Wine & Dash [M'gnum]

[Shiny]

It had been another long day of adventuring and wandering like a lost soul for Syrene. The Bluerider had betweened from Selenitas up to the North with Wridelth, and had gone to visit her old friend's makeshift grave on the field where a majority of the Dragon War had played out. After her routine respect-paying, she would sometimes lounge around Inverness. Which is what she was doing now. The paler girl hadn't eaten much at all since the break of dawn and she had been ravenously hungry, so she had wandered into Inverness Weyr, hoping for a hot meal.

Originally, the Bluerider hadn't intended to stay for very long. She just wanted to scarf down her food and leave. A large barrel of wine had been placed near the serving area, however, and had been tapped to dispense. It had been a while since Syrene had had any alcohol; she was normally too prude to have any in public. However, it was being provided for free, so why not have a bit? Or so was Queen's logic. He'd been very convincing.

A wine whirlpool formed in her goblet as she swirled it before taking another sip. She hadn't planned to drink too much, but after the first glass, she strangely felt more open to the idea. The Bluerider somewhat daintily bit into the meat of a small drumstick and tore it off, staring off into space while she chewed. There were people all around her. Normally this would be a very bothersome situation, but she actually didn't seem to mind it much at the moment.

Syrenemine, you are somewhat intoxicated,[/color] commented the rather surprised gray-blue dragon, who was lounging on the warm obsidian ledges in the weyrbowl. It is illogical to inebriate oneself in a foreign place. Your newfound behaviour is strange; I know you know better.[/color] Don't worry, Wridelth. I will be fine. I haven't had that much, I'm still fully in control of my body and mind. I love you, by the way. Although rare for the Blue, for once he was very befuddled by his human's extremely odd thought patterns, and he responded with nothing.

The large salamandyr that had been hiding in Syrene's cloak suddenly peeked his head out to check out the room. Since His was probably much less strict at the moment, she probably wouldn't scold him for coming out at the dinner table. He looked up at the large man sitting across from His and flared his frill with interest. The Bronze salamandyr fully crawled out of her cloak to perch on her shoulder for a moment, before he leaped off and glided across the table, making a show of the movement. He screeched as if to announce his presence to everyone at the table - after all, he was a Bronze and was King of the Salamandyrs - and latched onto the man's arm. He clambered up a bit to pull on his status knots. Bronzerider you are, pretty pretty Bronze like me. Not as handsome as I, but handsome-like nonetheless. Attention you to Mine, now, make babies. demanded Queen.

Syrene's eyes widened as her Bronze unexpectedly leaped at the man across from her, and hardened her glare at him. "What do you think you are doing? Get off of him." She reached for the Bronze but then hesitated, realizing that she was slightly out of reach. Great. She looked up at the man to attempt to meet his eyes with somewhat hazy ones. "I'm sorry, he's a bit of a diva. Thinks he can do whatever he wants."

[Aftershock]

M'gnum was eating his dinner in silence, his eyes scanning over each face in the dining hall as he mentally matched each face with a name. The bronzerider always made it part of his duty to know as many of those in the Weyr as he could by name, as it both was, he saw, his responsibility as a knight to know those he defended and lead, as well as a useful tool to keep his memory sharp and practiced.

Suddenly, his sequence was broken by a young woman with what appeared to be kohl painted around her eyes... a bluerider by her knots. M'gnum could not place her face to a name, and he tried to keep her subtly in view as she retrieved food, as well as a glass of wine from the barrel the kitchen drudges had tapped that evening for a small celebration earlier. A couple moments later, and the woman had coincidentally chosen to seat herself directly across from him. He nodded politely to her in greeting, though she did little to acknowledge him in return, so M'gnum continued to eat in silence, searching his memory to place this nagging mystery as she worked on her meal and her wine across from him.

Suddenly, there was a flash of bronze and a screech, and a sudden weight on his arm. Glancing over, he noticed the bronze salamandyr that had appeared on his sleeve, and was about to speak a greeting to the creature when it suddenly spoke to him... or, more accurately, at him. Blinking in confusion, he began to reply carefully, "Er... I thank you for your compliments, but I really don't think..." when the young woman across from him suddenly piped up, showing herself as the bronze's apparent owner. As he caught her eyes during her explanation and apology, he couldn't help but notice the redness indicating the wine was having an effect, and he responded, "Oh, it's no problem at all, m'lady. I have encountered such creatures before, and I understand many of them have interesting personality quirks."

Deciding this was a good a time as any to solve his mystery, M'gnum smiled and said, "Ah, I apologize for my poor manners. I am M'gnum, of bronze Higginth. Who may I owe the pleasure, m'lady?"

[Shiny]

Syrene simply watched the large man as he interacted with Queen. She had been worried that the Bronzerider would react with a reflex when Queen lunged at him, but the qualm quickly died down. The man didn't seem to be a threat - although it was still rude of her salamandyr to bother the stranger. Lightly-outlined eyelids lowered to a glowering position, to which Queen replied with a snort. Turning again to M'gnum, he flared his wings and frill. You WILL obey me, King of mandyrs I am, dare to you ignore me?! Asshat you, I- But the Bronze quieted down suddenly, having realized that his victim perch had started conversing with His. Although his wishes were clearly not being carried out immediately, it sounded to him like the conversation would go somewhere. And perhaps even further, if His had enough wine.

Still sitting on M'gnum's knot-bearing shoulder, he lowered his body to a lying position and half folded his wings. Narrow eyes glowing a haughty blue-purple watched Syrene as he communicated with her. Slavething will have wine more, or King Queen of Mandyrs will bite toes of you while slumber.[/i] The threat floated through her mind as she switched between staring at Queen to staring at M'gnum. His introduction flowed over Queen's muttered threats, and for a moment Syrene was quiet, her face bearing her normal cold expression.

The Bluerider smiled a little crookedly all of a sudden, a slight chuckle in her throat. She found his politeness, the way he spoke to be amusing. And she didn't understand why anybody would talk to her this way; normally people didn't, and for good reason. But since he had asked her a question and she was feeling oddly social, she decided to roll with the punches. Besides, she didn't want Queen to go through with what he was plotting to do with her. Taking another few sips of her wine, she replied with her own greeting. "Poor manners is better than no manners, I would know." She smiled curtly, watching the Bronzerider through a slight haze. "Syrene of Blue Wridelth. And you don't owe me any pleasure." Of course, that last bit set Queen off at M'gnum. Yes, you do![/i]

"I suppose you're from here, as is everybody else in this room but me?"

[Aftershock]

M'gnum filtered out the bronze mandyr's mindwords quite easily... he had practice doing so, after all, due to a certain mindmate of his who took this opportunity to reveal herself, popping her tiny green head out from M'gnum's collar to regard the much larger bronze who was perched on Her's arm. Eyes swirling a pleased blue, she casually extracted her petite form from her bonded's shirt collar, the sunburst patterns along her well-shaped back catching the light to make her appear to nearly glow as the darker green around her eyes almost made her appear to match Queen's bonded. Moving across M'gnum's shoulder towards Queen, her sinuous movements almost making her appear to be swimming in an invisible stream, she sent to the bronze, "Well, hello, there. You are a pretty male indeed, kissed with gold like a river at sunrise. I am sure more wormy target for your attention I am a much than my bonded boarding."

Ignoring the interaction between his salamandyr (who had taught him through the Turns how to filter salamandyr mindspeech more easily) and Syrene's, M'gnum replied to the bluerider, "Well, of course, m'lady... a knight must always put his best foot forward, especially for a lady such as yourself." If Syrene allowed it, M'gnum would take one of her hands and kiss the back of it chastely before continuing, "I am, indeed, posted to Inverness... I assume from your words that you are a native of Selenitas? I do not recognize you, though it has been a few turns since I was last posted there, so forgive my memory." Rubbing his square jaw with one hand, he asked, "What brings you North this day, may I ask?"

[Shiny]

A green-tinged bronze frill bristled in reflex to the sudden appearance of the much smaller Green. The defensive stance taken up by Queen changed in stature to haughty as he realized that there was no threat present. At the female salamandyr's comment, he preened. She'd put it in such eloquent words, too! Indeed, impossible is to it miss my beauty. Excellent that recognize it you did.[/i] He flared his wings mightily, skimming M'gnum's chin accidentally with the tip. I am Mandyr King. Queen.[/i] Pause. That would probably be confusing. Name. Name is Queen. Not King. King is asshat.[/i] He hissed at the mention of King; although this would seem slightly insane to the Green, it made sense. King was his twin brother, and he hated him with a passion. But that fact was tangential to his original point.

Glowing Green is beautiful,[/i] he complimented, observing her lovely eye-catching hide through a blue-purple haze. Pretty subject you make to me. Convince Yours procreate to with Slavething. You, what is the name?[/i] He inquired, tilting his head slightly, having realized that she still remained without identity.

If one of Syrene's eyes didn't twitch at M'gnum's calling her a 'lady', it certainly did when he reached out to grab her hand. She did absolutely nothing to stop the large man from pressing his lips to the back of her small, pale knuckles, mostly because she was simply in shock. A surprised, slightly dopey smirk flashed across her face to join the pink haze already sprinkled across her cheeks. Nobody had ever done that before and quite honestly she was... happy. But also completely uncomfortable. The moment had passed; the Bronzerider's light hold on her hand fell away, and the Bluerider recoiled her hand quickly.

So he was from Inverness. "Yes. I am posted at New Selenitas Weyr. I immigrated to Old Selenitas turns ago. Wridelth and I stand out of the crowd. I was a Wingsecond. But easily overlooked with the amount of Riders and the size of the Weyr, I suppose." The tidbit of information that she had fled Fort Weyr was still stowed away safely, even under the influence of alcohol. One never knew when a Rider would react badly to an ex-Fortian, so it was just safer to keep it quiet.

Syrene's eyes went hard again for a while, face returning to a neutral mask to hide her sadness. She was good at hiding things like that, especially from people who were practically strangers. "I was visiting a close friend." She watched her wine for a moment, then took another swig. "His grave." She looked up at M'gnum and continued to mutter. "Just came in to get a hot meal, it has been a tiresome day..." She took a moment to take a few more bites of the food sitting on her plate, fletcherizing the morsels while staring past the Bronzerider's shoulder.

[Aftershock]

Shekinah let out a thrum of pleasure at Queen's compliments, though the thrum became a squeak in the tiny salamandyr's version of a human's petulant huff as she replied to Queen, "I love Mine, but he is boring... like a slow-flowing straight river, he performs his duty of moving water from one place to another, but creates no interesting currents or swirls to catch the eye." Moving closer to the much larger bronze, she continued, "Shekinah be me, and you interested in I more am," as her eyes began to swirl a pleased blue-purple. Sliding slowly past Queen, Shekinah teased his frill with the tip of her tail as she thrummed pleasantly once more, adding, "Run when I next, yours convince here to come?"

Meanwhile, M'gnum listened to Syrene speak, only jumping slightly when Queen's wingtip skimmed his chin, giving the bronze a glance of slight irritation before returning his attention to rest of Syrene's speech. As she finished, M'gnum nodded and replied, "I apologize for not recognizing you... I, too, came to Old Selenitas many Turns ago, from Fort, though it was only two turns later that the Wasteland invasion caused me to retreat with the others to Burimyu Weyr. If you stayed behind at Selenitas, that might explain why I don't remember you quite as well as I'd like to." Noting her change in expression, he quietly added, "I apologize if my behavior makes you uncomfortable, m'lady... I've found the ways of chivalry can be confusing to some."

Watching her mood turn dour as she spoke of her friend's grave, he nodded solemnly, and replied, "I'm sorry for you loss. Many people lost friends and companions in that senseless war... my failed attempts to end the war back when it was simply Fort against Benden is the reason I eventually left Fort to join Selenitas. I am glad it is finally over, but it burdens me to know what price had to be paid... all due to the stupid pride of a few bronzeriders." Shaking his head, he added, "I only hope the actions of the Summit do truly prevent such an occurrence from ever happening again."

[Shiny]

Queen cocked his head at Shekinah, noting her use of words. You confabulate in interesting language at times, nearly rival vocabulary of mine.[/i] He snorted, watching the Green approach with a haughty, flirty stare. Humans be irritating, boring, smelly. I tolerate Slavething because need of servants I have.[/i] A pleased purr rumbled in Queen's throat at the positive attention he was receiving from the much smaller mandyr. It seemed improbable for his ego to inflate any bigger, but time and time again it would happen. Queen opened his wings again, subconsciously making himself seem like a bigger male. If present Inverness at when Shekinah Runs, yes I shall participate. From Weyr of Selenitas New, however, impossible to know. Will make Slavething come up North often more. Easier done when attachments to Yours are made, yes?[/i] He thrummed, tail flicking out to graze the Green. One could say he was working his manipulative magic on her to get Syrene and M'gnum together, but he was genuinely also interested in the proposition of a Run. It had been a while since he'd participated in one, and he was raring to go. Win-win situation, really.

Syrene was fully ignoring her Bronze salamandyr, hardly having noticed the female Green's appearance. Normally, the Bluerider took note of everything. At the moment, however, she was seeing the world through a vignette that was slowly increasing in thickness. She tilted her head slightly at the mention of her original Weyr and stared at his face intensely for a moment, trying to recall if she could remember his face from her childhood or not. "That is interesting; I am from Fort as well. I don't remember having seen you there before. That was decades ago, though; not surprising." She nodded curtly. "I did stay behind at Selenitas. I was only a Weyrling when Wasteland besieged us; the choice was not mine to make." Slight confusion crossed her face. Did he just say he wanted to know more about her? That was very odd indeed. She blinked at his quietness and waved a hand in the air, dismissing his sentence. "Don't be offended. I have never had such chivalry used on me before. Although it's about time I received the respect I deserve." She smiled quite broadly at that, if only for a moment, looking up into the Bronzerider's face.

The black-haired woman found it impossible to say anything as an immediate response, instead opting to continue watching the grained pattern of the wooden table, sipping her wine. "Power should not be placed in the hands of fools." She offered quietly, putting down the goblet rather unsteadily. "I was a foolish child, thinking I could end the war by espionage for Fort." Her eyes remained averted, partly because what she was speaking was from the heart, and partly because she found it hard to focus. "...I fell in love with Selenitas. To this day I don't understand how I could have sided with a cruelty such as Fort. I hope the... the Summit will solve our issues. But..." She angled her face upward again, blinking slowly at M'gnum. There was a slight slur to her words. "But society can never be truly safe. Fix one thing, cause ten more problems."

[Aftershock]

Shekinah trilled in agreement at Queen's mindwords, turning around and climbing upon the much larger male's back as her tail twined around his. "Indeed. Perhaps seeing both of us being as close as a sparkling river to it's sturdy and well-formed shoreline will make visit them more likely other each?" Shekinah proposed, moving her glance between Hers and Queen's.

Meanwhile, M'gnum raised a brow in surprise upon Syrene's admission to being from Fort as well, responding after she spoke with, "Indeed... this Turn marks a full ten Turns since I last stood within Fort as a member of the Weyr. It seems former Fortians like us are quite rare... well, former Fortians who were former before the end of the Dragon Wars, that is." He then let her continue speaking, smiling as she explained that his chivalry did not bother her, and that she in fact might enjoy it.

As she continued to speak, M'gnum nodded, responding after Syrene was finished speaking by saying, "Indeed... it is an unfortunate reality that not all those who receive power actually deserve, or should have, said power. The Weyrleader Trials have the potential to be a very positive result from the Summit... leadership determined solely by whose dragon catches the queen dragon has always been quite a ridiculous concept, and the consequences of such a concept being active for as long as it was can be seen in every facet of the Dragon Wars and all that lead to them, or resulted from them."

M'gnum's face then took on a very serious air, as if he were making an oath before Syrene, and he concluded, "I fully plan on participating in the upcoming Weyrleader Trials, and if I'm found worthy of winning them, I swear that I will do all I can to prevent us from returning to the rulings that lead to the Dragon Wars... I spent over seven turns of my life trying to stop the Dragon Wars, and now that they are finally in the past where they belong, I will be damned if I let them return in even the smallest fashion."

[Shiny]

Queen snorted as Shekinah crawled on top of him, purring deeply as she twined her tail around his. Attention from females who were clearly attracted to him went straight to his head, as was the case. Of course he was still really doing this for Syrene's sake - he couldn't have her having a bastard child with someone of non-Bronzerider status - but he could smell the roses along the way. Yes, that it exactly is. He met Shekinah's gaze with his own, presenting an eye colour of showy royal purple. Perhaps getting 'in the mood' would fuel His' libido, he thought. Queen puffed himself out in nearly every way possible and swung his head back to nuzzle against the much smaller mandyr, flaring his frill pompously.

A slight grin crossed Syrene's face as M'gnum spoke. "S'funny, I left Fort ten turns ago as well." She took a big gulp of wine when she paused. "Good thing we're so rare. Fortians are dangerous." The wink she attached to the end of that sentence was a bit confusing not only because she was actually being serious, but because anyone who knew Syrene would know she would never wink. But she was in a strange mood. Realization of the effect Queen was having on her would not come into play tonight.

Syrene nodded in total agreement with what M'gnum was saying. She was glad he saw exactly what she saw in the political system and its flaws. "You seem like like th' perfect cand'ate for it," she slurred slightly. "Better hold to that vow now th' you 'ave a witness." Queen perked up at the mention of M'gnum's 'running for Weyrleader Trials', and instantly went to lick Shekinah. That was all he needed to hear.

Suddenly feeling fiery, the Bluerider swirled her goblet absently, her stature shifting to lean inward a bit. She rested her jaw against her palm and observed the Bronzerider with something of a complex catty stare. "Y'know, it kinda sucks bein' a fe, female Bluerider. I never get to 'ave sex the way I want to, Greenriders bein' girls n' all." The corner of her mouth twitched upwards deviously.

[Aftershock]

Shekinah, not being in her mating cycle, of course had no desire for actual sexual activity, but she enjoyed the affectionate responses of Queen, and responded in kind, her own eyes turning a light purple shade as she nuzzled the sensitive skin behind Queen's extended frill with her nose and licked at it lightly.

M'gnum, for his part, did his level best to ignore the salamandyr love-fest occurring on his shoulder, and listened to Syrene speak. "Indeed, Fortians can be dangerous... though most of the most dangerous ones are no longer with us," he replied, thinking back to R'anatar and the blade stroke that ended the Fort Weyrleader's life during the raid M'gnum lead. "I remember something the groundskeeper of the Lord Holder's estate told me once when I was a young boy... 'Sometimes, a plant will enter your garden, and though it looks healthy and attractive, it will actually be sending shoots throughout the ground, choking out all the other plants and stealing all the nutrients from the soil. At that point, the only way to solve the problem is find the root of the original plant, and cut it off so the rest will wither and let the rest of the garden flourish.' I think that idea well applied to Fort," M'gnum added.

He smiled winningly as Syrene spoke of her support of him as Weyrleader, and he responded, "Thank you... and witness or not, I would keep to my vow. It's high time Pern had a leader who had the proper concern for all the people who allow our society to function, not just those who happen to be able to bond with dragons."

His eyes narrowed a bit as Syrene switched conversational gears... the man was far from dense, and he could see her change in expression and tone. Smirking slightly, he replied, "Well, not all greenriders are female... though admittedly, most male greenriders don't exactly have interest in women. However, it's a good thing you are a human, and not a dragon... you get to choose who you bed, and when you want to."

[Shiny]

The shiver of delight that ran up Queen's spine ended with the quiver of the very frill Shekinah was nuzzling and licking. Although neither would be mating any time soon, it was certainly nice to be treated so affectionately. It was about time for Queen to restock on attention anyhow, so the wooing of Shekinah could not have come at a better time. How Yours feel about stranger coitus? the Bronze inquired, tilting his head at the teeny Green while sliding his tail along hers. Perhaps by putting the image in her mind, M'gnum would also be such inclined, if he wasn't already that kind of person. The conniving Mandyr would have his way. Shimmering green-tinted bronze wings rose into a half-folded pose, nestling Shekinah between his shoulder blades, where she had formerly perched.

The snort that escaped Syrene as she watched Queen and Shekinah on the Bronzerider's large shoulder contained equal parts of derision and amusement. She knew what he was up to. She wasn't stupid; she didn't even have to be sober. And she was far from that now, but still, she understood. The fact was that she was letting him get inside her head (more than he already was, being bonded). Normally this would never happen, and the Bluerider found herself confused with her sudden willingness to let the mischievous Bronze steer her completely. But she was just rolling with the punches, for once letting her gut act before her brain did.

Maybe she was starting to realize - thanks to the death of X'rx - that time was running out. Maybe she was beginning to come to grips with this fear that she had only just realized was sitting inside her belly for ages. Whatever it was, the melancholy of her usual trips to the North was begging to influence change within the ex-Fortian. And although change could be... scary, this evening - drinking with a stranger - seemed to be going well.

The nearly empty goblet was raised in a silent toast as M'gnum expressed Fort with an analogy, nodding at him slightly. "That groundskeeper was certainly a wise man." She shifted her goblet to her mouth and finished the remaining wine in a rather dignified manner. That was all she would be having tonight, she decided. It was rather late for her to realize that she should have stopped two goblets ago, but there was nothing that could be done about it now.

Syrene shifted her body weight from being propped up on her arm so that she could fiddle with a lock of her dry jet black hair. She refused to admit - even in this state - that her feminine senses were kicking in. "Hmm," she smirked deviously, an amused hum caught in her throat. "I have yet to abuse the fact that I am human, then. I s'pose I ought to start. But where to start, tha's the question." She blinked several times, the devious smirk still firmly in place as her cool brown eyes froze on the Bronzerider.

[Aftershock]

Shekinah nuzzled tighter against the back of the larger Queen, her tail wrapping around his as a trill of enjoyment passed her throat. At the bronze's question, however, Shekinah paused, sending back, "'Stranger coat-us'? Mean you human-Run with not people know he?" Her eyes swirling blue, then green, in amusement before returning to the affectionate purple they had been before, she sent, "Mine enjoys knowing the ebbs and flows of a person's personality before he gives Chase to them, though many him strange confusing and find, so much Chase does he not." Narrowing her eyes slightly, she added with a chuckle in her mindvoice, "Shekinah sees try what you, and shouldn't thinks you push hard so. Mine forced like does not being, and Yours Chases he already."

M'gnum, for his part, nodded at Syrene's words, replying, "Indeed. Despite what many of my family might think, wisdom can be found from anyone, and it does not roost in the minds of the powerful alone." As she continued her thoughts following the last of her wine disappearing down her throat, M'gnum caught her stare with his own as he answered, "That all depends on you, I suppose. All you need is a willing party that you find attractive, and then you simply let nature take it's course..." He grinned as he spoke, one of his hands moving across the table to hover in the vicinity of hers.

[Shiny]

Queen tilted his head to listen to Shekinah as she responded to his question. A slight snort that couldn't be confused for anything other than understanding (but actually was more denigratory) followed her explanation. He supposed she just didn't know that he was always right. There was no point in going against his wishes. But he couldn't say anything bad, of course, because that would wreck any chance Syrene had with this Bronzey. Of course, pretty Green lovely. Me hopes Syrene-thing fondness of M'gnumyours.[/color] Just leave out the part of Syrene being a complicated, confusing, nasty piece of work. Perfect together they are.[/color] Queen observed His for a moment as he twined Shekinah's tail with his own, responding to her affectionate doings with equal passion. Indeed, she was Chasing M'gnum. Odd for her personality, but hey... it's what he wanted. Queen puffed his chest out proudly and sent an encouraging shove through their mental bond.

"You are a wise man," the Bluerider said, nodding slightly at his words. It was hard to focus on what he was saying, but she knew it sounded good and right, just as his statements had been before she was tipsy. A catty smirk twisted the corner of Syrene's mouth as she sensed M'gnum's aura shift open. She sensed something akin to a shove but did not register that it was Queen, and decided to go for it. Cold, thin fingers brushed against the hand that was suddenly hovering near hers. All of a sudden her voice became a bit husky - from both the wine and the situation. "And would you be a willing party, sir?" Her cold, feathery touch combined with her sultry (albeit slurred) words were sure to give him goosebumps.

[Aftershock]

M'gnum smiled at Syrene's complimentary words regarding his wisdom, and the smile spread further as her cool fingers brushed his own and she made clear the implications she had been making for the last few minutes. Taking one of Syrene's hands in his own once more, he brought it to his lips again, kissing the back of it like he had before, though his lips lingering longer this time. As his lips left her hand, he said quietly, "I would be a fool to not be, m'lady. Would you like to come to my weyr, or is there somewhere else you had in mind?"

Turning his head, he hooked Queen and Shekinah with a hard glance, indicating to the salamandyrs that they had best not act up as he reached over to detach the pair from his arm and set them on the table between the two riders. Looking back towards Syrene, he said, "I believe these two lovebirds can stay here... unless you would prefer they not be left to their own devices?"

[Shiny]

The seductive smirk gracing her thin lips seemed almost malevolent on her, but then again, most other expressions did too. A slight shiver dampened by the numbness of the alcohol ran through her nerves as M'gnum left a lingering, suggestive kiss upon the back of her hand. Such a gentleman. Syrene had surely never been treated anything like this in her life, but it was something she definitely could get used to. "I must suggest your weyr, for I know nothing of Inverness, and mine is on the opposite side of Pern," the Bluerider uttered, momentarily contemplating just pouncing him on the table. (Of course, that was the alcohol talking; there would be no way the real Syrene would even think about that sort of thing in public.)

Oh yes, right. There was Queen. She'd forgotten all about him. "Queen is a troublemaker. As long as Shekinah keeps him occupied I suppose he might stay out of trouble. Or perhaps she can take him to Wridelth in the weyrbowl." But that was enough about the Bronze. As long as he wasn't watching Syrene and M'gnum during their potential... activities, she didn't care. "Now, please... let us go." She gently pulled her hand from his and slowly untangled herself from the table at which she sat. The maneuver took longer than usual because her coordination was pretty shot. She took a few confident-looking steps towards the Bronzerider and extended her forearm for him to hook his own arm around if he so pleased, and brushed her shoulder-length black hair back with a hand.

Baby names, must think of. Magene. Syrinium. Myrum. Magsinene... Thought Queen as he happily watched the duo begin their departure.