Surprise! [Erilena]

[Shiny]

J'ash reappeared from the cold vacuum of between with goosebumps beneath his riding leathers. With a quick shudder, the absolute cold dissipated, and J'ash breathed a sigh of relaxation. He removed his riding helmet and goggles, letting his hair free in the warm, orchard-scented breeze that was unique to farm-like properties in the fringes of the Holds. The smell in the air reminded him of his childhood in a tiny cothold, where the sweet scent was stronger.

"Ready to see your old friend, Craivaruth?" An glove-less hand gently pat the course, scar-ridden teal section of hide on the beast's neck. I'm excited to see her. A warm smile spread on J'ash's face; getting the aggressive dragon to be positive was something of a challenge. Orange-yellow eyes became blue as the rider undid his safety clasps and slid off of the dragon's back. "Let's just hope she's home and not in the middle of something." Indeed, it was rather difficult to plan things so in advance when the dragons bonded to the humans could not telepathically communicate over the distance between them.

Craivaruth stayed stationary in the spot they had landed - between the barn house and the residence - while J'ash walked to the house's front door. Feyrianth. Surprise!

J'ash raised his fist and soundly knocked on the door a few times, then waited, rolling back on the balls of his feet. It hadn't been all too long since the last time he'd gotten to see Erilena and her family, but it still felt like a long time. The energy of his anticipation manifested itself as a strong glow in his silver eyes and as a smile on his face. While he counted her as one of his closest friends, he felt especially attached to her for helping save his life in the Great War.

[Rei]

Feyrianth had been lounging near the orchard’s edge having just woken up not too long ago. The four winged green had adjusted to being nocturnal long ago. Thankfully the family was still awake later in the afternoon so it wasn’t like they never got to see daylighters at all. Craivaruth’s mental exclamation had the green’s head whipping around back towards the barn her eyes washing with bright shades of cyan. Craibrother! Her wings flared outwards in her excitement as she lunged up onto her feet and bounded back in that direction, hardly bothering to try and contain her excitement. She had heard the watch dragon give the alarm of course but had figured that it was simply a messenger when no dragon had immediately bespoken her. Obviously that was because he had sought for his presence to be a surprise.

The female crooned at J’ash’s back before she bounced towards her brother her head immediately moving to bump against his jaw in a caress, her body arching against him as well in mimicry of a happy cat. It has been too long since you have visited me brother. You and yours are well I trust? Never one to shy at physical contact or affection it hardly occurred to Feyrianth to react in anything less than an affectionate and excited manner towards her brother. He was one of her favored siblings after all. Always had been, even before some of them had sadly passed between. It only made the fact that Craivaruth was still here all that more special. I have missed you.

Erilena had just taken her kids to her parents’ house for the remainder of the afternoon, to quiet her mother’s grumbling, and had just returned to an empty house. Dmitri had left a note something about going somewhere with her brother and Gyrion and she wrinkled her nose. Well then. So much for any chance at some time with him. Fine then she had obviously worn a skirt for him for nothing. She’d just have Lena time. Bending down she scratched at Ca’tauri’s ears and then glanced about the house and sighed. She had just cleaned it yesterday so there was really no point in going over it all again. With a sigh she moved through the house and straightened this or that before suddenly pausing in the middle of the sitting area.

Simply dropping the stuffed animal that she had been holding the woman raised her hands above her head and closed her eyes. Starting to sing she swayed her hips and was soon belting out a song her body moving along with her own inner rhythm as she swayed and danced and shimmied around her living room. Getting her hips and entire body into the dance as it became faster and more intricate, her song had started to become more and more breathless. Not that Erilena cared. No one was here to see it. Or so she had thought anyway.

So into her own dance she didn’t hear the knock at the door. Or the sound of Harper curiously padding across the floor to rear up and turn the unlocked handle. The black and white collie nudged the door partially open with his nose and looked up at J’ash his nose working as he uttered a soft unsure snort. He smelled familiar, but not at the same time…

[Shiny]

Craivaruth's eyes swirled brighter and brighter as one of his most treasured friends pranced across the orchard toward him, letting out something of a purr when the four-winged Green bumped into him and carressed his jaw and neck in an affectionate greeting. The Blue fully returned these gestures with as much exuberance as he'd ever displayed, although given Feyrianth's level of excitement, it was comparably a bit less obvious. He nuzzled the side of her snout with his own and the soft underside of her jaw with his nose, tongue flicking out to affectionately mimic a human kiss on the cheek. He contoured his body to fit against the similarly-sized Green as she rubbed against him like a feline, smooth shiny hide against scarred matte. His short, single-tipped tail slithered to gently wrap around hers. I have missed you too, Feysister. I've always condemned those who forced you and Yours to move so far from us. If I had my way, I would always be by your side.

Craivaruth flexed his long and narrow wings, the increasingly built-up wing and back muscles visibly contracting and relaxing as he did so. To compensate for his wings' hindering shape with aerodynamics, he had since trained in strength, as His had been. He wrapped his dark teal wings around the Green's body in a human-like embrace. J'ashmine and I are doing well; I would be here more often to see you if I wasn't so busy shuttling J'ash to Inverness to see Rinagth's. How are you and Yours and her family? You are looking beautiful, as always.

J'ash smiled over his shoulder at Craivaruth and Feyrianth, raising a hand in a waving gesture in case the Green had thought he had forgotten about her. He would hopefully get the chance to give her some affection before it was time for the Bluepair to depart. It was such a rare occurrence to see the blue-green dragon be so affectionate with anyone but the rider. It was really heartwarming - not only because of Crai's amazing change in behaviour, but also because of the dragon's direct influence on the rider's feelings. Indeed, he did feel happier than normal, having Craivaruth's heavy mood momentarily lifted off his shoulders.

Rocking onto the balls of his feet again, J'ash continued to wait, and wait some more. A thin brow arched low in contemplation; the second brow joined the first after a moment. Had he came at the wrong time, was she not home? His familiarity with orchard ambiance allowed the Bluerider to pick up a faint melody emanating from somewhere. He leaned forward; yes, it was coming from inside. Ear against the door, he concentrated, partly enjoying the music while trying to analyze it for a familiar voice. It did sound very much like the beautiful voice of the Greenrider he was so fond of.

J'ash blinked in surprise and took a step back when the door creaked open, something pressing it open from the inside. A black nose pushed it open slightly, enough for a brown-yellow eye to stare up at him. The Bluerider smiled at the dog. "Hiya Harper!" He kneeled and slowly held his hand out, offering it for Harper to sniff. "It's me, remember?" He wouldn't dare intrude on the dog's territory until it was clear to him that the animal recognized him and welcomed him in. He knew Harper to be very protective. For the moment, the Bluerider was completely content with listening to Erilena's wonderful singing and the padding of her feet as she danced. He could imagine her graceful movements, having danced with her before on many occasions. How he missed those days!

[Rei]

To say Feyrianth was pleased would be an understatement. She knew her brother to be a moody creature and his transformation around her never creased to make her anything less than ecstatic. She accepted his embraces and affection wholeheartedly her chest resonating with happy rumble. To call the noise a purr would not be wrong. Settling herself into his embrace she leaned her weight against him in a bid to flop them over so that they could properly cuddle. Only then did she speak again. I see. Well you will just have to try and drag yours to visit more often then. You can never have too many visitors and it has been sometime since the littles have seen yours as well. They are not here today and neither is Lenamine’s mate. But she is here. She will be excited to see yours. We are all doing very well all things considered. Yes they were all quite happy for the most part.

As she spoke her head moved to a position from which she could better regard J’ash as he knocked at the door. Feyrianth thought to maybe inform hers that J’ash was here but in the end she didn’t, solely because she wanted hers to be surprised too. Surprise visits were fun after all. Craning her neck she did her best swan impression and then responded to her brother’s compliment. Why thank you handsome. I was just oiled yesterday. I am glad you noticed. The mental tone was a bit playful as her muzzle poked lightly at his wing shoulder. And look at you! You look good as well. I can tell that you have been doing a lot of flying. We should go flying together! It was not often that Feyrianth got someone to play in the air with after all. Behruth was the one who visited the most and he could not fly as well as he used to because of his wings.

Harper for his part continued to regard this male with careful curiosity. He would have immediately went on the defensive had the scent not been mildly familiar. It was the man’s voice that finally clicked in his mind as he spoke and the canine’s tail started wagging slowly. Oh! He remembered this one then. They had played at times. He had a good throwing arm as well. Pushing the door open wider the collie’s tail waved faster and faster as his tongue flashed out to caress J’ash’s hand in welcome. A soft exited whine left him as he quickly licked the bluerider’s face and ‘danced’ in place his feet prancing against the ground as he circled the man and yapped once. Had he come to play? Harper wound once more around J’ash’s legs and then glanced up at him waiting to see what the human would do.

Had she been less involved in her dance Erilena might have paid more attention to Harper’s yap. But as it was he barked often enough that the greenrider assumed he was just trying to get the cat to play again. It had not been a bark of alarm so she dismissed it as she swung her body to the left, her voice rising into a higher singsong as she got more into her song. If she had known she had an audience Erilena would no doubt have been quite embarrassed, but as it was she was still blissfully oblivious. For the moment anyway.

[Shiny]

Feyrianth's pleased rumble was soothing to the Blue, who became a part of a duet with his own slightly deeper purr. Craivaruth slowly lowered the Green and himself to the ground upon feeling her pressure against him. There were very few dragons he trusted enough to allow their presence in his proximity, let alone allowing one to use him as a resting device. Feyrianth was one of the scarce few with those privileges. In fact, she was basically the only one. Rinagth sometimes would use him as such, although the feeling was different - rather like he was a possessed object instead of a dear friend. (He chose to ignore that fact for J'ash's sake.)

Perhaps Craivaruth was just being overprotective of his sibling, for as he listened he picked up the subtle off-fitting words such as 'all things considered'. Although tempted to ask if there was something going on that she was not telling him, the Blue kept quiet, not wishing to grill the Green and make her uncomfortable. He trusted that she would tell him if it was something worth mentioning. He could only hope that his unusually high level of trust was mirrored back at him from her perspective. I will try, Feysister. He loves Yours very much; I'm sure he'll be willing to visit more often. It is a shame that the children are out, J'ashmine loves Yours' so much. He thinks they're angels. I suppose that would be incentive to come back soon.

The Blue admired the Green's slender neck as she reeled in pleasure at his compliment, wrapping his shorter one around hers. He rested his head near her spike plates in a softer spot of hide. A slight snort escaped Craivaruth, but he refrained from saying anything at the reciprocating compliment. It was nice of her indeed, but it was untrue. He tread the borderline between neutral-looking and malevolent, ugly; his neck and tail were short, he was top-heavy now... but he'd promised J'ash he would not judge himself today, for both Feyrianth and J'ash's sake. Thank you. Mine and I have been training. The Blue twitched a wing at her suggestion, eyes swirling an azure blue. He had actually been wishing to play a chasing game with Feyrianth again. The memory of their first dance in the skies was brought on not only by her proximity, but in addition by the light, cool touches of drizzle spitting from the sky.

Craivaruth lifted his head and looked at Feyrianth, the slight feeling of adrenaline synthesis in his gut causing an active yellow-orange to backlight his swirling eyes. Would she recall the top-speed cloud-hopping storm flying they had once done?

"I've missed you boy," J'ash said through a sweet smile as the Collie pushed the door open and yapped at him, dancing around his feet with a wagging tail. He remained kneeling and ruffled the sides of Harper's neck and face with both hands, followed by a nice scratch between and behind the ears. His sweet spot. "What's your owner up to?" After a few moments of happily petting the canine, J'ash stood and peered in the door. It appeared that the Greenrider still hadn't noticed his arrival despite her dog's barking. He was not surprised at this, though; as a dancer, he knew how it was when one danced alone. It was an absorptive ritual, consuming both body, mind, and spirit. Indeed, dancing by oneself was different than dancing in front of an audience; it was, in a way, more free.

J'ash closed the front door quietly after allowing enough time for Harper to get back inside if he so wished, then proceeded to silently pad further into the house. The Bluerider desired to jump in and dance with Erilena, but if he surprised her she might have thought he was an intruder, and he might've ended up with a broken nose or worse. So, for the moment, he simply stood and admired her graceful twists and turns and free movements. Having been listening to her song for the moment, the Bluerider began to hum quietly along, making up his own section that would hopefully go with hers. That hum slowly followed a crescendo, and the Bluerider stepped slowly towards his friend, stepping in time with her own footing. His blonde hair whipped out as he did a spin; he extended his hand to Erilena as he came out of it.

At least in this position, he was just out of range of being hit in case she screamed and flailed in surprise!

[Rei]

Feyrianth rumbled in the draconic version of laughter as Craivaruth rested his head on her and she couldn’t resist commenting when he finally fell silent. Angels? Lenamine would be amused to hear them called such. Dancer and she call them little hoodlums. They are amusingly impish. She is convinced that they get it all from their sire but I am pretty sure it comes from them both. The green was extremely proud and protective of the family that they had built here. It was an exuberant feeling, having hers this happy. But I will say that yours has very good taste in littles. My bonded’s littles are the best I have ever encountered. And yes the dragon was surely biased but to Feyrianth herself? It was purely the truth. They had been born from hers, who was the most wonderful human on the planet according to Feyrianth. How could her offspring not be just as wonderful? (Especially when you took into account their sire as well.) No the twins were destined for greatness clearly. That much the green was sure of. But, it was always nice when others saw their worth as well. It was hardly surprising that Craivaruth’s J’ash liked them. He had always been a very wonderful friend. It should make for wonderful incentive yes. She said brightly as her head turned towards the skies above. Then we can fly together far more often as well.

Feyrianth had not missed the look Craivaruth was fixing on her and, while she couldn’t remember that far back, she could tell that the prospect of a flight excited her brother. Good then. She’d have to try and give him a run for his money. She was a far cry from the small and awkward young green who couldn’t figure out how to use her wings properly. Her flying might not be perfect from an average dragon’s standpoint but she had lived long enough now to have perfected what she could do. And there were some things she could do that a dragon with two wings could physically never do. Just as there were also things she would never be able to physically perform that a two winged dragon could do with ease. It was a balance she had achieved and she was damn proud of herself for what she had been able to accomplish.

Carefully Feyrianth untangled herself from her uniquely colored brother and reared up on her hind legs, throwing her head up towards the sky with a loud bugle. Her four wings unfolded as her back legs bunched and she vaulted off the ground, propelling herself with both tail and a powerful thrust of her hind legs. Her four wings caught the air giving her near effortless lift as she streamlined herself into a rise. A teasing caress was brushed playfully over her brother’s mind. Catch me if you can brothermine. You're it. Her mind voice singsonged as she reveled in the unique feeling of pleasure flight always caused to flood through her body. It was certainly euphoric.

Harper wiggled his body a little bit more before he simply slipped into the house after J’ash and pranced into the living room to try and find a toy. Maybe he could get some games of fetch out of this man. The collie wound carefully by his dancing mistress to head to his toy basket and find his favorite rope toy. Erilena of course was paying little attention to what was going on around her. Mostly because she knew she was alone and she had long since gotten used to the various small stirrings that happened in her house. She was safe there. Comfortable. Thus the carefree dancing. The greenrider didn’t feel the need to fear intruders or anything of the sort. Harper was protective enough to alert her anyway.

Thus the woman was quite surprised when a different note to her tune came slowly across to her. It wasn’t her husband, she knew that for sure. Dmitri’s tone was much deeper. There was the slightest stutter to her next step before she opened her eyes and turned quickly to catch the sight of long blonde hair flicking through the air and then a hand. Her surprise clearly registered on her face, if not also in the stiffness of her muscles. But in the next moment recognition hit and Erilena was smiling and dropping the pillow she had snatched off the couch to use as a weapon. (Yes she had been planning to smack the intruder with a pillow. It would have at least been a distraction right?) “J’ash!” She exclaimed brightly while also reaching out with a mental slight scolding prod to Feyrianth for not alerting her. “It’s been so long.”

With that she threw her arms around the bluerider and laughed as he swung them around in a twirl. Obviously he still wanted to dance. She could oblige him then. The greenrider smiled as she fell into step with him while still keeping up the conversation. “I’m surprised Harper let you in. Did you come alone? You scamp. What will my husband think of me letting in strange men while he is gone?” Erilena teased lightly as she let him lead for the moment. “Have you been busy?” She asked her hazel eyes bright as she tugged on a strand of his long blonde hair. “Need a haircut too. How’s J’on?” There was so much she wanted to ask. Was it really all that bad that she felt the need to blurt it all out at once? She always had been a chatterbox when she was really excited about something.

[Shiny]

Yes, angels. Mine considers all children to be angels, even if they're devils in disguise. Emitre and Dileina are higher ranked, though, since they have the bonus of having Erilena for a mother. At the thought of flying more often with the beautiful Green dragon, Craivaruth nuzzled with more pressure against her side. I would enjoy that, Feysister. Let's make it happen.

The Blue maneuvered to help untangle himself from the Green, sure that his sibling had interpreted his vibes correctly. Although Craivaruth was standing still for the moment, his muscles were tensed, ready to unfurl like bound springs. His eyes glowed a happy, determined green as Feyrianth brushed his mind jocundly. He was it, was he? Not for long. he tossed back in her direction, eyes locked like crosshairs on the Green. Feyrianth took off powerfully; Craivaruth watched her for a second, taking in the spectacle she always seemed to make (intentionally or not) whenever she flew. With a flick of his tail, the blue-green coloured dragon unfurled his wings and pushed off the ground with a miraculously strong force.

There simply was no competition when it came to beauty. Despite the Green's mutations, Feyrianth sliced through the air as smoothly as an object gliding across ice. Her four wings did hinder her in ways, but Craivaruth could sympathize. He too had issues with flying because of his disproportionately narrow wings. However, Feyrianth could do things no other dragon could, and her strengths showed so well that it was hard to realize that she had trouble in the air at all. The Blue certainly didn't have any advantages with his mutation, but he'd worked hard over the past few turns to build up his muscles. And that newfound strength would certainly give Feyrianth a run for her marks.

Craivaruth unfurled his thin, long wings and forced the relatively smaller amount of air under them down with hellish pressure, rising as quickly as Feyrianth was. Quickly, the pair ascended, wind whistling past their bodies to drown out any sound that might have occurred. After only a few short moments, the farm and countryside existed as dots below; an expansive plane stretching on to the horizons, blanketed with the grayish fog of distance. With a slight drizzle hitting his dry, matte hide, the odd Blue flapped his wings extra hard to rise above the Green, planning to swoop in from above to tag her. A loud, competitive roar bellowed from his throat as he descended upon his sibling.

For a moment, J'ash was actually concerned that Erilena thought he was an intruder when her aura shifted and she went to pick up a pillow. His posture began to shrink away as the Greenrider went to lift the pillow in his direction. The exclamation of his name reset his worry, and J'ash was all too happy to have Erilena crash into him. He used her momentum to easily carry her forth into a twirl with chests pressed together, using his strength to lift her a foot off the ground. It was indeed a happiness explosion, and with Craivaruth free of his usual angst and anger, J'ash hadn't felt this great in a long while.

Putting her down, J'ash beamed a brilliantly bright grin and continued his dancing, grabbing one of her hands to lead their movements for a while. She didn't appear to have any objection at all to the notion of continuing her solo with another person. They didn't have to dance for very long; of course, there would have to be a point where they would sit down and catch up properly. The Greenrider seemed exuberantly eager to do the latter, since she was spewing questions at him. J'ash chuckled. "Harper loves me! Of course he'd let me in. Craivaruth's here too. And I am such a strange man indeed. Your husband ought to worry about me." Erilena tugged on a lock of his hair, which these days generally resided at a length down to the small of his back. "I seriously hope you're joking," he said with an amused grin. "I had to go bald when I got that concussion and I refuse to get it cut short again." He incorporated a spin into the dance, raising both his hand and Erilena's hand so that his partner could twirl. "And if anybody tries to cut it, they're in for a surprise."

J'ash paused in the conversation for a moment to concentrate on awesome footwork, then attempted to stab at one of Erilena's questions. One by one was the way to go, he just couldn't blurt all of it out at once the way she had. "I've hardly had much to do these days. I've just been helping out at the creche, doing regular chores, you know. And J'on, well he's... fine," a massive grin spread on J'ash's face again, one that simply screamed 'I'm hiding something here but I totally have to tell you later'. "How have you been? Where are the kids?" He hadn't seen them around, perhaps they were out in the orchard? "And how much have you missed me?" he tacked on, winking as he slithered to reside next to her again in one flawless movement.

[Rei]

Oh but she was waiting. Feyrianth trilled teasingly as Craivaruth dove for her and at the last second she snapped her wings shut on one side and swung her tail to tilt herself into a roll causing the bisected blue to miss her by mere inches. Knowing he would be on her tail quite literally as soon as he managed to arrest his fall she swung back on herself to head in the other direction, her wings working double hard to send her away from her brother as fast as possible. There was no way that the female was letting him catch her quite that easily after all. The first of her transparent lids fell over her eyes as the drizzle increased and she felt the droplets splash against her shimmering hide. A joyous cry was offered to the heavens before Feyrianth dared to glance back at Craivaruth her tail snapping teasingly at him. Come now brothermine. I know you can do much better than that.

Stepping in time with the other man wasn’t that hard. Though, Erilena was used to dancing with Dmitri who seemed to read her mind when they partnered up thus dancing with J’ash was quite different. It wasn’t quite as smooth but it looked lovely nevertheless. The bluerider’s enthusiasm for it was charming after all. Giggling in a slightly breathless manner the greenrider responded. “I’m glad Harper likes you. He’s a great guard dog so it just surprised me is all. You haven’t seen him for a while so it’s nice that he actually remembered you.” Trailing off to let him get his comment in she wrinkled her nose. “Well don’t say that to him. He might actually worry about you then, and that wouldn’t be a goooooood thing.” Not that Dmitri really had anything to worry about but it was human nature to worry about things, and his wife being all alone in the house with another man was probably something anyone would worry about no matter who was involved. Jealousy was a funny thing after all.

Smiling at his comments about his hair Erilena refrained from commenting. She wasn’t really joking but she wasn’t going to push the matter on him. One day maybe he’d get it cut but it really wasn’t her place to force it upon him. Thus the woman only kept up an easy smile and laughed as he twirled her about. Stepping opposite to his footwork she put her own dramatic flair into her own movements before easing back to her partner in time for a question to be tossed her way. “Glad you are doing so well!” She responded cheerfully a curious look being offered his expression before her attention fell back upon his questions. “I’ve been good. More than good actually. The kids are doing well. Works been going well and Dmitri is teaching a bit at Harper Hall now. The Master Harpers were interested in his instrument so he is teaching others how to play it.” Her smile grew brighter. “I’m so proud of him.” Her footwork slowing a bit she tilted her head to catch the rest of his questions.

“So then you really came to see them huh?” She teased J’ash before continuing on. “They’re with my parents right now actually. Spending some time with Grandma and Grandpa and their cousins. They won’t be home till later on in the evening. Unless you want to stay on into dinner you’ll just have to come back at another point soon to get in some time with the munchkins. They haven’t seen you in a while so I’m sure they’ll be really excited to see you again.” A laugh bubbled up at the final question the bluerider asked and Erilena slipped easily into a final stance before dropping her arms and bouncing towards the kitchen. “Now, now J’ash not fair to ask a joined lady such questions about another man.” She teased as she entered the room to put some water on to boil. “Make yourself comfortable in there. I’ll be back in a moment.” The blonde called back before reaching for a plate and some cookies and striding back into the living area with them.

Offering him a cookie from the plate before setting it down on the small table before the couch, she then slipped into a chair near him and smiled. “Sooooo I can tell you have some type of news. Spill.” She encouraged with a small pout. “I only get the normal holder gossip here after all.”

[Shiny]

It didn't come as a surprise when Feyrianth barrel rolled inches out of his path. With talons spread wide, the Blue passed so close to his clutchsister that he could feel the sharp wind slicing out of her way, like the waking waves of the fishing boats. Craivaruth knew the Green was very agile in the air and had trick upon trick just waiting to be used. Despite being able to predict some of her movements, the Blue was simply unable to reach her, being less agile than his clutchsister. He did have a steady endurance, however. Just as he'd trained in strength by keeping himself from crashing into water at maximum acceleration, Craivaruth forced his wings out and pumped harshly against gravity, easily and immediately allowing him to correct his fall. Barely a second had passed since his miss and the Green was already gone from his sight.

It wasn't hard to lock onto Feyrianth again; her green, gold-spangled hide could catch anyone's eye. Although Craivaruth physically couldn't pull off the sharp hairpin turn that his sibling had just executed, he began to pick up speed again, following a direction-correcting arc. He was slightly behind her now, having spent a little extra time turning. All of his muscles were strained and easily visible through his confused-coloured hide, but at this pace he would never catch up to his target. And he certainly did not want to end this flight not having made Fey 'it' at least once.

Seconds ago, Craivaruth hadn't thought he could push himself any harder, but now... You're right. I can. Prepare yourself, Feymine. A deep rumble emanating from his throat turned into a full-fledged roar as he pushed forward with more than he had, muscles bulging with the immense strain. Green eyes became flooded with red, unintentionally becoming more vicious in appearance. Quickly the blue-green dragon accelerated after Feyrianth, watching carefully for any sudden directional changes, and lurched forward sharply, talons extended, teeth bared to subconsciously deal with the strain. It probably seemed like he couldn't keep this up for long, but the Blue had been pushing his limits in his training. He wouldn't be giving up yet. All he needed was to just graze the tip of her tail and she would be it.

J'ash chuckled lightly while he moved in sync with his dear friend. "I wouldn't dare say any such thing to him. The risk of never being able to see you or your kids is far too great!" he exclaimed, winking again. He had nothing against Dmitri, of course. In fact, he didn't know him very well at all, other than the brief exchanges they would have around Erilena. He could understand the concept of jealousy (perhaps all too well; the memory of forcefully participating in Rinagth and J'on's flight nearly sent a shudder down his spine), and knew not to meddle with it.

Erilena's bright smile was as contagious as it always was, and J'ash found himself easily wearing a similar expression. "That's excellent! Good for him." He was glad that the Greenrider had chosen to pair with a successful individual. He clearly didn't have to worry about her (although he still did). J'ash slowed his movements slightly to match Erilena's speed change, stepping around her while raising both of their hands, lightly spinning both himself and her. He pouted slightly before putting a smile back on. "That's a shame, I miss them! Dinner would be lovely, but I would feel bad because I didn't let you know I was coming to visit. Next time, next time. I got to see you, at least; that should tide me over." The Bluerider slid into the Greenrider's stance, ending their dance session gracefully. He grinned at her teasing, then watched the female practically bounce into another room. He stretched and took a look around before obeying the host's orders to sit on the couch.

The toned man took a cookie and smiled gratefully. His favourite food would probably be cookies; perhaps Erilena had a hunch he was coming and made him some, he thought in amusement. His brain was suddenly filled with tension from Craivaruth's end, an update on the dragon's situation. Stay relaxed; it's just a game. He was absolutely certain that his bonded wouldn't take it further; around Feyrianth, he need not worry about Craivaruth's aggressive nature.

J'ash took a bite out of his cookie with a very child-like innocence on his face. He caught a crumb and deposited it in his mouth. Crystalline eyes watched his close friend sit in a chair. A face-splitting smile erupted on his face; so she had easily decoded his body language earlier. "I suppose I'm just spilling at the seams, aren't I? Not hard to notice I've got something up my sleeve." He laughed. "Yes, well... Anyway." He cleared his throat a little, and hesitated for a second, clearly having never said this out loud to anyone before. He looked up into the Greenrider's hazel eyes with his own. "I've been thinking about this a lot, and I've come to the decision that I'm going to ask J'on to Join with me."

[Rei]

There was something about flight that brought out the playful vixen side in Feyrianth and she couldn’t resist a good tease. It was no fun if there wasn’t some element of emotion to it all anyway and so she put her all into her graceful twists and movements making sure to keep one amused whirling eye on her clutchbrother at all times. She was privately impressed by his recovery and she showed it by trilling in encouragement to him. Yes that’s right not allowed to give up the game. Not that she thought Craivaruth would. Oh no he was far too competitive and determined to give up quite that easily. The green loved males that rallied to a challenge and her brother never failed to give his all in things. The sudden flood of crimson to his gaze didn’t startle her. She was well used to the way her brother’s emotions often ran hot and she did not fear him. Not in the slightest. She trusted him far too much to fear him. He would never hurt her.

True to that prediction as he came at her Feyrianth held steady and then twisted to try and avoid him. She was too slow however and the outside curve of his talons brushed along her tail. With a happy trill the female looped and hovered as she tried to get a bearing on her bi-colored clutch sibling. I’m iiiiiit. She chorused as her wings tilted and she started a spiral down towards Craivaruth. Watch out, watch out! I’m going to get you~ She singsonged, much like her bonded might sing song to the hatchlings, as she sped after her brother in earnest working her wings as well as she could to build speed. She headed for him at an angle, ignoring that the rain had started to fall harder now.

Erilena couldn’t help but smile in a slightly satisfied way as J’ash sampled her cookies. If there was one thing Erilena prided herself on it was her baking, that and her dancing. They were the two things that she loved to indulge in both for others and just for herself. Oh she loved to dance with others, her husband especially, but she still liked to dance by herself in the rain and feel it kiss her skin. There was something liberating about it. A connection with herself and the elements, a way to just siphon off anything stressing her and come out of it feeling refreshed and cleansed again. Nothing else really gave her the release that dancing did. It was emotion in motion. Purely and simply. Those who could figure out how to read it could glance into her very soul and read her mind if they had the desire. Perhaps that was why the greenrider was so careful about who witnessed her private dances and always had been. Her hazel eyes flicked back to J’ash that easy smile still very present on her face as her friend’s own expression grew brighter and wider. Well whatever he was hiding it sure seemed to make him happy. That only sparked Erilena’s curiosity further. Hmm.

When the bluerider finally got to the point she was careful not to react immediately. She blinked once in surprise and then smiled. “Really?” After a careful pause she continued. Erilena didn’t want to seem unsupportive but she was a little, apprehensive. She knew she should be jumping out of her chair happy for him but there were reasons why she didn’t. Mainly because she had no desire for him to get hurt and there were some things he probably hadn’t thought of or completely through. Or maybe he had. Who knew? At any rate she kept her smile there but spoke in a curious tone. “Can I ask you something? Why joining? Why don’t you just transfer to Inverness and become weyrmates? It’s pretty much the weyr version of joining. Dragonriders…well they don’t really get joined J’ash. There isn’t even a harper to join you at a weyr either.” And really if she was being honest, same sex joinings just did not happen. Finding a harper that would agree to do one was incredibly rare. M’ta and R’wign had a hell of a time finding a hold that would agree at all. The greenrider didn’t even really think her husband would agree to do something like that. Not because he was against it or anything but because of what it could possibly do to his reputation should Harper Hall find out. They were…well very anti-homosexual. It very well could put him on a promotional black list.

Glancing back up at J’ash she gave him an apologetic smile. “It’s not that I think it’s not sweet. I do. I just…J’on is also very weyrbred. Most dragonriders just find joining stupid. Dmitri and I mainly did it to please my parents. Other than that we were both raised in holds so it felt right. And we ended up at a hold anyway so it’s not a real issue. But K’sel thought what I did was really stupid. A lot of my dragonrider friends probably did. Not that I regret it at all. I just want to make sure you are prepared for all the possible outcomes.”

[Shiny]

Craivaruth reared into a downward twist as soon as he felt the brush of Feyrianth's tail against his claw, Feyrianth's sing-song voice filling his mind. With a mental brush of competitiveness, the dual-coloured Blue glanced over his shoulder-wing joint to see Feyrianth spiralling down after him. It was a brief albeit spectacular image, with the blotted rainy sunlight streaming around the Green's form like a halo. Whether she tried or not, the Green always made things look more supernatural.

You'll have to try harder if you're guaranteeing that, Fey, Craivaruth replied smoothly, eyes flashing from red to a more purple hue with the joust. He opened his wings as wide as they could go and shot off at top speed, slicing through the rain like a blade. A few twists and turns were worked into his path, but they were nowhere close to the kinds of maneuvers that Feyrianth had been pulling off. His agility did suck, especially in comparison to hers. But that didn't stop him from trying.

Suddenly, the Blue folded his wings tightly, allowing his body to plummet. Like a bomb, he hit the thick gray-black clouds below, causing some of the fluff to explode outwards. He fought against the air current and forced his wings open, continuing to soar within the cloud layer. Sure, it was a little dangerous, with a storm probably brewing there, but now it would be much more difficult for the Green to locate him. That would probably even things up. Craivaruth checked over his shoulder again, unable to see much of anything. You may be faster and more agile, but do you have better sight?~ He teased, flicking his tail in sync with a playful mental prod.

J'ash was beaming a smile that was bright enough to match how passionate he felt about his decision. However, after a few moments of silence, it dimmed down. He had known Erilena long enough now to read her body language. It was very subtle, but he knew she wasn't as excited as he was. A brow twitched upwards slightly as he tilted his head. "What's the matter?" he asked in reply, and then waited patiently while she paused. He was actually feeling a little let down that Erilena hadn't reacted the way he had expected her to. But it didn't matter because he respected her opinions and would consider them, no matter what they were.

J'ash smiled softly and maintained light spirits despite his friend's confusion. "I could do that, but... it would mean so much more to me if we Joined. Given J'on's past, if he really loves me so much to be willing to Join with me, I'd... well, I'd be the happiest person on Pern." Just the thought of it made him grin a bit wider for a moment. "Of course, I'm not really expecting him to reciprocate, but I just really want him to know that I love him that deeply, and that I'm his and his alone." The man subconsciously began fiddling with a lock of his hair. His face morphed when Erilena brought up the fact that it would be a homosexual Joining, clearly showing his worry and upset about it. "I know, believe me I know." He sighed and paused for a moment. "It's just not fair... There has to be someone who would be willing to do it in private. I'd swear to never breathe of it to anyone. But I understand the risk." Hearing how hard of a time he would have finding someone from Erilena made him worry even more than he had been, as he hadn't thought it would be as hard as she was making it seem.

Crystalline eyes watched the Greenrider as she spoke. "I didn't think what you did was stupid. I think you did the right thing. You followed your heart. I suppose it makes sense from the perspective of a Weyrbred person to disagree with Joining, but... I'm a pure romantic at heart. All I want is to propose, and if he says yes, it doesn't even have to be made official by a Harper. I would be happy with that." After a pause, J'ash smiled and reached over to gently touch the Greenrider's hand, squeezing it briefly. "I hope you realize your opinions mean the world to me. I'm happy you're telling me what you really think." At least, it seemed like she wasn't hiding any worse opinions from him. He believed that she wouldn't.