Lesson 11 - Tropicals

[reqqy]

Lesson 11:
Classroom: Rider Signing Test and Special Training; Mating Flights
Training Field: Formations up from Three to Nine; Riders Given Straight Flight Assignments Throughout Pern

"Well done, everyone. Continue to practice signing, but I think we can manage some more complicated formations without running into each other, yes?" Lauranna grinned about at her weyrlings, her breast swelling with pride for the young people. They'd come so far. "Devai and A'viar...please see me after lessons today."

Where is that brother of mine? Salenth claims he's on his way. Something in Reysalth's tone caught Laurie's attention. Oh no. What is it? But the green refused to say. The blonde shook her head, tapping her nails lightly on the surface of her desk before straightening with a sigh. "In case you hadn't heard, we're going to be discussing mating flights today - which is why we're still sitting here staring at each other." Laurie cursed softly. "Shells. If he doesn't show up in a moment, I'm just going to jump the nearest male rider and drag him in here. Irresponsible..." Still growling, the woman was in the process of stalking toward the door to the classroom when it eased open. The greenrider snatched up a pen and flung it at the man. "You're late!"

He ducked back behind the door. "Yeah, sorry." S'rei bent to pick up the pen and desposited it back on L'ron's desk. Glaring at her little brother, Laurie sniffed, turning back to her students. "All right then. Boys go with the imbecile. The rest of you stay here. If you don't know which you are...then I'm afraid I can't help you much." Waiting as the bronzerider ushered his group of weyrlings outside, Laurie's smile reappeared. "That's better, isn't it? Now we can talk freely."

The woman hopped up onto the desk and kicked her legs lightly. "Move up and fill the desks in front, ladies. Your greens are almost mature. I would expect to see some rising soon, which can be frightening, but it doesn't have to be! It doesn't have to be scary at all if you know what to expect. All of you were here for Millieth's flight, no? And I'm sure you felt that goldflight lust building. When your green flies, the feeling will be very similar to that, just stronger. You will engage in some form of sexual activity - most likely with the rider of the male that catches your green, though if for some reason you two can't reach one another, you'll still end up with someone else. It's not something you can fight. And it's not really something you should want to! In fact, you should be giving your green all the support possible. Remember, this is new for her, too, and if you are frightened it will only confuse her. This is something she has to do. It's part of her genetics.

"When your dragon Rises, you should make your way to the Flightrooms, if you're not there already. Please also remember that your Flightpartner is just as much an instrument of their dragon as you are. It's really unfair to go crazy on them. I know I'm sort of rambling, so questions are welcome. More than welcome. First, though, is anyone still a virgin? Don't feel shy to speak up. It's only us girls." Laurie beamed around at her pretties.

***

S'rei leaned casually against the tree trunk, trying not to wriggle around while Worm skittered up and down his leg. He made a mental note to get Laurie back for the blackmail. Somehow.

"Settle down," he grated. "Sit or stand. I don't care. Just quiet so we can get through this." The man waited for things to settle, then began the awkward little lecture. "We have no greenriders here, so we can skip over that part. Your dragons will start chasing soon, if they haven't already. You know how it is when you want someone, right? Imagine that...magnify it by about a hundred times, to the point that nothing else is on your mind and you just have to have that person, and that's about what it feels like when your dragon chases. It's not something that can be fought. You forget who you are. You are Jedirth, or Zorith, or Fortith, or Sitieth. And if you're a vir-"

He twitched, hissing softly. Sharding 'mandyr! Grabbing at the lump wriggling about in his pants, he forced the creature up. Worm skittered over his chest and latched onto his shoulder, just her head showing. S'rei ground his teeth for a moment before forcing his mind back to the matter at hand. "-a virgin, it would probably be a good idea to take care of that now. Things will be stressful enough when you wake up next to someone - possibly a stranger - without adding that to it. Questions, anyone? Oh, yeah, I'm supposed to get the names of virgins for Laurie. If you don't want to tell me publically, though, just have your dragon inform Salenth. Shardit, Worm!" She'd taken to gnawing on his shoulder, the man catching her by the jaw and plucking her from him. "Go bother someone else, why don't you?"

As soon as he released her, though, she merely bit into the meaty part of his hand and dangled, cooing in his mind. S'rei let his arm drop in resignation.

T'nmor of Jedirth
S'adi of Sitieth - NPC
Q'in of Russeth - NPC
N'tian of Elleoth - NPC
A'viar of Brenath - NPC
L'ron of Fortith
T'ra of Gartoth - NPC
D'niel of Zorith - NPC
Devai of Zendreth - NPC
Janisi of Storith
Sikowy of Linoth - NPC
Fiona of Raiyth

[irbre]

T'nmor couldn't help but smile slightly as Lauranna voiced her praise for their signing. They had done quite a bit better, he believed, at least from before. There had been some, ah, collisions, though, and while it was best to put those out of mind, the fact remained that they had to learn from their mistakes. T'nmor had dutifully catalogued what had happened for later reference, his mind flowing vaguely over more complicated patterns. Jedirth was humming to himself for some reason, and it was more than bit distracting, so the bronzeweyrling forced himself to concentrate on the Weyrlingmistress once again, just in time to catch her next phrase.

Flights. She had said mating Flights, right? T'nmor cast a fevered glance around, as quick as possible, before staring blankly back at Lauranna. He could feel mirth bubble from Jedirth, though it was thankfully muted, and attempted to keep his face blank as Lauranna continued to speak. She didn't appear quite pleased, so T'nmor continued to stare blankly, eyes slowly following her movements as she stalked towards the door, just in time for it to burst open, revealing a bronzerider that T'nmor did indeed recognize. It was hard not too, after all.

He couldn't help but perk up slightly, straightening in his seat, as S'rei entered, apologetic for being late. The Weyrlingmistress instructed the males to go with S'rei and T'nmor stood up eagerly. If they were to discuss Flights and sexuality, he would appreciate it much more if there was a male doing the speaking, even though he didn't have anything against females in the least. It still felt...awkward. S'rei led them outside, T'nmor following quickly without a glance back, though he did allow his gaze to stray uneasily towards L'ron before snapping it forward once again.

Once they had arrived, T'nmor took a seat on the ground, placidly watching S'rei as he leaned against the tree, ignoring the sudden nervousness flitting through him. He had known male dragons Chased, but it was just so very...different when there was actually the distinct possibility of being involved in a Flight. A very distinct possibility indeed, as Jedirth had crisply informed him. Twisting his hands in his lap, T'nmor glanced up, watching as a lump crawled up and down S'rei's leg. He was extremely glad that he had left his pair back in his room, both of them fully sated with enough meat to knock them out cold for a good hour or so. Cannibal had taken to nipping at Hawk in an attempt to eat her, so he had been forced to feed the brown 'mandyr to the point of making him an absolute glutton. It was worth it, though, for he wouldn't want Hawk to run away at any point.

He listened in absolute silence as S'rei spoke, his dread deepening as the bronzerider continued to speak. His desire multiplied tenfold? No, a hundredfold. Biting the edge of his lip, T'nmor shifted uneasily in place, repositioning his legs before him and wrapping his arms around his knees. He had known that Flightlust was powerful, but that powerful? That couldn't be true, he decided, while Jedirth gave the equivalent of a snort in the back of his mind, no doubt plotting something. Scowling to himself, T'nmor focused his full attention on S'rei.

Would you like for me to inform Salenth? Jedirth asked kindly, not the slightest hint of mockery in his voice. T'nmor was thankful for at least that much. He absently watched Worm dangle from S'rei's hand, wondering if he should say it. After only a few seconds of decision, he decided against such an idea, and told Jedirth just that. As you wish, the bronze returned crisply before turning his attention towards the elder bronze. Salenth, Mine wishes to inform Yours that he is a virgin. T'nmor groaned inwardly, looking exceedingly resigned as he dared a glance around at the others.

[kysseh]

Much more practice would be necessary, Fiona decided. Much... much more. The curly-haired green weyrling had been practicing nonstop in an attempt to get the hand signals firmly connected with their meanings in her mind. Working with rote memorization only got a person so far, though, which meant that Fiona was casting surreptitious glances around the classroom to see who the more accomplished students were. Perhaps she could linger after lessons and persuade one or two to help her out. She was trying, certainly, but extra practice with company never hurt. And... company never hurt either, for that matter. At least the weyrlingmaster was satisfied with their progress, which kept the young woman from getting completely disheartened by her lack of leaping progress. Moderate progress, sure. Was she top of the class? Oh, definitely not.

You worry too much, Mine. You are doing fine, and we will be flying in beautiful formations very soon! Very, very. We have a good mini-wingleader. Raiyth told her quite happily, patiently relaxing outside as the humans continued to chatter on indoors. Took so long, those silly humans did! But apparently, they were going to discuss something more interesting, for Hers was suddenly paying very close attention as Salenth's came to take the human male weyrlings off somewhere. Strange. Was that normal?

Ohh, we're going to talk about girl stuff, love. We want the boys gone. Fiona reassured her dragon, though the interplay between the greenrider and the evidently less-than-enthusiastic bronzerider had her wondering. Was something wrong? Well, the man was late, but that hardly merited pen-throwing, did it? She just fidgeted a bit in her seat as the boys filed out, grinning at Laurie's directions. Oh, she knew very well which sex she was, thank you! Some of the boys looked like they might have been wondering, and she was so glad when they were all gone. Girl things just couldn't be discussed in front of dense young man, no sir.

She joined the rest of the female weyrlings in scooting to the front row, settling herself in a desk at the front, near the weyrlingmaster. Mating flights... mating flights. Oh, yes. She had nearly forgotten that Raiyth was due to Rise soon, and she perked up noticeably in her seat, wilting about a quarter second later at the realization that that meant Flightlust. Flightlust was a bit frightening in its intensity, though if it was her Raiyth... well, it would be better, wouldn't it? It would be much more personal and direct and not just the residue of another person's dragon's feelings. Apparently, she needed to get ready to accept this fact. She and Raiyth had only been together a Turn, but they had their entire lives to enjoy... which meant lots and lots of flights. Fi squirmed in her seat, though more out of habit than any real need to fidget about.

Oooh, good thing she was not a virgin, then! She still wanted a bit more.... ahem... practice... before the event came 'round, but that was solely because she, in her love of touching, just enjoyed it. Perhaps that one bronzeweyrling boy would-

Ah, ah. No. It was time to focus. Her head cocked to one side, dark eyes considering, Fi was the image of a model student, despite the fact that her brain was practically running around in circles. She had so many questions to ask! Now was the occasion to ask them, so she dove right in when none of the other girls seemed to want to be first. "Well... I'm not a virgin, but I don't know... much of anything about greenflights. Do they blood like the golds do? And how do we know when they'll Rise? I know people say 'proddy', but what's... 'proddy'?" she inquired carefully, looking more than a little bemused by the word.

[Kisha-Ra]

Janisi sighed with relief, the signing test was over, Lauranna was apparently pleased with everyone’s progress in learning the signs, and even better she hadn’t been called to stay behind after the lesson. Janisi supposed that meant she had passed the exercise. It seemed studying really did pay off.

Oh great, they were going to talk about Flights. A part of Janisi accepted this as rational and sensible; they probably should talk about what was going to happen when their dragons Rose or Chased. It might prevent a lot of confusion in the long run, if people were more aware of what to expect, especially people like her without even a bit of flitter lust to acclimatise them. A part of her knew all this; it was just that the rest of her was going to die of embarrassment.

Fortunately before Janisi could think too much about the upcoming discussion and dive out the window or something to avoid it S’rei arrived to take the male part of the class off and talk to them somewhere else. Janisi was relived about that, if she had to be involved in a discussion like this one she certainly didn’t want a bunch of boys in the room.

Janisi slipped into place at the front of the classroom, feeling trapped. Why hadn’t she escaped while she’d had chance? Janisi reached out for her dragon’s mind hoping to find some comfort there, but Storith was snoozing in the sun outdoors quite unaware of the part of this lesson that was centred on her and the other greens. Janisi sighed and tried to pay attention. Yes, she had felt Millieth’s flight going on and it hadn’t been at all comfortable. Well now she was really worried.

Janisi gave a brief moment of consideration to the idea that she would probably end up coupling with a man during Storith’s flights, as more male dragons were ridden by males than not, and then dismissed that as a silly concern. She had acquired appropriate herbs and started taking them as a precaution, she didn’t want to end up like that greenrider whats-her-name who was pregnant before she even got through weyrlinghood. Therefore she had nothing to worry about on that score and no doubt being part of Storith would scatter Janisi’s personal preferences to the wind.

Just when this was starting t seem not so bad after all Lauranna wound down to the end of her speech and asked the dreaded question ’…is anyone still a virgin?’. Janisi fixed her eyes on her desk, wondering if her entire face had lit up red and branded her as the only virgin greenweyrling left on Pern. Apparently it wasn’t quite that noticeable as Fiona cut in with a question before Janisi had worked up the courage to speak. She didn’t think she’d ever been as grateful for the curly haired girl’s outspokenness as se was just now. Fiona had granted her a moment’s reprieve but what was Janisi going to do with it? I could tell Reysalth.[/color] Storith offered, apparently woken by her chosen’s fear and/or deadly embarrassment. Since Raiyth’s has already spoken I am sure it won’t be taken amiss.[/color] Janisi considered that No, Lauranna will think I’m too cowardly to speak for myself. I’ll just wait until everyone’s done speaking, or maybe until the end of the lesson. I can guess what she has to say. I must be the only person who can’t find someone to jump into bed with as soon as we’re allowed. Storith didn’t feel there was much she could say to that, so she remained silent.

[reqqy]

So we do have this three post rule thing. I know that's hard to do, especially when I'm not posting every other day or so...thus here's how it's going to work. The close date is the last day you can post your first post and still be considered as having participated in the lesson at all, but you'll have until the beginning of the next lesson (the fifteenth for Lesson 12) to get all three in. Sound fair?

Lesson 11:
Classroom: Rider Signing Test and Special Training; Mating Flights
Training Field: Formations up from Three to Nine; Riders Given Straight Flight Assignments Throughout Pern

Lauranna directed a rather sympathetic smile at Fiona. "Oh. Forgive me. Reysalth's been rising for about fourteen turns now, and sometimes I forget about how new all of this is to you girls." She stapled her fingers, pondering for a moment. How best to explain? Well, best to start from the beginning and work from there. "No, your green won't need to blood. Some do anyway. Some like to actually feed...but most won't bother with either of those behaviors. They'll just wake up with the sudden urge to Fly, as often as not, and that will be that."

The greenrider kicked her legs lightly. "Proddy is something different for every green. It just means a change in behavior preceding Flight by a few days, or maybe even a sevenday. You'll learn to tell the signs after awhile. Sometimes, it's not the dragon whose behavior changes. For instance, when Reysalth is about to rise, I spend an inordinate amount of time...primping. Reysalth will start getting flirty a day or two after I start spending hours working on my appearance, and then she'll start glowing a bit the day before she Flies. Some dragons and riders get flirty, others get more tempramental, and occasionally they don't exhibit any behavior change at all - but the males in their lives start acting more possessive without knowing why. Almost all greens will start glowing, though, before Flight, so it shouldn't catch anyone entirely flatfooted."

The older woman paused, her green eyes scanning over the girls knowingly. "Now, I don't believe that everyone here has experience sexually. Remember, this is not to embarrass you. I had to do the very same thing when I was your age, lovelies. It didn't work out so bad, either, because the man who helped introduce me to intimacy ended up becoming my weyrmate later on." No, it wasn't a smooth romance, but the point was this wasn't necessarily the scary thing that most virgins were likely to believe it was. "All right. Last chance. The boys are winding down outside, and we have more to do this lesson. You do not want your first time to happen in Flightlust."

***

S'rei didn't quite pay attention to the dragons speaking to Salenth. Worm was...distracting. You have all that? I was supposed to remember all of those? The bronze huffed. Yes. I do believe that was rather the point. Bother. Salenth listed them off one more time, and S'rei shrugged dismissively. It wasn't all that unusual for weyrlings to still be virgins. Apparently they didn't listen to the candidatemaster's advice...He'd never had that problem. At all. Thanks be to two older brothers and the normal male hormones. Of course, fate saw fit to give everyone problems...Salenth's first successful flight included a green with a male rider. Joy.

He probably should...mention something about that, come to think of it. "Thanks for speaking up," he told the boys, generalizing the statement so as not to embarrass anyone. "It's only fair to mention that - especially for those of you who are strictly interested in girls - you'll probably end up in a male-on-male eventually. Try not to pull a S'rei and run out on them screaming." He smiled a little sheepishly, pushing the hair back from his face. "It's the dragon's choice, after all. Not that I expect anyone to - cuddle - or whatever. As a general rule of thumb, no matter who you wake up next to, be courteous enough to stay long enough to make sure everyone's okay. I can't imagine people would much enjoy coming out of a Flight to an empty bed and a burning sensation."

He surrepitiously attempted to shake Worm off his hand. "Ummm...anything else...ah. Yes. Aslath will be Rising next. Bronzes tend to blood their kills before the gold does - although you'll probably be well-aware that your dragon has noticed a gold about to go into Flight and intends to chase. It's perfectly normal for bronzes to blood. Some browns, too. As a bronzerider, though, your bronze will chase if there's a gold rising in the vicinity. That's just the way of things. I think that about covers it? The girls should be out to join you here in a minute, so make it quick if you've got any more questions/concerns."

[kysseh]

Fiona belatedly realized that one of her female peers was looking quite awkward about the situation. She gave the girl an apologetic look for butting right in as she had. Oh dear... had Janisi been about to ask a question? There was still some time for queries, though, so she would call attention to that after Lauranna answered some of the more pressing questions... like how, by the Egg, Fiona was supposed to know when her beloved was going to Fly.

Behavior changes... blooding... males being silly males. That should have all made sense to Fiona, having grown up around runners as she had. Runners were much the same way. The females started to act a little off, a little skittish around the males. The males got proud and wild and just completely unmanageable.... yes, it all was the same. Or... it was the dragon version of the same, anyway. She made a note of that and mentally nudged her Raiyth. If you or I start acting very strange, then let me know. Oh.... bother. You want know if you're acting weird. Well, if /I/ act weird, then let me know, okay?

Mine, you always act 'weird'. But I will tell you if you are weirder than usual. Raiyth assured Hers, eliciting a grin and a bit of a giggle from Fiona. Oh, was she excited for Raiyth's first Rising now? Most certainly! At least she sort of knew what to expect, which helped alleviate much of the anxiety that had her fidgeting previously. Not being a virgin was going to help a great deal. That reminded her of her peer's fixation on her desk, and Fiona glanced over at Janisi, head tilted curiously to one side. Oh, perhaps she was nervous because she was a virgin! Or maybe she just liked girls and not boys at all. Some girls were that way. Fiona wasn't; she loved on both sexes, though she much preferred the warmth that a big cuddly man offered. So cozy were they!

"I... don't have any more questions, I don't think. I'm just sort of nervous and excited about it," she admitted, resting her elbows on her desk and gracelessly plopping her chin on her folded hands. Brown eyes widened as her memory kicked her yet again, and she looked a bit guilty. "Ohh... err... sorry about hopping right in with questions, Janisi. I get carried away sometimes. I didn't interrupt... did I?" The greenweyrling lacked the capacity for blatant dishonesty, and she truly was sorry. She did tend to run away with herself and conversations on occasion, but now she made the perfect model of a good listener, patiently waiting for her classmate to offer up a query. Surely the other girl had queries too, right?

((I apologize for the randomness that is Fiona. -slinks off- x.x ))

[Kisha-Ra]

Janisi paid attention to the answer to Fiona’s question, or questions, with her eyes fixed on the wood of her desk. She wasn’t foolish enough to let the answers slip by her, she might well need those warning signs, well even if she missed the behaviour changes a glowing hide would be pretty obvious. It was briefly entertaining to consider that males of every species behaved in the same way when they wanted a female’s attention.

As Lauranna finished her answer Janisi let her eyes slid sideways to Fiona, the other girl looked ort of happy, sort of nervous and sort of excited. Janisi felt a flash of sharp envy, at that particular moment she would have traded away everything but Storith to be like Fiona, confident and carefree.

The envy turned to cold terror as Fiona innocently turned everyone’s attention on her, she tried to just speak out but her voice seemed to be frozen. Just say, silly Mine. What are they going to do with this information anyway?[/color] Storith encouraged reasonably. I don’t know, maybe they’ll pair me up with one of the virgin boys and tell us to get on with it. The blatant ridiculousness of her own suggestion gave Janisi a bit more confidence, what could anyone but her do about it anyway? She took a calming breath. ‘It’s alright Fiona, I, um… I just have to own up to still being a virgin then everyone can carry on.’ Janisi’s voice shook and she was certain she was going to expire of shame on the spot but at least she got the sentence out this time.

[irbre]

Male on male? T'nmor practically gasped, alarm pulsing through his bond with Jedirth. The bronze didn't seem to notice, instead paying close attention to S'rei and Salenth, leaving His to ponder that newly arisen predicament. T'nmor fidgeted uneasily, shifting slightly so as to mask his worry, his fingers thrumming against the ground. He wasn't exactly looking forward to losing his virginity, though more for reasons of him being awkward than not eager, but nor did he particularly want to lose his virginity to another man, if anything. Well, especially a man. That wouldn't be...opportune.

Jedirth, could you possibly Chase a dragon with a female rider the first time? Possibly?

The bronze snorted aloud, one eye rolling to stare at His. Mine, I will Chase who I Chase, he stated with the patience of explaining something to a small child, So you must not worry about it. He watched T'nmor for a moment longer, eyes whirling placidly, before turning his gaze back towards Salenth and S'rei, the only betrayal of any emotion in the occasional flick of his tail. T'nmor likewise flipped his attention back to their teachers, catching the strain of the conversation in time to laugh at S'rei's joke, if a bit nervously at that.

Thankfully, the conversation became a bit more straightforward after that, and T'nmor found himself listening intently. He vowed to himself that, if Jedirth ever caught anyone, he would stay long enough to make sure that they were okay before retreating himself, probably to hyperventilate or something pleasant like that. The fact that he would know some time before a Queen Rose if Jedirth was going to Chase was some consulation. The fact that S'rei told them that Aslath was the next one to Rise, though, made him uneasy. Very uneasy. He had helped Shmee out, and while he highly, highly, highly doubted that Jedirth would even be much competition for the other male dragons, the thought still put him on edge. Gnawing on his bottom lip, T'nmor shifted position once again, preparing to stand when the women came out.

[/fail]

[reqqy]

Lesson 11:
Classroom: Rider Signing Test and Special Training; Mating Flights
Training Field: Formations up from Three to Nine; Riders Given Straight Flight Assignments Throughout Pern

Lauranna smiled lightly at Fiona. The girl reminded her a little of herself at that age, sure enough. Her eyes swung to Janisi. Ah. A virgin. “All right, sweetheart. If you need anything explained or just want to talk about it, swing by my office. I can also give you an idea of who to go to, and even a list of some of the older dragonriders who would likely be willing and are good for a girl’s first time, if you’re just having trouble finding someone. My first was a friend of my older brother, so it’s not unusual to do this sort of thing. Okay? All right.”

The greenrider stood, stretching lightly before she grinned around at her pupils. “Time to get away from this topic and into the air. Don’t cheer too loud, now!”

***
S’rei fielded the last of the questions. He was just finishing up when Laurie emerged. “I’ll turn you over to my sister now.” The bronzerider finished with a nod and swiftly made for Salenth, mounting his dragon quickly enough that it was clear he’d found the whole situation more than a little uncomfortable. They were gone before the assistant weyrlingmaster could get a word in. Laurie merely shrugged and turned to her weyrlings.

“We’re going to all fly in one big formation today. Next month, we Between, so, until then, we’ll be doing straight flying to all the places you might Between to. Jedirth will take point, Russeth and Sitieth the ends of the V, and everyone else can fill in as they wish in between. I’ll fly above you with Reysalth. Today we’re going to Selenitas Hold and back, so get your dragons set and form up on the ground, and we’ll get started!”

T'nmor of Jedirth II
S'adi of Sitieth - NPC
Q'in of Russeth - NPC
N'tian of Elleoth - NPC
A'viar of Brenath - NPC
L'ron of Fortith
T'ra of Gartoth - NPC
D'niel of Zorith - NPC
Devai of Zendreth - NPC
Janisi of Storith II
Sikowy of Linoth - NPC
Fiona of Raiyth II