Talking to Himself {Open}

[Kerrin]

Kerrin still felt fearful of the dragons, but Joliffe’s casual behavior toward them did ease some of her misgivings. “You don’t mean--” she started her cheeks reddening. She had not seen what happened, but had heard it first, second, and even third hand, the story growing more wild with each retelling. She stared up at the rider, wondering what parts, if any, of the stories she heard were true. Some of the tales had gotten quite racy. She blushed brightly, and looked away quickly, embarrassed not only by her thoughts but also for staring.

“Oh, Joliffe, you’re terrible!” she said at his last comment before he greeted the rider. She remained just behind Joliffe, but the fear she’d been feeling was replaced with curiosity, laced with embarrassment.

------------------------

Mikkale had returned to the meeting place. He hadn’t seen the peddler, his wife, or a hold guard anywhere. He started to grow impatient, but it wasn’t long before he was joined by his two cohorts.

“Anything?” he asked as they returned.

“Nothing,” the first man said.

“No one remembers seeing them after they entered the alleyway," said the second man.

Mikkale grunted in frustration. He looked back in the direction he'd come. The brown rider had disappeared. The grunt became a growl. "That bastard Dragonrider. He covered for them! I'm sure of it!" His hands clenched into fists.

"Dragonrider?" The first man asked. "I'm not tangling with any of that lot! Especially if it's that Guardian that was walking the market earlier." The second man shook his head in agreement. “Maybe she was just helping the old peddler and is already on her way back to your cothold. We should check there before making any accusations against a Guardian.”

Mikkale looked at the two men in disgust. Cowards, both of them! But the man’s words made some sense, and eventually got through his alcohol-soaked brain. “Yer right,” he said finally. “But there won’t be much left of that peddler after I'm done with him.” And he’d make sure his wife remembered her place. “Let’s go.” He waved and started back down the alley and back toward his cothold.

[S'yloa]

An old man and a woman? What's going on here? Why is he taking them to the Weyr? More charity cases? T'wenth says his rider 'rescues' them. S'yloa smiled. So, I'm right.

With the slight distance, their murmured conversation escaped him, but the green rider's paranoia sparked thoughts about what they might be discussing. Which, of course, they were though S'yloa didn't know. He meant to greet them when they neared. The old man spoke first.

"Fair skies! Ah - hahaha, guilty as charged." Neither of them looked familiar to S'yloa, but that only meant neither had children Search age. The green rider didn't really take the time to get to know anyone who didn't (unless they happened to be attractive looking...). His gaze slid toward the nervous and embarrassed woman. "Oh honey, there's no reason to fear Engmyth. She's a sweetheart and wouldn't hurt anyone." S'yloa smiled as patted his beloved dragon on the neck.

"You can touch her, I promise it's fine. She's quite soft. I'll ask her not to move." He allowed his eyes to linger on her enough to be polite, and then tilted his head to look behind and beyond them. "By the looks of it, you only have a few minutes to get acquainted with them before you'll be on T'wenth's back. Come and at least stand between the dragons. It will be more difficult for anyone to see you."

[F'rendil]

Too far to hear anyone's conversation but his own, F'rendil continued to walk toward the meeting point. He saw the others crest the hill and watched from afar the trio's conversation. When S'yloa looked toward him, F'rendil raised a hand in greeting.

[Jannasper]

"So, you've come to make some of the young'uns happy?" Joliffe asked, smiling up at S'yloa. "Who has a clutch on the sands?” He held his chin in one hand while his forehead scrunched in thought as he tried to remember. “Tuirith is it not? And...Weyrwoman Klissiana! She is Senior Weyrwoman now?”

“Go ahead Lass,” he encouraged Kerrin, giving her a gentle push toward the green. “You don’t get many opportunities like this.” He moved toward the cover the two dragons provided, but didn’t try to approach Engmyth himself. He didn’t want to spoil her beautiful hide with his rough, dirt-stained hands.

[Kerrin]

“Good day,” Kerrin said a little bashfully, and nodded respectfully to S’yloa. She stared at the green dragon, admiring the brilliant emerald green of her hide. She was hesitant to approach the dragon at first, but Joliffe’s encouraging words and gentle push got her started and she moved closer to Engmyth. She held her hand out, moving it slowly until she touched it, her fingers lightly brushing against the hide. Her expression took on a look of surprise. Her hide was very soft. It was softer than leather or cloth she had ever owned. With a little more boldness, she placed her hand against Engmyth’s hide, and started to stroke it gently. “It is soft,” she said, mostly to herself.

[S'yloa]

Instead of replying right away, S'yloa watched in silence while Kerrin approached. "You're fine," S'yloa reassured Kerrin. Then, he left her be while she admired Engmyth. She'd talk to him more, or not, as she pleased. By her disheveled and anxious disposition, your soothing warmth and soft hide may be just the thing she needs.

He turned to Joliffe with a friendly smile and a nod, "Your memory's excellent, friend. You're right about Tuirith and Klissi. Tuirith's brooding on the Sands, so we're on Search. But not here, I have a lot waiting at Rivers Crossing right now. And we're playing ferry solo since no one else has the time. I stopped by Kajano to borrow a mark from F'rendil." His smile widened and color rose to his cheeks. "I admit I may have been avoiding Kajano because I had - " He cleared his throat with a soft, "ahem - ...such an unexpected experience here last time I visited. So... uh, are you ready to ride on a dragon?"


----

Long turns of being a Search dragon meant regular exposure to excited, screaming, and heavy-handed teenagers. Engmyth had lots of practice pretending to be the world's largest statue of a dragon. She didn't move at all as Kerrin approached her. Well, as little as she could. Her great chest still shifted with the constant motion of her breathing. And anyone in its path felt her warm exhales. When Kerrin's hand settled onto her hide, a tremble rippled under and on either side of the woman's hand as Engmyth twitched with the touch. It was a motion not unlike the movements of a runner's hide when tickled or surprised. Her faceted blue eyes swirled faster but other than the slight movement, she continued to sit still.

[F'rendil]

F'rendil reached the bottom of the hill and without breaking stride, began the short journey to the top. The conversation above came to him in scattered syllables and partial sentences. Aloud, to apparently no one in particular, F'rendil said, "Be watchful and wary. We'll be leaving soon."

[Jannasper]

Joliffe dropped his pack to the ground and stretched as S’yloa concerned himself with Kerrin. There were a few cracks that were accompanied by a slight moan. He returned the greenrider’s smile while S'yloa addressed him. “That’s quite a feat for your little lass there,” he said with a nod and then waved his hand dismissively. “Oh, pish posh! It’ll all be forgotten soon enough! Just wait for the next scandal to set them tongues a wagging, which we may be providing for ye.” He spoke the last words under his breath, his brow furrowed with some concern. “Oh aye!” he said, brightening suddenly. “I’ve never been a dragonback, though I’ll admit it's always been a boyhood dream of mine.” His gaze moved from S’yloa’s dainty green to her bigger, brown companion, and lingered appreciatively. “My old master had occasion to ride. He even got invited to a hatching once! But I never had the pleasure.”

[Kerrin]

Kerrin didn’t mind the dragon’s breathing. If anything, the slow, steady movement had a calming effect on her. She smiled to herself at the oddly familiar twitch when she touched Engmyth’s hide. It was just like Teala, an old mare from her home cothold. Kerrin had been taking care of the runnerbeast for her mother. She too seemed to know how to comfort Kerrin while her mother had been sick. She leaned against Engmyth, tears welling her eyes at the memory. She still missed her mother, even after all these turns.

F’rendil’s words and tone suddenly had Kerrin on alert again. She stood up straight and spun around, wiping her eyes before they started darting around. She looked particularly toward the hold, where they had just come from. She expected to see Mikkale come around the corner at any moment. "Is he--?" she started, growing anxious and tense. 

[S'yloa]

Engmyth smelled of sweetsand and the musky, woody aroma of the oil used to keep her hide supple and soft. Kerrin's tears brought a soft rumbling purr from the depths of the dragon's chest. The sound had a question in it and a wave of concern seemed to pulse through Kerrin. But when Kerrin turned away and let go of Engmyth, the sensation passed. The green craned her neck and tilted her head to face Kerrin. Should the human look up, she'd be as close to eye-to-eye with Engmyth as was anatomically possible from this position. A faint orange streak swirled through her gaze.


"Oh yes, we'll both be tired tonight. But it's no different than flying a 'Fall. We go in, we rest, we go in again until it's over. And she's had plenty of rest now so we're ready for another run." Joliffe's words put the greenrider at ease with the same effortlessness as he had Kerrin, and S'yloa laughed with a gleam of mischief in his eyes. "Oh, so true. And I'm sure Engmyth will tell me all about it. She does love her gossip. T'wenth there is so good at reporting all the goings on here." To the older man's comment about never seeing a hatchling, S'yloa waved his hand in such a manner that it appeared his wrist kind of gave out and went limp. "Well, since you're bound for the Weyr now, you'll certainly be able to witness Tuirith's..."

At Kerrin's sudden movement and the anxiety that spiked her voice, S'yloa broke off mid-word, his attention immediately on the tense woman. "...no, no everything's fine. I can see all the way to the Hold from here and no one's coming this way except F'rendil. Your tears have Engmyth worried. She's very empathic you know, all dragons are, but greens have the most of it with Engmyth and the rare few ranking even higher. We think her empathy is one of the reasons she makes a good Searcher."

[F'rendil]

It was a short walk to the top and F'rendil didn't even break a sweat or lose any breath. He came to a pause in front of Joliffe and Kerrin. His eyes went immediately to the woman's frantic expression, and he filled in her unspoken sentence. "Is he - gone from your life? Yes. Let's get airborne in the next few minutes to make sure of it." He closed the distance between them and put a hand on her shoulder, giving her a reassuring squeeze.

F'rendil didn't stop to linger on Kerrin's concerns. He released her shoulder as he walked past her and to Engmyth's side. He paused long enough to fish a single mark out of his belt pouch, and using the dragon for support, climbed far enough to offer the mark to S'yloa. "There."

Then, he hopped down and turned to his two passengers. "C'mon, let's get you both onto T'wenth. Joliffe, go ahead and climb up first. You'll wind up in the back, but that way we'll have Kerrin supported between us. That's the safest place for a nervous rider. Use his front leg for support, then grab those handles on the saddle's straps. Then pull yourself onto the saddle. I'll stow your backpack into his saddle bags. Once we're all on, I'll get us strapped in nice and tight so no one falls."

[Jannasper]

Joliffe stood with his hands behind back and gave S’yloa his full attention, allowing Kerrin the few moment’s of peace his dragon seemed to give her. “It never hurts to keep yer ears open,” he replied with a grin. “You never know when such idle talk can be put to yer advantage.” He certainly had on occasion. His attention turned with S’yloa’s to Kerrin as she tensed again. He merely watched silently as the greenrider, and then F’rendil both reassured her they were safe.

“Aye, Brownrider,” he said as F’rendil instructed him on mounting T’wenth, his keen eyes following his direction. A little unsteady at first, Joliffe made his way up the brown dragon, pulling himself up into the saddle. He had to rest for a moment, winded from the exertion, but then held a hand down to Kerrin. “Come on lass, it's no trouble at all.”

[Kerrin]

The scent only added to Kerrin's nostalgia as it reminded her of her home cothold. She heard Engmyth's soft purr, and thought it almost sounded like the dragon was asking her something, but she pushed that thought away. Why would a dragon want to talk to her? She didn’t notice the dragon staring at her until she started looking around frantically. She jumped back in surprise to see Engmyth’s head so close.

“My--my tears?” she repeated, glancing up at S’yloa as he spoke. “Oh, no, you needn’t worry about me," she said, turning to Engmyth. "The memories are sad, but not unpleasant. But, thank you for your concern.” She offered her a small smile as the dragon she had just met showed her more empathy in that moment than her husband had in their ten turns of marriage.

Kerrin gave F’rendil a grateful nod as he put his hand on her shoulder, and allowed herself a moment’s relief. She followed Joliffe to T’wenth, and watched the older man climb the brown and take his seat on the saddle. “Excuse me,” she said to the brown, before she climbed onto his leg. She had a little more difficult time managing the climb in her skirts, but with Joliffe’s help she settled onto the saddle in front of him.

[S'yloa]

When Kerrin spoke S'yloa looked at her. "Oh yes, your tears. She felt them and your sorrow, your relief and... what'd you say, love...? Oh, yes your loneliness." S'yloa's tone dropped at the last word as though the syllables pained him to say. Although Engmyth didn't respond in any way to Kerrin, the orange faded from her eyes leaving them a brilliant blue again. She lifted her head enough to look at T'wenth and then stretched her neck out as she waited for S'yloa to be ready to leave.

"Well, there's no need for that now. You're off to start a new life. Not everyone there is a complete stranger, you have us." He did a little hand wave to indicate their small group. "We'll be back by dinnertime, and we can all sit together if you're nervous. I promise everyone... well, almost everyone there is lovely."

Meeting new friends and gossiping were two of S'yloa favorite past times, but he took his position as the Weyr's only active Searchrider seriously. They had other things to do and places to go and people to see. He adjusted his riding goggles and did a visual check of his straps.

"It's been lovely to talk to you, sir," S'yloa said to Joliffe with a smile and a nod. "I look forward to seeing everyone at the Weyr. Come talk to me sometime." S'yloa stashed the mark in his satchel along with the others, and shivered in sheer excitement at the prospect of finally being able to purchase Jannasper. That beautiful boy is almost ours... He waved at the brown rider and his passengers before turning forward in the saddle. "Let's be off."

Upon her rider's words, Engmyth turned away from Kerrin. Though a slight dragon, even Engmyth stirred up dust when she took off. To mitigate this, the green executed a pivot in place so she faced away from the Hold. It was an elegant spin for a creature of her size which although it didn't put the green on par with the average human dancer, proved again her color's agility compared to other dragons. With much less grace, she cantered down the other side of the hill and after a few strides, she jumped into the air as she spread her wings. Quick as she was to get airborne, the green barely cleared a clump of stubborn trees. Once aloft, kept a low altitude as the duo once again circled above Kajano. This time, they gradually ascended into the clouds...

[F'rendil]

To expedite his passengers, F'rendil offered assistance and guidance where they needed it. When Kerrin climbed into the saddle, he kept his eyes steadfastly on the back of her head and hands to mark her progress. He chuckled at her soft apology to T'wenth. "Once you get up there, keep low so it's harder to see you. S'yloa can see everything, but everyone can see him too."

As soon as Kerrin settled, F'rendil side-stepped to the large bag secured to T'wenth's saddle by a series of crisscrossing straps. Steadying himself with one hand, he stowed everyone's belongings. He withdrew several items and draped them over his arm; a long coat with a soft interior, a pair of fur-lined gloves, two riding scarves (one the Weyr's colors and the other a pale green), and a heavy blanket.

"Here - " he offered Kerrin the long coat and one of the scarves. "Wrap it around your face and nose to keep the dust out of your eyes. It should keep you warm too. That jacket has pockets." He didn't wait for her to ask questions and turned to Joliffe to give him the blanket, the other scarf, and the gloves. After he handed out the clothes, he showed his passengers the small straps to secure their legs and waist. Made sure the straps were tight.

"Listen, we're going to go Between. Between is very cold. It's the most empty silence you'll ever experience. It's nothing." F'rendil tugged his goggles over his eyes and stared at them through the wherhide bound lenses. "I don't like taking first-time riders Between, but the longer we're here, the higher chances someone unfriendly will see us. We have to disappear." He slipped his helmet on and secured it under his chin.

Finally, the rider himself climbed into the saddle. Tied himself in place, and slid on his gloves. He secured the ends of the straps. "T'we - " The dragon tensed under them. F'rendil paused to look over his shoulder at Kerrin so she saw the side of his helmet and the leading edge of his goggles. "If you're scared, you um... can wrap your arms around me and close your eyes. Bury your face into my back and count to ten. We'll be over the Weyr by then. Or longer if you want to wait until we land." Again he didn't wait for her to respond. Instead, he turned to face forward as he said, "time to fly. Home, T'wen."

T'wenth stood up and made a series of hop-waddles that amounted to a giant U-turn. His tail swept the ground as he turned his back on Kajano. Dust swirled about them and the grass they'd managed not to flatten shook and shivered. The brown dragon too cantered down the hill with a longer pace and stride than the green and angled to the left of the trees. As they took off, T'wenth didn't gain altitude at all, rather he stayed close to the ground and within heartbeats, the foursome disappeared Between...