[G] [C] 734.09.01 | Happy High

“R’nd!”

The sing-song squeal was all the warning R’nd got, before B’jin came bursting through the tent flap, and threw himself across the small area to wrap arms around the bluerider's neck and send them both toppling to the ground. Bright, cheerful laughter fell away from B’jin’s lips as he scrabbled (careful not to knee R’nd) to his knees and settled himself comfortably on R’nd’s stomach. Leaning forward, B’jin pressed a warm kiss to R’nd’s lips before sitting up straight again, throwing his arms out joyously.

“Guess what!?”

We’re going on Search! The green dragon’s excited squeal filled the minds of both men, and Ayyonth as she danced excitedly on the spot outside, her wings half unfurled and her head held high. B’jin had barely waited for the dragon to land before throwing himself inside the tent he shared with the bluerider, when he wasn’t sleeping at the foot of Indamor’s bed. Larrikith made excited little chittering noises before shoving her nose through the flap of the tent and tilting her head so she could see both men, B’jin still perched on top of R’nd with his arms flung out exuberantly.

Real Search! Larrikith further explained, before withdrawing her head to spin around and face Ayyonth, bumping her nose against his shoulder in excitement before licking the blue dragon’s cheek affectionately. Excitement and delight radiated off the little dragon, and while she did manage to fold her wings away and eventually stop chittering like a bird, she continued to bounce slightly where she was standing beside her mate; the dragon and rider were feeding off one another’s delight.

“Spoil sport!” B’jin called out, throwing a sour albeit playful look towards the tent flap, before brown eyes flashed back to R’nd. B’jin leaned forward slightly, placing his left hand upon the centre of R’nd’s chest, fingers splayed out, and he tapped them one at a time in a gentle pattern, unaware of what he was doing. His face was intent and curious as he leaned forward, placing a gentle amount of weight on R’nd’s chest, as he peered down at his lover.

“Come with me?” Far more begging than demanding, B’jin stared avidly down at R’nd.

When Tyrrisath sent out the order for Search sensitive dragons and those with potential to meet for an important announcement, Ayyonth had heard the call and passed it on to R’nd. They were both interested in Searching; how could he not be after being Searched got him out of a life he didn’t like and then he spent turns in exile with that very same Searchrider? R’nd viewed it as a prestigious honour to be able to Search and had a lot of respect for B’jin, I’shan, R’jit, and the others. He especially admired their ability to continue on even through the distasteful way of kidnapping Candidates that held the potential to Impress one of their dragonets. That hadn’t been a glamorous time but it was needed all the same.

However, R’nd didn’t want to attend the meeting. Ayyonth hadn’t been properly tested yet and besides, they were of a Katilan clutch. Sure, they were the first, but they had never been allowed to go on scouting parties to the North in the past so why would now be any different? Even when all of his friends that were Searchers tried to get him to come along, R’nd declined. He didn’t really have any insight to offer since he’d never Searched before and had no proof that Ayyonth was capable so it would have been a waste of a spot at the meeting.

Of course he was curious the entire time it was happening and R’nd had to find something to keep himself busy so he wouldn’t ask Ayyonth to ask Larrikith what was happening. He ended up checking in with T’bia; his adorable protégé of sorts. The kid had terrible luck, lacked coordination, and had the oddest questions that made him believe even odder things but he had somehow come out of the landslide without a mark. R’nd had been relieved since he had grown fond of T’bia and felt a friendly visit would help them both.

He had only returned to the tent a few minutes before B’jin when the greenrider was suddenly flinging himself at R’nd. Normally he was prepared for such things and could balance them out but this time, R’nd hadn’t expected to have such an excited lover returning to him after meeting with S’kef and ended up toppling to the ground and playing soft landing cushion for B’jin.

The entire exchange between Larrikith and B’jin happened before R’nd could even ask what he was supposed to be guessing about. He stared up at B’jin, blinking the only thing he did for several seconds before finally breaking into a large grin of his own. “Real Search?” That was amazing news! It opened up quite a few questions as well but R’nd was stuck on being excited for his friends and grabbing onto the hope that he could one day be among their ranks.

Wait, what was the pleading tone for? R’nd ran his hands up and down B’jin’s thighs as he played back the last few seconds again and finally gave a confused look. “I don’t think blueriders are supposed to tag along as escorts.” Normally bronzeriders liked doing that since it made them feel important and like they had any say in who should be Searched. R’nd’s personal belief was that they were all shallow and wanted to make sure the gold Candidates were physically appealing and to start courting them for favour.

Ayyonth rumbled with amusement at everyone’s antics and returned Larrikith’s greeting with a nuzzling of cheeks. Smiles and happiness were in short supply still, even a month after the mud swept through everything and Ayyonth couldn’t help but quietly take it all in and enjoy it, without needing to actively be a part of it. He’d simply add his own persuasion to the reluctant man sprawled on the floor, including Larrikith and B’jin as well. We did find our current new home, R’nd. Imagine what we could do on Search to help all of those eggs ready to hatch.

B’jin spluttered out a soft laugh at R’nd’s expression, and the dear bluerider’s confused reply as the Harper’s hands relocated themselves from R’nd’s chest, to gently pause the rather distracting way his lover’s hands were warming up his thighs. A coy, cheeky smile played around B’jin’s lips as he raised his eyebrows at R’nd. “You? Escort me?” B’jin’s eyebrows arched up a little higher and he shifted his weight just slightly with airs of innocence before leaning in closer to the bluerider, so their noses were almost touching. “You think they’d actually let you escort me on official business?” Brown eyes sparkled as B’jin kissed R’nd on the tip of his nose. “Silly lover.”

Sliding backwards, B’jin made himself comfortable in R’nd’s lap, and shifted his grip so he could help haul his the bluerider into a sitting position; B’jin curled his legs around R’nd and wrapped his arms loosely around the blueriders neck. “I want you to come on Search with me,” the greenrider’s voice settled slightly, more serious as he frowned just barely up at R’nd, eyes searching his lover’s face. “S’kef’s allowing the adult riders to go, even Katilan Impressed, and even if Ayyonth isn’t Search sensitive, Larri can tell him who to pick. We don’t usually bother with green and blue, but she can still pick them out.” B’jin hated the way green and blueriders were forced to live, and could never imagine willingly bringing someone into that type of lifestyle; in addition, the prestige for searching gold and bronzeriders was better.

B’jin’s face was a picture of childish hope as he paused and allowed R’nd to take in what he had said, before wriggling slightly, suddenly nervous. “I—well, S’kef said we had to Search the outer regions; the little villages and stuff? So the Holds don’t hear about us yet, but…” He frowned and paused suddenly, slightly terrified by the fact that he had been so caught up he had lost the ability to speak clearly. A scowl fixed itself on B’jin’s face as he considered how to finish the question he was trying to ask, before puffing out a breath and his face smoothed out. “I was born in a little village in the Lemos’ region, and I thought maybe we could start there?”

The greenrider’s face heated up slightly, and he grimaced. The little area wasn’t home, not like the Harper Hall was, or Telgar Weyr, but it was wher he had been born, and B’jin hadn’t been back there since he was ten years old. He had no idea if the place was still around or if it had grown or who lived there; it would be an adventure of sorts! But he knew no one there would have ever seen dragons – not even the oldest folks – and he was also aware that it was a long distance of travel from the main hold. It was a good place to start a Search… Right?

R’nd stared up at his excited lover, confused and a tad insulted. He should have known he gave voice to a silly idea. B’jin was one of the best Searchriders they had; nearly everyone he had brought to Katila had landed on gold and bronze – with T’lian coming in close on a brown. R’nd, on the other hand, had Impressed seven turns earlier and Ayyonth had never been tested for Searching or been given a chance to show if he could. There was also the fact that being an escort really only meant you gave opinions on the pretty girls that would be nice to have on a gold. If he were to do such a thing, everyone would likely earn a seal of approval from the flirtatious bluerider that the entire Weyr knew slept around and found everyone attractive in their own ways.

As if reading some of his thoughts, B’jin’s idea of cheating and passing off the lesser desired colours to be on their record made R’nd frown. He settled himself comfortably in a seated position as B’jin adjusted the way he sat and held on. It was hard to be upset with the greenrider in general, but even harder when the man was so clearly into the idea of Searching properly once more. Some days, it was obvious B’jin didn’t want to be a dragonrider and pined for his old pampered life of a Harper but then there were moments where the man shined and seemed to bask in the glory and honour of being a dragonrider. He respected the longing of the old days but loved seeing B’jin flourish as the perfect example of a dragonrider R’nd had always viewed him as. Really, the arrogance only added to B’jin’s charm.

“Someone needs to bring in people for the blue and green dragonets, so who better than me?” R’nd’s expression finally moved away from a confused pout into a gentle smile as a hand lifted to brush through B’jin’s hair. The idea grew on him a bit more with each passing second of silence. Even if Ayyonth turned out not to be Search sensitive, they could at least pretend for the trip. The guilt of lying would end up being too much for him to continue after that but the large clutch on the Sands moving closer and closer to hatching, deserved the fib at least.

B’jin’s wriggling in nervousness worried R’nd and his hand slowly fell away from the task of playing with blonde hair. What else had been said in the meeting? What other rule would they be bending in order to get him to tag along? R’nd was ready for just about anything to be thrown at him when B’jin finally found the words to explain what he wanted to do. R’nd sat quietly, staring at his lover while taking in the suggestion of where they should go. So many thoughts were flying around his head that he wasn’t sure which one to latch onto first. He had never left the Benden region and in truth really never left the minor Hold he had grown up in. He had once confessed that to B’jin and how he desired to see more of the land and even be allowed to step foot in a proper Hall just to see what they were like so to be given a chance to see even a portion of Lemos was something R’nd couldn’t pass up. To know that it was where B’jin was born, even if it sounded like he spent more time at Harper Hall and Telgar than anything else, made the idea even more compelling.

A sudden kiss was given to the greenrider that sometimes baffled the words right out of him to the point that actions had to be used to express himself. “Sounds perfect, love,” R’nd finally replied after giving up on figuring out how to explain the excitement that lit up his eyes and had his smile growing. A chance to see the North again after leaving it for exile, a chance to see if Ayyonth could Search and fulfill the dream of being like R’jit and B’jin as an amazing Searchrider, and a chance to see a small piece of B’jin’s history. He’d be a fool to turn it down and stay hidden away in the tiny tent he now had to call home.

B’jin had not meant to be insulting, and likely would have been upset if he had realised R’nd had even considered taking his words in such a light. Truthfully, the greenrider simply found the idea of R’nd escorting him somewhere highly amusing and was fairly positive no one would trust them to go gallivanting off around the globe without getting side-tracked at least once. B’jin liked to think he was above such things, but he was able to be honest enough with himself (over some things, at least) to know that the chances of him and R’nd going on Search, alone, without getting side-tracked… well, that just wasn’t something that would happen.

B’jin laughed softly at R’nd’s rhetorical question, the sound delighted and relieved both as he enjoyed the casual finger combing R’nd was bestowing upon his hair, and he barely noticed the way it stopped when he spoke; he was taken rather by surprise by the kiss R’nd gave, brown eyes opening wide. Not that, of course, he could not work with it! B’jin wrapped his arms tighter around R’nd’s neck and inched closer to his love with a happy hum.

This would be a prime example of why they’re sending escorts along, Larrikith put in, both loudly and with snide amusement. B’jin just grinned and pressed another kiss to R’nd’s lips before resting his forehead against the blueriders. Browneyes studied his lover in amusement. “Did your gear survive?” B’jin’s own had been lost in the disaster, but he had no doubt that some new ones could be put together in short order! He was not going to go on Search looking like a muddy southern monster!

“I have to make Larrikith new straps.” Those had been lost, too, but B’jin was also disinclined to strap two people to the mischievous green without knowing they were one-hundred-percent in top condition. “S’kef said we can start on the third.” That did not leave a lot of time to get everything done, but B’jin was confident and his smile was radiant. I want a bath, too! And a proper oiling! B’jin gave a breathy laugh that was far more of a giggle.

With how distracted they always ended up thanks to getting caught up in each other, R’nd was coming around to see what B’jin had truly meant by his comment that they could go anywhere on official business without a chaperone. ‘Escort’ may have been the fancy term used, but in the end, at least with them involved, it boiled down to someone making sure they kept their hands to themselves. A wicked grin crept into place when B’jin’s forehead rested on his as he wondered who they would get stuck with and how much fun they could have messing with him. He might have been counted as one of the sweeter men and blueriders but R’nd still enjoyed a little fun and mischief when he could get away with it.

“It did but I’ll inspect everything thoroughly before we go,” it wouldn’t do to have shoddy gear and even a knick in a riding strap would leave him too nervous to transport someone else with him. The excitement and nervousness of being allowed to go on Search was starting to truly sink in and R’nd wanted to make sure it went perfectly and without a single bump. How embarrassing would it be for B’jin, the man that seemed to have a knack for Searching men and women that Impressed gold, bronze, and the occasional brown, be out on Search with a mess of a bluerider that wasn’t presentable and managed to mess something up? Everything was going to be perfect on his end, right down to shining buckles, spotless boots, and not a single smudge on a strap.

You should get your hair trimmed as well. Perhaps soak more in the springs you found. You certainly don’t do that enough as it is, what started out as a genuine idea quickly turned into the usual sarcasm and R’nd rolled his eyes at the dragon’s comment that was shared with everyone. It was true; he had enjoyed a bit of extra time in the hot springs since discovering the area but free time was precious and a relaxing soak was a nice way to unwind after a day of rebuilding and attempting to forget the pain and losses that were still too fresh in his mind. “I’ll freshen my appearance after the gear and Ayyonth’s beauty needs,” R’nd amended with a light laugh. Dragons could be such a hassle some days!

B’jin smiled, the expression containing some relief. “That’s good!” B’jin was not looking forward to wrangling someone into creating a full new outfit for him, and knew he’d have to go and do said wrangling as soon as he and R’nd had finished their current conversation; he wasn’t going to get stuck sewing his own when there were perfectly good journeymen for such creations. He just had to get to one of them before all the other Searchriders – and their potential escorts - did! He would probably have to take Larrikith hunting to get some of the bigger wherry-beasts, with more hide, in the process. Actual wherhide would be better, but B’jin did not fancy risking his dragon in order to kill a wild one; they would just have to rectify that when they got back North!

“This is going to be so much fun!” B’jin was practically wriggling with glee as he leaned forward to press a light kiss to R’nd’s lips, brown eyes far away. Of course, he knew that the most obvious response they would get would be terror - no one had seen a dragon in so very long, and then on top of that, the outskirts S’kef wanted them to all visit were practically ignored by the dragonriders pre-plague. The chance of even the eldest of the communities having seen a dragon was incredibly low. He would be shocked if any of them reacted with anything but abject terror. At least at first!

B’jin’s fingers raked through R’nd’s hair gently and he studied his lover’s face carefully as he considered what Ayyonth had said; the jab against bathing had been laughed at, but otherwise mostly ignored and it had taken a few minutes for the first comment to truly sink in. “Only a trim?” B’jin asked, trying not to let the tiny frown form at the idea of R’nd losing the majority of his hair; he liked R’nd’s hair as it was! Just as he knew the bluerider liked his own with a bit of extra length to it; it currently fell just shy of reaching his shoulders, and was mostly pulled back into a short, somewhat stubby tail.

“Mm,” B’jin opted to fall back on R’nd’s last comment, as he continued to play with his lover’s hair. “Dragons are so pushy,” and demanding and unthankful and B’jin ignored Larrikith’s grumbled input as he shifted his seat, curling his legs around R’nd’s waist and hooking his ankles together. “Pity you can’t get up,” the words were spoken with airs of innocence as he peered up at R’nd from under his lashes. B’jin was quite sure R’nd was more than capable of hauling him around if he chose to, but with a starting position of being sat on, on the floor, even his strength was not in the bluerider’s favour! B’jin grinned brightly.

Didn’t you need to secure someone to put together a new set of riding clothes? The green’s voice was droll and B’jin could feel the mental eyeroll she was giving him. Yes, but the next few days were going to be so busy! B’jin sighed dramatically and uncoiled his legs, a little, with a grimace. There was surely nothing worse than Larrikith being right! “Should probably do that,” he mumbled, scrunching his nose up and contemplating getting up – though he did not actually move to do so. If they took care of their nosy dragons, and the clothes and the riding straps, there would be time left before the date of first search… Right?

“Only a trim, I promise. I’m about due for one.” He wasn’t a fan of seeing himself with shorter hair than what he currently had. It looked odd on him and R’nd felt it made him look much younger than needed as well. He already had good genes and now he had Ayyonth’s longevity affecting his aging rate so any other factor that made him look like he was barely into his twenties was avoided. Besides, shorter hair meant less for B’jin to play with when they were cozied up to each other and that was something else R’nd didn’t want to mess with – even if the fingers in his hair always made it a mess.

R’nd grinned at supposedly being trapped on the ground by a clinging greenrider. He was sure he could at least roll them to the side and gain the advantage some way once B’jin’s back was on the ground but R’nd was more inclined to stay as he was, at the mercy of his lover that was taking control. If B’jin wanted to pin him down and direct where their excited energy was going, R’nd was more than willing to follow along. When the feet loosened thanks to a nosy dragon butting in, however, a pout found itself on the bluerider’s lips once more.

It was so hard to find time together with everything that was going on and even harder to find things to smile and laugh about still that R’nd wasn’t overly thrilled with the idea of parting ways just yet. It wasn’t like he was going to try distracting B’jin or insisting he was more important that preparations, though! Truth was, he was just as excited to go on Search and just as ready to start preparing and making sure everything looked perfect but he was still afraid Ayyonth and he wouldn’t live up to expectations in one way or another. Maybe he was the one that needed a bit of distracting.

“Leave the finding someone for your new gear to me, love. I have favours I can call in. You’ll only need to show up for measurements.” There was never a need to explain how he came across so many people willing to help him out for next to nothing and until B’jin decided he didn’t want such favours to be used on him, R’nd was willing to use them all to make the greenrider happy and less stressed. “They’ll do quick but still high quality work so you won’t have anything to worry about and,” R’nd paused with a wicked grin and gave a kiss filled with promise and desire, “we’ll have more time together before the first trip.”

The pout alone was very convincing and B’jin felt his disinclination to move only grow as sad grey eyes stared at him. The greenrider pouted right on back, completely oblivious to how ridiculous the pair of them were being. One hand lifted slightly to play with strands of R’nd’s hair. He’d have to do Weyrling stuff before long; Larrikith sighed and spoke loudly enough for her complaint to be heard by R’nd and Ayyonth both: Most of them are bathing, the rest are eating. N’mor and Rhezlath are fine, so leave them alone. Honestly! The silly man was smothering his poor son, even if that smothering mostly came in the form of fluttering around on the outskirts and wringing his hands.

B’jin’s pout deepened for a moment, but it was quickly removed by R’nd’s offer. The greenrider’s smile was bright and he leaned in to peck a light kiss on his lover’s lips. “You’re the best,” he promised, falling easily into the kiss R’nd bestowed, eyes dark and lusty when the bluerider broke it off and spoke some more. More time sounded fantastic, and B’jin’s little smile was curved with devilish intent. “Sounds wonderful,” he murmured, tone lost somewhere between thoughtful and husky lust. Practiced fingers left R’nd’s hair to work their magic on the loose ties at the neck of his shirt.

Eager fingers slipped under R’nd’s shirt, inching it up the bluerider’s torso with slow movements that kept his hands against hot skin; the shirt was eased over R’nd’s head and B’jin brushed some stray hair off his lover’s face with a vague little smile. Rather than tossing the item aside, as he might have done some other time, B’jin shot R’nd a sly sideways look as he took the time to dramatically – and very slowly – fold the shirt up and place it carefully off to the side.

Despite the appearances that might indicate otherwise, B’jin did actually have a great deal of respect for R’nd’s wardrobe. Unfortunately, B’jin had a childish streak, wherein pressing buttons was something he needed to do – he just couldn’t help it – and torturing R’nd’s clothing was a particularly harmless (mostly) way of poking at the bluerider. In his own, twisted sort of way, it was a form of B’jin’s affection. Despite that, he could be nice to his friend’s clothing… It just usually came with the added bonus of continuing to frustrate the man.

With the shirt set aside and promptly forgotten, B’jin eyed R’nd’s chest appreciatively for a few moments, before proceeding to pepper little kisses across his collarbone, from left shoulder to right shoulder. Lavender-oil-softened fingers continued their exploration of the revealed skin, a slightly amused and sly expression on B’jin’s face – daring R’nd to say something about his current methods of play – as teeth nibbled up the side of the bluerider’s neck. His eager fingers were making a slow and playful trek down to the ties of R’nd’s pants when B’jin paused.

Brown eyes narrowed slightly as B’jin sat up a little, tilting his head just slightly. He could half hear Larrikith having a conversation with someone else, the green clearly going out of her way to exclude him from whatever was going on. His lips pursed as he poked at her mentally, concerned – and not overly reassured by her rather vague response that it was Weyrling related, that they were fine, and to go back to ‘whatever’ he was doing. B’jin hesitated for several more seconds before catching R’nd’s face, and B’jin’s own expression softened. Leaning in, wrapping his arms once more around the bluerider’s neck, B’jin initiated a deep kiss, surrendering control to R’nd in the process.