[G] [C] 731.06.04 | Wish Upon a Wherry [Valerian]

No.

"What?"

No no no, no no no! The newly hatched dragonet creeled sadly, a large piece of meat slipping out of her jaws and back into the bucket that she had started plowing into. Her faceted eyes had swished across the Hatching Sands to land on her favorite Candidate, and then landed dangerously on the dragonet that had suddenly claimed him.

"For Faranth's sake, what Charath?"

Veeth did not ask me if it was okay to pick him. No. Veeth can go find some backwater tunnelsnake instead. The dragonet stubbornly stomped her front two legs simultaneously into the sand, forgetting completely about her ravenous hunger. Veeth hadn't even gotten close enough for her to inspect him properly, and she had already decided that he was not good enough for Valerian. Her fussing did not go unnoticed by Erisi, but he was already feeling jaded about Charath's fascination over Valerian. She was his dragonet, right? He hadn't even wanted one! So, having gotten one, he was now subjected to a cruel punishment of her liking someone else above him.

I didn't pick him. I picked you. Tell Veeth to pick someone else.

"What?" It was all Erisi was apparently capable of saying at a time like this. Only then did he realize that Valerian was headed his way with a dragonet in tow. It was probably the best thing Erisi could have seen at that time - because while he was mildly jealous over Charath's affection of Valerian, he did not want to be doing this Weyrling thing alone. If he had no choice but to go through with this, he wanted someone he considered a genuine friend to be by his side. Erisi was still sure he didn't even want this lifestyle. He liked Charath fine, loved her even, but that did not make him feel inclined to love everything that involved dragons now. There was still a huge prejudice against dragonriders in Erisi's mind.

"Valerian!" Erisi called out to his friend, though his voice was overshadowed by Charath's attempt to trumpet at Veeth.

I did not say you could pick him! she scolded the Blue with all the impatience Erisi had developed in his lifetime.

Valerian was still in a state of shock over everything that had happened over the last couple of hours including how he now had a blue dragonet walking beside him. The oddest thing of all was that it wasn’t simply any blue dragonet, but his. Veeth had chosen him and it seemed like it was a decision made almost from when the shell cracked with how easy and quickly their moment of meeting had passed. So now he had a lifemate and the biggest concern he currently faced was finding Veeth food. Too bad even that task felt a bit overwhelming but when he saw Erisi and the little green beside him, Valerian sighed in relief. At least he would have someone else to figure things out with.

As he opened his mouth to acknowledge Erisi’s flagging him down, Veeth’s high-pitched voice sliced through his mind, ending that idea. I do not need your permission! Veeth’s tone had taken on a defence edge and nearly bristled at the berating he received for no reason at all. Who did Charath think she was deeming him unworthy of the talented little Harper? He was the best match for Valerian and the bratty green no doubt knew that but couldn’t accept it.

Veeth turned to Erisi as they approached the pair, sitting down daintily beside his bonded and Valerian was surprised by the warm affection his little blue radiated for his friend after the chilly reception with the green dragon. I feel bad for him. His life will be so complicated and loud now. Unsure of what to say that, or even why Veeth was now showing interest in his friend at such a level, Valerian turned his attention on Erisi as well.

“How are you holding up? Pretty memorable night so far, huh?”

You do! I sat on him first! Charath rallied back against Veeth, her unnaturally dark voice broadcasted for every dragon in the vicinity to hear - along with her bonded. Erisi had little idea as to why Charath was acting so possessive over Valerian. It was only adding on to his now immense list of things that were wrong with his life. He was having trouble coming to terms with the fact that his life was completely changed now, and thus did not need to also cope with the fact that his dragonet would not behave herself. She was acting like he did on bad days, which was, well... he guessed it made sense, considering she had picked him. That did not mean he enjoyed this revelation, though.

"Charath," Erisi scolded, his voice strained. "Leave Valerian's dragon alone. You didn't pick him, you have no right to try and claim him." He was still mildly affronted by Charath's blatant favoritism of his friend. At least, dealing with Charath kept his mind away from the reality of his predicament. Erisi was probably one of the last people that were expected to actually Impress. Some people were probably even shocked that he had showed up, let alone the fact that he had attracted a dragonet. Sure, him Impressing Green wasn't that much of a surprise once he did Impress.

I like him. I just want to be sure he didn't get stuck with one of my stupid siblings. Charath's voice softened just subtly, as if to imply a verbal pouting, but even with an obvious effort to soften her voice it was harsh and raspy.

"I... don't know," Erisi admitted to Valerian, patting the spot next to him on the sand and inviting Valerian to sit down with him. "I'm so confused. I don't think I really know what's going on, and Charath won't stop talking long enough for me to get my head on straight."

Normally, he was much better at schooling his expressions but given the maulings he had witnessed and Impressing, Valerian was a bit out of sorts and didn’t stop the shock at Erisi’s words while he scolded the green dragonet.  Did Touching the eggs actually do something more than please older riders who held some odd superstitions? Valerian knew Charath came from the first egg he had Touched, the one that had embraced him and left him feeling, well, trusted and important to someone. He had been close to Impressing the green as well before Erisi was chosen but that also made sense since they were fairly similar in personality. Whichever reason it was, he had somehow made his own little impression on another green, Larrikith being the first and boy was she something else entirely, and he gave a soft chuckle while sitting down next to Erisi.

“As the person everyone seems to be bickering over, do I get a say in this? I don’t mind your dragon being fond of me. Charath, was it?” He turned his gaze to the dragonet in question and gave her a small smile which earned Veeth huffing in annoyance as he moved closer to Valerian, a sense of smug satisfaction in his actions emanating clearly. “After all, it would suck if the lifemate of one of my friends hated me and ruined our friendship.” His gaze moved from one dragonet to the other as he patted Veeth on the head. Veeth was sitting near him, seeming to stake a claim but his attention was on Erisi as he ignored Charath. It seemed the little cross-Impression went both ways which made the Harper relax a bit more. It didn’t seem like there was any need to worry about the dragons hating the bonded; just each other.

“This is Veeth, by the way. He’s been worried about you and your loss of silence with how much Charath likes to talk. But, I know what you mean. I wasn’t sure I would Impress or if I wanted to anymore and it happened so quickly.” He wanted to tell Erisi he was glad that they had both Impressed and would be together in the next portion of the new life adventure but Valerian couldn’t quite tell if his friend was ready to think about that just yet and turned his attention back to his blue.

“Veeth, you better eat. I can tell you’re hungry.” Veeth glanced at the bucket of food that did seem delicious but he looked back at Valerian and in a near-snooty tone replied, I’ll get dirty if I stick my head in there. Can you arrange for different eating arrangements?

“Are you serious?” It figured he had to get a difficult dragonet that simply couldn’t dive right in like so many of the others around them. “Just eat, Veeth. I’ll make sure you’re properly cleaned up afterwards.” He silently thanked B’jin and Larrikith for showing him how to bathe a dragon because he had a feeling he’d be doing a lot of it and as soon as possible.

If you do not eat it, I will. Charath told Veeth smugly, proud of herself for being able to eat her share and then contemplate eating her sibling's. She would be larger than Krypth at this rate! The silly Gold was too busy fussing over her bonded to realize that Charath had gotten a head start on eating more than her. Krypth was going to be a pathetically small Gold, and Charath was going to be the best Green in the entire Weyr!

"You have to finish your's first," Erisi reminded her with a sigh, holding the bucket out to her so that she could return to her meal. He tried very hard not to actually look at the contents in the bucket, assuming correctly that they would gross him out. With Charath finally dealt with, Erisi could turn his attention back to Valerian, relieved by the momentary silence Charath's meal provided him. He was terribly fond of the little Green, but she was already testing his limits. Erisi was completely out of his element, and Charath was a handful. At first, Charath hadn't seemed all that unruly, but now that he could actually hear her, that thought had to be amended.

"Yes, her name is Charath. She won't... stop talking about you," he groaned, letting on to his annoyance over Charath's behavior. "She's completely fixated on you, when she's not eating, of course. But you're right, at least she doesn't hate you." Of course, she was well on her way to disliking Veeth. It was likely that the poor Blue would never reach whatever standards she had put on him for being Valerian's bonded. Charath was terribly alike Erisi in one obvious way - they did not like many people easily. That Valerian had slipped past both of their defenses was a miracle. Erisi couldn't place any fault on Veeth for being incapable of making the same achievement.

"He's..." Erisi suddenly realized that he had no idea how to compliment a dragonet, and that alone was a sore reminder of how much he had ignored this world in hopes of avoiding it. "Very charming. But, I didn't think I would, you know? I was convinced I wouldn't. I'm pretty sure everyone thought I wouldn't." He had taken comfort in that - knowledge that no one really believed that he actually would Impress, besides the person that had Searched him. His attitude should have scared off all of the dragonets - it was a wonder why Charath was so attracted to it.

You're mine. That's all there is to it. He is nice, amazing even, but he is not you. Charath replied, complimenting Valerian a little too extravagantly in comparison to how she spoke to Erisi. She did not think he would need it, but one sidelong glance to her own bonded made her rethink her words. If you were less, or even with Valerian, I would not have chosen you. You are better. Magnificent. At least she was... trying to comfort Erisi.

"I really don't want to be a dragonrider," Erisi said finally. He loved Charath, and she was his dragon, annoying and charming all at the same time. But, that did not make him want to be a part of this Weyr.

I will eat my share and finish yours, Veeth countered, his voice as gentle as ever before moving with dignified purpose to the bucket that had been placed for him. I would hate to see such a …fine female as yourself gain any unnecessary pounds from indulging too much. With that, he daintily stuck his head in the bucket, mouth cautiously reaching for the first bite and pulling out to eat. Valerian was vaguely impressed by the move and how clean the blue remained. For now.

He still couldn’t get over the flattery of having Charath fixated on him but Valerian sensed that was going to be a sensitive spot with Erisi for some time to come. Normally he wouldn’t have held back on stating opinions but with some people that were counted as friends, Valerian was learning to save some comments for another time. Everything was currently still so new and emotions were being sorted as their own or the dragonet’s, and given how completed they felt with the little creatures bonded to them, it made sense to be bothered or jealous of their wandering attentions. Your kindness when it comes to your friends is one of the reasons I chose you. Valerian watched as Veeth snatched another piece of meat and chewed it thoughtfully as he regarded Erisi. You’re a good companion for him.

All right, he took back some of the previous thoughts. He was going to make a small mention on it after all, “well, it seems Veeth has taken a liking to you as well. He seems to have your best interests in mind quite a bit.” With the more Veeth mentioned Erisi, Valerian could see how Charath’s obsession with him could become annoying but for now, the Harper liked it and hoped the little guy would take well to Talian as well. Oh, and if Talian would even want to meet their dragonets. That wasn’t something he wanted to dwell on right then, especially not with Erisi needing more reassurances that everything was still okay. If he could do it since Valerian wasn’t sure himself what the future would now bring.

“I didn’t really think you would Impress either, or I guess I hoped you wouldn’t since I knew you didn’t want it. But it happened, to both of us, and I’m glad it did,” Valerian grimaced as Veeth pulled out a longer piece of entrails and worked his way through it. Seriously, couldn’t dragons be vegetarian or at least enjoy properly cooked chunks of meat? He scooted around just enough so he was facing his friend more than the dining dragonets and offered a smile before continuing with the thoughts he had only just decided moments before to hold off on sharing, “I think it’ll be easier on us to have a friend to talk to that knows what it’s like and understands. But as to being a dragonrider… what does that really mean right now? You’ve seen them, they train, sure, but for the most part they just relax and do their normal routines with a dragon walking beside them. I think we can handle that.”

He glanced back to Veeth and sent a silent apology for what he was about to say since he didn’t want to upset his lifemate but Erisi was in need of any idea to latch onto right then to help lift his spirits, “if nothing else, think of dragons as the ultimate accessory that most people would die to have. You’re the envy of many now, Eri.”

I am almost done with mine, and you've yet to gorge your blue hide on your own. Charath squawked with displeasure at Veeth's next comment - she was not a stupid dragonet by far, and was cunning enough to feel the hesitance in Veeth's voice over calling her 'fine'. I hate to see a meal wasted on such a... a, uh, reasonable male. She answered with a snort, 'reasonable' being the best thing she could think of, which was an insult in and of itself. Charath glanced over to her bonded, as if expecting a scolding for her attitude towards Veeth. Fortunately, Erisi was distracted enough by Valerian's ever-helpful presence that Charath got away with it.

"Good, maybe he'll pay more attention to me than my own drago-"

Oh, come on.

"-net." Erisi continued, sending his green a sly smile as she stopped her momentary feast to 'glower' at him. It looked as if they were a perfect match, both could annoy one another just the right amount and still love each other at the end of the day.

"I'm glad for her of course, but not the implications of what belonging to her means." He sighed, running stressed fingers through his dark hair. Valerian had always been able to go with the flow, but Erisi was considerably less adaptable when he didn't want to change. Valerian knew that this wasn't the lifestyle Erisi had desired, in fact, it was likely that everyone in the Weyr knew he didn't want this life. It was up for debate whether he'd finally adapt, or try and find his own path somehow. "This just isn't what I pictured my own life. I liked being a Journeyman Harper only, wandering about, doing what I wanted when I wanted. There was a certain amount of freedom in it that I'll never find here. I thought I was done with the lessons, the routine, I paid my dues towards that enough. And then everything gets uprooted so they can have just one more dragonrider."

Charath had stopped eating entirely, casting her bonded a worried look. It'll be okay. You are the best, and you will make it okay. You are mine, and I am the best too. If you don't, I will. She tried to reassure Erisi with gentle words, and while her voice was naturally acidic and dark, Erisi could hear the warm tone in them. It was soothing and reassuring. The combination of Valerian and Charath was working wonders on getting Erisi to calm down and come to terms with what was happening.

"Heh," Erisi finally answered with a short laugh. "Charath would be the worst accessory ever, but I imagine Kerrin's pretty jealous, huh? And that Ly-slime-ah chick. Did she even get a dragonet to look at her?" By some miracle, Valerian's ploy had worked.

Some of us have manners and don’t wish to make a spectacle of themselves while eating, love. Veeth stuck his nose in the air in what Valerian deemed an excellent imitation of a hoity lord holder. His dragonet was going to be interesting to deal with since he had a feeling this was only a warm up of what was to come. He also felt Veeth was holding back on the gorging that he actually wanted to do given the hunger pains Valerian was still feeling and urged his dragon to stop talking and finish eating.

“I’m not too excited at being stuck in even more classes either. I didn’t even want to go back to teaching classes and now I’m the student again.” Valerian suspected in several turns he would be teaching Candidates or maybe even Weyrlings given his background as a teaching Harper and having had gone through all of the Katila lessons already. That wasn’t really something to look forward to and was best not to think too much on that just yet. “Well, I’m glad you’re that one more dragonrider and not some of the dimglows we’ve been stuck with. And I have a feeling these two will make classes interesting for us at least.” If their dragonets’ constant bickering didn’t drive one or both of them insane first. Why did Veeth and Charath have to focus on each other so much in such a way?

When Erisi laughed at the accessory comment and seemed to accept it as a reasonable distraction to his current distress, Valerian laughed with him. “Can’t say I was paying attention to her. I can’t even remember seeing her out there,” not that he was looking for her or did more than track the progress of the hatchlings and his group of friends, “but I’m sure she’ll have a complete fit at you Impressing which makes this moment even better. As for Kerrin…” Valerian looked back to the entrance, still hoping the spunky weyrbrat would come strolling through with enough arrogance in his swagger to knock back even a seasoned bronze or brownrider. But he never came through. That didn’t bode well, unless his dragonet was okay with checking on Indivara first.

But there was one person that came through the entranceway that earned Valerian gawking. “I don’t believe it. Allendris actually did have a bronze waiting for him.” He hadn’t seen that one coming. Well, he wasn’t surprised that it was a bronze he Impressed but the simple idea that his quiet and borderline boring friend could attract the interest of any dragonet didn’t quite take hold.

It's the only way you'd stand out. I'm surprised your's even noticed you - your blandness is mind-numbing. What had been mildly playful banter was now less so, Charath puffing her chest up in challenge. She did not like Veeth, and now she was going to make sure he knew it! He had gone off and Impressed Valerian without her say, and now he was insulting her! In the end, what Charath managed to accomplish was completely shocking her bonded by her charring words.

"Charath," he hissed at her, reaching out to give her tail a sharp pull.

That is what he gets! You did not hear what he said to me! I don't like him!

"Just because you don't like them doesn't mean you have to be a wherry's ass to them." Of course, Erisi was the exactly same way Charath was - he was just taking the higher road in this situation. Besides, he valued Valerian's friendship, and he really was not going to let Charath get in the way of that. "Apologize to Veeth. Now."

No.

"Charath."

No!

"I will give Veeth your share."

There was a prolonged silence between the pair, and then a heavy sigh. I am sorry, Veeth. Her acid voice spoke his name with an even darker consistency than Erisi thought possible. Well, at least it was a step in the right direction. He wasn't going to press her for more than that.

"Hah, so me Impressing is only good because it saves you from being stuck with a bunch of dimglows?" Erisi replied to Valerian with an amused arch of his brow. "Well, that makes me feel so much better," he added with a chipper tone, which meant he was being completely and utterly sarcastic. Valerian was bringing up some valid points about his Impression, though. Later on, the actual problems with being a dragonrider would rise up in the front of his mind again, but right now he decided to take it on as a mild victory over every Candidate who had failed (probably Lymsleia especially).

"I think I'll go see her, just to rub Charath into her face. And yes, Charath, Lymsleia is free game. You can prank her all you like." Erisi had a smug smile on his face, which was a far better expression than what he had been carrying earlier.

"Oh, hey, it's your boyfriend," Erisi purred. He was making fun of the way Valerian and Allendris had been holding hands earlier. "Too bad he Impressed bronze. Might make him out of your league." Fortunately, Charath didn't really care about the ongoing conversation - she was too busy glaring at Veeth from over the top of her bucket of food.

While Veeth took some pleasure in the scolding Charath received from their bickering, he tried to hide it, stuffing his head back in the bucket of food. He was still carefully grabbing each piece of meat but his hunger finally became too much to ignore and there was more urgency in his movements from the speed of chewing and the frequency of dipping in for more meat. It was due to the hunger but also the satisfaction that the wicked green was in trouble that Veeth didn’t make any further comments. He didn’t even acknowledge the less than heartfelt apology. He was done playing with her and since Valerian didn’t seem to mind his antics but was now distracted with other things, there wasn’t a point in dealing with Charath any longer.

“My boyfriend?” It took Valerian only a moment to wonder why Erisi viewed Allendris and him as a couple. They roomed together and were seen in each other’s company sometimes outside of the Barracks. Valerian also had a new habit of grabbing the glass-smith’s hand and dragging him places, knowing Allendris would either take his sweet time getting there or not want to go at all. That was what happened earlier with getting to the Hatching and walking around the sands. He supposed the way he didn’t let go of that hand after finding Erisi didn’t help stop any rumours that may have been cropping up. “Anyway, why would ranking stop me from going after something or someone I wanted? C’mon, Eri, you know I follow rules when I have to but slip around others where I can.”

You could fly a goldrider if you wanted. Krypth is fun and should be loved as much as any green. Veeth had worked his way through the remainder of his bucket with impressive speed given his eating habits and moved to sit beside Valerian, eyes swirling with content as he watched the little queen enter the room soon after Allendris. I’m done eating for now. Clean me like you promised, please, and let’s go chat with the others. I know you want to see them both.

Rolling his eyes, Valerian grabbed at the hem of his robe and lifted it towards Veeth, wiping at his snout the best he could. What did he care if his robe was dirty and ruined? It wasn’t like Valerian had any interest in wearing the thing ever again and while he could be sentimental in song, he didn’t need to keep the hideous thing as a physical reminder of the night he met Veeth. Besides, wasn’t having the blue dragon in his life already a daily reminder of the Hatching? As he scrubbed at his dragonet that sat primly, tail swishing idly as he enjoyed being pampered and cleaned, Valerian cast a quick glance to Erisi and Charath, “Veeth wants to go socialize. Do you want to come with us?” Of course what he was really asking was if Erisi was feeling a bit better. More importantly, it was a statement of unity; they were Harpers together but also friends and Valerian had no plans on leaving anyone behind now that he had Veeth, whether they had a dragonet tailing behind them or not.

"That's your problem, you still follow most rules," Erisi teased with an easy smile. It was less stressful to engage in playful banter than it was to think about the implications of his Impression. Right now, he desperately did not want to be plagued by thoughts of the future. He wanted to live in the here and now with Charath, in this moment where nothing else mattered beyond the bond that they shared. Sooner or later, he'd have to revisit the thoughts that Valerian had distracted him from. Knowing Erisi, it'd be sooner rather than later. He was a pessimistic personality to begin with, and the only good thing about Impressing Charath was her. There were going to be a lot more things added to his life because he was with her that he could do without.

By the time Veeth had finished with his meal, Charath had already consumed her's. She did have a noticeable head-start on her blue sibling, though. That did not prevent her from taking some pride in her victory over the picky blue. She would have tried to steal a few bites from his bucket, but Erisi had caught onto that train of thought quickly enough to prevent it from happening. He had one hand on her neck, a gentle reminder that the only one of the pair who was going to be stirring up trouble right now was him. You're not being any fun, Charath complained, but as he started to pet her again she calmed down.

However, stopping her now surely meant that she'd come back at him with a vengeance later.

Now that was a good question. Did he want to go see the other Weyrlings, considering his state of mixed emotions? Not only that, he'd have to make sure that Charath displayed some good behavior. The dragonet was full, and thus the will to get up to any shenanigans was greatly decreased in comparison to how she wanted to behave. His gaze flickered back over to Valerian, showing a degree of hesitance and contemplation. Nothing bad would come out of seeing his new classmates, and maybe they'd help further distract him from his own thoughts. It was worth a shot, and if they became insufferable he could always leave. "Yeah, sure," he replied with a shrug of his shoulders, rising to his feet and brushing sand off of his knees and ass. Faranth, he just really wanted to change out of these horribly plain white robes.