A Sight To Sea [The World Above Weyrlings Lesson]

As one of the dragonriders assigned to the task of helping G'rem with his weyrling class - in fact, he'd even volunteered! - J'dan was positively abuzz with anticipation and excitement, which reflected in the bright blue eyes that followed the proceedings with more interest and awareness than his fellow riders had likely seen from him in months. After stifling a particularly giggle-like laugh at G'rem's gruff but predictable announcement that latecomers would be punished in his usual merciless fashion, J'dan turned his attention to the weyrling who had been granted the dubious honor of flying with him and Temsaith. He peered down at the man from atop said dragon, whose eyes swirled with unpromising sparks of orange, a clear sign of his annoyance with the whole situation.

Why did you volunteer us for this? I have better things to do than cart around babies. Temsaith complained privately to his bonded. He was, as usual, rather unhappy with the idea of playing ferry for anyone, and he liked to think he would have outright refused were it not for the sheer force of the rare joy and excitement radiating from his lifemate every time the man had thought about this chance to finally meet the busy weyrlings and their hatchlings up close and personal. After all, Temsaith was a kind dragon, and like all kind dragons he hated to see his human pout... but that didn't mean he had relinquished his right to make a fuss about the whole thing.

J'dan, however, was not the least bit deterred by the dragon's sour attitude, for his already good mood had already  soared into the skies at the sight of the adorable little blue hatchling that waddled up beside the young man who would soon be his passenger. Just LOOK at him, Temsaith! How can you deny that precious little face?! And besides, no, you don't.

Even as he carried out this private argument with his dragon, the young bluerider beamed down at Valerian. "Come on up!" he called, though it didn't seem to occur to him to offer any immediate advice on how to do so.

I doubt they know how, Temsaith grumbled with impatience, again electing not to share these thoughts with anyone but his rider.

What do you mean they don't know how? J'dan whirled around to stare the dragon in the eyes with obvious bafflement, which surely must have looked mysterious to Valerian - were he not probably already used to slightly off-hinged dragonriders carrying on private conversations with their beasts, comical gestures and all.

This slight oversight proved to be not a problem at all, for after a running start the clever little hatchling was already shimmying his way up the much larger blue's tail, who turned to hiss at the sudden unexpected sting of tiny talons on his hide. Impudent little creature! What sort of beasts was this baby associating with, to have ended up with so little manners or respect for his elders? I did not give you permission to run all up and down my back, little one. Try to remember that you have claws, Temsaith scolded the precocious hatchling, this time choosing not to keep his thoughts private, so that everyone - the little thing's bonded included - would be aware of just how inconvenienced he was.

At this - combined with Valerian's ho-hum shrug at the tiny dragon's antics - J'dan's courteously subdued chuckling broke into outright belly laughter as he slapped his beast's shoulder in an affectionate reprimand. "Nevermind my Temsaith, he's just in a bad mood!" J'dan managed to stave off his mirth long enough to help Valerian climb up from the blue's reluctantly offered foreleg. "He has been since I forced him to put on his straps this morning. You're welcome by the way, he usually doesn't wear them. He was hoping I'd forget, almost did too," the bluerider interrupted his rambling long enough to flash a friendly, high-beam grin at Valerian, who was probably only just now realizing how much trouble he'd gotten himself into by managing to dodge a ride with Larrikith.

If Valerian were to react negatively to this high-energy greeting, however, J'dan wouldn't see it - in the next instant he was signaling to his blue to take to the skies, hardly giving the weyrling enough time to secure himself into the straps that the talkative young man was apparently so proud of having remembered.

Temsaith only grumbled, vocally this time, in a low rumble that originated from somewhere deep in his chest - but his rider could feel the beast's relief at finally being allowed to get on with it as if it were a tangible thing. For all his stubborn reluctance, the blue nevertheless remembered to fly slowly and carefully for the benefit of the precious hatchling and the inexperienced dragonrider-to-be on his back. The dull flight might have ruined his mood even further, but the dragon was trying to frame it as its own challenge - to arrive at the lake with minimal bumps and shocks, finally ending in a silky-smooth landing after a gentle corkscrew glide down to the lake's edge.

Temsaith's patience was rewarded when the little dragon scurried down his tail with a touch more caution than before. At least, J'dan wisely advised his crabby beast to consider it a reward. The man still grinned with amusement even as the great multi-faceted eyes followed the much smaller creature's every move with the look of a quietly vengeful older sibling who was just waiting for his little brother to get a scolding from their parents. Or in this case, G'rem.