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+--- Thread: [G] [P] [EVENT] 743.08.03 | A Bird Without the Wings to Fly (/showthread.php?tid=5287)
743.08.03 | A Bird Without the Wings to Fly - Ch'es - 03.Aug.22
He and Pardrith had slept in snatches. Whenever they weren't snuggling together in bed, Ch'es ensured his mate was well fed and oiled. Any spare time was spent tending to similar needs for himself. At one point, Pardrith thought it a good idea to share and feed his boy some of the meat that was prepared for the dragons. While another may have been disgusted by the offering, Ch'es didn't shy away and accepted the food. He'd known nights without fires when raw meat was the only option between another day and the long dark.
Drowsy now, he shuffled alongside his fellow weyrlings with Pardrith trotting proudly at his side. If any of his siblings got close enough to risk hurting his boy, the dark bronze made sure to correct their mistake with furious snarls that served the extra purpose of helping Ch'es wake fully.
When the weyrlings were met with a hastily thrown together party filled with supporters and others, Ch'es faltered in his steps. There were so many people. Pardrith hummed his agreement and made no complaint when his bonded slipped from between his classmates who eagerly mingled to find small solace in a quiet corner.
Ch'es looked up with surprise at a familiar trill and spotted his green flitter gliding towards him. Oh! How could he have forgotten?! Chirp sent images of T'ryn and how he'd been keeping her company since the hatching even as she landed on the young hunter's shoulder to peer down at the newcomer.
Equally curious, Pardrith stood on his back legs, balancing carefully to sniff at the green firelizard. Not even considering that the pair wouldn't get along, the boy's dragon accepted the flitter's presence without question. He knew his mate's affection for the little one and would protect her as surely as he did Ch'es.
Looking across the way, Ch'es found T'ryn's gaze and sent him a grateful, beaming smile. No sooner had he looked away than another familiar flitter landed on his opposite shoulder. Fancy!
Which meant...
Yes, there he was. Perking up, Ch'es walked forward to grip Sironar in a fierce hug. While the pair embraced, Pardrith looked on quietly. By the time they pulled away, the dark bronze stared intensely at his boy's previous roommate.
RE: 743.08.03 | A Bird Without the Wings to Fly - Sironar - 04.Aug.22
After sleeping for most of the day, Sironar had managed to wake up and get cleaned up in time to drag himself to the party. Hopefully Chir was doing well. Well, Ch'es now. It had been odd going back to his room alone; even if his former roommate had been mute he still made some subtle noises, still shuffled and moved and rustled fabric to remind Siro that he had someone else around and occupying the space. He'd gotten used to it he supposed.
He waited until he'd seen a few other people drink the wine before he went and grabbed his own glass to fill. He figured that was a reasonable enough level of caution considering someone had been poisoned recently though he didn't know more than that. Food or drink seemed the most likely culprits, so he just tried to be at least a little wary. Fancy was lounging across his shoulders lazily eyeing the glass, trying to calculate he if could steal a sip or not, when he suddenly lifted his head and chirped.
"Oh really?" Siro asked the blue flitter. "You think someone's coming huh?" He could see the weyrling class heading over to the party as a group, some of them stifling yawns as they walked, others seeming a lot more alert. "If he's got Chirp then you can see him too. Don't want to upset his new dragon after all." He still couldn't believe that his friend had managed to Impress the first time. That sort of luck was usually reserved for strangers. A spot of green flew by and Fancy took off after it.
Siro carefully kept his cup from spilling as Ch'es suddenly gave him a hug and he couldn't help but return the squeeze. "Hey, how are you?" He looked down at the dragon curiously, such a dark colored thing! But the sheen on his hide and especially in the rosettes made it obvious up close that he was definitely a bronze. And then that oddly smooth voice entered his mind and his smile broadened a little. "Thank you. What's your name? And Ch'es you have to feed him more, he looks so thin compared to his siblings."
RE: 743.08.03 | A Bird Without the Wings to Fly - Ch'es - 05.Aug.22
Ch'es smothered a laugh behind his hand, but it didn't help when the dark hatchling could read his amusement clearly. Proud, Pardrith lifted his head and stood tall to show off his lithe frame for Sironar to appreciate properly. Since Ch'es seemed to think the world of him, he supposed he could give the youth another chance.
When one of his siblings bumbled too close and risked knocking over both of the teens, Pardrith squeezed by to bare his teeth in a lip-wrinkling snarl. The clumsy blue scampered back behind the cover of his boy, away from the pair under his protection.
Interested by the behavior, Chirp observed the interaction with a tilted head. With a trill, she bounded off Ch'es's shoulder to land nimbly on Pardrith's head where she mimicked his posture, acting as a second sentinel. Satisfied to have her following his direction, Pardrith sat and nodded. It was only right she should take direction from him!
Turning his attention back to Sironar, Ch'es regarded his roommate. Previous roommate. It was still surreal to realize he'd not spend another night in that room which had become something of a sanctuary for the pair of them against all that happened in the Weyr. Are you okay? he asked, falling back on the hand signals the pair had devised between the two of them.
Ch'es nodded fondly, dropping down to scratch beneath Pardrith's chin where he felt an itch himself before tugging Sironar with him towards the food tables. After collecting a plate for himself, he approached an attendant to signal for a bucket for Pardrith and carried all the spoils back to their secluded corner. It was hard to have any kind of privacy when Pardrith tended to tell everyone and their mother what he was thinking or feeling.
Well, he had no defense there.
Ch'es stuffed a bread roll in his mouth with one hand while plucking a piece of meat from the bucket out for Pardrith. Even if the young dragon could eat from the pail himself, both boy and dragon preferred the bonding of hand feeding.
Even with his mouth full, Pardrith still managed to offer his opinion interwoven with his boy's thoughts.
Ch'es kept the bread roll in his mouth and smacked his hand across his face. You can't just tell people how they're allowed to feel, Pardrith.
Clearly not understanding the implications, the little dragon turned back.
Even with his second hand covered in meat juices from Pardrith's meal, Ch'es brought it up to join his other hand and hide his face behind them both. This was going swimmingly.
He wouldn't have to worry about surviving all the classes he had to take now. Ch'es was convinced he would simply die of embarrassment right there.
RE: 743.08.03 | A Bird Without the Wings to Fly - Sironar - 05.Aug.22
Siro couldn't help but smile and then laugh a little as the little bronze spoke to him again. He wasn't sure who to look at really, who to focus on. So he kept glancing from Ch'es to Pardrith and back again. "It seems like you finally found your voice, Ch'es. I'm not sure who to look at when talking to you though, I don't want to be rude." And speaking of he quickly added, "And I didn't mean to say that he didn't feed you well. But you know some of those babies were born quite plump, they wouldn't have time to be that fat if they were just gluttons. So maybe if you don't make fun of them for being fat, I'll promise not to make fun of you for being thin, or ask about how Ch'es is feeding you okay?"
It was surprising to hear himself make such a diplomatic suggestion, but he supposed some of the things his father did had to rub off on him sometime. He watched as Chirp lightly landed on top of the bronze's head to puff up and help him stand guard. "I'm glad you get along with Chirp. She's a cute little thing, and a sweetheart. If you want you can meet Fancy Lad too." Hearing his name, Fancy hopped back over to his boy's shoulder, stretching down the length of his arm to peek at the bronze dragonet. It wasn't the first time he'd met such a young dragon before, and he'd learned that not all of the babies were so calm about things so he was cautious, despite his master's lack of worry.
He waited as Ch'es went to grab some food, Fancy keeping a keen eye on the boy and eventually abandoning his post to go see if he could beg a quick snack as he walked back to rejoin them. "Fancy, don't be a pest," said Siro gently. After one more soft whine, the blue flitter hopped back over to lounge around Siro's neck. Finding out his friend was worried about him made him frown. Was he down? Maybe, but it was hard to tell from the normal sad spells he was prone to.
"I'm fine. Really. I'll get a dragon one day, I'm sure. And I'm not mad at you for getting a dragon, really." Maybe a little jealous, but that wasn't the same. He smiled again and nodded. "I'm happy for you, and it's much easier to have a conversation with you this way, so there's that." He had no idea what else the pair was talking about since it seemed some of it wasn't directed at him specifically, so he just decided that the more polite option would probably be to say nothing at all about swimming. "He's a very handsome dragon though. I don't think I've ever seen a bronze that dark before."
RE: 743.08.03 | A Bird Without the Wings to Fly - Ch'es - 10.Aug.22
When Sironar offered a happy medium to his mate against calling his siblings chunky, Ch'es cautioned Pardrith before he could find a reason to take offense. It's a reasonable suggestion. With a grunt, the dark hatchling looked away.
Knowing there was no pushing the young one on this matter, Ch'es was all too happy for the change in conversation when Pardrith and Chirp stood guard. While Chirp returned to her boy's shoulder to purr and trill against his cheek, Pardrith stretched his nose out to sniff curiously at Fancy. Reading his mate's feelings concerning the blue flitter, he decided his presence was a welcome enough one that he delicately bumped noses before returning to standing guard.
When Ch'es returned with his food, both boy and dragon preened simultaneously at Sironar's compliment. He was quite handsome, wasn't he? Even if he hadn't been mated to him, Ch'es suspected he'd still feel the same regarding Pardrith's rich, dark coat.
Slipping to the ground to eat cross-legged, Ch'es plucked choice snacks off his plate for both Chirp and Fancy if he decided he wanted to get in on the food action the green flitter was definitely enjoying. The boy patted the ground next to him in open invitation for Siro to join him and leaned companionably against the other teen when he was seated.
Sitting there relaxing, weariness dogged Ch'es. It was only in the moments that he stopped moving that he felt the full brunt of how exhausting it was being up and down so frequently. Sensing it, Pardrith walked around to settle against Ch'es's back where he could lean against him, too, if he needed it. Grateful, the boy turned to smile at his dragon and wrapped his hand around the underside of Pardrith's throat to scratch his opposite cheek.
Ch'es found comfort in the easy silence between the five of them, and he watched his fellow classmates mingle with others as he ate his own meal. Unlike the majority of them, the introverted hunter felt no desire to dive into the throng of others and was quite satisfied with his place on the outskirts with the familiar closeness of a friend.
The boy realized he'd almost dozed off in such comfort when Pardrith's grumbling jolted against his back. Following his dragon's gaze, he spotted Tsavoth staring him down. Recognizing him for the brown who'd nearly trampled Sironar that Pardrith had defended him against, Ch'es placed a staying hand against his dragon's neck. Don't start trouble.
Whatever staring match was going on, the tawny brown sibling seemed to think better of it and left the lounging bronze and his Shadow in peace.
RE: 743.08.03 | A Bird Without the Wings to Fly - Sironar - 15.Aug.22
Sironar still wasn't sure if it felt weird to focus too much on the little dragon when he was meaning to talk to his friend, but at the very least Ch'es wouldn't be offended and that was really the part that mattered the most. It was kind of cute and amusing to see just how huffy the bronze could be about being being corrected, though he was glad that this one seemed at least a little reasonable.
And Fancy seemed happy enough at least, letting out a soft chirp in response to the careful nose bump he had received. Siro settled in easily next to his friend and couldn't help but let out a soft ghost of a chuckle at the lean. "Yeah, it's exhausting I hear. Especially the early parts where you're still getting used to things." It was something he always heard, and he remembered his brother's early days too and how disappointed he'd been at the time that S'fron was too tired to play one more time with him before going to live in the barracks.
He pushed that thought away as he instead tried to focus on happier times and the celebration, but the rumble from the bronze almost made him worry he'd offended before he realized the dragonet was glaring at someone else entirely. Siro blinked for a moment as he studied the dragons, unsure if he should run, but Ch'es seemed to have it in hand and things settled back down easily enough. "Oh is that the angry brown who came running at us?" It was easier to refer to it that way than to remember it had just been him at first, that Ch'es had easily avoided harm on his own before having to go back and rescue him.
Siro frowned. "Sorry for just... freezing up and then leaving you there when it happened. I just... I couldn't do anything. Not sure why." Except he did. He was a terrible coward. He shook his head and forced a smile though. "But hey, at least Pardrith was able to find you."
RE: 743.08.03 | A Bird Without the Wings to Fly - Ch'es - 16.Aug.22
Ch'es nodded when Sironar asked about Tsavoth. The richer brown tones along the other hatchling's head, wings, feet, and the tip of his tail made Tsavoth striking among his siblings and he seemed ever eager to fight. Once the little brown had gone about his way, the freckled teen looked over at his friend with a shared frown.
You don't need to apologize for that. It's a natural response to freeze. Knowing Siro's distaste for hunting tales, Ch'es opted not to share the times he had frozen in fear when faced with a boar who outweighed him by over two hundred pounds! I don't blame you at all.
Have you had any chance to do any mushroom or herb gathering? Ch'es asked, hopeful for any news from outside the Weyr. He'd have to live through his friend since it was unlikely he would get the chance anytime soon. We were supposed to, but everything happened so fast after the Touching.
It was hard to believe he'd already been here nearly three months when it felt like only days had passed. When S'far had first brought him here with Urudith, Ch'es never imagined this was what his life would be like. He'd always assumed he would just live his quiet, contented existence in the woods and spend his time curing hides and hunting. The possibility of reading or writing seemed so out of reach, and now he could do both well enough to get by. The majority of that was thanks to Sironar and the extra time he'd spent with him to help him improve. For that, he was more than grateful.
There've been no more poisonings, right? I'm not sure if they'd tell us if there were...