Revelations [B'run]

It was Shanith who sought out B'run first.  The long little green hummed when she found him pausing, then curling up around him, the man smelling of alcohol.  She crooned to him like a hatchling, whuffing into his hair and waiting for him to notice the dragon currently curled about him was green.  He didn't, and she concluded after a moment that he was passed out. 

Well, with R'ana cooking herself a fish and spiderclaw stew, she had nothing better to do than wait for B'run to wake up.  She curled herself around him protectively, crooning quietly and nuzzling at him, relaxing. 

She felt her bonded reach for her, sensed the woman wasn't exactly sober and shut her out.  She had after all been told to keep out of trouble and she wasn't doing anything that would cause trouble.  Shanith was quite contented with herself, she was. 

R'ana found her awhile later, the woman looking for her.  Shanith's rider gaped, and Shanith felt her all but panic.  The dragon tilted her head not understanding why she was being told to move!  She was comfortable, one of her favourite humans was protected and warm and she was warm too! 

She had missed the man and didn't understand why R'ana refused to talk to him anymore, or let her snuggle with Olemuth.  The green shifted as she saw the bronze, and her enthusiasm overweighed her quietness.  She bugled a greeting to him, overjoyed to see him, forgetting she was still curled around the dragon's rider and that B'run was still passed out.

Olemuth had gone hunting and was surprised to return to see Shanith cuddling his lifemate. He bugled a greeting of his own, landing and settling into his area. He cocked his head and watched as B'run mumbled and buried his face into Shanith's leg, cuddling against the green and mumbling sleepy things into her hide. He belched and grumbled, scratching his side and snuggling closer to the green, a contented smile on his face.

He's been drinking.

The bronze gave a loud bugle, causing his rider to sit bolt upright with a shout. "AH! Whatsit? Who-?!" He stammered, blinking at the mass of green in front of him. He blinked twice more, then finally got his eyes to focus. Ali, Hush, Brat and Lovely had arranged themselves on Shanith, enjoying the last bits of sun with her and being amused by the company of a dragon that was smaller than Olemuth.

B'run looked up, blinking bleary eyes and tilting his head slowly. "Sh...Shanith?" He slurred, swaying as he flopped back down and rested his forehead against her. "You... Why're you here?" His slow brain finally put two and two together and he jolted upright again. "R'ana?! She's... She's here?" His brain was too fuzzy with alcohol to properly come up with a plan for this unexpected visit and he reached out to Olemuth, getting no help from the dragon. The bronze was fond of the green and had no intention of sending her away.

B'run groaned and lay back down, accepting his fate and intending to enjoy Shanith's friendly company before her rider - Whom he was 99.9% certain hated him - showed up.

I know.  So has she.  She shifted to look up at the bronze; her happiness at seeing him coloring her tone.  R'ana had said nothing about talking to Olemuth.  So that was still allowed, right?  The firelizards are new!  he has company!  Adorable company!

Shanith made an effort to tone it down when B'run was woken by Olemuth's bugle.  She squealed a bit with delight.  She had to try that with R'ana!  She just had to!  It would be fun!

She hummed to B'reun and spoke to him, once he resettled.  Not yet.  She's drunk and hasn't realized that she hasn't heard from me in awhile yet.  Here uncertainty colored her tone.  I missed you and Olemuth.  We were friends and R'ana ordered me away because it hurt her to see you, but I missed you.  So I'm here becasue I remembered she didn't say I couldn't snuggle or talk to you, just that I had to not snuggle Olemuth.  She nosed B'run gently, asking for a scratch to her eye ridges as she did.  She was a good dragon, she was, totally not disobeying orders.

As she sat and stewed on her bed, R'ana realized then that she hadn't heard from her dragon in too long and couldn't feel her.  Frowning, she edged out of her hut, and down the path leading to the gather square, freezing when she saw her dragon curled around B'run.  She tried to stop and clumsiness came then, causing her to trip over herself.  She fell, and just blinked across the way at him, confusion showing in her eyes, along with a shadow of pain.  "Shanith?"

One hand clumsily rose up to scratch her eyeridges like she'd asked - Demanded, more like. Greens were so much smaller than Olemuth! He grumbled and lay there, scratching away until R'ana's voice reached him and he sat upright far quicker than he should have, eyes snapping open. In his surprise, his small harem of fire lizards screeched and popped Between in alarm.

He's amassed quite a collection, hasn't he? The big bronze adored the fire lizards and eagerly allowed them to sun on him while he did the same. They were friendly little things with, maybe, the exception of Brat, whom was demanding. Even Hush's constant chattering was a welcome change from B'run's quiet nature.

"Found yer dragon," B'run slurred, leaning against Shanith mostly because he didn't trust himself to stand up. "Don' know why she's..." He paused to hiccup. "Why she's 'ere... But I found 'er!" Olemuth crooned a greeting towards R'ana, watching her and hiding his pleasure at seeing B'run have company. It didn't happen often, but he was pleased when it did.

I do not think she is happy, he looked back towards Shanith.

R'ana stayed on the ground.  Seemed less trouble then getting up, tripping again, and getting up again.  She felt Shanith's happy croon, the dragon letting the feeling filter through their bond.  All she felt was growing pain and panic.  This wasn't happening, this wasn't happening, this wasn't happening. 

Shanith crooned to R'ana and B'run, suddenly worried as she felt her Rider's tangled emotions hit her mind.  She had meant to visit a friend, not make her rider feel like this!  Her tail lashed a bit, and she shrank a bit in on herself, careful of B'run.  She's panicking!  I hurt her!

She looked to Olemuth in appeal, then reached for R'ana, trying to calm her.  Most of the time dragon and rider worked well together, combining like Klah and milk.  Sometimes, when they both got upset at the same time, they didn't.  They bounced off eachother in all the wrong ways.  That was happening now, until someone intervened, forcing her to pull back from her own pain. 

Her green's distress battered at R'ana's mind until she gave and went to her dragon, reaching to pet her and soothe her, reassuring her she was a good dragon and no R'ana wasn't mad.  Shanith calmed down, and she replied to B'run tiredly, "I saw.  Thank you."  Her words were quiet, the rider reaching for formality to hide how she felt and to ground herself in somethign familiar.  She spoke quietly.  "She wanted to visit a friend.  We don't have too many of those, sir."

Politely, B'run scooted away, finally rising up and staggering to Olemuth. He slumped down against the dragon and leaned against his chest, nestled between his forelegs and content to sprawl there. He watched R'ana and Shanith quietly a moment before stupid reared it;s ugly head once again.

"Why d'you hate me?" He slurred, fixating those bright blue eyes on her. He wanted another drink, but he'd drained the bottle and didn't think he had anymore stashed away. He definitely didn't have any more in reach. Shoving his hair out of his face he sat up a bit straighter and tried to focus on her, a frown set in his features.

They'd gotten friendly after Olemuth had won Shanith's flight a while back. And while the relationship had never progressed past a casual friendship, B'run was fond of the woman and her green and had greatly enjoyed the time they'd spent together, even if it was mostly sitting in silence. But then she'd begun avoiding him and he, in an attempt to respect her wishes, had done the same. It had resulted in the pair not talking to one another at all.

R'ana leaned her head against her dragon's chest.  She murmured, tiredly, "You know why B'run."  Her words were flat, tired.  She didn't drink for a reason.  It intensified everything.  Emotion.  Clumsiness.  Then it numbed it.  What had she been thinking, getting drunk this night?

It was Shanith who picked up that he truly didn't know.  It baffled her, R'ana had tried many times to tell him, but she knew for a fact that he didn't know.  She turned to Olemuth.  Silently she showed the bronze an image of a child, two turns old, with R'ana's dark hair and eyes.  B'run's high cheek bones and nose.  Her name's Berani.  She spoke to Olemuth quietly, calm under her rider's touch and love, R'ana shielding her from her thoughts and emotions now. 

R'ana spoke quietly.  "I could understand you ignoring the first note I sent.  I stepped back while I tried to figure out being pregnant and whether to keep the baby.  But the rest..."  She hadn't been able to get Shanith to speak to anyone else or even leave her side once she had been put on bed rest with Rani so she had asked a friend to deliver notes to B'run begging him to come see her, that she needed to tell him something.  She had no idea the notes had gone undelivered. 

The worst part of it  had been that she had no idea what she had done.  If it was that she had grown to care for him?  Or that she had gotten pregnant during that Flight?  Or that she hadn't been able to trust enough to go to him about it?  The list of things she could have done to cause this was endless.  She didn't make friends easily.  She didn't let go of them easily and had never been able to let go of B'run.  She hated that.  Life would be easier if she just...She didn't know any more.  She petted Shanith softly.

"Wait, what?"

B'run blinked and sat up straight, eyes not leaving her. When Olemuth sent the image from Shanith to B'run the rider's eyes widened and he paused a moment, focusing on the image of the child and he rname. Berani. Berani. There was, of course, a chance it wasn't his but with the 'Be' at the beginning of her name... Well, he didn't have any other suspects.

"What note? I never got any note." He wasn't entirely defensive, but he did want her to know that he hadn't deliberately been avoiding her because of an obligation like that. "There was never..." He slumped back against Olemuth. "Baby? I... You have a child? You have... my child?" He had a child? R'ana had had his child? She had had his child two turns ago! Two turns! He hadn't known he had a child for two turns! He'd seen the girl around, he'd even helped her reach things she couldn't. All the while not knowing her name or that she was his.

He sat in silence, starring past her and trying to work out everything that had changed in the span of a few minutes. He ran a hand through his hair and rubbed the back of his neck, going through silly little motions to calm himself before lifting his gaze to R'ana once more. The knowledge of her being the mother of his child had sobered him up quickly.

"Can I see 'er? Not like this 'course. No 'un needs t'see me like this... But... Sometime? Would tha' be okay?"

She met his eyes, the surprise in them, making her blink and stop to reevaluate everything.  Aw hell...She had been mad and hurt for two turns...for nothing.  Then she realized.  none of her notes...She was going to kill her friend when she next saw him, dragon or no!  How dare he!  She hadn't had to go through the pregnancy alone...she could have had a friend.  B'run could have held his child as a baby, seen her first steps. 

She spoke quietly.  "I'm sorry."  She bit her lip.  "Her name's Berani, and yes she's yours.  I don't sleep with anyone unless Shanith's in the air."  Sex was painful, rough and well no need to go through that any more often than she must.  She looked down then at him.  "And you are welcome to see her.  Sober.  She's normally in the creche since chasing after Shanith is a full time job, but I visit her most every day."  Her face softened and she added, "She's a ball of energy, and Shanith says she feels her very clearly.  I wouldn't be surprised to see her riding a dragon in a few years."  It was more than she had planned to say. 

She looked down.  Shanith spoke after a moment.  Does this mean I can be friends with Olemuth and B'run again?  The dragon's voice was wistful, as though R'ana petted her she was fantasizing about all the ways she was going to end the one she had asked to deliver notes.  She spoke quietly.  "Only if B'run says yes."

"Of course sober... Of course... In the creche... Yeh, I'll go see her... Sometime. When 'M sober... Berani." He rambled on, shaking his head. He was still trying to process all this. He had a child. A child that was two turns old and could very well become a rider one day. He didn't know if he liked that last bit, knowing how female riders were treated, but he'd never deny anyone the right to ride.

"You don' 'ave t'apologize..." He blinked at Shanith and tilted his head, a small smile touching his lips. He will not say no. Olemuth contributed in his quiet, steady way. He leaned against the bronze, closing his eyes a moment. "I like Shanith comin' 'round. Yer both... All three'a ya welcome anytime."

Tiredness was hitting R'ana hard, the emotion of the night and the alcohol combining to drag her under.  She fought it.  "Berani."  She spoke her daughter's name quietly. 

She shook her head at his words.  "I do.  Was stubborn and hurt and didn't think clearly.  Didn't seek you out after having her."  She closed her eyes then.  Keeping them open was too much work.  "Never hated you though.  Was pissed and hurt but didn't hate you."  Shanith, nosed R'ana then.  Was her rider babbling?  R'ana never ever babbled. 

She tilted her head, quizzical over the whole thing.  She nosed R'ana, and watched her fall over.  Is this what it feels like when your rider drinks?  She feels all floppy.  R'ana was meanwhile trying to figure out what she was doing lying on the ground.  She blinked up at a green mass.  "Need to trust my friends more.  And kill T'rel.  When I wake up.  Night B'run."  She reached up to pat her dragon, missed and passed out, the alcohol finally hitting her fully. 

Shanith nosed her rider then, and licked her.  When R'ana didn't stir, she crooned to her, then settled for a long wait.  R'ana would be furious with herself when she woke up, for falling asleep infront of someone and revealing weakness, and for trusting the wrong person and for her own actions, but all that would wait until the woman slept off the booze. 

Figured he could use some time to process and all that.  Not sure if this is an ender or not?

"Heh... Thought you 'ated me." He mumbled, watching as she finally gave in and passed out. He hauled himself up, swaying just slightly and swaggered over to Shanith. "You mind?" He asked but didn't wait for a response before he crouched and scooped R'ana up. He paused, leaning against Shanith, but braced himself and rose up, cradling her in his arms. Olemuth crooned, pleased to see his rider caring about someone else. The man carried her, slowly and wobbling all the while, into his hut and settled her on the bed. He threw a blanket over her and collapsed into a chair, soon falling asleep himself.

Olemuth fluttered his wings and curled up in the area reserved for him, one wing open as he watched Shanith. Your rider's rule doesn't apply anymore. An open invitation for cuddling while they slept if there ever was one! He settled his head down on his paws and watched his rider's hut. Floppy is a good description. B'run mostly feels like he's chasing a green or gold... The bronze rumbled, dwelling on that thought a while before sighing and settling down for the night.

Shanith crooned happily and went to Olemuth, curling up against his side.  I'm glad.  I like some of the other bronzes but missed you.  You're better than them about listening to me babble without sending me away.  She watched the hut quietly, nudging her rider's consciousness until her sleep eased from fitful and troubled to deep and even.  She rumbled a bit, closed her eyes and slept too, the long little green drifting into dreams and snuggling right up to the bronze. 

R'ana woke first, aware that her head hurt and she wasn't in her hut.  She saw B'run and blinked, then eased out of bed, she assumed his bed.  She blushed at that thought, and blanketed him with the blanket she had been sleeping under.  She felt Shanith stir, reassured the dragon she was coming back, and left for her hut.  With the shortcuts she knew, she was back in five minutes with two flasks full of her favored fruit tea, laced with a tiny bit of fellis, just enough to ease the continual headaches Shanith induced.  She loved her dragon, but the green was loud.  It was easier to use the fellis to help than it was to calm her down and deal with her remorse over causing a sore head.  It should take the edge off a hangover.

She talked a weyrling into making a breakfast run on her way back, figuring she had overturned B'run world last night.  Breakfast and hangover relief was the least she could do.  Breakfast arrived shortly after she did and R'ana smiled at the weyrling happily.  Meatrolls, klah, fruit and cheese.  Perfect.  She arranged it on the table and headed to wake B'run, happy Shanith was still asleep. 

B'run was sprawled in his chair, snoring loudly. His hands were folded in his lap and he'd slumped down so that his head was resting on the backof the chair and his long legs were stretched out in front of him. It looked like he'd tried to pull a blanket over himself, but it was in a heap on the floor by his feet. He woke with a jolt as soon as R'ana touched his shoulder, sitting upright and wincing as his head spun. "M'awake," he mumbled, blinking.

Once he saw it was her, he collapsed back into the chair with a groan. "Figgered you'd've left." He drug a hand over his face, trying to cease his pounding head. He pushed himself out of the chair and ambled to a waterskin that hung on a post. He poured some into his mouth and swallowed, leaning against the post before looking down at himself. "Take a seat if'n you want... Gettin' outta these clothes."

He crossed to the bed and hauled open a trunk, rummaging through it until he found what he was looking for and, without concern for her being there, peeled off his shirt and tossed it to the side before pulling on another one. He kept his back to her, exposing the criss-cross of old scars that covered it. His boots were shucked off and his pants followed suit. He pulled on clean ones and kicked the others away, grumbling a note to get them later when his head wasn't pounding.

"You... Brought breakfast?" He wasn't about to complain and settled down in a chair. He looked wary, but popped a piece of fruit in his mouth and gave a contented sigh. "Uh. Thank ya."

She was quiet as he woke, sitting down and looking down once she realized he was stripping.  After a moment she turned her back on him and sipped from her tea.  Shanith would be awake soon.  She wanted the hangover dulled before her wonderful green nuisance woke up. 

She looked up when he settled by her, let him take the first bit of fruit and grabbed a meat roll.  She took a bite and chewed it, just nodding.  Shanith woke about then, and saw Olemuth.  With a spike of excitement that made R'ana wince, she wriggled and bugled.  R'ana closed her eyes.  "I love my dragon."  It was more a reminder to herself than anything else, and she tightened her grip on a flask. 

Morning Rana!  Morning B'run!  Morning Olemuth!  Morning...  As her dragon started greeting all she saw and felt, R'ana took a long pull of her flask of tea.  "I am never, ever drinking again."  R'ana missed the satisfaction at her words, and consequently that her dragon was being difficult and loud on purpose.  Shanith always hated it when she drank, another reason she didn't do it often.

She placed the flask down, nudged the other one towards B'run and said, "Tea, laced with a few drops of fellis. Supposed to be for Shanith induced headaches, but helps with hangovers."  She ate a bit more, trying to ignore the enthused green rampaging around inside her skull. 

She added, "Owed you breakfast.  Had I known you didn't know I would have behaved differently.  I'm sorry, B'run."

He chuckled at her enthusiastic greeting. Olemuth was notorious silent, especially when compared to the excitable green. The dragon was mostly content to sit in silence and sunbathe while Shanith, obviously, wasn't. He poured some of the flask into a well worn cup while he eyed the food. He wasted no time in snagging a meatroll and stuffing it into his mouth. The tea was amazing. He drained his cup and refilled it, taking another healthy gulp before sighing and returning to his meatroll.

"You get used t'it. The hangovers, that is. 'Course, I haven' got Shanith prancin' 'bout my braincage." He was so very thankful that Olemuth was the strong silent type. He didn't think he could handle Shanith's constant chatter, though his bronze seemed more than content to do so. While she chattered away, Olemuth groaned and rolled over, not quite ready to get up. The sun was on him and it was warm.

"Said las' night. Ain't nothin' t'apologize for. You tried t'let me know. It just... Ne'er worked out that way..." He let his sentence trail off while he ate another meatroll and a bit of cheese. "I know now, eh? Ain't sure what that means just yet, but I'll figger that out soon 'nough." Where did all this put them? Was he going to be involved in this child's life? There was a lot of information he hadn't quite processed and he wasn't too sure what to do with all of it just yet.

Shanith wriggled and wriggled, prodding at R'ana.  R'ana let out a sound that wasn't quite a whimper.  She told her dragon that she would indeed take her out after they ate.  She ate slowly, knowing from limited experience that activity on an empty stomach post drink was never a good idea. 

She murmured, "Shanith is a wonderful green.  She's just excited."  Permanently.  She sipped slowly, eating her meat roll quietly and nabbing a fruit that was purple with blotches of red.  She eyed it dubiously then shrugged and dove in.  She reached out to her then, trying to calm her enough so that she wouldn't pester Olemuth awake. 

She wanted answer to the questions running around her own head, but knew he needed time to process.  Truth be told so did she.  "I should go, before Shanith decides to pounce on your poor bronze.  Or lick him to death or something worse.  And I always go for a run around the lake after waking up.  It wears Shanith out enough that she tends to sunbathe a bit after."  Well more run a few steps, trip, get up and repeat.  She needed to learn where the ends of her legs were.  At least she was getting good at self doctoring bruises and scrapes. 

She nabbed another meat roll, leaving him the rest of the food, and stood.  She nearly hugged him, but reached over and touched his shoulder instead.  "Thank you for company over breakfast."  She headed for the door, calling Shanith away from Olemuth, and promising the green that yes she could come cuddle him or play with him or talk to him or...  As she hit the door, she turned to B'run.  "If you need to talk, or just sit and be quiet, I still have those chairs on the porch."  It was quiet, hesitant, uncertainty colouring the words.  With that, R'ana was gone.