What Once Was [Rhaedalyn]

The bronzerider looked up from his evening meal, frowning slightly at the vague tousle of emotions that suddenly flowed through him. Eyebrows furrowed and he put his fork down, reaching out to Xyreith – and the dragon took the moment to claim control. It was a response he hardly appreciated, though it didn’t entirely take him by surprise as he tugged the hem of his shirt down, sighing unhappily as he fought back against the dragon’s desires. “Excuse me, ladies.” At least he’d worn a long tunic that evening, R’nya thought idly, giving it another tug, as Xyreith fought viciously to take control. The internal battle caused the bronzerider to stagger almost drunkenly against the side of the table, and he patted one of the girls apologetically on the shoulder for elbowing her in the process. The screech of a randy green answered the unasked questions he could see on their faces.

“Xyreith!” The bronzerider’s voice came out a lusty growl, instead of the commanding reprimand it had been designed as. R’nya staggered again, unused to the onslaught of strong emotions, before trotting out of the dining hall with a handful of other riders, though they looked considerably more in control than the bronzerider, who so unused to flights. Finding the owner of the greenrider was important, and R’nya stumbled along at a trot with the other riders, guided by various helpful greenriders and non-riders who were clearly intent on ‘mothing the flight. R’nya ignored them as Xyreith shot into the air after the green, determination clear in every movement. As soon as he was to the sky, R’nya lost the last strings of battle he had been waging against the bronze, not wanting to partake in a flight.

Mine, Xyreith hissed as he flew strongly after the more agile green, watching her movements with a careful and calculating desire flushed over his face, and within the swirl of excitedly whirling eyes. It had been so long since he had flown, and so long since he had won – and needs had to be taken care of, even for such a dignified dragon as Xyreith. The moment the opportunity presented itself, the bronze twisted in, battering away the smaller blues and browns to snatch the green from her pretentious trickery, drawing her lithe form flush against his own as they toppled towards the ground once more.

On the ground, R’nya wrapped around the woman, the pair toppling to the bed without thought or care, caught up in the undeniable flood of lust and desire.

It was both a moment, and an eternity later, when pale eyes flickered open, the owner once more himself. There was a warm body sprawled half over his own and a headache brewing behind his eyes. Sore shoulders, tired muscles, tired body. R’nya lifted the hand not pinned down by a body to brush it lightly over his face. A disgruntled look was given to the still passed out woman, and R’nya sighed softly; it wasn’t her fault. Regardless, he hated flights, and had no desire to keep the woman warm through the night. Twisting, he withdrew his arm and toppled ungracefully off the side of the bed, catching himself and standing slowly. Rolling his shoulders, R’nya grimaced and kicked at the ground, searching for his pants.

“Nyeh?”
“Go back to sleep,” R’nya murmured, his voice low and husky as he found the clothing he’d been looking for, and tugged his pants on. The tie was busted, though whether from his own impatience or the woman’s wasn’t known to the man and he sighed softly again, glancing at the woman as she shifted, brushing aside the covering of her beside glows to peer up at her victor. R’nya started at the silhouette, memories dancing behind his eyes before the light caught up and his eyes adjusted. The bronzerider blinked as he picked up his shirt.

“R’nya?” The woman’s voice was soft, full of curiosity and delight. A cold shiver swept down the man’s spine and he nodded slowly, skin crawling with ghosts of the past. “Won’t you stay?” The bronzerider swayed, visibly, at the invitation and the woman’s eyes widened slightly in surprise before disappointment set in as R’nya suddenly shook his head firmly, almost childishly in the emphasis he put in the motion, and took a staggering step backwards.

“No.” The emotion in the single word surprised them both, and R’nya staggered back another step before turning and fleeing, not even bothering to disguise his exist as anything else, the front door bouncing back as he dashed through it, leaving a very confused greenrider sitting on her bed. A smug smile took over her features soon after, however, and the woman flopped back on her bed with a soft laugh. R’nya had flown her! It was a pity she was already pregnant, she thought idly, rubbing her belly. Claiming that bronzerider’s child would have won her some serious points with her fellow greens!

R’nya dashed the from the woman’s hut to his own, unconcerned that he was barefoot and shirtless, that it was extremely late, or that he almost barrelled into a woman and barely kept them both from toppling to the ground. The air was thick with ghosts as he carefully handled the girl, though he refused to look at her and didn’t check she had her balance or even ask if she was okay. “Sorry.” His voice was husky, thick with unshed tears, and didn’t even sound like his own. Leaving the girl, he turned and fled the last few lengths to his own hut, crashing into the door bodily, before falling through when he managed to twist the handle.

There was a muffled crash, and a growled ‘fuck’ when he ran into the coffee table, which wasn’t in its usual spot – he’d been cleaning earlier before getting dragged to dinner by a couple of the girls – and he stumbled to his closed bedroom door. Both fists were brought down on the innocent door, the crunch of bone on wood loud in the otherwise silence of his hut. R’nya crumpled, his knees giving out and he sunk to the floor, breathing audibly. Hands resting on the door, he leaned forward, pressing his forehead against the cool wood.

Xyreith paced around the hut once, before sitting regally beside the door. He didn’t bother to bespeak his human, and watched silently as Rhaedalyn timidly crept closer. His eyes were vague reflections of R’nya’s emotions; distressed and unhappy. He glanced around for Aradissicath, but failed to see her, and turned his attention back upon Rhaedalyn with irritation. Snorting, Xyreith flicked his nose from her to the doorway, and then rumbled softly, still staring at the woman. He would not be reduced to bespeaking her – but was also unwilling to risk waking the little dragon if she were asleep.

Rhaedalyn hadn’t been one of the girls eating with R’nya that night. She had been enjoying dinner several tables away with V’zire, catching up on the latest gossip with her greenriding friend. With V’zire in wing practices again and her own classes with Aradissicath, it made it harder to find time to see all the friends she desperately wanted to spend afternoons with. Still, she had seen R’nya leave behind a plate that still had food on it as he staggered away. The call of a green soon after verified that he was caught up in flightlust – which was always difficult to imagine.

She did her best not to focus on it, especially when it was confirmed Xyreith had won. Dinner and conversation were enjoyed with a friend and once she parted ways with V’zire, Rhaedalyn snuck into the kitchens, offering to help clean up if she could prepare a plate of food for a friend and nab some dessert for him as well. The dessert was the important part! Earlier in the day there had been some free time and Rhaedalyn felt it best used in the kitchens, lending a hand with the baked goods. Her batch turned out much better than she anticipated and made sure to set some aside to share with specific people if it wasn’t needed for dinner.

Aradissicath was proud of the accomplishment as well and encouraged the idea to bring the plates to R’nya. He was a grown man that didn’t get to finish his evening meal and would have exerted a lot of energy recently, of course he needed the food! Rhaedalyn flushed at the ideas that statement conjured up.

After checking her dragonet over for the evening and Aradissicath promising she was okay and would sleep without worrying how far Rhaedalyn was wandering off to, Rhaedalyn finally gave in to the urge to go check up on R’nya. It was far later than she had actually meant for it to be given the way the bronzerider liked to go to bed earlier than most people but the flight hadn’t exactly ended before the sun went down so she wasn’t entirely to blame. Although she supposed she could have snuck into his hut and left the food on his table to return to, but that didn’t seem quite as personal.

As per usual, Rhaedalyn hummed softly to herself as she walked and sometimes skipped along from her little home to R’nya’s. It wasn’t that far which was why she didn’t feel bad for leaving Aradissicath alone for a short period of time but the walk always seemed extra long in the dark when she was carrying something. The last time had been Rumour’s egg she found in the bathhouse. A giggle and flush over remembering that night hit as the firelizard in question rode on her shoulder. Whisper was likely already inside R’nya’s hut while Muffin had worn himself out with adventures of the day and slept on Rhaedalyn’s pillow.

It was her fault, it had to be, since she wasn’t looking but suddenly a man was running into her and steadying her with an apology before vanishing off into the night. She knew the voice instantly despite the unusual tones in it and even knew the gentle touch that had helped her out of the river or through a prickly patch of plants during their afternoons out with the others. R’nya apparently had only just made his exit from his flight partner but the entire thing seemed wrong. He wasn’t composed, wasn’t dressed, and didn’t even notice her.

Quietly now, Rhaedalyn followed after her friend but hesitated when his door came into view.  Was it really okay for her to barge in when R’nya likely wouldn’t want company? She hadn’t dropped the plates during the collision so she could just leave them at the door to be found later. As she stood meekly staring at the door, Rhaedalyn finally felt like she was being watched and looked around to see Xyreith was back. He’d definitely scare her off if R’nya didn’t want company but the bronze surprised her by gesturing for her to go inside. He didn’t need to say anything – and likely would have scared the girl witless if he finally spoke to her – as Rhaedalyn nodded, picking up on the meaning easily.

“Ren?” She called softly as she peeked inside the dark hut. She could hear him breathing and knew that R’nya was definitely inside somewhere. Another quick glance was given to Xyreith before Rhaedalyn entered the hut, shutting the door behind her. She held out the glow she had been carrying to help light her path and made her way through the room without crashing into rearranged furniture. When R’nya was spotted crumpled on the floor by the bedroom door, she gasped and nearly tossed the plates on the out of place table with the glow as Rumour took off to settle beside Whisper on the couch. Both stayed out of the way, knowing something wasn’t right as well.

A moment later and Rhaedalyn was on her knees on the floor beside R’nya, carefully reaching a hand out to her friend. “R’nya? What’s wrong?” She was slightly afraid! R’nya was always the steady rock in the friendship, not the one needing something. Rhaedalyn had no idea what was wrong and ideas spun wildly in her mind. It could have been simply he was thirsty all the way to something life-threatening.

R’nya’s hands trailed down the door, to flop into his lap; the man’s head remained pressed against the cool wood of the door as he stared at the back of his eyelids. There was a snowstorm of the past fluttering there, biting and bitter. R’nya shuddered, and slowly raised his head, oblivious. The bronzerider yelped in terror when Rhaedalyn reached out to him, viciously startled by her apparently sudden appearance. One hand clutching his chest, R’nya’s eyes were quite wide as he took a deep breath, calming himself rapidly and reaching out to Rhaedalyn, worried more about how she was reacting to his surprise than his own response to her presence.

“Oh! Rhaedalyn! Sorry!” Babbling worriedly, R’nya rocked forward onto his knees, reaching out to wrap the girl up in a reassuring hug, squeezing tight for a moment before letting her go. Lowering back to sit on his knees, one hand subtly fixed the front of his pants, forgetting for a moment that he had managed to end up with broken ties. At least they were still up where they were meant to be, and not around his ankles! While R’nya himself didn’t have any particular qualms about being seen naked, he had gone out of his way the past several turns to make the girls feel comfortable around him, and that mostly included an air of modesty R’nya didn’t actually have.

It was not a new habit, by any means; but that, too, brought up a wave of memories and R’nya wilted a little where he was sitting. “Nothing is wrong,” R’nya replied, well and truly belated to the girl’s question. “I am sorry I startled you, my dear.” Reaching out gently with the hand not preoccupied making sure his pants were not displaced, R’nya brushed his curled pointer-finger under Rhaedalyn’s chin, encouraging the girl to look at him properly. She seemed to be looking everywhere except! You’re practically naked, remember? The bronze dragon’s tones carried airs of exactly how idiotic his rider was being at that moment.

“Oh!” R’nya, still befuddled from flight induced everything, blinked comically at Rhaedalyn and then rapidly stood up, pausing a moment to help the young woman to her feet. The hand holding his pants up more notable now, and then flashed her an expression of amused apology as he reclaimed his hand from her own and opened the bedroom door, mumbling that he’d be right back as he went through the frame.  He did not bother to flick the door closed, the thought that Rhaedalyn might take the opportunity peek never occurring to him; she was such a proper young lady!

Meandering across the room, R’nya grabbed a shirt from the chest at the end of his bed. Loosening the grip on his pants to tug the top over his head, and then step into the comfortable cotton pants he wore to bed (another habit inspired by the modesty of his girls; he could still vividly recall the first time one of them had come barging in on him!). Tying the laces lazily, R’nya wandered back out of his room. Tilting his head back up, R’nya blinked, startled, and then frowned.

“Rhaedalyn?” Where had she gone? Slightly worried he had imagined it all, it took the light sound of movement in the kitchen to redirect the bronzerider, and he peered in cautiously, still wary of having imagined everything, and spotted the girl there. The food was an added surprise, and R’nya watched quietly for a few moments, before stepping into the room. “You need not have done that, my dear.” The warmth in his voice belied his appreciation for the thoughtfulness of the girl, but his belief that it was unneeded was also apparent.

She was a proper young lady, honest, she was! Still, Rhaedalyn’s head was spinning from the odd way R’nya was acting to the hug given her. It was more than enough encouragement to give in to curiosity and slowly peek around into the bedroom she always avoided, even when her firelizards were in the room entertaining themselves. It was dark in the room and could only barely make out R’nya but when she saw a flash of skin that may or may not have been a butt cheek, Rhaedalyn flushed crimson and quickly moved away from the door.

The food she had brought with her was quickly retrieved with the glow and the kitchen became her next destination. It was easy to see R’nya wasn’t as fine as he said he was but Rhaedalyn decided she would play along for now and make sure he had a full belly before finally getting to bed. Rumour appeared to check on what she was doing but Whisper remained out of sight though Rhaedalyn suspected the gold had slipped inside the bedroom that was once again a completely Rhaedalyn-free zone. “That’s not for you; at least not until Ren’s had his share.” Rhaedalyn chided the young blue when he inched closer to the plate of dinner that had been set on the table.

A light gasp escaped as Rhaedalyn spun around at the warm voice chiding her for looking after his stomach. It wasn’t that she forgot R’nya was in his own hut but rather she hadn’t heard him approach and was caught momentarily off guard. A warm smile and a shake of the head were quick to follow the startled noise. “Nonsense. You always look after us so I wanted to make sure you were looked after as well!” The plate of dessert was set down near the dinner and Rhaedalyn spread her hands over both to show off what she was referring to.

“I made the dessert earlier today. I even received some compliments on it,” A large and proud smile was glowing before Rhaedalyn dimmed it down to a modest and shy smile. She loved to bake but it wasn’t one of her stronger skills just yet though she felt she improved with each dish. To have compliments given was a definite sign of improvement! Hopefully it was to R’nya’s liking and she could make it again sometime when she owed him yet again for his kindness and assistance.

Suddenly, Rhaedalyn was across the kitchen and behind R’nya, hands lightly placed on the bronzerider’s back to give him a push toward the table. She’d walk him the entire way to the chair if need be but she was determined the man would eat. Maybe it’d be enough to make him more R’nya-like again and chase some of the oddities from him. “Please eat, Ren. Just a little will do.” At least then she’d know she was helpful. Despite Impressing a beautiful and perfect gold dragon, Rhaedalyn still felt she wasn’t as useful as others and living in a tree, exiled from Katila would still happen.

R’nya’s expression altered, bitter-sweet and sad memories flickering through the shadows of his face, and the bronzerider shifted his gaze from Rhaedalyn’s bright expression to look at the table, and the plated food upon it. He had not had time to finish forming his objections when Rhaedalyn was behind him, and pushing him towards the table. He wanted to play, to lean back against her hands and tease her, but that brought forth memories too. Why couldn’t he shake them, tonight?

Therefore, he obeyed the gentle shoving, stumbling forward and collapsing gracelessly into the chair that had been appointed to him. He picked up the fork, turned his gaze upon the plate of food, and stared at it. A breath later, and he put the fork down, pushing the plate away and shaking his head lightly; the thought of eating made him feel ill. The dessert was given a longing glance. He wanted to eat it, he wanted to make sure Rhaedalyn knew she was worthy of the compliments she had gotten for it earlier that day, but the thought of even stomaching a bite of food – any food – had caused his face to pale sickly in the short time since he’d sat down.

“Sorry.” The word was wrapped in quiet misery, and R’nya folded his arms over the empty table before him, leaning forward to rest his cheek on them, face angled so he could look up at Rhaedalyn. He studied her in the soft glow light, one corner of his lips quirking upwards in fond amusement when she started fidgeting. “Sit with me?” The words were whispered, holding both promise and invitation. He wanted to explain a little more, something beyond the known fact that flights made him odd, but he did not want to spend the entire night outlining his life, either. It would take a while, to find the right words, but if she were prepared to wait, he would try to find them.

Rhaedalyn was pleased when she got R’nya into the chair and he picked up a fork. It seemed like he was snapping out of his weirdness and food would definitely complete that! If he ate it, anyway. She watched the bronzerider with growing disappointment as her hands started to fidget with each other. This was a horrible mistake and she should have known better! She was trying to make a grown man eat and it was past his preferred bedtime. She had obviously barged in on something that had to be dealt with alone but instead R’nya had gone out of his way to dress for her sake and even tried to eat. Now all the energy he had in doing so seemed to drain from him as surely as the colour in his cheeks had.

An apology was on her lips and hands were about to whisk away the food when R’nya shifted again and looked up at her. The question was a whisper but Rhaedalyn still heard it and nodded a response, not trusting herself to speak just yet. The way she nibbled on her lower lip was a sign of exactly how unsure she was of everything. Moving as quietly as she could – the thought that maybe R’nya had a headache as well her motivation – Rhaedalyn sat in the chair opposite R’nya and scooped up Rumour when he waddled a bit closer.

“I’m sorry, R’nya,” Rhaedalyn finally blurted out with a pout. She shouldn’t have come over and shouldn’t have assumed he would want anything to eat, especially something made by her. She knew her baking wasn’t always the best but loved her friends for trying and sometimes lying all the same. With her luck, her dessert would have only made R’nya even more miserable than he already looked.

R’nya lifted his head slightly, and tilted it upright again as he shifted to watch Rhaedalyn relocate into the seat on the other side of the table, sad grey eyes watched her seat herself, and R’nya rested his chin lazily on his crossed wrists. Her apology caused the bronzerider’s eyebrows to arch upwards, and he continued to study the girl as she pouted. “Do not be sorry,” he murmured, expression altering to be a frown. “You did nothing to be sorry for.”

His gaze dropped, lowering to look at the weave of grain through the wood of the table, seeing but not really seeing it. The words he had spoken should have been applied to himself, but R’nya had never really found it all that easy to follow his own advice. He studied the table for several long minutes, the only true sound within the hut the quiet murmur of their breaths. R’nya had never been one to need the sound of voices, but there was always a time to speak. The bronzerider licked his lips, the frown returning.

“I grew up at Fort, born and bred.” He didn’t want to recount his entire history, but some points were important, and he was unsure how much Rhaedalyn knew about him, either from common gossip (which was remarkably unreliable) or through wrangling out of I’shan (even more unreliable). It was best to clear any misconceptions with R’nya given facts. “I Impressed Xyreith three years before the Plague hit.” How much are you going to share, sir? Not much. Pain flickered over the bronzerider’s features, and he felt Xyreith shifting, and the sudden appearance of the dragon’s face beside the closest window was not missed.

He sighed softly, and his attention shifted back to Rhaedalyn, though his gaze itself was still far away. “My father lost his dragon to the disease, and threw himself off the balcony of his weyr.” They were only the first of many, and R’nya allowed the silence to say as much, gaze shifting back to the table. He could not bring himself to name any others, and the eye peering in the window from his dragon outside swirled in shades of sickly yellow and greys. He sat up straight, suddenly, and folded his hands in his lap, frowning once more.

“We try not to think about it,” his tone indicated that Xyreith was the other part of that equation. “But some nights the past refuses to be ignored. The woman that rides the green Xyreith flew; for a moment, she had the face of another.” A pause, and the frown deepened for a moment. “It startled me.” Xyreith’s snort was audible to the pair, even if his words were for R’nya alone. That’s putting it lightly! R’nya ignored him, leaning forward to reach Rhaedalyn, brushing his fingers lightly over the hands holding Rumour. “I am sorry I startled you, in turn, my dear.”

Sitting up straight once more, R’nya dragged the dessert closer to him, and poked at it with the fork, delaying actually eating it. It was not that he did not trust Rhaedalyn’s cooking, or even that he didn’t want to eat it; he just wasn’t sure his stomach would enjoy it. If his stomach did object, he was not keen on the various ways Rhaedalyn would respond to not only his being sick, or even being sick over something she had fed him, but the combination of those two, in addition to it being something she cooked for him.

Mostly, though, he did not want her to leave just yet, because he was not ready to face the rest of the past by himself. He knew he could not keep her much longer; the girl had both a dragonet and her reputation to keep intact, and R’nya would hate to cause her issues on either scale. He continued to pick at the dessert, nibbling on small forkfuls as he stared at the table, resigned.

She had done plenty to be sorry for! R’nya was so sweet to say that she hadn’t though and given his current state, Rhaedalyn decided not to argue and continued to stay quiet. If she opened her mouth again, she’d either end up apologising again or possibly making the night worse with some silly concern that wasn’t needed. So she only cuddled Rumour and watched as Whisper quietly flew into the room to sit on the far end of the table to keep an eye on everyone. When R’nya started speaking again, it almost made Rhaedalyn jump.

Even with rumours and I’shan’s tales, Rhaedalyn didn’t know much about her bronzeriding friend and she almost asked silly questions when he brought up being born and bred in Fort. Her mind immediately went to Fort Hold, thinking his perfectly gentlemanly nature was explained by growing up in the Hold but that was quickly halted when his dragonriding father was mentioned. She gasped and quickly covered her mouth with one hand when the fate of his father was mentioned. How horrible! Rhaedalyn couldn’t imagine having that happen to anyone she knew let alone a parent! She wanted desperately to hug R’nya and offer him comfort a million turns too late but Rumour ended up with the hugs as she lowered her hand and returned to aptly listening.

The woman he was with tonight had the face of another? A face that shocked him? Rhaedalyn frowned as she thought about that cryptic sentence. A lover! She glanced back up at R’nya, eyes slightly wide as she thought about her stoic guardian that turned everyone away having a lover or even a mate. Everyone was different before the plague and it changed how people acted as well, she heard so many riders say that and she supposed it had to be true. She couldn’t ask about it, especially with the way R’nya offered an apology and seemed ready to change the subject. It was a personal topic and Rhaedalyn knew she wouldn’t want anyone prying into her life of tragedy if she had one.

What’s wrong? Are you okay? I’ll come to you! Rhaedalyn froze, eyes huge as she realized she had not only woken Aradissicath but scared her sweet dear thanks to her emotions going up and down. I’m fine! I’m sorry, you don’t have to come. I’m with R’nya still. Rhaedalyn concentrated hard on speaking privately to her dragonet. She was pleased with the progress they were making at not having to include the entire Weyr because they couldn’t control their thoughts yet. It took a lot of work still but at least it was improving!

Once she was certain Aradissicath wasn’t going to have a fit, Rhaedalyn focused on R’nya trying to eat, catching easily how much effort he was putting into forcing down just one bite. “Please,” Rhaedalyn softly begged, a hand reaching out to be placed over R’nya’s that held the fork, “please don’t try to eat for me. It’s really not that good and I can bake you something special another day when you do want sweets.” She tried to smile, to show she wasn’t upset or worried but it didn’t quite work out that well and her expression was nearly pouting with the sad smile that appeared.

“I can make you a tea or something stronger if you’d like though,” she still wanted to be helpful and Rhaedalyn glanced around the kitchen as if looking for a drink R’nya would want to relax with before finally kicking her out and going to bed. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to leave him alone though, even if it would give the Weyr something to talk about the next day if anyone saw her enter his hut at a late hour and leave hours later. It didn’t matter! So long as she knew her friend wasn’t drowning in the past. That wasn’t good for anyone and given how little R’nya actually spoke about himself, it had to be much harder on him.

Then stay. Xyreith can come to me and escort me to you. I want to be closer to you right now. Rhaedalyn would have laughed at her dragonet’s decision that she knew the grumpy bronze would have no choice but to follow if he didn’t want to be pestered eternally by her but her heart was too heavy for such things and Rhaedalyn gave a little nod to Aradissicath as hazel eyes turned their gaze solidly on R’nya. “I… I can listen as well. If you want me to, I mean.”

We woke the queen, the bronze’s voice was droll, and his head lifted, removing his eye from the window as he turned to look towards the location Aradissicath was located in, a rumbling growl resonating deep in his chest. R’nya’s gaze shifted from the tabletop, to look between Rhaedalyn and shadowed outline of his dragon near the window. Xyreith? Despite his bewildered attention shifting between the dragon and Rhaedalyn, R’nya was still startled when the young woman reached out to stop him nibbling on the dessert, wide grey eyes shifting to stare at her in surprise.

“I–” R’nya faltered, and let the word die away as he allowed Rhaedalyn to push his hand down, and he quietly dropped the fork, his gaze locked on it rather than bringing himself to look at the girl’s pout. “Thank you,” it was barely whispered, and R’nya pushed the sweet food away, then the fork, before folding his arms over the table again and burying his face in the crook of his elbow. He breathed in deeply, and let it out slowly, before startling heavily when Rhaedalyn spoke softly, head jerking up to stare at her once more.

“I –” the bronzerider’s voice was low, husky from all the emotions swirling mostly out of sight, and he shook his head slightly; not in dismissal of her offer, but at his inability to articulate anything. “I don’t know what to say?” It came out a whispered question, and R’nya sat back slowly, drawing his arms up and crossing them over his chest, dropping his gaze from that of Rhaedalyn to stare, once more, at the table’s top. He would know every knot and whirl by morning, undoubtedly.

I will be right back, Sir. Startled, R’nya’s attention shifted to the window, where Xyreith’s hide was dappled by darkness as he moved away. A frown furrowed the man’s eyebrows, and he reached for his dragon in confusion, blinking in surprise when Xyreith ushered him away to pay attention to the girl. Confident that R’nya would do as encouraged, Xyreith trotted slowly through the Weyr; most everyone was asleep and there was no need to fly when there were none in his path.

When he reached the barracks, Xyreith stopped, mind extending to contact that of the Weyrlingmaster’s dragon. The bronze could not tell what startled the other dragon more; If it was at Xyreith contacting him, or if it was the information that the little gold and her rider would be staying with his rider for the night. There were no objections, though, and Xyreith turned his attention in turn upon Aradissicath before quietly indicating she should accompany him back. They still thought too loud, and he didn’t’ bother to speak to her.

Rising from the dining chair, R’nya made a generalised sweeping gesture to indicate Rhaedalyn should follow him in relocating to the lounge, the bronzerider detouring halfway there to the bedroom for a moment. A breath later, and he reappeared with two folded blankets in his arms, and he offered one to Rhaedalyn, still avoiding her gaze. Turning back to the couch, R’nya swept the blanket around his shoulders, so it trailed like an oversized cloak as he finished the trek to the seat, and then plopped down in the corner, flicking the blankets over his legs and waiting patiently for Rhaedalyn to make herself at home.

He still was not sure what he would tell her, but he would figure something out.

Seeing R’nya in such a state where it was obvious he was at war with his emotions when he normally kept everything so perfectly under control was hard for Rhaedalyn. It was nearly heartbreaking with the way he kept seeming to hide when he leaned down against the table only to switch to sitting back with his arms over his chest in a guarded position. She wanted to help but the problem, she didn’t know what would do the job. The food was a failure but at least R’nya seemed grateful for not having to eat it. Her offer for a drink was given no reply so she wasn’t sure if she should make something anyway. And R’nya didn’t know what to talk about so she didn’t know how to fill in the silence that hung between them again.

Rhaedalyn was close to getting up to clean the kitchen and possibly boil some water or hunt for alcohol since she knew that was the crutch that many people went with when they wanted to forget but R’nya finally moved and seemed to indicate she should follow. Rumour was set on the table so he could do as he pleased as Rhaedalyn got to her feet and quickly moved to follow the bronzerider only to stop suddenly when he turned for the bedroom. Why was he going there and was she supposed to follow? She was confused and flushed by the time R’nya came out with blankets in hand but soon relaxed and took the offered one with a small smile.

Only after R’nya had seated himself did Rhaedalyn shake out her blanket and wrap it over her shoulders so that it also ended up as a hood on her head. There were seat options available to her with the most tempting location being the floor where she could fidget and not bother anyone or seem too forward for assuming she could sit wherever she liked but in the end there was really only one spot that was appropriate. Rhaedalyn shuffled quietly the few feet to the couch where she sat on the opposite corner to R’nya, kicked off her slipper-style shoes and curled her legs up under her. The skirt was given a flick to arrange it properly and the blanket was held tight over her torso as they sat in silence.

Aradissicath returned the silence that was given her as she moved along side Xyreith. She was far too pleased that the bronze had come for her to make a fuss over his lack of communication skills that night. There would be plenty of times in the future to point out that flaw given their humans were friends. Besides, their humans were currently more important than small talk and Aradissicath was grateful she was moving closer to her bonded that seemed stressed and more worked up than usual. It was a strange feeling though. Rhaedalyn was concerned but she wasn’t panicking nearly as much as she was known for and that made the urge to be close all the stronger.

I’m here now, Rhae. Ask the questions that are on your mind or nothing will be said tonight and you could miss your chance. Aradissicath spoke as she settled herself down near a window to peek in to reassure herself that everyone within the hut was fine. Once everyone was scoped out, the young gold made her way over to Xyreith’s barrow and curled up on the edge to make herself at home. It was hard to say how long everything would take and she, at least, was still a bit tired!

“Dissi’s outside with Xyreith now. She woke up and wanted to be closer to everyone,” Rhaedalyn explained softly, unsure if R’nya knew what was going on. She had been surprised to find out from her content dragonet that the bronze had actually gone to escort her but it was also nice to hear. Perhaps they had a budding friendship and it would be a good way to earn a spot in Xyreith’s good graces as well.

Aradissicath had good advice as well, which was another reason why Rhaedalyn was glad the dragon had arrived and was paying more attention to them for the time being. She should ask the questions circling her mind. Not all of them would be appropriate to ask but she had to find something to say and find a way to help R’nya shake the memories that haunted him so much!

“Are you happy, Ren?” As soon as the question came out Rhaedalyn both regretted it and realized it sounded like she meant specifically in that moment where it was rather obvious her friend was miserable. “In general, I mean. With how things are after the plague and coming here.” She knew all about life adjustments thanks to the kidnapping that brought her to the secret Weyr and finally Impressing. R’nya probably had a life that was perfect. A loving father that was proud of his son Impressing a bronze, a woman he loved that would have been a fool not to love back since R’nya was such a gentleman and an example of how men should act, and having Xyreith.

Xyreith watched with a silent gaze as Aradissicath made herself at home with far more arrogance than he had expected, given Rhaedalyn’s timidity. He was amused, and it shone through in flickers of green and blue in an otherwise grumpy expression of colours. Cheeky little bitch! Snorting softly, Xyreith walked slowly to his sleeping place, looking down his nose at Aradissicath in amusement before stepping over her and flopping down on the other side, and making himself comfortable. His tail tip flicked placidly by the young gold’s hip.

“She is?” R’nya asked, his voice slightly dazed as he shook himself out of a stupor and turned his face to Rhaedalyn’s direction, blinking at her dully for a moment before looking slightly more alive as he raised a hand, freeing it of the blanket to brush over his face. He then wrapped himself up again and focused on Rhaedalyn.  “Sorry, Rhaedalyn. I did not mean to cause you distress.” So much distress she had woken her dragon, caused her to come trundling to his hut. R’nya’s chin dropped, the bronzerider staring down at his lap shamefully.

A frown furrowed the man’s brows as he looked up in confusion at Rhaedalyn, mouth slightly ajar as he tried to figure out how to answer her question without sounding like his dragon. The expression faded out, turning into one of tired amusement and he shifted slightly, curling his own legs up onto the couch and leaning lazily against the back, all R’nya-esque posture gone in favour of a desire for sleepy comfort. “Yes,” his voice was gentle, quiet assurance as a smile peeked through, tilting one corner of his lips up.

His gaze shifted, seeing more past than present, and staring off somewhere towards Rhaedalyn’s shoulder, vague and distant. “It is a different kind of happiness,” his voice was still the soft murmur; “It is a different kind of life.” R’nya refocused, blue eyes searching out hazel and he smiled gently. “I would not swap what I have, for what I once had, my dear. I just miss it sometimes, and sometimes it seems to miss me.”

Aradissicath lifted her head from where it rested on her paws to glance back to where she sensed movement near her and eyed the flicking tail tip. She didn’t comment on it since it didn’t bother her and since it didn’t, it meant as soon as she said that, the bronze would likely stop doing it just to be contrary. He was an amusing fellow! He reminded her of some of the characters in Rhaedalyn’s stories that were grumpy but ended up being sweet and the hero by the end. Maybe he was more like the sidekick that was misunderstood and didn’t trust any attempts made to befriend him? The little gold contemplated that as she lowered her head back down, intent on getting some more sleep.

“There’s nothing to be sorry for, R’nya! I was a bit shocked and she picked up on that but she’s fine now and please don’t worry over it!” Rhaedalyn was fretting again and was nearly beside herself with guilt for making R’nya look so ashamed. She wanted to hug the sweet bronzerider but refrained. It wouldn’t be appropriate given he was battling with the past that clearly had a lost love in it. Would her hug only make him feel guiltier? Maybe it’d bring on stronger memories he couldn’t shake? It was best to sit still and stare at her hands, at least until he spoke again and Rhaedalyn glanced up once more.

“That I can understand,” Rhaedalyn replied quietly, almost too shy to mention her previous life. She had shared snippets with her friends, just as they sometimes did in turn but her life hadn’t been all that remarkable and most of it was glossed over. “There was a boy I liked though he never noticed me and I was trying to improve my sewing and cooking so I’d be good marriage material so my parents could find someone who would want me. I didn’t have a lot of friends either. But I still sometimes miss that life.” That actually sounded like a horrible life once she said it aloud but it was still hers and it hadn’t been all that bad. She wouldn’t trade what she had now to go back to that though. She had several wonderful friends, felt a bit more useful, and had the sweetest and most beautiful dragon ever. Rhaedalyn suddenly frowned as she realized her comparison was a bit insensitive. R’nya had a perfect life before and lost it all while she was mediocre at best and was doing better in exile.

“It’s okay to miss something and especially someone.” She paused, unsure about what else to say. She wanted to reassure R’nya that he was normal but maybe her words only continued to make things worse? That wouldn’t be too surprising. Then again, Rhaedalyn also knew talking was helpful. Talking about a fear made it seem not so scary and talking about a dearly departed made it easier to cope with the loss and remember with a smile. Maybe that was all R’nya needed. From what she knew, he had lived alone in exile and from their short time as friends, it seemed like the bronzerider never spoke of his past or himself all that much. He was in need of someone he could trust that could listen to everything that was bottled up inside.

“What’s one of your favourite memories from that different kind of life and happiness?”

Amused interest sparkled through R’nya’s eyes. “I am sure he noticed you, my dear. Perhaps he was just shy?” His lips quirked, in part teasing the young woman, but his words were genuine; Rhaedalyn was hardly easy to miss, with her long and eye catching curls! She was shy though, and had a way of blending into the background to avoid notice that was not dissimilar to his own manner of avoiding attention – at least until D’ren had brought it crashing down on his head, and Aradissicath, in her own way had done the same to Rhaedalyn. “Sometimes less is more, my dear,” R’nya added quietly, referencing her comment about friends. Better to only have a couple that were there when you needed them, than a hoard that had about as much use for you as whers did for wings.

A slight nod was given to Rhaedalyn’s quiet statement, an acknowledgement of the truth within the words. Since it was not a question, R’nya did not point out that he was aware of that, and that he felt no shame in remembering the past. He was just less than pleased when it screwed with his head – also something he was not particularly keen on sharing. Therefore, he remained silent, staring absently down at his knees, as Rhaedalyn seemed to sink into her own silence of thought. The bronzerider didn’t fidget or shift as he sat, silent and thoughtful, almost forgetting the company that was not so far away on the other side of the couch; he jumped slightly when she spoke again, lifting tired eyes to look at the girl with fading surprise and a slowly developing thoughtful expression.

“Impressing Xyreith.” R’nya spoke lowly, his expression altering drastically to one of remembered delight and love, widened blue eyes seeing nothing as he stared past Rhaedalyn with a vague smile. “I was just shy of fifteen,” she had not asked for details, but he could feel the curiosity radiating off her, and it would not do any harm. She probably already had I’shan’s side of the story, at any rate. “I wanted bronze, and so I was picky about which clutches I stood for. I was given permission at twelve, with the other weyrbrats, but Xyreith’s was only the second I stood at.”

His face twisted slightly, an odd flurry of emotions scrolling across it rapidly before R’nya shook his head slightly and tilted it, refocusing on Rhaedalyn. “He was the second to hatch,” R’nya didn’t bother to explain that I’shan’s blue had been first – he was quite sure the bluerider would have been more than happy to gloat about that the moment the opportunity arose. Instead, a smile lit up his face in fond remembrance, eyes vague as he dwelled on that moment so many turns ago. “But we bonded before he had even made it out of his shell.” R’nya refocused, throwing Rhaedalyn an oddly rakish grin. “He was very displeased about hatching second!”

As his expression mellowed into something far more R’nya, the man tilted his head slightly at Rhaedalyn. “Have they explained colour ratios to you, in your classes?” He figured it was something the girl would be learning as a goldrider, but he had no idea what order they were taught such things – and Tsuen was hardly a suitable teacher, and Jada was in the dark as much as any of the girls. That did not really bode well for their education! It was such a pity that the crazy old bat was the only surviving goldrider! R’nya threw that off before it could settle and ruin the slightly excitable mood he had settled into after recalling his Impression.

“The lower the chance of a colour being present in the clutch – such as gold or bronze – the luckier it is considered by the Weyr when they hatch first. They say it makes for a stronger, healthier clutch when a bronze hatches first, rather than a green, which usually denotes a high density of the chromatics. Not a bad thing, certainly, but say – for our time now, we want the higher colours, to build up numbers and widen the bloodlines as much as possible. During Threadfall, we would want more greens and blues, because they are the better fighter.”

And more inclined to bite the dust, over-exerting themselves, Xyreith put in, lifting his head and snorting softly, wary of waking up Aradissicath; women tended to get bitchy when they were woken, and Aradissicath was already a cheeky little snot! “That too.” R’nya grimaced, before sharing Xyreith’s comment with Rhaedalyn, careful to word it more politically than his dragon had; “Green and blueriders also run a tendency to be prideful, and over exert their dragons. The smaller dragons are not equipped for extended flights, which is why our current ratio is so heavily skewed. There should be four or five times the numbers of greens and blues but there aren’t, because many of them didn’t make it across the ocean.” Krypth was certainly working to correct that, though, with her clutch of greens and Aradissicath!

I’m surprised any of them made it across the water. Xyreith’s soft comment caused a shudder to travel down R’nya’s spine, and he shook himself slightly, shoving aside that topic as he raised eyebrows at Rhaedalyn, amusement lingering within the expression. “Now that I have answered one question, how many more do you have floating around your pretty head?” He was more awake now, dropping into his second wind and clearly lightened by talking about his Impression to Xyreith.

Oh, Rhaedalyn was certain she was never noticed back then or now. She had been quiet then and only at Telgar Hold to improve her tailoring skills in the hopes that someone would want her after that. Now, she was still a bit quiet and R’nya didn’t have to scare off nearly as many men flirting with her as he had to with the other girls. She was easy to overlook and for the most part Rhaedalyn didn’t mind that since it gave her a chance to learn more about a person before trusting them. Still, it would have been nice to have someone notice her and take an interest in her. Z’ia seemed to be warming up to her since their official first meeting though and that made the gold weyrling undeniably thrilled.

Naturally none of that was said to R’nya since the night was about making him feel better, not getting him to coddle her and tell her she was being silly for thinking such thoughts. R’nya always helped them and now, in her eyes, the bronzerider needed the shoulder to lean on.

When he answered her question so easily, Rhaedalyn was relieved but when R’nya offered details without prompts, she was beside herself with happiness. At the confession of his age for when he Impressed, Rhaedalyn was momentarily shocked that it had come so late during a time of the traditions having Candidates entering at age twelve. Hearing that he had purposely selected which clutches were worth his time made her giggle. That was so R’nya! He knew what he wanted and went about acquiring it in the best way possible. She was almost willing to bet he had the power to convince a dragonet of the wrong colour that he – or she – should keep on moving and that they weren’t going to be bonded.

The giggles continued at learning about the impression and Xyreith’s opinion on his placement. “Oh, I bet he was!” She vaguely recalled I’shan pointing out Ilveriath had hatched first but it wasn’t brought up or really even focused on in her mind since the bronzerider was top priority that night; not comparing versions of stories. “He knew a good man when he sensed him and wanted to get out there before another could grab you.” Xyreith came across as grumpy but he was definitely still smart!

There were other questions that stemmed from the story but they were cut off as R’nya started talking about lectures in class. She wrinkled her nose at him but listened all the same and nodded in understanding. The subject had been touched upon but R’nya made it make more sense and he did it in thirty seconds instead of thirty minutes! It was a shame he wasn’t a Wingleader anymore; he was probably amazing at getting the riders to listen and work together.

The thought of all the beautiful blues and greens perishing made Rhaedalyn frown and be thankful Thread wasn’t around anymore. She didn’t think she could bare to see any dragon hurt or watch a rider go through the pain of losing their dragon, even if it was their arrogance that caused the departure. R’nya’s mood seemed to be lifting, however, so Rhaedalyn shook off the gloominess and bit her lip as she thought about other questions.

“Hmm… maybe one or two. Did you Touch Xyreith’s egg? What’s Fort Weyr like? I’ve never seen a proper Weyr before.” She shifted as she spoke, until she was sitting sideways on the couch and facing R’nya properly. Her scooting about brought her a bit closer and her eagerness to know more about her friend was nearly sparkling in hazel eyes. “Will you finally tell me what colour to use so I can make you a nice summer shirt for gatherings? Have you always been a protector of girls? I’ve heard some people call you a pimp because all of us are always around you.” Again, Rhaedalyn giggled as she thought the idea silly and took no offence over what it implied of her or her other friends that were a part of the so-called Golden Girls – the name the girls under R’nya’s watchful gaze had earned.

R’nya could not help it! A throaty laugh was released as Rhaedalyn’s hesitance was lost after stating maybe ‘one or two’ questions were floating around, and followed it up with a flood of enthusiastic demands. The mention of being their pimp caused the laugh to transform into a choke, the bronzerider coughing with wide eyes, shaking his head as he tried valiantly to regain control of his lungs. “That’s what they say,” R’nya allowed, the words gasped out and eyes a little glassy from unshed tears the coughing fit had brought on. He had not realised the girls had noticed that part of the gossip! Blue eyes sparkled mischievously. “It does no true harm, and it keeps them at bay.” The bronzerider shrugged. The first man to call one of his girls a whore, though, would end up with a broken jaw. R’nya would make sure of that!

“I did,” he answered the first question, leaving it purposefully without further details to see if the girl would come back to it. “Big,” he added in reply to the question about Fort Weyr, a smirk slowly gaining control of the corners of his lips. “That’s a pity!” It was growing, and he was fighting valiantly to keep his features expressionless. Damned be Xyreith and his desire to screw greens! “Maybe.” The smirk was winning, and then; “Yes.” The smile faltered as memories danced, and forgetting his impending game of enticing Rhaedalyn to ask more questions – clearly she had far too many roaming around that she had refrained from asking – R’nya struggled to figure out which one he would be able to answer and banish the memories, rather than encouraging them. After a few minutes of internal struggle, he gave in to the flood.

“No,” he murmured, frowning slightly, as he corrected himself. “I have not always been a protector of girls.” His gaze shifted to watch Rhaedalyn’s face, blue eyes serious as he studied her for a moment, before continuing quietly. He spoke slowly, each word carefully considered before he allowed it freedom. “Etralla was the first girl I ever spent much time around; I was Weyr-raised.” His mother was a drudge; she did not have the time to raise a child, not when the Weyr at large could raise him, and R’nya had no female siblings that he knew – he knew he had them, he knew not who they were. “Xyreith won Cerith’s maiden flight before our first year of Weyrlinghood was through.”

He leaned into the couch more, resting his cheek against the backrest as he watched Rhaedalyn, only half seeing the girl. “Holder bred, she’d Impressed at her first standing, and was very hide-bound. She demanded to be courted, even though Weyrlife doesn’t work like that.” R’nya paused, shifting uncomfortably. “I did it, because I thought it was funny, and…” He grimaced, refusing to meet Rhaedalyn’s eyes, “we had bets on how soon I could get her into bed again.” He gave a dry, sour snort of laughter that held no real humour. “I won her over fast enough,” amusement drifted back into his tones. “But she would not sleep with me until after the Hatching. I had rather a lot of marks on betting before the hatching. She was a very clever girl…”

He trailed into silence, quietly remembering the odd antics Etralla had gotten up to, and the strange Holder customs she had taught him. He had learned a lot, not the least of which was treating women with respect, and how to string a decent sentence together! She had taught him how to listen to gossip, and how to make the most of blending into the shadows; to be somewhere without appearing to be there, a talent she used often with her apparently airheaded personality. He had been pleasantly surprised by the sharp personality residing under the façade of girlish ignorance.

“You may ask more questions,” r’nya murmured quietly as Xyreith shifted uncomfortably outside, and stood up, stepping over Aradissicath with great care to pace down the side of the hut, eyes a myriad of discomforted colours. R’nya’s emotions and memories were not kept from Xyreith, who remembered because his rider did. The refreshed emotions, the vivid pictures, and the deep emotions it brought up within him from times past were uncomfortable, and Xyreith whined lowly, wings half extended as he did a lap around the hut, returning to the area where Aradissicath was curled up, just as agitated as when he had started.

It is alright. R’nya’s thought was distracted, and coated in memories. Is it? Xyreith returned, his tone anxious as he swayed from foot to foot.

“Ren!” Rhaedalyn squealed the bronzerider’s name and slapped his arm playfully as she bounced a bit closer as he answered her questions as basic as possible and not at all helpfully! She loved the sound of his laughter though! R’nya really needed to do it more often and Rhaedalyn made a mental note to try to get him to do it again both that night and in the future. It wasn’t that he was always too serious since she had caught the mischievous sparkle in his eyes when he teased them and the eyebrow actually said quite a bit about him! But he held such a stoic expression so easily that it was almost sad and Rhaedalyn wanted him to truly be relaxed and comfortable around those he spent so much time with. Laughing never hurt anyone!

In his silence, Rhaedalyn thought over her questions and debated which order she’d ask for details on. She was curious about what Xyreith made him feel during the Touching since Aradissicath made it seem like she wanted nothing to do with her and then bonded with her not long after. Hearing more about everyone’s home Weyrs was hard since so many of the dragonriders liked to pretend that time didn’t happen but Rhaedalyn dearly wanted to know more about the life her friends had in such places since she had grown up in holds of varying sizes. Most importantly, she really wanted to know the colour to use for his new shirt!

None of those follow-ups were asked as R’nya started talking once more, explaining the question that Rhaedalyn hadn’t thought needed any further explanation beyond a positive answer. She was convinced the bronzerider had always looked out for women and maybe even children that needed a little extra guidance but the illusion quickly shattered and Rhaedalyn fell silent, her face falling into an expression of neutrality. It was true she didn’t know much about some of her friends but the confession revealed to her was something Rhaedalyn never would have thought R’nya capable of.

She wasn’t surprised by the pair chasing before a turn had passed from hatching nor did it surprise her that it had been a gold that was caught. Xyreith was a powerful bronze and as R’nya already pointed out, he wouldn’t settle for second either. He may have Impressed second but he’d prove he was worthier than most of a gold. It was the confession that he laughed at the girl and made bets about her that Rhaedalyn hadn’t expected and she didn’t know what to say to that. It was so opposite to what she knew and believed about the bronzerider that it seemed like one of his subtle jokes where it was hard to tell if he was actually serious or not. He wouldn’t make light of such things, though, of that she was sure.

“Etralla… what a pretty name,” Rhaedalyn whispered lamely and stared at her hands. She imagined a very pretty girl had been attached to that name. At least now she knew who R’nya kept seeing that night instead of a greenrider and managing to carry on a normal conversation or eat. R’nya had said he courted the woman so they had likely been mated and possibly even married in order to keep her happy which explained why the man never seemed interested in anyone and hated ending up in flights. R’nya was like Kahleena in that regard. Her friend still saw herself as married to her husband that even Rhaedalyn knew would have moved on from within a turn. Kahleena couldn’t imagine herself with another man and had dreaded Okalinath’s first flight. All Rhaedalyn had to go on in that area of life was pity sex from R’nd – though it had been rather enjoyable. No one had courted her or asked her to be a wife or mate.

Sensing her distress, Muffin appeared in the room, chiding the other two firelizards that had crept in closer to the humans for not protecting their Rhaedalyn better. She was unhappy! Even Muffin in all of his games and teasing her knew she shouldn’t be in such a mood and landed in the girl’s lap to be cuddled, a cue Rhaedalyn easily picked up on.

Without moving an inch from how she curled up, Aradissicath watched the bronze dragon circle the hut and finally voiced her opinion on the entire thing. Pacing won’t make anyone any happier. Sit down before you make me dizzy. You were also blocking the breeze from that side and I’d appreciate the shelter again, please. Aradissicath was starting to get irritated by all of the emotion spikes happening every which way. It was one thing for her sweet and gentle bonded to have such mood swings and think such silly thoughts but it was another to have the bronze dragon act like a caged feline! They are both adults and will sort through their emotions and memories on their own. Now kindly sit down, Xyreith.

Rhaedalyn wasn’t sure she wanted to ask more questions, afraid of what else she might learn. She wasn’t going to chide him for his behaviour from the past since it helped shape the man she had befriended and turned to for help but she also wasn’t sure if learning about the relationship that haunted R’nya would actually help the man. With her streak of luck, it’d only make things worse. So she went with one of the original follow-up questions instead. “What did you feel when you Touched Xyreith’s egg? Did you know that he was for you?”

“Yes,” R’nya murmured softly, the word far more of a sad little sigh and he smiled thankfully at Rhaedalyn when the girl asked a question of him once more, relief sweeping through him. In part, because she had chosen to attack a subject that was not related to the ghost of the goldrider swimming through his mind, and the question she asked was focused on a memory he enjoyed reliving but rarely got a chance to do so. R’nya was not really one to offer up information about himself. Apparently, that lack of offered information had given the girls the impression that he was not someone to be asked questions of. In part, it was because she was not storming off on him, or angry with him, for the things he had done as a child. He was ashamed of that part of his history, but Etralla had set him right, and R’nya was not ashamed of that; he was proud of who he was, and would hate for Rhaedalyn (or any of his girls!) to be unhappy with him because of it.

Xyreith’s great head swung around at the sound of Aradissicath’s voice, eyes swirling with untold emotions as he stared at her in silence for several moments, contemplating. After a moment, he moved, but it was not where he had been intended to move to; the bronze had been planning to continue his pacing, despite her demands to stop. Instead, he found himself stepping quietly back over her (a small defiance, but one none the less!) and flopping back down in the hollow, not at all mindful of the dust he swept up and around her. She would be bathed the next day, anyway, right? What was a little dirt? Turning his gaze on the little gold, Xyreith snorted at the back of her head, before resting his chin on his legs with another dissatisfied rumble. Golds!

“Sorry, Muffin.” His words were sincere, but his gaze was locked on Rhaedalyn; he had said something that had caused the firelizard to appear so possessively, and while he was not quite sure what it was he might have done or said, he was not unwilling to apologise for upsetting the girl, even if the name he used was of the firelizard. He tugged his blanket a little closer around himself, then sat up and leaned forward, hands appearing to straighten Rhaedalyn’s back around her shoulders once more, after all her excited wriggling. He flashed her a small smile as he settled back down again, rewrapping himself as he did so.

Resting the side of his face against the backrest of the seat, R’nya studied Rhaedalyn absently as he considered how to answer her question. “No, I did not.” He gave an amused snort and raised his eyebrows at the girl. “There was a green, in the egg I thought was for me.” He tossed her a wink. “Thankfully, I was one to keep such ideas to myself, so no one but you knows that now.” He did not think he had ever shared that particular titbit with anyone before, though he was not overly surprised Rhaedalyn had wrangled it out of him that night. He had told her a lot already that he had never told anyone before – though, to be fair, much of what he had mentioned had been common knowledge at Fort. The events surrounding the Touching he had participated in for Xyreith were known only by himself, and by proxy, Xyreith.

“He was an odd egg,” R’nya started slowly, though his voice was thick with the impending amusement he always got from remembering, and hoped Rhaedalyn would see it as well. “Imagine…” He paused, considering what to use for his example. “Imagine Grith, on a sugar high after eating every bubbly pie the Weyr has ever produced, and then shoved into the smallest egg on the Sands.” Blue eyes sparkled mischievously. “Then, Imagine Sugar-High-Grith in the most sour mood because every obnoxious weyrbrat in the Weyr wants to feel sorry for the itty-bitty-eggie.” The bronzerider’s eyes widened dramatically and he leaned forward slightly.

“It was like a thunderclap of emotions!” He shrank back again, eyes still wide. “I was terrified!” Laughter was thick in his voice, if not on his face, though it glittered in amused eyes. “Ask another!” Memories and swirling emotions aside, R’nya was enjoying Rhaedalyn’s questions. The girl was sweet, and the lack of malicious design behind her questions buoyed the bronzerider.

“Muffin will be okay,” Rhaedalyn commented as she continued petting the blue firelizard, mostly speaking on his behalf. She referred to herself in that statement as well, unknowingly matching R’nya’s tone of the apology. It was an odd night and the girl wasn’t entirely certain she was coping with it as well as someone else might but she was making her way through it all the same. The news about how R’nya behaved before the plague was a bit upsetting but she chose to stick with the belief that it helped form the bronzerider into the man she had befriended and could forgive such things. Rhaedalyn knew he would never act that way now with her or the other girls he watched over and that was the important thing.

The enthusiasm that returned to R’nya when she asked about egg Touching was contagious and Rhaedalyn perked up considerably herself. “A green? I couldn’t picture you on a green at all!” Rhaedalyn laughed behind her hand, doing her best not to laugh too loudly at the image of R’nya of green Grith. Rilaleeyth was a sweet dragon and had the possibility to match R’nya nicely but the colour was just wrong for their protector. The fact that Grith was being used to compare temperaments did nothing for the weyrling and Rhaedalyn continued her giggling. Xyreith’s reaction to all of the pity he received while his egg was touched didn’t surprise Rhaedalyn at all. In fact, she would have been more shocked if the great beast was sugar-high-Grith and pleased to meet everyone!

“I would have been terrified as well! But I was also afraid of Dissi’s reaction to me …and what would happen when she hatched.” Poor R’nya had to wait patiently for her to finally admit to the response and still Rhaedalyn felt a shiver of fear when she thought about it. It was the oddest sensation to have experienced! So much fear and the feeling of being stalked and then the gold that came from that was so sweet! She had been convinced Aradissicath wasn’t for her and R’nya had thought Xyreith wasn’t but some green was. She supposed Touchings weren’t all that reliable in the end but still a fun tradition. Then again, while both of their dragons had terrified them, they still Impressed to them. Would it have happened if they didn’t?

R’nya’s mood was up and down but Rhaedalyn was overjoyed when it swung into the upper emotions. It was so rare and even the other times seemed reserved compared to the openness she was seeing right then. She hoped this meant she actually was being of some use and helping R’nya to let go of his memories for another night and regain his balance. “Hmm…” As Rhaedalyn thought about more questions that wouldn’t link in some way to Etralla, Whisper decided she had had enough of waiting on the sidelines and jumped up on the couch between the humans and sat closer to R’nya. She waited, sitting prettily, for him to notice her and invite her to his lap or to give his wonderful pettings. She was a lady and would wait all night rather than simply jump into his lap!

“What was Xyreith like in his weyrling days? I bet you two were at the top of your weyrling class.” She hesitated a moment, worried that her next question would send R’nya spiralling back into depressed memories given the colour of Aradissicath’s hide but she went with it anyway. “Will you help me with any extra practice I’ll probably have to put in?”

“I should hope not!” R’nya teased, shaking his head slightly. Him, bonded to green? The thought bypassed ‘funny’ and went straight into disturbing and the bronzerider scrunched his nose up without thinking as he shook his head slightly. R’nya was a colourist man enough to be highly disturbed by the idea of being settled into a life of a green whore, and he certainly didn’t fancy the things they got up to in the bedroom! There wasn’t’ nearly enough women on blue for him to even imagine he would not be completely miserable on a green. Never mind a woman in his head all the time. Xyreith gave a great snort of laughter.

R’nya reached out gently to pick up Whisper, removing the little gold from the couch and placing her in his lap, waiting for her to make herself comfortable before he began petting her gently, watching her as he considered his response to Rhaedalyn’s question. It wasn’t that her question had brought forth memories, so much as that was a time of his life he wasn’t overly proud of; he’d seen the way she reacted to his comments earlier, and R’nya didn’t wish any of the girls to think badly of him, especially after he had worked so hard to win their trust. He was not like that anymore, but he knew not all the girls would be willing to accept that, if they heard of it.

“We were,” he said gently, looking up from Whisper to meet Rhaedalyn’s eyes placidly. “We were a very proud pair.” Which was putting it lightly! They had to be the best, at everything, and as often as not, they had to make sure the blueriding brat’s nose was rubbed in that fact – hard – in order to be completely satisfied. Winning Cerith’s flight had only made them worse, and their Weyrlingmaster had done little to put a damper on such attitudes. It was definitely not a proud time for the still proud bronzerider. “Of course, my dear.” A tiny, warm smile flickered over his lips.

He didn’t bother to tell her that such a request was silly; everyone had one or two areas of their classes they did not do so well in, R’nya’s had been respect, and there was no shame in asking for nor receiving assistance with those areas. He was far more pleased the girl still felt comfortable enough to seek him out for such things, and R’nya reached out to give her hand a gentle squeeze, before returning it to Whisper and the gentle pets she had demanded.

“Thank you, R’nya,” Rhaedalyn tried to keep hidden the relief and extreme enthusiasm over his agreement to help her. She trusted R’nya with everything but she still worried he wouldn’t have the time or want to assist her in silly lessons that should have been easy. So far, they were easy but she knew they would get harder, like focusing her thoughts and talking only to Aradissicath, so it was comforting to know she would have someone there waiting and as patient as ever. Maybe Xyreith would even assist in the dragon side of things since he seemed to like the young gold well enough as he was proving that night. Rhaedalyn smiled at the thought and then at the hand that was squeezing hers before returning to pet Whisper.

She watched in silence for a little while the way R’nya seemed so at ease with the firelizard. That was something else she was grateful for. If he didn’t like the tiny creatures, she’d have to work hard to keep them away from the bronzerider and given Whisper’s fondness of the man, it would be a never-ending task that would be exhausting. It was such a sweet scene, comforting and even domestic. It reminded Rhaedalyn of something she’d see back home in the North. In fact, before she had been Stolen, one of the residents at Telgar Hold had returned one night with a feline and he was sometimes spotted sitting quietly petting her. He was a bit creepy but it was adorable all the same.

As much as she liked watching the quiet interaction, Rhaedalyn also knew she was supposed to be playing as a distraction and possibly even asking more questions. R’nya hadn’t prompted her to ask more but that didn’t mean she had to stop. Except, she didn’t know what else to ask. A small yawn tried to escape but she smothered it quickly before R’nya blamed himself for not allowing her to get to bed earlier. That was actually a good idea! Not getting herself to sleep just yet, but perhaps the bronzerider was ready for bed. “Are you tired? I know you’re up well past your preferred time to rest. I’ll check that your bed is made up,” she flushed only a little at the suggestion but she wanted to make sure Muffin hadn’t appeared and decided baiting Rumour into playing on the bed, destroying the set up was a great idea.

“I’ll clean up the mess I made in the kitchen as well before I go,” it was more an excuse to keep her there a little longer and make sure R’nya was sleeping peacefully without nightmares or interruptions but he didn’t need to know that. Rhaedalyn only hoped he wouldn’t be his usual kind self and insist none of that had to happen. She didn’t want to leave until she knew he was fine and not just pretending for her sake. She also hoped R’nya didn’t think she was being nice simply to get out of talking more since she was enjoying their time, despite what prompted it.

“You are welcome,” the bronzerider murmured softly, doting almost entirely on Whisper as the little gold purred in his lap. Firelizards were remarkably easy creatures to please, and R’nya enjoyed their gentle and placid delight in being spoiled. Of course, not all of them were as sweet as Rhaedalyn’s lot, but that was okay. He did not have to put up with many of the other Weyr’s firelizard residents!

Blue eyes lifted to blink at Rhaedalyn as she began speaking again, and R’nya shrugged one shoulder lazily. “Do not fret about the kitchen, my dear,” he responded lightly, a light whisper of amusement flickering on the edges of the words. He loved his girls dearly, but some of them were so far focused on being proper even in those few moments when such manners were not required that the bronzerider found it both amusing, endearing and occasionally flustering. At the end of the day, it was a good thing, but teaching them to manage when was and was not the right time was proving to be difficult. His attention returned to Whisper for several moments as he considered the girl’s words.

“You should stay,” R’nya frowned, eyebrows furrowed in concern as he glanced up at Rhaedalyn once more. It was far too late for young ladies to be wandering around the Weyr, particularly one of his young ladies, and while her not-so-little dragonet should offer her some measure of protection (and Aradissicath was certainly intimidating when she wanted to be), R’nya wasn’t quite prepared to bet on that alone keeping her safe. There were some riders that seemed to get far too much of a thrill out of a challenge. The gossip the Weyr would come up with if Rhaedalyn stayed the night would not be nearly as damaging as what could happen if he shipped her out the door just so he could get some sleep! No, that wouldn’t do at all.

Standing up fluidly, R’nya mumbled a quiet ‘one moment’ and vanished into his room with quick strides, Whisper relocated on his shoulder with a confused chirp. His one moment however, became several moments before he reappeared in the doorway and made his way hazardously across the room to dump a couple of blankets and a pillow on the couch. Extending a hand to Rhaedalyn, R’nya waited for the confused girl to take it before ushering her towards his room. “I changed the bedding for you. You can stay in here.” Giving the girl a gentle shove to prevent her attempting to bicker with him (something he was sure she would at least try to do) R’nya quietly shut the door and returned to the couch.

Wake me if she tries to sneak out before daybreak. With issues ordered to Xyreith, who snorted softly at Aradissicath, the bronzerider collapsed onto the couch and threw the blankets hazardously over himself. He waited about twenty minutes to be sure Rhaedalyn wasn’t going to try and sneak out to do the dishes or tiptoe home in the dark, before giving in to sleep.

Rhaedalyn was one giant ball of confusion with wide, unblinking eyes as all of her protests were efficiently blocked and she watched R’nya disappear into his bedroom. She wanted to clean up so she could keep an eye on him a little more! He was going to ruin her attempts to further help. A pout was given at the doorway that didn’t seem to want to give the bronzerider back as she waited for half a lifetime for R’nya to return. When he finally did, the confusion was still in place as blankets and pillows were dumped on the couch beside her. Was he making her a bed? She was okay with that since now she didn’t have to pretend to look busy in order to stay and keep watch.

When R’nya relocated her to the bedroom, however, Rhaedalyn gave up on thinking. He was being so weird and unpredictable! “R’nya, I couldn’t-” her protest was cut off as R’nya closed the door and again she pouted and then huffed out an annoyed sigh. Men could be so frustrating! Not that she had a lot of experience with men but her few friends at least were good at bringing around the random bout of frustration. R’nya usually wasn’t one of them but tonight had him a little off kilter so she gave him some slack and didn’t whip open the door to properly protest and beg the man to go to his own bed.

Now that she was in his bedroom, Rhaedalyn cautiously peered around before feeling like she was spying and quickly moved to the bed and stared at it. It wasn’t the bedding that bothered her and it wouldn’t even if he hadn’t changed it but it was R’nya’s bed. It felt wrong to crawl up in it but it had been freely offered and there wasn’t any room to argue. Go to bed, dear. Everyone is tired and it won’t harm either of you. Well, he might have a sore neck but he will survive. Rhaedalyn managed a little smile for the gold and nodded.

Despite the hour, Rhaedalyn was still properly dressed since it wouldn’t do to walk around the Weyr in her sleeping garments. Her dress was untied and carefully shimmied out of to leave her in the dainty slip of the day. The dress was folded and placed on aside and shoes were only toed off once she sat on the edge of the bed, feet arranging them neatly off to the side. Mevrit always said she was a slob but Rhaedalyn was putting in extra effort to not make a mess of anything in R’nya’s home. After slipping under the blankets and assuring the two blue firelizards that curled up beside her that all was well, Rhaedalyn stared at the ceiling and debated sneaking out to check on R’nya.

She didn’t get the chance since she ended up falling asleep a few minutes later.

When Rhaedalyn next woke, it still seemed dark outside so she figured it had only been a few short hours since she accidentally fell asleep. The guilt of not being much help with R’nya battling his past, sleeping in his bed, and leaving a mess in the kitchen had bothered her enough to wake the exhausted girl. Quietly, Rhaedalyn got to her feet and with light steps on her tip toes, moved to the door and peeked into the living area. R’nya looked to be asleep still, Whisper curled up with him to keep him safe. The young weyrling smiled and moved quickly for the kitchen.

As expected, her fair had stripped away most of the food but she didn’t mind since it hadn’t been wanted by R’nya. Rhaedalyn moved with speed and as soundlessly as possible to empty the rest of the food into a little bin for composting and washed the dishes. Once they were done and the table wiped down, Rhaedalyn made her way back to the bedroom with one final peek in on R’nya. He looked content in his sleep and she hoped his dreams were peaceful.

The idea to leave for her own little room never crossed Rhaedalyn’s mind. It would be extremely rude to leave without a word, especially since R’nya had given up his bed for her. She owed him so much for his kindness and she was going to start paying him back by appreciating the gift and remaining in the surprisingly soft bed. As her mind played over what she could do to start thanking R’nya, Rhaedalyn drifted back to sleep.

As a rule, R'nya was an exceptionally early riser. Prone to going to bed around the same time the sun did, the bronzerider was just as commonly up when the sun was peeking over the edge of the horizon. Unfortunately, going to bed mere hours before one was inclined to get up, tended to cause one to sleep in. There were, naturally, several times when the demands of routine tried to rouse the sleepy man, but a body used to an average of ten hours sleep was very much uninterested in functioning on only two or three. Not even Rhaedalyn's tiptoeing about and bustling around in the kitchen could wake him.

Xyreith, on the other hand, was as personable as ever as the soft noise of movement within the building had his head lifting from where he had had his chin resting in Aradissicath, to stare towards the small hut. When the young gold curled up beside him made no motion to leave, and the young woman she was bonded to didn't appear in the doorway in an attempt to sneak away, Xyreith left well enough alone and dropped his head back down across Aradissicath, and closed his eyes. Judging by the lazy swirl of dreams in his humans mind, R'nya wouldn't be in any hurry to wake up.

Indeed, R'nya didn't wake up until an hour or so past lunch time, when the midday heat was finally becoming too much to cope with, and the bronzerider was roused by the imposing weight of the hit air. The windows were still open, originally to let the cooler night breeze flow through the small hut, they had since allowed it to become an oven. R'nya kicked the blankets off himself with little fanfare, and stared lazily up at the roof, utterly confused. How under the far-too-hot sun had he managed to sleep in so late? Even as he wondered, the evening filled itself in and R'nya paused for a moment, before sitting up fluidly and staring wide-eyed at his bedroom door. The man's blue eyes rolled up, lids closing as he prayed silently that the girl had made her way back to her own bed in the earlier hours, and he crept off the couch and across the room.

R'nya's eyebrows furrowed in mild distress when he was the very asleep form of Rhaedalyn sprawled across the bed, half the blankets kicked off and the girl still somehow managing to sleep with modesty. A small smile flickered into life on R'nya's lips, before he slipped out of the doorway - leaving it ajar slightly, and made his way to the front door, a flashing frown aiming at the kitchen when he saw it had been cleaned up; the expression aimed far more at himself, when he caught the irritable thought that she'd cleaned up dishes, but not thought to close windows. He would have rather woken up cool with a messy table! But such thoughts were unbecoming - she was a guest - and R'nya peered out the window at Xyreith, who had managed to relocate into the shade. He couldn't see Aradissicath - whether she'd left or was hidden behind the great bronze, R'nya didn't investigate. For all R'nya knew, the young gold had attended her daily check up and fed herself whiteout bothering to wake Rhaedalyn.

You should have woken me. R'nya grumbled to Xyreith as he made his way back to the kitchen, digging up a bottle of water in a heavy clay bottle, and pouring two glasses of the liquid. The bottle had kept the water cool, as it was designed to do, though not as cool as it could be. Why? You're a grumpy bitch if you don't get your sleep. Sir. R'nya's droll response was lost under the sound if Xyreith laughing in the back if his mind, as the rider made his way back to the bedroom, and his sleeping guest. He hesitated, for a moment wondering if t I would be kinder to let the girl sleep through the heat, before slipping forward silently and seating himself on the edge if the bed. While kinder, they both had duties to attend to, and R'nya was unhappily aware if rather a lot of gossip he would have to work through if he wanted to do damage control for Rhaedalyn's reputation.

"Rhaedalyn?" Placing the glasses lightly on the bedside table, R'nya brushed his fingers lightly over the girl's shoulder. "Time to wake up, dear," the bronzeriders voice was full of apology. She looked so happy all curled up in a mountain if curly reddish hair and fast asleep. She was utterly adorable, and R'nya's expression was of fond amusement as he watched her come back to reality and leave the dreams behind.

Rhaedalyn was still dancing around in her dream land when a voice filtered in calling to her. It sounded familiar but it didn’t fit the setting of playing on the beach with so much apology clinging to her name. It took a moment for the words to filter through clearly but the sleeping woman pouted and whimpered at the idea of waking up. It was hot out and resting in the shade at the lakeside was so much better! It’s time to wake up, Rhaedalyn. We have relaxed a bit too much today already. From the tone of her voice, Rhaedalyn knew Aradissicath didn’t entirely mind the laziness.

Slowly, she stirred and hazel eyes fluttered opened to land their gaze upon R’nya. Rhaedalyn frowned, confused at seeing the bronzerider, and wondered if she was still asleep. When it seemed like the man wasn’t going to vanish, Rhaedalyn recalled she wasn’t in her own bed and that R’nya had insisted on her staying the night after dealing with so many emotional memories. A gasp wanted to be the first thing she said but a yawn cut it off and Rhaedalyn quickly covered her mouth to hide the less than ladylike action. The yawn helped to compose her and Rhaedalyn instead offered up a light and still groggy smile. “Good morning, R’nya.”

It’s only morning if you consider that the time immediately upon waking up regardless of the sun’s placement. Aradissicath supplied after verifying with a second glance to the sky that it was indeed well past their usual wake up time. She hadn’t minded though since while he was silent, Xyreith was still enjoyable company and he really did block most of the wind and direct sunlight while she wanted to nap. Her hunger was increasing though and while she thought about wandering off to feed herself, Aradissicath hadn’t wanted to worry anyone if they woke and saw her empty place.

Rhaedalyn gave an odd frown as she considered her dragon’s words and was immediately wide awake when it clicked together that it was the afternoon and she had slept through the morning and their meetings. She was going to be in so much trouble! Sine R’nya looked much like he had the night before, she suspected he had done the same thing and likely missed appointments. His perfect reputation would be ruined because of her! “I’m sorry, R’nya!” Rhaedalyn quickly sat up and somehow managed to keep the sheet covering her from the waist down. She didn’t think to cover herself fully since she lacked in the breast department and her current slip only showed the barest peek of cleavage. Besides, there were things to apologise for that took priority!

“I kept you up so late and ruined your sleep schedule and you probably missed important things this morning,” she’d never forgive herself if R’nya was in trouble because of her. It was one thing to get a lecture for her own slacking off but it didn’t do to drag others into the mess as well. Speaking of messes, she had cleaned up the kitchen but hadn’t thought to close the windows since it was still cool out. How was she to know they’d sleep practically all day and wake up in an oven? “I should have closed your windows earlier. I’ll wash your linens for you as soon as I can today.” As a lady, she didn’t sweat but Rhaedalyn had a feeling she may have perspired a bit in her sleep with how warm the room currently was and she didn’t expect the bronzerider to sleep on used bedding anyway. It was one more thing to add to the list of what she owed R’nya for.

"Rhaedalyn!" R'nya's voice was soft, but startled as he held up a single hand in a placid acting gesture, eyes slightly wide as the girl took off on a tangent, her words spilling free almost too fast for him to piece together. Reaching out lightly, he brushed back some of the again sticking to her cheek with a gentle touch, before withdrawing and lowering his hand. "Relax, dear. Please." The girl was more than a handful at the best of times, but R'nya was still waking up and while he could sort out what was going on, it would be easier if she'd just breathe and save him the effort.

"You did not ruin anything, my lady. I promise." There was a hint of a smile there, and he shook his head slightly. He had had no reason to worry about being up early at any rate, and while he would certainly have found tasks to keep him occupied for the expanse of hours he had ended up sleeping through, R'nya also knew that not doing anything in them was no huge issue. While Xyreith rarely gave chase, he did manage to completely screw up R'nya's ups and downs and rights and lefts in the hours that followed when he did feel like winning. As a result, iI was unlikely that the young lady had taken note of his post-flight attitude before; R'nya usually spent it locked away in his hut or the bathing houses at any rate. Unfortunately for Rhaedalyn, R'nya had no desire to tell her that last night was how he usually responded to flights.

The bronzerider puffed out a purposefully comical sigh at Rhaedalyn's insistence on washing his bedding, the man giving her a droll, flat look for several moments. "There is no need; I will take care of it. And forget about the windows, dear. Getting upset will not change the events." The twinge of guilt she had evicted with her comment was, thankfully, well hidden. R'nya was many things, bu the had no desire to upset the girl by letting her know he'd had a moment of deep irritation at her thoughtlessness with leaving the windows open.

Standing up, R'nya folded his hands together behind his back, and nodded at Rhaedalyn. "I will let you dress." Blue eyes studied her face for a few moments, before R'nya turned on his heel and made his way out of the room, quietly closing the door behind him and meandering to the kitchen. The girl would need to leave soon, for while her weyrling master knew she was fine and well, he would still need to check over Aradissicath and make sure she was fine and Rhaedalyn undoubtedly had actual chores she was supposed to be doing. The bronzerider poured the girl a small glass of juice, and made his way back to lean lazily against the kitchen doorway, holding the glass lightly in one hand for the girl.

I want to go swimming. the dragon's voice interrupted R'nya's thoughts without apology. We're going swimming. He added, standing up lazily and stretching out, motions particularly feline as he yawned, then snorted with a shake of his head. Aradissicath was glanced at, but not spoken to as Xyreith shook himself out.

As soon as the door closed, Rhaedalyn was quickly sliding free of the bed and moving for her dress. She still felt like she had let R’nya down by not taking better care of his things and by letting him sleep so late. Perhaps it was a good thing no one had asked for her hand in marriage if this was an indicator of how she would be as a wife and messing up her duties to tend a home. Frowning, but thankfully not crying, Rhaedalyn shimmied into her dress and slipped her shoes back on. Hands patted at her hair and ran down her dress to make sure everything was covered properly and a large sigh was heaved.

She was going to be in trouble from the Weyrlingmaster and everyone else she said she would help today. She’d have to work extra hard as soon as she was excused from the check up. A treat for R’nya was in order as well. Rhaedalyn wasn’t convinced she helped her friend much the night before so apology cookies or perhaps another and better attempt at pie was needed for him. With that decided, she only had to find the time to get the treat made.

The door was opened and Rhaedalyn peeked around it to see where R’nya was and what he was up to. Spotting him holding out a glass of juice, a smile was given and she meekly moved to take it. “Thank you,” she mumbled as she grabbed it and did her best not to chug it down instantly. It felt so good on her parched tongue! She also had a feeling her welcome had long since worn off and Rhaedalyn wanted to beeline out of there as quickly as she could. “Please tell me if you do need your linens washed or aired out and I’ll come and do it for you,” she truly hadn’t thought they’d sleep so late and the idea to close the windows never occurred to her but that still made it her fault since she had been awake at some point.

“Thank you for the juice and the use of your bed.” Rhaedalyn moved passed R’nya to set the empty glass on the table, knowing better than to try washing it right then. R’nya would insist it wasn’t needed and they’d only end up even later to their promised activities of the day. “I better go check in. I hope and Xyreith have a wonderful day, R’nya.” Another smile was given to the bronzerider and Rhaedalyn made her exit.

Aradissicath mimicked Xyreith’s actions by standing and stretching as well but while the bronze was fluid in his movements, the gold ended up bumping Xyreith with a wing, even after thinking she had enough space to unfurl and stretch properly. She made no comment on the incident, however, since that would show whether she meant to do it or not and it was best to leave the great beast wondering what it meant rather than state it was accidentally done. A little mystery in everyone’s life was a good thing!

You helped him, Aradissicath commented lightly to Rhaedalyn as they fell in step beside each other. “I hope so but I don’t feel like I did.” In fact, Rhaedalyn kept wondering if she made things worse with her questions. No, you made him think of better things than waking up to a strange woman beside him and the loss of a loved one. That’s what friends do, right?

Rhaedalyn stopped to give her dragon a hug and then giggled. “C’mon, we better run. We’re going to be in so much trouble!” She wasn’t really worried though. What was a lecture about sleeping in when it had been done to help a friend?