Out and About [Open]

Arddra dropped off some items she had mended for other Weyrfolk who either didn't have the time, skill or desire to take care of such tedious tasks. She didn't mind it, it gave her a few things she needed. Unfortunately she never seemed to have enough items to barter with and things she could use she had to push down the list for the more urgent things.  Perhaps she should help down with the beasts, given she does have some experience handling herdbeasts. Not much but she wasn't completely incompetent in that area.

How she hated the time between clutches. Since she was stuck here Arddra was determined to do her best to Impress a gold dragon. There wasn't likely anything for her back home though she still very much would like to go home, even for a few hours. To talk to her family, find out if her husband was dead for certain. Just to know her past wasn't totally gone. But to get to the north she would need a dragon and she thus far had not Impressed.

If she could convince a dragonrider to take her North, despite the restrictions and other risks, then she could go see her home. The biggest problem was finding a dragonrider she could trust not to demand things she had no intention of given in return for a trip to the North. She considered the few dragonriders she had contact with since being forced here. Some were friendly enough but nearly all of them just wanted to sleep with her. She very much remembered being grabbed during flightlust and taken by force. Oh, no matter what others thought she knew many dragonirders were little more than arrogant thugs.

Striding down the hall she did her best to not draw attention to herself as she passed various weyrfolk.

V'riy briskly toweled himself off in his hut and dressed in more comfortable clothing than he had been wearing for his earlier exploring trip. He muttered softly to himself as his torn shirt came into view. The shirt had gotten caught on a type of flora that was covered with viscous-looking brambles.  Trailblazing through a patch of the stuff had resulted in minor scratches that covered a large portion of his right arm and still stung a little, even after cleaning them properly. The rider had had much worse on his little adventures outside of Katila. He easily ignored the small discomfort the scratches caused him as he flexed his arm experimentally, testing its strength.

Picking up the shirt he usually wore underneath his riding leathers, he examined the torn arm with annoyance.  The tear was too significant to ignore and too long for him to fix himself if the shirt was to have any chance of holding up. There was no way out of it. He would have to see if he could find someone to repair it. Perhaps someone at the Weyrfolk Hall might have time to do it, now that the Hatchings were past.

V'riy frowned as he considered making the trip to the Hall. He hated to have to visit the place when there was no imminent Hatching; it would be filled with Stolen Northerners and seeing them always stirred up feelings of guilt. Though he was not directly responsible for the kidnappings and had not been part of the decision to sanction them, as a bronzerider he felt his decision not to vocally oppose the kidnappings made him partly to blame for their presence at Katila. He had not had enough time to think up an alternative - by the time he had found out that the topic was under discussion, the decision had already been made.

The man had felt that nothing he could do would make up for the act of kidnapping the potential Candidates from their homes, so he had stayed away from them. After a lengthy discussion with a close friend, he decided it would be better to let the experience of living around and being bonded to dragons speak for itself. He hoped that once a few of them Impressed, their attitudes towards the riders who had abducted them might change. Perhaps after a few Hatchings, some of them might even come to understand why the decision to steal candidates and the subsequent kidnappings had been made, even if they might never agree with it.

V'riy packed the damaged shirt into his leather bag with a resigned sigh. He would be going to the Hall, and if he couldn't find someone with the skills to repair it there, he would have to attempt the repair himself. He wasn't about to bother anyone of rank with such a minor problem.

Morith snorted loudly. This is where having a woman of your own would come in handy, the bronze pointed out to him.
You look to your own needs in that department, and I'll look to mine, V'riy snapped, irritated at him. Taking the proffered foreleg, V'riy mounted with an ease borne of years of practice.

Morith sprung from the ground with a powerful leap and a great downward sweep of his wings. The dragon hovered for a few moments in the air over their hut. His eyes whirled orange in agitation.  Why so touchy today? he inquired carefully.

Many reasons, my friend. Many reasons, he sent back softly in a deeply apologetic tone. The dragon grunted in response but said nothing. Usually V'riy was even-tempered and largely remained unruffled at most things, so long as he got outside often enough and had enough alone time with his dragon. Lately, though, he seemed to be having issues.

As the dragon covered the distance to the Hall, V'riy did his best to clear his mind of the irritation he felt at this particular errand. He shouldn't let things get to him so easily. He usually prided himself on remaining calm and contained, even in the most trying situations. It wasn't like there was much that he could do about it at the moment anyway - the shirt wasn't going to fix itself, after all. Just a few moments to get in the Hall, find someone to repair the shirt, and get out. Surely that wouldn't be so difficult a thing.

Morith set down lightly on the ground and V'riy quickly slid off, eager to be done with his errand. He entered the Weyrfolk Hall with long, determined strides, intending to get this over with in record time and figuring out when he could take his next excursion into the wild. He was already halfway through planning his trip when he noticed a vaguely familiar face in front of him, belonging to a girl that he nearly ran over in his haste.

The rider came to an abrupt halt and considered the girl, carefully making sure to keep his eyes on her face. It wouldn't do for her to think he was sizing her up like a piece of meat; whatever his personal opinion, enough of the riders treated the womenfolk like that, and they were more than that, at least. He put a friendly smile on his face, intending to be pleasant, but the smile died and he frowned when it dawned on him that this was the girl who had been in the kitchen while that weyrbrat, Quenym, had been "cooking". She hadn't introduced herself, had backed away from him acting like he smelled of rotting wherrymeat, and hadn't said two words when he had walked away. Not even when foodstuffs were thrown at his backside by the offensive child.

"Hello," he said evenly, smoothing his expression and politely making a move to go past her. V'riy, who tried to like and be liked by most everyone he came in contact with, didn't think he liked her.

Hearing somebody say hello, Arddra at first didn't think it would be directed to her but there was nobody else in view and she had not passed anybody. The voice did come from behind her and it was masculine. Immediately she tensed and turned to see who had addressed her.

It was a dragonrider, there was no doubt about it even if he wasn't wearing full riding gear. She recognized him from the kitchen the other day, the one who mocked Quenlym for his cooking attempt.

He was heading right for her too, at least it seemed like it to her. Without even thinking about it she moved backwards, turning slightly to move out of his way and ended up backing up against the wall. Arddra's heart started to speed up as she watched him, hoping he would just keep on walking but ready to fight if he should try anything.

She didn't say a word, just stared at him, hoping he would keep right on walking past.

V'riy's eyes narrowed as she backed up against the wall. What in the name of the Egg was wrong with the girl? Did she think that he was some kind of raging monster? Was there some kind of crazy rumor going around that he didn't know about, one where he dragged unsuspecting women back to his hut and beat them into the void that spawned them all?

Morith rumbled with amusement outside the Hall as he listened in on his rider's thoughts. This female unsettled V'riy. The bronze dragon was enjoying every minute of his rider's discomfort.

V'riy ignored Morith as he did a quick mental review of the situation. He hadn't said anything to intimidate her; in fact, he had done quite the opposite, he was sure. He had kept his expression and tone even, betraying none of the irritation he felt for the girl's initial rudeness to him during their first encounter. Now, here she was making the situation even worse for herself, acting like a deadglow.

He let a few moments pass, studying the girl's expression, watching her movements, when he remembered that at the lake, he had come to the conclusion that the girl was most likely Stolen. In which case, he was the deadglow, not her. It was the only explanation that made sense and accounted for her being so terribly frightened, although he guessed that she had probably been around awhile and should have been somewhat adjusted to being around dragonriders by now. Maybe he was being too optimistic in his hopes that most of the Stolen would adjust to life at Katila over time. Or had something happened that had caused more damage on top of the kidnapping?

The bronzerider quirked an eyebrow at the cowering young woman. Clearing his throat quietly, he tried again. "Hello," he said patiently, adding, "It is customary to say hello back. And to introduce yourself. My name is V'riy." He took care to make sure he did not sound threatening as rocked back on his heels, waiting the girl out, standing his ground but respecting her personal space. He tried to smile kindly in an attempt to reassure her, feeling awkward as he did it. Damn it to the Red Star. He was no good at this.

Arddra didn't trust this Dragonrider, nor did she understand why he actaully said hello to her when he came up behind her. There was no need to even as far as courtesy goes, as she had not even known he was there till he spoke up. It would have been different if they had been facing each other as they moved down the hall. Thus in her mind he saw a woman and wanted her attention and she highly doubted it was because he was being polite.

Now he was making an issue of her silence. Taking a deep breath she narrowed her eyes, wishing he would just leave her be. Arddra sighed, she might as well satisfy his curiosity and then maybe he will go on his way so she can get back to her own business.

"Hello, I am Arddra." She said in a flat voice. Arddra looked him directly in the eyes when she spoke her name and couldn't help but see he didn't have cruel eyes. In fact he was rather handsome but she didn't let that ease her learned distrust of dragonriders in general. About the only ones she trusted were those who were Candidates with her and she was able to feel comfortable around them, not that she considered any of them close friends.

"Well met, Arddra," V'riy responded automatically, filling his voice with as much warmth as possible. He avoided flashing his usually charming, roguish smile that won the ladies over, opting instead for a friendlier older-brother type of smile. He was determined to erase whatever bad impression she had gotten of dragonriders. Backing up against a wall and becoming mute every time she was around one was a totally unacceptable response for someone who might Impress. Here he finally had a chance to repair what damage had been done to a Stolen, and he'd be damned if he let the opportunity slip through his fingers.

Well, well, looks like someone actually cares about what cards he's holding and which game he's playing, Morith commented astutely, even more interested in this new female acquaintance. He liked women, finding them to be more emotionally mature than men (in general) and better company, though admittedly most of that was because he loved to have them fuss over him and oil his hide. I can't introduce myself while the two of you are inside, the dragon added pointedly.

One thing at a time, my friend, V'riy told his bonded firmly, his attention fully focused on calming the girl down. He had to convince her that he was someone to be trusted, but how to go about it? That was the question.

"I don't suppose that you would know someone who could repair this?" V'riy opened his leather shoulder bag and pulled out the torn shirt, holding it up in front of her. Making sure that her eyes were on the fabric, he stole a sidelong glance at the woman. He was a man, after all.

With her attention diverted for the moment, V'riy noticed immediately the unusual color of her eyes. They reminded him of the ocean on a stormy day. Her wavy brown hair came down to about the middle of her back and had a healthy sheen to it. The color framed her lightly tanned skin quite nicely. She was a bit shorter than average and on the slim side, something he preferred in females. But mostly it was the eyes that he found the most pleasing. He had always been an eyes man... when he had cared about chasing the ladies.

He shook the torn arm at the girl and put on his most helpless expression. "I'm not any good at fixing things like this," he admitted candidly. "I'd appreciate it if you could steer me in the right direction, if you know of anyone able to stitch it back together."

Arddra was pretty quick to figure out the dragonrider wasn't just going to be content with her responding to his greeting, now he wanted to ask her questions. It did occur to her if he was friendly enough and could prove to be trust worthy, something she wasn't all that certain of, given how he treated Quenym the first time she met the young man. If he treated the younger Candidates like that, how would he treat women?

It occurred to her if she did Impress a gold dragon, she would end up in bed with a bronzerider whether she wanted to or not. That event in the future was the only thing that truly concerned her. Flightlust.

She was able to resist the lusty desires she felt when Greens and Golds took to the air, mostly by staying away from the horny bastards all over the Weyr except for one time. But she knew she wouldn't be able to resist the lust if it was her gold who flew.

Arddra sighed and looked at the garment he held before her. She could tell it was damaged but he kept shaking it so it was rather difficult to judge if it could be nicely repaired. She looked away from the garment and glared at him a moment.

"Let me see instead of shaking it about like a canine with a tunnel snake," Arddra said with exasperation and caught the jerkin and pulled it from his hand so she can look closer at the tears. From the frayed edges it was obviously a snag on something. Definitely wasn't caused by simple wear or a slash b a knife. There was blood on the edges of the tears giving her go believe he snagged it on thorns. If the tears were evenly spaced she would guess he was clawed by a feline or a very sharp nailed female.

"I can repair this, no need to point you to somebody else. I should be able to make the repair nearly unnoticeable but some of these tears are quite big, only so much I can do. Given there is blood on the cloth around some tears I expect your skin bears matching tears." She glanced up from the garment and let her eyes flick over his body, especially the arm corresponding to the arm of the damaged shirt. She couldn't see any sign of blood so he must have had the scratched tended to or they weren't too bad. No way was she going to offer to look at them to make sure they were well tended to. There was a Healer lurking about somewhere he can go to if he wanted medical attention. "I can get it done in a day or two unless you need the shirt sooner?"

V'riy's eyes widened with surprise as he heard Arddra scold him for vigorously shaking the shirt while she was trying to examine it. A canine with a tunnel snake? Morith rumbled loudly outside and his merriment infected his rider, who unsuccessfully tried to hold back the chuckle that escaped. He had gotten her to talk. And she was funny!

Grinning unabashedly, he held the shirt still and let her get a good look at the damaged fabric. He nodded at her comment about matching tears and tilted his head toward his right arm and the minor scratches covering it. "These are nothing. I heal fast. I was trailblazing."

V'riy nodded again when she said that she could get it done in only a day or two. "That's fast enough, I assure you. Thank you," he said sincerely, genuinely grateful for her assistance.

I will meet her now.Morith stated, sounding a bit annoyed that he had had to wait at all. Maybe she needs a ride somewhere. Has she ridden a dragon since being Searched? Does she sing? The dragon could barely contain his curiosity. Like rider, like dragon.

V'riy gestured in the direction of the entrance to the Hall where his dragon waited impatiently for his introduction. "I hesitate to take up any more of you time.. however.. it seems Morith is insisting on meeting you. Do you mind?" He smiled apologetically, wondering if her aversion of dragonriders included the dragons and hoping he wasn't pressing his luck.

His surprise at her reaction to him dangling his shirt before her eyes and shaking it caused her heart to beat faster. Will he get angry now and act accordingly? Fortunately before any real worry could set it, he chuckled instead.

Seeing the change to his face as he grinned convinced her he wasn't angry at her rather bold move, nor her grab at the shirt to get a closer look. It was a bit annoying he still hung onto it, did he think she will run off with it if he let go?

His dismissal of his injures didn't surprise her, men never admitted they were hurt even if they were bleeding all over the place. Nor did they admit how sick they were too, untill they could no longer get out of bed. She clenched her jaw at the thought. Well if this dragonrider felt his wounds were nothing, then it was on his head if they become infected, festered and he died from the poisoning of his blood.

She released her bitterness when he thanked her for her offer of assistance. "I will send word when I am finished."

Then he was suggesting she go meet his dragon who waited outside. Immediately her guard was up. She no longer had the fear of dragons she had back when she was kidnapped, the magnificent animals didn't have any maliciousness in themselves. The only time they became aggressive was to defend their riders or a gold was being over protective of her clutch. She also knew the dragons were more likely to do whatever their rider requested, including snatching her up and taking her somewhere she can't escape from and take advantage of her.

Arddra bit her lip, knowing she couldn't refuse to meet the dragon, she didn't want to offed him but she didn't trust the rider. Yet, even if she refused, she would end up having to head in the same direction the dragon was waiting or stay in the Weyr longer than she intended.

"I would like to meet Morith..I am not afraid of dragons," Arddra said, deciding worse comes to worse she could run.

V'riy had trouble keeping up his smile when Arddra bit her lip, betraying her anxiety, as she considered his request. Maybe he really was pushing his luck by giving into Morith. He wondered why she was so reluctant to accede. It wasn't unusual for a dragon to want to meet someone his rider took interest in. Should he rescind the offer?

The girl had said she wasn't afraid of dragons. What, then, caused her to hesitate? V'riy frowned slightly as he quickly put two and two together. She wasn't afraid of Morith - she was afraid of V'riy and Morith together. The poor girl probably thought he was going to scoop her up and drag her off somewhere to commit some kind of nefarious deed. If that was the case, he felt that he had to bring the girl, despite her reluctance to agree to meeting his bronze. He would do his best to provide Arddra with a positive experience in dealing with a dragonrider. Someone had to set a good example. He was determined to win her over, believing that it might help shed a little of the guilt he felt.

With another friendly, big-brotherly kind of smile, he handed the shirt over and moved aside, gesturing for her to precede him. He was making every effort to try and put the girl at ease, giving her a respectful amount of room, and making sure to keep his eyes above her neck at all times. Besides, he liked looking at her face. She was easy on the eyes. "Beauty before age," he said kindly, motioning her forward. "He doesn't like to be kept waiting."

Accepting the shirt, Arddra shook it out and with the skill of many years of practice had it folded up neatly before she put the shirt into her bag. His big brother smile and overall kindness so far was having an effect. Not enough for her to put her guard down but enough for her to appreciate his efforts to put her at ease. Unfortunately a large part of her suspected it was all an act.

Without saying another word she turned and headed towards the exit, walking with long strides more to keep the distance between herself and the dragonrider than in any rush to get outside. Arddra couldn't deny she was most curious to meet the bronzedragon waiting patiently to meet her. She just hoped V'riy wasn't planning to throw her onto the dragon's back to take her to his hut or some other private place to force himself upon her.

All thoughts of her worry about what V'riy was scheming left her mind when she stepped outside into the sun to see the dragon waiting to meet her outside. He was larger than most bronzes she had seen and his color was a very healthy shade, glistening in the sunlight. Though he was laying down his body proportions were very well balanced as far as she could judge and he wasn't stocky nor lanky in fit. In fact she expected he would be rather streamlined and very fast in the air. How many golds did he catch in the past?

He was one of the more handsome bronzes she had seen this close. Most of the other bronzes she only seen at a distance or were still under a year old.

"He's incredible," Arddra said softly in awe. Suddenly she hoped her fears about V'riy were totally false as the last thing she wanted was to fear this wonderful looking bronze because of actions done by his rider. Arddra was quite certain no woman liked to be forced into a man's bed.

Morith, whose head was flat on the ground, covered it with a forepaw, momentarily embarrassed.  Thank you, he said a bit sheepishly, his smooth, melodic voice filling her head. Removing his paw, he raised his head and slowly moved it closer, turning it slightly to get a good look at the woman. His eyes whirled a contented blue as he took a long look at the first of the Stolen he had met up close.

V'riy simply watched, not wanting to interrupt the girl's time with his dragon. Morith might be just the thing to put her at ease. He leaned back against the wall of the Weyrfolk hall, a silent observer, content to pretend that for the moment, he did not exist.

Don't let her words swell your head, V'riy teased his dragon, smiling fondly at the creature.

Morith ignored him and brought his head slowly closer until he was only an arm's length away, letting out a soft croon. You may touch me, he informed her, his voice sounding soft and velvety, and he pushed his head against her hand, encouraging the girl to do so.

V'riy laughed silently and shook his head at the beast as he waited to see what the girl would do. She would probably think it was some kind of trick, that he might demand that she owed him something for letting her touch his dragon, or some other kind of nonsense. He hoped that she would prove him wrong and try to trust him, but if she bolted, he would understand. It could be a long uphill battle to win her trust. But he would continue to show her kindness.. he would kill her with kindness, if necessary. There were enough egotistical bastards in the Weyr to go around.

Seeing the dragon cover his head with a paw as though hiding from her caused Arddra to smile. He was a huge creature and he was shy? No, embarrassed by her praise? She wasn't sure which but it made him so adoringly cute. Just then she heard Morith's words in her head. Her eyes closed a moment to better focus on how it felt to feel a dragon's thought in her mind.

His voice was smooth and melodic, like a harper's voice. Her eyes opened to look upon the dragon again, his large eyes whirling a contented blue made her feel at peace. She wanted to get closer but didn't want to make the dragon uncomfortable. Then his head was moving closer to her but not in any aggressive way. Arddra tensed slightly uncertain then worried V'riy was coming up behind her to grab her but a quick glance behind revealed he was leaning against the wall of the Weyr, far enough away she could easily run before he was close enough to grab her.

She looked back at Morith to find his head was just out of arm's reach and she had a strong desire to touch him. In the past she had touched gold eggs during her preparation to stand each clutch and found them amazing to touch. She didn't recall touching a dragon before and wondered if their hide would be as soft as that of firelizards.

His mind was in her head again, words giving her permission to touch him. Arddra didn't need to be asked again. Taking a step forward she raised her hand and lightly touched Moriths' muzzle. His hide was just as soft as a firelizard's, even more so for she could run her entire hand against the warm hide instead of just her finger tips. Even more amazing, just like Knack, Morith pushed against her hand, encouraging her contact.

Bravely she stepped even closer to the great bronze, moving so she could reach up and run her hand over his eye ridge. Arddra was curious if dragons enjoyed being scratched there as much as fire lizards. A smile lit up her face as she did, her body loosing all the tension she had since running into V'riy earlier.

Despite all her ordeals and the struggles she had every day dealing with her fears and distrust of dragonriders, Arddra knew she wanted a dragon of her own. A beautiful gold, to make her feel complete and more importantly, not so alone and helpless.

The bronzerider smiled as he observed Arddra and Morith. It seemed that this was her first interaction with a large dragon. Good that it was Morith, then, V'riy thought privately to himself. One good thing about his dragon; he always seemed to know the right thing to say and do to ease tension. It was one of the many reasons he valued his great bronze friend so highly.

Morith hummed appreciatively at the girl as she scratched one of his favorite spots. The bronze beast was a sucker for any kind of scratches or rubs. V'riy soft chuckle at his bronze's behavior was quiet enough to be missed by Arddra. He took a seat on the ground and leaned back against the building, content to wait a while longer. The rider didn't have anywhere to be at the moment and was enjoying himself.

I wonder if she would like to fly somewhere? the dragon questioned his rider, continuing his soft hum of appreciation at the attention.  V'riy considered it briefly, then ruled against it. Unless she asked, he wouldn't force any more interaction on her. He didn't want to go too fast, push her too hard and make her uncomfortable again.

He simply sat and waited, closing his eyes and enjoying the warm weather, a small smile playing on his lips. Eventually he would have to find some supper and tend to his dragon, who was due for some soaping and oiling. But for now, he was content. He was finally doing something to rectify the situation with the Stolen, and though it was a very small thing, it felt good.

Arddra lost all track of time as she rubbed Morith's eye ridge, encouraged by his hum of pleasure. She was so relaxed and totally focused on caressing the great bronze she was leaning against him, her body fitting nicely against the curve of his jaw. The warmth of the dragon and his odd but interesting scent filled her. It was a mixed blessing to her.

There was a time she had trembled every time she smelled dragon, remembering being bound tightly to the neck of a dragon, for all she knew it was a bronze just like Morith. But it had been too dark for her to see, she was too scared to really notice how big the dragon was. Taking a deep breath, Arddra pushed away the memories of that terrible night, of how scared she felt. She couldn't let herself remain afraid of the dragons, not if she wanted to Impress one.

Why did she have to remember such a horrible time in her life when she was only moments ago totally relaxed and thrilled to have the honor of touching Morith. Getting a hold of her emotions Arddra gave one final caress to the dragon and stepped back, looking into the large eye, wondering if next hatching she will have a gold dragon.

"I can't keep standing...not if I keep failing." She murmured, feeling tears threatening to come free but she pushed them back. Taking a deep breath she forced herself into calmness. Once more she touched Morith's muzzle.

"Thank you Morith for letting me touch you..it was a fantastic reminder of what I stand to gain here. It would be the only good thing to happen to me since...since  then."

V'riy opened his eyes as he heard Arddra moving away from Morith and rose, stretching his arms and legs. He rolled his head around a few times for good measure. He was feeling a little stiff after sitting for an extended period.

Arddra apparently hadn't heard him move, because he overheard her softly spoken words before reaching out to caress the bronze's muzzle again. Her voice sounded a bit choked, as if she was trying not to cry. V'riy frowned and wondered what he could say to the girl to fix it.

My pleasure, dear girl. replied, his voice a gentle purr in her mind. Would you like a lift somewhere? We can drop you anywhere, the bronze offered kindly. V'riy kicked his boots around in the sandy dirt, making a lot of noise to warn the girl that he was walking over. Again he kept that comfortable distance, making sure to respect her personal space.

V'riy chuckled at Morith, a bit surprised that the dragon had asked Arddra after V'riy had made the decision earlier not to offer. Apparently he had been overruled. But if Morith thought it was safe to offer, then it probably was.

"Well, how about it? Would you like a lift somewhere? It's no trouble to us at all. Takes less effort than the stitching you're doing for me." V'riy winked at the girl as Morith offered him a leg up and swung himself up swiftly before strapping himself in. "I promise I don't bite."

Hearing the dragon's offer to take her somewhere, Arddra felt her fear jump up then a sudden surge of hope as she wondered if the dragon would drop her off at home. Before she could even truly think over the possibility she heard the sound of somebody dragging their feet turned quickly, remembering V'riy and seeing him approach.

For one fleeting moment she was certain he was going to grab her, and she nearly bolted. But he didn't come close, keeping well clear of her personal space. His chuckle didn't sound sinister either.

Then he echo'd the dragon's offer and she realized he was saying mending hsi shirt was to be rewarded by a flight on his dragon. Looking into his brown eyes she wondered if the man was somebody she could trust to take her one place and not end up taking advantage of her.

Before she could respond, V'riy winked at her then mounted up upon Morith with the ease gained only by years of practice. Arddra looked up, still uncertain what she should do. If she accepted his offer, she would have to mount up next to him and there would be quite a bit of physical contact. She wouldn't be able to avoid him manhandling her if he so choose to do so. No she wasn't ready for that..the thought was making her want to turn and flee but she didn't want to be seen as a coward.

"I thank you both for your offer..but...you can't take me where I really want to go." She decided then backed away from dragon and rider both, more to give them room to launch into the air than because she was trying to put space between them.

"I will see you later, once I finish mending your shirt," Arddra said as a parting word. Despite her nervousness and fear of Dragonriders, Arddra did find V'riy looked rather impressive upon Morith's back. In a way he didn't look as intimidating up there as he did on the ground.

V'riy, now astride his bronze, looked down at the girl, making the effort to maintain his friendly smile. Convincing this girl he was no threat was certainly continuing to be no small challenge but it was one he was ready to meet head on. It seemed that she was afraid if even the most casual physical contact. What a shame; it was obvious she had enjoyed the company of his dragon and would most likely be thrilled to fly on his back, even for a short trip. A ride on a dragon should be something seen as safe to the girl. It was clear to him now that something more had happened beyond the kidnapping to make her wary of dragonriders.

Her assumption that they couldn't take her where she wanted confirmed his suspicions about her being Stolen. There was really only one place they weren't permitted to go, and that was North. He raised his eyebrows slightly, intending to ask her just where it was she had in mind, but she backed away from them, making it clear that it was time to go.

V'riy nodded to Arddra politely, acknowledging her dismissal of him. "You can always drop off the shirt at my hut if you can't find me around. I'm not always around the Weyr proper." He had realized by now that she might find it too uncomfortable to initiate a meeting with him on her own. So he had offered her a way to return the shirt to him without having to see him again.
He hoped that she wouldn't take the easy way out and would choose to return the shirt to him directly, but he didn't want her to feel forced to do so by some misguided sense of obligation.

"If I'm not training, I usually try to get away from here," he explained, gesturing at the buildings around them. He hoped she would catch the underlying meaning in his comment. If she was sharp enough, she would realize from his words that not every dragonrider was happy with the conditions at Katila.

Raising his hand to her in a gesture of farewell, V'riy ask Morith to ascend. The bronze turned his head one last time to Arddra and slowly moved his head towards her, giving her a reassuring bump with his nose. He was reluctant to leave her. She seemed to need a dragon's company more than most. He turned one iridescent eye on her, trying to memorize what she looked like. The bronze would very much like to befriend this human that thought him incredible. V'riy waited patiently as his dragon said farewell in his own way.

Goodbye, the dragon said softly to Arddra, an almost melancholy note audible in the musical voice.

Finally, after a long moment, Morith turned his head to the sky. The dragon gathered himself together like a crouching feline in preparation for take-off, giving the girl time to back father away if she felt the need. Then, with a mighty leap, the bronze shot into the sky, his wings beating strongly downward.

As the ground swiftly fell away, the dragon circled once, twice, waiting for the mental image from V'riy of their next destination. The bronze's richly colored hide caught and reflected the sun's rays like a glittering gemstone. Then his rider gave the order to go /between/. They disappeared from view, leaving behind the Stolen girl they so wished to help, knowing that she would need time to reflect on their encounter, and hoping that it had been enough of a step in the right direction.

V'riy's suggestion she could just drop the shirt off at his hut unfortunately was taken in the wrong way. Arddra assumed he meant while HE was there she can drop the shirt off. Besides she wouldn't know where among the many dragonrider huts spread out from the Weyr into the jungle his hut would lie. As far as Arddra was concerned, she had no intention of going anywhere near any dragonrider's hut.

As he continued to talk, Arddra wasn't sure what to make of his comment about preferring to be away from Katila. Did he mean he spent his time elsewhere on the Southerin Continent? With a dragon he could go anywhere, she was very limited on how far she could go. Sighing she realized it may take some effort on her part to return the shirt but she knew a few areas all dragonriders eventually showed up at and Morith was big and distinctive enough Arddra doubted she would have trouble spotting him.

When V'riy raised his hand in farewell, Arddra politely returned it. He had been kind, at least outwardly. She didn't trust V'riy but short of his rudeness to Quenym and she had a feeling that stemmed more from either a dislike of Quenym in particular or Weyrbrats in general, Arddra couldn't saw he earned her distrust. He had yet to earn her trust but at least he didn't have the arrogance or leering outlook of other Dragonriders she seen.

Hearing Morith's farewell in her mind softened Arddra. If it was one thing she enjoyed in this world, she enjoyed the comforts of animals. Not that she would call a dragon an animal but they did seem to have the same lack of guile and ill intent many humans possessed.

Arddra watched the great bronze leap into the air, shielding her face from the dust and dirt blown up by the powerful down sweep of his massive wings. His hide glistened in the sunlight as he ascended, a most beautiful and magnificent sight. To feel such freedom as could be found upon dragonback would be worth all the pain she suffered up to this point.

Only when Morith vanished 'Between' did Arddra look away from the sky and head towards her room in the Candidate's barracks.

<<fin>>