Reality Bites [Rhaedalyn]

Her shriek of defiance had no affect on him, Xyreith's bronze body twining elegantly around her own, grip sure and firm; no one was going to undo their pairing as he angled their wings, both experience and instinct guiding him as he lead them into a softly angled drop. There was no need to drop like stones as when one tangled with a green. Only the longest of flights would be worthy of a pairing such as theirs! On the ground, the bronzerider swept up Rhaedalyn easily, ignoring the others as the room emptied and he gently deposited the girl on her bed.

*~*~*

The familiar aches of a flight won warred with the knowledge that Xyreith had flown not that long ago, and so to fly and win again was vastly out of character for the creature. The soft, warm emotions coming off the beast were even more obscure and R'nya wasn't sure he wanted to ponder the implications behind them. There was, as always, a level of smug satisfaction, but that was the only reassurance - if it could so be called. All that meant was that Xyreith had, indeed, won. R'nya lifted a hand lazily and rubbed at his face, wondering which greenriding slut he'd wound up with now. Why Xyreith would choose to fly again so soon, he had no idea and stormy grey-blue eyes opened reluctantly.

There was absolutely nothing about the roof that told him whose bed he was in. The steady breathing beside him informed him that his partner had fallen asleep, rather than actively regain consciousness post flight. That, too, told him nothing and a gentle prod at Xyreith found him very much both content and asleep himself. R'nya blinked in surprise, that tidbit finally winning over his curiosity to see which bed he had landed in. Xyreith never curled up with his prize.

Blue-grey eyes took in the abundance of curly hair for several moments, framing rather nicely a very familiar face, and R'nya's face drained of colour. Aradissicath had flown? He'd known she was old enough, he'd seen her hide glowing more and more as the week progressed, and he'd been the one that had kept the idiots at bay when they tried to get into Rhaedalyn's personal space. He hadn't meant to get caught up in the actual flight though! Swallowing the urge to groan in distress, the bronzerider's hand made another pass over his face, fingers splayed over his eyes which opened slowly.

R'nya liked that many people considered him a prim and proper gentleman, and he felt it was an apropriate way to live. But he was still human, he was still a man, and he was still inclined to find pretty young women... pretty. He studied her sleeping face quietly, lowering his hand from his own slowly and gently shifting a lock of hair. She was smiling? Well, that was certainly nice! The girl was on her stomach, the light summer sheet spread at an angle across her lower back; R'nya was amused. He had no idea how the thing had managed not to end up on the other side of the room - unless Rhaedalyn had woken and put it... Blue eyes opened quite wide.

His eyes popping wider simply meant he had that much of a better view of the sleeping girl, and R'nya's attention shifted as blue eyes traced down the gentle curves of Rhaedalyn's back. She was so pretty! And all he could see was her back, and the shape of her legs under the light sheet, and her arms, and... R'nya shifted uncomfortably, sitting up carefully with one knee raised under the sheet. "Crap." The single word was spoken on a soft exhale, and R'nya leaned his weight back on one hand while the other carefully adjusted the light blanket so it covered more of Rhaedalyn.

The end of that action caused his gaze to linger back over her face, and R'nya froze like a deer in the headlights when he saw eyes staring back at him, barely breathing as he waited to see what she would do.

It felt like her sheet was moving on its own. That was odd. It’s nothing to be concerned over. Rest longer. The day holds nothing for us right now. That was even odder. Surely they had plans and why did it seem like her dragon was perfectly content not to move from where she was curled up? Slowly, with quite a bit of uncertainty over what she was about to find waiting for her – the end of the world was high on her list despite the calmness around her – Rhaedalyn opened her eyes.

And saw R’nya in bed with her.

Nude.

It clearly was the end of the world.

It was almost comical how neither of them moved. She was waiting for an explanation and R’nya almost looked like he was waiting for a shriek and slap to his face. He was in luck; slapping would have required moving and that meant sitting up and showing off her own extremely nude self. Why were they both lacking clothes and in her bed? I enjoyed a lovely flight this morning and Xyreith was the best at keeping up. Aradissicath explained mildly as if it was a perfectly normal thing that they did every day.

At the explanation, Rhaedalyn remembered the last few days and the fear she had over the flight happening. It seemed it did indeed happen and it must have went well since she was in her own bed, with a friend, and there didn’t seem to be any visible markings on R’nya and there was a lot of R’nya to explain. She flushed lightly at realizing she was checking out the man and would have turned away if it wouldn’t have been so obvious with how she was lying. Still, one more peek wouldn’t hurt, right? She didn’t get to properly admire his form when she went to him after the green flight and while she shouldn’t have looked right then either, she felt she had earned it in some way.

“Hi,” she managed to say after a life time of staring at each other had passed. She wasn’t quite sure what else to say and what was appropriate. Was she supposed to thank R’nya for their time together even though she couldn’t really remember anything? Ask him to leave? Ask him to cuddle? Ask him to turn around so she could dress? No one told her about this part! R’nd had been so sweet during their night together and she felt she had learned a lot but that seemed different. Now, neither of them had asked for the romp together and it seemed extra odd due to their friendship. She wanted to pout or cry from the confusion and frustration at being so horrible at everything but held off. She had a new rule where crying was only to be done when alone as it wouldn’t help anything if others saw her weeping like a weakling.

Suddenly, the humour in everything hit her and Rhaedalyn giggled softly as she tried to shift herself enough with the sheet to remain covered as she rolled and propped herself up on her side. “You said no to my maidenhood but got my maiden flight. I’m glad.” It was probably one of the inappropriate things she was trying to avoid but Rhaedalyn didn’t care. The relief after days of stressing and the calm bliss after sex had let her have a few moments of insanity and laughter. She’d regret words soon enough and find everything far too awkward for her liking then as well but for the time being, she was glad she was with a friend and not with some of the rougher men she had heard about. R’nya wasn’t Z’ia but the bluerider wasn’t a bronzerider either.

If R’nya didn’t look like he was about to bolt from the bed if the sheets wouldn’t hinder him, Rhaedalyn would have hugged the man.

R'nya stared, waiting, and waiting, and waiting as Rhaedalyn stared back at him, neither of them moving and the bronzerider barely daring to even breathe, quite sure the girl would kill him for daring to even enter her flight, never mind actually winning it. When the girl relaxed a little, and a blush coloured her cheeks slightly R'nya blinked, his own features adjusting slightly with one corner of his lips quirking just slightly with a whisper of Xyreith's own smug satisfaction as he realised Rhaedalyn was checking him out. "Morning," R'nya murmurmed softly, voice husky from disuse.

The giggle was slightly alarming and R'nya's eyebrows furrowed in confusion before he barely swallowed a yelp, one hand landing on his upraised knee to trap his part of the sheets, blue eyes widening slightly and he studied Rhaedalyn's face, startled. When there was  no evidence on the goldrider's face that she was actively attempting to steal his part of the sheet, R'nya visibly relaxed and tilted his head at her. "-I," R'nya wasn't quite sure what to say to that, and dropped his gaze uncomfortably, fidgeting with the sheet as he bunched it between his fingers and poked at it. How to explain himself? Was it something that needed explaining? It took a few moments before the end of her statement processed and blue eyes peered up, eyebrows furrowed in surprised confusion. "Oh."

Very articulate, Sir. Xyreith put in lazily, shifting just slightly so he could sprawl more comfortably in the morning sun, nosing lightly at Aradissicath's shoulder and up her neck before flopping over casually and puffing out a contented sigh. Relax. Enjoy yourself. R'nya frowned slightly, before visibly waving off his dragon with a dirty look towards the wall behind which the dragons were sprawled.

The bronzerider was only vaguly aware of how much emotion and expression he was playing with as he brushed his hair back with one hand, puffing out a soft sigh. "I am sorry I upset you, before." Eyebrows furrowed in concern as R'nya searched Rheadalyn's face. He had had his reasons for denying her, but it hadn't stopped the guilt and discomfort at seeing her reaction to the rejection. He'd been gentle, but he had also been taken by surprise and bumbled out his disinclination rather more abruptly than he should have. The awkwardness of such a subject had warned him off seeking Rhaedalyn out to explain or apologise. That moment seemed okay though; the girl had brought it up first.

Reaching out slowly, R'nya's expression was gentle as he brushed a lock of curled hair from Rhaedalyn's face, his bright blue eyes hazy with whispers of lust as his fingers brushed lightly over her cheekbone. Outside, Xyreith rumbled with self satisfaction as he gave Aradissicath a smug look, clearly responsible for messing with R'nya's lingering dragonlust induced emotions. The dragon was obviously waiting to see how the show would play out, but was just as obviously satisfied with managing to manipulate his human.

“it’s all right. R’nd was, oh,” Rhaedalyn froze and forgot what she was saying when R’nya moved towards her. The touch was so gentle and inspired a sad smile as Rhaedalyn caught R’nya’s hand with hers before he completely pulled away. It was one of the strangest situations she had landed herself in, that was for certain, but it was almost comfortable since she was with someone she trusted. Her emotions were warring with one another and tears desperately wanted to win so she could have a good cry about having a maiden flight, sleeping with someone other than the man she was interested in, and for putting R’nya into a position he clearly never wanted to be in but contentment, satisfaction, and even a lingering trace of lust kept those at bay.

She wanted to explain why she was okay with R’nd being her teacher back then and how having a friend beside her now was both better and worse than a stranger or someone rough but words were so hard to find! Rhaedalyn only knew she was glad it wasn’t S’kef since she had heard the rumours and seen the bruises Jada had after their flight together. Many blamed it on Jada being a frightened virgin and struggling but it was still scary. R’nya was her gentle knight that knew when and where to use his fists.

The lingering lust she thought was properly ignored finally took control and Rhaedalyn gave in to the budding desire to speak through actions, like R’nd had told her to do in such circumstances. If the tension was high and attraction crackled in the air, say it with a kiss. So she did. Rhaedalyn leaned in, still holding onto R’nya’s hand but letting them rest on the bed to help leverage herself enough to meet lips to lips. Within seconds of doing so, reality crashed in on the dreams once more and she pulled away, startled wide eyes staring at R’nya as if he had been the one to do such a bold thing.

Aradissicath snorted at Xyreith’s smugness but she didn’t comment on it. She actually liked it given the situation. He had proven his worth and was having fun with his human whether he did it directly or not. She was the same way by not toning down the content bliss she lazed in, letting it flow to Rhaedalyn freely. It was nice to see her bonded coming out of her shell and Xyreith was certain to enjoy it as well.

Her hand was so small, and delicate, against his own and R'nya's gaze cleared for a moment, blinking slightly, frowning just barely at the mention of R'nd; apparently of all the things the bluerider taught his lover, there was nothing about names thrown in. Didn't she know it was rude to talk about one, when with another? He had barely a moment of coherency before Xyreith was working back at him, twisting and twining the bronzerider's emotions to continue the little scene playing out, rather than having the bronzerider withdraw in on himself and flee the girl. Oh, he was quite sure he would get the ultimate of scoldings later, when R'nya realised what had gone on, but for now the bronze dragon had every intention of thoroughly enjoying watching his human act so bizarrely out of character. It was far too much fun.

When the girl leaned in to kiss him, R'nya accepted it easily, eyebrows twitching just slightly when she pulled back suddenly, and a trace of amusement flickered over his features. The bronzerider's lips quirked just slightly when he realised she was blaming him, the expression a combination of amusement and arrogance. Well, if she wanted to blame him... A playful smile flashed over his lips and R'nya leaned back into Rhaedalyn's space, his movements encouraging the girl to roll onto her back without his actively pushing her around. His hand lingered in her hair for a moment, waiting with some impatience for the girl to relax before letting his hands wander lazily down her body, lingering for several moments over her chest as he waited (again) for the girl to relax before pressing her gently further.

Outside, Xyreith rumbled softly under his breath as he lifted his head up once more, curling casually around Aradissicath and nibbling lazily on the back of her neck as he peered through R'nya's eyes. Playing with his human's emotions was far too much fun, and something he didn't do overly often (mostly because it tended to come with consequences) but sometimes it was clearly worth whatever punishment would wind up making itself known at a later date - and Xyreith had no doubt that punishment would come his way. The bronze dragon's eyes sparkled a rainbow of colours as he shared in his rider's climax, puffing a smug snort at Aradissicath, more than content to take responsiblity for all the good deeds for the day. Score, he murmured smugly to the gold, tossing his head slightly and radiating self satisfied smug.

She still couldn’t believe she had let that happen. She couldn’t believe how she enjoyed it. She also couldn’t believe that she was now contently snuggled up to R’nya and enjoying cuddles with him as her fuzzy mind tried to piece it all together. In the end, she decided dragon lust was simply a pain to deal with.

Rhaedalyn blinked again as she stared at the wall beside the bed. She was far too conscious of her blinking so she changed it to focusing on her breath. It would be terribly rude if she breathed too often and the gentle breeze bothered R’nya as it whispered over his bare chest. Shallow breaths. Far between breaths. That was perfect. Or maybe it wasn’t when it felt like she was lulling herself to sleep. That would be even worse if she fell asleep practically clinging to the bronzerider! He’d never be able to leave then since his gentlemanly ways wouldn’t allow for him to disturb her. It was easy to remember how R’nya was after that green flight and how he went fleeing from the poor greenrider and how emotional he had been.

Did he want to run now as well? He had stayed and wanted more once but maybe that was Xyreith’s fault like she was certain it was Aradissicath’s fault that she agreed to everything so easily and quickly. There was also the chance it was a normal thing and his freak out with his memories of his former golden mate would come in the next few minutes now that he had enjoyed the flight victory as much as he could.

No, that wasn’t like R’nya, even knowing how arrogant and horrible he had been as a Weyrling, Rhaedalyn couldn’t see her friend and protector behaving like that. The dragons and their lust had pushed things further and R’nya would want to leave soon. That meant she would have to let go soon as well. Rhaedalyn wasn’t sure she liked that idea since she was rather comfortable with how she was curled against his warm side with an arm draped over him in a lazy hug. Despite his manners, she was certain he’d ask her to move if needed or his panic attack would send her flying but Rhaedalyn wouldn’t hold it against him since his memories affected him so much when they came up.

Perhaps she should try nudging and kicking a pillow to the floor to soften her fall just in case that happened.

Leave the pillows alone, dear, Aradissicath commented when Rhaedalyn tried to inch a foot closer to one that had landed at the foot of the bed. The girl froze, frowned for a moment, but then let the idea go. She was being silly. Yes, you are. There’s no reason to rush out of bed either. You need your rest for our party tonight. There is a lot of talk about celebrating my beautiful flying. Rhaedalyn frowned further at that until she remembered they had had a party for Krypth’s first flight as well as Okalinath’s.

Booze did sound lovely right then. It was said many people found the answers they sought while inebriated and Rhaedalyn had a lot of questions that needed answers! One such question was what did R’nya currently think of her after giving into post flight lust so easily and then cuddling up to him like she had a right to it. The poor man had to be sick of her and she really ought to move so he could leave but still Rhaedalyn stayed silently attached to R’nya’s side. Worse, she finally tightened that draped arm so it formed an actual hug. Maybe he was asleep since so much time felt like it passed after they caught their breaths and not a word had been spoken since. Her comfort-seeking hug would go unnoticed and that thought made Rhaedalyn oddly sad but mostly relieved.

R'nya stared silently at the celiling, not speaking as his breathing slowly returned to something more regular. He didn't object when Rhaedalyn curled against his side, the bronzerider lightly placing an arm around her and his fingertips danced lightly over her skin without actively moving his hand. His gaze didn't shift from the ceiling even as his brain finally started to catch up and reboot, the bronzerider puffing out a soft sigh that ruffled Rhaedalyn's hair near his nose and he scrunched it up slightly, actively attempting to avoid a sneeze. She'd probably take offence - after he frightened the depth of between out of her with such an unexpected action, he was sure. R'nya's fingers paused for a moment, before resuming, running soft little circles around Rhaedalyn's hip bone absently.

Not quite sure what he had been thinking to do any such thing as what had just happened, R'nya was still not quite himself enough to pick up on the additional layer of smug that was radiating off his rather happy  bronze dragon as he wallowed beside Aradissicath like the king of awesome, his eyes swirling with self satisfaction and general contentment. Self-congratulating, Xyreith watched another bronze walk past, puffing out a snort at the other dragon; he was feeling particularly full of himself, and was more than content to spend the day wallowing in those emotions beside Aradissicath while his ridiculous rider tried to figure out what was going on. He didn't expect that R'nya would click at any upcoming moment, since he was still frowning at the roof in confusion as he tried not to breathe Rhaedalyn's long curly hair.

R'nya was trying to figure out if he should apologise to Rhaedalyn for what had recently occurred, or not. The girl hadn't hit him (yet, it seemed to be a response that could be used at any time) and she was certainly giving the impression of being content where she was sprawled against him. He was almost convinced the girl was asleep, until her arm tightened. At that point, R'nya didn't really care if she was peacefully aslepe or not; something needed to change and the girl needed to be made aware of his rather sudden discomfort! Rhaedalyn's arm tightening around him had caused the bronzerider to grunt in surprise, pale eyes widening slightly and a somewhat pained grimace painting his expression. "Rhae-" R'nya paused and cleared his throat slightly. "Rhaedalyn? W-would you mind loosening your grip there, dear? I," He paused again, and his voice was as chagrin as his face. "I have a rather urgent need to pee - Rhaedalyn?"

Rhaedalyn had been close to drifting asleep with how she was paying attention to her breathing and R’nya’s voice almost startled her as much as a sneeze would have. “Mmhmm,” she replied lazily, not entirely comprehending what it was the bronzerider was saying to her. Surely he had only said she could continue to rest like her dragon had suggested since he would have been worn out as well. It was exactly fourteen seconds later that the young lady put together the words that hadn’t made any sense coming from her prim and proper friend and two seconds more for Rhaedalyn to react.

“Oh!” She squawked as eyes went wide, one arm started flailing and the other pushed her away from R’nya. In all the commotion Rhaedalyn forgot the dimensions of her bed and found herself rolling not only away from the bronzerider but right off the bed and onto the floor with a startled shriek. Only her left lower leg managed to stay on the soft bed and Rhaedalyn found that somewhat funny as she blinked at the toes that she wriggled right then.

Sheepishly, Rhaedalyn dropped the leg to the floor and slowly sat up enough so she could barely peek over the edge of the bed at R’nya. She somehow had managed to recall her nudity despite all the flailing, shock, and embarrassment so she was careful not to show anything lower than her nose. Why couldn’t she have fallen with the sheet? It wasn’t like it had stayed where it was meant to since she got up that morning. “Sorry,” the apology was muffled as she spoke into the side of the mattress, the girl still unwilling to show more of herself right then. It wasn’t just the nudity, she realized, but everything about the situation that made her want to continue hiding like she was.

While R'nya hadn't been entierly comfortable, what with his bladder supporting extra pressure from Rhaedalyn's cuddling, he hadn't been exactly uncomfortable, either. It was just... Not ideal. Then again, the entire situation was as far from ideal as R'nya could possibly imagine. Clearly your imagination is lacking, Sir. Xyreith's voice drawled in the back of his mind, and R'nya's eyebrows twitched slightly as he scowled up at the roof. It was, quite clearly, the best place to direct his sight. Unfortunately, it also caused him to be caught completely by surprise when Rhaedalyn's more than a little adorabe 'mmhmm' turned into a squeak and a shove and -- "Rhaedalyn?"

R'nya shifted his head, gaze dropping, to peer at the girl that had, moments before, been cuddling against his chest. She was no where to be seen, though the suddne wiggling of her toes did catch his eye and R'nya's eyebrows shot up, amusement shoving the confusion aside and he struggled up onto one elbow and leaned towards the edge of the bed. R'nya blinked in surprise, then grinned, when Rhaedalyn's eyes peered over the top. He could tell she was flustered, and that did nothing to control the bronzerider's amusement. "Well, that was certainly... enthusiastic." That seems to be the word of the morning. The bronze's tone was smug and R'nya waved him off without so much as a twitch.

Instead, the rider reached out with the hand not occupied with upholding his weight, and poked Rhaedalyn gently on the nose. His smirking grin was a twisted combination of amusement and mischief. Had he not been loopy from emotional overload, R'nya likely would have been more considerate to Rhaedalyn and her natrually more skittish nature. "Are you alright, my dear?" He probably would have been more careful about using endearments while they were both naked, too.

“Yes… no… well, yes but…” Rhaedalyn didn’t know how to respond. Emotionally she was a bit up and down on the scale of being okay or not but overall, she felt she was all right. She was certain she was physically okay as well. Unless she ended up with a bruise from her fall! What if someone saw it and assumed it came from R’nya being heavy-handed with her? Everyone still whispered about S’kef’s way with Jada and Rhaedalyn didn’t want anyone to think poorly of her friend! She’d have to be careful about what she wore if a bruise did appear. Then again, what if people noticed she was dressed differently as well and assumed it was due to hiding something?

Everything was going so horribly wrong! R’nya looked like he was amused by all of her antics as well with the look he gave her and the poke to the nose she received and he could probably see everything if she moved even the slightest! Suddenly extremely self-conscious and embarrassed over naked, having bed head, and no doubt suffered from awful morning breath that she was quite surprised hadn’t scared off the pursuers earlier, Rhaedalyn’s head slowly dipped back below the bed line as she curled up into a little ball, hugging her knees to her chest. She’d cry right then but that would spook R’nya and she couldn’t do that to him after all his kindness.

She was a goldrider now as well. A fully blossomed one at that! Her dragon would clutch soon now that she had flown and there wasn’t time for self-pity, tears, or anything other than smiling and doing her duty. At least that’s what Rhaedalyn tried to tell herself as she rested her cheek on her knees. Her protector and friend had won her maiden flight and despite her lack of experience, there was enough lust lingering between them to spark another romp, and she had cuddled up to him afterward like they were a perfectly normal and happy couple. She had definitely overstepped a line somewhere in there and the fact that she had agitated his bladder only made things worse!

“You can go pee, you know. I’m sorry I had you trapped,” Rhaedalyn knew she was mumbling and her mother would not have been pleased by that. Most men believed women should be seen and not heard but they did like a woman who could enunciate and didn’t make them have to strain to hear their words of obedience. She’d have to apologise for it to R’nya later.

Afraid to make any sudden movements after tossing herself off her own bed, Rhaedalyn carefully looked back up over the bed to check on R’nya and show him her next words were meant. She wasn’t going to cry as she said the words but try to smile to verify her claims of being okay. “You… you don’t have to linger. I’ve taken up so much of your day already. I’m okay, I promise.” Rhaedalyn had a feeling she was mostly okay due to Aradissicath’s influence. She had been close to panicking moments before but now she was once again calm and almost numb to the entire experience – though the latter could have been more from drowsiness. First flight meant the first time dragon and rider had truly merged minds and with sex on top of that, Rhaedalyn was tired and a bit sore.

You need a bath and some medicine then! We need you in top shape for the party tonight, remember, Aradissicath would make sure Rhaedalyn didn’t forget their plans for that night. A feast was being held in her honour! The gold dragon was incredibly smug about that and couldn’t wait to have everyone fawning over her for flying so well and complimenting her pretty rider on how beautiful her dress was. Rhaedalyn had recently updated one of her older dresses with new ribbons and sleeves and Aradissicath knew it would be the only thing that was perfect to wear that night!

I’m glad one of us is happy right now.

Oh no, dear. Xyreith is radiating in his own amusement and happiness and I think R’nya seems rather content as well. It’s only you that’s unsure of whether you should be happy right now.

R'nya's smile faltered just barely at Rhaedalyn's stuttering as the girl tried to answer, his eyebrows furrowing in concern. The bronzerider blinked twice as Rhaedalyn's head vanished below the edge of the bed, the man leaning over carefully to peer down at her. Seeing Rhaedalyn curled up so pathetically and clearly upset, R'nya pulled back and sat up slowly. Pale eyes scanned the room thoughtfully, and he sighed softly. The flight participants had made a mess of the girl's room; things skewed and off kilter, a couple of things knocked over, and clothing rather alarmingly flung around. R'nya grimaced; that was clearly his rather enthusiastic fault.

Idly listening to Rheadalyn mumble something under her breath, R'nya slid off the opposite side of the bed and stood up quietly, rolling his shoulders and snorting softly in amusement as a handful of muscles put up a particularly vocal cry at being disturbed. R'nya rocked from heels to toes as he quietly sought out his pants without moving too much. Once they were spotted, the bronzerider strode over to them quietly and picked them up (he'd managed to flick them so they were by the end of the bed at least) and the bronzerider slipped into them. At least he hadn't broken the ties, which was nice. That was usually the first piece of clothing to come out of a flight in more than one piece.

R'nya made his way around the end of the bed to Rhaedalyn's side, and then paused, watching in quiet amusement as the girl peeked back over, talking to him but not seeming to catch on for a moment that he had moved. "I know that, dear." R'nya spoke gently, stepping around the bed and dropping to his knees beside the girl. He smiled lightly at her expression, and gently pulled the sheet from the bed. "Here," one hand extending to Rhaedalyn, R'nya helped the girl to her feet, not letting her natural modesty deter him, and carefully wrapped the sheet around her shoulders.

When she was suitibly wrapped, R'nya brushed some of her hair off her face, a lopsided and slightly sad smile claiming his lips. "It probably was not what you have been imagining," flights never were, but R'nya had been around his girls (and before Katila, the girls of his weyr) enough to know that many of them had rather... interesting... ideas of what would occur in flights, or in life, and there were many mentions of love and being swept off their feet and all kinds of mushy things that simply didn't fit into a dragonriders way of life, let alone a maiden flight. "I hope it was not too terrible, though." It was supposed to be a gentle tease, but the bronzerider's eyerbows knit in concern nonetheless.

That was embarrassing! Of course R’nya knew how flights worked and he didn’t need to be told what to do or be given permission to leave. She was actually glad he had stayed as long as he had considering the way he had fled the green flight and the state she found him in. He seemed much more relaxed and wasn’t screaming as he ran home which made the still slightly smiling girl genuinely happy but it had helped her as well. It felt more normal – or at least what Rhaedalyn thought normal would be like if she had more experience to go on – and gave her time to come down from the high and ease back into reality.

Even thinking about that kindness was distracting Rhaedalyn enough from what was truly going on around her and she stood more willingly than she normally would have when R’nya guided her to her feet. She still tried to cover up what she could with arms and hands but Rhaedalyn didn’t make a big show of it and there was a surprising lack of squeaks during it. Once the sheet was wrapped around her, however, the weyrling visibly relaxed and smiled at R’nya with far more emotions behind the action. He was such a sweet gentleman! Some days, Rhaedalyn wasn’t sure she deserved such a friend in her life.

“I’m not sure what I was thinking,” Rhaedalyn confessed and bit her lower lip for a moment as she thought about it. Her cheeks started to heat when Rhaedalyn realized her gaze had landed on R’nya’s crotch and while she told herself it was simply the tailor in her that was checking for damage to the ties – she had fixed quite a bit of those during her time at Katila – R’nya wold probably still get the wrong impression. Quickly, she glanced back up to his face. “I guess… I know it’s different from actual relationships and I know the man I would like to be with would never manage to fly with me so even if we were mated, I’d end up with someone else.”

Rhaedalyn paused again as she worried about how her words would sound to the bronzerider. Was she accidentally insulting him? She certainly didn’t mean to do that! “I liked our time together, Ren. I don’t think my maiden flight would have been as wonderful with anyone else.” That was better! She meant it as well. Brownriders and bronzeriders weren’t in her usual circle of friends so anyone else that had a true chance at winning would have been a stranger and Rhaedalyn wasn’t sure she was ready to wake up to that. It would happen one day, likely the next time Aradissicath rose, but that still gave her time to adjust.

The party… Rhaedalyn sighed as the gold dragon nudged her again about the silly thing that the girl was already tired of hearing about. “Dissi wants to make sure we both remember the celebration tonight. She looks forward to all the compliments and fun that will be had.” Honestly, that dragon of hers could be such a mental handful! You love it though.

R'nya's lips twitched slightly at Rhaedalyn's mumbled confession, pale eyes watching the girl with subtle amusement. Nodding slightly, R'nya began the careful process of digging up his own clothing, nudging things into a pile as he slowly broadened his search from where he'd been standing, to scoping out the whole room. Boots set at odds, laces barely even done as he'd kicked them off. While some dragonriders probably didn't bother with removing irrelivant items such as shoes, R'nya preferred to be rid of it all in such moments, even though it tended to make dressing more difficult. If he were the type to just shove his pants around his knees, he'd be able to flee from most flights a whole lot faster!

Picking up his shirt, R'nya pulled it on quietly over the top of his head, pursing his lips irritibly at a couple of popped buttons, and huffed out a low sigh. He was going to have to get that repaird now, too. At least it wasn't his pant ties! Poor Rhaedalyn would likely have viewed that six ways wrong. Amusement washed away the irritation and R'nya shook his head slightly, ruffling his right hand through his hair. He turned to smile lightly at the girl, eyebrows arching up slightly when her idle thoughts carried her own gaze down to his crotch. R'nya shifted slightly about the time Rhaedalyn lifted her gaze, relieved; he'd rather not get lost in rememberence of her pretty soft body and have the poor girl freak out when things happened! He liked to be a gentleman, but he only had so much control of his body, unfortunately.

A frown furrowed R'nya's features as Rhaedalyn spoke; the man she wanted couldn't fly her? R'nya wasn't really surprised the girl had her heart set on someone (he would have been far more surprised if she didn't) though he was quite shocked she'd apparently got caught up on someone that was incapable of flying Aradissicath. Was it because the man didn't have a dragon? Was he still in the North? Or someone on the wrong dragon? The second two did not sit well with R'nya, and he frowned. At least if hte man hadn't Impressed yet, there was a hope. How to get the girl to spill the beans, though? R'nya blinked in surprise at his own thoughts, and shook them away without further analysis. Likely he'd be able to wriggle such details out of Kahleena without even trying.

"Quite likely," he decided not to press Rhaedalyn herself on the comment. "Even mated couples don't always manage to fly together." Dragons could be netorious for things like that. It was better not to get too caught up in the idea that one's mate would always be the one to fly someone. Of course, sometimes dragons mated first, and the riders ended up spending so much time together they just went with it, such as himself and Etarlla, so many lifetimes ago. That, too, was shaken away with a shiver down the spine and R'nya's nose crinkled for a moment. He couldn't afford to think of Etarlla or Cerith, not right then. He felt Xyreith pause on the edge of his mind, before the great bronze puffed out a breath and returned to tormenting Aradissicath by gently poking her with one claw against her side, clearly seeing how long he could get away with it before she blew up at him.

Rhaedalyn's sigh startled R'nya, caught up in thoughts and dragons, and his face blanked for a moment before returning to a more casual expression. It lasted for a moment, before a whole range of emotions fluttered across his features in rapid succession. "Oh." He'd forgotten about the typical party that followed a gold's first flight. He knew the green and blueriders tended to use their dragon's maiden flights as an excuse for regular parties, but with the gold resulting in a clutch... R'nya's eyes widened slightly as he recalled that part too, and his hand rose to pinch the bridge of his nose. There was nothing worse than flight addled brains not recalling anything. R'nya grimaced, but there was a good natured air about him as he lowered his hand and met Rhaedalyn's gaze.

"In that case, my lady, if you'll excuse me, I had best bathe and make myself pretty." Tossing the girl a wink, R'nya fell into an exuberant bow before remembering he hadn't put his shoes on. Picking those up, and the socks that had been kicked around, the bronzerider flashed Rhaedalyn a smile and quietly slipped out of the room. Xyreith! Yes, sir? R'nya stepped outside in time to see his dragon stick his tongue in one of Aradissicath's nostrils. Well, that would save him a lot of time and effort. R'nya flourished a theatrical bow to the gold; "You have my complete and unwavering permission to slaughter him, my golden glory. Excuse me."

Xyreith's eyes sparkled with delight.

Aradissicath picked up on Xyreith’s games quickly which was why she didn’t put an end to them or say a word about the way he was poking at her so irritatingly. The bronze was a bit of a troublemaker and seemed to enjoy the suffering of others and she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of any sort of reaction beyond a bored glance at him and an exaggerated yawn. Besides, inside the hut was far more entertaining and Xyreith was easy enough to ignore.

Rhaedalyn’s cheeks coloured slightly at R’nya’s show of bowing and stating he would attend the party. While her family wasn’t lowborn, they weren’t highborn either. Her time apprenticing at Telgar helped Rhaedalyn to grow used to the way proper ladies were treated and how they were to act but it was still odd when men went out of their way to do it to her. It wasn’t that she didn’t think she deserved it since she knew perfectly well that she was a lady and should enjoy the little bit of respect given to them but it wasn’t a daily occurrence back then or especially within Katila. Perhaps that was the actual issue; so many dragonriders didn’t know how to properly behave around Hold-bred women that when one of them did something she was once accustomed to, it was odd and made her blush.

She barely had time to compose herself enough to smile in return before R’nya was slipping out of her bedroom and off to likely bathe exactly as he said he would. Realizing she was still standing around wrapped up in only a blanket, Rhaedalyn giggled and fell back onto her bed, holding the blanket even tighter. That was quite the experience! It was hard to say what she actually thought about it. The flight itself had been a bit scary when she remembered the looks the men chasing her had given her but the victory had been wonderful. It was sinful the way the lust dragged them both back into the other’s arms but it had been fun! Was it wrong that it had been with R’nya, though? Would it change their friendship? Could she look him in the eye later on and not blush endlessly as she remembered seeing him naked and vice versa?

She’d find out soon enough but first she’d have to bathe as well and find a snack since her stomach was starting to rumble. There was one other thing she had to do before anything. “Dissi… what are you doing?” Her dragon had been extremely quiet up to a few moments ago and Rhaedalyn wasn’t sure which was more worrying.

Aradissicath had twitched and shook her head to get the rude tongue away from her when Xyreith upped his game. She was now staring the bronze dragon down, plotting how best to get revenge. Nothing, my dear. She replied, letting the bronze in on her half of the conversation since it was about to involve him as an idea struck her. Xyreith is about to leave though. He just informed me in the most interesting of ways that he has horrible breath and needs to gargle with soap to improve that. Still unaware of how much influence she held in her words, Aradissicath didn’t know to watch how she said anything, especially since she was focusing intently on moving a front paw without bumping into anything around her. As soon as she finished her sweet suggestion to the bronze, Aradissicath switched from focusing on not hitting anything to bopping Xyreith on the snout with her paw. It wasn’t done to harm but more of a physical rebuttal for all of his poking and prodding.

Depending on her mood for her party later on, Aradissicath would further her revenge for the tongue in her nostril but for now she was content to laze in the sun as the bronze beast departed with his charming rider. She couldn’t wait for her party! She would need a bath as well to keep her beautiful shine going but Aradissicath decided Rhaedalyn had earned a bit of a break to tend to her own needs first. They would both be so beautiful by that night!