[G] [C] 739.10.01 | Changing the Game

When Halomirth let Zeianth know that F’drel was out visiting with the Weyrleader, D’hys found that rather intriguing and not at all annoyed the man wasn’t home when he stopped in for a visit. Instead, he left Zeianth to visit with the friendly green and was making his way to the Dining Cavern when he saw M’ris escorting a young woman around the Weyr. That led to him questioning people about who she was as he snacked on some fruit. He was still chatting, this time with the ever so charming J’ver when F’drel entered with what was obviously a Lord. J’ver informed him that was his second cousin, Jalazmar, the husband to the Lady M’ris had been with. Since J’ver was in a good mood, he even offered up the information about Jalazmar owning F’drel’s siblings and how they were a gift from Lord Nabol.

His little greenrider was turning out to be far more fascinating than he imagined. But he didn’t want to see the man yet and slipped out when F’drel continued his beeline for the kitchen. D’hys suspected the greenrider would return home after his errand, probably exhausted from his socialising so he stood outside F’drel’s door, leaning against the wall, affecting an air of boredom as he waited. F’drel wouldn’t care one wit if he actually had been left waiting for hours for his return, it was part of why he enjoyed the man so much. He had a bit of spine to him and a bit of spunk that actually made him add his own term to the deal of him being a piece of ass on the side. D’hys admired the way F’drel wanted to be able to say he was busy and toss the bluerider aside if he showed up looking for some action, so he had agreed.

It was initially the reason he had stopped in, deciding to partake in a little afternoon delight before working on the task R’nya had sent him on. Now, though, while that was still the idea, D’hys had come up with a new way to use F’drel. It had been on his mind for a while but now seemed like a good time to make the offer to F’drel. He wondered what the greenrider would want in return and looked forward to finding out; though most were happy with the offer he gave without adding to it.

It was only noon and F’drel was already done with the day. He’d consider just going to bed as soon as he got back to his weyr, but he’d just had three cups of klah and now had too much energy for a nap. F’drel probably shouldn’t have had so much, but he’d been denied his cup at breakfast and then he’d had the emotional ups and downs of being summoned to the Weyrleader’s office and then having to deal with Lord Jalazmar, and he’d just wanted his comfort drink. And then another two of them, because it was that kind of day.

A nap may have been off the table for the time being, but F’drel figured he may as well use the energy to give Halomirth a proper oiling; she had gotten so big, it took a lot more time and effort than it used to. He rather missed her little weyrling size. Then he’d look at a bronze or gold and remember how very lucky he’d gotten with his green on that front. Reminiscing on the chubby little dragonet Miri had been did improve F’drel’s mood a bit — at least until he reached the hallway his weyr was on and saw who was waiting by his door. That had his mood plummeting again, though at least this bluerider was better than the Weyrleader or a lord. Generally.

F’drel didn’t bother saying hello, just opened the door to his weyr, indicating with a nod that D’hys could come in. He’d considered telling D’hys to leave, but decided against it. Having the explicit permission to tell the bluerider to fuck off was probably the best thing he’d ever had in a ‘relationship’ — a fact F’drel never dwelled on — and he didn’t like to use it too often. Just enough to remind himself he could and D’hys would actually listen. So far, anyway. Besides, sex might be a good way to use up some of the unneeded energy from drinking three cups of klah. And then he could have a nap.

He moved to the side once he was inside his weyr, taking his boots off and leaving them neatly by the door, before crossing his arms and giving D’hys a look that said 'I know what you’re here for, so let’s hear how you want me this time.’

D’hys smirked as F’drel silently walked by and entered his home, allowing him to follow. He wasn’t a talkative man and that was usually appreciated since he wasn’t there for stimulating conversations. Usually. Today he was going to add in a conversation that might lead to future ones, though they would likely still be short and sweet before or after the fun sex the greenrider was good for.

Sex, it seemed the man was ready for as D’hys came in and looked F’drel over as he gave his usual expression of greeting. With a grin, he removed his boots –they’d be coming off in a bit anyway, might as well follow F’drel’s obsession with removing footwear as soon as he entered the room. “So eager today, F’drel. I like it and will take you up on that offer soon, but it’s not my sole purpose for visiting today.” He walked further into the weyr, going to a chair and making himself comfortable. He wasn’t sure if F’drel would join him or not as he seemed a bit wired at the moment and standing or pacing might be preferred. It didn’t matter to D’hys, so long as he was listened to.

“I have a proposition for you and I think you will like it.” He crossed his leg, ankle to knee and leaned an elbow on the arm of the chair, head resting in his hand. He was relaxed and confident that F’drel would indeed like it. Well, he’d like what he got out of it but there would no doubt be some issue with what was asked of him and D’hys expected some bartering on that end.

“As a greenrider, and given your upbringing, you’re used to staying out of the way and being overlooked, correct?” Of course he was; every greenrider learned to keep his head down and didn’t want much attention drawn to them lest they be the meal of the day by a bored dragonrider stationed above them. “I find that to be a valuable skill as it has advantages of people forgetting you’re around and speaking about things that shouldn’t be overheard.” Really, some people were lacking in the intelligence department.

“I specialise in information and offer it to those that might be interested in it,” for a price, naturally. Whether the information he found out benefited him directly or indirectly, D’hys knew when and how to play it and who would want it the most. It was why R’nya still kept him close, knowing he had ways of finding out the truth in delicate matters or helping someone come around to the Weyrleader’s way of thinking without directly tying R’nya to the action.

“And I hope you’d be willing to pass along anything interesting you might hear.” Now to wait for the questions and suspicions.

F’drel grit his teeth, managing to keep from scowling, but only barely. ‘So eager today’ — eager to get D’hys out of there so he could finally have some time to himself. ‘Eager.’ Fucking dick. Still, his annoyance at a certain fucking bluerider wasn’t enough of a distraction that F’drel missed that D’hys apparently had another goal for visiting today in addition to likely none-to-gentle sex. Fan-fucking-tastic. Just what F’drel wanted, another man who wanted to ‘discuss’ things with him. He didn’t manage to stop the scowl from breaking across his face at that.

A proposition? F’drel did not like the sound of that, and the assertion he would probably like it made him not like the whole situation more. Stupid fucking bluerider sitting in his chair and claiming bullshit about what he would and would not like. He kept his lips pressed tightly together so that he wouldn’t say anything stupid — or likely to get him hit. Keeping his arms crossed F’drel moved to lean against the wall, not really wanting to sit down or pace — looked too nervous — but needing to do something other than just stand there. The weyr wall was cool, grounding, and gave him something at his back.

He bristled at the mention of his upbringing, because how the fuck did D’hys know anything about that? F’drel sure as fuck hadn’t told him, and it’s not like that many people in the Weyr knew it either. Still, annoying as it was to admit, he was right about F’drel being good at going unnoticed — though apparently that day was an exception and everyone and their dragon were seeking him out. The claim that he worked in information had F’drel raising an eyebrow in consideration. Well, that explained why D’hys knew too much abut him, then. He was a nosy bastard with connections. F’drel thought he’d better figure out who certain of those connections were; he didn’t like not knowing who around the Weyr knew things about his past. Highly disconcerting and very unsafe.

To F’drel’s great displeasure he was, in fact, rather intrigued by the idea. He’d grown up around lords, he knew how much their reputations meant to them and how many secrets they had. F’drel had experience being the dirty little secret, even. It wasn’t surprising at all the same sorts of information was useful in the Weyrs. And damn it, F’drel kind of wanted to play, especially if it involved knocking a lord or asshole dragonrider down a peg or two. He’d even do it for free. Not that he’d let D’hys know that, of course. If he could get more out of playing snitch than grim satisfaction, F’drel would try to get as much as he could wrangle.

“Alright then,” F’drel said, leaning his head back against the wall and watching D’hys carefully, “it’s clear what you get, but what about me? Can’t say I’m overly fond of doing favors out of the goodness of my heart.” Especially for blueriders who see me as minor entertainment at best, he thought sourly, not wanting to give D’hys anything else for free. “In any case, I imagine my definition of interesting’s different than yours, so you’ll have to be more specific about what you’re looking for.”

He’d give F’drel one thing, the man was hard to read when he put effort into hiding his emotions. D’hys felt like he had hooked F’drel with his opening sales pitch but he surprisingly couldn’t read any tells to find out how much interest there might be. He decided the attempt to look as equally relaxed with leaning against the wall meant he was excited at the idea but trying not to show it. He’d have to pay more attention to F’drel when they got together to learn more about how the man operated. However, the bored indifference was another skill that worked well in the field of information gathering.

“I’m sure our definitions will align rather well but some examples…” D’hys took a moment to consider what he could give away, though he was going to be vague regardless so it didn’t matter. “Let’s say you find out a certain mated bronzerider is secretly meeting with a brownrider for sex when he gives off every impression he’s straight and happy with his mate.” Technically, M’ris was single at the time when he had been having his hook ups with K’tir, and D’hys was fairly certain they had ended some time ago, but that sort of information was nice to have on standby, just in case. Not that anyone even knew if he was mated to Ameris or not. They had an odd relationship.

“Information involving brawls… someone stepping too far out of line with their liberties… whispers of frustration or anger with the leaders. Anything that catches your attention. I’m not going to grade you on your gathering skills, F’drel. Just being my eyes and ears for me will be enough to keep me holding up my end of the deal.”

His end of the deal. He still hadn’t mentioned what that would be and he waited a little longer to let the examples sink in before he brought it up. He was also considering adding in a little something extra for F’drel. The kid was bright and just cynical enough that D’hys knew the normal offer of protection would be nice but not enough to satisfy him. Perhaps a little information trade off would be beneficial to their arrangement.

“As to what you get out of this arrangement,” D’hys stopped leaning on the arm rest, sitting up a bit straighter since they were moving into negotiations and wanted to seem like he was taking it seriously—since he was. Having the wrong informant could backfire on him and drag him down just as fast. “You’ll be under my protection. It won’t matter that I’m not always here, the word will be put out to the right people that you’re important to me and not to be messed with. Most know not to upset me and if someone should bother you in any way, they won’t make that mistake a second time.” He would find out, either directly from F’drel or someone he could trust and then the offender would have a date with his fists until he learned his place. He wasn’t the largest or –as hard as it was to admit—the strongest man in the Weyrs, but he was a good fighter and had a reputation to help back it up.

“I’ll also give you an information trade. If I come across anything that might concern you, I’ll tell you. If you have something you want information on, I’ll look into it for you.” He really wasn’t sure what a drudge-turned-greenrider could want to know, but the offer was there and D’hys would honour it if F’drel ever came to him asking after something or someone. Maybe he would have a crush on someone and want a background check before opening up to them. That was easy enough to see F’drel doing. The man was a hard read and didn’t give away much more than he needed to.

The example D’hys gave of the bronzerider was much too specific to be anything but true, and F'drel delicately raised an eyebrow at the description. Bronzeriders really were rather like lords, weren’t they, having secret male lovers on the side. Not that this was news to F’drel, just further proof of what his instincts told him. If he found that sort of tidbit, F’drel had no issue passing it along if it could be used to blackmail the bronzerider in question or something along those lines.

Of the other, less specific examples, fighting was easy to hear about, and not that interesting to him, so F’drel had no issue passing that info along. 'Stepping out of line with liberties' sounded a lot like 'taking advantage of people’ which was what he kept an eye out for anyway, so no extra effort there. He was perfectly happy to talk about people not liking leadership too, though he did get the impression D'hys would happily give the information to both other dissenters and the leadership itself, depending on what the bluerider felt served him better. He had a very self-serving vibe about him. Which meant F’drel might not give him something if he felt the information could too easily be abused, but some things? Sure, why not.

And what he got in return sounded absolutely worth it. It meant he was somewhat less likely to have men trying to get in his pants or harassing him, and F’drel wasn’t going to say no to that. Made his life at least a little less awful, in theory. The way D’hys spoke, too, made F’drel think it wasn’t just bluster either, that he actually had a decent chance of providing the protection he offered. Interesting. Was that what knowing everyone’s secrets got you? A level of power not related to what your social standing otherwise was? Because there was no reason D’hys as a bluerider should be able to get a brownrider or maybe even a bronzerider to leave some random greendrider alone. Yet it sounded like he could and while F’drel couldn’t say the man was easy to read, he seemed at least like he believed what he said. And D’hys didn’t strike him as someone who talked big without knowing he could back it up. Again, interesting.

Which of course meant it was very complicated too, and would probably be better to not have anything to do with the man at all. Too fucking late for that, F’drel thought grimly. He didn’t think D’hys would just let him walk away, even if he had agreed to letting F’drel deny him sometimes. Not the same thing at all, and everything F’drel knew about D’hys said the bluerider was used to getting his way. Fucking blueriders. Why did Miri have to have a thing for blues with dangerous riders? F’drel could very much do without it.

Still, the chance of additional safety was very, very tempting, as was the offer of information. Whether D’hys could protect him or not, an easy way to get information definitely could help F’drel stay out of dangerous situations more often than not. And he’d get it for really very little on his part. He listened carefully anyway, so it’s not like he’d have to change how he did things beyond occasionally sharing what he learned. Yes, to F’drel’s great surprise he rather did like the proposition — he just wasn’t going to let D’hys know how easy a decision it was. Besides, he did have another question.

“When you say anything that might concern me,” F’drel started, watching for any signs D’hys might be lying to him at any point, “I imagine that includes information about me. Do I get to hear that first, and do I have any ability to keep you from sharing it, or is it fair game for anyone who offers you enough for it?” He didn’t think ‘protecting’ him included his reputation in any way, but fuck it, F’drel was a private person, and he hated people looking at him like he was nothing. Being a greenrider got him enough of that from some people, details of his past would only make it worse. If someone paid enough for it, F’drel figured there wasn’t much information D’hys wouldn’t share. Except about himself, probably, but that was to be expected. That was self preservation, not morals or giving a shit about other people. Not that the answer being ‘your life details are forfeit’ would keep him from agreeing to the arrangement, but he wanted to know where they stood on the matter. And if he could do something to protect his privacy, F’drel at least wanted to know he had the option, even if it ultimately wasn’t worth it.

D'hys studied F'drel as he considered the offer, determined to figure out the man's tells. If he didn't know himself so well, he'd say there was no way someone was that good at keeping his emotions in check. He also knew Z'ia and how good his fellow bluerider was at playing a role and making it seem like he was constantly happy and kind. If he didn't learn it today, D'hys was confident F'drel would eventually let his guard down around him and start showing actual reactions. Then again, the greenrider would probably expect the same in return and that likely wouldn't happen.

"That includes information about you," F'drel was indeed clever. He was clarifying the points to ensure there wouldn't be any misunderstandings and D'hys couldn't twist the words of the deal later on. On this, though, he had meant information about F'drel or anything affiliated with him but it didn't hurt to have it laid out nice and clear. "I can't see you getting caught up in trouble but I will let you know if I hear something about you. I will even go one step further and say the person from which I learned about your past and where your siblings currently are and how they got there will be spoken to and convinced not to share that with anyone else as I know privacy matters to you." J'ver likely didn't even care about the other greenrider and only knew what he did through his family connections with the Lord Jalazmar. He probably wouldn't even know as much as he did if that Lord hadn't asked if he knew F'drel since they were in the same Weyr. From what J'ver said, Jalazmar was the youngest brother and the most innocent out of the lot so he probably didn't even know he was handing over such vital information.

"Do we have a deal and shall we celebrate it? You seem in need of an energy release and were so excited for my visit after all." D'hys grinned but stayed where he lounged in the chair. There wasn't a need to advance on the greenrider and pin him against that wall; yet.

F’drel couldn’t entirely believe how good this deal was sounding for him. Protection, a heads up if any rumors or information about him was going around, and D’hys was even offering to ‘convince’ — whatever that entailed, though F’drel assumed either bribery or threats — someone who knew more than F’drel liked to keep quiet. All this and for not a lot of effort on his part. He could understand why, if the bluerider worked in information, it might be worth it to convince F’drel to be an informant for him, but still. It seemed like a lot of perks for F’drel. Which of course meant there was a catch somewhere, but F’drel couldn’t find it. Chances were good it would only become apparent when it was too late, but until then? It was a good deal for him.

Even so, he couldn’t seem like he was overly interested in saying yes, so F’drel stayed quiet another moment, going over everything again to look for potential pitfalls for him. It also gave him a moment to control himself so he didn’t say or do something stupid. D’hys just looked so fucking smug and F’drel hated his stupid grinning face. Was the man messing with him or did he really think F’drel was excited he was there? He was never drinking three cups of klah in such a short span of time ever again, if it made him come across as wanting to get laid. Also because it was uncomfortable — his heart was definitely beating way too fast, and not just from the nerves he got being around D’hys, and staying still was taking all his focus. The excessive twitchiness and his general impatience with the day meant he didn’t deliberate as long as he would have any other time, and F’drel was nodding in agreement after little further thought.

“Fine,” he said, barely dipping his head in a minuscule nod, “I agree to these terms.” F’drel would probably regret it later when he discovered some condition he’d missed, but he was too tired to think too much about it just then. He’d had no idea it was possible to feel so energized and exhausted at the same time, but here he was. Today sucked, and the way D’hys was watching him didn’t make F’drel feel better in the slightest. Stupid bluerider, just sitting there and biding his time. F’drel didn’t feel like playing this game today, waiting for D’hys to initiate whatever he felt like that day, he just wanted to get this interaction done with as soon as possible. It had already gone on long enough with the added conversation about information gathering, and it had required a lot more thinking than F’drel was up to that day.

Fuck it, F’drel thought, pushing away from the wall and walking closer to the bluerider. Asshole already thought he was ‘eager’ today, may as well be eager and hurry this the fuck up so he could finally be alone. He stopped in front of D’hys, still sitting in the chair, a bit hesitant despite his decision to just get through this as fast as possible. No one ever expected him to be anything but compliant and he had just about no experience with initiating anything. F’drel had always just done whatever he was directed to when it came to sex, but D’hys wasn’t giving him anything. Slowly F’drel knelt down on the floor — most men didn’t like being reminded he was taller than them, so he figured it was best to not loom over the bluerider — and waited, carefully averting his eyes. He wasn't really comfortable continuing on his own initiative, and F’drel held his breath, hoping D’hys would just take what he was being handed so they could get on with it before F’drel lost his ability to suppress his sheer irritation with everything that had happened that day. He didn’t want to snap at D’hys like he’d snapped at R’dal — which he still felt bad about — because he would definitely say something he regretted. And D’hys, unlike R’dal, would certainly use whatever he said against him someday.