[PRP] Adjustment Period (G'ran, Nadry, Dragons)

[Tsunake]

G'ran was struggling to keep his temper in check.

He'd walked in on two older riders making comments about the perverseness of females riding above their station, namely in regards to dragons that were not green or gold. He'd frozen in his tracks, feeling something low, hot, and ugly starting to churn in his stomach, and the men had only glanced at him before resuming their conversation.

Elzebuth's reaction had garnered much more attention. Immediately picking up on his rider's fury, the quickly-growing brown had drawn himself up to his full height, mantling his wings as though readying himself to lunge forward. It was the alarm and rage he could feel pulsing through his dragonet that visibly shook the big man. The last thing he wanted was for Elzebuth to be hurt by the strength of his emotions, and, audibly grinding his teeth, he turned and forced himself to leave the dining area.

What is wrong? The Devil was pressing against his side even as he supported his rider, radiating love, affection--and an underlying current of brimming anger.

"They think they're better than others, just because of what they are." He growled. "They aren't. Sharding pieces of wherry dung--"

Aurinkoth's is better. Menankith's is better. Elzebuth replied dismissively. The man nearly missed a step, constantly surprised by how well the dragon knew his thoughts. Who would know them better than I? Came the query, full of polite puzzlement. Come. You will see.

Sharp teeth took the hem of his tunic with unimaginable gentleness, leading him towards the girl's section of the barracks. "Elzebuth--" G'ran protested, but it was either follow, or find his carefully hemmed shirt torn. Ichta had worked on this for him. He wouldn't let it be ruined so carelessly.

Menankith! Elzebuth called, searching for his brown brother as he nosed into other rooms. Where was he?

Meepfur

TADA...

 

[Meepfur]

Another rest day, another round of purposefully getting his rider dirty to get her used to it. She was certainly never going to like it, but they could build up her tolerance to where it wasn't such a big deal, nothing to get so upset over if and when it inevitably happened. As a rider, it would be unavoidable, just a fact of life, and it wouldn't do for her to be shrieking or having a fit about it. That wasn't very heroic, which he kept reminding her. It seemed to help.

That was their morning gone, so when Elzebuth nosed into the girls' section of the barracks, Menankith was stretched out, thoroughly scrubbed and freshly oiled, with a pale blue flit clinging to his headknobs. The brown bugled at his darker brother, and his hanger-on did its best to imitate the sound. Hello, Elzebuth and Elzebuth's!
Do you need something? Mine is getting clean, she will be back soon.

NadryMine, Elzebuth and His have come to visit, he notified his bonded, quite sure that she would like to know that they had company. If he didn't forewarn her and let her know to be presentable, she'd be terribly embarrassed, as well as a bit cross with him. Are you nearly finished?

Elzebuth and His? Oh. Oh, dear. Y-yes, almost done! Just a few minutes! Nadry set to scrambling to make good on that estimate.

Tsunake

 

[Tsunake]

Mine is upset. Elzebuth informed his brother, bugling back with interest. What was that other sound?? He found those that did not think Nadry should be Yours. I told him that they were fools. What was that on his brother's back? Elzebuth approached fearlessly, sniffing at the flit with a delicate nudge. Why didn't he have one of these? He swung his head around to eye His, almost about to voice his opinion. Oddly, His was turning interesting shades of color.

"Oh," G'ran said, his tone slightly strangled. "That's fine. I'll wait." He immediately stormed back outside, not about to catch Nadry in the process of.... getting clean. Shards and Shells, this is what happened when he let Elzebuth talk him into things!

Radiating amusement, the darker brown focused on his brother. You and Yours are well? We fly soon, you know. It was hard to tell if Menankith cared about things like these, so concerned about justice as he was. Admirable? Yes. And if it made him happy, Elzebuth was content to leave him to it!

Meepfur

 

[Meepfur]

They are fools, Menankith agreed vehemently, lacings of anger threading through him - but not a surge, not the same rush of fury he would have had if he had been present to hear such things himself. He and His knew that awful things were said, though very rarely in their presence...but it was easy enough to know, to expect it. It would have been more surprising if people didn't talk about them, non-traditional as they were in a place as rigidly ordered as High Reaches. Still, even though they had yet to be insulted to their faces, he knew that sometimes the looks got to his, the sudden lowering of voices when they walked into a room. But we will show them soon enough.

It will be just a few minutes, he assured G'ran, oblivious to the young man's discomfort, She was nearly finished anyway. Just as fearlessly as the brown-who-was-not-his had approached, the flit reached out with the intent to latch onto the new headknobs that had now presented themselves, sing-songing another attempt at the fascinating noise the dragons had made.

We are well. And you have been as well, I trust? The smaller brown paid little mind to the flit's antics regardless of the fact that they were taking place on his head. Nadry's pet was getting marginally better-behaved as it matured, though it had entered a rather grabby stage. We do? That is good, very good! I promised myNadry that we would soar, a very long time ago. Or at least, it seemed like a very long time ago, waiting for her inside his shell.

Tsunake

sorry-not-sorry, G'ran. you can have Nadry next post. XD

 

[Tsunake]

"That's fine. Tell her not to rush." G'ran could feel his face threatening to burn, shuffling well out of sight so he could lean outside her quarters. Shards and Shells, if he'd just barged in when she hadn't been decent-- He covered his face with one hand for a moment, trying to block out how hot his cheeks were. Shards. He was just grateful that he hadn't. He wouldn't have ever been able to apologize.

We have been well. What is this? Elzebuth asked curiously, holding still so the flit could seize hold of him. Such a tiny creature could not possibly make a threat.... and it was making interesting sounds! The big brown probably found himself crooning slightly at it, his eyes whirling. He wanted one, he thought! How had Menankith and His gotten hold of such a thing, and why did G'ran not possess one, too? His inquiry was sent to his rider immediately.

A flit? Why need a flit? I have you.

Elzebuth considered that and found it to be an acceptable answer. For now. And the sooner we fly, the sooner we burn Thread from the skies. There was no denying the hunger in his tone, the hunger that all dragons felt to destroy that hated, silver enemy....

Meepfur

At least he didn't walk in on her, his head would have exploded...

 

[Meepfur]

A firelizard, Menankith supplied as the creature transferred over to a new perch with an inquisitive chirp, followed by a mimic of the crooning. Mine says they are good for messages, but so far he has mostly been good for getting himself into trouble.

Lucky for them both, Nadry never went to bathe without taking all her necessary things with her, not one to parade about the barracks anything less than fully-clothed, even with the division between male and female Weyrlings. The other girls were so pretty, and she was...not. Not that it mattered, or should have. Some days it didn't bother her, others...it did. A little. Maybe. Today? Also maybe. She'd spent a good portion of her morning splotted with mud, and now she had a visitor, and there was no hope of getting her hair dry enough to do anything with-

It's just Elzebuth's, Mine, Menankith reminded her, picking up on the flurry. His seemed to have developed a tendency towards such concerns lately, which he found quite curious.

Yes. Just Elzebuth's. Augh. At least it wasn't as bad as the other day, with C'lusi, with the mud in her hair that may have been cause for a shriek that he may have heard and...and that had been downright mortifying. Having reminded herself that it could be worse, Nadry ventured out to see her friend with an uncertain attempt at a smile. "Good morning, G'ran. Or...afternoon? I suppose it's lunchtime by now, isn't it?" A look at the dragons and her smile steadied. The sight of Menankith's darker brother with a flit on his head was priceless. "Hello to you too, Elzebuth. I see you've met Sir Moustache."

Yes. We will be heroes, all of us. They would save the world, and save the Weyr from itself. The latter, he suspected, would be the more difficult task.

Tsunake

That makes two of them. XD

 

[Tsunake]

Elzebuth held himself still as the small thing climbed onto his head. I see. It is not unpleasant, at least. No, he found himself rather intrigued! It was no dragon, but... it looked like one, at least a little! He was beginning to think that G'ran did need one, despite his resistance.

Ah, but there was Menankith's. The large brown rumbled a greeting, but G'ran did not appear. She is wearing the clothes, Mine. With the exasperated reassurance, the big man finally dared to poke his head in the doorway. "Morning. Afternoon. Yes." He grunted, a faint hint of color still tinging his cheeks. He stopped dead at the sight of Elzebuth, then snorted. "Is that why you won't shut up about a flit? Faranth's sake." He grumbled, but there was no actual heat in his words.

Sir Moustache... Elzebuth rumbled, clearly ignoring his rider.

Shaking his head, he forced himself to focus on the other rider. "You've been alright?" He questioned. It'd been some time since he'd seen her, but that was mostly his own fault. He'd been so caught up with his Weyrling duties that he hadn't seen the need to socialize. He hoped she hadn't heard anything like what he'd walked in on...

The mere thought nearly made him clench his fists again.

Meepfur

 

[Meepfur]

Perhaps Yours should get one, Menankith suggested.  Elzebuth's fascination with the flit was easy enough to pick up on, largely due to the fact that his clutchmate was allowing it to climb on his head without protest.  Although, how did one come by a firelizard without being sent one, as Nadry had been?  He inquired and, receiving the answer, went on, Mine's was a gift, but she says people sell them, or find clutches in the wild? A strange thought, a clutch of tiny not-dragons out in the wilderness, waiting to be found. They Impress to the first person who feeds them.

Sir picked his way across his new perch, pausing only to chirp a greeting up at the new person.  Large person!  Hello, large person!  Now, about this new dragon... The flit murmurred busily to himself as he conducted his tiny explorations.

For her part, Nadry was having a difficult time looking at G'ran, and an even harder time not giggling.  She'd gone from quietly fretting to completely sidetracked by the sight of the massive, dark brown weyrling dragon with a flit crawling on him.  Shards, but their dragons had been getting big, and the size difference between the two browns was becoming more and more noticable.  Granted, either one was about large enough to be ridden around like a runner, but still.  But G'ran was talking, and she tore her eyes away to be properly polite and look at him as he did so. "Yes, quite alright," she answered with an affirmative dip of her head, missing any motivation beyond casual friendliness for the question. "You two as well?"

Tsunake

 

[Tsunake]

I think he should. Elzebuth agreed, blinking once at the information. A gift, or a purchase? Perhaps when they could fly, it would be easy enough to scour the wilds for a nest. What simple little creatures. His thoughts were amused, rumbling with contentment as he allowed the creature to do as it would. Being fussed over was always something that delighted the brown.

He weighed Nadry for a moment before he nodded curtly, apparently satisfied. She seemed well. It was, admittedly, harder to care much about people and what they thought when you had a never-ending wave of support and love with you. "Yes. Elzebuth is growing rapidly." Looking at the two browns, he had to admit that he hadn't realized how rapidly. He was certainly larger than his brother, and G'ran frowned. "Do sizes vary so much, between dragons? I knew the colors tended to be larger or smaller, depending.... but I thought they would have been closer to the same size."

Elzebuth acknowledged his thought with another rumble, but it was lacking its usual smugness. Menankith wasn't necessarily a rival, in his mind--not like Aresoth was.

Meepfur

 

[Meepfur]

I have been wondering if Mine should get another, that perhaps it would help if he had company, and he would do fewer troublesome things...but then again, the new one might also be troublesome and it would be worse. Such a conundrum! His had similar concerns about the possibilities. If you and Yours get one, it should be friends with ours. Do you think Aurinkoth and His would like one? Sir Moustache, oblivious to speculations about whether he needed friends, worked his way down Elzebuth's neck and to his back, nimble digits grasping ridges along the way as he chittered to no one in particular.

"I knew they varied, but I never realized just how much. I mean, before when I saw dragons, I just saw...dragons. They all looked huge, you know? It's different when they're yours, I guess." Nadry tilted her head to regard the pair. She definitely noticed it more now than she had when they'd been freshly hatched, but she hadn't exactly noticed much other than Menankith himself for awhile. He wasn't as big as Elzebuth or Kratoth, but he was perfect no matter what, just the way he was. "I used to think my brother's dragon had to be the biggest, well, anything, but he's just normal for a brown."

Tsunake

I am so full of phone typos, sorry.
orz

 

[Tsunake]

Hm. Then you could have a small group to help you with whatever you wished. Elzebuth's eyes whirled covetously, imagining His with a firelizard of their own... Oh, and Aurinkoth as well! I think he would rather like to play with it. He would just have to be careful not to step on it by accident... He swung his head around carefully to watch Sir Moustache move, noting his tiny little claws. Useful things, that...

G'ran nodded wordlessly; he absolutely understood what she meant. Dragons had seemed like enormous creatures of legend... but, now that he'd seen so many, there was so much variety. "Even in the hides." He grunted. Stripes, spots, mottling, different glimmers and shades of color... Nadry's talk of her brother jerked his eyes over, watching her thoughtfully. It was hard, sometimes, to remember that other people had families that they knew.

"Has he come to see Menankith?" He was averagely built, as far as G'ran's eye could see--but he had good confirmation, and he was sharp as a whip. Certainly something that anyone could be proud of...

....but then again, any dragon deserved pride.

Meepfur

I'm full of slowness, you are just fine! /smooch

 

[Meepfur]

Indeed. Elzebuth wanted a firelizard - good! Perhaps their problem of Sir Moustache needing a friend of his own species wouod be solved. The blue, having reached the end of the dark Weyrling's back, determined it was a suitably broad space on which to curl up. We will have to make sure to get him a larger one, Menankith determined, as though that were possible to engineer. Perhaps a brown. A bronze or gold would probably be bigger, but...no, large brown would suit very nicely.

Nadry made a wordless sound of agreement with G'ran's comment about the variety of dragon hides. Menankith was a rich, bright brown with hints that were almost orange, Elzebuth as dark as he was big, and Dobrokhoth almost gray. And the variety of greens and blues seemed infinite.

"We see them sometimes, from a distance, and Dobrokoth did say hello to Menankith once, but..." The young woman sighed and shook her head. "M'yk would rather ignore what he doesn't like than deal with it, so he'll just keep on pretending we don't exist for as long as possible." He'd proven that he could learn, as evidenced by the number of Holder views he'd shed during his time at the Weyr (granted, he'd subsequently replaced some of them with traditionalist Weyr garbage), but it took time. And whether or not this would change...well, who knew? But Dobrokhoth, at least, didn't seem to disapprove, so perhaps there was a chance that her brother would come around.

Tsunake