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 Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2021 11:36 am
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 With her Ara's attention mostly absorbed in her labored attempts to read a precious, borrowed romance tale, Damahath found herself instinctively reaching for her twin. It wasn't that the young gold was incapable of occupying or entertaining herself, but Ardoxshoth was, quite simply, her favorite company after her beloved bond.
Sistermine? she inquired, mindful that her twin might already be engaged in some other activity. If you aren't otherwise engaged, I would very much enjoy the pleasure of your company.
She was being excessively formal, she realized at once, and decided to blame it on the unnaturally stiff language of the romance Ara was puzzling her way through in their weyr. Ara's reading had improved, and she mostly didn't even have to say the words under her breath, except when she came across an unfamiliar one, but her thoughts when she read felt slightly alien to Damahath, since her words didn't flow or form as smoothly as they did when she thought and spoke for herself.
It isn't anything important, she added to her sister, pleased that this sounded much less stilted and odd. My Ara is reading again and I'm afraid I do not find the romantic adventures of humans who never existed at all very interesting.
As she awaited her sister's response, Damahath sorted through other enticements she might offer her sister to persuade her to abandon whatever she was doing. Little came to mind, unfortunately. In the back of her mind she heard the surprisingly sharp, but very cultured voice of an elderly gold she and Ara had recently met, reminding her that her golden hide meant she ought never present herself as a supplicant, even when dealing with other gold dragons, older and better-titled though they may be. She was the daughter of a queen.
I'm not being a supplicant, Damahath thought to herself. I'm simply being considerate.
And that gave her an idea for how she might please her sister. She had yet to eat this day, and she thought that perhaps if she and Ardoxshoth dined together, she could ensure that her sister got the choice portion, perhaps even deigning to address the humans in charge of such things to ensure it. That was a solution which should flatter everyone.
I'm on my way to have a snack, if you'd like to join me, she informed Ardoxshoth as she set out on foot. She refused to attempt flight without the say-so of the weyrlingmaster. |
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Posted: Fri May 07, 2021 12:01 pm
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The enticement offered by Damahath was a tempting one, but Ardoxshoth would have accepted the reward of her twin sister's company on its own. There were few indeed whom the young queen loved with all of her hearts; Damahath easily numbered among them, alongside Hybreoth and her own rider. It was not that the queen did not adore her clutchsiblings at large, but she did have a few special favorites. An open yet closed circle, belonging, to Ardoxshoth's mind, only to her.
However, as willing as she might have been to accept the one treasure alone, the greedy gold would happily snatch both her sister's company and a meal. Her Yunara was busy embroidering once again, and while that had once been exciting to the young queen it was a bit dull when contrasted with her sister's request. I will be there shortly, Damahath, Ardoxshoth crooned to her sister, leaving the shared work room to find her golden friend.
This particular path was well known to her, after all. Although they did not need to be fed daily, growing dragonets certainly did require plenty to eat. It was a point of pride that she and her siblings were now old enough to eat mainly on their own. Someday soon they would all be flying to the feeding pens rather than walking... but for now, her feet would certainly do. Mine hasn't read any romantic tales yet... do you suppose she might like them? Ardoxshoth asked, even as she closed the distance between her sister and herself. Her Yunara did seem to lack admirers... hmm. Was that normal for a queenrider?
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Posted: Tue May 11, 2021 12:43 pm
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It was always pleasant, Damahath felt, to be greeted warmly by the humans at work in the feeding pens. Well, perhaps not warmly, but with good manners and good cheer. It seemed to her that they were pleased to have her there, and she imagined their pleasure could only be magnified when her twin joined her. For herself, Damahath could do without attracting attention due to the sheen of her hide, but she never really minded basking in the glow of Ardoxshoth's golden glory. Not for the first time, she was grateful that she had a twin to deflect all the attention which would otherwise have fallen on Damahath alone. She quite literally shuddered at the thought.
She pondered her twin's question as she waited by the feeding pens, but not for very long. It wasn't a difficult question, after all: I'm not sure? Ara likes the stories, and gets quite caught up in the characters' relationships. She says the women all seem impossibly lovely and sweet and not at all like the people she knew as a drudge at the Hold or in either Weyr, and the men are all very brave. She also says that none of them seem to mention that there are a lot of drudges and other workers who are probably doing a great deal in the background to ensure the endings are happy.
Possibly that wasn't the most helpful answer Damahath could have given, but she did not read, other than hearing the stories as echoes in Ara's mind as Ara read, and had to assume that they lost a good deal in the transition between the page and her own mind. Trying to be helpful, she added, Some of the time Ara has to put the book down and skip a few pages, but it never seems to make much difference to the story.
It was a relief to see Ardoxshoth's shimmering hide glinting under the sun, as Damahath had begun to feel self-conscious around all of the feeding pens' human workers without Ara to act as an intermediary for her. She would have to articulate her desires to someone, of course, but she'd wanted to wait until she could be sure the desires she articulated were in line with her twin's. By the time Ardoxshoth arrived, the humans' solicitousness was becoming a little uncomfortable, and she trotted over to greet Ardoxshoth with a restrained but relieved nose boop.
I'm so glad you're here! What shall we eat?
Mr Cheri Ara is skipping the sexy parts of the stories to avoid alarming Damahath. That is why she sometimes skips pages that don't have an effect on the story.
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