Don't Get Carried Away

Writers: Emma, Estelle
Date Posted: 1st February 2018

Characters: R'fal, Oria
Description: R'fal introduces Oria to Marlath, and thanks her for the Search
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 2, day 24 of Turn 9

Oria

It was early afternoon, and Marlath's ravenous appetite had finally been
satisfied...for now. R'fal thought he was getting faster at chopping meat - he
ought to, after so much practice - and after cleaning up he found he had a few
minutes to spare until classes started again. He returned to Marlath and
crouched down beside him, touching the dragonet's warm hide and sharing the
enjoyable sensation of a full stomach through their bond.

Then he spotted someone he recognised walking across from the dining hall
towards the lake. R'fal hadn't had a chance to speak with Oria since the Search,
what with all the confusion of being transported to a new place, the Hatching
and the constant demands of weyrling training and caring for his lifemate.

"I'll be back in a minute. I'm not going far," he told Marlath, got to his feet
and jogged across the weyrbowl to catch up with her.

"Greenrider? I don't know if you remember me...I'm R'fal. You Searched me, from
a farm hold."

"Yes, yes I do," came the reply after a moment. "You impressed a brown, right?
Degrorth was so sure, and she likes to check up on these things."

"Yes. His name is Marlath. He's wonderful." The slightly dazed smile that always
accompanied R'fal's thoughts of his brown dragon appeared on his face. "I just
wanted to thank you - I never got the chance before, what with...everything that
happened that day. If it wasn't for you and Degrorth, I wouldn't have found
Marlath and I can't even imagine life without him now."

"You feel like a part of you was missing, and now you've found it." That was the
only way Oria had ever been able to describe it to herself, and anyone else.
Degrorth made her whole in a way nothing else could.

"Yes! That's exactly it." His eyes unfocused for a moment as Marlath spoke with
him. "If you have time - if you're not busy or anything - he says he'd really
like to meet you. We don't have long before class starts but he's just over
there with the others."

"If it isn't going to get you into trouble by making you late for class," Oria
said. "I don't want to have to deal with an angry Weyrlingmaster on top of a
hungry or tired dragonet," there was a note of laughter in her voice. "Although
he's probably wide awake and curious as to what you are doing now."

"He is, and he's just been fed so he shouldn't get hungry. Not for the next five
minutes, at least. He's asking what a search rider is," R'fal explained as they
walked over towards the barracks. "I told him it's someone who goes out with
their dragon to find Candidates, and now he wants to know how they do that. I'm
not sure I know that one."

"I'm not sure she'd be able to explain it to him," Oria said as they approached
the new weyrlings. "She can't explain it to me, but she does know somehow who
will eventually find their mate on the hatching sands."

"It must be interesting, though. Going out and visiting all those places to look
for people..." His voice trailed off as he recalled that his own home hadn't
exactly given the dragonriders a warm welcome. Luckily, he was saved from saying
anything more by the brown dragonet, who'd got to his feet and walked over to
meet his rider as he returned. "This is Marlath! Marlath, this is Oria, rider of
Degrorth, who Searched me."

"My duty to you and your rider Marlath," she reached out, tempted to scratch the
head knobs of the young brown. "May I?"

In answer, Marlath sat down before them, folded his wings and raised his head
towards her hand with a hopeful croon. R'fal laughed. "He says, of course. He
loves being scratched."

"They all do," she said as she obliged the brown. "I'm yet to come across a
hatchling that doesn't like this kind of attention."

"He never seems to get tired of it. I can feel how happy he is!" The boy rested
a hand on the soft hide at the back of his lifemate's neck. He still wondered at
how he could sense Marlath's emotions as if they were his own. "He wants me to
tell you that he's really grateful to you and Degrorth for bringing me to the Weyr."

"Degrorth will be honoured to hear that, and I'll make sure she knows."

"Thanks." He paused, listening to Marlath. "He also asked, will he be able to go
on Search some day? Sorry if it's a silly question," he added. "I wish I knew
enough about life here to tell him everything he wants to know."

"Sometimes brownriders will accompany a greenrider to certain holds, often it
helps. And they say that some brown dragons can find the girls who will one day
ride a gold. So tell him that it might happen." Oria said after a moment. "But
first you have to become a full fledged rider, and that is what has to be your
priority now, getting through the next few months together."

"I've heard that weyrling training's hard. It's definitely tiring!" Besides the
near-constant attention that the little brown hatchling required, having to be
back in classes again made his head hurt. At least he was somewhat used to
feeding and cleaning up afterwards from the farm. "Marlath can't wait to fly,
though. He keeps asking how long it'll be. I tell him he's got to get bigger
first and the best way to do that is to eat his meals and get lots of sleep, but
I think he knows I'm just as excited about it as he is."

"It will be exciting, and a day you won't forget, just don't let him get carried
away with it that first time."

"That might be easier said than done," R'fal said wryly. He turned to the
dragonet with a mock-stern expression. "Did you hear that, Marlath? Listen to
Greenrider Oria. No getting carried away!"

}: I will try, :{ Marlath sighed, }: but it's hard. Everything is so interesting
and fun! :{

A smile crossed Oria's face as she watched the interaction, that was one of the
best things that came from search. "You two will do well," she told them.

"I'll do my best." R'fal felt a warm glow of pride as he stroked the brown's
neck, and it gave him the courage to say what had been on his mind ever since
the search. "Greenrider, I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for...what happened
back home, with my Da and everything. I don't think he meant it. Maybe it was
just a shock, that I was chosen. And he did come to the Hatching, and saw
Marlath, and he liked him. I hope it didn't put you off searching at holds, or
anything."

"You don't have to apologise. It was the exception rather than the rule." Oria
explained. "Most holds know why we ride on search, and that most of the time
they welcome us, we're the people who protect them and also provide the
excitement and gossip for the next couple of sevendays."

"You certainly did that," R'fal said, relieved. He'd worried that dragonriders
wouldn't ever go back to his home, which would be hard on his younger siblings.
He followed the brown dragonet's gaze as he turned his head to look back at
where his clutchmates were gathering. "Oh - it looks like class is starting up
again. We'd better go. No, you can't stay here and be scratched," he told
Marlath firmly.

Marlath turned back to Oria, his eyes whirling blue-green with pleasure. "He
says he wishes you could stay longer and scratch him some more! But he also says
thank you."

"He's welcome, and so are you. But you two better scoot, before you get shouted
at."

"Yes, I definitely don't want that! Come on, Marlath." The boy started back
towards his classmates, then stopped and turned back as he remembered something.
"Oh, and please can you pass on our thanks to Bronzerider L'cor and Tonuth, as
well? Sorry! I didn't mean to forget him."

"I'll tell him," she said with a smile. "Good luck to you both."

Last updated on the March 2nd 2018

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Don't Get Carried Away