The Two of You

Writers: Jane, Vix
Date Posted: 23rd December 2007

Characters: Tamaca, Arateyka
Description: Tamaca confronts Arateyka about the smith's involvement with L'car.
Location: River Bluff Weyr
Date: month 7, day 15 of Turn 4

Arateyka patted the dappled green muzzle of the sleepy dragon and said goodbye to her sister, keeping to herself the thought that Isleth was as freckled as her sister, mainly because the teasing wouldn't make much of an impact coming from somebody as freckled as both weyrling dragon and rider. Instead she just edged past Isleth and rounded the Weyrling Barracks, intending to walk along the river and around the lake on her way to a late meal at the dining cavern.

Jorth had just settled in for a nap, freshly bathed, oiled, and fed, and Tamaca had taken the time to have a quick bath and change of clothing before supper. She ran her fingers through her still-damp hair to finish untangling it, reminding herself that there would be more time to fuss about her appearance as the green dragon grew and to accept what small opportunities she now had to allow herself to feel clean.

Ahead of her she saw a woman wearing crafter's knots, a familiar woman. Quickening her steps, she moved to catch up with the smith. "Arateyka - wait!"

"Hello Tamaca," the journeywoman smith said when the other woman approached. "I've just been visiting Isleth and Tey."

The young rider nodded. "I saw you with them. You seem to visit fairly often."

"And there are so many of us," Arateyka agreed with a smile. "The Weyrlingmaster is probably thinking about banning us from the area."

"She does have frequent visitors, though I'm certain that the Weyrlingmaster doesn't mind." Tamaca paused, thinking of how few visitors she had had, though most of her family had stopped by as she could, including one in particular. "My brother, when he visited - that was your doing, wasn't it?"

"We came along together since we both had sisters in the weyrling class," Arateyka said, hedging slightly.

"But he hadn't visited me before then," Tam insisted.

"He'd been thinking about it," the journeywoman assured her, wondering if she was doing anybody any favours by pretending and, deciding she wasn't admitted more honestly: "He might have needed a little push to get from thinking to doing."

The young dragonrider nodded thoughtfully. "You seem to have quite a bit of influence with him."

"I think I bully him," Arateyka said with a sigh. "Does it count that it's for his own good?"

"It may be good for him, but why is he listening to you when nothing anyone else has said for turns seems to matter?"

"Oh. Really?" It was silly to be so pleased that she was special in some way but she was. "Perhaps 'cause we're old friends?" she suggested.

Tamaca paused, hands on her hips. "But what's going on between the two of you _now_? For turns you went your own way but now the two of you. . .. suddenly he's doing things because you've suggested them, things that he couldn't be bothered with before this."

"Nothing's going on," Arateyka protested, suddenly realising Tamaca was a sister, and starting to suspect that all sisters were like her own interfering fair. "We're friends. That's all. And he wouldn't see anybody for Turns - rather than us going our separate ways. He was injured and lost contact with his friends. We were mostly still out here, waiting for him to get back to us."

The greenrider eyed her suspiciously. "And that's all?"

"Of course."

"So why haven't any of his other old friends come back?"

"I can't answer for them, but ... He's not exactly welcoming, yet, is he?" Arateyka said with a grin. "It's hard work being friends with your brother right now."

"Very true," agreed Tamaca. "So why bother?"

"I missed him," Arateyka said simply.

The other woman's words sounded sincere enough, but still . . . this was Tam's brother. "He's been hurt so much in his life - physically and emotionally. He can't take much more disappointment."

"I have no intention of disappointing my friend, Tamaca."

The greenrider studied the smith's face, a worried expression on her own. "Maybe not intentionally - but he's. . . he's different now."

"I know that."

Tamaca crossed her arms, sighed, and uncrossed them. "I suppose that I should be glad that you haven't deserted him when he's managed to chase away all of his other friends, but I can't help but worry about him."

"Of course you can't. Look, Tamaca, he and I have been friends for Turns; I care for him - I wouldn't ever do something I thought could hurt him - but nobody can give guarantees that things will work out for the best. People are unpredictable - life is unpredictable. I'll do my best not to hurt him, but that's all I can do. And there will be times when no doubt him and I will fight, because we're two adults and sometimes we'll think we each know better than the other. But that's just normal. And I think he needs a bit - maybe a lot - of normal in his life right now."

The greenrider could not dispute that, though since the death of one brother and the scoring of another she had lost all sense of what constituted 'normal.' "I suppose you're right, she told the smith. But I'll be keeping an eye out for him."

"It's good that somebody is," Arateyka agreed. "Enjoy the rest of your day, Tamaca."

"You too," Tam muttered, though a part of her still wanted to argue against the smith's involvement with her brother. Instead, she'd just have to wait and see what happened.

Last updated on the December 23rd 2007

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The Two of You