Long Day... (P'resh)

[E]

Amoare sighed, almost unwilling to climb out of the warm waters of the bathing pool. The day had been long and she had worked harder than usual. Giving her muscles a few more moments to soak up the heat, she finally rinsed her hair and climbed out. Towel drying her shoulder-length hair, she brushed it and shrugged into some better smelling leggings and a shirt that was two sizes too large. It was comfortable though, and its not like it mattered what she looked like this late at night.

Feeling a rumble in her stomach, she remembered she has missed both lunch and dinner and decided to see if the Night Hearth was still going. The short walk thru the dark left the back of her neck cold as her hair kept it wet. Entering the dimly lit room, she was thankful for the heat coming from the fireplace. Moving toward it, she picked up a bowl and dished herself a small portion of stew that was there before looking to see who else occupied the room.

Most of the faces she knew, but she’d never actually talked to before. Wondering if she should just eat alone, her eyes found a familiar bronze rider who had bespoke her a while ago. Smiling, she remembered he’d been a puzzling one, but entertaining all the same. She’d take a chance.

Walking over she smiled, “Hello, P’resh right? Mind if I sit with you?”

[Memorie]

At the sound of footsteps approaching, P'resh dropped his spoon back in the now-empty bowl, where it landed on hte bottom among the dregs of milk with a dull thud.

"Hello, P'resh, right? Mind if I sit with you?" the girl asked. He recognized her immediately, though a name was lacking in his mind for a few seconds too long.

Amoare, supplied Kaunth, P'resh's bronze dragon.

"Indeed, you may, Amoare. Don't suppose I could stop you," he added, eyeing her wet hair and the tunic draped loosely upon her shoulders. "Care for some klah? " he asked, and his mood had taken a dramatic upswing from where it had been lurking in the moments prior to the girls arrival.

"I see you are still waiting for a Hatching, hmm? Still Gold-hopeful?" he asked. P'resh had heard about this girl through the tubervine, and so far, she seemed a more likely gold candidate than did the other girls.

[E]

Amoare took the seat next to him at the round table, one foot beneath her to make her a little taller and the other on the edge of the chair, bringing her knee nearly to her chair due to her long legs. Happy to hear he had remembered her name, she kept her smile.

“Yes sir, still a gold hopeful. Klah sounds wonderful.” she said as she brought a spoonful of the stew to her mouth. After a moment of enjoying the taste, she swallowed and looked at P’resh again, trying to remember the name of his bronze… A list of names ran thru her head, but she found it faster than she thought she would and was pleased.

“And how fairs Bronze Kaunth and you?” she asked politely as she looked around for a spare mug for the Klah.

[Memorie]

Watching her cast around for a mug for the offered klah, P'resh filled a spare one that was next to him and handed it to her. "Kaunth is...well, Kaunth." P'resh laughed a bit of a rumbling laugh, and continued. "Much like his rider, he maintains that prideful, arrogant attitude. But, of course, it is always the best time with Kaunth." He paused here, and smiled slightly. Even just remembering his small, but powerful bronze seemingly brought that spicy dragon smell to his nose; it was his favorite smell above all others, even above the smell of a woman.

"So, my young friend," he said, smiling again, though rather mischieviously this time, "how long have you been here at the Weyr? Have you enjoyed your stay?"

[E]

Taking the offered mug a little surprised that she’d missed it, she smiled. “Oh, Thank You.” With a polite sip, she put it down again to eat some more stew as P’resh answered her question of well-being. Wondering a moment at his play on words, she shrugged it off and listened to his next question.

Wondering why his new smile was making her face feel a little warm, she concentrated on her soup as she answered with a slight giggle. “I was born here, so I guess you can say I’ve been here my full sixteen turns. I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.” She said as she reached for another sip of klah.

Looking back up again she found herself looking at that smile again and she wondered if he was silently laughing at her. “What is it?” she asked, puzzled at what it was she had said…

[Memorie]

"Oh," he said, genuinely surprised. One of those idiots in the wing had said that the girl had been at the Weyr for but a few weeks. "I'm glad the Weyr has been good to you."

His palms had become sweaty, and he wasn't sure why, until he reflected back upon her words. ...my full sixteen turns... crept slowly into his mind.

Ah, but she's young! P'resh thought, mostly to himself.
P'resh, you are only twenty-five turns yourself, his dragon reminded him. Kaunth rumbled affectionately, and some of the sound echoed in P'resh's head.
Right you are, then, he replied.

Knowing that his eyes had taken on a blank look (though the smile remained on his face), he snapped back to their conversation just in time to catch her words.

"What is it?" she asked, looking a bit troubled.

"What?" he asked, shaking his head. "Oh, this silly-looking grin? It's nothing!" he replied, and quickly covered it with what was obviously a fake frown. He pulled his eyebrows low to maintain a look of utter seriousness, and spoke again. "Is this better?" he asked, holding the face between chuckles.

Deciding that he was in a significantly better mood than before, he leaned back against the chair he had been occupying, and previously brooding in, for almost two hours. Pulling his arms up in the air, he stretched his somewhat weary muscles, allowing them to flex as the firelight flickered on his short-sleeve tunic-ed arm. Ending this position, he leaned over the arm of his chair to face her again, this time with a genuinely contemplative expression on his handsome face. "They" always said that bronze riders were usually handsome, and he was no exception to this rule.

"So, Amoare, why ride gold? Why not green?" he asked. "Or, why ride at all? Is there anything you'd like better to do?"

[E]

When she found herself looking at a serious face, she couldn't help but laugh at it. It was just too funny. Her ease returned, she watched as he stretched, noticing the stength of the tanned arms. The stretch ended and Amoare was, strangly enough, pleased to find his face closer to hers. Listening to his question, a rather bashful smile came upon her face.

"I'd never thought of any form of life besides that of a dragonrider, I guess thats what I get for growing up here with dragons everywhere. As for the color, I know my heart would be content with any should they choose me. I just don't see the problem with reaching as high as I might. The higher you reach, the less likely you are to come up with a handful of mud." she said reciting a saying she'd heard before and had stuck. She found herself using it quite often.

[Memorie]

P'resh grinned at the sweet smile on her face. Her use of a popular proverb made him chuckle, as did her explanation for desire of a dragon.

"You have a good motto," he said. "I never allowed for the option of Impressing any color but bronze, and so I did. I never knew if it was because I didn't ever believe I'd get another color, or if it was simply fate. Either way, it worked out, didn't it?" he said, chuckling again. He had been doing much chuckling this evening.

"So, have you made many friends around here in your sixteen years?" he asked, smiling again.

[E]

“Yes, it appears it did.” Amoare said returning his smile as she finished her stew. Leaning back in her chair and bringing up her other leg to rest on the end, she picked up her mug of klah again as she studied P’resh. Blowing on the top to cool it she took a sip before answering him.

“I’ve made a few.” she said simply. Then another thought came to her mind and she smiled, almost mischeviously. “Why are you interrogating me?” she asked almost suspicious as to his intentions, yet far from the truth.

[Memorie]

Barking a seemingly harsh laugh, he said, "My dear, you simply interest me!" P'resh smiled into the fire and said, "Besides, someone must keep this lovely conversation going. You haven't asked me many questions,now have you?"

As a drudge walked by, Presh hailed her attention. "Pardon me, lady," he said, turning away from the delightful young Amoare. The drudge appeared almost surprised at his politeness. "Would it be possible for me to get a glass of white wine?"

"Of course, m'lord," she replied, and she scurried off.

"I'd've asked for one for you too, Amoare, but you really are too young..." he said, trailing off. He was teasing her.

[E]

Amoare blushed, knowing that he was right about her not asking many questions. She was use to starting conversations, but it was usually the other person who continued it afterwards. Taking another sip of her klah as P’resh ordered wine, Amoare ran possible questions thru her head.

His teasing joke broke her concentration and she let her jaw drop slightly in mock astonishment that he’d say such a thing. “Too young? And just how old are you? You can’t be that much older than a weyrling.” she said putting a slight stress on the last word, teasing him back.

[Memorie]

His jaw dropped at the word "weryling."

"My fair lady, I'll have you know that I am nearing my twenty-sixth turn. I Impressed my fourteenth turn, and am far from weyrling-dom, love," he said, dropping in a term of endearment at the end.

After taking a sip of the white wine, P'resh smiled back at the lovely young lady at his side. "You are almost as sweet as this wine," he said, smiling with all thirty-six teeth.

You are a shameless flirt, Kaunth said. The bronze had been listening in for a while now. The comment only made P'resh smile more.

[E]

Amoare shifted slightly as she laughed at his reprimand until her legs were both leaning on the arm and her body was facing the rider. She was searching for a more comfortable position and seemed to have finally found it.

“Your fourteenth turn?!?” she exclaimed rather impressed. Not many impressed before sixteen. “I bet your wing members were not too happy about such a young bronzer joining them.” her eyes danced at the idea of such friction.

[Memorie]

P'resh rolled his eyes at the thought of those other idiots who shared his rank. "No, I don't suppose they were too happy," he mused. He never really thought much of other's feelings.

Looking over into her twinkling eyes, he laughed. "So, you aren't as innocent as you lead me to believe! You like your fair share of intrigue too, d'ya?" He laughed. "Still, I bet being a candidate has it's perks. I mean, when you become a weyrling, you are not allowed to have anything other than platonic relationships, you know...." He let the sentence trail off and grinned.

[E]

“Yes, being a candidate is wonderful without nearly as much work or responsibilities, but nothing can even begin to measure up to the pleasure and excitement you’d receive from impression and an attachment with a dragon.” she said, her eyes continued to dance, although now it was unsure if the glitter was from mischief or awe.

After another sip of klah, she spoke up again. “Although I must admit, I do not understand what you mean by intrigue, but by the sound of the word I can only imagine its as fun and interesting as this conversation and the way you are looking at me.”