Hot Water [A'zael] [Done]

[Zen]

A'zael :: Bronze Fath

Danovelith had very quickly become Fath's very favorite prettyshiny. She was so nice to him, and liked to cuddle, and she was just so pretty. He let out a pleased warble as she agreed to not only hunt with him, but also watch the sunrise. Now he was even more excited. He leaned over to nuzzle Danovelith, radiating gratitude and affection for her, Thankyouthankyouthankyou!

Srunae seemed completely unaware of what he was referring to, so it hadn't been intentional after all. And then she was turning red, which only caused A'zael to laugh. She put on a good show, had become quite comfortable with their flirty banter and all- well most of his innuendos. He hadn't missed how red she had turned at his soaking wet comment earlier. But her holdbred modesty still won out when things got physical. It wasn't something A'zael could understand, nor did he think he ever would, but it was somewhat... endearing. And somehow made her that much more tempting. Wanting what he couldn't have had never been a problem for him before, but now....

He raised an eyebrow as she started on about apologizing. As if that was necessary. But she came to that conclusion on her own, and he grinned in return, “Mmm... guilty as charged.” She was pressing against him again and he mentally groaned. Why was she making this so hard? His resolve was slipping away, and he couldn't... he shouldn't.... Did she... did she want to? He was used to moving fast, but Srunae... didn't seem the type to jump from a kiss right into metaphorical bed with someone. She was sure sending all the right signals, it was just a question as to whether she knew she was sending them or not. Why did hold girls have to be so complicated?

This was completely new for him. He had never been in such a situation with a woman, where he didn't know what to do next. Surely she wouldn't be so close if she didn't...? She would have moved away by now, right? No, even if she DID... that brand new logical and mature and boring side of his mind scolded, reminding him of Mollin, of the looks and the whispers of disapproval. As much as he was trying to ignore the fact right now, he was still Weyrleader, he still had to do whatever was best for the Weyr, and.... But the pre-Weyrleader side of his mind scoffed, who would ever know? They were in the middle of the forest, in a secret hotpool no one probably even knew about, with no one around but their dragons. If they had a little fun now, how could anyone ever find out?

And a small, spiteful voice in the back of his mind reminded him that everyone probably thought he was sleeping with her already as it was, since he had already starting hearing those whispers. He's taken ANOTHER weyrling to bed, what a surprise. How irresponsible can one man be, putting a GOLD at risk? He shook his head slightly and leaned down to rest his forehead against Srunae's, closing his eyes against the whirling thoughts that plagued him. Fath touched his mind with some concern, though the Bronze was entirely confused as to what was making His feel this way. He mentally waved his dragon away, urging him to enjoy his time with Danovelith and not to worry, which Fath obeyed readily enough. Everything was just... far too complicated for him to ever explain to his dragon.

All this wondering was getting him no where fast, leaving him running in circles in his mind, unable to choose any course of action at all. As fun as their banter was, he needed straight answers to move forward. He lifted his head and looked down at her, searching her pretty green eyes for the truth, “Srunae. You're driving me mad.” The corners of his lips tugged into a slight smile at that, “I want... I need you....” And the need he referred to had two parts to it, for it was far more than just a sexual need, though that was certainly enough strong on its own. He just wasn't quite sure how to put it to words properly just yet.

He brushed his fingers over her cheek, along her jaw, and stopped himself as he dipped down to kiss her again, his lips hovering over hers tentatively, “Tell me... what you want.... Whatever it is, I'll give it to you. I don't care... I don't care what anyone else thinks or says... they're always going to think and say whatever they want.” He would sooner hop Between and stay there than let what others thought control his personal life anymore. When it came to him and Srunae... the only one whose thoughts mattered to him were Srunae's. If she wanted him to back off, to wait, then he would. And if she didn't, well... he was far more eager to hear that answer than he probably should have been.

[Rhush]

Srunae :: Gold Danovelith

Danovelith chuckled brightly and happily accepted Fath’s nuzzling. Of course, it’s no trouble. She did like to get her beauty sleep, but… if it made Fath this happy, she could suffer an early morning for his sake. With that, the gold dragoness curled herself back up around her bronze pillow and settled in. It seemed Srunae and A’zael might be occupied with each other for a bit longer, so she might as well be comfortable, shouldn’t she?

"I thought so," Srunae chuckled, leaning her chin against A’zael’s chest. He seemed to be content to look at her for the time being, tentatively dispelling her initial worries that she might be making it worse for the poor man by being so close. Though… something did seem to be bothering him. Her smile faded as she watched his face slowly lose its amused expression, instead adopting something caught between deliberation and anxiety. The goldweyrling blinked a couple of times, a streak of worry passing over her features as he leaned his forehead against hers and closed his eyes. Was… was he okay? What… was he thinking about something? There had to be something that was making him so solemn all of a sudden? "A’zael—?" She questioned, watching the man deal with what seemed to be an inner turmoil of some sorts, from his shift in body language to his facial expression to… to… even his tone, as he opened his eyes and pulled back to speak, had taken on a different tack; all that seemed to remain of his typical flirty tendencies was a smirk tugging at the edges of his intense facade.

Srunae couldn’t help but return the slight smirk initially at A’zael’s admission – she was triumphant (albeit in a haphazard half-aware half-not-aware way) in teasing the shards out of him; that was a success in her book… but that quick flash of confidence faded almost as soon as it had come. She was suddenly very aware of the next thump of her heart as he continued to speak. I need you. Her eyes widened a little, heralding a rush of feelings coursing through her; longing, insecurity, hope, and… and a strange sense of… what was that? There was a soft touch of something deep, tender, warm… something… else… Srunae couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but it was all wrapped around the other feelings… The other feelings? Her feelings. Were they her feelings? They weren’t Danovelith’s, for the gold was completely calm and comfortable, curled up with her living pillow. So…

The goldweyrling blinked slowly, green gaze all but glued to the bronzer’s blue-grey one as she searched their depths for some explanation… that feeling had to have been something she saw in his actions, right? But… all she could see was how he was being serious… so very, very serious, in fact, that Srunae was a bit disconcerted. She couldn’t remember the last time he’d been this somber with her, even back when they were little more than acquaintances. The beastcrafter’s eyes closed as A’zael brushed his fingers across her cheek and down to her jaw, opening again as he stopped. Had it just been a gut feeling…? Oh, but he was so close now, his eyes locked onto hers, a storm of thought and feeling darkening their natural laughter. She was keenly aware of her every heartbeat, her every thought and feeling conflicting with each other…

Thump thump. His breath was warm on her face, and as he spoke again, his words came alive with notes of emotion.

Tell me… what you want... Insecurity… desire.
Whatever it is, I’ll give it to you… Curiosity, compassion… hope.
I don’t care… what they think… Determination… animosity.

Thump thump. A sense of focus, of admiration and small, intense threads of yearning.

Thump thump. 

"A’zael…" Srunae said, her voice very soft, “I…” The color abruptly drained from the weyrling's face. “I… need…” Danovelith’s golden head suddenly shot up from Fath’s back. Srunae's eyes darkened and closed.

Srunae…?! The beastcrafter collapsed into A’zael’s arms, unconscious.

[Zen]

A'zael :: Bronze Fath

His name was all he really heard before the color suddenly drained out of Srunae's face and his concern for her overwhelmed everything else he was feeling. “Srunae?” He wrapped his arms firmly around her a moment before her eyes fluttered closed and her full weight sank against him. Whatever she had been trying to say was lost to him as panic quickened his hearbeat and he held her close, looking around as if he might find help out here in the middle of the forest. Shards and shells what was he supposed to do?

“Srunae!” He lifted her safely into his arms, searching her face for any sign that she would wake up. Maybe it was just a momentary thing. Maybe.... She was breathing, at least, and it seemed normal enough to him, not like some sudden illness had overtaken her. Hopefully. Fath! His call was seeped in panic, and between his rider and his golden companion, Fath was aware that something was very wrong. The Bronze stood, compelled by his rider's need for him, and pushed through branches to reach the secluded hotpool where A'zael awaited him.

Getting out of the pool with Srunae in his arms was an awkward task, but he managed it, careful to make sure Srunae wouldn't come away from it with bruises and scrapes. Why had she just... fainted? She couldn't be sick... he couldn't handle that right now. They needed to get back to the Weyr, to the infirmary. He nearly climbed straight up to Fath's back when the Bronze lowered himself to the ground so he would have easier access to mount, but then he realized they were both wet and half nude, and if Srunae wasn't already sick, she likely would be after a flight in such a condition. Shard it all!

He settled Srunae against Fath, Stay still, I'll be right back. Fath crooned in attempt to comfort his rider, but A'zael was too distracted to notice. He jogged back to where they had originally left their dragons, and most of their clothing, and upon seeing Danovelith wondered just how she was taking this, “It's all right, Danovelith... she'll be fine. We've just gotta get her back home.” He tried to sound confident in that statement, unsure if the dragon would believe him no matter how confident he might sound. He snatched up both of their flight jackets, unconcerned with anything else currently as he jogged back to Fath.

He did his best to wrap Srunae up in the jackets and somehow managed to get them both up on Fath's back, making sure Srunae was secured by his riding straps and pressing close behind her, trying to make sure she kept warm. Why did something always have to go wrong? Let's go, Fath. Back to the Weyr... but be careful, I don't want to jostle her around too much....

Okay, A'zaelmine.... It wasn't normal for his rider to feel this way. It was immensely worrying to the Bronze. And Danovelith seemed worried as well. This wasn't good at all. He made his way out of the trees, glancing back at the Gold and sending her a wave of reassurance, Don't worry. Mine will take care of Yours. Even though he didn't entirely understand what was going on, he knew something was wrong with Danovelith's rider, but he had the utmost confidence in his rider's ability to keep her safe. With that he spreading his wings, and in a few beats they were airborne and heading home.

Don't fly too high, Fath, it'll be too cold, A'zael warned him, already the wind was chilling his own wet skin, but at least he'd been able to give Srunae a bit more cover. Straight to the infirmary, he ordered, giving Fath the mental picture of the infirmary cave's entrance. It didn't even occur to him how this might look, showing up with either of them barely clothed like this. He was far too concerned with making sure Srunae was going to be all right to care about such trivial matters.

Luckily it wasn't a long flight back, and Fath was soon landing outside the infirmary, lowering himself to the ground while A'zael worked to unfasten Srunae from his riding straps. A Healer stepped out to meet them as he carefully made his way back to the ground with Srunae in his arms, still wearing nothing but his rolled up trousers. The woman looked briefly aghast, but her training seemed to take over a moment later as she waved him after her and turned back inside, “Come, quickly, lay her here so we can have a look. What happened? Is she bleeding?”

He laid Srunae down on the indicated cot and shook his head, “No, no... I don't know. She just fainted, I think.... We were out in the forest, she found a hotpool out there. We weren't... we were just talking and all of a sudden she....” He waved at her still, unconscious form.

The woman listened as she moved toward a nearby shelf, reaching up for a blanket and unfolding it as she moved back to A'zael, throwing it around his shoulders, “Cover yourself before you freeze and catch sick.” She then bent over Srunae, “She did not hit her head on anything did she?”

“No... I don't think so,” he thought briefly of when he dropped her into the hotpool. Had she hit her head then? Shards and shells.... He rubbed his hand over his face, pulling the blanket around himself with his other hand as chills started to set in, feeling returning to his body now that he had gotten Srunae to safety. “She's not sick, is she?”

The healer woman threw him a look, “I'm not sure yet. We'll certainly keep her under observation for a few days to find out.” She called two apprentices on duty over and issued them a few orders before turning her attention back to A'zael, “And you, Weyrleader? Are you ailing as well?”

“Huh? Me? No... I'm fine, just... just take care of her,” his gaze trained on Srunae worriedly.

“Hm. If that's the case, then I suggest you return to your weyr, and perhaps... clothe yourself, before you are ailing from a chill,” she replied dryly.

A'zael stared at her for a moment, and then he remembered his state of undress. Oh. He glanced back at Srunae, not wanting to just... leave her. But, he was beginning to get the impression that the healer woman didn't particularly want him there any longer. He would probably just be in the way, but.... With a sigh, he agreed, reluctantly, “Right.... I'd like to know right away if you find anything.”

“As you wish,” she agreed tersely, turning back to Srunae. Normally she wouldn't divulge a patient's medical information without their consent, but... Srunae was a goldrider, and her health affected her dragon, and that could affect the entire Weyr.

Slowly, A'zael backed away, keeping Srunae in his sight for as long as he could, and finally turned around, casting a quick look back, as if afraid he was about to miss her waking up. He made his way back to Fath and returned to their weyr with him in worried silence.

A'zaelmine?

He looked up at the Bronze as he slid down from his back, feeling Fath's concern for him. He managed a soft smile and patted his dragon's leg reassuringly, “It'll... it'll be all right.” Fath lowered his head and A'zael pressed his forehead to his dragon's nose, closing his eyes. Srunae will be fine. It wasn't his dragon he was trying to convince.