Pushing Buttons [Srunae]

[Zen]

A few hours after Pets or Pests?

Captain Treyjen, Weyrleader A'zael :: Bronze Fath

Making his way up to the Weyr with his new pet in hand, Treyjen headed straight for the Weyrleader's weyr. He had initially wondered about perhaps sending someone up, having them find Srunae for him and either bring her to him or have them set up a better time for them to meet and discuss the new creatures if she hadn't been readily available, but then he'd thought... this would be much more fun. So after returning his daughter to her mother, he'd collected the little gold and headed over to the Weyr side of the caves.

Reaching the Weyrleader's door, he raised his free hand to knock. The gold had twined her tail around his fingers and was rather refusing to move from the spot, but it was just as well she stayed there where he could keep an eye on her. A'zael opened the door and Treyjen didn't miss the displeased look that flickered, briefly, over his face. He hadn't seen the man since his visit to request gemglider eggs from him, and all the teasing he'd done over Srunae, and was actually a tad surprised to find he might still be dwelling on it. She really must mean something to the Weyrleader after all, hm?

A'zael put on as polite an expression as he could muster, considering the fact that he'd rather just close the door in the other man's face, “How can I help you, Treyjen?” The pirate raised his entangled hand to show him the gold and A'zael took a step back as his pet turned angry red eyes toward him, rustling her wings threateningly, “Shells, Treyjen, you kept one of those things?”

Treyjen was rather surprised by the reaction and looked down at the gold, “Cut it out, you. I still haven't decided if you're more trouble than you're worth, you know.” The creature hissed at A'zael and curled up in his hand, red gaze trained on the Weyrleader. Turning back to A'zael, he explained, “Of course I kept one. I figured I might be able to profit from it in the future, if it turned out to be something interesting. I'd say this is interesting.”

A'zael snorted lightly, “They spit acid you know. Have fun with that.”

“Acid?” Treyjen glanced down at the thing warily, but A'zael didn't particularly feel like informing him that it wasn't anything lethal, “Ah... well, that brings me to why I'm here. I'm rather at a loss about what this thing is and if I should be keeping it, how to care for it. But I'm sure Srunae would be able to tell me all I need to know.” He didn't miss the falter in A'zael's facade at the mention of her name.

Gaze narrowed in the slightest, he agreed flatly, “I'm sure she would.”

He was so uncomfortable it was almost palpable. Treyjen did his best not to laugh, “Indeed, but I'm afraid I don't know the way to her quarters, so I figured you would be able to point me in the right direction?”

“I'll call her for you,” he replied immediately. It would be a warm day Between when A'zael told Treyjen where Srunae's private weyr was. No, she could meet him back here, in his weyr. Fath, ask Srunae if she can come to my weyr.... And, bitterly, Tell her Treyjen is looking for her. He returned his attention to Treyjen, still standing outside his door, “I'm not sure if she's busy or not. Fath's asking for me.” He didn't plan to invite the man in just so he could make more insinuations about Srunae if she had no intention of meeting him. He could just come back later if that was the case.

Fath spoke directly to Srunae, A'zaelmine wantsyoutocometohisweyr. He paused at the addition A'zael had told him to give her, Heisunhappy. Treyjenwantsyou.

A'zael threw a look back at his dragon, for as in most of the bronze's interactions, he had been privy to it. Why did you tell her that?

Fath tilted his head, Youtoldmeto A'zaelmine.

He rubbed his hand over his face in exasperation.

Treyjen smirked, rocking back on his heels slightly as he waited. The Weyrleader had yet to invite him inside. This wasn't awkward in the least, not at all.

Rhush

[Rhush]

Srunae :: Gold Danovelith

Srunae was once again lost in her studies, staring down a particularly dense book about the politics of a Weyrwoman's position, with explanation of both Senior and Junior duties, situations, solutions, and tips. After a few minutes, the soon-to-graduate goldweyrling let her forehead fall onto the open tome, closing her eyes and sighing exasperatedly. Was it really worth it to have a position of power if she would never have a moment to address the problems she wanted to address? All this bureaucratic song and dance to avoid the issue would leave no time for the issue, and Srunae hated that concept. Why not just get it out and done within the first few minutes? No muss over the shape of the table they were using, the knife that cut their varying fruit choices for snacks, the color of the room being too much of one hostile color or another... and the issue would actually be resolved in a timely manner instead of stalled out until it was no longer relevant. And of course, as the eldest of the goldweyrlings and the most understanding of the two in person and in dragon, chances were far higher that she would be dealing with more of this than Melana would, until the younger woman had some time to grow into herself. And yet, if this was the bull she would be dealing with each time Karredy's health dipped, Srunae worried she might pull her hair out before she finally got to leave whatever company in question.

Danovelith crooned in the back of her mind, and the beastcrafter sighed reluctantly. I would never trade you for anything, darling, even all the headache and heartache these sorts of things will levy on me. The queen shook her head, turning whirling blue and green gaze upon her bonded. I know darling, but I don't think you should suffer because of the rank I give you. Srunae chuckled darkly and raised her head up off the book, shaking her head in turn. It'll be worth it. Eventually I'll be able to get around this boring stuff and get what I wanted to get done, done. It's just a matter of patience. Srunae let her forehead rest against the book again, as if by laying on it the hidebound tome would impart its knowledge into her head. She kicked a foot around at the foot of the bed, and finally drew herself together to sit up, sliding to the edge of the bed and letting her feet dangle off it. I'll make it - we'll make it. You saw it in me to be able to do this, and I trust your judgement. The two of them shared a moment of silence, waves of encouragement and understanding flitting across their bond as if water flowing between two placid pools of emotion. At last, Srunae chuckled and put her feet into her most comfortable leather boots just as Fath's fast-paced mindvoice entered her thoughts.

It was a weird transition, going from her and Danovelith's shared mind to an open wavelength with another dragon that was not her own. Even though it was only Fath, it still took Srunae a moment to recollect herself after his intrusion, and she looked over to Danovelith with some modicum of concern. A'zael wanted her to come to his weyr... to meet Treyjen? But A'zael was unhappy about it? An eyebrow rose above green-hazel gaze, but Srunae complied, pulling on a more decent outfit of a loose, white cloth shirt, warm brown pants, and her most worn in pair of flight boots. Danovelith responded to the bronze for her bonded, a mild sense of confusion in her tone. Srunae will be there momentarily Fath. As the weyrling topped her head of long brown hair with her flight goggles, Zax leapt onto her shoulder, careful not to claw the thin skin at her neck as he settled into his usual position. Caught off guard, it took Srunae a moment to decide if she wanted to bring the bronze with her or not - on the one hand, he needed to be socialized with her friends so he wouldn't be so possessive of her, but at the same time, he was possessive of her, and that could cause problems. Frowning, but feeling a possibly unwarranted sense of urgency, she didn't force the bronze to stay behind, instead tying her hair up into a loose, twisty bun so that he couldn't hide behind the curtain of dark locks.

That accomplished, she jogged past Melana and Sularenth and then headed down the corridors to the Weyrleader's weyr. It wasn't a short walk, but it wasn't a long one either, and she arrived a few minutes after Danovelith's response, surprised to see the two men simply standing in A'zael's doorway as if they had both lost their sense of decorum - not to mention the tension between them was thick enough to cut with a knife. Srunae's frown deepened, and Zax flared his wings in a show of dominance before the two human-males before he settled back down, his wings folding neatly at his sides. If they dared to make his Pet upset, they would have to answer to him! Srunae cocked her head to one side, her laughter-filled eyes full of half-amused, half concerned questions. "Ah, I'm not interrupting some sort of macho contest, am I gentlemen?" A dark grin spread across her face as she attempted to diffuse the situation with humor. Sure, she had been asked to come there, but that didn't mean that in the time between her invitation and her arrival something hadn't turned into some sort of pissing contest.

[Zen]

Captain Treyjen, Weyrleader A'zael :: Bronze Fath

A'zael waited, keeping his gaze fixed back toward Fath so he wouldn't have to look at Treyjen's smirking face, hoping that Srunae would be too busy to come. A moment later, however: She'scoming, Mine. Shard it all. He wondered if she planned to come on her dragon or if she would just walk. Their weyrs were relatively close to each other, it wouldn't take her long to use the halls. Fath's response hadn't been quite as excited as he would expect were Danovelith coming to visit. Probably walking. He glanced back at Treyjen, leaning against the frame of the door, “She's on her way.”

“Wonderful. I do appreciate your help, A'zael,” Treyjen replied, all friendly, and pretending as though the Weyrleader wasn't intentionally being rude. A moment later Srunae approached, asking if she was interrupting something, and Treyjen looked over at her, a carefully constructed look of confusion passing over his face, “Contest? I'm not sure what you mean, love.”

A'zael's gaze narrowed further at him, but he finally deigned to invite him in before he tried to get Srunae to take him back to her weyr, “Well, now that you're both here, come in. Srunae enjoys stealing my office to teach people about random creatures.” He pushed the door open fully for them both.

Treyjen raised his hand to show the young woman the gold twined about his fingers and she mantled her wings threateningly, “I rather have need of your expertise once more. The Weyrleader mentioned that they, ah... spit acid?” He held out his free hand, inviting Srunae through the door first and followed her inside. This would be preferable to going to her weyr, actually... A'zael would have wondered what they were doing, sure, imagined all sorts of things without ever knowing, but this would be more fun. He'd be here to see it.

A'zael closed the door behind them and debated his next course of action, not wanting to leave them alone but also not wanting to just hover over them and.... Shells, could Srunae feel this? Stop it, stop it, stop it. He didn't even know what this was but certainly didn't want Srunae feeling it. Shards, what should he do? Keep his distance? Just what was her range on feeling these things, anyway? Ugh. It would be fine. It wasn't as though they'd start... as if they would... do anything, in his office... with him in the other room. Right.... Though that wouldn't stop Treyjen from flirting with her. He shook his head. Why did he care so much? What did it matter if the man flirted with her? And yet every time he thought about it, he felt a flare of annoyance, or anger, or something. What was wrong with him?

Ignoring A'zael for the time being, Treyjen turned to the matter at hand, eyeing the little gold in his palm. He hadn't missed the bronze on Srunae's shoulder either, he'd made himself known, after all. If she had one then they couldn't be that dangerous. “So... just what do I need to know about these things? What are they? Are they supposed to cling to you like this? What sort of care do they need?” The answers to these questions would determine whether or not he actually kept his new pet, but surely her future eggs would be worth any sort of effort in maintaining her? And that was another thing. Breeding her. He had considered keeping two eggs, hoping that he would get a male and female out of them, should they hatch out something worthwhile, but in the end he could have ended up with two of the same sex, lost out on some extra marks, and been in the same boat. But he'd bring up the question of breeding after his initial questions had answers.

[Rhush]

Srunae :: Gold Danovelith

Srunae raised an eyebrow at the Captain and rolled her eyes, the dark grin still in place on her lips. Treyjen knew exactly what she was talking about; it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that out (not to mention that she could feel the intense amusement rolling off of him without even trying) but the goldweyrling decided against directly calling him out on the matter, instead sticking with the more typical approach. ”Of course you don’t, Treyjen.” Sarcasm settled all too naturally into her tone as Srunae chuckled and shifted her attention back to A’zael. The Weyrleader was indeed less than pleased with the whole scenario – it was obvious in his eyes – but he eventually invited them inside to make use of his office for their purposes, giving Srunae the clue she needed to figure out why she was here in the first place.

”You never seem to mind,” She retorted warmly at A’zael’s jab, throwing the bronzer an amused smile, ”Or at least, you’ve never told me otherwise.” He had even attended a class or two about gemgliders, though she wasn’t sure if it was because he had wanted to learn more about Frisk or if it was simply because he lived in the next room over…

But this wasn’t about gemgliders – this was about Seaspitters, and someone who didn’t know anything about them but was bonded to one. Naturally, when the rest of the mystery eggs hatched, Treyjen’s single egg would have too – if it wasn’t a dud – and having been excluded from the impromptu class that was the hatching of the other eggs… he probably had no idea what his new pet was called, let alone what to do with them. As Treyjen raised his creature-twined hand and confirmed her thoughts, Srunae couldn’t help but chuckle. As lovely as the little queen was, her overall threatening posture kept Srunae from attempting to pet her. ”Oooh, she’s lovely Treyjen! I did figure you had ended up with the queen, if there was one.” Zax was a bit taken by the lovely gold, and watched her with whirling green and blue gaze, his protective nature momentarily ignored in favor of the pretty lady before him. A soft croon emanated from the bronze, and Srunae grinned before elaborating on Treyjen’s first question.

”And yes, they do spit acid – it’s a defensive behavior they use in the wild to ward off predators and such.” A moment of curiosity bloomed in the beastcrafter’s mind – would the Captain be as worried about the acid as the Weyrleader was? She slipped in the doorway as Treyjen invited her to go first, unsettling her bronze Seaspitter a moment as she skirted the wall and headed for the office. “The acid translates to a mild irritant for humans; prolonged skin contact will result in an unpleasant rash, but contact with the eyes can cause blindness if it’s not quickly treated.” The weyrling sounded matter of fact, but her voice illustrated excitement instead of concern or even caution as she spoke; there was no denying her fascination with the Seaspitter’s namesake, but she might seem a bit crazy to her company. ”I’ve been told it’s kind of like a mild agenothree.”

She heard the door close behind them and absently wondered if A’zael would be sitting in on this impromptu lesson. He had seemed to have an aversion to Seaspitters since she mentioned their ability to spit acid, non-lethal or not, but even before that tidbit the bronzer had seemed against them… perhaps because he didn’t want to bond to one? He hadn’t seemed terribly intent on another pet-- a sudden flash of panic blossomed on her emotional radar, and the empath paused briefly at the table’s end before catching herself and continuing along the length of the table to allow the two men to come in behind her. Srunae wasn’t in a position to simply stop and figure out which of the two of them had broadcasted that particular feeling – and either one of them could have, between Treyjen’s new acid-based knowledge and A’zael’s… err… behavior? Something about her favorite bronzer seemed off today, though she couldn’t quite place what…

Her train of thought was cut off as Treyjen continued into a new set of questions, and Srunae settled into a chair with a laugh, pushing her less pleasant thoughts off to the side for the time being. The empath loved animals, and if anything was going to help her stay above water in this less than comfortable atmosphere, it would be that adoration. ”You need to know quite a bit. We’ll just cover them as a whole; it’s easier, and I can give you specifics as I go. So, to begin, these guys are called Seaspitters,” She swept Zax off of her shoulder and set him on the table in front of her, eliciting a squeak of protest from the young bronze and sending his eyes aglow with yellows, oranges and a string of red as he eyeballed Treyjen and A’zael.

”They are an aquatic species that’s pretty close to firelizards.” She lifted one of Zax’s flippers between her fingers, and the young bronze once again protested, turning to glare at his Pet and chattering as if it would force her to stop before she was done using him as an example. The woman pressed her will against his for a moment and he ceased his complaining for the moment, but he still stared daggers at her.

”Best case scenario they stay in water all day, but for our purposes, you can keep them out of the water for extended time periods as long as you oil them really well and let them lounge in some water off and on.” Here she ran one hand down Zax’s back, illuminating the excess oil on his hide before scratching his eyeridges with a wave of approval – he crooned appreciatively and finally went back to watching the human-males and the pretty gold, satisfied that his Pet wasn’t going to be handling him roughly without some reward. Srunae paused for a moment, making sure Treyjen was still paying attention, and then continued.

”They can between like firelizards can, both in and out of water, and they are capable of flying, but not for extended periods of time. Gliding seems to be easier for them at this age.” She was basing that on her lacking personal experience with Zax – she hadn’t seen him truly fly yet in the short span since his hatching, but she had seen him glide off short distances of things a couple times since she took him to her Weyr. ”Naturally, they are fantastic swimmers; it is said they ‘fly’ underwater.” She imagined that Treyjen’s gold could potentially keep up with his ship in a shallow breeze; there was no information available on whether or not that was true, but Srunae would be surprised if a Seaspitter was quickly left behind when the wind was low. She scratched under Zax’s chin, and the bronze poked about her hand with his tail before twining it around her other fingers.

”They eat primarily fish, but will eat other meats if offered them.” Zax yawned here, and Srunae added an on the spot observation to that description. “Judging by their teeth, it’s safe to say they don’t eat anything other than meat.” She’d have to add that into her notes – there wasn’t much information on their teeth in her old book. She paused as she recalled something she had learned only a half candlemark before they called her here, after Zoom had returned from his errand for her.

”And yes, they are supposed to cling to you like that. As it turns out, Seaspitters can’t spit acid until after their first month. Because of that, they depend on their ‘pods’ - the equivalent of a firelizard faire - for the first month of their life for protection.” She poked Zax gently in the side, and the greenish-striped bronze swatted at her with his left front flipper, barely holding himself steady on his other flippers and bobbing his head around. ”That and common sense says it’s a lot easier for them to hold onto you than to try and walk or fly after you.” She smiled and glanced over at Treyjen, chuckling, before needling him a bit. ”Too much at once? Should I write some notes out for you?”

[Zen]

Captain Treyjen, Weyrleader A'zael

Srunae thought she was lovely? Treyjen wasn't sure about her yet, though he supposed she was a pretty thing if nothing else. The soft croon drew the gold's attention and she stared curiously at the bronze. When she had hatched she had been alone. This one the first of her kind she had ever seen. She forgot about threatening these other big things in favor of trilling curiously back at the male, preening under his attention. She was momentarily offended as the bronze's bonded started moving away, but Hers followed so she calmed down quickly.

Treyjen eyed the creature on his hand as Srunae confirmed their acid spitting ability, and lessened his concern by explaining it was only a mild irritant unless it got in the eyes. Hm. He'd never considered the possibilities of a pet that had defensive skills before, and for the life of him he wasn't entirely sure why. Possibly because the idea of having to take care of some creature didn't entirely appeal to him, there were plenty of other things he'd rather be doing, but....

He shook his head, following Srunae along the table in the Weyrleader's office as she started by finally giving him a name for his new pet. Seaspitter. Well, no reason to ask about the origins of the name, he had obviously already gotten the answer. Srunae confirmed they were an aquatic species, not that it was particularly necessary. Anything with flippers was unlikely to be land based. The woman placed her bronze on the table for observation, to his protest. His gold wriggled in his hand, trying to get closer to the male, and Treyjen lowered his hand to the table before she fell and let her go. She'd been wrapped around his hand for candlemarks, but at least it had made it easy to keep track of her. She trilled and spread her wings, making a show of herself.

A'zael settled in the office doorway, leaning against the frame and watching the two for a moment. Treyjen was quite focused on what Srunae was saying. It seemed he did actually want to learn about the creatures. He eyed the man moodily, hoping he paid attention and got this over with quickly so he could leave.

Treyjen gave a nod of affirmation as Srunae looked over at him to make sure he was paying attention. Water to lounge in and plenty of oiling. That didn't seem too difficult a requirement. He'd have to find something she could lounge in, he supposed, but that wouldn't be too difficult. They 'fly' in water hm? He'd have to test that when she got older, let her have a go in the sea, see how she fared. He wondered about that for a moment, but Srunae had said they could between as well. Coupled with her acid spitting defense, surely she would be safe enough? At least, as soon as she was big enough not to make an easy snack for something. He mentally filed away all the information Srunae was giving him. After all, if he was going to sell her eggs eventually, his prospective buyers would need to know how to care for their new pets. It didn't seem a terribly difficult task to care for one, once you knew how at least.

His thoughts rounded back to the acid spitting. She said it was something like agenothree? Could it be used the same way against Thread? That could be a selling point, especially in the smaller cotholds he tended to visit where agenothree sprayers were hard to come by. He stared thoughtfully at his little gold. What a fortunate find. Srunae teasingly asked him if she was giving him too much, if she should write down for him. Well, that wouldn't be a terrible idea. He could have the information copied to hand out with the eggs to future owners, “Actually, if you could spare the time, I'd appreciate a detailed 'how to' about caring for these things... Seaspitters. It will make it easier when this little lady has eggs of her own going to new homes. After all, I may not have you to teach another class about them, hard to say where I might be when her eggs are ready to hatch.” He cast a quick glance at A'zael where he was standing in the doorway before returning his attention back to Srunae with a slight smirk, referencing their first meeting, “Unless you want to make good on that story about running off with me.”

A'zael stiffened in the doorway. Wait, what? He closed his eyes briefly, trying to keep control of his emotions and failing rather miserably. He should leave... should go see Fath or something... maybe... play gitar. Yeah. But he couldn't make himself move from the spot either, so he settled a glare on Treyjen, jaw clenched, and hoped Srunae wasn't getting too much of this... whatever it was. Just what was Treyjen playing at exactly? It wasn't as though Srunae would ever actually leave, certainly not to join a bunch of pirates.... Did she even know? Not that it mattered. It wouldn't happen either way. She had Danovelith, and it wasn't like the gold was going anywhere. This was stupid. What was he worried about?

Treyjen made to be studying the two seaspitters, catching a glimpse of the Weyrleader out of the corner of his eye and doing his best not to grin outright. Hm. Srunae had gotten a bronze and he'd gotten the gold. Interesting. He returned to the mark making questions on his mind, “So do you know when she'll start breeding? I'd like to be back at Mavros around then to ensure she has possible mates... perhaps your bronze, they seem to like each other.” He wondered if there was a way to ensure the bronze caught her. He assumed the resulting clutch would be affected by the color of the father, as it was with dragons, flits, and whers. If that was the case, it would be best if a bronze was the sire. More eggs, more colors, a possible gold, more marks to be made.

[Rhush]

Srunae :: Gold Danovelith

Zax, at last freed from his Pet's prodding and poking, proceeded to half flap, half wiggle his way over to Treyjen's gold Seaspitter, trilling in much the same way she had trilled at him. He stopped a ways before reaching her, opening his wings in a similar show and crooning curiously, turning his head this way and that so as to better examine the metallic female. He had been the only hatchling like himself, though he hadn't been alone when he hatched; it was strange for him, to see another with a similar sheen to their hide, but not unwelcome. And she, for her benefit, seemed to be quite taken with him as well, making it even more interesting for him.

Srunae laughed brightly at Treyjen's needling, though she didn't miss his glance at A'zael and the quirk of a smile on his lips. Aha, so this was why A'zael was being so strange, was it? Because Treyjen was teasing him about... her? "I wouldn't mind writing you up a guide on them," She began, a grin spreading over her lips. "And I can't without a good explanation; we never did settle on the exact reasoning for such a thing, did we?" She chuckled darkly and glanced over at her favorite bronzer for a brief second, reaching a tendril of feeling out to check his emotional temperature. She wasn't expecting much - probably just a bit of annoyance that it was Treyjen teasing him instead of Srunae, but nonetheless some playful humor at it all - the characteristic feelings of her favorite bronzer, really. 

After a moment of feeling out the Weyrleader though, she was surprised at what she was getting. Irritation, discomfort, and even anger? What... It was a strange realization for Srunae, to think that A'zael could be getting so worked up over Treyjen and her interacting as friends did. It wasn't like she and A'zael were... well... an item or something... sadly... but the vague possessive vibe she was getting from A'zael did give her some combination of amusement and... well, hope. She did adore the bronzer, but she hadn't any idea if he felt remotely the same way - this was perhaps the first time she had solid proof... well, not solid, just some form of proof, that he might take more interest in her than just as a flirt-buddy. Why else would he get so worked up over her spending time with an equally flirty guy that wasn't him? Unless he was just a possessive bedmate... She hadn't any idea if that was true or not, nor did the idea of the man being possessive of all the girls he had slept with or would potentially sleep with seem like him. But then, what did this ball of uncomfortable feelings mean about him...? Ah shards, now she was just confusing herself, trying to gauge what feelings could mean what without their context. It was more fun and relaxing to just tease A'zael and chat with Treyjen about animals.

Two of her favorite things to do!

Treyjen's amusement peaked, bringing it up on the weyrling's emotional radar, and Srunae couldn't help but grin as he continued into another set of questions, her green gaze settled on his sea-weathered face. "Oh, your girl won't start breeding until she's a turn old at least, but after that it'll be a regular once every two turns." The goldweyrling chuckled darkly before she continued, catching his gaze with a mischievous smile, "They do seem to like each other... though, are you sure you're not just looking for an excuse to visit with me?" She knew what he was doing - her smile made that quite obvious - and she didn't mind helping. Depending on the results, she could keep this in mind as a means of riling up A'zael at a later date. It could be an interesting experiment, particularly if the angry A'zael took out his frustrations in a more... fun way. She'd never tried that before, though she would bet marks that A'zael had at least once in his life... if it didn't work out that way though, the beastcrafter would make sure she never did it again.

Zen