Difference between revisions of "Logs:Golden Confidant"

Northern Bowl, Fort Weyr

This section of the bowl is just as devoid of plantlife as the central portion, the sandy soil having been packed more solidly due to the sheer amount of foot traffic passing through. While there are weyrs located to both the east and west, there are very few toward the north.

Toward the northwest would be the ledges for the junior goldriders, while a second flight of stairs leads up to the Weyrleaders' complex. A little to the northeast is the entrance to the hatching cavern, while an entrance to the living cavern is located directly to the east. At the opposite and distant southeastern end of the bowl would be the lake and feeding grounds, with the weyrling barracks and infirmary to the southwest and southeast, respectively.

It's been a long day so far of sweeping and raking and shoveling snow, and Elise is just done with it. Except she isn't done, she still has a path to clear, and so she does that. The scrape of her shovel against the hard-packed floor of the bowl is repetitive and steady, this is technically backbreaking work but she doesn't show it unless you count that wrinkle between her eyebrows. She does at one point stop to stretch herself out of her hunch, wincing, and it's here she takes a moment to scan the bowl, wipe her forehead, push hair out of her eyes. And then back to it.

On high, Hraedhyth follows the same spiral path that she created in an effort to guard Fort Weyr as a whole. It's only on the very edges of the territory that the Reachian queen decides all is clear, and makes her way back. Rather than risk upsetting Elaruth within the hatching caverns, the tawny gold begins her descent into the bowl. It's much slower-- no, it's more gentle than her usual landings, the unfamiliar method slowing her down even more. Even from on high, those dark wings have enough power to stir up the air and snow closer to the bowl floor.

It's the snow, really, more than the air, that Elise doesn't want stirred up. And yet, Hraedhyth's landing goes unnoticed as of yet. She must be far enough away that her immediate environment isn't effected, after all there's a lot of bowl even if she's a queen. It isn't the landing that inevitably clues Elise into the fact that a dragon is there with her, which should come of no surprise except it's snowing; it's when she straightens up again for another stretch and turns to trod over to another section of snow-laden ground that she sees the gold dragon there and freezes, gasping. It all happens so fast.

Each backwing is a strain, a mantra: Must. Not. Upset. Matriarch. Hraedhyth takes her time to flex those dusky sails, stretching her wings just as Elise straightens similarly. Once finished, the gold tucks her wings and rearranges them comfortably, whirling eyes settling on the frozen girlthing. Wait. Frozen candidate. That makes Elise all the more interesting, and the very reason Hraedhyth sets to lumbering toward the young woman.

Maybe it's the fact that in that instant of surprise, Elise regressed back into being a scared little Holder girl. Ack, dragon! Or maybe it's just being scared in general doesn't agree with her. Whatever the reason, she narrows her eyes and plants her shovel, not in the ground because it's frozen solid but certainly on it. "You scared me," she tells the foreign queen, in a clear, strong voice that might be a little forced because oh no is she coming closer? And closer? The girl's eyes widen and she begins to go backwards, but her strides are too haphazard and they end up betraying her, she drops the shovel, it doesn't make any noise. Down she goes onto her rear in a pile of snow with a small 'oof'.

Elise's fall has Hraedhyth quickening her steps, eyes whorling faster as she lowers her head, several oversized jaws visible despite her closed muzzle. It doesn't stay that way, maw parting to let loose a low snarl that ends on a higher note than it began. SNAP. Her jaws close, the force of which wafting the scent of musky carrion. Ugh, dragon breath. The candidate will get another helping as the gold tilts her muzzle up, nostrils flaring as she rapidly scents the air around the fallen woman.

There's no time to scramble to her feet, no time to do anything but sit there in the snow, frozen in more ways than one, while Hraedhyth comes closer still. She doesn't cower or shy away when the gold puts her face so close to her face, rather she stares with those big eyes, unable to look away at all, even if she's scared. And she is. She's trembling; it might just be the cold, but given givens... The snap results in a full-body twitch, her eyes closing fast then opening again. "I--" And then she's sniffing. And since the queen is preoccupied so, Elise takes a moment to observe her, to look at her. There are only two gold dragons at Fort to be this close to, this is entirely new. "You're different from Elaruth," she comments slowly, after a pause, which might be the biggest understatement of all time.

Hraedhyth is busy taking in Elise's scent, the smell of the snow she's frozen to, and even that shovel. Eventually the gold is satisfied, giving one last huff of warm air over the candidate. Mention of Elaruth has the warrior queen pulling back, haunches lowering to the ground as she simply sits and stares. The whorling has slowed to a comfortable bright blue, hue doing little to soften the intensity carried in those close-set eyes. Seems as though the foreign queen is content to stare for as long as Elise plans on sitting there.

Sadly, Elise's pants are durable but not exactly water resistant, and that snow makes for cold dampness. After Hraedhyth has had her fill of smells the candidate begins to pick herself up from her little pile, shaky at first until she gains her balance, and her shovel. After a long moment of the two of them staring at each other, the human half forming a thoughtful pout with her lips, she says, "Beautiful though. Obviously. Just in a... dangerous. Sort of way." She pats herself down with one hand, snow tumbling from her in different places, mostly her rear end. Narrows her eyes, tilts her head up. And says, "I've seen you before I think. Just not quite this close. You probably don't remember." The smile that curves her mouth is slow and accompanied by, "If anyone could see this they'd think I was mad, talking to you like I know you."

For what it's worth, it doesn't look as though Hraedhyth is planning on making any sudden moves. She does end up cocking her head as Elise continues to address her, the occasional rustle of her wings a hint at her being restless. That, and her thumping tail tip. The candidate is given another chuff, stocky neck turning so she can aim a look over at the galleries. A few tail twitches later, and her attention turns back onto Elise, pale head lowering so that she can get a closer look-- but not nearly as close as when the dragon was sniffing her.

There's nothing she can do or say that will make any sense, so Elise just stands there, bringing the shovel around in front so she can lean into it and tilt her own head at the dragon's tilted head. They must look quite the sight. It's like she's taking Hraedhyth's cues, too, for when the queen looks towards the galleries so does Elise, though she takes another moment to study the dragon while she's not looking. When that closer look is given she lifts her eyebrows and does the only thing she can think to do, the only thing she's done before but with a different gold dragon: she reaches her hand out, palm out. Maybe it's an invitation for a pet, maybe it's just a show of good will, she doesn't seem to know why she's doing it herself. "Do you get to see the eggs? I know it's complicated for you queens. They're quite lovely. You should be here when they hatch. I'll be out there. Hopefully not dying."

The offered hand gets stared at for a few moments before Hraedhyth is moving to give the palm a push with her snout. Her nostrils flare once more, inhaling what she can of Elise while nudging that hand a few more times. The big beast is attentive, which should lend to the assumption that she's listening, but with such restricted features it's hard to say. The only real indication are those blue facets, bright focus still aimed at Elise.

That first push almost pushes Elise's hand right out of the picture but she compensates and nudges back at that gold snout. The next few pushes eventually urge her palm into more of a stroking tool than a nudging tool, though she does so tentatively because this is someone else's dragon and there's a certain amount of decorum needed. Still, she relaxes into it with familiarity, even if it isn't a ton of it. "You can visit any time you want, you know. I'll bet Hattie wouldn't mind at all. Even if you did almost eat me." Quickly, "Just kidding." A long pause happens in silence, Elise's expression turning distant, then, because Hraedhyth is a dragon and they're alone in the bowl, and secrets can eat you up, she confides. "I've been a little lonely here lately. I don't know. I have a friend, N'dalis is his name, and I think I cocked it up with him. And I miss my uncle more than a little. He was just very... dependably disappointed in me and that was something I'd learned to rely on. And I'm worried that I'll come away without a dragon again and then what do I do? What if they make me go back?"

At least the tawny gold is a good listener, or tilts her head in just the right way that it can be assumed of her. The longer Elise strokes, the more Hraedhyth rumbles deep in her throat, a savage sound that only borders on something like a croon from other dragons. Her muscles begin to relax beneath that mottled hide, sliding along the ground and mindful of where the young woman is standing. She rests on her stomach, content to claim this patch of the bowl for herself while Elise speaks. When the candidate asks that last question, her ominous growl lifts in a faint lilt before dropping back to its usual octave.

Elise's mouth quirks. "I wish I knew what you were thinking." Pause. "Or maybe I don't. Maybe you're thinking I'm silly." Pause. "I am silly." Since Hraedhyth is settling down she steps a little closer, not being so presumptuous as to trace any intimate lines on the gold's hide or anything like that, no, those strokes are even and neutral-placed. "I've always only been a silly little girl. I wish I could be... something. Else?" A squinty glance is cast skyward when she realizes she's not only stroking but also brushing off snowflakes from the queen's hide. "Do you get cold?" she asks, without expecting an answer. "Do dragons get cold? Or lonely? I suppose not, when you have someone else in your head. Hard to get lonely." And maybe there's a wistful little note in her voice when she says that. Her other hand lifts to her cheek, where suddenly there's a little wet streak that isn't melted snow. "I don't really belong anywhere. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..." Unleash all of her emotional baggage? In a whisper, "Don't tell anyone?"

Another mostly-croon from the gold is followed by a nudge forward, muzzle pressing into the young woman's chest. It's the closest to a promise that Hraedhyth might give, and even then there isn't much one is able to keep from their lifemate. Not that Elise needs to know that. It could be an attempt to comfort the candidate, or get a better idea of her scent as the queen's breathing picks up again, pressing into those damp clothes.

The nudge is unexpected but Elise recovers quickly, only a second spent widening her eyes. Then she's grinning, laughing quietly into the cold air, her breath coming out in little puffs of cloud. "Thank you," she whispers, and is bold as to lean in and kiss Hraedhyth right there, on her snout, whether she likes it or not. It's a quick peck, then she pulls back and brushes some more light snow from the queen's face. "I should probably go in. They'll need me for cleaning out the store rooms before dinner. You might be gone when I'm done so... thank you, again, and have a safe flight home. And come back and visit."

Does Hraedhyth even feel the kiss? Her only reaction is the huff of warm breath that rolls over Elise, and even that much could be a coincidence. When the young woman collects her shovel, the gold pulls her head back and rises to her feet. It's an odd sight, the Reachian queen following Elise back to the cavern's entrance. She's a quiet escort, and there are no sounds of longing when the candidate finally disappears. The dragon's gaze lingers on the cavern for only a moment before she turns and decides to investigate more of the bowl. Some time later, Azaylia will appear and rescue another candidate from her dragon's intense attention so that the two may take to the skies and disappear Between.