Can't Catch Me Now[Quimyenth's Flight]

[Shoki]

75.09.26
Early Afternoon

“Gah!” Mau threw down her work. The mess of fabric half stitched together made a quiet noise as it was flung to the ground, less noisy then the rider’s express of frustration. She was sitting in a chair in her room and had tossed down the needle and thread along with the bag she had been working on. Hammer watched her, crooning to try and make her feel better. She swore that EVERYTHING was going wrong today. She had gotten into a fight with Quimyenth today. That had taken up most of her morning. As a result they were both in a foul mood. Stupid glowing dragon having mood swings. Mau sighed and leaned over to pick the mess up again. At least dragons didn’t have to deal with these things every month or anything. She at least got some solace in that. She started to pull out her stitches and continued to review the horrible day she was having.

She had gotten no decent seats at breakfast at all, having been made late by Qui and her moodiness. And of course that meant the rolls were cold by the time she got them. No one was around and that meant she was stranded all by herself and he mood hadn’t gotten any better. Now it was like she couldn’t even stitch straight even though she could usually manage this in her sleep. Her finger suddenly slipped and the needle got into her finger and she shouted.

“Shardit!” She pulled the needle out and put the finger in her mouth before it could try and bleed all over the place. Hammer came over to occupy her remaining arm and make her feel better. Mau smiled a little around her finger and gave him a little pet, the King crooning at the attention.

Outside Quimyenth was brooding. Or at least she had been. She was napping though. Having bad dreams from the look of it, twitching her tail angrily even in her sleep. The Green’s head kept moving like she couldn’t get comfortable. Still, her eyes remain closed. Until suddenly she was wide away, her eyes whirling. Every bit of the Green’s body was enveloped by strong emotions and the desire to flee. Quimyenth roared, before taking off, pausing only as she almost passed the herdbeasts. She needed to move, she was fleeing so she needed food.

Mau was groaning, suddenly angry. The rider was not just angry, but had both a feeling of nostalgia and of uncertainty. She tried to wrap her head around it as Hammer, quite uncomfortable with what was going on here, took his leave. Nostalgia for leaving, angry because Qui was both angry and fearful, and uncertain because she was pretty sure this was Quimyenth rising but it didn’t’ feel anything like what she had expected. Still, she was slowly being pulled into the Green’s body and realized that the Green was already snacking on meat. Wait, that was wrong, she had to fix that. A mental fight ensued which eventually resulted in one mess of regurgitated meat on the ground. A moment later it had been blooded instead and the Green took off, dashing out over the jungle, just selecting the direction of south and bolting it. In her room Mau suddenly had a sickly sweet smile on her face. She was furious because Qui was. The pair of them together was just angry and dared anyone to try and catch them. No one would be able to manage it, they were going to get away and never come back.

[Kaya]

They would have had to be blind to miss the signs. While Quimyenth had become more irritable, to Korith she was growing increasingly more pleasing to look at. Holt had noticed too, and though he hadn't seen Mau yet that day the once glimpse of her he had seen indicated she was in a foul mood and having a rotten day. With Qui moody or asleep, Korith, even given his increased adoration of her, was not one to test her wrath with a Flight so close. So since Holt was apart from her that day, no messages, sympathetic or otherwise, were sent.

The whole ordeal of it made Holt very nervous. Well, to be honest, Mau in general, with all of her teasing remarks and her eyes and her hair and her ---well, the whole business of it made him nervous. And now, whether he liked it or not, whether Mau liked it or not, they were Riders, and her dragon was-

Flying. Quimyenth is away. And so are we! Korith announced abruptly. The Blue dropped fast into the Bowl. Take this harness off now! Packages can wait! But before the Blue had even asked, Holt knew. He carefully set the packages down, they were near enough to the office someone would find them and take them back (they would understand...right?), and he was running with all speed towards Korith. A few quick flicks, training in its efficiency, the harness was loose and Korith slipped it off. With just enough room to take off without putting a wing or a tail in Holt's face, Korith took to the sky. His Qui was leaving, and should not do so without him.

I know you are unsure. Do not be so. Just let today be. Korith insisted as he shot into the sky, steering south after the shining Green that flew with greater speed and grace in that direction. Korith had hope that if he followed long enough he would find her, and then they would go, to the horizon, past it, into some new land, but they would be together.

So they went, on foot and by wing, south and up, to soothe the ones they cared for.

I will find you, Quimyenth. Look for me!

[Shoki]

Quimyenth was speeding over the jungle. Her eyes were a mix of colors, showing her anger and fear, all swirled together and spinning fast. Mau was properly with her now, which meant that she didn’t feel any reservation about bolting past the lands she knew to those that she didn’t know. She couldn’t stay! The irrational ager pushed her wings forward, but the fear was slightly different. The nightmare that she had been having mere minutes ago was not entirely fresh in her mind but in essence it preyed upon the fear of being trapped and confined. So as Quimyenth moved she would glance around, as though there was a force trying to trap her at this very moment. Then Korith’s mindvoice was heard.

No! It was laughably childish, that just because she didn’t feel good she was going to push herself away. Or at least it would be normally. Flights put things out of perspective. The mixed mind looked around for cover or something. Trees? No, she had to MOVE. Cloud? The Green craned to look, and then bolted toward the closest puffy cloud. Genius, she would be covered and could move forward as well. She dove into the cloud, not really noticing that it was a touch too small to properly conceal her. The Green looked around, judging direction and then bolted to the next puffy cloud. She would escape eventually, nothing was going to stop that.

Though Quimyenth and Mau together had the feeling of fleeing, Mau’s body wasn’t sure what to do about this. However, when the Green went into a cloud, it was decided that Mau should do the same. It didn’t take very long. In no time Mau was sitting on her bed, knees at her chest and pillows in a defensive moat around her. A blanket was over her head and wrapped around her, leaving her face free. There, one cloud to hide in. It all seemed rather childish, the lot of it, but fears and nightmares were hardly the most logical things. Mau’s gaze was primarily combined with Quimyenth’s, but her eyes were on the door as well.

[Kaya]

No? The word shot through the Blue pair, a twitch of nerves along with a pang of rejection. She sounded upset, but, she didn't really mean to reject him, did she? Korith wavered in the sky, his speed trailing. And then from the southern trees a Green blur raced into the clouds. Still at a moderate distance and height Korith kept an eye on her. Maybe she would change her mind. Doubt, they felt it. If they doubted, should Korith even follow? Regret, if they did not, would not they know that feeling instead? So Korith kept after her, if at a conservative pace. He had a good, general idea of where she was now. He wanted to respect her decision, but still he followed her. No? It couldn't be. Should he press the matter? Would that even be proper? Was he even supposed to be asking these questions at this time? ...why 'no', Qui? When she jumped clouds he had to strain to see her. He feared being left behind, and so still fearing her claws and wrath, he sped up just enough to keep her in sight.

On Holt's end, which was fading quickly, he paced down the hall. As if the whole matter weren't bad enough without Korith in a tangle about what to do (it was a Flight, wasn't it? Dragons were just supposed to know how to do that!). He'd...never really talked about this with Mau. It was a Weyr, this sort of thing happened to Riders, but they weren't Weyrborn, and shardit all if he was going to let this ruin anything- The hurting thoughts were thrown out by Korith's mind invading his own. Holt blinked, each opening and closing of his eyes changing scene between Weyr and sky. He felt dizzy, his next step faltered. Finally his vision settled on what was supposed to be in front of him. The Blue Rider took off at a trot down the hall. Korith might be hanging back, and he felt inclined to do the same, but if his eyes failed him he wouldn't be caught blindly flailing about a hallway. He found the door he knew he was looking for, and gingerly opened it. "...Mau?" he heard in his own voice, mostly. There was still some tone of Korith's mixed into it. He saw her walled off on her bed, defensive. So he slouched down onto the floor against the furthest wall, head down, and said, "I'm sorry. ...I wish I'd been here for you today." He picked up the courage to look at her. He wanted to know her mind. He was blind enough in this world as it was, with clouds and blue sky edging into the sides of his vision.

[Shoki]

The mixture of minds felt a pang, a stab of regret when the much more calm voice reached out to her. Korith wasn’t trying to trap her, right? So he would understand, she could tell him why they said no. I can’t look back, it will all catch up with me! Fear was evident in her mindvoice. Qui-Mau was afraid of being caught, or was it caught up in something? Flight was inevitable. She/they were always going to travel away.

Mau’s face ducked when she heard her name. The voice was familiar though, and her eyes remained above her knees and she could see Holt dimly. Holt! She strained to watch him, not slip away. When he spoke again her head rose up like she wanted to say something, but then she buried it in her knees. He shouldn’t be sorry about that! She was the one all confused and fearful. Maybe it was better though, not to say anything. She…they were always going to want to move, run away and not come back. Was it just her nature? As much as she was impulsive, wanting to do what she wanted, making friends, hoping for a relationship, wanting to be the best that she could be, was she just going to drop it all and start over again? It seemed like that was just who she was, she’d never lived anywhere more than two turns. Well, here she was, two turns after impressing Quimyenth.

Quimyenth had to leave! She couldn’t bear it, she couldn’t stay any longer. What could she do there any longer? The same things she did all the time. Had she really tried everything? Swimming, flying, dancing, eating the weird and wacky, spinning, turning, flaming, being in a wing, learning to compose a letter, talking with people, where did she go now? There had to be something else out there, something else to do. She wasn’t just any Green! There were so many Greens, she had to be different! So she had to go, do, be something different.

She darted to another cloud, feeling heavy and weighed down. No! Mau/she/they had been right, meat was weighing them down. For Qui-Mau, anger was replaced by fear. What if they couldn’t get away? What if they stayed in the same place? In her room, Mau looked bewildered first, and then tugged the blanket closer around herself. Her voice was not quite her won, she was speaking for herself and for her Green, which made her normally focused voice go all over the place.

“I’m scared.”

[Kaya]

It would catch up with her? The fear of the sentence left Korith feeling cold, but his loyalty to her cause kept it from freezing him. Then I will flee with you. And when I can no longer flee, I will stay behind and fight for you, the Blue declared with unwavering conviction. Still, Korith hung back. He didn't feel others around him, though he didn't wholly trust that they were alone. He flew on steadily, and if Qui asked him to defend her from the sky as it fell he would do so, even if he were alone. Such was his loyalty.

He watched her climb into the cloud, and though he couldn't see her clearly he followed with faith that he would find her again. It took a moment, and he sped up even though he was wary of offending her if he came too close, but ahead he saw a glimmer of Green and kept on. He had no way of knowing the specifics of the turmoil that tore through the pair like the great storms, but he did see they were being tossed about like a leaf, delicate and still precious to him, in that wind. Maybe, if he were lucky, if the winds allowed him, he could catch that leaf, and rescue her from the storm. But only if she let him. Anything else would crush the leaf.

Mau's words zipped through Holt like Qui's had Korith. He ached for her distress, he wanted to be the one who could relieve them of their burdens, but there wasn't the time for passing smiles and simply reassuringly holding her hand. ...was there? Tentatively, Holt returned to his feet. He felt Korith's hesitation, but if they never approached, could they help?

"L-" the word got stuck in his throat. "...let me help you?" The last word twisted into a question what had been conceived as a statement. Shrugging off a frown at his uncertain words Holt walked to her side, eyes flittering in and out of focus. The rushing sky was crowding out his vision. He blinked and shook his head, trying to fight it off. Still, however he felt, his condition wasn't going to let him remain standing for long. So, out of necessity he sat on the edge of her bed, facing the wall. Throughout the entire process he'd opened and closed his mouth several times, classic Holt fish maneuver, trying to give voice to the scattered thoughts in his head that he thought Mau might need to hear. In the middle of another fish cycle he turned and put a hand on one of hers that were curled around her legs and the blanket. Maybe that was overstepping...but he didn't have too many words on a normal day. And this day, as much as they wanted to deny the rushing clouds and the draconic tints to their voices, was not normal.

[Shoki]

Quimyenth paused, glancing back from the cloud she was in. Really? The Blue was back there, moving forward, following her. He looked like he was keeping an eye out. For her? Even though she felt weighed down and tired, she was struck with a desire to move, to fly! The Green hovered where she was, the emotions she had whirling around in her body, trying to figure out what she was going to do, and gaining a moment to gather energy.

Mau was having a hard time keeping her eyes on the room. She saw bits of cloud on the edges of her vision, and a flash of blue. She blinked hard and looked up at Holt. She was always looking up at him. He spoke again, pushing what words he could manage out. The room was so heavy, so intense it seemed that even words had a hard time fighting their way upward to her ears. He wanted to help.

Help.

The idea bounced between their shared mind, trying to get it through their head. They could help? What did they fear, truly? Quimyenth didn’t want to be just another Green. Mau didn’t know if she could remain in one place. Was it freedom they craved? Or something else? Mau felt a hand rest on hers and her eyes tried to refocus, and slowly she could see Holt again. It was so hard but she managed. She could feel it more than see, a warm hand on hers. Qui-Mau could feel something else, a different fear, and so much more common, something they didn’t realize that they feared. Even before Quimyenth came Mau had known. How had she forgotten something like that? They would have fears that they would have to tackle themselves but there were some things that a person could not manage alone. Mau’s hand twitched, and Quimyenth’s tail did as well.

The Green bolted again, ignoring the clouds this time. All the energy she had saved up was being spent as she headed up, but still south, still away. It looked like she was heading away, making one made dash. Suddenly all of the tension suddenly sprung on her and her right wing twitched, cramping up.

Help! Her flight had slowed down and it looked like she was about to start falling. She had finally gone as far as she could manage alone.

Mau’s hand moved, slowly turning over so that she could catch his hand in hers. She might be used to leaving, but Mau had never been that great at letting go. So many letters, and she was sad every time she lost touch with an old friend, even if she hadn’t seen them in forever. So, while she was fleeing, she still didn’t want to let go. But it wasn’t just her choice, and that terrified her. Still, she involuntarily squeezed his hand in hers.

Korith, help!

“Don’t leave me.”

[Kaya]

Another dash. South. Beyond the clouds. Korith's wings ached with sustained effort to tail the fleeing Green. A Green and a Blue, alone in the sky, a scene not unlike many others in history. And yet Korith knew each one was distinct, the hues subtle in their differences, the wings stretching in unique places, the time and the presences occupying it, those were their own moments. They could, even should, be alike, for there was a grand comfort in similarity, like an old friend, familiar, safe, like home. And in these thoughts Korith followed Quimyenth through the clouds, and his steady heart gave a small flutter.

Holt knew Mau had his hand. He couldn't tell you exactly how he knew, but he did. And even in the precaution and fear he was starting to move past it, trying to wrap himself into Korith's security, his dragon's assurance that all was well and right.

Then Quimyenth faltered. It gave Korith a jolt, zipping across the miles back to his Rider as well. Then that fear was replaced with courage. So many wings had dropped a few lengths in the sky, but they always recovered. Sometimes they recovered with help. Quickly, evenly, he matched speed with the stalled Qui. And then he found himself holding her up, his tail seeking out hers. She had called him, it had been his name she requested.

Here I am.

The words came out akin through Holt. "Here. I'm here." The other thoughts swirled more as feelings than words, so instead he squeezed her hand back and reached to move her other hand out of its defensive clutch on her leg. And then a thumb on her cheek, and then his fingers in her hair and that smell that was only hers in his nose. He leaned in to kiss her softly, but paused to ask "Okay?"

[Shoki]

It was just a few heartbeats away from falling. One moment it felt like she was just hanging in the air, the next it was suddenly comfortable floating in the air, support from two strong Blue wings. A low rumble, a pleased rumble could be felt against the Blue hide and Quimyenth leaned closer, as close as she could manage, to Korith.

Good. Finally, yes, she could rest her wings. Korith could lead the way and she trusted he would get her where she wanted to go. Yes. She had sort of dimly expected him to always be around anyway. She naturally moved her tail toward his and kept close to Korith. It was a relief, now that she was being supported now. He would keep her safe.

There was a comfortable pressure on one hand, and Mau smiled, just a little at his words. Less defensive, her hand left her knees and she sat up more properly, looking up at Holt and feeling a bit of a rush when his fingers touched her hair, and her cheek. He seemed so much closer now, that she wasn’t trying to hide in a blanket. Not too tall that he was hard to get to, not like they were now.

He paused, just far enough to ask a question. A spark of something flashed through Mau’s eyes and she thought that she would take advantage of the fact that he had tempted her by coming so close. The little crooked smile, flashed and she closed the distance, pressing her lips against his. Her hands went to his shoulders, just like before and dancing. She pulled back for only a moment, just to get a a small sentence out.

“Does that answer your question?” A she had a little bit of a mischievous look in her eyes, but beyond that, like Quimyenth she felt safe here. What’s more she was comfortable in the knowledge that they had both reached out for each other here, and that she wasn’t mistaken. Everything else seemed less important and could wait a while. She was here now and there were some things that were not going to wait at all. She leaned back in to kiss him again.

[Kaya]

A deep voiced Korith rumbled as Qui leaned into him. He was pleased with them, not just himself for winning as he imagined some were. She had chosen him as he had chosen her. They didn't need competition for that choice to mean more. They were simply for each other, and he had been able to secure that thought for her at last. He held her close and drifted in the sky, riding the ups and downs slowly back down towards the trees below. Still, rather than a glorious moment that would fade into a memory, to Korith he believed this was a moment of change with important things both before and after. As for the present, he studied every detail and tried to take it all in. He would want to remember this well for a good long time.

In Holt's world, which was only faintly distinct from the rushing skies, Mau was teasing him. Not unexpected, given her nature, but it did pain him as she hung back for an insufferably long moment after he asked his question. Then something like looking into the sun happened, except for it hurt for all the right reasons. He started to move in further but she pulled back, also for good reasons. She accepted.

"Yes," he said with eyes that added his desire to kiss her again. Evidently she had the same idea. He approved and furthered their dance, wrapping his arms around her waist, like before but closer, tighter this time. This is how it was supposed to be. Him. Her. Nothing complicated. Just a boy and a girl, who fell in love, slowly, for all the right reasons. He breathed out in one of the short moments he could speak, "I love you, Mau."