Late nights (Cait/B'rek)

[Kaya]

| 78.11.27 | late night |

Her world was exhaustion and relief. The last several hours had been mixed. She had tidied the clinic, reviewed who was spending the night, and made sure the other staff went to get some sleep. The ones to replace them would be by in a few hours. That done, Eira went to round on the patients left at the Aerie. She was nearly through when she and Wivish discovered Insley's leg, and honestly the rest of him, were in worrisome shape.

So the next few hours went by with Eira and Wivish next to this man and his torn up leg, cleaning, re-bandaging, the LifeWing's song trying to support him, Eira waiting for his fever to go back down. Occasionally she'd get up, go see the others were all sleeping, and drift back to Wivish. They'd put too much work into this leg for something stupid to undo it all now. She felt her head nodding down onto her chest, and the jerk back up to stay awake.

Sometime later she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up to see Lindra, rubbed an eye and then her face, wincing. Her chin was still sore from the scrape she earned yesterday? two days ago? in the dining hall when her tired feet tripped her. The patients had all asked her about it, of course. She said she was fine, tried to laugh it off, of course.

"I got 'im," the LifeWing Rider urged her. "Wivish did wonderfully. We got it from here. Now you ought to get the rest of that rest in a proper bed. What does E'cil say?" Lindra looked concerned.

"Nothing if he doesn't catch me," Eira stood up, her tall legs and thin arms stretching. Lindra's expression didn't change, nor did she drop her gaze. Eira sighed. "I know, I know. You must first care for yourself before caring for others."

"Right. Now go sleep. I'll get Ovdenesh to chase you out if I have to," Lindra threatened. The snow bunting LifeWing puffed up, as if to look intimidating. It wasn't, perhaps other than her great size. Wivish looked at her, confused, then down at Insley.

"I'm going," Eira acquiesced. "Take good care of him."

"Always do."

Eira reached up to give Wivish a scratch. I'm feeling a little better, and I will sleep I promise, but I'm hungry. Gunna grab a bite first. Meet you at our room, ok?

Yes. I will make it all warm for us. Wivish puffed up and trilled a little, though she was tired too.

"Good," Eira smiled, giving her arctic tern life bonded another scratch before heading down the hallway after said food, and maybe a hot drink.

[Cait]

War. There could be no greater outcome as far as his movement was concerned. The amount of instability brought about by war was more than anything he or his people could have done. Of course, being a dragonrider now, B’rek was expected to participate. Given Upsenth’s ferocity and determination, it wasn’t a surprise that B’rek had found himself front and center for many of the skirmishes that the Weyr had been involved in. Sometimes he wondered if the Flame fought simply for the joy of fighting or if he was truly committed to the defense of the Weyr and its people. B’rek suspected the former but even after a few Turns the dragon’s motives were his own. Given that Upsenth didn’t pry into his rider’s motives or plots--unless they conflicted with his own--B’rek didn’t find himself overly concerned with the whys of the Flame. He was just grateful he hadn’t been saddled with some sniveling mess of a dragon at that cursed hatching.



Of course, having a dragon that was so keen to unleash his rage meant that B’rek was often drawn into squabbles that might otherwise have been avoided. In truth, though, he almost enjoyed it in a twisted way that Upsenth seemed to acknowledge and appreciate. A good fight went a long way to vent his frustrations and spent his energy in a productive way. If he had to be pulled from the forge at least he got to pound on something.



That night, B’rek and Upsenth had been flying their assigned route, making sure that all was well. With the Weyr destabilized by war and supply shortage, the lands around it were also destabilized. Raids and random acts of vandalism. Naturally B’rek was none too pleased about having to be away from the Weyr at night. There were far more pleasant ways he could think of to pass the time. Unbidden his mind brought forward a picture of a tall, too-thin woman with pale hair and a crease between her brows. Upsenth grumbled in irritation at his rider’s distraction but otherwise didn’t comment as B’rek proceeded to let his mind wander over the various interactions he’d had with Eira Kalarn over the turns. He could coax just about any woman into his furs, had done so without shame, but Eira. She persisted in denying him which made her all the more enticing. She’d berated him, poisoned him and been none too gentle with his injuries of the Turns but still, the hellion daughter of Brencis kept his interest as no other woman had.



Weyrlinghood had perhaps been the most infuriating turns of his life. He and Upsenth had come to blows almost daily and mostly because he was a spiteful wretch who was unable to fulfil his baser needs because of some damn dragon, he’d insisted on seeking out Eira to heal his wounds despite her insistence that she did not specialize in whatever wound she brought to him. His favorite wounds, however, were the ones that gave him the excuse to strip, to stand before her with a smug smirk on his lips in nothing but his scarred and bruised skin and tease her as she tended to him. It was truly a wonder that she’d done little more than lace his food with unpleasant herbs or be a little rough with her healing.



I think I’ll pay my wee healer a visit when we get back.



[smear:#800080]She is as tall as you are and also...I do not care.[/smear:#3333ff:0]



B’rek rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to their flight pattern. Their rotation was almost over and so far the night had been disappointingly quite. Of course the moment he thought it, Upsenth suddenly banked and he felt a surge of excitement from the Flame. Giving him a mental prod that was more the equivalent to an elbow to the face, B’rek leaned into the aerial roll and flicked his gaze to the ground. Even before the dragon spoke, he knew what the beast had seen. Fire. A few pin pricks of light amidst the rocks. People where they shouldn’t be. A devilish gleam contorted B’rek’s features at the prospect of getting a little rough with some unwelcome squatters.





Several candlemarks later, the pair returned to the Weyr. Upsenth sported a few scrapes and bruises but seemed in good spirits and likewise his rider was tired but pleased with the outcome of the night. Turned out they’d happened upon a small group of raiders who had taken to preying on supply caravans. Not only had he gotten the chance to flatten a few faces, but he’d also done some good. Doing good was required in order for him to keep his cover, especially now that he had a dragon that could creep in his mind and know his true intentions.



[smear:#800080]Sometimes I think you enjoy forgetting that I. Do. Not. Care. Go find your undernourished healer and leave me be.[/smear:#3333ff:0]



B’rek grunted and kicked the beasts tail then promptly jumped over it as Upsenth lashed out. It wasn’t an uncommon sight; the pair engaging in physical blows. It wasn’t nearly as bad as it had been during Weyrlinghood but the habit persisted long after they’d settled into a comfortable true-like relationship. It was a relationship of mutual survival. B’rek kept Upsenth from going too far when his rage struck and Upsenth kept his secrets, mostly because they didn’t concern the Flame.



Shaking his head as the Flame took off and purposely clipped him in the back with his wing, B’rek stumbled and caught himself before he went sprawling. His ribs wouldn’t be too pleased if he went and did something like that. Destination in mind, B’rek slipped through the night. Part of him just wanted to fall into bed, but the image of that barely contained righteous anger flitted through his mind and he grined, his teeth flashing pale in the dark. Of course he’d barely made it several yards before a familiar tall figure caught his attention.



Aha! What’ve we here. My wee bird out for a late night snack?



[smear:#800080]B'rek?[/smear:#3333ff:0]



Aye?



[smear:#800080]Shut up![/smear:#3333ff:0]



Go stuff yerself!



Grumbling under his breath, B’rek altered his course and jogged to close the gap, gritting his teeth against the sharp ache in his side where a couple well landed punches had no doubt bruised his ribs. There were also a few crusted over knife cuts on his arms and another on his thigh. None of them were particularly deep or troubling though if he had to he’d pretend they were just to make the bird lady blush.



Slipping into the kitchen, he softened his steps as he cast his gaze around, oblivious to how wild he looked with a bruise forming on his cheekbone around a small cut, or the way the longer portion of his hair was sticking up in all directions. Lurking in the shadows until Eira had found herself a place to sit and was bringing a mug to her lips, B’rek slipped up behind her and reached with his left hand to pinch her left side before slipping into the seat at her right, pointedly ignoring her as he flagged down a kitchen worker to request a plate and a mug of his own.

[Kaya]

Her body veered away from the surprising rough touch, sending hot halk down the front of her shirt and into her lap. She slowly moved the mug away, looked down to examine herself and the now slightly reddening skin. Irritating, but no long term harm; a description that also applied to the wild man now seated at her right. When someone came approaching with a tray, they noticed she'd spilled and pulled a rag from their back pocket and threw it her way for drying.

"Look what the wher dragged in." She cast a critical eye at his appearance, finally catching a view of the bruising cut on the other side of his face. "Tch, what've you done this time?" she scolded, grabbing under his jaw with a rough hand to turn him further left. And just as quick she twisted just a little more and released, returning her attention to her plate. "Too shallow to give your features a much needed update. And this sevenday's lass like as not won't look your way again. Lucky her," she critiqued between bites. This puffed up man, in more ways than one, wasn't going to be permitted to further delay her dinner.

[Cait]

B’rek’s lips twitched slightly as his pinch had the desired outcome. Oblivious to any harm or injury his intent had been to put the woman on guard. Considering the results successful, he pretended not to notice that she’d sloshed halk down her front or the little crease between her brows. In fact he only bothered to look over when the kitchen worker placed a plate in front of the healer and tossed a rag in her lap, presumably to allow her to clean herself up. He was just turning his head away to thank the worker for placing a hot mug of halk in front of him as well slender fingers dug into his chin like a pair of blacksmithing tongs and jerked his head to the left.

A soot smeared brow crept up as he took in the woman’s serious countenance while she perused the various scuffs and smudges on his face before her eyes settled on the cut below his right eye that was starting to swell and bruise. HIs lips curled into a smug smile as she roughly released him and turned back to her food. “Worried, lass? That’s sweet of you.” Chuckling, he roll his shoulders then his neck, getting it to pop. By the time Eira had finished her first bite, B’rek’s plate had arrived and he gave the lass who delivered it a dashing grin and a wink which sent her scampering back to her duties with a blush.

Take a rather large mouthful of meat and tubers, B’rek lifted his brow once more and adjusted himself bodily rather than just twisting at the waste to spare his poor ribs. Shifitng on his chair, his left knee pressed into the side of Eira’s leg as he propped his right arm against the edge of the table. “Lucky me, more like. The lass was a bore.” Taking another obnoxiously large bite, he chewed for a few seconds, smiling like he had some great secret he was dying to share. “Wanna ken how I got my wee pretty mark?” A mark that would no doubt serve him well.