Xanadu Weyr - Beach
The unerring range of subdued white rises and falls in a multitude of sandy dunes, creating an endless amount of tiny valleys constantly demolished and rebuilt by the frequent arrival or departure of a dragon. Smoothing out as it slopes gently to the edge of the deep blue water, the sand darkens and a shell here and there stands out for children to collect. The beach itself is set along a low cliff - the height lessoning as one heads eastwards, blocking a portion of the beach from direct access.
The wide wide stretch of water opens up to the east, the far distant shore way beyond the horizon and the beach curves ever so slowly round to east and west, distant arms of land embracing the wind-ruffled Caspian Lake. East leads up to the mouth of the Rubicon River, where the protecting cliff is merely an arms length higher then the sand, and beyond that, a winding road leading out of Xanadu's territory. Westwards, the beach narrows as the cliff swings out, leaving a path wide enough for dragons in single file before cutting in to the sheltered cove designated the Weyrling Beach. However, cut in the cliff face to the north are a variety of rough, wide staircases, providing access to the clearing and to the meadow.
Xylaihl is out bathing Xvetaoth at the moment, frowning up at the green every now and then. "You're a gigantic flirt, you know that?" she mutters at the green, glancing absently overhead as a blue dragon flies in to land on the beach. "Would it kill you to take /one/ cycle off? Tone it down?" she's asking the green, though they're obviously rhetorical questions. She wades partway back to shore and turns to look appraisingly at the green, one hand shading her eyes from the normally neon green's added brightness. "Looking good. /Glowing/." she calls back to the green, with a smirk.
Saenkarith isn't long at Xanadu, but he's already settled himself right on it. With his rider in a meeting with another member of the Search and Rescue Wing, the brown has taken himself to the beach to enjoy the view. Of course, there's another, better sort of view there now. A bright green one, in fact, who gleams not only with healthy, freshly scrubbed hide, but something better. More fun. Its a long croon to the green as the brown pads closer, gaze stuck to her bright beauty.
Hesketh is here, which probably means R'sul isn't too far off either. But for now it's only the dragon part of the pairing that makes his way onto the beach, landing as carefully as he can in the shallows, and peering out towards Xvetaoth. After a time he croons in her direction, dipping his head in a low bow befpre settling down to watch. To wait.
Yay for the bans being lifted! K'ael has been visiting the other weyrs one after the other, making sure none of their dragons have contracted the flu, and if they have then documenting them and distributing the cure. And when K'ael is out at meetings Azaeth makes himself at home in the water. Once things are taken care of at the infirmary, the bronzer makes his way down to collect his dragon. Though right now Azaeth is sunning himself, and watching a glowing green get a bath.
Kinseth flies in low overhead from elsewhere in the Weyr, though his rider is nowhere to be seen. There's a friendly bugle to Xvetaoth — he knows her — before he backwings in to land in the sand, turning to size-up the surrounding dragons for a long moment, before cocking his head smugly at Xvetaoth, and settling in to wait the green out.
Xvetaoth tilts her glowing green head at the dragons to shore, and trills a friendly greeting. « Hello, hello, come on over. » she calls, heading closer to shore. Xylaihl has been eyeing the dragons carefully, and pales at the sight of /one/ bronze in particular, Kinseth, but his rider is elsewhere, thankfully. Xvetaoth peers down at her rider, then shuffles up onto the shore, finishing her invitation with, « The sky is /lovely/. » as she launches into the air. There may not be all that much power in that stocky green body, but there's enough, especially now, with proddiness hormones roaring through her body.
Saenkarith trills again, turning his head to regard the other males with interest, regarding each bronze in turn, before he's trumpeting, and turning his earth-toned body upwards. Lean body coils tightly, strength gathering in his overlong form, and then he's shooting upwards afer the shiny green, body flying upwards like a snapped whip, stretching through the sky.
Hesketh is not one to crowd, keeping a respectable distance from the glowing green so that some of her modesty might be protected. her invitation does make him tense, however, tail lashing behind a form that fights to keep from charging in and letting feelings override sense. There's a slight hesitation after she launches, a tussle of wills with teh still absent R'sul, but Hesketh is the one that wins this initial battle. His wings snap out and he launches upwards, showering sand in all directions as his legs pull in time with his wings seeking height from which he can watch this fair maiden and plan his conquest.
K'ael moves over to give Xylaihl a wave. "Hello there. Beautiful day out today." He always felt strange introducing himself at flights. But his knot should be introduction enough, right? The bronzer pulls a flask from his coat and lingers close by to Xy. Once Xvetaoth is airborn, there's barely a moment's hesitation before Azaeth is up and ready to launch. A few moments and an unfurling of wings later, there's a nice sandstorm kicked up by the big bronze heading upwards into the air. Big sails push the air towards the ground as Azaeth moves after the neon colored green. Once he's airborn there's a low pitched trumpet sent towards her.
Kinseth crouches down as if to launch into the sky, following that blindingly bright beacon that is Xvetaoth, but stops at the last second, and shakes his head, as if there's something bugging him, some fly buzzing around in his peripheral vision. There's a defiant cry, and he tries again, this time making it into the air. Somewhere else in the Weyr, a certain bronzerider is fleeing to the safety, and isolation, of his weyr. Kinseth's wings pump as he flies. « I'm here. I'll catch you. » he rumbles,
Xylaihl is /ignoring/ Kinseth. Yes. He's not here. Cough. "Hiii!" she calls to K'ael, with a grin, and a glance up at Xvetaoth. "It certainly … is." she smirks. There's a hint of doubt in her tone, but she's trying to put that out of her mind. He won't come out here, nope, he wouldn't dare… Xvetaoth writhes in mid air, rolling over on one side to /glare/ at Kinseth. There's a sharp twist as she angles back towards the Weyr, veering off in such a way that Kinseth is stuck on the outside of the pack. And then, the flight takes hold, the sheer joy of flying getting to the green. She twists again, and flies upwards and out to sea, then does a long loop-de-loop, coming out behind the chasers and turning 180 degrees for a short stretch of straight flight, /away/.
Hesketh aims for height first and foremost, a place to survey the troops and to plan. As Xvetaoth makes her loops he watches, a deep croon of appreciation directed at her while he, himself, climbs a little more. her change of direction almost takes him by surprise, but this appears to be exactly what he was looking for. He trumpets loudly, the call to arms, and the battle is joined. Still keeping height he now moves, powering after the fleeing green.
K'ael chuckles a bit to Xy. "Great day for a flight, at the least." Though the bronzer can sense the uncertainty in her tone. But that's alright. By the looks of things he'd be escorting the lady home regardless of who actually won the flight. Azaeth meanwhile is making his push to the smaller pack of dragons. When the lady of the hour turns to glare at Kinseth, he's tempted to simply knock the other bronze out of the sky. Or at least try to. Except getting into a brawl might hurt his chances of catching, so instead he tries to move past him and maybe accidentally give him a good smack with his tail. Who knows if that will end up happening though, as suddenly the green has changed directions, and the gigantic bronze needs to focus his efforts in making the same sort of turn.
Kinseth won't be beaten by a green, no sir, anything that that compact green can do this massive bronze can do better! Right. He tries to copy all of her maneuvers, and makes a valiant effort, but he just can't turn as sharply as she can. And that loop-de-loop? Forget about it! It's of particular frustration as he'd managed to work his way towards the front of the pack by that point, no thanks to Azaeth and his smacking tail, which hit Kinseth's shoulder fairly solidly, only to suddenly find himself at the rear. He turns slowly, handling rather like a barge, and heads after the green, though he obviously put too much effort into his cocky stunts, as they're already tiring him.
Xvetaoth is taking a slight breather, and her straight flight continues. There's a smug croon directed at Hesketh, in response to his own appreciative croon. « I'm /goood/ at what I do. » she calls, in that seductive voice of hers. « I make it a /point/ to be. » she warbles, only becoming more smug at Hesketh's call to arms. She changes altitude experimentally, flying upwards for a dragonlength or so, just to see how tired she feels. There's a loud bugle as Azaeth's tail lands, and the green finds the energy to spiral even higher. After about three loops, her movements become sluggish, and halfway through the fourth she starts to fall…
Xylaihl smirks at K'ael, and nods. It /is/ a great day for it. "Xvet's got good timing for flights. Good weather sense." she notes absently. There's a wince then as Kinseth gets hit, and the woman frowns up at the offending bronze.
Hesketh dives, neck and tail held arrow straight, wings fluttering like a banner in the breeze. His path is true, his timing is the only thing that may be off. Did he wait too long? He turns a little to his left, then changes his mind. This is the way. Committeed he gives everythign to that final charge, but will it be enough?
Azaeth is mean! It's true. Well, he's just very competitive. There's an annoyed rumble given to Kinseth, but as soon as he's out of the way the bronze has forgotten all about him. The big bronze gives a regal trumpet to the green as she flirts a bit with them. Azaeth follows her upwards with the rest of the pack, he can't spiral like she can, but he can at least stay close to her. Then… she's falling… He tucks in his wings a bit and dives after her.
Kinseth /tries/. Oh how he tries. He even tries to emulate Xvetaoth's spiral, but he can't really make it. He hangs back slightly, psyching himself up for one last attempt, positioning himself roughly beneath the green. There's a roar then, and he flies directly up, none of this spiralling nonsense, just good straight /flight/. Yes.
Xvetaoth screeches as Kinseth gets close, and instantly swerves to avoid the bronze. NO. You can not, you /will/ not catch. It throws her off a bit, and she has to fight to keep from falling too fast, with only enough energy left to slow her descent. The flight is now between Hesketh and Azaeth. One rider is present, one is not, and it's already been shown that the woman's preference affects the green's. With a tired croon, Xvetaoth makes one final swerve, putting herself in Azaeth's path. Xylaihl looks relieved as Kinseth is taken out of the running, and then the green is caught, and she only has eyes for K'ael.
Kinseth cries out as Xvetaoth picks /Azaeth/ over him, then flies wearily off to find his rider. He doesn't /need/ her. His shoulder will be sore tomorrow, but it'll heal before his pride does.
Azaeth gives a hefty trumpet. He didn't really count this as winning, as he was picked, but hey. He's not going to complain. After scooping up the green, he'll fly off to a remote area to attend to business. K'ael meanwhile is encouraging Xy to run off with him. If not to her own weyr, to the guest ones.
Xanadu Weyr - Xylaihl's Weyr
Xylaihl murmurs in her sleep, and rolls over a little, frowning absently as she notices another body in the bed. And a noise. What /is/ that noise? She scowls a little, and raises a sleepy head, scowling at the door. The noise is out there. Sounds like… a young child, crying. And then a voice is added, murmuring to the child, though the words themselves can't be made out through the wall. Finally, the noise moves away, and the greenrider flops back down.
K'ael is wheeze-snoring away! Is that the noise she's hearing? No. Apparently not, or at least not the noise that's bothering her. When she stirs his does as well, snorting a bit as he breathes in suddenly. "Hrm…?" K'ael doesn't have any children he takes care of, so he's unused to a noise like that. Slowly his eyes open up and he realizes that he's not at home. And he's with someone else! A woman, thankfully. He smiles a bit tiredly to her. "Mornin'…"
Xylaihl wakes up a little more, and blinks, the now-gone noise finally sinking in. "Xylan…" she mutters, momentarily confused. The kid is gone now, safe with a relative. And then she glances over at K'ael at the 'mornin', and smirks slightly. "Morning." she responds, looking K'ael up and down, her expression unreadable. It's unlikely she's surprised by a stranger in her bed, she's been a greenrider near thirty turns. "You, er, want breakfast? Klah?" she offers, glancing again to the door. The noise carried on moving away beyond the weyr, so the coast is clear, at least. But the bed is comfy.
K'ael blinks a bit at her. "Hm? Who?" Not her weyrmate, right? That was most of what K'ael was worried about. Sudden appearance of an angry weyrmate. He grins stupidly back to her when he realizes no one is in fact coming in. "Mm… klah would be great, but there's no rush. I can do breakfast if you've got supplies?" He looks back at her with those nice blue eyes. "But again, no rush. How are you this morning?"
Xylaihl frowns absently, looking at the door. Eh. It can wait. "Mm, wouldn't you like to know?" she teases, tilting her head at the man, then relenting. "My son. From a flight about five turns ago." So, not a weyrmate situation? Well, that's good, right? There's a sigh from the woman then, and she stretches, murmuring, "I'll get the klah… And breakfast." before shuffling to the edge of the bed, pulling the top sheet with her as a makeshift robe, or at least attempting to. The sheet really is all that's covering the riders, Xylaihl never bothers with a full quilt.
K'ael blinks, then chuckles. "I would. That's why I asked. Thought it might be a big angry weyrmate coming to kick me out." He nods to her about her son. "Ah, I see. Oh?" He blinks a bit as she gets up to take care of breakfast. "If you insist. Need any help?" If not, he'll doze off back to sleep probably. The bronzer doesn't seem to mind just the sheet. He was usually a human oven anyways. Plus it gives him a good look of Xy in all her womanly nudeness.
Xylaihl smirks, and shakes her head. "Nah. The big angry weyrmate isn't due back for at least another hour." she teases. "Or, wait, was it an hour /ago/?" she muses, pretending to think about it. She tugs on the sheet, and glances over at the door. "Come on, breakfast awaits." she nags just /slightly/, her mothering showing through. And she wonders why she's never kept a weyrmate. Well, actually, Xvetaoth is the real reason, but that's another story. As for her womanly nudeness, well, she's had seven kids - three of them all at once - so she's a bit … saggy. She keeps fit, but there's only so much you can do before time and gravity take their toll. So she'd really prefer to cover up, actually. "You … go on. I'll be out in a moment." she waves the man out, blushing just slightly. The next room is set up half like a nursery - currently empty - and half like the bedroom of a pair of teenagers - also currently empty. The main room though, that has a few counters near the door, with klah and assorted breakfast supplies.
K'ael blinks at her for a second. Was she serious? Yes, no, maybe? It doesn't seem so, but he laughs a bit nervously and looks around for a telltale sign of a man living here. It doesn't occur to him hat Xy's weyrmate might be another woman. "Alright, I'm up I'm up." He gets up and looks around for his undershorts, finally spotting them and pulling them on. He didn't want to walk around totally nude, not his place so it might be rude. So she was a little saggy… oh well. K'ael likes the older girls, and that usually meant he'd see girls that weren't quite in their prime. But that also meant they weren't shy in the sack, either. He blinks at her a bit and then nods. A blush? From a greenrider? "Er, alright, sure." He gives her a bit of a smile, then heads out to help himself to klah and pastries.
Xylaihl emerges moments later with a hastily thrown on dress. "I, sorry about that… Old habits, I guess. I was raised in a hold." she says, with a slight frown. She certainly wasn't blushing, or acting like a good holder girl, last night! But that was then, and this is now. Any signs of male occupants in the house are either from the woman's teenage son, or previous flight winners. But they're /there/. "There's no weyrmate. Xvetaoth, she gets jealous. My children don't even actually live here, they just stay here occasionally." she admits, with a shrug. She has Xvetaoth, and that's all she really needs. That, and klah, which she now pours for herself. "So… I don't think I got your name?" she asks, with an odd almost sheepish note in her tone.
K'ael smiles and nods. "Me too, so no worries. I'm surprised though, being a greenrider and all." And given last night! From what he remembered at least. But she was still cute to him, being embarrassed like that. He does spot some things around the weyr that make him a bit nervous, until she admits to not having a weyrmate. "Ah.. yeah. No weyrmate for me, either. Azaeth isn't a bit fan of others, obviously." From his behavior during the flight. "I see. How many kids do you have, then?" Then he blinks. He didn't know her name either! "Oh, sorry. I'm K'ael. Azaeth's rider. Er… weyrleader at Ista." The last bit is mumbles. Titles and all. "And you are?"
Xylaihl would no doubt have noticed the knot last night, if she hadn't had other things on her mind. "Ohhh. Er. Xylaihl. Xvetaoth's rider. Nothing special." she shrugs, glancing around the shabby looking room, suddenly a little self-conscious. "I, er. Seven kids. Triplets first, then four more, single births. Though only the youngest two still stay overnight. One of the older kids doesn't even /speak/ to me any more… That was his bronze at the flight." she grimaces, and looks down at her klah. "I'm more than just a greenrider." she mumbles, though she's not actually speaking to K'ael, it's more of a reminiscing tone.
K'ael smiles and nods to her. Honestly, K'ael's weyr doesn't look any better. The bronzer didn't really have the need or the want to redo his own weyr. Even if he had the marks for brand new furniture and carpets and the like. Nope, he stuck with all his own half hand-me-down mismatched stuff. "Wow, seven kids! That's pretty amazing, triplets and all. I have four brothers myself. Two kids and one on the way, but all different mothers." He frowns a bit at the mention of the other bronze. "Ah, the one Azaeth smacked? Er… he's not always nice, I admit." The bronzer nods a bit to her about the greenrider thing, taking a bite of his pastry. "That's sad to hear about your son, though."
Xylaihl nods slowly, sinking into a seat with her klah. "Well, you know, he's doing okay, I hear… I still talk to his foster mother, and he still talks to /her/. So… I knew about his children before he did." she notes, with a snort. So, that makes her a grandmother, then? "Kinseth is his name, but I'm sure he'll be fine. Ego bigger than the red star on /that/ one." she says, with a shrug. "He… He was weyrsecond, for a time. My son, the… well… /a/ weyrsecond!" She's so proud.
K'ael nods a bit to her. With her so dressed he's starting to feel a big… naked. At least he wasn't totally nude, having klah with someone old enough to be his mother? "I see. Oh, my brother used to be weyrsecond here! He told me about that. Him and his weyrmate took a long vacation and come back to find out he'd been sort of replaced." K'ael chuckles a bit. "Azeth's ego isn't too big, but he's not generally fond of other dragons. Why is it he won't talk to you, then?" He raises a brow at her. She clearly cared about him. What was the problem, then?
Xylaihl isn't all that dressed, really. She certainly doesn't seem to mind K'ael's current state of dress, though she's not really looking at him very much. "Ah. You're R'miel's brother? Small world…" she notes, with a slight shrug. She's not /that/ old, really. Young enough to have a kid under the age of five. But old enough to have kids nearing thirty. "Kinseth chased Xvetaoth once before. Didn't win then either, but, my son, he wasn't expecting it… He ran off to Ierne for a few turns, only came back recently. I went over to try and talk to him, but he disappeared again. He broke quarantine, and lost his knot over it." she mutters. Not one of his /finest/ moments, then.
K'ael nods a bit to her. "Yeah, Ram is my older brother." A weyrsecond /and/ a weyrleader. Weren't his parents proud! Well, his mother was. His father wasn't a fan of riders. And K'ael really couldn't care less how old she was. She was still young enough to have a good time! And that was all that mattered. "Ah… I see. I suppose that could be a bit… unnerving. Well, with R'miel at Ista now maybe he can ask for it back? I don't know. I heard the weyrwoman here is a little on the crazy side."
Xylaihl shrugs a little, and frowns at her klah. "Funny how riding seems to run in families. My brother's a rider too, though no-one before him impressed, that we know of. Then, bam. He's a rider, I'm a rider, my son's a rider too." she smirks a little, and shakes her head. "The Weyrwoman's okay, so long as you're not an Istan bronzerider." Which K'ael kind of /is/. "Er, mainly a /specific/ Istan bronzerider." Yep. Wait, she's glancing to the room set up as a nursery? Huh. But the kid's name is Xylan, right? With an X?
K'ael chuckles and nods a bit to Xy. "Well, once I met my brother's dragon I really wanted to be around dragons. Even if I never got the chance to become a rider. So I left the hold and headed off to Telgar. Then went to Ista, where I found my Azaeth. Our grandfather on my mother's side was a rider. But none of us have met him." His mother was sort of disowned after leaving the weyr to marry a holder boy. He peer to Xy, all too familiar with that bronzer. "There are some Istan bronzers /I/ don't like, either." Not a big fan of his weyrsecond, he isn't. At least not on a personal level. He was fine with L'ton in a business sense, but anything else was out.
Xylaihl raises an eyebrow, and frowns at K'ael slightly, then shakes her head, choosing the subject a little more carefully. "My family's been holders for as far back as anyone can remember, got a brother who's a bluerider, a cousin who rides bronze, and was once Weyrleader at Fort, me, my son, and, well, a whole lot of holders. Not that there'll be any more holders, the way things are going. My children like the Weyr, my brother doesn't even know if he /has/ children, and my sister doesn't /want/ children." she snorts, and shakes her head.
K'ael has a feeling that frown is because Xylaihl has a different opinion about L'ton than he does. Which really was fine. But he didn't want to hear her talking about how great the other bronzer was. Or how he ought to strive to be like him. Because then she'd have an angry bronzer on her hands. He does nod about her family though. "Big family, then?" At least extended family that she knew. Obviously her own was quite big, with seven kids. "Heh, well… at least I've been able to keep track of who my children are so far." As far as he knows, at least.
Xylaihl snorts, and glances at her mug, then admits, "I … only know who the father of the youngest is." She's avoiding specifically mentioning L'ton, but odds are good that her youngest is his. "They were all flights…" she mutters, as if that excuses it. "Sometimes I didn't get the rider's name, sometimes they were gone before I woke… Sometimes I just didn't see the point in /remembering/ who won." she rolls her eyes. "But if the /mother/ doesn't know who the father is… It's hard to know…" Sticking up for her brother, then? "My own? Not so big, really. Just the three of us. My brother, me, and my sister." /Extended/ family is probably slightly larger, but not large enough to be notable beyond that one cousin who rides bronze.
K'ael nods a bit to Xy. He didn't quite understand wanting kids without someone else around to take some of the burden off. But he wasn't a woman! But now he was wondering if Xy might have a baby on him and not tell him. Though that seemed unlikely. "Ah, I see. Yeah, I guess that's true. Riders I guess are a little selfish in that way." No sense of family, which was good and bad. The bronzer gets up then. "I should probably head back to Ista and all. Though it's been nice talking with you, Xylaihl. And you know." He winks at her. Meaning 'everything else we did, notably last night'. "You should look me up next time you're at Ista. Or feel like getting out." He moves into the bedroom to dress himself.
Xylaihl would tell K'ael if she later found out she was pregnant, she knows his name and occupation and home and everything. But it's not quite as likely as it used to be. Quite honestly, the possibility doesn't even occur to her. "You should come to Xvetaoth's next flight." she smirks, at the man's wink. It's amazing how that name just rolls right off of her tongue. It's a mouthful all right. "It's not like I had nothing, X'hil's father left a jacket and gloves behind. X'hil /loved/ those." Still does, though he doesn't really talk about it. Ever. And then K'ael is heading back to get dressed. Xylaihl busies herself tidying up a little, frowning at the room.
K'ael would be appreciative, if she did get pregnant. He likes to keep track of his kids, as much as he can. He grins to her when she invites him to her next flight. "Heh, I might just take you up on that. And I guess something is better than nothing. I've been trying to look up my grandfather. See if he's still alive." He doesn't make any comments about X'hil. He doesn't know him! Once he's dressed K'ael heads back out. "Thanks for breakfast and everything. Sometimes greenriders are… rude the next morning." He even heads over to give her a kiss on her cheek. "See you later, Xy."
Xylaihl nods slowly. "Well, if you know a Weyr, or sometimes just a name, it can help." she suggests, though she's never had to track anyone down, really. Never really /tried/. "I try not to make it … rude. Though some /riders/ don't return the courtesy." No, not K'ael, other riders. NPC riders. "But the /least/ I could do is provide klah and breakfast." she shrugs. It's just good hospitality. One could argue that the /flight/ was quite hospitable, but still. "I'll look you up next time I'm over Ista way." she nods, blushing very slightly at the kiss. Something about flights just makes her feel so /young/ again. And then so much older, afterwards.