Where will we go, C'thu? Onilaath asked.
C'thu shrugged. "Dunno, I guess we'll just skip around 'till we find someplace permanent that we like." Personally, he was hoping to get a Wingsecond, or even a Wingleader, position somewhere, if possible. He wasn't sure if he'd be able to, but he could certainly hope.
Onilaath shifted his massive bronze body as he lay on his ledge just outside the entrance to their weyr. The bronze was sunning himself, taking advantage of the late afternoon sunlight.
Of course, he was also in a perfect position to watch the females of his species bathing in the lake. Onilaath's eyes whirled as a large golden dragoness stretched out her still dripping wings. She was perfectly aware of her bronze spectator, and seemed to be enjoying the attention.
C'thu rolled his eyes as he glanced at his bronze. He grinned wryly to himself as he stood up and walked over to stand beside his dragon. "Don't make too many friends, Oni'. We're leaving, remember?" He said as he scratched the large bronze's eyeridges.
Onilaath rumbled. Of course we are. Do you think we could go to a Weyr with lots of pretty golds?
C'thu laughed. "I'll think about it. Speaking of which, I'm ready to go now. Onilaath?"
The bronze nodded, lowering a forearm as C'thu vaulted to his back. Spreading his wings wide, the bronze leapt gracefully into the air, with more gusto than was strictly necessary. The bronze was still trying to impress the watching golds. C'thu just rolled his eyes, shaking his head as the bronze dragon went between.
The sky above Tripaldi Weyr was a bright, crystal-clear blue, with not a gray cloud in sight. Though the air was crisp and cool, it was not uncomfortably cold. A light breeze swayed the leaves of the trees that surrounded the Weyr.
This tranquil scene was disturbed by the arrival of C'thu and Onilaath from between. C'thu shivered, even if it wasn't particularly cold, it was cooler than it ever got on the Southern Continent where he'd grown up. And coming from the freezing cold of between certainly hadn't helped.
C'thu brushed dark blonde bangs, tipped by black, out of his face. His green and gold-flecked eyes took in the area around him as Onilaath backwinged, landing neatly on the ground. The man jumped down from his bronze's back with all the grace of the feline he could turn into.
That's what had made him leave his hold on the Southern Continent, and lead him to the place where he had Impressed Onilaath. It was because he could take the shape of a golden feline, marked by dark brown spots. What had the people at Ryslen called it? A jaguar?
He shook his head, dismissing the memories of his past and looked at Onilaath. "Oni'? Where are we?" He asked the bronze patiently.
A place with a very lovely golden dragon. The bronze answered as his eyes whirled innocently.
C'thu glared at his dragon. "Thank you so much for warning me in advance when you decided to chase, Onilaath." He said sarcastically.
You're welcome.
C'thu rolled his eyes again and smiled. "Alright, Onilaath. Who is it, then?"
Onilaath's eyes whirled excitedly. Her! She's the one!
C'thu turned to see which dragon his bronze had taken a fancy to. A large, bright gold dragon lay sunning herself on a ledge as she stared down at the newcomers, eyes glowing red. The bronzerider cocked an eyebrow, glancing at his dragon. "Are you sure, Oni'?"
The bronze nodded in affirmation, and C'thu shrugged. "Excuse me!" He called to the nearest person. A slightly annoyed looking woman walked to him, looking up at him questioningly. "Could you tell me where the flight boards are?"
The woman sighed and nodded. "Yes. You must be new here." She said as she beckoned for him to follow her. She set a fast pace, and C'thu struggled to keep up with her.
"Yeah, my dragon wants to chase a gold here." He shrugged. "So who am I to argue?"
The woman pursed her lips and glanced at him, then nodded. "That must be Frinaith, then."
C'thu looked at the flight boards and found Frinaith's name. He looked at her rider's name, Xalia. He wondered who this Xalia was, and where he might find her.
"Thanks." He said to the woman standing impatiently beside him. "My name's C'thu, by the way."
"Weyrwoman Xalia." She answered.
C'thu's eyes widened. Xalia? Weyrwoman Xalia? "Oh! Well, uh...I mean-that is, ah..." He stuttered as Xalia stared at him. "Umm...pleased to meet you...Weyrwoman." He finished weakly.
Xalia stared at him, one eyebrown raised in curiousity. "If you will excuse me, I really must be getting back to my office now." She said as she turned to leave.
C'thu sighed in exasperation. "Well, this is just great. I just made a total fool of myself in front of Frinaith's rider. The Weyrwoman!" He glared at Onilaath. "You just had to decide to chase the Weyrwoman's dragon, didn't you?"
Cheer up, C'thu. I think you'd make a great Weyrleader. Onilaath said as his rider groaned. Besides, it could be worse.
That made C'thu smile. He was right, it could have been worse. Granted, the Weyrleader position was a bit higher than he'd originally planned on...Besides, Oni' could have chosen a dragon with a much less attractive rider than Frinaith and Xalia.
So, maybe Onilaath hadn't won the flight. C'thu couldn't say he wasn't glad, even if the bronze dragon had been disappointed. He liked it at Darkling Dawn, now that he'd finally found a place where he fit in, and he'd even become a Wingleader. He didn't have much to complain about, except that maybe he got a little lonely now and then...
Onilaath won the occasional mating flight, but C'thu never kept a weyrmate for long. Although, that was before he met another shapeshifter, Sime...
