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Post by R'enh and Mnoranth on Jul 13, 2010 15:37:07 GMT -5
R’enh woke next to Maram and his hands traveled her sides and as much as he wanted more there would be plenty of time later. He kissed her shoulder before scooting out of the bed and finding his discarded clothing. He pulled on the pants and boots and grabbed his shirt
He left the privacy of her sleeping alcove and moved into the main living area to find a meal laid out for them by the kitchen. There was even fresh fruit. He had no idea where they’d gotten that.
“Maram” he said “There are apples!” he should his head. Certainly they were small and had to be left from their winter store but someone had thought enough about them to bring them apples.
He ran his fingers through his hair and pulled it back to retie the thong that bound the strands together.
There was so much that had yet to be done. He threw the shirt on and then his belt. He heard movement and turned.
Tag Maram/any
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Post by Maram and Chalarath on Jul 13, 2010 18:58:08 GMT -5
Maram roused with a smile on her face. As she blinked her eyes, she thought back over what had transpired this morning. Looking around her, she realized R'enh was no longer there. Had he left already? Had he no intention of staying with her now that he was Weyrleader? That thought gave her pause. Even with T'pin, her previous weyrmate, he'd warmed her bed quite often though they had never been loving like some.
That was when she heard him call her. With a smile on her face, Maram rose, pulled her now wrinkled clothes over her head and made her way out from behind the curtain. She'd be happy to get this weyr feeling like home, one of these days.
"I'd say good morning, but from the skies outside, it looks more like mid-afternoon," Maram smiled as she approached R'enh and the tray of foodstuffs that had been provided.
Suddenly Chalarath awoke, seeming distressed.
Frowning Maram moved towards her life mate.
"What is is Chalarath?" She asked concerned.
Sivarith and Hers have gone back. They are not here.
"What?" Maram asked startled, turning to R'enh. Then realizing he had not heard Chalarath, she quickly informed him, "Chalarath says Sivarith and Sorelle have gone back. We have to go after her."
Sivarith says hers will not allow it. She is faint, but I can hear her.
Maram frowned again, placing her hands on her hips as she looked at Chalarath. "What do you mean she won't allow it?" She turned back to R'enh. "What are we going to do?" Her tone, which only moments ago was full of joy and satisfaction at having mated, was now laced with worry over the safety of the gold and her rider.
Rag R'enh/Any
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Post by R'enh and Mnoranth on Jul 16, 2010 17:37:51 GMT -5
"I'd say good morning, but from the skies outside, it looks more like mid-afternoon,"
He turned toward the curtain and smiled as she came into the room. He was about to reach for her and pull her into his lap when she suddenly stopped.
"What?" she quickly informed him, "Chalarath says Sivarith and Sorelle have gone back. We have to go after her." then she stopped again and Mnoranth chimed in.
Sirvarith commanded none to follow her, she is not going to allow harm to come to hers.
"What do you mean she won't allow it?" She turned back to him. "What are we going to do?"
He caught her hand and pulled her into his lap as he'd originally intended. He was worried as she was but no matter what they wanted there was only one who could go after their escapee.
He held her for a moment and said "you know that only Chalarath can go after her if she's commanded none to follow her. " he thought a bit as his thumb stroked her arm where he held her. "Mnoranth might get away with pursuit if Chalarath commanded it of her mate, but only just maybe."
He turned her worried face to him gently, "I would really rather she didn't leave her weyr right now Maram. She's not expendable." He tried to communicate to the Weyrwoman just exactly how important she was as he softly tasted her lips.
"Sorelle is with Sivarith and probably searching for N'lon again. I want to help her but…" he shook his head. Their resources right now were too thin. "Has there been any news from the healers on our other gold rider?"
Tag Maram
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Post by Maram and Chalarath on Jul 16, 2010 21:54:37 GMT -5
Maram at first resisted when he pulled her down into his lap. They had to solve this problem, and in her mind they didn't have time for fooling around. She huffed out a frustrated sigh as he spoke about their options. She didn't like them. That's all there was to it. Sivarith might not let Mnoranth near her and that meant only she could try, but...
R'enh's words and the gentle caress of his lips on hers allowed her to relax into his arms.
"I know," she murmured, her hand resting on his chest. "If something would happen to Chalarath..." Maram's voice caught and she simply shook her head glad that Chalarath was still resting and hadn't heard that.
"I just wish there was something more we could do," she said quietly. When he mentioned the other gold rider, Tael, Maram's eyes took on a sad look. Shaking her head, she told him, "They said she won't stir. There's nothing physically wrong with her that they can find. I spoke with those from her Weyr and they said she could hear all dragons." Maram said the last almost reverently. "I wonder if..." Maram paused, glancing away for a moment as a flicker of pain filled her own eyes, "if all the loss caused something to happen to her. I couldn't imagine...hearing...all the dragons..." Maram couldn't continue, as she swallowed down a bit of a sobbing sound.
"So much loss..." her voice trailed off as she turned, her eyes full of shadows and wrapped her arms around his neck, needing to feel his support in that moment.
Tag R'enh
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Post by R'enh and Mnoranth on Jul 17, 2010 14:24:26 GMT -5
She was a strong woman and a strong leader. He knew Maram would do a very fine job as Weyrwoman, and if Sorelle could get her head together he knew she’d be an invaluable resource.
His thoughts turned to the Benden Weyrwoman again. She was such a dynamo and had been almost a force of nature, yet something had snapped with N’lon’s passing. He didn’t know how to help her through this with so much else on his plate now.
He held on to Maram’s lithe form even when she stiffened in her frustration.
"I know," she murmured, her hand resting on his chest. "If something would happen to Chalarath... I just wish there was something more we could do,"
“Yes, me too,” he said his hand stroking up and down her back when she’d relaxed. But then she turned a bit sad as she started talking about Tael. Hearing all dragons was an incredible tool but generations of dragonriders had fought thread without it.
”I couldn't imagine...hearing...all the dragons..."
He held her a little tighter before she turned and wrapped her arms around his neck. Then he wrapped her with his arms and just held her close until she finally shifted to let go.
He smiled his eyes gentle. Not many saw this side of R’enh. Usually competent and driven or stern and demanding with his wing, R’enh rarely showed his tender side.
Tag Maram
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Post by Maram and Chalarath on Jul 17, 2010 19:33:54 GMT -5
R'enh's comforting words and hold was all that Maram needed to recover from the shadows of sadness that had started to creep up. They had too much work to see to to spend too long dwelling on what was or what could have been.
"We'll keep a close watch through Chalarath on Sivarith. At least as long as we can. If anything goes wrong, we go after her, agreed?" Maram reached her hand to rest on his cheek. "We have a lot to do today, Weyrleader," she said the last with a twinkle in her eyes. "We better get started." Leaning in, she kissed him gently before quickly sidling off his lap and heading out of the weyr.
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Hours later, she returned to her weyr with R'enh beside her. The hatching of the firelizard eggs had been amazing and she was still reliving the images in her mind.
"What are you going to do with him now?" She asked, gazing down at R'enh's crimson lizard. "Have you thought of a name for him yet?" Before he could even answer, Maram stood up on her tiptoes, cradled his face in her hands and drew him down to her lips. She'd missed the feel of them on her all day and had been waiting for the chance to be alone with him again.
"Stay. Here. With me. I want to share my bed with you," Maram murmured, resting her head against his chest. When R'enh agreed, Maram felt her heart start to hammer in her chest.
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After spending a bit of time exploring each other, Maram had fallen asleep. Yet her sleep was restless, full of dark, shadowy images, almost like a darkness was coming. At one point she felt that she could hardly breathe. As the nightmare passed, she drifted back into an uneasy sleep until the wee hours of the morning.
Just before dawn, Maram jolted awake at the same time time as Chalarath. Maram's eyes whirled as wildly as any dragons. Something was wrong. Terribly wrong.
Maram hear footsteps quickly approaching her weyr.
"Weyrwoman..." the healer who'd approached looked a bit uncomfortable to be there at this hour. "Weyrleader," the healer quickly added. "F'nal, the bronzerider....he...he's not doing well. "
Her voice stopped at the same moment as Chalarath begin the keening cry of all dragonkind when another of their own was lost.
"No!" Maram called out, burying her head in her hands. F'nal was gone. His dragon had flown /between/. The loss of such an important dragon weighed heavily in the air as the healer turned and hurried back out, her own tears evident on her face.
Tag R'enh
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Post by R'enh and Mnoranth on Jul 18, 2010 17:08:25 GMT -5
After she slid off his lap he knew there were many things he needed to do but first he needed a few things from his weyr so he went down the outside stairs to the place he’d spent the previous nite to grab a few things. After he returned his afternoon turned into a study of musty records they had scraped together from the people who had joined them on their travels. By the time Maram had returned it was time for the hatching.
His world was turned topsy turvy when he found himself with a brand new firelizard on this hands and a red one at that. They came back to Maram and Chalarath’s weyr to find their two dragons sleeping side by side, necks entwined.
He passed Mnoranth holding the tiny crimson flit in his hands and a giant eye opened. “He is very small” said the big bronze and R’enh chuckled “so were you once.” Never that small. Came the instant denial and the giant eye closed.
"What are you going to do with him now?" Maram asked. “Thought I’d make him a place to sleep first, then feed and oil him” then after her next question she distracted him nicely and he nearly forgot the little guy until he heard an anxious peep.
“Well I thought since he was first, I’d call him Zoom.” He said with a grin as he broke away a little breathless.
He pulled a shirt from his bag and made a makeshift pad and laid the tiny crimson down on it. He knew it would need to eat several times but was uncertain of the interval so had a small pot of meats sent up. In the meantime he pulled a pot of oil out and with very gentle fingers oiled the tiny frame. He felt distinct pleasure and the tiny eyes opened to whirl at him so he offered a morsel which immediately became another feeding.
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He finally came to find her dozing under the furs of a chill evening and slid into the bedding she’d already warmed with her body. He proceeded to warm them both with her enthusiastic participation.
He was awakened later for another feeding but when he returned to the bed they shared Maram was restless.
He awoke suddenly in the morning at the approach of a healer "Weyrwoman... Weyrleader," the healer quickly added. "F'nal, the bronzerider....he...he's not doing well. "
Then his fist clenched to the sound of keening dragons. Another lost, this one had looked like he could be saved. They couldn’t afford to loose any more dragons or riders, not and hope to protect the survivors of the fire rain.
"No!" Maram called out
He pulled Maram into his arms to comfort her and waived the healer out of the chamber. He turned and immediately left them.
Tag Maram
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Post by Maram and Chalarath on Jul 18, 2010 20:27:25 GMT -5
Maram clung to R'enh as she felt her body shake from the sadness and loss.
"Why?" She whispered hoarsely against the tears that had fallen from her eyes, barely noticed by her.
"How many more will we lose? How are we going to survive this?" Maram felt the weight of despair settle around her like a heavy blanket that was nearly suffocating her and trapping her under its weight. She hadn't meant to bawl all over R'enh again, like she'd done the day they arrived, but lo and behold she couldn't hold back the intense sorrow that gripped her heart like a vise.
Of anything as the sadness seemed to lift a bit, Maram was grateful that she had not been alone when this news had come. R'enh's comforting presence gave her the support she needed not to settle down into a well of despair and hopelessness.
"I'm sorry," she murmured, trying to wipe the moisture that had gathered on his chest from her tears. "When will this end?" She added on a tired sigh.
Tag R'enh
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Post by R'enh and Mnoranth on Jul 19, 2010 17:31:36 GMT -5
He closed his eyes and held her as she wept. He smoothed her golden hair pulling it out of her face with gentle fingers.
He couldn’t answer her questions only move forward with the assumption that somehow… some way they would survive. They had a fertile queen and that gave him more hope than he’d dared give voice in the past sevenday. When he’d originally brought Sorelle with him out of Benden it was with the knowledge that Sivarith was near the end of her ability to rise, and her rider was unstable. Yet he’d clung to that hope and carried the Benden Weyrwoman in his arms for nearly half their journey when he flew from island to island.
He worried for her now yet Mnoranth seemed calm and kept reassuring him that she was fine. He still wondered how they would ever chase her down. If Sivarith would just cooperate they could bring her back to the relative safety of Dragon Weyr. But each time he asked he was met with refusal. The gold had ordered them not to follow so they would not. It didn’t really matter what he wanted when a Queen gave at order… it stuck, despite what the Weyrleader might want.
He took a deep breath and kissed the top of Maram’s head where it lay on his chest.
"I'm sorry," he thought he heard and a chuckle rumbled in his chest as she tried wiping up her tears. He couldn’t help himself, she was a maddening and sweet woman. "When will this end?" she asked with a tired sigh and he tilted her head up with his finger. “I honestly don’t know.” He said “I don’t know how we’re going to fight thread with so few dragons. We can’t possible protect all of Pern and most likely we’ll have trouble covering these two islands.”
He shifted her onto her back and sat up on his elbow looking down into her eyes. ”But… we will try, every day we will try. I will not give up Maram.” He said.
He thought he heard movement again in the weyr but this was a different whirring of tiny red wings and suddenly little Zoom was in his hair. “Looks like someone is hungry.” He said plucking the little one off his head gently but not without getting a wing in his eye. “Silly little flit” he said as he sat up. “Yes, yes there is food.” He chuckled with memories of Mnoranths endless hunger when they were weyrlings.
He leaned over to kiss Maram one last time before getting up to dress. The little fire lizard chirped and crooned at him from the bed with his need to be fed. He smiled "Well Weyrwoman, the Weyrleader need to get some work done today as tempting as you are."
"Mnoranth, please call the bronze riders and wing seconds to meet in the council room in a candlemark. Also send a weyrling to get Darvin as well, I would like his council."
After donning his shirt and a leather jerkin he set the little crimson on his shoulder and told him to stay. The tiny head burrowed into his hair and nipped at his neck. "Ok, ok! he said.
Tag Maram
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Post by Maram and Chalarath on Jul 19, 2010 20:58:31 GMT -5
His strong arms and gentle comforting presence gave Maram the strength and resolve to leave the feelings of sorrow and despair behind, at least for now.
"We have a lot to consider," she added on a bit of a sigh, "I won't give up either. We will survive and we will find a way to thrive."
Even as Maram spoke those words, Zoom darted into R'enh's hair and caused Maram to chuckle a bit.
"Leave it to a new life to help remind us what we have to live for," Maram reached out a hand to Zoom but the little Crimson didn't seem too inclined to come near her. Perhaps that would change...someday.
"We both have alot to accomplish. I've got to help oversee the cleaning and setup of the lower caverns, at least until we can determine who will make a good headwoman for the Weyr. They're a disaster, to say the least.
I could use a bath. And I feel an itchy spot. Chalarath stated these things with a hint of a jealous child not wishing to share he life-mate with the rest of the Weyr.
"And it seems our dear queen needs a bit of attention," Maram added with a bit of a chuckle.
Sliding out of the bed, she moved over and wrapped her arms around R'enh. She pressed her head into his back as her arms circled his waist. The sound of a tiny, chirping finally caused her to draw back.
Zoom was looking at her as though she'd grown two heads. "I don't think he's thrilled to share you with me." Maram released her hold on R'enh and turning, picked up a robe from the bed, slipping her arms into it.
"I'm going to bathe and then see to Chalarath and the lower caverns. You don't need me at your meeting do you?" Maram wasn't sure. Every Weyrleader was different in their decisions to include the Weyrwoman in different matters.
Tag R'enh
End Maram
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Post by R'enh and Mnoranth on Jul 20, 2010 19:12:43 GMT -5
"…it seems our dear queen needs a bit of attention,,"
His arms caressed her where hers wrapped around him but then Zoom chimed in. He smiled and a finger caressed him but when he felt the little ones possessiveness he cautioned him.
"I don't think he's thrilled to share you with me." he turned and smiled down into her eyes, “Well he’s going to have to learn to live with it.” Then watched her don her robe.
"I'm going to bathe and then see to Chalarath and the lower caverns. You don't need me at your meeting do you?"
He thought a moment, he was mainly going to talk about setting up the wings so she could skip this one of she wanted.
“I think you can beg off on this one if you want, just planning out the wings,” then he lifted a finger and a brow “but don’t make a habit out of it.”
Sorelle had been N’lon’s right hand and knew as much about what was happening with the riders as she did about feeding them. “I’m worried about supplies though and need you to give me an idea of what we’ll need to acquire. We will have to forage, we can’t expect any tithe at all for at least a year so we’re going to have to meet with craft leaders as well shortly.” He didn’t want to begin to think about how they were going to supply the dragons they had with enough firestone to fight thread.
He took a deep breath. So much to do.
Tag Maram/End R’enh
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