[PRP] Sunshine in the Midst of a Storm (Ty'bar & Vennodren)

[Hattaki]

Lightning shattered the sky, loud enough to startle the dark-skinned rider from his bed with a suddenness that wound him on the floor despite his best efforts. It had been months and yet still his equilibrium was slightly off, sudden motions making him wobble about like a hatchling. A groan pulled from him as Ty'bar righted himself and rolled his shoulders, brown eyes taking in the silence around him soberly.

It was the middle of the night. Why was he awake in the middle of the night?

SHE RISES!

The thunder in his head nearly drove him to his knees once more, Asilaeth was impatiently waiting for him. Very impatiently.

What are you talking about 'laeth? Who rises? What on earth is happening?

Come to me, dance in the rain on this night as Vimiath rises in the sky!

A rush passed through him, a feeling that he had felt in the past but never recently. Without a word he lurched to his feet and out of the sleeping quarters into the pouring rain that drummed the ground. His sleeping clothes were soaked instantly, bare feet suddenly cold as he sought his way across the slick ground of the Weyr to where Asilaeth paced, eyes swirling a brilliant orange. The darkness was rent by bright flashes of light, each followed by a booming clap of thunder that broke through his otherwise useless hearing and startled him. He was feeling jumpy despite himself as the feeling unfurled in the pit of his stomach.

What was this desire, this feeling close to need that poured through him. Ty'bar had been through many a gold flight and never had he felt this strongly. Was Asilaeth considering rising herself? She had never done so before, but then he'd never felt this before.

Ty'bar unintentionally walked into a wall in his dazed and distracted state, smacking it full on with his wet body. Laughter erupted from him as he rubbed at his scarred face and sighed.

"What a night this will be."

SilverLutz

 

[SilverLutz]

Vennodren was exhausted from a hard day of chores and classes, the typical day of a Candidate. Having spent the last twelve Turns as a Candidate, he thought he might eventually get used to the taxing, yet educational days. Those in charge found various ways to keep long-time Candidates busy, though, and each day was a new adventure and experience for Venn. He took them in stride and always gave them his all, hoping that every lesson learned, class attended, and chore completed would make him that much more desirable in the eyes of a dragon.

A particularly loud boom woke Venn from a sound sleep and he yawned, peering up at the window of his small room. It was storming outside and normally he'd sleep through weather like this without a problem, but something was different. Something was...not wrong. Just off. There were sounds mixed in among the normal stormy symphony that sounded like-

"Dragons," he said softly to himself as he slid out of bed, moving to the window quickly. As he did so a flash of lightning lit up the sky, as well as the golden dragon swiftly gaining height. A lurch of delight ran through the Candidate as he watched her dark outline soar, other smaller dragons joining her. A gold flight!

Although he knew there were rules against breaking curfew, Venn tossed all cares to the wind as he tore out of his room with delight, eager to watch the flight despite the rain. He found himself running without a destination in mind, just trying to find the best place to observe as the dragons continued to rise. He stared up into the rain with a huge grin plastered on his face, squinting against the water as it soaked him through. He knew what this meant - soon a clutch would be laid and a hatching would take place. Perhaps this was his time!

As he ran he began to feel the flight lust tug at him, pulling him to join in despite not having a dragon to do so. He couldn't wait for the day his own dragon might join in the flight, or perhaps have one of her own if he Impressed a green. Venn was lost in thought, so much so that he almost didn't notice the green dragon not far from where he stood, nor her rider that had bumped into a wall. He did, however, hear the comment over the sound of the storm.

Turning, he spotted both dragon and rider, two faces he had seen in passing in the Weyr but that he had never met. The man was darker than he and bore the scars of Thread and the dragon behind him was proof of his status. Venn felt his heart pound a bit faster with delight as he approached the other man, grinning wide enough to hurt his cheeks.

"What a night indeed! A gold flight...I wonder who it is," he said, squinting up at the sky once more. By now the dragons had risen into the clouds and all he could make of the flight were the occasional roars of the dragons high above.

Hattaki

 

[Hattaki]

With his hand still covering his face and his embarrassment nearly palpable on the damp night, Ty'bar flicked an eye in the direction of the younger candidate that stood before him so suddenly. Had he been able to hear he might have discerned how he came upon him so abruptly, but could only assume it was due to a late night rush through the Weyr. A grin flashed over his face at the smile, taking it in and feeling... what was he feeling? This boy was clearly at least a decade younger than his thirty six turns and he was a bit taller to add to the oddness of it all. There were marks on his wrists and hands, teachings and notes no doubt.

That brought on a true smile that pulled at Ty'bar's scars and he stopped using his hand to hide his rather proud if marred features so that he could face the newcomer. Had he seen him somewhere before? He knew that he was a candidate, but other than that he was fairly uninformed of his origins and Ty'bar liked to know everyone in the Weyr.

Did you catch what he said 'laeth?

The small dragon pressed herself against him and forced his left arm up over her shoulders, though that wasn't exactly hard to do, it only brought his arm level with his own shoulder. Asilaeth was not the largest dragon after all and her dainty head craned to look at the other man.

He wishes to know who flies this night. Even a candidate can feel the lust of flight it seems.

To her credit, her eyes stopped swirling orange and had switched instead to a welcoming, if not entirely warm blue that matched her mellow and monotone nature perfectly. If she could have winked an eye she most likely would have done so, a not so subtle hint. Ty'bar patted her neck and nodded to the man.

"Golden Vimiath is in the sky. The fastest shall chase her to a new clutch of eggs for Impressing." Why did he feel slightly awkward as he said that?

This man before him was old enough to be a full dragon rider by now, clearly Impressions had come and passed for him just as they had for Ty'bar so long ago in High Reaches. A shudder passed down his spine at the thought. Lucky this man was down in Western Weyr, he'd have been delegated to drudge or less by now if not. He'd once filled that position while he stood candidacy. The marks of it had faded with the Turns, but only the physical ones, replaced by the marks of a rider.

Grounded.

He had to remind himself, even if it hurt. Ty'bar shook his head and watched the face before him for a clue as to the next sentence that might pass those lips. The rider didn't take into account if it would be considered odd for both himself and his dragon to be staring so intently, though he at least had a reason to. Ty'bar thought of elbowing Asilaeth to stop being so protective, but it had done no good in the past.

SilverLutz

 

[SilverLutz]

Venn turned his attention from the sky to the man in front of him who was now joined by his dragon. The green was quite pretty in coloration and pattern and she was also quite small, giving her the advantage of snuggling up to her rider without the immediate fear of crushing him. He waited as the two spoke - bouts of silence were common when a dragon and their rider were speaking - and the answer had him smile even wider. It was a gold, then. The lightning hadn't been playing tricks on him. For a few moments he had been a bit worried his mind had seen what it wished to see and that the dragon was actually a green, but now hope and joy bloomed within him all over again. This wasn't the first time this had happened to him. In fact, it happened fairly frequently! But his hopes were high as ever and the dragon rider before him-

Was staring at him. Intently. As was the dragon. Venn glanced between the two, a little unsure of why he was under such close scrutiny, but with the feelings of happiness and joy and flight lust rolling around in his chest it was hard to be too thrown off by being watched by two pairs of eyes.

"That's wonderful," he said, speaking up to be heard over the rain, a laugh following his words. "Perhaps this time a dragon will choose me as their own. I do hope for a green," he added, glancing fondly at the small dragon. He'd happily take any color that wanted him by this point, of course, but green had always been his favorite color and it seemed suitable that he should wish for one. That and his sexual preferences would make a brown or bronze and bit awkward for any green or gold rider that wished to join in her dragon's delight with him.

"I'm Vennodren. Candidate," he added with a nod to the rider. "I think I've seen you around...your dragon is beautiful," he added, giving the green a wistful look. "And your rider is clearly one of great bravery," he added, speaking to the dragon this time with another smile. Those who had fought against the Threadfall were, in his book, big-time heroes.

Hattaki

 

[Hattaki]

A candidate with impeccable taste.

Asilaeth was basking in the glow of being complimented and having heard her beloved rider be held to such a high standard. To know that there were those who took that sort of thing into consideration, though he might not have known that they were a grounded pair, it still filled the dragon with a relaxed sort of happiness that brought a happy trill from her. She stretched her head towards Vennodren and trilled once more, as if to call him forward.

To his credit, Ty'bar watched the interaction with interest. It appeared that Asilaeth was showing her approval for the younger man and the way that she was trying to get him to scratch her brow ridges... A roar rumbled too close and he looked up to see the golden queen bank just shy of the caldera's looming wall. It seemed closer than necessary. A wave passed through him as the males followed suit, some missing and some colliding in their desire to follow Vimiath yet higher.

It was always amazing to watch those large dragons in flight.

A wing caught him in the side. Turning his brown eyes quickly back towards the candidate he caught the words 'dragon is beautiful' but missed the others. Pulling his eyebrows together, but still feeling a rush at having Asilaeth complimented, he waited and read the rest of the words with ease. He was getting better.

"I'm sorry, I missed your name." Ty'bar pointed at his ears. "These are almost useless, save for loud noises, and I'm still getting used to paying attention to how people move their lips."

He flashed his most winning smile and moved his marked features into a properly embarrassed expression to show his regret for having missed the other man's words. And it was a shame he missed the name offered, for the man before him was looking better and better the more the flight lust overtook him. Not that he hadn't before, but the age difference was still present in Ty'bar's mind, even as the flight attempted to wash all reason from it.

"My name's Ty'bar and this is Asilaeth, who apparently wants very much to make your acquaintance.", he offered a wink and crossed his arms to keep back the feelings rumbling there. He'd just met him, surely he couldn't follow the feral feelings rushing through him.

Ty'bar focused on the rain drumming his shoulders as he watched the man with what would appear to be calmness. It took all he had to calm the need within him to move, to race through the night and grab the hand of the one in front of him to follow. A candidate hadn't felt the rush of riding a dragon through the air, but Ty'bar wanted to share it with him for some reason.

SilverLutz

 

[SilverLutz]

The noise that came from the dragon had Venn laughing softly, pleased that he had gotten on her good side so quickly. He reached out a hand as she leaned in, giving her a moment to scent him before letting his fingers scratch and pat and rub any place she tilted her head to encourage him to pay attention to. Each dragon had their own preferred area for affection, just like any other creature, and he knew that while some loved getting rubbed under their chin, others detested it and wanted to be scratched between their eyes.

His attention turned back to the sky as the dragons swooped low overhead, the wind from their wings tossed his and and the rider's clothes despite how wet they were. Along with them came a fresh wave of flight lust, sending a shiver down Venn's back as he and the shorter male met eyes once again. It was clear that the other man was a good decade his senior, but age had always been a number to Venn.

The comment caught him off-guard, his face flushing slightly as he was told the rider was hard of hearing. He hadn't known, of course, and yet he still felt badly for not speaking louder or directly at him. It was enough to drown out the feelings swirling in his mind for a few minutes as he shook his head, not wanting his new acquaintance to feel badly himself.

"Terribly sorry, I'll be sure to speak facing you," he said as he gave the dragon another affectionate rub along her cheek. As the man introduced themselves - Ty'bar and Asilaeth - Venn gave another little smile as he nodded, quite glad that the dragon had approved of him so quickly.

"It's a pleasure to meet you both. I'm Vennodren," he repeated, making sure to emphasize the 'v' shape instead of the 'f'. He could see how the two might get confused. Asileath wasn't far though and could surely pick up on anything Ty'bar might have missed.

Another roar from overhead sent a little shiver through the younger man and a flash of lightning and clap of thunder startled him enough to step a bit closer to the duo, his arm no longer outstretched to reach Asilaeth. He gave Ty'bar a sheepish look, trying to determine if he'd be willing to enjoy the gold flight with him. Generally anyone was down for a roll in the hay on nights like tonight, but it was always a bit hard to determine if a person shared his preferences.

"It's a rather exciting night, don't you think? I feel like the storm adds to it all."

Hattaki

 

[Hattaki]

Ty'bar reacted to Vennodren's sudden move closer by reaching out to grab his shoulder and steady him, completely instinctive on his side as he had recently had issues with his equilibrium. A side effect of the damage to his head that had taken most of his hearing, so of course he was still adjusting and apparently grabbing at candidates?

If he could have slapped himself silly...

And the hits to your ego keep coming!

The rider chose not to acknowledge Asilaeth's attempt at ribbing him for his awkwardness and inclined his head to Vennodren but didn't release his shoulder. If asked later he would have brushed it off with a laugh and wandered off, in the moment though he knew all the reasons that he held onto the other man. Desire and need had taken control of him, pushing out logic and functioning mentality, even words were coming slowly to him as he wrung his brain for a response to him. Ty'bar cleared his throat and took a deep breath that proved useless in helping to calm his feelings.

"The lightning is certainly doing a good job setting the mood. Vimiath has never had a calm flight.", the rough sound to his voice would most likely give him away.

Asilaeth released a loud hum and suddenly disappeared from their sides, her parting words were not sarcastic or her usual monotone, but rather words of encouragement. It had been a long recovery for both of them and she informed him that he deserved such a night. The little green had returned to her usual bed, content to watch the gold flight from afar.

He couldn't have cared less at the moment, Ty'bar was focused on Vennodren's smile and tried to muster up his courage. He wanted to simply allow himself to fall into those passions stirred from the gold so far above, but he had only just met this lovely man. The end was coming though and he wondered if Vennodren felt it as the rider unconsciously stepped closer to him, only his will keeping him from attacking the other man in a not-at-all-violent manner.

Dooo iiiit!

SilverLutz

 

[SilverLutz]

The hand on his shoulder seemed to be the catalyst that kick-started the sudden desire that flooded through his body. Venn had lived through gold flight after gold flight and he knew that riders had the dual sensation of their own reaction to it as well as their dragon's. As a Candidate he didn't get that double-dose of intensity, but once he found someone to share the night with his own generally ramped up. He'd spent about half with someone and half on his own, but he much preferred to revel in the dragon's delight with other people.

He stared at Ty'bar as silence passed between them, words really not needed for the time being. There was a mutual understanding between them - yes, there was an age gap and yes, one was a Candidate...but did that matter? Not really - that was the final clue they were both looking for. Vennodren could almost see the flip being switched in the other man. The change in the tone of voice made Venn smile once more, now able to hear as well as see and feel that Ty'bar was definitely in the same boat as he was.

Asilaeth disappeared from their side, leaving the two humans to do as they pleased. The strong, scarred hand was still on his shoulder and Venn stepped closer once more, his own hands reaching out for the older man to rest on his waist.

"Shall we move somewhere that's a little more dry?" Now that his dragon was gone, Venn knew Ty'bar would need some time to process what he said and possibly for him to repeat it. That was fine - eventually there wouldn't be a need for words at all.

Hattaki

 

[Hattaki]

It didn't take any convincing for Ty'bar once the gap had been closed further, once he knew how Vennodren felt and that his desires ran along the same vein as his own the rider released his hold on the flight lust. Finding somewhere much much drier and possibly less open sounded like a grand idea, how had he not thought of that before? Of course there wasn't a lot of thinking going on in Ty'bar's head presently, not that he could be blamed when the rest of the Weyr was giving in to the amours of the night.

The necessity of raising himself higher to kiss the younger man seemed odd, but the rough and lust heavy kiss gave Ty'bar the confidence that he needed to act. Letting the kiss drag out slightly longer, he grabbed one of the hands on his waist and broke away, pulling Vennodren after him.

"I think I have an idea where we could go.", was the only indication that Ty'bar gave to indicate what he might be thinking.

Of course, what he was really thinking was how glad he was that there were no stairs on their course. He really didn't know if he could take stairs in his current state.

Luckily for him the route he'd taken to Asilaeth hadn't actually been all that far, the little green usually didn't venture too far away as it was, and the entrance to his Weyr came up abruptly. Though he was still about to drag Vennodren in behind him, Ty'bar wanted to be at least slightly polite about it. Instead he stopped and motioned to the drier space, face flushed and desires just barely held in place, the rider still wanted to leave the options open for the younger candidate, lest he changed his mind.

"It's not fancy, but it's drier than out here.", he laughed despite himself, feeling his insecurities biting at his heels as if to remind him that somewhere under his smile he still thought less of himself. It was a great effort to brush that aside and wave an arm in welcome.

SilverLutz

 

[SilverLutz]

It seemed the suggestion did the trick, breaking the spell between them that kept them at bay. Venn wasn't inexperienced, per say, but he was used to hanging around Candidates much younger than he was so it was a bit nice to find a guy older than he was to spend the flight with. The kiss was a precursor of things to come and Venn didn't need much encouragement to return it eagerly, his heart already pounding in his chest with anticipation.

He hung on to Ty'bar's hand as the shorter man led the way through the rain, heading for the shelter of his Weyr. Venn could see Asilaeth inside sheltering from the storm and obviously waiting for her rider to join her. The comment from Ty'bar made him laugh as he tugged the older man in from the large doorway before letting go to reach up and wring out his hair a bit.

"And it's not my shared room back in the Candidate's dormitory," he said with a wry grin. That was definitely not the place to go for a night like tonight. The area was cozy and not overly huge since the little green didn't require as much room as a bronze or even a large brown might, but it made for a perfect space to enjoy the evening and one another.

"As much as I appreciate your hospitality, Ty'bar," he added, making sure the rider was facing him as he spoke. "I would be quite obliged if you could show me your bed."

Hattaki

 

[Hattaki]

Pulled into his own Weyr, Ty'bar felt a feral grin slide over his face. He did, however, allow Vennodren time to wring out anything dripping on him as the rider tried to decide what to pull off first. Rain wasn't really a bad thing to him, neither was being wet, he didn't notice outside things when he was completely in his own mind and currently that couldn't be said.

Though he read the other man's lips and actually knew what he said, the rider could have cared less in that moment to respond. All he needed was the knowledge of the other's intent and he pushed him towards the bed with a kiss that spoke of everything he had been holding back.



Silence and warmth met a foggy head when morning sun shown through the small Weyr. Ty'bar was accustomed to being awake at early hours but not like this. One of his arms was asleep and felt pinned by something foreign.

Opening his brown eyes, the rider realized the reason for his warmth and exactly what was pinning his arm down. Realization cleared in his mind and the tangle of limbs and body made sense as he peered at Vennodren's sleeping form before him. Despite his slight discomfort, Ty'bar chose not to move just yet, he had reached out to Asilaeth and found her sleeping as well. It had been a long time since there had been someone to share his bed with, having held himself back on the last few gold flights thanks to recovery and uncertainty.

The quiet moments of morning gave him a chance to reflect and collect himself as he tried to mellow his breathing to match his previous state of sleep.

SilverLutz

 

[SilverLutz]

The sun was what woke Vennodren first, stirring him from a deep slumber. Up in his room the sun would light up his bed in the evening, not the morning, so to feel the warm rays touching his skin so early was a rather pleasant way to wake up. As his senses began to stir he became even more aware that he was not in his room. For one, there was no snoring. One of his roommates sounded like he was sawing wood most nights and while he had gotten used to it, Venn was glad for the silence. The smells were very different as well, much more earthy and alive. It was then that he noticed the body pressed to his own and the previous night came back to him with a little grin on his lips. Oh yes...now he remembered.

He shifted just a bit, feeling an arm under him, and he slowly opened his eyes to see that Ty'bar was already well awake. He gave the older man a sleepy smile as he stretched, shifting a little to pull the surely dead arm out from under him.

"Good morning," he said softly, happily hugging the arm that had been previously under him to his chest, his fingers rubbing the muscle to help stimulate blood flow once again. "Slept well?"

Hattaki

 

[Hattaki]

He would have sighed when his arm was released from the weight pinning it down, however it hadn't been a real discomfort and having Vennodren close was comfortable. Fingers rubbing into the muscles of his arm felt good, even if he had to resist flexing muscles out of impulse to the tingling that came to the tips of his own fingers and reminded him of how his head had felt. Ty'bar focused his eyes on Vennodren's lips and let a grin spread over his face slowly, he could almost feel the words being this close. The words felt rumbly even if they had been spoken quietly, words had a feeling now, one that he had never noticed before.

Then again it had been quite some time since he'd been this close to another, Ty'bar still considered himself worthless as a grounded rider.

"It's been some time since I slept that well, actually." he used his good arm, which had been haphazardly thrown over the other man's side, to rub at his eyes in an attempt to dispell any clouding that covered them. "Must'a been weird, away from your own bed though. This place must be small compared to those dorms."

Waving with his free arm, Ty'bar encompassed the small weyr, still somewhat new to himself even. It was tiny, if cozy, but he called it home for many a month and there was a certain pride in knowing that he had somewhere to go after duties. Duties that he seemed to have no problem forgetting about the morning after a gold flight. Ty'bar felt no rush to rise as he watched the other man's face carefully for his response, it was certainly more comfortable lying in a dry bed.

[quote"SilverLutz"]  

[SilverLutz]

Venn chuckled softly, glad he could have assisted in helping the older man sleep, even if he had only played a temporary role. A quick glance around the small Weyr made him shrug a shoulder before scooting in, curling his legs a bit to shove his feet between Ty'bar's legs. His toes were a little chilly.

"It's nice to get away from it, to be honest," he admitted. He'd been there for so many years and seen so many Candidates come and go that for just a moment, feeling like a rider was amazing.

"I think it's very nice," he added with a yawn, reaching in to pat Ty'bar's cheek sleepily, his eyes closing again. It was nice to wake up slowly rather than jumping at the call of the Candidatemaster to begin lessons and chores. Being able to take his time waking was a treasure he'd cherish.

"Thanks for letting me stay," he added, opening an eye with a tiny grin. "It was a great night."

Hattaki

 

[Hattaki]

Smiling gently and laying his free arm over Vennodren's side once more, he let the memories of the night slide a contented grin over his face. He didn't have a lot of chances to spend the night with someone, he'd try to hold onto the memory of it the best he could when life went back to normal in a little bit. However he was never sure what to say in the mornings...

"It was a great night, lightning and all.", he chuckled and moved his legs to allow the cold toes between them without complaint, "And you can stay as long as you like, though at some point we might consider getting lunch.

Choosing that moment to remind him of his hunger, Ty'bar's stomach growled somewhat loudly and was met with a snort that indicated Asilaeth's wakefulness. Lifting up onto his elbow and looking out across the room he saw the little green stretching her wings and legs, eyes swirling an impish light blue color. The little thing could have stayed asleep for a bit longer, but then that would have been slightly frightening too. Asilaeth had only slept for long periods after being wounded and had finally returned to normal after their physical wounds were healed. Now she was his perfect green again.

"Look at that, I managed to wake the beast.", Ty'bar winked at Vennodren.

Only that cavern you call a stomach. It could wake the dead.

SilverLutz