From:
"Isha Arrowhawk" <arianneshadowwalker@worldnet.att.net> Date: Thu Aug 8, 2002 11:56
pm Subject: Friendly discussions, fun dinners, and funked out dragons
Day 4
Late Evening
K'rvey watched as Eth'n took to the air, carrying the unconscious woman
to the med center. He hadn't really been formally introduced to the
trainer before, but he liked his first impression of him. He turned
around and inhaled deeply before he half-limped into the building.
Inside, he saw people carrying the unconscious slowly outside while the
people who were affected by the gas, but not enough to pass out, simply
struggled to get out.
Rushing inside, K'rvey grabbed the nearest unconscious person by the
feet, a young woman, and began dragging her out as he nervously watched
the rope he had tied to the end of Nhorit's tail swing back and forth.
{Nhorit,} he called, {how's that load of yours coming along?}
Immediately, K'rvey's mind filled with his dragon's annoyance. [You
found the rudest human to carry out your idea, rider!] The dragon spat,
[He keeps tugging at my tail as if he wanted to pull it out!]
{Uh, Nhorit? I think that means you should pull.} K'rvey suggested.
[Oh!]
The rope suddenly became rigid and, to K'rvey's relief, began dragging
what could only be over a dozen people outside. Sighing in relief,
K'rvey gave the Dining Hall and quick look over. A few unconscious
people here and there, but each were being attended for. Within minutes
the Dining Hall would be completely clear.
"Looks like it's just me and you darling." He whispered to the
unconscious person.
K'rvey grunted and finished dragging the woman outside, pausing only
momentarily to take a deep breath of fresh air. Pulling her further
away, he couldn't help but to smile as her shirt caught on the grass and
rolled up, exposing the contents beneath.
He laughed lightly and whispered, "Guess being a hero has its perks."
Leaning down, he began pulling her shirt back down when a voice behind
him brought his attention away from the girl's cleavage.
"Yes, I suppose it does, K'rvey." Sarilyn giggled.
K'rvey's hands shot away from the girl's shirt and he stood up and
yelped, "Sarilyn!"
Sarilyn shook her head slowly and said, "It would be more gentlemanly if
you pulled her by her underarms, instead of her legs though."
K'rvey grinned sheepishly and put his hand behind his head as he
laughed, "Yeah. I suppose it would."
Then as K'rvey looked at her face, she suddenly went serious. Her
giggles seemingly not reaching the fright in her eyes, and she asked
softly, "What happened? Have I transferred into a warren that is going
to destroy itself in front of my eyes? I don't have anywhere else to go,
K'rvey! I'm really *scared*!"
The goofy smile vanished as K'rvey noticed the woman's change of tone.
"Hey, don't worry," he said in the most comforting tone he could manage
as he put his hand on her shoulder, "I'm sure it was just a gas main
that burst or something. No biggie."
Sarilyn simply moved, wrapping her arms around K'rvey's chest and leaned
against him, still shaking with fear. "No biggie, ok. It's just that we
never had that at Xylian, and I mean, if it happens now, it could happen
again right? Don't those gasses go all over the underground here? The
entire place could blow up! How can everyone be so calm about it?"
She buried her head against him and shook, too scared to do more than
that for a while.
K'rvey placed an arm on her shoulder and held her for a bit, unsure of
what else to do.
Finally after a few minutes he pulled her away and looked at her eyes,
"A lot of bad things can happen. We just have to deal with them as they
come I guess.
He went around the unconscious girl on the floor and began dragging her
to where the rest of the unconscious people were being taken.
"Besides," he said as the goofy smile returned to his face, "You have
nothing to fear!" he said in an exaggerated masculine voice. "I'll
protect you!"
A small giggle escaped Sarilyn as she relaxed a bit. K'rvey laughed and
jerked his head back. Unfortunately, he was reminded of his burns
because of it. After he had finished hissing in pain and clamping his
eyes shut, he proceeded to cuss quickly and then groan in annoyance.
"Sorry." He apologized to Sarilyn, "Have to watch my mouth more."
"Don't worry about it, you should hear me when I'm trying to get those
in my...I mean...when I used to be Wingleader. My poor mother had to get
used to me cursing like a man. But M'ris thought it was funny...said I
had finally grown up, taken control of myself."
She was about to say something else when Maedralyn stood upon a chair
and raised her voice to the assembled crowd outside the Dining Hall.
"Everyone! If I could have your attention please!" she said in a loud
authoritative tone, demanding silence, "As of yet, we don't know what
caused the gas. However, we don't believe there is any immediate danger,
so I recommend everyone to return to their homes. We'll announce what
we've found out tomorrow. The Med Center staff will take care of the
people who are unconscious and if you wish to remain with friends or
family, fine. But I must ask everyone else to clear this area right
away." She looked around and sighed, "Sorry folks, the party is over."
She stepped down from her chair and disappeared from sight. A general
murmur began and people began to leave.
K'rvey turned to Sarilyn and said with a wink, "So, are we all set for a
night of obvious restlessness?"
"Yes, and who knows what else?" she smiled, "Do you by any chance still
have that bottle of wine? I want to relax, and just unwind, in any way I
can right now. And I want to check your back again too."
A slightly confused expression took hold of K'rvey eyes and he scratched
his cheek with his finger. "Eh... yeah sure." he said. He couldn't tell
if he was imagining things or not, but was this woman actually flirting
back?
K'rvey was disrupted from his thoughts as Nhorit added a snide remark
whilst he grinned, awaiting for them a short distance away, [A rare
occurrence my rider?]
{Oh, be quiet.} he responded as he began leading Sarilyn towards the
huge crimson dragon.
[My, aren't we touchy?], he mocked as his rider walked up to him and
opened the pack on his harness, pulling out the bottle of wine. K'rvey
turned to Sarilyn and showed her the bottle, smiling.
Sarilyn smiled back and began thinking about asking K'rvey why he seemed
slightly surprised about her wanting to go back to his place with him.
After all, hadn't he offered? And she really did need something to relax
her. If anything happened, well...she smiled softly, it would happen.
[By the way, would you mind untying this rope?] Nhorit said to his rider
as he showed him the rope dangling from his tail. [It's starting to...
to...] Nhorit's huge draconic face suddenly glazed over and he began
shaking his head back and forth while he began inhaling in short,
gasping breaths.
K'rvey's eyes immediately dilated in horror and he rushed to Sarilyn,
pulling her close and forced both of them to duck.
Huge gasps filled their ears finally ending with the huge dragon losing
control and begin sneezing uncontrollably. K'rvey grimaced as he buried
his face deeper in Sarilyn's hair, holding her closer, trying to shield
her from any projectile dragon snot. He began to wonder if he would have
to end up explaining a few more burns to Libby before the night was
over. Well, he thought as his breathing slowed, finding comfort in the
scent emanating from the woman, at least I have an excuse to hold a
pretty woman for a bit.
Sneeze after mind-blowing sneeze echoed in their heads as they cowered
before the huge beast, until to both of their surprises, like the
world's biggest dog, they heard a sharp yelp of pain.
K'rvey opened one eye, then the other, and finally pulled his face from
the Sarilyn's hair. He looked up and saw Nhorit, painfully licking the
tip of his tail, the charred remains of a rope by his rear claws.
The dragon visibly sighed and said, [Never mind about the rope.]
All of Sarilyn's previous thoughts vanished from her mind as she looked
at poor Nhorit's tail. "Oh you poor dear! Your *tail*!"
Her face blanked out for a few moments, and soon Lunath appeared,
landing softly next to Nhorit, offering comforting croons.
Sarilyn moved to grab a pack from the riding harness of her dragon...
containing simple dragon healing medicines and herbs. As well as minor
stitching supplies if needed. She dug inside, and smiled, pulling a jar
from it and moving to offer it to K'rvey and taking the bottle of wine
he was still grasping.
"Here, this will numb his tail, and your healer can handle the rest. But
using this will at least take the pain out so he isn't so miserable."
K'rvey took the jar and opened it, taking a sniff. He immediately
recoiled and made a face.
"That really smells nasty!" he cried as he began walking to the tip of
his dragon's tail.
{All right you big oaf.} he told his dragon, {Let me see.}
Nhorit shook his huge head and held his tail with his front paws,
hugging it closely.
[ No way! If it smells nasty, it MUST hurt. ]
K'rvey groaned. {Quit being a baby!}, he said as he began reaching for
his tail.
[ No! ], the dragon said as he hissed at his rider, [It doesn't even
hurt that much anyway.]
{Look, this is suppose to make it numb. It's not going to hurt!}
[ No! ]
{Come on buddy. You're making me look bad here.}
The dragon brought his snout down to K'rvey's face and snorted hot steam
in his face.
"Damn it Nhorit!" K'rvey spat out loud, "Gimme that tail! I'm not in the
mood to put up with this!"
The dragon growled menacingly and opened his wings. He twisted around
and turned away from K'rvey as he began running to take off. K'rvey
quickly placed a generous amount of the gooey white content of the jar
in his hand and with an impressive aim, managed to hit the tip of
Nhorit's tail as the dragon took to the air.
K'rvey grabbed his shoulder as the burned skin stretched, screaming in
his head. Confused and in pain, he watched his dragon take to the air.
{YOU ASS!}, he yelled in his dragon's mind, {WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU!}
K'rvey sighed and watched as the dragon flew away into the night.
Turning around, he walked back to where Sarilyn was looking at him with
an uncertain look in her eyes. He blushed in embarrassment and
apologized for his dragon's actions.
"I'm sorry. This is really unlike him... I don't know what's gotten in
him. Please don't think badly of us." He bared his teeth and looked down
at his feet, obviously uncomfortable at the moment, "I never thought I'd
ever have to say this to a fellow rider, but, do you think I can get a
ride with you? I somehow doubt Nhorit will be coming back anytime soon."
Sarilyn watched Nhorit's outline disappear into the night with complete
confusion on her face. "K'rvey, I think there is something seriously
wrong with your dragon. I can't quite place it, but it'll come to me, I
know it will." She turned her face to her companion, smiled, and said,
"And of course you can ride with me, but you'll have to tell me where to
have Lunath go, because I haven't a clue where you live."
She moved to her beloved blue, placed the bottle of wine in her harness,
and hauled up, offering a hand to assist K'rvey. "She's quite a gentle
dragon, and her flying is such a relaxing thing. I'm so lucky to have her."
K'rvey took her hand and pulled himself behind her. He sighed silently
and wrapped his arms around her waist, his dragon's actions still
lingering in his mind.
Probably nothing more than a headache, he thought, the big guy *is* sick.
Within seconds they were in the air and heading towards the dragon
rider's apartments.
*******
K'rvey slid off of Lunath's back and thanked the gods that this night
was finally coming to an end. Sarilyn jumped down in front on him and
turned around to face him. "So how did you like the ride?" she said.
He grinned and scratched the back of his head. "Uh... It seems to be
that Lunath is just as charming as her rider." he mumbled the first
corny reply that came to his head.
The flight back to K'rvey's apartment had indeed been relaxing. It had
eased his worries about Nhorit, however it was not because of Lunath's
flying. It had more to do with the fact that his nose had been
intoxicated with the redhead's scent and his arms had been wrapped
around her warm body. Simply put, it had provided ample distraction.
He was only worried if she had noticed certain, less-than-subtle, body
reactions that had occurred during the flight, especially since their
bodies had been so close.
"Oh keep that up, and I'll follow you anywhere, flatterer," Sarilyn said
with a giggle as she reached for the wine bottle. "Seriously, I could
tell you that I was trained to be charming, which I was, or that I'm
expected to put people at ease, which I used to be expected to do at
Xylian, because of my...umm, background...but instead, I'll just thank
you for the compliment, which I rarely get, pop the cork on this bottle,
and relax with you. Does that sound ok?"
She moved to offer a hug, and said softly, "He'll be ok, maybe he's
jealous or something. Should I send Lunath to keep him company?" She had
a feeling he was worried about Nhorit, and to be honest, so was she.
Something simply didn't sit right in her mind and it was going to drive
her crazy until she figured it out.
"No, it's ok," K'rvey, said as he gratefully accepted the hug and winced
slightly as Sari brushed a burn, "I think he wants to be alone for a while."
The door of the single rider's apartment opened and K'rvey reached for a
lamp to light the room.
"Okay, the apartment is a bit of a mess," he said as light streamed from
the small flame, illuminating the tossed clothes on a wooden rocking
chair and the odd pieces of random chain mail spread across the main
living room floor, "but I call it home."
He smiled as he turned around to his guest and said, "The bathroom is
right there," he pointed to a door to his left, "if you want to shower
or freshen up a bit. The bedroom is that door to the right of it. I'd
give you the room to yourself, but both beds are in there and I don't
know about you, but I seriously do not feel like moving furniture right
now." He grinned and pointed to the door opposite the bedroom. "If you'd
like anything to eat," he continued, " The kitchen is right there."
Taking the bottle of wine, he smiled and said, "Now let's see if we can
get you that glass of wine you've been after all evening."
Sari smiled as she listened to K'rvey's description of his apartment,
and her gaze took in the chain mail for a moment or two, bringing
another conversation topic to her mind before she spoke...it could come
up later on.
"A bath sounds lovely, in a little while, and a snack sounds
perfect...do you have cheese, bread, and fruit? Those would go
splendidly with the wine, and I don't mind both beds in the same room at
all," she added in as naturally as you please. "Oh, and get a glass for
you, I really don't like conversation over wine drinking by myself. It's
more fun sharing the experience, and besides, you look like you could
use a drink yourself.
A loud belly laugh escaped K'rvey's lips and he sat down slowly on the
couch in the main living room, wiping tears from his eyes.
"This is... this is coming from the woman who forcefully emptied my gut
a few hours ago!" he managed to say between laughs. "Alright, I'll drink
with you, but I will not be held accountable for my actions! And I won't
let you pull that nasty trick on me again either."
Still chuckling to himself, he took the woman's hand with his and led
her to the kitchen with the lamp in the other. A round wooden table with
scratches all around the edges was the centerpiece of the room,
surrounded by four plain chairs. On top of the table was a large chain
mail coat, which K'rvey quickly picked up and tossed back in the main
living room on top of the rocking chair, and placed the wine bottle
where it had been. There were a few dirty dishes on the sink to the
left, and to the right were cabinets and a medium sized icebox. He
quickly pulled up a chair for the woman and sat her down.
"Okay, you sit right there and start telling me about yourself, while I
get the food."
"First off, you have my word I won't give you my hangover fix again."
She said quickly.
K'rvey smiled. "Well, that's good."
"That was before the world shook and everything went crazy. Now, I need
to relax, and so do you. I can tell you're worried about Nhorit."
"A little..." he lied, "But I want to hear a bit about you right now."
Sari chuckled, "A bit about me. Well...I'm a former Wingleader with
responsibilities. I'm now just another rider who has to work her way up
the chain of command again, learn how things are done here, make new
friends...I hope, and manage to find happiness in a new place. I'm sure
my father would just tell me to 'Take hold of the situation and turn it
to my advantage, like I'm supposed to'," her voice changed, as she tried
to imitate Alexirn's voice.
"But," she shrugged softly, "I'm scared of people resenting me because
of who I am, or was, or however you put it, since I am, still his daughter."
As the woman talked, K'rvey began humming and walking in pace with the
tune. He opened a cabinet and took out two tall glasses, three plates,
one larger than the other two, a long bread knife, two butter knives,
and a smaller, sharper knife. Just in case the pretty redhead liked to
peel her fruit, he thought.
He laid the dishes on the table, one plate for each and the larger one
in the center of the table, and placed all of the utensils on the edges
of the center plate.
"And whose daughter are you, Sarilyn?" he asked softly as he finished
setting the table.
Returning to the cabinets, he pulled out a long roll of fresh bread, and
placed it on the center plate. Then, walking to the icebox, he pulled
out some red grapes, two pears, and a stick of butter for the bread.
Sighing softly, Sari watched in silence for a moment or two, liking how
methodical K'rvey was in how he did things. She'd have enjoyed having
him in her Wing back at Xylian... but that was then, this was now, and
she didn't know where she'd end up. "I'm the daughter of the former Lord
Aelixrn and Lady Kedrina, now the sole titleholder of Nambril."
"Wow... impressive."
He placed all the food next to the bread and then continued his slightly
silly dancing/walking across the room to where the dirty dishes were.
Quickly locating a corkscrew, he quickly rinsed it before he returned to
the table.
In a swift motion, he twisted the screw into the bottle and with a
practiced hand, easily popped the cork. He then picked up both glasses
and filled them to the brim with the dark red liquid.
Finally sitting down he raised his cup and said, "So? Should we have a
toast?"
Raising her glass, Sarilyn nodded, "I think we should. To...to new
beginnings, and friendships...may both prove enjoyable and long-lasting."
"Here, here!" cried K'rvey as he clinked glasses with the woman.
*****
It did not take long for K'rvey to become very relaxed. He was home,
drinking good wine, eating good food, and talking to a very beautiful
woman who just seemed glad that he didn't kick her out. It was more than
enough to boost his ego a bit as well as loosen his tongue.
He soon had told Sarilyn all about his rescue of Soucivi years ago. How
he had became his guardian. His parents' forge and where he picked up
how to make simple chain mail armor. The man talked like he had known
Sarilyn his entire life and she had simply forgotten everything about
him. It was soon getting late.
Sarilyn had listened attentively to each and every word, offering
reassurance and comforting hand-squeezes when appropriate, but not
interrupting much. It was one of the things that had made her a good
Wingleader, her ability to listen and really hear what her riders felt.
But he reminded her of what she'd wanted to talk to him about ever since
she'd arrived. "Chain mail! I almost forgot! Thank you for reminding me.
That's a much better weave than I've seen in a long time, and I have
many questions for you about it. But, first," she stood up and
stretched, "I would *love* a shower. Do you mind, it won't take long,
honestly"
"Oh sure! Sure!" K'rvey said standing up himself, "Let me just get you a
towel."
Taking the lamp in his hand, K'rvey led the woman across the main room
and to the bedroom. There, two beds, both facing the wall to their left,
a large wooden closet, standing directly in the center of the spaces in
front of the beds, a chair in the far right corner, and a small table
between the beds, where a small unlit lamp stood, were the only items in
the room.
Opening the closet, K'rvey pulled out a freshly folded brown towel and
handed it to Sarilyn.
Sari accepted the towel with a smile. "Thank you so much, I'll be right
out, honestly. I'm not even tired!" Well, she didn't *think* she was,
anyhow, as she hurried towards the shower. And true to her word, she
didn't take long, no matter that she wanted nothing more than to
luxuriate in that wonderful feeling for the rest of the night.
Wrapping the towel around her, she wandered back out humming softly to
herself.
K'rvey spotted the woman entering the room and appreciatively smiled at
the image of her in a towel.
"All done? Great, now if you don't mind. I'll go take one myself and
hopefully wash the remaining dragon funk from my hair." He grinned and
winked to the woman as he walked out.
"Of coarse if you'd like to take a second one with me, I'd enjoy the
company..." He laughed out loud and walked into the bathroom, not
bothering to hear the woman's answer. He quickly stripped down and
hopped in the tub.
Sarilyn almost turned and followed him back to join him, but decided
against it, for now, and instead, turned towards the kitchen. She then
did their 'dinner' dishes, and topped off her wine glass, sipping a bit
before finally just downing the entire thing, then heading for the
bedroom. She slipped the towel from her body, laying it across a chair,
and slipped between blissfully soft and cool sheets. And amazingly, was
asleep before she'd even gotten completely situated in the bed.
K'rvey meanwhile, had just been about to turn on the water. But before
his hand had reached the knob, he looked down at his chest and wondered
if he should take his bandages off to clean up. The chaos at the Dining
Hall had left them dirty, loose, and basically worthless, however, he
really did not want to invoke Libby's wrath in the morning.
Thinking it over, he reached for a pair of scissors on the sink and
carefully began snipping the white fabric off. The medicine, which had
been applied to his back, had done an excellent job of numbing the pain,
and he didn't even feel anything as the fabric pealed off.
Looking in the mirror, he noticed a few blisters already swelling under
the skin. He shrugged and returned to the tub. He let the water run over
his body for a while, carefully trying to avoid letting the water hit
his back. He then washed his hair and quickly soaped himself up while
leaving the water on.
He stepped out of the tub, dripping wet, and reached for the towel...
the towel he had forgotten to get from his room.
"Well that was stupid of me." he said under his breath.
He looked at the empty towel rack and scratched his head. Then, glancing
at the clothes he had thrown on the floor, he sighed. They were soaking
wet and useless.
Taking the lamp he had brought in the bathroom with him, K'rvey stepped
out steamed room, dripping water on the floor.
Maybe, he thought, maybe Sarilyn is already asleep.
He quickly dimmed the small flame and looked under the door of the
bedroom, checking to see if there was any light emanating from inside.
Finding none, he slowly opened the door and looked inside. The shallow
breathing of a sleeper reached his ears and he boldly entered the room.
To his relief, Sarilyn was already under the covers and seemed to be
sleeping soundly. Raising the lamp over his head, he looked at where the
woman slept and to both his surprise and delight, her strong, attractive
looking leg was completely sticking out from under the sheet.
K'rvey couldn't help but to trace the alluring curves of the limb, the
lines caused by the strong muscles, all suggesting of even more
appetizing sights under the covers.
Catching himself staring too long, K'rvey's head snapped away from the
sight and he closed his eyes. Unfortunately, neither his mind nor his
natural urges were so easily turned away from the image.
Well this is a fine way for a woman to wake up, he thought, finding a
man she barely knows, standing next to her bedside, naked, and with an
erection.
Keeping his eyes closed, he quickly turned off the lamp, figuring that
he was better off risking making some noise as he made his way across
the room, than being caught as he currently was and with light to see
by. Feeling around with his hands and feet, he slowly progressed to the
sanctuary that was the sheets of his own bed. However, as he was about
to turn Sari's bed, he promptly stubbed his toe on the familiar coldness
of iron armor.
He yelped and grabbed his foot. Wincing and gritting his teeth as he
hopped on one foot, he then proceeded to catch his other foot on the
same armor. Tripping, he launched the lamp into the air, where it
promptly shattered on the floor a second afterwards, while he found
himself sprawled on top of Sarilyn, his erection poking her through the
sheets.
The yelp had gotten Sari's attention, and just as she was about to bolt
upright in the bed, she felt something crash on top of her...at the same
time as yet another crash (the lamp) was also heard.
"Bloody wraiths and star spirits! What in the....*K'rvey*???"
"Uh... hi" he stated stupidly as his brain refused to give him something
more productive to say.
"Hello, yourself! What is going *on*?? Are you all right?" Then she
blushed softly, thankful he couldn't see her face, as she felt that
familiar poking sensation. "Glad to see me, are you?" she chuckled.
Her hand slipped between them, moving down, even as the other reached to
twine in his still wet hair. "Well, don't you want to kiss me?" Her legs
moved, trying to get the sheet free from her body, and one foot moved,
teasing as it ran along his leg, and hip. "Or, did you have something
else on your mind?"
******
Nhorit landed on the soft grass and sneezed. Growling softly he began
pacing back and forth and after a few minutes, he felt the anger melt
away and be replaced by annoyance, then regret, and finally shame.
Nasty medicine was no reason to get upset, he thought glumly. His rider,
after all, had only been trying to help.
He sneezed again and torched a small patch of grass. He sat down,
miserable, and looked down at his huge claws. There had been another
reason why he had grown upset, but he couldn't remember anymore. All he
knew was that he had embarrassed his rider in front of his new friend by
acting like a spoiled hatchling.
He sighed and reached for his rider, thinking that maybe he was still
awake and might be in the mood to accept an apology.
A slow draconic frown spread over his face as his rider's feelings swept
into his mind.
Well, he thought as he curled himself to sleep, obviously K'rvey is too
busy at the moment to pay much attention to what I have to say.
Feeling very lonely suddenly, Nhorit closed his eyes and growled himself
to sleep as he tried to keep his rider's contentment from seeping into
his own head.
---
This has been an enjoyable JP, concocted by:
K'rvey/Nhorit, aka Andre Oliveira
and
Sarilyn/Lunath, aka Jeanette Bloomfield
NRPG: I had a BLAST working on this!!! THANKS, Andre! *hugs* And not a word,
you told *me* to make up the title! :P
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]