Preparing for a Flight

Writers: Avery, Chelle
Date Posted: 15th January 2015

Characters: D'lorn, Riveenata
Description: D'lorn discusses mating flights.
Location: River Bluff Weyr
Date: month 10, day 24 of Turn 7

Sitting at the table in the Dining Cavern, he slowly drank his redfruit
juice, looking at his wherry eggs with relish. Breakfast was the best meal
of the day. Smiling to himself, he saw a certain green weyrling walking
toward him and thought about the conversation to come. She was Weyrbred,
of course, so this wasn't going to be as hard, thank Faranth.

Riveenata set her tray down before she greeted D'lorn, not wanting to drop
food all over the Weyrlingmaster Third - that would be an unmitigateable
disaster, she thought. "Good morning sir, how are you today?"

"Ah enjoying this lovely breakfast. And you?" She looked happy at least so
perhaps things were better. He wanted them all to succeed and it was hard
when they made mistakes, but they had to learn from them.

"I think the last sevendays have been going well," she said, a little more
hesitant now. She'd been doing better at keeping a handle on Savith's
impulsive behaviors.

He nodded, agreeing to her statement. "You have improved as a pair, aye.
You've managed some of the biggest milestones of weyrlinghood, including
your first /between/. Now there are two left-your first mating flight and
Blooding." He wondered if she'd put any thought to it at all.

She blushed just a little between the praise and the thought his next
words brought up. "Do all the greens rise before weyrlinghood is over?"
She'd been around flights, participated with losers, but now there was the
concern of it being _her_ flight with her dragon.

And Savith was precocious in everything else, so why not her rise?

"Not always. There are some that are late for various reasons. Like our last
class had a weyrling that was pregnant which brought things back. And some
have very young riders which can also cause them to wait from time to time."
Usually, though, greens were more regular in their cycle. It was the golds
who took time to mature and lay clutches.

She nodded as she listened. "I understand. But since I'm older and not
pregnant, Savith's likely to go up before weyrlinghood is over."

"I would think so yes. It's never really something you can be completely ready
for but I trust since you're Weyrbred you may have some idea of what's going to
happen and you've prepared yourself?" Of course it all depended upon who she ended
up with for the most part. At least greenflights weren't as intense as goldflights.

"I've hung around a few aftermaths," she said. "I know how the losing men
get - it must be even more intense for the winners. And I've had a few
relationships before Impressing." No virgin worries here.

"Honestly from our side of it that's not what to worry about. Some people
are afraid at the way their dragons take over. They're used to the normal mental
connection, not completely losing themselves. They can panic which in turn can effect
the dragon and the entire experience. Others panic when they wake up with someone who
wasn't necessarily their first choice or for other reasons." He kept his voice
neutral, approaching it philosophically, instead of a nitty gritty sex talk.

She felt a surge of morbid curiosity. "What's the worst thing that can
happen to the dragon if the rider panics?"

"The rider panics, the dragon panics. Sometimes they can hurt themselves.
If they're in the process of being caught-the other dragon can accidentally
hurt them especially if they suddenly start moving erratically. Wings can be
wrenched, wing spars broken, sails torn...and not to mention there was one
panicking dragon in the Records that caused the other dragon injury which
meant the Flight was never finished." He sighed, knowing there weren't that
many, but it did happen. "A claw could tear an eye, blinding a dragon."

More sobering than she'd expected when she asked the question. She'd heard
about disasters during goldflights, but not greenflights. The idea of Savith
losing an eye or getting her wings shredded horrified her to the core.

"I can't say I'm looking forward to it, but I trust Savith. The Flight's not
about me, it's about her."

"And that is the wisest thing to remember." D'lorn shook his finger, nodding.
"I sincerely hope everything works out for you. We don't have many here at
River Bluff that would harm a young female greenrider. I think you'll be fine."
Of course that wasn't necessarily true if the rider was male, but they were
still in the minority at this Weyr for the most part. The Weyrleaders tended to
frown on that sort of thing. "Just keep your head about you."

"The men of the Weyr have always been good to me," she agreed. "If I may -
were you scared the first time?"

He turned his chin up and thought about it. "I'm not holdbred. Nor was I of
the Weyr. As a trader, we were basically used to doing however we wanted under
the sky. So, I had no reason to fear it because I had fully accepted myself long
before." He smiled and thought about Villith. "And my lady took care of me."

It was a rare glimpse into her teacher as a person, and she appreciated
the glimpse. "I'm glad that it wasn't scary for you."

"Me too. And it shouldn't be for you either." He nodded to himself and finished
his breakfast, taking his time. When the plate was cleared, he got up and brushed
off his tunic. "Time to get moving. I'll see you in a bit."

"See you at lessons," she agreed.

Last updated on the January 20th 2015

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Preparing for a Flight