Hopes and Assumptions

Writers: Devin, Miriah
Date Posted: 11th September 2015

Characters: Lanniya, D'ren
Description: Lanniya approaches D'ren with some hopes
Location: River Bluff Weyr
Date: month 1, day 5 of Turn 8
Notes: D'lorn, A'kades

Lanniya

Maybe now, she could tell him, Lanniya thought. He couldn't have said
anything before because Anaeryth hadn't yet /betweened/, but now they
could talk. She could tell him that she thought he was very handsome
and maybe, just maybe, she could get her first kiss. The rest would
come after he brought her flowers and was romantic, but she wouldn't
mind getting that kiss to start things out. She knew he liked her,
after all. They talked often and never had argued. It was a start.

Dressed in one of her nicer dresses, the filmy skirts falling just at
her ankles and catching the wind with every mild gust, Lanniya felt
pretty. She'd even combed out her hair and put it up in what her
Grandmother claimed was a fetching style. Feeling confident, she
rapped on D'ren's door and waited.

D'ren wasn't expecting anyone so the knock was a surprise. Finding
Lanniya standing at his door was even more of a surprise. "Oh, hi." He
smiled at the young goldrider.

"Hi D'ren." She clasped her hands and twisted side to side a bit,
nervous, but excited. "Can I come in?"

"Of course." He stepped aside. "How is Anaeryth?"

"Good as always." She stepped in his weyr and looked around, gazing at
the inside as she hopped a little on her toes. "We went /between/
yesterday, you know."

"Congratulations. I'm glad no one was lost, but I heard you ended up
in the wrong place. Is that true?" A few competing stories had flown
around the Weyr, one that they'd almost lost the young gold pair,
another that they'd rescued another pair in distress.

She waved a hand. "Oh no. We got to the right place, but then Ihlath
and Fadira went to the Smithcraft Hall on accident and got scared.
Anaeryth and I went to help them. " A'kades hadn't liked that at all.
She rocked from her toes to her heels, antsy. "And you know, we
/betweened/ so..." Her voice trailed off and she cleared her throat.

"So you thought it would be safe to go after them?" The rumors had
been partly right after all. "You know you shouldn't take risks like
that." D'ren's tone was of a concerned friend. No doubt she'd gotten a
lecture from the weyrlingstaff already.

She sighed. "It wasn't a risk. Anaeryth and I knew where we were
going. She's very good about that already and we were very careful."
She held out her hand. "But that's not what I'm talking about."
Lanniya stared at him. "We _/betweened/_. I'm a senior weyrling now."
She waited for just a moment before taking the herdbeast by the horns.
"I thought you might want to go ahead and kiss me now that we can."

It took a moment to sink in and his eyes widened. "Oh." Uh-oh. D'ren
didn't quite know how to handle this. "Lanniya, I... If I said
something or did something to give you the wrong idea, I'm very sorry.
I like you as a friend."

For a moment, she just looked at him and she visibly deflated from her
bounce. "You...you don't want to kiss me? But I thought you liked me.
I mean, you're a bronzerider, I'm a gold rider..." She paused. "Don't
you think I'm pretty?"

Shards. "You _are_ pretty, but I don't think of you in a romantic way.
You, well... you remind me of my sister." He winced, knowing how that
had to sound.

His sister. His sister? Her face reflected her hurt. "But I think
you're handsome..." Her voice trailed off and her shoulders slumped a
bit. " And I'm not your sister."

"I know you're not. And I'm sorry. I don't want to hurt you." The look
on her face made him feel like a trundlebug. "But my feelings for you
are only friendship, nothing more." First D'lorn and now Lanniya
herself. What a mess.

It was a bit late for that, she thought. She rubbed her arms, now
feeling utterly embarrassed at her own assumptions and her actions.
"But..." She had had him in mind when they talked about the weyrlings
first times. She had assumed that he would be the one for that; now
she floundered and had no idea how to proceed. "So you don't want me
at all, then."

"I want you as a friend," he said gently. D'ren hoped this wouldn't
cost him her friendship.

"I thought you'd be my first." Her face flamed as she brought it up.
"I thought you'd want that." She bit her lip hard. "I'm sorry that I
didn't ask you about it or anything. I just thought..." She sighed and
shifted on her feet. "I'm sorry."

"There's no need to apologize. I'm sorry I don't return your
feelings." Now he was blushing, too. "If you can't find anyone else,
or if they make you really uncomfortable, I could... I could try. But
I might not be able to." D'ren's stomach tightened at the thought. To
him she was a sweet younger girl, not a bed partner.

She looked down and shook her head. "No, it's okay. I mean, maybe
someone will be interested in me before then."

He was certain people would be interested in her, many for the wrong
reasons. "Be careful with bronzeriders. They might only want to sleep
with you to influence Anaeryth's flight. If you can't find someone
you're interested in romantically, maybe look for a bluerider to help
you with your first time. Or a non-rider."

But _he_ was a bronzerider. Did that mean that he didn't want to win
Anaeryth's flight? She didn't ask the question of him; she didn't
think she wanted to know the answer. What about the Harper tales about
romance? _That_ was what she wanted. The conversation was getting a
bit awkward, especially since she had had _him_ in mind. "Maybe." She
was non-committal and sighed. "I'll just go, okay? To think about
things."

"I'm sorry." He couldn't stop apologizing. Once again he was
disappointing a sweet young woman that didn't deserve it.

"It's okay." Lanniya gave a half hearted little wave and hurried out,
unwilling to stay any longer. "I'll see you later."

D'ren felt like such a heel.

Last updated on the September 28th 2015

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