A Storm Raging
Dragonsfall Weyr
Amber Hills Hold
Vintner Hall
Healer Hall
Hidden Meadows
Dolphin Cove Weyr
Dolphin Hall
Emerald Falls Hold
Harper Hall
Printer Hall
Green Valley Hold
Leeward Lagoon Hold
Barrier Lake Weyr
Sunstone Seahold
Citrus Bay Hold
Writers: Iluva, Sia
Date Posted: 23rd June 2025
Characters: J'cello, V'maran
Description: J'cello deals with the aftermath of Bairelth's first mating flight
Location: Barrier Lake Weyr
Date: month 6, day 4 of Turn 12
Notes: Mild swearing
Mentioned: L'rin, N'kayden, Q'vettan
J'cello came back to his own senses gradually; half-dozing, completely satisfied, and suddenly very aware of the hot body pressed against him. The arm around his chest wasn't unfamiliar, though he had a hard time trying to think of the man attached to it. Definitely not anyone young enough to be in his weyrling class, which was a shame. He would have enjoyed riding N'kayden into the ground, or finally getting to see if L'rin knew what to do with all those muscles.
He languidly leaned back into the sturdy form, stretching a little, mind casually merging with Bairelth. She hadn't roused yet, which was for the best-- soon she'd uncoil from her chosen mate, wanting nothing to do with him nor wanting J'cello near anyone else, either. He searched her calm, mostly-asleep thoughts, looking for a name and eventually found one. One that made his heart nearly stop.
Kastegarth.
Oh no. V'maran. The same V'maran that was such a good friend of his parents that he had called 'uncle' for turns throughout his childhood, who had thrown a shoe at him once (though he didn't remember why except that he probably deserved it). Suddenly he didn't like this at all, but he couldn't move. Caught between fight or flight, he cleared his throat, a not-so-subtle check to see if the bluerider was awake.
There was barely a sound of acknowledgment. Just warmth - pressed solid and tight against him, a ridge of shoulder under his chin. Familiar, pleasant, and badly needed after months of frustration, of feeling useless and unwanted and unable. V’maran pulled him close, the sense of when or where he was not quite there yet - a soft limbo.
It had been a good flight. Too good, and whatever they’d done would catch up to him sooner rather than later. Kastegarth’s gratification radiated through him like sunlight, dulling everything else.
**You flew well.** V’maran’s mouth curved into a smile. **Still got it, old timer.**
}:She was fast. Thought she could trick me.:{ Kastegarth’s mindvoice was lazy and smug, the two of them curled protectively around their prizes. }:She’s young. But quite clever.:{
V’maran’s mouth fell into a flat line. _Young_. Xyrntoth wasn’t young if he was feeling Turns worth of aches multiplying, and S’bellan must have grown back a lot of hair if that was really the case. But then he remembered: he wasn’t with his mate, because his mate was dead.
There wasn’t even a chance for grief to bloom again before rage snapped into place.
Stubble scraped hard against the shoulder in front of him as V’maran jerked - well, tried to jerk away, but his hip hurt too much to follow through. A violent scream came awake and alive in his bones, as if forgetting it hurt in the first place doubled the pain now that it was back. And his back - what the Egg was going on"
**Who is this?!** He demanded. He tried to remember to breathe. Kastegarth took a moment to sort through the haze for him, pulling a face with a name that blurred together the moment they’d collided and the flight had been theirs.
Searing pain seized V’maran’s back, locking his hip in place as confusion fell firmly into wrath. “Who the bleeding shards is J'cello?!” He roared. J’cello… Joscello. Oh. Oh _NO_.
J’cello froze.
Not in fear. Not exactly. More like the stunned paralysis of someone watching a tree fall and realizing far too late it was falling in his direction. J’cello didn’t breathe. Didn’t dare breathe. Then, too late, his brain offered up a helpful, belated observation:
**You’re naked.**
He yanked the furs up to his chest and twisted halfway around, still only partly successful, given the arm still caught beneath him and V’maran’s very solid presence behind him. He met the older man’s face with wide eyes and the horrible knowledge that he must look freshly flown, flushed and tousled and very, very guilty.
“Uh.”
Great start. Excellent. Brilliant.
He tried again. “Hi, V’maran. Um. Sir. How about those Wing Drills?”
V’maran could only stare back at the little shit that used to always knock on his and S’bellan’s door and take off before they could answer it. He took in the flushed skin, the unfortunate evidence of what he’d done to the kid’s neck, and thought about all the times he’d thrown things at him and hit him near it. Just how much he wanted to hit him - or anything - now.
If he could have gone /between/ to S’bellan in this instant he would have. No question.
Instead, he could barely even move out of this sharding position, their sweaty bodies gridlocked, and that immobility was actually even more enraging than waking up this way. V’maran couldn’t deny the rage in his throat, growling at J’cello as he pushed through the pain enough to try and yank his arm out from under him. It didn’t. It couldn’t, not at this angle. He had to keep breathing, otherwise he would explode. “_Off_. _Now_.”
J'cello had never moved so fast in his life. Except he couldn't move far, both because they were still so tangled together and because he wanted to keep himself covered but that would then mean _V'maran_ would be uncovered, and then he'd see things he couldn't unsee. Still,he sat up and scrambled away, far enough that he was half off the cot but still close enough to have the furs covering the goods. "This is very bad flight etiquette, you know." He said, the joke coming almost unwillingly from his mouth.
His arm finally freed, V'maran just bared his teeth at him and his stupid little joke and ran a hand down his face in a slow, purposeful motion, then a second time, massaging temples pulsing with fury.
**Of all the sharding greens you could have caught.**
}:Why are you angry with _me_?! Bairelth didn't do anything wrong. Neither did I.:{ Kastegarth insisted, sounding as offended and perturbed as J'cello. }:You're the one who bit him.:{
Just kill him. Someone please kill him.
Finally looking over at the greenrider, and the obvious shock he was also going through, V'maran's hand went to J'cello's forearm, a grip like iron closing around his wrist. “Hey. Kid.” He said, looking him in the face. “Are you alright? Did I hurt you?”
That was enough to rouse Bairelth, and her horror at her situation dwarfed all the awkwardness her rider felt. }: He _bit_ him?! :{ She scrambled away from the blue, all claws and teeth like a feral kitten.
J'cello winced at the mental shriek, and it made him startle at the sudden contact, too. "I'm--" He started, faltered. "No, I'm fine. You didn't hurt me." A beat. "Not more than I liked, anyway." And then a look of horror.
**Shut up shut up shut up. Why are you like this?**
}:Yes, didn’t you hear? He just said he liked it!:{ Kastegarth squawked indignantly, alarmed at the sudden about-face in their cuddle. He’d flown her so well. _They_ had all enjoyed it. What was going on? }:Bairelth, it’s okay. Come, let’s relax a little, shall we? Ours are perfectly fine.:{ he said, trying - rather unconvincingly - to be soothing.
Whatever momentary relief V’maran felt at J’cello’s answer immediately vanished into an exasperated groan, loud and aggrieved, like the words had just launched another concentrated jolt of pain through the heart of his hip.
Kastegarth shuffled his wings, irritated and unsettled. }:She’s very upset.:{
**No shit. We’re all upset. Nice going.**
}:I beg your pardon, no one was complaining about what I did until _you_all_ woke up and started whatever _this_ is!:{
**Shove it,** V’maran sighed. A sigh of dejection and defeat and disgust with everything and everyone, himself included. Here he was, naked, aching, his back still spasming. His cane was back at his weyr, and his clothes were Faranth only knew where. Even if he _could_ sit up, he wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to see whatever else was in the room. “Kid.” He sighed again, trying to massage some of the fire out of his hip. “I’m glad you’re alright. Throw me my clothes before you go, will you.”
}: Excuse you, :{ Bairelth snapped, still bristling like a half-drowned feline and absolutely not speaking to Kastegarth. }: We're never doing _that_ again. Ugh. C'mon, Mine, we need to leave. I need a bath.:{
"Um." J'cello said. He extended a foot to catch the leg of his pants under his toes and dragged them towards the bed. He didn't know how he was going to get them on without being buck naked, but just about anything was preferable to staying right here in this moment. "Do you…need help? You've barely moved."
Kastegarth’s eyes whirled with every shade of irritation and disgruntlement. He’d done _nothing_ wrong, and the moment she turned away was the moment he snorted at her and took off.
V’maran felt a spike of envy for that ability, then a flare of indignation and embarrassment as he focused on J’cello again. “No,” he growled, “The only help I need is for my mate not to be _dead_, and since that’s not happening, I just need you to shut _up_ and hand me my sharding clothes. But even that’s like asking for a sharding miracle.”
Well shit.
}: You can just leave. :{ Bairelth insisted. }: You've already seen him naked. How is this worse than what you've already done? :{
**Like you're one to talk.** Still, J'cello finally abandoned modesty for speed and pulled his pants on, grabbing the rest and tossing what he thought was V'maran's clothes at him and bolting.
Thank bloody Faranth.
For a long, blissful moment, V'maran just lay there enjoying the silence, breathing better but his entire leg and sciatic region were still locked tight beneath the rumpled pile of clothes.
He sighed, and sighed again when Kastegarth finally asked, }:Shall I alert Tzenketh, then?:{
He didn't want to. He definitely didn’t, but, **Yes.**
Last updated on the June 23rd 2025