Sandcastles and Snowmen

Writers: Halyonix, Heather
Date Posted: 24th June 2026

Characters: Oriene, By'ler
Description: By’ler visits Oriene for the first time since her Impression
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 3, day 3 of Turn 13
Notes: Mentioned: R'zen, Tirraze

Oriene

By'ler

The change from Dolphin Cove to Dragonsfall was just as startling as always as Reviath soared over the cliffside Weyr and deposited By’ler. He left Reviath to find his own amusements with some greens on the weyr’s rim as he entered the warmth of the Dining Cavern.

The large fireplaces inside were certainly needed to help the heating systems repel the dry cold of the day. A smile appeared on By’ler’s face when his eyes settled on Oriene. It had been a long month since she’d impressed, at least it had been for him, back at Dolphin Cove without her. It had been barely an inconvenience to fly down and visit her at the Dolphin Hall when she’d been there.

“It looks like Weyrlinghood is agreeing with you,” he said, lifting and pressing a kiss to her hand as he took the empty seat across from her.

Her heart skipped a beat when he did that, hoping that Esperanth didn’t pay too close attention to that flutter. She stayed asleep though. “It is,” she answered with wonder in her voice. “Well, it’s a lot of work,” she quickly added with a laugh, “but worth every moment of it. Some mornings, even though I’m exhausted, I still can’t believe she’s actually _there_.”

Oriene chuckled and a bashful expression swept over her face. “You must think me moonstruck or something. I just…oh, but you _know_ what it’s like,” she said, shyness vanished as she looked By’ler in the eye with that look every dragonrider could somehow privately share.

“I know exactly what you mean,” he agreed with a matching smile. “I’m glad we decided on a whim to come here that morning and see the hatching.” Seeing Oriene happy made the distance between them worth it.

“Me too,” she gushed. The idea that Esperanth choosing someone else or worse hadn’t really struck the giddy haze that Oriene felt. Skipping forward, she asked, “What brings you here today? Errands?”

By’ler rolled his eyes, a teasing smile pulling his lips to the side. “You, of course. Errands and such are the exact things that have kept me away so long. I wanted to see how you and Esperanth are… and how you’re liking the cold.” It was a nice reprieve from all the sun at Dolphin Cove, but By’ler had never lived long-term in a colder location.

Oriene laughed. “By’ler, I have _yet_ to find a sweater that keeps me warm enough. I miss the heat a lot more than I thought I would.”

“I will make it my mission to find you an appropriately warm sweater, then, since Esperanth isn’t old enough yet for me to show you other ways to keep warm.” The bronzerider’s smile was wicked.

Oriene blushed, then bit her lip mischievously. “Eventually,” she said. She pushed away those thoughts mightily in case Esperanth woke up. “A sweater would be great though,” she said with a short laugh. “The first morning after the Hatching, apparently I was shivering and Esperanth just climbed on top of me to keep me warm.”

By’ler’s eyebrows raised as his eyes turned huge at the mental image. “Awww, she kept you warm, how sweet. Reviath would have smothered me for sure.” The young bronzerider glanced around the Dining Cavern, noting the differences between Dragonsfall and Dolphin Cove. The tapestries and fireplaces made the place rather cozy, he thought. “Made new friends, yet?”

She rolled her eyes playfully. “You know it. Nearly everyone in my weyrling class, of course. There’s an overachiever named R’zen. He’s convinced that he and his Ibranth are going to the best, even for blues. Sometimes the boasting is pretty funny. I don’t think he has any real idea what he’s up against but his attitude is in the right place. Usually. There are a few girls my age in the group -- they all Impressed greens too -- so we’ve been bonding over that.”

Oriene paused for a moment to shrug her shoulders a little. “I do miss some of my Dolphin Hall friends though. And definitely the Weyr crew.” Even if it was awkward sometimes with Tirraze, Oriene still missed talking to the friends she had known for Turns. Her gaze wandered shyly for a moment. “And you,” she admitted quietly.

By’ler reached across the table and put his hand over hers to let her know he understood and that it was mutual. “R’vkal has been taking off to the Dolphin Hall rather often lately…. To see Cidra of all people.” The bronzerider grinned, knowing the news would lighten the mood.

Her eyes widened but she was wearing a grin. “Cidra?! Are they…oh, are they dating??”

“I mean… Maybe? It’s really hard to tell with those two. He seems to like going down there, though, so I guess something is going well.” He couldn’t understand the appeal of the prickly apprentice dolphineer, himself, but to each his own.

“Good for him,” she said with heartfelt emotion. “You know he was engaged before coming to the Weyr, right? She died though. I always wondered if he was going to find someone but he was always so quiet. Even if it doesn’t work out, I’m glad he’s putting himself out there a little.” She gave his hand a squeeze. “You know it’s going to be months until…” Her eyes slid towards the sleeping dragon out of sight.

“I know,” he replied. “Enjoy all this time with her. It goes really fast in hindsight.” By’ler squeezed her hand in return. “Besides, I’ll be here when the time comes.”

“Here _visiting_,” she teased lightly. Not that they had been exclusive and not that distance was going to be an issue once Esperanath could flit /between/ but there was a difference between living in the same place and popping in and out of one every night.

“We’ll make the visits count,” he promised. “We’ll build snowmen when I visit here and sandcastles when you visit me.”

Her eyes glittered with delight. “Oh, I bet Esperanth would love that! Next time you come by, let’s do that for sure.”

Last updated on the July 1st 2026

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Sandcastles and Snowmen