Meant For Another (3): Because You're Weak

Writers: Devin, Bree
Date Posted: 5th January 2007
Series: Saving Each Other

Characters: N'vanik, Talryne
Description: N'vanik faces Talryne and tries to deal with his guilt.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 1, day 26 of Turn 4

N'vanik

Talryne

Talryne could practically feel the tension in N'vanik's shoulders as she curled up next to him in bed. Something was wrong--had been wrong since he'd returned that afternoon, really. She'd already asked him twice if anything was the matter, but he didn't seem willing to talk. Now she found herself sliding her arm around him almost hesitantly, half worried that he was going to pull away.

Part of him wanted to. Her touch made the guilt rise up again, and doubt and confusion came with it. But instead of pulling away, he laid his hand over hers. Talryne shouldn't suffer for his mistakes.

It seemed silly to ask the same question a third time, but she didn't know what else to say. "Is something wrong?"

N'vanik sighed. He'd been so honest with her, but he couldn't tell her this. She deserved something, though. "Yeah," he said quietly. "Me."

"You?" Talryne's fingers tightened a little around his without thought. "What's wrong with you?"

"Everything." If it wasn't for Talryne, he would be getting reacquainted with his liquor supply right now. Of course, if it wasn't for Talryne, he wouldn't be in this situation at all.

"What happened? Did Abrei say something?" She'd figured that her cousin would probably be unhappy about not being let in, but she'd assumed N'vanik could handle it. Then again, she should have remembered just how mean Abrei could be when she didn't get her way.

"She said plenty of things." Most of which he didn't want to hear, but what she'd said wasn't anything compared to what he'd done. **I gave it to someone that didn't deserve it.** And N'vanik was all the more bothered by how much this was affecting him.

Talryne struggled to hide a wince. "I should have just talked to her. She can--she can be mean sometimes. But you shouldn't pay attention to anything she says. She's just bad with people."

"So am I."

"No you're not," she protested. She propped herself up on one arm so she could look down at him. "It's different, N'vanik. She's just bitter and jealous of people who lived their lives instead of doing nothing but work. You're not like that. You can talk to people when you want to... you always make me feel better. She couldn't do it to save her life!"

Her words made him feel worse, but one thing stuck out and he clung to it. "Do I really? Make you feel better?"

"Of course you do!" She slid one hand up to the side of his cheek, her thumb sweeping out to brush against his lips. "How can you not know that?" she whispered softly.

It hurt, and it helped at the same time. "I just wanted to hear it," he whispered back. Her soft touch and her soft words stirred something in him. Talryne had told him not to pay attention to what Abrei said, but he couldn't help thinking about it. Could Abrei be right about his feelings for Tal?

Her thumb caressed his lips again, softer and more slowly. Then she leaned down to kiss him gently. "You make me feel better." She whispered the words against his lips.

N'vanik closed his eyes. **Run! Run!** a voice inside was screaming. But he couldn't run, not this time. Not from her. He laid a hand against her cheek. "You make me feel better, too."

"I'll deal with Abrei next time she comes. I shouldn't keep making you do that for me." Her fingers strayed up to his hair, smoothing it back from his forehead. "And you should--you can tell me if you don't want to. I don't want you to get tired of doing it and resent it."

"It's alright. I kinda . . . like being your door guard." Although he was tempted to let Tal handle things if Abrei came back. The idea of facing her again was not a pleasant one. "The hard part is trying to be nice to them," he smiled slightly.

The smile chased the rest of her fear away, and she leaned in to kiss him again without thinking about it. It was pure instinct--the only way she'd ever known how to thank a man had been with sex. But this wasn't that sort of kiss. It was slow and as gentle as the fingers that slid through his hair.

**Oh, this is torture.** His mind flashed through all the things he'd done to Abrei, all the things he couldn't do to Tal. Despite that, and despite the guilt, he returned the kiss. His arm went around her and he pulled her closer.

She finally pulled back and smiled down at him. "Thank you for taking care of me."

"No problem." But his thoughts were still troubled. Why did Abrei have to come here? Why did he have to give in?
**Because you're weak,** his father's voice whispered.

Last updated on the January 6th 2007

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Meant For Another (3): Because You're Weak