Talking vs. Sweater

Writers: Devin, Bree
Date Posted: 20th April 2007
Series: Saving Each Other

Characters: N'vanik, Talryne
Description: With U'kaiah gone, N'vanik and Talryne try to deal with the awkwardness.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 3, day 10 of Turn 4
Notes: Follows "Uh-Oh"

N'vanik

Talryne

N'vanik stepped aside so U'kaiah could pass. He didn't say anything to the other bronzerider as he left, hardly even looked at him. The anger was still there, and he didn't want to say something stupid. N'vanik waited until U'kaiah had closed the door behind him before saying anything. "He said you were . . . fooling around," he said very quietly, and regretted it as soon as the words were out.

Talryne felt guilty, and then felt annoyed by the emotion. Annoyed at U'kaiah for saying something so easy to misunderstand, annoyed at herself for being so terrified of upsetting N'vanik... "Is that what he said? That was unfortunate phrasing."

"What did he mean?" If they had done something, he wanted to know. But he _didn't_ want to know. Shards, this was so confusing, and he hated the way it was making him feel.

The annoyance grew a little. Shards, she'd never asked _him_ the details of what he did with other women. "If you're asking if I had sex with him, the answer is no." **Not that it would have been any of your business if I had been.**

"Oh." N'vanik shifted his feet. "It's just . . . U'kaiah and I don't get along, and I was . . . surprised to find him with you." **Curled up next to him. Without his shirt on.** He stamped down the flare of anger and jealousy.

He looked so miserable that some of the sharpness faded from her tone.
"I know you two don't get along, but he's one of the only people here that I got to know before--before. I don't really have many friends."

"Neither do I." And how was she supposed to react to that? Feel bad for him? Think it was okay for them to both have few friends? "You should have more friends," he added.

Talryne blinked at him, unsure what to say. "I don't know if I'm up to meeting new people right now," she said finally. "Is it a problem for you if I spend time with U'kaiah?"

He swallowed. "No." **Yes.**

She watched him for a moment longer before patting the couch next to her. "Sit with me?"

"Ok." N'vanik walked over to the couch and sat. His instinct to put more distance between them, to put up walls, was warring with a desire to hold her and forget this happened. But what would happen when she didn't need him any more?

}:Don't think like that,:{ Loseth said. }:She likes you, and she doesn't care about you any less now.:{ He wished he could tell his rider what he'd overheard from Talryne, and he wished he could tell Talryne how N'vanik really felt about her. But he would keep their secrets. That didn't mean he wasn't going to try to help, though. }:He needs to know you aren't going to replace him,:{ Loseth told Talryne.
}:But don't use those words,:{ he added hastily.

**I'll try...** She could almost feel the empty space between them like a barrier, but she slid her hand onto his anyway. It wasn't much, but it was a start. "I finished that sweater I was making," she started, her voice sounding forcibly cheerful. Maybe she could at least explain why U'kaiah had his shirt off without actually coming out and _saying_ that was what she was doing. "I think I must have miscalculated, though..."

N'vanik laced his fingers with hers. "Too small, or too big?" It was an odd change of topic, but it was better than nothing.

"Too small," she replied with a hint of a smile. "A little...
indecent. U'kaiah tried to get me to try it on for him, but I declined." Shards, she hoped this wasn't going to make it worse. For all she knew, N'vanik would be more upset by friendly teasing than by sex. "I tried to get him to put it on instead. He almost did it, too.
He's probably glad he didn't, now. You could have laughed at him for months."

His jaw clenched at the idea of U'kaiah trying to get Tal into indecent clothing. Even the thought of U'kaiah squeezing into a small woman's sweater wasn't enough to calm him. But U'kaiah had been the one to leave, not him. That was something, wasn't it? N'vanik sighed.
"I suppose it would have been funny."

Since he hadn't picked up on the most important thing she'd said, she decided to make it very clear, even if it might end up telling him more than she wanted him to know about her feelings. "I'm sort of glad he didn't try it on," she confided in a quiet voice. "He would have stretched it all out, and then it wouldn't have been nearly as fun to try it on for you."

He turned toward her. "You wanted to save it for me?" A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

It took everything in her not to sigh with relief. Instead she hopped up from the couch and swept the sweater up from where it had fallen on the floor when she'd tossed it at U'kaiah's head. "Stay right there,"
she said as she slipped around the couch and into her sleeping room.

When she returned, she'd exchanged her loose trousers for a dark skirt that hugged at her hips and had pulled on the tiny sleeveless sweater she'd knit. Between the skin-tight fit, the plunging neckline and the fact that the body ended a mere handspan beneath her breasts, it wasn't hard to see why she'd called it indecent. "I don't think it's U'kaiah's color anyway," she said lightly as she stopped a few paces in front of him.

Grinning, N'vanik admired the outfit. "Can you even breathe in that thing?" he laughed. The real question was whether it would be more fun to get her out of it, or to have her keep it on.

"Mostly." She returned his smile as she settled back on the couch, but inside she still felt guilty. Putting on a tight sweater and hoping that would distract him didn't seem like the most mature way to handle the situation, but it was easier than talking would have been.

He pulled her into his lap, his fingers playing with the hem of the sweater as his lips teased her ear. "I like it, and I like you in it." His lips moved lower. "And I like you."

"I like that you like me," she replied, her voice warm and low. She didn't want to think about anything except for how good his touch felt, but that nagging guilt made her reach out to Loseth. **Does he feel better?**

}:Yes. Are you wearing a blue sweater and a skirt, or is he making that up?:{ he asked, curious and amused.

**He's not making it up...** Not even the wonderful feeling of N'vanik's lips on her skin could quite distract her from the oddness of the question. **Does he usually make up things I'm wearing?** That could be interesting...

}:Not usually . . .:{ Loseth answered carefully. }:But it seems like a strange thing to wear. That sweater is very small. How will it keep you warm?:{ A giggle escaped from her before she could stop it. **It won't keep me warm. But it will make N'vanik happy, and he'll keep me warm.** N'vanik pulled back. "What's funny?"

**Whoops...** Talryne tilted her head to smile at him, and hoped he wouldn't be upset that she'd been talking to his dragon. "Loseth was worried that this sweater might not keep me warm enough." Her hand slid under his tunic and along the warm skin of his lower back. "He's right. I'll need some help staying warm." "Mmmmm . . . I'm good at generating heat." He pulled her close for a kiss. "And maybe, you could keep the sweater on, so I can admire your work." One hand crept under the skirt. "This can stay on, too. I just need access," he said with a sly grin.

Talryne laughed again before bringing her lips close to his. "I'll keep everything on if you take everything off." "Deal." N'vanik closed the distance, kissing her long and deep.

Last updated on the April 22nd 2007

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Talking vs. Sweater