Do Something Else (2/2)

Writers: Anaria, JR
Date Posted: 27th March 2011

Characters: J'klin, Roana
Description: Roana asks for J'klin's opinion on switching wings while he takes care of her
Location: River Bluff Weyr
Date: month 1, day 15 of Turn 6
Notes: Mentioned: Rhosyn

"It's probably hard to make friends in your wing, when your options are
injured and pregnant riders who won't be there long, and the goldriders," J'klin
agreed. "Not that there's anything wrong with goldriders, they just tend to
have a lot of responsibility that makes casual friendships with wingmates a
bit harder. Do you think it'd help if you got to meet some friends in other
wings?"

Sighing, she shook her head as best she could with the position she was in.
"I don't think so. Part of it is that I'm used to how Dragonsfall did things
in the Queen's Wing, and it's different here. I catch myself saying 'but
that's not how _we_ did it' far too often. It's time for a change. I just
hope I'm ready for it."

"I wonder if there would be a way for you to try it for a bit without being
stuck in another wing permanently," J'klin mused. "Like perhaps see if they'll
let you swap with a pregnant greenrider for a few months, just so you can
see how you like it. Maybe even if it's just a break to the monotony it'll
make you feel a bit better about things."

"I... don't know that I'd want to go back to the Queen's Wing, if it doesn't
work out. I'll deal with it, whatever happens." Her voice was soft and
faintly sad. It would be different - so different - flying with the upper
wings, something she hadn't done since she'd been in her early twenties and
now she was passing thirty. "Who knows, maybe I'll end up in with you."

J'klin forced his expression to remain neutral. "Maybe you will. Talk to the
Weyrwoman and see what she has to say about it," he said."Hopefully she'll
be flexible, and will let you transfer to another wing." He worried about
what she'd do if Rhosyn wasn't willing to let her move, but didn't ask.

"I haven't completely decided yet. I'll take another sevenday or so and
think it over. I don't want to rush in too hastily and realize it was a
mistake." Roana was very rarely impulsive, and with such a big decision she
tended to second-guess herself. She reached back to nudge at his leg, urging
him to move so she could turn over and see his face. "Do you think I'm silly
for thinking of it?"

"No, not at all. If you're not comfortable in your wing, you're not going to
be fighting to your full capacity, and that's not good for anyone at all. If
you move to a wing where you have more synergy regarding things, it will be
better all around, I think. And you'd be happier as well, which is my
primary concern," J'klin said.

She sat up and leaned forward, her forehead landing against his chest with a
sigh, "That makes me feel a little better."

J'klin pulled Roana closer to him, embracing her tightly, but not so tight
as to cause her additional pain. "I just want you to be happy, Ro. That's
been my biggest concern since the day you got here," he said softly. "I care
about you so much, I hope you realize that."

"I know," the greenrider nodded, "I do. And I appreciate that you've been so
patient about... things." She still had her doubts about getting involved
with him given their past at Dragonsfall, and his drinking problem, but
Roana was slowly but surely coming to trust him again. It was only a matter
of time before they made things official between them, even though the rest
of River Bluff seemed to think they were already sleeping together.

"Anything for you, Roana," J'klin said, kissing her softly. "How're you
feeling? Is the tea kicking in now?" He asked, concerned. He really did care
for her, so much more than he'd ever cared for any of the other women in his
life.

"Some. I still just want to sit here and not move much, though," she
admitted.

"Well, you'll definitely have a hard time convincing me to spend a few
candlemarks in bed with you," J'klin said jokingly, as he readjusted himself
to a more comfortable position for long-term cuddling. "I think I owe you
for taking care of me when I was sick."

Roana sighed as he pulled her back down to the bed with him. "Are you sure?
You don't have drills or sweeps or anything later?" She didn't think she'd
be that lucky - it only happened once every couple of sevendays that a rider
didn't have anything scheduled for a whole afternoon.

"I traded sweeps this week for overnight watch this evening. My plans for
the afternoon were to nap. So as long as you don't mind us sneaking in a nap
at some point, I'm all yours until nightfall," J'klin explained.

She laughed softly, "You really hate sweeps, don't you?" Roana had caught on
that he often traded them out for other duties. The wingleaders didn't seem
to mind as long as everything got done. "Regardless, I'm not going to
complain." She settled down, turning to let him spoon around her, putting
the warmth of his body against her aching back.

"I wouldn't hate sweeps so much if they weren't always scheduled for your
days off," J'klin explained, surprised that the greenrider hadn't figured
that out yet. He wrapped his arm around her, and buried his face in her
hair. "You smell good," he commented.

"Maybe I should request your wing then, so we'll mostly be on the same
schedule," Roana suggested.

"I would love that," J'klin said. While he knew part of him would always be
preoccupied about her safety, at least he would be able to protect her. That
would make him feel better about things. "Although are you sure you'd be
able to pay attention in drills?" he teased.

She swatted at him over her shoulder, then quickly dropped her arm when she
realized that wasn't a good idea. The tea had done wonders, but she was
still uncomfortable and achy.

"Don't go hurting yourself trying to swat at me, missy," he joked. "We
should take a nap, perhaps that will make you feel better," he suggested,
stifling a yawn. "Besides, you're so warm and comfortable..."

"Shush. I'm not quite at the point of napping, but just laying here for a
little while is fine with me," she grumbled a bit, but at the same time
twined her fingers with his where they were resting over her stomach.

"Mmm, alright," he agreed. He was trying hard not to focus too much on how
good she smelled, and how nice it felt to have her body against his. He knew
that with as tightly pressed together as they were, she'd notice his
response in an instant.

Roana was neither stupid nor oblivious, so he was right about her noticing,
but it wasn't the first time and probably wouldn't be the last. There wasn't
a point in making a big deal about it. She knew he wanted her and that until
she gave the okay, their relationship was staying right where it was.
Although now that she thought about it... Roana turned in his arms and
leaned up to kiss him softly. "Thanks for this," she whispered.

"Of course," J'klin said. "I meant it when I said my primary concern was
your happiness. I like taking care of you. Most of the time you're so
stubborn and independent. It's nice to feel needed."

"Well, I'll try to oblige you more often," Roana settled back down with her
head tucked between J'klin's head and shoulder with a soft sound of
contentment, "Mmm, this is nice. Why don't we get days like this more
often?"

"Because we're _dragonriders_ and we have _responsibilities_ and we're
_important_ to the _success_ of _Pern_ and blah blah blah," he said,
repeating the Weyrling lectures in a mocking voice. "We should have been
Holders. They get to sit around and pop out babies all the time," he joked.

The greenrider shook her head, "Of course you'd like that, you'd get to
participate in the creation of said babies, then have virtually nothing to
do with the rest of the process, while us women have to lug around that
extra weight and be miserable for nine months then exhausted for the next
several years chasing them around."

"But you'd be so cute pregnant," J'klin protested jokingly. "And of course
the resulting babies would be adorable. Then we foster them off and start
over again! That's how it works, right?" J'klin fought back a momentary pang
of sadness. In the past, he'd dated women who were non-riders, so the
prospect of actually raising his own kids was possible.

Her dark eyebrows winged up and she pushed her curls out of the way to peer
up at him. "J'klin. You're not seriously thinking about kids... with me, are
you?"

"No, of course not, I was just kidding," J'klin said, smiling. "Besides,
even if I were, we are a long, long way from any of that. My sole thoughts
concerning you right now are ensuring you're happy and building your trust."

His expression hadn't held anything like his usual half-smirking, 'I'm only
saying this to get a rise out of you' look, but she'd let it slide this
time. Roana still wasn't feeling quiet right - definitely not well enough to
pick an argument with him. "Alright, I suppose I'll accept that," she
acknowledged.

J'klin kissed her neck softly, pulling her near to him. He didn't want to
ever be away from her, that was for certain. He wanted to tell her how he
really felt, but he wasn't quite sure that she was ready to hear it. He
supposed those words in particular could wait until a later time, when she
was more comfortable with him.

It was rare for him to go quiet on her and it was only more confirmation
that there'd been more to his words than he wanted to admit to, but Roana
really was going to let it go for the time being. Her hand found its way up
to splay against his chest, her cheek pressed against his tunic as she fell
into silence too.

J'klin shifted to make Roana more comfortable in his arms, and before long
had drifted off to sleep.

Last updated on the April 27th 2011

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Do Something Else (2/2)