Picnic Time For Teddy Bears

Writers: AL, Chelle
Date Posted: 16th April 2011

Characters: Rhosyn, J'ren
Description: The two of them do have dinner and talk, revealing certain things.
Location: River Bluff Weyr
Date: month 1, day 20 of Turn 6
Notes: Mentioned: N'vanik

Follows An Intimate Evening. Also, I figure there aren't any teddy bears in Pern, but I had the song in my head! :) Blame my kids!

Everything was set. Wherry steak cooked just like Rhosyn liked it, tubers
with cream, though separate for now, fingerroots, dessert, it was all packed
and carefully so, ready and waiting to be consumed. Or rather, waiting to
arrive at the destination so it could be taken out of the basket and
consumed. A blanket, some wine and juice, and J'ren was in the bowl, waiting
for the arrival of Rhosyn, leaning casually against the side of his dragon.

**Here we go**
}:It'll be okay. I'll order you back if you ask me to:{

Rhosyn smiled and gave Orlaith a good scratch before she headed out into the
Bowl. She wore a white sundress and sandals as she headed into the night.
J'ren was easy to spot, standing by the big bronze bulk as he was. When she
got close, she nodded. "Allright, I'm hungry."

J'ren straightened, his eyes roaming Rhosyn's form. "That's a nice dress,"
he commented, a grin spreading across his features. "And don't worry, you
won't be hungry for long," he assured her, then offered his hand to help her
up.

She took it, then slowly made her way up the side of the bronze. Grabbing
the straps, Rhosyn pulled herself into the passenger saddle, then took her
time strapping in. Assuming they'd fly straight for the small distance, she
hadn't bothered with warm clothing.

J'ren helped her up and secured his own straps. A cursory glance back at
Rhosyn told him that she had finished doing her own, and he urged his
lifemate up into the air. The bronze circled over the Weyr, allowing both
passengers to get a good view of it before he headed west, following the
shoreline. Broad, powerful strokes sent them rushing forward and though a
large jut of rocks looked quite far away, the ride there took only a quarter
of a candlemark or so to reach. Kenaranth came to a landing at a small cove,
a fist of rocks jutting out over the water, flanked by light sand on either
side.

A gentle breezed teased as J'ren dismounted, then offered a hand to help
Rhosyn down before he reached for the basket that was strapped tightly to
his dragon. The sun had just begun to dip, the tip of the bottom just sliced
off and it had started to throw colors into the sky. A blanket was pulled
from the basket and J'ren crossed over to a smooth part of the sand to lay
it out.

Once she was down, she followed her first instinct and looked around while
he made his preparations. She couldn't fault his choice of scenery. It was
pretty to look at. Turning back, she watched him quietly. Even though he
wasn't N'vanik, she had to admit that J'ren was a good solid rider. He also
wasn't _that_ bad looking.

J'ren settled the blanket in place, securing the edges with rocks to protect
it from being tossed about by the wind coming off of the sea. He slipped off
his shoes, then crouched on the blanket and turned toward the Weyrwoman, a
smile upon his face as he extended his hand to her. "I hope you will find
things satisfactory."

She walked over and settled herself, wiggling her toes. Rhosyn began to dig
into the food immediately. Pulling out a knife to slice the steak with, she
took a few bites and chewed. Nodding that it was good, she enjoyed the quiet
while they ate.

J'ren had thought they could have some conversation, but the Weyrwoman was
so into her food that he almost felt bad for breaking the silence. So he
let her enjoy it without interruption, taking the time to enjoy his own
steak, cooked medium rare, nice and bloody, and work on his tubers and
fingerroots. There was bread and sweetrolls, bubblies in addition to the
dessert that Rhosyn had requested and of these he partook a little of each,
offering a small slice of each one to her before he allowed himself any.

Once she had eaten what she wanted, she leaned back and slowly ate the
dessert, savoring it. "That was nice."

"It's nicer when you have nice company." It was meant to be a compliment
for the Weyrwoman. "Thought maybe we could walk along the beach. The
sunset will be in full swing then. It's always pretty, but I think tonight
will be particularly spectacular."

"Why's that?" She finished off her cheesecake and drank some of the juice,
hoping this didn't become awkward.

"I just have a feeling." He grinned and pushed himself to his feet, then
held out his hand for her to take. "Walk with me."

She took his hand long enough to get up, then she released it, but she did
walk with him, carrying her sandals. Her bare feet felt wonderful in the
sand. Thinking of someone else on another beach, she tried to pay attention
to what J'ren was saying.

He would have held on to her if he could, taken that hand and appreciated
its warmth. But she let go and J'ren wasn't going to force her. "It's nice
here," he remarked, eyes turning toward the sky and the show that the sun
was already starting to put on. Golds and oranges and purples scattered
across the blue as it began to sink, spreading those colors against the
water and making it glitter as well. "Close enough to fly here easily, far
enough to feel like you're away and won't be disturbed."

"There are actually a lot of nice spots around here that you can fly
straight
to without being bothered." Rhosyn was mindful of her own safety when in
the jungle, but she did escape from time to time.

"I know, but there's just something about this one. I don't know why, I
keep coming back to it." J'ren motioned to a dark space where the trees
crept closer to the beach itself, not quite treading onto the sand. "There's
a little cove of trees over there, just perfect for sitting and watching the
sky."

"You come out here a lot, by yourself?" The question was gentle, but maybe
Rhosyn understood J'ren a little bit. She knew what lonely felt like. **He's
being nice** she admitted.

"Yeah. I do." J'ren gave her a sidelong glance, then looked back to the
path they were taking across the sand. "Probably more than I should." He
admitted with a half grin. He went silent, but only for a moment, the sound
of his boots sinking in the sand setting a rhythm for their trek. "So, tell
me about your life before you became a dragonrider."

"Ah..." Her eyes went to the sunset as she considered how best to say it. "I
was born as a holder. Then Papa died and Mama couldn't hold it together.
So I was sent to the Weyr to foster. Then after turns living there, I ended
up Standing sort of as a...look what I can do thing and I impressed, much to
everyone's annoyance."

"Annoyance?" J'ren led them into the shadow of the trees, a velvety carpet
of moss the perfect replacement for a blanket as he lowered himself onto it,
leaning back on his elbows. "Why were they annoyed?"

"Well...they all had their favorites out of the candidate girls and I wasn't
one of them. And then I just turned out to be a thorn in the Weyrwoman's
side for a long while." She smiled, though under her bluster, there was
hurt.

"Sounds like the kind of people who would try blowing out the glows." J'ren
shook his head, then turned his gaze to the sky. "Stupid, crackdusted,
flitter-brained flying watchwhers to think like that."

"No, it's okay. Now, I think about it..If I was her and someone like me came
along, I probably wouldn't have known what to do either. As it was, I think
not having it easy ended up being better for me. Now, there's not a lot I'm
afraid of." With a jut of her chin, Rhosyn's most important quality showed
itself.

"Someone like you?" J'ren tilted his head so that he could look upon the
goldrider and he chuckled. "I suppose that's a good thing. Though I'm glad
someone like you did come along, to be honest."

"Why's that?" The obvious answer came into her head, but she wanted to see
what he would say. Would it be flattery or something honest?

"Well, if you hadn't, Orlaith would have been lost," J'ren pointed out as he
looked back to the stars. "And if you hadn't, then you wouldn't have come
here at all."

She shrugged. Rhosyn could have taken on a craft, like beastcrafting and
ended up at River Bluff due to limited choices for female crafters, but she
didn't point that out. "That was one thing they could never do-take her away
from me."

"No. They could never deny the choice she made." J'ren turned, a frown
curling down his mouth. "I find it difficult to understand why people
second
guess the choices dragons make. Dragons know best. They always know best.
Orlaith is no different."

"I will say, though, J'ren...I have seen a few weyrlings in my time that
were
not...good riders. I mean, I wondered how on Pern they had impressed at all.
Some of them ended up devoured by thread, but it was sort of inevitable I
thought." She frowned, picturing some of them in her mind.

"But that doesn't mean they started out that way." J'ren shook his head.
"A lot can happen in a short amount of time. Weyrlings that were promising
suddenly change. Something alters them. Maybe it's another rider, or
someone else in their life that has affected them. Maybe the Weyrlingmaster
missed something. But at the time of Impression, they were what the dragons
felt were best. And obviously, other influences can change that."

"Aye maybe they fit best with that dragon, but that doesn't mean they were
going to be good riders. You can be perfect for your dragon and still fail
as
a human." Rhosyn's observation was delivered in a matter-of-fact manner.

"Perhaps you're right." J'ren nodded slowly. "But I do know this. Orlaith
made a wise decision when she chose you. Of that I am certain."

"I would never tell her that she is wrong," Rhosyn smiled.
}:I wouldn't listen if you did:{

"Just don't ever tell yourself that either," J'ren pointed out, tilting his
head so he could look straight at her. "Or let anyone else tell you that."

Rhosyn, despite her insecurities that she felt deep down, was a survivor.
The goldrider was not a quitter, which was why it had been so hard for her
to
believe what Traelyn had done. She looked up at the sky, then yawned. With
her belly full, she was getting sleepy.

"Tired?" J'ren asked, watching the Weyrwoman closely. "Shall we go back?"
He didn't really want to, but he wasn't going to pressure her to do
something _she_ didn't want to.

"It's been a long day..." She looked back, seeing where Kenaranth's big bulk
waited.

J'ren nodded, then stood and held out his hand to help her up. His touch
was
warm and he smiled as he helped draw the woman to her feet. "Thank you for
coming with me," he spoke, his voice soft.

"You're welcome. It was a very nice dinner and I did enjoy talking with
you."
It was hard for her to make friends and it would be good to have someone to
talk to. She was sure, though, that she had to be careful with him. **He
could
easily take it the wrong way** Rhosyn didn't need an angry bronzerider
around.

Once she was standing, she brushed off the sand and started to walk slowly
back, thinking of her nice bed.

Last updated on the April 28th 2011

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Picnic Time For Teddy Bears