I'm Glad You're Here

Writers: Ames, Heather
Date Posted: 6th June 2013

Characters: D'naz, F'aen
Description: D'naz and F'aen get closer at a gathering of riders
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 1, day 20 of Turn 7

"Come on, D'naz," Jaranla called out, looking back over her shoulder.
She carried a wineskin over her shoulder and a basket in the other
hand. "You'll have a good time."

"I'm coming," D'naz called back, chuckling a bit. The greenrider had
captured him earlier in the day and told him of the gathering on the
beach tonight. He had no idea who all was involved, but after just a
little coaxing, he agreed to join them.

D'naz enjoyed a good gathering of friends anytime. He liked
celebrating like the best of them. Jaranla had been pestering him to
join her gathering of friends for sometime. He'd held off, as most of
her friends were quite a bit younger than he, but she'd assured him
that _lots_ of others had been invited tonight.

Deciding he'd rather not spend the evening alone in his weyr, he'd agreed.

Jogging a bit to keep up with her, he reached her side. She was about
the same height as he, so he loped an arm around her. "I feel I should
have brought some treat for the others."

"Oh don't worry," Jaranla replied with a wave of her hand. "We've got
it all covered." She led the way out onto the sands, which were lit
only by the light of the moon. "I love the beach at night," she
sighed.

D'naz nodded, "As do I." That was when he spied a fire and heard the
sounds of many voices. Tonight was a night for riders. No dragons were
present. It was a way for them to bond and share in ways many of them
never got to during the work of the day.

F'aen loved it when folks decided to have a bonfire out on the beach.
There was nothing like sitting by the fires at night, chatting, and
swapping stories with the other dragonriders. It was always a way for
the greenrider to branch out and meet new people, which he thoroughly
enjoyed. Being a newer member to the fighting Wings, it was sometimes
hard to get to know the older dragonriders outside of Wing drills, so
the bonfire was the perfect excuse for them to all come together.

With logs pulled around the fire for sitting, F'aen was leaned against
one of them, his legs stretched out, and his hands behind his head as
he glanced up at the ghostly, pale moon that was now visible since the
setting of the sun.

"Here, F'aen," a wine skin was tossed in his lap, "you're always thirsty."

"Why thank you, Aathera, you are, of course, correct." F'aen smiled at
his fellow greenrider as she took a seat beside of him.

Opening the wine skin, F'aen took a quick sip before passing it back
to the woman. Through the darkness, he could make out the figures of
two more approaching the bonfire. Jaranla, one of the people who
helped plan the bonfire, and then D'naz. F'aen smiled. He didn't often
see the bluerider out these sort of things.

Things were already in full-swing by the time D'naz entered the ring
of riders gathered. He glanced around, nodding to the few older riders
he knew well. There were other faces he'd worked with or spoken to,
but hardly knew. Many of them were quite a few Turns younger than him.

Jaranla had hurried off and was already in the arms of a certain young
rider, leaving D'naz to wander on his own. His eyes drifted and landed
on a face he recognized nearby. F'aen. They'd had a good chat together
not too long ago, but he hadn't seen him much outside of drills since
then.

Raising his hand towards him, D'naz was interrupted when an arm slung
its way over his shoulders.

"D'nazz," the voice slurred in his voice. "I've been trying to git you
here for agessss...glad you made it." The voice belonged to one of the
riders he'd known since his youth.

"Oh, B'kal, you're drunk already! You know I've been busy lately."
D'naz had further reasons for staying away. He used to attend things
like this with N'ril and after his death it had been hard to come back
to them. He would try once and the pangs of sadness would envelop him.
So, he would stay away for long periods of time after that.

"Ah, work, shmurk, here have a drink." B'kal shoved a wineskin into
D'naz's hand. Never one to refuse a good drink, D'naz took a long
swig.

"Come on," B'kal said, dragging D'naz with him, "I want ya to meet
someone." The other bluerider all but dragged D'naz towards a small
group _away_ from F'aen. There were some older and some younger riders
in this grouping. "M'jar, this is D'naz," B'kal introduced them.
"M'jar just arrived." B'kal gave D'naz a nudge and a wink. "He's a
greenrider and he's single."

D'naz sighed. B'kal had been trying for Turns to get D'naz to move on,
but he just wasn't ready.

"Nice to meet you M'jar," he replied. It wasn't long after talking to
the greenrider that he found he was bored. M'jar was very
self-centered and womanly beyond womanly. D'naz didn't mind a softer,
gentler greenrider, but he liked _men_, not men who _truly_ thought
they were women.

Excusing himself after some time, he made his way over to a table that
had refreshments set up on. He'd already had quite a bit to drink as
it was the only thing that had kept him from pulling his hair out with
the group he'd been stuck amid. Now, however, he found himself hungry
for food and _any_ other companionship.

"You looked as though you were having a good time over there." F'aen
appeared near D'naz's elbow, a teasing grin on his face as he tucked
the wine skin he'd been working on earlier under his arm and began
fixing himself a plate of the finger foods that were present. He
wasn't as far into his drinks as D'naz, but then F'aen had been having
casual conversations around the fire, rather than listening to some
cross-dressing greenrider prattle on about this and that.

}:Is that jealousy, my dear?:{ Scarleth purred, the unusual emotion
from her rider sparking curiosity in the green.

**Hush.** F'aen hated jealousy, and anything related to it. It wasn't
a feeling that he enjoyed, and the greenrider had always worked hard
on being easy going, and never taking things personal. Especially in
the Weyr. Exclusive relationships were few and far between, in F'aen's
experience, and so he never let himself be fooled into think it was as
easy as 'happily ever after.'

He looked up and a true smile lit his face. "Ah, F'aen," D'naz
breathed and reached a hand up to the other man's shoulder.

"Thank goodness. You'll give me just the excuse I need _not_ to go
back to that brood over there," he pointed a thumb over his shoulder
towards the group he'd left behind. "Total bores. All of them. However
I got saddled with them..." he sighed, "well, that doesn't matter. I
would be pleased for some more pleasant company if you're not already
occupied." He glanced near F'aen, wondering if the greenrider had come
with someone else.

F'aen would be lying to say that he wasn't pleased that D'naz wanted
to spend the rest of the bonfire with him. Not that it should have
been a surprise, F'aen surmised, he considered himself pretty good
company no matter what the situation. "Luckily for you, there is a
spot near me open by the fire." He flashed D'naz an easy smile before
reaching out and snagging the man's fingers.

"Come on." He led D'naz back over to the fire. The place where he had
been sitting was still imprinted in the sand, and F'aen settled back
into it again, his back pressed against the log.

"I haven't seen you out at these before." F'aen pointed out.

D'naz followed happily, eager to get away from the prattling group of
greenriders and friends. He next to F'aen against the log and took a
nice deep breath as he turned his eyes towards the sky.

"Yeah, I haven't come to these much, not lately anyhow." He shrugged
and then perhaps because of the drink or perhaps it was something
else, D'naz decided to share, "I used to come to these things with my
weyrmate, N'ril Turns ago. It was hard to come back after he was
gone." The alcohol had made him a bit more sentimental and oddly
quieter than his usual, boisterous self. "I'm glad I came tonight
though," she turned his body so he was slightly facing F'aen and
without thinking reached a hand out to run it along the younger man's
shoulder. "I'm glad you are here." It was clear, even in his
inebriated state, that he was attracted to F'aen. He didn't know if it
was just lust or something more, and truthfully right now D'naz didn't
care overly much.

F'aen had heard that D'naz had once been weyrmated, although he hadn't
known the details of the bluerider's past. Seeing the pain of the past
on the other man's face as he shared, wrung the greenrider's heart.
"No, I'm glad you're here." He countered with a grin, and once D'naz
touched his shoulder he took that as an invitation, and gladly slid
sideways and cuddled up to D'naz. There was something about D'naz that
made F'aen feel comfortable, maybe it was because the bluerider seemed
so trustworthy. F'aen couldn't imagine D'naz ever hurting anyone.

D'naz held himself stiff for a moment when F'aen moved closer, and
then he relaxed. He hadn't cuddled with many people since N'ril's
death, especially not outside the bedroom. While he might have felt
awkward had it been anyone else, something about F'aen reminded him of
N'ril, and that brought peace and comfort to D'naz. He wrapped his own
arm around the greenrider.

"I'm glad I came as well." He turned and smiled at F'aen. It felt good
to be wanted again, to be utterly comfortable with someone. He wasn't
sure how or why it had happened so easily with F'aen, but then it had
been the same with N'ril. They had talked once, laughed alot and soon
found themselves together.

**I'm not asking him to weyrmate me, just enjoying his company,**
D'naz told himself, not ready to acknowledge that he was already
starting to have deeper feelings for the young greenrider. Instead, he
took another drink of wine and just allowed himself to relax with
F'aen cuddled up to his side. It felt good.

Last updated on the June 18th 2013

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I'm Glad You're Here