"Faithful Are the Wounds of a Friend"

Writers: Devin, Heather
Date Posted: 22nd July 2014

Characters: Talryne, Jeyme
Description: The two friends have a fight
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 8, day 4 of Turn 7
Notes: Mentioned; N'vanik, D'hol

Talryne

Jeyme

Talryne saw Jeyme as she turned down the hall and she tried to duck
back around the corner. She'd been avoiding her friend for a over a
month now.

Fortunately for Jeyme, and unfortunately for Talryne, the greenrider
spotted the other woman, and called out to her, "Tal!" She smiled,
picking up her pace to turn the corner, "Hey you!"

Talryne winced before turning around. "Hi."

"Where have you been hiding? I haven't seen you in forever and I just
got a new scarf pattern the other day." Jeyme said, oblivious to her
friend's odd behavior.

"Oh, I've... been busy," Talryne lied. Even though they hadn't been
friends long she _did_ miss Jeyme's company. It was just...
complicated.

The hesitation made a little red flag raise in the back of Jeyme's
mind, and she wondered if Talryne really _had_ been busy, "Really?
What have you been up to then?" Jeyme knew that Talryne didn't go out
and do much beyond her weaving because she wasn't particularly fond of
interacting with a lot of people since her dragon's death. She
couldn't imagine what would be so pressing as to keep the woman so
busy.

She had to think fast. "A new tapestry project. Once I start it I
forget everything else." At least there was some truth to that.

"A tapestry!" Jeyme was impressed, "Tal that is great! I would love to
see it when you are finished. I can't even imagine." She was adept at
tailoring breeches and shirts, and she had taken up knitting as well,
but tapestry weaving was an entirely different skill.

**Maybe I was just imagining things.** She thought.

"Mine aren't that good, but I'm getting better." Talryne rubbed
absently at her arm. "I should go." It was too awkward standing in the
hall and trying to have a conversation.

Jeyme looked crestfallen, "Oh, well, okay." She found herself wringing
her hands, "Are you," she hesitated, "are you sure you are all right?"

Shards. Talryne bit her lip. Running off without another word was so
tempting. Maybe she could keep avoiding Jeyme until the woman forgot
about her. Or maybe Jeyme would think she'd done something wrong and
it would bother her forever. "I'm sorry. It's the baby," Talryne
blurted.

"Mine?" Jeyme asked bewildered, her eyebrows shooting up. One hand
automatically went down to the small bump that was finally beginning
to show.

"I knew I'd say something and I didn't want you to think it was
N'vanik's idea and make everything worse. He talks to me and
everything but he never asked me to say anything to you and it's just
so unfair and terrible that D'hol is controlling your life and using
you so he can hurt N'vanik." Talryne hugged herself, stomach twisting.
"So there."

"Oh," Jeyme said, for lack of anything better. "I would love to
involve N'vanik, really but...." She thought back to the way D'hol had
acted over his dream of her dying in childbirth, "But I have to listen
to my weyrmate. I would hope that wouldn't stop us from being friends
because.... Well you are the only friend I have."

She hugged herself tighter. "I don't know if I'm strong enough to
pretend everything's okay. I look at you and all I see is him. How
you're hurting him."

The words were like a slap to the face and Jeyme found herself taking
an involuntary step back from Talryne. The greenrider's brows
furrowed, and hurt washed over her, "Well I don't know if I am strong
enough to be friends with someone who is so mean and self-centered as
to _blame_ me for something I can't control!" Jeyme lashed out in her
hurt, scalding tears pressing to the corners of her eyes. Did Talryne
really think that she would throw away her relationship to D'hol just
so N'vanik might have the chance to play daddy to a kid that might
_not_ be his?

"You are not a real friend at all! Good riddance Talryne and... and
good luck with your stupid tapestry!" Jeyme whirled and stormed off,
her pregnancy hormones raging.

Talryne's own anger flared. Can't control? Jeyme couldn't control her
own life and make her own decisions? Well, either D'hol was a master
manipulator, or Jeyme was still a good, obedient Holder girl in her
heart. Maybe both. "Maybe you don't have any friends because your
bronzerider chases them all away. Maybe he wants to be the _only_
person in your life." N'vanik, if anything, sometimes pushed too hard
to get her to make friends and interact with other people. Shards,
he'd even told her she could sleep with other men if she was ever
ready for that.

Talryne knew she was weak and broken and probably still depended on
N'vanik too much. But she was dragonless, forever less than whole.
Jeyme didn't have that excuse.

Last updated on the July 28th 2014

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"Faithful Are the Wounds of a Friend"