Friends for life

[Maggie]

{desc=Or how Mifth acquired a flitt harem}Dimglow had the best life ever. He was absolutely sure of this from the bottom of his happy flittish heart. He had the best person ever who gave him a nice, warm place to sleep, oiled him when he was itchy and baths whenever he asked. He had a big blue dragon who was actually quite small and who Dimglow thought might maybe just be an oversized mutant flit, which was the coolest thing ever. He also had a brother flit who he adored, even when Doom tried to dress him up. He was so funny, when Dimglow escaped! He would throw tantrums. And he was going to be smaller than Dimglow, which was also funny. So life was very funny and good.

He also had many, many friends. One of these friends he had met during an excursion to the kitchens to find food and new people to be friends with. The nice lady in the kitchen had given him lots of delicious meat scraps, but that hadn`t been the best thing about her. No, the best thing, he had discovered, was hiding under her hair, unsure about the world. Dimglow had been delighted to have a new flitt friend! Bubbly was not at all certain about anything, but Dimglow loved him so, so, so much right away that he finally relented a bit. He had had some experience with yellows, Dimglow had found. There was a big yellow like, somewhere, who had many flitts and came to the kitchens, sometimes. So Bubbly knew of yellows and their happiness and had grudgingly let Dimglow be his friend.

This had actually gotten better and better. Dimglow loved Bubbly, but he also loved adventure, so he tried to get Bubbly to leave his person, now and then. It was very hard. However, when Bubbly told him about the Good Man who his person brought smelly drinks to and about the time they'd gone to his weyr and about the Scary Big Blue Nose, Dimglow knew exactly what they had to do. He knew what that Scary Big Blue Nose was, he had one too, albeit a smaller one attached to a maybe-mutant flit, not a full-sized dragon. It was a big Bubbly! It was obviously, therefore, a new friend and Dimglow just had to meet him and the Good Man.

Maelie waas surprised to see the happy little yellow flitt follow her as she brought a tray of her latest creations up to F'dren's weyr. The poor man had his hands full with the Weyrling class he had just inherited, so she had thought he would appreciate a treat and the klah-glazed buns she had just made might be just the right thing. She brought them with a steaming fresh pot of Klah, making sure to arrange them just so on the tray so that everything looked most appetizing. "Bluerider F'dren?" she called shyly as she knocked, well kicked softly, really, since her hands were full, on the door. "It's Maelie, from the kitchens. I've made some new klah-glazed buns and I thought you might like to try them."

Dimglow did not even wait for the door to open, appearing in the weyr and flying straight to where he knew the Big Scary Blue Nose would be. Bubbly squeaked in alarm, but followed him, not wanting Dimglow to bother the scary thing and make it angry enough to eat them or his beloved person. He was trying to convince his flittish friend to reurn to the safety of Maelie's shoulders when he saw him: a blue like himself, but immense, big enough to eat him in a single bite. He gave a shrill shriek of fear.

Dimglow, however, seemed to have no such qualms. He cooed happily as he saw Mifth, flying straight for his headknobs to hug them. Oh he was a wonderful new friend! He was big, like Dimglow's Ana, but even bigger and definitely a real dragon! He would be a wonderful, wonderful friend! He crooned lovingly at the dragon, landing on his big blue nose and cheeping his affection.

[lee]

F’dren was going to die.

No. he decided alter a minute of mortified reflection, death was too merciful.

He had thought, when he had seized the opportunity Delilah presented, that being a Weyrlingmaster would be. . .well not easy, he certainly wasn't foolish enough for that preposterous assumption, but he had, perhaps, thought it would be a bit more...no, that wasn't right either, not ‘more’ anything.. He hadn't counted on it being so gosh darn full of hormonal and emotional teenagers. That was it. Of 'course, reflecting back, he had been exactly that when Mifth had flopped his way from his shattered shell to the then 14 turn-old's feet. But F’dren rather thought he could be forgiven for omitting that fact from his memory after nearly 20 turns. "So. so...yes. You're ah, you're not wounded. No. This erm, well it happens. Quite, um, quite regularly, I think. Roughly...roughly every four sevendays. I think, when you're...well, a female?" The weyrling in question burst into tears and F’dren choked on his sip of klah in alarm. Oh dear. Oh dear. "Ah—are you...I think...well...urn…” HAAH. Help--Mifth?

I will call Agnith!

F’dren nearly melted in relief. Faranth’s shards...THANK you. "Um, maybe... Delilah...she, well she's a healer" And female Which meant she did this too. F’dren blanched in horror, not particularly needing or wanting that thought, and he flapped a hand in front of his face as if it might somehow dislodge the blasphemous loop his head immediately launched into.. "She...well she can...probably better...better ah, [ explain..." This time. Nexgt time, he would know what to say. He would sit in the creche himself and learn the lecture, but he was, at this particularly moment, woefully unprepared. He patted the weyrling on the shoulder awkwardly, and she accepted the proffered handkerchief with a gusty sob, but seemed to get a hold of herself, as she nodded, mumbled something. Lost, he asked if she wanted him to accompany her, and she turned scarlet and shook her head violently, so he sat back in bewilderment as she left his weyr, and sank into the chair, rubbing his temples. Mifth?

Her bonded is concerned, but no danger. They both seem to be calming down. What do you call that conversation? The wherries and wizzbugs?

F’dren downed every last drop from his mug. We call that a nightmare, Mifth. We call that a nightmare.

I thought a nightmare was—

At the knock at the door, F’dren went sheet white and shaky, then slowly, slowly lifted himself up to answer the door, every bit of him trembling in fearful anticipation of what next teenage trauma would await him on the other side. Only instead, the musical lilt of a woman's voice greeted his ears and he threw open the door with such relieved delight that he might have looked feverish. "Maelie," He breathed, the name laced with every emotion related to respite, "Oh, come in. Please come in." In his haste to welcome her, he tripped over the chair trying to pull it out for her, but caught himself on the table, waving her in and taking the tray with trembling hands. He didn't notice the additional visitors, but Mifth did.

Oooh, hello! He cooed, immediately lifting his head and nose in attempt to get a better look at the critter that had landed atop of it. You are very bright. Like butter! Or citrus fruits. Or the juice from citrus fruits that they put sugar in and give to the littles and looks oh so very good--well okay, it looks like yellow juice, but the littles who drink it look oh so very happy—that I have always wanted to try but F'dren won't let me (because F'dren is stinky and mean) oh but you are not stinky. You smell like the kitchens. I would know. My nose has been there and you are on my nose. Oooh, and hello little mini blue friend! You have grown. As has your volume.

Harpsiklahd, for his part, was not nearly so welcoming. Harrumph! He sounded, winging from F'dren's shoulders to land resolutely on Mifth's head. He glowered regally at the intruder. Harrumph! This was not how things were DONE. One did not just fly in and land on other flitter's dragon's noses. No! There was an order to things! A proper way to go about it! Why, back in his day, flitters introduced themselves first! Brought a bit of an offering—a shiny rock, a tasy morsel of meat—well okay, they didn't, but it would be RESPECTFUL to do so! Who was this, who so brazenly, proprietarily plonked themselves down on HIS preferred perch upon the blue dragon’s proboscis?

[/blockquote]

[Maggie]

Maelie smiled and gave a little maternal chuckle as she saw F'dren's downtrodden state. "Dealing with teenagers is difficult, I thought you could use a little treat," she told him. "I haven't seen you down in the kitchens quite so often, so I thought maybe you might be low on klah. And pastries. I want to make sure I got the glaze just right. Someone said I may have put too much klah in it, but I wanted second opinion. And careful with that klah, it's very fresh and hot, don't burn yourself."

She looked around in alarm when she heard her flitt shriek, then sighed. "Bubbly, that's just Mifth. He's a very nice dragon. Be polite." She smiled sheepishly at F'dren. "He's gotten a little better about being brave. His new friend there is helping. I think he belongs to bluerider G'lin, but I'm not sure, I see him by himself most of the time."

Dimglow was very, very pleased by how happy Mifth was to see him and all the compliments. Harpsiklahd's arrival did nothing to dim his enthusiasm which, if at all possible, got bigger. Another friend! There were so many friends here! He was such a lucky, lucky flitt... The baby yellow hopped up higher on Mifth's nose, going to see Harpsiklahd with happy, happy cheeps. He threw himself at the brown, cuddling up to him with absolutely no shame. Harpsiklahd was wonderful! He was such a good new friend to have!

Bubbly was absolutely terrified. Dimglow was making everyone angry. Well maybe except the Big Scary Blue Nose which was attached to a huge blue dragon. A dragon that seemed happy to see him? And that knew him? He landed on the nose tentatively, giving a questioning chirp. His person didn't seem worried, so maybe it was ok? He sent Mifth a questioning image of himself, but big. Was Mifth a big Bubbly like Dimglow said? Dimglow said he had a big Bubbly himself, though it was smaller than this Big Bubbly. He kept a cautious eye on Harpsiklahd, ready to flee at a moment's notice if the brown got angrier.