Practice Completed

Writers: Avery
Date Posted: 22nd April 2016

Characters: Talwynn, T'shi
Description: Talwynn tries the rope practice.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 5, day 16 of Turn 8
Notes: Mentioned: Onnyth, Lissath, D'kere, Harki, Tavia

Notes: Follows "Accompany Me?"

It had taken two sevendays before they were ready for the practice.
Talwynn had been able to get enough rejected firestone from the weyrling's
sorting and the fall dregs, as well as some good firestone. From where,
T'shi decided he didn't want to know. He trusted that she wasn't
endangering the weyr by taking from its supplies to fight actual Fall, and
so he decided not to ask. Despite Tavia's words to not let her see his
doubt, he was still feeling uncertain about this entire affair. But he was
sure it was better if he was there, rather than her being alone.

T'shi had thought it would have been possible to beg some of the existing
practice ropes off of the weyrlingstaff, since there was little enough
left from Onnyth's class practice that a large amount of new ones would be
created by Lissath's class. But she'd insisted they could just make their
own, and that was how they had both spent a significant part of last
restday helping her shred old fabric the domestic staff had said they
could have because it wasn't usable for much.

To be honest, she had preferred to make their own because she hadn't
wanted D'kere to know. She wasn't sure if he would have offered to help
her with the early unofficial drill, or if he would have insisted she wait
for Lissath's class to get to that point. Since she didn't feel like
fighting with him if he didn't want to help her, she had figured it was
best to just avoid asking him at all.

She'd asked Harki to join them, but the other greenrider had already had
plans. This time she'd see how she and Riveth could cope with the
faux-Thread from one source. In the future, if Harki agreed to come along,
she'd be able to see if they could keep up with it from two directions.
Assuming she succeeded this time, which both of them felt confident about.

Now they were over a fallow field in Amber Hills territory, away from
curious weyrfolk and not near enough to disturb any holdfolk. She was
feeding Riveth the firestone and making sure the green directed it
correctly. T'shi was dousing the strips of fabric in the paint. Then he'd
bag them up, they'd mount, and he'd fling them down at her to char.

"Done," he said when he'd dipped the last ones and shoved them in a bag.
"How's she doing?"

"She'll be ready by the time we're in the air," Talwynn replied. She gave
Riveth the last piece, then wiped her hands and clambered up onto the
green's back, securing her straps.

"Want me to check them?" he asked.

"No, I've got them," she insisted. "If I can't do it myself I'm not much
good to anyone."

"Are you sure? Plenty of fighting wing riders will crosscheck if they're
on a different pair or if they're just in a new wing," he said.

"I've tried to keep them at fighting grade this whole time," she said.

"Even when running a quick sweep? Or when doing a package run?" he queried.

"Always when taking passengers," she said. The greenrider pulled on the
straps as she belted herself in to show that she was sure it was fine.

T'shi sighed mentally and he clambered up onto Iberath's back with the bag
of ropes. "Ready?" he called over.

"Ready!" she said. Riveth bunched her legs and leapt for the air, her
wings beating until she reached mid altitude.

T'shi directed Iberath up to high altitude and then had the brown reach
out to the green to see how she was doing. Once he received the
information that she was ready, signaled by the short burst of flame
below, he reached into the bag to get ropes of the faux-Thread. He tossed
with one hand while clinging to his straps with another just to be safe,
aiming to scatter it over as broad of an area as he could from this
position.

Riveth felt the rumbling in her belly as the firestone reacted in her
second stomach and did its work. The green spotted the falling ropes and
surged upwards to meet it. When she got close she let out a gout of flame,
which fell slightly short of the ropes until she pushed just a bit closer.
Then the flame met the rope, searing up it and turning it into a fiery
ribbon and then to ash. Talwynn cheered at the proof.

A few ropes slipped past the flame to land on her muzzle. Distracted by
the wet slap, the green hopped /between/ to avoid it, then reappeared
where she had been but with her muzzle downwards to direct flame to the
patch that had fallen past her. It was seared to a crisp, and then Riveth
twisted around herself in a remarkable display of agility in time to
become level again and reach the next batch of ropes that were dropping.

After that was seared, she saw another one further away. T'shi was
circling Iberath so that the ropes weren't all falling predictably from
one spot, but were coming from different heights and areas. Riveth had to
exert herself to chase after each patch, her agility tested to get them
all and her stamina as they kept coming.

Talwynn was pushed to cling to her dragon, figuring out how to shift with
the atypical movements of her dragon and to keep her balance with the leg
that was weaker at gripping. Her left leg began to ache badly and yet she
kept it from her dragon, not wanting to stop now. Not when there was a
thrill running through her, the adrenaline rush giving her an energy and
confidence that she hadn't felt in quite some time. She made a mental note
to try to improve the strap designs and then had to bring her focus back
to how to toss Riveth a firestone resupply with only her right hand.

After some time, T'shi ran out. **Tell them we're done,** he said.

}:There is no more rope. We should land.:{ Iberath said to Riveth.

}:It is over:{ Riveth reported to her rider, disappointment in her tone.
She started spiraling down towards the field.

Talwynn felt the same feeling of disappointment. With the play over, the
adrenaline was going to fade, and the hurts it had been masking were going
to make themselves apparent. She wanted to get back to the Weyr, but
Riveth and Iberath were both settling to the ground.

T'shi tore off his helmet and grinned at her as he wiped sweat from his
brow. "You were right about Riveth being fine. That up-down switch was
impressive," he called over.

"Thanks. How'd I look?"

"You kept your seat, though there was one turn when I thought you
wouldn't," he said. "Iberath thought we'd have to catch you."

"I didn't fall, though!" she protested. She knew exactly when he meant -
she'd thought for a brief second she was going to fall off, but her safety
straps had been cinched tight.

"No, you didn't," he said. "You've got plans for that?"

"I'll see about an additional strap to compensate for the leg."

"You might have to get help securing that," he warned her.

She grimaced. "I suppose if it's what I have to do. Did you see any other
problems?"

"She needs more sustain and control on the flame. She wasn't using it as
efficiently as she could. But that kind of experience can be gotten with
the weyrlings."

"I think some of it was stone quality producing uneven flame," she mused.
"We'll see how she does with the weyrlings and that should tell me." After
all, they'd be using higher-quality stone, not dregs.

T'shi nodded. "Ready to go back to the weyr?"

"Shards, yes. I'm going to need a long soak," she said ruefully, aware her
hand was rubbing at her left leg.

"Better thought, a Healer's massage. You're likely to be stiff," he
pointed out.

Talwynn winced. "Yeah. I might." But then people would know she'd done a
little extra unauthorized practicing…

"If not today, then tomorrow. And if you don't wash the stink off, D'kere
will know." He held a hand up at the glare the greenrider shot him. "I'm
just saying that if you want to keep these extra practices quiet you'll
need to figure out recovering from them in a way that, doesn't tell
everyone."

She sighed. "You're right. I promise I'll get tended to, okay?" Anything
to get him off her back about this.

"You better. Or no more help for you," T'shi said with a wag of his
finger. He put his helmet back on and gave Iberath a cue to launch again.
He'd keep an eye on her for the next few days. She'd done better than he
expected and hadn't needed rescue, but if she didn't take proper follow-up
care of herself, then he was going to turn her in. Better her be angry at
him than severely hurt.

Last updated on the April 27th 2016

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Practice Completed