Returning The Favor

Writers: AmajoS, Estelle
Date Posted: 13th April 2019

Characters: Benna, L'keri
Description: Benna visits L'keri the morning after the deadly Fall
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 10, day 20 of Turn 9
Notes: Mentioned: Paetri (not by name)

L'keri

Benna climbed the steps up to L'keri's weyr slowly. She'd heard that
most of Cyan Wing had gathered after the disastrous Fall so she had
waited until mid-morning to come see him. She'd considered coming over
last night, but decided against it. She wasn't in Cyan Wing and
something like this was private. She'd done her mourning in her weyr.
She wasn't in the same wing with either of the riders and dragons
lost, but any dragonriding pair lost was tragic and two in one Fall
was heartbreaking.

Now, she just wanted to see how L'keri was doing. He tried to hide it,
but she'd gotten to know him well enough by now to know that he was
more sensitive than he let on. Also, that he viewed his wing as his
family. She wanted to make sure he was alright.

L'keri hadn't wanted to get out of bed that morning. He'd woken with a
dull headache, drained and heavy, as if the previous day and night had
wrung all energy and emotion out of him. He'd felt for Rhalith's mind,
but the brown was still fast asleep, exhausted after the Fall. When
Rhalith woke, he'd get up, he told himself.

When he heard the knock, he reluctantly pushed himself to sit up and
then to stand. He was still wearing yesterday's trousers, and his shirt
was on the floor. He picked it up, but there was a wine-stain on the
front, so he tossed it on the bed and, moving slowly and cautiously,
went over to the press to find a clean one.

"Coming!" he called, wincing at the sound, and went into the bathing
room to splash some cool water on his face. He tried to damp down his
tousled hair, but there was no concealing the red rims and dark shadows
under his eyes. Pulling on the shirt, he went over to the door and
opened it.

"Oh - Benna." She hadn't been far from his thoughts ever since the fall,
nor from his uneasy dreams. Now she was here, he didn't know what to
say. "I...we weren't supposed to meet for running, were we?"

She frowned a bit, her forehead wrinkled with worry. "No, we weren't
going this morning. Even if we had been, I wouldn't think it would be a
good idea." She looked him over and he looked as bad as she thought he
would. Disheveled and bleary and obviously hung over. There was
something else though. He seemed oddly nervous. "How are you?"

"I'm...not great, really. It was a heavy night. But I'll survive." He
made an effort to smile. "Do you want to come in?" His bedroom was a
mess, but the main weyr, where Rhalith slept, was not so bad.

She accepted his invitation with a smile and nod as she entered his
weyr. It looked a little worse than usual, but she didn't mind. "Have
you eaten? I can cook something up here if you're not up to going down
to the Cavern. Or I can send for something to be brought up if you
don't have anything for cooking."

Benna kept a little bit of her favorite foods on hand in her
kitchenette, in case she wanted to stay in and eat. Or invite someone
for a private dinner, most often L'keri lately. But, she didn't know
if he had anything on hand, especially with his diet. Not that she'd
hold him to that today of all days. If ever there was cause for a
cheat day, the day after losing a wingmate qualified.

L'keri shook his head. Now she'd mentioned it, he realized he was
starving. He couldn't remember having eaten the night before. "I don't
have anything here. But we could get something..." He imagined hot,
buttered toast and sizzling bacon. And a steaming mug of klah. It seemed
almost wrong, but he couldn't help it. "Are you hungry?"

"I could eat," she replied. In truth, she'd already had a small
breakfast earlier, but she'd be happy to eat another one with L'keri.

"It'd be nice to eat up here. It's quiet." He rubbed the back of his
neck. "I should bathe..." He must look a wreck. Maybe it wasn't such a
bad thing. She needed to know what sort of a person he was, that he
wouldn't be worthy of the kind of sacrifice his wingmate had made.

"Why don't you go do that and I'll send for some food to be sent up,"
she suggested with a sympathetic smile. "It'll be here by the time you
get out."

"Thank you." L'keri hesitated, almost decided to reach out to her, then
changed his mind and retreated to the bathing room. He needed time to
think, when his head wasn't so clouded. In the night he'd imagined her
in the place of his lost wingmate, dropping out of the formation,
desperately calling out for him and then...

He stripped off last night's clothes and sank into the pool, closing his
eyes as the hot water eased his aching head. With an effort, he banished
that image from his mind. It couldn't happen. No-one, least of all a
young greenrider with everything to live for, could possibly care that
much for a worthless drunk. As long as he was careful.

He washed quickly, massaging the sweetsand into his hair and ducking
under the water to rinse it off. Then, feeling hungrier than ever, he
got out, dried off and wrapped a towel around his waist before peeking
out into the main room. "Benna?"

"In here," she called from L'keri's bedroom. She'd been neatening it
up a little while she waited for the food to arrive, which it should
soon. She had piled all the dirty clothes together to be sent down to
wash and had collected up all the dirty dishes. "Are these dishes
yours or did you bring them up from the kitchens? If they're yours,
I'll wash them for you, if not, I'll give them to the drudge bringing
up breakfast to take back down," she asked as she entered the main
room, dishes in hand..

L'keri emerged from the bathing room, toweling his hair. "Oh - uh,
they're from the kitchens, but - you didn't have to do that," he said in
a rush, embarrassed that she'd seen the state of the place. He must have
grabbed a quick lunch before Fall and forgotten to take them back. "I
should have tidied up in there."

"Please, I have brothers. I know how messy rooms can get. Besides,
you've had other things on your mind."

Just then there was a knock at the door and Benna motioned with her
head, "Go on and get dressed, that's probably the food."

Obediently, he went into the bedroom and found a clean shirt and
trousers in his press. Gradually, he was beginning to feel more human,
less detached from the world. The scent of cooked food drifted in to the
room as he dressed, and he hurried, his mouth watering.

Standing in the doorway, he watched Benna laying out the food on the low
table by his couch. A warm feeling filled him, from his heart to his
fingers and toes. She was pretty and lively and fun-loving, but she was
also kind and had known exactly what he'd need this morning. Maybe he'd
have to give her up, some day soon - or, more likely, she'd see through
him. But not yet.

"Hey." He crossed the weyr and came to sit beside her. "That looks
wonderful."

She smiled at him over her shoulder, glad to see he was looking better
after his bath and some clean clothes. "I just asked them to bring up
whatever they were serving for breakfast. I wasn't sure what you'd be
hungry for."

"I'm hungry for anything." He reached for a slice of toast and began
buttering it, then paused and looked at her. "Thank you. I...I needed this."

"That's why I did it," she reached out and gave his arm a gentle
squeeze. She remembered during the Hatching, when he had held her and
kept her from seeing. When he'd let her cry all over him. He'd taken
care of her that day. Returning the favor was no hardship at all.

Last updated on the April 16th 2019

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Returning The Favor