Very Distant Cousins

Writers: Aaron, Devin, Estelle
Date Posted: 4th January 2024

Characters: K'mai, L'keri, K'far
Description: K'mai and L'keri crash another holder wedding, but run into another guest from the Weyr...
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 10, day 9 of Turn 11
Notes: Mentioned: L'val, Saibra

K'mai

L'keri

"This is an excellent excuse to reuse my Turnover clothes with an
entirely new audience." K'mai grinned at his friend.

"I'm sure your finery will bring you just as much success." L'keri
winked over his shoulder at his friend as he finished loosening
Rhalith's riding straps. They'd landed in a grassy field just across
from the hold where a celebration was already in full swing, with music
drifting over from the gather square. Their last expedition to a holder
wedding had been such a success that as soon as the brownrider had got
wind of another one, he'd known they had to attend.

"Should be be from the bride's side this time, since we were from the
groom's last time?" K'mai asked.

"Why not?" The brownrider grinned. "What girl doesn't want to have two
dashing dragonriders in her family?"

"Indeed." K'mai stashed his riding jacket and helmet in a bag and then
smoothed his tunic. "Food first?" he asked with an amused twinkle in
his eyes.

"Always." L'keri licked his lips in anticipation as they started
towards the food tent. He'd even gone so far as to forego lunch at the
Weyr so as not to ruin his appetite. "Mmm, I can smell grilling...and
is that bubbly pies?"

K'mai tilted his nose up and took a good sniff. "Ahh, definitely." He
rubbed his hands together, practically able to taste it already.

"My favorite! Fresh out of the oven, and bursting with delicious
fruit." The brownrider felt his stomach growling as they joined the
crowd of hungry guests. "Do you think - as it's a wedding - it's
permitted to have dessert first?"

K'mai laughed. "Of course! Besides, who's going to know we haven't had
our vegetables first." He winked.

"No one at all! This way." L'keri wove through the crowd to the table
where a cook had just brought over a tray of hot bubbly pies, fresh
from the oven, and gave her his best winsome, little-boy grin. "Those
look as sweet and delicious as a lovely maiden's first kiss."

The woman smiled indulgently at them as she served up the pies onto a
cloth. "Careful, Dragonriders, they're hot. The Hold is honored to
have so many guests from the Weyr today. If I'd have known I'd have
made an extra batch!"

"The honor is all ours, to see our little cousin on her most joyful
day," the brownrider replied cheerfully as he breathed in the scent of
the pie. "Isn't it, K'mai?"

The bluerider nodded, eyes bright as he took a pie. "We're very happy
for her."

"If I'd known there were other guests of the bridal party at the weyr,
we could have traveled together."

K'far nonchalantly took one of the pies and grinned. It was a bit too
hot, so to avoid looking like a schmuck biting into it too fast and
burning his mouth, he held it in his hand.

"The bride is your cousin, you said?" He was not terribly familiar with
either one of the pair. He was fairly certain they were both in L'val's
wing. As far as he knew or could tell, they_could_ be her cousins. But
as long as it had been since they had seen each other regularly, K'far
had a feeling the groom would have mentioned having invited more riders
from Dragonsfall.

L'keri turned around, startled, and met the gaze of another brownrider.
He recognized the face, but it took a moment to place him - until he saw
the Wingsecond knots and his stomach dropped. Still, this wasn't the
first time he'd been in a sticky situation, and he decided there was
nothing for it but to brazen it out. "Yes - distant cousins, but we like
to stay in touch with the family. Keep up the strong bonds between Hold
and Weyr." He put on his most guileless air. "You're a relative, too?
Small world."

K'mai nibbled the edge of the pie to get some food in his mouth as an
excuse not to talk and watched the other two riders. A Wingsecond from
their own Weyr wasn't good news, but L'keri had gotten out of worse
and K'mai was thinking of ways to back him up.

"I'm sitting on the groom's side today," said K'far. "You two share a
grandfather, then? A great grandfather?" He did not think a weyrleader
would put brothers in the same wing. They did not look like they shared
both parents, anywayâ€" if even one.

"If I remember right, it's quite a few generations," L'keri replied
easily. "Someone who was Searched from the hold before the plagues. Or
so my foster mother told me! You know how things are, in the Weyr. We're
all likely related if you go back far enough." He blew lightly on his
bubbly pie, then took a bite, careful of the hot berry juice. "Mmm!
Delicious."

"Things get so tangled the further out you go," K'mai said, nodding.

"Isn't that the truth. So," said K'far. "Your foster mother knew you
were cousins? She must be quite the record keeper. A Harper?"

"No - no craft. She worked for the Headwoman," L'keri replied, wondering
how to turn the conversation away from their supposed relationship to
the bride. "But she wanted all us weyrbrats to know our roots. Maybe she
asked the Weyrharper." He shrugged casually. "And you, do you know the
groom's family well?"

"His family? No. It's a bit of a tale, but believe it or not, he and I
were Candidates together Turns ago out east at Dolphin Cove. We met
while we were apprenticed to the Healers there, and he was my best
friend for around four Turns. Then I Impressed, and he didn't. Never
did, obviously. When he left the Weyr, I didn't think I'd see him
again.

"Imagine our surprise when we ran into each other at Opal Cove a
little while back when I was there, believe it or not, for a wedding.
He sent me an invitation to come today, and I could hardly pass it
up."

"Come on, I'll introduce you. If you get him started talking about
back when he was a Candidate, he'll never stopâ€" especially if he's had
a few, and I suspect he has."

K'mai gave L'keri a quick 'maybe we got away with it' look before
turning to K'far. "I'm sure you both have interesting tales from your
time as Candidates. Were you serious sorts, or did you get into a bit
of trouble?"

"You'll hear all the stories twice if you get me started before we find
him," K'far chuckled. "Maybe the bride knows where he got off toâ€" have
you said hello to her yet?"

"Ah - no. Not yet." L'keri realized with a sudden jolt of alarm that he
had not yet managed to discover the name of the bride. On the previous
occasion they'd been able to find out by asking around, but he couldn't
do that with K'far there. He'd have to be very careful! He glanced
around, looking for a woman in a bridal gown. "Shall I go and see if I
can find her?" Maybe K'mai would be able to keep the Wingsecond
distracted. He gave his friend a meaningful look.

"You know, this bubbly has made me thirsty," K'mai said. "Maybe K'far
and I could grab drink while you look for the bride? I could grab you
a drink too."

"Ach." K'far glanced at the pristine bubbly still in his hand. "I
haven't even gotten started. No worries, I don't need anything to drink
just yet. I'll help you look for... shells, I already forgot her name,
what is it again?"

"We always used to call her Shorty," L'keri joked. "Though I expect
she's grown up a lot since we saw her last. Just juice for me, please."
He figured he'd need all his wits about him to get out of this. To his
relief, he spotted a young woman with flowers in her dark brown curls,
surrounded by a group of excited holder girls exclaiming at the beauty
of her gown. "Ah, there she is. Shall we go and pay our respects,
K'mai?" He winked at K'far. "Don't worry, I won't tell about you not
remembering her name."

"Very magnanimous," K'far chuckled. "I'm a bit envious, really. I bet
there were a lot of cousins and probably even brothers and sisters I
never met because no one knew... It would have been nice to have
family I had nicknames for."

As they approached, he waved at the bride. She would probably have
some cute names for them, too.

"It's been so long I hardly recognize her." K'mai sighed. "Dragonrider
life, you know. I sadly neglect visiting some of my more distant kin.
I don't know about you, L'keri, but I might have to remind her who I
am."

"I expect so. She won't have seen us since we were skinny young lads,
not long since graduated to the Wings, and not the two fine figures of
dragonriders we are today." L'keri eyed the women, then decided there
was nothing else for it but to take the plunge and hope for the best.
He approached them confidently and swept a low bow. "Cousin! Many
congratulations on your happy day."

The young woman blinked at him, startled. "Ah, thank you, dragonriders...?"

"It's me - L'keri! Shells, I haven't seen you since you were this
high. How you've grown! You look truly lovely." He straightened. "But
you can't possibly have forgotten this handsome bluerider." He
gestured towards K'mai.

"K'mai, of blue Sebeth." He bowed, heart beating a little fast with
nervousness. "My ego would be very pleased if you do remember me, but
it would only be my own fault if you don't." The bluerider smiled.
"It's sadly been many Turns."

"Many, many Turns," L'keri echoed with a solemn face. "But we hope to
make up for our absence in the dancing square this evening, if you and
the rest of these lovely ladies will do us both the honor."

"Of course." The bride's smile was a little embarrassed at having not
recognized her "cousins", but as with the couple at the last wedding the
dragonriders had dropped in on, she appeared to be too polite to mention
it. "Thank you all for coming." She glanced at K'far, as if wondering if
she'd forgotten yet another dragonrider relative.

"It's a pleasure to be here," said K'far. He offered a hand. "I'm K'far
of Brown Torth. I hope Mylan mentioned he was kind enough to invite me.
We were friends a million Turns ago when we were both at Dolphin Cove.
I'm not quite sure where he's wandered off to, actually." The latrine,
probably.

"I'm sorry to say I never had a cute nickname for him like your cousins
here had for you," he chuckled.

"Nickname?" She glanced at the other two riders, looking even more confused.

"That was all a very long time ago," L'keri said hastily. "I expect you
were too little to recall. And now you're a grown-up lady!"

"I suppose I am." The young woman took K'far's hand and relaxed, clearly
more familiar with his identity. "Mylan often talks about his time at
the Weyr, and your friendship. He'll be so glad you could make it today.
I think he went to talk to the harpers... I'm Navine, of this hold."

"Shells." L'keri slapped a hand to his forehead , pulling a mortified
expression to hide his profound relief at finally learning the bride's
name. "We ought to have introduced our cousin, K'mai. How rude of us. I
can only say that I was so overwhelmed by her beauty, I quite forgot."

K'far glanced askance at L'keri. He preferred to give fellow riders
the benefit of the doubt, but all in all, he was fairly sure the story
did not add up. He was not about to accuse them in public, but he was
fairly certain now that they were no more closely related to the bride
than he was.

He felt a small pang of guilt, though, to hear that Mylan still spoke
of him often, when he had scarcely thought of Mylan for Turnsâ€" not
until he received the wedding invitation. And they had been so close
once. K'far would have to make a point to visit now that he knew
exactly where he ended up, and to catch up if Mylan had the time.
Weddings were exhausting for the couple, having to be social with
everyone they had ever met.

And with dragonriders who pretended to have met them.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Navine. I hope we can be friends,
too."

K'mai repeated both names to himself so he wouldn't forget. "It really
is a lovely celebration. I'm so glad the beauty of your wedding day is
matched by such a wonderful party. Though nothing can match the beauty
of the bride herself, of course."

"Thank you, Cousin K'mai." There was a glimmer of amusement in Navine's
eyes - perhaps she'd caught K'far's expression and come to the same
conclusion. "I hope you all enjoy yourselves at the Hold, and it won't
be so long before you visit again. Now, I'd better greet the other
guests - would you excuse me? If I see Mylan I'll tell him his old
friend is here."

When all of the parting pleasantries had been exchanged, K'far was at
last alone with K'mai and L'keri. He was not precisely responsible for
riders outside of Saibra's wing, but he nevertheless felt as though he
carried more responsibility than an ordinary wingrider to represent the
Weyr well among the Holds.

"You're not related to her, are you? Or each other, I suspect."

L'keri winced and glanced at K'mai. "Well...if you go back far enough,
we're all related to each other, aren't we, really?"

"Some cousins are a little more distant than others." K'mai tried to
keep an innocent expression. Getting chewed out by a Wingsecond was
not how he wanted his day to go. This was just supposed to be a bit of
fun.

K'far sighed and shook his head.

"The Holds already give so much to support us. I'm disappointed in you
for taking advantage of their hospitality."

He should tell L'val what they were up to. That was the responsible
thing to do. But he would not tell Mylan unless he asked. Navine surely
already suspected, but that did not mean K'far had to confirm it if it
meant harming the Weyr's relationship with the Holds.

"We never meant to take advantage of anyone, Wingsecond." L'keri did his
best to sound regretful, which wasn't too hard. They'd hardly had a bite
to eat yet, nor a chance to meet any of the hold girls except for
Navine. "We only wanted to - to show our respect for the holders on
their day of celebration, and enjoy the dancing. I admit we shouldn't
have said we were relatives, but we had nothing but good intentions."

"I'd like to believe you. Everything would be so much simpler if I
could. But you haven't spoken a word of the truth to me since I ran
into you," said K'far. "What wouldn't you tell me if it got you out of
the consequences for this?"

"Is it really so terrible that a few ladies get to say they danced
with a dragonrider or two?" K'mai said.

K'far shook his head and sighed.

"I'd be much more inclined to consider it harmless if you hadn't lied
about it," said K'far. "I'm not in any position to hold you accountable
for anything myself, but I'll be informing L'val, and he can do with you
as he will."

L'keri's heart sank. This wouldn't be the first time he'd been in
trouble with his Wingleader, but he wished he hadn't got K'mai into it
as well. He knew better than to argue, though. And perhaps the excursion
might not be a total loss...

"Can we at least stay a little longer?" he asked hopefully. "It would
look strange if we left so early. The holders would be offended."

"Stay as long as you will. It's not as though you're going to run
away," said K'far. "And do consider getting the happy couple a wedding
gift, if you're feeling generous. I'm sure they would appreciate it."

K'mai didn't know if he could enjoy the rest of the celebration with
that bit of doom hanging over his head. "Ah yes, a gift would be
nice."

"Of course, Wingsecond." L'keri's expression brightened. Any trouble
they were going to get into was a problem for tomorrow. Maybe K'far
would have such a good time, he'd forget about them, or at least show
some mercy, and they'd still get to enjoy the party. "Come on, K'mai -
let's go and find a truly special present for our, ah, little cousin."

The bluerider brightened at that. "Oh yes, a bit of shopping would be
nice. I'm very experienced at gift-buying, you know."

"I've had some practice at choosing gifts myself. At least, for
ladies," L'keri said, modestly. "I'm sure between us we'll find
something appropriate!" He nodded politely at the Wingsecond, then the
two walked off, a little hurriedly, in the direction of the craft
stalls.

Last updated on the January 6th 2024

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Very Distant Cousins