Rumor Has It

Writers: Halyonix, Devin
Date Posted: 27th May 2025
Series: Bronze and Blue Entwined

Characters: I'serin, K'mai
Description: I'serin hears some terrifying rumors and calls K'mai in to explain.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 4, day 27 of Turn 12
Notes: Mentioned: N'kevyn, Aydhan, J'ler, E'kirim, T'mhas

I'serin

K'mai

The drudges huddled close together but they were speaking
none-too-quietly. "Did you hear about that Cyan rider telling the
_whole_ dining cavern that his _boyfriend_ was a bronzerider?"

A snort from one. "Gotta be lying. Ain't no way."

"Heard it was two. Well, dating one, banging another. You know how
those blueriders get around."

"Wasn't it two bronzeriders at the same time?"

"I thought one of them was a _brown_rider."

"No, it was definitely a _blue_rider," an older woman insisted.

"And they got drinks at the tavern."

"Been there once. Pretty place. Good beer there. Pretty barmaid too."

"Two bronzeriders are the same time? That's definitely not true.
Unless a queen dragon was involved and they just got confused. That
doesn't count."

"I would believe it either, but Filsom works in the kitchens and heard
the whole thing! That whole Cyan table just going on and on about
bronzeriders sleeping with men, and they sure as shells crack weren't
talking about flights!"

"Still hard to believe. A bronzerider for a boyfriend! Who'da thought
-- ah, Weyrleader! Good to see you this mornin'. Anything we can get
you?"

The normally loquacious bronzerider just stood there for a long
moment, panic coursing through his veins. Turns of discipline kept a
wooden mask in place but his mind raced with possibilities -- every
one of them ending with the fear that K'mai had blabbed to someone
about their...relationship...

And now the Weyr knew.

}: Sebeth's rider would not, :{ Aluneth remarked stoutly, shattering
that panic long enough for I'serin to recover his voice.

"Ah, breakfast? Please?" he asked politely. Did his voice crack?
Maybe. But the drudges quickly went about securing food for him,
merrily chattering as though nothing was wrong. Inwardly, I'serin was
rapidly becoming a wreck. Who knew? Who had guessed? How far had the
rumor spread? What if his father had heard?

"Here you go, Weyrleader! Fresh biscuits and herdbest tip gravy," one
of the drudges said happily a few terrifying long minutes later. The
Weyrleader murmured his ragged thanks.

I'serin did not quite run out of the Dining Hall with his food but he
certainly did not dawdle. **Have K'mai meet me in my office. Now,**
I'serin practically demanded of Aluneth as the fear ebbed back into
his mind.

K'mai was sipping his klah when the summons arrived. "Oh shells, the
Weyrleader wants to see me," he said to his breakfast companions as he
rose. From the tone of things, this was not going to be a social
meeting and the bluerider wondered what he was in trouble for this
time.

Moments later, he knocked on the office door before pushing it open.
"I'serin? Uh, Weyrleader, sir? You wanted to see me?"

He entered to see I'serin with his hands flat on the desk, obviously
focusing on something internally. Grounding. Pushing the panic to the
edges of his being so that it did not dominate the conversation.
"K'mai, I... you know I do not care about who you spend your nights
with but the drudges are...circulating...an unsettling rumor." He
looked up then, his eyes full of fear. "About you with a bronzerider."

Then it clicked and K'mai's mouth dropped open. "Oh . . . _oh_ you
think that was about you. No, no!" He waved his hands. "I was talking
about N'kevyn." Shards, K'mai really hadn't thought that through.

"_N'kevyn_?!" I'serin sputtered in both surprise and relief.

K'mai couldn't help smiling at the memory. "Mmm, yeah. Him and Aydhan
at the same time. I uh, got a little carried away bragging about it."

"At the same time??"

K'mai's eyes darkened, his smile turning wicked. "Do you want details?
I can tell you _allll_ about it."

I'serin waved his hands rapidly. "No, no! I do not..." He made a sound
somewhere between exasperation with the incorrigible flirt of a
bluerider and deep relief that it was someone else at the center of
those rumors, despite the surprise of who it was.

He sank into his chair as his hands rubbed his forehead. "I was so
worried..." he murmured, voicing his fear.

K'mai was caught between wanting to comfort him and worrying that
I'serin wouldn't want to be touched in his office. Concern won out and
he walked around the desk to squeeze I'serin's shoulder. "I told you I
would keep your secret."

I'serin stilled instinctively. As he shoved down the urge to shrug
K'mai's hand off, he said, "I believed you. I...I do believe you.
I..." He sighed loudly. "I did not think. I panicked."

"I didn't think either. I was so excited that I could talk about a
bronzerider screwing me that I didn't consider what you might think
when you heard." A small laugh escaped K'mai. "Oh shards, what _did_
you hear?"

"I am not repeating it," I'serin muttered. Mostly because he did not
want K'mai confirming or denying it. He already had plenty of unbidden
images running through his mind.

"You don't want to hear it from the source?" K'mai laughed again.
"Well, just in case things got muddled, I found out there's _another_
bronzerider who likes men, unless J'ler is lying. He said E'kirim is
his boyfriend. A bronze and a brown! People kept saying that couldn't
happen, and here it is going on all around us."

"Another one?" Something began tickling at the edges of I'serin's
mind. He had grown up thinking that he was alone. And then had met
T'mhas, someone who had spent most of his life dismissing his
sexuality as a joke (until recently). And now, more and more, his
father's words of "boys who like other boys don't ride bronze" seemed
to be...wrong. Could it...be the start of something more?

Just before his mind summoned the small hope that he could one day be
himself publicly, panic drowned it.

"It has been noted," he heard himself say, "that the dragons are
choosing more women to ride blues. It...would be logical to make the
same jump in assumptions that they would be changing
other...traditions."

K'mai nodded, smiling. "Maybe some bronzes . . . and browns, don't
care as much about their rider's sexuality as we thought." He
chuckled. "Aluneth's hatchling apparently didn't fall far from the
tree."

"Apparently not," I'serin agreed. He exhaled slowly, focusing once
again on grounding. "I...am sorry that I panicked, K'mai," he said
slowly once he felt more in control.

"I'm sorry you heard rumors about me bragging to the entire Wing." He
_was_ sorry for worrying I'serin, but it was also funny and he covered
a laugh. "I'm kind of shameless sometimes. Okay . . . maybe most of
the time. I didn't tell them who it was, though, which . . . oh
shells, that might have made it worse. I did make it very clear that
it was a bronzerider and his goldrider weyrmate, and not from this
Weyr, so _nothing_ points to you."

Another exhalation, another step towards feeling more centered. "You
know how the rumor mill can leave out pertinent information," he
gently reminded K'mai.

"And _add_ things." K'mai rubbed the back of his neck. "I haven't
really had to worry about it before." Wild rumors about him were just
fun, but now he had I'serin's secret to protect.

Add things indeed. I'serin let out a weak huff of laughter.
"Definitely not two bronzeriders at once," he muttered softly.

K'mai wiggled his eyebrows. "Not _yet_."

"K'mai." I'serin drew out the bluerider's name in mild warning.
Switching topics, now that the panic was mostly contained, he asked,
"Are we...still on for tomorrow's Gather?"

"Shards, I hope so. I've been looking forward to it for sevendays and
_you_ need to get out and have fun." K'mai arched an eyebrow. "You
aren't trying to back out, are you?"

I'serin shook his head. "No, it will...be good to get out of the Weyr
for a bit."

The bluerider grinned. "Good. We can forget all about this. And about
all this," he waved at the hidework on the Weyrleader's desk. "and
just enjoy ourselves."

The bronzerider nodded his head slowly, agreeing with K'mai's point.
"I will see you tomorrow morning then," he said.

"Tomorrow." K'mai blew him a kiss.

Last updated on the July 22nd 2025

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Rumor Has It