Bloody Breakfast

Writers: Halyonix, Steel
Date Posted: 7th August 2025

Characters: Rh'din, Katora
Description: Paskith and Rh'din get to know Saoirth and Katora a little bit more.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 7, day 14 of Turn 12

Rh'din

Notes:
~*~

}:Good morning, Saoirth!:{ Paskith greeted, happily, lifting his head from his meal when he saw the green coming.

Rh’din looked up as well when Paskith squealed, and nodded to Katora. “Morning.”

“Good morning,” Katora answered as she slid down from Saoirth’s neck with a grin. It was still a new feeling, flying together even for short distances, but every day they got to practice. Katora couldn’t wait to see Pern unfolding for them for miles around under Saoirth’s wings.

Saoirth hopped away from her rider and aimed straight for a wherry. “How’s Paskith this morning?” Katora asked.

Rh’din couldn’t help but grin back, the thought of Paskith never far and easily able to bring a smile to his face. “Stronger every day.” He responded, proudly. “And still a chatterbox.” He added, after a moment, though his tone was utterly fond. “Busy thing.”

}:It is a lovely morning today, is it not, Saoirth?:{ Paskith asked. }:And wherries are certainly delicious. I think so at least. Do you think so? They are also faster than herdbeasts, but certainly not more so than we are!:{

}: They are a perfect meal right now. But soon, I think I’ll try taking down a herdbeast, :{ Saoirth replied. }: It’ll be a good challenge. :{

To Rh’din, Katora said, “Saoirth is the opposite. She tends to only speak when spoken to. I think she gets that from me. I…” Katora lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “I like to observe, not talk. Not that talking is bad. I like talking for a reason, not just to hear the sound of my voice.”

}: Oh I am certain you will do wonderfully, Saoirth.:{ Paskith assured happily. }:Perhaps we… Perhaps we might try to take one down together, now? For practice?:{

“That's entirely fair.“ Rh'din allows. “And if you keep your words sparing, more may listen when you do speak.”

A brief pause. “... I like your voice.” He offered.

Another girl might have blushed and flirted at the compliment. Katora looked at Rh’din with that dark-eyed observing nature of hers until she bobbed her head and answered, “Thank you. I like yours. You can tell we’re Traders because we don’t have the usual Hold accents.”

}: Practice? :{ Saoirth echoed to Paskith. She eyed the wherry she had felled, barely eaten, and then looked at the flock. }: If you’re still hungry, we can. I don’t want to waste the food. :{

}:I could eat… :{ Paskith responded, tipping his head as he thought about it, sinking into a crouch.

**Paskith.** Rh'din called, mentally, sensing the way his blue’s attention shifted. **Are you done?**

Paskith froze, but only for a moment, before returning to his wherry. }:You are a wise and mighty hunter, Saoirth!:{

Saoirth let out a delicate, disagreeing grunt but kept her focus on what she thought would be their target. }: You approach from the right. When it bolts, I will catch it. :{

“They’re up to something,” Katora said with a nod of her chin toward their dragons.

“I can feel Paskith plotting.” Rh’din agreed, shifting his attention mostly from Katora to the two dragons in the field. “... I think he wants to-- yep, there he goes.”

The blue had indeed circled to the right, crouched low. Now he stood tall, with his wings flared, and galumphed at speed toward the herd, aiming for one of the shaggy herdbeasts and bugling.

See how intimidating he was?!

The herdbeast and its nearby fellows took off in alarm. As agile as a green could be, though not as graceful as she usually was, Saoirth darted forward to trip up the one closest to her. Her jaws fastened on the thick neck. }: Help me hold it down! :{ she said to Paskith.

Paskith pounced on the hindquarters of the beast, trying to avoid knocking into Saoirth when it kicked out. Between the two of them, they managed to bring the animal down. Saoirth tore its throat since she wasn’t big enough yet to snap its neck.

Katora let out an impressed grunt. “They did it,” she remarked with quiet pride.

“They did.” Rh’din responded, with a grin for her. “Impressive, aren't they?”

Paskith tossed his head back and bugled proudly. Saoirth joined him.

Katora chuckled. “Impressive definitely. Maybe they can start splitting meals together instead of hogging the wherries. They could probably share that with another dragon from our class too, if they catch one big enough. Might be good practice honestly.”

}: That was a good challenge. We should do it again tomorrow, :{ Saoirth said to Paskith as she licked the blood off her muzzle.

}:As soon as we are hungry again!:{ Paskith agreed, and took a bite of this new food. }:We certainly make a fine team, Saoirth! Truly we are mighty hunters.:{

“Speed and teamwork are definitely what should impress the Weyrlingmasters. Maybe even wingleaders.” Rh’din agreed.

Katora nodded to that. “I can’t believe how big she is now. It feels like just yesterday that we Impressed and now they’re already flying and soon to be going /between/.” The thought of that scared her a little but Katora believed in their training. “It would be nice to see my family again, once all of this is complete. I wonder where they are now.”

“Probably on the trading routes.” Rh'din offered. “We had a summer routine and a winter one.”

He paused. “... I'm just imagining their faces when I show up on Paskith.” He added, amused and just a little bit wistful. “They didn't get to meet him, after all. My cousins and little siblings are gonna be all over him when we do.”

Katora was smiling at that thought as well. “So will my family. I’m certain that all of my cousins are jealous of me. I can’t wait to see their faces when I show up with her.” She paused for a second and then suggested, “Maybe we show up at each other’s caravans. Show off how two Traders got dragons.”

“... I think my caravan’d like that.” Rh’din said, after a moment of consideration. “My mother might think there’s more to it than that, if we showed up _together_…. But I can always tell her otherwise.” He offered Katora a grin. “I’m just glad to have at least one friend with a similar background here, with folks of all sorts winding up at the Weyr.”

}:Mine, you are not paying _attention_! Did not Saoirth and I hunt so well?!:{

Katora cocked her head at him, processing his words and the undercurrent, compared to what he had said about her earlier. Did he like her? Should she like him back? With Saoirth so young, Katora hadn’t thought any further than their training. But part of their training involved romantic relationships -- well, sex during mating flights -- so maybe she should think about this at some point too.

“We can figure it out over the next few sevendays. There’s no rush,” she said. “And I’m glad to have another Trader friend. We’ve seen the world in different ways than others. I think that’s a really good thing.”

“We have until we graduate, at _least_. Or until our dragons are grown.” Rh'din agreed, amiably. “And we have seen more. We're likely less hidebound for it, too.” He added. “I know Paskith wants to see the ocean someday.”

“Saoirth too. And plains. She likes the idea of flat land as far as she can see. She’s already seen a waterfall.” Katora waved to the waterfall that dominated most of the Weyr’s landmarks. “She likes the idea of just flying straight, seeing everything. I guess that’s why she picked me. It’s the same things I liked about being a Trader.”

“Paskith says he wants to explore, too.” Rh'din responded amiably. “The ocean is just the part he revisits most often.”

He laughed. “Because it's blue like him.”

“But he hasn’t seen an ocean yet,” Katora pointed out, though she was smiling a little. “Unless you’ve been envisioning one vividly for him, I guess.”

“Well. Visualizing things _is_ going to be part of going Between. I want to be _good_ at it.” Rh'din responded, then paused. “Ocean's just part of it. He likes seeing my memories of the caravan. Even if he wanted to eat the draybeasts pulling the wagons the first time I showed him.”

“Please don’t do that,” Katora remarked with a chuckle. “We would like for our Trader families to be _proud_ of us, not angry with us for ruining their transportation.”

“If he ever dared, I'd make Paskith pull the cart until they could afford a new one.” Rh’din huffed, amused. “Can you imagine the tone, if that was my first visit back? Great Faranth.”

“I’m imagining a dragon pulling a caravan wagon!” Katora answered. She giggled a little. It was funny to imagine, something out of a wild harper tale. “Dragons as draybeasts.”

Saoirth made a dainty, dismissive sound.

“Saoirth doesn’t like that idea nearly as much,” Katora said to Rh’din.

“No, I bet not.” Rh'din chuckled.

}:Don't worry Saoirth!!:{ Paskith assured brightly. }:We are dragons. No one will make us pull carts!:{ Saoirth bobbed her head in agreement.

“We should get ready for our next class. We don’t want to be late,” Katora remarked as she noticed some of their classmates heading towards the barracks for the next lecture.

“You're… probably right.” Rh’din conceded, glancing at said classmates. “See you later, then. Well… um. Not later. You know what I mean?”

He stepped back, motioned her to precede him if she wanted. “You go on ahead. I want another moment with Paskith.”

Katora gave him another one of her assessing looks, like she was mulling over some contextual clue she had missed. “Sure,” she eventually said. “See you in class.”

Last updated on the August 29th 2025

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Bloody Breakfast