The Best Blue

Writers: AmajoS, Emma
Date Posted: 17th September 2007

Characters: Benna, An'dr
Description: Benna helps An'dr bathe his dragon and winds up contemplating twists of fate.
Location: River Bluff Weyr
Date: month 6, day 2 of Turn 4

With the sun slowly making it's way down, the weyr was winding down for the day. All except for one young bluerider.

}:I do need this bath,:{ Pluserth assured his rider from the water's edge. }:It was hot today and I think I might be getting a dry patch.:{
**You are not,** was his rider's reply as he walked to the dragon, **I take good care of you and you know that.** An'dr put the brushes he was going to use down, and unstrapped the pouch of sweetsand from his belt.

Benna slowed as she noticed the blue dragon entering the water, followed by a seemingly reluctant rider. She grinned a bit and decided to offer to help. She loved any chance she could get to get close to dragons, even if it was messy, wet work. Besides, she was finished with her chores for the day and hadn't anything better to do.

"Want some help?"

The sound of the girl's voice startled An'dr, making him drop the pouch. He bent to pick up, before noticing the red hair and freckles as he stood.
"Umm, sure."

"Sorry," Benna grinned at the boy. "Didn't mean to startle you." She then turned her gaze to the blue dragon, her grin turning into a smile. "What's your dragon's name?" She asked as she walked into the water with the boy and his dragon.

"Th... That's Pluserth." he stammered a little. "And I'm An'dr."

"Very nice to meet you, An'dr and Pluserth. My name is Benna." It seemed the young bluerider was shy. "Where do you want me?"

"Well met Benna," he said recovering his composure a little. "If you take this brush here, and start by his tail?"

Benna took the brush and moved over to the blue's rear, she patted the blue hide before wetting it down and starting to scrub. She'd done this a few times, and knew to push harder than she thought she should, that dragon hide was tougher than it looked. She still felt the need to ask, "Am I scrubbing hard enough for him?"

}:Nearly, tell her she won't hurt me.:{ "He says you can try harder, that you won't hurt him." An'dr was by the blue's wing, lathering up a spot that the blue had always complained about.

Benna complied, putting more effort into the scrubbing. "One of these times I'll get it right the first try. The first time I helped wash a dragon, I thought I had to be so careful. The green's rider was laughing at me and I'm pretty sure her dragon was too," she chattered as she scrubbed.

}:I am not laughing.:{ The blue turned his head to study the girl, at least she'd know he was commenting on her.

"He said he's not laughing at you," repeated An'dr. "It takes time to learn how each dragon likes it. My sister's dragon is a bit more sensitive than Pluserth."

Benna beamed a smile up to the blue, "Thank you very much, Pluserth.
That's nice of you. Be sure and have your rider let me know if I need to do it differently." Then she turned her attention to An'dr.

"Are your whole family riders?"

"Just my sister, everyone else is a printer."

"Really?" Benna moved a little further down the blue's tail, trying to maintain the same pressure as she went. "Do they all live here in the Weyr?"

"No, the Harper Hall. Ma's the Hallsecond."

"Really?" Benna had, of course, heard of female crafters before coming to the Weyr. She'd even seen the occasional one at Gathers. That didn't mean it wasn't an odd concept to her. Strange and kind of exciting really. And to think of a woman being a Hallsecond! "Does she like it?"

"I think she does, she says so in her letters."

"I bet it's all sorts of interesting," Benna said as she scrubbed further down the blue's tail. "My parents would lecture for a whole sevenday if she heard me say so, of course." She giggled and added, "They'd say the Weyr has corrupted me already."

"That depends if you'd let it corrupt you.."

Benna made an impatient noise, "My parents are silly wherries. They've always wanted me to act more like a "young lady" than I do. I haven't seen anything all that corrupting so far. Of course, that would probably get me a lecture too, if my parents were here! They'd expect me to be scandalized by the way people act."

"It'll seem normal after a while," commented An'dr. "I wasn't supposed to be here, but Pluserth had other ideas, imagine that as a shock to the system."

"You weren't Searched?"

"Nytha, my sister was. I just came to see if she'd impress. I think I shocked everyone that day."

"I imagine so! Course, I bet you were more shocked than anyone. Being Searched was surprise enough for me, and if I Impress a dragon, I've had time to get used to the idea. It's hoped for. I even expect it.
But just happening to be there when it happens? Wow."

"They say he'd have died if I wasn't here."

"Wow," Benna repeated, slowing her scrubbing and regarding the blue dragon solemnly. She returned her gaze to the rider, "Does that really happen?" People always talked about it as a consequence, but it was so hard to imagine that if circumstances didn't work out just so, it would lead to a dragon dying. What if she hadn't happened to have been spotted by that Search and the dragon meant for her happened to hatch
- like she hoped it would! - from this clutch? Would the little dragon really have just died? Not trying to find another she was compatable with instead? Was it all up to fate? It seemed rather cruel and arbitrary.

"So they say." An'dr's voice was solemn.

Benna shivered and resumed her scrubbing. She felt a strong urge to lighten the mood and went with it, "Well, thank goodness it didn't happen then. Your Pluserth here is much to pretty a blue to have been lost that way," she grinned at both An'dr and the blue.

"The best blue on Pern."

Last updated on the September 23rd 2007

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The Best Blue