Sitting, reading, and so on

[Teryl]

Teryl leaned back against a small hardwood tree, one of the few plants in the garden tall enough to give shade. Raith was next to her, so much bigger now then when she had hatched, and from time to time her human reached out to stroke her head or scratch her eye ridges.

The garden was pleasant, warm today. With the sun almost directly overhead, the patch of shade Teryl rested in was rapidly dwindeling, but she didn't want to move. She was practically asleep, eyes mostly closed, book in her hand forgotten.

What a luck thing it was that she had found this garden, she thought sleepily to herself, though Raith heard it. So peaceful and quiet here. ~When I can fly, mine, we shall find spots even more peaceful.~ the dragon added. Teryl nodded slowly, shooed away a passing vtol, and relaxed into a light doze.

[Siera/Mellody/K'lin]

K'lin walked by with Jinth right beside him. Look mine a green. Yep and her rider as well. Go say hi to them. Jinth said pushing his rider closer. "Umm hi. I'm K'lin and this is Jinth," he said quietly.

[Teryl]

Blink. A voice pulled Teryl relentlessly from her doze, a voice that was unrecognizeable to her. She tried to turn her head, mumbling into the plush tan fabric of her tunic for the intruder to go away, but too softly to be heard by human ears.

Raith was a different matter. Her head shot straight up from it's languid position on her front paws, eyes changing in an instant from contented, sleepy navy to alert green. She surveyed the two newcomers sharply, deciding if the boy was a brown rider, he couldn't be of the altogether bad sort.

The green also picked up Teryl's sleepy mutters, sensed her intentions to utterly ignore the pair, or dismiss them offhand. That wouldn't do. Her bonded should get to know some people around here.

She flashed garish red-orange colors into Teryl's head, rousing the girl instantly from sleep. "Raith? Is something wrong?" She said instantly, swinging a long brown braid into it's proper position between her shoulders and looking at the dragonet with a worried frown.

Raith gave a tolerant, if slightly exasperated, mental sigh. ~Teryl. Company. A brown rider - weyrling, rather. They just greeted you. Please, please respond. They'll think they're being snubbed otherwise.~

Teryl's face heated, and she turned her brown eyes away from her dragonet. Sure enough, a boy and dragon stood there in front of her, looking down as if awaiting a response.

~What did they ask?~ she querried desperately to her bonded.

~They didn't - they just introduced themselves. The boy is K'lin, his dragon Jinth,~ the green responded.

Teryl smiled, sheepishly. "Oh. Er, hi. K'len."

~K'lin!~ Raith corrected her, clearly exasperated.

"Umm. I mean, K'lin. I'm Teryl, this is Raith." Her face was probably as scarlet as a redfruit by now, but she kept her eyes up determinedly. "Guess we aren't the only ones who thought this would make a good reading spot? Me and Raith, I mean."

[Siera/Mellody/K'lin]

"I guess not. It's nice to meet you Teryl and your lovely green as well." K'lin looked over at Jinth to make sure the dragon didn't wander off.

[Teryl]

"Uhu. Nice to meet you too," Teryl said, slightly desperate. She was bad at talking to girls, and somehow boys were even worse, so she brought her book back up, fully intending to hide behind it until that pair got the hint and left.

But alas, it was not to be. Raith, who was still closely monitering the conversation, did not move from her position of laying on her paws, neck straight up like a young green sapling. But Teryl's head was once more filled with painful colors. ~Don't. Just don't. Is talking to someone once and a while too much to ask?~

Teryl felt pricklings in the corners of her eyes, knew the mahogony irises would be starting to sparkle. Oh, no, no way was she going to cry. She just loved her dragon so much, she didn't want to displease her. And yet, it was difficult, to talk without making someone hate you. And she couldn't think of anything to say!

Raith softened, the colors becoming cooler blues, for she loved her bonded with the same intensity. ~I know. It's hard to break a habit. But you have to, you do. For me, and for yourself.~

Teryl felt a sigh sitting hard in her chest and forced it down. Her book followed. She had to. For her dragon.

"So, umm... do you come out here often?" Again, there was a note of desperation in her normally pleasent alto voice, but the boy - K'lin? - might not notice. She hoped he wouldn't, anyway.

[Siera/Mellody/K'lin]

"No. It's such a nice day that I thought we'd just walk though," K'lin said. He wasn't much of a talker himself.

[Teryl]

Teryl nodded, brown bangs flopping into browner eyes. "I won't stop you then," she replied. As always, blunt and to the point.

Perhaps too blunt. That sounded far too much like a dismissal, didn't it? She thoughtfully tapped a thumb on the cover of the book, keeping her middle finger between the leaves to mark her place. How to make him understand she wasn't sending him away?

"Of course, if you want to stay around, I won't stop that either..." She could feel Raith cringing from disgust at her bonded's social ineptitude, but what was there to do? Teryl just wasn't an outgoing person.

"I mean..." she tried to continue, then cut herself off. First of all, she didn't know what she meant, second of all, she couldn't think of any way to save herself from falling headfirst into disgrace at this point. Maybe an honest apology.

"Ach, I'm sorry, I don't know what I mean. You'll have to forgive me if I've offended you. Do whatever you'd like, don't let me stop you." she hunched down even lower, face blazing so hot she was surprised she couldn't see smoke. How could she keep doing this? How long did Raith intend for her to try to make freinds?

~I intend to keep trying until you make a few. But don't worry, it grows easier with time.~

So soothing was the mental voice of the lovely green, so confident, that Teryl felt the heat of embarressment die down in her face. If Raith approved, it was worth every torturouse minute.

[Siera/Mellody/K'lin]

"We'll just be on our way then. Jinth just wanted to see the garden anyway," K'lin said walking away before Jinith stepped in front of him. STAY AND TALK TO HER! Jinith please can't you see she wants to be alone. I think she likes your company.

[Teryl]

Teryl thought the boy was leaving, as he said he would be on his way and appeared ready to take a step. But before he could, his expression glazed, and he froze.

She waited. K'lin continued to stand there. Talking to his dragon? Waiting for her to speak? He didn't seem too sure of himself... but then, she had always been terrible at reading expressions.

Taptap, went her finger on the book cover, resounding in the silence that was now beginning to grow awkward. Her dark eyes darted left and right, searching for some escape, but none was forthcoming.

"So... umm... are you okay?" she ventured. Her voice choked at the beginning of the sentence and tried to seize up at the end, but she pushed it out. It seemed to echoe, sounding weird and tinny to her ears. But anything was better then that tense silence.

[Siera/Mellody/K'lin]

"Yeah I'm fine I was just talking to Jinth," K'lin said turning back to her. Jinith pushed him back to where he was standing. Soon a brown flitt circles overhead and lands gracefuly on his sholder. "Uh this is my firelizard Tanner," K'lin said gestering toward the brown flitt. Tanner chirpped a quick greeting before watching the girl and her dragon.

[Teryl]

A nod to that. Teryl talked to her dragon as well. It was rather hard to avoid, at that. But what had Jinth said to stop his bonded leaving her in peace? This was all Raith's fault, and she thought that in the same way you tell yourself something is your own fault, not as if looking for a scapegoat. It was the bare and simple truth.

Raith, who had laid her head back down upon her paws, flashed Teryl a mental nod. Of course it was her fault! Was that a bad thing?

Teryl realized she was nodding towards Kalin in a somewhat vacant way, head bobbing up and down in acknowledgement a few times too many, so she stopped it, reaching one hand back to grab a hold of her thick brown braid as if to prevent such a thing from happening again by forcible restraint.

Mahogony eyes then found the brown flitt now perched on Kalin's shoulder, looking too her insufferably smug. Probably a trick of the light, for how could such a draconic creature look smug? But oh dear, she seemed to have missed something once more in her musings.

~He introduced the flitt, which is Raylin,~ Raith promptly responded, ~But you really ought to pay more attention.~ The last was in the gently scolding tone of an oft repeated, oftener forgot phrase.

"Oh." Teryl had not intended to speak aloud, but our intentions are not always what actually comes to pass. "Nice to meet you Raylin."

One of the best things about speaking mentally was, words were never jumbled, your dragon never had an accent, and unless there was some terrible hurry, everything was perfectly crisp and clear. So Teryl had only to hear the name once, and though she may just as soon forget it, it should retain correct prununciation until she does.

Now, why was she adressing the flitt? I don't beleive either she or I can know the answer to that. It was a somewhat tongue-in-cheek move, unusual for Teryl, though just as much caused by ignorance as design. Perhaps more, for now her attention was turned back up to Kalin - so far above her, perhaps she should stand? - To say, "What a lovely firelizard. I would have tried to get one of my own, but my Hold is in quite a mountainous area, and there hasn't been a clutch since I arrived at the Weyr."

Anything to be speaking, for silence seemed awkward when more then one person - or at that, more then one bonded pair - shared this garden. Teryl was prepared to run with whatever topics she could find until the brown weyrling left.

[Siera/Mellody/K'lin]

(Tanner is the flitt's name) K'lin sighed. "We better get going Jinth I know Tanner's hungry and I bet you are to." Fine, Don't make any new friends see if I care. We'll meet agian maybe. So. "I'll be on my way then. Pleasure to meet you," K'lin said before walking off.