Ready to Go

Writers: Francesca
Date Posted: 19th April 2024

Characters: J'nic, A'lin
Description: J’nic and Raileth take Arlin on his first flight and trip /between/.
Location: Barrier Lake Weyr
Date: month 10, day 20 of Turn 10
Notes: Mentioned: Lenorin

J'nic

A'lin

Arlin had spent all day brainstorming ways to get out of the meeting
with the Weyrlingmaster Third. He could feign sickness, or lie and say
he’d been able to go on a ride with someone else. Or, maybe he could
say he needed to head home to help with something.

However, anxious as he was, there was a small part of him that was
excited to finally ride a dragon and curious to feel what it was like
to go /between/. He ended up spotting the greenrider outside and
approached, waiting until J’nic turned and saw him.

“Arlin,” J’nic said with a smile. He’d had some doubts about the
Candidate showing up and was glad to see he was there, and right on
time. “Good timing. I was just about to call Raileth over.” His eyes
unfocused for a moment as he spoke to her. Then, “Did you have a good
day today?”

“Yes,” Arlin replied, wondering what to share. “Helped out in the
kitchens for a bit, and a few dragonriders came to Candidate classes
to talk about life as a dragonrider.”

J’nic nodded. “It’s good to hear from many dragonriders, since
everyone’s experience is a bit different. Were any of them holdbred?”

“Two of them.” Arlin’s attention was drawn by the arrival of a green
dragon, who landed delicately near them.

“Arlin, meet Raileth. Raileth, this is Arlin.” J’nic went to the
green. “You can come right up. She likes it if people introduce
themselves, even though she won’t respond. As you probably know,
dragons only rarely speak to someone who isn’t their rider. I’ve been
with my weyrmate for over a decade and she has only spoken to him a
handful of times.”

Arlin was hardly able to absorb the fact that J’nic had been weyrmated
to a man for such a long time because Raileth was looking at him and,
even though she was a green, she was still pretty large. He had helped
wash a few dragons, the largest a brown. But this was different. “Hi
Raileth,” he said softly. “I’m Arlin.” He was reminded of the day he
was Searched, with a different green dragon approaching him and giving
him a sniff.

After a moment, J’nic said, “She says hello. You can touch her if you
want.” He showed the young man where she liked to be scratched, then
set about putting on the riding straps, explaining what he was doing.
Soon, they were ready to go.

“I’ll get on first, so you can see how to do it. Then you can get on
behind me and we’ll make sure you’re secured. Don’t worry. You won’t
hurt her.”

Raileth’s hide had been softer and warmer than Arlin had expected. It
had felt strange petting her like an ovine, but she seemed to enjoy
it. As J’nic mounted his dragon, Arlin watched closely, then did his
best to copy the movements. He felt awkward, but at least he was
successful and, a moment later, the riding straps were in place.

J’nic showed Arlin where he could hold onto the riding straps, then
added, “If you feel unstable at all, you can also hang onto me. It’s
completely ok. Ready to go?”

Arlin nodded, then realized J’nic couldn’t see him, and said, “Yes.”
His hands gripped the riding straps as tightly as they could.

A few seconds later, and they were in the air. It was such a strange
sensation, being above the Weyr. They circled it once at a leisurely
pace, then turned towards Barrier Hills Hold, which looked so small
from a distance. Arlin was still scared, but it was also exhilarating.

“Ok, ready to go /between/? Remember, count to three and then we’ll be
out. I’ll take us somewhere in the mountains, then we’ll come back.”

“Ready,” Arlin said immediately, before he could lose his nerve. If he
wanted to be a dragonrider, he’d need to get used to this.

J’nic signaled with his right arm, then they were in the complete
nothingness of /between/.

Arlin forgot to count and, just as he was starting to worry, they came
back out. He took a deep breath and looked down, making sure his whole
body was still there.

“We’re not too far from Dragonsfall Weyr,” J’nic said loudly, so his
voice carried. “It’s a little colder here, but not too bad. Ready to
head back?”

“Ok.” Now that he knew what to expect, it was almost more
anxiety-inducing. How could anyone ever get used to it? Flying, yes.
But it felt like going /between/ would always be an alien experience.

A few heartbeats later and they were back over the Weyrhold. Raileth
spiraled down slowly, then landed gently in the Weyrbowl. Only then
did Arlin let go of the riding straps and relax his arms.

J’nic dismounted first, then gave Arlin a hand down. “Now you can say
you’ve ridden a dragon. How was it?” He worked to remove the riding
straps.

“Interesting,” Arlin said immediately. “The flying was great. Going
/between/ was, strange.”

J’nic’s voice was kind. “It’s more disconcerting when you’re a
passenger. When it’s your dragon, you know exactly where you’re going,
and you know you’re not alone.” He looked across the Weyrbowl. “Well,
I’m meeting my weyrmate for the evening meal. Want to join us?”

Arlin tried tamping down the panic that rose at the question. Showing
up at the dining hall with the Weyrlingmaster Third and his _male_
weyrmate? What would his brother think? He shook his head. “Uhhh, no.
Sorry. I have plans to eat with my brother.” He almost always ate with
Lenorin.

“Of course. Well, it was good seeing you. Feel free to come by any
time. I’m always happy to chat.” With a final smile and a wave, J’nic
headed off.

Arlin saw him meet up with a man with a beard. They shared a brief
kiss, then headed to the dining hall hand-in-hand. He felt a mix of
emotions, but the primary one was longing. They made it look so easy
to just be together, and happy. It was hard for him to imagine what
that might be like.

Last updated on the April 22nd 2024

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