You Know I Will

Writers: Eimi, Dana
Date Posted: 17th October 2005

Characters: U'kaiah, Traelyn
Description: U'kaiah and Trae say goodbye
Location: Elsewhere on Pern
Date: month 8, day 4 of Turn 3

U'kaiah was still sticking his arms in his sleeves as he closed the young
woman's door and started down the hall towards the stairs. **Where is
she?**

}: They went to the cove. Your cove. The one you play waterball at. :{
his bronze answered. }: Nyith was really worried, U'kaiah. We should
hurry. :{

The bronzerider rolled his eyes. He figured the quick and lame excuses to his chosen partner for the evening, the fact that his boots were still
unlaced, and his shirt half off could have been some indication of haste! **Meet me by the Weyr entrance.**

}: Don't you need your riding jacket? :{

**No, the cold will do me some good,** he said as he skipped down the
stairs. The blast of cold air as he stepped outside did much to help his
body forget the young drudge's eager hands and lips.

The warmer air over the cove was a relief as the bronze slowly spiraled
down to where the gold was waiting, her eyes whirling in concern. As soon
as U'kaiah's feet had touched the sand he began walking towards the woman
staring off at the moonlit sea.

"I didn't think I'd see you tonight," she said quietly.

"Yeah, neither did I. I figured you'd be spending the evening with
N'vanik." U'kaiah ran a frustrated hand through his hair.

Her lip curled as she folded her arms tighter across her chest. "No."

"Well, what happened then?" The bronzerider was really trying not to be
impatient with her, but the truth of it was, he had been avoiding her on
purpose. He wasn't good with saying goodbyes, and he knew this was going
to be a tough one, for all that they had been friends for only a few short months.

Every little thing, whether it was a look in someone's eyes or a tone in
someone's voice, pricked at her tonight. Deeply. Sensitive to his mood,
she struggled to force down the lump in her throat. "If you sharding
_don't_ want to be here, U'kaiah, then leave. Go back to your little
drudge or greenrider - whoever was in your sharding bed before Nyith
called you."

"No, Trae, I _don't_ want to be here. I would much rather imagine that
you are happy and enjoying your night with N'vanik. But you're not happy, and as much as I was enjoying spending time with my little drudge, I can't enjoy anything if I know that you are not okay. So whether I stand here or sit in her room wondering, it doesn't much matter." He walked towards her. "Now please, Trae, just tell me what's wrong?"

She was silent for a moment before telling him softly, "It's all starting
to sink in now." She stared out at the silvery light reflecting off the
rippling waves. "Me seeing N'vanik just really drove it home, I guess."
Shards! There went that irritating crack in her voice. Her jaw
tightened, trying to fight her self-pity, her sadness, her frustration.
U'kaiah certainly didn't need to hear what she'd told him already all over again. And _she_ didn't need to sharding dwell on it anymore. Shards.

He knew that she was hurting. The bronzerider could see it written all
over her, and his heart ached for her. Walking up behind her, U'kaiah
wrapped his arms around her and whispered, "It's not all bad, love."

"I know," she whispered back. "I know it's not. But it...it's hard for
me. To let go."

"You are letting go of very little, and gaining so much more," he said as
he gently began rocking her, feeling the fear and tension in the woman
between his arms. "What are you letting go of? Just a Weyr. Just a
room. You gave up that much to come to Dragonsfall."

She shook her head slightly. "It's different. It's..." How could she
put it into words? "I was just starting to settle here. When I thought
of home, I thought of Dragonsfall. Not Far Island. When I thought of my
friends, I thought of you...and the others. Not the group I had grown up
with at Far Island." Again, she shook her head, fighting back those
sharding tears. "I know everything is a dragon-hop or a dragon-thought
away, U'kaiah... But it's not the same." Traelyn leaned her head back
against his shoulder, one hand moving to hold his wrist, her fingers
tightening there.

"You will find a new home, Trae. Maybe at first it won't be easy, but you will make new friends and new memories, far more than at Dragonsfall." U'kaiah could feel a nagging ache in his heart as he said those words aloud. He hoped for her sake that she would forget them, and forget him, quickly. But it hurt to think that he would soon only be a memory to her. "And you will be _Weyrwoman_. This is what you have been training for since the day your heart met Nyith's. She was not wrong about you, you know."

That brought a small, flickering smile to her lips and she glanced over at her queen, who was crouched next to Kalamath, her whirling eyes focused lovingly on her. "Not all goldriders become senior Weyrwomen, U'kaiah. I never thought it would happen to me. Filling in the position of Weyrwoman Second was enough." She paused, her eyes turning towards the sea again. "Nyith tells me that I can do it. And I know I can... I know it. But I know it won't be easy."

"No, love, it won't." He leaned his head against hers as he followed her
gaze out over the water. "You like this place, don't you."

She nodded against him.

"Everything you see - this beach, this sea, this tiny, insignificant
little island we are standing on - this is Dolphin Cove territory. This
is _your_ island now, my love." He pulled her closer and gave the
tightened muscles of her jaw a tender kiss. "This island - and me - we
are just a dragon's thought away."

Traelyn didn't realize she was crying until she saw one of her tears drop
onto U'kaiah's wrist. She hadn't wanted to cry.

}:It's all right, Trae. It's all right to let everything out,:{ Nyith
crooned softly, sending all of her complete adoration and love to her
rider. }:It's all right...:{

Trae took in a deep, shuddering breath, her fingers moving to brush the
tear off his skin. Then another one fell.

"It's okay, Trae," U'kaiah whispered, squeezing her gently in his arms.
"You don't ever have to hide from me."

She turned around in his arms and gazed up at him, her own arms slowly
encircling his back. She blinked, then she leaned forward and rested her
head against his tunic, gently rubbing her cheek against him.

He kissed her forehead lightly. "Do you want to tell me what happened
tonight?"

Traelyn closed her eyes as N'vanik's last words to her echoed in her
thoughts. Her fingers tightened slightly on his tunic as she slowly shook her head. "No," she whispered.

**Shards, what did that idiot do now?** U'kaiah sighed as he gently
traced his fingers along her cheek. "He will miss you, you know. And he
will realize evenutally that he was a sharding fool." **And if he
doesn't, I just might have to tell him...**

"Maybe..." she murmured softly. But right now, she wanted to forget the
angry words that they had exchanged. She wanted to forget what he'd said. She wanted to forget the look in his eyes when he'd said it. She wanted to forget _him_. Traelyn shifted closer, her tension easing as she felt his fingers smoothing against her skin.

"Well, if he doesn't... I don't know... I'll pour numbweed down his
trousers or something."

That brought a grin to her lips and she tilted her head back to look at
him. "To do that to a ladies man means death for his social life,
U'kaiah."

He smiled down at her tenderly. "If he is fool enough to lose you, Trae,
then I would be doing the ladies a favor."

Her grin turned into a gentle half-smile. "Yes...I suppose you would be. But then again, you'd be doing _yourself_ a favor too. All those ladies would be running to you instead."

The bronzerider nodded gravely. "And I would do everything I could to
comfort them."

"Oh, you..." she snorted lightly.

U'kaiah grinned and pulled her close again. It was good to see the light
back in her eyes, if just for a moment. He would miss her. He would miss her terribly. The bronzerider had not known how sweet a friend who was _just_ a friend could be.

Trae could hear Nyith's faint croon drifting from nearby as the
comfortable silence stretched between them for a moment. "You'll visit
me?"

"Yes," he promised in a soft whisper. It was starting to feel like
goodbye. "And you'll visit me? I mean... you'll visit _us_?"

"You know I will."

Last updated on the October 19th 2005

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You Know I Will