It's the Past

Writers: Dana, Eimi
Date Posted: 23rd June 2009

Characters: B'ram, Traelyn
Description: B'ram and Trae forget that the past should stay in the past ...
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 3, day 7 of Turn 5

B'ram

B'ram lazily drew circles on the skin of her bare shoulders as he smiled thoughtfully. "Ok, I have one. Remember when we all went off on that big feline hunt because Orobo was sure he had seen tracks leading off into the trees? And our fostermothers freaked out because we didn't tell anyone where we were going and we lost track of time and they sent a bunch of weyrfolk out beating the brush trying to find us?"

"I remember," Traelyn grinned up into the darkness of the weyr. "And I also remember you doing your damnedest to get me to go back because I was a girl and was slowing you guys up."

"I was _always_ trying to do that. You were so sharding annoying back then," he said with an impish smile as his fingers moved down to her more sensitive side.

"Yeah, I know." She twisted, catching his hand in hers before he could really begin to make her writhe and giggle most girlishly. "And I was _always_ ignoring you. You were just so sharding bossy...."

"Well, I was the leader," he replied with an air of mock authority. "At least as long as you weren't around. When you showed up, suddenly all the boys started tripping over themselves to show off for you. Come on, admit it. It had to really irk you that I didn't fall all over you like they did."

A small smile curved her lips and she rolled so she was half-draped over him, chin propped up on his chest. "Maybe."

"_Maybe_?" he repeated, his fingers moving to draw circles on the small of her back. Shards he loved touching her. "Just _maybe_? Are you sure about that? We don't have secrets any more."

"Mmmm." Her expression grew thoughtful. "I guess it irritated and confused me that you were so against me. Even when I had some good ideas--and you have to admit, they were good ideas--you didn't want to listen. Like when the dolphin pod came to the cove and I said that we should swim with them and you said no and stubbornly sat down in the sand." But she could remember the look of longing on his young face as she and the rest of the boys slipped out of their outer clothes and paddled out into the calm waters to be with those marvellous creatures. "You would have had fun, you know."

"I didn't _always_ say no to your ideas," he protested with a snort. "Remember when you hatched that plan to sneak into the kitchens while they were making cookies and snatch the cookie dough? I went along with that. I even helped K'kar distract the cooks while you guys grabbed the bowls, remember?"

"I remember," she chuckled. "How did you end up distracting them again?"

"I can't remember," he said thoughtfully. "I want to say we let a couple tunnel snakes loose, but I think that was another time. All I remember was how sharding sick we got off that cookie dough! I couldn't even look at a cookie for months after."

"You and me both!" she laughed, resting her cheek against him, nails idly running gently up and down his side. "To this day I still think I prefer a muffin over a cookie."

"See, not all your ideas were good ones," he teased. Most of them had been though. He would admit that at least to himself. B'ram snorted softly as he thought about just how much she had irritated him. She stole away his friends, and later, his friends had stolen _her_ away... He pushed away that thought rather quickly. "I'm adult enough to admit it. I hated the fact that whenever you were around, all the boys followed you instead of me. And I hated that I knew why."

Her fingers stilled against him. "Why?"

"Because we _all_ wanted you, Trae," he said as if she should already know. She probably did. "Me just as much as the rest of them. Everyone was falling all over each other to impress you. I hated it. I wanted to impress you too, but I didn't want to look as stupid as they all did. I mean, do you remember..." B'ram chuckled softly as the memory came back to him. "Do you remember when all those guys got into that stupid somersault competition to see who could do the most somersaults? They kept going until they were practically sick! It was stupid from the start and I told them so, but they all smiled at you like idiots and hoped you'd smile at _them_." And after all that, just look at who she was lying naked with now, he thought with a smug smile, tracing a finger across those amazing lips. "You were literally turning heads that day."

Her vanity was pleased. Of course she'd known it--all of it. But it wasn't often when she heard him speak of their past like this, with that look in his eye that warmed her straight down to her toes. "And you were the only one scowling that day," she murmured, reaching out to caress his cheek. "But I remember watching you more than watching them."

"Probably because I was the only one _not_ watching you." He knew her pride. It probably drove her nuts to see that he wasn't trying to impress her. "I was just enjoying watching how green they were all turning as they kept going and going... Shards, when you were around, they just didn't know when to stop."

She snorted softly, folding her arms, dark eyes flickering to his. "I didn't ask them to get into competitions, you know." Of course, she hadn't stopped them either. The young Trae had loved the attention, and really, nothing had changed. Even now she wanted male attention, and enjoyed it whenever she got it. She saw B'ram's expression change slightly, and before he could point out that exact fact to her, she murmured, "No wonder you were always so exasperated."

"If I had really tried, I could have beat all of them." But then he would have had to have stepped down as a leader to follow her around like her pack of canines. It was beneath him, even now.

But Traelyn knew why he hadn't, especially when they began to go through adolescence. It had been because of L'kub. And yet, if he _had_ "beat all of them," even L'kub.... Shells, this wasn't the first time she had wondered what would have happened if B'ram had been the one in L'kub's place all those Turns ago. Guilt swept through her for thinking it. "Probably," she whispered, dropping her eyes to watch as her finger traced soft patterns on his skin.

"In the end, you didn't go for the winner, did you." As much as he loved L'kub, he had never been the best at anything a day in his life. And yet out of all of them, he was the one she chose.

"You know I didn't."

"So it really wouldn't have mattered, would it. I would have been the best at every competition to get your attention, but someone else already had it." He shrugged a shoulder as if it had never mattered to him that much. "At least I never looked the fool."

She withdrew her hand, knowing now that they were on very dangerous ground. "You're angry."

"No," he quickly replied. And yet, it was unnerving how she had pegged him. Well, almost. He wasn't _angry_... But he couldn't help but remember how it had felt that first time they had all watched as Trae and L'kub slipped away from the group thinking they hadn't been noticed. It seemed Trae had forgotten, or didn't care, that all of their eyes had been on her constantly. Of course they would have noticed the way she and L'kub had been flirting and glancing at each other like they knew a secret. Did they really not feel all of those pairs of eyes on their backs as they walked behind those rocks? Did they really think they all hadn't just been imagining what they were doing back there, alone. "It was a long time ago. It's the past."

"And yet here we are, thinking about it." About how the good memories quickly became bitter-sweet, then soured, becoming painful. "And talking about it." Traelyn shifted to lay on her back again. Months and months ago she had accepted that B'ram would never cease to see her as the girl she had been, and the young woman she had turned into. Most of the time she could ignore it, but sometimes, like tonight..... Shards, why had they brought it all up again?

Last updated on the July 4th 2009

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It's the Past