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[draconafin]

Given everything that had happened in the last month and a half it was hard to tell if the hunter was actually avoiding the banquet hall on purpose, or not. For at least a month of that time he had been under armed guard at the Infirmary and not eating for the most part of that anyway, wary of various herbs that could be slipped into foods. Despite the well-meaning nature of any healer, he was just not a man who just trusted people; his trust was often hard won, although some people around the Academy had ended up on the fast track given recent events. Avoiding the place or not the recently made rider made his way into the banquet hall, finding it oddly empty, perhaps expected because many people were not up this early, and those that were had already moved on to other tasks. Perhaps it was ironic that the place was as empty as it had been the night he had found out Ophelya, and she had attacked him in return. Hand twitched over the hilt of his dagger, memories as bright as the fire burning away in the hearth. From the looks of it someone had returned the fire poker after he had been removed from his abdomen, and it now hung from a pair of hooks that had not been there before.

Beneath his feet the flagstones sounded hollow and an unbidden chill crawled up his spine as he crossed a certain point, stones that had been stained darker only a few feet away. There was a new finished chair nearby too; the other had broken when Ophelya had tripped him with it. Anyone who might have been able to guess at what was going through the mind of the formally falsely accused would guess that was why he had not come into the banquet hall for so long, that he was too busy avoiding the memories of when he had nearly been killed. Truth of matter was more along the lines of the fact that as a wrymling he could just as easily grab a bite directly out of the kitchens if he wanted to, or anywhere else around the Academy had had food on offer. He just hadn�t figured to come up this far again. Now that thought about it he wasn�t sure what he thought it, the whole event was, well, pieces of it were missing. One foot hooked around the leg of a chair and pulled it from the table in the same movement, before half folding himself into it, molten eyes darting across the floor.

Dark stain, that would have been where he bleed out; fire brushed eyes closed a moment as he tried to back track through the events of that night. Flagstones, he could remember them pressed against his back after colliding with a chair� the one that had been replaced. Fire poker, it had been a weapon, he had fended it off. Everything other than that was a little hazy� and it annoyed him. Although he was grateful that Alder was asleep back in the barracks still, he had not let the Forest dragon into this memory yet. Some things did not need to be seen. Someone, he wasn�t sure who, pushed a mug of coffee across the table at him and he thanked them for it before they headed off again. Over the rim of the mug he regarded the fire quietly, still picking at what facts he could remember of the night, so many of them had seemed unshakeable at the time, yet had become dislodged when he passed out at the Infirmary. The last thing he actually remembered was Hao telling him to brace himself, most likely before the poker was freed from his flesh. There were other pieces too, bits of conversation, half filled in faces; but nothing solid.

Just like that other time, nearly tortured to death by a Tainted rider, another memory he would not let Alder have� and it would quite possibly stay that way indefinitely, the old scars around his wrists ached even when his mind brushed the barricade he had put up years ago. Not that entire incident was clear in his mind either, large fractions of that were missing too; even several of the weeks after it were completely missing from his memories. Healers he had blamed for the later, there healing concoctions, herbs, and voodoo� Unable or unwilling to admit that his body was in so much shock that it had shut down, forced him to heal over many weeks. The same had happened this time, even if Asara had helped him play a deception, increasing the healing time because of it, a bid to keep him out of a prison long enough to get onto the sands. To catch Ophelya� a task which almost paled when he realised he had walked away with a dragon.

Fate was a funny thing� his molten eyes continued to watch the floor with an odd sombreness as if it would piece together the rest of what had happened in his mind, no real luck though and he sooner found himself staring at the bottom of his mug over getting answers. Mug found table again and the wyrmling found himself leaning forward so elbows rested on knees, and hands were propped under his chin. Staring at the floor was really getting him nowhere, and the only reason he wanted to know, was he didn�t like the idea of his own life being out of his hands. Surely enough, rumours had circulated now; most people had heard he was the Crystal thief, only to have the notion retracted some time later. Good news apparently travelled faster, but that didn�t mean it answered all questions.

[Bowser]

Good news, bad news� it was all news. It was all news she had only heard through the grapevine and had never been allowed to investigate. When a person was detained they were cut off from the world, or at least they were cut off from unimportant candidates who were thought to need �protecting� from things. And yet those who had sought to protect people from the �crystal thief� fiasco that had gone on had proven to be completely wrong and clearly incapable of protecting their own belongings. But Vulkyra was unable to argue with them and had gone for a good amount of time without seeing Striker. In the time that had passed she had allowed it to slip from her mind, allowed the loss of that friend to fade as dragons rise and eggs were laid.

And now, as life continued on and everything continued to change she had Brahmut and had caught the first sights of that lost friend at the hatching though it had been fleeting. But Brahmut had gone into a baby�s slumber and would not be woken for quite some time she was sure of it; over the last few days she had learned the basic sleeping and eating schedule of the young Earth and was delighted to find that once he was full he slept for several hours and was nearly impossible to wake up. And even when it was in the middle of the night, Vulkyra reveled in being able to go off and be alone for a little time. She loved him dearly, that was true; he was the other half of her whole. But she wasn�t entirely used to having someone so dependent and needy. Or at least she hadn�t had someone like that since her youngest brother had stayed behind in Hellman�s Well all those years ago. Her mind drifted to the time she had spent there as she entered the dining hall.

It was relatively quiet and empty, save a few people she noticed in the dim lighting as she hardly attempted to see exactly who all was there as she made her way across the room and grabbed up a mug of coffee. She looked into it and sighed gently, swirling it a bit. Even with the war now over and a dragon of her own she didn�t feel entirely whole. Wasn�t she supposed to? Brahmut made her feel whole in some sort of way. But what of those she lost? Of her brothers, of her tribe. Her eyes lifted and she took a moment to better survey the room and see who exactly was there. There sat someone she recognized, someone she hadn�t seen. Her face lit up as she ventured across the room at a quick pace until she was suddenly upon Striker and her mug was thumped onto the table.

�Striker!� she exclaimed, putting her hands on his shoulders and shoving him up into a sitting position so he was back into his chair and then quite abruptly dropping herself into his lap. Personal space had never been a concern with her when it came to him, and she gave him a very rough hug as she beamed at him. �For the love of Taint, where have you been since the hatching? I know you found your dragon partner � but finding you has been impossible. You�re never around.� Her face became serious for a moment. �They wouldn�t let me see you when you were in the infirmary. I didn�t believe them when they said you stole those crystals.� She shifted a bit where she sat and crossed her arms over her chest, studying his face. She had a lot to say to him she realized very quickly as she stopped herself from rambling at him, considering the look on his face didn�t seem very enthusiastic.

�How have you been? I�ve missed you my friend.�

[draconafin]

Part of the hunter had tuned out, but at the same time he was vaguely aware of people coming in and out of the banquet hall which was to be expected anyway, it was, by it�s very nature one of the busiest places on the Academy grounds. So people were to be expected, so it wasn�t all that unexpected that he didn�t notice the sound of one person coming into the hall over the other. When the sound of a mug hitting the table next to him sounded out the warrior glanced up, a flicker of mixed emotions flaring in his molten eyes; mostly a question as to who wanted what from him. Question turned to surprise when he recognised the woman who had thumped the cup down on the table beside him, Vulkyra. Even so; he didn�t get much past an immediate reaction as she pushed his shoulders back and basically jumped into his lap. She then launched straight into conversation, much like the vibrant candidate he remembered from months back. The familiarity alone was enough to put a smile on his face, even if there was a slight apprehension underneath it from having the woman in question in his lap. Vulkyra might not have been one for personal space, but the warrior had always been a strongly solitary type; he was also not likely to say anything, at the very least her stream of questions gave him something to answer.

�I�ve been around; Healers have been keeping my busy enough,� was the answer, easy and honest. He had taken some time to move into the Wyrmling barracks, due to the fact that the wound Ophelya had run though his side a good month before was still healing. By the time lessons rolled around he should have enough freedom of moment to stop needing healers checking up on him and telling him off if he accidently split something, like his stiches, again. At the mention of finding his dragon partner there was another smile, one which was easily coaxed into place, just by thinking about Alder. Recalling the event ironically led him back to thinking about Vulkyra�s own experience on the sands, she had been given her Crystal by Kazuko only seconds before him, right between the small disasters that seemed to implode around the now missing Ophelya. Remembering the candidate who had tried take apart the lives of many riders, as well as that of many dragons almost brought a serious frown back to the hunter�s face, but he contained it. Just enough to maintain a rather neutral expression, even with the other wyrmling still using firmly seated in his lap.

For a moment it seemed like Vulkyra was going to keep rambling, although when she brought up the matter of the Crystals the only thing he could do was manage a small nod, which came with great appreciation. There was something about hearing the fact that she didn�t believe that he was the thief was liberating. Slowly he was beginning to realise just how many people had been standing behind him without even being asked. Prior to coming to the Academy he had spent a lot of his time drifting from place to place without ever really making connections with anyone. Now he had a dragon, and more friends than ever before; come to think of it, it was the first time that he actually had people in his life that could be considered friends. Then, without being asked Vulkyra switched topics again, asking how he was, as well as openly calling him friend; which brought another smile to his face; as it was a sentiment he shared, considering Vulkyra a friend. More so now he knew that she had not been shaken by Opheyla�s deceptions.

�I�ve been better,� he remarked, referring offhandedly to the fact he was technically still healing from both the hatching and the events before. �I will admit I missed you too, friend. I trust Brahmut has been keeping you busy too�

[Bowser]

There was an inherently good reason why Vulkyra had been failing miserably at explaining to Brahmut what personal space was; very much like her he was right into everyone elses business with his sharp little nose, although unlike her he would eventually outgrow it. His was wrought from curiosity, hers was wrought from a lack of concern for who her body was near. Perhaps allowing her body to be sold for sexual favors when she had initially entered Lihn and before the Academy explained why she lacked the propriety of getting immediately in the space of those who she felt at least somewhat comfortable with; there was nothing worse than being in the space of someone who you weren�t comfortable with. At his simply answer of �being around� she snickered and gave a bit of a shrug of her shoulders. �Honest answer, I suppose! No doubt young Alder keeping you as busy as Brahmut keeps me.� She nodded, shifting herself out of his lap and into the seat beside him. It was difficult, she realized, to reach the table and drink her coffee from there atop his knees.

She sipped carefully at it and watch his mostly solemn expression on his face shift as he seemed to think of something, though she was delighted in the pleasant switch it took when she mentioned she hadn�t believed he was the crystal thief. Anyone who knew the man would not have believed it; he was not the type. He had to willingly helped to teach her how to turn a hide into leather for the now brilliantly made reins that were the envy of the entire stables. Though she would not use them very often anymore, or not at least until Brahmut was bigger. And though for a moment she relished in the thoughts of that bit of freedom those few short months back, the present was here and her future had hatched. And so given the opportunity to speak of her beloved she quickly pounced upon it; no doubt he wished to speak of Alder.

�I�d hardly think you could be any better, not with Alder. I did manage to catch a glimpse of him before Brahmut�s hunger drove us from the sands. He is positively fuzzy AND adorable!� she said, taking another rather long sip of her coffee and thumping the mug on the table. �Brahmut isn�t really� fuzzy. He�d cuddle, if I let him.� She shivered at the idea; she loved him dearly, but he was very large and very� pointy. She sighed in an exaggerated kind of way and slumped down in her chair at the whole �keeping busy� bit. Busy was hardly the word for it.

�Brahmut is up every second it seems from dawn until dusk. �Let�s go here!� �what�s that smell?� �Who is that?� �Can I touch this?�� she animated every action that she described, pointing this way and darting her face that way. �I have scarcely seen such energy even in a child. And when he sleeps� he snores.� She frowned slightly at this, rubbing her left eye absently. �I�ve gotten used to it but I think it�s from his under bite.� But she simply shrugged again at the thought and offered him a smile.

�What is Alder like? I�m looking forward to when I meet him, and when he and Brahmut can meet.�

[draconafin]

She really did seem like the same person, even if Brahmet had potentially changed her life it didn�t seem like Vulkyra was slowing down anytime soon. The sound of Vulkyra�s snigger or modest laughter was familiar and welcome all the same. At least the other wyrmling saw fit to move from his lap and onto the chair next to him, from the looks of it at least she had worked out that her coffee was easier to reach from that angle. He had a suspicion that if she could have reached the mug from his lap she would have stayed there; regardless of any objections anyone else, including himself might have had. As she had shifted into the chair next to him, his fellow wyrmling had remarked that the answer was honest, or so she guessed; well, given everything that had happened before the hatching he hardly wanted to do anything dishonest. It was highly likely that some people still had their suspicions after all, even if the final chapter of the so called story had been played out in public on the stands. Her follow up comment about Alder made him smile; the little Forest was very much a part of his life to bring a smile to his face, even without being in the room.

A smile which managed to grow as the other wyrmling continued to make her comments about Alder; even though he had tried to turn towards Vulkyra and her Brahmet, he wasn�t going to object to the slight deviation to his own dragon. When Vulkyra called Alder fuzzy, the hunter found himself turning the term over in his head, Alder would approve no doubt� although it was not a description he himself would have come up with. Vulkyra seemed to switch topics again, back to her own dragon. It was a topic that also kept the smile on his face, and even coaxed a polite and somewhat sympathetic chuckle out of him when she mentioned the fact that her Brahmut was not exactly the cuddly sort. Even so he doubted the dragon would object to attention. Not to mention the fact the young Earth sounded to be just as much of a handful as his own Alder was at this stage, curious about everything.

�I�m sure the tow of then would look forward to meeting each other just as much,� was the remark he managed when the other wyrmling stopped her so called rambling, smile still on his face the warrior debated just how he could talk about his dragon without sounding like he was bragging, or going over the top. He was mighty proud of the little Forest and no matter how modest he tried to be on the subject his pride and love was always going to show though in his tone.

�Alder likes to spend his mornings either sneaking around, or hanging from the roof�� the end of the sentence came out with a slight chuckle, a shake of his head and inflection that the young dragon had not managed to catch his rider off guard yet; but the hunter had years of experience on the Forest, and together their skills would grow. As would the skills of every other wrymling pair they would have the privilege of working with. �He is also convinced that everyone, everywhere is going to be his friend.�


[OoC Sorry for the the Fail Bowser ^^; *still technically on holidays*]

[Bowser]

Vulkyra wasn’t one to change too easily even with the incredibly life-altering events that had happened lately, still oddly pleasant but with an undertone of paranoia and brash and uninhibited aggression. But their conversation as one of such delight and clear admiration of her bonded dragon that most of her negative personality quirks seemed to fall to the wayside to instead harbor more pleasantries and smiles. Discussing their young dragons was quite fun; she hadn’t really gotten the chance to do such a thing considering how much time of hers Bramut needed and their lack of a roommate to provide any interaction. “No doubt by the time they start up our lessons and start handing us out chores we’ll have more than enough interaction.” She replied with a kind of grin, the pride she held for her own dragon no doubt at the same caliber that he had for his own.

Though when he mentioned the dragon enjoyed hanging from the roof she had to admit she was quite taken aback for a moment. Hang... from the roof? That was a bit odd for a dragon she felt, though recalling the looks of the young dragon he did have a long tail well suited for such things. Each dragon had it’s own little quirks and differences, right? She laughed at him also adding that Alder was convinced everyone everywhere was going to be his friend. “What a coincidence, Brahmut feels the same way!” she responded, finishing off her cup of coffee and running her finger around the lip of it. “Although he is far more interested in what’s underground. His feet are massive.” She made a kind of motion to show what she mean “And shaped kind of funny; he likes to dig a lot. Says it feels good, says he feels better down in a dark hole and keeps insisting we go exploring caves.” She sighed slightly, the thought of taking the young dragon anywhere outside of the Academy at that point seemed risky.

It was then that she was beginning to remind herself why exactly she had gone out from the barracks away from her beloved dragon that particular day and time. “Tyl!” she squawked rather suddenly, shuffling herself where she sat and standing up. She had planned on taking Tyl out for a run around the outskirts of the Academy while Brahmut was sleeping; considering the brute slept for an incredibly extended period of time when he was fed enough. She had pumped him full of meat and had ventured on her way soon after he had fallen asleep, with the promise of another Wyrmling across the hall she would be fetched were he to wake up. She then made a kind of ‘come on’ motion to Striker “I was going to take Tyl for a run today while I had some downtime from Brahmut. I haven’t gotten a lot of time to pay attention to him since the hatching… you care to join me if you have time?” She wasn’t entirely sure of the sleeping schedule that Alder kept or how long he would be asleep, but she figured it would be worth a shot to offer an invite to him.


((It's okay, I failed too XD I was running out of things to think of to say to make this keep being interesting... so I figured I'd change the pace a little!))