Family Connections

Writers: Miriah, Suzee
Date Posted: 26th October 2019

Characters: K'ale, Aviday
Description: Aviday meets her brother for the first time
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 13, day 20 of Turn 9
Notes: Mentioned: D'ale, T'kala, Tisafelle

K'ale

Aviday

He'd flown in quite early in the morning Dolpin Cove time. Now having
breakfast in the dining hall he was watching the weyrlings until he
finally saw someone who fit his father's description. He stood and
cleared his tray then he walked over to the table she shared with a
couple other weyrlings and smiled. "Aviday?"

Aviday looked up from chatting with a fellow weyrling and blinked at
the new arrival. Her eyes flicked to his knots and she paused, brow
knitting. He was from Dragonsfall... Her eyes widened as they went
back to his face. "Yes. Are...are you K'ale?"

"Yes," he said gently. "Nice to meet you."

Her mouth parted and then a sudden smile flashed over her face,
delight and surprise evident. She rose quickly, her attention from her
friends taken by his arrival."Hi!" She didn't know whether or not to
hug him, though her arms ached to. She lifted them, paused, then
quickly wrapped them around him, pressing her cheek to his chest. "My
brother."

He wrapped his arms around her, "Hello sister," he grinned over her head.

There was a little hiccuping breath, but she didn't burst into tears
like she had with D'ale. Instead, Aviday hugged him as tight as she
could. "I'm so glad to meet you. I've always wanted a real brother."

"Well now you've got a couple," he said. "Though Daley is still pretty
small. Da weyrmated Lady Yanley from Amber Hills. She's pretty great,"
he added to the top of her head.

She pulled away, just a little, to look up at him. Food forgotten,
her smile beamed up. "I want you to meet Kobeth. She's excited too.
And you have to tell me all about yourself. I have a candlemark
before classes start. "

"I'd love to meet her," he smiled and stepped back. "Let's go," he
tilted his head.

She took his hand and started leading him outside, her shorter legs
still moving quickly. "She's really great! She plays a lot though and
she's like me so sometimes she gets really bored or burps in class or
tries to catch her own tail." Aviday grinned. "What's your brown's
name? Is he nice? Do you have any kids? Or a girlfriend? When did you
Impress?"

K'ale chuckled, took several breaths about to reply but when she she
finally seemed to take a breath of her own he broke in. "Imalkyth is a
handsome pecan brown who likes to dump me in the lake. One on the way,
weyrmate is Lanniya, four turns."

"Can I meet him? I can swim, can't you?" She kept a hold of his hand
as though afraid he would disappear the moment she released him. "Oh,
you're weyrmated to Lanniya? She's really nice. I helped wash and oil
Anaeryth one time. And she's pregnant? WOW! I'm gonna be an aunt! I
never thought I'd get to be one! When's the baby due?"

As they emerged into the Weyrbowl, Kobeth came hurting at them, a
small green dart that slithered through the grasses to come barreling
towards their feet. }: Mine! Mine! I caught a fish! :{ She was holding
the flopping packtail in her teeth. }: It won't hold still for me to
eat it! Who's that? Is he nice? He's taller than you.:{ She skidded to
a stop and the packtail's tail flopping frantically while she peered
up at K'ale. She dropped the fish at his feet, ignoring its flopping
before thrusting her head at his hand. }: Scritch! :{

K'ale laughed again, "Yes, yes, yes, yes, and four months about." his
hand reached out when the little green pushed her head into his hand
and did exactly as he would have for Imalkyth at that age. Just then
the big brown head of his lifemate arched up over his shoulder and
blew a soft breath on the little green.

:}Hello little sister,:{

}: Hi! I'm Kobeth! Do you like fish? I have a fish but it's still
flopping. :{ Her eyes half-closed with pleasure at the scratches and
she gave a little croon. }: I like this one. He gives good
scritches.:{

Aviday bit her lower lip and shifted from foot to foot. "Is D'ale
nice? He seems to be. I don't know what it's like to have a Papa or a
brother or a sister. My mama...she's well, she's more interested in
mating flights and stuff. I grew up in the creche more than with her.
I love her and I know she loves me, but it wasn't like all the other
kids with riders for parents or anything. I really want to do brother
and sister and family stuff, you know? And get to know everyone."

"You like to ask a lot of questions," he chuckled. "Suppose we take a
walk over to the lake so Kobeth can show me how she catches fish."
**Be nice to her** he admonished the brown.

}:Of course,:{ he said to his rider. }:I taught him how to give the
very best scritches:{ Imalkyth rumbled. }:You are a very pretty
color:{ he added admiringly.

"Yeah, that's what the Weyrlingmaster says too. I guess I just want
to know things and I get excited about stuff." She started walking
towards the lake, still keeping her hand in his. "So are you like
other big brothers? Like all protective and stuff?"

Kobeth squirmed with pleasure, beaming up at Imalkyth with happily
whirling eyes. }: Thank you. You're a nice color too. :{ Immediately
distracted by the suggestion, she rushed after Aviday and K'ale. }:
Fish! Fish fish fish! She barrelled into the lake with a wild splash.

K'ale's head snapped around at Aviday's questions. "Why is someone
bothering you?" Then he snorted as Imalkyth bustled past them after
the little green. "Well I guess they're both going fishing."

"The boys in the bathing caverns mostly. They laugh at me. Burr not so
much now that I'm a weyrling and they aren't. But the was this one
girl, Tisafelle, she used top call me 'boy' all the time and she
stole my flit egg and Impressed the flit in it. Bit she's gone now.
She's at the new Weyrhold they're building. " Her eyes narrowed. "I
hope she hates it there. "

"Stole your flit egg!" K'ale was suddenly angry. "That's not right
Aviday! What did the leadership do?"

"Well..." she hedged, "she didn't really _steal_ my egg, I guess. My
friend T'kala gave it to me for a late birthingday present and she
tried to buy it from me and I told her no. I had it by my bunk. When
it started hatching, she was there and I wasn't, but she didn't call
for me or anything. She told Sh'del that she was just making sure that
it didn't starve. She got in trouble, extra chores and stuff." Aviday
sighed. "I should have watched the egg more carefully, to be honest.
But I was doing the chores I was assigned."

"Ah," he said and relaxed a bit. "Well that's the trouble of trying to
hatch a flit, you have to be there and sometimes it takes hours. But
it's not nice what she did."

"Yeah, I know." Aviday replied mournfully. But her mood lifted as
Kobeth began to swim around Imalkyth, playfully splashing at him with
her wings. "She likes him."

K'ale chuckled watching the little green's antics. **Careful** he
thought to Imalkyth when he used his snout to flip the little green
into the air. He put his arm around her. "Do you still want a flit?"

Aviday leaned into him, pleased at the affection. Though the creche
workers had always been warm and caring when she was a child, having
an embrace from a family member meant almost as much as her Impression
had. "Nah, not really. I have Kobeth now. And she's better than any
flit."

Kobeth squealed with delight at the play, splashing back into the
water with a loud flopping splash. The little green darted around in
the water, faster than the bigger brown. }: Again! :{

K'ale smiled at the deep throated rumble of amusement from the brown
as he flipped the little green into the air again. Not high enough to
tempt her to spread her wings but enough to give her a little
enjoyment. He hugged his new sister. "We'll come to get you once
you're free to fly and Imalkyth will give her the image of
Dragonsfall. Then you'll come visit the rest of the family. Sound
good?"

"I'd really like that." She lifted her head and beamed at him, hugging
him back tightly. "I want to meet everyone. But you'll still come and
visit when you can, right? Maybe with D'ale? We could have a picnic or
something."

"I'll see what I can do," he smiled. "Da's basically leading his wing
so he's a busy man. But, I'll ask."

Last updated on the November 1st 2019

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