Too Much Freedom (4/4)

Writers: Len, Paula
Date Posted: 14th June 2011

Characters: G'wen, E'naer, T'bel, N'ki
Description: G'wen has to face an entire Dinning Hall that knows--thanks to the fight between Sh'lua and his dad, and his lifemate's antics last night--exactly what he's done in Sh'lua's weyr
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 2, day 23 of Turn 6
Notes: Mentioned: Meledei, Sh'lua

"Everyone's staring," muttered G'wen, as he backed up into T'bel. He
could feel his face go beet red as he stood in the dinning hall,
looking around at all the curious faces glancing over their shoulders
and around klah mugs at him. It was early morning, he would have
thought everyone too tired or sensible to have heard the commotion
last night. Shards, he had been in the same room as his dad, Sh'lua
and E'naer--not to mention poor Neath who didn't even want him to
leave her site long enough to get breakfast this morn--and he hadn't
woken up. So why did it seem that the rest of the Weyr had?

T'bel nudged him to get a move on. "Of course everyone's staring.
You were happily passed out, you didn't_hear_the commotion Neath was
making. Not to mention your father and Sh'lua! Child, we're going to
need to work on that man and his grip on you, otherwise he's going to
ruin your adult life like he's done your childhood." When G'wen
looked like he might try and defend his dad, T'bel held up a hand for
him to stop. "Don't you even. That man stuffed you into the role of
a drudge, just cos he thought he was 'protecting' you." T'bel snorted
at that. If only he had been weyrmated with the man when G'wen had
been a little Weyrbrat. He would have made sure the boy's life had
been a happier one. "He's not about to stuff you into the role of yet
another victim greenrider just so his 'reputation' stays intact."

All eves followed them as they walked in and found a table off to one
side. G'wen sat, feeling completely shamefaced. How was he going to
live this one down? His head was still pounding from his hangover,
and the last thing he wanted to do was eat anything. And he felt
woefully unsore which meant that he still had to get some experience
but now his da was on to him. T'bel patted him on the shoulder before
getting breakfast for the two.

When he returned, more than a few faces--mostly blue riders, he noted
with no small annoyance--were still staring at the poor child, who
looked completely defeated. "Okay folks," he stared hard at a few of the
blueriders who were known cads. "Okay, those are the lips
that gave Sh'lua a good time last night. Take a good look and now let
the boy have some privacy. You too H'lar." He pointed to a burly
rider who liked a new boy in his bed about every night. "You so much
as try and talk to his boy and the last thing you'll need to worry
about is G'waren, cos I'll string you up personally, got it?" At that
he sat down and nodded to G'wen to eat his porridge. "You need to try
at least. I'll settle your stomach."

The boy grimaced and reached for his klah. Out of the corner of his
eye he saw a familiar face, and one of the last ones he wanted to have
to face so early. E'naer! He groaned and T'bel turned to see the
source of the boy's further discomfort.

"Good morning, T'bel, G'wen. Nice to see you up and on your feet,
G'wen," E'naer greeted, he was on much better mood than yesterday. A
night with a bluerider could do that to you.

T'bel grinned at the fellow greenrider. "You're awfully perky this
morning for a man who just a few candlemarks ago had to shout down two
blueriders and one angry Neath." He held up an empty mug and filled
it with klah for E'naer, in case he wanted to sit with the two of
them. He hoped so, as it'd be good if the two men could talk to G'wen
and give the little green weyrling some advice.

"I didn't spend whole night shouting," E'naer replied with a little
shrug of his shoulders. What he did after he stopped yelling wasn't
anyone else's business. He accepted the klah with a nodded thank you
and took his seat. "So, how are you feeling this morning, G'wen?
Having a hangover?" he asked.

"I bet you didn't..." T'bel winked at E'naer over his cup of klah.

G'wen just looked at E'naer and nodded. And then grimaced as the act
of nodding hurt.

"I could lecture you of the dangers of over-indulgence, but I think
you already figured out what they are," E'naer couldn't help a little
malicious grin.

"Over indulgence out of bed means none in bed, right?" G'wen groaned,
plopping his chin on his hand and looking completely dejected at the
thought that he almost had a source of his crush right where he had
wanted him and lost it all.

"Exactly. Not to mention head ache and the throwing up," E'naer had
been young once too, although it sometimes felt like forever ago.

"Hmm...I haven't thrown up at least." G'wen knew he hadn't drunk
enough to do that.

T'bel eyed E'naer. "We ready to give him 'that' lecture now?"

"I'm sure we are," E'naer winked at him.

"Okay little man..." Before he could get any further, one bluerider
he would rather stay as far away from this child as he could, sat
right down next to G'wen.

"Morning all!" N'ki grinned and wrapped an arm around G'wen's
shoulders. "A table full of green riders is a bit hard to resist."

"Morning, N'ki," E'naer replied, being quite familiar with the bluerider.

G'wen tried to shrug the man's arm off his shoulders but N'ki just
grinned and squeezed him. "I'd say you're about the prettiest thing
here if E'naer wasn't also sitting at this table."

"Bugger off, N'ki. I don't need my da or T'bel to tell me about you,
I already know." The boy pointedly removed the man's arm from his
shoulders.

"You haven't changed a bit, N'ki," E'naer remarked.

"And you have, sweetheart? Still like 'em big and well muscled? You
must, cos that Sh'lua, when I saw him this morning, sure didn't look
like a man who just lost a cute little prize like this one here." He
wrapped his arm around G'wen once more, who was looking at E'naer like
he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"I still like them _all_" E'near replied with matter-of-fact voice.

"Oh yeah? Even short ones like T'bel here?"

G'wen looked aghast at E'naer at that. "_You_? And T'bel?"

The weyrlingmaster's third just looked mysterious. "I follow the Kiss
and don't tell - principle."

The boy put his head in his hands. "This last 24 candlemarks can't
get any worse, can it?"

"Oh, I don't know. At least you didn't throw up on his bed," E'naer
said and tossed a piece of cheese to his mouth.

"That wouldn't have made a difference to me," the boy sniffed and
looked pointedly at E'naer before dropping his head as he thought
about how his father was likely to react to this. Staring at the
table, he muttered, "what am I gonna do now before that Flight?"

"Concentrate on your training," E'naer suggested and patted his back
comfortingly.

"And go wandering off to another Weyr," N'ki added, winking.

T'bel stopped eating to stare at N'ki. "You've got it."

"Got what?"

"That's it! That's the answer!" T'bel grinned and turned to the
confused looking G'wen. "How soon are you going to pay that little
gold rider friend of yours a visit, over at Dolphin cove? She's
hurt, I bet she could use some company." He looked over to E'naer and
raised his eyebrows.

"Gold rider and greenrider? Now I've lost it," E'naer was confused. He
had forty-odd weyrlings to supervise, he didn't know all the details
of their lives.

>From the look on his face, N'ki had gotten it. T'bel explained, "no,
not like_that_. G'wen goes to Dolphin Cove to visit Meledei...and
there you," and he turned back to the boy, "can do anything you bloody
well please, and daddy doesn't need to know a thing."

"Okay, got it. Just for a second I was thinking...him and a goldrider.
No, too weird. Might work out if G'wen was a bluerider," E'naer said.
"Put it on sleep deprivation."

"That good a night, eh?" T'bel grinned at the man and shook his head.
"I never took you for a poacher before now."

"Hey, that was not poaching!" E'naer protested. "I don't know what
G'wen did to him, but the poor man was really frustrated. I just
helped out a friend."

"It was probably the first time he's had fresh meat in his clutches in
ages," T'bel remarked dryly, turning to eye the boy who was a mix of
trying not to look smug, trying to deal with a thumping headache
and trying to bat off N'ki's hands.

E'naer just shrugged his shoulders. "At least he stopped what he was
doing as soon as he realized that G'wen was out," he gave the weyrling
a warning glare. "Someone else might not have cared and just had
carried on."

The boy jerked his thumb in N'ki's direction and said, "like him?"

E'naer nodded. "He wouldn't have noticed if you had died on him."

"Shards, that might just turn him on even more," T'bel remarked. "And
if that hand is going where I think it's going, I'm going to string
you up by your eyeballs, N'ki."

"Hey baby," N'ki said to G'wen, ignoring the older greenriders. "What
say we go back to my weyr and you show me what you did on Sh'lua with
that sexy mouth of yours?"

"Get_off_me, N'ki! You're gross!" The boy moved his arm once more
and looked to E'naer for help. T'bel was giggling too much to be any use.

"Hands off from my weyrlings, N'ki," E'naer warned the bluerider.
"Find someone else to play with."

At that the bluerider picked up a startled G'wen, put him over his
lap, sat him down on his other side and slide over to E'naer to put an
arm around him. "Like you? Doing anything later?"

"Not today, N'ki-dear," E'naer patted his hand and then removed it from him.

N'ki groaned and asked, "why not? Did that Sh'lua wear you out?"

"Yes," E'naer said.

G'wen muttered, "it should have been me worn out," and playfully
flicked E'naer's hand.

N'ki turned back to him. "Hey baby, I can wear you out."

"You can wear your right hand out, now bugger off."

"You heard the boy," E'naer echoed.

"Okay, on_that_note, don't you have a little dragon to wash?" T'bel
looked to G'wen. "And don't you have some kids to teach?" He eyed
E'naer, before turning to N'ki. "And don't you have some other
innocent you can corrupt?"

"Yes, I have. Some people are going to learn /betweening/ soon,"
E'naer replied and drained last of his klah.

"Okay off you two go, don't worry I can handle this one." T'bel
turned to glare at N'ki who was trying one last feel off of G'wen, who
looked like he was about to hit the bluerider. "N'ki stop that."

E'naer nodded for a goodbye and got up, taking his dishes with him. He
was going to refill his mug and then head for his office.

G'wen hopped up behind him, feeling like he just wanted to take a long
cold shower.

Last updated on the June 17th 2011

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Too Much Freedom (4/4)