'Bout Time! (2/3)

Writers: Eimi, Nici
Date Posted: 14th September 2005

Characters: Jaela, U'kaiah
Description: Jaela takes U'kaiah out on his first excursion after his incident
Location: Elsewhere on Pern
Date: month 7, day 24 of Turn 3
Notes: 2 of 3

Jaela waited until they'd gained altitude before she lifted her arm, the signal to do between. And then, they were /between/ and there was nothing save the chill and the sense of vast emptiness.

...and then the sun was blazing hot on their frigid backs and the air was decidedly more tropical. Jaela watched Kalamath and his rider appear and laughed, pointing.

It was a favorite cove of hers, not far from Topaz Sea Hold.
The coast still bore signs of the devastating hurricane--downed trees and some debris, but this small cove had somehow been spared nothing more than bent foliage and only a few downed trees. The water was like liquid sapphires, sparking and inviting.

The bronzerider did not recognize the cove, but he did recognize the heat. From the smile on the goldrider's face he could guess that this was a homecoming of sorts for her. **This must be part of Topaz,** he thought as they came to land. Sliding off Kalamath's neck, he breathed in the fragrant sea breezes and looked across the vast expanse of water before them. Somewhere before them was the North, but he could not imagine that on that continent there could be any spot as perfect as this.

"It's gorgeous, Jaela. Breath-takingly gorgeous."

"It is, isn't it?" She smiled at him. "So, was it worth the wait and the surprise?"

"Very much so," he nodded. "Do you come here often?"

"Not as often as I'd like. When I was a child, we'd often ride out there so we could swim." She smiled fondly at the memory. "I did tell you we'd be swimming, right?" Normally, she'd go without swim gear but she didn't think that was wise considering how touchy their relationship was. Weyr or no Weyr, she made him uncomfortable.

"Swimming?" He this day was getting better and better! U'kaiah couldn't wait to feel the water around him. It had been a while since he had taken a dip in the warm sunshine. He pulled his tunic over his head and started to work on the fastenings of his trousers. "Shall we start walking in that direction?"

Jaela grinned and unhooked her flight jacket and started on her tunic. Half a second that joined the jacket and she quirked an eyebrow at him. "You move like an old auntie, U'kaiah...and what are you staring at? Were you going to swim in your clothing?"
At the last moment, she remembered she hadn't told him about swim gear...it would have given the surprise away. Oh crap...

"Old auntie? What are you talking about? I'm all ready to go!" He laughed as he threw cast his undergarments on the pile with the rest of his clothing. "I'm just waiting for you now."

"Oh..." She pretended that she in _no_ way want to check out his assets and worked on uncovering her own, working her way down to the slight swim gear. "Last one in is a rotten tunnelsnake egg!" That said, the small goldrider took off at a surprising sprint.

U'kaiah was content to keep himself to a slow jog and admire the way the goldrider moved. She really was a beautiful sight, with the brilliant blue sea in front of her and wearing that thin layer of cloth... This was turning into a _great_ day!

Jaela dove in head first and came up splashing. "Tunnel snake egg!
Come on, old auntie and get in here...the water's great!" In the distance, Calyth dive bombed into the water and her landing was enough to create a mini tsunami, burying the goldrider in water.

U'kaiah dove head-first into the swell the gold had created, enjoying the pull of the current as he slipped along beneath the waves. He waited for the goldrider to surface before grabbing her around her legs and pulling her back down into the salty sea with him.

The 'fought' for a bit and U'kaiah learned just how strong she was for someone who looked like a stiff wind would knock them over. "Okay....time out!" She spat water out of her mouth and paddled in the water. "How are you feeling?"

"More worn out than my manly pride would care to admit," he said with a laugh as he rolled over onto his back and allowed his body to float atop the waves.

"Hmm...manly pride, eh?" She moved closer. "They're having fun..."
Farther out, the gold and bronze frolicked as if neither of them had a care in the world when both lead wings with precision and care. "So am I. Surprisingly..."

"Surprisingly?" he asked as he turned his head towards her.

She wriggled her nose at him. "Yes, you've managed not to annoy me _once_. And I won the race into the water. So far it's been a banner day!"

U'kaiah smiled, tempted to tell her that he didn't even try to race just so he could have the pleasure of watching her figure, but decided that he didn't want to do anything to spoil her mood. For _once_, it was a good one. "Well, there is still time left in the day. I'm sure I could find a way to annoy you if you'd like."

"I'm sure you could if you worked hard enough...but isn't it a bit of a novel experience _not_ to have me snapping or glaring at you?"

"And aren't I more handsome this way?" he teased.

"You're handsome _most_ ways, U'kaiah....the problem is you know it..." She swam a circle around him, as at home in water as she was on Calyth's back. "And no one's ever told you 'no'. Even me as I recall..."

The bronzerider watched her as she circled round, temptingly close.
"Plenty of women have told me 'no', and as hard as it seems for you to believe, I have said 'no' to many women."

"I'm not sure if I should be honored to be in that number or insulted." She shrugged. "It really doesn't matter anyway."
That said, she started off at a steady clip for shore. She found it more than insulting considering some of the greenriders he'd slept with that she somehow didn't quite make the cut.
Still, she had D'wrayt who adored her and Kavlyn, who served a purpose in amusement and adoration as well...still, why didn't it seem enough some days?

**Shards and shells**, U'kaiah thought as he watched her swim for shore.
Somehow they were back to this? He flipped back onto his stomach and began swimming for shore at a fast pace, turns of playing waterball paying off as he cut through the pulling current. Despite his ease in the water he was surprisingly winded when he reached shore. Grabbing his side, he called after her, "I never... said 'no'... to you."

She stopped and turned around, paddling once again. "You walked out when I was half naked and _very_ interested. I think that's about as loud a no as one can get without being able to read minds..."

"I told you why. And you then laughed at me when I tried to be honest about my feelings. That was a pretty clear 'no' to me." Shards his side hurt. He definitely was not up to form.

She cleared the water, shaking it off of her like some sea creature as she headed for him. "Lay down...."

"I think that's a good idea," he said as he flopped back into the warm sand. What was that the healer's said about taking it easy?

She shook her head. Men had absolutely _no_ sense. "Well, the first time you actually follow an order and you do it in such a way to guarantee you'll be finding sand in delicate bits for days..." She went to the carisak she'd abandoned with most of her clothing and pulled out a blanket, waving it "Hello!"

"You didn't tell me you brought a blanket," he mumbled as he got back to his feet. "All right, just let me wade back in the water and wash off my 'delicate bits'."

Last updated on the September 15th 2005

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'Bout Time! (2/3)