Chapter 20 – Kendra

Disclaimer: I do not own the settings or the world of the Dragonriders, which is the sole right and privilege of one Anne McCaffrey. I do however own Jareth and the original characters.

A/n: Hmm…two chapters so soon…you're all very lucky indeed. Either that or I've given in to eminempern's methods of torture that she calls 'peer pressure' and 'being a good beta'. Somehow, I don't see the difference. So, in an effort to make sure my muse Jareth doesn't get shot, here it is! Just a warning, I needed to vent about men in general due to some things my dad and brothers did, so this isn't going to be very kind on the male gender.

Previously:

"So, who were the wherry-whore's sons and what are we going to do about 'em?" she asked him, grin in place but dead seriousness in her glinting, sapphire eyes.

It was later on that evening and K'dra was attempting to take a bath. Attempting, because she belatedly realized she had no towels and very little soapsand left, either for her hair or for her body. That momentarily placed her in a foul mindset until Terranth adroitly reminded her that she could just soak today and wash tomorrow, for the next morn would be a rest day.

She supposed, as she lay back in the water with a moan, which wasn't entirely pleased, that if she really wanted to she could always have Terranth bespeak B'yin's Kalisth and see if he could bring her some. Or she could go to the Weyr Stores and see if they had any in stock, but that would require her moving, and the water was just so warm and just the right temperature.

On the other hand, she wasn't in the mood to deal with anyone. Well, anyone who was male and originating with this Weyr, in any event. She figured she'd caused enough trouble and entertainment, albeit indirectly, for her Wing.

She winced and shifted again, her nether parts still tender, and letting her know with loud protestations. Losing one's virginity was as painful as her mother had told her it would be, but the activities of the past two days had served to detract her from the worst, but she wasn't out of the Thread line yet. Sitting astride a dragon for several hours and then being on her feet for longer hadn't helped to speed up the healing process.

She'd once heard from her Healer aunt that it generally took a female a few days to get over the initial soreness. And to think here she had been, bedding two vigorous dragonriders, and flitting merrily about on her dragon. The hot soaking was just what she needed.

Closing her eyes, she sighed, and relaxed further, letting her head be cradled between the headrests so she wouldn't inadvertently drown while she was asleep. She must have been more tired than she had thought to lose consciousness so quickly, because the next thing she knew, she was startled out of a dreamless sleep.

Terranth? She automatically reached for the emerald presence.

Xenith and his rider are here. His rider requests to speak with you.

"I don't wanna speak with him." K'dra grumbled.

Terranth caught the thought and gave a warbling hiss from outside.

Shrugging into her robe, K'dra left the chamber and entered into the main weyr, noting that Terranth wasn't in her little wallow in the dais and was even now standing in the entrance, guarding her mistress sternly against her own mate and superior. She had taken to defending the weyr entrance after K'dra had returned from finishing her meal, and had refused anyone coming nearby an audience.

She doesn't want to! She could hear Terranth state firmly, and knew instantly she was speaking to Xenith. Apparently, R'ahvin wasn't taking 'no' for an answer.

Shards.

The answer is no!

Terranth roared unexpectedly in challenge and irritation, which was not exactly smart when the other guy was nearly twice her size. But she carried the home field advantage in that her weyr and the narrow entrance allowed her to guard, defend, and attack with relative safety and effectiveness. Her tail started thumping and whipping around, the forked end making a snap that resounded through the air.

Other dragons were beginning to take notice of the noise, their voices adding into the clamor, and K'dra gave a sigh as she realized they would continue to disturb the entire Weyr until the Weyrleaders stepped in, and that would be even more unpleasant than speaking to R'ahvin. Well, maybe they were of equal standing on the things-of-which-should-NEVER-happen list.

"Terranth, stand down."

But you don't want to talk to HIM! Terranth grumbled, still hissing, but obediently stepping back into the weyr.

Her slow progress and audible snarls made it clear she was only backing away because her Beloved had asked her to and not because she was afraid or intimidated by Xenith.

"I know, but if the Weyrleaders are disturbed and the whole Weyr awake because of his stubborn stupidity, I for one, do not want to take the blame."

"How courteous of you, K'dra."

"Courtesy has nothing to do with it." K'dra scowled at that once welcome voice, reminding herself that it was not good to think of him still as sexy, even though she was mad at him.

She was more furious than when he had insulted her prior to Terranth's flight but this had gone beyond mad. She was incensed and it hadn't lessened, instead settling down deep and flowing throughout her being, sending her into a sort of battle zone calm eerily similar to the one she entered during Threadfall. She didn't say anything, choosing to ignore him for as long as possible, while he came further inside.

He stopped, staring in some surprise as Terranth continued her deep rumbling growls, eyes whirling and directed at him, tail whipping thoughtfully where it was curled by her side. Dragons would never attack a human, but she looked ready to spring or at least seriously contemplating hurting him. Since this weyr was originally built for a larger dragon and with her petite stature, there was more than enough room for her to maneuver to do so.

An angry dragon, even a petite green like Terranth, was a thing to be wary of. Terranth's head was still as large as the average grown man's body, and able to swallow a man in two bites. Let's not forget the powerful jaws and rows of razor sharp teeth, and strong forelegs armed with deadly claws.

Twenty two feet long from her tail's forked tip to the slightly pronounced tip of her muzzle, and a wingspan almost twice her body length, she screamed raw power if a smaller version of R'ahvin's metallic fellow. Whereas Xenith was a powerhouse reminiscent of a sledgehammer that could do major damage, Terranth was lean and lithe like a whip. While not as solid or immediately apparent as being dangerous, once uncurled and let loose, it was a very real and precarious force, something to be feared and respected.

The silence stretched on as K'dra went about her nightly routine, checking straps one last time, and letting her hair loose from its updo in order to brush it once more before neatly plaiting it back to hang down her back.

R'ahvin's intense gaze seemed to pierce her and follow her around, but for once, K'dra wasn't going to back down. She had cried enough, made an emotional wreck of her, for two too many times today. It would not happen again, she swore on Terri's shell.

"K'dra," he began, but stopped, seeing she didn't even turn around or acknowledge him.

She joined her rumbling dragon, giving the potentially dangerous jaws a loving caress, and taking a paddle and uncovering a bucket of spare oil. She rubbed the sweet smelling concoction in specific areas that had been bothering her little dragon love, thrumming in her throat nothing in particular.

One eye dropped an inner eyelid down in ecstasy, but the other was firmly watching the man in the room. R'ahvin was eerily reminded of some of the tunnelsnakes stalking their prey. It was not a pleasant thought, thinking of himself as prey.

Xenith didn't like it either, and the brassy trumpeting from outside, came as a warning to the emerald predator currently being groomed.

The inner eyelid opened and her neck lifted her head higher and she grumbled in answer toward the weyr entrance.

I did not threaten him Xenith I was merely watching him. Terranth heaved a dragon-sized snort. I cannot help what your rider thinks and feels.

Make your rider talk to mine so we can leave.

Make your rider apologize and leave K'dra alone!

Xenith made a sound like ha! that showed he wasn't happy. It wasn't that being near his mate wasn't pleasant, but it was the thoughts and feelings he was catching glimpses of in her rider's mind that was setting him on the edge, and the double echo of his lifemate's confusion wasn't helping.

"K'dra, this is ridiculous. Enough!"

For the first time since he had come inside, K'dra tilted her head toward him, finally meeting his gaze. She arched an eyebrow but chose not to say anything.

"K'dra, talk to me!"

Taking a chance, considering Terranth's state of being, he crossed the room and grasped the young woman by the shoulder and lifted her away. He ignored Terranth's hiss of annoyance, sea green eyes boring into her pale grayish blue ones.

"Talk to you about what exactly, R'ahvin?" K'dra's voice was low and tight, her anger masked by a coldness to match the fire of her rage. "Oh, you mean talk about what a truly despicable, deplorable man you were to an innocent man? A man who happens to be one of my closest friends at that? Or talk about how you and K'vic managed to make such complete dimglows of yourselves in front of the entire Wing and embarrassing me from here unto Turn's End forevermore?"

"K'dra…"

"Where did you get the blood from?"

"Wha-?" R'ahvin tried to keep up with this shift of topics but K'dra was merciless.

"There was blood on your mouth and chin as if you'd wiped it away. And you have a horrible looking bruise there," she motioned with a flippant hand in the general direction of the now visible bruise. "And why exactly did K'vic and you turn on Et'an? As far as I know, he hasn't insulted or given you reason for the debacle today at supper. So what is it you want, R'ahvin?"

During this little speech she had pulled away from his grip, eyes blazing bright, but never leaving his even as she took a step back to keep some space between them. Hands upon hips and foot tapping, she looked more like an irate Weyrwoman with her erring bronze consort than a green rider under his command.

"Well?" she demanded.

As R'ahvin cast a bout for an answer, Terranth lifted the reason from Xenith's mind, and she creeled to K'dra.

"You got in a fight with K'vic!" K'dra gasped, eyes wide in surprise. Her jaw was dropped and she was just staring at him, her anger momentarily dissipated.

"Xenith has a big mouth," R'ahvin frowned. "And we didn't fight, merely had a difference of opinion."

"And why were you and K'vic fighting?" K'dra ignored the 'we didn't fight' part, much to R'ahvin's annoyance.

That was just ludicrous. Dragonriders fighting amongst their own, much less at all, was pointless and stupid. Not to mention that it showed a lack of maturity.

When R'ahvin stayed silent K'dra rolled her eyes heavenward, her conversation with Et'an coming back to her.

'He thinks of you as his girl.'

"Please tell me it wasn't about me. It wasn't, was it?" K'dra wanted to beg.

This was giving her a headache. Now she knew why many riders ignored intimate relations with others unless absolutely necessary, finding solace only in their bond with their dragon. This was almost as bad as telling her family about her pre-flight activities.

"He had made some comments," was all R'ahvin said.

Okay, this was in a category all by itself.

K'dra waited a beat for him to continue but he never said anything else.

"What kind of comments?"

"Nothing that concerns you."

"Oh really? So you two come into the Hall, after fighting with one another, or at least roughing each other up a bit, and then proceed to gang up on Et'an! My best friend, Et'an, for no other reason than you and K'vic got into a pissing contest, embarrassing and humiliating not only me but a fully fledged dragonrider of another Weyr in front of the entire Wing. I'd say that makes it my business." K'dra exploded.

"No, I don't think it does."

"Gah! Now I know why Bria chose to go for the same gender, this is ridiculous! If this is how male riders are going to react to female riders the dragons should just Impress boys!" K'dra huffed even as she leaned back against Terranth's alarmed body, mumbling reassurances to her green beauty, scowling darkly at the male in her weyr.

"I didn't come here to fight, K'dra," R'ahvin spoke wearily.

"Could have fooled me."

"K'dra, please."

"Please what? What do you want me to say? What do you want from me? Why are you here?"

"I came here to make sure you were okay. That we were okay."

Why did she want to get lost in those eyes so badly?

"I'm okay, it wasn't me who took the brunt of the humiliation today. And as for we…" K'dra stopped to take a deep breath. "As for we, I don't feel it is in the best interest of our Wing or Weyr to continue…us."

"You can't just decide that! One little argument and you're willing to give away what hundreds of other women would give everything for. You have no right!"

"No right to choose who shares my bed? Since when do I not have the right? One little argument, I don't think that was just one little argument, R'ahvin, and I wouldn't be surprised if the Weyrleaders have something to say about it. Both sets of Weyrleaders, I might add. And don't think that just because Xenith caught Terranth that I am in anyway bound to you for all time."

"I may be a junior dragonrider, and ride a green at that, but I do know my rights concerning weyrmates. I'm under no obligation to continue any dalliance whatsoever and you can't make me! If you can't handle that, then I'm sure any of the 'hundreds of other women' would be glad to service you because I won't!"

"You fly in my Wing…"

"Yes, I fly in your Wing. I'll fly beside you until and unless I'm ordered not to do so. But I won't be sleeping beside you anymore."

There seemed to be a heavy silence, as R'ahvin fought to take what all happened. K'dra had never felt so empowered, or emboldened, and she briefly thought she may have gone too far.

It is he who has gone too far, Terranth's lovely tones crooned and K'dra clung desperately to that unconditional loving link. She had a feeling she was going to need it.

"You're making. A. Big mistake."

With that ground out, R'ahvin left her weyr as abruptly as he entered. It was only after the sound of scraping talons and the snap of wings had vanished did K'dra give in to the shaking of her legs and she collapsed, right into the crook of Terranth's forelegs.

Oh, my.

K'dra was exhausted from the challenges of that day, and she turned like a babe in it's mother's arms, curling against the

The lifebonded pair stayed that for the rest of the night, comforting and seeking comfort in each other.