Private Tales Flint to the Fire

[Nadya]

She had been about to tease him about kissing noble boys when his voice came out rough and guttural, a language she knew she would never understand or ever attempt learning. Nadya Caliar never looked scared. There would be no chance given for anyone to see her weak.

"Gods, they look friendly." Nadya grumbled, cutting their scout friends a sideglance.

But her grey eyes snapped forward when Talorgan brought her attention to the moth dragons. Of course, he possibly thought to steer her attention to the natives coming their way, but the female's sharp inhale did not go unnoticed. Her arms wrapped around his solid one, squeezing it tight to relieve the sense of cuteness that overcame her. She would not dare do so with the actual smaller species dragons, but her friend's arm would suffice.

 

[Talorgan]

"We're outsiders. They normally only see us landing monstrous dragons in the hills. I think a few times scouts have burned human tribes they thought were jarlax from the air."

He glanced down at her hands and smiled.

"Do not put your hands near their mouths. They eat lots and lots of small creatures all night."

The two scouts slowed and dropped into step a little way behind them. Talorgan continued on the as the group ahead turned to face them.

<You know me!> he called out.

<You are not one of us.>

<I thought I was welcome. >

<To talk. In the day!>

<I am or would...> Talorgan started to stutter.

"You are still bad!" called the oldest in the group. Talorgan felt embarrassed at failing in their language in front of Nadya.

"We don't have shelter for the night," Talorgan said.

"Well what did you bring?"

Talorgan opened the bag at his hip.

"Spices!" he started, lifting out a small tin. They were valuable back home but he didn't know how they would be treated here.

"You don't have anything we could call a gift?" he muttered to Nadya.

 

[Nadya]

Nadya had tried to keep her face neutral, but as soon as Talorgan began speaking in another language, her brows furrowed as she tried to decipher a sliver of what he was saying, but as soon as the natives began to reply, she caught on that Tal wasn't the most fluent or confident in speaking with them.

One of them began to converse in Thanasian, almost shocking Nadya.

Then Tal asked her a question.

A hasty laugh, she turned to look up at him. "Do not judge me."

But from her pack she pulled out five nicely crafted daggers. From Thanasian Iron and the hilts carved from obsidian, they were a true dedication of Thanasian styled weaponry. "A guy I was fooling around with made them for me. Thought they could have come in handy if we needed to.... you know, hunt our own food." She grimaced, looking sheepish as the rest of her pack was majority food rations.

Nadya laid the daggers in their sheaths on the ground between both parties.

"An offering, from me to your community. Tal brought me here to show me there is much to learn from the Wylds..." Best they hear her pandering to them.

 

[Talorgan]

Judgement only came in the form of one raised eyebrow.

There was a palpable tension as the daggers were laid out. Only the elder knew much thanasian. The others didn't understand of this was an offering or a threat.

"That will do. Shelter for one night. Food. We celebrate Andthrid's..." the Elder looked to the sky as if it had the word.

A brief exchange followed in their language.

"It's a coming of age celebration," Talorgan explained.

"Come, come," said the elder.

The two scouts remained behind them. They were thrown a single glance by the elder. Talorgan suspected Nadya would be closely watched. The other tribes people continued on their original task: setting watch with the moth dragons.

"At least you got a good look at them," Talorgan said as he followed through the elder on a narrow, steep path between the rocks.

"They have some shelter in the rocks themselves, but they mostly live outside," he explained as they stepped out into an open area.

They were slightly higher than the flat land below. Several rocks jutted up ahead of them and there was a system of caves beneath it. To their right was a field of tents and to the left a large fire was being built.

"Must have made an impression for those knives..."

 

[Nadya]

Nadya let out a breath she had no clue she had been holding, but her lungs relieved at the decompressing. She had looked to Talorgan, about to ask what exactly entails as a coming of age celebration, when they were asked to follow. It was obvious the better idea was to do as she was told, and the Wing Leader fell into step beside her friend.

The moth dragons had been a pleasant surprise, but the way these people lived their day to day intrigued Nadya more.

"When they said shelter, did those knives buy us two tents?" She would have loved the privacy and peace, some time to herself after all that travel. Nadya had always had a moment to herself whenever she returned to her private home withing the sacred grounds on Thanasian lands.

Nadya looked to Talorgan. "I mean, no offense to you. I'm sure you don't snore..."

 

[Talorgan]

"They may just have given us space in the communal tent with the warriors," Talorgan laughed. "Or maybe one tent or maybe two. Or you could just sleep on the grass."

Talorgan hadn't taken offense, but was clearly amused by her comment. For him, it played into the delusion that he was a wild man who rejected civilisation and she was a pampered noble heiress.

The elder slowed and turned about. He was tall by thanasis standards, but wiry. All of the tribes people were. They ranged far and wide and food was not as plentiful.

"Why now? Why her?"

"I think it's important that more..."

"You are welcome. We are not here for you to make a show of."

Talorgan felt that one. His expression changed sharply. For all he might have spoken about wanting to expand awareness, this was still all a pursuit because he didn't have anything better to do. He felt more at peace out behind the wall. Showing this place to Nadya wasn't really for the benefit of the tribe.

"Ah come. Andthrid will be playing Kaja before the celebration."

Talorgan looked to Nadya.

"It's a ball game," he said. "Half the tribe will play."

 

[Nadya]

Nadya plastered on a pleasant smile, enough to satisfy the elder, but it faltered the moment she asked Talorgan why bring her along.

She began to feel as if she was overstepping, being called out for having no true purpose to this visit. Nadya simply wanted to escape Thanasis and responsibility for a while...

Privilege. For someone that spoke so much about not needing it, she certainly didn't show it.

Surprised, Nadya looked to Tal once they were ushered to follow and sure enough, half the tribe were already deep within a game.

A ball, easy to tuck under one's arm, was the sole object of either team to retrieve. Nadya had thought it simple, especially given how easily accessible each team made it to steal, but then she realised how tactics worked in this sport. She jumped, knocking into Talorgan when she saw a tribesman tackle their opponent that made a run back to their base with the ball, only to drop the ball and have it returned to a new location on the field.

"Fuck." She hissed, seeing the tribesman that had been tackled stand and limp off the field. Another was eager to replace him on the field. "I think they would murder me, Tal."

 

[Talorgan]

"Maybe," he laughed. He placed his hand on Nadya's shoulder.

"Miyo means throw or pass the ball. Don't touch the people with white flags, they're calling the score. One time they told me the whole tribe played and no one score all game. Just a big pile on that lasted an hour."

Two young men from the tribe approached. They both wore scraps of red fabric. It was the most colourful dye the people made from local flowers. They held out another red cloth for Talorgan.

"Why don't you watch and decide if you want to play," Talorgan laughed. He set down his pack, and set down two knives and his sword.

The tribes people were tall and wiry. Built for walking long distances. Talorgan was broader, with thick arms. It was obvious why one team had quickly saught him out.

As he ran out into the ill defined space for the game, he was immediately thrown the ball. Talorgan charged straight at two players trying to stop him, clutching the ball tight to his chest and dropping his shoulders.

 

[Nadya]

Nadya had to think and distract to get herself to not think the thoughts she had watching Talorgan move amongst the tribal people.

It was all too obvious the differences between Thanasians and the tribes, the different strengths and skills between both cultures showed which were bred for warfare and combat. It became glaringly obvious to Nadya that she may indeed have a type.

Clearing her throat, she tried to push away the appreciation of watching Talorgan, but no one else had their muscles move the way his did when he held that ball.

"Are you promised to him?" Asked a tribes woman.

Nadya spluttered, playing it off, "To Tal? No! No, he's a friend. I am to be a Commander one day, and Talorgan likes his freedoms." Certainly, he would make a good husband, but to a woman or man that liked the same things as him. Nadya was built for military.

 

[Talorgan]

A great laugh ripple around the game. Talorgan had been tackled by three young tribesmen. Instead of trying to wrestle the ball from his grasp, they had picked him up.

All three made a mad dash with Talorgan and the ball to try and bring it back to their team.

Wriggling and twisting, Talorgan managed to get his arm free and fling the ball back towards his own team. He was unceremoniously dumped to a loud cheer.

The scout came jogging over. He was shirtless and covered in a sheen of sweat. Broad chest rose and fell heavily. Tal didn't see as much sun as the tribes people, but he was more bronzed than most riders. They tended to spent their time covered up at altitude or indoors.

He brought a fist up to his lip and wiped away some blood.

"Not joining in?" he laughed.

 

[Nadya]

She watched him approach, lips parting ever so slightly as the awareness of the tribes people thinking them to be together was distracting her. It put Tal in a new light, and although she went after riders for their ability to not be attached since they were all statistically to live shorter lives than those without a dragon bond, she could see that she had been blind to Talorgan for some time, it seemed.

His question startled her; eyes snapped to meet his, slightly widened in shock of being caught staring.

"Oh, no no... I am terrible sport. Honestly, I would be a danger to myself and others if I were to join in." She was made for War Games, not this. A rider on the back of a dragon, a rider by her bloodline's right, a rider through and through.

 

[Talorgan]

Talorgan raised one eyebrow. He didn't always pick up on cues, but it was hardly difficult to read Nadya's expression. Her surprise - and what sudden feelings she was surprised by - were all too evident.

"Well that's probably enough for me now," he laughed. He brought up one hand, wiping away a bead of blood across the back of it.

"You're probably tired from all that walking too."

He stayed still before her, waiting to see if she would recover herself and find a witty retort.

 

[Nadya]

There were reasons why she never really noticed Talorgan before. Hell, she even eyed up one of his brothers not that long ago, wondering how a family could be so blessed, but really, Tal was by far the more handsome in comparison.

His stare was on her, but something else occupied it. There was calculation behind it, watching her every move as she did not dare to break eye contact from him.

"Well, of course. Someone made sure I put my legs to work, I am afraid I may need a hot bath to soothe my sore muscles." Then she grimaced. "I am guessing there in fact is no baths out here?"

Nadya crossed her arms, letting her gaze rake over him once again. "You look like you need a wash too. All that... sweat." Despite the cool climate out this way, she had indeed witnessed him pull in a lot more work to keep up with the tribes people in the sport.

 

[Talorgan]

"I'm afraid there are no baths, no."

He crossed his arms over his chest. As a third son he was often ignored. It gave him his freedoms. He was quite enjoying being the centre of attention for a spell. Her house might not have been one of the greatest, but she was destined for great things.

"No one is going to leave safety and bathe in a stream at night."

He glanced towards the concentration of voices.

"They will be gathering by the fire to speak words for Andthrid soon. You won't understand much, but... We could always get you some body paint."

He chuckled and uncrossed his arms.

"And I can always rub away any aches and pains later..."

 

[Nadya]

Nadya didn't understand how his last set of words made her heart dip and beat faster.

She cleared her throat, looking around and hoping no one that spoke Thanasian could hear them now.

"Well, I would gladly appreciate your help in..." But her words trailed, failing to continue as her eyes watched as his arms uncrossed and moved a series of muscles that she wanted to rub her hands over. "Well, best get in some time at the stream and enjoy the quiet a little before the festivities. We're also losing what little moonslight we got left."

 

[Talorgan]

"The quiet?" he asked rhetorically. Talorgan canted his head to one side. Nadya had been subjected to a little revelation. One he intended to take advantage of. Suddenly showing off the cultures of the wilds was the second most important item on his mind.

Talorgan barked out a few words in the wildlings tongue. There were a few back slaps and pats as the game dispersed.

"Come on," he laughed.

He led them through a field of tents and past small, but jagged rocks. A stream cut through the rear of the settlement. He walked them past several guards with a leashed moth dragon.

"Just me that needs to bathe?" he laughed as he stripped off and waded into cold water.

"Fuck!" he hissed

 

[Nadya]

Nadya was not all that keen to hurry into the water. Even she knew it would be freezing, but watching Tal wade into the water and curse made her grin. She made no move to shed her layers as quickly as he had. First, her bag was pulled over her head and then placed onto the grass. Next, her boots and the socks she wore specially for the amount of walking they had to do.

"Oh, please. I bet ot isn't even that cold." Within the next minute, Nadya had shed all layers and even released her hair from the braid that had begun to loosen. Running her fingers through the locks, she stepped onto the pebbles and then into the water. She scrunched her nose, easing into the depths.

Now, she looked at him. They were alone, but Nadya's gaze reminded him of what was unspoken between them. She had her eye on another, someone she could not lose, but Talorgan was presently here.

"You said something about rubbing my sore muscles?"

 

[Talorgan]

Talorgan offered no privacy as she stepped down to the water's edge. The cool stream lapped around his waist and he watched her intently.

He had felt his pulse leap as he cold bit into him, but now it raced. For a few seconds as she strode towards him he questioned if he had entirely misread the situation.

Talorgan stood before her, broad chest heaving. Some of the body badly was already smeared. He reached forward, a curled fingertip to her skin, catching a bead of water just below her sternum. His finger graced downwards to the surface of the water.

"I did but now that we're here..." his gaze lifted all the way up to hers. She cut such a slender figure in the evening light.

"... I must warn you that I don't feel like being gentle. If the water is too cold, we could have just taken a tent."

 

[Nadya]

He was the first to make physical contact. Not anywhere near the spots that made her arch her back and whimper, his trailing finger at her sternum made her body react in such a manner that it became obvious she hadn't taken anyone to bed in a while. Where the cold made her shiver, it was his touch that had her peaking.

"Oh, I much prefer being here..." She murmured, keeping still as his stare kept her in place. Nadya did not dare move. Her stormy grey eyes darkened with her intent, but the intensity of it posed as a challenge to Talorgan.

He could step away from this and change his mind if he so wanted to.

"Unless you don't think you can perform in cold water?" Now Nadya smirked, moving to swim off into the deeper waters of the stream, towards the large rocks that would hide them from sight should anyone wander to the stream.