Claymore and Dagger (closed)

[heartofcourage]

"You have no idea what you're in for. They're working to get me comfortable enough to ride without my harness. I don't know if I'll ever be ready for that, honestly." Fiona said softly with a long sigh, picking up her half eaten pack of food. "And what I packed for lunch doesn't really seem all that appetizing. Maybe I can steal part of yours."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Feel free," Sam set the small basket between them for her to take what she liked. "I'm lookin' forward t'the training, but no' the idea tha' at some point, I'm gonna fall. I know Gaiann'll catch me, but..."

 

[heartofcourage]

"You'll have to be brace, Sam. That's not something that anyone can do for you." She said as she looked inside the basket, laughing as Elin came sniffing around them at the smell of cooked meats. "I was thinking she might be big enough for a rig of her own soon. To start training her."

Fiona pulled out a roast chicken leg and offered it to the little drake, watching as she grabbed it in her maw and ran off to the safety of her mother to eat her treat.

 

[KieranSoares]

"I've been thinkin' of making her a harness t' start getting used to it. Then once she's a bit bigger she can carry things until she's ready for a rider." Sam chuckled as Elin ran off. "Sure, give 'er the good stuff. Spoiled thing."

 

[heartofcourage]

"You would have done the same." Fiona said with a smile as Sam teased her about giving the drake the best piece of meat that he had brought. "She's like your daughter. You beam when you think about her. I'm not sure that any child that we might have in our lifetime will compare to your drake."

She was being dramatic, but it felt good to share a few lighthearted moments with Sam in the middle of all the chaos and stress.

 

[KieranSoares]

"It's only because she's small an' cute righ' now," Sam insisted despite the smile on his face, making his own sandwich from a few things in the basket.

 

[heartofcourage]

Fiona chuckled as she simply leaned her head against Sam's shoulder, still not interested in food for the moment. She sighed and closed her eyes, resting after the busy morning that she had already had. He calmed her in a way that she had never really known in her life. It was a good feeling to know that she was loved by someone who was strong and confident. He gave her a strength that she would have never had otherwise.

 

[KieranSoares]

Sam let his head rest against hers for a long moment, and they simply enjoyed one another's company until Kennah came back to Sam a while later as if to remind him they had to get back to work. He sighed as she nudged at him. "Alright, alright... Guess we'd better get Gaiann. Help me up." He took hold of her horn and she easily pulled him up with her powerful neck.

 

[heartofcourage]

"Kennah, you spoil him." Fiona said as Kennah lifted Sam to his feet. "Soon he'll be too lazy to get to his feet on his own."

 

[KieranSoares]

Kennah simply rumbled happily as Sam kissed her maw and stroked her neck. "She doesn' mind," Sam chuckled. "I'll probably see you soon, love, if I don't fall t'my death. Odds are Ezra an' Danica'll have us work together."

 

[heartofcourage]

"If you fall to your death, I will certainly be having words with Gaiann." Fiona swore, even though it was one of her greatest fears. "And he might join you soon after."

 

[KieranSoares]

"I'll hold you to it," Sam offered her a smile and a kiss before climbing up on Kennah's back and setting off to find Gaiann and Danica.

 

[heartofcourage]

"He'll be the death of me one day, Invah. I know he will be." Fiona said as she leaned back against her dragon with a long sigh. "And I'm afraid at the rate that we're going, that will happen much sooner than I would like."

 

[KieranSoares]

"He may well be. But he believes in what he's doing." Invah's tail circled Fiona securely. "And he certainly won't quit, so all anyone can do is support him."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I'm sure you felt the same way about Gaiann many times." Fiona said, glancing up at Invah as she curled her tail around her. "I just hope that we have a happy and successful marriage. I know we'll both have to compromise on a lot of things but it should be worth it."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Compromise will be a part of it, yes, but I've always found that most of the time, it isn't needed. You're still two separate people with different ideas. There may be times when your paths diverge, but as long as you support each other, it will all work out in the end." Invah gave Fiona a gentle nuzzle and scooped her up to set her on her feet. "Come along, my love. If Ezra is anything like other Rider mentors I've ever met, he doesn't take long breaks. And we may see your Samuel in the distance once Danica gets him started."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I suppose I learned some bad habits being home with uka and mormor." Fiona said as Invah insisted that they needed to get back to work. "An afternoon nap was a nice luxury."

She climbed back into the saddle, strapping herself in and giving Invah the lead to take off again. She knew that Ezra would already be hard at work, but she was interested in see what Sam was doing on Gaiann.

 

[KieranSoares]

Just as Invah had expected, they soon saw Danica and Sam with their partners running some basic maneuvers. From such a distance, Fiona couldn't see how Sam was faring, but Gaiann seemed calm and was taking everything slow to start.

Ezra and Sadah came to meet Invah and Fiona and they got straight back into working on climbing transfers. Ezra was trying to turn it all into muscle memory for Fiona so she wouldn't falter or forget what to do in the middle of a fight. After a couple hours as Fiona was beginning to struggle to pull herself up, Ezra helped her up onto Sadah's saddle and they soared eastward to see Danica and Sam.

Gaiann was running barrel rolls with Sam as as they drew near, Fiona could see Sam was strapped in and holding on tight, but his eyes were deadly focused despite the very real fear he was facing.

 

[heartofcourage]

"He looks thrilled." Fiona said as she and Invah came up on Sam and Gaiann. "I'm sure he'll be in a terrific mood this evening."

She was beyond exhausted, but she was willing to put in a little extra time to train if it was what Sam wanted.

 

[KieranSoares]

Ezra watched Sam lean low through several sharp turns and dives, and murmured, "I'll take that as sarcasm. He looks absolutely petrified. Let's hope he doesn't get airsick."

When Gaiann landed, Sam unbuckled the straps with trembling hands, slipping down only to stumble as his knees went weak. He fell into a kneel, nearly hyperventilating as his steady focus failed to take in just what he'd been doing. Danica landed nearby and came trotting up to him happily.

"Never heard of a Ghis getting weak a' the knees. Or maybe it's just tha' pansy Scottish blood, aye?" She teased, leaning down to take a look at him. He cracked a weak smile at her joking.

"Better Scottish an' weak a' the knees than Irish an' spineless," he muttered, making her laugh brightly. There was a long-standing rivalry between Scots and Irish, but in Inverness, it was fairly friendly for the most part.

"Come on, big guy. Or your fiance will think I pushed you too hard." Danica hauled him to his feet and Sam had to lean back on Gaiann as Fiona and Ezra slipped from Sadah's back to meet them.

 

[heartofcourage]

"Sam, I don't know what you are trying to prove." Fiona said as she stood in front of him with her hands on her hips. "If you aren't meant for dragon riding, then you aren't meant for it. It's not just a little fear either. You look absolutely petrified up there."

 

[KieranSoares]

"I'm getting better. It was jus' all new today... I'll figure it out. Jus' gotta get used to it," Sam insisted quietly.

"He really did quite well, Fiona," Gaiann offered. "Give him time. We'll stop him if he can't manage."

"He's a great student, and scared of heights or no, he's well-disciplined. That'll take him far," Danica agreed.

 

[heartofcourage]

"And the moment he freezes up so far above the ground, he might lose his head." Fiona commented, not pleased with the situation in the least.

 

[KieranSoares]

"If he freezes, Gaiann will take care of 'im. Honestly I expect him t'freeze once 'r twice in training. I haven't known many Riders who 'aven't choked at some point," Danica insisted. "The more we face it, the easier it'll be t' get Sam past his fear. There'll always be some nerves, but that's part of the thrill."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I think you're going easy on him because he's the prince of Inverness." Fiona said, glancing at the other woman as she countered her argument. "Would you go this easy on any other rider? Be honest. Dmitri nearly did me in half the time when I was first starting out."