Dragon Rider Play

Pat tried to swallow the lump in her throat and nearly choked.  Standing on wobbling knees, she followed the angelic being, her stomach in knots.  She kept her eyes downcast as she walked.

Alterrion led Pat to the Bunkhouse. Once there, Alterrion returned to his position with the other professors behind the Headmaster.

Blade looked calm, and his face devoid of emotion as he watched Alistair very carefully. he watched the other assassin's every move, from how much his chest moved when he breathed to the slightest twitch to where Alistair's eyes looked.

Pat stood before the Headmaster, unable to meet his eyes and visibly trembling.  Alistair stood watching him, holding his breath about.
"Patrick, what do you know of this?" The Headmaster demanded, pointing to the treasure Erika was sitting on.
Pat glanced at it then away.  "It was taken," she whispered.
"Did you take it?"
Pat didn't answer, holding herself tightly.
"DID YOU TAKE IT?" Grumbledorf barked suddenly.
"Yes," Pat squeaked, tears escaping.  "Yes.  I had to."
Seeing how genuinely distressed Pat was, the Headmaster used a quieter voice.  "Why?"
Pat couldn't answer, just shook her head.

Blade listened to the confrontation, but also kept an ever watchful eye on Alistair. He doubted the other assassin would take kindly to being caught and ratted out. No assassin did.

Mark seemed at a loss of what to say or do. he mostly seemed surprised or shocked through the whole thing, from start to end.

The Headmaster nodded to Alistair.  "Did he tell you to take it?"
Pat bit her lip hard. A trickle of red bled down her lip.  She didn't answer.  She couldn't answer.  Not that question.
"Pat!" Alistair yelled.  "Tell the truth!  I didn't tell him to do anything!  I didn't do anything!"
Pat looked ready to crumble under the stress. 

Unable to take it, Tithenor stepped forward.  "Please, Sir, will you allow me to take care of my clanmate?  They accept me as their leader, will you allow me to act in that capacity?"

The Headmaster debated then looked to Blade and Mark.  "Mark, do you agree tat he is a leader and accept Tithenor as your leader?  Blade, Erika is your dragon, and you were hurt the most from this.  What is your say?"

Mark nodded with certainty. "Yes. Tithenor is the undisputed leader of our team. The head of our family."

"I do not blame Pat." Blade said confidently. "Pat is a gentle and caring soul. My gut and my instincts and my knowledge on thieves and assassins all tell me that Alistair is the mastermind and culprit behind this. And if I may speak from that knowledge again, letting him go unpunished will do nothing to solve any of this. It will only hinder him briefly. To beat and cripple an organization of any kind, you aim for the boss, not an underling or tool."

The Headmaster inclined his head.  "Ver well.  Patrick, your fate will be decided by Tithenor.  Alistair, you will come with me."
"I didn't do it!  I was set up!  Pat, tell them!" Alistair screamed, lunging for Pat.
Krudd reached out and easily scooped Alistair off his feet, draping him over his shoulder.  "None of that!  Let's go."
The Headmaster glanced at Blackwater and Alterrion.  "See to the young dragons, please.  I will see to this myself."  He swept out after the screaming and cursing boy being carried like a sack of potatoes.

(Lol yay Krudd XD)

When Alistair had lunged for Pat, Blade had moved between Alistair and Pat, knives ready, but Krudd had grabbed the other assassin before he got to Blade. He put his knives away and slowly sat back down on his bunk. "And now... I feel woozy again. Erika? Is everything there?" he asked his dragon.

Alterrion and Blackwater nodded. The dryad was secretly relieved to be out of that claustrophobic box again and under the open sky. he and the angel walked over to the Rookery, Loam falling in step behind his rider.

Mark leaned against the wall. "I need a drink..." he muttered to himself. What a stressful day, and it wasn't even over yet!

Erika purred as she sorted through her items, surprisingly neat and organized for a dragon.  Of course, as soon as she had a new place to hide it all, it's just be shoved in a pile again.  So far so good!

"A drink can wait," Tithenor said sternly, pointing for Mark to sit next to Blade.  "Blade, stop getting up or I swear I'm going to follow through on Pat's threat and sit on you myself.  Pat, sit."  He pointed to the bunk across from Mark and Blade.

Pat sat, only too glad to.  Her knees weren't going to hold up much longer and she suspected she may have wet herself.

Blade sighed. "But toriaun.... what if I have to get up? Does that still mean I'll be sat on?"

Mark nodded and sat beside Blade. He wondered what Tithenor had planned.

"Then you can ask for permission, honeg," Tithenor said primly as he pulled a chair over and sat between them.  He turned his attention to Pat, and he softened.  He had had a soft spot for Pat ever since he'd started to take command.  Pat just seemed so vulnerable he couldn't help but want to protect him.  He was like a kitten or a puppy.  "Patrick.  Why did you take Erika's things?  You knew it would hurt her.  You even left behind her most precious treasures.  Why would you take it if you knew how much it would hurt her?"

Pat just shook her head again, hugging herself as she hunched over.  "I'm sorry," she whispered.  "I didn't want to, but I had to.  I'm sorry."

"What do you mean, 'had to?'" Blade asked. He didn't sound mad, and he wasn't. "Were you forced to?"

Pat closed her eyes, shaking her head.  "I can't tell you," she whispered.  "I can't.  Please don't ask.  I know you hate me.  I don't blame you.  Just please don't ask."

Blade sighed and rubbed his temples. "Why do you think that? I'm starting to become upset because you won't tell me, but I won't be mad at you if you're honest. Have you forgotten I did similar work to Alistair? I know it's a trademark thing to manipulate someone else to do work for you so you may get off scott free, and if they screw up, you aren't out anything. I want to think of you as a friend, Pat, and I've already forgiven you for taking Erika's stuff, but I at least need to know if I can trust you now and in the future."

"You can't trust me," Pat whimpered, trying not to cry.  Be strong, Pat!  But she couldn't.  Not anymore.  Not with this.  "You can't.  You never should have trusted me.  Not me.  I'm the weak link of this chain, and I'm the one everyone will always come after and they'll make me do things.  I never wanted to hurt anyone.  I can't.  I can't.  Please."  She was crying now and bent double so her forehead touched her knees.

Tithenor frowned, looking to Mark.  Something was seriously wrong here.  If Alistair was out of the picture, then Pat had nothing to be afraid of anymore.  That meant... "Patrick, did Alistair leave something behind so that even if he were caught, something would happen to you?"

Pat forced herself to nod.  Close enough.

Blade frowned. He knew Alistair couldn't have been trusted... "Pat, what is it." Blade asked gently but firmly. "All three of us... we want to help. But you have to trust us. You are not weak, Pat. You have learned and progressed so much and so fast. Heck, you even wrapped up my arms today so good I think 53 was impressed. You care so much and remind at least me to smile and have fun so much that I have come to really like it here." He said genuinely.

Mark caught Tithenor's look and casually looked around. What was Alistair playing at?

Pat scrubbed at her eyes with the heels of her hands.  "I can't tell you!" she wailed.  "I want to, but I can't.  He always knows everything.  Things he shouldn't know.  I don't know how, but before you can do anything, he'll..."  She clamped her jaw shut and shook her head, looking as though she was dying inside. She was still fighting to keep Nightshade from feeling the depths of her despair.

Tithenor sighed and stood.  "Enough," he said softly.  "It is enough for today.  Patrick, you have not down anything to care for your dragon all day.  You will go now and perform your responsibilities.  Mark will go with you.  I need to think."

Mark nodded and stood. He waited for Pat before he walked to the rookery with Pat. Alterrion and Blackwater were still there. They both went through and examined each dragon and each stall, making sure both were taken care of and nothing was amiss.

Pat went along willingly enough until she saw Blackwater and Alterrion inside.  She stopped short, fearful once more.  Would he think she was telling them things?

~

Tithenor sat next to Blade with a weary sigh.  "I do not understand.  Can you help me to understand, honeg?  How could Alistair hold this much power over Pat that even caught and taken to be punished Patrick still will not speak?"

Mark lightly led Pat to the stall with their dragons in it. Nightshade didn't even lift her head when Pat came in.

~

Blade put a hand on Tithenor's shoulder. "My guess is that he somehow has a threat that Pat believes in and is dangling it over Pat's head. I would assume some kind of threat against someone or something he cares about, or information Pat doesn't want anyone to know. As far as what exactly... I am at a loss."

Pat didn't look at Nightshade, ashamed and broken.  Woodenly, she went about changing the straw in her dragon's stall then changed the water.  She collected the molted feathers from the straw and placed them in a bag she kept for that purpose.

~

"It is ridiculous," Tithenor said shortly.  "There is nothing I would not do to protect any one of you. However, as Patrick believes this is a legitimate threat, we must treat it as such."  Tithenor stood.  "I need space to think.  I will go out and view the others and how their training is going.  I can trust you to stay in bed and keep an eye on Pat and Mark when they return?"

Mark cared for the dragons as best he could, but Nightshade refused to eat, no matter how much Mellon whined and tried to coax her.

~

Blade sighed a bit. "I think the only way we could eliminate the threat without knowing is by making Alistair go away or disappear, and all the ways I can think of to do that are frowned upon here. But if you insist, I will stay here and do nothing and probably die of boredom. Oh, and may I please have a waterskin before you abandon me?"

Warrior tried to nudge Nightshade up and get her to at least move.  Why was his friend still so sad??  Surely if she was happy, Pat would be happy!  Right?  Dragons always made riders happy.

~

"Are you perhaps part elf?" Tithenor asked as he handed over the waterskin.

Nightshade sighed sadly. But This Pat wasn't The Pat that was the rider she loved and cared about...

~

Blade knit his eyebrows as he accepted the skin. "What makes you say that?"

(That might actually be kind of cool if it wound up Blade and Tithenor were distant cousins XD Like the elf blood in Blade was diluted enough it doesn't give him the pointy ears or stature, but it IS there?)

Warrior stood over her, grooming the top of her head a bit like a kitten or a dog.  Maybe she needed to be reminded.

~

"You are melodramatic enough to fit right in," Tithenor replied, making sure the food was in easy reach along with his knife and some wood before going out the door.

(There's food for thought!  I will think on this some.)