There are 2 messages in this issue.
Topics in this digest:
1. [DL-J] Who's Victoria and What IS Her Secret? (JP)
From: "Katrina Gischer" <kgischer@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
2. [DL-C/DL-J]: Bad Timing.
From: bberg@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
1
Date: Tue, 20 Jul 2004 14:37:13 -0700
From: "Katrina Gischer" <kgischer@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
Subject: [DL-J] Who's Victoria and What IS Her Secret? (JP)
NRPG - its a wee bit of a backpost and pretty much just character
development, but enjoy.
Day 6
Afternoon
Jerram's idea had at first seemed like a good one. Since Gus had
seemed a bit miffed at him over the business of his "not being
sup****tive enough" of her attempts to impress the Cleft rider Trevor
with her ideas of draconic discipline, he had decided that there was
one way in which he could *surely* get back into her good graces. And
all it took was a little trip into town...
He'd had Seyd drop him off at the end of a street he knew of, one that
had all sorts of interesting places. And as it turned out, one of the
very first had just what he was looking for. Oh, when she saw THIS
outfit, she'd be...hm, overjoyed? Embarrassed? Outraged? Well, only
one way to find out.
However, he hadn't expected to find out quite so soon. He had just
come out into the street a moment ago, and was absent-mindedly
strolling down the walk, when he heard a familiar voice. No, it
couldn't be, could it?
Well, as it turned out, it could. And she didn't look happy. Had she
been spying on him, he wondered indignantly? Was she going to take
him to task for buying this for her? Well, he wasn't going to
apologize for trying to be nice to her, that was for sure!
[snip]
Some sixth sense - or more likely that link with a suddenly very VERY
quiet dragon - made Gus turn. Dimly, through the rage that was now
tingeing her vision red, the thought occurred that Jerram had almost
certainly heard her declare her inability to read, but that thought
was
eclipsed by the fact that he was there, following her, despite his
promises. She spun away from the frothing madman that was Corwin and
strode angrily over to Jerram. "Lyin' rat," she spat at him. "Promises
t' me mean nothin' t' ya?" Corwin's ravings were still audible and she
cocked her head in his direction. "And how much o' THAT is yer fault,
too? Only happy when I'm in trouble, are ya?"
With no words now vile enough to encompass the venom she felt, Gus
simply swore - fluently and with the vernacular learned on the docks -
and stormed away, heading automatically back towards those same docks
and the dim sense of security in the familiar.
[end snip]
Gus sank onto a pile of ropes and netting in a dark alleyway, where
the afternoon sun's rays were muted to a near twilight and took
several deep breaths. Her head was spinning and she didn't know what
to think - hell, she wasn't even sure what to be angry about. Jerram
following her when he'd promised? Tyler's idiotic ideas of what her
locket meant? Corwin being a jerk?
She ran her hand through her hair and sighed heavily. She was TRYING
to fit in and do right, she WAS - so why did it seem that she could
only screw up?
Jerram found her there moments later, and glared down at her in
frustration. "Now what the hell is *this* all about??" he demanded.
"Try to do something nice for a person, and they climb all over you."
Well, truth to tell, there were certain times when he wouldn't mind at
all having her climb all over him, but in a totally different sense
than this! "Or were you just hoping to entice me into a dark alleyway
for unscrupulous purposes?" He followed that last statement up with a
wink that he hoped she'd take the right way.
Naturally, she didn't.
"Izzat what ya figger I'm up to, that yer always chasin' after me,
then?" She shot upright, putting herself nose to nose with Jerram -
even if she had to stand on tiptoe to do it. "And I aint sure what
the hell YOU been taught, but breakin' a deal aint never come under
the headin' o "doin' somethin' nice for a person", not EVER."
"Breaking a deal?" he asked, mystified. "Since when is going on a
shopping trip for someone you care about 'breaking a deal?" He shook
his head. "Maybe I should just go back to the store where I got
*this* from, eh?"
"Followin' me int' town after ya promised not to IS breakin' a deal,"
Gus retorted. She had a full head of steam after the earlier nonsense
with Tyler and Dylan and Corwin and Jerram was JUST the right person
to take it out on. Then his words penetrated. "Whaddya mean shoppin?
Got WHAT?"
"Well...this!" said Jerram, tossing her the paper-wrapped package. "I
think you'll agree when you see it that I didn't buy it for myself.
Although I'm sure I'd look fetching in it, it simply isn't my size."
He crossed his arms and waited to see if she would open it.
Deftly catching the package, Gus snarled inwardly. How in hell was
she always in the wrong? She eyed the unrevealing package carefully,
there clearly hadn't been time after Corwin's little scene for Jerram
to get this - could he have gotten it as a plant before joining
Corwin.
<Um, according to Seydor, he and Sygnath did not fly here together.
To the best of HIS knowledge, they hadn't spoken since breakfast.>
Swearing inwardly as she recognized that Jerram had scored off her
AGAIN, Gus glumly unwrapped the present and then felt her jaw hit the
boards of the dockside alley she stood in. For a moment her only
reaction was "pink". Gradually, that expanded to include "lace" and
"silk...wow, is that REAL silk" and then "Hey, Lissa at the Scarlet
Pleasure had one just like this..." Her eyes raised to Jerram's.
"What the hell is this?"
"Well, as you said, Lissa at the Scarlet Pleasure already has one," he
said. "So, it must be for you." He looked carefully at it as she
held it, deciding that he'd done a pretty good job of describing her
size right to the clerk at the store. "Well, what do you think?"
"I think," Gus said in a carefully level tone, "that ya seem awful
proud o' havin' bought me fancy whore's underwear."
"I think," said Jerram, "that if you look closely you'll see that this
is MUCH finer quality than anything you're likely to see worn at the
Scarlet Pleasure. That is NOT anything a whore would wear - high
class all the way! So, with that in mind, what do you think?" He'd
not expected her to see it this soon, so the price tag was still
attached. All she had to do, he figured, was look at it to see how
much this stuff cost!
Gus blinked in surprise. That was certainly a different tack than
she'd expected Jerram to take. Frowning, she slowly let the ....thing
hang off her finger from one delicate strap and studied it. It was
very...pink. And lacy. She ****fted to let it slide through her
fingers and stifled hastily a gasp of awe at the sheer pleasure of the
material. It really WAS real silk? Curious, she lifted the tag. For
whatever reason, numbers had never done the same awful dance in front
of her eyes that letters did and she could parse out how much gold
this had cost.
Her jaw once more hit the ground. "Jerram! You...you...this...it's
....riders don't get no money, how'd you...its..." she stuttered into
a shocked silence.
Jerram shrugged. "Oh, a little here, a little there, you know." He
decided not to tell her that this had largely cleaned out his winnings
at cards for the last couple of months! "Of course, if you REALLY
don't like it, I could take it back and get something
else...something...well, dowdier..."
Gus held the silken confection in front of her face, carefully
examining it. It was a magnificent gift and despite the pink - and
the overall "girlieness" - she wanted it. Then her suspicious nature
reared its ugly head. "Why," she demanded. "Why'd you get it? What
did you do?"
"What did I do?" he asked rhetorically. "What did I DO?" He rolled
his eyes. "Well, I felt like doing something nice for someone I cared
about, something I thought she would appreciate...and not look a
gift-dragon in the mouth!"
Dimly Gus grasped that once again her street instinct had been the
wrong ones to use - and that this was another of the times she
offended without even trying. Fighting off a faint scent of guilt,
she parried instead. "Can't see YOUR mouth past that hairy
monstrosity," she quipped.
Jerram twirled his mustache. "Well, at least that's an improvement
over calling me a traitor, a liar, and...well, whatever else you were
snarling at me a few moments ago. So, are you ready to be enticed to
go back to the warren and try that on, or do you still feel like
skulking around in dark alleyways? Hm, although come to think of it,
dark alleyways aren't a bad place to...hm, no, then again, not wearing
THAT!"
Gus paled somewhat at the "whatever else" knowing she'd snarled at
Corwin her secret illiteracy, but she decided to just pretend she
hadn't said any such thing. After all, if Jerram had heard, surely
that'd be the first thing he'd've gone after her with? She made a mock
sigh of resignation. "Well, I suppose if you've gone t' so much
trouble, I may as well give it a try."
"I'd hoped you'd see it that way!" he told her, grabbing her by the
arm and quickly drawing her out of the alleyway and into the street.
He remembered just a bit too late that he she was still holding the
pink silk nightie in full view, and that it was a somewhat crowded
street. He didn't even need to look at her to know the look he must
be getting from her right now. "Oops," he said under his breath.
"Oops?" Gus retorted icily, and yanked her arm out of his grasp.
Realizing the stares she was getting from the other people on the
street she was about to make Jerram REALLY pay when she realized that
several of the glances were amused and there were even some of what
she dubbed the "aaah, love" looks. Flu****ng as pink as the garment,
she hastily shoved it inside her jacket and tugged the leather closed.
Refusing to meet Jerram's gaze, she hastily boarded Loki before the
little grey had even completely landed and took off for the warren,
landing on Jerram's ledge.
"Damn, that was fast!" thought Jerram as he called his own dragon in
to pick him up. Why couldn't she always be that quick to follow his
suggestions, particularly when it involved plucking her out of dark
back-alleys? Well, he figured he'd better make the best of a good
thing. He scrambled up onto Seyd, and a moment later the blue dragon
was spiraling down over the warren. He landed on the ledge, where the
small gray dragon was already waiting. He slid down onto the ledge
and strode inside. "I'm here!" he announced, looking around the
apparently-empty front room. "Um...are *you* here?" She pretty much
had to be, he figured, unless Loki had dropped her somewhere first
before coming up to the ledge...but that didn't make any sense. He
headed back toward the bedroom.
Gus stood in the bathroom, staring at the ...whatever it was that
Jerram had bought her and trying to figure out just how the hell it
went on. She heard him call from the living room, but chose to ignore
him - after all, Loki was sitting on his ledge, where else WOULD she
be? She noted abstractly that her hands were shaking slightly. At
length she slid off her clothes and began to work her way into the
pink...thing.
Jerram tried the bathroom door in due course, and found it locked.
"Well, I know the bathroom has a full length mirror," he called in to
her, "but I think you'd find me a more appreciative audience." He sat
down on the bed to wait. Then he had a better idea. He quickly
divested himself of all his clothing, and flung himself down onto the
bed in a not-too-graceful-but-very-manly-looking pose to await her
grand entrance.
Gus once again chose to ignore Jerram and instead concentrated on
pulling on his gift. She had to admit - but to herself ONLY - that
the silk felt awfully nice against her skin - utterly unlike anything
she'd ever experienced. She turned to look in the mirror, nervously
adjusting a thin strap that didn't actually need it and felt her jaw
drop. The... slip or dress or whatever had a...well, she supposed it
was some kind of breast strap, but...but it lifted and pushed and....
She stared at her figure in the mirror. She actually looked...buxom.
She started to smile, and then remembered Jerram calling her scrawny
and suggesting she was rather small in that area. Truth,
unquestionably, and a long time ago, but still....! Apparently,
Jerram hadn't forgotten had he? Decided on some improvements, had he?
She threw open the bathroom door and stormed into the bedroom. "Just
what the hell is THIS?" she demanded, gesturing at her chest.
Jerram blinked. "Well, ahem, the saleswoman at that store is very
knowledgeable, you know. She asked me for a complete physical
description of you....well, and as much as I could tell her about your
personality...and she said that she could, um, just pretty much
visualize you and said that this outfit would be the perfect
thing...that it would, um, compliment all your good features, you
know? And, well, she was an expert, so of course I...well....um, you
do like it, don't you?"
"What did ya tell her?" Gus gestured again at her chest. "That I was
*scrawny*? That I looked like a BOY? Or didja just say, well, she's
gonna need some help up top?!"
Jerram thought fast. "Um, no...in fact, she said that that style is
the "in-thing" this season. She was wearing one herself, as a matter
of fact!" That *might* have been true, of course...the saleswoman had
seemed rather well endowed, and Jerram was always suspicious of
anyone's assets who seemed *that* well endowed. Something like the
male trick of stuffing a potato down into ones...well, no need to go
there, he decided. "She just felt that when I told her what a fun and
lively person you were, you'd want to wear something, um, stylish!"
Chewing on her lip and still looking furious, Gus thought through
Jerram's response. She didn't SPOT any holes in it, though something
about it just smacked of fast talk. "Fun and lively," she muttered
sourly. "And stylish, huh?" Her eyes narrowed suddenly. "So...she
was wearin' just this same thin', then? And ya figgered that SHE
looked so good in it....?"
"Well, not as good as you do, of course," Jerram told her. "But she
was, y'know, older and didn't have as much to work with as you do.
However, I knew that a woman of her, um, years, and, ah,
experience...not to mention her line of work...would have a
well-developed fa****on sense and besides, I thought if it looked that
good on her, it would look absolutely fabulous on you!"
Gus crossed her arms - unwittingly adding to the outfit's enhancement
- and glowered at Jerram. There just HAD to be something wrong in
what he said - it was JERRAM, after all. But she couldn't find it.
"Not as much t' work with?" she asked. "If she was wearin' this,
how'd one tell? And what grown woman has less'n I do?"
"Does it matter?" he asked, arranging himself on the bed in a
still-more-inviting pose. "The im****tant thing is that you look
absolutely lovely in that outfit... in fact, if you were to come
closer so that I could see you a bit better..."
Despite her nervousness and a back-of-the-head feeling that there was
something WRONG with wearing something with so obviously one purpose
only, Jerram's clear appreciation penetrated Gus's thick skull. The
visible evidence was not only obvious, but breathtaking and she felt
her heartbeat ratchet upwards. She managed a shaky grin and stepped
closer. "Oh, I forgot, old men like you have weak eyes, I'm so
sorry."
"Well, you know about how us dirty old men are," he said, with an
innocent shrug. "My eyes aren't what they used to be, but even from
here I can tell that you're worth seeing! So, would you be willing to
grace a decrepit old man with your presence over here on the bed? I'd
love to see how that material feels now that it's on you instead of
just hanging on a hanger!"
Flushed with the combination of guilt and pleasure that these games
with Jerram always engendered in her, Gus stepped over to the bed,
standing close enough to Jerram that the hem of the slip-thing brushed
delicately across his skin and grinned. "I'da figgered a smart man
woulda seen how it felt in the store...," she teased.
"I did," he admitted, then quickly amended, "but feeling it while it's
on a steel hanger just isn't the same, you know? Just like it
wouldn't feel the same if I were one of those classical marble
statues..."
Gus frowned in confusion slightly before figuring out Jerram's ploy.
"A statue, huh? Dunno much 'bout statues, but ...." Her voice
trailed off as her hand slid down Jerram's body to wrap around the
part of him most obviously attentive to her.
In time, the lingerie served its purpose and drifted down to make a
silky pink puddle on the floor next to Jerram's bed. Neither rider
noticed.
_________________________________
Submitted by:
John as Jerram
and
KK as Gus
Summary: After her set-to with Corwin in Cabral, Gus storms off and
Jerram follows - with a special gift. After some....negotiations, the
gift serves its purpose.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Message: 2
Date: Wed, 21 Jul 2004 00:37:26 -0700
From: bberg@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
[DL-C/DL-J]: Bad Timing.
(NRPG: This would be a bit back posted for Jasra. But I wanted
to answer a tag and finish up in Jasra. Boy, I hope I got it off
to all the lists okay. This is the first time I had to send to WW,
Jasra and Cleft!)
******************************
Day 4. Afternoon. Jasra.
--------
(snip from 'Shooting Daggers']
>>> Jerram pulled a small dagger from his belt and sent it hurtling
toward its target - the exact hub of a wagon-wheel some twenty yards
distant. Katrina smiled and hurled one of hers after it, to strike
right
alongside Jerram's. The swordmaster nodded approvingly just as
Dakhrau
strode up.
"Very good!" said Jerram, retrieving the daggers and handing Kat's
back
to her. He turned to Dakharu. "How are you with dagger-throwing?"
"I can work with any blade," Dakhrau answered simply.
"Okay, shall we keep using the wagon-wheel for a target?" the
swordmaster asked.
"Wagon-wheel easy target," Andahar scoffed. In quick succession a
pair
of daggers whizzed through the air to embed themselves, quivering in
the
hub's center.
Kat's eyes lit up, "Andahar, what is that 'game' the Nomad's play?
Where
you toss the daggers at a target but your opponent tries to stop
them?"
Andahar smiled, "There are several. Which one? Where you throw to
hit
dagger of opponent before it strike target or one where you catch
dagger
of opponent?"
"Hmm... both sound fun," She smiled at Jerram, "Which sounds more fun
to you?"
"Let's try catching them," said Jerram, looking at Kat and Dakhrau.
"Are you game?" There being no objections, he looked back to the
Nomad.
"Okay, let's see how it works."
Andahar explained quickly that each person had a target beside them.
The objective was to catch your opponent's dagger, thus preventing it
from reaching the target beside you, while throwing your own -- and
any
you caught -- at your own target. Any that embedded in the target
scored, any you caught scored, and any of your opponents that you
caught
and then embedded in your target scored double points. You lost
points
if you got hit by a dagger -- and in some instances, lost your life.
Kat smiled, "Shall we show them?"
Andahar nodded. "Four daggers each? Or only two?"
"As this is demonstration, why not two?" Kat answered.
They set up targets and stood at the ready. Both of them staring hard
into the other's eyes, just waiting for the telltale flinch of a hand.
Kat gasped as a knife suddenly embedded itself on the wheel beside
her.
She hadn't even seen Andahar move until it was too late to do anything
about it. But she answered and was rewarded with her dagger striking
the target, as well. But her second throw was not in time, and
Andahar
snatched it from the air and with a flip of the wrist, returned the
>>favor, sending the dagger sailing toward the target at Kat's side.
------
(End of snip)
Eventhough Katrina had done some dagger catching in the past, it
wasn't
her best dagger skill. Throwing was more her forte'. Throwing was a
skill
she had garnered respect for during her earlier days in Cleft. Once
while searching a series of caves for the missing rider Lenna, Kat
had impressed
her fellow riders when she hit a small spider on one of the cave walls
with
one of her thrown dagger.
Now as Andahar's second dagger came her way, Kat drew on that
experience
in the cave with the spider. With a good deal of focus, fine
reflexes,
speed, and a keen sense of accuracy coming together, Kat was able to
catch
the blade.
Once the demonstration was over, the game commenced with the Jasra
riders
joining in. When it was her turn to go against Andahar, Kat hoped,
unlike the
first demonstration throw with Andahar, she would catch his first
game throw. However, as she prepared to catch Andahar's blade, she
heard Azure.
Since focusing on catching a blade and speaking to her dragon at the
same
time was not a good idea, instinct took over and Kat jumped aside as
Andahar's blade flew towards her. A sharp pain on Kat's hand told her
she hadn't been quick enough. Thankfully, when she looked at her
hand, she had only a mild
cut on her palm. The dark haired rider knew Azure hadn't meant to
distract
her. If Azure had known her rider couldn't have gotten out of the way
in
time, she wouldn't have interrupted the toss.
<My rider, when you are done tossing utensils can we go swimming?>
Before Katrina answered her dragon, she signaled Andahar, Jerram and
Dakhrau that she was okay.
<Sure we can go swimming Luv. You know, you've been wanting to do a
lot
of swimming lately. Even though we have some water in and around
Cleft, you
have never been inclined to do too much swimming there.>
<True, I enjoy basking more than swimming. Except for the river, the
water
in and around Cleft doesn't move. It doesn't have big waves, or
dolphins,
or sea dragons! I love the sea! I think I would make a good sea
dragon!>
<Yes, I'm sure you would have been a good sea dragon. But, I'd love
you no matter what kind of dragon you were. Now, after I wrap my
hand, I'm going to toss some more utensils around. Andahar and the
Jasra riders are waiting for
me to play again. And, when I'm done, you and I will go for a swim.>
After Kat finished speaking with her dragon, she used one of her
daggers
to cut a thin strip of material from her ****rt for a bandage. The
make****ft bandage might make it a bit tougher to catch blades, but
she decided to
continue with the game anyway.
Giving her injury no further thought, Kat smiled, and
with enthusiasm said, "Okay then, let the game continue!"
(I'd tag here, but since this is backposted in Jasra time now, I
don't think a reply would be needed.)
*******************
Day 4. Evening. A Jasra beach.
The moonlight dancing on the sea, matched the iridescent blue
dragon as she sat with her wings arched around her rider. With
her dragon's wings to keep the cool sea breeze at bay, Katrina
sat on the sand listening and watching the waves crash against
the shoreline. Just as the moonlight on the sea mirrored Azure,
Azure's thoughts mirrored her rider's thoughts.
<My rider, I wish we did not have to leave tomorrow.>
<I know Luv, but we need to get back to Cleft. Aside from our
duties there, we need to make sure my little brother and Alizarine
aren't getting into trouble.>
<Hmmm, all that is true. But, I will miss all the Jasra dragons,
their
riders, the dolphins and the swimming.>
<I'll miss all of them and the warren as well. Compared to the
dryness
around Cleft, it is cool and pleasant here with the sea. Perhaps we
should
spend more time in and around the water back at Cleft.>
<I agree with both of your statements. Did you know, Bohoc does not
like the climate here? He thinks it is too damp.>
<Hmmm, Bohoc was a wilder and Andahar a nomad. So unlike us, they've
been around our part of the Dragonlands longer. So they are probably
more accustomed to Cleft's climate. Over the years, I think we've
gotten
use to it as well. Wow, you know what that makes me think about?>
<Yes of course I do, I know your thoughts.>
Kat laughed. <Then you know I was thinking that we've been at Cleft
for seven years now. By the egg, time sure flys. Speaking of time,
I guess since we'll be heading back to Cleft early tomorrow, we
shouldn't spend too late of a night out here.>
<You are right my rider. But let's enjoy our last night here by
staying a little longer on the beach>, sent Azure as she continued
to enclose her rider in a cocoon of wings and tail to keep her from
getting too chilly. Kat agreed to stay. And the two bondmates sat
there for a while chatting and watching the moonlight ****ne on the
azure water as it lapped at the Jasra beach.
**************
Summery:
Jasra, day 4, afternoon: Kat tosses daggers with Andahar, Jerram,
and
Dakhrau. She accidentally cuts her hand after Azure contacts her.
After
Kat promises Azure she'll go swimming when she is done tosses
'utensils',
Kat decides to continues with the dagger game regardless of her hurt
hand.
Evening: Kat spends some alone time with Azure on the beach. Where
they talk about leaving Jasra and returning to Cleft the next day.
NRPG:
All: Work, and stormy and humid weather kept me from working on this
and getting it done sooner. Anyway, thus ends Kat's time at Jasra. And
she, Azure, and myself have enjoyed the time there. I didn't include
day 5 in this post because I like the way things ended here. Since
I'll
be starting my next post at Cleft with day 5, this will be my last
Jasra/Cleft one.
Respectfully submitted,
KB aka
Katrina/Azure
Cleft Warren
________________________________________________________________________
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