You have come a long way... You must be cold. She sees the rider on the blue's back, and blinks away snowflakes as they land on her face. I can fix you something to drink... Do you understand me?
From above, the dragon bellows a harmonious song, and the rider waves. They land in the drift of freshly-fallen snow, and the dragon sinks up to his first leg joint. The snow is awfully deep, yet Ainea remains perched atop it easily.
How could that be?
She is so small, her weight barely registers on the crusted over surface of snow. Her white-grey outfit allows her to blend in with the snow as it falls, just another shadow on the terrain around her. Her hat conceals another secret: her long pointed ears.
They would be so cold if they were not covered by the high furry hat. When the rider dismounts and begins walking, he sinks to his waist almost immediately.
Oddly, as he begins struggling through the snow, he finds that there are almost steps up out of the frozen mire. When he gets to Ainea's area, he is standing on the top of the snow, rather like her. But there is more to it than that.
"How did you do that?" Asks the man, towering over the little ice elf. "I was halfway buried!"
Ainea tilts her head. She does not understand his speech, but she gets the gist of his question.
I shape the ice and snow, she thinks to him. It is not an easy thing. And it will get colder out here before it gets warmer. Would you follow me? I'm afraid your dragon will have to stay outside, as my home den is ... rather built for me.
Not at all phased by the fact that the little girl-sized person spoke into his mind, R'lan announced that he was, "R'lan, rider of blue Ancith, search rider for Ryslen weyr."
What is "weyr"? Ainea asked, her mind buzzing with questions. And why have you come here?
"Honestly," R'lan panted, his breath pluming visibly in the chill air, "I don't even know where here is. A Weyr is where our dragons roost, and where dragon riders live."
I have ridden a snow bear, Ainea commented but said nothing more. Still completely silent, she edged up against a sheer cliff wall. It was white with ice, covered in snow as it fell. If the dragon and rider had not stopped when they did, they might have crashed right into this wall and never even seen it.
Ainea places her tiny hand on a small crop of rock, and a portion of stone slides away revealing a dark tunnel.
Would you come in side? I have a fire, and there is water everywhere, and somewhere... She begins to walk into the cavern, I have some herbs. They will keep a chill away...
