After finding his long-lost sister, there was nothing else in the world Sy'n wanted... except maybe to find the girl of his dreams someday. Of course, that is what any hot-blooded male wants. And Onaleth is no exception.

After losing Mezireth's flight, Onaleth was unusually sullen. Granted he'd lost a rather important flight, but he didn't seem to mind this much when he lost Lillith's flight.

Sy'n was worried about his bondmate, and was considering asking Glinde, the dragonhealer, to take a look at him.

It's not that bad Sy'n. the Alabaster-born dragon said, rolling over on his couch so he faced away from his rider, like any moody dragon would do.

"Obviously, it is Onaleth." Sy'n responded, drumming absently on his leather-clad thigh. ::proddy brown:: he tapped unconciously.

::negative:: the brown drummed back haughtily.

Sy'n laughed. "I think so. What's going to get you out of this slump, On'?"

Nothing.

"Not even another flight?"

Not even that.

Sy'n sighed and left the weyr.

* * *

Time passed, and Sy'n got word of a flight at VellaCrean. Gossip about who was flying where spread quickly, so there was time to sign up. Enforcing flight lists was tough, but it happened.

Sy'n smirked to himself as he considered it, but L'ran was furious. "Sy'n, that's just plain wrong! A leopard? A feline for Shell's sake? What would father say? What would mother say?"

The drummer shrugged his brother off. "Times change, L'ran. And We both know father never loved mother, so back off."

The flame-haired tanner grew quiet, his lips pressed tight. "Take that back."

"You know it's true, L'ran. Cope." Sy'n said, putting on his riding jacket.

* * *

The next thing Sy'n knew, he was lying on a bed in the infirmary with an icepack on his eye.

"I don't know what you said to your brother, Sy'n," Healer M'lian began, "But I haven't seen a man dropped with one hit in quite some time. Especially a rider." Sy'n groaned, and M'lian chuckled. A healer must keep a sense of humor about him. "What did you say?"

"It all started with my interest in a flight at the VellaCrean. Apparently setting Onaleth to chase a female with a leopard for a rider would disgrace my late parents."

M'lian nodded. "Cream Vertuok and her rider Leora?" Sy'n nodded in response. "That one's a shifter - she's human, more or less. It's more or less common knowledge, though we don't spread it about. Should I drop a word to your brother that you're not going to have a fling with a real feline?"

Sy'n shook his head. "No... there really isn't anything I can do for him, except maybe set him up with a girlfriend." M'lian chuckled as he put things away. "But I know that won't work. L'ran's got a temper..."

M'lian grinned. He'd had to patch up that brownrider several times - though "the other guy" always looked worse. "You go convince your brown to chase - he's been looking a bit lethargic. Trillienth was getting ready to send Glinde after him. Don't worry about your brother. He'll find his match somewhere, somewhen."

"Thanks doc." Sy'n said, rising from the bed. His eye was swollen and purple from his brother's fist, but it would heal in time. Always had before.

"Don't mention it." M'lian said. "Just glad I could help."

* * *

Onaleth was grumpy. No, he was definitely upset. Your brother assaulted you for even thinking of telling me of this chase, and you still want me to consider? Has your brain been rattled loose?

"Onaleth! Please! Vertuok is no ordinary dragoness, and her rider is a special woman."

So special your sibling knocked you cold over her?

"Vertuok is a VellaCrean cream, and her bond is a shape-shifter. Human/Leopard."

Onaleth sat up on his couch. A cream? You want me to chase a cream? I only chase golds...

"And you never catch them."

I could've had Mezireth, but Dulveth got in my way.

"Sure, Onaleth. Blame it on my brother's dragon, and take his rider's side instead of mine." Sy'n walked out of the room and sat down on the ledge.

Sy'n?

Sy'n?

The brownrider did not respond, so Onaleth rose from his couch and strode out to the ledge. He was average sized for a brown, but well-muscled. His hide was dark brown tinted with red. All things considered, he was an impressive beast. ::appology::

Sy'n didn't respond. Onaleth sat beside him and craned his cocoa-colored neck around to look at his rider, and was dismayed to see tears running down the drummer's face, running awkwardly around his swollen eye. I'm sorry Sy'n. If this is so important to you, I'll take a look at this Vertuok. I'm sure I could chase her, but you know she'll end up picking a big stupid bronze. Besides... are you sure a svelte feline would want to wake up with a drummer with a black eye?

"I can't know that for sure, Onaleth, but I'll bet good money that she'd rather wake up with someone who's accepting that she's only partially human than someone who'd be revulsed to have spent the night with a big cat."

Onaleth nodded. Shall we head off to VellaCrean then? I am definitely qualified to chase a cream - they're classified as female browns, according to some riders. I can outfly browns with my eyes closed. I'm sure I could outfly bronzes with the right amount of encouragement...

Sy'n rose from the stone ledge. "Let's fly!"

* * *

Sy'n and Onaleth were out of VellaCrean in such a short time, the horrid brusing from L'ran's fist was yet a sickening green-purple around his eye. Onaleth was so silent his presence was a painful ache in his rider's mind. Sy'n himself was feeling somewhat abused.

"Anywhere but home." Sy'n found himself saying as he climbed aboard his sturdy Alabaster-bred dragon. Onaleth did not reply, but complied. Where they arrived was only vaguely familiar to Sy'n, but he knew they'd been there before. Beach Shard's Weyr.

The brown landed, and his rider dismounted, letting him go lounge where he like while he nursed his wounded pride. Sy'n unfastened his riding jacket, and wandered around. No one paid him any heed. Dragonriders belonged in the weyr, and even if they didn't live there, they always had a purpose for being there... well, almost always. Sy'n found a shady spot to sit, and was quiet for a while before beginning to ponder his lot in life.

"Maybe L'ran was right. Perhaps I have disgraced the family; disgraced myself. I should never have bullied Onaleth into that flight..."

A calm voice interrupted Sy'n's pity party at that precise point. "It doesn't look like Onaleth was the one being bullied from this angle."

Sy'n looked up into the large gray eyes of a woman; deep, intense, like the mist over the water at Vallen's Cove when a storm was brewing. Embarrassed, he tore his eyes away. "..." He attempted to reply, but no words came.

"Start from the beginning." the slim young woman suggested, sitting down beside the distraught Sy'n.

Sy'n faltered. The beginning was a long way back. "Onaleth just lost a flight I had to argue him into participating in in the first place. Now he's rather upset. The dragoness' rider was a leopard-shifter, if you know what that is, and my brother L'ran was very upset - as you can see - that I would consider putting myself together with a feline. Our parents were gold and bronze riders, and I think it has gone to L'ran's head."

Nixfuzon nodded. She knew what it was like to have parentage of some standing, and of having to deal with it...

I'm sorry Sy'n. came Onaleth's distracted voice then, She rises, and I must chase.

Sy'n slowly stood up, a bit stunned. Had he been standing, he probably would have sat slowly down, but he wasn't. Nixfuzon scambled urgently to her feet. "Who rises?"

Anzenth. "Anzenth." Nixfuzon and Onaleth replied at the exact same instant, with the same intonation, though their voices were distinctly separate.

She's Corlath's daughter. the strong brown said.

Nixfuzon looked at Sy'n with her large eyes. Sy'n looked back, and was still startled by how pretty she was. A fleeting thought passed through his mind. Did he think she was pretty, or was Onaleth's lust persuading his brain? Would he ever know the difference?

Nixfuzon ran, and after a moment, Sy'n did too, joining with the throng of other riders, whose males vied for the chance to sire the teal-lilac dragoness' children.

Onaleth is participating in Teal-Lilac Anzenth's flight at Beach Shard's Weyr.

Onaleth participated in Cream Vertuok's flight at VellaCrean, but lost.
Onaleth participated in Gold Mezireth's flight at Ryslen, but lost.
Onaleth participated in Gold Lillith's flight at Talis Weyr, but lost.

Onaleth was Impressed at Alabaster Weyrhold.

Background from Boogie Jack's Web Depot.