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It had been a long day of drills. Shar and Yulaniath were both exhausted, but in that sort of achy, just had a great work out kind of way. They'd both scarfed down dinner and went through their evening routine of chores and making sure Yulan's hide was well taken care of, as well as Shar's riding equipment before finally heading back to their weyr. Not too long ago R'iz had offered them to move into his weyr with him and Bossuth since they usually spent more of their time there, only returning to their much smaller weyr to sleep. It was far more comfortable for Shar who really did try to be civil to her former weyrmate, but it was hard to shake the standoffish attitude she tended to get with people she didn't know. The rider and her dragon had been nice enough, of course, but Shar was much more comfortable with Bossuth and R'iz in her living space than anyone else.

Come, mine, let's go, Yulan said as Shar slid onto her shoulders, confident in her green to carry her up to their weyr without her harness. The duo took to the air and landed a few moments later along side Bossuth whom Yulan greeted with a head bump to his powerful shoulder.

Bossuth! How was training? she asked, clearly delighted that he was back. Shar had slid off Yulan by that point and spotted R'iz towards the back of the weyr flopped on his bed, still not changed into his sleeping clothes despite the hour.

"She wear you out?" she asked as she approached her own bed, dropping her things at the foot before stretching. It was then that she noticed the expression on R'iz's face and she paused, arms outstretched above her head as a very unpleasant tingle ran up her spine.

"What's wrong?" Though Shar was certainly not the most empathetic person out there, over the Turns she'd become quite in tune to her friend's emotions. After being around him so much it was kind of hard not to notice when something was bothering R'iz and right now something was definitely up.

Being enveloped in Bossuth's love wasn't something new for Yulan, but as she opened her mind and senses she could tell the entire living space was practically saturated with her brother's happiness. Clearly something good had happened and Bossuth confirmed that as he greeted her.

Better than training? That's a high mark to hit, she teased softly. Although Bossuth was a dedicated dragon, she knew the setbacks he and R'iz had faced had them both in the dumps for a while. The scars on his beautiful hide were a reminder that even the biggest and strongest could succumb to Thread, but Yulan couldn't help be a little jealous of them. They were also testament to the fact that Bossuth fought and fought hard, giving everything he had and not running from danger. She knew not to wish scars upon herself or Shar but she couldn't help but admire her brother despite how they broke up his beautiful patterns and color. Still, despite their setbacks, Bossuth and R'iz trained hard alongside Yulan and Shar and they'd often talk about intense, difficult sessions with grins on their faces.

Shar could feel the delight coming from Bossuth and it was nearly suffocating. She could remember when he'd been just a little thing and his love had very nearly tipped her into some sort of panic and he was usually better about overwhelming her, but right now it seemed his filters were off. It was particularly jarring since R'iz wasn't all smiles and excitement, so clearly there were mixed feelings on whatever had happened. She knew the woman who played a maternal role to R'iz - they were in the same wing - and if she'd done something to mess with him somehow she had no qualms in letting her get an earful.

What came out of her friend's mouth was not what she'd been expecting, though, and all thoughts of flying right back down to the bowl to find her were tossed aside. She stared in disbelief for a moment, trying to figure out if she'd misheard, but R'iz said it again.

"...no, that...that's pretty intense. I don't know what I'm feeling right now either," she agreed, glancing over at the dragons. Clearly Bossuth was happy so she assumed R'iz was at least somewhat on the same wavelength as him, but there was a lot of emotional baggage to unpack that went along with having a dead sister suddenly show up.

Shar hesitated for a few moments, chewing her bottom lip. This was not her area of expertise. She had no idea what to say, to do, but a gentle push from Yulan made her rise from her bed and move over to R'iz's. She stood there for a moment before sitting down beside him, close enough to feel his body heat but not close enough to touch.

Yulan was quiet as she gazed at the pair, both concerned for R'iz and very excited that Shar was finally letting her emotions guide her rather than stuff them back into her mind. It was jerky and hesitant and she knew Shar didn't feel confident making the move from her bed to his, but she sent a wave of encouragement her way to let her know she was doing well.

That's a pretty big surprise, she agreed, gazing up at Bossuth as she pushed a little surge of excitement his way. Ever since they were young they'd been doing a bit of low key scheming where their riders were concerned and things were slow-moving, but this seemed to be a step in the right direction.

"That's...I mean, that's great that she's alive," Shar said once she sorted out the words she wanted to say. "But that was kind of a flitterbrained way to go about telling you." Yeah, maybe she hadn't thought it could bring on such a mixed reaction, but still! She lifted a hand and held it awkwardly over R'iz's back, a few inches away, fingers curling into a fist and relaxing again as she tried to figure out what it was she wanted to do. Normally she'd give someone a slap on the back or shoulder, but that didn't seem right for this situation. She remained like that for a few moments, her thoughts freezing on what the shells should I be doing?, and Yulan gave her another little mental push. The reassurance that she was on the right path helped and she finally settled her hand on R'iz's opposite shoulder, resting there firmly.

"You. Want to talk about it? I know I'm kind of awful at stuff like that but you are too so maybe two awfuls can make an all right?"

Dolphins? That's quite exciting, Yulan agreed, clearly delighted in Bossuth's happiness. It was a shame R'iz was feeling so conflicted over the whole thing because his dragon was certainly eager to share in the joy. Yulan knew the moment of reunion must have been emotional but overwhelmingly happy and that these other, less pleasant emotions bubbled up once they'd been on their way back.

She must have been delighted to meet you, Bossuth. To know her brother is a bronze rider surely was an honor. Even though Bossuth downplayed his own importance, the color of his hide was well known all over Pern. Every dragon was a blessing to the world but golds and bronzes were held in high regard.

Shar, for her part, was doing well after letting her hand settle on R'iz's shoulder. She'd caught the pause and understood his surprise all too well. He was usually the one to initiate any sort of emotion-based touching - though Yulaniath's maiden flight was an exception, but that could hardly be called emotional and more instinctual - so for her to lay a comforting hand on him was certainly a shock. He took it in stride, though, and Shar took a deep breath to steady herself.

She listened as best she could even though she was quietly starting to overthink the situation. R'iz was crying, but also laughing, but clearly confused himself. They both knew they'd rather sit on their emotions than deal with them (or in Shar's case just get pissed off), but they'd both been working slowly towards a healthy attitude towards them instead with the help of their dragons. Bossuth was the resident expert on letting emotions flow and Yulan kept a foot based in reality to guide them while still encouraging them to explore. This situation was A Lot, though. It wasn't every day your sister came back from the dead, so to speak.

"Shards if I know," she said honestly. "Emotions are weird. But..." She trailed off, biting her lower lip. She didn't like to see R'iz upset. She knew he was strong, that he'd borne so much physical pain in her time knowing him, and that something as mysterious and internal as feelings could mess him up like this. This wasn't something she could hit or dominate into submission and she felt rather helpless because of it.

Yulan could sense that Shar was floundering and she looked up at her brother, her gaze beseeching. Mine is trying very hard to help, but we both know this isn't her strongest quality. Perhaps a bit of encouragement from you? Yulan knew that Shar sought out the bronze for quiet talks about emotions when Yulan's advice didn't quite help. Bossuth was a treasure when it came to things like this.

"You couldn't know she was alive," Shar insisted after trying to sort her words again. "You came here right after Thread fell. You were in the healer's ward for so long, then you enlisted as a Candidate. Got Bossuth...it wasn't like you could leave to go try and find her." And after watching his brother die Shar felt like some part of R'iz had died as well, that he felt so alone that it wasn't possible for his sister to be alive. Seeing R'iz like this made something within Shar's chest ache, sympathy or something similar, and it startled her. Shar wasn't the type to empathize with people and she definitely didn't have an equatable experience. But sitting here, watching R'iz struggle...it hurt.

"It's...okay to be sad," Shar added slowly as if testing the waters to ensure it was safe. "I think. I mean. Your brain is probably all kinds of overwhelmed right now and if that's what it's latching on to? Go for it. And like you said, you mourned them every single day for four Turns. Maybe you're sad because you could have been a bit happier all that time and you're mourning four years of missing that."

The idea of leaving the Weyr wasn't one Yulaniath was shy about wanting to do, though they had only just gotten to the point where that was possible on their free days. She longed to explore and to see what all of Pern had to offer. As much as she loved High Reaches the call of the horizon was very tempting.

All talk of visiting other places was put on the shelf as Bossuth focused his attention on the two humans within the small weyr. Yulan clambered up between Bossuth's strong shoulders, taking her preferred spot on his back. She stretched out with him, her head resting on his neck, her tail trailing over his side, wings tucked neatly against her back. She wanted to watch and see what would happen.

"Well, it's not like you could have gone even if you didn't Impress. You'd have to age out before going anywhere," Shar rationalized. "So there really was no way to physically check." Lots had happened in the four Turns since Thread returned and it was easy for goals to be put aside, especially when one became a Candidate and suddenly had a duty to see to. Now, though, he had graduated and both he and Bossuth had recovered from their first fight. Now he could do as he pleased.

The sudden touch from Bossuth surprised Shar, but the voice and the tone were something of a comfort to her by this point. Whenever she'd been too embarrassed to talk to Yulan about things she'd gone to Bossuth for his input and advice and it turned out he had been the right choice. She loved her green dearly and Yulan could be a wonderful dragon to bounce ideas off of, but she didn't have the same grip on emotions that her brother had. She hadn't taken offense to Shar going to Bossuth for advice, of course, and had even gone so far as to have chats with R'iz to allow the other duo to have some privacy.

A gesture. Even before Bossuth suggested a hug Shar knew what he meant. Hugs were...strange. She could handle a quick one here and there, a little squeeze 'round the middle, but she knew that wasn't what Bossuth was getting at here. He meant a heartfelt hug, one that lasted more than a few seconds, one where R'iz could potentially feel all the things Shar couldn't say. That she was here for him if he wanted to talk, that even though she was pretty shitty at emoting as well they could be shitty together, that she cared and didn't want to see him suffer. At this point a hug was looking less and less terrifying than saying all that out loud, so she steeled herself to do just that.

"I get that. You're happy she's okay but you know the same thing isn't going to happen for your brother." She knew how much R'iz beat himself up over that, that he felt like he'd failed to protect him. Shar was of the mindset that everything happened for a reason and that R'iz's brother was just one of the many honorable Thread fighters of Pern who had died for the cause. In his death Pern had found a new dragon rider and that, to her, was as important as the bronze that R'iz now rode. She let out a little breath before leaning in, pausing as she tried to figure out how to hug him. They were sitting side by side and that would make for a very awkward position, so she scooted a bit to pull one leg up onto the bed, now facing R'iz as best she could while seated.

"Come here," she muttered, her face turning just a bit red as she tugged R'iz towards her probably a bit faster than needed. She wrapped both arms around him in what eventually turned into an embrace but began more as a grapple, her posture stiff and tense. A bit of encouragement from Yulan got her to relax, though, and after a bit she was much looser and hopefully comforting to her friend. She even went so far as to rub his back (awkwardly on the first few times) with her hand.

Feeling Bossuth's love and delight rising beneath her was contagious and Yulan was not impervious to it. She kept giving Shar little mental nudges and encouragement as she watched her rider do as Bossuth had suggested, the hug awkward but slowly softening the longer she watched. She could tell R'iz was startled from the way he tensed up, but at least it seemed to shake him from the spiral downward he seemed to be slipping into.

Shar, meanwhile, was trying very hard to process why R'iz was sad while also trying to figure out if the hug was helping or if she should pull back. Shar had never lost anyone important in her life before, never had siblings, and couldn't relate to the pain R'iz was still going through all these Turns later. Any healing he might have done had clearly just had the scab ripped off it by seeing his sister. The manner in which he'd been reintroduced was jarring and she got that, but after the harsh startle she figured he'd be overjoyed even now. And yet R'iz seemed more depressed than he had been since she'd known him.

The hug, however, suddenly took precedence as she found the world tipping, R'iz's weight dragging her down onto the bed. They hit the mattress hard, arms and limbs bumping thanks to their proximity, and for an awkwardly long moment amber eyes met gold. Shar felt her face going red and her limbs tensing up again as R'iz pulled her closer, breaking their gaze but crushing them against one another. For a moment she couldn't breathe and she almost shoved him away, but a firm presence in her mind stopped her.

You can do this, SharMine. R'iz needs this right now. Just relax... Soothing waves accompanied the words and although Shar didn't completely relax, she did reassess the situation. R'iz was clinging to her like his life depended on it, he was clearly distraught, and while she wasn't the best at physical comfort she was his friend and she would try as best she could, shard it!

Trying to relax her arms again, Shar managed to return the hug. It was still stiffer than someone who was comfortable with this sort of thing would offer, but for her it was a massive improvement to her usual awkward slaps on the back or hugs. Yulan was clearly very pleased with her rider and she kneaded her sharp talons gently on Bossuth's back, delighted at the scene playing out before them.

Squeezing her eyes shut again, Shar did what her mother would do when she'd been trying to connect with her young daughter: she pressed her forehead against R'iz's, one hand sliding up to cradle the back of his head to ensure the contact wouldn't slip.

"Now it's not 'me and maybe Xazri', though. It is you and Xazri. It's more whole than it has been. I know it's not perfect, but it's at least a little bit better." And hopefully he could work with 'a little bit better'. She let out a slow, slightly shaky breath, more words welling up on her tongue, but her brain wasn't letting them out. You have me, she wanted to say. And Bossuth. And Yulaniath. She knew nothing could replace his lost brother and she didn't want to try, but she hoped she and their dragons could bring him a new type of happiness that might help dull the sadness of his brother's death.

Of course, seeing his sister had set off all those feelings again so maybe now wasn't a good time to bring that up even if she had the courage to do so.