The first thing Sindri saw the following morning was Ansar waiting for him outside the door. "Oh, hey. How long were you waiting outside my door?"
"Shhhhh!" Ansar hissed before promptly grabbing Sindri by the elbow and all but dragging him into a large linen closet several hallways down. "Well, you're halfway through the Gallants! How were numbers one through three?" He asked, curiosity bleeding through the tone of his voice. "I've been hanging out with Ruthed most of the time. And though he's fun, he's hardly lifemate material, let alone Lunare material. I've been trying to spy on Madhal, but lately, all he's been doing is talking with Ilohir up and down..."
"I don't think I'm supposed to tell, but if you can keep it to yourself..." The apricot dragon began as he pondered over what to tell him. "Well, out of the ones that I've gone out with so far...I guess I like Kelius the best? I liked Madhal, but there just didn't seem to be any of that type of connection for me. And Ilohir asked that I not pick him."
Ansar clutched his shirt over his chest as if he was in the middle of a heart attack. "K-K-Kelius!?" He hissed. "You've got to be joking! He's nothing but a complete and utterly perverted jerk!" He whined as he thought back to all the times that Kelius sneakily played around with him whenever Sindri wasn't looking. "Darn. I guess I don't have much of a say in any of this...so, I'll just have to deal with it in the end if you really do choose Gallant Kinky, of all people."
"As I tried to explain before, Ansar, I only meant that I liked Kelius best out of the first three. I shouldn't make the decision based off of only a few exchanges," The blonde reminded him. "I'm only halfway through this."
One of the maids of the fortress began to knock on the linen closet. "Darn. Guess we'll have to continue this another time," Ansar pointed out.
The seating arrangements were similar that morning to the way they were before, except that Emyve took it upon himself to sit between Kelius and Gonuret to keep a closer eye on them. As soon as Sindri neared the table, all of the Gallants stood up. Perhaps the redhead's words from the night before struck a chord with all of them.
After a rather peaceful breakfast, Emyve stood from his seat and held out his hand politely for Sindri to take so that he could help him out of his seat. "Please, allow me." He then led the apricot dragon to a library within the fortress. No one was around, so they didn't have to worry about speaking too loudly.
"Wow, they have quite the selection here!" The apricot dragon gasped as he tried to hide his excitement at seeing so many books in one place. His home biome had archives with brittle scrolls and far fewer sturdy books. Sindri was in the process of taking a book to browse through it when Emyve began to speak.
"The fissures underwater in my home biome have been unusually active, drawing forth magma." The burgundy dragon informed immediately. "Similar strange occurrences seem to be happening on a world-wide scale." His intelligent purple eyes gazed into Sindri's. "I know that choosing a life mate is very difficult, but I do suggest that you don't take longer than necessary in your decision."
"Ilohir was saying the same thing about his home...If they're happening on a world wide scale, do you think it could be due to a similar source?"
"I thought so too," Emyve explained as he reached over to pull out a book above Sindri's head. As he leaned over, the distance between their bodies dwindled down to a close inch. He smiled when he saw the apricot dragon flatten himself against the shelf. His blush was rather adorable, but he quickly pulled back to open the book to the pages he wanted to show him. "Right here it talks of the Astral Princess and her collision. We were taught that our ancestors knew nothing about technology, so they merely documented it as a 'Grand Earthquake that tore up the ground.'"
"Since then, we know that the biomes have constantly been moving in their own separate lithospheric sections." Emyve continued. "But, they've always only moved in slow, clockwise circles. Before coming here, I've noticed that a large space has been forming on the complete opposite central point of our planet. Something is causing the segments to slide down."
"I haven't heard about such rumors in my village," Sindri mused. "But it could be because the elderly might have been trying to keep the younger Visionaries from worrying."
"For all we know, this may have begun centuries before we were even born. We're only now noticing its effects." He placed a hand on Sindri's shoulder. "When I've gathered enough information about what all of us have seen in our biomes, I will report to Solare Vitara so that she may begin to discuss it with the Sentains. You don't have to bear this alone."
Hearing the assurance in Emyve's voice, Sindri felt for the umpteenth time that perhaps he might not have been the best choice to take on the role of the new Solare…the redhead before him seemed to be so much better for the part. "I hadn't even heard of such severe changes elsewhere." He felt his heart sink a little at the thought of being unsuited for his position. But, he felt grateful to have such guidance early on by dragons such as Emyve. "Thank you. That helps more than you know."
Emyve felt that it was time to change the subject. He didn't want Gallant Sindri to worry too much too soon. "Gallant Sindri," He called softly as he walked with him to a spiral staircase that led to the second floor of the library, which was an open dome that allowed the sunlight inside. He pulled up a chair for Sindri to sit at one of the round tables near the center. "What do you look for in a lifemate?"
Hearing his question of choice, Sindri laughed a little. "I'm the one who's supposed to be asking you that." He thought for a moment about how to answer the same question that he had been asking Gallant after Gallant. A faint image of the Gallants that he liked the best so far popped into his mind, causing him to blush. "Ah...I don't think I can give you an answer. I would hate for one of you to start acting like someone you truly aren't." He admitted in a serious tone. "But, what about you?"
"You would subject me to the one question you don't want to answer. The reason I asked you was simply so that you can reflect on how difficult that question truly is. Try not to make an unwise decision based solely on the answers to that question." Emyve advised. "As for me, I am old enough to understand that what I would WANT in a lifemate is not necessarily what I would truly NEED." His hyacinth purple eyes took on a sad demeanor. "For example, I might love literature and might prefer solitude. But one shouldn't have to live alone, lifemate or not."
"All that I know for certain is that no matter who I pick for my lifemate, I hope that all of you will at least be cordial. Not only with me but with each other." Sindri said with a slight frown. "And you are right; no one should have to live alone. Not when they don't truly want to be."
"Please don't frown; it would cause me much worry if you were to be troubled over me." The redhead revealed. "I'm sure that the others would agree that you have a gorgeous smile. As Gallants, we would prefer to always see that smile on your face, regardless of who you choose for Lunare." He stood up and once again extended his hand to help Sindri pull himself up. "I've taken up enough of your time. Gallant Ruthed is an impatient dragon."
::::::
When they entered the ballroom for lunch, Ruthed was indeed the first person to greet them. "You know, for a redhead, you sure are predictable," Ruthed said as he folded his arms in front of him. "You brought him exactly on time, but not a minute sooner." He tossed Sindri a smile even as he sent Emyve a saucy wink. "Come on, let's eat so that we can have some real fun."
Sindri laughed a little nervously when he heard the aquamarine dragon's comments. But, he nodded and returned the smile. "I'm looking forward to it."
Everyone stood up once again for Sindri when he walked in with Emyve for lunch. This time, Ansar was seated on the complete opposite end from where Kelius sat. His entire face was glowing in a pink hue as he glared at the auburn-haired dragon. Gonuret, wanting to avoid trouble as well, was seated near Ansar and away from Kelius. Kelius decided to take the time to acquaint himself better with Madhal and Ilohir. Emyve took a seat next to Kelius while Ruthed sat next to him.
"Since Ansar and I are banned from not only the kitchen now, but the staff room as well…" Ruthed began. "I suggest that we take our date outside to the farmland to look at all the animals!"
Sindri felt a bit better about some of the seating arrangements, hoping that maybe they could keep the peace going. His gaze fell on his beige friend as he wondered what could have happened for the brunette dragon to have such an expression on his face. "That sounds fine to me. I like animals." He replied to Ruthed with a small smile.
"I wonder what kind of moon will be out tonight," Kelius mused aloud, his volume high enough to be heard from across the table as a devious smirk formed on his face. "I know that sometimes the moon is still visible during the day." The smirk widened as he shot a knowing glance in Ansar's direction.
"Forget this!" Ansar huffed and slammed his fork onto the table, storming out of the ballroom in a huff, lunch completely forgotten and his face a bright red.
Ruthed found himself blushing a bit, as well. "I'll explain all of that when we're out of here," He whispered to Sindri.
Sindri was stunned when Ansar slammed his fork onto the table and stormed off. "Ansar!?" He questioned, but the yellow-eyed dragon showed no sign of stopping. The blonde frowned and glanced at Ruthed when the other dragon began to whisper to him. Though he gave the teal-haired dragon a nod, it felt rather strange to be eating lunch without his best friend in the room.
When they all finished their meals, Sindri followed Ruthed to the farmlands. As soon as they were far enough not to be heard, he looked towards the other dragon. "Alright, tell me what happened. Why did Ansar storm off like that?"
Ruthed lifted himself onto one of the sturdy fence posts, urging Sindri to sit beside him as he glanced out at the pastures. Several cows reclined leisurely in the cool shade of the trees. "Ansar and I became fast friends from the moment he became my roommate," He began as he gently kicked his hanging legs and sent Sindri a wink. "We explored a different part of the fortress every couple of hours. We got into trouble in the kitchen when they finally caught us sneaking out snacks." His face fell a bit as he continued. "But, earlier today was a bit worse…"
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"That must be where all of the maids change into their uniforms," Ruthed whispered.
"The uniforms sure make them look good," Ansar whispered back. The two of them were peering around the corner of the hallway at the staff room as girls rushed in to change and came back out for work. "I think just about anyone would look good in that uniform," Ansar concluded.
"I bet that I'd look better than YOU would in one of those maid uniforms," Ruthed challenged as the last maid left the staffroom.
"You wish!" Ansar snickered. The two of them rushed into the staffroom to test out their theory.
Kelius caught sight of the tip of Ansar's beige tail just as it disappeared into the staffroom. He rose an auburn eyebrow and began to turn into that hallway to find out what the two dragons were up to.
Inside the staffroom, Ruthed and Ansar tied each other's aprons as they looked themselves over. They were quite a sight in the dresses and ruffles. And neither of them could stop giggling.
"I think you're right," Ruthed replied in between the laughter. "You're shorter, so it suits you better!"
Kelius was quiet and stealthy as he snuck up behind them. Unable to resist the temptation, he reached down and flipped Ansar's skirts up high. The beige tail shot straight up in shock, and crimson eyes widened at what the skirts revealed. "Well, well…what a lovely well-rounded, pale full moon. I never pegged you to be the type of dragon that didn't wear any underwear!"
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"Ansar's loud screech alerted the maids down the other hallway, and we were banned from yet another part of the fortress," Ruthed finished.
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