July 25, 2004
The next morning, R'hyn and Kiora discuss the ramifications of their situation.

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Kiora seems to be sleeping comfortably enough, despite the fact that her gold has led to a disturbing political upset and Dr'vell's battered a chunk of the furniture. She's curled up wherever's nearest, mumbling things occassionally under her breath about watching the rocks on the beach or not eating the fish.

R'hyn, likewise still sleeping, rolls over, seeking to get closer to Kiora -- it's cold, and he's lost half the blankets. He snores, very quietly, in his sleep, but his expression is peaceful; for the moment, the implications of All This can be cheerfully ignored.

Kiora wriggles nearer to the bronzerider, waking up enough to grope about behind her for anything warm. She finds another blanket, after a moment, and hauls it the best she can over the both of them. "Hate this place," she mumbles, squirming beneath the covers. "Needs to be time to go home."

"How could anyone /like/ this," mumbles R'hyn in response, face mostly buried in a pillow. The awakening process has begun to move, and, though mostly unseen, R'hyn's eyes open. He mutters something else into his pillow, then sits up, groggy. "Oh, shit."

"Don't say that," Kiora mumbles irritably. "S'not very nice." She remains firmly latched on to him, reaching over his side for another blanket. "Bet if we asked real nice they'd let us leave."

R'hyn props himself up against his pillow, letting Kiora rest up against him, though he sighs heavily. "Sorry. I don't think we'd even have to ask nicely," he murmurs, sadly. "They'd love to see us go."

"We should go, then," Kiora replies, apparently finding this a viable option. "If they want someone else so bad, they can find somebody else. We can't help any of this. I didn't /mean/ for it to happen."

"Nor did I," responds R'hyn, readjusting the blankets about himself - it's cold! "But we can't. You're the Senior Weyrwoman. I'm the--" he breaks off, apparently finding it easier to ignore that part of the equation. "They need us."

Kiora offers what she must think is a reassuring hug. "I'm really sorry about that," she adds quietly. "I know how much you didn't want to be. No matter what anyone else thinks, I know you wouldn't let Ainsley do that."

R'hyn returns the hug, as warmly as he can, then shakes his head. "It's not your fault. Bad timing. If Ainsley was-- I don't know. Would she try and send me, to win the flight? Could she have known? It certainly wasn't intentional on my part. But it's going to look that way, isn't it?"

Kiora considers this, pulling the blankets up under her chin. "If people don't think Ainsley sent you on purpose," she begins thoughtfully. "Then they'll think I tried to get Siramyth to pick an Istan. Which is kind of true," she admits. "But I didn't want to mess everything up like this."

"Arisvath said as much," admits R'hyn. "I-- well. There wasn't going to be a happy ending, regardless. Right? So... we just have to live with it. We're going to need to meet with," he pauses, as if trying to recollect names - until now, they weren't important - "Geraine? And the Weyrsecond. See if we can't work out some kind of cohesion."

Kiora grimaces, pulling the blanket up a bit more. "I don't want to. They're both going to be mad at us. And they'll probably yell, and I hate it when people yell at me. Can't we send somebody else?" Then she pauses, and something occurs to her. "... if there were anybody else, anymore."

R'hyn blanches, staring at the ceiling unhappily. "/So/ not what I got up to do, yesterday." he sighs, reaching out to ruffle Kiora's hair. "Exactly. We're it. I don't have the faintest idea how to do this."

Kiora relaxes just a bit, leaning in to put her head on his shoulder. "Sorry I kept you from delivering your message," she offers, mostly out of habit. "I guess we'll just let them yell for a bit, maybe. And then once they feel better, just ... try to work something out."

"It may well be for you, now," R'hyn reflects, glancing across the room - the scroll is on the floor where he dropped it, more than a little squashed. "Yeah. We'll let them yell, and then we'll work out what to do. It's not ideal, but it's what we've got." He smoothes Kiora's hair again, and adds, finally, "I'll have to go back to Ista. For a day or two, to get my things, and say goodbye to Rhyena, and so on. I'll come back as soon as I can, though."

Kiora smiles weakly. "Guess we'll see. Maybe we ought to just give it to Alyssa, so nobody thinks I'm trying to put my nose where it doesn't belong yet." She nods, then, stretching out slightly beneath the blankets. "S'okay. Even though it's a bit silly in comparison to all this, s'probably more convenient for me, anyway. Ara won't be real happy with any of this, and I'd hate for him to bother you."

R'hyn nods soberly. "Listen to Alyssa. If, you know, you're unsure. She's done this for a long time, after all." He grimaces at mention of A'raz, and nods, playing with the edge of the blanket. "I hadn't even thought of that. Poor A'raz. I'll try and stay out of his way for a bit, even when I get back."

"Alyssa's been real nice to me," Kiora admits, nodding. "I'll, um, ask her if I have any questions." She'll probably be the most receptive, anyway. "Don't worry about Ara for too long, though. He just ..." She trails off thoughtfully. "I dunno. I try not to worry about Inashanth chasing, but he got terribly worked up last time Sira went up. He's just a bit silly about it, and you have enough to worry about now."

R'hyn nods, setting the edge of the blanket down again. "You've had more time to get used to it, than him. And, you know, there are all these riders lusting after you, and he can't stop it. I'd probably hate that, too, if I were him." Keeping the blankets tightly wrapped, he adds, "Did you see where my pants went? I don't /want/ to get out of bed, but..."

Kiora turns vividly pink. "I know, but I wish he could just be a bit more optimistic, or something. Even if I've had /time/ to get used to it, doesn't mean I have." In regards to the pants, she can only offer a sheepish, "Not in the bed?"

"I know," says R'hyn, grimacing in sympathy. He peers over the edge of the bed and makes a grab at something, but it's only his shirt. "I am /really/ going to hate this cold," he grumbles, reluctantly disentangling herself from Kiora and most of the blankets, keeping one about himself, to get up and go hunting.

Kiora siezes the opportunity to hog the bed, whether it's because she's actually sleepy or just because she doesn't want to leave is unclear. She does roll over, though, peering usefully over the other side of the bed and producing a pastel pink shirt and a less Ki-esque pair of trousers. "Think I found them, unless I wasn't wearing the skirt that I thought I was."

R'hyn turns, and nods. "Those look like mine. Ta." He reaches out, using his other hand to hold up the blankets slung about himself. "I think I may avoid the caverns on my way out, today. The awkwardness... And I think half the riders, last night, wanted to kill me."

Kiora sits up, holding the blanket and her tunic against her with one hand and holding his pants out with the other. "I'm fairly sure they did. And those that didn't," Perhaps Cardixa. "Probably won't be very happy with me, either. If you're hungry, I can go get some food and bring it back, maybe? I don't think anyone liked me much to begin with, so I don't see how today'll be much different."

R'hyn takes the pants, and is left with something of a quandary as to how to get into them without freezing in the process. "No, maybe not," reflects R'hyn. "In short, we're both universally making people unhappy, probably including ourselves. Cheers to that." he finally, hurrying, attempts to slide into his pants without dropping the blanket, which works reasonably well, but only up to a point. "No, it's fine - go back to sleep, if you like, or go and see A'raz, or whatever. I can eat back at Ista."

Kiora claps a hand over her eyes helpfully. "If it makes any difference," she begins, attempting to smile reassuringly despite that she can't really see. "I'm, um, kind of glad it was you. Again. I guess. Even if everything is kind of messed up. You're much nicer than the Fortians will probably ever be, and ... well, I'd rather have Siramyth be caught by a dragon whose rider I like, really, even if it makes a fuss."

R'hyn, finally, drops the blanket, and pulls his shirt back on, hurriedly covering it up with his jacket. "All dressed," he reports, then, quiet, smiles. "Well-- thanks, I think. I mean, I think if Arisvath had to catch another queen, better Siramyth than Dovryth, or, you know, another one elsewhere. I wouldn't like to know that it was a Fortian, given their dislike and all. So... well, you know, we'll just make it work, somehow."

Kiora drops her hand, pulling the blanket a bit tighter. "Thing's will work out," she agrees. "They can't do anything about us now. They wanted help, and they got it. Too bad for them if they don't like us."

"Exactly," says R'hyn, sitting down on the edge of the bed to find his boots and put them back on. "We're here for their sakes, not ours. I think both of us would have been happier staying at Ista."

"We all would have been," Kiora replies. "Us, all the transfers, everyone, and I think Fort would be happier if we hadn't come. I wonder, sometimes, why E'van and Ainsley volunteered all of this ... I mean, they're smart. I dunno how they couldn't have seen something like this happening."

"They wanted us gone?" R'hyn suggests, lacing his boot. "Maybe. I mean, I don't think E'van would really want me to be, you know, leading anything - but on the whole? It gives them more control over Ista. Unfortunately, it all makes perfect sense."

Kiora shrugs, carefully tugging her tunic over her head and pulling it down quickly. "I don't know. I mean, isn't E'van Weyrleader because Priane sent him over? Even if she's gone, I don't know why they'd risk putting somebody like me in charge. You've been Weyrleader before, but I'm just a disaster waiting to happen, 'specially with folks here being mad Geraine's not Weyrwoman."

"I was a terrible Weyrleader," R'hyn reminds, wrinkling his nose. "Hopefully I can do better, this time. I think - well, I think E'van really just wants power for himself. Fort doesn't matter anymore. /His/ power does. Ainsley would rather work with goldriders who are hers; if she could get rid of Serriena, she'd probably do that, too." He finishes his second boot, and turns back to glance at Kiora encouragingly.

Kiora gnaws on her bottom lip. "I'm not sure if she'd send Serriena off. If she had to pick between us, it'd make sense she picks me. Even if Serri doesn't like Ainsley, she's much better at this weyrwoman business. Somebody's going to start picking fights, eventually. Fort'll be fussed because they're not in charge, and there's not much E'van and Ainsley can do, now." She shrugs, then, and flops back on the bed, managing a mild grin. "I don't wanna think about it, anyway. It's not very happy, and it's too early to not be happy."

"In time. That's all I'm saying. Once Ainsley's got herself some more juniors." R'hyn pauses, then nods. "You're right. Far too early. We'll deal with it all, all that is our problem, anyway, when I get back. If you really need me in the meantime, just get Siramyth to tell Arisvath, mm?" He stands, wrapping his jacket about himself more tightly.

Kiora curls up comfortably with a pillow, nodding. "I will. Have fun at Ista, 'kay? Tell everybody I said hi and stuff."

R'hyn nods, quickly. "I will, I promise. Good luck." He gives her one last smile, then turns to go, shoulders slightly slumped. The cold. Brr.

You head up the long, slightly slanted tunnel to the bowl.

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