Post by sorra on Aug 8, 2012 19:25:23 GMT -5
((JP between Kendrall and Sorra))
Shayna lay on her side facing the wall, her hair falling over one shoulder while she gentle stroked her fingertips down M'riel's arm. She was snuggled back against his chest and could feel the fabric of his pants rubbing against the back of her leg. Sanyara was fed and sleeping peaceful, but Shayna still couldn't get her mind to shut down. Since she was feeling better things kept creeping up into her mind that she wanted to get working on.
"M'riel?" she whispered, not sure if the Weyrleader was awake or not. If not she wouldn't bother him. it wasn't like what was on her mind couldn't wait until morning.
M'riel wasn't exactly sound asleep, but he was certainly content enough to be resting peacefully. His arm was wrapped around Shayna's waist, and he could feel her fingertips lightly stroke his flesh. It was warm enough in the weyr, between the fireplace he'd remembered to stoke shortly before turning in for the night, the extra furs he had asked to be sent up, and cuddling next to his weyrmate that he didn't need a shirt in spite of the cold weather.
She giggled softly when she heard his "mmm". Apparently he was almost asleep. She hadn't meant to wake him up then. She turned her head and kissed his neck gently. "Go back to sleep, baby. We can talk in the morning." She wasn't sure how coherent he would be anyhow if he was half asleep. She did continue to stroke his arm though, hoping it would help put him back to sleep if he wasn't already. It had been a long day for both of them, yet she still couldn't seem to turn her mind off. Well, she would just do her best to lay still and not disturb her weyrmate. Maybe if Sanyara woke up later hungry she would just curl up on the couch if she still couldn't sleep.
He thought he heard her giggle, then felt her kiss him on the neck then tell him he could go back to sleep, that they could talk in the morning. He could still feel his weyrmate stroke his arm. "If you're trying to be cute and use an affectionate term such as 'baby', I appreciate the gesture," he said, still a bit groggy but a smile was coming to his lips. "But if you're thinking that I'm nothing more than a big child, I've been called worse." His eyes slowly opened, only to be looking at the back of Shayna's head.
M'riel snuggled in a little closer to his weyrmate, brushing aside a few locks of her hair and planted a gentle kiss on the back of Shayna's neck. "It's not Sanyara, is it?" he asked softly.
Shayna curled back up against him, giving him the option as to if he wanted to wake up or not. She couldn't help but smile at his next words. "Oh you have definitely proven you're not a child." No one would ever make that mistake. Especially not her. She had seen what he was like under the furs and she had to smile at the thought. "I was just trying to be loving," she promised him. She hadn't meant any insult at all. She was just still in baby mode with taking care of Sanyara all the time.
She shivered as his warm lips touched the back of her neck. She hadn't expected that at all considering he had just been asleep a couple minutes prior. "No, Sanyara's fine," she assured him. The baby was still sleeping peacefully and thankfully hadn't gotten sick or anything. "I was just thinking about the Weyr. But you're probably tired and don't want to think about that right now."
A light chuckle escaped from his lips when she tried to reassure him she wasn't trying to tease him, and he let out a soft sigh when she said her daughter was fine. The subject of the Weyr came up, and M'riel propped himself on one elbow. "Never hurts to discuss Weyr politics with the woman I love," he said, gently tugging at Shayna's hip so she could face him. "But this will probably cost you. What's on your mind?"
The chuckle was a good sound. At least he wasn't upset that she had woke him up. She heard his sigh though and rethought her thinking. Maybe she shouldn't have brought this up right now. Well, too late now. He was awake and she was pretty sure that he wouldn't let her back out of talking now. Shayna easily turned on her back so that she could look up at him when he tugged on her hip. "Oh will it?" she asked playfully, wondering just what he was thinking. She thought about the best way to approach the subject that had been bothering her. "Have you thought about a Weyrsecond?" she finally just asked, not knowing how else to bring it up.
M'riel watched as Shayna turned onto her back, looking up at him and playfully teased him right back. He gave her a warm smile. He took his left hand and started to lightly graze the fabric covering her belly with his fingertips. "Well, I *do* seem to recall a conversation you and I had not long ago, while I was consoling you after that nightmare you had." That "consoling" was a drastic understatement. M'riel fondly recalled making love to her that night, finally reaching through to Shayna and breaking down any barriers that had been between them. That night they spent together under the furs had been, to use a certain field medic's description, "very fulfilling, very therapeutic."
He looked into her eyes, then let his gaze trace back down to her belly where he was still letting his fingertips trace random patterns on the fabric, then letting his eyes meet hers again. He knew it probably wouldn't take much for her to get what he was driving at. But when she asked him about a Weyrsecond, he didn't stop his movement, but he let his eyes close for a moment, thinking. "I thought L'ret was still the Weyrsecond," he said after a brief pause. M'riel opened his eyes again. "He's been in that position before, and until he proves otherwise, he'll stay there for now. But isn't Kolteya your current Weyrwoman's Second? Or did you have someone else in mind?"
Shayna shivered as he started to trace patterns on her stomach. It sure wasn't easy to think straight when he did that. Although there was no way she was going to ask him to stop. She liked it. She chuckled softly. "Yes, that was quite a night," she agreed, remembering him "helping" her forget her nightmare. It had worked quite well. She hadn't had another nightmare since then and she had had a wonderful night on top of that. It had been much needed by both of them. She had finally broken down and let him into her little world and she felt better since she had.
A smile touched the Weyrwoman's lips. Oh yes, she knew exactly what he was thinking. And she certainly wasn't going to argue that point. "Later," she promised, looking into his eyes. She could lose herself in his eyes so easily it was scary. She wanted to get her thoughts out in the open before she gave into temptation. And shards, he sure was a handsome temptation. Shayna nodded. "Kolteya is my second although she doesn't have a mate," she agreed. "You're alright with L'ret?" He had been doing well despite his age. "I had thought about suggesting M'cleod. I know you two don't get along real well, but he's helped build this Weyr from the ground up and the riders respect him. I thought he might make a good second."
M'riel laughed lightly when Shayna agreed that night had indeed been something to remember. He kept up his light traces against her stomach, not bothering to lift up the fabric that separated his fingertips from her skin. But when she promised him they could get to the "more important" stuff later, M'riel listened as Shayna gave her input. Kolteya was indeed her Second, but didn't have a mate of her own. She asked if he was fine with L'ret, then suggested M'cleod be his Second. True, he had helped build this Weyr from the ground up and the Riders all respected him...
...but M'riel frowned when he recalled the times he and Mac had clashed ever since he first arrived. He ceased his tracing for a moment, sitting up in the bed and drawing his knees to his chest. He let out a long exhale through his sinuses. Just how much could he trust the former Raider to not try and lead a mutiny against him, or undermine his efforts to lead the Weyr? Granted, Mac didn't appreciate M'riel trying to question his every decision when the Brownrider had been in charge, and M'riel was getting a taste of his own medicine from the former Raider now that he was the Weyrleader.
Finally, after what seemed like several minutes, the Weyrleader finally spoke. "I'll give him the benefit of the doubt, Shay, but only because you're right about him building this Weyr from the ground up. I remember reading some of the archives about the plague killing off a large portion of dragonkind and Riders alike, then that volcanic eruption that brought an end to Tristar. A lot of the Riders still look to him, and I'm aware most are still undecided about my own leadership abilities." He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath, then let it out slowly. "I also know that he has a lot of experience when it comes to hit-and-run tactics, and that's something I've been sorely considering we implement in order to bring us supplies until the Holders agree to talk with us." M'riel knew Shayna would probably be taken back by this sudden revelation into what he and Il'ran had discussed privately not long ago. "I'll talk with him, but he has to understand and accept that while it's my responsibility to teach the rules, it's his place to learn them. I was thinking of having him hand-pick his own team for the hit-and-run missions on the trading and merchant caravans, anyway; put him in charge of those missions."
M'riel opened his eyes, then turned to look at his weyrmate. "He can be my Weyrsecond, but I'd still like to keep L'ret in some type of leadership role. Maybe have him report to M'cleod as his second for covert ops." He thought for a moment. "What have you thought about with Ardalae? Keep her as your Second, or move her back to Third?"
Shayna grinned impishly. She knew just what he was wanting but she wasn't giving into that until they had talked a bit. Although she certainly didn't mind the idea of that once they had talked. She had to give him credit. He was doing quite well at holding himself back and just keeping his touch to her shirt. She sat up in alarm when he sat up. Uh-oh. She hadn't meant to upset him. She moved closer to him and rested a hand and her chin on his shoulder. She would remain quiet until he was ready to talk. She knew pushing wasn't a good thing.
She was actually surprised when M'riel seemed to agree with her. "I know you're still leery of trusting him. But trust me when I tell you Mac would never do anything to harm this Weyr," she said gently. M'cleod had too many family members here to even think about that. And he had helped her through a lot when she had first jumped forward and Taenia had not liked her at all. "The riders just know him better. Give them time. They'll come to respect you. And if you and Mac can at least work together I think it will help the rest of the Weyr to see that they can trust you too," she said gently. It was worth a try anyhow. Shayna looked at him in shock, her pretty eyes widening. "Hit and run?" she asked softly. "We're really going to have to resort to that?" She hated to think of that. Why couldn't the Holders see that the riders weren't the bad guys? Oh, she had a bad feeling this wasn't going to end well. She did no though at his words. "That would be a good idea. Mac would know just what riders he would want with him." She knew that M'cleod knew all the riders personally.
Shayna gently nuzzled his neck with her nose, wanting to cheer him up a bit. "I'm sure L'ret wouldn't mind that at all. Him and Mac worked well together before," she said softly. She sighed. "I want to keep Arda as my Second. I confide in her a lot more then Kolteya, but Arda is very impaired with her sight which is why Kolteya is my Second. Surely I can leave them both that way, can't I?" she honestly wasn't sure. She would drop Ardalae to Third if she had to.
M'riel felt Shayna press closer to him when he sat up, feeling her hand and chin on his shoulder. He listened as she spoke, knowing full well of how her weyrmate felt about the former Rider, but asked M'riel give Mac a chance, and the other Riders a chance as well. He nodded slowly. It was worth a try, at least. He had already anticipated Shayna's response to his revelation about the hit-and-run missions, and M'riel lifted his right arm and wrapped it around the Weyrwoman's shoulders. "Don't worry, Shay," he said reassuringly. "We're not going to intentionally harm anyone. No, all we'll be doing is striking at the traders' and merchants' caravans that travel the known routes between the Holds, taking the majority of the cargo, then allow the bystanders to go unharmed. If there happens to be a high-ranking official or even a son or daughter of a Lord Holder, we bring that person here and treat him or her as an honored guest, but we don't release our guest until the Holder in question agrees to talk with us, and we manage to secure a written and sealed agreement with them for supplies and Candidates."
"I'll make sure Mac knows full well what I want him to do on those covert missions, Shay. I think he'll agree with me on just about every detail."
M'riel couldn't help but chuckle at Shayna's attempt to cheer him up. She thought she didn't mind if L'ret was removed from his post, but gave it some thought about Ardalae. "You're the Weyrwoman," he said after a moment. "If you want them both as your Seconds, you could always divide the responsibilities between them. I thought about moving K'ryn into a Weyrsecond role, but he'll help me with the day-to-day administrative duties. Mac will be the other Weyrsecond, but as I said before, he'll be heading up the covert ops team."
Shayna was thankful that he was at least willing to listen to her. They couldn't work as a team if they weren't willing to listen to what the other had to say. Especially on things that effected the Weyr. She smiled and snuggled close to his side when he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "It sounds like you've got this all figured out," she said softly. She wasn't so sure she really wanted to know all the details of it. Maybe it would be better if she didn't. She slowly nodded though. "Maybe it would help. I just don't understand these Holders. When I was in Fort we never had problems with the Holders." Things had certainly taken a drastic change there. She just hoped that maybe they could get things sorted out there.
"I'll leave that to you and Mac. I know nothing about covert missions or anything like that," she said with a slight smile. She wouldn't be any help there.
"We've been trying to divide the responsibilities anyhow," she said. They had been doing that since Authanth had died. "I'll have to think about it more." Either way she would always be able to talk to Ardalae. She smiled a bit. "I'm sure K'ryn would gladly help you." She imagined the teen would probably be shocked to start with. It seemed like a lot was changing for him recently.
M'riel sighed as he snuggled with Shayna. "To be honest with you, the Holders for the most part were willing to negotiate with High Reaches, but even they were somewhat skeptical of why we still needed Candidates. The only reason why I chose to become a Candidate myself was after having a long heart-to-heart with my brother, shortly before resigning my rank in the Guards." He had to shake his head over that one. "I don't regret making that decision, though, otherwise I wouldn't be here with you."
"As for Mac...it's probably a good idea if we held an informal meeting with him, K'ryn, L'ret, Arda, Kolteya, and Eodira. Mac and I can go over the details of the covert ops team." He didn't tell Shayna that there may be a time or two he would join Mac's team on any given hit-and-run mission, given his own background as a marksman and sniper. M'riel had given quite a few participants in his "winter wargames" simulation, and only Swift and Ekaterina could keep up with him due to his taking advantage of the environment.
He listened as Shayna mentioned she would have to think on dividing the responsibilities some more, and M'riel nodded. "Whatever you feel is best, love," he said, kissing her on her forehead. "We'll face whatever the future throws at us together. Now, are you just content on cuddling like this for the rest of the night, or did you want to wake the others up for that meeting...or would you rather just 'focus' on us?" He emphasized the word "focus" for a reason, but otherwise was content with whatever Shayna wanted to do.
"Really?" she asked curiously. She hadn't realized that even in the future they had had problems with the Holders. Maybe because Fort was the oldest Weyr and Hold the Holders hadn't caused problems, but she had never had to face this type of thing until just recently. She smiled and kissed his neck. "And I am glad that you're here," she whispered. One never knew what the future would hold.
She nodded. "I think that would be a good idea." Hopefully being informal everyone would be more at ease. She saw the look in M'riel's eyes and had a feeling there were going to be times that she was worried sick about him when he went with the others. She sighed and decided she would face that when the time came. "You definitely want to have a plan before jumping into anything." It wouldn't due to make a mistake on something like this.
"I'll talk to Arda and Kolteya and see what we can come up with." She was really leaning toward leaving them both as her Seconds. If Thread every came back then Kolteya would step up as she would fight Thread and Arda couldn't but right now they were both important to Shayna. She shook her head. "Let them sleep. Tomorrow is soon enough to talk about this," she whispered, smiling up at him. "Oh, I think I could do for a little "focusing" on us," she whispered.
Shayna lay on her side facing the wall, her hair falling over one shoulder while she gentle stroked her fingertips down M'riel's arm. She was snuggled back against his chest and could feel the fabric of his pants rubbing against the back of her leg. Sanyara was fed and sleeping peaceful, but Shayna still couldn't get her mind to shut down. Since she was feeling better things kept creeping up into her mind that she wanted to get working on.
"M'riel?" she whispered, not sure if the Weyrleader was awake or not. If not she wouldn't bother him. it wasn't like what was on her mind couldn't wait until morning.
M'riel wasn't exactly sound asleep, but he was certainly content enough to be resting peacefully. His arm was wrapped around Shayna's waist, and he could feel her fingertips lightly stroke his flesh. It was warm enough in the weyr, between the fireplace he'd remembered to stoke shortly before turning in for the night, the extra furs he had asked to be sent up, and cuddling next to his weyrmate that he didn't need a shirt in spite of the cold weather.
She giggled softly when she heard his "mmm". Apparently he was almost asleep. She hadn't meant to wake him up then. She turned her head and kissed his neck gently. "Go back to sleep, baby. We can talk in the morning." She wasn't sure how coherent he would be anyhow if he was half asleep. She did continue to stroke his arm though, hoping it would help put him back to sleep if he wasn't already. It had been a long day for both of them, yet she still couldn't seem to turn her mind off. Well, she would just do her best to lay still and not disturb her weyrmate. Maybe if Sanyara woke up later hungry she would just curl up on the couch if she still couldn't sleep.
He thought he heard her giggle, then felt her kiss him on the neck then tell him he could go back to sleep, that they could talk in the morning. He could still feel his weyrmate stroke his arm. "If you're trying to be cute and use an affectionate term such as 'baby', I appreciate the gesture," he said, still a bit groggy but a smile was coming to his lips. "But if you're thinking that I'm nothing more than a big child, I've been called worse." His eyes slowly opened, only to be looking at the back of Shayna's head.
M'riel snuggled in a little closer to his weyrmate, brushing aside a few locks of her hair and planted a gentle kiss on the back of Shayna's neck. "It's not Sanyara, is it?" he asked softly.
Shayna curled back up against him, giving him the option as to if he wanted to wake up or not. She couldn't help but smile at his next words. "Oh you have definitely proven you're not a child." No one would ever make that mistake. Especially not her. She had seen what he was like under the furs and she had to smile at the thought. "I was just trying to be loving," she promised him. She hadn't meant any insult at all. She was just still in baby mode with taking care of Sanyara all the time.
She shivered as his warm lips touched the back of her neck. She hadn't expected that at all considering he had just been asleep a couple minutes prior. "No, Sanyara's fine," she assured him. The baby was still sleeping peacefully and thankfully hadn't gotten sick or anything. "I was just thinking about the Weyr. But you're probably tired and don't want to think about that right now."
A light chuckle escaped from his lips when she tried to reassure him she wasn't trying to tease him, and he let out a soft sigh when she said her daughter was fine. The subject of the Weyr came up, and M'riel propped himself on one elbow. "Never hurts to discuss Weyr politics with the woman I love," he said, gently tugging at Shayna's hip so she could face him. "But this will probably cost you. What's on your mind?"
The chuckle was a good sound. At least he wasn't upset that she had woke him up. She heard his sigh though and rethought her thinking. Maybe she shouldn't have brought this up right now. Well, too late now. He was awake and she was pretty sure that he wouldn't let her back out of talking now. Shayna easily turned on her back so that she could look up at him when he tugged on her hip. "Oh will it?" she asked playfully, wondering just what he was thinking. She thought about the best way to approach the subject that had been bothering her. "Have you thought about a Weyrsecond?" she finally just asked, not knowing how else to bring it up.
M'riel watched as Shayna turned onto her back, looking up at him and playfully teased him right back. He gave her a warm smile. He took his left hand and started to lightly graze the fabric covering her belly with his fingertips. "Well, I *do* seem to recall a conversation you and I had not long ago, while I was consoling you after that nightmare you had." That "consoling" was a drastic understatement. M'riel fondly recalled making love to her that night, finally reaching through to Shayna and breaking down any barriers that had been between them. That night they spent together under the furs had been, to use a certain field medic's description, "very fulfilling, very therapeutic."
He looked into her eyes, then let his gaze trace back down to her belly where he was still letting his fingertips trace random patterns on the fabric, then letting his eyes meet hers again. He knew it probably wouldn't take much for her to get what he was driving at. But when she asked him about a Weyrsecond, he didn't stop his movement, but he let his eyes close for a moment, thinking. "I thought L'ret was still the Weyrsecond," he said after a brief pause. M'riel opened his eyes again. "He's been in that position before, and until he proves otherwise, he'll stay there for now. But isn't Kolteya your current Weyrwoman's Second? Or did you have someone else in mind?"
Shayna shivered as he started to trace patterns on her stomach. It sure wasn't easy to think straight when he did that. Although there was no way she was going to ask him to stop. She liked it. She chuckled softly. "Yes, that was quite a night," she agreed, remembering him "helping" her forget her nightmare. It had worked quite well. She hadn't had another nightmare since then and she had had a wonderful night on top of that. It had been much needed by both of them. She had finally broken down and let him into her little world and she felt better since she had.
A smile touched the Weyrwoman's lips. Oh yes, she knew exactly what he was thinking. And she certainly wasn't going to argue that point. "Later," she promised, looking into his eyes. She could lose herself in his eyes so easily it was scary. She wanted to get her thoughts out in the open before she gave into temptation. And shards, he sure was a handsome temptation. Shayna nodded. "Kolteya is my second although she doesn't have a mate," she agreed. "You're alright with L'ret?" He had been doing well despite his age. "I had thought about suggesting M'cleod. I know you two don't get along real well, but he's helped build this Weyr from the ground up and the riders respect him. I thought he might make a good second."
M'riel laughed lightly when Shayna agreed that night had indeed been something to remember. He kept up his light traces against her stomach, not bothering to lift up the fabric that separated his fingertips from her skin. But when she promised him they could get to the "more important" stuff later, M'riel listened as Shayna gave her input. Kolteya was indeed her Second, but didn't have a mate of her own. She asked if he was fine with L'ret, then suggested M'cleod be his Second. True, he had helped build this Weyr from the ground up and the Riders all respected him...
...but M'riel frowned when he recalled the times he and Mac had clashed ever since he first arrived. He ceased his tracing for a moment, sitting up in the bed and drawing his knees to his chest. He let out a long exhale through his sinuses. Just how much could he trust the former Raider to not try and lead a mutiny against him, or undermine his efforts to lead the Weyr? Granted, Mac didn't appreciate M'riel trying to question his every decision when the Brownrider had been in charge, and M'riel was getting a taste of his own medicine from the former Raider now that he was the Weyrleader.
Finally, after what seemed like several minutes, the Weyrleader finally spoke. "I'll give him the benefit of the doubt, Shay, but only because you're right about him building this Weyr from the ground up. I remember reading some of the archives about the plague killing off a large portion of dragonkind and Riders alike, then that volcanic eruption that brought an end to Tristar. A lot of the Riders still look to him, and I'm aware most are still undecided about my own leadership abilities." He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath, then let it out slowly. "I also know that he has a lot of experience when it comes to hit-and-run tactics, and that's something I've been sorely considering we implement in order to bring us supplies until the Holders agree to talk with us." M'riel knew Shayna would probably be taken back by this sudden revelation into what he and Il'ran had discussed privately not long ago. "I'll talk with him, but he has to understand and accept that while it's my responsibility to teach the rules, it's his place to learn them. I was thinking of having him hand-pick his own team for the hit-and-run missions on the trading and merchant caravans, anyway; put him in charge of those missions."
M'riel opened his eyes, then turned to look at his weyrmate. "He can be my Weyrsecond, but I'd still like to keep L'ret in some type of leadership role. Maybe have him report to M'cleod as his second for covert ops." He thought for a moment. "What have you thought about with Ardalae? Keep her as your Second, or move her back to Third?"
Shayna grinned impishly. She knew just what he was wanting but she wasn't giving into that until they had talked a bit. Although she certainly didn't mind the idea of that once they had talked. She had to give him credit. He was doing quite well at holding himself back and just keeping his touch to her shirt. She sat up in alarm when he sat up. Uh-oh. She hadn't meant to upset him. She moved closer to him and rested a hand and her chin on his shoulder. She would remain quiet until he was ready to talk. She knew pushing wasn't a good thing.
She was actually surprised when M'riel seemed to agree with her. "I know you're still leery of trusting him. But trust me when I tell you Mac would never do anything to harm this Weyr," she said gently. M'cleod had too many family members here to even think about that. And he had helped her through a lot when she had first jumped forward and Taenia had not liked her at all. "The riders just know him better. Give them time. They'll come to respect you. And if you and Mac can at least work together I think it will help the rest of the Weyr to see that they can trust you too," she said gently. It was worth a try anyhow. Shayna looked at him in shock, her pretty eyes widening. "Hit and run?" she asked softly. "We're really going to have to resort to that?" She hated to think of that. Why couldn't the Holders see that the riders weren't the bad guys? Oh, she had a bad feeling this wasn't going to end well. She did no though at his words. "That would be a good idea. Mac would know just what riders he would want with him." She knew that M'cleod knew all the riders personally.
Shayna gently nuzzled his neck with her nose, wanting to cheer him up a bit. "I'm sure L'ret wouldn't mind that at all. Him and Mac worked well together before," she said softly. She sighed. "I want to keep Arda as my Second. I confide in her a lot more then Kolteya, but Arda is very impaired with her sight which is why Kolteya is my Second. Surely I can leave them both that way, can't I?" she honestly wasn't sure. She would drop Ardalae to Third if she had to.
M'riel felt Shayna press closer to him when he sat up, feeling her hand and chin on his shoulder. He listened as she spoke, knowing full well of how her weyrmate felt about the former Rider, but asked M'riel give Mac a chance, and the other Riders a chance as well. He nodded slowly. It was worth a try, at least. He had already anticipated Shayna's response to his revelation about the hit-and-run missions, and M'riel lifted his right arm and wrapped it around the Weyrwoman's shoulders. "Don't worry, Shay," he said reassuringly. "We're not going to intentionally harm anyone. No, all we'll be doing is striking at the traders' and merchants' caravans that travel the known routes between the Holds, taking the majority of the cargo, then allow the bystanders to go unharmed. If there happens to be a high-ranking official or even a son or daughter of a Lord Holder, we bring that person here and treat him or her as an honored guest, but we don't release our guest until the Holder in question agrees to talk with us, and we manage to secure a written and sealed agreement with them for supplies and Candidates."
"I'll make sure Mac knows full well what I want him to do on those covert missions, Shay. I think he'll agree with me on just about every detail."
M'riel couldn't help but chuckle at Shayna's attempt to cheer him up. She thought she didn't mind if L'ret was removed from his post, but gave it some thought about Ardalae. "You're the Weyrwoman," he said after a moment. "If you want them both as your Seconds, you could always divide the responsibilities between them. I thought about moving K'ryn into a Weyrsecond role, but he'll help me with the day-to-day administrative duties. Mac will be the other Weyrsecond, but as I said before, he'll be heading up the covert ops team."
Shayna was thankful that he was at least willing to listen to her. They couldn't work as a team if they weren't willing to listen to what the other had to say. Especially on things that effected the Weyr. She smiled and snuggled close to his side when he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "It sounds like you've got this all figured out," she said softly. She wasn't so sure she really wanted to know all the details of it. Maybe it would be better if she didn't. She slowly nodded though. "Maybe it would help. I just don't understand these Holders. When I was in Fort we never had problems with the Holders." Things had certainly taken a drastic change there. She just hoped that maybe they could get things sorted out there.
"I'll leave that to you and Mac. I know nothing about covert missions or anything like that," she said with a slight smile. She wouldn't be any help there.
"We've been trying to divide the responsibilities anyhow," she said. They had been doing that since Authanth had died. "I'll have to think about it more." Either way she would always be able to talk to Ardalae. She smiled a bit. "I'm sure K'ryn would gladly help you." She imagined the teen would probably be shocked to start with. It seemed like a lot was changing for him recently.
M'riel sighed as he snuggled with Shayna. "To be honest with you, the Holders for the most part were willing to negotiate with High Reaches, but even they were somewhat skeptical of why we still needed Candidates. The only reason why I chose to become a Candidate myself was after having a long heart-to-heart with my brother, shortly before resigning my rank in the Guards." He had to shake his head over that one. "I don't regret making that decision, though, otherwise I wouldn't be here with you."
"As for Mac...it's probably a good idea if we held an informal meeting with him, K'ryn, L'ret, Arda, Kolteya, and Eodira. Mac and I can go over the details of the covert ops team." He didn't tell Shayna that there may be a time or two he would join Mac's team on any given hit-and-run mission, given his own background as a marksman and sniper. M'riel had given quite a few participants in his "winter wargames" simulation, and only Swift and Ekaterina could keep up with him due to his taking advantage of the environment.
He listened as Shayna mentioned she would have to think on dividing the responsibilities some more, and M'riel nodded. "Whatever you feel is best, love," he said, kissing her on her forehead. "We'll face whatever the future throws at us together. Now, are you just content on cuddling like this for the rest of the night, or did you want to wake the others up for that meeting...or would you rather just 'focus' on us?" He emphasized the word "focus" for a reason, but otherwise was content with whatever Shayna wanted to do.
"Really?" she asked curiously. She hadn't realized that even in the future they had had problems with the Holders. Maybe because Fort was the oldest Weyr and Hold the Holders hadn't caused problems, but she had never had to face this type of thing until just recently. She smiled and kissed his neck. "And I am glad that you're here," she whispered. One never knew what the future would hold.
She nodded. "I think that would be a good idea." Hopefully being informal everyone would be more at ease. She saw the look in M'riel's eyes and had a feeling there were going to be times that she was worried sick about him when he went with the others. She sighed and decided she would face that when the time came. "You definitely want to have a plan before jumping into anything." It wouldn't due to make a mistake on something like this.
"I'll talk to Arda and Kolteya and see what we can come up with." She was really leaning toward leaving them both as her Seconds. If Thread every came back then Kolteya would step up as she would fight Thread and Arda couldn't but right now they were both important to Shayna. She shook her head. "Let them sleep. Tomorrow is soon enough to talk about this," she whispered, smiling up at him. "Oh, I think I could do for a little "focusing" on us," she whispered.
