A small token... (Arda/M'riel) (15.12)

[kendrall]

It had only been a couple of days since the Gold flight, and M'riel wondered how he could get a certain Junior Goldrider to talk with him. In fact, to the new Weyrleader, he needed to have the conversation with her, but wasn't sure if she'd be interested.

Ardalae had willingly volunteered to stand in for Shayna when Josiath rose, practically putting herself at risk for whatever heady moments of passion were sure to follow once Josaith chose her new mate. Oreath was chosen by the Gold, and during the Flight Ardalae's weyrmate K'ryn had likewise become involved as he was to try and get the new Weyrwoman and her unborn child to safety. But, as the old saying "The best laid plans..." starts, that didn't exactly turn out so well. All four Senior Riders wound up succumbing to Flightlust, eventually winding up entangled together under the furs. Shayna went into premature labor; R'bao was still furious at the new Weyrleader for putting "his weyrmate" and daughter under "extreme risk"...

...and to M'riel, he was worried that Arda wouldn't talk to him. She was regarded as a political ally when he and his Riders first arrived here from the future, and now that he was the Weyrleader, he still needed her support and friendship.

Which was why he was down in the Lower Caverns early one morning. It was cold in the cavern he was currently occupying, his boat still unfinished, but he didn't seem to mind. Not when he was working with his hands. What he was working on was a small piece of pecan wood he'd managed to find while wandering the plateau on the top side of the Weyr, and decided he would carve a figurine out of it. M'riel was sitting at his large angled table, whittling away at the small chunk of wood, making a rough curve on the top but left a couple of knobs. Carving a notch into the front wasn't quite so easy to do, nor was making the rough curves towards the base and on the back. He'd been at this for about a day now, and hopefully he would have it ready soon.

[Katlyn]

Ardalae had all but avoided the two individuals of that flight, both Shayna and M'riel, since after the morning Shayna's daughter had been born. She knew her sole purpose for having been at the Weyrwoman's side had been to take her place, so that Shayna could be removed and her daughter kept safe. Instead, she and her weyrmate had gotten tied up with them and it had ended with a premature birth. The only thing she could say was at least her friend and her friend's daughter had pulled through relatively ok. She'd been thinking about that that morning when she finally sighed and pushed herself out of her bed to get dressed.

After she'd pulled on her socks, thick woolen pants, the under-dress, and over dress, she bent down to pull on her furred boots and called Copper to her as she grabbed her scarf from nearby. It was early in the morning and she knew that the night's cold would still be out there. The little brown popped himself on her shoulder as she pulled on her final layer, before grabbing her gloves and heading out of her Weyr. Her wanderings took her outside, at which point she pulled up her hood against the cold wind.

Walking while she thought about things helped her process them, and she got so caught up in her thoughts over the flight, and what had happened, that she hadn't realized she'd finally made her way into the lower caverns across the bowl from where her weyr was. In fact, she was just about to walk right past the cavern that M'riel occupied when Copper cheeped, and startled her out of her thoughts. She blinked, confused, and the brown showed her the busy man she'd been about to walk right on by. "oh..." she mumbled softly, wondering if he'd noticed her yet, or if she could keep moving by quickly, or even turn around.

[kendrall]

M'riel's hand nearly slipped on the knife he was using to work the piece of wood in his hands, but luckily he managed to catch it before he could cut himself. He had been so engrossed in his work that hearing a flit cheep startled him. Biting back a curse, M'riel turned to see where the sound came from...

...and he noticed someone near the threshold of the cavern where he was working.

The Weyrleader studied the newcomer over the top of his reading glasses, and saw a familiar-looking brown flit on the other's shoulder. Copper, wasn't it? If so, that meant it was Ardalae, the very person he wanted to talk to. "Arda," M'riel called out. "Do you have a few minutes to talk?" He may as well try to clear the air between them, to let her know he still needed her on his side.

[Katlyn]

Copper stared at the rider when he looked up to frind where the cheep had come from. One of his wings flared when he realized that he'd been recognized. Arda had just been in the process of trying to quickly move on by when Copper cheeped again as M'riel called her over. She gave a small sigh, the little brown on her shoulder settling down and churring apologetically, since he could tell now this man was part of the reason she'd been so caught up in her thoughts. She smiled and have his eyeridge's a rub with a gloved hand as she moved into the cavern, pushing the hood back some.

"Good morning," she said, voice quiet. "I'm sorry. I hope we didn't interrupt anything. I was just out taking a walk," she added, trying to not look around the room with Copper's sight. It would probably be easier to try and keep the conversation as short as possible. After all, she was nearly 100% certain that he was simply going to chastise her for not doing her job as the Weyrwoman's stand-in properly. That's what she was assuming anyone who wanted to talk to her wanted to do. "What were you wanting to talk about?" she asked then, trying to be polite even though she was certain she knew.

[kendrall]

M'riel slid out a stool next to the one he was sitting in, offering it to the Junior Goldrider. He then set down his knife and the rough carving. "No, you didn't really interrupt me," he replied before letting out a sigh. "Look. I know there's been a lot of pent-up emotions since Josiath's flight, a lot of conflicting emotions for everyone involved. Now, it's my understanding that you willingly volunteered to be a stand-in for Shayna, although I'm not for certain why. If it was to try to protect her unborn daughter, well...I really don't know on whose shoulders the blame would fall on. I can't exactly fault you because you did what you were supposed to do, to draw my attention away from Shayna. Which, as far as I can recall, you did in more ways than one." The new Weyrleader tried to keep his face from flushing. "I wasn't exactly sure why K'ryn was there, but from what I can gather he was there for two reasons. One, because he obviously is very fond of you. Two, he was to try to get Shayna out of there...which, again, didn't quite go as planned."

The memory of waking up with three others in the same bed as he didn't set so well with him at first, but then he finally dismissed it as the result of a Goldflight. There wasn't a single Betweened thing anyone could do about it. He also came to the conclusion that he and K'ryn at some point had switched partners, only to switch back near the end of the Flight. What he didn't recall, however, was when that switch occurred...or which Goldrider rose and fell with him. He thought it might have been Arda, but then again he couldn't be one hundred percent sure. Flightlust often caused one to forget many things, leaving only fleeting and random memories and flashbacks.

M'riel waited for Arda to give her view on that night before he would continue.

[Katlyn]

"You may not, but I certainly do," she said, sighing softly when she realized she had shared that. "I meant the blame thing...I mean, I shouldn't've waited for K'ryn to get there. That's what I mean. . ." She almost huffed at her inability to get out what she was trying to say, but instead she settled for a sigh.

"Shay and I talked a while back abou the pregnancy, and I had suggested to her, if everyone was so worried about her loosing the baby, why not get a stand-in that way she wouldn't have to fully participate. When the conversation was all said and done, it ended with me basically saying I would do it. But then we never really got the chance to work out the details. K'ryn was supposed to get Shay out of there before the flight was even over. It was just supposed to be me and whoever. . ." she mumbled quietly. In the end though, she still didn't blame K'ryn. After all, his bronze had been trying to chase. "And then when the flight ended and K'ryn still wasn't there, I just waited...And I shouldn't have."

Her weyrmate's arrival to the room was her last real coherent memory before the flight lust had taken full charge of everything. She couldn't remember much beyond that, other than the four of them getting oddly involved. And in the end, he was right. There really wasn't that much that they could have done about that, once it was all said and done. But she didn't let that sit in the way of her telling herself there was more she could've done to kept Shayna and the baby safe.

[kendrall]

M'riel leaned in. "Arda," he said gently. "What's done is done. The only thing I ask of you, is that you not blame yourself for what happened that night, nor blame K'ryn. You were brave enough to offer yourself as a stand-in for Shayna, and even though I can't speak for her, I know she couldn't ask for anyone better than her best friend to be there for her. I know how you and K'ryn feel about each other, but he still was there for you nonetheless. Shayna and her daughter both pulled through, because we have some of the best Healers around." M'riel owed Eodira a great deal for what the Master Healer perceived as putting the new Weyrwoman and her unborn daughter at risk, but thankfully it was the Healer's skilled hands along with R'en's timely arrival that proved to be life-saving. Both mother and daughter were safe.

He turned to pick up the rough carving he'd been working on, and knowing the Junior Goldrider couldn't see very well, instead held it up for Copper to take a look at. "This may not look like it's much, but once I'm finished with it I plan on giving it to you. It's a carving of a runner's head that I plan on making a pendant out of. My way of saying 'thank you' for being there from the beginning. My way of saying 'thank you' for standing with me and my Riders when we had no one else to support us. For being a friend. For being you."

M'riel then whispered into Arda's ear. "Don't be afraid to come and talk to me if something is bothering you. A friend's door is always open, his ear always willing to listen."

[Katlyn]

Brave or not, the younger goldrider knew that she hadn't done what she was supposed to have done well. She was grateful, though, that they had good healers on hand, as she would've been quite upset by the situation, more so than she was now, if things had ended up turning sour. And the weyr had a more stable, set in stone leadership again, which was always a good thing. As for blaming K'ryn, she didn't, and wouldn't do any such thing. The fact that he had even been willing to be there with her had been enough. But she wasn't going to protest against what he said. She honestly didn't think that it would do much good.

Copper gave a cheep before looking at what M'riel was showing him, passing the image onto Arda without missing a beat. He was used to doing such things, and the litle brown didn't mind it one bit. "Oh. It looks like it'll turn out very nicely," she said, managing a small smile. She actually quite liked runners, so she knew that she would like the pendant. HIs next words made her smile a bit more. It was nice to know that the bronzerider thought of her as a friend. "Thank you," she said then, voice still quiet.

[kendrall]

M'riel waited a few moments, supposing that Copper would pass on the image of the rough shape of the pendant he was working on. Once Arda managed a smile and commented that it would probably turn out nicely, the Weyrleader nodded slowly. After he leaned in and whispered that she was welcome to come and talk to him anytime she needed a sounding board, a confidante; M'riel noted with satisfaction that the Junior Goldrider's smile widened a little. He returned her smile with a faint one of his own, but still displayed camaraderie nonetheless. He then turned to his side momentarily, picking up his reading glasses and placing them on his face, then selected a different tool this time, with a smaller but narrower blade compared to what he'd been working with before Arda arrived.

The Weyrleader then turned back to face Arda, but kept the tool and the rough figurine low enough where it wouldn't produce any stray splinters. He resumed his whittling and carving, working on the finer details. "You're welcome to watch if you wish," he said in a casual yet friendly manner. He didn't mind the company.

[Katlyn]

She nodded, staying where she was and watching him work silently through Copper's eyes for a while. It was nice that he didn't blame her for what had happened with Shayna and the baby during Josiath's flight. She still didn't feel much better about the situation personally, but she didn't quite want to let him know that.

"Is this where you're always hiding when you aren't in your office or with Shayna then?" she asked him curiously. She wasn't trying to pry, but she was curious as to where to find him in the future, should she need to talk to him about something again. After all, he had told her she could come to him anytime she needed someone to talk to.

[kendrall]

"Usually," M'riel replied. He was still focused on carving the finer details of that runner's head pendant; carefully forming the ridges near the crown and down the back to represent a runner's mane, the ears and eyes, the teeth. This part, he knew, would take probably another day or two before he could make the final hole in the pendant, where the thin wherhide cord would go. "I've found that woodworking helps keep me calm, keeps me focused. Once that boat is finished," he paused momentarily and slightly tilted his head towards the as-of-yet-unfinished craft, "and the weather is warmer, I plan on putting her through her paces, see what she can do."

He looked back down again and resumed his handiwork.

[Katlyn]

Ardalae nodded and let it fall silent again for a while, watching him work for a little bit through Copper's eyes. The boat cetainly seemed interesting enou, though she imagined it would be a while before he would get to use it. She really hoped ot started to warm up again soon, and hoped the summer would be warmer. Eventually, though, she felt as though the silence was somewhat awkward, and she knew she ought to get back to her weyr before K'ryn woke up and wondered where she was. "I should probably get back..." she said to him, standing up from the stool she had sat on.

[kendrall]

M'riel simply nodded as Arda stood up, saying she needed to get back. The Weyrleader supposed it was back to her quarters she was sharing with K'ryn, but didn't comment about that. Instead, he took a different direction. "I should have this finished within a day or two. I'll come find you when it's ready." He didn't look up at the Junior Goldrider as he continued to carve into the wood.

((To be continued))