Fort Weyr - Weyrleader's Offices

Aged by time, this office has lived through the ages of Fort just as its counterparts have. But unlike the Weyrsecond and Junior Weyrwomen offices, this cavern is spacious and formed in a rough semicircle of three conjoined caves that were carved and modified Turns ago. The middle portion acts as a waiting room of sorts, holding only a few modest chairs and a simple tapestry to otherwise brighten up the plain stone walls. There are no windows here and the only light comes from well placed glow baskets.
To the right, the smaller of the two adjoining caverns has been set aside for the Weyrwoman, a large desk situated in the middle and a bookshelf pressed against the wall. A small hearth allows for some warmth in the colder months and another cabinet rests across the room to hold various supplies, as well as several books, reports and records. More tapestries have been hung there, lending some color to room.
On the left, the larger cavern belongs to the Weyrleader's office and the walls here are littered with a vast array of maps, as well as a tapestry hung behind where he would sit. The desk is large and the wood aged, looking old and a bit worn, but well tended too. Shelves and a bookshelf line one wall, crammed with rolled hides, other maps, books, reports and records and all arranged in an organized chaos. A small hearth has been built in here as well and various well placed glow baskets are hung to offer just the right amount of light in this windowless office.
Both offices have stout wooden doors that have been carefully worked into the stone. They can be closed and locked if privacy is needed but are often left open.


Was that… Ezra that just ran by the Weyrsecond's open office door? Followed by the muffled sounds of tears? What the…? D'ani rises to check it out, but by the time he's at the door and peering down the hall, there's no one in sight. Maybe he was mistaken? But no, there's definitely the sound of someone crying. It's not in his nature to shrug it off, and so he spins on a heel, snags the box of tissues on his desk and trots towards the sound… which leads him to the door of the Weyrleader's office.

Well, clearly, Dtirae isn't doing all that well at covering up the sound of her tears. Normally, she would have retreated back to her weyr before it got this far. But, she certainly can't go /out/ with the progress she's made in her crying. The door of the Weyrwoman's office is shut, but definitely the source of the sobbing.

D'ani hesitates to interrupt. Maybe the Weyrleader's have just gotten some horrible news? Not the type to listen at keyholes, he nevertheless holds his breath, cocks his head and listens for a beat or two. No, he doesn't hear the voice of the Weyrleader or come to think of it, the weyrwoman either. There's no other voice stammering and stuttering excuses, so it's likely that no one's been called on the carpet for a reprimand. He doubts Th'ero is capable of weeping. Maybe the Weyrleader would let leak a stern mantear or two, but D'ani has yet to witness such an event. Deduction, my dear Watson, leaves but one person. And so without bothering to knock, his fingers grasp the knob and turn it soundlessly, opening the door a crack so he can peek in. "Dtirae? Are you-" She is! "What's wrong?" He steps inside without waiting to be invited in. He probably figures she can toss him out if she wants. What? It might be great therapy for her!

Good thing he doesn't make much noise opening that door, otherwise she'd have started yelling. But, when his voice filters in, the Weyrwoman jumps. There is that guilty look again, and fresh tears still streaming down her cheeks. There's a sniffle as she brushes them away. "Nothing." She's not really the sort to cry over nothing. "Nothing's wrong."

Riiiiight. Does he believe this? No. Because only crazy people cry over nothing. And those don't exactly look like tears of joy. But he's not one to force other people into confiding in him, either. He's heard that being Weyrwoman is a stressful job, so maybe it's that. So D'ani just stands there with the tissue box for a moment before striding to her (wherever she is) and offering it over. Just, y'know, in case she's run out. Or will run out. "I'll just… be in my office… if you need anything," he says lamely beginning his retreat. He'll just back awaaaay from the woman slowwwwwwly.

The offered box is taken quietly, and settled on her desk before she's taking one and quietly brushing at her eyes. "You… Don't have to leave. I figure we should talk about it…" Seeing as he's partially involved. Dtirae's avoiding meeting his gaze directly, hiding behind her hands, the tissues. Luckily, her desk is too low for her to hide behind it without looking silly.

…Talk about nothing. The nothing that is making her cry. That they should talk about even though the woman is not upset about it. D'ani tilts his head, brows knit in confusion as he watches her so obviously avoiding his gaze. Hiding. From him, of all people. Behind a tissue. No, he won't say she looks as silly doing that as she would under her desk. He's heard the other guys say women are a strange lot, but he's always disagreed. Until now. Not that he's going to say it, even if she is confusing the hell out of him. So he'll just agree - with one clarification. "This isn't about my nose, is it?" He's pretty sure they've already covered that. And hey, look - it's doing better! That plaster dressing is off and the bruising has faded from red-purple to a green-yellow. That tiny cut on his nose is half-healed and his schnoz looks as straight as it ever was. But he remains, concerned because something clearly is wrong.

"It's… Sort of about your nose." Dtirae murmurs. Once the tears are all done, and her eyes are dried, she's lowering her hand away from her face. Though, eyes are still red from crying. There's a movement in which she's opening one of the desk drawers and placing a note on the desk. She doesn't clarify as to why, allowing him to either take a look or leaving it be. If he does look, the note reads: 'You said you wouldn't hurt him.' She's avoiding his gaze again, looking off elsewhere. "Ezra and I had a fight, I suppose…"

Her admission makes him sigh and tsk. As if he'd chide her for angsting over his nose when they'd already put that behind them. The want to keep edging for the door dissipates since it does have something to do with him, so giving her some privacy is now out of the question. He'd like to comfort her until she's got herself under control, but she's remaining behind that desk, so he just waits calmly and since staring at her would be awkward (not that this isn't going to be anyway), he tilts his head back and studies the ceiling. Which, to its credit is… interesting. See, there's a crack over Th'ero's desk all craggly in a semi-circle that almost looks like a watchwher. And over there near the fireplace a smoke stain over lapping a water stain that might look obscene if one of his beastcraft pals were eyeing it. Her drawer opening interrupts his train of thought, but the note is carefully ignored, since he's not directed to it. Instead, his mouth opens, then closes while his brow wrinkles in confusion. "You suppose? That's what-?" He can hazard a guess but… He steps around the desk, hands reaching for her shoulders, "Weyrwoman, are you telling me that a fifteen turn old boy has wreaked havoc with your peace of mind?" He's dumbfounded. "Why don't you tell me what happened?" It's a gentle suggestion.

Dtirae is sitting there a little awkwardly as his mouth opens, then closes and the look of confusion settles onto his face. Guilt is ebbing up again, cheeks flushing with embarrassment and the woman looking on the verge of retreating again. But then he's around the desk with his hands on her shoulders. Embarrassment creeps up at his statement, her gaze dropping away from him. Shame? Definitely. "He sent me a note, which I took as a threat. Not that I think that he could hurt me, but, I spoke to him on it. He's mad and I explained to him what happened and that… He doesn't entirely understand." Of course, it's hard to understand being bonded with another mind, and sometimes losing control of your own actions. "Long story short… We started yelling at me. I realized I broke my promise to him, and that I should have tried harder to be there for him when he needed someone, but only saw my failures when I looked at him… And, maybe you're better off with someone who isn't me."

He'll pretend not to see her embarrassment or shame in order to preserve her dignity. Instead D'ani's stepping behind her, hands that reach for her shoulders settle there and he squeezes them gently kneading to relax her tension. Ezra. Ezra? Sent her a threatening note. "Oh did he? May I?" One hand leaves her shoulder and gestures to that note before her. While waiting for her to hand it to him so he can read it, he chuckles faintly, "Of course he doesn't understand, he's a kid." His other hand squeezes her shoulder, silently supportive while she tells her confusing tale. "Hmm," is all he says of her last comment. The note? When he reads it, he can't help it. He laughs, then drops his other hand back to her shoulder and gives her a gentle shake. "Of course he's mad. And he's right, but this… isn't a threat." Of that he seems very sure. Because he knows Ezra.

At least he saves her dignity, the woman's pretty low at the moment. Dtirae relaxes as gently kneads her shoulders. Eyes close for a moment, until he's asking for the note. She does hand it over without much protest. She keeps quiet as he reads, turning another shade of red as he gives her a shake. She doesn't say anything, giving a slight shrug. "I didn't know how I was supposed to take it… I didn't mean to break my promise, it wasn't like I was in complete control of myself…" A soft sigh, "and that doesn't change the fact that he'd rather us break up. And that I'm prone to hurting people I care about or I make them leave one way or another. And that I am an awful partner."

D'ani 's trying not to laugh, really he is. "I'm sure you didn't know how to take it, but he's a teenager." A half-grown, wiry one at that. "What's he gonna do to you?" Easily, lightly he seeks to help her get a more realistic perspective, "Didn't mean to is irrelevant to him, Rae," D'ani says. "He's pretty black and white. You broke your promise. A promise," he says with a teasing tone and another gentle shake, "you should never have made. Because not hurting living people is nearly impossible." Though he does add, "I told Ezra you haven't hurt me. He doesn't see it the way I do, obviously. And…he's not a rider, so he's not going to understand the way a dragon's emotions can affect the rider's mind." He listens to her then and it's a good thing she can't see the way he shakes his head. "He's entitled to his opinion." If he's surprised, his voice doesn't show it, but it doesn't seem to bother D'ani either. Her last comment finds him slowly swiveling her chair to face him while he squats to be eye to eye with him. "Are you?"

Dtirae doesn't protest his logic, because her logic is somewhere else. "Nothing. He can't do anything to me." Not that she would sit there and take it, either. His teasing and gentle shake earns a soft sigh, "I didn't intend to hurt you. I never promised not to hurt everyone, just not you. I don't make promises I can't keep… I never thought I'd be in a situation where I hurt you… Intentionally or not." Grey eyes shift away again, sighing softly. "I know. I…" She leaves it at that and gives a shrug once again in response. When the chair moves, and she's facing him, cheeks turn another shade of red, especially as he squats to be eye level with her. "Am I a bad partner? Yes. I guess? I… Haven't exactly had a good record with partners. But, I like you and shards…"

D'ani doesn't argue with her about her ability to hurt him. His family was vulnerable to the floods that took them; he was hurt. She is not invincible and should he ever allow himself to be vulnerable again… But he's not. Not yet. Instead, "I know that," he says of her 'didn't mean to'. He understands the situation, which is why he's shrugged it off. He listens seriously to her answer and then leans forward, kisses her forehead. Drawing back he says firmly, "You know what I think? I think you need to let me be the judge of that." Then he looks her straight in the eye. "Weyrwoman, you worry too much about… so much. No one is perfect, but guilt is pretty useless. Guilt looks inward, at the self. Love looks outwards at the needs of others. These are your people. Be there for them?"

Dtirae sighs softly, eyes closing again. "You are the judge of that, I am merely warning you." Grey eyes peek open again, meeting his gaze with a slight frown. "If I don't worry over it, then something will go wrong. I will miss something and…" A slow breath is drawn in, her eyes close again as if defeated. "I am there for them. You're the only one who ever sees me like this."

D'ani snorts. Clearly he doesn't share her opinion. "Things go wrong anyway, Dtirae," he says reasonably. "That is life. You can't 'worry' things away to prevent them from happening. Care, yes. But to do this… self-blame is not healthy. You're human. You're going to miss things from time to time." When she closes her eyes, he rises, then reaches a gentle finger to tilt her chin up to warn her with, "Whether only I see it or you hide it from others, this self-directed attack will drain your confidence entirely if you keep it up." If it hasn't already. "I think you are stronger than to give in to that, Rae." Then he leans and takes the note, holds it up and says with a brisk change of subject, "If you don't mind, I'll have a word with Ezra about this."

"This is true. I can't watch everything and expect to catch everything." Dtirae is, of course, coming to see reason. As her head is tilted upwards, grey eyes slightly peek open to watch him. "I know, I can't let myself fall into this again." A soft chuckle, "the last time: I ended up fighting and I haven't stopped since. I think I've gotten it all out now, I am stronger than giving into it." Her hand lifts, to gently give his a squeeze before she considers him, and the note. "You don't have to, unless you feel that it is an issue you need to address. I can't expect him to like, or trust me after I essentially abandoned him once bringing him here. Whatever you decide is best."

With a chuckle, "He'll worry about it if I don't. He'll think I'm mad, so I'd better clear the air." The note goes in D'ani's pocket and then his hand joins the one she's reached for. Fingers of both hands curl around hers and press reassuringly. "I believe you can do it!" Then he smiles at her, his point regarding guilt made by her statement of her having abandoned the boy after bringing him here. He as a person outside of the situation understands somewhat why she did but the boy would not. "Ezra does not give trust easily; you might earn it yet." He flickers her a wink and lifts her hands to his lips, presses a brief kiss on her fingers and stands straight, snaps off a salute and heads on out.

"Don't let him worry." Not that she expects that he will. Dtirae smiles, completely and genuinely again. "I can." There's that confidence back, and it certainly shows with that teasing smile she gives him. "I'm not expecting to earn his trust at all, if ever." The wink earns a teasing smile, but it is his kissing of her hand that causes her to flush a shade of pink once again. "If you're going to kiss me and leave, kiss me proper next time." She'll let him leave, laughter following him out. At least now, the sound coming from the Weyrwoman's office is far more pleasant than when he entered.


'The World of Pern(tm)' and 'The Dragonriders of Pern(r)' are copyright to Anne McCaffrey (c) l967, 2000. This is a recorded online session, by permission of the author but generated on PernWorld MUSH for the benefit of people unable to attend.