Meeting A Lady

Writers: Avery, Estelle
Date Posted: 29th January 2020

Characters: K'ran, Ashela
Description: K'ran meets with Ashela on her arrival at the Weyrhold.
Location: Barrier Lake Weyr
Date: month 12, day 23 of Turn 9
Notes: Mentioned: Kapera, Teseada, Jayzine

K'ran

Ashela

None of the goldriders would be arriving the same day, which gave K'ran
some time and flexibility. He'd been considering what the best way was
to meet them, in a formal capacity as the acting Lord Weyrholder of the
Lake Weyrhold. Whether it should be a formal, assessment meeting, the
kind he'd have with any new wingrider transferring in, not bothering to
make it any different just because they were queenriders... That had the
potential of being insulting, and he feared it would it sour their
impressions of working with him. At the same time, he didn't want to go
as informal as a private dinner with them, because was that going to
look like his aim was to charm them with the hopes of winning their
flight? He did want it to be clear this was a professional discussion,
but not be unwelcoming.

He'd met Kapera and Teseada before while serving at the same Weyrs as
them, which helped, some - he knew what kind of people they were.
Actively working with Kapera for the last Turn meant he had a good
assessment of her capabilities as a leader. Teseada he'd had a good
impression of, but he wanted to get re-acquainted with her, given that
he'd last been at Dragonsfall over a Turn and a half ago. With either of
them, he could probably get away with an informal dinner. But the last
goldrider was the biggest variable, since if he'd ever met Ashela
before, it would have been in passing at a Hatching - maybe she'd been
the representative of her Weyr to River Bluff at his only Hatching there
as Weyrleader? He'd met so many... but he couldn't put a face to the
name. And he didn't want word getting around that he'd treated any of
them differently.

Finally he settled on the idea of a compromise "working lunch" - or
dinner, depending on timing. He'd invite them to a meal in the Council
meeting room, with the weyrhold plans all spread out and information
about the project status ready to go. It would clearly be a work
meeting, but the food and drink would make it seem a little more casual.

So it was that when Ashela arrived, he had Rogueth reach out to Aglayath
to invite her to a meeting, while he sent a runner down to the kitchens
to have them prepare a meal if she accepted.

The goldrider received the message in the new weyr that Jayzine had
shown her to, surrounded by bags and bundles of her possessions and
wondering where to start. Gratified by the prompt invitation, she
responded at once. **Please tell Rogueth's rider that I would be
delighted to join him as soon as I've got you settled.**

}:I am settled now,:{ Aglayath replied from her couch, where she had
curled up to watch the unpacking with interest.

**I know, but I need a little time to prepare.** Fortunately, she'd
anticipated meeting the Weyrhold's leadership on arrival, and had packed
a few useful items in a small bag for just that eventuality. A clean
blouse, smarter than she'd wear for flight, a little perfume, a
hairbrush and a hand mirror... She took a moment to admire her
reflection before she left the weyr. Neat and professional, yet elegant
and feminine; just the image she wanted to project, at least until she
knew him better.

Basking in her dragon's admiration, Ashela left the weyr and followed
the directions Aglayath passed on to her to the council chamber. She
summoned a warm smile, knocked and pushed open the door.

"Lord Weyrholder." She offered a hand. "Thank you for seeing me so soon
after my arrival. I've been looking forward to meeting you."

K'ran had taken Rogueth's message that she would be available shortly.
He'd straightened the nice tunic that wasn't quite hatching or gather
grade but wasn't ordinary wear, and gotten some food ordered up, which
hadn't yet arrived. He took a seat on the side of the conference table
rather then at the head, and was looking over one of the plan drafts for
the wing's office section when Ashela arrived. He looked up - and up -
and realized that there was going to be several inches height difference
between them with him on the shorter end of it. **As usual,** he thought
with some resignation.

He stood up, stepped over to take her hand, and gave it a solid,
professional shake. "Goldrider Ashela, my duty to you and Aglayath,
welcome to Barrier Lake Weyrhold. We've been anticipating your arrival."

Her eyes sparkled with amusement, though not a hint of it reached her
face. She hadn't expected to be so much the taller, either, and wondered
if Yvonnes had deliberately kept that fact from her. If so, she'd
underestimated Ashela; she was far too astute to mention it. Though she
wondered if she'd have to rethink her plans. She imagined them attending
a Hatching or a Gather as Weyrleaders together. They'd look ridiculous.
Still, he was good-looking, otherwise, and polite...

"Thank you. Everyone's been so welcoming, I felt quite at home before
I'd been here an hour. You've done so much work already, making this
place a fine place for dragons to live." She glanced over his shoulder
at the papers on the table. "Are those the plans?"

"Please, take a seat anywhere," he said, sitting back in his old seat
and wondering where she'd choose.

"They are," he confirmed when they were both seated, pulling a couple
close to hand so he could answer any questions she had. "I've scheduled
an official meeting with the Leadership Council for when all the
goldriders have arrived so you can all be briefed together on how things
have been operating and how they will until we open formally, but I'd be
happy to answer any questions you have now and give you a more casual
introduction."

"Thank you. I do appreciate your taking the time, since you must be very
busy." Ashela considered, then chose the chair beside him, though
keeping a respectful space between them. She glanced over the plans. "Is
that the Hatching cavern? Aglayath is very interested in how that is
progressing. Only the best will do for her eggs," she added in amusement.

He slid it over so she could take a better look. "Yes, it is. Because
it's a fairly deep cavern, it will have the regular setup like other
ones with terraced stands for people to sit in and watch, but there will
be an additional level for people to look at. The irregular shape is
estimated for three clutches at once if the golds can tolerate the
closeness, even though I haven't seen that actually since the pre-Pass
major numbers."

Ashela traced the shape of the cavern with a finger. She liked the idea
of a large audience for her Hatchings; not so much sharing the sands
with another goldrider, or even two. "Aglayath can be rather possessive
of her space when she's guarding a clutch. But we'll deal with that if
the time comes. No sense in borrowing trouble." She leaned closer to
examine the rest of the plans, casually tucking a lock of her hair
behind one ear. "Which part of the Weyrhold are they working on now?"

"Right now, focus is on constructing weyrs to move dragonriders into.
I'm sure you saw the temporary cots and sand wallows up top when you
flew in?" he asked. "Neither of us are affected, but space for
dragonriders to not live exposed in the open is key. The Dining Hall and
areas for the Headwoman, storage, all got done early on. Weyrling
barracks are still under construction since they're not immediately
needed...infirmary's almost done but the dragon infirmary is taking more
time..." He ticked things off on his hands as he spoke.

She looked up from the plans at him and smiled, dazzlingly. "It sounds
as though you've got everything under control, Lord Weyrholder. Barrier
Lake is in good hands." Another sheet of paper caught her eye, this one
showing two spacious weyrs that must be for bronzes at least. The
Weyrleaders' quarters? Deciding not to show too much interest in those
for now, she leaned back in her chair. "So tell me, what can Aglayath
and I do to help? It would mean a lot to us to contribute to the
construction of our new home."

"I'll be holding a meeting of the leadership council in a few days to
lay out exactly what all the senior officials will be doing. Since we
don't have a set Weyrwoman yet, but since the goldriders coordinate with
the Headwoman anyway, I'll assign you to work with Jayzine for the next
few days." He waited to see how that was taken.

There was just a hint of a chill in Ashela's eyes. Assigned to the
Headwoman, who wasn't even a rider, as if she was a drudge or a
Candidate! That was hardly fitting, even if they were in the midst of
building a new Weyr. All the same, her pleasant expression didn't
falter. After all, it sounded like the other goldriders would be
subjected to the same treatment.

"Of course. I'd like to get to know the Headwoman better." She relaxed,
leaning on her elbow, and allowed a little mischief to lighten her tone.
"And you, of course, Lord Weyrholder. You've been so welcoming and
helpful. If there's anything I can do to assist you...personally, then
you only have to ask."

"I would like to have dinner with you to get to know you better, if
you're amenable. I'll let you settle in first, but perhaps in a day or two?"

"I'd be delighted." And she was - delighted and triumphant. This was an
opportunity, and she intended to make the most of it. Her mind was
already half on her choice of gown to wear. Maybe the blue - the color
suited her and it wasn't so revealing as to be unsubtle. "Any time you
like. I feel quite at home already."

K'ran smiled at that statement. "I'm pleased to hear that, lady Ashela.
I don't want to keep you from moving in. Is there anything else you need
before you want to do that?"

"Oh, no. The Headwoman has prepared everything I need. I'm really very
impressed." She stood gracefully, casually shaking out her golden-brown
hair and tugging an invisible crease from her blouse. "I do look forward
to our dinner together, Lord Weyrholder. Very much, indeed."

Last updated on the February 1st 2020

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Meeting A Lady