A Request and a Gift

Writers: Estelle, Miriah
Date Posted: 1st July 2019

Characters: J'ackt, Alyena
Description: Alyena meets J'ackt and receives something in return
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 11, day 15 of Turn 9
Notes: Mentioned: Grevan, N'vanik and Cyradis (Not by Name)

J'ackt

The dining cavern was bustling with weyrfolk coming in for the midday
meal. There were crafters, herdsmen, a group of laughing young people
with the faint scent of sweetsand from the laundry. Children ran
about, shepherded by foster mothers or harpers. And among them all
were the dragonriders, confident in their riding leathers or
wingrider's knots.

Alyena sat alone at the end of a table, trying to make herself as
small and insignificant as possible. This was her second visit to the
Weyr, this time with the Harper who would be defending Grevan at his
trial. Although she'd been desperate to see her son again, the sight of
him had been distressing. Locked up alone for more than a month now, he
was thinner and paler than ever, despite his reassurances that he was
being fed. She was sure he had given himself up to despair and she had
no idea how to bring him back from the dark place they'd driven him to.

She would be returning to the Hold alone, since the harper needed to
speak with some of the witnesses, and she'd been told to wait there
until a rider could be found to take her back to Emerald Falls. She
hoped it wouldn't be long. Every time a dragonrider passed, she
wondered if he had been one of the ones who had hurt her son. Or if...

She wasn't quite sure what made her do it, some impulse of morbid
curiosity, but she turned in her seat as a girl passed, carrying a
tray of food. "Excuse me, can you tell me if J'ackt, Zith's rider, is
here?"

"I think so...yes." She pointed. "He's over there."

Alyena followed her gaze to a tall, blond young man, sitting alone.
She could hardly believe her eyes. He was so young! How was it
possible that someone like that had destroyed her husband's life? He
couldn't be much older than Grevan. "Are you sure?"

"Everyone knows him." The girl grinned and left to join her friends.

Alyena hesitated, watching the dragonrider. He had taken so much from
her, from her family. But if there was even a chance it would help her
son, she had to try. Before she could lose her nerve, she got to her
feet and went over to his table.

He was just finishing his meal, preparing to rise from the table when
the woman approached. He looked up, not recognizing her and she wore
no knots to give him any indication of who she might be. His brow
knit, just a little. "Yes?"

She lowered her eyes, as if in respect. A bronzerider would expect that,
and it wasn't too hard. She'd been used to showing deference to men,
even young ones, since childhood.

"My name is Alyena, I'm from Emerald Falls Hold." **You killed my
husband.** No, she couldn't say that. She concentrated on keeping her
voice steady. "I have a son...Grevan."

J'ackt's expression changed as she spoke, going from distance
politeness to wariness. He stiffened as she finished, hands going flat
on the table before he took a breath and leaned back, jaw twitching.
"Really. You're his mother?" He exhaled slowly, then rose slowly. He
wanted to ask if she'd helped plan the attack on him, but bit back the
question, not wanting to create a scene in the middle of the dining
hall. "I guess you're here to see him then."

"Yes, I've seen him. He's not in good shape..." Alyena caught herself.
She wasn't here to make accusations. **Ask about him.** She wasn't sure
she could pretend to be concerned, but it would be polite, and might
help. "Did he - I mean, have you...recovered?"

J'ackt looked down at her from his height and spoke softly to avoid
others from hearing his words, but he wasn't gentle. "He tried to kill
me...nearly succeeded. I could have killed him, but I didn't. I chose
not to. And no, I haven't. Not completely. They don't that I will ever
completely recover." His lips thinned as he mastered his temper at the
memory and took another breath, counting backwards. Grevan's mother
had not attacked him and he'd have to remember that. "So why are you
coming to me?"

"I have two other children." Alyena made herself look at him, tried to
think of Furayl and Evalya, and not whether she was supposed to feel
grateful that he hadn't killed her son as well as her husband. He'd been
hurt, too. She needed his help. "They're still young. Grevan is the only
one who was strong enough for farm work. It's already difficult...
Without him, I don't know what will happen to us." She took a deep
breath. "Please, if you have any influence with the Weyrleaders, ask
them to let him come home. I know he regrets what he did."

He stared at her, his face blank for a long moment, amazed by the
request. Her plight as a mother did tug at him, as did the thought of
what would happen to her children, but to allow Grevan to just go home
was unthinkable. "He tried to kill me and you want him to go home? I
heard him tell other riders that he hoped I'd die. That would have
sent my dragon /between/. It would have killed my Zith." His voice
held a hint of the fury that he was keeping tightly under control. "I
don't even know if I'll ever be able to fly Thread properly again to
protect your family and you want me just to forget it happened and let
him go home so he can plan worse? I can understand why you all are
angry and I get why you're pleading for him. You're his Mam. Mine
would have done the same. But I won't ask that he just get sent home.
I don't believe that he regrets what he did; I think he regrets that I
lived."

"But he's not like that. He's young, he lost his father..." Alyena's
voice faltered as she remembered Cronfur when they'd brought him back
from the Weyr, the ruin of his face. The damage this dragonrider had
done. Could still do, if she angered him. Suddenly, she was more
frightened than when she'd faced the Lord Holder, than when they'd gone
/between/. Her throat closed up and every part of her screamed to back
away, to run.

She couldn't, though. She was the daughter of a guard, and her son was
in danger. She couldn't be afraid.

"If you won't let him go," she said quietly, "would you ask them to let
him live? Please, bronzerider. It would give me hope, to know that I'll
see him again."

The fear in her expression, though brief, was enough to rein in his
temper completely. J'ackt sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose, a
little frustrated. The woman could have struck him repeatedly and he'd
never have struck back. "I'm not going to hurt you. I wouldn't. And
it's not up to me whether he stays or goes either." He exhaled, her
plea tugging at him despite his residual anger. He could picture his
own mother...he shook that thought aside.

He knew what it was like to struggle and while he felt no guilt about
his fight with Grevan's father, he felt for the woman and her family.
"I can't promise anything." He sighed and spoke softly. "What does
your family need right now?"

Alyena's lips tightened for a moment. Her first thought was to say that
she didn't want anything from the Weyr, and certainly not from him. But
the scents of baking bread and cooked food filled the dining hall,
making her feel almost faint with hunger. They had so much... "I need to
feed the children." She wanted to cry with shame. Hers was a good
family, they had always been able to provide for themselves.

Faranth, he knew what it was to be hungry. "Wait here." He strode
purposefully to a staff member he happened to know well. It only took
a flash of a charming smile and a few words before the young woman
scurried off towards the kitchen. He waited, glancing at Alyena once
before the young woman came back with a large bulging satchel. He
murmured his thanks, bent to brush his lips over a bright red cheek,
then returned to Alyena. He looked down at her, pursed his lips in
thought, then gestured to her. "Follow me. I'll take you home."

A look of doubt crossed her face. Her first thought was that she didn't
want this dragonrider anywhere near her home or her children. If he knew
where they lived, he could take revenge on them for his injury and
no-one would know or care. She had promised she wouldn't put them at risk.

If he really wanted revenge, though, he didn't have to do anything. He
could just leave them to the slow descent into poverty that had already
begun after a month without Grevan. Alyena's eyes locked on to the
satchel, temptation warring with fear. For once, she longed to give
Furayl and Evalya a good meal. They could go to bed with full bellies,
like they had in the old days at the Hold.

Hoping she wasn't making a terrible mistake, she bowed her head and
followed him out of the dining hall.

It didn't take long to summon Zith or to get him strapped up. The big
bronze watched the unfamiliar woman with interest, but didn't get too
close, heeding his rider's restraining thoughts. Instead, he waited
patiently and when requested, bent down and proffered his foot for
Alyena to climb. J'ackt was brisk and quiet as he assisted the woman,
only asking where her home was in relation to Emerald Falls main Hold.
He secured Alyena in the straps and at his signal, Zith leaped into
the air.

Alyena gasped and clung on to the straps, watching as the Weyr cliffs
fell away below her. The bronze's wingbeats were even more powerful than
those of the blue who'd brought her here. Wind whipped at her hair and
stole her breath, and despite everything, she felt joy bubbling up
inside her, that she'd had the chance to experience this for herself. It
was strange, she thought, that at the time when she should have been
most afraid, she wasn't, at all.

She didn't even have time to think about the jump /between/ before it
happened. Then, a few heartbeats later, they appeared again over Emerald
Falls Hold and were flying along the road, the distance that had taken
her so long to walk that morning covered in minutes. She was worried for
a moment that they'd missed the cothold, but then she recognised it in
the distance. Even from the air it looked run-down compared to the
others, the outer fields overgrown where she and Grevan hadn't had the
time or strength to tend them, one of the fences down. Fighting back her
shame, she touched the dragonrider's shoulder and pointed.

With care, Zith landed near the cothold. J'ackt scanned the area; from
his time observing healthy cotholds to decide what to steal from them,
he'd learned which would be worth the trouble and which would not.
This cothold...he wouldn't even have considered it. It was clear the
place had little. He frowned, carefully unbuckling the older woman and
with surprising gentleness, helped her down to the ground. Handing her
the satchel full of food, he glanced around again, getting his
bearings and relating it to what he knew of the area. He turned to
her, looked at the surroundings again and made a decision. "I'll be
right back."

Mounting Zith, they leaped into the air and blinked /between/.
Calculating what the family might need, and knowing where to find it,
J'ackt directed Zith. It only took a short amount of time before they
reemerged from /between/ over the cothold. In each of Zith's taloned
hands hung a fat, wild wherry. He landed with more difficulty, but
retained his hold on each. J'ackt climbed down from the bronze and
looked at Alyena. "If you have a rope, I'll skin and butcher these for
you."

She'd half expected them not to return and had felt a jolt of fear when
the bronze dragon reappeared in the sky above them. Alyena had told the
children to stay inside and start preparing the meal. Though she didn't
look back, she could imagine them with their noses pressed to the
window, watching.

"I have a rope. Around the side of the cot." She caught the faint scent
of blood in the air, remembered with a sharp pang how Grevan had said
he'd bring back game for them. "I'll show you." Her son had shown her
how to do it, but she'd only tried a few times. Gutting wherries wasn't
a skill she'd ever imagined she'd need. But then, she'd had to learn to
do a lot of things since her husband died.

He nodded, found the rope and strung up the first wherry on a low
hanging branch of a nearby tree. He worked quickly, but obviously
favored his left side, though he didn't complain. Zith watched for a
moment before a silent request sent him towards the unplowed field.
While J'ackt silently worked, the bronze dug his talons into the soft
soil, raking it thoroughly.

J'ackt knew what he was doing and it wasn't long before the first
wherry was gutted, skinned, and pieced into large hunks of meat. A
sheen of sweat covered his brow as he strung the other up and quickly
did the same, leaving behind bare carcasses. By the time he was done,
J'ackt was bloody, sweaty and tired, but it was done. Two wherry hides
and plenty of meat for the family had been laid aside. Wiping his brow
with a forearm, J'ackt cleaned his blade against his tunic and
sheathed it. "That should last you a good while. Or you can trade it
and the hides." He shrugged just a little, his shoulder now feeling
sore and aching. "Have a good evening. We have to get back."

Alyena had watched silently for a while before going back inside the
cothold. She returned just as he was finishing, carrying a cup of cool
water from the well.

"Here." She offered it to him. "Before you go."

He almost accepted it, but remembered quickly what forgetting caution
had nearly cost him. Instead, he shook his head, giving a brief smile.
"No, thank you." He inclined his head. "I hope this helps in some way.
Have a good night." He turned to Zith, who was preening dirt from
underneath his talons before bending to allow J'ackt to climb upwards.
J'ackt nodded to her again after strapping himself in and settling his
helmet upon his head.

For a moment she was confused - why wouldn't someone accept water, after
working in the day's heat? It was only once she'd watched him climb to
the bronze dragon's back that she realised and stared up at him in shock
and sudden understanding of just how grave her son's crime had been. She
was a proud holder and would never harm a guest, no matter what he'd
done - even to her own husband - but that meant nothing any more.

Lifting her chin, she raised the cup to her lips, her throat working as
she drained it in one swallow. Then she turned and walked back to the
cothold without looking back.

J'ackt watched, but said nothing as she walked back into the cothold.
"You're welcome," he muttered softly. His arm, side and shoulder ached
and he was exhausted. **Lets go home.** Zith leaped into the air and
disappeared /between/.

Last updated on the July 22nd 2019

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A Request and a Gift