These Tender Thoughts

Writers: Avery, Yvonne
Date Posted: 17th February 2020

Characters: J'nus, Kapera
Description: J'nus and Kapera have a private moment and, as usual, dance around their feelings.
Location: Barrier Lake Weyr
Date: month 13, day 11 of Turn 9
Notes: Mentioned: Jayzine, Ashela, Teseada, Cyradis
Notes: backdated because of Avery LOA

Kapera

J'nus stretched his legs out in front of him and stared out over the
lake. Weyrlake. His arms and shoulders ached pleasantly as a reminder of
a hard day and he was acutely aware of the meat pies and other goodies
in the basket at his feet. The sun had nearly set and the sky was bathed
in pinks and golds fading to indigo, and Timor was rising to the east.
Sitting out like this while the sky darkened and the air cooled reminded
him of when he was younger and still travelling with the caravans.

A sound behind him made him turn, and the bronzerider smiled. "Good
evening, Kapera."

"J'nus, I'm not late, am I? I wanted to change."

The goldrider had taken time to go back to her weyr and change to
indicate she was clearly Off Duty. Riyanth had been informed of such,
too, so that she wasn't to be interrupted. She was wearing a loose,
flowy dress in the pale blue color of Dolphins Cove. Her hair was
gathered in a simple runner's tail, easy to put up or take down, rather
than the braids she wore and tucked under a cap while laboring like earlier.

Her eyes roved over the two chairs and the view. "This is lovely."

"Isn't it?" J'nus looked back at the lake after a moment. "It's not
quite the ocean, but it's certainly something."

"You lived near the ocean at what, two Weyrs?" she asked. River Bluff
and Dolphin Cove, she couldn't remember if he'd stayed anywhere else but
Dragonsfall. Which had the two lakes they both remembered, but.

"Just the two Weyrs," the bronzerider replied. "I like living by the
water, ocean or not."

"I like this lake a lot better. The part where it looks out into the
east so you can see the sun rise over it and light right into the
weyrbowl, the dawn glimmering on it. Have you seen that yet?"

J'nus thought for a moment. "I've seen plenty of sunrises here, but I
admit that I haven't _noticed_ any of them. By the time the sun is up,
we're working."

"What are you assigned to working on? Are you a strong laborer?" she teased.

J'nus laughed as he passed Kapera the picnic basket. "Kopth certainly
is! We've been hauling. Today it was gypsum direct from the mines for
plaster. Although I think we're doing timber tomorrow, mostly for
fencing, I think. What have you been doing?"

"Jayzine's ordering the goldriders around to various projects. I
volunteered to work with records, making sure that room's getting set up
right, helping her with supplies and inventory work."

"The Records Room must be nearly empty." J'nus paused, thinking about
the shelves that would someday hold the records for the Weyr.
Impressions, births, deaths, Wing rosters, weather reports, and reports
from the surrounding territory would crowd the shelves soon enough. "Are
we taking the records from River Bluff Weyr?"

"Yes, since we're inheriting the territory, it makes sense. The clutch
records with so many riders coming back are valuable, the territory
reports and histories are essential. Making a list of what else we'll
need to bring in or make up for is interesting," she said.

"I can see why it's such a project. Organizing all that, after it's
been moved across the continent, plus all these new riders coming
in..." J'nus shook his head. "I think I prefer moving things. It's
much simpler."

"It's worth it to see everything grow. I mean, _founding_ a whole new
Weyr, that's an opportunity that doesn't happen often I'm sure."

"Not since before the Pass started." It had been quite the time, then.
Clutches were suddenly doubling or tripling in size, Weyrling barracks
were overflowing, and the skies were filled with jewel-bright wings
within the space of a decade. The bronzerider was quiet for a moment.
"It's funny. All the records and histories that I've heard never seem
to say that a Pass lasts this long. But it's been Turns, now.
Sometimes it feels like it'll never end."

She started taking things out from the basket, finally, while he
talked. She didn't interrupt him, just beamed when she pulled out two
meat pies.

"They must end. They can't go on forever, or we wouldn't get
Intervals. One day, this will all be done and Pern will be safe
again." She extended one hand to him with a meat pie, used the handoff
as an excuse to skim her fingers over his.

He smiled. The goldrider's touch always made him smile. "And I hope to
see the next Interval. It's been a long time coming. If the Pass
continues, it won't be long until we have children Standing to Impress
who have never known a planet without Thread."

"That sounds amazing for them. To not go into it knowing what the
large clutch number means...to not have to fly and die... But it won't
be any of our eggs they stand for."

The bronzerider blinked. "Why not?"

"I wonder if Riyanth will be rising still when the Pass is over," she
confessed. "Since she's been so inconsistent."

J'nus took a moment to weigh his words. "Maybe," he said. "Maybe not.
But my guess is that she will. She's young and healthy, and her
inconsistencies have had good reasons. And who knows when the Pass
will end. Maybe next Turn. Maybe in two."

"I hope so," she said. She was quiet as she nibbled at the food. Then,
she blurted out, "Is it so wrong I want to win?"

"I hope not. Because then I'd be wrong for wanting you too." J'nus
held his hand out to her. "You're good as Weyrwoman. I saw you. I
remember. And I trust you. Otherwise I wouldn't have cleaned out my
weyr and followed you here."

She took his hand and, in a reversal of typical protocols, brought it
up to her lips to kiss. "I trust you, too. I wanted you here. I want
this to be ours and lead it together."

He laughed. "I suppose that we'll see what happens when Riyanth
rises," the bronzerider said. "But it's nice to know that you have a
preference."

"Of course I have a preference, and of course it's you." She stroked
her thumb across his hand. "If she doesn't rise first... or if she
does and it's not you... You wouldn't go back to Dragonsfall or
Dolphin Cove, would you?" she asked, hesitantly, after a moment.

The bronzerider shook his head. "Likely not. I have no desire to pack
up my weyr again," he said lightly. Although his response was light
hearted, he'd realized some time ago that he wanted to be where Kapera
was. Stupid as it was. It wasn't as if they were weyrmated, or that
either of them were exclusive. But they'd been... together, now, for
Turns. Sometimes lovers, sometimes friends. When he'd heard that she
was transferring, it wasn't much of a choice to follow. Although it
had been nice that she'd asked.

"If I'm not Weyrwoman, Cyradis said I could come back to Dolphin Cove.
But I'd like to stay here and keep building something new."

J'nus smiled. "Who would you rather work with, Ashela or Teseada?"

The answer to that one was easy. "Teseada, of course. We worked
together in the past and I trust her. I just don't know if she trusts
me, back."

She was silent a moment. Teseada had been left in an unfortunate
position when Kapera had fallen ill and had taken up Weyrwoman duties
on herself for a time before Hygalia, and later Saibra, arrived. She
was smart, and competent. And Onnyth had thrown a gold egg before. If
Teseada was the Weyrwoman, she'd well deserve it. And if Teseada
didn't hold a grudge about how she'd been left with Dragonsfall,
Kapera could see herself working as her Second. Or Teseada working as
hers.

"Ashela...reminds me too much of myself. She's probably slept with
almost all the bronzeriders and ignored everyone else. Getting them
all invested in her, dancing for her favor, hoping they could be _her_
Weyrleader. But she doesn't care for any of them." Kapera knew she'd
been much like that herself, in the past, and she grimaced at the
description. She sounded so shallow, so contemptuous. One bronzerider
had broken her heart because he wanted to win her dragon, and she'd
become a heartbreaker just like him. How had anyone liked her?

A sudden thought occurred to her, jealousy and possessiveness flaring
rampant. She and J'nus weren't exclusive, but someone like _Ashela_
with him... "She didn't try you, did she...?"

"Me? No." J'nus turned his attention to his meat pie. "Why do you ask?"

"She might consider you as a contender for Weyrleader and thus seek
your attentions, of course," she said, her tone slightly sharp. "And I
don't want her to seek you out."

The bronzerider smiled. "As much as I'd like to be Weyrleader, I would
rather be _your_ Weyrleader than anyone else's."

"No wandering eye for Ashela, hmm?" She meant it to be teasing but the
thread of possessiveness continued to lace through her feelings.

J'nus looked up from his dinner. The setting sun had haloed Kapera's
dark hair in red, and the sky above was a million shades of indigo
dusk. "The only thing I see right now is you."

A slow smile curved her lips and gentled her face, showing emotions
she normally only opened up to around Riyanth alone. "You're such a
charmer, and I love - it." She hitched for just the smallest second.

"I speak nothing but truth," the bronzerider said lightly. That
pause-- had it been there? Or had he imagined it? He picked up his
meat pie to distract himself. "The view is beautiful."

"It's a beautiful view of a lovely weyrhold. I can't believe we're
really making this place, designing it and bringing it to life. It's a
project for the history books."

He was grateful that Kapera had followed him into safer conversational
topics. "And as the first Weyrwoman, your name will be in them."

"I hope you're right," she said, the soft smile remaining on her face.
"Pass me another pie, would you?"

Last updated on the May 31st 2020

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These Tender Thoughts