Out with it all!

Writers: Anaria, Suzee
Date Posted: 16th June 2011

Characters: Mardria, Y'gel
Description: Mardria comes to pump Y'gel but gets something else entirely.
Location: River Bluff Weyr
Date: month 2, day 19 of Turn 6
Notes: Mentions: Rhosyn, U'das, K'sedel

Y'gel

Mardria was a woman with a mission - and that mission was gossip. One
of her friends had caught a glimpse of the Weyrwoman at Dolphin Cove,
and had sworn up and down on the shell of her dragon that Rhosyn had
been there with Y'gel. More interesting than that was the fact that
she'd apparently turned up in a dress that was so revealing that
people thought she was in her night clothes. Once she had completed
her Apprentice chores for the day, and Y'gel had ducked into his
office for a moment, she swooped in like a dragon on a herdbeast.

"Alright, what happened?" She demanded, sitting down on one of the
chairs in Y'gel's office.

Y'gel feigned surprise, "What do you mean?" Of course he had no idea
what she had heard or what kinds of things were already circulating.

"About Weyrwoman Rhosyn? And the Hatching? And the dress she wore? Did
she really go off with their Weyrleader?" She demanded, leaning
forward. "Out with it all!"

He laughed and shook his head. It wouldn't matter what he said, he
knew it would be embroidered and embellished until it lost all touch
with reality. "Her dress was beautiful. Briata made it." He'd been
either with or near her most of the night. He took his job as escort
fairly seriously. "The two of us had drinks with _both_ the
Weyrleaders." He thought a moment and added. "We were in the middle of
a crowd at the time Janani and I went to get drinks for everyone. I
don't think that constitutes 'running off.'"

"So she didn't spend the night there? But what of his visits to her at
the Weyr here?!" Mardria demanded. There was a sordid story in her
somewhere, that she knew! She made a mental note to speak to Briata
the next time she needed a particularly scandalous gown designed.

"No, she did not spend the night there. I brought her home myself." He
shook his head. "Did people take as much notice of who visited _your_
weyr over the turns Mardria." He raised an eyebrow. "I'm sure that
would have been a very interesting litany. You were quite famous you
know." He didn't really think such a tactic would put her off the
trail for long but it was worth a try.

"Hah, most people couldn't remember a list that long," Mardria said
boastfully. "Although the times when I had a weyrmate I was certainly
faithful enough. Beyond that, I'm a greenrider. It's expected of me."

He chuckled, "Oh don't I know!" he sat back and rubbed the side of his
nose as he remembered. "You were quite the talk of the weyrling
barracks when I was coming up. I think you wrote the book on
greenrider behavior. Though I don't think anyone else had your style."
His eyes twinkled at her. "I even imagined myself in love at one
point, but that was before I met Liranet..." his voice trailed off as
her lovely face swam up in his minds eye. "Ah well, memories."

Mardria's face flushed brightly. "I had many a man in my bed, but I
always seemed to be alone in the end," she said, shaking her head in
disappointment. All of them preceded me in death, even my two sons."
She felt tears stinging at her eyes, and didn't bother to hold them
back. "They don't tell you how hard it is to be retired from duty with
no one to spend your free time with."

His eyes filled with sympathy. So many riders lost. That was part of
the job. You did your part while others around you fell to the enemy.
Then one day... it was your turn. Only it had missed her, or Soravath
was that good. Time and time again those around her fell. Yet here she
was. Success had a steep price. "Mostly because they don't know
Mardria. Very few riders reach your stage in life."

"Nowadays no, but when I was a girl, before the Plague.... we didn't
have Thread. We didn't have restrictions on what crafts women could
participate in. Shard, I don't recall as many devastating storms and
earthshakes as we have now either. In the time I've been alive, all of
Pern has changed, but sometimes I feel like I haven't changed with
it," Mardria said thoughtfully.

"There's nothing to say you have to change Mardria," he replied. "We
can use you here as long as you wish to be involved. You've already
contributed significantly with your poultice. We're using it on U'das'
Zackariath and it seems to be helping him. I've also talked with
K'sedel about it." He didn't want to scare her but he added. "I'm even
thinking of presenting it to the other Dragonhealer Masters at the
Emerald Falls Gather as a possible addition to standard treatments for
arthritic dragons!"

Mardria blinked in surprise for a few moments, "Re-really?!" She
asked, excited. "Oh Y'gel!" She stood up and threw her arms around the
younger man in excitement. "I've wanted to contribute ever since
Threadfall started, but no one ever really wanted an old lady like
myself!"

He chuckled in surprise as she threw her arms around his neck and
hugged her back briefly. "Trust me Mardria, you've contributed. More
than you know."

Last updated on the June 19th 2011

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Out with it all!