Fruitless Search
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Xanadu Weyr - Coastal Road

This coastal road runs parallel with the edge of beach that stretches endlessly beside the Caspian Lake. From coast to inland the dunes of the beach grow smaller and smaller until they eventually peter out into nothing but small moguls in the sand. The path is eventually seen to be blocked by a river that reaches the lake just south of the point where the road turns west and crosses a grassy meadow towards a sturdy wooden bridge that can be seen in the distance.


Hold visitation, morning sweeps and drills are finished and ordinarily it would be the office that sees the Weyrsecond and Junior Weyrwoman plodding through paperwork, but the weather is clear and it's a fine afternoon and Thea has noted that D'had is absent. The poor man has had more of her attention lately, whether he's aware or not, hopefully not. She's been trying to keep him from seeing her worry these past few days since his family's ship went missing. A surreptitious brown shadow has been watching and thus it is before he manages to leave the Weyr that a footfall sounds behind him the clearing beside the weyrbarn where Seryth and Siebith curl up and there is Thea, dressed in flight leathers. "I'm coming with." Not asking.

D'had looks like he's about to squelch that idea, or at least try, as he finishes his check of straps and turns towards the sound of Thea's arrival. "Fine," he agrees, a defeated sound to that word though they haven't argued over it. "If you see anything let me know." In otherwords, no going off on your own. He'll deal with anything they might find.

Seryth is already wearing her straps, having flown to Rubicon earlier, so Thea is ready to go. Yay for forethought! Thea is braced for that protest and when it doesn't come, she almost doesn't seem to know how to respond. Finally, "I promise I will." All the carefully-planned arguments for going fly out the window while she blinks at D'had, that concern she's been keeping from her expression floods her face. She steps closer. "We'll find them. There were no storms…" It's a weak reassurance at best. His family is how late into port now?

D'had nods just once. "I know," he replies before swinging up into place between Siebith's neckridges. While he's buckling himself in the blue steps off away from the gold to have enough space to take off. Coordinates are shared with Seryth before he blinks between, but there's no waiting for her until the other side of the jump.

D'had's behavior is unusual enough that it has Thea frowning in growing disquiet. Arms that had lifted to him, drop as he swings aboard Siebith without seeming to note them and she steps towards Seryth, biting an annoyed exclamation off as he poofs Between without waiting. If he's hoping they mess up and arrive somewhere else, he's going to be sadly disappointed, for they emerge just a bit behind and to one side, close enough that they call across if need be. Her weyrmate gets a dark glance before she leans over to see where they are, since she never thought to ask -which- port his family didn't arrive at.


Somewhere over the Southern Sea


Siebith senses that Seryth’s gentle mist curls with a thought that is entirely the gold's, tattling as it were « She thinks he is too much in his own head these days. » It could be a question.

D'had waited on the other side of that jump, Siebith circling slowly. Now whether waiting was dragon or rider's idea… that's another story. Close enough to shout between, that may be, but D'had doesn't rather letting the blue relay directions. Below there's no port, apparently he's on to looking elsewhere so as to where they are exactly it could be hard to say.

Seryth senses that Siebith's ocean waves lap gently at the shore that is Seryth's mind. « He doesn't want her to know how worried he is. » A thought intended only for the other dragon. « He says to fly northwest. She knows what it looks like? » And just in case an image of the missing ship is shared.

Thea wouldn't know whose idea it was, only that it's unusual for him not to wait. That and…something seems… off between them, understandable though it is, but she doesn't have to like it. The coast below is unfamiliar to her, thanks to never being allowed to fly sweeps, this fact doesn't help her mood either. There's a grim nod to something Seryth relays to her and then she settles down to scan the water below, her face turned away from the man and the blue over there. Silence from her, perhaps pointedly so.

Siebith senses that Seryth takes her time answering, her shores fog-shrouded and colored with the pique of her rider, « She knows. » There's the sense she's referring to more than just the ship, although the private comments between dragons have not been shared. After a pause, the queen adds, « She makes plans. » Her mists darken with the sharing of that, uneasy.

D'had should perhaps be more talkative about things, but alas he's not. Instead it’s without a word on his part that Siebith sweeps off in the other direction, putting a gap between himself and the gold to spread out the sweep area that much more.

No, he isn't, is he? It's something Thea deals with on a regular basis but times like these are especially difficult. She notes both out of the corner of her eye and via Seryth that widening gap though she doesn't turn her head back his way. It's the invisible gap that is bothering her, however but she says nothing aloud or through Seryth. Her main focus, is below on the waters - it's why she's here after all. The seas would boil and evaporate if her glare could only do it. Seryth, finding the blue uncommunicative, falls silent, like her rider, keeping her worries to herself.

As they fly on there's a few notes shared via Siebith. Left, right, adjusting the flight pattern. A reminder here and there to look for something like this or that. A good few hours easily go by in that uncommunicative state, but all that looking and still nothing.

It's tiring, this flying with no talking, no nothing, but Thea can be stubborn, so she doesn't attempt to break that silence even once. Finally a flicker of a glance to be sure D'had over there doesn't see her hand creep back to rub at the small of her back, and then re-grip the flight lines, her eyes back to the water below. Doing her best to… if it even IS helping. Searching. Being there for him.

Tiring, no doubt, and this is what he's been doing every afternoon since he realized they weren't going to show. It’s no wonder he's been so tired in the evenings. D'had doesn't notice that move of hers, and after awhile longer with still nothing found the directive comes from Siebith that its time to head back.

No wonder indeed! Seryth follows smartly Between and when the pair touch down, Thea's arms twitch, then she sits there with the flight lines gripped in her gloved hands, by all appearances making no move to dismount. She just stares at her hands. Blink. Okay hands. Let. Go. Shouldn't have gripped those straps so hard all those hours.

D'had slips down easily enough, though she should know him well enough to be able to tell that he is tired and sore from that long flight spent searching. "Come on," he says gently, having stepped over to Seryth's side to offer a hand down to Thea. "Lets get some dinner and some rest." If the twins will let them rest that is.

Thea shifts her attention from her hands to the man down there beside Seryth. Right. Easier said than done! Unable to get her hands to open, she mutters something. A delay perhaps? Hard to unsnap the hooks holding her into the harness with her hands curled up into fists from hours of tension and stiff from Between as well. Seryth rumble-chuckles and sinks to the ground. She's tired and unused to flying straight for so long.

D'had waits semi-patiently. He gives her a minute and then repeats himself, "Come on." A bit later he realizes just what the problem might be and as Seryth sinks down he climbs up, the fact that he's going to shared with the gold by the blue a second before. "Don't hold so tight next time," he notes, an amusement tinge in the words as he presses a kiss to her cheek and helps her down. "I'll take care of straps if you wanna find somethin' ta eat.."

Seryth doesn't seem to mind at all that Siebith's rider is climbing up. She's lowered her head, neck snaking out to rest on the ground with a tired churr sent the blue's way. Thea doesn't quite meet D'had's eyes as she receives that kiss to her cheek and her fingers are peeled from those straps. Once they're open, she flexes them open-closed, open-closed a few times before allowing him to help her down. "I'll try not to do it when we go tomorrow," she assures him dryly with a glance though her lashes at him to see his reaction to that. As for those straps, she shakes her head, stubbornly. She can handle this! "I'm just a little stiff." The words are uttered from between tight lips as she turns to relieve the queen of them.

D'had nods. "Alright then," he replies. If she wants to deal with her own straps then he'll let her, turning to take care of unbuckling and removing those on Siebith. There's nothing said about going out tomorrow. He's already said next time, so perhaps he was already thinking such. Hard to say for certain though. "Just don't push it," he notes, going on to finish strap removal and coil them up.

Just don't push it?! This is SO not like D'had. Thea is left to stare after him as he walks away. Well then. Troubled, she slips the straps off of Seryth, coiling them over one shoulder as she goes. Into the house to hang them and get something hot for them both to eat. Thankfully the nanny watching the twins has already put them to bed and they're asleep, the stew she'd made is set to simmer and soon heated. Bread, ale, the sweet she made yesterday, all set out on the table. Whatever else she can think of to bring him some sort of comfort. And silence. He seems to want that.

D'had follows inside after one last check of Siebith. Once inside he hangs his straps beside her and continues further into the weyr. "Smells good," he notes, turning a hint of that smirk of his up for his weyrmate. He wouldn't mind some noise, he just really isn't sure what to say about anything just now, and so as is him… there's silence.

And since Thea doesn't know why he's being so MUCH more silent than he is, it's only so long until she begins pacing with the effort to curb questions and comments. Such pacing hopefully disguised in pulling out his chair and heading to the kitchen for little things like salt. Back for pepper. Napkins. More ale. She reaches a hand up to massage her jaw, the muscles bunched from clenching her teeth. She has plenty of things she could say…

D'had notices her pacing, though he doesn't put two and two together so quickly. "Sit down," he comments, turning a glance to her as she passes. "Eat." She was out there as much as he was today. He knows how tired he is, he can only guess to her. Another pass and he reaches for her hand, wrist, arm, whatever's in easiest reach at that exact moment, aiming to pull her to him and down onto his lap having turned in his chair to make that possible.

Distracted with her own thoughts, Thea merely nods; she will. In a minute. Or so her acknowledgement of his request seems to say. She has a loaf of fragrant bread in her hand on her return, mutters something about a knife as she places it beside D'had's bowl and turns to head back. Her wrist is snagged and she yields to that tug, too tired to pull away, or maybe simply unexpected, thus she lands in his lap and blinks at him, trying to read him without asking anything of him. "I'm in your way," she notes quietly, her glance sliding away from him.

D'had shakes his head, wrapping arms around her waist. "No," he replies, repeating the word again, "No, you helped." That said he rests his chin on her shoulder, holding his cheek close to hers. "Covered twice the area today with your help."

Thea turns her head back to him with those words, she hesitates before her arms slide 'round his neck, returning his hug and pressing her cheek to his in a comforting gesture. Silent for a few moments after he says she helped, there's nothing save her breathing softly that moves his arms as she inhales, "We'll find them, Donn. We have to." She pulls back enough to see his face, tipping her forehead against his. "I'm worried," she tells him softly, reluctant to put it into words, apology in her tone for doing so. "There's been no signs of her. What could have happened?"

D'had pulls a bit of a smile for her as she turns. "I know," he replies. They will find them. He might wear himself out in the process, but they will find them. As for worried, he doesn't comment on that. "I don't know, is the reply to the last, a shake of his head going along with the words. Of course he has his suspicions, but that doesn't mean he's going to worry her more with them. "I'm just happy I know where you and the kids are."

D'had gets a bit of a narrowed look. Somehow Thea doesn't quite believe that. He's been on the sea and must know some things that ought to delay or sidetrack ships. She presses against that invisible gap between them, "There's been no reports of wreckage spotted…" Where she and the kids are is nodded to as she lifts her forehead from his with fire snapping in her icy green eyes, softly bitter, "It's the least I can do to help. I should let you eat."

D'had shakes his head, "I'm good," he replies about eating. "You should eat," he turns it back on her. "And you pacing the weyr isn't going to help anything." A quirk of a smile hits again and he leans in to steal a kiss. "And then bed. Dunno about you," he has an idea, but he'll let her pretend, "But I'm beat."

But he hasn't eaten? This draws another long look, interrupted by that kiss he steals which this time she doesn't really even try to return, nor does she smile back. "Donn…" with a sigh, Thea shakes her head, shuts her lips firmly and slips from his lap. "Not hungry." With quick movements she clears the table, returning the uneaten food to the cooler. No comments on whether she's tired or not. He'd have to be blind not to see she's upset, but she doesn't try to talk about it. Silent into the bed where she lies there in the dark with her jaw and hands clenched staring at the ceiling and trying not to cry. Helpless sucks. Watching Donn suffer and shut her out sucks even more.

D'had frowns when she pulls back and clears the table. He wasn't expecting much in return, but that isn't what he was expecting either. He remains in his chair, silent while she goes about that. Finally standing he takes care of the last few things on the table before following into the bedroom. "Thea," he tries as he crawls in beside her, an arm reaching over her waist as he rests beside her. "Thanks." He would never have asked her to go out on that search with him, but he does appreciate her being there with him. "You being here…" It helps. He leaves it at that though lifting his head to leave a goodnight kiss on her cheek before lying back beside her and soon drifting off to sleep.

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