Xanadu Weyr - Weyrsecond and Jr Weyrwomans' Office
Office or study? Perhaps this room is a little of both. It is spacious and airy with the big windows opposite the door looking northwards, a perfect aspect when one is this far south. Those windows are framed by dark forest green drapes, soft ribbons and braid in dark, rich gold sewn along the edges to give them a sumptuous look. The back wall is covered by shelves that hold a variety of things - mostly records and reference material as well as writing tools and sheets of hide and paper. Tapestries, including several lovely scenes of the terrain around Xanadu Weyr, cover the rest of the wall-space while a soft, plain off-white rug hides the stone floor. A small, low table sits by the door and usually has some refreshment set out on it.
Several broad desks are arranged around the room, each one set so someone sitting at it doesn't look directly at any of the others. Small screens can be set up on each desk to give a little more privacy and each has one comfortable chair that goes with it. So far, it looks like one desk has a permanent claimant. There are also several other chairs, which can be used by visitors.
Late morning at Xanadu and Thea is well into her day's work already. The stack of paper in her 'out' box is growing and the pile she has yet to go through steadily diminishing. She's leaning on one elbow, head braced in the palm of her hand as she reads some kind of a letter. There's a mighty perplexed look on her face as her eyes skim the words.
The door to the office might have been left standing open, or it might have only been slightly ajar. Either way, it's now closed as D'had has let himself in. Its only then that the man happens to look to see if there was anyone else occupying the space. Dark eyes settle onto Thea and he nods curtly. "Busy?" Okay, so maybe that was a rhetorical question.
Thea raises her eyes slowly from that letter, almost reluctantly pulling her attention from it to the speaker. "Oh! Hi D'had." There's a bit of a sheepish smile tugging at her lips, "Ah, yeah. Busy. When am I not?" She places the letter down on her desk, tilting her head to prop her chin in her hand instead as she regards the Wingleader. Her other hand waves at a chair,"What's up?"
D'had glances back to the door, if only to make certain its closed. "Oh, nothing much," he replies giving a round about answer to the question at hand. "Wasn't meaning to interrupt anyone." Beat. "I hear Seryth is on the sands?"
Thea blinks just a bit as D'had turns to look at the door, she leans around to peer at it as well. She notices nothing stare-worthy about the door, she shrugs and shifts back into place flickering a baffled glance at him. She barks a short laugh, "Interrupt, please. I can only do so much paperwork before I'm wishing to toss it all in the lake." Her eyes lower to that waiting stack and she flicks at it with one finger rebelliously. The question has her sighing ruefully, "Yes, she's on the Sands. Again."
D'had hrms and nods, finally settling into the chair that was previously pointed out by the junior. "Well then I might have to think about visiting them a bit more often, hmm." An off-handed comment, as usual from the blue rider, but still that's hint of amusement in his dark eyes.
Thea can't help but snicker at that, "Niva planning on foisting more unwanted knots on you?" Impish, she grins at him, "Dunno why anyone would want to swelter in there if they didn't have to." Just about as soon as the words are spoken, she winces and her grin fades. She drops her eyes to that paper in front of her, but her eyes aren't really focused on it.
D'had snorts. "I hope not," he replies in regard to the commentary on knots. "But if you're there," her own grin is echoed by the quirk of his lips. "And like you said, who'd want to?" Which only goes to reason that he's assuming someone else (or perhaps more than one someone) won't be found there.
Thea looks back up from that letter at D'had, a dark brow lifting, another short laugh of disbelief, "Who are you hiding from now?" There's a shake of her head, "You're hopeless, you know that?" Her smile is back, although it's a lop-sided one at that. "The mines would be cooler." Ever practical, she is.
There's a knock on the door, polite and D'son doesn't call out, just waits, hands clasped behind back, though Inimeth reaches out to Seryth to let her know that the Weyrleader waits outside the door.
The knock has D'had quickly turning a glance over his shoulder towards the door, his gaze turning back to Thea when it remains closed. "Guess its back to work for both of us." Obviously that knock must surely be meant for her and he'll be on his way, which is silently noted by his standing. Well it's a better thought than the alternative anyway.
"Come in," Thea calls to that door, although by now she knows who it is that's standing out there, she doesn't say the name. "You don't have to leave if your life is in danger, D'had. Can't have you slain in the hallway." There's a smirk as she says that, but she's already looking back to that door herself.
The handle is pushed and D'son sticks his head in the doorway. "Thea I —," Dels breaks off and grins at D'had. "Hey there, both of you," the Weyrleader says and steps through. "Slain in the hallway?" Blinking there since the Weyrleade didn't catch the smirk to go with the words.
D'had holds up a hand to stop the weyrleader's question, but then the bronzerider seem to leave it at that without anyone saying otherwise. "Long store," he replies simply. "But if you two have things to discuss I can be off."
Thea coughs, attempting to stifle her laughing, but it's hopeless. She isn't really able to greet the Weyrleader properly with all that snicker-coughing, so she doesn't even try. Instead, when she's got it back in control, she explains to D'son, "I can only guess someone's after him if he's desperate enough to come hide out on the sands with a broody gold and a junior who isn't the best of company to anyone these days." She shrugs her ignorance of the Wingleader's story.
That hikes D'son's brows upward and he eyes D'had sidelong, looking amused. "Huh. Hot on the sands," he points out and runs a hand along the back of his neck. "I was just interested in any notes you had about our uh … 'visit' to Ista, Thea. But, how's things, D'had? You and Siebeth okay in spite of apparent madness about the sands?" Joking there.
D'had shrugs. "Like Thea said, place not many like to hang out you know," he notes with little interest.
Thea reaches into one of her drawers, pulling out a few sheets of folded papers, dirty and stained. "I kept a sort of journal of the days." She unfolds the papers, attempting to smooth them out on her desk. She eyes the pages, a faint blush creeping into her cheeks, "Keep meaning to copy them onto clean sheets." At D'had's tone and short words, she flashes him a concerned look. "What's wrong D'had?"
"Guess it is pretty quiet," D'son says about empty sands and eyes first Thea's blush then the interaction between her and the bluerider. "Great, no rush, when you have them copied, I'd like to add them to my own records," Dels says seriously enough then falls silent.
"Women," is the reply that D'had grumbles in Thea's direction. "But if you two have things to talk about I'll duck out." Hopefully said woman is gone by now. A hand lifts to send a slight wave as he heads for the door.
Thea is still giving D'had an odd look when D'son speaks, "I'll do it today." She stares at the scribbled words on the spotted pages, her hands still on the sheets. At D'had's words, she half-grins, "Never thought I'd hear you complain about-" She blinks at the Wingleader as he rises and heads to the door. She's a bit open-mouthed in surprise, her lips form a soundless 'okaaaay'. Her eyes slide sideways towards the Weyrleader, "They say male dragons don't get proddy…" She seems to be seeking confirmation for him on that.
"They can be complicated," D'son agrees with D'had with a sheepish look Thea's way and then he's shaking his head. "Just wanted to ask about those notes. I actually — well, there's something I wanted to talk to you about D'had. If you're not in a hurry."
D'had blinks, turning back towards the pair he was just about to leave behind within the office. "Oh?" he half asks as eyes light on the weyrleader once again, a glance added in Thea's direction as well.
Thea just snorts, "Might be complicated, but at least we talk in more than two-word sentences." She's got a tiny grin on her lips as she says it, so she's obviously not upset. Her attention is already on the pages on her desk, one hand already reaching for a clean sheet of paper and a pen, when she spots the letter she was reading as D'had came in. "Oh, D'son. Here." She hands him an open letter, "From a Holder in south Boll. Came with that box there." Beside her desk is an opened box, a worn flight jacket can be seen in it.
"Yeah, I wanted to — oh," the letter is taken and the box eyed. "A jacket?" Dels blinks a few times then he looks back over at D'had. "I wanted to ask you about being second in command," the Weyrleader says more seriously to the bluerider. "Weyrsecond. If you're interested at all. Just to get you thinking about it." Clearly, he's not uncomfortable mentioning this in front of Thea.
D'had blinks. Again. Blinks and stares before shooting the junior weyrwoman a look. She knew about this. She MUST have. And that's just what he says, "You knew about this??"
Thea nods at D'son, her face and voice once again showing her total confusion. "It's X'hil's. Was found in a chicken coop in South Boll." She's pointing to a rather battered Weyrsecond knot attached to the jacket. "I'm not risking prison to get it back to him." Then there's that question. The jacket and how to return it to it's owner totally forgotten. Her eyes swing D'had's way and she's taking in that look and his words, shaking her head and laughing silently. When she can speak, all she says is, "You're getting it without having to call him cupcake this time?" See, an upside.
This causes much blinking and D'son looks down at the letter, reads it, looks back up at the jacket, blinks some more. "You know, it's never just one thing around here," he notes with a little shake of his head. "It can get passed off to someone to take over," Dels notes. "Though .. shells, a /chicken coop/ ?" More head-shaking. "Uhm, anyway, just let me know D'had. No rush." Beat. "/Cupcake?/"
D'had is just as confused as the other two, if not more so. He narrows his gaze on Thea, a glance to D'son, back to Thea, and he settles once again on the Weyrleader given the forceful question of that one word. "That was the Weyrwoman, and I didn't ask for that either," he huffs the last half of his statement clearly being directed more towards the woman in the room. There's silence on his end for a moment and then, "Who else did you have in mind?"
Thea just shakes her head at the jacket. "Doesn't really surprise me, D'son, knowing the company the man keeps." A handflip dismisses the former Weyrsecond's follies. Her eyes slide back to D'had, very amused. Oh yes. She just smiles sweetly back at D'had when he glares her way, then back at D'son, with a bit of curiosity to hear his answer.
"Niva called you cupcake?" Poor puzzled D'son. And a deep breath. "Uhm —" he names two other riders, one brownriding the other bronze. "I just thought you know, we get along pretty well, seem to see eye to eye and all that." Dels regards that jacket for a moment. "I know he gets around. But chickens kind of seems to be pushing it."
"No," D'had almost, but not quite, snaps in reply, "I called her." As if that should explain everything there is to explain. But he's been given time to think about this knot and this bluerider and time to think don't always work so well together. Or perhaps its just that he doesn't take the time to do so… He nods for the names given all the same. "… Chickens?"
Thea hasn't had such an entertaining office day in… ever! She's enjoying the back and forth. D'son's comment about X'hil just has her shrugging. "Likely booze involved." An understatement. Her eyes are back to D'had, "Now now, don't try to change the subject. We all know X'hil is… troubled." She points to that knot. "Weyrsecond, not something to sneeze at." She lifts a brow questioningly.
"/Oh/," D'son gets it at last and rubs at the back of his neck. "Man. What'd she do to you when you did that?" Dels asks D'had sympathetically. "I … dunno about troubled. Anyway, yeah. Got a shiny /new/ knot if you're interested. Just let me know," the Weyrleader says lightly, trying not to step on any toes here.
"Gave me this one," is the wingleader's reply to the Weyrleader's question in a way that he wasn't exactly pleased with it, at the time anyway. The woman in the room receives only a snort for her input on the knot on the desk. "Wasn't really a choice in the matter," he explains. Of course there's likely more to that whole story, but that's neither here nor there. At the moment he's still avoiding an answer.
"Troubled. Trust me." Thea assures the Weyrleader and it seems she's totally serious, at least about that. Her too-bright eyes swing D'had's way again, she's ignoring the snort and trying hard to keep a smirky smile from her lips. Since the Wingleader isn't jumping at the chance, she asks D'son, "Does the knot come with any perks?" Sell it why don’t you?
"Oh," D'son says again looking a little discomfited now. "Well anyway, this one is your choice," the Weyrleader notes and shoots Thea a little 'what' type look. "Uhhh — being charge if something happens to me? More chicks? Though I'm thinking that might not be something D'had's into right now." Breath out. "Anyway, think it over D'had. Thea, I'll look for those notes when you're ready. Thanks both of you," Dels says sincerely.
D'had hasn't left yet. That's something at any rate. The bluerider simply nods, "Right," he agrees to think about it with that single word. "I'll talk to you," he adds pointedly to Thea, "later. And, I'll get back to you on that Weyrleader." he agrees before turning towards the door.
Thea waves away D'son's 'what' look with a brief, "Long story, Sir." She sobers just a bit as she speaks to him, nodding. "Notes, check. Will be on your desk by dinner." Her eyes shift towards D'had for his reaction, "More girls, more chasing. Might be seeing a lot of you on the Sands if that's true." Might not be though. His pointed remark has her baffled yet again, "Innocent, I swear." She raises both hands palm up. Really.
"Er — Thea really had nothing to do with this. I've been thinking over it for a while that I uh — should get on the ball," D'son notes with a sheepish look. "Especially since Ista." You know, when he was in jail for several days. "See you later, both," Dels says and waits for D'had to head out before following after.