Dossier No. 3 - Jarett

Writers: Heather, Sia
Date Posted: 13th October 2025

Characters: Saibra, Jarett
Description: Another bad goldrider interview
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 8, day 17 of Turn 12
Notes: Galgaith slander

Saibra

The cold of Dragonsfall was an unpleasant surprise as Halvereth appeared from /between/. Summer was almost over at Benden Weyr, and while the evenings had started to take on a chill, the days were at least warm enough to not need the extra layers. Jarett immediately regretted not bringing her scarf and gloves on the short trip.

Halvereth bugled a welcome to the other golds. }: Hello, Chioneth! Tabanirth. Galgaith -- oh. :{ The gold quickly turned her 'outside thought' into an 'inside thought', and added privately to her rider, }: Is…Galgaith okay? :{

Jarett had to muffle a snort. **I'm sure she's fine. Don't be rude.** She swung down from Halvereth's neck as soon as she landed, pulling off her riding helmet and goggles and tucking them under one arm. She was tall, almost entirely leg, all sinew and sharp angles under her riding leathers. She wore her jacket closed high at the throat, the cut unfitted and severe. Her hair was shorn on the sides and tumbled in short, messy curls in the back. No jewelry, no decoration. If it wasn't for her knots and the brassy dragon behind her, she could've come off any dragon at all.

Her youth may have been the most striking thing about her. She didn't look past her mid-twenties, if that. "Afternoon, Weyrwoman!" She said with a too-familiar grin, "Thank you for offering to see me."

Saibra had to tilt her head up to look at the other goldrider’s face, such was the differences in their height. It had always been that way with Kapera, as well.

“Well met, thank you for coming.” Already that morning K’yne had told her he was stepping down as Weyrlingmaster’s Third, and even though it wasn’t her position to fill, she worried about it nonetheless. “Today is actually one of our better weather days,” Saibra commented off-handedly as she gestured for Jarett to follow her into her office.

"I forgot it was winter here." Jarett admitted as she followed, rubbing her hands together to bring the warmth back to them. "It's getting into fall now in the north, but it's still warmer. Do you get much more snow?"

“Snow is our near constant companion, it seems,” Saibra admitted. “But then, I’m a Far Island native, so maybe it just _seems_ like constant snow to me. Please, have a seat. I need to ask you a very bizarre question before we get started…. Your dragon isn’t likely to _rise_ while we’re having this interview, is she?”

Jarett blinked, momentarily speechless. "Oh Faranth, I hope not." She said, "But I guess I don't need to worry anymore about being the most awkward interview? Hal isn't due for months yet, if that eases any worry." Her first and only mating flight was a sharding disaster, and she hoped that Saibra didn't have to take clutch size into account.

“Oh, good,” Saibra said with relief. “Two days ago we were mere seconds from a gold fight right here in the Weyr. If nothing else, it was the most memorable interview of my life,” she chuckled. “Tell me, what do you believe the working relationship among the Weyrs goldriders should be?”

"Well, it's…important?" Jarett said after a moment's pause. "To support each other. Be allies, not rivals. We’ve got a lot on our plates already, between clutches and Threadfall and, y’know, everything else. So, keeping communication open is key. And.. Respecting boundaries. I mean, trusting that everyone is working together and getting their work done.”

“So you prefer macromanagement as opposed to micro?” Saibra asked, notating something on her ledger.

Jarett hesitated just a moment too long before answering. “Well, yeah, I guess. I mean, I don’t need someone breathing down my neck to do my job. And so I try not to do it to anyone else.”

“What methods would you use, then, to make sure that a junior goldrider under your purview was effectively taking care of her duties?” Saibra asked conversationally, chin perched on her hand.

"Um.." Jarett shifted slightly in her seat, trying to find the right words without sounding uncertain. "I guess that depends on the goldrider, doesn't it? A holder kid will have different experiences than the Weyr-kid, and if they've had any similar training growing up. Some girls might know enough to hit the ground running. Others might need things like check-ins or a bit more support."

“Right, but how would you determine if she ‘might know enough’?” Saibra dug a little further.

Jarett opened her mouth, then shut it again, buying herself a moment by rubbing her palms against her knees. “Uh… I guess I’d just… ask her?” she said at last, wincing inwardly at how unsure that sounded. “Like, check in now and then, make sure she’s, y’know… doing okay? If she seemed like she was keeping up, then I’d figure she was fine.” Even to her own ears, it lacked the polish of someone who’d thought the whole thing through, but she pressed on with a small shrug. “I mean, I haven’t really had to manage anyone before, so… I guess I’d figure it out as I went.”

Saibra made notations. “What if the girl lied to you about her competency and then endangered the lives of those around her with her lack of training? That would be problematic, wouldn’t it?”

Jarett’s mouth went dry. “Well, yeah. That would be bad.” Her laugh came out a little too loud and nervous. “But, um, I’d hope she wouldn’t lie about something that important? I mean, if you can’t trust the other goldriders, then what’s the point?”

**Hmm. Clearly she doesn’t have much experience with other goldriders,** Saibra thought, making more notations.

“Are there any questions about the position or Dragonsfall that you have for me?” The Weyrwoman asked.

Jarett shifted in her chair, a long leg stretching out, boot tapping idly against the stone floor while she tried to look more confident than she felt. She should’ve prepared questions.

“And, uh…” she continued, words tumbling faster now as if momentum could cover her uncertainty, “how do you…balance it all? The politics, the other queens, Threadfall. Do you ever get used to it, or is it just…constant running to keep up?”

It was a question that Saibra found herself answering often. “Yes, you get used to it. The duties, meetings, and the politics all become routine at a certain point. The more organized you are, the easier. Dealing with Weyrleaders is the easiest - most of them have big egos and need to feel they’re the best, smartest, most daring bronzerider to ever exist.” The last was said with a sharp bite of humor as Saibra chuckled. She was fortunate in some ways that I’serin was not like the other Weyrleaders of the Southern Continent.

"Sounds like bronzeriders are just about the same wherever you go." Jarett said dryly. Half the bronzeriders she'd met were convinced they were holding the sky up on their shoulders. It was refreshing to hear a Weyrwoman say it out loud, even with humor.

Even still. It was hard to imagine being that kind of organized. Jarett felt like she was sitting there in borrowed boots, waiting for someone to notice the fit was wrong.

}: The fit is fine. I chose you. :{ Halvereth said simply.

That's true. The gold did pick her. "And what would you want from me, if I came to Dragonsfall? What's missing here that you need filled?"

“I need my ‘second to be the extension of my arm in our Holds and minor territories. I try to get around to them, to their events, as needed, but having a Weyrwoman’s Second manage that branch of Weyr-relations would be most helpful.” Saibra had appreciated that Ashela seemed to enjoy it. “Is that something you would feel comfortable doing?”

"Yes." Jarett said, too quickly. In truth she wouldn't be, and she was a poor enough liar for Saibra to know otherwise. She'd be fine with doing anything if it got her out of Benden Weyr, even if Saibra had asked her to manage weyrling manure disposal indefinitely. "I have a hard time matching names to faces and I end up sticking my foot in my mouth a lot when talking to holders, but that's something I can study for before I visit each location. I have a pretty good memory."

Saibra’s smile was stiff, but polite. “You’ll hear from me soon.” She wouldn’t. She would absolutely not be hearing from Saibra any time soon.

Last updated on the October 19th 2025

Welcome to Triad Weyrs!

Dossier No. 3 - Jarett