The Candidate

Writers: Jane
Date Posted: 28th February 2009

Characters: Ylisahn, Leisenn
Description: Ylisahn discusses a potential Hall headwoman with Leisenn.
Location: Dolphin Hall
Date: month 1, day 22 of Turn 5

"Hallmaster."

Leisenn shut one eye against the sun streaming into her office and peered at the leggy blonde woman in the doorway with the other. "The Weyr's headwoman," she said, getting to her feet and rounding the desk to extend her hand to the visitor. "I didn't catch your name on my visit."

"I'm Ylisahn," the younger woman said, accepting the handshake and waved invitation to take a seat. Behind her the office door was closed and she was glad of that. While this _might_ have been nothing more than a courtesy call, it wasn't, and she did want her business to remain her own for a while yet.

"And I'm Leisenn. What can I do for you?" the Hallmaster asked, settling back behind her desk and trying not to let her curiosity show. The youthful looking headwoman probably had more than most to fill her days so the visit was likely not a social one.

"I understand the Hall doesn't have a headwoman, and that you're looking for one."

The older woman nodded. "And you have an assistant that you'd like to recommend?" she guessed, already considering the idea.

"Something like that. Would you be interested in somebody from the Weyr? I know that there can be some prejudices - on _both_ sides." The ways of the Weyr were not always seen as admirable by hold and hall folk and the Weyr had little time for those who didn't accept them. It could lead to conflict though the lodging of the Harper Hall within Dolphin Cove's cliffs indicated that anything _could_ be worked out where there was a will to do so.

"We're inundated with apprentices - and more senior personnel - with Weyr backgrounds," Leisenn admitted with a chuckle. "It's not so where I was last posted and I was surprised. Perhaps I shouldn't have been. Being able to see dolphineers at work would obviously make the craft a more relevant possibility."

"And the former Hallmaster's son showed that not all the movement between the Weyr and Hall has been in your favour."

"Yes, I'd forgotten that. But I haven't forgotten, and I don't suppose anybody who actually experienced it has forgotten - that dragonriders were the saving of the dolphineers and staff when Topaz SeaHold was destroyed. I think a Weyr-bred and trained headwoman would be acceptable to most people here."

Ylisahn nodded. "And to you?"

"Yes," the Hallmaster said firmly. The lack of a headwoman was more worrying to her than the lack of a Hallsecond. Where the headwoman was, in many ways, the heart of the Hall a Hallsecond's role was one that could be divided among the other masters and the Hallmaster. "Despite my lack of familiarity with weyrfolk I would be more than willing to trial anybody you would recommend to us. You do have a candidate in mind, I take it?"

Ylisahn smiled, her round face alight with her usual good humour. "Yes. I'm not just here to raise false hopes. There are a couple of things you should know about her, though."

Leisenn nodded for the other woman to carry on.

"The - er - candidate -" it was odd to use the term to mean anything but a person hoping to Impress a hatchling but Ylisahn supposed that the word was used in a more general sense beyond the Weyr, "- has a weyrmate rather than a husband." When the Hallmaster just nodded again, Ylisahn continued: "And couldn't be a husband because her weyrmate is a woman."

For a moment Leisenn was rendered speechless and then she started laughing. "There's something about weyrfolk, isn't there? Always a surprise. And that might be a problem because I would like a headwoman with some experience of children. Not the very young, perhaps, but the youngest of our apprentices."

"She worked for many Turns in the Weyr's creche, and she and her weyrmate have two children."

"Fosterlings?"

"No. One each, of their own."

The older woman opened her mouth to ask the obvious question and then shut it. A lack of manners was always a lack of manners, no matter how curious one was. "How old are the children now? Would they come with her - them?"

"They're adult and would stay at the Weyr. So, her relationship with another woman wouldn't be a problem?" Ylisahn pressed.

"N-no. I've certainly suspected such things before, but in the Holds and Halls discretion would be required." She shrugged. "If that's the Weyr's way then the people at my Hall will have to at least manage to show good manners, if not total acceptance. She wouldn't - Erm. Neither of them are the type to ... entice young women?" Though Leisenn had known more than enough male masters in the early days of her training who would have done such a thing. It wasn't right in either case, but it would seem negligent not to ask.

"No," Ylisahn said, unoffended. "They're in an committed, long-term relationship and neither of them are inclined to look outside their partnership for lovers. If that's all right then, there's only one other issue ..." Her tone contained more than a trace of apology. "I'm not throwing you an empty firestone sack, here, but I do want to be open about the issues. The skills and abilities are typical of the somebody who would be taking on the job but I just want to make sure there's no unexpected surprises for you."

"And I appreciate that. Let's hear it then."

The Weyr's headwoman took a deep breath and said quickly: "During the hurricane she was caught by flooding in the Weyr. No real harm done but now she can't face the tunnels - and we have a lot of them."

"How does this affect her work?" Leisenn asked, realising almost immediately why the Dolphin Hall was considered a solution to the woman's problem. The former SeaHold ran parallel to the cliff face, most rooms having one of their shortest walls against the cliff to gain natural lighting. Behind the rooms ran a single corridor with only a very few rooms from there going deeper into the cliff. The Hall had nothing like the intricate maze of tunnels that the Weyr boasted. "How does it affect her work there; how would you expect it to affect her work here?"

"She loses concentration when the memories are recalled - and they can't be stopped. It's over quickly, but it's inconvenient, sometimes. And she has trouble sleeping. She stays awake -" Ylisahn smiled. "She spends most of the night working, so it's no loss to the Weyr, at the moment, but it's not doing her any good. And here? It's catching sight of the tunnel mouths that sets her off. I don't suppose the problems will disappear overnight, but being here, away from the tunnels ... I think things will improve over time."

"Even with all this -" and Leisenn thought she knew of a couple of cases where dolphineers had had bad experiences and had taken Turns to get over them, "- she's still working well enough to take on the work here?"

"Yes."

The simple word was enough for the master dolphineer. The Weyr's headwoman had been honest and was trying to do her best for her subordinate without misleading anybody. What had she called it? Without 'throwing an empty firestone sack' for the Hall to catch. Leisenn smiled at the image. _Such_ a dragonrider-specific idiom.

"All right, Ylisahn." The Hallmaster nodded. "I'm interested. Send over your candidate and I'll speak to her - ask her a few questions."

Ylisahn nodded and made an effort to smile despite the pang of sadness she felt. This was what she had wanted, after all. "Ask away, Hallmaster; I _am_ the candidate."

Last updated on the February 28th 2009

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