It's Not Right

Writers: AL, Jane
Date Posted: 18th July 2009

Characters: Briata, T'vanen
Description: T'vanen makes yet another visit with Lady Briata and she makes an admission to him.
Location: Garnet Valley Hold
Date: month 3, day 1 of Turn 5
Notes: Mentioned: Ishek

Briata

T'vanen was normally greeted with an eager and bright smile when he made
a visit to the Lady Warder of Garnet valley. Briata had been grateful
for his company and had encouraged him to come as often as he like. He
seemed to have taken that encouragement to heart and he had been a
frequent visitor in the last couple of sevendays. That day, however, as
he strolled into the solar, Briata's brow was furrowed, her lips turned
down into a frown, and the embroidery, a task which she generally took
great joy in, sat on her lap, forgotten.

"Why the sad face, my Lady?" the bronzerider asked, saddened himself to
see her unhappy. Or preoccupied. Perhaps he was making too much of
catching Briata without her usually sunny smile. It's wasn't _just_
that, though, he reasoned silently. He often thought there wasn't
something quite right with Briata these days.

Of course she should have changed from the girl he had met - she was the
Lady Warder now, married, with no doubt many things on her mind. He
admitted that his demeanour would likely change if he found himself a
Wingleader - or worse, Weyrleader - all of a sudden. But still -

The startled look she gave T'vanen made it obvious that she hadn't even
sensed his approach. She did offer him a smile and stood in greeting,
but the sparkle that usually gleamed in her eyes didn't make it.
"T'vanen, hello! How are you?"

"I'm fine. Flying as well as ever, my Wingleader says, though I'm not
sure he was being complimentary."

"You aren't?" Briata motioned for T'vanen to take a seat before she
reclaimed her own. "So you're back to full capacity?"

"Apparently so." He sat himself down carefully on the chair, thinking
it had been designed for dainty women and he didn't qualify. Still, it
remained in one piece and he was able to relax after a moment. "And
what about you? How's life at Garnet Valley for Briata?"

"It's..." What was she to tell him? It would be a lie if Briata stated
everything was fine, but surely T'vanen didn't need to hear about her
sorrows. "Interesting."

"So is Thread," T'vanen said drily. "That doesn't make it a good thing,
now does it?"

"No." He was right, Briata couldn't argue with that. "It's...not what
I...it's not what I thought it would be."

"I would have thought you would have had a good idea what it was like to
be a Lady Holder - Warder. Just a bigger version of what you were doing
at your home. Is it not?"

"Yes well...it is but...it's...the marriage isn't quite what I had
imagined." Briata had wanted a reflection of her parents' marriage.
Instead she had gotten something completely different, something
completely at odds with what she envisioned marriage to be like.

The bronzerider frowned, all the stories of life in the Holds coming
into his mind. "Briata ..." he leaned forward, though there was nobody
near enough to overhear. "If you ever need to leave here, I can take
you. Back home - anywhere on Pern."

Briata's eyes widened at the suggestion and she shook her head. "Oh
no...no it isn't that. It's just...things aren't...easy." How could
she explain? It was too embarrassing to admit!

"It's not right," he grumbled. "You don't have to live like this."

"It could be worse." Briata reached out to touch his arm. "And it's
nice to know that I have friends who care."

"It's nice to be considered such a friend," he said, though he didn't
add that he considered it _not_ very nice to know a friend was in such
trouble. "Just remember. You can give a message to any dragonrider
from River Bluff, if you need me. They're all pretty reliable."

"I appreciate it, T'vanen." More than anything, Briata needed her
friends right now. Ishek had been her friend, but as of late, things
had changed and it pained her.

"Do you see anything of your father?" Perhaps that was another option
if Briata was unhappy, though the stories about Holder fathers all but
selling their daughters into unhappy marriages were well known at the Weyr.

"He's visited once since the marriage, but it's hard for him to get
away." Briata held no resentment for her father. In fact, she had told
her father very little about her marriage woes. She had confided in her
step mother as she was much more comfortable talking to her - especially
on _that_ subject! "He does have a hold to run."

"And I suppose he was in favour of this marriage?"

"He left it up to me." And Briata had thought Ishek liked her enough to
love her. Yet, things had cooled off even quite a bit since their marriage.

"Would he - Would you want to go back there. If you - er - left here
for any reason?"

"Well...I don't plan on leaving here, but if I had to, I know I would be
welcome." But would she go? Briata wasn't sure. She loved her father
and her mother, but it would be strange going back, even after only
having left for only a few months.

"All right. Let's talk about something else," T'vanen said, glancing
around again but there was nobody to overhear. "What's been happening
at Garnet Valley lately?"

"Oh...nothing much. Why don't we go to the kitchens and get something
to eat and we can chat a bit more."

"Can we? Can you? Is that something the Lady Warder can do? Hang
around the kitchens like - just anybody?"

"Of course it is!" Briata placed her embroidery into her sewing basket,
took up the handle and stood. "I may be Lady Warder, but that doesn't
mean I can't hang around the kitchens!"

The young man got to his feet with a laugh. "All right then. Let's see
how that's done."

Last updated on the July 26th 2009

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It's Not Right