A Moment to be Still
Dragonsfall Weyr
Amber Hills Hold
Vintner Hall
Healer Hall
Hidden Meadows
Dolphin Cove Weyr
Dolphin Hall
Emerald Falls Hold
Harper Hall
Printer Hall
Green Valley Hold
Leeward Lagoon Hold
Barrier Lake Weyr
Sunstone Seahold
Citrus Bay Hold
Writers: Sia, Yvonne
Date Posted: 6th June 2025
Characters: Thiseta, Q'vettan
Description: The new leaders of Barrier Lake Weyr take a breath
Location: Barrier Lake Weyr
Date: month 6, day 17 of Turn 12
Notes: Follows 'BLW: A New Dawn'
The world was swaying gently, as if she lay in the bottom of a boat or was cradled in a hammock. Thiseta let herself seep gently back into her body. She felt sore and sated, and lay limp-limbed curled into someone’s warm body. Her hair tickled her nose when she exhaled.
**Weyrwoman.** Imbeth had risen first. She was Weyrwoman. Reluctant to move but knowing she had to, Thiseta stretched and felt her partner" her _Weyrleader_ move as well. “Congratulations.”
Q'vettan's hand on her back, a slow, lazy drag of his fingers down her spine. He was doing it when he came back to himself, subconsciously mimicking the way Tzenketh's tail swished gently against Imbeth's. They paused for a second, then resumed. It was still early, he was in no rush.
He shifted when Thiseta did, finally opening his eyes. He tilted his head toward her, his dark curls a wild halo around his face. An echo of Tzenketh’s triumph still pulsed in his blood; deep, satisfied, possessive. "Well flown, Weyrwoman." He said, "Congratulations yourself. Barrier Lake is yours now."
“Ours,” she corrected. Q’vettan wasn’t who she’d expected" honestly, she’d had no idea who to expect. The Weyrharper swapping his knots for a Weyrleader’s was far from a worst case scenario. “Tzenketh flew well. Imbeth likes to drag out her flights and I really wasn’t sure where she’d go at a new Weyr.”
"She tested us, that's for sure." Q'vettan said with a low chuckle. "It's good she stayed close. I don't know if Barrier Lake Hold has gotten used to goldflights yet." The baby boom after Riyanth's first flight had been amusing, at least. "But a long, drawn out flight bodes well for you both- a first clutch as Weyrwoman should be big."
“Maybe,” she said, although she rather thought it would. “And it also bodes well for _you_.”
Q'vettan gave a hum of agreement, but it was slow, thoughtful. "That it does. But it's _your_ legacy we're building here. This isn't my first stint as Weyrleader. I can lead the Weyr into 'Fall, but it's you that leads the Weyr."
The weight of it settled around her shoulders like an anchor. This had been her choice, but a choice that seemed far off until it happened. Now that choice had caught up to her and it was" exhilarating. Terrifying.
**Problems for later.** Thiseta forcibly relaxed herself back into Q’vettan’s embrace. “Honestly… I’m glad it was Tzenketh who won. I was nervous when Imbeth rose, that we’d find ourselves with a Weyrleader who didn’t know what they were doing. I’m glad I was wrong.”
"That's no small part why I roused Tzenketh." Q'vettan said mildly. His voice was calm, nearly conversational. His fingers went back to idly tracing lines across Thiseta's back when she relaxed into him. Not intimate, just thoughtless habit. "A new Weyrwoman doesn't need to manage an inexperienced Weyrleader, on top of all her other duties. You'll be pulled in ten directions before midday, if they all had their way. Let's take it slow. Barrier Lake can wait a little longer for their Weyrwoman."
“I’m fine with that.” She hoped that he was hinting at something a little more distracting than simply falling back asleep. Q’vettan was right. There was a lot waiting beyond those doors for both of them, and it was nice to just… take a breath.
Q'vettan smiled, slow and unreadable. His hand paused at the small of her back, then settled there; warm, steady. He let his eyes close again, just briefly, memorizing the way Thiseta’s body fit against his, the quiet strength of her, the calm before the storm of duty. For now, they were just two riders in the quiet aftermath of a flight. Flesh and blood and breath. Nothing more complicated than that.
Q'vettan tipped his head until his mouth brushed her hair. “Let them wait,” he murmured. “The Weyr’s not going anywhere.”
And for the moment, neither was he.
Last updated on the June 8th 2025