Consequences
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: Corrin, Duskdog
Date Posted: 6th February 2026
Characters: Sybana, T'lonas
Description: Sybana is called into the weyrlingmaster’s office over an Incident with the holdless.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 7, day 2 of Turn 12
Notes: Mentioned: Naldhavi
Late post we forgot to send.
The summons came between lessons. T’lonas wanted to see her.
Sybana breezed into the weyrlingmaster’s office with the casual confidence and happy air of someone who expected nothing more serious than a casual check-in. And why not? She was diligent in their lessons, and Galgi hadn’t bullied any of her siblings off a cliff lately. So with a smile and a blissfully clean conscience, Sybana joined the T’lonas at his desk and took the proffered seat across from him. “You wanted to see me, sir?”
“Yes, Sybana, thank you so much for coming promptly. How are you doing today? And Galgaith?”
“We’re both quite well,” said Sybana. “It took some time for Galgi to settle into our new weyr, I think she missed her sisters, but we both enjoy having more space. As for lessons-- she finds the visualization exercises a bit dull, but I’m sure she will love Betweening.”
T’lonas smiled warmly. “Yes, I’m sure she will. And you will, too. Once the initial nervousness of doing it wears off and it becomes second nature, I don’t know any rider who doesn’t love being able to travel wherever they wish and be back home for dinner!”
He gathered up the papers he was working on, stacked them neatly, and set them aside, folding his hands on the desk in front of him. “I actually called you here to ask you about an incident that may have happened a bit ago. Have you spoken with any of those young Holdless men?”
“No, of course--” Sybana caught herself in the middle of her response, as automatic as it was indignant. She wasn't back at Opal Cove. T'lonas wasn't the Lady Holder or her governess. She was _allowed_ to talk to men of all sorts. And she _had_ talked to one of them. If you could call it that. Her expression darkened. “Actually, yes. I did. It was very unpleasant. It was a lucky thing Weyrsecond M’kayre was nearby.”
His eyebrows went up. M’kayre was involved? Perhaps it was indeed serious, though he was surprised he hadn’t heard anything from M’kayre himself, if so. “Oh dear, what happened?”
Sybana was only too eager to share. “It was just days after they arrived and one of them cornered me in the dining hall. He said he wanted advice about candidacy and that he'd been Searched. Naturally I was surprised, but I _did_ give him my advice. I told him I thought it would be an awfully hard adjustment. He took offense and it-- it was getting Unpleasant when the Weyrsecond thankfully stepped in.”
“That does sound concerning. Was he threatening, aggressive? Or only rude?”
“He didn't threaten me, “ Sybana admitted, almost reluctantly. Now that someone actually asked, it was difficult to put into words. “You could call it rude.”
“He was smiling-- and it was polite at first,” she continued. “He was acting shy and unsure, but that all changed on a mark when he didn't like what I said. I told him dragonriding was a life of duty and discipline and a far cry from the freedoms of the holdless. Then he turned sarcastic… mocking. He was still smiling when he left, but it wasn't at all friendly.”
T’lonas nodded thoughtfully. “I see. I suppose I can see, then, why both of you might have walked away with a poor impression of one another. He took your words as an insult, and the whole thing soured.” He wasn’t going to say so to Sybana -- no sense fanning any flames there -- but he’d suspected Naldhavi might be the type who could spit attitude, regardless of how polite and hopeful he’d been back in the Weyrlingmaster’s Office. There was just something… not _quite_ genuine about him. It was difficult to put a finger on, though, and he disliked judging people before they’d given him reason to do so. “He seemed to feel that you had been terribly rude and dismissive of him.”
“I admit… I was caught a little off-guard by the news he’d be Searched. I should have hid that better. I hadn’t known at the point that it was being allowed.” From her tone it was clear she disagreed with that decision. “But he asked for my perspective as a new rider, and I stand by what I told him. The lives and obligations of dragonriders and holdless could not be more different. Pretending otherwise would be a disservice to both parties.”
“I can’t pretend to know what the lives and obligations of holdless are like, so I certainly can’t speak on the differences,” T’lonas said. “Only make certain every candidate is informed of the risks and responsibilities that will come with Impressing a dragon. I suspect the realities of it come as a surprise to many, not just the holdless.”
“Your generosity is admirable,” said Sybana, when she really meant Misguided. “But you know more of their ‘obligations’ than you credit yourself-- by definition they live outside our systems of tithes and duty. They either rejected it and left our society by choice, or they broke its laws and harmed its people, or they were raised by people who did either or both. This is far beyond the average weyrling learning to separate ballad from reality. Impression and a few lectures will not change a man's nature, nor will it erase Turns of experience. The Holdless have only themselves to look out for and can afford to be the most selfish of our world, but dragonriders can _not_.”
T’lonas considered her for a long moment, his expression uncharacteristically _un_cheerful. Not angry, but… serious. And perhaps a trifle sad. “Unless I’m terribly mistaken, you yourself have had to learn -- and _unlearn_ -- a few things in your time here. There are those who would have said -- may still say -- that a lady of your station is raised soft. Pampered. Delicate. Unsuited for the rigors of dragonriding, both physically and mentally.”
His lips twitched a little, not quite a smile, but a brief echo of one.
“Those that would say that are unfamiliar with a Lady of My Station,” said Sybana tartly.
“I’m not among those, mind you,” T'lonas assured her. “I believe you’ve risen to the challenge of becoming the rider of a willful gold dragon admirably -- and, though you may not believe it or may even be insulted by it, I believe you would have risen to the different-but-no-less-difficult challenge of Impressing a green, had things happened differently. Of course, I can’t say if those people are right about the way you may have been raised. It’s so far out of my own world that I’d never even presume to know. All I know is _you_, and what you’ve shown me of yourself -- because I make a conscious effort to remain open to _being_ shown. It saddens me that you don’t believe that a person can rise above their circumstances, or that they can change. I believe, with all my heart, that _anyone_ has the ability to rise to the occasion, and _anyone_ has the ability to change, if necessary. The will? Perhaps not. That depends on the individual. But the ability? Certainly.”
Sybana watched him, her mind turning away, her resting expression as soft and sweet as ever-- but it was like velvet in steel. She was unswayed. “I will allow that an exceptional individual may rise above their circumstances,” she said, leaning forward earnestly in her appeal. “But how many Holdless are there in candidacy now? Word is there are over a dozen. Are they all exceptional? I may have had to unlearn a few things to adjust to the weyr, but I did _not_ have to grow a sense of duty or a respect for rules and structure from nothing. Those were all rooted deeply within me as I hope they are in any rider.”
“We are not short on candidates, Dragonsfall is welcome to Search through the protectorate. Why are we taking on these risks?” A bit of her frustration was leaking through now. She had been over this already with Tsaera and to no avail. “I did not say it to that boy, but the weyr is not a charity. It is not its job to rehabilitate criminals or perform morality exercises. Can you imagine the chaos a single Holdless man on brown or bronze could cause if he learned to Between through time? What regrets or revenge he might pursue? There is so much at stake here!”
“It’s a credit to you that you appreciate the weight and gravity of a dragonrider’s duty. And I won’t claim that every candidate, or weyrling, or even _rider_ appreciates it as well as you do. But I just don’t believe that a person’s circumstances are the be-all and end-all of who they are. I’ll not dismiss an entire group of people out of hand, while giving everyone else the benefit of considering them individually.” His tone carried an air of finality -- he didn’t expect to sway her so much as to make clear that his own position wasn’t going to change. “I can see, perhaps, why Naldhavi took offense,” he added softly. “You _meant_ offense -- perhaps with good intentions, but both things can be true.” He cocked his head. “Though I don’t believe he was innocent in this, either.”
He sat for a moment, drumming the fingers of one hand on the arm of his chair thoughtfully. “I think you could benefit from some… personal exposure to other people, some time to learn who they are, and a chance to share your knowledge in a more productive way. Some of the Holdless haven’t had much opportunity for education. I’d like you to do a bit of tutoring.”
Sybana privately thought she had a better idea of who the holdless really were than an out-of-touch dragonrider--who hadn’t lived in a hold in Turns, if ever--but she couldn’t see any hope for that argument. Despite his phrasing, it was clear he wasn’t just stating an idle whim. “If you wish,” she conceded with as much grace as she could muster. “And if the weyrwoman approves.” Her last faint hope was that Saibra or Thiseta might veto the idea.
“I’m certain she will, but of course I’ll run it by her for her approval this afternoon. I’m aware you do have other duties and other lessons from the Weyrwoman, of course -- diplomacy among them,” he reminded her. “Assuming I get that sorted, I’ll let you know when, where, and whom you’ll be working with. I greatly hope that the interaction could be beneficial for everyone involved.”
Sybana highly doubted it would.
Last updated on the February 8th 2026