We Have a Chance

Writers: Dana, Eimi
Date Posted: 29th August 2008

Characters: Traelyn, U'kaiah
Description: Trae informs U'kaiah of her decision to throw her Flight open.
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 11, day 18 of Turn 4

Trying not to fidget with impatience, Traelyn's eyes darted towards her office door again. Shards, when would he get here? She knew Dragonsfall's drills were done now, but S'ren had probably delivered the letter when U'kaiah was right in the middle of hidework. But U'kaiah knew that she wouldn't ask him to come to Dolphin Cove this close to Nyith's rising time when it wasn't important. And this _was_ important. Her news was important. _She_ wanted to be the one to tell him, not his Weyrleaders.

Suddenly hearing heavy footfalls outside her office, the nervous excitement fluttering in her stomach increased, and she rose to her feet when he came inside.

The Wingleader's face was serious as he opened the door. "What is it, Trae? What's happened?"

To see such a look on his face brought her up short. "Oh, shards, U'kaiah I didn't mean to concern you." Her expression went from glad to contrite as she realized that her note to him must have sounded rather serious, even though it hadn't been written with a sense of urgency behind the words. "Nothing drastic has happened.... I'm sorry." Walking around her desk she met him halfway. "Everything's fine."

"Thank Faranth for that," he said as his brow relaxed and his lips spread into a relieved smile. Closing the distance he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to him. "Do I at least get a kiss for rushing over so fast?"

Grinning, she obliged him.

He hummed contentedly when their lips parted. U'kaiah had to be careful - he could get used to seeing her more than just on restdays. "So what is it then? Missed me? You've been missing me a lot lately. Not that the feeling isn't mutual..."

She snorted, taking his arm and imperiously leading him over to the sofa. "I have some news."

"Oh?" he asked, intrigued. "Good news?"

**That all depends.** Easing down onto the sofa, she patted the spot next to her. "You've probably heard that J'darin was 'scored in the last Threadfall?"

"Yes, I did," he said, sliding onto the seat next to her and stretching his arm out along the back. "I was very sorry to hear that. What are you going to do?"

"Hasaarth was 'scored too." Her expression turned somber. "They won't be able to fly for a month...maybe even two." Turning her head, she looked up at him. "And you know Nyith will rise at the end of the month. Hasaarth won't chase, U'kaiah. He can't."

"Not this time, but he'll heal, Trae. I heard it wasn't a permanent injury by any means." There was always the chance J'darin could reclaim his position in the next Flight.

"U'kaiah...." She shifted on the sofa until she was facing him completely. "I'm throwing the flight open."

The bronzerider let those words sink in for a moment. She was opening the Flight up to riders from other Weyrs. In other words, to _him_. "Why are you doing this, Trae?"

"Publicly? Because we've suffered extreme losses and there are honestly not enough eligible Dolphin Cove bronzeriders to lead the Weyr competently. But as for my own, private reasons...." She searched his eyes for the reaction she expected of him. "I'm giving you the opportunity."

"You want _me_ to be your Weyrleader." And she would play on the Weyr's politics in order to give him that chance. It was flattering. It was also just plain wrong.

A line creased her brow--she couldn't read his expression. "You know I do," she told him quietly.

"It's an amazing opportunity, Trae, but... You know you it's a gamble, right? There's no guarantee that I would win the Flight."

"Of course I know it's a gamble," she replied testily. As soon as the words left her mouth she closed her eyes for a brief moment, reining it in. She was reading him wrong, that was all. Opening her eyes, she looked up at him. "All mating flights are gambles. But Kalamath will have as great a chance as any other bronze contender, U'kaiah."

And if he won? Would her people accept their Weyrwoman's lover as the fair winner of an open Flight? Or would they see through the excuses and cry foul? But she was doing this for him. She wanted him with her, and Faranth knew he hated the distance. "It's a lot to think about."

This wasn't at all what she'd expected from him. His unreadable expression unnerved her, even more so than his words. "It's a chance worth taking."

"I want to be with you, Trae," he said, reaching for her hands. "I want to see you every day and hold you every night..." But U'kaiah wasn't sure he could just sacrifice everything he had worked for to do it.

"It isn't just about us. After half a month of knowing you, I knew you'd be a great Weyrleader if you were ever given the chance." Her grip tightened in his. "For the past two Turns, Dolphin Cove has been through one sharding tragedy after another. We need a Weyrleader who can keep pulling us back together, and I need someone I can work with, someone who I know and trust."

U'kaiah smiled softly, reaching up to caress her cheek with the backs of his fingers. Dolphin Cove already had one Weyrleader who could see them through the toughest of times. Trae had proved herself over and over again. "You know that whatever happens you will always have my full support."

His words were meaningful, but they weren't what she wanted to hear. "We have a chance," she whispered.

And that was the only reason he was still even considering it. "We do," he said with a slight nod. "You've given us a chance." But was it one he was willing to take?

Last updated on the August 29th 2008

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