Log Date: June 21, 1996
Log Cast:
	In the Living Caverns:
		Kethran
		Jehrina
		K'nan
		Ursa
		Tinya
		Jaeleka
		R'val
		Salless
		Karise
	At the Hot Springs:
		Jehrina
		F'hlan
		Kethran
Log Intro:
	It's been a tense evening around Benden Weyr. Tinya, visiting blue
rider from Eastern Weyr, has been finally opening up to K'nan about the
problems that drove her North; Jaeleka, toddler child of Jazmin, has
been having quite the spat with Kethran. And if all this wasn't enough
to make the Living Cavern a lively place, Jehrina, glowering under the
effects of her gold Leilanth's impending rising, is nursing an
uncharacteristic acquaintance with a beverage that is NOT fruit juice.

[NOTE: A couple of Benden Weyr chat lines have been left in for 
giggles.]

Benden Weyr's Living Cavern(#750RJM$)
This huge cavern is sufficently roomy to hold a large portion of the 
  Weyr's population without feeling cramped. There's always a bustle of 
  activity here. Fragrant dishes are constantly in prepartion for
  mealtimes: currently for the late meal. Drudges are always present,
  either cleaning under Salless' watchful eye, or helping fetch and
  carry. A myriad of glowbaskets and many ever-lit hearths make the
  cavern warm and inviting despite its size. The scents of cooking
  meats, baking breads and pastries, and the pungent aroma of spices
  hang mouthwateringly in the air. It is little wonder that those
  seeking to relax nearly always find their way here to do it. Dark
  summer blooms of vivid hue decorate the tables.
A short tunnel jaunts eastward out to the bowl and the merry sounds 
  of cooking, chores, and laughter echo from the kitchen at the
  southwest end of the cavern near the westerly passage to the rest of
  the lower caverns. To the southeast is an entrance to the infirmary
  weyr to care for injured dragons and riders.
Contents:
Kethran
Jehrina
K'nan
Ursa
Tinya
Jaeleka
R'val
Salless
Karise
Obvious exits:
Lower Caverns  Kitchen  Bowl

Aeyri flitflitflitflitflits.

Kethran listens to Jaeleka's lies with half an ear, saying nothing. 
  He takes another sip of juice.

Aeyri(#9556IMeps)
Quite possibly the most adorable firelizard on Pern, dainty green 
  Aeyri has big, swirly, sparkly eyes, delicate soft-hued wings, and a
  cheep in the purest, sweetest tone a firelizard can produce. She is
  banded on her right hind leg with the red and black of Benden Weyr,
  and an additional thin stripe of bronze.
She is 16 Turns, 6 months, and 29 days old.

Jaeleka holds out a hand piteously to Ursa. "Him's hurt 'leka hand."

Ursa asks, "Not even a little?" then bends down to look at the hand. 
  "Your hand need a kiss, then?"

Karise looks over to Kethran. She notes he doesn't say anything, so 
  neither does she. It does, howver get a smile from the girl as she
  stands slowly to refill her cup.

Jaeleka shakes her head again. "'leka no lell, lady, pwomise." She 
  holds her hand out further, with a watery smile, at the mention ot a
  kiss.

Kethran smiles and mutters to Karise as she passes.

Ursa stoops to give the hand a dramatic kiss. "There. That should 
  help. Leka can yell loud, ya know..." she comments.

Jaeleka blinks. "'leka no loud" she insists.

Karise nods, stopping to get a good look at Kethran. She suddenly 
  chuckles, reaching over to pull out a cumbly piece of pastry. "Maybe
  you should soak too...though red does suit you," he adds, voice filled
  with humor.

Kethran glances over at Ursa, and then murmurs back to Karise, a 
  hint of a smile on his lips.

Ursa nods, letting the matter drop, then gestures towards Kethran. 
  "Looks like man met up with the same bubblies that you did."

Jaeleka glares at Kethran. "Man break bubblies!"

Aeyri coos prettily as she sails down to a perch and looks to see if 
  there are any handsome blues in here.

Karise ahs, something flashing across her face, then quickly 
  disappearing. Mutely nodding, she continues her way to the klah pot.

Ursa has to snicker. "Looks like he did a good job of it, too."

Jaeleka giggles. "Him fall down!"

Ursa giggles too. "Did he? And took all the bubblies down with him?"

Jaeleka nods, giggling at Ursa. She scrambles to her feet, then 
  flings herself onto her bottom, lying on her back. "Hims do that!"

Karise goes back to her chair, putting her feet idly on the her 
  backpack, watching Ursa and the child for a moment before sipping
  lightly on her cup.

Tinya takes another good swig of her wine, not quite finishing the 
  glass. Taking a deep breath, she answers, "_This_ time, he was telling
  half the living cavern that the reason he got hisself scored today was
  he was watching _me_ to make sure I wasn't doing anything dangerous."
  She slaps the wineglass down on the table with a loud smack. "In the
  very first place, Liath is one of the best dragons in our entire
  sharding Weyr, not to mention our wing. In the second, _he_ was the
  one who skipped drills 4 times in the last two sevendays. And in the
  last place, I'm not even in his sharding wing, so how could whatever
  we did be his concern?" Her voice rises to an 
  indignant height as she recites her litany of grievances.

Ursa grins at the demonstration, "Did he? He musta looked silly, 
  yes?" She glances up and gives Kethran a grin.

Jaeleka nods, looking over Kathran's way and giggling. "Hims look 
  funny! Make 'leka laugh!"

Kethran smiles back at Ursa, his expression a bit tight-lipped, 
  nonetheless.

Jaeleka frowns, then gasps, looking at Kethran. "Lady! Man hurt 
  hand!" She wobbles a little closer to Kethran to make sure. "Hey, man.
  Hey Keth-ran man, you hurt hand?"

Kethran totally ignores Jaeleka, sipping his juice. He keeps his 
  look fixed on Ursa's face.

K'nan reaches over to steady the glass so she doesn't spill it, and 
  nods very slowly. "Okay...So why'd that get you..ah..asked to leave?"

Jehrina eyes Aeyri, "Oh good. You don't look like you're glowing."

Jaeleka frowns, turning to Ursa with a confused expression. "Him not 
  hear lady?"

Aeyri coos!
Aeyri flitterflitterflitters, and cranes her little neck at Jehrina 
  daintly.

Ursa scowls at Kethran as he ignores her little friend, gesturing at 
  the lil'un with her head. "Him pouting." She explains. Then sighs. "I
  mean, he's pouting."

Jaeleka frowns. "But why man pout? Him big...big man no pout."

Kethran smiles at Ursa. "Nope. Afraid I'm not pouting. But I'm 
  afraid if I say anything to Jaeleka, I'll say something I'll regret
  later," he says, managing to keep his voice rather pleasant and
  neutral.

Jaeleka looks over to Kethran at the mention of her name. She pads 
  over to the man, tugging at his sleeve. "Man, man..."

Ursa whispers. "Cause his hand's hurt. Maybe he wants a kiss on his 
  hand, too."

Jehrina takes another drink from her glass, finishing off another 
  half of it. She reaches out a hand to Aeyri to scritch the little
  green gently.

Jaeleka continues to tug insistently at Kethran's arm. "'leka kiss 
  man hand?"

Aeyri flitflits happily at Jehrina, eyes whirling powerd blue.

Kethran glances at Ursa's face, and then his expression softens, as 
  it always does when she regards him. He glances down at Jaeleka and, 
  hesitantly, offers his injured hand back toward the mouth that injured
  it in the first place.

Zuli pops into the room with a puff of cold air, and swoops about 
  looking for a perch.
Zuli has arrived.
Zuli enters from the Bowl.

Karise raises a brow at Ursa, then slowly nodding. She doesn't say 
  much, just going back to nusring her mug of klah, which slowly grows
  cold.

Jaeleka puts her tiny hands on either side of the larger fist, and 
  bend her head, curls falling forward, and kisses the hand gently. She
  pats it softly before releasing it. "There, man. Better?"

Jehrina idly refills her glass, and peers around the cavern.

Tinya says "Because if I didn't go, I was going to throttle him." 
  She sighs, looks away, finishes off the remainder of the wine in her
  glass. "So A'rot marched me out and had Kreth order Liath to keep me
  away while he dealt with it." Another sigh, and an admission, "He does
  take good care of me, when he can."

Zuli lands on mantle to the hearth with a flutter of wings.

Aeyri peers over the rim of Jehrina's glass. Coo?

Zuli
Zuli regards you with a bold gaze, his eyes whirling with curiosity. 
  His hide is a deep, gem-like blue, and hints of gold flicker in the
  folds of his wings. Zuli's painted band of red, black, and brown, just
  above his right rear claw, indicates that he looks to a brownrider at
  Benden Weyr. He is a big, intelligent blue, haughty to strangers and
  affectionate to those he trusts.
Zuli is 8 Turns, 8 months, and 22 days old.

Kethran hardly feels the pat through the numbweed the Healers 
  slathered onto it, but cringes slightly. "Better," he manages to say,
  and then, with some effort, persuades himself to smile down at
  Jaeleka.

Jaeleka smiles innocently back up at Kethran. "'leka like man" she 
  tells him, hugging his knees.

Jehrina grins at Aeyri, "Silly lizard, you don't want any of this. 
  See?" She tips the glass towards Aeyri's head.

K'nan pours another glass for Tinya, as she seems to need it. He 
  nods sympathetically, "So..this rider's bothered you before?"

Aeyri's cute little head swivels around. "Coo," she insists, and 
  peers at the glimmery reflection of herself in the alcohol.

Ursa gives Keth a little glare at his expression. "She's just two 
  turns old. Don't be a grouch. She's not gonna bite you..."

K'nan sips his own drink a bit, not even half done yet.

Kethran manages to smile, and glances at Ursa helplessly. "Man like 
  'leka, too," he lies, with a forced grin, and then nods to Ursa. "Not
  now, no."

Karise chuckles, adding softly, "She already did, m'am...."

Jehrina blinks at the green, and moves the glass to take another 
  long drink before holding it in front of the lizard again, "Look
  different now?"

Jaeleka huggles Kethran's knees tightly once more before toddling 
  off. Beneath her bench, she finds some remains of sandwich which she
  picks up and takes a bite of.

Aeyri cheeps!

Ursa glances over her shoulder at the voice, frowning as she tries 
  to figure out just who that person is. Then she turns back to Kethran,
  "She really bit you?"

Jaeleka happily munches on her found bits of cheese.

Jehrina giggles, soundly slightly hazed, "Well.. it has been a 
  while." Another drink, "See the waves in the wine?"

Kethran nods slowly to Ursa. "It's not important, though," he tells 
  her. "I could use a bath, though," he says. "And maybe some comapany?"
  he suggests hopefully.

Tinya sips from her refilled glass, consumption slowing down. Now 
  that the taut mask is melting away, the rage subsiding, substantial
  hurt shows through. She nods. "He's been the ringleader of a group
  plaguing me the better part of a turn now." Then she frowns, shakes
  her head, amends, "More than a turn now."

Karise goes back to sitting quietly from her perch, watching 
  weyrwoman and lizard ponder over a glass. Well, the lizard anyway. 
  Shrugging, she sits back in her chair, leaning back into as she takes 
  another small sip from her mug.

Aeyri bobbles her head at the Weyrwoman. Maybe she'll get another 
  scritch. Chirrup!

Ursa drawls, "Already took one bath today..." She eyes Kethran 
  carefully, "YOu really could use a bath, couldn't you?"

Aeyri flits once, showing her banding on her leg. The bronze stripe 
  catches an interesting glint in the liquid Jehrina's drinking, and the 
  little green coos in obvious fascination.

Jaeleka discovers Sock and picks him up, grinning. Holding him 
  carefully by the mereset portion of material, she dances Sock up and
  down, humming to herself.

K'nan blinks at that, surprise mixing with the sympathy in his 
  expression. "A whole group of people bothering you down there?
  But...but why?"

Jehrina giggles softly, refilling the glass, taking a sip, and then 
  wriggling before the green again, "Like watching the lake, isn't it?"
  She reaches her free hand to scritch the lizard again, "Where's your
  pet, hmm? Haven't seen him in a while."

Kethran nods, reaching up to extract another bit of bubbly from his 
  hair. His face still bears the red-and-blue streaks from the juice and
  fruit inside the pies. "I could."

Aeyri croons!

Jehrina giggles again, "Here. Come sit up on my shoulder, and we'll 
  go have a look for him, shall we?"

Aeyri flitflitflits ecstatically at the scritching, and offers the 
  Weyrwoman an adoring string of croons as well.

Ursa shakes her head, murmering teasingly, "What a sorry waste of 
  bubblies."

Jaeleka stands, grabbing Sock and taking him with her, wanders to 
  the exit of the room
Jaeleka walks off towards the kitchen.
Jaeleka has left.
From the kitchen, Jaeleka enters the kitchen from the living cavern.

Kethran grins to Ursa and nods agreement. "Indeed it was," he says. 
  "I suppose I'll have to answer to the Weyrbaker tomorrow for it."

Ursa watches the little girl go. "So can you tell me what really 
  happened now?"

Tinya answers shortly, both in tone and in length, "M'rek."

Aeyri lifts herself daintily up onto Jehrina's shoulder and nuzzles 
  her ear.

Jehrina stands up, still carrying the bottle, and heads out towards 
  the bowl. She turns her head long enough to give Aeyri another
  slightly dazed smile. "On we go."
Jehrina walks down the short tunnel and out into the bowl.
Jehrina has left.

[Cheerily, the dainty green fire lizard leads the somewhat befuddled
 Weyrwoman out into the Bowl, and southward, towards the lake...]

Jehrina says "Leading me on, are you?"

Aeyri sails off happily, heading straight for the hot springs, where 
  the distant bronze shape of Tzornth can be seen floating.

You zip across the rocks to the steamy hot springs of Benden.
Benden Hot Springs
Nestled between several rock outcroppings lie several pools of water 
  and smoothed, flat rocks angled towards the sky. Immediately, the
  warmth of geothermally heated water reaches you, and you see steam
  rising from the springs pools.
Two smaller pools with another, much larger pool past them, rest here. A 
  cliff rises over one end of the large pool, with steps to climb up to
  the top. (Use 'places' to see the various springs.)
The skies are clear from horizon to horizon.
Contents:
Tzornth(#742IMQaeqs)
F'hlan(#7796PHOQace)
Obvious exits:
Lake Shore

[The log now switches to F'hlan's point of view.]

Aeyri zips around an outcrop by the lake shore that is wreathed in
  steam.
Aeyri has arrived.

Jehrina picks her way around an outcrop by the lake shore that is
  wreathed in steam.
Jehrina has arrived.

F'hlan climbs carefully along Tzornth's length, scrubbing at him with a 
  full-shouldered motion. The bronze rider is, despite the wet work,
  clad in shirt and breeches, and his garb clings to him as he scrubs.

Tzornth floats sleepily, rumbling in idle pleasure at his rider's work.

Jehrina slowly picks her way up the rocks, and then peers about, a smile 
  crossing her face as she catches sight of Aeyri again, "Just run off,
  why don't you, 'lizard?"

Aeyri cheeps!
Aeyri flits up to perch on Tzornth and croons to him, making F'hlan look 
  up, blinking through the darkness. There's a glow basket F'hlan's
  left open on the side of the pool, but still, it's pretty dark out
  here.

F'hlan ohs. "Jehrina... good evening..."

Jehrina giggles softly, and sets the bottle down, "Ooh, Saer's not going
  to be happy about that." She sits down and kicks her boots off,
  slipping her feet into the water before looking up hazily, "H'lo,
  F'hlan. Your lizard's a bright one."

F'hlan arches an eyebrow, though that can't be seen very well. "Aeyri, 
  bright?" He chuckles quietly, and resumes scrubbing.

Aeyri cheeps prettily, recognizing her name.

Jehrina tilts her head, and nods, dropping farther into the water. This
  is, of course, going to soak her clothing, but that doesn't seem to
  have occured to her. "She led me all the way out here. Bright little
  thing. Not bright like Leilanth now.. that's a different bright.
  Shining, even."

F'hlan pauses again, peering down at the younger rider for a moment, and 
  listening as Tzornth gives a slight uncertain rumble to him. He says
  dryly, "I'd have noticed if Aeyri were that kind of bright. Twyr and
  Koei and Neme would have helped point it out."
F'hlan's eyes glint a bit in the glow-light, as he notes the bottle the 
  Weyrwoman has with her, and _that_ seems to make him pause for just an 
  instant. But his demeanor doesn't change, as he continues his slow and 
  methodical work.

Jehrina smirks, dropping a hand into the water and waving it back and 
  forth, watching the patterns. She giggles, and nods, "I know.. I
  rememmmber. That was like the first time I ever met you."

F'hlan laughs, very softly, the kind of laugh he rarely uses these days 
  save with those who have known him longest. "Aye," he agrees, kindly.

Jehrina squints up at the older rider, and then grins at Tzornth, "Silly 
  bronze, you should never have let him out of his weyr. Looked like you
  were about to collapse, you did, F'hlan."

The bronze's eye glints of its own accord without the aid of the glow,
  and the dragon gives an uncharacteristically restrained warble.

F'hlan says with another brief laugh, "I did. Later."
You say "I've learned to just leave myself weyrbound when it happens,
  now."

Jehrina eyes Tzornth, and then rests against the edge of the pool. 
  Overcarefully, probably, "Hrm.. yes. All the caverns girls notice
  that."

F'hlan gives a snort that makes him, for once, sound like Tzornth.
  "Would have thought they'd be noticing T'lar and F'laav, by now."

Jehrina shrugs a shoulder, slipping a bit against the rocks before
  quickly straightening up, "You're still Benden's most handsome
  bronzerider. It's that headband... or is it the eyes?"

F'hlan blinks, then coughs a bit, and says gruffly, "Always have been in 
  the minority opinoin on that, I think."

F'hlan(#7796PHOQace)
With a lean, slim build that accentuates his otherwise unremarkable
  height, this man seems made more for quickness than strength, though
  the unconscious sureness of his movements suggests discipline enough
  to make up for any lack of physical fortitude. Sunstreaked dark
  reddish-brown hair frames his lean, weathered face, long enough to
  reach his shoulderblades in back, and to leave a thick lock habitually
  dangling in his solemn brown eyes. A streak of silver - a premature
  one, given the youthfulness of his face - runs through his forelock.
  His demeanor is customarily gravely polite. When he walks, he 
  does so with a slight limp, and occasionally has a look of strain
  about him as if from a headache.

Benden Weyr> F'hlan with all the canny training of a Weyrleader, 
  Wingleader, and Weyrsecond, sizes up this situation. Jehrina with a
  bottle of something that is NOT fruit juice. F'hlan in the middle of a
  hot spring, and wet. AIGH!

Benden Weyr> K'nan summarizes your position for you, from a tactical 
  viewpoint, F'hlan: You're screwed. . o 0 (Um...maybe that wasn't the
  best way to put it.)

Jehrina shakes her head rapidly, "I don't think so." She rubs a hand
  across her eyes, leaving dripping hair in her face. She blows it out
  of the way irritably, "If I was in the minority, /you/ never would
  have reacted like I was about to... attack you,. or something the
  first time I met you. When I was just some lower caverns girl."

F'hlan looks down off his dragon's back, and half-smiles. "I was a
  younger man, then, and more scared of lower caverns lasses."
"And besides," the bronze rider adds, "I've fewer fire lizards, now."

Aeyri chirples cutely at her human as she hops along Tzornth's back, 
  playing in the sweetsand.

Jehrina shrugs again, her speech a bit slow, "That doesn't make you any 
  less attractive..Just means you're less likely to have a problem with 
  controlling... impulses."

F'hlan points out, as he scrubs, "I'm slightly less sharding handsome
  than I used to be, too." His tone is almost wry. Is he teasing you?

Jehrina hrmphs, undeterred, "So you think. Some women are attracted to
  more.. mature men."

F'hlan, not quite certain he wants to know where this is going, says
  gently, "I'm a happy man with the one I've got."

Kethran picks his way around an outcrop by the lake shore that is
  wreathed in steam.
Kethran has arrived.
Kethran enters and wanders toward one of the Hot Springs, then notices
  who else is there. He turns to leave; there's always the Lake.

Tzornth as Kethran comes into view blows air out across the water,
  causing bubbles, and his rider glances up from the bronze's back,
  where he's perched scrubbing. There's a glow basket on the edge of the
  pool, casting enough light to show the Weyrwoman, clad, perched in the
  water herself.

Jehrina eyes Kethran, a slightly annoyed expression crossing her face
  before she turns back to F'hlan, "Melora's wonderful, I'd have to
  agree."

Kethran picks his way across the rocks to the sandy lake shore.
Kethran has left.

F'hlan starts to greet the younger man, before Jehrina's look drives him
  off.
"That she is," Tzornth's rider agrees earnestly, though his tone has
  changed slightly, now. It's almost too mild.

Allegro zips around an outcrop by the lake shore that is wreathed in
  steam.
Allegro has arrived.

Tiemenneff zips around an outcrop by the lake shore that is wreathed in
  steam.
Tiemenneff has arrived.

Jehrina nods, "The look on her face when I made you come back to Benden.
  She looked like she couldn't have been happier. I think." She rubs her
  hands across her face, and then dunks her head in the water. When she
  brings it back up, too fast, her eyes cross, "Whoops."

F'hlan considers, then says softly, "I owe you thanks for that, myself."
F'hlan adds, without embellishment, "I was dying in Southern."

Jehrina blinks owlishly, and nods, "I know. Tzornth said so. To
  Leilanth, I mean. They said you had to come home. We missed you here."

F'hlan smiles a little, and scrubs at the bronze's shoulder ridge. The
  dragon croons.

Jehrina smiles at Tzornth, "Smarter than lots of people will give credit
  for, you are. Loud, too. Good thing one of you is."

F'hlan continues to grin a bit. Perhaps assured by Jehrina's failure to
  rant at him, Tzornth croons a little more firmly, as if to reply, 'I
  make up for many lacks in my rider. Don't mind him.'

Jehrina waves her feet back and forth in the water, nodding again,
  "That's ok, at least you're one of the people I can trust to do the
  right thing when I need it."

"I think that after eighteen Turns I've finally had some sense driven
  into my head," F'hlan says, perhaps wryly again. He casts another
  glance down at the Weyrwoman, though, the same kind of glance he still
  gives to wingmates' dragons when evaluating their flight capability.
  Or the proddiness of the green ones.

Jehrina picks up the botle again, idly toying with it before taking a
  small sip. "Saer's not going to be happy with me," she says again,
  "Eighteen turns? I've known you more than ten, then.. a lot of things
  have happened."

F'hlan nods wisely. "Aye," he agrees to the last words, but not without
  noting the mention of your brother. Scrub, scrub, goes his brush on
  bronze hide, as he peers critically at the creature in the glow-light.

Jehrina wrinkles her nose, "I should wash Leilanth. She's so grumpy
  though."

F'hlan looks down again, and nods, slowly. "I can finish Tzornth and
  clear the pool..."

Jehrina shrugs, "She can wait 'til morning. I don' much feel like
  washin' her right now anyways. Too much effort."

F'hlan inclines his head, and resumes scrubbing, amiably quiet. But
  alertly so. Tzornth gives a brief, plaintive-sounding warble, that
  might be relief... or disappointment. His rider doesn't say which.

Dragon> Tzornth senses that Leilanth snorts softly, << I am not grumpy.
  She is. >>

Tzornth> Leilanth senses that Tzornth, not quite sure whether it's wise
  to answer your voice when it stirs unease in him, sends back an
  undefined acknowledgement.

Jehrina sets the bottle back down, carefully and crosses her arms, her
  eyes focused (more or less) on bronze dragon, and rider. "Feh.
  Obnoxious dragon. Too loud for her won good. Too much like her
  grandsire."

F'hlan hides a smirk, and the hand he pats Tzornth with. "Aye," he says, 
  neutrally.

Jehrina snorts softly, "And you're too quiet for your own good."

F'hlan asks lightly, "What would you like me to say?"
F'hlan finishes off the section of Tzornth he's working on, and scoots a 
  little further down, dripping a bit.

Jehrina stops, dead quiet for a moment. Making an obvious effort to
  gather her thoughts, she says, "I.. well. How about something that'll
  help me deal with you once in a while? When I dragged you back up
  here, you weren't much happier than you'd been at Southern. And I felt
  completely useless to help you. How about that?"

F'hlan glances over, pausing in his work, and considers this. "I'm....
  not the best at words," he says at last, "but if it aids.... know that
  I'm happy with my life now."

Jehrina smiles, very faintly, "Well, that's something, at least. Do you
  have any idea just how frustrating you can be, bronzerider?"

A grin flickers across his weathered features. "I've learned," he says.
  "I've been trying to work on that."

Jehrina chuckles, "I'd hope so. We've been trying to tell you that for a
  long time." Her voice softens again as she states, "Not that it
  matters, though. We'd rater have you like that, than not at all."

F'hlan smiles. "I'd prefer to let you have me."

Jehrina's right eyebrow rises, just fractionally, a flush creeping up
  her face. Eloquent as always, she says, "Oh? Really?"

F'hlan answers honestly, "I need Benden, lass." (Lass? Since when was
  the young Weyrwoman 'lass' to F'hlan? But then, perhaps it's a measure
  of his comfort with her...) "I prefer to be here. I prefer to live."

Tzornth croons briefly, and his rider smiles.

Jehrina swallows and nods, "Aye, F'hlan. I'm hardly a lass anymore.. not
  with that great golden glowing beast. And I'd rather have you that
  way, myself."

F'hlan looks down at you directly, and finishes, "So I've learned, I
  think, how to let myself _live_ at Benden. I've a dragon. I've a
  weyrmate. Six -- six!" For a moment, his eyes shine. "Six children! A
  man doesn't need much past that."

Jehrina waves a hand in front of her face, "Six.. quite a number. I
  think my two are more than enough... I don't know that I could deal
  with any more than that." She smiles, almost a coherent smile, even,
  "I'm glad that you're happy here. I am. More than you know."

[End log.]