OOC{Sorry it took so long. I've been rather sick and busy}

"Rurith waits for nothing when she is ready to feed, M'rik." Lanara offered the smallest of smiles. "And please, don't use that tired Milady on me. It makes me seem as old as my mother was. Lanara is perfectly fine."

She noted his distance from her weyr, and she knew why. M'rik had always been polite, which meant that unless she invited him over, he would not intrude despite the weather. And the weather was was still miserable and drizzling rain, the chill in the air made her shiver slightly. She also knew that M'rik was being cautious about politics in the weyr. It would be quite unpleasant for another bronze rider to be seen in the weyrwoman's weyr this close to the queen rising. Sith was still looking on, watching Rurith the way he'd watch a herdbeast before swooping in for the kill, and every now and again he would turn his gaze to Lanara. If she could trust the bronze giant not to reveal her secret she would've forced him to leave.

"This weather is dreadful." She sighed softly. "It looks like the cold is going to be terrible this turn, and the weyr is beyond unprepared. No tithes to speak of... I apologize, I should not burden you with my worries."

She noticed that Rurith was taking up residence next to her once more. A slender hand reached out to scratch an eye ridge and was rewarded with a soft croon, and Lanara smiled in a way she only did when Rurith was awake, which wouldn't be long considering the large meal the gold had eaten.

{Done now... sleepy}

[Lazy thing you only just woke up]

{Sleepy.}

[You shouldn't eat so much.]

{I was hungry}

Lana knew it was pointless to argue with her dragon and watched as she flew a bit awkwardly back to the weyr and settled down to sleep. A small affectionate smile crossed her face as she felt the dragon drift off, though she knew that she'd have to be oiled and scrubbed later in the day. Not that she would neglect the dragon in anyway, the task was a dull and boring one. And Rurith would inevitably complain that she itched and that is was taking too long to finish. The dragon was well aware of her status at Benden.

Silently the bronzerider watched Lanara comfort her gold, and his gaze was intently considering as the queen lumbered back off the comfort of her sleeping wallow. She seemed to be hitting another growth stage, it wouldn't be long before she was rising. A reassuring and voiceless rumble in the back of his thoughts from Imminth radiated self confidence in the assessment.

"It's no burden to know the state of the Weyr, and as soon as Rurith rises for her first flight, you'll be called Lady, will you or nil you." M'rik spoke up to the woman. "As for tithes, as soon as the search riders start bringing back the precious scions of the Holds, you'll get your tithes. They may stint when it's just riders brooding on their ledges, but not when it comes to their own spawn." He couldn't quite keep a bitter note from his voice and tried to temper it with an offer.

"You're cold, and Rurith's gone to sleep. Will you join us at the dining cavern, maybe have a hot drink? The riders will want to see you, get to know their future Weyrwoman as more than a face in the distance." His calculating gaze returned to Sith as he spoke. "Nobody could protest you openly taking up your duties to the Weyr and it's people."

Formalities... She let out a gentle sigh; Lanara knew that M'rik was right. They would call her Lady and Weyrwoman, and few would call her by her name except in private. Lanara sought only the respect of her peers, not the formalities and coldness that came with her status. She was not a demanding woman, and she wanted little more than her weyr to be treated with its due respect and her home to be safe. Too long had she listened to the songs and stories of Harpers, taught to her by instructors merely because tradition mandated it. After all, no one believed that the Red Star was a threat, even as if winked down upon them.

"One can only hope that there will come a change in the treatment of the Weyr. I fear that we will have difficulties if such change does not come." Lanara's voice held a bitter tone, one of anxiety. "I know the search should bring a change in mood from the Holds, but I fear that the our riders will not be well received in the Holds when they go on Search."

Her fingers ran through the dark tresses that were beginning to curl in the dampness of the air, and her golden eyes flickered slightly. Swiftly she braided it back into a loose braid to keep it out of her face; several strands escaped their prison and blew about. She made an attempt to hide her deeper fears so that she would not wake the sleeping dragon who was resting out of sight. There was a glimmer of hope in the fact that when Rurith rose she would truly be weyrwoman and would be able to affect real change.

"I think that it would be a fine idea. I could use a hot drink to warm up." Her eyes flickering over to Sith and T'san, who had appeared on the ledge. "Besides, there is much to be done about the weyr as usual." T'san caught sight of her narrowed golden eyes, and he stepped back out of sight. Clearly the incident that left the fading bruise had left a lingering mark on him as well, since none of the weyr save a few older riders disapproved of striking her.

Respectfully M'rik stepped forward enough to bow formally and offer his arm in the precisely accepted manner permitted a bronze rider to an unattached queen. Before she could protest his elaborate mannerisms, he glanced back up at her with golden eyes slanting towards T'san's weyr, then back to her and dropped a single eyelid in a wink.

(this would be an excellent time for any new members to be at the dining cavern)

OOC{Yes it would be}

Lanara bit back a comment about the elaborate formal mannerisms M'rik seemed intent on using, especially when she caught his wink. The fiery weyrwoman offered a wink in return as she returned with a regal nod of her head and accepted his arm. After all he was behaving as any bronze rider was permitted when she was unattached, despite the claims T'san made. The weyrleader by default still felt he had a claim of attachment since Sith had flown Fareth; no one but T'san believed such a claim but still, the older rider attempted to assert his authority.