Meow!

[Kitari]

"Klah!" Kitari snapped, tone so sharp that the three nearest drudges all jumped and began moving towards the Kitchens before realizing only one of them was needed for the task.

That just frustrated the goldrider more. Why did drudges have to be so thickheaded all of the time?

It was dawn, and Kitari was not at all pleased that she was awake. Ever since the wake-up call, pre-arranged the night before, had come, the Jr. Weyrwoman had been in a foul mood. She hadn't even bothered with tidying her appearance; her black curls bobbed like storm clouds about her head. She was exhausted. Alana had kept her up late the night before discussing the new schedules for Sweepriding, now that the Sr. Weyrlings were being integrated, and had insisted that they rise early to complete the task. Since they had come to a standstill, disagreeing about a number of pairings and assignments, the other woman had suggested a good night's sleep might clear their thoughts.

Except that it hadn't been a full night!

The goldrider paced until her klah arrived, then sat down forcefully at a table near the Kitchens and took a long sip. Immediately, her mouth twisted in pain, tongue burned, and she let out a few choice curses. It seemed like she and Alana couldn't make any decisions together lately! They bickered over the tiniest details! And Kitari could swear that Alana was purposefully trying to get her angry, as if she had some issue with Kitari that the girl was unaware of.

"Where is she?!" Kitari cried, tired yet angry eyes flashing towards the door. How dare Alana insist on getting up so early and then arriving late herself? That one was turning into a striking image of Sitareh, that was for sure.

The one thing that Kitari was relieved about this morning was that she had managed to slip out of the Weyr without waking Lefayeth. It was enough that she had to suffer; she couldn't bear to cause her dragon similar strain. Falcon, unfortunately, had been awoken, but the sleepy blue was now drooping on her shoulder, head slanted into her hair and nearly asleep again. It was almost enough to make Kitari smile, were she not too tired to do so...

[Shikai]

“Shards, shards, shards…” Alana muttered under her breath as she stormed through the hall, more than one drudge veritably leaping out of her way. It was clearly not a good morning for the Junior Weyrwoman. The dark circles under her eyes, the disarray of her clothes – the same from the previous night, actually, as she had been too tired to bother to change out of them both the night before and that morning – and her barely brushed hair, were a testament to the young woman’s lack of rest. Why, she could hardly remember the last time she had slept fully! There was always so much to be done, and to her, the Weyr would always come first.

However, that was not the worry on her mind at the moment. No, she was running late for her meeting with Kitari! Oh, but she was getting so frustrated with that woman…Alana tried to work with her, to cooperate as a team in making the Weyr’s decisions. Such was only fair; they were both goldriders of equal rank – for the time being, at least. But they just seemed to disagree on policy after policy…it was a completely inefficient use of time, and Alana’s patience was wearing thin. Did Kitari just like to argue? Was she purposely trying to annoy or subvert Alana for some reason? The Junior Weyrwoman couldn’t help but wonder, although they were but irritated speculations that were quickly discounted.

No, it was probably nothing like that…but it was frustrating, nonetheless. Especially since Kitari (if she even saw fit to be there on time – she didn’t seem to think that the Weyr’s affairs were more important than getting a full night’s sleep for one day) was waiting for her…she was sure to be annoyed that Alana wasn’t there at the appointed time.

In Alana’s defense, she had gotten up at the wake-up-call with time to spare! Unfortunately, Gwynevith had also awoken, and she, unlike her rider, was not at all happy about her sleep being interrupted. The thoughtless drudge had been much too loud, startling both dragon and rider alike, so that Gwynevith had jolted awake and knocked over Alana’s table. Which Alana would certainly not bother to take care of then, but Gwynevith had scraped her shoulder, the poor dear. Alana’s conscience refused to let her leave without first inspecting and oiling it, and soothing her beloved dragon back to sleep.

But now that that was all taken care of, Alana was making her way toward the lower caverns with all possible haste, and it showed in her elevated breathing as she finally arrived, moving toward Kitari’s table and sinking down into the place across from her.

“So, shall we get to business?” She asked, eager to finish the assignments as soon as possible so she could finally get to other things. She tried to keep the weariness out of her voice; she would have to ignore her tired state for now. Alana could sleep later…but this was more important.

[Kitari]

Finally, Kitari thought grimly at the emergence of Alana's thin frame from a corridor. It seemed the other goldrider had deigned to make an appearance in the Lower Caverns at last. Kitari watched as the other young woman strode over to her table, seated herself neatly, and began to address the previous night's business without even a hint of apology for her tardiness. The Jr. Weyrwoman's mouth twitched, and her brow furrowed ever so slightly while she let the silence linger for a moment more between them.

"I hope you'll be a little more willing to compromise today," was all she said, tone somewhat cold. She took another sip of klah, waving at a drudge to fetch another mug for Alana. Then, the goldrider reached up to stroke Falcon, who hummed sleepily before settling into slumber once again.

Kitari considered Alana for a moment more. The other woman looked rather haggard, she had to admit, but then why did she continue to drive these conflicts between them? It would be easier on both of them if they could just agree on matters quickly. Better for the Weyr as well. In these times, there was nothing Araelen needed more than unity.

"So where are the hides?" Kitari asked, forcing herself to soften her tone slightly. She glanced around but failed to spot them, and her frown deepened. In preparing the Sweepriding schedules, they had been using several hides for reference, not to mention the one they'd been building the final schedule on. For Alana to have forgotten them was beyond ridiculous, especially after arriving so late.

"We can't do anything without those hides!" she grated, jaw clenched in an effort to restrain a greater outburst. Was Alana even thinking?!

[Shikai]

Alana bristled at both Kitari’s words and the tone she said them with. How dare she imply that their failure to reach a compromise the previous night had all been Alana’s fault? True, she had not been willing to go solely with what Kitari wanted, but Kitari had been very stubborn herself! Why, if anyone was failing to compromise, Alana thought angrily, it was the other goldrider! Alana had made an effort to get along with her, she really had. Decisions had to be made; wasting time was never permissible in her book. Which is probably why she was getting so aggravated…but really, it wasn’t at all fair for Kitari to insinuate what she did!

However, with much difficulty, she bit back a scathing retort, inhaling deeply as she tried to get her nerves under control. They had business to attend to, after all, and by Faranth, Alana was not going to waste another second arguing! Perfectly ridiculous. She held out her hand to the approaching drudge and took the proffered mug, sipping from it as she looked expectantly down at the table to view the needed hides. Except…they weren’t there? Her still tired mind took a moment to register the significance of that, as though she was still expecting the hides to suddenly reveal themselves. She blinked, and looked up in confusion as Kitari spoke.

“You said you were bringing them,” Alana replied, tone more perplexed than accusatory, as she struggled to remember the arrangement made the previous night. Yes, they had decided Kitari would be responsible for that…right? Well, it seemed to her that that had been the case. However, Alana glared at Kitari at her outburst, the accusatory tone snapping something in her by now very strained nerves.

“Of course not, which is why you were supposed to bring them!” She exclaimed, still glaring in irritation at the other goldrider.

[Kitari]

The frown on Alana's face was doing nothing to soothe Kitari's ragged nerves, and the klah had turned bitter on her tongue. She was just so tired and so frustrated. Early mornings had been expected of her in the Fishercraft, but there was something about having it demanded of her by one who was supposed to be her equal... And it seemed like every night was a late one, every morning early, yet nothing ever got done.

Nothing was getting done again, today, it seemed. Alana's confused rejoinder caused Kitari's mouth to twist in displeasure, and the goldrider's teeth gritted at the accusation.

"Me!" she exclaimed, nearly hissing. As if Alana would ever let Kitari be responsible for something on her own! The other Jr. Weyrwoman didn't trust her opinions; she certainly wouldn't trust her with important documents. Kitari could clearly remember when they had talked about it last night... Well, as clearly as a sleep-fogged memory could be. She had been so certain Alana was taking the hides. Or maybe...

"Fine! I'll go get them. If you don't have them, and I don't have them, then I'm guessing we left them in the office." The office being Sitareh's old work space, where they worked on occasion. It was a musty, dark little room, but it had all of the important Weyr records right at hand.

Abruptly, Kitari stood, nearly causing the drowsy Falcon to tumble from her shoulder. With a squawk, he leapt to safety and between. A pang of regret struck the goldrider, immediately channeling into anger. If Alana hadn't gotten her so worked up she wouldn't have frightened her fire lizard like that!

With a swish of her dark curls, Kitari strode determinedly to the end of the table and rounded it, making her way back down the aisle behind Alana. A nagging voice in the back of her head was crying out for calm and a moment of clear thought, urging her to put aside this anger and sort through this...

And then another voice caused her to swerve more drastically around a drudge than was necessary, and she bumped into Alana's shoulder with some force. Kitari felt a moment of shock. What was she doing? The young woman took a step back and stopped, gazing at the other woman with a touch of trepidation.

"I'm..." she began, but the apology wouldn't come. She wasn't really sorry; Alana was driving her crazy!

[Shikai]

Alana said nothing in response to Kitari’s offer, choosing instead to sit in brooding silence and sip her klah. Well, Kitari should go get the hides, right? After all, she was the one who had forgotten them. Or…no, no Alana was sure that had been the case! Or at least, was angry enough with Kitari that she stubbornly refused to question her admittedly foggy memory of the previous night.

Instead, Alana attempted to recover some sense of composure as Kitari stood up and walked around the table, taking a deep breath and raising the mug of klah to her lips. There, that was a little better…it was all just a misunderstanding, right? She was still greatly vexed by Kitari’s attitude, but the emotions were beginning to quiet as she brought them under control.

That was, until Kitari bumped into her with such force that it simply couldn’t be construed as an innocent mistake, causing the klah mug in her hands to jolt, spilling the scalding liquid.

Alana gasped in pain as it hit her pants and quickly soaked through to her lower thighs, as she had been sitting somewhat hunched over. She bolted upright, fanning her legs with her hand in an effort to cool the liquid down. She waved impatiently at a drudge with the other, motioning for her to clean up the spilled klah. Alana stormed forward, the pain flaring her anger into twice what it had been, and roughly shoved Kitari sideways out of her way as she headed for the door herself, but stopped just after pushing Kitari, whirling to face her for a moment.

“Well, if it’s that big of a deal to you, I’ll get the sharding hides! Seeing as I have to change my pants now anyway!” She fumed.

[Kitari]

Although the Jr. Weyrwoman's mouth had fallen open in shock at the sight of klah spilling all over the other woman's legs, it quickly snapped shut at the fierce shove Alana delivered. Kitari didn't even see the attack coming, stunned as she was. The other woman had stood and pushed her all in one fluid motion, and Kitari found herself stumbling backwards, arms flailing behind her for support. Her shins slammed against the legs of a bench, and she fell precariously backwards into the table itself. Luckily, her grasping hands caught the edge of the table and prevented her from falling right onto her back, but she barely kept her balance regardless.

Alana was yelling at her, fury reddening her face, and her eyes were so dark and cold...

Something stirred in Kitari, building and sweeping through her like a tidal wave, and she erupted forward. With a wordless scream of rage, Kitari threw herself at the other goldrider.

All sense was gone, all calm erased, and Kitari could think of nothing but releasing this anger onto the source of all her distress. Her lunge became a tackle, and her fingers reached like claws for anything that was a target. Hair, face, arms, anything!

Beyond the goldrider's awareness, Falcon echoed her scream, sweeping into the Lower Caverns and flying madly about. Something was attacking his! Something was attacking his! Or so the emotions seemed to tell him. If the panicked little blue had bothered to look, he might have realized that his was the one doing the tackling, but all Falcon could do was screech and screech, crying for help and wondering if he should use his raking claws to assist.

[Shikai]

Alana was not at all prepared for Kitari’s sudden shriek of rage as the goldrider tackled her to the ground, knocking the wind out of Alana as her back hit the floor. Alana’s arms flew up at once to protect her face, and as the initial shock receded, wordless fury took its place as all her frustrations with the other Weyrwoman were amplified tenfold.

Alana flung her arms upward to push Kitari away, getting off her back and throwing herself back into the fray, overpowered by the desire to not only defend herself, but repay Kitari for that tackle. Rage coursed through her and seized control of her fingertips as she sought to scratch, slap, pull, punch, whatever she could do to best her assailant as vengeance and primal instincts replaced all traces of logical thought. The pain from Kitari’s scratched only fueled her anger, and she fought back like a wild feline with every fiber of her being.

Through her rage, she was only dimly aware of the dormant presence in her mind beginning to awaken, a frightening power like a sleeping behemoth lifting its head and building anger at what it found, preparing to unleash that fury on the offending world.

Gwynevith’s scream reverberated through every hall of the weyr. Such fury, pain, and primal rage; the sound made the blood run cold and gave one an understanding of why some people still feared dragons.

Hers was being attacked. This was as inexcusable as an attack on she herself, the colossal and radiant, the true queen of the weyr! Alana was hers, and no one, no one, attacked hers. Her roar commanded that the attack be stopped, the unforgivable assailant be apprehended; this she did not ask but demanded from all the weyr’s denizens, all of her subjects.

Alana stumbled away from Kitari as countless emotions surged through her from her normally polite, well-mannered gold; anger, pain, fury, lust…lust? Alana has a single moment of the most horrifying clarity before the emotions took hold again. Gwynevith was angry, Gwynevith was furious enough to take on the whole weyr…and she was rising.

[Kitari]

The enemy was not a passive recipient of her rage, for Alana had raised her arms and was pushing Kitari away. This was not what the goldrider wanted, for she was in a strong position while pinning the other to the ground. Alana's ploy succeeded, however, as the other Jr. Weyrwoman rolled to the side. Kitari hissed, trying to lunge after her before realizing that Alana was doing the same. They collided once again, and Kitari found herself being attacked with as much ferocity as she had been delivering moments before.

Crying out, Kitari raised her arms now against the onslaught. A moment later, she decided that her only defense was a continued offense, and she returned Alana's scratching and punching attacks in a blind frenzy.

There was nothing in the world but the other young woman, nothing but rage and fury and the need to hurt.

The floor shook beneath her as a dragon screamed. Another force began to rumble awake, drawn out by the challenge. A second scream reverberated through the Weyr.

Lefayeth's was in danger. Such outrage, such deceit! No one could threaten hers! The other gold was her rival; she was the cause! Lefayeth was the queen of this Weyr. The other dragons knew that. All were awed by her might. Gwynevith would cower before Lefayeth for daring to interfere!

Yes, Kitari thought, her pumping blood infused with the swell of power. How dare she...

And then, another surge shook the goldrider, and she cried out in shock this time. The flooding rage was mingled with something else, something that didn't make sense with trying to inflict as much pain on Alana as possible. No...no...

Lefayeth was rising.

((See Flights board for a continuation of both of these Flights!))