[Dining Hall]

He made his offer and waited for her response.  She looked surprised.  
"Trey..." she began.  Her voice held some slight doubt and he realised it 
was too soon to ask.

"I shouldn't have asked.  It's too soon since Darrin, I know," he said, 
trying to hide his disappointment and embarrassment.  Trey had never been 
one to wait once he realised his true feelings.

Diana laid her hand upon his arm.  "Let me finish.  The last few days I have 
spent with you have been some of the happiest in my life.  Like Zena said to 
me this morning, you make me laugh. I had hoped you felt the same but never 
dreamed you would want to share an apartment quite this soon."  She paused 
and looked into his eyes. "Trey, I think I am falling in love with you, if I 
haven't already. Yes, I want to share an apartment with you."

He returned her gaze.  He felt suddenly like a much younger man in the 
throes of first love.  He drew her close and kissed her. "Let's look this 
afternoon, okay?"

"Sounds good to me," she said with a grin.  "Now finish eating or Cook will 
think you don't like her, and you sure don't want to get on Cook's bad side!"

He laughed and picked up his fork.  "No, that I don't!"

A short time later, Z'lec suddenly stood with a bellowed, "What?!"  The 
Wingleader headed toward their table.  Trey looked at Diana in confusion as 
Waylene stepped in front of her mate.

They were close enough to overhear Waylene's words to her mate.  "Can I 
speak to you for a moment, outside, please."

Z'lec looked at Trey and Diana, then back at his mate.  "I'm just going to 
knock some sense into her," he roared.

Waylene's voice was calm and quiet.  "You are making a scene.  Walk outside, 
so I may speak with you please."

Z'lec glanced around.  Trey followed the man's gaze and realised everyone in 
the dining hall was staring at the Wingleader.  Z'lec threw his hands up in 
the air and exited the dining hall, with Waylene close at his heels.

Most in the dining hall went back to eating, pretending the interruption 
hadn't happened.  Trey looked at Diana's shocked face.

"I assume he's not usually this temperamental?" Trey asked her.

"Not usually."  Her brow wrinkled in concern.  "I guess you wouldn't know-- 
he's always been pretty bad with you."

Trey nodded.  "I can't blame him, but I can't think of any way to establish 
any trust between us.  How do you prove that you won't, at some undetermined 
future time, do something?  There isn't any way."

Diana shook her head sadly.  "And you probably haven't impressed him by 
getting involved with me so quickly."

"No, I don't suppose that would look very good to him."  Trey sighed.  "Ah, 
well, can't be helped, I guess.  I'll just have to muddle through.  I was 
informed that there's a wing exercise this morning-- working the new 
transfers in, getting the old ones reorganised to fill the holes left by all 
the deaths.  I intend to show up.  I hope he doesn't make a scene about it. 
I don't think he will, since he's *supposed* to be supporting Waylene's 
decision and keeping me out of the wing would be pretty flagrant."

Diana nodded.

"I also want to stop by the Medical Center and see David, and maybe his mate 
Minty.  Koroth told me this morning while we were swimming that she 
miscarried and nearly died.  That has to be really rough on both of them."

"That would be awful," Diana agreed.

The silence stretched a moment.

"Diana, did you and Darrin ever consider having children?"

She looked distant.  "We talked about it.  We were going to wait just a bit 
more."  She sighed.  "After all, we had time."

He took her hand and squeezed it gently.  "I'm sorry."

******

Z'lec tried very hard not to glare at Trey when he arrived at the training 
session after a brief visit with David.  As Trey had guessed, Z'lec made no 
move to exclude him, but Trey could feel the cold rage of the man directed 
at him.

Trey observed a few things he himself would do differently as wingleader and 
bit his tongue to keep from offering them as suggestions to Z'lec.  He 
didn't want to start some assinine competition with the man over who was the 
better wingleader.

After the exercises, they settled down on the green to listen to Z'lec.

"We'll be reorganising and adding the new riders into our patrol schedule 
soon.  All of you consider who you'd like to be paired with and turn your 
requests in to me by tomorrow evening.  I'll try to honour as many of them 
as I can."

Trey considered, glancing at Diana.  Should he request Diana be his patrol 
partner, or would it be better to broaden his acquaintance here at the 
warren?  He decided it might be better to take what the luck of the draw 
handed him.  He'd talk to Diana about it later.

Z'lec continued.  "I will be announcing my choice of a new Wingsecond as 
soon as I have observed everyone enough to decide on one.  I *do* *not* want 
anyone proposing themselves or anyone else for the position.  I'll make my 
own judgement."

Trey nodded.  A wingsecond had to be someone the wingleader knew and trusted 
implicitly and could work with easily.  It was a very personal choice.  He 
thought of his own and wondered how she was.  Another life he had trampled.

Z'lec dismissed them.  Trey approached his new wingleader.

"Yes?" Z'lec asked gruffly.

"I wanted you to know that I appreciated your defending me at the warren 
meeting the other day, though I know it wasn't for me that you did so.  I'm 
sorry I undid it all moments later."

Z'lec shrugged.

"I'd also like to ask that you pick a patrol partner to assign me."

Z'lec seemed a bit surprised.  "You're not asking for Diana?"

Trey shook his head.  "I'm not used to patrolling with my mate."

Z'lec flinched at the word, and Trey himself found he was amazed at how 
easily the word came to his tongue.

"And I think it would be best for me to get to know some other people here," 
Trey continued.  "I trust your judgement in the matter... and I thought you 
might feel more comfortable choosing someone for me."

"Waylene promised you wouldn't be treated any differently--" Z'lec began.

"I know.  I realise I could make a choice and you'd have to live with it.  
But I'd really like to try to work with you.  So, you choose.  I'm sure I'll 
be happy with the choice."

******

He met Diana for lunch and then the two went apartment hunting.  Of prime 
concern to Trey was that the kitchen be well-designed and that there be some 
room for his sewing.  Since many dragonriders never cooked, some of the 
kitchens were quite abyssmal.  It was some time before they found one that 
suited them both and their dragons.

Trey sat on the bed and surveyed the place.  "I think it will do."

He laid back and she joined him in the bed, kissing him with slowly growing 
urgency.  He gently pushed her away.  "I think we need to get a bit of stuff 
moved in before tonight."

She sighed.  "I suppose so."

"Besides," he joked, "I'm not a young man.  This 35-year-old body can only 
handle so much passion in two days."

"And have you filled your passion quota already?" she asked, teasingly.

He rolled over on top of her and kissed her deeply.  "Not quite, my love, 
not quite....  But--" he interrupted as her hands began to roam, "let's 
leave something to anticipation."

"You're mean," she mock pouted.

"Indeed," he agreed with a grin.  "It comes of old age."

Then he rolled off her, slipped off the bed and headed to the dragon 
chambers.  <What do you think, Roth?>

<It is quite roomy.  Zena and I both like it.>

<Good.  How do you and Zena get along, anyway?>

<We are friends.  I think I may be closer to Yenal than to her, as of yet, 
but she is a good friend.>

<I'm glad to hear that.>

<Are you worried some other will fly her?>

<Roth!  Have you ever known me to have problems with mating flight surprises?>

<No, not really.  I was just wondering if perhaps that had changed...>

<No, Roth.  It hasn't.  I'm sure you'll stray a time or two yourself, if I 
know you.>

<I fully intend to.>

Trey smiled and rubbed his dragon's side.  Diana entered the chamber, her 
eyes reflecting that slightly blank stare of dragon-rider conversation.

"So, is Zena okay with it?" he asked when her gaze focused on him.

"Yes, she likes it."

"Sounds like the vote's unanimous, then," he said.  "Shall we go get some of 
our stuff?  And I want to make sure the kitchen is well-stocked."

She rolled her eyes.  "You and your cooking!"

He grinned.  "You don't complain when my cooking is in your mouth."  His 
eyes grew distant and then he looked into her face.  "I also want to write 
to Ophelia and the kids and inform them.  I don't want them to hear it 
through the grapevine."

"You still love her, don't you?" Diana asked, seeing the pain in his face 
when he mentioned his former mate.

"I always will.  I guess I'm beginnig to understand dragon love a bit.  My 
love for her doesn't diminish what I feel for you, or vice versa.  I hope 
that doesn't bother you."

Respectfully submitted,
 Lynette R. F. Cowper
  Tr'etram and Koroth

NRPG: Back to you, Kat.

Kris: I left the conversation with Z'lec for you to finish if you want, or 
we can assume it ends there.

Justin: Probably not a real significant visit.  If you want to do something 
with it, feel free.

All: Lots of room for interraction if you want, during breakfast, lunch, 
drill or while they were apartment hunting.

 **********************************************************************
 * Lynette R. F. Cowper       *     Official INWO NetRep & Goddess    *
 * lcowper@io.com             *        Circle of Janus Secretary      *
 * lcowper@indy.net           *   VP of P.U.R.P.L.E. (People United   *
 * http://www.io.com/~lcowper/*   Respecting Purple Legal Equality)   *
 **********************************************************************
 *     The INWO rulings I make are official.  All other opinions,     *
 *  discussions, deck ideas, card ideas, political beliefs, etc. are  *
 *  my own and not those of Steve Jackson Games, the Circle of Janus, *
 *                        or P.U.R.P.L.E.  Fnord.                     *
 **********************************************************************