Waylene
***
<<Day 8 - Morning>>

Waylene was in her office the next morning when D'zall burst in with his
good news. Yasmine would be released! Utha's death had been ruled a heart
attack, and not Yasmine's fault.

"I'm so relieved!" Waylene breathed.

"G'vriel is waiting for her and will escort her home."

"Good, I'm glad to hear that."

"There is one little problem." D'zall told her.

"What?" she asked, knowing there was always 'one little problem'.

"Well right now Yasmine is named in Utha's will as his heir. Tressa is hers."

"She can't be ruler of Tressa, she's a dragonrider."

He nodded, "That's the problem."

Waylene nodded, "Very well, I'll deal with it as soon as I can."

***

It wasn't long after D'zall left that Traknor made his way down to her
office. She frowned slightly as she watched him limp in, but hid her
concern quickly with a smile for him as he kissed her lightly on the lips.
"Good morning, m'lady."

She shook her head at his use of the term, m'lady. "How are you feeling
this morning."

"Slept like log .. can't believe I slept so long .."

"You've been sleeping a lot lately." She said gently.

"Just getting my strength back," he grinned at her.

She nodded and was about to say something when Aura informed her that
Healer C'tain had asked to see them in his office. She groaned. She'd been
trying not to think about C'tain's threats to leave the warren. She didn't
want him to go. She'd always  respected him and his family. She'd loved his
father just as if he'd been her father .. and she wasn't happy to see the
way C'tain was feeling right now.

Trak had received the message from Mayhem and told her that Mayhem had
volunteered to take them both. She nodded. It was a long walk to the med
center and right now her knees were feeling a little shaky at the though of
the confrontation that was coming. She tried to hope that he'd come to his
senses .. but somehow, she doubted it.

***

>"I still feel that Lakoda and this entire Medical Staff is owed a sincere
>and public apology. She has been treated abominably and only had the
>pressure taken off her because she's pregnant."

"So, you're not leaving?" Waylene asked, feeling a great deal of relief.
Perhaps he was coming around. However her relief was short lived as he
continued, his face still stoney.

>"I don't know yet. If I don't, it won't be because I've changed my mind
>about your reprehensible treatment of the medical staff. If I do, I intend
>to take Koda with me."

"What?! You can't--" For him to leave Marrid healer-less was unthinkable,
not to mention the dangers of Koda's pregnancy. As she understood it, it
was fragile enough without all this stress. She frowned at him, feeling her
anger and disbelief growing.

>"I can and I will if she's willing. We'll go somewhere where the healing
>arts are appreciated and allowed to flourish instead of being ground under
>the heal of a tyrannical wingleader who know nothing about medicine. If
>that leaves you in the lurch, it's just too bad. Maybe you'll think twice
>the next time you decide to second-guess your healers."

>Trak leaned forward. "Look, she was doing something I felt was--"

>"No!" C'tain interrupted. "You look. She's either a good healer, and you
>let her work without second-guessing her decisions-- and you APOLOGIZE for
>the horrible way she's been treated-- or she's a bad healer and you don't
>want her here anyway. You know nothing about medicine. You can't dictate
>her medical decisions *or anyone else's* that works in the Medical Center.
>And *if* I decide to stay and if this sort of thing happens again, I will
>not hesitate. I will be gone within the hour. So will Sina. Do I make
>myself understood?"

>"Even if that means leaving injured untreated?" Waylene challenged.

>"Better they be untreated than mistreated, Waylene. Competent healers can
>always be called in on an emergency basis-- ones that will do what needs
>done and not be constrained by warren politics and who's sleeping with
>whom and who got their feelings hurt. Now, I have final rounds to do, then
>I'll be talking to Koda at breakfast. If you want to assure yourselves
>that I don't persuade her to leave the warren with me, I'd suggest you
>start apologizing and hope she can see fit to forgive you and trust you
>again."

By this time, Waylene was nearly shaking with rage. How dare he question
her respect for healers! Or her intentions for the good of the warren! To
her credit the only things giving off her rage were the white lines in her
fingers as she struggled to contain herself. "You do your rounds and you
talk to Koda, and then after breakfast, I want the three of you in my
office, and we ~will~ discuss this issue."

"I see no reason for discussion. You have my terms." C'tain said stubbornly.

"I warn you, C'tain. I want the three of you there .. in my office as soon
as breakfast is over. And anyone who does NOT show up .. I will help you
pack your bags out of here."

For whatever reason, C'tain nodded in agreement, then left to do his rounds.

"I will NOT apologize!" Trak said just as stubbornly as C'tain.

"I DO NOT want to talk about it right now." Waylene lashed out. Finally her
body gave into the shaking and she dropped to a chair.

"Waylene?" Trak asked concerned.

"I'll be all right .." she stammered. "I just need a moment of quiet. Go on
and get something to eat .. I'll see you after breakfast."

"You need to eat too .." he protested.

"Trak, Please!" she said a little louder then she'd meant to. "I'm sorry ..
I just need time to calm down and think .. I'll get something later."

He nodded, seeing that she was not going to change her mind. He left her to
her thoughts and decisions.

***
<<After Breakfast>>

Lakoda was the first to arrive, "Aura told Ribbon you wanted to see me?"
Her eyes searched the room, and seemed relieved that Waylene was alone.
Waylene knew why she probably was relieved.

"I sent Trak to watch the kids. What I have to say does not have anything
to do with him." Waylene told her, "Did you speak with C'tain?"

Lakoda nodded, but didn't elaborate. Still it was clear the topic wasn't
completely comfortable for her.

"You don't have to discuss that with me," Waylene assured her. "Did he
mention whether or not he was coming here to join us?"

Lakoda nodded, "He didn't seem happy about it, but I think he'll be here."

Waylene sighed in relief, "I'm glad to hear that. Koda, you have to know I
don't want to lose him or Sina .. or you."

She nodded, but didn't have a chance to respond as C'tain pushed
unceremoniously through the door, followed by Sina. He  looked at Waylene,
"Where's Traknor. I assumed he'd be here to apologize."

Waylene ignored the jab, "Please sit."

C'tain looked about to protest, but Sina pulled him to a chair. Lakoda took
one as well.

Waylene moved to the front of her desk and leaned back against it taking a
deep breath before beginning. "When I came to Marrid, I was young and
scared and I failed to join to a dragon. I was treated cruelly by my
father, and taken in by the kindness of the people here. People who didn't
know me from the next person.

"I fell in love with the Warren back then. And I knew no matter whether or
not I ever joined to a dragon, I would live here for the rest of my life."

"What does this have to do with anything?" C'tain asked.

"I need you to listen, please." Waylene replied. "I think as Warrenlady, if
not as your friend, you owe me that."

He nodded grudgingly and Sina answered for him, "Go on, Waylene. He'll listen."

"I had few friends at first, and even less after Aura hatched, and I had to
spend so much time learning how to be a junior queenrider. But throughout
all of it, your family was there for me. I have always appreciated that. I
learned to depend on you and your father .. and Sina too," she nodded at
C'tain's youngest sister, ".. once she began to take a larger role in the
med center. I've never had any complaints regarding how we all work
together and how you work with the dragonriders assigned to help out."

"And you never would have had you not let Trak begin dictating how this
warren was run." C'tain said pointedly.

"When Lakoda came to Marrid, it was like a dream come true. We finally had
a JOINED healer! Someone who could make communications between us better ..
more efficient. And I'll admit that perhaps I took more advantage of that
then I should have."

"Absolutely. You didn't treat Arri this way."

"Daetyn was a different dragon. She wasn't accessible the way Ribbon was ..
and she was a queen. And while it may make no sense it does change the way
some dragons and riders dealt with her."

"We are the healers! We are the ones with the medical knowledge! Our
decisions must be respected if we are to be effective."

"I would agree with you., however we are talking about something that was
not a medical issue." Waylene said. "We are talking about a warren issue.
This warren's *Wingleader* was found half-crazed and dying due to the lose
of his dragon. Irregardless of my relationship to him, as *Warrenlady* I
should have been informed!"

"Lakoda has already told you .."

"Yes, she did," Waylene interrupted. "And I do respect her reasons, but the
fact of the matter is, she ~was~ wrong."

"That's a matter of opinion." C'tain told her.

Waylene nodded, "True, but C'tain, *I* am Warrenlady. I make the final
decisions when it comes to this warren and it's well-being."

"And if I can't abide by them."

"Then you are right to leave." Waylene sighed. "I will not beg you to stay.
And will most certainly not cave into your threats. I made my choice and if
I thought it was a wrong one, I would be the first to admit it. However, no
matter whether or not you like it, Lakoda is a dragonrider first! Even
before being a healer."

C'tain reddened. He knew that. It was exactly what he had been telling Koda
not so long ago at breakfast.

"And I will have her trained to be a dragonrider both for the good of this
warren and for her own safety. I am not asking her to fight combat. I am
only asking that she know how to protect herself and her dragon should she
ever find herself in a dangerous position. And as a healer who has the
ability to transport directly to the wounded, and is inclined to do so by
the very fact that she is a healer, makes training all the more essential.
It is no more then I would ask of any dragonrider."

"You had her training with the Wing! That is not the same thing."

"No it's not, you're right. However, while the wing trains for battle, they
also train for self preservation and it makes sense to train all
dragonriders at the same time rather then having one or two separate. This
is a small warren, and we do not have the resources some warrens do. We
have basically two trainers. One for the hatchlings, basic things that Koda
would already know. And then we have the wingleader .."

"Trak was punishing her! It was spiteful and disrespectful. And you allowed
it!"

"C'tain," Waylene said calmly, "My intentions were not to punish her, but
to get her thinking like a dragonrider .. like a team. Trak apologized
already for making it more then that. It really wasn't his intention either
..

"You accuse me of not respecting the healers of Marrid, and that couldn't
be farther from the truth. I value you. And Sina .. and Koda. And I will do
everything in my power to be sure you are here and safe to do your job.

"So here's what we have. I don't want you or Sina or Koda to leave. We need
you .. I need you. Both as healers and as those I thought I could call
friends. However, I will not require Trak to apologize anymore then he
already has. And I will require Koda to be trained as much as is necessary
for the safety of her and her dragon. Those are my terms and if you can not
respect my position as Warrenlady, you are more then welcome to leave. In
fact, you will be required to do so."

Waylene looked at them. Her face remaining resolute, even as inside she
prayed silently that they would see reason. While healers could be replaced
.. friends could not.

Regards,
Waylene & Aura
***
NRPG: Okay Part two .. one more part to go :)

Kristen
------------------------------------
Kristen & Scott Gant
http://homepage.interaccess.com/~sgant/gant.htm