[Rhia -- morning everyone leaves Lotherra and Coneta submits to Haedin... 
ooh.]

Rhiannon woke to the pre-dawn chill and shivered slightly, reaching, even
now, for a warm body that was never going to be there again...  The old
pain surfaced, no longer quite so sharp edged, but still cutting deeply
even as Queri's unconditional love flowed through their bond, numbing the
edges of the emotional wounds.  Would she ever wake and feel peace... not
reaching for Idal, or remembering the sounds of that horrible night...

Rhia shuddered, slipping out of bed and pulling on a warm wrap.  Better. 
Not perfect, but better.  With practiced ease, she wove her way around the
furniture in the apartment and went into the tiny kitchen, feeling her way
to the little cold-box and pulling out a few pieces of fruit.

< Rhia? >

<< Yes, beloved? >>  Rhia walked out into the main chamber and then through
the door that led to the ledge/sleeping area that her beloved Queri used.

< Why are you so sad? >

<< No reason, really.  Stress, maybe. >>

A puff of warm air *whuffed* past her and Rhia smiled.

<< I'm fine, beloved. >>

< You're alone.  Not even Ce'lot is alone -- well, not any more... >

<< Oh? >>  Rhia went still, considering the comment.

< Brit finally found him a playmate...  Menia's rider. >

<< Menia?  -- Oh, that new girl, Bella...  The shy one. >>

< Yes.  Primeta says that Brit -- >

<< Queri! >>  Rhia's mental voice was mockingly stern and her mental
laughter was bright.  << Let it be.  I'm glad for him.  He's been too
isolated. >>

< You're one to talk... >

<< Oh, Queri... >>  Rhia munched on an apple and walked over to curl up
against Queri's foreleg.  << Haven't met anyone I...  I want to be with. 
That's all. >>

< You're not looking.  There are plenty of willing... >

Rhia sighed.  Queri never understood why it was so important that she
*care* for a person she shared her life with...  That mating for humans was
often so very different than mating for dragons.  The quicksilver queen was
constantly pushing her to move into that...  Never considering that for all
that she was the WarrenLady, she had been brought up among the LandBound...
and there were things that she just couldn't do.  She wasn't Elspeth, who
seemed to cheerfully bed-leap again and again.  Whether she could claim the
lands with the title or not, she was still Lady Rhiannon Landress...

Rhia winced at that internal thought.  Glynweith had warned her that the
council was getting restless concerning the Landress estate.  Rhia was 22,
almost 23 and had no heir, either by body, adoption, or proclamation, and
had shown no sign of marrying or -- as it was called in the Warren --
taking a mate, and they were seriously considering taking the entrustment
of the estate away from her.

Never mind that under her supervision, all of the orphans and displaced
peoples from Landress had been cared for...  More master craftsmen,
artisans, merchants and skilled laborers had come out of the diaspora of
the Landress survivors than she had thought possible, and it was beginning
to look like the estate itself had begun to revive.  All of that done, it
would be possible for people to move back... For her to...

The thought trailed off.  Landress wasn't her responsibility anymore, but
these were *her* people and damned if she was going to give them up...  But
what was she going to do?

With Ilara taking some of the responsibility from her shoulders, Rhia would
have time to do everything she needed to for Landress...  Assuming that she
could reliably leave the Warren in the girl's hands, which was not
guaranteed.  What had Queri's daughter chosen for the Warren?

A sentiment that Rhia told herself was not only unfair, but unworthy as
well.  Rhia sighed.  Why couldn't life be simple?

Even from far above, Rhia could hear the sounds of the Warren waking and
felt the weight of her responsibility bear down on her.  Whatever else
happened, Xylian was hers to protect and to serve...

-----
[H'lie]

"Good morning, laddy-bucks and lady-o's,"  H'lie smiled at the assembled
group and leaned into Rendel's neck.  "There's something that I need to..."

Billy raised a hand.

"Yes, Billy?"

"Why did --"  The boy glanced at Erkvinen and Lunath and H'lie cut him off
before he could form the sentence.

"Not now, Billy."

"But --"

"Not.  Now."  H'lie's voice was firm and brooked no argument.  Billy bit
his lip and H'lie sighed inwardly.  The boy had a right to his curiosity,
but H'lie was *not* going to undermine the authority of the Junior
Queenrider by announcing that she and Sarilyn had rather foolishly run off
together to go looking for Carlynee.  Despite Queri's roaring, very few
people knew about the activity of the girls beyond the fact that they'd
gotten caught in the previous night's storm and H'lie wasn't about to make
it any clearer than that.  If Billy really wanted to know, he could ask
Sarilyn himself.

H'lie cleared his throat.  "Now, there's a subject that I hadn't brought up
before, but now that you're dragons are bigger and almost ready to hunt for
themselves --"

That got a spontaneous cheer.

"-- I need to discuss some of the side effects of separation from your
dragon.  Just because they're now big enough to fly by themselves -- and,
in fact, with you on their backs --" another cheer, "-- they aren't ready
for you to go wandering off on them.  As you know, several riders left
Xylian on horseback to go look for refugees from Lotherra and offer them
sanctuary...  Some of you may think that because riders who have been
Joined for a long time can do it, you could too..."  H'lie laughed.  "At
this point it's perfectly natural to want a chance to get away from the
bottomless pits for a bit..."  Rendel snorted. "...but you can't do that
just yet.  Your bonds are fragile yet and will not be completely solid for
a while.  If you get too far from your dragon, your bond will begin to
fray... first you'll have difficulty hearing one another, then feeling one
another... and eventually it will snap...  Just like if you went into the
wastes."

The usually noisy crowd stared at him.  "Horrible thought, I know.  Worse,
your dragon will probably think you're dead..."

"Which means that they'd..." whispered someone in the back and H'lie
nodded.

"They'd suicide."

Everyone shuddered, except Ilara who was staring off into space with a
dreamy smile.  H'lie counted to ten.  Then did it again, but the girl just
stared into nothing and, potential authority or not, he was *not* going to
allow that.

"Ilara?"  He walked over to stand in front of the junior queenrider and
stared down at her.  "Ilara...  Having a nice fantasy?  Something better
than Erkvinen suiciding because you got too far away from her?"

Ilara blinked and then flushed, embarrassed, standing up straighter.

<~ Erkvinen says to tell you that Ilara is sorry. ~>

<* Tell Erkvinen that that's not enough.  Ilara has a responsibility and
she can't get away with just woolgathering.  It's not fair, but there it
is.  If she does it again, I want a public apology. *>

<~ I'll tell Erkvinen. ~>

He heard the pounding of hooves behind him and H'lie looked up, mildly
startled.  The rider came down and approached him.

"This has to do with rider Sarilyn, and is of vital importance.  I have to
hand this to her directly, and right now, please."

Nobles, and couriers for nobles.  H'lie rolled his eyes.  It never seemed
to occur to anyone that a simple "I need to speak with so-and-so," would be
sufficient.

"I'm very sorry, Sir.  Please, just let me talk to him for five minutes?
He wouldn't come unless it was important, honest!"

Soft and slightly scared, H'lie nearly went forward to soothe the child. 
She always sounded afraid, like she expected that he was going to do
something to her...  It wasn't as though she'd know that a courier was
coming and thus could have excused herself from class ten minutes before
hand.

H'lie nodded, turning to scowl at the newly-joined as a number of them
started to whisper eagerly.  He turned to watch Sarilyn as she read a note
and went terribly white before slipping off a bracelet and handing it to
the courier with a whispered message.

He gave the class a short recess, telling everyone that they were going to
go over the chapters in the book that he had assigned and telling them to
be back in an hour.  Frowning a little in worry he called out to Sarilyn.

"Sarilyn, please stay after this class.  I want to talk with you."

"Yes, Sir."

"H'lie, please."  He looked down at her, as puzzled by her constant
submissiveness as he had been aggravated by her previous arrogance.  "Are
you okay?"

"What?"  She looked confused.

"I asked if you were okay.  You didn't look very happy with whatever it was
that young man gave you."

"Oh...  I... it's...  I have to tell Lady Rhiannon something."

"Ah.  Well, come on, I've given the class an hour off.  It was important
enough to give you that look, we should probably go right now."

They walked over to Rhia's office and H'lie knocked on the door.

"Come in."  Rhia sounded tired and somewhat sad, but that was nothing new. 
Rhia always became melancholy as the winter festivals approached, her
memories of her former life coloring everything around her.

"Lady Rhiannon?"  Sarilyn sounded scared.

"Rhia..."  She smiled, slightly, weariness instantly disappearing from her
features.  "I remember telling you that the 'lady' tends to grate on my
ears.  What can I do for you Sarilyn?"


-----
[Haedin]

He watched Coneta carefully she shivered, probably against whatever she
thought he would ask her to do next.

All of this for lovely Lecia...  Or for the guilt she seemed to bear over
what had happened to her toy?  It was an interesting question and one that
he'd get the answer to... eventually.  But for now...

"You'd do anything, pet?"  He smiled, dark charm oozing from him.  "Well
then..."  She took a step forward, eyes filled with an odd mixture shame
and determination and Haedin laughed.  "No, nothing like that pet, you
haven't earned any rewards... and that is definitely a reward, wouldn't you
say?"

Coneta bit her lip and he enjoyed the mix of emotions that swirled in her
lovely blue eyes.

"As I was going to say, pet, we'll need to see to your education... and
find out what you know...  Tell me about Gerard...  everything about
Gerard, from his favorite foods to..."  He smiled slowly and she blushed. 
"You will tell me everything...  And if you tell me something that I don't
already know --" He touched her lips gently, "-- I might consider suitable
rewards.  I intend to see him brought howling to heel, and you're going to
help me, aren't you, pet?"

Coneta licked her lips, nodding slowly.

"But for now, I've promised Tevran his reward and he is the one who found
you..."  He smiled, catching the front of the sack cloth gown and ripping
sharply.  "When you're not giving me the information I want, you will serve
him...  You will learn what he has to teach..." Haedin traced a finger
along her jaw line, "and when you've passed your exams, you'll use your new
skills however I tell you...  If you do all of that, I'll leave Ce'lot's
pretty little sister alone..."  He draped a soft, linen robe around her
shoulders, tying it off modestly.  "If you do it well, you might even earn
the respect you think you deserve."


-----
[Rhia -- afternoon]

"Ilara."

"Um... hi."

The young woman's voice was hesitant and Rhia stood up, running a hand
through her hair, sparking golden flames from her chestnut hair.

"Today, we're going to talk about the most important lesson you have to
learn about being a queenrider..."  Even without S'dan's help, Rhia moved
gracefully around the furniture in her office and headed for the door. 
"Come with me."

"Ma'am?"

"Please call me Rhia...  We're practically sisters now, Ilara... and
anyway..."  She smiled softly, "It makes me feel old when people call me
'ma'am' -- I'm 22, not a crone, after all."

"No..." Ilara said softly.  "Definitely not a crone."

Rhia led her out of the office and out to a bench in front of the small
building.  "Come, sit."

"Rhia?"

"Sit, Ilara..."  Rhia's voice trailed off as she listened to the clamor of
the people moving about, dragons taking off, landing, walking around. 
H'lie's voice in the distance talking about beginning flight maneuvers and
their extrapolations into Wraith combat.  Her hands were clasped gracefully
in her lap as she listened to the piping voices in the school, some terse
orders from Z'ril as a load of tithes came in and he directed foodstuffs to
the kitchen.

"Rhia?"

"When you look out there --" Rhia gestured to the cacophony, "-- what do
you see?"

"People," Ilara replied, confused.

"Yes.  Exactly."

"I don't understand."

"The most important lesson, Ilara.  People... Our people.  Entrusted into
our care, by fate... chance... the choice of our dragons..."  Rhia turned
her face to the pale sun.  "What makes queen dragons special?"

"What?"  The change of subject apparently caught her by surprise.

"What makes queens special?"

"They lay eggs..."

"Yes... but why is that special?"

"The.. uh.. other female dragons don't?"

"Yes..."  Rhia nodded.  "Why is that important?"

Ilara fell silent, thinking.  "Because they're... rare.  Because without a
queen..."

"The Warren would fail."  The sun caressed her skin with cool fingers and
Rhia smiled sadly.  "Without us, the warren would not exist -- could not
exist.  Simply by being chosen by our dragons, we have been given a special
trust that ensures the continuity of the Warren...  The Plateau."

She heard Ilara swallow hard and cocked her head at the younger girl.  "I
don't know what you may realize about being a Queenrider, Ilara, but the
power of our position does not mean freedom, the way that joining with
another dragon might...  Our dragons are too valuable -- we are too
valuable -- to do whatever we want.  We sacrifice that freedom for them..."
 Rhia gestured to the milling people, "...for everyone on the plateau. 
It's the hardest lesson, 'Lara, and the most important of the lives we
lead.  We cannot go wherever we want, whenever we want.  We cannot put
ourselves at risk deliberately, can't just take off without telling
anyone."

"I'm sorry..."

Rhia raised a hand, shaking her head slowly.  "Don't apologize to me,
'Lara.  I understand...  I do.  You were worried about Journeyman Carlynee.
But...  Before you take any action, you've got to think about the greater
good.  I'm sorry..."

-----
NRPG --
Tag, Kris, Jeanette, Sam

*hugs* all

Respectfully Submitted,
Jill E. Flansburg
Rhia, et. al.
Xylian Warren
                 X-FILES                         DRAGONLANDS

  Assistant Director                     Rhiannon, WarrenLady  *Xylian*
  Sterling Kincaid, Team Leader, ECHO    Elswyth and Aedra   *Keldarra*
  Damien Cunningham, UD DELTA            Katla and Satinka *Whiteriver*
  Xan X. Xavier, Trainer, Classroom A    Zera and Mazel       *Norwall*

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			      Vasaris, the Fuzzy Dragon
       Jill E. Flansburg	    |		            vasaris@az.com
       CS HMC 1994	          |		jflansbu@muddcs.cs.hmc.edu
       History, WWU 199?          |		vasaris@divcom.umop-ap.com
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