"… At least take it back to them for me." Yfana stands at the edge of the tree line here, arguing with a man who stands within the land itself. "Or bring me with you - it doesn't matter either way." She's shorter than him, but her hands on on her hips and she's showing the most stubborn streak which she can put forth.

R'zel and Verokanth glide down for a landing not far from the treeline, and R'zel slithers down from the dragon's neck and unfastens his helmet without actually noticing that there are other people here. He's just standing and breathing, and looking at the sweep of the meadows - until Verokanth lowers his head to deliver a quiet nudge. Then he steps past the dragon, to where he can see the people that the bronze has spotted. At this point, he doesn't interrupt.

"Tzvaen has a right to be at the table, even if there are fewer of us here. The weyr isn't going anywhere, and neither are our people." Yfana shoots back, her voice louder than the other man, or perhaps it's just because she's slightly facing R'zel's direction, while the man has his back to the bronzerider. Glancing up Yfana notes R'zel and nods respectfully to him, inviting him to join if he will, or to stay aloof. "We can do more together, and the hold is the other option for these refugees."

R'zel nods back to Yfana, with a questioning lift of the eyebrows that's the nearest he can get to 'Is this guy bothering you?' without actually saying anything, and then walks over. He settles for 'Good afternoon,' and looks uncertainly from one to the other in the manner of one who just knows he's about to be in it over his head, before asking the one he recognises - that's Yfana - "Is there a problem?"

A small nod, Yfana's managed to get at least a FEW of the weyr's nonverbal gestures internalized. "No, it's… I'm sorry, I've forgotten your name?" At some point Yfana MIGHT have known it, but it's escaped her just yet. "This is my cousin, Lairel, of clan Tzvaen. Wouldn't you agree that wildlings paired with wingriders could possibly find land that might work for these refugees without offending everyone involved?" R'zel totally wanted to be drug into wildling politics, right?

R'zel nods to Lairel. "Well met. I'm R'zel, and my large friend there is Verokanth." He takes a moment to consider the question. "If they're going to stay, then finding land should be possible. It's not as if the continent's short of it. We can survey areas - some of our riders specialise in that - and I expect your people have a good knowledge of what's on the ground and what a place is likely to be suitable for. Finding land that suits them, when it's not that clear what they can do, and within the limits of what we can protect, might be trickier, of course. I'd certainly think that working together could be helpful."

Lairel is more than a bit skeptical. "There is a reason why we did not go up to the hold," There is at least a little respect in the way that the Lairel turns so that he's addressing both Yfana and R'zel equally. "We were not quite so ready to sell ourselves for safety to the northern holds - and now our land?" Yfana sighs, this is NOT her speciality, and she crosses her arms on her chest, then drops them, indecisive about what exactly she wants her posture to be. "But what R'zel is saying is that they can help us find land that we aren't taking up. There's a solution, but we have to find it and bring it before everyone gathers."

R'zel takes a deep breath and adopts a measured tone. "If that's the decision that's made, then yes, I do think that would be possible. We still don't know how these people have come to be here, though. It's possible that there are criminals among them, though they look much more like victims to me. Whether they're actually able to make a living in the Southern environment - cut a new settlement out of the forest, say - I wouldn't really like to say. And I suppose we don't want to send the message that it's OK just to arrive and start a village without asking anyone - or even telling anyone."

"Except according to them they thought they DID tell someone - that has to count for something, right? Even if it was a lie?" Yfana darts her gaze between Lairel and R'zel, seeking agreement from at least one of them. Lariel, for his case, is shaking his head. "The rider has a point. We can't just roll over for them."

"As I said, they look like victims to me - and I'd like to know whose." R'zel's tone on the last few words is rather grim. "I've never seen much point in punishing the victims. Personally, I'd be quite happy to see them set up properly somewhere, as long as we aren't somehow putting marks in the pocket of whoever risked their lives by bringing them here illegally. But I'm just a wingrider; if anyone really knows who's responsible, it isn't me, and I certainly can't speak for the Weyr."

Yfana pulls in a deep breath and then slowly let it out. Her shoulders droop. "At least - can you make sure I can be there? I'll keep looking here for…. SOMETHING. Averie and Audra don't want this to be…. like the last time." When the wildlings rebelled. It turned out alright in the end, but the ugly in the middle simply wasn't pretty in the slightest. Lairel nods and then turns to the rider. "We're not against the weyr, take that back to your leadership? There's just only so much we can do when everyone is so divided on it."

On being asked to take something back to his leadership, R'zel frowns a little as he tries to understand. Looking from one to the other, he seeks clarification. "I can pass your message on, but have I understood this right? You're saying that people are divided about what should happen to these new folk? And you're afraid this might… unsettle your own community, lead to factions?"

"We're already fractured rider," Lairel says it mildly, before nodding and turns away, leaving Yfana to answer the questions. "They'll be getting another message too, but… I don't know. It's complicated, no one wants to give up their land, but these people want the land. I mean, they're angry, which I get but like…" Yfana's youth shows through in that single word. "Does that make sense?"

That would be a 'no', at least not to R'zel. Fortunately, the harpers did manage to instil some tact into him, so he goes for, "I'm not entirely sure that I've got it. The new arrivals are angry and they want land, but your people don't want to give up any of their land? Which is quite understandable, of course." He looks to Yfana for confirmation, then puts a question to both. "So if we /could/ find somewhere else for them - somewhere within Weyr coverage but not currently occupied, say - would people find that acceptable?"

"That's my idea, and Averie said I could explore it," a twist of her lips as she doesn't mention that even her grandmother thinks it's a vastly wild idea. "But I don't know. As far as most clans are concerned the WEYR is in the invader too, but one we're willing to put up with because," a gesture towards the sky, "thread."

That stops R'zel in his metaphorical tracks for a moment or two. "I guess Thread is rather compelling." He goes on, rather uncertainly, "I didn't think anyone was living at the Weyr while it wasn't being used as a Weyr?" Moving past the surprise of realising that he's considered an invader, he continues more confidently. "Have you suggested this to the Weyr leadership?"

Yfana shakes her head slowly. "It's not really much of an idea yet to be honest. It just… it seems like maybe it could be something people could live with? Maybe? I don't really know. I haven't even formally suggested it to the clans, we're not all on the same page as I mentioned."

"If it could be done, it does sound like a sensible solution." R'zel's thinking on his feet. "It would have to be somewhere we can protect without straining our ability to cover the area. Large enough for the number of people, with water and… natural resources." He's a bit vague about what those might be. "And preferably with healthy grubs. And our leadership would have to agree to any increase in coverage. And I suspect they'd need some help to get started, because they must have lost a lot of what they brought with them."

"I think they said something about farms? I don't know a thing about farms. But I don't… think…?" SO UNSURE, "that you can farm in trees? Wildlings don't usually grow their food." A quick explination given for why Yfana doesn't have a clue about small things like these. Quietly, "They don't have anything."

"They'd settled a stretch of riverside, and it was fairly open - we didn't have a lot of time to look around, but there were cattle in a pasture, and they were growing stuff. I don't know how much of the land was like that before, or if they'd had to clear a lot of trees, but maybe they just found a naturally good place." R'zel adds rather wistfully, "It looked as if it would have been lovely, before." Before it got turned into a volcanic wasteland, that is.

"This is totally stupid but - do you think - maybe you could help me look around? I mostly know where our clans end, or at least, I can figure out if we've been there recently, but if I could come with something more solid to the wildlings then maybe they wouldn't be so quick to dismiss me? I mean, I wouldn't blame them if they did but, what if they didn't?" Yfana worries at her lip, "In your free time?"

"That sounds as if it might be a big job," R'zel says cautiously. "We have maps at the Weyr. Would you be able to show me where you think we should be looking? That would help to narrow down where we actually had to go. I'm afraid I don't have a /huge/ amount of free time. We've had quite a busy sweep schedule lately, with all that's been happening." He's not actually committing himself just yet, but he doesn't sound too averse to the idea.

"I know I know…" A big job for an eighteen-year-old and a wingrider of no particular rank. "I don't really know much about maps beyond the ones that Odesse showed me of the ocean… but I'm willing to learn. I mean, I was willing to do it for dolphins and this is a million times more important." Don't ask Yfana what that math actually is because she probably couldn't figure it out. "I'll be around? Maybe in the archives?"

"Let's give it a try, then. Why don't I look out for you in the living cavern, or - where is it you're working?" As R'zel proposes this sketchy plan to Yfana, he shoots a cautious glance at the cousin. "Even if we can only identify the general regions that are occupied, it would help. It's a big continent, and we only really need one decent place where no clans live."

Lariel shrugs his shoulders and turns away, disappearing into the jungle. This is Yfana's business, not his. Yfana smiles brightly, at least there is HOPE. "Probably in the archives? That's where they keep maps, right?"

"Yes, but-" R'zel's unsure enough of Yfana's current status that he's going to give up on that. "All right. I'll look for you there when I get free after drill. Tomorrow - or maybe the day after?"

If nothing else it's possible that R'zel can convince Yfana that this is insane and get her to abandon things. Instead Yfana will keeps smiling - "Thank you. Maybe… I might be able to ask another rider or two - I'll be in the archives looking." With that Yfana is just going to scoot herself as quickly as possible towards the weyr. Youthful energy says do it all RIGHT NOW.