A bright and sunny afternoon is almost a mockery given the events of the night past. Va'os is cursing and avoiding that sunlight due to the epic hangover he's sunk himself into. It's been a hell of a morning regardless, with the Weyrleader having to go far beyond his comfort zone to try and keep the Weyr's morale from further plummeting; and not without help! No doubt D'wane has been doing his half (or a little more) and then there's Southern's two remaining goldriders. Having just met and dismissed a few Wingleaders in a brief, if not hurried meeting, Va'os now settles in his customary seat in a quiet war room and, pounding headache or not, is already reaching for the bottle again.

In the day after any queen disappearing, bright, sunny skies are just rude. Mayte steps into the War Room and walks straight to where Bailey will have written her last records, taking them up without even consideration of what was there, and marches them to where Va'os sits. Her hair is pulled back into a severe knot and there are bags under her eyes. The record rolls are set down carefully and Mayte, still standing, takes a long moment to examine Va'os. And in case he's wondering, she opens with, "It sucks just as badly every time it happens."

"Tell me about it." Va'os pinches the bridge of his nose as he mutters his reply to Mayte and not even bothering to look up. He does, however, stall in taking a swig from that bottle. Rum, no doubt. Lowering his hand, he'll squint first at those records and then up at her. "I'd worry, I think, if I didn't feel anything, when it does." And while he was no close friend of Bailey's, it still hit hard. Grimacing, he'll gesture for her to sit, if she so chooses to. "How're you holding up?" He probably looks like hell, himself.

Mayte eyes the bottle Va'os takes off a little longingly, and purses her lips, trapping words. "If you don't feel something, your dragon does, which is pretty much you feeling something," she tells him, and it's a little more complicated than that but the older woman doesn't go on about it. "I've been through two queens going between after Impressing, and I wonder if it's harder on Rhis because she's gold, or on the others because they're not." Philosophy gets them no where, though and Mayte takes the offered seat. A bit of an indrawn breath: "I'm doing… as best as can be. It's Amani I'm keeping an eye on," becaues Mayte really can care sometimes, "Benden Weyr sends their condolences, as do the other Weyrs." But Benden mostly.

Va'os isn't going to be rude and hog all the rum. He just needed a 'pick up' to take the edge off his pounding head ? or that's his excuse. "Shit…" he exhales under his breath and promptly offers said bottle to Mayte. "I don't even want to know how that went as far as coping…" Which is Va'os-speak for 'damn, I don't envy you and that must've sucked'. Just in case she's still learning how to read him! "We'll have to send some sort of… message," Heavy question mark implied, there! "To Benden in thanks." As for all the others? Well. Maybe he didn't think that one through! Brows furrow at the mention of Amani, followed by a little roll of his hand in a 'do go on' gesture. "What's concerning you?"

The War Room is empty for the most part, with only Va'os and Mayte currently present. Outside, the afternoon is bright and sunny, which has already been determined to be an insult given the prior night's events.

A bottle offered is a bottle taken, with Mayte: She takes a good gulp from it and sets it back down between them. Her mouth twists in some sort of dark humour but doesn't say more, instead commenting, "We'll them a fruitbasket or something." Is that how it's done? Who knows. About Amani: "It's just she and Zymuraith are so young and she's lost her dam to Ista and her Senior so quickly." Mayte straightens as something occurs to her: "Shit. I have to send a message to Hannah."

As though summoned by the mention of her name, Amani appears in the doorway, pausing to be sure she really has found Mayte and Va'os and isn't about to walk in on someone else. It becomes clear enough that she's been steered rightly, and she gives a soft, tired sigh as she steps in, looking at the bottle of booze sitting between the Weyrleader and other goldrider. "Fitting," she says, he tone rough-edged with the remnants of a sleepless night. She settles into an empty chair and looks between them, clearly clamping down on a lot that's going on within at the moment. "So. I suppose we have some sorting to do and quickly, right?"

Va'os almost fumbles the next sip from that bottle when Mayte straightens. "Wouldn't Hannah already know?" Dragon grapevine and all? Before he can reflect on the rest of their conversation, however, the sound of another approach has him lapsing silent; if not apprehensive. What now? Oh! Someone's ears were burning! There's a lopsided smile for Amani and a gesture to the bottle, now back on the table top. "Help yourself!" It's not like HE needs to get drunk a second day in a row, here. "Ah, well… Yes?" He'll be darting a look to Mayte for that one. Most of the morning has been spent calming folk down and voicing reassurances. This may literally be the first time the three of them could sit and talk.

Looking over her shoulder, Mayte nods to Amani coming in. Great timing. When Va'os hands the bottle back, Mayte takes it up and puts in front of where Amani sits down. "Hannah'll know, yeah. But… yeah, I should visit her, make sure she's okay." She won't be. Amani gets a long look and for a moment, Mayte seems to grin. Or at least look approving. "Yeah. Haven't… quite started on that, but s'better you're here for that."

Amani manages a smirk of her own for Va'os, blinking a bit owlishly at the bottle when it's placed in front of her. It takes what might seem like an inordinately long time for her to decide to pick it up and take a sip. The notion of booze in the morning, regardless of what's just happened, is still a little new to her. The younger gold rider nods to Mayte's last; she'd figured there would be a meeting of all of them for such a thing. "What about D'wane?" she asks of the Weyrsecond. "He ought to be here too, then, I'm assuming."

And speak of the D'wane! Just as Amani mentions his name, the Weyrsecond appears through the door. And he doesn't come empty handed. But since there is probably enough booze in this room for everybody, he doesn't bring any with him. Nope. Instead, he's got a platter full of sandwiches. Bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwiches for everybody. "Did I miss anything?" He's just going to claim a seat and drop his plate in the middle of the table and grab a sandwich for himself.

What! No plate of JUST bacon or something equally as greasy? Va'os doesn't pressure Amani into taking any of the rum and there seems to be a more leisurely feel to that bottle being passed around. "Might be a good idea, then." Mayte's got his blessing on any visit to Ista! Not that he'd really try to stop her. D'wane's arrival brings a slight scoff but he'll take a page out of the older goldrider's book. "Good timing!" As for that food? Well. Can the Weyrleader be forgiven for looking a touch queasy? "Not yet. Just been… Are we even officially gathered or was this just all weirdly by chance?" Even now, he'll act a bit of a goof. Or he's stalling.

Mayte looks to Va'os when Amani asks about D'wane. When he appears, she looks a little suspiciously at Amani but the platter of sandwiches is more interesting. "Not yet," Mayte tells the Weyrsecond, nodding absently at Va'os; she would have gone either way. He gets a shrug, too. "Maybe we just have really good timing. or…" Rhiscorath's rider frowns for a second, eyes crossing as she checks with her dragon… but, "Nope. Rhis says she didn't put this together." She takes a sandwich and stares at it for a moment… delicately places it not on the scrolls of Bailey's last writing, and reaches for the bottle of rum for another swig.

"Does 'casually official' work?" Amani asks, giving D'wane a nod as he comes in and deposits the platter of sandwiches in their midst. She eagerly snags one, not having eaten much yet at all today. "It might be be chance, but it also just…seems like it was supposed to happen." And maybe the fact that it did is a good sign. All of them being on the same wavelength and all.

D'wane may have tried to get a plate just full of bacon, but the kitchens insisted he take the BLTs as the lettuce and tomatoes make it at least slightly healthy. And don't look at him. He didn't put this together. He just shrugs as he munches his sandwich. "Seemed like I should be up and doing something. So I came here." A gut feeling that if he needed to find somebody that needed something to be done, they'd come to the War Room first probably. Or the dragons are all lying and conspired behind their backs. Either is possible.

Tsiroth would be one to plot behind ALL their backs! Only the bronze is still subdued, to a degree. Va'os will eventually come around to the offering of food D'wane brought with him. One of those BLTs will be snagged and promptly picked apart JUST for the bacon. Sorry, not sorry, kitchen staff! "I like casually official. That should be a thing!" he points out to Amani, along with a fleeting grin. Grinning actually hurts right now, okay? "Well. I guess since we're all here? May as well… try to puzzle things out. Mayte," Sorry, you're it! "You've unfortunately been through this before. What's our next possible step?" Aside from Va'os just shoving it all on her and Amani's lap, that is.

Mayte finishes her swig of rum and then takes a bite of her sandwich. It's chewed slowly, ensuring she can't speak for a few minutes. Chew chew swallow. She's staring off for a moment and clears her throat: "Like in any catastrophe," she starts, "the Leadership has to be proactive and present," as if it's rote and then a little more personably, Mayte quirks a half grin, "And I know I'm about the worst person you want for comforting people. But we have to carry on, and," eyes move to Amani, "Wait for the next gold to rise."

Amani manages a slightly bigger smile in response to that pained grin from Va'os before taking a healthy bite of her own sandwich. She looks to Mayte now, brows rising a bit as she processes the significance of what the older gold rider says. "Well I hope it's Rhiscorath, then," she says quickly, her heart rate picking up a bit at the prospect of what will happen it that isn't the case. "In the meantime, acting Weyrwoman should definitely be you; you've done it twice." Whereas Amani is still basically in training for a first time she'd always considered to be long in the future.

D'wane is going to just keep eating his sandwich as the weyrwoman work out who is doing what, but then he's got an idea that he can't help but voice. "Amani, you should definitely shadow Mayte. You know. Just in case. It'll hopefully be a less painful crash course than if Zymuraith decides she's going to be the first to rise." And then he's just going to grab an extra sandwich and eye that rum bottle that's next to Va'os. "You gonna drink all that?"

"If not this one, another bottle. Somewhere." So that's a 'maybe', D'wane! And Va'os will snag the rum, swig from it and then hand it over to his Weyrsecond. Sharing is caring! Hangovers for everyone! He'll make a pointed gesture with his hand to his suggestion too. "I'll agree with D'wane there, Amani. You're as much a part of Southern… even if new to it all." He can kind of relate there, given he just landed Weyrleader not even two Turns into being a Wingrider. Yay? "Mayte… any objections to stepping up for now? Until things… ah… settle the usual way?"

Another bite of sandwich and Mayte starts to… look a little green. Amani's comment gets a brief snort, but she nods at D'wane: "That's pretty much what we're always training for," she says unnecessarily and then to Amani, "We'll work closely, in case I get a bad case of Threadscore." Shaking her head at Va'os just makes Mayte look a little more green and she stands up suddenly: "I'm… I'm good with that. If you'll excuse me, I have to… figure out what I'm gonna say to Hannah." Perhaps a bit too much run? Too much bacon or vegetables on an empty stomach? A nod to everyone and then Mayte puts a hand over her mouth and she moves out to the Council Room quickly.

There's an emphatic nod from Amani for D'wane's words, sliding Mayte a somewhat sidelong glance that could be a little apologetic. She'd been doing the same when she could with Bailey, after all. "I do know what duties I think I'd be best suited to take on," she offers up. Tired though she may be, she's been thinking on, sorting through things with Zymuraith's help. The notion of possibly still ending up as Senior if Zymuraith's maiden flight happens anytime soon is still enough to give her palpitations, and she waits for D'wane to finish his pull from Va'os' bottle so that she can sample it again herself. Then the other goldrider is leaving in a hurry, looking as though she's about to be sick, and Amani watches her go before uttering a heavy sigh and settling back into her chair, still looking a bit bewildered around the edges.

D'wane finishes his swig and then passes the bottle off towards Amani, because as Va'os said, sharing is caring. Mayte's green-ness is noted, but she's running out before he can actually say anything since his mouth is full of sandwich and it'd just be rude to talk with his mouth full. He'll salute Mayte with the half-eaten BLT. And once he does have a clear mouth, turned attention to Amani. "If you need help during the transition… just let me and Va'os know, you hear? It's not easy for anybody, but at least we've been doing our jobs for months now." As if months make it seem like their experts. He'll just shoot a look towards the Weyrleader. They're on the same page about this, right?

Va’os is either looking at Mayte with concern or maybe he’s trying not to think on it too much or he’ll end up being the next one rushing out of here. The rest of his disassembled BLT is pushed aside and he’ll forgo any more rum too, while he glances between D’wane and Amani. “And this is why I’ve got him as my ‘Second,” he’ll chime in, with another weak grin because his head is still kind of tender. Sobering in the next breath, he’ll nod (and regret that too). “Seriously, though. He’s right. You’re not alone in this, Amani. None of us are! It’s gonna be rough going for a few days but… One day at a time, right?”

"I know, I know…" There's no exasperation to Amani's tone; it just feels like she needs to repeat it to herself a bit. "Thank you both. It'll be alright, I know. One day at a time," she echos Va'os, and then takes a moment to study him, klah-dark eyes narrowing slightly. "Are you going to be sick, too, Weyrleader?" She might be deadpanning; it's a little hard to tell. There's a moment of eying the sandwiches again before another is snagged.

"Don't be sick," D'wane is going to nod his agreement with Amani that Va'os is looking a little bit off-color. "I don't want to have to end up carrying you to your weyr." Because that might be another reason why he's useful as a weyrsecond, but not necessarily a duty that he's volunteering for. "So, sounds like we got a plan." Sandwiches, booze, one day at a time, and Va'os not getting sick. What else would they need to do?

“It’s a bad hangover,” Va’os counters and mock glares at both Amani and D’wane. “I’ll survive and no, I don’t need to be carried back.” Again. Then his mouth quirks into a crooked half-smirk. “But thanks for the concern.” Even if it wasn’t, really. “I’d say we’ve a plan, then. We can wait until the next morning, to formally announce it? Give the Weyr the rest of tonight to… grieve.” Too much change, too soon, won’t be good. Even if this half of it is expected, at least!

A hangover already? Well, to each their own way of dealing with the world turning upside down. "Sounds like one to me," Amani says of plans, and finishes off her current sandwich. "Mayte and I will keep you in the loop about how we're splitting things up." Most things, anyway. Wearily, she pushes up from her seat, snagging one last swig of rum along the way. "Thanks for the sandwiches, D'wane," she says, and stifles a yawn before giving both bronzeriders a nod. "I need to go be with Zymuraith a bit. Gentlemen." With that, she slips back out and makes her way through the caverns to the Bowl and her lifemate.

Hey, if D'wane has to carry Va'os back to his weyr, it's only fair that he gets to draw on his face. Them's the rules!!!! And he's totally not snickering at poor Va'os's hangover. Not at all. "Well, if you don't need to be carried back, guess I'll go check in with the wingleaders. I'll take Leo and Tiger if you want to grab Serval and Ocelot?" Amani's departure gets a polite wave and then all eyes on Va'os.

Those rules are KNOWN! Which is probably why Va’os is trying to avoid being carted off by D’wane. Though maybe Southern needs a good laugh, given the recent events? He’ll smile as he offers his own wave to Amani as she departs. “Already met with one of the ‘Leaders…” he mutters. “I’ll trade you Serval for Leo? Not sure if I can keep, ah… professional right now with Rielle.” Yeah, that was probably way too much info for D’wane but at least he’s honest about it? Va’os will no doubt be visiting the brownrider later anyhow.

D'wane isn't going to question it. But he's got his orders and off he goes. Looks like Va'os still has a few more BLTs he can extract the bacon from if he so chooses.

All that bacon is definitely going to be extracted and someone's going to be left with a whole lot of bread, lettuce and tomato~