** Friendships That Remain True **


Turner
******* 

"And I'm wondering if it could have been prevented."

Turner sighed. "Prevented by you, you mean. The answer is no...just like it
was before when you saw fit to blame yourself for everything M'del or 
his dragon did"

"I didn't say that...well, not exactly," she replied.

"That's what you were thinking, though," he said, shaking a finger at her.
"I know how you think by now woman."

She propped her head up on her forearm to look at her mate.  "This wouldn't
have happened to your mother...it *didn't* happen to any of her 
children. They all turned out...well, like you.  Mine turned out like..."  

She just shook her head.

"And so, to your quirky way of thinking, that makes you a bad mother," he said. 

"It certainly doesn't argue that I'm a very good mother, does it?" she
asked.  "Gods, Turner...what does that mean for *our* child?"

"Love look... you don't hold the bag for being what you think of as a bad
mother... Why mine could tell you tons of stories of the things we all
pulled as kids. We weren't perfect you know. We did our share of driving her
crazy. But as we grew older Mother tends to think we grew smarter. We always
knew she was there for us if we needed her because she constantly reminded
us of that fact. The best thing you can do is let Trevor know you're here
for him if he ever does decide he wants to open up to you."

"But what if he never does?" She asked, and he could tell she was really
worried about the possibility. 

"Don't worry... He will... " Turner assured her. "Love you didn't see how
much he was hurting when we thought... When it looked like you might not
make it... Trevor was nearly as devastated as I was. I could tell he cared
and a great deal when he though he was about to lose you. Just give him time
and re-enforce how much you love him each time you see him."

He could see Kellie thinking it over, but then she frowned, as if not liking
what she'd come up with. He knew he was going to have to do a bit of
positive re-enforcing himself when it came to the way she felt about herself.

"But what about our child? She asked again. "What if I make the same
mistakes with him or her as I did with Trevor?"

"Love," he said softly and reached out to take her hand in his. "I'm not
your first mate. I've no son of my own to turn a blind eye too. Ten too you
forget who our child's grandparents are. Do you really think mother would
ever let you make a mistake like that? Or let me?"

He wasn't in the lease bit as worried as Kellie seemed to be. "Besides
which. Things were different now. You're different. You've been up the river
so to speak and made it to the other side a whole lot smarter about things.
You're a different person now then you were back then. Stronger about things
that matter to you, and I'll be there beside you all the way, so if there
are any mistakes to be made. We'll make them together."

"Oh Turner... I'm not so sure..." Kellie still fought against his words and
her own fears. 

"Kellie you just can't keep on blaming yourself for things that happened in
the past," he told her. "Trev doesn't blame you. He never did.'

"No he blamed himself," Kellie hissed more to herself then Turner's words.
"If only I'd..."

"If only the sun didn't shine we would never have known what heat was. If
only night came once a week then we'd live in the light six days a week...
if only my mother had one child instead of two when the twins were born then
we'd never have come to know and love Lenna for her antics. And never would
have known just how much she meant to us until she was gone... " the stock
smith quipped sarcastically, listing all the what ifs that sprain to mind no
matter how silly they sounded.

"If only you had never come to the Cleft, then I would never have found out
just how little I knew about loving someone as much as I love you. We can't
live our lives on *if onlys* love," he told her, pulling her gently into his
arms. "You'll see Kellie my dearest heart..... It'll all work out, and by
the time out son joins with a dragon... you can have something else to
really worry about."

She turned and looked up at him, amusement now in her eyes. "And just what
happens if our *daughter* joins with a dragon... How will you handle that papa?"

"I'll worry about it *if* and when the time comes," he gave a mock growl,
letting her know just how he would deal with any male rider who mistreated
his blood.

A sound alerted them that someone was outside the door on the ledge and a
moment later there was a knock.

"Varie says it's Trevor," Kellie informed him as Turner got up to answer the
knock. 

"How's she doing this evening?" Trevor mouthed quietly to his mothers mate,
as he entered the apartment.

Turner smiled. "Come see for yourself."

As they both entered the room, Kellie smiled up at her son and then after a
few seconds held up her arms to him indicating she wanted a hug. 

Turner knew how much this simple action had been for the woman and grinned
to himself as Trevor a bit stunned finally advanced forward into his mothers
arms.

It was a start.

"It's so good to see you looking much better mother," he said hesitantly,
then his face relaxed into a grin and he smiled around the room. 

"It will take more than a little bit of water to get rid of me," Kellie
said, squeezing Turner's hand as she looked back and forth between her mate 
and son.

"I'm going to hold you to that, my love!" Turner told her. "I will too,"
Trevor said. "I'm just glad to see you looking this good....both of you, for
that matter!"

"Well..." Trevor started then let his words trail off. "I guess though for a
while this means you won't be doing any swimming at your lake huh?"

"Not for now, but with the bathroom Turner made for me, I won't miss it for
a while... you should see it." Kellie beamed. "There's a bathtub big enough
for three regular size people. Or just the two of us if Turner's in it too."
She teased, because the smith was a big man. "And it's deep enough to
actually be comfortable in."

"This I've got to see," Trevor got up, heading into the backroom to check it
out. "The one in our apartment is just good enough to get in, get clean and
then get out of before you hurt yourself."

"Oh you shouldn't have done that," Turner groaned just as soon as Trevor was
out of ear shot.

"Why ever not?" Kellie asked. "I'm proud of the work we did on it and want
to show it off."

"But love..." her mate groaned again, looking at her with put-a-pone eyes.
"You know that once he sees how great our bathroom is, he's going to be
asking me to put one in for him and Cynthia? Then that over sized white runt
of his is going to demand I put out on her ledge and then everyone and their
dragons in the Cleft will be wanting one and by the time I fish remodeling
the whole entire Warren our child will be old enough to take their own mate?"

"Well it's something to think about... Oh Varie just told me Dani and Lenna
are here... Go out and meet them would you while I do something with my
hair," Kellie seemed excited now. All her worrying pushed aside for the
moment at the thought of seeing Lenna again.

Turner laughed as he kissed her forehead then stood up and started for the
door leading out to the dragons ledge. "you look fine my love."

"What do you know... you're my mate," she smiled sweetly. "You have to say
that. If you don't want to spend your night's on the couch."

"Heartless woman," Turner muttered as he left the room to go to the door.

A few minutes later and with the front of his shirt damp from Lenna's tears,
he led them inside and Lenna saw Kellie sitting up on the long couch in the
living room, but a glance around the room told her the woman wasn't there alone.

"Hello Lenna....." 

Lenna looked up and saw him standing in the doorway, and her eyes widened a
bit. Trevor...it's good to...well, you know..."

She hadn't realized just how much he had missed her until he'd lifted and
spun her around once before putting her down.  "It's good to see you again!"

"Well, I guess it's good to see you too," she said, grinning.  

"Where have you been?" he demanded. "We all looked for you and never found you!"

Lenna blinked, then smiled faintly. "Well, maybe you should have looked
harder then!"

Trevor matched her smirk. "We looked for you so long that Trissana wore her
wings down to the nubs.  So that means that I'll be needing a ride again 
to go out and map. If you and Blanchie are ready..."

"Sorry," said Lenna, remembering how she had once chafed at riding heard on
the map-maker. Not that it had been all that bad at times... but she didn't
want a steady diet of it. "I think I must have caught a cold somewhere. I'm
a little *horse* this morning."

"Well, then, let's go down to the dining hall and we'll see if they can
spare you some hay and oats!" he told her.  

"Hey... she just got here," Kellie frowned at her son. "You can't just take
her away the moment she gets here you know. There *are* a few other people
who are just as happy to see her as you are my son! Mind your manners!"

Trevor blinked and looked around the room, back at his mother then at
Turner. "I could have sworn Danki was here. My mother must be spending way
to much time with her because she's starting to sound just like her."

"And that's a bad thing?" Dan'yar and Turner asked at the same time.

"Depends on which side of the scolding your on," Lenna quipped, though not
with the same sharpness that used to appear in her tone.

She might have fooled her brother's, but then they were just happy to have
her home. Not that Trevor wasn't, for he was just as thrilled as the others,
but he did noticed something missing from her usual spirit. Maybe it was
just that she was tired after a long day.

Then everyone started talking at once and Kellie and Turner took turns
telling her about the flood that nearly took Kellie's life. She told them
she was happy to hear they had come together with an agreement of partnership.

"It's good to see you both so happy and with a baby on the way..." she
beamed for real this time. She didn't have to fake how happy that made her feel.

Then everyone noticed Kellie starting to hide a few yawns and Turner began
to rush them away.

"I know you're happy to see Lenna home my dear, but it's no reason to make
yourself sick from exhaustion. You can see her again tomorrow. She's home to
stay now."

"Yes Kellie... " Lenna spoke, as she got up. "I'm a bit tired myself, so I
think I'm going to join Trevor for a light snack in the dining hall then
head to bed myself..... But it's so good to see you and know you're going to
keep this big guy out of trouble!"

Moments later they were out on the ledge and Dan'yar mounted upon Shinner's
back looked down at her. "I'll see you in the morning sis... I think I'd
better meet with you before you head over to the folks place... it might be
nice for someone to tell them you're back before they hear it from somewhere
else..."

"I agree... I'll see you in the morning."

Lenna then mounted Blanchie, who told her that Rand was asleep and doing
fine, then waited for Trevor to mount Triss and the two headed down to the
green near the dining hall.

"Okay what's wrong?" Trevor asked once they were downside and had dismounted
from their dragons.

Lenna turned slightly so he couldn't see her face. 

"Why do you think sometimes wrong?" she asked. "I'm happy to be home."

"But..." he asked, blocking her path when she would have continued on to the
hall.

"But everything is different... " she said finally, not trying again to deny
her feelings from him. "I mean the people haven't changed much... except
they may look a little older then the last time I saw them... but two years
have gone by since I was here last... Oh it may have only been a year for
you all... but for me it seemed longer."

"It's all still so confusing Trev," she confessed softly to her old friend
as they stood there  leaning against Blanchie's side.

"Strange how?" he asked. "This should all be familiar to you."

She shook her head and looked around. "It is but... but then it's different
just the same. It's like a different time ago and I was a different person
then."

"Does this mean the Warren won't have to worry about ducking every time you
walk by now that you're back?" he quipped.

"Maybe when I get my feet back into it," she replied, but her words lacked
the vibrancy that he had always associated with her before. "I'll try to
warn you ahead of time. Just so you can duck and get out of the way of
flying objects."

"I'd appreciate that," he said formally and bowed dramatically trying to get
a real smile out of her.

"B`rand gave up on me," she said in so quiet a voice he just barely heard
her. "He gave up believing I would ever come back."

"No Lenna," Trevor stepped closer and place his hands on her shoulders
forcing her to look up at him. "B`rand and Lonnie more then others believed
that you would be coming back. They never let any of us others believe
anything different."

"Then why did I find all my things packed into boxes when I got to our
apartment!?!" she snapped showing more emotion then he'd seen from her since
walking into his mothers living room and finding her there. "If he was so
damn sure I would return, then why did he empty our bedroom of everything
that belonged to me!"

"You must have miss-understood... " he started to say but she cut him off.

"I don't think so..." she snapped again, then felt bad about it. Trevor
didn't deserve her anger. He was only trying to help.

As he watched, as suddenly as her anger had heated up, it just as quickly
melted away leaving her looking sad and lost before him.

"Imagine how you would feel Trev... If you had been lost in the dark for a
long time... Not knowing who you were past your name... or remembering
anything of your past or how you came to be where you were... or how you got
to that point. Imagine how you would feel, not knowing that out there
somewhere were people who you had known and loved... who had loved you and
would be grieving your loss. Living a whole year this way in the dark."

She paused and took a few deep breaths while he stood there quietly allowing
her the time she needed.

"Imagine how you would feel if one morning you woke up and the memories just
as suddenly came crashing back into your mind all at once until you felt so
dizzy from the overload of images fighting with one another inside your mind
that you thought you were going crazy!"

"I can't imagine that Lenna," his voice was soft, soothing. His touch upon
her arm was comforting. "I can't imagine what it felt like for you to go
through it, but you survived and have come back to us... "

"But what have I come back too?" she scoffed. "A mate who has given up on
me... not knowing he has a son?"

"If he has then it's his bad luck," Trev said stoutly. "It'll be his loss
and with all the uncle's Rand has... and I demand to be added to that list
by the way... I don't think your son will be at a lost for a male lead in
his life."

"Uncle Trevor the map-maker of the Cleft..." she gave a small laugh, drying
her eyes with the back of her hand. "I think I like the sound of that."

"So do I," he agreed quickly, his hands gentle as he wiped away a few of the
tears she had missed.

"Okay enough of this for one night..." she said, taking a deep breath.
"Let's go get some of that hay and oats you promised me and then you can
tell me all about what's been going on here the last year. Did you ever get
the area mapped out?"

"Not hardly," he chuckled, slipping his arm around her shoulder as they
started towards the dining hall. "things sort of got a bit busy around here
preventing my work."

"Oh do tell."

As the night shadows reflected off the stone walls around them, Trevor began
telling her about the events that had taken place while she was gone.

============ 
NRPG: this is Part one... since I had to devide it cause it got to long for
some e-mailer (like AOL ) to accept it as one whole post.. :)

***Submitted by: ******

Lenna & Blanchie
Dan'yar & Shinner
Turner (Master Smith)
Cleft Warren

Aka
Barbara