So Day Three Begins

Ja'ks
******

Sprarroe didn't have any trouble finding the spot where the newest rider to
Daere had spent the night. He landed beside the big black and lowered
himself so his rider could slide from his back then warned the black that
his rider needed to talk with his.

"Good morning," Ja'ks greeted the man when he saw him. "I hope that you both
spelt well last night?"

"Well enough," D'Altar returned the greeting. "Has the Warrenlady decided
what's to become of us yet?"

"Getting right to the point I see," Ja'ks grinned. "I like that. Mean's
you'll be quick to make decisions... and as it happened she has. You're to
be assigned to Beta Wing for training..."

"We've had training," the other man started and Ja'ks unconcerned waved him off.

"Training out in the wilds yes, but we have a different way of doing things
around here," he told the man. "We'll talk more of that later but for now
how about we find the two of you a place to live and show you around the
Warren."

(Tag Peter)

Jayleigh
********* 
(Morning Day Three)

Mornings were becoming her favorite time of the day every since Revena had
been born. For it was a quiet time when she could spend a few moments alone
with the little girl and dream that everything in her world was right. 

Such perfection she could find glancing down into the sleeping face of her
daughter. Such sweetness. But this morning not even the beauty of her
daughter could settle her soul. 

Gerald was back. 

She really hadn't expected him to return so soon. Really hadn't expected him
to return at all after their last talk. But now he had and she's have to
deal with it. 

"M'lady... are you awake yet?" came the voice of Tonia from the hall way. 

Leigh hadn't thought it so late in the morning yet. Time must have gotten by
her as she thought about Gerald. 

"In here Tonia," she called out and then handed her sleeping well fed
daughter over to her nurse. "She's been fed and should sleep most of the
morning for you."

The woman chuckled. "Fine thing for now but I'll be looking forward to the
time she stays awake a little longer for us to admire how much she's growing."

"I agree, but right now maybe it's a good thing she's so easy to please. Now
if anything happens... Jadain knows to listen for a change in her mental
tone and will call Troy if......."

"Go on with ya gal," the nurse ushered her out the door. "I've been taking
care of little ones far longer then you even if this is your second. I think
I know by now what to look for."

Leigh chuckled as the door closed behind her. 

<What's so funny?> her waiting Queen asked as the rider moved to mount her
for the short trip down to the offices. 

<<I've just been told off... Kindly mind you... but told off just the same
by the woman who raised not only me but my son as well. She reminded me that
I was acting like a first time mother.>> 

<Oh...> Troy asked in a strange tone that made Jayleigh wonder if there was
something else on the Queen's mind. She didn't ask knowing Troy would tell
her sooner or later when she was ready too, and gave the order to fly.

Moments later they she was dropped off near the office complex and Troy
moved off to cuddle in the sun with the other dragons that were there. Far
off in the training field Leigh could see T'rell was already working with
the new riders, and for a moment the only noise coming from the bowl were
the ones that were suppose to be there. 

She made her way inside and was greeted by a worried looking Vesta sitting
behind her desk in the entry hall.
The top of her desk was covered in files and she had another one in her hand
that she held out to Leigh when she was standing before the desk.

"What's all this?" Leigh asked motioning towards the file covered desk.

"Marialla.....She wants to help. To feel apart of what we do so....." the
young courier told her. "She's been up since dawn going over the contracts
of the Lords we still have to meet with.

"Help?" Leigh queried, not sure she liked that. Not at this time when the
girl was still so vulnerable. "What kind of help?"

Vesta smiled shyly as if she'd been up to something. 

"I've been feeding her the reports from the Master Healer, Master Herder and
from the kitchens on the things they've put in for requests and letting her
familiarize herself with what it takes to run this Warren. And I've been
having her look over Lord Gossimor's file since he'll be in here next for
contract talks."

She paused and her smile only reached her eyes as she went on. "R'ven told
me it was okay to let her deal with those files, but not to give her any of
the files dealing with the Naiad's."

"In that you did right," Leigh agreed. glad that her order there had been
followed. 

"I'm glad you think do," Vesta quipped.

"Mari giving you some trouble over it?" Leigh queried.

"She hasn't been mean or anything like that. But I've been putting her off
over them and she's beginning to wonder why. But now that you're here you
can go play the....."

Leigh grinned and patted the girls arm. "The heavy? Well don't you worry
about it any longer. I'll go deal with her over it myself."

"Remember you said it," Vesta picked a file up off of her desk and re-file it.

"Cheeky wench," Leigh muttered as she resumed her walk down the hall to the
Jr. Queenriders office.

"You're up bright and early," she told the girl when she entered the room. 

"There was work to do and with you out half days... Someone needed to be
here," the girl said, and Leigh couldn't help but hear the slight defiance
underlining her tone.

"How very true," Leigh agreed and took the empty seat across the desk
without it being offered. "And you don't know how happy I am to let someone
else deal with the stocks and food reports. And who better to understand the
food orders then you who've had to deal with them before."

"They're easy to understand because I know how to cook."

Leigh broke out laughing. Her stomachs reaction reminding her that it hadn't
been that long since she'd given birth to her daughter. "Now Mari, I'm sure
you didn't mean that as a slight to *MY* cooking..... humm..."

"But you don't have any cooking skills," Mari piped up before realizing what
she had said. "Jadain and Realee both told me that your cooking was far
worst then.....Oh my... I didn't mean..." the girl looked mortified. 

"don't worry about it," Leigh chuckled letting the girl off the hook. "I've
heard worse... Why do you think T'rell hasn't done anything stupid lately...
I threatened him with having to eat a meal I cooked if he did."

"Jayleigh..." the girl now hesitated before going on. "What about the talks
with the Naiads?"

"What about them?"

"Well with everything that's happened... With the baby and Now with Tair'n ..."

"That's being handled and Revena is with her nurse right now. the talks are
being well taken care of."

"But I should..."

"Not this time Mari," Leigh said as kindly as she could. "I know you want to
help but after what happened to you... I just don't feel like it would be a
good thing to have you involved right now. R'ven and C`nis will do
everything they can to see the talks work out."

She knew the girl was depressed over her verdict. "Lord Gossimor and his
family will be here in a few weeks and you can help me with those talks. But
for right now I want you just to work on the stock requests."

"Jayleigh... what's going to happen to Tair'n  when they find him?

"He'll be given a trail the same as anyone else and evidence will be
presented to judge if he's innocent or not."

Mari nodded. 

"You don't believe he did it do you?"

Leigh looked up and caught her eyes. All traces of the previous amusement
gone now. "No Mari I don't. I know Tair'n  would never harm his son in the
way some bastard hurt Cal'an. Just as I know he would never harm his daughter."

"If there's anything I can do to help....."

"Thank you Mari. You don't know how much that means to me." Leigh left then
and went back to her own office. To get ready for the talks with Lord Naiad.
Something she wasn't looking forward to. 

Though he drove her crazy, she found herself hoping that C`nis would be
there. the man really did have a way with fretting out the meaningless
dribble that seemed to consume half the talking time. 

Besides which, she had a feeling that Lord Naiad would meet his match in the
Daere advisor. They were two of a kind when it came to dealing.

(tag Allen and Kiddo..... how fair the talks..... Jayleigh still won't pay
for the horses.....)

Where later after the talks were over for the day, Troy told her that
Havelok's rider wanted to have a meeting with her and a few others. Martyn
arrived first and filled her in a little on what he was going to tell the
rest of them. then one by one and in pairs the others arrived and soon where
seated awaiting Martyn's finds.

Martyn looked seriously at the group assembled before him - Warrenlady
Jayleigh, Marialla, R'ven, and the Wingleaders Ja'ks and T'rell. "I've been
quite busy today, as you can well imagine," he said. "And I have found out
some things that are, to say the least...interesting."

"What have you found?" Jayleigh asked without preamble.

"First, that certain facts were not told to me last night," he said. "Such
as death threats against Lord Naiad, or the killing of some horses."

"They had nothing to do with the attack on Cal'an," Ja'ks pointed out.

"Nor, really, does the fact that Tair'n was responsible for the death of his
mother," Martyn returned. "And yet, that seems to be on everyone's lips
today, throughout the warren."

"So you're saying there's a connection?" Jayleigh asked.

"No, only that there could be," he replied.  "I do ask, though, that each of
you make note of any other odd occurrences that take place here."

"You said last night that you had evidence that might clear Tair'n," R'ven
snapped. "Do you, or don't you?"

"I have *evidence,*" Martyn said. "As to whether it clears Wingleader
Tair'n...well, you can judge for yourself once you've heard it. Let's look 
first at what we know. Tair'n left the Warrenlady's office yesterday in an
agitated state, and went to the cellarkeeper to pick up a bottle of wine. He
left the warren shortly afterward. His whereabouts are unknown from that
point until later, when rider M'naten found him asleep next to the stream."

"We know that!" R'ven said impatiently. Jayleigh put a hand on his arm to
silence him, then motioned for Martyn to continue.

They all listen to what he had to say after that. Sometimes asking questions
to get him to clarify things, but the weigh in Leigh's stomach seemed to be
lightening a little as she listen to Martyn's words. Then he was telling
them something about *finger prints* on the bottle and her interest picked
up even more. 

"Which means," Jayleigh said slowly, not daring to hope he meant what she
was praying he meant. "that..."

"Martyn nodded. "That someone else touched the bottle after the blood was on
it. And that someone was not Tair'n."

"Can we use the fingermarks to find out who did it?" R'ven asked.

"I've taken the liberty of drawing out the fingermarks of the unknown
person," said Martyn, holding up the piece of paper containing the drawing.
"Find a person who has that particular fingermark, and you'll have found our
prime suspect."

"You make it sound like you won't be the one doing it," Jayleigh said
thoughtfully.

"Well...yes," Martyn said uncomfortably. "There is still my mission to
Marrid Warren to consider."

"Clearing Tair'n is more important than anything going on at Marrid," R'ven
said testily.

"I would beg to differ," Martyn said, and then turned to Jayleigh.
"Warrenlady, here at Daere the fate of our Alpha Wingleader hangs in the
balance...but at Marrid, the life of an entire warren may hang in the 
balance. I am needed there as well, and their need is urgent."

Jayleigh gazed down at the top of her desk. "When Daere needed help, Waylene
of Marrid came here despite her own problems. Now that she's in need, I'd be
hard pressed to say no."

"M'naten and Sharees agreed to help match the plaster cast of the missing
person's foot," he told her. "I can show all of you how to read fingermarks.
That way, the investigation may be carried on while I'm away.  
And, of course, if I am urgently needed, I can always come back."

"Very well," said Jayleigh.  "You may return to Marrid.  "But if we need you
back here..."

"You may always send someone to find me," Martyn finished. "And I will, of
course, check back in at short intervals."

With that, the meeting broke up.  As Martyn hurried out to find Havelok for
the return trip to Marrid, the others filed out of the office one by one. 

"T'rell, I need to talk to you for a moment," said Jayleigh. She had come to
some decision and wanted to talk to him about it before to much time had
gone by. 

She was sure she had seen something in his eyes change as Martyn presented
his evidence and was going to take the chance that some of it had left
doubts in T'rell's mind as to Tair'n 's guilt or innocence in the matter. 

Besides who else would she have to sit in judgment if there was a trial
without sending to the Dragonlady and asking for help. she knew damn well
she herself couldn't do it. Nor could R'ven who would have been perfect,
except that he and Tair'n  were mates and there for that excluded him as it
did her. 

T'rell stayed behind after the others left. "What is it, Jayleigh?" he asked.

Jayleigh looked uncomfortable.  She stood up and paced over to the window,
staring outside. "T'rell, I hope that Martyn finds enough evidence to clear
Tair'n. But if he doesn't..."

"He may not come back, either," said T'rell. "In his place, I probably
wouldn't. And, of course, if Cal'an is at some point able to tell us what
happened to him..."

"But we have to be prepared for the worst," she told him.  "And we have to
face the possibility that we may have to put Tair'n on trial for
the...assault...on Cal'an.  You do see, don't you, the problem that leaves
me with?"

T'rell shook his head.

"If I were to preside over Tair'n's trial, and I ended up clearing him of
the charges, what would people here at the Warren think?"

T'rell nodded slowly. "I see your point," he told her.  "They'd think you
did it because...well, because you and Tair'n..."

"That's exactly it," she agreed glumly. "And I don't see how I could ask
Marialla to preside, either."

"No," T'rell agreed. After what she herself had been through, he couldn't
imagine putting her into a situation where she'd have to render a verdict in
a similar crime.  "Ja'ks, then..."

"My brother?" Jayleigh chuckled mirthlessly. "And have everyone say that he
cleared Tair'n because of me? Then we'd have two Wingleaders discredited,
not just one!"

"And the same would be said if R'ven officiated," T'rell agreed. "Who, then?"  

"Well, what about you?" she asked, knowing he wasn't going to like it even
before she asked.

"Me???" he asked, dumbfounded.  "Jayleigh, that's not up my alley...."

"Of the senior riders here, you're the only one who could preside over a
trial who's word would be accepted - *if* you found Tair'n not guilty."

T'rell knew he couldn't argue with such logic.  "All right," he said
quietly. "But Jayleigh...*if* he comes 
Back and *if* the evidence still points to him as the one who did
this...I'll find him guilty as quickly as 
you can snap your fingers!"

"That's why I want you to do it," she said. "Will you, if there's a need?"

T'rell looked down at the floor. "All right," not liking this one bit but at
the same time not seeing any other way.

"Thank you T'rell. You don't know how much this means to me that you'll do it."

"Will it mean as much to you I wonder if I do happen to find him guilty?" he
asked with a sad smile on his face.

"Well I promise I won't demand you eat dinner at my apartment if the
evidence proves he did it and you vote that way..."

"Just so that's clear M'lady." He said and left her office. 

(Later night day three. Jayleigh's apartment)
"He must have some hiding place Sis, because no one has been able to find
him and we've had every available rider out searching," Ja'ks informed both
his sister and R'ven who was there seeing his God-daughter.

The Beta Wingleader turned to look at the raven haired man sitting there.
"Can  you think of any place we might look, because we've just about
exhausted every place we can think of."

R'ven looked thoughtful for a few seconds before he spoke. "Did you try
looking in the cave where .....his mother..."

Ja'ks cast a quick glance at his sister before nodding his head. "I thought
about that and went there myself with a handful of riders. We searched every
nook and cranny we could find and there had been no sign that anyone had
been there."

"Well keep looking Ja'ks," Leigh told him. 

"We will Sis but it might not be that easy if he doesn't want to be found.
Tair'n  knows this area better then most of the riders, except the ones who
were born here,"
he paused not wanting to tell these two the other things he'd been hearing,
but knowing he'd better.

"Another thing. People have been talking. They said that you gave the order
to delay the search to give him time to get away. So there could be no trial."

"Does everyone believe that?

"No of course not. But I think that we'd better do something soon. Weather
Tair'n  is found or not."

And just what do you purpose Ja'ks?" R'ven asked.

"Look you both know I'm on your side of this. I don't think Tair'n  is any
guiltier of hurting Cal'an as the two of you do. But it might be wise to go
ahead and set a date for a trial..."

"Even without him here to testify for himself!" R'ven exploded. "Hang the
man without even being able to defend himself!!"

"With the way he bolted out of here that might be for the best!" Ja'ks voice
rose over R'ven's to cut him off and get him to listen to what he had to
say. "If we put Tair'n up there right now he'll convict himself and you know
it. Better to have everyone hear the evidence Martyn has come up with and
let them decide on *that*! Rather then the mutterings of a disturbed man."

"But who will stand up for Tair'n and see that his rights aren't violated!"
R'ven asked, not really liking the idea but seeing that it had some merits. 

"I may be able to help there," a voice said from the door way and all eyes
turned to see Gerald standing there. 

Though she had known last night that he had come back to Daere... she still
wasn't prepared to see him yet. 

========================== 

Nrpg: Okay Tags to those who there for and I hope I did okay bring Gerald
into it here. Lyn said that Allen had said Gerald would defend Tair'n . Can
it be done without him actually being there?? I wonder.......

Sorry I put so much of John's last post in here but I wanted to make sure
everyone remembered what was going on. 

Man it feels good to be writing again..... :)

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

Warrenlady Jayleigh & Viktroy
Ja'ks, Beta Wingleader
Daere Warren

Aka
Barbara