[Tair'n]

He came to in Gerald's arms.  Not a bad place to be, even if he did still
hurt like hell.  Then other hands were pulling them apart.

"Come on, Gerald, he's alive.  Rest up a while."  The voice was Ja'ks's.

"He's still bleeding..."

"You've stopped the dragon's share of the bleeding and he's in no danger
of dying in the next few minutes," a voice Tair'n didn't recognise said.

Tair'n considered opening his eyes, but it was too much work.

"There's that Nomad boy who helped Cal'an," someone said.  Tair'n had a
vague feeling it was one of the recent joinees.  "We can have him help,
that way not all the healing's on Gerald."

"Sounds like a plan..." Tair'n whispered.

"You with us, Tair'n?" Ja'ks asked.

Tair'n nodded weakly.  "Lara was calling me... and Mother and Father...
But I couldn't go.  Had to... 'pologise to Lan."

There was a moment's silence, then Ja'ks broke it.  "Let's get him to the
Med Center.  Gerald, can you ride okay?"

"I think so.  I'll take him to the Med Center on Random."

Hands took hold and lifted, then he passed out again.

******

He came awake briefly as he was being carried into the Med Center.  He
heard Herin's voice issuing orders and Gerald explaining quietly.
"...stabbed in the chest three times...  punctured left lung... artery
into the heart nicked... other... missed... nything vital...  Healed him
enough... keep from dying..."

"It's a wonder... lasted long enough... you to get to him," Herin said.
Then his voice raised, obviously changing from talking to Gerald to his
staff.  "Let's get him in room five and prep..."

Tair'n faded out again.

******

[Cal'an]

He and Jadain were helping out Realee in the Dining Hall when the
expedition returned.  The riders who filed into the hall didn't notice the
boy transferring biscuits from a pan to a serving basket.

"So where are they keeping him?" one of the riders asked.

"Who?" a female rider asked.

"You know, the guy who stabbed Tair'n."

Cal'an froze, the pan clattering to the table.  The girl looked up and
caught sight of him.

"You idiot," she snapped to her companion, then headed his way.

But Cal'an shook his head and fled.

Moments later, he heard Jer'lin calling him.  "Cal'an, slow down.  Come on,
lad, let's talk."

"No!" he called back and saw the rock too late.  He hit it and flew
forward, landing hard.

******

[Tair'n]

He was aware of a strange heat coursing through his body, accompanied by a
vague sense of arousal.  There was no pain and as he lay, he felt his
energy return, seeping into his members with the heat and desire.  He
opened his eyes to look into the deep brown, almost black, almond-shaped
eyes of the Nomad boy, Akil.  Akil withdrew his hands and Tair'n felt the
heat fade.  The dain Hehran nodded to him and smiled quietly, then nodded
to others in the room and turned to leave.

Tair'n glanced around to take in Gerald sitting tiredly by his bedside,
Herin obviously itching to examine him, and some staffer who was gathering
up blood-soaked clothes.  He recognised them as the ones he had stolen and
had been wearing.  He submitted silently to Herin's examination.

The healer shook his head in amazement and muttered to Gerald, "You and
that Nomad will be the end of my career."

The staffer opened the door to exit and was almost bowled over by R'ven,
who stopped with a gasp at the sight of the clothes.  "Oh, dear gods
above..."  His mate looked into the room, fear and panic in his eyes, and
took in Tair'n, completely whole.  R'ven stepped past the staffer and
quickly made his way to the bed, tears beginning to stream down his face.
Wordlessly, he scooped his smaller mate into his arms kissed him with all
the passion and relief he was feeling.

As they broke the kiss, Tair'n shifted uncomfortably.  R'ven's kiss had
done nothing to alleviate the stirrings Akil's healing had left him.  He
grinned suggestively at his mate and said huskily, "You'd best not repeat
that, lover, or we'll have to send everyone out and lock the door."

Herin quietly exited to his other duties.

R'ven chuckled and hugged him tight.  "I swear you and your antics will be
the death of me yet.  When I saw Amadith..."  R'ven's voice broke.

"I'm okay now," Tair'n assured him and shifted again.

R'ven pulled away, wiped his eyes and smiled at his mate.  "I can see you
are.  I'm glad you're back.  Even..."

Tair'n nodded.  He knew what the 'even' was.  "How is he?"

"Cal'an's fine.  Tai, he doesn't remember who did this.  It might not have
been you."

"If he doesn't remember, it's probably because it was someone he trusted,"
Tair'n pointed out.  "Like me."

"There's evidence you may not have done it."

"Dear gods, Ven, don't cling to impossibilities."

"You would never--"

"I would never what?  Never hurt him?  Like, oh, getting drunk and
punching him?  No, I would never do that, would I?"

"That was different," R'ven defended.

"The mind healer warned me to watch myself because abused children
frequently grow up to be abusive parents.  I didn't watch myself.  I went
out and got drunk and...  Gods, it makes me sick to think about it."

"That's because you didn't do it," R'ven countered.  "That's why it makes
you sick to think about."

"Forget it.  The trial will decide."

R'ven looked at Gerald, as if pleading with the other rider to back him
up, but Gerald remained silent.

"There is going to be a trial, right?" Tair'n asked.

"Yes," Gerald replied.  "We were just waiting for you to return.  I'll
need to talk to Martyn and go over the evidence he's collected."

"Martyn?"

The door swung open then and Jayleigh stood there, Ravena in her arms.
Tair'n looked down guiltily.  He had spent so little time with his
daughter.  And now he would be banished and the girl would grow up
fatherless.

His near death experience had also left him with the certainty that he
needed to resolve things with Leigh.  But now was not the time, with R'ven
and Gerald in the room.

"He's back with us, Leigh," he heard R'ven say.

"I can see that," she said.  He looked up to see her looking at him.  "Vena
missed her father," she said.

"Sorry," he said quietly.  "Can I hold her now?"

She stepped over and placed the baby in his arms.  The silence hung heavy
as he looked down at his daughter.  Would he ever again get to hold her?
He could only hope that he and Jayleigh could arrange something so that he
could see her every so often after his banishment.

"We've been talking about what's going to happen," R'ven said "Gerald
wants to talk to Martyn and go over the evidence that he collected. I was
going to ask you to send a rider to Marrid after him so he could be here
in the morning."

"Fine. I'll talk to T'rell and see who he suggests to go. He can give the
rider the picture of the new location for Marrid Warren." She commented,
her tone emotionless.  "Then we can begin the trial the day after. I've
asked T'rell to officiate as I don't think it would be right to do so
myself. He's agreed."

"Do you think that'll be enough time to prepare for trial?" Gerald asked
softly.

Tair'n wondered what more evidence they could need to convict him.

"I think by now we have enough evidence to decide whether or not Tair'n is
guilty or innocent," she answered and he flinched. "Once Martyn has had a
chance to present the evidence he found with the help of M'naten and
Sharees I'm sure there will be no doubt in anyone's mind that Tair'n could
never have done such a vile thing to his son."

Tair'n fought the urge to disabuse her of her naivete.  She would see at
the trial.  He only hoped she didn't take it out on T'rell when he was
banished.

"So you believe he is innocent of the charges?" Gerald asked her.

"I do," she said, looking right at him.  Tair'n wished he had her simple
belief, but he knew better.

"So, T'rell's trying me.  Martyn, Sharees and this M'naten person are
presenting evidence.  What's Gerald's role here?"

"I'll be defending you."

"Like you did Alexis?" Tair'n asked.  "I don't want off on a
technicality."

"You weren't mistreated as he was," Gerald said.  "If you get off, it'll
be because you're innocent."

Tair'n fell silent.  It was a terrible thing to know he'd be letting down
all these people who believed in him. "Anything interesting happen while
I've been gone?" he asked, changing the subject.

They talked a while longer and then she left, taking their sleeping
daughter with her.  Gerald left soon thereafter, leaving him alone with
R'ven.

******

[Cal'an]

He watched the scrape on his hand as the blood slowly welled up, waiting
for it to spill out as it always did.

He had banged both legs, too.  Herin would be panicked to get the internal
bleeding stopped.  Jer'lin puffed up.  "Oh, dear.  We have to get you to
the Medical Center."

"Something's wrong," Cal'an said, staring at the scrape.

"What's that?"

"Something's wrong with my blood.  It isn't running out like it always
does."

Jer'lin looked at him in concern.  "Let me see, son."

******

Cal'an sat staring at the tube of liquid where Herin had dropped a drop of
his blood and watched it clump together.  It had never done that before.

Herin was talking to the Nomad boy Akil, using Qedhar as a translator.
"What does he mean, he healed his blood?"

The two Nomads consulted, then Qedhar spoke.  "He says it was too thin, so
Hehran's touch made it thicker, so it would be right."

"You mean I'm not a bleeder anymore?" Cal'an asked.

"That's what he says, yes."

"For how long?"

Qedhar shrugged.  "Forever."

******

[Tair'n]

The two sat in companionable silence for a while.

"Since there's not many patients, you'll stay here tonight," R'ven said.  
"It's probably safer anyway.  I'm hoping to get you released into my
custody tomorrow morning. But you have to promise not to escape before
your trial."

Tair'n nodded.  "I won't."  They fell silent again.  "Ven, when... if I'm
banished, will you come see me from time to time?"

"You won't be banished."

"But if I am..."

R'ven silenced him with a kiss.  As the kiss turned more passionate,
Tair'n gave in to it, deciding to enjoy this time with his mate without
the disapproving eyes of the Landbound with whom he would be living in his
banishment, who would forever see such a pairing as perverse and
unnatural.

He almost cried as he realised again all that he had lost.

If only...  If only.

Respectfully submitted,
 Lynette R. F. Cowper
  Tair'n and Amadith
  and Cal'an

---

 Lynette R. F. Cowper <lcowper@indy.net>, INWO Line Editor