She brushed the back of a sooty hand against her nose....damn allergies...
Gray particles...either dust...or the burned remains living beings...had
triggered her nose into twitching.  

A wooden board with the needle ends of nails poking out was picked up and
hurled into a large bin with the help of Ghost.  

"Have you heard from your father?  Or brothers?" her friend asked.

"Yes...thank goodness they were with me when this all started..  Had they
not been, I wouldn't be able to help with this cleaning up before I was
assured that they were okay," Argent straightened, placing her hands at the
small of her back and stretched.  

Some older dragonriders approached her, picking their way through the
charred debris, and quickly demanded to know from her what exactly was
going on.

"I'm not sure..." Argent said empathically as she spied the dried tears on
some of the women dragonriders' cheeks.  "I know as much as you do right
now..."

"Our dragons have said that an egg was stolen from the Queen's lair...is
this true?" a stern looking man asked.

The blonde headed junior queenrider nodded her head slightly, not knowing
exactly what information should be leaked to the general populace of the
warren and what should not.  

"The Queen's nest was tampered with.  I'm sure Phaedra will want to address
that-"

"You mean when Phaedra is found," the same man snorted at her.  "She and
Melith are missing!"

"There are many people missing right now due to all the confusion," Argent
felt her cheeks flush with burning red anger.  

"You're second in command, are you not?" another member of the melee had
stepped up to the forefront.  "Are you like the other one?  Was this all
planned so that you could take over?"

Argent stumbled backwards slightly before straightening herself again and
trying, for all her worth to do what Phaedra would do in such a situation.  

"I will hear no more of this talk..." she said tensely, her lower lip
trembling.  "And I would suggest that instead of standing around and
amusing yourselves by fueling rumors throughout the warren, you start
picking up the mess and cleaning up Geode with me."

She turned on her heel, clinching her fists tightly, and walking away
hurriedly.

<Bravo> Silver sounded with approval inside of her head.  

<I'm so angry...>

<Just calm down...sit down and take in deep breaths> her dragon instructed
as Argent approached her.  

Argent collapsed onto the ground and laid her head back against the
metallic scales.  <I have no one's respect...>

<That's not true...>

<It is... how will I ever be fit to lead a warren?>

<You are fit...  You handled that well, I thought...>

Argent sighed and nodded some before realizing that her dragon was still
grieving over those that had met their terrible fate at the flames of the
rogue beasts.  

<Sil...gods, I'm sorry...  I should be the one offering you comfort..>

<It's all right, Aggie..> Silver wrapped her tail around the young
queenrider and pulled her close.  <Just stay here close to me right
now...This is what I need...>

Argent nodded and pressed her cheek against the rib cage of her dragon,
while letting her leaning form rise and fall with the breathing of her best
friend.

<TAG anyone who wants to run into Argent>
Respectfully Submitted,
Tracee Taylor-Schneider
Belarade and Menia Xylian Warren
Argent and Silver Geode Warren
Jaewyn The Kingdom of Ralengarde