Just a little from Sister and brother's POV. 
The day in the life Shae's family

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

Explanations Owed

Shae/Lesta
***********

[Jasra Warren]

"Looks like trouble in paradise."

"What do you mean?" Jerram asked.

"Dar and Lesta .. lover's quarrel .."

"Lover's quarrel??" Jerram looked surprised. "Dar and Lesta??"

Saul nodded, "Of course .."

Jerram shrugged, "I didn't know that .."

Lover's quarrel.

Lover's quarrel??

LOVER'S!!!

He could mean... 

But somehow Shae knew he did. 

Lover's quarrel!! 

Now where in the hell did the dumb man get that idea....

Her first reaction after over hearing the stupid comment from the bearded
rider was to get up out of her chair and go over to him and set him to rights. 

Lovers.. in deed!

The words were there. Hovering on the tip of her tongue, but instead of
uttering them and giving him the satisfaction in thinking he was right, Shae
got up and followed Darlea out of the hall. 

Right now she was more worried about calming the girl down then to in
telling that egotistical male... just how wrong he was.... 

By the gods.. He thought they were lovers..? 

Was that why he had been watching them all this time? Man how wrong could
one person be? She thought of telling K'tan about it the next time he came
to see her. Shae was sure he'd get a kick out of it.. but then she
remembered she couldn't say anything for fear of giving Dar's being there away.

Then a thought hit her. 

Why not *let* him believe it if he wanted too? After all people only saw
what they *thought* they saw, and what they *had* been seeing was the two of
them, Dar and herself spending every free moment they had together as well
as just about every meal.

Who said she had to set them to rights and tell them she was doing so to
protect the girl?

Well it might have started out to be the reason, but Shae had really come to
care for the girl and had kept up the friendship because she really enjoyed
the talks they had together.. She had come to really *like* the girl, no
matter how jealous she had been over the past between Darlea and K'tan. 

She could be nice about that now that she knew K'tan really did love her.

She knew first hand how rumors could get started. Didn't she? Hadn't it
happen to her once already in Keldarra? Wasn't that why she was here in
Jasra now hiding out under an assumed name? This time why not let the rumor
work *for* her instead of against her? It would certainly solve a few
problems she faced when she did have to finally leave this place and go home.

As soon as she was outside she burst out laughing. Man it was perfect, and
it could work too if Dar would go alone with it. How could she find a more
perfect way to protect Dar after she was gone then to have the men in this
Warren believe that she didn't accept their advances because they were
simply 'not her type'.

She had to find her and tell her. Had to find her and make sure she would be
okay. She'd taken Shae's comment about leaving pretty hard and Shae felt bad
about it. 

<<Fireball... will you ask Makayla where her rider is. She was upset when
she left me and I want to explain it to her.>>

<She's down the beach where the seats are cut into the stones...Makayla says
she is crying.>

<<Tell her I am sorry that it is my fault and I want to make things right if
I can.>>

<She knows you mean well and would not harm her rider. Go to her.>

Shae made her way down the beach, side stepping over the flotsam that hadn't
been picked up yet and on down until she came to the benches where she found
Darlea. The girl was seated as far to the right as she could get without
becoming part of the stone itself with her legs drawl up, arms wrapped
around them to give her head a pillow to lean on while she cried. 

Shae could hear her soft sobs as she came closer. 

"Dar... I'm sorry... Please... Let me explain. I want you to know why I have
to do this so you won't hate me when and if I do have to leave here."

"But this is your home! How can you even think of leaving here!?!" Dar
wanted to know.

Shae bowled her head closing her eyes as she thought over how she was going
to answer that question. She didn't want to lie. She hated lying and had
been forced to tell so many over the last few weeks that even she was
finding it hard to keep up with them.

She sighed and let out the breath she'd been holding and turned to look out
at, but not see the white caps flowing in from the choppy sea. 

Then slowly she turned back to find Darlea sitting there staring at her.
"Look this is going to take a while to explain," she said softly. "Can I sit
down while I try?"

Dar nodded and Shae moved up on the bench seat beside her. 

"First off I want to you to know that in the time we've been friends here...
You have come to mean a lot to me. I probably couldn't have lasted as long
as I have without your friendship. That's why I'm going to trust you with a
secret that could get me banished or worse from here if anyone else finds
out what I did."

"What could you have done that was so bad?" Dar asked.

"It's not so much what *I* did.. as what others were doing.. and I got
caught up in the middle of it without knowing the rules of the game or even
being asked if I wanted to play." Shae told her, still trying to figure out
how much of the truth she could tell the girl without giving away to may
clues that might bring memories back to her now.

"What I told you about my life before coming here... well part of it was true."

"Which parts," Darlea asked , sounding a little angry now that she was about
to learn her *good* friend had lied to her.. or so Shae thought.

"The part about my mate. I did have... no make that I *do* have a mate..."
Well he may not have asked her to be his mate in so many words... but they
did love eachother. "Someone I love and miss very much. But someone I had to
leave when .. things... began to happen."

What things, and where is he now," she wanted to know. "Does he know where
you are now?"

"He knows. He's even been here a few times to let me know how things are
going back where we come from."

"Did you get into trouble? Was that why you had to leave there?"

"There was.. some trouble... but I was not the cause. I mean I was.. but not
the way you might think. you see I had come to the Warren to find my family.
The man I had always thought was my father told me on his death bed that my
mother had been pregnant with me when they had met. That my real father had
been someone she had loved before and who had been killed before I was born.
Anyway they fell in love and he claimed me for his own daughter.. and raised
me that way, even though he thought my mother should have told me the
truth," Shae paused to make sure Dar was following her. 

"He told me that I might still have family in the Warren where my father was
from, and made me promise to go there and find out. that's how I came to be
there the day I joined with my dragon."

"What about your family? Did you find them?" the other girl wanted to know.

"Yes and no... you see I found out that they had been there... that my
father had had a brother.. and so I started to ask questions.. cause I
didn't want anyone to know yet why I was there... But someone must have
gotten scared of my questions because strange things began to happen to me
and people around me. things I was getting the blame for... But I didn't do
them I swear. Then someone tried to kill me ( in this she did lie and hoped
Dar would never remember the truth.) And I didn't know what to do .. So I
fled the Warren not knowing who I could trust.. and went home first then
came here to hide out where no one would know me."

"But you said your mate..."

"He went to see my brothers and after they talked they told him where he
could find me and came here the first time with my younger brother to talk
to me. He went back home and is trying hard to find something that will
clear me so I can go home and be with him and my brothers."

"Does Tara know? I mean that you're not who you say you are?"

"No," Shae shook her head. 

"But how then..."

"How did I get accepted here?" Dar nodded. "a friend of my brother.. a
dragonrider who was doing him a favor.. Forged a letter of transfer for me
and in all the confusion that had been going on around here around the time
I arrived... Well no one ever checked on my papers to see if they were real
or not."

"So you're just going to wait here until he finds out something then leave
when he does?"

Shae nodded. "As much as I love it here... It's not my home. My home and
life are back there somewhere and until I have it back..."

She was quiet then. Giving the other woman a chance to think about what all
she had just told her. Shae knew there was a chance Darlea could go to Tara
and tell her the *truth* as Shae had just told her... But she was praying
their new found friendship would make her think twice.

"There's one other thing Dar," Shae said, breaking into the girls thoughts.
"I over heard something today that I think you had better know about."

She saw puzzlement in the other girls eyes before going on. She wasn't sure
how Dar was going to take it, but wanted her to know before word got back to
her from someone else.

"It seems that the reason that bearded rider, Saul has been taking such a
great interest is that he believes.... we.. you and I... are lovers."

Dar's eyes widen. "He what? Where did he get that idea.....Oh. How did you
find that out."

"Like I said. I over heard him telling Jerram about it earlier when you
..ah.. left the dining hall so upset. But maybe we can use that to your
advantage."

[Tag Kris can Dar figure out how?]

 Jono 
******

[[Keldarra Warren]]

"K'tan! Why the moping about? Introduce us to your friend. He's
newly-joined, is he not?"

"Jono, um, rider of Nightraider," the other young man faltered.

"Well I feel like dancing, and I think you could use a bit, K'tan. Would
Jono like to show our DragonLady to be the dance floor? Of course he would."

Jono watched as she took K'tan's hand looked helplessly at the young
Queenrider. 

Then feeling slightly foolish for just standing there he offered her his arm
and bowed. "Shall we? This is too good a song to stand around to when we
could be having fun dancing."

He smiled his most charming smile to put her at ease and seconds later he
saw her lips turn up into a shy grin of her own. 

"Why not."

And so they danced. Not just to the song that was playing, but to the next
two. Both lively dances. 

Jono was having fun trying to keep up with her, and thought how pretty she
looked with her hair slightly messy and the rose colored blush that had come
into her cheeks. 

When the forth song turned out to be a slow one, he was more then willing to
stay out on the floor, but Brisse begged off saying she wanted to get
something cool to drink. 

He gave into her, after noticing the sadness that had come into her eyes,
but said nothing to her about it as he led her off the floor and back to her
seat. 

"I'll be right back with a drink for you," he said and looked over to where
the Dragonlady was sitting to see if she wanted one also, before moving away
to retrieve their drinks.. 

He wondered about the sadness as he got them all a drink. 
then thought it wasn't his place to ask. After all he'd only met her tonight
and didn't have the right to be so forward with her. 

He smiled at another pretty young thing as she squeezed past him in the
serving line and though maybe he'd find her later and ask her to dance. The
night was still young after all.

"So Jono," Christalla was saying after he'd returned and past out the
drinks. "I don't remember talking to you before the hatching, but K'tan here
tells me you've been in the Warren for a few days."

"Umm yes ma'am," he through a nervous look at his friend. "I had been
traveling and remembered my friend K'tan lived here so I thought I'd stop in
and see him. I also have.. family in the area."

He didn't want to mention who. Things were going so nicely for him tonight
he didn't want to mess them up.

"And did you see your family?" Brisse asked.

"No they weren't at home when I got here, so I just came on to see K'tan and
then I found myself following the others to the hatching caves and the rest
you all know."

"And how well we do," Christalla laughed. 

"But then I'm sure you've been though it all before."

"Oh a time or two," she agreed. "But you never get used to seeing the pairs
join even after the twelfth time. There's always a renewal of feelings that
take you back to when you yourself were joined."

"Then I'll have something to look forward to at the next joining." He
grinned and caught sight of the twins he had seen join with the twin
dragons. Saw them look at the woman sitting beside him then at him. 

They were frowning. 

He wondered what that was all about. The twins joined them at the table and
pointedly ignored him. Not that they were rude or anything, but he got the
feeling like they didn't want him here. Or maybe it was that they didn't
want him around Brisse.

"Brisse did papa say when he would be coming back?" the first girl asked. He
didn't know which one she was. They both looked identical to him. But Brisse
didn't seem to have the same problem. 

"No Arly he didn't," the young DragonLady answered her. "They didn't say how
bad the flooding was, but I don't think Dan'yar with be back anytime tonight."

"He will have missed dancing with you," Leyean, the other twin said. "He had
been talking about it the whole day before we got here. He misses you, you
know."

K'tan stood up then and said he was going to go circulate and reached out to
drag Jono with him. 

"Hey I was having fun back there," he protested. "Why's you have to go and
drag me away."

Instead of answering, K'tan just pointed at back at the table and Jono
looked around just in time to see a smiling face M'ressan holding out his
arm to Christalla. 

"I didn't think you want to have to answer any questions about Shae in front
of her if he took in his head to ask," he quipped. 

"Quick thinking," Jono sighed then his boyish smile returned. "So McDuff led
on.... I'm sure there are plenty of more unattached women here who are just
waiting for us to ask them to dance."

But even as he danced with others his mind keep returning to the young
Dragonlady. Why had she been so sad when the slow song had started? And who
was this Dan'yar the girls had spoke of. Their father he had gathered, but
what was his relationship to Brisse? Somehow he'd find out. 

Maybe she might even tell him one day why the song had made her so sad....
He'd be a good listener. 

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

Jono & Nightraider
Shae/Lesta & Kaaren/Fiery
Keldarra Warren 
(currently hiding out in Jasra Warren

aka
Barbara