Day 8, Ismene Warren)

     As soon as the dragons had landed on Ismene's green, Vignette took her 
leave of the others.  "Doubtless there's a stack of paperwork of unbelievable 
proportions awaiting me," the Dragonlady told them.  "I need to get back to 
my office and see what's been happening here.  In the meantime, why don't you 
two start packing things up for your trip back?  Dinner's in two hours, so 
I'll plan on seeing you then."

     Tara nodded, and as soon as Vignette had left, she turned to Jerram.  
"How much do you have to bring?" she asked.

     The Swordmaster sighed.  "A few changes of clothing and a few other odd 
possessions," he replied.  "I've never been an acquisitive sort, you know."  
He turned around and gazed out over his soon-to-be former home.  "Ah, but the 
weight of memories of this place...a hundred dragons could not carry it."

     Tara frowned.  "Jerram, you didn't really want to transfer, did you?  
Look...as much as I'd love to have you at Jasra, maybe there's something I 
could do, talk to Vignette, see if she'd change her mind..."

     Jerram hesitated a moment, then shook his head, smiling.  "No, 
Tara...Vignette doesn't make snap decisions, as you well know.  Whatever her 
reasons for making that decision, she'd be quite hard to sway.  Besides, what 
would the trainees do without me?  I can't imagine Elly, or Dalaine, or 
Corwin, or Danis having to break in a new trainer.  And without me there, 
within a week or so young Gus would have found a way to slip the entire 
warren in his pocket and make off with it!"

     Tara grimaced.  "Jerram, you're *entirely* overstating the case!  He's 
one of the most honorable young men I've ever met, even though he does have a 
certain amount of 'street-smarts' to unlearn."  She decided not to mention 
the matter of the jewels at this point.  Jerram would find out for himself in 
good time.

     "Seeing is believing," Jerram said, "and I still haven't seen...ah, 
never mind.  Do you need any help?"

     "No, not yet," she said.  "Right now it'll be a one-person job, deciding 
what to take and what to pitch or give to someone else.  See you at dinner?"

     "You may count on it," he replied, bowing.

* * * * * * * *

     [Hey, watch that!] Varaenna protested, ducking her head at the last 
second to avoid being hit by a flying object - another of Tara's cast-offs, 
in this case an old shoe that had been missing it's mate for some time. 

     Tara turned, to see the queen's head protruding in through the 
entranceway.   *Well, you should know better than to be in the way when I'm 
throwing things out!*

     Varaenna blinked.  [And how should I know that?] she demanded.  [I can't 
remember you ever throwing out a single thing in the entire time we've been 
here!]

     Tara had to admit that there was a certain amount of truth in that.  
She'd always been something of a pack rat.  Varaenna, meanwhile, was busily 
eyeing the interior of Tara's old apartment.  [Looks better,] she decided.  
[I really like what you've done with the walls.]

     *Smarty!* Tara chided, knowing what her queen was referring to.  Her 
wall-hangings - most of them ones she'd made herself - had been taken down, 
leaving expanses of bare wall that had never been there before.  *Everyone's 
an art critic these days...first Vignette, now you!*

     [Just trying to be helpful,] the queen replied.  [Tara, Darath just 
spoke to me.  She says her rider needs to see you in her office.]

     *Now?* Tara asked, dismayed.  She'd hoped to have time to clean up 
before dinner, and had just been preparing to stop work to do just that.  If 
she had to go to Vignette's office now, she'd have to go as-is.

     [Yes, she says now,] Varaenna replied.  [Sounds important.]

     *It always is,* Tara said, putting down the bundle she'd been carrying 
and hurrying out the door.  *Watch things while I'm gone, will you?*

     [Of course,] Varaenna replied.  As soon as Tara had gone, the queen 
extended her head and neck into the apartment as far as it would go, and 
glanced over the separate piles of Tara's belongings - one pile to be packed 
for the trip to Jasra, the other to be left behind.  With a soft chuckle, the 
queen used her nose to push Tara's wall-hangings from the "take-along" pile 
to the "leave-behind" pile.  She supposed that her rider would probably 
notice the switch and correct it when she returned, but there was always the 
chance...

*  * * * * * * *
(Vignette's office)

     "You wanted to see me?" Tara asked, after being shown into the 
Dragonlady's office.

     "Yes, I do," Vignette replied.  "Tara, just after I got back here, I was 
approached by Inagua's brother, Yechur.  He told me something very 
disturbing."

     Tara sighed.  "She's been fighting with Phaedra again?"

     Vignette nodded.  "Yes, but it isn't just Phaedra.  I'm afraid that 
relations between her and Ristea are at the breaking point as well.  The 
situation's rapidly getting out of hand.  Quite frankly, I've come to the 
decision that to keep the peace here, either Phaedra or Inagua needs to get 
out of Ismene for awhile."

     "So, you're sending one of them back to Geode?" Tara asked.

     "I wish I could, but that wouldn't work," Vignette told her.  "Phaedra's 
condition is such that she needs to be here, where our best healers can 
attend her when she has need of them.  And as for Inagua...well, as you know, 
she's senior to Argent, so if I sent her back there *she* would have to take 
over as acting Warrenlady of Geode.  And we both know she's not ready for 
that, not yet."

     "Then what?" Tara asked, a suspicion entering her mind that perhaps she 
shouldn't have asked.

     "I'd like to send Inagua back to Jasra with you," Vignette told her.  
She held up her hand to forestall Tara's reply - in fact, the Jasra 
Warrenlady had already opened her mouth to do so.  "For a short vacation," 
Vignette continued.  "Two or three weeks lounging around on the beach has a 
wonderful effect on a person."

     "Well..." Tara said, her brow furrowed in thought.  "If that's all it 
is..."

     Vignette raised an eyebrow.  "What more could there be?"

     "I seem to remember you sending another queenrider to Jasra not so long 
ago, for a two or three week vacation," Tara reminded her.  

     The Dragonlady shrugged.  "Just try to avoid being shot at during the 
next hatching, and you won't have any worries."

     Tara sighed.  "All right.  I guess it wouldn't hurt to have her there 
for a couple of weeks."

     "I've already told Darath to speak to Myacura," Vignette told her.  
"Inagua will be down in the dining hall in fifteen minutes or so.  You can 
talk to her there and make the necessary arrangements."

     "Aren't you coming?" Tara asked.

     "Me?" the Dragonlady asked, shocked.  "With this pile of paperwork to 
get through?  I'll be lucky if I make it down for breakfast tomorrow!"

* * * * * * * *
(Dining hall, shortly afterward)

     Tara was already sitting at a table drinking her coffee when she spotted 
Inagua entering the dining hall.  She waved a hand and called out to her.  
"Inagua!"

     The Geode queenrider saw her and made her way over to her table.  Tara 
noticed that her hand was bandaged, and she could more or less guess what had 
happened between her and Phaedra.

     Frankly, Tara still had her doubts about having Inagua at Jasra, even 
for a short time.  She'd been given to understand that the drug problem was 
mostly taken care of, but that the drinking problem had not.  And that, 
combined with Inagua's telekinetic abilities, made for an explosive 
combination.  She remembered only too well the destruction that had been 
wrought on Ismene's med center after Inagua had been brought in, and the 
deaths that had resulted from it.  Promises to Vignette aside, if anything 
*resembling* that happened at Jasra, she'd have Inagua back here in a hurry.

     "Tara," Inagua said, pulling out a chair and sitting down.  "I'm glad to 
see you back, though I understand it's just for a short time.  
Congratulations on your transfer."

     Tara nodded.  "I'm pleased to see you too," she said, then decided to 
cut right to the heart of the matter.  "I've talked to Vignette," she said.  
"She's suggested that you might like a short vacation at Jasra...two or three 
weeks.  I told her I was agreeable to this, but it's up to you if you want to 
come."

(Tag Bridget)

* * * * * * * *
(Midday, day 9, Jasra Warren)

     When Varaenna and Seydor, each laden with their riders' belongings, 
teleported in over the warren, Tara quickly noticed a ship making it's way 
slowly toward Jasra's cove from the open sea.  From the look of it, the 
vessel had sustained a certain amount of damage. She guessed that it had 
probably been caught out in the storm, but she decided not to do anything for 
now since it didn't seem to be in any particular trouble.  Instead, she 
directed the queen to land on the green.

     Tara unstrapped herself and climbed down as soon as the queen had 
landed.  Jerram did likewise, and they stood for just a moment to take a look 
around before starting to unpack the dragons.

     "Well, we're home!" Tara said.

(NRPG - Okay, Tara's back and ready to get back to work.  Bridget, I imagine 
that because of Inagua's teleportation difficulties, she'd travel to Jasra 
separately with an escort from Ismene.)

Submitted by:

John

Warrenlady Tara & Varaenna
Jerram & Seydor
Jasra Warren

Trevor & Trissana, Cleft Warren
T'rell & Flerrion, Daere Warren
Martyn & Havelok, Marrid Warren