Tara
(Day 10, early evening)

     Leaving a puzzled but pleasantly surprised Dolfis behind, Tara sprinted 
to the hatching cavern at her queen's call.  She'd been blocking the queen 
out to the best of her ability to keep Varaenna's bad mood from spilling over 
onto her - but the queen's joyous cry that she was laying her clutch alerted 
the Warrenlady instantly.

     Oblivious to all else, she dashed into the hatching cavern to see 
Varaenna curled protectively around her newly laid eggs.  She ran up to the 
queen and flung her arms around Varaenna's white-silver muzzle.  *Oh, my 
beauty, this is wonderful!!* she said happily.

     [Yes, I am, aren't I?]  Varaenna said absently, disengaging her head 
from Tara's grasp so that she could go back to pushing sand around the eggs 
with her nose.  Tara knelf down and began to count.

     "An even dozen!" she called out to the onlookers, who couldn't see the 
eggs clearly because of the queen's intervening bulk, and who hadn't dared 
approach her this closely to do an accurate count.  Her announcement was met 
by loud applause.  When the eggs hatched, there'd be twelve very happy young 
people here at Jasra.

     Looking back up, she saw that Varaenna had her head raised as though 
speaking to someone.  *Who are you talking to, love?* she asked.

     The queen looked down at her.  [Just talking to a couple of dragons,] 
she said, then opened her mind so that Tara could at least hear her side of 
the conversation.  [Anyway, Fayloth, you and your rider need to find some 
additional candidates...yes, that's right, there are twelve eggs...well, I 
know, but we did just lose young Ansel, and I want my children to have a good 
field to choose from...oh, if you could manage three candidates for each 
egg...]

     *Three!* Tara said.  *That's completely unreasonable!  We have more than 
enough candidates even without Ansel!  And by the way, we did not *lose* 
Ansel, you know!*

     Varaenna sighed.  [All right, Fayloth...my rider doesn't want all those 
extra candidates, so just forget it...but if you do see any likely 
candidates, you know what to do...yes, I know you've been doing this for a 
long time, just making sure...now, Seydor, could you manage to bring a couple 
of nice, freshly-killed bucks down here?  No, they're not both for me, silly, 
one's for Sabbith....yes, I know he's capable of hunting for himself, but 
that would mean he'd have to leave here...well, I think that having the sire 
present is good for the eggs' development, even before they hatch...]

     Tara couldn't help but chuckle...Varaenna had gone back to being her 
irrepressible self, much to the Warrenlady's relief.  Even though she might 
be stuck in the hatching cavern, she'd continue to have her claws on 
everything that that went on among Jasra's dragons.  Tara made a mental note 
to have Kay thank Sabbith for whatever he'd done to straighten her out 
earlier.

     [Good idea...in fact, I think you should spend more time with Kalewyn,] 
the queen told her.  Tara turned to tell her to worry about mothering the 
eggs instead of mothering Tara, but the queen had already turned her 
attention back to the eggs.

     Just then, she saw Kay and Darlea standing some distance away from 
her...and from the look on Darlea's face, it looked like they were involved 
in an argument of some sort.  She hurried over to where they stood.  "What's 
wrong?" she asked.

     Darlea turned angry eyes on the queenrider, "This man refuses to answer 
for his dragon's despicable behavior!  He was tormenting poor Makayla!" 

     Kay turned helpless eyes on Tara. *Help!* his hands begged. 

    Her eyes strayed to Kay's belt, and she immediately noticed that 
something very important was missing.  She moved her mouth to say silently, 
"Forgot to get that slate replaced, didn't you?" 

     He nodded miserably. 

      She quickly turned to Darlea again.  "Darlea...this is Kalewyn, 
Sabbith's rider.  He doesn't answer you because he can't...he can't hear, or 
speak.  He can speak to dragons, but has to use sign language to speak to 
humans.  He normally uses a writing slate, but it got broken when he arrived 
here and he hasn't had the time to replace it yet.  But Darlea, I don't 
understand...you say *Sabbith* was bothering Makayla?" 

     "Deaf?"  Darlea looked at Kay, who nodded helplessly.  "Oh my, I'm sorry 
.." she turned to Tara, "Can you tell him how sorry I am.  But honestly poor 
Makayla ..that monster was .. was .. I don't know what he was doing. But 
Makayla was howling like a banshee!"
 
     Puzzled, Tara turned to Kay.  "I don't understand this, Kay...what did 
Sabbith do to Makayla?"  She couldn't understand...Sabbith was normally such 
a well-behaved dragon.  But clearly something was going on here. 
 
     *He said they were playing ..* Kay said, clearly as confused as the rest 
of them. 
 
     "Playing," Tara mused, then spoke to her queen.  *All right, love, 
what's going on here?" 

     <Nothing?>  Varaenna said.  <Oh, I'm sorry, but I must get back to my 
dragonets...this is a very important time...> 

     Tara sighed.  "Varaenna's being rather uncommunicative, which means she 
knows something she doesn't want to tell.  Darlea...Kay...maybe you need to 
talk to your dragons and get a better explanation out of them." 

     Both riders turned to their dragons.  Sabbith's wings dropped as he 
spoke to his rider, while Makayla's wing's and her head bobbed irritably 
while talking to hers.

      <We were only playing, My Kay.  Makayla wanted to play too .. she 
insisted in fact!> Sabbith assured his rider.

     <He attacked me!  And he's so big .. I didn't stand a chance!>  Makayla 
wailed.

     After several minutes both riders turned back to face the Warrenlady. 
*Sabbith insists they were only playing and that Makayla was playing as 
well,* Kay sighed while Darlea watched Kay's hands then turned to Tara for a 
translation.

     "Kay says that Sabbith was only playing...and that Makayla had wanted to 
play too, " Tara told the courier.  She glanced over at the green dragon, 
noticing the absence of scratches or other marks on her hide.  "She doesn't 
appear to be hurt...I don't think that Sabbith would have deliberately tried 
to hurt her in any case, but if he had then surely Varaenna would have 
stopped him.  She takes the welfare of Jasra's dragons very seriously.  
Perhaps its just that Sabbith's used to playing...whatever...sort of game 
this is with Varaenna.  She's so much larger, perhaps he just forgot that he 
needs to be more *gentle* when he's playing with a smaller dragon." 
 
    Darlea sighed, "None of these dragons seem to want to talk straight!  
Makayla only whines that Sabbith wouldn't let her go."  She looked back at 
Makayla, who tried her best to look pathetic, "You're right, she isn't hurt 
.." Darlea looked pleadingly at Kay. "Do you think you could please ask your 
dragon *NOT* to play with Makayla .. however it is they were playing .. not 
even if she begs."

     Tara turned to Kay.  "I think that might be a good idea," she told him.  
"I don't know what went on between them, but please tell Sabbith that while 
he has my permission to play with Varaenna anytime he wants, after the eggs 
are hatched, if he wants to do...whatever...with any other dragons, he needs 
to *ask* them first.  And...it might be a good idea if he told Makayla he was 
sorry."  She didn't want any hard feelings between the riders. 

     Kay nodded. He was eager to get this over with.  He didn't want to be on 
the wrong foot with any of the Jasra riders .. Especially the female ones, 
since they always seemed to cause him the most trouble.  He turned to 
Sabbith, 

     <But, my Kay .>  Sabbith protested.

     <Apologize!>  Kay ordered.

     Sabbith grumbled a bit more, but finally turned to Makayla, <I'm sorry, 
Makayla .. >

     <And Sabbith .. no more of this game except with Varaenna, unless you 
ASK first .. do you understand?>

      <But she asked..>  Sabbith grumbled.

     <No more..>  Kay told him firmly.

     From her corner of the hatching cavern, Varaenna had been listening to 
the interchange between Sabbith and Makayla...she wasn't really quite as 
engrossed with her eggs as she'd led her rider to believe.  <Got in trouble 
over this, eh?> she asked. 
 
      <Yes ..>  Sabbith moped, moving over to fall on the sand beside her.

      <Well, don't feel too bad,> said the queen.   
 
     Sabbith looked at her, a hint of a sparkle in his eyes, <Well, sorta ..> 
 His little secret cheered him a bit.

      Varaenna chuckled, figuring that she was safe now that Kalewyn had 
forbidden Sabbith from indulging in his tickling game.  That meant that he 
couldn't pounce her by surprise now...but of course, she wasn't under any 
such restrictions.  Well, that was the way it should be, she decided.  She 
*was* the queen, after all.  Putting the matter out of her mind, she swung 
her head around to look at the three riders.  <Kalewyn, dear, you *will* be 
in here bright and early tomorrow to continue your work, won't you?> 
 
     Kay turned from Tara and Darlea where he had been assuring them both 
that Sabbith would behave, and took a few steps toward the queen.  

    The queen chuckled softly.  <Oh, I will, dear, I will,> she assured him, 
her tail snaking out to slide gently across Sabbith's back. 

      "Well, then, it's settled," said Tara, satisfied that the problem was 
resolved.  She put an arm around each rider's shoulder.  "Now that this is 
taken care of, shall we go and get ready for the party?" 
  
     *A party ..* Kay signed hesitantly.  He hated parties.. too much 
activity.  It was difficult to keep up with everything that was going on.

     "Oh, and Darlea...I've agreed to let Captain Dolfis repair the Marquesa 
here, and so I'd like you and Makayla to take him out tomorrow sometime to 
find a suitable tree that can be made into a new mainmast.  There are some 
pretty large trees inland, so I'm sure he'll find one that's suitable."

     "Of course," Darlea agreed.  "Shall I take anyone with me?"

     "Yes, that would be a good idea," Tara said.  "Take Ghost and Kikeane 
with you.  It'll help them get familiar with the area."

     Regrettably, they didn't make it to the storeroom for a new slate...for 
as they were making their way there, the unmistakable sounds of roaring and 
flapping wings that heralded a mating flight could be heard throughout the 
warren.  *Who?* Tara demanded of Varaenna.

     [Doshy,] Varaenna replied.  [Sabbith, wait...oh, drat!!!]

      Tara saw that Kay was also aware of what was going on.  His eyes had 
that same, slightly-vacant look that was the hallmark of any male (or 
sometimes female) rider who's male dragon was pursuing a mating female.  "Go 
on," she told him, giving him a pat on the back.  I'll pick up the slate, and 
see you at the party...unless Sabbith wins, that is."

    With a grin, she watched him hurry off to join the throng of male riders 
who were converging on Jasra's wingleader.  She'd just picked up the slate a 
few minutes later, and had been intending to go and check on Shawnee to see 
who'd won the mating flight, when Varaenna contacted her.  [Vasleth's and 
Hesperus' riders would like to see you,] she said.  

     *Tell them I'll meet them in my office,* she told the queen.

* * * * * * * *
(Warrenlady's office)

/snip from Peter's post/

Mc'Key was uncomfortable as he retold Inagua's story, or at least what he 
knew of it, to the WarrenLady.  She looked gravely concerned.

"So, this woman *is* guilty of attempted murder of a Warrenlady?" she asked.

"She is guilty of setting out to do so.  I think, however, given the 
opportunity she had, if she had really intended to do it, Phaedra would be 
dead by now.  She could have killed her easily, but she didn't."

"Perhaps she was simply too drunk," Ed'wen said.

"No. Inagua may be a," he blushed slightly, "heavy drinker, but if she truly 
intended to kill Phaedra, she would be dead."

"The question is," Tara began, "What can we do with her once we bring her 
here?"

/end snip/

     "One thing, though," she went on before the others could say anything.  
"Inagua's only coming here for a vacation.  As I see it, there isn't really 
anything we can do in terms of a long-term solution to her problem...she 
isn't going to be here that long."

     Ed'wen cleared his throat.  "No disrespect to our Dragonlady, 
but...that's what she said when she first sent you here...and she all but 
admitted later that she'd intended all along for you to stay."

     Tara shook her head.  "I can't speak for Vignette, and I'm not going to 
make that assumption for now.  Until we're told differently, Inagua's to be a 
guest here for the next two weeks.  We'll deal with any change in that status 
if and when it comes up."

     "Still in all," Mc'key said thoughtfully, "that doesn't change her 
problem...or ours.  Even if she were only going to be here a day, the danger 
is still there."

     "The danger seems to mostly manifest itself if she's been drinking," 
Tara mused.  "I'll tell you, between her and Devon..."  She stopped, as an 
idea began to occur to her.

     "You're *not* thinking of putting her and Devon together!"  Ed'wen 
protested.  "That would be a disaster."

     "No, nothing like that," Tara agreed.  "But...Vignette's sending her 
here for her health, right?"

     Both men nodded.

     "Well, it can't be very healthy for her, drinking the way she does," she 
went on.  "Ed'wen, I'd like you to go and see Balagon tomorrow, and find out 
from him if there's some sort of herb, or other remedy that can lessen a 
person's craving for alcohol.  If there is, perhaps we could put Devon on it 
too.  But whether there is or not...Mc'key, you'll be Inagua's 'welcoming 
committee' when she arrives.  And you can inform her that as far as she's 
concerned, Jasra is a 'dry warren' for the duration of her visit.  Make sure 
the cellarkeeper knows not to give her any if she ask...at least, nothing 
stronger than grape juice."

     She turned to Ed'wen.  "And if we find that Devon's emptied that bottle 
you and Shawnee left in cell, the same orders will apply to him as well."

(Peter, Dana, and Bridget - have fun with this one!)

* * * * * * * * 
(Later, the party)

     "Ansel!" the Warrenlady called, seeing her brother talking with Corwin 
and some men she didn't know but assumed to be of Dolfis' crew.  He waved to 
her and hurried over.  

     "Tara!  Isn't it wonderful?" he asked, his face beaming.

    "It is at that!" she said happily, pulling him into her embrace.

    "Tara...I'm a dragonrider now..." he said, suddenly conscious of his 
dignity.

     She laughed, releasing him.  "Yes, you are!" she said.  "How's 
little...Khamorray, is it?  I'm anxious to meet him!"

     "And I know he wants to meet you, too!" he said.  "He's sleeping now, 
but maybe in the morning..."

    "I'll take you up on that!" she told him.  She wished she could say 
something like 'Think how proud our parents would be of you,' but they both 
knew that wasn't true.  Their parents would be as horrified by this as they'd 
been the day Varaenna chose Tara at Ismene...and they'd abandoned her without 
a thought.  And they'd tried to stone Ansel to death for protesting his 
disbelief of the tenets of their their narrow-minded cult.

     Ansel knew what she was thinking.  "Sis, it's okay," he said.  "We've 
got each other.  We don't need them, or anybody back in Karban."

     "You're right, we don't," she agreed.  "Well...let's talk later.  I've 
got a couple of announcements to make."

     Leaving Ansel with Corwin and the others, she hurried back up to her own 
table at the front.  *Not long now,* she signed silently to Kay, who clearly 
wasn't much of a partygoer.  She took her spoon and rapped it loudly against 
her wineglass to get everyone's attention.

     "I'd like to propose a toast!" she called out.  "To the warren's newest 
dragon and rider pair - my brother Ansel, and his dragon Khamorray...long may 
they fly!!"

     "Ansel and Khamorray, long may they fly!" everyone shouted happily, 
looking at Ansel to say a few words.

     "Um...thank you, all of you," Ansel said, his face turning beet-red at 
the unexpected attention.  "On behalf of Khamorray and myself...we're very 
happy to be here and...hope to make ourselves an asset to Jasra!"

     After the clapping had died down, Tara raised a hand to signal that she 
wasn't finished.  "I would also like to welcome some new arrivals to our 
warren," she said.  "We've been lucky enough to receive two new transfers 
from Geode Warren...I guess we all knew we couldn't keep these beaches a 
secret forever, could we?"  Everyone laughed, and she had to wait for it to 
subside before speaking again.  "Please welcome Mc'key, rider of Vasleth, and 
Ghost, rider of Kikeane!"

     There was a loud buzz of conversation as people from around the room 
shouted greetings to the two riders.  "We also have some guests I'd like 
everyone to welcome.  Many of you know Inagua, queenrider of Myacura, 
currently stationed at Ismene Warren.  She'll be staying with us for a couple 
of weeks to soak in some of the sunshine and sea breezes that Jasra is 
becoming famous for.  I know that everyone will do their best to make sure 
she has a fun and relaxing time here with us.

    "Also, I'd like to extend Jasra's welcome to Captain Dolfis, and his crew 
from the Marquesa.  They'll be here with us a few days while their ship is 
under repair, and during that time please extend the full hospitality of the 
warren to all of them.

     She reached into her vest pocket and drew out a slip of paper.  "I'd 
intended to have Wingleader Shawnee read this list...it's the patrol partner 
assignments for our new arrivals and the recently-joined who are just now 
finishing their training.  Unfortunately, Wingleader Shawnee is...ah, 
indisposed right now..."  This generated another round of laughter.  "....and 
so, I'll go ahead and read them myself.  To start with, some of you may not 
know that Wingleader Shawnee has asked Ed'wen, Hesperus' rider, to be our 
Wingsecond.  Congratulations, Ed'wen!"  After more applause, she cleared her 
throat and began going down the list.

     "Gus and Loki with Dalaine and Selene..."

     "Elvynia and Iris with Ghost and Kikeane..."

     "Jerram and Seydor with Silver and Friend..."

     "Mc'key and Vasleth with Kalewyn and Sabbith..."

     "Corwin and Syngnath with Ansel and Khamorray..."

     The list was a fairly long one, what with all the new arrivals and 
trainees to be paired.  When it was finally done, she told everyone to enjoy 
themselves for the rest of the evening  
She sat down wearily and looked at Kay.   "Okay, just a few more minutes for 
appearances sake, and then we can slip out.  By the way, I think you might 
want to find out if Mc'key knows sign language.  If not, it might be useful 
for you to show him...could come in handy."  She tossed down her third glass 
of wine at a gulp.  Well, it'd been a very long day...

/snip from Dana's post/
Gus snorted in disgust.  "You're a fine one to talk about no sense.  But you 
got one thing right.  Us bein' partners - especially them dragons - stinks."  
Frankly, Gus thought bein' partnered with anyone was a lousy idea.  But them 
dragons - that was beyond lousy, it was fuckin' NUTS.  "We gotta talk to 
Tara." 

"I'm one step ahead of you."  Lainie stood up unsteadily, taking a teetering 
pace toward Tara as she prepared to inform the Warrenlady in no uncertain 
terms why she had to reassign them. 

Gus frowned as Lainie wobbled unsteadily.  Dammit, was she drunk?  Watching 
Lainie weave towards Tara, Gus decided that yes, her partner was drunk.  She 
sighed and followed.  As they neared the Warrenlady's table, Gus noticed 
Tara's head bent close to Kay's.  "Uh, Lainie, now is not a good time.  We 
can wait until tomorrow." 

"Nonsense," she insisted.  "Now is the perfect time."  She took a few more 
tottering steps.  "Tara!" she called out too loudly as she approached the 
Warrenlady.  "We have to talk!"

/end snip/

     Tara sighed.  "About what, Dalaine?"

     "About...about these patrol partner assignments!"  Lainie sputtered.  
Tara looked beyond her to see Gus rolling his eyes, clearly embarrassed 
beyond words.  Tara put a stern look on her face for Lainie's benefit, but 
managed a quick wink at Gus.

     "Well, these assignments are not written in stone, of course," she said. 
 "Now, mind you, it was my queen that suggested that you and Gus be 
partnered, and she has quite an impressive track record of making good 
choices along that line.  Still, if you *really* want to make a 
change...perhaps you'd prefer to be paired with Elly?"

     "Elly?" Lainie gasped.  "No...then poor Selene would have to be with 
*Iris* all the time, and Iris would pick on her!"

     "Or perhaps...Jerram!" the warrenlady suggested with a wolfish smile.

     Lainie gulped loudly.  Even in her obvious condition, Tara thought it 
must be registering with her that perhaps being put with Gus and Loki might 
not be such a bad thing after all.

     "Or maybe with Ansel or Corwin," she went on.

     "Selene can't swim," Lainie said morosely.

     "Well, then, see how nicely things work out?" Tara chuckled.

* * * * * * * *
     After Gus and Lainie had left their table, Tara grabbed Kay's arm.  
"Okay, let's get while the getting's good!" she said - pausing only to drain 
her wineglass, which seemed to have somehow gotten itself refilled yet again.

     She found that she was having just a bit of trouble walking a straight 
line as they made their way out across the green.  Kay took her arm, using 
his free hand to sign to her.  *Are you all right?* he asked.

     "Yeah...I think so," she said.  "Just not used to drinking that much 
wine...in fact, I'm not even quite sure just how much I did drink..."

     Kay smiled.  *I think it's time for you to go to bed,* he signed.  *I 
think you've earned the rest, after all that's happened today.*

    Arm in arm, they made their way up the stairs to the Warrenlady's 
apartment.  Kay seemed uncertain as to whether to come in or just leave once 
he'd seen her safely inside...so she helped him make the decision.  She took 
him by the hand and pulled him inside, drawing him over to the couch.

     "Oh, look what's here!" she said, reaching across Kay to grasp the wine 
bottle that was on the table...and promptly lost her balance, falling right 
across his lap.

      *I think you've had enough!* he signed, grinning down at her.

      "Maybe enough wine," she agreed, managing to get herself to her hands 
and knees with a little help from Kay.  She let herself fall backwards, 
pulling the surprised Kay on top of her.  "But maybe we could find something 
we like a little better than wine, eh?"  She reached up and unbuttoned his 
tunic, then ran her hands sensuously across his chest.  He leaned down, his 
lips finding hers as her hands slid around to his back, pulling him more 
tightly against her.

     [Um-hmmmmm,] Varaenna said smugly in her mind.

     *Pay attention to your eggs, dear,* she told the queen, as she pulled 
Kay down for another kiss with one hand while pulling off his tunic with the 
other.

(Tag Kris - well, Tara's usually not this forward outside of mating 
flights...but she did have a fair amount to drink...so have fun! :)

* * * * * * * *
Jerram
(Early morning, day 11 - training field)

     Jerram was at the field early, not expecting to see any of the trainees 
just yet.  So he was surprised to see Loki winging his way in.

     *They're early,* he commented to Seydor.

     [Well, they work hard at this,] Seyd remarked.  

     Jerram sighed.  *Yeah, they do...and I suppose you're going to tell me 
to lighten up on them, right?*

     Seyd shrugged, his wings rustling softly.

     *I don't lighten up, because the kid's got potential,* Jerram said.  
*Hell, you saw the two of them yesterday.  If it hadn't been for them, who 
knows what would have happened?*

     [Two queens trying to kill one another, most likely,] Seyd told him with 
a shudder.

     *That's right,* said Jerram.  *Gus is a pain in the rear, but....there's 
something about him, you know?  Can't quite put my finger on it...darn it, I 
still think he'd swipe the silverware from the dining hall if he could get 
away with it, but then he goes and does something really unselfish, even to 
the point of risking his life.  Like yesterday, with that wilder."

     [Or when he jumped into the sea to help save Selene's rider,] Seyd 
reminded him.

     *That too,* Jerram sighed.  *I don't know...hey, what are they doing 
now?*

     Jerram and Seyd watched as Loki did a rollover in mid air.  He let out a 
breath as the little dragon successfully righted himself, but decided to call 
a halt to things before they went any further.  *Tell Loki to come down, now!*

/snip from Katrina's post/

This time the little dragon touched down perfectly - not a wing rustled, not a
talon out of line.

<Woohoo! Great job, Loki!>

Gus slid down her smug beast as Jerram marched up angrily.

"Just what the hell do you think you are doing?"

"What's it look like? Practicin'." Even as the words were spoken, a horrible
thought occurred to Gus. Oh gods, is there a rule against it? I aint never
gonna last here with all these rules! Swallowing her internal wailing, she
turned a serious face to Jerram. "Aint I supposed to?"

/end snip/

     Jerram sighed.  "No, there's no *rule* against it....except that doing 
those midair rolls can be more difficult than it looks, and I'd rather see 
you live to graduate from training!"

     "Loki's good at flying," Gus said defensively.

     "No doubt he is...but he shouldn't do that with you aboard until he's 
practiced it a lot more by himself.  With a dragon his size, your weight 
could unbalance him when he tries something tricky like that...so that if he 
puts just a *little* too much spin into that maneuver, and can't stop himself 
from flipping back over, he could go into a flat spin that he isn't 
experienced enough to recover from.  Is that a good enough reason?"

     Gus looked thoughtful, but said nothing.

     "Anyway," said Jerram, "The warrenlady had her queen leave a message 
with Seydor last night.  You and Loki are excused from training 
today...something about a trip to Cabral?  Anyway, you're supposed to take 
Ojean with you."

(Okay, Katrina, the road's clear for Gus' and Ojean's trip!)

(NRPG: Thanks to Kris for playing both Kay and Darlea in this post. :)

Submitted by:

John

Tara & Varaenna
Jerram & Seydor
Ansel & Khamorray

Jasra Warren