Chapter 6
Marilka expressed a wistful desire to be able to knit, but having o wool and having had to sell her needles to by food she had no means.
Petrilla sent Esmelda to ask the Weavercraft marksman at the Port Hold about needles; and suggested asking him how many skeins of wool would be needed for a sweater for a big man – 'like Hallon' said Petrilla.
While Esmelda, unable to knit, was doing her careful best to explain what her auntie wanted it was sheer child's play for Petrilla to steal a whole sackful of different wools. With what Esmelda carefully paid for, Marilka would have enough to occupy her all winter; and Petrilla urged the old woman to make things for others who needed clothing.
The leggings, sweater and cap for the expected child of the heavily pregnant loving wench must needs wait for another baby.
The child came shortly after the dawn and was dead before the sun set on that brief winter's day.
Petrilla probably mourned the child more than his mother; who declared philosophically that it was one less mouth to feed and bad for business anyway having a brat underfoot and as a boy couldn't even be trained up into the business.
The little suit was laid away; and Marilka turned her attention to much needed blankets, a square at a time to be sewn up as needed.
Blankets or no, the cold took its toll on the older population as on the youngest. The seamen of the Port Hold did at least take the bodies out to sea for the fishermen's farewell ceremony; and after one cold night they had four elderlies and the sickly child of another group of itinerant workers.
It was another reason Petrilla feared elderly aunties and uncles; you could smell death on some of them. And it was the main reason she hated winter.
The chances were that the blankets Marilka knitted saved some lives; another sickly child turned the corner after being warmly wrapped, and provided with stew from Petrilla's own pot as she continued to improve. It did not make the ones who died easier to think on however.
Once a sevenday, Petrilla paid Zila Petlengro to come and do her laundry and take advantage of the fire to do her own in hot water too. She was usually wont to pick a sturdy looking trader's wife or itinerant worker who looked trustworthy enough; but it seemed sensible to continue the alliance between herself and Poley's family. Their little girl, Feeni, was too young to be any real help but did her solemn best, with great aplomb and self importance. The boys Garriden and Leusar, ten and eight turns old, felt that woman's work was beneath them; but they made themselves useful in other ways being good at gathering driftwood for the fire to supplement the logs.
Poley's cousin Chola arrived, having cadged a lift on a sled, moaning about how his oldest daughter Meeri had been dragged off on search.
"Just as she's old enough to earn a mark or two in holdefolk's furs too" he grumbled "I could have made a good thing out of her virginity at the Spring Gather, now she's being wasted being had for free by dragonmen and having that harper rubbish taught her too!"
"Well I'm glad" said Poley, sharply "she'd be wasted as a loving wench, bright and musical girl like that, like granddad Bavol. You're a grasping fool, Chola and he'd be ashamed of you!"
"They ain't got no right!" whined Chola "Depriving a man of his livelihood!"
Zila was a quiet, inoffensive woman; but she had her limits.
She had finished with the washing water; and poured it, still hot, right over Chola's head.
He shrieked as though it was still only just off boiling.
"You great lump!" said Zila, her arms akimbo, her eyes flashing "YOUR livelihood? You think a girl is for nothing but selling her body to make marks for you?"
"Well what else use are they?" whined Chola "And bad enough Tassarla threatened me with a knife and run off to the weyr, now my Meeri's gone too!"
"T'arla" said Poley "She's T'arla now. Give the weyrwoman her due honorific, porcine face; she's more important now than you can ever imagine! No, don't bother to call her anything; you sully her and your daughter both by even mentioning them. Just get out; and stop whining!"
"Huh, you can't boast, they took Chavul, I suppose he's being buggered by every Blue Rider going, pretty boy like him, even with a claw hand!"
"Chola" said Petrilla deciding to take a hand "I advise you to shut your mouth concerning Bronze Rider Ch'vul; or I can find enough contacts to whistle up a brace of older Bronze Riders ready to shut it for you. And if your wife ever has the sense to leave you to seek refuge in the weyr, as kin of those of their own they'd take her and the kids right willingly" she raised her voice to carry to the cowering woman and her assorted children "And I'd not blame her in the least. In fact I'd think better of her for leaving a bullying hog like you; and I'd even escort her!"
Chola bared his teeth at her; but he knew who she was and was wary of her. He still had a fine white scar down his manhood from a time he had decided to just get his tackle out and take what he took for a loving wench – not intending to pay – and had learned his mistake at the end of her skinning knife.
"So much for brotherly support!" he sneered at Poley "Come on woman, we need a place to stay!"
"My charming kinsman" sighed Poley.
"Get his wife and kids up here and we'll send for some dragonmen to take them" shrugged Petrilla.
"Not a chance" shrugged Zila "Mimi's a silly bovine; I can hear her now without asking, for I've tried to get her to leave him before and come along with us. She'll say 'but he's my maaaan…I loooove him….he don't meeean nuthin' by it'" she assumes a whiney, bleating voice to imitate her sister in law.
Petrilla shuddered.
"Not even for the sake of the children?"
"Huh, he come before them by a long chalk" snorted Zila "Poor little sprouts. And she say he don't hit them about much and only for their own good. Her, she's as much use as a cheese cook-pot!"
Petrilla shrugged.
"Well, you can only help those as will accept it" she said "With luck the ones next to this Meeri will wise up and leave."
"The two boys? Forget it. Chips of the old block are Pov and Dannor" grunted Poley "And skilful thieves already too I shouldn't wonder! Next girl down? Turn or two maybe. Maybe. She's the same age as our Feeni, is Truffi; at least she's not old enough to worry about having to earn as a loving wench yet."
"Well, we can hope Meeri may take her sister with her one day – for the child's sake" said Petrilla.
Having once mentioned contacts with dragonfolk to scare Chola, Petrilla decided to sit Marilka and Esmelda down and explain the whole to them.
"You must keep it secret" she said "There are those who would at best shun us; or at worst seek to kill us because they would mistrust what I do – for such would undoubtedly misconstrue the weyr's motives and mine; we should be seen as spies. I don't like to put you at risk by knowing but it's going to be increasingly hard to conceal and your help would be valuabel in helping people out."
"Like you helped me" said Esmelda.
"No, you helped yourself. You saw an opportunity of escape and took it" said Petrilla.
"Like you helped ME" said Marilka
Petrilla shrugged
"It has become mutually beneficial however" she said.
Marilka smiled quietly
"My dear, you don't have to pretend to be all hardboiled and businesslike with us. We know the real and generous Petrilla."
"No I'm not" said Petrilla seriously "Oh I've always helped out a little – nobody is an island and all that sort of thing – but I couldn't afford to get as involved, I couldn't do as much without knowing that I have weyr backing and their financing. I wouldn't dare; being a fence is good business but it's still as precarious as any Holdless occupation."
"Can the weyr help oldsters by providing wool and paying aunties to knit for them?" asked Marilka "They must need plenty of winter woollies to go off to fight Thread on days that are not cold enough to freeze it to crackdust but are cold enough to notice."
"I'll certainly ask" said Petrilla "And those that can't see so good any more or who've not got enough memory left to knit garments might make squares for blankets for the children they're taking in, the orphans."
Marilka nodded.
"You find out from that handsome big Rider of yours – he is a Rider, isn't he? – and I'll organise the aunties and those uncles as can knit."
Petrilla flushed ruefully.
"He's not my Bronze Rider" she said regretfully. "If he was….well, anyway, he has a weyrmate, one of their newest Queenriders."
"Don't worry my dear, I'm sure the right man will come along for you" said Marilka, patting the younger woman's cheek. "Aye, and for Esmelda too. I had to wait til I was nearly thirty afore my Joop came along; and not so long that I had him by some counts" she sighed "But they're sweet memories."
"What happened? If you don't mind me asking" said Petrilla.
"Oh the silly idealistic fool must only defy Fax and tell him that the Lady Gemma should not be dragged to Ruatha so late in her pregnancy and her ill" said Marilka "And of course she shouldn't; but telling him never was going to do anything but cause trouble. And he got lucky at that; Fax only ran him through. If the beast hadn't been in a hurry he'd have had Joop whipped to death. I suppose he had to do it" she added "Joop I mean. Lady Gemma was a good mistress."
Petrilla's eyes widened.
"You know Lady Elexa as was then?" she said.
"Aye, poor child" nodded Marilka "So beautiful, so scared to be wed to that old….." she finished with a rude noise "That was right before Joop spoke out; things add up that make you snap I suppose."
"Then you belong in the weyr of right if you wanted to serve L'exa and her daughter" said Petrilla. Marilka stared.
"I doubt she'd remember me anyway."
"If she didn't she's still unyielding about duty towards dependants" said Petrilla "I've seen her arrange positions for nubile daughters of drudges to get them away from her brother; and she's Impressed a Queen too, you know; it's not just anyone who does that!"
Marilka looked wistful.
"Well….perhaps you would remember me to her; but I'd be a fine one doing my duty to her if I don't do what the weyr asked and organise these aunties, if they approve the scheme."
oOoOo
L'exa herself flew in with J'red as her lift, Elith being just a baby still and not big enough even to take a passenger let alone go Between! The Riders came ostensibly distributing medicines and advice to the Holdless, and Calla along too and healer apprentice Green Rider S'ealle too. Arth was a strong Brown for an Oldtimer; indeed by anyone's standards; and made light of carrying three passengers and a chest of medicines.
L'exa was not the most effusive of people; but even so Marilka found herself embraced.
"I recall you of course" said L'exa "You cleaned the girls' room and found time to play and tell stories. I'm sorry – so much has happened! Your husband was a good man – he was assistant to the steward was he not?"
Marilka nodded, tears in her eyes.
"J'red and I are going to try for a baby" said L'exa "Would you foster my child?"
"Oh my lovely lady, I'd love to; but I'm not so spry as I was, I don't know if I could manage!"
"Pick a good strong girl here or at the weyr to do the physical stuff; that's the least important. I want my baby loved when I'm too busy; a second mother" said L'exa.
"Then I'll do that gladly!" said Marilka.
"Weyr medicine will also help you get spryer" said L'exa.
"Good food has already made a difference Lady L'exa" said Petrilla.
"I'm sure it has" said L'exa "She's certainly a different woman to those poor aunties in the main cavern. And there's no 'Lady' any more Lady Petrilla."
"Surely it's an honorific to a Queenrider?" said Petrilla "And if you're wishful to cast it off to someone vaguely associated with the weyr I should think that a 'lady' to my name is quite unnecessary."
L'exa grinned.
"Shall we stop stalking around each other with hackles raised and be friends then?" she said "I've found that making friends is a very pleasant experience; and you know enough about me after all!"
It had been Petrilla who had provided the lurweed Lady Elexa – as she had been – had used to poison her brother to stop him raping her daughter.
Petrilla grasped the hand she held out.
"We've had rather wary upbringings you and I" she said "I guess we can unbend enough to understand each other!"
It was put about that the weyr needed warm clothes, especially children's clothes and blankets in preparation for their orphans; and Marilka was picked as a suitable person to be paid to supervise the efforts of others.
J'red and L'exa kicked out – quite literally – a group of Bitran card sharpers who had taken over a comfortable cavern with a chimney hole; and established the knitting aunties in there.
"And our weyrwoodcrafter is bigger than me" said J'red to the evictees "And less even tempered. And he'll be dellivering fuel so they can knit properly with warm fingers so if you come back, so help you he'll snap you in two like this" and he proceeded to break several of their dragonpoker face cards.
The Bitrans fled, muttering.
"How nice to just be able to bully people like that" said Petrilla.
L'exa gave a grin of sheer impish enjoyment.
"It's a wonderful feeling!" she said.
"Of course one should not abuse it" said J'red "Me, I'm an Oldtimer; I know too well that things can get out of hand."
L'exa laid a hand on his arm.
"I can't see you ever abusing your position, dear J'red" she said softly.
He smiled down at her; and Petrilla felt an intruder with the love that shone from his eyes when he looked at the Queenrider!
Wool arrived; and needles; and an instruction that Marilka should oversee the feeding of the aunties from the monies provided to make sure they all ate properly. They might knit what they choose; for there would always be children of all sizes to cater for. And adult riders too!
"And a child particularly in need is a lad with a damaged spine" said L'exa "Who was born with the bone and spine cord exposed. He's a turn and a half now, but small for his age; he'll want long tops over woollen trousers to double the layers."
"I'll do them myself, my dear, My Lady" said Marilka firmly.
"Thank you" said L'exa. "He's kind of fostered by the woodcrafters at the moment, so if you're able to put a tree pattern across they'd be very pleased."
"Not a problem" said Marilka "Aye, we won't just knit warm things, we'll see these unloved babes have pretty things too. And you'll maybe be wanting me to sort out which of these aunties might be spry enough to help out in playrooms?"
"Excellent" said L'exa "We can't take them all; but even those who aren't spry who have the patience to teach knitting and such would help. We want out orphans to grow up with good skills."
"Leave it to me" said Marilka "With Lady Petrilla to help you'll have all you need."
Petrilla was glad that Marilka was prepared to deal with the aunties! And also pleased and amazed at how much the old woman had blossomed under responsibility – and the chance to help L'exa!
It sometimes seemed that she, L'exa and Esmelda might just as well have been Marilka's fosterlings!
And that was not an unpleasant feeling.
The old woman reminded her of her own grandmother.
A/N No I'm not exaggerating Mimi's foolishness over her abusive husband; I have had experience with battered women[long story] and all too many of them really are that hopeless. It kinda makes anyone trying to give them a backbone want to take over the battering at times by shaking some sense and courage into them. Dear me, with Mimi and the wet Dionne poor Petrilla has her share of abused women around her...