Chapter 7
Jessenia had been glad of the flying jacket while between, and would be equally glad to shed it when they landed!
Kunder's Gorge Hold lay in, as the name suggested, a gorge, where the air lay, even late in the turn, hot and oppressive. The plains above the gorge provided grazing for cattle, the Hold's main source of income; the valley floor provided room for some farming and fruit trees, stunted and twisted, clung to a precarious existence on the screes at the base of the gorge, their roots often exposed when the spring melt water and spring rains brought it into spate. The tributary came from further north than the Weyr, which rarely received more than a sifting of snow, like sugar on bubbly pie. The last of the apples and pears were being gathered in, the late maturing varieties, and workers bolted nervously out of the immediate vicinity of a large Bronze Dragon. One had the presence of mind to run to the well-dressed man supervising.
The man turned and headed towards the visitors.
"Bronze Rider?" – Fordel?" he added in shock, seeing one of the passengers.
"Oh, I'm just the delivery boy" grinned V'sheren. "Your good lady's father and niece wanted to visit to discuss family matters. Any chance of begging a glass of rough cider? I see you've a press up."
"Please, Bronze Rider, help yourself – I'd relish an opinion" said Ranyer. "I think it's been a superior turn myself, though I am biased."
A labourer was quickly at their side with mugs.
"Not for the girl" said Fordel firmly. "Let her have apple juice, she's not ready for YOUR scrumpy, Ranyer."
Apple juice was brought for Jessenia, who preferred it to cider in any case.
Ranyer watched Fordel and V'sheren. The old man nodded, and so did the Bronze Rider.
"How many barrels can you sell to Igen Weyr if I put in an order?" asked V'sheren. "This is excellent – a fortuitous combination of weather as well as the soil and varieties I presume?"
Ranyer nodded. "A fine spring, ending with enough rain to swell the fruit, and a good hot end to the summer. Our late fruit will do well too. I've perry as well. I can do you 50 barrels without shorting our usual orders, maybe 60."
"I'll buy all you can spare" said V'sheren "and perry too. It's more refreshing than wine, whatever the Harpers might say."
Ranyer laughed. "That's Faranth's Truth! Though we make apple wine for home consumption that some compare favourably to Benden wines for all that it's cloudy!"
"I look forward to trying it sometime – but I interrupt family business! Mind if I get nosy and look around?"
"Please, Bronze Rider – make yourself at home! Honoured to have you!" said Ranyer.
V'sheren wondered why it was that the stock phrase was believable on this Holder's lips where so often it was just an empty phrase in the mouths of others!
"Come to poach daughters off you" Fordel got to the point. "Jess is for the Weyr; wondered if Ranee or Rudee wanted to tumble for me."
Ranyer raised an eyebrow. "They've a Queen egg? I hadn't heard."
"She's standing for a Green next clutch. They're copying High Reaches" said Fordel. "Wants to talk Carya into standing with her, too."
"I heard High Reaches has female Green Riders – thought it was all gas and ash" admitted Ranyer. "But if you're with a Bronze Rider – WELL! I can't deny I'd be honoured if any of the girls wants to go; but they can't have Ranis. I need him."
"Ranis wouldn't go; he'd have to get dirty bagging firestone" said Jessenia, earning her a tweaked ear from her grandfather.
"Oh he's grown out of being such a pompous little ass as he was last time you were here" said Ranyer, not in the least put out. "Actually stripped his shirt to give a lesson in tumbling to a visiting, and rather limited, acrobat. Poor fellow, when half the girls could perform better than him, he got in a huff and went on to pasteurs new."
Fordel laughed. "Idiot. Should have stayed to learn: might even have taken one of your girls off your hands as a partner! Proves he wasn't worthy of them."
"Quite" said Ranyer dryly. "To your first question, if Relda is agreeable, Ranee has been asking about joining your troupe, and no question but she can come back any time she wants as my daughter, no loss of status. Rubee's not in the same class, and she DOES like her home comforts; and the rest are too young. The only one of the older ones who might measure up is Ranis; and you can't have him any more than the Weyr can. Carya's passable, and I might have let her foster a turn with Jess on the road, but frankly I'd rather have a nubile daughter settled somewhere like the Weyr where she won't be offered insult."
Fordel grunted assent. "One reason I'm happy to leave our Jessenia. We had one incident, and barely avoided others."
"Ought to be an accredited Crafthall for entertainers, really" said Ranyer. "As protection. If you've powerful Weyr contacts it's worth asking to have the idea mentioned to the Crafters."
Fordel nodded. "They call me 'Master' at the Weyr of courtesy. It WOULD be protection for genuine entertainers; I might do that if Jessenia Impresses. Wouldn't like to otherwise; seems a little forward."
Ranyer agreed. "I take your point. Well, let us send her to find Carya before the child explodes with impatience. You may tell the Hold Harper that I excuse Carya from lessons for the duration of your visit – run along!"
Jessenia ran!
oOoOo
Carya walked in the apple groves with her arm linked in Jessenia's, listening to all her news.
"You HAVE been busy!" she said ruefully. "I wish I'd been there! I've been practicing tumbling with Mother Relda in hopes of being let to go with you!"
Jessenia laughed. "You'd miss your soft bed and gentle living."
"I'd get used to it" said Carya. "At least I'd feel I'd got out and done something with my life, not been a useless ornament."
"Well, if you came to the Weyr with me to stand for a Green Dragon, that's doing something, isn't it?" said Jessenia.
Carya gave a delighted squeal loud enough to startle the apple pickers.
"Really? Oh my! A Dragonrider? A REAL Dragonrider not having to do pretty manners like a Queen Rider to the sort of idiots Father despises?"
Jessenia laughed. "Queenriders work jolly hard too you know" she said. "Though I think they work them harder at High Reaches than at Igen . . . Lady Nadira is a wonderful woman, full of compassion." Quickly she told Carya about the Childhold idea and Nadira's obvious concern for orphans.
"She sounds lovely" said Carya "And I guess it's Queenrider and Weyrleader who set the tone: I should thinking being a Rider in Benden might be a bit nervous at times 'cos the Weyrwoman has a temper on her!"
"Lady Nadira is the sweetest-tempered lady you could ever meet" said Jessenia, who already admired her. "I've never heard her raise her voice or get cross, though she DOES sigh at Weyrlings being daft sometimes. But her telling them gently that she's disappointed in them goes further than Weyrlingmaster V'sheren shouting at them you know."
"Well, anyway, I think I'd rather be a Green Rider than a Queenrider" said Carya. "And, when I get as far as wanting one, a wider pick of lovers than just Bronze Riders, 'cos a Bronze could fly a Green if he wanted to."
Jessenia blinked. "I suppose so" she said. "I'd not thought of it. We can sequester if we want, if we're not ready."
"Well, I'm not quite, but I have started noticing boys" said Carya, candidly. "I guess if I Impressed I'd have time before my dragon grew up to pick and choose without having to sleep with anyone if I didn't want to."
"I'm glad you're not a flirt like cousin Caytreen" said Jessenia in heartfelt tones. "I had a nasty revelation or two last time I saw her."
Carya sniffed. "They came through – oh, five, six months ago, presuming something rotten on the relationship with Mother Relda, all impudent eyes and adding up what everything must cost. They knew the value of everything and the true worth of nothing, Father says."
"I think he's right" said Jessenia, seriously. "I never realized until recently. Ma said, Caytreen's the sort to squeal at a dragon in hopes of being comforted by his Rider."
"I slapped her for making eyes at Ranis" said Carya, with satisfaction. "And when she wouldn't let him alone I put early onion juice in her underwear so she squirmed so much at supper even Aunt Rupa noticed and sent her out."
"That must have smarted."
"Not so much as later onions," said Carya viciously, "but I had to work with what I had to hand. And the stored ones were all used."
"You're a bad girl and my best friend" said Jessenia warmly. "Reckon from what I've heard, if there's a Queen egg there'll be some stuck up candidates to play with."
Carya grinned mischievously. "Oh good!" she said. "AND as daughter – albeit of Minor – I can pull Rank on some of them too just for fun!"
The girls giggled happily together!
oOoOo
The family meal was joyous, V'sheren drawn cheerfully into conversation. Ranyer and his children gave him deference without undue flattery or grovelling, nor any veiled insults, and V'sheren liked them the more for their cheerful frankness. No wonder Fordel found a welcome here when he visited! Doubtless Ranyer was ready to offer his mistress' father a home too when he was too old to travel. The Bronze Rider had wondered why the Holder had not married Relda as his second wife; and was rapidly coming to the conclusion that it was more a case of indolence – or rather, not getting around to it – than any desire to keep a once Holdless lover at a distance. His older children treated Relda with the pretty deference of children to a mother, and if there was any undercurrent of snobbishness, children would pick up on that first! The Holder showed no difference between his first family and his second either; even the twins said to have been sired on his late wife by the Hold Harper.
Jessenia was quite right: the girls DID look like the Hold Harper, and willingly entertained by singing and playing.
"They're taking girls now at the Harper Hall" said Ranyer, interpreting his glance. "They're keen to apprentice, so I'll give them the chance. Why not? They seem to have inborn talent. It seems a shame to stifle it, any more than I'd want to stifle Ranee's talent as an acrobat."
V'sheren nodded.
"You, Holder Ranyer, are a quite remarkable man I think" he said.
Ranyer laughed.
"Oh, you have to be to survive ten daughters" he said cheerfully.
oOoOo
Ranis had improved, Jessenia found; he grinned at her with genuine pleasure to see her, rather than looking down his nose at "such as her." His teeth were nice and white and even against his dark complexion.
"Hey, cousin Jess! You HAVE turned into a looker!" he greeted her. "Feel like wedding me to keep the predatory wherries at bay?"
"Whatever sort of chat-up line is that?" scolded Jessenia. "I'm glad to see you, Ranis, but I don't want to marry you, I want to ride a dragon!"
He shrugged, laughing. "Worth asking, though – I like you and you're fun, which is more than you can say for a lot of girls I know. And if I had you on my arm they'd all drop dead with envy" he added.
"Now THAT" approved Jessenia "is a line with more style to it! Practice a bit more and you might actually impress the girl of your dreams when you meet her!"
Ranis laughed and gave her a rough hug. "You take care of yourself at the Weyr – and my sister too!" he said sternly. "And if you don't Impress, you could marry worse than me, you know!"
"If I don't, I'll consider your offer, but reckon I'll still say no" said Jessenia. "You're too much family – it'd be like marrying my brother!"
Ranis considered. "I suppose so" he said. "I want someone to be friends with like Father is with Relda."
"Well you've heaps of time yet" said Jessenia with sympathy. "Your good friend and bride probably hasn't got loose from the Harpers yet and wears her hair in long plaits."
He laughed.
"Maybe!" he agreed equably.
Ranyer was right about him improving, though Jessenia, if only he found a good wife he'd remain half decent too! Aunt Relda would not let anyone she did not approve of marry him; and Aunt Relda had more moral fibre than Aunt Rupa.
oOoOo
Asreth had two extra passengers in the persons of Carya and Ranee. Carya firmly bit back the gulp on going into between, and Ranee's cry of shocked surprise was bitten off too. Fordel took his second trip between with utter equanimity, gazing down with interest at the changed scenery, and the busy Weyr.
"Exhilarating business, flying." He remarked "though tumbling can come close to feeling that the human body itself can fly."
"Pity you weren't Searched yourself, Master Fordel" ventured V'sheren.
"Well, what is, is" said Fordel. "The young ones got the chance, and I'll be glad for them if they Impress. Don't cry, Ranee, child. Your sister is with you, and you have Aunt Tanni. You'll be too busy to be homesick."
"I'm not crying" said Ranee firmly. "It's wind in my eyes."
"Good girl" said Fordel, approvingly.
