17. Twenty-Eight Days Later
my apologies for the mix-up in Norabeth's name. She is Norabeth. Not Norabelle.
Torene awoke with a start. She cast around in her mind on what may have awakened her. Then she got out of bed, passed water in the night basket and began to be aware of what was missing. Cramps. She was missing cramps.
Torene was as regular as the sun rising and setting. As regular as moon cycles. She was late.
"Now, Torene," she told herself in a whisper, don't get too excited. It may come later in the day." She turned around and there sat M'hall, tousled from sleep, gazing at here through bleary, but alert eyes.
"Did I just hear you say you aren't to get excited? What about, beloved wife of mine? M'hall asked lazily.
"Um, it is the 28th day of my cycle. I should be having cramps, but I actually feel great!" Torene told her husband, grinning. She let that grin fade as her eyes filled with loving for this gorgeous hunk of hers.
She climbed into bed next to him and slid her arms up his bare chest and laid him back against his pillows. she kissed his neck and nibbled his ear and felt a shiver go through him. She moved down to his chest, and kissing each nipple, watched as the brown aureole popped up and tautened. He moaned a little and putting his hands under her arms, lifted her up to his chest. Their lips met in a slow, languorous kiss as his left hand went to her head and his right hand to her hip where he settled her onto him and moaned again.
"Torene," he whispered, "I love you so much."
"I love you, too, Michael," Torene whispered against his ear. The red head and the golden head separated as Torene raised up on her hands. The rhythm that she found was perfect.
As they stepped out of the bathing room all set and dressed for the day, M'hall stopped Torene and kissed her deeply. Torene's knees melted and it took everything she had to remain on her feet. She looked up at M'hall, who just shook his head, picked her up and carried her back to bed.
As they hurriedly got dressed a second time, Torene asked M'hall "You want me to ask your folks to come to the meeting, too, don't you?" He nodded as he pulled on his boots with a grunt. "Yeah, that would be good."
Torene picked up a barely awake Toreal from his crib and set about changing him out of his jammies. He was such a good boy. Headed onto eight months now, he slept like a log and went through his day a jolly soul. His parents, his grandparents, the whole weyr doted on him. He was getting ready to walk and had already kissed his mother's milk good bye, relying instead on cut up meat and tubers from Deboreen and Tarrie.
When the Weyrleaders made it down the stone steps, it was full on breakfast time. Late for them, as they usually ate breakfast at dawn to get a start on their day.
Only two heads turned their way as they entered. Jess looked at them, smiled mischievously and nodded, then went back to eating his melon. Tarrie also noticed the three coming in, late for them. She gave them a welcoming smile and said, "We've got something special for breakfast if you'd like to try it. I found a bunch of laminated sheets that AIVAS must have printed before we left Landing. They are recipes with wonderful names like 'Biscuits and Gravy,' which is said to be a Southern specialty."
"Let me drop Toreal off with Verona," Torene said, "I would like to try those biscuits and gravy. And do we still have some fresh fruit?
"Yes" Tarrie said, "Melon and pineapple."
"I'll take pineapple," Torene said, "Oh, wait! Let me have a little of both," then she laughed, "and no klah for me today."
Tarrie's eyebrows went up. Klah was to Torene what nectar was to bees. She couldn't live without it. Tarrie die some quick arithmetic in her head and came to her own conclusions.
Torene came back and slid gracefully onto her bench next to M'hall.
Kristo and Norabeth sat opposite them. They were making plans for the wedding although Kristo was doing the bulk of the planning and Nora was agreeing, or failing to disagree. She missed her queen dragon like half of her soul had gotten ripped out. But Kristo seemed to understand and worked with her to help her get a little more excited about the proceedings.
Her father had been by earlier in the week with her younger brother and sister. Their routine weekly visits always left her exhausted as she tried to put on a brave, healthy look on her face for her young siblings. She didn't want them, or her father, to worry about her. She was animated and engaged when they were here at the Weyr. Even her father didn't have any idea how half-dead his eldest daughter really was.
If not for Kristo, she would have tried to end her life a whole lot sooner. But now that he was here, it almost seemed like a betrayal of his love. It frightened her that she could be so depressed and guilt-ridden that she hadn't been strong like L'ren and B'ref. She hadn't told anyone about her feelings.
She looked across at Torene, all glowing and vibrantly healthy, and suddenly she was afraid.
"I'm so sorry I didn't suicide," Nora cried out, dropping her head into her hands. Her shoulders began to shake with the force of her sobs.
"What?" Torene asked, incredulous.
"Suicide!?" Kristo and M'hall queried at the same time. The other occupants at the table all chimed in with their concerns and remarks.
All the speakers paused as Torene got up and went around the end of the table to where Nora sat.
"Nora," Torene said, "we need you here, with us, if you can bear to be here. Without Tenneth."
Torene knelt down beside the older woman. "There is so much I need your help with. There are so many projects with 'Nora's' name on them," here Torene paused, then said, "And above all else, Kristo here, would be heartbroken and desolate if you decide to end the pain."
Nora was not looking at Torene, but she did appear to be listening. Her hands were quiet in her lap, but her fingers were moving sporadically.
"But try to remember, you are richly loved by several people, some right here in this Weyr, some not. Kristo loves you deeply. Your father, your brother and your sister all love you." Torene reached out her hand and gently brushed the tears from Nora's face. Nora looked up.
The entire table, including Nora was spellbound by this beautiful green-eyed young woman who sat on her haunches like it was a natural thing to do, listening with rapt attention to the healing balm her words seemed to be having on Nora.
"Kristo would become a hermit, I'd bet" Torene went on, "M'hall and I would be saddened with every thought of you, gone forever."
Torene brushed Nora's damp hair back from her face and settled the strands behind Nora's ear. Then she took both of Nora's hands into hers, and with Nora staring at Torene like she was a lifeline, Torene pronounced, "Every person in this Weyr would suffer in some way if you died, Norabeth Bergonin."
"Every weyrling would miss your gentle ministrations. Every person helping on Thread Fall days would miss your gentle, compassionate ministrations on the injured, either two legged or four legged!" Torene paused to let that message sink in.
"Tarrie and Deboreen would miss your assistance on heavy days here in the kitchen—how you just pitch in, intuitively knowing what needs to be done." Here Torene paused again. She leaned in to brush her cheek against Nora's. In that moment, she whispered, "Don't go, dear heart, please don't go." She waited a moment more, then withdrew, laid Nora's hands into her lap, leaned back slightly and got gracefully to her feet.
Everyone at the table, and even the nearly tables sighed with such a release of breath they hadn't known they were holding.
Nora looked up at Torene and gave her a watery smile and a small shake of her head. Torene smiled gently and blinked her eyes slowly to let Nora know she understood.
Torene sighed herself, and returned to her side of the table. She glanced at M'hall, who was gazing at her, speechless and mesmerized. Looking at her like she had healed someone. He was awed and a little afraid of his wife at that moment.
She leaned down and kissed him on the cheek, sat down and cleared her throat.
"Before we go on, could I just ask Nora if she thinks she will be needing help with her wedding planning?" Torene asked, settling a loving look at her friend across from her.
Nora nodded eagerly, "Yes! Poor Kristo is trying so hard, but we do need some help, since we really don't want to put off the wedding," Nora said shakily, still trying to absorb the words Torene had said and keep the darkness inside at bay.
That phrase seemed to galvanize the queenriders. Uloa, Tarrie, Jean, and the new queenrider, Annalisa all got up and went to Nora's side of the table to converse with her and Kristo about where they were at in the planning.
"Okay," M'hall said, "we have Threadfall day after tomorrow. You are all big boys and big girls, so I won't tell you what needs to be done, but I'll be around for a safety check after lunch today."
"Wingleaders, we also have one more thing to discuss," M'hall said with a very serious note in his voice. "We have two queen dragons recovering from the fight. They have been cleared by the veterinary staff and have been carefully exercising their wings and taking short flights to strengthen their lungs and wings."
"There is a lot of hope that the two dragons will be wanting to mate soon," and here M'hall paused. What he was about to say next was sure to irritate and frustrate some of the bronze riders, but it couldn't be helped.
"One of the queenriders is in a stable relationship with a bronzerider and there has been a request to close the flight to only three bronzes. Gesilith, Hallath and Brianth."
"What?" Brian yelled, "Why do you get to choose who rises with what queen?"
"Oh, and you think these three are the only three dragons who will listen to their riders when in mating lust?" D'van sneered.
"Take care how you speak to your Weyrleader, D'van," N'klas said with a hard edge on his voice.
"Why is it just these three?" someone else asked.
"Because if we can accommodate a request from a dragonrider for his or her dragon, we should, because we can," M'hall stated firmly, "The request has been made to limit the bronzes to those that can be requested to fall off the flight."
"No, no, no!" Tarrie had leaped up off her bench and went running to Boris, crying, "No! No! NO! I thought you loved me! You said you loved me, Boris!"
Boris, totally non-plussed, stood up to catch Tarrie before she slammed into him.
"I DO love you!" Boris declared, "That's why I asked for a closed flight!"
"I don't want ANY OTHER DRAGON flying my Porth!" Tarrie cried, "Why would you ask them to fly Porth?"
"I don't want any other dragon to fly Porth, but what can I do? She will want bronzes to chose from, won't she?" the man asked, perplexed. He thought he'd been helping, but it felt like he'd put his foot in it!
M'hall intervened, "Tarrie." He waited.
"Tarrie," M'hall said a little louder. The woman finally broke off eye contact with Boris and looked at her Weyrleader.
"Any rider may request accommodations for their dragon. Any rider. Any accommodation, and if it is within my power to grant it, I will," M'hall said. He waited a beat.
"I declare the mating flight of Porth to be closed to all but one dragon. Gesilith. This and all future flights, as long as the pair are together and wish the flights closed." M'hall declared loudly so all dragonriders could hear.
Tarrie collapsed into Boris' arms, her eyes on her Weyrleader with gratitude uppermost in her eyes.
"Now," M'hall said quietly so that the dragonriders had to quiet down to hear him, "we also have Catherine's Singlath who has been cleared. She asks only to be given more time. Which has been granted."
"Jean and her queen Greteth; Seyva and Butoth; Jen and Chamuth are all on schedule to be rising," M'hall continued, "Greteth should be first, Chamuth second and Butoth later this summer. So, keep watch over your dragons, girls, and you bronze riders, stay sharp for their lusting call." M'hall stood up. The bronze riders stood up, too.
"Let's leave the ladies to their planning and get our gear in order, shall we?" M'hall said, and quit the room.
