Disclaimer: I don't own Pern. I do, however own most of the characters in this story.

Chapter Nine: New York City

Nairyry walked with Jess, who was silent as she picked out a path no one would be following that late at night. The younger woman saw no real reason to keep people from seeing the dragonrider except for her garments. They were odd enough to attract unwanted attention, especially as they left a good portion of her showing. The pants were fine, but her shirt would not have been far out of place in a Luau on the Hawaiian Islands.

She seemed dressed for the Islands too, not for a climate like New York's night, even this early in Autumn. Jess picked out the most concealed route she could find to her house. Well did she know there were people out here whose business might not be so honest as hers. Finally they came out of Central Park. Across the street was the condominium where she lived with her father and an assorted half-tame flock of pigeons she fed out of her window.

Nairyry was hiding a fear of the street and the noisy creatures or machines that ran past on it. Jess took her had, making it look to passers by that she was taking the hand of an older relative, and waited until the signal to walk came on. Only the too-tight grip on her fingers betrayed the dragonrider's fear as they crossed the street. Jess flexed her hand and Nairyry let go. With a sympathetic smile Jess led her to the door and pulled it open, gesturing for her friend to proceed her.

The green carpet with blue and red flowers was familiar to her, at least, if not Nairyry, as was the cream paint of the walls and ceiling, the brass doors of the elevator and the door to the stairs. She led the way to the elevator and pressed the button. Familiar, faintly heard whirrings met her ears but she heard them anew as Nairyry must, frightening noises doing who knew what. Jess felt another jolt of respect at the calm and unafraid air that the dragonrider was showing, though her hands were clasping her pant legs tightly and her jaw was tight.

Finally the lift arrived and she stepped in, smiling encouragingly at Nairyry, "We're going to go up now," she explained, gesturing to the ceiling as the doors closed in front of them. She pressed her level button, 14, and they started upward. Her friend grabbed her arm in one hand and the railing in the other. "It's okay," Jess explained. She gave Nairyry's hand a little reassuring pat. "We're okay."

000

It was not the same as flying a dragon, Nairyry thought. Glad W'lam can't see me now, scared as a wherry. "W'lam," she whispered to herself, closing her eyes and unconsciously taking her hand from Jess's arm and touching her belly. Vaguely she wondered if she was- no.

"W'lam?" the girl asked, tilting her head to one side, and Nairyry opened her eyes, looking down at her with a bittersweet smile. She looked away and down, hair falling forward to hid her face slightly.

"W'lam?" Jess asked gently, leaning forward to see the dragonrider's face. She glanced at her, eyes a little wet, and away with a faint tinge of pink staining her cheeks.

Seen that look before, Jess thought to herself, trying not to giggle and smirk. It was the same unmistakable look that her older friend had worn when she thought of the man she had married two years later, when Jess had been only ten. She's in love, and I think W'lam must be his name.

The elevator finally ground to a jolting stop, and Nairyry tensed. Then the doors opened and they stepped out with relief. She cautiously looked around the strange place, then followed Jess as she turned left. At number 149 she stopped, took a small ring of strange metal things that could only be keys from her coat pocket, selected the right one and opened the door with it.

Inside Jess shed her coat and set her ring of keys on a hook in the wall, then looked around cautiously and motioned for Nairyry to follow her and be quiet. She led the dragonrider to the second door on the right and gestured her to go inside. A bed in one corner had been made hastily, but the dresser, desk and chair, window seat and floor were all clear.

Nairyry looked around with interest. Jessica got her attention and motioned for her to stay here. She left, shutting the door behind her.

"Dad? You here?" There was no answer, so she looked into the bedroom. He wasn't there, nor in the kitchen. After satisfying herself that he was gone she bolted the door and went to let the dragonrider out of her bedroom. Nairyry was sitting on the bed, turned away from the door, apparently studying her hands on the blanket. Her head was turned in such a way that Jess couldn't see her face.

The girl started to come over to her quietly, then stopped as she saw that her new friend's shoulders shook ever so slightly. Jess hesitated, unsure. Nairyry took a calming breath and wiped her face with the back of her hand and turned, folding her hands in her lap, and stared down at them. Out of the corner of her eyes she must have seen Jess shift position uncomfortably for she swung her head around to look at the teenager. "W'lam," she said, apparently in explanation, for she smiled in an apologetic way and looked down again.

Jessica bit her lip then came to sit beside her. When she gingerly put her hand on the dragonrider's shoulder she placed her own hand over it in silent gratitude. And again almost unconsciously her free hand drifted to touch her belly and the settle in her lap again.

What was wrong with her stomach? Jess wondered, and remembered she was in love.

Pregnant?

By the man she called by W'lam?

She couldn't be! She was too young to have… anyway, she seemed too young for anything beyond kissing! But was she? Really, did the teenager even know how old her new friend was? Besides a dragonrider… what did she know she was?

Jess looked at Nairyry's face, the closed eyes, the tightened lips, the sorrow and regret and homesickness written all over it.

Nairyry remembered W'lam and Jurcath, and all that the four of them, with Thyrath, had shared. Especially she and W'lam. What they had shared together only that day –really that short of a time ago?– and how quickly they had come together. Now she had to wait until her dragon could fly. How long? How badly was she injured? And, when she flew again, could they bring themselves to face that long dark again?

With a deep breath she opened her eyes and smiled at Jess, reassuring the anxious teenager. "W'lam is a rider I know. He's… ."

Jess nodded understandingly and gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder, then slid to the floor, taking the dragonrider's hand and jerking her head at the doorway. She sat her new friend down at the kitchen table and rummaged in the cupboards and fridge until she had a plate of apples, cheese and crackers and a cup of milk. Then she added a couple of packets of Ritz Bitz Peanut Butter while Nairyry watched her curiously.

Placing the food in front of Nairyry she gestured with a smile for her to go ahead and eat. She took out some left over pizza and popped it in the microwave, then turned to find that the dragonrider was holding up a cracker and looking at it as if she had never seen it before. Jess grinned as she realized that this was actually likely the truth, and showed her how to put cheese on both apples and crackers and then eat it.

At the beep when the pizza was ready Nairyry leapt from her seat and put her hand to her belt, where Jess saw she had a knife in a concealed sheath. With an amused grin, though she was a little startled at the appearance of a weapon, Jess told her that it was just the food that was now hot. She put two slices on each plate and passed one to Nairyry, then grabbed a second cup of milk for herself, her own pizza and a couple of napkins for them.

After noting that her friend was just as perplexed by the cheese pizza as by the crackers and cheese she tried to hide her sympathetic, amused smile and picked up a slice, indicating that Nairyry should copy her. When they both polished it all off and took a last gulp, finishing their milk, Jess cleared the table and reached up into another cupboard, taking out some Oreos and passing three to Nairyry and taking three herself.

With a frown she remembered something she had forgotten. "Um… just how old are you, Nairyry?"

"Twenty-one," the dragonrider said, smiling crookedly. "Much older than I look, right?"

"Twenty-one?" the teenager exclaimed, startled, and sat back in her chair, thinking, maybe she's not too young to be pregnant. Her own mother had been about twenty-three or so when she had her. "Um… W'lam…" Jess trailed off. How to ask someone who didn't know the lingo politely if she was pregnant? She colored slightly, then burst out in a rush, "Are you in love with W'lam?"

Nairyry's eyes widened. Then her expression changed to thoughtfulness as she looked at Jess. After a moment she nodded in a half embarrassed sort of way.

"You… I mean, are you- do you have his baby?"

"Maybe, but it's- it's really to soon to tell." She half shrugged, giving the impression that she wasn't sure, and blushed, looking down at the table. "Thyrath… she's also carrying Jurcath's eggs. Jurcath is W'lam's bronze dragon." Jess stored that information away and saw that now both of them were blushing heavily.

So faintly that she knew she was not meant to hear, Jess caught Nairyry's murmur as she looked away. "Oh, W'lam…"