Chapter 9
Apart from several stray caprines – probably the herd under the care of the girl and boy – they saw no more signs of life. Amrys tempted the beasts with a wrinkled apple she had in her rations; and tied them all firmly together.
"No point saving the boy if he's then to starve" she said practically "Besides, their milk will be handy at the Healer station; and they're all due for milking. And no harm in us having some ourselves to keep us going" she added "The klah's all gone."
Deftly she stripped milk from the teats of the leading nanny, offering it to Otelek. He drank gratefully, making only a slight face at the unaccustomed strong flavoured milk before handing the rest to Amrys.
She drained it with every appearance of enjoyment.
"Was there klah left in yours? You made a face" she said.
"I'm not used to caprine milk" he explained "Only bovine."
"It's much nicer than bovine milk; more body to it" said Amrys. "Oh dear, I suppose it's what you're used to is what you like; maybe it is an acquired taste."
"You and your words!" teased Otelek. "When is Thread due, do you know?" he added suddenly.
"Two days here; we've plenty of time for searching. By then there's little hope left anyhow."
"Trust you to know! It was at least half a rhetorical question!"
Amrys shrugged.
"I learned in the Weyr to consult the tables regularly and learn the patterns. This Fall starts hardly any further west than here and Telgar Weyr will take it on as it crosses the big river about midday the day after tomorrow."
"Are you going to stand for Impression?" he asked curiously.
"I doubt it. I belong to Hold and Craft; I'll not shirk my responsibilities. If one of the kids looks like being better than me I'll stay with craft I guess not Hold; but it's not really fair to wish Holding onto them; it's a tough job. Like caring about every one of the cotholders swept away in an avalanche. This is bad enough; and these aren't ours."
"They're not? I thought Holders were jealous of autonomy – yet Rivenhill turned out in force!"
"Avalanches don't respect autonomy. With natural disasters EVERONE muck in. The people over here are pretty much independent; but that doesn't mean they should be left to stew in their own juice. It'll be dark soon you know; let's get down. Do us no good to break a leg for not seeing where we're going and the further down we go the darker it'll be."
Saph and Em and Otelek's two firelizards helped chase the caprines in the direction they were supposed to go; and presently the two reached the hastily erected tents of the healer station.
"You're exhausted!" Otelek caught sight of the little girl's face in the glows set about.
"My head aches a little, is all" said Amrys. "can we check on the boy? I think I'd feel better to know how he is."
The boy's name was Gerel; and the Weyrhealer told tem that he was sleeping on exhaustion and judicious dosing with fellis.
"His family cot was right in the path of the avalanche" she said "Dragons have been digging in; but no-one has much hope after this time. Orth is burrowing in with more industry than those fool Benden dragons dug up the Ancients' settlement and to more good use; for we never give up hope until the last minute. But chances are the poor kid is all alone in the world and no other kin that we know of."
"Poor kid" said Amrys "We can take him at Rivenhill, a good herder is always an asset. Unless he chooses the Weyr."
"Rivenhill has done its duty and more" said Calla grimly "And more than made up for the turns it did nothing. I'm afraid his sister didn't make it; too many things inside were crushed beyond even Master Oldive's capabilities. And I'm afraid I can't give that news any more gently, young Amrys."
Amrys swallowed and nodded.
"Thank you Calla" she said "I'd rather know, you know."
Otelek asked,
"Are there any dragons available to take my young charges home?"
Calla nodded.
"No problem."
They were transported home on a pair of Green dragons Amrys did not know; but she was too spent to do more than murmur thanks to them.
"That child ought not to be allowed to push herself so hard" Master Lynger said later to Otelek when Amrys was asleep.
"And would you care to explain that to her, Master? She has the concept that Blood obligates; and I can't dispute that, for it does! She has siblings, should she manage to kill herself; and we all respect those Holders who ask no more of others than they give of themselves!" shrugged Otelek. "She's a plucky kid; I try to save her what I can when I see her tiring. She's worth ten of the little slackers who declare themselves exhausted the moment they get a little tired!"
News came in early next morning that Gerel was indeed an orphan; Orth had come across the remains of a flattened wall. The rest of the cot and its occupants had been swept down the mountainside before the avalanche's fury; there was no chance anyone could have survived that.
The faculty decided not to pass on the news unless Amrys asked specifically.
Amrys did not need to ask.
Grave faces and no GOOD news – that she knew she would be told – told its own story. She met Otelek's eye, saw the uncomfortable look and read the whole without a word being said.
"It happens" she said "The mountains are rich; and beautiful; and cruel."
"The same has been said of the sea" said Otelek.
Amrys nodded.
"Has he chosen Hold or Weyr?"
"Weyr; he wants to work hard to help other orphans. He's a good boy, though I doubt it's all really sunk in yet" Otelek sighed, thinking of Janika.
Amrys patted his hand kindly; the brief glance over at the little girl enabled her to follow his thought processes.
"At least she has grandparents and you" she said "And us too; for the craft is an extended family, isn't it! Well we've plenty to do today to catch up; no time to brood. And more to do to pre-empt Thread tomorrow too."
And Amrys was very glad of the hard work to help cope with her first real personal brush with death; for her infant brother's murder was blurred mercifully in her memory for having been too young to understand totally at the time.
A piece of good news came in to help counteract the bad; a reclusive lumberman higher up the mountain had survived being covered in snow and had managed to poke his ski stick through the snow covering him both to get some air and to attract attention by dint of tying his scarf to it that had brought a dragonman down. The lumberman was of the opinion that the avalanche had been started by the outraged screams of a flock of wherries, fighting over a carcase, for he had heard the row. It was as likely an explanation as any; though as the weather warmed avalanches could easily start spontaneously any way. The lumberman was very happy to be alive and to have escaped with no worse than a broken leg! Y'lara brought this news when she came to present the silver star badge to each of Otelek's team, the High Reaches region recognition for those who saved life in mountain rescue. A lot of dragonriders earned it many times over; but it was a badge universally respected in the Weyr, Craft and Hold throughout the region, in the same way the fishercraft recognised the embroidered silver shipfish badge for saving life at sea.
When Thread fell, the weavers were becoming both used to and adept at walking sweep. Many apprentices had started volunteering, loath to be left out – or to be shown up by little girls! Of the new ones, only Sajed, Jaid and Bretine volunteered; though Ankevor would have done so had he not been forbidden by his father until he was older!
After Thread had passed for another forty nine days the spring weather settled down to torrential downpours – just too late to drown Thread, as Amrys said in disgust – and the river roared in spate both from the rain and from melting snow. Few cared to go out; and the apprentices were glad of plenty of work to occupy themselves! Master Lynger, conscious of his charges' physical wellbeing instituted a minor Kabaddi league played across a chalked line in the eating hall, and gave an hour every day over to running about games there too. Brollom produced a fipple-pipe and Jeral a bodhran and a few sets of impromptu country dances were also set up. Master Lynger improved on this by asking the Hall Harper to play his fiddle for dancing.
Word came from Sagarra of Segrith having laid her clutch, just seventeen eggs; then a few days later Bretine gasped as a Brown Dragon emerged from Between as the youngsters went for a walk between rainstorms.
"It's B'tin's Tayath – I hope nothing's wrong!" she cried.
That the reverse was true was evidenced by B'tin's face, beaming with joy, as he approached the apprentices; and threw his daughter up in the air as if she were as light as little Corrys!
"Your mother has Impressed a Green dragon!" he shouted "One of the girls persuaded her to stand and now she's a Rider too!"
Bretine's face split in a grin.
"Oh B'tin! That's WONDERFUL news!" she said "Oh give her and the dragonet all my best! What's her name?"
"Terith. And Tayath's delighted!" declared B'tin, looking delighted himself.
"Congratulations from us all!" said Amrys warmly. "Any other girls to Greens?"
"Six in all" grinned B'tin. "And I have to go – Fall over Upper Igen, but I HAD to let you know!"
It was wonderful news!
Spring set in suddenly, early, and in earnest, with green shoots everywhere one morning; and volunteer apprentices started planting stands of flax to harvest for next turn's linen. The retting and fulling mill was now fully operational and Journeyman Otelek would be soon teaching more senior students its mysteries; though its day-to-day running was to be under Journeyman Talanor who did not teach. At H'llon's suggestion, a cut had been made to a pool, grading it so that the wheel was turned in an overshot fashion for greater power; and the water rejoining the river downstream. There was such a lot to Weavercraft it would be hard for any one person to know more than the very basics of it all, thought Amrys! She almost regretted electing out of fibremaking; but she could not do everything, and the electives she HAD chosen were all themselves very demanding.
Amrys was sat in class frowning over her picot-edged pillow lace, laying in a gossamer-bug in the curve of a half-stitch firelizard tail when Otaysa came in.
"Excuse me, Master Rakul, may I have Amrys? She and her brother have a new sister and their mother has asked for them."
"Have you come to a place you can leave it, Amrys?" the Master asked.
"Not easily….is it urgent, Otaysa or may I have a few minutes?" Amrys was not REALLY anxious; if Rillys was likely to die in childbed she would have been swept off to the Healer Hall long since.
"No, there's no hurry" Otaysa hastened to assure the little girl, for common sense or no, Amrys had paled. "But your mother is impatient to show you the baby!"
Amrys finished the final supporting spoke, stuck in the brass pin to hold it and carefully pinned the cover cloth over her pillow.
"I'm ready."
Hand in hand with Jilamon, Amrys gazed on small Rilbinna.
"Isn't she awful small?" asked Jilamon.
"She's no smaller than normal" said Rillys, who had an awed Corrys sitting on the bed beside her patting the baby's coral fist.
Amrys thrust over the layette.
"For her. Green for a girl" she said.
"Why Amrys! Did you knit it all?" Rillys was delighted.
"Not the coat" said Amrys sadly "The first one had an….accident happen to it; Journeyman Hetel kindly helped me finish in time by doing the coat."
"You've done very well, darling!" Rillys kissed her; shooting her eldest daughter a sharp look at the tone of voice over the 'accident'; but deciding that this was not the time for searching questions.
"May I hold her?" asked Amrys.
"Of course" Rillys laid the baby in her arms; and Amrys rocked her gently, an adoring look on her face before she handed the small bundle to a distinctly nervous Jilamon!
Amrys wrote to Sagarra straight away and dispatched the note by Saph, knowing that her weyrbred friend counted her family as kin.
Naturally, since hatching was only a few days away, Amrys and her family would not attend this time; but the Master was taken, since a weaver was standing, who would have future associations with Rivenhill Weaverhall at some point.
Master Lynger returned a trifle shocked; but alone. He had composed himself fully by the time he made the announcement that a Weavercraft apprentice named R'rik had Impressed, and would – when his dragon was substantially grown – come on to the Hall as its Rider to complete his confirmation as Journeyman.
The apprentices cheered on general principles; only Nelon knew the boy and he said nothing to his fellows.
"What colour, sir?" called Amrys.
"Green; er, Dilbeth her name is" said Master Lynger who had remembered just in time before leaving the Weyr to ask, in case his more weyr aware apprentices asked!
"Oh!" said Amrys, enlightkened "THAT's why the old codger bullied him so!"
Lynger coloured.
"A thirtysecond fine for disrespect!" he said firmly. One could NOT have one's apprentices referring to another Master as an 'old codger' however much one might agree with any disparaging comments!
"Sorry sir!" Amrys apologised readily.
She worried from the flush if the Master was concerned about homosexuality; and promptly went to see him to kindly explain that it wouldn't mean that the Green Rider would want to sleep with apprentices any more than any Journeyman or Master of more conventional sexual appetites would want to sleep with the members of Green Dormitory.
"I wasn't that" said Lynger testily "A man's relations with others is his own business so long as he's discreet. There was….an incident. And I suppose you'll only write to that dark haired moppet of R'gar's if I don't tell you."
"Not if you ask me not to, sir" said Amrys, burning with curiously "Though if there was any High Reaches drama she'll likely write and tell me about it anyhow."
"Well….you're discreet enough and it'll get out soon enough I dare say; it was loud and public. R'rik's father made a rather unseemly scene and was, er, firmly sent home" he paled suddenly, having heard that the man had actually threatened to kill Dilbeth, believing that Impressing a Green made a man homosexual, instead of female dragons merely preferring to choose those with such preferences!
"Oh….got his own problems of acceptance of what he is then" said Amrys scornfully. "Poor R'rik; I hope he gets a nice kind Blue Rider lover. We don't have any gay men here at the hall so he'll have to stick to weyr for that."
"Er….yes" said Lynger, wishing Amrys were not QUITE so knowledgeable; and so uninhibited about it! At least the little girl would probably firmly enlighten and educate her peer group without prudish giggling and teach them a little more tolerance than was common.
"Did Ipominea Impress?" Amrys wanted to know.
"The Printer girl who was a woodcrafter who designed the pulleys for out looms?" he asked, checking; and went on as Amrys nodded "Yes; I think they're calling her Po'nea. There were six girls to Impress, including one who had a Blue; which I would have thought is unusual" Master Lynger was more perspicacious than many in picking out J'inne as a girl! He added "And the new Weyrwoodcrafter has a Brown, very dark!"
"Oh good" said Amrys. "Telfer – T'fer I mean – is a good sort. I'll have to get a full report from Sagarra; I don't know who everyone is any more."
Lynger smiled fondly.
"Well I dare say you'll soon find out" he said "And thank you for, er, your intentions to help my non-existent prejudices!"
Amrys grinned.
"It was awf'ly cheeky, wasn't it?" she said "Only if it had upset you I thought it'd be uncomfortable for you and R'rik both."
"Incorrigible child! Run along!"
Amrys ran, cheerfully!