A quickie to keep us up to speed! Thank you for all your reviews, which tells me you're enjoying our little jaunt into the worlds of AM.

15.8.198

"Whatever are you doing down here, lovey?"

H'ric looked around as Mima came into view around the edge of the huge storage barrels in the lower caverns.

"Just checking."

"And the drudges and the Headwoman don't do a good enough job for you?" Mima sat down on an upturned crate, setting the glow basket to one side. H'ric turned his back and began marking his list again.

"Benden red, Benden white, cider from Keroon, fruit juices and vinegar," Mima observed. "I know what's down here, lovey, but I want to know why you're down here, so far into the Weyr we could probably break out the other side."

H'ric straightened and looked around, giving a shrug.

"I don't know, Mima, I just feel - angry - all the time - "

"You quarrelled with your lady," Mima said with a nod. "I thought you had. Hiding away down here isn't going to help, and if I tell you Haveneth is blooding her kill, what are you going to do about it?"

"Maybe there's someone out there better than me at managing this place," H'ric muttered. "I don't seem to be able to do it right."

"Is this because of the lady Irilia?"

"I knew she'd accepted my judgement, however reluctantly, but I didn't think she'd go holdless!"

Mima sighed out and came over to take H'ric into her arms.

"Lovey, she had an awful time in that hold, and with the man denying it so hard, what other judgement were you to give? As for holdless - I think you'll find she's only just outside the Weyr, thinking and deciding."

"You think she hasn't run off to those northern valleys?"

"I'm sure of it. Lavend's family farms on the lower slopes of the Weyr, and the lady accepted respite with him and his family. Avenil went with her, don't forget, and that's a very sensible girl."

H'ric rested his forehead on Mima's shoulder, feeling her patting his back.

"I suppose I had sharp words with Jiverny for no reason?"

"The best reason of all, that her dragon is blooding her kill. And if you don't get up there, Galanath will miss his chance to show all those other bronzes he's been fooling around with that bad shoulder!"

H'ric straightened and stared down at her.

"Galanath can chase Haveneth without me being present," he pointed out.

"Yes, and that would be too much of a novelty! If you run, you should reach the Weyrwoman's place in time. Cut through the outer opening, through there, and you'll be able to call Galanath to pick you up. Well go on! Unless you want that L'rens as Weryleader and your lady's mate?"

H'ric dropped a quick kiss on her cheek and ran. He knew these Lower Caverns very well, having for years been part of the crew unloading supplies and storing them. He ran lightly through the unloading area, hearing the bawling of beasts from the feeding ground, and then he had burst out of the opening of the Weyr.

- mount quickly

H'ric ran across to Galanath who had winged down to the roadway, and was poised, wings half lifted, ready to take them both back to their weyr.

"Don't time it!" H'ric shouted as he clambered up and gripped Galanath's neck spines.

- we are too close to ourselves.

Galanath found a thermal and soared, high up, the Weyr falling away below them at dizzying speed. H'ric caught a glimpse of people working, turning the meagre soil in the small fields, and then Galanath soared up and over the edge of the Weyr, and landed neatly on his own ledge.

H'ric slid down off his dragon's shoulder and ran down to the Weyrwoman's rooms. All the bronze riders were gathered there, and Jiverny was seated, her expression completely blank, obviously caught up with Haveneth as the gold dragon blooded her kill for the second time. H'ric shouldered his way to the front of the riders, hearing the low mutter from them, as if they had not expected him to be here.

With a roar of provocation, Haveneth launched herself off the feeding grounds and the bronzes launched from their ledges, screaming their defiance at each other as they caught the thermals and tried to outmanoeuvre each other.

H'ric was aware of Galanath circling around, and then with shocking suddenness Galanath barrelled his way through the bronzes, scattering them for those vital few seconds that gave him the advantage, as Haveneth twisted around to confront him, finding and soaring on a thermal, and Galanath winged after her, arrow straight where she was drifting and circling, and with a roar echoed by his rider and the queen rider, Galanath twined himself around the golden queen and brought her once again into his embrace.