Menolly stared warily up at Silvina as the woman laid a small stick on the table next to her

Disclaimer: Anything or anyone you recognise belongs to Anne McCaffrey, and in some places her son Todd McCaffrey as well. All else belongs to me.

Menolly stared warily up at Silvina as the woman laid a small stick on the table next to her. Beauty chirruped and sidled up and down on Menolly’s shoulder. Oldive was standing behind Menolly’s chair, hands clasped behind his back. Rocky, Diver and Poll swooped through the open window and landed carefully. Rocky and Poll sniffed the small stick carefully while Diver settled himself on the back of Menolly’s chair, cheeping politely at Oldive.

“Good morning to you to.” Oldive replied with amusement. Menolly smiled at Diver. Silvina threw her hands in the air with irritation and hurled the stick into the bin.

“Those things are useless! I’ve tried to use them twenty five times and out of that only one predicted it correctly. I guess we’ll just have to wait and find out, Menolly.” Beauty’s eyes began to whirl excitedly.

You use stick for knowing about babies? Menolly gasped at Beauty.

“You mean you can tell?” Silvina jumped when she heard Menolly’s voice. “What can Beauty tell?” she asked, intrigued.

“She asked me if we were using the stick to know about the babies.” Menolly’s voice was delighted. “What a clever Beauty! How can you know?”

Just do. Ask greens. They female. Beauty sounded slightly patronising, just like normal. Menolly was distracted from this new talent when Silvina put in – “Babies? Ask her what she means, Menolly.”

Menolly obligingly turned to the little fire lizard. “Babies, Beauty?”

Harper twins. Menolly laughed in delight. “That’s hardly surprising, Beauty. After all, both Sebell and I are harpers.” Silvina, looking slightly put out, asked what Beauty had said.

“She said that it was Harper twins! Twins, Silvina!”

“That’s wonderful, my dear! Do you want to drum Sebell back from Fort?”

“No, I want to tell him privately. When will he return?”

“A couple of hours, I believe. Now - ”

At that point Robinton burst into the room and sent all the fire lizards twittering into the air. He apologised profusely, then turned to Menolly.

“I say, Menolly, Zair just put his first sentence together! He told me that he was hungry! He told me, Menolly. Oh, hello, Silvina. And you, Oldive. What on earth is this little gather about?” He turned to Oldive and Silvina raised her eyebrows at Menolly, indicating her stomach. Menolly quickly shook her head and mouthed, Sebell. Silvina nodded and Robinton whirled around to face Menolly again. As he opened his mouth to speak, Beauty smugly said to Menolly, Harper twins. Harper father. Menolly went quite pale. Robinton noticed this.

“Oh dear, are you feeling quite alright? Not coming down with anything, I hope? You haven’t been down south with Jaxom and caught Firehead again?” Menolly opened her mouth but no sound came out. Silvina grimaced and harried Robinton out of the room, unceremoniously pushing him out into the corridor. Beauty scolded Zair until he rejoined his friend. Then the door was slammed in both their faces, urgent voices coming from inside. Robinton decided it would not be a good idea to eavesdrop, but asked Zair if he could pick anything up from Beauty. Zair sent him a picture of blackness. Although the little fire lizard was no longer mute, he still preferred images to words.

“You’re sure, Zair?” Robinton asked, cautiously. Then he received a picture of Beauty, eyes whirling as she glared at the door behind which he was standing. Robinton was about to hurry off when Silvina flung the door open with a bang. She glared at Robinton as Oldive edged past her.

“I suggest you respect your journeywoman’s privacy in the future, Robinton. I can’t imagine Beauty was impressed with your eavesdropping.” Silvina’s voice held a hard edge. Robinton’s was as cheerful as he could manage.

“I wasn’t eavesdropping, Vina. Ask Zair.” Silvina snorted.

“That lizard would assure me that the sky was green if you asked him to. Now, I respectfully request that you leave us in peace, Masterharper.”

Robinton nodded in compliance and almost slunk off, back to his quarters. He couldn’t imagine what could be the matter with Menolly.

-o-x-o-x-o-x-o-

“So, my dear, do you reckon that little fire lizard could tell us when you’re due?” Silvina asked a very pale, worried-looking Menolly.

“I … I’m not sure. Can you, Beauty?” She tried to keep the tremor from her voice. Beauty replied immediately, sending her pictures from a night she wished to regret, almost three months ago. Menolly sighed, head in hands.

“She reckons it’s been a little less than three months, so I guess just over six months?” Menolly said, trying to stop Beauty sending her the pictures. Silvina noticed the state the girl was in, and drew her into a warm hug.

“Is there something you want to tell me, honey? I can promise not to tell a soul.” Silvina’s voice was gentle, soothing, and Menolly sobbed once.

“I don’t know …… if I can. It’s so embarrassing.”

“Is it something to do with Robinton? You went so very pale when he came in.” Silvina had an inkling, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. Menolly’s voice, when it came, was barely more than a whisper.

“Zair flew Beauty a little under three months ago.” Menolly was waiting for Silvina to push her away in disgust, but, to her surprise, the woman hugged her even tighter.

“Are you going to tell him? And will you tell Sebell?” Silvina asked.

“I …… should I?” Menolly was trying so hard not to cry, Silvina could feel her whole body shaking.

“It’s nothing to be ashamed of, dear. Would you like me to let you in on a secret?” Menolly nodded, wiping away tears that had fallen unbidden down her white cheeks. Silvina smiled and carried on, “I myself have a son by the Masterharper.” she said, and Menolly gasped, astounded, her plight momentarily forgotten.

“You do?”

“Of course I do! Why else would such a dimglow as Camo be allowed to work in my kitchens? That’s why the Masterharper never married again, you know. His first wife died, and he loved her so very much, and then I found myself pregnant. He offered to marry me, but I knew I could never compete with Kasia, his first wife. So I declined. But then Camo was born with the cord wrapped around his neck, and so his brain never worked properly. Robinton was so disappointed. His son, who should have been a brilliant harper, destined to be a kitchen drudge forever. There’s enough of a family resemblance in him and Sebell for you to be able to tell everyone the babies are Sebell’s. However, I suggest you tell them both. Sebell first.” Silvina finished her story with an air of disregard, and that told Menolly how deeply she felt it, so the girl volunteered slowly:

“I’m going to send Beauty to Sebell and ask him to come back.” The tremor was gone, now. Silvina nodded, and stood back as Beauty took off and disappeared between. Diver and Poll went, too, but Rocky stayed behind, stroking his small head against Menolly’s wet cheek. Menolly, grateful for the reassurance, clutched him to her. He settled into her arms and carried on reassuring her, in an unsteady voice, that she would be fine.

Silvina reached for a small vial from the wall behind her.

“Here, this will alleviate any morning sickness. And this,” she said as she plucked another one off the shelf, “will help to dull the pain of any cramps. I would recommend highly that you try to avoid flying between until after your babies are born.” As she finished speaking, Beauty burst back into the air above them, followed by Poll. Beauty landed on Menolly’s shoulder.

Friend of Kimi comes. Diver stays with Kimi. The little lizard repeated her message, then curled up in Menolly’s lap. Poll hastily took the vacated spot on Menolly’s shoulder, burbling to himself as he got comfy, then turning to Menolly, to say his part of the message.

The big Fort bronze brings harper. Menolly couldn’t help but smile at Poll’s reference to Lioth, N’ton’s bronze. “Thank you, Poll. Well done with delivering the message.” Then she settled herself to wait for Sebell. She heard hurried footsteps about five minutes later, and then Sebell burst into the room, face tense.

“Beauty says you need to see me?” He asked, worriedly. Silvina tactfully chose that moment to leave the room.

-o-x-o-x-o-x-o-

So, what does everyone think? Should I keep going? This will be set after ‘The White Dragon’ and ‘The Renegades of Pern’ but before ‘All the Weyrs of Pern’.

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