Then, all of a sudden, as if the arrival of that contingent had been the signal, the Gather was ready. All stalls were up and furnished, the first shift of harpers on the platform and ready to entertain. Then Rosa pointed to the wide steps leading down from the entrance to the Hold and there were the Lord and Lady, looking exceedingly grand in brown Gather finery, descending to the court to formally open the Gather Square. They were accompanied by the dragonriders as well as a clutch of folk, young and old and all related to the Lord Holder. According to Rosa, Lord Groghe had a large family.
“Oh, let’s not miss the opening,” Spacia told Tenna. Rosa had accompanied Cleve into the station and was helping Penda serve the Boll group a second breakfast after their long run.
So the two girls had excellent seats to watch the two Lord Holders do the official walk through the Gather.
“There’s Haligon,” Spacia said, her tone hard, pointing.
“Which one?”
“He’s wearing brown,” Spacia said.
Tenna was none the wiser. “There are a lot of people wearing brown.”
“He’s walking just behind Lord Groghe.”
“So are a lot of other people.”
“He’s got the curliest head of hair,” Spacia added.
There were two who answered that description, but Tenna decided it was the shorter of the young men, the one who walked with a definite swagger. That had to be Haligon. He was handsome enough, though she liked the appearance of the taller man in brown more: not as attractive perhaps, but with a nicer grin on his face. Haligon obviously thought himself very much the lad, from the smug expression on his face.
Tenna nodded. She’d give him what-for, so she would.
“C’mon, we should change before the mob gets upstairs,” Spacia said, touching Tenna’s arm to get her attention.
Now that she had identified Haligon, Tenna was quite ready to be looking her very best. Spacia was also determined to assist and took pains with Tenna’s appearance, fluffing her hair so that it framed her face, helping her with lip color and a touch of eye shadow.
“Bring out the blue in ’em, though your eyes are really gray, aren’t they?”
“Depends on what I’m wearing.” Tenna gave a little twirl in front of the long mirror in the room, watching the bias-cut swirl around her ankles. As Spacia had suggested, the anklets took up the spare room in the toes of the borrowed boots. Nor did they look ungainly on the end of her legs as her long feet usually did. She was really quite pleased with her looks. And had to admit, with a degree of satisfaction, that she looked “pretty.”
Then Spacia stood beside her, the yellow of her gown an attractive contrast to Tenna’s deep blue.
“Oops, I’d better find you some spare runner cords or everyone’ll think you’re new in the Harper Hall.”
No spare cords were found, though Spacia turned out all the drawers.
“Maybe I should be Harper Hall,” Tenna said thoughtfully. “That way I can deal with Haligon as he deserves before he suspects.”
“Hmm, that might be the wiser idea, you know,” Spacia agreed.
Rosa came rushing in, pulling at her clothes in a rush to change.
“Need any help?” Spacia asked as Rosa pulled her pink, floral-printed Gather dress from its hanger.
“No, no but get down there and keep Felisha from Cleve. She’s determined to get him, you know. Waltzed right in before he’d finished eating and started hanging on his arm as if they were espoused.” Rosa’s voice was muffled as she pulled the dress over her head. They all heard a little tearing and Rosa cried out in protest, standing completely still, the dress half on. “Oh, no, no! What did I rip? What’ll I do? How bad is it? Can you see?”
While the seam had only parted a bit, and Spacia was threading a needle to make the repairs, Rosa was so disturbed at the thought of her rival that Tenna volunteered to go down.
“You know which one Cleve is?” Rosa asked anxiously, and Tenna nodded and left the room.
She identified Felisha before she did Cleve. The girl, with a mop of curly black tangles half covering her face, was flirting outrageously with the tall, lantern-jawed runner. He had an engaging smile, though a trifle absent, as he kept looking toward the stairs. Tenna chuckled to herself. Rosa needn’t worry. Cleve was obviously uncomfortable with Felisha’s coy looks and the way she kept tossing her hair over her shoulder, letting it flick into his face.
“Cleve?” she asked as she approached them. Felisha glared at her and gave her head a perceptible tilt to indicate to Tenna to move on.
“Yes?” Cleve moved a step closer to Tenna, and farther from Felisha, who then altered her stance to put her arm through his in a proprietary fashion that obviously annoyed Cleve.
“Rosa told me that you’d had a run-in with Haligon, too?”
“Yes, I did,” Cleve said, seizing on the subject and trying to disentangle himself. “Ran me down on the Boll trace six sevendays ago. Got a nasty sprain out of it. Rosa mentioned he pushed you into sticklebush and you had some mean slivers. Caught you on the hill curve, did he?”
Tenna turned up her hands to show the mottled sliver pricks still visible from that encounter.
“How terrible!” Felisha said insincerely. “That boy’s far too reckless.”
“Indeed,” Tenna said, not liking this girl at all, though she smiled amiably. Surely she was too heavyset to be a runner. Her mop of hair covered whatever Hall or Hold cords she might be wearing. Tenna turned to Cleve. “Spacia told me that you know a lot about the local leathers and I need new shoes.”
“Don’t they tan hides wherever you come from?” Felisha asked snidely.
“Station Ninety-Seven, isn’t it?” Cleve said, grinning. “Come, I’ve a mind to look for new leathers myself and the bigger the Gather the more chance at a good price, right?” He brushed free of Felisha and, taking Tenna by the arm, propelled her across to the door.
Tenna had a brief glance at the furious look on Felisha’s face as they made their escape.
“Thank you, Tenna,” Cleve said, exhaling with exaggeration as they strode across the court to the Gather Square. “That girl’s a menace.”
“Is she a Boll runner? She didn’t introduce herself.”
Cleve chuckled. “No, she’s Weaver Hall,” he said dismissively, “but my station runs messages for her Craftmaster.” He grimaced.
“Tenna?” Torlo called from the door, and they both stopped, allowing him to catch up with them.
“Anyone point out Haligon to you yet?” he asked.
“Yes, Rosa and Spacia did. He was behind the Lord Holder. I’ll have a word with him when we meet.”
“Good girl, good girl,” Torlo said, pressing her arm firmly in encouragement, and then he returned to the station.
“Will you?” Cleve asked, eyes wide with surprise.
“Will I what? Give him what-for? Indeed I will,” Tenna said, firming her mind with purpose. “A bit of what he gave me.”
“I thought it was sticklebushes you fell into?” Cleve asked, taking it all literally. “There’re none of those in a Square.”
“Measuring his length on a Gather floor will do nicely, I think,” she replied. It ought to be rather easy to trip someone up with such a crowd around. And she had committed herself rather publicly to giving this Haligon a visible lesson. Even Healer Beveny was helping her. She was obliged to act. She certainly didn’t wish to lose respect in the station. She took a deep breath. Would tripping him be sufficient? At least on the personal level. There’d still be the charge of reckless behavior leveled against him with the healer-verified proof of her injuries. These had certainly kept her from running for three days—loss of income.
“Oh!” she said, seeing the display for fabrics draped on the Weaver Hall booth: brilliant colors, and floral prints, as well as stripes in both bold and muted colors. She put her hands behind her back because the temptation to finger the cloth was almost irresistible.
Cleve wrinkled his no
se. “That’s Felisha’s Hall’s stuff.”
“Oh, that red is amazing. . . .”
“Yeah, it’s a good Hall. . . .”
“In spite of her?” Tenna chuckled at his reluctant admission.
“Yes . . .” and he grinned ruefully.
They passed the Glasscraft display: mirrors with ornate frames and plain wood, goblets and drinking glasses in all shapes and colors, pitchers in all sizes.
Tenna caught a reflection and almost didn’t recognize herself except for that fact that there was Cleve beside her. She straightened her shoulders and smiled back at the unfamiliar girl in the glass.
The next stand was a large Tailor Hall display with finished goods in tempting array: dresses, shirts, trousers, and more intimate garments—enticing merchandise, to be sure, and this one was already packed out with buyers.
“What’s keeping Rosa?” Cleve asked, glancing back over his shoulder toward the station, which would be visible until they turned the corner.
“Well, she wanted to look extra nice for you,” Tenna said.
Cleve grinned. “She always looks nice.” And he blushed suddenly.
“She’s a very kind and thoughtful person,” Tenna said sincerely.
“Ah, here we are,” he said, pointing to the hides displayed at the stall on the corner of the square. “Though I think there are several stalls. Fort Gathers’re big enough to attract a lot of crafthalls. Let’s see what’s available everyplace. Are you good at haggling? If you’re not, we can leave it to Rosa. She’s very good. And they’d know she means business. You being unknown, they might think they could put one over on you.”
Tenna grinned slyly. “I plan to get the most for my mark, I assure you.”
“I shouldn’t teach you how to run traces, then, should I?” Cleve said with a tinge of rueful apology in his voice.
Tenna smiled back and began to saunter aimlessly past the leather stall. Just then Rosa caught up with them, giving Tenna a kiss as if they hadn’t parted company fifteen minutes before. Cleve threw one arm about Rosa’s shoulders and whispered in her ear, making her giggle. Other shoppers walked around the three, standing in the middle of the wide aisle. Tenna didn’t object to the chance to examine the leather goods without appearing to do so. The journeyman behind the counter pretended not to see her not looking at his wares. She was also trying to see if she could spot Haligon among those promenading about the Square.
By the time the three of them had done their first circuit of the Gather, it was almost impossible to move for the crowds. But a goodly crowd also added to the “Gather feeling,” and the trio of runners were exhilarated by the atmosphere. They spent so many hours in work that was solitary and time-consuming, often at hours when most other folk had finished their labors and were enjoying companionship and family life. True, they had the constant satisfaction of knowing that they provided an important service, but you didn’t think of that running through a chilling rain or battling against a fierce gale. You thought more of what you didn’t have and what you were missing.
Refreshment stalls displayed all kinds of drink and finger edibles. So, when they had finished their circuit, they bought food and drink and sat at the tables about the dance square.
“There he is!” Rosa said suddenly, pointing across the square to where a group of young men were surveying girls parading in their Gather finery. It was a custom to take a Gather partner, someone with whom to spend the occasion—which could include the day, the evening meal, the dancing, and whatever else was mutually decided. Everyone recognized the limitation and made sure that the details were arranged ahead of time so that there wouldn’t be a misunderstanding of intent.
This would be an ideal situation in which to make Haligon suffer indignity. The area where he was standing with his friends was at the roadside, dusty and spotted with droppings from all the draft animals pulling Gather wagons past it. He’d look silly, his good clothes mussed. With any luck, she could get his fancy Gather clothing soiled as well as dusty.
“Excuse me,” Tenna said, putting down her drink. “I’ve a score to settle.”
“Oh!” Rosa’s eyes went wide but an encouraging “yo-ho” followed Tenna as she cut diagonally across the wooden dancing floor.
Haligon was still in the company of the taller man, laughing at something said and eyeing the girls who were parading conspicuously along that side of the Gather Square. Yes, this was the time to repay him for her fall.
Tenna went right up to him, tapped him on the shoulder, and when he turned around in response, the arch smile on his face turned to one of considerable interest at her appearance, his eyes lighting as he gave her a sweeping look of appreciation. He was looking so boldly that he did not see Tenna cock her right arm. Putting her entire body into the swing, she connected her fist smartly to his chin. He dropped like a felled herdbeast, flat on his back and unconscious. And right on top of some droppings. Although the impact of her fist on his chin had rocked her back on her heels, she brushed her hands together with great satisfaction and, pivoting on the heel of her borrowed red shoe, retraced her steps.
She was halfway back to Rosa and Cleve when she heard someone rapidly overtaking her. So she was ready when her arm was seized and her progress halted.
“What was that all about?” It was the tall lad in brown who pulled her about, a look of genuine surprise on his face. And his eyes, too, surveyed her in her formfitting blue dress.
“I thought he ought to have a little of what he deals out so recklessly,” she said, and proceeded.
“Wait a minute. What was he supposed to have done to you? I’ve never seen you around Fort before and he’s never mentioned meeting someone like you. And he would!” His eyes glinted with appreciation.
“Oh?” Tenna cocked her head at him. They were nearly at eye level. “Well, he pushed me into sticklebushes.” She showed him her hands and his expression altered to one of real concern.
“Sticklebushes? They’re dangerous at this season.”
“I do know that . . . the hard way,” she replied caustically.
“But where? When?”
“That doesn’t matter. I’ve evened the score.”
“Indeed,” and his grin was respectful. “But are you sure it was my brother?”
“Do you know all Haligon’s friends?”
“Haligon?” He blinked. After a pause in which his eyes reflected a rapid series of considerations, he said, “I thought I did.” And he laughed nervously. Then he gestured for her to continue on her way. She could see that he was being careful not to annoy her, and that provided her with further amused satisfaction.
“There is a lot about Haligon that he would want kept quiet,” she said. “He’s a reckless sort.”
“And you’re the one to teach him manners?” He had to cover his mouth, but she could see that his eyes were brimming with laughter.
“Someone has to.”
“Oh? Just what offense did he give you? It’s not often . . . Haligon . . . measures his length. Couldn’t you have found a less public spot to deliver your lesson? You’ve ruined his Gather clothes with muck.”
“Actually, I chose the spot deliberately. Let him feel what it’s like to be flattened unexpectedly.”
“Yes, I’m sure. But where did you encounter him?”
“He was using a runner trace, at a gallop, in the middle of the night. . . .”
“Oh,” and he stopped dead in his tracks, an odd, almost guilty look on his face. “When was this?” he asked, all amusement gone.
“Four nights ago, at the hill curve.”
“And?”
“I was knocked into sticklebushes.” With those words, she held out her right leg and pulled her skirt up high enough to expose the red dots of the healing injuries. And again displayed her free hand and its healing rack of punctures.
“They got infected?” He was really concerned now and obviously knew the dangers of the sticklebush.
“I’ve saved the slivers,
” she said in a firm tone. “Healer Beveny has them for proof. I wasn’t able to continue working and I’ve been laid up three days.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.” And he sounded sincere, his expression somber. Then he gave his head a little shake and smiled at her, a trifle warily, but there was a look in his eyes that told her he found her attractive. “If you promise not to drop me, may I say that you don’t look at all like most runners I’ve met.” His eyes lingered only briefly on her bodice, and then he hastily cleared his throat. “I’d better get back and see . . . if Haligon’s come to.”
Tenna spared a glance at the little knot of people clustered around her victim and, giving him a gracious nod, continued on her way back to Rosa and Cleve.
They were looking pale and shocked.
“There! Honor is satisfied,” she said, slipping into her seat.
Rosa and Cleve exchanged looks.
“No,” Rosa said, and leaned toward her, one hand on her forearm. “It wasn’t Haligon you knocked down.”
“It wasn’t? But that’s the fellow you pointed out to me. He’s in brown . . .”
“So is Haligon. He’s the one followed you across the dance floor. The one you were talking to, and I don’t think you were giving him any what-for.”
“Oh.” Tenna slumped weakly against the back of her chair. “I hit the wrong man?”
“Uh-huh,” Rosa said as both she and Cleve nodded their heads.
“Oh dear,” and she made a start to get up but Rosa hastily put out a restraining hand.
“I don’t think apologies will help.”
“No? Who did I hit?”
“His twin brother, Horon, who’s bad enough in his own way.”
“Quite likely, with the lewd look he gave me.” Tenna was halfway to convincing herself that she had at least hit someone who needed a put-down.
“Horon’s a bit of a bully and nice girls won’t have anything to do with him. Especially at a Gather.” Then Rosa giggled, covering her mouth with her hand. “He was sure looking you up and down. That’s why we thought you’d hit him.”
Remembering the force of her punch, Tenna rubbed her sore knuckles.
A Gift of Dragons Page 11