“This is our child,” Fiona corrected. “We will raise him together, all three—four—of us.”

“You’ve mentioned this to T’mar?” Kindan asked, eyebrows arched high.

“Not … officially,” Fiona temporized. Kindan’s expression deepened. “I told him that he was to expect to provide lots of aid and support as he would need the practice.”

“Wouldn’t it simply be easier for you to stay with T’mar and Lorana with me, then?” Kindan asked in a reasonable tone.

“No,” Fiona said in a small voice. “T’mar will have duties that keep him out at all hours, and so will you and I can’t sleep alone!”

A smile played across Kindan’s lips. “I remember that,” he said softly, turning toward Lorana to explain. “She used to invent every excuse to crawl in with me when she was little.”

“And if not you, then someone,” Fiona said. She gave them a troubled look as if weighing whether to relay a deep confidence and then admitted, “I’ve always wanted a large family.”

Kindan nodded slowly, glancing quickly to Lorana who was herself nodding in agreement. He had come from a large family himself and while he never recalled the times he shared his bed with two brothers fondly, he could understand how a young survivor of the Plague that had swept through Pern twelve Turns back would feel the need of the comforting warmth of others. How was it, he wondered even as he realized that once again he would relent to Fiona’s whims, that such a young person could possess such a forceful personality?

“And lots of kids,” Lorana added, her eyes reflecting Fiona’s quiet fervor.

“I’m a good sharer,” Fiona said to Lorana hopefully. Lorana nodded and smiled back at the younger woman.

“You are at that.”

“Good,” Fiona said with a firm nod, grinning up at Kindan. “Because now I’m going to share with you two the joy of explaining the new arrangements to T’mar!”

“Look at this shell,” T’mar said, tossing a chunk of egg to Kindan as he, Fiona, and Lorana entered his quarters minutes later. Kindan made the catch easily and glanced down at the proffered shard for a long moment before looking back up again to the Weyrleader. At a gesture from Lorana, the harper passed the piece over.

“It’s thick,” Lorana said after a moment, glancing up to Kindan and T’mar to see if they agreed. She passed the piece to Fiona. “This was from Tazith’s egg?”

“No,” T’mar said, reaching for another, even thicker shard of egg. “This is.”

Kindan cocked his head thoughtfully, gesturing for T’mar to pass him the piece. “Mmm, much thicker.”

Fiona peered up from her inspection of the first piece and craned her head over the piece the harper held. “I can see why he had such a hard time breaking out.”