Elgion had just finished another tune with Oharan and some of the other visiting harpers when he caught sight of T’gellan, assisting a craftsman to mount a green dragon. It was then that Elgion noticed that the visitors were thinning out and this rare evening was drawing to a close. He’d speak with T’gellan, and then seek out the Masterharper, too.

“Over here, man,” he said, beckoning to the bronze rider.

“Oh, Elgion, a cup of wine, please. I’m parched with talking. Not that it’ll do those cold clods much good. They’ve no feeling for fire lizards at all.”

“I heard you found the clutch. It wasn’t in that cave by the Dragon Stones, was it?”

“By the Dragon Stones? No. Way down the coast in fact.”

“Then there wasn’t anything there?” Elgion was so bitterly disappointed that T’gellan gave him a long look.

“Depends on what you were expecting. Why? What did you think would be in that cave if it didn’t hold fire lizard eggs?”

Elgion wondered briefly if he would be betraying Alemi’s confidence. But it had become a matter of his professional honor to know if the sounds he’d heard from that cave had been made by pipes.

“The day Alemi and I saw the cave from the boat, I could have sworn I heard pipes. Alemi insisted it was wind over blowholes in the cliff, but there wasn’t that much wind that day.”

“No,” T’gellan said, seeing a chance to tease the Harper, “you heard pipes. I saw ‘em when I searched the place.”

“You found pipes? Where was the player?”

“Sit down. Why’re you so excited?”

“Where’s that player?”

“Oh, here at Benden Weyr.”

Elgion sat down again, so deflated and disappointed that T’gellan forbore to tease him further.

“Remember the day we rescued you from Thread? T’gran brought someone in as well.”

“The lad?”

“That was no lad. That was a girl. Menolly. She’d been living in the cave ... Now, what’s the matter?”

“Menolly? Here? Safe? Where’s the Masterharper? I’ve got to find Master Robinton. Come, T’gellan, help me find him!”

Elgion’s excitement was contagious and though he was mystified, T’gellan joined the search. Taller than the young Harper, T’gellan spotted Master Robinton in deep conversation with Manora at a quiet table in the Bowl.

“Sir, sir, I’ve found her,” Elgion cried, dashing up to them,

“Have you now? The love of your life?” asked Master Robinton amiably.

“No, sir. I’ve found Petiron’s apprentice.”

“Her? The old man’s apprentice was a girl?”

Elgion was gratified by the Masterharper’s surprise and grabbed at his hand, quite prepared to drag the man after him to search.

“She ran away from the Sea Hold, because they wouldn’t let her make music, I think. She’s Alemi’s sister ... ”