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Right here is Chapter 7. I have tried something different here. The charactors Joe/Gwen/Kyle and Janice belong to Dolphin Dreamers story. Flying Mile High. http://dolphin-dreamer.sofurry.com/ I have edited that story from the beggining and he suggested that Ruth could travel to Australia on Business. Chapter 19 of FMH is a direct mirror of this from a different P.O.V.

So without further ado, I would like to thank him for being an evil bastard to Janice, and therefore creating a wonderful ingrediant in Ruth's ever complicating life. And of course to Mysterydude for tinkering with this chapter with me.

Yours R.o.P.

Chapter 7.

Ruth yawned loudly as he made his way to the main exit where Vanessa, Xiu Meah and Leah were all saying goodbye to each of the passengers. Most of them had passed his door, and one of the other stewardess's had lent in a few minutes before to say his escort was ready. Xiu Meah was smiling at all the other passengers as they left, but upon noticing Ruth, her smile disappeared and she wrapped her arms around him.

"I'm going to miss you, Ruth," she whispered. Ruth was slightly surprised by her public actions, but on impulse reached out and started to stroke her back, causing her to purr.

"I'm sorry Xiu Meah, I really am. But as I'm sure you know, as you are very familiar with my situation, there's nothing much I can do."

Ruth found himself staring deeply into the teary feline's eyes. Like the classic movie moment, they slowly drew closer to each other and kissed deeply, enveloping each other's maws in a frenzy of twisting and spiralling tongue wrestling, each desperately fighting for the superior position, in the knowledge that it was likely to be their last opportunity to do so with each other. Leah and Vanessa were slightly taken back by their friend's public reaction to his appearance, but smiled, knowing that she has finally experienced the feeling of love.

"Thank you," Xiu Meah said with a smile, as she watched him walk off the plane and out of her life. For a moment, she stared after him, then turned with an expressionless look on her face and strolled back into the main body of the plane, new tears forming at the corners of her eyes.

A kangaroo on the raised walkway introduced himself as a security officer, and asked for Ruth's passport, visa and disembarkation card. Once the requested documentation was handed over, the kangaroo opened the door of the jetway and guided him down the stairs of the air bridge. Ruth looked up at the giant mammoth that had flown him all the way from London and was astounded by the actual size of the creation.

"Sir, your passport, visa and check-in luggage will be returned to you on your charter transfer. Please board the limousine over there, and it will take you to the plane that awaits you".

Ruth was too tired to care, and would have accepted a seat in a thirty year old Mini at that moment. He just sat on the first seat he was presented with by the chauffeur, and unwound himself, from the stresses of the journey that his body had sustained. A TV screen in the forward headrest was playing various footage of the different Australian scenery. Ruth found a remote control clipped in a holder next to him and hit the next channel button, and female koala appeared on it presenting a TV show of some sort.

"Our next video on Australia's Funniest Home Videos will literally blow you away! That's why our kids should never lay their hands on a cricket bat. Check this out!"

Ruth rolled his eyes as the audience gave a canned laughter at the presenter's terrible joke. A Rough Collie puppy was seen holding a cricket bat, ready to take a shot from his pitching father. There was also an annoying voice-over from an Australian man with a high pitched voice who pretended to voice the boy's thought. The father bowled the cricket ball to his son, which he managed to hit back and straight into his father's crotch. He fell back on the grass, writhing in pain from the hit. His son ran over to his aid, dropping his cricket bat onto his crotch as well when he stopped beside him. This resulted in a lot of laughter from the live audience.

"These Aussies have the worst sense of humour," Ruth growled, as he changed the TV channel. A wolf appeared wrestling a wild crocodile in a small lake.

"Crikey! You won't believe how strong this one is!"

'Crikey! This fucking Aussie died ages ago when he pissed off a stingray!' Ruth thought as he switched the channel again. This time a lion with a Yorkshire accent appeared on TV, doing a live broadcast on the BBC. Ruth relaxed with a sigh of relief after finding something that was not 'Down Under trash.'

"Thank you, Sanjay. I'm standing right now in Le Louvre Paris where the contestants of the Iron Dragon Race have completed their race over the English Channel. Flights out of Charles de Gaulle International Airport were delayed in order to allow for the safe arrival of the flying contestants. Due to an unforeseen change in weather, the contestants were forced to battle headwinds, and the quickest time to complete the race was twenty hours, two minutes and thirty-nine seconds. Although this has been the slowest time for first place in the history of the Iron Dragon Race, experts say it has also been the most challenging. However, twenty-two contestants had to retire while flying over the channel, which is the highest number of retirees so far. Later on we will interview..."

"Ms. Ruatha, we have arrived at the charter terminal," announced the chauffeur.

The limousine came to a halt and he came round to open the door. Ruth stepped out onto the tarmac where he was greeted by the members of crew. Interestingly enough, three of the four members were dogs of British pedigrees.

"Good morning Ms. Ruatha, welcome to Sydney Australia. You will..."

Ruth stopped the border collie mid-sentence, and corrected the gender mistake that had been made by everyone he had met so far in Sydney.

"Nice to meet you, I'm guessing you are the Captain?" The collie nodded. "I am actually a man, not a woman, which is a common mistake due to having an old English name."

Ruth smiled at the border collie, who clearly appeared to be embarrassed from making such a mistake.

"I apologise Mr. Ruatha, welcome to the land down under. You will be flying on the Gulfstream G650, otherwise known as the G6. My name is Joseph Williams, and yes, I will be your Captain on this charter flight. The other members of my crew are First officer Kyle Harrison, First officer Gwen Cooper, who with your permission will be running the flight under my supervision for the purpose of her final captaincy exams." Ruth nodded his acquiescence. "And you have flight attendant Janice Miles for your personal needs. So far there are only two of these planes operating around the world on a private basis and the other one is under the ownership of our airline as well. Now if you follow Janice, she will give you a brief tour of the state-of-the-art business jet."

Ruth followed the golden retriever up the stairs and into the main cabin. As the retriever bitch was showing him the different facilities in the main cabin, Ruth couldn't help but notice the scent of fear pheromones that she was emitting unconsciously.

'Strange... What does she have to be afraid of?' Ruth wondered,as she guided him into the bedroom at the rear of the plane. 'Maybe it's due to the fact that I'm a male dragon and a predator to her thinking.' All doors to the public parts of the plane opened off the lounge, or lounge corridor, so it was easy enough to remember.

"Janice, is that right? Please sit down." Ruth sat on the bed and gestured for the retriever to join him, to which she complied.

"Janice, I'm sure you are nervous being around me. I'm sure there isn't a lot of my kind in Australia, and you've heard all sorts of stories about dragons tearing people up. I am also sure that you know that 2000 years ago, my people have took an oath not to harm anyone in return for a place in society. Don't worry, I have a clean criminal record! You don't need to be scared of me, okay? If you have any personal issues, you can always talk to me. I've been known for helping my friends back home in Blighty." He gave Janice a quick kiss on the forehead and left the bedroom before she could reply. He strapped himself into the luxury recliner armchair and settled himself for the final leg down to Cairns.

"Excuse me sir, you are now officially welcomed to Australia. Welcome to the land down under!"

It was the kangaroo he met earlier while leaving the A380. The security officer handed him his passport and visa and notified him that his baggage is safely stored away in the cargo compartment.

"Sorry officer...I need my checked in luggage in the bedroom please. I have to change into the suit that I have packed in there for the meeting I have arranged in Cairns," Ruth said.

"My apologies Mr. Ruatha. I will have it retrieved now for you by the ground crew."

Ruth closed his eyes as the noise filtered in through the open door from outside. He was just dozing of to sleep, when he was rudely jolted awake again by an announcement coming from the speakers, and Janice closing the external door with a thunk.

"Good morning Mr. Ruatha, my name is Gwen Cooper. Welcome aboard this Gulfstream G650 bound for Cairns International Airport. We are just receiving clearance from the control tower and we will soon be on our way. We currently have good weather in Sydney and we hope to arrive slightly ahead of time with tailwinds en-route. We will be cruising at an altitude of 47000 feet and our flight path can be viewed from the television with selectable channels in the main cabin. Janice is about to make a demonstration on the safety procedures aboard this aircraft. Otherwise, sit back, relax and enjoy the flight."

"Good to know. I'll skip the safety video," muttered Ruth as he slowly fell asleep again.

****

'He stepped out of the cab as it came to a stop outside his front door, turned to pay the fare, and watched as it drove away. He had just returned from a meeting at headquarters in London, following up on the failed trip to Australia. He was not in good odour with the company, and he was fighting every step of the way to retain his job. The fucking Irish concern had stolen the contract from under his nose...ironic as they would have to ship everything again from Dublin into Holyhead before it even got anywhere near the continent.

He shook his head and walked up the front path, placing his key in the door. It wouldn't turn. He wriggled it, but to no avail. He looked around and saw the edge of an envelope sticking out from under the ornamental planter next to the door. He pulled it out and ran a talon under the flap.

'Dear Ruth, I have left you...You know that Amy is expecting now. Well she had a scan and it isn't Stefan's or someone else's...it's yours. Despite my best efforts you haven't been able to get me pregnant yet...so I will leave you to play happy families with your tart of a secretary. Maybe next time you will be more careful. The solicitors have been informed and the house locks changed until our assets can be separated. Serves you right for not keeping your dick wrapped up like I instructed. I am going to a relative's for a few months while things get settled. Don't try and contact me except through the solicitors. Good bye. Jessica Ruatha nee Giles....'

****

"Fuck!" Ruth shouted, his shoulder hitting hard against the seat as he was thrown sideways as the plane abruptly taxied to the right.

He panted loudly to as he thought about his nightmare. He would never let such a thing happen to him! He must be really stressed out by the trip and lack of sleep, for a dream like that to have formed in his mind.

"Janice, please be seated for departure. Mr. Ruatha, we will be taking off very shortly. Please make sure that your seatbelt is tightly fastened across your lap. Thank you!" Gwen's voice announced over the speakers again.

'Here goes nothing,' he thought as he anxiously watched the plane turn on the runway. A high pitched scream sounded from the rear of the plane as the engine's fan blades began to spin at top speed. Ruth was thrown back into his seat as the world around him became a blur again.

'Déjà vu,' he thought, as he watched the plane outrun the other Virgin Blue 737s. He was pushed back against his seat as the G650 rose smoothly into the morning sky. The plane continued to climb sharply before easing off a bit and banking to the left. After flying Northwest, Ruth could see Port Jackson looming far beneath him.

"Now that's English pride," he muttered as he marvelled the structural design of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Ruth turned his head away from the window shades and noticed the TV screen which was displaying the plane's flight pattern. The altitude information kept fluctuating as the plane climbed rapidly towards its cruising height. His eyes almost popped out of their sockets as he realised how fast the plane's rate of climb was.

A chime sounded in the cabin as Ruth sat relaxing in the leather recliner, his eyes closed in a half doze. He unbuckled his belt and stood, stretching his legs. Janice appeared, still looking very uncertain, and emitting fear pheromones in his presence. "Janice, I told you when you escorted me on the tour. I may come from a purely predatory species, but you do not need to be afraid of my presence. My ancestors took our oaths over 2000 years ago, never to eat those who ask us not to..." He smiled, trying to break the ice with a laugh. "I am not going to renege on that pact now."

Janice forced a grin, shifting uncomfortably. "Erm is there anything I can get you sir?" Her words reminded Ruth of freight cars, shunting into one another in their haste to continue on their way. "Wine, spirits, something to eat?"

"No, but I will retire to the bedroom now. I know it's not a long transfer, but I need to be alert for my meeting...Please, wake me twenty minutes before descent. I need to buff and dress myself...I won't need anything else of you, so you may relax. Treat yourself to a break...watch the TV or something...on me." Ruth smiled again, hoping to settle her. 'Hope there isn't anything else wrong,' he thought, as he excused himself for a moment to visit the toilet. Upon his return, he noticed that Janice was still hovering in the lounge, before he headed into the private bedroom, locking the door behind him.

He stripped down to his pants, and felt the bed for firmness, before sitting on the edge and pulling a file out to attend to a splinter on one of his toe talons. He heard a clink of glass knocking against something in the lounge. "I told her I didn't want anything...she can't be drinking herself...it would cost her her job," he muttered, standing and moving towards the door, pressing his ear against it. More tinkling noises sounded, and he could hear her muttering -- just the odd word sounding clear enough to catch through the panel.

"Coming...Brian...Sorry...Dragon...Why...Wait...So long...Dad..."

Ruth shook his head 'Something's up...' He cracked the bedroom door quietly, opening it just a fraction, so he could see what was going on. Janice was pacing in a circle, uniform jacket unbuttoned, holding an open whisky bottle. He watched as she took a slug, still muttering, and then paused, shaking her head. She headed for the crew partition by the bar, placing the open bottle on a side table as she passed, and retrieved a handbag.

He watched, still unobserved, as she opened the bag and fumbled in the bottom of it, and then removed something that was shielded by her jacket hanging loose. She turned, back to him, and grabbed a throw cushion from couch. He caught the glint of metal as her jacket flared with the motion. 'Oh shit!...She has a gun...''

She resumed pacing, continuing her muttering, then paused by the table, taking another slug of whisky. She swayed slightly, and then collapsed into the recliner with her back to him, next to the side table. She placed the bottle back down and held the gun out in front of her, examining the tracings on the barrel. "I'll give him not a predator...He thinks I am scared of him...Bastard! Men! I hate them. All of them...Give him a shock when he wakes up...wakes up...I'm never going to wake up again..." she muttered, shaking her head, steadying herself, and turning the gun's muzzle towards her forehead. She stopped, seemingly unable to align it properly.

'Gotta stop her...' Ruth thought, and slowly opened the door, creeping towards her as she manoeuvred the guns muzzle into the throw cushion. He watched as she started to raise it towards her chin, tilting her head upwards, oblivious to the threat against her attempt, approaching from behind her.

'How...How...Ooh fuck it!' He swung his tail around in an arc, flicking his tail spikes erect in the motion, and struck the back of recliner hard, tail ridges slicing through the leather and catching her uniformed shoulder. His tail spikes impaled the cushion, tearing it from her hands. The gun flew across the cabin, smashing into the bar mirror, shattering it in a huge splintering of glass and a cascade of bottles.

"NNNNNOOOOOOOOOO!" she screamed, and grabbed the whisky bottle, turning before Ruth could extract his tail from the chairs stuffing, and smashed it on the top of his skull, trying to escape from his grasping talons.

His horns absorbed the impact, eye's protective lids nictitating across his lenses, protecting them from from the splinters of glass that were raining down with the whisky, burning at his tear ducts, and dripping off his chin onto the ruined recliner. He couldn't free his tail, a ridge broken and hooked around a severed spring, so he grabbed for her shoulders, trying to stop her from escaping to retrieve the gun.

"SSSSTTTTTTOOOOOPPPPP, WAIIIT, HEEELLPPP!" he roared, causing her to grasp her at her ears with her hands, trying to block the volume from tearing at her ear drums. She struggled desperately as she felt the thump through the floor as the flight deck door slammed open, 'Got to get away...got to get away...' screamed through her mind, and she started batting and punching in increasing desperation at Ruth's head, trying to find a weak or sensitive point to cause him to release her...

"Stop, please...Janice stop, hold...calm down please...I'm here...please..." he absorbed her raining blows, shrugging then off, as the hysterical girl tried in vain to free herself. Blood was running down her uniform sleeve where his tail ridge had caught her shoulder a glancing blow, dripping off her elbow into a spreading patch on the recliner's seat cushion. He tried to move around the chair, using his weight and his hips, to rip the side table from its floor anchors, its reading light smashing, sparking against the wall. He tried to pull her closer to him, vying to get a better grip as her uniform started to tear away from his hands.

He caught a glimpse out the corner of his eye, of the male First officer and the Captain running towards him, heard them shouting at him to let her go. He felt the weight of the Captain haul onto his shoulders... 'They think I'm attacking her...I have no choice now,' he thought, and ducked his head, ripping his tail out the chair's springs with a primal roar, and forced his wings open, throwing the Captain back in the direction he had come from, hearing the curse as the dog hit the destroyed bar.

The First officer had stepped on a piece of the broken mirror glass, and stumbled as it cut though his paw covers, causing him to collapse against the passenger's workstation on the opposite side of the cabin. Ruth brought his wing elbow around in a over head sweep, and it impacted against the top side of Janice's skull, snapping her head back, and she collapsed, the conscious thoughts fading from her eyes as she slipped to the floor out of his grasp.

Ruth stood there panting, trying to regain his breath as the pain from his wounded tail -- and bruised wing, he now realized -- started to penetrate his mind as the adrenaline wore off. He could hear the Captain cursing as he tried to right himself from behind him, and turned to see him approaching again with a wary look in his eyes, trying to gauge Ruth's next actions.

Ruth sighed... "Stop please...go and look by the bar...she was trying to commit suicide...There is a gun..." He swayed, and sat back on his haunches, the last vestiges of the fight draining from him. He heard the bitch calling from the flight deck, and the Captain turning and calling back for her to stay at her station...wait for further instruction.

He watched the Captain walk carefully over to the shattered bar and bend, retrieving the gun from amongst the destroyed bottles and mirror, a look of shock dawning on his face as he realised that Ruth couldn't have made it through the security checks with it. Ruth eased himself to his feet carefully, and held his hand out towards the Captain, who handed the gun across in a daze, not realising what he was doing.

Ruth glanced at the trigger for a moment, then carefully flicked the safety into position. "Hmmph, German Luger, officers pistol from the war...My grandad had one as a trophy before he surrendered it a few years back," he muttered. He pressed the stock's button, removing the clip, then hooked a talon under the cocking bar, pulling it up, turning the gun upside down and allowing the chambered round to drop into his other hand. He walked over to the workstation and placed the pieces next to the still moaning First officer. "There, safe. Now I assume you carry first aid kits..."

The Captain regained his composure and nodded.

"Right, go and tell...Gwen wasn't it?"

The Captain nodded again.

"Go and tell Gwen to engage auto and get her arse into here. We have a problem, a big problem to sort out, and I am not happy. Fetch whatever kits you have back with you. She's out cold..." he gestured at Janice, "but I want that gash patched up on her shoulder before she wakes. We need to sort him out as well..." and gestured to the First officer.

"But that's against regulation, I can't leave the flight deck unsupervised..." he protested.

"And this isn't against fucking regulations, you bloody idiot!" Ruth shouted, gesturing at the carnage in the lounge. "Now save your own fucking skin and fucking do what I tell you. We need to salvage the situation as best we can."

He collapsed into a chair and grabbed his tail, watching as the Captain nodded, the situation they were all in registering finally in the dog's brain. After a moment, the Captain nodded again, then retreated to the flight deck. Ruth started to lick at his own wound, examining the damage, and deciding that his ridge would need stapling back to the cartilage. He sighed, and continued to lick until the blood coagulated under his sterile tongue. He stood and gingerly extended his wing, feeling the bruising pulling at his elbow joints. 'I hope the company don't want a flying demonstration...I will have to rest that for at least a week,' he thought as he folded it back into position carefully.

He walked over to the bar and picked up a piece of the mirror, holding it in front of him to see if there was any damage to his head. "Shit!" One of his top horns was cracked along its length from the root to the point. He lifted his hand and felt for movement, but luckily it was solid. "Well, I am going to need a medic for my tail before the meeting...They should have some acrylate glue in their kit somewhere. Bit of sandpaper and I should be able to fix that from splintering," he muttered under his breath as the Captain re-entered to lounge with a big green box, followed by Gwen, who emitted a huge gasp as she took in the scene.

"Right...Gwen isn't it?"

She nodded.

"You make Janice as comfortable as you can over by the couch. I will come and stop the bleeding when I get him sorted." He gestured at the moaning dog. "I had first aid training at work...never had to use it but it sticks in the mind." He walked back to the worktable and knelt next to the First officer.

"Captain, remind me of your name and his please. And bring me that box now, thank you."

"My name is Joe, Mr. Ruatha..."

"Stop! It's just Ruth, alright?! We are all in the same mess...No more formalities, Joe," Ruth said with a smile.

Joe lifted a lip in a half grin. "Ruth, right okay...He's Kyle." He brought the box over to Ruth and glanced at Gwen, who was leaning Janice up against couch.

"That's better. Now, did I do any damage to you? I'm sorry I had to throw you off..."

"Just bruises. I... I'm sorry I misjudged the situation...I shouldn't have..." Joe started.

"Nonsense. If I had run into a scene of destruction and seen a bloody great stranger fighting with a hysterical colleague, I would have assumed he was the one at fault. Stop the self blame and try and work out what we can do about it now."

Ruth turned to Kyle and examined his foot-paw. "Shit, you have glass in there...this is going to hurt a lot." He pinched the edge of the shard between his talons and pulled it out in a sharp movement. Kyle screamed, but Ruth held tight and spat a gob of saliva into the profusely bleeding wound, and started licking at it until it coagulated.

"Joe, that should hold until Cairns. Can you apply a bandage to cushion it? He will need stitches when we land."

Joe nodded, and Ruth stood, wincing as his tail caught on the table legs. "Ruth, your tail...do you want me to..."

"Not yet...need to stop her bleeding first." He walked over to Gwen and Janice, kneeling next to the unconscious retriever.

Gently peeling the blood soaked uniform from her torso, leaving her bra in position, he examined the wound. "It's not that deep," he assured Gwen as she watched with concern, and started licking the wound clean, stemming the bleeding. He applied a sling bandage, wrapping it in a loop under her breasts, then securing the damaged arm to her other shoulder. He moved to her head, tilting it this way and that, but thankfully it didn't look like he had split her scalp. He lifted her closed eyelids and checked her pupils. "She's going to have a hell of a headache but should be alright in an hour or so..."

He stood and lifted Janice onto the couch and sat, laying her head on his lap. "Gwen, please take a seat over there with Joe and Kyle. We need to sort this out."

Gwen complied and sat next to Joe, gripping his hand in a comforting gesture.

"Now, what are our options...we can't exactly cover this up..."

"Well we could divert..." Joe started.

"No, I must make that meeting in Cairns..."

"Well, I will get security to meet us on the apron and arrest her..."

"No again...that's the last thing that needs to happen to her...She must have had a reason to attempt suicide..." He stroked Janice's cheek with a hand as she started to stir. "How well do you know her?"

Gwen started. "Well she came clubbing with us and the other girls occasionally...I don't know where she came from...As a pilot I don't really form close friendships with the crew..."

"Uh-huh. Joe?"

"Well until I bumped into her at a club with Gwen and Sarah another stewardess..." he paused and blushed, glancing at Gwen. "We err...we all ended up back at mine...Gwen and I are now engaged." He flashed his ring. "Erm, well, they all ended up in my bed..."

Ruth grinned. "I gather you all had a good night?"

"Well, no actually, we ended up in a drunken fight over him, and I got knocked out...We were all pissed, and I couldn't blame him as I'd invited them home..." Gwen blushed, trying to cover her shame. "I found I was pregnant the next morning, and he decided to make an honest woman of me...We've been together since high school..." Gwen trailed off.

"Do you think she holds that against you?"

"No, no I don't think so..." Joe said, startled.

"Good, it must be something else..." Janice started kicking gently with her legs, then tried to curl into a foetal position. "Come on, we need to get this sorted out before she wakes...Kyle?"

"Well...I have kind off fancied her for a while...but I never asked her out." He blushed.

"Hold that thought Kyle...she will need someone to help her through this, and I won't be here." he sighed. "Come on, how do we resolve this?"

"Well the company are going to go nuts...they will want someone's hide for the damage..."

"The damage was caused as I disarmed her...I suggest you direct them to look at security personnel, not Janice. Something was wrong when I first boarded...I smelt the fear on her, but you dismissed it as nerves as you were expecting a female, and had never seen a western dragon before."

Joe nodded. "What do you want to do?"

Ruth paused and thought for a moment. "To be honest...at the moment get my sorry ass of a busted tail back to Blighty as fast as possible...but that ain't going to happen," he said with a grin.

The crew all laughed.

"Now..." he glanced at the wall clock. "How long before you have to radio in...start descent or whatever."

"About eighty minutes..." Joe said.

"Mmm...she will be awake very shortly." Ruth said wincing, his tail disturbed as Janice moaned and started moving on his lap. "Right...Gwen can you put a pressure bandage on my tail before she livens up again?"

Gwen nodded, then moved to kneel by the couch and started to dress his damaged ridge.

"Right...I won't say anything about this at all. Call it a mid flight incident if anyone asks...what do they call them...air pockets? Bar shattered...got cut and thrown around...should cover my injuries." Ruth mused.

"An air pocket shouldn't have broken the..." Joe started.

"Not your bosses...but the press will have a field day with your company if this leaks. 'Suicidal air hostess attacks British businessman'...I can see the headlines now," Ruth exaggerated comically.

Joe and Kyle smiled.

"Imagine what your bosses would say..."

All three frowned as the consequences sank in, and Janice emitted another moan.

"Now...What to do...Well when you go back to the cockpit you had better get hold of Cairns and your controllers and tell them what to expect...You must also tell them that I will reveal the truth if anything happens to her!" He indicated the now twitching Janice. "You got loyal ground crew at Cairns?"

"Yes...we have a limited staff..."

"Good. Get security to collect the gun, and have a light cleaning crew come and get rid of the busted glass. It's going to need a refit when you get back to base. You had better get a trained paramedic on standby. I will need stapling and an acrylate, Kyle and Janice here need stitches. The fewer who come on board...the fewer who can talk. Now about me getting home after the meeting. Can this thing reach Singapore for rendezvous?" Ruth gestured at the plane.

"Well yes, I will admit I wondered why you hadn't been routed from Singapore to Cairns direct...would have saved you about six hours." Joe said, rolling his shoulders which were starting to stiffen up.

"Rush job...I was on holiday...London probably didn't realise. Well, see if you can take me onward from Cairns...call it the price for my silence in the matter."

Joe nodded with relief, thinking about how he would phrase the request to flight op's. Janice started kicking again, and her eyelids started fluttering.

"Right..." Ruth looked at the clock again, ten minutes had passed since the last time. "Captain, go and re-take control of this bruised bird with Kyle...he should be able to walk on that bandage until he is stitched up. Start a few calls, use my phone if you want a closed line --it's in my carry pouch in the bedroom-- then let me know what the response is. Remember, no action against Janice here, and protect your own asses as well. Gwen, can you stay here in the lounge?" Ruth rubbed at his sore head, his horns may have absorbed the impact, but they had still transmitted a shock wave into his skull. "She may not want to talk to me, and I will protect you from her if she gets violent again."

They nodded, and Joe went to retrieve Ruth's phone, then helped Kyle limp back to the flight deck. "I can see why they sent him over here on business..." Ruth, just overheard Joe say to Kyle as they went around the crew partition.

Ruth smiled, and glanced down at Janice, noticing her eyes were open and clear, and smiled. "How do you feel, dear?"

"L...Like my head has split in two..." she whispered.

"Sorry about that...I had to stop you before you damaged yourself and me further..."

"Why did you stop me?...You could have let me finish it...you could have let me have my peace finally..." she burst in to racking sobs, and crawled up against Ruth's chest, like she was a puppy again.

Ruth made soothing noises and started to run his hands and talons through her back fur. Gently, he rocked her back and forth...then carefully extracted his wings from behind him with a wince and enveloped her in a tent hug, breathing gently and warming the air within...

Gwen eased herself up from the floor and moved over to the worktable, taking a seat...watching the situation warily, but not interfering.

Janice shuddered to a halt...gradually calming down...realising the situation she was in, and lifted her head, licking the underside of Ruth's chin. Ruth smiled down into the tent hug, and gently touched the tip of her nose with his tongue. "Why protect me? I am a stranger to you..."

"I would not let anyone do that to themselves...there is always an alternative. How much did you overhear?"

"I...I heard you tell the Captain not to report me...t...to cover...Why?" she stuttered.

"Because the last thing you need now, is to be charged with endangering an aircraft and attempting suicide...You do realise how powerful that little thing over there on the table is? If you had pulled the trigger the bullet wouldn't have stopped in you skull, it would have gone through the roof."

Gwen blanched visibly, realising just what would have happened then.

"S...Sorry...I...I didn't think of that...Gwen?... Forgive me?"

"I forgive you dear..." Gwen walked over and placed a hand on Janice's shoulder as Ruth retracted his wings again.

"I do too...Now, what happened to cause this...?" Ruth prompted, shifting position slightly and shifting Janice into a more upright position on his lap. He gestured Gwen to take a seat on the couch next to them.

Janice looked at him, and then at Gwen, and shook her head. "Everything..." she whispered, taking a breath. She closed her eyes and allowed the memories to return and spill from her tongue...

"It started when I was six...just a puppy...It was Father's day. I woke up all excited and fetched the card I'd made him at school from my bag...I...I ran to my parents room and opened the door..." she started crying again gently.

Ruth started to rock her again, and Gwen laid a hand on her thigh.

"M...my mum was crying...I...I looked up and saw my dad, my dad was hanging from the ceiling...he...he was dead." her sobbing increased. "I didn't understand...my dad, my dad... I loved him...why did he...why wouldn't he wake up? Why wouldn't he hug me for the card I had made? I just collapsed next to my mum...just hugging her, trying to stop her from crying..." she paused again, trying to regain composure a little. "It turns out he was in debt...lost his job...Mum didn't work, so after the funeral the bailiffs came and took the house...we ended up in a flat...Mum became a prostitute...I couldn't understand where all the men came from...why some of them tried to hug me...why mum used stop them...why I fell asleep every night listening to my mum panting...screaming sometimes when some of them beat her..."

Gwen and Ruth looked at each other in horror over Janice's head...

Janice seemed to blank for a moment then continued..."I somehow made it through high school..my mum was smoking weed to forget by then...I knew what was happening now, she kept me out of her client's sights...my grades were terrible and the teachers started to get angry...blaming me...calling me a 'lazy good for nothing'...If only they had known...

"I turned fourteen...The class bully found out about mum...he cornered me with his gang at school...said I must be like her...tried to strip me, ripped my uniform...A teacher saw and stopped them in time...the teachers then started to watch me...didn't stop them catching me outside the gates though, never actually forced me...but always beat me for money...

"I fought back one day, had had enough...I snapped...they beat me badly...teachers sent me home all bloody and torn...mum was off her head on weed, saw me...thought I had asked for it... and lost it...threw me out...disowned me...forgot about me...I ended up on the street at fourteen, nowhere to go." she paused and started to cry again, huge sobs tearing through her body..."Why mum...Why?" she sputtered.

"What about..." Ruth held up his hand and silenced Gwen.

"Let her continue...I have a feeling there is more, it's too long ago..." he whispered.

"I vanished from the authorities radar...never went back to school...hitched out of town, living from scraps I found in rubbish bins...starving some days...washed up for meals on others. I stole charity clothes from donation bags...washed in rivers out of town where people couldn't see me...kept myself tidy...

"I turned fifteen, and ended up in Bankstown...I found dry culvert near the airport, and used to just lie there in a shelter I scavenged from scrap, watching the planes take off and land...It was so relaxing...so comforting imagining where all the people were going...escaping to...wishing I was with them. I fell asleep one day in the car-park...leaning against a car. The owner came back and found me...Brian."

Ruth started. "She was muttering his name before I stopped her..." he whispered to Gwen, not disturbing Janice's trance, questioning Gwen with his eyes.

Gwen shook her head and continued to gently comfort Janice with her touch, as the retriever continued with her quiet diatribe...

"He took pity on me...He was nineteen and a newly qualified flight instructor...took me home...adopted me unofficially and fed me up. He had just moved away from home himself into a flat...a bachelor flat." She laughed quietly, wrinkling her nose slightly, recalling to herself what it had looked like when she had first walked in. Ruth and Gwen also shared a grin over her head. "He found out I was only fifteen after I had bathed and cleaned up...I found a space on the couch and we sat and talked. Nothing happened then, nothing happened between us other than petting for three years, but I fell in love...he was so kind...I agreed to keep house for him in return for a bed of my own, and food when I wanted. I told him I had enjoyed watching the planes, and wished I could fly away myself...escape what had happened to me...

"He took me onto the airfield...told his bosses I was his younger cousin. Started to take me on short flights when he could, teaching me how to fly...I loved it." She went quiet again, then pulled a hankie from what was left of her uniform, and dabbed at her eyes with her free hand. "I got my student's licence at sixteen, and my full pilot's licence at seventeen...

"When I turned eighteen we arrived home after a celebratory meal, and he told me that he would return my love fully...I was overjoyed. I joined him in his room that night for the first time. We set up a camera for memories...I finally lost my virginity that night...I...I still watch that video..." she zoned out again for a few minutes. Ruth and Gwen just sat there, never letting off from the comforting strokes.

"He put me in for my full commercial exams the next day...didn't tell me, just took me to the airport as usual, and handed me to one of his colleagues. I passed...I qualified, then became an instructor in light aircraft alongside him two months later. As he had qualified to instruct in light jets by then...we did different shifts, but always ended up at home together, even if he left before me in the mornings..." she smiled again, then started crying. "I...I left an hour later than him...he was going to take me up in a larger jet for the first time as a treat...I got to the the flight school and found he had not arrived...He had been in a car crash on the way in...It took three days for him to die in the hospital...three days of sitting by his side...he never managed to say goodbye..."

She dissolved into sobs again, this time she cried until her eyes ran dry.

Ruth bent his head, and started licking her fur with his tongue, gently kissing her on her ear tips and muttering inconsequentialities into her soul. Gwen started to tear up herself as she realised just what Janice must have gone through.

"I was walking home from the hospital in a daze that night...forgot my car...I ended up in town and a group of teens ambushed me...they dragged me into an alley. A...the leader, a lion overpowered me and forced me to give him a blow-job...then he threw me at the others and they gang-raped me...I...I blocked it...I couldn't comprehend what was happening...I had just lost Brian...I loved him...I didn't fight, just let it happen. They dumped me, and I gathered what was left of my clothes and made it back to the flat...I couldn't get myself clean...four hours I spent in the shower...ran out of hot water...started shivering...never been clean since..."

Gwen stifled a sob...swallowing her paw in an attempt to silence herself. Ruth increased his attentions, and started to clean and lick her around the nose and lips.

"Tried a bath the next morning...had to go to work...didn't help... I never told anyone about that night...never admitted what had happened to me...My colleagues at the flight school knew I had lost Brain, they tried to comfort me, not knowing that my hurt went much deeper than that...I paid for a tank of fuel and told my boss that I needed to think alone, and as I had no lessons booked, I was going for a solo flight...He allowed me to take the plane's keys and left me to it...

"I did the pre-flight checks, got into the cockpit, strapped myself in and started the engine...The noise broke something inside me...Everything from the day of my fathers death to the previous night hit me like a sledgehammer. I hadn't cried then... since Brian had found me that day...It was like being shot...I froze and just sat there on the apron...propeller spinning...I lost control...I broke down..." she paused again, going misty eyed for a few minutes, no tears left to shed.

"I killed the engine and just sat there. I left the plane, locked it and went to the staff bathroom...I left the keys on a toilet cistern with my security I.D...then strolled out, telling the receptionist that there was a blockage so that they would be found...I never went back...never saw any of them again...Didn't answer the phone to their calls, or the door of the flat if they came knocking...I didn't even go to his funeral...but I visit his grave...

"I walked away...left our flat...decided I would never become a commercial pilot now...the dream had died with him. I booked into a motel for a few days...just lay in the room all day...crying until I thought I could cry no more...then started again...I left the motel, and as I walked past a newsagent's, saw a copy of his favorite magazine in the window...The Australian Aviation magazine...I went in and bought it...flicked through and read the classifieds. Air Tangara were taking on new stewardesses. I applied and hid my flight qualifications...got accepted, and here I am now, two years later."

Ruth sighed and allowed Gwen to take Janice into a hug of her own...

"Janice," he whispered..."What happened today...what happened to trigger this mess?" He waved a hand around the wrecked lounge.

"I...I...A lion...A lion was on my last flight...He looked like the gang leader...he died in the toilet...I...I...thought I was over it...b...but his death brought a closure to me...I..." She paused, realising that she was about to confess to murdering him, and that if she did there would be no protection from them... "I thought it was time to join Brian and Dad..." she started dry crying again, switching her attention back to Ruth.

Ruth hugged her close again, starting his tongue grooming again, glancing at Gwen for conformation, and receiving a nod. "I heard about the death...I am afraid passengers do suicide on us occasionally...Kyle had a vixen do it on one of his flights not long ago..." she paused. "We, and I mean the crews, sort of wall it off...I guess that the coincidence triggered something in her mind." She gestured at Janice.

Ruth nodded, and was about to speak, when he heard the engine note change through the cabin. He looked up at the clock, and then at the partition as Joe came around it.

"Ruth, we are starting descent. We land in twenty minutes, you need to get strapped in..."

"Forget strapping in...I need to get ready." He sniffed at himself, realising that all the nervous sweating Janice had done had made him smell like a wet dog. "Look, enough regs have been broken today, a few more won't harm...I need a shower and to get changed into my suit. Leave Gwen here with Janice on the couch, I am sure they will be okay if there is no turbulence expected...?"

"No the air is reported clear on the Dopplar..."

"Then leave it at that...my choice. Okay...Now what have your control said?"

Joe handed Ruth his phone as he started to stand, gently sliding Janice on to the couch cushions, leaning her against Gwen with a reassurance. "Look Janice...I will be back in a few hours...we can continue to talk..."

"Well they wish to extend their thanks to you...but they won't transfer you to Singapore on this plane..." Joe started.

"Oh?" Ruth looked up exasperated...

"No, they are sending our other G6 up with pilots only...it should be on the tarmac by the time you get back from the meeting. We will be flying you to Singapore on that." Joe smiled.

Ruth laughed. "Very funny, what about you, the crew?"

"The new pilots will take this one back to base. We four will take you onward as you requested. Op's control have agreed that no action is to be taken against Janice, but she will have to go on a counselling course...on full pay. They are going to hit the security measures hard though at the crew stations. Make sure it can't happen again."

"Good. And you?"

"I will have to run a full debrief as the Captain...I might get a ticking off but nothing serious...the others will have no further action taken against them."

"Right...Well, that is satisfactory. Remind me and I will give you all my card later...I want a call or email from any of you if they try and renege on the agreement. Tell them that I will go to the press if I have to. Now, I must go and clean up. I gather the medic will be waiting for us?"

"Yes, and they are trying to dig up the acrylate you asked for...I am afraid it's not standard kit with there not being many of your type around here," Joe confirmed.

"Hmmph...I think it may be soon if this contract I'm here for goes ahead..." He turned to Janice and knelt next to her. "Hear that kiddo? Everything is going to be alright...I am going to wash up now, but I will see you before I leave for the meeting."

Ruth planted a long kiss on Janice's forehead, licked her nose, then stood and headed for the bathroom and a long shower.

Joe nodded. "Gwen, sit with your back to the cockpit, and hug her close. When Ruth comes out of the shower, tell him I will give you five minutes warning on the intercom before we hit the runway. He needs to brace himself somehow." He left to take control of the plane for final approach.

"I think I love him, Gwen..." Janice whispered.

"What?! Whoa, Joe's mine...stay clear of him..."

"No, not Joe...Ruth..."

"Pardon?"

"He saved me...he must like me...love me back...no one else loves me enough...no one else protected me..."

Gwen shook her head, not believing what she was hearing. "Janice, hold on a minute...Ruth is a respectable business man...He is mated, did you not see his hand?"

"No..."

"He has a ring dear...under his scales. There is just an emerald showing..."

"But he must love me...he must...or he wouldn't have saved me..."

"Janice...I would have tried to save you if I had been in his situation, any one with a conscience and the ability would have saved you..."

"No-one bloody saved me before!" she snapped. "I could have been saved a long time ago if the dirty, rotten, balls driven, turn a blind eye, self centred wankers had noticed me. Even the other fucking cabin crew...the bitches are all so fucking cock-hungry they don't notice what is happening to their colleagues under their own fucking noses! Didn't notice me crying...didn't notice me huddling in the corners when something came to get me from my mind..." She trailed off again, calming down. "Even you Gwen...Even you and Sarah... 'Oh, let's invite Janice to the club.' The only time I can be normal is when I am under the influence..."

Gwen shook her head, realising the problems that Janice was suffering from had driven into a state of semi-madness. 'I must tell Op's that she needs more than counselling...' she thought as Janice continued.

"He is the first person...the first male who noticed me...noticed me, and not just my body, since...since Brian."

"It's pretty hard not to notice someone pointing a gun at themselves dear..."

"He must have known something was wrong...something before he went to bed...I was so quiet, he must have checked on me..."

"Maybe he was checking to see if you had calmed down a little Janice. Hell, you were emitting so many fear pheromones, you would have unsettled a whole super jumbo, if you'd been aboard."

"He must care for me...he must..." she started gently crying again.

The intercom sounded, and Kyle's voice came over it, "We are five minutes from landing, please brace yourselves..."

Gwen pulled Janice into a braced hug, and continued to stroke and comfort her to the best of her ability. 'I wonder if it's going to be like this with my puppy...' she thought as she slipped a hand underneath Janice, resting it on her belly...

****

Ruth heard Joe talking to Gwen as he entered the bathroom and closed the door. He pulled his pants off, chucked them in the corner...then stood staring at his visage in the mirror. 'Why me? Why did she choose me to do this to herself? I am so tired...so tired...Why did no-one notice her, notice what was happening? The crews so far have seen so close, why didn't they notice?' He shook his head. "I must get cleaned up," he muttered.

He stepped into the shower enclosure and turned it on to full temperature, revelling in the scalding water sluicing off his scales, the sweat and blood stains draining into the flush tanks below him. He unwrapped the bandage from his tail and slowly massaged the area around the wound, cleaning it carefully, ensuring that it would be easy for the medics to apply the staples.

Ruth sighed. "Right bloody sight I must appear now...hope they don't hold it against me at Austran," he growled." He stepped out of the shower and grabbed the fur dryer, wielding it expertly to blow the excess water off his scales into the floor drain. He opened the door and walked back into the bedroom, collecting his bag from the floor, and throwing it onto the bed. Using the buffer in the pocket he applied a light polish to his scales where they would show, but opted to leave his wings, as one was still too sore.

Undoing the zip, he pulled the suit bag out and laid it on the bed next to the bag, then fished out fresh pants, stepping into them carefully, and buttoning them gingerly around his tail. "Now let's see if the guy in London really is my size..."

"We are five minutes from landing, please brace yourselves..." came over the intercom.

"Bollix!" Ruth moved the suit to the side chair and lay down on the bed for landing in just his pants. "I will have to get dressed when the plane is on the ground."

He lay there quietly until there was a thump, and he heard the engines spool up as he started to slide towards the foot of the bed under the deceleration. "Oh crap!" He dug his talons into the fixed mattress, tearing through the sheets as he stopped his slide. "Oh well, a bit more damage for them to gossip about..."

As the plane rolled to a stop and turned slowly on the tarmac, into its bay? Ruth stood and gathered his cream linen suit trousers, pulling them over his feet carefully. They fit around his tail perfectly, but they were a little slack around the waist. "Hah, bloody office junkies are letting themselves get fat..." he exclaimed, and dug around on the hanger, finding the belt. He hitched it tight, then pulled the shirt off, looking at it in the light, cursing.

"Which bloody idiot picked this?...It's fucking white, and the suit's cream...I will look a right prat with my white scales as well." He shook his head. "No choice now, but I am going to look like a pissing dragon shaped ice cream sundae with licorice sticks on top!" He laughed to himself.

He gently slipped the shirt over his wings, and found the collar was too big as well. 'Will have to leave the top button open to disguise that and forget the tie...say it's the bruising to my wings...' he thought, and slipped the linen jacket on, letting it hang loose. He picked up his phone and glanced at the screen as the plane came a stop, noting that an email was waiting for him. He heard voices coming from the lounge and decided to take a look in the taxi on the way to the meeting, and slipped it into his pocket.

Yawning, he opened the bedroom door and walked back into the lounge, observing as Gwen stood and opened the outer door for the awaiting ground crew.

The first person to come through the door was a rather tough looking dingo. He muttered something to Gwen and she gestured at the work table. The dingo strolled over, seemingly unfazed by the mess, and picked up the pieces of the Luger, grunting and putting them in a bag on his waist. He turned and noticed Ruth. "Good job, sir." He cast a disgusted glance at Janice, and then walked back out of the plane without a further word.

"Will he..." Ruth started, as Joe came around the crew partition, supporting Kyle.

"Not if he wants to keep his job. They only gave him a rough brief, and that he wasn't to touch her. Normally she would have been secured before the gun," Joe said, as Janice emitted a whimper.

"Good." Ruth strolled over to the couch and laid a hand on Janice's unbound shoulder, gently patting it in reassurance as two medics came on board with a Koala in a suit.

Joe and Gwen did a double take. "Sir! I didn't know you were up here...I..." They both started to say.

"Don't worry Captain Williams, First Officer Cooper. Congratulations by the way," Gwen blushed. "I have been briefed on the situation. I just happened to be having a few days off in Port Douglas up the coast. I was mid-round on the Sheraton Mirage when Op's alerted me to the situation. I took a chopper down to see Mr. Ruatha personally -- got here five minutes before you landed."

He turned and extended his hand to Ruth. "John, John James, Mr. Ruatha. Deputy director of Air Tangara. Friends call me J J before you laugh."

Ruth smiled. "Better call me Ruth then."

John smiled. "Now about your trip, I must apologise about the inconvenience..."

Ruth held his hand up to stop him. "John look, I am quite happy with the arrangements your company has agreed to, if you hold to them nothing more needs to be said."

"Hmmph, well, we have a limo waiting for you when you are patched up. Your plane to Singapore should be waiting for you when you return. You sure you want the same crew?" He gestured towards Janice, who was now sitting upright, still with Ruth's hand on her shoulder.

"Yes, that is part of the deal for my silence. I have given all the crew here my contact details...They will inform me if you try and break the deal..." Ruth said ominously.

"Yes, well of course...I will ensure that we keep to our end of the bargain then..."

"And I will keep mine..."

He turned to the medics. "Now, Kyle there needs stitches in his foot-paw. I got all the glass out. Janice needs her shoulder patched up. Use sterile cotton stitches, not tag adhesive on them, as they need to hold until they get back to Sydney. They will need a thorough shower to get rid of the blood from their fur before then. Which one of you has the kit I need?"

The wombat medic raised a hand. "Right you deal with them," he directed the other, "Can you come over here to the table? I will need a hand," Ruth asked the wombat, dismissing John as he walked over to the workstation.

John paused with his mouth open, and then turned to Joe, beckoning him to follow him into the jet's kitchen. Ruth heard talking coming from around the partition, but no raised voices, so he sat, extending his tail out flat in front of him. "What's your name mate?" He asked the medic.

"Clive, sir."

"Right Clive, you need to take the damaged ridge and staple it back to the underlying cartilage there. I will hold it position while you do it, it won't hurt me. It's the soft tissue around it that's causing me my pain problems." Ruth laughed, to ease the wombat's obvious nerves. "I won't bite you know..."

Clive grinned, and went to work with Ruth guiding him in his movements. The staples were fixed and Ruth tested the ridge for movement. It was solid. "Right, now, if you can you just apply a pressure bandage around it to stop it from snagging...the scales should regrow around it within a week. Did you manage to get me that acrylate glue?"

"Yes, sir."

"In that case can you run it into the fracture lines in my head horn, then spray the activator on? Don't breathe the fumes, they're cyanide. I will file it smooth when it sets fully." Ruth knelt and presented his head to Clive so he could reach it.

Clive applied the glue carefully to the visible cracks, watching it as it ran in. Then, he activated it, causing a crackling and bubbling sound, and a cloud of white gas to drift up from around the horn as it set. Ruth picked up a piece of the shattered mirror and examined the result. "Good, that should hold until it regrows fully."

He walked back in to the bedroom and grabbed his talon file, slipping it into the inside pocket on his jacket. He walked over to Janice, who was wincing as the medic re-strapped her shoulder. "When the new plane arrives, you go and get a good shower. You will feel much better for it. Get the tear mats out off your face fur as well." He smiled, bending and planting a long kiss on the side of her muzzle, lifting her chin and staring into her eyes. "Everything will be alright, you'll see."

Janice nodded, "Thank you..." she whispered.

"Now there's a good doggy!" He patted her between her ears, and neatly avoided the swipe she tried to give him with her free hand, laughing as a smile appeared on her face. "See you in a few hours."

Ruth walked towards the plane door, and John came out of the crew area with Joe. Joe was smiling, so he knew that for the time being things were going as agreed.

"You leaving for your meeting now, Ruth?" John asked.

"Yes, it should take about three to four hours. I think the offices are in the commercial district."

"The limo driver should know...he's a local."

"Good, now, something else emerged from that little crisis...Gwen should back me up on this as well. Janice has already got her commercial pilot's licence, and her light aircraft instructor's qualifications. Maybe when she is recovered you can consider training her to be the second female pilot in your team."

Janice gasped behind him, and Ruth smiled. Joe looked nonplussed as well.

John turned to Gwen. "True?" he queried.

"Bankstown, about two years ago from what she said," Gwen confirmed.

John shook his head. "Well, I am sure we can check on it, if she cleared for active..."

"Ahem!" Ruth warned.

"Ah...yes...When she is cleared for active duties again," John quickly corrected, a little flustered at being backed into a hole. "We would be happy of course to gain another female pilot..."

Ruth turned and winked at Janice, happy to see her smile again. "Well, in that case I am sure that as long as you can keep your ground staff quiet, nothing more needs to be said on the matter..."

"No...nothing at all...Erm, Mr. Ruatha..."

"Yes, John?"

"If you ever find yourself in need of a job yourself..."

"I am quite happy handling inanimate cargo, John...I will leave the talking cargo to you!" Ruth laughed. "I will keep your offer in mind though, thank you."

John laughed, relaxing a little. "Well and good, Ruth. I am just glad this happened to someone that could handle it this way. You are very good at handling people, you know."

"So I have been told J J, maybe our paths will cross again in the future..."

"Maybe they will, maybe they will Ruth. Now, I believe you will be late if you don't catch that limo."

"I will hop to it now. Thank you again, now you get back to your golf..."

"Good luck with the meeting."

"Thank you, and good luck with your golf..." Ruth strolled out the door and headed down the steps to the limo. Gwen had exited before him and was at the bottom, talking to member of ground staff.

"Ruth..."

"Yes, Gwen?"

"We need to talk about Janice before you come on board the new flight...I think we may have a problem..."

"Oh?"

Gwen glanced as John appeared at the top of the steps, shaking his hand with Joe. "I will tell you when you come back," she said. "Nothing to worry about, I hope,"

Ruth felt the steps shake as John stepped onto them. "Very well...I will try and catch you then..." He paused. "Gwen thank you for helping me with her...I suggest that you help shower her clean, you could do with getting rid of the tear mats and sweat yourself..." He wrinkled his snout to the best of his ability.

Gwen laughed at the implied olfactory insult, and he walked over to the waiting limo, stepping in as the driver opened the door. "Northern offices of Austran please," he glanced at his watch. "I need to be there in twenty minutes."

"No problem sir, they are only ten kilometers away." The driver said as he hopped into the seat.

Ruth sat back and retrieved his phone, opening the email and starting as he realised it was from Amy, not Jessica...

Come home as soon as you can Ruth. Jessica is very unhappy, and I can't bring her out of her fugg. I think she needs you... Yours with concern. Amy.

'Shit, now what...' Ruth thought as the limo pulled off.

"Will do, should be home in about 40 hours, with luck. Try and lift her mood for me. Yours with thanks. Ruth." He typed, and sat back, trying to clear his head enough for the meeting ahead...

****

The limo pulled up outside Austran's offices. They were modern in design, with a glass front overlooking a small landscaped pool. Ruth waited until the driver jumped out and opened his door, before getting out onto the paving in front of pair of automatic sliding doors.

"Thank you. How do I make a call for transport back to the airport?" Ruth queried the driver.

"No need sir, I have instructions to wait. Just come out of the door here and wave, and I will spot you. I will be parked over there." He gestured at the car-park on the other side of the pool.

"Very well, I should be no more than a few hours."

"Good luck with the meeting sir."

"Does everyone know why I am here?" Ruth asked, exasperated.

"You are the third European to be dropped off by our company here in two days sir...you are the first to arrive on a private jet though... Not pre-booked either. We only got the call for you about thirty minutes before your plane landed. We are the only company in Cairns that do limos, the other two only had our taxis pre-booked."

"Check with your offices then, you may find my office had a taxi booked too...Tangara must have upgraded my car because of the problems I faced." Ruth gestured at his tail.

"Ah, will do sir, I will radio the office when I park up."

"What's your name, mate?"

"Mate? Sorry...Oh, ah, we use blue here now sir...Mate is only used between couples to avoid confusion in public. Sir."

"Ooops, thanks for that tip...so blue," Ruth rolled the unfamiliar affectation off his tongue. "What is your name?"

"Gerald, sir."

"Well Gerald, bit of inside information then...did my competition look happy as they left?"

"They were both quiet on the ride back to the airport. Sir." Gerald kept his face straight, but winked as he looked towards the doors, and the receptionist clearly visible through them.

Ruth glanced quickly, and spotted the watcher. "Ah, of course...well, thank you for your help, and I will see you in a bit," Ruth finished, and shook Gerald's hand, before turning and walking towards the doors.

Ruth greeted the receptionist. "Good afternoon, I have an appointment to see a Mr. Clyde Everidge at three o'clock."

"Your name and company ah... Sir?"

"I am Mr. Ruth Ruatha, representing Overland Express from London."

"Yes, ah we were expecting a female sir..." she glanced at the clock, recovering smoothly from the error. "Please take a seat over there, sir. I will let him know you have arrived."

"Thank you, I get that a lot. Do you have a washroom? I need to attend to my damaged horn."

"Yes, over there sir." She gestured at a plain door in the wall, "Do you need help with that and your tail?"

"No, the medics came to the plane, but the horn glue needed to go off fully. We hit some dead air on the way up from Sydney, and I was standing at the time in the lounge...got thrown around a bit, nothing serious." Ruth reassured her, and then walked across the marble lobby into the washroom.

"Bugger me!" he exclaimed. The second privacy door opened onto an anti-chamber, tiled in chequered pale green and blue ceramic pattern. Large stone sinks hung suspended from the walls, in front of full width mirrors, and large fluffy white towels hung on rails over chromed radiators to either side of the sinks. Another door in the wall led to the sanitary facilities, and another had a shower icon on it. "These guys are rather plush," he muttered, approaching the sinks.

Ruth pulled the file from his pocket and quickly removed the excess glue from his horn, where it was showing white, then filed off the rough edges. He then pulled a small disk of wet and dry sandpaper from his toiletries in his carry pouch, dampened it in the sink, and polished the surface back to a gleaming black. He stood back and tilted his head, checking for any flat bits in the reflection. "It'll pass until I get back to the manicurist..." he grunted, packing the file and paper away.

He rinsed the filings down the drain, and then quickly stepped into the facilities and relieved himself, before splashing a little water in his face to liven himself up. He walked back out into the lobby, to observe a Kangaroo standing by the reception desk in a suit.

"Ah Mr. Ruatha. It's Clyde, Clyde Everidge. Sorry to hear you had a rough trip..." The roo walked over and extended his hand.

Ruth gripped it strongly in a shake. "It's Ruth, Mr. Everidge...I don't hold on formalities amongst acquaintances in the same industry."

Clyde smiled, "Well in that case it's Clyde then, Ruth..." He paused laughing. "You know it's going to be hard not laughing every time I call you by a sheila's name."

Ruth laughed with him and they headed towards the elevator. "I promise I have heard them all, and I will take no offence...I am afraid my parents were scholars in Celtic history, and named me after an old king from a few thousand years ago."

"Well in that case, we will get get along fine. It's nice to meet someone with a sense of humour."

"I find that if you can't laugh at your parents foibles, well, you will always end up being the butt of all the jokes. It could be worse, I could have ended up a Shirley like the eighties, gorilla wrestler!"

"Bugger me, you could have!" Clyde laughed, slapping Ruth on the back, the ice well and truly broken. Ruth winced.

"Crikey blue...you all right?"

"Yes fine, I explained to the receptionist...The plane hit some dead air on the way from Sydney, I got thrown around a bit. Just bruises, but I hope you don't want a flying demonstration, my wing elbow hit something hard..." Ruth brushed off the concern.

"Nah, we know what you dragons can do, just never met one before over here...That's why we want to form an alliance with you Europeans. You Pommes are the only only ones to send a real live dragon though. The French sent a bloody goat, and the Germans a pig! They can't even drive properly, never mind fly!"

The elevator opened onto a hallway on the fourteenth floor. A Tasmanian devil sat behind a desk wearing lipstick and eyeshadow. Ruth stifled a grin at the sight.

"Oh that's Sue, she's my receptionist, and yes she does rather like to highlight her gender...Bloody Americans seem to think her kind only come as blokes." Clyde laughed, encouraging Ruth to laugh openly. Sue looked up and made a moue, then smiled, obviously in on the joke.

They walked past the desk, and two large myrtle doors opened automatically as Sue pressed a button, admitting them to Clyde's office. A huge goldfield burr slab acted as Clyde's desk, with Banksia nut pen and stationary holders on the surface, and a keyboard slide underneath. A pair of slimline forty-two inch, LCD monitors were mounted on the wall, either side of the doors they had just walked through. Two, well padded, shagreen office chairs were situated on either side of the desk. The wall beyond the desk was clear glass, and overlooked the coral sea, small flashes from the coral sand bars sparkling above the azure waters in the sun.

Clyde walked over to a large blue globe, gesturing at the chair nearest the door. "Take a seat Ruth...Drink?"

"Just fresh orange, if you have one." Ruth said, sliding his tail through the opening in the back of chair. The texture of the shagreen gently plucked at his scales. He sat and shuffled as the linen trousers caught and held on the micro scales.

Clyde opened the globe's top, then poured a fresh juice for Ruth and a soda water for himself, walking over to the desk, and taking a seat on the window side. He slid the glass to Ruth on a coaster. "It's refrigerated, just little perk for appearances sake..." He gestured at the globe.

"Right, down to business. I assume you have been briefed about why you are here..."

"Yes," Ruth took a sip of the orange juice. "Overland Express are the biggest, internal flight orientated same day couriers in the UK. We have our head offices in London, and twelve regional offices situated around the UK and Ireland. I work for the North West office which covers Liverpool and Manchester. The position I hold is the manager of the Cheshire division. We have strong affiliations with Eurotime on the continent as well. We run a fleet of road vehicles ranging from bikes up to forty-four tonne trailer. We also have container skellies.

"At current staffing levels we employ 137 western dragons across the twelve regions, but mostly in the urban conurbations. They specialise in traffic avoidance, express deliveries within towns and cities. They have a general lift and carry ability of sixty kilos only though. Inter city long distance is handled via the road network, with generally only the last twenty city miles covered by air. Dragons have a maximum cruising air speed of around eighty mph, so vehicle transport is quicker over long distance. We also have around forty lighter avians, for light package and letter delivery." Ruth paused and took another sip of the juice.

"Overland Express have established vetting and recruitment procedures within the UK offices. All candidates on aerial work duty are strength and endurance tested at interview stage. When injuries occur, in general if they have the appropriate aptitude the staff are retrained for road duties. On less urgent parcels and pallets, we use the well established forty-eight hour delivery network, Parcdel.

"Overland Express currently have options available on 12,000 bonded square foot on the Airpark at Manchester, and 120,000 bonded square foot, in Bootle, Liverpool. Do you have any questions?"

"Yes." Clyde made some notes on his keyboard, the information scrolling onto the wall screens behind Ruth. "How do you propose to aid in the streamlining of our operations here, down under?"

"Overland Express proposes taking offices near to your own centre of operation in Canberra. We would employ local experienced staff, associated with your Austran. To aid the streamlining efficiencies we would import senior management on a six-month visa rota, who are familiar with the abilities and management of avians."

"We have a shortage of large, available avian workforce here in Aus. How do you propose to make up that shortfall?"

"We aim to recruit English speakers from the UK and Europe, vet them, and then encourage emigration to Australia where needed. With positions confirmed and available, and sponsorship by Austran, immigration status should be available as an option for those that wish to settle. There is currently no shortage of Western Dragon and the larger Eagle species within our countries. We also propose to look to the Orient, for the lighter inter-city package transfer staff which Eastern dragons can handle."

"Do you have contacts within the Orient?"

"Not at present."

"Hmmph...we have." Clyde said. "How do you propose to solve the distance issues we have here?"

"Dragons --and most large Avians-- have range issues when carrying, so we would have to use whatever intercontinental system you currently use, with the exception that you will no longer need to fight city traffic. I would also recommend the use of light aircraft for distances over 600 miles, as I believe most of your larger towns have airfields. Air couriers could rendezvous with the aircraft for final delivery point."

"Can Overland Express handle the volume of export we are proposing?"

"Yes, with the expansion of our northwest office."

"Where you are situated?"

"Where I will be relocated to, if I am successful here. I am currently head of operations in Cheshire, a sub-division of northwest office."

"Would you not be interested in relocating to Canberra?"

"Not at present...I have family commitments, and the northwest office director will require me to help with any expansion of his office." Ruth smiled. "I am quite happy of course to go where my company wants me...including helping with any set up in Canberra, as I am currently the most senior avian in Overlands organisation."

"That's good...I would want to work with you if the board approves..." A bell sounded on his desk. "Excuse me. Yes Sue?"

"Sir, your afternoon repast is here, would Mr. Ruatha like a sandwich?" Sue said, over a hidden intercom.

"Ruth?"

Ruth glanced at the clock...it was four-thirty and his stomach rumbled. "Well I think my stomach just answered that for you." he grinned sheepishly. "What is available?"

"I recommend the crocodile slice for meat eaters." Clyde laughed.

"In that case, a crocodile slice sounds good to me..." Ruth agreed.

"Send a couple of croc slices in for Ruth please Sue," Clyde spoke into the hidden mic.

"They will be up shortly sir." A click sounded.

"Right, back to the subject in hand...I have one more concern to see tomorrow, and then I will put the matter before the board. Now, do you have any questions for us?"

A chime sounded, and the doors opened. A sheep rolled a trolley through with two silver salvers on top. He presented one to Clyde and one to Ruth, then left without saying anything. The doors gently closed behind him.

"Another juice Ruth?" Clyde asked.

"Yes, thank you."

Clyde walked back over the globe and poured another juice, and then a soda with a splash of whisky for himself this time. "You sure you don't want anything stronger?"

"No, no, I am afraid I didn't get much sleep due to the incident, and if I drink anything, I will fall asleep here at your desk." He grinned.

Clyde laughed. "Well that's a mark up for honesty! Go ahead and eat up, they taste better warm."

Ruth opened his salver, and was presented with the sight of two twelve inch long subs, piled high with a pale grey meat, a few pieces of salad, and a strong sauce. Clyde opened his, and Ruth observed it was just a plain salad with relishes.

He took a bite of the sub and leaned back in pleasure. "Oh, that's different to what I've had before.."

"Yes, I am led to believe that the meat is quite unique...the grub sauce is rather tangy as well."

"Grub sauce?" Ruth looked uneasy.

"Yes, the sauce is made from witchetty grubs. Spices up salads as well." Clyde made a show of dipping a carrot stick into one of his relish pots, then biting the end off before chewing and swallowing, his eyes never leaving Ruth's.

'Oh well...in for a penny...' Ruth took another large bite of his sub, telling his stomach not to reject what he was eating. His taste buds overrode his mind though, and he decided that the taste was rather pleasing. "It is a rather acquired one, but very good..." he said licking his lips.

Clyde smiled. "Please continue if you have any questions for us while eating...I don't hold on formalities, so ask between mouthfuls, and I will have no objections."

"Fair enough...How much did you pay the umpires to win the last 'Dusties' series?" Ruth said with a straight face.

"What...?" Then Clyde started laughing, realising that he was the butt of a joke. "You pomme bugger... we won that fair and square, even with your cheating little bastards using South Africans on your team!"

"Touche," Ruth laughed, and the two of then traded English/Aussie insults in increasing frequency for the next twenty minutes until the meal was finished.

"Right enough!" Clyde said, laughing and sliding the salver to the side of the desk. "Now we really must get back down to business."

Ruth smiled, and placed his salver on top of Clyde's. "Well, I only came up with two questions."

"Go on."

"Why do you want Overland Express to fund your streamlining operation?"

"In what way do you mean that?"

"That the export of super visionary personnel for the initial access and implement would be at Overland's expense, as would the establishment of an office."

"But Overland would be gaining a contract worth many millions..."

"Which on a standard sixty day payment term, would mean an initial outlay of around 750 thousand pounds, without the upgrading of our UK operations. And that is just to get us up and running here in Aus...What I would like to propose is a fifty-fifty split in the costs of the initial set-up here, your half recoverable in kind from the payable cargo deliveries. Banks are not exactly sympathetic to expansion programs in the UK at the moment."

"That, I would have to discuss with the board...I couldn't commit to anything of that kind at this stage, but I see your point." Clyde made some more notes. "What was the other query?"

"If Austran wish to opt on Overland...have you considered using Speke/Liverpool John Lennon airport, rather than Manchester. Landing fees are cheaper, and so is the property around the air park. It also has the advantage of being in much closer proximity to Liverpool, therefore the sea and air operations could be combined."

"What are their landing capacities?"

"Runway is certified up to 747's, but not A380's, however I don't think anyone runs them as cargo as of yet. It could offer a good saving on your air operations..."

"As with your storage and transport..." They looked at each other, waiting for the other to blink first.

Clyde sighed, and typed some more notes. "You drive a hard, but fair bargain Mr. Ruatha. I will put the suggestion to the board along with your pitch."

"That was all I could hope for Mr. Everidge." Ruth finished.

Clyde stood, and extended his hand across the desk. "I hope that I will have the opportunity to work with you Ruth. As it stands, Overland will be my recommendation to the board on Friday."

Ruth smiled and stood, gripping Clyde's hand and shaking it over the desk. "That is all I could wish for...I look forward to the opportunity to develop our friendship."

"Too right blue..." Clyde laughed. "Now, what time do you have to be back at the airport?"

"Well I have a charter on hold, and the driver is waiting in the car-park..."

"Surely you have time for a drink and maybe a game of pool?"

"Pool?"

"Yes, we have a games room, and that shouldn't stretch you muscles too much..."

"I can't see any harm in a few frames...Give me chance to hold old Blighty's end up."

"No chance blue...you have no chance!" Clyde laughed, pressing a hidden button and the office doors opened. He led them towards the elevator, past Sue, but turned left, pushing through another door.

They entered the games room, and Clyde strolled over to the pool table and began racking the balls. Ruth followed and picked up a cue from the rack, sighting down it for straightness, then applying chalk.

"Toss for break," Clyde said, holding up a dollar piece.

"Queen's for me please."

"Of course." Clyde tossed, and the piece landed and spun, landing head up. Clyde laughed and threw the white at him.

Ruth caught it and cued off...

Five frames later, Clyde sunk the black to clinch a three frames to two win. "Right that's it I'm afraid. I believe I have imposed on your hospitality --and my driver's-- long enough." Ruth indicated the clock which was reading six-thirty p.m. "If I stay any longer, you will end up with a snoring dragon on your couch..."

Clyde laughed and held his hands up..."Very well, but I look forward to a re-match soon?"

"So do I...blue, my fellow countrymen would demand it!" Ruth laughed, using the new affectation for the first time.

"Of course! Here, let me show you down to the lobby." Clyde led Ruth back to the elevator, and then across the lobby to the front doors. Gordon spotted them, and drove the limo around the turning circle, pulling up and jumping out, holding the door open for Ruth.

"Well, until we meet again Ruth." Clyde held his hand out again with a smile.

"Until me meet again, Clyde." Ruth shook, and then turned, easing himself back into the car.

Gordon closed the door, and returned to the drivers seat, pulling away from the curb. "Went well sir?"

"It went very well. Thank you Gordon."

"That's good sir. Would you like to eat before returning to the airport?"

"No, I ate with Clyde. Just take me back to the plane please."

"As you wish, sir."

Ruth sat back, relaxing in contentment and watching the strange architecture drift by, going into a semi-doze, until the limo pulled back up next to a plane on the apron. "Here sir," Gordon said.

"Thank you Gordon," he pulled twenty pounds out of his carry pouch. "Here you go, I am afraid I haven't had time to get some Aussie money..."

"No problem sir, I will exchange it. Thank you." He jumped out the drivers seat, and held Ruth's door as Gwen came down the planes steps to greet him.

Ruth questioned her with his eyes, and she nodded. "Mr. James extends his regrets that he couldn't wait for your return, but everything is in order as requested Mr. Ruatha." Gwen said.

"Thank you, Gwen. I will settle and sleep all the way to Singapore." He turned and shook Gordon's hand, then followed Gwen up the steps...