Rhiannon - Dragonrider

Chapter Three - A Fight in the Clouds

For the next couple of days, it rained pretty much non-stop and, for most of the time, we were shut up in that depressing hostel. We did manage a rainy visit to a local 'Museum of Highland Life' which left me with the distinct impression that life up here a hundred years ago must have been pretty grim. I mean... it was bleak enough in summer. In winter it must be really dreadful.

But at last the rain stopped and the sky was blue and shiny and kind of decorated with little, white clouds as the gaggle of excited, chattering girls trooped down to the harbour for what was supposed to be a highlight of our week... a boat trip along the coast.

And I suppose I was looking forward to it too. I mean... after being shut up in that miserable hostel for so long, you'd look forward to pretty much anything!

"Are you quite sure it's safe?" Droopy asked the old fisherman when we reached the boat.

I looked at Megan but didn't bother saying anything. It was another of those 'just not worth the aggravation' situations.

"I've been fishing these waters for the better part of fifty years and I haven't lost a boat yet," he said in his funny highland accent... and you could just about see he was grinning behind his bushy white beard.

"And it's not going to be too rough for the girls?"

"It'll be a wee bit choppy just out beyond the breakwater but it should settle down once we get round the headland. Ye'll be fine, when you get used to it."

Droopy didn't look all that convinced but you could see her sort of bracing herself and she took the hand he was offering and let him help her down into the boat.

I mean... she still looked pretty worried but she called us all on down anyway.

It was an old fishing boat that had been fitted out for tourist trips. There was a little half cabin thing towards the bow which had windows to the front and sides but was open to the rear. The fisherman stepped onto the side of the boat then kind of jumped up to sit on its roof looking back at the rows of benches behind him and waited patiently as the girls trooped on down the gangplank.

"Grab yourselves a seat," he told us and, once everybody had found a place, he started reading out a sheet of safety instructions in a bored voice. Of course, when he started going on about life jackets, Mary Jane did this stupid squealing thing.

I mean... I know I'd been thinking, 'Don't be so pathetic!' but I didn't think I'd said it out loud... saying stuff like that is just more grief than it's worth

But I must have done because the guy gave me a bit of a grin.

"Right," he said, when he was done, "now that bit's over, we can get going. Today, we're going to be heading up the coast towards Seistethy Draig. I don't know whether I'll be able to take us through the Maw – that's the passage between the stack and the cliffs up there - I'll have to have a look at how the tide's running when we get there. I'll stay as close in to the cliffs as I can, so you should be able to get a great view of the birds. I hope you've got your binoculars with you."

"Are we allowed to get up and move around?" Claire asked.

"You can go anywhere you like except back by the engine gear," he said, nodding towards the back of the boat. "You can even come into the cabin to see what I'm up to but no more than two at a time, please."

"I'm not moving from this seat," Barbara said emphatically. She already looked pretty pale. The old fisherman thought that was pretty funny but didn't bother saying anything.

He jumped down onto the deck, stepped into the little cabin and started the engine. "Cast off!" he shouted to his mate who was still on the quayside. The mate released the ropes and jumped aboard.