Surely By Now It Must Be Saturday

Surely by now it must be Saturday.

It is.

And where is everyone?

Let us recap.

Gaius and Dr Yates are in Alice Springs, getting ready to drive to the Alcoota dig in Dr Yates's Jeep, expecting to meet Arthur, Ageless, Baby Pierre, Ouvert and Lavender there ( but not the Sapphires) and to see once again the hired bicycle (without a flat tyre).

Baby Pierre, Ouvert, Lavender and the Sapphires are at the side of the Plenty Highway, just out of Gemtree, with Gaius's hired bicycle (with a flat tyre) and Arthur's water and snacks, (of which little remains) and One Thousand and One Arabian Nights, a book that belongs to Ageless, but that he left behind when he needed to find somewhere to moult. They are waiting for Gaius and Dr Yates to turn up in the Jeep.

Ageless is in the Gemtree Caravan Park billabong, having just finished moulting, enjoying a last feast of spangled grunters, before emerging to take leave of his new friend the thorny devil called Moloch, and join up once again with Arthur to continue their journey to Alcoota.

Arthur is about to leave the Gemtree Caravan Park on foot, with nothing but a friendship bracelet and the glittering knife, hoping to catch up with his ex friend and lover Paul Verlaine and exact some revenge for the hysterical shooting that took place a long time ago but has not been forgotten.

Paul Verlaine is heading back to Gemtree Caravan Park with his wife Mathilde, in their hired jeep, in spite of  

misgivings. He has no idea that Arthur is there.

It will be interesting to see who meets up with who.

And who misses who.

And one more thing will be interesting.

Wasn't everyone ( except Ouvert and Lavender, and of course Paul Verlaine) there to look for a Claw?