The Nighttime Clutch {Dael x Showoff}

[neeuqtar]

((BTW SYMPHY RAWIGN IS NOT ESCAPING))


Hurry hurry babies Hatch! Dael's voice cut into Uu'n's mind eagerly. The young man was perched on Adith, trying to 'surf' on the dragon's back, standing where he would usually sit. Needless to say, it was very difficult, and the duo were very glad for the catch-straps tied to Uu'n's waist. Better take us down, Uu'n sighed to Adith, and the dragon drifted down happily enough, for it was near dawn. Mind telling the Weyr? Uu'n asked impishly, knowing the dragon would get a hint of pleasure from waking the Weyr at such an early hour.

All! The salamandyr Clutch is Hatching at this moment in the stables. All interested, make your way there quickly. Uu'n laughed, then finished disentangling himself from the straps, unbuckling Adith so the dragon could have a quick hunt before the dawn struck in an hour or so. I'm sure you'll have many thankful applicants, the dragon snickered, before launching, straps caught in his talons. Adith chucked the straps onto his weyrledge with remarkable accuracy as Uu'n jogged to the stables. Daeluunya would not be thankful if he wasn't there.

Look! Beauty beauty they, Dael trilled cheerfully at Uu'n, moving her body to the side to show the Clutch of seventeen. Already two eggs rocked... both the Midnight Egg and the Sunset Egg were in eager motion...

---

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Dael x bronze Showoff :: Nighttime Clutch

[/size]
17 eggs[/center]

Dawn Sisters Egg: Pale pinks on one end, shading through violet into midnight blue on the other, this egg is stunningly beautiful. Faintly striated, it looks like the beautiful beginning of a sunrise, and Dael keeps it dark-end up. Three pure white dots in a triangle mark it about 2/3 of the way up, closely gathered together, just like the Dawn Sisters that haunt the Southern skies.

Midnight Egg: Pitch black and mottled with purple, this egg could almost be a bruise in the sand. Yawning emptiness, it is a rather creepy-looking egg among the more mysterious ones, and almost entirely swallowed up by the sand, as if Dael tried to bury it, or keep it out of sight. Very vocal, the salamandyr within this dark and dreary egg constantly shifts about and ‘talks’ at its mother, the chirps and sound of shifting sand no indication of Hatching, but merely of life in the void.

Howler’s Cry Egg: This egg is one of the eeriest in the Clutch. Pale blue, and gleaming like strange metal, this egg looks heavy, as if carved out of blue-tinged lead. The luster of it goes to touch—velvety soft but utterly smooth, touching this egg is like touching vellum. But if you look closely, there is a shape—no, more a shadow of a shape, elusive and brooding—a howler, muzzle tilted up towards the sky to raise its voice in lonely, melancholy song. And at the edge of hearing, there seems almost to be the echo of its howl… or is that the howl of a beast far out in the jungle?

Nighthawk Egg: A surprise among the darker eggs is this one, pale tan in color. It looks almost painted, with a pattern much like the feathers of a nighthawk brushing across its surface, though the illusion of texture I just that: an illusion. It seems almost to wait, poised to strike at any moment, with an air of intense watching which can be very unnerving at times. It is directly upright and near the edge of the Clutch, as if a sentinal for the small group of eggs

Twin Moon Egg: This egg is utterly black, save for two brilliantly pale orbs hovering in rings of fading yellow, like the twin moons hanging above Pern. Careful examination proves them to be not-quite-full, just very gibbous, which is curious, and the faint difference will be enough to drive to very observant to madness. This egg leans against the Midnight Egg haphazardly, as if it was drunk and about to fall over.

Sunset Egg: Very similar to the First Ray of Rukbat Egg, this egg is vibrantly colored with washes of yellow, orange, red, purple… every color which touches the sky in the most brilliant sunset is layered and blended across this egg, with the dark bellies of clouds scudding purple across the paler, brighter colors. If an egg could seem evil, however, it would be this one, with a menacing sense of purpose and distaste for everyone and everything around it.

Wildcat Egg: Tan-yellow and spotted with black, this egg looks as if it was painted in the design of one of the many wild felines which roam the jungle around Selenitas Weyr. Almost silly-looking in the patterning, it doesn’t truly look natural, though the coloration is completely enough. It lurks behind the Starry Egg, as if it can hide its brilliant coloration and somehow blend into the night.

Starry Egg: Clear violet-blue, this egg is sprinkled with motes of silver-white, spangling the egg in no apparent order, merely speckles scattered across the egg. It is very pretty, but compared to some of the other eggs, quite a dull egg, with no intrigue at all about it. Indeed, this egg is far more similar to a painting by a small child, the stars merely glitter tossed onto wet paint by a small hand—pretty, but unassuming. Beloved by someone at one point, but forgotten by the maker and really nothing special by itself.

Witching Hour Egg: Perhaps the strangest egg in the Clutch, the Witching Hour Egg is splashed, whirled, and mottled in hues of intense color that seem unnatural—hideous vibrant green, strange roiling purple, shockingly brilliant red, ugly mustard, disgusting mottled brown. It is neither a happy, nor a pretty egg, and it leaves one with a sense of intense discomfort and a feeling of something that should not be, something beyond understanding.

First Ray of Rukbat Egg: Pale metallic blue, like the pre-dawn sky in the depths of winter, this egg is eerily beautiful. A lancing ray of lilac-pink shoots across the egg, fanning out into a wider ray of softest yellow before vanishing into the blue. This egg seems to promise the dawn, an end to the darkest night and the mystery of the evening. A restful and cheerful egg, it is certain that the salamandyr within is a pleasant and joyful creature, no matter the color!

Darkness Egg: This egg lacks any coloration at all, dully soaking in the light into the matte blackness of this egg. As dark as a black hole, with no light escaping, it seems to be a yawning pit in the Clutch, and only the Aurora Borealis Egg dares to come near to it. Though a pitifully tiny egg, the eye is still drawn to the blackness of the egg, entirely complete and encompassing. It sits deep in the sand, with the tiny grains oddly swirled around it, as if in a halo, pulled towards the impossible gravity of this egg.

Aurora Borealis Egg: Lances of green, blue, pink, and pale violet dance together across the darker blue of this egg, in rolling ribbons and twisting dancers, as if the spirits of spring danced across the crisp winter skies, bringing brilliance to the night’s sky and a beautiful form of day to the sleeping land. This egg is very near to the Darkness Egg, as if it could cast light into the black depth of the other, and is among the smallest of the eggs in the Clutch.

Red Star Egg: Gray and deep violet-blue whirl together in a maelstrom of clouds, thunderheads building up and crashing down in the forerunner to a terrible storm. Against the roiling dark cloudiness of this egg winks a malevolent red spot, balefully glaring from within a curtain of gray cloud. Dark shadows jut up from the base, framing the Red Star and marking the silver Fall. Sitting dead center to the Clutch, this egg is sat carefully atop the sand, barely indented in it, but unless salamandyr eggs are very different from dragon eggs, it is not a queen egg, for no sheen of gold touches the disturbing surface of this egg.

Flamefly Egg: Dark green is the base tone of this egg, with vertical striations, almost like a meadow at night. In and among the “grass” float tiny orbs of light, blinking and flickering across the egg, flameflies dancing in the warm summer evening. This egg is lying on its side, as if to give a panoramic view, and seems to be a peaceful and restful sort of egg, almost exuding harmony and laziness.

Adith’s Egg, or Night Sky Egg: A forest of green blotches at the bottom of this egg stretches up into a midnight sky. Pale specks mark the egg, and two slivers of yellow-white could be the twin moons of Pern. Spread across the darkness is a darker silver-blue, almost in the shape of a dragon soaring above the jungle forest. Cheekily, Uu’n has named it for his own dragon, though Dael didn’t seem to agree, giving it a name of her own…

Watchful Eyes Egg: Sitting off to the side of the clutch, this egg is a shadowy shade, darkened silver as if set in a corner of some room. But, just off to the side and the bottom are two spots of golden yellow color that darken to nearly black on the insides, appearing almost like eyes, watchful, waiting... No matter where you stand to look at the egg, it seems like you are being watched by these eyes, and even when you back away they still follow you, an unblinking stare.

Constellation Egg: Most of this egg is the color of night, the color of the space between the sky between the stars, inky indigo, yet there is more to this shell than just that... All over the shell seem to be splatters of color, white and gold and palest cream, all of various sizes, some alone and some bunched together. If one were to look closely, they would be able to recognize that many of these 'stars' make patterns, oddly echoing those of the constellations seen in the night sky. A person could spend all day looking at this egg, just as they would lay out under the night sky and watch the stars in the heavens above.

[glamourie]

Hatch, hatch, hatch! Up! Go hatch! Go hatch!

"Gruhh.. for the love of --"

Showoff sat on K'lir's chest, quite pointedly displaying at the greenrider as he stirred in his furs. His eyes were closed and one hand rose to his face to clasp against his cheekbone, his hand covering his eye completely. He groaned and squirmed backwards, trying his best to ignore the excited chattering of the Salamandyr on his chest. Fortunately for him, Calistoth and Trouble were asleep, dead to the world, curled up and unlikely to stir any time soon. Though in the past few sevendays Calistoth had finally accepted Showoff, it was not necessarily the ambition of K'lir to deal with them both at once. They were both extremely demanding creatures and he frankly felt close to exploding whenever they disagreed. Thank Faranth for wine, or he probably would have at some point.

All! The salamandyr Clutch is Hatching at this moment in the stables. All interested, make your way there quickly.

Jolting upright, K'lir blinked twice. Showoff tumbled down his chest and hissed his displeasure at suddenly being uprooted, but K'lir did not appear to notice as he looked around quickly as if to spot the source of the voice, when the actual statement clicked in his mind: Salamandyr clutch hatching. In other words, Dael. And Adith. And Uu'n. Wince.

K'lir slowly pulled himself to his feet and dressed, making a point to ignore the excited feelings washing over him. He attributed them entirely to Showoff, who was quite pleased with himself (despite the fact that K'lir had strongly considered drowning the salamandyr after he dared chase and actually catch Dael - hiss!) though in truth part of the excitement was his own. Showoff was as much his as Calistoth and he was theirs; some part of him felt... almost as if he was some kind of proud father. It was ridiculous, yes, but he couldn't help the elated feeling. Of course, his bubble was partially burst by the knowledge that he was going to see Uu'n, who he felt considerably awkward around. It was all Showoff's fault!

We go now! We go! Babies! Showoff proclaimed excitedly as he slithered up K'lir's leg, around his chest and then along his shoulder to settle right at the base of his neck, a reddish bronze blur against K'lir's tanned skin. The blood red of K'lir's hair matched the 'mandyr's colouring. We go!

Tuning out Showoff's excited chanting, K'lir made his way to the Stables, talking to himself the entire way - though he made it seem as though it was Showoff he was addressing and anyone passing by would not be any the wiser, or so he hoped. "I'm going here because it means so much to you and because you'd be there for me but let it be known I am coming in protest," he stated, giving the salamandyr a pointed look, though Showoff ignored him and continued to chant his excitement. He was well-aware of why his personthing was whining and didn't care; his babies were hatching! Hatching hatching! K'lir snorted and stepped into the stables. His arrival was only a few minutes after Uu'n's and he did not appear to notice the bluerider yet, still whispering nearly inaudibly to Showoff, "And do not expect me to speak to --"

And then he caught sight of Uu'n and blinked. Twice. Showoff jumped off his shoulder and scattered over toward Dael, but K'lir froze. It was hard not to; he didn't want to admit it but he rather liked what he saw, which was essentially Uu'n sweaty and shirtless. "-- Uu'n. Hi. Er." He blinked, then turned to Showoff as the bronze salamandyr bounced over neat Dael... though he gave her space enough that if she didn't want him close to the clutch she could express as much. "Showoff, if you get any more excitable..."

Beautiful Dael, Beautiful Clutch!

[kysseh]

After a mildly amused Dohulth and the mental 'shout roused him from what had been a lousy and restless sleep, K'von reluctantly peeked his nose out from under the covers. Why should he get up? It was so warm and comfortable beneath the... wait, salamandyrs?!

Curiosity got the better of him, and the brownrider reluctantly pulled himself from bed, throwing on an appropriate amount of clothes and running a hand through his already-tousled dark hair. He did have some sense of shame and flattened it into some sense of order, though he couldn't fix the hair that was flattened on the back of his head where it had rested on the pillow. Ah well.... it added class to his appearance, right?

After checking on Dohulth, who had already fallen asleep again, K'von made his way toward the stables, managing to not crash into anything along the way. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he made his way toward the other young men present, keeping a safe distance from the clutch so as not to upset the clutch mother.


Go see the pretty things! Raiyth insisted vehemently, picking her head up to give Hers a pathetic draconic expression. Curled up and very comfortable, the green weyrling was loathe to get up and head all the way to the stables to investigate the pretties, but Fiona surely could. Don't you want to go see the salamandyr things? Maybe you can get one, and then there can be three of us! Oooh, a girl! Maybe a girl?! We can be like three sisters!

Fiona, unable to resist the lure of hatching pretty things and desperately wanting to hush Raiyth's cheery babbling, was out of bed and in her clothes in under a minute, hopping toward the door whilst still pulling on a boot. Raiyth's amusement echoed through her mind as she headed toward the stables, and it was only when she arrived--after several other people, she noted--that she realized why. Her normally well-behaved curly hair was sticking out all about her head, and she blushed furiously as she tried to tame the mess. It was an exercise in futility, though, and she simply did the best she could before leaving it as it was. It wasn't like everyone else hadn't been asleep either. Surely someone else had similar bedhead!


Savitri, who had had her nose buried in her text and was reading up on the appropriate treatment of wounds received by contaminated blades, was appropriately startled by the abrupt announcement of a hatching. Hatching? Salamandyrs? With her mind still in 'healer' mode, it took a few seconds for her to register that 'salamandyrs' were like the impudent little thing that had accosted her in the head healer's office on her first day in the weyr. Charming.... she thought, sighing and rolling her eyes as she attempted to return to her studies in peace.

Curiosity and the need to get up and move--she had been sitting for far too long, she noted--finally drove her to investigate, though, and she got up out of her chair and slung her healer's bag over her shoulder, a precautionary measure she'd been taking since she became an apprentice. People were always getting hurt, and she hated being unprepared. If salamandyr hatchings were anything like the stories of dragon ones, she though it best to have a few bandages in hand, just in case.

She took her sweet time getting to the stables, in no particular hurry since she didn't expect the eggs would hatch within a minute anyway. She settled herself a safe distance away, content to just watch for the moment, feeling far more alert and conscious now that she had been up and moving for awhile. The junior greenweyrling nearby had terribly messy hair, which made the healer twitch the corners of her mouth up in a smile. Well, someone had just awakened, it seemed.

((Lousy post. Sorry. @_@ Taking painkillers for busted ankle, and my muses are all running away.))

[ryanne]

"Don't even think about going to that stupid hatching, you have work to do," Liassa's mother warned sleepily as Liassa jumped out of bed. She knew that look on her face; it was clear that the candidate had plans and it was going to be quite hard to deter her from them. But if anyone could do it, her mother could.

"What do you need me to do?" she asked, opening her eyes a bit wide. Liassa was prepared to do whatever she hadn't finished already and still make it to the hatching. She had heard about the hatching only seconds ago and she was determined to be included.

"Clean the empty weyr with the attached washroom," her mother ordered, confident that she had won.

"Finished."

Now that was surprising. She knew that her daughter worked quickly, but usually she didn't get around to cleaning the weyrs until a few days after she asked her to. "Fine then, the tubers need to be skinned and quartered."

"I finished that last night. It was part of my candidate chores."

"Did you replace the glows in my room?" Liassa never forgot to do chores, but if there was one chore she always left for last, it was replacing glowbaskets.

"Yes ma'am." Shards, she'd run out of reasons to keep her daughter working and away from the little creatures that she considered meddlesome.

"Fine." She'd lost. Liassa had won. The young candidate was ecstatic. That didn't happen much.

"I'll be back after the hatching," she promised, bounding off for the hatching.

Liassa had always wanted a flitt of her own and, with the discovery of the salamandyrs, she'd quickly began to watch out for either hatching. This hatching was open to the weyr and she had been so happy to hear about it. She grabbed some fish from the counter on her way out, dodging a warning smack from her mother. If she remembered correctly, that was what they ate.

Heading towards the stables, she had to struggle to keep at a fast walk. Liassa knew that they wouldn't all hatch in the few moments she'd been detained by her mother, but she was still extremely nervous. A minute later found her in the stables, smiling to Uu'n and K'lir amicably and taking a place to the right of the clutch. Such beautiful eggs and such a beautiful clutch mother. Oh, she couldn't wait for them to start hatching!

[Administrator]

Mine! I have a present for you![/color] announced Bazeth from where he lay on his weyrledge. E'ri raised an eyebrow from where he lay in his cot. He sighed, opening his eyes and looked over to the bassinets instinctively. Why Bazeth couldn't have chosen a different time to give him a present was beyond him. The blue had been extremely guilty over letting his nearly get killed in the skirmish with Benden, and had been looking for a way to repay His. Your present is in the stables. I can fly you there. You shouldn't walk so far yet,[/color] Bazeth added, mothering his rider. E'ri sighed. Between Bazeth, Cezine, and Nocturne, he had been extremely well cared for. It was almost too strange for the bluerider, who just wanted to act like things were normal again. Sure, there was a healing hole in his stomach, but he could do almost everything already. Except that Bazeth wouldn't let him sleep just at the moment!

The dragon snorted. The little cousin will watch your hatchlings. Please? I want you to have this present,[/i] Bazeth said pitifully. Grumbling, E'ri pushed off his furs. He had constantly been shirtless since he was stabbed, mostly because it was awkward wearing a shirt over his heavy bandaging. Yet since he was going out in public now, he figured he should at least put something on his shoulders. Carefully striding to his dresser, he opened one of the drawers and pulled out a harper blue button-down shirt. Wincing, he pulled it over his shoulders as he felt Bazeth fidget in his mind with impatience. Hurry up or you will be late![/color] E'ri frowned. He didn't like the sound of that.

"What do you mean 'late'?" he demanded, but Bazeth avoided a response, instead rising up on the weyrledge, waiting for his rider to get on. Glancing at his babes quickly to make sure that they were under Nocturne's watchful eye, he slowly climbed onto Bazeth's back, wincing in the twinges of pain it gave him. It also didn't help that he didn't get Bazeth's straps on, but the blue seemed to be in too much of a hurry to do so.

The minute E'ri securely held onto Bazeth, they were pushed into the air. E'ri closed his eyes, resisting the urge to rub his stomach that was now aching. He truly had been stupid. The fight with Benden wasn't even a sevenday ago, yet here he was, riding bareback on his blue.

Landing, he had to brace himself for more pain as he lowered himself to the ground at the entrance to the stables. He never really had a need to come here. Runners weren't as good as dragons, nor as pretty. Regardless, he entered, feeling a bit chilled from his lack of shirt and from the cool breeze from the sky. He could feel Bazeth excitement as he entered, and looked around, where he saw...

"Shard it, Bazeth," he muttered, seeing the shaking eggs around him. Looking at the queen 'mandyr with resignation, he cursed at Bazeth in his head multiple times. He couldn't just walk out of a queen salamandyr clutch-- it was rude. Shard it all.[/size]

[marissa]

Ah. A Salamandyr clutch. Wonderful. Raen rolled back over and went to sleep, not really registering what the dragon had told the Weyr... at least, until one of the other candidates, whose bunk was right next to her, leaned over and kicked her. At first, it was pretty gentle... but when Raen failed to wake, the girl kicked her again, startling the blonde candidate partially awake. "Wha--?" the drowsy girl murmured, slowly opening her eyes and rolling over to look at her abuser. "Wha' was that for?"

The girl only looked at Raen. "Weren't you talking about how much you would like a 'mandyr just the other day, Raen? Well... today's your chance. A dragon just woke the Weyr, talking 'bout how a salamandyr clutch was hatching... it's down in the stables. Throw on some clothes, girl." This truly woke Raen.

"Oh, oh, thanks." She jumped out of her bed, hurriedly throwing her furs back over the cot, and then jumping over to her trunk to pull out some clothes. Not even checking to make sure she matched, the candidate was out of the barracks quickly, making her way as fast as her body could allow. Still, because of her slow-awakening, she was one of the last ones to arrive. Shard it... why did it have to be so early? Looking over the eggs briskly, Raen couldn't help but let a grin spread over her face. Aww... they were just so cute!

Since the discovery of the salamandyrs, like many others, Raen had been astounded - and, therefore, infatuated with them. Looking towards Dael for a moment, the candidate stared for a few moments -- she was just so... well, the girl couldn't say beautiful, but most definitely pretty, and intelligent to a certain degree. It would be almost like having a puny little dragon, if she Impressed. The 'Mandyrs could speak to you in your mind, like dragons, if not as... fluent as the larger creatures were. Even if they couldn't, it was still simply... wonderful.

Raen couldn't explain her reasoning behind the last one. But it was true. Taking her place near the side of the crowd that was forming around the clutch, the girl made a deliberate move to distance herself from the people that were also there, although making sure not to distance herself too far from the eggs. Settling herself for a decent wait, Raen began to watch the eggs for any sign of movement.

{There we go. Sorry for the crap-post. I'm rtying to edit it as we speak, but I also have homework and a speech to work on.}

[ravenmane]

Jashta tugged on Kalushka’s shirt with a steely determination all the while screeching at the top of her lungs. Images of rocking eggs were shoved in the girl’s head as Jashta continued to berate her. When the candidate had refused to listen to the ‘Queen’ Green, little Jashta had become furious. To get the attention she required, the Green had screamed and tugged at Kalushka with all her might. Grabbing the annoyed fire-lizard in her hand, Kal grumbled about how no good would come of this. Placing Jashta on her bed, Kalushka turned to the door only to find her flit on her shoulder…again. “What is with you, Jash? Seriously, it isn’t the end of the world if I miss a silly flitter Hatching.”

Jashta sounded the equivalent of a sigh of annoyance. Again, the flit shoved a picture into Kalu’s mind, but instead, it was the image of a salamandyr. Actually, it was what the fire-lizard thought salamandyrs looked like. Ugly deformed monsters that thought they were better then fire-lizards. Jashta’s picture resembled a salamandyr enough so that Kalushka finally understood. “Oh! Why didn’t you say it was a salamandyr Hatching?” Jashta growled angrily before blinking between. She had had enough of Hers today. Shrugging nonchalantly, Kalushka trotted towards the stables where Jashta had thankfully directed her.

When Kal entered into the musty stables, familiar smells assailed her. Gazing around, the candidate noted the young man with the clutch’s mother. The golden salamandyr was a sight to behold, and the way the creature held herself was queenly. Wrenching her gaze from the golden beauty, Kal drank in the sight of wobbling eggs. They were absolutely beautiful, and Kalushka greatly hoped that she would Impress one of the darling creatures.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Sk’ler, there are more things Hatching at the stable. And by things, Triniath was referring to Chatti’s species. The little salamandyr loved to come and sleep on Triniath’s back in the afternoon, and the Brown had been waiting expectantly for Chatti’s mother to clutch again. Sk’ler rolled his eyes with surrender and quickly placed his book back in its place. Alright, Trin. I’ll go. Just don’t get mad if I don’t Impress anything. I won’t. Whistling for Joolree and Soltun, Sk’ler tugged on a shirt and headed off to the stables. He had long given up trying to defy Triniath, but this was the last Hatching he would purposely participate in. Sk’ler already had his own little pests, especially the thieving Joolree, but his Brown had wanted a companion just like Chatti. Thankfully, Chatti was a unique salamandyr, and Sk’ler would not enjoy her constant mumblings like Ciara did.

A heavy weight appeared on the weyrling’s shoulder, signaling Soltun’s arrival. Sea-foam green Joolree happily twirled overhead. Sometimes, Sk’ler wondered what had caused her to be so lacking in intelligence, but he wouldn’t change her for the world. A high-pitched whistle sounded just as Joolree collided with Soltun. Her Brown clutch-mate screeched with surprise as the pair tumbled to the ground. Pausing to place Soltun back on his shoulder and Joolree in his arms, Sk’ler shook his head with wonder. At least once a day, little Joolree ended up headed for a head on collision with her brother. If Sk’ler Impressed a salamandyr, he desperately hoped that they would be more coordinated then his little Jool.

As the boy entered the Stables, he paused to stare at the handsome clutch Dael had laid. Seventeen beautiful eggs graced the stables, and their occupiers would raise the salamandyr number up to 26 or at least Sk’ler hoped so.

[boober]

Mine, there is a salamandyr Hatching! Let us go see, let us go see! Brennath sounded downright excited, something that made Cezine glance at her oddly. Sky and Topaz flew around her chattering their excitement while somehow still managing to thrum their birthing song. Perhaps it was their excitement that Brennath was picking up on; who knew? Shrugging it off, the green weyrling dropped her current task and made her way out of the kitchens, following her chittering flits as guides. She wasn’t the only one by far who was taking themselves out to the clutch; C’lryn had been reluctant to go. He was perfectly happy with Darling and Minoath, but as before, the bronze had insisted, finally pushing his life mate into going with the plea that he wanted to see one of these ‘salamandyrs’ up close. Defeated, the bronze weyrling had laughingly got up and gone to the stables himself; Darling was fast asleep, curled up against Minoath’s bronze hide. Her own hide seem to be brilliantly gold against his, but her bonded seemed to think little of it.

A’mine, these salamandyr creatures are hatching; you might go. Dramuth’s voice was pleasant as he bespoke His, but Aryna knew better. She knew the brown was all but ordering her to go, and she didn’t stop her eyes as they seemed to roll of their own accord at the brown.

“I’m in the middle of something, Dramuth. There will be other clutches.” She was fitting a new set of straps to her brown, making sure that they fit properly. But the dragon shifted slightly, turning his head to behold his rider with his whirling rainbow eyes as he shifted just beyond her reach. Aryna turned to glare at him, but as soon as she caught his gaze, it was a losing battle. She tried not to smile, to hide it with an impatient wave of her hand. “Oh don’t bother. I’ll go, for Faranth’s sake.” Dramuth crooned, pleased, and leaned forward to nuzzle his life mate affectionately. Aryna couldn’t keep the smile from her face even as she shoved playfully at the brown’s head. “Yeah, yeah. I’m going, you silly thing.” She shook her head and made her way toward the stable. Damn. Was she always this big of a pushover? It was kind of embarrassing, though not as embarrassing as… the way K’lir was staring at Uu’n. Blinking, Aryna had hardly realized she’d already reached the stable until she saw the green weyrling standing there staring like a deadglow. Was he drooling on himself?

Just as he looked away, she was behind him. “Got something on your mind?” The brown rider’s voice was a low, sultry purr as she leaned forward and spoke low into K’lir’s ear, unable to resist. The boy was STARING! And Aryna could never pass up the opportunity to embarrass the crap out of someone she liked. It was just too much fun.

As soon as Cezine entered the stable, she knew it was going to be hard to get near the clutch. Already so many people had shown up! Shaking her head slightly, she edged her way over to the thicker part of the crowd. But on the way, she spotted E’ri and frowned slightly before going to stand beside him instead. “E’ri, what are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be resting?” She paused, watching as her flitters sailed over the heads of everyone present to find a good perch and to congratulate the clutchmother. But her attention immediately snapped back to the blue rider before her, and she tilted her head. “Who’s watching the babes?” There was no accusation or assumptions in her voice, only a mild curiosity and a hint of concern. She knew E’ri wouldn’t leave his twins unless he trusted whoever was with them, but she couldn’t help but worry. Distracted, she placed the bowl of meat she’d picked up from the kitchens on the way out against her side; she’d brought enough to share if need be, so it was a fairly large bowl. However, she winced visibly as the edge dug into the stitched wound on her side, causing her to swear under her breath as she moved the bowl. That in itself testified as to how painful it still was; Cezine never swore. So she was a fine one to question E’ri about his activity, but her wound was less grave than his. Sure it still hurt, but that didn’t mean it was worse. Just one more scar to keep the others company.

Kedan was lying on his neatly made cot, furs folded and smoothed. Kedsk was resting near the bed, sleeping contentedly by his mind mate. However, something woke the blue wher with a snort and made him look up at Kedan. A soft sound interrupted the reading that the harper was doing, a sound he’d come to associate with Kedsk wanting his attention for something. Lowering the book, he looked down at the blue with a smile. “Yes? What is it Kedsk?” The wher got to his feet and nudged his bonded in the side while sending images into his head along with a rather insistent feeling. Blinking, Kedan sat up, swinging his legs over the side of his cot, though he was careful not to kick his friend. “You… want me at the Hatching?” Now that he was sitting up, Kedsk had to resort to tugging on the young man’s sleeve, trying to get him to his feet. Kedan obliged with a soft laugh. “What makes you think I need a salamandyr?” Kedsk looked up at him balefully and snorted before nudging him insistently once again.

“All right, all right. Since you’re clearly insisting.” Giving the wher a farewell scratch, the harper turned and made his way out of the room. Kedsk watched until he was gone, then turned and shuffled back toward the bed, which he scrambled up onto and flopped down happily in the furs, rolling and writhing on the bed till the neatly made furs were all bunched and rolled up and Kedsk was very content indeed in the nest he’d made of his handler’s sleeping place; he knew he wasn’t allowed, but the Hatching would keep Kedan occupied for some time. The blue had plenty of time to lounge before his return.

[dalina]

Coralt was in the candidate barracks when the rush towards the stables began. He contemplated for a second whether or not he should go to watch. He was just a candidate and he had absolutely no expectations of actually being able to Impress, but he hadn't seen much of the little creatures. Sure, he'd caught a glimpse of them around the weyr, but he had heard they were very rare.

Well, if they were going to let candidates watch, there was no reason that he should pass up the chance. When the decision was made, he started asking directions for the stables. He'd only been at the weyr for a short time and he was still having trouble making his way around. After asking a few people, he was still left without a clue where it was. So he just started heading off in the general direction, hoping that he'd be able to get more specific directions along the way.

After he'd walked a ways, he stopped a drudge. "Could you direct me to the stables?"

"You just passed it," she replied, looking at him like it was he who should be the drudge, not her.

Coralt just laughed, thanked her, and headed towards the building he just passed. By the time that he got there, there was already a small crowd. He joined the rest of the expectants, watching the eggs closely. The mother was quite a beauty and the father was nearby, obviously very proud of his eggs. The eggs themselves were beautiful, but only a couple of them were shaking so far. He could wait.

[Tashe]

"F'con and the others say they'll help me get a Runner... I guess they've finally convinced me that having one would be good for me." Shrugging her shoulder gently as she looked to both of the men flanking her sides, the young Goldrider coughed slightly before sighing. Both F'rah and K'nam had insisted on accompanying her to the stables so late in the afternoon, unfortunately for all of them, it was the only time she had to visit with the Stablemaster. Kaegan was, for the most part, doing a fair amount better than she had been a week or more ago. The young woman had taken a while to bounce back to a state the healer's deemed 'stable', but the burns and emotional stress still remained as painful as ever. And although she had been promised that the burns she had sustained would stop their seething, she felt like they would never truly go away.

Shaking her head slightly as she looked from one of her 'guards' to the other, Kaegan coughed once again before turning her attention to the looming wooden fortress that held all of the Weyr's Equines. It wasn't long before the young Goldrider could pick out the distinct shapes of people standing around a particular stall as they entered the beginning of the housing entrance. Shrinking back almost immediately, Kaegan hid herself somewhat behind the Bronzerider before looking at F'rah. Watching as her silent question went to be answered, the girl latched onto K'nam's sleeve all the while giving yet another cough. A few moments later the Weyrlingmaster returned with a reassuring smile, and carried a sort of merriment around him.

"Don't worry. Seems like our First Salamandyr Queen's eggs are a hatching."

Obviously relieved of the innocence of the source of commotion, Kaegan made her way closer to the Stall with quiet footsteps. Nearing the stall next to the occupied one, the Goldrider slipped into it, hoping that no one would see her. Peering through the metal fence in the dividing wall, Kaegan was able to clearly see the eggs on the straw and sand covered ground. "Oh my."

---
F'rah


Clad solely in darker colors (mainly consisting of a forest green tunic, dark brown leggings, and black boots), F'rah quietly walked beside his childlike Junior Weyrwoman, like a wraith prowling in the night. And although he was wearing clothing that was just a few shades darker than Kaegan's emerald colored dress, the Weyrlingmaster seemed to blend in with the fading light around the trio. If not for his metallic knots that rested on his chest, the man could have passed as a forest guard for a hold, simply just disappearing into the vegetation around him. His mind had wondered from Kaegan and strayed to Laurie, he missed her greatly and was comforted in the fact she was perfectly fine after the horrendous battle on the hatching grounds. For the longest time now, he hadn't been able to take more than a few moments to be in her company, the Weyr simply sucked up much of his time these days.

"F'con and the others say they'll help me get a Runner... I guess they've finally convinced me that having one would be good for me."

Blinking as the Queenrider's words woke him up from the trance he had seemingly gone into as his mind mused over Laurie's attractiveness, F'rah quietly cleared his throat and nodded quietly. A runner would be good therapy for the young woman, he had seen people make amazing emotional recoveries because of them before, he didn't see any reason why it wouldn't work now. Smiling down at Kaegan as she shifted her glances between himself and K'nam (who he was still a little wary about, mainly because he was fatherly toward the Goldrider), the Weyrlingmaster made sure to match his pace with hers. As the three drew up to the Stable, F'rah was quick to pick up on the hushed noises coming from inside of the housing area, and when Kaegan stepped back he needed no other signal to go look. Humming slightly as he wondered over to the nearest person he could find, the Wingsecond struck up a friendly conversation with the Stablehand. "So whats with the party?"

"Its one o' the drat'd 'mandyrs clutch. It'd be a hatchin' right now ya' see, and it's got all of the Equines all antsy an' the like."

Raising an eyebrow as the old man bustled off grumbling, F'rah quietly returned to the duo with a smile. "Don't worry. Seems like our First Salamandyr Queen's eggs are a hatching." Watching in surprise as Kaegan silently made her way toward the crowd, the Weyrlingmaster shrugged before following her. Happily positioning himself outside the second stall, F'rah was sure to stand in sight of both the 'mandyr hatching and his Junior Weyrwoman, appeasing both of his current interests.

[randi]

"I think it would. A runner would probably help distract you a little bit," he didn't bother to mask the truth of why the others were going to help her. K'nam could tell that she needed something, and was only to happy to see that something was like to happen to help relieve her stress. His strides matched hers and F'rah's, and he couldn't keep himself from musing about how he had gone from recluse several months ago to becoming wrapped up in her life. Since the incident at the Hatching Grounds, he had been scarecly absent from the Junior Weyrwoman's side.

It wasn't a mystery to him why he insisted on being near her at this time. Since childhood he had been the protector, and now he had found a reason to step into his old role again. On top of that, the man felt responsible for her, felt like he owed her to remain beside her.

K'nam blinked as he spotted a crowd gathering, a bandaged hand pushing gently at his dark curls. Before he could inquire, Bearinth was ready with an answer. The salamandyr Hatching is happening, K'nammine. He nodded slightly, aware that Kaegan had slipped slightly behind him, grabbing onto his tunic's sleeve. The bronzerider had become accustomed to this, and he glanced back with a reassuring smile at her. He moved with her as she entered the stall near the other one, eyes softening as he peered into the occupied stall. Hatchings were delightful, Hatchings gave the light of hope to the darkest mind.

He wanted to stay and watch, thinking that the familiar sight of shells breaking might put his mind more at ease.

---

As dawn had broken, Orask had fallen easily asleep, the gouchy bronze more than happy to leave his bonded with morning insomnia as the boy was wont to have. Unable to focus, Oraru had heard Adith's call. For a moment, Breeze wound over his shoulders, encouraging the boy to remain here. "You know, with a little bit of help, I bet you could humble his bronzeness," Oraru whispered to the firelizard, who chirped in query. Orask, still slightly awake, responded with a disbelieving snort.

Suddenly, the firelizard seemed all for it. He preened Oraru's dark hair as the boy fixed his clothes from the night, trilling with anticipation (and to wake Orask back up) as they went out the door. He founded the stables with no problem, as well as finding the crowds. The small framed boy blinked, his good eye focusing on the rocking eggs. Was he sure about this?

Breeze pecked him hard in the head. Yes, he was sure, and that was all that should matter at the moment.

[irbre]

T'nmor was attempting to remove an extremely eager Cannibal from his chest, for he had had the sad misfortune of choosing to wear something shiny. Immediately upon seeing such an item, the brown salamandyr had attacked him quite viciously, completely intent upon securing the shiny bit for his nest. T'nmor was finally forced to resort to violence, which merely meant grasping the writhing Cannibal and pulling him away, wincing as the demonic little creature proceeded to maul his hand for interfering. Well, T'nmor considered it mauling, despite the fact that it was a very little coating of scratches that were purely superficial, if even that. Still, he was quite disgruntled by this fact and let the annoying brown flitt know just that. For a moment, at least, before he was interrupted abruptly by Jedirth.

Mine, there is another Hatching. Perhaps brining the cannibalistic creature will help calm him? Jedirth suggested tentatively, looking slowly up at T'nmor from where he was placidly stretched. The bronze flared his wings slowly, working the kinks out of them as he began to get to his feet before changing his mind and settling back down. Cannibal had finally ceased his struggling and looked innocently up at T'nmor, spreading his frills for a moment before hopping amiably towards the Histhing, clearly eager to make amends if it meant seeing something new.

What what? Chirping, the salamandyr hopped closer before scampering up T'nmor's arm, eying the shiny piece of metal with a look that clearly promised that he would return later for it. He settled on T'nmor's shoulder, nudging him eagerly towards the door, his mind already fixed on something he knew absolutely nothing about. Jedirth let out a wicked, draconic chuckle which sounded more like a dry choking noise as he settled back down, watching His and Cannibal with mild amusement. T'nmor snorted and obediently moved towards the door at Cannibal's bequest, unable to keep from rolling his eyes at least once.

It took T'nmor awhile to arrive, for he had gotten lost almost immediately despite his time at the Weyr. In all truth, he had never before been to the stables and it took him his fair share of wandering to make it, as well as the shame of being forced to ask a passerby for directions. He arrived in one piece, though, if not a bit haggard from Cannibal's constant chattering and screeching, for the brown salamandyr viewed every moment not spent at this new location a complete and total waste of time. Huffing, T'nmor gestured obliquely to the Clutch, pretending to be uninterested even though Cannibal's squeaking told anyone else otherwise. He watched the Clutch with narrowed eyes, intently scanning the eggs, for there were quite a few. Two were already moving, the salamandyr contents attempting to free themselves and hatch into the world.

[Elzyn latur.]

[missa]

Rielana was no less happy to hear teh blue's voice in her mind than some of the others were. Merely muttering something about sleep and rolling over, succeeding in nearly squashing Fiel as the blue flitt scrambled away, only to return and tug on her ear to wake her as Jeminorth snorted in response to Adith as she woke.
You said you wanted another little one like Fiel. It's only a little before dawn. Up, up RieMine.

That chirpy voice had more effect on Rie than Fiel's rather frustrated chirping had done so far. The girl blinking open her eyes as she grumbled something about dawn and the dislike of green's that woke up instantly. How did Jeminorth do that anyway? It was just unnatural. Grumbling darkly as she got out of bed, Rielana rubbed her gritty eyes as she picked Fiel up and placed him on her shoulder. How she hated waking up at such inhumane hours. Why did clutches have a habit of doing silly things like hatching in the middle of the night?

But... It's not the middle of the night. It's nearly dawn.
...Shut up.
It's true. Really. Didn't you notice?
Jeminorth, you just woke me up. No, I haven't looked at the sky yet.

As it was, it was a sleepy, much less bubbly Rielana that stumbled into the stables. Hair brushed, clean clothes, looking reasonably ready to face that, day. Aside from the way she stood with her eyes half closed as Fiel found somewhere safe to watch.
"It's a beautiful clutch Dael.. Congrats." Blinking steadily as she forced herself to wake up at least a little bit, Rielana allowed her eyes to brush over the clutch. Oooh pretty!

[Kisha-Ra]

Jarathon winced as wraith bounced up and down on his shoulder, the little salamandyr was flapping her delicate little wings madly to get herself higher than normal, unfortunately her landing technique left a great deal to be desired, like an entirely different one.

Now, hatch. Nownownownownow! Good now.[/color] Wraith chattered insistently about the hatching to her humanpet, trying to get him moving in the direction she wanted. She squawked with rage as Jarathon trapped her inside the shirt he was throwing on, how could he treat his wonderful Wraith like that?

Taking note of the indignant sound his salamandyr produced Jarathon fished her out of his shirt, quickly because Wraith would try and find her own way out in manner that was amusing for onlookers but quite painful, and humiliating, for Jarathon. ‘Yes we’re going, now. Though I’m not really certain I can handle two like you.’ Wraith cocked her head at Jarathon and looked supremely innocent.

The stables, what a place for a hatching. Jarathon thought as he joined the crowd with Wraith, who instantly clambered onto his head for a better view and started combing her talons through her humanpet’s hair.


Did you not hear Adith?[/color] Azrath inquired of his rider. Darya growled and sat up, glaring through the encompassing darkness at the large shadow that was her dragon. ‘I did. I chose to ignore it in favour of sleep. I’m an old woman and I need my sleep.’ Darya snapped at Azrath, not bothering to concern herself with anyone else’s sleep.

I think you should go to the hatching. I like the salamandyrs, Daeluunya and her young are fascinating. You’re not that old.[/color] That was a bad sign, if Azrath had bothered to remember the salamandyr queen’s name he truly was fascinated. Plus he had a stubborn note to his tone that told Darya that she was going to lose this argument.

Darya decided to give in gracefully, either way she wasn’t going to get much sleep. Throwing the cover from her bare body and getting out of bed stiffly, that was what you got for being careless in fights, she began searching the floor for some clothes.

Azrath dropped Darya a ways from the stable out of concern for the runners who lived there, the poor beasts were probably confused enough this morning without being terrified by a dragon too. He grumbled constantly about not being able to see the salamandyrs hatch for himself and all Darya could promise was that she would attempt to get a good view for him.

Darya walked quickly to the stables and raised an eyebrow at the amount of people packed in there already. It looks like we won’t get to see much dear one. she told Azrath as she squashed in and tried to at least get a look at the eggs for her dragon.

Odian bounced out of his bunk at the mention of a salamandyr hatching. Ever since he’d met Jarathon’s little Wraith he had coveted one of the strange little creatures for himself. He’d been told Dael was the only queen there was too. That made it even more important to get to this clutch; there was no chance of finding wild clutches.

As he ran outside he buttoned his shirt, incorrectly, and wished he remembered to put on shoes. The stable was so far away, although at this time of morning everything was too far away.

Odain found that he wasn’t the only person to find salamandyrs interesting, he wouldn’t have believed so many people would fit in the stable, he leaned inside the door, reluctant to get crushed in the crowd, and yawned.

[neeuqtar]

Uu'n just decided not to pay attention to anyone who came in. He was here, after all; if any of the little monsters came his way he'd just flee from them. The blueweyrling did nod, however, to K'lir; the other rider seemed to be avoiding him religiously since the Run. Uu'n didn't know why, after all, it was the same sort of thing as a Flight, just with salamandyrs--it didn't mean anything. And he was the one who'd walked funny the next two days, after all! Unaware of exactly why K'lir was looking at him, Uu'n laced his fingers in his tangled pale-blond hair, once again thinking that maybe he should cut it. It was getting awfully ragged, after all...

His shirt tucked in his belt and quite sweaty, Uu'n just enjoyed the break from exercise. Maybe he'd get a bath after this... it would be a nice time to just relax and chat with Dael and Adith, who seemed to finally be gaining some form of rapport together, though neither would ever admit it.

The Midnight Egg Hatched first, the dark shards of the egg sticking to the body of a lovely sapphire-blue creature. The salamandyr blinked at the assembled mob of people, before darting off and perching on the wall near Uu'n and K'lir. Apparently ignoring the people, the blue salamandyr began lapping up a line of insects, tongue picking them up from the rough wood with ease as the creature chirped cheerily to himself.

In the center, the Red Star Egg suddenly lurched, cracks emanating along the cloudy sides from the baleful red spot on the egg. Another lurch, and the egg crumpled out on once side, before the inner membrane tore and a spectacularly green creature spilled out onto the tangle of leather Dael had placed her Clutch in. She shrieked, her voice incredibly high pitched and painful, and struck at the offending leather strap with fangs and talons, before drawing back, tail curled over her back and frills outspread and trembling in fury.

She spat on the nearest object--the Starry Egg--and then dashed off of the shelf, scrabbly talons hooking into the rough wall and letting her hang upside-down under the Clutch, examining her choices. Bite! she cried to C'lryn, turning and vanishing for a moment before zipping across the floor to run up his leg, body and neck to latch sharp fangs onto his ear, hanging there like and earring. FEED!

Nearby, the Witching Hour Egg began to violently rock, the whole egg shivering and cracking, while the Sunset Egg cracked and began to truly Hatch, while Adith's Egg began to slowly shift...

---

Red Star Green:
Impressed to: C’lryn (Boober)
Code: 00FF00
Appearance: Brilliantly, brilliantly green, this salamandyr is certainly not one easily missed. Twin ‘racing stripes’ in near-black run from a solid line up her muzzle, splitting at the base of her skull before running down either side of her spine, not rejoining until the very tip of her tail. However, if her tail is ever to be broken off, the stripe will grow in one solid line, so you’ll always be able to tell where the break was. Her build is sleek and very muscular, with bunched power and long, smooth lines. But don’t dare to touch her! This spitfire has enormous white fangs hidden in that innocent face and isn’t afraid to use them—or her exceedingly sharp talons, either!
Personality: Possibly the best word to describe this green is “mean.” Barring that, malignant, baleful, bitter, wicked, evil, or even just pointy would work very well. This green gets pleasure from inflicting pain, and hates pretty much every creature on the face of the planet. She’ll willingly attack anything you point her at—the problem will be teaching her when to stop, and what exactly “no” means! Firelizards receive the brunt of her ire, but anything in her way—whether person, dragon, inanimate object, or innocent bystander—is likely to be on the receiving end of her fangs and anger. So watch out! There is no friend with this girl… only foe, and food!

---

Dawn Sisters Egg: Unmoving
Midnight Egg: HATCHED: blue
Howler’s Cry Egg: Unmoving
Nighthawk Egg: Unmoving
Twin Moon Egg: Unmoving
Sunset Egg: HATCHING
Wildcat Egg: Unmoving
Starry Egg: Unmoving
Witching Hour Egg: Rocking violently
First Ray of Rukbat Egg: Unmoving
Darkness Egg: Unmoving
Aurora Borealis Egg: Unmoving
Red Star Egg: IMPRESSED: green to C’lryn
Flamefly Egg: Unmoving
Adith’s Egg, or Night Sky Egg: Shifting
Watchful Eyes Egg: Unmoving
Constellation Egg: Unmoving