Candidate Lesson (All candidates must attend!)

[kysseh]

The common room on the main floor of the candidate barracks was largely empty, for now. While there was a chair present for her, Aliscia passed on the opportunity and chose to stand, shifting her weight minutely from foot to foot. The tiny woman had agreed, reluctantly, to give the candidates a lesson, in broad strokes, about weyr life and how to live as a candidate. She was no expert at this, but since no one else had volunteered to do it, the greenrider had opted to get in the good graces of the superiors early on. Besides, it kept her mind off her restive green, who was currently sulking on the Drumheights. Call them, Tanny. I'm not yelling for them. she told the grumpy dragon, glancing around the bare room. I want to get this done and over with.

The green was unhappy but acquiesced. //All candidates... if you value your chances at Impression, you will move yourselves to the common room in the barracks /now/. You are having a lesson.// Tanith broadcasted to the weyr at large, merciless. She did not want to share Hers with the desperate little powerseekers, but since she had no choice, they might as well get this over with quickly.

Sending her dragon an appropriately grateful thought as the candidates filed in far too slowly for her liking, Aliscia waited for a moment until they settled down and then cleared her though, raising the eyebrow on the unscarred side of her face. "You don't have a candidate master, so I'm filling in for now so that you don't go into the upcoming Hatching completely ignorant. I'm Aliscia, of green Tanith. If you see her, I'd suggest giving her a wide berth. She has a long reach and a nasty bite." There. That ought to get their attention. "Those of you raised in the weyr understand the way things work. The senior weyrwoman is bonded to the senior queen. In this weyr, that's Weyrwoman Shmee and gold Aslath. The junior weyrwoman and junior queen are Weyrwoman Kaegan and Millieth. The riders of the dragons who Fly those queens when they Rise to mate will become the weyrleader and junior weyrleader, respectively. In our case, that's Ka'arys of bronze Ciceroth and R'non of bronze Rath. You should know and respect these four people. They are in charge, and you are far below them. Remember that."

The greenrider swallowed, her throat a bit dry. She had not spoken this much in Turns. "As a candidate, you're very low in the ranks. Regardless of parentage, training, or rank back at home, you rank just above a drudge here in the weyr, and every candidate is exactly the same, with no one being worth any more than another. You refer to everyone as a superior unless they tell you otherwise. The riders, especially the weyrwomen and weyrleaders, deserve your utmost respect. When in doubt, treat someone as in authority over you. You are required to attend lessons like this, when they are held. You are required to do chores, as most of you know and have done. If you don't do these chores, there will be punishments. Chores can be anything from general weyr duties, like changing the glows and sweeping or mopping the floors in the main buildings, to helping in the archive rooms to assisting with kitchen chores. The Headwoman can be sought out if you need to know what you can do. Follow the weyrlings too; they know what they're doing, and they have chores just like you do."

"The weyr views sex much differently, as the holdborn of you may have realized during Aslath's recent Flight. When dragons are involved, the inhibitions and desires of the riders are largely immaterial, and it is understood that you will have relations with other people while in dragon-roused emotional states. I strongly suggest getting adjusted to the idea of this now. There is no room for prudish behavior. If you Impress, your dragon's needs come above your own, and you'll have to accept that. But, I'll leave that for a later discussion," she said, glancing over the assembled candidates. "I was holdborn too, but it is something you have to adjust to quickly. The weyr is far more open about such behavior."

She paused for a moment and looked out over the candidates to make sure they understood her, or at the very least looked like they were paying attention. Satisfied for the moment, she moved on with the more interesting topics, hoping they were at least grasping some of this. "Remembering that you're exceedingly low in the social ranks here at the weyr, keep in mind to be respectful when it comes to the dragon clutch, when it is laid. You will be allowed to touch the eggs during the Touching, to acquaint yourselves with the fact that the eggs will hatch into hungry and clumsy baby dragons. Fighting, even in play, on the Hatching Grounds is not tolerated, and rest assured that the clutchmother will watch your every move. Show some respect for her and for her eggs, and you'll escape the Touching a bit wiser."

This was the hard part now. She knew they would likely not remember this come Hatching time, but they needed to know what they were getting themselves into. "At the Hatching, remember that your time to touch the eggs is over. You trying to influence yourselves on the hatching dragons should be done from a distance. When my Tanith was hatching, a girl took it upon herself to stroke the shell in encouragement. Tanith mauled her nearly to death before storming her way straight across the sands to me. You'll be sorely tempted to touch those eggs and to try to better your chances, but don't do it." She let them sit in silence for a moment to contemplate that. Her memory of that bloody day was still fresh in her mind. She had somewhat edited the real story. In truth, Tanith had badly bloodied up half a dozen people who got in her way whilst she moved herself across the sands to Hers. No need to completely frighten the little candidates, though, she decided.

Content that she had hit most of the important and basic points, the greenrider glanced around the room, one eyebrow lifted. "Is any of that unclear? Are there any questions?"


Attendance:
Malrigor
Aminadra
Celeyn
Lienos
Lillvor
Lyelle
Coralt
Liassa
Raen
Savitri
Torra
Redaro
Kalushka
Odian
Jarathon
Mutasim
Keandren

((Sorry about any typos, everyone. Have your candies come in and ask any questions they like. Another lesson will be up this weekend, hopefully.))

[lilliana]

((I hate you for making me read all of that... XDD <33))

Lyelle sat at a table in the Dining Hall, not far from the table where a few riders were discussing some Weyr gossip. Of course, she had been innocently eating her food (and listening to the occupants of the table in front of her as they discussed the latest flitt hatching, of course) when these people came along, and began discussing politics and the new Weyrleader. Now, which was more important? Of course, she immediately left listening to the dawdling conversation of flitters, to soak up the more dire, opinionated, and needed gossip... for, sadly, Lyelle did not know much about her new Weyrleader, and this gave her at least a bit of insight.

However, the curious candidate did not get to listen in further than, "You know Weyrleader Ka'rys, right? Well... I've heard that he and Weyrwoman Shmee don't have the best relationship..." "Oh, really? Faranth, even the smallest weyrbrat knows that!", before a dragon's voice sounded in her mind, calling her back to the Candidate Barracks. By the tone of the dragon's voice - Tanith, green of Aliscia, if her sources were correct - she didn't feel any urge to dawdle, and Lyelle quickly scarfed down a few more bites before disposing of her food and rushing out of the Hall. Thankfully she had almost been done, anyways.

Thankfully, Lyelle arrived with a large wave of candidates entering the Barracks, so she couldn't be considered late. Grinning at those she knew (which was pretty much all of them), the girl called for Ril before gathering around Aliscia. The green immediately cut off her coy flirtations with a brown to appear above her bonded's shoulder, and she wasted no time in settling herself as Ly settled herself in the crowd gathered around the temporary Candidate Master. She, being weyrbred, was interested in hearing what the Candidate Master would tell them.

So her sources were correct in that, at least. Tanith, yes. Respect to Shmee, Ka'rys, Kaegan, R'non. That had been drilled into her mind - respect your elders, your Weyrleaders, and everyone in the Weyr - since she was the merest weyrbrat. Also that she was the lowest of the low. Lyelle's got that. Loud and clear. It actually brought a smile to her face, these words: the lowest of the low, and it would knock some of the candidates on their hind ends. Also, the chores. Shells, she had been doing chores for Turns. This was nothing she hadn't heard before.

This being said, why didn't Lyelle tune Aliscia out? Because she was a curious girl, and she wanted to know what 'basics' they would be covering today. It amused her to no ends, really, what was being said, and that some people didn't know these things. The candidate took this knowledge for granted, from position to chores, to eggs and dragons. Even (or maybe especially) to sex. It didn't bother her, but especially when it came to the latter, some holdbrats and craftsfolk were at shock with weyrlife. This, however, was the way Lyelle was raised. Looking around to see people's reactions and documenting it in her memory (so she could mull over their different personalities later -- it helped a lot, to see people's reactions to certain things, and it helped her judge their reactions to other things and the dragons they might Impress), the candidate let a small smile come to her face, before finally turning her head around, back on the temporary 'Master.

Of course Lyelle's head shook from side to side when it was asked if there were any questions. She had already known all of this. Maybe later lessons, or even later into this lesson, she could learn something new. Of course, a lot of people in the Weyr thought that repetition helped you, and even some weyrbrats had been known to do exactly as Aliscia described -- reaching out and stroking the egg as it hatched. Silly people. Smiling up at the green rider, the girl waited for either and continuation, or a dismissal.

[flupine]

Celeyn heard the call alright. She heard the command blasted into her mind, how could she not? Communication still left much to desire here in the Weyr, always had though. Rubbing her ear in a sympathetic gesture she sat back on the seat she had jumped from when the message came loud and clear through her mind.

Sitting down in her seat Celeyn continued to finish her meal, in nor rush at all. Instead she took up in avid interest in watching the drama unfold amongst the Candidates and even the Weyrlings. Most the Candidates and even a few stunned Weyrlings jumped up, just as she had, when the commend come through. when a dragon talked, you listened. And already the candidates in the kitchen were headed out the door, leaving half eaten meals on the tables where the sat. Not her however. Would she even go? Celeyn debated on this. Was there any real point in her showing up? She had been through the whole Candidate Training-thing. Actually she had found it boring even then having lived her entire life in the Weyr, much less now that she had been through the lessons. Looking around she noticed a few dirty looks directed her way. How amusing, they were upset with the new Candidate already. Smiling sweetly at a few who stared, she moved her plate away, standing. The debate was over-she would go, just for the kicks of watching the Candidates. Sometimes there were some rather funny reactions from the Hold-borns.

Walking toward the Candidate Barracks Celeyn took her sweet time, stopping to smell the roses sort of walk. Trudging along except with more grace. She would not look like some petulant weyrbrat made to do chores, but it was hard because that's how she felt. Like a long list of chores awaited. Just because the thought of having to go through the same Candidate classes again piqued her she stopped off by her room to change clothes. Celeyn dug through her clothes, picked an outfit to put on and began adjusting her look. She was not sure how she wanted to look for this. Expert smart-aleck, long-suffering and annoyed, new and confused? Lifting one side of her mouth in a self-amused smile she silently laughed at herself. This whole scene had a since of Deja-Vu. How 'bout going as Celeyn? she silently mocked herself. Shrugging her shoulders she stepped back, surveying her collection of clothes she shook her head. What are you doing Celeyn. You don't care aboiut this stuff anymore, remember? You are a Holder now. You DO NOT even want to impress. Not anymore....Though she had spoken these words aloud, her heart cried silently:Yes you do... Unable to understand herself she left her room without even bothering to change as she had originally planned. She was Celeyn, she did not need to put on a show for anyone.

Slowing down upon entering the Candidate hall she took a moment to analyze her feelings, sometimes if she recognized how she felt then she could handle whatever it was that made her feel that way? So how did she feel? Not fearful but there was some trepidation. A little angry and rebellious? That was why she was purposefully showing up late to the lesson, to prove a point. But what point was being late showing? That she was not a good candidate? That I don't want to be here. Celeyn whispered the words as if being spoken aloud would solidify the words and make them real. Huffily she reconsidered being late, now she was just making drama over nothing, she should have just came or maybe she should have stayed in her room instead. Taking a breathe she slid into the room as silently as possible. She felt the twinge of guilt bite into her mind, nibbling on the edges of her brain. No, she would not feel bad. She did not want to be here, remember? It must be that she was Weyrbred, that putting herself in a position of endangering her chances at Impression was just wrong.

Shaking the feeling she chose not to sit down instead remaining at the back of the room. Celeyn could feel the accusing eyes on her. she knew what they were thinking, How dare she? Because she was thinking the same thing. Unconsciously Celeyn took an indifferent, nonchalance stance. Leaned against the wall in a cool repose, legs crossed as if already bored and might fall asleep, head lifted in an arrogant tilt. Every taut line of her body spoke of arrogance and boredom. The hand on her hip said she was ready to be a problem. This was not exactly the look that Celeyn wanted, she had been attempting aloof disinterest. But this had once been her Weyr, even against her will she felt the pull of it. She must have been injected as a baby or maybe it was bred into the Weyr-born, Selenitas forever! But not for her....

Realizing she was arguing with herself, Celeyn pulled herself back to the lesson, thumbing her nose in the air at the dirty looks she had received. These little flitters knew nothing, less than nothing. She was not worried about them. she turned her attention from teh Candidate to the dragon rider, having lost interest with the candidates once they all turned back to the lecture. So this was the woman in charge of preparing the Candidates for the Hatching? Incredible. Apparently her dragon had an attitude problem and the rider did not seem overly social either. Craggy voice that went straight to the heart of the matter, not even trying to scare the Candidates with any really gory stories. What fun.... This was almost worth a trip down memory lane. The gory story her Candidatmaster had told with relish,then the wait until Hatching. No! Celeyn shut down that train of thought instantly. The past was in the past and should stay there. Determined to now stay focused she watched the Green rider with an intensity. It could almost be interpreted as a challenge, not that she had meant to look that way of course.

Yet as Celeyn listened to what she had decided as a "ridiculous" first lesson she sliently mocked the words in her head, nearly making her laugh out loud. With a smirking smile on her face she tilted her head so that her nose was almost quite literally in the air. That is until she heard that as a Candidate she was the lowest of the low, right above the drudges. HER?!! No, not her. She was of Sera's time. She was friend of the bloodline. She was right below the bloodline. That was far above any drudge. Is this what they were teaching now? That Candidates were all but worthless in any real, weighted value? Impossible! Outrage flooded her veins. That quickly, Celeyn felt herself turning angry. thank Faranth that she had learned to control her anger these past turns or right about now she would be marching up to that...that... that green rider.

Never had Celeyn thought of being a Green Rider as bad, the Weyr needed greens but... how dare she say she was lowly. That was enough to turn her blood to ice, to inchor and poison those around her. Keeping a tight grip on her temper, like a run away runner beast, she lost the cool indifferent look openly expressing her anger through her body and expressions. She did not recognize the Rider but perhaps she had impressed here while Celeyn had still been here or perhaps afterward. Either way this Rider must not know who she was or did not recognize her either. She was Celeyn. But then, no one seemed to know her anymore. But they would. Standing up, away from the wall, she kept the cool mocking look plastered to her face. And it would stay there if it killed her. Letting go just slightly of her anger, giving it just an inch of running room, she Humph.. and grunted at every thing she disagreed with. Blah... Blah..Blah This rider knew nothing, she was not even attempting to scare the Candidates with any truly bloody battles on the Hatching Sands. Surely this was something that desperately needed to be corrected, otherwise hwo would these poor, poor, unknowing candidates know just how dangerous Hatchings were?

Innocently, Celeyn raised her hand, just to half-mast, as if afraid of attracting too much trouble. Celeyn did not even wait to be called on-timidly asking in a somewhat shrill voice

Um... I've heard some really just awful things have happened at Hatchings. Hungry confused and even enraged Hatchlings have charged Candidates down. Injuring them sometimes permanently. Slapping candidates with their tails and sinking sharp claws into them. Have not the Hatchlings attackedinnocent Candidates just standing there, hopeful of impression? Those poor poor darlings never the same.

Gushing a little in dramatics, drawing out the gory-ness, she paused a moment while she waited for the attention to turn to her. Looking purposefully at Aliscia's scarred face she raised a questioning eyebrow. Smiling sweetly with the innocence of a child only two turns old that had no idea it had spoken of something wrong. Oozing of sweetness she tunred up the "sweet dial" of her voice, blinking almost dumbly in the face of direct attention.

We should try to stay out of Hatchlings' way at all costs, right?

[kysseh]

Halfway through a scroll on the proper treatment of Threadscore, Savitri nearly fell from her chair at the command inserted forcefully into her mind, managing to maintain some dignity and turn the wobble into a deft reach for the scroll that had fallen on the floor a short while before. Regaining her composure and becoming aware of the message, the healer stood and shuffled her things in order, quickly scooping up her bag and making a beeline for the infirmary door. It took longer than she wanted to get from the infirmary to the candidate barracks, but she managed to slide in before the greenrider introduced herself and began her lesson. The healer met Aliscia's gaze, to which the greenrider merely twitched an eyebrow to acknowledge her. Savitri was grateful to the greenrider, as anti-social as the other woman was. She could appreciate Aliscia's plainspoken tendencies, and it was the rider and her hostile dragon that had convinced Savitri to sign up, so to speak, for candidacy. Her lot in life had changed little. More work, plus lessons now... but there was that chance at Impression. Seeing the deep bond between Tanith and Aliscia made her envious, to say the least.

She had comfortably settled near the back of the group to listen, able to hear if not see all the time. This was one of the hazards of being vertically challenged, but she minded little. The healer in her was shocked at the tale of the dragon viciously mauling candidates at the hatching, though she was unsurprised that Tanith had done so. The green never had seemed like much of a well-mannered creature to her untrained eyes. The lesson seemed like mostly common sense to her, things she had picked up in the weyr in her time present there. The only thing that made her cringe was the weyr's... openness... in reference to sexual activity. While Aliscia had warned her previously about it, the healer-turned-candidate was no less reassured by the thought. It was not that she was not interested in men; she simply had not found one that struck her fancy. Apparently, though, her old-fashioned holdbred notions needed to be pitched out the nearest window opening.

The late arrival of the one candidate had irked her a bit, mostly because the movement distracted her for a second. She ignored the girl at first, though, largely because there was no point in paying attention. At the sound of the unnaturally shrill and snobbish voice, the healer turned her head to turn a look of supreme annoyance and disdain at the ignorant twit, jaw set in a grimace. Yes, of course, that was exactly what this frightened group of children needed: to be terrified to death. "You should stay out of the Hatching altogether. Dragons dislike bullies and snobs," she told the other girl flatly. She caught Aliscia give her a sharp look and fell silent, though no less infuriated. Sharding little snob... who did she think she was with those kind of airs?!




After silencing Savitri with a look--though she was glad she wasn't the only one who had seen through the facade of sweetness that the late arrival oozed, Aliscia returned her gaze to the impertinent young woman with the innocent expression. The candidate had had the body language of an arrogant, self-assured woman since she slid her way in late. She reminded Aliscia of the girl who had been mauled at that Hatching all those Turns ago. The mere thought of it made Aliscia's scarred face twitch in something reminiscent of a smirk. "Yes, awful things do happen at hatchings. Candidates get mauled, dragon hatchlings get injured, and blood and ichor are spilled. The beauty of it is that if you'd listened to half of what I said, that wouldn't happen for the most part. Now if you'd kindly shut your mouth before you make a fool of yourself even more, I'll explain more fully."

"The hatchlings usually emerged confused, clumsy, and hungry, understandable if you've been cooped up in a shell for a long time. The point of the Touching is to acquaint the candidates with the dragons in the eggs, and vice versa. If candidates would attend the Touching like they are asked to, familiarize themselves with the eggs and with the idea of an ungraceful hatchling coming from that egg, then there is far less to no carnage as a result. However..."

At this, Aliscia gave Celeyn a stony look, her light-colored eyes narrowed. This candidate would take careful watching. That was for sure.

"... if the candidates insist upon not being present for the Touching, arriving late for the Hatching, or doing something stupid like I stated earlier, then all bets are off. Some dragons, by nature, will aggress at people who get in their way, though rarely out of spite. They want to get to their bonded, and people are in their way. Yes, you do want to get out of their way as quickly and gracefully as you can, which means you need to pay attention during the Hatching so as not to get in the path of a searching hatchling. And if you insist upon arriving late for a lesson or acting with such disrespect again, I shall ensure that you get extra chores and are not recommended for an apprenticeship with a rider. Am I clear?" the greenrider finished, her last sentence aimed directly at the girl loitering near the back. She felt Tanith stirring in the back of her mind as the green plucked from her rider's mind the image of the offending candidate. "Or did you have anything else to inquire?"

[flupine]

Smirking the whole time, refusing to release the image of arrogant, selfish weyr-brat, Celeyn took a step forwad. Yes, she dared to take a step forward. This was it, this was her territory, her place. This intruder would not intimidate her. She was a dragon rider but one who still needed a little education in Selenitas Weyr.

Celeyn's smirking half smile began to trasform into a predatory grin, teeth flashing, eyes dancing like she was on the hunt. Perhaps a little too eagerly her face lit up with the blatant challege tossed into her face. She was Celeyn. This was Her Weyr. Tossing her head aloft, she ran a hand easily through her hair, just to prove that even though adrenaline pumped through her veins, she was unshakable, especially by this... intruder. Feeling the rage uncoil inside her she could feel the eagerness for a fight stamp it out. Not now, she needed to be calm, be cool, act with indifference. Taking a quick calming breath, the slip in her demeanor would hardly be noticed as rapid as it appeared and then disappeared again. A snap of the fingers and it was gone. Forcing her facial expression back under control she made a show of not caring. Indifference and nonchalance always seemed to anger candidate masters when there was a Hatching at stake, and she was going to make sure it Stuck.

Taking a quick glance around her gaze fell to one of the older Candidates, the one who eyed her in disdain. This was her element now. Spreading out her legs to balance out her weight, she looked supremely confident and hardly shaken by the warning from Aliscia. Psshh.. She wish she were Selenitas-bred Celeyn looked daring despite her height, her hair raked backwards in a careless manner. Though this looked accidental on her part, the hair now raked away from her face showed her full facial expression in the light, giving everyone a good iew of her if they just turned around in their seat. Letting her eyes pause on the woman eyeing her so futilely she lifted her head in a silent acknowledgment of her displeasure. Not the Celeyn cared but she wanted the woman to know she saw her and would remember her. Easy Celeyn, this is not your Weyr. This maybe the place you were born but it does not belong to you. It belongs to Shmee now. Again she repeated the words twice but even as she opened her mouth to humbly apologize she knew something entirely different was going to come out. It almost seemed that she had lost control of herself when Selenitas came in to the picture.

Turning down the blasting mockery of sweetness, she let her lips fall into a near pout, her liquid mercury eyes looked rather piteously around the room. It would be almost impossible not to fall under her spell and at least feel empathy for getting herself caught in her position. Her expression changed to chagrin, nearly speaking of an apology, like she did not realize what she had done was bad but still wanted to make up for it. She exuded confused innocence, even taking a tearful moment to look at the ground, biting her lip. Looking around for sympathizers she could feel some turning to her side. It seemed an unlikely battle of wills between a confused and hapless new girl and a scary unsociable teacher. At least that was want Celeyn wanted them to see. Switching her voice to a lower, more natural tone she asked in a daze

I simply thought that perhaps you had finished because you had stopped talking. I thought when people stopped talking, that meant they were finished talking. I am sorry if I jumped in but I wanted everyone to be aware of the danger presented by Hatchlings. When one is Impressed they are so very elated or when waiting for a new Hatchling that might be Theirs they tend to forget all else.

Twisting her hands together in a helpless gesture she waited for the attention to shift from her to the Green Rider once again before she made an offensive move. It would do no good for everyone to think she was mean.And truly Celeyn wasn't mean. She was arrogant and demanding and was extremely loyal to Selenitas, growing up believing Selenitas was the best place on the whole of Pern. Intruders were not welcome in her eyes and since she had been away, everyone was an intruder. Narrowing her eyes, she leaned forward in the eagerness of a challenge. Her silver eyes solidified into a burning blaze but her eyebrow raised in a silent mocking question while her lips twisted back into a self-assured smirk. A deeper more guttural voice emerged from her mouth, carrying easily from her to the front of the room where Aliscia stood.

I believe I know exactly how a hatching is suppose to go. I hardly need a lesson in that... But then neither do you I suppose. So I do not see you point, after all you have already gone over how Hatchlings act. I simply wanted to emphasize on the Danger.

Ending on a flippant note she quickly rearranged her features to that of cool indifference once more. She saw several head turn around in shock before searching the back of the room, unable to believe that such a... feral voice actually erupted from Celeyn's mouth. She looked so innocent and sweet, and even if she didn't she merely looked relaxed almost about the situation. It seemed a conundrum that she could have spoken those words, so much so that some people even wrote it off as nervousness and fear because of the Teacher's harsh words. Whispers exploded in the room and people discussed what had happened unable to keep it in until after the lesson. Celeyn took a moment during the distracted talking to lift an arm high to show a scar- one she received at a Hatching. At Sera's Hatching. Only holding the arm aloft for a few moments, she knew that the scar would be easily seen, angry jagged line that it was.

Celeyn was the master of manipulation, letting otehrs see her as she wanted or the situation called for. That was why she made such an excellent leader at the Hold, she learned use her mastering of her emotions as a weapon, a powerful tool to be used against people. She could make others feel and use that against them as the situation needed. Unfortunately she had let herself be a little too exposed by arriving late. Aliscia had seen her real, conflicted feelings the moment she walked through the door. Oh well, you lose some and you win some. Fixing her features into smooth lines, she relaxed her body, untensing her shoulders and rocked back on her heels, putting distance between her and Aliscia. this was a visible show of fear...if she had felt any fear. Looking the picture of horror and contrite she added before anyone could really think to long about maybe She had dared to say those things. Sweetly once more and in a much lower voice, her tone, her aura spoke of quiet embarrassment.

I.. I would not dare skip a touching! How hooorrrrible. I shudder at the very thought! Perish me before you if ever I would dare such disrespect...

Though Celeyn had meant to keep to sticky sweetness her voiced oozed out the word horrible, dragging out the syllables much longer than necessary. But the second part was said in such mocking despair, of a theatrical sense.Did she dare? Did she want extra chores? But then she had spent the past turns working her way into a respectful position at the Hold. the worse punishment would have been being Apprenticed to a Rider for Celeyn. The pain of being around the dragons and Weyrfolk again would hqve been too much. But she was ruining any chance of that now. So did she dare? Oh she did dare... Flippantly she tacked on the last part, this time in her true voice, a medium soft tone, even pleasant on the ear.

And who needs an apprenticeship when they were born of Dragon Riders? When they are Selenita's bred?

Smirking she watched carefully. Oh goody not only was this interesting but she might actually get kicked out of the Hatching. Which meant she did not have to attend that back-stabbing Aslath's clutch. Then she could go back to the Hold and live the life she had so carefully planned. But did she really want the chance to not Impress? Did she really want a Holder's life? But she had hardened her heart against this life the day she left, the day Sera's daughter died.

[ryanne]

Liassa sighed as she scrubbed the floor. She had barely had enough time to breathe yesterday. She'd gone straight from chores from her mother to candidate chores to lessons with A'noan. On top of all that, she was convinced that she was coming down with something. She had a headache and her stomach ached all day. Today was supposed to be a bit easier, there were no lessons with A'noan. She still had to change all the glows in the empty weyrs after she finished scrubbing this floor though. Her mother expected her to be one of the sole caretakers for the vacant part of the weyr. Sometimes Liassa wished that the woman would trust some of the drudges in this section, but she knew that the work wasn't that hard so she'd just have to keep pushing through it.

Scrubbing was rough on her hands and it was inside, making it not her favorite chore. But it was systematic. She could think while she was doing it without messing up. She could consider everything around her while still getting her work done. That at least made it better. The Flight was over (she'd ignore her own small involvement in the happenings...she couldn't stand to think about that) and the clutch was laid. They would probably get to touch it soon enough. It wasn't anything that she hadn't done before, but she was excited. Maybe this time she would actually Impress.

To think of that...riding on the back of a dragon, having someone bonded to her that loved her unconditionally, to finally be out of the kitchens and empty weyrs. It would be amazing. As a weyrling, it wasn't like her rank was much higher, but it meant that she was rising, rising out of drudgelife and that was all she wanted. Being a dragonrider had been her dream for as long as she could imagine. After all, she was weyrbred so she grew up in the fairytale land that others just dreamt about. She was lucky and she was going to get another chance. If she didn't Impress this time, she could wait...she still had turns left of Standing. But part of her begged whatever higher power to just give her her chance now, to not make her wait those turns.

Liassa hadn't even noticed as she sat there and scrubbed the same spot four or five times. She was almost done with the stone floor, but it seemed that her thoughts stilled her motion around the ground, leaving her hand just moving in circles as she mused.

//All candidates... if you value your chances at Impression, you will move yourselves to the common room in the barracks /now/. You are having a lesson.// [/i]

She looked up in surprise. She hadn't realized that candidate lessons were today. Her mother was not going to be happy, but Liassa couldn't do a sharding thing about that. Looking at the floor, she was surprised to see how much of it was actually clean. A few more swipes towards the doorway and she was finished, though she was hurrying. She did not want to be late. Something about the green's tone and words warned against that. Leaving the bucket and brush where it rested, she drew herself to her feet, laughing at how shaky she was due to having sat on her knees for so long.

She arrived on time, much to her relief, and was allowed to sink into one of the chairs, her legs just beginning to tingle as they completely woke up. She'd been through candidate lessons before and she knew how they worked. Liassa was determined to pay attention anyway. A'noan would have her head if she got in trouble with the Candidate Master even if she was just "some lowly greenrider." The information was all familiar and that, at least, was comforting.

The late girl, however, was not. There were several words that Liassa could apply to her, but she was going to keep them to herself. The candidate was rude and manipulative and Liassa saw that from the moment she began to toy with her expressions and emotions. There was no way that she could ever put up with her. Liassa just didn't have the patience or the willpower to actually get to know someone like that. She'd slap her before a candlemark was up and that was a gurantee.

Just as she was about to say something, another girl cut in. Liassa flashed a smile at the healer. She knew her from around, but she'd never really talked to her. It seemed that she had some of the same ideas though when it came to the girl standing in the back. Liassa still had half a mind to say something herself, but she didn't. It wouldn't bode well for two people to jump on the brat. One and then the Candidate Master should do it just fine. She would just make a note to congratulate the other on opening her mouth first later. She wished that she'd gotten to insulting the girl first.
[/size]

[marissa]

"Got it, love? When I do that, I want you to come right here, alright? Shirk. Shirk! Shirk?" With a heavy sigh, Raen crouched down to prod her salamandyr. It was just like the green to do this, because of course the candidate was attempting to train the her little love. 'This', of course, was falling asleep in the span of a minute, as Raen had been trying to convey the action that she had wanted to take place. Why was the little bugger so lazy? No idea, whatsoever. She was only aware that she was saddled with a completely adorable, completely lovable, completely layabout creature to be bonded to. Any complaints? Nah.

Scooping up the little green, so that she was sprawling in her bonded's arms, Raen cuddled her to her chest for a moment, before extending her arms to hold Shirk at arms-length. "Shirk? Dear? Darling?" No response, of course. "Hey: annoying, lazy, adorable 'mandyr. Wake up so you can get on with your training!" Still no response, that creature. She could sleep through anything. "I'll give you these meat scraps..." Well, except that. If it was possible, Shirk loved food more than she loved sleep, and the green's eyes were immediately staring at her bonded. Sighing again, Raen set her loved salamandyr on the ground, digging in her belt pouch to produce some meatscraps, which she threw out into the grassy land, except for one. It actually worked, better than the girl thought it would, for the green made her way, slowly but surely, towards the meatscraps closest to her.

"Good job, de--"

//All candidates... if you value your chances at Impression, you will move yourselves to the common room in the barracks /now/. You are having a lesson.//

"ar. Alright, you've gotten off for a few more days, dear. Shmee might need me, for a couple days, with Shei or Miguel. Now, comeon." Shirk only responded with a disdainful, yet somehow loving, glance in her bonded's direction as she munched the food. Rolling her eyes, the candidate was quick to scoop the 'mandyr off the ground, and made her way towards the Barracks.

Raen arrived soon enough, taking a position at the back of the group, as was her nature. These ordeals actually interested her, as she was holdbred. While she understood rank well enough, and all aspects of it (she was the lowest, and should therefore respect everyone, especially those at the highest spectrum... ie: Shmee and Ka'rys), and she understood chores. Shells, she was a kitchen helper for how many turns? She had those down. The sex, however... it unnerved her. Sex without a Joining ceremony, or at least a degree of love, wasn't right. It was as simple as that, and that Weyr accepted it, though there dragons, as facts of life was strange, and immoral.

Aslath's Flight recently had scared ever fiber of the girl's being, and she had been sure to be as alone as was humanely possible. She had alienated people for as long as was possible, that day, training Shirk out by herself as long as Aslath was in the skies. The lust was strange for her, and she tried as she might to block it out... succeeding, at least to a certain degree. She didn't go and idulge on her wishes that day, as many people did. She refused to. If she impressed she might think about this in depth. If. But Raen was a firm believer that lust was wrong, even when sex was such an easy topic at the Weyr. She would not, repeat, not get used to this idea until the opportunity presented itself. It was the reason that her mother had died, that her father had alienated her, and that she was so against growing up. Sorry, no. Sex produced babies. And babies could ruin lives as easily as they could enrich them.

Still, Raen stayed quiet when asked if they had any questions. After all, she had none. She knew, for once, exactly what was going on. And if that deadglow of a candidate, Celeyn, wanted to backtalk as stupidly as she was doing, she could go right on ahead.

For that was what Celeyn was doing. Raen hadn't even noticed that she was there, too focused on her own beliefs and Aliscia's words. Now, however, she was simply trying to frighten them all, and while on some levels it was working, on others Raen knew that it was better to put her trust in the greenrider. A smart-mouthed candidate, versus an experienced rider? The girl was well aware that she would trust the latter, even if it had only been cadidate versus candidate. Although, that decision may have been based solidly on the fact that Celeyn annoyed her to no ends, even just meeting her now for the first time. So, for once in her life, Raen spoke up.

"Congratulations - you were born of dragon riders. That does not make you one, or make your rank any higher than a single person in this room. I was born of drudges, of dragon-haters. Does that mean that I am one as well, or that I hold the same lowly rank here at this Weyr?" Her voice was quiet, but it carried... hopefully. Raen had a small, determined expression, even as she wondered if it was the right thing. Standing up to someone was, a lot of times, pointless. Especially someone like Celeyn, where Raen would bet marks that one person's words went in one ear and out the other. Still, it was a step... for Raen, at the very least.

[flupine]

Celeyn paused and pulled back slightly staring at the girl who was daring enough to speak aloud to her... Celeyn? But that was not even the most important thing right now. What Celeyn was wondering was how she had seen through her facade. Celeyn was generally a nice person, slightly backstabbing outside her most trusted loyalties, but nice. And yet this girl not only presumed to know her well enough to be disgusted with her, but she was not the only one. Three girls had all turned to give her looks varying between disdain and disgust. How did they read into her. Quickly analyzing her, Celeyn reviewed every movement she had made thus far. She had been careful, she had look innocent and sweet, she was new, that was all these girls should know. Celeyn would have to be more careful about open displays if at least three girls could see through her that quickly. Or perhaps they simply saw past her because they were girls, or they recognized something about her. It was not if Celeyn was a bad person. She was a Selenitas-brat, she was born and raised that she was the absolute best that Pern had to offer, below that of the Bloodline. Her life had strict hierarchy, and that was life. Selenitas demanded the very best of everythings, including Candidates. Despite refusing her past, rejecting Selenitas, she still felt the passion on the Weyr flowing through her veins. As did everyone who had been bred Selenitas, it was more than a Weyr, it was life.

Right now the fact that this girl was obviously of a lowly position gave her reason to feel disdain and a slight twinge of respect. If the old rules still applied and this girl had been searched for Candidacy, she must be of the best the Searchers had been able to find, but she was a drudge after all and there was no changing that. Quickly going over her options, she decided on the best move to make. This all happened in a few seconds, just a quick scan of thoughts and action, gone in the amount of time needed to snap. Celeyn was a pro at this. Alright Celeyn, time to back up a little bit. You ccannot have them all hating you.... Dropping her smile, this was not a time for games, she met each baleful glare her way for as long as the girl would allow. Her body stretched out a little, her legs spread like she was balancing her weight on the rocking deck of a ship. The silver arrow eyes met with deathly coldness. Slowly dragging eye eyes to touch upon each girl she settled on the last one. Defensive or offensive? Mulling over her options while she stared at the girl, she decided upon both, she wanted to adress the girl individually without making everyone hate her. Voice filled with the same sticky sweetness that had oozed out earlier, curling through the room over powering the memory of the girl's words.

Well Shards!! No offense was intended darling... it is simply that with being raised in the Weyr and with no Threadfall, life had once been much calmer and I was allowed to follow my father and help with the bathing of His. And I would never presume to tell you your place in life, that is your own problem but I do believe our lovely instructor here did just explain how our positions were nothing more than that of servants, perhaps a mere step above drudges. But if you cannot hear her perhaps you had better move closer to the front. And by Faranth, I would hope that you nor anyone else would hate Dragons, why would you be here otherwise?


Drawing out certain parts of the response she was all smile, giving the right cue response at the right moments, a hand extended out to the instructor as if to point out that she was standing in the front of the room. She looked across the room again, warm and friendly. Surely no one else would think she was a snob, that sweet innocent voice could reach into a person's chest and pluck their heart strings. Taking a small step back she lowered her eyes to the flow, biting her lower lip, making a quiet display of anguish. None of her movements were flamboyant or overtly eye-catching, just a quiet gesture, like she was attempting to hold back, very dignified move actually. And in a way, it was sincere and even genuine. She really hadn't meant to make people hate her, she just wanted them to know who she was, and that she saw them as intruders in her Weyr might have played just the tiniest bit in her actions. Celeyn was a Holdperson now. She should be trying to find a husband and go back to her job. But it seemed the longer she stayed here, the more she fought it, the more she fit in. The idea of marrying and making a life-long commitment never to be broken was so out of the ordinary for her, it was as if the Weyr was ingrained in her make-up, and indeed it's customs were. Though she now understood some of the shock that filled holdbrats at the mentioning of open relationships, the same dread and even fear had entered her at the thought of belonging to a man permanently. Celeyn should be worrying about getting back to her Hold, to her new life. But how could she leave the Weyr like this? Her Weyr, her people and something terrible had happened to them. It haunted her dreams, her thoughts. The somber tragic faces that hung around now, surely not even Shmee would be capable of turning the mood of the people and the dragons so drastically. And where were the dragonriders? She hardly recognized any of the Riders now, many of the ones she had been in Candidacy with no longer walked the Weyr, what happened to them? There were too many questions unanswered for her to leave, this had been her home. At leas that's what Celeyn kept telling herself, excusing her from leaving and to keep hanging on one more day. But was this a wise decision or would it ruin her? Just like before.... Shaking her head she focused on the girl. She needed to fully address this one to make sure it stuck, besides it was too late for an apology. In a motherly and almost stern tone she sounded like she was reprimanding the girl when she finished.

And I did not say I was a Dragon Rider darling. I said that I did not need an apprenticeship. The difference between the two are as stark as the differences between us and Benden.

Sweeping across the room she wondered if these Candidates even knew their history. Had they been devastated at the loss of the Bloodline? They probably did not even feel the same soul-shattering loyalty she had felt at her fist turn of Candidacy. And that was a shame. Something she longed to correct. But that may have to wait until a later date. Raising her eyes slowly to Aliscia, the barest hint of moisture was still disappearing from her eyes and as she avidly watched the teacher for her response, her eyes hardened, her face hardened. She did not like this intruder. Dropping the tone she talked normally to the Green Rider, there was no use in using a facade on her, she was not even worthy of one anyways. And to think, now she did not even have to Apprentice to some green rider, two Wherries with one stone.

My name is Celeyn by the way.

[Kisha-Ra]

Odian and Jarathon occupied a table in the dining hall, along with their weyrling friend Janisi, the boys didn’t see as much of their friend since she Impressed Storith at the last hatching but the trio could usually manage one or two meals together in the course of a sevenday. Admittedly at this meal not very much conversation was going on, mostly because all three were busy eating.

When the call for lessons came to the minds of the unsuspecting candidates Odian dropped his fork onto his plate with a clatter and Jarathon bit his tongue. ‘I take it you two have a lesson.’ Janisi laughed, privately glad that the weyrlingmaster’s dragon would only speak to the weyrling dragons.

‘Oh yeah, we’ve got a lesson.’ Odain muttered retrieving his fork and using it to shovel the rest of his meal into his mouth with a total disregard for common table manners.

‘Uh huh.’ Jarathon agreed picking up those parts of his remaining meal that could be carried away. ‘Another approaching hatching, another set of stern lectures. See you later I guess.’ Janisi nodded and waved a hand as her friends left.


Odian and Jarathon arrived in the middle of a bunch of candidates and, well assured that they weren’t late, took seats near the back of the room. Jarathon sprawled in his chair in an ungainly manner while Odian sat straight and leaned forward in his.

Jarathon was only half listening to the lecture, he really wasn’t being told anything new about chores, his own lowliness, or the sexual attitudes of the Weyr. That last topic was a sore point with him right at the moment though, especially since Wraith blathered on incessantly about Chatti and didn’t miss a chance to sneak off and be with her mate. Irrelevantly he wondered if the mating behaviour of Salamandyrs should be mentioned in this induction type lecture, he might even have said something had some truly offensive girl not interrupted the greenrider’s speech, which had somehow managed to get as far as hatchings while he was thinking, before he could open his mouth.

Self important idiot, she was probably trying to scare people off with horror tales. Jarathon stuck his tongue out at the back of Celeyn’s head and crossed his eyes but said nothing; he wouldn’t bother arguing with someone like that.

Odain listened carefully because everyone was different and this rider might consider different things important that the last person who’d taken this lesson. Her dragon had an evil temper, right. Respect the Weyrwomen and Weyrleaders, uh huh. He was some of the lowest scum on the face of Pern, got that. Odain leaned even further forward when the woman mentioned hatchings, she should know about them, she had Impressed. Odian snorted derisively, what kind of idiot would risk the wrath of the clutchmother to touch a hatching egg? Queens didn’t really seem to like touching, even at the appointed time. The hatchling dragons weren’t bad though, they were just scared babies and just like puppies they didn’t realise that teeth could hurt.

Another derisive snort, it seemed like there was already someone present who was going to be trouble. Odian bit his lip to keep from saying something along the lines of: I heard the whole hatching cavern fell in at Telgar and that’s why no one lives there anymore, or: Isn’t it true that a dead egg leapt up and beat some candidate about the knees? Couldn’t that girl hear that they were being warned to keep out of the way of seeking hatchlings? If everyone could use their common sense and their eyes they could keep out of the way an not get mauled half to death, after all young dragons were quite ungainly and very focused on their choice, it wasn’t too hard to just get out of the way.

That girl just kept on going and going; did the term shutting up even appear in her vocabulary? Probably not. ‘Fancy yourself don’t you Celeyn?’ he said in a bored tone, knowing he was probably going to make things worse but unable to hold back any longer.


Redaro had taken a seat in the front row with only one of his flitters, the malformed Insi, with him. He slouched in his seat and ran a hand constantly along Insi’s hide but listened attentively, this lesson hadn’t been on the program for the wher hatching. It was quite interesting but he could have done without the audience participation that was turning this whole thing into a farce. He hoped the master for this lesson would ignore the continued interruptions and carry on talking.

[reqqy]

Mutasim was late.

Truly, he hadn't attended a single lesson in...well, a month? Two? Why he chose to now was anyone's guess. He certainly wouldn't be able to tell you. The boy had a nearly perfect memory, and he'd scrupulously come to every shard-blasted lesson through three hatchings. They certainly weren't about to offer him any knowledge on how to be a more desirable choice for a hatchling; even as babes, dragons were too smart to align themselves with Muta.

Jabari hissed, clearly offended. The brown firelizard - the candidate's doting shoulder-ornament - nipped at the neck of his pet. He didn't seem to notice. Though Mutasim didn't like to admit it, he found himself caring even less about everything now that his closest friend had walked out of his life. Solitude suited the Bitran boy well enough. He shook himself, staring at Aliscia as the woman got into it with some pesky girl. Girls were the worst of the lot, sure enough. When did that woman become the candidatemaster? Eh, he might have been shirking lessons longer than he'd thought. Oh well. He'd been doing his chores, and seeing as how none of the higher ups had approached him or launched into bothersome lectures, apparently that was enough to please the weyrfolk around here.

The boy sighed, stretching as he listened to all the shrieking. Yes, shrieking. Women had such high voices. He didn't really like such voices much. Recognizing that his thoughts were wandering, Mutasim merely allowed them to. At least he wouldn't likely be noticed, with all the screeching and aggravations. Clearly, he must have suffered from temporary insanity to actually come here. If he hadn't been destined for the noose in Bitra - if the Lordholder was feeling merciful, that was - he would have thought he'd quit his sanity the moment he'd joined that searchrider all that time ago.

Tugging lightly on the collar of the glaring white trench that was so out of place here in the south, he found himself taking a slight interest in the exchange between this Celeyn and...what was her name again? Something to do with weather, he thought. Storm? No. Snowflake? That drew a chuckle from him, one he quickly hid behind his wrist. Definitely not. Rain. Yes, it was Rain, he thought. Though knowing how people were, she probably spelled it differently. Parents. No one seemed to know how to name a child.

It was hot.

Glancing about for a good place to throw the heavy coat, he caught Odian's comment, a small smirk coming to his mouth. It only served to darken the danger behind his gaze. Well, that one had a brain, anyway. There were worse people to share space with. Mutasim doffed the coat, throwing it half-hazardly over the table, and slumping gracefully into a seat. The scars that ringed neck and wrists stood out starkly against his dusky skin. Obviously, he didn't care. The boy merely scratched Jabari's head after the flitter resettled, waiting to see what would come of this sad excuse for a lesson.

Even if it was the result of a moment of insanity, at least he might derive some amusement from it.

[midnight]

Aminadra was taking a break in her room, reading one of the few books she had brought with her to the Weyr. She was coming to an especially exciting passage when a strong female voice echoed in her mind. //All candidates... if you value your chances at Impression, you will move yourselves to the common room in the barracks /now/. You are having a lesson.//[/color] She let out a squeak of surprise, dropping her book to the floor as she jumped. Then, the startlement was replaced with excitement. First of all, a dragon had spoken to her. Well, technically to all of the candidates, but still, she'd heard a dragon's voice in her head. That was exhilarating enough. Then, it was to announce the first candidate lesson. Aminadra was a nerd at heart, and she loved to learn new things. She didn't know much about the Weyr yet, and she wanted to learn as much as she could before the Hatching.

She hastily strode to the common room, glad that she wasn't too far away. She slid into a seat close to the substitute Candidate Master, eager to hear every word. Aliscia and Tanith. she repeated the names to herself, wanting to remember them, in case she had more questions later. She wasn't really frightened by Aliscia's warning to watch out for Tanith. Aminadra didn't really believe dragons could be mean or aggressive unless they were really provoked, and she would never dream of doing so. She already knew the Weyrleader's names, having made a point of learning them soon after coming to the Weyr.

She was not really bothered by the low status of candidates. As far as she was concerned, the lowest of the low in the Weyr was still better than anything she had as a Holder's daughter or wife. Here, she had the possibility of being a dragonrider. That was enough. As a Holder, what possibilities did she have? Being a mother? A dutiful wife? None of it ever mattered to her as much as her candidacy did now.

The Weyr's lax views of sex were, indeed, a bit shocking, but not unwelcome. Here in the Weyr, her comparatively innocent affair with Teran would barely have been noticed. Her smile faded a bit as she thought of him. She missed him. Where was he now? Maybe there was some way to find out. He would surely be happy for her if he found out she was a candidate. But there was no use thinking about it now, and she turned her attention back to Aliscia as she instructed them to show respect for the clutch. Aminadra could not imagine assuming anything else. She would be on her very best behavior for the Touching and Hatching.

She considered her many questions when Aliscia finished speaking, but before she could voice any of them, another candidate piped up with a rather gruesome inquiry about the violence of Hatchings. She seemed a bit old to be a candidate, Aminadra thought vaguely, peering at her knot. But why would a rider be at the candidate lesson? She frowned as the woman talked back to Aliscia. She felt like she had missed something because of the way the other candidates reacted. Maybe Celeyn had acted up before? Whatever the case, she certainly seemed very fierce about her opinions. That wasn't always a bad thing, but Celeyn's outspokenness made her a little uncomfortable.

She glanced up as a late candidate entered, pitying him a bit for walking in on the middle of this exchange. Maybe his arrival would diffuse things a bit, though. Tentatively, she raised her hand, clearing her throat lightly to gain Aliscia's attention.

"I hope you don't mind my interruption, but I have a question. Not entirely related to matters of Hatching, but I believe that the answer will be useful to us nonetheless. Might you explain the political situation in Selenitas? Attacks on the Hatching Grounds, a recent change in Weyrleadership--I only know a little bit of it." She glanced at Celeyn, almost ready for a comment from her. "Perhaps you could help answer, with your extensive knowledge of the Weyr." The remark, while it might come off as impertinent, was genuine enough on her part.

[kysseh]

"Enough!"

Even if Aliscia's voice was just barely raised above the level of normal conversation, the sheer force of fury behind it was enough to convey her anger. The tiny rider's eyes were narrowed to near slits, and she pinned Celeyn with a look of utter disdain. "Don't speak to me about danger, child. If there is any emphasis you can provide, it is the emphasis on how manipulative and utterly distasteful beastly children like you are. Since you obviously have no need of this lesson, by your own admission, you will remove yourself from the room immediately so that you cease to cause further interruptions. You did not listen; you are therefore counted as not having attended. Get out before I forcibly remove you," she said shortly, pausing for a brief moment to allow the girl time to clear the room before the greenrider felt the necessity to remove her. She made a mental note of the girl's name for later. She had ways to fix this issue.

Satisfied with that, she glanced around at the rest of the candidates, giving the late arriving male and those who had rebuked Celeyn an extra second or two of a glare. "As for the rest of you, it may be tempting to scold your peers, but from now on, that job falls squarely on the shoulders of myself or any other rider or person in charge of overseeing you. Do not take it into your own hands." She did not blame them in the least for their dislike of the weyrbred snob, but discipline had to be kept, and that was that.

While more than a little annoyed that the other female candidate had included Celeyn in her questioning, Aliscia nodded at the girl who had posed the question. "I can offer you what is common knowledge. The weyrwoman and weyrleader, as well as certain others, have better information, I'm sure, but what I know I can share." Unfortunately, she had limited knowledge of the Selenitas half of the story. "As far as the change in Weyrleadership, that is caused by the results of the senior queen's Flight. The rider of the bronze who flies the queen becomes Weyrleader. Whenever the senior queen Rises, there is a chance for the weyrleader to change. Our weyrleader was previously S'rei, but since Ciceroth flew Aslath, Ka'arys is the new weyrleader. This is standard practice for the weyrs. It often happens, though, that one bronze in particular Flies the senior queen every time she rises, so the senior weyrleader remains constant. This is not a guarantee, though."

"As some of you may know, Benden Weyr desires to keep Selenitas Weyr under its thumb. The attack on the Hatching Grounds was an attempt to do that, an attempt on the lives of the weyrwomen and the weyrlings. Benden encourages and trains its riders and dragons for dragonback combat, and they are relentless. I'm sure they'll be back. I suggest you all be cautious of that as well," she added, touching the scars on one half of her face. "I am new here myself, so learning the details of what happened is a challenge. The riders and weyrlings who have been here longer can instruct you better on that. Does that answer your question?" she asked, arching an eyebrow at the querying candidate and then extending the question to the rest of the present population.

[flupine]

Keandren slunk into the room as unnoticeable as possible and with his stature that would not be a difficult task. Though he had not been late, he had been one of the last Candidates in the room, filing in with the last wave, he pulled away heading toward the outskirts of the room, choosing a end seat on a row located somewhat towards the middle. Easy escape route. Moving around in his seat uncomfortably while everyone that came in took their seats, he noticed that many would not look his way and the ones that did simply glared at him. Obviously he did not have many friends in here already. Choosing to ignore any provoking looks directed his way, after all, he was planning on hanging out under the radar of the Candidate instructor. However after everyone took and seat and settled in Keandren realized that he could not see the instructor, he sat almost a full head below the people sitting in front of him. Though most times he did not mind his height there were some distinct advantages to being at least 3 inches taller and he would not have mind looking a little older too.

Beginning to move around in an attempt to see better, even standing up slightly, the people behind him began to hiss at him in aggravation. Deciding it wasn't worth it, causing a scene, he sat back down and just listened. Same thing every year, be careful, watch out, sex and such... Though he thought this. Unlike someone (cough cough) in the room, he kept his thoughts to himself. Amazed, he turned around to look in the back of the room. Amazing that the sweet looking girl would possibly add to it, though he felt drawn into her voice, into believing her and listening to her he realized what was happening. Oh.. she was good, she was real good. Never missed a step. Smiling brightly, properly innocent and mischievous she made a compelling talker. She was obviously a manipulative person, the moment she switched gears her body practically sung it. Her voice could be used like a weapon and yet he watched as a few of the other candidates saw past her facade. Interesting he had thought that not many would be able to tell, she did nothing untoward, anything that would attract there particular attention. it was amzing how she could flip so quickly though. Magnificent, even through the distaste he felt respect, she was good. Watching the crowd he could see that some of her sympathizers swayed back and forth between her and her opponents. Thoguh he watched carefully, his lips twitched slightly upwards. If she impressed this would be an entertaining Weyrling training. But just as quickly as she popped up, oh so innocently, she had been dismissed. No doubt she would be a target for those who had just spoken out against her, to the ones who had seen through her. She would probably make friends but she definitely have some enemies. Turning away from her he watched the intructors carefully, but did so as if he needed to hide where his eyes went.

Keandren still wished to avoid any notice though some people were bound to notice him, it seemed that his small stature made him more unnoticeable but also attracted attention because many thought he was too young to impress. this was both a blessing and a curse and for some reason he did not think Aliscia would be the nicest and most accepting of people, he needed to make a semi-good impression, to at least be tolerated. Unlike ms. prissy who had been dismissed he might have also grown up in the Weyr but other than running errands for the occasional Rider he had no previous experience. It would be a great opportunity for him to be apprenticed to a Rider and having always being look over as a possible candidate for the Apprenticeship, he wanted to try this year. Gritting his teeth slightly over the previous years happenings, he was much more hopeful this year. Perhaps he looked a little older and would have better chance. But then again after running his hand across his chin, no, he probably did not look any older than he had last time.

Choosing to ignore the rest of the crowd, he had enough problems of his own without getting involved with others, he chose to watch different people reactions. But as Aliscia stepped between in the fight, she commanded attention back to her and most obeyed, swinging back to focus upon her. He followed suit to watch Aliscia waiting for the next event. Would Aliscia spend any actual time getting to know the Candidates, how would she refer Apprenticeship. But looking around the room again, he knew if she talked to many of the other Candidates about him, there would be no way he would even be considered. He had been in many fights and made lots of enemies.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Raising an amused eyebrow she met the eyes of the Candidate who felt himself called upon to add his own two marks worth into the conversation. Grinning ferally at the Candidate, she eyed him up and down, though there was not much to see as he was sitting down. Smiling prettily at him, she cocked her head to the side as if something about him perplexed her and in a way he did. Tilting her mouth into a smirk she answered him, after all if they wanted to go up against her, she would answer. It would be completely rude not to.

"Yes, actually I do. It's rather sad for those who don't, tragic if you don't like yourself..."

Rocking back on her heels, she crossed her arms over her chest, moving her head to tilt forward, waiting with a gentle smile plastered kindly on her face. She would wait, if they wanted a piece of her, they could have it, she would even wrap it for them. Amused at the thought she let her eyes glide across the room. But the sound of the girl's voice brought her eyes to abruptly stop on her. Stepping forward, she smiled winningly at the girl. Her eyes softened greatly, her whole face softened as she looked toward her. Finally a good girl, a good respectful girl, one willing to learn about what would be her history if she Impressed or even if she simply lived at the Weyr.

"History? I can teach you about Selenitas..."

But even as Celeyn began to talk, specifically to the girl, she was -rudely- cut off by the Instructor, Aliscia. "Don't speak to me about danger, child. If there is any emphasis you can provide, it is the emphasis on how manipulative and utterly distasteful beastly children like you are. Since you obviously have no need of this lesson, by your own admission, you will remove yourself from the room immediately so that you cease to cause further interruptions. You did not listen; you are therefore counted as not having attended. Get out before I forcibly remove you,"

Oh no - she did not just very rudely interrupt her. Turning her gaze up to Aliscia, tearing it away from the girl slowly and reluctantly. Burning with rage, but smiling condescending she shrugged, "Sure-- I think I can manage that but do not presume you know anything about me. Say what you would like but I think that everyone already knows I was here. " Though that had not come out as polished as she was aiming for, it was a t least smoothly said. Turnign gentle eyes back to the girl, she smiled. "It would seem that I am being banished from the lesson but if you ever want to find out about Selenitas, I will be around, at least until after the hatching." Swinging around to walk out of the room, Celeyn could not help but stop and say one final thing, "Do you even know who Seresta was?" No longer playing some game, as Celeyn would never play about Selenitas, her face was stripped of it's overwhelming facade. Stripped down and starkly contrasting with her earlier display, Celeyn looked haunted, sad and hurt. This had been her life and now intruders had taken over. Glaring at Aliscia she did not even spare a glance for the brats who had spoken up and trounced out of the room.

(Seresta is Sera's daughter)

[reqqy]

Mutasim met the glare with an entirely blank expression, trying not to laugh outright. Obviously she wasn't nearly observant enough to notice that he was her resident absentee, if all she did was glare at him briefly. A glare. That was supposed to be...what? Intimidating? Ludicrous. If men with daggers and fighting dragonpairs didn't frighten him, a little nasty look sure wasn't going to do the trick. Maybe these soft little kidlets. Sure, some were older than him, but he was actually nearing the older edge of the pack nowadays, though he didn't much look it once you took away the persistent facial hair. Content that he'd succeeded in masking most of the derision, Mutasim allowed his body to relax still further, giving the illusion of ease. The sharp gaze called a lie to said illusion.

He did take a moment to openly stare at Celeyn. What? Now they were all supposed to know her? Admittedly, he was extremely antisocial, but she couldn't be that important if he couldn't recognize her after nearly two turns. Mutasim was secure enough in his own observation skills to be certain of that much. Trumped up little priss. His eyes narrowed dismissively.

A look in the archives had told him all he needed to know about Seresta. Idiotic child. The last in a line of women in which the blood had diluted with each passing generation. She thought she could rely on her genetic heritage, instead of her own traits to get that queen. Thought it was hers by rights. Whatever. People do that from time to time. But committing suicide when she didn't get what she wanted? A monumental temper tantrum. Seresta was merely a childish, vain creature with weak blood. To say that aloud would have been immensely stupid; he kept it to himself. So this Celeyn had something to do with Seresta. No wonder she thought she was something. Anyone who cleaved to the royal deceased pain-in-the-arse could hardly be less arrogant.

He turned his attention back to the candidatemaster as she professed general ignorance, then proceeded to ask if the girl's question had been answered. Were all people this...stupid? Mutasim folded his arms across his chest. Ironic, really. His friend had been there, during the weyrling massacre. And Mutasim himself was of course within the weyr during every single incident, including the one not even the Weyrleaders - present or former - were aware of. He'd even been the one behind the dagger that killed that Benden dragonless who'd initially poisoned Shmee. Not that anyone knew about that. If they /had/ known, he might well have been kicked out of Selenitas. These people were strange, after all. Self-defense seemed a fine excuse, but simply murdering someone because they were evil might be seen as 'evil' itself. People could be so demented sometimes.

Though reluctant to speak up, Mutasim had never been reluctant about stepping on toes when it came right down to it. "It's not just the riders and weyrlings who might have been around long enough to know what's going on. Any of the candidates who have been here awhile could help fill in the gaps," he commented. There. He'd been good. Hadn't pointed out her ignorance or anything, and she could take his suggestion or leave it. Mutasim really didn't care.

[ravenmane]

Please? Fog chirped quietly into his Bonded’s ear. His small muzzle nudged her gently further bringing his need to Kal’s attention. “Alright, Fog. Come here.” The candidate picked up the small salamandyr gingerly and transferred him from her shoulder to her hand. Please! This time, the ‘mandyr’s voice was most insistent and needy, and a small tightening of her gut told the candidate what was wrong. “Oh. You’re hungry, aren’t you, Fog?” The little salamandyr’s frill opened slightly as he chirped an affirmative. Good. Kalushka smiled at him before returning her pet to his perch and quickly tidying the place she had been sitting.

As Kalushka left the Records Rooms, a hungry Jashta joined her and Fog. Her voice was high and demanding as her chosen proceeded to rush to the Kitchens. “Quiet, Jashta. You’ll get your food soon.” Kal’s words did not calm the demanding flitter, and Jashta continued to grumble quite loudly. When the candidate finally entered the Kitchens, she sighed slightly with relief. Soon she would be able to shut up her annoying pet and have some peace and quiet. After locating some fresh meat and an empty table, Kalushka settled down to feed her ‘mandyr and fire-lizard. Jashta rudely pushed little Fog aside in her haste to be fed, but the blind salamandyr ignored her and climbed onto Kalushka’s shoulder. Food quickly disappeared into both of the creatures’ stomachs, and Kal was able to snatch some food for herself.

While she was eating, a drudge had been watching her and finally approached her. “Ain’t ye a candidate, girlie?” Kalushka looked up with surprise, but nodded. “Well, girlie, ye be’ter git goin’ to yer lesson. T’e Mis’ress won’t be ‘appy with ya.” Before the wizened drudge could finish, Kalushka was hurtling out of the Kitchens and off to the candidate barracks. A perturbed Jashta soared above the candidate, and her raucous voice urged the girl on. How could she have forgotten about the lesson? Impressing was the most important thing on her mind, and she had forgotten about a frickin’ lesson! Kalushka silently cursed herself as she arrived at the Barracks, and she fought to slow down her breathing. After taking a couple of deep breaths, the girl entered the room where the CandidateMaster was and the others candidates were. She bowed to her teacher before giving speaking. “I’m sorry I’m late, Ma’am. I forgot about the lesson.” Her eyes stared at the ground from shame. How could she be a dragonrider if she couldn’t remember to attend her lessons?