Occam's Razor [Razorclaw Hatching]

[Sebz]

Ke'von was still being lectured by his dragon on the proper care of baby creatures. You have to feed a baby constantly. Otherwise it will get to skinny and die. You failed me on that one Ke'von, see, I am far to skinny for a young dragon. If you were compitant you would have stuffed my gut in order to make sure I didn't go between for malnutrition. You have to make sure nothing attacks a baby, because babys are helpless when the've just left their shell. Don't piss a baby off eaither. Look what that one did to Keqesith's, it bit him it did. Are even sure you want a bird? I thought they would be interesting, but they don't seem so wonderful up clos-

Ontehth weaved his head around the nest, without breaking off his tourent of instruction, trying to get a look at the hatchling that one of the mother's were hiding. “Your not going to be able to get a look at it Ontehth, stop tangling yourself up.” The brown gave an affirming rumbled, and uncurled himself from the nest and people alike. I was just trying to look... Oh really? Well you know that they bond to the first thing they see. Wait- Ke'von said, looking at Ontehth with alarm. You want a Razorclaw? Maybe the brown said slyly.

Ke'von rubbed his dragon's head grinning in good humor. Ontehth was quite a handful, but he couldn't imagine what he would have done if he hadn't impressed the brown. Your life would have been boring. Now stop day dreaming and watch the clutch dumbbutt. Ke'von let out a bark of laughter, but took the brown's adivise and turned to the clutch.

[Ruby]

The Immovable Object egg didn't want to seem to do anything. It was one of the largest eggs of the clutch, and so, by all normal rules, should be quite healthy. So what was the problem? Kami hopped down in the nest to tap at it, then cocked her head to listen. After a moment, she started warbling at it, clearly communicating even if the humans couldn't understand what she was saying. Surely it was still alive in there? Did her baby not want to come out and get some food?

The clacking of her beak that meant food seemed to be the magic word. In a sudden flurry of movement that made Kami leap backwards to perch on the edge of her nest, the Immovable Object hatchling shredded its egg, leaving a chubby, almost perfectly round puff of feathers behind. The little one didn't even wait for Kami to urge it towards the edge of the nest - no, a quick scan showed him who he wanted. One kind of food, one kind of food, no food... ALL SORTS OF FOOD. Ontehth might have been closer, but it was Ke'von that had all the different snacks, and all of them human food. The Immovable Object hatchling had made his decision already, and the Brownweyrling would feel a fleeting poke of hunger - this hatchling's bond was strong. A kind of whining creel started when Ke'von didn't respond fast enough, and the Immovable Object male even went so far as to start flapping his wings. Come ooonnnnn, he was hungry~

Echo had turned to watch the Immovable Object hatchling as well, finally letting everyone see the Quantum Theory female. Of course, the fat little featherball in the other nest was making such a racket that people would likely ignore her for a moment or two, but he made his choice so quickly. She wasn't anywhere near so decisive, looking back to her mother for a moment and cheeping. Kami (fluffed up oh so proudly) came over to sit next to her sister, nibbling her gently on the neck before flapping a wing at the Quantum Theory hatchling. Go on, time to choose.

The little girl, who seemed even slimmer than she was in comparison to the tubby beast in the other nest, picked her way carefully up to the rim, holding her wings out to steady her. It wouldn't do to fall out of the nest before she had a mama to care for her, after all. So many males... they were nice, but not mama material. And the females were so serious. Only one was smiling, and she seemed to miss someone important the same way the Quantum Theory female knew she would miss Echo. Merridan. With a demure cheep in her direction, the Quantum Theory female made her bond, and the last of the Clutch was safely in the care of a human.

Kami gave Raven one last nuzzle, then returned to M'kai's shoulder, pleased as punch. Had he seen her babies? Weren't they wonderful?

[Ruby]

Immovable Object Male
Name-
Species- Razorclaw
Gender- Male
Bonded to- Ke'von
Physical Appearance- This razorclaw is simply huge. He's muscular, yes, but that muscle is covered with a hefty layer of fat envied by none. He will easily outstrip his smallish mother in sheer bulk, and will likely be the largest male razorclaw owned by a human. The bulk only looks bigger when you take into account his extra-long feathers, which he absolutely adores and will spend hours preening every day. He especially likes to arrange them so they poof out from his body a little and are displayed to his best advantage. His wingspan is also wider than normal (a good thing, too, or this tubby avian might never get off the ground).

His coloring doesn't help, either. Basically a uniform muddy grey-brown, this hefty guy's coloring is broken only by his mother's black eyeliner, which circles each eye in a thick band, fading quickly back into mud brown again, and the very, very dark brown edging to his wings he inherited from his father. Beak and legs are a uniform shade of dirty grey, with very faint bands of the same brown as his feathers, although his feet are tipped with claws that are a shiny, healthy ebony. As boring as his feathers might sound, though, this male does shine a little more when he bothers to fly - when he fans his tail out and stretches his wings, you can see that that the undersides are silver. Not matte silver-grey, but actually silver, glossy and shiny when he is well fed and well cared for.

Personality- This guy really doesn't like to fly. It's such a pain to get his bulk in the air that he would rather waddle if he has to go anywhere, or (preferably) be ferried where he needs to go by his human. He won't take rides from just anyone, though. Actually, it is a huge sign of trust and respect for this bird to perch on anyone but his bonded. Of course, he treats his bonded like a walking tree, so he rarely needs to get rides from others, anyway.

And boy, does he love his human. His bond will always be impressively strong, and it is rare to find the two apart (whether his human likes this arrangement or not). He would far rather be fed than hunt for himself, and will actively lay around and whine until his bonded figures this out. Human food is his absolute favorite, although he tends to look even fatter if that is all he is fed. Luckily, other than his obvious laziness, this bird is quite sweet, and downright loving when it comes to his human. He is always happy to be petted and cuddled, although other people should make sure and ask nicely before touching him. This is a one-person bird, and he can be quite suspicious of newcomers. Any and all pets and mindmates of his human will be treated with the same amount of suspicion forever. He is also quite smart, and loves to solve simple puzzles for treats (for example, place a treat under a cup, mix it in quickly with two other cups, see if he can pick the right one). In fact, as he practices different puzzles he will become so good that his human will probably enjoy showing off his tricks.

Mating flights mean both flying and leaving his human's shoulder, of course, so this male may take longer to reach sexual maturity than his clutch mates. Eventually, however, he will get his lazy butt in the air... and then you won't be able to keep him away. While he will never be a fast or agile flier, and even his stamina will suffer when he is looking fatter than usual, he brings the best food gifts. He goes out of his way to discover what the females who will be flying like best, and will happily shower them in their favorite gift. That is the only time he will ever hunt on his own (although he would rather His provide whatever gifts he needs).


Quantum Theory Female
Name-
Species- Razorclaw
Gender- Female
Bonded to- Merridan
Physical Appearance- Neither very large or very small, this female settles neatly into the middle of the size spectrum for a female Razorclaw, but it’s very easy to mistake her as being much smaller than she is, especially when she isn’t moving. Her feathers tend to lie very flat against her body, which not only slims down her appearance considerably, but also means she gets cold very easily; Hers will have to be careful, especially when she is a hatchling. However, she’s not delicate in any other way—her beak is sharp and aquiline, her talons almost out of proportion in their size to the rest of her, so large and powerful are they; her wings, too, are fairly large and give her an incredible turn of speed and agility.

Color-wise, the female has inherited her mother’s paleness, but her feathers are still undeniably flashier; she is a stark white, every feather along her back meticulously ticked in browns dark enough to appear black until the sunlight flashes gold upon them. Her wings are especially light in their ticking, appearing as liquid gold-brown under the sun. Pure black shadows both of her eyes in a mask, ending at her beak, and her tail feathers are extravagantly marked in rich reds and blacks, every mark a startling contrast to the otherwise pure white. With a bright yellow beak tipped in dark brown and paler gold legs mottled with light browns, she’s certainly a sight to behold.

Personality- Set against most razorclaws, this female is positively polite; while her Bond with Hers will never be incredibly deep, she harbors a very genuine respect for Hers at all times. To all extents and purposes, they are partners for life, and while she will not cling to Hers or follow them around (she is a fairly independent creature, and it will not be unusual for her to be absent for large spans of time), whenever she is with them, she will be a very calm, reserved razorclaw. Dragons and whers hold no fear for her, and it will become increasingly difficult for anything at all to startle her as she grows and becomes accustomed to the world that surrounds her.

She’s very intelligent—it won’t take long before she learns how to undo complicated knots and figure out any games that Hers may choose to play with her, and it will be even easier to train her to come and land on command or deliver messages with the proper incentive. However, this female is not, no matter how docile she may appear, anything but a Razorclaw, fiercely proud and definitely with wild blood in her. Her reputation is taken very seriously, as is that of Hers, and any teasing or insults will not be tolerated at all. Picking up on human signs of disrespect will come very easily to her, and her defensiveness will ensure that people take care of where and when they insult Hers.

Very dependable, in flight this female is nothing special to watch; smooth enough, graceful enough, but not extravagant or flashy. Unlike some, she’s very adaptive when it comes to feeding. If Hers wants to feed her, that’s fine, and she’ll accept with a grace that eludes most humans; if Hers cannot, then she is perfectly fine fending for herself for a short time. When she does hunt for herself, the female brings down creatures whose sizes correspond directly to how hungry she is, and never will she be interested in making a play for a feline or canine, preferring to stay on the smaller spectrum—wild avians, the occasional wherry, tunnelsnakes—and perhaps a firelizard or Salamandyr if Hers does not train her out of it.

[Sebz]

Ontehth was deeply distraught when last hatchling didn't want him. But he was closest! Ke'von didn't have time to comfort his dragon because instead, he was rushing to give an offering off food to the rotund hatchling that was demanding it. The avian immediately starting gouging itself on the treats Ke'von had brought with him, giving the weyrling a chance to inspect his new partner.

I don't like him., Ontehth complained the instent he felt another dynamic being added to his rider's mind, that dynamic being the whining of the bird.This was a dumb idea. Lets just put him back in the nest and run before he can follow us. I'm sure one of the other humans will be stupid and take him. Not that you are stupid Ke'von, the brown added affectionatly. Ke'von ignored his dragon, suspecting that the brown was just jealous. Instead, he smoothed the feathers of the birds head, and coaxed it onto his shoulder with the promise of more treats. "He's lovely," the boy said in a matter of fact way.

Ontehth snorted. Be objective Ke'von mine. Look, compare him to me. I am awesome, he is not. I am smart, he is dumb. I am lithe and attractive and he is FAT. He is not very appealing, am I right? Of course I am right.

Ke'von frowned. Yes, the Razorclaw was a bit on the heavy side. A lot on the heavy side the dragon butted in. the weyrling looked at Ontehth and back to the bird. "Well, what should we call him." Sir Fatty. Ke'von growned. He had not expected Ontehth to react to the bond this way, a few minutes ago he had been all for it!

"Granted, he is pudgy... how about 'Pudge'" Ontehth ignored Ke'von completly, and instead stared at the creature that had stolen his's affections.

Pudge was inspecting Ontehth as well suspiciously. What did the ugly want with his? This was Pudge's food bringer, not the dragons, and the human best not forget it! Pudge leaned forward and nuzzled his human's cheek with his head, before opening his mouth, impressing onto Ke'von the fact that he really was quite hungry!

[Rowana]

"They do?" Merridan's eyes drifted to her own fire lizards with a worried expression. Auran was sitting with a claw on Vikky's tail, nicely keeping her from getting too close to the mother Razorclaws. That was all well and good, but Mer wondered if she'd be able to train one not to eat her other companions. Still, Auran could take good care of himself and Vikky if necessary. It wasn't like she had to get one. It didn't look like they had laid many eggs. She was a bit surprised at the large numbers of weyrlings though. Maybe no one had thought to tell them how much trouble having a baby dragon and a baby avian would be.

Mer's soft smile returned though when she saw the odd little creatures hatch. They really were cute, in a fluffy, screechy kind of way. They certainly made a change from fire lizards and salamandyrs. She winced as one of them bit it's chosen person. Thankfully, it looked like they wouldn't all do that. The next one was so chubby and fuzzy looking, that Mer couldn't help a lit chuckle. She'd nearly forgotten the nests contained one more hatchling. The soft noise drew Merridan's attention and she couldn't help but smile when she realized the lovely creature was calling for her.

All thoughts of fire lizard eating avians aside, Mer was thrilled to let the little girl hop down into her hands. Auran watched with a grumpy huff, wondering why they needed yet another silly female. Vikky was beside herself with delight at the little razorclaw. It was hard to believe that someday it would grow big enough to eat her. Mer batted the green aside and began carefully feeding the baby tiny, mushed meat scraps. "You wouldn't eat your new friends," she chuckled fondly. Gawain had already shown her these razorclaws could be trained. She would be sure 'not eating Auran and Vikky' was first on the list. "Eh, little Shira?"

[Ivy]

Do not fret Roselle-mine. They are a handful. You would not have liked one anyway. Tserieth said matter-of-factly to her bonded when she sensed Roselle's mild disappointment at not getting one of the razorclaws.

You're just happy you don't have to share my attentions.

No. The others wanted them because they feel they need things to help them be better than they are. You Roselle-mine are better already. The best. You do not need extra wings or claws to help you do things.

Oh you think so little one?

I am hardly little and would appreciate if you stopped that. It is demeaning and you know I do not like it. You are the littler one between us. I do not call attention to it.

Roselle smirked to herself, the telepathic argument and goading with her Green lifting her spirits. Yes she had wanted a razorclaw, but she certainly didn't need one - as Tserieth was quick to point out. She would manage, and there would be other hatchings later on. Her Green was probably enough whining and neediness right now anyways.

I do not whine nor am I needy.

Whatever you say little one.

The Green did not even give Roselle a response, but if she knew Tserieth at all she knew the dragon had given a snort and when she got back to where she'd left her she'd get the cold shoulder for awhile. Oh the joys of being a weyrling.

Nodding politely towards M'kai, not that he had likely noticed her arrival and would also miss her leaving, she turned on her heel and made her way down the hall.