Hatching of the Ben & Jerry's Clutch

[glamourie]

“Of course she’s big, what did you expect, something tiny? Golds are the biggest dragons on Pern and Hepaticath’s the biggest one at Selenitas – she’s bigger even than Millieth. Her mate’s also the biggest bronze here – though not by much. He kinda looks like a gold too but – well, see for yourself,” Kalerary said and lifted one hand toward the entrance. She was obviously not at all put off by being out in the open since her position gave her a perfect view of the hatching eggs – though the sound of wings had drawn her attention back to the dragon entrance and the pale bronze that was gliding inside. “That’s the clutchsire, his name is Ciceroth.” She didn’t tell Nabrik that the dragon in question was her father’s. She didn’t think he needed to know that, and it was unlikely that the boy was familiar enough with the weyrfolk to recognize who she was. Not that she was anyone all that important. She didn’t even sleep in the same weyr as her papa anymore. And was Ciceroth -? Yes, yes he was. Ciceroth was carrying Ka’rys in his mouth.

Gliding easily, Ciceroth came to land on one of the platforms around the Sands. He offered Hepaticath what could only be described as an apologetic croon before nudging Ka’rys in the direction of Savitri, and his head swiveled around to examine the hatching eggs curiously. He was late, he knew, and he hadn’t meant to be – but His was too asleep to walk down on his own. Much too asleep. Even then, Ka’rys didn’t have his eyes open and when he wobbled over toward where Savitri was, he didn’t bother to change that – instead flopping down bonelessly next to the goldrider and mumbling an incoherent greeting – or at least, the tone made it sound like a greeting. First day he could sleep in and he had to get up. Ironic.

I apologize for being late. Rysmine has not slept well. He did not want to wake up and I did not want him to miss this. Although… considering he hasn’t even opened his eyes… honestly… You have become a perch for the little cousins?

Ciceroth’s question was emphasized by the appearance of another firelizard – this one glinting gold in the glow light. She glided around Hepaticath for a moment before coming to settle down right next to Charming with a pleasant flute; there was undeniable fondness in her ‘voice’ as she addressed the brown. Her head swiveled down and she chirped her compliments to the larger gold, her wings ruffling and her tail curling around her body. So many pretty babies. She was sorry for being late – she’d had to tell the Checkoth-brown to help her wake up Hers and he would be arriving soon, yes he would, had she missed much? She nudged Cath’s head adoringly and flapped her wings again. Such lovely babies. She’d have to clutch somewhere where Hepaticath could see her babies next time, since she let her help watch the eggs, yes yes. Maybe the corner of the Sands? Hers insisted on moving the eggs constantly though. Really. She didn’t understand why. Bad Hers.

As Ciceroth landed, Kale casually pulled her hood back up and fidgeted, her head turning to follow the hatchlings before she tugged on Nabrik’s sleeve. “Look, that brown Impressed to a boy not much older than you. I bet you’ll get one,” she said with a definite nod. She didn’t actually think he would – they were both too young – but it was possible, and that boy didn’t seem that much older than them. His childlike enthusiasm amused her. “Oh, that’s Ellie – look, Ellie’s here. She looks to my friend R’wign~ She’s one of the two gold flitters but she’s the only one of them that’s nice. The other one’s really mean. I think she’s been helping Hepaticath watch the clutch – she kept tattling on me to Ciceroth when I tried to sneak in on my own. Tch…”

Bumped. Oh. There he was. Marsayis crinkled his nose at Kostya and then leaned against him, mumbling something sounding suspiciously like, “Need klah.” Too early. He was going back to bed after the hatching, yes yes. That sounded like a good plan. What was he staring at…? Blinking, the dark blue eyed male lifted his gaze toward Jazheera before glancing back at Kostya and whispering, “She’s awful short. Either the perfect height or the absolute worst, depending on your preference. I didn’t realize you liked them tiny.” He did, though. His type had always been short, dark haired with brilliant eyes – blue or green preferred. Hers were wrong, and interestingly, eye color was more of a turn off for him than most anything else. He even preferred women who were a little overweight over brown eyes. It was absolutely the worst trait he could think of. “Oh look, she’s glaring.”

Her movements made him smirk and Marsayis raised his voice so that she could hear him, “You don’t have to be modest on our accounts, gorgeous.” There was a definite hint of playfulness in his voice – he wasn’t fully awake or he might’ve been more eloquent, but there was no denying he was teasing. “Can you even see anything from there? Kostya, if you’re going to look, at least be a gentleman. She probably can’t see anything. Help her out, would you?” He probably would’ve offered too – except at that moment something impacted his legs and he turned to find himself presented with a brown dragonet wandering away. Blinking, he snickered, “Well, I guess she can see plenty, since the littles are coming over here – hey!” Moving away from his friend (and ignoring that the little brute had probably bloodied Kostya as well), the candidate turned and offered a hand to the girl – as though to help her back up. “Not many manners from him either, eh? You okay?”

Dumb baby, Calamari called back irritably, before climbing up Marsayis’s sleeve. Not want fats. Dumb fats. Dumb fats hurt. Not want. Why were they there again? Tch.

[Tashe]

Of course. The first Dragon comes to him. What the shells. Part of him wanted to leap backward and cling to the nearest person, but the other half kept him frozen to that one spot. More talking! Was today invade your mind with voices day? Although, he had to admit the Green's voice was generally more pleasant sounding than Hepaticath's had been. "I'm sorry... I don't know." Moving his feet as the Green moved away, he watched her sort through the candidates. It wasn't long till the diamonded Green impressed one of the girl candidates. Of course, being the shy recluse that he was, he only knew the male candidates. Even then only their name and face, except for a few he had befriended to a degree. Smiling at the new Greenweyrling, Eliah clasped his hands and brought them up to his lips, biting carefully at the side of one his black, finger nails.

His attention shifted to the betangled Brown, all interest on how he was going to free himself. Eventually it did and it started to make its way down through the Candidates, but not before a rather loud and annoying tittering stole Eliah's attention. Then that Blue impressed to a candidate which the boy had trouble identifying whether Z was a female or a male. And suddenly, there was impressions everywhere. The Brown impressed to a younger boy than he and if Eliah remembered correctly, the boy was about Dy'shi's age when he impressed Chakraith. He gave the two new pairs the same smile he had given Sari and her Green. But it was fortunate that there where ten eggs left, for despite the first three Impressing so quickly there were many more to hatch and admire. Gone were the little voices in his head that told him he wasn't good enough, and gone where the ones who told him he was good enough. The excitement of the hatching had shooed away those thoughts in lou of the small newborns that crawled along the sands. Which might he add were almost unbearably hot on his sandaled feet. He might just have to get aloe for them later on.

His eyes now went to the next of the hatchlings. Soon there would be more to join the glaring Green. Although maybe the others didn't want too. She did have an Im-going-to-eat-you kind of look about her... switching finger nails so he didn't chew the black paint off of any particular one, Eliah tried to control his breathing in the heat and enthusment.

[Ruby]

Tenlie had been running a tough schedule since moving to the hatching barracks. She'd been working hard to complete the remaining glass order for Selenitas (she'd moved on to vanity items like mirrors and wine glasses instead of vital things like bottles for the Infirmary), plus she was still settling in, attending Candidate lessons when they were held, and working on the next version of her Masterpiece. She certainly wasn't anywhere near done, but she had to keep re-melting it and doing it again until it was perfect. Of course, that would be years from now, but the more she worked on it now, the sooner it would be. She was up before dawn every day, asleep after dark every night, and she hadn't so much as spoken to another candidate besides a smallish, scrawny boy with a big book who had pretended she didn't exist when she approached him at lunch. Not that socialization really mattered, but it would have been nice.

So Ten was up already, thick goggles covering her eyes and tough gloves over her hands and arms as she delicately added powdered gems to a red-hot lump of molten glass. Big Brother was twitching and fussing in the background, troubled and unable to sleep this week. The heat of the forge calmed him somewhat this early in the day, when it was still cool, and he had finally drifted off just a few minutes before. Counting the crushed stones in grain by grain with a pair of tiny pliers, she was totally focused on her work, face only inches from the boiling crucible. She'd scorch her face for this, she was sure, but the amount had to be just right.

Suddenly, Big Brother jerked out of a deep sleep, head lifting like that of a hunting feline that suddenly smelled prey. Ten startled backwards as the sudden awareness bloomed in her mind, spilling her remaining grains all over the table. Bro was humming; something very strange for the taciturn blue, and Ten looked at him in confusion. The blue flashed a vague feeling of wide open space and a half-remembered image of lumpy things. They were shaking. The blue disappeared and Ten dropped the pliers with a clunk against the crucible, her mouth falling open. "The eggs!" They were hatching, and Ten was frozen. A voice tore through her mind, a shining voice, inviting her to the grounds and breaking her terror. She ran.

Tearing off her wherhide apron and leaving the gloves flying in her wake, the Glasscrafter bolted, pulling damp hair out of its tie. Her face was red and raw, her clothes sweaty and soot smeared, but it didn't matter. Forcing her robe on over her head, she headed out of the Barracks without a second look, not sure if anyone was left. Before she knew where she was, Ten was on the sands, peering at the clutch from behind the rest of the candidates. She could sense Big Brother up in the distant rafters, mostly out of sight, but.... something seemed to be wrong with her vision. Lifting a hand to rub a her eyes, Ten ran into something hard. Of course! She'd left her goggles on. With a nervous giggle directed at the candidate next to her (not that she knew who it was), she pushed them up on her head. Hopefully it wouldn't bother the dragonets.

---

Todmund had taken to sleeping in the archives. No one seemed to care, and he knew plenty about dragons already. He was more interested in firelizard/salamandyr crossbreedings these days, motivated by the Greenrider he had met at the gather. She was truly gorgeous, a natural beauty that, as far as Todmund was concerned, and even Carenath approved (for now). The Candidate had fallen asleep over his books, snoring slightly, but ultimately peaceful. His legless bronze was curled around a slack forearm, the tip of his tail around the pen that had fallen out of Todmund's hand.

Sometime in the night, one of the head archivists had looked in on him, and had left a glass of water and a plate of toast at is elbow. The old stick of a woman had taken a liking to the young man, and maybe even enjoyed bringing him little treats now and then. She'd even recapped the ink bottle, but when she'd tried to take the stylus out of his hand, the Bronze had snapped at her in his sleep. That was a vicious beast, no question about it. Territorial, too. A shame, the old lady thought, that such a sweet boy had such a nasty creature.

It was Todmund who woke first. Carenath's tail had pulled the stylus up against the glass, and the two were clinking together rapidly, vibrating at a high pitch. Todmund sat up and pulled his arm away, taking the Firelizard and the stylus with him. The clinking stopped... but the vibrating didn't. It was a deep hum, almost sub-auditory this far from the sands, but unmistakable. That was no firelizard hatching, and there was the gold’s voice to prove it.

Straightening slowly, Todmund returned to the barracks in a daze, dressing on autopilot and heading for the Sands. Carenath started throwing a fit halfway there - his was HIS, and no one else's! - but Todmund ignored him. This could be it. His moment. He could become a rider out of legend, strong, powerful, a grand figure of Pern. With an absentminded scratch for Carenath (who was still throwing a totally ineffectual tantrum), and entered the line of Candidates, already overwhelmed by all the people and activity. Struggling to control his breathing, Todmund focused on the ground in front of him, feeling all the eyes pressing in. Maybe he wasn't cut out for this after all.

(M’kai and Piden are in the Stands)

[Kisha-Ra]

‘Urgh, can’t it wait?’ Kainfuzzi’s hand flailed ineffectually at the voice interrupting his sleep. Apparently not, he thought as the noises that were disturbing him failed to cease, in fact more noise was added, it sounded like the whole barracks had suddenly exploded in wakefulness around him, especially to keep him awake.

Further observation suggested the whole barracks had, in fact, exploded into activity, as a few dozen people ran around, desperately trying to get ready for a hatching. With an annoyed sigh Kain hauled himself up out of the furs, concentrating on the minor, irritating, factors involved in getting out of bed before the sun had actually risen and shuffling down, or rather up, to the hatching grounds rather than the potential outcomes of the event.

To be totally honest if Kain thought too intensely about being present at a dragon hatching again he’d probably lose all the determination that had brought him to this Weyr in the first place and vanish into the jungle to live wild (or more likely be eaten by giant felines), so he concentrated on rising and dressing himself correctly, a little spot of slowly moving calm in the chaos. By the time he realised he was unconsciously putting off the moment when he’d have to get out there and face his…fears? Hopes? Whichever.

A short sprint later Kainfuzzi was stepping out onto the sands with a practiced bow for Hepaticath and his eyes firmly on the ground. This was probably not a good idea…

[neeuqtar]

Dawn was when Tirmanet had always woken up, and she was awake when the call of the gold Hepaticath rang through the minds of the Weyr. Jogging along the river path at the top of the cliffs, Tira swiped a piece of sweaty hair out of her face, changing her path to take her to the Weyr's beach. Nikeath, would you bring me a towel and a new blouse? she asked her green. The dragon snorted.

Tralove, do you not think I will poke holes in them? she posed archly, stooping from the sky to land with a thunder of backwinging on her ledge. Tira-Hers always kept a change of clothing set out near the front of the weyr, to be grabbed in cases of emergency. But despite her protestations, the green picked up the bundle of towel and cloth with her forefoot, careful not to extend her talons, and hobbled over to the cliff on three feet. She jumped out, spreading her wings and carrying herself along the river to where Tiramnet had jogged down the switchback path to the river, shucking her clothing and ducking into the river to get cleaner.

The dragon dropped the clothing on the beach before landing on the expanse of sand. Tira came out of the water, shaking her hair out before finger-brushing it back and quickly braiding it into a club. As rapidly as possible, she toweled off and put on the loose pants Nikeath had brought along with the towel and blouse. Tying her breastband back in place, Tiramnet mounted her dragon, holding onto her bareback mount with knees only while she tugged her blouse into place, towel wrapped around the dirty clothes.

Nikeath dropped her off near the entrance to the Stands before starting to hum, a deep sound that was felt more than heard. Tira jogged up the stairs before working her way down the Stands to get a better view, taking a seat near a wherhandler she didn't know -- one Piden. It looked like two or three had already Impressed -- a green, a blue, a brown. Nice spread of chromatics, the woman said approvingly to her dragon, searching through the remaining Candidates. Catching sight of one she recognized, Tiramnet waved slightly at Todmund.

"Have I missed much?" she murmured to Piden, inclining her head towards him while keeping her eyes on the Sands and the four dragons that occupied them. "I didn't want to come straight from my run," Tira added, in explanation for her tardiness.

---

The green's Impression seemed to go quickly. Her voice sang sweetly through the minds of the Candidates before she stopped broadcasting so widely, choosing one of the girls. The yellowy brown who'd Hatched just after seemed to take forever to untangle himself, bumbling about and bumping into-- oh dear sweet Faranth, what was that noise?? It was bad enough to make the queen mother cringe. It sounded like a cat caught in the lines.

"It" was a blue. A very dark purple-looking blue who came hopping over to them when its horrifying noises were not met with applause. The creature tripped over a boy and shoved past the girl he was standing next to. Aubereine prepared to flee. He was all for Standing -- it made him useful to the Weyr, at least -- but not intent on marring his smooth skin. No way on Pern.

Then the blue flared out his wet wings awkwardly, sending bits of sand and flakes of almost-dried egg goo flying off in all direction. It looked like it was intended to be some kind of flourish, something impressive. All Aubereine could think of was how much the dragon needed to get brushed clean. He would likely be a beautiful creature when not covered with a layer of sandy, dried egg slime...

Oh, helloooooo, my gorgeous, ‘ReineLove! Do you like me? Before Aubereine could answer, the dragon sprawled out at his feet, the first somewhat-elegant move he had made the entire time. Except that it kept making those tuneless noises! The dragon was worse than drunken sailors! ’ReineMine, I am your Madhavath, and I am beeeee-yooooo-teeeee-fuuuuul, am I not? Your beautiful girl wants to be feeeeed now[/i] he singsonged shamelessly, accompanying them with a horrible series of attempted chirps.

Aubereine wanted to escape the horrific noises, but he had far too much dignity to hike up his ungainly Candidate robes and flee. And this feeling... as terrible as Madhavath's singing was, and as much like a-- a-- an extravagant actress as he was (and had he just called himself a girl? Even Aubereine knew he was still a boy!), Aubereine couldn't escape feeling like it was meant to be. How.. strange.

The new blueweyrling put on his best welcoming smile -- easy to do, since he wanted to hug the strange blue, and take it... him.. her... whatever... home -- and tugged off his Candidate robe before doing a full curtsy to Madhavath in his spring frock. Two could play at being girls!

"I like you very much, Madhavath," 'Reine said gravely. "I am certain that you are very pretty underneath all that sand. Once we brush that off so that you can eat without getting sand in your mouth, then we will go over to the food." Without waiting for an answer, 'Reine started using his Candidate robe to buff off the dried goo and sand encrusting his dragon. Madhavath thrummed with happiness and wriggled around to get itchy places under 'Reine's hands.

'ReineMine, 'ReineLove, won't you tell them who I aaammmm? Madhavath begged, peeking his nose out from under the white cloth to peer at 'Reine with limpid blue eyes. I want to siiiiiiing to them~ Then aaaaaalll of them will LOOO-OOO-OOOVE me! Without waiting for his answer, Madhavath plopped his butt down in the sand, tilted his nose up, and started caterwauling again. Somewhere outside the Hatching Ground, a canine started howling along.

"Madhavath-- augh, Madhavath, I, um, I can't tell them your name if you're singing!" 'Reine yelled over the sound, hands clapped to his ears. He had enough diplomacy not to tell the exuberant dragon that he was, well, atrocious. Madhavath paused, and then closed his mouth before gaping a draconian smile. The blue licked his violet lips.

Oh, that is okay then! the blue said cheerfully. Then he waited expectantly while 'Reine finished rubbing the flakes off of his wings.

"Oh! Um, yes," 'Reine said sheepishly. He turned to the Stands, cupped his hands around his mouth and bellowed in true sailor fashion. "'REINE, OF BLUE MADHAVATH." Then he turned back to the blue dragon and raised a brow. "Good enough?"

OooooOOH yes! Thank you, 'ReineLove! Can you pleaaase give your PAAAA~tient, BEAAAAUUU~tiful girl some food nooooowwww? 'Reine hid a grin as he finished buffing off the last of the egg goo. Madhavath really was quite a beautiful dragon, if a bit rounded off at the corners. Nothing like the Valiant's figure head in the least.

"Yes, of course. Shall we?" He curtsied to his dragon again. Madhavath attempted (and failed) to do the same, before hopping off towards the food, warbling in joy. I am really going to have to get him some music lessons, 'Reine sighed to himself.

Yay! Music! I loooOOOve music! Madhavath cried. But 'ReineMine, I am a LAAAAAY-DEEEEE~. 'Reine shook his head. He'd work on that later. One thing at a time...

[Rowana]

Nabrik had been so absorbed in the huge awesomeness of Hepaticath, that he'd completely failed to noticed anything else around him. At least until Kale's voice broke him out of his staring stupor. He couldn't help feeling a little miffed at her. "I knew that," he grumbled, offering her an offended look. It wasn't like he was a complete idiot. He just hadn't been prepared for it. Kale, on the other hand, seemed to know every dragon by name. Nabrik was starting to feel a little jealous and resentful.

He might have sulked about it a while longer, but Kale's tug had reminded him why they were here in the first place. How could he have forgotten! Four little dragons were out already! How could he have not noticed! Little was a relative term, since most of the hatchlings were still a little bigger then he was. At least he could see all of them without craning his neck though. He watched each one with the same wide eyed wonder that he'd given their mother. Now if only one would come closer.

Nabrik grinned at Kale when he saw the boy she was pointing too. He certainly didn't look that old. If he could get one, then Nabrik was sure he could too! "Yeah!" he agreed excitedly. "And I bet ours will be even bigger!" Nabrik had no concept of dragon colors yet, so he didn't really care about that. Obviously his and Kale's hatchlings would be the best of all! He glanced around until he spotted the fire lizard queen Kale had mentioned. She was lovely too! The talking salamandyrs were cooler though, in his opinion.

~

The tiny green dragon was practically bouncing in her place in the stands. Did you see? Did you see? she sang joyfully. Sari did impress! I said she would! Farryl couldn't help smiling from her own seat. Peppeth's happiness was infectious. Even Isshun, sitting in her lap, was being compliant for once. Hobbs had flown down to join Charming in congratulating Hepaticath on such beautiful eggs before returning to her shoulder. He didn't feel polite sitting on the great queen and he couldn't keep flying for that long. I see, Peppeth, Farryl replied patiently. It's a lovely little green.

We will be such friends! I just know it! Peppeth continued, barely stopping for response. And look! Reine impressed too! It is so wonderful! Farryl beamed. She was now more glad then ever that they'd picked the boy up. It had been a lucky day for both of them. She would have to congratulate him later. He must be so happy! I want to say hello! Peppeth leaned forward on her perch. Patience, love, Farryl soothed. Let them get to know each other before you pounce on them. All right, Peppeth allowed. But I will say hello later!

[kysseh]

The Banana Split Green looked as though she would sit in the remains of her egg forever, though it was a sticky, sandy sort of throne that did nothing to enhance her beauty or dignity. No, she was merely protesting her terrible treatment by not moving. The world aimed to make her look ugly and sandy, and the candidates were not all admiring her. The world was a very bad place, indeed, and she huffed in dismay, awkwardly rubbing her little face against one forepaw in an attempt to rid herself of the sand crusting around her eyes. The move was unsuccessful, and she began to creel in distress as her attempts at grooming only made the problem worse.

Behind her, the Peanut Butter Cup Egg had started to break open, revealing hatching so pale that it almost seemed… white. But no, he was splotched with a bright blue in several places, revealing himself to be, in fact, a blue and male. He squawked and flopped over on his side, his head nearly twisted upside-down as he stared over at the candidates. Whooooa, they were so far away.

The Banana Split Green was wasting no more time, though. She moved across the sands with her wings dragging gracelessly behind her, and leaving the cracking Half-Baked Egg to hatch without an audience, she got roughly halfway to the candidates before plopping her rear end down on the sand and refusing to move any further. Her head turned, one eye fixing on the person that would be her slave. TenlieSlaveLove, get those hideous/things off your head. They are awful. Now come feed your Rajnith, and make it good food! None of that mushy stuff. I want to chew it, and get this sand out of my eyes! It hurts me![/color][/i]

Though it made Rajnith screech in upset at her spotlight being stolen, the Half-Baked Green stampeded across the sands, her large, striped body bouncing off candidates in a strange sort of ricocheting maneuver. Which way, which way? Her green sister was being loud, and it was soooo not encouraging. She squeaked a few times, awkwardly flapping her wings in an attempt to get herself to move faster. How was it so difficult to get where she wanted to? And where was Hers?!

She sniffed at each human, bouncing off them after a nose-nudge to each crotch (it was as high as she could reach without getting up on her hind legs!) revealed that none of these humans were for her. Finally, she flung herself to the legs of Kainfuzzi and stayed there, crooning in a awkwardly squeaky fashion. I found you! You hid, and I found you! Never mind that he had been perfectly out in the open. She had found him! K’fuzziMine, your Balath loves you! See, love? Love! She squeaked repeatedly, wriggling in her excitement and heedless of the fact that she could have knocked Hers over. So food now? Foodfoodfood? I want food! Pleeeeeeeeeeeeease?

Hepaticath crooned in quiet delight at her mate made himself present, flicking a wing in the direction of the candidates as more of them arrived. Polite candidates she could deal with, though she aimed a mild snort at RysCiceroth’s hatchling and her little friend. Hmph. They were breaking the rules, though she opted to not call attention to them. There were too many things to keep track of, especially as she crooned to the firelizards on her nose. She was very grateful to the gold firelizard for assisting her in babysitting the clutch. It was too bad the gold firelizard’s eggs never hatched where Hepaticath could watch. Firelizard babies were always adorable, and she was fairly sure Elegance made the best of the lot.

Hello, CissMine. I am glad you could make it. What is troubling Yours that he can not sleep? she inquired with concern, watching as Hers slipped her arms around RysCiceroth’s waist and hauled him towards herself. Savitri was cuddling the bronzerider, shamelessly showering him in affection as their children sat and stared in amazement at the hatching going on in front of them. What a strange image it was.

[rii]

"I was curious.. " Kostya let the words trail as he met the girl's look with a light smile. His conversation was with Marsayis, but the blond disinclined to remove his eyes from Jazheera. The way her hands tried to mask herself only upped the degree of his smile. "And it seems she answered my question without me having to voice it."

He might have found amusement making a game out of how uncomfortable he could make Jazheera feel, or how long it would take her to retaliate against the unwanted attention. Alas, Kostya wasn't that interested in the matter and the little dragons drew his attention away from the girl. The blundering brown that had knocked into his friend had Kostya's amusement for the moment. He was about to tease when he caught sight of the blue moving too closely by his legs. It was too late to move, but tried he did anyway, swinging his leg to only take a side-long scraping of claws as the blue scampered onward.

Kostya's face smoothed into a blank mask as he settled his weight over his right leg and let his pale eyes drifted down to throbbing in his left. Blood was already soaking into the pristine white of his robes. And for a moment Kostya felt the urge to laugh. The bright red of blood would show up nicely for the crowd in the stands despite their distance. See, they all came to satisfy their little sick fascinations, didn't they..

Clucking his tongue, Kostya tilted his head to let his eyes trail after the careless, noisy blue and note the boy it had impressed. Thought it was a female, did it? Strange. More impressed in those few fleeting moments. It was all happening so quickly – did that mean it would be over just as quickly? One could only hope. His leg was really starting to burn.. "Sayis." Kostya said quietly, eyeing his friend's back as he catered to the girl. "Please don't make me hop."

[midnight]

Pain sliced through her very being, as she lay curled on her side. Eyes watching the wall. Insomnia had set in early that morning. She didn't know why, but she had been awake for hours. Listless and tired beyond all belief. Drop was in a dead-sleep, while Clingy was slightly dozing off. Ka was in a warm pot of sand by the fire, and Gojii was curled up beside her. Bare as the day a baby was born - and Gojii was not happy about being a NAKED cat. The girl stretched out, eyes watching the wall listlessly. She was tired, and in pain - her whole body aching. She had decided to go training all day.

She didn't know where she had gone - or how long she was gone. When she got back she was covered in a myriad of scratches and bruises. But that didn't matter, it all accentuated the scars running down her face - not. Faranth she felt so unattractive at that moment. But she let it slide past as she stood up. She heard the commotion, and a spark of life came to her - as it did to Clingy. No stupid! No Eggsies! No! the blue screeched. Meagen leveled a glare on the blue and then watched as he settled down. It had taken awhile for them to reach some level of agreement.

She got dressed, not bothering with the white robe in the corner - it had slowly collected dust for awhile now. She simply put on a nice looking tunic and a pair of nice looking trousers. On went her boots - as she laced them up she realized how weird this felt. Ever since she could remember - for several turns - she had been on the sands. Now she wasn't and it felt so weird. But she'd get over it. She brushed out her hair and braided it. Picked up Drop and Clingy and put them in their spots. Ka could remain where it was, it would be fine.

Gojii decided to follow as well, as the girl made her way to the sands and the stands therin. Oh Faranth - did it feel weird. She sighed as she continued her way towards the stands - now in a rather depressed mood. But she'd get over it, it was just stupid emotions playing with her.

She saw a familiar face in the crowd and decided to make her way towards him. Up into the crowd she went, and found M'kai. Sitting down next to him, and just tapping her foot a little. "It's weird, seeing it from this side. Right?" She said conversationally.

[raii]

The eggs were hatching! She'd never been to a Hatching before, much less been a part of one. It was incredible to think that she could wake up a lowly candidate and go to be a full-fledged rider! Well, more like a day-old Weyrling, but it didn't bring down her ecstasy. It was incredible. Today could change everything!

Partially from pre-hatching excitement and partially feeding off of Eselda's excitement, her little fire lizards chirped and chattered loudly. Even Indo, who could be a bit of a grump, communicated loudly and kindly with the others. Loli and Renn seemed to welcome this temporary change, making them even louder and happier. They swarmed around Eselda, radiating emotions of joy and euphoria. “I'm excited too, but if you want to come with me, you'll have to calm down.”

They stopped flying almost immediately. Loli claimed Eselda's left shoulder, and Indo her right. Annoyed that Indo had stolen his favorite spot, Renn attached himself to the front of Eselda's robe, using his claws to cling to the material. Thankfully all three were small and light, so she allowed them to hitch a ride. In fact, she was used to it.

Though they had calmed their bodies, they had not calmed their mouths. “I mean it. Quiet, dears, or I can't bring you. Hatchings are about the dragons, not about Eselda's loud fire lizards, all right?” Eselda smiled, giving each a fond rub as they quieted. Of course they did! There was nothing that could make them miss the Hatching. She reached the sands, adorned in fire lizard jewelery. With horror she realized several eggs had already Hatched. What if she missed her chance? Oh no!
--_--

Rofi awoke to the queens proclamation. He lay in bed for a moment, confused. Suddenly, he leaped out of bed, falling flat on his face. Rushing tended to make him clumsy, and therefore slower. He ripped his room apart, trying to figure out where he had placed those robes! He'd put them somewhere specific, so he would remember, but now had no recollection. Finally, he found them underneath his most prized sketchbook.

His troubles were far from over as he attempted to dress. Wait, it's inside out. Now it's backwards. “Shards! Did I just rip it?” He tugged it off, carefully inspecting it. Luckily, there was no ripping. He put it back on. Backwards again! After finally calming himself down enough to get dressed, he fell. Again. As an afterthought, he grabbed a leather thong from a table and tied it to his neck. It was a kind of good luck charm from his father.

He wasn't usually so clumsy or forgetful (though his memory was pretty bad), but pure excitement had him rushing to the point of careless mistakes. He'd waited so long, and finally—finally!--it was here! He could Impress a dragon! His very own dragon! Would he Impress? Would the dragon like him? Of course the dragon would, he thought to himself. Why else would he or she choose me? What would the dragon be like? What color would the dragon be? But...what if he didn't Impress.

“Think positively, Rofi,” he muttered to himself. Even if he didn't, he was still young. He desperately hoped he would Impress. He needed to. Dragons were the most beautiful, amazing, wonderful, incredible creatures in all of Pern! Their hide was shiny and soft, like warm fur, but shiny instead of furry. Not really like furs at all. He emerged into the sands, finding that his antics had made him late, and that a few dragons had already Impressed. He joined the other male candidates with an embarrassed but silly grin.

[glamourie]

“Yours,” Kalerary corrected smoothly before smiling. “I don’t expect to Impress anything. I just wanted to see the babies closer up and the eggs. Last time Hepaticath clutched, High Reaches tried to steal one of her eggs. Think it hatched that bronze – forgot his name – but yeah.” She bobbed her head and rocked on her toes momentarily before leaning against Nabrik. “These are a lot more colorful than the other eggs. They’re pretty too. What color are you hoping to Impress?” Ultimately, Kale was a realist. She was a weyrbrat through-and-through and as a result, she knew more about dragons than most people from Holds. She didn’t want to give Nabrik false hope, but she knew it wasn’t likely that he’d Impress. Being supportive was nicer than telling him the truth – even if it did give him the belief that he actually had a chance. Oh, Kale had no doubts that Nabrik would Impress some day (and be Na’rik, perhaps?) but… most likely not that day.

She squirmed awkwardly and watched in blatant fascination as the brown sought His, knocking over several people in the process. Her gaze turned back to the eggs and she bounced in spot as several new babies hatched – each more unique than the next. Her bouncing was only emphasizing how small she was, and momentarily she was distracted from the fact that she’d been trying her best to avoid being spotted by Ka’rys (who still looked half-asleep). Her hands rested behind her back and the small girl cocked her head to the side before noticing – for the first time – that Hepaticath was looking at her. She crinkled her nose.

“Oh don’t give me that look,” she said, though whether the Gold could hear her amongst the chaos was another story entirely. “I wanted to see them and Ciceroth kept carting me off. It’s not my fault your mate’s over-protective.” If it was odd to be so casual with a queen – well, it didn’t dawn on Kalerary. She was very comfortable with Hepaticath, after all. “It’s not like I’m trying to draw their attention and anyway we’re better than half of them.” To emphasize her point, Kale turned and pointed at the other candidates. “We at least know enough to get out of the way when they’re coming at us. Right Nabrik?” Yeaaaah, because talking to Hepaticath was normal weyrbrat behavior. Right.

Chittering, Ellie rubbed her body against Hepaticath’s nose, her eyes whirling her pleasure. The continual stream of quiet compliments did not stop. She liked to think of Hepaticath as her gold dragon (in true queen fashion, she claimed the things she liked, even if she was much too nice to ever make that obvious). The better the clutch was, the more compliments her lovely gold deserved, yes? So much better than that other gold who kept trying to steal the Checkothbrown and the Behruthbrown (both of whom were Ellie’s, thank you very much). Oh look – the humanlings were cuddling. Ellie flashed an image to Hepaticath before curling up on the larger gold’s nose, her gradient hide gleaming in fine health. Spoiled, she was. She was R’wign’s favorite – and she knew it. Her head cocked and she looked down at the bronze and goldriders curiously before chirping to Hepaticath. Did they always cuddle like that?

The heat, Ciceroth replied with a hint of amusement. He does not respond well to this weather. He’s having trouble adjusting, my Rysmine. He’ll get better once the heat goes away some though. He fluttered his wings and looked down at the clutch before crooning. They’re very lovely, aren’t they? Did I miss too much? … Is that the hatchling? Because at that moment, Ciceroth noticed Kalerary for the first time, and his tail gave a sharp jerk in response. Naughty child.

Bleed, dumbling. No like.

Looking back over his shoulder at the sound of Kostya’s voice, Marsayis raised an eyebrow. He was tempted to tell him that he was being silly; didn’t he know he’d come back to him in a moment? But there wasn’t really any time – blood and all. He turned his attention back to the girl before saying, “See, now my slave needs tending to. I hope that you’re all right.” He actually didn’t care at all. Obnoxious, glaring girl. Her backside wasn’t even that nice. Just the same, he turned and slinked across the sands, back to Kostya before tearing the bottom of his robe at once – revealing the pants he’d worn underneath because just as much as he lacked modesty, he also hated the feeling of starched cotton on his body. Extra clothes were a necessity. “Here,” he said, holding it out for the other male to take. “Don’t bleed everywhere, eh?”

[Rei]

Kaaoloth crooned from where he sat watching the hatching. So many beautiful babies for him and his. Arching his neck he placidly regarded his from his spot on a nearby ledge. Good hatching so far. Hepaticath always turns out such beautiful hatchlings.

Sel’n shook his head and half smiled. Careful Kaaoloth your favoritism is showing. The brown snorted at that before turning his eyes back to the hatching. The little blue which was currently flopped over. Silly thing. The Weyrlingmaster was trying to alternate his time between watching the hatching and helping the newly arrived correctly feed their dragons. He was far to busy to pay much attention to anything besides that at the moment.

~~~

Ruliana had awoken with the rest when Hepaticath had made her announcement. It all seemed so surreal. The crowd, the rocking eggs, the massive figure of Hepaticath dominating the entire scene. The heiress had bowed when her turn came and was now at the back of the group of candidates. Before the first egg broke she examined the group for Jazzheera. Finding her she smiled but didn’t approach. Her friend seemed focused on the eggs and there would be time to catch up later.

Hands clasped in front of her she turned as the first green broke shell. From that moment on she only had eyes for the rocking eggs. Each emerging dragonet was followed to its new bonded. They where adorable if a bit motor challenged currently. The sight of the blood on Kostya’s robe made her pale. He didn’t look at all faint and it had surely been an accident, but lesson learned. If one came towards her it was best to stay out of the way. She swallowed against a lump in her throat her stomach churning nervously. Was this really the right decision? To late to help things now. All she would do was watch and wait.

~~~

Tynaris was quite calm as he entered the sands and made his bow to the queen. He had been looking forward to this for months. The hatching off each egg and each successful impression was met with a smile. A particularly wide one was given as Tobby impressed to a rather odd looking brown, but good for the kid. He deserved it. His eyes went back to the clutch noting the amount of eggs left. Still a good amount. He had little to worry about. Besides of course getting trampled or scratched like some of his fellows. The tall boy shifted his weight from foot to foot. Did the sand have to be quite this hot?

~~~

Amour popped from between to land in front of the flopped blue and tilt his head. Silly baby. Oh he loved the baby. Come on baby time to go find his. With a trill to the baby he winged to perch on one of Hepaticath’s ridges and croon. Oh the big gold had such beautiful perfect babies. She should be so proud! He twittered and chirped as he watched the little blue.

In the stands Elysia put a hand over her face and rubbed along the bridge of her nose. “At least you behave.” She shot to Baron who was perched upon her shoulder like a well behaved flitter. He gave a soft croon and nuzzled her cheek. The greenrider glared daggers at her other brown. Stupid thing why was he so obsessed? As if asking her to pop out horrors wasn’t enough (which wasn’t going to happen) he had to be obsessed with each one he found. Arrgh.

[Ruby]

Piden smiled as the greenrider took a seat next to him, scooting over slightly on the bench to make room. Even this late in the morning (er, early, if you weren't a Wherhandler), the stands were full, with more people arriving every minute. Piden wasn't particularly interested in dragon hatchings, but if he was up anyway, he figured he might as well go. Red was with him, shivering in his collar, and for a mercy Shells hadn't switched over to being nocturnal so easily and was still asleep in the Apartment. Now, it looked even more like his decision was a good one.

A pair of redheads, one with a split lip, slid over to make room for a companion a few people down the bench, causing the whole group to shift back over, forcing Piden's leg up against Tiramnet's. Not that he was complaining, of course, but it did give him a reason to lean in as she started talking. "Hmm," Piden pondered, looking at the dragons who were already headed to the feed tables. "A green that thinks she's a canine, a blue that thinks he's a she, and a brown with about ten feet of leg to spare. Plus that green who seems to think she's a queen." The Peanut Butter Cup Blue and Half-Baked Green had made their appearances while Tira had been getting settled, so Piden left them off. "Interesting mix, so far. Lessons should be a hoot - if I'm ever up, I may go watch," he added, eyes still fixed on the sands (with the occasional covert flick towards the Rider).

A funny little creature like a legless tunnelsnake with wings appeared in the air in front of Tiramnet, dropping to land on her hand and stick a nose in her pocket. It was the same color as the one who seemed to have been attacking the Candidate Tira had waved to, who had waved back tentatively and then squared his shoulders, facing the eggs much more bravely. "Is that your... cousin or something?" he murmured back, smiling. How cute, a family affair. Or something.

Further down the row, M'kai was suddenly made very aware of his fat lip, and the faint bruises and scratches on his arms and neck. They were still healing, and he'd finally been able to move without cringing a few days ago, but they were still there, and it was simply too hot to wear long-sleeved shirts in this weather. "Hey, Megs," he said, shoving his brother over to make room for her on the bench. "What are you doing here? The Mindhealer didn't clear you for Standing?" He shot Cr'oph a subtle look, but left it at that. "That's got to be awful."

((Tenlie's coming... when I get Rajnith!))

[Ember]

Jazheera smiled slightly at the guys. She was no stranger to teasing and she didn't bother taking it to heart. The hatching was more impressive so she ended up ignoring them (and true to her thoughts, her arms crossed in front of her again). She looked at the brown hatchling as he stumbled about as he made his way over to the candidates. She watched him wander into the guy standing near the one who had been ogling her before the sounds emitting from the eggs brought her gaze back to them. The dark something had turned out to be a blue with a horrible singing voice. Really, it was dreadful. She winced as he continued and breathed a sigh of relief when he stopped. She tried to tune him out and looked towards the brown again. Perhaps if her attention had been on the blue he wouldn't have been able to cling to her.

She hissed sharply as she felt pain for a moment before being knocked down by the blue. Jazz fell to the sands but it wasn't the heat that bothered her. The white robed had been torn at the bottom by dragonet claws and her legs were scratched up too. Memo to her, baby dragons were dangerous, despite being a tiny fraction of their full grown size. She tore off soem of the bottom of her robe (those claw tears making her job easier) and bound her legs as best she could. Not the first time she'd been injured.

Then suddenly one of the guys was there and she blinked up at him. She glanced at his friend curiously. Helping her before him? How thoughtful. She accepted her hand and let him help her back up. She could have been stubborn and gotten up on her own but her legs already hurt enough and she wasn't stupid. "Thanks. I'm alright," she said, letting go of his hand and nodding. He had his friend - slave? - to tend to. She looked to see others Impressing as well and a blue remaining on the sands. The burning in her legs served as a reminder not to lose focus of one hatchling. Everyone heard of maulings but no one expected them to happen to them.

Jazheera eventually caught sight of Ruliana and waved, hoping to atrtact her attention. Her friend didn't look too good...hopefully she wasn't sick or anything. Oh, or maybe it was the dragons that worried her, too? Yes, that was probably it. She smiled encouragingly though she wasn't sure if Ruliana would notice at all. The short girl glanced at the hatched blue again before risking a look at her legs. The strips of her robe were already red and she frowned. She'd need some medical attention after the hatching.

-----

Charming chittered happily at Ellie. Hello, hello! Wasn't she just stunning today? He leaned over and licked her lightly. The brown flirted with pretty much anyone, but he was genuinely fond of the gold firelizard. He'd had a clutch with her. If that didn't prove that he liked her then he wasn't sure anything would. The brown was amused by the memory. The bronze that believed he was green that had actually sired the clutch had thought him crazy for thinking he'd flown Ellie. In the end, Charming had claimed that clutch as his.

[Rowana]

Nabrik shook his head at Kale. "You got as much right as me," he told her bluntly. It was true. Neither of them were supposed to be here, and both of them were just as worth in his opinion. Kale maybe even a bit more, since she's grown up here, but he wasn't going to admit that. "Steal an egg?" His eyes widened. He might want a dragon badly, but not that badly. "Glad they didn't."

The color question made him pause, long enough to watch the next few impressions. Still nothing come close to them. It was starting to get discouraging. Still, they were adorable and amazing at the same time. He just couldn't get over it. Coming here was definitely the best plan he'd ever had! "I dunno," he admitted, eyes fixed on the newly hatched blue. It was such a fun looking one that he couldn't help wishing it would come closer. "They're all great," he said honestly. In truth, he had no idea the differences in the colors or even how many colors there were. "How about silver?" he asked, perfectly reasonably. He really liked that color. Like the patches on Path's coat.

He listened with amusement to Kale's words to the giant queen. He was starting to like her more and more. She didn't take no from anyone, even the big queen! He nodded firmly and crossed his arms stubbornly. "Yeah! We're just as good," he declared boldly. "I worked hard to get here, didn't I?" After all, if Kale could talk to the queen, so could he. Right?