Post by kysseh on Jun 22, 2009 3:53:28 GMT -5
((I’m sorry, guys. x.x As much as I’d like to continue this on for awhile, work is eating my life and brains, and it’s just not fair to you all to drag it out for another three days until I get one lousy day off. Many apologies, and I promise the hatchlings and the Hatching itself will compensate for the loss of flight-time.))
She knew her suitors by sight, but it still made her quite smug to see some of the fine beasts pursuing her. The bronzes could not escape her lure, Hepaticath knew, but for so many of the browns to Chase her too… oh, but the young queen was enjoying this rare moment of being the full and complete center of attention. The queen rumbled in the depths of her chest, letting herself fall and spin almost lazily toward the ground. Almost. Only the fact that she was traveling at such speed and altitude kept the movement from being wholly without effort. Still, the energetic cost was minimal, considering the view it gave her suitors of her flawless golden form. Ahh, yes. Didn’t they just adore her?
And she did adore them too, Hepaticath did. Most of them, she did, anyway. The little weyrling bronze could vanish between at that moment for all she cared, and his presence was completely disregarded save for when he impeded her upside-down view of one of her suitors. Then he was simply… a flying bronze wall. Inconvenient. She wondered if her claws would make screeching noises on his hide the way they did on her weyr walls. A task to experiment with later, for sure.
‘Later’ was going to be sooner than she expected, for the golden queen was finding herself rapidly becoming bored with simply evading the males. Tacking back and forth on the air currents was fun enough, watching them scramble to keep pace with her and maintain a decent bit of altitude. Still, it was hardly adventurous or exciting. Invigorating to be paid attention to, surely, but Hepaticath was getting tired of just running. Perhaps if she made the pursuit a little more interesting? Yes, that would certainly keep things fresh. It would also separate the worthy from the unworthy, and some of her suitors were, sadly, going to be unworthy. Happily, the silly young bronze was first to go into the unfortunate category. One down… many to go.
The browns… they flew well, even the young ones. She had to give them credit for that, a low and appreciative croon humming up from her chest to float back to the eager suitors. For all their boldness and eager attitudes, though, she did not think any of them capable of catching her. The browns honored her with their presence, but… she would not have one of them. Unless, perhaps, that one…
In a flash, the young queen’s wings tucked in, and she dove and flipped back toward her pursuers, amused by the fact that they would now have to avoid her. Would they be so brave, faced with her teeth and claws as opposed to her tantalizing tail? Doubtful, but she did not give them the opportunity to explore it, instead diving straight beneath the pack of pursuers to head in the opposite direction. Collisions would hopefully be avoided, and she chuffed out a noise of utter amusement, her gaze drifting over the three she had selected for further investigation.
Idith. Her clutchmate. Strong, impressive, and certainly enthusiastic. He would make a fine clutchsire, she had no doubts, and his personality was not so terrible as to be obnoxious. Yes, she liked him just fine, that young bronze. Young bronze, though, which was his only real flaw. His flip earned him an appreciative noise as she passed beneath the pursuers.
Ciceroth. Her favorite companion, pillow, and competitor. He had already proved his capacity in siring impressive clutches, and he was past tolerable to the point of likable and even coveted. Coveted. She liked him, she did. Enough to choose him, though, she was unsure. He was flying well, showing off his magnificence so subtly. Tempting.
Ahh, but Kaaoloth. Now he truly flattered her with his pursuit, and as she snuck a glance back beneath her wing to see who was able to follow, he got an extra look. Another impressive male, even if a brown and not a bronze. He could not nearly match her for size, but he had long been familiar and friendly to her. She respected him and his judgment--usually, that was--which was high praise indeed to come from the young gold. Still… he wasn’t a bronze.
Perhaps toying with them just a little would make it easier to pick one of them before she got incredibly bored with just escaping their advances. Her wings beat powerfully, back arching with the effort of giving herself altitude. It was easiest to start from the top and work one’s way down, and since Ciceroth had positioned himself above the rest of the pack, he was first to be teased. The young queen swept up toward him and effortlessly flipped to her back, forelegs extended to make a playful swipe-
-which landed claws-first on a shiny bronze shoulder.
So startled was Hepaticath by the fact that she had misjudged the distance and speed and altitude, enough so that her claws had actually hit her target, that she momentarily forgot her proximity to the male. That split second was enough that her body, in mid-twist and still moving, became tangled with his, and she let out a shriek of utter surprise and confusion. The gold would have struggled but for the instinct that allowed her to submit to the one who caught her. Caught. Her neck struggled to twine with his, wings flapping desperately for lift despite the fact that she trusted Ciceroth to not let her fall. Gravity was a scary thing, but her bronze was good at figuring out these kind of problems. Her bronze. All hers.
She knew her suitors by sight, but it still made her quite smug to see some of the fine beasts pursuing her. The bronzes could not escape her lure, Hepaticath knew, but for so many of the browns to Chase her too… oh, but the young queen was enjoying this rare moment of being the full and complete center of attention. The queen rumbled in the depths of her chest, letting herself fall and spin almost lazily toward the ground. Almost. Only the fact that she was traveling at such speed and altitude kept the movement from being wholly without effort. Still, the energetic cost was minimal, considering the view it gave her suitors of her flawless golden form. Ahh, yes. Didn’t they just adore her?
And she did adore them too, Hepaticath did. Most of them, she did, anyway. The little weyrling bronze could vanish between at that moment for all she cared, and his presence was completely disregarded save for when he impeded her upside-down view of one of her suitors. Then he was simply… a flying bronze wall. Inconvenient. She wondered if her claws would make screeching noises on his hide the way they did on her weyr walls. A task to experiment with later, for sure.
‘Later’ was going to be sooner than she expected, for the golden queen was finding herself rapidly becoming bored with simply evading the males. Tacking back and forth on the air currents was fun enough, watching them scramble to keep pace with her and maintain a decent bit of altitude. Still, it was hardly adventurous or exciting. Invigorating to be paid attention to, surely, but Hepaticath was getting tired of just running. Perhaps if she made the pursuit a little more interesting? Yes, that would certainly keep things fresh. It would also separate the worthy from the unworthy, and some of her suitors were, sadly, going to be unworthy. Happily, the silly young bronze was first to go into the unfortunate category. One down… many to go.
The browns… they flew well, even the young ones. She had to give them credit for that, a low and appreciative croon humming up from her chest to float back to the eager suitors. For all their boldness and eager attitudes, though, she did not think any of them capable of catching her. The browns honored her with their presence, but… she would not have one of them. Unless, perhaps, that one…
In a flash, the young queen’s wings tucked in, and she dove and flipped back toward her pursuers, amused by the fact that they would now have to avoid her. Would they be so brave, faced with her teeth and claws as opposed to her tantalizing tail? Doubtful, but she did not give them the opportunity to explore it, instead diving straight beneath the pack of pursuers to head in the opposite direction. Collisions would hopefully be avoided, and she chuffed out a noise of utter amusement, her gaze drifting over the three she had selected for further investigation.
Idith. Her clutchmate. Strong, impressive, and certainly enthusiastic. He would make a fine clutchsire, she had no doubts, and his personality was not so terrible as to be obnoxious. Yes, she liked him just fine, that young bronze. Young bronze, though, which was his only real flaw. His flip earned him an appreciative noise as she passed beneath the pursuers.
Ciceroth. Her favorite companion, pillow, and competitor. He had already proved his capacity in siring impressive clutches, and he was past tolerable to the point of likable and even coveted. Coveted. She liked him, she did. Enough to choose him, though, she was unsure. He was flying well, showing off his magnificence so subtly. Tempting.
Ahh, but Kaaoloth. Now he truly flattered her with his pursuit, and as she snuck a glance back beneath her wing to see who was able to follow, he got an extra look. Another impressive male, even if a brown and not a bronze. He could not nearly match her for size, but he had long been familiar and friendly to her. She respected him and his judgment--usually, that was--which was high praise indeed to come from the young gold. Still… he wasn’t a bronze.
Perhaps toying with them just a little would make it easier to pick one of them before she got incredibly bored with just escaping their advances. Her wings beat powerfully, back arching with the effort of giving herself altitude. It was easiest to start from the top and work one’s way down, and since Ciceroth had positioned himself above the rest of the pack, he was first to be teased. The young queen swept up toward him and effortlessly flipped to her back, forelegs extended to make a playful swipe-
-which landed claws-first on a shiny bronze shoulder.
So startled was Hepaticath by the fact that she had misjudged the distance and speed and altitude, enough so that her claws had actually hit her target, that she momentarily forgot her proximity to the male. That split second was enough that her body, in mid-twist and still moving, became tangled with his, and she let out a shriek of utter surprise and confusion. The gold would have struggled but for the instinct that allowed her to submit to the one who caught her. Caught. Her neck struggled to twine with his, wings flapping desperately for lift despite the fact that she trusted Ciceroth to not let her fall. Gravity was a scary thing, but her bronze was good at figuring out these kind of problems. Her bronze. All hers.