There's Something In The Air [Fenrisk's Hatching]

[Kiran]

Hespera was spanking new to Dalibor, and as such she hadn't expected to be witness to her first wher hatching there. She had managed to get to the hatching sands with the other candidates and was more than a little impressed by the sheer size of the nest. Virtually none of the white nests back home had been like this! Her eyes had widened in disbelief and happiness. How on earth had she lucked out like this? In her candidate robes, on the sands and feeling the heat rise and heat her sandals through (chasing away the chill of the autumn that had come over Dalibor), she was transfixed by the eggs.

It was a fantastic thing to come here! Hespera was certain of it.

She watched as the first egg cracked, spilling out a black. She grinned happily at it, watching it prance around and explore the world around it. Hespera liked how that wher was. It was both scary because of a wher and wonderful because of how absolutely enthusiastic it was about exploring the world. Out of the corner of her eye she saw an enthusiastic girl try to come out on the sands, and had to keep her self from laughing. Yes, she could totally understand that enthusiasm! Hespera adored whers herself, and would have happily run to hug it herself. Except that was frowned upon and for good reason, she had seen the injuries from candidates who had been attacked.

But Hespera was also fairly certain that this particular black would have enjoyed and probably returned it. A wonderful wher, indeed! Scary in all the ways it should be.

[Chek]

Newt had a little warning – that being a certain green dripping rainwater on him from behind – before Yhisk gently – ACTUALLY gently, not just her definition of gently – clamped her mouth over the side of his head and mouthed at him with minimal tooth use before oozing her slinky and not-inconsiderable bulk down over his shoulder and into his lap (and Letorin’s as well, just from her size). She didn’t speak to him – she’d claim it just wasn’t something she was doing right now if asked – but she started up a rusty hissing gurgle that, if someone was drunk and underwater (or at least familiar with this particular wher), could be interpreted as a purr. Or at least a sound with a similar intent.

Yhimere followed her over – not into Newt’s lap though – wedging himself in on the other side of Newt from Letorin. Yhisk promptly spread over onto his lap as well. “Hey,” he glanced at the sands, recognizing the color of wheret sprinting wildly around the Sands and winced faintly to himself as he clamped a hand over Newt’s shoulder, “Peace. Close your eyes, if you need to, you have two perfectly good friends here to narrate for you.”

[Kila]

Aydan was watching the eggs with such rapt attention that he did not notice the other weyrbrats descend upon him until they were in the seats next to him yammering. The little boy looked up in surprise when a girl child plopped down and whispered to him, leaning in close in her excitement. Fortunately for her Akklyn was on Bug’s side of the bench and the blue pillie had no qualms at all with being sandwiched in between two children. Srrrrrrr, he purred happily, pleased by the unexpected company. Aydan drew away from her, looking her up and down suspiciously, only to be poked sharply in the shoulder by another weyrbrat, this one a boy child.

Unfortunately for Oosh he was on Shardit’s side of the bench. FRRRRrrrRRRR the Brass frothed, raising up and waving his feelers violently. Oosh had poked his ward! That was a DIRECT ATTACK! UNACCEPTABLE! Aydan gathered him into his lap impatiently. There was no time for a bloodbath, he scolded Shardit with his eyes, the eggs were going to hatch soon! He thought about the other boy’s question while he waited though, and eventually turned back to him to shake his head. Nadysk was not his. It would be cool to have a gigantic Brown wher, but Nadysk was Nadya’s wher and he was a fun sucker. His wher would be way cooler.

Srrsrrr, Bug called, drawing his human’s attention back to Akklyn. He liked her, so he thought that His should too. Aydan snorted at that logic, but did give Akklyn a second glance. He shrugged like always saw Nadya do and looked at Nadysk. Whers. Whers were going to happen. Duh. He hugged his feral, thrashing pillie closer. Girls were stupid. And icky. Nadya said men were bad and Oosh was a man, kind of, so he was no good either. Nobody was. But at the same time, weird and uncomfortable as it was, it was nice to have company to watch the event- Aydan just didn’t know it.

But then the first egg exploded and all thoughts of his new neighbors were forgotten. A Black! Aydan crushed Shardit to him with excitement, eliciting a long hiss from the pillie. He looked so cool! Aydan admired him adoringly from afar. The hatchling wasn’t uniformly colored like Nadysk- he had patterns on his face and chest. His markings made his face look like a skull, but he face was weird because it seemed kinda big compared to the rest of him. Also unlike Nadysk the little Black was long of leg and limb and very slender. Aydan liked his wings especially, and how he beat them even though there was little there.

Aydan followed him closely when he took off, leaving his mother and his nest behind. He went to the Candidates, as expected, but continued right through their ranks instead of stopping to pick one. Aydan’s mouth gaped. The Black was running straight for the Stands and he was on the very first bench! The front row! That meant that the baby would have to pass by! He looked to both sides in excitement to see if Akklyn and Oosh had deduced the same thing, not thinking about the action.

[turkoizdog]

Rocks. They all looked like rocks.

Not that Zynn would say that aloud, but he did know white hatchings tended to be a bit odd. The father was a black, he'd heard, so it wasn't a double white hatching like the dragon hatching a turn or two ago. Still, there were more eggs than he'd expected. Unless some of them were rocks?

He greeted the mother as he had done so many times before, and took his place on the sands, waiting for more candidates to arrive. The sheer size of the previous hatching meant there were few at this one, but the hatching was small as well, so that sort of made sense. Slowly, though, more candidates showed up.

When the mother invited them to stand in the nest, he was hesitant. Given how bloody past hatchings had been, he didn't really like the idea of standing right in the nest with them, but Fenrisk seemed to be far happier and friendlier than Kalesk had been. Granted, that didn't guarantee that her children would get that from her. One of those eggs could easily hold a red.

[RavenSong]

Fenrisk was quite glad for Kalesk's interception of a person who didn't belong on her Sands. It meant she didn't have to chase him off, which let her focus on her sprinting offspring. Fenrisk thank much, Kalesk, she said to the gold, watching the little black buzz around like a headless wherry.

Fenrimere grinned at Kalenna, chuckling a bit.

"I think it's jus' th'fact that Fenrisk likes tha children and they like her. She only invited them ta see, though. They should know better. I figured some of them, like th'one in tha' costume, would want ta love on th'wherets which is why I'm standin' 'ere ta intercept them and send them back. Tha' Cyanrider up there seems ta 'ave them in 'and, though."

The tiny black wheret continued to scamper around, nosing intently at the weyrbrats before scampering off to investigate Matilda. He ran back to Mouse to investigate Lisk and Saosk, not really saying anything, but his curiosity was apparent. Then he was off again, like a shot, across the stands to investigate somebody else. The pillies drew his attention next, and he ran on over to peer at Shardit and Bug. He didn't get too close to them, investigating from afar. They were weird and he wasn't sure of them at all. Soon, though, he grew bored with them and bounded back out to the Sands to investigate the Candidates. Fenrisk had told him to pick one of them, after all, so he decided he was going to figure them all out.

While he weaved in and out amongst the Candidates again, Fenrisk nosed at one of the objects in the nest. It was the front-most one, one that looked like a rock laying on its side. She gave a mournful sound as she broke it open. Inside was a half-formed wheret, a dud. The green mass of her body drew the black wheret's attention, and he trotted on over to investigate his lifeless sister. He found the poor dud to be quite interesting in her own way. As the black investigated the dud, Fenrisk wandered over to nose at the rightmost egg in her nest. The little black, of course, instantly beelined over that way. Sounds were heard from within the egg, a panicked sort of noise. Fenrisk nosed at the egg again, privately encouraging the wheret within, but the little black had a different solution for the problem. He ran off to one side of the Sands, putting a good bit of distance between himself and the egg Fenrisk was worrying over. With a little baby roar, he charged at the egg, lowering his head to smash into it with his forehead. It worked, as he broke a hole the size of his face in the egg. With his head stuck in the egg, he sat there for a moment, wings splayed, feet planted, tail straight out. Fenrisk couldn't help it. She dissolved in giggles right there. Fenrimere couldn't help it either. She giggled too. Fortunately for the little black wheret, though, the egg's occupant quickly used a foot to kick his head out of their egg. He sat down, looking smug. Yep, he'd figured it out. He was clever, just like his parents.

A cyan claw, dark teal in color, poked out of the shell and tried to gain purchase on the Sands so she could climb out. It failed, so she withdrew the claw back into her shell. Then a light blue claw poked out, trying the same tactic. That didn't work either. The claw withdrew, then both the light blue and dark teal claws came out, followed by her head. Her head was rounded and flat-faced for a wher, and overlarge for a wheret. It was barely small enough to pop through the hole in her egg made by the black's head, and her left eye was visibly larger than the other. Her egg had been too thick for her to break on her own, and it didn't break any further as she wriggled her way out through that hole. A gash opened up on her left side as she pulled her way free, from her shoulder to her flank. Once free of her egg, she shook her patchwork self, flicking her overly-large right wing while her miniscule left wing just sat there. Her short, stumpy tail swung back and forth as she swivelled her head on her short, stumpy neck, looking around. Her coloring was odd as well, three separate shades of blue coloring her frame, blending well but still quite patchworked. Overall, she had the sense of being badly put-together.

The cyan decided then and there that she loved her black brother and that she was going to kiss him. She darted toward him with just that intent, which sent the black fleeing. Running on her own set of spindle-thin, gangly legs, the cyan gave chase. She clearly had no idea she was injured, that her ichor was oozing from the gash on her side. The black was clearly having none of her stuff, but the cyan continued to chase her. He ran into the Stands, hopefully finding succor there, beelining towards Newt without realizing it. He didn't notice the young man's panicked reaction to him as he ran, though he did accidentally run him over and use his lap for a springboard, his claws shredding flesh by sheer virtue of the fact he was running at top speed to get away from his obnoxious, cootie-ridden sister. He stopped in his tracks and growled at the cyan, demanding that she look at what she'd made him do. The cyan blinked at him a few times, then flicked her overlarge wing and sat down.

The black padded back over to Newt, intrigued by his mind but also somewhat repulsed. He nosed the young man's arm. The cyan followed, settling down just beside the black, tilting her head curiously at Newt. He was broken, just like her, but she knew he wasn't Hers. Hers was nearby. She just didn't know who it was yet.

Sorry, he said simply. Not mean hurt. Stupid cyan chase. He stared at Newt for a moment, then dropped his jaw open in his best Impask smile. Newt's find again, trust. Someday. All be okay. He gave Newt a lick on the face, then turned to go. The cyan licked the black, then Newt, earning herself a swat on the nose from the black. He took off again, carefully weaving through everyone to get away from his stupid sister. He took refuge behind Valasco's feet, looking up at him intently.

Valask like you, the black said, grinning like his sire once more. Come on! New thing see. First food, then see all thing. Then scare all thing, maybe. Be fun.

Black Valask, bonded to Valasco

SPOILER: Click to show

Appearance:

(141414, markings in 393939)

Valask is a long-limbed wher. His legs are long, his neck is long, even his tail is long. He moves with unusual grace and agility. His head is abnormally large. He has greyish markings on his muzzle and around his eyes, giving him a sort of skull-like look to his face. His underbelly is the same color, extending to the underside of his neck. His wings are rather large for a wher's, but decidedly different. They have practically no membrane, giving him what basically amounts to another set of claws on his back. They sit there, though, only moving in reaction to his emotions.

Personality:

Valask is a very polite wher, as whers go. He's quite the gentleman, both patient and graceful. He rarely loses his temper and can be considered quite a dependable wher. Unless, of course, he encounters something new. At that point, he dashes forth like an excited child to investigate it, wondering just what that interesting thing is. Another exception to his usual gentlemanly nature is when he gets the urge to scare the absolute pants off someone. He is even more of an explorer than his sister, with a desire to know anything and everything and most importantly see it all himself. His penchant for scaring people never involves violence. He'll stop short before actually touching his target, but he'll find some pretty creative places to hide in order to execute the perfect scare when he gets that urge. He's slow to anger, but once he's riled up enough he could rival a Red's ferocity.

The cyan wandered away from Newt, looking around. She was sad, realizing he'd bonded. She decided she had to do that too, but who was her person? Still oozing ichor, she started her own search.

[Cathaline]

The last time a black wher had run at Newt like that, pursued by a cyan, it had Impressed him. And then died.

Newt wasn't entirely in control of his own mind at the moment, ever since Jafask had pushed him over the edge into freefall. He was only half here; half of him was back on the dark sands of Ausk's hatching, in the white robe, excited and youthful and so, so happy. He gave a short little gasp and wrenched himself away - with Yhisk sprawled over three laps, her weight wasn't entirely on him, and he half-fell when he slipped out from under her, barely catching himself on the bench behind him. He scrabbled up another couple of flights in the hope that the black would swerve right past him, ignore him, not touch him and break the way Newsk had -

It darted over his lap, and Newt yelped as sharp infant claws shredded through his pants and dug into the soft flesh of his thighs. So he'd be wearing the scars of this hatching after all. Dizzy with exhaustion and pain, he made a pathetic sound when they both came to him and stared.

Stay out, he thought. For the love of Faranth, stay out. I'll kill you. I kill everything I touch.

He didn't stay out, he spoke. It had to be a Dalibor thing, the sheer number of unbonded babes who were willing to speak to people who didn't belong to them. Maybe someday when he was feeling better, Newt would do some kind of study. That sounded like an excellent long-term research project.

Right now, though, he cringed and put his hands over his ears, but of course it did nothing. "I'm so sorry," he whispered to the black. So sorry that it had touched his diseased mind, even briefly. So sorry for being in the way, for bleeding. He squeezed his eyes shut when they both licked him -

And then they were both gone. Alive, still. Somehow.

"Son of a tunnelsnake," he said through clenched teeth. There were tears on his face, he realised, and he stood up. Instantly his legs gave out, and he clattered pathetically down to his friends again, half-collapsing against Yhimere's shoulder, reaching out to touch Letorin's head to steady himself. "Get me out of here. No - don't call Yuri. I can't - "

[Gray]

Kida wanted to see the baby wheret too, especially since he was nosing around in the sands! But Disk blocked the girl with her bulk.
No Kidababy. No get close. Babies sometimes mean. Fenrisk's good, but careful. Just in case. She bumped her head against the girl, partially apologizing. Dita grinned at his Wher. Disk took her job seriously. She was going to keep Kida safe. Sighing a bit, Kidanyr nodded.
“Ok, I'll be good.” She pouted a bit, though she didn't want a repeat of what happened last hatching. Her cheeks burned slightly as she remembered her mother's anger. Seeing his charge upset, Dita placed a hand on her shoulder.
“Don' worry Kida, you'll be old enough soon. Then you can stand for whers and dragons to yer heart's content.” Kida nodded and watched the Wher move through the stands.

Matilda, too was excited. When the black investigated her, she beamed at him.
“Hello there, little sir.” He was so skeletal, like another that had once investigated her. But he felt... different. She could tell pretty quickly he wasn't hers. There was no click, but she didn't mind being looked over. A'til was tense beside her. He didn't dare move or try and pull Matilda away. Not only could that anger the wheret, but it would certainly anger her. He did keep an arm tight around her side though, if needed he would drag her away and put himself in front. A'til breathed easier once the black was gone.
“You're awfully chatty to something that could kill you.”

Matilda shook her head a bit and patted his hand.
“Calm brother, calm. You talk to something that could easily crush you beneath a claw, and you think I'm odd.” She smirked as A'til flustered, and Asperath's laughed brushed over the two of them.
“I know, I know 'It's not the same'. He's a curious baby. He won't hurt.” Still she was glad her brother was looking out for her, even though she thought he was over reacting.

A'til sat silently, keeping his eye on the black as he made his way around. When Fenrisk moved, he hesitated, was that a warning? But no, she broke a dud egg. Oh. Asperath crooned sadly in the eves and A'til shook his head. That was unfortunate. There was another one though, and she moved to an egg he assumed was making a sound. He watched the whers and hesitated when the wheret's clawed poked out. Two colors? But that was not much to worry about.

Quince honked as the wheret broke free. Kida gasped and Dita coughed. Oh, she was an odd one. There was a lack of symmetry about her, even worse then the usual wher.
“She's so...” Kida tried to find the words to say.
Cute baby! Disk supplied happily. Oh, second baby! Second baby! Disk waggled, knocking Quince and Jonah from her head.

[mopsy93]

It was hard to keep track of the black wheret as he dashed excitedly through the stands, though a couple of images from Janvia showed him first investigating the Weyrbrats then from a distance a couple of pillies. After running around some more he lost interest in the people in the stands and made his way back onto the Hatching ground sands. There Fenrisk had smashed open the egg lying on its side revealing it to be a dud egg, a sad half-formed green sliding out of what was supposed to be a promise of new life. The sad moment in a comparatively tame hatching was soon overshadowed by Fenrisk, soon followed by her black son, turning her attention to the only other egg that showed any sign of life.

This one seemed to be having troubles hatching from its own egg, sort of like the first known male White in recorded Pern History. This time it was the wheret’s brother who broke through the shell, in a rather comedic fashion too considering the fact that he rammed his head straight into the egg breaking through the shell. What came out was by all appearances a fairly disfigured Cyan with odd proportions even for a wheret. At least the Cyan had some fight in her showed off by the fact that she managed to stay alive this long and knocked her brother out of the she hatched from. A brief chase between the wheret siblings ensued, though less aggression on her part and more seemingly out of love for her black brother. This ended with Newtollen being clawed by the black in attempt to get away from his sister, thankfully so far this was the only injury so far much to Carissa’s relief though feeling sorry for the older Candidate. After the pair of siblings tried to apologize the best way they knew how making Carissa smile a little, the first Impression took place with the black choosing Valasco.

[Maggie]

Dawn gave Saowyn a calculating look up and down. She was Saosk's handler, obviously, and Genner had vetted her for caring for Mouse. She still was going to have a long conversation with Genner about not waiting for Saowin and Lirmox to show up. "Dawnova. Weyrling cyanrider of Nesdeth," she added, realising that it might not be obvious since she wasn't accompanied by her bonded as Saowyn was. "You can call me Dawn. Or Red. Gennesk does. I'm technically not wild anymore, I think, since Nessie's my handler."

She grinned down at Mouse as Lacey translated her question. "If the babies are bad, of course we will bite them. Or stomp them. Gennesk likes stomping," she told Mouse brightly. "Now Gennesk was very mean not making sure you had a job before he left for the sands and we'll tell him when he's done working, ok? But we know we have to guard from up here and starting tomorrow, you can ask if you can maybe go do the wherling class without a handler." It might be feasible, she thought, if only because the clutch would probably be small.

She tensed, ready to strike as the little black wher came up towards them. It only seemed interesting in licking, though, which was good. A nice little wher, like his parents. "See, Mousie, if you couldn't go to the babies, they'll come to you. No use being on those hot sands. Believe me, I've been there plenty of times and it's not always fun." But sometimes it was magical. She glanced over at where Nesdeth was still looming.

"Oh look, a Cyan like Nessie and Enci!" she exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. She did have a fondness for cyans. Nesdeth's eyes actually whirled a pleased green. She breathed a sigh of relief as the little black Impressed. No chance of him mauling his sister to death, now. They would have a happy new cyanhandler, soon!

Your baby is beautiful even in death, Nesdeth told Fenrisk as the white saw the dud. Death was always interesting and the dud hadn't been killed horribly, so Dawn wasn't upset and Nesdeth could just examine it.

Genner nodded as he saw the little black impress. Good. One wherling safely Impressed and in good health. There was that, at least. Now if the little cyan could choose her new handler, he would be set. It would be a small class, but that suited him. Smaller classes would get more attention and could learn more more quickly.

[Tigersilk]

"Do you guys know who that is?" Sunita asked, referring to the boy that had walked onto the Sands minus a Candidate's white robe, and seemingly not knowing what was going on. What was that fool thinking, approaching a mother wher's nest uninvited? Fast way to get killed, that's for sure.

Ziata shrugged. "Seen him around the Barracks recently," referring to the Candidates Barracks, "but don't really know him. Bit of a dimglow, from what I can tell. Seems nice enough, otherwise." Surely he could realize from what everyone around him was doing that a Hatching was happening, even if he'd never been to one before. Ziata and her sisters had learned the rules of a Hatching the moment they arrived at Dalibor, before being placed on the Sands with little more than a meal and a few hours sleep in them. Couldn't this boy have done the same himself, without Kalesk roughly escorting him off the Sands like that?

"That wheret looks like it's not eaten for ever," Jas said, looking at the new little black hatchling. "Poor thing is just bones and hide."

The girls watched as the wheret explored its surroundings, dashing among the Candidates before moving into the stands, investigating the spectators. They laughed when the little fellow helped free his sister by charging into her egg head-first, like a bull herdbeast.

"That Cyan looks like someone had a box of leftover parts they needed to use up." Ziata observed. "Hopefully it has good health and a nice personality to compensate."

"Do whers normally Impress to people in the stands?" Jas asked, watching the little Black Impress to a kid she'd seen around the Barracks but otherwise didn't know at all.

"Don't know," Sunita answered. "Ask your Candidatemaster that at your lessons tomorrow. She should know if it's really that common, or if the last two Wher Hatchings were exceptions to the rule."

They returned to watching the Cyan wheret, seeing who she might Impress.

[maruset]

The black that hatched made Valasco grin a bit, especially when he took off to go explore. All right, he could appreciate that instinct, it was what he and Lavi did. Kept an ear that way as he watched the nest. After what had happened last hatching, he thought being wary was a perfectly reasonable reaction.

Though it didn't take long for the black to come back, investigating the dud that his mother had uncovered. Then Fenrisk seemed to focus on another of the objects in the nest, and Val hoped that that was another viable egg. The black seemed to have figured something out, and headbutted the egg.

There was a definite snort of amusement from Val as the black's head got stuck a moment. But the headbutt seemed to fix any issue there was, as the little cyan was soon free. She was a pretty thing, and then the pair were off in a chase again. This time, there was a bit more reaction in the audience, and Val wasn't sure what was going on.

What he did know was the black was soon back on the sands, hiding behind his legs. He looked up at Val, little deathhead grinning. And then he spoke, and Val couldn't help but grin back, a sharp grin. Valask.

"Yeah, let's get you some food. Then we'll go find all sorts of things to scare." His grin just grew. "Come on, let's get you fed." He collected the black, who was still small enough for him to do, the black clinging a bit to his arm and looking around with curious, gleeful little eyes, still grinning. Things to see and to scare later. He wanted to run around, but for now, he could see a lot more than when he had been on his feet.

Val heard his sister give a cheer, and grinned. He had to admit, he had been standing for whers for a long time, and was happy to finally Impress. Maybe that would give Lavi a boost of good luck so she might get a dragon before she aged out.

"You and me, little deathhead, we are going to have some -fun-," he grinned at Valask, getting a grin back. Yes, fun, scare lots thing. Hungry, but later scare.

Oh, yes, they were going to get along just fine.


***


The black hitting the stands was bad, and Letorin knew it. Especially when Newt reacted. And the babies stopped. There was blood, and Letorin grimaced, especially with the way Newt responded to whatever happened between them. When the man staggered, Letorin reached up to help brace him. He had been petting Yhisk, because Gennesk and Yusk had both taught him to pet whers when they were in his lap. Now he was more worried about Newt.

Nudging the wher off his lap, Letorin stood and moved to be a better brace. "Come on," he murmured. "Let's get out of here. Do you want to get something to eat, or just head back to our room?" He glanced at Yhimere, not really familiar with the person, but they were obviously a friend of Newt's.

[Chimera]

Mouse say you mean stupid. Lisk agree.

"Nooo." Lirmox wrought his hands and mock-sobbed for a few moments. "Everyone haaates Lirmox." He shrugged, and scoffed, amused. "Listen to what Dawnova and...even what Lisk says, then." He watched the curious black wheret scuttle around the Sands, fascinated by the world he'd only hatched into a few candlemarks ago. Lisk squinted at him, a bit distrusting. Lisk hissed quietly, her tail twitching, and she bristled a bit, nearly baring her teeth when he came over to her and Saosk, though she released her tension as he headed off again.

Lisk, don't scare him. Lirmox sent a small wave of calmness as the black wheret approached, keeping the green from going full-on attack mode.

ANYWAY. Be good guard-wher need be sometime still. Watch. Plan. Even bad baby, Lisk want KILL, if bad need wait. Scare babies. ANYWAY. No always attack, even WANT, then good wher, good wher get scritchies, tasties. Eat face meat-animals. Be good wher, stay now here, later get scritchies.

"...Yeah, what...she and Dawnova said." Lirmox frowned at Lisk. People thought tans were confusing. He smiled at the wher candidate no longer, Valasco, when he Impressed to the black wher. Now there was a strange cyan wheret on the sands. Even for a wher, she looked lopsided, and quite patchwork-y.

***
Akklyn watched the Sands, glad to see a hatching without violence (yet), until she saw Aydan turn away from her.

So much for friends. She huffed, crossed her arms, and pretended to ignore the boy, looking back at the Sands. She did dart her head back to his blue pillie occasionally. It was kind of cute. MiniMe glared suspiciously at Aydan and his pillies, however. Then another kid approached Aydan, sitting down on the brass pillie's side. Akklyn didn't envy him. She smirked at Oshumer, and MiniMe chirped pridefully too - he'd gotten the worse side with the violent bug.

"Who the heck are you? D'you come to watch the whers too? I got to see Fenrisk's eggs when they were still soft. Now they're hatching, and - cool!" Akklyn forgot about her two acquaintances as the first wheret hatched. She raised an eyebrow at the black's skeletal markings.

"Wow, a hatching that isn't so violent yet and a skeleton wher hatches."

Akklyn followed the black wheret's path with excited eyes, and nearly thought he'd Impress her, Oosh, or Aydan for a moment - but then he went away and Impressed a Candidate. Alright.

"What's your name?" She got up and poked Oosh's shoulder, leaning over Aydan to reach the other boy. If he could poke, then so could she. "D'you know his? You know who, the guy I'm leanin' over." Akklyn asked of him.

***
Fascinating. Dardrask keenly observed, looking not unlike his other black brother Isk (were it not for the fact that he considered himself superior to the boring wher), Fenrisk's two live children - and her dud. He liked the skeletal black, and even the mismatched cyan seemed to unnerve some in the audience. They seemed a good lot so far. He would congratulate the newly named Valask, a thing that Dardrask had never done before to anyone, after the hatching. If he liked scaring and causing fear as much as he did, they'd make a fine duo.

Fascinating indeed. Who do you think will Impress the cyan?

Pale ghost black-hair? He asked, turning his inky black head to Matilda.

Dardranel snorted in laughter, stifling it with a wiry hand.

Matilda's not a ghost!

[RhiaBlack]

It was warm in here. Warmer than the Ring Islands, like being an ant under a magnifying glass. In every sense of the phrase. He couldn't help but think that these Hatchlings, and those who Stood for them, were being judged.

Czervon hated it. He hated it with a passion whose fire could only be contained by his immeasurable self-will. The same will that had seen him the sole survivor of the Windward Fury's sunken hull, and the bleeding mess that he had been when the Seawher had taken him, within the dark waters of the Deep Sea. He'd survived those, this was nothing compared to that.

But shard it, the wait was killing him.

The self-mutilation of the Cyan etched a frown from him. The poor beast had injured itself; he wasn't sure if it was female or male, it was hard to tell, he was only just now getting aquainted with various colors. Many of them seemed represented here, both on the Sands and in the stands. And strange waterbug creatures, as well. All of them seemed strangely confusing, but Czervon pushed the thought of it from his mind. He'd learn about all of them soon enough. All the colors, all the personalities, all these strange creatures he overheard being called "Pillies". The smaller Dragonkin, the Firelizards. Whers and Dragons, most of all, though he would never hope to ride the latter. It would require that he make friends with someone who had one, and Czervon had never been prone to anything but sea-legs. At least this place was within walking distance of water; both fresh and salt.

His stomach growled. There was a considerable hunger there - it had been as many days since he ate as when he'd last slept, and it wouldn't do. Once those other eggs hatched, he'd see about some decent fish and a good night's sleep in his hammock. Chores tomorrow, which whether they took him any measure of time or not to finish, would be good for letting him explore this place. Find out who else was in charge other than Audren and Ausk.

It took him a moment to realize that the Black had picked Valasco. Impression wasn't something he quite understood, though a number of his crewmates past had family who were Dolphineers. Connection to any animal, be it Dolphins, Runners, Herdbeasts, Canines or anything else didn't seem strange to him. Something he'd learn, he was sure, from lessons and eventually when and if he got a Wher of his own.

Something he was still trying to wrap his mind around, all the same. The Cyan's injury worried him, but it was only seen in the marginal lift of his brows against the saturated length of his headscarf. It was one thing for a Human to suffer, at least they could help themselves. Animals and beasts were something different. With any luck, the little creature would Impress soon, even if it wasn't to him. Someone that would look after it.

He had to admit, he was a bit fond of its coloring.

Shifting where he stood, his hands laced over his arms behind his back, and he waited patiently. There were more eggs, weren't there? Only the one dead one, and then these two, that left five more...

[Rii]

It had taken G’dan a good long self-talk to convince himself to go to Fenrisk’s hatching, especially after the bloodbath he’d witnessed at Callistath’s and Kalesk’s. He wasn’t sure he wanted to risk seeing that again. Ever. The wherets would hatch perfectly well and do whatever they decided to do whether he was there or not.

Still, he was curious. As much as a part of him didn’t want to see, he did want to see even more. There was always a certain kind of wonder at watching the eggs and seeing what scrambled out of them. Like gems, he had told Sebol once, as they had sat in the stands together watching eggs. Still encased in stone, yet to be freed from their matrix to be cut and polished and allowed to shine. G’dan wasn’t much of a lapidary, but he could still appreciate it enough to appreciate the simile.

So he went, after all. The greenrider sat alone in the stands, fingers pressed together with his lips resting lightly against their tips. Two eggs had hatched; a third had been revealed as a dud. The first had also apparently bonded, which was good. G’dan regarded the remaining ‘eggs’ on the Sands. Sure, they looked like eggs, but not a jiggle nor a twitch could be seen from any of them. Add it to whites not generally clutching more than three, and tan Wenth’s collection of objects from outside to prettify her ‘nest’... well, the shy inventor had to wonder. But all he could do was wait and see.

***

Eggs hatch. You go. I go, too.

Der looked up from the hide he was studying to frown. He couldn’t remember the last time that Desk had insisted that they attend a hatching. No, that was a lie; they’d had a look-in when the oranges and cyans had hatched, and it had put Desk in such a bad mood that he’d avoided them ever since. Not that he’d ever say that she’d been jealous…

...Okay, she totally had been. And he hadn’t wanted to exacerbate it again. Except that now she was demanding that they go do just that. And he couldn’t claim duty as an excuse, they weren’t due to patrol until much later that night. Why this hatching, Desk?

Fenrisk white. White special. Almost special as grey. Desk prowled at the door to their quarters, rearing up to bat at the handle. Der shook his head and rose, opening the door and letting his wher precede him. When Desk was determined, nothing would stop her from attaining what she wanted… except maybe a warm, cozy place to nap.

Alright. But we watch this hatching quietly.

I quiet. You quiet. Always quietest wherpair. They took up a watching spot near the sands, where Desk could bask in the heat rising from them. And observed the spectacle of the odd-looking wherets hatching.

What do you think about them? Der inquired of his short-spoken wher.

Desk’s prettier.

He couldn’t help but grin. That was his bonded in a nutshell; always convinced that when she did something, she would push to be the best. You haven’t had any hatch yet, though, lovely.

Yet. Desk replied smugly, and returned to watching.

[RavenSong]

The cyan wheret wandered back down onto the Sands, where she started seeing little green droplets of ichor. She stopped, tilting her head at them, and sniffed intently. That smelled familiar. Somehow she knew it was a bad thing, that it was injury. She looked around herself, doing a doubletake when her large left eye caught sight of the gash down her side.

When had THAT happened?! She let out a panicked squeal and ran to Fenrisk, creeling, upset because she was shedding ichor and she had no idea how it happened or if she was supposed to be like that. Fenrisk cooed soothingly at the cyan, nuzzling her to reassure her so she wouldn't freak out too badly. Once she had the cyan calmed down, Fenrisk nosed her toward the Candidates with a firm admonition to choose now so she could get that side of hers looked at. The cyan resisted, knowing somehow that her person wasn't on the Sands. They were... where they weren't supposed to be, which she liked somewhat. Fenrisk huffed a sigh and let her go, watching the cyan trundle away on those spindle-thin legs of hers. The remaining wheret meandered around the Stands, pointely staying away from Newt's area, his broken mind not quite what she wanted.

She wobbled a bit as she reached Matilda, noticing the cast on her foot. She gnawed at it a bit, finding it as thick as her own egg, if not thicker. She looked up at Matilda, her mind sliding into the woman's mind as they made eye contact.

Matisk broken, the cyan announced. Need... need sew. She picked up the concept from Matilda's weaver-trained mind, and found it acceptable. Matisk need sew, Matilda, and roam. Too long stuck in egg. Valask get out. Matilda take now, we go. Find sew, find food, find cave. Need sew, and Matisk fix again.

Cyan Matisk, bonded to Matilda

SPOILER: Click to show

Appearance:

(a6d0d8, markings in 5ecee6 and 306a76)
Matisk looks as though she was badly put-together. Her wings are mismatched, the right overly large, the left barely there. Her legs are long and spindle-thin, her neck and tail short and stumpy. Her head is big for her body, rounded and flat-faced. Even her eyes are mismatched. Her left eye is visibly larger than her right. Her coloring is rather patchwork as well. Her head and right foreleg, as well as the foot of her left rear leg, are a dark teal. Her right rear leg, midsection, and stunted left wing are a pale sky blue. Her large right wing, the top part of her left foreleg, and her tail are a bright watery blue.

Personality:

Despite the oddities of her physique, Matisk is a determined creature. Unable to feel pain, Matisk will need her handler's guidance and any injury will need immediate attention. Her handler will also need to keep a closer eye on her hide than most handlers, because she will not feel itchy patches either. She is very devoted to her brother Valask, loving him from a distance even though he doesn't love her back. She hates being cooped up in one place for too long. If she's kept in their quarters for several days, Matisk will find a way to get out. This poses problems when combined with the fact she can't feel pain. Matisk is also a remarkably crafty wher, inheriting her dam's intelligence. Her craftiness can be directed into whatever pursuit her handler desires, but she'll always have a fondness for exploration for the sheer sake of getting out of where she's cooped up.

Her last child bonded, Fenrisk deliberately broke Matisk's thick shell. She carefully sorted out shell pieces, one from Valask's, Matisk's, and the poor dud's, into six separate piles. That done, she looked at the Candidates remaining.

Eggs for you too, she said. Rocks for prank, funny prank, not make Can-dits jump like wanted but still funny. You take egg piece or rock for keep if want, remember Fenrisk by. Not from piles, those special pieces. Leave dead baby alone, Fenrisk handle soon. Can have egg piece from dead baby, if want. Sad baby.

The white wher was joyous, though, despite the dud. There had been minimal blood, both from her children and Yusk's babies. Nobody was going home as upset as they had when Kalesk's bad babies had terrorized everyone. To her, it was still the Best Prank Ever.

Fenrimere, for her part, was happy as well, for similar reasons. Matisk's physical nature concerned her, mainly because the little cyan was so oddly built, but both live wherets had Impressed successfully and nobody had died or bled too much beyond what was needed for the bond, except perhaps poor Newt. She was concerned for the young man, and decided she'd have to speak to him sometime, alone, without Fenrisk or her pillies attending him. He needed reassurance.

'Oo are you giving the special piles to, lovey? she asked Fenrisk privately.

Valask's, Matisk's, Ironbutt Z'dyn, Blueflyer Ana-scarf, Nadysk's littleperson, Gennesk's littleperson, Fenrisk replied. After everyone out, for Ironbutt Z'dyn and littlepersons.

Fenrimere gave a little nod, turning to the Weyrbrats up in the Stands.

"Aydan, lovey, can ya come 'ere? You too, sweetie in tha wher costume. Fenrisk wants ta see ya once everyone's out." She smiled warmly. "Stay in th'Stands, but stick close ta me."

Fenrisk turned to the spectators, grinning in her wherish way.

Thank all for see babies! she said. Maybe see Fenrisk later. In nest. In bed. Ahahahaha.

[Gray]

They watched with similar expressions. Browns knit and lips drawn thin, they watched the cyan. She was pretty hurt, and it seemed that she just noticed that. She looked surprised. Not what either of them expected, and she ran to her mother. Sensible, A'til thought. Fenrisk would know what to do. Still, they both did noticed that those wounds looked kind of bad. Bravery and toughness could only go so far.
“She'll be fine. They're touch, remember? Don't worrywart over someone else's baby now.” Matilda nudged her brother a bit. His seriousness was going to make him sick. A'til looked to her with an expression that was hard to read, but Matilda got the hint.
“I don't think we'll see more death this round. Trust me, I know these things.”

Disk crooned sadly at the sands, stomping her claws against the floor.
Dita, Disk am help baby later? Baby hurt, Dita bring fishes?
“I'll help too! Well. I might need to sleep. But if you go again tomorrow I'll help.” Dita nodded silently before shifting.
“We'll get them both some presents. Offer the help we can, you know. The usual stuff.” Disk turned and wiggled her head under his arm, laying it in his lap.
Good. Presents for all. Kida chuckled, turning to watch the cyan again, since it looked like she was getting nudged towards the candidates.

Once against A'til tensed slightly. The wherets really seemed to like them, for some odd reason. He wondered if they were just some kind of beacon for the little dragonkin. Up close, he could see the cyan's wounds, and the patterns of her hide. She really did look like several whers made into one. He could feel the faint tremble in Matilda's hands when she reached over to grab his hand.

Somewhat stunned, she glanced at her brother before returning her gaze to the wheret that decided to gnaw on her cast. There was a tiny part of her that wanted to pull her foot away, to get it away from further damage, but she stayed still. As the cyan listed mismatched eyes to meet Matilda's own, she felt something tiptoe into her head. There was a tinge of worry, and an odd, lingering sense that she had smelled ichor. But beneath all that there was a sense of joy, of freedom.

Matisk broken, Broken? Oh dear, She felt a smile tug at the edges of her mouth. The cyan was not broken. Hurt, maybe, but not broken.
Need... need sew. Matilda was a bit surprised that the wheret could pluck things from her that easily, but she nodded and let go of A'til's hand. Her brother just looked at her with a small but solemn smile. Looks like she wouldn't be joining him in the air.
Matisk need sew, Matilda, and roam. Too long stuck in egg. Valask get out. Matilda take now, we go. Find sew, find food, find cave. Need sew, and Matisk fix again.

“Of course. Let me get my crutch and we'll, like, get you taken care of and fed. Then maybe we can have a small walk around.” Her voice had pitched higher, and there was a a rather unusual, dreamy tone to it. She did notice though, that she didn't feel any pain through their bond, it was like the wheret only knew she was hurt because she saw it. That was a bit concerning, but nothing she and Matisk could not deal with. She had something to do before that though. Reaching for her knife, Matilda frowned a bit and sliced across her palm. Matisk jumped back, looking rather confused, almost like she had been struck. Hesitantly, she crept forward again and ran her tongue over Matilda's offered palm.
What is, Matilda? The wheret's eyes whirled as she tried to send an echo of Matilda's pain back to her. It was harder than she had thought.
"It's Pain, Matisk. It's... A feeling. We'll talk about this once you're fixed and fed, I think we will have much to talk about as time goes on."
Grabbing her crutch, she once against fitted it under her arm, standing a bit wobbly.
Matisk follow. The cyan clung to that slight confusion, but Matilda had said they would talk. So she could wait.

Matilda nodded a bit, she would have liked to carry Matisk, but the cyan did seem to want to stretch her thin legs, to get out and about. Plus she could not, even though she wanted to. A pity. The pair walked slowly, but surely to the healer's area, Matisk looking around as they did. As they neared, Matilda waved to Makkoi.
“Sorry to bother, but Matisk needs a patch up before she can eat. She's leaking all over.”
Please fix, Matisk hunger. Matilda smiled. Well, at least she could feel hunger.

Nudging Kidanyr, Disk snorted.
Come babyKida. Hatch end, Fenrisk played good prank. Fun prank. Only three egg. We take to creche, play more tomorrow? Kida looked once more to the sands, where other weyrbrats gathered, well more wherbrats really, since they where Handler children. She nodded.
“We'll play some tomorrow. After I help in the infirmary, ok?” Disk cooed. Yes, she would protect and play. Then check on other babies, and play with them as well. She would be busy, as usual.
Fenrisk,[/i] Disk called to the white.
Good hatch, have good babies. Nice babies.

[mopsy93]

After brief moment of panic on the Cyan’s part after finally realizing that she had injured herself in the process of getting out of her egg, and some reassurances from Fenrisk the Cyan went to Impress. The thing that was surprising was that she Impressed somebody in the stands, a Candidate but as far as Carissa knew that Matilda only stood for Dragons outside of Callistath and Kalesk’s double clutch. Carissa still felt relieved though, Matilda’s Impression of a wher was the only big surprise and in terms of injuries there were only two and both were accidental. All things considered this was pretty uneventful, at least compared to the past two Hatchings. There was only one last surprise in Fenrisk saying that the majority of the so called ‘eggs’ being in reality a bunch of rocks placed there as some kind of joke by Fenrisk.

With the Hatching over Carissa stood up to leave not needing much more prompting for the clutchmother, who seemed pretty happy with the outcome of the hatching. After a brief pause Janvia appeared out of between above Carissa landing on her shoulder with the girl receiving waves of happiness form the flit, clearly just as glad about the outcome. The pair returned to making their way to the Dinning Cavern just as eager to have dinner as before.

[Tigersilk]

Ibith translated Fenrisk's closing comments for Hers and HersSisters All the babies have hatched. The rest are rocks, put there to make the Candidates laugh after the problems of the last Hatching. That Hatching was the one Ibith came from; this was the first time the young Cyan dragonet had ever attended a Hatching, and she was enjoying being with the older dragons in one place. Fenrisk has left gifts for some of the weyrchildren she knows; that is what the piles of shells are. The Hatching was happy, Ibith was happy, could Hers be happy and come back to their Barracks weyr and spend time with just herIbith? That last for Sunita's mind alone. Ibith did not want to hurt the feelings of the younger girls by letting them know the dragonet wanted her-time with her bonded, without them.

Let me finish my dinner, love, grab some warm klah, and shoo the girls back to their rooms first. I'll be back at our room to cuddle with you in a bit. You can go back now if you like, and get out of this rain. In truth, Sunita didn't want to spend time with any company right then; the weather putting her in a mood to do nothing but curl up with a good scroll, some hot klah, and a warm dragon to lean against. Ziata and Jas had a test in the morning; she'd see if they wanted to take a closed pot of klah with them after dinner to study with in their dorm room. Hopefully the rain will have let up enough to allow them to return to their respective rooms after dinner without getting too wet.

No-one was going to be visiting anyone this evening. Not in this downpour.

[RhiaBlack]

Czervon frowned slightly, but it couldn't be helped. Apparently the rest were rocks. A trick, a prank, but nobody seemed particularly upset about it. He wasn't going to mope or be upset - he had only just arrived, those who had Impressed had been here much longer than he had. It was only fair. The Fisher might be something of a self-righteous man, perhaps blunt, but he understood fairness.

It just wasn't his turn yet.

Fenrisk was given the same bow that the others had shown her; Czervon was still trying to get the hang of this whole Standing thing, after all. He tended to learn quickly, so that was a good thing, he supposed. A quick look around the Sands, the stands, and the corridor out. He didn't see any sign of that kid that had touched him right off-hand, and so as nonchalant as he could muster, he started for the way out. Back into the rain, it appeared. Ah, well.

He needed to find the Dining Hall, soon. They had only just begun the night's candlemarks, but he knew there would probably be at least some manner of settling in that he would have to take care of. That couldn't - and wouldn't - be done on a stomach as empty as his was. He couldn't focus with it growling as raucously as it was.

Preparing himself, he drew a breath, looked out into the night, and soon stepped out into it, headed for a decent meal before he would check in with Audren and the others he was supposed to see. After that, it would be a long process of backlogging his memories and convincing himself that as much of a nightmare as it had been, he was still comfortably rocking below deck on his ship.

Things would never be the same again, but that didn't stop him from remembering how they used to be.

[Kiran]

Hespera watched the other Impression happen. Even with a dud - and she was sad for that - she was supremely glad that both Impressions happened, and both without a single hitch! How lucky was that?! The cyan would be patched up quickly enough, and the black would have a forever adventure partner. It was wonderful. Hespera hoped that when hers hatched, she would have one just as amazing. If she got a wher, though she was fairly certain that there was a chance she would get a dragon still - she was still young enough for it.

Her thoughts drifted as she contemplated that and considered what she might Impress. And how long it would take. And what it would be like. And as she thought, she missed Fenrisk's gathering of the eggshells. The announcement of taking a shell or egg was a surprise to the girl. She nearly jumped out of her skin when it came, which actually made Hespera giggle slightly. Fear! It was frightening! How wonderful. Just like it should be.

An eggshell seemed like a good idea, though. That was new and unusual, she had never been offered one before. Hespera moved forward and grasped one that had come from the black with the death-mask that hadn't been swept into the piles, like asked. She fingered it as she glanced around. Rocks, huh? It was a prank... But Hespera wasn't sure that she really understood it and why it had been funny. She gave a confused smile to the white, but thanked her regardless. It had been an interesting hatching, that was for certain!

Now, to settle in and work and wait for the next one....

[Maggie]

Genner grabbed two buckets of fish, meeting Valasco and Valask first with a nod. "Fish, without the antidote in it. Remember, give him small pieces, make sure he doesn't eat too fast and choke." He then made his way over to where Matilda was speaking with the healers, handing her the bucket. "She can eat while getting looked at, if it's not hurting her too badly." He looked down, trying to judge the severity of the wound. He had seen worse on hatchlings who had survived easily, so he wasn't too worried. "How is she feeling?"

He turned to include Valasco in what he said next. "I'm your new WherlingMaster, Genner of brown Gennesk. If you have any questions or concerns, you may address them to me or to Gennesk. Your only concern, for the next day is feeding and caring for your whers. If you need more food, come and see me, I will get you more. Give them small chunks, make sure they don't eat too quickly and choke. Then you may go to the wherling barracks and rest. They will probably be very sleepy, after their hatching and if they are not, they should be and you are to encourage them to rest. You will spend the next few months living entirely according to their schedules, but the next few days are particularly important. You are not to leave them alone for more than a few minutes for any reason. They are infants. Big infants with sharp claws and teeth, but infants nonetheless. Keep that in mind." He grinned at them and Gennesk trumpeted, doing a little dance of joy. "Congratulations Orange class, you're wherlings now."

G'lin! My Candidate Impressed! And the cyan daughter of a white, oh I just knew she was special and unique, G'lin, there is nothing mainstream about her, no nothing, nothing at all! Ana crowed in his rider's mind, his eyes wherling a quick green. He did love cyans and a white clutch-mother... This was too perfect.

Dawn let Mouse go as Fenrimere ushered her onto the Sands to see Fenrisk. "Can you make sure Genner takes her back to his quarters after she's done?" she asked the woman quietly. "The dimglow already thought it was a good idea to just leave her in the stands without any supervision, I don't trust that he'll remember that he's supposed to be looking after her." She shot a glare towards the new wherlingmaster. "She's supposed to be Gennesk's hatchling, he can at least bother to act like it."

[Zephyr]

Mouse was considering the merits of biting the babies with Dawn. She was pretty sure she was too small to stomp anything. She’d leave that to Gennesk. She couldn’t stomp, but she could bite! And the child snapped her teeth gleefully at Dawn as she rode on Saosk’s back, half tettering from his side. Can’t stomp. Bite, though! It was a good thing she was contemplating this, because one of the wherlets was suddenly much closer than he’d been before and Mouse fell off of Saosk’s back, regarding the little black curiously for a moment before he…licked her?

She froze for a second, going crosseyed at the little one before squealing loudly and leaning forward to kiss him on his head as he toddled off to go impress. She watched him go, looking back at Dawn, Saosk and Lisk with wide, happy eyes. Did they SEE THAT? That was just the most awesome thing EVER.

The baby was gone and Lisk was talking, so Mouse listened to her curiously, eyes brightening at her words. I kill? It was a word that Mouse had heard before…somewhere, but she didn’t really know what it meant. If it made her the bestMouseguard ever, though, she would have to learn how. I kill! She crawled back up onto Saosk’s back, thrilled suddenly. Bad babies are kill, I attack and then get scritches! She’d finally figured it out and Lisk had helped her.

Mouse was curious when Fenrimere came to her, almost too curious to be mad at the woman for pulling her off the sands, but she glanced at Aydan curiously and slid off of Saosk’s back, following the woman back to where Fenrisk was sitting. A smile split Mouse’s face, and she bounced in place, barely resisting the urge to fling herself forward and hug the wher. Here! Have present for remember Fenrisk. See all time in wher area, maybe have wher someday.

What? She didn’t understand…but Mouse stepped forward and picked up the pile. She sat down where they were standing in the stands, and looked at the bits of egg shell with a look of utter concentration on her face before she smiled again. Thank you! I loveee!

Then she proceeded to spew <3’s in Fenrisk’s general direction, thrilled beyond belief.

[Gray]

A'til watched his sister with a slightly sad smile on his lips. She had impressed, and he was proud of her for that. But he had been hoping they could fight thread together, so he could keep her safe.
And you think Matisk won't? Look at her. She and your sister are perfect for each other. You and I can keep the skies safe during the day, and they can keep us safe during the night. I think it's pretty fitting, you know! Asperath wasn't going to let his mope around like that, not now.
Be happy for her, you can do that right?

A'til rolled his eyes so hard it almost hurt. Looking to the gathered dragons, looking for the familiar seafoam hide. He shook his head a bit.
I am happy for her. Look. I figured this would happen, she was always against doing the same as I. I am as happy as I can be, she and Matisk will be great together. I am allowed to be sad that my sister is taking different paths, you know. His shoulders sagged a bit as he looked back to the healer's area.

Matilda nibbled on the inside of her lip as she looked at Matisk,the cyan standing stock still. When offered a bucket of fish, Matilda accepted it with a nod.
“Oh, okay, well then she'll be able to eat soon, I'm sure.” She hesitated for a moment, and frowned a bit as she tried to decide to to approach the topic.
“She's feeling hungry. That's it. I do not think she understands or feels pain. When I cut myself to make the blood bond, she was incredibly surprised, since she felt it through me. Has this happened before?” Matisk was holding still, trying to be good for the healers, but she turned her head to look at the bucket.
Have food for Matisk? Eat soon?
“Of course dear. If you can hold still, I can feed you.” She knlet down next to the Cyan and started feeding her small chunks of fish very carefully.

As she fed and listened, she scanned the gathered audience. Soon, she spied the familiar blue color of Anablimyth. Waving, she nodded at him and then down to where G'lin was. Because of them, she and Matisk were together. She would have to make Anablimyth something nice, when she had the time of course.
Make? Matilda sew thing, sew... present? Once again Matilda could feel Matisk shuffle through her head, trying to find a word that fit what she wanted to say. Nodding she reached out to pat the where on her flat head.
“Yes, a present. You'll want one to, hmm? I can try to make you something nice. You can even help if you'd like.” The cyan seemed to like that idea, nad raised one spindly set of claws to touch the bucket.
More eat first.

[Kila]

Aydan held his breath when the skeleton Black nosed at him and
the other 'brats. So close. He reached out a tiny, unsteady hand
to touch the curious hatchling, but he disappeared suddenly, off to
investigate someone or something else. Aydan let out his breath, but
just as fast he was back again, ogling Shardit and Bug from a safe
distance. Next he was helping to free his sister from her egg, charging
it valiantly. Once she was free, a chase ensued. The Black's true
interest lay in the Candidates however, and he ended his wanderings by
choosing one lucky boy from the bunch. Aydan watched forlornly as they
left the Sands.

He went to turn his attention to the mismatched Cyan, but Akklyn leaned
over him to talk to Oosh and blocked his view. Shardit hissed and Aydan
wrinkled his nose. What was she doing? Didn't she know that the Hatching
was still going on? Even worse she was talking about him now, like he
wasn't even there. Aydan had half a mind to put Shardit on her back but
instead he leaned forward and pushed her out of the way, forcing her
back into her seat. Geez. Mine's be nice, Nadysk
chastised him, but he ignored the Brown.

The Cyan's impression was much less dramatic. Noticing the gash on her
side, she cried and was comforted by her mother. Mother, he
mused. Fenrisk was a lot kinder than Nadya, but Aydan wouldn't know what
to do with such coddling. The Cyan eventually wobbled away, an odd sight
with all her mismatched parts, and went back into the stands. This time
Aydan was passed by without a glance in favor of a girl farther behind
him. That was disappointing, but there were more eggs so he wasn't too
upset. There was no movement on the sands when he looked back though,
only Fenrisk crushing her babies' shells with a knowing smile on her
face.

The White's announcement shocked Aydan. The rest were rocks? There were
no more eggs? His shoulders drooped; he had not been expecting that. The
Hatching had only just started... He was about to lay the blame on Oosh
and Akklyn before running out of the cavern, but Fenrimere called his
name. Fenrisk wanted to see him! Aydan lit up like a glow and scrambled
off of the bleacher. In a rare show of obedience he stuck by Fenrimere
until the other spectators had cleared out and he was allowed to
approach the White in her empty nest. He had wanted to see the nest when
it was full of real eggs, but it was still exciting to be on the
Sands. He glanced down with a mix of curiosity and sadness at the
lifeless, half-formed Green, but shied away from her and hurried to his
Wher friend.

Have eggshells Nadysk's littleperson, she
said cheerfully. Know wanted see eggs in nest, saw
Nadysk stop Nadysk's littleperson. Someday littleperson have wher too,
sure of it. Wher go with hissbug and other bug. Wher and bugs together
best ever. Aydan bent down and scooped up the pile of
eggshells she indicated with awe, handling them with the utmost
fragility. It was the best thing anyone had ever given him. He would
have thrown his arms around Fenrisk and smothered her with love, but he
already had his treasure in hand and did not want to put it down. Heart
fit to burst and determined to show his gratitude, he leaned forward and
kissed Fenrisk on the tip of her snout. "Thank you" in words would not
suffice. He gave her a smile as big as his whole face and then ran off,
his two pillies and Nadysk and tow, excited out of his wits. Bestprank
and besthatching ever.

[Chek]

Yhimere was really starting to have issues with black whers.

He barely held Yhisk in check when Newt went scuttling backwards; pursued, it seemed, by the little black – not black, Yhimere begged in the quiet of his own part of he and Yhisk’s shared mind, not a black, not after Ausk and Kalesk’s hatchings. Yhisk, noisy as she was, was quick to reassure him – no Impression here, just a little black wher nosing around where it was not welcome or needed.

She would happily eat it for them.

Yhimere laced his affection, his helpless love for his fierce little lady, around his fervent denial of that idea – eating the black was hardly going to help anything, and might make Newt worse. He rose at Newt’s decision to leave – the desperation in his friend’s voice getting him to lever Newt up nearly off his feet on his side, tipping his head to Letorinm “Let’s get him away, everything looks to be ending anyway. Not to the barracks, though, too many excited Candidates. I’ve got a spot though. Yhisk and I spend a lot of time there, all we need is a warm pot of klah and some food.”

Yhisk get, go ahead. The green loped off before Yhimere could get a word in edgewise.

“Well, I suppose I’ll just hope she doesn’t bite too many people. Hie onwards, friends, we’ve got somewhere less traumatic to be.”