A Dismal Touching of the Eggs

[Spirithawk]

Kaith grumbled and growled deep in her throat. Her eyes whirled swiftly with swirls of red, orange, and yellow. Her chosen stood next to her, trying to soothe her.

"Birinj, get Sh'iron." She pictured her weyrmate. "Go find the big bronze and ask him to come to Kaith." She pictured the big bronze coming to his golden mate. The creature chirped and flew up from his hiding place behind the young woman's hair.

I don't want them near my eggs Christae sighed. She had been arguing back and forth with the headstrong Queen to get her to let the Candidates touch the eggs before the Hatching. The Hatching would happen any day now. Already, family members of the Candidates were beginning to trickle in to watch the Hatching.

A strange mixture of fear and excitement pervaded the halls of Dark Moon. The missing egg had not been returned and the other eggs showed signs of Hatching soon. Weyrfolk were distrustful of each other and the normally family-like atmosphere of the Weyr was gone. The tension affected rider and drudge alike. The riders couldn't concentrate on their work, drudges made mistakes and the quality of Weyr life was declining a bit.

Christae was at a loss at what to do. The Candidates neeeded to get a feel for the eggs but they couldn't do that with an angry Queen refusin to let them get near the eggs. She had considered sedating the Queen again, but hen decided that she couldn't possibly put herself and her dragon through that again.

She was determined to convince her Queen to let the Candidates on the sands. If not, the Queen might hinder the hatchlings when they emerged from their eggs and went to Impress. "Kaith, you will have to let them be handled sooner or later. They will not harm your eggs. I will have Myranenth and the other bronzes stand guard and you will be here. If you don't like a particular Candidate, tell me and I will see what can be done."

Christae hoped that Sh'iron and Myranenth would come quickly. She had told the Candidates to report to the Candidate table in the Lower Caverns. If the Queen finally relented she would tell them to go to the Hatching Grounds, but if not, she would brief them on Hatching procedure with the help of Rhia.

[nike]

Sh'iron slipped into the Hatching Grounds, and scanned the sight of the eggs before him. Blue eyes were troubled as he looked at the Queen. Hohw could someone be so wherry-headed to steal a dragon egg? Even the dumbest of all people knew not to steal one. And even if someone was going to steal an egg, they should have stolen a queen. But why was he thinking like this? He should be supporting the Weyr, and think that they will get the egg back. Before anyone could catch the look on his face, Sh'iron bowed low to Kaith, and then trottoed over to Christae.

Myranenth flew in, and perched himself on his ledge. Wings were folded against his back, and he crouched down low. Eyes whirled brightly, and hinted with the little anger of the stolen egg. Sh'iron sighed. When they would get the egg back, Kaith, Myranenth, and all the other dragons would forget about the whole theift, but Christae, and the riders would not. The bronze rider smiled at Christae when he reached her. Quickly, he kissed her, then turned his attention to the brooding Queen.
"You called?" He asked, and nodded to the bronze firelizard which had returned back to the Weyrwoman's shoulder.

[Spirithawk]

Sh'iron's kiss was too brief but she didn't say anything. "Kaith steadfastly refuses to let anyone touch her eggs. She doesn't even want them to Hatch. I need help convincing her and I thought Myranenth would be able to help." Her eyes sought his, pleading.

Kaith grumbled again as Sh'iron made his way over to her chosen. She was a bit molified when he bowed and her mate settled on the ledge. The Queen hadn't left the mound of piled sand that she had built. She could see her eggs from the mound and she was not leaving the grounds for any reason.

They will harm my eggs. They will not touch them! Kaith's wings extended briefly and her eyes whirled faster. She was magnificent in her anger but Christae would rather not have the dubious pleasure of seeing her Queen in such a manner.

"They will not harm the eggs Kaith, we will be standing right there. You can trust me and you can trust Sh'iron. He loves your eggs just as much as I do. He would not let any harm come to the eggs. Myranenth is your mate. He is just as upset about his children as you are. He is willing to let the Candidates touch the eggs and you should be too."

[nike]

Sh'iron nodded, and turned his blue eyes towards Kaith. Head was tilted to one side as he studied the young Queen.
Help us Myranenth. The rider told his dragon, only glancing at the huge bronze. Turning his attention back to Kaith, Sh'iron gave a small smile.
"Kaith, the Candidates do not wish to harm your eggs. No one else in this Weyr does. Myranenth is here, he will not let any harm come to you, or your eggs," the man said, and nodded to his dragon. Many times, Sh'iron was glad that he Impressed a strong, and healthly bronze. Without Myranenth, Sh'iron wouldn't have been here. The bronze extended his neck down towards his mate. Crooning, he nuzzled her.
"She will listen in good enough time. We just have to calm her down, and keep her trust. I think we should bring in each Candidate one at a time, and if he or she, is worthy by Kaith, they can touch the eggs. Then leave, and the next one comes. That way, Kaith will know if that person does any harm to her eggs. The other Candidates can wait outside until they are called," Sh'iron nodded, and turned to Christae for her own idea.

[Kandarra]

Valkoran was hurrying to answer the summons to the lower caverns. The egg-touching would be today. Any real enthusiasm he held for the event was dampened by the fact that an egg had been stolen, and still not recovered. He was still enraged by that; who would be so arrogant and heartless and ignorant-- yes, they had to be ignorant not to know the possible consequences-- to, essentially, take a baby away from its mother?

Therefore, his mood was not the joyous one he had expected, but a darker, sadder mood. He hoped that when he saw the eggs, some of the worry would go away, for he wished to enjoy this experience. Briefly he wondered how Kaith was taking this, then decidedly pushed the idea of a moody and protective queen glaring at him out of his mind. He arrived in the lower caverns at the Candidate table, and waited there with the other Candidates who had come.

[Torva Anian]

Kinest sat at the table drumming his fingers lightly on the surface. He would look around at the others before folding his arms and pillowing his head with them. He didn't really enjoy the tense feelings at the table right now. His short little feet swung a little as he stared at the wood before his eyes. After a few minutes this bored him and he looked up again. It seemed no one was in a particular happy or talkative mood though. Kinest usually entertained himself by listening in to other conversations or being off somewhere on his own. He straightened his shoulders slightly and sat back against the chair, perhaps the queen wouldn't be so mad today. Perhaps they might touch the eggs. Christae seemed like a good enough person to get her to quiet. It wasn't like he didn't understand her anger but he would like to touch an egg.

[Spirithawk]

((There isn't a hall that leads to the Hatching Grounds from the Lower Caverns. READ posts before you post please...the Candidates were ordered to report TO THE CANDIDATE TABLE in the Lower Caverns and you know who im talking to))

Christae was relieved when her mate mentioned bringing in one Candidate at a time. Perhaps the grouchy Queen would listen to that idea. "That is a good idea Sh'iron." Her face brightened a bit and the bleak look in her eyes was a little less. "Kaith, what do you think? One Candidate at a time will come before you."

The dragon looked rebellious but with the presence of her mate and her mate's chosen adding to the pressure to allow the Candidates in, she relented. They may come one at a time and they are not to harm my eggs. I will kill any one who tries to harm them. I want my bronzes here now. They will help me protect my eggs.

Christae let out a sigh of relief and then embraced her mate. "Thank you love." She told him. She scratched the Queen's eye ridges on her way out to tell the Candidates the good news. She went to the Candidate table where they were supposed to meet and nodded to the Candidates already there.

~~~~~~~~~

Rhia was waiting in the Lower Caverns. The Weyrwoman had summoned her to lecture the Candidates on Hatching procedures and to tell them how to approach the Queen to touch the eggs. She was sipping at a cup of klah when the Weyrwoman walked in with a look of relief on her face. The brownrider stood and walked over, bowing. "Weyrwoman, my respects to you and your dragon." She said with respect, trying to show the Candidates how to greet their Weyrwoman. Any other time she would have called the other woman by Christae but lessons and public gatherings called for formal greetings.

[Kandarra]

((fine, sorry, I was trying to get a reply in before I had to go off to class and everyone else attacked it.))

[Tenma]

Jakel was running, once again. He was so excited. They were finally going to touch the eggs, which meant that the eggs were going to hatch soon. Jakel didn't waste any time getting ready, he didn't even struggle with his unruly hair this morning. He dashed out the door before anyone else.

So, why wasn't he the first one there? Simple, he got lost. In his haste to touch the eggs first, Jakel took a wrong turn and found himself in the wrong place. He didn't know where he was but with a deep breath he backtracked his steps and made his way to the lower caverns.

The young candidate pouted at the site of other candidates. He wanted to be there first. Oh well, at least they hadn't started touching the eggs yet. Jakel took a seat beside Valkoran and smiled. "Hey." He said to The two other candidates. "Hello Brown-rider Rhia, Weyrwoman, Weyrleader." He greeted the three politely, but his eyes were filled with rushing excitement. He couldn't wait.

**************************

Hali woke up to see three of the boys all ready roused from their beds. She walked into the bathing room, where she always got dressed. Satisfied with her looks, Hali left the candidate barracks for the lower caverns, where they were told to meet.

On her way there something, well...someone, dashed by her, running in the direction she was headed. She smiled, noticing it was Jakel who was once again in a hurry. She bowed politely to the older riders and sat down.

[nike]

Sh'iron nodded, and watched the Queen for any sign that she agreed. Of course, he couldn't hear any dragons except his Myranenth. Though, he was glad that he could just hear his own dragon. Sometimes he could never understand how the riders like Nike, or the ones at Benden coped with so many voices in their heads. His one friend at Benden seemed to enjoy it. He said that the dragons were amazing gossips, and you could learn a lot just from listening in for a few moments. And so, the Weyrleader waited. His eyes flickered to Christae, also for any sign. For him, it seemed to take forever, but yet, it was only a few moments. When Christae sighed, Sh'iron grinned. Good, so Kaith must have agreed to his idea. He grinned up at his dragon, and turned around to say something to Christae, but she was gone. Sighing, the Weyrleader chased after her.

Sh'iron walked into the Lower Caverns just as a few more Candidates trotted in. He nodded to them, and walked up beside his mate. He smiled at Rhia, and nodded as he spot her name.
"Brown Rider Rhia, nice to see you again," the Weyrleader said, and then turned to the Candidates. Quickly, he counted heads, and sighed slightly. Still, they were missing many.

††††††††††††

Malenie raced through the halls, padding on bare feet. In her hands were her boots, and socks. The girl had woken up late to find the whole female side of the Barracks empty. The girl cursed. Why was it that she was forced through these things? One of them could have atleast woken her up. But no. They just left her. Well, she would get back at them, someday. Her clothes were messy, and her short hair wasn't even combed. She didn't look the best. As soon as the girl reached the dining cavern, she stopped, and quickly spotted the table filled with Candidates.

As she walked over to the table, she scanned the faces, looking to see who was there. Oddly, no females. Why was that? The barracks were gone. Mabey they had all woken up eariler, and didn't hear the message. Shrugging slightly, the girl slipped into a seat. As she sat there, she soved her socks on, and then her boots. As soon as they were on, the Weyrwoman and Weyrleader walked in. She looked up at them, and smiled. Malenei still had no idea what they were about to do.

[kestral]

Tavril was not enthusiastic about going to the Hatching Sands. Ever since the egg was stolen, he had noticed the growing strain about the Weyr. At this point, he felt as if the tension in the Weyr, and around the Sands in particular was so thick that one could actually feel it pressing against one , impeding ones progress like a physical barrier.
Such sentiments were more typical of Khaliall than him, but having spent less time in her company in the pass few weeks than he had in years, though they OUGHT to have been closer than ever in such a place, he found her views were rubbing off on him.

It was a bit unnerving. Almost as much as heading, alone, to the Candidate Table in the Lower Caverns where they had been instructed to wait and seeing the others assembled, with untypical reserve.
His own reserve was, however, very typical, and he settled quietly, contemplating his clenched fists.
Tavril knew that the Queen was not pleased. Indeed, he had heard too many rumors about her displeasure over the theft of her egg...and he wasn't sure that he wanted to be here.
But as a Candidate, it was his obligation. It was his duty: It was supposed to be his pleasure. Yet he couldn't quite summon the enthusiasm he had hoped to feel on the day that he would be permitted to touch the eggs of such a marvelous clutch. He shifted uncomfortably, and frowned at his hands and the surface of the table.
If he didn't know himself so well, he would have said that he was afraid.

[Akki]

Despite the fact Hasima was in a rush to get to the lower caverns, she couldn't bring herself to run there. She might have seen someone while running and could just picture someone pointing and laughing at her in her minds eye. Her clothing was slightly rumpled and her hair frizzy but it didn't matter to her, what mattered was getting to the candidate table before she missed everything.

She was nervous, there was no doubt about that. Today was the day they were allowed to touch the eggs, and she was excited and scared at the same time. She wanted to see the eggs, be in awe of them all over again but she was afraid that the giant Queen would snap at her if she got too close. She took a deep breath and strolled, actually shuffled a bit faster than normally, into the lower caverns with her head staring at the floor as she slipped into a chair at the table.

[Spirithawk]

((k sorry if my posts are blah..you guys know why))

Christae nodded to each person as they came in. Some of the tension was gone from her face now that the great Queen was allowing the Candidates in to touch the eggs. Things would be ok now, especially if the egg was returned.

She smiled slightly at Sh'iron and took his hand as they waited. "We will wait a bit longer to make our announcement and begin your Candidate class.

~~~
Rhia bowed to the Weyrleader in acknowledgement of his greeting. "My respects to you and your bronze Weyrleader." She glanced at the Candidates. "The first part of the lesson will be how to greet your Weyrleaders properly in the right settings like this one."

[maira]

Jessalyn, along with the rest of the Weyr, had been horribly on edge since one of the eggs had been stolen. When the call came for the Candidates to gather at their table in the lower caverns to prepare for touching the eggs she was thoroughly surprised. She hadn't thought the protective gold would ever allow them in the grounds for the hatching, let alone a simple touching. Still, even though she was surprised, Jessa couldn't help but be excited. She hadn't planned on being a candidate when she came to the Weyr and she was determined not to let anything ruin the experience for her.

Finishing up with her chores in the stables, Jessa ran her fingers through her hair then took a string out of one of her pockets and pulled it back from her face into a braid. She'd only been feeding when the call had gone out so she wasn't dirty but her hair had been mussed and she wanted to look as presentable as possible for the anxious gold.

It didn't take her long to reach the lower caverns, and even less time to spot all the candidates gathered around their table. She made her way over to them and quickly found Valkoran and gave him a quick hug around his shoulders before he knew she was there. She limited any further show of affection for Valkoran to slipping her hand into his as she sat down to wait with the rest and pay attention to the lesson that Rhia was starting.

[Kandarra]

Valkoran looked up, startled for a moment, until he saw it was Jessa who squeezed his shoulders. He smiled at her and accepted the hand she offered. He squeezed that gently, and whispered-- for the mood around felt a whispering one-- "This isn't going to be the same without the void egg." He remembered wondering at its strange black surface and sighed. The thief still hadn't returned the egg, and now it was looking doubtful that it would return, at least to him. It was so close to the Hatching. Valkoran sighed and leaned on the table, trying his best to pay attention to brownrider Rhia but not doing so well. He'd caught something about greetings.

[Akki]

Hasima lightly tapped her fingers against her leg, which was bouncing up and down very slightly in anxiousness and nervousness for the touching of the eggs was drawing closer and closer with every passing moment, every passing heart beat. She took a deep breath and glanced quickly at everyone at the table, recognizing a few. She turned to face Rhia who was now talking to the group gathered at the table.

She chewed the inside of her cheek, and silently prayed that she would remember the proper greeting. Her mind flickered to an image if she didn't remember, something to do with her in the middle of a circle with everyone laughing at her. She closed her eyes for a moment and dismissed, or tried as much as possible too, that as she opened her eyes again and concentrated on the brown rider and her next words.

[Spirithawk]

The brownrider glanced at the Weyrleaders and received a nod from Christae. She stepped forward so that she could see the Candidates better. "Today, as you might have heard, you will be allowed to touch the eggs. I do not know how our Weyrleaders were able to convince our Senior Queen to allow this but remember that this is a privelage, not a right and you should be very grateful to your Weyrleaders for this chance. Don't screw it up." Her voice was serious.

"I will wait a bit longer to see if any more of you arrive but if you arrive this late to a lesson again you will be doing chores. Those who arrive after I begin my lesson will be counted tardy and will be punished. This is not a joke or a game. What I have to teach you may save you from being mauled by an angry Queen if you make a mistake."

The brownrider knew that she was being harsh but she also knew that Kaith was likely to harm any Candidate that did not show enough respect or showed any sign of harming her eggs whether the threat was real or imagined. The young woman reached up to stroke the little silvery green flitt that was hiding behind her runner tail.

[kestral]

Tavril leaned forward, listening intently and slowly growing more and more nervous. Fear was not something that he was accustomed to feeling, but the Candidate felt it now.
Shard it all... he thought weakly. What if I /do/ screw it up? Being mauled by a furious Queen did not seem to be an appealing prospect.
Why had he ever agreed to come to the Weyr? It seemed folly, now that he was here. Things had seemed so bright at the Clutching, so magnificent and hopeful...and now he just wanted to go home. The tension in the Weyr was eating at him, and Tavril wanted nothing more than for everything to be over with. He would have been content to miss this Touching of the Eggs completely, but he knew that that could be riskier than not going.
What if he made some horrible mistake at the Hatching that he could have learned how to avoid?

Thus he paid extremely careful attention to the words of the Candidate Mistress, who was obviously entirely earnest.
Tavril hoped that things would be over quickly -painlessly- but he could have no guarantees that he would remember. The thought of the magnificent eggs, one now missing, made his pulse quicken.
Touching the eggs at all was an amazing thing, considering the circumstances, he reminded himself. If only Khaliall could have told him what to say...what to /do/! Surely she would show enough empathy to know how to stay calm in a situation such as this.
Not for the first time, he wondered whether bringing his half-sister to the Weyr had been a good idea.

[Tenma]

Jakel grew impatient, waiting for the whole thing to begin. He scooted up in his seat as Brownrider Rhia began to talk. He leaned forward. As Rhia said, "Don't screw it up." Jakel couldn't help but blushing slightly. He remember running on the Hatching sands and getting angrily roared at by the large Queen. He had messed up that time.

He sighed and leaned back in his chair. They weren't even starting yet. False alarm.


*******************

Hali listened quietly and intently.

[maira]

As much as she wanted to pay attention to Valkoran, Jessalyn was focussed mostly on Rhia and her instructions. Not to mention her threats of punishment for being late to lessons and that they better not mess up the opportunity to touch the eggs. She heard, vaguely, what Valkoran had said and when Rhia's attention was turned from the candidates, Jessa turned to him and frowned. Then she whispered in response, "No it won't but is it wrong to be excited?"

She'd been fidgeting withouth knowing it and when she spoke to Valkoran she realized it and forced herself to quit picking at the table with her free hand. She looked quickly to Rhia to make sure she still wasn't talking then she asked Valkoran, "Am I a bad person for not being overly worried?" She didn't know why but she just wasn't... She was as nervous as everybody else and as upset that an egg had been stolen but she just had a feeling things would work out. Of course, she was ever the optimist.