First Clutch Together

Writers: Aaron, Avery
Date Posted: 12th March 2021

Characters: J'ler, Kadira
Description: The siblings stand together for Kadira's first clutch at Aglayath's Hatching.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 8, day 9 of Turn 10
Notes: Mentioned: A'kades, Jadirah, Kaibren, Orifa, Saibra, V'rel, T'lin, Zinlai

J'ler

The Candidates had all assembled in the teaching classroom for their
morning class. It felt like they'd barely sat down when suddenly the
brownrider leading it lifted up his head and looked off into the middle
distance for a moment. Kadira recognized it as speaking to his dragon,
and a small jolt of fear coiled in her belly as she saw that at the same
time, the blue firelizard on Zinlai's desk lifted his head as well. She
remembered how the firelizards and dragons had reacted early at the
River Bluff disaster and wondered if something was wrong - an
earthquake, something else - and her heart started to race a little
faster.

But then the firelizard began to hum welcomingly, and the brownrider
turned his attention back to them. "Aglayath's eggs are Hatching now.
Back to the barracks to get your robes, then out to the Sands," he
ordered them.

She hurried back to the barracks with the rest of the other Candidates,
taking deep breaths. She'd had the same reaction to the start of
Chioneth's last Hatching, and she hadn't even been a Candidate at the
time. Every time the firelizards and dragons started reacting, a part of
her got nervous that it was going to be a disaster again. Before what
happened to River Bluff, she'd always assumed it was a Hatching, a
joyous event. Now she always thought of the worst things. It was a
response she was trying to get over.

**I have to focus,** she told herself when she got into the barracks and
started pulling on the robe and the sandals for the hot sand. She wanted
to purge the fear from her mind so she could focus on everything they'd
been told before the Candidate classes. **Keep your mind open. Project
love, and affection, and open-ness, to make sure the dragonets knew you
wanted them. Don't think about being scared, don't think about not being
enough. Be happy, be wanting, be convinced you have something to
offer.** And she did, didn't she? She was a Healer, generous and loving.
She was a hard worker. She could take good care of a dragon.

She stepped out of the barracks and huffed a relieved sigh when she saw
Jadirel. She could always manage a smile for her younger brother.
"Excited?" she asked, even though she knew the answer - he was bounding
on the tips of his toes in the way he always did when he was excited
about something.

"Of course! But you look nervous. C'mon, there's nothing to be afraid
of. All those baby dragonets are looking for their riders, and it's
gonna be _us_," Jadirel said confidently.

She nodded, buoyed by his confidence, and let his excited chatter sweep
over her as they walked to the assembly point. There, one of the
weyrlingstaff members held them still for a long moment, maybe counting
Candidates, maybe waiting for a signal from the goldrider. The mass of
Candidates shifted around like a school of fish as they tried to peer
through the opening into the hatching cavern or get closer to the front.
She stood patiently in the back. They'd get let in eventually and she
didn't want to make a fuss. Finally the man nodded and waved them all
ahead to go.

When she stepped out with the others, she realized how dizzying it could
be down here, at the focal point, standing on the hot Sands. There was
so much to look at, from the people up in the stands, to the bulk of
Aglayath with her head arched in her watchful guard over her eggs, to
the eggs themselves. They were colorful and patterned, beautiful in
different ways, and already rocking. And the sounds - the crowd noise of
people speaking in the stands, the loud humming of dragons, the chatter
from other Candidates and the weyrlingstaff around the crowds.

Jadirel pulled at her sleeve. "Hey, don't lag behind. Let's find our
parents." He tugged her along with one hand and scanned the Stands with
the other, before finding what he wanted and pointed at the gathering of
family members with surprisingly good seats. Jadirah was there with
A'kades, and so was V'rel and T'lin.

Kadira followed her brother's gesture, scrunched her face in a smile and
gave them a wave, feeling a little less overwhelmed by the busy-ness and
more grounded now that she'd found something familiar to focus on. "I'm
glad they came, even though it's late over there."

"Well, they've got to congratulate us, just like we congratulated
V'rel," he said.

The humming reached louder, and louder. "This is it..." Jadirel
whispered. He let go of her hand and moved towards the front of the
crowd of Candidates, closer to Agalyath and her eggs.

Kadira hung back from the crowd moving forward. She was feeling a little
overwhelmed by the heat, and the noise, and the bustling. Because she
was on the outskirts of the Candidate rings, she was closer to the other
side of the Sands. She half-turned to see Chioneth around _her_ eggs,
swinging her head back and forth as she alternated between staring down
Aglayath and nosing at her own eggs. "Oh, she's angry," Kadira murmured
to herself.

"She's a queen," said Jadirel. "She should be the center of attention on
her Sands, but she has to share. With another queen. And today is her
day. Today is _our_ day, too." He smiled, unable to keep himself from
bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet.

"We have to share, too. But we're not queens." He grinned. "She'll have
her day next."

"I hope it's both our days. Are you hoping we'll be in the same class?"
Kadira was nervous enough about Standing - having her brother there
would help.

"Of course!" Jadirel assured his sister. "I'm counting on us both to be
walking out to the meat buckets after this so V'rel can congratulate us.
Are you planning to introduce everyone to a secret lover like he did,
too?" He grinned, even as he watched the eggs rock.

"Believe me, I don't have anyone. The question is, do _you_?"

"Well, I wouldn't mind – do you know anyone who's up for a quick roll in
the furs before the eggs hatch?" Jadirel asked, even as he stuck his
tongue out at her and grinned. They hardly had time for anything of the
sort. But if there were time...

"Sorry, I don't," she said. "Are you still seeing - oh!"

She was cut off by the crack of the first egg, and the bronze that
spilled out. "Oh, lucky, lucky."

"See? That's our sign. This is going to be a good one. Our good one."
Jadirel was quietly thankful for the distraction. He did not want to
think about the girl he had been seeing just then. Those were not bound
to be happy thoughts, and he needed happy thoughts.

And what better distraction than a bronze first out of the shell?

Jadirel thought at him as loudly as he could. Choose me. Let's be
remarkable together.

But the bronze had other ideas. Jadirel tried not to let the
disappointment show. The Sands were full of Candidates, and only one of
them was going to get that first bronze. There would be more.

"Oh, that's Kaibren! Saibra's son!" she exclaimed.

"I know who Kaibren is," Jadirel chuckled. He could admit that he was a
good choice for a bronze and an auspicious one for the first in their
class. "It'll be good to be his clutchmate."

Things always started to pick up and go fast after the first. Jadirel
always hated how quickly it was all over once it had started. But this
time would be different. There would be no need for disappointment.

He gasped as a little green strayed off and nearly caused a kerfuffle
between the two golds. What a different tone their class would have had
if that had gone poorly! He sighed with relief when she found her rider
with none worse for the wear.

"That was close," he breathed. "Do you know that one? I think she's
new."

Kadira shied as Chioneth swung her head and stumbled a few steps back.
She shook her head. "Searched Holdbred girl, I guess."

She recognized they'd also drifted a little close to Chioneth's side.
"Better get closer to Aglayath's or we're gonna miss it."

Jadirel was more than happy to scoot away from anyplace a gold might get
angry at him.

There were so few eggs left already. Being on the Sands felt familiar.
He had been there before so many times, it was almost like coming back
to a place he had never left. He had been so sure this would be their
time. The time when Kadira had finally agreed to be there with him.

But soon, there was only one left, and neither of them had their
dragons. He turned to look at Kadira briefly.

The little brown was a lanky thing. He almost looked like he was somehow
too long for his own body. But he was by no means big. Some of the blues
had Hatched bigger than he did. He would have to work harder. Be more
clever. Take more initiative.

}:You already know me,:{ said the little brown. }:I promise I could make
you proud.:{

Jadirel's eyes went wide, and he knelt down to him.

"It's... he's... Kadira, this is Maishoth," he said, still a bit
gobsmacked. His stomach growled in sympathy with the brown's own hunger.

"I couldn't say no," he laughed as he hugged the hatchling.

One dragon left, and a brown. Well... Jadirel had been Standing since he
was 12, and he hadn't found his lifemate yet. How could she expect to on
her first? And she'd been nervous about this from the beginning. Maybe
it wasn't meant to be this time. She opened her mouth to say something,
and then she saw the brown come their way and Jadirel's expression
change.

There was always cheering from the Stands during a Hatching, but Kadira
swore it intensified now. She looked up and saw her family on their
feet, then turned and grinned at Jadirel's expression. "You look like a
wherry kicked all the breath out of you," she said. "Maishoth, huh?"

"I didn't... I wasn't... They really can't tell you what it feels like,
can they?" Jadirel laughed.

}:You told her my name, now introduce her back,:{ the brown insisted.

"This is my sister, Kadira," he said. He could feel the dragon rooting
around in his head for more information. Jadirel could already tell he
would never be able to get enough of it. "My... clutchsibling. Sort
of... we weren't born at the same time, but we have the same sire and
dam. Aren't you hungry?"

}:Yes. Yes I am. Look. The crowd awaits. They will meet us there, yes?:{

Jadirel scratched his head. He felt he should feel guilty for Impressing
without Kadira. But he could not help but feel giddy.

"Will you come with us to meet the family?" he asked Kadira. He knew
some Candidates preferred to be alone with their disappointment, but he
wanted to share this with her.

"Of course. If I wasn't on the Sands, I would have been there. To hear
your new name, and meet your boy, and - what is your name?"

"My name. Oh." Jadirel had almost forgotten. He was meant to have a new
name now. For a long time, he assumed it would be J'rel. But ever since
V'rel Impressed, Jadirel had known in his heart that he wanted a name
that would stand out, be unique, when compared to his brother.

If they both had some way for their names to have matched A'kades's, it
would have been different, but...

"I think I'm J–"

}:You're J'ler,:{ said Maishoth before Jadirel could finish saying,
'J'del'. }:You want to the world to know your name? Make your own
name.:{

"J'ler," he agreed confidently.

"I like it. Let's go tell our parents."

Last updated on the July 21st 2021

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First Clutch Together