Show Me Those Eggs

Writers: Aaron, Corrin, Duskdog, Estelle, Francesca, Halyonix, Heather, Iluva, Len, Shawna, Sia, Yvonne
Date Posted: 16th November 2024
Series: From Hold to Weyr

Characters: Saibra, T'lonas, C'uren, Diara, S'yen, L'kayric, Sanvi, Katora, Sybana, Zaphare, M'rhas, Tiyo, Lyndana, A'ten, E'kirim, Varethos, Nosarre, Sylvian, Z'renh
Description: Chioneth is finally convinced to allow the Candidates a chance to touch the eggs.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 3, day 17 of Turn 12
Notes: Takes place prior to the Hatching, but the names in the Who reflect their new names so they'll match on the website!

Saibra

The day was frigidly cold. Experienced Dragonsfall dwellers were in
their thicker fur-trimmed clothing and thickly knitted scarves.
Fortunately for the Candidates, the temperature in the Hatching
Caverns was positively toasty and would not require them to be in
their coats and scarves, which were left by the entrance.

The eggs were nestled in the far back corner and in front of them the
hulking, jasmine figure of Chioneth sat, and then in front of her, was
the diminutive by comparison, figure of the Weyrwoman.

}:I don’t like it. I don’t _want_ them here,:{ Chioneth insisted. Even
the denseness of the sand was unable to completely cancel out the
vibrations of her growls.

Saibra turned to regard her snarling lifemate. **You _will_ let them
touch these eggs, Chioneth. You want all of your dragonets to find
lifemates, don’t you?** It was not an easy thing, imposing one’s will
upon a gold dragon, and the force of it made Saibra’s forehead bead
with sweat.

}:They may touch them,:{ Chioneth finally bit out, }:all of them
_except_ the gold.:{ The queen shifted her figure out of the way to
allow passage to the eggs, but her golden head hovered above the eggs
to ensure no harm was done.

T’lonas stopped the candidates just inside the cavern, pausing to make
sure that he had everyone’s attention. “Now. Before we head out onto
the Sands, I want to take a moment to make sure that you’re all aware
that this is a _privilege_. No queen is required to allow you to touch
her eggs -- though of course many of us believe that it’s good for
both the hatchlings and the candidates. Chioneth’s instinct is always
going to be to protect her young, and I’ll warn you now that she cares
a lot more about _them_ than she does about _us_ right now. Take care.
No running on the Sands, no dancing around, no big sweeping movements.
You don’t have to be silent, but please do be quiet, and be
respectful! You may touch the eggs, lay your hands on them, speak to
them if you’d like… but remember, too, that you can’t lay claim to an
egg. If I catch any of you trying to bully anyone else away from one,
you’re leaving. If I, or anyone else, catches you being reckless or
getting too loud or being disrespectful to Chioneth or the Weyrwoman,
you’ll be leaving -- and that’s if you’re lucky enough that Chioneth
herself doesn’t step in. You don’t want to get yourself banned from
Standing by the gold, herself! And you don’t want to be the one to get
the entire class kicked out of this touching early. Are we clear?
Excellent. You may approach.”

“Oh, and please refrain from touching the gold egg, ladies. She’s
especially sensitive about that one,” Saibra said, flashing an
apologetic smile.

“So _that_ is what a gold dragon looks like!” Ceauren said brightly
with a broad grin. “Look at her! Lovely _and_ dangerous. Just like the
sea. Well met, you beautiful creature, you! Many thanks for letting us
see your lovely children!”

“I hope she eats you,” Syerin muttered under his breath.

Diara gave a small smile at Syerin’s comment. She was glad she was not
the only one who found Ceauren’s optimism grating. She could not
imagine any dragonet choosing him.

Lakayric couldn’t help but smile. It was heartening to see a holdbred
so appreciative, and so unafraid to express it. Who said they were all
sad and repressed? “Is this your first time seeing a gold up close?”
he asked Ceauren. He nodded vigorously. “Wait ‘til you see how
beautiful her babies are when they’re shiny-wet from hatching. It’s
amazing.”

“You should get _real_ up close.” Sanvi winked to take the sting out
of her words as she breezed past. She loved getting to touch dragon
eggs. Somewhere inside each shell a baby dragon was curled tight as a
fern, dreaming. And if Chioneth snapped at someone, that was always
fun too.

“Oh ho! A veteran to this? I’m following you,” Ceauren said to Sanvi
as she strode forward.

Katora lingered towards the back, apprehensively taking in the
situation. “She looks like she’s going to eat someone,” she murmured
to the nearest Candidate to her.

“She really does,” Sybana agreed, casting a wary eye over the snarling
gold. It was a far cry from her uncle’s placid blue. “I never knew
they could be so… vicious. They really want us to get closer? She
doesn’t seem happy.” She didn’t plan on getting closer whatever the
dam’s attitude, not with the gold egg off limits.

“Don’t worry, dragons don’t hurt people,” Zaphare dismissed, albeit
with more confidence than she actually felt. The gold _did_ seem irate
about it, and, well, there was a first time for everything. She
wondered if the dragon could somehow sense that she wasn’t supposed to
be there. Or if the babies could. Surely not… but just in case, the
old “fake it ‘til you make it” had worked well enough for Zaphare so
far in life. So she moved in amongst the eggs boldly, focusing on a
small one that caught her eye and tugged at her heartstrings first,
running a hand gently over the hardening shell.

Sanvi, meanwhile, knelt by a mid-sized egg near the edge of the nest.
The sand was pleasantly hot against her knees. She put a hand on the
warm shell and did her best to keep an eye on Chioneth while ignoring
Ceauren hovering next to her.

“They’re all so beautiful,” Ceaurean was saying. “Oh, look at that
one! It just looks so adorable. I bet it has a blue in it.” He
prattled on in casual praising manner as he wandered through the eggs.

Though T’lonas’ speech detailing consequences wasn’t all that
intimidating, Merhaskel's survival instincts chimed in at Chioneth’s
snarling. He gave a sincere bow, and proceeded with more caution than
he had in a long time, mindful of his every step. Not that he was
scared of course - he just didn't want to scare _her_! Rhas gave the
golden mother a wide berth as he waded through the masses of
candidates, eventually palming a slightly dull brownish egg. And
despite knowing that his whole head fit in the gold's mouth he was
still chewing on the delicious possibility of sneaking in later for a
second look…

Still off to one side huddled up with her jacket tightly cinched, Tiyo
wasted no time eagerly absorbing great walls of heat streaming up from
the Sands. Despite the dreary weather, she gave a warm if hesitant
smile when she approached, her dark eyes lingering on the Senior
Queen’s, the color as much as the speed. The tides tended to turn
pretty quickly in this pocket of the Weyr, and it seemed highly
unlikely that she would sanction multiple visits.

And although it was a little closer to Chioneth than some of the
others, with her movements smooth and deliberate, Tiyo slowly crouched
to rest cold fingers on a warm shell. Someone's lifemate was in there,
she thought. Someone’s _life_ was in there. “Shells, they’re
beautiful.” She looked at the Candidate nearest to her. “Don't you
think?”

Sylvian nodded, but she couldn’t really concentrate on touching the
eggs. It was her first time properly seeing the queen and she was
struck dumb at the sheer size of her. And that what came out of that
egg no one could touch would one day be the same size. She gulped, and
looked down at the tiny egg by her. This one wasn’t so intimidating.
Hesitating a bit, she reached out and touched it.

Diara kept her distance from Chioneth but gave the gold a small bow,
then went to one of the smaller eggs, hoping it held a green. She
placed a hand on the side of the shell. It felt a bit silly to talk to
a dragonet she could not see and who would not respond, but it could
only help her chances. **Hi there. I hope you’re comfortable in there.
We’re all looking forward to meeting you soon. And, if you’re a green,
or even a blue, maybe we’re a good match.** After a moment’s pause,
she moved on to another egg.

Katora watched the other Candidates in what they did. No one was going
near the treasured golden egg, which she understood, given that
Chioneth was guarding it fiercely. Would the gold dragon allow
Candidates near it when it was ready to hatch? Seemed awfully
overprotective if she didn’t. Eventually, Katora drifted over to a
smaller egg, one not touched yet, and crouched to rest the flat of her
hand on it.

Nothing happened. Katora’s brow furrowed. Maybe she had been expecting
something to happen? Did touching the eggs before Hatching help in any
way? Why did they do it? She had a lot of questions now. Maybe she
would ask the Weyrlingmaster later.

Lyndana’s eagerness to be here quickly dissipated when she realized no
one was being allowed to touch the egg that mattered the most. Looking
around the crowd, she hoped someone with more nerve would make a fuss
about it, but instead the candidates spread out amongst the other
eggs. She followed suit, although she made sure to keep her hands to
herself as much as possible, only reaching out to touch an egg if she
saw one of the Weyrlingmasters looking towards her, and even then, she
deliberately touched the ones she deemed far too large to hold any
greens.

Varethos took his time and methodically walked along the eggs, careful
to at least touch as many as he could, though kept particular
attention to a couple smaller eggs. He wouldn't say no to any color,
really, but he especially wanted a sweet green like his father's
Fianwyth, and that kept him from getting too close to any of the
larger eggs that drew the attention of the other boys.

Arten wandered slowly among the eggs, taking a few minutes to gather
his courage before he approached one. Growing up at the Weyr, he'd
seen eggs from the Stands plenty of times, but never so close up that
he could see the texture of the shell and the darker whirls and
speckles in its creamy color. He still wasn't sure what he felt about
the idea of Impressing, knowing that it would change his life
irrevocably in so many ways, but he thought now it was worth giving in
to his father's pleading to have this chance. Reaching out, he brushed
his fingertips very lightly over the surface.

Aedris knew that he probably shouldn’t, but his curiosity was getting
the better of him. He slowly, carefully let down the wall in his mind
so that he could try and hear Chioneth’s thoughts. When he did, the
strength and vehemency of them made him take an automatic step back.

}:I don’t like it. They’re too close. What if they damage one?:{
Chioneth was saying in a tight voice.

Aedris couldn’t hear the Weyrwoman’s response to her lifemate, but it
was apparently strong enough to placate the senior queen as she
continued to remain poised over the eggs, but did not force anyone to
leave.

Higher up in the caverns, Aedris glanced up to see Aluneth. The
bronze’s thoughts towards the eggs he had sired were certainly ones of
glowing pride but he was also watching the Candidates with sharp
interest.

Putting the mental block back into place, Aedris felt the tension in
his body release a bit as quiet re-entered his brain. Now he could
focus on touching one of the eggs. He hadn’t imagined them to be so
big, and he hadn’t honestly known what they would look like, but they
did not disappoint.

She'd never seen Chioneth so agitated, but Halia wasn't going to let
this opportunity pass her by. She moved in among the eggs, touching as
many as she could. She would never get this chance again, unless they
raised the candidate age limit, which seemed unlikely.

This was the best part of being a candidate, in Ekirim's opinion.
There wasn't anything else like it back at the holds; even with
chickens, you had to dart your hand out to get the eggs and hope not
to get pecked. Chioneth could do a whole lot worse if she tried. So he
kept to the far end, away from the massive queen, and not being too
particular in which eggs he was touching and which he wasn't. It was
still a little strange, listening to people talk to the eggs or
scrunch up their faces real hard like they were willing the dragonet
inside to read their minds. He placed his hand gently on a larger,
speckled egg, marveling at the texture and the warmth. He tried to
imagine how the cracks would start to form on the shell, come hatching
day, and how the creature inside would tumble out.

Zorenh had done this before. There was nothing special about it. If
there were, he would have discovered the secret by now. He had tried
everything over the Turns, and nothing had ever convinced any of the
dragons inside all those eggs that he was for them. He had certainly
never found a surefire way to know which eggs had bronzes in them. He
had spent long minutes with huge eggs only later to see browns or even
_blues_ hatch from them anyway.

Browns and blues who had nonetheless wanted someone, anyone else but
him. He knew they did not care whether their rider wanted bronze. He
had seen heaps of boys who were as certain as he was they would get
bronze walk away with dragons who were not bronze.

Of course, that was not going to happen to him. He was suited for
nothing less than bronze, just like his father. But bronzes were
scarce. More scarce than boys who were suited for them. He might very
well find his bronze in this clutch. Or he might never find him.

He glanced upward at the stands. Maybe even when he was too old, his
bronze might still come find him up there. There was always hope.
Maybe he would be the first man to Impress bronze past the age of 30.
Then he glanced aside at Ekirim.

He wished he could be as sure of himself on the inside as Ekirim was
on the outside.

Nosarre did not touch any eggs. She wasn't here for any old green or,
Faranth forbid, a _blue_ like Kadira, and there was no point in
letting any of their half-formed minds get attached. The girls could
entertain those eggs just fine. She took a casual loop around the
grounds, careful of her footing on the hot, uneasy grounds, just to
see how close she could actually get to the gold egg before Saibra
waved her off or Chioneth got too mad.

It wasn’t very close. There was a flash of gold, a roar, and a snap of
teeth that sounded like a mountain breaking off.

“CHIONETH!” Saibra bellowed, taking a step just as the queen’s teeth
snapped shut beside Nosarre's head.

}:Get them out! _Now_!:{

“Alright everyone,” Saibra clapped. “That’s it for today. Thank you
all for coming. Mind your footing on the way out.”

Last updated on the November 19th 2024

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Show Me Those Eggs