I Don't Know How Parents Do It

Writers: Cali, Patrick
Date Posted: 23rd December 2006

Characters: B'lamick, I'poro
Description: The two candidates talk names as they work.
Location: River Bluff Weyr
Date: month 1, day 5 of Turn 4

"So what's your new name going to be?" Belamick asked his friend as the two were rolling dragon bandages. Since they were both apprentice healers, when they weren't in candidate class, they had been allowed to continue in their craft studies.

"I'poro." Ioporol replied. "I figured that out before my first Hatching." He grinned. "You have one yet?"

Belamick shrugged, "I don't know; B'mick, B'lam, B'lamick, B'lik? I guess I could even go with L'mick, L'am? What do you think?"

"What about..." Ioporol put his hand on his chin in thought. "L'amick? Kind of rolls off the tongue don't you think?"

"I don't know," Belamick answered uncertainly, "It sounds kind of funny to me. Do I _look_ like a L'amick?"

**You look like way more than a L'amick.** said the voice in Ioporol's head, outside he said: "I guess not. Then which one do you like?"

The apprentice healer grabbed another bundle of bandage and started rolling out the set length to cut.
"I'm kind of fond of Belamick, my mother gave it to me after all. Why do we need to shorten our names anyways?"

"Oh I know this one!" Ioporol was so excited to show this piece of knowledge. "I wondered the same thing when I first came here. I went to the Record's and read something that said that the dragons thought it up during Threadfall ages ago." He beamed at his ingenuity. "What we consider honor now-a-days was just a nickname in Fall." Ioporol cut and wrapped another piece of gauze. "Bet you didn't know that."

"Huh... the _dragons_ gave nicknames." He thought a moment then realized he lost his count on how many hands he'd measured out for the bandage. "Maybe I'll just let _my_ dragon nickname me."

"I guess..." What was so hard about picking a name! "You don't like _any_ of them?" Belamick finished measuring before speaking, having learned his lesson. "I like them all just fine...
except L'am, or L'ick!" he added with a grin. "I've just never named anything before, and this is a forever sort of decision. I don't know how parents do it, and sometimes ten times!" "Neither do I." He mumbled. "You don't have to pick right now you know. Maybe you can send a letter home to your father, ask his advice?" Ioporol had thought of that himself, but had decided against it. Some things he just had to do on his own.

He smiled as he measured out another length. Ioporol should know better than anyone how lazy he was about sending letters. "I'll figure it out I guess, and you're right, I don't have to pick right now. Hey, maybe I'll have a vote! Everybody in the candidate barracks gets to put in their suggestion and the best one wins!"

"That would be something new." He'd never heard of that before. "But what if one you don't like wins. Like L'ick?"

Belamick would never be crazy enough to trust something as important as his _name_ to a bunch of strangers, but it was funny to think about. "If it was looking that way, I'd just pad the vote!"

Last updated on the December 24th 2006

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I Don't Know How Parents Do It