Feargth & Sarlo'Alakuth

Their Hatching The next two eggs hatched as one, spilling a large brown and a blue-sized bright orange dragon onto the sands. The hatchlings looked at one another, and hissed at their sibling, bristling. Their mother called them to attention before they could properly fight, and the brown reluctantly looked away, towards the four candidates gathered there. With a contemptuous snort, he said, None of them are good enough for me, Feargth. I'll find my own bond at Ryslen. The brown turned and walked to the kitchens without another word. * * * The last two eggs revealed a pair of dark-colored dragons. The first was a tiny black, who quickly revealed his name as Ejjelith. He decided to go to Calyeni Caverns. The other dragon was a slightly larger silver-black. He flicked his tail impatiently as his brother decided on his new home. And my name is Sarlo'Alakuth. I'm going to Ryslen. The silver-black strolled slowly off the sands as the stands emptied for the second time.

Having found their first meal, the stubborn brown and the striking silver-black hatchlings found each other - they would have met eventually, but since they had both chosen to go to Ryslen, they were lumped together. In each other they found a friend - another unbonded dragon with which to converse and practice and all the other things that dragons did with the help of a partner. It was especially good in the first days when they slept and ate and grew and Itched.

Higher... Higher... A little to the left... Perfect! Feargth directed and purred as his friend Sarlo'Alakuth found the itchy spot.
Imperfect hide cracks Between. Sarlo' recited from recent memory as he dipped his paw in the shallow pan of oil that had been left for the two of them, and then rubbed it on his friend's itchy spot.
Oh thank you... Feargth purred, his itchy problem solved at least for the moment.
Sarlo' seemed to smile. You're welcome. Though he was smaller, he was by no means the lesser of the duo. He wasn't the greater by virtue of his rarer coloring either. In each other Feargth and Sarlo'Alakuth had found their equal - they were just dragons who needed a helping paw to reach the itchy spots that life created for them...

Why are we friends, Feargth? Sarlo'Alakuth asked one day well into the weyrlinghood of the duo.
What do you mean? Feargth replied, startled out of his doze by the smaller dragon's question.
We're not bonds, and we're not brothers per se, except that we hatched on the same sands on the same day. So why are we friends? The silver-black said, expanding on his initial query.
We just are. Feargth said, laying his head back on his paws and closing his eyes. Isn't that enough?
Sarlo' didn't reply, but he lay his head against the large brown's flank and closed his own eyes.

Some time later - days, weeks, minutes, what did it matter? - Feargth looked at his blue-sized friend. Why didn't you bond, Sarlo'?
Why didn't you? Sarlo'Alakuth replied, distractedly.
Because none of the candidates were good enough for me. Feargth replied right away.
Sarlo' blinked his multiple eyelids. Really? A strong brown like you should have had his choice out of all the candidates.
I Chose none of them, Sarlo'. There was nobody there strong enough to be my rider. Feargth was being stubbornly prideful again, as he was wont to do from time to time. Usually he was just stubborn or prideful. Why didn't you bond? He half-demanded from his friend.
Because I didn't. Sarlo'Alakuth responded, his brows furrowed in confusion. Usually he was the one asking philosophical questions with no solid answers.
Fine! Be that way! Feargth said, launching from the ground and using his large brown wings to haul his brown self away from the silver-black.
Sarlo', totally puzzled by this entire occurrance, lay down where he was and put one paw over his muzzle. He almost felt like crying. Maybe he would.

The rest of their training would pass in a burning fury of separation -- they were both upset by what had and hadn't happened, and could not reconcile. By sundown that day, they had both requested new - solo - accomodations. Feargth was too angry to share the space with Sarlo' let alone sleep where the silver-black had slept. And Sarlo'Alakuth was too hurt to sleep alone on a couch that he'd formerly shared with what he thought was his best friend in all the dragon worlds. They were individually promised that their space would be kept open in case they changed their minds, but everyone knew that the chances of that were less than zero.

The Story Continues