Taleran
:Story::Search::Candidate::Hatching::Weyrling::Adult:
:Dark Moon Weyr::Tripaldi Weyr

Taleran was sitting in the barracks, his chores were done for the day and as the hatching was several days overdue there were no more lessons to be had. Negra was perched on his shoulder chirping a happy, discordant tune when another of the candidates walked in. Karonil was older than most of the other candidates and not at all inclined to be friendly either. It wasn’t that he was an unpleasant person though, despite what the others might say about him, he was just unhappy. Taleran smiled at him but received no response, nor any indication that his smile had even been noted.

Taleran shook his head sadly and tried to hush Negra, who’s off-key chirping was getting very annoying. But Negra would not be shushed and simply flew to the window to continue her chirping when he tried to quiet her. Taleran chuckled softly and shook his head. Negra was amusing at times, but often a large pain in the neck, like now when she was determined to be annoying.

Just then Negra stopped chirping and her eyes whirled in excitement as she peered out the window. Worried, Taleran got up and walked over to her. As he got there she started humming and he jumped in surprise, turning to look at Karonil. “I think the eggs are hatching!”

Taleran threw on his robe as the rest of the candidates thundered into the room and Negra vanished, no doubt to go find herself a perch inside the hatching grounds. The candidates filed onto the sands and the first hatchling broke its shell. The little green creeled piteously and before long a young woman cried out to her. The green padded happily over to join the girl and all attention returned to the sands as a steady brown shook free of the shards of his shell.

Before he could choose though two more eggs hatched, revealing two blues. Eager to impress before the two blues did the brown pounced in front of a young man and butted his head into the boy’s stomach. The young man led the determined brown quickly off the sands and the darker of the two blues found his own weyrmate after regally surveying his options. The other blue also made his choice, though not so gracefully as he tripped and tumbled over to his chosen weyrmate.

A slight pause was broken as another hatchling cried out. Everyone looked for the source of the cry and a bright, spunky bronze skirted around two other eggs. The two eggs hatched to reveal a green and a blue but the bronze paid them no heed, dashing up to Taleran and jerking his head toward the weyrbowl where bowls of meat were waiting.

Well, are you just going to stand there waiting or are you going to feed me? demanded the bronze and Taleran smiled and suppressed a chuckle.

“Of course, Robith. I wouldn't dream of waiting any longer,” said Taleran in response and quickly led the bronze from the sands.

In the weyrbowl they claimed a bowl of meat and Taleran sat down to feed Robith, who swung his head from side to side as if he had to see everything, even while he was eating.

“Robith, you might want to focus on chewing rather than on what those other dragons are doing,” Taleran chided gently and the bronze cocked his head at him for a moment.

But then I might miss something interesting, said Robith in response. Besides, you are one to talk T’leran, you were almost more interested in watching that blue hatch than you were in impressing me!

T’leran’s mouth fell open, but only for a moment. He handed Robith another piece of meat as he started laughing. “I’m sorry Robith, I’m not laughing at you, it just threw me for a loop when you called me T’leran. Hard to believe I’m a real dragonrider now!”

Well, not yet, but you will be when I’m old enough to carry you, said Robith practically and T’leran laughed again.

“Very true, now finish eating already, will you?”