"Padist. Paki. Pan. Paztexdonial. Peinal. Pelment. Perope. Phiahekh. Pkothazh. Pleione." Those P's stepped forward, and the voice took a breath. "Peongmoy. Phyllia. Phylra. Pitu. Puanga. Puma." The rest of the P's stepped forward, only for a crowing laugh to have them stop short. "Please step _off_ the Sands!"

"Mean, mean, mean!" Peinal chanted as he raced with Pkothazh to one of the bird dragons, so like Bamon's canary. The one left had robin-like markings, and deliberately backed up when the boys came rushing.

"Mine," said Paztexdonial possessively from behind. "Right, Kashath?" Somewhere, far up in the stands, his cousin gave a cheer.

"Don't sulk, boys," Pleione purred as she crossed Peinal and Pkothazh's path, a green and a copper-gold at her feet.

"Not fair," Pkothazh grumbled as Padist gave them a wry grin, a blue with black and a cloud brown-white looked up at the two. Even Paki and Pan had bonds - a light blue and a teal-blue, respectively.

"Try that way," they chorused, one pointing left and one pointing right before breaking into giggles.

"Thanks," Peinal said dryly, stepping right. Only to run into Phiahekh, nursing a night cream to her feet.

"Shards!" Pkothazh snarled. "Peinal! Found yours!"

"How d'you know?" Peinal asked.

"Has your name on it." Peinal whirled to face Pkothazh; a siamese blue-green was sitting there, a tag around his neck. Pan and Paki broke into giggles once more.

"And here's yours," Peinal said grimly, pointing at a blue with white. "It's got your name on it," he added when Pkothazh raised an eyebrow.

"Pelment was the last to leave, violet-silver Dvjhith following behind.

The Q's were skipped over entirely, and the voice moved on to the R's. "Rafaeli, Rafi, Ramiro, Rapi, Recento, Remington, Richelaly, Richen. Roisin. Ruberal. Ruchba. Ryvor." Ruran, Riwen, Riura, Rayya, Rayrann, Qarsinth, Quatter, Quma, Raell and Rahcael walked off the Sands.

"I rather think Nesoriel's planet. Kiyua Nikeehe, I believe it's called? We'll have to ask them soon," Nedawen said lazily in the Sands. "And Xi Shira, I believe."

"This way, my lady?" Remington asked Rafi with an elaborate bow. The girl laughed, but took Remington's offered arm.

"Ciarth, and then Caeith, please. I get these blasted circle numbers mixed up all the time." Remington waited as Rafi walked slowly around first Ciarth - waiting as Ramiro claimed the night cloud she had been watching - and then Caeith, as once again, Ramiro took the dragonet she had liked. This time, it was a little night green, and Ramiro shrugged.

"They just sorta call, you know?"

"No," Rafi grumbled, "I don't." Remington pushed her around the border, stopping at Liriath's clutch to look at a green. "Jheth!" Rafi cried, reaching out to the green-blue. Remington slipped off at the call of a blue with white a few clutches down.

"My Vismatoith," he whispered. Richelaly was singing a song softly to a siamese white-green, Richen and another siamese, this one blue and black, listening carefully, swaying back and forth.

"Macaroni!" This time, the foodstuff was mentioned by one Clyntyn of Terra, on a dare by the rest of his "friends" as Recento's yellow bond was displayed. Recento laughed along with the rest, not quite getting the joke.

"Don't worry, Moidpith, it's not a race," Rafaeli assured his bronze-blue as he finally picked out his bond. "We'll be fine."

"Roisin!" cried the voice again and Roisin scowled.

"You," the Candidate snapped, pointing at a dragonet at random from the clutch. "Ouch! Etalfuth!" The dragon was night - pure night.

Ruberal, Ruchba, and Ryvor were the only ones left, and the voice was already starting to list off the S's.

"Salshara!" Ruberal spotted an indigo, and darted towards him, scooping him up.

"Sanzaro!" Ruchba's green-black Dhehyth gave a croon, alerting the girl to her presence.

"Saosh!" Ryvor was the last, picking an earth, which was called Mirihaith.

"Are they done? Then Sarcon, Satordi, Saylar, Selwyn, Sendoa, Seyc, Shaymar, Shiaam, Sjashi, Skyyne, Soisur, Solvi, Soroa, Suanvo, Suunnin and Sychill!" There was the expected parade off the Snads - Sirell, Sinxitz, Sinru, Sienn, Selnemtis, Sayvalia, Satast.

"Black night. I don't get it. What is a night if it's not black?" Shaymar asked Shadzar as they carried dragonets off the sands; Shaymar's black night and Shadzar's brown.

"Blue?" Shadzar guessed.

ME! cried the black night.

The Shintaru S's banded together to hunt through the eggs. Satordi, Selwyn, and Sendoa gave random cries as they uncovered some dragonets that had been hiding in the sand, and some who were sleeping, and those that were still running around madly. "Satordi! This one's yours!" Selwyn groaned, wiping sand from his eyes after a surprise attack from a morning sky.

"What? Why do you say _that_?" Satordi asked brightly, but nodded. "You're right."

"Found mind!" Sendoa called excitedly. "Meith and Lozdath." A soft purpley colored and a green with yellow. Selwyn frowned and joined with Saylar.

"Sorry, Selwyn. My Seelith is right there. The plum colored one." Selwyn scanned the neighboring clutches, which appeared to be empty.

"Izehtrith! There you are! Hiding, you idiot!" The blue popped out from behind an eggshell, laughing.

"Yvuojeth, Yvuojeth," Sanzaro murmured to himself, hunting for the dragon who matched the name in his head. Around him, Salshara found her Alskyrian female blue and Saosh clamped onto a green with white from Akyoth's clutch.

"Down there, Sanzaro," Seyc advised as he lovingly stroked a silver from Avianth's clutch.

"Down there?" Sanzaro glanced down, through a hole in the second circle to the third. "Yvuojeth!" he called, and a red-orange turned his head. "There you are."

Solvi had gotten seperated from her "friends," and pawed through Kalionth's last children, much to the disgust of Akyoth. She smiled as a green with amber was uncovered, a delicate little hatchling.

In the fourth circle, Sjashi and Skyyne both Impressed greens - Sjashi's from Tiyranelth's clutch and Skyyne's from Marqueliath's.

Shiaam chose a dragonet from Persikath's clutch after a moment in deep thought. He opened his arms to the violet, who moved slowly towards him for a hug.

Soisur and his brown Kaiexypth helped escort lemon Tumyuth and Soroa off the sands, Soroa's foot having been cut by a stray eggshell.

"She'll be fine, don't worry," Suanvo assured his blue-white Morsunieth quickly. "And, yes, we have red blood. You have green ichor!"

"Murmutyth." Suunnin repeated the name to herself as she lounged (carefully) on the sands next to her female bronze from Kaarewiath's clutch. The bronze mother watched the pair fonldy.

"Get up, Suunnin!" Sychill called, a night white and periwinkle following him, "it's time to get off the sands, dimwit."

"Knew that," Suunnin muttered and led Murmutyth off, to the disappointment of Kaarewiath.

"Down to the home stretch, people. Tabor, Taika, Taipa, Takara, Talin, Tallain, Tecie, Tenorien, Tesin, Tihitir, Timego, Tonan, Tosin, Troy!" Taika, part of the Calyeni cavalcade stood up when her name was called.

"Go on down, Taika, it's fine," Alianora assured her. The girl moved slowly, but a gray was sitting there, waiting for her.

"Eleni'wath."

"So. I'm really named after a city-state?" Troy asked Tosin as they walked towards the exit, Troy with a green and Tosin with a brown. "In Greek mythology?"

"Yup!" Tosin replied, "right, Rinzojenth?" The brown nodded.

Tukali chased a silver-pink out of circle three, only for the dragonet to stop at Tihitir's feet. A white had been crouched beside Tihitir's feet, but stood up and sniffed at Tukali. "Mine?" Tukali asked, glancing up at Tihitir, but he was too busy with his own Deymetnth.

"Last one, Flynnth?" Tilin asked hopefully as he spied a small blue. "Mine, possibly?" The gold didn't reply, so Tilin took this as a good sign.

Talin, however, wanted the same blue. "Tilin! Mine!" Flynnth bugled at the sight of what looked like the same boy, only doubled fighting over dragonet.

"Dude," Timego interrupted as he walked carnation Mysth out of the sands, "there's another _right there_." Talin and Tilin's heads went up - they both dashed to the new blue, but the old one called to Talin.

"I know, I'm yours."

Tesinth - also known as Tesin - carefully picked out a blue-gold from Skerath's clutch and waited for Tecie to come up with her blue with green to walk out. Aoognlth and Nyuumyuth nosed each other curiously.

Tallain laughed at the fox-like antics Deyunilarrith put into effect to show him what a fox really was; the red-orange fox pounced a stray "bug", knocking into Takara with her green with white Ebiith and Taipa, who had a orange and green at her feet. "Sorry," he apologized.

Tabor watched Kalionth and Akyoth, and then spotted a blue in between. "Hold up!" he shouted, dashing out to pick up the blue with gold speckles. "Okay, everything's clear, right buddy?"

"Finish up, T's. That means even Telir, Tha, Thectri, Thulle, Tinesosh, Tinmay, and Thodi have to go so everyone else can find their match! Veral, Veran, Viscylc! Wenhi, Werrbbyk, Wialan. Xaneric, Xedash. Yavuz, Ysobel, Yuryan. Zandi, Zavijava, Zeladon, Zesenerpyrm, Zhenechka, Zinn, Zsuir, Zuza. And have I forgotten Gopal?" A man in the stands stood up, visibly shaken. Kaarewiath crooned at him, and nudged a little green towards Gopal. He darted forward to accept, but let Zuza pass in front. The girl had two dragonets already; a purple-black and a green from circles two and three. Zsuir purred at her lemon from Sezerie's clutch, while Zinn leaned down to get nose to nose with a bronze from Alaodeth's clutch. Zhenechka and Zeladon came together, but Zeladon soon broke off to choose a mango he called Lhietyzth and Zhenechka fell in love with a white-black with pink. Xedash's silver fall Xanlueoth ran into Ysobel's flamingo-marked dragon. It must, Yavuz remarked later to his blue, been something that happened once in a lifetime. After all, it was extremely hard to not see the flamingo.

Zandi's maroon with violet Yyeooith conversed quietly with Zavijava's brown Jeriukhrhohaith while Zavijava complained endlessly to Zandi and Wenhi about unpronouncable dragon names. Neither had anything to complain about; they both had dragons with nice short names, like Wenhi's green Kuriath.

Vulin, Veran, and Viscylc (the "V's," otherwise known as the only letter group to have all the members impress) walked off together, but separately still. Veral's blue-green Hishuth was _not_ on speaking terms with "that bronze" that Veran had Impressed. And forget indigo Lhyyrmaoth, Viscylc's choice. The brown from Flynnth's clutch was worse, if that was possible, and Vulin gave them all a shy smile as he was told all about it. Wenen waited for Werrbbyk and blue Jivmatueth to walk off; he wanted to hear all about Impressing, so he'd be ready next time. Xaneirc and white Cheth were the last to leave.

"All that's left are those groups of two," someone pointed out.

"Yes. Why are they there?"

"Why?" asked all the riders of the parents of the clutch.

"We wanted them to Impress."

"Would you just be quiet?" It was Hadassah, down from her post, leading a boy and a girl with her. "One's going with each parent, which you all would've known if you would've listened to any of 'em." Here she fixed Alianora with a glare; the amberrider looked away and started to whistle innocently.

"Who are those?" It was Kashii, from Falas, who had brought the Earth-Candidates in her group.

"These?" Hadassah asked innocently. "Oh. More Earth kiddies for you, Kashii. I figured that those four aren't enough for you." The four "Earth kiddies" stared. The two didn't look _anything_ like "Earth kiddies."

"Hadassah." Maalya fixed the white-blackrider with an "I'm-the-Weyrwoman" stare.

"Fine. They're from Nedawen and Nesoriel's Kiyua Nikeehe and Xi Shira place. It's free for us to colonize, if we so chose. Figured that having stayed about three, four turns in one place is long enough, right? Anyway, no one's on Pern anymore. It's just not cool." Hadassah's right hand plunged into her pocket and she fingered something there. "And you've got lots of witnesses here, whenever someone asks where the Weyr's gone. Not like that funny business a few Passes back. There's no Thread right now, remember? We _can_ leave." Hadassah sighed and threw her hands up in the air. "Never mind. Just go to the after-party feast. And remind the riders to go and at least _talk_ to the dragonets. That means you, Alianora, and you, Arelii, as well." all done - for now

pick-up info