Zenia sighed and looked out the window, waiting for her brothers brown dragon to land in the courtyard. “Mom, I thought he said he’d be here at midday,” she commented as she stroked her blue firelizard.

Her mother shrugged and walked up to the window, rubbing the eyeridges of Zenia’s other firelizard, a gold named Serlin. “I don’t know Zenia, you know how he is.”

She nodded and said, “He probably stopped to talk to a pretty female on the way.” She sighed but then looked up at her mother and asked, “do you think he’s picking I’ren and Alex up as well?”

Her mother shrugged again and said, “I couldn’t really tell you. He may be but he didn’t mention anything about it.”

Zenia sighed again and rested her chin on the palms of her hands. “I wish I could Impress soon. Do you think a Weyr will send dragons here to search soon?” She had always wanted to become a dragonrider and now she wanted to more than ever since all of her other siblings had Impressed.

Her mother smiled down at her and said, “I can understand why you would want to, now that I’ren and Alex have Impressed as well, but you know that your father doesn’t want you to. He doesn’t want the entire family going off to the Weyr, he would like at least one of you to stay here and carry on his work after he retires.”

“I’m not working in a mine,” Zenia said flatly.

Her mother laughed and said, “He knows you wouldn’t work in the mine but he would like you to carry on the silversmith business. Your father has been very successful in the business you know. You could make a lot of money if you were good at the trade.”

Zenia sighed and said, “I don’t want to be a silversmith mom. I want to be a dragonrider like Alex, and B’tan, and I’ren. I’ve been on a dragon before so I know I’m not scared of them and there’s plenty of Weyrs here and Caers on Alskyr that I could go to and Impress a dragon.”

Her mother frowned and said, “Alskyr? You know very well that we will not permit you to go to that planet just to bond a dragon there. Your brother was different, he was searched out and we couldn’t do anything to stop him. You, however will not be permitted to be searched by an Alskyrian dragon. It’s bad enough having B’tan off the planet. I couldn’t imagine having our fifteen year old daughter there as well.”

Zenia sighed and said, “but B’tan would be there to show me the way of the Cear and I would be fine after I bonded so it wouldn’t matter.”

Her mother shook her head and said, “No, I won’t allow it and that’s final.”

Zenia sighed and looked out the window, not saying anything else to her mother. An hour passed and then finally there was some action in the Hold courtyard. Zenia stood up and went to the door, opening it in time to see her brother land his dragon and dismount.

She ran out to him and gave him a hug. “It’s good to see you Zenia. I’ve brought I’ren along as well. I tried to pick up Alex but she recently Impressed so she couldn’t leave her hatchling. She sends her apologies as well, for sending a firelizard I mean. She said she hasn’t had time.”

Zenia smiled and asked, “She Impressed at Talis Weyr finally? What color did her lifemate hatch?”

Her brother’s dragon head-butted him in the back and B’tan turned around and asked, “What do you want Var?” The brown warbled softly and B’tan smiled, turning back to his sister. “He says hello and that he would speak to you directly but he doesn’t know if you remember him so he wouldn’t want to scare you.”

She looked at the small brown and then said, “Varshanth right? I remember you alright and I would be honored if you bespoke me directly instead of talking through your rider.”

The brown crooned and said, “Well in that case, it is nice to meet you again Zenia.”

She looked back at her brother and asked, “So what color did she Impress? You never told me.”

B’tan took his riding helmet off and ruffled his hair before saying, “She Impress a green named Mynterath. She’s extremely light in color and is dappled slightly, but it’s hard to see sometimes.”

She smiled and said, “I wish I could Imrpess like you guys did.”

B’tan frowned and asked, “Why can’t you?”

She stroked Serlin’s neck and she warbled and then said, “Mom and Dad won’t let me. They don’t want all of their children off at a Weyr or Caer.”

B’tan shook his head, visibly angry. “They don’t have a say in it. They can’t stop you from going to a Weyr or Caer if you’re searched, which you’re bound to do eventually, considering the rest of our family.” He rubbed his chin and asked, “Where were you planning on going anyway?”

She shrugged and said, “I was thinking of Alskyr because I know that you enjoy it there and you would be able to show me the way of Caer life right?”

He shrugged and said, “I could, but I don’t think mom would let you go even if I said I’d watch you. She thinks I’m not coming back after Varshanth is an adult so she thinks you’ll just stay there for the rest of your life as well. I think that you would have better luck Impressing if you tried to convince her to let you go somewhere on Pern.”

She nodded and said, “Yes I know but I really would like to Impress a dragon of Alskyrian blood, and I would like to get away from mom and dad.”

B’tan smiled and said, “I see what you mean but I can’t help you with this one. If you can convince them, great, I’ll take you to the Caer and see if you’re searched. However, if they say no I can only take you to one of the Weyrs here on Pern.”

Zenia nodded and was about to say something when Varshanth warbled and said, “I think you would make a wonderful bonder no matter where you stand.”

B’tan patted his dragon’s leg and said, “Here bonders are called candidates Var.”

The brown looked at his rider in a confused manner and then turned to Zenia again. “Well I think you would make a good candidate as well. B’tan agrees with me as well but he wouldn’t tell you so I decided to instead.”

Zenia smiled and said, “Thank you Varshanth.” She stroked Serlin absently and looked behind B’tan, trying to see her other brother, brownrider I’ren, who had been silent the entire time. When she didn’t see him she turned back to B’tan. “Where’d I’ren go?”

B’tan raised an eyebrow and turned around, obviously surprised that he wasn’t there as well. “I don’t know, he was here before. Maybe he ran off to say hello to his friends or something while he’s here.”

Zenia shrugged and said, “Yeah maybe. Hey, come on in and see mom. I’m actually really surprised that she hasn’t seen you yet.”

He nodded, patted Varshanth on the leg, and then followed his sister inside their house. When they got inside he took his riding jacket off and hung it on one of the pegs on the wall. “Mom?” He called out as he hung his helmet and gloves up as well.

She poked her head out of the kitchen door and then smiled, walking towards him quickly and enveloping him in a big hug. “How are you B’tan?” She asked as she wiped her hands on her apron.

He shrugged and said, “Same old I suppose. Varshanth is a senior fledgling now and when he’s an adult I’m transferring back to Pern to stay at one of the Weyrs here I think.”

His mother smiled and asked, “Which one, Cyrumque Weyr? I think that’s the closest one.”

He shook his head and said, “No, I know for a fact I’m not transferring to that dump. I was thinking of Tiynarea Weyr. It’s a fairly new one on the southern continent and I heard the weyrwoman is nice but that doesn’t really matter.”

She nodded and asked, “Why don’t you want to stay on the northern continent?”

He frowned and was about to answer when Zenia quickly changed the subject. “Hey I’ren came along as well mom!”

She smiled and asked, “He did, where is he? Did you pick up Alex as well on your way here?”

B’tan shook his head and said, “No we couldn’t get her to come because she Impressed and she has to take care of her hatchling. I’ren was here but he ran off, probably to say hello to his friends.”

Zenia’s mother nodded and said, “Yes that sounds like him. She Impressed you say? What color, a rare I hope?”

Zenia shook her head and said, “No mom, she Impressed a green, like the one outside there. Her name is Mynter…” She stopped abruptly and looked outside again, thinking she had seen something. However, she still saw the green dragon, sitting on her haunches next to Varshanth, who seemed to be carrying on a conversation.

B’tan followed her gaze and then sighed. “I’d better go get Varshanth before he chews that poor green’s ear of with his flapping jaw. C’mon Zenia,” he said as he grabbed her wrist and dragged her out of the house.

As they walked out Varshanth warbled happily and said, font color=saddlebrown>“This is Phaysath and she’s from Falas Weyr. Her rider is on search here today.”

Zenia looked at her brother excitedly and then jogged up to Varshanth, patting him on the leg. “Do you think she’ll search me?”

The brown shrugged and looked at the green again. He crooned and said, “She says to ask her rider instead. She is standing behind you currently.

Zenia whipped around and saw a young greenrider, who looked somewhat surprised. “Hi,” she said happily.

The greenrider blinked a few times and then pointed to Varshanth. “He talked. I mean, he talked out loud! How is that possible?”

She smiled and pulled her brother over. “This is my brother B’tan, he bonded Varshanth on the planet of Alskyr. On that planet the dragons talk out loud as well.”

The greenrider nodded, still a little freaked out, but said, “I’m Blizska and my dragon here, who you’ve already met, thinks you would make a good candidate. If you’re willing to stand of course.”

Zenia nodded and asked, “You think I would make a good candidate as well?”

Blizska nodded and said, “I tend to agree with my dragons choices. This time I definitely agreed with her when she chose you. What do you say, ready to become a dragonrider?”

Zenia smiled and said, “Of course I am!”