I can’t fly anymore Karlean, I must rest, the tired weyrling said as they continued to fly with the rest of the training wing. “We can’t right now Val, but we should be done soon.” The green warbled in answer and panted harder, trying to keep her position in the wing. She banked left with the rest of them as they did their drills and then said again, I must land Karlean, my wings are beginning to ignore what I tell them to do. Karlean sighed and said, “Take deep breaths Valirith, we are almost done. You should know this drill by now, after that left bank we spiral and then pull up, then we’re done.” Valirith crooned and said, I remember the drill just fine Karlean. We have never done three drills in a row like this before that’s all. Karlean nodded in understanding and then instructed her green to spiral down, pulling up at the end and landing at the weyrlingmaster’s signal.

Valirith let her rider slip from her back and then plopped down on the grass, sighing with relief. The weyrlingmaster dismounted as well and turned to face them, smiling widely. “I’m proud of you all. You did very well today and I’m glad you stuck with it for I know how tired your dragons must be after that. You will get stronger and this will seem easy eventually. Don’t think you won’t make it cause you will be forced to. I don’t care if anyone hates me ‘cause in the end you’ll thank me. Now go let your dragons walk around and then go soak in the lake. I want everyone here bright and early tomorrow. We’ll be starting a new drill, flaming.” Karlean turned to Valirith and said, “Did you hear that? You get to start flaming tomorrow!” Valirith warbled and said, That is good but I would like to clutch at least once before I start flaming. Would that be possible?

Karlean shrugged and said, “Let me go ask.” She walked off towards the weyrlingmaster and cleared her throat. He turned to face her and asked, “What can I do for you Karlean?” She looked back at her dragon briefly and then said, “It’s about he flaming drill tomorrow sir. My Valirith would like to clutch at least once before she starts to flame. I just wanted to know if that was possible.” He looked at Valirith, still lying in the grass and smiled saying, “Yes that’s fine. I’m sure you won’t have the only female that wishes to see a clutch of her own hatch and Impress. Tell her that it is fine with me if she clutches first.” Karlean smiled and thanked him, turning around and trotting back to her lifemate.

“He said that it is fine,” she said when she reached Valirith. The green lifted her head and looked at her rider. Really? Karlean laughed and said, “Really. Did you think that he would deny you the right to have offspring?” The weyrling snorted in response and said, Of course not. I do not think that his brown would allow him to say no. Karlean nodded and said, “Yeah you’re probably right.” After a moment Karlean looked at her dragon again and asked, “Would you like to go to the lake now?” Valirith hauled herself to her feet and said, Yes I would like to go now. Karlean smiled and led her exhausted dragon to the Weyr lake.

“I just don’t understand why she decided to do it Ori,” L’das said as he stroked his brown firelizard Hurni. Oricanluth shrugged slightly and said, Perhaps she felt it was better this way. I know that I was never all that kind to Valirith, and I regret it now but I do not think you were ever unkind to Karlean. L’das shrugged and sat down near is ever-growing dragon. “You’ve gotten big in such a short period of time Ori,” He said as if noticing for the first time that his dragon was almost three times the size he had been when he hatched. This surprises you? I am over a year older now. You too have grown, though not like myself, the blue said as he shifted his weight. L’das laughed and said, “I would hope not. If I started to sprout wings like yours I would be extremely distressed.”

L’das stood up after a while and said, “I have not realized how long we have been talking. You have not eaten in about a seven-day, are you hungry?” Oricanluth shrugged and said, Yes, though not greatly. I would enjoy flying down and conversing with the females though if that is all right. We have done nothing as of late but weyrling practice and my whole body aches from it. L’das nodded and said, “Yes that’s fine Ori, I would like to meet some of them myself, and you never know, we might even see Karlean and Valirith there.” The weyrling snorted and said, I don’t think they would like it much if they saw us down there.

Oricanluth landed lightly on the grass near the hunting grounds and let his rider dismount. “Do you see them here?” L’das asked as he smoothed his breeches down. His dragon looked around the grounds and the surrounding cliffs but sighed. I do not L’das, but perhaps it is for the best. I am going to go eat now. L’das nodded and waved his dragon off. He stood in place for a moment and then walked towards one of the cliffs where a few female riders were talking. “Hello ladies,” he said as he walked up. They stopped talking and turned to him, smiling. “Good afternoon…” One of the women said, trailing off. “L’das, and I hope I’m not interrupting anything important.” The woman shook her head and said, “Of course not L’das. I’m Oya, rider of green Lesereath and the others are Elisa, Mikaya and Nyra.” L’das said hello to them all and then Elisa said, “I have not seem you around here before now L’das, did you transfer recently?” He shook his head and said, “No I Impressed here actually, I’ve just been kept extremely busy.”

“So which one is yours?” Oya asked after exhausting almost every other topic that could come to mind. L’das scanned the grounds and found his dragon sitting by a small group of greens, eating a small herdbeast. “He’s the blue within that group of greens there,” he said, pointing to his blue.” Nyra nodded and said, “Oh really? My Doraeth has taken quite a liking to him. She informs me that he is good with his words.” L’das laughed and said, “Yes that is very true. He surprises me at times with how well he can twist his words and enchant even myself.” Elisa giggled and asked, “Will he be entering any flights soon? My green, Caiith, is rising soon and would love to have him try to catch her.” L’das smiled and said, “I wish it could be so but he is only a weyrling, and not ready to enter such a physically draining test as that.” Oya raised an eyebrow and asked, “He’s only a weyrling? He could have fooled me with his charm.” L’das nodded and said, “Yes he’s very… mature for his age.”

An hour later L’das sighed and said, “Well I must be going. Both me and Oricanluth have a long day tomorrow.” The girls bid him farewell and then went back to gossiping among themselves. “Ori, let’s go,” he called to his dragon. The blue looked towards his rider and snorted saying, Must we? L’das nodded and said, “Yes, if you stay out anymore you’ll be dead for tomorrow’s training.” Oricanluth sighed and glided down to his rider. As he mounted up he said, Those females are very nice. May I enter their flights when I am old enough? L’das laughed and said, “We’ll see.”