The sound of rocking eggs was clear, along with the soothing and relaxing, but extremely encouraging, thrum of the dragons all around - the Senior Queen's brassy thrum the loudest. At a pleasurable croon from the queen, and a knowing broad smile from the Weyrwoman, the first egg shatters. A small brown dragonet appears, shrugging off his shell and creeling to the world his hunger. A proud rumble from the largest of the bronzes, the sire of the clutch, Treyath is heard as the brown heaves himself to wobbly legs. The brown tilts his head, gazing with whirling eyes at each candidate. With a decided snort, he hobbles over to Geotat. The young man smiles broadly, and after his eyes glaze over from conversing with his dragon, he looks and the stands and announces, "His name is Omarath!"

The next eggs to crack are three large ones, each revealing a bronze of differing size. One of the bronzes, a smaller one - probably just bigger than a large brown - creels first, pushing past his brothers to tower above his chosen. Yearn looks up at the bronze with pride, and speaking to his bronze aloud, his smile grows, "Well Smaith, you'll show 'em, won't you?" The larger of the three bronzes walks steadily and surely, already having control over his limbs, toward his lifemate. Siralwyn looks up at his bronze, then turns to the candidates around him and announces his dragons name, "Verelith!" The third bronze, between his brothers sizes, seems to not be able to find the one he wants. With a whining snort, he plods towards the boys and uses his head to shove the ones he doesn't want away. The bronze finally stops beside one young man and croons with pleasure. His eyes whirl faster, and tints of blue can be seen in hunger-made red eyes. With wide eyes Degarmo looks up at the bronze before a smile appears. He reaches out with an assured hand and rubs the bronzes muzzle, "I'll feed you Bevometh, don't worry."

With a last glance toward the leaving bronzes, all eyes turn back to the eggs. With a loud crack, six eggs split. The first to crawl from their shells are two sturdy greens followed by three blues, and another green. The first two greens are the first to Impress, having been out of their shells seconds before their siblings. The greens part ways, one going over to the huddling group of girls, and another to the group of boys. The first of the two greens to Impress trumpets loudly along with Jerancoa shouting at the same time his green trumpets, "Hyrilath!" The other large green snorts in disgust of the girls and begins to turn away. With a scowl, Oenone stomps up to the green, "Faith, you snob! There has to be someone good enough for you!" With a pause, and widening eyes, Oenone realizes what she just said and smiles at the green. Motioning with her head, Oenone speaks again, this time with love, "I'm glad you found someone good enough. Lets get you something to eat." The largest of the blues, though not able to challenge the previous brown's size, snorts sand from his nose and wobbles quickly over to the candidates. His wing ends up dragging on the sand, and with a flap, he's stepped on his wing and taken a nose dive into the sand, collapsing at the feet of a young woman. Myrinal gasps in shock and falls to her knees despite the burning sand to cradle the blue's large head in her lap. She smiles and sighs in relief as the blue warbles, "I'm so glad you're alright Yendrith." The other two blues, having been squabbling while Myrinal made Impression, finally realize the candidates hopeful stares their way. The lighter shaded blue stumbles forward, barking draconically at Ganon. Ganon chuckles at the blue's commanding, and steps forward to rub his eyeridges, "There. Is that better Dorth?" The darker shaded blue turns his head and snorts at the boys, dismissing them. With odd glances, the boys seem to wonder just what was happening - a blue refusing them? With a swift glance Samatem struts up to the blues head and looks at the male candidates as they stare at her. She smirks, glancing up at the blue, "What would Shiseith want with you lot, anyway?" The last green, who had only just rid herself of the cumbersome shell, walks as if drunk, not sure how to use her legs just yet. She yelps as she tips over sideways and rolls, landing on her back, crashing into the back of Erik's knees. Erik turns his head to look questioningly at the thing that just knocked into him, and smiles seeing the dragonet. With a sorrowful croon the green tries to right herself. Erik manages to stand and reaches out to the green helping her up, "It's alright Nenialth, no harm done. I'm just fine." Satisfied with her riders answer, she croons and leads the way out.

As disappointed sighs arise from the candidates as no more look to be hatching just then, they move to sit and wait for the rest of the eggs to hatch. The queen however brings all attention to her as she rolls one of the queen eggs away from the others with a gentle hand. At it's mothers touch, the egg starts to shake violently - it had been shaking before, but no one had seemed to notice other than Naomith. At seeing the egg shake, the girls rush up, only to take a few steps back as the queen hisses. As Naomith's hiss dies away, the egg fully shatters, the newest queen greeting the world with a brassy trumpet, quite similar to her dam's voice. The queen, being very large, turns her head and flicks the rest of her shell off her. With a deadly gaze she examines the girls. With a bark, she lumbers towards the girls, several scattering to not be trampled by the clumsy dragonet. A young woman hurries up to the queen trying to stop the dragonet's rampageous searching. The young queen blinks her whirling eyes and looks down at the woman. Triviara smiles, her eyes glazing over. The young queen stops moving, staring only down at Triviara. The young woman then turns to everyone around her, tears of joy welling in her eyes, and announces softly, "Veralineth doesn't have to search anymore, she found me!" An appreciative applause erupts from the crowd, the first of two possible queens has been Impressed. The applause dies away suddenly as eight eggs seem to hatch one right after the other.

The first three, two browns and a blue, of the eight hatched, separate, paying no attention to each other as they find their lifemates. The brown finds Morrgan, the young man surprised at the sudden appearance of the brown before him. With a triumphant shout, the browns name is announced, "Roketh!" The other blue and brown, followed by four greens, make their Impression next. Rand is approached by the blue, and Ralamar the brown. Ralamar is the first to speak, quite bewildered at the elegant yet strong brown at his side. "Yes, I'm sure Unipoeth, no one but you will have me." Ralamar speaks aloud, looking up at his brown. Rand, at a loss for words, gets an encouraging shove in the lower back from his blue. He swats playfully at his blues head for shoving him, then turns towards the crowd shouting with a grin, "His name is Baroth!" The four greens that had followed their three brothers all march towards the girls. The largest of the group the first to Impress. Miia breaks away from the group of girls to rush up and embrace that green. She's rumored to have whispered into her dragon's emerald hide, "Raginth" Two of the four green dragonets make Impression at opposite ends of the sand, making it hard for people to watch both Impressions. Reggina hugs the light colored green dragonet as Mikaeli rubs her hands on her greens muzzle. Reggina releases her green from the embrace and looks up grinning, "My Foanith!" Mikaeli rests her chin on her greens muzzle, looking into the dragonets whirling eyes and breathes happily, "Nessynith." The final green of the group finally chooses, flapping her wings as she stands in front of her chosen, warbling happily. Meshia smiles up at her green, "Hush Ysalith, there will be plenty of time for singing when I've fed you!" The final of the eight eggs to hatch together is a large blue, easily able to rival the size of a small brown. Zeachilly takes one look at the blue and can't get to the dragonet fast enough. As he slides to a stop, the blue warbles at him, causing him to grin. "Shazith, be polite! I couldn't have gotten here quicker if I had wings!"

As the eight newest dragonriders hurry to lead their dragons off the sand, five eggs decide to show their contents to the spectators. A sturdy bronze, three brown, and a blue are the contents of the varying size of eggs they came from. The bronze shoves past his brothers, wasting no time in getting to the one who is meant for him. He carelessly shoves past many of the boys, a couple ending up on the ground. The bronze finally stops before Staranum, the young man grinning broadly. Without taking his eyes off the bronze he announces his name with one word; "Keith!" The browns all make Impression quickly, one right after another. The first is the smallest, a deep color of brown. He stands before Reskressen and snorts. Reskressen chuckles, "We'll go, we'll go. I won't let you starve Relimonth!" The second is the larger of the three browns, and the lightest in color. Kenallin is the one whom Impresses the strong fellow. The brown nudges Kenallin with his head, and croons. "Cagnaith, right?" Kenallin asks his brown. With the brown's nod, Kenallin turns to the people around him and announces his dragon's name. The third brown, a medium shade and build yawns as he ambles towards Connore, his eyes whirling red from hunger. Connore nods, fairly amazed at the brown, "Yes, yes, I'll feed you Dirteth. You know I need food myself, too." The blue who had been watching his brothers, now gets to looking for his own rider. Daykonu scuffs his boot in the sand, watching the sand displace, and flip a few inches away. As the blue croons, his eyes widen and he looks up, finding the blues muzzle inches from his face. With a wide grin, Daykonu rubs his dragonets muzzle, "Would you try not to startle me again, Telervith?"

With a croon, the senior queen looks down at the second, and final, queen egg. It's oval shape displaces sand as it rolls, leaving a wide track where it once was. As it rolls into another egg, which is also shaking violently, the two split. As a result of the eggs splitting on impact with one another, the small queen lands atop a squirming blue. With a shriek of protest, the blue tries in vain to get out from under his large gold sister, and his golden sister lies there in a daze, wondering just what happened and why the blue is shrieking. One young woman bites her lip, then seemingly decides. She rushes up to the pair of dragonets, and hushes the blue with a gentle hand on his muzzle. The blue still wuffs in agitation, but stops squirming. Jeanee then turns to the gold and speaks with her, "Come on now, up you come. Off your brother, you're hurting him." She pauses. "Yes! Hurting him, that's what I said. Come on, get up." As the gold stands, getting control of her limbs, several other candidates who had crowded around the trio, pull the blue from his spot. As the Weyrhealer hurries across the sand to assist the blue, then gold swings her head to look at the girls. With a shake of her golden head, the young queen turns back to look at the one who had helped the two of them. Jeanee smiles, watching the Weyrhealer help the blue, not really noticing the gaze of the gold. The young queen, now agitated herself by hunger and at being quite ignored by the one she wants, snorts and stomps her back foot on the sand, her tail lashing behind her. Jeanee looks up at the gold and chuckles, "Oh hush now. I am paying attention to you." With another pause, Jeanee's eyes go wide, realizing she's been talking to the gold dragonet. She examines the young queen, "What's your name? Smooth? Come, I'll feed you." As they leave the sand, the blue who had been trapped under the gold gets his medical attention. One young man, Kiriallin, Holds the blue's large head in his lap. "It's alright, he's here to help." Kiriallin looks at the Weyrhealer slather on numbweed here and there where he'd gotten scratches from being laid upon. The blue sighs with a croon, and looks up at Kiriallin. The young man smiles, "Henaveth, feel better?" With a nod, the young man's smile grows. "Good."

The final six eggs split, a blue, four greens, and a small bronze. The blue and two of the greens spot their brother laying in the sand, being helped by the Weyrhealer and a few other candidates, and peer over the candidates shoulders. Skyra bats at one of the greens muzzles without looking, not realizing that it's a dragon who's come up close behind her. As the green continues to inch inward, Skyra turn around to give whom ever continues to push her a piece of her mind. As she sees no human, only the green dragonet, her anger fades instantly. She gazes into the whirling eyes and smiles, "Why didn't you tell me it was you, Liorath?" At glancing up to see Skyra's Impression, Jacinthe realizes that there's a green dragonet peering at the blue who's getting help. She stands up fully and walks over to the green, and before she knows what comes out of her mouth she speaks, "Come on Celyvaith, enough leering over him, he needs air, not you in his face." The blue who had been watching his hurt blue sibling, and his green sister's Impressions, now ambles over to the boys, away from the dwindling group of people around the hurt blue. Murranu locks gaze with the blue, seeing he's wandering, and smiles, "Nenverth? Over here!" The final two greens make Impression with two girls standing near each other. Yamoore chuckles as her green starts examining her wings, flapping them. Rilliora puts her hands on hips as her green stares at her, the girls eyes glazing over. Yamoore turns to the spectators of the hatching and announces her green's name, "Her name is Zaramth!" With a grin, Rilliora caresses her dragonet's chin, "Alright Delonyth, you win. Lead the way, and I'll feed you!" The bronze, now the only dragonet on the sand, and last un-Impressed dragonet in the clutch, lets loose a hunger-caused roar. As several candidates clap their hands over their ears, Rixer stands there arms crossed, "Vhenth, if you'd get your hide over here I could feed you!" The bronze complies quickly with his riders order, and the young man grins.

With a triumphant roar, the dragons of the Weyr loudly and joyfully announce to all of Pern the newest riders and dragons. The riders all grin, and many have tears in their eyes, remembering their day of Impression with their beloved lifemates. And with those memories came the memories of the Hatching Feast. If Headwoman Kila had anything to do with it (and you can bet she would) no one would be hungry that hatching night!