A'ao sits down on his bed looking at a painting his mother painted. Dreams of the past came streaming into his head.  Ayao's parents had died when he was just a boy leaving him no where else to go but to and orphanage. There Ayao was taunted and teased about his one true dream of one day becoming a dragonrider.
One day a searchrider K'rland who had been injured and could no longer ride adopted Ayao. This put Ayao one step closer to his dream.  K'rland taught him all the values of riding, and Ayao shone with great potential.
Being a former search rider,  K'rland knew that Ayao would make a good candidate. He heard of a clutch at the Valley Weyr and sent Ayao to the weyr.
There everyone liked him at once and knew he would impress a Bronze, and soon Ayao found himself thinking the same he was going to prove the other boys at the orphanage wrong. A sure enough he impressed Bronze Garanth.
A'ao  looked over to the dragons couch where his great bronze was sleeping. Curled up beside him was a smaller bronze, his firelizard Yuil. Yuil was from Dragon Fang Weyr. A'ao had not meant to impress Yuil, the little bronze had just followed him home from a visit to the neighboring Weyr.

A'ao set down his mother's painting. Back to work, he thought. Ever since his bronze had caught the gold Ziarrath in her first flight, his position as Weyrleader of Valley Weyr had been full of hard work. This work would be dull, recording the harvest this season. Weyrwoman Ulania, who had to read back over his records often complained of his handwriting. Grinning, he tried to write as messily as possible.