What happened BEFORE?

While Scam and Delpeth practiced flying, Avatar sulked around the weyr. He was meant to stay on the grounds because the other clutches might hatch at any time. So, Avatar set about learning the differences between certain Ryslen dragons. Scam's irridescent brown had no knobs, no tail spade, and no crest. Most of the older Ryslen locals had those things. Some others had markings on their wings... Avatar strolled along the riders' dens and made mental notes about what features might be found on whom.

Of course, all that did was pass some time and alleviate some boredom. It didn't make the eggs harden any quicker, and it certainly didn't bring any new candidates to the sands. Because Avatar had been raised by a Breeder, he was always watching the people around him for traits that might be beneficial to breed. He almost asked the older Weyrwoman, Tiyanni, if she'd be willing to donate any eggs to his collection but then realized that might be a social blunder worthy of throwing his sad tail out of the Weyr.

"I've got the hang of this, now," Scam said, placing his riding harness back onto the pegs on his weyr's wall, and looking around for Avatar. His cousin was nowhere to be found.

He is sulking again. He would really rather have impressed first, you know.

"I know, I know... But he's just got to wait."

He must. Or else his dragon will miss him when they hatch.

"He can't do that. He's still in the weyr, so I'm not all that worried. Let's get us bathed. I want to find a dance partner for the gather next week, and I can't do that if I'm filthy."

I am not filthy, you might be. The dragon said, puffing up. But he didn't balk at bathing.

***

While the months between hatching and weyrling were pretty tame for everyone, there came a time of about one small month's span when every shell on the sands decided to break. And every time, of course, Avatar would be there until he bonded - or until he tired of this game. It had crept into his mind, like it would for everyone else who stood but didn't impress, that he might not be cut out for this after all.

But that would be silly. He stood at Gold Mezireth's hatching - watching some beautiful and odd colored dragons hatch. Without coming to him.

It was for the next hatching, a mere week later, that Avatar started to think he felt something. This was on odd clutch, too, because the female had paired with not one but two males during her flight, so the eggs were sired by different genes.

Several eggs started to crack, showing off a red and blue dragonet. He bonded, then a brown with blue wings paired off. A night-green bonded, and then it looked as though the whole world would stop for Avatar.

The fourth hatchling lay on the warm red sands, basking and collecting his wits. Someone thought this was lazy of him - that he ought to be all excited to be there, and yelled, "go get your rider!" But that didn't make the dragon even flinch.

He was two-colored, like his other siblings, body bronze and wings brown. I think you should get him for me, the dragon told everyone.

Laughing, Avatar said, "You tell them, Kazatith."

I have, and you I tell you, Avatar. We'll have whatever we like, without any effort whatsoever.

"I think that'll do fine." Avatar announced, and plopped down beside his dragon to watch the rest of the hatching. Scam laughed - but knew that there would be much more hard work involved for his cousin and his new dragonet than this.

Later - the Zekirans spoke while Kazatith was slumbering and Delpeth was watching over him.

"So you finally did it," Scam said. "I'm proud of you. Getting a dragon like Kazatith. He's got the size of a bronze, and the laziness of a brown."

"Who says browns are lazy?" Asked one person walking by them, obviously a brown rider.

"That one sure is," commented someone else.

"Kazatith is not brown. He's bronze." Avatar said, almost wanting to sulk or slug someone about these insults to his fantastic dragon. When they got home, they'd be unstoppable!

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