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News of the clutching had come quickly across the Weyr, and fastest of all to the dragonriders. And who better to find such news out first? From the very moment that Moth had uttered that Ariath was beginning her laying process, Farin quickly threw off her clothes, and rushed to get more presentable garb on. She didn't anticipate being needed, but there was much to do, and most of it involved keeping candidates out of the Queen and Weyrwoman's hair.

The green rider paused for a moment to slip a dark hand behind her head, and pulled back a mass of curly blond hair. She tied it loosely with a strap of brown leather, and it fell down in a lumpy mass at the nape of her neck. It wouldn't be too hot on the sands yet, but the hatching grounds themselves seemed to radiate heat whenever she visited.

You better hurry, or all the other dragons shall know how many there are before I. Moth rumbled pleasantly from the ledge. Farin darted an eye quickly in her direction. The green was looking quite brilliant at the moment, but mostly it was due to the bright sunlight reflecting on her skin.

"You won't come?" Farin added, pulling on a loose green shirt and hitching a small belt around her waist.

Moth rumbled pleasantly, and turned her head. No love, I'll see the eggs at the hatching. The Queen would not like my presence anyways; this is a very quiet time.

The rider nodded. In fact, even she questioned exactly how welcome the she would be at this point. But it would not do not to at least make herself accessible. The last thing she wanted was for the other rider's to grow an opinion that she holed herself up and did not come out for anything.

No one thinks that of you. Moth yawned, and shifted her position on the rocks.

Farin simply shook her head, and pulled on one last article of clothing. She stumbled as she hooked the last loop of her boots, before quickly extricating herself from the weyr. As soon as the door to the rocky apartment closed, the green turned her attention to the bowl. Pleasantly, she added a low bellow of happiness to the Weyr's already bustling inhabitants.

It took only a few moments for the woman to scale down the stairs and out the dusty old door to the main bowl of the Weyr. The green's weyrs were not high off the ground to begin with, and stepping outside and onto the warm pathway, she took one more glance upwards at the green. She was peering down at her, and gave her another pleased bellow.

Although nothing was said, Farin nodded as if something had passed between them. She hiked the collar of her shirt, and spun on her heel, quickly moving down the path and towards the Weyr's hatching grounds. They were an unmistakenable feature of the Weyr, sticking out like an amphitheater from the rocky crevasse.

As she rounded the last dragon length to the enormous structure, as it did take her quite a few minutes to cross the Weyr bowl, she felt a sudden rush of air above her head. She knew it instinctively now, but she did not take the moment to stop. Perhaps not proffering her flitts a perch would drive them away for this occasion. With a stern gesture, she continued her pace towards the hatching ground. As she did, the pair of gold and bronze fire lizards quickly circled her.

She arrived quite abruptly at the entrance of the hatching grounds, moving in swiftly from the lower entrance, and scaling a few steps towards the main dome. She dared not go any closer to the queen, despite her urge to check on the eggs. Instead, she stood at the arch. She could be in view from this position without disturbing anyone, or so it felt from where she was standing.

On either shoulder, Vera and Fleckin settled themselves. Both oddly quiet, they behaved with one another, their bright blue eyes focused directly upon where the Queen was, although they saw nothing.

Emoraan had thrown all of his weavers into the hard work of making clutching clothes and now the day had arrived. Hastily, customers came and gathered their clothing, then rushed off to the sands. He was pleased with this work and knowing that the stitchings would hold in all the excitement.
Nestren had gotten word of the clutching from others rushing past him. For the first time since coming to the weyr, he was anxious and excited. It was not the Hatching, but still...you could not have a hatching without a Clutch! Throwing on one of his cleaner shirts and pants, Nestren practically leapt towards the Sands.

He was not the first one there, nor was he the last. In fact he had arrived with a small group of people...all central to the running of the weyr. Everyone spoke in excited, hushed tones. How many would the Queen lay?

Counting quickly, the former hold boy almost clapped his hands together at the five or six large eggs that were the closest to the crowd. A clutch could vary greatly depending on Fall and Flight. Rias was not a small weyr and if too many were produced, some would be sent to fight in the Northern wings. Happy at the chance to see the clutch up close, Nestren headed back down to the Candidate quarters. There would be much to talk about tonight. No need to be on the sands, especially when the gold completed her duty.

Emoraan had one of the greens fly him to the sands. He was disappointed that the Weyrwoman did not wear the new dress he made for her...but these things rarely went as planned. She would still have the dress for the Hatching, that was an event that could almost be counted on to go smoothly. Giving everyone else a quick glance to check on his hall's work...he wondered how many apprenticemen or journeymen he would lose to the dragons...

The brown dragon shifted from where he had been lying on Ariath's ledge; the smooth, sunwarmed rock keeping him asleep longer than he should have been. Today appeared to be like any other, the great male dragon lying in a rather lazy posture with large wings tucked against his sides and tail curled about him. The weather was fine - as it usually was - clouds scuttling about above his head and other dragons skimming across the bowl. Every now and then a faint squeal of a frantic herdbeast could be heard as it was singled out by a hungry dragon, the sound not affecting Tallith in the slightest.

He was content.

Then along the fogginess of his mind he heard Ariath's voice, a pleasant and beautiful sound that he found rather pleasant to wake up to. The brown beast stirred, opening whirling blue eyes as he raised his head a little, canting it questioningly. Ahh so it was time! A great swell of pride filled his chest, as he raised his body upwards, with a few powerful strokes of his mighty pinions he parted his jaws and bugled. The sound erupted all around, startling herdbeasts into a frantic run as he announced his excitement of the event that was occuring. His Ariath would finally be able to prove how perfectly right their pairing had been, perhaps this would be enough to alert his rider to the wonderful position he had been put into.

He replied first to his Golden One, roar turning into a pleasant croon as he padded over to the edge of the rock he had been lying upon, claws clicking upon it's smooth surface. I shall be there soon when I have given L'cian the news. The dragon chuckled lightly and closed his eyes as he communed with his other half.

I have news, rider dear. Tallith spoke, a teasing tone to his usually solemn voice that mirrored L'cian's own.
Can it wait? I'm busy looking over something right now.
You shall never change. The dragon mentally sighed, rolling his great eyes and extending his wings leisurely. Would you change your mind if I said that Ariath is clutching?

~~~

L'cian choked violently on the mouthful of klah that he had been at that moment trying to swallow, backing up away from the many important documents that had been laid out before him. That dragon of his knew how to pick his timing, that was for sure!

"Shards!"

He reached for a rag, wiping his hands and mouth before standing up, ignoring the fact that he wasn't as presentable as he could have been before turning and dashing from his weyr. Dark strands of hair were askew - made worse by his run to the hatching grounds - grey eyes bright with excitement and nervouness. This was it; the day he had been dreading and wanting at the same time, it would prove many things which would either prove him as worthy or as a disgrace.

He heard his dragon's huff and apologised quickly. No offense intended old friend but you know what I'm like. Are you already at the hatching grounds?

On my way there now Weyrleader. The dragon hummed pleasantly, the title being used as a reminder of what L'cian had become.

~~~

The two arrived simultaneously, Tallith bellowing as he descended into the grounds, great sweepings of his wings bringing up small swirls of sand as he met with the ground. He kept his distance, not wanting to crowd his Queen in this important time. He did however take on a protective stance, eyeing all who came near with suspicion and snorting loudly if someone came a little too close for his liking.

Stop that Tallith, they only wish to see your Queen's eggs. They won't take them. L'cian laughed as he slowed to a quick walk, moving swiftly across the hot sands, eyes scanning for Ephia. She was sure to be around here somewhere, and most likely near Ariath. Then he saw her, the ebony-haired Weyrwoman who was focused on the eggs that were being kept safe by the gold. He moved to stand beside her, raising a hand to touch her lightly on the shoulder.

"How many so far?" He asked in a lowered voice, the tone bordering with excitment and anxiety as he scanned the smooth shapes of the eggs. He counted five so far, but were there more being hidden that she had seen?

~~~

Carella too had been passing by when she had been alerted by the brown's bugle and suddenly the corridors were full of excited people. Too shy to stop and ask any of them she followed the crowd, listening on on the few words. Something about eggs and a clutch. So had the Queen finally started laying? It was then that she too found herself whirled up in the excitement as she followed the others, hoping that she might be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the eggs herself. It would be something for her to write back to her brother about that was for sure.

Kirana wandered down towards the Hatching Ground, ink, quill, and skin in hand, glancing through the crowd for someone that didn't look like a desperate candidate. Verde creeled softly, leaping off of Kirana's shoulder and trying to mingle through the crowd towards the Weyrleader and Weyrwoman. "VERDE!" Kirana exclaimed in a hiss, frowning. She wasn't about to run after her...and Verde never listened anyway.

Njaria frowned softly as she glanced out of the barracks at the gathering crowd, shrugging and turning back to massaging Hiresk's useless wingframes. The Bronze Wher had hatched from the egg she had found turning the scavenger hunt, and he'd aged nicely in the few months since then. She'd found herself being...less concerned about Impressing since then, too.

The hustle and bustle surrounding the queen only caused her to curl around her eggs more protectivly just before muscles tensed and another egg was set upon the hot sands only to be hidden away by its mother's tail and wings. No, she wanted none to see her clutch and let them know with deep rumbles in her throat should they come too close. The only ones able to approach the queen had not yet, though their proximity was more near than others dared. Swirling eyes turned to her brown, Tallith. If he wished to move closer she would not object but warnings were sent to the other mighty beasts that had arrived to watch the proceedings. Another wave of tensness washed over her body as Ariath deposited yet another egg.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ephia sighed in aggrivation as Ariath curled tighter around her clutch and the queen had no intention of informing her rider of how many eggs already lay upon the sands. Such concentration upon her queen caused her to jump as a hand connected with her shoulder. Turning to see who it was her startled expression warmed upon seeing L'cian. "I saw five when I arrived and she had laid two more so seven I am aware of, but I get the feeling there may be more hidden by her." Brushing a stray piece of lock which had managed to dislodge itself from the plait hanging against her back she sighed. "Well, my plans for the day weren't all destroyed by this." She chuckled as she turned her attention from L'cian to her queen as yet another egg was set upon the hot sands.

"Now, I only wonder how long we shall wait here until all the eggs are laid." She smiled softly at the prospect of spending the day watching Ariath lay eggs and Tallith sitting by her protectivly while she was with L'cian. Yes, the day was turning out of be quite good in her opinion.

--------------------------------

Little had to be said to the young apprentice as the corridors began the bustle with Weyrfolk. Bits of chatter floating from person to person confirmed the wonderful event of the clutching. Excitment flooded through his body at the prospect of a hatching that would not be too far from this day. Glancing to his Master whom was busy with some numbweed the Healer only laughed and nodded to his apprentice. Xilias wasted no time in joining the crowds that were bustling about the corridors.

Managing to push his way towards the Hatching Grounds Xilias slipped into the stands, opting to sit far from the queen whom looked far from happy with those who were drifitng to close for her liking. Grey-blue eyes scanned the crows, but he spotted the figure that he had been searching for. She wasn't hard to find since she was one of the few who the queen made no hostile movments to.

Ephia appeared to be well and calm. It was a wonderful thing for Xilias to see since he rarely got to set eyes upon his sister anymore. She was far too busy and he wasn't far behind in that department. Studying to be a Healer was quite daunting task but he was enjoying the challenge just as his sister seemed to be enjoying the challenge of running the Weyr. Then agian, she had always been the kind to boss people around...well...him at least. He huffed at such memories and arms crossed in front of his chest, the loose sleeves being pushed up his arms in the process.


(Note: I was too damn lazy to run a spell check, please forgive. LOL)

Out on a gathering, Kalya was in the sky when she heared the news from Tarlith. It looks like our queen has decided to clutch. The smug voice came to her. He swung down to alight on the grouns long enough for Kalya to slip off before jumping back into the air to take his place amongst the other dragons.

Kalya took off at a run towards the sands, hoping that she had not missed too much. Her herb bag slapped against her shoulder and she placed carefully in a shady alcove before hopping over the sands to the seats above. The heat of the sands burned her feet so she hurried over as fast as she could, minding to stear clear of the rather watchful queen. Seeming a lot bigger then she remembered, especially compaired with her Tarl, the gold dragon was actually a little frightening in this high state of agitation. Kalya hurried over to the stands, not wanting to spend too much time dwelling on the eggs until she was a safe distance away, who knows what an angered queen might do!

During the comotion of all the other weyrfolk entering the grounds, Roller decided to materialize with a loud squark and decided to tuck himself around her neck, head firmly in Kalya's hair. Worried that Nicker would soon to follow, with an even bigger ruckus, she decided it would be better to call him first. Unusually, he came, purching on an open spot on her shoulder that wasn't taken by the blue flit. With her two smallest of her brood under her watchful eye, Kalya breathed a little easier. Lithely, the blue dragonrider hopped up the first few steps before looking around at the gathered people. Noticing a few familiar faces she decided on one she had not had the chance to chat to for a while. As she drew close to Lemurrin she hailed him with a wave.



Pulling a thread through a jerkin she was working on, Amanari considered this a very peaceful morning. Both Segan and Leyann were out doing a few chores, well Segan was doing the chores, Leyann would be helping when she could. She thought fondly of the two she was fostering at the moment. The tanner looked over towards the egg that was sitting near the fire. While not quite sure how long watch-weyr took to hatch, she was sure this one was nearing it's final stages of development. Suddenly, hearing a comotion from outside, Amanari looked up from her work as Segan rushed into the room.

"Dragons, Humming! Ephia is laying!" Segan garbled his words in his excitement. before looking contrite when he noticed the expression on Nari's face.

"You mean Ariath, not our Weyrwoman... and where, exactly did you leave your sister?" The tanner frowned, shaking her head slightly at the neglect in his exhuberance.

"She is in the stands already with one of the dragonriders. I asked him to take her up so she wouldn't miss out." He almost hopped from foot to foot partialy apoligetic tinged with a partial impatiance. "You can see for yourself, come out and see the laying." The tall yough almost pulled his foster mother out into the bright sun and the loud noises of the bowl floated towards them.

Nari shook her head and rolled up the jerkin she was working on befor estuffing it into a large pocket of her apron. "I guess I must if I am to find out if Leyann is fine." She grumbled slightly in jest as she almost matched the boy stride for stride towards the sands.