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Another safe Impression. Not to him, but the one who had been chosen was right for the cheerful looking green so that was good. Still disappointing though. You couldn't help but long for those whirling young eyes to turn onto you... That bronze still hadn't picked. Patience was a virtue though. It would decide soon, he was sure, and the agony of not knowing would be over. Taking a steadying breath, Conomor ran his eyes over the unhatched eggs. It was so different, seeing them here as they broke out of their shells with crowds all around to the quiet time of the Touching. He had tried to communicate to each egg - save the gold obviously - all that he was, and all that he wished for in life.

If his dragon was here it would have felt him, and it would come to him. Patience. Relax. One way or another, it would soon be over. There was no point in panic, no sense in fear. What was to come was already decided, and he could do nothing to alter it. Letting the breath out again, the stocky weyrbrat focused on the world outside his own mind once more and waited for the next shell to crack, for the bronze to act. If His was here, the dragonet would find him. He just needed to wait, either for the elation of bonding, or the disappointment of walking away still alone.

At first Nimwae could not quite tell if the dragon was looking at her or the Candidates to either side of her, but she didn't dare break her sight on the dragonet to see if what the other girls were acting like. As the striped green moved, looking almost as if she was going to tip again, Nimwae finally shouldered past the two Candidates in front of her. She would be there to catch the little green should she fall again, and so focused was her thoughts that she hardly noticed when a Candidate was knocked down by the clumsy green. And then..

May you tell them I am sorry? Lernaeth did not mean to. She is very clumsy. The words took a moment to fully register, such was the oddity of having another's thoughts in your skull. But that moment quickly passed, and Nimwae was left with...so many feelings! Not just her's, but also the emotions of the little dragon in front of her. NimwaeMine.

Letting her knees hit the Sands as Lernaeth neared, Nimwae brushed a hand against her watering eyes, letting the other finally touch the head of the dragonet. "She says she's sorry. Lernaeth says she's sorry," the said, not even looking up at the pushed over Candidate. "And I am sorry, too. I'll always be there from now on, I promise!" she murmured, this time to the dragon.

Everything had changed.

First the blue, then the green had Impressed - and still, that bronze was waiting!

Okassis had underestimated the little dragon, he realized with a smirk. He'd decided that the bronze had style, flair, right from the time it had cracked shell - but this was beyond that. This was teasing, testing. This little dragon had one half of the room hanging on its every motion - and it must know it, too. And while other dragons tore out of their eggs, ravenous and nervous and driven by pure instinct, this one was already at home in its own skin. It was in control.

This bronze was, in every sense of the word, special. But did that make it the one? That special one that Okassis had dreamt up, that would match him step for step, that would boost them both to new heights?

Probably not, he admitted to himself. Whatever else this dragon was, it was unexpected, and it was wholly unique unto itself. His imaginations had nothing to do with it.

But it might be better than his imaginings. It might be more perfect than perfection. It might be it.

Of course, until it stopped messing around and hooked up with its bonded, there was no way of telling.

But it was all right. When you saw a good deal, you didn't rush in and force it - you waited for the point at which two sides decided what the other was worth, and when the time came, the conclusion arrived, everyone knew exactly what was on the table. It was a force of nature then, pure simpatico, magnet to steel. And if this one was meant to be - and more and more, Okassis thought with amusement and fondness, this smug little b*****d could really be it - then it would be. Simply because he was there, and it was there, and that was all that the world needed to prove.

He wondered if the boy standing beside him thought the same. Or any of the boys lingering back behind him. Certainly not the one who had jeered them for stepping out of the crowd.

Then Okassis thought that it didn't matter. And it really didn't. All he wanted was his chance, and he was getting it; what was in the heads of others had nothing to do with it.

All he had to do was sit there, smiling confidently and watching the little bronze raptly, and wait for it to make its choice.

Notos only watched, taking a seat. A seat in the back would've been nice actually. A place for him to lean against, like a solid wall. But the action couldn't be seen as well from there as up close. Like the actions of the green for instance, Notos told himself. He knew that the green had chosen a female, since there was sorts of commotion over there.

His gaze strayed once more, to the bottom of the sands, where the large group of boys still remained. they were still waiting for the bronze, it appeared. They probably had the best vantage point, being the closest there. But a dragon would choose a Him, no matter where he was. Front or back, did it matter?

He observed the head leader of the bunch, idly wondering if he should greet him sometime later. The boy was so confident, it was practically oozing out of him. That smirk, and posture explained it all. This was the same person that had broken the traditional rules.. not that Notos disagreed with him. But Notos took his gaze away with a grin. he could definitely see that boy getting slapped one day.

Had Mo actually got to know a few of her fellow Candidates more than just 'that guy' and 'that girl' she might have actually been excited to see some of the Impressing. As it was, she was simply watching a bunch of dragons make their way towards people she didn't know. Somehow the Hatching had lost quite a bit of its excitement now that H'dek wasn't here. A part of her – a very small part – replied that the Hatching would be much better if she made a new friend and got to watch him or her Impress. The larger part told the smaller part to shut up, and that was the end of the mental battle. Mo's inner fights rarely turned to wars.

She jumped when she was grabbed, turning her head sharply to see who was trying to pick a fight. Hatching or no Hatching, she wasn't going to let someone push her around just to get a little closer to the eggs. They could go find other Candidates to shove around. The girl who had grabbed her, however, seemed rather apologetic. Mo scowled for a moment as her brain cells attempted to put two and two together. An accident? Was that why she was apologizing? Well…. She supposed it was alright then. "It's fine. You tryin' te get te the front or somethin'?"

~

H'dra was once again in the back of the stands, doing his best to look like he belonged here. Dievath seemed to be growing bigger every day, and before long he was sure that they would no longer be Weyrlings. Personally he didn't think he was ready for the responsibilities of a full-fledged rider, but his blue assured him that they would absolutely awesome. Somehow, H'dra still wasn't reassured.

Having so many people around him made him understandably nervous, however he sat up tall in his seat despite his nerves. He would not lose face in a place like this, not when F'sey could hear about it. Now that the greenrider was a Weyrlingmaster he had even more reason to make sure he didn't make a fool of himself. He would never forgive himself if he got in trouble with his mentor.

The bluerider was shaken from his worries when someone came and sat next to him. He looked up sharply, surprised, only to realize that it was someone he knew. Zara had come to the Hatching! "Yes miss Zara!" He squeaked, a shy smile forming on his face. "You Impressed a blue at the last hatching, didn't you? I don't think I got to say congratulations." He noted the name of the blue when Zara said it. "Dievath is doing very well thank you. He is very happy that you Impressed a blue."

Clearly, Mal had to meet more people. He didn’t recognize the boy that the Green had Impressed to. Not too surprising, considering all of the sharding latrine duty. Well, that was the nice thing about this Hatching! Once it was over, Mal would be able to socialize again! Aeron was better trained now, or at least he no longer flung himself at stranger’s boots.

Speaking of Bronzes, another one broke free from his shell, a fact that his brother did not seem to appreciate. Or maybe it was the fact that his tail was nudged that wasn’t appreciated. Either way, it looked like a rivalry was brewing amongst the two brothers, as they both tried to prove themselves to be the bigger dragon.

If the Candidates were lucky, the dragons would challenge each other to see who would Impress first. That would solve at least one problem in Mal’s mind. Or maybe it was a challenge to see who could take longer.

Two bronzes on the Sands at the same time? Oh, Shards! Okassis's eyes widened, realizing that this might be troublesome. The two seemed to have hit each others' nerves right off the bat. The posturing would have been funny, if it weren't for the possibility that the dragons could get distressed. For a moment, Okassis tried to imagine what he'd do if they broke into a fight - if there was anything he could do, other than get ripped up in a dimglow move that would see him kicked out of the Weyr for sure--

But the Queen could manage her children, he was certain enough. She wouldn't let them quarrel to such a point that either might be in danger of hurting one another, or going between. Inhaling, he forced himself to remain relaxed. Two bronzes - that was a blessing. They didn't need everyone getting jittery and nervous.

But it was worth being wary of that second one, he decided - the Death Adder dragonling looked like he might be a bit mean-spirited, and Okassis didn't think he wanted to be standing in the way if he made a charge. Ever so subtly, he adjusted his posture - unplanting his feet, keeping ready. But not moving back, not one sharding inch.

Another bronze. Ariaen was slightly worried about the first bronze, who wasn't impressing. Maybe he'd been waiting for his brother? Or just wanted to start a rivalry with him before he impressed? Who knew.

She looked around, then at the remaining eggs. Not long till she could go back to sleep now...