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Eliaza moved on with the tide of other candidates. It didn't seem fair, somehow, to linger too long at any one egg. Then again, she didn't like being rushed along, no matter how much she understood the need. She didn't want to risk Yirath getting upset with them, or the weyrleaders for that matter, but this was a new experience, and there was a large part of her that didn't want to rush through it for anything.

So she found herself reaching out to touch the Green Sea Turtle Egg before she was really close enough. Once she'd laid her hand against the shell, a giggle escaped her. She bit the inside of her cheek and stifled the urge to laugh again, but she couldn't help herself. The dragonet inside this egg was sure to find ways to have a good time, all the time, maybe even when it wasn't appropriate. That could mean it would either be a delight or a terror. Either way, Eliaza's eyes were dancing as she stepped away.

When her fingers grazed the Majestic Angelfish Egg, she sucked in a little breath and straightened up unconsciously. She didn't have the urge to giggle, not anymore. Now she felt like she was under inspection, or standing before her Master, being judged as to whether she'd finished her project quickly enough and with enough skill to merit praise. She wanted, she hoped, for approval and that she held that stolen breath in until she had no choice but to exhale and take another. Oh, I would be honored to be worthy of you, she thought before pulling her hand away and stepping forward again.

To the Emperor Angelfish Egg. It was beautiful. Eliaza couldn't deny that. Her eye had been drawn to it the moment they stepped onto the sands, and it was no less impressive up close. She stayed straight-backed, still hoping for approval, but now it was less being worthy and simply in an effort not to be overwhelmed. She could certainly be stubborn, she knew, and she thought she might have to be in order to keep up with the dragonet inside this shell. Whoever it chose would have to work hard to keep their identity their own and not be overriden by the mind inside. Could she master that challenge? She would have to wait and see.

For a moment Sil looked up and noticed that she was under scrutiny. That Canoe girl. She sighed and rolled her eyes. Honestly. Some people really needed to grow up and learn that the world didn't revolve around them. Take, as a prime example, the Canoe girl. She always seemed to expect special treatment just because she was pretty. Sil wouldn't have been surprised if she jumped into bed with any rider who beckoned.

She was still irritated when she laid her hands on the clownfish egg, but found her irritation fading as her hands lingered on the curved shell. Its position, surrounded by four other eggs, made it a little awkward to touch in the first place, which had irritated Sil somewhat, since these eggs were arranged by their mother, she'd heard, but that irritation, too, faded. Contentment wasn't something she experienced too often, given her nitpicking nature and the fact that no one lived up to her standards, but with this egg she was close. She wondered what it would be like to Impress to a dragon like this.

Before she could become too attached to the idea Sil forced herself to move on to the eel egg. No sooner had she touched it than she felt a very strong pull and a feeling of Mine. Sil raised her eyebrows and stepped back. She barely remembered to stop herself before telling the egg aloud, "I don't think so." Instead she just thought it very firmly. Considering the conviction with which she felt and thought everything, the egg probably got the message even without her concentrated efforts. This egg was like those ones which had tried to dominate her, and she wasn't having any of it, any more than she would submit to domination from an egg.

The last egg, the flamingo tongue snail, was small, and compared to its clutchmates it was so mild that Sil had to be sure she could feel anything at all from its nondescript shell. At length she decided that she was feeling maybe some sort of mild-manneredness. This egg was going to produce a bullied dragon, she suspected, amidst all the stronger personalities of the clutch. She snorted softly. Best of luck to it.

And then...she was done. She moved along after touching the last egg. Nine was such a small clutch, she'd heard. She didn't remember if the last clutch had been larger or smaller. Probably larger, but maybe not. She'd not been there as a candidate, but as a vintner apprentice. She'd been noticing different things. As a candidate, she was now a little dismayed by the small clutch, and as she made her bows and left, the thought stayed with her that the next clutch, if it was even during her tenure as a candidate, could be even smaller. If she was going to Impress, it would have to be here and now.

Tsubari continued on as he watched the reactions of the others. It was a good think he looked when he did, otherwise he would have tripped over the Green Sea Turtle egg. He got his balance in time and leaned down to the buried egg to touch it. That was not..No that was funny. He smirked as he touched the egg, and laughed softly at himself and the egg. Seems like it was to be a joke, hopefully nothing bad happens from this joker. You are going to give Yours a lot of trouble huh? See you soon. He moved on to the Majestic Angelfish egg and sighed. This egg reminded him of Erie and with that he was determined to have this one like him. I hope you put me in a good spot, unlike another you remind me of. He made a soft kissing noise at it and sent a very heartfelt thank you to the little one inside. Whoever you pick, I hope we become friends.

And he moved on, making his way to the Emperor Angelfish egg. He looked at the egg before going to touch it. Well, maybe not touch it. It doesn't seem like it wants Tsubari to touch it with full hand. So with just his fingers placed on the egg, the teen felt the power emanating from it. He shook his head, I hope Yours wants the same as you. And he moved to the next egg. Before he touched the egg he sighed at the small clutch and just as quickly, he pulled straightened his back and went to touch Nembrotha Kubaryana egg. He was taken back by the dominating feeling from it and almost moved his hand, but remember something his mother had said and kept his hand there. Shy? Gentle? Hmm..it could be true for you, even if you want to dominate. He moved on with a gentle pat, two more left.

He looked at the little egg that the other was leaning on. It looked proud to him. Without another thought, he touched it and nodded. This one was proud, probably be a handful for the one Impressed. Don't think yourself to far from your color, some of them might try to knock you down here. He figured a little push of advice might help bring down the feeling, but he was wrong. It seemed to make it that much vainer. He sighed and gave the little egg a pat as he moved back to the eel egg. Told you I would be back. One egg left and I have to leave til you start hatching. With a final pat, Tsubari moved to the last egg. He touched the Reef Triggerfish egg with the forefront thought of why it was by itself. "Why are you uneasy? We wont hurt you," he whispered to the egg. He wondered how long it would take the egg to come to terms with his hand on its shell. He noticed the others leaving and didn't want to linger to long with this egg. Good luck young one. It will get better when you find Yours.

He looked over the eggs again, sighed because he figured he wouldn't Impress to one. At least he had a fall back with the Whers. He smiled as he left, bowing again to the Weyrleaders. Wait until I tell Erie about that one. She will just love that.

Gathered with the rest of the candidates, Kadayon felt the familiar nervous clenching of his stomach at the sight of the eggs. Combined with the heat it was almost enough to make the candidate sick, but thankfully he had yet to lose his lunch (not eating before a Touching spared him that at least). Still, it was hard to remain stationary what with all the nervous and excited energies all the other candidates were giving off, many practically bouncing up and down in an eagerness to touch the eggs. Kadayon, for his part, just looked a little pale. Touchings were… well, he couldn’t say they were his favourite activity but he couldn’t say he hated them either. There was something spooky about letting a dragon get a mental read on you, but at the same time there was something unworldly about being able to get a mental read on the dragon. It was the closest any of them would get to an actual Impression unless they were chosen by a dragon. Kadayon liked having his thoughts to himself, to keep all of his insecurities and ill-will under wraps, and so it was only natural the thought of letting some other creature see that made him unbearably tense. No matter how much he logically reminded himself that the dragons wouldn’t remember him as he was now, wouldn’t seek him out to expose him to the rest of the Weyr, he still wasn’t keen on sharing.

Nevertheless, the boy joined the candidates as they filed onto the Sands, doing his best to look at ease. He made sure to smile if he caught any girl’s eye, recognizing many of them from the lessons. Of course Canoake was there; he didn’t expect any less from her. Winderick made an appearance as well and though Kadayon made a mental note of it he didn’t go out of his way to talk to the other male candidate. Now was the time for the eggs and he didn’t want to think of what the gold would do if they were caught talking. Besides, it would ruin his almost perfect reputation. Straightening his shirt a little, Kadayon bowed before the queen and then turned to face the eggs. If what his mother had said about the young Weyrs was true, this clutch was a small one, dangerously close to the number the Crimson had produced. The boy couldn’t help but allow his thoughts to stray back to their earlier conversation. Would this clutch have the strange colours that appeared in the South? Would the Weyrwoman have to bash the eggs open with a shovel? Kadayon shuddered at that image and forced it away. The last thing he needed to do was make himself sick.

Watching the other candidates in his peripheral vision, the boy made his way towards the Reef Triggerfish Egg, wanting to be away from the main gathering for a little while longer to steady he nerves. Unfortunately, the egg only seemed to amplify his feelings. As Kadayon put his palms on it he felt a distinct feeling of unease, like the dragon was an unsure as he was about this whole Touching ordeal. It was slightly comforting, to know that something else felt like he did, but at the same time he wasn’t about to leave his hands on an egg long enough for the dragon to get a good read. He gave the egg a small pat before removing his hands and heading back towards the main clutch.

The pair of eggs were next, one leaning on the other, and for a moment Kadayon wasn’t sure which he was supposed to touch first. Eventually, he decided on the Nembrotha Kubaryana Egg, running the pads of his fingers down its surface. He jerks his fingers away instantly, however, disliking the almost aggressive feelings the egg gave off. It sparked a small feeling of rebelliousness in the boy and for a moment he almost considered putting his hands back on the shell. Who was the dragon to try and boss him around? He was not about to be told what to do by some scaly creature! With a soft huff, he decided it was better to just ignore this figure of authority in the eggs and move on to the one it was leaning on. He caught himself before he stuck his tongue out at it and forced himself to put his hands on the Nembrotha Cristata Egg instead. Aaah, now this one was better. There was an underlying sense of, dare he think it, vanity in this one’s demeanor. It seemed to be certain that it was the best, no matter how small it was, and nothing was going to change it. A small smile turned the corners of Kadayon’s lips upwards as he stroked this egg with an open palm.

Confidence boosted, he continued on to the center of the clutch where the Emperor Angelfish Egg sat. It was more ambitious than the boy felt comfortable with and he gave it only a careful finger-pat. Judging by its size and temperament, Kadayon had no doubts that there would be some kind of arrogant bronze in there. As much as any boy dreamed of riding a bronze there was something very off-putting about this egg in particular. Let the boys who dreamt metallic dreams have their fun with this one. He would go touch something else instead. Despite the pride emanating off of the Majestic Angelfish Egg, Kadayon only touched it for a brief second, scared off by the feeling of being appraised. It touched a nerve in the boy and he was hasty to find another egg, disliking being categorized by a creature that hadn’t even seen the world beyond its eggshell.

The Green Sea Turtle Egg was next in line and Kadayon carefully ran his fingers over it, fearing a dragonet that was similar to the last one he touched. Where he had expected judgement, however, he only got a very intense silly feeling that seemed to radiate from it. Surprised, the boy nearly let out a squeak but managed to keep it down just in time. Nevertheless he flashed the queen a quick look to make sure that she wasn’t going to eat him and carefully removed his fingers from the egg. Silliness was all well and good but he wasn’t going to linger.

It was more difficult to get to the Clownfish Egg but somehow he managed, reaching over the other eggs to ensure that he would only touch one at a time. Kadayon can feel the tension flowing out of him as he lets his full palm rest against the egg, unable to help but enjoy the feelings it’s giving off. To be so calm and so sure about yourself, even when you were surrounded by eggs twice your size; it certainly was a nice thought. Perhaps the egg was just oblivious to its surroundings, though. It couldn’t know that beyond its egg lay more of its kin, waiting to hatch just like itself. Or could it? It would be a feat indeed if he could maintain such composure even when surrounded by its brothers. Kadayon hovered longer around the egg than any others before remembering himself and moving on.

The Eel Egg was as shocking as the Green Sea Turtle Egg had been, though the emotion was entirely different. Kadayon understood this feeling well. Already he could feel his lip curl a little, knowing full well what it felt like to have to share things he didn’t want to share. How strange, that the very creature that made him so possessive about his things could feel the same way. The boy remained with this egg too, surprised to find that the emotion started to shift towards happiness the more he touched it. An egg that wanted people to pay attention to it and only it. Whoever Impressed this dragon would have quite the handful to deal with, that was for sure. With a sort of strange grin, Kadayon gave the egg one final touch before he changed his course to touch the last egg.

It was with mixed feelings that he laid his hand on the Flamingo Tongue Snail Egg. Calm and polite; a perfect way to end the Touching. Kadayon sent a mental thank you to the dragon inside the egg before he turned and headed back out the way he came. He should have been happy to be done, and indeed he was glad to be moving off the hot sands and back to things more familiar. But at the same time, Kadayon couldn’t help but feeling he had met some very interesting personalities in there. Only time would tell if there was a dragon here for him and the boy still wasn’t sure how he felt about that.