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On to the Orange Stripe Egg for Jadamirei. She moved around another Candidate to carefully run her hands over the egg. She frowned quickly at the sheer displeasure she felt from it. It gave her mild creepy-crawlies up her spine, so she quickly stepped away, wiping her sweaty palms on the white skirt she wore.

She took a step over, placing her hands gingerly on the New Grass Egg. This one made her smile. What secrets did the small egg hold, leaving up against its Queen like that? Like the pink charcoal egg, it gave her a pleasant feeling. It was reluctantly that she pulled her palms away from the egg.

Next, she stepped carefully around the gold egg to stroke the Blue Earth Egg. As she touched it, it seemed to leap, making her start in surprise. Luckily, she didn't make any other noise, but her blue eyes warmed slightly and she pressed her cheek slightly against the active shell. She would most definitely have to find the weyrsinger after the Hatching, they still hadn't had the meeting of the Harper Apprentices to write the piece devoted to Kaveth, Malkai and now to this beautiful clutch.

Stepping back, she started over towards the next egg, again careful to bypass the Queen egg. It did, however, get an admiring look as she stepped around it yet again. Soon. Soon.

Yulu had made for the spicy red egg, and so she followed. It was a large one, her marks would be heavily on bronze had she been seriously betting, and it seemed possessively close to the queen egg... but its tip was pointed away. Did that mean anything, or was it just chance that its mother had nudged it that way? Well, perhaps touching it would answer some questions; it wouldn't be a dragon that chose her pretty well for sure, but she saw no harm in letting it know who she was.

The moment her hand came to rest on the brightly coloured shell, she regretted her decision; it didn't like her at all! Nevertheless, she forced herself to remain in contact with it for a few moments before pulling away from the impatient feeling. Was it just impatient to hatch, she wondered, or would it always be impatient with everything? This would be one to watch on the sands, it might well be one that would charge around hurting people.

Shivering slightly, Layla turned away... and began to feel more relaxed as she looked at the queen egg. That had to be the egg's influence, she never calmed that quickly on her own. Several of the other girls seemed to be saving touching the gold egg for last, but she didn't recall any rules that said you had to. Decision made, Layla stepped towards the shining egg and laid a gentle hand on the shell. As she did so, the feeling of calm intensified thousandfold. A collected, regal queen this one would be by the feeling it gave off. Perhaps she would even be able to keep the dragon inside the spicy red egg from rampaging if she hatched first...

Much as she wanted to linger here, absoirbing the gold egg's calm, she didn't want to get in anyone's way, or to get in trouble to seeming to stay with the queen egg for too long. Smiling slightly to herself, Layla stepped back and tried to decide which egg she should touch next.

The rest of the eggs, with their relatively smaller size and distance from the queen were of less interest to Tarusen. Perhaps, if he'd been alone on the sands, he might have walked off without examining the rest of the clutch any more closely. But there were observers and he wasn't one to lose face by appearing dismissive. No, it was best that he made the full rounds. Besides, if his bronze was in this clutch, and he wanted to believe it was, it'd be best that he was at least passing familiar with his dragon's clutchmates.

With that comfortable thought, he leaned to stroke the Three Spots Egg, enjoying it's interesting patterning even as it's size failed to impress him. It's amusement was pleasing, especially after the relative irritability of some of the eggs he'd touched so far. He let himself smile, gave the egg a gentle pat, and moved on.

The Blue Earth Egg, next to be within reach, he nearly lingered over. Sure, it didn't promise anything larger than a very small brown, but it seemed so happy to have him around. Though he'd never admit it, Tarusen had not yet forgotten what it was to be treated as an annoyance and he could not help but take pleasure in those who enjoyed his closeness. But, nevermind. This would not be his dragon. Nice, but not meant for him.

The Grey Speckled Egg only got the briefest of touches before he removed his hand and took the extra caution of stepping back. Laziness, sleepiness, those things were not for him. Let someone else have life pass them by. He was going to grab it by the throat.

Seen as it was right beside the queen egg she had just stepped away from, Layla moved to crouch beside the new grass egg. Small, blue she had reckoned on but it could easily be green, and pressed close against its large sister. She understood the desire to do that, to get closer to the comfort the gold egg seemed to give out. Smiling a little to herself, she ran a hand gently over the shell... Oddly, she wasn't really sure what she was getting from this one. Did it have that same calm aura as the gold, or was it keeping its feelings to itself, or was she just not attuned to it or something? She hoped that last wasn't so, if she had even felt something from an egg that was pretty sure to be brown or bronze then this one which had to be green or blue must have something serious against her to close her out...

Or maybe it was just too focused on the large egg it lent against to bother with her, or with any other candidate. Yes, probably something like that, it would have no reason to dislike her, she hadn't even met it yet!... Maybe it scorned her for what it could feel coming from her. Maybe it wanted a strong rider, not a shy little mouse like her.

Feeling somewhat discouraged, Layla removed her hands from the shell and straightened up again. She was probably wrong, probably it had nothing against her at all, and the lack of feeling was due to one of the other things she'd thought of. She needed to worry less, she'd heard some of the other candidates saying no dragon would choose you if you were too scardy... Could that be true? If it was, she was in deep trouble.

Stepping away from the bright green egg, Layla glanced over at Yulu before making for the orange stripe egg. No sense lingering, she could over analyze and panic some more once she was off the sands.

Here, finally, were the last two eggs in the clutch, the Pink Charcoal Egg and the Streaked Sky Egg. Tarusen lay his hands on both shells at once, meaning, at first, to give them only the most cursory of pats. But the conflicting attitudes surprised him, and almost not meaning to, he let his fingers linger on the shell, considering them.

On the one hand, the pleasant, almost friendly attitude of the Pink Charcoal Egg, on the other the seeming hostility of the Streaked Sky Egg. And yet, when he removed his hands at last, it was the Streaked Sky Egg that he let his fingers linger over just a bit longer. There was something in him, something built, yes, but built so deep as to seem natural. A need to overcome hostility, to charm it. To prove, in the end, that he was worthy, that it'd been wrong, how they'd treated him as a child. In his own, strange way, Tarusen was drawn to the personalities that had once bullied him, drawn by a desire to somehow rewrite his own history.

But, nevermind. This was not, would never be his dragon. He'd ride bronze and this small, if pretty shell, was not for him. As... other things... were not for him. Still, he patted the shell one last time, cordially, as if to remind the hostile inhabitant that he had not been chased away, but was leaving out of choice.

He left the sands smiling, just a bit, sparing one last glance for the larger eggs. This time, maybe. Maybe his bronze was finally waiting.

By now, other girls had gone through and touched the Golden Stag and New Grass Eggs. Canoake smirked at the excitement and chatter. A potential gold rider, a potential dragon rider should try to keep themselves somewhat dignified. Once she was a rider, the buxom teen would make sure that she acted with grace and posture. Just like her daily movements and actions now, everything would be plotted with oh so minute detail and care.

'Best not color the dragon before it hatches,' a catty voice within her nagged. With a shake of her dark brown lockes, Canoake ignored the voice and stepped forward with true feminine confidence. She place both hands on the New Grass Egg first as if to make the queen aware that she was there. This egg gave her a feeling of yearning and reassurance. Like it would not be forgotten even though there was a gold next to her. After all, every dragon was important to Pern, was it not?

"And you are," Canoake murmured in a soft moment, allowing her hands to slide from top to the middle of the egg. Had the scared woman within bonded, just for an instant, with an unborn dragon who just like her didn't want to be left behind. Startled by the truth and strength in the emotion that rocked her, Canoake withdrew her hands and hastily looked around.

Good. It seemed no one had noticed her moment of uncertainly.

With a swish of her skirts, she moved to the side and stared at the golden egg. Canoake truly believed it would be her fate to Impress and with all the right planning and plotting, using the right people, she would get the gold. With a fierce determination, she reached out and boldly touched the egg. No hesitation, no undercurrent of a unsure and scared woman, oh no. This time, Canoake touched the Golden Stag Egg, she was reassured that all would be alright. That everything happened for a reason.

Canoake smiled and wondered why she worried at all? A small chip in her wall that would not take her long at all to patch up and fix. The woman was positive that her time was coming, her star was rising. And all those who doubted her would eat those words. Sliding her hand back and forth, she was reluctant to stop touching the egg but eventually did so. With a bold step backwards, she looked over the other eggs she had missed.

Time was running out and she didn't want to touch all the eggs. As a weyr native and having stood before, Canoake knew that touching didn't always mean Impressing. Which egg drew her the most? Finally she went with the Spicy Red Egg. It was probably a bronze or a large brown but it had drawn her in and the aura of impatience appealed to her.

Patting it as opposed to actually touching it, Canoake almost thought of someone other than herself. After all, this egg may contain a male that might one day dare to chase hers and what she deserved in flight. There was a quiet strength and an eagerness to to prove itself as well. An amusing thought, Canoake gave it a nod of approval and then finally stepped back away from the clutch. Let the others paw and fawn, she was satisfied with how she acted this day.

Hilena barely felt the heat of the Sands as she followed the other Candidates into the Hatching Ground: she was bouncing from foot to foot with sheer excitement. One of these mysterious eggs could hold the future she'd been dreaming of. The Weyrlingmaster's instructions were familiar now, and reassuring. She liked J'ev, his enthusiasm and his laughing tone. She shot him a smile, but he was watching one of the boys and didn't turn her way. She followed the others.

Golden Kaveth loomed above her, shining and imposing, and the new Weyrwoman, no less statuesque, stood nearby. She managed a bow to the pair, but the fine words evaporated out of her head, so she merely smiled and bent lower. She hoped they'd understand, but she could barely breathe from excitement, let alone speak.

The eggs! They were larger than she'd expected, and more beautiful. Such lovely colours, and what would the dragons inside be like? Back at the Hold, she'd helped with pregnant women, felt the kick of the writhing infant against its mother's distended stomach. Would the Touching feel like that, she wondered? Would she be able to feel the dragonets within their shells?

The Candidate training had suggested she was only eligible for the great golden queen egg, so she headed directly for it, but she couldn't resist trailing her fingers against the smaller Grey Speckled Egg as she passed. The shell felt warm and smooth, and she paused to lay her hand flat against it, fascinated. Her nervous energy slipped away as she concentrated on the sensation, rubbing her hand against the shell, almost hypnotised. It was only the heat of the sands through her boot soles that wakened her from the reverie. Awed, she gave the sleepy egg one last pat, then moved on. Nothing like a human baby.

The New Grass Egg was between her and the golden egg, so she ran her hand over it, too. It was a completely different sensation to its grey sibling. She felt an awareness now, a needing? Unable to place the emotion, she let her hands slip away and stepped back.

Giving in completely to curiosity now, she reached for the Orange Stripe Egg. Its unhappiness was like a slap. It resented her? She'd only just got here! Maybe something else was bothering it. She let her hand linger, but the sensation only intensified until she let it drop.

Instead of going ahead to the golden egg, she backed away through the clutch, reaching out to the other eggs first. She was becoming more attuned to the subtle auras each egg was exuding, and wanted to be certain of her awareness before she paid her respects to the unhatched queen.

The Blue Earth Egg was a welcome and welcoming feeling, a delight that made Hilena giggle and splay her fingers wide across its shell, tracing down the green patterning as if she could tickle the dragon inside. Perhaps she could - it wiggled under her touch, the whole egg rocking sharply, deliberately. In the end, she only removed her hands to cover her mouth. Laughing aloud would probably be deemed inappropriate, she guessed, and moved on.

She didn't spend as long touching the Streaked Sky Egg. The negativity it turned on her when she placed her hand was obvious. Poor egg, she thought, it was such a pretty colour to be so stand-offish. Pondering this, she touched the Pink Charcoal Egg beside it. Such opposites! It was a sweet feeling, but a little overbearing. It counteracted the previous touch, though.

Following the other candidates around the clutch, she reached the Three Spots Egg next. She knelt down and placed her hands on two of the bright spots, letting the warmth soak into her palms. She felt the humour in the egg, could almost imagine the lowest white spot tilting into a knowing smile. An echoing smile played on her own lips.

Only two eggs left now. The Spicy Red Egg seemed to be guarding its queen, and when she reached out to it, it made its impatience clear. It seemed to have no time for her at all. Or maybe, she thought, it was just in a hurry to break shell. It must be terrible for the dragonets to be so enclosed for so long. But the shells were already hardening, the Sands burning to bring them closer to Hatching day. At least it wouldn't have to wait much longer.

For the second time, Hilena turned towards the The Golden Stag Egg, this time with no other distractions or excuses. It seemed irreverent to reach out to this future queen, but she had touched all the others, and it was, after all, the reason she was on the Sands at all. Breath unexpectedly hitching, she laid her palms gently against the shining shell. And let out the held breath on a sigh. This queen did not begrudge the touch or wish it over. Its serenity smoothed away Hilena's concerns, and when she finally lifted her hands, moved away from the clutch, it was a far calmer and more thoughtful girl than had first entered the Sands.