[G] [C] 733.12.21 | Gotta Touch 'em All! [Touching]

This was not the first group of candidates J'di had led onto hot sands, but in her experience, the first bout of misbehavior at a Touching session usually came from one of the human children- not the gold who'd laid the clutch. She directed a narrow-eyed look at the exuberant gold as she chattered so loud the most mind-blind lout could hear her.

Okalinath is simply excited. Her blue soothed, projecting quiet amusement. She is young, and will settle.

I suppose. At least the rider was quick to take her dragon in hand. She would, however, make a mental note to mention Okalinath's energy to her colleague in warning before he brought his half of the class.  J'di inclined her head in acknowledgement of Kahleena's apology and turned to address the candidates now that their attention wasn't being stolen by a big gold dragon.

"Alright, listen up and I'll make this quick." She announced briskly. There were, fortunately, a lot of experienced youths in this group, so she shouldn't have to repeat herself. "Most of you should know how this works by now. Be well-behaved, don't crowd, don't even muss the shine on the shells." Not that they shone, except possibly the gold eggs, but why ruin a fine warning with a technicality? "Anyone who acts up will have their ass booted out of this egg touching and be subject to further punishment later, subject to the nature of the offense and just how much it has pissed me off."

She leveled a sober stare around at her charges and, once certain the warning had reached their ears if not their brains, continued in a relatively softer tone. "Be prepared for extremes of emotion when touching an egg. Young dragons are not always always careful in what they project. Both clutches are available for touching today, and you may touch as many or as few as you like- though you must touch at least one! Females only ought to approach the gold eggs." Faranth almighty, she shouldn't need to say that, but it seemed like there was one boy in every class that needed the obvious spelled out.

With the last instruction delivered, J'di stepped off to the side and nodded permission for the main event to commence.

Touching.. The touching was today and Ameris trembled with nervousness. Not from the actual process of touching, for all her failures she enjoyed them immensely. No. Her nerves stemmed from her multiple failures and the fact that she could very well fail here as well. She wiped her sweaty palms on the dress she'd donned for the occasion as she filed onto the hot grounds with the rest. She was thankful she'd left Mud with Rislan or she would've had to chase the little brown around the hatching sands to keep him still, she had no doubt.

The scene that greeted her when she finally made it on to the sands was one that wrung a giggle from her throat. She glanced around to be sure no one realized the bright happy sound had come from her before glancing at the eggs once more. Okalinath was not the kind of gold she had expected to find. Instead of the fiercely protective mother she had been expecting the golden dragon all but bounced in place as she scurried about her hardening eggs rearranging them to her liking.

Another giggle erupted from her as Okalinath snuffled and sniffed each candidate, blurting out advice to them all. No.. Definitely not what Ameris had expected in the gold but a welcome relief to be sure. She glanced quickly to where Krypth lay amongst her own clutch, an old hat at such goings on before she remembered what her father had insisted. Do not touch any egg but the golds. We can not take the chance that another will chose you, he had growled at her and after a long argument she had finally given in. At the memory a bit of the nerves surged and a bit of the happiness she felt dimmed.

She smiled at Kahleena as the girl came to collect her exuberant dragon, all the while wiping her palms on her skirt. She listened with half an ear at the instructions of Jayedi, she'd been through enough of these to know a thing or two. Sighing as the female weyrlingmaster finally finished, Ameris made her way towards the eggs that would hopefully hold the two gold hatchlings. Never could tell if the color would be on the mark, but it looked to be a sure clue.

Kneeling, she reached out a hand and touched first the gold egg of Okalinath's clutch. She did nothing for several moments, she'd long ago given up speaking to the eggs, instead just allowed her soft hand to lay gently against the hardening shell. With a sad, shy smile Ameris stood and moved to back away from the egg.

---

Kowtow

Peorray shuffled onto the sands with the other candidates, only to stop and stare at the prancing gold. Okalinath was certainly different from Nirinath and Krypth, though she didn't blame the dragon for wanting to show off her babies. Faranth knew she was bad enough with Soren.

She winced slightly when Kahleena reprimanded her dragon, feeling sorry on the dragon's behalf. If she'd been scolding her dragon in front of others, she'd have done it privately, over their own link. This reminded her of her brother blaming their young canine for stealing their dinner when it had been his responsibility to keep the pup tied up and out of such mischief in the first place.

She listened patiently to the Weyrlingmaster, less nervy than she'd have been if she hadn't been through two clutches already. The rules basically amounted to 'don't be stupid' and she could do that. The time to be nerve-sick would come later, with the whole Weyr watching and a new golden hide stalking the sands.

When the lecture finished, Peorray sized up both clutches and struck out across the sands for the smaller set. With all the Okalinath drama, the quietly experienced Krypth was looking rather nice at the moment. She took a moment to admire the sunlight shades for of her target egg before unhesitatingly laying a hand on its shell. Let's see what there is to see, eh?

[Spoiler=OOC]

Sacrifice Egg

Kowtow – (Ameris)
You feel something soft and pulsing in your mind. It begins to beat faster and stronger until it matches exactly your own heart rate. For a moment, your feel as if you and the embryo inside are one and the same. And then you feel nothing. It has drawn away. {Desc. by Banana}

Sacrifice – (Peorray)
When your fingers come in contact with the egg, a blanket of curiosity wraps you tightly, preventing any movement as the dragonet thoroughly examines you. Though frozen, you hear the chirping mind reassure you that you will not be harmed, only inspected, before returning to its quizzical scrutiny. As the curious egg releases you, pleased by your willingness to be explored, it trills a cheerful farewell. {Desc. by Lauren}

N'kal had risen early that day, the scheduled touching of Torath's eggs, as the bronze beast put it they were at least half his, had kept the rider up half the night. He didn't know why he was so anxious about it, he hadn't fertilized the massive clutch of eggs. He was less then cranky, but he was't quite ready for laughs, smiles, and chuckles either. When are you ever ready to laugh?, came a less then amused question from a less then happy Torath. 'Oh hush. And stop being so grouchy..it's not like you and we only have room for one grouch in this duo.', he said, attempting to lighten his bonded's mood. Torath snorted at him and said, You wouldn't be happy either, if it was you're children people would be putting their grubby hands all over.... N'kal just rolled his eyes as Torath paused in his grumpy behavior just long enough to nuzzle Okalinath when she pranced around and licked his cheek. He was so very proud of her, and proud that he had sired her clutch. N'kal felt there was far to much pride bouncing between the two dragons for his to handle.

N'kal eyed his dragon and shook his head. His children indeed. Like that was ever bound to happen. He pushed that thought from his mind, eyeing the beast from where he was curled up, not too close to the clutch, and definitly not near Krypth's, but still close enough to the gold egg that he was IMMENSELY proud to have sired. His and Okalinath's cluth was in his opinion the pride of Katila and one could easily tell his pride by the way he lay there, head held high. Yes..he was definitely overdoing it in the pride department, had N'kal been a woman he might have blushed with embarrassment much like Kahleena tended to do. If Torath was upset by Okalinath bouncing around the clutch it did not show, he knew she was excited, knew she would never harm their children. He trusted her completely, it was the humans that were to touch them he didn't trust or care much for. 'Stop it...', N'kal warned gently at his grumbly dragon. 'Everything will be fine, they will be gentle with the eggs, you will see.' Torath rumbled at him, still not convinced, as he watched Okalinath bound around her eggs, rearranging them for whatever reason, while N'kal watched her from the corner of his eye, and though he trusted her as well, he still flinched a bit every time she bounced near the eggs.

Eggs and dragons aside, hewas feeling a bit awkward at the moment, sitting there on the sands eating his morning meal with Kahleena. The girl always made his feel awkward, like if he spoke to loud or moved to fast she would break and dissolve into a fit of blushing and or tears. He took the offered stack of toast with a nod and a half smile. He took a bite of toast and a swallow of klah, he needed to be more awake for this event or he might not make it through it any more gracefully then Torath who was huffing and puffing, stopping only occasionally to watch Okalinath then went right back to being grumpy. N'kal, downed his klah and refilled the cup giving a slight sigh, eyeing the girl who had seemed to come into his life from absolutely nowhere, and didn't seem to be going anywhere anytime soon. She still amused him, but she didn't seem to blush quite as often as when they first met so he took that as progress toward being friends at least. Oh..considering her a friend finally?, Torath asked, suddenly amused with his rider. 'Shut up...', was all he said, shooting his dragon an icy glare over his cup as he drew in another swallow of klah to wash down another bite of his food.

He had just looked back at Kahleena to ask her something when Okalinath let out a bugle that startled his so much he nearly choked on his klah. Torath was instantly up as well..looming menacingly over the candidates as they entered while Okalinath pranced over to them, more than excited at the arrival of several of the fifty or so candidates that had been needed for the large clutch. He shifted in the sands, a low rumble of warning to those gathered as he moved his body to be sure he could see each and every one of them and his eggs. Where Kahleena ran to save the candidates from her excited dragon, N'kal got up as well, shooting the girl a grin and took off for Torath who's jaw was now parted, sharp teeth glinting in the light as another growl came from from the massive bronze. "Hey!", N'kal shouted up at him, 'Hey now! Stop that you hear me!" To which N'kal received a orange and yellow whirling glare and the snap of teeth that seemed to echo off the cavern walls. "They won't hurt them Torath. Calm down.", he said calmly, and out loud so that the candidates knew he was trying to reassure and calm the dragon, not rile him up.

Why must there be so many of them!? They better not hurt them!, he snapped his teeth again and flared his wings sending sand flying. "Enough!", N'kal had had enough of his bad behavior and meant for it to stop. Glancing around he saw Kahleena had managed to reel in Okalinath, who was rather sulky as she came toward Torath. He shielded his eyes from the upheaval of sand that occurred when Okalinath dropped beside Torath, who nuzzled her gently, his sour mood almost instantly better in the golds presence. N'kal narrowed his eyes at both of them, then turned and headed back across the sands, his dark eyes still narrowed slightly as the candidates were instructed on what to do. He came to stop by Kahleena, sighing a bit and trying not to appear quite as savage as the unhappy dragon he was bonded too. He also didn't want to upset Kahleena, then the irony of that thought struck him as he looked over at his dragon and Okalinath, then looked down at Kahleena. Both of them, beasts tamed by females. He rubbed a hand over his face, shaking his head at that. After a moment he spoke quietly to Kahleena. "Are we going to survive this?", nodding toward the pair of dragons, one annoyed one sulking, with a bit of a grin.

Ryvian felt like he had spent the night drinking and was only now feeling the consequences with his head pounding and mouth so dry. His limbs and back ached a bit as well and that wouldn’t have bothered him so much if he had done something wonderfully naughty the previous night to warrant such a thing. Instead, it seemed like he was coming down with a cold and that just made him want to sulk. He never got sick! Well, it was rare enough to feel like he never got sick. So it made for a pouty, sulky twin that wanted to stay in bed all morning. Unfortunately he had eggs to Touch.

It was hard to be fully enthusiastic over his sixth Touching given how many dragons that totalled that hadn’t wanted him but for Nyvian’s sake, Ryvian was still smiling and doing his best to put a bounce in his step. Perhaps being sick wasn’t too bad after all; it was a good excuse to fall back on when anyone called him out for acting odd.

At the Sands, Ryvian nodded in agreement to the lecture, as he always did, but barely paid attention. He had grown up around dragons and been through enough Touchings that he could tell everyone else what to do and not do. Okalinath prancing over to them, however, was not something he could recall ever happening and counted it as the one thing that could still manage to surprise him at a Touching. He laughed at her enthusiasm and eyed the egg she had said would be a wonderful one for him to Touch but then shook his head. He’d get to it soon enough but Indivara would be with Jada and Krypth at the other clutch and since she was missing out on this one as well, Ryvian wanted to let her see the first few eggs he Touched.

Moving over to Krypth’s clutch with a few others from his class, Ryvian gave a smile and wave to his friend and then focused on the eggs. A bleached and splotchy looking one caught his eye first and Ryvian made his way over to it, leaning over to place his palm on the shell.

---

Jealousy.

The warmth of the egg slid along the palm of her hand as she knelt before it, silent and calm. Just before she moved her hand to come away from the egg a gentle nudge and a soft pulsing began within her mind. It was soothing, that sweet pulse that began to speed up until it echoed the steady rhythm of her heart. Was this what it felt like to have a dragon to call your own? The steady bond? The feeling of joining with another being? Her wonder and slight awe shone in her face as her fingertips trailed the light yellow shell. With a sigh she felt the little one retreat to be replaced with a touch of loneliness. With a sad and shy smile, Ameris stood and moved back away from the egg. A hint of the smile was still evident upon her face as she turned to wait patiently for Peorray to finish with the next gold egg.

Indivara was perched on Krypth’s foreleg, one of her own to each side of the gold dragon’s limb, leaning back against the side of her shoulder with arms folded over her rather obnoxiously large belly. Indivara was insanely uncomfortable, and the girl’s features were twisted into something somewhere between a sulky pout and a grimace of discomfort. The child in her belly was intent on kicking her consistently, shifting and moving around and attacking her ribs, or her bladder, or some other part of her anatomy that was unused to and displeased with the constant attacks.

The day prior had been particularly traumatic for the girl; when she’d been visiting Par’a, she’d been having awful cramps for most of the day, and when the child placed a particularly powerful kick right in the centre of her bladder, Indivara had wet herself. Both women had been convinced her water had broken and there had been hysterics until the event was figured out, and Indivara had slunk off in shame to bathe while Par’a tried valiantly to convince the girl that it was nothing out of the ordinary, and how could she possibly have helped it? Indivara made her promise – promise – not to tell anyone, and was eternally thankful that Grith had been completely absorbed with being painted at the time, and missed the entire event.

Dressed in an oversized shirt the girl had stolen off one of her taller friends, and wearing a pair of undone and low-riding pants, she watched as the candidates entered the Sands with a sour expression. Her right hand pressed down firmly on part of her stomach, shoving at the baby-foot imprinted on the skin as the child ran its foot across the length of her stomach with enough force to be visible. Looking at it made the girl’s skin crawl and the desire to puke rear its head, so she focused on glaring at Okalinath.

“The fuck?” Indivara grumbled to Krypth and Jada, as both the other dragons went spastic and sent their riders scurrying in all directions. The gold dragon just rumbled a laugh and Jada seemed preoccupied with something, so Indivara slumped back against Krypth once more and pet Blood Sucker gently when the little blue landed on her belly and leaned forward to lick her nose. The girl gave a half-hearted wave back to Ryvian, and watched sulkily as he zoned in on an egg. She was so sick of being barred from the Sands!

They can’t stop you, after your baby, Krypth pointed out reasonably, and Indivara just huffed. She was starting to doubt the little bastard would ever be born!

Peorray began smiling halfway through Sacrifice's examination, charmed by the unhatched dragon's curiosity. She'd come to get a look at the egg, why not expect the same in return? As with her previous two Touchings, there'd been no clear sign that this was the egg that held her dragon, but she wasn't really expecting any. She was still smiling as she rose and nodded at Ameris as she passed.

There was no need to rush over to the other egg and Peorray's good mood took her in a rambling, indirect path through the rest of the eggs. She wasn't there to touch -her hands remained firmly clasped behind her back as she ambled on her way- but she did stop a time or two to study the interesting little brown freckles of Nexus and the grayish tones of Liberalism before continuing her walk.

The rush of feeling that Sacrifice had inspired had faded by the time she laid a hand on the other gold egg's surface. Peorray had taken her time partly for that reason- it wouldn't be right to go to one egg while still being affected by another.

[Spoiler= OOC] Kowtow Egg

Weren't golds supposed to be all regal dignity and stern forebearance on Touching day?  Obviously someone had forgotten to tell Okalinath that.  Her voice ricocheted off the inside of Terken's skull as she greeted the assembled candidates, and he had the sudden feeling he might not want to be around come hatching day.  He had a feeling Okalinath would be even more excited that day than she was. 

Terken shifted from foot to foot as he listened to J'di run down the rules of the Touching.  Don't be stupid, don't piss her off and...my what a good many sharp white teeth that bronze had!  Suddenly deciding he would touch one of Krypth's eggs first, he stilled.  Was the sire normally this involved in a clutch's hardening?  He didn't remember seeing Tyrrisath on the sands, ever unless it was hatching day. 

Right.  He needed to go touch an egg.  Whereas before, he had been planning to touch one egg and get the hell out of there, now he planned to touch as many as he could.  He still didn't want his life disrupted, didn't want to leave his canines, but seeing B'sen black and blue after a flight, and then watching the other greenriders, he'd realized that he could protect them. 

If one of these eggs was good enough to give him a dragon that wasn't green...He slid towards Krypth's clutch and took a deep breath, wanting to see if any of the eggs drew him.  Almost without realizing it, he wandered.  Finally, he found his eyes on a coffee tinted egg with cream colored speckles. 

Taking a deep breath, Terken looked at the egg for a long moment.  He wasn't one to talk unnecessarily, so did his best to open himself to the egg, and reached out to place his palm lightly, but firmly, on the egg.

Humility Egg

The approach of spring was something that Isscer had never looked forward to. Spring at Katila meant ungodly hot, humid weather with frequent thunderstorms; it also meant that he was more frequently confined to the Weyr proper due to bad weather. The buzz surrounding the two clutches had been going around the Weyr ever since the Flights, and the lead-up to the Touching only served to make the irritable Farmcrafter even more irritable.

At least he could very nearly recite the rules for the Touching from memory, and it was with a sour expression that he noted the female Weyrlingmaster. There had been plenty of others, but in Isscer's experience the majority of them were male--this one was a female, and a bluerider at that! He could only imagine how that had been allowed, but having seen the size of the Candidate pool Isscer could only figure that it was simply due to short-handedness.

The bouncing Gold did little to lighten Isscer's mood, and he shot her a surprised, if vaguely disapproving look. He pointedly ignored her suggestions about eggs, not thinking that she would speak to him anyways, and moved off to a more secluded section of the clutch. An egg with two grey stripes seemed the best place to start, and Isscer laid a hand on the warm eggshell, trying to mentally prepare himself for the onslaught of emotions from the dragonet within.

Querulous Egg

Ameris watched as the other began to make their way towards chosen eggs. It was all so very exhilarating. But then each and every one had been. She watched with that small, sad smile on her face as one bloomed across the face of Peorray. The woman certainly softened quite a bit with a smile, she ought to do it more often. Eyes still on the woman, Ameris followed her with her gaze as she went from one or two other eggs, never touching, just looking. Her uncertainty had come again. She wanted so to touch other eggs, but the biting words of her father kept her away.

With a soft sigh she travelled much the same path as Peorray before coming to the gold egg that belonged in Krypth's clutch. She started slightly as she spotted Indivara lounging on the forepaw of the gold and mentally kicked herself, she should've expected it. She recovered quickly and acknowledged the awkwardly pregnant girl with nothing more than an incline of her head. Kneeling once more she reached out a hand to trail her fingers gently along the pale sunlit egg. It was rather plain but for its color, she decided as she gently rested her fingertips against the egg.

---

Sacrifice

There had been a certain amount of anticipation and maybe even a bit of pride that had found home in Bordtai when he’d learned that the Bronze behemoth he’d met had flown one of the golds.  He remembered Torath and his rider – the grizzly bear of a man who had taken him out of the rain and given him dry clothes.  Bronze Rider N’kal had even shared pieces of his past with him which had given Bordtai a sense of friendship, or at least as much of one as a weyrbrat could have with a bronzerider.  It was silly, really – to think a bronzerider would take time out of his day to think of a brat, but that had been exactly what happened and Bordtai had not forgotten it.  So when he’d heard Torath had caught the gold, he’d jumped and cheered with other’s who were simply excited that it would not be another brown-sired clutch.

Perhaps it was the pride he had in the rough-looking pair, or perhaps it was the fact that he had finally grown a few inches.  Either way, when he followed the crowd of candidates onto the sands the thin boy had a flicker of confidence.  He was closer to the same size as the rest of the candidates, not like the last clutch where he had clearly been the smallest.  To top it off, he felt he had an advantage, knowing the Sire of half the eggs.

Watching the bronze beast across the sands growl and snap angrily, Bordtai hesitated but it quickly subsided into a grin.  This was part the bronze’s clutch as much as it was the golds.  Even though there were two good clutchs on the sands, Bordtai took the time to know beyond a doubt which was linked with Torath and that is where it walked once the intimidating Jayedi allowed them to.  It wasn’t that he didn’t appreciate the eggs Krypth had produced, but the Weyrbrat couldn’t help but hope he’d have a connection to the others no matter how vauge.

Walking through the eggs of Okalinath’s clutch, Bordtai could not help but find his eye caught by an egg that seemed to have a grey shadow cast upon one side.  Circling it once, Bordtai confirmed that it wasn’t a trick of the light and that the egg actually had a grey tone to it.  Smiling, he brushed his fingers across it’s hardened shell before spreading them and resting his palm upon it’s surface.

Egg = Determine

Jealousy – (Ryvian)
The egg does not respond for several long moments. Then, the first strings of emotion begin to flutter around, spiking and strange; they vary from pleasure to fury, and everything in between in sparks that are gone almost before they can truly be felt.

Kowtow – (Peorray)
The contents of the egg seem to draw away from Peorray, shrinking back and down and the air of quiet innocence is excluded, designed to create a shielding effect – hiding the little one away from the woman whose hand is upon its shell. Only when the thought to remove her hand flutters through Peorray’s mind will the emotions change: a fluttering of relief.

Humility – (Terken)
Arrogance, the egg reeks of it the moment a hand is placed upon the shell. Clear determination, and a vividly high opinion of itself, this hatchling has no qualms about making sure the very first person to poke an inquisitive mind in its direction was well aware of that fact.

Querulous – (Isscer)
The sand is hot. The hand on the shell is cold. The constraints of the egg are too small and when will it be time to be free? Impatience and dissatisfaction roll around this egg, the dragonet clearly unhappy with the situation and anxious to be free of the shell, the time not yet ready to break it. Every indication of a dramatic sigh follows the removal of Isscer’s touch.

Sacrifice – (Ameris)
Quiet, serious and very obviously sizing up Ameris, this egg seems to be teetering on the brink of the unknown, pondering and considering. Reaching, reading, poking, prodding, withdrawing before anything in the dragonets thoughts could be received. The girls biting discontent with being restricted to the gold eggs caused a ripple of inexplicable emotions through the dragonet that it made no effort to keep from the young woman.

Determine: – (Bordtai)
The confidence in the youngster that laid a hand upon the dragonet’s shell caused a flicker of emotion that was both pleased and surprised. The dragonet welcomed the youngster and poked around curiously at him, clearly looking for something. Whether the dragonet found it or not, it withdrew quietly with a warm goodbye before resting happily without any further emotions.

Farren liked Touchings. The sands were warm and while the eggs were rather intimidating and the gold watching over them certainly was she'd long since grown used to the presence of dragons and they didn't phase her as much as they had when she'd first arrived. She waited patiently until there was an opening to the eggs she'd decided she was going to touch. Only two - She hardly had her hopes up and didn't expect much from them. She'd long ago ceased to believe she'd Impress anything much less a gold and the primary reason it bothered her was because it made her feel useless.

She pushed those thoughts to the back of her head and pushed her hair behind her, moving forward and brushing her fingers over the first egg, inspecting it quietly and willing it to grow big and strong. Even if they didn't go to her she still wanted them to be healthy. They were babies, after all.

Sacrifice

Ameris didn't remove her hand from like sunlit egg as the tiny creature inside began to inspect her. It was odd being sized up by such a small little thing and she certainly hoped she passed the tiny dragonets little test. She got nothing from the tiny being inside until the small one began to withdraw from her. The whirlwind of emotions barraged her mind and caused a tiny tear to leak from the corner of her eye and Ameris was instantly contrite. She hadn't meant for the little one to hear her thoughts, had meant to clear her mind of all things before touching the hardening shell before her and she clearly hadn't.

"I'm so sorry, little one. I didn't mean any of it. You will be perfect and lovely, and everything a little gold is meant to be," she whispered softly as she closed her eyes as she broke her own little rule. She knew better than to allow her own thoughts to color a touching. Her hand trembled slightly as her fingers stroked the egg once more before whispering quietly, "I'm so sorry." Coming to her feet, Ameris moved away from the eggs and towards the back of the pack of candidates. She dreaded when the event was over, when she had to go back home with the results. A'mad would insist she tell him almost as soon as she entered the hut and she would have to lie. His thrill at the first touching would earn her a reprieve but should she tell the truth of the second... Rislan would be staying at the creche for a few days and Ameris disliked leaving him there for so long, so a lie it would be.

Peorray felt the withdraw, or at least realized that whatever faint presence that had met her was quickly fading into that sea of quiet innocence. It was so very different from Krypth's daughter. Maybe the baby was just shy, overwhelmed by all the visitors.

She remained a few moments, trying to let the dragonet get used to her, coax some response to her presence at all- even if it wasn't the bright, active presence she'd so liked about Sacrifice. But nothing came and she knew when to call it a day. As she took her hand from the shell, the fluttering of relief from the dragonet inside made her draw in a sharp breath and draw away from the egg with more speed.

Now, that kind of hurt. Was there something about her that scared the dragonet, made it feel like it had to hide? Feeling like a bit of a monster, Peorray slunk toward the back of the candidates in decidedly lower spirits than before. "I feel like I just kicked a puppy..." She muttered aloud when she reached Ameris' vicinity,  in discontented confusion.

Well, at least Krypth's clutch would probably hatch first. That dragonet had seemed to like her well enough.

N'kal stood off to the side, a scowl on his face for the most part, and that was mostly because that was just who he was. Torath's emotions and agitation at the situation was not helping. But at least he was far calmer than he had been before, nuzzling Okalinath occasionally. N'kal had been on his way to sit with Torath and Okalinath when Torath lifted his head from the sands, something having took his interest. Lifting his brow he stopped and turned, initially he did not see the boy, Bordtai, that had managed to make a friend of the rider and his dragon. He has grown.., rumbled at him calmly. He looked back at Torath but since he wasn't exactly forthcoming with the information he turned dark eyes again on the candidates.

He saw him then and he couldn't help but grin a bit. He had indeed grown some, he wasn't nearly as short, and he seemed to walk with a bit more confidence. He gave him a nod as he walked by him, toward Torath and Okalinath's clutch. He watched him choose an egg, Torath rumbled softly as he watched intently, head up, eyes swirling slowly as he stretched his legs out in front of him. When Bordtai laid his palm on one of the eggs Torath said, This will be his time., to N'kal. They had hoped so at the last clutching too, but perhaps this would indeed be his time. There were certainly plenty of eggs to go around, surely one of them would like Bordtai enough. He seemed different now, not so scared and worried, N'kal was glad for that. Well let's hope so yeah?, he replied then finished his walk across the sands and hopped up onto one of Torath's leg's to watch at a distance, hoping Bordtai would touch more than the one egg.

Ryvian felt like he had been left with whip lash as he tried to keep up with the fleeting emotions. Every time he felt he had one and was ready to explore it, it was taken away from him and another glimpse of a feeling was in its place. It was odd but still not the strangest reaction he had had over the turns of Touchings he had been asked to partake in. It was obvious this little egg wasn’t for him, or so Ryvian hoped anyway. If it did contain his dragon, then he suspected he was in for a wild ride of blinding mood swings and that didn’t sound like too much fun!

He removed his hand and glanced over to Indivara. A shake of the head was given to indicate that definitely wouldn’t be his dragon and he mouthed it was likely a green as well. That particular egg didn’t house the dragon that was suited for either of them. He still didn’t think a bronze would actually choose Indivara no matter how tough she could be and how she was far manlier than most of the men strutting around but he didn’t see his friend on green either.

Shrugging, Ryvian moved on to the next egg in Krypth’s clutch that he wanted to Touch. It made the most sense to go for the egg that was closest to the current one but Ryvian still operated on going with instinct and what he was drawn to. It didn’t take long to find his next egg either, not when there was one that seemed so perfectly white that it was almost blinding to look at in the sunlight. If he didn’t already know the gold egg was pushed aside to be shown off, Ryvian would have suspected the egg he moved for to be the one with the faint shimmer to it. With a quick verification he wasn’t about to embarrass himself and Touch the gold egg, Ryvian placed his palm on the new egg.

---

He selected Lazy this time!

Isscer frowned at the egg, at his palm where it laid on the egg's shell. A sudden, pressing sense of claustrophobia invaded his mind, fear twisting deep in his gut. Thank the First Egg that he had not eaten much for breakfast--if he had, Isscer had no doubt that it would have been brought up all over the Sands. "I'm... sorry," he mumbled under his breath, embarrassed at talking to an egg, though he figured if the dragonet inside could affect him in such a way they could feel his regret and fear in kind. "It won't be much longer now."

He truly was horrid at being reassuring, and after a moment of trying to think very hard of happy things Isscer gave up. His hand slipped from the egg shell, and the Farmcrafter flexed it gingerly. Touchings had never been his favorite part of the Hatching process; more often than not they simply made him uncomfortable. While he typically only touched one egg, this was a special case; it was unheard of that two Golds had to share the Sands. It was this sense of strangeness, including a healthy sense of duty, that had Isscer moving away from Okalinath's much larger clutch and towards Krypth's, determined to touch at least one egg from each group.

Spying Ryvian (and remembering what happened at the last Touching), Isscer made a point to avoid his fellow candidate. Selecting an egg that was as far away from Ryvian as possible, Isscer settled a hand on the egg shell, just wanting to get this over with so he could go back to something more productive.

Imperious Egg, please.

The pleasant curiosity and warm goodbye he’d received from the first egg only emboldened Bordtai, strengthening that bit of confidence he’d found in Okalinath and Torath’s clutch.  Smiling, he was loath to take his hand away from that egg, but he reminded himself that this was Torath’s clutch!  And the more eggs he touched from this clutch the better chance he would have of impressing.  Not that he would complain at all from a dragonet from Krypth’s clutch… But he had pride and hope in Okalinath’s.  Not only had her first flight been won by Bronze Torath, but it was larger than any of Krypth’s clutches.

Moving away from his first egg, he let his hand brush over a very darkly colored egg that looked almost more brown than tan with even darker freckles across it’s surface.  Letting his thumb caress the freckles admiringly, he gave the egg a few moments of his time.

Incapacitate Egg, please.

Flora watched as the others went out to the sand among the eggs. Her curiosity always got the best of her as she watched with shining eyes as they touched the eggs here and there. She always wondered if the queens  lined the eggs in a order or fashion when they laid them or if it really was a random as it seemed.

She also noticed there were several gold candidates already out  exploring among the eggs. She wondered if these candidates felt more pressure then the normal candidates. She even saw one of the boys that was her age among the eggs.

Flora had never stood before so she was very nervous and shy. She'll probably have to get one or more hatching under her belt before she was truly comfortable  going out on the sands. This time she was more then willing to just watch the others.

Lazy – (Ryvian)
There is a pause, a subtle amusement, and then… the egg’s emotions explode, positively bouncing off the walls of Ryvian’s mind from excitement. Hello hello hello! Who are you? How are you? What are you? Why are you? Oooh, what’s that? Why’s that? Look at that! Pretty pictures! The dragonet makes itself at home, the excitement within it pulling forth random memories and vivid images. Eeee!

Imperious – (Isscer)
Isscer’s hand is barely upon the shell before the Hatchling is giving every impression – and then some – of looking down its nose at him. Unworthy, unwanted, un, un, un, the list goes on as the dragonet – so much mightier than thou! – dismisses the young man with every reason why he will never be good enough for this dragonet. Go find some other worthless beast!

Incapacitate – (Bordtai)
Terror. Resounding, petrifying, blood freezing, bowel clenching terror. The egg reeks of it, never ending, never changing. There is no rise or fall, no changes, no bumps or wobbles or moments of relief: just a continuing, everlasting fear. It freezes the breath, it grips the lungs, and it causes a mindless, senseless, bodily shaking and a cold sweat to break out.

Ryvian felt like he was going to be sick. The onslaught of questions, emotions, and memories left his head spinning and he swayed slightly where he stood. Yet for all that, he didn’t remove his hand. The dragonet probing at his mind was so enthusiastic and had taken quite the interest in him. True, it was a little overwhelming but compared to the other eggs he had Touched in recent times, this seemed like the best connection. Then again, Ryvian wasn’t sure if it was a true connection and if they were meant for each other. Could he handle the constant questions the little fellow would likely have on a daily basis for the rest of his life? It was hard to say but given the headache that was forming, he wasn’t too sure.

“I hope I answered some questions you had,” Ryvian whispered to the egg after a little while of opening his mind to the constant prodding for answers. He couldn’t do it all day, however, and wasn’t even sure he’d last another five minutes and knew he had to get away. Surprisingly he found it hard to do just that but finally removed his hand from the warm shell and took a few stumbling steps away from the egg. There was a smile on his face as he glanced from the egg over to Indivara but soon he was hunched over with his hands resting on his knees. That ride of curiosity and memories really had made him queasy!

Perhaps he’d Touch more eggs soon, but first he needed to clear his head.

Vee had been at the back of the candidates that had been filed onto the sands, this was far from her first Touching but she was still always excited to a point, and though she listened carefully to Jayedi, she knew how this worked all too well. The gold Okalinath's antics made her smile and laugh a little. Her excitement over her own clutch and over the candidates warmed her and gave her a boost of excitement she hadn't previously had. Her eyes wandered over the rather large bronze dragon that was being fussed at by his rider. She thought it rather odd the sire was on the sands, she didn't know they cared much about the eggs, though she supposed it made some kind of sense, didn't it? She gave a little pout when Okalinath's rider shooed her away so that they could all go toward the eggs in peace. She felt a little remorse that she did not know the girl, Kahleena she believed, very well if at all honestly. She had managed to keep herself as far away from the others as possible, she wasn't really all that sure why though.

She fell in with the other gold candidates, a stroke of self doubt went through her heart briefly but she pushed it away. She could never help worrying that she was getting far too old to stand for clutches, but she had yet to be turned away so she still clung to a small light of hope, locked away. Pulling herself from her thoughts she watched the others and while some went for Krypth's clutch first, the antics of the gold dragon left her still very amused and so she went to her clutch first, kneeling before the slightly lopsided egg and gently placed her palm against the light yellow surface, a smile as she whispered, "Hello there little one, I bet you're ready to see the world aren't you?" She remained a moment longer then gave a quiet farewell to the egg and the baby dragon inside then moved aside for another candidate to take her turn.

Kowtow of course! xD

J'di remained a silent sentinel on the sidelines while the children moved out among the eggs. Until her intervention was needed or they had to leave, this was their time. She personally thought the process was crap when it came to Impression -hadn't Caymath found her when she'd only touched the gold of his clutch?- but it did serve the use of getting candidates comfortable, so she grudgingly approved.

Speaking of-

J'di knew there were always the reluctant and the shy. Most eventually overcame their issues to answer the lure of the eggs, but the girl she had been keeping an eye on looked rooted to the ground. Well, she was rather young. J'di would give her a helping hand. The bluerider came up behind the girl to bend down and speak in a level tone for her ears alone, "Young lady, I believe I said you must touch one. If you need help locating one, I can assist you."

J'di had no problem frog-marching the girl over to the nearest egg. There was no room for weakness in a female candidate, particularly one with interest in the fighters- best the girl learned that now.

Flora almost jumped as she heard a voice in her ear. She though she would not of been noticed but apparently she was noticed after all just standing there.  Flora blushed softly " I'm very sorry Ma'am." She hurried off among the eggs with the others now.  She looked around at the eggs and picked one not to far from where she was standing and laid her fingertips upon it and sliding it slowly over the surface before resting the rest of her palm down on the smooth surface of the egg.

She was amazed at the feel of the surface of the egg  she never felt the like before considering this was her first hatching that she had come to the sands. Before she was to young and always had to watch on the sidelines. The sand was quite warm under her shoes but she supposed that was for the benefit of the eggs.

They all looked so beautiful  laying there on the sand she did try and see if there was a pattern but she couldn't tell. But then she did suppose that except for the gold egg none really knew what was under the shells.  She was simply drawn to the silvery egg that was  dotted with little dark brown freckles. She really liked the color but when she got closer she couldn't resist reaching out to touch the smooth surface. She looked around and saw the others had moved to other eggs but she stayed for a moment.

She wondered vaguely if the dragonetts where as nervous and curious as the candidates that where waiting for them to be born.

Nexus

What courage Bordtai had brought onto the sands that day was shattered as the terror washing over the dark colored egg froze his blood.  It was as if someone had tossed him into a lake even colder than the Weyr’s in during the winter months and he’d forgotten how to swim.  His muscles instantly ached and shook from the sheer terror and try as he might, he couldn’t break free from the egg instantly.  It was as if he were drowning and he couldn’t break the surface of that icy lake no matter how hard he tried to swim.

Moments felt like eternity before his knees finally gave out beneath his shuddering and he fell, forcing him to break contact with the egg.  It seemed a mercy to feel the burning sands through his breeches to scorch at his knees.  Shaking, he pushed himself back onto his feet and took a step away from the dark, freckled egg of fear.  Even now as he remembered to fill his aching lungs with air, Bordtai could not manage to tell for certain if that fear was coming from the egg… or if the egg had simply pushed aside the boy’s momentary courage to show what truly was lying beneath.

After all, a dimglow with a dragon had a purpose.  A dimglow without…. Was nothing but a dimglow.

Feeling wetness on his cheek, Bordtai lowered his head and quickly wiped away the tears that the egg had forced to come unchecked.  The last thing he wanted was for other candidates to see him crying.  A slow look around as he tried to get his knees to stop shaking told Bordtai that at least the majority of the candidates were too enthralled by the emotions they were getting from the eggs. 

Moving further away from the ‘fear egg’, he took a long moment to gather his composure as he looked out over the eggs and the candidates touching them.  When a boy stepped away from a smooth, creamy-white egg Bordtai tried to gather up his nerves and step forward.  The egg didn’t have a single blemish or freckle on it.  No shading of colors.  It seemed almost perfectly white and was a stark contrast to the last egg he touched. 

He hoped that the change in shells would bode better results…

Lifting up his hand, he watched it shake for a moment above the eggs shell before he snatched it away and rubbed his hand on his pants.  It looked so… grubby in comparison to the egg.  Deciding his pants were not going to make his hand any cleaner, he reached out again with a bit steadier of a hand to touch the new egg.

Arbitrate Egg, Please.

Nexus – (Flora)
You don’t feel anything right away and the fear it may be a dud starts to build until the dragonet finally stirs. The dragonet picks up on your nervousness right away and begins poking through your mind, drawing out every memory where you have been overwhelmed with the emotion, connecting each one in a series of images of one timid girl after the other.

Arbitrate – (Bordtai)
The moment your hand touches the smooth shell, you feel yourself being judged. Every action, every word, and every thought are sifted through and measured. Finally, the decision is made and you are found wanting. The dragonet within the warm egg finds you unworthy of its attention and you get the sense that you are being dismissed, waved away like nothing more than a pest.

Kowtow – (Vaeyla)
Your touch does nothing to stir the dragonet but your voice does. The little creature seems to cower, as if afraid to reply out of turn but you also get a sense of wonderment as she thinks about what was said. She wants to be free but is it truly okay to want that? Just before you remove your hand you get the final sensation of longing for approval and direction. Why are you leaving? Did I do something wrong?