[G] [O] 744.12.23 | Spiciness May Vary

Mylorah was nervous, but also excited. Tazikel kept telling her it was okay to be both and that it would be fine, but now that they were moments away from the Touching actually beginning, it was harder to believe him. She didn't even know why she was so nervous! How many Touchings had she gone through as a Candidate without a fuss? Not even Thallyath's maiden clutch had slowed down her stride entering the Sands that day--though the bad reaction she had to one of the eggs had stayed with her for longer than she admitted to everyone but her men. Still, she had gone on to the next Touching without too much hesitation. So why was she a ball of nerves for her dragon's first Touching?

Because you're worried everyone will have a bad experience. Total nonsense! We have given my babies nothing but love and even Z'kel liked the ones he met. Mylorah gave Amagrith a quick smile, letting some of the tension go. She was right; they had done everything perfectly and even her punishment of being confined to the Sands and working on the most boring of paperwork had been a blessing in the end. She'd been there daily, telling stories to Amagrith and the eggs while they also worked together on being better at the gold pair thing.

And then there was the part that had them being naughty and sneaking Z'kel in last night so he could have his own Touching since he had been robbed of that experience before his own surprise Impression. Seravath had been fine with it and it probably didn't hurt that they had promised the plucky green a job during the Touching. Z'kel was going to keep Mylorah company on the Sands that day while Amagrith overlooked the whole affair and Seravath would guard the entrance and give the Candidates approval to enter. Mylorah really hoped that didn't backfire and no one was denied access, but what was one more blemish on her record?

As Tazikel approached with the mugs of hot chocolate and snacks she sent him off for, Mylorah officially relaxed. Everything would be fine. There were bound to be some negative reactions, but that was normal, she reminded herself yet again and accepted a mug. It was hot on the Sands, but chocolate in any form was a comfort. "Okay, Seravath! Let them in!" She felt only slightly bad for the Candidate Master having to put up with yet another eccentric gold pair, but if it avoided a gold having a hissy fit, most things were tolerated.

Candidates are divided into groups of twenty (20) who each visit the eggs for an hour, with a 15 minute gap between sessions. For the purpose of RP, all PC Candidates are in the same group, which is being threaded now.

This Touching commenced at 8am and this is the first group, meaning that no one else has Touched the eggs yet. There are 21 eggs which have numbers neatly marked on them in charcoal. A minimum of one touch is required. The ladies are expected to touch the gold egg and are free to try others as well.

Candidates are expected to be polite and demure; the safety of the eggs is paramount and anyone found to be goofing around will be removed. Firelizards are not allowed on the Sands during the Touching. The same goes for humans that are not a part of the class and the instructors. Special permission can be granted if asked beforehand but even then, there won’t be many exceptions granted.

Eggs are approximately 4 to 5 feet in length, and approximately half to two-thirds that in width. They’re rather squat and roundish. Eggs are laid in a leathery state, much like an earthen snake egg. They slowly expand as they harden with the youngster growing within. When a candidate Touches an egg, they will find the shell to be hard, but kind of lumpy and bumpy in some spots, and smooth in others, depending on how the dragonet shifted during the hardening phase. All the eggs are roughly the same mottled greenish-tan, except for the gold egg, which has a bit of the metallic gold colour in the shell, in addition to being larger than all the others.

Additionally, when the Candidate’s hand connects with the shell, the dragonet within will reach out mentally and touch their mind. The response the dragonet has to each individual candidate is extremely varied and often considered private by the individuals. A negative response from a dragonet does not denote the inability to Impress the hatchling within! There have been several cases in the past – PC and NPC – when characters Impressed to a hatchling from an egg that they thought hated them.

If you want a reply from the egg, put an ooc note below a hr tag with a number 1-20 or 'gold' and I'll get one up. You can also ask for the word used for the prompts if you wish to interpret that your own way.