A/N I've added an index right at the front here in case anyone wants to go back and check a particular story. I hope it's helpful.
1 L'rilly, introduction
2 Zaira
3 Prisca
4 Carlinna
5 Serehana
6 Mirielle
7 Sibealle
8 Siselly
9 Libethra
10 Katha
11 Imbelinne
12 Shuba
13 Elena
14 Elexa
15 Jeresha
16 Vorinia
17 Tualai
18 Caralara
19 Lusya
20 Jarla
21 Lasolly
22 Candidates for a Golden Egg
23 Impression
24 Aftermath
1 L'rilly, by way of introduction
L'rilly was feeling a lot better after the serious operation she had undergone, and was finally permitted to return to some light duties. She had even flown Thread a few times, contrary to the suggestion, if not the expectations, of Masterhealer Oldive and High Reaches' own Master Healer, Calla. L'rilly was under orders to take it easy; and her weyrmate D're was making sure she mostly fell in with those restrictions; such as only flying half of Fall and returning with the first group of Green Riders. As she was also caring for D're's little sister's unwanted twins, conceived in rape, he was concerned that she not do too much!
In truth, the babes had foster parents and siblings from all quarters, for L'rilly had become quite popular, and plenty of people clamoured to do her favours such as take the children for an hour or two! The Gold Rider, freed of a lot of the exhausting physical labour that she was not yet fit enough to cope with did however find herself in need of mental stimulation! She was a keen participant in the cogitations of the logicators, and divered herself by being downright nosy.
Segrith's flight, and other circumstances, had brought more girls and women than ever to the Weyr.
"There'll be more female Green Riders than male if this keeps up!" she remarked, disapprovingly to D're.
"That's as maybe, m'dear; but then, for sure, not all male Green Riders are so happy when their dragons rise, for they're by no means all homosexual; for to have all Green and Blue Riders liking each other we'd have a population of homosexuals outnumbering heteros three to one so we should, and it's unreasonable for sure. And if the girls can do the job, where's the problem? They'll not get flown by gay men, for there'll be inhibitions I'm thinking."
"It – it's just not what I'm used to, I guess" she laughed ruefully. "I sound like a hidebound old Beastcrafter, don't I?"
D're chuckled.
"At least you surely don't look like one, Pretty. And 'tis well for the dragons to have the choice. There's a-plenty of Greens in this clutch; as well as a Queen egg that all know about" he said in his broad Ruathan brogue.
L'rilly was used to D're's peculiar ability to sense the colours of unhatched dragons and firelizards.
"Is there?" she asked curiously.
He nodded.
"For sure. And a shame it is that K'len is wise to me gift now, so it is; for I could've cleaned out all comers layin' odds on more Bronzes than either Browns or Blues. But" he sighed gustily "The little tyke won't take me marks any more."
He shook his head in mock sadness.
"Serve you right" said L'rilly with mock sternness. "You and H'llon cleaned him out twice – or was it three times?"
"Twice, he got wise after that" said D're unrepentantly. "And a fair revenge for me friend H'llon it was, for K'len had a book on how long it'd take the poor man to get laid when he first arrived all craftbred and innocent. And bein' the sensitive crafter lad as he is, it hurt him sore, not bein' a rogue and a rascal like meself."
"That – and more" retorted his lover, tartly. Then she asked, "D're?"
"Yes lovely?" he sobered at the change of tone.
"You see dragon colours; could – could you see about Warneth?" she referred to the Brown dragon with stunted wings released from a thick-shelled egg by one of the candidates, who fled so deformed a dragon, and Impressed by dragonless Shirallen, now Sh'allen and one of D're's closest friends.
D're pulled a face.
"You want the truth of it, lovely?"
She nodded.
He said,
"Y'know, I knew – I thought I knew – that I was too old to Impress. And yes, I could see he was crippled somehow. And Jays, it passed through my mind, poor little critter, maybe he'd accept a crippled man a turn too old for a regular dragon. Only Esruth had other ideas and decided I was his!" a big soppy grin spread through his ginger whiskers as he remembered that moment of pure joy. "And I'm afraid I forgot all about poor Warneth. It's glad I am that he and Sh'allen found each other."
L'rilly nodded. As Sh'len, Sh'allen had been her lover from time to time; dead Tath had flown Golden Tamalenth twice. She still had a soft spot for Sh'allen, for though they were temperamentally unsuited as long term lovers there was a deep bond of friendship between them.
L'rilly contemplated D're's easy acceptance of female Green Riders in significant numbers. There were currently fourteen at High Reaches Weyr; and there were a dozen and a half female candidates, of whom half were possibly suitable to present to the Gold egg. Even allowing a truly outsize clutch of Greens, and in the event of all of them Impressing to females [and there were those candidates L'rilly could never see Impressing at all] that would bring the complement to perhaps thirty.
Of the entire complement of the Weyr, half the dragons were Greens, around a hundred and eighty Green dragons in all. Looking at those figures, it did not seem so bad!
Since L'gal later returned with a cousin of T'arla's as a candidate, and having collected traditional Tinker ballads that involved female riders, she told herself off for being a worry-wherry!
L'rilly had suggested to Pilgra that she, being on light duties, might help deal with the female candidates. Although T'lana, who usually acted as weyrlingmistress for the females to aid her weyrmate weyrlingmaster R'gar, was weyrbound with pregnancy, she was somewhat unwell this time and was on light duties herself. Pilgra was glad to accept extra help, especially since L'rilly herself was born Ranking, a matter that seemed to count in the repression of the pretensions of some of the sillier girls. The younger Queenrider thought about the candidates. Three had already stood for Impression; and it was the general consensus that the only reason young Zaira had not Impressed had been that she was waiting for her Queen. The golden egg this time had led to very short odds on it being for Zaira, and significantly some of the dragons were cheerfully referring to it as 'Melth's rider's mate's egg'. Of the other two, L'rilly doubted either would Impress without a significant change in attitude! Prisca, highborn and the silliest creature L'rilly had ever met, was also the laziest creature the Queenrider had ever encountered, expecting to be provided with a drudge at first to be waited on hand and foot. R'gar and T'lana had seen to it that no other candidate or weyrchild had been bullied into gratifying the spoilt girl; but though Prisca had, rather sulkily, to shift for herself, she did as little as possible. She had even had to be taught how to tie laces on close fitting winter boots! Even B'lova in her more unlovable days, reflected L'rilly, had put effort into learning what interested her, and pursued her chores diligently to avoid boredom! Even I, she admitted to herself, was never THAT bone idle!
The other unlikely candidate was Carlinna. On the whole, L'rilly felt sorry for Carlinna. The girl was an artist and had received a regular apprenticeship under a master with two or three other boys apprenticed to him. She had been passed over for journeyman, and had been heard to express the opinion that it was because she was female; but L'rilly had seen the girl's work and felt that it was more likely that it was because the girl was not competent enough to be given papers of release. Especially by comparison to Weyrartist Geriana, self-taught and brilliant, and always happy to draw visualisations, even changing seasons at any given location for ease. Less well advertised was that Geriana had enough mathematical skill to work out the positions of the stars and the phases and positions of the moons to draw a night or crepuscular visualisation to allow for going Between time with an accuracy that could be measured within an hour. It had not yet been a skill that had been needed; but T'bor had asked if she would develop the skill in case it ever was, and Geriana, as always, had cheerfully complied. Carlinna refused to do such 'menial' work as drawing any kind of visualisation – which in L'rilly's mind was just as well as anyone who followed her drawings would be like to be lost Between – and hated and despised Geriana. Geriana was prettier, more talented, friendly, and universally popular – even amongst the dragons, who all deigned to name her. The point was, L'rilly could see definite parallels between Carlinna and her younger self, and her own jealousy of T'lana, now her dearest friend. It had taken the terrible experience of coming close to killing T'lana and being rewarded by forgiveness and friendship, and help to overcome her lefthanded awkwardness when using a flamethrower to make L'rilly love T'lana; and even to love herself truly. That of course was too drastic a solution to get Carlinna to recognise Geriana's gifts! Besides, circumstances were different. She, L'rilly, had been undervalued by her parents and had been desperately seeking acceptance. By all accounts, Carlinna's kin thought her wonderful and encouraged the banal excesses the girl called 'art' and the unkinder critics declared flatulent to require an 'f' at the beginning.
L'rilly turned her mind to review the new candidates, and her thoughts on them as they had each arrived. They were a mixed bag, in age as well as background. Youngest was Y'lara's fosterling Serehana, only thirteen turns; although Y'lara herself had been no older and there were others within a few months of the young girl in age. For Queenriders it would be ridiculously young; yet, after all, boys were put to egg from twelve turns, and young male Green Riders were either posted elsewhere for a few turns or the boys sequestered when their dragons rose to mate the first few times. The changes in female bodies over puberty were more profound, perhaps, but the result of mating perhaps less drastic and potentially damaging than for a young boy. There was no reason not to sequester young girls in the same way. Not all in the Weyr agreed; Mayana, one of Keerana's nieces, was not to stand until she had Turned fifteen at least; and the only other weyrbred girl of age was K'len's second sister Kelia, who was n,ot, it seemed, even interested! Lekelle, the next youngest, was interested; but at just eleven turns was not of age, even for boys.
The oldest candidate was Elexa, daughter of the unlamented Lord of Seven Holds, Fax, by one of his spouses, raised in the main by the Lady Gemma. Married at an unconscionably early age – L'rilly worked out she could not have Turned thirteen – her daughter Elena would stand with her! Elexa was rumoured to have poisoned the old man she had been married to; and she certainly had poisoned her half-brother Lord Aven to prevent him from violating his niece – by rumour also his own daughter – Elena. As Aven was also the man who had raped L'rilly's sister-in-law Kaili, the Queenrider was willing to believe any atrocity of the man and could not find any blame in the least for Elexa! Having a known poisoner in the Weyr might have proven uncomfortable; but T'lana had used her unusual telepathic talents to probe the woman's intentions and found them good. Elexa had, T'lana said, no more need for violence; she had people now to help her and her daughter. L'rilly reflected that, had not Lady Gemma, known for her gentleness, raised the girl and given her some basic values, Elexa might yet have grown up as dangerous as Fax himself, or even more so for being a woman able to inspire men. L'rilly admitted rather ruefully that of all the candidates, only Elexa had the true force of personality to rival Zaira for the Golden Queen egg. What did irritate L'rilly was Elexa's aloof air of self sufficiency that bordered on insolence; but T'lana assured her friend it was nothing but armour.
"She needs a good man, dear one" the little red haired weyrwoman said; and L'rilly sighed in exasperation.
"That's your cure for everyone!" she had declared. T'lana just twinkled wickedly.
"Sure, and doesn't it just work?" she did a creditable imitation of D're's thick brogue.
L'rilly had thrown a cushion at her; but supposed she had a point!
As Elexa became involved in the logicators, it was apparent that she could unbend, and L'rilly was certain that ultimately she would fit in well enough! Elena, L'rilly thought, had further to go than her mother, being rather introverted – and no surprise to that – but nervous of people, especially men. To her credit, she displayed no nerves at all concerning dragons and was quite at home asking a basking dragon to move his or her tail when it impeded her doing her chores!
Mirielle had been in the Weyr before Elexa and Elena, but had wanted to be sure her sister Kaili was happy before committing herself to being a candidate. L'rilly's older sister-in-law was plainly captivated by dragons, where Kaili was merely not frightened. L'rilly was certain of Mirielle's chances! Not so much for the Queen egg, for Mirielle was too easily put upon by those she felt needed her; but certainly for a Green!
The next to arrive had been Sibealle, a widow with two young sons, who had quickly made friends with Greenrider A'ira who had sons the oldest of whom was of an age with Sibealle's younger lad. Sibealle was one of the people who was glad to help with L'rilly's foster twins, and generally attached herself to L'rilly as personal drudge! L'rilly was glad of her help, and enjoyed chatting with the healer-trained woman, now gaining more training under Calla and surprised and gratified at the idea that she should be allowed have a proper apprenticeship to work for her journeyman's papers instead of just drudging on wards as she had been expected to do before! The widow had taken the line of coming over as rather strait-laced until she was ready to consider any liaison, which was refreshing in a new candidate to the weyr. L'rilly knew it was just a natural reserve and fear of being taken advantage of, and was glad to be a confidante of someone of such remarkable common sense! If she did not Impress – and L'rilly saw no reason she should not – she would still be a good friend and an asset to the weyr in its healing halls.
Next there had been Siselly, brought in by L'gal and his weyrmate T'arla. Siselly plainly looked up to T'arla, but seemed in some ways rather immature to L'rilly; and the nervousness she displayed of the larger dragons, even L'gal's Solpeth, did not bode well, though one had to admire the girl's spirit and courage, for she hid her fear manfully. The girl did have some good man management skills and organisational skills, having helped the Headwoman, L'gal's mother, in lieu of a Lady Holder at Mynd Hold until her father married. Once she grew up and got used to dragons she might well prove an asset.
The next candidate was not technically entered as one. Libethra and her daughter Tefanny were spending time taking stock in the Weyr. It was Tefanny's Bloodright to Hold since her father had been deposed by Lord Bargen, the decision ratified in a High Reaches Holder's conclave; but Libethra was afraid of being forced into an ill considered marriage by the Lord Holder as Lady Warder. T'lana had discussed her with L'rilly, citing her compassion for a drudge girl wrongly accused that had led Libethra to seek Weyr – or rather, logicator – aid; it was a good sign for a potential dragonrider, especially as Libethra plainly heard when dragons spoke, even if she did not hear all dragons as such. If she could not be talked into standing in the meantime, the two weyrwomen plotted to be sure Libethra was in a front tier, having been asked to run errands that took her through the hatching cavern to give the hatchlings the chance to sense her
"As if it makes any difference" said T'lana "For none of our tier Impressons have had any close contact with the eggs; but it can't hurt!"
Katha was a Blood relative of Lord Bargen; but a poor relation. It had been young Kaili who had persuaded the young woman to come to the Weyr instead of marrying to please her parents any man who had wealth enough to accept her undeniable beauty as sufficient dowry. Not that Katha, a nicely spoken and dutiful girl had put it that way, but the inference was plain and also that when it was her body to be sold there was a limit to her dutifulness if another solution presented itself. She was not the only one to come as an escape from a marriage; but for Shuba, whose predilections ran to other women, the idea of marriage to any man, however personable, was horrifying. She had come with her lover Joana and Joana's brother Josend, originally picked as Shuba's husband and also homosexual and as opposed to marrying Shuba as she was to marrying him! As Joana feared dragons and stayed happily in the lower caverns, and as Shuba was dedidedly nervous around them too, it seemed unlikely that she would Impress; but the two were good willing workers, and were helping to break land and farm terraces outside the Weyr to help feed the orphans High Reaches supported.
Between Katha and Shuba had come Imbellinne, Lord Meron's daughter, escaping from intolerable fosterage and begging aid for her next younger sister Ipominea. A third sister, Meliandra, had also agreed to come to the Weyr, but was not, at this hatching at least, ready to think about being a candidate. Ipominea was too young, the same age as Lekelle and had in any case settled in happily as a woodcrafter apprentice under the Weyrwoodcrafter H'llon. As Zaira was his weyrmate and unofficially fostered Imbellinne and Ipominea all was quite well sorted out. L'rilly herself felt a soft spot for the girl between Meliandra, the oldest, and Imbelline; Sorelinna had run away with one of D're's cousins. Not that she was not sympathetic towards Meliandra too; abused by her foster father, the girl had, like L'rilly, fallen into the trap of mistaking sex for an affection substitute.
These last had all come before Elena and Elexa, who had, like Katha, come on Kaili's suggestion. L'rilly grinned; her young sister-in-law did well by the Weyr even fostering out of it!
And thinking of the next candidate to arrive, L'rilly thought testily that they were rather heavy on the Ranking. Counting Prisca and Libethra eleven of the candidates had Rank! And whilst L'rilly was proud of her own Blood – or strictly, half Blood – she had learned that it was not necessarily a recommendation!
This next to arrive, Jeresha, was a niece of Lord Holder Deckter, and L'rilly had to admit that she displayed nothing but the best characteristics. Jeresha had freely admitted that all her suitors bored her; and that she wanted more out of life than marriage. She claimed to have bullied her uncle into sending her to the Weyr, and with her bouncy and perky personality, L'rilly was strongly reminded of the way Pilgra gently bullied T'bor!
These women and girls had at least had a chance to get to know each other – which might or might not have been pleasing to them – before the next batch arrived, after the clutch had been laid and filtering in steadily up to ten days before hatching.
Vorinia had followed Jeresha, a Ranking child in as sharp a contrast to that merry maiden as ever might be found. In L'rilly's opinion, Vorinia was the kind who wants to ride on a Golden Queen to accept the adulation of the masses and as such wanted nothing to do with her. A preferable candidate arrived within a matter of hours, and indeed Tualai only avoided being the first candidate in after clutching because of the party her family had thrown to feast Y'lara when she came to pick up this young niece of hers in response to the promise she had made the young girl. Tualai was scarcely any older than Serehana; but then, reasoned L'rilly, they seemed to grow up fast in seaholds. Predictably Tualai and Serehana were soon as thick as thieves and Y'lara was heard to threaten Tualai with returning home if they could not manage to stay out of trouble for more than a day at a time!
Another relative of a resident Green Rider came in as soon as J'nara was able to cadge a lift off M'gol; as a wingleader his duties were fairly heavy and when paperwork was involved, put off to the last minute. Duties out of the way – and mostly in J'nara's handwriting – M'gol had taken his weyrmate to fetch her sister Caralara and her brother Jeneel. L'rilly found it difficult to reconcile the concept that talkative Caralara was the sister of gentle, quiet J'nara! Fortunately the girl seemed to have musical abilities and had attached herself to L'gal and T'rin, the latter L'rilly suspected cynically as much because he was an unattached Blue Rider as for his musical abilities. She watched in gently malicious joy as T'rin's eyes glazed over when Caralara was in full spate. There were few enough people who could out-talk the Harper boy whose enmity L'rilly had finally overcome. Which was not to say she did not take pleasure in his mild discomfiture!
It had been another few days before H'llon collected his cousin Lusya from the Woodcrafter Hall in Lemos, when he took Telfer to take up his advanced apprenticeship there. Lusya seemed a sensible girl and was healer trained; H'llon had introduced her straight away to R'gar as well as to Calla, and the girl was busy studying dragon anatomy. She did not seem in the least bit disturbed by R'gar's customary forbidding mien; which boded well. Several of the girls were quite silly about it. L'rilly liked Lusya. Which was more than could be said for her initial feelings for Jarla, who had come on Search; a Runnerholder's daughter, technically at the verge of being Ranking. In some ways, L'rilly told herself firmly, she was a bit like Kaili – loving runnerbeasts as she did, and being fit and athletic – a good start – but also being just a little bit spoiled. Taking any kind of criticism came hard for Jarla. At fourteen turns she considered that she knew it all! L'rilly sighed. There was a lot of potential in the girl. Perhaps it behoved her to get to know the child better. After all, she was still very young; and some of her bumptiousness might be due to being away from her family in a strange place. She was at least a lot better than the final candidate to arrive, Lasolly. Lasolly had been brought in by a plainly dazzled T'chal – he seemed to have a weakness for spoiled Holdergirls – and she had tried to throw her weight around even worse than Vorinia. When slapped down, she had the tendency to throw hysterics; and had been spectacularly histrionic when she discovered that the mucky young person she had actually slapped was of the Blood of a line that outranked hers, and was a Queenrider into the bargain! L'rilly had taken great delight in verbally excoriating the girl after having been taken for a drudge because she had been playing mud baths with her twins!
They were a definite mixed bag, mused the Queenrider, some good, some bad; some needing time to settle down and find themselves.
How comforting to know that they might yet settle down, even as she had, to know that the love in the Weyr could work wonders!
It was interesting that before the hatching, there was some vindication of the idea of female Green Riders in the past.
Work enlarging one of the bathing rooms in the lower caverns at High Reaches Weyr caused the plaster to fall off one whole wall.
The tiles beneath caused no little consternation.
T'lana was one of the Weyrwomen who came to view the strange inscription fired into the fine tiles; and read it aloud for the benefit of everyone.
"being the tale of Kate, rider of green Reeth, second pass. I choose this medium that my tale not be lost in case any need like help in the future. I came to the Weyr by choice, but a boy I knew, Tomas, did not accept this. When visiting a fair with other candidates he kidnapped me and held me naked that I could not leave. I had already viewed the eggs; and it seemed to me that if a dragon waited for me to Impress her then I should be there for her. And so, I thought, it would be logical that my future self would send my – her – dragon back to rescue me. And indeed, a green dragon without a rider arrived; I climbed on and we went between to the hatching grounds where a small green bawled, riderless. And I fell off the dragon to Impress Reeth; and her poor colour told me that I had done the right thing. Now I have closed the loop, for Reeth has been and returned safely, if poor in colour herself, proving that it worked. And so I have permission of Weyrleader R'hard to so record this."
There was deep silence; then a murmur of wonder.
T'lana cleared her throat, and grinned a little shakily at T'bor.
"Proves two – no, three things, Weyrleader" she said.
"Enlighten me."
"High Reaches has had women riding green dragons before; a habit of doing the, er, unusual; and a tradition of weyrleaders with common sense. T'kul excepted."
T'bor gave a rueful smile.
"And I am glad that this R'hard was also proud of his people and let them experiment. Or at least" he quirked an eyebrow "forgave them."
T'lana gurgled with laughter, remembering T'bor's consternation over her own mad ride to fetch little Sagarra to bring R'gar back to consciousness.
"Why was it plastered over?" wondered Pilgra.
T'lana snorted.
"Some idiot weyrleader or weyrwoman NOT in the tradition felt it too radical and had it hidden" she suggested; and Pilgra nodded!
T'bor was actually quite tickled by this tale. As T'lana pointed out, not only did it confirm the previous existence of female green riders, it also went to prove that strange things happened in other times as well as his own. It was somehow strangely comforting to think of that ancient weyrleader R'hart perhaps groaning over the exploits of Kate as he had groaned over T'lan's. That she seemed not to have taken a contraction in the way his own young female riders had chosen to did not bother him; for after all, why should there not be some new customs? And it did not entirely prove that women never contracted their names. For how could one shorten a name like Kate anyway?