Disclaimer: Anne McCaffrey is a goddess and I merely toy with her creations. However, the plot and OC are mine. :p
A.N.: This is post-AIVAS and incorporates some of the less savoury aspects of Pernese culture. Oh yeah, be warned, I haven't read all the later novels so you'll have to forgive me if I get things startlingly wrong.
No Dragon for Tyrie…
By
Isolde Jansma
Rider - M'rem; Blue Lunneth: Fire Lizard – Tuli (gold)
Drudge – Tyrie
It was another fine, hot summer day at Southern, and the sky was a peerless azure with nary a cloud to mar its immaculate surface. The air shifted, leaving a haze, and a soft, warm breeze played with the fronds of the trees, moving them slightly, but it was not enough to take the strength out of the sun, so a good part of the Weyr was at rest in what shade they could find. Not so a number of dragons, who had taken to basking on the beach, much to the dismay of riders, who had had to retreat to hastily constructed shelters in a pitiful attempt to escape the sweltering heat, rather than holing up in the Weyr as was right and proper.
M'rem squinted over to where he could see Lunneth blissfully rolling on the beach, his great blue body covered in fine particles, scrubbing his hide as he wriggled side to side, and through the link he could feel the intense bliss his life partner gained from both heat and sand. The rider reflected there was probably going to be some payback for the dragon's pleasure, in the shape of a lengthy, and dull, oiling session, no doubt to be undertaken later that day. Hopefully, he thought, after the very worst of the day's heat had dissipated somewhat. Sighing, he shut his eyes and settled to snooze, accompanied by the warm amusement of his dragon's thoughts.
An insistent cheep at his shoulder made him turn his attention to the golden fire lizard who hovered there, gossamer wings a blur, as she communicated something of importance to him. Of enough significance that she demanded, in her own small way, that he get up immediately and follow her. Apparently, he was not going to get that nap after all, because she flew to look straight into his eyes, intent.
M'rem held out his arm, and the queen obligingly landed there, wrapping her tail around his lower arm, and hummed, projecting an image of rocks, crashing surf and a wild fire lizard fair. She walked up his arm a little way, loosening her tail a fraction, and meeped into his ear.
"A hatching, is it, sweeting?" he asked her, and she cocked her head to one side, her eyes whirling, but gathering speed as she pictured the wild fair careening madly in circles about a mound, and the accompanying sense of urgency grew stronger.
Lunneth, Tuli says there's fire lizards' hatching a little further up the beach, he called. You'd better get the sand off your hide before I ride you, so go and rinse yourself, please.
Why have we got to go? Someone else could do that, and you wanted a nap too, Lunneth said, opening an eye and watching his rider from where he lay, wings flat against the ground. It's nice and warm here, and I'm sleepy.
"You're always sleepy," M'rem replied, getting up himself, a little reluctantly, and earned a scold from Tuli who was still balanced on his arm. "C'mon, Lunny, you know you need the exercise, and you'll get fat if you lie about for too much longer." The rider stroked Tuli's head with a forefinger, and she crooned softly, appeased from her shaking, while he sent a comforting thought to the scandalised Lunneth who had denied vehemently that he was in any way fat. No, you aren't fat now, but you could be if you don't stop eating all those wherries and keep lying around on the beach.
There was a grumble from the blue, who rolled reluctantly to his feet and waddled slowly into the sea. He rattled his wings against his back before allowing the surge of the waves to buffet against him, and over him. I'm clean now, Lunneth announced, tinges of annoyance in the mind-voice, still huffy at the image of himself as a fat. And sand is good for hide... I like it. You should try it, M'rem.
"No thank you," M'rem stated solidly, as he bore down on the dragon with his riding straps. "It's good for hide, not skin, and I have skin, you big lump, and I want to keep it." He tossed the straps over Lunneth's ridges expertly, tightening them, and launched himself onto the dragon's back when he was satisfied they were safe; he checked to make certain he had some meat to entice a hatchling in the bag hanging from his waist. "Let's go, Lunny. Tuli is insisting we get a move on, so would you mind passing on the message to a few of the other dragons in case their riders are interested."
She always insists we get there quickly and is very bossy, Lunneth grouched, still irritated at being disturbed from his relaxing afternoon, a wistful yearning tingeing his voice, but gathered himself and sprang into the air, his wings taking a strong downbeat, clearing the earth easily. He circled as he received the directions from his rider, and set off towards the hatching, covering ground swiftly. The dragon asked longingly, Will there be bathing afterwards?
Of course there will. M'rem patted the long, smooth neck fondly, and chuckled, knowing that Lunneth might grumble, but would soon be interested enough in the hatching of his tiny cousins as he liked Tuli to sleep curled by one ear. M'rem really hoped they would be quick enough to get to the hatchlings so he could impress another of the charming creatures.
Chores definitely finished, the girl massaged some sweetsand into her hands to clean them of dirt and removed the apron tied around her middle. She'd had enough of preparing tubers and as it was such a fine day she was going to go for a walk on the beach, down by that outcrop of black rocks that caught the sun and had the lovely pools with the tiny jewelled fish. There was also the chance she might get to see the wild flits that liked basking on the rocks, too, and that was certainly worth disappearing from the Weyr for, even if it was only for a few hours before the sun went down.
Today was different, though. Today, she got the whole afternoon to herself, and she made it out of the kitchens just before Byrta swept towards her with another pan-load of vegetables to prepare. Tyrie could hear the woman begin to trundle in her direction, and steadfastly ignored the shout that followed her disappearing back – this was her time, and that was that.
Tyrie bundled the apron up into a ball, and threw it into the pile of dirty laundry on her way out of the kitchens, dragging her curly blonde hair into a rough braid as she went, and filched some meat rolls to keep her going for the rest of the day. Slipping her feet into her sandals, she grabbed a large, straw hat and jammed it onto her head before trotting swiftly to her escape.
Racing along the footpath, she jumped down from the rocks to get to the path leading to the beach, holding her sunhat firmly in place so it didn't fly off, hurrying because she knew that the firelizard clutch she had also been so carefully watching at the rocks might be hardened enough for a hatching and she wanted to be there, just in case, to see the tiny beasts take flight. Only a very small part of her hoped she could impress one, and this thought she put to one side easily, if reluctantly. It was not for the likes of Tyrie, drudge, to get ideas above her station even though most of the flits of the Weyr came to her for titbits when their owners weren't about. She loved them – their supple bodies, soft hide, pretty voices and the spicy smell they had, and the pictures they would send her were often funny and, sometimes, scandalous. Most of all, she loved their trust.
And that was how she'd found out about the clutch, from one of the chattering fire lizards, who had been snoozing on her lap while she plied the silky green hide with sweetoil. So she had gone in search of it, and sure enough, it was exactly where the little green had seen it, and she'd kept a vigil ever since, sneaking out whenever she could and counting down the days.
She set a blistering pace, and the black rocks loomed quite suddenly so she slowed her gait, caught her breath, and kicked off her sandals so she could scramble to a better position. Digging her toes in, she clambered over the top of the rock and lay on her belly before squirming forward so she could see the small cave where the eggs had been laid. She really was in luck, and she blessed everything that she could for, as she wriggled over the smooth rock surface, she could see that the queen was balanced at the top of the cavern and her head hung down gazing at her eggs. She beat her wings quickly, talons gripping the grass tightly, so that she didn't tip over to fall onto the clutch. Around her, her fair wheeled in dizzying circles, bugling, coming to hover by her before flitting away to rejoin the others, or to settle on various outcrops, jewelled eyes whirling.
One of the creatures noticed Tyrie, but was so used to seeing her there he didn't feel threatened enough by this lanky, young human to begin to mob her so, beyond a cursory examination, the little bronze ignored her. And because he did, so did all the others, which was as well because Tyrie could see that the shells were beginning to crack.
The queen belonging to M'rem suddenly popped out of nowhere, and she fluttered about before disappearing back between, no doubt to let the rider know about the commotion going on over here. Tyrie shrank against the rocks; the girl really hoped that they wouldn't arrive too soon as then she'd have to leave, and would miss the tiny ones as they took their first flight. She felt a little cheated, because this was her special thing, and now it would be over.
Tyrie's attention was dragged back from her musing by the hum of the lizards as they all crowded to watch the eggs split open, and she craned her neck to see. One was rocking so hard that it tumbled over and split in half, throwing a tiny green body onto the warm sand, and the fledgling righted herself before shrieking and launching herself towards the sea.
Three more followed in quick succession, a brown and two blues, then two more, both greens, and Tyrie watched with tears in her eyes, wishing one of them would come her way, recalling the two dragon hatchings she'd been lucky enough to witness. She fished in her bag for a meat roll, and brought it out, affected by the pangs of hunger emanating from the hatchlings as they came free of their shells, took a bite and had an idea…
Carefully rummaging in her bag so she didn't disturb the flits, she pulled out the meat slices wedged in the bread and, concentrating ferociously, edged forward on her stomach until she was within a couple of metres. Stretching her arm out, she projected love, and admiration, and held the meat in her hand as an offering, flat against the palm. Tyrie waited, holding her breath, and was rewarded when a tiny green popped into the air beside her, followed by a little bronze, both of who pounced with greedy relish on the morsels in her hand, minute talons digging in as they dragged it away. She smothered a giggle, and watched them bolt the meat then, when that had gone, made certain that those two had more in easy reach.
A sudden noise made Tyrie look up into the sky, and she saw several of the dragons from the Weyr circling into land, the leader being blue Lunneth, so she grabbed her bag of food, much to the little bronze and green's disgust, and slid away from their prying eyes. She'd seen M'rem a few times and knew him because of Tuli, but it wasn't often she'd had much to do with any of the riders. Tyrie hid in the grasses at the base of the rocks in the sand dune, willing herself not to be seen, and listened.
"Just in time, M'rem," said green Tiliath's rider, Lalli, quietly. "Let me have that bag… quick now."
There was some urgent rustling, and a few more muttered comments, then silence reigned while the riders concentrated on the hatchlings. Eventually, after what seemed like hours, Tyrie heard the dragons and their riders depart, and she breathed out a huge sigh. Relaxing, the young woman pushed her feet out into the sand, and wriggled her toes, going over what had happened today. Rising, she dusted herself off, and wandered away from the dune so she could take a better look at where the nest had been.
It was quiet, and only an occasional dragonet flitted about, the newly hatched lizards all feeding with their dam and the rest of the fair. Tyrie allowed a small delighted smile to sit on her mouth, and she picked up her sandals, then started the walk home, a swing in her stride that hadn't been there before, running over to the water edge and letting it flow over her feet. The feel of the water lapping against her ankles was relaxing, and Tyrie thought about her afternoon again, which had ended spectacularly.
Even if she hadn't impressed, she'd fed some hatchlings and witnessed at close hand something really special. Tyrie felt privileged, and deeply happy. It had been a day well spent.