It seemed like only 2 hours since Kim fell asleep when she heard Thomas saying Mommy wake up! Kim groans and says It's too early Thomas. The white cat pawed at her face and says I know mommy but your Gold Egg is hatching! That jolted the young woman out of her sleep her Egg was hatching!
Kim looks at the Gold Flitt Egg then around the room, she hadn't a clue where she'd find meat for her Flitt and she saw Kathryn who was up feeding her silver and she quickly went to Kathryn and says in a hushed tone, "I need meat Thomas says my Gold's hatching!" Kathryn looks up at the woman and she went to another spot and quickly returned with a small bowl and she says, "This is for the Flitts here. Let's go see her hatch."
Kim accepts the bowl and says, "Thanks." The two headed back to Kim's bed while Silvith had fallen asleep again. Kim sat down and Kathryn did at the foot of the bed as the egg was rocking and twitching and soon the egg seemed to disintegrate around the Gold who started promptly creeling for food, Kim grabs a handful from the bowl and offers it to the Gold who promptly ate the food, but quite delicately.
Kathryn says, "Don't try and go back to sleep it's almost dawn and Aleth will be waking soon to eat." Kim groans at Kathryn's words she had slept longer than she realized and says, "Thanks Kathryn." Kathryn got up and got another bucket and returns to Kim and hands her the bucket and says, "For when Aleth wakes up." Kim accepts the bucket and says, "Thanks."
Soon the Gold Flitt curled up near the white cat and fell fast asleep to the cat's purring. Kim smiles and says, "Starlight and Thomas will get along fine it looks like to me Kathryn. Though knowing Daisy the other cat she'll chase the Gold." Kathryn chuckles and says, "Yes it does look like they will. Yeah I bet Daisy will as she chases Chocolate." As she said that the lights came on and the dragonets were starting to creel for food, Kim stands up and takes the bucket and goes to feed her silver.
Kathryn watches the young woman feed her silver dragonet and watches her own wake back up; but doesn't creel for food as she hadn't eaten that long ago. J'vron says, "Once you're dragonets are fed we shall take them down to the lake you will learn to bathe and oil them there."
Soon the dragonets were full and the Weyrling's lead their dragonets to the lake, the majority turn to the others on how to wash their dragonets, but Kim picks up some sweetsand and heads for the water with her silver and starts washing her pointedly ignoring the Weyrlingmaster and his assistants as she knew what she was doing.
Once she was done with washing her silver she guides the dragonet out of the water and picks up a container of oil and starts working on oiling Aleth, but J'vron comes over and asks, "Why did you ignore my words Miss?" Kim looks up at J'vron and she says, "Because I already know what I'm doing, sure I'm from Earth, but yeah I know all about what I'm doing."
J'vron was startled at the woman's words and he says, "Oh so you're the woman that J'meson found yesterday then?" Kim nods and says, "Yeah that's me and the white cat and the black and white cat that Kathryn found 4 days ago belongs to me." J'vron was shocked and he says, "Well at least you know more than the young whelps I will be training this clutch then. If you want I'd be happy to let you help me teach them."
Kim smiles and says, "I'd like that helping you teach them. I know traditionally Gold's can't chew firestone, but Rinth is a weird mutation Gold and she can chew and clutch without any problems just like Aleth here can." J'vron was startled at her words and asks, "Are you sure about that?" Kim nods and says, "It's what my writings back on Earth say that she can chew and clutch, she should know that as well." J'vron says, "Then we will have to talk to her about it. Why don't you go get yourself some breakfast? Then meet at the east end of the Weyrbowl in 2 candlemarks."
Kim nods and heads to the dining caverns to get some breakfast knowing she had 2 hours before she had to get to the Weyrbowl, she bet the next lesson would be on preparing meat for Aleth. She also spoke to some of the caverns workers about some food for her cats and was assured that they would both be fed.
Once that was done she headed for the east end of the Weyrbowl where sure enough there were Herdbeasts as they were called here hanging from tripods and she walked over to J'vron and he says, "You're the first to arrive Kim." Kim shrugs and says, "I don't eat too much I just had to make sure my 2 cats got fed and then I came," she pauses before saying, "I don't have a belt-knife as I'm from Earth."
J'vron says, "Of course I figured you don't," he pauses and shows her a knife and says, "You can have this one. Should I show you how to carve the meat off the beast?" Kim smiles as the belt-knife was beautiful and she shakes her head and says, "No I think I got it. Do you know what we call these creatures on Earth?"
J'vron nods and hands Kim the knife and she turns and starts cutting off hunks of meat, but J'vron says, "No I don't know what you call them on Earth. I'd love to know though." Kim says, "We call these cows, but I know here they are Herdbeasts to you." J'vron was impressed at her words and her skill at cutting the hunks and says, "That's interesting that's what you call them. Yeah we call them Herdbeasts, when you have your bucket filled grab an empty one and I'll show you were you can prepare them for Aleth."
Kim nods and watches as another Weyrling joined them, she recognized him as the one who impressed the Bronze that hatched first and she says, "I remember you, you were the first to impress at the clutch. I'm Kim of Silver Aleth." The boy turns hearing the female's voice and he says, "Yeah you were standing near me on the sands and you impressed the Silver that didn't go into the stands right? I'm M'thew of Bronze Garenth." Kim smiles and says, "Yeah that's me. A pleasure M'thew, let me guess before impressing your name was Matthew?"
M'thew smiles as he was right and he says, "Yeah that was my name before impressing, I was shocked I impressed that was my first standing." Kim laughs finishing her last piece and says, "That was mine too." The two were done at the same time, J'vron came over and he says, "Here Kim this is the sheath for your belt-knife." Kim accepts the sheath and places it on her belt, M'thew says, "Come I'll take you to the feeding room and show you what to do."
Kim smiles and says, "Sure M'thew." J'vron says, "I'm fine with that Kim." Kim nods and follows M'thew into the feeding rooms and they picked a spot together and he showed her how to cut up the meat properly and Kim watches and mimics what he did eyeing each piece making sure it wasn't too large.
M'thew says, "You are a quick learner Kim." Kim chuckles and says, "Always have been a quick learner." The two chatted while they cut the meat up, but once Kim was done she frowned as the bucket was only 2/3rds full and she knew that wouldn't be enough for Aleth and she grabs a cloth from the string and wipes her knife before sheathing her knife again, M'thew asks, "Are you done?" Kim shakes her head and says, "Not enough meat I think, the finished bucket is only 2/3rds full." M'thew cleaned his knife too and says, "Then come on we'll go back together I got about the same amount too."
Kim nods picking up her buckets and M'thew picked up his too and the two headed back for the beasts and cut more meat, once done they had enough. They were dismissed for the day after that, the two guided their dragonets back to the barracks and then M'thew asks, "Do you want to talk?'
Kim looks at the young rider and says, "Sure M'thew." M'thew leads her to the Kitchens and the two sat down, but one woman says, "Kim I fed your two beautiful felines and your Gold Flitt was creeling for food so I fed her too for you." Kim looks at the woman who spoke and she says, "Thank you."
The woman nods then leaves the two alone. M'thew asks, "Did you have anyone special back on Earth?" Kim looks at the diamond ring still on her left ring finger and she nods and says, "Yeah I did, we were engaged to be married, you call it betrothed." M'thew was startled at her words, but he says, "I guess he didn't come as well."
Kim shakes her head no and says, "No just me. I'm still at a loss how I ended up here though." M'thew says, "You might never know, when our Dragons are able to, do you think you'll go to Earth for your love?" Kim nods and says, "Yes I definitely am going to go home and get him and bring him here, I've been teaching him about Pern."
M'thew asks, "What would you like to know about our world?" Kim went over what she knew and she asks, "Did Jaxom exist and did he impress a white named Ruth?" M'thew nods and says, "Yes they both existed and yes Jaxom impressed Ruth, however I don't know if they are still alive or not. Can I ask you about your world?" Kim smiles as it was true and she nods and says, "I'm glad they did exist, I hope they are I would love to meet them; sure you can ask about my world too."
M'thew was glad she would answer questions about her world as well and he asks, "Do you have food synthesizers where you lived?" Kim shakes her head no taking a sip of a fruit juice drink a drudge had given her and M'thew and says, "No we don't have food synthesizers, we cook our own food, I've read only at the landing are there one's here."
M'thew was startled at her words, but he nods and says, "Yeah just at the landing we have them." Kim laughs and says, "Some say this place is backwards and weird for not wanting modern conveniences, but I can see why." M'thew chuckles and says, "I've never heard anyone say that; but I guess to some we would be backwards for not wanting modern conveniences. What did you have?"
Kim sighs and says, "Had a computer that was my own and had access to a portable one we call a laptop it belonged to my love. Where I lived we didn't have to wash our dishes by hand we had a device called a dishwasher, we had televisions and such, though my fiancé didn't have a dishwasher." M'thew was interested in what she was talking about and he says, "That's cool. Did you have a foster system?"
Kim nods and says, "Yes we do, but not too much the same as the one here on Pern, I was given up to foster care when I was born and was there until I was 5 months old and then I was adopted."