A.N. An update for you all, and one I hope you'll enjoy. Btw, happy Christmas! :))

K'Lund sat at the table spooning large quantities of cereal into his mouth, chewing earnestly, his attention fixed on M'rem. Every now and again he paused his spoon, and listened intently, the milk dripping back into his bowl.

"What do we know about her?" he asked finally, taking a large gulp of cold juice as the day had started out hot and sticky.

Breaking a piece of warm bread to stuff into his mouth, and feeding some titbits to Chalc, who was begging from whoever he could rather shamelessly, M'rem shrugged. "Not a lot. She's been here since the tsunami back in '31. Orphaned, from what I heard, and has been working as a drudge – here - ever since."

Lalli, seated beside her weyrmate, propped her chin on a fist and stared thoughtfully at the bluerider. "I know I've seen her about."

"Mmmmnnn," agreed K'lund around another mouthful.

Soothing Chalc, who was fluttering his wings and had his front paws on K'lund's arm with his mouth agape, M'rem also gestured agreement. "Yeah… Tuli really likes her, and so do the other lizards, or so Lunny says."

Unbidden, Lunneth interjected, loudly enough that all three riders heard him. I know the others like her, M'rem. It isn't something I made up just because I wanted to, you know. I'm not a silly hatchling.

Lalli stifled a giggle, putting her hand over her mouth, and K'lund smirked, while M'rem sent an apology to the offended blue, sharing a sheepish look with his companions. "I'm sorry, Lunny, you're right. I didn't mean that to come out the way it did."

Lunneth snorted clearly, the sound reaching them all, as well as the mental huff that accompanied it. Good, he said. I have an itchy patch on my back which needs looking at.

"You have an awful lot of patches these days, Lunny," remarked his rider dryly, recognising a scold, and accepting it in good humour.

That's because you aren't as good to me as you like to think you are, Lunneth rejoined, his voice full of amused rebuke. I have no idea why I let you get away with so much.

Laughing openly, M'rem had the grace to look pained. "I'll check on it once I've eaten my breakfast, Lunny, I promise." He managed to coax Chalc away from K'lund with a piece of sausage, which was wolfed down greedily, then the flit yawned and clambered onto M'rem's shoulder, wrapping his tail around his neck. "This tiny fellow," remarked M'rem, a little exasperated, "is just about the greediest fire-lizard in the Weyr – or anywhere, come to that."

"Oh, I don't know," Lalli observed, casting her mind back to the exploits her own two had got up to in the quest for food that morning. The blues were currently fast asleep in the sun with Tiliath, glistening with health, who was also enjoying the heat of the morning. "Jonel and Kavi have massive appetites for their size, and I swear they are growing faster than usual."

"Yeah," mumbled K'lund, through the last mouthful of cereal, a little impatiently, as he had had to put up with the two flits behaviour that morning. "But what about the girl, M'rem? Did you hear anything else?"

Shifting uncomfortably, M'rem eyed them both and said, "Adrea gave me the task of looking after her, as she thinks she should be a candidate for an egg – " he chewed his cheek for a second, then opened his palms out in front of him in a helpless gesture – "because all the flits listen to her, and her lizards come from the same clutch as the ones Lal and I impressed."

K'lund's brows climbed their way into his hairline, and he choked on his juice, coughing and spluttering, alarming all their dragons, as well as M'rem and Lalli – who was pounding on his back – until they all realised he was laughing. Disgusted, Lalli and M'rem settled back down, sending calming thoughts to dragons and lizards, and they scowled at the miscreant.

"No, no, he's fine… thank you. Really he is." Lalli waved off the concerned help of one of the adjoining tables, and eventually the kafuffle died back down to the pleasant, busy, hum of the morning.

Once he'd managed to control his mirth, the brownrider lifted his head up to look into M'rem's eyes, hazel meeting brown, and he rubbed away the tears left by his explosion. He lifted a finger, and pointed it at M'rem's chest. "You? A baby sitter? Oh, that's good."

Folding his arms, M'rem arched a brow at the other man, managing to convey hurt and annoyance in the twist of his mouth. "Well, thanks, dear brother. Thank you very much for your support and understanding."

"C'mon, man," K'lund cajoled him. "Even you have to see the funny side of that, M'rem. You know full well you're not really the mothering type."

"Or the fatherly, come to that," added Lalli, her eyes were sparkling with laughter, but her gaze was sympathetic. "And," she added, giving him hard stare, "you're such an outrageous flirt your reputation ain't exactly glowing plus, ever since you impressed Lunny, you've been in more scrapes than I like to remember."

That's not my fault, the dragon said clearly, obviously interested in the conversation, certainly enough so that he felt he had to talk to all three of them.

"I hear you, Lunneth," grinned K'lund, then tore a piece of bread to put in his mouth, hot, tasty and covered in honey. "How come Lunny hasn't picked up on the girl before, M'rem? I mean, if we got a candidate for an egg right under our noses then surely one of the search dragons – one of the best ones too – would have sensed her?"

"I dunno," M'rem said, looking baffled. "Lunneth says he never noticed her before, although he knew the lizards listened to someone in the Weyr. He just never made the effort to find out more about it."

Lalli leant forward, elbows on the table, and considered. "That's typical of a dragon, though. If they don't think it's important they won't pass it on. It's only when it's really blatant they can see there could be consequences."

"True…" her friend agreed. "But, Lunny usually tells me his impressions of people he finds for search, and she's the first one he ever missed." M'rem looked a little rueful. "Another possible reason for me nurse-maiding, I suppose."

"So what are you going to do with her?" K'lund took a final swig of juice, and leant back, placing an arm around the back of Lalli's seat, so that his hand rested on her shoulder. "Are they going to put her to the clutch that's hardening here, or…?" Leaving the question hanging, he waited for M'rem to respond, and gave Lalli a squeeze, smiling warmly at his weyrmate.

"Adrea thinks she could be gold material, as it's a rare skill she's got there. Trouble is, we know next to nothing about her, apart from the fact that she's orphaned, and been here since the flood."

'Well, that doesn't mean she's no good," Lalli said, "or couldn't be a rider – even a gold rider – "

The bluerider waved that suggestion away easily. "'Course not. But –" and then M'rem leaned forward, his face grave – "the lass has no memories before she came to Southern, either. She was badly injured when one of the riders from Ista found her and brought her here, head stuff, so no one was certain if she'd live, but she did, and the rest, as they say, is history."

"Shards, that's terrible," Lalli murmured, her gentle heart affected by the thought. "Maybe we should just help her adjust to the idea of being a candidate for a gold egg?"

"But… what are you going to teach her, M'rem?" K'lund insisted, his mind completely fixed on the prospect of him looking after someone.

"How to be nice to other people," M'rem suggested slyly.

"Oh, funny."

"You deserved it. I'm not certain what Igometh or Lalli see in you, brother."

"Apart from charm, humour, astonishing good looks…?"

"A family trait, my dear brownrider, so there's nothing to choose from there. Do better – "

Are you two going to squabble all morning, or can I have something for my back? It's really very itchy, complained Lunneth, intruding on the conversation again; he added, almost as an afterthought, I like Tyrie, too.

Sending another apology to his dragon, M'rem cocked a brow at the other two. "Well, that settles it, I guess. If the girl has Lunneth's approval then we should all jump to it and make certain she has the help she needs."

Tyrie folded her sheets carefully, smoothing down the creases, still feeling very uncertain about everything that had happened to her. Shap and Benno, recently fed and sated, sat watching her with curiosity from the perch they'd found on the windowsill, their opalescent eyes whirling slowly with yellow in their depths. The green crooned softly, sending impressions of the warm sill, and the breeze to her friend, almost seeming to want to help the girl to become calmer, certainly at ease with her own situation. Benno was stuffed to the gills, and his impressions were entirely contented.

Continuing to fold her stuff into neat piles, Tyrie gathered up some of the smaller items and stowed them into the bottom of the box she'd been given, arranging them so they fit neatly. Then, moving to a small hidey hole situated in the room's walls, she inserted her fingers into the chink and found the single thing she'd had on her when she came to Southern, apart from what she'd been wearing. From her fingers, the broken chain dangled and in her palm rested the lovely, crystal pendant that was her only legacy. Set in silver the stone caught the light, its internal fires as brilliant as dragon eyes, and she stroked a finger down its smooth surface, wondering at its perfection, lost in the many-coloured hues that danced within it. Emerging from her contemplation, she found the small leather pouch she'd sewn to store it in, and tucked it carefully away inside, wrapping the thong as tight as she could to keep it safe. The pendant had been hidden for a long time because of resentment from some of the other drudges, and even now she knew it would be a foolish thing to have on display.

Byrta had helped rescue it a few years ago, after a tussle, when the chain had been snapped by an avaricious hand grabbing at it, and she'd told the girl, in no uncertain terms, that if she wanted to keep such a thing safe then she'd better not wear it round the likes of some. The cook's words had been meant kindly, as Byrta had a soft spot for Tyrie, and she'd also supplied the leather that the pouch was made from, helping the girl to stitch it, teaching her a few rudimentary sewing skills. From that day, Tyrie had kept the pendant safe, hiding it in various places until those that were envious finally stopped trying to find it.

She placed her pendant, in its pouch, carefully in the bottom of the box, covering them with the folded bits and bobs, making certain they would be safe from sight. Sighing, she picked up her box of meager belongings and, casting a final look around, she stepped out into the day, placing her feet firmly on the new path that was being laid out before her. Benno and Shap flew straight to her shoulders, wrapping their tails around her neck, their eyes glittering, and hummed softly together, the sound a gentle descant, their presence soothing.

Unexpectedly, Tuli suddenly popped into the air beside her, and with another audible pop, disappeared again. Tyrie arched a brow, knowing there was never going to be a moment she could be truly on her own now that everyone knew about her ability. The flits would listen to her, but not if their owners were insistent about finding her, as that was something she'd already tried with another of the Weyr's little beasts, who looked to Charlv, one of the fosterlings currently living there.

Sighing, she continued walking towards the Weyr, certain that M'rem would soon show up, with all kinds of instructions, orders, and general ideas of how she should behave. It wasn't that she disliked the bluerider per se, but she was wary of him as several of the girls had been bitten with a crush on him, and were all too ready to be at hand when Lunneth flew a proddy green and, she wasn't quite ready to see that she needed that much instruction about being a candidate for an egg. She was hoping M'rem was just an unfortunate hiccup, but one she could cope with as long as he didn't play some of his silly tricks on her. Really, she considered, it was the blue dragon she was excited about getting to know, as he was surely one of the handsomest beasts in the Weyr, with his royal blue hide, midnight wing sails, and he was so beautiful.

I will make certain he behaves himself, Tyrie, said a pleasant tenor voice in response to her thoughts. And thank you for the compliment.

So startled she stopped dead in her tracks, Tyrie's mouth dropped open before she clamped it shut and bit her tongue as she did. "Ow!" There was a noise like laughter running through her mind, and she also found herself knocked to the ground in a flurry of limbs, box, clothes, and deeply disgruntled flits. "OW!"

A hand came into view, and she looked up into a pair of amused brown eyes, thick black hair falling around a strong face with a wide, sensitive mouth that was currently stretched into a big, white, grin. "Sorry about that," said M'rem. "But I think you should be looking where you're going, you know."

Nonplussed, Tyrie just sat on the ground, staring at him like a lackwit before giving herself a really hard mental shake. "Lunneth spoke to me," she squeaked, grabbing the proffered hand and getting hauled to her feet unceremoniously. Her lizards whirled about over her head before landing on her shoulders again.

"He does that," M'rem said, and crouched to pick up her spilled things, scattered across and into the sand. Dusting them off, he placed them back into the box carefully, after he'd righted it, and then the light hitting the pendant attracted his attention. Picking it up, he rose fluidly to his feet and stared at the piece of jewellery in his hand. He wasn't allowed to look at it for long as Tyrie had grabbed it back, and was turning it over in her fingers, examining it carefully. "It's important to you?" he asked.

Looking up at him, she gave a mute nod. "It's all I have of who I once was."

"Very important, then?"

Tyrie gave a little wisp of a laugh, and bent over to retrieve the pouch lying on the ground; she carefully coiled the chain around the pendant and tucked it back in the pouch again before slipping it into her waistband. She gazed up at the rider, then gave another nod. "Yes. It is."

M'rem stared hard at the girl in front of him, into grey eyes fringed with black lashes that were currently examining him keenly - with more than a hint of caution in their depths. Her whole manner was refreshing, cautious yet polite, and quite assertive, but not entirely unafraid of the changes occurring in her life. "I'll carry the box the rest of the way, Tyrie, as it's my fault they ended up on the floor."

A smile flickered over her face, and the guarded look disappeared to be replaced by humour. "That's kind of you, but I can do it myself."

"Oh, I insist," he grinned and sketched a mock bow, making a very fine leg, then swept the box up and started walking towards the Weyr. "If Lunny likes you, then that's good, as he has very discerning taste."

Tyrie blushed, the colour staining her tanned skin suddenly and unexpectedly, but it was a surge of pleasure that she felt. "I was so flattered that he would speak to me," she said, her voice brimming with pleasure.

"He likes people," M'rem explained. "He will sometimes talk to people if he is curious about what they are doing. He says it passes the time when I'm busy."

"He's a very nice dragon," she said.

Yes, I really am.

Lifting her head up, Tyrie looked across at M'rem to see if he had heard that, and he was gazing at her with a lop-sided grin, then he chuckled so infectiously, she joined in.

"He also thinks he's very funny," M'rem pointed out unnecessarily, still amused by his dragon's attitude towards the girl.

Walking beside the rider, Tyrie was suddenly filled with an overwhelming sensation of astonishment. Her life had completely changed in the course of a few hours, and all because she'd decided to take a risk and not tell anybody about a fire-lizard clutch. She hadn't realised how her talent for talking to the flits was so important, and she still didn't see that it could be, especially as they always listened to the queens, and to the white dragon if he was about. The girl gave a mental shrug, dismissing the thought because it had been a big deal, and then wondered about being put forward as a candidate for an egg. Surely she was too old now? She knew that most riders impressed before they got to twenty, and here she was on the cusp of that birthday, if not already past it as she was uncertain exactly how old she was.

Tyrie was still really uncertain whether she wanted to be a rider as she had never really thought much further than the possibility of impressing a lizard, and now she had two. Lost in her thoughts, she was unaware of the man walking beside her, and that he was becoming uncomfortable with her silence.

Normally garrulous, M'rem found he wanted to make conversation, but felt unable to. So they continued in silence until they entered the Weyr, not pausing until Tyrie had entered the chambers reserved for candidates and, sometimes, especially this close to the end of a Pass, guests.

"I'll leave your things here, shall I?" he enquired, uncomfortable, and at a loss, uncertain how to deal with this young woman or whether to stop a little longer.

Tyrie looked up at him again, and gave that odd smile he'd noticed earlier. "Thank you, bluerider, sir… er…" Trailing off, she looked at him quizzically and waited for him to tell her what she was to call him.

"M'rem, is my name, Tyrie, and I would be pleased if you would call me by it."

The smile faded, to be replaced by something quite solemn, but pleased. "Thank you… M'rem… - " and she tested the sound of it in her mouth, her fingers fiddling unconsciously with the pouch ties at her waist – "M'rem, rider of blue Lunneth."

The rider smiled kindly at her, and gave a brief nod. "I'll be back a bit later today and then we can start talking about caring for flits, if you like. But, I'm certain that Lalli will be about to help if you want?"

"I'll be fine, thanks. I just need to put my things away, and Adrea wants to see me too."

"In that case, Tyrie, I will leave you and talk with you on my return."

The bluerider turned on his heel and left, leaving the young woman to begin to sort through her things.

I really do like her, M'rem. I just don't know why I've never noticed her before. The blue was still very puzzled by his omission, and as they circled above Ista Weyr to come in to land, he had been thinking the whole thing over very carefully.

M'rem was impressed by his friend's concerns, but couldn't see what there was to worry about. "Well, we know about her now, Lunny, and that's all that matters."

I suppose so. But Lunneth sounded unsure, and landed briefly to let his rider down before springing aloft again to sit on the ridges. The mental sigh reached M'rem, and the dragon added, I just need to understand what I missed so I don't do it again.

M'rem sent a comforting thought, and had his arm taken by an older brownrider in greeting, who had approached him as he'd alighted. Clasping each other, the younger man smiled, pleased to see his uncle, N'gran, for the first time in an age. "Good to see you, uncle."

"You too, boy. To what do we owe the pleasure of this visit?"

M'rem released the arm, and said, "I need to talk to the Weyrleaders about the rescue of a girl by one of your riders eight turns ago."