Chapter 14
The time came that Segrith took herself to the Hatching Cavern and produced, rather apologetically, a clutch of seventeen eggs.
"Sure, and such lovely eggs as they are, Segrith me pretty" said D're, come to reassure the Oldtimer Queen. "You always produce some quality clutches, never you be minding av the numbers, when yer well up on the higher colours f'sure."
Segrith allowed herself to be flattered by D're – a Senior Queen always had a special relationship with the Bronzes and their Riders – and was smug enough armed with that information to please Pilgra.
"What are they?" asked the bouncy blond Queenrider.
"Sure, and doesn't Segrith almost always lay a high number of Bornzes?" said D're "It's two here and four Browns, five Blues and just the six Greens."
"Could disappoint a few girls" said Pilgra.
D're shrugged.
"The dragonets will choose as they will" he said. "They have high choice; I'm thinking it's good."
oOoOo
Boys left from the previous clutches would be standing again; and with a small clutch it was decreed that, apart from weyrbred or new weyr members or those related to weyrfolk, no Search would be made. This would include the weyrbred brothers Garald and Garvan, Harper apprentices, and Garvan was now in age, as was Artist apprentice Boral, and R'mina's second brother Ravis. Apprentice Artist Sessel was one who would be standing again, as would apprentice artist Gweta; which meant, as Geriana pointed out, four artists standing with the girl Vellara hoping for a Green.
"Trying to rival the Harpers and Woodcrafters" grinned T'rin.
"Oh we won't manage that – you've two standing and Telfer will of course, and Ipominea and Tahnee are in age" said Geriana cheerfully.
T'lana had instructed Telfer formally that she expected him to stand; and now assured, in his Journeyman's status, the young man was ready to agree!
Of those new residents of the Weyr, the one-time caprine herder Fidonas would stand, his limp mostly gone with Calla's careful re-breaking and setting of the leg that had healed so badly; and so too would Chorlo and Piaz, P'rilla's fosterlings. Their oldest sister was too young; and must wait a while!
Chorlo and Piaz promptly teamed up with Fidonas and Roberthel, a lad who had failed to Impress in the previous clutch. Roberthel had joined the Mountain Rescue team in the meanwhile and had proved himself brave and resourceful. He had already befriended Fidona, and had drawn the diffident boy out of his shell; and had suggested that his new friend should also join Mountain Rescue. Fidonas was keen, he wanted to help others as he would have wished to have been help if only his father had sent word; he had however been half afraid to put himself forward. The responsibilities brought him on no end and there were sage nods that this confidence was what he needed to add to a natural potential of power to make him Rider material, for he did not lack courage at all.
Chorlo had had his problems that he had needed to overcome; and the four youths complemented each other very well. It was however Chorlo who noticed something amiss and spoke bluntly to Rorik.
"You're not happy, are you Rorik?" he said shrewdly.
"Who says?" the other boy scowled.
"Your whole attitude says. You like to poke your nose in, but yet you don't join the logicators as any normal nosy person might. Are you afraid they might find out something about you that you're afraid of finding out about yourself? They say you were a sneak. I used to bully kids for the man who owned us because it saved me knocks; and he had me well trained, had me from an early age. I was a pretty babe you see; and all pretty babes beg better if they're crying and they cry better if they are in pain" and Chorlo lifted his tunic. "These are the pins that just grew in" he said.
Rorik stared in horror; and Chorlo took that as a victory, to elicit a reaction.
"What sort of monster….." the weaver lad could not finish the sentence.
"One H'llon broke the neck of" grinned Chorlo. "The monster did the same to our Silse; but he may even come to forget it. P'rill was able to get all the pins out of him. I wanted to prove that I know what bullied is – and you strike me as having the manner of one who is bullied."
"I – not entirely" said Rorik "Certainly not like that! But I never was accepted by the other boys, so I got my own back by sneaking."
"Why weren't you accepted? Because your father's a master?" asked Chorlo bluntly.
"That… I…." Rorik looked angered.
"Look, if you don't want to talk to me, why not talk to R'gar? He's pretty kind you know – I've heard some stories of how he can drop gruff if any of his boys needs kindness!" said Chorlo.
"I – how do you know if you're homosexual?" blurted out Rorik.
Chorlo blinked, and considered.
"I dunno" he said "I guess if men look more attractive in that way to you than women. I mean, if you'd rather kiss T'rin than L'rilly that's a good indication I guess; though I don't think T'rin blows that way, I think he keeps strings of women."
"He's a Harper" said Rorik "Goes with the territory."
"Well….. that's the only suggestion I can make" said Chorlo. "I guess you could talk to a homosexual Rider? One who isn't aggressive about it, like one of Geriana's boys? The brothers like girls too, so they have more experience than anyone else I guess! Me, I like women, though I'd not want to try to approach any of the gorgeous pieces here for fear of a serious rebuff and boxed ears."
"I don't really notice women, well except by whether they're doing their jobs properly" said Rorik. "But then, I've not much noticed any men either, not to….well….."
"Maybe you're lucky and blow both ways like S'net and S'negen" said Chorlo "Look, the way I see it is that HERE there's no such thing as being different – everyone is expected to be an individual and that includes how you like your sex. For those people who are getting it. I really like that idea. Don't you?"
"I get jumped on a lot for doing what I thought was right" said Rorik resentfully.
"Yeah, I'd already sussed that your father's a bully even though you try and protect him" said Chorlo "And with his free spy. You need to find out who Rorik is, like I had to find Chorlo, without letting the sons of the Red Star who've been controlling us having any say. I bet the real Rorik is a nicer person than his father tried to make him, after all look what pains you're taking over Tanaish!"
"Enlightened self interest – you should have smelled him when he first arrived!" groaned Rorik "I do feel sorry for him – he's amiable enough – but not as sorry as he made me feel for myself sleeping next to him. We had to teach him to use the rag-on-a-stick."
"Had to learn that myself" said Chorlo "Always used leaves or hoped it wouldn't stick. Not that many amenities in my life before P'rilla took me on."
"Yes, well, that's not your fault" said Rorik "Tanaish is cotholdbred – and if the rest of his family are as bad as him it must whiff in there closed up for the winter! It – it's been nice having approval from the others for taking care of him."
Chorlo shuddered. He had heard some stories of the unfortunate Tanaish.
"Well – you can start again, huh? Accept you've done the wrong things because you didn't know better, because there's no reason people shouldn't look at you anew if you were moving on from that. Specially us newcomers."
Rorik nodded.
"Thanks. I'm – I'm glad you came to talk to me; you made me look at WHY I am unhappy – because you're right, I am. Maybe…..maybe I can start to become happier."
"Just love the dragons; I learned to. I'm not scared of them any more, now I know they're people too. I guess if you didn't want to talk to a human person, you could always talk to a dragon. Like Renpeth; he's pretty chatty, and as discreet as a Harper too."
Rorik stared.
"Maybe I'll do that" he said.
Rorik was still something of a busybody, but at least he started trying to help instead of just reporting infractions.
oOoOo
None of H'llon's senior printcrafters were to stand for Impression this time; save Ipominea who was well enough ahead in the craft not to need to worry about taking time out should she be successful. The rest, the Printmaster had decreed, must wait for the next clutch and only the confirmed apprentices eligible unless there be a youth from new intake demanded on Search by the sensitive Blue and Green Riders. Tying the craft to the Weyr meant that there would be less Crafthall antipathy to the Impressed members giving their time to fighting Thread and would too show why it was imperative for the craft to fight ignorance through the dissemination of knowledge.
Tahnee, as a Journeyman, was to stand for Impression, though Saralsi had turned the opportunity down though he was still just within age. He was loath to give any time to a dragon when he could give more to his new craft. Tahnee felt the same way, but she had been reared over the last few years with Weyr attitudes to consider that it was also her duty to give the dragons as wide a choice as possible.
The printer girls meanwhile took young Linnara under their wings; with the result that she too was to become a printcraft apprentice with the new intake, Weyrfolk always having preference with weyr crafters. Jeinne and Tahnee struck up a tentative friendship too, the latter explaining her bad experiences under Sandrina and the prejudices she felt as a result. Tahnee was far too level headed to permit prejudices to seriously influence her however; and hoped that this friendship would cure her of them! Jeinne was glad that the younger girl was honest about her feelings and her reasons too, rather than hiding them. In her opinion getting things into the open was always a good idea!
oOoOo
Before the excitement of hatching came excitement – and not a little concern – for those who had Impressed Green dragons from Daenilth's clutch a turn before.
K'iara was happy in her relationship with H'gey of course, and Brieth was more than likely to fly Idrith. I'la was with Brown Rider D'rel and S'eta had formed a relationship with Sh'rit: but Sh'rit's little Bronze was still too young, so S'eta requested sequestration. Two other girls had boyfriends: T'asha had gravitated towards T'han, who plainly adored her, and M'eela was 'walking out' as she put it with I'la's brother B'rint. As both girls were still young, however, and both admitted under blunt questioning to have gone no further than petting, T'lana decreed that they would be semi-sequestered in being tied into a sack with seacraft knots, that would enable them to share the experience with their lovers but without penetration. Most of the male Green Riders of the clutch were to be sequestered too, save C'irt, a diffident lad of eighteen turns who hoped that a mating flight would enable him to end up with a Blue Rider he admired but had been too shy to approach – and who had not approached him for fear of placing undue pressure on a younger lad. As C'irt's little Green flirted outrageously with the Blue, there was a good chance this strategy would prove successful!
Amongst the unattached older girls, A'da and M'iandra elected to accept their dragon's choice and see if that led anywhere subsequently. M'iandra finally had a good enough self image to accept that this was a long way away from her attention-seeking promiscuity of her unhappy teen years.
F'anni preferred to sequester and wait; normally a rather impatient girl, she found herself shy and desirous of having love grow from friendship rather than hoping that love and friendship would grow out of shared dragonlust. J'la also requested sequestration, as did Sh'elle; and M'yana was given no choice in the matter on account of her tender years!
K'iara's main concerns meanwhile over Idrith's rising were her lover's health.
"Is your back up to it?" she asked earnestly. H'gey walked now without sticks but his back ached if he had done too much standing, and R'gar still kept his fiercely kind eye on him, especially when the Harper had been carrying firestone sacks to the fighting Riders.
H'gey grinned.
"I'd not miss it, if it lays me up for a couple of sevendays" he said firmly. "There's no danger to my back; the worst that can happen is pain. And shells knows, I'm well enough acquainted with that not to worry about it."
"If it hurts after will you tell me?" demanded his weyrmate.
He nodded.
"I'm not a complete idiot, love, even though I'm a fool for you; I don't want to risk damaging myself by moving awkwardly."
K'iara nodded, satisfied.
oOoOo
It was probably through being a couple that meant that it was Idrith who was the first to be ready to rise on her first mating flight; and K'iara was warned of its imminence when she almost snapped at young Lyseder for making her jump through having fitted up a Minercraft noisecracker to go off by the beating of the practice drum. Well aware of the expectation of irritation beforehand however, K'iara was expecting this and bit of sharp reply to use the method taught by sweet-natured B'kas to all the High Reaches Weyr Green Riders, of saying a soothing verse to herself and thinking of some of her favourite things. B'kas had managed to help a lot of the more volatile Green Riders thus, and if the Weyr in general were pleased by the results of less snippy Riders with proddy mounts, the Green Riders themselves were grateful to avoid the usual snide comments their pre-mating snippiness generally earned from some Riders of other colours.
Which being so, Lyseder received a rather brittle smile and the sentence to spend his free time for the next sevenday as drudge to the Weyrtanner to understand the value of skin and the folly of risking its integrity. It would be hard and odorous work; and Lyseder would have far preferred a good walloping with the Journeyman's slipper but he acknowledged gloomily that it was fair enough. He had been at a loose end with his friends Garald and Garvan standing for Impression and spending most of their time with the other candidates and at lessons in dragon care. Lyseder himself now had even less free time than the brothers.
K'iara went as soon as she might to observe Idrith and saw the little dragon practically glowing with the sheen that denoted imminent mating. It was time to warn H'gey; Idrith might rise any time in the next couple of days.
When it came, K'iara was transported! Their love overlaid with the intensity of their dragon's lusts was a marvellous, wonderful thing and as Brieth caught Idrith and turned her for home, K'iara went gladly with H'gey in a passion beyond words!
She had however been very careful to keep up with the taking of contraceptive herbs; she loved their baby daughter Geyara deeply, but had no intention of falling pregnant again so soon if she could help it, for the good of her own health.
oOoOo
Other Greens were swift to follow Idrith in rising; A'da ended up with T'gar and M'iandra with C'nar which as M'iandra said later when they compared notes was just like a pair of Harpers. C'nar grinned and asked if any Harper could resist one of the most elegant and sophisticated weyrwomen around. The box M'iandra gave his ears was somewhat half-hearted. Cnar at fifteen turns never expected any serious relationship; and the girls rolled their eyes and sighed over the iniquities of Harpers. T'gar and C'nar just laughed!
The shock of the batch was that T'han managed, during the throes of dragonlust, to divest T'asha of her sack.
"That boy is too resourceful by far" said T'lana, firmly dosing the girl with contraceptive herbs.
T'asha grinned, blushing.
"He's the best" she said.
T'lana could hardly read the girl a lecture; she had decided on her own weyrmate hardly any older, and gave her instead a frank and pithy catalogue of advice, mostly involving the use of herbs.
C'irt had succeeded in winning the lover he hoped for and went around grinning inanely for several days; and the older girls who had sequestered had awoken alone, faintly frustrated and determined to find lovers before their dragons rose again – even Sh'elle!
oOoOo
Segrith's eggs were hardening well and due to hatch within days when Sagarra received a message from Rivenhill Hold and announced, in her own idiom, that Rillys had Hatched a Green called Rilbinna.
The drums announced the birth of Lady Rillys' third daughter shortly thereafter.
oOoOo
Hatching began auspiciously with the simultaneous hatching of the two Bronze dragonets; who found their way into the arms of young Roberthal and Piaz, now R'thal and P'az. Chorlo hardly had time to be proud of his foster brother before he found himself gazing into the loving raibow regard of a very well grown young Brown!
The artists were cheering themselves almost sick: Sessel and Gwetar both Impressed Blue dragons and Vellara one of the few Greens. S'sel, G'tar and V'lara were walking on air! Nobody was as surprised as Telfer when Brown Vith's loving gaze made him T'fer, with little brown Softy chirping encouragement, and the young Weyrwoodcrafter murmuring something about the two browns being a delightful contrast, for Softy was a soft light brown and Vith was so dark as to appear quite black in the shadows! T'fer was distracted only by Vith's hunger from contemplating how to use this in a complex inlay of dragons in tessellation in a segue from light to dark.
T'lana meanwhile was jumping up and down and shouting in sheer triumph over being vindicated when Jeinne became J'inne with Blue Uluth, the first ever known female Blue Rider; and Neminda Impressed Gree Luhith.
Few enough of the spectators realised that J'inne was a girl; which was perhaps just as well. With her slender boyish figure and cropped hair she looked every inch a young man. And no-one was more delighted than her sister Linnara!
C'rinn was sobbing with joy to be successful on her third attempt; Mallitta was left again, rather mournful, to be cuddled by her brothers B'mall and B'ron and her sister-in-law V'lie. That Lekelle became L'kelle was no surprise at all; nor that Larrina failed to Impress again. Tahnee was as relieved as she was disappointed – and she acknowledged that she WAS a little disappointed – not to Impress; but there needed to be one decent house mother to the printcraft babes. Glenlys, the oldest female printcrafter, was a nice enough girl, but not, Tahnee thought, used to little ones!
Teesha too was left; and she too had her craft warring with her desire to Impress. Well, she was allowed another time; and shee would see.
As for Ipominea, clinging delightedly to little Beth, H'llon whooped with delight for his fosterling.
"Which of your too many syllables shall we use in contraction?" he chuckled.
"Use Po to start with" said the girl gravely "It IS my nickname."
"Po'nea" said R'gar firmly coming over. "H'llon, get up into the tiers; there's trouble."
And the trouble was from an angry Weaving Master.