If you missed the Hatching, go back and read the updated Chapter Fifteen.
Jurille sat at her couch, the faded wherry hide leather worn and patched in places, but ever so comfortable as compared to the stone stool with it's thin padding. A Record lay opened on the overstuffed arm of the couch as she entered the names of the new dragonpairs. B'ton lay on the couch, his head in her lap, his face flushed from a little too much celebratory wine, and his thoughts pleasantly hazy as he watched her write.
"I have a newfound respect for L'stur." He admitted after al long moment.
"Oh?" Jurille sounded bemused.
"All this time, I thought he was avoiding me, because I replaced him. But he was letting find my own flight path. I had only to ask."
With her free hand Jurille gently caressed his head. "Real leadership means knowing when to step back." She reminded him, getting to the list of new blueriders. "What did you think of our surprise's father?"
"He's a good man, trying to do right by his craft and kin. Did you know that the girl's mother had been Searched?"
"No, but after having met her I can see why."
"Tell me, please?" B'ton smiled up at her with his endearing plea. Jurille chuckled and nodded.
"So, after the Hatching and the congratulating of the new dragonpairs, I finally had the opportunity to sit down and eat some dinner...
"Weyrlady?" Jurille looked up from her conversation with the other queenriders to see a very pregnant healer approach the table. She stood, and offered the woman her seat. Gwedli flushed at the courtesy as she sat.
"My thanks, but I must speak to you about my daughter." She demurred.
"And your daughter is...?" Jurille braced herself for another of Benden's blowbys.
"Charel, the girl who impressed a blue." Gwedli sipped the cup of iced juice Koru poured for her. "My thanks, weyrwoman," she murmured to Koru, who smiled and pinked in response. Jurille pulled another seat up to Gwedli.
"Yes?"
"I've already spoken to her about the responsibility of being a dragonrider, but she's young. My mate and I, we've tried very hard to teach her all the things she will need to know, and yet shelter her from the cruelties of the world. Perhaps we sheltered her too much, I have heard what happened today, and I know it is no fault of your own. But, for all that my daughter is a vivid, clever girl, she's still so young. Please." She put the cup down and took Jurille's hand in her own. "I can't be here for her when she falls in love for the first time. I can't be here to help her choose the best dress for a Gather, or tell her what herbs to use for her first menstrual cramps. I know you have good teachers to instruct her in dragoncraft, and she will be a good dragonrider, but do you also have someone to teach her how to be a woman?" Gwedli asked softly. Jurille squeezed her hands.
"I promise you, mother healer, we will not stint on either education. Your daughter is as welcome here as she is in your own hold."
"Then I place my faith, and my daughter, in your hands." Gwedli smiled a watery sad sort of smile, the same one all mothers share with foster mothers." Jurille concluded, still stroking B'ton's head as she penned the last of the greenriders' names and set her quill aside.
"Mmm... L'stur spoke of her like he was talking about one of the Magnificent Eight." B'ton responded.
"Really? Tell me what he said."
"L'stur offered to fly Reelon, the girl's father, back to his cothold and explain things to his mate. Mebeckle went with him, he said to give her an unbiased opinion, should she need reassurance about Weyrlife...
Joith landed in front of the door of the cothold, and Reelon slid down his side the same way he had seen dragonriders doing earlier in the day.
"Gwedli! Gwedli it's me!" He called, and knocked on the door. The door was thrown open and he was instantly mobbed by his daughters and mate, all asking questions.
"Reelon!" Gwedli's voice, usually soft, was hard and strident, cutting through the clamor of her daughters' questions. In the startled silence she asked very quietly. "Where is Charrie?"
Reelon swallowed, then smiled weakly. "S-she Impressed."
Gwedli looked from her mate to the other two men. Mebeckle and L'stur both nodded. "I had heard nothing of a queen egg on the Sands."
"She didn't Impress a queen." L'stur said.
Gwedli's eyes widened. "Charrie rides a green?" She asked, sounding less certain of herself. All three men shook their heads, and she stared at them perplexed.
"What then did she Impress, a firelizard?"
Reelon took her hands in his. "Gwedli, love, she Impressed a blue dragon." Gwedli pulled free, staring at him as if he had grown a second head. Again she looked at the other two men and saw only agreement from that corner.
"Take me to her."
"But, 'Li, the baby-" Reelon protested. Lips set in a tight line, her hands on her hips Gwedli glared from her mate to the bronzerider.
"You will take me to see my daughter." Her tone left no room for argument.
"Yes, of course." L'stur demurred, as she more waddled than marched up to the great bronze, who blinked at her with slowly whirling blue eyes, shining gently in the encroaching dusk.
"Master Bronze, would you be so kind as to lay down?" She asked, a courteous request that held a hint of a command. Joith blinked, then surprised everyone except Gwedli by laying down flat against the ground and extending his neck quite straight. Without another word Gwedli grabbed the riding straps as if she mounted dragons everyday and heaved herself up into the natural depression formed by Joith's neck and back.
"I am ready now, Master Bronze." She said diffidently, and Joith nodded, standing back up. He offered L'stur his leg, his eyes still blue, although the increase in speed suggested mirth.
"Thank you, Joith." L'stur added aloud, carefully arranging the riding straps so they did not add any undo strain to her belly. The he climbed aboard and turned to offer Reelon his hand.
"I really should stay with the girls." He hesitated, looking at the three girls watching from the doorway.
"You should go. I can watch the cot for you, and the girls seem to have things well in hand." Mebeckle said, motioning to the twins and Tibitha. Reelon hesitated for a moment longer and Gwedli gave him a scathing look.
"Are you or are you not the man I took as my mate?" She asked in a very soft voice.
Reelon took L'stur's hand and settled himself directly behind her, so both men bracketed her.
I am going to jump now. Joith informed all of them, causing Reelon to gasp in surprise as he leapt up with a surprisingly shallow jump, his wingtip actually touching the ground as he beat them faster than he usually would to gain the minimum altitude his bulk needed for flight.
We are going between now. The bronze added again for the benefit of his passengers as L'stur projected the image of the Weyr. Once again Joith took the initiative, coming out of between a mere wingspan above the far end of the Bowl. Gliding across so gently that there was almost no jolt when he came to a stop he landed, and laid down without any instruction, allowing Gwedli to dismount directly onto the steps leading to the Weyrling Barracks.
"Thank you, Joith." Gwedli said with a dip of her head to the old bronze, who dipped his great head in response. Reelon helped her to the small room that had been designated for Charel. There, Charel was sitting on her cot, Vaeth asleep with his head and as much of his shoulders he could fit, in her lap.
"Charrie," The girl looked up and a smile broke across her face.
"Ma! They really did bring you!" She struggled to stand but the deadweight of sleeping dragonet hampered her efforts.
"No, stay where you are." Gwedli said, and sat down next on the edge of the cot with a sigh. "So... you new friend really is blue." She remarked, looking over the near comatose beast.
"Yes, his name is Vaeth, and he's really curious and smart, and I can hear his voice in my head and everything!" Charel got out in a breathless rush. "He really likes it when you rub him behind the eyeridge-" she stopped suddenly looking at her mother anxiously. "You're not angry at me, are you?" She asked, her voice cracking from uncertainty.
"What? No. Of course not." Gwedli reached over and stroked the dragonet's head as directed, and in his sleep the little blue let out a contented sigh. "He's darling," she added, and watched joy bloom anew over Charel's face. They sat their quietly like that, in joyous silence for a number of heartbeats, then Gwedli sighed mental and touched Charel's hand.
"Charrie. We must talk." Charel slowly looked up at her mother. "Yes Ma?"
"Today you have been given an incredible gift, but also an immense responsibility. Your Vaeth is more than a working beast like Socks or Berk, your dragon is one half of a whole, and a symbol of the agreement between you and all of Pern. When your blue darling is large enough to fly and flame, it will be up to you to protect each other as you protect Pern. Not just your family or the cothold, not just the herdbeasts or Crafthall, all of Pern, all the people and animals, even the hard hearted ones that won't understand why a girl is flying a fighting dragon." She reached up and stroked the side Charel's face. "My sweet, curious baby, I am so proud of you."
Outside the privacy curtain L'stur listened in, unabashedly eavesdropping with Reelon.
"Why wasn't your mate Searched?" L'stur asked, only half in jest.
"She was." Reelon replied quietly, leaning against the wall. "She refused."
L'stur gave the younger man a startled look. Reelon grimaced good-naturedly. "She's terrified of heights." He explained.
"So that's why..." L'stur shook his head. "And here I though Joith was merely trying to be gentle."
I was also trying to be gentle. Joith interjected from his favorite perch. It is unwise to anger a queen of any species. L'stur coughed to cover his laugh.
"Ah, well, the Weyr's loss, your gain." He said quickly to smooth over any unduly long pauses.
"I think, Lord Bronzerider, the Weyr has had the greater gain today." Reelon said stiffly, and L'stur wondered if he had misread the journeyman.
He is conflicted. He is proud to have another dragonrider in his Bloodline, and relieved that she Impressed a blue, not a green, Joith sounded puzzled by that. But he is worried, because she impressed a fighting color. I do not understand. Greens and golds both fight, but he is happy that Vaeth is a blue.
L'stur, having the benefit of having been fostered at Telgar Hold for a time, understood. He is worried because of the reputation greenriders have among Holders.
"You need not worry about your girl Impressing a fighting color," L'stur offered gently.
"Your dragon's been telling on me?" Reelon asked, and was rewarded with a guilty look from the bronzerider.
"He listens in on me, mostly to keep me out of trouble." L'stur admitted.
"Heh. A flight of queens might be better guardians for Charrie." Reelon sighed.
"Your girl is a troublemaker?" L'stur asked mildly. Reelon shook his head. "Worst, she's endlessly curious. Smart too, and I'm not saying that because she's kin. Rather than foster her Gwedli and I were looking at getting her early admittance to the Herdcrafthall." Reelon looked almost sad. "How-how long before she's expected to fly Thread?"
"It's a full Turn before they're capable of prolonged flight, and we don't train firestoning until they've mastered going between." He explained as blandly as possible.
"There's only three more Turns of Threadfall left... what's she to do after that?" Reelon gave the bronzerider a puzzled look.
"Well, that's up to her, but I rather imagine the Hall would be very interested in having a journeyman who has her own transportation." L'stur hinted broadly. "I'm sure you've met our Weyrherdsman," Reelon nodded. "His contract with the us ends in eleven Turns, so if he wished to leave, she could take over, as we like to be as self sufficient as possible."
Further conversation was precluded by Gwedli appearance in the doorway.
"You neglected to mention the attack." She said to Reelon, with a faint frown.
"You neglected to give me time to." He replied without rancor. Gwedli dipped her head, acknowledging his point. "Say goodnight to your daughter." She said gently, a soft catch in her throat, then turned to L'stur. "Please, may I speak to the Weyrlady?"
"Hmm... that must have been when went she went to see you." B'ton added.
"Did Reelon ever mention who in his Bloodline had Impressed?" Jurille asked, closing the Record with the title on the spine reading Hatchings.
"No, but the dragons, Wubath and Joith both, said he thought a lot about them. Why?"
"Oh, I was merely wondering if this was more proof that 'riding was a genetic trait." Graesth, is either Finth or Rekouth awake?
Yes. The gold murmured sleepily. Rekouth is listening to the harpers sing.
Tell him that he and M'gi are to pop over to the girl's cothold and collect her things tomorrow.
M'gi wants to know if they are to sniff out candidates while he's there. Graesth yawned.
If he doesn't mind too terribly. Jurille replied coyly. Graesth snorted, and B'ton snored.
As per usual, any and all grammatical and spelling errors being pointed out to me is greatly appreciated.
Language notes: It is so RARE in McCaffery's novels for a Weyr to have multiple queenriders of note that for the sake of this fanfic I am using the term Weyrlady to denote the senior queenrider. However, it is a rank given and used only by the non-Weyr folk, amongst the dragonriders themselves it is not used.
MageOfRoses, I apologize that Namul and Fulsa aren't more developed, they will be as we see more of them in chapters to come.