I'm Sorry, You Did What?!?! [Whers!]

[Cait]

3074.08.11
Just before dawn
Wher dens

Though she wasn’t particularly inclined to keep tabs on the great hulking beast that was her wher companion—mostly because she adamantly despised him—Dalonia had noticed that he was being far more secretive and evasive than usual; hiding away in his den and refusing to leave unless it was to patrol and even then he was distracted and irritable. Now, a Crimson wher being irritable was nothing new, not by a long shot. However, Dalosk’s secretive mannerisms were. Usually he would share just about everything with Dalonia whether she wanted to know or not…and she rarely ever wanted to know anything regarding the Crimson.

Dalonia was lacing her boots, pulling the strings tight when a girl that was at most, half her age who usually cleaned out Dalosk’s den—as she was one of the few individuals that the Crimson tolerated aside from Dalonia—came slamming into the woman’s private chambers. Thief unfurled his deep brown wings and hissed and Klutz lifted her head from where she was curled up on her unwilling mistress’ pillow, echoing the sentiment.

With a snarl, the guard spun about, knife drawn from her boot in a fluid movement and flung with precision. It slammed into the lintel just above the girl’s right shoulder and the girl squeaked and scurried out of the room but didn’t leave all together. Instead she hovered in the hallway just outside the door, peering through the opening with wide, watery eyes.

“What do you want?!” Dalonia snapped, not in the mood to deal with the child’s whimpering about how Dalosk had shoved her—for he had been rather more cantankerous than usual—though a second after the words left her mouth she noticed a stain of red on the girl’s grimy clothing and the breath hissed through her teeth as her lip curled. Sharding nasty beast…she was going to beat him silly if he didn’t stop mauling the help because there was no fardling way she was going to clean up after his messes. Little Vyrakha had lasted far longer than the rest and seemed to like Dalosk far more that Dalonia herself ever would.

“I saw somethin’” The girl’s voice was watery as she unconsciously poked at her arm where the red was seeping into the cloth of her tunic. With a growl, Dalonia stalked over to the door, wrenched her knife out of the lintel and returned it to the boot sheath before grabbing the girl roughly by the shoulder and leading her forcefully to the bed where she shoved her back so that Vyrakha was seated. Thief twisted his neck around and scowled then deciding that there was nothing to interest him, settled down again and went back to dozing. Klutz was more curious and stretching, lost her balance and tumbled from the pillow with a squeak. Righting herself she marched rather unsteadily across the bed then plopped down to stare up at the girl who was now crying in earnest, more from shock than anything.

“Stop your blubbering and speak up. Was it Dalosk that grazed you?” Dalonia’s voice was gruff but the steel in her gaze had softened ever so slightly as she pulled the girl’s arm towards her. With surprisingly gentle hands, Dalonia cut away the material of a tunic that had seen better days with a knife that Vyrakha hadn’t even seen the woman pick up. Large brown eyes stared at the relatively minor injury on her arm as the older woman poked at it. She seemed to consider her answer very carefully, weighing what she’d observed of the transferred pair before answering.

“It were Dalosk but…” The girl shied away from the flash of pure rage in the Guard’s pale eyes but otherwise didn’t move. Everyone knew about the fiasco with the Weyrling and the new Weyrleader by now. ”Miss, it were eggs that I saw.” Vyrakha finally blurted out and was disturbed by the look of dumbfounded shock on Dalonia’s face. Eggs? What in the name of all that was good was her nasty Crimson wher doing with EGGS?!?!

Her mind chasing its own tail as she recalled his disappearance during one of their solitary strolls to the outskirts of the jungle and the following mysterious disappearances as well as scrapes and flecks of ichor, Dalonia fished around in her room for bandages and using the water from her canteen, she quickly cleaned up the girls arm, wrapped it in bandages after patting it dry then stood in the center of her room, scowling.

The only time they’d encountered eggs before had been a rather large firelizard clutch in the jungle and Dalosk had stomped the eggs into a sickening pulp—which she hadn’t put a stop to of course—so why would he suddenly start hoarding eggs? Reaching out with her mind, she found Dalosk in the midst of a fit; something had upset him and she highly doubted it had anything to do with little Vyrakha.

“Come with me.” Dalonia finally spoke and started toward the door. Thief lifted his head and with a grumpy hiss took off from the foot of the bed while Klutz struggled to unhook her little talons from the blanket that covered the bed so that she could follow. When she failed to succeed, she hissed angrily and began gnawing at the blanket until her claw was freed and she’d made a hole in the blanket. No doubt a near death experience was in her future.

The girl jumped up from the bed and hurried after Dalonia as she walked at a brisk pace through the corridors and down towards the Wher dens, a pair of young firelizards in her wake—for Klutz had finally joined the entourage with a bit of blanket stills tuck to her talon. When the quartet reached the opening to Dalosk’s den, Dalonia was very nearly knocked back by a large, wedged head that was thrust through the door as the Crimson growled and snapped at her.

“Want t’ try that again?” She snarled as she took a step forward, but Dalosk held his ground…at least until Dalonia raised her hand, her eyes narrowed to dangerous slits. The wher’s lip lowered and Dalonia pushed past him as he refused to actually move out of the way. When the firelizards and the weyrbrat moved to follow, however, Dalosk growled once more and hunkered down like he would pounce.

From somewhere beyond the bulk of the wher came the sound of fist colliding with flesh and the Crimson swung around, forcing Vyrakha to dodge his tail before she darted into the den and kept near the wall.

The den was low ceilinged and humid and smelled strongly of musty wher. There was a pile of straw in one corner that served as a bed for the Crimson and a collection of large herdbeast leg bones in another corner that hadn’t been cleaned out in several days. Dalonia cast a cutting glance at the girl who was staring at the pile of straw with wide eyes. It was then that Dalonia became aware of a strange sound and turned her own attention to the mound of straw. There was squeaking and scratching and as she stepped closer, Dalosk growled and moved to intercept her.

“Stay!”

The snarled command made the Crimson freeze in place though he clearly wanted to keep her away from his bed.

As Dalonia drew closer, she noticed a faint movement and frowned. Tilting her head slightly she wondered if he hadn’t brought some creature in here to torture and pulled a knife from her belt.

FUUUUUUUU!

Turning to fix a commanding glare on the wher, Dalonia was startled when something bumped into her booted foot and pulled back to kick at it even before looking down. Dalosk broke free of her control and lunged for the object and hooking a clawed foot around it, pulled it to him then situated himself between Dalonia and the rustling pile of straw. Taking a step back to avoid getting bowled over; the guard found herself staring in shock at the wobbling egg over which the Crimson huddled. Eggs…

“Vyrakha go alert that Sharded Candidate Master.”

The girl was already gone, first the alert the wher hopefuls and second to alert the kitchens. There was a great deal of cursing and grumbling and the cooks scrambled to prepare the gruel for the young whers that would come. Many a person wondered why they hadn’t been given advanced notice. The truth? Dalonia just didn’t care enough to figure out why her wher had been acting so strange of late.

“You’ve done it now, you fardling wretch!” The woman hissed as she shoved past the Crimson and began to toss aside clumps of straw until the tops of eight eggs of varying sizes could be seen. The addled wher had tried to raise a clutch of eggs as his own?

Fuuuu uuu!

“They’re yours?” She looked over her shoulder as Dalosk pulled himself up proudly and began to hum. Rolling her eyes she stalked to the entrance of the den and wondered if she might not be able to just disappear during the whole hatching process. With any luck, the dumb beast would change his mind and stomp all the little whers to a mushy pulp.

[Shoki]

Lan was busy with Syne. This happened a lot. Lan knew how to keep himself busy when he wasn't caring for Syne, but caring for him was work. Currently he was cleaning out Syne's enclosure, and taking the time to check on things as well. As he was done with the general cleaning he raised his right arm and tapped his glove with two fingers. Syne hopped onto Lan's glove and contented himself with preening his feathers. He had to check the leather ties that were on Syne's legs to make sure they weren't rubbing too much or were loose. Occasionally the leather stretched and when that happened, they could slip off. So he made sure it didn't happen. Lan was checking on the ties when someone ran by.

"Hmm?" Lan stared blankly as he spotted another Wher candidate booking it. Lan trotted into the hall and called after him. "Hey, Delsen, what's going on?" The fellow hopeful turned around, looking pretty surprised to see Lan.

"What are you doing here? Didn't you hear?" Lan could see the other man was visibly impatient.

"No, I-"

"There are eggs man, and they are hatching! Hurry up!" With that Delsen raced off, leaving Lan staring at where he had just been. Eggs? But no one had said there were eggs right now! There was nothing for it, he'd just have to finish up for now. He went back and put Syne on his perch and closed and locked the door. The bird seem unperturbed, and went on preening. Syne usually amused himself when Lan was away, so he didn't worry. What he had to worry about now, was Wher eggs.

Lan had gotten to where he had been told to go, which somewhat baffled him. He had just arrived by a Crimson Wher's den. Now, Lan had done some research on the matter, so he was quite clear on this fact. Crimson Whers were male, just like their dragon counterparts. Why was he here exactly? Lan had somehow still forgotten to take of his glove, so he was still wearing it, though he didn't think it would matter. He also had a handy dandy knife on him. Again, he had looked into it, and blood bonding was something that looked interesting. So just in case he attracted a Wher. Still, that remained to be seen. He would be okay right? Lan stepped forward to look in the den and saw a fairly attractive woman and the Crimson Wher. Bloody egg shells, he was doomed. One, he was going to be a stuttering mess. Two, he knew of Dalonia and, yeah, he was doomed. So he hesitated at the door, not quite willing to go in. Maybe he would just wait until the next batch of Wher eggs came in...

[catsavage-Z]

Ria was up and about at this early hour to give herself a brief moment of peace before her grandmother would awaken and come find her for whatever the old woman would demand of her this day.

It was when she was on her way towards where the whers lived that she was nearly bowled over by someone running. Hearing a moment later about 'eggs', Ria's mind went into overdrive. Here was her chance!

A surprise clutch of wher eggs, her grandmother still asleep and she now old enough to bond with one; The combination was a perfect opportunity. Would her dream finally come true?

Her heart quickened and her mind, after analyzing what this might mean, prompted her feet to move. Hurrying back at a run in the direction the other person had come from, she soon came to a wher den that was obviously the target she had been searching for. There was another standing at the entrance. He looked like he was undecided about entering or not.

Ria was not undecided. She saw that the den belonged to a very temperamental crimson male. That did not matter to her. She was smart enough to know the danger but willing to take the risk.

Passing the man (Lan), she stepped inside the entrance and called softly to the woman she saw. (Dalonia)

Before she spoke she clicked softly to alert the crimson that she was near the entrance. And then crooned to show that she meant no harm. "Good day to you crimson wherhandler. May I enter please?"

[Cait]

The first Candidate arrived rather promptly and Dalonia, hearing a shuffling by the entrance to the den, snapped her head around to glower at the boy. When he didn’t seem inclined to enter, pale eyes flashed with annoyance. Not only did she have to put up with her dimglow beast stealing some unsuspecting wench’s eggs but now she had to deal with skittish candidates. Well if they were scared of Whers, why in the name of the blasted Shell were they even here?

Storming over to the den entrance, Dalonia reached out and grabbing hold of the lad’s tunic and hauled him into the den, a thunderous look on her face that only seemed to be echoed by the hiss of the Crimson behind her…a hiss that was cut short when the wobbling egg over which he hovered let out a mighty crack and split in half. There, between the bloody red claws of Dalosk was the first to hatch; a vibrantly yellow Citrine who rolled and flailed about, creeling loudly as she tried to right herself. Dalonia shoved Lan towards the other eggs even as she curled her lip at the sight of the little gooey wherling and silently willed Dalosk to crush the hideous little monster.

Dalosk’s head came up from his contemplation of the little creature between his claws and he hissed angrily at his handler, his tail lashing out. Before long, the rest of the eggs began to shudder and wobble until three more had rolled out of the straw that had covered them. While Dalosk was distracted by the rolling eggs, Dalonia took a moment to try and count the eggs that remained covered….five more…NINE! This was no silly Green’s clutch! Not even a Starlight could boast nine eggs. Cutting a positively venomous glance at Dalosk, she noticed another candidate at the den’s entrance and raised her brow as she made a soft clicking noise that drew Dalosk’s ornery attention towards her. Though the girl crooned—something that made Dalonia wrinkle her nose—Dalosk hissed and made as if to chase the girl away. They were HIS egg babies after all, right?

Dalonia quickly intercepted, slammed the heel of her palm into the side of his head and shoving his head away. “Back off, you smelly wretch! I’d just as soon bathe in Thread as let you keep even one of your monstrous spawn!” Her voice was low and very nearly a growl and while she faced off with the Crimson, two of the three rolling eggs began to crack, dropping bits of shell here and there. Finally, out of the larger of the two eggs, a dark blue and black hind leg emerged causing it to roll suddenly to one side and crash into the smallest of the three eggs. In a matter of seconds, the Citrine—who was now busy trying to gum a shell shard to death—was joined by a rather disoriented Midnight and a flailing Flame.

“There’s nothing good about this day, now get in here. Where are those fardling drudges with the gruel? I want to get this over with.” Dalonia snapped, summarily dismissing Ria as she slipped past the girl to look out into the corridor. Before long Vyrakha was back and not far behind here were a few more Candidates as well as a small squadron of drudges carrying a hastily prepared vat of blood gruel and a stack of bowls between them.

Moving back into the den, Dalonia was surprised to find Dalosk trying to herd the three wherlings together and failing miserably. The Citrine had taking to gumming the end of the Crimson’s tail while the Flame “stalked” the Midnight then pounced on him with a delighted ‘Urrrrrrg’. Things only got more chaotic when the mid-sized egg that was still rolling and wobbling about finally began to crack and an ugly black head protruded with a…purr? The egg crumbled around her and in a oddly delicate manner, she rid herself from clinging egg shards, revealing patches of not-quite-but-almost-black grey hide, mostly along her nose and spine as well as on her claws.

“You’re a male, I wasn’t supposed to have to deal with this, you oaf!” Dalonia hissed as she stalked up to Dalosk and using both her mind and her hands, began to shove him back into the corner so that he wouldn’t interfere. It took quite a bit of willpower, but she finally managed to get him to retreat, though the little Citrine remained latched onto his tail and was dragged along with him. Who would’ve pegged him—a Crimson!—as the least bit paternal?

[Shoki]

Lan's face didn't quite get to the look of 'oh shards the angry Gold dragon is about to squish me' but he didn't quite crush his look of fear at Dalonia coming over to grab him and drag him into the den. His feet moved in response to her pull, so when she let go, she hadn't had to actually pull him really. Once in place, he actually looked quite a bit better. He kinda figured that would be the worst thing about the hatching, assuming there wasn't some portion that involved Dalonia full on ranting at him. He prayed to all that was good in the world that that would not become part of it. He was in a place to see the eggs and Daolonia had bigger fish to fry now, so Lan looked at the Citrine that had just broke out. She was a cute little thing. As she made a creel, he could see her mouth open and, yep, no teeth. Having never seen a young Wher without teeth before he looked extremely interested, but at the same time he was keeping an eye on the Crimson Wher. Dalosk if he remembered right. The Crimson was being very paternal, so to speak and he was gonna keep an eye on that situation. For the time being he felt free to observe from his spot, so to speak.

His eyes caught sight of some little ones having some trouble hatching, or rather making it interesting. A Midnight and Flame were loosed, two males to cause their havoc. Not really, besides the Crimson, the Whers were actually extremely non threatening. He hardly paid that attention, he was just fascinated how they hatched. He was more used to seeing birds hatch, and they were rarely so full of life as these young Whers were. It took a long time too, a very long time for a brood to hatch fully. This was a very different sort of hatching altogether. He knew it would be, but really, it was more exciting to be there rather then think about it intellectually.

Lan watched silently at the proceedings as a Black- wait, no it was a Grey- hatched, and Dalonia looked perturbed. Best be quiet and stay out of the way. He would be a person for a little Wher to attach themselves to, he certainly wasn't going to be near the woman that he was a bit fearful of. He did spy the Citrine clinging to the Crimson's tail and gave a very quiet smile. He turned it back to a straight face he had been displaying. Though his face was straight, he looked more relaxed, in the way he was standing. Well, he was here now, best be ready to either handle a Wher, or wait for the next hatching. Those were the two options after all, so it was better to be ready then lacking. He fixed his eyes onto the newly hatched Gray, she seemed rather interesting.

[catsavage-Z]

Ria noticed that her crooning did absolutely no good. It only served to disgust the handler and anger the wher. Shrugging mentally, she determined that a different tactic altogether would be needed here. So, dropping the nice-act, she straightened her shoulders and barged right on it, cautious but showing no fear.

Some amount of fear was good. It showed respect for a power greater than hers. So some small part of Ria's heart might have beat with fear but her mind and countenance did not acknowledge it.

The handler past her by but it did not matter to Ria. She needed to get inside before her grandmother found out what was occurring and come look for her. Seeing the little ones already hatched and hatching inside gave Ria reason to smile. She was very pleased. The crimson sire, was looking extremely protective and she wondered how this was going to work with him in the middle of things.

It wasn't long before The handler was back, being followed by more people. The crimson was moved back with effort and the little citrine still held its grip on his tail. Ria's smile turned slightly more towards a grin of amusement at that but she was careful to keep her expressions respectfully muted.

[Simile]

Flame red hair caught the faint light of the tunnels as the clan leader wandered her way amongst them, a far off look in her eye, a determination in her stance. She had to talk to the leaders of the Weyr and soon. But of course.. plans rarely came to fruition as well... planned. She heard the commotion as it came, watching the young drudge girl walk past her along with Wher Candidates and other drudges... carrying gruel. How could their be a clutch at this time? She hadn't herd a thing about it... of course, life had a way of working out like that so she sighed and fell in line, grateful she always had a knife or three on her at any one time. She felt one against her hip there and took a step. She watched the others enter.

She knew this was a Crimson Handler's room... so it really made little sense for there to be a clutch here... But of course, things did happen. And whatever the circumstances - they needed Candidates down there, so without a second thought, she through herself into the den, hand held up to fend off what sounded like a not so pleased Wher which... was apparently already being backed into a corner by his handler. He was indeed a crimson. So very odd. She turned to take in the babies, her eyes surveying the scene quickly. At least four babies hatched... and... she counted the eggs rolling and shaking... five more. So nine. This wasn't some clutch of a green or low ranked Wher. She wondered how the Handler hadn't known her Wher had even run... or that a large female wher had been in this den with her eggs... or had the crimson sneaked them in. She had never heard of a Crimson - especially a wher being so paternal. She still didn't understand how the handler wouldn't have known and told someone. It seemed as if this woman didn't really have much of a bond with her Wher in the least.

Bella wanted more than that. Much more than that. She looked at the wherlets wandering around, raising an eyebrow as she watched each one individually. Though she did find the sunset latched to the tail of the large crimson wher rather.... odd. she was going to be an interesting one. However, there was question as to how many would bond and how man would go wild... or be handled by those they did not bond to. It was always a question in a Wher Hatching since whers did not have to form a bond to survive. They could very well be their own. And, of course, a bond could be forced, but such things were always quite weak.

She waited, ready to form the blood bond with whichever of these young ones would be hers... if any... Of course the results were always up to fate. But by Faranth she hoped to bond a Wheret this night.

((I apologize for shortness.))

[Cait]

Dalonia kept herself between Dalosk and the arriving candidates, becoming more and more agitated with every body that slipped into the den. Part of it was the Crimson’s agitation and another part the simple fact that while she may not exactly like the disgusting beast, this was his spot, and by proxy hers. The simple fact that he’d hidden the presence of the eggs from her was irritating enough without obnoxious little brats passing judgment on her for it.

Watching the Candidates as she was, she noticed the change in the girl who had entered before making silly noises; a change for the better. Before long, the other candidates and the drudges arrived with the gruel and the little Black-Grey hatchling, finally finished with her grooming was the first to react. Gone—almost instantly at the smell of food—was her demure composure, replaced by a little hellion that was HUNGRY! Her thick tail lashed about as she watched the drudges pass out bowls of gruel. The first bowl was given to Lan and the little wherling charged.

Prrrrr The little wherling, because she couldn’t reach the bowl and because she didn’t quite know how to work the breaks, ran headlong into the young man’s leg and then bounced off with an indignant honk. Flailing and squirming she tried to right herself, her tail lashing and slamming into the boy’s boot.

Prrrrrrrrrrr!

The first tentative bond was beginning to form and would be solidified by food and blood if the boy didn’t screw things up…and Dalonia would see to it that he didn’t. Already her fingertips graves the hilt of her dagger as she watched the little Black…Grey…no, maybe it was both. It was hard to tell where one color started and the other left off though.

At the scent of the blood gruel, the other young wherlings also seemed to redirect their attention, the Midnight watching in almost complete stillness while the Citrine finally released Dalosk’s tail and began stumbling and hopping along behind the drudges as they passed out the bowls, slurping up any of the mess that slopped over the edges of the bowls. The Flame wasn’t far behind and when one of the candidates crouched down with their bowl, the spirited little monster very nearly tackled the poor boy, spilling the gruel all over his lap.

While most of the people in the den were distracted by the antics of the little wherlings, two more toppled from the now sparse and scattered straw covering, both rather large. There was the sound of a shell cracking but upon inspection it was neither of the two that had slipped from their hiding spot. The cracking continued and when it finally fell silent, it was only Dalosk’s attention on the straw pile that indicated the location of the youngling. That and an explosive sneeze that sent straw and dust flying.

Seconds later a little wherling wriggled his way out, straw stuck to his damp hide, though even with the impromptu camouflage one could clearly see that his hide was already a form of camouflage; bright spring greens swirled together, accented with woody browns and darker greens here and there. When he was finally free of the straw pile, he sneezed again and looked around with large eyes, his nose wriggling, a piece of straw clinging to it.

---

Black-Grey (F) Prrrrr Wher – 000000, 292929
Adult Size: 3’7”
Impresses: Lan
Name: Ethilask

A peculiar Wher to be sure, Ethilask…well she struts; there’s no way around it. She is certain that she is the most beautiful Wher in the land and cannot seem to be convinced otherwise. Certainly you agree, right? You do, don’t you? Alright, maybe she’s not so convinced all of the time. In fact, there are times when she’s downright insecure about her appearance and without the proper handling will refuse to leave her den. This one is going to take both a firm and patient handler or there will be nightly chaos at the Weyr. Despite her troubles, if kept on task she should prove to be rather good at her task, especially since she easily blends in with the shadows.

[Shoki]

Lan continued to watch patiently, though turned his head a slight bit as the arrived with the gruel. He accepted the bowl of food quietly, but abruptly got distracted from the movement in his peripheral vision. The Gray (or was it Black?) came barreling over and hit his legs rather quickly. She certainly turned into a ball of fire, as she wriggled on the ground, trying to figure out how to fight gravity. Lan took the moment of confusion to grab the knife he had on his person, holding the bowl in his left hand while he unsheathed it. With a quick motion he made a quick cut on the side of his hand, since it was really the only area he could get to. It wasn't very painful, shards, he'd been subject to worse. The young Wher had gotten back to righting herself and Lan bent down a little to begin the preliminaries, right after putting the knife away.

Lan very carefully positioned the bowl so it was just out of reach, but his bleeding hand was not. The Black-Gray creature went for the blood, gumming his hand a bit. Soon enough she realized he wasn't food that she could eat, but that was all Lan had wanted so food came into reach promptly. As she started eating voraciously he took the time to notice how she was actually two colors. He had been rather confused on that point. Still, it looked like he had a Wher to handle now. He smiled a bit at that. Ethilask was enjoying her food anyway. Lan paused for a moment trying to figure out how exactly he knew the Wher's name. It just kinda appeared in his head. That was cool. Still, he had to focus a bit more, he had a job to do. Ethilask continued to eat, and Lan gave a very quiet low whistle. It was the same tone he used for Syne, and had long decided that it was 'his whistle'. Ethilask wasn't quite paying attention, but he could tell she had at least heard it. It would take time, but eventually he would get her acclimated to both him and anyone else he needed her to be acclimated to. The new challenge poked her head up for a moment to get a look at him, apparently pausing for a breath of air. Her nose was coated in a little bit of the slurry that she would be eating until her teeth grew in.

"Prrrrrrr." It was hard to say what she meant by that, as Lan didn't entirely understand her yet. Still she looked cute.

Lan returned a brief low whistle, and she observed him for only a moment longer. The next moment her head was back in the bowl, apparently satisfied with his placating response. This was going to take a while, but he was quite okay with that. It was nice to have a female around that he wouldn't stutter for.

[catsavage-Z]

Despite her demeanor of calm, Ria was rather enjoying all the chaos. She loved the whers and new that a hatching was going to be hectic. She was not disappointed. With a bowl of gruel in her hands now she watched as the little ones either looked on or scattered in different directions towards the food.

Would one of them come for her?

She hoped with all of her rapidly-beating heart that one would. With her viciously, deviously-plotting grandmother demanding she become a dragonrider and attempting to mold her to impress a queen for most of her life, she had no idea when another opportunity like this would come along. It seemed as if this was a 'now or never' sort of thing.

As she watched the first bonding and saw the young man pull out a dagger, Ria nearly screamed right then and there. She always carried a hidden boot dagger just in case something like this happened. Ria was a very smart girl that could equal her grandmother's cunning, plotting ways. But this time at this hour, she was not wearing her boots. Thus no boot dagger. She was secretly angry at herself for this terrible lack of preparedness. She had a plan though. She looked towards Dalonia and noticed the woman was fingering a dagger.

If a wher came her way, she knew what she had to do.

[Terayne]

The night was quiet, dawn only hours away, when Terran came through the passages, striding along confidently, all the arrogance of his bloodlines coming out in that swaggering stride. It wasn't, of course, noticable in the darkness, but he didn't mind. It was merely a part of him that he had no reason to be rid of. The smell of runners came along with him, manure, hay and the stuffy, musty smell associated with the beasts, for he'd just returned recently from a short visit to his family's hold, and hadn't yet washed, not caring enough to do so.

The sound of running feet caught his attention, and head turned, golden locks shimmering as they swung around with the motion. Sharp ears caught the sounds more strongly as he angled his head, and he frowned, then followed the noise, wondering what was going on at this hour that had everybody running. Before he got there he'd caught the words Crimson and Hatching, and was frowning even more fiercely, for the two just didn't fit together in his mind. Crimsons, after all, were DISTINCTLY male, and could not lay eggs.

Padding silently into the corridor, he went into his seldom used stealth mode, stepping softly and moving along the wall where the shadows were deepest, just listening and watching. Again came the words, and he shook his head, but moved a little more swiftly. If there WAS a Hatching, he wanted to be there. It was why he was HERE after all, why he'd given up the daylight, for a chance at one of the admittedly not very pretty beasts of the night, the TRUE protectors of the Weyrs, at least in his opinion.

He halted at the entrance to the Crimson's den, a swift glance taking in all of what was going on. Wherlings all over the place, one of which, no, possibly two, looking like they were in the process of Bonding, and three more(It WAS 3 right? he thought with amusement) following the food. Citrine, Flame, Midnight, Black-no Gray?-No, both, and what looked to be a Jungle in the pile of hay. As well as what appeared to be at least two more eggs rolling about.

Smiling, the unconciously sensual smile of his family that was, at the moment, all for the Whers, he padded in, head high, daring anyone to deny his right to be there, his hand already at the hilt of the knife resting in its sheath, forever on his hip just in case this chance came along.

He was Terran Jorashi, of the Clan Jorashi, and he FULLY intended to be a Handler before the night was through.

[catsavage-Z]

As a hunter, Sanderon was used to getting up well before dawn. Wandering his new home in the wher, he ducked silently into a darkened corridor as the one had been in suddenly became a frenzi of activity. He was curious but not too much to reveal himself. He wasn't up to something bad, no. Sanderon just liked to be left alone. He was naturally aloof.

Seeing a particular person pass his location (Terran) he did not give them man a second thought, at first. As he watched, he noticed a sudden change in the man's countenance and walk. Slipping into the shadows, this man became stealthy. Sanderon's brow furrowed slightly with suspicion. What was this person up to?

Slipping out of his concealing shadow, he followed on silent feet. He also heard the words of a hatching but did not think anything of it. His focus was on this individual ahead of him.

Seeing the person place his hand on his dagger and duck into a wher's den brought a low growl to Sanderon's throat. This man was up to no good. He determined to help whoever might need it. Following after the man, he entered a moment later ready for anything.

Anything but what he now saw.

[Cait]

Curling her lip as she watched the man stoop and blood the little wherling, Dalonia shifted towards the straw pile, the urge to stomp on the eggs hidden there growing with each passing second in which she found herself trapped in this place with far too many creatures and people. Before she could get too close to the straw pile, however, Dalosk shoved her none-too-gently with his head and she jabbed at him mercilessly with her elbow—not that it did much good—and turned her attention back to the gathering candidates. It took a matter of seconds to realize that one of the girls was looking at her and the guard narrowed her eyes but kept silent. If the girl knew what was good for her, she’d stay away; Dalonia was in no mood to coax and comfort ill-prepared little candidates.

Of course her attention was quickly divided between two things; the entrance of a young man whose confidence instantly put Dalonia on guard and made her want to hiss and the two exposed and wiggling eggs. The smaller of the two was moving more frantically and before long fractures began to appear in the shell. A lurch from the occupant sent the egg rolling towards Dalonia who instinctively lifted a foot to kick it away. Before she could make contact, however, Dalosk gave her another shove, and off-balance she pitched sideways and into the pile of straw with a sickening crunch/squelch and an explosion of straw and cursing. A second later a deafening bellow reverberated through the enclosed area, no doubt causing everyone’s ears to ring. It also sent the three unpaired wherlings skittering towards the candidates at the opposite side of the den.

The sound also proved to mask the sounds of hatching that the rolling egg had made and now, sprawled awkwardly on his back was a rather striking looking young wher; hidden in the shadow of his father, at first one would think that he was a purple as the back half of him was more readily visible, but as he squirmed, squawking in an attempt to mimic the Crimson’s cry, it became apparent that there was yet another bi-colored wherling up for grabs.

As the Black-Purple squirmed and worked on righting himself, the Citrine gummed her own tail nervously and attempted to walk at the same time. Clearly not able to multitask she turned into a rolling ball of bright yellow hide that came to a sprawling, mewling stop in front of Terran.

Drrrrrrrrrrrr!

The Midnight had skittered off into a corner where he stared with red-orange eyes at the candidates, watching as the ones who had already been chosen were bonded with blood. The scent made his nose twitch briefly followed by his tail tip. With a soft Hrrrrm he ventured from his corner and sat silently behind Bellatora, not drawing attention to himself and for all the world seeming as though he was content to sit in her shadow indefinitely despite the hunger gnawing at his belly.

The Jungle tripped and stumbled his way towards another of the candidates and soon the only wherlings left were the Black-Purple and the largest egg that continued to wiggle and wobble sporadically. And while Dalonia flailed in the combination of egg goo, shell shards, and—thank goodness—partially formed and stillborn wher fetuses, Dalosk swung his head around to the final egg just as cracks spanned the entire shell and it crumbled away to reveal a pudgy but rather unremarkable looking bronze wherling. It took the little bronze several seconds to comprehend that he’d hatched and a couple minutes to figure out how his legs worked, but once he did, he waddled towards the nearest candidate with food leaving the second bi-color the only one left to Impress.

By now the Black-Purple had righted himself, as had Dalonia who looked as though she were on the verge of mass murder, covered in goo and straw, her eyes wild and her attention fixed on the momentarily oblivious Crimson. In no uncertain terms she made it very clear to him that if he pulled a stunt like this again, she’d destroy every last egg he brought back and would follow it up by turning him into a new riding outfit for the ever annoying T’kar which she would give to the man after rubbing down the inside with leaves that caused irritation. The Crimson rumbled and flicked his thick tail as Dalonia stood there looking like she’d just hatched out of a shell herself as Dalosk gave the bi-color a nudge.

It took some doing, but the Black-Purple finally made his way across the den to Ria where he gurgled, begging for some food in what had to be one of the most adorable displays of wherling awkwardness; his toothless mouth was open, his wings flapped and his tail flailed. In a way, he almost looked like a baby bird.

Whhhhhhhhhoooooooo!!!!!!!!

---

Citrine Drrrrrr Wher – FFFF99
Adult Size: 2’9” x 2'6"
Impress: Terran
Name: Tersk

This little lady—and the term is used rather loosely—has a bit of a temper that mainly revolves around her mouth. She likes to put anything and everything that could possibly be edible—which is basically everything because let’s face it; wher’s aren’t that smart—in her mouth and throws a colossal fit if you try and take it away making all sorts of noise in the process. She also seems to have developed the habit of carrying things around in her mouth—oftentimes dead things—and depositing them in places for you to find at the end of the evening when they’re nice and ripe for you. It would be wise to avoid firelizards as they might disappear one night.





Midnight Hrrrrm Wher – 000052
Adult Size: 3’10”
Impresses: Bellatora
Name: Bellask

Despite his dark coloring—perfect for blending into the shifting shadows of the night—it is still a wonder how something so ungainly can be so very stealthy. Bellask is a bit aloof and isn’t nearly as dependant on his handler as some whers though that by no means translates to a lesser bond between the two. In fact, if anything he is more attentive than some whers and certainly far more protective. Despite his seeming lack of personality, there are times when his slightly twisted sense of humor shines through; it generally involves scaring the hide off of his handler and whoever else may be around by popping up seemingly out of nowhere. He is surprisingly tolerant of firelizards so long as they don’t draw too much attention to him.





Purple-Black (M) Whoo Wher – 000000, 6a00c4
Adult Size: 4’6”
Impress: Ria
Name: Riask

Riask’s personality has a duality to it, very similar to his hide. While not impossible to predict, he can and often will swing quite quickly from diligent, no nonsense defender of the Weyr to rather adorable and quite playful; easily distracted. It will take some time to figure out how to navigate the constant swings from stick in the mud to free spirit and how to harness the former at and suppress the later when the time comes to guard, but in all he is a good wher, if a little obsessed with his tail from time to time…and his sire. That is another peculiar trait that the little bi-color beast possesses; if he ever disappears it would be wise to seek out Dalosk as chances are, Riask is following him around taking too-big steps in an attempt to mimic the Crimson.

[catsavage-Z]

Ria was entranced and already in love when the black-purple began to come her way. She had picked him out of the group and watched him carefully. When he stopped in front of her with the most adorable display of hunger and his signature sound,

Whhhhhhhhhoooooooo!!!!!!!!

Ria smiled from ear to ear. Kneeling down, she put the bowl of gruel under his nose. As she began to pet his head she looked to Dalonia and with a frown for her attitude she spoke with little emotion. "Give me your knife or cut me yourself but for shell's sake don't take off my hand please." She held out her hand that wasn't holding the bowl of gruel and waited.



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As Sanderon followed the suspicious character into the wher den and finally came to realize what exactly was going on, he stepped into a darkened shadow by the entrance and watched with keen interest. He had never seen a wher hatching before. It fascinated him. The other character he had followed was put out of his mind when he realized the man was no threat at all, but merely a willing participant in the blooding and bonding that was occurring. With arms crossed over his chest his mouth turned up into the hint of a smile.

[Terayne]

Terran was continuing to stand right where he'd entered, having stopped to look around, when the little wherling rolled up to him. He knew immediately what she was, and could also sense what she wanted of him, but he knew better, knew himself better than that. Shaking his head, he turned, moving away from the Citrine and what she sought, not wanting to give her-or himself but mainly her-a life that would not be good to her. She was female, plain and simple, and he was far too male to be able to effectively handle a female mind Bonded to him own.

A cursory look around the room told him that the rest of the Wherlings-including a handsome little Bronze beast-had all started the Bonding process to the others in the room, and, with a soft sigh, he determined that tonight was not to be his night. He glanced back at the Citrine, sitting with an obviously confused look on her face and looking at him, then shook his head. A life with a female Wher would only be torment, for him AND for her. He wasn't that cruel. She could survive without a Bonded one.

With that thought, he turned and padded out of the Den, leaving behind the night's promise and determining that next time he wouldn't be so obviously late to such an important event. Of course, hopefully next time the Parent Wher's Handler wouldn't be OBLIVIOUS to what was going on underneath their very nose, for it was fairly obvious to him that Dalonia had had no clue what her Crimson had done.