He may have appeared resentful at first, for being sent away with his brothers to the guilds. But the adoration in his mother's tone, her tears, her long gaze as the caravan left the Hold made him realize that this was far harder on her than it was on the boys. Baepei had lost two men, within two years of one another. Though she'd never married either of them, the men weren't rivals either (and there were whispered rumors of scandalous meetings among the trio, none of which the brothers really understood until much later), Baepei loved them and would certainly have allowed them to help run her Hold when she inherited it. So really she'd lost three men: her father too died unexpectedly and since she was his only heir, his Hold was hers. Then, both Teron and Loyax died in that frightful storm. The boys had been with them - and Baepei expressed often how thankful she felt for not having lost all her men.

She would always tightly embrace them all together, with that memory.

Bitaplan would shrug off the hugs, but always return her nightly kiss. When he was ten, though, half a year after the storm took his father, it was time that Baepei did what needed to be done. She had a good head on her shoulders, she was well versed in maths and literacy so she could run the shipping dock business that her father had inherited from his own family. But with the boys being essentially too young to work, and a distinct lack of good Harpers in the area, she had to send them off.

Her extended family had several guild members - harpers and healers and the like. And fortunately, they felt for their cousin who had lost one of their favorite uncles, and put in the good word for the boys. Sight unseen, they were approved for tentative training in various Halls.

The caravan ride was miserable, boring, and long. But eventually once they got used to the rolling and rocking and bumps of the trip, the boys found themselves asking each other what they'd want to learn at these guild halls.

While his brothers both enjoyed more intellectual pursuits, Bitaplan favored more artistic ones. Thus, when they did arrive at the Guildhall, he immediately took to the weaver craft. His hands were deft and sure, and his eye for detail and color was unmatched. Soon enough he was an apprentice, and last year was given his Journeyman knots. However, because his brothers were both younger than he, it was decided that they'd wait until all three of them were of the same rank, to do any traveling.

He would send letters once a week back to their mother, along with some of his weaving work to prove that he was doing well. Some she kept - but other pieces he discovered she'd been selling: not to make ends meet but to buy something special for him. And indeed, the long black leather coat that he wears was well worth hours of weaving. The fact that now in his sixteenth year Bitaplan could appreciate his mother's presence as not just a parent, but as a business contact, was of immeasurable value. He wore the leather coat any time he was to be seen in public or out of the Guild hall, but he also seemed to just adore it in general, and made plans to trade other works for new things.

His appreciation for the work that went into things was obvious, especially when the dragon riders from a strange place, Dragonhope Weyr, came to the Hall. Told along with his brothers that they were Searched, this put their Journeys on hold - but now that they were all three Journeymen anyway, it suited all of them. When he was to leave with his brothers, however, one of the elderly women weavers pulled him aside, and pressed something into his hands privately. She whispered what it was, and his eyes bugged out. Something extremely valuable to any weaver.

Mulberry seeds. Why? Because silk worms didn't like to reside anywhere but mulberry plants. And they were so rare here - he wasn't sure whether the climate where they were going would suit them, but he knew that the Weyr which they'd wind up in, should they impress, would be excellent. Mountain winds and year round chill aside, Dragonhope would sponsor them when they were riders.

If they were riders, he chided himself, putting the seed packet away carefully into the inner pocket of his coat. If they did, he'd be able to plant those seeds anywhere in the world.

***

While one of the brothers, Ph'ron now, had impressed at a unique Weyrhold named Shintaru, it turned out the other two would need to head somewhere else. As a pair then, they were told that Aneris would likely suit their needs. His brother was excited, but then any time they got to travel on dragon-back was an event.

Maybe it would be commonplace to them some time, but... for the moment, they both thrilled with the trip!

*** 2021 Update ***

And it ... was not to be there either. Dejected with their continued frustration on sands that kept vanishing or turning out to be full to capacity and turning them away, they returned to Dragonhope with one last chance. The Weyrleader, S'xon, sat them down while their third brother was busy with weyrling training in the prestigious queen's wing Tariqa Rani, they knew he would be safe there as a diplomat. He opened with an apology, his brilliant lime-green eyes showing true regret and sadness about their failures. He was quite proud of their third.

But now, what of Bitaplan and Pahpeyx?

"The Weyr we're going to bring you to is a bit unusual, you'll probably find that out when you get there. But it is active, and since you're both well trained already in your candidate and potential new rider skills, we'll just make sure that you come home... guided, instead of carried, by other dragons."

Dawn Watch, was it? Well, maybe... maybe they could also use these seeds, who knew. Whatever it was that S'xon hinted at how different this place was from their current surroundings, 'Plan generally thought 'oh it will be tropical or desert', he wasn't quite prepared for the reality...

Balpheron

Bahpeyx

* from the hatching *

One of Dianath's offspring made a quiet and largely unnoticed entrance, as a large crack in the side of the second-largest egg broken apart and a little brown hatchling came slithering out of the still mostly intact shell. Dianath twisted her head around to watch him, while also shifting her leg to keep the enthusiastic Zilirth contained.

Oh, it's very loud out here The little brown complained, shaking his head as he began to get to his feet, which caused him to stumble into one of the other eggs. There was a loud cracking sound as the brown's weight came down on just the right weakened spot to cause the whole thing to come apart.

Aniyath! The protesting voice drew out the name, You ruined my grand enterance! A small green shoved herself upward, dislodging the brown who had come to rest on her back.

I'm sorry Diyoth. I didn't mean to The brown replied.

I know. The green sighed quietly, No-one never means these things. Still, I'm going to go find my rider now, before anything else happens

She took off, leaving her brother to right himself without assistance. The brown had gotten to his feet and approached the gathered candidates as another egg, the largest, broke open. The earlier first hatching white had found her bond, along with the pale blue female.

As many faces turned towards the newest pairing, Ainyath had also found his rider. Hello Bitaplan The brown's body language proclaimed his joy as he stopped in front of the young man he had chosen. I am Aniyath. Things are going to change now Bitaplan. But in a good way I think. First though, you need to help me find something to eat.

With only one egg left, Bitaplan gazed at his brother, but then was very, very surprised to see a purple male dragon come from that egg... And impress him!

***

Bitaplan (P'lan)
Status: Guild Born
Age: 17
Gender: male
Siblings: one full, one half brother
Born: first
Legitimacy: born out of wedlock, fostered due to financial burden
Childhood Health: very sturdy
Adult Height: taller than their friends
Adult Build: average in build
Skin Tone: tanned
Hair Color: darkly brown
Hair Style: wavy
Hair Length: cut to the neck
Eye Color: forest green
Literacy Level: read and write with expert precision
Politeness Level: their politeness extends to everyone around them
Focus: attention is paid to their work, they are focused, though their work is only a small fraction of their true obsession
This character is certainly one of the best looking folks around
They're well known for being very selfish

Values and Goals
Enjoys: their expensive clothing
Dislikes: being at home
Low goal: marry and have a family
Very weak fear: open spaces
Seeds kept in a pouch is in their posession

Crafting Guild: Weaving, Status: new journeyman
Other Skill picked up around Guild folk: math
Odd Skill (learned outside of craft if any): dirty fighting

Originally From: lake side community
Location size: average sized
Location climate: rainy
Searched: this morning