It had only been perhaps a sevenday after Nozomith's hatching when the queen on the sands, Lasaraiv, bellowed to her rider and mate.

There are extra eggs on my sands! I did not lay these! What Is Going On? She demanded loudly. Anyone in the Weyr within mental distance who could detect draconic thoughts would have had their brains blistered by the force of her anger.

Sirriol bolted down to the sands, from the nearby weyr for expectant-queen riders. "What?" Almost as loudly, Sirriol was in half a panic. She examined the sands and sure enough, there were a small number of hardly-halfsized eggs in addition to the queen's batch of 8 or 9.

"What in the world is going on here?" Kira asked, when she'd been summoned by the bluerider tending the sands, L'go. He hastily beat a retreat - even though he was expert at cleaning the sands after a hatching, and keeping the records of who was going where with what Impressions made, L'go was not one to wait through stormy disputes with big jealous queens.

Eventually a number of other weyr-personages had made their way to the Sands, summoned by their dragons in the hopes that Lasaraiv would calm down with their presence. And if anything, they made her worse.

She paced around, gently and not endangering her eggs, glaring at the smaller orbs that were somehow interspersed with her own larger eggs. And at last, someone poked her head into the sands area who seemed to know what was going on. It was the records keeper, Ilina, with a bashful blush on her face.

"I.... Think I know what's happened," she said, quietly. The whole place went silent. Weyrling master R'vfen stalked up to her with a glowering expression.

"And that would be...?" He said, his scarred face slowly gaining red color.

"Well, see," Ilina said, drawing her foot through the fine grains of sand, "you know how busy I am with the records room, and how when we were weyrlings and in training, how I broke my leg?"

R'vfen seemed to recall this event rather vividly. The color in his face was growing even brighter.

"Well, you know how you helped me privately later, when the other weyrlings had gotten their flight training, and then their betweening?" She asked, sweetly, and R'vfen barely held his tongue. "So, ... well, it was obvious that even though both of us - Tsuiokuth and I, I mean - could fly and go between, I was needed more in the records chamber and not in the wings for fighting. Right?"

R'vfen's eyes had closed to slits.

"So it is looking like ... Well, Tsuiokuth seems to have had a ... mating flight, and um, well, since we're not in a fighting wing we haven't been... feeding her firestone."

R'vfen ground his teeth together, until Kira placed her hand on his shoulder to try and calm him. "It's all right, there are candidates aplenty today."

"That - Is - Not - The - POINT!" R'vfen finally exploded. His face was almost purple with anger, and Ilina had gone past white in pale fear of his wrath. "She knew that she should be chewing firestone, and even though she's not a wing rider that does not excuse her from being on duty!" He was wildly pointing at the small pony-tailed girl. He half imagined the green dragon of hers cowering behind her rider, which she'd done once as a hatchling - and again as a weyrling. Now, if she'd been in the chambers, Tsuiokuth would certainly have been trebling behind Ilina again.

"So can you at least give us the name of her mate? So we can put it down in the records that you keep so well?" Kira said, aiming a nasty glare at R'vfen to indicate that his anger wasn't welcome any more. But Ilina hardly piped up with the answer. Her normally cheery voice went quiet.

"I don't know," she said, "she doesn't remember. She remembers the flight, and how fun it was - and I wasn't ... with anyone. I don't know how I managed to really miss it, but maybe there was some project I was working on ..."

"You ignored a green's mating flight?" Asked S'xon who had arrived just in time to catch the weyrlingmaster's tirade. "How do you do that?"

Ilina shrugged, "I'm ... able to concentrate, that's all. I know it was a blue, as the sire, but... I'm afraid that's all I know. And, there aren't that many eggs. Are there?"

THERE ARE SIX EGGS! Bellowed Lasaraiv.

"I'm SORRY!" Ilina shrieked back. "I didn't tell her to clutch there! I thought she would do it in another sands area!"

"Can you ask her why she chose to cuckoo her eggs in Lasaraiv's clutch, then?" Kira asked gently. But her own ire was rising... How could this be happening on her sands?

Ilina clearly asked her green, and then turned her eyes back to the weyrwoman's. "She said that she was very busy with the weyrlings - she is helping with their training you recall, Weyrlingmaster R'vfen? And... well, since I was also quite busy, she felt that the mothering talent of this lovely queen on our sands," It was obvious that Ilina was plying for Lasaraiv or Sirriol's sympathy here, "was much better than a green like herself's could be."

"Well I can't say I like it, but she has good taste," Sirriol commented wryly. "Raiv, I don't think there is anything to be done about this now. I mean, the eggs are small and hardening just as quickly as your own. There is no harm in keeping them safe."

I will know my young from hers, Lasaraiv announced haughtily. But she lowered her wingsails and her tail stopped lashing so hard. All right. But she will have to hunt for me.

That's MY job! Thineziv whined from his balcony.

***

Just about four sevendays later, with the eggs completely hard - both types, Lasaraiv noticed - the queen decided that she'd announce her clutch the proper way. She began to hum softly at first, and then her mate joined her. Soon enough, the others in the Weyr had flown into the main sands, and sang their beautiful haunting tune. Even green Tsuiokuth came and joined her voice to the queen's, though she had very little recollection of the reason why Lasaraiv glared at her so much now.

Quickly the candidates were brought in. It was only early afternoon, a good day to have a hatching. While the air was getting nippy now, there were no clouds in the sky and the sea could be seen easily from the Weyr's heights - not a scrap of fog lingered.

There were quite a number of candidates, and this time even Kira had to admit that there were not enough eggs to go around. The little green's flight would provide valuable additions to this clutch, after all. But she hoped that those who would surely be left over at this clutch's completion would want to remain on hand. The slated risers on their flight boards were ... interesting. And Kira knew that some of the waiting candidates might fit those flights offspring.

But try telling a distraught candidate that? It wouldn't matter, they always had a strong celebration ready. The drudges and kitchen staff were already piling foods onto the long tables in the hall nearby. The young dragonet teams that had Impressed just over a month before were all on hand - most of their little dragons were singing along side their adult counterparts.

When a shuddering egg gave a mighty crack, the song of the dragons went silent suddenly. Two other eggs shook themselves loose from the sand, rolling about. Three dragonets burst from their eggs at once - but the one who certainly took the greatest praise for a moment was the first to show himself fully.

A bronze, brightly colored and quite large, lept from his shell with a dramatic creel. His voice did not give out, he wanted to be heard! The blue and green who hatched shortly after him gave this big boy a very wide berth. He did not move from the middle of the egg pile, instead, he climbed atop another pair of eggs and spread his wings.

F'rek! I wanted to make sure you knew that I was yours! And you are mine! I am Tjereth - you will never have to return to your old life! And, the dragonet added slyly, I approve of the girl - maybe her bond will help us lead a wing, huh?

Fadurek was stunned into silence. He'd been passed over in the first clutch he'd been near, but now... Now? NOW! He was a bronze rider! He tried to maintain his composure but broke into a run toward the dragonet. Tjereth was large, a sturdy dragon who took F'rek's enthusiastic hugging easily.

From the stands, Jurana applauded loudest. She knew that he deserved this bronze. The pride from her as well as her brown's was obvious.

Once they had cleared the sands, it was the blue and green's spotlight. The blue was obviously from the smaller green's clutch, being nearly the size of his sands-sister green. They met up on the dune nearest the group of candidates, and began looking them all over.

We have been conversing in our eggs, said the green to Pyotr, and we decided that you and your brother are best for us.

To Ilviylir, the small blue announced, I am Malmth, and my sands-sister is Steinspruth. We will be happy to aid you in your travels, if you wish.

"Il'ya," said Pyotr, "did you hear that?"

"I did, P'tr," the new blue rider said, grinning. "It looks as though we're proper riders and crafters now."

One of the queen's eggs shook and Lasaraiv stood up sharply. She swept over to the candidates and physically moved the boys out of the girls way - she knew something they did not, apparently. The egg had a bit of a sheen to it, but with such a small clutch one hardly expected a--

"A gold!" Someone shouted, "she's got a gold there!"

And sure enough, there was a smallish gold dragonet weakly moving from her shell. She was not having difficulty, but she was being very deliberate about which limb she pulled free of her shell first. Her wings, then hind legs and tail, then her head and forelimbs at last were out in the open.

Proudly, she turned to her mother, and they seemed to confer. No one but them knew what they said to one another. But then Lasaraiv encouraged her daughter to approach the girls and make her choice for lifemate.

In turn, the queenly little hatchling moved in and out of the group. There were eight girls or more, some were local weyr girls who had been requested to join the candidates, but were very clearly not fit for a gold - at least they thought so, and the queen seemed to agree. But there were three who the little golden one dwelled upon.

The proud holder girl, Endicte, was the first she sniffed at. She even went so far as to look her in the eyes. But no Impression was there - her inner eyelids fluttered over her red-mixed eyes, and she moved along. Mavi was the second, getting a thorough stare as well.

But it was to Kylvaa that this small gold stood near, placed her wings into the air and trumpeted to the world her Impression.

Kylvaa, I am Urteth, and I am so glad you came to me.

"But Urteth, you came to me..." Kylvaa said, with tears standing in her eyes. She'd... impressed a queen! She could now do whatever she wished - she could fly with a strong wing, she could...

You could show your foolish father what he missed, when he drove you away, Urteth suggested with a strong bit of spite in her voice.

"I don't know if I'll ever be ready to do that, my love, but someday, we might..."

When everyone had finally finished applauding the new queen and her rider, giving Kylvaa a bit of a start - it'd been quite some time since she had been around this many people, and would still need some adjustment time - there were other eggs trembling on the sands.

A blue broke out of his shell, from the Queen's clutch. He yelled loudly, protesting, as his wingtip was stuck under the shell nearest him. How he got there was a mystery.

"Delth, you can't start out like this... Pick up your wing, and I'll push this egg out of your way. Okay?" Bomajar said.

Thank you B'jar, thank you so much! I didn't realize it took two to hatch...

B'jar laughed, and they joined the already Impressed.

Two eggs from Tsuiokuth's small clutch broke up into pieces when they spun into one another. A pair of greens emerged from the white orbs, each quite tiny. They looked a bit dizzy.

One of the local boys went out to stop them from knocking into the other eggs.

K'men, I would have been able to find my own way to you, you know.

"Esoyoth, maybe you should look where your rear end is bumping," the metalsmith known as Kadmen, now K'men, pointed out her rump that was sitting squarely on another small egg.

The other green had already gotten herself into a bit of a jam as well, but instead of being on top of an egg, she'd managed to nosedive below one, and was squishing her nose. When she started flapping frantically, Szenik came running out.

"Sunnheth, are you all right? Can you breathe?"

S'nik! My nose hurts! And I think I just pulled a wing! OW! Don't pull my tail!

"But it's the only way I can get you out of there, now, you silly girl!" S'nik grasped her by the base of her tail, and pulled her free, both of them falling near Kira and S'xon. He grinned widely, announced her name, "Sunnheth," and bolted out of the sands with her, to check her over for any lasting injuries.

A trio of eggs shook, showing cracks for a long while before any of them actually shattered. It was a brief flashback - a bronze, green and blue all graced the sands shortly.

The bronze did not hesitate like his brother. He was not as large as the first of the clutch, but he looked like he knew just what he wanted out of life. That would be ...

Y'lao, I like how you stand up for things. I will stand up for you if you need me. The bronze tried to do so, but rolled onto his back. Yelao gave a chuckle, the first time in years that he'd felt like laughing, but realized that the dragonet was serious. His own solemnity came back quickly.

"Well Bestemmeth, I believe you. But I think we should get you fed before you do any more acrobatics."

"Two bronzes," muttered S'xon.

"But no browns," Kira countered. S'xon lifted his eyebrows and gave a nod.

The blue and green that walked around were mirrors of their earlier companions - the green from Lasaraiv's clutch, while the small blue was looking for his partner from Tsuiokuth's side.

The green walked unsteadily toward Aseicien, and nudged at her green flitter. Will you share? She asked.

"Drommendeth, I think Caolla will like being with you, just like I know I will!"

The blue stopped at a young boy whose drudge mother exclaimed from the stands, "he's taking you, Falnek!"

He turned with glee in his eyes, and replied, "Borsteth says my name is F'nek now!"

As the happy pairs left the sands, two greens, one from each nest, hatched. The bigger queen's clutch green swaggered around looking at the girls, before choosing a local weyrbrat named Wiyut as her partner. The girl gave off a little gasp and then chided her dragonet, "Udigeth, you shouldn't say such things about other hatchlings! You're barely even dry yourself!"

The second and much smaller green creeled sadly because she could hardly find her way around the broken shells and shards on the sands. She wandered aimlessly, occasionally looking like she had the knack of walking, and then fumbling around in the soft warm sand. Finally in this haphazard manner, she found herself face to face with Kathaa.

"Luftledeth!" She bubbled, "how's tricks?"

The ditzy pair left the sands - with a bit of assistance - and would somehow provide a wing with whatever it was they were going to be 'good' at.

R'vfen glanced significantly at Ilina, and said, "that's your dragon's offspring, recordskeeper, your dragon's green."

Ilina bit her lip, and rolled her eyes once the weyrlingmaster had turned away again - he had one of those annoyingly triumphant grins on his face, like he'd known all along that the clutch would be like this.

At last, though, there were only two eggs and still almost a dozen candidates milling about the sands. The lone egg from Tsuiokuth's nest seemed not to be moving at all, while the last of Lasaraiv's trembled open to reveal a bright colored blue.

He made a sound rather like someone clearing their throat, and two flitters came flying toward him. Blue and green, they flapped around the blue's head until he looked dizzy and fell to his side.

"Hey - Shin! Kai! Stop that! Don't get me into trouble here," Cadoimas yelled at the flitters.

Oh, I don't mind them, C'mas, I think they're going to take us places.

"Don't you mean you're going to take us places, Kjoreth?" C'mas replied, realizing that there was a name to this blue, and only he knew it.

With the sixth egg in the smaller nest obviously not going to hatch, the hatching dwindled to an end. While there were still at least six candidates who needed a bit of consolation, most had come away today with a fine dragon. Ilina conferred with each rider so that she could get the name of both dragon and rider right on the records.