Precious Stones, Precious Girls (Zi/Shin)

[Lark]

Loraketh rumbled slightly as she took a heavy breath of air. She was laying in the afternoon heat right now, soaking up the blissful rays. The Queen didn't have a single concern with her sister's clutch on the sands. Hers was a bit worried but the promise of a new Gold lifted Inali's heart. All in all, things were not bad for the WeyrQueen. 

Or thats how it should have been. Since the clutching feast, Loraketh and Inali had been more on edge than ever. The missing children scared her rider as much as the people that were their blood. Then there was the matter of Inali's own child. Shifting a swirling eye toward the sleeping form of her rider, Loraketh crooned. Hers little one had been draining her as all children did to their mothers at some point. Seeing the girl, no young woman really, handle herself these days impressed the Queen to no end. She was steadily dealing with issues. More rumors had spread along with some other...unpleasant things. Growling slightly at that thought, Loraketh shifted her position again. That was a bit better at least. 

The thought if children and her sister with her Golden egg caused a twinge in the young Queen's heart though. She had not spent much time with her own daughters lately. They went and took turns, Her's and her sister's Own, giving kore private lessons to the sub queens and Theirs as they would with a young Gold. 

"As they did with you." Loraketh crooned as Inali spoke up. The Weyrwoman had awoken in the midst of her dragon's thoughts. The ideas still hung in her head too. My Lady. The dragoness dipped her head. The metallic structure was almost Inali's own height, but it never concerned her in the least. Hugging it and kissing the soft hide, Inali smiled. "Call them for a lesson. We will show them our favorite spot. They should know what is going on anyway." 

Loraketh crooned in agreement with her rider. Raising her head, the Queen sought out the minds of her blood and filtered to Talath and Kayath. Come now. It is time for another lesson. We are in the forest here. The dragoness sent images of a pathway in the trees and the directions to where they were. 

It was nearby the Weyr, but closer to the ocean. A good 15-20 minute walk...a much faster run being only a half of that time. After all, both sub queens at about four months were able to be ridden. Just not yet flown. That would come in time though. Looking up hill at a nearby cave entrance, Loraketh warbled in delight. The golden sparkle of the stones inside was visible even from here. "You have dragon eyes though love." Inali flicked her Queen lightly on the large nose, receiving a snort in response. 

[Zirin]

Miiine! You missed a spot! Stop ogling that boy over there and pay attention to my hide! The topaz squirmed a bit as she complained, bumping into her rider and causing J’dol to tumble backwards a bit. Geez Kayath, watch it or I’ll leave you to itch! He retorted as he carefully stood on her hind foot to reach the itchy spot on her rump as Bit helped with her wings. Spazz was also helping.. In his own strange way. The young blue flit had coated himself with oil and was rolling around on Kayath’s back. It wasn’t the most efficient way to oil a dragon, but it worked. Finishing up the final itchy spot, J’dol sprawled on the ground to rest, a bit worried about how he would manage to keep her oiled as she continued to grow. He couldn’t believe how fast she was still growing! It looked like she had gained another couple feet since the gather. The memory of that night caused him to shudder. Kayath interrupted him before he could spend any time on that thought.

Oooh! Mine! Mother has called for another lesson. We must hurry. We need to beat my sister there! J’dol chuckled as Kayath sent him the image of their location as well. He had noticed a bit of a mean streak in Kayath towards the smaller sub-queen, though it was mental, not physical. The orange colored dragon had, even since hatching, insisted on being better than Talath, though why it mattered so much Jaks didn’t know. He didn’t want to upset her though, so he quickly climbed up onto her back so they could begin the rather awkward run to the forest.

There it is. She said as they approached the requested meeting place, though the large form of Loraketh had been visible for a while, though both rider and dragon had enjoyed the run too much to mention it. Pulling up close to the gold, Kayath stretched out her neck to nuzzle her dam as J’dol slid off her back. Reaching for Inali’s hand, he bent down with the intention of kissing the back of her hand as he spoke.

“My Lady,” He said to her before turning and bowing to Loraketh, “And my Queen. You’re both looking well.” Though in truth he thought the Weyrwoman was looking a little strained. The extra lessons the sub-queens were receiving had helped J’dol a lot in the respect department. It was hard to believe just a few months ago he wouldn’t have truly respected the ranks of the Weyr, but he was slowly changing. And look Kayath, you even beat Talath here. He held back a grin as he spoke mentally to his dragon. Of course I did! She shot back, sounding somewhat offended. I AM the better one, after all. Oooh! What‘s that? J’dol raised an eyebrow as Kayath sent him an image of what she had seen. He wasn’t sure what it was, but it was pretty. So sparkly… Kayath was so entranced that the final thought had been broadcasted to everyone gathered there.

[shinska]

Aela was rubbing Talath down. It was about that time where the Obsidian needed to be cleaned and oiled again and as always the Obsidian female was quiet throughout the entire thing letting Aela do the talking. Since Impressing to Talath, Aela's life had changed drastically. She learned to observe before speaking out and learning how to best use her anger and when. "You tell me if I missed a spot Talath. If I miss a spot and you don't tell me you will be itching like crazy later and I will be very upset." The girl looked at the Obsidian sternly.

Talath had been silent the entire time and carfully chose her words. I understand. Though you have actually gotten every inch of me.[/color] Talath fell silent again and watched with amusement as Aela finished and began putting everything away.

"Four months. Your getting very big my beauty." Aela put the cleaning gear away and then heard the call from Loraketh. "Well another lesson for us Sub-Queens. You ready?"

Talath nodded and waited for Aela to return the stuff before they traveled to where Loraketh and Inali were. Once there were there they saw that J'dol and Kayath were already there. Aela dipped her head to Inali and Loraketh and then to J'dol and Kayath. Aela felt pretty special. Sure it meant more lessons, but at least she did not have to be around D'rek all the time. Taking their place the Obsidianpair waited for the lesson to begin.

[Lark]

Inali smiled as J'dol arrived first. The goldrider wasn't surprised in the least by this. Kayath hated to be less than her sister. Or anyone else really. Loraketh similarly dipped her head in greeting, framing her neck so she could perhaps nuzzle her daughter's side. Yes my sweet one. The rocks in there are sometimes used for flaming, which you will choose to do or not later on. However, the pretty ones are called sunstones. Welcome Talath dear. The gold turned her head to look at the Obsidian. Greeting her as well, the Gold turned to her rider for further instructions. "Talk to then here about what your like Lore. You two follow me."

Inali wanted to get away from prying eyes. Turning back to check that they were following, the Weyrwoman stepped into the cool cave. It was dimm in here, but not dark. The light filtered through, bouncing off the sunstones way into the depths of the cave. "This is Loraketh and my favorite spot. I found it when I was younger." Inali smiled, leaning on the wall. Placing a hand on her stomach, she sighed and faced the two subriders. "How much do you two know about what is going on?" The young lady looked at Aela and then J'dol. "I know you were both there at the gather. Do you know anything else?"

She waited for them to answer before continuing. "The riders are from Ista. I haven't yet told the others, but I wanted to explain something to the two of you. Only people that are fearful of something would do this. Only people who were scared out of their minds. They took children, five. Iskra's son, Kierah's daughter, and the Apolla Hold's Lord child. We are going to send some riders there soon to see what is going on." She paused here, watching their expressions and remembering the meetings the Weyr had had since the feast. "What I wanted to explain, was this. I don't think Talath, Emiath and Kayath are the only ones different. Loraketh and Maerath are sisters as you know. Their mother, Mivinth, was hatched in Ista. It is very possible that the mutation is genetic." Inali waited for the information to sink in.

Outside, Loraketh was with her daughters. She was talking about diplomatic things of another sort. Have you and your riders talked much about wanting to try flaming? It is your choice, but know you may loose any chance of having children in the future. You both are plenty large enough to carry eggs, and I would never take away that. You could vastly change the structure of whatever Weyr you are in if you did so. Or you could fight thread when it came again like the other dragons do. The Gold sat and wrapped her tail around her feet. If you choose to, one day you will be on those sands like I was, like my sister is, and you will watch as your own children find Theirs. The pride in Loraketh's voice was obvious.

There is also the kidnapping to discuss if you wish. Your riders are learning though, and it is information that is easily relayed. Subtly, the WeyrQueen was meaning she had not really intention of saying anything Hers was already talking about. The Gold had gotten tense in the months past. Something that echoed in her rider. It was instinct for her to lead, but it didn't mean she wanted to. Hers was even worse in this feeling. We will do though My Lady. Loraketh sent the soft thought to Hers only.

[Zirin]

Kayath crooned as her mother nuzzled her, feeling loved. Hear that Mine? Sunstones! They are so pretty aren’t they? J’dol smiled, answering that they were beautiful. Wait… I’m prettier though aren’t I. You wouldn’t dare say a rock is more beautiful than your Kayath!? She turned her head to face her rider, snorting quietly at the very notion that Hers would choose the shiny stones over her. Obviously he just needed to do a better job oiling her. You are and always will be the most beautiful my Princess. He was saved from any further frustration as Aela and Talath came into view.

The Topaz huffed as Talath finally appeared. Though the obsidian had not arrived long after the topaz pair had, Kayath was annoyed that anyone had dared make HER wait, especially her sister. Sister. Kayath said curtly, her only greeting for the smaller sub-queen. J’dol, on the other hand, was pleased to see Aela. He had come to enjoy spending time with the girl through these lessons and was more than happy to give a quick wave to her before turning his attention to Inali, rather curious as to what the dragons would be doing. Well, Kayath would likely pass on the information if it was important. So, wishing her a fun lesson, he followed after Inali. He ran his hand across the stone walls as he followed her into the cave, wondering what it was that brought them to the caves. His silent question was soon answered by a question from the Weyrwoman. What did they know?

“I know we were attacked by another Weyr, don‘t know which though.” He answered, not really sure what it was she wanted to hear, “And I’ve heard rumors that transfers have been halted.” He paused then, thinking back to the recent feast. That one harper had been yelling about a missing daughter, but he doubted that had anything to do with the dragons; it was likely just a case of a worried parent. There was one final thought that had been plaguing his mind for much too long, and J’dol carefully blocked his mind-link with Kayath, not wanting her to hear his next words. “I’ve heard it was the new colours that were the cause…” That his Kayath, prideful and vain as she was, could cause other dragons to attack the Weyr was just… After Aela gave her thoughts, Inali finally gave them the kind of information that J’dol had been dying to have. The thought of children being kidnapped also got under J’dol’s skin. He didn’t particularly like kids, but the thought of being ripped from home by crazy riders was just wrong! Yet, it wasn’t the stolen children that truly grabbed his attention, it was the words about Maelath and Mivinth that caught him.

“You think there are other’s like ours? If that’s the case, why would Trelis be the only one attacked?” he asked, angered by the idea itself. If there was another Weyr with mutations, then why hadn’t they stepped forth and spoken with Trelis about it? Then again, Mivinth was from Ista… so did that mean Ista’s queen could have clutched mutations, just like Loraketh had? The Istan dragons had attacked the gather, and had attacked the queens of all things… he couldn’t imagine what could happen if their own queen clutched the mutants… would she, and the young, be in just as much danger as Trelis was? “We’ve got to do something about it then! If there’s a Weyr full of crazy riders killing off weyrlings just because of colour, then we need to find the others, keep them safe!” He recalled how utterly helpless he had felt at the gather, he still felt the same now, and until Kayath could fly and flame back, he was beginning to think he would always feel helpless. On the plus side though, sheltering other mutants would, at least, offer up new people for him to flirt with.

Kayath sat herself in a nice patch of sun, making sure the light glinted of her hide, just to make sure she stood out more than that silly twin of hers. Kayath tilted her head. The topic of flaming had never actually come up between the orange dragon and her rider, but deep down she could almost feel that J’dol expected her to chew and flame. She grumbled. I am no common green! She said loud enough for both the dragons to hear. I am a queen after all, and queens carry eggs, The idea of her being able to change Weyr structure, of course, only pleased the topaz more. Not to mention, what use was there for flame when there was no thread? Hers certainly didn’t think it would be coming back, so to have flame was simply useless. It was a good thing their thoughts were currently being kept from each other, for there was no doubt that rider and dragon differed greatly on the opinion of chewing firestone.

[shinska]

Aela listened as her Weyrwoman explained who the Dragons were that had attacked at the Gather. Her eyes narrowed. Not only had they attacked the Gather they had kidnapped several children. Aela listened as the Weyrwoman she explained that the place they were in was hers and her Gold's favorite place. A smile lit Aela's face. The girl liked the thought that this place was a good place.

The Obsidian listened to Loraketh. Why would she need to chew firestone? Mine?[/i]

Its up to you Talath. If you want to chew firestone then go ahead. If not then that's fine too. I will not force you to do something you don't want. Aela responded.

No. I agree with Kayath on the part of Clutching eggs. Though Kayath we are SUB-Queens. Not Queens.[/i] Talatah fell silent after she had spoken. The Obsidian was not a Queen, but she could provide the Weyr with future offspring. Talath would not chew firestone. Greens were sterile and if a Gold ate them then so would they so deducing that if she or Kayath ate firestone then they, too, might become sterile.