Hatching Aspirations [Tag: G'rett]

[Hiko]

As Mollin neared the weyr where G'rett and Mastromideth were currently dorming, she had an awkward sense of deja vu. The last time she'd gone knocking on a bronze rider's weyr, it was the beginning of the worst time of her life. This time, however, it brought a sense of renewed hope.

It had been a few days since she and the G'rett had brought back the pair of fire lizard eggs after their little adventure (and counseling session, she thought with a mental kick to herself), and there was a nagging at the back of her head to go check on them.

As she walked, a smile toyed at forming on her lips. Daltilith was all too curious about what his new little friend might look like, and when Mollin couldn't tell him as the eggs had yet to hatch, the blue had demanded she go and see. It paired with her own suspicions, and she wondered how much her own bias had played into his questioning.

Knocking, Mollin wondered if G'rett was even in the weyr at the moment, and if he wasn't, how much of a hard time D'nel would give either of them if she were to just enter without invitation. She debated the idea, more amused at the trouble of it all than anything, and knocked again.
“G'rett? You in?” She paused. “Mastro?” Mollin couldn't help but be quietly pleased that the big bronze had taken a liking to her. He was of a different sort of personality from Daltilith's over-excited, joking nature, and while it never ceased to surprise her when the bronze spoke where she could hear, it felt like a gentle reminder that she belonged, that she was, indeed, home in the Weyr. Isolation could do a lot of damage, she reminded herself. It was entirely possible that the bronze was that open to everyone, but regardless, Mollin appreciated it.
With her hand on the side of the weyr entrance, the blue rider leaned, just barely poking her head in.
“How are the eggs?”

Alyx

[Alyx]

G'rett - Bronze Mastromideth

G’rett rubbed his temples, pushing the hide away across his table for a moment. It was nice, for the moment, to have the shared weyr to himself. He wasn’t sure where D’nel was, but right now, he really didn’t mind the peace. In the start, the roommate thing hadn’t been so bad; but now, so close to graduation? The tension was almost something you could taste in the air when both Bronzers were in the room. G’rett wondered if it was just him, or if it was actually a real thing. Either way, G’rett did his best to steer clear of the cramped quarters when his ‘weyr-roomie’ was home.

He hadn’t heard the first knock. Or the second really. It wasn’t until he heard the female voice call his name that he lifted his head and looked toward the entrance. “Yea, I’m here. Come on in.” He pushed to his feet, giving the room a quick look around to make sure that yes, he’d put his filthy clothing in the hamper and there was nothing laying around. All good – good. Mollin’s head poked into view, and he flashed her a grin. “Still there, last time I checked.” He made a motion in the direction of the basket sitting on the floor near his banked, low burning fire. “Take a look; I checked them about a candlemark ago, and turned the basket so they weren’t too toasty on one side.”

It had been odd for him, babysitting eggs like this. He’d had Haella take a peek at them when he’d brought them back from Mollin’s hunt on the beach; the greenrider had told him she was nearly positive they were actually ‘good’ eggs. But if they weren’t, he would have known within the first day or so – probably by smell alone. No smell, so good eggs, right?

Hiko

[Hiko]

Mollin returned the grin, entering the bronze rider's weyr with satchel in tow.
“No D'nel, hm? You know, if you ever want to trade babysitting, I'm sure I could take him off your hands for a few days. You'd have to change a few diapers, but...” She shrugged, trailing in the jest and squatted next to the basket. If she were to be truthful, things had been better with Zaelin. She'd finally given over full care to one of the foster mothers within the creche, and set a schedule for herself to visit the child every few days. Her mood had drastically improved since, and she felt as if she was starting to see some light at the end of the tunnel; at the very least, she had started to shake off some of the guilt and hurt she had felt when near the babe, and one of the creche workers had even commented this morning on how much happier she'd seemed.

Gingerly, she poked at the smaller of the two eggs. They were definitely warm, and she could feel a low, steady beat pulsing from within the shell. There was something alive in there, no doubt. She plopped down onto the floor and opened her pack. Casually, she tossed a redfruit to G'rett before taking the rest of the contents of the bag out. She'd packed a few redfruits, meatrolls, and a rather large sweetroll she planned on splitting between the two of them.
“I brought lunch. Would you like a meatroll or a meatroll?”

Alyx

[Alyx]

G'rett - Bronze Mastromideth

Mollin’s offer got an instant rush of rough laughter. “Watch it; I might take you up on that offer. You’d be getting the raw end of that deal, I think.” G'rett started to turn away, to put stuff away on the table and stopped. "Oh, be careful; Zeki's taking a liking to the shinier egg. He tried to steal it once already and I caught him. Now he's just taking to hiding in the sharding basket with them." He watched as she stooped to check on the eggs – when no blue furry ball of hyper happiness appeared, he assumed the Gemglider had found someplace else to roost, for the moment.

“They seemed… heavier this morning?” G’rett didn’t know quite how to put what he was saying, catching the fruit as Mollin tossed it his way. “Thanks.” Watching her dump the rest out on his floor, he pushed off the table and crossed to join her. He pulled his knife from his boot before he dropped to sit on the floor near the fire with her, cutting into the fruit as he laughed. “Meatroll or meatroll? Oh, tough choice.” Almost as it summoned, there was a soft thump against his back, and his shirt shifted. He shook his head, using the knife to cut a bit off the redfruit in his hand, and held it up over his shoulder on the blade. “I guess I’ll take a meatroll, and leave the meatroll for you.”

From his shoulder, threw his hair and around his ear, little hands reached out to catch the edge of the cut fruit. A noise, a shuffle, and the glider creeped out on to his shoulder the rest of the way and began to munch happily on the offered bit of food. G’rett, for his part, mostly ignored Zeki on his shoulder – even if the glider was munching almost in his ear. He cut another piece off, offering it to Mollin. “So what you up to today?”

Hiko

[Hiko]

Taking the proffered slice of fruit and popping it into her mouth, Mollin brought the meatrolls out of her pack and handed one to the bronze rider, before unwrapping her own and taking a large bite. They were still warm, and the crust was nice and flaky, but Mollin was too preoccupied watching the eggs to really taste anything.
They were heavier, didn't he say? Mollin tapped at her chin, contemplative. And the gemglider had already picked one out in preference?

Mollin made an awkward scoot in order to turn to better face G'rett, but still have the eggs in her peripheral. She picked at her roll and plucked a small piece off, stretching out to offer the morsel to the beggared gemglider.
“Not terribly much,” she said in between bites of what remained of her roll, “Zaelin's with a full-time foster mother now, so I've mostly just been getting back into life. Y'know, exploring the Weyr more, talking with weyrfolk. I didn't really get to do much of either, before. I only arrived a little before Dalti's hatching, and, well.” There wasn't any point in rehashing the past, and so she let that train of thought die as she peered at the eggs. She was certain she'd seen the basket move out of the corner of her eye.

After a moment, she returned her attention to the last bite of her roll and continued, “I know training's coming up again, and that'll be good, but,” she sighed. “He's going to be so much older than the rest of the weyrlings we'll be with. I was already one of the oldest in our class, so that's nothing. But Dalti's...”
Mollin let out an exasperated laugh, “He wants to be with his classmates. Shells, I can't blame him, not when he's been stuck taking care of me.”

Patting her hands onto the leg of her trousers, she batted away the few crumbs that attempted to stick to her skin.
“Enough about me. What does the great G'rett do when he's not bronzing it up?” she grinned, “How are leadership lessons going?”

Alyx

[Alyx]

G'rett - Bronze Mastromideth

He let her take the slice, then cut off one for himself. Lifting the knife to his lips, he caught the bit for redfruit and pulled it into him mouth before reaching to take the offered meatroll from her hand. Chewing, he leaned his head to the side a bit as she offered the morsel of her meatroll to the Gemglider. Zeki leaned forward, sniffing at it slightly. “He might now take it. He’s not a big meat eater, it seems.” As if the little fuzzy Blue had heard him, Zeki reached out his hands and caught the food from Mollin’s fingers, chirping softly and he turned it over and over in his grip, and then began to chew on the edge of the pastry. G’rett chuckled. “Or he makes a complete fool of me. Pretty much the standard.”

G’rett unwrapped the meatroll, listening to Mollin as she filled him in on how she was settling. He was thrilled to hear she was doing better. He nodded though, understanding what she meant about her Blue wanting to be with his clutch group. “No, you really can’t blame him. He’ll be almost a turn and a half older than anyone else in the class, but with luck, it just means you two will kick butt in the lessons and be out before everyone else.” It had to be strange, having had their whole clutch was nearing graduation and Mollin and Daltilith were left watching from the ranks of their new lesson group.

Her question got a choke of laughter, G’rett swallowing the bit of food before answering. Great G'rett? Where did that come from? “Mostly trying to survive till graduation, it nothing else. Trying to balance being a Bronzer and a healer – which actually is a lot harder than I thought it was going to be.” Zeki chirped, finishing his snack and set about grooming himself. The mention of the leadership lessons got a groan from G’rett. “They are going, I suppose?” He sighed, taking a bite from the meatroll and chewing it, taking a moment to swallow before continuing.

“I mean, A’zael is okay in them. He really seems to, you know, fess up to the face he’s not the best at what he’s doing and that he’s hoping that he’ll have us more prepared for the position is any of us end up in it.” G’rett gave Mollin a grin. “Which, I seriously think he is hoping someone other than him ends up there next time Zalmaranth goes up.” He shook his head, “but other than that? Ash, Mollin – I haven’t seen so much posturing since I was home with my brothers. G'drin seems to not be able to think before he speaks, D’nel is trying to be a charming tunnelsnake, and then you add that the Brownriders don’t want to be there, and enough ego…”

He cut himself off with a growl, realizing he was rambling, and then sighed. “All in all? I’d rather be working a plague in the infirmary then in those classes.” Zeki chirped, leaping from his shoulder to his lap, and his lap to the floor. A few hops, the gemglider pounced up onto the basket, and then scrambled up into the basket with the eggs, chittering the whole time. “Zeki…. Leave it. You don’t need to run off with the shiny egg. You hear me?”

Hiko

[Hiko]

Mollin rubbed her fingers together as the little glider took the treat from her. She hated the feel of residual flakes. Wiping her hands on her pants once more, she grinned at her compatriot.
“What can I say? I have a way with critters. That, or that piece was more pastry than meat,” she laughed, watching Zeki skitter back.

While it was true that she'd expected machismo from any gathering of dragonriders, hearing his troubles in the lessons made Mollin wince. From the little she recalled of training, she knew his peers to be acquired tastes. But for the brown riders to be apathetic? Surely, they understood that they had just as much chance at leadership positions – if not Weyrleadership?

At his growl, the girl gave her friend a sad smile. He did seem to be more at home with the sick. Unwrapping the sweetroll, she carefully bent it until a seam formed. Tearing it in half, she offered the a piece to G'rett.
“I don't suppose you could just fly out, be away the next time a gold rises? An absent dragon can't catch a queen.” Mollin shrugged; she knew it was a doubtful prospect. The Weyr needed every bronze available when a gold rose, and Mastromideth was huge, even in comparison to other bronzes. It seemed unikely to her that he wouldn't catch whatever he gave chase. “At the very least, is there any way you can focus more on healing? Surely, you don't have to take promotions if you don't want them? And G'drin and D'nel seem the types to grab at any chance to improve their rank.” Again, foolish speculation, and something she would never need to worry about, she suddenly realized. Grimacing, she rubbed the back of her head.
“It's all for naught, isn't it? Regardless of what you want, you'll still be a bronze rider first, now, huh? It'd be like me trying to become a wingleader. No dragon in its right mind would follow a blue, never mind if I'm capable.”

When the gemglider scampered back to the basket, Mollin eyed the eggs. Would there be a hum, like with dragon hatchings, she wondered? She could swear the eggs moved when the basket was jostled.
“He's pretty attached, isn't he? Heh, maybe he knows something we don't.”

Alyx

[Alyx]

G'rett - Bronze Mastromideth

G’rett really hadn’t planned to drop all that in Mollin’s lap, but she took it in stride. She didn’t say anything he hadn’t already thought about; escaping the threat of a rising Queen by fleeing the weyr had literally been one of the first things he’d thought about. He wasn’t really sure if it was something he could do or not, honestly. Not that he wasn’t tempted to give it a shot. He made a soft noise in his throat.

“I mean, it’s possible, but not likely. It’s not like the Queens really give a whole lot of warning before they Rise. I mean you could pack a bag and run when she started blooding, but…” He frowned, reaching up to run a hand over the back of his neck. “Just not really looking to bite off more than I can handle, and pretty sure I do not want A’zrael’s job, with how he talks about it.” Yea, a Bronzer that DIDN’T want to be leader; he knew how it sounded.

“I’m planning to restart my studies in healer arts once we are officially graduated so that the lessons don’t conflict. I also heard that our Dragonhealer might be holding a few classes. I might try to see if I can grab a spot in there too.” He sighed, rolled his shoulders, and looked at Mollin. She got it; Bronzerider first, whether he liked it or not. “Yea, pretty much. I just need to find a way to handle both so I don’t lose my mind, then I’ll be good.” Oh, that sounded SO much easier than it was, and they both knew it.

Zeki made an easy change to the subject, both riders watching the Gemglider as he shifted around the eggs and made the weirdest little noises. G’rett frowned, shifted his seat a little. “Yea, well, like I said – he tried to steal the shinier one already, the day I brought them home. He caught him and sent him off, and he’s sort of hovered the Basket since. Today though I can’t seem to keep him out of it. Come on, Zeki – out of there before you break them.”

The Blue glider was not happy to be uprooted, squirming and protesting in G’rett’s as the man pulled him out of the basket. “At least I know if I ever need a clutch of anything mothered, I can let Zeki do it.” He held on to the glider, ignoring the protests from the little creature as he reached over the eggs and made sure they were still seated upright in the soft sand in the basket. He stopped, frowning, his fingers resting against the shell. Tap…tap… He glanced at Mollin, then back at the eggs. Fingers still on the shell, he closed his eyes. He swore he felt it shift without him moving it.

Opening his eyes, he pulled back. “Hey Mollin? Hold one of them, will you? I swear I felt it move when I shifted it.”

Hiko

[Hiko]

It was good, despite all his troubles, that G'rett was having a hard time adjusting to responsibility, Mollin thought with a nibble of the sweetroll. Not for him, obviously, but it rallied her own spirits to know that sometimes, it just wasn't easy for anyone. At least for G'rett, however, there was potential. She could understand the desires not to lead – you would have to be insane to want to be responsible for the entire Weyr – and silently hoped the best for him in his healing studies.

Personally, she held some hope that she might rise as high as wingsecond one day; leading a qing was out of the question, with Daltilith. But second? Being in the thick of it, aiding a wingleader in drills, acting as a mediator between those who lead and those who follow? The color of her dragon wouldn't matter, with the right wingleader, and Mollin herself was no slouch when it came to real work.
Well, for now, such ambitions didn't matter. She still needed to finish training, and she doubted K'ton would speak highly of her to any wingleader.

Zeki's insistence called her attention, dismissing her puny hopes. She watched as G'rett closed his eyes in concentration and considered the eggs. When he reopened them and told her to hold one, she immediately wished she'd saved some of the meatroll from before.
But they were moving! She knew she wasn't crazy! Well, at least not in this matter, at any rate. She stifled a crow of victorious laughter and held out her hands, eyes shining.
“I thought I kept noticing movement, but it was so slight, I couldn't be sure. You felt it? Shells, do we have anything left they can eat? I knew I shouldn't have scarfed down that roll!”

Alyx

[Alyx]

G'rett - Bronze Mastromideth

Mollin’s near-instant panic made G’rett grin. He turned his hand, pushing Zeki against his shirt and letting the little glider get a grip on the fabric before letting go; the fuzzy Blue scampered up the tunic onto his shoulder and made a little noise, still unhappy at being uprooted. “I think it’s more of something shifting inside, just a little, which is why I asked you. I wanted to make sure I wasn’t jumping at shadows or something.”

He moved a little to the side, making room for Mollin to get closer to the basket. Her anger at having finished her own lunch so fast reminded him that HE hadn’t; he leaned over, fingers catching the unwrapped remains of his own meat roll. “Here, we can use what’s left of mine. Firelizards are meat, right? I remember Gliders are fruit.” A pull with the fingers and he yanked the unwrapped remains toward them a little more.

He caught it up, breaking the meat roll into smaller pieces and leaving it on the wrapper on the floor near the pair of them. Zeki, for his part, seemed pleased that the silly humans were actually paying attention to the little eggs, finally, and settled himself happily a little more on G’rett’s shoulder to watch both the riders and the eggs in the basket.

Hiko

[Hiko]

“Mm, yeah,” Mollin replied absently, attention fully on the throbbing eggs as she took hers from the hot sands within the basket, careful not to burn her fingertips as she went
“Meat's for lizards, same as dragons.” She paused, blinking over at G'rett. “Didn't know that about gemgliders. Huh.” She would have to file that away for future information. While she wasn't positive the little creatures were her sort of animal, it was good to know, should situations arise.
Reverting her gaze to the pulsing eggs, she fondled the one in her grasp cautiously.

As she rubbed her thumb gingerly over the hard shell, she could feel the smallest of cracks. Grinning, she rotated the egg in her hands and showed the bronze rider.
“Just there, can you see?There's just the smallest of cracks right along this side,” she said, barely tapping at the shell along the splintered appearance. At that small prod, however, a piece fell off and onto the floor. Mollin blinked at the fallen piece.
“I. Uh. I didn't mean to do that.”

Alyx

[Alyx]

G'rett - Bronze Mastromideth

Watching Mollin collect her choice of the eggs, he gave a quick nod. “Yea. Makes sense.” Then it was a good thing he more focused on keeping Zeki out of trouble then stuffing his face; he didn’t really have a lot of just meat laying around his Weyr – and he doubted jerky counted. The meat roll was quickly broken up into little bits on the wrapper, ready to feed the little lizards in the eggs. “Yea, learned that when I bonded to Zeki. I think one ate some fish, but most of the others seem fonder of fruit than the meat; Zeki here is pretty much a fruit man.”

Zeki leaned more off his shoulder, little fingers in G’rett’s hair, making a symphony of little noises. When this had started, he hadn’t wanted the little egg; it had been simply fun to go looking for them that day on the beach with Mollin; even if she had tried to break her neck on him. Still, it had been fun, and with every passing day, he found himself waiting eagerly for the first signs of them hatching.

Mollin pulled his attention to the egg she was holding, pointing out the fine spider’s silk-like cracks in the shell. A bit of the hell dropped away at her bare touch, and the look on her face made him grin. “Well, it’s going to come off anyway, so a little bit won’t hurt?” He looked at her, then the egg still in the basket. “You gonna hatch it in your hand?” Zeki chirped, seeming to think this was a fine idea. Mastro finally became interested in what his rider was doing as G’rett leaned forward, gently scooping the second egg from the hot sand it rested in.

Eggs? G’rett sent a quick thought of the hatching little pair, and the Bronze was instantly excited. Will you keep one? ‘Probably. I mean, why not?’ Mastromideth let the rush wash over his rider, then pulled back to observe via G’rett’s thoughts. G’rett turned his hand, gently running his thumb over the shell. “Still hard to think that there’s a little thing still alive in these after where you found them..” He voice trailed off a little, watching a long crack appear in the shell. Should he tap on it or something? It shifted in his palm, or he thought it did.

The sheened egg shifted, the crack spreading a bit more, and G’rett felt an urge to hold his breath. It was clear now that neither he or Mollin had been seeing things. Maybe she was right and Zeki had known something they didn't. The crack seemed to pulse, push, and widen a little. G'rett had to resist the urge to help the little creature break out, not wanting to hurt it - but he wanted so badly now to see what the little lizard inside was like. And wanted it safe.... knowing the colors of the pair would be a bonus.

Hiko

[Hiko]

When G'rett had brought attention to the fact that she was still holding the cracking egg, Mollin felt a flush of embarrassment in her cheeks. She had been so intrigued by the crack lines and so keen to show the bronze rider, that she hadn't considered the fact that her cupped hands might not be the best place for a baby lizard to hatch in. Gently, she laid the egg down onto the curve of her satchel, making a small groove in the fabric so that it wouldn't shift much as the hatchling inside worked to free itself.

“Hadn't really thought about it,” she mumbled, still embarrassed at the ordeal. She was grateful that Zeki seemed to approve, however. Maybe she wasn't a complete dimglow? Even as she considered the reality of her stupidity, the egg continued to crack and wobble, this time with more vehemency. She peered at the breaking egg, trying to guess what color of hide might appear as a tail, claw, or little head would come out.

As another piece fell away, a brown snout gave the barest of pokes out from the egg, sniffing at the air. Immediately, Mollin snatched up a handful of meatroll pieces from G'rett's donated mound. Brown, eh? Brown was good! Well, Mollin thought with some amusement, she supposed any color would be good; she still considered G'rett a good luck charm, with the two of them being able to bring back any viable eggs.
He was the prettiest shade of brown, too, she noted. Soft suede, with a freckling something hinting at a darker hue – she wondered if that would remain, or if it would fade as he aged.

The brown seemed to tumble out of the remains of the egg, falling face first onto the bag in which the egg sat. Chuckling, Mollin offered the little brown a bit of the food. He flapped his wings at her in a mix of surprise and appeasement, and after a few bites, worked up the nerve to crawl up her arm. When she'd thought he was merely going to curl up at the crook of her neck, he dove straight down onto her half of the sweetroll, looking more like a falling rock than a diving lizard.
“Well,” she laughed, too elated to be annoyed at her loss of dessert, “I think Plummet'll do for you, little guy.”

Alyx

[Alyx]

G'rett - Bronze Mastromideth

Mollin’s reaction to his comment of her holding a hatching egg wasn’t what he was expecting. He hadn’t meant she had to put it down; he had been simply asking if she was going to hold it as it hatched or not. He kicked himself a little, frowning as she tucked the egg into her satchel laid out in front of her. When she commented on not thinking, he gave a soft shrug. “I wasn’t trying to tell you to put it down, Mollin. Just wanted to know if you were gonna hatch it in your hand was all.” He would have to think before he spoke in the future, to make sure he was clear and not upsetting her.

Cradling his own egg in his hands, he watched as Mollin’s fractured and started to break open. A little nose pushed out of a crack, and she dove for the food. He gave a laugh, watching the little Brown tumble into the open. He looked healthy; and what a stunning little colored creature. “I don’t think I’ve seen a brown that shade before.” His voice was warm, happy for his friend and she fed her new pet. The Brown tried to climb up Mollin’s arm, and then dropped over and into the remains of her unfinished sweet roll. “I think it’s a great name. Fits him, and how you got him.” G’rett flashed a grin.

Zeki nipped his ear, the bronzer jerking his head a little. “Hey! No biting Zeki.” The Gemglider ignored his reprimand, instead climbing down the Bronzerider’s arm to paw at his fingers. G’rett unfolded his hands a little, surprised to see the cracks in the sheened shell had multiplied several times over. The egg itself almost seemed to breathe, the shell flexing a little in, then out, and back in… he shifted his seat, easing the egg back down into the soft, warm sand of the basket – for his safety and its. Zeki hopped from his arm to the Basket, peering over the edge as the egg rocked a little more, bits of shell dropping off onto the sand.

The little egg shook a bit more, then stilled. G’rett frowned at it, wondering if everything was okay. He counted softly in his mind to 10.. then 10 again, then a third time. Maybe he should have helped it? Was it okay? He reached a hand out, running a pointer finger along the shell gently. It jerked under his touch, then shatter in a little blast of gold and shells. He cursed, yanking the hand back in surprise. Zeki made a rather panicked sound, leapt from the basket's edge and vanished someplace into G’rett’s weyr. He’d be back. Eventually.

The little creature took G’rett’s breath away. The little firelizard remained curled up for a moment on the sand, then uncoiled and stretched her little wings. She gave a cry – yes, she. Almost a shade between amber and honey, she shifted and fanned the air with her little wings, turning a look on G’rett and gave a rather demanding little cry. He blinked, then remember. “Oh, right.” He snatched up a handful of the torn-up meat but, offering a piece to the Gold. She snatched it, downing it quickly almost before he could offer another. He risked a look at Mollin, grinning, as he felt the little Queen.

When she had finished most of what was in his hand, she gave a yawn, her eyes swirling a gentle rainbow before she claimed his open palm and curled up in it. He lifted her away from the sandy basket, dropping the rest of the shredded meatroll on the wrapping before cupping his other palm under the one the Gold was laying in. “Well, not exactly what I was expecting?” He hadn’t expected the little egg to be a Gold. Not in… any stretch of the imagination. The light of his fire danced off her still damp hide. “I think… I think I’ll call her Glimmer.”

Hiko