Something's Wrong

Writers: AmajoS, Estelle
Date Posted: 24th March 2019

Characters: Benna, L'keri
Description: Benna and L'keri attend the hatching and witness the joy and the tragedy.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 10, day 6 of Turn 9
Notes: Takes place during and immediately following the 'Tragedy and
New Life' Hatching Post.

L'keri

"Something's wrong," Benna said, gripping L'keri's sleeve as she
watched the green hatchling stumble around the Sands, crying
desperately but not approaching any of the remaining candidates.

Benna loved watching Hatchings, every Impression made reminded her of
her own disbelieving joy on the Sands. She had especially enjoyed this
one because she had the added bonus of the brownrider beside her. He
made humorous observations and indulged her in her fun of trying to
guess who the hatchlings would pick before they were completely out of
their shells. This had been a lovely Hatching and she looked forward
to the feast afterward and all the happy families and the dancing and
revelry. She'd been wondering if L'keri knew how to dance and had been
looking forward to finding out.

But now... something was wrong. She felt it from her dragon as well,
something was terribly wrong.

The brownrider knew exactly what it was, and he felt cold to the pit of
his stomach as he sensed Rhalith's distress. L'keri had been a Candidate
in the last Turns before the Pass began, when the size of the clutches
had been growing rapidly but many of the Holds still did not permit
Search, and he had seen this before. Which didn't make it any easier.

Then he heard the lone green hatchling scream her despair, and the hairs
rose on the back of his neck.

"Benna," he said in a low, rough voice, turning to her. "Don't look."

The tone of his voice was one she'd never heard before and it
surprised her enough to pull her attention away from the distressing
scene unfolding below on the Sands, "L'keri, what..?"

A moment later, the silence that had followed the hatchling's screech
was broken when Henerath cried out in her mind. That was followed by
the sound of dragons keening in grief and Benna gasped, horrified. She
began to turn her head back toward the Sands to see what had happened.

Before she could, L'keri wrapped his arms around her and drew her in
close to his chest, so that she wouldn't have to see the crumpled green
form on the Sands, or the healers rushing to the still and bloodied body
of the Candidate. Even so, there was nothing he could do to protect them
from the eerie wail that went straight to his core as Rhalith mourned
the loss of one of his kind.

She didn't fight him, knowing what had to have happened and suddenly
not wanting to see it. This wasn't supposed to happen, it was a
Hatching not Threadfall. Dragons weren't supposed to die at Hatchings.
But they could, she knew. She remembered her weyrling training, when
she and the other green and blue riders had been told to keep careful
watch if their dragons seemed particularly interested in someone. The
importance of making sure there were always more than enough
Candidates on the Sands. Henerath had never indicated any skill in
Searching, but she still remembered the lessons.

Benna cried silently into L'keri's chest, Henerath voicing the grief
for both of them.

At last, the keening faded, and around them the spectators began
silently to leave the stands. L'keri watched the queen and her bronze
mate for a moment before turning his head away. "It's all right," he
said softly. "Erdenth will look after her."

She nodded, her face still turned into his chest, away from the Sands,
"Can we go?"

"Yes. Let's go." They could go to the dining cavern, and join the
weyrfolk and visitors in celebrating the bonds that had been made that
day. Best to hold on to that. L'keri thought of his children, and hoped
that their foster mother was taking care of them. For a moment, he felt
a guilty relief that Arten was still too young to be on the Sands. It
would be hard for those left behind today.

He slipped an arm around her waist as they walked out of the Hatching
grounds together. "We could look at the new dragonets on the way out, if
you like? I don't know any of the Candidates well, this time, but I
always like to see them. Reminds me of the day I met Rhalith."

She leaned against him a bit as they walked, glad for his arm around
her waist. She still felt a bit unsteady, but smiled at the idea of
visiting the new dragonets. "Me too, with Henerath. It's hard to
imagine how small she used to be, until I see the new hatchlings." She
was quiet for a moment and then said, "Thank you, L'keri."

The brownrider smiled as they approached the area where the hatchlings
were being fed their first meal. The brilliant colours of their hides,
still gleaming and damp from the egg, contrasted with the white
Candidates' robes, and the sight of the joy and love in the eyes of the
new weyrlings lifted his spirits. "Whatever for?"

She didn't know how to answer without sounding foolish or needy. He'd
tried to shield her from the worst of the tragedy and had held her
while she cried. It meant more to her than she could express properly,
so she just shrugged and said, "For being there. For being you." She
couldn't look at him, afraid he might think she was being silly, so
she kept her eyes on the hatchlings and their lifemates. The looks of
wonder on their faces, that even death couldn't dampen.

A warm glow of affection filled him, a sensation that he'd not
experienced for a long time, and it lifted his mood despite the sad end
to the Hatching. He gave her waist a playful squeeze. "Well, I must say,
I'm very glad to be me at this particular moment."

Benna couldn't help but smile, feeling much better. She reached her
own arm around the brownrider's waist and leaned her head on his arm,
watching the dragonets work their way through buckets of sliced up
meat. Remembering her own Henerath doing the same. Her own
astonishment at how much such a small creature could put away had even
rivaled the incredulous joy that Impression had brought. She saw that
reflected on more than a few faces of the new Weyrlings as well.
Speaking of food though...

"Do you want to get something to eat? There should be food out by now."

The brownrider's eyes lit up. "Yes! I absolutely would." He could feel
his mouth watering at the thought of the feast that would have been
prepared to celebrate the Hatching. The succulent roasts, the heaps of
crispy tubers and the sweet bubbly pies... "I don't think Hatching Day
counts as a diet day, do you?"

She huffed a short laugh, he lit up like a child with a birthday
present at the idea of escaping the dread diet. "I don't think so, no.
We'll just have to do some extra running in the morning to make up for
it," she added with a teasing grin.

"Can't we do some extra...exercise in the night, instead?" he suggested
hopefully, doing his best to look guileless.

Benna made a small humming noise in her throat as she regarded him
with her own coy smile, "I think we can manage both."

"You know something? I think I'm getting to like my new healthy
lifestyle," L'keri said cheerfully as they left the Hatching Grounds
behind them.

Benna laughed at the irrepressible brownrider, feeling glad all over
that she'd decided to attend the Hatching with him. As they approached
the Dining Cavern she could hear not just the sound of people, but
harpers playing as well. It reminded her of something she'd wondered
earlier, "Do you like to dance, L'keri?"

He put a hand to his heart in mock affront. "You're asking a brownrider
if he can dance? That's like asking a dolphin if he can swim. We're
renowned for it." He struck a pose and tried out a few dance steps, then
bowed and offered her his hand.

She grinned and, dipping a curtsy, took his offered hand. "Good. I was
hoping to dance tonight." Her grin faltered a bit as she continued,
"I'm not sure it's a good idea now though. What do you think?"

He considered it for a moment. "I don't think it's wrong to celebrate.
We'd be honouring Chioneth and her hatchlings, and welcoming the new
weyrlings. Perhaps we should wait and see what the Weyrwoman and the
goldriders do," he added as the thought occurred to him. "If they dance,
then it'll be all right for us to join in."

"Good idea," Benna shifted her hand so she could twine their fingers
together. "In the meantime, let's eat. I'm as hungry as those
hatchlings were now."

Last updated on the April 4th 2019

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Something's Wrong