[PRP- Wildlife Weyrlings] How to be a Rider for Dummies

[Earisa]

Lessons had been fairly understandable at first, Lianly was fine with being considered average in the class. Average wasn't so bad. It helped that Falxath would tell her what she wanted or needed and Lianly would provide or restrain to prevent over indulging. Oil, walk, eat, sleep; It wasn't too different to raising her blue Keloc, except being much bigger and able to use words rather then chirps, screeches, claws and teeth.

Maybe the turning point was a couple of days ago.

Now blue Conjusquath, not even six months old, had caught the plague and died taking his rider with him. It hadn't been the first weyrling death Lianly had experienced, only a month before Falxath had hatched bronze Swouth had died in an flying accident. However this was the first dragon death as a Rider, and Falxath's grieving had struck hard and deep in a way that she had never thought possible. She didn't think she had ever met the pair and it had been hard to hold back the tears.

The test yesterday had caught her still with jumbled thoughts, and the test was already hard enough for her. Lianly was very honest about how little she knew of dragons, let alone riding gear and flying formations. Being Hold bred resident far from a Weyr, she had not seen a dragon up close until she had been Searched and had not riden one since. It was no wonder she failed the test, though by a wider margin then she would have liked. It wasn't much of a comfort to know that many of her peers had struggled to even get so much as a passing grade.

You will do better, we will study When Falxath said something would be done, there was no getting out of it. With no walls to separate living areas everyone could see Lianly set down the small pile of hides on a communal table. Falxath sat down next to her chair, the big green now able to see over the edge fairly comfortably. Even if the dragon would struggle to memorize the diagrams, she would make sure her rider studied enough to not need any help.

We should all study Falxath sent to her brothers and sisters. Even if they passed and didn't think they needed to study they should help each other. Wings were made of more then one dragon and rider.  

[TawnyAngel]

L'thor was lying on his bunk looking up at the ceiling, his thoughts sad and tired and grey. Musculuth lay on the stone floor beside him with her chin on the bed, wishing for a softer surface under her but unwilling to move away from her rider while his mind was heavy. They had known that some of Julith's children would likely not survive, indeed that many of them might not, but losing the first of them had still been a terrible shock to her and to her rider...

Falxath thinks we should all study together, I think it's a good idea. Musculuth crooned softly and gave L'thor a gentle nudge. Come on, it will be good for you to be around others. Why don't you take along some snacks?

Getting up was the last thing L'thor wanted to do but his dragon's gentle nuzzling and the concern he could feel pouring off her were impossible to ignore and so with a great effort he pushed himself into a sitting position and reached over to rub his dainty green's eye-ridges. "Good idea," he agreed with a wan smile, "I didn't do very well on that test at all." He'd passed but only just, and that was pretty poor for a Weyrborn weyrling - especially one who'd already been through these classes once.

Rubbing his eyes and rolling his stiff shoulders L'thor got to his feet and rummaged in his trunk of possessions until he found the bag of sweet dried fruits and candied nuts his father had given him last week, and his study notes of course, before heading across the barracks to find Lianly.

"Hey," he offered the tall young woman a faint smile and waved his notes, "Musculuth said Falxath suggested some study time? Um. I think it's a good idea, I didn't do too well on that test. I ah, I brought snacks too, thought it'd make the time go a bit easier."  

[The_Muffin_Puppy]

Telleara and Antolith

The atmosphere in the barracks had been rather sombre since Conjusquath's passing. Telleara hadn't known the dragon or his rider, and neither had Antolith. The bronze's memory of the even was already getting hazy, the names of the pair taking longer to conjure up. This was only helped along by Telleara's conscious effort not to think about it. The young woman didn't like the impact that the event had caused on Antolith, and was resolutely denying that it had any impact on her. She hadn't even known them. Why would she grieve someone she had never even met? Just because they also had a dragon? Was she to grieve every member of the Weyr whether she knew them or not? It seemed foolish, and Telleara did everything in her mind to push what had happened and all emotions associated from her mind.

For now she was intent instead on focusing on the present. Presently she was oiling Antolith once again. The dragon was growing rapidly, far more than she expected. He was already taller than her. Were he not the most wonderful creature to ever exist then she might find the concept unsettling. Clay and Quartz were 'helping', which roughly translated to smearing oil in random places and a lot of nuzzling so that they essentially got oiled too. Telleara was mainly focusing on his feet at the moment. It was important to make sure to oil all of it individually. Apparently just dipping a foot in oil wasn't actually good enough. Still the young woman found something oddly comforting in sitting with her dragon's foot in her lap inspecting them. The opportunity also allowed her the chance to inspect his talons, file any uneven edges and remove any dirt. Antolith for one enjoyed the attention immensely, and was happy to wait.

Falxath says we should study. He said when his sister reached out. Telleara didn't cease her inspection, not looking up even as Lunathor and Musculuth moved to join the group.

Why should I? Unlike some others, I passed the test. Antolith carefully pulled his forepaw out of her grasp and rose to his feet, looking down at his rider's displeased face.

A leader is only as good as their weakest teammate. Telleara sighed and threw her tools back into her kit with perhaps a bit more force than necessary. Using a rag she cleaned the oil from her hands, before returning the kit to her trunk. Instead she took out a leather bound book, an ink pot, quill, and a small bound set of charcoal. Walking over to the communal table she dropped the book down and took a seat. Untying the bind on the book she flicked it open revealing pages of notes neatly copied out in ink. From the back she took several loose pages of hide, which appeared to have much rougher notes taken in charcoal. Antolith sat behind her chair, the pony-sized dragon able to look over the back of her chair and rumble happily to his sisters.

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K'lir and Ostarath

How about that one?

Unlike many of the others, K'lir and Ostarath were outside. The young green might not be able to fly yet, but she was intent on building up her speed while she could. The Weyrlingmaster had approved it, so they were good to keep running. As long as they stopped before Ostarath was exhausted and K'lir was careful to make sure that she didn't do any damage to her muscles. It had become a common occurrence now for the pair to be found just outside the barracks. They had places large rocks outide, giving Ostarath a course for her to practice on.

"A little faster, I think it's that second turn. You took it way smoother this time 'round." Ostarath trilled happily, nuzzling K'lir's face. They had started with a straight sprint, but Ostarath was now intent on making her turns faster. She needed to be agile as well as fast. Pulling back the green tilted her head to the side as her sister spoke to her.

Falxath says we should study. Everyone. Not just us. She clarified, giving K'lir a playful nudge. K'lir wiped the dramatically hurt look off his face and bumped his nose against the green's snout. She was the perfect height for it at the moment.

"Come on then." K'lir didn't take much convincing. He'd passed the test, but was aware enough to know that it wasn't by a lot. Maybe on another day he wouldn't be so lucky. Studying was never a bad idea, even if it was kind of boring. Still it was more interesting with other people around. Heading back inside he quickly gathered up his notes and headed over.

"Hey g-"

Hi everyone! Ostarath cut off her rider excitedly. It wasn't unusual to K'lir just chose a seat and sat down next to Lianly instead. We've come to join your study group. What're we studying? Oh, can we race when we take a break?  

[Wylde Roses]

N'tan and Meleth

Some things, N'tan prided himself on being skilled at. He was halfway decent at healing, a skill that would always have value no matter what else occurred on Pern,and he liked to think that at least some of that translated to his attention to detail when it came to caring for Meleth, but unfortunately for him it seemed that memorizing information that didn't have to do with the field he had very nearly gone into was...somewhat more difficult, to say the least. He hadn't even managed to pass that last exam, and as a result had been in something of a foul mood ever since.

In an effort to mitigate any effect his poor mood and naturally-brusque manner might have on any of the others who had failed (and there were more than he'd expected, which was both comforting and vaguely concerning), he'd taken himself to Meleth and was spending time checking her over until he could put aside his frustration and focus. Or at least, that had been the plan. He'd been partway through going over smaller areas in search of anything that might need extra oiling when his dragon gave a disgruntled shuffle and nudged him with her snout.

Falxath wishes all of us to study together, the young green grumbled, looking more put-out with the idea of being in a group than with the idea of studying. Are you going to join in?

"I suppose I must," N'tan answered her,picking himself up with a grumbly noise of his own. "I do need to study, and it isn't as though I can do worse than I already have should a group session do more harm than good."

There could have been more notice, at least, Meleth grumbled,and the two made their way over to the growing group at their own pace. Once they reached the table, Meleth found a spot that she judged comfortable enough for her current mood, and settled to watch the proceedings with the watchful gaze of the less-than-sociable. If there is to be a race, Ostarath, leave me out of it, she complained at her sister. I'd rather enjoy some peace and quiet.

The_Muffin_Puppy

Meleth is just a grumpybutt, sorry Ostarath!

 

[Earisa]

Not knowing where best to start, Lianly just picked a hide at random from the pile and tried to content herself to reading about the geography of Nabol. She knew the region had sandy soil, excellent for root and leafy vegetables, some carefully cultivated orchards but nothing of hold names or even it's current Lord Holder. Maybe in several Turns and she became a journeywoman she might have dreamed of traveling to this side of the continent... Well, she had to get used to the fact that she could no longer worry about crops and soil. None of that would be on any test or help her here.

The woman was almost startled by a 'Hey', not inspecting company. When L'thor mentioned it was Falxath's idea she shot her dragon a look and had never seen the green so smug and self-satisfied. Already she felt her mind melting of boredom trying to take in any of this information, maybe having a study partner to help her focus wasn't such a bad idea. A smile spread on her lips but before she could respond Telleara came to the table with a slap of hide and thud into a chair, not a word to them. At least K'lir, or more Ostarath, cut the tension and restored some sense of comradery. Lianly was especially happy that K'lir had joined them, considering him a good friend more so then many of the other Weyrlings. Since he took the seat next to her she hoped the feeling was mutual.

I will race you, Ostarath, but now is study time. They might not study right if we don't watch them, and that will take them longer. Falxath hoped to appeal to her bouncy sister's nature to help keep everyone on track so they all might return to more fun pastimes faster. Going outside and enjoying the sun was far better then sitting inside staring at beast skins for hours, but she understood that it needed to be done sometimes.

"Sorry, L'thor. If I knew so many would join in I would have asked the kitchens for refreshments if they would let us." Lianly apologized as N'tan and Meleth joined them. No point in waiting for any of the others to appear, they could catch up. Since her dragon had started this, it looked like she should take the lead. "So I have geography, politics and flying formations; a vote on where we should start?"  

[TawnyAngel]

"Oh, um, it's no problem," L'thor shook his head at Lianly, still smiling slightly, and set down his bag of treats in the middle of the gathering group. "Everyone help yourselves, tastes better when you share right?" Ugh, had that sounded awkward? It had sounded awkward.

Only to you dear, Musculuth said privately, giving her rider an encouraging nudge as she settled down behind him and sent a feeling of welcome and affection to all of her siblings.

"So um, how is everyone?" L'thor continued, not reassured all that much Musculuth's words but willing to keep trying to press on with being sociable anyway. "I um, I thought I'd do better on this test than I did... Um... I don't mind what we start with, but I guess I'll vote for formations? But I really don't mind if there's a tie or something."  

[The_Muffin_Puppy]

Telleara and Antolith

While Telleara barely looked up from organising her notes as more classmates arrived, Antolith offered each sibling a happy rumble of greeting in turn. Many of their group were here, and he enjoyed the time they spent together.

I will join in a race. Although I don't think I will do very well. The bronze rumbled similarly to a laugh, if only to offset the slightly grumpy tone bought about by Meleth. Antolith might have the longest limbs in the class, but of the dragons around the table he was certain to be the slowest. To his credit, this didn't seem to bother Antolith all that much. He was happy to see his siblings flourishing in their own talents. Besides, he had his own strengths to lean on. They would work best as a collection of varied strengths after all.

Having finally finished arranging her notes, Telleara looked at the gathered around her. Their individual results were a mystery to her. Some hadn't passed, and others were disappointed with their scores, she knew that much. L'thor clearly was counted among the latter. Still disappointment didn't necessarily mean anything. An overachiever could be disappointed should they receive a good score instead of an excellent one. Her opening statement had only begun to form in her mind when she felt the mental brush of Antolith.

Be kind.

She managed to resist rolling her eyes, but did consider her words more carefully before beginning. "I believe formations would be a logical starting point." Since some of us clearly haven't grasped it. Behind her Antolith leaned slightly forward, huffing a breath of warm air into her hair. The feeling of praise for curbing her viscous tongue, soothing her initial irritation at having to rethink. Antolith did love his siblings, and they loved their riders, so he liked Telleara to be gentle with them. They had much still to learn, they could not teach them if they had put up barriers against them.

-----------------

K'lir and Ostarath

Meleth's complaint did nothing to dull Ostarath's enthusiasm, the green looking happily at her sister. Maybe you could be a judge, Meleth? Ostarath liked the idea of her sister being involved, but she knew that Meleth didn't necessarily like running around like she did. This way Meleth could still take part even without running around. They could find her a nice comfortable place to watch.

Ostarath's head whipped around to look at Falxath as her sister agreed to race with her. In the future. Happily she nodded at her darker sister's proposal. Don't worry, Falxath's I will make sure they study properly. Personally Ostarath found studying to be terribly boring. With conversation and friends it was slightly easier for them. Ostarath learned best through experience, but K'lir had made it clear that some things needed to be learned through words. Sometimes. When Antolith also agreed to race, Ostarath happily shuffled her feet. This would be fun! Later. Later it would be fun.

K'lir couldn't really do anything except smile as Ostarath excitedly spoke with her siblings. When she turned her large eyes to him, K'lir gently placed a hand on her head. The green headbutted into her rider's hand and sighed contently. His smile stayed firmly in place as Ostarath scratched at the ground under her and settled into lying down. Her head was just able to rest on the table beside K'lir's notes, eyes flicking between individuals as they spoke.

"Formations sounds good to me." K'lir nodded with a smile, looking from L'thor, to Lianly. He felt Ostarath's interest peak. She knew that one! Formations were physical. They were easy! Well, maybe not easy, but she remembered them. "Ostarath votes formations too. I think she might be the only reason I managed to pass," the young man said with a slight laugh. "My notes on them aren't great though." Pulling a sheet out he looked at the scribbles of dots and arrows, before casting a sheepish glance at Lianly and her seemingly more organised set up.  

[Earisa]

(( Note: I asked Rosebud who said it was okay to continue ♥ ))

Lianly nodded as the votes came in, even without her vote there was a clear winner. Though she shouldn't have been all that surprised by the result. "By majority vote, formations it is." Out of all the topics this was the one most young candidates would think most important as a Rider. At least she didn't have to embarrass herself by admitting she didn't know the names of most of the Lord Holders this side of the continent. If N'tan had another preference he chose to stay silent, he hadn't said anything to the table when he sat down either. He didn't seem the most friendly of sorts, though there was nothing to stop him from studying on his own should he see fit. Would be disappointing, but it was his choice to do so.

Moving the unnecessary hides out of the way, the young woman laid out the charts as best she could so everyone had a view of most if not all the diagrams. Some were clearly older then most, but she wasn't sure if they were newer formations or just newer copies. She took the opportunity to pluck a candied nut offered by L'thor, it was good! Wasn't like any of the nuts she was very familiar with from Benden and Igre- You're getting distracted again Falxath interrupted her. Though the young dragon did not do more then just blink, it might as well have been a shove. Exactly what she needed but hoped this wouldn't become a habit. You're right, thank you my dear.

Sitting down again, she wasn't quiet sure how to continue. Lianly had never been a leading type, so no one had ever really looked to her for advice like this. Not to mention she had also failed the test miserably, so that didn't put her in a good position for the others. Then ask the questions you don't know the answers to. Isn't that how you learn? Falxath advised. Only two months old and Lianly didn't know what she would do without her Green to keep her in check.

"In severe turbulence, what is the widely accepted formation to fight Thread?" She had got that question wrong on the test. Not that there was any Thread to fight right now, but it wasn't that long away until the Red Star would rise again. Should the future be kind, all of them here would rise to meet it and it's deadly legacy.