From the Fields (Search Thread)

Veyani had never been one to worry needlessly, so as she waited for a response to her suggestion, she didn't think she would be denied. She was not at all surprised when they agreed. Smiling, she added " We will not get caught. There have been plenty of times we snuck out and back in again and our parents were none the wiser." And her smile would suggest that were true. Waving goodbye as she walked away, she kept her eyes on the blue dragon as she did so. He must be wonderful to watch taking off. So when she was a good distance from the dragons she stopped to watch them go by.

When they were gone she went back to the fields where she had been working, aware that her mother was keeping her gaze on her until she was out of sight. She had to be careful how she communicated with her siblings. Devrie was with them and he would be more likely to tattle on them than to help. She waited till they were walking back, later in the evening Devrie had gone ahead to put up and clean their tools.

Veya spoke quietly to her brother and sister, explaining the plan. They would have to travel light and carrry very little with them. Veyani suggested they could wear clothes provided by the Weyr instead of worrying about such things. they contained any excitement they might be feeling till after dinner and dishes were put away. They went upstairs to wash up and get ready for bed, once they were all in bed, it was a matter of waiting. They knew it would take a couple of candlemarks for their parents to fall into a deep sleep. None of them were able to sleep themselves while the rest of their siblings were out like a light.

All the hard work they did made it easy to be a heavy sleeper. They ended up being able to walk out the front door without anyone being the wiser. Veyani knew the way even by dark although the night sky was lit up by the moons and stars. Although in her mind it hadn't seemed that far it took them over a candlemark to reach the stream. They were already tired from a long day of work in the fields and it took all the strength and energy they had to keep going. Determination could be motivating.

When they finally arrived, Veyani looked around to N'kai and Kaisoth.

It hadn't taken long for the dragons to spy out what must have been the location Veyani was talking about. Of course, there was no telling for certain until evening came, and it was time for the girl to appear with her siblings.

Where the two riders'd come to land in a clearing large enough for the two of them alongside the river bank, both Blues curled up at rest while they waited. Kaisoth's dark sapphire-like hide blended almost perfectly into the midnight blue of the night's sky, turning almost black. The dragon next to him however, was a fairer shade however, and seemed to reflect the light of the moons, becoming brighter under their light. Though they were restful, they were on the alert to the sound of footsteps in the foliage.


They're here.

N'kai looked up from where he sat on the ground between the two dragons, next to his friend, where they'd been chatting and joking about wing practices earlier in the sevenday. Glancing back to T'lan then,  he nodded and both men rose to their feet. Just as they dusted dirt from their trousers, Veyani and her siblings appeared.

N'kai grinned, "No one followed? I guess we should hurry either way, just in case." A momentary pause in his breath came, before he offered, "I guess you can each decide who you want to ride with. It won't matter to the dragon's or T'lan and I either way. We both brought additional riding harnesses."

As the kids neared and the riders too, had close some of the distance between them, Kai thought that they all looked weary, but nonetheless excited. Thinking to forewarn them then, give them one last chance to turn back if they had any second thoughts, he added, "Life at the Weyr is going to be a lot different from this" referring to the farmland around them. "You're used to the hard work perhaps, but it's nothing the same. And one day soon, when Thread returns, if you've Impressed, you'll all be asked to put your own lives on the line in order to protect the people of Pern. As a Rider, some people will hate you. Some people will envy you. You will have to be able to work perfectly as a team and follow orders without fail in order to fulfill your role. There is also the possibility that you may never Impress at all.

"The Weyr does not offer the same kinds of freedoms as the outside world. It is a demanding existence, but it is a worthy one. You will never be alone, and yet there, it is possible that you will never have a proper family as you have here in the cothold." Kai didn't want to scare them, but he did. He wanted them to understand what they were running away to -it might not be a place as filled with as much fantasy as that which filled their young heads. They hadn't had a chance before, to talk about what life at the Weyr was really like.

"If you do Impress however," the Bluerider couldn't help but smile, casting a glance back to Kaisoth as he did, "it will be the best day of your life when it happens." Enthusiastically, Kai's grin broadened ear to ear, and he turned on a heel to return to his dragon's side, giving the sweep of an arm in upward motion toward the deep dark Blue who was now eyeing the group of siblings with two great orbs alive with curiosity. "All aboard?"

Kaisoth was already getting back on his feet, and with a little shake of his wings, began to stretch them before relaxing them again, but letting them remain slightly extended, wondering which of the young ones would choose to ride with him.

"No one. They all sleep soundly and we've snuck out before. No one will notice till morning and by then there will be nothing they can do about it." They listened carefully to what N'kai said. Perhaps more than most would, they knew there was a cost to living in a place so different from their own. It was more of a trade off to go somewhere where there were new people to meet, adventures to be had and things to be done. And while the three of them would prefer to impress, they did understand that a person who was searched did not always Impress. They would be happy to go regardless. It was their intention to move to Igen Weyr and be closer to their family when the weyr was ready.

Although she could not see the dragon in the darkness too well, she knew he was there. "Kaisoth will put in a good word for me with the little ones I hope..." she winked, knowing that the dragon could o no such thing. Jayna immediately walked over to T'lan, to ride with him which did not surprise anyone since she had been talking to him mostly and not with N'kai. Veyani and Mikrean however, being better acquainted with N'kai, opted to ride with him.

To Veyani it seemed it might be a bit of a struggle actually getting onto the dragon's back. Maybe riders had some trick to get up there. They made it look so easy earlier. Harness seemed tricky to put on as well but she supposed they practiced that a lot in weyrlinghood. Oh she couldn't wait to be at the Weyr and see and do things she had never seen or done before. Her best friend and older brother, Mikrean, was just as excited. She could see it in his eyes, he was finally being given the chance at an adventurous life. The explanation of possible death by Thread was not enough to deter any of them.

Assured by Kaisoth also that there was no one else he could sense having come except for those they'd Searched, Kai smiled back down at Veyani, giving his glasses a little habitual adjustment as he cleared his throat, eyes following after each youngster in turn to see who they preferred to ride with. The kids' choices on who rode with who seemed natural, and either way, woudln't have mattered. Both riders helped the new Candidates by leaping up into the saddle first themselves, and then with the beasts still bent low, let the kids climb up onto a forelimb and be offered a hand from above to help pull them up. To N'kai, it seemed easier that way. Helping them get their harnesses tightened correctly, N'kai then adjusted his own for the flight.

It was almost a little nervously that N'kai turned to look back at Veyani from over his shoulder, removing his glasses so that he could put them in his pocket and get his riding goggles and helmet back on. "Hang onto me if you want. Kai's takeoffs and landings are pretty smooth though...but if you do get scared..." Leaving it at that, because he was sure that she wouldn't, he still felt the need to offer out of necessity for courtesy. "When we go Between, it will be cold for no more than a couple of seconds. The distance between here and Fort Weyr for a dragon is not significant."

Kai, let's go. Share these coordinates, will ya? The Bluerider was already passing images through telepathy with Kaisoth, and only a split second after, they were being passed on to the other Search Pair. Then they were taking off, and in one graceful lunge, were in the air. Kaisoth's giant wings caught the night air, making quick ascent without breaking their two-dragon formation, taking time to hover briefly before both dragons were Between.


The cold of Between was but momentary icy prickles on the skin. Counting to one, two,... and before one could quite count to three, they had reappeared over the great bowl of Fort Weyr. The time difference wasn't much, so it was still in the middle of the night. Under the glow of Pern's twin moons however, some ledges were lit enough that the sleeping hulks of dragons could be seen, and as they descended, outer entrances and passageways more apparently became outlined by
lanterns; periodically, a drudge moving with one would break the sequence in them.

Kaisoth alerted one of them to come to assist in getting the new candidates all settled in in their new beds, so it was just as soon as they landed that they were visited by a middle-aged woman, and to Kai's surprise, another face he recognized -Emerene.

Making sure that the newly Searched were able to get their harnesses off without any real assistance, the Bluerider slid down the dragon's side while Kaisoth offered another leg up for them to make the step down a little less of a chore. N'kai offered a hand up to Veyani first, reaching the other up in case he should need to catch her by the waist if she tipped off balance on the way down. He offered to do the same for Mikrean.

After that, his helmet and goggles were removed, hugging it against his side as he turned to face the drudge and the Weyrwoman's daughter. Admittedly, he was a little curious as to what brought Emerene out at this hour. Though he wasn't sure yet why she was accompanying a drudge at this hour, he still addressed her first, being that she far out ranked the other woman. "Emerene, These are the newly Searched from Telgar. Since you're here with Dimetra, would you mind showing these three to the Candidate Barracks? They've had a difficult time today and I'm sure are very tired."

Kai tried to ignore the somewhat curious, if not grim expression cast upon him by Emerene, wondering if she'd get around to asking questions about the late hour of their arrival, playing it off as though nothing were amiss.

Emerene however, didn't miss a beat. "I'll take them. I'm about to go back there anyway." The girl had been looking between Jayna and Mikrean and then finally Veyani, curious about them. She'd apparently caught the brief glimpse of curiosity in N'kai's eyes, because after that, she addressed it directly; and she did so with a proper tone of authority in her voice, though it wasn't overbearing, and not with haughtiness. That was not her way. "The Weyrwoman has me assisting the Headwoman for a while. For now, I'm to start assisting more with leadership tasks concerning the Candidates since I am one." Starting off small, she supposed.

Clearing her throat purposefully, to pin the spotlight back on N'kai, her lips pursed into a thin, tight line while she shot the Searchrider a sidelong, accusing stare. "Remind me again what Searchrider goes on Search this late at night? There was no trouble, was there?"

Kai's expression softened into a cool smile that was almost boyishly charming with his glasses now replaced. Beyond them, though, he was still dashing,...and Emerene was still a flirt. He was a young, handsome male rider after all. Her expression softened as well, when he gave her that smile, unable to remain too stern.

The Bluerider assured her, "Don't worry. They just needed some time to prepare for leaving." Though it may not have looked like it given how little they carried with them.

"It looks like I'll have to help get them outfitted with a few more sets of clothes and other necessities tomorrow, after morning exercises. I'll have time just before afternoon class." Ofering a bit of a curtsy to the three candidates, she figured introductions were in need, "Welcome to Fort Weyr." Emerene's smile was genuine and beautiful. "My name is Emerene. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am a candidate also, but since I'm serving as the Headwoman's assistant, if there's anything you need, you may also come to me. That would be easiest, seeing as we'll be seeing a lot of eachother."


When introductions had their chance, Emerene added, "If you'd follow me, we'll head straight to the barracks so that we can get a good night's sleep. You'll need it for tomorrow I'm sure." Casting furtive glances back in N'kai's direction, she was curtsying again, more out of a desire to keep N'kai's attention than anything. She knew she didn't have to bow to him. Winking at the Bluerider then, she laughed, and spun about to lead them away with Dimetria in tow with a lantern. "Thank you N'kai. It's past your curfew though, so you and T'lan should head back to your own weyrs before I turn you in for being out so late. It is a little suspicious, don't you think?"

Emerene left it at that though, and left them, N'kai grinning after her, amused at her silly flirtations and idle threats.