Arial, rider of Blue Zyelth
Wow!  Congrats!  So you've made it through the rider torture and frying on the Sands and now you have a dragon all your own and you're wondering what weyrlinghood is like.  Here's a brief synopses of Arial's out take on the military school they call weyrling training:

Arial blinked, astounded as depth less eyes stared into hers.  "Zyelth?! Zyelth!"  She fell to her knees and embraced the blue before her.  "Oh you darling, I could never forget you!"

It was this moment that changed the Harper-cum-candidate-cum weyrling's life forever.  One of the admired and often sought after hatchlings had chosen her, Arial, to be his life-long mate!  On the Sands, joy engulfed her and she had nary a thought about what it meant to be a weyrling. That came the next morning when she woke up.  Zyelth was still sleeping, and Ari's mind raced with doubts, insecurities, and fear.  What did she know about taking care of something as precious as a dragon.  Her mind raced with stories of over-worked weyrlings who dedicated their lives to their dragons.  Early morning feedings, constant oiling and bathing, mucking out the couches.  All of these chores raced through Ari's mind and she felt inadequate to the task.  A life was in her hands, and she was solely responsible for it.  The enormity engulfed her as she stared at her lifemate, sleeping ever so peacefully.  She was now a parent, she who didn't even like children!

Despite her foreboding, Arial settled into weyrlinghood if not easily at least not as awkwardly as she expected.  Her gregarious soul railed once or twice against the restrictions placed upon her, but she wrote to friends and family often, needing some way to stay in touch with the outside world.  Zyelth made her semi-isolation worthwhile, though.  She could spend whole days exploring the different facets of his mind as he explored her hidden secrets.  She also found herself in the teacher role.
<<Why are there two moons?>>  <<Why must we eat?>>  Ever curious her baby blue was, but she found that she could lean on him as much as he leaned on her.  It was a partnership in mind, body, and soul.

Arial had thought that she worked hard during candidacy.  That was nothing compared to the work she faced as a weyrling.  Who thought that dragons could excrete so much dung!  But they ate several times a day, and it wasn't long before Arial found herself mucking out piles that were taller than her.  Not to mention the tedious classes of history and formations that took up most of Ari's time when Zyelth was sleeping. Free time, what was that?  Every second of Arial's day was spent taking care of her dragon in one way or another.  She had to make sure that Zyelth's couch was clean and organized for inspection or she'd be peeling tubers long into the night.  Her mind reeled with new information and she learned new skills, some which she never thought she could do.  Sewing was never Arial's forte, but she leaned, after /much/ practice, how to make straps for Zyelth (much to his chagrin).  She had the technique down so well that she could make them in the dark, if need be.

It was with much joy and a bit of relief that Zyelth first learned to fly under the weyrlingmaster's direction.  <<Why are you so awed?  It is natural that I fly.  It is what I am.>>  His first landing almost gave Arial a heart-attack from worry and Zyelth was riddled with small abrasions.  Only after much practice did her blue learn to land properly, if not perfectly.  Soon it was Ari's turn to experience the joy of flying with her lifemate, and he didn't waste the chance to show off.  He had become an expert in this most joyful part of life, reveling in the fact that he was flying. On their first foray between, Ari was wracked with nerves.  If anything went remotely wrong, she and Zyelth could be lost ::between:: forever. Her heart pounded as she concentrated on the Star Stones, remembering every detail.  Her palms became clammy and she had to wipe them on her new leathers more than once as she and Zyelth flew a few dragon lengths away and under Karise's supervision made their first hop ::between:: The absolute freedom and victory Ari experienced as she and Zyelth appeared exactly where she envisioned them was inexplicable.  She had gone ::between:: before on dragonback, but this was the first time that she was the one responsible for their destination.  Ari's confidence grew even more, supported by Zyelth's absolute faith in her.  He trusted
her completely, even with her own doubts.  <<I do not understand why you worry so much.  I knew we could do it.>>

Graduation day came none too soon for the pair and they celebrated with a solitary ride to the shores of Igen where they basked in the sun and frolicked in the waves.  Ari's little baby had grown to enormous proportions in the time they had been together.  She could no longer protect and comfort him by curling her body around his.  Instead, he was her massive protector, not even a wherry showing its face as they rested on the beach.
 

Eldana, rider of Blue Ilyth - validictorian speech
And so comes the time when we leave one stage of life and enter another. On such an ocassion it behoves us to think on various things. First, we should consider the past for it is what has made us who we are, the things we have learned not only as weyrlings but before that time as well. We came here from different walks of life, from different crafts and holds and weyrs. Each of us was different from the other. We stood upon the sands together and were lucky enough to impress. At that time we entered another stage of life, that of weyrlinghood.

Guided by C'zar and Tam and the rest of  the weyrlingmaster staff we learned how to care for our dragons, to chew and flame, to work together as one unit. We've gone through changes as individuals and will always be individuals, but there is a bond among us all, that of clutchmates. As we move into the future, let us remember that we will always have that in common as we join wings, rise in flights and do our duty as Riders. Change should not be a time of sadness, but be welcomed with joy as change means growth and growth means life.

Our thanks go out to our teachers and mentors on the staff and we hope that they will remain so as well as become our friends. It is with joy that we graduate, touched with wistfulness of a joyful time passing, one thatwill be looked back on with pleasure. We will not /dwell/ on the past though as our futures beckon us forward to new experiences,new growth, more changes. May we always remain close though, candidates together, weyrlings together, and now Riders together.
 

Rivka, rider of Brown Epionth
As a weyrhealer, and more specifically one specializing in mindhealing, Rivka thought she was quite
 well prepared for weyr ways. WRONG! Of course, despite her hard time adjusting at first, Rivka
 really did love being at Bahrain! When she was transferred to Fort, to help our Odesa (Now Desa,
 Rider of Green Muireth at Fort), it was a shock, and a disapointment that she had to leave what
 she considered her home. Nevertheless, she stayed, did her job, and then, much to her delight, she
 was transferred back to Bahrain once a new healer was found to take over her post. Imagine her
 surprise, when, just after settling in, she saw the clutching of all 4 of Bahrain's Queen's! It
 was something to remember, even more so when Asarith, her cousin C'zar's lifemate, whuffled and
 snuffled, and then gently whispered a few words into her mind. Yes indeed, Rivka, Journeywoman
 Healer was now a candidate!

Living in a dorm wasn't anything new to Rivka, having endured apprenticehood with surprising
 fortitude. The chores were harder, there was markedly /less/ privacy, and it was quite different
 then having your own room in a weyr, to say the least. Her personality didn't change much, she
 still jumped everytime someone nicked their finger, or started to become upset. Same ol Riv ;>

The big day!  Or, make that days! A very nervous Rivka follwed her fellow candidates on the sands.
 This one in particular worried if her cousin would be dissapointed in her, worried if her craft
 would let her stay shoudl she not impress, stood nervously, hiding behind some tall Igen lad the
 entire first day! She left the sands breifly to rest, partially refreshed for day 2 of the
 hatching. After her Igen lad was claimed by a rather airy green dragon, Riv was left alone, the
 candidates now fewer and more scarce, the last of the eggs left rocking on the sands.

From the egg that Rivka had always had her eye on, a few cracks appeared, a torrent of rushing
 water rippled by a tremor, and the most beautiful brown dragon Rivka had ever layed eyes on popped
 out from the remains. it was truly a sight to behold, when the little brown stripped, and hurt
 himself, but only a tiny bit! it was more injured pride then anything else. Trust Rivka to
 over-react however, and jump up and down to check the hide from afar. To kneel even, and try and
 get a better view! Whoooooooosh, Suddenly, a sound of pipe, a scent of lotus, a soothing cooling
 breeze overwhelms her, and Epionth..Yes, Epionth becomes a part of her forever!

Along with a hundred or so other weyrlings, Rivka, and Epionth grew, and learned, both teaching,
 and bolstering each other in times of need. One learning anew, and one with a totally new insight
 into the world. Being taught by her cousin was a treat in itself! WeyrlingMaster C'zar!   Riv, of
 course, always did her best to make him proud, and was doubly hard on herself when she made a
 mistake, but both her and her lifemate managed to muddle through weyrlinghood quite well.

It was a great time to develop friendships! The most enduring ones being with her clutchmates Kym,
 N'hn, Romilly, Eldana, J'na, T'on, and S'ran, all of whom she considers her closest friends.

OOC Note: Really, weyrlinghood is a wonderful time, that you should all treasure! It's a great
 opportunity to get to know your PC clutchmates IC, and OOC. It's sometimes difficult, when not
 everyone gets along, but it's worth it in the end when you look back!

 
Tam, rider of Brown Timoth
Tam was a journeyman healer and the Weyrhealer at Bahrain when she was searched and subsequently impressed to brown Timoth. Before her impression, Tam was always helpful and considerate to others, but it was more of a power thing with her. Being a Journeyman Healer, she felt she outranked the other candidates and treated them as such. Not in a bad way, but it's been said that Tamar was a rather snobby person. ;-)

When she impressed Timoth, it was a very eye-opening experience for her. Her dragon could /not/ keep a secret, and had a /very/ willing listener in Asarith, C'zar's bronze dragon. Unfortunately, they tended to share some rather intimate details between themselves, much to the consternation of their riders! ;-) The result, was that Tam became a little more relaxed and understanding of other riders and her attitude also changed dramatically from being, "Miss Prim-and-Proper" to being....well, a little less restrained. >;-) 

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