Another thing he taught her was that childbirth was not all that easy a task. At 17 turns, Sharmon bore H'ex a son, named Zarap. H'ex had been Impressed for just over a turn when Zarap was born.
Sharmon followed H'ex to the weyr, but returned to their old home in Dawnlight when her mother Masada fell ill. Marta was there too, for the woman's passing. Now at 20 turns, and having watched her lover grow mature with his brown Bireth, Sharmon wants to put the Hold behind her and concentrate on her true calling.
Sharmon would love to fly in the skies against Thread. Of course! Not like her sister, flinging herself at all comers and for any reason jumping into the sky... But with a purpose and with care. By her very nature observant and careful, Sharmon has always warned H'ex that his vocal tirades against the Holders at Dawnlight would get him banned from there.
Fortunately, he did so only AFTER Sharmon had been Searched.
With relief, then, Sharmon packed the last of her family's things away, and let H'ex move everything to Blackstone.
"I told him it was okay for Shard to take him out to the Isle. That's all..." The pink-haired man said, sheepishly looking at his mahogony-skinned weyrmate. "I mean, it's just the Isle!"
"It is the Protectorate's best kept secret, H'ex. It's an island in the middle of NOWHERE, and you let that irresponsible BLUE rider take our SON there?!"
"Zarap is old enough to make that decision himself," H'ex said.
"He's barely older than three turns!" Sharmon hissed. "You call that old enough? Oh! Why I ever let you drag me here!" She stomped around, and worried endlessly about their little boy.
H'ex put his strong hand on Sharmon's shoulder. "I know you worry about him, but Shard knows what he's doing. Zarap likes flying with Jeremoth, and--"
"And Shard rides without a harness! That crazy man could LOSE our son BETWEEN!" Fiercely, Sharmon tore out of H'ex's grasp and stood on the ledge of their weyr. "You bring him right back. You go and get him and bring him back."
"I can't do that," H'ex said, "honey, Shard is the Protectorate's leader! And Jeremoth, whether you like him or not, is a great dragon. He's an excellent search dragon too."
"I know... I know..." Softened by that memory, Sharmon let her shoulders slump and her breathing relax. "He's ... he is a fine dragon to steal our son away."
"He Searched you, didn't he?" H'ex chided. "And you don't mind that, do you?"
Sharmon finally grinned, eyes still a bit hot but her cheeks brightened. "I don't mind. I wish I knew where I would stand, though. This waiting is agonizing!"
H'ex decided to finalize her feelings on this... "Sharmon, if you do impress, you'll barely have time for Zarap."
Not taunted by this, Sharmon raised her caramel-black eyes to H'ex's and smiled widely. "That is what YOU are here for, then aren't you?"
Sharmon said nothing. She was not 'invited' to this little shindig, fine. But her son... His hair looked, well, it looked okay that way. And from what she'd been told, it would STAY that way forever. She hoped his dragon would like it when he impressed.
That got her thinking in circles again. Since Jeremoth had nudged her after their meal and brought her out onto the windy ledge, just more than two sevendays ago. The blue was confident and happy. He always seemed to have something cute to say or add to a mental conversation, and Shard always interpreted his words for those without dragons around them.
That night, it had been while Zarap was sleeping and everyone else was actually being relatively quiet in their weyr-gather for once. H'ex insisted that his friends come around to play dragon-poker, and Sharmon usually wound up beating most of the players at the game before the night was done.
Jeremoth said that it showed she had good tactical ability. Sharmon replied that she liked preying on the weak willed. That too, he had added.
A strong will, he said, that was necessary. Good eyes, able body, and no fear of things like heights and winds and thread.
Well, Thread would always scare everyone. Didn't it? Yet it was their enemy, their dire consequence for living here on Pern.
Since the Red Star continued to approach, and would be looming in the skies of Pern for decades to come, Sharmon thanked Jeremoth and decided that it was right for her to become a dragon rider.
Now, if only... If only she could find a weyr to stand at...
That little problem was solved when H'ex brought along a rider from another weyr, to their game. K'allin was his name, and upon blue Henaveth he came soaring onto their ledge. The beautiful Talor-born blue strode up to H'ex's dragon Bireth, and they seemed to confer while the riders and weyr folk played cards quietly.
Sharmon watched them, almost expectantly.
You wish to stand, yet have no sands? Asked the blue, and Sharmon nodded. Then you will come with me, to Cincanta. We could use a good candidate like yourself there.
"H'ex... Will have to take care of Zarap for a while alone, then..." She whispered, dazed.
