"It isn't driving you crazy?" Trici felt like shaking the drudge until his teeth rattled.
The man obviously thought the cat-lady was off her rocker. "No ma'am. It's kind of pleseant."
Trici sighed as the man left her in the candidate barracks. She flattened her ears and covered her head with her pillow. "I can't take it any more!!" She tossed the pillow across the room, fur standing on end. She stormed out of the candidate barracks.
"Where are you going?" The other girls who shared the candidate barracks with Trici had gotten used to her complaining. One of them now wondered why she'd finally snapped.
"I can't take the music anymore!! I haven't had a good night's sleep in days!! I'm going to kill the Harpers!!" Trici stood in the doorway, feeling as crazed as she must have looked.
"Zheyth will kill you. She likes the music." The girl smirked.
"How can you all stand it?" Trici flopped to the ground, lying where she fell. "I can't take it anymore!"
"You've mentioned that. And the music isn't that loud. We can barely hear it."
Trici sighed. "I'm beginning to wish I had cut my ears off." Trici's ears perked up as she registered a new song. "Humming." She murmured it to herself.
One of the girls looked at her. "What did you say?"
"Humming." Trici walked, on two feet, to her chest and removed her candidate robe. She pulled the white garment over her short blue dress while the other candidates looked at her, not understanding.
As if on cue a drudge came running in and informed the rest of them that the dragons were humming and the eggs were hatching.
As she walked onto the sands, Trici couldn't help thinking how she was so relieved the music was over and she could get a decent nights rest tonight, dragon partner or no. She crouched on the hot sands, watching the eggs rock.
As all the other candidates began to walk away with their lifemates, Trici came to a startling realization: There were more candidates than eggs. Of course there are! She mentally smacked herself. But I never saw almost ten candidates walk away empty-handed... Her tail began to flick back and forth nervously as the last eggs began to hatch. Finally the last egg on the entire sands showed signs of light cracks. Trici resisted the urge to hold her breath. It's just a little dragon...I can stay on for the next clutch... She began to shift her weight from paw to paw as she waited. I'm not nervous...I'm a little excited...relieved the harpers finally put a cork in it...glad to be a part of something like this...biting through my lip! She jerked and rubbed her lip. Ow. Okay maybe I'm a little nervous...but only a little. If I could just get this stupid song out of my head... Her jaw dropped as the half-feline realized she wasn't the one with the song in her head.
It's all she loves, it's all she hates, It's all too much for her to take. The light brown dragonet's eyes were whirling blue as she approached her chosen.
Browns aren't female. It was simply an afterthought, but Trici's lifemate picked it up.
No, we're not. The light brown admitted. Will you have me anyway, Trici?
The half-feline purred - literally and rubbed her head against the hatchling. "Oh yes, Mikanth..."
As they left the hatching grounds together, practically on the same level since Trici was walking on all fours, Mikanth felt the need to continue the song. Man I gotta get out of this town. Yeah now I gotta get back on that train. Man I gotta get out of this town. I'm outta my pain. So I'm goin' back to L.A.
Trici winced. "Mikanth?"
Yeah?
"Don't sing."
Okay. The hatchling began his dinner. Trici?
"Yeah?"
What's an L.A.?
* * *
Read Trici's candidate story!
Trici impressed Mikanth at Ryslen Weyr.
Background from Myrror Images.
Song referred to is LA Song by Beth Hart. Lyrics found at Beth Hart Lyric Sheet.
