"And who's this brat?
Another of your friends, Tekale?
Going to leave us to 'take care' of her too?" The geneticist demanded, finally noticing me.
I glowered.
"I'm a candidate for the F.G.P.C. and I can take care of myself!" I snapped.
"Ooh, looks like she's got a tongue to give yours a run for its money, Sem'." N'fel said gleefully, then darted off before she could hurt him.
In fact, as I looked around, I saw that Rioalnaar, L'for, Niena, Ke't and Ch'vi had made themselves scarce.
Semmal glowered - probably as much as I did - at Caelki.
The shape-shifter leapt from my arms and shifted back to his human shape.
"The Rurachi is catching up on this Pass's events." He said silkily.
"I highly suggest you leave her alone.
However, I'm sure that she'll let you stay."
The geneticist winced as her relative swarm of fire lizards flew around her.
"They're hungry.
Where're the kitchens?" She asked.
"That way." I answered, pointing.
"Good luck."
And she left.
I could not help but grin as she wandered away.
Life really was interesting with Semmal and Shayniie wandering about.
Caelki looked at me.
"Well, I had better let you get back to your chores..." He began.
"I don't have any." I responded quickly.
"Teek!" Rioalnaar called, running back from wherever he had been.
"The Rurachi says you're off-duty today, so us three candidates can kidnap you."
The third candidate turned out to be Demeirsaatt.
I smiled at her.
"Hello, I'm Shailey." I said nervously.
"Demeirsaatt, but Demei's better if you please." The girl answered, smiling back.
"So, now that we get to kidnap a shapeshifter, what should we do with him?" I asked, grinning evilly at said shapeshifter.
Cael'kinta-n'ume shifted into a miniature version of his true self, flit-sized, and sat on Rioalnaar's head.
He peered down at the F.G.P.C. candidate's face with an expression so amusing that I began to laugh.
He reminded me of my sibling's hamsters back on Earth sometimes.
Earth...
My thoughts drifted away from Falas and my new friends back to my old life.
Had I actually done the smart thing, leaving them?
I felt a pang of homesickness.
I missed them already.
"Shailey?
You okay?" Someone was asking, shaking my shoulders.
I shook myself back to the present.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." I mumbled.
I noticed that it was Caelki shaking me.
He looked at me evenly with his gray-green-blue eyes and I averted my gaze.
"Homesick?" He asked kindly and I nodded mutely.
Neiden nudged my cheek, crooning softly.
Detrenim was humming a happy tune and Ayukay was fiddling with my earrings.
I smiled weakly.
"I'll get over it." I assured them.
Demeirsaatt smiled slightly.
"Don't worry, there'll be other Earthlings coming for this clutch.
You never know, maybe someone you're friends with will come." She pointed out.
An uncomfortable silence fell, broken only by Detrenim's continued humming and the sound of Ayukay playing with the little golden hoops dangling from my ears.
I managed to shake off my melancholy state of mind and grin at them.
"So, what're we going to do to pass the time today?" I asked, tucking my hair behind my ears.
"You are going to help me name these things." A sharp voice said behind me.
I grinned evilly and turned around.
Semmal was back with eleven sated flits.
Now that they had all settled on perches on her, it was easy to count them.
Caelki looked evenly at her.
"You're more creative than I am." He observed evenly.
"Tough.
Your little adopted things dropped eleven eggs on my lap as they were hatching.
Therefore, it is your fault for not watching them." She retaliated.
I tried very hard not to laugh at the situation.
The two were equally calm in manner, yet the shorter, green-haired young woman had eleven flits clinging to her.
Eleven.
Even I was not crazy enough to bond that many.
"I can help." I said suddenly.
The geneticist looked at me scornfully.
"You?
An Earth-brat?" She asked.
"Yes, me, an Earth-brat is willing to help you, a Pern-brat." I answered innocently.
She glared at me, yet conceeded.
I pointed to the largest brown.
"Tor," I said simply, then pointed at the cream.
"Shall," the largest blue, "Rill,"
the gold, "Krysse,"
the largest green, "Daey,"
the darkest green, "Rayni,"
the lightest brown, "Zerd,"
the palest blue, "Mol,"
the smallest, plainest brown, "Ewen,"
the smallest green, "Ynne,"
I was about to name the dawn when she stopped me.
"His name is Solayn.
Or, at least, that's what he says his name is." She said evenly.
"He can talk?" The three other humans asked, astonished.
"He's from the F.G.P.C. Hall I guess.
Zserauth probably snuck in and grabbed an egg, not knowing it was a talking dawn." Caelki pointed out.
Neiden gave the few females of Semmal's group a sly croon.
I glared at him and he shut his maw.
I would not have my newly hatched fire lizard think that he could chase.
Besides, he was still unsteady on his wings.
"You keep him away from mine." Semmal said sternly, glaring at the bronze-gold.
"Aww, c'mon, you don't think he's cute?" I asked, unable to keep my mouth shut.
"I think he's rather handsome.
Or is he not good enough for your beauties?"
Caelki, Demeirsaatt and Rioalnaar sniggered.
Semmal glared at them and threw her hands up.
"I give up!
I give up!
Kishyth!
You win the bet!
This Earth-brat's exactly like me!" She exclaimed.
I smirked.
"Except I have intelligence." I muttered in an aside to Caelki, who grinned discretely.
The geneticist smiled suddenly, no longer so annoyed at me.
That was good since I planned on going to the Deragonray if I Impressed.
"You are going to render the Rurachi miserable.
But, we could use a few more stubborn women around the Deragonray.
The gold-riders are all push-overs." She announced.
"Not all of them!" Demeirsaatt said forcefully.
I grinned.
I knew why, since I had written up Demeirsaatt's story.
She had a minor - well, major - obsession with golds.
She was trying for the golden egg in Nysheth's clutch.
I suddenly frowned.
"I'm not gold-type am I?" I asked, never having really thought about it before.
"You can never be sure." Cael'kinta-n'ume said, coming to the rescue of the bewildered others.
"Stereotypes only go so far."
"Don't you want to be a gold-rider?" Demeirsaatt asked, looking very confused.
"Actually... I can't see myself as a gold-rider." I answered honestly.
"I mean, I can't see myself sitting around with a dragon that can't flame."
"So.. what can you see yourself riding?" Rioalnaar asked.
I shrugged.
"Dunno." I responded.
"Color doesn't matter all that much to me."
