You Didn't Even Want It
Dragonsfall Weyr
Amber Hills Hold
Vintner Hall
Healer Hall
Hidden Meadows
Dolphin Cove Weyr
Dolphin Hall
Emerald Falls Hold
Harper Hall
Printer Hall
Green Valley Hold
Leeward Lagoon Hold
Barrier Lake Weyr
Sunstone Seahold
Citrus Bay Hold
Writers: Sia
Date Posted: 31st December 2024
Characters: E'kirim, K'aur
Description: K'aur and E'kirim have a small confrontation at the hatching feast
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 3, day 22 of Turn 12
Notes: Mentioned: Mirima
The Hatching Feast felt nearly as loud as the Sands itself. E'kirim was swept up by his family the moment he stepped into the hall. His mother wrapped him in a crushing hug and his little sisters peppered him with a flurry of questions each about the bronze dragonet that slumbered in his wallow back in the barracks. Despite all the excitement at the feeding buckets, Norrianth was out cold, snoring and splayed across the space like a hen caught under a wagon wheel, a tangle of limbs stuck in every direction.
Still, he was a comforting weight in the back of E'kirim's mind, his content humming like a fire against the flurries outside.
Once his sisters and mother had their fill of him, E'kirim drifted toward the food table, idly picking at the spread. He was reaching for a stuffled roll when a sharp voice sliced through the noise.
"Bronze."
He startled, nearly dropping his plate, and turned to find K'aur standing beside him, arms crossed and scowling.
"Faranth." E'kirim exclaimed, "You're like a pop-up book from Bitra. Where did you even come from?"
K'aur didn't answer. Instead he tugged E'kirim away from the food table, his dark eyes flashing. "What in the name of the first egg happened today?"
E'kirim stiffened, his jaw tightening. He'd been expecting to find an angsty gloom around K'aur the entire Hatching Feast, if he saw his brother at all. K'aur had spent so long determined to Impress a bronze before Remiath found him. "I stood on the Sands. I didn't do anything different. I didn't even bring a sausage like Sybana did."
"_You_ didn't want a bronze. You wanted a blue or green." K'aur insisted. "You didn't even _want_ to be a candidate!"
"I didn't do it on purpose. Norrianth chose me. I wasn't hoping for bronze any more than you were hoping for brown." K'aur flinched, just a little, and E'kirim felt bad for it.
"You didn't even want to be here." K'aur continued, "Mirima and I were Searched, out of all the kids at Amber Hills. You just stumbled into it. _Mirima_ was ready. She deserved a dragon. She deserved the gold."
“K’aur,” E'kirim interrupted, his voice low and firm.
“What?”
“Drop it.”
K’aur’s scowl deepened. “You don’t get it. Do you know how hard she worked for this? How much she wanted"”
“She’s fine,” E'kirim said, cutting him off again. “You’ve looked at her, haven’t you? She’s fine. She doesn’t need you making this a thing. She _especially_ doesn't need you making it about yourself.”
K’aur’s mouth opened, but E'kirim didn’t let him speak. “You want to be mad about Norrianth choosing me? Fine, be mad. But if you even _think_ about giving her or the twins a hard time…"
“What?” K’aur demanded, leaning closer. “You think you can scare me now because you’ve got a bronze?”
E'kirim leaned back, arms crossed. “I don’t need to scare you, K’aur. Mirima knows you're sulking because your dragon can't make you Weyrleader. She could handle you. _I_ could handle you. We've let you keep this up because you're our brother and we love you, but I'm not against shaking you until all the sixteenths fall out of your pockets."
For a moment, K’aur just stared, caught somewhere between anger and disbelief. “This isn't over.” he muttered finally.
E'kirim shrugged, his tone light but his eyes hard. “I have no doubt. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to finish pretending to eat.”
K’aur hesitated, then promptly turned on his heel and stalked off.
As the tension ebbed, E'kirim took a deep breath and retrieved his plate. Norrianth's sleepy presence brushed his thoughts, warm and comforting.
**Keep sleeping, buddy. It's fine.** He thought. He felt the gentle assent and relief in his tight shoulders as the bronze stretched and rolled over, falling back asleep.
Last updated on the January 1st 2025