Cathix|NB|Bonded to Zeb|Mentions Zeb and Galladis

Cathix’s lavender eyes shot open to darkness. A feeling had awoken them into consciousness, an urgent combination of welcome and familiarity. Either way, Cathix was compelled to find the source of the sensations. They strained to break free of the small space they were confined in, wings and tail and neck wrapped tight around their legs and body. They pushed with their shoulder muscles, and managed to move their wings just enough to raise their head to the surface of whatever substance surrounded them. Finally, Cathix began to jab at the walls of their prison with the end of their snout.

After the blackness of the egg, Cathix’s eyes were temporarily dazzled by the sudden influx of light. It shone off their dark scales and the fragments of eggshell lying scattered around, both slick with the fluid from inside the egg. The next thing Cathix noticed was a strange two-legged creature, with skin as dark as Cathix’s scales and hair paler than Cathix’s claws. It stared at Cathix with vibrant purple eyes, and as their gazes locked the feeling of familiarity grew stronger. This individual, though dragon they were obviously not, felt like family to Cathix.

Hesitantly, Cathix began to stretch out their nose to sniff the animal. However, another of the strange two-legged beasts approached, and for the first time Cathix became aware that they were surrounded by a rather large number of these non-dragons. The newcomer had dark hair and green eyes, and was followed by, of all things, a dragon! Cathix raised their head in excitement and gave a little inquisitive cry before moving to stand next to the violet-eyed beast who had awoken them into awareness. Though they knew nothing about them, Cathix had a feeling they were meant to stay together.

Topaz Finn-Agæca | F | 25 | Human | M: Sol, Galladis indirectly

Ugh, why did Finn's sword have to be so damn heavy?

All it did was impede her movement as she picked through the crowd. Extra careful that the red leather sheath wouldn't catch on anything or anyone, for that matter, Topaz awkwardly ducked out of the main crowd. She wasn't about to get trampled or pickpocketed over a dragon egg that wouldn't hatch for her anyway. The roaring and constant shoving of the over-enthused crowd was getting on her nerves. This was supposed to have ended already, yet not a single egg had hatched for anyone in hours.

Had the draw of being able to see the dragonlings with her own eyes not been too strong for Topaz to resist, she would already have hit the road headed east-toward Rosben. A whole week in Saenor was far too long for her liking, there really wasn't much to do aside from sit around and gamble or drink. And she always lost at cards. Always.

As she made her way out of the roughest part of the crowd, packed together like a school of fish stuck in a tidepool, she began to notice the fact that people seemed to step out of her way. Why on earth would they-

The sword, of course.

A heavy weapon forged for someone much bulkier than she, maybe it looked somewhat intimidating alongside ridiculous. That or they assumed she was someone of higher breeding because of the crimson leather and crest of a merchant family stamped into its side. If only they knew it had been practically stolen from its original owner. Well, alongside the person it had belonged to, that is. No one would move out of her way if they only knew.

Topaz was just lucky no one yet had pointed it out to her. What a wonderful conversation that would be.

Hey, I wonder if I could-

Her thought process was stopped in its tracks by the collective gasp of the crowd. Whipping her head back toward the pavilion, her eyes widened as a small silvery-grey creature cried out and made its way to stand next to its person...bonded...thing. Wasn't that the Fae apprentice? And the Dragonborn with her?

The odd sight distracted her enough to not notice the man headed quickly in her direction before it was too late. He shoved her to get past, clearly focused on someone in the crowd, who that was Topaz couldn't tell. Reacting as if on instinct, she shoved the guy back.

Obviously not one of her brightest moments.

It wasn't hard to tell he did not like that reaction. Of course not. It was just her luck to get into it with a guy who stood easily a head taller than her. His fist clenched as he looked her up and down. Then his posture changed into something odd. "Oh-er-sorry-Miss...." And then he was gone, ducking back into the crowd as if he didn't want to be seen.

The sword again.

It was no surprise he had changed his tune, the family crest etched into the leather (even though there had been attempts to score it out) was the symbol of the Creedan Shipping Company, owned by a wealthy trade merchant. She would have almost preferred to get hit to...whatever that was.

Æschylus Rune | ♂️ | Fae-Human Halfling | M: Galladis, Zeb, Cathix, Aroa

The young man sent a hiss of wind through his teeth in a way of sighing. He was displeased with the current events. Perhaps this was Galladis's way of publicly humiliating him? It would be a miracle if he, a fae halfling, was chosen for anything. This is why he'd been forced to accompany Zebethraey, or Zeb, the Dragonborn apprentice. He was nothing more than a sideshow for hissing and booing upon appearance. He saw the segregation between the races, the sharp face of the eleven queen, and the energetic faces of those hoping to be chosen. He was hidden away near the back of the massing crowd. If he wanted his rations, he needed to be unseen and unheard.

The sound of an egg hatching caught his attention. Someone had bonded with a dragon. He positioned himself in a different manner so as he might see, and he gave a sigh of relief that Zeb bonded first. The Fae would be proud. Less likely they bothered him later. As he moved to stop looking, a larger man suddenly pushed him forward, walking as though through him. This shot the young man towards the front of the crowd. His soft platinum blonde hair covered his forehead, dirt and dust now tainting his clothes. He stood up and brushed his white linen shirt off. He wore black trousers, dark boots, and his eyes were an alluring turquoise at the moment. When he turned, he was swarmed once again, nearly knocking into a Fae guard near one of the tables of eggs.

The man, Esse, placed a hand on the table for support. He then found himself in the spotlight of the bonding. Instantly he knew he was dead when they made it back to the Faedom. He sighed, closing his eyes momentarily. He took a look at the egg ahead of him. It was similar to a chunk of rough gold. The scales were overlapping and the egg was a tad disheveled. He leaned forward, his eyes taking note of the shifting golds within the shell. In a bout of pure instinct, he reached forward and placed his hand fully upon the egg. He was unsure what type of dragon it was, however, Esse felt a heat in his chest. A sense that he couldn't leave the egg. These feelings were strange to him, as he realized this he turned away from the egg to leave, gently taking his hand away.

Galladis/Galledeas Verael | M | Re'enalla | Everyone present (literally everyone, some short)

The list in his hand flashed brightly, emblazoning a name into the paper. Zebeythrae the Dragonborn Apprentice, bonded to metal. He gave a short grin. Of course Zeb would be the first. She was his apprentice, after all. He figured he- having such unusual bonding circumstances- would influence her own bonding. "Who is it?" He could feel Wren's presence in his mind, a soft shuffling forward at the mental words spoken. Zeb. Galladis moved to go congratulate her, when a voice interrupted his saunter.

"Galladis, if this is going to take a long time, I think you should get someone to prepare that seat for me, where I have a good view of the proceedings."

Randi. "Of course, Randi." Giving a dip of his head, he pointed to an elevated chair a small ways beyond the table. "It is already prepared, you can view what you wish from there." Continuing along his walk, he reached Zeb and patted her on the back. "First one, hm? Great job. Maybe I should start referring to you as Dragonborn as well." He hoped he wasn't sounding too formal. Formalities came to him naturally; having buried himself in his work for the past decade, it normally showed up whenever it could.

While he was grinning at Zeb, Wren watched the hatchling with curiosity. "Tiny. Cute." She held her nose up to the hatchling, cocking her head with what could be a smile. As she was, he noticed two stand-out people hanging around. "If you'll excuse me." The first he approached was lying along the side with disinterest; almost bemused by the gathering. "Hello." In respect, he tipped his head slightly. "Why not give bonding a chance? There's nothing to lose, no matter how much you might find it... amusing." He gestured to the table, swiftly removing himself to talk to the other.

The woman he walked up to wasn't anything particularly special, but that sword. It was bright, standing out from the crowd. It seemed to make others nervous. At the very least, it was finely made: a wealthy traders' family, perhaps. She could be a good asset for trade, if only he could reach her through the crowd dispersing from... her. He beelined to reach her, staring down whoever seemed to oppose his slight forcing. Wren followed along dutifully, normally clearing those around her from her power.

When he reached the woman, he had to take a closer look at her features. She was around his height, tan and wiry, yet humbly dressed. She looked familiar, but he couldn't place where he'd seen her before. "Have we met?" This he directed at the strange woman, narrowing his eyes at her features. "What's your name, hm?" Something caught his eye, a distraction in the back. Wren was... purring? In any case, she looked like she wanted to be around this woman. "Strange. Familiar." She rubbed up against her, not even worrying if she would knock the woman over. "Family."

He pondered this. How would Wren know her? No one he was related to, she'd met. It would take some thought to place who she was. Even if he got her name, it was unlikely he'd recognize her. After all, he was the Dragonborn- he met dozens, even hundreds of new people every day. "Wren. Back." The moon dragon complied, slowly taking herself from the woman's side. She turned her head side to side swiftly, holding it up for a moment by the table. "Familiar halfling." He followed her gaze, watching as she looked over to see none other than Æschylus Rune staring at their time egg.

If bonding had nothing to do with the dragon choosing the person, he would have stopped him from even coming to the event. If a second name hadn't fired onto his list, he would have had the guards take him away. It is what it is.

Aroa | F | Bonded: Æschylus | Time Dragon| M: Esse

Something stirred in the misshapen egg at the touch. Well, more than stirred. The entire egg shifted, rolling toward the man's hand as he pulled it away. He couldn't leave yet.

And then she was awakened.

Wedge-shaped head pushing through the outer shell as the large lumpy scales fell away as if whatever was holding them together suddenly dissolved. The little creature sat, blinking at the sudden bright lights and sound with wide eyes bright as mercury, taking in the scene. It seemed to have fallen oddly quiet. Were they looking at her? And then she turned her eyes to the person. Her person, she could feel it. She needed him, yes. The little creature reached out to him with her muzzle.

And in that very moment they touched, she was taken over by a vision, perhaps strong enough to affect the both of them.

Lights, oh so many lights. A massive beast, something she could feel wasn't like her. No no no, bad-bad-it was very bad. A gold headpiece falling to the floor. An inked image of...her? Something like her? Green hair. The dirt. A dark-haired man with a nasty look. A large gray hairy thing with thick legs. A rush of emotions that she knew didn't belong to her. A hot crimson rain splashing across her face...his face...their face. Who's face? Teeth tore into flesh. Soft flesh that didn't belong to her. Falling, pain, no.

And just like that, it was gone.

As if snapping out of a slumber, she came to. The little creature looked up at the man, no, her man and let out a warbling cry and trundled in his direction. When the little dragonling reached the end of the table, she looked down between her front feet at the daunting distance between the table. Then back up at the man. Down, up, down, up. She cocked her head at him, a question. One she didn't wait to be answered.

And with that, she barreled off the table in his direction. If she had gotten her way, she would have landed right in the middle of his chest. But as clumsy as a baby dragon was, who knew where she would end up.

Aibek

Moon dragon | M | Bonded: Camila | M: Camila

As soon as the female's fingertips touched the egg, something awoke. The egg began to shake. The creature inside has begun to move and was ready to greet the new world.

A loud pecking noise came from the egg before a couple of cracks appeared. Pieces of hard plates of the outer egg fell to the ground. A small triangular muzzle pushed its way through the small hole that had now formed. Another piece of outer shell fell as the creature pushed its head out.

He hissed as his ocean eyes open the light was a lot for him to take in. His body jerked back, he was not a fan of what was happening. Hundreds of voices echoed around him. A weird feeling washed over him, something was keeping him from leaving his egg. He hated the feeling it was so dark and unlikeable but then something greater was trying to pull him from his egg; a feeling of happiness and comfort.

He closed his eyes one last time before pushing his head out. Using the large wings wrapped around him he tried spreading them out. causing the egg to break more. He hissed as he stepped from out of his egg. the light had blinded him. He stumbled falling off the table; he did a bit of a flip before landing on his back. He wrapped his long wings around his body like a bat trying to shield his newborn eyes from the harsh light.

He could feel the feeling of happiness and comfort right in front of him like some kind of creature calling him. He slowly peeked from behind his wing. His eye quickly went from large pupils to slit trying to against to the harsh light. There standing before him a two-legged non-dragon creature and instead of wanting nothing to do with it... he was drawn to it. He let out a high-pitched call trying to let the non-dragon creature that he was here.