The World of Pern(tm) is copyright to Anne McCaffrey (c) 1967.
The Dragonriders of Pern(r) is a registered copyright.

This is a log of roleplay on PernMUSH, available online by permission of
Anne McCaffrey, author of the Pern novels, and recorded by A.S. Korra'ti
(piper@murkworks.net), player of Mehlani of Telgar Weyr on PernMUSH.
This log may be distributed freely as long as this header remains intact.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Log Date:
	7/19/97

Log Cast (People):
	F'hlan, Juliana, Morgana, Kassima, Kelanna, Thera, Handor, Merla,
Makear, Deannus, Aidoann, Merien, Aphrael, Alyssa, Kethran, Sonya,
Kevyn, Tairell, Asrai

Log Cast (Dragons):
	Lilith, Prefeth, Tesith, Pryth, Cygnith

Log Intro:
	The Benden Weyr Spring Games have commenced, just shortly after
another rather auspicious but rather less widely publicized event at
Benden -- the 40th Turning of F'hlan, bronze Tzornth's rider. Perfectly
content to keep that latter event unpublicized, yet feeling restless under
the knowledge of age creeping up on him, F'hlan has been watching the
Weyr's activity from his accustomed place on the sidelines; he's noted,
too, that his young daughter Mehlani has reported the return of her
friend Devlin to Benden, an occasion which has caused Mehlani to make
the unprecedented remark to her father that "Devlin is very tall now."
With this evidence of his offspring's fresh youth to consider, F'hlan
ventures out into the Bowl to distract himself, unaware that one of
his wingmates has been looking for _him_....

----------
[Location: the South Bowl of Benden Weyr]

Juliana looks at you for a moment.

F'hlan limps out of his weyr, a green fire lizard riding on his shoulder, and 
  pauses to take in the sight of the day.

Juliana looks up at the man and grins, all friendly-like

Juliana
You see a little girl with shoulder-length reddish-brown hair and curious 
  green eyes. She wears a blue jumper with many pockets of various shapes and 
  sizes over a loose-fitting cream-colored shirt with a small knot of Nabol 
  Hold on the shoulder. She proudly wears a dragonclaw pendant around her neck 
  (+detail available). In one of the largest pockets can be seen the lump of 
  her new friend, blue firelizard Spot. And hovering above her is another 
  blue, Monner. On her little feet are small brown boots.
Juliana is a small girl of 7 Turns, 7 months, and 19 days. She is very active 
  and rail thin. She seems always to be happy and giggles a lot. She carries 
  with her a small handmade stuffed canine that Juli will introduce as Blue.
Carrying:
Monner
Sweety
Spot(#1642IVp)
Blue

Juliana tugtugs at her sister's tunic, "Look, he gots a green one.."

Morgana grins, "Pretty."

F'hlan turns, and smiles, a small quirk of a grin, to the little girl. The 
  fire lizard in question coos cutely; she's parked with her tail vanished 
  under the man's dark mop of hair. "Here for the Festival?" he asks politely.

Juliana nods, "Pretty firelizard, Mister."

Morgana says "Very pretty."

Morgana
You see before you a 7 Turns, 7 months, and 19 days old young girl with 
  shoulder-length reddish brown hair and mischievous bright green eyes. She 
  wears a brown jumper over a loose fitting white shirt. Upon her feet are a 
  pair of small brown boots, matching her jumper.

From Juliana's shoulder, Sweety croons his agreement.

"Thank you," replies the man with the green, as the little creature preens 
  herself and trills, evidently fully aware that she is attracting attention. 
  "Her name is Neme."

Juliana repeats the name, "Neme. Neato name. I gots three firelizard, Mister. 
  Sweety, Monner, and Spot." She grins as each chitters as they're introduced.

Kassima emerges from the prize tent.
Kassima has arrived.

F'hlan chuckles softly, regarding the two youngsters as he lifts a lean hand 
  to scritch the little green perched there on his right shoulder. "Do you, 
  know? You take care of them well, I hope?"

Juliana nods, "Yeah, Felista showed me how." she states proudly. "My sister 
  has one, a green one too."

Morgana smiles and nods, "A green."

Kelanna emerges from the passage to the entrance cavern.
Kelanna has arrived.
Kelanna opens the gate and enters the feeding grounds, closing it behind her.
Kelanna has left.
In the Feeding Grounds, Kelanna goes home.
In the Feeding Grounds, Kelanna bounces delightedly into her cot.

Kassima shields her eyes for a moment as the bright contrast between the Bowl 
  and the prize tent hits her, blinking once or twice and murmuring soothing 
  nonsense to Kaylira as the child whimpers. "Heyla," she calls over to the 
  two strangers--and, what the heck, to F'hlan too for that matter--with a nod 
  and a smile. A smile which then brightens as she finally manages to focus 
  her eyes enough to recognize the bronzerider. "Oh, F'hlan! Just the 
  bronzerider I was looking for!" Uh-oh.

F'hlan grins quietly down at the pair of children. "I've got a few more where 
  this lass came from, myself." The green chirrrups, but then, the man lifts 
  his head at Kassima's hail. His dark eyebrows go up, and he queries, "Aye?"

Juliana opens her mouth to ask something, but hushes as the other rider talks 
  to F'hlan, she waits.

Kassima strides away from the tent, the usual cloud of fire-lizards following 
  after her; several of them choose to perch on Lysseth, though a few somehow 
  find perches on the greenrider's shoulders, wrists, head... you name it. 
  "I've a bit of a favor to ask of you. We're in a bit of a bind, y'see--we've 
  had to postpone a bunch of our events due to unforseen circumstance, and we 
  need *something* to kill time in the meanwhile... it really is for a good 
  cause," she adds, not *quite* wheedling. Whatever she wants, it's bound to 
  be a doozy.

Above, Lilith leaps from Lilith's Ledge and flies into the air.

F'hlan's dark eyebrows stay up, even as Neme, on his shoulder, decides that 
  right about now is a good time to tangle herself up in his hair. "You're not 
  going to ask me to sing in public, are you?" he inquires dryly.

Lilith backwings for a landing.
Lilith has arrived.

Thera swings a leg over Lilith's neckridges, and hops off the green to the 
  ground. Lilith wheels her head over, assessing her rider and those about, 
  before relaxing after a gentle scritch from her rider.
Thera has arrived.

"Well, nay precisely... though you *could* sing. If'n you wanted to." Kassi 
  pauses to disentangle Kay's hand from her braid, letting the child grab onto 
  that ever-convenient strap attached to her jacket for just that purpose. 
  Waving to Thera, she then asks, "Had you heard about the booth Kindre set up 
  for us, in the north?"

Kassima
        Kassima is a slender woman who stands about 5'10" in height; you'd 
  guess her to be around 23 Turns, 0 months, and 9 days of age. In good health 
  and physical condition, the sun-burnishing that bronzes her skin is shown 
  off splendidly by the outfit she wears. The black lace-up tunic is not 
  overly unusual, nor are the ankle boots of ebon wherhide that fold over to 
  form a cuff. The sable belt does look new; tooled with dragons, the leather 
  hasn't yet lost its gleam. But it's what that belt is threaded around that 
  comes as something of a surprise: Kassi is this day bedecked in a kilt, 
  which falls just above her knees and is checked with black and a verdant 
  green. Perhaps this accounts for the almost constant gleam of rueful 
  amusement in her emerald eyes, and the quirk of her arched eyebrows; the 
  somewhat impish grin, however, is a constant that cannot be attributed to 
  clothing. A long black braid falls over her left shoulder, ending a mere 
  handspan above her knee, and her eyes are almost obscured by a thick pitch 
  forelock that has been brushed to one side by absent fingers.
        As usual, Kassi almost seems to radiate energy, flashing you a grin as 
  she spots your gaze. Her crimson eggshell, silver dagger, and 
  silver-and-malachite dragon pendants compliment her costume nicely, and an 
  emerald graduation ring (+detail available) sparkles on her right ring 
  finger. The left is crowned with a ring of emerald and bloodstone, while a 
  silver puzzle ring and gold band with etched green dragon silhouettes occupy 
  her right and left index fingers respectively. You may notice that there are 
  many fire-lizards perched all around her.
        Though Kassi isn't wearing her unique riding jacket, it is still slung 
  over one arm, and one can see upon it the red, black, and grey-green knot 
  that delineates her position as a Benden Weyr Wingsecond and the rider of 
  green Lysseth. Upon the opposite shoulder is a patch with the symbol of 
  Thunderbolt Wing.
Carrying:
Toy Rock
Kaylira

Kaylira
        Small and just a bit delicate-seeming at first glance, this 
  deceptively quiet baby girl stares back at you with wide eyes of a dark 
  storm-grey that sometimes lightens practically to silver. A sleek cap of 
  black hair crowns her head, holding just a hint of the natural curl it will 
  no doubt have later; along the sides, where she tends to rest against her 
  cradle, the hair has thinned into practical nonexistance. She is still as 
  pale as any Benden babe in early springtime, but looks to be in fine overall 
  health. It is possible to see in her face some of the features of her 
  parents if you look hard enough--especially in the slight, feline-like tilt 
  to her eyes that matches the shape of her mother Kassima's. Kaylira seems 
  fairly alert when she is neither asleep nor discontented, and often turns 
  her tiny head to try and see just what's going on around her.
        Kaylira is currently wrapped in a blanket of dark forest green. 
  Underneath the blanket, it can be seen that she's been dressed up in a tiny 
  version of her mother's festival clothes: a very small black shirt and 
  miniature kilt checked in black, green, and bronze look adorable on her. 
  Looking at this child, you'd estimate her to be somewhere around 0 Turns, 5 
  months, and 3 days old.

Thera slaps Lith playfully on the rump, and heads to the crowd.

Handor walks here from the north.
Handor has arrived.

F'hlan's eyebrows lower, only to be replaced by his squinting at the younger 
  rider instead. "Which booth would this be? There are several."

Juliana ooohs, there're more booths, she grins to her sis.

Merla walks here from the north.
Merla has arrived.

Morgana grins back at her sister.

Merla nods to those she knows as she arrives. She stops near Lysseth, her eyes 
  scanning those assembled.

Kassima hesitates a moment before answering, "The dunking booth. 'Twas our 
  thought, you see," she rushes on, "that if'n you were in the booth, mayhaps 
  we could get a good crowd of people together for a contest--y'know, whoever 
  successfully dunks you the most times wins? 'Twould be for a very good 
  cause, really 'twould!"

Juliana giggles, a dunking both? Her eyes .light up mischeviously

Handor heads in the direction of the shimmering lake, leaving the South Bowl 
  area of the Weyr.
Handor has left.

On F'hlan's shoulder, Neme twines herself ecstatically in the rider's long 
  dark hair, even as his brown eyes widen. "You... want me... to sit in your 
  dunking booth?"

Morgana giggles and wants to go visit the dunking booth, She looks at her 
  sister, "Wanna?"

Juliana nods, "Let's go." She waves at F'hlan, "Bye Mister." she calls before 
  tugging her sister in the direction of the north bowl
Juliana walks north.
Juliana has left.

Morgana waves and is dragged
Morgana walks north.
Morgana has left.

Kassima nods enthusiastically, grinning at the bronzerider. "Kin's dunking 
  booth, technically, but aye! S'cot's in there right now, but I'm sure he 
  couldn't draw half as much attention as having you sit up there could. Why, 
  just think on it! 'Twould be excellent for... for Weyr-Hold relations, aye!" 
  Not stopping a beat in her attempts to persuade F'hlan that this is a good 
  idea, she waves to Merla as she continues. "Why, if'n the visitors to the 
  Weyr had a good time, they would be impressed by the Weyr, which is all to 
  the good--and it really would be fun, F'hlan. Honest!" Easy for her to say, 
  of course....

The bronze rider leans away from Kassima ever so slightly, still squinting at 
  her dubiously. "You said this was for a good cause?" he asks, tone gruff.

Merla nods, trying to hide her amusement at Kassima's reasoning.

Thera blinks up, but quickly focuses, and grins wolfishly. "You know Kassi, 
  you're so very right. For the game-goers to see a Bronze rider, acting for 
  them, playing with them....being dunked on their behalf...why, F'hlan, you'd 
  be a hero."

Kassima nods vigorously. "What better cause could there possibly be than 
  Weyr-Hold relations?" she reasons. "And it wouldn't be *half* so good for 
  those if'n all our guests were *bored*, now would it? A'course nay. And 
  Thera's right, too! 'Tis a chance to show that bronzeriders are really 
  people too. 'Twould be a noble cause, agreeing to be dunked for the purpose 
  of their enjoyment!"

At Thera's interjection, F'hlan starts turning just a touch pink. But as the 
  female riders converge on her human, little green Neme peeks out of the 
  tangle she's made of her human's hair, and coos cutely at the both of them. 
  Tzornth's rider blows out a breath, and mutters, "Well... I _have_ done my 
  duties for the day..."

Makear walks here from the north.
Makear has arrived.
Makear has left.

"And 'tis a very honorable thing to go above and beyond the call of duty," 
  Kassi interjects, expression one of wide-eyed sincerity. It's even hard 
  whether or not to tell whether it's contrived.

He knows he's going to regret this. It's quite apparent on the man's lean 
  face. Nevertheless, F'hlan shoves a hand through his hair, on the opposite 
  side from his little green, and blows out a sigh. "Alright. What do I need 
  to do?"

Merla places a hand over her mouth to hide her amusement at F'hlan's 
  situation. She is mildly successful, but her eyes still gleam with laughter.

Kassima positively beams, not *quite* bouncing in place as her wheedling meats 
  with success. "Oh, you won't regret it, F'hlan," she assures him. The 
  amazing thing is that she manages to keep a straight face while doing so. 
  "'Tis quite simple; the booth's in the north, and you just need to climb up 
  and sit on the seat there. Oh... and don't wear or carry aught that you 
  wouldn't want getting wet."

F'hlan's mouth quirks in a smirk, but he eyes Kassima with a kind of resigned, 
  benign amusement nevertheless as he limps off northward.

You walk north.
North Bowl(#396RJ$)
The light spills over the over-arching mountains and into the bowl. It 
  illuminates the patched ground, covered with gravel and fine sand. Here and 
  there, the odd piece of greenery struggles up from the ash-based soil. The 
  first few spring flowers are blooming in pots, and what weeds there are have 
  a renewed, clean color. The smell of spring comes in on the west wind. The 
  northern half of the crater is smaller than the southern one, but still 
  immense. To the west is an opening into the Living Cavern of the weyr. Other 
  openings in the northern cavern lead into the weyrs of the junior queens, 
  weyrleaders, and the massive Hatching Grounds. Storage bunkers of various 
  sorts are stacked against the rough rock walls. The murmur of voices and the 
  clatter of pots and chairs drifts from the Living Cavern, where the evening 
  meal is being served.
Several entrances lead to the junior queenriders' weyrs. Use '+view 
  queenriders' to see them.
There is not a cloud in the sky, but a cold wind blows up from somewhere, 
  giving you a chill.
Contents:
Dunking Booth(#10386MOVae$)
Winecraft Pavillion (WP)(#4493JMe$)
Painting Contest Tent
Obvious exits:
South Bowl  Weyrleaders' Complex  Hatching Cavern  Outer Infirmary  Guest Weyr 
   Living Cavern  Records Room  

Dunking Booth(#10386MOVae$)
        Your first thought when glancing over this booth is, "What in 
  Faranth's name -is- this contraption?" As your mind slowly pieces together 
  all of the parts...a pool of water, a bench above it, and a target of some 
  sort...you realize that it's a dunking booth. The large tub of water could 
  easily accommodate a young weyrling dragon and is about three weaverlenghts 
  high. Hung a single weaverslength above it is a bench, made comfortable for 
  its occupant with a soft, red cushion. Several chains and pullies attach the 
  bench to a bovineseye on the left, itself hued in alternating circles of red 
  and black. A small, oak table sits just afront and to the right of the 
  booth, guarded by a young man. Benram, he'd tell you if you asked his name, 
  apparently hands out the balls as well as being in charge of this game. 
  S'cot, green Kilth rider, is the standing volunteer, available when the 
  other vict...er, booth-sitters are taking breaks. Your mission, should you 
  accept it? See who's in the booth and try to 'dunk' them! (If you're unsure 
  how to play, ask Benny for the 'rules')
        Currently in the booth is: S'cot

Merla walks here from the south.
Merla has arrived.
Merla walks right after F'hlan toward the dunking booth, "It's sturdy 
  enough..." she says simply, "Kindre made sure of that. It won't break 
  underneath you."

Kassima walks here from the south.
Kassima has arrived.

Public announcement: Kassima announces "Hear ye, hear ye! For this one time 
  only, F'hlan, Benden's very own Shardingly Swoonable Bronzerider, has gone 
  out of his mind enough to agree to sit in a dunking booth for a contest at 
  the Benden Weyr Spring Games. The one who dunks him the most times wins a 
  prize, so +go benden-bowl, then North for this chance of a lifetime! We now 
  return you to your regularly scheduled programming. :)"

Public announcement: F'hlan announces "Don't listen to Kassima. I'm not that 
  sharding handsome, honest."

Above, Prefeth leaps from Prefeth's Ledge and flies into the air.

F'hlan flicks the gold rider a slight smirk, as he carefully disengages Neme 
  from his hair, and sets her down on the ground before him. Then he starts 
  unlacing his tunic.

Prefeth backwings for a landing.
Prefeth has arrived.

Juliana steps back under the arch, out of the painting contest tent.
Juliana has arrived.

Morgana steps back under the arch, out of the painting contest tent.
Morgana has arrived.

Juliana cmes outta the painting tent, all covered in pretty colours that 
  weren't on her outfit before.

Kassima waves up to S'cot, who's sitting in the booth at the moment, looking 
  good and soaked; apparently, at least some of the Games attenders have 
  rather good aim. "We've found a replacement for you!" she calls up to 
  Kilth's rider. The greenrider grins, looking *quite* relieved, and hops down 
  from his perilous perch to grab a towel from Benram in an attempt to dry off.

Deannus walks here from the south.
Deannus has arrived.

Prefeth carefully holds his wings aloft to prevent much wind from his landing. 
  With a soft croon of greeting to the other dragons in the bowl, he drops 
  down to the bowl.

Above, From the Benden Star Stones, Thiva's mottled green Avivth rears on hind 
  legs and bugles a greeting to green Tesith and her rider, Merien of Ista 
  Weyr.

Juliana tugs her sister along, "We dunk more." she grins mischeviously.

Thera walks here from the south.
Thera has arrived.

F'hlan eyes the gathering crowd, then flicks a look into the air for a moment, 
  before he reaches up and climbs into the torture device Kassima's asked him 
  to sit in for a while.

Above, Tesith glides down from above.

Morgana grins and follows her sister.

Dunking Booth(#10386MOVae$)
You're sitting atop a cushion covered bench which dangles precariously over a 
  rather large pool of water. Mayhaps two weaverlengths deep, the water just 
  -looks- cold as tiny waves lap against the sides of the booth. Not far below 
  and to the left of you is the target; brightly hued with alternating red and 
  black circles, it's your secret wish that no one will manage to connect a 
  ball with it.
You hop up onto the seat above the water.

Outside, Aidoann walks here from the south.

Dragon> Benden dragons sense that Tesith bugles a greeting to the watch dragon 
  as she spirals down toward the bowl.

Outside, Deannus waves a greeting to Kassima the only one she recognizes in 
  the crowd. "Heyla!

Outside, Above, Tesith flies into the entrance to the Hatching Grounds cavern.

Outside, Neme chirplechitters, quite confused by all these goings on, and 
  flitters right up to the top of the dunking booth to peer down at F'hlan. 
  What IS her human doing?

Outside, Aidoann steps in, munching on a bubbly, she grins at the crowd, in 
  cosiderably good spirits, for her.

Outside, Above, Tesith emerges from the hatching caverns.

Dragon> Benden dragons sense that Tzornth rumblesnickers. << My rider wet. 
  This should be entertaining. >>

Outside, Tesith backwings for a landing.

Outside, Merien comes down to Tesith's foreleg, then to the ground.

Outside, Aphrael climbs down from Prefeth's neckridges with practised ease.

Outside, Merien climbs down Tesith's leg and stands beside her lifemate, one 
  hand on her hide.

Outside, Deannus turns to Merien with a grin. "Heya. I 'member ya from Igen.

Outside, Juliana grins at her sister, "Mister gunna be in it. We try him too?"

Outside, Morgana grins back and nods, "Sure thing."

Outside, Juliana claps

Outside, Alyssa walks here from the south.

F'hlan settles himself as comfortably as he can, and puts on as serene an 
  expression as he can manage. He'll strangle Kassima later.

Outside, Aphrael tugs off her gloves, slapping amusedly at Prefeth's hide as 
  she calls, "Better move and let some of the other dragons land, dearheart," 
  To the blue, turning to watch the crowd gather around the booth. Curious, 
  she makes her way closer.

Outside, Prefeth lumbers south.

Outside, Alyssa wanders in, quietly, a look of abject and absent concentration 
  on her features, skirting the crowds.

Outside, Kassima grins, standing off to one side and watching the crowds 
  arrive. V'dan, who has abandoned his post in the Pin-the-Tail tent so as not 
  to miss this spectacle of a lifetime, helpfully takes Kay off of Kassi's 
  hands for the duration of the event. "Heya, everybody!" she calls 
  cheerfully. "Benden's duties to everyone and everywhere! You're just in time 
  t'try your hand at bronzerider-dunking. What we're going to do is this: 
  everybody who's interested, give me your names (OOCly, page me), and I'll 
  write up a queue. We'll have three rounds--and whoever dunks him the most 
  times will be our winner!" (OOCly: This will be judged based on three 
  things: the pre-toss pose, the toss, and the post-toss pose. Page me now to 
  get on the queue. :)

Outside, Aidoann eyes the crowd, then spots the dunking booth, she chuckles 
  lightly.

Outside, Deannus ducks closer to the crowd around the dunking booth, looking 
  for some kind of line. It's not every day one gets to dunk a rider.

Outside, Above, From the Benden Star Stones, M'nar, on mint green Gelth, 
  backwings to a clean landing and settles, replacing Mottled green Avivth, 
  bearing her rider Thiva, on watchrider duty.

Outside, Merien pats Tesith and speaks to her quietly for a moment before 
  walking toward the others.

Outside, It doesn't take long before Neme, up on the top edge of the dunking 
  booth, is joined by several other greens. And after a few moments, a brown, 
  too, all of them looking very curious as to what exactly F'hlan is doing in 
  the weirdthing that has water in it. With the sort of practiced poise an 
  ex-Weyrleader can have, F'hlan maintains his seat, and squints out into the 
  gathering crowd.

Outside, With tail wrapped around Aido's neck, egg-laden Verelan wurblecroons 
  softly to the other firelizards gathered.

Outside, Merla watches quietly, standing near the entry to her weyr.

Outside, Kassima takes down names as they're given to her, flashing a grin up 
  at F'hlan as the list grows. "You're popular, bronzerider!" she calls up. 
  Turning back to the assemblage, she uses the toe of her boot to drag a line 
  across the Bowl Sands. "How this works is very simple. When 'tis your turn, 
  you step up to this line, grab a ball, and try and hit the target. I'll 
  demonstrate for you in a moment. Anyone can be added to the queue until the 
  entire line has gone through; when the first person has their second go, the 
  queue will be closed. Right now, I've got...." She consults her list. 
  "Merien, Aidoann, Deannus, Juliana, and Aphrael."

Outside, Alyssa pauses near the unfamiliar green, smiling in the way she 
  usually does not smile at another human: a bit less guarded, a bit more 
  reassuring, and decidedly curious.

Outside, Kethran comes out of the short tunnel from the living cavern.

Outside, Merien blushes. "I'm first?" Then she protests, grinning. "But I 
  don't even know him."

Outside, "I do," grins B'fus with a wave and wink. "Intimately. Go ahead, 
  Ista, toss it. Drown him!"

Outside, Tesith bends her neck to look at Alyssa, eyes spinning a slow, happy 
  blue. She croons.

F'hlan calls down to Merien, "No fear, lass, I don't know you either."

Outside, Deannus giggles. "Ya don' need ta /know/ someone ta dunk him! Gettim 
  Merien!

Outside, Alyssa's smile grows a trifle as she draws closer to Tesith, her eyes 
  averted from the dunking booth (thank Faranth) as she concentrates on the 
  Istan green.

F'hlan smirks briefly at B'fus, and readies himself to catch his breath.

Outside, Thera grins broadly, and makes her way to stand closer, nodding to 
  Alyssa as she passes.

Outside, Merien hears Deannus' voice and her name, and waves. "Heyla!" Then 
  she says, still smiling, toward the poor innocent bronzerider she's going to 
  be trying to dunk in a moment, "I'm Merien, by the way. And Ista's duty to 
  Benden."

Outside, Kethran wanders casually out of the Living Cavern and gravitates 
  toward the crowd around the Dunking Booth. He blinks as he realizes who's on 
  the platform, and his grin grows with each passing second. He folds his arms 
  and contentedly watches the scene.

Outside, Kassima grins, watching Merien. "Well, if'n you're that eager, 
  mayhaps I'll skip the demonstration for now. We've also got Thera on the 
  queue; any more? If'n nay, Merien, go ahead and dunk that shardingly 
  swoonable bronzerider." She steps back, quite looking forward to seeing 
  this. (OOCly: the command for the booth, BTW, is 'dunk.' :)

"F'hlan, Tzornth's rider," comes the polite reply from the evidently mad 
  fellow in the booth, who adds without missing a beat, "And ignore my fellow 
  Wingsecond. I'm not that sharding handsome."

Outside, Tesith bends to whuffle at the woman near her, curiously. 
  Unfortuanately, she had firestone-chewing lessons all day.

Outside, Deannus places her hands over her mouth to stifle any further 
  giggles, not wanting to distract Merien. Over her hands, her eyes sparkle 
  with laughter however, and a muffled squeak can be heard on occasion.

Outside, Above, From the Benden Star Stones, M'nar's mint green Gelth rears on 
  hind legs and bugles a greeting to blue Pryth and his rider, Sonya of Ista 
  Weyr.

Outside, Kethran laughs, and can't let that one go by. "F'hlan, you're the 
  quintessential sharding handsome bronzerider, and this from someone who's 
  usually made fun of as being a good judge of bronzeriders!" he calls.

Outside, Aphrael chuckles lightly as she moves over to take her place in the 
  line.

Outside, Not really seeming to mind the smell of firestone, Alyssa reaches a 
  tenative hand toward Tesith as she murmurs something reassuring to the 
  unfamiliar green. Her brother's outcry, however, causes her to turn to one 
  side and quirk a brow.

Outside, Merien laughs and says, a little confused, "Where's the thing I toss? 
  And I aim for the target, not the man, right?" She steps closer to the 
  booth, eyes narrowing to gauge the distance.

Outside, B'fus laughs at Kethran and claps him on the back. "We're both good 
  judges of it, laddy, eh?"

Outside, Kassima snorts up at F'hlan, "You are so. All the Lower Caverns girls 
  say so--why even bother denying it?" Adding herself to the end of the line 
  once she seems to have gotten most of the names, the greenrider folds her 
  arms and waits to see the first toss. "Aim for the target, aye! The balls 
  are on that table there, behind Benram." She points them out helpfully.

F'hlan smirks not unkindly down at Kethran, and smiles encouragingly to 
  Merien. Mostly encouragingly. He _does_ have one dark eyebrow quirked, as 
  though he's trying to judge the likelihood of an impending swim.

Outside, Above, Pryth glides down from above.

Outside, Kethran smirks at B'fus. "Can I help it? At least you seem to have 
  better luck that I," he points out to the rider, his arms still crossed, and 
  a look of pleased anticipation on his face as he looks back toward the 
  platform.

Outside, Pryth backwings for a landing.

Outside, Deannus takes her place behind Aidoann, a huge sunny grin spreading 
  across her face as she waits for her turn.

Outside, Aidoann takes her position in the line, finishing up her bubbly

Outside, Pryth warbles a greeting to everyone, his rider slipping off her 
  rideing jacket and slides down Pryth.

Outside, Juliana gets in line to, grinning mischeviously

Outside, Thera rocks back and forth on her heels, still grining mischeiviously.

Outside, Merien takes a ball and waves it toward Sonya and Pryth as she spots 
  them landing. Then she's assessing again, both the target and the potential 
  dunkee. "Does he look better wet?" she asks, giving him a rather shy wink, 
  then she pulls back her arm to throw. Bag-tossing drills with weyrlings can 
  get repetitive, but they do wonders for your aim. At least, that's Merien's 
  hope.

Outside, 
        Merien peers up at F'hlan with a scrutinizing eye before picking up a 
  ball. The bullseye also gets a quick study before Benram gives Merien a 
  poke. "You gonna do this or just gawk at F'hlan all day," Benram queries 
  with a touch of annoyance in his boyish voice. Waiting for a few snickers to 
  quiet down, Merien pulls back and fires off the ball towards its target! 
        *THWANG!!* is the sound of ball meeting target, followed quickly by 
  the telltale *SPLASH* as F'hlan falls unceremoniously into the chilly waters 
  of the pool. V'dan apparently thought Merien was going to miss as he can be 
  seen forking over several marks to some fellow riders. A few waves of water 
  roll over the edge when F'hlan peeks over the pools lip, dripping from head 
  to toe. "Here's a towel ya drowned wherry," Benram laughs as he tosses one 
  over. "Not bad, by the by," the young man then compliments Merien before 
  finally moving away to retrieve the ball.

Outside, Juliana giggles and claps at the hit.

Outside, Aphrael laughs and cheers Merien, calling out. "Way to go!"

Outside, Tesith was still looking at the woman, curiously, until she saw her 
  rider throwing something and raised her head just in time for the splash.

F'hlan splutters as he goes down, much to the startlement of his fair, who all 
  squawk in agitation. Only when he climbs up and back out, dripping, his dark 
  hair now plastered damply around his skull, do the greens settle down.

Outside, The attempt to stifle her laugh fails, and Deannus joins in with 
  everyone else, clapping her hands in delight.

Outside, Alyssa turns at the loud splash, moves forward a bit to see what's 
  going on, and puts her hand to her mouth when she realizes what's just 
  happened.

Outside, Sonya climbs down Pryth slowly.

Outside, Kethran grins, applauding as well, though it's not as loud as some of 
  the clapping from the others around him, and settles back to watch.

Outside, Aidoann chuckles softly

Outside, B'fus cheers. "Good strike, Ista! Got yer there, F'hlan, my dear!"

Outside, Merien puts her hand over her mouth. "Oh shells, I'm sorry," she says 
  toward the bronzerider, and now she's blushing. "The weyrlings just got done 
  with tossing drills, and I'm afraid I've had too much aiming practice 
  lately." She smiles then and says, belatedly, "Are you all right?"

With lean hands, F'hlan shoves his wet mop out of his face and better ties it, 
  with his headband. "No worse than when Tzornth drops me in the lake after a 
  flight, lass!"

Outside, Kassima starts laughing, too, as F'hlan hits the water. "Good throw!" 
  she yells appreciatively to Merien. Consulting her list, she notes, 
  "Aidoann's up next, with that tough act to follow. If'n anyone else wants on 
  the queue, 'twill be open until 'tis Merien's turn again."

Outside, Alyssa watches the dunking booth with an expression that asks 
  silently and clearly, "F'hlan, what are you DOING?"

F'hlan catches Alyssa's eye, and smiles a bit sheepishly down at her.

Outside, Sonya weaves through the crowds, to see what is going on. She chuckles 
  at the wet rider, standing beside Merien now.

Outside, Aidoann licks her fingers briefly, cleaning them of bubbly juice as 
  she steps up to the line. She looks at each of the balls, concentrating, she 
  finally finds one and takes careful aim, well maybe. She shifts numerous 
  firelizards and arches back, she brings arm forward to throw the ball.

Outside, 
        Running a finger over a few of the balls, Aidoann finally picks one 
  that seems suitable. "'Bout time," grumbles Benram as he steps away from the 
  table and points to F'hlan, "Think you can hit the 'eye and sink 'em?" 
  Opting not to stick her tongue out at the holdbrat, Aidoann instead gauges 
  the distance to the target. F'hlan seems to hold him breath as the ball is 
  lofted into the air...
        *THWANG!!* is the sound of ball meeting target, followed quickly by 
  the telltale *SPLASH* as F'hlan falls unceremoniously into the chilly waters 
  of the pool. V'dan apparently thought Aidoann was going to miss as he can be 
  seen forking over several marks to some fellow riders. A few waves of water 
  roll over the edge when F'hlan peeks over the pools lip, dripping from head 
  to toe. "Here's a towel ya drowned wherry," Benram laughs as he tosses one 
  over. "Not bad, by the by," the young man then compliments Aidoann before 
  finally moving away to retrieve the ball.

Outside, Aphrael coughs and giggles, clapping. "Two in a row!" She yells.

Outside, Merien glances toward Alyssa and says, "Getting wet, and it's my 
  fault, I'm afraid." She extends a hand. "I'm Merien, rider of green Tesith." 
  She tilts her head then, thinking. "You look a little familiar. But I'm not 
  sure why."

*Woosh!* F'hlan goes down again, treads water, and splutters as he surfaces 
  again.

Outside, Deannus giggles, applauding again. "Good throw! Mebbe I kin make i' 
  three.

Outside, Kassima applauds enthusiastically, plainly delighted by this turn of 
  events. "I hope you can!" she calls to Deannus, flashing her a grin. "Good 
  luck!"

Outside, Aidoann grins a tad as her fair chitter hyperly, she blushes a bit 
  and blinks, she did it? She strokes her little gold, "I b'lieve that calls 
  for 'nother bubbly, don't you, Love?" she says to the firelizard as she 
  moves out of the way from the others.

Outside, Alyssa returns the smile, tentatively, until F'hlan is dunked again, 
  and once more her hand moves to her mouth. She does not notice Merien for a 
  moment, then, with a slight shake of her head turns to take the other 
  rider's hand. "It's an honour to meet you, Weyrlingmaster," she murmurs. 
  "That's your green, I believe? Tesith?"

Outside, Merien nods and turns to look at her lifemate. "Yes, Tesith. She's 
  the one who convinced me to get out of the weyr for one night, at least." 
  She grins. "And this is Sonya." She turns a bit late to make sure Sonya is 
  still where she's indicating.

Outside, Deannus retunr's Kassima's grin, stepping up to selevt one of the 
  balls. "Thank ya." She eyes the selection critically before deciding on one, 
  tossing it into the air a couple of times as she waits for the rider to 
  return to his seat in the booth.

Outside, Sonya is still standing beside her, though her gaze is across the 
  bowl. Her head jerks over at her name. "Hmm?"

F'hlan regains his seat, now quite well and thoroughly drenched.

Outside, Alyssa seems to be on slightly more familiar ground as she notes 
  politely to Sonya. "I've met the Weyrsecond several times. Good evening, 
  ma'am."

Outside, Kethran is strangely enough very quiet as he watches, simply 
  grinning. He looks tired, in a way, but is also hiding it well. Slowly, he 
  moves over to join the conversation between his sister and the visiting 
  dragonriders. He unfolds his arms and drops them to his sides as he listens, 
  with a gentle, lopsided smile on his features.

Outside, Thera says "Kassi, he's gonna melt soon if no one starts missing, and 
  then where will weyr-hold relations be?" she grins playfully, and counts the 
  people ahead of her inline, while shooing away her firelizards. "Off now, or 
  you'll get wet."

Outside, Deannus chews on her lip as she guages the distance, drawing her amrm 
  back for the throw. After a moment's pause, she snaps her arm forward and 
  slightly to the side, ignoring the grumpy rumble of her 'lizard at the 
  violent motion.

Outside, Sonya relizes she was being introduced and flashes a smile to Alyssa. 
  "Yeah, she's one reason I can sneak over here, say I'm visiting her." she 
  teases.

Outside, 
        Benram tosses Deannus one of the balls and points towards the red and 
  black bovineseye. "Take that," Ben indicates the ball, "and hit that," his 
  finger goes towards the target. Deannus seems to vaguely listen to the 
  holdbrat before nodding while F'hlan awaits him fate patiently. Studying the 
  target for a moment, Deannus finally tosses the ball with some might and 
  then watches along with everyone else to see if it'll hit...
        "Aieeeeeeeee!" is heard from within the booth as F'hlan goes crashing 
  down into the water! Cheers quickly join in the sputtering and splashing, 
  Deannus hopping up and down a few times in elation. "Good shot," Benram 
  winks before looking towards the booth, "How's tha' water feel, F'hlan?" 
  While the good-natured laughter finally quiets, Benram goes to collect the 
  lucky ball.

Outside, Aphrael gapes, shaking her head in amazement. "Again? By Faranth, 
  poor F'hlan!"

Outside, Alyssa's head turns again, toward the dunking booth, and her eyes 
  close. "Poor F'hlan..."

Outside, Kevyn comes out of the hatching cavern.
Outside, Kevyn steps under the arch and into the painting contest tent.

Outside, Deannus claps her hands over her mouth again, giggling. "M sorry!," 
  she cries, her eyes negating her statement.

Outside, Merien laughs as the third shot manages to dunk the bronzerider 
  again. "Maybe you should change your name to F'hloat?" Then she blushes 
  again and says, still laughing, "I'm sorry. That was terrible."

Outside, Juliana giggles, bouncing, she's next, she thinks. She rubs her hands 
  together, grinning micheviously, she spots the line and looks at it, aweful 
  far for a 7 turn old.

F'hlan's fair pitches another multi-voiced fit, as F'hlan, breathless, 
  surfaces a third time, blinking and treading water until he gets his wind 
  back. Slowly, then, he climbs back into the seat, and smiles crookedly down 
  at the audience.

Outside, Kethran looks back toward Merien at the pun, and groans, though he's 
  grinning to show his appreciation. He looks back toward his sister, and then 
  toward F'hlan. "I think it'd be best if, after he's done, he were off to the 
  hot springs, with some dry clothing waiting for him," he suggests calmly.

Outside, Kassima groans at Merien's pun even through her laughter. "You're 
  quite right," she assures the Istan Weyrlingmaster with a grin, before 
  shaking her head. "Though I must say, I've never seen anyone dunked so much! 
  Juliana, you're up next."

Outside, Kevyn steps back under the arch, out of the painting contest tent.

Outside, Deannus dashes over to Merien, still giggling. "I got him! I got him! 
  Wait till Alane an' Trea hear 'bout me dunkin' a bronzerider!" She bounces 
  up and down a few times, gloating.

Outside, 
        "Gonna give it a try, are ya," Benram queries Kevyn as her finger 
  flick over which of the balls to use. Picking one up, they peer up at F'hlan 
  thoughtfully before the target gets the once-over. "Go on now, will ya? We 
  don't have all sharding day y'know," Benram prods Kevyn and seems to set her 
  in motion. Pulling back an arm, the ball then goes sailing towards the 
  circles of red and black while F'hlan braces for a possible fall...
        Perfect aim! The ball is heading right for the target when suddenly a 
  blue firelizard pops out of *between*! The sprite little mischief maker is 
  just quick enough to snatch the ball out of the air and then quickly 
  disappears with his new toy! Although F'hlan is obviously pleased with this 
  turn of events, Kevyn looks ready to make firelizard stew.

Outside, Merien leans to Sonya and says to her quietly, with a more somber 
  expression, "I have to say I'm seeing more of this F'hlan here tonight that 
  I have of our Ph'lan since he came back home." She smiles at the 
  firelizard's intervention, but her expression is overcast now, like a sunny 
  sky gone just a bit cloudy.

Outside, Juliana eyes the balls, then the line, she decides to try and stand a 
  bit closer, snagging a ball, she blinks as someone goes in front of her, a 
  slight pout and she throws the ball. Saying to the person, "'twas /my/ turn!"

Outside, Alyssa, still standing near Merien, glances at Deannus with one brow 
  lifted slightly and a faint glimmer of disapproval shines in her amethyst 
  eyes before she merely nods to Kethran. Arms fold over her chest, she 
  continues to watch, silent and unhappily.

F'hlan stifles a grin and tries to look as calm as possible.

Outside, 
        F'hlan watches Juliana with a nervous and wary glance while Benram 
  hands over a ball. Rolling the ball over in her hand, Juliana returns the 
  glance before grinning mischieviously. A few onlookers seem to be wagering 
  as to the outcome, but quickly still their voices as Juliana cocks her arm 
  back and lets the ball fly...
        *THWANG!!* is the sound of ball meeting target, followed quickly by 
  the telltale *SPLASH* as F'hlan falls unceremoniously into the chilly waters 
  of the pool. V'dan apparently thought Juliana was going to miss as he can be 
  seen forking over several marks to some fellow riders. A few waves of water 
  roll over the edge when F'hlan peeks over the pools lip, dripping from head 
  to toe. "Here's a towel ya drowned wherry," Benram laughs as he tosses one 
  over. "Not bad, by the by," the young man then compliments Juliana before 
  finally moving away to retrieve the ball.

Outside, Kevyn stomps her foot, growling under her breath. "Do that to me 
  again, you little beast," she calls to the air, "and I /will/ make a stew 
  out of you!" She frowns and waits her turn to try again.

Outside, Kassima blinks, and turns her head to face Kevyn. "Please, ask t'be 
  put on the queue if you want to have a throw?" she asks mildly. Looking up 
  to see the next toss, she grins as it's yet another hit. "Woo! Excellent, 
  Juliana! Aph, you're up next." Unable to resist, she further calls to F'hlan 
  once he's surfaced, "Having fun yet?"

Outside, Juliana bounces and claps, still frowning at the other person, 
  though, it was her turn. She looks over to the booth, "Sorry Mister." she 
  says mischeviously.

Outside, Aphrael coughs lightly as she moves up. "Tough act to follow," She 
  comments.

Dunking #4 leaves F'hlan down for a few seconds longer. He surfaces gamely, 
  waits for his breath to return, then clambers carefully back into the chair, 
  water streaming down his lean-lined form.

Outside, Kethran looks back toward the Living Cavern, and grimaces as he sees 
  a lower caverns girl trotting toward him. "At the rate this day is going, 
  I'll need a soak in the springs more than F'hlan. Be well, all!" he calls.

Outside, Merien says, speculatively, "How much of this can you take, F'hlan?"

Outside, Several LCGs who lurk on the edges of the crowd take one look at the 
  dripping-wet bronzerider and, in chorus, exhale in a longing sigh.

Outside, Sonya gives Merien a small smile. She doesn't look like she knows 
  what to say. She touches her shoulder lightly.

Outside, Aphrael gathers up the ball, tossing it lightly in her hand as if to 
  judge the weight of it all. Shooting a dark look at Benram for the expected 
  wisecrack to come, she grins up to the bronzerider in the booth, calling, 
  "And F'hlan, I'll not try /too/ hard to hit the target!" With that, takes a 
  deep breath, draws her arm back, and prepares to throw..

Outside, Alyssa smiles a bit at her brother, then glances back at the 
  bronzerider in the booth.

Outside, Thera notes her turn coming up, and begins to strech out her 
  shoulder, muttering somthing about greenrider honor.

Outside, Kevyn shuffles her feet sheepishly. "Sorry. He didn't say." She waves 
  a hand at BBenram and goes to the end of the line.

Outside, 
        Aphrael peers up at F'hlan with a scrutinizing eye before picking up a 
  ball. The bullseye also gets a quick study before Benram gives Aphrael a 
  poke. "You gonna do this or just gawk at F'hlan all day," Benram queries 
  with a touch of annoyance in his boyish voice. Waiting for a few snickers to 
  quiet down, Aphrael pulls back and fires off the ball towards its target! 
        As the ball goes sailing well over the target, Benram bursts into a 
  fit of laughter. "Ha ha ha! You couldn't hit the side of a Crafthall, I'd 
  wager," the boy continues to snicker at Aphrael while F'hlan looks decidedly 
  relieved. A few of Benny's relatives from Half Cirlce, who've been watching 
  the obnoxious teen, converge on the boy. Lifting him up and away from his 
  table, they dump -him- into the water below F'hlan! (Much to Aphrael's 
  delight, they're sure)

Outside, Deannus throws a contemptuous look at the sighing girls, wondering 
  what all the fuss is about.

Outside, Kethran walks beneath the lintel and disappears into the living 
  cavern.

"I'm fine," rallies F'hlan in reply to Merien, though he looks a trifle more 
  strained than a younger man might be, and he quirks another grin at Benram's 
  sudden misfortune, then just as quickly hides in.

Outside, Aidoann giggles as she sees what happened, she, of course, has 
  managed to find herself another bubbly

Outside, Aphrael shoots a sour look at Benram, muttering, "Just wait until I 
  get you up into that booth, Benram!" And by the look in her eyes, she 
  determined to see it happen too. To F'hlan, she calls with a wink, "Lucky 
  for you, F'hlan, that my aim's so bad!"

Outside, Merien smiles to Sonya and just nods. As if by intent, her expression 
  brightens and she watches the dunking continue. "You should give it a shot, 
  too, Sonya. Just picture T'bin up there in the booth."

Outside, "If you're so fine, F'hlan," Alyssa sighs to herself, "why do you 
  sound tired?"

Outside, Deannus tugs on Merien's sleeve, tilting her head to get a better 
  look at F'hlan. "He's gonna give himself a chill if he keeos i' up. Mebbe 
  someone else should take his place?" Not that she wouldn't mind getting a 
  secongd throw to dunk a bronzerider, but that water /does/ look chilly.

The respite gives F'hlan a chance to get resettled, and he gives himself a 
  good shake, once, trying to get the water's chill out of himself.

Outside, Merien looks at Deannus. "You're not suggesting I get in that thing, 
  are you?"

Outside, Alyssa remarks just a little more loudly, "If he keeps shivering like 
  that, he WILL get out."

Outside, Thera reaches forward a limber arm to accept the given ball. "Ok, 
  F'hlan...nothing personal, but it's not often you get a chance like this." 
  Her eyes gleam, and she winds up, and heaves the ball at the target, with 
  all her strength behind it.

Outside, Sonya perks up, tugging on Merien's sleeve. "Yeah, come on. It's your 
  night out, live alittle!"

Outside, 
        "Gonna give it a try, are ya," Benram queries Thera as her finger 
  flick over which of the balls to use. Picking one up, they peer up at F'hlan 
  thoughtfully before the target gets the once-over. "Go on now, will ya? We 
  don't have all sharding day y'know," Benram prods Thera and seems to set her 
  in motion. Pulling back an arm, the ball then goes sailing towards the 
  circles of red and black while F'hlan braces for a possible fall...
        Thera frowns as the ball goes skidding well below the intended target. 
  Benram raises a single brow before shrugging, commenting, "Think you got a 
  trundlebug or two..." with a snicker. F'hlan is visibly relieved as the ball 
  rolls away. His taunting done, Ben jogs over to retrieve the ball. Noting 
  Benram's lack of attention, her eyes glint with mischief as Thera swipes 
  another ball and heaves it towards the target! *KER-SPLOOSH!* F'hlan falls 
  like a rock into the pool!

Outside, Kassima calls up to Thera, "'Tis your go, cousin! G'luck--to either 
  you or F'hlan, whoever needs it more!" She grins, watching greenrider and 
  bronzerider both with some amusement. On a serious note, she adds, "And 
  F'hlan, if'n you do start feeling like you can't continue, for Faranth's 
  sake say so and we'll put someone else in."

Outside, Deannus flashes a grin and shakes her head in a negative. "Oh no. 
  Mebbe one o' tha others 'round here willin' ta ge' in there." A hint of 
  mischief creeps into ther eyes. "Accourse, if ya wan' ta, I wouldn' pass up 
  tha chance ta dunk ya.

Down goes F'hlan again, at Thera's second throw. "Nothing personal, she says," 
  he rasps as he comes up out of the water.

Outside, Thera giggles. "Thought you'd get away, huh?" She pats her hands down 
  her trousers.

Outside, Merien looks at Sonya and laughs. "Hey, I consider having some wine 
  and going to a gather a 'night out.' Being tossed into cold water isn't 
  exactly what I had planned."

Outside, Kassima, as her turn comes up in the line, notes cheerfully, "I'm 
  just doing this for the fun of it--honest." She dithers over selecting a 
  ball until Benram gives her his best Evil Eye, which she meets with a 
  protest of, "I don't want to chance a lousy weapon fouling my shot!" He 
  keeps on grumbling, though, as she steps behind the line. Ready... aim....

Outside, 
        Benram tosses Kassima one of the balls and points towards the red and 
  black bovineseye. "Take that," Ben indicates the ball, "and hit that," his 
  finger goes towards the target. Kassima seems to vaguely listen to the 
  holdbrat before nodding while F'hlan awaits him fate patiently. Studying the 
  target for a moment, Kassima finally tosses the ball with some might and 
  then watches along with everyone else to see if it'll hit...
        The ball flies through the air with all the grace and beauty of a 
  wounded wherry in a panic. Benram snickers a bit before trotting off to 
  collect the ball. Kassima frowns a little before shrugging off the miss with 
  a chuckle while F'hlan simply sighs contentedly.

Outside, "F'hlan," calls Alyssa from one side of the booth, "you're not 
  getting a chill, are you?"

Outside, Kassima sighs, disappointed. "One of the only times in m'life I get a 
  chance to try and sink a bronzerider, and I miss! Feh; well, 'tis life. But 
  you're bound t'be dunked *next* time, F'hlan!" she yells up, lest the 
  bronzerider think himself safe. "Merien, 'tis your second turn now."

F'hlan winks down at Kassima, then gives himself another slight shake again, 
  before waiting to see if Merien will send him swimming once more.

Outside, Thera steps out of line. "I already had my two shots." She elbows her 
  cousin. "Thought you could throw, cos?" Winking, to prove it's a jest, she 
  moves out of the way.

Outside, Merien looks up and says, eloquently, "Hmmm?" Then she smiles. "Oh! 
  Already?" She walks toward the booth, giving F'hlan his chance to back out 
  as she balances the ball in her hand again. Then, with another brief 
  narrowing of her eyes to judge the distance, she draws back and gives the 
  ball a strong, straight throw.

Outside, 
        Running a finger over a few of the balls, Merien finally picks one 
  that seems suitable. "'Bout time," grumbles Benram as he steps away from the 
  table and points to F'hlan, "Think you can hit the 'eye and sink 'em?" 
  Opting not to stick her tongue out at the holdbrat, Merien instead gauges 
  the distance to the target. F'hlan seems to hold him breath as the ball is 
  lofted into the air...
        Merien frowns as the ball goes skidding well below the intended 
  target. Benram raises a single brow before shrugging, commenting, "Think you 
  got a trundlebug or two..." with a snicker. F'hlan is visibly relieved as 
  the ball rolls away. His taunting done, Ben jogs over to retrieve the ball. 
  Noting Benram's lack of attention, her eyes glint with mischief as Merien 
  swipes another ball and heaves it towards the target! *KER-SPLOOSH!* F'hlan 
  falls like a rock into the pool!

Outside, Kassima rolls her eyes at Thera, grinning. "I throw *knives*! The 
  balance is totally different, y'know." She breaks off to whistle sharply in 
  appreciation of Merien's throw, applauding energetically. "Good show!"

Outside, Merien says, "Trundlebugs! I HATE trundlebugs!" She takes another 
  ball and tries to send it after the first, where ever those evil bugs were 
  hiding. In fact, this second one hits the marks. "Ooops!" She blushes. 
  "Sorry, F'hlan. I have this... thing about trundlebugs."

Is the bronze rider's response time starting to lag? If it is, he's not 
  complaining, as he takes the time to get his wind back before he makes the 
  climb back to his seat. His fire lizards, still all arranged there atop the 
  booth, flitter anxiously and peer at him, their eyes whirling assorted 
  shades of yellow.

Outside, Deannus steps up to the line, a tiny frown furrowing her brow as she 
  looks at F'hlan. "Yer sure yer okay? Yer lookin' like a drowned feline.

Outside, Tairell comes out of the short tunnel from the living cavern.

F'hlan mops water out of his face, and settles back, panting a bit, before 
  looking down to Deannus and grinning sheepishly. "Meow?"

Outside, Kassima hrms, brow furrowing in some concern as she sees the 
  fire-lizards. "F'hlan, are you sure you can keep going? We can make it only 
  two rounds, mayhaps, if'n you can--I think three might be a bit much. If'n 
  you're going to continue, then Aidoann is up."

Outside, Aidoann blinks, her turn already, she takes a ball in her unoccupied 
  hand. She looks at the bronzerider and hrms, "I don't think he should do it 
  anymore.." she says as she places the ball down

Outside, Deannus manages a small smile in return, stepping out of the way so 
  Aidoann can take her throw.

Outside, Merien shudders as she takes her place back by Sonya. "Trudlebugs," 
  she says again. "Ugh."

Outside, Alyssa dropped Isolde.
Outside, Alyssa glances at the booth a final time and, with a slight shake of 
  the head, goes in side the infirmary.
Outside, Alyssa moves beneath the rocky overhang that protects the Infirmary 
  entrance.

F'hlan blinkblinkblinks, down at Kassima and then at Aidoann, and then up at 
  his fire lizards. "I'm fine," he informs the fair sternly. Aeyri, the oldest 
  of the greens, chirrups at him plaintively, sounding as though she doesn't 
  quite believe it.

Outside, Thera waves to everyone, and makes her way back to the south bowl. 
  "All this dunking, i need a bath myself."
Outside, Thera walks south.

Outside, Deannus mutters to Merien, "... could always ge' some o'..."

Outside, Aidoann shakes her head, "I'll not throw again" she states and walks 
  away from the line.

Outside, Merien laughs at Deannus' suggestion and says, "But you'd be boiling 
  the baby with the bathwater."

Outside, Aidoann shrugs as Verelan takes flight from her shoulder.

Outside, Kassima puts her hands on her hips. "Are you *sure*?" she asks, 
  eyeing the bronzerider. "'Twould nay be good for the Wing for you to be 
  grounded for illness." Evil she may be, but she's practical when it comes to 
  duty at least.

Outside, Alyssa emerges from the infirmary.

Outside, Verelan croons to the greens, trying to comfort.

Outside, Deannus grins. "I' was jus' an idea."Turning back to the dunking 
  booth, she nods at the rider. "Yeah, an' if ya got all sick yer bronze migh' 
  come lookin' fer some o' us fer gettin ya tha' way.

F'hlan's dark eyebrows quirk again, and he considers, weighing the benefits of 
  satisfying Kassima's 'good cause' versus the benefits of getting the shard 
  away from that cold water. Then, sheepishly, he asks Kassima, "Got another 
  stand-in?"

Outside, Alyssa reappears with a pile of towers and a blanket, moving toward 
  the dunking booth and just...waiting.

Three of the greens near the dunked rider croon down at Veralan; three more 
  are still peering at F'hlan, along with the shy brown in their midst.

Outside, Kassima chuckles, and glances around the Bowl. "Well... Lys, how 
  about you?"

Outside, Jaide's Fair bursts out of *between* with a breath of cold air.
Outside, Jaide's Fair swoops down towards Kevyn.

Outside, Alyssa's eyebrow raises a bit. "How about me what?" she murmurs.

Outside, B'fus howls. "Yeah! Please!"

Outside, Kethran comes out of the short tunnel from the living cavern.

Outside, Kassima smiles sweetly at the bluerider, eyes widened to an 
  expression of innocence. "Why, how about you as a stand-in for F'hlan, 
  a'course. What else?"

Outside, Kethran sneaks back out into the bowl, and waves cheerfully as he 
  reapproaches the booth, though once again he doesn't join the queue of 
  people waiting to throw. Instead, he simply stands, losing himself as best 
  he can in the crowd, and watching.

Outside, Verelan wurbles softly, maternal instinct visible, she strokes each 
  green with her golden head and croons softly.

Outside, The vairous seven lizards of a /green/ fair (can you believe it???) 
  appear from *between* and swoop around Kevyn's head, taking turns landing on 
  her shoulders before lauunching again.

Outside, Alyssa pauses and looks toward the booth. "If that will get poor 
  F'hlan out of there and into some dry clothes..." she says cautiously.

F'hlan drips, and dripping, watches the gold assure his greens for a bit. 
  "Alyssa," he calls down, "I'm just _wet_, for Faranth's sake, I'm not 
  dying!" His tone is kindly teasing.

Outside, Alyssa replies with a fond smile toward F'hlan, "Your teeth are also 
  chattering, bronzerider."

Outside, Kassima promises, "It would, Lys, really and truly. And we've only 
  got one round of throws left, hai? With Thera out of it, and Aidoann, you'd 
  only risk being dunked four times. Pretty please?"

Outside, Jaide perches on Kevyn's head, cheeping, as the girl watches the 
  proceedings with a touch of impatience. "Well, get on out of there, get 
  warm, and get someone else back in," she says with a grin.

Outside, Merien stands near Sonya, listening quietly.

Outside, Kethran drifts over toward Kassima and Alyssa. "Y'know, I'd save you 
  the trouble, 'lys, if you asked nicely. Dunk the Steward -- I know there're 
  a few drudges who might be willing to do that, for certain."

F'hlan nods sagely to Kevyn, and, making his greens all take flight as he 
  moves, reaches to clamber out of the booth.

Outside, Alyssa sets down the towels and blanket and removes her hide jacket, 
  carefully. "All right, Kassima," she says with a faint smile, though she 
  turns to her brother with a questioning look. "It doesn't matter to me, 
  Kethran, really. It's Kassima's choice."

You decide you've had enough of this fun and hop down from the booth.
North Bowl(#396RJ$)
The light spills over the over-arching mountains and into the bowl. It 
  illuminates the patched ground, covered with gravel and fine sand. Here and 
  there, the odd piece of greenery struggles up from the ash-based soil. The 
  first few spring flowers are blooming in pots, and what weeds there are have 
  a renewed, clean color. The smell of spring comes in on the west wind. The 
  northern half of the crater is smaller than the southern one, but still 
  immense. To the west is an opening into the Living Cavern of the weyr. Other 
  openings in the northern cavern lead into the weyrs of the junior queens, 
  weyrleaders, and the massive Hatching Grounds. Storage bunkers of various 
  sorts are stacked against the rough rock walls. The murmur of voices and the 
  clatter of pots and chairs drifts from the Living Cavern, where the evening 
  meal is being served.
Several entrances lead to the junior queenriders' weyrs. Use '+view 
  queenriders' to see them.
The winds blow some clouds across the crisp, autumn sky.
Contents:
Kethran
Jaide's Fair
Alyssa
Verelan
Isolde
Tairell
Kevyn(#12038PIJace$)
Sonya
Pryth(#282Jaeps)
Aphrael
Merien
Tesith
Deannus
Neme(#7851)
Kassima
Dunking Booth(#10386MOVae$)
Winecraft Pavillion (WP)(#4493JMe$)
Painting Contest Tent
Obvious exits:
South Bowl  Weyrleaders' Complex  Hatching Cavern  Outer Infirmary  Guest Weyr 
   Living Cavern  Records Room  

Deannus takes her place at the front of the line again, a huge, almost evil 
  grin spreading across her face. "ha ha! A new victim fer tha booth.

Above, Cygnith leaps from Cygnith's Ledge and flies into the air.
Cygnith backwings for a landing.
Cygnith has arrived.

Kethran looks back toward Kassima, and grins. "What's a little brother for, 
  but to spare his big sister a dunking?" he wonders, with a twinkle in his 
  eye.

Kassima inclines her head, turning to look at Lys and Keth. "Either one of you 
  can go in, whoever'd rather--we just need someone t'serve as stand-in for 
  the last few tosses."

F'hlan dripdripdripdrips, as he makes it down to the ground. Strange. Now that 
  he's actually out of the booth he does actually feel a little colder, and he 
  mutters something rueful under his breath about his age catching up with him.

Alyssa offers a towel to F'hlan and notes to Kethran, "I can't really see me 
  in there, Kethran, so if you wish to go, then yes, please."

F'hlan bobs his head in gratitude to Alyssa, accepting the towel and burying 
  his face in it.

Up between Cygnith's neckridges, Asrai waves to the others as she dismounts.

Alyssa wraps the second towel about F'hlan's shoulders and watches Kethran 
  with a slight but grateful smile.

Asrai makes her way down from Cygnith's back.
Asrai has arrived.

Sonya is still here, but her attention is just not on the activity around her.

Kethran grins at Kassima and Alyssa, and nods quickly. "Right, then!" he says, 
  and turns toward the booth, with a twinkle in his eye once again.

Kassima nods to Keth, and gestures to the Booth O' Doom. "In you go, then! 
  'Tis Deannus's toss, then Aph, then me, and I think those're the only folk 
  remaining on the queue." Glancing at F'hlan with some honest concern, she 
  asks, "Are you all right, then? 'Twas nay knowing that so many people would 
  have such fine aim when we asked it of you. Really."

Kethran climbs up the ladder and settles onto the seat above the water in the 
  booth.
Kethran has left.

Alyssa fluffs at F'hlan's hair but remarks with just a very brief smile, She 
  mutters to Kassima, "... that's... toss..." 

Deannus selects a ball, her grin fading into a tight smile of concentration. 
  The tip of her tongue pokes from the corner of her mouth as she narrows her 
  eyes at the target, drawing her arm back for the throw.

Jaide's Fair goes home.
Jaide's Fair has left.

        Kethran watches Deannus with a nervous and wary glance while Benram 
  hands over a ball. Rolling the ball over in her hand, Deannus returns the 
  glance before grinning mischieviously. A few onlookers seem to be wagering 
  as to the outcome, but quickly still their voices as Deannus cocks her arm 
  back and lets the ball fly...
        Deannus frowns as the ball goes skidding well below the intended 
  target. Benram raises a single brow before shrugging, commenting, "Think you 
  got a trundlebug or two..." with a snicker. Kethran is visibly relieved as 
  the ball rolls away. His taunting done, Ben jogs over to retrieve the ball. 
  Noting Benram's lack of attention, her eyes glint with mischief as Deannus 
  swipes another ball and heaves it towards the target! *KER-SPLOOSH!* Kethran 
  falls like a rock into the pool!

Kevyn goes home.
Kevyn has left.

Kassima grins at Lys, and winks. She mutters to Alyssa, "... nay... am,... 
  for... everyone else..." 

F'hlan's fair makes its way down off the top of the booth, and F'hlan informs 
  them all huskily, "I'm fine, you lot." He mumbles this again to Kassima, as 
  Alyssa works on drying him off.

Asrai makes hr way over to the others, feeling much better now. "Hello all, 
  Kethran!"

Deannus steps back before Benram can turn, remarking to no one in particular, 
  "Must be a loose latch back there or somethin'. Should ge' tha' looked at.

Merien looks at F'hlan with concern.

In the booth, Kethran hops up onto the platform, and gazes down at the water, 
  his grin transforming into a look of foreboding that's not even close to 
  entirely sincere. He then looks out toward the crowd, and grins, tilting his 
  head to the side. "Step right up," he calls, and grins widely, regarding 
  Deannus's toss with a skeptical eye. "All right, step right back," he says, 
  with a cheerful note to his patter -- along with a bit of relief.

Alyssa then drapes the blanket around F'hlan's shoulders and murmurs, "But if 
  you catch cold your weyrmate will have our heads, and yours too."

In the booth, Kethran waves cheerfully toward Asrai, before his gaze moves to 
  Alyssa and F'hlan, with a slight smile sent in their direction before he 
  turns his gaze back to the crowd.

Aphrael glances over and waves to Asrai, smiling. "Heyla, Asrai.. s'my turn?" 
  She asks of Kassi, waving up to Keth with a grin.

F'hlan reaches down to recover his tunic and boots, and once he's actually 
  something vaguely resembling dry, he shrugs into the tunic, re-covering his 
  scarred torso. Then, as the blanket makes it around his shoulders, he leans 
  over and murmurs kindly to Alyssa, "I'm not made of glass. And I've 40 
  Turns, not six. I'm fine. But thank you."

Deannus trots over to Merien, a smug expression plastered all over her face. 
  She tunrs ro look at F'hlan, remarking with the honesty of youth, "You sure 
  don' look to good.

Deannus
Meeting your gaze with a combination of suspicion and calculation, this small 
  girl who looks no older than ten, though she claims thirteen, wears an air 
  of cocky confidence, her amber eyes holding yours with obvious challenge. 
  Her almost translucent skin is offset with a cap of close-cropped, raven 
  curls, stray strands held back from her face with a frayed ribbon. Her 
  clothing is battered and dusty. The plain brown trousers have been mended 
  many times, and over them she wears an oversized tunic that comes to her 
  knees, once white, now a dirty grey. For footwear., she's managed to 
  scrounge a rather nice pair of boots, which though slightly large for her 
  feet, serve well enough to get her around. Over her shoulder is a sturdy 
  knapsack, jealously guarded at all times.
Carrying:
Tobias

Kassima nods, concern somewhat assauged. "All right, then... if'n you're sure. 
  Since Lys is keeping an eye on you, I'm sure you'll nay get away with saying 
  you're fine if'n you're nay." She then winks, grins, and asks, "So was it 
  fun, getting soaked like a Candidate washing a mischievous dragon?" As Keth 
  goes falling into the pool, she cheers and starts applauding again. "Nice 
  throw!" she yells to the girl, flashing her a smile. Aph recieves a simple 
  affirmative, "Aye!"

Alyssa, blushing, steps away from F'hlan and remarks, "This reminds me of 
  almost ten Turns ago when I first treated your chest for firelizard 
  scrapes...do you remember?"

Asrai steps closer, "Is this that...Dunking Booth you were talking about?

This time, accompained by some of her fair, including a particularly curious 
  swirling eyed young bronze, Aphrael takes the ball, grinning lightly up at 
  Kethran as she tilts her head, judging the distance. She tosses the ball up 
  and down once more -- fighting for a few moments with the small bronze 
  firelizard, "Get away you! It's my ball, not yours! Sharding 'lizards!" 
  Before she finally wrests the ball free, and throws it hastily towards the 
  target.

        Benram tosses Aphrael one of the balls and points towards the red and 
  black bovineseye. "Take that," Ben indicates the ball, "and hit that," his 
  finger goes towards the target. Aphrael seems to vaguely listen to the 
  holdbrat before nodding while Kethran awaits him fate patiently. Studying 
  the target for a moment, Aphrael finally tosses the ball with some might and 
  then watches along with everyone else to see if it'll hit...
        The ball flies through the air with all the grace and beauty of a 
  wounded wherry in a panic. Benram snickers a bit before trotting off to 
  collect the ball. Aphrael frowns a little before shrugging off the miss with 
  a chuckle while Kethran simply sighs contentedly.

Unruffledly, F'hlan smiles to Deannus, and then grins to Alyssa. "I'll be 
  finer with something warm in me. Klah?"

In the booth, Kethran chuckles softly, and then shifts on the platform 
  carefully. "So far, nobody's hit," he comments, dripping. "And I don't count 
  that bit of cheating," he adds, levelling a finger at Deannus's direction!"

Deannus returns his smile before turning to watch her competition.

Aphrael clicks her fingers, "Missed again!" She calls out, grinning to Asrai. 
  "Aye, it is."

Kassima nods an affirmative to Asrai. "'Tis indeed! You missed a chance to 
  dunk F'hlan, but Keth's up there--you could dunk him after the contest?" A 
  grin, and she turns to see Aph's throw. "Awwww, sie. Too bad. You're the 
  last contestant, methinks, so... give me a moment to tally up the votes." 
  She walks over to where S'cot, V'dan, F'rosti, B'ald, and Sh'ggy have been 
  watching, huddling with them to determine the winner.

Deannus ducks her head, offering a lsmall wink to the man in the booth. "Was 
  n' cheatin'. Was a loose latch or somethin'.

Alyssa turns to murmur something at a pair of hovering drudges, who giggle and 
  sigh and run off to get a mug of klah for the dripping and handsome 
  bronzerider.

Merien says to Deannus, conversationally, "I'm glad it wasn't me up there 
  getting dunked. It's freezing here, compared to home."

Asrai nods, looking the contraption over with a weary eye. "Well, I certainly 
  hope I'm better at this then that Pin the Tail game."

F'hlan, once klah is acquired, smiles sheepishly at the pair of maidens who 
  bring it to him, and curls his hands gratefully around the mug. He sips at 
  the stuff, and color begins to return to his face as he does. Watching 
  Kethran, he grins up at the lad, before finally leaning back to Alyssa and 
  whispering something to her.
You whisper "I've got to go have a word with Mehlani. She says Devlin's back." 
  to Alyssa.

Deannus nods quickly, agreeing. "Yep. I woudn' wanta be up there either. 
  'Sides I don' have any dry clothes ta change into." With a smile, she 
  crosses her arms and waits for the results of the contest.

In the booth, Kethran is indeed shivering slightly from his place on the 
  platform, but continues grinning, looking around at the milling crowd as it 
  departs. "Sheesh! Aren't I as good-looking as F'hlan?"

Kassima steps away from the rider-huddle, a sheet of hide in her hands. "After 
  much deliberation," she announces with a grin, "we've decided that the 
  winner is Weyrlingmaster Merien of Ista Weyr. Congratulations!"

F'hlan, grinning a little to himself, then slips quietly off.

[End log.]