Dawn of the Dragons [Original Clutch Hatching]

[Itoshii]

Much like the day the eggs first arrived on earth, so Hatching day was just another day. A Saturday to be exact. Jessie lay in a sleeping bag by the hearth, rolling over in the first stages of waking up. It wasn't a commotion, or something sudden however, that roused her. It was nothing. She sat up quickly, a feeling of unease at just how... quiet it was. The only sound to be heard was the merry crackling of the fire. Not a bug chirped nor a bird sang.

She sprung from her sleeping bag, using her fingers on her mussed hair as she searched the mansion, and then the grounds, trying to find something amiss. But there was nothing. Not a thing seemed out of place. She returned to the Egg Room, rubbing her neck and thinking. Something drew her eyes to the eggs, but as she stared at them nothing seemed amiss there either. Or wait... was that...

"They're HATCHING!!!" she exclaimed to herself, nearly tripping herself in a mad dash for her phone. She quickly typed out one word and sent it to her fellow candidates: NOW.

From there she scrambled about getting the robes to the entryway, throwing her own on in the process, before dragging the table from the corner to what she felt was a more appropriate place for a feeding station- The food! She quickly typed out a message reminding everyone to remember their food before dashing to the cooler she had stored in another room (away from the heat of the hearth) and brought out her own pile of packaged, cubed meat. She plopped it down, hoping it would be enough for a Hatchling, preferably with some left over, just in case.

And then she waited. After a few moments another egg shook, and then a moment later another. The movements were becoming frequent and she began to get antsy. Every second seemed an hour as she waited, hoping the others would get there in time to see the first Earth dragon spill from it shell.

[.:Nox:.]

Skyler was already awake that morning, watching cartoons while eating some cereal.  He frowned for a moment when he got Jessie's text, practically spitting out his mouthful.. He didn't live too far away from the mansion, so it wouldn't take him all that long to get there. He snagged a backpack with his laptop in it, as he wanted to record the Hatching as it happened. He ran as fast as he could, making it to the mansion in record time.

He skidded to a stop in the foyer, spying the robes already set out. He tugged his on, and went to the egg room. "Oh good, I didn't miss any of them hatching yet." He said, pulling his laptop out and setting it so that the camera had a good veiw of the eggs. " Memories, you know?" he explained, then darted to where they had stored to food as he realized Jessie already had hers out and ready.

" This is enough to fill a bucket, right?" he asked, laughing, " Thats how much they always say they eat."

---

Zoey heard her phone go off, but she wasn't ready to get out of bed yet, so she didn't even check it before rolling over and going back into a doze.

[Dragonmage]

Gavin had just finished feeding Mist when his cell phone went off with the impossible to ignore text message tone he'd set for all the Pern club members and candidates.  He ran into his room, ignoring the fact that his footsteps thundered through the house; he had to know what the message said.  For one moment, he was disappointed at the single word, NOW, but his racing mind quickly put the pieces together.  The eggs were hatching and he had to get there.  Clumsy hands yanked on clothes, ignoring anything like color coordination as long as they were clean.  He sent a rushed text back to Jessie, "Coming," and headed out of his room with the phone in hand.  After a pause at the garage fridge to grab the lunch cooler of chopped meat he'd stocked up on, Gavin grabbed his keys and headed to the mansion.

When he reached the mansion, his arms were cramping somewhat from the weight of the cooler, although he'd taken the risk of going there as directly as possible.  Gavin didn't know for sure how long the eggs would take to hatch and he didn't want to be late.  He hurried to the egg room and gave Jessie a nod as he settled down to wait for the eggs to hatch.

[Lynn]

Darius was at the coffee shop when it happened. His phone went off and he glanced down at it to see that single, much anticipated word.

NOW

He leapt out of his chair and rushed out, startling several other patrons and causing one to look at him with concern. He didn't notice, running out to the Panzer and starting it up, taking off down the street. It might be THAT day, but he still followed his normal zigzag route to confuse anyone following him before pulling into the front of the Mansion. Leaping out, he raced around to the back and pulled out the duffel bag inside the bed, then trotted inside, going and changing his clothing in one of the bedrooms he'd essentially claimed as his. He then came back downstairs, now dressed in just the White robe and a pair of simple sandals he'd found at Payless for cheap. His next stop was the kitchen area, where he'd been keeping a large cooler stocked with ice and meat. The meat he'd gotten a few days before, a couple of skinned and beheaded chickens, and he took that now and stuck it in a bucket before trotting to the Egg Room and joining the others. "Hope I'm not too late!" he almost chirped in his excitement.

Outside, a shadow again moved under the trees, black, brown, green and tans in their mottled pattern hiding the one bearing them. Eyes watched the Mansion now with concern rather than curiosity, wondering what was going on that had the members of the little Club that met there in such a flurry as they arrived.

[Itoshii]

Jessie relaxed only slightly as Skyler rushed into the Egg Room, the first to arrive. At least that ment her text had gotten out to everyone (hopefully), she glanced at the laptop as he set it up, not so sure about the idea though she couldn't deny it was better than paper records, before checking his pile of meat and nodding with approval "Hopefully it'll be enough. If we have to we can scoop some fish if they're all still hungry after we stuff their faces with what we have."

She looked over when she saw more movement and managed a small grin as Gavin came scrambling in with an obviously heavy cooler. "You'll never get a dragonet in those clothes," she chuckled at the obvious lack of caring when he trew on his outfit, "Go get on a robe!" she shoo'd him off good-naturedly just as Darius entered, seemingly more organized than Gavin.

Just then one of the eggs gave an ovious cracking sound and a few small chips fell away to reveal a squirming form within, the one of the larger ones she had stickied as By Valor and Arms. It was too hard to see very well, but the creature within was darker in coloration and once in awhile there seemed to be a slight gleam that was gone as soon as it appeared. Jessie sucked in her breath as she watched, mesmerized. The first glimpse of an Earth dragon, and the four of them were there to see it. The thought brought back a slight glimmer of panic.

There were 12 eggs... but only 4 of them were there as of yet. Where were the rest of them?!

[Dragonmage]

Gavin grabbed one of the robes and darted out of the egg room to change, returning in the white robe in time to catch the cracking of By Valor and Arms. Even in the uncertain light of the egg room, the dragonet within seemed to be dark in color and almost gleamed at times, or was that just a trick of the light? Where were the rest of the club members? The eggs were finally hatching, but most of the club wasn't at the mansion yet.

"Not yet, babies," Gavin whispered, staring at the eggs, "the rest of the club isn't here yet. They'll be here soon," he finished with more confidence in his voice than he really felt.

[Cait]

Ellie had been in the middle of attempting to make a batch of herdbeast stew when her phone pinged. Well chirped was more like it, but all the same she lunged for it, hands covered in God only knew what. Fumbling with the touch screen, she finally managed to pull up the text message.

NOW

At first she stared at it, wondering what on earth Jessie was talking about. Then it dawned on her. With a high pitched squeal, she darted out of the kitchen only to skittered to a halt and run back towards the stove. Turning off all the burners, she wiped her hands on her apron and tossed it on the counter before scrambling towards the foyer. Grabbing her keys and her purse and slammed into the door in her haste to get out of it then wrenched it open. "GOING OVER TO DARIUS' DAD, BE BACK LATER TO CLEAN UP!"

Climbing into her eurovan, she hauled major ass over to the usual car dump then ran like a pack of wild dogs was chasing her. Crashing in through the door, she scrambled into the egg room, only then realizing that she hadn't put any shoes on. Chest heaving, she grabbed a robe and began stripping in her panic that the eggs would hatch without her. Pulling her tshirt over her head she quickly pulled on the robe then shimmied out of her capris. "I didn't miss anything, did I? Please say I didn't miss anything."

[Lynn]

Darius smiled as she shoo'ed Gavin out, inclined his head to Skyler, then locked his eyes on the eggs as "By Valor and Arms" began cracking, urging it to continue the fight for freedom. He was concerned that only a few of them were there, and his head turned as Ellie came rushing in, only to return to its position as she began stripping, giving her some privacy. "We have bedrooms you know," he said teasingly to her. "And no you didn't miss anything. First one just started cracking."

He was eager to see this first dragonet, to know what hue it would be, whether it would bring luck to them. Supposedly a Bronze Hatching first was good luck, but they didn't know what would occur here due to the trip Between and the different environment.

[Cait]

"Huh? Oh...sorry!" Her cheeks colored as she smoothed down her robes then fairly skipped forward to stand beside Darius, peering at the egg that sported a few cracks. It was really happening! Ellie bounced around for several seconds then something seemed to dawn on her. "Food!" Scrambling on bare feet, nearly tripping over her own clothing, she barreled through the house to the kitchen where they'd managed to hook up a few appliances to a generator. Hauling open the fridge, she hauled out the meat they'd been amassing over the last week along with several five gallon buckets from Home Depot.

Grabbing the various cuts of meat that had been found on sale here and there, she quickly began to tear them open and dump them into the twelve buckets, tossing the nasty wrappers into the large sink. More than once a slimy chicken breast or a bloody cut of steak would land on the floor and Ellie would lunge for it. When all the buckets had been filled, she stood there, hands slimy and dripping, held away from her sides and seemed perplexed. Getting twelve buckets to the other room. Picking up two of the buckets she began to shove two more across the floor with her feet in an awkward, shuffling process.

[Itoshii]

Jessie couldn't help but twitch a little in surprise at there was a great commotion in the entryway, like someone was trying to corral a wet cat, before Elizabeth shot into the room and began tossing clothes about to get her robes on. She could barely get a word out before the girl was off again and more commotion could be heard from the kitchen. She shook her head in amusement as Ellie reappeared, this time slowed down by the burden of heavily laden buckets. "Well, at this rate we'll overstuff the poor babies" she laughed. She looked back to the eggs, like Darius willing them to fight to escape, to come to them, to make that bond each of them had ever dreamed of.

[summerrain]

Acacia's phone began to ring, but she just turned over in her sleep. Aster came back into the room the two shared, already having showered and dried her hair. She was running a brush through her short locks when she turned to her sleeping sister. Aster sighed and looked at her sister's phone. The text had one word.

NOW

Aster gasped, threw her hairbrush on her bed, and started shaking her sister. "Wake up! It's starting!" Acacia took a moment to comprehend what was being said, but then she kicked her sheets away and rushed into the closet, pulling on a pale blue tank top and a mid-length black skirt. Aster was already dressed, so she ran a brush through her sister's hair, then tied it with a white ribbon. Aster was wearing a pair of mid-length black shorts and a dark blue t-shirt. She found a white headband and put it on quickly. They both slipped into their flip-flops, brown, and dashed out the door, leaving Galax confused.

Cairrean was in the shower when the text was sent. She pulled on a pink bathrobe and put her hair in a towel, checking her phone as she passed the bed. She gasped and rummaged through her closet. She picked a pair of denim shorts and a short-sleeved purple t-shirt. She pulled her hair into a low ponytail after running a comb through it, then stuck her phone in her pocket and hurried out the door.

The three girls arrived at around the same time, all three rushing through the door without saying anything, the twins carrying a larger cooler between them and Cairrean holding a small one with just one hand.

"I would've been here sooner but I was in the shower when you sent the text," Cairrean told Jessie. Her eyes locked on the egg Anywhere at any Time, the one that she had felt that brief contentment from. Perhaps that one would be Hers? The cooler had her last name on it, and she placed it not far from the door. "I managed to get a bunch of cubed ham from the freezer, but some of it is already cooked. Do you think that'll make a difference?"

Cairrean and Acacia scrambled to put their robes on, while Aster simply watched from the door. She was just here to support her sister, after all. 

[Itoshii]

Jessie let out a sigh of relief as the three girls burst through the door almost simultaneously. Good, that made most of them. Moments later Randomcandie1 and Randomcandie2 came into the egg room, garbed appropriately in their robes with their own meat offerings. The were chatting excitedly and placing bets on what the first color would be and what color one another would be getting.

No sooner had the two candidates taken up their own places among those assembled did the top 1/4 of By Valor and Arms loose its grip on the rest of the shell, falling apart and revealing an eggwet tail that thrashed about, as if the owner was displeased with the occurrence. It seemed to be primarily what one would consider hide to look like, and greenish brown in color. Small patches of scales were easily discernible and seemed very light, and more shiny than being wet would cause. The tail had no forking to speak of, and some disgruntled chortling could be heard as the creature attempted to reposition itself.

Not far away the Liberty is Duty egg gave a violent shudder as thudding could be heard from within and spiderweb cracks could be seen peppering the shells surface. The Semper Fidelis egg also began to lose pieces of its shell, a pale reddish-brown hide visible through the openings. The dragonets seemed to be racing for who would be the first to step foot on Earth soil, but the By Valor and Arms egg had it in the bag from the beginning. As the tail slid out of sight and other parts passed into view, a sight they had all been dreaming of finally appeared. Chaotically whirring, multi-faceted eyes peered at the candidates with a curious chirp.

The egg toppled over, though the dragonet managed to keep its balance and stepped from the shell with more grace than most would probably manage and shook itself, goo flying like water off a dog. It seemed rather Pernlike, all things considered. Headknobs rose from its skull, the head itself was wide and rather horse-like, four legs, two wings, everything seemed in order. Aside from the patchy scales and un-forked tail one could almost call it a Bronze. It certainly carried itself with a sort of natural authority as it moved towards the candidates.

[Dragonmage]

Gavin shifted his weight from foot to foot slightly in impatience. He guessed that looking back on it, the Hatching would seem to have happened all too fast, but for the moment the eggs seemed to be taking a long time. Ellie thundered into the egg room and threw her clothes around as she changed into the white robe then ran out of the room, yelling about food. In a little while, she was back with five gallon buckets of meat.

Gavin grinned at Jessie and said, "Yeah, if everyone brings food, we won't have to worry about running out of food; we'll have to worry about making them sick from overeating." Three more girls arrived, including two of the triplets, also carrying coolers he presumed were full of meat. Then two more candidates arrived, also carrying meat. Most of the club was here now, and Gavin thought it safe to think encouraging thoughts to the babies.

The last two candidates were just in time to see By Valor and Arms lose the top quarter or so of its shell and a greenish brown tail thrash around in the opening. The unforked tail was patched with scales and the dragonet repositioned itself to continue hatching. Liberty is Duty shuddered and cracks spiderwebbed their way across the egg's surface. Semper Fidelis began to shed pieces of its shell, as if spurred on by the competition from its clutchmates. Though pale reddish-brown hide showed through the openings on Semper Fidelis, it was the greenish brown baby from By Valor and Arms that became Earth's first dragonet. Overall, it looked very much like Gavin had expected the dragonets to look, despite the scales and the lack of a forked tail. Now who would it choose?

[Cait]

Depositing the buckets at the edge of the room, Ellie was about to turn around to fetch the rest of them when the sound of shells cracking stopped her. Whirling around, her robes billowing slightly she stared with wide-eyed wonder at the By Valor and Arms egg as part of it fell away to reveal...scales? Blinking, she stepped around the buckets she had hauled out of the kitchen and towards her friends. Pernese dragons didn't have scales.

She continued to watch, unconsciously wiping her hands on the sides of her robe and staining it. As she watched, Semper Fi's shell began to fall away as well to reveal...a brown? A bronze and a brown...though Liberty looked close to hatching as well and might beat out Semper Fi. She'd always liked that egg best, mostly because her brother was a Marine. Biting down on her lower lip, she bounced on bare feet, slipping between the others until she stood beside Jessie. "Are they supposed to look like that?" She whispered as she stared in awe at the little bronze with his scales and decidedly not bifurcated tail.

[Lynn]

As the twins and the other girl went racing inside, coolers in hand, the shadow slipped forwards, out from under the trees and towards the door. The appearance of two more people had it ducking for cover under a nearby bush, but once they were inside, it moved forwards once again. The wind had shifted, allowing the words "Dragon, eggs, Hatching, NOW," to slide into the watcher's ears, and eyes were narrowed in disbelief. A game, perhaps? A roleplay? Either way, the excitement, and almost panic, that some of the people had displayed had brought the shadow here to investigate and find out what had these younglings so enthralled they kept coming back here in supposed secret, making a good effort to beat out any attempts to find out what they were up to...

Darius was almost bouncing on his feet as the eggs all began cracking and falling apart. The hides being displayed were a myriad of shades, and he was so CURIOUS to know what they would be! And then? Then, there was what APPEARED to be a Bronze standing before them, eyeing them intelligently. Although, he lacked the forked tail, and patches of scales covered his shimmering hide, unlike the smooth hide and forked tail of a true Pernese dragon. "Earth's first is a Bronze... Good luck, according to what we know," he said quietly, awe and respect in his tone as he tracked the male.