The trip was successful, and Aedelian thanked every single one of the Avengaean dragon-gods for that. Though Aloia was very amused by the situation, she had finally parted with fourteen bonding scrolls, altered just enough to make sure that a half-Avengaean dragon would be able to use it. Aedelian hoped that he could talk Vyly into keeping two of the children for them to raise-- he did love children, after all, particularly his own-- but they could keep the scrolls in trust for them, in case they wanted to bond later in life. His return to the station after two days, basket of scrolls in tow, was heralded with quite enough relief and gratitude to make him feel quite the hero, at least with Vyly. It was a nice feeling.

That didn't last long, though. Carrying fourteen eggs wasn't very comfortable, and Aedelian got the brunt of Vyly's irritation at the fact. He even did hide, just once, in human form in the other side of the suite, when he ran afoul of her foul mood quite on accident. For the most part he was able to stave off arguments and cushion her moodiness with the right words and actions-- being able to read her thoughts and emotions was very helpful, there-- but it was still a very large relief when the end of gestation neared and it was time to find her an open hatching bay to clutch in.

First, though, they had to find the Minister of Flights and Hatchings, Siche Four, and setting up an appointment with the formidable cat-woman was a little daunting. Aedelian flew Vyly out, aiding her strained flight with several powerful winds, because she complained about waddling, as well as being unable to fly of her own volition, and landed them both in the lift that took them up to Deck Two, where Sichie was waiting for them in her office. He led her down the hall, shifting down to human form for the appointment. He looked far less formidable that way, even a little silly, but these people seemed to expect dragons with bonds rather than bondless dragons, and even though the woman was well aware he was mate to Vyly and not bond, he thought that something that looked a little more familiar would put her at ease.

At the door marked with Minister Siche Four's name-- not much taller than an average-sized human, but with a buzzer at eye level for Vyly, or a convenient height for the city's normal inhabitants-- he paused, gave Vyly's foreleg a fond and reassuring rub, then took in a breath and knocked smartly. "Enter," answered an irritated-sounding voice, and the door slid open. Vyly sat down carefully and awkwardly, forced to wait outside by the size of the door, and after another gentle pet along her leg, Aedelian slipped inside.

What greeted the shape-shifted dragon was a simple office with a plain, synthetic wood desk, a pair of comfortably stuffed chairs, and a simple holoterminal. A worn looking feline-woman in her mid-fourties, her facial fur a dusty cream-grey, her short-cropped hair a shade darker then her golden eyes, leaned back in her chair. "Afternoon," she said shortly, giving him a brief nod as she shut down a file she'd been working on. Her ears were heavily pierced, and when she flicked one of them in irritation, all of the rings jingled slightly. "Now, you are... Aedelian Landwerlen?" She asked, consulting her agenda. "And you're looking to set up with your dragon, hmm?"

"Yes, please," he answered politely, taking a seat opposite her in one of the chairs. He didn't bother to correct her that Vyly wasn't exactly "his dragon", though he hoped Vyly hadn't heard that, or she might have been offended. Curiously, all he could read of the woman's mind were mild irritation, a surface emotion, and the occasional flicker of a thought; either she was of an alien species who were naturally protected from mind-readers, or she had a very disciplined mind and held that protection on purpose. Since he was here for Vyly and not himself, he curbed his curiosity and kept his probes to himself. This time, anyway.

"All right," Siche gave him a brief nod and keyed open a new file. What appeared over the flat surface of the terminal was a small, holographic diagram of the hatching bays. There were five in all, and on the diagram, three-- one at either end, and one in the middle-- were marked off with neat little X marks. "Now," Siche said, her voice falling into something of a lecturing tone. "Bays one, three and five are occupied at the moment," she pointed each one out with a stylus. "Two and four are free. I would personally recommend that you introduce Vyly to Bay Two. Hmm....." She absently keyed open another file, and then another. "Aedelian, you're a native Avengaean, a dragon as well?" She raised one pierced eyebrow at him, apparently unsurprised. But then, perhaps she knew what Avengaean dragons looked like in their human forms.

At any rate, she didn't even wait for a reply before plowing on, "Another Avengaean has sired a small clutch in the first bay, an... Earth, by the name of Laudu Lenudah. I'm not sure if this has any influence on you." He shook his head, unfamiliar with the name; but then, Earths and Airs didn't often associate. Earths, in fact, didn't often associate with anyone.

"Anyhow," she continued, finally looking back at him intead of her files. "Are there any special requests that you or Vyly have?"

"A couple, if that's all right," Aedelian said. "We haven't had a chance to discuss it yet, but we might be keeping two of out children ourselves to raise-- there's going to be fourteen," he admitted with a sheepish expression, "so we can't very well look after all of them, but two is a good number. At any rate, the other twelve, they won't be bonding naturally. We have some magical scrolls from my homeworld that will do the trick, though. Is there going to be any kind of problem with that?"

Apparently that surprised her, for Siche blinked at him and twitched an ear, then gave a slight shake of her head. Or perhaps she disapproved of giving away one's children; despite his own twinges of guilt on the subject, Aedelian would dare anyone else criticizing him to try and raise fourteen precocious youngsters at once. "Of course not," Siche answered him, then asked, "May I ask how these scrolls work?"

"It's a fairly complicated spell," Aedelian explained, "meant to act the same way as the mental bond formed at birth by many other kinds of dragons. We started a program for bonding on Avengaea, to try and help us against the demons there. At any rate, they work by touch: a kit approaches someone they choose to bond to and offers the scroll, and once their chosen touches it, the spell is activated, forming the bond."

"I see..." Siche replied, nodding faintly and tapping all but one file closed. She shifted as she spoke, leaning back in her chair and opening a drawer. "Would you prefer to screen the candidates we bring in before-hand? Some of the natives prefer to know exactly to whom their children are going, though many off-worlders don't appear to quibble over such things." For a moment, Aedelian blinked; he hadn't even considered that they'd let him do such a thing! "Take your pick," she added, dropping two card-keys on the table, marked 02 and 04. He absently picked up the one marked 02.

"Could we?" he asked hopefully. "That would-- definitely ease my mind. I didn't ask for fourteen of them, after all, I'm more used to one or two at a time... but the thought of just sending my own children off with strangers...." He shook his head faintly. "I would like to meet the candidates beforehand, yes, and perhaps let them be acquainted with the eggs, as well."

Her muzzle twitched as if she might be smiling, and Aedelian was obscurely pleased that he'd gotten this dour woman to smile at least a little, even if it was at his expense. "Of course, that could be arranged," she began, but a shrill beep interrupted her, causing her to flatten her ears with frustration. "A moment please," she said, irritated again.

"Of course," he said.

"What is it this time?" she asked the air, thumbing an intercom key.

"Minister, they're at it again," an apologetic voice answered.

The Minister gave a sigh and tapped a dull-clawed finger to her forehead. "Demons of hell, we just had that bay cleaned out, I swear it."

"I've called the custodians already," the voice in coming from nowhere said, "they'll be here once everything's through. Minister, the hatching's supposed to be quite soon, now."

"Yes, I know," she sighed. "I'll be there."

The look gave Aedelian was one that suggested that their meeting was at an end, as she thumbed off the intercom. "Apologies," she told him, "but that huge 'xenodragon' clutch is in dire need of a proper supervisor. That key," she gestured at the one that Aedelian now held, "will open the rider's suite in Bay Two, if you care to stay in there. Bedroom, bath, small kitchen. You'll have to get food for yourself, but the accommodations are free." He had no intention of using it, of course, unless Vyly literally chased him away from the eggs, but he nodded graciously, anyway. "If you'll excuse me?" She stood, gesturing politely for the Avengaean to exit, and he rose, as well. "I'll be in to check on you once the 'hatching' is through. If you have any other questions, I'll be around to answer them then."

"Thank you," he said sincerely. "Thank you very much. I'll see you then-- and, er, good luck with that xenodragon thing," he added on his way to the door. Behind him, he heard a quite unprofessional snort, and he chuckled faintly as the door slid shut.

::Well?:: Vyly asked, still sitting right where he'd left her. ::What's the word?::

::We're just down the hall and around the corner,:: he quipped, feeling considerably more cheerful now. ::Ready?::

::If I have to sit here another second, I think I'll just lay them all in this hallway,:: she replied, her voice tinged with irritation despite her joking tone. Aedelian tried not to laugh as he shifted back up into full dragon form, more comfortable that way, and certainly feeling more like Vyly's equal rather than midget mate. ::Well, let's go!:: she exclaimed impatiently.

::Yes, dear,:: he said meekly, smiling, and let the way down the corridor.

Chapter Six

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