Don't know WHAT America OnHold is doing with this mail... 
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[Morning, flying day]

Domaia yawned.

The morning had been far too long. Perhaps she had gotten herself 
into a rut. Day after day, same old routine: wake up, morning preparations, 
feed the greedy maw, feed herself, get the greedy maw/mischief maker out 
onto the green for training, listen to the lecture, try her damnedest to keep

the maw-of-mischief out of trouble... 

Domaia began to doze off.

<Yippee!>

Domaia awoke with a snort and earned a glare from all of the other diligent 
dragonriders-to-be on the green. Oh, yes, the lecture... Awfully hard to 
remember that when her eyelids are attached to lead weights, she decided.
*What, Lyric?*

<We're flying today!>

*We're what?*

<Flying! You get to sit on my back and we get to fly! Soaring through the 
stratosphere, wind beneath my wings...>

*Easy, poet.*

<My name's Lyric, Domaia Domaia.>

Domaia shook her head ruefully. She still hadn't become accustomed to this 
little creature. The beast certainly made life interesting, to say the least.


T`grat explained the mechanics of riding harnesses to each of the pairs and 
instructed the riders all to enharness their dragons. He went from pair to
pair, 
making sure the equipment was fastened properly before this critical first 
flight.

He stepped carefully around Lyric, who brought her head up to his eye level 
for a closer look. 

<Why is he so careful around me, my rider? Is he afraid of me or something?>

*No, dear. It's just that he doesn't want you to try something like you did 
before...*

Now Lyric's head turned to Domaia. <What did I do before?> she asked in 
her most innocent tone of voice. She fluttered her eyelids in a further 
attempt at feigned innocence. Domaia scowled and crossed her arms.

T`grat tugged gently on the riding straps. "All right," he said. "You two 
are ready to go up. No tricks now, Lyric. It's not safe." Lyric put her 
forepaws down on the ground and brought her head to rest between them. 
T`grat chuckled, nodded, and went on to the next waiting pair.

After what seemed like an eternity, T`grat finally gave the signal for the 
pairs to lift off the ground. Lyric pushed herself off the earth with a stout

leap. Her wings began to flap and she squealed happily. <Ooh, ooh! We're 
flying! We're flying!>

By now, Lyric had gained some significant altitude. She peered around at 
the other dragons, content to remain at that altitude, and crooned smugly. 
Far be it for *her* to do as the other dragons do!

She dipped her head and wings and went into a terrifying drop, despite 
protests from her rider, who could not resist screaming at the very top of
her 
lungs. Lyric thought she heard a few dragons trumpeting over that maneuver. 
She'd show them!

Within a winglength of the ground, Lyric snapped her body back upward. 
No longer on a collision course with terra firma, she let out a triumphant 
hoot. <That was fun! Let's do it again!>

Domaia would have replied had her stomach been a bit calmer.

Lyric, ever interested in trying all things new, decided that the ground
wouldn't 
be her next target. The inside cliff of the warren would do nicely in its
place. 
She flapped her wings and blazed toward the solid rock. Domaia didn't scream,

and her stomach wasn't calm. She held onto her harness for dear life and
prayed 
to every deity of which she could recollect. She hoped length of prayer and 
choice of language didn't affect prayer potency... 

A few seconds before the impending collision, Lyric veered on her side and 
peeled away from the cliff. The bugling and trumpeting was a lot louder now. 
(Maybe I should touch down and find out what all that fuss is about,) the 
reckless beast thought to herself. She did, and as she settled onto the 
ground, she could feel the weight of her rider slumped across her neck.
--------------------------------------------

NRPG: 

Hope I wrote this little touch of chaos properly. Any reactions from
witnesses? 
Just how much trouble are these two in, Les? :]

Clear Skies and Seas,
Paula

Noni/Ammie of Daere
Domaia/Lyric of Norwall