Meeting. [Ukon Deville]

[Arrow]

Guardian Aster sat behind her desk with a very large scroll in hand, tipped sideways toward the flickering lamp on her desk. Her brow was pinched in a weary, overworked sort of way and her green eyes were dimmed beneath her spectacles; in her free hand, she thoughtlessly toyed with a clean quill.

It was approximately nine at night, and she had been expecting a student. A young, quite spirited girl by the name of Ukon; between the Head Guardians, it was always a game to try and guess what would hatch for them, but with this girl, there wasn't much sport. Complicated as she were, she had a few, defining traits about her that they all easily recognized.

With a light sigh, Aster lifted her eyes from the paper and cast a longing glance at the open window, through which drifted the tantalizing evening breeze. She was far too tired for this, tonight...perhaps she'd send someone to go fetch her, already....

But no sooner had she thought this than there was a sudden knock at the door and, reflexively, Aster's head snapped to it.

"Come in," she said with another weary sigh, setting down the parchment and quill.

[Ukon Deville]

Ukon couldn't help shivers of fear coming down her spine. For her entire life Ukon had a pressing fear of authority, and now it came out in the worst way. Slowly, she shuffled into the office, head down, quivering.

"Whatever it was I'm sorry and-and..."

The kid trailed off and sniffed.

"God, just don't hurt me."

Something in Ukon quailed when faced with the Guardian Aster, and she cringed back, not even sitting down but slowly shutting the door behind her.

"Oh man. Oh man." Ukon feared the worst. Expulsion. Having her egg confiscated. Her egg was clutched to her tight, and her gaze pled with Aster not to take it away.

[Arrow]

Aster's eyebrows arched into her forehead. This was an unusual reaction; most students walked in timidly, stared at the floor, and waited for their verdict. Some even looked her dead in the eye- but the Guardian couldn't remember the last time she had received this reaction. The poor child almost made her think that she was guilty for something the Head Guardian wasn't aware of.

"Have a seat child," she said at last, nodding kindly to one of the chairs in front of the desk. "You're not in trouble; can you put your egg up here for me, please?"

With the end of her quill she tapped an empty spot on the table, before taking up the parchment again and scribbling something down, flicking glances at the object in the girl's arms. She caught the poor girl's expression again.

"Miss Deville, for God's sake, please don't look quite so miserable. Most students look forward to this moment."

[Ukon Deville]

A nervous sigh exhaled from Ukon; issued forth in a manner that revealed her fears had been assuaged by this firm statement. She was absolutely terrified, yes, but who would not be? She placed the egg upon the table gingerly, and a smile crossed over Ukon's face.

"Sorry. I...think we were talking about two different...things. And I am most excited."

A twitch of the left eyelid displayed that Ukon was not just nervous but excited, as it was her right lid that twitched in anxiety.

[Arrow]

Lady Aster sighed, set down her quill once more. "I think so, as well."

From over the rims of her spectacles she studied the egg for a good minute, drumming her nails absently against the mahogany desk. It was interesting, noting one egg color to another- the Guardian often wondered if it was affected by personality, as well.

"Alright, lets get this done, then," she said, and produced a small vial from one of the several drawers of her desk. It was a beautiful glass object with a crystal rose as its stopper, a slim chain of gold encircling the lip of the opening. From within a pale amethyst liquid swirled; with a light pop, Aster removed the stopper, brushing away the collecting mist around the bottle. Tilting her hand only slightly, she allowed a single drop to dribble from its lip, where it fell to the egg's shell and seemingly disappeared.

Then, calmly, Guardian Aster recapped the vial and set it carefully back in the desk. "Give it a minute," she said, wizened in the eager ways of the students from many years of Hatching Ceremonies.

The egg looked unchanged; it sat there, quite innocently, the center of attention in the uncertain silence. Lady Aster had scooted her chair a tad back- all eggs hatched differently, and, if she guessed Miss Deville's companion correctly....

Without warning, the egg suddenly shattered into a thousand brittle shards that flew as far as a foot away. Pieces slid over the desk and slid to the floor- a veil of mist shadowed the huddled mass within which the broken pieces circled. It hung there teasingly; like a curtain, it slowly fell, revealing the golden tips of black wings, first.

She had guessed correctly; with a faintly smug grin, Guardian Aster reclined in her chair as the creature came into view. It was a small thing, no bigger than a swollen watermelon, and sat hunched, black wings pulled over the rest of its body. It had an ebony coloring, wings with golden tips and green flecks dotting the feathers. It had a black mane and golden hooves and, when it dropped its wings from its face, vibrant emerald eyes.

"A Pegasus- spirits of the wind. Congratulations," said Aster, reaching again for the parchment to record. "It's going to need a name; its a male." Companions were always of opposing gender.

[Ukon Deville]

The child's eyes had gotten very wide. The egg began to hatch and Ukon's entire body tensed. Please, she thought, don't be something that will hurt me. Aster had scooted her chair back and-

eggshell hit her in the face. Ukon laughed, a sound kinda like tinkling bells. The mist thet flowed out made Ukon smile broadly. No longer was she afraid. The pegasus was amazing. Green flecks on his wings, gold hooves...Ukon was grinning extremely wide.

"A name...? Uh...let's see." She went quiet for a moment, extending a hand out to the pegasus. He crept forward and then jumped, wings spread, but fell. Okay, it couldn't fly. Ukon caught him and he looked rather content.

"I'll call him...Taurus." Slowly, Ukon began to pat the pegasus on his back. Taurus seemed quite happy.