Timothy M.

So I can see your meeting would be at 8.00 AM for the Danes, but what time of day was it for you ? And no, the teabat wasn't meeting with me, though that might have been fun. Hope you all have a nice Sunday. from Denmark

Silly H'rek. It would serve him right if D'gar gives up on him and finds someone else.

D'gar is a great teacher, patient and encouraging. A much better Wingsecond than F'drun.

It's unfair ro take it out on H'rek, but I guess his father is not a nice person in general. And I notice we're beginning to see some of the nastier behavior of the old-timers here, with the burnt orchard.

Fnor was always one of my favorite characters. I'm not surprised to see him interact so well with D'gar.

So F'drun is an idiot and not just a bully. How could he ever think he would get away with that lake stunt. But D'gar will have difficulties with him for a long time to come. But maybe he'll get hit by thread.

Well, at least D'gar knows it's F'drun who is a stupid bully, so he can take his precautions. I hope his wingleader catches on too, fairly soon.

D'gar is sensible and his dragon even more so. But I think that nasty wingsecond is going to be trouble.

I agree. It was both exciting and easy to imagine the scene from your description. Well done, H'rek, for joking along with the other riders. I hope H'rek and D'gar stay together.

LOL, you tell him, Herebeth. And F'drun needs to get dunked.

I'm happy for both of them that Herebeth managed to catch Rioth. And I hope D'gar made H'rek enjoy himself the second time.

Ohhh, interesting. The old-timers did better with preparing the green riders for mating flights. Something else which has been lost during the long interval. D'gar should take this up with someone in charge.

Wll, both all the old-timers and the modern holders have to adapt, but we all know from the books it wasn't easy. I'm hoping D'gar will do better than Tron and his ilk.

I hadn't thought about them bringing all the Weyr people and things with them, not just dragon riders, but of course they had to.

I feel sorry for Sh'bul. The weyrleaders are obviously not up to their responsibility when they don't prevent such abuse or help the poor youth afterwards.

It's nice to hear more about the weyrlings and what they do during Threadfall. Valli seems to like them, which is a point in their favor. And I'm sure the weyrlings will remember the flame thrower lessoon much better with the sex jokes.

I like the fact D'gar thinks for himself and questions matters. He'll be less hidebound than other old-timers in the future.

A brown is a very good option for Detgar, and more likely to win a mating flight for a green every time. I'm glad the boys are weyrlings together and have a chance to be weyrmates.

I like that Detgar is loyal to his friend and lover. I hope they Impress togther.

I hope for H'rek's sake he'll find a solution to this issue. Getting some non-dragon-flight experience with sex would be a good idea. He should find an experienced green rider (who is not an old-timer) and ask for advice.

I finally caught up with reading and commenting on Sidewinder, so now I can look forward to a new chapter on Monday.

That lawman gave good advice and I hope the boys take it. They're rewarded for honesty and integrity, and I think the sheriff is right about We, Lee and Dan wanting their friends to have the gold. It was nice to meet a proper sheriff of the wild west. He might be hard, but he's sensible too and as he said, a good judge of character.

I like the proverb. Coy was the one who whetted Boone's appetite for same-sex love as more than just a convenience. And now Boone is keeping Coy's conscience and integrity sharp. The gunny sack has given up its secrets and Coy must once and for all face the fact his brother was an evil dude. And he also has to understand how three good guys died, because he let Will tag along and kept bailing him out of trouble.

Well, we know now Will did his best to destroy Coy's friendship with Boone, and he and his mother made sure Coy never dared to take it further than friendship. Also, it's pretty obvious Will killed Wes and Lee not just for their gold, but because he hated them for being a couple. Is Boone a fool for having stuck around, for not taking Dan up on his offer ? Maybe, but I think he preferred the gold of his friendship and love for Coy, rather than pretending his liking for Dan could be a substitute, even if he thought he might have come to love Dan eventually. But Coy was definitely a fool to pretend his brother had a heart of gold beneath his nasty behavior. I'm glad Boone confronted him with the falsity of that belief. Maybe Coy will finally learn to distinguish between the fool's gold of caring about the opinion of people who hate without reason, and the real gold of someone who cares about his happiness. But maybe it's too late.

I know your chapter title refers to Coy's trying to cope with his sadness about his brother's (well-deserved) death, but there is also another end to mourn. Boone seems ready to end their partnership in panning for gold, and the heart ache over liking Coy 'that way' without having his feelings returned. I'm also thinking of another meaning of Wake - waking up. Coy is finally waking up to the truth about Will, that he was a killer and hated Boone. And maybe he is also trying to wake up to another truth, but it may be too late for Boone to believe him. Perhaps Boone needs to wake up to the idea not everyone knows for sure about liking guys from the start ?