"Don't worry! Please don't worry! The thought was urgent, but not his own. 'Go away. Leave me alone!' he cried. Why? Was the injured-sounding question inserted into his mind. There was no voice, no tone, but the question was there, perfectly clear, in his head." Keevan desperately wants to be a dragonrider but he is afraid this might never happen because he is very young and very small. He lives on the planet of Pern with his father, K'last, his foster mother, Mende, and the other colonists who include the boys who will be competing as candidates for dragonriders. One of these boys is Beterli who is much larger and older than Keevan. Beterli bullies Keevan constantly until Keevan wonders if he should even bother to try to be a dragonrider. Mende is the only person who encourages him to keep trying. She tells him dragons don't care what size a person is but look for what is in that person's heart.
             Keevan is concerned one night at dinner when the adults are discussing whether to change the age requirements for dragonrider candidates. For example, one of his father's friends says, "Having older candidates makes good sense." In addition, he feels there are too many eligible candidates and the younger boys should wait. This worries Keevan because he knows he would be one of the first to be left out, since he is so small and so young. Luckily, his father defends him with the statement, "Any boy who is over twelve Turns has the right to stand in the Hatching Ground." But Keevan is still fearful at the thought of being removed from the group at any time.
             Another problem arises when Beterli comes over to Keevan when he is shoveling black rock at the bin and grabs the shovel from Keevan's hands. Beterli says, "Heard the news, babe?" Beterli tries to frighten Keevan into thinking that the age requirement for dragonriders has been chang...