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Post by nighttillek on Jul 5, 2008 10:47:26 GMT -5
Brileena took a great gulp of air when the dragon and his rider burst from between, then noticed that she har her arms wrapped about the man's waist and was holding him tight. Instantly she released the man, who chuckled at her.
Brileena began to look about her when she was sure that her lungs could fill themselves with precious air. They were high in the sky above the weyr which spread across the ground below them. She leaned over a little farther and strained her eyes to see the weyrfolk below, and the massive amount of dragons. More dragons than she had ever seen or ever thought of seeing! Some were feasting on herdbeasts in what she knew to be the "bowl" of the weyr, some were off in the distance diving in and out of water to bathe themselves, some flew across the skies of the weyr or sat about or lie peacefully in their weyrs. And as they drew closer she could see the people of the weyr. The flits skittering about their heads zipping in and out of between or crooning to their masters or laying about on the rooftops to sun themselves.
Brileena watched the people as the blue dragon she was upon bugled a welcome to the watch-where standing guard. They seemed so normal, like those of her home in Kalarne. And yet they were so different from them, for these were weyrfolk. They did not earn a living by trade, but by the hide of their skins, fighting Thread to save their world. With that thought she was left in awe, merely taking everything in as she could.
The blue dragon touched ground and the rider slid off before helping her down. "There is no clutch on the sands, but the beastie here could not let me turn you down when we were in your hold checking on those wonderful herdbeasts of yours."
Brileena smiled, "Oh, just being in the weyr and having a ride upon a dragon is more than I could wish for. Even if I do not impress a dragon of my own, my time spent here will be my fondest memory," and the more she thought about it, she realized that even if she did not impress and they were forced to send her home, she would be given another ride on dragonback!
"The candidate barracks are just over there," he said pointing, "Females to the right," then he turned as the blue crooned to him, "Ah, my beastie seems to be starving after going over all that meat from your hold. I shall have to go let him feed now, and oil his poor hide. You'll be fine young lady, don't fret. By the first egg, everyone is either nervous or giddy beyond belief their first day on weyrsands. I know I was," he chuckled again then left to tend to his dragon.
Brileena smiled as the pair went out of sight toward the bowl, then turned herself to the barracks and made her way there. This certainly was going to be the best time of her life, even if it only lasted a short while.
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Post by Spirithawk on Jul 5, 2008 11:26:42 GMT -5
Kaith was finally sleeping. The dragon had been broody and temperamental even before her mating flight. Christae was at her wits end. The Queen snapped at anything that moved, including her rider and her mate. Now that she had a Weyrleader she could take more time to herself but she almost wished that she had more to do because her dragon was driving her insane with her carping. Kaith's belly was already beginning to bulge with eggs but it would be some time yet before she finally clutched.
"Faranth help me deal with a proddy Queen." She muttered as she stormed out of her office and into the Weyr Bowl. She saw a blue touching down to drop off a new Candidate. "Good. So many Candidates will please Kaith, hopefully." Christae changed her direction to greet the newcomer. Her weyrmate had sent her off and told her not to do any work for the next candlemark. She had been about to pull her hair out with frustration between her dragon's attitude and the sheer frustration of trying to keep the weyr accounts straight.
"Good morning." She said as she walked up to the newcomer. "Welcome to Dark Moon Weyr."
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Post by nighttillek on Jul 5, 2008 21:01:51 GMT -5
Brileena blinked, then looked at the woman who had approached and spoken to her. She gave a great curtsy, not wanting to offend anyone of the weyr, especially someone whom she did not know, or even the rank of that person. "Good morning," she replied in a friendly manner, thrilled to be speaking to someone of the weyr. "And thank you for the welcome, it is wonderful to be here in the weyr!"
She straightened up and gave a great smile, happy to be in this woman's presence. There was a great chance that she could be attached to a dragon! Already Brileena was loving the feel of the weyr, though the company of home had passed through her mind and left her in slight longing when the blue rider had left her alone. She had felt just that, for the first time in her life. Being in a small family with a large job to do, you often worked with people to get everything done, all the runners fed, all the herdbeasts safely kept at night. Farmers had a full time job, much like dragonriders.
"You are a rider?" she asked excitedly, unable to keep her questions to herself much longer. "If you are a rider then you are the first female rider that I have met, do you enjoy flying? How is fighting Thread? What exactly do you have to do as a female dragonrider? Is there any difference in the duties from male dragonriders?" She couldn't bear to keep the questions inside, so she just let them fly out of her mouth as she was overly excited to hear about life in the weyr.
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Post by Spirithawk on Jul 7, 2008 15:37:34 GMT -5
Christae smiled warmly. The girl's enthusiasm was refreshing. "Actually, I am not your normal female rider. I am the Weyrwoman. Sr. Queen Kaith is my dragon. I love flying and female dragonriders aren't all that rare though we probably have more of them than usual here at Dark Moon. We don't really have Thread at the moment but I lead the Queen's Wing. We do low flying drills and rescue maneuvers a lot. Flying is one of the best experiences in the world when you are linked to your dragon."
"The duties of female dragonriders don't actually differ from males. Of course Queenriders have different duties as do riders of different colors but those duties vary according to the color of the dragon and not the gender of the rider. The only difference is that a pregnant rider flies with the Queen's wing until she has had her baby."
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Post by nighttillek on Jul 8, 2008 11:51:14 GMT -5
Brileena seemed to be in a state of awe as she stood there, face to face with the Weyrwoman of the weyr. The queen rider of golden Kaith. All the replies she gave so easily seemed to soak in slowly into Brileena's mind. Female riders had basically the same duties as males. She cursed herself for being so stupid to the weyrwoman directly, of course queens and clutching female dragons would have different duties, as firestone would turn the dragon infertile. Her hold harper would have been so ashamed of her at this moment.
Brileena's upper teeth peaked out as she began to chew on her lowr lip, thinking to herself, "But females impress both genders, correct? There have been female riders to impress male dragons, and therefore have the duties of those dragons, firestone and thread. And there are males who impress greens, and they still fight thread." She was more speaking her mind aloud than talking to the queen rider, a bad habit she learned from living with animals. They didn't really listen, but they liked the sound of your voice
Then she blinked up at the queen rider, "But what happens to candidates who don't impress?" she asked, here gray eyes widening at the thought, "Are they sent home? Are they banished or laughed at? Are they even allowed to go home? Or must they go to holds unattached to the weyr where they were unwanted?" She seemed overly-fearful of being unwanted.
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Post by Spirithawk on Jul 9, 2008 9:07:39 GMT -5
"Yes. We have a brown that Impressed to a woman, our WeyrlingMaster and Candidate Master Rhia of brown Mneith and Akki, rider of blue Ebbeth who is our Assistant Candidate Master. Yes, although there have been more women Impressing to greens as of late but we still have quite a few men Impressing greens." Christae smiled.
"No my dear, Candidates are not sent home unless they want to go home. Those who do not Impress are not laughed at or banished. There is nothing wrong with not Impressing. Sometimes it means that their dragon just wasn't in that clutching. I have seen several Candidates stand until they were too old and on their last Hatching, Impress their lifemates. Some just aren't meant to be dragonriders. No Candidate is unwanted. A Candidate who doesn't Impress has the chance to either be transferred to a Hold or another Weyr. We also bring them to be Apprenticed at any Craft they show an interest or aptitude for. Some choose to stay in the Weyr as a helper."
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Post by nighttillek on Jul 9, 2008 13:14:39 GMT -5
Brileena smiled at the thought of having more than one chance to impress a great dragon of her own. And the thought of almost any dragon being open to impress her made her near giddy. She enjoyed the thought of having a dragon of her own. The thrill of flying in the sky and fighting Thread to save all of Pern! To have someone as close to you as dragons were, or so the Harpers all spoke of it that way. She really had no experience with how the link between dragon and rider came about.
She looked thoughtfully at the weyrwoman, "So the bond between a dragon and the one they impress is unbreakable, right? Will a dragon choose me and then change its mind? Or is the bond forever?" She wanted so bad to feel a bond that lasted forever. One simply didn't get that from other animals, not even other people really. She really enjoyed the thought of having a true friend, especially one that would soar through the air with her and allow her to be something special. Something a little out of the ordinary.
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Post by Spirithawk on Jul 13, 2008 19:40:06 GMT -5
"The bond between a dragon and a rider is one of the closest, strongest bonds you could ever imagine. Your dragon feels what you feel. You feel what your dragon feels. To be cut off from your dragon is to be cut off from part of you. Dragon and rider are bonded for life. If a rider dies, so does the dragon. A rider can live if his or her dragon dies, but most of us don't want to. We choose death rather than live without our lifemate. A dragon can no more change his or her mind than its rider. Once the bond is made it is unbreakable save only by death. A rider without his dragon is half a man. That is more than just a saying. For us, it is truth. It is our life."
"Now, since you are new here, how would you like to drop your belongings off at the Candidate Barracks and maybe get a cup of cold fruit juice? Since we are practically in the Barracks already it would be silly for you to carry your belongings about just because a WW is a bit lonely for some friendly conversation. My Weyrleader kicked me out of my office and told me I can't go back in there for at least two candlemarks. I can show you to the Lower Caverns and the kitchens and point out some of the more important places you will need to know. Your Candidate Master will be able to give you a more in depth tour a little later. She has a class right now but I won't send you to her at the moment. We like to let our Candidates settle in at least before we set them to chores and lessons."
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Post by nighttillek on Jul 13, 2008 20:31:45 GMT -5
Brileena smiled, "Thank you very much, weyrwoman. I am fairly used to having chores, and I expected to have them upon arrival. But a tour from you would be that much more exciting!" She couldn't help but wonder exactly what the weyrwoman would show her or how she felt about each of the places here in her own weyr. Perhaps she would have helpful information on how Brileena should expect to live her life in the weyr, since they weren't going to send her back to the hold if she did not impress. She liked the idea of staying near the dragons. And away from the holders. The hold never really felt like home, but already the highest rank - save the weyrleader himself - was being friendly and open with her. It made her feel special, almost.
And the thought of being bonded so close to another being was so tantalizing to her, she hoped and prayed that she would impress a dragon of her own. A friend forever to be on her side, someone she could talk to or who could read her very thoughts when she didn't know what to say. Such a relationship seemed so impossible that Brileena yearned for it. She shook her head slightly, for she knew that she should not wish so. If it did not happen, it simply did not happen, and Brileena could only hope she was not crushed and did not break down and cry right there on the hatching grounds.
"A tour would be lovely, if you have no pressing matters to deal with. I would not want to keep the weyrwoman busy when she has more important business to attend," Brileena said with a respectful curtsey.
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Post by Spirithawk on Jul 17, 2008 14:00:13 GMT -5
OOC: Just fyi Weyrwoman is capitalized if it is talking about the WW of the weyr. If it is just a junior goldrider it is weyrwoman.
IC:
"I have no pressing matters at the moment. Like I mentioned before, my Weyrleader thinks I have been working too hard. For a while the weyr was without a WL because our previous Weyrleader left to return to his former weyr before Kaith rose to mate again. But Kaith just had her mating flight and there will be a clutch on the sands soon. We also have a new Weyrleader."
The Weyrwoman led the way into the building before them. "This is the common room. Both boys and girls share this. The girls' side of the barracks is this way. The other side is the boys. You are not allowed in their side and they are not allowed in your side unless they are invited and chaperoned. The Candidate Master has a bell that she rings when she needs to summon the Candidates or the Weyrlings and she hasn't had time to post a notice on the Candidate board yet. The board outside is kept updated for the most part with any notices we think you should know about. Rhia and Akki will post when your classes and chores will be scheduled as well. Our Weyrlings just graduated so any bell you hear ringing means that you need to report to the Courtyard we were just in. Go ahead and pick an empty cot and put your belongings in the chest at the foot."
"Any questions so far?"
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Post by nighttillek on Jul 20, 2008 2:45:23 GMT -5
OOC: Okay, I looked it up, and it's not capitalized just for the WW, but instead is capitalized like any noun, when it's proper. As in, when it's a title. Kylara was called "Weyrwoman" (capped and in the middle of a sentence) the moment she impressed, even though Lessa was the WW. Just like Weyr is capitalized when talking about the entirety of the place holding the dragons and weyrs for their individual places of residence. I guess I should start using caps more, as I was simply being overly lazy ^_^
Further research: Okay, so I believe that I have decided that the reason Kylara was referred to as "Weyrwoman"(before actually becoming WW) was due to either Anne McCaffrey's inconsistencies, or possibly the fact that she was still developing her world as she wrote her first Pern trilogy. I looked into Moreta, and although the definition of "weyrwoman" was simply female dragonrider, some queen riders were referred to as "weyrwoman" in the People of Pern.
I'm finding the topic overly intriguing, I suppose, but it's fun looking into it ^_^ Either way, I shall be less lazy and follow the grammatical standards of the Weyr I am in ^_^
IC:
Brileena's eye lit up and sparkled at the mention of dragonflights and a clutch to be soon on the sands. She wondered if the Weyrleader was as nice as the Weyrwoman? For she seemed overly nice, and open to even a complete stranger like Brileena.
She followed the Weyrwoman as she moved about the Weyr, informing Brileena of her surroundings, all of which were new and exciting to a holdborn and craftbred girl. She listened intently as the Weyrwoman described every detail of the home of a candidate, as well as what they were expected to do. She wondered what exactly the bell sounded like that the Candidate Master would use to summon her. She looked about the empty barracks, there were many cots here, each with a chest at their feet. Her teeth came out to chew on her bottom lip, "Will this enire room be filled with candidates?" she asked as she placed her belongings in the chest of one empty cot. It seemed the same as each of the rest, so she hoped that there was nothing more to it than simply picking one like that.
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Post by Spirithawk on Jul 20, 2008 22:43:24 GMT -5
OOC: Hmm that's interesting. The first weyr I played in the WW herself was capitalized and the lesser goldriders were weyrwomen. I guess it was just that Weyr's rules. Thanks for the tip. I'll keep that in mind.
I'll edit this and post my reply tomorrow.
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Post by Torva Anian on Aug 10, 2008 8:22:28 GMT -5
This was probably Quiote's fault. He never could find the socks he wanted, because the bronze seemed to love taking them. He huffed and sat back on his bare feet. Dimglow flitt. His head tilted slightly. Noise? Must be something fun, eh? Leaving his clothes and various oddities on his bed and scattered nearby on the ground he left the room.
"I heard voices. Hey!" Kallan had poked his head into the girl's side of the Candidates Barracks. "Can I come in? I don't think I'll find my socks anytime soon and this might be fun." He smiled over to the two women. Looking at them he didn't think he'd met either of them before. He hadn't met anyone in the Weyr that he'd regretted meeting yet.
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Post by nighttillek on Aug 10, 2008 22:46:23 GMT -5
Brileena turned in the direction of the new voice, her eyes wide, blinking once as she looked at him. Her eyebrows creased together as she thought a moment, looking from the boy to the Weyrwoman and back again. Then she relaxed and let a smile show, "I suppose with the Weyrwoman here you would certainly be under supervision. Otherwise, this is the girls' barracks, and without supervision you would not be permitted," but her voice was friendly and open as she spoke to the boy, although she was mostly blabbering without really knowing what to say. She certainly didn't mind his presence, as the Weyrwoman herself was here to watch them.
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Post by Spirithawk on Aug 11, 2008 22:30:05 GMT -5
OOC: Whoops I forgot I hadn't edited that last post to include a reply.
IC:
Christae smiled. " I don't think the entire room will be filled with Candidates but a good portion of it will be. As soon as Kaith begins laying her eggs the Searchriders will be out searching for Candidates in earnest."
"Hello." Christae told the newcomer. "I don't believe we have had the chance to meet and for that I apologize. I like to meet my Candidates at one point or another but I have been busy lately." She half turned towards Brileena to include her in the conversation. "As long as a senior rider is in the room such as your Candidatemaster, a Wingleader, me or the Weyrleader is in here it is ok for a boy to be in the girls' barracks. Otherwise it is off limits. You have a common room for that."
"I am Weyrwoman Christae of Senior Queen Kaith. A pleasure to meet you Candidate..." She trailed off, waiting for him to supply his name.
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Post by Torva Anian on Aug 28, 2008 7:39:48 GMT -5
"Kallan" He blurted before bouncing into the room. He glanced at the room that before now had been off limits. Didn't really seem like much. Actually, it looked rather like his own. Perhaps girls just liked to be mysterious. Yeppers, that was probably it. He flopped onto a nearby bed, crossing his feet under him and smiled up to the two woman. "So you got Kaith. Wow, how do you clean her? She's just really huge, it'd be impossible to cover that much hide. She'd probably be dirty again before you finished the last bit. Then again she always gleams so maybe she has a dust resistant thing....herrmmm that would work." He glanced over to the Candidate. "Did you just get here?" He leaned towards her conspiratorially, "I've actually been here a few days. Great place, great place..."
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Post by Spirithawk on Sept 8, 2008 13:23:03 GMT -5
"We are glad to have you her then Kallan." She laughed. "Kaith gets cleaned just like any other dragon, but since she is so big it just takes longer." The WW's brown eyes danced with amusement. "I can usually get someone to help me clean her and my bronze flitt Birinj is a great help but I am glad she doesn't get full of firestone dust as often as the fighting dragons."
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Post by nighttillek on Sept 21, 2008 13:48:29 GMT -5
Brileena smiled shyly at the boy, giving a small nod to him, "Yes I have just arrived. I am very glad to have been chosen to stand for the clutch," she was very polite in how she spoke. A well taught little girl who didn't want to upset anyone in anything. She smiled as the Weyrwoman laughed, glad to see such humor in a woman with such a high rank. Surely she would get tired from time to time with so many responsibilities. "I don't doubt that anyone would mind helping you with taking care of a gold dragon. One should think that they would all be honored," she said simply, thinking of how she would feel if a hurried Weyrwoman had asked help with the oiling of a large dragon. "Does a queen still need to be oiled on the hatching ground sands?" she asked, thoughtful of such happenings. Surely no gold would be welcome to many outsiders near her eggs, but if the Weyrwoman was not able to oil her all alone someone else would be needed to help.
Of course she posted the knowledge of the firestone dust at the back of her mind. That was one thing she assumed that she would have to take care of if a dragon did choose her. Golden dragons were the only ones who would not be covered in the dust from drills or Threadfall itself, and as they were the rarest hue it was unlikely that any that chose Brileena would have the same fortune. Perhaps that was another reason that the fighting rank dragons were smaller than the golds? To be easier on their riders when it came time to clean them or see to their hides.
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Post by Torva Anian on Sept 22, 2008 13:38:38 GMT -5
Kallan clapped his hands once and jumped off the bed, "Then it's settled. You need a tour. With me leading you ... and the weyrwoman, who best to give you a tour, eh? At the very least you'll need to know where the Hatching Sands are. Come to think of it, I don't know where the Sands are yet." He smiled at both women, "So where to first?"
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Post by Spirithawk on Oct 11, 2008 15:58:43 GMT -5
"Yeah, she does require a lot of oiling while she is on the sands. The sand and heat dries out her hide faster than the sun does. At least when she is sunning herself on her ledge the humidity keeps her a bit moist. The heat from the volcano that warms the sands drys out her hide. I have to oil her at least a couple times a sevenday so she doesn't dry out and crack. That would be fatal *between*."
Christae chuckled at the enthusiasm of the lad. "I have a bit of free time for now. I suppose I could show you a few of the places. I can show you the Hatching Sands first but I don't think Kaith will be happy if you go too far in but you can peek in and stay in the tiers."
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