A Feeling Of Freedom

[Zen]

One week after A Hero's Welcome

Yvinka

The fact that the candidates’ quarters were right on the beach was absolutely fantastic, except for the fact that apparently parts of the caverns flooded at high tide. That was a thing. Yvinka had been shown to a bed and tossed her sack of random clothes she’d haphazardly grabbed onto it before promptly leaving the cavern in favor of the beaches. It was warm, summer was nearly here and it certainly felt like it at Mavros. Without anyone to tell her to do otherwise, she tied her shirt up and giggled to herself as she imagined her father’s horrified face. Her entire belly was exposed. She dug her bare feet into the sand and kicked some up, laughing, “That’s not how a lady should dress, Yvinka!” The sense of freedom was exhilarating. He couldn’t tell her how to dress, or act, or do, or not do. He couldn’t do anything. With some satisfaction, she tied her skirt up too, dangerously short, and strode along the edge of the beach, letting the water rush up around her feet and back out to sea again in a steady rhythm that felt as familiar as her own heartbeat.

Staring out at the seemingly endless water, she considered the vast distance between herself and her family. She would miss her mother, but after she Impressed a dragon, after her father couldn’t do anything about anything anymore, maybe she’d try to find them again. And then she considered her possible future as a dragonrider, really for the first time since she’d been Searched. Initially it had only been an escape, an exciting one, flying away on the back of a dragon where her father could not follow. She hadn’t really considered what it would truly mean, to be a candidate, to Impress a dragon. Like most Pernese children she had played at being a dragonrider on occasion. But that was before Thread started falling. A child with no inkling of the terrors dragonriders would soon face played at it with so much naivety. She hadn’t really thought about it as a possible future for herself, it had all only been a game, once upon a time.

Of course, for all her rebelliousness, she had expected to be married in the next couple turns, regardless of just how she felt about it. She had never really dreamed too big because her future seemed set already and what was the point? So she had just tried to have as much fun as she could before she was forced to grow up. She had liked sailing, liked being a trader, traveling, seeing new places and meeting new people. If she had to get married to keep doing it, she figured she could handle it. Whether her future husband could handle her or not was the question, but there hadn’t been any other future to consider.

Did she really want to be a dragonrider? She wasn’t really sure. She figured she’d give candidacy a shot though and just see what happened. If she didn’t Impress she could always find something else to do. Maybe she could find some other ship to join. She stopped, frowning slightly, wondering if she would be able to find a ship that would let a woman join them. If she couldn’t, maybe she would just cut her hair off and pretend to be a boy. That could work. Maybe. She kicked up some water. Well, whatever, it didn’t matter right now. That was a problem for future Yvinka.

[tovaana]

Ceela;

Ceela grinned to herself as she skipped down the caverns toward the candidate quarters. She took a sharp quick turn into the entrance, sliding along a smooth spot that had been frequently stepped on, and kept herself steady with part of the wall. No one was there, which was expected in the middle of the day. Ceela had been searched for a whole day and she had mostly been shown around more of the Weyr the day prior and the duties were expected… the boring things. She had half listened, more interested in what chore she had the option of choosing, though had half wondered if ‘no chore’ counted for anything. If she chose to stay in the kitchens, would she actually get to cook more? Or was there another job that would allow for more freedom?

She stood at the end of her assigned bed, glancing around at the other beds, reveling in the thought that she was now counted as a Mavros candidate. She had done it without her just being a bronze rider’s daughter and for having siblings that were also riders. This was hers to claim. Her chin lifted a bit and she shrugged her shoulders close together in a moment of unconfined excitement. Then she quickly reached into the chest at the bottom of her bed and picked out an old book about dragons that was well worn, and promptly skipped out of the room toward the beach.

When she got outside she rolled up her loose cotton pants, glad she already had on a thin loose shirt from southern summers. There was still a bite to the air – nothing like the humid summers in southern, but it was definitely beginning to feel warmer. Her legs moved her quickly away from the cliff edge, welcoming the sun with a satisfied groan as it hit parts of her skin. There wasn’t quite enough warmth to lay in the sun in summer southern garb – but she hoped soon enough there would be. When she opened her eyes after enjoying the sun’s first embrace, she spotted a figure walking down the beach. As much as Ceela enjoyed reading, it took her just that moment to forget why she had come to the beach in the first place. At a skipping jog Ceela caught up with the girl.

“Isn’t it a beautiful day?” She slowed down as she became parallel with Yvinka on the beach shore, her arms and face lifting to show how much she was enjoying the wonderful weather. The gesture was short lived, arms plopping back to her side as she gave the girl a grin. “I’m Ceela.” As much as she loved that she was a candidate, she didn’t ever feel the need to edit her introductions to make her sound more or less important – her name was all that was needed in those first moment impressions.

Zen

[Zen]

Yvinka

Splashing along in the waves rolling in, reveling in her newfound freedom, Yvinka wasn’t paying too much attention to her surroundings. She was musing over the waters of Mavros and how they compared to other places she’d been. Tidewalk’s shores could be downright icy while Southern’s beaches were always warm, often too warm, and therefore the water was always pleasant. Mavros’s waters didn’t seem as warm as Southern’s, but she wondered if they got as cold as Tidewalk’s. For now it was pleasant anyway. Lost her musings, she didn’t notice when someone else approached until the other girl spoke.

“Oh shells!” her hands clasped over her mouth in surprise, and then she burst into a fit of laughter, “You scared me. I wasn’t paying any attention, great Faranth.” Her laugh tapered to a girlish giggle and she shook her head, “It is indeed an absolutely wonderful day.” For so many reasons. She took the part of her skirt that wasn’t all tied up and still hung a bit longer to one side into a hand and gave the other girl some sort of mock curtsy in response to her introduction, giggling again, “Well met Ceela! I’m Yvinka. I’ve just arrived at Mavros and thought I’d explore the beach a bit. Have you been here long? I’ve heard all sorts of things about the place but who knows what’s true or not at this point.”

She brushed her hair back behind her ear from where the wind had tugged it loose and had been whipping it around in her face, giving Ceela a decent once over. She was quite pretty. And clearly friendly. And enjoyed the beach! Yvinka grinned, “I think we’ll be great friends, Ceela. Oh! Congratulations, you’re the very first friend I’ve made at Mavros!” She giggled again; as if that was some great accomplishment. Hopefully she’d be making plenty of friends soon. There were bound to be other candidates to get to know, after all, and she was eager to do so, but first she had wanted to get to know her new home more first. Not that she was disappointed that Ceela had come along.

tovaana

[tovaana]

Ceela;

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” She gasped just as the girl startled. But the girl was in a fit of laughter, so that was a good sign. She wasn’t sorry about introducing herself though, just for startling the girl. Who seemed to be new to Mavros as well! Well, Ceela had been there for a season or two, but candidacy was new to her, so she felt like Mavros was new again. Her grin broadened and she laughed when she mentioned that she didn’t know what to believe or not. It made her think of her first day in Mavros, and the lady that seemed eager to tell her all the dirt of Mavros. Yet- Ceela didn’t really mind the chatter or gossip, not when it didn’t directly effect her. “I honestly don’t know half the time either.”

She felt herself getting giddy the way this girl was feeding her social appetite. It wasn’t often she found someone who engaged in conversation with as much passion as she did. Ceela mirrored the girl and pushed her hair back behind her ear with the hand that didn’t hold a book. “I haven’t been here too long – maybe a season or two. I love how easily it is to get to the beach from the candidate’s quarters, though! That’s new to me.” She managed to get that in before she announced that they were going to be friends. Ceela grinned, oh – she hadn’t needed to tell Ceela that. Though, Ceela often assumed everyone was her friend unless they told her otherwise. Yvinka would definitely be one of those, but perhaps even more since her aura seemed similar to Ceela’s.

She giggled at the congratulations, she felt honored to be the girl’s first interaction all the same. “Do I get a medal with that honor?” She paused and tugged at her pants as if she could curtsy with them the way she had curtsied – like the way she’d been taught to curtsy at a dance, but always did more playfully and never seriously like her sisters. “Well met Yvinka! We’ll be the greatest friends. And you’ll love it here! There have been some crazy things that have happened – did you hear about the dragons going back in time? That rumor is true anyways. I worked in the kitchens for a while and got some first hand info.” Her voice trailed off, her eyes had trailed off to the ocean – and she looked back at the brunette, smiling. “I originally came from Southern Weyr – what about you? I miss the warm sands there, but I’m glad Mavros has a beach.”

Zen

[Zen]

Yvinka

“Oh! You’re a candidate too!? That’s even better!” Yvinka grinned, “I hope we Impress together, that ought to be fun.” She still wasn’t entirely sold on the life of a dragonrider really, but she was excited about standing for at least one Hatching, being up close and personal with baby dragons just joining the world. That would be an experience of a lifetime even if she didn’t Impress and decided to do something else in the long run. She laughed as Ceela asked if she got a medal for the honor and glanced around, considering her options, “Hmmmm….” She wandered away slightly as something caught her eye and skipped back quickly after stooping to pick up a shell of some sort that she had noticed in the sand. She held it out to Ceela with a grin, “I hereby award this shell of first friendship to you, Ceela.” She broke into laughter again, unable to keep a straight face about it.

When Ceela greeted her she realized she hadn’t yet told the girl her nickname, “Oh! Only my stuffy family members call me Yvinka. My friends call me Yva.” She listened intently as Ceela spoke of Mavros. Considering she’d just got here, she actually hadn’t heard about any supposed time travel yet. What? How was that a thing? “Nooooo. You’re kidding right? How can anyone go back in time? That’s crazy!” But Ceela said it was true. Now she was even more excited about being at Mavros. What other crazy stuff was true? “Do you think we’ll get to travel through time? Great Faranth that sounds ridiculous to say!” She laughed, still not quite able to wrap her mind around the idea that it had actually happened and wasn’t just another insane rumor about the rogue Weyrhold.

“I came from Tillek, I guess. My family are traders so we don’t really stay there a lot. I think Southern is my favorite place to visit. I love the beaches there. I was actually in Tidewalk when I was Searched though. It’s kinda weird to think about Impressing and being tied to one place forever after spending my life traveling all over Pern. I mean, I guess a dragon makes travel real fast if I ever wanted to go anywhere, but my father’s ship has always felt more like home than our house back in Tillek.” She shrugged, because it hardly mattered now. She was never going back there, where her father would try to get her to marry some stranger just to help business somehow. Blegh.

“So what color dragon are you hoping to Impress, since you’re a candidate. You must have some preference? The perfect, ideal dragon? Personally I think greens and blues are just beautiful, and I’ve seen them do some pretty fun things in the air at gathers. I bet they’d be fun to have as a partner,” Yvinka finally paused to let Ceela actually answer the question she’d posed.

tovaana

[tovaana]

Ceela;

“It would.” Ceela agreed, somberly – yet still grinning, responding to her idea of them impressing together. She had always wanted to impress, but she had never wanted to be under her family’s shadow. What if that had prevented impression before? Now, there was nothing holding her back – not her feelings, not the looming reputation of her family. “I have been to many, many hatchings – but maybe this will be the one!” She said to the air, as the girl strode away. Ceela’s eye brows furrowed in momentary confusion, and then relaxed into a humorous grin.

She took the shell with her left hand, her right hand with the book going behind her as she bowed slightly to graciously accept the reward. “Well, then Yva – I graciously accept said award.” She used a tone used by leaders when doing serious things – but laughed with Yvinka, unable to keep up the act.

“I dunno…” She said dreamily, hoping mightily she’d get to go on such an adventure like the timers – but then the girl started to talk about her home. Ceela just grinned as she listened, happily eating up the conversation that her new friend was providing. She tried not to get distracted by her own thoughts that Yvinka was sparking; like things they could do together – the beach trip she had posed to N’yx, or going down to the docks and flirting with traders to get rides on their boats, or even better – flirting with dragonriders to get rides on their dragons, or… She tried to rein back her thoughts as she talked about dragon colors.

She sighed dramatically. “Oh, I want all the colors! Do you think that’s possible? To get a dragon with all the colors? I heard there’s a white and a black dragon that came back from the Timers – the Timers being those who went back in time obviously. But if we’re talking seriously.” She tried to muster a more serious face, but failed as she continued to speak. “I picture myself on all the colors all the time. I grew up around dragons, so obviously as a little girl I liked the Golds – until I realized what gold dragons do all day.” She gave the girl a look that matched her disdain. “Nothing. They hardly even get to fight thread!” She shook her head. “Greens and blues are pretty, but I’ve even heard that there are female brown riders! So, I rest my case… Any of them… Or all of them…” It was a silly thought, but she didn’t like to choose just one color. Partly because she really loved them all, and partly she didn’t want to get her hopes in one basket, she wanted to be open to whoever wanted to impress to her.

“I’ve convinced N’yx, a blue rider, to go on a trip to a Southern beach on one of her off days! You should come! And help me convince a few more riders to come with us.” She said with a little hop from her excitement. “I think we’ll need a few men to even the odds.” She said with a little giggle. This girl fed her energy- and had a contagious energy that added to her own. She was glad she had had the urge to come to the beach, but really hadn’t needed to bring her book.

Zen