What I'll Do...

Writers: Avery, Heather
Date Posted: 11th October 2017

Characters: Tarley, Erivana
Description: Two River Bluff refugees have a chat.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 13, day 17 of Turn 8

Erivana knew she should be getting to know some of the Dragonsfall
folks living in the barracks. They were going to be Candidates
together and if they Impressed, they'd be her clutchmates. And yet she
wasn't thrilled by the idea of getting to know new people just yet.
She preferred to interact with other River Bluff refugees, folks she
already knew. So when she saw Tarley in the Dining Cavern, she carried
her tray that way.

"May I sit with you?" she inquired.

Tarley looked up and was relieved to see another River Bluff face.
Although everyone at Dragonsfall had been friendly enough, they kept
to themselves, at least the Candidates did. Her sister, Erathena, of
course had no trouble squeezing into the Dragonsfall cliques, and was
further down the table seated between a couple new friends. It wasn't
that Tarley didn't want to meet new people, but she had enough on her
mind with the move to Dragonsfall, meeting her estranged Uncle, and
making sure Chartel was well looked after. She didn't have time for
making new friends.

"Sure," she gestured. She knew Erivana from River Bluff, they'd never
been close friends there, but it was a familiar face nonetheless.

Erivana set down her tray and then settled into a chair. "If this is
the end of spring, I can't imagine how bad winter will be," she said.

"I know, I haven't gotten use to that moment when you get out of the
bathing pool. My teeth chatter every time." The cold was new, at
least, it being this cold at this point in the Turn, but Tarley did
love the picturesque cliffs and the two lakes.

"That's what's getting me. I see some riders using the top lake and
I'm like, "how are you doing that?""

"Perhaps if we Impress here and stay our hides will toughen up enough
to find out." Tarley certainly hoped this would be her time to
Impress, otherwise she would be too old at the next Hatching.

"I suppose so," she said. "How's the family?"

"Well, you can see Erathena is fine," she tilted her head toward the
end of the table where her sister, who could pass as her twin, was
busy laughing with some of the Dragonsfall girls."Acharl seems to be
doing okay, he has made some friends with the other Candidates. Tyrael
loves the beastcrafters here and so far Yralei seems to be doing okay
in her apprenticeship."

"Good!" Erivana said with real pleasure. "I'm glad they're doing well.
Acharl especially." She'd had a crush on him for a whole Turn.

"What about you? How's your mother?" Tarley asked.

"She is settling in well enough."

Tarley gave a nod, her eyes straying to a rowdy group of wingriders
that had come in together. "It's good to have family with you."

"I feel bad for the folks who don't have anyone at all," she agreed.
"Have you been making friends yet?"

"Not exactly," Tarley said. "I am not avoiding it, but I am focused on
my Candidate chores and my siblings."

"And settling into dragonhealing here?" Erivana guessed.

Tarley lifted her shoulders, "A bit. I've kind of put it on hold until
I see if I Impress. Without a dragon there's no path forward in the
craft."

"I know the feeling. I don't want to switch to being a person Healer
or switching to do something else." She could be an apprentice forever
- but she'd do it elsewhere, without her mother.

"I haven't decided what I'll do if I don't Impress. I should start
thinking about it though...." Tarley looked around, envious of the
security the riders in the cavern felt with their places in life.
"Maybe I'll do things backward and go to the Hold and marry."

Erivana's eyes widened. "Truly? But wouldn't that feel constraining?"

Tarley gave a shrug, "I don't know. I think it would be harder staying
here, scrubbing floors while people in my Candidate classes went on to
be dragonriders."

"That's fair. But children and a husband, and what if they hated your
craft training?"

"If a husband hated my craft training I doubt he would have married me
in the first place." Tarley pointed out.

"That's true. Do you think there are a lot of holder men who'd marry
you, though? Or that you'd get to _do_ anything?" Maybe she could tend
flits...

"I don't know, raising kids might be satisfying enough. Who can say?"
After what had taken place in her life in the past few sevendays,
Tarley wasn't sure about anything.

"I hope this time works out for us both and we don't have to think
about it," she said.

Tarley's eyes strayed back to the group of dragonriders that had entered
together. "Me too."

Last updated on the October 27th 2017

Welcome to Triad Weyrs!

What I'll Do...