A New Life (2 of 8)

Writers: Len, Paula
Date Posted: 27th March 2019

Characters: L'fael, Yanley, Jaylene, Jessmyr
Description: After the meeting with the Weyrwoman, Jaylene takes Lafael to the Headwoman to get settled in (part two of eight)
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 5, day 9 of Turn 9
Notes: Mentioned: D'ale (not by name), E'naer, Kiomo, Uetia
Note: part two of eight

Yanley

Jaylene

Lafael's head was spinning as he followed the pretty greenrider back
down the stairs. She was chatting to him but he was unable to take it
in. His mind was instead focused on the quiet chatter from the
dragons. It wasn't overwhelming, it was more like having spent his
life out in the wilderness and to now be relocated into a Hold. Only
this was a Weyr. And then it came to him, he_was_at the Weyr.

He was safe.

}:Of course you're safe:{ He could feel the love coming from Reanth,
along with her kind words. It was all too new, too overwhelming to
explain to her about his life, about the constant uncertainties, the
constant abuse, the loneliness, the feelings of worthlessness.

He stopped in his tracks.

It took Jaylene a few moments of hearing her own voice to notice she
was talking to the air. Halting both her feet and her mouth, she
turned and looked back. The boy was stock still, a look of both
confusion and happiness flicking across his rather attractive
features. With a good scrub-up, he would be a good looking kid, she
thought to herself. **Reanth? Is he okay?**

}:He's just realized he's safe:{

**Of course he's safe!** And then it occurred to Jaylene of the life
this child had led. Just looking at his state, of the shabby, dirty
clothes, the torn tunic, the long tangled hair, of the dirty hands and
calloused fingers. Of the bruise along the side of his jaw. Of the
wounded, scared eyes. This may have been the very first time he had
ever felt safe.

Jaylene blinked back the unexpected tears that thought brought to her
eyes, and walked back to him. In as gentle a voice as she could, she
said, "Are you okay, Lafael? Do you need anything?"

"Do I...need anything?" The boy looked at her like it had never
occurred to him to be asked those questions.

Reaching out, she took him by the elbow and gently squeezed it. "I've
always lived my life in a Weyr, I haven't a clue what it's like to be
in your shoes, but I can assure you now that you are free to do
whatever you wish, Lafael. As the Weyrwoman said, you can do whatever
your heart wishes."

"I...I never got a chance to learn," he said in a whisper. To read a
book freely without struggling over the words, to learn what he
wanted, to find out things to fill his mind hungry for knowledge.

"Well, now's your chance. I'll let Yanley know you are to go to the
harper first thing tomorrow morning, okay?" The look on his face made
Jaylene tear up yet again. She covered it up by leading him down the
hall and into the kitchens. "But you can't learn a thing unless we
introduce you to Yanley. You'll like her, she's my wingsecond's mate."

Lafael nodded to her words but his senses were being assaulted. The
kitchen was as busy a place as he had ever seen. It made the Sea
Hold's kitchens look tiny in comparison. But unlike that kitchen this
one was orderly and tidy. No one was being yelled at or kicked or hit.
In fact everyone looked--for the most part--happy to be there. Through
the maze of people Jaylene walked, yelling a few good natured insults
at an older woman he didn't realise at first was her mother. Before he
could take it all in they had arrived at a short hallway to which a
door stood closed.

Jaylene rapped it with her knuckles and shouted, "Yanley? Are you in there?"

"Yes, I am," Yanley replied, her voice sounded muffled thru the closed door.

Jaylene grinned at Lafael and opened the door. "I've got a new orphan
for you to take charge of. He's from Sunstone and can hear dragons,"
she said as she walked in, and indicated that Lafael should take the
seat opposite Yanley's desk.

Lafael sat down, his eyes wide. The Headwoman was quite possibly the
prettiest woman he had ever seen. He snapped his mouth shut when he
realised it was hanging open. Every single woman here seemed much
prettier and happier than any he had ever met at the Hold. With good
reason, he thought to himself.

"Welcome to the Dragonsfall Weyr. I'm Yanley, the headwoman," Yanley
introduced herself. Her gaze sweeped over him and she noted his
condition and state of his clothes. She give Jaylene an quizzical
look.
"And you're name is?" she asked, picking up hide where she could
record his information. Both of her flits were staring the boy too
from their perch.

Lafael saw the flits for the first time. He opened his mouth to answer
her but nothing came out, as it took all his attention to stare at the
fire lizards. There weren't very many of them at the Hold.

Jaylene caught his expression and raised a wry eyebrow to Yanley. "His
name is Lafael. He'll probably end up Standing but we need E'naer to
find a searchdragon to sniff him over first. In the meantime he's
going to need an entire new wardrobe and a haircut and anything else
to make him look pretty." She grinned and ruffled the boy's hair,
getting his attention. "Do you want a cup of klah?" The boy was
looking a bit washed out.

"Yes, they've both mine, Thistle and Bramble," Yanley said gently,
noticing where his attention. Getting anything out of the boy was
going to a task. "Bram, I have job for you," she called and the brown
flit flew to land on her desk. "Fetch Jessmyr, tell him to bring klah
and something to eat," she told him, adding the image of the pale
faced boy and tray with steaming pot. Bram let an affirmative chirp
and soon popped /between/.

"Meanwhile, Lafael, I need your birthdate and -Turn, as well of name
of your parents and any siblings you might have," Yanley requested.
She needed the information for the Weyr's records.

Lafael sighed as the little brown disappeared /between/. He'd rather
see the flit than have anything to eat, though his stomach rolled in
protest against that thought. He turned back to the Headwoman, taking
in her questions. "Parents...? I...I...never knew my parents. My ma
died just after I was born and her older brother raised me as the
family's drudge, then he traded me to a passing caravan and I worked
as a groom for the runnerbeasts until I broke my ankle and was left at
Sunstone. So...I_think_I'm nineteen turns, and I don't exactly know my
birthingday, no one ever told me. I'm sorry."

Yanley was bit surprised, the boy looked younger than that. "Well, I
need some sort of birthdate for you. Do you have any idea if you were
born in summer or winter or anything? If you give your uncle's name
and where he lives I can inquire it from him."

The lad just gave her a blank look. How would he know that??
"I...uh...was traded when I was about ten or eleven, I've no idea my
uncle's name or the Hold we lived in. It was deep in the jungle and
there were only his family and another as far as I remember." He
looked to Jaylene for help.

Reanth also reached out to her rider. }:These questions are really
hard for him, his mind has gone very sad. I can't reach him as well.:{

Jaylene nodded both to her green's thoughts and to Lafael's sad eyes.
"Yanley? I'm sure I can get a weyrling to go to ask Kiomo for these
questions later today. I think the lad really needs some new clothes
and something in his stomach right now, and maybe a quiet place to
take all this in. Uetia and I did sweep him away first thing this
morning." She smiled at Yanley, hoping she wasn't stepping on the
headwoman's toes. But her duty was to her young charge, and to listen
to her dragon.

"You're right, Jaylene, we can figure it out later," Yanley took
another look at the boy. While ten Turns old should have been able to
know his uncles name and the name of the place he lived, he could be
just so badly traumatized that he didn't want to remember, blocking it
subconsciously. "Jessmyr should be soon here with refreshments. Also,
we need to have him checked out by healers at some point." That didn't
have to be done today though, so Yanley just wrote it to Lafael's
record as a reminder to schedule it.

Jaylene was relieved that Yanley didn't look like she was going to
insist he see a healer right now. She wrapped a sisterly arm around
the lad, glad to see a bit of colour returning to his cheeks. He
really did need some food and clothes, a bath and time to settle in
and take in everything.

The was knock and voice called thru the door. "It's me, Jess."

"Come in," Yanley replied and Jessmyr stepped in, carrying a tray with
steaming pitcher of klah and some breakfast rolls with cheese left
over from morning meal. Val rode on his shoulder. The flit surveyed
the people in the room, always ready to protect his human. He already
knew Yanley, Jaylene smelled like dragon, so she was probably safe and
third person..even an over protective firelizard couldn't find
anything threatening in Lafael.

Jaylene sighed in relief as Lafael tucked into the food and klah with
gusto and Reanth said his mind was again at ease. She's get to the
bottom of his life at Sunstone, but that was a job for later. Now was
only to make sure Lafael was okay.

Last updated on the April 4th 2019

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A New Life (2 of 8)