Familiar Places, Familiar Faces (1)

Writers: AL, Devin
Date Posted: 21st November 2008

Characters: Jerroll, Edele
Description: Edele finds out something about herself.
Location: Elsewhere on Pern
Date: month 12, day 10 of Turn 4

The ship had been docked and the gangplank lowered. Edele stood upon the ship, staring down at the ramp. The sailors bustled about on the ship, but upon the docks crowds and crowds of milled together, a wave of bodies and a cacophony of shouts, their dissonance ringing in her ears. Was this where she was supposed to be? Or had she merely heard the name and her dreams had urged her to seek it out on a fruitless journey?

"Need an escort?" Jerroll asked.

"Escort, courage, motivation." Edele's lips stretched thinly in a weak attempt at a smile. "All three."

"You're in luck. I happen to have all three." He offered her his arm.

Edele's hand slipped into the crook of his elbow and she drew close to him, as if trying to draw strength from his presence. "I suppose there's nothing to do now but go ashore. No sense in coming all the way out here for nothing."

"Relax, Edele. This is an adventure. You might get to discover your life all over again." He led her off the ship.

Yes, but would it be a life she wanted? Edele had become so accustomed to the ship despite the short time she had been on it. She had grown to love the life at sea. Would she be able to part with that life? "Yes. A new adventure." Edele stepped off of the ramp and inched closer to Jerroll, pressed in by the sea of bodies that massed on the docks.

He steered them to a more open street. "Well? You're the navigator."

"A navigator who doesn't even know where to go." Edele looked around her, eyes darting about. Yes, things seemed familiar, but it was still vague as to how. No details came to her. She clung to Jerroll as if she were afraid she would misstep and fall into the sea. After a moment, she gently began to tug at him, heading toward the stretch of building that comprised of the main hold.

She had to admit, she was surprised at the size of it. While not a major Hold, Esper bay was still large and very, very busy. Even the lighter areas were full of waves of heads bobbing up and down as people rustled about their business. One boy ran into them and muttered something unintelligible. He glanced up at her and seemed to be about to go his way when he froze, his eyes widening and he stared at her, mouth gaping.

"Do you recognize her?" Jerroll asked.

The boy's eyes strained over toward Jerroll. Then, without a word, he turned and bolted, disappearing into the crowd before either of them could move. Edele frowned, lines creasing the corners of her mouth. "What do you think that was about?"

"I don't know. Maybe he thought you were his older sister," he teased. Inside, he was nervous. It would be hard for him to believe that Edele was a bad person, but even the best people could get into trouble. Edele could have been involved in anything before the shipwreck took her memory.

Edele hmmed softly, then motioned that they should continue. They wound their, taking a path that headed straight to the Hold proper. There the crowd thinned considerably and only the occasional person would come or go on their way to or fro. They had gotten about halfway there when they could see two forms jogging around those who were moving slower. Edele gently tugged Jerroll to the side to get out of their way, but the forms slowed down and stopped. One was the boy they had seen earlier. The other, a man who looked to be just a little younger than Jerroll, hair to his shoulders and face ruggedly handsome. His blue eyes grew wide as he regarded the woman, "Alita....Alita it's...it's you!" He moved forward and took Edele by the arms, staring at her as if she were a vision of his dreams rather than a reality.

Last updated on the November 22nd 2008

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Familiar Places, Familiar Faces (1)