A New Beginning

Writers: Heather, Lethy
Date Posted: 8th December 2020

Characters: Senalea, F'aen, Ayressa
Description: F'aen and Ayressa welcome Senalea to the Weyr
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 6, day 10 of Turn 10
Notes: Mentioned: T'ner, Malkis
Mentor Approved, obviously takes place after being Searched ;)

"Don't worry, you'll get the hang of things in no time." F'aen told Senalea as he led her out of his office. "Ayressa, do you have a minute?" he said, stepping into a nearby classroom.

Another Candidate came to the door, curiosity showing in her eyes. "Yes, sir?"

"Senalea this is Ayressa, Ayressa this is Senalea, a new Candidate to the Weyr. Ayressa came from the Emerald Falls territory, so you two might have some things in common. Ayressa will show you around the Weyr and help you get settled into the girl's barracks."

"Thank you, sir, I'm sure I will. I'm just feeling a little overwhelmed right now." she said, and turned to Ayressa. "It's nice to meet you Ayressa. Whereabouts do you live? I'm to the north of the Hold; my parents have a small farming cothold." She smiled, and adjusted the bag over her shoulder, somewhat nervously.

"My husband... I mean, my weyrmate's family are Holders at Green Valley." It was still weird to think that the man who had once been her 'husband' no longer was, technically, since he had Impressed and Impression canceled out marriages. Ayressa still wasn't certain why that was necessary, but it was the 'way of the Weyr' apparently. "I felt so overwhelmed when we first arrived - I had never been away from home before coming here." Ayressa looked at F'aen. "I'll take it from here, sir."

F'aen smiled at them both. "I know you will. If you have any questions, Senalea, you know where to find me." The greenrider departed then.

Senalea watched him leave, and turned back to Ayressa. "So, where to first?" she asked, expectantly. This place, this Weyr, was so different than she was used to, having lived on her parents farm all of her life. "I'd never been away from home either; glad I'm not the only one who's ever felt overwhelmed." she continued, relief in her voice.

"Let's go to the barracks so you can get a bed and put your things down, no use lugging them all around the Weyr. Do you need me to carry anything?" Ayressa offered.

Senalea glanced down at the bags she carried over her shoulder and in her hand, thinking. "Um, they're not too heavy, I can manage, but thank you for offering." she replied with a reassuring smile. "I can make it to the barracks."

The walk to the barracks wasn't far. "So those cots," she gestured to some of the bottom bunks, "are all empty. Just pick the one that you want. You can store your things in the chest at the foot of the bed." Ayressa explained. "There's not a whole lot of girls living in here right now, since there are no eggs on the Sands, so it's usually pretty quiet in here."

Senalea looked at the bunks and picked one on the end of the row. She opened the trunk at its foot and stowed her bags, with a relieved sigh. Shutting the lid, she turned and stared around, familiarizing herself with the room; it was so different from home!

With a mental shake, she forced back the feeling of homesickness and bravely smiled at Ayressa.

"So...where to next?" she asked.

"I'll show you to the two most important places - the Dining Cavern, and the spot where the Headwoman posts the chore list at the beginning of each sevenday." Ayressa said with a lift of her eyebrows. "If you want a good piece of bread or meat in the morning for breakfast, you have to be willing to get up early. A lot of the wingriders get there first because they have early drills or transport duties. If you wait too late then all you have left is what has been picked over." She explained this as they walked across the Weyrbowl.

As Senalea tagged along, listening to Ayressa, a shadow passed over them, and she quickly looked up, to see a blue dragon passing overhead. She watched as it perched on a ledge, and then disappeared inside. She got a little behind the other girl, and she trotted to catch up. "I'm an early riser, so I can be up, no problem." she replied.

They entered the Dining Cavern, and she looked around the cavern, noting all the tables. "This is a big place! Does everyone sit in certain spots, like riders in one place, candidates in another, and so on, or can we sit anywhere? Does it matter, I mean."

"The head table is for leadership, but otherwise, you can pretty much sit anywhere you find an open spot. People tend to cluster together in groups, so you'll usually see some candidates together or Weyrlings." Ayressa said as they passed through the Dining Cavern to the kitchens. "This," she tapped the board there, "is where the Headwoman posts the chores lists for _everyone_ Candidates, cavern workers, everyone. You aren't on the list yet, but it will be updated soon."

Senalea nodded understanding; she would be expected to pull her own weight, but she was grateful she'd have something to do while waiting for a Hatching to happen, some day.

Being in the kitchen reminded her that she hadn't eaten in some time, and her stomach abruptly growled. She chuckled. "I was so busy getting ready to come to the Weyr, I missed a meal."she explained apologetically.

Ayressa waved off the apology. "I haven't eaten yet either. Let's grab something, and we can talk while we eat."

"Sounds like a good idea to me! I think I'm hungrier than I first thought- must have been my nervousness keeping from realizing it. But anyway, something smells delicious!" Senalea replied, following Ayressa to get in line.

"So, what's your family like? Were they excited about you being Searched?" Ayressa asked once they had their food and were seated at a table.

Senalea slowly cut into a meatroll, thinking. "Well, we're just farmers- Papa is a journeyman farmer, it's all he was ever interested in. Mama and my brother and I helped him around the cothold.

When the Searchrider showed up though, my parents were very excited; Papa thought it would be a great honor to be picked to be a Candidate, so when I actually was, he was so proud I thought he'd bust," she replied, grinning at the memory.

"I thought my brother Malkis might be jealous, but he just gave me a hug and teased me some about it. I think he was kind of relieved; he has a sweetheart I think and didn't want to leave her behind. Was your family excited for you?"

"Not exactly," Ayressa chuckled. "I was married, to Tener, he's T'ner now, and we had a baby, but he was Searched and so we decided to move our family here. My family thought coming to the Weyr so he could Impress was ... outrageous. Then when he Impressed to a blue dragon... my family practically disowned me. His was a little more understanding. I was just Searched myself a couple of months ago, so I doubt my family even knows."

"Oh...I'm sorry to hear that. It must be hard, not having support from your family like that." Senalea said, putting her fork down, and giving Ayressa a sympathetic look. "My family is so close, I don't know what I would do if they weren't so positive about my being Searched."

She stared at her plate a moment, wondering how to change the subject to less depressing things, hoping she hadn't upset Ayressa by asking about her family.

"Oh, don't apologize, my parents have plenty of other children they can be proud of." Ayressa smirked a little to let Senalea know she was teasing. She had accepted that her family would never understand when she and T'ner moved to the Weyr. Her happiness was not dependent on their understanding or acceptance.

"Oh! Okay, I got you." Senalea said, with a relieved laugh. She was glad Ayressa wasn't upset.

She went back to eating, and finished quickly. She stood up and grabbed her tray, taking it to where others had put their empty dishware. She walked back to Ayressa, and said "I think I'll go back and unpack my things. Thank you _so_ much for showing me around, I really appreciate it! I don't feel so overwhelmed as I did before!"

With a wave and a smile to the other girl, she left, humming. Yes, she was going to enjoy living in the Weyr!

Last updated on the January 13th 2021

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A New Beginning