A New Life, A New Look

Writers: Avery, Heather, Yvonne
Date Posted: 9th September 2014

Characters: L'pin, Alina, Chaysea
Description: Alina needs a new outfit to go with her new dragon, although she's less than pleased with the result
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 8, day 13 of Turn 7
Notes: Takes place the day after the Hatching

Alina

It was not that long after lunch, and Alina was exhausted already. She rubbed her eyes with the heels of her hands and willed herself energy-- and wished she could steal some from Imarith. The dragonet was running in wobbly circles around the yard, fascinated when her feet kicked up puffs of dust. }:Look at me! Look! Look!:{

"I see you," Alina called back, still uncomfortable with a dragonrider's silent communication.

}:Look! Can you do this? I can!:{ Imarith jumped and landed flat-footed, sending up a very small puff of dirt. }:I bet you can't!:{

**Sure I can, just not now.** Maybe when her legs healed a little more. She sighed, then stood, dreading the next task. But as a dragonrider-to-be she'd been given no choice, no matter how awful it would make her. "Let's go find L'pin."

}:I thought we were staying here?:{ Imarith reluctantly abandoned her game to trail after her rider. }:Where are we going? We were told to stay here while everyone else went running. Are we going running too?:{

"No." Alina grimaced. "We've got to go see the Headwoman."

Imarith immediately peppered her with questions-- what was that? Who was that? Why were they going? Did she have food? Could she make dust-clouds with her feet? What did she smell like? Alina answered with as much patience as she could muster until she found L'pin half-ways to his office. "L'pin? Could I bother you for a moment?"

"Absolutely. What's going on?" he asked her, smiling as he saw Imarith tagging behind.

"I..." She looked down at the peach dress she'd taken from the storerooms earlier. It was so pretty... but she didn't have that luxury anymore. "I need new clothes. Everyone else is exercising, so could I go see if the Headwoman is free?"

"Of course you can," he said, leading the way. "You aren't yet overstrained by what we're having you do, right?"

"No. I'm fine." Although it was hard to tell. Everything hurt, and it was exhausting. But that's what getting two inch talons in the back of the thighs did to a person. She tried not to think about it too much, or anything too much. It was best not to dwell.

"Good," he said. "If anything changes, you have her let us know."

}:We will take care of your rider, if you ask,:{ Chaneth reassured Imarith.

They arrived at the Headwoman's office before he asked her any more awkward questions, though he kept an eye on her. He knocked and said "It's L'pin and Alina," so she knew who was in.

"Hey," Chaysea said as she pulled the door open with a smile. There was concern in her eyes as she looked at Alina, "How are the legs feeling?"

"I'll be fine. Thank you for asking, Headwoman," Alina said. She nodded her head in the best approximation of a curtsey that she could manage. "I-- need new... clothes, if I may."

The Headwoman had secretly wondered when Alina would come to her for proper attire. She remembered talking to the Candidate about it when they had gone to the storage and picked out a new dress to replace her old one. "Of course, we'll just head to the storage room then."

Alina nodded glumly. This was going to be _awful_.

Chaysea cocked an amused eyebrow at L'pin, "And are you coming along for moral support?"

He gave her a soft smile when she opened the door, but let her handle the discussion. "To carry anything acquired back," he said.

"I can manage. I'm sure that you have more important things to do," Alina said. It was bad enough that she needed an escort at all-- the life of a Weyrling was apparently even more restrictive than that of a Candidate.

"Then I can't spend time with my favorite ladies," he said with a disarming smile, hoping the lighthearted line wouldn't offend either of them.

Chaysea laughed, "A chivalrous dragonrider? This is an odd commodity, Alina, we should take advantage of it. Come on." The Headwoman led the way down to the storage room and unlocked the door.

"I am sure you remember where things are." She said to Alina as she pushed the door open.

The weyrling nodded, then began her slow way to the shelves with tunics and pants. She did her best not to look at the dresses, which hung in neat, beautiful rows against the wall.

}:Where are the heads?:{ Imarith asked suddenly. The dragonet had followed Alina inside and was brushing a shelf filled with blankets with her nose.

"Heads?" Alina stopped and put her hands on her hips. **You're going to make a mess. Stop messing things up!**

}:But I want to see the heads.:{ Imarith's wings drooped as she followed Alina towards the shelves with pants. }:Can I have another head?:{

**You can't have another head. That's impossible.** Alina pursed her lips. **Why are you asking about heads?**

}:Because the Headwoman has things. Like heads,:{ came the reply. }:Doesn't she?:{

Alina snickered in spite of herself, imagining rows of heads in jars. Felines, people, dragons, runners, all neatly lined up behind glass.

Chaysea stood with L'pin by the door, her arms crossed over her chest as she watched the Weyrling browse. Because of her hallbred nature it was easy for her to imagine how different this life was for Alina. Luckily, in her capacity as Headwoman, Chaysea did not have to assimilate as much as Alina did as a Weyrling.

"Heads?" L'pin queried aloud, suspecting Imarith was thinking something. He was amused by the green's exploration of the storage room.

"We don't often see them inside. It's a shame, they're so curious." His eyes widened as he considered something. "Headwoman, do you know of any
old unused items that I could borrow, that could stand up to dragonet teeth?"

"For what purpose?" She asked curiously.

"A fun visualization exercise," he said, not wanting to spoil too much. "I'll tell you about it later, it's well worth a watch."

"Sure, I will round up some things and bring them to you tonight." She promised.

Alina, meanwhile, was staring at the shelves in defeat. She didn't want any of it-- the tunics, the pants, and worst of all the bathing costumes. She understood that they might be practical, that the dragonriders wore them for a reason, but... she began plucking a few things off the shelves at random, shaking them out and holding them up to her body to see if they might fit. The action gave her a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach, and Imarith turned from her explorations to crouch near her rider, her eyes whirling with reflected anxiety.

When she'd amassed a small pile, she went to the changing area that she'd used before and reluctantly unbuttoned her new dress. It fell to the floor in a
puddle of peach coloured cloth, and she let it lay there, abandoned, as she stared at the clothes she'd grabbed. They were all so... awful. Reluctantly she pulled on a pair of dark grey pants and hated them instantly. They stretched across her backside and curled provocatively around her thighs, and didn't feel particularly nice against her stitches. The tunic at the top of the pile was a rather drab green with short sleeves. She pulled it over her head and stared at herself in the polished metal that served as a mirror.

She looked... exposed. Alina tried to tug the tunic a little over to cover herself a little better, but it stubbornly stayed put. The top part was actually
looser than the dresses she usually wore, but the bottom... **I can't go out like this!** Her body was on display like a slab of meat hanging on a hook at tin the kitchens. And the green tunic wasn't particularly flattering, but maybe that was a good thing.

}:What are you doing?:{ Imarith poked her head beneath the curtain.

**I--** Tears stung Alina's eyes. She hastily knuckled them away and took a deep breath. Imarith meant that she was a greenrider, and greenriders paraded around half-naked all the time. It didn't matter how awful the pants made her feel, or how vulnerable. It was what was expected and her vanity could be scorched.

}:What did I do?:{ Imarith asked softly. The green crept all the way into the little space and pressed against Alina's legs. }:I'm sorry. I won't do it again.:{

**You didn't do anything.** Alina took her wedge-shaped head between her hands and bumped the dragonet's forehead with her own. **I'm just-- sometimes you have to do things you don't want to do.**

}:Why?:{

**Because you do.** Alina took a deep breath. No matter how much she wanted to, she couldn't hide in a store room forever. Picking up the folded pants and tunics she'd grabbed, she shook out her dress and pulled aside the curtain with a jerk before marching across the floor and holding the peach dress out to the Headwoman. "I won't need this anymore. Thank you for your time." She couldn't quite look at Chaysea or L'pin, and hated the humiliated flush that crept up across her face and chest.

Alina's body language was miserable, and he felt compelled to speak up. "You're allowed to keep personal items," he said gently. "Weyrlings don't have to have only work clothes. Two or three pairs of those, and one or two Gather items...surely it can be spared from stores," he said with a look at Chaysea.

"Please keep the dress, Alina, it looks so lovely on you. You can wear it in your free time." She said this with a glance at L'pin to make sure it was allowed. Surely Shen they weren't actively in chores or practice they could wear whatever they wanted?

"The Headwoman's right," L'pin said, pleased Chaysea was backing him up. Alina didn't have to give up everything she valued.

"Thank you." Her lips pinched, Alina refolded the dress and stuck it onto the top of the pile. It was better than arguing, although she saw the offer clearly for what it was-- a token gesture that meant nothing. The dress would go into the bottom of her drawer and get eaten by bugs before she'd ever get to wear it again. It wasn't even a Gather dress, just another work dress that was now useless.

Chaysea gave a nod, "Alright then. If that's all?" She gestured for L'pin and Alina to exit the storage room so that she could lock it again.

L'pin started out. "Thank you very much for helping us today, Headwoman," he said formally.

The brunette smiled at them both, "Any time."

Last updated on the September 29th 2014

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A New Life, A New Look