|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Wed Jul 29, 2009 1:54 pm
Tucked beneath her mattress, bound in wherry-hide, a sheaf of skins bound together with leather strips bears the tiny and painstaking writing of Illabel. It is a transcript of her life in the Weyr, from her perspective. Every available inch of the hides is written upon, maximizing the chance to put down in charcoal all that has gone on.
Welcome to the inner thoughts of Illabel, Candidate of Ista Weyr.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jul 29, 2009 1:57 pm
Dorm Life
Illabel shares a room with Allende and two other girls. Their room is tiny, however, so arrangements have had to be made for two to sleep on cots and two to sleep on pallets that tuck under the cots during the day.
Since this is such an incnovenient situation, all four girls have equably decided that it's only fair to pair off and take turns sleeping on the 'good beds'. Each will sleep on a cot for one week, and on the floor the next. Illabel is paired with Allende, who is not at all grouchy about giving Illabel the bed when it's her turn."I consider myself lucky to have convinced Alle to come be my roommate. The last girl was pretty nasty about sleeping on the floor. Alle though plays fair and we have no reason to quibble over sleeping arrangements. (And it's rather fun to have another girl to whisper and giggle with at night!)"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jul 29, 2009 1:59 pm
Who I Am
Illabel is fifteen, and has a round, gentle face with soft brown eyes. Her mouth is small and lovely, prone to smiling small, shy smiles. Her hair is a dark honey color, more brown than blonde usually, thick with a natural wave in it. Her hair was cropped short in the lice plague, but it has grown a bit more, so is a honey-colored mass of ripples. It has lightened in color due to all the work outside she's been doing with her shorter hair. Even so, she never looks untidy. Despite her jobs, she does her best to stay clean and neat, often with a smock over her clothing to keep mess to a minimum. Her clothing is feminine, often wearing skirts and simple blouses.
Over the year she's been in the Weyr, she has changed some physically, and not just the length and shade of her hair. Her body has been maturing in the nature of a late bloomer, developing the gentle curves of a young lady. This tends to embarass her, however. Also, she has developed more muscle tone. This isn't really visible, but she can tell when doing her chores. What used to tire her out or give her soreness every evening no longer does so. She feels stronger and more capable than ever.
She is a sweet-natured girl, often soft spoken. She holds firmly to the beliefs of her family: Do only good to others; what you think and speak comes from the heart; chastity before marriage. She knows some consider her chosen belief system rather restrictive, but since she instinctively follows it anyway, she finds nothing about it binding or uncomfortable. So far it hasn't become widely known yet among the Candidates that she follows this life-rule, but this is partly because her shyness has prevented any boys from taking notice of her.
Other than that, she is a steady if not speedy worker. She takes time to make sure it is done right, rather than done fast. She is deliberate and meticulous about all she does. Inwardly, she is equally deliberate. Illabel is a thinker, preferring to take time to mull things over before deciding what to do about them, or how she feels about them. She has in this last year made some concious changes to how she treats certain ideas, like being a goldrider. Though the idea still terrifies her, she has taken a firm grip on her fears and has made herself admit that even she could potentially be chosen by a gold, and thus that she should be prepared for that option. For shy little Illabel, this is quite a feat of determination."The longer I am here, the more certain and determined I find myself, that I WILL Impress. The longer I am here, the less I can see myself doing anything else."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jul 29, 2009 2:06 pm
Where I Came From
Illabel's parents, Bentarro and Gerdwyn, both worked in the Lower Caverns. Bentarro is one of the cooks, preferring soups and vegtable preparation to meats and breads. Gerdwyn was a cleaning servant, plain and, to some eyes, coarse in feature. But together they found love, a deep abiding trust, and contentment. They each felt the other completed them, and anyone could see they were both deleriously happy. When Illabel was born, there was rejoicing in the kitchens, needless to say.
However, when Illabel was very young, she lost her mother. (Unspecified reason, pardon the gap in storyline, just haven't figured out what happened.) Bentarro grieved deeply for her, but treasured his daughter all the more for the loss of her mother.
So little Illabel was raised in the kitchens, petted but not spoiled, for there was too much work to be done to spend overmuch time making a pet out of her. It wasn't long before she began to help out. By instinct she kept her head down and didn't draw notice to herself when more important people were about. The Headwoman noticed, and thought it might be time to set her to work doing tasks within the rooms of those who did not clean for themselves.
Thus it was at twelve, when their Lord Holder brought back firelizard eggs and distributed the few he had been given among those he wished to reward, Illabel saw the pots set upon hearths, the eggs hidden beneath the warm sand. She knew her place, and did not ever dare touch such precious things. This very thing was why she was trusted in their rooms, after all, trust that she knew her place and would not meddle.
However, one of the recipiants was a man who felt his importance dictated teh honor of an egg, though the man didn't seem to care much for the egg or the little life within it. Troubled, Illabel had a quiet word with the Headwoman, who then made sure to tend the egg for him, turning it at the proper intervals as the rest had been told to.
It was Illabels ill fortune to be cleaning up in this man's room when she noted the egg was moving. It had already shaken the sand from around it, and was rocking back and forth. Alarmed, she rushed to inform the man. To her dismay, he brushed her off. He was busy, didn't she see? He couldn't be bothered to chatter with some lowly servant girl, and one so young besides! He told her to go play, or do the tasks she'd been given, but to leave him alone! Frantic, she darted back to check the egg, which now was rocking madly, as if it might split at any second. She heard cries down the hall from a room she knew had one of the other eggs. She darted for the door, but noone paid her any heed.
She helplessly wavered, then ran back to the egg, just in time to see it crack open and tumble out a small, creeling form. It howled lustily for the one and only thing newborns want. Food! Beside herself for this tiny life, she snatched it up and ran back into the room where the man who should have been this flit's master was, eating his lunch and marking forms. She snatched a chunk of meat straight from his bowl of stew and gave it to the tiny thing, which gulped it whole, then creeled for more. The man turned in startlement and anger.
Needless to say, she tried to give it to him, but the firelizard would have none of it. The damage was done, Illabel had impressed the little bronze. The Headwoman arrived in a hurry, bowl of meat in hand, knowing the eggs would hatch at the same time. It was a good thing, for the flit was clawing with buttersoft claws at Illabel, who was in tears, and the man was in a roaring rage. The capable woman shoved the bowl into Illabel's hands, then pushed her into the other room while she had words with the neglectful man.
For Illabel, that was a lifechanging moment. She had always felt dutiful to follow in her mother's footsteps, but never had quite felt as fulfilled as she understood her mother had been. It was good to work hard, to feel the satisfaction of seeing the result of her work. But something was always missing. It had been since before she could remember, since the absence of her mother had created a hollow in her heart.
Little Bartan echoed joyfully in that hollow, but did not quite fill it. She delighted in him, and though he made a pest of himself, swooping in and out of rooms looking for her, or mussing with her hair while she was trying to work. (However, the Headwoman kept her from cleaning his original owner's rooms ever again. Probably a safe idea!) Still, he brought more joy into her life, and helped her be less shy and introverted. Everyone knew who she was now, which she found disconcerting after being nearly invisible. Her peers sought her out for Bertan's sake. She didn't mind that they really wanted him rather than her, but it pleased her that they wanted her company anyway.
It made quite a stir when a Rider came on Search. The entire Hold gathered round, with Illabel at the back while her father and the other kitchen staff scrambled to prepare something to offer the Rider. As a consequence, he never got a chance to tell her how proud he was, nor how it didn't surprise him in the least that she was chosen. Word drifted into the kitchen that someone was going, and that the Rider was sweeping her off. They were gone by the time he was told it was his daughter.
She felt very out of place at the Weyr at first, and was having a bit of culture shock, being amongst the Candidates and in the different atmosphere. Her tale from there on has been of her adjustment, and the friends she has made as she finds her way through this new life.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jul 29, 2009 2:07 pm
My Adventures
Little Lost Lamb - Illabel, Bartan, Lanakirene
Touching (African Clutch) - Illabel, ORP
Hatching (African Clutch) - no post
Hesitant Friend - Illabel, Bartan, Astrisabe
Touching (Tropical Fish Clutch) - Illabel, ORP
Hatching (Tropical Fish Clutch) - Illabel, ORP
Touching (Snake Clutch) - Illabel, ORP
Hatching (Snake Clutch)2 - Illabel, ORP
Have a Smile! - Illabel, Bartan, Beka
Girl Talk - Illabel, Bartan, Allende
Hatching (Horse Clutch)23 - Illabel, ORP
Voices in the Dark - Illabel, Bartan, Darcir
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jul 29, 2009 2:08 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Aug 03, 2009 11:01 am
Possible Futures
(What I want for her to experience)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
