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As soon as the sun started to set and the heat of the day began to fade, music began. The harpers were each taking turns to entertain and provide music for the dance. Even dragonriders who had been apprenticed to the craft before being Searched were in on it. With the heat gone, the people of Ista seemed to come alive. Energetic songs were played. People were dragged to the large dancing circle that had been marked off the day before by men and women alike.

An energetic dance was taking place with much twirling and tossing. Harpers were on the stage; some in customary harper blue, others in brightly colored gather finery. Voices joined in a familar song. The stage was lit by glows, as well as the rounded tables on the outside. Vinters were dutifully delivering wineskins as quickly as they were able.

This thread takes place early evening and will continue through the night. Any harper trained character (dragonrider or otherwise) is invited to play a tune or song! Just make sure it's either from the books or has been rewritten to fit the setting with credits to the original artist if not your own work.
At the end of the event, there will be a raffle with rewards for those who have participated.

Ritsa felt like she was the last to appear to the gather. It had taken her far to long to procure a proper dress for the celebrations. She had even missed a meal in order to arrive at the special time. Her hair hung down in loose curls around her face. And she had even gone to the extent of making sure ever tiny inch of her was cleaned properly.

Her hazel eyes scanned about the crowds. She was nervous being here, but had been told it was proper protocol for a Candidate to appear. She wasn't sure she agreed with that notion but, be it as it was, she wasn't one to refuse the rulings of those higher ranked than herself. So here she was, surrounded by riders and Weyrfolk alike.

Chewing on her bottom lip subconsciously, Ritsa moved towards the outer edge of the group. It seemed she had appeared in time for the dancing. If that were the case she wouldn't mind settling for being a small wallflower. Part of her wondered why a gather had been called in the first place but she wasn't about to question it either. Tilting her head to the side as the first song of the dance rang in the air. The harpers were always good at their craft. She herself would never be skilled enough to be a harper, it required gifts you were born with, talents she herself could never posses.

Even then, she had heard life in the harper hall wasn't that easy for women. Licking her upper lip to moisten the dry skin Ritsa moved away from the main crowd of people.

F'nbar watched Ashlyn and T'anis with quiet amusement. They coupled up pretty quickly. he thought, with a slight inward grin. F'nbar looked toward the stage. For now the circle was empty. There had been one or two people dancing there before, but they all seemed to have broken off for now and there was an awkward pause as the musicians prepared to start the next tune with no one on the floor.

But, happy to dance, even if no one else was, F'nbar struck out first, hoping that breaking the empty circle would lead to others doing the same. Now it was just a question of whether his partner was as willing.

He kind of understood people's hesitation. The first ones out inevitably had everyone's eyes on them, even if for the briefest of moments, and that could be daunting. And, there was always that slight fear that no one else would follow and you'd be stuck in the middle by yourself, looking like an idiot. But that kind of thing had never really bothered him. If it would break the ice, he was happy to look like an idiot for everyone else's sake.

Even so, he'd prefer not to. After all, it was hard to dance alone. He turned to Kaila and held out a hand. "May I have this dance?" he asked her, graciously.

Melira was rather surprised to find a pair of arms wrapping around her. She had been about to make her way towards Kieza and ask for a dance. She recognized the embrace: so Melly had convinced R'rick to attend afterall. She didn't look up, and instead smiled. "Hello, love," she greeted him. "I thought your sister would get you to come. Can't have you missing out on the excitement!" She beamed up at him. "Will you dance with me?" She asked, raising a hand to his cheek. "Melly cleaned you up nicely," she teased. "You're even wearing your new boots! I'll have to congratulate her."

The greenrider had been resigned to the fact that her Weyrmate would not be attending the gather, despite his promise to dance. "You look very handsome, Roddy," she complimented him, taking her eyes off his for a moment to study what she assumed was his sister's handy work. She would have to ask Melly how she had convinced him. "If you won't dance, maybe you'll visit the stalls with me, hm? I have a few marks. They're burning a hole in my bag here." She patted the small satchel she had draped over her shoulder. "Where's Tieth?" She asked, looking for the dragon in question. "Not dancing, is he?" She glanced towards the heights, "With so many people, he's liable to crush someone."

She grinned, taking his hand. "Come on, Roddy! I'll give you back to Melly later!"

"Hn." R'rick couldn't help but grunt at the mention of excitement. This really wasn't the type of event he was interested in. Of course, he'd been at the weyr long enough to know that sometimes he had to sit through social events that he didn't much care for. This, however, was a bit stranger. Gathers reminded him of the festivals that Melly used to sneak out of the house to attend. The memory caused him to sigh lightly.

"Cleaned me-? I was perfectly clean before," he grouched. He might be here to make her happy, but that didn't mean he felt exactly at ease surrounded by so many people. But her hand was warm on his cheek, so he let his voice fade to a mumble. He was quiet a moment as he considered her offer, then glanced toward the group of dancers. "Let's go to the stalls first." Taking her hand, he steered her away from the music and dancing. "Tieth has been told to stay far away and not to cause trouble." Something in his voice hinted that he didn't exactly expect the brown to listen. "Besides, I'm to understand that dragons aren't welcome at this sort of event."

"Hn?" Melira echoed, smirking. She knew well, Roddy's dislike of crowds. She had never been particularly bothered by them, reveling as she did in the gossip of the Weyr. "No, you certainly look better than when I left our weyr," she teased him. She placed a kiss to his cheek, leaning forward on her toes to do so. "I'm glad you came, Roddy," she said, smiling up at him warmly. "I know you don't like them, but Turnover doesn't feel right without you." She wanted to catch a look at the ghosts tonight. They had been particularly bright the turn before.

"Stalls first?" She allowed him to lead her, beaming. "You hungry? Let's grab a bubblypie or two. Maybe something savory..." Gathering was hungry work! "Did you hear though, Rumith's rider is expecting! I'll tell Melly later. I'm sure she'll be excited to hear!" Melira didn't expect R'rick to recognize the dragon's name, nor to have heard the news. It wasn't something that made the entire Weyr buzz: babies were born daily, and had been for thousands of turns. Still! Melly would enjoy the news, she was friends with the bronzerider, wasn't she?

She gave R'rick's hand a squeeze. "You really do look nice, Roddy," she said. "I feel like we're Weyrlings again, just itching for romance."

~~~


Joleen was waiting for J'nes off to the side, watching the dancers. She looked up and spotted him. A smile crossed her face. So he had decided to come after all! She hadn't expected him to stand her up, but to meet a man so prompt: that was new! "J'nes!" She called to him, waving. She made her way through the crowd, towards him. "I thought you'd be coming later," she admitted, once she reached him. "Did you find someone to finish out your stall for you? Er. Do you want to dance? We could grab something to eat, too." Shards, when had communicating become difficult?

"I hope you have numbweed handy. I don't want to permenently damage your toes."

Naressa was sitting with the other harpers and she was adorn in the best blue dress she could pay with the few marks that she had and her hair was pulled back in a braid as she played her harp along with the other members. They finished up a medium paced song and now it was time for something a little different.

She was going to sing.

She was nervous, whether it showed or not was a different story. She had sung alone to herself as well with the other harpers, however. She hadn't sung in front of everyone else yet. Let alone other candidates. She gulped and she strummed a few notes of her harp as the others with their instruments chimed in. She cleared her throat slightly and she started to hum and finally, she sang.



She forgot how long that song was and she finished strong which surprised her because sometimes she faded out but she seemed to get it that time. She wanted a break from the playing of instruments and she gave a small smile to the group and stood up and walked over to the refreshment table. She needed a drink.