((currently C/P))

Name: Xing
Age: 30
Gender: Genderfluid.
Appearance: Xing is a grab bag of mixed ancestry, with slightly golden skin, dark almond shaped eyes and high cheek bones, thick black hair that stands off to wild lengths with very little encouragement, and encourage it zie does. There is a definite nod to Mongoloid genetics in zir build, and a mix of hard and soft angles in zir lanky, somewhat tall frame that ought to be considerably more awkward and less attractive, but Xing owns zir shape and plays on the ambiguous combination of traits and uses them to push perception, dressing for the gender roll zie wants to play at the moment.

Personality:
Flirty and Light hearted, Xing likes to mess with people's perceptions, taking maybe a bit too much delight in finding out zie has caused confusion or even argument over zir gender among people who don't zir very well, which can cause some problems among the more traditionally minded, or people who think it's not really that funny to push buttons just to push them, and who think that just maybe it's not really that helpful either.

Truth be told, a certain degree of this light heated, careless attitude is a facade to a sensitive core of a person who thinks the best way to keep from being harassed for not fitting traditional roles of gender identity is to do the harassing first.
Even after many arguments with zir partner about the appropriateness of copping this kind of defensive attitude, it remains something of a hard habit to break, born mostly from the reactions of outsiders and visitors to zir home Weyr, rather than people from inside it.

Xing doesn't always wander around wearing a smiling mask, however, in spite of an taste for highly unconventional fashion and a fondness for frankly extravagant things when available. ((Zie is especially fond of make up, in so much as zie can afford it.)) Zie is perfectly capable of becoming a storm of emotions, preferably matched by a theatrical change of of clothing. While Zie has fairly average intelligence, zie works well with others as far as tactical planning, and certainly knows how to use zir unusual qualities to throw people off balance, and is perfectly alright with using this to advantage in a discussion, especially if it will help a friend.

Zie, while open and very friendly, and decidedly flirty, may also surprise people when zie reveals that zie considers zirself to have a great many acquaintances but only a few friends, and no partners who go deeper than romance, since zie is generally disinterested in that sort of activity, as much a zie likes children, the process of getting them (outside of adoption) is just too messy.

Friendship is a hard won affair, and usually is a trophy awarded to those enormously patient souls who can not only accept zir rather unfortunate tendency to 'trial by fire', pushing at people until zie is certain that zie is ACTUALLY accepted and that it's not just 'Pretend acceptance'. This habit has no doubt cost friends over the years, and may cost others, but Zie has yet to fully break this deeply ingrained habit.

Also surprising to some is that Xing, in spite of a taste for flamboyance, sparkles, and bold patterns, is an equally determined fighter, and never went into being a candidate with the intent of bonding to a Gold dragon, but a fighting one. Zie has never been one to hide her light under a barel, even if that light is occasionally more of a misguided will-o-wisp dancing off in directions chaotic and impolitic, and learning to fight was something zie took to with a passion as a trainee. Misdirection and trickery are some of zir favorite techniques, but zie is still moderately skilled with the sword, if no master from harper song.


History:
Xing, the first born little girl to a proud brownrider and her lover (a non rider) grew up in a fairly normal fashion for a Weyrborn child, as comfortable and accepted as would be expected... but also became aware early on that zie was living in something of a comfortable bubble, and that not everyone was as tolerant of zir fluidity.

The first time someone's expression just... changed at the realization the phrase "today I'm a boy" wasn't just pretend stuck with zir, and has remained wedged in zir thoughts like a small thorn, seeping a thin thread of discontent like poison into zir life.

With zir supportive family behind zir, she became increasingly showy, even theatrical, as a way of handling zir resentment over how zie would be treated if zie had lived in less accepting climates. Not the best way to respond to things, but not as ideally managed as it could have been, since it was not always clear that this was a response to outside stimulus, and not just a particularly flamboyant personality (which zie does have anyway.)

Zir reluctance to call many people friends comes from further experimenting, curiously trying to make friends with people from outside the weyr as they came and went, and finding out that not all of them were as comfortable with zir ideas about gender identity as zie would have liked, though some did genuinely accept zir. Still it's always been the ones that didn't that stick with Xing, and zie treats them as the rule in dealing with people.

Becoming a candidate was, in zir mind, a natural step, dragons being superior to people in their acceptance of people, though candidate robes could really have been considerably less boring, but... zie guesses kind of ok. Blah blah need for order blah blah. Order can be gorgeous. Order should be gorgeous instead of boring, but zie supposes not everyone really could rock a sparkly beaded tunic so playing to less fabulous individuals is sort of kinder.

Zie did tolerably well at intellectual pursuits, but had a bit of trouble sticking to subjects that didn't capture interest as strongly. Memorizing dates or terms of old treaties was just never as exciting as a tidbit of scandal, or who was flirting with who and did so and so know about it, and it's something zie struggles with to this day. But zie at the time always figured that as someone surely destined for a fierce and gorgeous chromatic, why should zie have to know things that more ambitious riders, probably partnered to metallic dragons, would have greater involvement with. Zie didn't really think zie wanted much to do with politics and close minded souls from outside the weyr, not outside of saving their ungrateful rear ends anyway.

Then came he dragon plague, costing Xing zer mother, and her father both, as well several of zir small selection of 'true' friends, and a clutch laid not on the sands of zir home, but on unfamiliar desert sands. With so many losses, zie did not debate as much about leaving home for this standing as zie might have in other times, and zie, like may others, went to the desert, mingling with outsiders more open minded, more forward than deliberately politically backward Xing thought was possible, and zie maintains a deep fondness for the other Weyr and its inhabitants, and would like to see its ideology spread, though zie isn't so politically blind to think that zie has the power to change this easily, but hopes to at least see the roles of women in High Reaches change in zir lifetime.