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Approved by Tawny

Name: Gelsana
Age: 17
Gender: Female
Rank: Candidate
Appearance: Dark brown hair and deep dark brown eyes go well with coffee colour skin. She's tall, rakish and she lacks a typical women's figure. Instead her body is a lot of sharp lines and harsh angles. Her elbow looks like it could take your eye out if you got to close. She does have muscles but they are as tough and wiry as the rest of her so they don't help give her any real additional curves. Her mother always insisted her boobs would grow but Gelsana has seen no evidence to support this since she was roughly 13.

Her face is a soft long oval shape and 'striking'. Not a typical beauty but the sharp lines of her frame extend to high cheek bones and fierce cat like eyes above thin lips. Her features are softened in a small degree by the blossom of youth and red in her cheeks but even that is quickly fading.

She keeps her head shaved as expected of a candidate but when allowed to wear her own clothing at gathers she often chooses a surprisingly feminine selection. A pretty scarf or shawl to cover her head while shaped tops and jackets make the best of what little she has. Below that she wears flowing skirts and dresses in a whole variety of pastel colours.

Personality: Life is not easy, expect nothing to be given to you and do what you have to in order to survive. These are all harsh life lessons that Gelsana came to learn at a very young age. Gel's childhood freedom was short lived and as soon as she was old enough she began to work on her family farm. It is thanks to this she is entirely practical in her approach to life. Everything needs to be a means to an end or it is assumed to be a frivolous waste of time and energy.
There is also very little room for over sentimentality in Gel's world view if calves need to be culled for the good of the herd she is unlikely to so much as flinch when she cuts its throat.

In her mind, Crying is 'silly' because its not going to solve anything and if someone has nothing useful to contribute then they are better left in a corner out of the way. She doesn't find many jokes very funny and others simply pass over her head. When she makes open attempts at human interaction it is often to boss other people around because they aren't doing the thing quite right. If they continue to fail in the task despite her very clear and exact instructions she can often become frustrated and even loose her temper all together. She has little patience to put up with others inadequacies and no patience for people that won't even try or put in suitable amounts of effort.

She has efficacious and organised daily routines and her own personal space is always spotless. Messing up her things is a guaranteed method to send her into fits. Any rider that takes on her on as a squire is also guaranteed an equally high standard of cleaning about their weyr.


Her skills range from sewing to butchering a whole herd beast ready for the table. She often struggles to understand why everyone else can not do the same. She is athletic and nearly all physical lessons and new skills come easily to her. Including fighting where each one of her movements are fast brutal and effective with no undue flourishes or twists. On the other her education of the arts is incredibly limited, painting, poems and music never hold her attention for very long and if you try and force her to dance, she will hurt you. This extends to reading and writing which has been a struggle for her ever since she was brought to the weyr. She has only manged to get a hold on her letters because she has come to see their practical application.

Just because she is good at a lot of things does not mean she can do everything on her own, even though she tries. She has a very hard time asking for others help, which has lead her to becoming over whelmed in the past and working to exhaustion or making mistakes while she juggles too many things at once. It takes a good friend or equally strong personality to talk her down and let others take some of the weight off.

On the flip side of the coin, she is not a robot. She still has the ability to make long lasting and deep connections with people if they can get around her controlling habits. She forgives easily and will not hold grudges. She is loyal to her friends and she never breaks a promise. She is also highly reliable when she says she will do something there are few instances where she will fail to get it done. On rare occasions she can even be goaded into actually having fun! He one major indulgence in love is food! She loves cooking and she adores trying new dishes. She melts at anything sweet and given the chance she would eat till she burst. She also enjoys cooking for others and the only time someone has seen her blush was when someone complimented her meat pies. During her rare free time she can be found gathering natural edible ingredients around the weyr to use if she ever gets into the kitchen.


History: Gelsana's family history on her paternal side is along lines of rouges, holderless and mercenaries. Her grandfather was the first one to break the cycle when he met Gel's grandmother. The story of their first meeting changes every time. From simple meetings to daring rescues and wild romance. Whatever the reality the result was that Gel's grandfather put away his sword and settled down on a cothold at the edge of a small hold where they had three daughters and one son (Getlan). One of the daughters was married but the older two of the three never managed to find husbands to their liking and they stayed at the family farm supporting their brother and parents in running things.

It was widely acknowledged that the families son was a gambler and a drunk, over all, no good. But by some small miracle he still manged to find himself a wife. A childhood friend by all accounts. Shortly after a skirmish rose up between Ruatha and high reaches and Gel's grandfather was killed defending the hold from bandits (likely other refugees.) It meant the hold survived with minimal damage and Gel's poor family reputation in the community was improved by his sacrifice. Getlan was left the only remaining man of the household but the gambling dens were always a greater attraction than hard work. His wife Sanela and his sisters stepped up to run the land and with careful management and luck shielding them from the worst of perns misfortunes the farm grew and by the time Gelvet was born the family were comfortable. Shortly after Gelsana was followed by two girls and a boy mirroring the previous generation perfectly.

Gel was quickly taught about life on the farm after she graduated from the creche since she was the oldest and was expected to pull her weight more than her younger siblings. Her grandmother was her main carer about the house and taught her how to sew, grow herbs in the garden and most importantly to cook. Meanwhile her aunts taught her about life with the beasts and how to care for them. Gel's mother handled the accounts and became friendly with the local traders and representatives of the weyr who were their main customer, getting better prices and buying in fresh blood to improve the quality of their herd. Gel's father meanwhile was an embarrassment and Gel's early childhood admiration of her parent quickly turned to scorn. He might have still had a chance to win back his family but his gambling got worse and one day when the drink was cheep and the complaints of his wife and sisters ran through his head, he bet big and lost.

The aftermath was predictable, after a solid day of heated argument and angry words Getlan left. He took took his fathers sword and left to join the war that was brewing in Ruatha swearing he would make his own fortune. None of the family could claim they were sorry to see him go. Soon the war spread and further crushed the family's financial stability. More of the herd was stolen and on one occasion the farm was almost burnt to the ground. Within a few turns the family went from prosperous stability to living on the edge.Gel's grandmother grew sick and died as did one of Gwen's younger sisters. Small relief came when the war ended but Gel never saw the return of her father and it was a slow road trying to rebuild their herd. They only survived at all because the community of the hold stepped up to protect them in return for meat they reared knowing they had to band together more closely than ever and the dragon riders who fended off many of the bandit attacks.

It was during a patrol that Gelsana was searched, there was a brief battle between her and her family about the best course but in the end she entered the weyr as a candidate. Flying through the first stage of her training with relative ease she just has to pass the test of a squire before she is ready to stand.

Okay that should do it!

And I just want to stress I didn't mean to offend anyone with the OCD comment.I'm sorry if I did