Age:35 *birthday 5/17*
Sexual Orientation: bisexual
Craft/Rank:Wing Rider (aka Messenger Girl)
Pre Impression History:They say it takes a village to raise a child and if that is the case, Ralae needs at least two. Born as the result of a brown rider losing a mating flight and a crafter in Malvern, Ralae was by no means their first child nor their last but she was the only child from their pairing. She knows her father's name is R'lur and her mother Laeoni, so she assumes that her name is a combination of theirs. As soon as she was old enough, she was fostered along with others in her age group to her foster mother, Addaja. From the very beginning, Ralae may have appeared very girly and sweet but she was rough and tumble. Wanna go play with the canines? She was there! Time to go play dragons and felines in the field, count her in! Anything a boy could do, she can do better. And so, Ralae grew as any weyrbrat did. She knows her Ballards and her Duty Songs. She knows basic mending, cooking, cleaning, baking, and other tasks. Ralae knows how to write her name and do basic numbers. In fact, anything that she didn't know, she has made it her point to know including finding out who all her half-siblings are. She has five of them and knows one of them personally, her oldest brother Donal. The rest she knows on sight but not personally. At least, not yet.
Pre Time Jump History: It was a fairly uneventful Impression. It also happened to be Ralae's birthday. In fact, Zabreth and Ralae were the first bonded pair. And what a pair! They took life by the horns and embraced lessons with joy. Making several friends, including Blue Rider Wykla and Crimson Rider, Kleos, life was good. Or it was until the golds started having trouble laying. Always up for an adventure, Ralae was one of many riders who volunteered for the first Time Jump. The goal was to go back in time and look for mystweed and other clues on how to help the goals.
What happened was far worse.
Somehow, they got lost in Time. And even worse, they had emerged during Threadfall. Ralae and Zabreth were hurt very badly. They had come out in Thread, getting hit by clumps all over. They were lost for weeks before finally making it back home. And still she volunteered to show others how to go back in time, to try to find myst weed and other artifacts to help the golds out. Malvren was her home, she was shaken. She had nightmares. But she was okay with her friends by her side. And then Keller and his forces struck. Fleeing to Trine, Ralae stayed close to Kleos and Wykla. The two girls helped her through rough times and nightmares. And thing started to get better, she was able to become a messenger again. All was going well until it wasn't... Trine was being undermined by sabotage, assassinations, and much more.On the night of a Gathering, a celebration, someone had managed to let loose a tunnel snake. Ralae went with the group to hunt the snake. Which they found. And which crushed and gouged her. This caused her to go into shock.
For a long time after, Ralae suffered from PSTD. Though her inner strength shocked many as she didn't suicide or lose her mind. Working with mind healers and staying close to her friends, Ralae began to heal slowly. She formed a close bond with the crimson rider she considered her hero. The idea of new districts, taking back Malvren, a strange new weyrhold forming... The strife of Pern was nothing compared to the mind storm Ralae worked her way through and shortly after Bandshidheth's clutch at Trine, Ralae finally felt well enough to go back to being a full time rider.
Time Jump History: Petitioning to join Kleos's wing, Ralae was confident in being able to return back to rider duties. Going out on patrols, playing messenger once more, Ralae did her best to stay away from the fighting and anger. Her heart ached to return home. But then, a horrible event occurred... Sharath was poisoned and her clutch tainted. Suddenly, Ralae found herself preparing for a war. Though she did not actually fight in the battle, Ralae and Zabreth were used to convey supplies and other odd jobs. She was there when Benden fell and rode by Kleos's side (though not actually by her side) for battle for Malvren. She had hoped that they could reclaim their home but that was not the case. Instead, both weyrs were abandoned and Trine expanded.
And she was at a loss again. Ralae was tired of the violence, tired of the fighting. She looked to become an assistant to the WeyrlingMaster or CandidateMaster but nothing panned out for her. She tried training as an official courier but that did not work out for her. In the end, she went to the Harper Hall and begged for lessons in something. Anything. Anything to ease the torturous times she had lived through during her 10 Turns as a rider. So she took to scribing, for she had always had a natural curiosity. Ralae truly enjoyed looking through old tomes and manuscripts. Her handwriting improved, her mind expanded, and she was content. Until fear and anger started to divide them.
Ralae truly was content where she was at in her life, she didn't want power. Didn't want prestige, only peace. But when the golds tried to command dragons and force them to act against their will, Ralae and Zabreth chose their side. A rider and dragon should be able to chose their own path, shouldn't be forced to make such horrible choices versus their own desires.
Current: After 2 decades of turns, Ralae is tired. Tired of conflict, tired of fighting... Almost tired of life. After the crisis with the Rogue Queens, Ralae was able to go back to Trine's record halls and take scribing back up. She still is in rotation for fighting Thread and patrols but in her spare time, she is either at the Halls or with Zabreth. Her dragon still enjoys "treasure" hunting and collecting, and she enjoys painting. Ralae has also taken to mentoring younger riders and those who have experienced severe trauma as well. It is her hope that she can make a small difference in their lives.
Through all her trials and tribulations, there is one person she has stayed close with besides her own dragon- Kleos. Her view is a mix of hero worship, big sister, and much more. Ralae credits the crimson rider with a lot of her survival and she would do anything for the rider or dragon.
Description: Ralae has light ashe brown hair that almost borders on blonde. The white hairs are starting to creep in and occasionally, she uses a herbal wash to even out the color. Her hair is very fine and doesn't tame easier so she tends to keep it short, just below her chin. Since becoming Time Lost, her hair is parted weird by a scar that runs from the middle of her head, down to the right and ends just at her eyebrow. Her eyes are a warm brown color, like mud just after the rains. A round face that has high cheekbones, her face has shaped into a young woman's face though now small wrinkles from stress and age have started to creep in near her eyes and corners of her mouth. It seems like she constantly has bags under her eyes but it is more shadows than anything. Ralae has a short nose that tips down, a wide mouth with a bright smile when she graces someone with it. She comes in at 5'4" and 120 lbs, having a late growth spurt around 18 turns. Her arms and legs are toned from running, and she has finally built up some muscle from her rider duties; however she is still lean in general. Her skin tone is simply brown due to being outside all the time. She is slightly bowed-legged and sometimes walks funny due to the fact that she broke her right ankle when she was 7 turns. Her right leg gives her pain from being broke, causing her to limp from time to time. There is an ugly scar across her chest that runs from her left shoulder down to about her belly. It looks like a burn that healed ugly. Over time, it has faded and is not as risen as it used to be in her younger years. She must keep it oiled so that it doesn't crack. There are scars across her arms from being scratched by the tunnel snake. She also has scars going across her stomach from where the snake also gouged her. These have faded over time as well, now only about half an inch wide though they still stretch across her stomach.
Personality: More Up to Date:
Keep Ralae busy and challenged; this makes her a delightful and clever woman. Over the years, her sunny personality and open happiness have been buried under trauma and tragedy but as of late, it has begun to shine once again. She is more reserved than before, no longer rushing into adventure or needing to know immediately the latest bit of news, Ralae still likes to know what is going on and why it is and if she doesn't know, you better bet your dragon's shell she will do her best to find out... But now, instead of hounding you with questions, she listens much more closely to what is said and pays attentions to others' actions.
She has taken her naturally inquisitive nature and put it to good use in the record halls. Though more reserved, she does open up and sometimes can go on for a candle mark or two about the interesting tidbits she has found. Zabreth indulges her as do her few friends. When it comes to meeting new people, Ralae has allowed Zabreth to take point and work on making her more comfortable with others.
In the Past:
Once, her inquisitive nature had gotten her into trouble into the past but her old Harper Wellard had seen children like this before and let Addaja know that idle hands make much mischief. Because of this, Ralae is rotated through different tasks and crafts so that she doesn't get bored and go looking for her own fun. Ralae can come off as a know-it-all but a good-hearted one. She only wants others to do as good as she does though she lacks the patience to show anyone how it is actually done.
Though Ralae acts like she knows it all, she doesn't. And she has the habit of getting on people's nerves by asking questions or trying to direct them in what she thinks in a good direction. Later on in life, these micromanaging skills may come in handy but right now from a thirteen year old, it's down right annoying. Most of the younger kids stay away from her so she doesn't boss them around and the older children find her too childish and bratty to want to have her around. Some adults enjoy having her around and teaching her, impressed that she can keep so much knowledge straight but many other adults find that she constantly gets underfoot and in the way. This has left her in the awkward position of not having very many friends. While this hurts her deeply, Ralae does her best to plow on each day and not let anything affect her. Right now, she is not sure what direction she wants her life to go in but can only hope she will get there in one piece.
Strengths:Bright, friendly, curious, eager to learn and help out
Weakness:Can be a know-it-all, gets bored easily, no patience for teaching or explaining, gets into other people's business
Other:Ralae is very good at humming and keeping a beat. When she has free time and is not investigating, she likes to create little tunes to keep herself amused. As she has been rotated through many crafts and jobs, she might come off as an amateur Jill of all Trades which she would use to seem more knowing. She has also taken an interest in painting since her dragon Zabreth still loves to paint with the color pots. When she helps out with other injured or hurt riders, weyr folk or others, she uses the paints and music as a sort of outlet.
Zabreth
Age: 11 Turns and going strong
Personality: Zabreth is, well, creative would probably be the best way to describe her in a hurry. It's certainly an apt enough adjective, and this sensitive dragon wouldn't take offense to it either. To Zabreth, everything is beautiful, everything is worth examining, everything has value. Even though she means no harm, this sparkly perspective on life can be a little hard to take sometimes. Scatterbrained is another adjective you might use to describe this little green, as long as you don't say it to her face. Spacey, flighty and crazy are some others. Sadly, unlike her easygoing clutchmate Pumuth, Zabreth is a bit overly dramatic. She takes the slightest criticism to heart and tends to have trouble with lessons because of this. In addition, she zones out a lot and is quite accident prone as a result. Expect her to be a handful as she progresses through those pesky 'teenage' years.
Zabreth exhibits classic hoarding behavior. She enjoys constructing strange dragon sculptures from found objects and as such, will collect everything from broken wheels to cooking pots. She has the spotty memory of most dragons, however, and when she stores her treasures, there's a pretty good chance she won't remember where she's put them.
Her boundless enthusiasm for life also extends to mating. It's all fun and games to be chased and she attacks this necessary function with relish. In addition, Zabreth is likely to be caught fairly quickly because she'd rather perform artistic swirls and loops through the air than stick to the standard 'fly as fast as you can' nonsense. Nothing's more fun than a game of tag, especially an aesthetically pleasing one!
Current: Zabreth has been the sunny rock to keep Ralae from drifting away. Though her memory poor, her enthusiasm is high and everyday is a new chance to love and live life. Forming almost a hero worship towards the crimson Moriath, Zabreth has tons of red objects in her weyr. She also has random piles of shells, stones, and other shiny objects she has happened upon in her wandering of the shores. She loves her color pots and can often be seen with bits of paint stuck to her hide when Ralae hasn't cleaned her in a day or two.
Why ME!?
Zabreth wanted someone who could see the world as she does, who might want to explore and learn and absorb the beauty as much as she wants to. Ralae is the sort of person that needs to be kept busy and possesses youthful exuberance and potential that this dreamy green is attracted by.
Ralae is young yet, and as such, isn’t as constrained in her imagination as older people might be – as demonstrated by her desire to know and piece together information. This lack of inhibition means Ralae is more likely to truly understand Zabreth’s artistic soul. Additionally, Zabreth needed someone who could keep up with her and manage reality while she navigated through dream space and Ralae’s burgeoning management skills may help to ground the spacey green as they grow. Ralae might not have many friends but she needn’t worry about that any more! Zabreth will provide the outlet that Ralae needs to keep her busy and learn and she’ll be the girl’s best friend until the day they die.
