[Candidate] Avali [Approved]

[Ryala]

Name: Avali
Age: 15
Gender: Female
Rank: Candidate

Appearance: Avali hates how she looks, believing that she's not even slightly pretty. Standing at 5'7", she's slender, but still as flat-chested as a boy. Shoulder-length hair of an indeterminate shade of brown frames her long face with loose curls, though it has no gloss to it. Easily, her best feature would be her sparkling blue-grey eyes. More noticable, though, is what she calls a "wherry beak" nose. Her mouth is small, and when she smiles you can see a dimple to the right of it.

Long of leg and small of waist, finding clothes for her growing height has been a problem for Turns. Long, slender fingers grace her hands, making them appear delicate. Her feet, though, are definitely not delicate... they're larger than she likes, making her feel awkward.

Personality: Generally, Avali is rather quiet and shy, though she wishes frequently that this were not the case. If given the chance, she would prove to be friendly, once she managed to get over her uncertainties of how others might perceive her to be. Of course, there's always someone who she discovers that she can't get along with, and those people she simply tries to leave alone or ignore. If the person has authority over her, or someone gets in her face and yells, she gets nervous and upset, resulting in a poorer quality in her work. After all, no one likes having someone yelling in their face, and if a journeyman or master is giving her problems there's not much she can do about it except fret (with doesn't help at all). Though she's not aware of it, Avali can be extremely stubborn and determined. She never noticed, though, because she's only really aware of the shy, quiet side of herself. If she has to defend herself, she finds it nearly impossible to do so, due to a combination of her low self-esteem and her uncertainty of what to do. However, if one of her friends is in trouble, or if someone tries to get her to do something that she disagrees with, she'll put her foot down and will refuse to budge an inch on the matter, without giving any conscious thought to what she's doing. There are, after all, certain things that she will NEVER do (such as jumping into bed with someone just to gain their favor) and she cherishes her few friends (namely because she has so few). Afterward, if asked, she'd shrug and say that she didn't know why she did it (which she honestly wouldn't) and change the subject, back to being her usual, quiet self.

Avali always strives to do her best in anything that she does. Unfortunately, she's still hopeless when it comes to basic chores, like cleaning or making her bed. She's also a dreamer, and has been found daydreaming instead of working on more than one occasion (much to her embarrassment, and oddly only when she's supposed to be cleaning). She likes to help people, even if they're not aware that it was her that did so. For example: if someone needed to be cheered up, she would try to find them a gift that they'd like... and if that failed, she'd try to make one. She will listen to what she's told, and follow orders until they clash with her own judgement. If she's told to do something that she disagrees with, she'll ignore what she's told and do what she believes is right, even if she knows that it will anger someone in authority (again, there are things that she'd never do, no matter who tells her to do so). She has learned that, sometimes, there was a good reason for what she was told, though she learned this the hard way (such as when she was 4, and climbed on a table that she was told to stay off of... and them promptly fell off of, hitting her head). If the one whose orders she disagrees with wanders off, fully expecting that she'll do as she was told, she'll simply not do it (or do something else that she deems more appropriate). If the person sticks around to see her do it, she'll duck her head and quietly tell them no. If given the opportunity, she'll try to explain her reasoning why; if not, she'll simply continue to shake her head, and wait for the expected blow. Better that, in her opinion, than to be dishonest to herself.

Having been made fun of for so many Turns growing up, Avali has grown to be uncertain and hesitant around people that she doesn't know. At times, she even suspects that others are talking about her behind her back. She's certain that they do it because she won't do anything to stop them, which only encourages them to continue without fear of reprisal. She's equally certain, though, that there are folks who are better than that (after all, she doesn't do anything like that... and she can't be the only one, right?). The problem is finding out which type of person someone is: the type who'll insult her and pick on her for fun; the type who would ignore her as if she were beneath their notice; or the type who would be willing to talk to her and discover for themselves what she's like. To test that, she uses her looks... the only good thing about her appearance, in her opinion. She's learned that most people tend to prefer girls who range from pretty to downright beautiful, and she firmly believes that she's plain (at best). So if someone insults her appearance, she avoids them. If they look at her and keep walking, she leaves them alone. If they try being friendly, she'll make an effort to overcome her natural shyness enough to talk to them.

Strengths: Respectful, determined, friendly, thoughtful, honest
Weaknesses: Shy, stubborn, dreamer, low self-esteem, a little messy

History: From a family holding in Telgar, Avali is the second of three daughters. Being the middle child, Avali was occasionally accused of having done things that her sisters did. Since, in her parents' eyes, her older sister was "old enough to know better" and her younger one was "too little to have done it", she ended up taking the fall for them a few times... but only when their was something in it for her, like a ribbon that she wanted. Otherwise, she found a way to prove that it was them that did whatever it was. This ended when she was 8, when her parents caught the older sister in the act of doing something... and even after being caught still trying to pin the blame on Avali. Despite this, the three of them mostly had fun together. The other youths in the area, though, tended to pick on her, mostly due to her less-than-ideal appearance. Due to this, she grew to have little in the way of self-esteem.

As she grew older and started assuming more household duties around the hold, her folks noticed that she tended to 'slack off', stopping whatever she was doing to daydream. Asking the local harper about it, he tested her, and discovered that while she was, indeed, a dreamer, there might be a reasonable outlet for it. Showing them the sketches that she'd made for him, he recommended that they allow her to try an apprenticeship as an artist, and they tentatively agreed. To everyone's surprise, the dragon who arrived to transport her announced that she was suitable as a Candidate, and she chose to go to the Weyr rather than to the crafthall.

Other/Talents:---  

[The_Muffin_Puppy]

Approved!