So this is solid ground? [Tag: Tera]

[Terayne]

One dark brow rose at his snapped question, and she shook her head. "Let's see. Murder, chaos, Flights, Run... Nope. Not sheltered at all," she replied good naturedly, smiling even as she listed the items. Behind her Awrith whuffed her amusement, then looked at the man coming over sharply, tail twitching slightly. A hand on her foreleg held her, and they watched as clothes were given to the lad.

Once he'd changed his shirt at least, she waited, then inclined her head for his not quite request. A soft mental call and a little creature appeared out of nothing, soft black hide gleaming with faintly purplish tones on its wing membranes, tail and spinal ridges. She quickly gave the little flitter her 'orders' then watched as she darted away to do as her Mine bid her. "It will be here as soon as Laren finds her way to the kitchen and delivers the message," she assured the lad, unsure if he'd seen Fire-Lizards before.

[mimi]

Andilan snorted to himself when the woman nonchalantly rambled off a fraction of what happened behind the Weyr's walls but he did not believe that she was apart of what she said. Flights and Runs were considered normal for those that lived within the walls of the Weyr and there were always problems when people were gathered in one place. She was sheltered, whether she believed it or not. She had never had her skin parted beneath the touch of a whip or had the very breath stolen from her lungs as she was beaten in to submission, or had been force fed when she was too weak after a beating to move. At least she could sleep at night....

There was a soft croon from the woman's Flitter which drew a bit of Andilan's attention from his sulking. The little creature seemed more then happy to fly off towards the Hold after a moment or two like it was prompted. Of course it was prompted, Andilan ridiculed himself, Flitters had minor telepathy and it was evidently the woman's pet. So perhaps food was on its way....but no more conversation would come from Andilan until his stomach was sated. The time it took the Flitter to get back would give him at least a little time to organize his thoughts and to prepare for what the Rider might ask him.

"So what was your name again?" Andilan asked for a while when he felt like he could speak without spitting venom.

[Terayne]

She waited patiently for him to come up with something to say again, and when he did, she smiled gently. "I am Korina, of Green Awrith," she said, pronouncing the Green's name as a-rith, with a long "A." "Are we allowed your's, or are you not ready to gift us with it yet?" she asked curiously.

[mimi]

Andilan felt his lip curl in to a slight sneer when she teased him slightly about releasing his name to her. His name was all that he had that no one could take away from him. He held on to it tightly but even he had to admit that being nameless was becoming more trouble then it was worth. He detested the name 'kid' with a vengeance because he was no longer a child but to all of those around him...despite his hardened and scarred appearance... he was still considered young. He spat his irritation and he shot a stinkeye at the Rider. "Andilan." He answered sourly when confronted with her gentle but teasing expression.

The young man glanced at her Green lifepartner and could not help but divert his eyes from her form when he locked eyes with her. He could still feel her words echoing in the corners of his mind. She looked through him so easily...it shook him immensely....he was so confused and conflicted. It made him angry to be so but he had a hard time unleashing that anger against the Green pair. All he could do was sit and stew, coming up with sharp and angry retorts, as they simply watched him. Why didn't they get angry at him? Why didn't they leave?

Because they want you. A part of Andilan responded softly until another piece whispered answered. But then again, no one in their right mind would want you. Even your own father sold you in to slavery for his own means. Just look at you....you're a piece of someone else's trash.

[Terayne]

"A strong name," she said mildly. She then followed his gaze to her Green and smiled slightly, patting the pale hide gently. Awrith cocked her head slightly, watching him quietly, then rumbled a low note to her rider, who chuckled.

Just then, Laren came soaring back, followed by a sturdy man who bore a tray of delicious smelling food.. The Black-Purple cheeped to her Mine, then settled to her shoulder as the food was offered to Andilan.

[mimi]

Andilan did not huff negatively or sneer when she commented on his name. Instead, his eyes swept calmly out to look along the docks and the sight of the boats loading and unloading their wares. He accepted her comment without a fight, for once, as he simply waited for time to pass until he could sate the sickening emptiness that gnawed at his insides. A calloused hand lifted and rubbed the opposite juncture of his neck, his fingers kneading at sore muscles and knotted scar tissue beneath the fabric of his new shirt.

The young man, could not help but stand upon seeing a man approaching with a tray. With the Flitter leading his course, it was no doubt meant for him and he could not help but begin to salivate whether he knew what he was getting or not. He could have gotten plain rice gruel and he would have been satisfied with that. It would have been stars above what he was so used to eating.

The man greeted the Rider with a warm smile but eyed Andilan in his poor state with a wary gaze before handing the tray to Korina. "Let me know if you need anything else, Lady Rider." He rumbled pleasantly before he took a water skin off his shoulder. The meal consisted of a rice and seafood soup with a loaf of fresh bread and some soft cheese. When the tray was offered to Andilan, he took it without hesitation though he briefly eyed Korina as if she would take it back and away from him like some horribly cruel joke. The soup was hot but that did not stop the starved man from attempting to wolf it down. He spooned it in to his mouth and great globs before almost immediately swallowing. A ragged bite of bread chased down the hot soup in the attempt to cool his pallet before he continued his abuse.

[Terayne]

She accepted the tray without comment and gave it over to the one it was meant for, then leaned calmly back against Awrith as the three females watched him eat. It was obvious he was starving, for Korina could tell the soup was hot, but that wasn't stopping him. "Hey slow down. You're gonna burn yourself," she said gently, her concern obvious in her eyes and her voice. She wasn't about to try and physically intervene, that would have been the height of foolishness, but she did wonder even more about how he'd come to this place.

The seamen had said they'd found him drifting after the storm, and, with its severity, he likely would not be the last, she thought with a frown, her gaze wandering to the sea, the waves dancing under the light of Rukbat's rays joyously, as if it had not been devastatingly dark and ferocious not that long before...

[mimi]

Dilan hardly heard Korina as he ate quickly as if he suspecting someone would suddenly snatch the food away. His posture was possessive of the tray, his body hunched over it as if attempting to hide it from view from the few passerbys that came past where he sat. In one hand, he grasped the small loaf of bread, in the other he grasped the spoon that shoveled the soup in between his lips.

A sound came from him as he almost miss-swallowed and choked. He swallowed hard to get past it, his eyes watering at the corners, before he continued to eat but at a slower pace when the food dwindled and he was growing full. He emptied the soup bowl and hugged what was left of the bread loaf to his chest with the small ball of cheese wrapped in a soft cheese cloth as he sat and tried to regain his bearings. The food had obviously hit the spot, though he would never admit it, and he appeared much more willing to talk....in a...certain...kind of closed off way.

"So......" Andilan huffed, "...what now since you're so sure of yourself...."

[Terayne]

She noted his posture-it reminded her of a canine she'd once seen-and sighed softly. She'd seen the scars, their ugliness, and could only cringe for him, for the pain he'd gone through from the story they told. He'd obviously lived a rough life...

At his query, she cocked her head and looked to Awrith, who rumbled softly. "She says that if you WANT to come with us, we will take you back to the Weyr, where you will be taken care of, and can get food and lodging whenever you like. All you need do in return, is humor us and take the mantle of Dragon Candidate. If you do NOT wish to come, we cannot make you, nor will we try. It is all in your hands."

[mimi]

Andilan eyed her as she explained, or rather, glassed over the finer points of going with them. "So...you'll feed me and give me a place to sleep if I go with you and say I'll be a candidate? Clothes too? No signing in blood or anything like that?" He asked before he found the edge of the bread loaf and tore off a little bit to chew on it thoughtfully.

It was tempting...He could either stay here and deal with the sea folk that pulled him from out of the water. He had already had his fill of sea men to last a life time and the mere sight of a boat peeved him now."Eh...has to be a catch." He muttered beneath his breath before finding another little sliver of bread to chew on. "Can't be that easy."

[Terayne]

The only catch, she thought, was the chores. She had a distinct feeling he would despise those on sight, essentially. She sensed Awrith thinking and touched to the Green, then hid her smile at her thought of 'So we just won't tell him that part then.' Her Bonded was DETERMINED to get him to go with them, which meant she felt VERY strongly he would Impress. A good sign, since she was usually right.

"The only catch is that, should you Impress, you are a Rider for the rest of your life. No going back on that. But should it happen, I promise you, it will be the most wonderful, frustrating, and possibly trying time of your life. But worth every moment."

[mimi]

Andilan's nose curled slightly when Korina confessed that if he did Impress then he would be a Rider and bound to the Dragon partner for life. He was not happy with the thought that his life would be bound to another's and that the said Dragon would hear his inner most thoughts and feelings. His whole expression soured slightly but he still appeared to be thinking and weighing the options.

By his math, he was almost too old to be a Candidate. He danced right on the edge of being too old. A Turn more and he would be released from said position. He would get food and a dry place to sleep. Surely he could survive a Turn being a Dragon Candidate....another nibble of bread was chewed slowly as he mulled over the entire thing.

"Despite how doubtful I believe my Impression is....I think I could handle being a Candidate for a time." Dilan finally confessed though his tone was a bit flat. Little did he know just exactly what the Green pair wasn't telling him. He was right to suspect that it wasn't as easy as they made it sound but the Dragon wanted him to Stand and they would do just about anything to get him there, short of physically dragging him there by his heels.

[Terayne]

Korina smiled when he answered, a charming, beautiful smile that lit up her whole face. "Excellent!" she said happily, looking like she was about to start dancing. "Let us get the fish that we came here for, and then we can head back." She hummed softly as she padded off to hunt down the Captain of the ship, telling Awrith to alert Moraiya and her Blood that they would have a new 'baby' soon in their class.