 |
Name: Solai
Age: 20
Nameday: 07.12.3556
Sex: Transgender male
Sexual Orientation: A mess of uncertainty bordering on bisexual.
Weyr: Western Weyr
Rider Rank: Wingrider
Previous Rank/Craft: Journeyman minecrafter
Physical Description:
Well-built and overall as sturdy as a watchwher, one look at Solai in action makes it very clear that he's been doing physical work for most of his life. Although he's not of any incredibly imposing stature, standing at little more than 5'7", he's well-muscled, and can more than carry his fair share of work. He's somewhat overweight, with plenty of padding to protect vital organs during anything physical--he'd just argue that it softens his edges enough to be cozy. Typically, he wears rather simple clothes, and is careful to select fabrics that are both durable and easy to clean. His sense of fashion is more utilitarian than anything, although he allows himself a few frivolities in his accessories--he wears a few thin gold rings, little more than hammered-out pieces of wire, as well as a short necklace of iridescent green glass beads that was given to him upon graduation to Journeyman.
Solai's features are soft, with a broad, gently sloped nose and slightly thin lips that are usually set in a smile in one way or another. He's got a short mess of tightly curled black hair, and it tends to go wherever it pleases with little attempts at styling on his part. His eyes are a deep blue-green, and although he tends to look some shade of tired most of the time, there's no small amount of mirth in there all the same. His skin is dark, littered with starkly pale scars around his hands and forearms from a variety of minor workplace accidents, and although he's got a few slightly stiff fingers as a result of them, he's rather proud of them for the experience he got alongside them.
Personality:
Solai is a firm, no-bullshit individual who follows the mantra of 'work hard, play harder.' He's proud and headstrong, but understands well that his place in the world isn't one of bossing others around--instead, he tends to act more as a guiding force when possible, aiding whoever's in charge of him in keeping order. Maintaining morale is just as important to him, and he's careful to tread that fine line of not cracking down too hard on others when push comes to shove. Above all else, Solai seeks to maintain a level of balance, thinking of the world like a machine--if everything is well-oiled and neatly kept, it'll run perfectly. That's not to say that he has a tendency to view others as more cogs than people--in fact, quite the opposite. Solai is a fervent defender of people's individuality, and not simply from a workplace standpoint. Finding one's personal identity can be difficult, as he very well knows, and he does everything he can (within rules and reason of course) to be as supportive and helpful as is possible with easing others into their best selves.
He's of the mind that there's a time and place for everything, and although his patience leaves something to be desired, Solai will (at times begrudgingly) wait if he has to. There's no need to be rash about things, yes, but it doesn't take very long for him to start chafing in periods of inactivity, and Solai tends to get antsy far faster than may be expected. He's at his best when he's able to keep doing things, be it work or some other general activity, and being placed on any long periods of rest still agitate him. While he'll always submit to those with authority over him, it won't stop him from grousing about it on his own time.
When he's turned loose in a social situation, Solai well and truly thrives, finding it easy to integrate himself into preexisting dynamics and conversations. He's careful not to step on any toes, which takes a bit of subtle observation first--fortunately enough, he's quick to read the room, and knows how to navigate the social landscape from there. Formal situations are where he starts getting a bit out of his element, given the additional rules and etiquette necessary for such things, but he can still perform admirably despite his uncertainty. Really, he'd be a perfect second in command, but he lacks some of the personal initiative needed to make him a truly exceptional leader.
Solai is a loyal, even-tempered individual, but his high standards mean that he can be a bit hard to please. He takes a fine-toothed comb to both his own work and that of those around him, and he's quick to criticize himself--he uses much softer language when going over someone else's contributions, but he spares himself the sugarcoating. Although Solai doesn't like to immediately jump to conclusions, he's hard to shake once he's come to whatever decision he's set himself to, and it can be difficult to persuade him to another side. He'd argue that it means he's hard to distract, but it's just as easy to claim that it makes him somewhat of a pain to deal with if he's decided to be contrary.
Positive Trait List: Confident, dedicated, team player, mindful.
Negative Trait List: Nitpicky, stern, stubborn, impatient.
History:
The first son of a Smith and a wher-handling Minecrafter, Solai grew up in a world of rock and metal. He was born in Crom Hold, and stayed there for most of his early life, finding himself well-suited to the mountains in spite of the isolation they provided. From a young age, he was just as fascinated with his parents' crafts as they were, and quickly made up his mind to follow in his father's footsteps as a miner himself. He was always watching them work, trying to reenact their techniques in his spare time--it didn't take long for his parents to decide that they should find the boy a position as an apprentice, and soon enough, he was officially part of the Minecraft Hall. He took to it like a fish to water, and although he wasn't quite as popular as he would have liked due to being something of a teacher's pet, was well on the path to making a good life for himself as a miner.
Eventually, though, the less than savory nature of Crom's alliance with Nabol started to rear its ugly head, and his family began to plan for a way out. With a new baby sister in tow, they wanted to find somewhere safer to call home, not to mention their unspoken desire to get out before Crom could get as bad as Nabol was. The return of Thread was more motivation to get somewhere less isolated, but it was decided that they'd wait until Solai was finished with his apprenticeship to make any hard decisions. In spite of all this, Solai walked the tables at eighteen, and becoming a Journeyman was one of the proudest moments of his life. It looked as though things were going well, and he was rather optimistic about his future--perhaps mining wasn't the most glamorous work out there, but it was painfully necessary, and he was happy to contribute to Pern's future. His family threw him a small party in celebration of his success, and he was all too ready to begin the rest of his life from there.
However, things went a little differently.
A few weeks later, Solai was Searched to High Reaches, agreeing to go more out of a sense of duty than a deep desire to be a dragonrider--in his eyes, it was more about following protocol and paying proper respects to the weyr, but he quickly found himself getting a bit starstruck by the idea. Lofty dreams aside, going to High Reaches would give him an excellent opportunity to study the Weyr's structure, and that was enough to give him a more practical reason to go. Still, it was all only a fantasy though, right? Nothing to get so caught up in that he lost sight of his goals; just something he was currently doing, that's all. He just wasn't the dragonriding type, even if that rider had told him he had potential. He'd be a miner like his father, and he was okay with that.
When it came time for Killakeeth's hatching, he willingly participated in the candidate transfer to Western, curious to see what their climate was like after a life spent in far colder mountains. Although it took some time to acclimate to the tropical heat, Solai found himself to be quite fond of Western, agreeing readily with their merit-based ideas--he almost wondered if this was a better fit for him than High Reaches until he caught himself.
Almost immediately after, something else caught him.
A little hatchling, long since having made up his mind, knew exactly which candidate he wanted. He found Solai with no difficulty whatsoever, slipping through the crowd so quietly as to evade notice--even His didn't know for sure that he was there until he crept up from behind, gently placing his nose in Solai's hand. He'd never expected to Impress, but here he was on the Sands with a dragonet telling him he'd done just that.
From there, the pair progressed through weyrling training with the rest of their class, working hard to earn their place in one of Western's wings. Solai's parents were immensely proud of him, and he still does everything he can to stay in contact with them despite the distance separating them.
Other: He thinks whers are adorable, and was a little bit nervous about heights up until flight lessons made him get over that. Has a fear of birds.
DRAGON
Name: Tokochath
Inspiration: Red Lynx
Origin of Name: Derived from Tokoch Kachina, a Hopi wuya and bobcat/red lynx spirit.
Color: Blue
Personality:
Cryptic, secretive, and mercurial, Tokochath is a dragon of few words and many shifting opinions. He prefers to watch and wait before making any move, and is decidedly slow to act--when he does, however, he responds quickly and confidently, with no room for second-guessing himself. Tokochath keeps all of his observations and secrets very tightly to his chest, and while you can be sure that he's always watching, he doesn't have any intention of spreading what he's seen to anyone you'd know. It's not that he's planning on hatching some malicious scheme or anything--Tokochath simply likes keeping tabs on others, considering it on the same level as birdwatching. People are curious things, and he enjoys seeing their reactions to day-to-day events, even more so if there's something unexpected involved. If he's bored enough, Tokochath has been known to be the unexpected thing, poking and prodding where he can just to mix it up a little. It's never meant as an insult or genuine slight, and he has a hard time understanding when other people have been truly upset by his actions. Why would they be mad at him? He was only breaking the monotony--perhaps you're in a bad mood, but now things are less boring, aren't they?
That being said, it's not terribly surprising that Tokochath isn't a very popular dragon. For all his peoplewatching, he's socially inept all the same, and tends to see the world in a bit more of a logical light. He acts based on what he thinks is best, which leads to him often ignoring or misunderstanding the feelings of others; he uses his many observations of those around him to guide his plans, and allows little room for other viewpoints. Tokochath is convinced that he's quite impartial, thank you, and doesn't need to be swayed by anyone--so don't bother telling him your side of the story. He's highly opinionated in spite of his relative silence, and once he's leveled his judgment, it's final. Once he's made up his mind on someone, it's hard to change it; in the case of his high praise, this means for a stalwart ally, but not so much for the inverse. Fortunately enough, he's slow to make his final verdict, although he's certainly quick to judge others until then.
At his best, Tokochath is perceptive, dedicated, confident, and quick-witted--while he's not as skilled with words as he thinks he is, he's also a rather constant presence for those he loves. He's supportive in subtle ways, and ardently refuses to make a grand show of it. Tokochath never wants to be the center of attention, and is more than happy to deflect it elsewhere--for example, to the nearest person he admires. He maintains a very tight social circle of close confidants, and Tokochath sees no issue with providing these few individuals with as much affection and care as is possible. He'll bend over backwards for them, and expects little in return--he doesn't like being on the receiving end of excessive amounts of attention, and would much prefer to simply be privately recognized for his favors.
Size: 26'
Physical Attributes:
Tokochath is a lean, svelte dragon with overall rather even proportions, save for his legs--they're just a bit short, giving him a somewhat compacted appearance. His head is long and slender, and his fangs are just long enough to show even when his mouth is closed. His tail is much more bony than the rest of him, however, especially near the tip.
Additional Notes: Tokochath is strongly interested in other males, and basically has zero interest for Greens and Golds. They're nice to look at, sure, but his affectations are mainly with Bronzes, although the occasional Brown or Blue can make their way into this circle. His favorite color to look at is, unsurprisingly, his own, and he's Solai's number one bird wrangler should the need arise.
Why Me:
Solai is an industrious, hard-working young man with a dedication to order and not rocking the boat--he's got so much potential as a perfect partner, and Tokochath knows exactly how to bring that all out. He doesn't want to change him completely, though; if he did, he simply would have picked someone else. Solai is perfect how he is, although Tokochath would love it if he'd be a little less subservient sometimes. Fortunately enough, that's what he's here for. Tokochath's strong opinions and fast thinking serve to make Solai pick up the pace when it's needed, and in return, Solai balances out his dragon's sharper edges. He's the restraint to Tokochath's more socially disastrous tendencies, and the calm edge of understanding and compassion to help his dragon better navigate dealing with others. They're just different enough to compliment each other, and Tokochath knew that Solai was going to be His from the moment he touched his shell.
- - - -
How did your character behave during Weyrling Training?
Solai kept his nose to the grindstone and worked his a** off. It's what he does best, and he certainly wasn't about to start shirking his work ethic just because he'd gotten a dragon--Tokochath served more to motivate him to work harder than anything else, now fueled by a desire to be someone deserving of being a dragonrider rather than just someone lucky enough to Impress. Tokochath stayed as far out of the spotlight as was physically possible, and save for some remedial lessons to help keep him at the same speed as the rest of his class, he maintained a position well in the middle of the pack. They did well overall, save for the occasional rough patch, and made sure that they'd earn their keep in the process.
What did your character think of so many twin dragons? What did your character think of having not one, but two, gold sisters?
Solai's simply of the opinion that they all got quite lucky--more dragons means more candidates leaving the Sands happy, right? Sure, trying to keep track of all of them when they were out and about during the Hatching was a bit overwhelming, but he was more impressed that so many of those eggs held multiple dragons than anything. He's still not sure how exactly some of them fit in there.
Tokochath acknowledges his Gold siblings for what they are, but isn't starstruck by their hide; they're dragons just like him, and with the hierarchy of Western how it is, their contributions matter more than how much they glitter. He's more fond of Kleoth between the two of them. given her lack of those more colorist notions, but Leoth certainly does have her moments.
How did your characters do during flying lessons and Between training? Were they naturals or did they struggle?
Tokochath is particularly comfortable with Betweening, but it took a lot more effort for him to get off the ground--he well and truly wanted to, of course, even if his luck was quite set on making sure he didn't. Short legs unfortunately don't give a lot of lift for getting in the air, as he learned.
Solai had to learn quite quickly to be comfortable with being in the air as opposed to being in the mines, but once he got over the initial gut-wrenching from takeoff, he found that he actually quite liked flying. Being up in the air with Tokochath isn't anything like he could have dreamed; he'd never thought of putting himself up on a dragon of all things, and it's better than whatever he might have imagined when he was younger.
How has your character been handling being graduated and a real dragon rider?
Solai still thinks it's a dream. Rather than working below the surface of Pern, here he is, soaring high above it on his own dragon--it's a bit unreal, even though Tokochath assures him that he's not going anywhere. He's taken to the structure of a rider's life quite well, and although he's still proud of his previous work, he's quite firmly shifted gears toward being the best rider he can be. Tokochath is all too happy to encourage this, and together, they make for a strongly focused pair.
|
 |
Reply
