Search Story of Quinn Quinn pulled the simple dress down over her head and smoothed it down her thin, muscular thighs, her small waist, and her challanged breasts. Her shoulders were left bare, and she felt....exposed. She hated the way men looked at her when she got dressed up, the way their eyes invaded her privacy and made her skin crawl. Giving an involuntary shiver, Quinn pulled her black hair from her back and wrapped a tie around it to keep it out of the way as she struggled with all the stupid little buttons down the back. It would be so easy to call someone in to help her, but she was determined to do it on her own. She liked the feeling of being independant. "Are you almost ready?" One of her sister's called from down the hall. Blowing a stray strand of hair out of her face and rolling her deep blue-gray eyes, Quinn decided not to answer and instead slipped the last button through it's hole and went to work on her hair. It continued to slip from her long, slim fingers and Quinn slammed the tie onto the dresser and growled in anger. "No!" She screamed back down the hall, glaring at her reflection in the mirror and wondering who the prissy girl was that was staring out at her. With a sigh, Quinn sank onto the bed and finally understood why her friends wanted nothing to do with her anymore. She was just like all the little lordlings daughters, dressing up in pretty clothes and going out to parties instead of sleeping at each other's houses and giggling into the early hours of the morning as they fantasized about what might be or could have been. How she missed that. Looking around at her own room, Quinn decided she would give any and all of it up just to have a friend to trust again. The heavens knew, she didn't have any at the moment. "What's taking so long? Good heavens, Quinn, you can't go with your hair like that." Milasandre said with a shake of her perfect head when she saw the curls going wild about Quinn's head. "Here...." Quinn remained silent as Milasandre tugged at her head and poked the small pins right through her hair into her head. She had a pounding headache by the time Milasandre was done, but at least it looked all right, with it piled up top with curls reaching down in tendrils to kiss her white shoulders with their soft touch. "Are you coming?" Milasandre asked, making sure her own golden locks were perfect as she pulled her dress down a tad more to show off some more skin. "Do I have a choice?" Quinn asked sweetly, looking up at Milasandre and batting her eyes innocently. Milasandre pursed her full lips and narrowed her eyes. "You should be grateful! Father worked hard to get where he is, and what you have is all because of him." "Well, he can have it back!" Quinn said angrily, pushing herself out of her chair and promptly tripping on the hem of the skirt. Quinn clenched her fists and let out a roar of frustration. "I hate wearing skirts, and we never see him anymore anyway, so what difference does it make? I'd rather go back to working in the fields beside him than sitting at home bored out of my mind!" Quinn snapped at Milasandre, sweeping past her and storming down the hall, her skirts hiked up to her knees so she could take the long, confident stride she was so well known for. Milasandre watched her with wide eyes, looking from her bared calves to her angry face as though she was committing a crime. "Are you coming?" "Quinn, dear, you look lovely." Her mother said with a smile lighting her plump face. Quinn allowed herself to be kissed on the cheek and spun around for a few moments before pulling back and waiting for her mother to round up her three children to be off. Quinn was the youngest girl of four, and the second youngest of seven. Her two older brother's were married and out of the house, as well as two of her older sisters, though she, Milasandre and their youngest brother, Speed, remained at the house. At the age of twenty-three, Milasandre would be gone at any time, if she would just make up her mind about which poor sap she would marry. She and Speed, aged nineteen and eighteen, would be at home for a while longer, though Speed was besotted with a pretty girl and Quinn had a feeling he would be gone before she would. With a laugh, she realized he would be, seeing as she never wanted to marry, ever. Speed finally came down, dressed in a smart suit and carrying a small bouquet of flowers for his darling. He winked at Quinn, and swept them all out of the house and into a waiting wagon. Quinn personally would have preferred dragon-back, but her mother had been distraught at that idea, and Quinn had to sit on the jolting wagon and try not to look too glum as they rumbled towards the large House. "I heard dragonriders are going to be there." Speed said softly, leaning towards Quinn and smiling widely. She grinned as well, and punched him lightly on his shoulder. He knew she loved talking to them, and bugged her about it whenever he could, but he also got her to them when otherwise she could only have watched them fly by. "I don't want you anywhere near them." Their mother said with a snap, sending a sharp look at Quinn and raising a perfect little eyebrow. Quinn ran a finger along her own eyebrow, happy she hadn't let her mother pluck the hairs out of it, and smiled sweetly. "I'll distract her." Speed barely whispered with another wink, turning his eyes back to the road as he steered, humming happily as they moved down the road. Quinn imagined the dragonriders, tall and strong and incredibly handsome. She could just picture their arms around her waist, strong and gentle... "Lord Mourid is bringing his sons, Quinn. I do believe they're slightly older than you." "And probably have more children between the two of them than you and Auntie Dedra combined." Quinn said, scrunching her nose and sticking out her tongue. The two boys were very handsome, indeed, and they knew it, which made them completely unbearable. The elder probably had seven children with seven different women, at the least! Quinn personally found them disgusting, but wasn't about to say so. "If they ask you to dance, you will dance." Her mother said dangerously, smiling at her daugther and making sure she got the point. Yeah, I got it. Quinn thought, turning away from the look and watching the trees and brush trickle by as they moved towards the Hold. Finally, they reached their destination and Quinn leaped off the wagon, ignoring the offered help. Milasandre gasped in amazement and disgust. Quinn ignored her and went in search of their father. The hall was brightly lit, despite the fading light outside, and Quinn felt her heart fall when, at first glance, she didn't see any dragonriders. But she did see her father, and lifted her skirts an inch off the floor as she hurried towards him, dropping them and throwing her arms around his waist when he saw and turned towards her, opening his arms with a grin. "And who would this beauty be?" He asked, lifting her chin as he narrowed his eyes, as though trying to think of who she was. "Could this beautiful woman be my little Quinn? No...and yet, the twinkle in her eyes says it is." "Daddy...." Quinn laughed, planting a kiss on his cheek and realizing that her father's associates were watching their exchange with small smiles. "You look wonderful, darling! Glad to see your mother finally got you out of those pants." He said, hugging her again and letting her go. It was then Quinn saw the dragonrider patch on the men standing across from her. A flush settled in her cheeks and she smiled into the man's bright eyes, wondering if they always looked like he was smiling. "This is my youngest daughter, Quinn. Quinn, these are some friends." "Pleasure." Quinn mumbled, hating having to say it, because it wasn't, but hoping they didn't know that. "To meet you as well, Quinn." The dragonrider replied quite loudly, giving a tiny bow and making Quinn blush. "I'll find you later, dear, we're just talking business." Her father said softly, but firmly, and Quinn knew she wasn't welcome. It angered her, and she said nothing but turned and walked swiftly away. It wasn't because she was his daughter, it was because she was a woman. Women never did all the interesting things, like business and running a Hold, or....." "Mind if I join you?" Quinn jumped and turned to look at a younger version of the dragonrider speaking with her father. He saw her looking at him and smiled, then turned his attention to the discussion going on. Quinn smiled at the dragonrider and sighed. "Why not?" They made their way across the hall to a bench, talking of where he lived, what he did, who his dragon was. That was what Quinn wanted to know. "Blue Siyeth." He said proudly, grinning when he saw her eyes light up. "I'll introduce you later." "Oh, would you!" Quinn asked happily, clapping her hands together in a girlish anticipation and giving him a quick peck on the cheek. "Thank you." "No problem. But I gotta walk around a bit. He'll bite my head off if I don't. We'll be in touch." He said, standing and moving off. Quinn wondered what he meant by that, and frowned further when she realized they were from two different places. Why would one bite the other if they didn't even work together? Unless...... "Speed!" Quinn said, rubbing towards him and almost killing herself when she stepped on the hem of the dress and fell into his arms with a laugh. He helped her stand, pretending she was a little girl, and then laughed when she swung at his head, hard. "What?" He asked, moving back to let a few more guys crowd around him and the girls around him. "They're searchriders." She whispered, a light glinting in her eyes. "You didn't tell me they were searchriders." "They're searchriders." He said with a shrug of his shoulders. "Big deal." Quinn rolled her eyes and moved away from the flock surrounding him. She envied him that, that he could so easily make friends and attract followers. With a scoff, though, she turned away and ran right into one of Lord Mourid's sons. "What a surprise! I was just coming to ask you to dance." He said with a toothy grin as he swept her around in a circle. Quinn tried to pull away, but he firmly held her close, a strong hand resting rudely on her lower back. Very low on her back. "That's too bad. I was just going for a drink." Quinn said with a smirk, twirling out of his arms and walking away, only to have him appear at her side and wrap an arm around her waist. "Wonderful! I'll join you." "Completely unnecessary." Quinn said firmly, plucking his finger's from her waist and pursing her thin lips together. He laughed and pulled her closer, handing her a glass of...something. "It's good. Try it." He said with an evil glint in his eyes. Quinn downed the drink and had to silently agree that it was good, though strong. But she was used to strong. She didn't grow up with three brother's for nothing. The look of surprise on his face, though, when she drank it so quickly, made her giggle and drink another, just to make him reconsider. Instead, he pulled her back onto the dance floor. The band was just starting with some slow songs, and Quinn, no matter how hard to twisted and turned and darted, couldn't get away for a least four songs, and then she bolted for another drink and ran outside. No proper lady would disappear outside alone, after all. The cold wind felt good on her bare shoulders, and Quinn pulled the dress up a little, wondering when it had slipped down. Her head felt light, and she was slightly giddy. Sitting down on the step with her head between her hands, she wondered how strong that drink really was. "Ah, here you are!" Lord Mourid's son sang as he sat beside her, dropping an arm around her shoulders. "Get away from me." Quinn said, pushing his arm off her shoulders and rising. He pulled her back down and kissed her pale neck. "You're very pretty, Quinn. Much prettier than any other girl I've known, really." "And I care because?" Quinn asked, shoving his face away from her and slipping from his reach once again. The world was starting to spin and Quinn knew she was in trouble if she didn't get inside, quick. But Lord Morbid stood in the way. "Are you playing, Quinn? Because I like to play." He said with a growl, stalking towards her as she backed away. It was dark outside, and her eyes weren't adjusting very quickly. In fact, they weren't adjusting at all. He was upon her before she could take a few steps, and he had her against the wall in a second, her skirt slowly climbing up her thighs as his hands skimmed down her body. She took in a breath to scream, and he covered her mouth with a smelly hand, grinning at her and shaking his head. "Don't make a sound." Her heart was pounding as he slipped his hand up her leg, and she squirmed, bu to no avail. Tears sprang to her eyes as she knew that drink was way too strong for her to have had three, and she did the only thing she could think of. She bit his hand. "Ow!" He yowled, trying to pull his hand away as she bit down harder, tasting his blood in her mouth. He hit her with his free hand, but someone had heard and came running out, shouting something. Quinn's head was pounding from the blow and she sank down the wall, giving Lord Mourid's son a good kick in the shin to keep him away as she did. Strong arms caught her and pulled her back up, and Lord Morbid was getting a stern lecture from someone while he whimpered like a little kid. "How much did you drink?" Someone asked, leading Quinn away from the hall. "Too much." She said with a groan, pulling away as she threw up the contents left in her stomach. "Where are we going? The hall is the other way." She said, wondering if she had been saved only to need more saving. "I promised you I would introduce you to Siyeth, didn't I?" Quinn looked up at her hero, then turned and threw up again. She head was pounding, and her face was starting to hurt. "What did you drink?" A new voice asked, and Quinn looked up at her father and burst into tears. "He gave me a drink he said was good, and I had another to prove to him I wasn't a sissy. I had another after we'd danced. I don't know what it was, though." Quinn cried as her father wrapped his arms around her. "Shards, Quinn, I thought you'd know better! But then, it's not like you've never had a drink or two before...." "If she had the stuff Lord Mourid brought, that's twice as strong as anything else." Someone else whispered, and Quinn closed her eyes and leaned against her father. "He was trying to get her drunk." Another person commented angrily, and Quinn opened her eyes to see the angry glare between the older searchrider and Lord Morbid. "He wanted her drunk." He said again, looking sympathetically at Quinn as her lip quivered and she wondered why she was acting like such a baby. "Get her inside. We'll get her feeling better in no time." A woman said, and Quinn made only a small fuss when someone scooped up her small five foot seven frame and carried her back into the hall and into a room. She didn't protest when the residing Lady's handmaids helped her out of her ruined dress and into a cold bath, because she knew she had brought it upon herself. Sulking in the tub was better than throwing up outside, anyway. ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ Quinn awoke with a heavy head, but rose without complaint and dressed in the plain dress left out for her. It was a little small around the shoulders, but she kept silent. At least something had been left out for her. When she walked down the stairs, her parent's and the House Lord and Lady were eating breakfast, and all stopped and watched her make her way gently down the stairs. She also saw the two searchriders, plus some other folk who lived father away and her siblings. "Good morning." Her father said, his face tight and drawn. He looked....upset. Quinn hoped it wasn't at her. "'Morning." She mumbled, sitting down beside her mother and looking only at her plate as the table remained silent. "Quinn," her father started, clearing his throat to get her attention. "I have something to ask you." Her stomach clenched and she looked up, a strand of hair falling down in front of her eyes as she watched her father's eyes dart around the table. "What do you think of dragons?" She paused wondering if that was it. What did she think of dragons. "I like them." She said slowly, looking around the table as all eyes turned to watch her. "Very much." The older searchrider nodded and Quinn wondered why. Her father looked sad, and her mother was sniffling beside her. When no one said anything else, she sighed and put down her utensils. "What's going on?" "Would you come with me." The searcher said, rising from the seat and making it quite clear it was a command and not a request. Quinn rose and followed, walking slowly so she didn't jolt her head any further. They walked out of the house and down to a meadow where a large blue dragon was lazing in the sun, as well as a brown. The brown opened an eye and looked at the approaching people, and the blue lifted his head with a croon. As they stood in the sun, the two dragons watching her and the older searchrider, and the younger searchrider when he joined them, Quinn had the oddest feeling she was being.....judged. She didn't like it. Finally, in the stillness of the morning, the blue let out a soft warble before letting out a happy bugle. The brown joined him, and the older searchrider nodded and left, leaving Quinn with the younger one. He was beaming. "Congrats!" He said, pumping her hand up and down as he pulled her towards the blue dragon. "Siyeth?" She asked, stopping him when he nodded as she eyed the dragons warily. "If he's a searcher, why is he and the other bugling?" "You been searched." P'mir, Siyeth's rider said. Quinn stayed still, not quite believing her ears. "Searched?" She squeaked, looking back to the House where her parent's were watching. "Me?" "Yes, for Falas Weyr. Gold Ellenath and Black Delduwath have a clutch on the dunes, and you'd do splendidly. Good enough, I think, to stand for the queen." "Queen." Quinn repeated dumbly, her mind racing and her heart pumping. Her? A dragonrider? Of a gold? "Are you serious?" She whispered, turning her wide blue eyes to P'mir. He only grinned. Quinn could only cry as she threw her arms around his neck and thanked him. She was going to be a dragonrider! ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ Over half a year later, Quinn was crouched at a stream, scouring pots. Grabbing a fistful of sand, she threw it into the pot, and then scrubbed as fiercely as she could, muttering under her breath the entire time. Mostly, she muttered about the dragoners. At the hatching at Falas, she had been completely ignored by every hatchling, and afterwords by almost every person, as well. If she hadn't bonded a hatchling, obviously she wasn't worth notice. Slamming the pot down onto the ground, Quinn muttered a string of curses that would have made her mother swoon had she been around. Quinn felt a pang in her gut when she thought of that, and looked around herself. After her miserable performance at Falas, she had begged off on a dragoner to get her as far from Falas as he could. He'd done that.....and more. He'd taken her to another planet. Alskyr, to be more specific. Alskyr of blue skies and troubled waters, of such newness it brought tears to her eyes, a beauty that took her breath away....and a place where she knew no one. She'd gotten a job easy enough, like it or not. As she sat scrubbing her pots, she sighed and wiped a tear away from her cheek with the back of her wrist. Quinn had thought she'd never again know the long hours of working hard jobs, and yet here she was. She was thankful for the position....it kept a bed under her and a roof over her, but after leading a privelged life for so many years, work had been a bit of a wake-up call. Even after having worked on her parent's farm for years before her father's promotion to Lord. "Quinn, you almost done with those pots?" The innkeeper called from the back door. Blowing a stray black curl from her face, Quinn glared over her shoulder and clenched her teeth. "Do I look done?" She snapped back, the large man throwing up his hands and storming back inside. A couple of the other girls who worked at the inn, the laundress and a maid, giggled and shook their heads, then went back to chittering between themselves. Biting down a sharp remark, Quinn held back more tears of fury and started rinsing out the pots. "You're so bitter with him." One of the girls, Mara, said softly. "He's nice enough compared to others." Quinn ignored her, fearing she might say something she'd regret, and moved slowly towards the inn, pots banging together as she walked slowly up the green hill. She was bitter towards him, but so what? The pots dropped from Quinn's arms and she clenched her red, calloused hands in tight fists. When did I become so bitter? She thought unhappily, sinking down to the grass and letting her head drop almost to her chest. Her chest felt like it was on fire, and Quinn angrily wiped the tears from her eyes and started picking up the pots. "Here." A gruff voice said, not at all angry, as hands helped her to her feet. She was pushed in the direction of the inn, and the keeper himself carried the pots. "Don't rightly know what's got you so upset. Don't know I want to know. But someone up front wants to speak with you." Quinn could only nod as she moved woodenly to the front of the inn. She scanned the room for a familiar face, and seeing none would have left, had not a hand snaked out and gently shaken her. "Quinn?" The man asked uncertainly. Quinn nodded in response, and the man's face lit up. "Quinn. Nice to meet you. I have a request." "A request?" Quinn interrupted, narrowing her eyes at the man and looking him over for any signs of anything to do with dragons. She seemed to have lost her taste for dragoners after being blown aside after not bonding. "A request." He continued, watching her looking him over with a confused look. "I'm from Ryslen." "Never heard of it." She said truthfully, gesturing for him to continue. "We have three clutches on the dunes, and I want you to come stand." He said in a rush, and Quinn smiled wryly and shook her head, backing away from him. "No." She said simply, feeling the wall behind her as she inched sideways, looking for the door. "No?" He asked, stepping forward as a hungry glint lightened his eyes. "Why not? You're not afraid, are you?" "Of course not. Don't be ridiculous." Quinn hissed, her hands moving behind her as she searched for the doorknob. "Then come stand." He said, a smile twisting one side of his mouth. "No." Quinn repeated stubbornly. She stopped looking for the door and planted her fists on her hips. "You're all the same, aren't you? You think you can just interrupt people's lives because you're a searcher. I'll not stand again, I'll not be put through, through.....that again. No!" "They were fools not to keep you for a second try, Quinn. You have spirit, and some dragon needs that. I know where that dragon is." He whispered the last part, leaning forward, closer to her. Even as her heart soared at the thought of being around dragons and dragoners, she squashed it and shook her head, angry that tears had sprung to her eyes again. "No!" She said loudly, causing many people at tables to look at them. "What part of that can't you understand?" "All of it." He said, stepping back and looking at her hard. "I thought this was something you wanted. The way Speed went on about you...." "Speed?" Quinn whispered, her brother's face popping up in her mind. "What's he to do with this?" "He heard about you at, uh, Falas. He couldn't find you after, and told the lot of us to keep an eye out for you. To drag you to sands to try and bond again, if need be." "He wouldn't." Quinn said, stubbornly refusing to give in. She couldn't go through that....rejection again! "You won't walk away without a bond, Quinn. I promise." He said meaningfully. Quinn pressed a hand to her throat and bit down on her bottom lip. "I don't know....." "Someone will watch over you the entire time. You will bond." "You don't know that." Quinn said forcefully, turning her turbulent blue-gray eyes away from his baleful stare. "Yes, I do." He replied. Which is how Quinn found herself at Ryslen, with not one, but three clutches to bond from. "You'll see." She was promised. She crossed her arms and looked around anxiously. She had better! Quinn is a bonder at Ryslen