Noelani was pale in skin tone. Her skin was light white, and smooth, no blemishes. Her skin was light in colour, a pale blond. It came to a bit above her shoulders, and was very thin. It was cut so that it angled inwards, framing her delicate face and accenting her features. She had a small, delicate nose with a slight ski-slope incline, small, full lips that were a slightly more pink colour than her skin, and big eyes, a very pale blue. She was tall, and thin, and very graceful. When she walked, she seemed to float across the ground. And she had a sort of glow about her- not in her personality, but literally, a glow. It was a calming, goldish-white aura that surrounded her from top to bottom, soft and fuzzy looking. It moved about slowly, sometimes glowing brighter or becoming very faint. But it was always ther. And the one thing that people noticed first, the one thing that made her so different...well, maybe they were two things... Her two small, feathered wings. White in colour, and too small to actually let her fly, her wings were the cause of many stares and questions. And truthfully, Noelani could not answer all of the questions. She was quiet and shy, and avoided making eye contact with people, even when she spoke to them.
One of the most common questions, rude as it was, was "What are you?" Noelani never knew how to answer this question. She knew she couldn't be alone, with the light appearance, and wings, and that faint, soft glowing that surrounded her. And her ability to...to read people. People and animals. Whenever she saw a living creature, be it human or animal, an image, or several images would form about the creature's head. Most of the time, she could even hear their thoughts, if they were "thinking loud enough", if that made any sense. Sometimes the images made her blush...She didn't much care for the idea of looking into people's personal lives.
My wing... It hurts. Hungry...pain...thirsty...cold... The voice was clear in Noelani's head. She blocked the other voices out as best as she could- those voices of the other forest creatures which chattered in her mind. For the few days she had been in the forest, she had gotten little or no sleep. The creatures that were up during the day chattered nonstop, and those at night...well, they had plenty on their minds too. And to add to the fun of the voices in her head, it had just snowed, and the ground was covered in a few inches of the white powder. This voice was different that the others...It was more intelligent. And so, she started towards it, gliding across the forest floor. Her silky dress, pure white and to her ankles, blew in a gentle breeze that really wasn't there... She finally found the source of the voice. A tiny animal, small and dirty, all trace of colour covered by mud and grime, was at her feet. It cringed away from her, shutting its eyes from her glow, which was brighter than ever. It had wings... And one was sliced clear from bone to bottom. There were the remains of egg shells around... Perhaps it had cut itself hatching? She didn't know. But her heart broke at the sight of the poor creature.
She crouched down, and the creature, sort of dragon-like, looked up at her. She reached a hand out and touched the wing. The glow that surrounded her melded with the creature's body, and then encased it too. Both human and flitter- for that was what it was, she now realized- were glowing in a brilliant white-yellow light. She didn't notice then, but she would later, that where they were sitting, the snow completely melted away to reveal leaves and grass underneath. When the glow finally winked out, the little dragon hopped up, stretching his wing.
"Good as new, little guy," she whispered, smiling. And she stood.
Thank you, but I am still hungry and thirsty. Will you feed me? asked the firelizard, looking up at her. She smiled, and scooped him up in her arms.
Noelani carried Angel- that was the name she gave him- to a clear pond in the forest. She really didn't know how she knew it was there, she just did. Some things just came to her. There was a thin layer of ice on the water, but the glow seemed to do away with it. She gently held the flit down to the surface, letting him drink. When he was finished, he raised his head. She noticed a glimmer on his nose where there had only been mud brown before. She dipped her hand in the water, and began to rinse him off. He cooed the entire time as she scratched his hide, clearing it of every speck of dirt. And when she was finished, she saw that Angel was indeed a bronze, not a brown. But no matter. He was still hungry...
And so, she fed him a meat roll from her pack. He thanked her profusely, over and over. And then, she felt that perhaps, he was going to stay with her.
Yes, I would like that. To stay with you, I mean. You have good food. You are kind. And you helped me even when you thought I was but a blue. You have a good heart, Noelani. She smiled, and hugged the firelizard. And then, she set off. She did have somewhere to be, after all.
She reached the Hold, and was glad to finally be home. There were children playing in the snow, building snow people and having snow wars. They all hailed greeting to her, happy to see her back. She was the Hold's Healer, and the best at her trade. Of course she would be, what with that magical glow and all...whatever it was. Some kind of trait of whatever her species was. But they didn't care what she was, as long as she could Heal their people and animals. And while she had been gone, there had been many to fill in. In all honesty, she hadn't been missed. She had no close friends, only her patients and casual aquantances who would say hi and nothing more. But again, she had no enemies either. And no family. For wherever she was from, she was most likely the only one on this side of Pern.
Cheer up. You have me now. She smiled. Of course Angel was right. He always was. She entered her home, and breathed deep the odor of flowers. It was good to be home.
Many sevendays later, Noelani was sitting in her home. There was a fire burning in a fireplace. She sat in a chair facing the fire, sipping a mug of spiced cider. Her life had continued its normal routine since she got back. Waking up, bathing, Healing, coming home, eating, reading up on history (mostly, she was trying to find anything at all about her species and where she may have come from), going to sleep, and then starting all over again in the morning. She finally admitted to heself one day that she was bored with herself. Or rather, Angel told her.
You are bored. Noelani looked up from the thick hide she was reading. She rarely spoke. Angel did most of the talking around her home.
You are. I can tell. You think that I am the most exciting thing to happen to you. Which is pretty bad since you are...what, twenty-something turns, and you just found me a month ago? She frowned then. He was right. He was always right. Such a smart firelizard.
"What do you suggest, Angel?" She closed the hide and placed it on a table. Angel rose, and fluttered to land on a perch by the fire.
A Weyr, he thought simply. Noelani looked at him for a moment.
"A Weyr? Why?" Angel flicked his tail.
There are dragons there. I would like to see others like myself. Even if I am but a flit. And I think you would do well there, with the people and dragons. I know a place. He said it simply and shortly, not really speaking, just thinking. But it was all Noelani needed to hear.
The people of the Hold were sad to see her go, but they would be fine without her. This caused her some pain, to know that she would not be missed. But no matter. She was off to find something different. A different routine, perhaps. A different life.
Whispers followed Noelani as she walked through the Weyr. Whispers, and unspoken words. Words that only Noelani could hear. They were wondering who she was, where she came from, and what she was. They wondered why she was there, when their next meal would be, and whether such-and-such liked them. They wondered why she glowed, and why she looked the way she did. She had finally made it to Ryslen, and her appearance showed it. Her dress was ragged. But her body, although she had been trekking through forests for days, was completely unmarked. No scratches, no bug bite, no frostbite or redness from the cold. Angel fluttered behind her, peering around himself, taking it all in openly. Noelani was staring shyly at the ground. She dared not lift her eyes, for fear someone would send her away. This place was beautiful. It was full of dragons, mostly white, or partially white. And one that was black and green.
"Hello," said a young woman.
"Hi," whispered Noelani. She was still peering at the ground, her hair hiding her face. She looked up carefully, at the girl who spoke to her. She was looking at Noelani with a strange look, almost as if she were in deep confusion or wonder, as if she were thinking very hard. Noelani quickly looked back at the ground. The image over the woman's head was one of a large question mark, and a picture of Noelani's own face. For some reason, she could not read this one's thoughts. Not that she was complaining.
"Are you an angel?" asked a child from a crowd of onlookers. Her head jerked towards his voice. He was young, maybe only five turns. The name, Angel. That of her flit. It had just come to her out in the woods. And Angel was an actual being? She did not answer the boy, instead, she looked questionly at the woman.
"Come with me, Noelani." Abruptly, she turned and started away. The dragon followed, and Noelani hurried to catch up.
As they left the crowd, the thoughts got fainter. And she was greeted by silence. She listened hard for the thoughts of the dragon, or the dragon's rider. But there were none. Perhaps this bonding process blocked out the mind-reading ability?
"This is Auspexeth. I am Minaeya. We are Searchers here. There is something about you. Something different. I would like to speak with Weyrwoman Tiyanni about it. If you will wait right here, I will be back very shortly." Minaeya disappeared into a room, and closed a door. Noelani tried hard not to listen, but she could hear the voices clearly. Not their thoughts, but their voices.
"She has no aura, Tiyanni. None. All I can see is this blinding white-yellow glow that encircles her entire body. And I believe everyone else can see it too. I saw the way they were looking at her. It can't just be her wings." The door opened, and Minaeya ushered Noelani inside the room. She was incredibly nervous. The Weyrwoman?
"Noelani? I am Weyrwoman Tiyanni." She held out her hand, and Noelani shook it.
"Are you... Have you come here to Stand for a clutch?" she asked suddenly. Noelani was so startled that she looked up. Tiyanni's face was warm and friendly, smiling and welcoming.
"Well, no ma'am. I just...wanted a change." Tiyanni glanced at Minaeya. And then, back at Noelani.
"Auspezeth there seems to think you would make a wonderful candidate. There is the Winter Gather Flurry Flight happening soon. Would like you like to Stand?" Noelani was speechless.
"It would be a definate change," she added. Noelani just nodded. Tiyanni smiled.
"Very well. We'll sign you up. For now, make yourself comfortable."
The other candidates were very accepting. They cared not for how she looked, or her shyness. Somehow, they managed to get her talking more and more, and to keep eye contact with people. She smiled much more often, and enjoyed having snowball fights and building snow families with her newfound friends. For sure, it was the best time of her life. And for once, she didn't care about what she was, or where she came from. All that mattered was that she was living, and having fun.