Name: T'laq (Telaquil)Age: 26
Nameday: 10.24.3548
Sex: Male
Sexual Orientation: ???
Weyr: High Reaches Weyr
Rider Rank: Wingrider
Previous Rank/Craft: Apprentice Harper
Physical Description:
A very long and lean 6'9", with dark hair, medium-dark skin, and gray-blue eyes. With very sharp, slightly elongated facial features, T'laq leans more towards unique than he does conventionally attractive, and is seriously afflicted by a chronic case of resting broody face.
Personality:
T'laq is someone who exists on the fringes - not because that's where he's been relegated to, but because it's what he prefers. He values quiet, privacy, and personal space. He is neither shy nor awkward, however - he just has preferences and very well-defined boundaries. He can and does tolerate most people, may accept some, and may even like a few, but the difference can be difficult to discern. He holds his thoughts and feelings very close to the chest indeed, and even with those he considers friends generally seems aloof at best. Still, for all that he is quiet, he has a definite presence and weight - he just doesn't flaunt it or throw it around. His overall impression is cold, but regal.
Raised to be independent and capable of thinking and caring for himself, T'laq's first priority is, in most cases, himself. This never leads him into cowardice, however, as he's also proud, and well aware of the importance of appearances, or of duty. He is High Reaches born and raised, after all, and has always taken to his lessons well. It just that his reasons for doing the right thing don't necessarily boil down to doing the right thing - he will do it because it is required, or beneficial, or because of the consequences of not doing it. He is a pragmatist, first and foremost.
There seem to be no cracks in his self-control, and though he's easily irritated by and looks down on many others (whether their fault is that they're loud, stupid, reckless, or a host of other things), he keeps that under wraps just like he does the rest of his feelings, so few will ever know. He can be condescending, but usually subtly so, but get under his skin enough and he can be scathing. He has a cutting sense of humor that he enjoys wielding against others if they've crossed him...or if he actually likes them. He can be a difficult friend to have, with such sharp edges to his affection. Having people close in almost any sense is varying degrees of uncomfortable for him, so if he happens to push people away by doing this, well, that's fine (sort of, maybe).
He is someone who doesn't appreciate excessive noise and chatter, and likes things to be a certain way. Though it doesn't quite reach into compulsion territory, he doesn't take well to disruptions. Loud or disruptive individuals - especially if they're intentionally disruptive - are the worst, and the most likely to be on the receiving end of a biting snap from him. On the other hand, this fondness for order and routine makes him well-suited to the structures of Weyr life and dragonriding. Accordingly, he's also very clean.
He likes fine things, but not ostentatious ones, is fond of animals, and likes the dark. If he weren't subject to the rigid schedule of dragonriding (and Weyrlinghood and Candidacy before that), he would be a night owl.
Positive Trait List self-controlled, intelligent, pragmatic, independent
Negative Trait List habit-driven, arrogant, selfish, puts up walls
History:
Born to Aquilina of gold Caracath and one of the bronzeriders of High Reaches, Telaquil was a model weyrbrat. His mother was there for him, but never coddled him - past a certain age, he was expected to be able to think and act for himself, and he did not disappoint. He was a quiet, easily-tended child, always more interested in lessons and learning than he was in playing with the other children. While he was often nearby, rather than fully isolating himself, he was never interested in being in the thick of any rowdy games, although he would readily offer ideas for new or improved iterations. As he got older, and especially as he entered Candidacy, he had a ready supply of companions (inasmuch as he wanted them) in other children of metallic riders. Though he was never at the center of the group, remaining on the fringes by choice, he was welcome enough among them. His intelligence and demeanor made him a clear choice for a good ally, assuming they all eventually Impressed to the hides that befitted them (and why wouldn't they?). And he was that boy: the mysterious, brooding one whose emotional distance made him seem 'cool' and appealing to many, in spite of some lanky teenage awkwardness as he grew into long limbs and a lot of height.
As the turns passed and he grew into a young man - not quite handsome by conventional standards, but strikingly interesting nonetheless - so too did the clutches, one after the other. Turn after turn, more of he group would Impress, sometimes to the 'right' color and sometimes not, until eventually, the older ones began to age out. Some left, some lingered, and the rest continued to wait, while new ones aged into Candidacy. If Telaquil was concerned about his own chances, he never showed it, though he was pragmatic and undertook Harper training. Though he doesn't often deign to share it, he has a lovely voice.
He got older and older, he lost more friends to either Impression or aging out, and was well on his way to aging out himself when they were summoned to the Hatching on an island beach. It was fairly late in the proceedings that an elegant blue broke its shell and, while attention was elsewhere, announced himself to Telaquil and requested to be fed. T'laq, of course, obliged, with no indication of disappointment at being selected by a blue.
Nandith, after all, is the very finest of blues, and nothing to be disappointed in. So what if his friends who Impressed larger dragons are no longer his friends? He was never actually all that fond of any of them, anyway, so it was no real loss. Weyrlinghood for T'laq and Nandith was largely uneventful - they were both ready and willing to learn, quick studies who thrived with lessons to devour, and eager (but never recklessly so) to serve their Weyr. Nandith was friendly with his clutchmates, and T'laq was as he had ever been: present but distant, and easy enough to work with. At their blooding, they came through with barely a scratch - just the lightest of scores to Nandith's tail, and a pulled muscle from throwing firestone for T'laq.
Other: yum_tea
DRAGON
Name: Nandith (from the Nandi Hills region, where Kenya Purple Tea is grown)
Age: 1
Color: Blue
Size: 30'
Physical Description:
Just a little bit longer from nose to tail than the average blue, but overall slender in build - he has the enviable trait of being able to eat whatever he wants without ever adding an ounce of pudge. It all goes into lean muscles, lending to ready athleticism and agility. Though he may be slim, he's quite a hardy fellow, who can endure and withstand more than one might think based on first glance.
Personality:
Nandith may be a blue, but he is not and will never be just a blue, or just anything, for that matter. His color may relegate him to a certain place in the hierarchy and specific role when it comes to fighting Thread, and he accepts that without question, but that is not everything that he is. He is absolutely not disposable or easily replaced, whatever some of the more extreme traditionalists might think: he is valuable, he is an individual, and boy, what an individual he is!
He has confidence in abundance, with class enough not to ooze it (because ew, who wants to ooze anything?). Everything he does, he does with flourish and style, and none of it is an affectation or a deliberate reach for attention. He is just that smooth, just that graceful, just that sharding handsome, that he can't help but draw the eye...not that he would ever have it any other way, or doesn't know his best angles or how to catch the sun just so after he's been oiled. He just knows it all so well that he doesn't even have to think about it. Nandith is that way about most things, in fact: he's an extremely quick learner with excellent muscle memory, and rarely requires more than one lesson or practice session for something to be properly ingrained. From day one, he was an absolute natural at flying, and has an enviably fast reaction time when fighting Thread.
This propensity for such fast learning does have a downside in that he gets bored very easily - waiting for everyone else to catch up is such a chore! Once he's gotten what he needs - or what he thinks he needs - from a lesson or drill, his attention is very quickly lost. And Faranth forbid he encounter something that gives him any amount of trouble, at which point he'll become frustrated. In such circumstances, he'll either claim to be feeling unwell, or blame and even snap at his teacher or teammates, because surely the fault can't be with him. After all, he's usually good at everything! This just isn't him, oh no. It can't possibly be!
Moments like that aside, Nandith tends to be a fairly relaxed and accepting dragon. It's rare indeed to find him in a flurry of activity - even his quick actions and reactions during 'Fall have an easy quality to them, as though it's all a carefully-choreographed dance and he always knows exactly what the next step is. In truth, it's just sharply-honed natural instinct and a willingness to roll with the punches: he isn't a worrier or second-guesser and doesn't waste time on what-ifs, he just does. He just is. And everyone else? Everyone else just is, too, whatever it is that they are. He has no interest in trying to change anyone else, any more than he has any interest in trying to change himself. As long as no one gives him or someone close to him any trouble, he won't give them any, either. As resilient mentally and emotionally as he is physically, he can weather most upsets or insults to himself without much issue, and will most likely shrug it off and turn the other cheek. If someone he's fond of is on the receiving end of something nasty, though...well, let's just say that he's very creative, and sooner or later, he'll see that they get theirs.
Flirting is another thing that comes naturally to this blue, although more often than not it's just friendly, playful banter, simply another facet of his charming demeanor. He may want to catch, he may want to be caught...who knows? He'll go with whatever feels right at the time, but will never knowingly break hearts. His affections are always true, in the moment at the very least, but it's unlikely that any one dragon will ever tie him down exclusively.
Loves yellowfruit, and, though he would never admit it, is a gossip connoisseur.
Why Me: Who is this fine gentleman, and how is he still on the market? Presence, intelligence, taste, a good lineage...there is no shortage of things Nandith appreciates about his chosen, and can't fathom how no one else ever snatched him up. Their loss is his gain, however, as Telaquil is just perfect for him. This blue needs an equal who can keep pace with his quick learning ability, and with the class not to seek attention but rather draw it without effort. And maybe, just maybe, Nandith can smooth down some of those sharper edges and enable His to find a real friend or two.
Dragon Art or Proof of Obtainment: NPTea raffle~
