Nephele of Green Nuoth

Nephele

28 (February 2995)
Female
Heterosexual
Wingrider

Nephele's features are defined by a slight roundness that give her a general sweet look. She's nearly perfected the art of hiding her feelings behind sweet smiles or piteous expressions. She became so accustomed to donning pretty, false smiles that her real smile actually tends to look awkward on her. She keeps her silky dark brown hair cut short so that it doesn't quite reach her shoulders. Nephele has light brown eyes that are frequently the only way to tell if she's faking or not. While usually she's able to mask her emotions even there the occasional really strong emotion will be betrayed in her eyes. When she can, she often employs light use of kohl and a faint lip shade to enhance her features.

She stands at an average 5'4 height. Much to her chagrin, she has wide hips and a small bust. Other than her wide hips, Nephele is a slim woman with a surprising amount of hidden strength. Special training with the Legatus Wing that used to be at Selenitas has led to her having increased grace, though she still clutzes out frequently regardless. Out of old habit, Nephele tends to walk a little hunched over, unconsciously trying not to be noticed too much. When approached, however, she straightens and displays a surprising amount of pride and confident charm.

With motherhood has come a drastic change in clothes. Initially she wore what would appeal to men in order to manipulate them, then came the Burimyu days where she wore whatever she could get. As of late she wears a lot of skirts and simple tops or day dresses when she's not in drills or the like - for those she switches to pretty standard flight gear for a rider. She finds these clothes the easiest to chase after her son in while still keeping up the sort of appearance she likes.

Something of a loner naturally, Nephele rarely seeks out the company of anyone other than her friends. When approached she'll act pleasant enough and carry on a conversation but she really would prefer to be left alone unless she approached them. If she approaches a person she definitely has an interest in them, in some form or another. She loves kids and pets to an almost sickening degree, has an interest in unusual cases (such as brownriding females, or people who break the rules in interesting ways), and was rather open to one-night stands with men until she settled down with K'sel.

Her family is something she has craved for a long time without really acknowledging as much so she cherishes them dearly. Even if, you know, her weyrmate is kind of really weird and their son is such a little terror. Not to mention her weyrmate's younger brother and her own younger brother...Yeah. She's surrounded by people she should theoretically hate, being the way she is, but she loves them all anyway. She dotes a touch too much on Kephe, though. From her side he is definitely a little spoiled with her being nervous about being too harsh with him. She tries hard with it though and she can lay down the law of mom when it really counts.

As with many people with those close to them, Nephele is a different sort of person. These people are pretty few and far between and she tends to cling to them when they come along. Around these people she's open, friendly even and willing to help out anytime. Masks are dropped almost entirely around these special few and they get a glimpse at the girl Nephele was supposed to be, if the world had treated her a little kinder. That said, she's changed enough that people she actively dislikes can tell now too. She's not above making snide remarks and acting like she's superior to people who earn her ire.

Birth and Early Turns (2995-3008)
Nephele was born in the large family of Nephon and Adele in a Benden Cothold. She spent much of her younger turns under her mother's wing, looking after her younger siblings (with a particular fondness for Aephon) and learning the ins and outs of domestic life. When she hit her thirteenth turn, though, her father sent her to Benden Weyr. Such was the fate of his daughters who hadn't received any profitable Joining offers. With very little fanfare, her fate was determined and the girl was determined to bear it with good grace.

Benden Weyr (3008-3012)
In the beginning of her servitude at Benden Weyr, Nephele remained mostly within the kitchens out of fear of being attacked or worse. After watching women in the dining area attend to men it became obvious what they were. It also became obvious that they earned certain...benefits from their occupation. Her first was a man by the name of P'mon who especially delighted in shaming her and hurting her. She never quite became good enough to manipulate a higher ranked rider into taking her in. Some women had managed it but she seemed stuck in her place. Tired of serving the rough Benden men, Nephele convinced a tithe train driver to get her out of the weyr (payable in physical services, since she had no marks) and made her way as far from the war as she could - she went South.

Selenitas Hold and Weyr (3012-3016)
When Nephele finally got south she settled in with an old woman and her grandson a couple turns younger than herself. She worked in the Hold's kitchens briefly before being Searched and taken to Selenitas Weyr. Though she had little hope in weyrs in general she gave the place more of a chance when she Impressed not one but two brown firelizards (Charming and Misfit) not too long after her arrival. She hopped from bed to bed frequently as she tried to find a place to belong in the new environment though she found the men weren't as bad as their northern counterparts a lot of the time. Her life took a surprising turn when High Reaches attempted to steal Hepaticath's eggs. Despite her lack of training of any sort, she leapt onto the sands to help defend the eggs.

It was with a certain sense of irony and exhaltation that she ended up Impressing Nuoth from the very same batch of eggs she'd tried to protect. It was a bit of a rocky start; Nuoth shared too much and Nephele not enough. They adapted to each other in time and truly enjoyed their weyrling training despite numerous Weyrlingmasters, the plague, and keeping themselves relatively aloof from their classmates. In fact, they spent more time with Erilena and even K'sel than they did with their fellow weyrlings. She'd even managed to Impress a third firelizard she fondly named Mother despite him being a bronze. Her comfortable life was interrupted by Fort attacking Selenitas. She assisted the weyrfolk and smaller weyrlings during that time.

Somehow along the way, Nephele had learned to love being good at what she was. Though she still cared little for helping people she wanted to be one of the best greenriders she could. Around the time she impressed a fourth firelizard, green Diva, she also lost her beloved Misfit. After her graduation from weyrlinghood, Nephele did her best to get moved off the Miles wing and somehow or another ended up catching Ka'rys's attention. She was thrilled to get onto Legatus where she could learn things not only to protect herself but those precious few that were close to her. She managed to Impress yet another green firelizard she named Sweetheart. She was also reunited with her brother and saw him Impress before Wasteland took over and she was forced to flee, leaving Diva to her death.

Burimyu Weyr and Merging (3016-3018)
The new weyr the exiles found held very little interest for Nephele. She had no one close to her to confide in, though she did appreciate E'rro and Sel'n's company on occasion. She'd also formed a slight bond with all the Legatus members on an old feline hunting trip but they were nothing like her friendship with Erilena, or even her attraction to K'sel. She felt no problem with taking tithes that should have been theirs in the first place or Searching candidates for Jingth's future eggs. She did, however, feel bad for the deaths at the Hyphen Gather when she'd escaped unscathed other than the emotional wounds from not being able to stay near her loved ones. Meira's death came as an unwelcome shock and Nephele stepped up her Searching. She could only trust in Jingth's babies to help secure their future at that point.

Nephele escaped from the weyr frequently just to get away from the atmosphere. On one such trip she encountered K'sel and they finally acted on their feelings for each other. During the second tithe theft the greenrider was overjoyed to see K'sel again because his appearance not only saved more people but also gave him an in to the secretive weyr. The pair quickly (read: instantly) became weyrmates and much to Nephele's surprise they actually worked. So well in fact that not long after the earthquake that brought the weyrs together (and reunited Nephele with her best friend Erilena, who she found herself jealous of initially) Nephele discovered she was pregnant. She also lost her firelizards Charming and Sweetheart during the plague. It was a hard loss for her.

Despite one little blip early in the pregnancy surrounding concerns over K'sel's reaction, her pregnancy had gone as smoothly as any pregnancy could. One thing she learned as she got larger and larger, however, is that she never wanted to be pregnant again. In July she finally gave birth to a healthy son, Kephe, much to the delight of herself and Erilena. Their children would get to grow up together, after all. Nephele and K'sel ended up asking E'rro to be Kephe's godfather. Much as she loved her brother, Nephele trusted E'rro the most when it came to looking after her son if something ever happened to her and K'sel. She was relieved when he said yes because it wasn't long after that Selenitas joined in the war big time. Training with Benden began, and damn if she didn't have more than a few panic attacks seeing her old weyr.

Changing World (3019-present)
She participated in the war, though more on the sidelines than she would have liked due to Nuoth's nature, and after the war happily returned to a world that was getting ready to leave it behind. Yes, she was glad to see its end...but not the new restrictions on dragonriders or the fact that she had to be separated from her closest friends because her little family had been assigned to Inverness. No longer allowed to practice Healing she was a bit resentful of Ae'on who not only got to keep his craft but also got to stay in a Weyr. Still, weyr life was probably worth the small sacrifice. They adapted to Inverness and raising a son together. All told, Nephele remained pretty happy if a little miffed at the world as it was.

Nuoth

10 (February 3013)
Green #3EAE46

Nuoth is just larger than average in size for her color, barely bigger than her clutchmate Huath. She is very lean in build, almost to the point where she might appear underfed or sickly while she is growing. Her hindquarters are the most muscular portions of her body, looking rather out of proportion in relation to the rest of her body. Her wings are no larger than the average for her length, but they look rather large, given how slender she is. They do appear rather delicate, though, given their unusual transparency and Nuoth’s habit of fluttering them at any moment.

Nuoth’s hide is a very mild shade of medium green. Her coloration would be thoroughly unremarkable were it not for the lighter overtones to her hide, giving her a certain appearance of paleness and delicacy. Her hide is lighter at her extremities, at her feet, nose, and the whole length of her tail, almost to the point of being pure white at the tips of each. Her rump is covered in small spots of a lighter green shade, though they are just pale enough against her hide that the ‘freckles’ take some squinting or the proper kind of light to be noticed. Her hide looks soft and feels the same, always having the most pleasant of textures when it is properly cared for.

Because of her slender form, Nuoth is very agile and quite speedy. Her stamina will always be in question, but she is undoubtedly a quick creature and could fly circles around many of the weyr’s dragons with very little effort. Despite her delicate appearance, she is quite capable of getting airborne and is more than willing to do so at a moment’s notice. She is fairly well-coordinated on land but is far more agile in the air, so expect her to excel in weyrling lessons and wing drills. Threadfall might be a problem, given that she burns through her energy quite quickly. Always, though, will she be a joy to watch in the air, twining and twisting at such high speeds.

Elegance personified… or dragonified, rather… Nuoth is the epitome of grace and dignity nearly all the time, a self-assured, though strangely cautious, creature that will stop at little to do a good deed or two or four. She is very soft-spoken and can have trouble making herself heard at times. Never would she be rude enough to interrupt, and always does she think thoroughly through what she says before it is offered forth. This makes her seem rather skittish and withdrawn at times, but the truth is that she is simply careful about what she says and how it is received. If in doubt, she will graciously say nothing, instead listening to what is going on in order to get a better grasp of the situation.

Because she is a good listener and is sensitive to the needs of others, Nuoth can be the best of friends to a creature in need. She makes no biases about species boundaries and will speak tenderly to any being that seems in need of kindness or will listen to anyone with a grudge to vent. Since she takes in more than she expresses, Nuoth can occasionally become overwhelmed by all the emotions that she has taken in from others, making her occasionally moody and quite jumpy when she gets herself worked into a fit. This will usually lead to a stretch of self-indulgent wallowing in her own emotional overload, and, to strangers, she can seem quite detached and uncaring, listening only for the sake of appeasing them in these instances. Those who know her well, however, know that she is in reality simply overwhelmed by the emotions she takes in, and her infrequent moody periods will pass as quickly as they come, if those who care about her will take the time to weather the storm.

Her moody nature and tendency to detach as a mechanism for self-preservation will make it difficult for her to bond with a male as a lifetime mate. She will Rise frequently and rarely pick the same male twice, simply out of fear that they will grow tired with her occasional moodiness and will move on. To those friends (and the occasional mate) who choose to devote time and energy to a relationship with her, they will receive a most loyal friend and secret-keeper in return, a dragon who is willing to lend an ear at any time of day or night and never betray that confidence, save to Hers. From Hers, Nuoth will keep no secrets. Theirs is an open bond from Nuoth’s end, and she will be forever sensitive to Hers’ feelings as well as strongly broadcast her own emotions onto her Chosen. This could prove to make life interesting for them both.

Mother

9 (December 3013)
Bronze #BBBD61

This bronze is not incredibly large, perhaps a consequence of having a Salamandyr for a sire, but he certainly isn’t small either, settling right in the middle of the ‘average’ range for bronze firelizards. However, contrasting with some of his clutchsiblings that look just a tad off due to the mix of genes, at first glance, this bronze is…perfect. A muscled, elegant body with a long, whippy tail, a proudly arched neck and a regal head; wings that are neither too small nor too large and have a tendency to flick open to emphasize a point; short forelegs and longer hindquarters for pushing into the air with. And he is perfect. Except for one thing, the only thing that sets him off from other firelizards: The fact that, on either side of his neck, are two little flaps of hide – thin, tiny, almost unnoticeable, but definitely there: Frills. This bronze has limited control over them, and can lift them to ‘display’ with when truly agitated, but most of the time they remain flat, practically invisible.

As it happens, this bronze firelizard’s color will, without fail, be the first thing that comes to mind. He’s extremely pale for a bronze, his hide an odd mixture of gold and green, flowing across his hide in metallic shimmers. Definitely vibrant and certainly capable of sparkling, this firelizard’s wings will often send bronze rainbows skittering across the floor when open, for instead of just the simple bronze shade, his wing membranes swirl in all different shades of bronze, ranging from a decidedly mossy green-bronze to a bright orange/gold-bronze. Along his back, mossy-green stripes are interwoven with spots, much like those on the back of a “chromatic” Salamandyr, ending just above his rump near his tail. Down the front of his neck and chest runs a gleam of what’s without a doubt pure gold, wriggling down awkwardly from the right corner of his jaw to streak down his neck and end under his left elbow.

Quite surprisingly given the reputation firmly established by almost all bronzes, this firelizard is a very quiet one. Expect no arrogant strutting to and fro for this bronze. Actually, expect very little of anything from him. No, he’s not lazy, and he’ll certainly move around, but he’s silent to the point where most will likely expect that this firelizard is actually mute. And yes – most will also dismiss him as being lazy, too lazy, certainly, to be any sort of intelligent, seeing as he prefers to cling to his person’s shoulder all day as opposed to flying around and flirting with queens or any such idea. Instead, he prefers to direct all of his attentions on his person; let there be no failing of confidence with this bronze around! Very encouraging, gentle, almost motherly, he is. This is displayed most prominently towards His, but if anyone else seems in need of an ego boost, he’ll certainly be willing to send a few warm feelings towards them. Babies, younger creatures, and smaller creatures (this includes Salamandyrs; this bronze is incredibly patient with them) are favored by far, but that’s certainly not to say he’ll ignore the larger and older.

This firelizard is very intelligent, and certainly will be easy to train; he’s cooperative enough that he’ll be willing to indulge his pet human in quite a few matters and run a few errands for His here and there, though he’ll always prefer to be safely curled on his pet’s shoulder. So much nicer that way, isn’t it? He’s very observant, too, noticing little things more than the larger picture. This can, of course, cause a few sticky situations sometimes, but fortunately those times will be rare. His instincts – decidedly more on the maternal side than the paternal – can also get him into a few sticky situations; it’s not every mother that takes kindly to a random bronze firelizard fussing over their offspring, after all – nor is it every (or rather, any) queen dragon that will allow a bronze firelizard unfamiliar to them curl up on their eggs. Yes, he knows that he’s not wanted sometimes, but they’re babies. Babies! How can he resist babies?! Truly, definitely impossible…