Circadia and Arcadia - written around 2001

Circadia (left) and her twin sister Arcadia (right) are only the middle children of 12 to their parents minor Holder Chalak and Lady Mirial of Northstar Hold. Mostly composed of twins, and with only one exception all girls, their siblings comprise a huge force in the Northstar population.

Circadia and Arcadia have chosen to get away from the power plays and the Holder intrigue to settle in a more calm, physically challenging area in the South: Eden's Gate.

Both of them were Searched by Shard on his blue Jeremoth, while up north in the cold lands of their birth.

Circadia is the more passive of the twins, though she seems to catch on to pranks and fun stuff quickly.
Arcadia is more outgoing and loves challenges, in whatever form she can find them.

They are both around 15 turns old, and have since their leave-taking from their home Hold, gotten ahold of interesting information and equipment from Alabaster Weyrhold: computers! Shard allowed them to remain at Lord Engell's place long enough to train them in many less-lordly pursuits, and since leaving there, they are active in Dawnlight.

"If you've come to talk to Arcadia, I'm afraid she's not in." Said a voice from beyond the heavy leather flap.

"What about Circadia?" The records-keeper asked.

"She's around somewhere, she's usually awake this time of night."

There was a pause. Then almost hysterical laughter came from the inside of the weyr.

The records keeper groaned. He should have known that these two would be trouble from the start. They were odd ones, that was certain. Both of them were so interested in the Landing site, where the Ancients lived. Both of them claimed to have been there once or twice. He chose not to believe them, but a part of him did so wish...

"We've seen a strange thing. A device," Circadia said, showing the records keeper a snowy-white piece of parchment with words printed on it so carefully it was amazing!

"That is a print out," Arcadia said, grinning over her sisters shoulder. "We asked to see if there was any proof we could take out of the Landing and there it is."

"But this is just parchment," pointed out their harper attendant. "How can you prove that it's anything but very nicely pressed parchment? And expertly printed lettering?"

Annoyed, Arcadia growled and grabbed the paper. "It says that we've visited. See? Right there!"

He rolled his eyes. Circadia said quietly, "Arcadie, just leave it. He's just going to ask about our parents and all that muck."

"Why don't you want to know about US instead?" Arcadia threw her arms into the air. "I mean, we're far more interesting than a pair of Holders!"

"Indeed," said the harper. "Why is that?"

"Why?" Arcadia gasped, "we've seen the world!"

"We've traveled on dragonback!" Added Circadia.

"We have spoken to queen dragons and craftmasters alike!" Arcadia whispered. They were good at this, playing with their audience together. It was very much like they could think together, like rider and dragon. It unnerved the harper.

"Do you like it in the South?"

"Very much," said Circadia.

"It is so much nicer here than in the north!" Cried Arcadia. "It was so cold up there, I felt like I was only a sculpture of ice, sometimes... my fingers so cold they could barely move."

"I like being able to scribe things with ease, and you know that if it gets cold enough, your ink will freeze?!" Circadia pointed out to the harper, who looked at his quill and ink bottle with surprise. "Yes!" She added, for emphasis when she saw him doing so.

"I have heard that Between is colder than that," said the harper.

"It is chilled," Arcadia tilted her head and pushed her silvery top-hair out of her eyes. "It is."

"But it only lasts a few moments. And I can handle a few moments of my time for instantly being somewhere nicer!" Circadia laughed, and her sister joined her.

"Do you wonder what kind of dragon you'll impress?" He asked next and the sisters got quiet. Like they were talking among themselves without actually speaking. It was eerie.

"I don't know," Arcadia said. "But I wish for a dragon who will take me to the skies and back! To the very limit!"

"And I want a dragon who would be wise and soft and warm..." Circadia purred, "one which will remember my birthing day and --"

"I cannot forget our birthing day, my sister, for it is my own." Said Arcadia with a solemn beat to her words. They grinned, cheshire cats.

"Do you have any pets?"

"Shard won't let us have any," Arcadia grumbled. "He says we're dangerous enough as it is."

"I'd like to have a fire lizard," Circadia said, "but I haven't seen any clutches about. I can wait. It's okay."

"Well, I think that's about all I need," the records keeper of Cincanta weyr said, putting his quill down and dusting his wherhide records with sand to dry the ink. "If you ever want to add anything, just find me. I'm --"

"Down in the labyrinth of the lower caverns," Circadia said, laughing.

"Where it's all spooky and stuff. We like it in the open, out under the stars... In the sun and the wind!"

"And the Thread?" Asked the harper, and the girls sobered a bit.

"Only when it's safe," Circadia said, "then it's beautiful. But ... The red star..."

"I hate that," Arcadia said, "I would so love to be in a world, a time, when there was no Thread! But I hate it so much I want to blast it out of the very sky. Can I do that?"

"Only if you impress," said the harper, exiting their weyr.

***

The girls sprinted down the hallway to the Hatching Sands, once the humming started. They left everything back in their barrack, knowing that no one would steal anything... Everyone would be at the hatching!

It did not take any time for a green to burst through her shell, followed by her blue brother. The blue made a line quickly toward Arcadia, but the green knew herself to be best at running and being first -- after all, she WAS first!

I am Boreanath, she bespoke to Circadia, I itch! It is cold outside the shell!

The blue made it to Arcadia shortly after, and bespoke his new life partner, I am Austrulath. She's pushy, isn't she!

They announced their dragonets to each other, then to the crowd, and left with the broadest grins on their faces ever!

***

"It's not too much to ask that we get a weyr that we can share, is it?" Asked Arcadia. The weyrwoman nodded.

"It's easy, the ones that are usually for the junior queens are large enough for two adults, especially if they're blue and green. I'll have the roster updated when you're settled in."

With excitement, the pair and their sibling dragons entered their new living space. It was large, almost grand! But they all knew that it may become cramped if they got too large.

"I will take this side, you take that side," Circadia sang, "and we'll share the middle!"

I like this weyr! Look, you can dive right into the lake from here!

You can do that from any of the weyrs, Aus. It's not that hard.

"Oh, hush both of you. We've got some fine tuning to do on this piece of work..." Arcadia muttered, while dragging in a table-full of junk liberated from a low storage weyr.

You're always playing! I want to see it work!

"So do I," Circadia said, leaning on her sister. "So do I!"

***

With each gadget that Arcadia and Circadia created, Cincanta's weyrlings got more and more scared of the pair. It wasn't enough that they had exlposions going off at random times in the night, but they wanted to TEST their devices on the other weyrlings.

Finally, when the pair of dragons were adults, they were contacted by the Protectorate's wing leaders. "It's time these two were put somewhere that could appreciate them." N'ate grinned. "And the Screw Loose wing is it."

A wing! I want to be in a wing!

Me too!

The dragons were enthusiastic, as were the girls. Their new friends in the Screw Loose wing were also excited, for it wasn't often that such a pair were found. "They need a little work," V'ax muttered, to Daverin.

"We do not!" Cried Arcadia. "Our work is great!"

"It needs to be in the right hands, though," Circadia said, with a sly grin.

"I think you'll find that it's going to be ours," N'ate said, and draped his arms over the girl's shoulders.