Chapter 1 - The Morning Brings a New Light
Udelle woke up with a smile. The warm rays of sunlight beamed through the windows of her hut, gently nudging her from the confines of her bed into another wonderful day. Sitting up and stretching, the young dragon took a moment to acknowledge the Lightweaver and all that they had done to bring yet another beautiful day around. She took a moment to check in with her daily scroll, making sure all the day’s tasks were listed and that she had organized enough time to complete them all. Once that was done, she stepped out of her hut.
The light breeze that cooled the air was just enough to keep temperatures from getting too high, softly rippling the grass that surrounded the hut circles. Udelle waved contentedly at several of her clanmates as she wandered past their huts, taking a few moments to drink in the beauty of the day before heading to the library for work. As she made her way past the stream, she couldn’t help but notice how serene the waters looked, glinting with sparkling sunshine as it danced over pebbles and around twigs.
“Good morning, Delle.” Birch, the clan’s librarian, grinned as Udelle entered the library. “Have a good rest?”
Udelle set her satchel down. “I did!” She began to pile several scrolls and tomes out of the bag and onto a desk in the center of the library. “Isn’t the brightness out just wonderful today? I love the rise of Light elemental...I can’t wait for it to peak at Brightshine!”
The spiral smiled and shook her head. “I know you can’t. You tell me every day. Several times a day.”
“I’m sorry!” cried Udelle, blushing as she picked up her ink and quill. “I tend to get a bit…”
“Enthusiastic?”
“I was going to say obsessive, but I guess that works as well.”
Chuckling, Birch began to shelve old tomes. “Why don’t you go work at the tavern for a while. I’ve got things under control here, and I really think you could use a change of scenery. You’ve been spending almost all your time here lately.”
“No, I’m fine.” Udelle began to scratch away on her parchment, occasionally glancing back at the tome for reference.
“Delle, honey, you used to love going to the tavern. What changed?”
“Nothing!”
“That was far too quick of a response to be true, love. Talk to me. You know I will always keep your secrets.”
“Fine.” The young linguist set down her quill and turned to face her mentor. “So. You know Ura, right?”
“The tavern owner? Yes, I know hi- wait, do you like him!”
“What? No!” Udelle shook her head frantically, taking a deep breath. “Of course not, why would you say that? Anyways, he hired a new barmaid.”
“And you’re jealous that another female is spending so much time with him.” Birch nodded knowingly.
“Again, no. Please stop - what did you call it -
shipping me with Ura, it’ll never happen.”
Birch tilted her head curiously. “And why not?”
A beat passed in silence before Udelle sighed. “That’s not the point. The point is that he hired Kayleighe.”
“And you hate Kayleighe because…”
“I do not
hate Kayleighe! She just gets on my nerves...she’s always hovering. I know she means well, I really do, she just doesn’t know when to back off. She only got the job because her sister is the brewer for the tavern anyways.” Udelle huffed and turned back to her parchment. “That’s why I don’t want to work at the tavern anymore. I’m worried she’ll be there and I won’t be able to get anything done because she’s too distracting.”
Birch nodded slowly. “She isn’t the only dragon who works at the tavern who tends to distract you…”
“Birch!” Udelle trilled and tossed a rolled piece of parchment at the giggling spiral. “It’s not like that! I swear!”
“Uh huh. Sure. Whatever you say, Delle. Go work at the tavern. I know for a face Kayleighe has the day off, I saw her heading into the marketplace an hour ago.”
Udelle paused for a moment. “I...I really have work to do.”
“I know. That’s why I’m sending you to the Tavern. Go!”
“But-”
“It’s not a request, hon. Go to the tavern. Have a drink, chat up your bartender, do some work. You’ll love it.”
“Fine.” Udelle caved and shoved everything back into her satchel, slinging it over her shoulder before heading out the door. As she left the library she turned to shout one more thing over her shoulder. “He isn’t
my bartender!”
“Whatever you say, Delle.” Birch smiled to herself as she continued to catolouge tomes. “Whatever you say…”
~
Ura blinked slowly, trying to clear his head. He had wound up working late the night before - a hatchday celebration had run late - and hadn’t gotten much sleep. Not that he minded, he loved the tavern. Spending time with all the patrons, getting to know all the dragons in the clan, it was wonderful. He had connections to every single dragon in the clan, and they all knew (and more importantly, liked) him. Usually the extra long hours wouldn’t bother him at all, but this evening he had to go to a council meeting. And, while being a member of the council was fun, and the meetings were usually civilized, they were still serious, and quite often draining.
He turned his attention back to the figure at the bar, plastering on his patented million-treasure smile. “Well, morning Aeryn. How was the rest of your celebration?”
The wildclaw at the bar smiled, blushing slightly. “It was wonderful. Thank you so much for hosting us last night. Fal and Jar and I had a fantastic time. It was definetly the best hatchday we’ve ever celebrated.”
“Good. The usual?” Noting the nod, Ura whipped into action, mixing up a pastel peach beverage and pouring it into a glass. He shook his head as Aeryn tried to pass him a few coins. “Nope. No way. On the house today.”
Smiling softly, Aeryn gratefully took the drink in her claw. “Thank you, Ura. I appreciate it.”
“Always. Happy hatchday! And tell your brothers to get their butts in here as well! You all know hatchday drinks are on me.”
With a nod, Aeryn made her way to one of the tables by a window, cozying up with a book and her drink.
Ura hummed to himself for a while as he putterd, topping up bottles, wiping down the counter, and washing out used glasses. After a while, with several more dragons served, he ducked under the counter to grab something.
“Ura?”
The small voice startled the wildclaw, who jumped and bashed his head on the underside of the bar. “Oh, deities.” He groaned and stood up, coming face to face with Udelle, who was leaning on the bar with both elbows. “Hey! What are you doing here? Aren’t you working today?”
“I am!” Her face turned up in a grin as she gestured to her satchel, brimming with scrolls and tomes. “Birch told me to work here. She wanted me out of her scales for a while.”
Ura raised his brow as he began to mix up a drink. “Really? I can’t imagine anyone wanting to get rid of you. You’re so...pleasant.
Udelle deflated slightly at the phrase, but shook it off rather quickly. “Anyways, I thought I might as well get something done over her. And say hi to my favourite bartender.”
Passing her the drink, Ura leaned forward. “You’re favourite, huh? I mean, I am pretty fabulous.”
“Mm. And fairly aware of it, apparently.” Udelle sipped the drink experimentally and grimaced. “What’s in this”
“A few roots. I’m trying something new.”
She shook her head and placed the glass back on the bar. “Don’t. It’s awful.”
“Come on!” Ura protested. “It can’t be
that bad.”
Udelle shoved the glass toward him, a grin appearing once again on her lips. “Try it.”
The bartender rolled his eyes and took a swig of the blue liquid, immediatly spitting it back into the cup. “Oh, by the Lightweaver, that is the worst thing I have ever tasted.”
“Told you!” Udelle said smugly, folding her arms.
“Alright, alright, you got me.” Throwing his claws in the air, Ura dumped out the glass and began to make a new drink. “I guess I should just stick to the classics, huh?”
“That would probably go over better.”
A moment later, he handed her a mug full of steaming liquid. “Your usual. On me, as an apology for making you drink that horrific, sinful poison.”
Udelle laughed, tipping her head back. “Thank you. I’ll go sit in the corner to get out of your way.”
As she was moving, Ura shook his head. “You can stay here if you want. Just try not to take over the whole counter.”
A smile, and the young linguist set up her work, casually chatting away with Ura as she took notes.
All in all, it was turning into the perfect day.
@
Petall
IT IS STARTING I AM SO EXCITED! AHHHHHHHHHHHH
So this is my new clan lore! The last attempt did....not last, so I'm hoping I can stay a little more focused with this one. I have a long gameplan, so that helps, and I'm also not in school anymore, so other than NaNoWriMo, I don't have any constant writing assignments!
LETS GOOOOOOO
