Asterism

This hen was thrown out of her old clan for being too fussy about details. When she was still but a hatchling she insisted she be called Asterism because constellations are sections of sky, not the stars and invisible lines and objects that most people think of when they talk about constellations.

After a particularly bad argument, Asterism was banished and eventually ran into Orion and then Andromeda. While Andromeda has ambition and Orion has people skills, Asterism has her perfect recall of data. She's not very good with people since her antennae only tell her what others are physically feeling and Asterism doesn't understand how to interpret that into emotions. She's still learning to recognize her own emotions, too.

But neither Orion nor Andromeda mind that Asterism doesn't function like most skydancers do. She can keep track of every single thing in their hoard and tell you exactly where to find it without consulting their records, and that's what's important. And so long as she's accepted here and is allowed her space and permitted to continue working on her mathematical ideas, Asterism is quite content to stay put.

Even if Andromeda is clearly insane and Orion has no control over the situation.

---

Some time after joining Andromeda's clan, Orion found a weary sneakbog carrying a tri-colored, crystalline, unconscious spiral curled up on her back and tied to her with vines. The two exhausted travelers had fled a long ways from a situation neither has ever been willing to speak of, and Orion offered them shelter from the rain beating down on the world outside.

The spiral captured Asterism's attention in a way no one else ever had. The skydancer could not explain why she found it difficult to focus on anything else when the crystalline dragon danced through the sunlight to amuse the hatchlings. Nor could the Head Record Keeper explain why the spiral kept coming to rest next to her or why she would watch Asterism work without saying a word for long stretches of time.

Every day, the spiral would find her in the early morning at Asterism's favorite spot -- her study, where she would look over messages left by the other record keepers before starting the day's work -- just as Asterism was about to have her morning tea. The polite thing to do was offer tea, so Asterism did, and the other dragon accepted and offered her a lump of hardened, sweet sap, and the polite thing to do was accept, so Asterism did.

It became a morning routine, and Asterism liked routine. She appreciated that the spiral did not try to force conversation but instead allowed the quiet to stretch its wings out and fill the space between them.

In celebration of the anniversary of when Asterism joined Andromeda's clan, the spiral gifted the skydancer enchanted, floating candles which never melt or otherwise need replacing and which follow her. They have always been Asterism's favorite gifts as she can always see where she's placing her feet and can work without having to think about her light source.

Asterism gifted her spiral with a book about the fine art of growing crystals. With the knowledge in it, her spiral started growing crystals into art. She gave Asterism a crystalline flower with both of their colors in it, and Asterism keeps it on her windowsill where it can catch the beams of the sun or the moon and fill her favorite place with the same kind of light that dances off of her spiral.