Meirleach

While Meirleach inherited her mother's congenital wing weakness, she also inherited her father's cheerful attitude and inventive bent. Her brother and clutchmate Aerdhaite was flying with the adults long before she had managed to build enough strength to even lift herself off the ground under her own power, but she quickly became the best climber in the Bramblewood Grove. It's not uncommon to find her clambering through the branches of the larger trees, and she makes her lair in the canopy of a massive walnut tree. She has built a number of platforms nestled in the leaves, safe places to curl up, write plans, or leap from to glide down.

While climbing and gliding are fun, Meirleach longed to see the rest of the world, like her clanmates. The Guardians and Imperials would have been happy to carry her, she knew, like they did for the Tundra dragons when their winter coats came in... but that wasn't enough. She wanted to fly under her own power.

So, she set to work, scavenging materials from wherever she could find them. Unattended items started disappearing, pulled up into the trees by a stealthy claw, a swift tail, or a jaw snaking down from an overhanging branch. The identity of the grove's phantom thief was discovered rather spectacularly as Meirleach crashed down in Gealaglair's flower beds, the splintered remains of her first brace prototype dangling from her wings.

It took many tries, many plans, and enough "borrowing" to impress a Ridgeback, but eventually, she found a wing brace design that worked. Flying long distances still tires her quickly, but at least she can soar with her clanmates when they go for scavenging runs!

And, of course, she can better cause mischief. She is Drochspruis' daughter, after all.

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Meirleach and Balgair are very close friends, and they tend to hatch schemes together in Meirleach's treetop lair. (Fealladha sometimes joins in, though she's a bit too big to sit in the tree, so she just rests her head on a platform.) She is very close to her father Drochspruis, but somewhat distant from Preachan. She enjoys spooking her brother Aerdhaite, frequently discusses the latest gossip with Lanntair, and likes to swap tales of high adventure with Gileorail and Sprout. (She earns frosty looks from Chirrup, though, since she's prone to "borrowing" shiny things from his tree.)

Meirleach's familiar, Hayate, is a small Raptorik warrior who surrendered to the clan during one of their forays into the Bamboo Falls. She took a liking to his fiery spirit, and they swiftly bonded over a mutual love of shiny things. He frequently goes to fetch things that are out of Meirleach's reach, and protects their small hoard while the Pearlcatcher is out. (His small quick hands also come in handy when it comes time to apply the wing braces.) Meirleach frequently makes (or grows) small gadgets that Hayate keeps on his belt -- you never know when you might need something!