Z'warName Pronounced: Zoo-WAHR Appearance: In both appearance and personality, Z’war seems to have been created for the sole purpose of being abused. The best possible word to describe his physique is scrawny–one gets the feeling that even if he tried to work out, muscle mass is something Z’war could never dream of attaining. His unexpectedly broad shoulders are usually slumped forward in a gesture used by animals as a defense mechanism and his big feet rob him of the agility most prey use to escape predators. He has stringy brown hair that he wears tied back in a ponytail or as a veil to hide behind, and he keeps his face well shaved. He has large, feminine brown eyes with long eyelashes, which, when he is pushed too far, have been known to well up with tears. His hands, though on the smallish side, have the rugged look of those which have never been used for anything very detailed or tender. He wears a silver bracelet at all times that used to belong to his grandfather, and he toys with it when he gets nervous. He has the misfortune to embody many stereotypes of homosexuals–the limp wrists, girlish gait, inability to throw, and, most condemningly, the lisp. He emits a general feeling of nervousness and fear, but he is secretly very intelligent. Personality: It is easy to see why Z’war Impressed green–he is incredibly submissive. Hesitant to advocate for himself, he has a ‘speak when spoken to’ attitude and wants nothing more than to blend into the shadows. Unfortunately, both his dragon and his natural clumsy awkwardness tend to get in the way of this desire. Although he is always quick to apologize, he is prone to knocking people over or tripping into them. Even despite these things he might have been able to escape notice, but being a dragonrider has both forced him into the company of others as well as given him something worth defending. Although he rarely says a word about himself, he has a fierce love and devotion for his green, Korith, which occasionally leads him to uncharacteristic actions. There is nothing that terrifies Z’war so much as the prospect of public speaking, and it is only on Korith’s back that he is able to tolerate heights. For Z’war there has never been a point in denying his homosexuality–it is complete and total. Still, he feels no pride in it, and it is something that he would absolutely never verbalize, although to claim it wasn’t there would be patently ridiculous. Z’war would much prefer to repress those feelings, as he does many others. One also gets the feeling that Z’war is a bit of a time bomb– that perhaps some day in the very distant future he is going to get very drunk, or very scared, or pushed beyond reasonable limits, and years of oppression will manifest themselves in unforseen ways. History: Z’war, born Zeewar, spent his early childhood as many hold-bred boys do, helping his father farm. But as he grew and showed less and less enthusiasm or skill, he eventually began to spend more time in the hold with his mother. This was a great source of tension between he and his father, who never quite gave up on the idea of having a son just like himself–a rugged, fearless man of the earth. Z’war was Searched by a High Reaches rider at 18. His mother was thrilled, but his father, who had begun to suspect certain things about his son, told him before he left "If you Impress a green, don’t bother coming back". Z’war didn’t know what to expect from weyr life, but at the very least was excited to be leaving the Hold. At High Reaches he was reasonably successful at blending into the woodwork and avoiding notice–few there would probably even remember him. The Impression of Korith was without a doubt the most joyous moment of his life, and although it meant he could never return home, he was happier than he had ever been. Mating flights, with their evocation of primal, unrestrained emotions, did put a damper on weyr life for Z’war, and were generally something he dreaded. In fact, it was when he fell in love with another man that he decided to leave High Reaches for good, rather than endure the prospect of facing him in the flight room. Information about Z'war's dragon Dragon Name: Korith Colour: Green Age: 7 Wing (Weyrling Group): Appearance: At her head Korith’s hide is a deep green mixed with greys and blues, like the sea before a storm. As it progresses along her body the green gradually lightens, so that end of her tail is a light minty green. She is somewhat strangely proportioned–her wingspan is very large for a green, and although her mid-section is quite short, her tail and neck are very long. Like her rider she is very thin, and her head seems to have been enlarged to accommodate her enormous eyes. Because of the size of her wings and her overall lightness Korinth is a very fast flier, but she is not very muscular and she tires quickly when she cannot take breaks to simply glide. Her wingspan also makes it difficult to execute sharp turns–she’s better than browns, bronzes and golds in that respect, but most greens and blues could turn much faster than she. Korith and Z’war are similar in their awkward appearance–Korith’s head and wings appear to have been cut from a much larger green and attached to a diminutive, albeit lengthy dragon. Still, the confidence with which she bears herself lends her a poise and grace that Z’war could never exhibit, and her elegant coloring has earned her many admirers. Personality: Korith is more like Z'war than she would care to admit. She, too, has very little self confidence, but she overcompensates for it by pretending that she is the most confident dragon on Pern. In her thirst to prove that she is not weak she often makes poor decisions, adressing browns, bronzes and golds improperly and overstepping boundaries. She is also ridiculously flirtatious, although this is more of a natural tendency than a coverup. She loves browns and bronzes, but very rarely devotes much of her attention to blues. Korith is never happier than when she wins the attentions of a handsome brown of bronze–people unused to her often assume that she is on the brink of a mating flight. The attention of males validates her, and if she goes too long without it she can become depressed. She has very little use for her fellow greens and is very protective of Z’war. She has a very short attention span, and constantly needs something new and exciting to holod her interest. She is fiercely competitive (especially with other greens and occasionally with golds), impatient and spontaneous. In moments of intense emotion, Korith can be surprisingly perceptive. Weyr of Origin: High Reaches Abilites and weaknesses: All references to worlds and characters based on Anne McCaffrey's fiction are copyright© Anne McCaffrey 1967,2005, all rights reserved, and used by permission of the author. The Dragonriders of Pern® is registered U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, by Anne McCaffrey, used here with permission. Use or reproduction without a license is strictly prohibited. |