Not a Good Judge of Character Part 1

Writers: Ames, Eimi
Date Posted: 11th May 2013

Characters: Danrina, Canovan
Description: Danrina meets a potential suitor and learns that she's not a very good judge of character
Location: Sunstone Seahold
Date: month 13, day 13 of Turn 6

Danrina

She heaved a sigh. She'd been here now a few sevendays already and
she'd met a smattering of people, but no one who seemed husband worthy
yet. In fact, she hadn't really met many _men_ at all. They were all
either so busy or off and about most of the time that she only had the
other women for company. Danrina was _trying_ to be friendly and speak
to them, but it wasn't always easy. She knew she needed them to
accomplish her mission.

Standing tall, back as straight as a rod, she stood taking in the sun.
It had been raining for _days_ and she was sick and tired of being
cooped up inside. Breathing in the fresh air, she looked around,
noting quite a few of the other residents out enjoying the sun as
well.

"Nice day, isn't it?" a deep, rich male voice asked.

She turned at the sound of the voice, not one she'd heard before. "It
is," Danrina replied. Her eyes taking in the man standing there.

The first thing she would have noticed would have been his height and
broad shoulders. His hair was black and wavy, his eyes bright blue and
standing out against his tanned skin. He would easily be considered
handsome, and his smile showed his confidence in that fact. "I don't
remember seeing you before. Are you new here or was I just blind?"

She swallowed a bit, blinking as she took in his dashing good looks.
Then doing her best to turn on what little charm she felt she
possessed, Danrina smiled. It wasn't something she'd done much of in
her past, so it often came out a bit forced, but she _was_ trying.

"I'm new here. Just arrived not too long ago. I'm Danrina, and you
are?" She _had_ to know this man's name. He was already a clear
candidate in her mind, based on his looks alone. **Looks can be
deceiving girl,** she chided herself, having known men like her
father, who were good looking, but had little to no heart or love in
them.

"I'm Canovan," he said, taking her hand and bringing it up to his lips
with a slight bow. "Pleased to make your acquaintance, pretty Danrina.
Welcome to Sun Stone. How do you like it?" The handsome stranger made
no attempt to drop her hand.

She had to admit he was flattering and her heart skipped a beat as his
lips brushed her hand.

"I...um...well, I like it alright I guess. I hardly know anyone and
haven't really settled in yet, but I like it enough to know I could
live here. Have you lived here long Canovan?" She asked, hoping to
divert some of the attention from herself and stop her fluttering
heartbeat.

"About ten Turns. So you haven't seen much of the Hold then?" he asked,
deftly turning the questioning back to her.

"Not much," she replied, "I've walked some and went for a ride with
the Steward when I first got here, but otherwise, I've not really
known where to go."

"A ride with the Steward, eh?" he asked, his eyes sparkling with
delight. **I bet he did take her for a ride...** "You like going out
for rides around the Hold?" Away from prying eyes?

"I like riding around the land, yes. It's so much bigger than my
father's hold had been. It's refreshing to be out in the fresh air,
admiring the beauty of the land around us." Danrina, of course, had
little to no idea what she could be getting herself into.

"Your my kind of girl, Danrina," he grinned, feeling he had found a nice
little gem in this rough little patch of Pern. "So where do you live?"

She gave him a confused look at that question. "Here, at Sun Stone
now. At least for the next Turn."

"Well, yes," he laughed. She was something! Canovan leaned a little
closer. "Where in the Hold? In the Hold proper? In a cot? Do you
live with your family...?" **Please say you live alone!**

"Oh!" She chuckled a bit nervously, not picking up at all on the
potential dangers of revealing her location. "I have my own room in
the Hold proper. It's not much, but it's all mine." Danrina felt proud
to have her _own_ place. It wasn't something many women were able to
brag about.

"Really, how lucky." For _both_ of them! He liked how she seemed to
emphasize 'all mine', as if to assure him that they would be completely
alone.

"It really is a nice place, and much better than sharing with my
annoying siblings," she rolled her eyes at that. "So, what about you,
Canocan, do you have your own cothold or do you live in the hold
proper?"

"Canovan," he gently corrected her, though if he could get her on her
back, she could call him anything she wished! "I live in a cothold, but
mine's not so quiet. Your place sounds so much nicer. So what do you
do with yourself during the day? Where can I find you when I'm ready to
take you for that ride?"

"I guess I could meet you somewhere if I knew when you were coming?"
She stated the last more as a question, finding herself very attracted
to the charming man, she was eager to get the chance to know him
better already.

"Oh, don't worry, I wouldn't get lost. I lived inside the Hold proper
for a time," he assured her with a charming smile. "Why don't you just
tell me where you live? I'm never sure when I can get away, so some
time I can come knock on your door and surprise you. If you're there
you're there, if you're not, I'll try again later."

"Oh, okay," she replied, blinking a bit, disappointed he couldn't
commit to a time. She then explained where her rooms were located so
he could stop by to visit her when he was free. "I look forward to
going for a ride with you when you're free," she added after giving
directions to her room.

"Canovan?" A woman with a child on her hip and two more in tow had
stopped a few feet away from the conspiring pair. She had quite a stern
expression on her face as she looked Danrina up and down. "We're
finished now and the children are getting hungry."

"Coming," he said with a sigh. Turning back to Danrina, his smile just
as bright, he murmured softly, "I'll be by to take you for that ride
some soon."

Her mouth gaped open and closed as she took in the woman, the
children, and the man. **Oh, what a fool!** she told herself,
swallowing against the hurt she felt. **Yet, why did he say he was
still taking her on a ride?** She shivered a bit as she watched him
leave. **You'd best be more careful in the future, girl,** she told
herself. No matter how much she might have disliked having her family
around, at least she knew they would protect her. Now, well, now she
was all alone.

"Stupid girl," she murmured to herself as she wrapped her arms tightly
around her chest and hurried back inside the Hold where she hoped she
would feel safer about what had just transpired outside.

Last updated on the May 16th 2013

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Not a Good Judge of Character Part 1