[Penultima]

Ending Tonight!

[oMallieKat]

Cool, I'll have to brainstorm with myself

[Penultima]

Your Username:
maluruloki
Dino's name:
Viorel (Romanian, "bluebell" - not to mock how powerful this dino is, but a homage to his striking eyes)
Your Rider's Name:
Genevieve Pryce
White-blonde hair makes Genevieve stand out within her tribe. Her pale-grey eyes and light skin gives her a washed-out appearance, which has earned her a few unflattering nicknames. As the daughter of a councilmember, she's doing her best to keep her reputation out of the dirt and joining the latest group of wanna-be dino tamers seemed like a foolproof idea. She's hoping to tame this feathered dino in order to gain respect (and fame...) because who would mock the rider of such an awe-inspiring beast?
Your Rider's Tribe:
Mat'era
Do you plan to train this dinosaur?:
Yes indeed!

I love the description of this character and it looks like a nice match with this dino to me :3 Nice job everyone and congrats to maluruloki!

[Khrusolophos]

Congrats! This ones a beauty, I envy you!

[maluruloki]

Thank you, Penultima!!! I'm going to get right on training him, so please look for the posts on his page here!

[maluruloki]

.:: Training Viorel ::.

~ Basic Training ~

First attempt to touch or pet the dinosaur.

She had been waiting here for hours, tucked away in this awkwardly-shaped nook in the side of the cliff. Manuscripts lay about her feet, the discarded lessons of the day that had been long-since memorized and analyzed. Genevieve tucked a lock of white-blonde hair behind her ear and carefully checked how loudly she sighed. There was only so much reading she could do before her eyes began to hurt. Wrapping her arms around her knees around her legs, conscious of how the woven fabric warded off the cool of the shade. It was nearing sunset and she was nearing the end of her patience. Ever since mid-afternoon, the light-haired young woman had staked out the shallow nest between the ridges of earth. That one Bernikesaur, the one with the feathers - such an oddity! - rested her at night, out of the coldness of the rain and within the retained heat of the daytime sun. She tugged at the ties of her fur-lined vest to pull it closer to her body. It seemed like the sun never reached this one pocket in the cliff-side. Just at the edge of the little cave, Genevieve could see that the sun had finally sunk below the horizon and still, there was no sign of an approaching dinosaur. Tears pricked at her eyes despite her sense of self-control. This Bernikesaur, this feathered rarity, it would have been her saving grace. No one would ever have picked on her again because not only would she Ride him, but he would defend her. No...would have... she thought to herself as she wiped at one cheek. Then...there it was. It startled a hiccup from her and she quickly clapped a hand over her mouth. That rumble...and another...another...and another. A long shadow entered the canyon and then, there he was, feathered jawline and all. She was frozen in place and then, so was he, with his nostrils quivering. The dinosaur's deep-sounding breaths rushed over her as with unerring precision, he sniffed her out. Genevieve pressed back against the wall as the Bernikesaur stuck his nose right into the opening of the small cave. Almost all the light was blocked out and she instinctively reached out as if to push him away. Her hand made contact with the dinosaur's skin and again, both froze. His skin was rough and pliable, pitted with small scars from struggling prey, and she gently flexed her fingers to feel it more. He took in another deep breath, clearly curious, and pulled his nose away. Genevieve crawled forwards a bit on her hands and knees, only to pause again as one large bright-blue eye took the place of the nose. The pupil grew and shrunk as he watched her and she could only stare back. There were all shades of blue within his iris and Genevieve was reminded in a flash of picking bluebells in her younger years - the Bernikesaur's eyes were distinctly the shade of the inner petals of a bluebell.
"You're not a Bluebell though..." she dared to whisper. He blinked and pulled back; now she could see all of his head and was reminded of how large a Bernikesaur truly was compared to a human. She swallowed and crawled a bit more forwards. He hadn't threatened her in any way and mirrored her, taking steps back to her forward movements. "Viorel," the young woman finally said as she stood up on the small lip outside the cave. "Viorel is your name." The Bernikesaur tilted his head to one side and the feathers fluffed out, almost giving him a ruff-like appearance. Genevieve giggled. The dinosaur didn't find her as amusing, however, and dismissed her with a snort. He continued off down the small canyon to his resting place and left her standing there. It didn't matter to Genevieve at all: she had touched her Bernikesaur and knew now that no one else would get near him. She would return tomorrow to try and saddle her sandy-colored Viorel!

First attempt to saddle and bridle.

I don't know what to do if he won't let me put this saddle on him! Genevieve was a bundle of expectant nerves as she sat on the lip right outside the small cave that she had frequented regularly since Viorel had accepted her presence. He didn't find her that interesting - in all honesty, she was more like a small forest creature that just happened to live near his resting place. She had succeeded yesterday in getting the saddle blanket down on his shoulders as he leaned against the rock wall for his customary scratch behind the jaw, within the feathery area beneath his lengthy horns. He had paused and looked back at the deep-maroon material as if it were a surprise. He had sniffed and snorted at it, but hadn't removed it. Her scent was all over it and it seemed like Viorel was beginning to accept her as a small part of his life. The flaxen-haired young woman grabbed at the heavy saddle as she felt the dinosaur's approach in the rumbling ground. With unerring timeliness, the sandy-colored Bernikesaur appeared at the entrance to the small canyon and his light eyes quickly sought her out. When he saw her at her customary perch, he let out a low growl - much like a purr - and stomped over. He was quick to nudge at her legs and lip at her offered hands, never brushing his teeth against her. He had quickly learned that any sort of toothy action on his part made both the fun little creature and its stash of delicious steaks go away. Genevieve tossed him a large cut of steak, the size of a small dinner plate, and made sure that the lined sack of meat was within reach. She was getting more used to the metallic smell; at first, it had nauseated her slightly to carry it on her back on the way here. Viorel continued his low purring growl and presented his shoulder to her, where she threw the blanket over the broad expanse. He didn't even acknowledge it and she offered him a pile of steaks that he took with much relish. Now comes the hard part... With a grunt, she picked up the heavy saddle. Viorel glanced back at her, but didn't move; his facial expression was a combination of quiet interest and slight boredom. Actually...maybe the bridle first... Genevieve lugged it back across the small cliff and came back with the unwieldy bridle. That had Viorel a little more interested. The Bernikesaur played right into her plan as he leaned forwards and sniffed at the thin but strong lengths of woven leather. Holding her breath, Genevieve set down the bridle and went to grab an armful of meat. It squelched in her arms and she swallowed thickly, but made it back over to him without puking. Viorel quickly quit sniffing at the bridle once he realized that meat was approaching and stomped a few times in excitement. She quickly deposited it at the edge of the cliff and grabbed up the bridle. Luck was in her favor with her timing: as he leaned forwards for the meat, she managed to loop the front half of the bridle over his nose. He seemed confused at first and she held her breath as he paused; it wouldn't take but a second for him to change his mind about her and she would either go flying from the cliff after being bashed with a rock-hard skull or...worse. The sky-blue eye, right before her face, reflected her pale anxious form in its depths. Viorel took another heart-stopping moment to blink at her and then went back to grabbing bits of meat. Letting out a shaky sigh that ended on a hiccuping-sob of relief, Genevieve did her best to quickly clip all the pieces into place. Cheek-clasp: done. Horn-loop: looped. No reins were attached at this point. She stepped back, clasping her hands together, and waited as Viorel finished the pile of meat. The Bernikesaur licked around his teeth a few times before wrinkling his nose. It was a new weight on his face and he was a bit perturbed by it. Genevieve felt like time was frozen as she watched the desert-hued Bernikesaur reach up to claw at the bridle and remembered the manuscript about training the dinosaurs.
"Viorel! Hey!" She whistled sharply and he paused, his pale eyes on her. She quickly offered another slab of meat and he went from being irritated to lipping at her hand again. It took a few more repetitions of this behavior, but before the sun had moved much farther in the sky, Viorel had accepted the bridle. He still wrinkled his nose every now and then, but knew that he was making this useful little creature happy by not touching it - plus, he got fed. What a bonus!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The next day, Genevieve returned with another bulging lined sack of meat and with the saddle in tow. She was sweating by the time she reached the natural set of ledges that led up to the cliff and wished in her heart that Viorel could already be trained to help her out. With a gusty sigh, she grumbled as she began to walk up the ledges. To her surprise, she rounded the corner onto the cliff to see Viorel already waiting there. He appeared to have been standing there - and her heart flew into her mouth with incredulous delight as she saw that he had left on the bridle overnight! She had taken such a risk leaving it on him yesterday and her sleep hadn't been well; many dreams about him destroying it had flashed through her mind. He began that undulating growling once he saw her and sniffed at her person closely, nudging her gently as if to demand that she interact with him.
"Easy, Viorel - EASY!" She landed on her behind with a grunt as he nudged a bit too hard. He pulled away as if embarrassed when she waved her hand at him, saying, "Back OFF! BACK!!!" It seemed like they made leaps and bounds with communicating to one another because Viorel stood there politely until she rose to her feet again. Brushing red dirt from her clothing and tucking her braid behind her shoulder again, Genevieve gave him a gimlet look. The dinosaur returned it unflinchingly. "Alright, saddle, buddy. Saddle." It was a new word and he tilted his head, the sunlight glinting from the bridle's metal parts. Again, she made the hand motion to come over and he leaned up against the rock wall, presenting his shoulders. She dumped out the entire sack of steaks at the edge of the cliff and then did her best to quickly lug the saddle over as he was gulping down the food. First, the saddle blanket: no response. Next: the saddle itself. "Saddle!" she yelled at him before she half-dropped, half-threw the riding tool onto his shoulders. Again, he froze and slowly looked back at her. Those blue eyes narrowed at the saddle. Flickers of last night's bad dreams rushed through Genevieve's mind as he craned his head back to sniff at this new apparatus. Part of her was relieved when she realized that he could only lip at the saddle; his neck wasn't quite flexible enough to reach it - and that meant he couldn't reach her if he tried. "Viorel, here! Here, bud! Meat!" Clapping her hands, she got his attention again and turned it back to the pile of steaks. As he mouthed each bite, she scratched at the bridle, underneath some parts, and again the rumbling growl filled the canyon. A grin spread from ear to ear on her face, making her grey eyes twinkle. This was some serious progress! Next...oh next...was riding him. She wanted the saddle back this time and quickly wrenched it from his shoulders as he was finished the last bite. He watched her, licking around his teeth, as she stashed it against the back wall of her little nook. Maybe...maybe in a day or two...they would ride. "Good job today, Viorel. Good boy, good boy," she crooned as she offered her palms out for him to sniff. He snorted when he saw no food was offered and just as quickly as he had originally attended her, he ignored her and went to lie down. Genevieve smiled. What a personality.

First attempt to ride in saddle.

It was the day. THAT day. After at least a week of slowing getting Viorel used to being touched and having objects placed on his body, Genevieve was going to do it: she was going to try riding the rambunctious dinosaur. She stood there, frozen on the edge of the cliff, all nerves and anxiety as the desert-hued Bernikesaur kept munching away at the pile of meat. Already the bridle was on and it had been a breeze. He hadn't even really blinked when she slipped it over his nose. Even having the bit between his lips barely stopped him from enjoying the food. The saddle sat on his shoulders, right it should be, and he had given it a mildly irritated glance before he had lost interest. Taking a deep breath and whispering a prayer to the gods above, the flaxen-haired young woman scrambled onto the saddle. Quickly, she stuck her feet in the stirrups and grabbed up handfuls of the loose reins. There hadn't been time to connect the lower length of bridle to the front saddle strap, so they swung rather freely. It made her teeth grit. As she glanced down to the right, she was aware that the front saddle strap wasn't tucked into its safety band either and the extra length was flapping against Viorel's neck. More silent prayers went up as she saw him take the last mouthful of meat and swallow it.
"Oh my gods....ohmygods-ohmygods-ohmygods!!!" Her breathy voice squeaked as Viorel looked back and blinked a few times; he seemed intrigued to find her sitting astride him. He shuffled his shoulders a few times, experimenting with her weight on his back, and decided that she wasn't a bother. Her stomach dipped as he took a step forwards, heading nonchalantly towards his bed, and then...she tugged back on the reins. It was a gentle tug, but a tug nonetheless and the Bernikesaur froze up. He mouthed the bit a few times and she heard it clink against his razor-sharp teeth. Genevieve steeled herself and thought back on her riding manual: do not let them see your fear - you are Rider - you are in command. "Viorel...? Viorel, buddy, let's go this way," she said in a cajoling voice, giving the kiss-click sound that he knew so well. As she put more force into the pull to the right, Viorel moved his head with it, but not his body. His light-blue eyes found hers and she got the impression that he was confused at his loss of power. "To the right, Viorel. Right," she said again, this time with a bit more iron in her tone. The Bernikesaur gave a low growl and a snort, but half-heartedly took a step to the right in place, putting him ninety degrees in a turn. "Right, right, keep going - right," Genevieve repeated, keeping up the gentle pressure and before she knew it, they were facing out towards the exit to the canyon. Her throat closed up as she realized how far they had both come in such a short time. Viorel craned his head back and tongued at the bridle; he cleared wanted to spit it out. "Ah-ah, tssst, no - easy, buddy, easy." The Bernikesaur stopped with a grumble and hung his head. His Rider reached out with her hand and scratched at his neck, just in front of his shoulder blade, and she was pleased to see him react positively to it. Okay, a little treat if he can behave, gotta remember this, she thought to herself. "Viorel? Let's go." He glanced back at her and blinked a few more times; Genevieve was beginning to wonder if this was his "I'm confused" signal. She let him have more slack in the reins and repeated herself. He seemed to mull over her words and took a step forwards. At her triumphant laugh, he paused and looked back again. "Yes, Viorel! Yes! Good boy!" The Bernikesaur danced from one foot to the other in a moment of indecision before taking a few more steps and then stopping to look back at her. "Yes! Good boy, good boy." They made it haltingly to the end of the canyon before Viorel seemed to plant himself. Alright, that was fine, don't push him yet, Genevieve thought, remembering the manual. "Alright, Viorel. Right, buddy - right," she commanded with a gentle pressure on the reins. He fought her for a second by not responding, but then seemed to realize that they were turning back into the canyon and turned all the way around of his own accord. Genevieve was back at the cliff within a few giant dinosaur steps. She dropped the reins and carefully dismounted. Viorel stood there, his light eyes on her, as if asking for her to get these obnoxious things off of him. She complied calmly, first with the saddle and then with the bridle, and Viorel rubbed his head on his ribs as if ridding himself of the feeling. It did make Genevieve a little disappointed, but she knew that only time and practice would make things easier. "Good boy today, Viorel, good boy!" Her voice echoed off the walls as she stood before his head. With a low croon, he leaned in to sniff her hands. She took the opportunity to scratch at his nose and they had a mutual bonding moment. It was delightful and Genevieve went home that evening with the knowledge that she was well on her way to becoming a dinosaur Rider.

(( I wanted to add that this whole post is all rainbows and sunshine right now, but just wait until the next level of training...muahahaha. ))

[maluruloki]

.:: Training Viorel ::.

~ Advanced Training ~

Relaxing with Viorel

They had been at this whole "riding" concept for another week and both creatures were getting quite tired of the heat. Genevieve was sweating beneath her Novice Rider armor (worn to build up body strength and for the fledgling Riders to adapt to moving in it) and even Viorel, born and bred in the open plains, had his toothy mouth a-gape to suck in lungfuls of air.
"Let's get to the shade, bud," his Rider called out as they crested the rise of yet another one of the rolling hills that made the Mat'era/Mat'junea borders so unique. It was beneficial that the two tribes were on good terms - Genevieve had a chance to interact with other young Riders and their mounts when they came across one another. They hadn't seen another Rider in quite some time and the sun was getting unbearable. Viorel looked back at Genevieve, gave one of his signature bobbing-nods of semi-intelligent agreement, and sniffed at the air. His Rider wondered what he was doing until he began a gentle lope along the basin between two hills. It wasn't long before Genevieve realized he was heading towards water and her suspicions were confirmed when the dry basin quickly turned into a large pond. With gusto, Viorel stomped into the water until he was up to his shins and leaned down to drink. His Rider released the reins to scratch at a favorite spot beneath the saddle blanket until she felt him begin his purring growl of appreciation. She paused to finger the fabric of the new blanket. It had been handcrafted by her mother in secret and kept locked away because, according to her mother, she "knew this day would come and your dinosaur would need a blanket". The flaxen-haired young woman gave a soft laugh that got Viorel's attention. He craned back his head, muddy water dripping from his chin, and she laughed again as she reached out to rub his nose. His eyelids drooped down until they half-covered his bright-blue eyes. She gathered up the reins again and gently steered him towards a man-made dismounting structure; constructed of solid wood, it acted as a platform for the Riders to safely get off their Bernikesaurus rides. Viorel had been nervous of the odd things at first, but within a day or two, Genevieve had shown him that it was similar to the cliff of his home den. She hopped down on to the platform and gratefully sat down on the edge within the shade of the roof. Genevieve didn't say anything, just sat back and watched her dinosaur, and he tilted his head to each side to watch her as well. He seemed to sense that he was free to do his own thing for a bit and waded out to the center of the pond. His Rider watched him curiously before pulling out her small pocket notebook; this was an opportunity to record an unknown Bernikesaurus behavior. With a growl and a grunt, he slowly submerged himself up to his breastbone and extended his neck to wet its underside. Genevieve paced hands over her face and groaned. The fringes of the blanket were now stained with muddy water. She rubbed at her forehead before looking down at him again and calling out, "You are a brat, Viorel! Grade-A Bernikasaurus brat!" His light eyes rolled to take in her irritated posture and his response was to stick his nose beneath the water...and blow bubbles. She was totally taken a-back at first, too amazed to laugh, but then the giggles caught up with her. It looked like blowing bubbles in chocolate milk! Viorel seemed to know she was amused and pulled up his nose only to do it again, this time vibrating so that the surface of the water rippled outwards. Her braid smacked against her back as she shook her head and finally stopped laughing. "Oh Viorel..."
Needless to say, they spent a good part of the afternoon at that pond - Rider taking amused notes and Bernikesaurus wallowing in pond water. Just another lazy moment within the confines of Mat'era territory.