Barlow

**Name:**Barlow

**Gender:**Female

**Birthdate:**Early Fall 2757

**Location:**Fort Weyr

**Rank:**Weyrling

**Appearance:**

Barlow is a little on the taller side, with a curvy build with a little extra weight on her, but she carries it well. Her features are all soft, with a wide, heart-shaped face and large, expressive brown eyes. She has a ready smile, and full cheeks that can sometimes make her look a little on the young side. She has pale skin, which tends to burn in the sun before turning to freckles, though she usually manages to keep herself out of the sun. Her hair is a coppery red, thick and sleek but kept cut fairly short, in what is perhaps her only concession to a more modern fashion. Her sense of dress is otherwise more than a little old-fashioned, usually with high necklines and long skirts, though she has a distinct fondness for the color pink.

**Personality:**

Barlow is a calm and steady young woman. There's little that can flap her, and even less that can get her to actually display overt worry. Even in times of high stress, she's good at keeping her head, and good at directing others so long as someone else is there to help her figure out what the right tactical decisions are. She's never going to be the smartest person in the room, or even anything more than average, but she possesses a wealth of common sense that's served her well so far. She's a bit of a rule-follower, and encourages others around her to do the same. She can even get to be a little naggy at time, but she'll always be there for her friends. She strives to be a positive example, but isn't especially skilled at anything other than steadiness and isn't much of a role model at all save in a moral sense.

She can be a little overcautious at times, being unwilling to take what she sees as unnecessary risks (which is most of them), and she's not especially good at putting herself out there. She prefers to have a few close friends over many acquaintances, and can be awkward in large gatherings, often going entirely silent when there's too much going on. She's also a little on the conservative side, wearing clothes that cover her well and favoring skirts over pants, which she considers a rather newfangled idea for women. She's made a little uncomfortable by the idea of anyone other than a goldrider in charge, and doesn't agree at all with the radical changes High Reaches and Semaca have made. Similarly, she considers women on bronze and brown an unfortunate oddity, and wishes she could return the world back to the way it was.

She loves her younger siblings dearly, and writes to them as often as possible. She hates to lose the ties she has to people, and is hesitant to make changes in her life without due consideration. In fact, she often agonizes over even simple decisions, such as what to eat for breakfast, or how to style her hair. She loves dressing up and trying to look pretty, but hates trying to decide exactly how to.

**History:**

Barlow is the child of two journeyman Weavers who, during their time at Ruatha Hold, proceeded to have four more children and decided to make a more permanent home there. She grew up spending much of her time looking after her multitude of younger siblings and the rest of her time learning to sew. Despite never formally apprenticing, due to never finding the time to put in that much studying, she's a rather competent dressmaker, though not much good at drafting patterns for other articles of clothing. For the most part, her life was just calm and stable, with little happening good or bad. Living at a major Hold, the war largely passed them by, and when Thread began to fall they enjoyed the protection of Fort Weyr.

All in all, Barlow was happy. She loved her family, she loved her hobby, and she was content with her life. Some parts of Pern seemed to be changing too rapidly for her taste, but they weren't the parts that usually affected them, and so she ignored them. A Weyr’s business is its own, though when whispers of conflict between Fort and Benden began again, even she began to grow a little nervous. Still, she had faith that Fort would protect them, even if she did begin to lay aside some supplies, just in case her family would need them.

The worst never did come to pass; however, something else occurred. A green and her one-eyed rider came, and offered her a chance to come to the Weyr and stand as a Candidate. To the green's evident disappointment, Barlow refused to decide then, and promised to send a letter when she did decide. It took a month, but eventually she made up her mind to go to the Weyr. Maybe, if she was there, she could somehow help turn back the clock a bit, and put the Weyr a little closer to a return to a time when Pern had never even considered war.

**Updates:**

* Late Summer, 2765- Failed to Impress at her first Hatching, and was horrified by all the nontraditional events that happened
* Early Fall, 2766- Impressed Magasuth, a garnet-bronze chimera

**Lifemate:** Bronze Magasuth