"Eona, those people are staring at us," Radory said as he pointed to the scattered groups of people around them. The Gather's varied entertainments swirled around them unheeded as Eona turned her head. It wasn't every person; a person here, a person there, gesturing towards the two of them with a quick tilt of the head and bending close to whisper something to their companions. She couldn't be sure, but she guessed what they were saying.
"Such unhandsome children."
"The father's a bit of a...well, you know. Gets the milk without buying the herdbeast."
"Bastardborn, probably the girl too."
"Take after their father, no doubt."
She took her little brother's hand and pulled him away while he complained about wanting to see the jugglers.
Of course it wasn't every person, even she knew that. There were plenty of Holder men and women who treated them with every kindness despite their family history. But, well, there were the others. They stood out more. There wasn't a whole lot of them, but there were enough. Radory might have asked their father about it all, but Eona knew better. His eyes would grow sad, his face would fall into a picture of guilt and remorse, but he would never, ever say anything. Eona didn't really need to hear it; Radory might not know why some people treated them the way they did, but she was old enough to remember.
The first thing she remembered were the fights, where she would stay up, lying in bed, and listen to her parents shouting at each other outside. Then her mother stopped fighting. At first it was a relief; Eona was able to sleep a lot better, but then her mother bought a long, curvy dagger, pretty and sharp, and she was found the next night with it buried in her chest with a note beside. Eona couldn't sleep after that.
Then there was the time two years later. Her father was gone a lot of the time, and some people and her father told her she was getting a baby brother. She was never actually told the events surrounding it, but she saw and overheard enough, and over time, it became clearer. The first time she saw him, Eona told Radory that she wasn't going to let anybody pick on him because of his parents. It had lead her to coming home with cuts and bruises a few time from other children, but she never regretted it.
Now Radory was tugging at her hand, whining in his nine-year-old voice for pies from one of the nearby stands. Eona bought two, one for each of them, and the two of them sat down in a corner to eat and watch the people going past them.
One man walked past and he caught her eye, because Eona didn't recognize him and she was sure he had never been to their Hold before. He seemed to be enjoying himself and he had a big, good-natured smirk on his face. The man, certainly a good few turns older than their father, might have noticed Eona's staring at him, or perhaps something about the two of them just drew his attention, for he broke away from the Gather crowds to greet them.
Eona watched him with guarded eyes, but he seemed harmless. He introduced himself as C'fron, causing Radory to shout out something about dragons. The rider grinned and nodded in reply, and he chatted with them for some time about nothing in particular. Eona found herself liking the man, despite herself, and she was caught off guard when he told her that his dragon thought she should be searched.
She hadn't even seen a sign of any dragons, but then a movement from outside the crowds in the Gather caught her eye, as a dragon lying just beyond the boundary of the Hold lifted a wing in greeting. She remembered that dragons and riders could often hear what each other were thinking.
C'fron was still waiting for her opinion, and she finally shook her head. "I can't go anywhere, I have to take care of my father and brother," she told him.
Radory didn't agree. "You should go!"
"No," she just shook her head.
"Are you sure, then?" C'fron asked, and was about to nod, but she gave it a little more thought.
"Well, could my family come with me?"
The rider cocked his head and shrugged. "The Weyr could always use a few more people, I don't see why not."
Eona nodded, slowly and thoughtfully. "Well, okay. We'll go."
"Your father won't mind moving?"
She met his eyes steadily. "No. We'll go."