For King and Country (Medieval/Fantasy) (Re-Accepting) NEW!

[D_letion]

xxxxxxxxxxxxxGaran Henrik Latham
The Lord of House Lathamxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Adrift on a silent sea
The cold night surrounds me
Black ice forms beneath
The waves of a childhood dream
A far light hypnotized

It ebbs and flows and comes and goes
And rips you up and lets you go
It eats inside and splits your mind
As you search around for others kind

It's getting colder
I'm getting colder
Let it get colder until I can't feel anything at all

x ✁ The courtyard got silent as Garan stood in shock of what just happened. Mostly everyone had cleared the area, the few that were left seemed to watch him with curiosity, as if he might have been mad. He looked at where Etana had stood, and felt a small wrenching in his belly. Was it guilt? Most likely. Guilty for what? Guilty for clearing the area of innocent bystanders? Guilty of ensuring she was away from the room provided by the host? Guilty of being on-guard when she looked as if she was going to transform? Garan frowned and went to pick up his shoes, feeling the slight goosebumps on his skin as well as the eyes. "Training can resume. Pardon the disturbance."

Stalking back to his room and ensuring that nothing was too wrecked on his flight from the room. He picked up his cloak, dusting it off and replacing it on the chair within his room. Closing the door, he flopped down into his chair and fumed for a bit until his pent-up anger was released.
What was her problem?! Why did she get so upset!? I just had to run for my life from some mad woman trying to kill me!
He ran the scenario over and over in his head, feeling the tickling in his gut each time. As his father had taught him, that feeling meant something wrong. Something he had done that went against his morals or good-nature.
Perhaps I overreacted?

It was only an hour after the incident, but Garan knew Etana to be the grudge-baring type. He yanked his cloak on and stalked from his room, catching one of the guards at the gate, "Have you seen the young lady Eyre?" The man shrugged as Garan sighed, "Long dirty blonde hair, green dress? Athletic in build?" He motioned for a height, approximating what she was against himself. The man made a face and nodded before reporting seeing her head in the direction of the woods, to the outside of town.
Garan released a groan. There was no way that he would find her in a forest, and if she truly wanted to avoid him she could easily do so. He wasn't a tracker, and he didn't have his father's goshawk with him to help. He sure as hell didn't know if Kyron could help him, being in the funk that he was recently.
What is there to do? How long does she plan to stay out there?

Turning to head back inside, Garan started speaking to the staff about their dinner. He requested a stew to be made--in small portion--and to be kept on the fire in the main hall. He assured them he would take responsibility for it, and they began to add it to their list of duties. Next, he attempted to stay as close to the main hall as possible. During dinner, he continued to glance at the door whenever he could, despite receiving a few comments about distractions. More pleasant conversations until the men began to drink and then things became a bit more bawdy. Garan, however, refused more than just two beers and as the last man left the main hall, the young lord sat in his chair and stared at the door, waiting.

Eventually, his eyes became heavy as he rested his head on his fist, propping himself up in the chair as his head fell to the side. He would open his eyes at every sound of a door, though, in hopes that she would come back. He didn't know what he was going to say, but something was better than nothing, and it had obviously upset her, whatever it was.

[Harmonie and Happiness]

ＦℓσяєиɀXXXX ＤαvιdXXXX Ｌαтнαм

тнє second ℓαтнαм sσи⇇
▆▆xx▆▆▆▆▆▆▆xxx▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆

Florenz squinted his eyes and slightly looked away when Vormund started to yell at him. It was expected, that was for sure, but the bit of spit that landed on his face was an unpleasant surprise. God… He was yelling so loud, he was sure one of their heads was going to explode. Before any serious injury, however, Vormund stopped.

Wiping the spit of his face, he closed his eyes tightly, and looked like he was trying to fight off a migraine. His clean hand pinched the bridge of his nose, and he took a couple breaths before he was ready to fight back. Holy god, this was terrifying, but if he didn’t do something now, he would never live it down. The only way to earn this baboon’s respect was to beat him.

How? Florenz surely didn’t know the answer, and getting into a yelling match with him sounded terrifying. Maybe if he just kept responding in a calm manner, Vormund would look like the fool.

“Vormund.” Florenz responded calmly, but with a hint of terror. “We. Are. Going. To. Wait. Until. Garan. Comes. Home.” He ordered and then looked over at David, her face confused and also terrified.

“If you would like to talk to the prisoner, that is fine, but no one is allowed to take any harming action towards him until Garan lets them.” Florenz stopped there, waiting for another round of yelling or even worse, a punch to the face. He wondering if he would even be able to stand up if Vormund hit him, or if it would just knock his lanky a** out.

He turned his head slightly and clenched his teeth, preparing for the worst, when another voice appeared in the hallway.

“What is going on down here?” Lady Latham asked, suddenly standing next to the two males.

“We’re.” Floren blurted out, beating Vormund to the punch. “We were discussing what should happen to the prisoner while Garan was away. I thought it would be a good idea to wait, until we do anything drastic and risk losing them.” He replied, not being able to help the instant relief he felt with his mother standing next to him.

The Lady nodded her head, placing a hand on his shoulder. “If that is what you think is best, dear.” She agreed, and Florenz looked back at Vormund with an almost grin on his face.

Not so tough now, are you?

[Harmonie and Happiness]

EtanaXXXX ◯ XXXX Eyre

the eyre shifter⇇
▆▆xx▆▆▆▆▆▆▆xxx▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆

Etana pushed back the crowd and walked in a fast pace in the direction that seemed less traveled by. The woods were only a few more yards away, and there she could escape the people and Garan. She looked back over her shoulder, relieved to see that Garan wasn’t following her, but also… upset? She wasn’t sure why she wanted him to follow her, when all she would have done was push him away.

Reaching the woods, she plowed through the snow and the fallen leaves. She was not sure where she was going, but knew she needed to get there fast for her own sanity. After a few moments of running through the woods, she came across a large tree and decided she would climb it. That way, if anyone did come looking for her, they would have to know what they were doing. Plus, she didn’t have to worry about encountering any wildlife in this particular tree.

When she grasped the last branch and pulled herself onto it in a sitting position, she could feel the tears start to fight their way onto her cheeks. She wasn’t sure why she was crying. Maybe she was frustrated at Garan for overreacting and making her look like a monster, or maybe she was heartbroken because of it.

She wiped the tears off her cheek, already feeling them start to freeze on her face. She really wished she didn’t take off her fur coat now, but this weather wasn’t anything she couldn’t handle…. She would just be miserable for a while.

She stayed up in the tree for a long time, brewing her anger towards Garan, wondering what she would do if she saw him again. What if she acted like the monster he thought she was and ripped his face off? Even the thought of that, however, made her cringe. No. She would never do that. But she was still pissed off and she wanted to destroy something.

Her breaths started to become less shaken, and she looked at her hands. Garan didn’t hold all the blame… Or even a large part of it. Yes, he did make her feel like she was a monster, but… wasn’t she one? If anything, this whole thing was more reality slapping her in the face, than anything. It was probably best to remain in the tree to calm down, rather than returning and being unstable. She didn’t want to act like the beast everyone saw and it was especially hard not to at times like these.

After the sun and been down for good amount of time, Etana decided she didn’t want to be sitting out in the cold any longer, and started to climb down. She had stopped crying a couple hours ago, and she could feel herself no longer on edge. Since it was night time, she doubted she would have to explain this whole situation to her father… Though she probably would have to in the morning.

Heading back to the large cabin the group was staying at, Etana made haste to get there as quickly as possible. Maybe she should have shifted if anything else than to keep her warm. The beast that made her suffer emotionally was always there to protect her physically. She didn’t hate it… but she wished something were different.

When she got to the large doors, she opened them up, not too worried about waking anyone up and turned around to shut them. She took in a breath and turned around to see a lone white-haired figure sitting by himself in the great hall that could only be identified as Garan. Her heart started to race and she became panicked, not sure why he was here. Was he going to talk to her about how she acted earlier? Did he tell her father about this? No... No! Etana had just calmed down, she didn’t want to go through this again. She looked toward the hallway, wondering if she could make a run for it before he managed to get up to talk to her.

[Tyber Septim]

XXVallena HalleXX

THE SILVER GRIFFON

Vallen's hands crumpled into fist. She'd beat the honor into Davan. For him, it would take forty good punches to pay back for the dirt, another forty for birthing a b*****d, the next forty were just for Vallena's own enjoyment. He deserved the beating. With stunted strides Vallena crossed the training grounds to her opponent. The grass crunched under her sabaton, then her stride came to a halt. The crowds behind Davan begin to split like cockroaches before sunlight. In strode her father. He came like a mountain. Large, with look of vast unfathomable disappointment etched into his stony face. Vallena shrank before him. It was only now her good sense begin to nag at her. A Royal Admiral, rolling around in the dirt, beating the snot out her elder brother. Come on Val, you're better then this. Davan used to be better then this. That last fact stung her more then Vallena wanted to admit.

"I shall end it, here!" Came the thunderous command of her father. She'd almost forgotten that side of him. The side that could hammer in a troll's face. The side that could tear the life from a man. Vallena's began to do a detailed inspection of the ground. The dirt was very nice today. She felt that same dirt shake with each of her father's oncoming steps. "Rolling in the dirt again, just as you had as a snot-nosed brat." Vallena's throat tightened. Her hands were held so tight she feared her fingers would snap. Snot-nosed brat, a snot-nosed brat. The words rang like a town criers bell, an announcement to her failures. Over, and over. Lord Ostadar's shadow fell upon her. It smothered Vallena. Her breaths came in spurts. You dare throw dirt an an opponent's eyes whilst they fight you?! At her father's words Vallena head shot up. His cobalt eyes found her father's wrath not upon her, but upon Davan.

She stood in still silence as her father poured insults, and declarations, upon Davan. Silence had become a quick hobby of the crowd. They stood eyes fixed upon Davan. They watched like vultures, they were creatures of carrion, and they'd spotted dead meat. The crowd that had cheered him on stood with sealed lips. Not a word was raised in his defense. The soldiers had with eagerness egged Davan on now stood at attention. Vallena's eyes slipped from Davan's destruction to Prince Arne. Beside him stood the well tanned Prince Vaughan. For once Vallena's glare was not meant for Vaughan. Prince Arne bore the front of her fury. Her eyes shouted at him, all because of your pride, you and your damned pride. That fiery gaze was torn back to Davan upon her father's final declaration. Vallena mind sank into the muck. This wasn't what she'd wanted. Sure, whack Davan with a practice sword for a crowd, had its finer moments. This, this was out of hand. "F-father," the words couldn't even be called a whisper.

"Father, I ask you reascend that decree," Vallena couldn't meet her father's eyes. She did as she had during her early years in the navy. She looked up, and to the left. Never into their eyes. "I ask that Davan be given one final chance. He fought well, he f-fought, like he used to. Like the old days. I ask that he be given one last chance. I'll enlist him. I'll do it right now." That's when she met her father's eyes. When she had cards in her hands. She held them tight to her chest. All she could hopes is that they were good. "If you remove Davan, then Oscar, and Avalon are in my way. They won't stand a chance. You just made me next in line, and one day, you will die. First thing I do will be to reinstate Davan. Or you can let him keep his name, and I'll enlist him. When you die I'll look upon his career and decide then if he's worthy of the title. I made him resort to dirt, I made him sink to a new low, I beat him, father. I own him." Vallena limped a the few steps between her and her father. She stepped between the giant lord and his son.

The pain from Davan's swipe to her side stung. Well, stung being an understatement, hurt-like-all-hell was getting close to the idea. It didn't matter, none of it matter, because Vallena's eyes never left her father's. "Anyone else who wanted my brother, has to go through me." She met Orstadar's eyes. They were brown like rusted steel. Just as sharp. "Davan Halle, of House Halle, I conscript you under the King's Decree of the 27th article of Emergency Warfare to enlistment under the command of Navy Admiral Vallena Halle of House Halle. Your first order of command, report to my quarters before the end of the night. Failure to meet these orders, or any order I give, will result in your imprisonment, and afterwords execution." Vallena spun her heels to face her brother. She'd forgotten how handsome he was up close. Even with all the dirt, the welts, and the disheveled hair, under it all lay the man she'd once called a hero. "It will be a honor serving with you."

With that Vallena turned once more and limped away. Try to imagine an arm-less man trying to turn a bookpage, while a leg-less man dances a jig as he watches the arm-less man, all while a blind man paints a portrait of the whole affair. Burn that into you minds, soak in the awkwardness, you now have a tenth of the feeling of what it was like to watch Vallena Halle try to limp speedily away from the entire affair she'd left in her wake. It looked to be an interesting morning. One that was far from over. As she exited the training yard she lingered by the stairs for a minute before the hall was empty. Then, careful to ensure no servants bustled in. She attempted the stairs. After her race with Vaughan her legs had burned. They'd told her she'd pay a price for this. Now it seemed the bill was due. It took a while but she surmounted the steps. From there it was rather long walk to Princess Anastasia's room. Damned royals, and their damned stairs, and their damned rooms on different floors. Finally she reached the princess room. Vallena rapped on the expensive wood with her gauntlet. It left marks. Something felt right about that. She'd left a mark. How many other could say the same. Sadly, too few.

The Admiral’s Orders
- With: Princess Ana, Prince Vaughan, Prince Arne, Davan, Lord Halle, and a silent crowd.
- Where: The Training Yard, and the doors to Princess Ana's chambers.
- Wondering: Stairs, I hate stairs. Once I'm Lady Halle, I'm going to outlaw stairs.

LOYAL, STRONG, SWIFT

[D_letion]

xxxxxxxxxxxxxGaran Henrik Latham
The Lord of House Lathamxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Adrift on a silent sea
The cold night surrounds me
Black ice forms beneath
The waves of a childhood dream
A far light hypnotized

It ebbs and flows and comes and goes
And rips you up and lets you go
It eats inside and splits your mind
As you search around for others kind

It's getting colder
I'm getting colder
Let it get colder until I can't feel anything at all

x ✁ Garan's head bobbed once again just as the sound of the large doors opening caught his attention. His eyes slowly opened, half expecting another guard or servant to be wandering in rather than the person he was looking for. To his infinite relief, it was Etana. They both stopped for a few seconds, watching each other in a bit of shock. As Garan rose to speak to her, she seemed to attempt to stalk away as fast as she could. Unfortunately, her legs were much shorter than his, and he caught up with her before she had reached one of the halls which led away from the main hall.

"Etana, wait." Garan said, reaching out for her arm, a hem of her dress, or even her hand. He managed to succeed in grasping her arm and stopping her as much as he could while still attempting to be gentle. "Please... I'm sorry." He didn't know exactly what he was going to say to her, but he wanted to say something that she would understand and would make her feel better. "Speak from your heart. Be honest, yet eloquent and people will like you and forgive you." Lord Calember had said, many years ago during one of the children's fights.

Taking a deep breath, Garan dared to pull Etana closer, knowing she might struggle, and wrapped his arms around her in a hug, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. I ran because I was hoping the yard was cleared. It wasn't, but I ordered as many people away as I could. It wasn't to protect them as much as...well, I know you don't like people seeing you like that, so I thought that if I could calm you down where people aren't looking you would feel better. I didn't want to upset you, I'm sorry." He held her a little tighter, "Not everyone understands, and even I don't completely get it, but that's why I tried to shoo them away. They wouldn't understand at all."

As he held her, he could feel the cold of her skin and caught the scent of the woods on her. He smiled and inhaled, deeply, "You were in a tree, I take it?" reaching up with one hand, he pulled out a few leaves from her hair and dropped them on the ground by the two sets of feet. "Come on. I asked stew to be held on the fire and I have a warm cloak you can heat up under." Leaving her, slowly, Garan made his way to the table and picked up the large dark-brown cloak and held it out for her to slip into. On the table was also a bowl and spoon. "You might need to push aside a small bit of film on the soup. It's been on for quite a while, but the meat should be pretty good. I heard they used pig to make it."

Looking at her, Garan would have never thought Etana was an emotional person, much less capable of being upset; it wasn't long until he began to notice how Etana's bravery was also hurting her. He always felt bad when someone was upset or mad around him, but Etana was different. He was always worried for her. She constantly acted strong and didn't let a tear fall. She bottled up her emotions so much that she was prone to bursting, which wasn't healthy or good for the soul. When Etana finally did show her emotions and burst into tears or rage, Garan felt an overwhelming urge to run to her, comfort her, and do whatever it took to stop her from bursting. She shouldn't have to cry, but if she did he wished that she had someone to run to, or someone to get her to smile again afterwards... even if it wasn't him. Anyone would do. Her father, Kyron, her mother, Antoinette... anyone would do. Just someone to make her smile again and to be there when she was feeling like crying.

"I-I'm sorry. You weren't bothering me, I was just... worried, is all. I was worried for you," he smiled, in that sheepish way he always did, "though, I know you hate it when people do that."

[EpiXfailure]

Davan Halle:
Davan was a little shocked that Ostadar came seemingly out of no where. He was focused on the fight he wasn't paying too much attention. So he was disowned like that? It didn't take the years of drinking, or a b*****d but throwing some dirt in a middle of a fight was suddenly too much? The old man had an odd sense of priorities. Though he did admit that throwing dirt was a dirty move. Though he had fought as if his life were on the line. If it were a duel to the death then that would have meant that he had lived and his opponent had died. Vallena did surprise Davan in standing up for him. Though saying she won irked him. Had he held either a mace or a sharpened blade, that would have been a fatal blow. Maybe he lost the honorable battle, but he won the fight. That's all that mattered. However, he had a feeling if he mentioned that, his father's hammer would most likely land in Davan's face. Although, he would most likely die not a moment afterwards due to his current condition.

"If there's a chance I get to fight you at full strength then I'm fine with that Admiral. Though these bouts, I treat them as if they were a true battlefield. Fighting foe amongst foe, and fighting a mighty adversary when you are at your weakest. I'd rather live to fight for the rest of my life rather die young and miss the action." Davan said as Vallena parted. He looked at Ostadar for a good two seconds and then gave a heavy sigh as if Ostadar had ruined a party. Davan didn't exactly seem too upset after being disowned by his father though he showed gratitude towards Vallena. He would move towards his own blade he had laid to the side using the practice blade as a walking stick. Most likely he'd move the stables where he'd take a nap.

[Wildear19]

= Guardian of the Mountains =

Vormund der Berge

Vormund fought mightily NOT to punch Florenz in the face, his gauntleted fist was raised . OK so it was a near thing. Very near in fact. Vormund wound have indeed punched the second child of his former lord in the face had it not been for the timely intervention of the Lady Latham. Vormund lowered his fist. His scowl deepened as the lace wearing idiot explained what they had been doing. He grunted inaudibly, his scowl deepening even more as he stared at Florenz You damn milk drinking flowery dandy!, these being some of the more ‘calmer’ thoughts that ignited in the old knights head like a rain of flaming arrows. “Of course whatever order the ‘Lord Regent’ commands will be carried out. I was merely in the area when the report came to me that the prisoner had arrived so I decided to come and see for myself,” Vormund grunted, bowing to the Lady, though his tone was akin to rough weathered stones. “You two, stand guard until the lord returns, guard this Rat with your bloody lives. I swear if either of you let this prisoner die before lord Latham can judge him, I’ll personally string the pair of you up by your damn loins!” and with that Vormund withdrew, presumably to go and kill a mountain bear with his teeth, or drink the tears of crying market boys… or whatever it was that Vormund did in his free time.

[Harmonie and Happiness]

EtanaXXXX ◯ XXXX Eyre

the eyre shifter⇇
▆▆xx▆▆▆▆▆▆▆xxx▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆

Etana rushed to one of the smaller hallways, telling herself that Garan was not waiting for her. He was just… waiting for someone else at this hour by himself. Before she got too far, however, she felt his hand grab hers. She stopped, not sure what to do and kept her eyes off of him, like a hound that knew they did something wrong.

Garan’s mouth opened, and she flinched at the words before he could even say anything. Here it was, he was going to tell her something horrible. Something she didn’t want to hear. Blame her for something… Or even ask her to head back to Vermana.

Please... I'm sorry.

Etana stopped herself from ripping her wrist out of his grasp and looked up, at him confused. He was sorry? She didn’t even expect him to know why she was angry, let alone being sorry about the whole thing. When he pulled her into a hug, she let out a relieved sigh, and rested her head against the bottom of his neck. All of that anger and fear instantly got lifted away when he put his arms around her. In all honesty, he could have started talking about chess, and she would have forgiven him. She had to fight back tears, not from anger or sadness, but from sheer relief that he understood.

He held her tighter, and she wrapped her own arms around him, loving this way more than brewing out in the cold. Garan was always warm. Those damn Lathams never seemed to get cold, and right now, she wasn’t minding the warmth that was coming from him.

She hid her face in the fur of his collar when he stroked her hair and pulled a few leaves out of it. She smiled slightly at his comment, but it was hidden. This is until he left go and it felt like she had to rip her hands off of him. The smile faded, and was replaced with guilt when she noticed all the things he had ready for her when she returned.

She slipped into the coat and pulled it close to her face, her nose and hands starting to thaw out and feel better. How long had he been waiting? Etana stirred the stew, feeling guilt in the pit of her stomach. She wasn’t without blame either, but she couldn’t find her voice to speak.

Taking a few bites, Garan started to apologize again. She looked away at the pig stew to find his face in the dark. She set the spoon down and scooted closer to him until she could at least put one arm around him. “Garan.” She said, leaning on him while the other arm pulled him closer. “It’s okay. I understand.” She paused to let out a sign. “If anything, I’m the one who’s sorry. I didn’t mean to make you worried. Or… Or even to have you wait like this.” She said, a tear escaping her eyes, but was quickly caught once she wiped her sleeve on her cheek.

"You're such a moron for waiting this long... I love you."

[Harmonie and Happiness]

ＦℓσяєиɀXXXX ＤαvιdXXXX Ｌαтнαм

тнє second ℓαтнαм sσи⇇
▆▆xx▆▆▆▆▆▆▆xxx▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆

The Lady nodded at Vormund’s response and Florenz avoided eye contact with Vormund at all costs. Vormund’s wrinkles were so deep from his permanent scowl, Florenz swore he had a colony of fire ants living in his face. It made the most sense out of anything. Vormund was constantly angry, and he never changed his facial expression, worried that it would affect the social insects.

As Vormund stomped away leaving a trail of anger and testosterone, Florenz looked back at his mother, not sure what she would say. “I… I am trying.” He said only to be quickly cut off by his mother.

“Are you, though?” She asked, looking at him with sad, dreary eyes. She had yet to get over her husbands death, but instead of constantly crying and… acting strange like Ant did, she was more taken back and looked hallow.

“Well, I did try for awhile. He… he just makes it so difficult. I have no idea what I’m supposed to be doing. Everything I do is wrong somehow?” He responded, clearly frustrated. His mother was probably the first person he had been able to vent to. It was a little awkward that they were having this conversation in front of the prisoner, but Florenz figured she would rat him out later to Vormund. He hoped.

“That’s just the kind of man Vormund is. He believes that you can always do better. He just wants to make sure you can protect yourself. He cares.” She replied and even the words made Florenz want to vomit.

He cared. That was the biggest… most incorrect… stew pot filled with smaller stewpots filled with hogwash. Instead of vomiting, however, Florenz just nodded his head, and tried to hide the absolute distain on his face. His mother would never understand what it was like to be a male around Vormund. Especially a noble male, whose father just recently died. “Yeah… I guess so.” He mewled out, wanting nothing more than to tell her how violent that old goat could get. He didn’t, however, because he was almost positive that would get him into even more s**t.

“Well, I was just checking up on you. You haven’t seen Antoinette, have you?” She asked, turning to leave.

Florenz shrugged and thought over the last time he had seen Ant in his mind. “I think she’s been hanging out near the cellar.” He replied and his mother gave him a curious expression before she left.

Once the Lady Latham was out of the dungeon, Florenz let out a sigh and started to fight that migraine again. With one hand on his forehead, his knees buckled and he soon found himself sitting on the ground.

[Harmonie and Happiness]

MortimerXXXX ✘ XXXX Beauson

Heir to the Beausons⇇
▆▆xx▆▆▆▆▆▆▆xxx▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆

Mortimer’s attention had been and currently was on the fight between the two Halle children. There was betting going on around the fight, and while Mortimer wanted to partake in it, his wallet was stashed away somewhere in his guest room; the gods only knew where. Instead, he leaned on the pillar next to him and watched as Vallena beat the snot out of Davan, while Davan in return threw dirt at her eyes. Mortimer might have been the only person in the area to laugh, and it was more of a cackle than anything. Davan was acting like a scumbag, and was actually fighting how Mortimer would if he ever and to tussle with someone. Mortimer wasn’t a fighter and there would be no reason to hold any honor in a fight if it ever came to it.

When Lord Halle parted the massive group with his lordly roar, Mortimer looked away, suddenly uninterested. Well, there went all the fun from that. Now he was curious to see if everyone had just lost their money to the stable-boy who started the betting, or if they each got their money back. In Mortimer’s opinion, they gave their bet on what would happen and they were wrong.

He took a step back and went to turn on his heel, when suddenly he bumped into something very large, red, and could have easily been mistaken for a hanging drapery. His eyes widened as he tried not to lose his balance all the while trying to not step on the cracks in the tile either. After a few nearly-falling steps, he managed to regain his balance so he could look back at the princess.

“Oh. My apologies, Princess. I… Did not see you there?” Mortimer said, as he fixed his shirt, and pulled one of the princess’s obnoxiously long red hairs off his sleeve. As the words left his lips he had a feeling they was a bit odd. Vanya was in a very large dress and stuck out like a sore thumb.

After standing there for a moment, Mortimer side-stepped away from the pillar and seemed to have his attention on something else now. “Is this your pillar, Princess? Please excuse me.”

His eyes quickly shot back over to the fight, only to see Davan limping away and Vallena trying to best the stairs. “My father would have never done anything like that to his children.” He mentioned, referring to Lord Halle attempting to ban Davan from the castle, only so he could be rescued by his sister.

“He would have just locked us away.” He mused, but in reality it had happened once before. Hollyn got the blunt end of most of his father’s hate, but that didn’t mean Lord Beauson didn’t have enough for all of his children.

[EpiXfailure]

Vanya Yates:
Vanya's attention had diverted to the crowd. Apparently Vallena and Davan were duking it out. While she wasn't too fond of fighting, she would gain immense satisfaction seeing Davan get beaten up. However, it seemed like the battle was cut short and Davan was so close to being kicked out of noble life. It waas a little sad that he wasn't thrown out.

She would start to move to another pillar to get a different view but she ended up hitting something. She would fall over rather ungracefully. She would look up to see she had bumped into Mortimer and she flushed a bit considering she had made herself look quite the fool. She would get up and act like nothing has happened.

"I'm not using the pillar so you may use it if you so desire." Vanya said trying to match Mortimer's pace. It was rather easy since she didn't really have to act around him. He mentioned Lord Beauson locking them up. One would normally take that as a joke but Vanya didn't get that vibe. It could have been truth but he could have been messing with her.

"How long would he lock you away for?" Vanya asked out of curiosity of how Mortimer would respond.

[D_letion]

xxxDavid Francxxxxxxxxxx
The Visionary Painterxxxxxxxxxxxx

xDavid had remained quiet for a long time, attempting to look as inconspicuous as possible, despite the fact that it was her they were arguing about. When the fist of the large knight rose up, David almost flinched for the Latham girl until the voice of another woman came down the hall. It didn't take long to catch on to who this was. She is the late Lady Latham, recently widowed, and everyone here thought it was the painter's fault. Yet... She stood by her daughter in lieu of the more brutal punishment?

This is not like the stories at all. This is kindness, almost to the point of suspicion. What reason could they possibly have for being this nice? Hoping to coax the information from her about her leaders? Most likely. Hoping to train her like a dog with nice for cooperation and torture for punishment? Possible.

When the dungeon began to clear out, David remained silent and slid closer to the wall and curled up again hoping to find some warmth within her own body that hadn't been there earlier. She peered at the cell door in curiosity, one eyebrow raised to watch the young Latham girl collapse down to the floor.

Out of instinct, she rose to help the girl up, but hesitated as she reached the bars. Here she was a prisoner guilty of murder. Reaching out for help could get her hands chopped off. "H-hey, you okay?" she said, hesitating to speak for fear of drawing out more frustration or anger, "He shouldn't be able to raise a hand to you like that, whether you're dressed as a man or a woman. You could always attempt to teach him a lesson, you know." David let out a wry smile. She wrung her fingers, unsure of what to do. She had never been in the position of comforting someone while behind bars and unable to touch them.

Sighing and remembering back to her days with the old man in the cell of Iskra, she dropped down to a sitting position before the bars. Conversation, stories... that was how she would forget the cold and continue to keep her sanity. "You know, I didn't know how to fight at all until I moved out of my family's home and began dressing as a man full-time. Between the few bar brawls and learning from a few male friends I can hold my own in very light combat." Then again... David was pretty sure that guy was fully trained and capable of taking out three burly pitbulls all on his own. Her smile lowered as she realized the advice wasn't that great, "You have knights you can learn from, or you could learn to fight a little dirty. It's not good for tournaments or anything like that, but when you do get into a scuffle and are fighting for yourself there's no such thing as dirty fighting."

Somehow, David felt as if she was making things worse for herself rather than better. "I--this isn't helping, is it? Sorry. I'll shut up." She shifted back from the bars, curling up on herself again. Conversation didn't really work. Stupid idea anyway... Don't talk to your captors.




Spirits of the night communicate with me
Their visions of a future of what is yet to be

'Til the moment comes around
Like I've been here once before
And I'm questioning the truth
No escaping déjà vu

If I could harness this power
Assume absolute control
Of my visions from a future
No one will ever know

[Harmonie and Happiness]

MortimerXXXX ✘ XXXX Beauson

Heir to the Beausons⇇
▆▆xx▆▆▆▆▆▆▆xxx▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆

“Vanya, I believe that is a bit of a personal question.” Mortimer replied and found yet another red hair on his doublet. Or… Maybe it was the same one? He tossed the hair away from him, only to find the wind carrying it back over. Mortimer was able to dodge it this time, however, by simply side-stepped to the left again.

Looking back at her, he could tell that was not the response she wanted to hear. That question was in full violation of the contract, but now that Mortimer thought about it, he didn’t have a contract with her so she didn’t know it wasn’t okay to ask in the first place. Well, he would let it slide this time, but he wasn’t going to let word get out of it or before he knew it, Valentine would be kissing him on the cheek and Vaughan would force him to going running again. Sure it was good for you, but at what cost?

“Not too long really. My siblings and I were fast learners. After it happened once, we would never do it again or… get caught again. Though Hollyn always had a problem holding her tongue. She spent the most time in her room, but she was never locked in. We… had… A lot of… stairs in the house.” He said breaking the silence, and remembering the good old days when he would force Hollyn to go outside her comfort zone and brave the stairs so she could get to the library. All she had to do was push her chair down the stairs, while she held on to the side-railing for dear life. Not that hard, and she had her younger brother ready to give her a starting kick if she became hesitant.

“Well, I won’t keep you waiting. I was just about to visit my half-brother. You’re welcome to join us.” He offered, and went on his way to see what Valentine and his sister were doing. It looked like a game of chess, how amusing. He wondered which one of them would best the other. His money was on his sister.

Walking up to the two, he looked at Valentine, the piece his hand was on, and raised an eye brow.

[D_letion]

xxxxxxxxxxxxxGaran Henrik Latham
The Lord of House Lathamxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Adrift on a silent sea
The cold night surrounds me
Black ice forms beneath
The waves of a childhood dream
A far light hypnotized

It ebbs and flows and comes and goes
And rips you up and lets you go
It eats inside and splits your mind
As you search around for others kind

It's getting colder
I'm getting colder
Let it get colder until I can't feel anything at all

x ✁ Today was a strange sort of day. It had started as many had, but ended quite different than anything the young Lord could have expected. He smiled, continuing to do so as Etana ate her stew. She was beautiful, even in this light and even after hours of crying and fuming. He didn't want to seem creepy, so as she ate he patiently pretended to fiddle with something else, stealing occasional glances of her. When she spoke up again, his eyes snapped directly to her.

Her arms wrapped around him, which made him go even warmer and a funny, tickling feeling filled up his belly and chest. His arms wrapped around her in a big bear-hug, shocked at how small she suddenly felt. When she apologized for making him wait, he chuckled and pulled slightly away from her to meet her eyes, "No. Don't apologize for it. I chose to wait up for you. It isn't your fault because it's something I chose to do, not you. I just wanted to make sure everything was okay between us and that you were safe." He grinned and pulled her close again, smelling the forest on her and feeling the slight chill in her hair. God she smelled wonderful, even beyond the simple smell of the forest. It was something else, something hers. "I just want you safe and happy. That's all."

Garan felt her move and looked to see what she was doing. When he saw the sleeve rise up his smile dropped and he gently pulled her face up by the chin to bring her eyes up to meet his, "Hey now. No more crying. You just did hours of that. If you cry any more you'll shrivel up like a prune." he laughed, hoping she would as well.
Laugh. Please laugh. I love your smile...

"You're such a moron for waiting this long... I love you."

Garan froze, his heart seemed to catch in his chest and he felt a wave of heat pass up from his chest to his head followed by a fuzzy feeling that just made him want to smile and giggle like a fool. "I--" A lump caught in his throat which he had to swallow to try and speak again. What was I going to say again? He struggled to think of a way to finish his thought, but everything didn't quite seem to fit. His mind continued to jump to one action in particular he could perform, but deep down he feared it would make Etana angry and the whole thing would be ruined. She doesn't want to be kissed. She wants a friend, that's it. If I kiss her, she'll think I waited up only for that and not that I cared. Garan felt the heat rise up again as his chest felt torn into two pieces. Say something! If you don't say something she'll be upset again! Say something!

Garan swallowed again, but just before he was about to say something he leaned forward and gently kissed that stubborn Eyre, throwing as much of his emotions into it as he dared. His heart was going a million miles a minute and his eyes stayed closed, fearful that he would see hate reflected back at him before having his cheek blasted with a punch and this evening turned rotten and infectious.

[Dark Princess Tamara]

Aɴᴀsᴛᴀsɪᴀ Yᴀᴛᴇs


❖ Aɴᴀ ❖


ᴛʜɪʀᴅ ᴘʀɪɴᴄᴇss ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ʏᴀᴛᴇs ғᴀᴍɪʟʏ

`•.¸¸.•´´¯`•• .¸¸.•´¯`•`•.¸¸.•´´¯`•• .¸¸.•´¯`•`•.¸¸.•´´¯`•• .¸¸.•´¯`•


Ana had walked tiredly away from the training grounds, she'd had enough of being belittled for one day. So without a glance back she'd left her brother and wandered back into the Palace. She stopped by the kitchen and swiped a bottle of wine on her way up the many stairs to her chambers. Her chambers where further away then her brothers, almost entirely separated from the guest wing of the palace and up many flights of stairs. Once when she was little she whined about how far her room was to her governess, the older woman only laughed and said that princesses needed protection, so her father had put her in a room so far away because he loved her and wanted to keep her safe. She accepted it then, as a little girl who didn't know better. Now as she looked at the walls of her home, she couldn't help but think it looked like a very beautiful cage.

”Leave me please. I wish to be alone.” She spoke to the servants as she entered into her rooms. They fluttered out quietly. She looked at her sitting room, her bed and private chambers where located in the back and sectioned off the main room, there was a small table and a lounge located within the sitting room. She'd sat in this room many times with her mother or maids, practicing her lessons or preparing for some event or other. But when alone Ana had always preferred to sit out in the balcony, breathing in fresh air and feeling the sun warm her face.

”Today has not been a good day.” She spoke to herself. Ana took the quiver of arrows off her back and set them neatly to the side, standing her bow down among them. It was still fairly early in the day but she was already done with it. Ana set the bottle of wine down and moved to her vanity. She pulled the clips out of her hair and let it flow long and free down her back and into her face, she'd thrown her cloak off somewhere and undid the small overcoat she wore over her gown, covering her arms and collarbone leaving her shoulders bare. She was just about to undo her corset when a hard knock came at her door. Ana frowned slightly unsure who would come to see her at the moment, uncaring of her appearance she walked back to the door.

She was surprised to see Vallena Halle standing on the other side of her door, looking slightly out of breath and ruffled from her duel. "Well, hello Vallena.” She greeted the other woman and opened the door further to allow her in. ”Um...Come in.” Ana's said, her manners taking over.



`•.¸¸.•´´¯`•• .¸¸.•´¯`•`•.¸¸.•´´¯`•• .¸¸.•´¯`•`•.¸¸.•´´¯`•• .¸¸.•´¯`•



❖ Where: Her Chambers
❖ With: Vallena Halle