Welcome to Gaia! ::

Atanas is my character. :3

It was another normal day as any other in Aldervale Castle, with sunshine and birds singing. Atanas, one of the Elvish servants, got out of bed unusually early and was dressed in a pair of work clothes that were given him. He had been in the castle since his birth, and he was looked down on by everyone, because he was an elf. There wasn't a day he was called by name. He was always called 'Elf', or 'Knife-ears'.

But he wouldn't let those 'names' define him. He was Atanas, and he was a thankful servant to the royal family of Aldervale. He headed out into the courtyard, where his workplaces were. He was a jack of all trades: Blacksmith, wood-cutter, a squire for the knights. He even cooked occasionally. Today, he was to cut wood, as winter was approaching and they needed wood for the fires. He took an axe and sharpened the blade, and began splitting logs.

Atanas kept at his thankless chore for several hours that morning, stopping occasionally, and only to wipe the sweat from his brow. When he had cut a sufficient amount of logs, loaded several splits onto a pack he had made and began making his rounds throughout the castle, starting with the Noble's Quarters.

After splitting several logs, he loaded them up onto a special pack he had made to carry the lumber throughout the castle. In each quarter, he would knock on a door and wait for a response. They usually went like this:

"Uh? Who's there?"

"A servant of the King, sir. I come with your lumber for the evening."

Then the door would open and whatever smile that the guest wore would vanish, and would instead be replaced with a scowl. "Put it over there, knife-ears." They'd say, gesturing to a corner by the fireplace.

Atanas gave a nod and simply put the lumber in the corner, as he was instructed. "Will that be all, madam?" He asked, turning sharp on his heels to face her. "Or may I take my leave?" He was one of the few servants who would dare talk to her; the others would have just come in, dropped off the lumber, and scurried away like a tiny, scared mouse. Atanas, on the other hand, would at least try and be a man and walk with his head high, as if he were honored to serve her and her family (which he was).

Atanas gave a nod and a bow, then turned and left her alone. She seemed extra... what was the word he was looking for? Demanding, maybe. She seemed extra demanding today. He proceeded to do the rest of his rounds, before heading to the Servants Quarters. "Her lady requests the presence of her maids in her chambers immediately!" He called down the hall, before leaving the quarters and returning to the chopping block. He turned to the sound and examined the large clock tower that stood in the middle of Aldervale. He loved that clock, he had no idea why. Maybe it was how tall it stood, or how it had been there for at least a century and still worked, despite storms and wars. It rang its brassy tones twelve times... The afternoon just started.

Atanas watched the Princess strut down a hall through one of the windows from his spot down on the ground and sneered at her in disgust. He knew that she had somewhat of a right to act that way, she was the princess after all. But it still didn't change that she was like an ignorant peacock. He shook his head and returned to work, determined to keep his misdemeanor to a minimum.

(( Sweetness! ))

Word was getting around the castle fast regarding the Princess's punishment, and it wasn't long before Atanas heard it. In one way, he saw it coming. In another way, he didn't expect it at all. He wasn't sure whether to pump his fist in victory or not. He was on his way to the Dining Hall as the Princess stormed towards him. He stood aside, but did not bow. After all, she was not the Princess anymore. Not today. He wondered how she might react.

Atanas was at another crossroads: What to do? Should he encourage her, or belittle her because she deserved it? He approached her and gave a low bow. "M'lady, whatever is the matter? I didn't realize it was you, I would have bowed swiftly if I had known. You remember me, don't you? ...No, of course you don't. You have so many servants that it gets hard to keep track of, am I correct?" He asked. "Or you have so many servants that you don't really care?" He guessed, and that was probably the correct answer. He shrugged. "Well, I suppose you have better things to do than talk to an elf, so I'll be off then... actually, why aren't you at the Dining Hall? Don't you usually take your meal at this time?"

Then he noticed something... her eyes. They seemed to be holding back something. "...Is something wrong?"

Atanas stopped dead in his tracks and turned to face her. "My name? It's uh... It's Atanas, m'lady." He replied, swallowing. What happened? Was he in trouble? "I've faithfully served here for many years, since my birth." He stopped speaking before he started to ramble; she most likely had better things to do. But the fact that she stopped him and asked him a question about himself specifically struck him as odd.