— ✧ 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐆𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐀𝐕𝐀𝐍 ♔ medieval rp ♔ O&A

[senna_]

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──── 𝐃𝐈𝐀𝐍𝐀 𝐓𝐀𝐘𝐋𝐎𝐑 ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
◆ • maid • location: outside • mentions: tag • tags: mirabel

Mirabel seemed to have more of an effect on the sun than the sun did on the people in court. Her bright grin was big enough to distribute joy to those in the nearby city; her misty eyes so bright and shimmery, light practically radiated out of them. Diana didn’t have “bad” days often, simply ones with more or less energy, but Mirabel’s presence always seemed to manage to lighten her spirits. She was the rainbow after a miserable rainfall, the bright-eyed girl who broke off the dullness of an adult-led conversation. Sinless, nonviolent, and all-around sweet, Princess Mirabel was. Diana could only imagine the fun she had with her ladies ─ she was kind enough to Diana, as it was. Then again, Mirabel tended to skid away from discrimination. She was constantly dining with the maids, checking in on the kitchens, doing jobs that seemed a bit far-fetched for a royal. And Diana loved it. It made her seem… real.

xx Diana’s smile was tight-lipped, but it was genuine, as Mira gestured to her own dress. A bit self-consciously, she looked down at it. Mirabel’s comments never made her feel embarrassed about her attire, though. She knew it was poorly made compared to the princess’s lavishing attire, but she didn’t feel shame or discontentment. The burgundy popped against Mira’s blush-pink dress; a bold choice, she realized, as they stood beside one another. Mirabel was known for her light dresses, though. Pinks were almost all she wore, and the colour suited her greatly. Her dark hair, especially, popped against it. “Well,” she continued, with the slightest dip of her head, “that is another reason to leave the dirty work to me. I am quite sure your ladies would rather see a maid such as myself sopping wet than yourself. And with a new dress! You do not want to get it wet so quickly; you must have a chance to show it off first.”

xx Despite her weak attempt at convincing the princess that Diana really didn’t mind doing her job by herself, Mirabel had made up her mind. Diana had no choice but to let her gaze follow the princess as she neared the bucket of soapy water. There was no point in arguing; Diana truly was grateful for her offer, even though she knew she would feel guilty if the dress Mirabel wore got dirty. “Be careful, Your Highness,” she warned lightly, a lingering smile present as she, too, inched closer to her workload. “If the King catches you, he may wish to make you a maid, as well.” She was teasing, of course. She didn’t know much about the King, but he seemed like a just man. She knew he wouldn’t actually give his youngest daughter any dirty work, especially not like this.

xx She stood in silence as Mirabel dipped her delicate hands into the soapy water, covering her mouth to shield her lips, which were fighting hard to keep back a small laugh at the princess’s face. “My biggest apologies,” she voiced, unable to rid the slight quiver in her tone as she bit back her laugh. “It’s quite suiting for this chilly weather, don’t you agree?”

xx Finally, Diana stepped closer, dunking one of the loose t-shirts in the water. “Don’t worry about me, princess! Sometimes I like to hang out in the kitchen.” A guilty look crossed her features, and she kept her dark eyes focused on the soapy bubbles in front of her. “The ovens get very warm when they are making meals.”

xx Backing away, she turned on her heel to hang the shirt up on the tall wires behind the two of them, only pausing to look over her shoulder as Mirabel made mention to her hair. In truth, the princess did have a point, looking past her cheery offer. Diana had long hair, and it was both thick and stubborn; she spent longer than she cared to at night, detangling her hair. She had few pins to pin up her hair, though, and she was no expert on braiding. “Would you?” she asked, her tone almost shy, like a child speaking to an adult, as she turned to properly face Mirabel. “Truly? My mother liked doing things with my hair, but that was years ago. That would mean much to me, princess. Your dresses, however...” She ducked her head slightly to hide the soft smile that had crept up onto her lips, and reached out to grab a cloth, before strolling over to Mirabel. Gently, she opened the princess’s hands, placing the cloth in her open palms. “I could never ask that of you, but that is the kindest offer I have ever been given. Your dresses are your treasures, I am most happy with what I own. One day, though, I would love to go to the dressmakers and have one sewn just for me. I’m saving up. I can imagine the thrill of it. Do you watch, when they make yours? I am sure your silks are imported from all over the world, though.”

[enby]

♞𝑬𝑭𝑭𝑰𝑬 ⥽ 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲/𝐬𝐡𝐞
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xx♘ 19 | stablehand | tagged; Karter ♘

Nodding they smiled a bit as she watched him eat. ''Well that's good! I hope it doesn't pick up too much for you?'' She smiled a bit and looked up at him with gentle eyes, her shoulder raising up to her left slightly as she rested her cheek on it. ''Days aren't ever overly busy for me, unless people are coming and going with their horses, or the horses as being extra rowdy.'' She mentioned and finished up the last few bites of her food, despite her small size she was a quick eater- perhaps it was the fact she didn't get much so she took it while she had it.

She tapped her chin a bit gently and raised her brows a bit ''Oh, Karter how'd you feel about heading into the woods? After you're all done eating?'' A tiny smirk crept up their lip, they weren't always much for being a bit mischievous or misbehaving, OR getting it situations they shouldn't but Karter didn't give the best impression on her over the years of knowing him, they did pick up on some of his behaviors and mischievous acts. She leaned into him a bit, a slightly impish expression on her face. ''Are you scared of the woods Karter? I find them pretty scary myself.. Especially later in the day, or during early mornings.'' She squinted a bit playfully, it wasn't often she'd be too playful or tease much but she felt she could do more with him, and have more fun with him rather then be uptight and nervous the whole time.

♛𝑀𝐼𝑅𝐴𝐵𝐸𝐿 » 𝑠ℎ𝑒/ℎ𝑒𝑟
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xx♕ 19 | princess | tagged; Diana ♕

Maribel enjoyed these moments with Diana, as it felt she was just a person, real and genuine which could be hard to come across with being part of a royal family as everything was so serious and joking around was something happened seldom of the time, and her joking around wasn't much accept by those around her especially elders. She never much minded though, and would seek out those who would be accepting of her light hearted personality- Diana felt like one of those people to her, and she felt safe with her! She was a good friend to her, someone she could trust and talk about whatever she liked with.

She laughed at the statement she made about her father after she had hung up the piece of clothing ''Well.. Even if he were to do so, I think I'd have a grand time with all of you!'' She let out a laugh and closed her eyes happily, her brows frowning as she smiled. ''The cold isn't any good!!!'' She laughed and shook her head gently, a smile still plastered across her face, cheeks flushed and dimpled as she watched Diana. She tipped her head a bit and make a small noise ''I hang out in the kitchens often too.. I love eating the sweets and such that they make!! I even help make them sometimes!'' She grinned gently and held her hands together gently.

Her eyes fluttered gently as Diana spoke about her mother, her head tipping gently a few strands of dark curls falling in front of her face gently ''I'd love to sometime, whenever you aren't caught up in all this work and I also have free time, we could do such things together!'' She beamed happily, her shoulders raising, and eyes fluttering as she mentioned her own dresses and that she wouldn't want to do such a thing inside it frustrated Mirabel a bit that other felt they couldn't enjoy what she also did, but she'd accept it. ''I've watch a few times yes!! It's a relaxing thing.. The silks I'm sure are but I don't always ask! Though, once you get all the money you need for your own dress I'd LOVE to come along Diana! Oh I think you'd look absolutely lovely in a dress of red, decorated with golds.. It would bring out your hair and eyes so much..'' She smiled sweetly, watching with gently eyes as she handed her the cloth, she gently gripped it and thought for a moment. ''Here! This is for you, and it could help you even get closer to your goal of the dress too!'' She handed a small cream colored pouch to her, filled with a good some of coins, as well as some beautiful gold earrings with ruby jewels in them, tucked at the bottom of the pouch and wrapped in white silk fabric. ''AND you can't give anything in this pouch back to me!! It's yours now!'' She said as she looked at the maid with large eyes.

[razzberry]

✯ ━━ 𝐒𝐂𝐘𝐋𝐋𝐀 𝐂𝐀𝐒𝐖𝐄𝐋𝐋
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duchess ✩ she/her ✩ twenty-five ✩ location: - ✩ tags: astoria, celestine

Her night had been restless, an occurrence that was becoming increasingly familiar to the duchess, so as one does when sleep evades them Scylla abandoned it entirely. She'd woke before the first signs of dawn, propped up against the mound of pillows that lay against the mahogany headboard of the four poster bed she occupied. For a while she just lay there, aimlessly letting her mind run rampant through her head with thoughts that she hadn't even been able to make much of. When even that became too boring and her listlessness grew overwhelming, the dark-haired woman peeled back the duvet that shielded her body and swung her legs off the side of the bed. Goosebumps immediately pimpled her skin as the cool rush of air slammed into her body and Scylla nearly stole away under the covers again. However, the duchess knew that there was no recapturing a moment of sleep now that she'd woken up so in the silence of her room she padded across the cold floor, the intermittent cushion of rugs providing warmth from the floor's surface. Dressing herself wasn't a chore and unlike many royals Scylla often preferred to dress herself, it allowed her a sliver of a window for her to indulge in self-care that she otherwise was often too busy for.

When Scylla stepped out of her room and maneuvered through the hallways of the castle it was dark and utterly silent, she'd noticed that about the gleaming estate in the dead of night. It felt eerily lifeless without light. Scylla seemed to glide through the castle and out one of the side entrances closest to the stables soundlessly, the only sound of her movements after reaching the outside had been the muffled crunch of gravel beneath her feet that paved the path towards the stables. She knew it would be far too early for any of the stablehands to be present and that's exactly what she had been counting on. Slipping into the barn she counted the stalls as she passed by, noticing both a number of other horses owned by her family and the knights, only stopping once a golden head appeared from inside the stall in front of her to her left. Weaver's soft golden head was partly covered by the long forelock that was a light cream colour. The gelding bobbed his head, tossing the forelock off the plane of her face and over to the side so it veiled his right eye while a gentle nicker filled the quiet of the barn. A smile pulled her full lips wide and she stepped towards him with an outstretched hand, stroking his velvety nose while he revelled in it. If his drooping eyes were any indication at least. Not even a minute passed by before she felt an abrupt bump to her shoulder that jarred her body. "Now Prophet, we've had this talk before. Jealously doesn't look good on you" she teased the dappled grey stallion who was now vying for her attention from the stable next to Weaver's. He was her other mount, younger than Weaver with much more fire in him than his docile counterpart.

A couple hours passed before Scylla took note of the faint light beginning to seep into the barn through the small windows. She had to guess that dawn was upon the kingdom and with that meant the citizens would be as well. Gathering herself from the hay-covered floor of Weaver's stall, she brushed a few coarse strands of straw from her gown and cloak, giving the palomino gelding a scratch behind his ears in parting and the same to her other stallion next door who would have thrown a fit had she left without saying goodbye. Just as quietly as she'd exited the castle she'd returned just as noiselessly, heading straight for the kitchen where she planned to snag one of the stemmed goblets for her morning drink. Not of coffee or tea, no she rarely dabbled with such substances. Instead she filled her glass with a tantalizing wine she often helped herself to. She could just hear the king now if he'd been able to see her. The exasperated sigh and shake of his head followed by a "you could least wait till' noon, you know?". A half smile tugged at the corner of her mouth at the thought as she nestled the glass in three fingers, lifted it to her mouth to take a sip before striding out of the kitchen.

Eventually she'd found herself out on one of the terrace's, leaning her body against the pale banister as she nursed the glass of wine. That was where Astoria had found her. She'd heard her cousin's melodic voice before she laid eyes on her, turning her head to catch sight of her over her shoulder. Astoria was someone Scylla would always seek out whenever she got the chance, heck, half of the time she didn't even need to go looking for her, they were just drawn together like magnets. "Oh you know me, simply starting the day of...the right way" Scyall's answered with a mischievous smile as she tipped her glass of wine to Astoria. "Just my luck, I have yet to eat too. I figured my beverage here would be enough for me to get through the morning, but now you've reminded me that maybe that wouldn't be wise. Well, the wine by itself, that is" she added as the svelte duchess turned to face the princess. Scylla raised the goblet to her lips for another drink as a third voice filled the space around the cousins and upon lifting her gaze over the rim of the cup, noticed the baroness, Celestine. "Ah Celestine. Good morning" came the brunettes seemingly normal greeting, her head was tilted as she speculated the other woman, eyes narrowed ever so slightly as she studied her. "Astoria and I were just about to see about getting something to eat. If you would care to join us?" she was sure it the wine's doing that she was feeling rather benevolent that morning, maybe in a chattier mood than normal unlike her usual self.

♘ ━━ 𝐂𝐄𝐃𝐑𝐈𝐂 𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐆
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stablehand ♘ male (he/him) ♘ location: stables ♘ tags: shawn, adora

The smell of horse hair and hay was like home to him and the second he stepped across the threshold of the barn he felt immediately at ease so much so that he couldn't explain it. There weren't enough words to his knowledge that could accurately describe how the presence of the horses that he worked with made him feel. He was sure had he chosen a different path, knighthood specifically, he might not be granted the same opportunity to see things as he does now. Shawn's voice was the first to greet him as he was getting settled and preparing to start his work, his friend's voice always put him at ease and in a content mood. " There's never an excuse for your tardiness, friend or not" Cedric plastered a mock frown on his face, only able to fully hold it for about three seconds before he broke out in a cheeky grin. He'd grown too close and comfortable with Shawn to worry about him taking his jokes to heart so as they parted ways and went about their duties the chance that he'd offended him was the last thing on his mind.

With another heave of the pitchfork he grasped in his hands, his broad shoulders rolled and his muscles tightened as he tossed a clump of hay into one of the horses stalls nearby. The sleek black and white stallion within, one of Princess Mirabel's, gave a thankful snort before plunging it's head into the pile hungrily. He continued shovelling the morning feed into the stalls of the mounts that were unaccompanied at the moment, pausing as he reached the stall he'd noticed one of the knights enter a little earlier. "Oh, Morning Adora. I thought I'd seen someone come in here" Cedric greeted the knight as he leaned an arm across the stall door. He knew better than to reach out to the stallion, not every horse here was as keen to being touched as others and from his years working with these specific equines, he knew them all well by now. "How are you this morning? Taking Gadreel out for a ride?" the stablehand flipped them a smile as he scooped a pile of hay into the stall just inside the door for Adora's mount.

[sunhorsestar]

Karter Zael | Knight | Tagging: Effie


"Even then, you’ve got a few other stablehands to give you a hand when ya need it." Karter couldn’t help but wonder if the stablehands worked more closely together than he did with the other knights— minus Bero, who he’d been with almost since he’d first started training— since their work was pretty repetitive and simple, more time to socialize amongst themselves, perhaps? But what did he know.

Karter grinned. "Me? Scared? Hardly!" Karter was scared of a lot of things. He kept it mostly to himself. However, the woods were not one of those things. He finished off his food and slung an arm around Effie's shoulders. "We can go explore a little if ya want. I’ll keep you safe out there from all the nasty…bugs." Was there really much in there that was truly dangerous? Aside from the possibility of wandering in too far and getting lost. He’d done THAT a couple times himself.

[sunhorsestar]

Shawn Robin | Stablehand | Tagging: Desmond, Cedric


Shawn's attention was stolen for a moment by the sound of Cedric's voice, scolding him in a mocking manner, a joke in his own way, and a smirk found its way onto Shawn's face. Anyone else saying that same thing, he might've been worried was being serious, but he knew the look in Cedric's eyes when he spoke in good humour, and that glimmer was present. He shrugged and returned to his horse, brushing over the sleek coat.

Shawn's gaze flicked between Desmond, to Cedric, back to the horse in front of him. That was his greatest downside, his inability to keep focus on any one thing in particular. He always tried though. "Heh. I really should make more of an effort," he responded with a grin. As a general rule, Shawn was very timely. He rarely allowed himself to be late. Only…three or four times had he slipped up on that, in all the time he’d been there. He still took it hard when he failed to show up on time though, seeing it as a failure to himself. However, the jokes thrown casually his way by his friend made him smile, made him laugh despite his self-disappointment.

[nikbowie]

████ 𝑬𝑳𝑹𝑰𝑪 ! !
████ 𝑮𝑨𝑳𝑳𝑨𝑽𝑨𝑵
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♛ • prince • he-him • 21 • location:the secret meadow • mentions: astoria, lucille, bero • tags: kit


Elric’s eyes widened, and he inhaled quickly. Kit gripped his arm and it pulled him back to reality, a little. “King Ode?” His voice cracked and he lowered his hand on top of Kit’s. “King Ode.” It was mostly to himself. He tightened his grasp on Kit’s hand without noticing. Elric’s hands shook a little.

He associated the man’s name with the death of his mother. He remembered being led around and smothered by puffy eyed maids and nannies, and whispered constantly in the background, he heard King Ode, the queen. Only three at the time, he didn’t understand what it meant, but the association was formed.The two things were intertwined in his mind, and now he couldn’t think of one without acknowledging the other.

Nelson began to shift nervously below him, always in tune to Elric’s emotions. “Is he here?” Elric's tone was hard to understand. He felt muddled.

His mind was usually completely abuzz, with a thousand things going on at once. Normally, he might notice how cold Kit’s hand was, and ask him about it. Or, how someone had found their meadow. Or he’d say something, anything, about Bennie.

He couldn’t, instead, he looked into Kit’s eyes, blue meeting blue. He said everything to Kit with his gaze, and knew he would understand. It was seldom that Elric was speechless. He sat stock still for a moment more, then kicked back into gear.

“Who was that? What did he say? Was that one of my father’s men? Are the troops here? Is the threat definite? What land? Is this about my mother?” This stopped him for a second, then he refocused. “Are Astoria and Maribel safe? Is Lucille with them? Or Bero?” The questions came out as a spew of random and unhinged thoughts. “Is my father safe?” He steadied his hands, and began to massage Nelson’s neck. “Are we at war?” He wasn't even quite sure how war worked, outside of the ominous sound of the word. With this threat, had a declaration of war been implied?

Nelson threw his head in the air and began to back up, jumpy and tense. Elric pulled him next to Kit, so that Bennie and Nelson were almost touching, and his dusky stallion settled. “Where do we go, Kit?” Kit would know what to do. No matter what, he always seemed to be in control. Elric could hardly think of a time that Kit had not been exactly where he needed him. It would all be okay, if Kit was there. Elric had learned that. When things went badly, Kit could save him. This is like the lake, he thought, he'll catch me.

Nonetheless, he couldn't bite down the unsettled feeling in his throat. His mother had been assassinated when when Elric was four. In the dead of night, he now knew, her throat had been slit. A maid had discovered her, and her screams woke the entire castle, including Elric. He was whisked away quickly, but still remembered seeing her in bed, her golden brown curls tumbling off the side of the mattress. Astoria looked a lot like her, now.

A few years ago, his father's men had caught the man who was hired to kill the Queen, and executed him. Elric frowned at the thought of that. He had always felt that they stooped to Terrowin's level with that killing. Surprisingly, they had received little pushback from their enemy kindom—had they been preparing for invasion this entire time?

"I wish..." He stared into the distance. "I wish he hadn't told us that in our meadow."

[nikbowie]

████ 𝑩𝑬𝑹𝑶 ! !
████ 𝑶'𝑩𝑬𝑹𝑵𝑨𝑵
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♘ • knight • he-him • 19 • location: the woods • mentions: astoria • tags: robert


Robert seemed very aware of their surroundings. He wondered, fleetingly, what that would be like. Bero had lived here for years, but couldn't remember the last time he had taken a walk just for the sake of walking. Usually, his mornings involved patrolling. Often, he wasn’t even on duty, but he was always on the lookout for something, any indicator of danger or signs of a fight. “I like feeling alive.” He raised his eyebrows and leaned his head a little to the side. “Though, I’ve never tried walking for that.” Bero gestured towards the sword on his back. “That usually does the trick for me.” He eyed Robert’s trinket, nestled between the man's spindly fingers. “What is it?”

He thought about it for a moment. Robert seemed so aware of the details. He would never have noticed the wheel. “Are you working today? We could walk to the castle.” His eyes gleamed. “Today I’ll try that method of feeling lively and tomorrow you’ll sword fight, how about?” Bero laughed a little. He couldn’t really picture Robert sparring, what with his vests and trim suit jackets. "The Bear vs the Writer. I bet people would pour in from miles to watch." Bero had noticed Robert writing before, as he walked. Bero could barely write, sitting perfectly still. It was pretty impressive, although he couldn't tell Robert that.

He thought about his duties for the day, and wondered how Robert felt about his job at the castle. Bero didn't mind some things, like teaching Astoria, but other things, like waiting guard in the watch towers was just so dull. He longed to do something more. But for today, that more would have to be a walk with Robert. It seemed like a good place to start, because it was new, and he desperately wanted something different. Bero shifted his weight, and the chain mail forearm sleeves of his armor jangled. He instinctively reached for his shoulder, and fingered the Gallavan Crest that was pressed into leather shoulder pad. He liked having it there. It reminded him what he should be fighting for, even when things seemed so pointless day to day.

A few beams of sun peaked between the forage, leaving the ground dappled with light. He squinted as a new patch of light made it into his eyes, and took a step closer to Robert to escape it. "Nature." He shrugged and laughed once. "I think I'm more equipped to handle men."

[cKy]

𝐑𝐎𝐁𝐄𝐑𝐓 𝐖𝐎𝐋𝐅𝐄 ♠xxxx♠ butler ♠ he/him ♠ location: outside; the woods ♠ tagged; bero ♠
Robert felt a stubborn smile grace his face as Bero began to talk, not waning no matter how much Robert willed it to die down, even if just a touch. Smiles from Robert weren't awfully plentiful, and even then most were deeply rooted in anxiety and nervousness; and he supposed, so was this one. It was rooted in nervousness, but it felt different. He felt different to the way he usually did while nervous. And, while talking to people was a mighty fine reason to feel anxious, it wasn't usually the type of anxiety to warrant an unrelenting grin.
... Well, best not to dwell on that.
"Most of my..." He searched for the word, in a futile attempt to seem poetic and in-tune to flowery language, "...liveliness," and well, not quite, but at least something was said, "comes from these walks. I've been going on them for... well, all of relevant history. It didn't start out so frequent, but..." he took in a breath sharply, smile (finally) briefly flickering, "all of relevant history." A half-truth. Robert knew it could be considered disrespectful to attempt to hide such a momentous moment in his life with a simple phrase, but said momentous moment would not aid him in this conversation. Small talk? something adjacent? Anyway, certainly not a conversation to suddenly interject with such dark subject matter. Small talk. Yeah, Robert can do that.
Robert Felt his heart skip a beat, realizing all of a sudden he had been holding the little trinket in his hands as he spoke, passing it between his fingers and turning it this way and that, the texture of the rust somewhat grating on his fingers. "Oh, this; it's a miniature wheel. Steel, I'm sure, judging by the rust. I imagine it once belonged to a toy carriage or cart," he glanced in the direction of the palace, briefly, "and perhaps the carriage used to belong to a member of the royal family." He supposed it could, to be honest. though, he never saw Mirabel play with it; perhaps it belonged to the prince at one point? Robert wouldn't know.
"Yes, I do believe I am working today, as there are always odd jobs and things to do around the castle. I'm not sure if I'm especially rostered for anything today, though. Besides, It's not like I have be in right away. And I would be delighted to walk with you." Robert smiled, tucking his hands into his pockets and rolling back onto his heels a little before before standing upright once more.
Robert laughed, "Sword fighting? Goodness, well... for the sake of being a live, I might give it a go; if, of course, you go easy on me.
"The Writer? I, well," He stumbled a bit with his words, flattered that he had been noticed scrawling into a notebook every so often. he thought about it for a moment, and tried not to show and sour on his face as he realized how awful his posture might be while he writes without a desk.
"...How about The Poet instead? More of a ring to it, don't you think?" he suggested, gesturing with a dip of his head, smiling wide. "Leagues of people, I think, would like to watch The Bear and The Poet. Sword up against pen."
Robert mentally noted the way Bero's hand reached to press against his Gallavan Crest, and shortly related it back to how he might, under the cover of his pockets, run his finger along the spine of his notebook, just to know it's there, or how he was turning the wheel in his hands earlier. While for Robert, it grounded him to the physical world to ensure he didn't get too lost wandering his thoughts without a map, perhaps for Bero it helped ground him to something else. The knight was boisterous, that much was obvious, what with the way he rid the village of a bear when he was only a young man. Such personality and ferocity could not be lost. Maybe more the more simple or quiet duties that might sustain Robert bored him.
Robert's head turned slightly sideways at Bero's words. "Men, my friend, are second only to nature itself; and then because it falls under the idea of nature. If one considers, say, a bear a manifestation of nature, then why not the man who slays it? Predator and... more skilled predator, I s'pose." Robert laughed a little, aware that the analogy wasn't among the most honeyed words to come from his mind.

[bigwig.]

𝐃𝐄𝐒𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐃 𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐄𝐑
♟ ✧ male ✧ stablehand ✧ location: stables ✧ tags: shawn, cedric mentioned
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Desmond's attention was called suddenly back to the real world when he heard one of the many voices murmuring through the stables come directly at him, indicating he was being spoken to. Shawn? Desmond managed to look over at him, his focus drawn in quickly enough to actually catch what he was saying. He felt a tinge of embarrassment - or maybe more like guilt, maybe more like fear - at the fact he had not realized Shawn was addressing him until this very moment. He had just assumed Shawn was more interested in speaking with Cedric.

"Sorry." Desmond said, in a quick, short way. He knew all too well that an apology did not guarantee that you would be granted forgiveness. The other stablehand seemed much too carefree a type to begrudge Desmond his slights, but others would. There was a sort of paranoia that lived in Desmond's head, a constant fear that the people around him were passing speculations and judgements of him around whenever he wasn't in attendance. Certainly it would not take much to repulse the royal family to his presence, at least enough so that they too cast him out. Being a pariah was not something that he enjoyed, but a part of him worried it had been made a permanent state.

There he was again, somewhere else in his mind and not paying attention to his surroundings. Desmond was not a daydreamer, but his mind was always busy. Today seemed a particularly bad day for it; there was something in the air, a sort of stifling feeling like a breath of smoke, that he just couldn't shake off.

Shawn spoke with a timbre of laughter in his voice, a jovial sort of sound that was just enough to re-ground Desmond a bit. Desmond envied Shawn's lightheartedness, his ability to make playful jokes and banter back and forth without having to premeditate his every action in the rigid, over-precise way Desmond did.

Well, he really should say something. It was quite discourteous to make someone feel ignored. "I just haven't slept well. I'm sure you know the feeling." The excuse was more or less a lie. Desmond rarely slept restfully, but tiredness was not the reason for his absent-mindnedness this morning.

[eldritch hound]

𝐰𝐞𝐬𝐤𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐞

♠ — male — duke — location: lanercost → three siren's — mentions: xx — tags: xx
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ever so quickly, before he left the estate he entered the small kitchen and across to the even smaller larder when he picked up a soft, fuzzy peach, the last of his supplies, and tucked the morsel of fruit into his breast pocket. he wasn't going to be seen in the streets eating a 'peach' or things, think of the rumours "is his grace loosing his way", "is lord constantine finally ran out of money?" heavens no, he couldn't bear the speculation. unprepared fruit was frowned upon by the upper class and was a supposed food of the poor but it had grown to be a guilty pleasure of his. sure, pies were great and all, but sometimes he would like fruit on it's own, without all the added sugar.

he winced to himself before leaving the larder returning to colpach and clipped his foot into the stirrup and heaved himself up with a flourish and a sigh before pulling at the mares reigns and out of the estates paddock. he had always found the way the horseshoe clipped off of the cobbled streets very satisfying and as a result, the rest of the city was easy to ignore. he let out a serene smile and set off at a trot down the streets, dipping under the odd washing line here and there before he finally broke through the houses and into into the surrounding forest.

it wasn't until he was obscured by a the trees that he allowed himself the pleasure of biting into the soft orange, if not slightly bruise, flesh of the peach. he clicked his tongue for his mount to move faster and into a canter. after taking a second bite of the peach, removing the pit and discarding it on the ground, he leant forward and fed the rest of the fruit to colpach who let out a grateful whiny and plucked it from his hand. he smiled and patted her neck before he let the forest overtake his senses. the birds song in his ears, the cool breeze coming from the ocean and the fluttering of wind in his hair as his steed bobbing and weaving through the trees.

𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐫𝐚 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐥

♦ — agender — knight — location: stables — mentions: xx — tags: cedric
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as they was brushing the stallions coat with more concentration than the task demanded and gave a soft jump as a sudden voice startled them out of their distraction. adora let out a muffled squeak of a yelp, dropping the brush and their face turning a shade of crimson all at once. they turned towards the direction of the voice and let out an exasperated huff "oh, uhm, yes, good morning," they paused for a moment, trying their best to produce the name of the stablehand before adding "it's cedric, right?" they always tried their best to know the names of the castles employees and while they failed sometimes the do pride themselves on being respectful to even them, it was 'the knightly thing to do' adora told themselves.

adora smiled at him "I'm...awake, if not sluggish" they admitted with a small chuckle "I was considering it, what says you all mighty horse master?" they accentuated with a curt, if not mocking bow as they attempted a joke, not something adora did often, they wondered if the point came across that it was only in jest and not to actually insult the poor worker. she straightened and watched as the ever hungry equine bent his neck and started picking through the hay that was dropped for him.