♔ CROWNLANDS [closed]

[tempest,]

ＥＬＤＲＩＣＨ ＨＡＷＴＨＯＲＮＥ
role queensguard of skaga | location great hall | tags noah

If Eldrich anticipated that greeting Noah would promptly dissolve his suspicion, then he proved to be fundamentally wrong. Though he may have already characterized the other man as a representative of the standard young, bold, and righteous knight, perhaps a fairly recent addition to the royal guard, a potential wildcard due to his youth. Not that Hawthorne couldn't be classified as such just as well. Throughout his training for knighthood, he had picked many a fight with knights of whom Noah now reminded him, both thanks to Hawthorne's temperament and secretly a jealous streak. Needless to say, he had grown since to use the head on his shoulders properly and advanced in his career. Brushing a stray lock of hair away from his eyes, Eldrich shifted his weight from one leg to the other and briefly glanced around the room. As far as he could tell, all monarchs from both kingdoms seemed to be engaged in conversation. None of Noah's fellow guards appeared to follow their chat or cause any misgiving in Eldrich's eyes. As he made eye contact with another Skagan guard by chance, Eldrich subtly nodded, aware that any member of the guard would approach if the necessity presented itself. Right now the overall atmosphere seemed rather jovial, music had returned after a dramatic pause and chatter continued.

In a different lifetime, Eldrich could have fit in nicely in Aeralya, gladly led a simple and comfortable life in its warm weather, harvesting crops, drinking and feasting. The person he had grown to be at this point, he wouldn't be proud whatsoever of settling down so easily. "Aeralya is... certainly a pleasant change of scenery. I wouldn't mind visiting here for a longer period of time." Before he had the chance to retort a snide remark about the king that was on the tip of his tongue, Noah had reached out for a couple of goblets. The idea of poison crossed Eldrich's mind and, in fact, amused him, for the chance of being administered some sort of potion seemed out of place and nearly impossible to execute, given the circumstances. Still, he did hesitate for a bit before accepting the offered drink, likely extending the polite time limit and further establishing tension. "That's what they keep saying." Describing the King as "not like his father" was one way to put it. "From my experience, the apple rarely falls quite that far from the tree." Eldrich was giving the oldest Myros the benefit of the doubt; however, he wouldn't overlook him. After all, Calahan was raised by the ruthless former King who had brought war to Skaga, a war Eldrich had fought in himself and lost people he knew, not to mention the countless lives of innocent citizens.

[horror.]

𝐌𝐚𝐯𝐲𝐫𝐨𝐧 𝐈𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐤𝐬
Prince of Skaga//Located at the Great Hall//Tagged With Calahan, and Audri//Feeling Mortified

Mavyron's face flushed a deep rouge as the young king of Aeralya gestured for a servant. "N-No, that will not be necessary, your majesty. It's..customary in Skaga to wear such layers." Mavyron prayed to the gods that this night end quickly because he wasn't sure just how much longer he can play charades with these Aeralyans. To swiftly cover his embarrassment, he had grabbed a goblet from one of the waiting servants and immediately gulped down its contents. The lighter taste was not quite like the richer, heavier drink from Skaga he was familiar with. It was..like a palate cleanser of sorts to wash down the rising bitterness in the back of his throat.

Suddenly the fur cape on his back felt heavier. Or maybe it was something else. Was it getting a bit hot in here? The drink wasn't enough to quench his thirst, but, it was something.

"Mm.." He exhaled, and then, flashed a courteous smile at the two other royal men, particularly, Prince Audri who had just asked him about their journey here. "Worry not, Prince Audri. I promise it was pleasant. I have not seen the sun shine like this anywhere in Skaga. It's given enough warmth to raise such rich harvest, I presume." It seems to him that Prince Audri seemed aware enough of his brother's...overbearingness? He'll admit, he found the siblings intriguing enough. How were they behind closed doors away from prying eyes?

Were they anything like their father—the man who murdered his parents? Or are they as virtuous as they say they are. Mavyron was an optimist, sure, but he was not a fool. Nothing could get past him. "I believe I would have liked to explore your country more, Prince Audri, but alas. Perhaps another time then."

[pasdeplumas]

audri myros
prince of aeralya, in the great hall
mentions ; tags calahan, mavyron

He was vaguely surprised by the prince's explanation of his refusal to remove the heavy fur cloak. While, understandably, it was customary to wear thick layers of clothing in the chilled northern regions, the fact was that they were not in Skaga. Why he was so hesitant, Audri couldn't say for sure, but the man's cheeks flushed in embarrassment, and he knew his brother would respect Mavyron's wishes. A woman had already approached at the king's summons, of course, one hand carrying a tray of drinks, the other free. She looked at them expectantly, but seeing as Mavyron had declined the offer, Audri held up a subtle hand to dismiss her so his brother wouldn't have to worry about it. She nodded, but before she turned to go, the Skagan prince had quietly grabbed one of the glasses from her tray. She curtsied to him before melting back into the crowd.

He had downed the cup's entire contents before Audri could even blink, and just like that, his moment of discomfort was gone, though his face was still tinted pink. Audri gave a knowing smile as Mavyron responded to his question. No sunshine? As hot and overwhelming as the sun could be here, especially in the summer, he wouldn't have traded it for a sky constantly shadowed out by clouds. Not to mention the snow, too. He shivered just to think of it.

Although he knew Mavyron was just minding his manners, it stung every time he addressed him as 'Prince'. It's just a title. Albeit an annoying one.

"Please, call me Audri. And I'm sure we could arrange a tour for anyone interested. That is, if you stay for an extended amount of time." Besides accidentally revealing more than intended, the only thing a tour of Aeralya could do was improve the trust between the two groups. He smiled again, before he added, "Hopefully one day we'll be able to do the same in Skaga. I would love to see the mountains up close." This was perhaps the truest thing he had said all night. Those mountains were so stoic and unrelenting, even from this distance, he couldn't imagine how they might dominant the landscape in Skaga. The earth, aside from in the center of the kingdom, was flat in Aeralya, the majority of it covered in fields that stretched as far as the eye could see. But he had often found himself wondering what it would be like to see rocks jutting from the ground, giving the land some character.

He glanced at Calahan to make sure he wasn't over-stepping any boundaries. He'd become quite good at knowing what was and what wasn't acceptable to him, and rarely did his brother chastise him, but times were changing now. Their father was no longer in the picture, and Calahan was on his own, as far as responsibilities went. It was new territory for all of them, but for Audri, it was like learning to walk all over again, navigating these strangers as well as his own family.

[Dragonheart48]

The Witch of the Frozen Moon
talvayas. tags. Gwyn & Feyre


"Well Saskia is certainly one for dramatics, though I'm not really one to judge on such matters. I'm a rather dramatic woman myself", the witch said with a smile. For the sake of a good show, she let her eyes change turn golden glowing color and tilted her head as she focused on the princess. Her awareness of the spell made it a little harder to get a clear answer to her question at first but a little prying revealed that Gwyn believed what she was saying was true. The royalty of Aerayla appeared to actually want the peace their forefathers had spat on, and she had some mixed emotions to put it mildly. The reassurance of the other woman, Feyre if she remembered correctly, was a little surprising but not necessarily unwelcomed. "Oh, I don't mind but thank you for your concern. It's", she paused for a moment searching for the right word, "let's just say more open-minded than most".

[baenerys]

x

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Ｒ Ｉ Ｖ Ｅ Ｒ Ｓ
knight of aeralya // mentions: saskia, feyre, gwyn // tags: eldrich

Noah couldn't help but feel a tension when he offered a goblet of summerwine to the fellow knight. There was a long moment of hesitation before Eldrich took the goblet, probably evaluating the likelihood of poison. To ease the other knight's mind, Noah took a swig from his own goblet, reveling at the sweet taste on his lips. In truth, he supposed that if their roles had been reversed and Eldrich had been the one to offer the wine to Noah, he would surely hesitate as well, so he brushed the tension aside. Of course, it took only just a moment for a fresh wave of tension to build on his shoulders, as the other knight spoke ill of the Myros family. Knuckles turned white about the goblet as Noah tried to hold his tongue, but seeing the ease with which Eldrich had spoken of the family, he just couldn't help himself. "Maybe it's different in Skaga, but in Aeralya, people are not judged on who their father or mother might have been. The best anyone can do is forge their own path, even if that means straying far from the road laid out by those before us." The younger knight pursed his lips and felt a deep frown furrow over his brows, and he could feel a spark in his chest at the disrespect Eldrich had just exhibited. Maybe he saw this whole event as a farce, but Noah knew that the Myros family truly did have good intentions, and it made his stomach turn in a knot that the Skagans would just spit in their faces like this. Before he could say anything else, the grand doors to the hall burst open, and a fellow Aeralyan knight rushed in a wild frenzy, cutting the music as sharp as when Saskia had entered.

"They've turned the household guard into woodland creatures, and the barracks are overrun with vines and plants -- that witch, that Skagan witch, she's cursed the lot!" the knight cried out, as squirrels scampered into the hall with quivering tails in fury, and song birds swooped in with angry shrieks. The knight, who Noah recognized to be Ser Henry Oldstone, had trained a number of the squires with very traditional techniques. He was getting slower but not so less deadly with a sword; but now, he looked frantic, for many of the Aeralyan people feared magic and witches. He was pointing at the Skagan witch, Talvayas, all accusing and rash. The hall erupted in panic and fury, birds swooping down to peck at Skagans and squirrels skittering to nip at them too. The goblet that Noah had in his hand clattered to the floor as he swiveled to Eldrich, only just catching sight of Feyre and Gwyn, standing far too close to the Skagan witch for comfort. "What are ye's playin' at?" he barked at Eldrich, hands clenched into fists, eyes narrowed in a flare of anger, as he went to shove past the knight to bring Gwyn and Feyre away from the Witch.

[daughter]

F E Y R E A G N O R
the ward | mentions: audri | tags: Gwyn, Talvayas, Noah

feyre had opened her mouth to respond to the witch before her words got stuck in her throat at the sight of the aeralyan knight crashing the scene. his wild appearance brought once more the familiar tensions in the room, and his words hit even harder. the accusatory finger hung in the air as the peaceful creatures that feyre spent some time admiring when the weather was nice turned savage. she knew there was truth behind the knight's words, and this fact stung at the heart of the young woman. it did not come as a surprise to feyre though knowing that didn't help to ease her emotions.

her eyes darted from the knight back to the witch. feyre bit her lip, uncertain of how to feel. as one of the smaller squirrels went towards talvayas, feyre quickly scooped up the animal. with steady hands, she brushed down the rustled fur. "it's true, isn't it?"she did not need the witch to confirm the accusations. for feyre, it was whether or not she would be honest with them. would she be proud? this is what feyre expected from talvayas as she did not see her as someone to be ashamed or afraid. "what is the meaning for this?" she kept her voice calm but could not hide the look of concern or betrayal on her face. as she spoke, she looked at talvayas, searching the woman's eyes.

she looked over her shoulder and saw noah approaching. feyre was unsure of whether or not he could help the situation at hand. at the thought of the other royals, she scanned the panicked crowd to find audri. she did not like having eyes on him but feyre knew that the only thing she could do at the moment, was to deal with the witch. the woman turned back to face talvayas, chin lifted slightly and voice soft. "i want to believe you did not do this out of malicious intentions, but rather safety precautions." that's what she wanted though, and if life had taught her anything, you rarely got what you wanted.