ravenDivinity

When the Flames Die

Gareth shook Thomas's hand. "Ah, my name is Gareth Harker." He bore no titles, and perhaps it was slightly embarrassing, but titles and such were trivial manners and the true merits for him were accolades in goodwill. "And my... they train you knights quite well in chivalry." Truth be told, the members of the Order were characterized by their willingness to treat others well for glory of the king, and no doubt Thomas was a paragon of this trait, which Gareth found charming in others. "The pleasure is mine, Sir Thomas." Harker felt comfortable speaking to another of his kind and gained some confidence being with Karl who was lesser in virtue but higher in status. One thing that stuck out to Gareth, however, was the mention of assassination attempts which struck his anxiety about the day, that had already taken quite a few hits earlier. He caught Thomas's frown, and assumed that Arduin II's life ended in such away, that the kings were unpopular with some in the country. These facts he took disconcertingly, but his smile did not falter in this time of civil unrest.

When the Flames Die

Composing himself and putting on a smile, Gareth followed Leid to the throne, and he stood adjacent to Karl and slightly behind while Karl initiated. The boy figured that the knight and Karl Leid had some sort of history together, confirming his earlier assumptions about Karl. He stayed quiet as he knew the position the third partner took in a chat between two former acquaintances—the one who waited to be introduced. Harker glanced between the two slowly in a pendular motion, noting the history behind them - they both served the now-interred older brother of King Bard II in his kingship. The nature of their former relationship, to Gareth at least, continued to be undisclosed, and perhaps would stay that way if the past was itself lost. Many thoughts ran about his head while his mouth remained shut—interest, admiration, intrigue, questioning. The two before him certainly had many years under their belts, experience with Mullen's and Keilaudrin's affairs that ran deeper and more abundant than his own, and the half-elf inwardly reminded himself that he did in fact want to learn more about Mullen and its people, that this was another opportunity for him to learn and become acquainted.

When the Flames Die

"No, no, sir, I'm no expert, for I'm a half-elf myself after all," Gareth explained with a smile, denying any sort of advanced knowledge. "My mother's a pureblood elf, father's a human. I could tell one if I saw one." He thought about the guard by the throne, Sir Morgan. Yes, his being a half-elf slipped by Gareth, since he couldn't have gathered it without actually asking. Sir Morgan, a handsome specimen with a figure Gareth fancied, looked a mere few years or so older than Harker, but using his intuition Gareth understood that he was either the age he interpreted or a decade older, considering how elves aged. "Ah... I see it now, he is a half-elf, with little elf blood." The problem that presented itself to Gareth and Karl was the problem of appropriately bringing it up in conversation or approaching the knight of the Order. Harker furrowed his brow in thought. "How shall we go about approaching him?"

When the Flames Die

The young half-elf was taken by this change of mind, for he could've sworn from Karl's situation that he might've been considering leaving. But the tale Leid told after, that was a treasure of conversation to behold. "Oh? But..." Gareth found this information contradictory. "A prince turned knight for another kingdom far away? Why?" An enigma wrapped in a conundrum wrapped in utter mystery. He didn't recall seeing any half-elf guards on the journey to the castle. Perhaps a person or two with similar features to a half-elf or a distant relative of a half-elf, but no one with appearances directly indicating his half-elf status beyond himself. "But I swear, I haven't seen a guard that looks like a half-elf at all, save for a faroff resemblance here and there." Harker folded his arms once more, himself intrigued by the legend. It occurred to him that he was talking a little loud, like a gossipping wench, and when he next spoke he reduced his volume to a more acceptable level. "Do you know who it is?"

When the Flames Die

Gareth gazed at them in time with Karl, who no doubt was also acknowledging the affluence of the lady by the guard. The servants catering her didn't lie; she could've been a noble or a princess. Although Leid and Gareth were eager to speak with the group by the throne, Gareth knew that trying to speak to them now would prove fruitless in their egress. He, while closely watching the leaving troupe, listened to Leid's talk, from which Harker assumed that Karl likely had to depart as well. "Ah, but... the night is quite young, sir. Does this mean you must leave here at once?" For the reserved half-elf, it would mean losing someone whom he could talk to as the night went on, who could lead him along and help him socialize, and yet despite his initial intimidation by Karl, Gareth would sooner have Leid's company than be left alone for the evening to figure out what to do with himself. It was here wherein the young Harker started planning his next move in case Leid left—'go speak to the guard, just attain the courage to do so,' and 'avoid the dining area for the time being.' He frowned, pausing for Karl's response.

When the Flames Die

Harker chortled at Leid's little musing. "Oh, haha, I'm sure many more are getting drunk and loud already in the Grand Hall..." Gareth gathered from the crowds entering the gates that a vast number of people were congregated in other areas of the palace. After all, it made no sense for a large crowd to enter and for the only populated area to be the throne room, sparsely. "Perhaps the celebration simply hasn't made its way to this room quite yet. It will be very still and quiet here until the king comes... or more people arrive, or both." He trailed off a little and found his thoughts again. The half-elf concluded that Karl formerly worked under the king or something, which would explain his social status. Idly he stood with Karl there, in silence, analyzing the status of the room again. "Hmm... I'm a little shy, but I suppose, ah, we could collect with the other group standing over there by that guard." Admittedly, Harker's conversation with Karl exhausted a lot of the topics he would cross with a stranger, and because he did not want to lose Karl's interest by being a boring conversation partner, Gareth attempted to encourage Karl and himself to join the other group, in hopes of maintaining a good impression. "Any idea of what I should speak of escapes me... maybe they have an interesting discussion for you and me."

When the Flames Die

Gareth folded his arms and nodded. "Pleased to meet you as well, Karl." Karl's words and comments made him chuckle, and it was ironic, for he did not believe he was living his life fully, but he played along anyway. "Well, ah, I'm interested in seeing what our new king is like, and I feel as though I need to have a good time and relax... And this is clearly going to be the right palace to do it. Since I've come to this town a few months ago... Haha, I might as well become acquainted." His eyes glanced around the room, then they returned to Karl shyly. It was true, wherefore he worked himself over much by running errands for his friends and neighbors, recently getting more and more offers to do small tasks for other people when their hands became full and busied, a busy person like Gareth needed a break from the tedium of everyday life to enjoy himself, even if only for a night. The half-elf perhaps thought that maybe later on he could move to more exciting things, after the king sits down in audience with the court for a little while, in keeping with what a coronation day brings. "Mmm, what brings you here?"

When the Flames Die

I'm not a very good writer, but I'll try to improve myself.

Rupdeus

It'll turn out alright. I'm sure no one will scrutinize you here if you don't write perfectly—keep in mind, you are in the free roleplay section.

When the Flames Die

"Ah, yes, this is true." Gareth agreed. The man before Gareth seemed to have experience under his own belt, and failing that, on their own the words that Karl spoke were a commonly understood truth about governments—they always tended to run with much corruption under the noses of the people. A very miniscule pause existed before he spoke again, finally deciding on the right words to use. "I just wish, for maybe a time in the future, for there to be a type of leadership fair and just that knows little corruption. It is but a wish, an ideal state, but no more." In this, he conveyed his assumed naiveté and attempted to avoid being openly discouraged of his opinion, his lack of confidence and his insecurity both clearly shown. Gareth had tensed for a bit, his facade of contentment faltering for a mere second, before he loosened himself again to maintain his composure. His mind resolved to divert attention away from his slip and the current subject matter, or at least for a brief moment, and his mouth completed the work. "Oh dear, I am sorry. I haven't introduced myself. My name is Gareth." He bowed slightly. "You are?"

When the Flames Die

Gareth pulled down his hood to reveal his entire face to the two newcomers that approached him. Before they had neared him, his eyes watched the duo furtively from the corners of his peripheral vision, and already Gareth conjectured a sort of pre-analysis of the seemingly noble man, who was determinately arrogant in the face, and a dressed woman, whom he deemed pretentious. These he knew were only judgements, and in his mind he cleared them in order to dismiss any predisposition towards the newcomers. The boy put on a light smile for the two when the man had spoken to him, and he turned fully to acknowledge the pair in return.

"Yes, uh," Gareth paused, gathering the words he wanted. "It's intriguing almost... It is indeed bizarre. The absence provokes a thought of the possibility of chaos." That thought he grasped for a moment, recalling how he felt about the situation of the instability in the government. "But this land... it needs order."

Perhaps if things did collapse, perhaps order could come spontaneously from the chaos to counteract it, and bring a golden era with it. Gareth, in this fragment of time, received the impression that an upheaval was underfoot. A premonition came to him, and it foreshadowed that things might go awry in the coming day, this increasing his already growing anxiety over the coronation.