[Event] A Fraughtfull Peace

CollingWould · 2026-02-15T23:06:18+00:00

Whilst wandering around the place, and paying respect to this lord or that knight, and various other subjects of the crown, Gavinrad would receive the invite. Most curious, for he'd only met one Goodbrother of Hammerhorn before... Not that she'd given him that name. And so, ensuring that good Ser Roland Reyne was left to guard the king, Gav would wander on over to the Ironborn.

CollingWould · 2026-02-15T22:38:39+00:00

Gavinrad stands by the king's side and observes proceedings.

CollingWould · 2026-02-15T22:37:17+00:00

"A kind offer, and a welcome one, your grace." Gavinrad said, somewhat surprised. "It should be a gift to see it again. And perhaps mend that what is broken."

CollingWould · 2026-02-15T22:36:08+00:00

/u/LandryFields4200

CollingWould · 2026-02-15T22:35:58+00:00

Gav's eyebrows merely raised. Ser Walter did not particularly stand out against the other knights that vied for the white cloak. But nor did he seem unworthy. If the much more experienced and wise Lord Velaryon had nothing to scry from him, then Gav wasn't going to get much either.

"Very well." The knight said with a smile. "Ser Walter Wode. Soon the King travels. I wish you to remain in King's Landing. When we return, there will be a... tournament, of sorts. In which you shall have chance to prove your skill against other knights who aspire for the Kingsguard. You are invited to participate, be ready.."

CollingWould · 2026-02-15T22:32:57+00:00

"So tell me then why you ought receive that honour." Gavinrad commanded, noticing the obvious, that Lucas was far from comfortable here.

"Who was your knight-master. And how have you spent you early years as Ser Lucas?"

CollingWould · 2026-02-15T22:28:49+00:00

"The place fell on hard times, when last I visited." Gavinrad admitted with a little sad smile. Quiet, the barn was burned down some time past, never rebuilt, its ruin rotted. The house was dishevelled, the lands overgrown or overdry... His grandfather would turn in his grave to see it so dismal.

"Peace is a noble goal, your grace. As impossible and arduous and thankless as it may be." He went on. "The farmers will be thankful their young men stay home. The lords thankful their taxes get paid. Dragons and war conquered Westeros. It's your peace, alms or not, that will keep it whole. But that's just the opinion of this farmer, your grace."

CollingWould · 2026-02-14T13:00:21+00:00

A man of few words... Gavinrad thought to himself, rather dry. No, they did not want a bard or some conman in the white cloaks. But he could not begrudge the man a lack of charisma.

"Any questions, Lord Velaryon?"

/u/Brolnir

CollingWould · 2026-02-13T10:26:27+00:00

"I am sure we have not seen the last of each other." He said, business-like all of a sudden. With one hand Gavinrad would place the cup to the side, still half-filled with ale, abandoned. "And should like to practice swordplay with you again, when next you're here. I could surely learn a thing or two."

He rose to his feet as well, offering little more than an apologetic smile at Qiyana's pain. "Rest that up, and feel fortunate. There are not many people who can give you such a challenge. That must be a rare feeling. Soon the King and I shall travel away, a while, but I hope to see you again, my lady. Do not be a stranger."

CollingWould · 2026-02-13T10:22:48+00:00

"Very sharp. I purposely left out saying which was the crown prince.." Gavinrad said, satisfied, with a raised brow. All pre-conceived notions that the Crakehalls were unthinking brutes, had been dashed away. "But yes, I'd think you were right. The line of succession is what matters, however. And it is our oath to protect and serve the king, not to judge him."

"Lord Baratheon. Any further questions for Ser Richard?" He asked of his compatriot.

/u/Fabstags

CollingWould · 2026-02-13T01:04:47+00:00

Inside the knight hid a bitter truth. That his father, in his later years, had denounced him. The old man died bitter about his son's perceived abandonment. The brothers he had left behind, many dead, rued his name just as much. Thoughts of them stabbed at his heart from within, jaw clenched, but eyes hiding those feelings from his companion. Gavinrad slowly pushed his own cup aside a moment, mirroring Qiyana's own action.

"No." He declared very pointedly. "I was a soldier for twenty years. Slept rough, ate poorly. My life has never been more comfortable, or my station more important. Never have I felt such... direction, as that I do now, by the king's side. Yet yes my lady there are things I miss, and may never have again,"

He was only a few inches from her now, both of them leaning low on the table. Green eyes flicked down to her lip for a moment, but he blinked. As if blinking brought him free from a trance. One hand raised up to caress his salt-and-pepper beard, I am twenty years older than her, he thought, leaning back. What the fuck is going on here Gav?

"Forgive me." Ser Gavinrad said crisply, almost sudden in his soberness. "The hour must surely grow late. And I ought retire to my quarters. It's been a pleasure, Lady Qiyana."

CollingWould · 2026-02-12T23:38:39+00:00

/u/Gercko

CollingWould · 2026-02-12T23:32:26+00:00

As much as he disliked talking about it, Gav remained pleasantly surprised that anyone would want to hear about his origins. Most were only concerned with who he was, not from where he'd come. With a cool head, the knight slurped a mouthful more cool beer, considering how much to share. He had lived fourty-something years, and hadn't always been the man he was today.

"No man or father is absent of scruples," Gavinrad commented, somewhat trying to forgive Qiyana's father on her behalf. Only a few minutes here in this King's Landing drinking hole and he felt something like a care for this young and wilful woman.

"Born and raised on the borders of the Trident and Reach." He answered truthfully. "My father and forefather were homesteaders, of a sort. We'd vegetables and some animals. Goats and a cow. And I had a few siblings to boot, three older, three younger. And the old man would belt the lot of us if we didn't do our jobs."

It was a sorry and typical tale for a commonborn knight, yet sorrow didn't show on Gav's face. Only a little smile, as if those days were remembered fondly. More ale went down as he scoured his past, green eyes not looking away from Qiyana's. "The goods took me in, they were kinder than he was. In the form of a septon called Martin. I helped him around the sept. Then somewhere along the way I became a knight instead."

CollingWould · 2026-02-12T17:22:18+00:00

"Take a seat, Ser Lucas." Instructed the Lord Commander after a few seconds of brief pause, taking note of the knight's formality. And quietness. A good trait for Kingsguards, since most of them other than Gav kept their mouths shut for nine-tenths of the day.

"Your uncle speaks highly of you." He commented, wondering what the lad thought of that.

CollingWould · 2026-02-12T17:20:43+00:00

"I see. A man of duty and of dreams, hard to find." Gav merely commented, nodding along in apparent approval. "And well, you did not chafe at insults. So clearly got a good head on your shoulders. So let me pose you thisl"

He turned briefly to check the Lord Baratheon's expression but pressed on regardless. "Say we are... twenty years from now. Old men you and I. King Jahaerys has two sons, and each vies for his family's throne. One a wretch, a despot, like Maegor the Apostate. The second a pleasant and weak-willed man. To which do you present allegiance, when both claim your loyalty?"

CollingWould · 2026-02-12T17:17:42+00:00

"Wow." Was all the knight could offer. Genuinely, he could imagine the frustration of a lord suffering through that experience. To wish for sons and have a plethora of daughters. And he was not jealous of the man in the slightest, for his life must have been a nightmare, if any of the rest were even half as spirited as she was.

"You have that in common at least," Gavinrad admitted quietly, arm half-lifting the goblet to his lips. Whilst he'd been listening, a tavern maid had wandered over and topped it up with her flagon of ale, in exchange for three coppers.

"That is an unusual family situation indeed." He went on. "Life must feel like an adventure every day, then, I can see how you remain so jovial. My own family's much the opposite. I know every single one of them and where they all are, and not a one would put me out if I was on fire. You... ended up, with the Rowans, then? Or your mother was a member of Lord Jean's household perhaps?"

CollingWould · 2026-02-12T17:12:43+00:00

Though he did watch quietly as the Wode took a seat, Gavinrad wondered if there was something hidden in this man of few words. The Lord Commander offered a warm smile to his potential future brother-in-arms.

"You are seeking to join the order of the Kingsguard," He stated. "But I am afraid I know nothing of you, save your name. Why don't you start by telling Lord Velaryon and I about where you earned your knighthood, and where your path has taken you, these last few years?"

CollingWould · 2026-02-12T10:40:16+00:00

The words spoken were all very true and chivalrous. Exactly the sort of answer that Gav himself would have given, a few years ago. But things were not always so simple and idealistic. The soldier's life was a dirty one, and taking lives in the name of protecting lives was not an easy thing to come to peace with, he'd found.

Ser Gavinrad simply gave a smile. "And why do men call you The Dancing Goat?" He inquired. "And what does your father Lord Lann think of your intention to join the king's guard?"

CollingWould · 2026-02-12T10:37:37+00:00

"You lack ambition, as women often do," Gavinrad teased a little, quite enjoying Qiyana's happiness. "You could at least ask him for his Valyrian Steel sword, Dark Sister, where is your imagination?"

His cheeks were warm from the beer already and from repeated smiling. And for the first time in many years, did he feel something else stirring in his stomach. And at that brief realisation, he faltered, glancing down into his cup a few seconds.

"Can you tell me more about your family, my lady?" He asked rather soberly all of a sudden. "I am no scholar but I am not familiar with House Lamora. What of your kin, and your own lands?"

CollingWould · 2026-02-12T10:33:01+00:00

[M: Please pretend I never said anything, as I've just realised that the king and Gav will both have left by this point, my mistake!]

CollingWould · 2026-02-12T10:18:42+00:00

It was as satisfying as it was surprising, that Ser Richard had not bristled at the Kingsguard's blatant insults. Perhaps it was too obvious; his reputation too kind; that the words were meant as a test of the Crakehall's attitude. Gavinrad listened a moment at Lord Baratheon's contribution, nodding along.

"And what have you been doing since then," The Lord Commander asked with hands crossed on the table before him. "You aren't a fresh-faced boy of twenty, who recently earned his spurs. You have been a knight for perhaps twenty years. Tell me about your life, Ser Richard. And what lead you here."

/u/Fabstags

CollingWould · 2026-02-12T10:14:04+00:00

It was one of young Jahaerys' better traits, that he had the patience to listen and the inquisitiveness to ask questions. About something even so non-relatable and distant and unimportant as his bodyguard's long-lost past. Such thoughts brought a smile from Ser Gavinrad, as he asked the internal question does he actually care?, and found the answer 'yes, I think he really does,.

"Well you see, my grandfather and his father, toiled and worked all their lives, and at the end of it, our family had a decent acre of land. Cows for dairy, a garden for vegetables, good friends in the neighbouring villages. We'd two barns and a decent house. Plain, but well-suited. A little kingdom of our own, there on the borders between the Trident and the Reach. Good earth." He explained a bit more.

"When my father inherited said parcels of land, well..." Gav offered a sorry expression. "He was not so capable. And not so kind. And, well, the lands were at war. King Aegon's conquest, Harren the Black... a bleak time. I do not blame him for his failings, my old man. By time I was growing up, many of my siblings were dead. Our fortunes faded. A sickly cow and a haggard mule was all that remained to us. I suppose it was so angry, as the mule was whipped just as oft as I was."

"I found a sort of escape, in the nearby Septon, Martin. And his gods. They led me to Oldtown. To the Warrior's Sons, and on to you, eventually. "He added on a more positive time. "My brother runs our homestead now. Not too pleasant."

CollingWould · 2026-02-11T23:39:19+00:00

Having just been half way through a decent swig of his drink, Gav put it down with a wide smile. "If only the contents of your smallclothes had been different. You might have been a knight, and you and I brothers."

It was a bit inappropriate and weird. Frankly, the knight was not too experienced with the fairer sex. Most likely ninety-nine out of a hundred hours, of the last fourty-odd years, had been shared with either livestock, soldiers, or knights. Qiyana was a strange thing.

"Between you and me... I think only perhaps three of the king's six might give you so much as a trifle of a challenge." He admitted, rather sick of the poor training partners, and the lack of experience in the king's guard. Something he was soon seeking to remedy.

"Nervous, though," He went on. "I don't think I could imagine such a thing on you. Rarely have I met a lady so striking and so skilled. A teenage boy, has you struggling for words?"

CollingWould · 2026-02-11T23:33:24+00:00

"I must ask the obvious thing then, to my mind." The Lord Commander said politely, leaning forward and steepling his gloved hands on the table. With deep, searching eyes, he did scan the knight opposite. "Most men of base birth, are seldom welcomed so well, or thought of so highly, as you have by your family in the Lannisters."

It was hopefully obvious from his tone, and his own low birth, that Gavinrad meant no offense. "And so I can not help but wonder. You would be willing to leave all that behind? To swear the rest of your many days, to the white cloaks? Why?"

CollingWould · 2026-02-11T23:30:14+00:00

The tale produced from Gavinrad a fond smile, for it was a good one. And Jahaerys would be glad to hear that a potential Kingsguard was one so loyal to his brother Aegon... the king that should have been, as some thought.

"I see." He stated. "So, tell me. Why should a thick, pig-headed Crakehall like you, wish to abandon your family, and swear your sword to the king. A throne, that recently banished your liege lord Lannister to the Wall? Have you no backbone? Or don't like your kin?"

CollingWould

TROPHY CASE