[R&S 2.4] Enter House Heron

Diary for 15261st month of winter11th dayEvening in Crownhold

I have received a curious letter of an ordinary nature.

It is common among the middling houses of Arcadia, with exception for the Akubans, to use children coming of age as political tools. The occasion is a moment to improve the standing of their house - large parties, regional tours, sending letters of notice as an excuse for introductions, etc... not that I had any experience with that in my youth. We were kept at bay least we present a threat to my aunt and her children.

Since becoming king, I have seemingly received every letter of notice about every daughter coming of age. As noted in volumes 11 and 12 of my diaries, entertaining offers like these has been deeply disappointing. Simply considering those candidates caused rampant friction and unexpected fallout. While it is surely within my capacity to study my court so well as to formulate worthy predictions of such acts, my time is better spent on matters of greater importance.

Had I been a proper prince, as I should have been, such an education would be in my past and I would undoubtedly be fluent in such trivial court details. I loath that it has taken me so long to fully learn lessons around these details - specifically that an announcement of openness and an offer to the king are disingenuous formalities used to raise the self worth of a house. An offering of any kind to a king should be absolute. Alas, changing cultural mannerisms of a whole land is beneath my time, and entertaining offers such as these is a fool’s errand.

So imagine my surprise when I received the following letter:

My daughter Kima Heron, a most focused and serious soul, has become available and begs your consideration.

Unlike the long scrolls of fine vellum inked with vibrant dyes and colorful prose, Ms. Heron’s came on parchment with only 17 words in the body. A most curious and unusual way to write one’s king, and a most intriguing choice for a description of a match. There are those that seek rulership, whose letter I receive often, and those who seek leadership, whose letters I long to receive. I am most certainly getting ahead of myself, but this letter reads like the latter. Such brevity and directness is uncommon in a people cowed for generations by their draconian masters.

For now I will say nothing. While my interest has been piqued, I shall not display it as such. I will watch for house Heron in court, and I will make inquiries through enhanced methods.

Diary for 15262nd month of winter14th dayAfternoon in Crownhold

Tonight let us write about House Heron. It has been a month since I have received their letter, and they have been quiet at court. Matriarch Tunda Heron has caught my eye at the end of each day as court disbands. A short but clear moment of eye contact and a single nod of the head.

Curious.

Many families would sell their children to a dragon for fame and fortune, and if I were to go down that route I could have my pick of as many wives as I wanted. I’m not interested in a sacrifice, I’m looking for a nesting partner. A tempered soul.

Kima Heron is twenty six years of age, having left her previous husband for cause due to his indiscretions. I myself signed the divorce paperwork last year; however, it was during one of my bouts of insomnia and I can recall nothing about the meeting nor the woman.

I will meet with her and take her measure in private, away from the whispers of her family. With a little luck she could be the accomplice partner I need to manage the Kingdom’s affairs. I have spent far too long rebuilding this kingdom to leave it unattended, yet it requires far too much of my attention.

Diary for 15262nd month of winter24th dayEvening in Crownhold

I have spent the day speaking with Kima Heron.

She arrived early with only a single hand maiden and the bodyguards required to navigate the streets of Crownhold. Her manner of dress was a quiet dignity. Her genuflects were so minimal they could have been insults or challenges of authority, yet in our quiet confined space they felt more honest and sincere than had she been as formal as she ought to have been.

I at once felt a choice before me. The old me, the careful me, would have spoken to her without exposing my hand or taking any risks. I would have measured, quantified, planned, and arranged each step so as to be sure of the success before taking it. But her calm and focused spirit opened another path. One in which I could speak with her plainly, and we could honestly assess where we each stood.

I explained the truth of things to her. That I bear scars across me much in the same way a knight does. That a knight’s scars are are skin deep, but mine rip through every fiber my very being. I told her about the mountains of Bravo, about Atrapos, the villagers, Tyrael’s oath, cloud giants, Anton’s tiny plane of existence, and more.

She listened with a hard face, taking in each story with solemn focus.

I told her about the costs that were paid by so many selfless people. I told her the hidden truth of what happened to my mother, and I told her what became of Anton. I explained that these things might happen to her if she chose to stand beside me.

She took a quiet moment before saying - and I shall remember these words until my final days for their directness, the pauses between each statement of fact, and those eyes that blazed with fearless independence while staring down the most powerful man in the world - “My lord, gods have come to the world. The Dragons have all been slain. The Empress has been murdered. An outsider sits upon the throne. The armada has been sunk. Invaders hover beyond our shores. Yet my king tells me there is something greater that I should be concerned with. It is what we do with our lives that matters, not when they end. I do not fear the risks I must assume to further my kingdom. I am not here for love. I am not here for romance. I am not here for grandeur or fortune. I am here because I can serve Mistrya best by serving at your side.”

Remarkable. Simply remarkable. Martha, Astair, and Nerual have sent me exactly what I need, and just in time. Gods be praised.

Still, I am no fool, and I tested her further. I told her it was one thing to make promises of valor and bravery, and another thing altogether to follow through with it - then I dropped the spells altering my appearance. It is important that she goes into this with both eyes open.

She took it well, barely reacting, before nodding in understanding.

I did not draw up the illusions for the rest of the conversation, save for when servants entered to serve and clear. She understood what I was saying without me having to speak. She remained focused and unaffected. At no point did she try to read the faces of the servants, did she look for escape paths, did she seem distracted.

I asked her about her convictions and her past. She didn’t try to explain away her convictions with personal stories, only that they were a part of her and could not be denied. She told me of her first marriage, that it was postulated on similar grounds, that It was not the affair that mattered, but getting distracted with the unimportant.

Our conversation had a flatness to it. I showed her my realities. She showed me hers. Not cold, not transactional, but without fear of consequence or desire for reassurance.

I spoke of problems of the realm, both mundane and fantastic. Her responses were calm and measured. Her opinions were decisive, her suggestions were strategic, not tactical. She speaks 4 languages and has no children.

In the melee, movements happen before thought. There is a flow. When I speak with Kima, I feel that same flow. A voice in the far back of my mind warns me that I should not trust so quickly. My rational mind tells me this could be a trap, that a cleric of Chis has put exactly what I want directly in front of me when I need it most. But I have had her family vetted. Her whereabouts and associates are known and recorded. Her history is consistent.

For safety, I should question her deceased relatives to see if there was ever a sudden change in her demeanor. I should check for enchantments and charms on her, her house, and myself. That is the careful step, but with such a busy schedule it would take weeks, maybe months to be sure. I feel myself wanting to put that aside and trust the state of flow.