• Solo • Caz and Ryn

[Devin]

Ashan 2, Arc 722

On the 2nd of Ashan, Devin Thorn, High Priest of Delroth and Baron von Smooglenuff was just sitting at the luxurious desk in his equally luxurious office and taking care of some paperwork, because that was unfortunately part of being a Baron, too. He was doing it in style, though. He was wearing a dark blue suit, with a vest that was covered with all kinds of buttons that had pictures of little birds on them, because buttons were in fashion that season, and what more, he had rainbow-colored socks on, and he was sipping delicious hot chocolate with a hint of rum from a porcelain cup every now and then.

Even paperwork became bearable when you had nice clothes and a good drink, and besides, it made him feel important. He liked being important and famous and powerful!

He was just checking a note that Mrs. Adams, the head cook, had given him regarding the meals for the next seven-trial, when he suddenly heard a knock on the door. He immediately called out to enter, in an enthusiastic tone of voice, because, as much as he loved being important and barony, an excuse to take a break was always welcome, nevertheless.

(Besides, none of the paperwork was so urgent that it couldn’t wait a little!)

Korim, the half biqaj butler of Smooglenuff Manor, a man that was just a few arcs his senior, opened the door and entered. He bowed before he approached Devin’s desk and told him in a polite and respectful tone of voice, because he was a very professional butler, “I have been asked to inform you of the fact that there has been a delivery for you, Your Grace. They apologize that it’s a little delayed due to the bad weather in Cylus”, he added before he fell silent and waited for Devin to speak.

Devin furrowed his brow and furrowed it some more because he was drawing a blank at the moment. He just wasn’t sure what kind of delivery Korim was talking about – new clothes, new jewelry, new shiny swords, or maybe more gifts from his adoring fans? – and finally simply decided to address the butler and asked, “What are you talking about?”

“The free mount that you got for coming in third place in the ScalvHunt last arc”, Korim replied in the same polite and respectful tone of voice as before. “You picked a Scalvwing. I told one of the stable hands to take it into the stable and make sure that it has water and food and is comfortable while I get you, Your Grace”, he added and looked at Devin once more, standing very straight, his hands clasped behind his back now.

The young Mortalborn’s eyes abruptly lit up, and then he stood. “That’s great news! Thank you so much for telling me, Korim! Can you take me to my new mount now, please?” he wanted to know, an excited smile on his face, before he continued, “Can I give you anything, by the way? I could give you a cup of hot chocolate of your own, and I have cookies that one of Mrs. Adam’s assistants baked just this morning”, he offered and pushed a bowl that was filled with cookies with white and dark chocolate towards the butler, because he wanted to thank him for delivering that great news with more than just words.

Everybody could say thank you. He preferred to make his employees truly happy and give them all kinds of little gifts though. His goal was to be the best and most generous leader ever!

Korim eyed the cookies that looked quite nice for a moment, wondering if taking one might be unprofessional, despite the Baron’s offer, before he shrugged his shoulders and took a single cookie. “Thank you, Your Grace”, he said politely, but with a light smile and took a bite, enjoying the sweet taste. “If you would follow me now, please? I believe that someone wants to meet you”, he said and gestured for Devin to walk after him which the Mortalborn did, of course.

[Devin]

Together, Devin and the butler walked through the manor, out of the front door and finally to the stable. One of the stable hands was just taking Devin’s amazing, winged goat, Keke, for a walk. The Mortalborn wanted to make sure that his mounts always got enough opportunities to move – horses and animals that were kind of like horses needed a regular workout – so, when he was busy, or just not in the Barony, his roommate Aidan who was pretty much a veterinarian or one of the servants spent time with his four-legged friends.

Even though Devin was absolutely excited to meet the newest addition in the stable, he walked over to Keke in order to stroke them and give him a treat first, because such an amazing being should never be ignored in his opinion, before he promised him, “This evening, we’ll ride to the beach together. Would you like that?” Keke didn’t answer. Being an animal, he was of course incapable of speaking. He did briefly look at Devin, bleat a bit and stick out his tongue though.

Devin stroke him again before he turned to the stable hand, a human with red hair and lots of freckles that was a few arcs younger than him, and asked, “How has Keke been?”

“Oh, he’s been very good, Your Grace”, the man assured him. “I’m always surprised by his appetite though. He sure eats a lot. Maybe, that has something to do with … being what he is though?” he asked somewhat uncertainly. Over the course of the previous seasons, the various inhabitants of the Smooglenuff Barony had gotten used to Keke because he often accompanied Devin, but there were certain aspects that still confused them and surprised them. He had a very extraordinary personality, to say the least.

“Probably”, Devin said in a cheerful tone of voice. “Thank you for helping me with him. Could you spend a little more time with him though? I’m just about to take a look at the new Scalvwing, and I’d like to introduce my animals to each other one at a time so as to not overwhelm the new addition”, he explained in a friendly tone of voice. He was not as good at dealing with animals as Aidan was, but he knew that a new environment could be overwhelming, so, he’d decided to take it slow for now.

With that thought in mind, he nodded at Korim who had stayed a few steps behind him, arms clasped behind his back and looking very professional and butlery once more, and then they finally walked into the stable where another stable hand was taking care of the new Scalvwing. She … Devin quickly bent down in order to confirm that the Scalvwing was indeed lacking certain appendages … she was absolutely beautiful, he decided.

While Caz, his male Scalvwing, was black from head to toe, the new Scalvwing was a very nice and deep shade of purple which made him wonder what would happen if he bred her with Caz, and if he would get black Scalvwings with purple spots or stripes out of it.

He smiled quite happily as he pictured a herd of black and purple Scalvwings that were running across the orange beaches of Faldrass - until he suddenly remembered that Caz was gelded, because male Scalvwings always were before they were being sold. That meant that he couldn’t make babies anymore.

That was kind of disappointing.

Fortunately, Devin was only disappointed for a moment though, because he still had two winged horses rather than one now, which was pretty awesome, and besides, a gelded horse was much gentler and less driven by its impulses which kind of made up for the lack of baby-making.

He didn’t need any unruly horses!

So, without further ado, he came closer, exchanging a few words with the stable hand in the process, before he finally focused all of his attention on the Scalvwing herself. Korim the butler made his way back into the manor in the meantime in order to continue his usual work.

[Devin]

Even though Devin was absolutely excited, he didn’t rush over to the new Scalvwing, saddle her and immediately take her for a ride; he realized that he needed to gain her trust before he rode her for the first time. With that thought in mind, the young man approached the Scalvwing, very slowly, so as to not scare her and held out his hand so that she would be able to sniff him while the stable hand held her reins and watched the two of them closely.

The Scalvwing hesitated – apparently, she was a little bit shy – but after a moment, she came closer and whinnied softly. Devin looked at her and begin to whisper gentle words to her to reassure her, but he didn’t move.

He wasn’t sure if moving a lot would be a good idea.

“You need a name”, he told her and admitted, “I’m not very good at naming things, but my other Scalvwing is called Caz, and Cazryn is the Xanthea word for ‘bird’. So, how would you like being called ‘Ryn’? It sounds nice and pretty and feminine”, he added in order to convince the Scalvwing, because animals should have a say in his opinion as well. The Scalvwing moved a little away from him, but she didn’t complain which Devin took to meaning that she did at least not hate the proposed name.

“You’ll get to meet Caz soon, as soon as you’ve rested a bit”, he promised her and smiled at her. He didn’t move closer to her again though as he didn’t want to overwhelm her.

“Actually”, he suddenly heard a voice from the stable door. When he turned around, he saw his roommate Aidan standing there. The human had seen how the Scalvwing had arrived from the window of his room and decided to go and take a look because he was quite curious. “I wouldn’t introduce the animals to each other at all to-trial, but keep the new Scalvwing separate from the other animals for a few trials. I doubt that she has any diseases, but it’s still better if they only see each other for a while and can get used to each other slowly. Just like we did with the chickens. It's better for their mental wellbeing”, he reminded Devin.

“You can use that time to gain her trust though”, he added upon noticing the disappointed look on the Mortalborn’s face. “Stroke her and brush her so that she gets used to your touch, and talk to her. Did you already give her a name, by the way?”

“Ryn”, Devin replied and grinned. “She’s the other half of Cazryn”, he added proudly and grinned upon seeing the flabbergasted look on Aidan’s face before he turned to face his new Scalvwing again. He spent some more time with her before he left her so that she could get some rest and checked on his other Scalvwing, Caz. He also paid Keke another visit.

Eventually, he returned to the manor though, thanking the stable hand that made sure that she had a nice spot away from the other mounts, and focused on his unwelcome, but necessary paperwork once more.

And in the evening… in the evening, he headed to the beach with his winged goat because he had promised him.

He always kept his promises.

As for Aidan … Aidan stayed in the stable for a little while longer in order to examine Ryn before he too had left in order to head to the library and read a book about the finer points of grammar, because he loved linguistics just as much as he loved matters of animal husbandry.

As he sat there, he wondered if he occasionally lectured Devin too much. Maybe he did, a little, he decided, but he only did so because he wanted to help him. He wanted him to succeed, no matter whether it came to chickens or horses. Devin was one of his best friends.

They had been friends since before Devin had started university and become a doctor, in fact.

[Avalon]

Review & Rewards

Name: Devin

Points awarded: 10

Knowledge:
Animal Husbandry: Horses and similar animals need to be moved regularly
Animal Husbandry: Don't overwhelm a new animal!
Animal Husbandry: The advantages and disadvantages of gelding
Animal Husbandry: New horses should be kept separate for a while
Detection: Noticing that your new horse is female
Mount: You need to gain a horse’s trust before riding it

Renown: 5 (Baron Devin is a very nice man that treats his employees very well - everyone says so!)

Skill Review: Appropriate to level.

Notes:
I really enjoyed reading this solo for a variety of reasons. Devin is such a warm, genuine character who wants everyone (including his animals) to be happy. I've enjoyed watching his journey over the last year and a half and seeing how he's grown. He was worried about the responsibility of being a Baron, but he's adapted and truly excelled in the role, in my opinion.

I remember rewarding the Scalvwing to Devin in that thread at the beginning of my moderator days, so I'm happy that I get to follow up on that and see Devin with Ryn!

The thing that struck me the most about this thread is how concerned Devin is with his menagerie of animals and making sure they are cared for, and how he thinks about all the small details of their lives and care. He is a very responsible animal owner and I think all his animal companions are lucky to have him!

It was great to see Aidan again and enjoy the support and advice he offers Devin. I've always appreciated how Aidan acts as a bit of a stable anchor to Devin's more outlandish whims (not that there were any in this solo, mind you) and is a good npc counterpart.

Congrats on the new Scalvwing and great writing. Enjoy your rewards!

Avalon