[Scholars' Nook] Two Arcs Later...

Once an isolated and dying township, an influx of academics, adventurers and thrill seekers have made Scalvoris Town their home. From scholars' tea shops to a new satellite campus for Viden Academy, this is an exciting place to visit or make your home!

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[Scholars' Nook] Two Arcs Later...

"In fairness to you, Tristan, you always have made me feel better," she said and she grinned at him. Watching him eat was the same as watching him drink wine - a lesson in incredulous for Faith. "You know, I think you would make an excellent follower of Cassion. He's the Immortal of hunger." Remembering their time together, Faith couldn't quite help but smile when she remembered that it was a job of work keeping him fed. Shaking her head though, she was very quick to reply. "I don't mind that you miss my food. I'm sorry that you do, but I'm glad too. It means I was good at what I did, and that was very much what I wanted." What a strange situation their lives had been, Faith considered. She owed him so much, he had freed her and she would do anything for him; except that she could not do the one thing which he wanted.

What a strange thing life was, Faith thought.

As they walked, Faith wondered whether she'd been supposed to hold his arm, or some such. She didn't think so and he hadn't offered so she figured that the thing to do was to just walk with him. This she did and then she grinned when he asked her if she had help. "I do. Padraig's grandfather, Cyrus and his partner Katie, they live with us. Luna, too. She's..." she smiled and shrugged slightly, wondering why she paused. "She's a former slave that Padraig rescued. He saved her life." Then, she said, there was Padraig. He wasn't here at the moment, but when he was he was a very hands-on father. Truth told, she told him, it wasn't at home that she needed help. It was in the professor, council member, Order of the Adunih, business owner, philanthropy side of her life that she could do with an assistant. She was cheerful enough when she said it, and she was good at hiding it, but Faith was tired.

Still, soon enough they reached a spot just outside of the town walls and there, Faith pointed. The house she showed him was precariously (it seemed) perched on top of an outcropping of rocks. The bridge was sturdy and safe and the cablecar-thing looked like a deathtrap. "Funny story," she said with a smile. "I asked Padraig to go and get some eggs and milk. He came back with this house, not even having looked inside." The journey over, whichever way they did it, was terrifying. But the house was beautiful and, once they were inside and Faith called out, "It's me! I brought a guest!" They were greeted by a bounding, blue and white and very strange looking and very large dog. "This is Cosmo." Faith said and then she ushered them both through into a comfortable lounge where there was a young woman, much the same age as Faith playing with the twins.

"Hello Luna," Faith said and she smiled. The young woman in question looked at Faith and smiled, but she was nervous around Tristan and Brandon, and Faith put her hand on her arm. "This is Tristan, and Brandon. They're friends." Dark brown eyes fluttered to them both and then Faith asked, softly. "Would you let Cyrus and Katie know we have guests?" Luna nodded and scurried out of the room.

In the meantime, Faith had scooped up both twins - and they might both notice the wolf pups which sat with the babies. "This is Madison," Faith said as the girl chatted away in gibberish at her mother, who beamed in delight. The boy, however, observed Tristan and Brandon with serious silver eyes. "And this is Noah" Madison was quick to hold her arms out and Faith was happy to pass her to Tristan, but Noah held on and that was fine too.

"Oh hello!! Hello!!" It was less than a bit until the voice of a woman in her mid-thirties, with perfect make up and long well kept fingernails was heard. She walked into the room and before Faith could speak at all, she started. "Hello to Faith's friends. I'm Katie, and it's such a pleasure to meet you both! Oh, you must tell me who you are, where have you been hiding two such handsome fellows, Faith? Oh, aren't you both gorgeous, let Katie shake your hand." Faith turned amused eyes to Tristan as the blonde-haired woman offered her hand to him. "And who are you, darling boy?"
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NPCs are in the first two posts here = people and animals!
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"Every evil has its good, and every ill an antidote."

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Tristan Venora
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[Scholars' Nook] Two Arcs Later...

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“Cassion’s the Immortal of Hunger?” Tristan asked. “I didn’t know that. I’ve mostly concerned myself with Syora, Lisirra, Aelig and Zanik recently. Maybe I’m hungry all the time because I’m secretly his son! There are a lot of Venoran bastards with strange abilities”, he mused. His half-brother and doppelganger Hart had all kinds of weird abilities that were neither magic nor Blessing, and then there was Ayla who was probably the strangest (and cutest) member of the family. He had to admit, a part of him almost wished that he weren’t Tristan Venora because it would mean that he would be able to abandon Rynmere without suffering from a guilty conscience …

He stopped thinking those thoughts again abruptly though as he realized that they weren’t happy thoughts – because he wanted to be happy and enjoy himself on Scalvoris and not worry about his uncertain future, and he wouldn’t break the promise that he had made to himself. Secretly being a Mortalborn would be totally awesome though!

As they walked to her home, and she told him about the former slave that lived with them, he looked at her thoughtfully for a moment before he replied, “It’s good that Padraig rescued her. Faith, I’m not like that anymore. I don’t keep slaves anymore. I never bought a new one after you left.” He would never make anybody get a brand again, he had stopped going to the slave market and watch slaves beat each other up in the arena, and he had vowed that he would never buy another person again, unless it was to save their life.

“Are you sure that the man you live with is the real Padraig though?” he asked because buying a house on a whim didn’t sound like Padraig at all. The man never did anything on a whim. He was boring and uncreative and a stickler for rules. “Maybe he’s a doppelganger! I have several of those”, he informed her. She probably remembered that. Hart and he had once pretended to be each other and pranked everybody.

The trip to the house was terrifying. Tristan had matured a lot over the past two arcs, and he had gotten braver as well, but this here was something else. A part of him just wanted to hold onto Faith for dear life because he was afraid that the little cable-car thing they were in would just fall into the abyss below them, and he didn’t want to die yet.

When they safely reached the house, he breathed a huge sigh of relief and just stood there for a moment, trying to get his heart that had begun to pound madly in his chest under control again. Brandon on the other hand did no such thing. The bodyguard had been grinning like a madman during the trip in the cable-car, and he looked back at it with longing, as if he wished that he could just do it again.

While Tristan’s gaze instantly went to the twins, Brandon walked over to Luna, extended his hand, offered her a flirtatious smile and proclaimed, “I’m His Grace’s bodyguard, and I have already saved his life several times!” hoping that the young woman would be sufficiently impressed. It usually worked, but for some reason Luna just acted really nervous and finally scurried out of the room. Brandon looked from Faith to Tristan and back in confusion and wondered, “Have I done anything wrong? I don’t look that scary, do I?”

Tristan just laughed and shook his head before he turned to face the babies again and started to play with them and make all kinds of funny faces because he found them absolutely cute and irresistible. As Faith passed her daughter to him he hesitated for a moment though before he took her and cradled her into his arms. “Hello, Madison!” he said softly and held her small, warm body against his chest. “I’m Tristan. I’m a friend of your mother!” He looked at Faith and smiled at her as he said that.

And then he nearly broke the promise he had made to himself a second time as he wondered if that was what his life would have been like if he had asked Faith to marry him. Had things gone differently, these children could have been his. But if he had married Faith, he realized, he wouldn’t have Ayla, and he couldn’t imagine life without his daughter anymore!

Less than a bit after he had taken little Madison into his arms, he heard a woman’s voice, and he turned around and just stared at her incredulously. This was Katie? If she was Cyrus’ partner, how old was Cyrus? Had the men in Padraig’s family all started to father children when they had still been in their teens? While Tristan was still trying to wrap his head around the fact that Padraig’s grandfather had such an incredibly beautiful and charming partner, Brandon simply walked over to her, extended his hand and proclaimed, “Brandon. It’s a pleasure to meet a woman as beautiful as you, Miss Katie!”

“She already has somebody”,
Tristan whispered to him, but Brandon just shrugged his shoulders, and then the young duke suddenly found himself facing the blonde and looking right into her eyes.

“Tristan”, he replied and handed the baby back to Faith so that he could shake Katie’s hand, unable to resist her charm entirely. How many more surprises would await him that trial?
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[Scholars' Nook] Two Arcs Later...

When Tristan told her that he'd never bought another slave after her, Faith smiled at him. Her next words might, of course, explain some of her tiredness. "In two trials, slavery will be illegal on Scalvoris," she said, her voice soft. "It started with a job in an Inn here, to get enough money to buy Cally's, the restaurant. Then, it opened with six staff members and eight trainees." The trainees were people who were in the worst situation in Scalvoris, she explained. The hungry, the poor, those who had nothing. So, with her restaurant she had bought a small farm and four small houses. The trainees were given somewhere to live, clothes to wear and food. But they were given that in return for working. They each worked, as soon as they were able, and they learned a trade. Some learned to be farmers, others chefs. Then it grew to ten trainees, then twenty. The farm grew, they added orchards and vineyards and livestock. "Eventually, it became a village," she said and gestured to where, in the distance just outside of Scalvoris town, they could see a small hamlet of houses and farmlands, just outside the town proper. "Beacon, they call it. A beacon of hope." She smiled ruefully at that. There had been other suggestions, but she had refused point blank.

"Then, when the docks collapsed, the residents of Beacon who now number over a hundred, they came and volunteered," she said. She gestured in the correct direction for the ocean, but totally the wrong one for the docks. "Some people sent slaves, too, but they were so starved and beaten and damaged, that we looked after them. So, I put forward a proposal and showed how it worked. It's been a lot of work, but we've done it. Slavery is abolished here." It had taken an inordinate amount of time and a ridiculous amount of effort, but they had done it. She had worked tirelessly and now? Now she was tired. She laughed and shook her head when Tristan said that Padraig might be a doppleganger. "He is not the person you think he is, you know." Faith knew her husband and the man Tristan thought he was simply was not him. Still there was no point saying more than that, the two of them would never get on.

Once they were in the house, Faith smiled at Brandon and shook her head. "She's a lot more able to deal with situations than she used to be. But it takes a long time. You did nothing wrong, I assure you." She turned to Tristan then and she smiled as he spoke to Madison. Faith would have said something at that point, but Katie came in. To Brandon she gave a mischievous giggle and a smile. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Brandon." And then she was face to face with Tristan. At his name, her eyes sharpened.

"Katie..." Faith said and Katie raised a hand, just a little. "Don't you worry, Little Doll. So, you're Tristan? Well let me tell you, Tristan. I don't like you." Faith was set to argue again, but Katie's gaze silenced her. "I don't like that you thought it was acceptable to buy this beautiful girl and just... well. I don't like you, not one little bit."

Her gaze was steely when she looked at him, "Faith, however, is a better person than me and she tells me you're family to her. So I'm going to draw a line and I hope you make me think that Faith might have a point about you after all." Faith put her hand on Tristan's arm, squeezing his hand gently. "Tristan was kinder to me than anyone had ever been, Katie. And he gave me my freedom. He is family." Katie sniffed and looked between the two. "Well, the babies like you, so that means you can't be all bad. Faith tells us you have a daughter. Will we be meeting her?" Katie asked the question but Faith was the one who turned hopeful eyes to him. Please don't let this descend into a fight, she thought. Please don't.
word count: 712
"Every evil has its good, and every ill an antidote."

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[Scholars' Nook] Two Arcs Later...

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“Congratulations“, Tristan replied as Faith told him that slavery would be illegal on Scalvoris soon. Two arcs ago his reaction would have been different. He would have argued that some people actually wanted to be slaves and that they weren’t used to being free, that most of them would just become homeless and starve, no matter what she did. He would have informed her that his family’s slaves had always been treated well – better than a lot of free citizens, in fact – but now he was just happy for her because she had accomplished something that she’d wanted for a very long time. “You must be very proud of yourself”, he remarked and smiled, and then he fell silent again and just looked at her for a moment.

Perhaps. Perhaps he had been wrong about Padraig as well, perhaps he wasn’t just dull and spiteful, but a wonderfully creative, kind and gentle human being, but he couldn’t bring himself to saying it out loud. He couldn’t forgive the man for marrying the woman that he had loved – and having the life that he had always wanted to have – and neither could he forgive himself for letting it happen and being such a tremendous fool. And then Katie informed him that she didn’t like him and criticized him because he had bought Faith. For a moment the young noble couldn’t do anything but hang his head in shame, but then he met her gaze. His eyes seemed to be ablaze for a moment.

“You don’t have to like me”, he told her. “I don’t like myself either – or rather the man I used to be. If I could, I would take it all back. I would free Faith right away, and I would shower her with riches. I would give her whatever she wants because she only deserves the best. But I can’t. I can’t turn back time, and I have to live with it for the rest of my life.” He didn’t understand how he could ever have thought that it was acceptable to buy Faith either – and give her his storage room to sleep in. And then there were the manacles. Of course, she had suggested them, but that didn’t make it right. His family had kept slaves for centuries, but that wasn’t really an excuse. He should have questioned things earlier. Maybe losing Faith was the price he’d had to pay …

“Thank you for being willing to give me a chance though”, he added softly because he didn’t want to start a fight right now, not in front of the children, even though there was a lot more that he wanted to say.

“I have a daughter, yes”, he replied and smiled because he loved talking about her. “Her name is Ayla, and she is a very special little girl”, he said, but he didn’t explain how special. Faith knew, but he wasn’t sure how he was supposed to explain Ayla’s story to Katie. Would she even believe him if he told her that Ayla’s mother was an evil Immortal, but he didn’t know which one? “I hope to bring her here soon. I would have brought her with me now, but she was tired from the journey to Scalvoris, so I left her at home with Lianne and her nanny.”
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Re: [Scholars' Nook] Two Arcs Later...

Proud of herself? Faith considered it and shook her head. "I'm not. It's a beginning and a good one, but no." Faith looked at him and smiled a slight, sad smile. "I will be, I think. When I stop. But there's so much still to do. Miles to go before I sleep." That was very true. All the former slaves would be provided homes and education, she explained, and the faction she and Padraig and Nir'wei had founded was funding that, so she had a lot of things to sort out. It was important that it was done just right, the way that the council demanded it be done. Lifting a hand to pinch her nose, Faith stopped focusing on all that there was to do. It was helped when they got to the house and she was with the children. They always chased away her fretting.

But then, there was Katie and Faith looked between the two of them. "Oh, Tristan, you don't...", standing on tip toe, Faith kissed his cheek and she looked between the two of them. The moment seemed to have passed and Katie was not continuing - just keeping a wary eye on Tristan for the moment. "I think it's important that you realise that, too, you know. I don't count any of my other former owners as family. You were a very kind and gentle man and I will always be grateful to you." For freeing her, of course, but more than that. "I genuinely believe you held open the door for me to become who I am. You always, always, treated me like a person and you went against every pressure on you not to."

Faith very much wanted to see Ayla again and she said so. She was a beautiful little girl and Faith felt bad for Tristan that he'd thought that the baby was theirs together, that he'd held her - or someone who looked like her - in his arms as she died. He'd gone through so much, she thought and she looked at him with concern in her eyes. "How long have you been here? You must be tired too. I'd love to see Ayla again." Looking down at the baby in her arms, and his twin in Tristan's, Faith smiled. "We could all go out for a meal. I know a good restaurant," she grinned at him. "And I own it, so we'll get the best service. The children, too, if you'd like?"

Whatever he wanted, Faith said. She didn't want to put any pressure on him, but equally it was just lovely to see him and she hoped that they'd be able to spend time together for however long he was here. Katie watched between the two of them and shook her head slightly. She was never going to understand people, she decided. Never if she lived to be a hundred.

Apology!I'm so sorry! I've fallen woefully behind on Faith, but I'm catching up now. Shall we end this one here and do another a few days later? We could have a wacky adventure - but only if you'd like to!!
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Re: [Scholars' Nook] Two Arcs Later...

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“I always thought that slaves are people, too”, Tristan replied. “It just took me longer than it should have to realize that owning people is wrong, on a fundamental level.” Her words were kind, and yet the filled his heart with sadness because there were so many things that he regretted. His family, back in Rynmere, still kept slaves. There were people like Faith that were suffering right now, that were being branded like cattle, that might accomplish great things, just like her, if they were only allowed to do so. He wondered what it would take to change King Cassander’s mind, as far as slavery was concerned. His friend seemed to be prone to making questionable decisions these trials – and not listening to the voice of reason …

“I only arrived here at the beginning of the season”, he told her as she asked him how long he had been on Scalvoris. “And I am tired. You have no idea how tired I am, Faith!” he said. He hadn’t realized how tired he was until she had mentioned it. Seeing her again after all those seasons had filled him with energy, but now a bone-weary kind of exhaustion was setting in, and he was beginning to feel the full effects of the journey on the boat and navigating the minefield that was the political scene of Rynmere for the past arc while trying to protect his child from mortals and Immortals alike.

“Your restaurant, I assume?” he asked and laughed before he cast another glance at Katie who was still looking warily at him, he noticed. “I’d love to go there with all of you! I’m ready whenever you are!” he informed her and gently rocked the baby in his arms, much as he had done with Ayla when she had been little as he looked at the woman that had once been his slave and that was now one of his best friends and a hero.
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Re: [Scholars' Nook] Two Arcs Later...

Here's your stuff!


Name: Faith

Knowledge:


Loot: No
Injuries: No
Renown: No
Magic XP: No

Name: Tristan

Knowledge:


Loot: No
Injuries: No
Renown: 5 for meeting someone even more famous than you are. Wow Faith, what a star?!
Magic XP: No

Points: 15
- - -
Comments:

Hey Tristan, if you come back and want to claim knowledges for this thread, let me know and I'll give everything another look.

Nice little social thread, in which we learn a lot about recent events in Scalvoris.

Tristan, I really enjoy reading about your character. I hope you don't take this the wrong way, but he seems like such a sheltered eccentric. I find it funny how he just says things that pop into his head, he's definitely an open book and seems like a really nice guy. Even though he doesn't know why a woman wouldn't want to hear that she looks tired. He's just showing his concern though, so it's all good, I'm sure.

Faith, nice stuff here. I liked the line you used at one point: "You mentioned it," more than once, "briefly." I chuckled a bit at that. In any event, your relationship with Tristan is well explained here, and I enjoy knowing more about the most famousest of people on Idalos, because that knowledge might come in handy someday, who knows? I find her attachment to Tristan as sort of a bigger brother (Although the impression I get is an older sister for a younger brother, just because of Tristan's unbridled enthusiasm and Faith's maternal patience.) endearing.

Great social thread, hopefully there will be more meetings between these two in store for the future.

If you feel I've missed anything or if you have questions about your review, please don't hesitate to send me a quick PM. Thanks!

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