Squiring ♔ and i won't cry for yesterday

[wynn]

WHO || Wynn, Arthur Pendragon, Merlin, James Watson, Riddick, Myrinlandel de Tanos, Katniss Everdeen, Andrea Anderson, and open to current Knights attending the ceremony
WHAT || A second February Squiring Ceremony...? WHAT GO ON
WHERE || Knights Headquarters, the Great Hall
WHEN || February 9th, 2012, 6:00PM
HOW || Actionspam
MUSIC || ♬ King Arthur - Steve Mazzaro

The incredibly sudden announcement yesterday of an impending Squiring Ceremony to occur today has caused considerable uproar among the more seasoned knights, who have been talking non-stop about what in the world the break from general tradition could be about. Mentions of an incredible feast to follow, before the usual ball aren't doing much to die down the gossip either. So it's hardly surprising that the Great Hall is packed to the brim with everyone who could potentially attend, craning their necks to try and see what the big deal is. As before, the Knights stand in ranks on either side of the wide stretch of red carpet, each wearing the traditional set of ceremonial armor in their possession, worked in dark blue and silvers.

Wynn seems to be waiting with a great deal more expectation than usual for the doors to open and reveal the squires, each garbed in their own newly fitted suit of armor, as is the tradition for the ceremony. It's striking as always how much of a sense of importance the event is given just by the uniform appearance of the Knights, as they stand shoulder to shoulder in rank and file to receive their newest pledges. Wynn's eyes are fastened on the door at the end of the Hall, seeming to stand more proudly than ever, one hand on the sword† hilt at his side.

The music sounds: loud, bold, proud swells, a military march. Just as the group did last week, the seven new squires are ushered inside as the large doors swing open slowly, walking in a line, side by side, past the ranks of their soon-to-be brothers and sisters in arms. There's a lot more hushed whispering rolling through the crowd this time, however, as people speculate what in the world is going on here.

Now would be a really awkward time to face plant, squires.


For additional dice rolling fun (optional):

† Roll or randomize a d20. Those who roll a 15 or above can spot the sword for being the exact same sword that was suspended in the statue above the Round Table, when they met with Wynn in the Prologue.
† Roll a d20 dexterity check. If your character rolls a 2 or 3, at some point during their walk they're bound to stumble. A critical fail will lead to an epic faceplant ... or worse.

Comments

The Walk

[wynn]

[Optionally play out your character's WALK OF DESTINY down the red carpet, and people in the crowd can react to them/interact with them]

[befree]

[Friendliness? Excitement?

What are those things?

Katniss is uncomfortable in the armor, but refuses to let it show. She also refuses to let any emotion other than serious linefacing focus show, and she silently walks toward Wynn as if it were a funeral procession and not a celebration. She doesn't bother glancing around to make eye contact with anyone. She doesn't know them, and even if she did, she doesn't care what they think. She holds her head high and looks like a big old sourpatch.

It's a great first impression upon others, I'm sure.]

[witchwoman]

[There's way too many people here. And her familiar was told to stay out of the way of the formal ceremony. Myri was certain that she would reunite with him before the feast, but for now, Amaranth was not allowed to be at her side. Without him there, Myrilandel is a thousand times as nervous to be walking down the long red carpet.

Her head turns sharply at a sound in the distance, wondering if it is her faithful flywacket, come to observe from atop some perch. She smiles just slightly, but it doesn't last long. The distraction causes her to miss her step Dex Check: 2 and before she can correct, Myri finds herself falling to one knee and nearly knocking over the girl to her left in the process.]

Oh! [She exclaims as she catches herself, one knee to the ground. Myri looks at the girl and whispers.] I'm so sorry. Are you alright?

[befree]

[Instinctively, Katniss is annoyed by being plowed into, and she huffs as she steps away from the person that offended her personal space. She turns around to say something about how they should watch where they're going, but the sight of the other girl's hair causes her to take pause and gape.

An image of a child, one with braided, pale hair and a sad smile enters her head. She has no idea who this girl is supposed to be, but she can feel that maybe she's supposed to be important. But given that no recognition sparks at the image, she shakes it off and forces herself to stop gaping.]

I'm not hurt, so don't waste your breath worrying.

[She murmurs out a response, her tone gentle enough, and holds out a hand to help the other girl up. Now that the connection has been made of this person to the girl that just flashed in her mind, she feels obligated to assist.]

[witchwoman]

[Myri takes the offered hand with a smile of gratitude. She doesn't want to hold up the procession any more than she already has, but it takes her a minute to straighten out the outfit they put her in.]

Thank you. [She says, quietly so that only the other girl can hear.] I'm not usually so clumsy. [She wipes at her knee and looks back down their path, turning back to Katniss with a timid smile.] After you. I'll keep my distance, I swear.

[befree]

[She opens her mouth as if she wants to say something else, but quickly clamps her jaw shut and nods. She takes a second to adjust her armor before continuing along again.

She doesn't really care if the other girl keeps her distance or not, she's too busy trying to piece together why the stranger gave her such a sense of familiarity.]

[witchwoman]

[As the girl walks off, Myri's eyes drop to the ground. What a lovely first impression she's made. After a second, though, she realizes that she must press on, lest she hold up the rest of the ceremony.]

[piratitude]

[Andrea keeps any opinions she might have about uniformity and military order to herself - though the tiny, vaguely amused smile that tugs at the corner of her mouth shows she might not be taking this as quite as serious as their soon-to-be-leader seems to be.

The armor is heavier than what she's used to, but carries it well enough under the circumstances, though the grace of her movements is checked a little by the weight.

She eyes Wynn, taking in the blade at his side with a vaguely interested glance. She had an eye for blades, and this one was an exceptional piece of work. It pleased her a little that it appeared to be more than just ornamental. A sword like that deserved to be used.]

[ironsides]

[Meanwhile, Dovan is over in the audience near the front, lined up with the other Section Heads, looking proud as a peacock. It's been awhile since he had a squire, ok. He elbows the person beside him just to say:]

That one's mine. Looks like she was born to this, doesn't she?

[piratitude]

[Andrea grins crookedly at Dovan over her shoulder as she passes.

Oh yeah, she definitely got the best Knight.]

Re: The Walk

[lightblindbadass]

[Riddick walks calmly with all the rest of the squires, still more than a little disbelieving that he is going through with this. But he'd made his decision and wasn't about to back out of this chance now. And he'd been promised that, if it didn't work out, he didn't have to stay. That worked for him.

His steps are deliberate and slightly predatory, his eyes constantly scanning the rest of the Knights surrounding him. That was the unnerving part. The only other times he had been around this many strange people were when he was thrown into a new Slam and all the other convicts there were rolling out the welcome mat in the form of a first-day beating. Most new prisoners died that way.]

[nepotism]

[Wait.

That guy?

Was Wynn serious? Fred can't help but think he looks like the kind of guy who strangles crocodiles for fun. He can tell the guy looks ill at ease and feels a little bad for him - this is probably more than a little bit much. Either way, he nods at him when they meet eyes. And then realizes Riddick probably has no clue who he is yet. Whatever.]

[lightblindbadass]

[Riddick catches Fred's head nod as he scans the room, his eyes narrowing behind his welder's goggles. He'd seen every kind of threat in his life, implied or called right out. That nod...seemed like the guy was trying to be friendly. How the hell was everyone here so fucking nice?

He scowled at the guy, then turned around again to face Wynn, ready for this to be over.]

[spymaster]

[The armor, really is new. He's not used to it, used to moving about in just clothing. This entire thing really is new, he hates ceremonies, hates them as they're pointless and only meant to show things off and James is certain really, that this is all for show.

But he just walks, does what he needs to, because that's why he's there after all to do this, get things done so he can do more important things then be in armor he never wanted in a ceremony he doesn't want. Head held high, shoulders and backs straight, he walks, occasionally looking out of the side of his eye to see what others are doing. The sword is of little interest to him, but the people around him? They interest him.]

[lissatrinall]

[Lis'sa is one of the audience members who doesn't seem at all impressed by the extra oomph of the ceremony today, and instead watches with a seemingly dispassionate expression from the front row, alongside the other Section Heads.

Her eyes rivet onto the man intended to be her squire, and she takes in every detail she can about his expression, appearance, her lips set in a tight, thin line. It's probably easy for him to tell that she's staring, but she figures he'll find out why soon enough.]

[spymaster]

[He sees her staring, and he keeps his dislike of this entire thing hidden pretty well off of his face, just enough dislike there, mostly in how he looks at things, the slight tilt of his head towards her because she's interesting, more so then the ceremony going on.

Now just why is she staring? Oh yes he is interested, but he's also, at least, patient enough. He's certain he'll find out the why at some point, until then, he's just going to give her a small look, almost asking her what she thinks right now.]

[lissatrinall]

[Lis'sa isn't surprised when he notices, and holds his gaze firmly, arching one brow as if in response to the unspoken question. She nods her head, just the tiniest bit, though whether in greeting or affirmation or something else, it's difficult to say.†]


† A Wisdom D20 roll of 15 or higher will note her unusual facial features as well - they seem somewhat pinched at the cheekbones, and her nose seems oddly flattened along the bridge. Even wearing all that armor, it's possible to see how wispily she's built. There's something notably inhuman about it all, but not obviously so.

[spymaster]

[He arches his own eyebrow back, even as he he takes in her facial features, Wis 16 not seeming bothered by the oddity of them, her wispy build. Instead he just logs it away, giving her a slight nod. They'll talk later, about quite a bit he imagines.]