[D4, all afternoon] Watching the joust

[Reader]

[OOC:open thread for people to watch the jousts, scheme, gamble and flirt]

[Lady Corrine Marsten]

Corrine watches the Knight of Stones with keen, excited interest. It is the most animated and cheerful she has looked all day.

[Gwyneth Drakeson]

Gwyn arrives late, looking...well...terrible. For her at least. Her eyes are red and the skin around them is a bit puffy and dark;
she looks like she hasn't slept all night. And she's still wearing the same clothes she had on last night in the Great Hall.

She gives Corrine a hollow-eyed look as she takes a seat.

"
Am I late?"
Gwyneth whispers. "
Has he gone..."
She breaks off when she spies Dunstan taking the field, and sighs in visible relief. "
Thank the gods. Corrine, how did the trial go?"


There's anxiousness in her voice at that question.

[Lady Corrine Marsten]

Corrine looks at her cousin with great concern. She's never seen Gwyn look so troubled and weary. She sympathises, feeling both physically and emotionally drained herself.

"
The kinslayer yielded,"
she replied, forcing down her true feelings on the matter, though her anger formed a tense undertone to her voice.

[Gwyneth Drakeson]

Gwyneth frowned, taken aback. "
Yielded? That's...a surprise. He didn't seem the sort to do that. Baelon must have given him too great an injury..."


Abruptly she twisted in her seat to give Corrine a hug.

"
I shall have to apologize to him later for missing it."

[Lady Corrine Marsten]

Corrine embraces her cousin gently, rubbing her back gently.

"
A few injuries were given, but Baelon will be fine. I didn't stay to watch the eye being taken. I couldn't bear sich a gruesome sight. Are you alright? Could you not sleep either?"

[Gwyneth Drakeson]

Gwyn chuckles as she sits back and looks out at the field again.

"
Could have. Chose not to. Too much to do, and I wanted to be done before the trial. Have you seen Lady Blackwood here yet?"


She looked around, scanning the seats, squinting slightly.

"
I looked a bit, but haven't seen her here yet."

[Kevan Lyras]

After his successful showing in Round 1, Kevan walks through the attending crown. He looks at the large board, where all the upcoming rounds are announced. Finding the name of his next opponent, Ser Hugo Rivers. He walks through the crowd looking for someone who has seen Hugo's first round to learn more about he fights.

[OOC, do I need to roll? Awareness? Persuasion?]

[Reader]

Ser Hugo's brutal style is well known to everyone - he likes to stand high in the stirrups and smash his opponent to the ground.

There are dark accusations of cheating, but he's a big man and few would dare make one to his face.

[OOC: everyone just saw him and you've enough friends watching present to inform you]

[Lady Corrine Marsten]

Gwyn chuckles as she sits back and looks out at the field again.

"
Could have. Chose not to. Too much to do, and I wanted to be done before the trial. Have you seen Lady Blackwood here yet?"


She looked around, scanning the seats, squinting slightly.

"
I looked a bit, but haven't seen her here yet."

"
I'm afraid I have not,"
Corrine replied apologetically. "
Do you need her for something important?"

[Gwyneth Drakeson]

The younger of Corrine's cousins shrugs at that. "
I just wanted to offer my condolences, and extend a hand of friendship. Whatever the history of our families, no woman deserves what she's gone through."


She looks around again and frowns.

"
Odd, I'd have thought to see Dyana here."
Gwyn smirks to herself. "
I wonder where she could have gotten off to?"

[Lady Corrine Marsten]

Corrine nods pensively.

"
No, she did not deserve that at all. And I cannot abide men who disrespect women,"
she added, her voice a little dark at that comment.

"
I'm sure we'll see her soon,"
Corrine said, suppressing a knowing smile.

[Dunstan Tullison]

Dunstan was defeated but the way it happened left him in good mood. He was not unhorsed and the moniker of the winning knight, the Grey, made him sound like some sort of legenmdary figure so the young lord was pleased with the jousting results.

Spotting Gwyn from across the bleachers he walks toward her hastily dressed in his fine clothes now, his face and body scrubbed from sweat and muck.

"
Gwyn! Did you see me jousting? It was so great!"
he says, enthusiastic as he is.

Seeing Corrine he halts for a moment, "
lady Corrine! I pleasure to see you again."

[Gwyneth Drakeson]

Gwyn beams warmly at him, and moves over to give him a space beside her.

"
You rode magnificently,"
she assures him. "
There's no shame in losing to a knight like Ser Garibald, especially after three tilts!"
She reaches over and squeezes his hand as he comes closer.

Then, "
This is my cousin Lady Corrine Marsten, the heir of our House. Corrine, this is Lord Dunstan Tullison."
Gwyn grinned.

[Dunstan Tullison]

"
Thank you my Lady. I hoped to carry your favor further into the lists but am quite pleased with how things went!"
he says, now relieved that Gwyn liked his performance too.

[Lady Corrine Marsten]

"
Ah, famous Lady Corrine! Pleasure to finally meet you in person, I heard so much about you"

Corrine smiled warmly and extanded her hand;


"
Lord Tullison. A pleasure to meet you at last! Ser Benedict speaks very highly of you."

[Dunstan Tullison]

Dunstan smiles widely and shakes the Lady's hand as if she is an old friend.

"
You know Ben! he is my cousin, companion, sworn sword and a friend! If you know him then my opinion of you just rose much more than before, and I thought such thing could not be possible!"


Turning to Gwyneth he said, "
You Marsten Ladies are all charming are you not. "

[Gwyneth Drakeson]

Gwyn laughed. "
We do try. Benedict stayed at Hartshorn for some time when we were all younger. He's almost like a brother to us."

[Dunstan Tullison]

Dunstan clapped his open arm against his forehead, "
Well, I knew that. Only, well, forgot. Maybe the Grey Knight smacked me on the head harder than I thought."

[Lady Corrine Marsten]

Dunstan smiles widely and shakes the Lady's hand as if she is an old friend.

"
You know Ben! he is my cousin, companion, sworn sword and a friend! If you know him then my opinion of you just rose much more than before, and I thought such thing could not be possible!"


Turning to Gwyneth he said, "
You Marsten Ladies are all charming are you not. "

Corrine is a little taken aback at having her hand shook instead of kissed, but smiles anyway.

Gwyn laughed. "
We do try. Benedict stayed at Hartshorn for some time when we were all younger. He's almost like a brother to us."

She nods, though cannot help but smile knowingly for a split second.

Rather less brotherly to me now, but you'll find out soon enough.

"
As Gwyn says, Ben spent some time at Hartshorn years ago. A friend of Ben's is a friend of mine, my lord."

[Dunstan Tullison]

"
Likewise my Lady. He is one of a kind, Ser Ben, he trully is"
just as Dunstan says that Ben unhorses the Bracken and the young Lord jumps up, high in the air, "
Yes, show them m.."
just as he is about to swear he puts a hand over his mouth.

Terribly excited, Dunstan fails to do any proper courtly customs and treats everyone as an old friend.

"
Who did you bestow your favor upon my Lady? If I may ask such a bold question."
he does ask.

[Lady Corrine Marsten]

Corrine also stands and applauds, though laughs at Dunstan's hasty attempt to stop himself being uncouth.

"
You're a bold one, my lord. I bestowed it upon Ben, as a matter of fact,"
she said, with a bashful but shining smile.

[Dunstan Tullison]

"
Ser Dunstan the Bold.. Hm, sounds well enough."
Dunstan smiles, "
Oh but wait, Ser Jon Roxton is already known as Bold. I guess I'm meant for a different nickname after all."


His smile widens as she tells him about her favor and Ben, "
Well you choose well. Both you and Gwyn did!"
he jokes one more time and winks at Gwyn.

[Lady Corrine Marsten]

"
I'm sure you will acquire a suitable moniker in good time, my lord,"
Corrine replied, then glanced between him and Gwyn with a questioning look.

"
Who did Gwyn give hers to?"
she asked,

[Dunstan Tullison]

"
Oh"
Dunstan thought Corrine of all people would know, "
well, she is right there you could ask her."
Dunstan says and smiles. Normally he would just answer straight away but he didn't know if Gwyn would be angry or displeased.

[Sponsored content]