Events of 26-9-1266 TGR - House Affairs City Excursions
Dinner with Lord Branadarus, evening of 26-9-1266
Branwyn and Imari arrived at the home of Lord Branadarus for the mysterious dinner event. The two were shown into a salon and asked to wait for a moment. Branwyn turned to Imari and said quietly, “We don’t have to make this a whole night affair. We just have dinner, see what he wants and then we can go home. Who knows? Maybe we might even enjoy ourselves.”
Branwyn’s head turned as the door opened.
"Branwyn the Mysterious, Imari of the Raven, please follow me"
The young woman waits at the door and then leads Branwyn and Imari down a short hallway to small dining room.
The room has a small round table with four chairs spaced about it with four place settings.
She gestures to two seats on opposite sides of the table.
"Please sit, Lord Brandarus will be with you shortly. He apologizes for the delay."
The young woman closes the door behind her quietly.
Shortly afterward a well dressed young man comes in with a pitcher of wine and pours for all four glasses.
"Is there anything else you would like before the Lord comes?"
“Nothing I can think of, thank you. I think we are quite comfortable,” Branwyn replied and looked over at Imari as if to tell her to speak up if she would like anything.
The young woman nods at Branwyn and Imari. "Very well, the Lord will be in shortly. He apologizes for keeping you waiting."
"Apologizes? Hardly that" a loud friendly male voice says, "Rather the Lord regrets that he cannot spend more time with such lovely ladies and that his tiresome secretary has scheduled so many meetings that are much less important than being with Marquessa Branwyn the Mysterious, Ambassador of Drillian and her companion."
A broad shouldered dark haired man with a wide smile comes up behind the young woman. He casually plucks the pitcher of wine from her hand and gives her a nod of dismissal. She ducks her head with a smile and leaves, "I will tell the cook you are ready for the first course."
Lord Brandarus refills each of the three goblets then turns to Branwyn and Imari.
"Thank you for coming. I have a been quite taken by you Marquessa Branwyn."
He then comes around the table to her seat and drops to one knee.
"Marquessa Branwyn the Mysterious, you are more than I could ever hope for. "
He pulls out a gold ring,
"Will you marry me?"
Branwyn looked down at the ring, at the face of the stranger kneeling before her, and up at Imari. Then she burst out laughing.
When she was able to recover she said, “Isn’t that a question that goes better with dessert? Please get up Lord Branadarus. No, I shall not marry you. I do not even know your first name and you certainly do not know me. I cannot imagine what gave you the idea that I would agree to such a thing or that this should be something that you would even want. Please, please sit down and let’s just have dinner. Besides,” she said glancing at the fourth place setting, “aren’t you expecting another guest shortly?”
Lord Brandarus stands with a smile and leaves the ring next to Branwyn's plate. "I wondered if you would be more appreciative of a straight forward proposal rather than a long drawn out affair. We would fit very well together. You are strong and independent. I have my own lands and I am powerful in the Realm. We both come from an adventurous background. Neither of us I wager wants to spend any more time in the City than is absolutely needed."
He takes his seat and picks up his goblet raising a toast. "To new friendships may they quickly blossom into.... "
Takes a sip.
Wanting some wine after all that, Branwyn reached for her goblet, thought about the toast and drew her hand back. “Oh this is ridiculous,” she murmured under her breath and took her goblet and drank fully.
No sooner had she put her goblet down, a servant was there to refill it. Another came in and served the first course. Branwyn waited for the servants to remove themselves to the corners of the room before she spoke again.
“Lord Branadarus, your reputation is not unknown to me. For such a large city, Dryads Lair seems to be one of few secrets. I would venture to say it could do with some pockets of Mist if you ask me. I have heard that you were looking for a wife and regularly invite young ladies to your table as part of your search. And yet,” pausing for a moment, “you remain unmarried. It is curious. You are a man of means, nobility, and with the high esteem of the Royal Family. You are also not without charm, I see,” Branwyn said smiling. “I am aware you had sent a fleet to fight the bugbear pirates, but I was not told if you led the fleet in the fighting or simply supplied the ships. So, your bravery and fighting prowess are a mystery to me, but surely not important qualities to all women. So for all of this, I would think there would be a line of eligible young ladies falling all over themselves to be the wife of a man such as yourself. And if you are in the habit of proposing first and serving dinner later, I do not understand why it is that you do not already have a wife presiding over your table.”
He smiles, "Actually I do ask many a young woman but I almost never agree to go through with it by the end of dinner. Most refuse outright, some say yes far too enthusiastically. It seems that everyone does listen to those rumors and acts accordingly. Which does make my quest for a lifelong companion hemmed in a bit but overall if you use what is given to you then you can go far."
Pushing his plate back after devouring it quickly,
"I actually did not sail with the ships this time. I made my fourtune in adventuring and careful planning of the after effects of my companions quests. Three of the four of them wasted their money on various things or came to a bad end after retiring. My best friend, "raises his glass to the empty chair " worked with me to ensure that we had a future to look forward to as well as a past. "
Takes a deep drink and waits for the plates to be cleared.
"I hire adventurers now a days and supply them with the gear they need in exchange for a share of the profits. The people who live in my lands can take up arms and go with the adventurers if they wish with the same benefits. I am looking for someone who has an eye towards a future where they can still enjoy life without forgetting the excitement of the wilderness."
He nods to the servants as they present the second course.
“So, you leave a trail of broken hearts in your wake, as you propose and then take back your offers, do you?” Branwyn asked simply. “I suppose I could look at it as a challenge. Will I be able to take the ring home with me this evening, if I so desire? And desire is indeed the crux of the matter, so you will forgive me if I do not leap to this particular challenge or weep when you inevitably take the box back and return it to your pocket.”
“I do quite well for myself and am not in need of a husband and all the things that tie one down when one obtains one. Besides that, I am only here in Dryads Lair on behalf of my Queen. I have every intention of returning to my home in Drillian at the end of this assignment. When I marry,” Branwyn continued, “it will be because my heart tells me I must. There will be no reasons my mind can muster that will win against it. Considering that A. your thoughts on marriage seem to revolve solely on satisfying your own whims, and B. that you have retired from adventurous undertakings, I’m afraid my heart would be a challenge you’re most likely not up for. But I do thank you for your gracious consideration,” she said with a slight bow of her head.
Before he could respond with more marriage talk, Branwyn smiled cheerfully and tried to change the subject. “In any event, please tell me about these adventures of which you speak. I have brought several friends with me from home that are feeling quite claustrophobic in this city, as pleasant though, that it is. Some are here with me and some are off killing the dragon of Domvile, but I am sure that they would wish to hear of any new opportunities when they return.”
"Oh you are keeping the ring. I would never ask for that back. If you were indeed in need of a husband I would not be the person for you. I prefer to be with people that want to rather than need to be with me. Home is where your heart is and I think that if you visit you might see that there are places outside of your Mist that you would be comfortable. And I think that you enjoy a challenge just as much as I do."
Smiling at Imari, "The Raven does not fly against the Dragon?"
"I find it interesting that Domvile has a dragon problem. You would think that it would either be a regular occurrence there or that they are using it as an excuse to lure some of your best people away from you."
Takes a slow sip of wine.
"Then again I am a paranoid person and can see danger in every shadow."
The servants bring in the main course a small roasted duck for each diner.
"I have had several dangerous and exciting adventures, which would you like to hear about?"
He pauses and chuckles, "Because no one wants to hear about the ones where you go into the lost temple, find it is empty of creatures and manage to walk off with the lost holy books. "
He slices off a large portion.
"Which sort of adventures do you enjoy? Or do your people enjoy?"
Branwyn knew that the ring was not coming home with her tonight, but saw no reason to discuss it further. She would leave it on the table when she left and that would simply be the end of that. Since Imari seemed uncharacteristically speechless, Branwyn tried to continue things along.
“You are not the first to question the Domvile favor we are doing. All of the people with me in Dryads Lair are my best and so if a portion of our group is off on an adventure it does not mean that anyone else is in any grave danger. Worry and paranoia are one’s biggest enemies. I’ve always done better without them myself. But please do tell us of one of your adventures. What was the last adventure that you went on yourself? Not one that you hired people to do.”
He gives a twitch of his eyebrow at Branwyn's comment. "I find a healthy dose of paranoia keeps you alive when dealing with the left overs of a mad wizard or a crazed warlord."
Taking a long drink he swirls the remains of his wine in his goblet watching it slosh up the sides.
"The last bit of adventure I was on is more of a military excursion I would say. Last spring one of the groups that went out with my blessing brought back a magical sword. When one of the young lads chose that sword as his prize and took it home no one thought badly of it. Until on the night of a full moon when he woke up bloody from slaughtering his pa's prized bull. Of course everyone immediately leaped to the idea of werewolf, it seems that is the modern sickness doesn't it? At least it does not sweep across like the Grey Death."
He pauses in contemplation.
"So this young man was in a spot of trouble. The villagers were wanting to burn him at the stake. He took every test that asked and passed. Still no one believed he would do such a thing on his own. Then again in the next full moon he awoke bloody from attacking something. This time the villagers could not find the remains and grew very agitated. They sent for me to come dispense justice."
"When I arrived the next day with only a handful of men it appeared to me that the young man was telling the truth about his non-werewolf state as it were."
He takes another drink warming to the topic.
"So I had the young man locked in silver chains over night and of course nothing happened. It was not another full moon you understand. However we did uncover a band of goblins that were sneaking through my lands. I quickly formed a small platoon and we went off to give them a what for. We pinned them down in a hollow and kept them there till the light of day. When morning came their natural aversion to light weakened them even further of course. It was a simple task to then put them to the sword and clear out the threat. We tracked their path back to where they had crossed into my lands to ensure they had not let any reinforcements behind."
He finishes with a drink and a smile, "I know not an exciting adventure but it is the last one I was on personally. That is what you asked. Now if you would like me to tell you about the time we raided the Norse Priest's temple that is a very different tale."
“As long as your paranoia doesn’t turn to paralyzing fear, I suppose. One cannot be so convinced that everything is a death trap that one never just opens a door or a chest or talks to the stranger heading their way. Sometimes you just need to walk through things. Let yourself be surprised and be confident enough to know that whatever happens, you will deal with it. Because, yes, you are that good,” Branwyn said with a smile.
“But then I have been told on numerous occasions that I am foolish and reckless,” she shrugged. “I think I have fun all the same. And I’m still here, so that says something does it not?”
Taking a sip of wine, she thought about the story she had just been told. ‘That was an interesting adventure, but there were a couple of minor points I didn’t quite understand. The man with the magic sword attacked things on two consecutive full moons. By the time you arrived it was not the full moon, and as you said, the man did not attack anything. The goblins seem completely unrelated to this man’s affliction. What happened to the man at the next full moon? My first guess from what little information I have is that his sword may have been cursed and it was not so much an affliction of the man but one upon the sword that he had newly acquired. Is there a detail that I have missed?” Branwyn asked.
He smiles happily at Branwyn.
"This is why you are so attractive. You were not distracted by the warfare or by the horrors of potential affliction. You zeroed in on the part of the story that solves our original purpose. "
He raises a toast to Branwyn and Imari.
"Yes you are supposing correctly. The young man was fine it was the sword that he brought home that caused the problems. That sword is now entombed in a bit of stone in my keep. Because yes I can deal with what ever happens." He gives Branwyn a wink.
"I am so sorry that our evening must draw to a close, but I have an appointment with Dame Colonto before I can retire to my chambers. I look forward enjoying your company again."
He stands and bows.
Branwyn and Imari said their goodnights and then started to make their way back home. Branwyn walked sideways into Imari, nudging her a bit. "So, you were awfully quiet this evening. What did you think? You want to marry him?" she asked teasingly.
