An Accidental Proposal

27 Thaumont 990AC (Hearth-Home)
 
The Dwarven delegation arrived at Silvercrest yesterday. We had a banquet for them and they stayed overnight and, quite frankly, I’m surprised they stayed that long. I could see the boredom in Durbin after being in Silvercrest for a week. Our people are just too different in most everything for us to live amongst each other. I was sad to leave my home though Rhiannon was excited to see Hearth-Home. I was curious but the dread of being stuck underground for all that time was weighing on me. Most of the travel there was perfectly fine. Once we arrived at the edge of the Farolas Hills they took us in a secret entry. Because it was secret they had to blindfold us. That may have been worse than the entire stay in Hearth-Home.
 
The city itself was very foreign to me. It’s very hard to put into words but for the lack of a better term it gave me a headache. The sharp angles and repetitiveness of it did not help. Rhiannon wanted to meet with the Loremaster and was very excited to listen to his stories. I stayed with her for a bit but I found it difficult to stay focused here. They did have an apple tree in what I would say is their courtyard so I stayed there as much as possible. Even Melwen did not care for the dwarven city and stayed perched on my shoulder the entire time due to the predators above. Rhiannon lamented as well that she did not feel comfortable here but wanted to stay a bit longer to learn more. Had it not been for her I would have left by myself as soon as possible.
 
They did have a grand feast to celebrate the return of their War leader and thank us for saving him. The elves had given us fine silver rings denoting the Silvercrest clan (not that I really needed one) and the dwarves gave us gold rings done in their style. It felt heavy and awkward but I'll wear it while I am here as I figured it may be a sign of disrespect to take it off in front of them? The food was actually fairly decent which surprised me a bit. Still it’s impossible to shake the uncomfortableness of this place. I wonder if Durbin felt this way the week in the forest? I can’t imagine he could as he was traveling a lot outside and didn’t seem uncomfortable.
 
3 Flaurmont 990AC (Kleine)
 
We finally left! I felt a huge sense of relief after we exited the secret tunnel and Melwen felt the same. It felt so good to have the blindfolds off and finally be out from under the oppressive weight. Melwen was ecstatic and could not contain herself. Rhiannon and I made our way to Kleine and stayed there overnight. There was not much to do though we did play songs for them in their tavern/town hall building. She suggested we keep the songs simple and not perform our duet. Which reminded me we still needed to finish our duet for Melinir as we only played the first half the night we went to Torlynn.
 
Tomorrow we’ll take the raft down to Melinir. Before we left Hearth-Home I spoke to the others about the items we had identified from Barrik’s Keep. Durbin wanted the enchanted bag but that’s it. I had some plans for a few items but with them technically being Lord Gustavon’s he would need to allow it. So we’ll head down to Melinir and then to Torlynn to speak to Lord Gustavon.
 
7 Flaurmont 990AC (Torlynn/Melinir)
 
The journey down on the raft was pretty uneventful. There’s not too much room, pretty much sitting on the crates of food they are bringing down to Melinir. The journey itself was pleasant enough going down the river. Not as peaceful as the forest but it was very nice and I have found that with Rhiannon with me everything seems better. I could never have made it through three days in Hearth-Home myself.
 
When we arrived in Melinir there seemed to be somewhat of a buzz going through town. The Black Knight had announced some kind of tournament and the prize would be a “damsel in distress”. Rhiannon seemed a bit rattled by it, I assume because the Black Knight doesn’t seem to be a very trustworthy person. Aside from that everything else seemed fairly normal there. Rhiannon mentioned she would like to visit her parents in Edgewater. I asked her to come to Torlynn with me first and then we could head there. She seemed a bit reluctant but agreed. Maybe just this Black Knight tournament has startled her?
 
Torlynn was thriving! Some of the fields actually had seedlings coming up already. It also seemed like it was greener here then the surrounding countryside but that could just be the happiness of the people. Lord Gustavon was happy to see us and sat us down to wine and a meal. We discussed the items and the identification provided by the elves. The only item he wanted was the bell to summon food. That was slightly disappointing but not surprising. The good news is he let me keep the gems and the gold leaves I wanted. We also got the book “safe”, the blue dyed wooden box and crystal key, the dagger and the wand.
 
These items in hand we enjoyed a nice meal. I did offer my services if he needed assistance and he said they were still planting anything they could and needed assistance plowing fields. While plowing fields by itself did not seem much fun I figured I could use some magic to make it interesting and make some games of it. I agreed though I could see Rhiannon was looking a bit disappointed. I asked if she wanted to head home to her parents and I would meet her there and she quickly agreed. She finished her wine, kissed me goodbye and was out the door quickly. I guess she hasn’t spent time with her family in awhile so that makes sense.
 
The plowing was fun for a while but became dreary after some time. At first I just used a simple shape earth spell. A bit of create and shape water to water the seedlings and onto the next row. I did try some more complicated ways after seeing how the humans did it. I froze water into the shape of one of their plows and tried that way as well. I also challenged some of the farmers to speed tests to see how I could fare against them. Well part of the reason it became boring was that magic did indeed make things much easier. I spent about half of this day on the 7th plowing and was ready to move on. I said goodbye to the farmers near me and Lord Gustavon and made my way back to Melinir.
 
My first stop was the jeweler. I showed him the two golden oak leaves and the gems I wanted set on them. He suggested silver so it stands out from the leaf. The star ruby he said should be left as a polished uncut gem and the topaz should be cut. He was the expert so I said if he felt that would be best then do what he needed to do. I also asked for gold chains for both, one for mine and one for hers. He made suggestions and, again, I told him he’s the expert and what he felt would look best would be good for me. This cost sixty of the gold coins which seemed fine to me. I also mentioned I had several other gems he could have that we did not need so I was able to get a few coins back from that. I did need to present these in some way, maybe a smallbox? He said typically they are presented wrapped in fine cloth and I should see the weaver about that. I thanked him and he said come back in about a week and they should be ready.
 
Stefan was not in but his wife was of great help. She asked what colors Rhiannon liked and I had to think. I know she liked blue and the star ruby was pink. I showed her what I was going to give her by pulling out one of the other golden leaves I had and explained what it would be. She asked what the occasion was, which surprised me a little. I told her no occasion, it was just a gift as I appreciated her and enjoyed her company plus she liked the star ruby. She asked how I was going to present it as well which I replied I was going to give it to her. She said no, such a beautiful gift should be accompanied by wine, a walk on the beach, something romantic. This was getting to be a lot to just present a gift but if she was giving me advice I suppose I should listen. I paid her and asked if she could deliver it to the jeweler and I would pick it up all at once from there and she agreed.
 
After that I stopped by Pickman’s to check and see if Geoffrey had been there yet for any power stones. Turned out he had been by and did leave one I may be interested in. It was very powerful but had a small quirk. In order to recharge it had to be exposed to sunlight. It wasn’t a big deal Pickman explained, it was in a small box with continual light cast on it to keep it bathed in light. He joked it was “afraid of the dark”. If acceptable I could take it and leave the fifty gold coins behind and he would pick them up. Seemed acceptable to me though I had used a large portion of the coins I had. This is all a bit frustrating as we did not do things this way among elves but I will need to learn if I’m going to travel more.
 
Last stop was the monastery at Edgewater to return the book of “poems” and pick up something new. The process was easy enough and I was able to get a book on Thyatian geography. I was very excited about this though someone will need to open the trade routes up so we can get out. I did ask them how to get a better card and they said there were several ways. Donations of gold, books, etc were the biggest. Time with the library and returning books in good condition was another one. I’ll have to keep that in mind. I would donate but I did use a lot of coins between my stone and the jewelry.
 
With my errands finished I went to the home Rhiannon told me about in Edgewater that was her parents as I should check for her first there. There was some tension in the household because of the tournament and even Rhiannon didn’t seem herself. I found it odd but wasn’t sure what to do so I just kept to myself for a few days, spending time with her as I could and reading the Thyatian geography book which was amazing. Their capital was likely at least as big as the entire valley, maybe larger.
 
That reminds me I did ask Gustavon about how he came to own that bottle of wine. He said it was an old adventure where he saved a noble lady and the Emperor thanked him. He was actually in his palace on a balcony overlooking the whole city lit up at night. Although it is not the forest I was curious what it would look like. From the book there are many elven communities within Thyatis as well and it would be nice to meet others outside my own clan.
 
15 Flaurmont 990AC (Edgewater)
 
Yesterday I finally asked Rhiannon if there was anything I could do to help her as she did not seem her ordinary self. “You could talk some sense into my Father!” I believe it has something to do with the tournament but I could definitely talk to her Father about it. With that I told her I needed to go back to Melinir to check on something and I would be back later. I suggested we take a walk down by the lake and have a picnic this evening to which she agreed. Well that part was set.
 
I went to Melinir and picked up the necklaces and gold leaf pendants. They looked fantastic! I wasn’t sure what to do with mine so I had him put it in the same silk bag/wrapping hers was in. When she opened it I could explain I made matching ones for us. Once I had those safely in hand I picked up the sweetcakes she liked and one of the bottles of her favorite dry red I got from the Sarcastic Goat and set off back to Edgewater. This was very nice but I still don’t understand all the formality and ambiance around just giving a gift. Well I was about to find out.
 
I made my way back to Edgewater and picked up Rhiannon at her parents home and we went down to the beach and found a good place to set down for our picnic. As the sun started to set and the sky was awash in a myriad of colors I presented her the gift. She was silent at first staring at them and then burst out that she loved them! I was happy she liked the gift but then she said she wasn’t aware that humans and elves could marry and if I asked her father. So my joy turned to confusion…well yes elves could marry humans and no i didn’t ask her Father…is that customary? She said yes we would need his permission.
 
I wasn’t sure what to do here. I told her I wasn’t aware of any of these customs and I just wanted to present her a gift as she liked the gem. I saw a disappointed look on her face and her bright blue eyes actually seemed to dim. She said she was sorry for the mistake and she liked the gift. Now I was disappointed and confused too. I didn’t get it? Mistaken about what, I told her I enjoyed being with her very much. I pulled out my book on Thyatis. Look! After you mentioned Thyatis sounds like a wonderful place I got a book on it to learn more. I want to go there with you and learn new things, perform new music in other places. If this marriage is a human custom then I would do that.
 
She was silent for a moment and asked if elves marry. I explained no, we don’t. We do have very long term relationships that would be similar to human marriage. With that the disappointed look remained and she said, "So then i was correct, this is not a proposal.”
 
I was silent for a moment now. I didn’t understand what was going on here and needed a moment to think. I apologized for the confusion. This would be akin to marriage. We don’t have such customs among elves but I would like to be with you and travel to the places in this book which I held up for emphasis. With that the color returned to her eyes and she smiled. She accepted the gift and everything went back to normal is the best way to say it. We enjoyed the wine and fine weather and stayed on the beach well after the sunset.
 
16 Flaurmont 990AC (Edgewater)
 
Well this is becoming a common occurrence now of the difference between elven and human culture. This evening I decided to finally sit down and talk to her father before the evening meal. At first I brought up the tournament. He explained she was worried that his house would respond, as it should he said, but that they would not. His son Alin is not old enough or trained enough and he was beyond his tournament days. That made perfect sense so I was a little confused why Rhiannon was so worried if they weren’t even going to the tournament.
 
Then he asked about the necklace. I explained yes I got her that, it was a bit different as our customs are not the same. Then he kept asking more questions. What were my intentions? I explained I enjoyed his daughter's companionship and wanted to be with her. Then he asked me if I wished to marry his daughter and was a little forceful about it. I stammered a bit: yes marriage, yes I would like to marry your daughter. Then he moved into how to provide for her, how to provide for children, what trade I studied? I did not know humans would plan all this out before marriage!
 
I explained as best I could we were both skilled in music and singing and wanted to travel outside the rift to make a name for ourselves and see other places. I am a strong mage even by elven standards so I would continue those studies. I’ve also done a little adventuring to help people. Then he seemed very concerned we would be “traveling vagabonds”. Now I was confused, had he not heard his daughter's music and voice? Like we would be staying in dirty inns playing for mongrels? Or raising children while traveling from city to city? Not knowing that humans planned this out I just had to tell him I didn’t know what the future holds. The whole conversation seemed to just spiral out of my control. I felt like I was trying to reassure him that I had honorable intentions but he was starting to get angry.
 
That’s when the door flung open and Dram, Durbin and Sorin stepped in. We were all surprised by this. Dram asked if everything was good and I explained this was more of a private conversation and I did not need assistance. Well I suppose I could have used his help navigating the human customs as I was clearly doing something wrong. Then the ladies came to fetch us for the evening meal, saw we had additional guests and set some extra plates. Her Father said we would continue this discussion later. Great, I would have some time to figure out what to do to salvage this situation.
 
Dinner went well enough. Her father was not too happy and just kept his head down and gave short, curt answers when asked anything or engaged in conversation. We discussed our songs and what had happened in Torlynn. Her mother seemed happy enough though I wonder why she had no say in this? Must be another human custom.
 
Dram said we needed to urgently leave. It’s obvious the Black Knight is planning something and apparently Valum needs our help. He said it might be best to give her father some time to cool off. Very smart, give me time to think and her father some time to relax, that made perfect sense. After the meal I excused myself, let her Father know I would return to finish our conversation and said farewell to the rest and to Rhiannon.
 
We got back to Melinir late in the evening and Dram wanted to see if Valum had time to talk. We went to the Town Hall and sure enough he was there outside with his Son and Connor. To my surprise he did want to see us and led us inside. Connor brought us drinks, even going out to get ale for the dwarf. Valum explained he wanted to put us in the tournament somehow but could not figure out a way. He also explained that there was bad blood between the Black Knight and house Dimir (Rhiannon’s family). Her grandfather was killed by the Black Knight and many suspected foul play and not an accident but it was never proven. Well that made a lot of sense with how tense everyone was at the house.
 
Valum explained some of the rules of the tournament. Each house provided a champion and a man at arms who would both compete. All the families had already accepted and either sent their people or registered them so there wasn’t much hope to get us in. Dram looked at me and started to speak and I believe I knew what he was going to suggest. ABSOLUTELY NOT. I seem to have already upset her father enough, I can't go there asking him to send his untrained son to the tournament with us in tow. We would need another way. Valum said Pickman was looking into anything they could do but that would be tomorrow. Well that was enough for me. The quadrial was working on it and they were probably the best hope so best to just turn in for the evening.
 
17 Flaurmont 990AC (Melinir/Torlynn)
 
I don’t know if we are blessed or cursed by the Immortals! I spent a lot of time thinking about this whole marriage situation and how to win her father over. I met everyone at the Sarcastic Goat for breakfast and we discussed what to do next. Of course Dram wanted to rush in and help out. I suggested we talk to Pickman first and see what he dug up or see if we were meeting up later. That turned out to be irrelevant as when we stepped outside a familiar carriage was waiting for us. Well at least this time it wasn’t in the middle of a fantastic performance.
Erik said Lord Gustavon had great need of our help urgently. Well this was good, let the champions of the other houses deal with the Black Knight, we could enjoy some hospitality and hopefully solve another issue not involving Rhiannon’s family. Well that was not to be as when we pulled up Tristan’s man at arms was very sick and he wanted Dram to be his replacement. Fantastic. It seems we can’t just get away from this. Since we were here I may as well make the best of it. Dram would need to train for the few days leading up to the tournament. Sorin had to go fetch him a horse as apparently the man at arms had to be riding a horse. Apparently I was to be his “minstrel”. I may yet ask for the Emperor's gifted wine…
 
19 Flaurmont 990AC (Torlynn/Black Knights Keep)
 
I spent time helping around Torlynn, studying my Thyatian book, working on a few songs I had currently going and pondering how to win over Rhiannon’s father. Oh yes and drinking whatever wine I could. I did not want to seem overly indulgent or usurious but he brought us here so I may as well take advantage of it. Perhaps if we could help foil whatever the Black Knight was planning I could win some favor that way? Maybe this wouldn’t be so much of an issue?
 
On the last day everyone packed up and we headed down to the Keep. I wrote a note to Rhiannon to let her know what was going on. I would have liked to deliver it but we were not going through Edgewater. I paid a farmer a silver piece to deliver the note to Rhiannon, not anyone else. He seemed ecstatic about it! Admittedly I did send Melwen to follow him and meet back up with us. I wanted to ensure that she got the note and not anyone else in the household. A bit later she did return and confirmed that Rhiannon received the note. I know she was not happy about this tournament but the die was cast now.
 
The journey down there was fairly uneventful and even the Keep itself wasn’t that surprising. The Black Knight was a bit surprising. His armor was indeed black and gleamed in the light. Next to him was a man that Dram said was from the Landmayne family from Kleine. Apparently he does not like him at all and was getting quite agitated quickly. I had to remind him to keep his emotions in check. The jousting field was being set up at this time. Apparently they like to charge full speed at each other with long lances. I don’t understand this. Perhaps if there was some archery I could help. Oh yes and the Black Knight does not like elves or dwarves. He also does not like Mages. Seems I will fit in just fine here.
 
Apparently the champion and companions stay inside the keep while the rest of the families stay outside to watch. A butler named Revit who I believe we all took an immediate dislike to met us and would show us the Keep and our room. We walked in and the furnishings were very nice except for the two Orc guards inside the doors! Not only is the Black Knight openly kidnapping people but he has Orcs on his side. How do humans allow this? Just inside were also banners and displays of the victories. The Dimir family seemed to be his most “proud” moment as it had an elaborate painting along with the banner and broken sword. I was now the one with emotions running high. Had I the power I would tear this keep down and bury this scoundrel in the rubble.
 
After that he showed us some paintings of the old war of mages and fighters and they showed the mages in a very bad light. Both sides were at fault but this did not sit well with myself. Then the dining room, a sitting room and a training room. The rest were off limits and we needed to stay out of them under what I can only assume would be a harsh penalty. He then showed us our room which was quite large. He gave Tristan the key for our room and that we were not to go in anyone else's room. Made sense. He showed us his room and to knock if we needed anything. He and his wife (who would marry this man?) would be there and could assist. He also asked if Rhiannon Dimir was with us. As if I would bring her to this foul place. That got me a little worried though, and got my emotions roiling a bit more.
 
We set our gear down in the room and am sure we were all thinking the same thing, what did we just get into here? After a few minutes we heard Revit again showing Bryon his room and giving him the same spiel. After Revit left we crept out to talk to Bryon. He seemed pretty surprised to see us so I guess Gustavon had not let anyone know. He did bring some bad news, a woman from Kleine who went to Mage island for training was kidnapped as well. Apparently this was someone that Dram knew quite well growing up so He was not happy. Would he try and kidnap Rhiannon too? Wouldn’t he have done so already, Melwen saw her at home not long ago. I don’t know if this is going to help or hurt me if we are to figure out what is truly going on here.