[OPEN] Long Was His Silence

[lifeofendurance]

WHO: Aleron Darton and YOU
WHAT: Pre-Orlais Catchall for July
WHEN: Start of Solace up until it's time to head out.
WHERE: Skyhold, various
NOTES: If any of these don't work, feel free to wildcard or PM me for a starter. Prose or Brackets a-ok, I'll tag to preference.

Aleron is nothing if not a creature of habit. There are reasons his twin has heckled him all their lives about how dull he is; he's not loud, excitable, or given to doing things which are not part of his daily routine.

Morning and evening, he may be found in the Chapel attending to his devotions. At least an hour upon rising, and before sleep, is spent in prayer. Following his attention to matters of the spirit, he then attends to honing of physical training. Where the training ring has been set up in the Courtyard, he works through sword and footwork forms, old and sometimes new. Just prior to lunch, he visits the Stables to see how Valiente fares. Taking the horse out for a ride isn't all that out of the ordinary. However, almost every outing takes him the direction of the Warden's Camp. That destination in itself is a deviation from his routine, but a sharp eye might notice that he never fails to travel there without either a book, a basket lunch, or a handful of wildflowers.

Of an afternoon, he's easily found in the Library, engrossed in research of some variety or another, or enjoying casual reading of wholesome volumes such as The Sermons of Divine Hortensia III. Sometimes he can be observed attending to his correspondence, though there too is an oddity. For a change, each letter received is read, though it can be discerned from his facial expression that he's dreading some of them. Usually those sealed with a ram's head on green. Evenings before vespers, he sits quietly in the Herald's Rest. He never indulges in more than a single ale and listens with quiet appreciation to the music and conversation around him. The Seeker still hasn't quite worked up to initiating social interactions, though he welcomes others who opt to join him and break up his solitude.

Comments

[theproperglove]

Josephine, of course, being who she is, had identified the root of Aleron's troubles before she'd even bothered to make her way over. "Bad news from your family?" she asks, before tilting her head to the side and appearing to mull over the matter, even though truthfully, it hadn't required that much consideration at all.

"Or is it news of a more mundane nature?" she continues, her smile curving upwards at the side. She may tease, but she also wants to help, if she can.

[lifeofendurance]

"It depends on your view, I suppose." He's still eying the set of letters like they are vipers that will suddenly strike. He lifts the stack, holding them gingerly waiting for the attack. "Do you care to take a wager? I can almost guarantee I know the contents before I open them."

Thus explaining his long standing habit of tossing them in the fire unread.

The first he holds up is the singular letter with the seal of the du Guille family. "This one is from my mother. The first half will be a scathing rebuke that I am a wretched son abandoning her in Orlais to come here. The second half will sternly remind me that I owe a duty to the family and not merely the Maker. When will I stop fighting her attempts to see me happy and finally take a new wife? Have I read the list she sent me of every eligible daughter between the ages of 16 and 36 in Southern Thedas?" Incidentally, Josephine was included in the list, which he would know if he'd given it so much as a glance.

He places the letter down and slides it over to Josephine. It's an invitation for her to check and see if he's right. The man has no secrets whatsoever. It drives his mother and sisters mad with frustration.

If she takes the challenge, she'll find he's correct. Very correct, in anticipating the contents. Though a sharp eye will see that he's not just dreading it, he looks almost miserable trying to figure out how to answer her.

[theproperglove]

Josephine rests her fingers lightly atop the letter, as though considering Aleron's proposal but making no move to open it yet. "I would take you up on such a wager if I were not certain that I would lose." The corners of her lips tilt ever-so-slightly upwards, making her smile grow more wry.

She chooses her words carefully before speaking. "As much as I do not wish to pry into personal matters," she begins, tone too inquisitive to be properly sincere, "how long do you think you might need? I understand everyone recovers from such losses only when they are ready. Not to mention that these are uncertain times we find ourselves in, and you could not be faulted for finding more import in your duties here than those to your family. For now, at the very least."