Low-Town, Snow Town?

[Torqin]

Cylus 11, 718 - 8th Break

Torqin was bundled up, torch in hand, as he left the Astedia Estate. He stopped by the stables to ensure the animals were fine, and of course, Teddy, much older now, was already there, as was the rest of the staff. It made Torqin proud to see several of his old friends were not slacking in their duties. And he knew, if his dad were still alive, he'd be right there with them, protecting the animals, and digging out the estate. The guard and other servants were busy digging out the roads and paths in the estate to make it functional again, and really, there wasn't anything for Torqin to do here.

So, he grabbed some supplies from the stables' storage, a variety of shovels, torches, sacks, and set them all in a wheelbarrow. Since the estate was managed, it was time to dig out the rest of the city. He didn't make it far with the wheelbarrow, still within view of the Estate entrance, northeast, about halfway to the main road extended from the docks gate, splitting mid-town from low-town. Torqin set the wheelbarrow down, pulled the supplies out, setting them atop the snow, grabbed a shovel, and began to dig, by the candle light given off from inside of a house.

He plunged the shovel into the snow, scooped up a load, and dropped it in the wheelbarrow. He could've just flung it off to the side, but that would've just further buried in people's homes and businesses. That just wouldn't do. Imagine what people would say if they saw a member of the Andaris staff burying in the citizens of mid-town and low-town in further? Once he had a full barrow, he pushed it back through the entrance of the Astedia estate, and scooped the snow out into the yard, off the paths. This space would do for now, until he reached the main road. Once there, he could take the snow outside the city walls.

Torqin continued to dig for a break, constantly back and forth, making sure to provide pathways to every door along the way, until finally he reached the main road. He hadn't seen anyone else digging in this small stint of mid-town so far, but now looking up the road, he could see mid-town was beginning to wake up. But... Across the way, low-town was receiving no attention whatsoever. Torqin shook his head, and began digging his way toward the gate, and once there, emptied the snow outside.

Then he began to carve his way into low-town, since it seemed everyone else was too busy worrying on mid-town. Such a shame. Low-towners were the most likely to suffer the most from being buried in. They were the people that would lose the most from not working, they were the people who couldn't afford to keep a lot of excess food and firewood and supplies on hand to wait it out. They were the people with drafty homes, who would feel the chill. And so Torqin dug toward and for them, constantly having to move his excess supplies. Surely someone would come to help, and he made sure to be ready to receive it.

[Daliane Andaris]

Staring out the window of his room, stroking his pig and popping warm nuts into his mouth, Daliane couldn’t help it but feel bad for the house servants. While the women stayed inside, tending to fires and doing their best to check up on all the lords and ladies to see that they’re warm, a majority of the men were outside-- digging snow for what felt like an entire trial. Even for the lord, who has never lifted a finger in his life. Some were hollering and hooping as they dug into the snow, Daliane assumed the frosty weather was beginning to get to them. Others were muttering and cursing under their breath, however not loud enough for Daliane’s family to hear.

If someone were to watch and observe Daliane at this moment, they would say he was shamelessly watching the working class and benefitting from it. And sadly, that person would not be wrong. Since there was no entertainment in the house and he could hardly go outside, the only amusement he could rely on right now were the busy bees of House Andaris. He wasn’t watching the servants dig snow because he enjoyed their suffering but because he had nothing better to do. The snow was a large barrier at the moment. But if it weren’t there, he would be out shopping or at Rynmere’s theatre. He would be anywhere but the house he had little interest in.

Most of the staff seemed to be failing at shoveling snow or giving up. All except one Daliane had been having his eyes on for a while now. An abnormal sized fella, that’s what drawed his attention, with dark skin and muscles out of this world. Daliane found it a little ridiculous at first but then remembered the lotharro men he once encountered. He was sure but this man could possibly be one of them.

Anyway, the man had been shoveling snow like it was nothing. He was clearing pathways in no time and almost before you knew it, half of the estate was clear of snow. Daliane began to grow excited as he began to think about how he would be able to go out again. He got dressed quickly; his clothes were light and for the normal person, unable to protect him from the cold. Good thing Daliane wasn’t the normal being though and Ziell blessed him.

He ran down the stair and out the house, ready to go on his usual adventure but instead, he did not. Curiosity got the best of him once he noticed the lotharro man who had dug the estate out of trouble had disappeared. Daliane wondered where he had gone and stepping outside the gates of the estate for the first time, he immediately spotted the man walking off somewhere.

Where did he think he was going? The lord didn’t think too much about that question, instead, he followed the large man.
Daliane’s feet were as silent as the snow that touched the ground. Literally . As he followed closely behind the man to see what he would do next. Daliane’s feet began to grow tired after passing most of midtown. He wondered when the man would stop.

When he finally did, Daliane stood quietly behind him and watched as he helped the (what he liked to call) the uninhabitable part of Andaris dig itself out of trouble. How sweet. Daliane thought. The man was just a big, friendly giant.

”That’s very thoughtful of you, sir.” Daliane spoke up after standing behind the man in silence for sometime. ”I don’t think my family would appreciate you leaving though.”

[Kayleigh]

Andaris had been not only cold but blanketed with snow over the past several trials, the fact there had been a few blizzards this season didn't help much either quite honestly. Kayleigh had spent a lot of her time indoors to keep warm and earn a bit of nel through music, at least when she had been allowed to play thanks to the proprietors. Yet she kept herself cooped up for too long these trials, and needed to connect with people outside more than anything. Andaris remained unexplored territory to her after all, and she would learn as much as she could while here.

But with the recent large amounts of snowfall it seemed hard to connect with others, particularly when people were either too busy shoveling snow or... just wanted to get out of the cold. Kay herself sort of wanted to find refuge in warmth again also, but part of her felt it wrong to just ignore the fact people were still buried in their homes. Thus she had come across a couple of men who were near Lowtown with shovels, and asked to borrow one herself if they would allow. They didn't. Why was beyond her but clearly they were over possessive over their shovels, thus Kayleigh trotted off into the area without a second glance back.

Men. Who were they to think she couldn't shovel snow, even if they did they evidently didn't trust her with a shovel. A mere tool. Kayleigh's held worse objects in her life certainly, the fact she's not cut herself with her own saber should've been a merit to this. But no. She stormed down the street into the streets of Lowtown Andaris, her hands dipped into the pockets of her jade colored coat as she walked along accordingly. What's this though? Her arrival had brought a discovery of another here, two men who seemed to be discussing something while one had a shovel along with a wheel barrel. Nearby seemed to rest another shovel in the snow, and sure enough she wasn't going to ask a simple question twice.

Not if they wanted the extra hand anyways. With a demeanor that suggested she held little care Kay walked up to the two, a polite "Excuse me," muttered to the larger one as she passed him. Her hand reached out to hold the free extra shovel, her grip firm as she felt the fabric of her gloves tighten. With little disregard to what they may have to say, she continued to walk a yard or two where snow was thickest. Satisfied to have picked a spot to start, Kay held the pole of the shovel in her other arm and shoved the tool into the snow. With a big pile of it scooped on she briefly panted and held her breath, until finally she exhaled with the shovel turned over to drop her scoop into the barrel. There. She did it. No need to prove to anybody else she could help as well, and surely these two wouldn't judge her for volunteering herself in helping.

"Lovely trial to-trial!" She called out rhetorically as she went in for another pile, while her voice clearly rang sarcasm as she jabbed the shovel in another pile of snow.

[Caius Gawyne]

A trial and a half of blizzard-like snow had been a welcome excuse to hide at home, hearth fires crackling, buried under blankets with books and his wife while the wind howled and fat flakes hid all of Andaris under a surprisingly thick cold cycle coat. It was an excuse to do very little academic work and simply enjoy each other's company which, admittedly wasn't at all that difficult for the young Gawyne and the delicate pianist as it was, Caius' second life of sorts no less overshadowed by death as the first had been and yet invigorated by both the tender feelings of love and the sharp edges of determination.

Sleep still escaped the northern noble, arcs of willfully ignoring its sweet call intermingled with the fear of nightmares and lost time keeping the printmaker from enjoying more than a few breaks of real rest at a time. The morning of the Eleventh, nestled like hibernating creatures in the comfortable warmth of each other's embrace and far more layers of blankets than the Ezere really needed, the dog made sure that what little sleep Caius did manage to enjoy had even less reasonable limits than normal.

Smudge whined, loping in blissful, needy ignorance over the body of his master, little paws finding all the wrong places to dig into in his boundless enthusiasm.

"Sard it all—'m awake." Hissed the young Gawyne in sudden discomfort, shifting reluctantly away from the lovely body of Darcyanna at the press of a wet nose against his shoulder to shove a hand toward the wrinkled face of his loyal grey dog, reaching blearily in the dark to scratch fingers behind an ear and stave the creature off for a moment or two before Smudge found his face instead, "Alright, boy. Alright. Let me get up."

Kissing his soundly sleeping wife's cheek softly, Caius snatched his dog with a smirk and slipped from the blankets, pausing to tuck his Winter Rose back into all the covers with an envious, wistful smile. Setting Smudge on the floor, the northern noble fumbled about as quietly as possible in the dark of Cylus, hearth fire little more than smoldering embers at this break barely casting a ruddy glow in the small space of their upstairs bedroom. He didn't dress in layers, not needing them thanks to Ziell's favor, fingers pausing to trace over the ice-like cracks that emanated from over his heart before he buttoned his shirt and tugged on his vest, all with an eager little dog weaving back and forth under his feet,

"Go on, downstairs." Caius whispered while slipping into socks and pausing to add a few logs of fuel to the fire, bringing it back to life to warm the room for Darcyanna before he made his way down after the little grey dog. Thankfully, the home the pair rented began on the second floor, and as the northern noble reached for the ash grey cloak that indicated his employment, sharp blue eyes glanced out the window and down into the Mid-Town street below, "Well, damn, it's going to be a bit of a struggle for you out there."

Well over a foot of snow, possibly closer to two, blanketed the whole city. The young Gawyne grumbled, grateful for the shovel downstairs he often used for cleaning out the smelting stove and the hearths of their home. Not even bothering with gloves despite the frigid weather, Caius paused to run fingers through his ever-unkempt hair before opening the door cautiously to the stairwell. It took a bit of shoving, the snowdrift high against the wood from the wind, but a bit of cursing later and he'd managed to make space enough for his little bulldog to crash happily out into the snow and himself to slip out.

The cold made the surface harder, crunchy, and Smudge managed to make his way down the stairs without disappearing beneath the surface of the white blanket, tail wagging and tongue lolling in pure canine joy. Caius struggled his way down the stairs with a bit more effort, movement precarious with so much thick snow. Underneath the stairwell where the door to his business on the first floor, Ink and Prophet, was protected, a shovel rest against the wooden support for the stairs. While his little dog took his Fates-be-damned sweet time fining that perfect spot for the business that had been so sarding urgent a few moments ago, the young Gawyne set about clearing the area in front of his business and the stair well, digging the shovel in and tossing the snow toward the back of their rented home where a narrow alley-turned-yard would be filled with grass come the warm cycle.

None of the city's servants had begun clearing the snow yet, Caius noted, squinting down their street in the darkness of Cylus. They hadn't even come out to re-light the street lanterns after the storm. Instead, the moons sparkled off of the thick white coat, making the whole street feel much brighter than it actually was.

It was so quiet. Thoughtless. It felt good.

The Lord Arbiter sighed, closing his eyes for a moment as his breath dissolved in warm clouds in front of his face.

Maybe Thierry's would be open. Glancing at Smudge, he decided baked goods were in order given the weather, "C'mon, friend. Let's go for our walk before our Lady wakes up. Breakfast for all of us sounds sarding good. We'll have to work for it, though."

With that, he turned with his shovel and began to clear a path along one side of the street that their rented house shared with a bunch of other well-kept stone homes. It was a pleasant, quiet neighborhood with a handful of children and working-class families that most likely had no sarding idea Caius and Darcyanna were even nobility, living far below their station without care. The young Gawyne had spent the better part of an arc rubbing shoulders with common folk, getting his hands dirty at the Rynmere Gazette, sitting in classes with students from all walks of life. With the exception of Nathaniel Endor's generous gift, he'd worked for every nel of his business and the house, for ever class toward his degrees.

Shoveling snow was the least he could do, both enjoying the process of finding a rhythm of motion—dig, lift, toss, repeat—and knowing that perhaps with his face not unknown among the people as Lord Arbiter, he could be a little bit of positive public relations on this trial of trials, helping his section of Mid-Town dig out of the snow.

He'd made it all the way to the Corner only to find Thierry's Bakery was still closed. Disappointed that his friend was rightfully still in bed, comfortable and warm above his business, Caius would have to give the man some time to get up and get baking before he could bring home any treats to his wife. Leaning on his shovel for a moment, he looked back over the narrow, clear path he'd left in his wake, his right shoulder reminding him just how much strength he'd lost in Zi'da after Pythera's stabbing with a dull ache of protest. Even though the scar had faded unexpectedly, Caius suspicious of the strange effects of Syora's mark, he'd spent thirty trials wearing a sling and returning to normal proved itself a slow process of making conscious effort to rebuild and push past his previous strength levels. Smudge was having a grand time in the snow, following along and occasionally disappearing into a soft patch or two with a yelp.

Pausing to loosen a button or two of his vest under his cloak, already breaking a sweat in the chill he no longer felt, Caius noticed a path that had been cleared carefully the next street over. Like himself, someone had begun to work their way through the thick blanket of snow and clear the way for others. He wondered when he'd see the Iron Hand or the Moseke Knights out working, side by side with the city's menial workers, shovels in hand, clearing the streets. The signs were there—shouts from at least a crew of workers a few streets over ringing through the frigid air, everything made still under the blanket of snow so sound carried clearly. Aware that he could also commission for a few Purifiers to come and shovel with him, perhaps to help the Order of the Mantis' somewhat tenuous public image, Caius thought the better of making his way toward the Crown and the barracks.

Instead, he trudged his way through snow drifts past his knees to follow the path someone else had cleared in hopes of finding the end of it and work from there. He didn't realize he'd be trudging his way through the maze-like streets toward Low-Town, Smudge at his heels, bouncing and happy to follow his master.

It was the little bulldog that found the trio first—a Lothar, judging by the man's size, an underdressed Lord by the looks of things, and a dark-haired lady. The beginning of a good joke if it hadn't been interrupted by an excited, yapping dog and the young Gawyne, already armed with a shovel and hardly more dressed than the other man, his exception being the ash grey cloak that marked his service for the Crown. Smudge was eager to sniff all of them if the three strangers would let him, all cold-wet nose and wagging stub of a tail.

If the trio had been working together, they'd made decent progress, a wheelbarrow smartly employed to move the piles and piles of snow out of the way while actually making the thoroughfare clear. All of Low-Town in view was buried under the thick layer of white, a quiet blanket that most likely reached higher on the squat, unkempt homes and businesses that made up the poorest section of Andaris.

Digging out those who couldn't necessarily help themselves was worthy cause—it wasn't like the crews in Mid-Town were at all in a hurry to make their way toward Low-Town and help out those who were actually in need. Caius knew he had a few breaks to help in the dark, not wanting to spend too much of the trial away from Darcyanna and his warm, comfortable home, but enviously aware she'd be sleeping more than he was even capable of,

"It's a matter of perspective, I'm sure. To-trial would be a lovely Saun day if you were in Viden or just a light snow if you're from Gawyne." The Lord Arbiter chuckled at the dark-haired woman, his smile lopsided, sharp blue irises shifting to a warmer green in his amusement before he nodded toward the other two men, "Perhaps you three could use another shovel. Or someone to man the wheelbarrow. Do you have a destination in Low-Town in mind? There's a square this street leads to that may be a good landmark."

Caius had made the walk to the Jail far too many times now that he wasn't entirely a stranger to the safest routes through the poorest section of town. He chose not to make that obvious however, leaning on his shovel and snapping his fingers for Smudge to stop his enthusiastic search for cuddles from willing strangers.

Ledger

Insert price of shovel here.

❦

[Torqin]

Torqin heard an unfamiliar voice speak to him from behind, immediately recognizing the words to be coming from a member of the Andaris family. He stuck the shovel into the snow, put a professional smile on his face before turning to the Andaris, seeing that it was Daliane, one of the lower members of the family. Torqin hadn't met the man before he'd escaped to the Eastern Settlements, and had only seen him distantly since his return. But the man was memorable in his impeccably kept appearance and many of the staff enjoyed snickering about him just "Dallyin' about," instead of working, at least work that most nobles did.

Plus it would be remiss to be employed by the Andaris family and not at least be able to recognize the nobles upon sight.

He bowed his head to the man, "Lord Daliane, quite the pleasure to finally meet you in person." He broadened his smile a bit, "Oh I'm sure no one would mind me helping out in the name of the Andaris family, particularly on my day off. Ms. Hart has always said us stable hands should help out more, within and without the estate. Though I do apologize if it appears that I am not doing my duties, far from it good sir. Only the most hard working people for the Andaris."

He worried that he may have laid it on a little thick, but for the most part he didn't care. What was the worst that would happen? The man demand that Tivania Hart fire him from the stables. That woman bowed to no Andaris ire. It was why they kept her after all. Fiercely loyal and accepted no nonsense, it kept the animals in her care healthy and happy, as well as those that used them safe. She'd banned people from her stables for less. Plus Torqin hadn't actually done any wrong, nor did he give any true slight in his words.

And before he could continue the conversation, a woman approached, one that was clearly all business. She grabbed one of the spare shovels, and set about to working, and Torqin's smile shifted slightly from the false visage for Lord Daliane to one more genuine, "See, my lord? We set a good example, and others follow. But now I must work, wouldn't want them to think I'm some layabout? With your permission of course."

While waiting to be granted leave from the Lord, a small bulldog scampered up to them. The small creature sniffed at him, and Torqin crouched at the knees, balancing on the balls of his feet, as he offered his hand for the pooch to smell. It did so eagerly, before licking at his fingers. Torqin then rubbed the canine's head playfully, enjoying the wag of its tail. Looking up, he saw the man the dog seemed to belong to. One he thought he recognized, a man who'd helped him pick out flowers for Vedanya back in his youth.

This was confirmed as the man reference Gawyne, "Lord Caius?"

Torqin stood up to his full height, "It's been ages, my lord." Then realizing a question had been directed toward him, "Apologies. The wheelbarrow is all yours, and the square sounds like a fine choice."

He then turned expectantly back toward Daliane, waiting to be relieved in order to get back to work. He'd not even had a chance to greet the woman that had amused upon the loveliness of the day, but Lords had to dismiss the staff in their presence. And so, he waited.

[Kayleigh]

Kayleigh honestly wasn't sure about the small scruple that seemed to be open to see, aside from some posh'd up noble giving somebody beneath them lip. She wasn't really a considerable one to involve herself with such affairs, still being new and fresh to Andaris and Rynmeren culture in general. Besides from the sound of it her grabbing the shovel already aided in the bigger, darker man's rebuttal against the nobleman so... why bother from there?

"Men." She muttered under her breath as she used heaved her arms to shovel more snow yet again, still caught up in the attitude the two from earlier displayed when she offered to help. It was then someone chimed in to remark on her comment earlier, which in turn actually garnered her attention enough to stop shoveling momentarily. His philosophical comment on how the Trial was today led her to smirk a little, as she could easily recognize the sarcasm found within his voice. Just as he seemed to insinuate that the three could use another wing-man for the job, the noble that stood harassing the other guy scoffed and walked away.

"Well," She huffed with a pull of her hair behind her ear, "looks like we're down to two anyways. Don't see the harm in having another to help out." She reckoned that the both of them were going to do a majority of the heavy lifting anyways, while she of course was happy to just help shovel snow somewhere. For a moment the one that chimed in on the Trial sounded a little familiar, though Kayleigh wasn't able to pinpoint where she heard it exactly. A few deep breaths were taken and somehow she couldn't help avoiding a shiver, the cold still settled in her bones even when she seemed determined to work.

Off Topic

Wow. Sorry this is short in comparison, hopefully it helps get the thread moving?

[Caius Gawyne]

"I'm sorry, do I know you?"

It wasn't uncommon for strangers on the street to know his name now, to recognize the Lord Arbiter whether he wanted them to or not. Most of the time, their notice wasn't entirely malicious, but when the man who was so kindly giving Smudge the much-needed attention the small bulldog seemed to exist on stood to his full height, the northern noble recognized a Lothar when he saw one,

"Ah, yes. Well. Hello, Ser Torqin. There are so few of your people I have met over the arcs. Ha, I suppose the seasons have made men of us both. What has brought you here to Andaris? Service to the Crown is my excuse, though such is the burden of my lineage." He laughed, rolling his narrow shoulders in a self-deprecating shrug. While Caius wasn't entirely sure if the man had even left, he certainly hadn't seen him and a Lothar was honestly hard to misplace when towering over other mortals. He smiled at Kayleigh, "Looks like you're welcome to a shovel, my Lady. I'll start moving some of this toward the square."

Smudge was already at the woman's feet, sniffing and curious, nub of a tail wagging while his master shrugged off his cloak and rolled up his sleeves despite the chill, seemingly unconcerned about the dark and the cold. Caius set the ash-colored cloak over the handle of the wheelbarrow and picked one of the other shovels up, beginning to dig into the pile and load it, one heap at a time, so that he could move it toward the square.

Unlike most of his kind, the young Gawyne wasn't afraid of hard work, didn't find it offensive, and understood that his Kingdom was built through the hard work of his ancestors. This was, apparently, a fact forgotten by other nobles, and while Caius could admit he'd rather not rub shoulders with every commoner under the suns, there were plenty of nobles he didn't really enjoy working alongside of, either. People were people and more often than not, everyone annoyed the Lord Arbiter eventually.

At least here he could serve a purpose, instead of the malaise of fear and uselessness he often felt crushed by under the watchful shadow of Darcyanna's Mastes-granted anak or under the watchful gaze of the Lord Inquisitor himself. His first attempt at loading the wheelbarrow proved to be a bit too overconfident of his strength—too full of snow, Caius did his best to hide his struggles while everyone else shoveled, quickly emptying some of the packed stuff off the top of his pile before he could get the thing going down the icy, snowy road to find somewhere to dump it out of the way of the path they were making, little bulldog at his heels.

He'd be back again for more in a few bits, this time with Smudge in the barrow, the grey creature's tongue lolling eagerly in excitement.

❦

[Aeodan]

Name: Caius Gawyne

Knowledge:
None requested

Loot: None
Injuries: None
Renown: No
Magic XP: No

Points: 15

- - -

Comments:
I would have liked to have seen where this was going to go. Well written, all of you.


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[Pegasus]

Torqin

Overview

Thank you for submitting this for review. It's a shame it didn't get completed, as you all wrote well. Drop me a pm if you've got any questions.

Points

XP: 15 (not for magic)

Renown: 10

Loot

Knowledge

Strength: Lifting a shovel full of snow
Strength: Pushing a wheelbarrow full of snow
Endurance: Shoveling all morning
Leadership: Lead by example

Daliene & Kayleigh

Overview

Just giving you both the points here. Hope that's ok. PM if there's an issue

Points

XP: 15 (not for magic)

Renown: NA

Loot

Knowledge