"It wasn't my wounds that needed healing..."
Lancel Lannister, Game of Thrones
BASICS
NAME: Lancel
GENDER: Masculine
PRONOUNS: Masculine (he/him/his)
ORIENTATION: Questioning, but closeted (somewhat prefers men/masculine-identifying)
BIRTHDATE: Summer 2740
AGE: 36 as of 2776
LOCATION: Semaca Weyr
OCCUPATION:
WING: Pavane
APPEARANCE
EYES: Blue
HAIR: Blonde
HEIGHT AND BUILD: 5' 10"
PLAY-BY: Eugene Simon
EXPY SOURCE: Lancel Lannister (Game of Thrones)
FULL APPEARANCE:
Between his narrow frame, being 5' 10" tall, and his habit of effacing himself, one could be forgiven for mistaking Lancel for a gangly teenager. Though muscular from Turns of dragonriding, he's still very round-of-face, a gentle softness to his frame that time hasn't changed. After three Turns in Semaca, his skin maintains a gentle tan, freckles beginning to appear across his face and along his shoulders. In regards to his hair and eye color, he has sandy blonde hair, gently curly and kept long to about his shoulders, while his eyes are cornflower blue in color. Lancel prefers to dress in muted earth tones, but he's rather fond of red and he absolutely loves green; it both demonstrates his love for Alezaeth and he feels his finest wearing it. Scars mar his right pectoral and run across his shoulder from an injury that didn't heal correctly, gained in one of his first Threadfalls. As a result, Lancel suffers pain and weakness into today, leading him to favor it.
PERSONALITY
PERSONALITY:
Lancel is notably shy and somewhat timid, leading him to incline toward anonymity, to keep himself from others' sight where he can. It's rare for him to speak, but his voice is steadier and louder than it was Turns ago. Driven to be logical and tactical by necessity, he thinks very carefully about everything he says, which often sees him saying nothing at all, no matter how crucial a moment he finds himself in. Lancel often finds himself overthinking everything and would rather keep quiet than risk saying something wrong. A trait reinforced by his time under a High Reaches under Golre's reign, he hates conflict and avoids it at all costs, going so far as to go against his morals and agree to something or someone than continue to protest.
After all he'd experienced, Lancel matured into a somber and solemn man, but his time at Semaca has mellowed him. What sense of humor he possessed was quickly lost upon arriving at High Reaches, but while he still doesn't understand most jokes or pranks, he manages himself much more gracefully and no longer panics so readily. While he still forces his laughs and his smiles are still hard to come by, he's no longer quite so terrified of being discovered for his visible disadvantage in most social situations. But no matter what, he'll always enjoy moments of peaceful solitude spent in quiet contemplation, most often in Alezaeth's company; nothing will change that.
Though it's been Turns since his days in High Reaches, Lancel still struggles to find value in himself, as well as both confidence and purpose; he isn't certain where he fits in or if he'll ever find his place. Regardless of who asks, Lancel rarely says no if someone asks something of him, especially if it's given as an order. In his eyes, asserting himself isn't worth what trouble he'd be in for refusing, a belief heavily ingrained from his time in Golre's High Reaches. Alezaeth is among few he's certain he can trust; no one knows him better than he knows himself but her. No matter how uncertain he is whether he'll find his place in Semaca or not, Lancel knows where he'll always belong: Alezaeth, in her heart and mind.
(Personality provided by Arc!)
HISTORY
FAMILY:
Kevan - father - Holder-bred - living
Dorna - mother - Holder-bred - living
Martyn - younger brother - living - open tie! - [-2]
Willem - younger brother - living - open tie! - [-3]
Janei - younger sister - living - open tie! - [-7]
Ranator - retired Holder - uncle - living
Leitan - retired Holder - aunt - living
R'tan of White Mazath - dragonrider - cousin - living - [+2]
Ranalei of Brown Ranalesk - Holder - cousin - living - [+2]
SIGNIFICANT OTHER: N/A
BIRTHPLACE: Mining Hold beholden to Nabol
HISTORY: TW: arranged marriage (threatened); Golre's High Reaches (fear & bullying, colorism, major injuries)
Lancel was Kevan and Dorna's firstborn son, in a small but prosperous mining encampment in Nabol territory. In relatively short order, brothers Martyn and Willem followed, but it was difficult for her to conceive again after Willem's birth, much to her husband's relief; Dorna wasn't a sturdy woman, something time had not helped. Kevan's lineage was secure; he had Lancel, as well as two younger sons, should something happen to his eldest son. But Kevan's family was not in charge of operations, but rather a branch of a greater tree. That honor fell to Kevan's older brother, Ranator; he and his family were in command. But once it was time for Ranator to retire, a fierce competition sprung up between his eldest children, twins Ranalei and Ranatan. Ultimately, Ranalei emerged victorious, proving she was Ranator's best successor, so he trained her to one day bond to his wher and take command. Ranatan didn't take it well, so much so that Lancel couldn't help but pity his cousin, but he discovered him gone one day. K'tor, uncle to both Ranator and Kevan's children, a dragonrider of High Reaches, had offered Ranatan a chance to Stand as a Candidate, rather than stay a simple miner in Ranalei's shadow.
Lancel moved on easily enough. Ranatan could go for all he cared. If Lancel was to succeed his father as his family's patriarch, he had much to learn; he still had his duties and responsibilities to focus on. As a gift for his sixteenth Turnday, Kevan presented his son a firelizard's egg. It hatched in short order, giving Lancel a bronze, much to his excitement. Lancel Impressed him moments later and gave him a name fit for a Lord: Fiero. A few Turns after her victory, Ranalei soon took her father's place, bonding to her father's wher, now Ranalesk. But in claiming her new position, she'd also claimed power; power she did not wanted to lose or share. Though Ranatan gone to High Reaches, she still had her cousins to manage. Lancel, eighteen Turns, was first in her sights. Ranalei made it clear that she wanted nothing of him or his siblings in her Hold. After some hints that Ranalei wouldn't be above arranging a marriage of her choosing for Lancel, he began to fret, knowing he had few options. All he could see to do were to succumb to Ranalei's influence and do as she bid or flee in disgrace.
Ever a savior, K'tor swooped in a second time, offering Lancel a third option: to accept most honorable Search to be a Candidate of High Reaches. It would both grant him an honorable excuse to depart and would bring honor his family's standing, should he Impress and Impress well. Lancel thought little of his own fate, accepting almost immediately. Informing his family and avoiding Ranalei's gaze, he packed his things and went to High Reaches. But it was his worst nightmare; stressed and terrified Candidates badgered each other, weyrlings could expect a life of shame and disappointment should a dragon of a "wrong" color choose them. It was so bad that blues were not immune to scorn, but greens and whites were declared completely worthless, garnets utter abominations. How could his uncle not tell him? But K'tor seemed concerned for his own reputation and nothing else. One of his Searches had Impressed a shining white, that Candidate being his own nephew. R'tan had fled as soon as his white was able to fly, but K'tor was still trying to repair his reputation in wake of such a monstrous Impression. Lancel found no comfort or help in his uncle; he was on his own and he had to make what he could of it. Every clutch he attended, he'd hope that he'd Impress to a color High Reaches favored, for his family's honor as much for his own safety. But not for K'tor; such a vile and venomous serpent could vanish between for all Lancel cared.
Left Standing numerous times across three Turns, Lancel thought his fortune would hold and he'd age out of eligibility. It didn't. One fateful hatching, a bronze burst free from his egg and rushed toward Lancel. Hoping he might look to him, though such a beastly disposition he displayed had him quaking, he stood his ground. Lancel was knocked down in his charge, moving on to find his Candidate. Lifting his head and shaking sand from his hair, Lancel saw a dragonet's forepaws enter his vision; green forepaws. Lancel... he heard a gentle voice speak in his mind. Swallowing down a sob, he tilted his head to meet her eyes, swirling rainbows for him. I am sorry to distress you, but I am your Alezaeth. Come, on your feet. We must stand tall, to show we are worthy. Trying to hide how hard he was shaking, Lancel sat up, but found a dragonet's face pressed against his own, still damp from hatching; Alezaeth sought to comfort him, giving him a soft hum, letting him share her confidence. Lancel couldn't help but cry a little. No matter what High Reaches thought of greens, Alezaeth was perfect and she was his; such a beautiful and gentle green had chosen Lancel to be hers. After he'd gathered his wits, he got to his feet and strode to feed his dragon, head high in spite of hearing jeers and whispers float to his ears, eyes heavy on him. Though he didn't dare look up, to face his uncle's wrath, Lancel could feel such an intense sting in K'tor's glare from where he watched above. After so long, he'd Impressed to his wonderful green Alezaeth, but what did that mean for them?
A greenrider's future Golre's High Reaches was not a bright one, which meant Lancel and Alezaeth's was no different. Weyrlinghood was an ordeal, constantly harassed by peers and frowned upon by instructors, it did a number on Lancel's self-esteem and confidence. After graduating weyrlinghood, both found themselves at Golre's frontlines and Lancel's first Threadfall as a fully-fledged dragonrider went horribly wrong. Crashing into a wingmate, Alezaeth took most of both Thread's ravages and dragon's claws. But Thread scored her and Lancel both, sending her between on instinct, to rid them of such terrible agony. Thankfully, both emerged, albeit at a wrong trajectory, sending them crashing into a scrubby forest. Lancel was flung from Alezaeth's neck and all went still, but he doesn't remember much of that day other than searing misery in his shoulder as he drifted to and from consciousness. Alezaeth was all he had keeping him tethered to Pern; he might've died that day otherwise. But after what seemed an eternity, Healers found them. Alezaeth had them found, projecting through her pain to all who would hear. Lancel and Alezaeth were recovered and treated; both were injured terribly. Lancel was lucky he was still able to move his right arm, after what dragon claws and Thread did to it.
While Alezaeth made a full recovery, Lancel fell sick; his injuries had not healed correctly. Both were grounded, Lancel plagued by fever and Alezaeth almost sick herself in her worry. But so much changed while he convalesced; after one more attack on Fort, for a senseless war Golre had started, High Reaches' tyrant queen herself was killed. Fort moved in to rebuild in wake of such misery and torment. Lancel and Alezaeth had stayed where others fled, through constant harassment and danger, for K'tor was always lurking somewhere and Lancel feared for his family. K'tor was his uncle by blood and had rank on him; he could say something to his parents, should he so choose. In spite of all that he'd faced, Lancel felt he had to stay to uphold his family's honor. Alezaeth respected his choice and supported her bonded regardless, but once K'tor was listed among Threadfall's casualties in 2762, but a Turn after Golre's fall, Lancel decided that it was time to go. It was true, High Reaches was emerging from its darkest days, but it was still too much for Lancel to stay. Once he had recovered from his illness and he was deemed fit to go between, Lancel filed for transfer, wrote a letter to his family to inform them of what had happened, and fled for Igen Weyr. High Reaches would fall behind them. Good riddance.
After life in High Reaches, Igen was like an oasis in comparison, but things were radically different here. Every moment, Lancel expected a jab for riding green or an order to fly an extra patrol, but there was nothing. It was both heavenly and disconcerting, but Alezaeth flourished here and that was all that mattered to Lancel. Though Lancel was still a skittish man, he'd found a haven here in Igen; it would take time for his wounds to heal, but here he could begin that journey. It took almost ten Turns for him to begin to feel remotely at peace. Everything High Reaches had afflicted upon him haunted him every day, like a constant shadow. One of his wingmates tried to soothe his fears and be his friend, so as a present for his thirtieth Turnday, his wingmate presented him a second firelizard egg. Surprised, Lancel reluctantly accepted her gift, which soon gave him a little blue, whose first choice upon hatching was to seize a loose thread of Lancel's sleeve and rip a hole in his shirt. Upon Impressing him, an exasperated Lancel named him Figaro.
Lancel had admittedly distanced himself from...everything and everyone. All he wanted to do was stay far away from everything High Reaches and keep Alezaeth from it too; she was thriving here. Correspondence to and from his family was infrequent. How could he explain how K'tor had betrayed both him and R'tan? No, it was better for them to know little, save that High Reaches had been a terrible place, but that Lancel and Alezaeth were safe. Lancel visited but a few times during his being stationed at Igen Weyr, deflecting gentle questions from his parents while his younger siblings delighted in meeting Alezaeth. But once word spread of a budding Weyr and its need for all willing hands, Alezaeth was intrigued, interested in going to Semaca. Lancel hadn't thought of transferring. Nothing was "wrong" about Igen, but a change of pace might be what he needed. It would be good, to be a part of something new and separate from all other Weyrs. Requesting transfer once more, Lancel and Alezaeth departed for Semaca Weyr, hoping for a bright future ahead.
UPDATES
- Late Spring 2775: In Threadfall, Lancel and Alezaeth go to fight attacking spotties. Alezaeth's right wing is broken in so doing. (Major)
