Family Business (D3 EM)

[Davelyn Sand]

"More like he takes it on with devotion. I wish he wouldn't stress so much about it, but he does a great job I think." He gives a nod. "I don't think I've ever met a Maester I didn't like though. There is something comforting as a warrior, knowing that there are men out there devoted to knowledge rather than killing. I don't doubt my role in life or who I have become, but I never had a mind truly keen enough to do what they do."

[Warryn Wydman]

"I never thought of it that way... truthfully, I'm just happy there are men who spend time on learning how to heal. It is a useful skill." He smiled. "Though you are right... fighting can be honorable, but life is more than that."

[Davelyn Sand]

He nods. "In many ways fighting is both living and the opposite of it. If one spends their entire life devoted to ending others... but then if that life is also spent protecting lives of those that cant defend themselves. It's a complex thing."

[Warryn Wydman]

"Aye, a complex one. Yet, sometimes so simple. When your family is behind you, and someone who wants to hurt them, it becomes as clear as the sun." He smiled. "Have you thought of doing something else? Instead of fighting?"

[Davelyn Sand]

"Not since before I was a boy. Nothing has ever deterred me from my path. Not even... Olyn." He smiles sadly at some distant memory, lost in thought.

[Warryn Wydman]

"Olyn?" Warryn asked with a frown. "Now you've got me curious friend."

[Davelyn Sand]

"He was the most non supportive of my dream to be a knight. A very good friend otherwise, but on that issue he constantly told me I was stupid. That the northern knights would never truly accept a Dornish bastard. The closest I ever came to that dream dying... he lay on his death bed, looked me in the eyes, and told me it was a fools dream."

He looks at his hand as though he were picturing holding someone else's. "He believed it so truly, a boy that I had known longer than I remembered knowing him, that it was important enough to be the last words he shared with me. That... nothing had ever shook me like that. But I persisted and I think I'm stronger for his resistance."

[Warryn Wydman]

"He was the most non supportive of my dream to be a knight. A very good friend otherwise, but on that issue he constantly told me I was stupid. That the northern knights would never truly accept a Dornish bastard. The closest I ever came to that dream dying... he lay on his death bed, looked me in the eyes, and told me it was a fools dream."

He looks at his hand as though he were picturing holding someone else's. "He believed it so truly, a boy that I had known longer than I remembered knowing him, that it was important enough to be the last words he shared with me. That... nothing had ever shook me like that. But I persisted and I think I'm stronger for his resistance."

The Valemen listened, his eyes wide. "Well... I can understand where he came from. I hope at least I am able to refute his argument." He smiled, though it was a sad one. "You did good... you are honoring his memory." He let silence lapse for a while. "How... did he pass?"

[Davelyn Sand]

"A wasting disease. He had never been the healthiest boy, despite what you might have thought watching him run around. But he got tired quicker than most and frequently got sick," he replies. "We would explore around the city all the time. Watching people and making up stories about them. He was a lot better at that than me."

[Warryn Wydman]

Warryn nodded. "Not a glorious way to go, but then... death cares not for your wishes." He sighed. "I lost my wife similarly. Not disease, but the conditions. The Mountains are not an easy place to live, and our little vale... even more so." He played with the food in his plate.

[Davelyn Sand]

"It is definitely not a good way," he says shaking his head. "I hope that in his life I at least brought some light and happiness. Other than that one significant point between us, we got along very well. Small arguments here or there about who got the last snack, or who rode first... but those are good memories. I hope that you at least have good memories of your wife to hold onto," he said, smiling at Warryn. "Tell me about her?"

[Warryn Wydman]

"It is definitely not a good way," he says shaking his head. "I hope that in his life I at least brought some light and happiness. Other than that one significant point between us, we got along very well. Small arguments here or there about who got the last snack, or who rode first... but those are good memories. I hope that you at least have good memories of your wife to hold onto," he said, smiling at Warryn. "Tell me about her?"

"That is good to hear. Friends are important. I'm glad Tal and Ywain are here with me, so that I'm not alone with my family." Warryn sighed a bit.

"She was..." he thought how to explain. "She was sweet." Was his lame response. "But she couldn't cope with the weather and the land."

[Davelyn Sand]

Possibly unexpected, Davelyn leaned forward and took one of Warryn's hands in both of his. "I'm sorry for your loss Warryn. For both of them. But you seem a happy sort so I am glad you have not let those losses knock you down. It's a bright thing, like the moon in the darkness, for others to see strength like yours."

[Warryn Wydman]

Warryn blushed, enjoying Dav's touch. "Thank you, but...." he sighed and looked away. "I don't deserve your praise. I... didn't really love her, you know. It was a marriage of convenience and politics, but well... not love." He felt ashamed. "I should be broken up, but I'm... not." He sighed. "I should be better than this Dav."

[Davelyn Sand]

His hand squeezed gently. "It's understandable. It was not something you chose, but something chosen for you. Do not blame yourself for being the person you are and feeling what you feel. You are a strong and capable man that will do great things for your family. Fate intervened and took her away, so you'll never know if you could have come to care more for her with time. But perhaps that is because there is someone else that will come along and make your heart sing. I hope that is in the future for you."

[Warryn Wydman]

His hand squeezed gently. "It's understandable. It was not something you chose, but something chosen for you. Do not blame yourself for being the person you are and feeling what you feel. You are a strong and capable man that will do great things for your family. Fate intervened and took her away, so you'll never know if you could have come to care more for her with time. But perhaps that is because there is someone else that will come along and make your heart sing. I hope that is in the future for you."

Warryn sighed, but slowly, looked up at Dav, unsure of himself. "Hrm... you think so? Someone else out there." He slowly stretched until he was at his full height. "I...hoped it would be, then I didn't. I felt there was no room for hope in my heart. Duty would come to the fore." He looked into the Dornishman's eyes. "Now... there might be something else in my future than duty, and leadership. Not just burdens, but something else as well. Someone else."

[Davelyn Sand]

Smiling warmly at him, meeting his eyes. "I am glad to hear that from you. Hope is more important than any other feeling. Nothing can drive a person forward as strongly as hope can. If there is someone that you can see as providing you with a bit of happiness then I truly wish that it works out for you Warryn. And if I can assist you with that in any way I am here for you."

[Warryn Wydman]

The Valeman smiled. "You're already helping. It is good to talk to someone."He leaned back in his chair, putting one arm at the back of it. "It means a lot... especially knowing that there are friendly and honorable people outside of the Vale."

[Davelyn Sand]

"I think there are more people out there that care than some would believe... but fewer than some would hope. It is not an easy world and it can make people hard... but I think that people are more resilient to that then we expect," he says with a nod.