Feels Familial [A3]

[Arwyn Forrester]

She exchanged a look with her brother to see if he had any more insight than she did. Failing that, she shakes her head. "I don't know. If I had to speculate, I would guess that he would be in favor of peace. He was a diplomat before House Forrester was revived, and is seeking a peaceful resolution to the Whitehill problem. Mother, being a Reachwoman herself, is more suspicious of Dorne... she's talked about it before, but I think her House, Crane, is one of the ones wanting to pull back on the militant stance."

[Kevan Dunn]

"So they are altogether more likely to vouch for peace if it comes to formulating an allied stance." Kevan considered the fact with a more worried smile, but then acknowledged something else. "Your mother is from House Crane? You're half-Reachmen both then!"

[Arwyn Forrester]

She nodded and gave an apologetic smile. "That's only my supposition, but it seems more likely." It becomes more warm at the latter, though. "We are. A couple of our siblings really look like it, too. We got more of the Stark looks."

[Kevan Dunn]

"I don't blame the Gods for that at all." He laughed, taking the excuse to look at her more directly. It'd be obvious for Marqus that Kevan's eyes were getting at least slightly googly whenever Arwyn came into sight. "Speaking of, did Lord Stark put restrictions on how much ironwood you can harvest? The extent of logging is at the core of the row with the Whitehills, right? I wonder if you can make more spears and shields than to just defend yourselves... Is ironwood good for bows?"

[Arwyn Forrester]

She considers the question, "Mm... he left it to us to manage, rather than getting involved in the nitty-gritty. Marqus was not long ago speaking with the Master of Ships in King's Landing for a potentially extensive shipbuilding order. I think we'd have to be careful how we harvest that and afterward, but that gives you an idea of what our capabilities are."

"An ironwood bow would be powerful but have a very heavy draw, I would expect, assuming it's flexible enough to begin with. It does make for excellent shields, though. Has Marqus shown you his?"

[Kevan Dunn]

"He still has to do it. I think the quality of ironwood shields is something that could easily appeal to the military sensibilities of my father. We already have the best cavalry in the Reach, and well-drilled infantrymen and archers. Some lords may have larger standing armies, but ours is superior in combat readiness and ferocity. With your shields, they could get even better." Kevan mused, sharing his honest thoughts. "The thing about having soldiers at disposal is less about pushing them into battlefields and more about deterring. Perhaps, once our houses are allied, a superior Dunn force could discourage the Whitehills even from afar."

[Arwyn Forrester]

"It's possible. If you are able to come up, it would be a good way of showing them you're willing to be there if Forrester turns out to need you, which may well be deterrent enough by itself," she muses.

[Kevan Dunn]

"That's the rough plan." He laughed, taking a swig of wine. "I really want to visit a godswood."

[Arwyn Forrester]

"People from the South are sometimes unnerved by the heart trees. Great, old weirwoods... the children of the forest carved faces into them," she describes. "I think they're comforting, but that probably doesn't surprise you. The godswood is centered on those."

[Kevan Dunn]

"I guess it's one of those things one needs to see to start comprehending. Have you ever seen a Child of the Forest?"

[Arwyn Forrester]

"No," she replies with a shake of her head. "They haven't been seen in a long time."

[Kevan Dunn]

"So how do you know about them? Are there tales retold from the times of the First Men by winter fires?"

[Arwyn Forrester]

She smiles a little. "Yes, basically. They've been gone for years, but we're told stories about them... Old stories without much detail. We had pacts with them for thousands of years, so it feels important to remember them."

[Kevan Dunn]

"Pacts? That's interesting. Like treaties? I wonder what those were about. Or if they are still in force since they haven't showed up for a long while as you say." That genuinely amazed Kevan. He stopped eating to ponder this.

[Arwyn Forrester]

"Um... if I'm remembering correctly, it was basically a peace treaty," she said. "They were enemies at first, if I'm remembering everything correctly."

[Kevan Dunn]

"We waged war on them and took their godswoods?" That was not a part of lore Kevan was familiar with.

[Arwyn Forrester]

"I think the First Men just sort of started worshiping their gods, too, after they made peace with them," she says. "I remember something about part of the agreement being not harming the weirwoods."

She shrugs and gives an apologetic smile. "It's ancient enough history that I don't think anyone knows what happened for absolute certain."

[Kevan Dunn]

"I know how it is. House Dunn is very old and we can't really agree what kind of roots we really have, from who do we hail and all that." Kevan laughed, but then remembered something. "You mentioned something about bringing your house back. Don't answer if I am imposing, but what had happened with the first House Forrester?"

[Arwyn Forrester]

"Honestly, House Forrester isn't so different. It's at least as old as the Andals' arrival," she replies. "According to legend, House Forrester was born for the same reason the current one was - King Theon Stark recognized the treasure that the ironwood trees were and created House Forrester to protect and carefully ration the harvest. He figured out the value in the wood when he was seeking material for a fleet of ships. The line died out over only a few generations, though, back then."

She smiled. "Our line shows every sign of health, so that's not a concern now."

[Kevan Dunn]

"Very apparently so." He laughed after a small lip-biting, his mind being quick to engage in projecting a future in which Arwyn's healthiness was being involved in ensuring that hereditary lineages remain unbroken. "So it is for the Dunns. My father has taken care I have no shortage of siblings."

[Arwyn Forrester]

She didn't miss it, but didn't comment... not with her brother here. "We have three othe siblings beside us. What about yourself?"

[Kevan Dunn]

"There are five of us as well." Kevan chuckled, refilling beakers.

[Arwyn Forrester]

"Yes, there are no worries in that direction on the horizon," she chuckles.

[Kevan Dunn]

"There are in other directions though." He sighed, remembering. "What do you think about what happened during today's jousts?" He wanted an opinion from her free of his own bias.

[Arwyn Forrester]

"It was a horrible tragedy," she answered, shaking her head, but he can see that her mind is working. "I think we need to find out the details for justice to be served properly. Right now, it's looking an awful lot like he went in expecting a fight, and I'd like to know why. I know the fight was hectic, but did you get any impressions of his state of mind?"