[Rearing Stallion] Surviving Another Year

[Alexander Ross]

Alexander Ross 55th of Spring, 516 The air was thick with hearty laughter and the smell of food mixed in with ale and wine, not the sort of environment that the now twenty-year-old Squire Alexander Ross would normally spend his time in, but he honestly had no other choice but to make an acception. Literally… his patron Ranqor had remembered his birthday, and ordered the Squire to wait at the Rearing Stallion while he began notifying the patrons of other Squires in the Order. Whether or not Alex would know any of the Squires being sent his way was debatable… and he hoped at least a few of them would be people he knew. For the most part, Ross was supposed to wait in the Rearing Stallion until the Squires began to arrive. From there, it was all up to them whatever they wanted to do; converse, go on walks, train, drink, whatever. It was much unlike last year, where he paid twenty golden mizas to rent the Rearing Stallion, only to have very few people show up and leave early due to already being exhausted from Sayana’s own party. Poor Orin who had catered for both looked as if he could barely even stand after the night was over. All in all, the party was a bit of a drag and ended with Alex having a few drinks alone at an isolated table in a shady and depressing-looking corner of the tavern, despite a few select people who showed up and at least made an effort to make things better. Ranqor had heard about this and had sincerely apologized to the young man, and allowing him to take the day off. The Knight truly must have felt bad, considering that he would go so far as to ask other patrons to give their Squires some time off to spend time with Alex. Ross had his eyebrows raised in surprise, exclaiming that he didn’t want Squires to take time out of their day and possibly busy schedule just to keep him company and give him gifts. It didn’t sit well with him. Of course, this was only rewarded with another three hour-long lecture on how it was important for him to expand his social circle, since he would be fighting alongside these people in the future. For the sake of not wasting time, the Squire grudgingly complied. He sat down at a table that was located away from the rest of the common rabble, politely refusing the kind offer of a drink from one of the waitresses. Alex was not the most social person, and having so much attention focused on him was almost too overwhelming. He just hoped that he could get through the day without having a mental breakdown.

[Garland]

Garland walked into the bar, carrying two little babies throwing confetti at each other. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALEX!" If it wasn't for the last time he broke a door down by kicking it, he would have kicked the entrance in.

He looked around the crowded bar and spotted the man in question. "Alex!" He walked over to Alex, ignoring the confetti that was being thrown around by the twins.

Garland sat down near to Alex and placed the twins on the table. This wasn't exactly a place for children, then again Garland had grown up here. He had going in and out of this place since he was eight.

Though he didn't drink when he was younger, he mostly came in here for the occasional scrap one of the owners would give him. In a way, he was like a stray cat whenever he wandered in here.

He called over to one of the wenches and ordered some apple juice for the three of them. "It has been a long time since we had a drink together." He smiled and watched the kids play on the table. They have grown much in the season he had them.

So far, the only thing he had to worry about was the small cut Aneeka had when she was learning how to walk. "I'm guessing you haven't met these two yet? A lot of things happened in the few seasons we haven't seen each other."

Aneeka threw her last bit of confetti at Alex and giggled sweetly. Phobos had knocked an empty mug off the table for no reason other than to see it fall. In the crowded bar it didn't really matter if the kids made a ruckus, Garland was just here to make sure these two don't hurt themselves.

"You know... parties and taverns don't really mix well, maybe the White Swan would have been a better idea." He pondered and looked around, he placed his arm on the edge of the table catching Phobos expertly before he could tumble to the ground. "Orin should be here... He makes amazing food and is perfect for just parties."

He had been wearing nothing but his citizen clothes today, a pair of black trousers, a tunic, and a leather jacket on top of it. The twins were wearing the jumpers that Elann had bought for them before, along with the adorable fuzzy hats that were in the purchase. "Introductions... The boy is Phobos, he likes to make stuff fall and throw things. The other one is Aneeka, she throws stuff at people and likes making noise by hitting things."

And to prove Garland's point, Aneeka started hitting the table with her hands.

[Alexander Ross]

Alexander Ross Alex flinched as the front doors were suddenly open, and a loud, hearty voice yelled out to him. Most of the inhabitants of the Rearing Stallion paused their actions to look over at the Squire that had just entered, most of them bearing a rather confused look. However, Alex couldn’t help but grin as Garland entered and made his way over to his table. Now this was a face he knew quite well, and was pleased to see. He had not seen Garland in a few seasons, at least since before he left for Abura. He had often wondered how the Squire was fairing. Speaking of which… his smile almost immediately shifted to a rather surprised expression as he noticed the two toddlers Garland was carrying, a boy and a girl. For a long moment, Alex was completely speechless. He wanted to believe that these two children were nephews… or cousins… but something told him that this was not the case at all. As the girl tossed a bit of confetti at him, he flinched before chuckling a little. He let out a small breath, blowing off a bit of the confetti from his face back at her. “I can see that.” He said, before dusting the rest from his lap. “Wow, Garland… I was only gone for what, two seasons? And already you’re knocking women up.” He chuckled. He gave a sigh and shrugged. “I actually haven’t seen Orin in quite a while. It would have been nice to have him join us.” He admitted. If anything, he would have just asked the cook to join them, rather than cook anything. He felt a bit bad for working him so hard last year… He winced a bit as Aneeka began banging her hands on the table, before sighing and shaking his head. “Sooo… who’s the crazy… I mean, lucky lady?” He joked.

[Garland]

Garland hid reaction when Alex asked about the twin's mother. "She left, her name was April and she just left, found these two after a season she disappeared. My first thought was slavers, but then these two showed up. I have no idea where she is but right now I don't care." He gave a small forced smile, not because he was lonely but because he didn't want these two to grow up without a mother.

Anyway, now was not the time for feeling sorry for himself. It was a time to celebrate Alex's birthday, he was always a bit reclusive so the few times Alex was out in a social event, he tries to make him feel welcome and things interesting.

"Barmaid!" Garland called out. "An ale for my friend, and three glasses of apple juice for me and the kids." Garland let the twins roam around a little on the table, and he also held up Phobos so he could try and stand up.

"What have you been up to, friend? Things have been... interesting on my end to say the least."

Aneeka unsteadily tried to stand up and wobble over to Alex. She had her arms outstretched and fell into Alex's chest like a ragdoll.

"Yeah, they learned how to walk somewhat. Kinda shaky though so keep that in mind if you see them walking around."

[Samuel Longwell]

Grading Complete Please edit your grade request thread so that it's obvious that it's been graded. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions/problems with your grade. Name: Alex XP Award: Socialisation 2 Lore: Ranqor: Forcing me to socialise Phobos: Garland's son Aneeka: Garland's daughter Garland's a Father! Name: Garland XP Award: Childcare 2 Rhetoric 1 Lore: Trying to make Alex Ross feel welcome Childcare: Keeping an eye on shaky walkers Notes: A nice start to a social thread, I particularly enjoyed that Garland brought his children to the party! Enjoy your grades.