Kids with Guns

[Fawkes]

Fawkes opened his mouth, and shut it as Richard dismissed his complaint. The Ogre had only been King for two effectively weeks, but he was just as impatient as the rest of the younger in their Court.

It felt like months.

The Elemental had never met this many people before asking for his time, and he had only been effectively interacting with the Sacramento Lost for six weeks. He had bulldozed his will without even thinking much about it, flipping the Court, Pledging most of Winter, securing a haven without watching the latch with a loaded pistol. When was the last time he slept?

Richard leaving meant he could settle his raw nerves. His pipe was in the car. Stop.

"Thank you, Sir," he managed, "I owe you. A lot." He blinks as his eyes click to Seraphina,

"Did you want a Pledge?" He put more emphasis at the start. This was one thing he wasn't going to enforce on a calmer personality. He wouldn't have brought it up after nearly punching her in the gut with several knives for digits, but his Sovereign was presenting a beneficial solution. "I can leave you alone, too."

[Seraphina]

Well, that was that then. Maybe he was tired of hearing about the lack of a Freehold Pledge? She couldn’t blame him.

A nod, “That won’t be an issue anymore. Now that I’m aware of what I can and can’t do, proper steps will be taken to prevent this from happening again.” She’d rather not go through this again. Especially then pain.

Again, she nods. There wasn’t more to add to it. She knew she screwed up. It wouldn’t happen again.

Smiling once again, “Thank you. I have my own apartment and shouldn’t have any problem getting there.” It’s where she wanted to be right now. In her home.

Sapphires look back to Fawkes, “I think that would be a great idea. I’d like to try training again with you.” Then she shakes her head, “No way!” she says with a smirk, “Can’t get rid of me that easily. I think we have a lot we can learn from each other. That is, if you’re still willing.”

[Richard Price]

Rich nodded, he wasn’t going to let Fawkes off the hook for this but that would be taken care of at a later date. Fawkes likely had a problem, he gave the signs, and it may just come off as quirkiness. Rich didn’t know for sure. That was also something he would be looking for later because this situation didn’t need to be exacerbated.


”When you two come up with something call me, I’ll get you the space, then you can start up this little sparring club again. Until then try and keep things on the down low.”

This was a kind offer, and very much a order and he expected Fawkes at the very least to carry out the demand. No sparring until a pledge was in place and a safe place could be provided. You couldn’t have these types of things jeopardizing the community and the other Lost, nor did Rich want to be the one telling everyone Seraphina had not made it if things went completely wrong.

”Stay safe, be in touch you two. I’ll see you at the house, Fawkes.”

They could catch him if they needed but otherwise the Rich was on his way home, likely to sit and contemplate the situation while waiting for the elemental.

Rich leaves the scene unless otherwise needed or asked anything

[Fawkes]

Fawkes chews a nail, thinking.

"Okay."

His eyes are bright as he watches her, "I can base the framework off the one we used in my last Freehold. When I first joined the Spear, an Ogre saw my skills and wanted to teach me how to hit harder," he laughs quietly, "Trusting a stone fist to connect with you, and the other having the finesse not break you in half took some help."

He clears his throat,

"We stand at the precipice, and look to build foundation.
The heat will rise and test our fortitude, so let the Season of New Beginnings be our time of growth,
From Spring to the dog days of Summer, we will task ourselves once a week to polish our skill,
Let the Wyrd bless our minds and bodies with the knowledge we need,
So we may pay back our protection in kind to this Freehold.

If we break this trust by breaking skin, bone, or spirit,
Let the very hands that dealt the blow suffer with the grind of joints that were once so honed,
Until Summer comes so we may meet our Promise."

As he intones, his eyes are half-lidded. The mannequin is surprisingly well-spoken on terms of the Wyrd. The weight of the room shifts as magic waits for Oaths.

Fawkes has outlined a Pledge of Mentorship. Seraphina may offer changes before they swear, or reject it outright.

Duration: Get better at self defense by Summer – up to one season (+2)
Boon: Increase in fighting prowess and emergency response – Adroitness - +1 dot in a Skill: Brawl, Blessing - +1 dot in Merit: Mentor (+2)
Tasks: Mentorship – Difficult: meet once a week for hard training to prepare for Summer (-2)
Sanctions: Consequence to causing major injury – Curse - major: arthritic joint pain of the hands for the Season (-2)

[Seraphina]

The Treasured nods, “Understood.” She wouldn’t make the same mistake again. Lesson learned.

Smiling softly, “Thank you Rich.” Her tone grateful.

Looking back to Fawkes, “You’re not going to have a nail left you know.” She tries to joke with a smile. The air had been feeling too heavy for her, and she didn’t do heavy. At least, not well.

“That sounds good, I’ve personally never crafted one myself. Never stuck around long enough in a Freehold to have to.” Another attempt at a shrug, and yup. The pain was still intense. “Well, as someone who’s felt like they got hit with a stone, it’s a bitch.” She says with a small laugh.

When he clears his throat, she sits up a bit straighter, head titled as she listened.

Blinking a few times, her mouth slightly agape, “Wow Fawkes, that’s one of the most well spoken and worded Pledges I’ve heard.” If she was honest, it wasn’t something she expected to come from him. Seems there was more to him than she thought. But could she peel away the layers?

“It sounds fair to me, and are conditions I can abide by. And having a Pledge now in place will make explaining this,” gesturing to her side, “A lot easier." Cause yah, not going to be a fun discussion. “But I will swear to those words.” Another nod. “I only hope you’re getting something out of this and not just me. Cause that’s a bit one sided and not right.”

[Fawkes]

Upon review, the Sanction should be 'Flaw', as Curse is general bad luck. Poisoning of the Boon is inappropriate, as it affects the hands, which ties into other rolls. The math still applies.

Fawkes looks at the floor as Sera flinches, clenching and un-clenching his hands. He shrugs at her compliment shyly,

"Um. I don't want you to use the Pledge to dismiss what happened. I think it helps others understand the importance of setting boundaries," he says. He doesn't mention how it will look to other Lost if a rumour went around that the mannequin tricked others into Pledges that allowed for great physical harm. "This is my way of making it up to you. If you want to award me something, that's up to you. I don't need the promise of the Wyrd to punish you if you don't. I'll be better at fighting as well, which will help my control."

He cocks his head, "I'm going off the assumption that you aren't used to this? You have choices how to seal it. We can swear on our True Names, invoke the name of our Keepers, or if you're religious, you can swear on who you answer to in the next life. All these have different consequences if you break the Pledge," he gives her a moment to ask questions and for the information to sink.

"The other way is using something from the environment as a symbol. That usually means the physical world will retaliate based on what we use. Like..." he looks around the hospital room and sees the orchid plant, "If I used a flower to represent the Spring Court, Courtiers would have the urge to come after me if I broke the agreement."

He hums to himself, "I'm going to swear on my Keeper. It means if I hurt you, They will come for me because I took a huge shit on Their honour," he chuckles darkly.

[Seraphina]

She gently shakes her head, “I’m not, I know what happened was my fault for not setting boundaries. There is only one that I’ll talk with about this, other than him, it’s no ones business. But I agree, setting boundaries is important, and I now know just how important.” She screwed up and knew it. “And I do want to award you something.” She just didn’t know what yet. That would take some time.

Shaking her head, “No. But that’s what a life moving from one Freehold to another will get you.” But she was learning.

Wait, invoke the name of her Keeper? Oh hell no. Never again. Just thinking about that sent a chill down her spine.

There was a brief look of confusion and concern, “Doesn’t that seem a bit harsh? I know you don’t plan on hurting me, but that’s still a huge risk. I don’t want you to put that type of danger on yourself.” Truth be told, it made her uncomfortable.

“And, do they have honour?” that was more of an afterthought actually.

“I will swear upon my True Name.” cause fuck that bitch.

[Krakenbox]

Wrong account!

[Fawkes]

"Okay."

The mannequin offers the universal symbol of a shake, "Mutter it under your breath. You shouldn't give that out to people. Names have Power." Once she takes his hand, he repeats the Pledge with no alterations. The pressure of the Wyrd increases once more, creating a feeling of anxiety as if one were on the edge of a cliff,

"This, I swear on my Keeper, the Duke of Zephyr," he intones. There's an alien pitch to the quality, with the audio layering as the shards in his throat rattled from the Name.

[Seraphina]

She reaches out to take his hand, nodding as he spoke. And then repeats the Pledge as well, her own Wyrd infusing with her words. Her heart flutters, for just an instant.

“This I swear, on Amy Clark.” She mutters under her breath.