The sept. Located inside Arrowmark's walls. More practical than pious. Small. The stained glass of the seven-sided building could have been done better. Sharra could have done them better herself.

The Septon was very old, he had served the House for generations. Frail even. He was not in the sept right now.
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:24, Sat 25 July 2020.

Sharra was kneeling in the sept, her eyes closed and hands together as she prayed. She had much to pray for. That was true any day, of course. One could never give God too much honor. But these were sad, special days. She prayed for her brothers, that the Father would give them  the wisdom to rule House Sylvayn and the Warrior would make the strong. She prayed the Maiden would make her the kind of daughter who would honor her father's memory. More than anything, she prayed the Mother would show her great kindness to Sharra's dear departed father in the afterlife. Eventually, she finally opened her eyes and sighed. Sharra wasn't made for sad times, and they were hard on the cheerful maiden. But it wasn't acceptable to cry in the sept. She looked around to see if anyone else was there. She would have asked her brothers to accompany her in her prayers, but they had important business to take care of for the House, so the duty was hers.

Sharra prayed. She prayed for her brothers to do well in their new roles now that their father had passed away. She prayed for her father and that things would be well with him in the afterlife. And she prayed for guidance in her own transformation. She spent quite some time on her knees with her eyes closed in the sept. Pouring her soul out to the Seven Faced God. Knowing that no answer would come while she was on her knees, but having faith that they would hear and act. And faith manages. Faith can accomplish anything.

Sharra's purple eyes scanned the sept, but it was still empty. Still small. Still not the kind of sept a House like House Sylvayn should have. There were two exits. One to the outside, through which Sharra had entered. And another that continued on to the quarters of Septon Arlan and Septa Moirane.
This message was last edited by the GM at 09:28, Mon 27 July 2020.

Sharra stood and dusted off her skirt. Her prayers had helped her feel somewhat better. She frowned when she noticed no one was there. It was not a good sign that so few could be found in the Sept; not properly honoring God was a serious matter. "I'll have to set a better example" she mused to herself. It was the responsibility of a noble maiden to set an example for the other girls of the household. She turned and left to see if her brothers were around.

As Sharra left the sept, she saw Ser Ben Stone, the Master-at-arms, speaking to Brynden, her uncle's squire a little distance away from her.

[OOC: Do you want to ask them or go elsewhere?]

"Oh, Ser Ben!" Sharra called out. "Have you seen my brother? That is, Lord Sylvayn" she said, still awkward with the new title. If not, she would have to check her father's old chambers, where she did not want to go; it was still too painful.

Ser Ben came over to Sharra. "Mylady," he said. "I saw Lord Sylvayn earlier with your other brother and your uncle. They were leaving the castle. They didn't say why Mylady."


[OOC: I'm leaving the names of Gold's and Gray's characters out on purpose in case they decide to change them.]

Vandrose had been touring the castle, checking here and there to see how everything was going. Making a list of things that needed to be taken care of and listening to the advice of those who did certain things best. Walking around also helped him focus his thoughts on things in a grander scheme than the more precise focus that had to be applied to each matter while in the office.

Vandrose just happened to be passing by the others and heard them talking. “Lord Sylvayn is it?” Vandrose called out in a deep and serious voice. “That is a pompous way to refer to someone who always lost to you while playing Cat’s Cradle.” His voice now clearly chiding and playful as was the smile on Vandrose’s face as he walked up to join the others.

“Really,” he chuckled. “I still think it is fine to simply call me Vandrose or even just Van. Even if we are conducting business with others I think it is allowed as family privilege. Those we do business with can call me Lord Sylvayn so that they can think that are dealing with someone important.”

Brynden followed Ser Stone across to where Sharra and Vandrose were chatting.  He tried to straighten himself up on the walk over, hoping that Sharra and the lord had not seen this. He wanted look good in front of the household but he did not want them to know that.

"Mylord, mylady."  Bryden greeted the two Sylvayn.  "Do you know where my master is?"  He asked.

"Thank you Ser Ben" Sharra said politely.

"Vandrose!" Sharra called out and rushed to give her brother a hug. "It's good to see you." After the hug, she stood back and curtsied "My lord." She must remember her manners. What does a maiden have, but her manners and her honor?

She giggled. "Well, you should have known better than to challenge me. Making shapes with string is too much like making shapes with thread for me to fail at it."

"Hello, Bryden. No, I don't think I do" she answered.

As they were standing there talking, near the small sept and the more well-appointed training grounds, Maester Artos hurried towards them in his rough robe and his puny chain.

"Mylord. Mylady." he said and bowed to Vandrose and Sharra. "We have received a raven from our liege." He gave the small scroll with the impressions of a falcon and a crescent moon in the blue wax to Vandrose.

“My, Artos, you are quick.” Vandrose’s said as the maester hurried toward them. “Take a moment to catch your breath. Then you can read it out loud to us if you’d like, or simply hand it over if you think the message is of a sensitive nature?”

"You never know if it is sensitive until you have read it," Artos said. "But as you command." He opened it and read it silently. He then spoke aloud.

"Lord Arryn commands that we arrange the wedding of Perryanne Corbray and Darke Melcolm two months hence. We should make all arrangements, including a hunt. The Corbrays will pay for the wedding. The two Houses have already agreed to the union." Artos then handed the opened scroll to Vandrose.


[OOC:
Some information that your characters know.
* The Corbrays and the Melcolms have been rivals for years and Lord Arryn apparently needs a third party to host the wedding.
* Your sept is not large enough for a wedding such as this.
* The Shepherds have the largest sept in the Vale.
* But you can house more guests than they can.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:06, Sat 08 Aug 2020.

"A wedding, how wonderful! That should be lovely, the feasts, the dancing." Sharra gushed. "That's just what we need after these, these miserable times."

Vandrose pondered over the situation. “How should we best prepare for this wedding? Even though we can host more guests than any of our neighbors, our sept is not large enough to do such a ceremony justice. I doubt the participants will want to lodge here and ride all the way to another house just for the wedding and then want to ride all the way back just to have a place to sleep.”

"Is there a third option," Artos asked? "Something here, but not in our sept?"

“Is it permissible to have a wedding out doors in a garden?” Vandrose asked the advice of all those gathered there. “If that would not be considered an insult or classless, we could decorate a garden with finery fit for a king.”

"I think it would be best to ask Septon Arlan about that," Artos said.

"We only need to arrange it" Sharra pointed out. "We don't necessarily need to have it here. Although I do love gardens."

"I may have not conveyed Lord Arryn's intentions very well," Artos said. "It seems he expects us to host it. So the various locations couldn't be too far from here."

"Oh!" Sharra said, pouting a little that her idea didn't work. "I suppose I shall ask the Septon if the garden is suitable. It's not nearly enough time to expand the Sept, is it?" She didn't think so, but what she knew about construction could be put on the head of a pin, so that didn't mean much.

"Unfortunately not," Artos said. "It would take at least a year to build a sept that large. Perhaps even more. And I don't think we'd get away with hosting any portion of the festivities further away than on Cragborn lands. And even that might be too far, unless we can make the journey part of the festivities in some way."

The two Sylvayn siblings and Maester Artos didn't have to go very far to get to the Septon's quarters.

They went around the small sept and up a small set of stairs to a roofed outdoor corridor leading from the sept into a building where the clergy, among others, lived. It was built in typical Vale architecture and two levels up and a couple of corridors away, they came to his door. There were noises coming from the other side of the door.

"Septon Arlan?" Sharra called out, her voice respectful and deferential. "May we see you?"

The noises stopped.

"I'll be right there," the Septon said.

It took a couple of minutes.

A 16-year-old servant opened the door.

"Milord. Milady." she said and curtsied for the two Sylvayns before she left.

"How can I be of assistance," old Septon Arlan asked, standing before them in full Septon dress

“Good day, Septon.” Vandrose said in greeting. “I hope that we are not disturbing you, but we find ourselves in a unique situation. Lord Arryn has requested that we host a wedding, and we were wondering if it would be suitable protocol to have the event outdoors in the gardens.”

Vandrose looked around curiously as he awaited the answer.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:53, Wed 12 Aug 2020.

"Not at all mylord," Arlan said. "Weddings are not ordinarily performed outdoors. But it wouldn't be the first time it happened. From what I understand, even royalty has been married outdoors. But those were generally smaller affairs. But yes, even large weddings between important nobility has been conducted outdoors in the past. The more naturally beautiful the site, the better."

Sharra curtsied to the Septon when he appeared; you could never show God's representative too much respect. "Septon Arlan, it is good to see you" she said respectfully. She perked up when hearing that the more beautiful the area, the better. "Oh, that's perfect! We'll plant flowers!"

Vandrose tried to keep his face neutral as realization filled his brain. “Thank you, Septon Arlan. This is beneficial news indeed. We will have to begin preparing the gardens right away. I am sure that there are a number of different decorating choices that we can make to make this a most memorable and suitable wedding.”

"Of course mylord," Arlan said. "I am here to serve. Is there anything else mylord or mylady needs?"

“No, just the question of protocol.” Vandrose smiled. “We should probably let you get back to your day and begin planning out the event. I am sure Sharra will have a million ideas to put forth before all is said and done.”

Vandrose turned to his sister.“What do you say? Are you already envisioning everything down to the cutlery?”

"Nothing for me at this time, Septon Arlaon" Sharra said. Actually, she'd like him to prepare, but a maiden didn't give orders to a septon of the Seven.

"And who are getting married," the septon asked.

The siblings and the maester left the Septon's quarters having informed him of who the "happy" couple would be and securing a promise that Arlan would officiate at the wedding. After which he continued his day of ministering to his flock.

"Aren't you excited for this?" Sharra asked her brother. "I can't wait!"

"I don't have quite a millionmideas, but I've got lots to think about."

“I don’t know that excited is the right word.” Vandrose admitted honestly. “But I do think of it as a bit of a challenge, so that does make it fun.”

“If we can make it as beautiful and wonderful as possible, it may give us some political clout. I know that isn’t how most would look at such a romantic occasion, but in practicality, this could help improve how others perceive us in the future.”

"It may be a good idea to delegate the responsibility of planning and or completing various tasks to make sure that we take full advantage of this opportunity," Maester Artos said. "And have them report to mylord. Preparing for a wedding can take a lot of time."

"Do you want me to send ravens to Lord Arryn and the families in question to confirm that everything is going according to plan, mylord?"

Sharra frowned. "Vandrose, if think about it that way and you aren't careful, you're going to ruin all the enjoyment for yourself, and then where will you be?"

"I think we should send a raven."

Vandrose nodded. “Yes please, Artos. And if you could ask in the message if anyone has any objections to an outside wedding, I would much appreciate it.”

Turning back to his sister, Vandrose added. “Or it could be more fun for me than anyone could realize.” Van laughed. “What about lighted tent pavilions? Bright colors on top, but sheer curtains and open air swaths on the side? It would be like each area was it’s own little kingdom, looking in on other kingdoms.”

Artos bowed to Lord Sylvayn when he had received his orders. "I will do that my Lord," he said and left the two as Vandrose and Sharra continued sharing ideas about the wedding.

"That's the spirit!" Sharra said happily. "I do like bright colors" she added, then looked down at her dress. Following the death of their father, she had not been wearing bright colors. "We want things to be as cheerful as they can be for the wedding. I wonder if we can hire some entertainment."

“Oh yes!” Vandrose agreed as Sharra looked down at her dress. It was indeed time for things to be livened up a bit. “We must at least have some music. I don’t think jugglers would be appropriate, but maybe some dancers as well.” What other types of entertainment would suffice? “ I suppose a few goblets of strong wine might provide even more entertainment for all. “

"We can't go without music and dancing at a wedding" Sharra said. She looked a little down; she loved both and missed them. "Not too strong... we can't afford drunkenness with the eyes of the Vale upon us." 

The siblings went inside and upstairs to a more private reception room where they found both their mother Alicent and their aunt Nyla, one of several Northerners who had found their way to the House. Two widows talking as women of means with too much time on their hand might.

The room was comfortable and well furnished with large comfortable chairs. There was a fire in a fireplace that heated up the room while crackling invitingly. There were painted beams in the ceiling that enhanced its domelike feel. The walls were covered by tapestries and decorative woodwork. As well as a couple of large windows.

The charming aunt with her brown hair and eyes and the olive undertone of her fair skin was much darker in color than the Sylvayns and her dress complemented her natural color.

Sharra curtsied deeply. "My Lady Mother, Lady Nyla. Might we have a moment to speak with you?" she asked deferentially.

"Of course," Alicent said with that perpetual smile on her resting face. And moved a strand of her light golden-brown hair behind her right ear. "How can we help the two of you?"

Sharra brightened to see her mother's smile. "We've been asked to host a wedding, mother! Isn't that wonderful? We have some questions about related issues."

"That is most wonderful," Alicent said and her smile widened as her resting face mirrored the exuberance in her voice.

"How can I be of help?"

“We were thinking of gathering the key planners in the solarium,” Vandrose explained. “But we thought that we would solicit your personal insight first. Where do we need help? Everywhere. We have to give the bride and groom the memory of a lifetime and prove our selves in the realm of politics as well.”

Alicent asked and the siblings filled her in on the details they had discussed so far as well as the details on who were going to be married in this unforgettable ceremony the Sylvayns would host.

It would be a garden or tent pavilion ceremony.
With entertainers and music and dancing.

"We need four days at the least. One day for everyone to arrive and make sure everyone has somewhere to sleep. As well as food for all."

"The second day would have the hunt that Lord Arryn has requested during the day and with the dance you suggested in the evening."

"The third day would be the ceremony itself with the Wedding Feast and the traditional bedding. And yes, there will be much drunkenness, tradition would expect nothing else. A dry affair would be a sad affair."

"And a fourth day where everyone leaves."

"Is that the basic set up you were considering?"


[OOC: This is the room I was referring to as the solar, but as I read more about the solar it also seems to be a sleeping chamber and that wasn't what I had in mind. In any case, this is the room I was intending.]

Sharra smiled to see her mother so happy. She blushed when her mother brought up the traditional bedding.
"That sounds about right, I can't wait for the dancing. Although I only hope I won't make a fool of myself during the hunt... and that nobody else will make a fool of themselves during the drinking."

"Someone always plays the fool," Alicient said. "There is always someone that drinks too much. Always someone who thinks he is better at dancing than he actually is. They usually know to stay away from the hunt though. But when they don't, that's where you usually find the biggest fools."

Sharra frowned. "Oh dear, I hadn't thought like that... I was hoping our guests would behave themselves, since the Arryns will be paying attention. We'll have to keep an eye on them"

"I think we can do that quite well," Alicient said. "Any plans on what prey you will hunt or what will be served?"

"Hmmm, I don't suppose we know what the bride or groom would prefer?" Sharra asked. "I don't believe I can recall, but it would look good if we could have it."

"I agree," Alicient said. "Who can find out what their favorite is for us?"

"I'll see what I can find out" Sharra offered. "It'd like to ask my friends, but it'd be silly to send out ravens."

"That sounds like a good plan," Alicient said. "Is there anything else that we're missing?"

Sharra giggled. "Well, I need to pick out the right dresses... but otherwise, I can't think of anything."