Scrutinising Isidor's Suitors

[votivescholars]

The discussions had been long and intense. Apart from the Tenemil boy, each of the potential suitors Lieselotte had found had been fought for, and against, by each of them at various points. The genetic advantage of Andolian as a husband was a particular point of contention. Genetically Andolian was clearly the best match, Vercor pointed out, and the goal of marriage was to strengthen the bloodline. In return Lieselotte was quick to say that if he really thought that then he would have married a Scottish girl instead of her. Stathis sat uncomfortably through most of the arguments except for the odd occasion he intervened with an unhappy grumble or a small rant.

At the end of it all they were down to two. Lieselotte championed 'the handsome Zandros' while Stathis supported 'the Leywalker boy'. Vercor was not going to choose anyone based solely on a second hand account, even his wife's, so they soon found themselves calling on Harrowheart once again. Lieselotte asks the death knight to arrange for Zandros Alter to come to the Durant manor on one day and Basil Leywalker on the second. Both are allowed to bring their parents for the visit, and are assured that this is not a formal event (though they are advised not to treat it casually either). Both will get a list of the customs and manners expected of them for meeting the Archon. A list which, though they ask Harrowheart to write in his native language, is rewritten by someone with a finer hand.

When the first day comes Harrowheart is asked to come to the manor ahead of time so that Lieselotte can run over some rules. Namely, how to address the Archon, and how to introduce him. Then, finally, Harrowheart gets to meet the infamous Archon Durant, Accomplished Scholar of Magic Itself, creator of Dragonfire, and father of Isidor Briar Durant.

Comments

Day Two - After the Manor: Harrowheart

[heirtothearcane]

Today a lot has been revealed that Viatorus was completely and utterly unaware of. While that isn't usually a surprise when it comes to his family, this time it's about something life changing. He knew Isidor would have to get married some day, but he didn't know his parents were already looking for someone. Never in his wildest dreams would he have imagined they would ask Harrowheart for help with it, or look for a husband in Azeroth. If they had told him that before he would have been anxious, worried for Isidor... but after meeting Basil he was already reassured.

Although Harrowheart seemed a little... off in the manor, Viatorus was eager to talk to his friend about this new revelation. So he messaged Harrowheart and sat on a bench in the park, waiting for him to appear.

[westfallcorndog]

Twice now. It's twice now that Harrowheart has had to meet with Viatorus with the spectre of negativity haunting him.

When he sees his friend his lips twitch in the shadow of a smile, and without a proper greeting he drops heavily into the bench beside the mage. He sits still, utterly still, until finally he breathes in only to sigh a cold and foggy rush of air through his nostrils. Only then can he try again for a smile, this time just a hair more believable.

"V," he says. "What's up, my man?"

[heirtothearcane]

Yet again Viatorus brightens when he sees Harrowheart, but contains his excitement so that he doesn't make a scene by yelling before Harrowheart is in speaking distance. That is... until he realises that Harrowheart looks... tired. It feels... oddly familiar, but also not. It certainly doesn't look right on Harrowheart.

"Um." He starts, then hesitates. Excited as he is, he can't help but be a little concerned. "I... I'm fine. Good. Great. Fine." He turns away to clear his throat and then puts on a gentle smile for Harrowheart. "How are you? You... You seem a little... tired?"

[westfallcorndog]

"Tired?" he asks, and with it comes a tiny huff of a laugh. "I think... My head is full, that's all. I've had a lot of thoughts lately. It's like working out a muscle I haven't used in a while."

A more sincere though still quiet laugh comes now when he says, "So maybe I am tired. But you seem pretty lively, huh? Saw you smilin' from all the way off. You got some good news to wake me up with?"

[heirtothearcane]

Viatorus nods along in understanding. If Harrowheart was helping his parents the way he had to, it would almost certainly be very tiring.

"Well, I-I wanted to make sure you were alright, partly." He smiles guiltily and lifts a shoulder. "I didn't know you were helping the Archon. That can be... a lot of pressure."

"A-And I wanted to talk to you about Basil- Ah, Mr. Leywalker," he continues excitedly. "They don't want me to talk to Isidor about anything yet, but you know. I've never met a real Kirin Tor mage before, a-and you've told me so much about them. Hearing about them was exciting, but meeting one was everything I could have hoped. He made us a cake! Just like you said they could! Out of thin air, just like that!"

[westfallcorndog]

"I'm not helpin' the Archon," Harrowheart corrects. "I'm helpin' Isidor."

He pauses a moment to think about everything Viatorus has said about Basil. Though his expression had grown distant when he listened, now it softens. He blinks as his gaze shifts around the park, but quite a bit more silence passes before he turns his weary eyes back to Viatorus. Another little smile for his friend.

"Sounds like you really like him, huh? He really made you a cake? Was it any good? 'Cause, you know, if you get a spouse who makes cakes, Isidor probably deserves one, too."

He waits again, quiet once more until he thinks to ask, "You didn't think he was borin' or nothin'?"

[heirtothearcane]

The correct gets a double take, but once Harrowheart's words have been processed Viatorus nods vigorously in agreement. Really, who he was helping isn't the point. The point is he brought a cool Kirin Tor mage round and Viatorus got to meet him.

Harrowheart's joke about bakers for spouses gets a laugh from the scholar that is, perhaps, a little over exuberant. Although that might just be his social awkwardness coming into play since he catches himself and clears his throat, covering his mouth. "Yes. It. It was a good cake. It was a sponge cake with strawberries and cream and it tasted a little strange, but it was nice. I've never seen anyone conjure cake before. I've never seen anyone with an eye or arm like his before- Well, Lawrence, but this was different?"

He gasps suddenly and turns to face Harrowheart fully. "And he did this display- To show us his magic, you know. And he summoned a creature like a minotaur- Well I'd thought he summoned it at first, but it turned out it was just an illusion. I didn't know that though. When it swung at us we could feel the air move past our heads, but then it charged at Basil and gored him! Except Basil had made copies of himself and taken it down and it turned out getting gored was just part of the illusion too..."

[westfallcorndog]

Viatorus gets to the part about Basil's magic and halfway through has to blink hard. He chuckled, filled with a little more energy himself now, and taps V's arm with the back of one of his floating hands.

"I don't think I've ever heard you this excited about somethin', man! Listen to you! You're actin' like you met Khadgar himself!"

Another laugh, louder this time, and Harrowheart corrects his sloppy posture. He spends a few seconds smiling at Viatorus before he shakes his head until he's looking away. After a few seconds of silence he slyly turns a scheming grin on V and asks, "Were you scared when he got gored?..."

[heirtothearcane]

Harrowheart calls Viatorus out on getting excited and the mage checks himself, closing his mouth and ducking his head guiltily. He's met mages before, but this was an Azerothian mage. How is that not exciting?

"Of course I was scared," Viatorus answers with a blink. Then his cheeks start to turn red. "I know, I should have realised it was an illusion. But it was so real! I've never seen anyone get hurt like that before. He'd only just come over and had a small chat with us and suddenly he was killed by a minotaur. It was scary..." He shuffles on the spot and shrugs, trying to hide his embarrassment. "Until I realised it was an illusion. I'm glad it wasn't real, of course, but I should have known."

Viatorus' gaze slips off into the distance for a minute and then he smiles at Harrowheart again. "I really hope I get to meet him again. He and the Archon discussed continuing to meet even if he isn't chosen to be Isidor's husband. I hope it works out. He's so nice, Harrowheart, and friendly, and he was so patient with me. You'll like him- Oh." A nervous laugh slips out. "I suppose you've already met him."

[westfallcorndog]

Viatorus flails and Harrowheart smiled softly. He drapes his arm around his friend's shoulder and pulls him in for a roomy half hug. Only when he's holding his friend does Harrowheart suddenly feel the absence of all the people he's grown distant from of late.

He realizes too late that those thoughts have him holding Viatorus a little closer now than he ought to and he lets his friend have his space with a self-conscious laugh. "Sheesh, Viatorus, who's gettin' married to him, your sister or you?" he teases. Yes, that's the trick. Transfer your shame onto others.

"I have met him, yes. I didn't see what you see in him. But, then again... I didn't see the friend in you when we first met, either. Still, I... Think Isidor's gonna see him like I see him more than like you do. But."

He eyes Viatorus up and down. "If you liked him so much, I bet we could arrange a trip to Dalaran for you. I know where he lives, don't I? I'm the one who found him, after all. You could even finally put on that cute little outfit with the hat and the tabard."

[heirtothearcane]

The slight pink to Viatorus' cheeks turns into a tomato red and he squirms at the joking. He has been gushing a bit, hasn't he? But even though he tries to calm himself he can't help but feel a deep sense of disappointment when Harrowheart doesn't share his enthusiasm.

Just as quickly as his expression drops he's back to blushing and spluttering. "D-Don't do that!" He turns his gaze and hides his face with an anxious scratching at his hairline, mumbling, "I'd feel silly wearing it in front of him. It would be like wearing a costume in front of the real thing. I mean... I'm not actually Kirin Tor."

[westfallcorndog]

Flustered squirming, oh how it gives life to this old corpse! Harrow tosses his head back and laughs in a way he feels he hasn't in quite a while. "Whaddya mean 'don't do that?' Show up dressed like a Kirin Tor apprentice and tell him it's an illusion! He'll get a laugh out of it, I promise! I know for a fact he's a jokester. But if you wanna be that way, we'll take you dressed in your usual getup. You won't stand out too bad."

Harrow pats V's knee and looks away briefly before bringing his attention back to his friend. "You think your folks liked him? I mean, you think they'll pick him? You really make him sound like a good mage... And I ain't ever seen you excited like this about another person, so he must have been real fun without me around. But do you think he'd be a good husband?"

[heirtothearcane]

A laugh? Viatorus… hadn't considered trying to make him laugh. Maybe that shouldn't surprise him. He has to admit, he's never been much good at joking around like Harrowheart does. It gets him to stop and reconsider the idea right up until Harrowheart asks him if the Archon liked Basil.

Viatorus wilts without realising. They probably don't like him. His mother is always so good at putting up pretences, his uncle doesn't like anyone the first time he meets them, and the Archon… The idea of the Archon liking Basil flits by like a wisp and disappears. Like Harrowheart said, Isidor probably wouldn't see Basil the same way he had and the Archon is far more like Isidor than him.

"I think he'd be a great husband," Viatorus says eventually. "Whether he'd be a good husband for Isidor, though…" He shrugs and fidgets. "I don't know. I couldn't say. It depends if Isidor likes him or not. That's all that matters, really."

Why does that make his stomach knot strangely? Viatorus tries to inject some enthusiasm into his voice. "But either way I hope he's around more. Then we'll have another friend from Azeroth." His mouth twitches into a smile. "And when you come to our parties you'll have someone to complain with about the strange Earth mages."

[westfallcorndog]

Another friend from Azeroth. It makes Harrowheart smile in a way that it shouldn't. It isn't often that he feels his friend is wrong, but maybe that's the humorous element of it all. Viatorus couldn't be more wrong about it, Harrow figures. Just seeing Basil -- and Zandros -- sends an untamed anger through his numb body. How could Viatorus expect them to be friends?

But then he has to go and say something legitimately funny and Harrow, taken by surprise, coughs a laugh. "Yeah," he says, smiling much more kindly now. He pats Viatorus' arm. "Yeah, I will, won't I?"

He looks away. Thinks. When his attention comes back around his smile has waned from his face but remains in his quiet voice. "Anyone ever accuse you of bein' optimistic?"

Idly as he looks away he pats Viatorus' knee. "I'll ask Elune for your folks to pick Basil. A new friend for you and a nice husband for Isidor..."

He goes quiet, loses himself and his focus in the workings of his mind. It's a few long seconds before he turns back and asks, "You didn't meet the other guy, did you? Zandros?"

[heirtothearcane]

Once Harrowheart laughs, Viatorus beams fully. He made a joke that Harrowheart liked! That always gives him a small pang of pride. It's his turn to laugh when Harrowheart asks about his optimism. "You do! All the time!"

He settles down into a large, happy smile while Harrowheart talks about asking Elune for help. In that moment he's content in his little bubble where the future is set to have a lot more of his new Azerothian mage friend. Maybe he could help teach Basil how to draw. Would he be better because of his arm? His arm... What is it like to use magic with that arm...?

Suddenly he realises Harrowheart is speaking to him and he stops chewing at the inside of his lip to blink at the death knight. Oh. He was asking about... another... suitor...? Viatorus blinks again and slowly shakes his head. "I... didn't hear or see anything about someone else. It was just Basil." A small worried crease appears between his eyebrows. "There's someone else? Did you meet him? Do you know what my pa- Wh-what the Archon thinks of him?"

[westfallcorndog]

It's a treat to sit a moment with his smiling friend. Viatorus has a way of radiating positivity that uproots Harrowheart from the deepest malaise or anger, and right now that passive magic is working perfectly.

Until he himself has to go and ruin it. Why did he even bring that man up? And why, of all things, is it Viatorus' anxiety that makes him feel most guilty? Just seconds before he'd been so excited about Basil. Mentioning that someone else might deprive Viatorus a chance at a friend so very like himself feels criminal in hindsight.

"I met him," Harrowheart says, then pauses for a breath he only needs emotionally. "I think the Archon liked him. After he showed off his magic, the Archon shook his hand. I..."

No. He's not saying anymore about that 'display.' Instead he forces a smile and jostles Viatorus lightly. "I don't think what he did compares to Basil's illusions, by the sounds of it. I think your new little buddy'll be part of the gang before you know it."

It's strange how much he suddenly hopes that's true.