In The Excersise YardKenrith took his oaths seriously, especially those made in the grove. Before even entering the grove, however, he understood that he had preparations to make. He went through his possessions, and packed what he would need or want in the north. Everything else he either gave away or threw out. While no pack rat, he had a small pile of ruined clothes which he used while polishing armor and the like, and these were tossed into a communal tinder box which wouldn't be used until winter came to the south. He also made sure to eat filling meals on the day beforehand, as he didn't want to pass out during his vigil. He wouldn't have a chance to eat between taking his real oaths in the godswood and his ceremonial oaths in the Sept, and he would arrive in the grove before dawn and leave after sunset. For similar reasons, he went to bed quite early the evening before, as he would be rising well before dawn. As he prepared to enter the grove, he dressed practically. Much as one did not greet one's father in underclothes, Kenrith was not about to enter the temporal home of the old gods in a wool rag. Instead, he wore his newest and best clothing that was appropriate for spending time outdoors. His boots were freshly polished, and his tunic had only been worn once before. The path into Riverrun's godswood was familiar to him now, perhaps thanks to the fragility of memory it was better set in his mind than even the grove at Holdfast. Once he had reached the circle of towering wyrwoods at the approximate center of the grove, he seated himself and contemplated the red-eyed face as the sun rose over his right shoulder. Filtered through the canopy above, the rays of sunlight alternated bright an dim, red and green, warm and cold, as the day passed by. He thought back over his short life, and tried to place himself in the proper state of mind to commune with the old gods as he made this important step forward in his life. Gone, for now, were the concerns of the trip ahead and the long-held bitterness he carried in his heart over this or that injustice done. Even his irritation at the predations of the Seven into the north, and Westeros in general when he wished to hold grudges that ancient, was absent from his mind in this day of peace. There was simply himself, his words, the old gods, and their grove. Periodically, he would take a sip from his water skin or trace the vertical course of the wyrwoods upwards into the sky. As the noonday sun shined down on him through the branches, he started to speak his oaths. He swore to speak the truth. He swore to be brave. He swore to defend those in need of defense. He swore to Hold Fast. He swore many things, and all of them knightly... but when he was finished, he still had half of a day ahead alone in the grove. He spent it quietly contemplating what he had committed himself to, both in speaking his oaths before the old gods, and in following this course in life in general. As the sun started to set behind the 'low' walls of Riverrun, Kenrith thought back on what was perhaps his most important trip to the godswood. The trip which he had thought to be his last. Surely, Rhys and the old gods had saved him on that day. Kenrith understood, on this day, something he should have realized long ago. There was at least one thing the old gods meant for him to do. As the last rays of the sun passed beyond the artificial stone horizon, he said "And I swear I will do this last thing you intend for me, though I know not what it is." With these words spoken, he rose on tingling legs and trotted towards where he would make his ablutions in cold water and dress in his colorless wool shift before making his way barefoot to the Sept for his nightlong vigil. As he sat on the bench in the Sept, his skin still stung from the vigorous scrubbing he had endured. The woolen shift was itching upon this burning, and this was probably to help keep him awake. The cold evening air did its part as well. ~So much of the Faith was unnessisarily debasing or uncomfortable~, Kenrith thought, as he looked around at Riverrun's sept. Unlike the septs Kenrith had seen in the north, each of the seven was represented by a statue. In the north, each nitche would have been filled with its own intricately carved mask. Here, each was carved larger-than-life in marble. Kenrith busied himself during the evening with silent recitations of his formal oaths and the other details of the ceremony. It certainly wouldn't be the horrifically formal affair that the king's sons would one day endure, with speeches and supplications and benedictions from... what amounted to far too many people with far too many hollow words. As the first rays of dawn passed through the carefully constructed and placed glass windows of the Sept, Kenrith rose from the bench and walked out of the Sept along the well-worn path which brought him, eventually, to the Tully's great hall. While few would ordinarily be up this early, he did see some onlookers out of the corners of his eyes. It seemed that all of Ser Grell's other trainees had come out for the event, as had others who Kenrith had interacted on a daily basis. He did not turn his head to nod and smile, as he might have on another day. He also didn't wince much as bare feet settled onto what turned out to be a quite pointed rock. His going was fairly easy, however. He recalled when Geoff had gone up for knighthood the year previous, how he and the other lads had swept the path he must walk to prevent such ocurrances. He had -also- heard of knights who had faced the opposite treatment... pointed stones and even bits of broken glass had been 'secretly' placed to deter him. It was said that once one had begun one's vigil, if the aspirant didn't complete the ceremony it was because the Seven did not grant him dispensation to become a knight... Kenrith paused at the threshhold of the hall to bow to his sponsors, Lord Tully and Ser Grell. Each sponsor bowed in turn, although not as low. They were dressed in fine gilded armor, each with gleaming fish helms under one arm. The Septon was dressed in his finest rainbow robe, and much of the rest of the court had turned out in their finery as well to witness. After a short benediction, the Septon called for the supplicant to step forward and kneel. Kenrith had been waiting attentively for this moment, and strode forward with a touch of nervous haste before he checked his pace. The Septon stepped forwards and anointed Kenrith with the seven sacred oils of knighthood. His uncle, Ser Grell, moved behind him and placed his hands on Kenrith's asymetric upper forearms. Again, Kenrith had been expecting this, and so did not jump when his uncle touched his withered, senseless limb. As he was permitted nothing but his woolen shift, it would be hanging lifelessly at his side if he hadn't caught hold of his flopping hand and folded the pair in his lap. Lord Tully called out "In the name of the Father, I charge you to be just." And Kenrith replied, "I swear to this charge." Next, Lord Tully called out "In the name of the Warrior, I charge you to be brave." And Kenrith replied, "I swear to this charge." As he touched his drawn blade to Kenrith's right shoulder, Lord Tully called out "In the name of the Smith, I charge you to be humble." And Kenrith again replied, "I swear to this charge," without pause. The lord called out "In the name of the Mother, I charge you to defend the young and innocent," as he touched Kenrith's left shoulder. Although Kenrith understood it was coming, he did twich slightly as the blade touched his lame shoulder. He could feel the touch more in his neck than he could in his arm, just as he felt his left hand as a sense of clammyness clasped within his right. After a momentary pause, though, he replied "I swear to this charge," Lord Tully continued, "In the name of the Maid, I charge you to protect all women." Kenrith replied as he had before, "I swear to this charge," with the same ancient strength in his voice. Finally, Lord Tully touched the blade to the crown of Kenrith's head with deliberate care and called out "In the name of the Stranger, I charge you to honour even those mysteries you cannot understand," And Kenrith replied, "I so swear to this charge, and again to each you have put before me." Lord Tully smiled as he removed the ceremonial gold-gilt from the top of Kenrith's head and passed it off to his left to the Septon. "Then rise, Ser Kenrith Hardy, and do honour to your family, your sworn house, your king, and the Gods. I pronounce you a knight on this day. Remember these words, for it may fall to you some day to raise up another into the order of the Knighthood, to protect all that we hold dear." As Kenrith stood, the ritual atmosphere was broken by the claps of those gathered around the great hall. Ser Grell and Lord Tully led him, and the assembled behind them, to the celebratory meal that had been prepared in honor of the occasion. Categories: WinterChillsGameLogs |
