The kings room

As a King's Guard you could expect to stand before the door of the Kings Room for hours. As King's Guard you were expected to be able to save the King at any moment of the day. So standing at the of his room was one of the common tasks. People went in en people went out. Advisers, knights, people who went on a patrol, and such. He watched them closely as they went in and when they came out. Watched for any sign of trouble, ready to strike if needed. But those people were mostly trusted, so Tamlin just stood there.
And as he stood there he drifted away in his thoughts. Thinking about his father, who was Lord Commander of the King's Guard. Trying to picture him, his hair color, his eye color, his skin color, those where the things he remembered, but the picture of his father in his head kind of blurred, just as the picture of his mother, though, he could picture her better than his father. He also thought often about his brother, what he did to him. Lucien wore a mask because of him, though, the mask didn't help covering his scars and fake eye. It stayed visible. While Tamlin stood there, thinking, his features were cold, empty. He was just standing there, on guard. He knew that it wouldn't be long until he could do something else, maybe with the king, or maybe the king would release him and set Lucien on Guard and give Tamlin another task. There was enough to do. What the King commands was his duty.

OOC: Ik ben geen ster in begin posts en als je liever verder gaat in t NL zie ik dat wel.

Tamlin wondered if he'd be able to be king. All the stress, all the meetings, al the duty's, decisions, et cetera. No, that was nothing for Tamlin. The blonde elf male was best at fighting, protecting, maybe giving some advise, especially based on war and leading, but also in that case based on fighting and protecting, war. But now he was just standing there, listening, observing and feeling a kind of bored. He understood why he had to do this, but that didn't take away that standing on guard was the most boring part of being a King's Guard. His feline instincts made him alert, a good listener and a good observer. So if something happened he'd be the first to notice. Tamlin would storm inside and do what he had to do. Tamlin was someone who could act quick and well. Another group of humans walked past in the hallways, talking about some selling business, nothing special. The one guy was complaining about a bad trade he made today. Others were talking about the winter that was on its way and again, other people were talking about the current peace, a peace that didn't feel that peaceful. Tamlin only snorted. Yes, he felt it too, but he wasn't too concerned. And if he was really honest with himself, he wouldn't mind fighting on the fields again.

A human guy left the Kings Room and greeted him. Tamlin grumbled a greeting back and went silent again. When the guy left around the corner a big yawn left his mouth. He rapidly closed his mouth again and stretched his back. It wouldn't be long from now on. And yes, the door of the Kings Room opened again and King Thriumph appeared. He ordered him to come in and Tamlin obeyed. The tall elf walked into the big kingly room and scanned his surroundings. He always did, even though he knew everything was okay inside this room. He trusted his King. Thriumph Medici gestured him a seat and Tamlin sat down. He used to complain about the human furniture, it was on the small side, especially for a full blood elf like Tamlin. Tamlin watched the king as he grabbed two glasses and a bottle of wine and he couldn't resist a small grin. The king sat down and asked him a question with cold eyes focust on his. Tamlin knew that the mand before him was a special kind of man, but he didn't distrust him of dislike him. Tamlin was more curious in some way, wanted to know more about him. Why people left this room with a big cloud of unease around them. "The usual, complaining about bad trades or some showoff because of a massive profit someone made, some whispering I couldn't quite overhear and some people were talking about the current 'peace' that runs over Fallen Skies," he took the glass of wine Thriumph had shoved toward him and took a small sip. "But there was one thing that took me by surprise," Tamlin pinned his feline eyes in those of Thriumph. "Rumors that Aeron has moved to Nordshal," Tamlin said and his gaze became a little sharp. He hated Aeron because of what he'd done. It was not that Tamlin was still mourning his parents, but once Tamlin wanted to take revenge, avenge some loved ones, he'd hold on to that idea.

- Ik moest ff wat random verzinnen qua rumors op de gang haha.

The room was rather empty, there was a fire place, though there was now fire in it, a table and a couple of chairs, a map to the wall and a detailed map of Navarre on the table. Tamlin let his gaze slide over the map, seeing the names of the towns and small city's, forests, rivers and meadows. On the top in the north of Navarre was the completely burned down place, though, nature was doing her best to recover, which was notable. Tamlin knew that this map was used for strategics, such as patrols. The borders were on it, which were important for those patrols. Sometimes when Tamlin was of duty, he would go on one of those patrols, only when The King himself gave him the order to do so. Tamlin was Kings Guard and so he was ought to obey.

Tamlin laid his arms on the table and made himself comfortable. He wasn't that tired, though it felt good to give his long legs some rest. Tamlin listened, when Thriumph spoke. He nodded at his words. Tamlin took a sip of his wine and let the warmth of it slide down his throat. Thriumph started explaining and Tamlin nodded again at his words and noticed his grin. Tamlin himself grinned a little too. "That's true, your grace," he responded, taking another sip. But then he decided to bring up the rumors about Aeron Medici. Thriumph repeated the name slowly and Tamlin narrowed his eyes a bit, wondering what the reaction of the King would be. At the kings words Tamlin nodded. "A young lady, wasn't she?" He reacted. Tamlin flexed his jaws when Thriumph spoke again. "Nordshal gets a new leader and Aeron moves there... The new leader is a young lady, a child. It sounds like Aeron wants power again, doesn't it?" Tamlin spoke, narrowing his eyes and rotating his glass of wine before he took another sip.

The wine had a fine sweet, refreshing taste, just the way Tamlin liked it. He could smell the aromas of the different grapes in it. A good, fine combination for sure. He wondered for a moment if this wine came from Rhoynar. Since Rhoynar had the perfect climate to make the best wines from all over Fallen Skies. It wouldn't surprise him, since D'auvignon was a trading spot, so all kinds of products came here, eventually. And surely the king had the finest wines of them all, right?

Thirumph Medici told him how rumors and the usual had brought him to a council of his brother. He told him that he'd to listen for two very long days to the crap everyone had to say, but it had seemed to be worth it. Tamlin took in his words and gave himself a moment to think about it. Then he nodded as a response. It was true, the boring, the usual and the stupid could lead to very interesting things in the end. That was his response a look of understanding.
The conversation went further and the subject changed to Aeron Medici and the Lady, a Child, of Nordshall. King Thriumph told him that the young lady was an exceptional for a leader. That must be so, since she was very young. Then Thriumph continued about Aeron and Tamlin nodded. He knew that Aeron was hungery for power. "I’ve send scouts to Norshall already, I know my brother and I know how much it infuriates him that I’m on the throne," Was what Thriumph said. Tamlin nodded in agreement and got an alert look in his eyes at the end of the sentence. "On any throne to be honest." And that was one of the reasons why his job as Kings Guard was so important. Not that Thriumph wasn't capable of defending himself, but still. "I will keep my eyes open for any signs that Aeron's people are inside these walls," Tamlin spoke. Not that he hadn't done so already, but it seemed like it was necessary to be even more alert. "And is there something else I might be useful for?" He then decided to ask, because that's what Tamlin wanted to be, useful. That's something his life was all about.

PS: Tamlin is nooit een elf geweest, daar heb ik toestemming voor, so you can forget about that~

Tamlin thought of Thriumph as a mysterious man. He didn't know much, though, he did know something about the man he served. He was the man he would give his life for, since he pledged to do so. Tamlin had gotten close to the king, as far as possible, to get a higher position so he would get a better shot of killing the man who had killed his parents. That seemed fair, right? And, seeing Tamlin had gotten so far, he wanted to get to know Thriumph much better, get more knowledge about the King of Navarre. Tamlin possessed quite a position, so he could just as well make use of it. Was this king worth giving his life for? For now he believed so.

Tamlin spoke to the king, while he was taking a sip of his wine. When Tamlin was done talking, he toke another sip of his own wine, finishing what was left and then figuring the wine started kicking in. His skin felt warm and he felt somewhat lightheaded. He did not drink alcohol that often and Tamlin was just a young man. The king approved what he did and then added that he had to keep his eyes open for those who were eager to hear about the rumors. Tamlin nodded at the words of the king. That seemed like a doable task. The following words kind of surprised him. Did Thriumph just give him a compliment? Tamlin chuckled at that. "Thank you, sire," he said.
When Thriumph had told him that he had to train harder en more often, that war was closer than ever. Tamlin narrowed his eyes and took another sip of his wine, while he let the word sink in. He then nodded, while straightening his back. "I will do that," he then said and not able to resist a grin. It seemed stupid, but the idea of needing to train more, preparing for war, comforted the young shapeshifter.
The king made a request to come and hunt with him the next day. Tamlin felt kind of surprised but nodded. "I'd like that," he said, and then he curled his lips to a feline grin. "How would you like me? Bow and arrow? Or fangs and claws?" He arched an eyebrow, waiting for the response of the king. Yes, the winde had kicked in, because Tamlin talked way to comfortable. Did it matter?

Tamlin was known for being a fighter, loving to fight and fighting to rough. Yes, maybe he enjoyed fighting a bit too much. And if King Thriumph was aware about that, he didn’t seem to mind, maybe he even approved it. As a kid Tamlin had been a rough fighter, wounding his classmates and even hurting the teachers at time. He had almost been kicked out, but that hadn’t happened. He was too good, to precious to have as a knight, eventually. And now he was one of The Kings Guard and he had himself under control. Sure, Tamlin could be aggressive and rather hot-tempered. But that was just his personality and he didn’t bother anyone with it anymore.

Tamlin had been a member of the Kings Guard for almost two years now. He would turn twenty three within five months now. That was kind of long comparing to some others. He, Lucien and Rhysand were a stable group now. Tamlin suspected that he was the closest to the king, comparing to the others. Was it because of his ambitious? Or was there another reason? Whatever it was, Tamlin had nothing against it.
Thriumph answered his reaction toward the commands with a ‘good’. Tamlin had no problems with the idea of war coming, needing to train harder, stay alert. He even liked it in a way. That were the things that kept him going.
The dark smile which crept on the lips of The king wasn’t noticed by Tamlin. He chuckled at the words of the king. Tamlin was always in for a hunt, it was a second nature to Tamlin. As soon as Tamlin had come of age, he would go out hunting from time to time. Just to keep the lion underneath his skin satisfied. “I think it does,” he replied to the question of the king. Tamlin took a pleasure out of hunting himself and it did satisfy him to kill his prey, now that he thought about it. Then he asked the king whether he wanted him with bow and arrow, or fangs and claws. He was to decide himself. Well, Lion it is then. Since he was best at hunting with all his instincts on sharp. “Lion it is, then,” he spoke, grinning. His blue eyes sharpened with a feline gleam. Of course, the lion in him personalized him for who he was. You couldn’t expect him to be completely human. The lion also explained his hot-tempered, sharp personality and his dominance toward others. Not to the king, since he respected him.

Tamlin became truly honest when he was drinking alcohol. Of course, he wouldn’t reveal anything important about the Royalty, or anything that he knew which wasn’t meant for others. But when it came to himself, he would be an open book. The more he drank, the more he would reveal. That was probably a reason why he didn’t like drinking. He hardly did it anyway and if he did it, he would only do it with people he trusted mostly. And yes, he did trust the King. Tamlin had no secrets. He was loyal and he did know that he was doing good. Yes, he is a confident man.

The question Thriumph Medici asked him surprised him a bit. He took a sip of his refilled glass of wine and narrowed his eyes for a moment. Tamlin had fought a lot in his life as Kings Guard, even killed people. It had never bothered him. “It depends on the situation, I guess. But I do think that it doesn’t bother most people,” he answered. A save answer. His next question made him think again. “I guess it’s power indeed. But again, I think it depends on the situation, depends on why you’re killing. Revenge, justice, survival, self-defense, and so on,” he decided to say. Tamlin never thought about his feelings if it came to human kills. There was one kill he would certainly enjoy, and that was when he could finally avenge the dead of his parents.
He nodded at the orders of Thriumph and when he said that tomorrow was going to be a special one he got a curious shade in his eyes but decided not to ask for anything. He’ll see it tomorrow. You could say that he was in best shape when he was hunting as a lion. His senses were sharper, he was faster and stronger. He finished his last sip and put down the glass. He was already looking forward to the hunt of tomorrow.

Killing as a lion felt a whole lot different than killing as a human. It was mostly animals he killed when he was in lion form and, though, it had just been two men he’d killed in his whole life, it had been partly human and partly lion. His hands had been claws and his eyes had turned feline, just like his teeth, but he’d been more human than animal then. It was clear memories. And he had to admit that he’d felt satisfied, stronger, powerful, he’d won, they’d lost. It were weeks later that he’d wondered whom those men had left behind? A daughter? A son? A wife? But then, they’d been the enemy. That was probably the thing every man said to himself to get himself through the night. Or things like; I had no choice, - it was self-defense, - he wasn’t going to survive anyway, - it was for the best.
His features showed that he became fascinated by the words of the king and he nodded in agreement when the king was finished. He stayed silent, thinking about it. That was exactly what the feeling of taking a life meant. But there was always a part which enjoyed killing, winning, not being the one who died. Tamlin looked up and again, nodded in agreement. “I probably should,” he replied, restraining himself from yawning. “I’ll be sharp like a knife,” he said, waving nonchalantly with his hand. He really needed to get in bed. That small bit of alcohol made him a bit too loosely.  “I’ll see you tomorrow, sire,” he said and bowed before the King before he left the room.

As soon as Tamlin arrived in his own chambers he released himself from his Kings Guard armor and let himself fell into bed. It was a deep, dreamless, sleep. The sun awakened him, and he was delighted to discover he felt perfectly sharp, exactly as the king wanted him. He shifted forms and left his chamber like a lion and he had his breakfast like a lion. He ignored the glances people gave him when he left the castle, walking toward the Eastern Gates. He was on the early side and wondered if Thriumph Medici would have arrived already. Tamlins manes weren’t fully grown yet, they were rather short and not that full, but he didn’t look like a cup anymore. It was notable, especially in lion form, that Tamlin was still a young man. They arrived at the exact same moment. Tamlin bowed his head for the King. “Good morning, sire,” he greeted him, his voice rumbling, but clear enough to be understood. It had taken him many times of practicing before he was able to speak common tongue as a lion. The golden lion straightened and waited for the signal to leave.