By the Twang of the String - Archery Tourney

[Princess Anastasia Fyodorov]

Anya smiled faintly and bowed her head to Lord Luna, then glanced towards her brother oddly. It looked as if she too was taking part. If nothing else, it would be a means of showing that not all Sarkozsians were lacking in honor, dignity or sportsmanship. A nod thanked Demetri for his well wishes, then she turned to her sister. "May your arrows fly as true as you are, Katling." For her sister's sake, she managed a softer smile and a touch to her shoulder before she went to set herself up as well.

A few deep breaths allowed her to concentrate and focus, the arrows bearing the colors of her homeland in a quiver that was a gift from her father. She missed him desperately in that moment, and decided to make her efforts in the tourney in his honor. He would be with her in spirit, she knew, though Anya silently wished for him there in body as well.

[Lord Tomas Rose]

He smiled when the prince acknowledged him, he had not met the prince yet but clearly the man had been paying attention or made it his business to know who was about, that was a quality that he could respect in a man. He was getting to like court more and more as he started to learn more about the people at it. The princess had called for them to prepare and he took a second looking over the nobles that were gathered. The princess was even more beautiful than her likeness he had commissioned for his trip and he looked over the various people. Not recognizing them, he could not have everyone at court's likeness that would have taken much to long, he would just have to wait and introduce himself to them or them to him.

He walked up to one station nearly Lady Vivianne and picked up the bow, looking it over and pulling the string a few times. He liked to think of himself as a good shot but he had never measured up to anyone outside Honeyvine before, he knew this would be quite educational and interesting in its own right. He looked about and waited with a soft smile on his face and a sparkle in his eye.

[Lord Alejo Cataluña]

Noting that everyone seemed to be dispersing toward the targets, Alejo thought it was time he and his wife excused themselves as well. “Luck to your bows, my lords and ladies,” he nodded, before turning to his wife with an amused grin and kissing her on the lips. “And to yours, love, though don’t be too upset if I manage to shoot slightly better than you,” he murmured, once he pulled away from Catalina. It was, as usual, a bit hard to do, but he found it rather amusing, particularly given their environment that wasn’t their home Court at the moment.

Taking his place in front of one of the remaining free targets, he inclined his head in greeting to his neighbor, checked to make sure that the arrows were his and not those of his wife, and strung the bow, holding it at the ready with an arrow in Linten colors and bearing his initials loosely notched. He would have an easy time of drawing it once the command was given.

[Lady Catalina Luña]

The din of conversations and introductions came to an end as the Demerian princess opened the tournament officially. There were many names and faces in her mind to consider later but for now, she had a tournament to participate in. As everyone dispersed to the targets, Catalina turned towards her husband as he addressed her. Returning his kiss, Catalina smirked at his murmur, the smirk turning into a smug grin when she saw how difficult it was for him leave her side. "Ah, my love, it is going to be your bruised ego I will be tending to when I prove the better marksman than you," she challenged playfully, the rest of the participants, for now, forgotten. She didn't care who bested her or who she bested so long as Alejo Cataluna was among those that she bested. Preparing her bow, Catalina held it at the ready as she awaited the word for them to shoot.

[Princess Katya Fyodorov]

Katya allowed herself to fade into the background as her eyes made note of each individuals reaction, or lack thereof, to their presence. These observations could prove handy in the future and allowed her to see which ones might be amenable to converse with. Even with the marks against them, she still had her own personal quest for knowledge and she refused to let that quest of hers be one of the many things besmirched by Nikolai. Of course, she could simply speak to Tristan but she wanted to hear what others besides him would say.

Eyes drifting his way and hoping her entirely too observant elder siblings didn't notice the slip up, Katya turned her attention to Princess Emmaline as she began her speech. "Thank you, brother, sister. Your good wishes are appreciated. Luck to your bow as well, Anya." She chirped before going to the first available target that she could see. Managing to find herself next to Prince Tristan, she aimed a challenging smile the young blondes way. "The moment of truth, Prince Tristan. Remember when we spoke of this?" She asked, referring to the time when they had each declared that they would find something in which each bested the other. Katya was determined that archery would be hers considering he already showed himself best at swordsmanship.

Prince Tristan Carlisle

[Princess Emmaline Carlisle]

Once the contestants were lined up, Emma surveyed those who intended to participate coolly. The tension was slowly leeching from her form, thanks to the renewed distance from the Fyodorovs; she wasn't quite ready to be gracious about the situation, but she had a responsibility to fulfill and per her promise to her father and brothers, she stepped forwards to address the archers.

"May the Triad grant you luck and true aim. You may take your first shot!"

The sun was high, spilling plenty of light to see by and the wind seemed to die at the opportune moment to allow the arrows to fly straight and true towards the waiting targets. Only once each participant took their shot would the other judge and herself come to inspect the shots and record the scores. Aware of the rivalries in place, she lifted a brow to see two others join in.


Lord Tomas Rose, Princess Katya Fyodorov, Prince Tristan Carlisle, Lady Catalina Luña, Lord Alejo Cataluña, Lady Rosalie St. Claire, Lord Dominic Halton, Lord Frederick von Arles, Lady Vivianne Trevelyan, Princess Anastasia Fyodorov, Prince Demetri Fyodorov, Lady Serah Lancaster

[Prince Tristan Carlisle]

Tris grinned back toward Princess Katya, who found herself next to him, a rather convenient find, in his opinion. The challenge she spoke of, from the library conversation, seemed to have turned into a success more than they expected it would, even if they could’ve done without the fallout on the way to it. “Of course, my Lady. Far it be from me to back down from my own challenge.” Bowing his head toward the girl, he glanced back toward his sister, a look of pride cast her way, as she addressed them overall. It wasn’t necessarily easy for her, that much he could see, but he’d attend to his own part in it for now.

Raising his bow and notching the gold and red fletched arrow properly, Tris took aim once the instruction for the first shot was given. The wind died down soon after, which helped things along, and he was able to see, as well – the sun was not in the archers’ eyes, or so it seemed from his place. A quick prayer to the Triad, as he was aware that while he was good, he wasn’t the best among the group present, and his first arrow was loosed, its’ aim slightly higher than the center of the target, or so he hoped.

[Lady Vivianne Trevelyan]

With one last wink at Rosalie, a face made at the Grand Duke and an amused shrug at herself, Vivianne selected an arrow and nocked it before she brought the bow up to sight down the range. There was hardly a breeze to throw her aim off, or so she hoped, but there was also the very real dread of embarrassing herself horribly before half the court. Oh well, nothing ventured, nothing gained. She drew in a breath, holding her pose as she deliberately blocked out the sights, sounds and scents around her, then let her breath out. With it, she released the arrow and let it fly, lowering the bow to watch it hurtle towards the target. Hopefully it would strike the target and not hare wildly off...

[Lady Rosalie St. Claire]

Beaming toward Lady Vivianne as the other wished her luck, Rosalie crossed her fingers that were fiddling with the arrow fletched in green and white, and couldn’t help herself but follow Lady Vivianne’s gaze. Studying the latecomer with avid curiosity, as he hadn’t joined in with everyone else, she blushed slightly as soon as she realized the study was turning to staring and was thankful for the Princess’s call for the first shot. And how was she supposed to take that shot when her mind was only half on her target?

A sheepish look was given the target as she fiddled with her arrow, thankfully not dropping it, notched it, and took aim after mirroring the stances of those around her. Thankfully she was practicing before this tournament, so she would be able to take this distance – or so she hoped. Arrow notched and drawn, she let it fly along with the rest of them, watching and waiting to see where hers would land.

[Lord Dominic Halton]

Staying silent granted him the chance to leave his ears open, though he knew he'd earned a few odd looks. There was time enough once the tourney was done to play up the social aspect, but for now, Dominic kept to himself. Focus was needed when shooting arrows at a target, rather than hunting or in battle, however archaic some deemed the bow.

He took up his stance at the far end of the row of targets and raised his bow with the arrow already nocked and ready. Behind him he could hear the movements of others, a few twangs indicative that shots had been taken. He narrowed his eyes at the target, drawing the string smoothly and releasing in one fluid movement. Only once the arrow was hurtling through the air did he lower his bow, a glance over his shoulder taken to see the pair of young ladies behind him; one was dark as night, the other as blond as the sunshine itself. His gaze lingered for a moment, but then shifted back to see where his arrow struck.

He had a reputation to uphold as a Halton, after all.

[Lady Catalina Luña]

Settling on one side of her husband turned out to not be a very good idea as a light breeze wafted his scent right into her nostrils. Barely catching the words of the Demerian princess, Catalina tried to concentrate on her target. This was proving difficult as many thoughts that had nothing to do with archery flittered through her mind, causing her to lightly bite her bottom lip. Trying to line her first shot, Catalina gave up, she was too distracted at the moment though she knew one cure for it. "Sorry, My Lord Love, you're being far too distracting," was all she said before grabbing hold of Alejo and giving him a nice, solid kiss on the lips. By now, it was probably obvious that the pair were Lintenese from the way they dressed, spoke and acted with one another. Lightly skipping back to her target, Catalina was able to focus more on hitting her target. She was certain that she would considering how many years she had wielded a bow, a requirement for safety when traveling with her husband on his ship, which was often. Letting her first arrow fly with precision aim, Catalina couldn't help a playful smirk sent Alejos way.

Lord Alejo Cataluña

[Lord Frederick von Arles]

Unlike Dominic, Frederick did not allow himself the distraction of gazing upon beautiful women. The hunter had taken over, the target had been replaced by a great buck. In truth, one could strike a buck in one of several places to instantly fall it. The most merciful, however, was aiming just behind and underneath the shoulder blade to strike the heart. Death was nigh instantaneous.

The hunter held his breath, drew back, aimed and released the arrow. A light gust of wind drifted over them just after the arrow's release. It would surely alter the course of the arrow, but hopefully not by much.

[Lady Serah Lancaster]

Serah opted against entering, not being all that skilled with the bow and preferring to support her cousin in the undeniably awkward situation. Keeping a watchful gaze on Emma as well as the entrants, she let her gaze fall on the Hunter with subtle interest, observing how he narrowed his focus and took aim. Frederick was intent on his target, bringing other thoughts to mind on which she did not linger, yet the questions sprouted root.

A glance then to Emma confirmed her cousin was calm and outwardly composed, allowing her to resume spectating what promised to be a very interesting event. The rivalry between Princess Katya and Prince Tristan promised to make it an interesting contest, as did the unexpected presences of the Rose heir and the Halton lord. This Festival was proving full of surprises indeed.

[Lord Alejo Cataluña]

Distracting, was he? Alejo had noticed his wife’s fumbling her arrow with some amusement, slightly caught off-guard by her kiss after her brief detour from her target before taking her shot. “I’ll show you some true distraction once we’re back in our pavilion, my lady wife,” he teased her back, entirely too amused by her convenient spot next to him and her practically skipping back to her target to take a shot.

Now conveniently delayed from taking a first shot himself, the man just ruefully shook his head, eyes on the target, as he readjusted the arrow he was planning on shooting in the first place. Drawing the bowstring back and letting the arrow fly, he nodded in some satisfaction. Considering his experience, the first round was in his pocket, even taking the lovely distraction that had taken place into account. Lowering his bow into the ready position once again and preparing his second arrow, he quirked an eyebrow up, turning to look toward Catalina. Did she have any more tricks up her sleeve, or was that about all for this particular tournament? One would have to wait and see about it, at least those were his thoughts.

[Prince Demetri Fyodorov]

Seated at the stands, the closest row to both the targets and the archers in front of them, Demetri was observing the building rivalries with most amused expression, particularly when he saw exactly where his youngest sister ended up. So that was behind Anya’s words to him earlier at their conversation in Triadon. He found himself mostly amused at the girl, though, deciding he’d take a moment to converse with her at a later point.

His eyes following the flight of the first arrows, sufficiently distracted from the teasing Katya was likely to get later, he noted the distance between the targets and the archers, nodding to himself as he concluded that perhaps this round would be passed by majority, though time would tell, as distractions of the many were also easily observed. More amused than anything else, Demetri leaned back in his seat, watching and waiting to see if there were going to be any misses in this round. What with the fidgeting he could see up and down the line, there very well might be, but thanks to the distance of round one, but he wasn’t placing any bets on it.