Laswell Vance

Laswell Vance was the second son of Lord Davos Vance and his lowborn bastard wife, Margot Rivers, the husband of Lady Rohanne Vypren, and the Lord of Atranta from his ascention to Lord after the death of his elder brother, Leyton, in the year 419 AC, to his death at the hands of hired assassins in the year 438 AC. In life, he was a famous tourney knight, until his first son, Theowyn, was born. His legacy as the Blue Drake lives on in the Riverlands, but while his name might've commanded respect in his lifetime, it now only serves as a reminder that he was everything his sons are not. He was the father of Theowyn Vance, the current Lord of Atranta, Bryndemere Vance, the current Lord of Harrenhal and Warden of the Blackwater, Byron Vance, and Victaria Vance.

Appearance and Character
Laswell Vance was known for his bright, crystal clear blue eyes, which in part lended to the creation of his moniker 'The Blue Drake', a trait inherited from his mother. Tall and barrel chested, and broad as an oak tree, had his father's jet black hair, rather than his mother's gold-blonde. As he grew older, his hair grew paler and paler, being nearly white with platinum blonde streaks by the time of his death. Though he lost muscle and size with age, his impressive height never ceased to dominate the room, backed by his commanding voice. He was never without a short, closely trimmed beard, and always carried a blade on his person.

History
Laswell Vance was born the second son of Lord Davos Vance and Margot Rivers. In his youth, Lord Davos had fostered in the shadow of the black walls of Harrenhal with his distant cousin, the heir to Harrenhal, Perceon Vance. The two shadowed his father, Lord Perwyn Vance incessantly, when they weren't exploring the grounds of the behemoth ruined castle, or wandering the densely wooded Godswood in the heart of the castle's walls. It was in those very woods where a young girl by the name of Margot was found by the pair. Half-starved and covered in dirt, the two immediately coaxed her back to the castle grounds, whereupon she collapsed from exposure to the elements. She stayed in the lower wards of the Kingspyre Tower for upwards of a week before she woke, starving and terrified. Ecstatic at the idea of a new child to spend time with, as Harrenhal's cavernous walls had few places for children to be raised, the two harassed Lord Perwyn into finally submitting to allow the girl to stay. After days of silence, the girl finally began to speak, in short, terse sentences.

She said her name was "Margot", and made all sorts of wild claims when asked where she came from. Sometimes she said she had been a tree in the ground, suddenly come to life by the power of the old gods, sometimes she claimed she had miraculously formed from the foamy waves of the waters of the God's Eye. Unwilling to have some sort of common rabble running about his halls, Lord Perwyn gave her the bastard's surname Rivers, to at least add some sort of formality to her stay, despite how unorthodox the situation was.

The Eyes of Gods and Men
The years dragged on, and as the three grew older, they grew closer and closer to one another. And as children grow old, they begin to notice one another in a different light. Before long, it was the talk of the whole castle that Davos, the future Lord of Atranta, had taken to playing far more scandalous games with the mysterious bastard girl Margot Rivers. When word had reached the Lord of Atranta, his father, Desmond Vance, he ordered the two to be separated, and have Davos sent back to Atranta at once, so that he might begin learning to rule in his own father's shadow, where closer attention to his behavior could be monitored. The effort proved futile, however, as the night before Davos was to return to Atranta, and he Margot, both aged six and ten (Margot's age was merely a formality, much like her name, as there was no true way of knowing how old she was.) were wed in a midnight ceremony beneath the bleeding eyes of the Harrenhal Godswood, by a thoroughly drunken septon who was later hanged for the deed. Lord Desmond raged and blustered at the indignity of his son marrying some lowborn bastard girl, but the marriage had been consummated many times over by the time of his arrival at Atranta with her at his side. The two had grown to love one another with as much fire as youth can muster in one's heart, and that grew more and more evident the more one spent time around the two. Eventually, though, Lord Desmond was forced to submit to his stubborn son's will, as there was naught he could do but seethe quietly at Davos' rash decision making. With luck, the girl would die of pox or perhaps in childbirth before any true damage could be done to House Vance's reputation, right?

Twist of the Knife
Lord Desmond was right about one thing; disease would take the lives of many a man and woman in Atranta during the coming year, as an outbreak of fever ravaged the countryside. Among those that were snatched by it's unflinching gasp was Lord Desmond himself. With his lady wife having died in Childbirth, Davos Vance was declared Lord of Atranta, and his bastard wife, Margot Rivers, his lady consort, not even one year after they had been wed beneath the heart tree of Harrenhal.

More whispers followed Lord Desmond's death, though. Davos, too occupied with burning passion for his wife, and dreading the thought of her waking up one day with the plague, found little time for mourning his father's death. Queerer still was the sudden dissipation of the fever's presence in Atranta after the lord's death; within a moon's turn, all that had caught the illness either died, or suddenly regained their strength, and all signs of sickness were gone. The suddenness with which relief came to Atranta made many whisper that Lady Margot had bewitched the castle; all knew of her mysteriously feral upbringing, and the rumors that she had hated Lord Desmond were only validated by his rather plainly open opinions about her marriage to his son. It didn't help that Davos had always been a sickly child, prone to catching any old cough or fever that had been going around Harrenhal, and bedridden for a quarter of his time alive. And yet, he had been entirely untouched by the fever, as had she. Whatever the cause of it, though, most were just grateful the reaper had passed them over.

Ruling the Drake's Den
Davos proved to be as unremarkable of a lord as his own father. Many had expected worse, though. Davos was a rather dull child, and never quite a prodigious swordsman or strategist. He was terrible at riding, hated reading, could barely run a hundred paces without falling over, and constantly whined about anything and everything. But as he transitioned to his new position, a sort of odd transformation took place within him. The tall, sickly boy had been replaced by a young man, something many people also accredited to Lady Margot. It was a year of conception, as Lady Margot was soon with child once more after Leyton was born. The babe was born far later than expected, and after almost a week in labor and several moments of near death, an exceedingly weary babe escaped Lady Margot's womb, leaving the both of them looking worse for the wear. Despite the difficulties in delivering him, however, he was as healthy as can be, if a bit angry with the whole affair. The lusty, black haired babe was named Laswell, and he was already a good deal heavier than his elder brother, who was just as sickly as his sire had been in his youth. After she had recovered enough to leave her bed, Lady Margot, looking significantly older than she had before Laswell's birth, declared that she would have no more children as long as she lived, a promise she has kept firm to this very day.

Grim Brotherhood
As children, Leyton and Laswell were constantly pitted against one another in every facet. Life was easy for Laswell, who found all things come to him without effort. He learned reading and writing and numbers with the proficiency of a young acolyte, and was particularly prodigious with a blade in hand. By the age of ten, he was able to best boys years his senior in the training yard. Laswell was well spoken, he was as courteous as any lord ought to be, and was a handsome young lad, well liked by all the household of Atranta. In short; he was everything Leyton wasn't. The only way in which Leyton surpassed his younger brother was his own status as heir to Atranta. He struggled in academics and warcraft alike, was a pisspoor rider, couldn't run twenty paces without falling over, and constantly whined and complained about the smallest things and largest alike. He was petulant, sickly, and unattractive, but he was still the first in line for Lordship when Davos would pass on. Had you asked any of the servants of Atranta, though, there wouldn't be one that would say he ought to be.

Laswell was even favored by their own mother. Unlike her firstborn, she refused to let a wet nurse even so much as hold him. Though he was too large for her to carry after his first few years, she had nursed him from her own breast until he had grown to wanting real food. Leyton, on the other hand, was still suckling at his tired wetnurse's teat at the age of seven, a habit he was eventually coaxed out of by his father.

At the age of five and ten, Laswell was knighted by the Master-At-Arms of Atranta whom he had squired for since he had been one and ten, Ser Gareth of Fairmarket, who was impressed with just how quickly he had mastered sword and mace, as well as the use of a lance on horseback. By the time of his knighting, Laswell had been defeating fully grown men-at-arms and even knights in skirmishes. As a reward for his excellence in what many claimed to be all things, Lord Davos, exceedingly proud of his son, began searching for a match for the boy, having proven himself to be a capable young man. A year later, he was betrothed to Rohanne Vypren, the quiet, stunning redheaded daughter of Lord Vypren, a famous beauty in her day. Laswell and his betrothed bonded quite quickly, and the match was confirmed to have been a clever one the more time they spent together, walking the walls of Atranta, or taking small sojourns to the meadows beneath the hills of Atranta, where they spent hours and hours enjoying one another's company. Unlike his father, however, there was no burning passion that forced them to dishonor one another; the young Ser Laswell Vance was as chivalrous with his betrothed as a true knight could be. Meanwhile, Leyton's resentment of his younger brother grew and grew. Though he was a sweet, dull boy, and had never been prone to jealousy or anger, the blatant way in which his own mother favored Laswell over him, and the constant stream of praise he had showered upon him while Leyton himself received nothing but pity had hardened him over the years, blackening his heart towards his younger brother in a way that would prove most destructive to Atranta in future years.

A Wedding in Black and White
In the year 413 AC Laswell Vance and his betrothed, Rohanne Vypren, were finally wedded together in the fields they had spent their youth wandering together. The wedding was a small, quiet affair, with naught but the families of the bride and groom in attendance. The wedding landed without a hitch, and within two moon's turns Rohanne was found to be with child as a result of their bedding ceremony. By that point, Laswell had become known outside of just the Riverlands. Laswell had toured all the seats of power and luxury of the Realm in the tourney circuit, establishing his reputation as the infamous Blue Drake, particularly popular amongst the smallfolk for his tendency to allow his blade to speak for him. The title would come to eventually cause him to change his own personal heraldry to the Vance sigil, but with blue dragons quartered rather than emerald ones. Upon hearing the news his wife was with child, however, he did not return just yet to Atranta; he wished to come back only once he had proven himself to be worthy of being a father. He did write letters to her every night before he closed his eyes, however, a tale he would later regale his children with alongside his exploits in the most lavish tourneys around the Realm.

After a year of riding on high with his achievements, Laswell's joy was suddenly cut cruelly short; upon returning home to see his wife, he had found that even though his firstborn son, Theowyn Vance, had been born in his absence, his father had died of a fever while he had been gone. To add insult to injury, Leyton, the new Lord of Atranta, had grown fed up of having to compete with his peerless brother, or the mother who showed him no love, and ordered Laswell's budding family, as well as their mysterious mother, Lady Margot Rivers, to leave Atranta within the moon's turn. A legendary shouting match ensued between Laswell and Leyton, which resulted in Leyton being bedridden with a broken collarbone and shattered jaw for the next three moons, and Laswell taking the rest of the Atranta Vances away, leaving Leyton to simmer in his bitterness.

The Great Rift
The ensuing period of time was known as "The Great Rift" as denoted by the maesters of Atranta, though it was anything but. At the dawn of the year of 414, Margot Rivers returned to Harrenhal for a time, where she was welcomed with open arms by her long-lost childhood companion, Lord Perceon Vance, who was more than happy to have her return to the first place she had called home. Although Perceon invited Laswell and Rohanne to bring their newborn and stay with him for a time, they elected instead to house within her own father's walls at Vypren's Pond. And it was there that they lived a quiet life for just over five years. Despite the seething rage that Laswell lived with on his conscience, his marriage with Rohanne thrived in the following years, as while at her girlhood home, they had another three children; two sons; Bryndemere Vance and Byron Vance, and a shockingly large, fussy little girl, Victaria Vance. With frequent visits to Harrenhal in order to ensure the children were acquainted with their mother, their family grew close in those tense years away from Atranta. Despite it all, though, Laswell only grew angrier and guiltier with time, holding onto the grief of his father's death, and the newfound hatred of his older brother, whom he had always looked up to as a boy. Unable to comprehend his betrayal, all he could do was twiddle his thumbs idly, and watch the world spin past as he had not the faintest clue how to deal with the emotions bubbling up inside him.

Death in the Family
In the year 419 AC, the increasing silent tensions between Leyton and Laswell finally collapsed in one the both of them. Laswell took off into the night, his tourney armor and lance with him, and rode in a black fury for Atranta.

Those who know the truth of what happened that night are dead now. What is known is that on the dawn of the next day, Laswell declared himself the Lord of Atranta, and sent for his family from Harrenhal, where his children and wife had been staying for a short visit with their grandmother. They arrived within the week, and dwelled there quietly since.

Trouble in Paradise
Finally, things had begun to quiet down for the Blue Drake. The unabiding rage that he had held in his heart seemed to dissipate, and his family flourished once back in their true home, where they belonged. Life was quiet as he and Rohanne raised their children in peace. For a time.

Unfortunately for Laswell, peace would not last in his house. His children, ironically enough, were just as stubborn and hotheaded as he was, if in varying degrees. The most worrisome proved to be his second son, Bryndemere, who was becoming a menace to his siblings and the household of Atranta, his preferred passtime playing cruel jokes on unsuspecting victims. When he wasn't being a nuisance, he rarely associated with other children, or his siblings; instead preferring to play with the ravens and birds and other animals that wandered Atranta. Laswell let him assist Maester Agrivaine with the upkeep of the Rookery, hoping that might channel his destructive energy elsewhere, but to no avail. The final straw was an incident involving some dirty laundry and a dead chicken staged to fake the death of his younger sister. After nearly a day and a half of searching, it had been found that she was hiding in a cupboard in the kitchen, and had been told by Bryndemere that everyone would be angry with her if she revealed herself, even if called by her name.

More exasperated than angry, Laswell contacted his distant relations at Wayfarer's Rest, and arranged for Bryndemere to be fostered there. At least he would be someone else's problem, and wouldn't traumatize his siblings any further.