Perceon Vance

Perceon Vance is the current Lord of Harrenhal and Head of House Vance of Harrenhal. He is the son of Lord Perwyn Vance and Lady Roslyn Tully. Since the disappearance and presumed death of Prince Aemon Targaryen in 405 AC, he has served on the Small Council as Hand of the King.

Appearance and Character
Perceon Vance has shoulder-lenth dark hair and piercing blue eyes. He keeps his chin clean-shaven in warm months and sports a closely-cropped beard during winters. He dresses appropriately for his station as a Lord of the Realm and member of the Small Council but avoids excess ostentation in his attire. He favors dark colors, accented with the white and gold of his house colors.

Perceon was shy as a child, and has worked hard to overcome his introverted tendencies in social settings. He rarely speaks more loudly than necessary to make his voice heard in a room yet is charismatic enough not to have to, and is seldom given to displays of anger in public. He prefers to smile now and seek revenge at his leisure later. He possesses a talent for organization and administration, evident in both wartime and peace.

History
Perceon Vance was born in 368 AC, the firstborn son of Lord Perwyn Vance and Lady Roslyn Tully. Perceon proved a bright child, but had little interest in esoteric academic learning. He much preferred to be his father's shadow, so Maester Maynard tailored the boy's lessons to build off of what he observed in the operation of Harrenhal's court.

In 379 AC, Perceon traveled with his family to the capital for the Kingswood Tournament. While there, Lord Perwyn arranged for his heir to squire for Prince Viserys Targaryen.

Perceon quickly became fast friends with Viserys's son Aemon as the two boys were of similar age. He received an intense education in the art of statecraft in the service of the Lord Hand, and learned to navigate the intrigues of the court from a young age. And though Prince Viserys was himself not a man of martial bent, he arranged for the two boys to receive arms training from members of the Kingsguard and lessons in generalship from Captain-General Rogare of the Golden Company.

Perceon became completely smitten with Shiera Velaryon, eldest daughter of Lord Vaemond Velaryon. Vaemond played the part of an overprotective father to the hilt, refusing all attempts by Perceon to secure permission to court her and sternly warning him to stay away from his daughter. In truth, Vaemond had already written to Perwyn Vance at Harrenhal and arranged the betrothal.

In 387 AC, Perceon was knighted by Prince Viserys. A few months later, he returned home to Harrenhal for his wedding to Shiera Velaryon. He spent the next decade helping his father administer Harrenhal and its lands, along with regular trips to the court of his cousins at Riverrun. Shiera gave birth to their first son, Preston in 388 AC, and a daughter Rhialta followed the next year. A second son, Paxter, was born in 395 AC. The Great Famine struck the Riverlands hard. Perceon Vance used the connections he'd gained during his time in the capital to do what he could to alleviate the misery in his lands, straining House Vance's finances.

He took on Gwayne Baratheon as a squire in 395 AC, and due to Gwayne's rapid growth, the boy was taller and stronger than his master by the age of four and ten. Perceon focused his lessons on military command and lordly administration, and brought in a hulking knight named Ser Arlan to serve as Gwayne's sparring partner.

In 398 AC, he answered the King's call to arms and bid good bye to his pregnant wife, and joined his cousin Lord Brandon Tully in leading the men of the Riverlands in the war in the Stepstones. While Lord Tully was more courtier than soldier, he knew how to effectively utilize the talents of his subordinates, and Perceon became a leading voice in his command tent. He absorbed further lessons from the example of Prince Baelor Targaryen until the Prince of Summerhall fell to a bout of camp fever.

At the Battle of Grey Gallows, Perceon rallied the Riverlands troops and kept their lines from breaking when Arranax bathed the Westerosi forces in flame. The lines held until Prince Maekar Targaryen engaged Alequo in a dragon duel, whereupon Perceon renewed the assault on Alequo's forces. After the battle, he knighted Gwayne Baratheon for his bravery in rescuing another knight from the flames.

Upon returning home in 402 AC, he was greeted by the news that the Scarlet Winter had claimed the life of his father scant weeks before. After settling affairs at Harrenhal and confirming his brother Ser Pollux Vance as Castellan, he traveled back to the capital to re-join his friend Prince Aemon. Aemon had been named Hand of the King, and Perceon took his former position on the Small Council as Master of Laws. He worked closely with Aemon and Princess Visaera with the intent that he would become Aemon's Lord Hand once he ascended to the Iron Throne. The following year, the winter's unrelenting cruelty claimed the life of his mother, as well.

In 405 AC, Aemon Targaryen vanished on a diplomatic mission to Essos and no trace of him or his dragon Rhaegal could be found. He was presumed dead and Perceon was named as the new Hand of the King by King Aenar. With the King's health declining and the succession being questioned, Perceon finds himself responsible for overseeing an orderly transition of rule to the next monarch when the King finally passes.

Recent Events
King Aenar has declared a grand tournament at Harrenhal to celebrate the appearance of the Red Comet. When the King died, Perceon was at Visaera's side, to continue serving her as Hand as he did her father. Queen Visaera's reign has seen swift change for his family - his heir, Preston, to marry the Lady Elana of the Crossing, and his daughter, Rhialta, wed to Damion Rivers - now Damion Tully, Lord Paramount of the Riverlands. An encounter with his niece Elana made it clear that her feelins lie with the father, and not the son, and a kiss has left Perceon feeling angry over the situation, with little he can do - she is the Queen's Lady-in-Waiting, even if he is her closest confidante.

It is not the only doubt that weighs on Perceon's shoulders. He knows he should not feel bitter about it, but seeing Rhialta marry a by-blow instead of Gwayne Baratheon stung, a long term plan sent to ruin by the sudden roll of politics. He has genuinely surprised himself with feeling a mourning for the passing of Berenna Tully - something he has only chosen to acknowledge as being a political opportunity lost. Perceon has, however, easily accepted the loss of a marriage to his past ward as a necessity of stability in the realm. There has been a darker doubt, one he has locked tightly away, a worry over the actions Visaera took the night her father died.

Yet he has up that aside. Perceon is as loyal to the Queen as ever, and has now gone to the Riverlands to secure his goodson's kingdom, throw back the rebels, and restore the stability he so desperately craves.

Family

 * Perwyn Vance (344 AC - 402 AC), Father. Lord of Harrenhal 389 AC - 402 AC, died during the Scarlet Winter
 * Roslyn Tully (346 AC - 403), Mother. Married 366 AC, died during the Scarlet Winter
 * Perceon Vance (368 AC - -) Lord of Harrenhal 402 AC - present.
 * Shiera Vance (nee Velaryon) (371 AC - ), Wife. Lady of Harrenhal 402 AC - present
 * Ser Preston Vance (388 AC - -), Son. Heir of Harrenhal. Wed to Elana Frey, Lady of the Crossing
 * Rhialta Tully (389 AC - -), Daughter. Wed to Damion Tully, Lord Paramount of the Trident
 * Paxter Vance (395 AC - ), Son. Squired under Lord Robert Vance of Atranta
 * Minisa Vance (399 AC - -), Daughter.
 * Ser Pollux Vance (371 AC - ), Brother. Castellan of Harrenhal
 * Wife of Pollux
 * Children of Pollux
 * Cassana Vance (371 AC - 393 AC), Sister, twin of Pollux. Married Lord Symond Frey.
 * Mellara Vance (374 AC - ), Sister.
 * Pearse Vance (376 AC - ), Brother. A Maester of the Citadel