Profile

BASICS

Name: Lord Raoul of Ferselle
Age: 53
Birthdate: September 27th, 575
Class: Duke Knight (Lances, swords)
Country: Korin
Family: Father // Jaran ; Mother // Raea ; Brother // Careth ; Wife // Eimere [deceased] ; Step-Daughter // Estel ; Goodson // Derrek ; Daughter // Raeslin ; Goodson // Martin ; Daughter // Jeanine ; Grandson // Rausten ; Granddaughter // Eimilla
Blood Type: O
Language Profiencies: Trade [S], Korin [A], Old Korin [A], Dentorian [C]


HISTORY

If Raoul had one tragic flaw it was this: That he was born in the shadow of his older brother. Careth cast a long shadow, and it was brutally apparent early on that the three year advantage he had in age was not the only advantage he had. Even if there had been a chance that Careth wasn't going to make it, Raoul knew he wasn't even close to the first choice as lord of the house. Despite there only being the two of them, he was dwarfed by his brother. They were both slender youth, but Careth carried himself better in the field. They both had magic, but Careth was stronger at it. They were both virile, but Careth always drew the better bedwarmers.

As it happened, Raoul didn't have to worry about it for very long. To secure an alliance, his hand was offered in marriage to the widow of Ferselle, Eimere. It was true that she was only ten years older than him, and it was true that he'd instantly gain an heir. Unfortunately, nothing could soothe his young ego over the fact that he was getting damaged goods, and his brother was getting Jeann.

What none knew at the time was the passionate affair that that Raoul had with his brother's wife. They were careful. They were cautious. But they were also mad. Two willful people, and a third if you included Careth in the count. By all rights, it should have come to an end when Raoul went away to seal the alliance. For a time, it did. There was correspondence, but slowly Raoul convinced himself that he was happy. He and Eimere were having a good life for a few years. He didn't mind his step-daughter, and later a daughter of his own.

What he didn't expect was a visit from his goodsister a few years later. What he didn't expect after those years was the same exact feelings he'd had before. On both sides. The visits were frequent, and punctuated every argument she had with Careth. There were many times he wished she never had to leave, but there was always the fact that Careth trusted his wife to get home to him.

When she stopped visiting, he started visiting himself. Unfortunately, Sylea wasn't as welcoming to him as Ferselle had been to Jeann. Raoul was lord under his own roof, but under Careth's roof he was always the younger brother. Tensions were always high. He did love his brother, but being in the same place as he was for too long was problematic. Then his own wife took ill, and he didn't leave Ferselle again. Not even after she died. He had to accept the fact that he was a Lord with that capital L, and that meant he had responsibilities that nothing short of war could take from him.

When all was said and done he sat in a castle with three daughters, a happy populous, and enough things to do to keep his mind occupied daily. He wasn't the father of his heir, but that didn't matter as much to him as it could have. He was content to let Eimere's daughter be the politically minded one, and give the two of his blood the opportunity to blossom in their own ways. He thanked the Dragons that none of them were at all interested in war. Ferselle was going to thrive.

When news of his brother's death reached him, he knew it was inevitable. However, Ferselle was doing very well at the time. When his nephews arrived, he did everything he could to delay giving them what they wanted. His step-daughter wanted him to do nothing, his own daughters were on the fence, and most of his advisors weren't eager to participate in a fight where Sylea was going to get all the benefits. In the end, he gave them a token force, and sent Keane and Malcolm on their way.

He knew as well as anyone that Sylea's feud with Keir was going to last for all of eternity, it seemed. Of course, bad things always came of it, but Sylea always recovered. He expected just another meaningless fight.

Over the course of a few years, he watched the decline of the House of his birth. It was rapid. It was heart-rending. It was not his fight. He hung on word of every missive, and his position made it increasingly uncomfortable to be the lord of Ferselle. His own spies within Sylea kept him informed of the numerous problems they faced.

He was almost thankful when the news of the war itself stopped coming, but it only brought with it worse news. The culmination of it was when he'd heard what they'd done with Jeann. They'd locked a dragon in a cage. Raoul knew that she could sequester herself on her own without any trouble. The moment you tried to confine her though, Jeann would fight you, he knew from experience.

Recently his spies have had an even bigger revelation for him. Varise, a power he's never quite liked at all, has finally begun their power play, and wiped Noye off the map already. His spies are very sure that Varise is not going to stop with Noye, but would prefer to work slowly. Well, one of his nieces was married to the lord of that house. He has a solid reason to go to war. His family isn't enthusiastic about this one either, but it doesn't matter. He's still the ruler of the house. He's ready to rally to this fight. When he received his summons from Keane, he knew how he had to reply.


PERSONALITY

When you hear about calculating people, you often think that they're quiet. That they hold back from saying things until they're ready to strike out with the perfect thing to say. Raoul is calculating, but you'd never know it immediately from talking to him. He's boisterous, and outgoing. He's excited, and positive. And while his mouth is moving, you'll always get a quick reply to any individual exchange. What's going on in his mind though, is an entirely different story. Raoul is a younger brother, and his thirst for attention he was denied has never really gone away. Even still, he was the younger brother to Careth, and the things he had to do to strive for attention was to become a tactician born and bred. His mouth will stop eventually, but his mind won't.

He is not someone who likes to be lead. He is one who likes to lead. He doesn't like following anyone else's orders. He had a life where all he could do was follow, and he's worked too damn hard to take any more of that. He'll give weight to the opinions of people who come to him as followers. The moment they try to present themselves as above him, he is far less likely to listen to them. He's Lord of Ferselle; He takes orders from no one. Not Rayla, not Varise, and not even his family.

He would like nothing more than to see Ferselle continue to prosper as long as possible. He still feels like he has a number of years to continue as the ruler before he has to turn it over to his step-daughter and her husband. He doesn't have very many goals for his house other than to keep it from falling as well as he can. Not that it has been much of a problem, but he'd rather not be the one who fails in this task.

APPEARANCE

Raoul is a man who prides himself on how well he's taken care of himself. Not being one with the privilege of being able to delegate his military role, he's kept himself trim and fit. He tries to spar regularly, and maintain a battle-ready body. He keeps his look professional, and carries himself as he feels a lord should; with a practiced bearing. He's never truly thickened up since he became an adult, and he's kept himself slender through the years. His greyed hair is cut short, but rarely stays exactly where he would like it to. He wears spectacles as his vision has weakened with age.

In a private conference he will let himself relax a little, but never in a public setting. This doesn't stop him from looking happy, but he will never let himself look uncomposed, even if he has to fake it and withdraw quickly.

[Raoul is PBed by Santo Claudio Paradiso from Ristorante Paradiso]