Post by Minuit on Jun 26, 2010 21:44:27 GMT 10
Provost's Dog Character Profile
by greenie and Lisa
The Life of Lord Gershom of Haryse
Lord Gershom, best known as the Lord Provost of Tortall during the reign of King Roger II, is a man very little is known about. There is clear documentation of some aspects of his life. For example, the journals of one Rebakah Cooper (a noteworthy Dog with ties to the Jane Street Kennel) cite his appearance: he was known for his steel-colored hair in the time she knew him, which he wore in a horse-tail. She also noted the kindness of his voice and the eyes that occasionally twinkled, when he was in a good humor.
In Lord Gershom’s personal life, it could be noted that he married Lady Teodorie at a relatively young age, and they had a loving relationship. Like all marriages, there were hardships. His wife occasionally begrudged the life work he chose for himself, and on several occasions he was banned from their bedchambers. Not so often, however, that there was no love or children shared between them.
Gershom was known for his kindness; in the late 230s he befriended Ilony Cooper and her daughter Rebakah, and took them into his household. Rumors indicate that this friendship had more to do with his capturing of the Bold Brass Gang than it did with altruistic charity – but there is very little other than the accounts of Matthias Tunstall, a Dog and Hillman, to offer any proof of such tales.
Although Gershom is remembered as an exceptional Lord Provost, records from the palace show that he was in danger of being replaced after his continued failure to capture the Bold Brass gang in the late 230s. Rumors that the young Rebakah Cooper was behind their eventual capture did not affect his position – it appears that the king and council were interested only in the capture and not the means.
Gershom was particularly popular among his ‘Dogs’ because he made an effort to relate to them as professionals. The diaries of Rebakah Cooper state that whenever one of the Guards was killed on duty, the Lord Provost would walk for a while with each of the other pairs on that watch. Mattias Tunstall’s journal also shows that whenever a pair or group of his Dogs solved a difficult, dangerous, or high-profile case, Lord Gershom would treat them to dinner, usually at the upmarket eating-house Naxen’s Fancy.
Rebakah Cooper’s diaries also show that Gershom was meticulous in his compilation of information, and frequently used the technique of marking information on maps to work out significant patterns. This technique was later used by Guardswoman Cooper in her training year to solve the Shadow Snake murder cases.
There are many rumors that have circulated in the hundreds of years since Lord Gershom’s lifetime, some that pose questions about his professional decisions, others that shed light on his personal life. His association with Rebakah Cooper is one of them. As mentioned before, it is rumored that as a young child she was the one to lead to the hobbling of the Bold Brass Gang, during a time when he almost lost his position as Lord Provost. After this incident, he took her into his household. Many questioned the appropriateness of their relationship, when she went on to become a runner and then a Dog – and even rose to prominence among the Dogs of Corus, known for having the most desired assignments as early as her first year as a Puppy. It is rumored, as well, that Lady Teodorie was not fond of Miss Cooper, and the relationship the girl shared with Lord Gershom might have fueled the infamous tension between the couple. Others speculate that this was a circular problem.
This circular problem perhaps has some truth behind it, as records show that Gershom was close with Lady Knight Sabine of Macayhill. How they met is unknown, although it has been suggested because of their age difference that Sabine was Gershom’s squire. Whether their relationship was merely as friends or it progressed to the bedroom, it would have been enough to arouse Teodorie’s suspicion.
In addition to rumors of his personal life, there are many rumors of Gerhom’s time as Lord Provost. Perhaps the biggest part of this was due to the rise of his cousin, Nestor Haryse, amongst the Provost’s Guards of Port Caynn. Records published show that some members of the Port Caynn Guards felt that Nestor’s rise to sergeant came suspiciously quickly. Others saw Nestor’s self-imposed decision to work in Port Caynn rather than in the capital with his cousin as proof of his integrity and dedication to his work. These rumors were not kept quiet at the time, but they do not appear to have affected either Gershom or Nestor at all, with both of them having long and successful careers at the same time in their respective cities.
The authors are hoping that more will be revealed with the deciphering of the most recently discovered journal of Guardswoman Rebakah Cooper.
Maybe once we'd have seen it during Smackdown!