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[incendiium]

ERIK OF HOUSE HARLAW, lord of greyshield & heir to the ten towers

࣪ᰋ𓈒 ֶָ 𝑤𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑜𝑠𝒕𝒗  ⁝         alexander dreymon,  38,  cismale,  he/him.    announcing  the  arrival  of ERIK of house HARLAW,  the  KNIGHT OF GREY GARDEN, LORD OF GREYSHIELD & HEIR of  TEN TOWERS.  whispers  among  the  court  name  them  to  be  both  DAUNTLESS and CYNICAL in  disposition,  and  those  closest  to  them  speak  to  their  interests  in blacksmithing.  if  we  bards  could  compose  a  song  for  them,  it  might  tell  stories  of a blood-stained hand gripping the hilt of a battle-worn sword, the unforgiving crash of ocean waves amidst a violent storm, a silver chalice brimming with blood red wine.  the  seven  whisper  to  their  most  devout  queen  as  she  sleeps,  making  her  question  where  their  loyalties  truly  lie.  are  they  right  to  whisper?  for  their  thoughts  have  lingered  close  to  treasonous  of  late.

I. B A S I C S

FULL NAME: erik gunnar harlaw

TITLES: lord of greyshield, knight of grey garden, heir to the ten towers

AGE : 38

GENDER : cis-male

SEXUAL ORIENTATION : heterosexual

ROMANTIC ORIENTATION : heteromantic

PRONOUNS: he/him/his

MARITAL STATUS: married

BIRTH PLACE: ten towers, isle of harlaw

CURRENT RESIDENCE: grimston, island of greyshield

CULTURE: ironborn

ALLEGIANCE: house harlaw / the iron islands

II. A P P E A R A N C E

FACE CLAIM: alexander dreymon (the last kingdom)

HEIGHT: 6'2

HAIR COLOR: dark brown with hints of russet under the sunlight

EYE COLOR: ocean blue with specks of green

SKIN TONE: warm ivory

BUILD: tall and muscular

SCARS: his forearms are peppered with scars garnered both from years of practice with all sorts of weaponry ; he also has a long scar on his left forearm, and a vertical scar from his left temple to his left cheek.

RECOGNIZABLE FEATURES: deep blue eyes resembling that of a deep ocean ; long, dark hair often worn half-up, or with small braids ; the vertical deep scar on his face.

III. P E R S O N A L I T Y & P S Y C H E

+ TRAITS: dauntless, self-reliant, resilient, assertive

- TRAITS: cynical, obstinate, vengeful, hard-bitten

MORAL ALIGNMENT: chaotic good

RELIGION: follows the drowned god

IV. H I S T O R Y

tw: pregnancy, illness, death ( from child birth )

erik is the eldest of the ( legitimate ) harlaw children; the first born and only son, which meant that his father's expectations of him had been set high even before he could utter his first word – or, as some may say, even before he was born.

his house had a reputation to uphold – bearing the name harlaw as an heir to the ten towers was both a blessing and a curse at the same time. erik's youth was filled with consistent lectures to the ways of their people, the art of war and navigating the sunset sea ( and beyond ), and the cumbersome intricacies that was the westerosi politics. though not much of an academe, the expectations for him as the heir pushed ( if not, forced ) him to learn everything that his parents and his mentors had to teach him.

years of learning paid off, for erik grew to be a skilled and wise man of his own, worthy of the titles bestowed to him by his father. he became a master swordsman, a skilled archer, an adept navigator of the sea who leads a small fleet of his own, and a fearsome warrior who would do anything in his power to defend the honor of his house, the iron born ( in most occasions), and to protect his family against anyone who wish to do them harm.

as the heir to the ten towers, the responsibilities that befall erik were heavy, as was expected. from childhood, he was already bound to lady lyra of house oakheart who had a sizeable dowry that did more than enough to convince his father to seal the deal. the greyshield's proximity to old oak also meant that he would have gained a close ally through the marriage and better support for his stronghold, should he need it.

at the age of 21, erik and lyra were married, and while it was a marriage set to create stronger alliances, it turned out to be a rather successful match. although they started off as strangers to one another, their marriage was not as catastrophic as he first expected it to be. love may not be in the equation, yet the two of them learned to navigate their marriage; dealing with life one day at a time.

it was in the third year of their marriage when lyra became pregnant with their first child, and suddenly, eyes were on the couple. while he had been conflicted about the thought of having a family of his own, erik realized that it was all stemming from his doubts about his ability to become a father. would he discipline his child the way his father did him? is he capable of adapting the gentle ways of his mother? these were the thoughts that worried him for sometime, until they soon became replaced by lyra's condition that seemed to worsen as the moons pass by, and her belly started to show.

while bearing a child usually came with its risks, lyra was particularly and unusually ill within the first two months of her pregnancy. she hadn't been the healthiest even before she fell pregnant, which added to erik's worries, but the need for an heir was echoed from both sides of the family. needless to say, the pregnancy turned to be a perilous journey – one that lyra, nor her child, did not have a chance of surviving. the baby came three months early, and erik lost both his wife and first born before the break of day.

in the months that followed, erik mourned for his wife and first born. he learned to respect and care for lyra, and with her demise, she and their child left a hole in his heart. he turned to the sea as his way of coping, commanding his own ship and sailing as far as the narrow sea. for the next decade, sea voyages would be erik's preferred method of learning the ways of the world; often garnering both friends – and foes – along the way. he would also do his diplomatic missions this way, and his father would often send him away to represent the iron islands' and his family's interests to those who would heed them.

erik spent a lot of time in essos, and was away in one of his travels when he heard news of the attack at highgarden. worried about his family, he sailed back to westeros, and decided then that it was time for him to return to greyshield and continue his duty as its lord. the next few months he was back in westeros, erik sought a new bride and was married for the second time. the attack was unsettling as it was too close to home ( with highgarden being a neighbor to the shield islands ), and he feared that it wouldn't be the last – who is to say that the perpetrators would stop there?

in the aftermath of the attack at highgarden, the iron islands was subject to suspicion, and erik felt as though his family were judged as among the main culprits considering their influence in the islands, and their fealty to house greyjoy. though most ironborn couldn't care less about what happened, erik was among the few who felt a certain sense of unease following the series of accusations that spread like wildfire across westeros. considering that his first wife was from the reach, it was not a surprise that he felt almost insulted that anyone would even think he and his family had a hand in it — nevermind if it was only by association to the greyjoys.

nonetheless, erik is a nonbeliever of the reigning monarch, and while he disliked how people were so quick to point their fingers to the ironborns, a part of him also thinks that whoever was behind the rousing of the smallfolk and the attack, had all the right reasons for inflicting such a catastrophe upon some of the most influential families in westeros.

V. F A C T S

erik is the captain of reaper's wind long ship. this is also the name of a ship that had a very minor role in a dance with dragons, so i figured it'd be safe to claim it as erik's main longship within this rp group's realm!

he loves navigating the seas, and from time to time, terrorizing pirates that they would cross paths with. it also goes without saying that he's been through quite a handful of skirmishes out in the sea – or even out of the sea, in some occasions. he survived them all though not without a couple of deep scars for him to remember those narrow escapes from death by.

erik loves blacksmithing, and actually prefers forging his own swords and weapons. he had been trained as a child by their resident blacksmith, and have since become a master of his own art.

like many ironborns, he follows the drowned god though he's not as devout as the others. he generally thinks that religion is just a way of controlling people, and refuses to succumb to it nor bow down to the influence that it has on some.

he can be a bit of an ass towards some people, and is not one for fake flattery / fake friendships. if he doesn't like someone, he'll make it known lol ( basically, he'll have that negative aura about him when he doesn't like a person or would either completely avoid them or ignore their presence ).

very protective of his siblings and family. he adores his siblings although how they feel about him is all up for discussions with the muns who play the other harlaw children! but i imagine he's very fond of his sisters, and as children, he would often catch the scolding from their parents just to save his sisters ( i.e. even if it's not his fault, he'd say it is 🥺)

as mentioned above, erik highkey is not a big fan of the reigning targaryens. he thinks they are weak especially without their dragons, and certainly not the monarch that the seven kingdom needs in this day and age. he keeps these thoughts to himself though, knowing the risks of being accused of treason if anyone were to know this (esp. the wrong people).

erik is also vexed at how the lord heir greyjoy refused his sister's hand in marriage. a part of him understands why the lord heir did it, but it rubbed him the wrong way when he married someone else after the negotiations were done. he thinks that the lord heir could have done better; perhaps could have been more "man" enough to state what he wanted before his sister could take the fall and potentially shamed in front of many others who knew of what happened. needless to say, he's not a big fan of their ruling overlord in the iron islands either lol

more to be added !

VI. C O N N E C T I O N S

NOTE: these are just some ideas, but i'm happy to plot/discuss any connection ideas you might also have/want for your muses!

new spouse (0/1) — sending a wanted connection for this on the main! but this is basically a relationship with lots of angst/pining/drama (basically, a slow burn type of romance).

brother or sister in arms (0/1) —an iron born sworn to house harlaw, and someone whom erik has been through battles with. they have a long history of not only camaraderie, but also true friendship. they are the only one that erik would trust with his life if things were to go downhill and he needed someone to help him.

friends from afar (0/?) – erik and these muses would have met in one of his many travels at sea. ideally, these muses are from essos, and he became good friends with them after the visits and/or his past stays in one of the free cities. dynamics of the friendship is up for discussion!

unlikely friends (0/1) – this muse would be a westerosi, ideally from a house who has strong opinions about the harlaws or ironborns in general, but after a past encounter, the pair became friends. ideally, this friendship would have started in young adulthood – or even in their teenage years!

past loves, old fling/s (0/?) — erik has had his fair share of past loves and flings, from his youth to his adulthood ( within the 13 or so years that he was unmarried ), he was a man known for being a passionate ( and great ) lover. these muses, he stuck around with for quite sometime (a couple months to a year or so) – though not at the same time, of course. relationship dynamics can vary from friends to annoyance of sorts – we can plot and keep it fun, or angsty...take your pick! bonus: if someone brings me a baby mama, like...a muse with whom erik had a child with and he didn't even know until now lol

failed betrothal (0/1) — erik almost got betrothed with this muse a two years after his first wife passed, however, he refused to go through the betrothal since he didn't think he was ready ( nor did he think he will ever be again ) to commit again to a marriage. how this muse feels about him, in the past or present, can be discussed!

adversary / antagonist (0/1) – as an ironborn who is also the heir to an influential family, it was easy for erik to be disliked for whatever reason. be it because of a past encounter, or simply for breathing, this muse just cannot stand the lord of greyshield. this connection can also be discussed!

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