I switch between Tony, Lord Stark, Lord Anthony etc. with the following reasoning:
1) Pepper told him explicitly to call her Pepper. So he stopped calling her Virginia.
2) Pepper thinks of him as Lord Stark but slowly uses Lord Anthony as she gets to know him. She does not call him Tony yet because he hasn't told her to.
I'm a firm believer of the usage of nicknames only if you know someone well enough or if they tell you to call them by the nickname.
Being a candle is not easy; In order to give light, one must first burn.
It was morning. Pepper walked down the stairs slowly. She stopped at the bottom. She was dreading Lord Anthony's presence at the table. She did not know how to face him.
How can I? I was a tease. I went in there. I showed him my body. I decided to sleep with him. I kissed him willingly and then I didn't go through with it. But I just couldn't. I want to love the man I lay with. Lord Anthony is a good man but I don't love him.
She touched her lips as she remembered the passionate kisses they shared and the way she shuddered in his arms as he took her mouth. Then she remembered the violent way he slammed his fist into the bed frame, to release his anger. His force, the look in his eyes and the blue flame, the way he was controlling, no, restraining his rage, she did not blame him if he hated her.
And she did not want to face that hate today. Perhaps she should leave. But where could she go? Her home was... no longer her home. And on her own, she knew the villagers would not accept her. She sighed and walked into the main hall.
No one was there and she went into the kitchen, looking for Jarvis. He and Magdalene were sitting on the large stone slab, which was the kitchen's counter, eating porridge. He smiled at her and said "Milady, Good morning! Help yourself to some hot porridge and come sit with us."
Her face must have shown her confusion as he continued "We can eat informally as Lord Anthony will not be here all day."
She exhaled with relief, then composed herself and asked "Where has Lord Anthony gone? And how long will he be gone?"
Jarvis looked uncomfortable for a minute, then replied "It could be a few days or a week or a month, you can never tell with Lord Stark's journeys. Anyways, I thought I would show you around the grounds, in his absence." He was trying to change the subject and Pepper let him. She would ask him later.
Four days later
It was a cold but bright day. Pepper sipped a hot cup of ale in the gallery, humming to herself. There was no sign or sound of Lord Anthony and Jarvis was acting on edge. Twice he had come close to confiding in her but he would just gulp and change the subject or move away. Pepper was determined to know what was going on and decided to corner him. Plus she was bored of reading the scientific treatises in the library.
She found Jarvis tidying up in Lord Anthony's room. Tigliath was all curled up at the foot of the bed.
"Tell me Jarvis, why didn't Lord Anthony take Tigliath with him on this journey?"
Jarvis stiffened and replied "It is very difficult for Lord Anthony to keep a low profile or blend in with crowds, with a panther around. And Tigliath is just too curious at times and disobeys instructions. So it is better, he stays here on difficult quests."
"Quests? Lord Anthony has gone on a quest? What type of quest? Where is this quest?"
Jarvis then sighed and said "Milady, try as I might, I cannot keep evading your questions. And frankly, it would be good to confide in someone as Milord's antics worry me. I shall tell you all, from the beginning."
Pepper nodded and sat on the bed. Tigliath promptly pushed his heavy head onto her lap for some petting.
Jarvis spoke, "Lord Stark was born into a family of noble knights and soldiers. His father, Howard the Third, was the leader of the Iron Legion, a rout of elite knights whose sworn duty was to serve King Vanko and to expand his kingdom. From childhood, Lord Stark was treated as a knight in training and it was always expected that he would take his father's place as the head of the Legion when the day came."
"Lord Howard was first and foremost a knight and only cared for his king. So he sent Lord Anthony to far away lands as a child, to learn the art of war and train with other soldiers. It was hard for his wife, Lady Maria to bear as Anthony was her only child and she was saddened by the hardships he had to endure at such a young age. She never enjoyed the joys of motherhood or marriage as both her husband and son were never home. Time passed and Lord Anthony was in his twentieth year, when a Slavic assassin murdered his parents, on their way to the coronation of the new king, Leoric."
"Lord Anthony was awarded his father's knighthood and took his place as the leader of the Iron Legion. At first, the other knights did not respect him and ignored him because they were envious of him achieving so much so young. But my lord proved his mettle in the Battle of Timnoth and many other battles. He was King Leoric's most decorated knight and the most respected, due to his strategic thinking and intelligence on the battlefield."
"In his thirtieth year, during a particularly vicious battle, my Lord was heavily injured and captured by an evil wizard in the Forest of Nioh. I do not know what they did to him, milady, but somehow he escaped and came back to us after three long months. He was a changed man, both physically and mentally. He doesn't talk about his captivity because it pains him. All i know, is that another prisoner, a shaman from the East, saved his life by magically filling him with an eternal blue fire, that gives him inhuman strength. It is also the energy source that powers his Iron Knight armor."
"The blue fire", Pepper whispered.
"Yes Milady, you can see it glowing in his chest at times, when his emotions are high. The fire is both a blessing and a curse for my lord."
"Why a curse?"
"Because it is a living source of ancient spirit power that lives through Lord Anthony. He will not admit it but I feel the spirit talks to him and disturbs him. It is also a source of guilt for him because... the shaman died, so that the power could pass from him to Lord Anthony. He did it, so that my Lord could escape with his life. That act of sacrifice shook Lord Anthony. He realized how he had spent his life, dealing death and destruction. All in the name of conquest, money and fame. All the shaman asked of him, was to use the blue fire to help others, not to destroy them."
"This change in morality must have been difficult for King Leoric, to stomach from his best knight." Pepper noted drolly.
"Indeed Milady. Once Lord Anthony returned to court, he requested an audience with the King and asked to disband the Iron Legion, saying its violent acts were unnecessary and cruel. King Leoric laughed in his face and suggested his captivity had addled his mind. When Lord Anthony tried to reason with the King, he was thrown in jail for a few days and then humiliated by being publicly stripped of his knighthood."
"His title remained because King Leoric's advisers felt Lord Anthony would see the error of his ways soon enough and return to the King. They did not want to alienate him completely. But it has been two years since my Lord left the court, swearing never to return and to do good with his powers. He will not go back to that life."
Pepper thought, He lost his parents and his position in society. Just like me.
"So what does he do with his powers? Is that the quest he is on?" She asked.
Jarvis shuffled from one foot to another and said, "Milady, Lord Anthony has become a silent champion of the innocent. If he hears of any raids or attacks against simple farmers or villagers, he goes to their aid. He also seeks to prevent injustice in the form of invasions or dictators. Right now, he has gone to destroy a large camp of slavers in the North West. He learned of their camp from a note he found in the slave camp where you were imprisoned. He wants to set their prisoners free and send them home."
Pepper inhaled sharply, remembering the muted anger in Anthony's eyes as they rode away from the destroyed slave camp. "I will not allow this to exist anymore", he had said with coldness. She looked at Jarvis with worry.
"He has gone to fight a camp of slavers alone?"
Jarvis said with a sad smile "Who is interested in freeing poor enslaved innocents? Certainly not the neighboring barons or lords. Or the King's knights or stewards. Even the villagers will not interfere unless one of their own has been captured. So yes, Lord Anthony is always alone on such quests. But he comes back every time, victorious. You see, it is not just the power or the armor, he is also a battle-hardened strategist and knows how to win through stealth."
"Does he usually take so long on a quest?"
"No, he comes back in 1 or 2 days. But he mentioned the camp would be large as it is the main camp. I feel you inspired him in this regard, Milady. After seeing your plight, he is determined to rid these lands of this slaving scourge once and for all."
Pepper felt joy in knowing that the others who had been imprisoned with her would be free soon. She wanted to learn more about Lord Anthony and his quests. When he returned, she would seek him out.
6 days later
Pepper stared at the gentle fall of snow from her bedroom window. It had been 6 days since Lord Anthony had left on his quest. And now Jarvis and Magdalene had to travel to a farmer's abode as a midwife was urgently needed for his pregnant wife. The first-time father had come to the Keep, desperately looking for aid and both had experience with childbirth. It was a two day ride and they had left in order to reach the farmer's home in time for the birth.
It was just her and Tigliath for now. She settled on her cot with the big cat, who never left her side. Together they sat in the fire's warmth and waited for Lord Anthony to return.
