[GHOSTSUNSHADOW] Dorna Swyft

Name:
Lady Dorna Swyft 

Alias:
Mother Swyft
The Golden Hen

Age:
31

Gender:
Female
Orientation:
Straight

Relationship Status:
Wedded to ser Kevan Lannister

Race:
Human

House:
House Lannister (marriage)
House Swyft (birth)

Rank:
Lady of Cornfield

Family History:
House Swyft of Cornfield has been a house of landed knights sworn to Casterly Rock who for several generations now have served loyally and honorably. In the Westerlands they’re known by the blue bantam rooster on a field of yellow for such is their proud sigil hanging proudly in the wind above the countryside holdfast of Cornfield. The lands under their control don’t host mines rich with gold or guard an important road of strategic worth to their liege lords though instead they host a far more important resource needed today. House Swyft has access to the largest granary in the Westerlands, their fields ripe with grain perfect golden. This lesser House has always served a crucial role in the Lannisters’ successes for their lands have supplied the Lion’s troops with ripe grain and fresh food to keep the soldiers’ moral high. 

Though their role is critical in the welfare of the Westerlands, their standing in the court of Casterly Rock is limited. Most noble houses around these parts don’t consider them worthy of their place at the Lion’s court, even the Lannisters never deemed them much more than high born peasants. However to ensure their loyalties remained ser Kevan Lannister was given choice from all Swyft daughters to take as his bride, binding their Houses in blood. This decision described by Lord Tywin Lannister was the greatest accomplishment of a chinless craven but regardless off his contempt the thousand heavy lancers they supplied to the Lannister army had been most useful in the current War of Five Kings. Tywin’s brother however never took offense to this arrangement for he was given the hand of Lady Dorna Swyft, a young bride with hips wide and a womb perfect for carrying little lion children. 

Today the honeymoon days of ser Kevan Lannister and Lady Dorna Swyft have long come to pass though the flames of their passion marriage have not yet weakened. Their relation was been a fertile one for at a young age Dorna gave birth to the first of three sons, giving him a heir in ser Lancel Lannister. Afterwards came the brave Willem and the gallant Martyn Lannister while their nights together came to an abrupt end when their latest Janei Lannister was born only two years ago. It was a sad parting of lovers when Tywin called his brother and most trusted captain to stand at his right hand side in the war against the false kings. 

Personality:
Dorna has always been a gentle soul, that timid innocent wallflower prone to stand in the shadows of all the beautiful ladies the Westerlands had to offer. She’d always been a shy individual with a fondness for all the simpler things in life, never dreaming beyond the borders of her precious quarters in Cornfield. In social settings Dorna always took a backseat and for good reasons so as the ungrounded envy of Lady Cersei has given way to a series of most unflattering rumors. Chinless, chicken-legged and flat-chested are but a few of the mocking suggestions the Queen Regent whispered in the noble circles of the Westerlands and beyond. Such insults to her name have left her isolated, feeling only comfortable at home with friends and kin around her. It may seem like an empty way of life but for Dorna it’s been all that she knew from the day she entered this world to the day the Seven call her to them.

As a lady there isn’t much else of worth to tell about Dorna Swyft but as a mother there are books that could be written about the first daughter of Cornfield. Having brought four children, three sons and a daughter Dorna was the kind and loving mother the bards write songs about. Every morning she’d greet her children with a light kiss to wake them from their comfortable night’s slumber. Every night she’d put them to bed telling each of them the stories they craved for. Lancel always wanted to hear about his cousin ser Jaimee Lannister, Willem wanted to hear about his uncle Tywin while young Martyn just wanted tales of dragons and knights. Today however her boys have grown too old to listen to her bedside stories letting her spend those minutes teaching Janei all sorts of things a lady is expected to know in a playful manner. After the sun has set she then returns to her beloved husband to fulfill her marital duties offering all of herself to her knight who stood for so long in the shadow casted by his own brother. 

Beside her role as mother and wife, Lady Dorna is a spiritual person with a blind devotion towards the Seven. Every day before the dawn sets over the horizon she goes down on her knees upon the balcony and prays to the Mother to keep her children safe from harm. Then her pleas are directed to the Warrior to lend her husband the strength to live another day and bringing him closer to certain victory. Every festival devoted to the worship of the Seven will be awarded with her charity for much of her father and her husband’s coin has been invested in the High Septom. Those less fortunate than her are offered a half penny for their troubles, others simply given a warm meal and a loaf of bread to feed their starving families with. 

Physical Description:
Regardless of the rumors Lady Cersei Lannister spread through the Westerlands, most have proven to be untrue by those who actually met the wife of ser Kevan Lannister. Chinless was a word hushly whispered in the noble circles as was the chicken-legged and flat-chested comment that goes around though such are but empty words spread by an envious woman. Hair blonde like the ripe wheat that her family grows for their liege lords with eyes brilliant cornflower blue Dorna Swyft is a beautiful woman with strong feminine features. Long curls tumble down her back like a river of golden waves that rest upon perfect satin skin. A soft voluptuous body rounded in all the right places accentuates her natural strength as a wife and mother; breasts perky and full have fed four children and kept a husband to stay true to his marital vows despite all temptations; hips wide and supple have set three sons and a daughter in this world while holding onto her knight’s affections. Her eyes can soothe a crying child with a single look while summoning ser Kevan to her chambers regardless of his duties occupying him at that moment.

Dorna possesses a humility that reflects in her wardrobe for unlike the woman that tainted her reputation; she always goes dressed in flattering garments that hide her feminine features. Soft natural colors feature in her richly filled closets from the hand sown cotton dresses she made herself on those lonely summer afternoons to the lovely gowns her husband brings back for her upon each campaign successfully completed. Jewelry is luxury fairly absent in her nightstand for this lady prefers to donate her gold to the Seven rather than have it hung around her neck and ears. Pearls however are a weakness of hers and her dear ser Kevan Lannister knows about this one vice to her otherwise virtuous behavior. Every time he leaves the comfort of his keep, leaving behind woman and child he’d return to her with beautiful embroiled dresses from every remote corner in Westeros along with rings, necklaces and earrings all set with those shiny polished pearls she loves so dearly. Perhaps this is done for the immense gratitude she shows him in reward for these gifts but there’s not a day in the Seven Kingdom calendar that Dorna Swyft doesn’t wear those precious trinkets with the sea’s most valued treasures in them.

Powers and Abilities:
Dorna possesses no exceptional powers or abilities, merely modest talents any woman of noble birth has been taught at a young age. Growing up in Cornfield where wheat for the entire Westerlands was grown in addition to fluffy white cotton, she was learnt to sow and make some of the nicest needlework decorations found in the seven kingdoms. She can sing fairly well, enough to soothe the temper of any crying child in mere seconds while her feet are light enough to carry her into an intimate dance which she prefers to share with her beloved husband. Her skills as a mother are truly exceptional, perhaps even the reason as to why the Queen Regent started all those nasty rumors for each of her three sons have proven to be kind and obedient lads with proper etiquette and charming manners. Her boys are genuinely brave, perhaps a bit timid like her but loyal nonetheless to their last breath all thanks to her teachings. In the noble circles of the Westerlands it’s often whispered that if Joffrey had been raised by lady Dorna he wouldn’t have turned out like such a spoiled brat but none would ever utter such dangerous words out loud in the presence of the one daughter of Casterly Rock.
 
Strengths:
• Supporting her husband
• Parenting four children
• Running a household

Weaknesses:
• Public confrontation
• Political scheming
• Social events

Weapons of Choice:
Except for a talent with needles and the occasional use of a kitchen knife, lady Dorna sees no reason to arm herself while remaining safely within the comfort of her own home. Once outside her precious walls however her husband insisted on always wearing a stiletto knife strapped to her thigh yet she’d not know how to use it even if her life depended on it. Her best weapon resides in the two loyal Crimson Cloak guards her husband hired to accompany her for taking up arms is completely unfit for a lady of her standing.

Armor of Choice:
Much like her aversion for all forms of confrontation be it physical or verbal, Dorna prefers to stand on the sideline from all dangerous circumstances. For such an attitude, the need to wear armor seems to be a lost cause.

Background History:
In the Westerlands the noble houses are old and prosperous, each marked by a long history of wealth and success. Their ancestors were all great men with big names and even bigger reputations but few could ever dream of rivaling with their liege lords from Casterly Rock, the mighty and proud House Lannisters. Richer than the Targaryen family they had control over the largest gold mines in Westeros and with such fortune came power. With their vaults stacked to the roof with solid golden ingots the lions from Casterly Rock can afford entire armies of sellswords to side with their red and golden banner. A small dozen of Houses, high born nobles and knightly families all have sided with the Lannisters supply resources and men to their army in desperate times just like when they sacked King’s Landing. Amongst those families are the members of House Swyft from Cornfield.

House Swyft from Cornfield controls a large part of the countryside, owning fields rich with corn and wheat from their ancestral seat southeast from Casterly Rock. This family was put in charge of the granaries of the Westerlands, their vaults stocked with barrels of grain and wine rather than gold and gems. With such easy access to the food supply of this corner of the Seven Kingdoms, it came to none’s surprise that House Swyft quickly rose in the social hierarchy gaining land and title along with significant standing. Their House bannermen counted well in the thousand foot soldiers along with several hundreds of heavy lancers all ready to come to their overlord’s aid in dire times. Ser Harys Swyft however ambitioned for something more than being known as the Lord of Fields and with two beautiful daughters at his disposal the possibilities seemed infinite. 

His oldest daughter was a precious flower with a corn-fed vigor and eyes blue like the sapphire blue cornflowers that grew aplenty on his lands. Lady Dorna Swyft was her name and a countryside charm was her fame for with voluptuous curves in all the right places and hair like golden waves she’d make a fine lord’s wife someday. And so the political game of House Swyft began. Ser Harys petitioned Lord Tywin Lannister, lord of Casterly Rock to unite their houses in marriage but the Ward of the West didn’t deep the Swyft girl a suitable match for his sons. The campaign continued as the Lord of Cornfield began presenting his precious Dorna to all nobles in the Westerlands but only a few showed any genuine interest. Lord Leo Lefford however was interested for an alliance with House Swyft would grant him the supremacy he desired in the Westerlands. This union however would weaken the Lannisters rule, leaving Lord Tywin to make a drastic decision, his brother ser Kevan was to wed Lady Dorna in order to have the lions reign remain undisputed.

Like most arranged weddings there wasn’t love involved in this union of Houses, merely political decisions made to secure power and control within the lands they considered home. Ser Kevan was a handsome lad back in the day full with potential yet with his brother’s own words: some are meant to be leaders, Kevan was born a follower. Lady Dorna was a young maiden who’d just been through her first flowering when the engagement was written in the books of Westeros History. Nineteen years there stood between the bride and her groom, a shy wallflower and a lion who always stood in the shadow of his older brother: the match seemed to be one destined by the Seven but when Dorna first laid eyes on her knight it was love at first sight. Handsome and strong he seemed to her when the wind lifted up his crimson cloak and golden hair while the sun caught brightly upon his shiny armor. He seemed so worldly to her, a man rich with experience that would make a fine husband and from that day a wedding out of duty became one out of love.

What happened next is history for that night the proud lion’s brother made a woman out of Dorna. He was gentle and loving with her, always polite and carrying when he laid her in the bed and filled her with the seed that brought forth three handsome lion sons and one baby daughter. Her first child was the most painful one as nine months of misery went before eighteen hours of agonizing labor before the Westerlands greeted Lancel Lannister in its ranks. The twins Willem and Martyn were an easy carriage and a quick birth as was their little girl who joined the family only two years ago. Ser Kevan grew fonder of his precious Dorna with each year that passed, falling more in love with each child she blessed him with. The young Lancel grew up in the spitting image of his uncle Jaimee Lannister, gaining both title and standing from his aunt Lady Cersei yet Dorna can’t help but be suspicious of the woman’s intentions. Martyn and Willem joined the Lannister army and rode to the Riverlands though news of Willem’s untimely end still needs to reach his mother’s ear. Janei will one day become the wife of a prominent nobleman, once more giving the Lannisters alliances through the union of Houses. The future for this family seems most bright for now.

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