Casper Caron

Lia Tarly

Leyla Connington

Casper Caron is the thirdborn son of the late lord Armond Caron and his wife Baela Caron. Presumed to be in service of his eldest brother, he is his own man, with his own motives and interests. Casper is fond of hunting. Never bound to one place, he travels around the realm, attending tourneys and feasts, seeking to prove himself and find new friends.

## Appearance and Character

Standing at 6 feet tall, Casper has an athletic figure. He has great pride in his appearance, taking care of himself. He has brown hair and beard, which is kept short and neatly trimmed. Casper's eyes are dark blue, though they may look like purple in the dark. His wardrobe contains various kind of attire:  from the extravagant and expensive doublets and tunics to simple boiled leather cloths and travelling cloak. He has custom made helm in form of bird's head with a beak, which he wears during tourneys.

He is often described as a frivolous and passionate person by his brothers, which is not far from the truth. He is gregarious and fond of attending feasts and tourneys across the realm. He is honest and not afraid to tell what is in his mind. He is quick at making new friends and enemies. An arrogant and proud man, Casper won't let anyone besmirch him or his family. He may be quick to anger but eventually cools down. It's not uncommon to see him having a drink and laugh with a former adversary. He is kind to his friends and loves animals, which does not prevent him from enjoying hunting.

## History

### Early Life

Born in 68 AC, Casper was a healthy baby. From his early childhood, he was a fussy and active child, the main headache for servants and educators. Only one year younger than his brother, Corwin Caron, he spent most of childhood with him as a friend and a rival, taking lessons and playing games together. Unlike his eldest brother Clyve, Casper was not groomed to be a lord, so his father was lenient with him and let slide most of his misbehaviour, be it playing tricks on his brothers and sisters or skipping lessons. Maester Humfrey said that he had a bright head on his shoulders and could have been a scholar if he used it. Instead of reading books in his room, Casper prefered wondering inside Nightsong, the whole castle being his playground. Sometimes he would climb on the roof of some building and watch knight fighting each other in the training yard. Soon enough, at the age of 8, he exchanged a tree branch for a wooden sword. His uncle, Edric Caron often put him against his own brother Corwin, who he suspected to be favoured more. More often than not he was the one on the ground but nevertheless, he has never yielded without a good fight. Tired of losing, he started seeking what other weapons he can train with. Encouraged by father, he chose the bow and arrows. Soon enough he could shoot much better than Corwin and even Clyve. Seeing his son's progress, Armond took Casper hunting with him. While mastering his skills, Casper appreciated the scenery and the time he spent with his father. He would cherish these memories later in life.

### Squireship

The days of childhood were coming to an end for Casper in 79 AC, when he and his father arrived at the isle of Greenstone. Here he met his distant kins through the marriage of Casper's greataunt into house Estermont. Lord Armond sailed back to Nightsong in the fortnight, leaving Casper to squire under ser Godric Estermont. It was not easy for Casper to adapt to a new routine and new rules. Being a strict mentor, Godric instilled into Casper sense of duty and discipline, forcing him to study and conduct himself appropriately, according to etiquette. He would take Casper on long voyages on his ship *Triumph*, teaching him the basics of navigation and astronomy. Hearing about the past adventures on this ship, Casper decided that he would travel himself, if not by ship, then by horse. It seemed as the whole world was in front of him. From the Wall in the north to the dornish sands in the south, from oldtown in the west to Slaver's bay and Quarth in east. They never sailed far from Greenstone though, so Casper had to set aside his dreams for later.

He continued to do his job as squire until the peace was disturbed and dornish attacked marcher houses of Stormlands, his own home among them. It would be called Fourth Dornish War. While Carons were marshalling their levies at Prince's Pass, Godric called his banners and sailed south with an army and his 15 year-old squire. They would meet with royal forces at the river of Wyl to plan an assault on dornish castle. Godric would lead an amphibious assault, giving royal forces a chance to traverse a river. The landing was successful, Estermont troops managed to secure foothold and push dornish forces back into their castle. The path ahead was steep and dangerous for stormlanders. Casper killed half a dozen men before troops reached the castle. It was near the walls of Wyl, where Godric was struck by an enemy arrow. The wound was mortal, heir of Greenstone died almost instantly, in the hands of his squire. Casper brought the body back to the ships, while the men, seeing their commander dead, started to panic and lose ground to dornish. Ser Gunthor Estermont ordered the retreat back to the ships, where he regrouped the men, waiting for royal reinforcements. With the fresh forces, ser Gunther led the final assault, taking the castle of Wyl. He would knight Casper after its capture for distinguishing himself during the battle. Casper accompanied body of Godric back to Greenstone to pay respect and offer condolences to his family before returning back to Nightsong.

### Adulthood

Newly knighted, Casper did not linger in Nightsong, his dreams could not be contained any more. He wondered around the realm and even North, attending different tourneys celebrations. He participated fairly in melee, though he had no luck in jousts, having to buy back his horse and armour quite often. What he lost in jousts, he made it up by winning an archery competition. He would later attend the feasts, making new friends and indulging himself in drinking and lechery.

His debauchery would end in ten years when his father approached him with a prospect of marriage. Prince Martell sought to improve the relations with Stormlands after Fourth Dornish War and offered a hand of his cousin in marriage to Carons. It was a good match for Casper, even though it was rumoured that lady Martell was not a maiden and had a bastard. *Please, can she be at least not ugly* - he thought to himself and hit the road. The road was long and insufferable.  Unlike the weather, dornish hospitality was far from warm. It was at Sunspear, where he met Prince Nymor, he could have a safe sleep. Next day he had a small feast in his and his future bride's honour. All this time, he could not leave his eyes from Ashara, so beautiful she was. Next night he havent a good sleep. Then they travelled to Nightsong, where they had a wedding. Suspicious at first, it was hard for Caron family to warm up, not until the gave birth to the little boy, who they named Criston.

Happiness didnt last for long since the Rosegold Rebellion started and house Caron was called to war. Never at the front lines, Casper commanded marcher's archers, killing enemies from afar. Some may think its cowardice not to be in front lines but he just did what he was good for. Besides, he did not seek his death so soon after he made a family.

After the war Casper would stay at Nightsong, spending time with his family and hunting in nearby woods. He decided to use his dowry and prize gold to expand kennel and stables, buy dogs, birds and horses for hunt and breeding. He would occasionally travel for tourney, such as the one at Storm's end in 96 AC, where he won archery contest and had a brawl with his brother-in-law lord Connington. Later he would join a skirmish in Rainwood, where he tracked down bandits under the command of his brother Clyve.

## Recent events

Casper decided to attend the funeral of Balerion at King's Landing and take part in the tourneys.

## Family tree

http://www.familyecho.com/?p=JSRS9&c=1l220ch5by&f=772426020724370213