The Best Colonizing Party {Gaston}

[Naveen]

"This building does not look very put together," offered Naveen, just in case his partner in crime wasn't aware of the situation. In truth, Naveen was a little confused as to why they went this way looking for people or whatever they were doing instead of heading into the forest. Not that he was complaining: he'd much rather be here than out there in the wilderness with who knows what. Though given the current state of the school, "the wilderness" and "civilization" were apparently quite the blurred line.

Naveen peered into the building again. "Why are we here again, my most muscular new friend?" he asked, looking over his shoulder at the burly hunter who had insisted they head this way. Naveen still thought it best to keep tagging along with the handsome man, since he clearly had more control over the situation than anyone else there, save for possibly the scrawny man with the beard (but that man just looked a little too much like a servant; Naveen kept wanting to ask him to wash his underclothes).

And Gaston had said something about heading this way out of some purpose that Naveen still wasn't quite grasping. He tapped the door again, bouncing up on his toes to try and see if the reason was about to jump out at him. He definitely wasn't going in first: Gaston was armed, bigger than him, and marginally less expendable than Naveen.

[Gaston]

So, he hadn't gone hunting. The others might think they could order him off, expect to provide food for the masses, but Gaston didn't hunt for anyone but himself. And until he had walls to hang some antlers off, there wasn't any point in hunting. Someone else would find food - if he absolutely had to find something he'd just wait till that overly-happy one lured her little animal friends over, and he could snatch a rabbit or something.

Mostly, he was irritated. Irritated at being issued an order as if he was just like anyone else, irritated at being expected to provide for the group when he couldn't see anything in it for himself, and irritated that Arthur had gone off with Russia, instead of wanting to hang out with him. After all, it had been 10 years - surely Arthur wanted to hear everything single thing that had happened to Gaston in that time. What was so great about Russia, anyway?

And so, he'd decided to forward his own agenda. He'd show them what he was made of.

They reached the Threave building, and Gaston stood outside with Naveen, looking up at the building. So, it was overgrown - same as the rest of this dump. All he needed to do was get inside, stake his claim, and he was done. In charge, taking over. How hard could it be?

At Naveen's question, Gaston set his jaw in determination, running one hand over the side of his hair to ensure it was smooth. "We are here to take charge of this whole sorry mess." He said darkly. Swinging his gun from his shoulder, he aimed it towards the door, finger ready and hovering over the trigger.

With a sudden movement, he kicked the doors hard, forcing them open, and coughed as the air filled with dust. He turned to Naveen with a dark look.

"Let's do this."

[Naveen]

Naveen did notice the slight preening; it made him want to doublecheck himself. "Ah, yes," he said as he glanced at the door again, "I can see why we are most definitely in need of good, solid leadership such as yourself." Indeed, the man's take charge demeanor suited Naveen just fine. He seemed to know precisely what to do and was more than willing to do it.

The loud shuddering of the door made Naveen jump, and he nearly scurried behind Gaston. Instead he forced himself to remain in place, coughing and waving a hand as the dust gathered, making his eyes water. "Yes, we should enter quite valiantly, like the brave men we are," he said, wishing he felt a little more confident. Of course, now that he'd said that, he had to follow suit, which meant stepping inside the building.

"My friend, one of the first things you should be doing is firing the gardener," Naveen said as he nearly tripped over what looked like a root. He tapped it and took a few steps cautiously inward, looking around. "They are doing a most awful job," he looked around again, seeing the plants curling against the walls. It was odd, but underneath it, Naveen swore he could almost see what looked like an official building. He'd been in enough places of governance. Oh well, it wasn't like it really mattered. "Perhaps you should boldly go forth to make quite certain it is safe. You are, after all, the more capable one of us, no?"

[Gaston]

He noticed Naveen's jumpiness and rolled his eyes. Gaston didn't know what was waiting for them in the building, and he really didn't need to be babysitting. He needed someone who'd have his back. He turned to Naveen. "Do you have anything useful with you? A gun, sword, knife... anything?" He asked, exasperated. "Just... don't get in the way." He growled as he took a step inside the building.

"I suspect the gardener is dead." He muttered at Naveen's comment. "But if you're looking for a job..." He walked into the building slowly and carefully, looking around and aiming his gun around the entrance hall as he walked. He smirked at Naveen's compliment - well, obviously, Gaston was usually the most capable, no matter who he was with. It was just a perk of being Gaston.

It was dark, dusty and dirty inside the building, but the entrance hall, at least, seemed deserted of everything except overgrown plants, vines, and a hell of a lot of ivy. Gaston curled his lip slightly at the dirt - he really didn't like getting dirty, but it appeared as if it was going to be somewhat inevitable. The dirt and dust muffled his footsteps, and he turned to Naveen with a finger on his lips, listening intently.

He couldn't hear anything. So far, so good.

Keeping his gun ready, he turned to Naveen. "So, who are you, anyway? What's your agenda?" He asked, as interested as Gaston had the ability to be in anything other than himself.

[Naveen]

"I have a guitar,' Naveen pointed out, holding the instrument protectively in front of him. Naveen would rather not lose it, but at the same time, better it than him. He could definitely follow the other order, quickly getting out of Gaston's way, falling a little behind. "oh no, I am most definitely not looking for any employment. I would much prefer to avoid such horrible things," he looked around again, realizing that perhaps this place qualified. Everything looked about ready to fall down and/or attack them at will.

The turn and silence did have Naveen pausing, keeping quiet for a few seconds. He did know some about hunting, even if it was more in the abstract sense. The few hunts he'd been on had mostly involved a lot of drinking and riding around.

"Hmm? I am Prince Naveen! Of Maldonia!" Naveen said, grinning. "And my only desire is to just keep living the good life," he looked around again. "This place, it looks like it used to be some sort of, what did you all say, school? I have not been to a school in some time,' he focused back on Gaston. "Surely you must have been one of the people in charge? The, ah, what do you call it, Headmaster? You seem very Headmasterly, Mr. Gaston."

[Gaston]

"What, you're going to play the bad guys to death?" Gaston muttered, rolling his eyes. Fantastic.

Oh wonderful, another prince. What was it with poncey princes latching on to Gaston? This was all he needed. He'd spent some of the best years of his life taking care of Arthur, because God, had he needed it, and now he had another one. At least this one seemed to fully appreciate how fantastic he was, something Arthur had never quite grasped.

"The good like - I think you might have come to the wrong place for that..." He muttered, turning sharply as he heard a noise above them and aiming his gun towards to rafters. He relaxed slightly as he saw a pigeon flying from one perch to another.

"I was a student last time I was here," He told Naveen, smirking at his words. "I am not a student anymore though. And somewhere in this building are the keys to taking control of this school, and the power to shutting up that damn do-gooder Merlin." He stood up a little straighter, puffing his chest out and smoothing his hair again. "Headmaster Gaston has quite a good ring to it, don't you think?"

[Naveen]

"Well, you can make the good life be wherever you are? And so long as there are people who are there to be with you---" Naveen paused as Gaston shifted, head cocking to the side. It took him a bit to remember that they were supposed to be looking for something. His head moved up, only to snap back down as Gaston picked right back up again.

"Merlin? Was that the blonde one or the one with a beard?" asked Naveen, blinking. "Ah, well, yes, Headmaster Gaston, it just makes sense, no?" Naveen took a few more steps forward, looking around. "Oh ho ho, this building, it contains the office of the Headmaster, yes? And if you are the one in the office, then you would be the one who is the Headmaster."

Naveen let out a laugh. "Ashidanza! My friend, you are as clever as you are handsome and strong!" he walked up and gave Gaston a few slaps on the shoulder. "We should probably be heading up, yes? As this is where the office will be," plus, if Naveen was one of the people helping the Headmaster, that meant the Headmaster was likely to ignore him in the future, which meant he could go right back to doing whatever he wanted, right?

[Gaston]

Gaston couldn't help but scoff at Naveen's reply. "Yeah, give that a go here and let me know how you get on." He muttered. From what he could remember, there was very little making of 'the good life' here in Tintagel. It had mostly just been full of drama, angst and various near-death experiences. Of course, there had been some wonderful moments - but that was all they had ever seemed to be, moments. Fleeting, few and far between, and always ruined by some disaster or stupid error of judgement.

But it wasn't worth dwelling on that. By the looks of the group that had arrived in the courtyard she wasn't there. At least she wasn't there yet. Maybe she'd arrived since they left... or been deposited somewhere else... No, Gaston shook his head, willing the thoughts away. He needed to concentrate, he needed to do what he'd come here to do and get the power so he could start bossing Arthur around. Oh, he was going to enjoy that.

"Idiot with the beard." He growled, when Naveen asked who Merlin was. He didn't know what it was about that servant that wound him up so much. Of course, anyone else could tell him that it was jealousy at his closeness to Arthur; Gaston was clearly envious of the time Merlin had been able to spent with him, while Gaston had been cast out with no one who understood, no one who shared any memories of his time at school. Or of Gwen.

Gaston gave Naveen a strange look at his exclamation. "Bless you." He said, as Naveen slapped him on the shoulder. This guy was a little strange, but hey, maybe Arthur would get jealous at how much his new friend admired him. He nodded, looking towards the staircase. He'd never actually been in this building as a student, but he figured Naveen was probably right, and started making his way towards the stairs.

"Come on then. If you help me find the office and lay claim to this place, you can be my deputy." Gaston offered graciously. After all, who wouldn't want to be the wonderful Gaston's deputy?

[Naveen]

Right, so this Merlin was the one with the beard. Odd, but Naveen had almost thought that one could've taken Gaston's place as leader. He didn't have quite the raw charisma, of course, but even Naveen had noticed how everyone seemed to look up to him and listen to what he said and did. That was the other part, after all.

Naveen almost fell over as Gaston clapped him on the shoulder, and he certainly let out a little coughing noise. "Ah, yes, that would be most glorious," offered Naveen. He assumed so, anyway, though he wasn't quite sure what a Deputy Headmaster would do. Probably it would be something like a prince: a nice title, but the other person would be responsible for doing all the work.

Since Gaston took the stairs without further prompting, Naveen fell in line behind him. He began humming to himself almost immediately, running his hands along the walls. "We must definitely get the serving peoples to do the cleaning of this, yes? It is most unpleasant," he drew his hand back. "But of course, as the Headmaster, you will be making sure this is done."

[Gaston]

Rolling his eyes, Gaston paused for a second to take a calming breath. Sure, this guy might be up there in the adoration stakes, but he was also coming across extremely high in the stating the obvious specs. "Yes, Naveen, I will be employing serving people to clear the place." He glanced back at Naveen over his shoulder. "What, you think I'm going to do this myself?" He scoffed, before turning and continuing up the stairs.

The climb was easy, but once they reached the first floor hallway, the going began to get a little tougher. With dirt and debris everywhere, every step was precarious, and plants and vines had grown through into the building, making the place look like something from a post-apocalyptic world. Which, Gaston thought, he supposed it kind of was. Seeing a door on his left, he headed over to it, trying to open it but finding it impossible to move; no matter how much weight Gaston put against it, there was something blocking it from the other side. He looked around, looking for the Headmaster's office.

He was starting to get frustrated. The place was a mess, he was hungry, he was still annoyed at Arthur and Merlin, and he was beginning to realise his plans hadn't really gone much further than getting to the office - beyond that he didn't know what he was going to do. He supposed he could send Naveen out as a messenger, let the others know that he had taken control and call them all to a meeting.

But first he had to get into the office. He looked at Naveen, deciding to shoulder his gun - this place seemed pretty deserted and he figured that if anything or anyone jumped out at them, he could take them down with his bare hands. "So. I need to find the headmaster's office, then once we're in we can go from there. Check the doors, see what you can find." He ordered Naveen, pointing down the corridor.

[Naveen]

"Why no, of course not! Why would someone such as yourself do something like cleaning?" asked Naveen, meaning every word. Plus, he figured it would be that much easier to include himself in that, which meant that he wouldn't necessarily have to as well. Given what Naveen saw as they kept walking, he was thinking that was very much a good thing. Nobody had done anything to this place in far too long. Who let a perfectly good castle fall into disrepair like this?

Naveen stopped at the door with Gaston. Instead of helping, he stood by, careful to give Gaston enough room. Had the burlier man continued his task, Naveen probably would've started cheering him on or something. As it was, he simply gave the door a light kick after the fact, wincing slightly and resisting the urge to rub his foot.

"Ah, excellent decision," agreed Naveen. He could definitely open doors. He turned down the corridor. A few paces, and he was actually opening a door. Several vines fell on top of him, knocking him to the ground. "This door, she has many plants," he offered, trying to wiggle and mostly just flailing.

[Gaston]

With a nod, Gaston turned his back on Naveen and began to make his way down the opposite end of the corridor, stopping at each door and rubbing the dust and dirt from the name plaques. With each one his irritation grew - these were nothing but useless administration rooms, secretaries and assistants. He needed the room of someone with some power.

He turned as he heard a commotion behind him, his gun immediately back in hand, his finger hovering over the trigger. He moved quickly but stealthily towards the sound, and groaned, rolling his eyes when he saw Naveen on the floor covered in vines. Gaston stood over him, making no move to help, shaking his head.

“I miss LeFou.” He muttered with a sigh, before finally reaching down and helping Naveen to free himself of the offending vines. “Tell me you’ve at least found a useful room?”

[Naveen]

"God bless you," offered Naveen in response to the strange bit of near gibberish that Gaston had said moments before coming to help him get free. The prince wiggled and almost got in the way as much as helped, but he would eventually end up on his feet, which was where he wanted to be. Naveen brushed aside some loose bits from his clothes, before realizing that Gaston had asked a question regarding the actual room.

To which Naveen smiled and shrugged. "I have not had the chance to look," he craned his head into the door, looking around. "There seem to be many of the files and something that looks like a set of keys?" he peered into the room. "Ah," he pulled out, "this is likely belonging to a, a servant type person. You know," Naveen gestured. "the kind that takes notes and is very concerned with appointments. Surely an important man as yourself had at least one of these, yes?"

[Gaston]

“Keys?” Finally, something that had potential. Gaston peered into the room, looking around carefully, not wanting to miss anything. The room looked as if it had been frozen in time, the people removed but everything else exactly as it would be on any working day - papers on the desk, a pen cast aside, a filing cabinet drawer half open. Gaston slowly and cautiously took a few steps inside, immediately pocketing the keys on the nearest desk and continuing further into the room.

He made his way over to the filing cabinet and looked inside, pulling a few folders out and looking at the titles. “Emrys, Merlin; LeGume, Gaston; Miller, Della; Thatch, Milo; Romanov, Anastasia...” Gaston’s face broke into a wide, and undeniably evil, grin. These were student files. These little bits of cardboard were full of all the dirt and dark secrets on his former classmates. Gaston’s eyes almost glazed over at the thought of the power this could give him. He had stepped into a hidden goldmine, and it was wonderful.

He needed to keep this goldmine safe. Turning and leaving the room, he quickly shut and locked the door, before turning to Naveen. “No one goes in here without my say, got it?” He pointed the key at Naveen. “I will hold you entirely responsible for the security of this room. And trust me,” Gaston took a step towards him, pulling himself to his full height and towering over Naveen, “you do not want to upset me.”

[Naveen]

Naveen hung back while Gaston got excited over the files. The prince did recognize those, at least in a general sense. He also knew that he had absolutely no interest in them. He'd already started getting his guitar out, and was strumming while Gaston worked himself up into brilliant plans about what he could do to other students.

Naveen was so distracted that he almost jumped when Gaston closed the door. He looked up at his new companion. "Wait a moment, my friend," he said as Gaston finished, holding out a hand not steadying his guitar. "Look at me," he gestured at himself, "who would want me responsible for anything?" Naveen held out his hand, giving a slight shrug. "But do not be worrying!" he clapped Gaston on the shoulder, before striding, half bobbing past him. "I'm sure that people will not be fighting you for files of information. Who would want to read through all that? Bah."

"Oh!" Naveen stopped. "I see a door with a little plaque beside it," he was already leaning over, peering at the dust. Whatever it said, Naveen certainly couldn't tell. Not because he couldn't read, but because it was covered by... something.