The Beaver King, A Cautionary Tale of Medieval Dysfunction

At court, Little Lord Bucker was called the Unburdened One, a kindness extended to a boy upon whom no one ever dared place an expectation. Freed from duty, spared from instruction, and excused from consequence, he moved through the halls of Beaverton with the careless ease of someone long forgiven in advance. His strength was admired, his idleness indulged, and his vacant calm mistaken for peace, though those who watched closely understood the truth: Bucker was not untroubled by weight so much as untouched by thought, and the court, in its mercy, asked nothing of him lest it be disappointed.

The Third Son of The Beaver King and Queen Consort Brystal is in his early 20’s. He is very lean and muscular with noticeably long limbs and a narrow waist. It is a well known point of gossip with girls from the Court his age, that his pride and muscles had clearly been built to compensate for a most noticeable “lack” in another area. His posture is generally slouched, taking up space without awareness or intent. He has a head full of sandy brown hair with a reddish tint, long and unkempt, extending past the ears. It is uneven and never freshly cut, often tucked under a small dark cap. He has a long red goatee. It is also unkempt, sharply pointed, and noticeably longer than expected. It has a striking color contrast to the color of his hair.

He has mostly angular features and a sharp jaw. His eyes are blank, aloof, and unfocused. His gaze drifts, rarely tracking anyone speaking to him. His expression does not convey disdain, but absence.

Little Lord Bucker is very stupid, and very unintelligent. True incapacity. He is slow to understand cause and effect. He cannot follow extended reasoning, he is incapable of abstraction or planning, and he loses explanations midway. His attention span is fragmented, easily hijacked by sensation or impulse. The Parish Psysicker offered a gentle explanation once during his childhood that he is frequently “away in his head” and that was why he was unable to sustain focus long enough to complete tasks.

The Little Lord is barely able to read and write correctly. He misspells common words, once even his own name. He basically just avoids all of this entirely. Any documents attributed to him are dictated or handled by others. This is widely known and quietly accommodated.

Despite the coldness and cruelty in the family, Lord Bucker has a soft heart. The softness is not wisdom or empathy born of understanding, it it simple emotional desire. He wants everyone to get along and wants everyone to be a nuclear family unit. He wants all conflict to stop because it makes him uncomfortable. He desires surface harmony but not resolution. He does not understand why the conflicts exist, only that he dislikes it. Bucker has repeatedly tried to “fix” tense situations by forcing people together. That has always ended poorly for those involved. He has insisted that people remain together when separation was needed. He has minimized harm to restore surface calm. He has ignited worse situations trying to make everyone happy. Not maliciously, not knowingly, because he lacks the aptitude to perceive underlying problems.

There has been a generational decline in the work ethic and responsibility in the young Lords of Beaverton. Baylor the Brave is disciplined, capable, and fully trained in duty and labor. Little Lord Brentin will work, but due to his Beneficianistic belief system, will do the minimum to get by. But Little Lord Bucker… he has no work ethic to speak of. He is profoundly lazy, having never been trained in responsibility. He was never expected to persist or corrected for idleness. Work does not register to him as obligation or value, and he avoids them thru complete disengagement, not rebellion.

Bucker has attempted many occupations across the Kingdom.

• Manual Labor
• Stable Work
• Guard Duty
• Messenger Tasks
• Apprenticeships

Each attempt failed quickly because he was late or simply absent, forget instructions immediately, lost tools and materials, abandoned tasks halfway thru them, and required constant correction. He did not argue or resist, he just could not perform. This has lead to him being completely blacklisted within the Kingdom. No guild, household, or post will ever take him again. This exclusion is universal and permanent. Beaverton adapted by excluding him.

Lord Bucker has never learned proper manners or social skills. He was never taught or corrected, and was never required to learn etiquette. In company, he does not pay attention to whom is speaking, will not make eye contact, and interrupts without awareness. He fails to respond when addressed, and engages in unrelated actions mid conversation. It is not rudeness by intent, simply the absence of social awareness.

This begs the question to this Minstrelle, “Is education illegal in Beaverton?” But I am a storyteller not a jester, therefore I digress. This Minstrelle will just assert that it is my opinion that Bucker wants a better life. This is obviously based on opinion and not proof. I believe he longs to be valued, be comfortable, be included, and occupy a better emotional and physical position. However, it is painfully obvious that he lacks the skills to pursue it, and will never be taught that in order to have those things, he must first change his position in the Beaverton Regime.

Buckers life follows a predictable cycle.

Attempt. Failure. Exclusion. Return.

He always returns to the Log Cabin Castle. The Beaver King loves this cycle. He takes satisfaction in Lord Buckers inability to succeed independently, his inevitable return home, and his role as a provider and rescuer. King Robert positions himself as The Saviour- not to impress Little Bucker, but to keep him dependent. Poor Bucker mistakes dependency for care.

King Robert ignores Bucker, except as a returning defendant, he enjoys being needed. Queen Brystal barely registers him and offers no guidance. LLB exploits Buckers tenderness. He uses him as a buffer and a tool.

This Minstrelle and Baylor the Brave strongly believe that Lord Bucker wants peace, but being “The Unburdened One” he will never work to create it.

And the cycle continues in perpetuity.