( mackenyu arata, cis man, he/him) HARK! I believe the heralds are announcing the arrival of KAITO HIGHTOWER, the TWENTY-SIX year old, LORD of OLDTOWN. They are known to hold loyalty towards THEIR HOUSE and little birds sing of them being INVARIABILE & TRUSTWORTHY. When one dreams of them, images of “a boy pretending to be a knight, a silence that you wear like a cloak, undying loyalty to the family that took you in” comes to mind. However their REALISTIC and CAUSTIC nature can make for difficult times. Time will only tell what their true intentions are.
BIO
you weren’t born into the Hightowers, but you might as well have been from the way you carry yourself, from the you acted. raised you like were of their own after being adopted at the age of five, too young to remember your own father and mother though you are told that you were born to them on the 22nd day of the sixth moon cycle of the year. you heard they were dutiful to the house they served, one as a knight and the other as a handmaiden. you folded into the rhythms of the noble life without hesitation as if it was something you were destined for, and for the most part, that was enough for you. still, there’s always been a shadow of feeling like you were different. a reminder of how you’re not bound to your family by blood, not tied to them but only by surname. in a way, that shadow feels...comforting. you feel like you were chosen. wanted. but there's a sting to it. wanted, but not original. not at first.
you try not to think too hard about what people see when they look at you. the orphan boy playing pretend lord. the commoner who rose up to noble status after being rescued. you do not let it distract you from playing your role well, but there’s an ache under your skin, a restless sense that you're…missing something. it reminds you of when you first arrive. how you struggled to learn things. it felt like everyone else was taught the rules before they got here, meanwhile you're having to learn as you go. and the rules are never that clear. you don't mean to say the wrong things, to say them the wrong ways, but you do. some of it gets laughed off. other times…it isn't taken well. you have no idea what you're doing. so you remembered how you learned bying just watch. by observing. to try to learn quietly, as if maybe one day you'll untangle the whole complicated mess of how to be a noble.
you’ve always been better at playing than watching the training yourself, especially after witnessing your first tourney. you had always though the only path that laid in front of you was to serve your house as a maester, for it was what Oldtown was known for but you wanted different. you always thought about being a knight but you did not want to wear the white cloak or join the city watch, so you succumbed yourself to achieving this another way. you see more than you should, and you don’t always know how but its easy that you wear born to wield a lance and a sword. maybe it was because you were your father's son. you've learned what you can before it is decided best to travel around the Reach at first. soon after, you learn what you could and it is decided for you to visit the other regions. it is not common for you to be so far away from home but you tell yourself you are doing this to bring honor to your family. to bring honor your own way as if it was a way to say thank you for taking you in.
you’ve always been better at silence, though even the in your silence you attract attention. the way you carry yourself they say, followed by how easily you are able to talk to someone. some wondered if you are so well read due to where you grew up in. some wonder if it is because you learned how to master the Hightower charm. and yet you are better at slipping into the background, a steady figure where others are loud and demanding. your siblings burn brighter, walk with a certainty you've never mastered. so you learn to stay back. not out of fear. not out of contempt. just...because it's easier. you’re content to spend you days playing the tourney knight, sitting in the shadows of the training grounds when others sleep. there’s a kind of safety in the solitude. a kind of peace. the moon doesn't demand anything of you. the moon sees you. sometimes, you wish you knew what it saw. other times, you're glad you never can. you know you are to one day be wed to someone who can help benefit your home. it is a role you do not mind for it was the least you can do to support.
*Update: is betrothed to lady luciya of the tullys from the riverlands to secure an alliance but before was almost betrothed to her older sibling.
**Update: kaito and luciya got married during the 8 month time skip, during the 7th month/december and just before the 3rd event.
sometimes you wonder if they had made a mistake when they took you in. when you were adopted. if it really was meant to be or if they were just being kind. you’ve thought about asking them, but you are too scared to. out of fear of offending. out of fear that they might think you are not grateful. but still...you say nothing. so you keep watch over your siblings. quick to want to defend, to protect. you lose your older sibling to the fire from a dragon and you are livid. you cannot help but wish your family had said something. had fought the king but alas maybe it is best to keep to your quietness that you are known for. as maybe that is the best option while you wait to see what is to come next.
