Officers' Dinner (open)

[Bog]

The lad had a point, Leighton supposed. He had never really considered the plight of ex-rankers who were able to claw their way up to a commission. His own path had been much simpler.

"Indeed." He sipped his tea and considered the question just put to him. Not that he really needed to think too deeply on it. "I haven't, no. Which is fortunate, I suppose. If I am killed, there must be someone in the direct line who can inherit."

He smiled and added, "Of course, I was not a very willing ensign when I first entered the service, but I don't regret my father choosing it as a profession for me."

[Chørd]

`Matthew

Matthew shrugged at the Captain's reply to his question. Fair enough, he supposed. He wasn't sure he was glad that he had relatives in the military or not - sure, it made you stick around through thick and thin, and it made the army a little more comfortable, but sometimes it put pressure on you to match their achievements or in some instances, out-do them.
Nobody would inherit anything from him though - when he'd left for the army he'd still been living with his parents, and being the youngest his inheritance wasn't anything compared to that of his older brothers. It'd all go back to his parents, his commission included - his father had paid for it, after all.
"I guess that it's fortunate in other ways, too," he shrugged his shoulders diffidently. "If you don't have relatives in the army, they can't keep checking up on you."

He was surprised when the Captain mentioned not willingly joining the army as an ensign. He'd been under the impression all officers - aside from himself and the odd others from the ranks - enjoyed sitting pretty atop horses and playing at soldiering.
He grinned in response. "Perhaps I was foolish for gladly joining the ranks?"

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