Josten Lancaster (LD Stories)

Sir Josten Lancaster (AKA "Josh") is a character in The Reluctant Dark Knight Series and the Expanded Animated Universe, created by Numbuh 404.

Background Information
He is a squire for King Gerard who has a secret passion for literature and music. He is fifteen years old (when introduced) and has been serving his majesty as long as he can remember, but intends to become world renowned for his poetry and songs. He sings and plays a handful of different instruments (such as a flute) to musical compositions or songs of his own inspiration.

True Origin
To be revealed in "Josten's Scar!"

Childhood
He has always been looked after by Mrs. Sourberry if he stays in the castle, which began when he was a child of perhaps two or three years. In this time, he essentially grew up with King Gerard and wondered if they were brothers for a long while, but learned that they were unrelated by age seven. He wishes to be close to him, like a brother.

He grew up mostly on his own and is considerably philosophical for his age; his most valuable lesson learned is that "one must remain humble through all achievements." Sometimes when he thinks he is alone outside the castle walls, he will play his flute to a tune he improvises on the spot - other times he will have his lute and make up lyrics to a song.

He doesn't always stay in the castle; when he is amongst the common folk, he takes up residency with the village minstrel, with whom he is good friends. He learned all he knows of music and instruments from him, but his writing is a self-taught talent.

Role in the Royal Court
He wants to work for the king as his Royal Bard, and has been sought out for services such as delivering parchments, reading proclamations written by Clockwork Smurf, or providing summonses by travelling.

Royal Status
At the age of ten, he met a small girl visiting from another kingdom with her father whose charm and curiosity captivated him. Though he did not catch the girl's name, he realized that she fancied knights, and so he courageously applied with the Man-at-Arms. Despite hating the idea of jousting and going into battle for the good of the kingdom, he wanted to impress her.

For nearly five years, he found no trace of her, but continued his training in the hopes of being reunited - and possibly winning her heart, should she not already have been married to another. Even after coming to accept his true passions as an artist, he convinces himself that becoming a knight is the best choice he can make for himself. Through his training, he has become a remarkable swordsman and archer, often surpassing his peers, but he is modest in spite of all the compliments he receives.

Switching Gears
To be filled in later!

Compositions
As stated above, Josten has created both poetry and music.

Songs

 * 1) The Raven's Soul
 * 2) Come Home Dark Knight

Poetry

 * 1) Daughter of Eve
 * 2) The Mermaid (Co-written with Peewit)
 * 3) White Blood

Relationship with Sir Johan
To be expanded later!

Relationship with Peewit
He meets Peewit in his debut episode of Season 11. To be expanded later!

Relationship with Princess Savina
To be elaborated later!

Dame Barbara
To be elaborated later!

Relationship with Falla Cye
This section will be expanded later!

Season 11 Episodes
After the Season 10 Finale, Sir Josten makes an official appearance in Season 11 and is scheduled to be included beyond that.

King Gerard's Squire - Ep. 9
Pending...

The Princess and the Peewit - Ep. 10
Pending...

Tug-O-War Court Affairs - Ep. 13
Pending...

Mechanical Hero - Ep. 14
Pending...

Josten's Scar - Ep. 19
Pending...

Mother Nature's (Re)Creation - Ep. 21
Pending...

Falla's Birthday - Ep. 25
Pending...

Crestfallen Christmas - Ep. 26
Pending...

The Smurfs of Poetic Prose - Ep. 30
Pending...

The Dragon of the Far Land - Ep. 37
Pending...

Take Back the Knight - Season Finale
Pending...

Appearance
Sir Josten has pale skin, standard black eyes, and stands about 5'8 1/2" in American measurement. His white-blonde hair is thick and bushy with outgrown bangs, but is shorter in the back; he has a thin, but masculine figure.

Royal
He wears a dark red minstrel hat with a yellow feather on the right side, black calf-length boots, and matching elbow-length gloves. His outfit consists of a dark red tunic with short sleeves (similar to Falla's), a yellow undershirt and leggings, and a gold-clasped dark brown short cape.

His waist-belt is black with a gold hinge, and he has a necklace, which connects to the clasps of his cape. However, he also has a scar travelling down and off to the side - in a ring pattern - of his left eye, starting at his eyebrow.

Uniform
Pending...

Voice Actor(s)
The best voice actor for Sir Josten would be Justin Timberlake speaking in an English accent. He is a well-known American pop culture singer, and voiced Arthur Pendragon in Shrek the Third.

Trivia

 * His physical appearance was initially based off of two people: Terence from Disney's Pixie Hollow series and Numbuh 404's real-life friend, Mars McCullough. His eyes have been changed from standard black to light blue for three reasons: (1) Blue is the color of the sky and water, both elements of the natural world. (2) This eye color is more common in Germans, which was considered the "superior" race during the WWII Era. (3)They give him more of a gentle appearance.
 * His personality and development are based on Numbuh 404, and his backstory is inspired from a classic fairytale (yet to be revealed).
 * He is right-handed, which comes as a surprise to his king and royal advisor, considering how prominently his artistic talents are expressed.
 * He received his gold clasp necklace this from the village minstrel when he learned of his promotion to squire hood.
 * His character songs are "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic" by The Police, "Shot At The Night" by The Killers, and "Magic" by Coldplay.
 * His birthday is May 3rd and his zodiac sign is Taurus.
 * His favorite Season is Spring because he loves seeing the natural world come to life after a long winter. As pointed out by Falla, he seems to have a "healthy glow" at this time of year while Peewit thinks he has some sort of "spring fever" that causes Dandruff.
 * In a non-canonical dream-based story, a villain seeking control of the King's castle is disguised as Josten to fool everyone into blaming the squire.
 * Unbeknownst to everyone besides Clockwork, he keeps a personal journal.
 * He prefers green tea flavors, but may occasionally accept Lemongrass.
 * He is a poor swimmer and will only enter deep water if it is absolutely necessary.
 * The hairstyle concept for Jaris Smurf of the Sapphire Smurfette, the Magic Smurfette series was partly inspired by Josten's appearance.