Random book to cure boredom

GILBERT WHITEHAND

(This is a character for a roleplay. @Chessie13

Name: Gilbert Whitehand (so called Whitehand due to his pale skin. Also he has a condition where his hands start hurting badly in cold weather, and they turn a sickly white colour. He wears gloves, and rarely takes them off)

Age: Twenty one

Gender: Male

Faceclaim: https://www.roleplayerguild.com/topics/91410-cursed-critters-tallshade-tales/ic?page=2 It's the faceclaim used for Tobias Rieper

Height: 5,8

Magic ability: He can shape-shift into a Stoat

Personality: Upon the first meeting, Gilbert Whitehand seems quite withdrawn and untrusting. He isn't a very naive fellow, and treads carefully round people whom he doesn't know, taking time to judge their character and whether or not they are suitable to be trusted. He tends to perceive people with a guilty until proven innocent point of view, and he doesn't mind being thought of as judgemental as it's worse to blindly trust and potentially be led into a trap, or betrayed. That's his opinion. He's observant, and very perceptive regarding the way people act and behave. He can easily distinguish how a person is feeling by observing their posture, eyes, or mannerisms.
He's cunning, skilled at lying, and is also able to manipulate. However, he's not a generally malicious fellow, and he doesn't usually intend to harm when using these skills. Sometimes it's in defence, or sometimes it's to escape a bad situation.
Below his solemn demeanour is a more soft side. A side which can be romantic, as he thinks of poems and songs, and enjoys singing them also...usually when he thinks nobody is listening. He can play the vielle and lute very well, due to being a noble at birth (he was taught the instruments at a young age.) He's also a chivalrous man, preferring fair play rather than foul play. However, only in extremes, when it's the last resort, will he condone foul play, and only if it's to defeat an evil force.
He's a logical man, tending to sometimes overthink situations. He is also of a neurotic disposition, though he struggles not to convey his anxiety and worry as he dislikes showing weakness for he believes that enemies could manipulate his weaknesses

Quote: "A badly structured fortification can lead to disaster. Any hole or imperfection, however small and seemingly insignificant, must be rectified immediately, before it can be used to the enemy's advantage."

Original importance: Not much was known about Gilbert Whitehand, but various ideas range from him being a cook for the Sheriff of Nottingham, to him having been an archer for the Sheriff. It seems that he was a very skilled archer, Robin Hood's equal even. Some think he taught Robin archery, and others speculate that his name Whitehand refers to his right hand which was withered and so he fought with his left hand. However, the withered hand tale is unlikely, as he wasn't recorded to have had any disability. Some think his name refers to his hands which were stained by flour due to his profession as a cook, and others say that his skin was white, not yet turned brown by the sun due to his life in the town