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Royal Black Sheep


MadHatt

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I roughly sketched this after one playthrough with my favourite saved character, Noble, Auncesay-born, Descendent from Royalty, 'Page' Black Sheep. I kept wondering how a Royal would be a Black Sheep and this is what came out: not so much as badly treated but neglected and somewhat forgotten. The Secrets and Silence background helped as somewhat of an excuse.

 

The large name is because I've yet to read about a royal with a small name and if I did, I forgot about it...thus wasn't really memorable after all.

 

----

 

When the letter from Academagia arrived, the voices in her head started screaming all at once.

 

She nearly slipped off the wall. Luckily, she did grab a rather badly placed brick and held on, but not before her feet kicked out in panic causing some pebbles to alert the pretend - guards and then it all went downhill.

 

Master von Metzger shouted which is not something you’d ever want him to do. He was renown as a …’page’ trainer and frankly, you could see it just by looking at him. He was tall and lean like an upright walking snake and just as dangerous. His dark, beady eyes could hypnotize chickens.

 

Frankly, one would question what exactly Lord Dredd was thinking by sending his one and only child to the man but the answer was quite simple. He wasn't. Or perhaps he thought she’d end up a page instead of …a “page”.

 

But more than likely, he barely noticed what was what.

 

He did that.

 

Everything was placed second, however, as she and the main cook and head of staff were staring at the sealed envelope as if it would grow teeth. The Shade poked it, but being insubstantial, it didn't count for much.

 

“Well, open it!” said the cook, by the name of Mrs. Bouvier's, waving her spoon about with passion. She always had a wooden spoon in hand, even when she wasn't cooking, which made the young Lady Penelope Aenor Dredd-Fullop think that she carried it around solely to smack her.

 

Threatened by such a prospect, she did.

 

“It’s an acceptance letter”

 

Mrs. Bouvier harrumphed in a satisfied manner. “Congratulations! I knew you would be”

 

Penelope shook her head slowly, as if digesting the situation. “Thank you. I think. Er…did…” she blinked. “Did you send a letter?”

 

“No” the suspicion spread along Mrs. Bouvier's large face slowly, having to travel a long way, followed closely by a slight flush. “You didn't?”

 

“…No. Did Father…?”

 

The question remained unsaid and she very well could have deserved being smacked for it.

 

Her parents were not exactly mean to her or in any shape or form wicked. They just didn't really know she was there. At dinner, every time they raised their heads from the soup and saw her they’d get sort of a surprised look on their faces as if she’d just jumped them. Then a slight sense of panic started to creep into their eyes like they’d been caught by a surprise inspection which found them wanting so they looked back into their soup.

 

Her mother, a Lady by birth and marriage and the other half of Penelope’s name was a special kind of lady. She liked pink, cats and jewelry and was a fan of Merilien fashion. Her entire personality was as self-centred as a spinning top. She always remembered to offer a smile whenever she met her daughter on the hallway, but it was an uncomfortable one with a bit of a squint.

 

Her father, Lord Dredd, was busy. Whether he was busy with a match of Rimbal, chatting with the King or just sitting in his chair, staring into nothing, he was busy and he reminded everyone of that. He knew he had a young child and always made sure to glare every so often at her just to make sure she never got into trouble before stalking off.

 

And now, she had to gather said parents into the same room to give them the news. Mrs. Bouvier's eye, the one that twitched wildly whenever she did something wrong, started to move a little.

 

“I’ll get your father” she said, heading for the garden.

 

“Thank you” she said, before going to get her mother.

 

It was noon which meant that the Lady had woken up, but just barely and was still in silk pyjamas, fixing her jewellery.

 

Never would she have expected the reaction that followed, however.

 

Her mother paced, silk wisps bellowing about her and her father, in full Rimbal uniform, was twirling his wand, in the same room. That alone was an occasion. Penelope had often wondered of her conception, considering the fact that her parents seemed to drift to opposite corners of the room whenever they shared one. She had decided that it was by magic.

 

“She is too young to go, half a world away!” the woman declared, waving her jewellery filled arms which could have been declared, if not a lethal weapon, at least quite dangerous to innocent bystanders.

 

“She will be fine. Don’t smother the girl. She’s had…training” he dismissed the notion with one hand, as if self-defence had settled on her like dandruff.

 

“She is ten years old! Do you know what I did at ten years old? I was learning about tea parties!”

 

Though convinced that it was a bad idea, Penelope felt the need to intervene. “ I'm twelve”

 

“What?”

 

“ I'm twelve. My birthday was a few months ago” she wavered before deciding to add, for clarification. “We had cake”

 

The Lord and Lady looked at one another, apparently mystified.

 

“Was it that layered pound cake filled with raspberry jam finished with butter-cream frosting?” her father asked, dreamily.

 

“Don’t be silly, dear. It was the vanilla and almond sponge cake finished with caramel icing” he mother giggled, then looked at her wide eyes as if asking “did I get it?”

 

Penelope sighed. “It was plain chocolate”

 

“Oh” the Lord mumbled. Chocolate made him gassy…

 

“And what did we get you dear?” her mother asked.

 

“The same book as last year” she paused at their expression “but I really enjoyed reading it and it’s always good to have a spare, you know…in case one of them, er…burns” she finished lamely.

 

With an almost audible pop!, the tension rose in the room and her mother walked, almost floated, out of the room.

 

“Well, have fun dear!” her voice tinkled out of the way.

 

She turned to her father. “So I can go? I need money for the tuition”

 

“Hm?” he asked, still thinking of chocolate. “Oh, yes, sure dear. There’s money in my office. Enjoy camp”

 

“School” she finished for him only to find herself talking to walls as he rushed over to finish the Rimbal game.

 

She sighed and settled for going inside the large imposing room and digging into the safe that contained money set aside for “added expenses”.

 

That included mostly her mother emptying it out monthly for new jewellery but she occasionally dipped in it.

 

No one really cared.

 

She took enough pims out for her tuition and then, after a second thought, pulled out an added full fist of them.

 

They’d never remember to send her spending money, after all.

 

Then she and Shadow went off to pack. It sounded like quite the adventure.

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haha a very good intro to Penelope! I just saw an episode of an old danish series featuring the 1930ies. There was a silly old goose who was clinging to her position as lady-wife to the Bank Director. And even as the world shook and crumbled around her she was clinging that certainty. I could see her as the mother. Actually, Penelope's mother seems more active and level-headed than Maude (the wife), though perhaps not by much, and I think that is saying something either way ;)

 

Do you intend to continue? Cause it sounds like a good story :)

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  • 1 month later...

Yes, the mother was meant to be very ...interesting. I tried not to make them too brusque or mean, just uninterested in their offspring. I just imagined that there weren't a lot of chores to do when you have maids all over the place.

 

It was written at first as a one-shot but there are some moments I'd like to add, so I might continue. Glad you enjoyed reading it :) .

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  • 4 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

Thank you!

 

Can't believe I missed the reply.

 

I suppose it depends. Yes, being ignored is sometimes worse but there are other people in the household that can provide what the parents fail to do. I'd like to think that this is why this specific character, in all new DLC playthroughs, ends up helping and idolizing the Captain.

 

As for the heritage of Gates and Mastery, well, I did begin to write a second one-shot (can it still be called one shot?) in which that will be detailed a tad more. Especially about the father, who is quite cunning...Well, he'd have to be in order to be a successful noble.

 

As a question born of my curiosity, what college do you guys think is more appropriate for her?

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Two-shot it is!

 

Morvidus, indeed, is not really one where she'd go.

 

Or Aranaz. I figured out, only minutes after I made a trial test-run with her personality in Aranaz that she is MUCH too passive for it. No dreams of scheming and plots. She's a noble, distant royal, mage and really rich, though. How much more could you get by plotting? I'm trying out more colleges so far for the permanent classes, though I already have most of her extra classes.

 

Guess who has a new found crush on Professor Sido's hair?

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