#seasonsintro

[    basics    ]     ⸻

full name  :  augusta josephine dormer.

meaning  : augusta means magnificent; josephine means god will increase. she was named after a princess of the dynasty, and her father, joseph.

also known as  :  gus, goose ( by her brothers ).

titles (  if applicable )  :  lady dormer of wyng.

gender + pronouns  :  cis woman  +  she/her.

orientation  :  bisexual.

age  :  twenty eight; going twenty nine in two months.

[    background    +    familial    ]     ⸻

date of birth  : may 12th, 1784.

place of birth  :  london, england.

residence : ascott house, near wing, buckinghamshire.

rank  :  gentry.

father  :  joseph dormer ✝ tba.

mother  : amelia dormer, née ? ✝ 1784.

siblings  :  brother one, brother two ( both older ).

partner  :  publically, none. privately, see wanted connection below.

other familial relations  :  elise dormer, née tba ( former sister in law ) ✝ tba.

languages : english, french. has repeatedly attempted to pick on greek and latin.

[    appearance    ]     ⸻

portrayed by  :  olivia cooke.

height  :  5′5″ / 165cm.

hair color + style  :  dark brown, nearly black; though originally wavy, or faintly curled, she primly curls them tighter with the assistance of hot tongs and overnight rag curls, pinning them to the latest of fashions. she is a big adept of hairdresses such as bonnets and big hats.

eye color  :  chestnut brown.

voice : per olivia's own voice, her tone is husky, yet honey - coated and she has an inclination to speak rapidly. as of the norm for the period and her station, her accent is posh, most likely some form of the RP english accent.

distinguishable marks + scars  :  dimples in her cheeks when she smiles, big doe eyes.

piercings + tattoos  :  pierced ears.

[    personality    ]     ⸻

zodiac sign  : taurus sun, aquarius rising.

mbti  :  tba .

enneagram  :  tba.

temperament  :  the executive ( choleric - sanguine ).

moral alignment  :  lawful evil.

element  :  earth.

inspirations  : becky sharp ( vanity fair ), jackie bukhart ( that 70s show ), capitu ( dom casmurro ), petra solano ( jane the virgin ), nurbanu ( magnificent century ), lucrezia borgia ( history ).

[   history ]     ⸻

trigger warnings for: parental death, death by childbirth, gambling addiction.

the former baron and baroness dormer were once forces to be reckoned in, in the public eye. the first of his line to attend the house of the lords, and the minor cousin of a gentry family who became the diamond of her season, joseph and amelia were both gregarious and expansive, and their match was an envious one, both for their matching of wits and of the matters of the heart — they were desperately in love, and one accommodated and partnered the other: amelia aided him in relations outside of the parliament while commanding their household, and he rejoiced in oratory, as well as giving her every opportunity to shine on society. 

her last labor came as a surprise — it was by the end of the season, and despite being heavily pregnant, amelia would not waste precious time, but the babe came too early. the birth was a mess, and though the child would come out hearty and loud, lady amelia would remain quiet and pale for the rest of the week. joseph fell in denial, believing his wife could somehow recover, but by the end of the week, amelia had made her peace with dreaded death, ordering her husband to care for their children and their life together, and naming their only daughter augusta, after a princess the lady had once much admired.

it was the least to say joseph did not entirely abide to his wife's plans. though there were some self - insistence, at least at first, not to forgo his family — particularly, augusta never believed her father wished her harm or believed her some evil that took away his beloved wife, nor did he ever remarry, when he as well could have had — his social excellence seemed to have been tightly connected to amelia, and, without her to guide him, the baron soon turned to vices. it was a method of relief: long nights with drinks over games of cards, locked in rooms with his friends from the parliament, but once friendly games became a constant monthly debit — for joseph's luck had run out, it seemed — it was felt. tongues began to wag, a rumor here and there about how often joseph was politely escorted away or denied from gambling tables, or how much he lingered at the tracks, and at boxing rings; when the london house was "closed off", "lended" to a "friend of the family" for the season, all that was said was that the family needed the fresh airs of buckinghamshire, away from the memories of lady amelia and her immense joy.

for augusta, however, those memories were important. without the guidance of her mother, she relied on her ghost, on the many portraits, on words of her brothers and father and every one who had once felt the glimmer of lady amelia. though in distance, augusta wished to emulate her mother: her beauty, her elegance, her charisma. like a silly girl, she would play with her clothes in front of the mirror, reigning over a society of dolls. her innocence was often interrupted, however, for her father's sake. there were costs to be cut, no matter how much she begged for a gown of the finest silk or for a new hat. at some point, her brother, impatience with the burden of the keeping of the house and of the family name due to their father's negligence, went on to show her the disorganization of the books, and the lack thereof of funds to spend in more frivolities than necessary for appearance's sake.

already better at card games than her father at the cusp of teenagehood, she tried to learn accounting. her odds were improved when she realized she took to numbers better than her peers; she was too young to handle the household finances, but alongside the governess, augusta sought to familiarize herself with the matters of keeping the household, taking a load off her brother's back. by the time she was of age, she controlled the ascott house herself, gladly so, and was more than eager to debut and return to society. london was a dream come true, but not only its societal aspect. augusta realized, along with her siblings, that there were gains to be had, less explored by those of higher society — and how foolish they were, not to see the opportunity spark!

tragedy struck merciless when the new baroness dormer, too, found her demise in the birthing bed. repeating his father's tale, baron dormer returned to ascott house to find relief in the fresh air, and though augusta more or less willingly accompanied him, instead of wallowing in purposeless misery, the family found gold on the purchase of a less than savory establishment, the white rabbit. theirs in all but in name, the dormer siblings are partners, and, of course, that includes augusta, who takes care of the books of the place meticulously, always seeking for an opportunity to improve their gains, as hands on as she can possibly be under the cloak of distance. naturally, the recent misfortune situation at the white rabbit much displeases her, but she is nothing if not positive this will be but a forgotten misdemeanor in no time, and the white rabbit — and their fortunes — shall continue to rise.

[    personality ]     ⸻ 

grasping, opportunistic, materialistic, quick witted and dissimulated on the inside, on the outside, augusta is the typically accomplished gentlewoman, with practiced tunes in the pianoforte, polished steps of the cotillion and memorized pleasantries spoken with a honeyed tongue, paired with big eyes gleaming with mirth and faux innocence. she relies on keeping a clean image, and has no qualms to lie, fake, buy and manipulate her way into forcing the belief that her family’s reputation is unfounded ( #girlboss #gaslight #gatekeep, so true of her ). though she is contented with their entrepreneuring agenda — finding that running successful businesses built by them and not simply inherited all ready as many aristocrats do is very fulfilling, especially as a woman that would not have a place otherwise — she is eager for a spot in society as well, wishing she could shine as much as her mother once had.

 [    tidbids ]     ⸻

is mildly (quite) scared of horses due to an incident on the track as a child, and never learned how to horse ride.

 [    wanted connections ]     ⸻

the dormer family! they are deliciously cunning, but also very tight - or, at the very least, augusta believes herself able to manage both men and bring them together to uphold the family legacy as a whole, not just individuals. for the elder, i generally imagine that he has taken their father's failures and followed a path of improvement, and the younger, he may have been in the army or something? both of them have had a hand on bringing her up as a person, despite the not so big age difference between them all.

the white rabbit employees as a whole, but particularly, the madame, whom would be aware of the family's involvement with the estabilishment and augusta's, and fighter one, employed under the dormer state and whom i imagine to have a secret relationship of the romantic and/or sexual nature with augusta; it's not entirely pleasant, because she isn't, but there is a bit too much affection in there to loose the attachment ( slutty rec would be jack o'connell :cattongue: ).

friends, new or old! this also includes people who could have tried to pull away or have succeeded at that, believing the dormers to be too shady / improper, or people who don't believe the rumors ( augusta is certainly lying her ass off about it, so )

people who have hostile feelings towards the dormers for their alleged shady behaviors, and may try to keep them out of society somehow, which frustrates augusta as she longs to be a functioning part of it all. they could either believe being able to see past the airy nature she keeps and believe her a wolf just as her brothers, or not notice her dissimulation

regulars at the white rabbit, whom augusta would know either by official bookkeeping, or by gossip. she may use the knowledge of their enjoyment of the estabilishment to blackmail or simply to amuse herself. alternatively, people who owe debts to the dormers, or to the white rabbit, would also fall on this category

crushes, exes, etc! augusta may have a constant interest in the fighter, but she has a hidden romantic nature that has her fixating on pretty people as well as pretty things, and she just may be genuinely sweeter to those who hold either such exterior beauty or objects of luxury ( obviously open to women, men, etc, with a bit of a preference towards women )

BASICS :

full name: kareena amoli varma, close friends & family may occassionally refer to her as reena . age & birthday: twenty seven, march 18th, pisces. gender & orientation: cisfemale ( she / her ), demisexual marital status: unmarried

PHYSICALITIES :

faceclaim: anya chalotra height: 5'10" hair: long, black, and fine. often in a braid or updo when in company, loose when alone or with family. eyes: brown

A BRIEF HISTORY :

note: some of this may be subject to change after plotting.

as the youngest of the varmas, and the only daughter, kareena had the great fortune to grow up relatively sheltered. she escaped the pressures that her elder siblings faced, and for the most part her parents gave what they could to ensure that kareena had everything she might have wanted. whilst the varmas were not exactly titled, they were comfortable enough that kareena never worried. any financial troubles -- or any troubles otherwise -- were never shared with kareena, regardless. she was the baby, and there was never a need for her involvement. kareena never argued the fact, she simply accepted her role for what it was.

she was a quiet little girl; she enjoyed reading and writing, playing the piano. these traits translated into adulthood with grace. it's not that she is shy, rather that she is comfortable in who she is and what she has to say. she is a listener, not a talker, someone who is highly empathetic. oftentimes her empathy leads her to take on the emotions of those around her, whether it be exhilaration or despair. in the same breath, she's been shielded from any hardship or troubles, and it has made her intensely oversensitive and emotionally vulnerable. she cares deeply, and a firm word or harsh stare might be enough to send her into tears.

being suddenly thrust into the upper echelon levels of receiving a title has been somewhat of a culture shock. she is still learning to navigate the world of courting and title etiquette, whilst trying to thicken her armour against the fast-pace of ton gossip.

kareena, for the most part, is mostly unaware of just how dire the varma family situation is. she continues to remain sheltered from the real issues. she is only aware that this season is incredibly important for her brother, and that she is to be on her best behaviour for the family. whilst she has some suspicions about the fate of her family, for the most part she is largely unaware of just how much is at stake.

full name   maisha annette charlize  ( formerly titled princess of monaco ) moniker(s)   nettie,  mae. age    thirty-five. place of birth   zürich,  switzerland. gender / pronouns   cis woman,  she/her. orientation   bisexual,  with a female lean. fc    gugu mbatha-raw.

paralells    kristina  ( the girl king )   /   lady sarah  ( the favourite )   /   jo march  ( little  women )   /   georgiana  ( the duchess )  

TIMELINE

a girl in place of a promised son,  what is it to be damned since the very start?  you are born as maisha:  moon child  &  as desirable as such.  a darling babe with empire whispered as your last name.  so,  as the first daughter of quaint european dominion,  you reside on the edge of infinity.  cradling both everything  &  nothing at all with the promise of opportunity on either side.  as your parents had it,  this playground kingdom was never truly yours to rule;  for you were merely their sweet disciple.  to be worshiped darling girl,  one must first conquer.

you learn swiftly that if you are to inherit what you are owed,  you must carve out the past of ascension with your teeth.  so you bare your sharp ivories and bite down,  snagging down on anything  &  anyone within reach if it meant feeding your insatiability.  

when your brother arrives you immediately lapse from your succession to the thrown.  the children of the crown,  so akin in likeness that one would be mistaken to think that the pair were twins when they were only cut from the same cloth:  both unravelling at the seams.  you’re both rotten  &  but you flay yourselves for very different reasons.  while he yearned for the appeasment of the court,  you wager to be found so unsightly that your father could no longer deny you of what you are:  a true progeny of the crown.

some are quick to brand your family warmongers;  if only they knew just how much you all liked that title.  or perhaps how much your father liked it.  war is your birthright,  of that you are certain and it shall become the very thing you wager upon your own kin when you were still but a girl.  a heavy rush comes from knowing that you are near untouchable,  arrogance nurtured from a young age.  you are still a feather-weight,  saccherine thing but this mock sugariness is something that ensnares and coaxes;  you may be virtuous at your root but even that cannot rid you of that glint of mischief that suits you so.  even so,  you’re not all corrosion. 

you were still young when your mind had finally lapsed and inverted itself.  all the more reason to be secluded from that thing your father called love:  all those attempts to temper you and you were still wrong.  as the glimmering shell of your family,  you are hollow enough to float  &  empty enough to harbor everything else.  even enraptured in all the trappings of the european court,  a fox in a silk bow is still a fox.  and when your brother dies in battle,  your white flag is raised.  wearing black reminds you of how much color had drained from your life.  the big cold house you lived in as a child had lost its vibrant color,  saccharine pink bedroom walls were long painted over,  even the judgmental family portraits lining the stairwell lost their vigor.  

before your brother is cold in the ground,  you are swiftly endowed upon a foreign court;  unsure of whether it was a claim of kindred love or if those who bore you were merely that eager to rid themselves of the issue you had proven to be.  you’ve revoked your title as princess,  and rumors begin to stir.  nonetheless,  you are crafted anew fore you set foot on the grassroot belonging to your husband.  baring a certain personage akin to that of which you had always yearned for,  you become increasingly sumptuous;  a true gem whose gleam only flickers morsels of your true nature.

HEADCANONS

very girlson coded.  always beckoning her father’s approval,  even seas away.  has mostly outgrown her capacity for true wretchedness but hasn’t been completely wrung out of her mischief.  quick to lean into hearsay if it favors her own personal endeavors.

has had many daliances with women,  which was likely part of the reason of her being wed so suddenly after her brother passed. it was much less about the security of title than it was setting her onto the straight and narrow;  or rather, leaving the task to someone else.

is not all bad!! she has the capacity for kindness  &  has been know to display it in intimate relationships / it’s much more of an armour worn in protection of self rather than true spirit these days.  maybe the foreign court has softened her.

though there are murmurs of upset within her own marriage,  annette is not yet with child on account of not wanting to end up like her mother:  complacent and unshowing of the love she was hardly taught.  if she must have a girl annette hopes she’ll be a fool.

basics     ⸻

full name  :  sir gabriel anderton.

meaning  : 'man of god.'

titles (  if applicable )  : captain of the british army, (minor) baronet.

gender + pronouns  : cis male  +  he/him.

orientation  : bisexual.

age  :  thirty two.

background     ⸻

date of birth  : 21 august 1781.

place of birth  :  surrey, england.

residence :  primarily anderton house, a townhouse in fashionable grosvenor square.

rank  :  militia / gentry.

father  :  colin anderton.

mother  : dorothy anderton.

siblings  :  two sisters.

partner  :  none.

other familial relations  :  prince george ( eldest friend, brotherly relationship ) ✝ his sister's unborn child :| ( nephew )

languages : english, farsi / hindi, french, dutch, (some) afrikaans.

appearance      ⸻

portrayed by  :  ruairi o'connor.

height  :  6′2″ .

hair color + style  :  dark red, falls in rugged waves.

eye color  :  forest green.

distinguishable marks + scars  :  various scars from years of service in the british militia.

piercings + tattoos  :  a branding on his left shoulder.

timeline      ⸻

august 1781: born, surrey, england.

1795–1799: educated at st paul's school, london, where he meets the prince regent (with whom he forms a lifelong bond).

1799: travels to india with his father, develops an interest in seafaring.

1801: enlists in the navy / appointed to lieutenant in 1803.

1806: appointed to command a frigate. his ship was captured by the french while escorting a convoy, but liberated soon afterward. honoured as a naval hero by the royal family.

1806–1809: undertakes a period of service in the east indies before returning to the british isles; captures several enemy ships and wins significant prize money by smuggling valuable cargo. he is gifted a country estate by prince george, and a fashionable london address in grosvenor square (derided by the rest of the ton for their close bond – jealousy is a disease get well soon!).

1811: created a baronet by the crown, largely rejects his title.

1812: assigned to service in the cape of good hope, south africa; lasts only a few months before he is summoned with the news of prince george's (ultimately fatal) bout of illness.

BIRTH NAME :  felix james of house hanover. ALIAS  /  NICKNAME :  little fox, in his youth. fee on occasion by his wife. TITLES :  duke of york, future king of england. AGE :  thirty years old. DATE  OF  BIRTH :  novermber 26th. PLACE OF BIRTH :  buckingham house, london, england, great britain

GENDER :   cis male , he/him pronouns. RELIGION :  church of england. SEXUALITY :  heterosexual, heteroromantic.

FACECLAIM :  patrick gibson. HAIR COLOR : blonde, lightening considerably in the summer. EYE  COLOR :  blue. HEIGHT :  5'11 | 178 cm.

PRIMARY  VICE :  envy. PRIMARY  VIRTUE :  diligence.

POSITIVE  TRAITS :  quick witted, sympathetic. NEGATIVE TRAITS :  self serving, arrogant.

FATHER :  george, king of great britain & ireland. MOTHER :  anne, queen of great britain & ireland. SIBLINGS :  william ( prince of wales ), duke of kent, sophia ( princess of great britain & ireland ). PARTNERS :  catherine grosvenor. CHILDREN :  none.

[    timeline    ]     ⸻  

1783 :  felix james is born, the second child & second son to the king and queen. in juxtaposition to his elder brother, felix was notably a very average child health-wise with few illnesses and injuries. however he was an annoyance to his tutors often as he had a habit of slipping away from lessons or talking his way out of attendance if there was something he felt more inclined to pursue.

1801  :  felix has a discrete, brief affair with a woman of a lower station that goes awry within a few months. after she makes a few threats, felix's father steps in before he is able to handle it himself & takes care of the situation. it remains unknown to the rest of the public, except for felix & his father. it places a wedge between the boy and his father, the king citing that felix lacks the maturity and wisdom of his brother.

1801 - 1808  :  discontentment begins to grow within felix at his allotment in life. like a rot slowly forming inside of a tree, felix begins to allow whispers and dream to manifest that convince him that he is meant for more than title of spare. while his brother marries, felix carefully begins to sow whispers of gossip an general displeasure.

1809  :  when the season arrives, catherine grosvenor is named diamond & felix's mother informs that her hope is for the young woman to marry one of his cousins or perhaps a younger brother. felix is intrigued by her beauty and poise, using his status to step ahead of her other suitors and declare his intentions swiftly. they end the season engaged & are married that winter.

1811  :  catherine becomes pregnant with their first child, felix is overjoyed at the prospect of being the first one with child as well with the prospect of fatherhood that is so near. despite it being early, felix secretly began to formulate his plan for taking back the heirdom. soon after informing him, catherine miscarries in their rooms - they do not inform anyone aside from the royal physician and felix's mother, the queen.

1812  :  in  october, the princess of wales passes away, robbing his brother of his beloved wife and his only heir.

1813  :  the  new  season  begins  & felix has every intention of garnering favor against william from the influential families of the ton.

[    notes    ]     ⸻  

this is a WIP still.

despite his current ambitions, felix cares deeply for his brother still - he more-so believes that if allowed to continue onward that this inheritance will kill william prematurely. in his eyes, the fates are attempting to convey the message that his eldest brother is not fit to one day rule & felix is merely pointing out the message. in his ideal, william does not die but rather abdicates his rank in succession to felix.

regarding his relationship with his wife, catherine: " love  was  a  slow  growing  thing  between  the  newlyweds  .  the  queen  and  her  father  both  had  meant  for  her  to  end  up  with  the  duke  of  kent  or  one  of  the  king’s  nephews  but  the  duke  of  york  had  happened  into  her  path  ,  charming  her  away  from  his  brother  and  his  cousins  though  catherine  knew  very  little  of  him  outside  of  what  he  had  first  shown  her  .  the  secrets  had  threatened  to  split  them  asunder  at  first  ,  his  displeasure  at  his  lot  in  life  placing  a  distance  between  them  but  catherine  had  persisted  ,  remaining  pliant  and  patience  ,  optimistic  that  she  would  find  companionship  in  her  marriage  ,  if  not  love  ,  and  was  rewarded  with  his  trust  for  her  efforts  . the  news  of  a  pregnancy  had  sweetened  the  relationship  further  as  she  fed  into  his  wish  to  produce  an  heir  before  his  brother  but  before  the  babe  could  taken  root  in  her  womb  ,  catherine  had  suffered  a  miscarriage  in  the  privacy  of  their  chambers  ─  a  fact  that  only  the  duke  of  york  and  the  royal  physician  know  .  what  progress  that  had  been  made  in  their  marriage  came  to  a  halt  as  he  comforted  her  for  their  lost  but  descended  deeper  into  his  study  and  his  plots  ,  and  the  news  of  the  princess  of  wales’  expectant  state  in  1812  further  added  more  pressure  onto  her  shoulders  as  she  tried  to  appease  her  husband  and  keep  him  calm  .  catherine  grew  reticent  ,  choosing  to  remain  in  their  country  home  during  the  1812  season  as  the  sight  of  the  princess  of  wales  ,  swollen  with  her  child  ,  was  too  much  for  her  to  bear  . "

QUICK  FACTS.

NAME:  albemarle  codrington  dormer  NICKNAME:  albie  AGE:  thirty-seven  PLACE OF BIRTH:  oxfordshire,  england  ETHNICITY:  anglo-irish  GENDER:  cisgender  man  PRONOUNS:  he/him  ORIENTATION:  bisexual  RELIGION:  roman  catholic  PARENTS:  swynfen  coare  dormer  (  baron  )  &  albertine  makepeace  dormer  née  learmonth  (  baroness  )  SIBLINGS  utp,  ophelia  dormer  LANGUAGES:  english,  french,  ancient  greek  (  fluent  )  latin,  gaeilge  (  conversational  )  german  (  basics  )   EDUCATION:  eton,  oxford  OCCUPATION:  nominally  an  antiquarian,  in  actuality  the  owner  of  white  rabbit  HOBBIES  &  INTERESTS:  gambling,  travelling,  antiquaries,  fencing,  poetry  RESIDENCES  newcastle  house  (  london  )  steeple  barton  manorhouse  (  oxfordshire  )

PARALLELS.

alexei  ivanovich  (  the  gambler  )    tom  ripley  (  the  talented  mr.  ripley  )    sisyphus  (  mythology  )    tantalus  (  mythology  )    ozymandias  (  watchmen  )

SNAPSHOT.

tl;dr  giant  faker  of  a  man  does  the  whole  ‘hey  kid  wanna  do  drugs’  routine  on  the  whole  ton  and.  somehow  this  works?  bc  ppl  can’t  help  but  woobify  a  white  man  with  a  sob  story 

aka  tom  ripley  if  he  was  born  rich tw   for  references  to  gambling,  death

the  rumours  are  aplenty,    but  perhaps  none  moreso  whispered  than  this:    there  is  a  rot  in  baron  dormer’s  soul.

consider,    perhaps,    his  smile:    too  easy,    too  wide,    too  generous.    perhaps,    if  his  automatic  response  to  anything  is  to  smile,    this  habit  then  leading  into  one  or  two  moments  of  embarrassment  to  be  gleefully  traded  around  the  ton,    then  it  would  be  a  non-affair.    as  it  is,    he  would  offer  you  a    how  do  you  do?    he  would  ask  you  how  your  kids  have  been.    he  will  make  it  seem  as  if  he  is  interested  in  you,    your  life,    your  hopes,    your  dreams,    your  fears    —    worst  of  all,    he  might  even  become  your  friend,    offering  you  a  shoulder  to  cry  on,    honeyed  words  of  advice,    a  strong  hand  to  push  you  where  you  have  always  needed  to  go.

do  not  be  fooled:    there  is  no  room  for  friendship  in  the  baron  dormer’s  soul.

consider,    too,    his  gregariousness.    he’s  no  fool.    he  knows  the  things  being  whispered  about  him.    he  knows  that  you  have  been  talked  to  death  about  his  loss  of  fortune,    his  predilection  for  the  gambling  table,    the  death  of  his  wife,    his  back-alley  dealings,    his  magnetism  for  scandals,    his  propensity  for  being  pitied.    he  knows  all  these    —    and  yet,    when  he  talks  to  you,    doubtless  knowing  what  it  is  he  knows,    it  is  as  if  all  is  forgotten.    he  must  have  known  you  exchanged  whispers  about  him  with  miss  tyrwhitt-prufrock  in  almacks  assembly  hall,    but  see  him  come  to  you  now.    see  him  offer  you  his  smile,    his  companionship,    his  easy  humour,    his  amiability.    he  must  have  heard,    hadn’t  he?    —    but  then  again,    perhaps,    maybe  not,    for  how  else  could  he  still  show  his  face  to  the  ton?

he  will  offer  you  a  smile.    he  will  ask  you  how  you’ve  been.    he  will  ask  about  your  children  at  home,    your  hunting  grounds  in  the  country,    your  latest  troubles  in  trying  to  marry  off  your  eldest.    he  will  have  you  talking  so  much  about  yourself  that  you  will  feel  yourself  rude,    being    so  self-absorbed,    and  so  you  will  ask  him  about  himself.    he  will  smile.    he  always  smiles.    he  will  talk  to  you  about  his  journey  to  greece,    where  he  talks  about  how,    in  years  and  centuries  past,    maenads  will  dance  themselves  into  a  frenzy.    communed  with  the  divine.    have  you  ever  felt  that?    he  will  ask.    have  you  ever  felt  the  divine  touch  your  soul?    i  am  not  talking  here  of  religion.    here,    he  will  laugh  a  charming  kind  of  laugh.    you  must  steel  yourself  against  his  laugh.    you  must  steel  yourself  against  him.    i  am  talking  of  something  more,    something  better,    something  purer—

there  is  something,    you  are  beginning  to  realise,    about  the  way  he  talks.

later    —    much  later,    perhaps  days,    perhaps  weeks    —    he  will  come  up  to  you  again.    he  will  tell  you  how  business  seems  to  be  booming.    you  try  to  remember:    he  did  say  something,    didn’t  he,    about  his  antiquaries  business?    he  will  laugh  when  you  remind  him  of  this,    and  you  laugh  along,    even  though  you  don’t  know  why.    he  just  has  that  way  about  him.    you  extend  him  condolences  for  his  loss    —    something  that  you,    in  your  predilection  for  smutty  rumours,    have  completely  forgotten    —    and  you  almost  see  his  façade  crumble.    yet  he  will  pull  himself  together.    he  will  thank  you  for  your  thoughtfulness.

you  will  realise,    then  and  there,    that  he  has  been  putting  up  a  front.

fool  that  you  are,    you  do  not  know  that  this  is  yet  another.

the  rumours  are  aplenty,    but  perhaps  none  moreso  whispered  than  this:    the  right  honourable  lord  dormer  must  be  pitied,    for  all  that  he  has  suffered.

A  DEEPER  LOOK.

mad,   bad,   and  dangerous  to  know:   blond-haired  byron  serving  machievallian  realness  while  even  having  the  raging  philhellenism.  does  not,    however,    use  it  to  die  a  needless  martyr’s  death  in  greece  but  does  use  it  to  buy  and  sell  antiquaries  he  could  reliably  prove  (  or  forge  )  the  provenance  of.    for  even  more  lord  byron  plagiarism  fodder:  also  writes  poetry    —    though,    alas,    he  publishes under a pseudonym.

is  quite  a  good  chess  player,   and  went  to  schönbrunn  palace  during  his  grand  tour  of  europe  to  battle  with  the  mechanical  turk.  soundly  lost.   rues  the  war  on  europe  simply  bc  it  barred  him  from  a  rematch  and  now  supposedly  the  owner’s  shuttered  the  whole  thing  down.

absolutely  shits  where  he  eats:   has  zero  (0)  qualms  enjoying  his  own  wares.   sometimes  brings  it  with  him  in  social  function  and  offers  freebies  to  anyone  discerning  enough  to  ask   —   provided,   of  course,   that  it’s  only  to  prove  what  the  other’s  been  missing  out  on.

WANTED  CONNECTIONS.

people  whom  he’s  owed  gambling  debts  to  which  have  now  been  paid  off  and  heaven  knows  they’re  suspicious  about  the  source  of  the  money  they  received  as  payment  but.    how  does  one  exactly  go  about  returning  crime-tainted  money?

people  he’s  probably  done  the  tactic  on  in  the  snapshot  above.    i  dare  say  this  goes  for  most  of  the  members  of  the  ton,    but  he  basically  just  uses  the  whole  season  to  scope  out  customers  for  his  other  business.

STATS.

FULL NAME : euphemia alice howard

TITLES : lady of house howard (courtesy title)

PLACE OF BIRTH : arundel castle, arundel, west sussex, england. 

AGE : 25 (1st May 1788)

RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION : Anglican

MARITAL STATUS: betrothed to mr. edmond lambton

MOTHER : duchess of norfolk

FATHER : duke of norfolk

SIBLINGS : earl of arundel (elder brother), duchess of fife (elder sister), lord howard (twin brother)

EXTENDED FAMILY: george, king of great britain and ireland (maternal uncle), anne, queen of great britain and ireland (aunt by marriage), william, prince of wales (maternal first cousin), felix, duke of york (maternal first cousin), duke of kent (maternal first cousin), sophia, princess of great britain and ireland (maternal first cousin). 

ORIENTATION : bisexual

FACECLAIM : alexandra dowling

HEIGHT : 167.5 cm

EYE COLOR : blue

HAIR COLOR - medium blonde

NEGATIVE TRAITS : jealous, opaque, wary, nosy

POSITIVE TRAITS : intelligent, creative, observant, polite, pragmatic

HEALTH CONDITIONS : tba.

LANGUAGES : english, french, latin, spanish, german.

HOBBIES : sketching, painting, reading, writing, embroidery, riding, swimming. 

AESTHETIC : tba.

TIMELINE.

1788 - euphemia and her twin brother are born to the duke and duchess of norfolk

1796 - euphemia is considered an intelligent but very quiet child. her curiosities are indulged and it is assumed that she will become more sociable with age.

1804 - euphemia is presented to the queen and makes a respectable showing.

1810 - euphemia partakes in an affair with a contentious acquaintance who soon feels honor-bound to propose but she dissuades him from seeking a betrothal. (wc).

1812 - euphemia’s sister becomes the duchess of fife

1813 - in her ninth season, euphemia is betrothed to mr. lambton.

FULL BIO: TBD