MADE YOU MY ENEMY - joining,

[SAINT BERNARD]

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a

[i]THE TIRED SOLDIER

[b][i]bernard smith. stumbling across the border, bernard fumbled for a new cigarette. the one he had had fallen out of his fingers when he accidentally burnt himself and he dropped it out of panic. he was grumbling to himself, weary eyes struggling to focus as sleep threatened to make him fall. perhaps he had been drinking, or maybe he was just so exhausted. he could feel the sleepiness creep on his sore shoulders, dragging them down slowly.

he could see some sort of civilization and tried to push forward. he could no longer feel his toes. he was used to that, though. in the war, in the trenches, when his feet would get infected and he could no longer feel his toes. he would feel worried if it weren't for the buzz of his earlier drinking still lingering on his tongue. the cigarette he was trying to grab slipped through his fingers and fell into the snow. cursing, bernard tried to grab another one, pressing on. he held the cigarette in his mouth and tried to light the end, his frozen fingers not wanting to work.

with frustration, bernard put his lighter and cigarette in his pocket. if he couldn't smoke, then he'd focus on trying to move forward.

"speech."

[EDMUND.]

[align=center][div style="width: 430px; text-align: justify; font-family: verdana; font-size: 6pt; letter-spacing: 1.5px; word-spacing: 0px; line-height: 12px; color: #000"]A soft plume of smoke wisped into the cool air, Edmund stood rigidly just on the outskirts of the village as he gently held his cigarette close to his lips. Whilst he stood so solemnly, observing the briefest snippet of the peaceful lives of those in Flintlock as children played on the brick streets nearby, he had barely considered just how fortunate he was to have been able to live this newer life of safety. At least, far safer than his former life. He had shelter, warmth, nourishment and people he actually sometimes felt safe around. It was a vast improvement considering his upbringing of constant paranoia.

A man was stumbling towards the village, likely exhausted from his journey or injured somehow. Eddie wasn’t one to take a risk, dropping his cigarette to the ground and crushing it with the toe of his shoe, he watched carefully as the man slowly neared him. Hand barely twitching as he anticipated having to shrug his rifle off his shoulder to defend himself and Flintlock. Newcomers were almost always innocent, but Eddie couldn’t be too sure anymore.

❝ Hello. ❞ Eddie called out when the man was near enough, brows furrowed as he examined the man warily. ❝ It’s a long journey up to these parts; what brings you here? ❞

[spoiler=tags ― updated 08/08.][size=6pt]◜BASICS ┊ SO THIS IS WHERE WE ARE◞
&. ❝ edmund theodore stirling ❞ | ed, eddie | male [he/him] .
&. 25 years old . | seventh august ; leo .
&. currently the captain and official loyalist of flintlock lodge .
&. currently the boss of the stirling's notorious irish crime family .

◜PERSONALITY ┊ IT'S NOT WHERE WE HAD WANTED TO BE◞
&.  ambitious . brave . calm . disciplined . honorable . intelligent . leading . logical . patient . reliable . skillful . trustworthy . wise . aloof . cynical . detached . flirtatious . harsh . jealous . lustful . pessimistic . quiet . ruthless . secretive . stubborn .

◜ APPEARANCE ┊ IF HALF THE WORLD'S GONE MAD ◞
&.  five foot eight & one hundred and seventy one pounds ; reference .
↳ dirty blond hair kept very short and neat .
↳ stocky and well-built frame , lightly freckled skin .
↳ muted blue vacant eyes , unreadable , somewhat frowning expression .

◜ FAMILY ┊ THE OTHER HALF JUST DON'T CARE , YOU SEE◞
&. alfred stirling x leonora moray | both deceased .
&. four older siblings and two younger half-siblings .
↳ dominik stirling , 32 , shot and killed by alfred .
↳ thomas stirling , 32 , caretaker in flintlock .
↳ alfonso stirling , 28 , enforcer in flintlock
↳ franklin darrow , 25 , estranged in bluestem .
↳ henry stirling , 11 , resident in flintlock
↳ ida stirling , 9 , resident in flintlock
&. also lives with four cousins and his aunt .
&. father to thomas , charlotte , kieron and louis .

◜ RELATIONSHIPS ┊ YOU DON'T WANNA FUCK WITH US◞
&. bisexual, biromantic ; mongamous | tends to have a wandering eye .
&. ex-husband to blake kegan
↳ marriage fell apart after he cheated on her .
&. ex-lover to mickey serge
↳ he learned about his bisexuality with him .
&. lover to maxine van doren
↳ a rekindled flame where their relationship is kept a secret .

◜ INTERACTIONS ┊ BRITISH TO THE VERY LAST ◞
&.  [ 9/10 ] physically  |  [ 7/10 ] psychologically .
↳ difficulty w/ guns [ very difficult ] | difficulty w/ melees [ difficult ] | difficulty w/ hand-to-hand [ difficult ]
&. [member=2919]truce.[/member] | dm for any major plots .
&. friendly or nonviolent actions may be powerplayed .[/size][/spoiler]

[guts]

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She had been luckier than some that came to town, it seemed. She came out of her own will, rather than being forced to by injury, or by sleep deprivation so severe that it clung to your body like deadweight. Truly she had no idea what it was like to experience such an awful feeling, even though she was no stranger to exhaustion.

Being the mother hen she was, Naomi quickly made her way over at the sight of someone stumbling towards Flintlock, concern etched into her face as she frowned at the state of this stranger. There was hardly a thought in her mind that maybe this was a trap of some sort, or that this person didn't have very good intentions. Her only worry was helping this man.

"Poor thing, what's happened to ya?" she asks as she comes to stand next to Eddie, a littld taken aback by his calmness in such a situation. It wasn't every day someone showed up in town like this, at least not where she was from.

MY LITTLE VERSAILLES
cosmyn

[SAINT BERNARD]

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a

[i]THE TIRED SOLDIER

[b][i]bernard smith. he hadn't seen eddie, but he noticed the flame just before the man spoke. fight or flight kicked in and the old man stumbled back a moment, hand reaching briefly for his belt where a knife would be; the knife had fallen out of his numb hands long ago and all that remained was the sheath that stayed buckled. no one needed to know he didn't have his dagger. he hesitated when the man didn't immediately attack, and when a woman had come by, he straightened his posture as best as he could. he still felt like collapsing.

"i'm- i mean no harm," he started out, then turned his head into his shoulder to cough, his whole body trembling. "there was an accident, and i- i needed to get away, and i got lost. i need shelter, please."

bernard looked between the two of them, his tired eyes threatening to shut if he didn't stay focused. he needed to keep moving, feeling the cold seep into his bones. the lull of sleep felt so tempting. to lay down and let his weariness melt across his worn skin and down into the ground. he stumbled for a moment to keep upright, shaking his head and lifting it up, steam escaping his lips. he couldn't stay up much longer and feared if he fell.

"m- my name is bernard, bernard smith. i have nothing on me anymore, i have no food or drink."

"speech."

[EDMUND.]

[align=center][div style="width: 430px; text-align: justify; font-family: verdana; font-size: 6pt; letter-spacing: 2.5px; word-spacing: 0px; line-height: 12px; color: #000"]His heart lurched in his chest when Eddie’s gaze flitted down to silently note the way the newcomer fumbled around a bare sheath. Eddie’s own hand slid to rest on the grip of his handgun, warily observing and anticipating reason to use his gun. Instead, the man seemed to straighten up feebly once Naomi had halted at Eddie’s side. ❝ I mean no harm, ❞ The man said, slight frown now sat upon Eddie’s features as he quietly watched the ailing state of the man.

The man continued to explain himself, opening up about who he was and why he found himself stumbling towards Flintlock Lodge in the first place. There was an accident, he said — Flintlock’s mountains were renowned for their perilous nature, and so this wasn’t a surprise to Eddie. In this state, turning the man away would be his death sentence. There were no settlements near Flintlock, and the walk back downhill would be deadly for someone in Bernard’s state. He’d not make it through the night out there. Now, Eddie could often come across as a heartless man, but he cared enough to not wish to decide the ill fate of another person.

Shoulders slumping ever-so-slightly, Eddie shuffled back before nodding his head towards the village. ❝ We have food and water here. Shelter, too. Let’s get you back to the lodge, shall we? ❞