BELIEVER — open, sparring task

[EDMUND.]

    Upon the realization that a sparring event was on, Edmund was quick to subtly spread the word. Why? Well, whilst he didn't intend for Flintlock to turn into a group of fighters (in fact, he wished for the opposite - keeping the group out of trouble meant that it gave less opportunity for those in his life of crime to track his family down) but what he was interested in was ensuring that as many people as possible had the opportunity to learn how to defend themselves at the very least. If they had that, then Ed could rest easy knowing that if another crisis like the attack from the Bonifacio's took place, maybe there would be less casualties, if any.

And so, once he was finished notifying other in the Lodge, Ed shoved his hands in his pockets as he made his way to the makeshift gymnasium, followed closely by Alfie, Tommy, Peter and William. He'd insist his family participate; he trusted their capabilities and needed them constantly on their toes. Always prepared for the worst. It was what kept the Stirling family thriving for so long, after all. ❝ Afternoon, Brendan. ❞ Edmund mumbled shortly in greeting with a nod of the head. Eddie stood next to Brendan, folding his arms across his torso comfortably as he watched Alfie feign punching Peter's shoulder.

❝ You'd not even see me coming and then WHOOSH- I come in, fists swinging- ❞ Alfie explained rather eagerly - he was always a lover of all things brutal and violent.

Peter didn't flinch, features somewhat sneering as intense eyes watched Alfie carefully. ❝ Are you done now, or would you like a lose a couple teeth? ❞ He questioned in a quiet utterance. Perhaps to some, it may have been seen as joking but all the boys knew that Peter was being dead serious, especially Alfie who was quick to keep his hands to himself again.

William snorted a huff of laughter beneath his breath, actively attempting to fight off a smile whilst Tommy sighed, one hand resting on his hip and the other pressed against his forehead. ❝ Brendan - mate - I apologize sincerely for the bullshit Eddie has just brought into this fuckin' room. ❞ He pointed out, eyes flitting over towards Alfie, Peter and William with a grimace before looking back to Ed and Brendan. ❝ A buncha idiots. ❞

[align=center][div style="width: 350px; text-align: justify; font-family:verdana; font-size: 7px;"][spoiler=tags :: updated 01/07]basics.
⋟ edmund theodore stirling-moray // ed, eddie, moray
⋟ goes by the name edmund moray
⋟ male // he/him
⋟ twenty four // ages real time // born seventh august
⋟ skipper of flintlock lodge // formerly a traveler with his family
⋟ mob boss of the stirling crime family
⋟ joined FL two years ago

appearance.
⋟ faceclaim - finn cole
⋟ voice claim - finn cole
⋟ 5'9ft // stocky, well-built frame
⋟ muted blue eyes and dirty blonde hair
⋟ physical health - 80% // current injuries: stitches on side of head where his head was slammed into ice and a chest infection following a near-drowning experience.
⋟ mental health - 70% // depression and deluded thoughts

personality.
⋟ quiet in nature but confident in himself
⋟ completely fearless, almost foolishly so
⋟ insensitive and callous // cares for very few
⋟ very calm and calculative // always planning in his head
⋟ disciplined and practices good self-control
⋟ very flirtatious and persuasive // overly lustful
⋟ aloof and untrustworthy // jealous and deceitful
⋟ tactful and knows how to get what he wants
⋟ can be very nasty when he wants to be
⋟ but can also be very protective and faithful too
⋟ has a strong set of morals // has the quality of honor

relationships.
⋟ alfred stirling x leonora moray // both deceased
⋟ three older brothers // alfonso, thomas & franklin
⋟ the fifth stirling-moray brother, dominik, was killed
⋟ two younger half-siblings // henry & ida
⋟ bisexual but he stays silent about homosexual activity
⋟ husband to blake moray // cheating on her with multiple people
⋟ father of thomas moray and charlotte moray

interaction.
⋟ storage // playlist // pinterest
⋟ physically: very hard // mentally: hard
⋟ father taught him how to kill at a young age
⋟ insensitive towards injuring or killing others // will do so without hesitation
⋟ mentally, he is slowly becoming undone from stress, grief and guilt
⋟ often found guarding the lodge with a rifle
[/spoiler]

[freddie]

[align=center][div style="background=transparent; borderwidth=0px; bordercolor=; width: 420px; font-size: 8pt; line-height: 125%; text-align: justify; font-family: arial; color: black"]

— freddie hadn’t originally wanted to go to the sparring event. he understood that the point of it all was to keep everyone on their toes, make sure they knew how to fight and be prepared for anything. fred didn’t like that point, however; he much preferred the idea of relaxing in the living room. relaxing, finally, after all this time spent on his toes-- well. a stirling could at least dream, couldn’t they?

shuffling in a bit after the others, he looked around at the familiar faces. he glanced around at the others before he eventually breathed a short, dramatic sigh. “i don’t think i belong here,” he hummed, casually throwing an arm around his brother. “i’m a lover, not a fighter. don’t you know?” he glanced around at the group, as if to see if there was anyone that actually bought his keen self-observation. he didn’t think others were that convinced. it was hard to play a part when so many knew exactly how he was. pursing his lips, he nodded to himself. note to self; family could see right through any good-guy act.

narrowing his eyes slightly, he hummed to himself as he glanced around the group. then- “alf.” this was a bad idea, an insanely bad idea. yet there was something about bad ideas that just felt so right. “i bet i could beat you with one hand tied behind my back.” alfie was exceptional hand-to-hand combat… and for someone who was well-aware of it, his confidence made him sound almost completely oblivious to the fact.

//wow sorry for this post

[EDMUND.]

    tw. brief mention of gore

The moment Freddie stepped into the room, Ed already prepared to roll his eyes at whatever spewed passed his lips. And, sure enough, it didn't take long before Freddie began with a theatrical sigh and then some rubbish about being a lover not a fighter. Ed stared at Freddie plainly before eyes shifted around the room to look for other people's reactions. William snorted under his breath, roughly tousling his younger brother's hair before he uttered, ❝ You're such a dick- ❞

❝ Oh, bullshit, Freddie. ❞ Tommy's words were biting as he threw a hand when gesturing towards him, features crinkling up with distaste. ❝ Tell that to all the fucker's throats you've slashed in your lifetime. Fuckin' idiot. ❞ Thomas grumbled with a shake of his head and, though words sounded like they were fueled with vexation, in reality this was simply Tommy. Abrasive without meaning to. Painfully blunt. Painfully brash. Eddie began to shift from foot to foot, hands resting on his hips as he turned to look towards Brendan. ❝ So, what are your plans for today? ❞ Would he take suggestions from the kid? Sure, he supposed. It beat having to plan the sparring task himself.

Now, Freddie had turned all attention to Alfie. Ah, bad move. Alfie raised his brows at Freddie's proposition, silent for a moment before he began cackling. ❝ Fuckin'... Sure thing, man. I could beat you with neither of your damn hands tied behind your back, you fucking shrimp. ❞ Alfie snorted as he began to tie his hair back casually.

Perhaps he was overconfident in his abilities, but towering over the rest of the family as the Stirling's muscle man seemed to give him an unfair advantage in hand-to-hand combat. Well, Eddie was looking forward to seeing how little Freddie could fight nowadays. Alfie gestured towards William, ❝ C'mon, get something to tie this shrimp's fuckin' hand up. ❞ Alfie announced, then pointing a competitive finger Freddie's way, ❝ This is your last chance to back out. ❞

[align=center][div style="width: 350px; text-align: justify; font-family:verdana; font-size: 7px;"][spoiler=tags :: updated 01/07]basics.
⋟ edmund theodore stirling-moray // ed, eddie, moray
⋟ goes by the name edmund moray
⋟ male // he/him
⋟ twenty four // ages real time // born seventh august
⋟ skipper of flintlock lodge // formerly a traveler with his family
⋟ mob boss of the stirling crime family
⋟ joined FL two years ago

appearance.
⋟ faceclaim - finn cole
⋟ voice claim - finn cole
⋟ 5'9ft // stocky, well-built frame
⋟ muted blue eyes and dirty blonde hair
⋟ physical health - 80% // current injuries: stitches on side of head where his head was slammed into ice and a chest infection following a near-drowning experience.
⋟ mental health - 70% // depression and deluded thoughts

personality.
⋟ quiet in nature but confident in himself
⋟ completely fearless, almost foolishly so
⋟ insensitive and callous // cares for very few
⋟ very calm and calculative // always planning in his head
⋟ disciplined and practices good self-control
⋟ very flirtatious and persuasive // overly lustful
⋟ aloof and untrustworthy // jealous and deceitful
⋟ tactful and knows how to get what he wants
⋟ can be very nasty when he wants to be
⋟ but can also be very protective and faithful too
⋟ has a strong set of morals // has the quality of honor

relationships.
⋟ alfred stirling x leonora moray // both deceased
⋟ three older brothers // alfonso, thomas & franklin
⋟ the fifth stirling-moray brother, dominik, was killed
⋟ two younger half-siblings // henry & ida
⋟ bisexual but he stays silent about homosexual activity
⋟ husband to blake moray // cheating on her with multiple people
⋟ father of thomas moray and charlotte moray

interaction.
⋟ storage // playlist // pinterest
⋟ physically: very hard // mentally: hard
⋟ father taught him how to kill at a young age
⋟ insensitive towards injuring or killing others // will do so without hesitation
⋟ mentally, he is slowly becoming undone from stress, grief and guilt
⋟ often found guarding the lodge with a rifle
[/spoiler]

[DAMIEN.]

[align=center][div style="0px; width:450px; height:auto; text-align: justify; font-size: 9pt; line-height:13px;"]Combat, something that Damien was well aware of and was well aware that it really seemed to be Brendan's strong suit. The kid liked to wave his little stick around, that was for sure. Wandering in, he watched people start chatting, throwing punches, all the like. Damien didn't exactly.. know where to start. He was certain that knives weren't acceptable for this event (so there went all the fun), and guns were definitely not involved in sparring.. so... what was he to do?

After leaning edgily against the wall for some time, he suddenly struck up an idea. Sure, the kid hated him, but as he sauntered over to Brendan, Damien figured he couldn't refuse. After all, it was sparring. "Brendo. B dog." The ghost of a grin was just evacuating the graveyard as he spoke the next few words. "You think you could.. uhh," the vision of Brendan flipping him over was a little bit stressful, but all things hurt in the end, he supposed.

"Your staff. I wanna know how to deflect blunt objects. Or at least defend my face from them." For once, Damien was serious as he spoke to the younger boy, eyes flicking from the walls to the ceilings as he waited for a response.

[EMERY]

[align=center][div style="width: 350px; text-align: justify; font-family: helvetica; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 1.4;"]tw for mentions of past abuse

emery hawthorne had never been the fighting type. she was the one who was on the sidelines as her cousins would start arguing, quick to try and be the one to break it up as long as it hadn't ascended into something uncontrollable. she favored peace and harmony, wanting everyone to at least try and get along. in her eyes fighting was a waste of time, there was always a better way to handle things than inflicting pain on someone else. even when her parents had gone into one of their spirals and beat up on her, she never once raised her hand towards them to defend herself. she would just curl up as much as she could and try to talk them down to get them to stop.

as she grew older, the distaste she had for violence and fighting turned into more of a fearful subject for her, bringing her back to the house she grew up in. at the mentions of brendan teaching some sparring to those interested, emery was set to just avoid that room for the duration of it, planning on going out to see some of the views for inspiration. then she heard the term self defense get thrown in with it and she stopped to think about it for a moment longer.

eventually, she had decided she would at least and just go observe them, figuring that if she paid attention close enough that she could pick up a thing or two that could benefit her in the future. she lingered outside the door for a second, her hand hovering over the doorknob as she once again debated over it. finally, she quietly slipped inside the room and stayed close to the back wall. she already began to feel her heart start beating quicker even though nothing really had started yet, the idea alone started to get to her, though. emery took a deep breath, eyes shifting around the room, fingers nervously tapping on her legs.

[spoiler= my dear sweet nothing updated┊15/1]◜BASICS ┊ IT LOOKS LIKE EMPATHY◞
&. ❝ emery lennon hawthorne ❞ | though she normally just goes by emery, it isn't rare for her to go by em/emmy or by her middle name, lennon/lenny | afab cis female [ she/her pronouns ] .
&. 23 years old . | february twenty-fifth ; picses .
&. member of flintlock lodge .

◜PERSONALITY ┊ TO UNDERSTAND ALL SIDES◞
&. very hardworking and dedicated when she puts her mind to it, but when shes relaxed and doesn't have anything to do her mind tends to wander and she daydreams a lot. also very creative and imaginative, jumpy and clever. very warm and caring, will write this into a better thing eventually

◜ APPEARANCE ┊ BUT I'M JUST TRYING TO FIND MYSELF ◞
&.  5'5 & 118 pounds ; reference
↳ dark brown hair that gets natural caramel and blonde highlights in the summer ; almost reaches to the middle of her back ; pretty soft for the circumstances everyone is facing ; has a natural wave to it
↳ green eyes that can have hints of blue and brown in different lighting ; almond shaped
↳ light complexion ; can sometimes tan in the summer but it's not very likely
↳ tw for brief mention of past parental abuse has some scars on her back from her parents hitting her
↳ has an australian accent
↳ alycia debnam-carey faceclaim and voiceclaim

◜INTERACTIONS ┊ THROUGH SOMEONE ELSE'S EYES ◞
&.  [ 7/10 ] physically  |  [ 7/10 ] psychologically .
↳ difficulty w/ guns [ medium ] | difficulty w/ melees [ high ] | difficulty w/ hand-to-hand [ low ]
↳ combat information will go here eventually .
&. attack in bold #7A0929 | [member=122]finny.[/member] | PM for any major plots .
&. friendly or nonviolent actions may be powerplayed .

◜INVENTORY ┊ SO SHOW ME WHAT TO DO◞
&. [ 2 ] weapons | [ 0 ] armor pieces | [ 2 ] consumables | [ 3 ] aid items | [ ? ] misc .
↳ for weapons, emery has a butterfly knife and a pocket knife, she knows they aren't the best weapons to defend herself but they're all she had for the longest time . she is very skilled with butterfly knives and can flip it around (or twirl it, whatever the term is) with ease. for consumables she has a canteen that she always fills up with water whenever she comes across a safe water source as well as a small back of almonds she found. she's not sure on the number of misc. things she has, she has one almost used up sketchbook as well as two empty ones, various different pencils and paints, some pictures of her and eileen as well as some books and other little things.

◜RELATIONSHIPS ┊ TO RESTART THIS HEART OF MINE◞
&. garrett (unknown) x regina (unknown) | she also had an older sister named eileen (deceased) . her parents were very cold and distant, but she had bonded with her older sister to the point where eileen was more of a parental figure for her . she had assumed eileen had ran off and left her to deal with their parents, but she had actually passed away and emery never found out .
&. pansexual, panromantic ; mongamous ; slight preference for more masculine people but in the end she really doesn't care . | just a bit of info on how they feel about relationships .
&. single ; no crush ; no possible crush
↳ not actively looking but she's,,,, not not looking. in her mind, whatever happens, happens.[/spoiler]

[freddie]

[align=center][div style="background=transparent; borderwidth=0px; bordercolor=; width: 420px; font-size: 8pt; line-height: 125%; text-align: justify; font-family: arial; color: black"]

— guess freddie had a lot to learn about knowing his audience before he went and tried to act so innocent. their reactions would have been far different from his brother’s and his cousins’ own responses. william roughly tousled his hair, freddie’s brows furrowing as he protested, “lee-” tommy’s words were, by far, the complete opposite of what freddie originally wanted. couldn’t he try and convince anyone that he was a good guy?

to be fair, probably not.

deciding the failed attempt with the “hopeless romantic” bullshit, freddie decided it was better to turn to the task at hand. however, as alfie cackled, tying his hair back absently as he made his confident remark-- fred had the feeling instantly that it was a bad idea to try and fight his cousin. he should’ve gone with someone easier, like… edmund, or-- edmund. he took the time to glance over towards william, the slightest crack in his overconfident facade - with a helpless look that could only be summed up as, “what the hell did i get myself into?”

“c’mon, get something to tie this shrimp’s fuckin’ hand up.”
his gaze wandered back towards alfie, raising a brow. huffing, amused, he dusted invisible dust off of himself, as if completely unfazed by alfie’s intimidation. “you know, alf,” he hummed, “i’ve always wanted to hear you beg for mercy.” and this fight would give him the chance to finally witness that, wouldn't it? since when did the stirling’s muscle man ever get beat? it was time to put the overconfident asshole in his place.

fred went on the defensive; have alfie throw a few punches and then hit him when his guard’s down, sort of strategy. it seemed ingenious to freddie-- even when the odds were noticeably stacked against him. leave it to freddie to bite off more than he could chew.

//sorry for this post y i k e s

[EDMUND.]

Eddie could only expect that this situation was going to turn sour pretty swiflty. Ed's lips parted slightly as he watched Freddie and Alfie prepare to spar, realizing that he ought to intervene... but then again, did he really care to see Freddie lose? He contemplated on the thought for a moment, before William walked over to stand next to Ed. ❝ Good luck, Freds- ❞ Words were playful and unsympathetic, a shit-eating smirk on Will's lips as he watched, arms folding across his torso.

Alfie cracked his knuckles, as if he really wanted to show off how big and brutish he was. ❝ Me too, Freddie- ❞ He retorted arrogantly, curling his lip as he neared his younger cousin competitively. ❝ I've always wondered what it must sound like. ❞ Of course Alfie would win - he never lost!

Sighing, Eddie turned his head as he saw Emery enter the room and keep close to the wall. She seemed worried, and so it didn't take time before Edmund wandered over. ❝ Do you know much about hand-to-hand combat? ❞ He questioned before looking over to the sound of Alfie lunging forwards, throwing his fist towards Freddie's solar plexus. Oh, here we fucking go-

[align=center][div style="width: 350px; text-align: justify; font-family:verdana; font-size: 7px;"][spoiler=tags :: updated 01/07]basics.
⋟ edmund theodore stirling-moray // ed, eddie, moray
⋟ goes by the name edmund moray
⋟ male // he/him
⋟ twenty four // ages real time // born seventh august
⋟ skipper of flintlock lodge // formerly a traveler with his family
⋟ mob boss of the stirling crime family
⋟ joined FL two years ago

appearance.
⋟ faceclaim - finn cole
⋟ voice claim - finn cole
⋟ 5'9ft // stocky, well-built frame
⋟ muted blue eyes and dirty blonde hair
⋟ physical health - 80% // current injuries: stitches on side of head where his head was slammed into ice and a chest infection following a near-drowning experience.
⋟ mental health - 70% // depression and deluded thoughts

personality.
⋟ quiet in nature but confident in himself
⋟ completely fearless, almost foolishly so
⋟ insensitive and callous // cares for very few
⋟ very calm and calculative // always planning in his head
⋟ disciplined and practices good self-control
⋟ very flirtatious and persuasive // overly lustful
⋟ aloof and untrustworthy // jealous and deceitful
⋟ tactful and knows how to get what he wants
⋟ can be very nasty when he wants to be
⋟ but can also be very protective and faithful too
⋟ has a strong set of morals // has the quality of honor

relationships.
⋟ alfred stirling x leonora moray // both deceased
⋟ three older brothers // alfonso, thomas & franklin
⋟ the fifth stirling-moray brother, dominik, was killed
⋟ two younger half-siblings // henry & ida
⋟ bisexual but he stays silent about homosexual activity
⋟ husband to blake moray // cheating on her with multiple people
⋟ father of thomas moray and charlotte moray

interaction.
⋟ storage // playlist // pinterest
⋟ physically: very hard // mentally: hard
⋟ father taught him how to kill at a young age
⋟ insensitive towards injuring or killing others // will do so without hesitation
⋟ mentally, he is slowly becoming undone from stress, grief and guilt
⋟ often found guarding the lodge with a rifle
[/spoiler]

[BRENDAN]

A part of him wonders if that maybe, just maybe he should’ve taken the babysitting task. Like—it’s usually what he does anyways, making sure the kids in the lodge are a-okay, so there’s no reason for him to not pick it; he likes kids, they’re easy to deal with, it just seems right. Yet here he is: dusting off the mats in the room he practically claimed for the sparring task he crossed off. Once he figures it’s good enough (the floors are going to get dirty again very fast anyways), he puts the cleaning supplies away and looks around.

Okay, so...now what? The room’s clean, he has his staff propped up against the wall, ready to go; the punching bag was even shoved into a corner, since he hopes people plan on focusing more on sparring against actual people than inanimate objects. The only catch is—how is he going to tell people that this is even occurring? It’s not like he feels the urge to go around and tell everyone a time and date, it makes him cringe just by thinking about it, but he also has a task to do. Crossing his arms, he exhales slowly. He...he has an idea. Maybe.

It doesn’t take long, thankfully, and soon enough he’s taping a piece of paper against the room’s door. Stepping back, he admires his work: in the most random, near-perfectly neat handwriting exclaims a simple "sparring" on the paper. Right below the door, standing in front of Brendan—Roosty. Because why not? He’s cute, he deserves some fun every now and again. Picking up the rooster, Brendan looks around the hallway, then steps inside the room. Time to wait, he guesses. (No complaints if people don’t come, though...he feels at ease just sitting around.)

[table]