my sky's not blue, it's violent rain ┊JOINING (O)

[MAXINE.]

[align=center][div style="width: 350px; text-align: justify; font-family: helvetica; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 1.4; text-transform: lowercase;"]tw for injuries, blood, language, death of parents, etc.

"c’mon, sebby… hold on a little longer, bud. i think we’re almost there.." maxine’s voice was quiet, a slight whimper could be found within it as her vibrant blue eyes looked down to her younger brother. her arm was around him for support and he did his best to make it so all of his weight wasn’t completely resting on her, but max could feel him growing more and more heavy as seconds passed, he didn’t have much longer without medical attention. her clothes were covered in blood and her cheeks were damp from stray tears that escaped down her face, it had been a long night and it was one that she wasn’t going to forget. 

she felt numb. it was similar to when their parents had died years ago, instead of processing the emotions she felt, maxine van doren had bottled them up and put on a brave face for the sake of her siblings. she was the glue, she had to be the thing holding the family together - she couldn’t help them if she was busy crying. this time there was a difference to her bottling it up, she didn’t want to process anything. she didn’t want to think about the fact that she had lost all of her siblings within the span of a few hours. she wanted to believe that it was some kind of sick and twisted nightmare, but the more she went on with sebastian clinging to life, the more it started to set in.

the stirling family and van doren family had a truce, they wouldn’t bother each other as long as the other kept their word on that as well. she hadn’t see any of them for quite some time, but when their parents had passed, the stirlings had lended a hand out to them, telling them they would help look out for them. max had heard they had moved to flintlock, so that’s where she was trying to get seb to in hopes that he could get help.

”i’m tired. need to stop.”

"we can’t stop, we have to get you-" she was cut off by sebastian going unconscious, all of his weight collapsing on her smaller frame which made her stumble to the ground. "fuck!" she snapped, she lightly pushed him off of her legs so she could stand back up, attempting to pick him up from under his arms so she could drag him up the mountain. as the top of the lodge came into view, max felt a small rush of relief hit her. "we need help!" she yelled as they got closer, hoping someone inside could hear her as she managed to get seb closer before stumbled backwards again, noticing his breathing was becoming more shallow.

[freddie]

[align=center][div style="background=transparent; borderwidth=0px; bordercolor=; width: 400px; font-size: 8pt; line-height: 125%; text-align: justify; font-family: arial; color: black"]

— fred liked to consider himself to have at least some role in his family. he didn’t think of himself as the glue, the person that held the family together; sometimes he felt like he was inches away from accidentally tearing the family apart. while his role wasn’t as vital as keeping everyone together, he liked to think that he was at least something. a piece that couldn’t be left out. the kind that if one were to put the puzzle together and the piece wasn’t there, the puzzle as a whole would look incomplete. empty. not a useless puzzle, but still looking at that empty piece would leave a bad taste in one’s mouth. that’s how he saw himself, at least. he couldn’t say whether it was true or not.

eyes wandered outside at the sound of muffled yelling. as he peered outside the window, he saw her, and the person she carried in her arms. usually fred wasn’t convinced to help visitors - not unless there was something in it for him. flintlock had been hurt by visitors before; they had stolen from them, hurt them... however, before anyone else, fred stepped outside of the lodge. “strangers heading towards the lodge,” he said into his walkie-talkie as he neared. paused as eyes looked towards the figure in the person's arms before adding, “we’ll need a medic.”

jesus. the hell had these people been through? he didn’t get a good look at their faces before he held his arms out. “here, i’ll carry him. let’s get you to the lodge.” perhaps on the inside, fred wasn’t a kind and caring person. sometimes those darker parts could show through and reveal things more sinister than anyone would expect from frederick. now wasn’t one of those times - some could even say this kindness came off as a bit genuine. fred wouldn’t answer if it was or not.

//this post sucked but
welcome to fl !

[EDMUND.]

Perhaps many would view Edmund as the glue which held the Stirling enterprise together nowadays. Perhaps some would even view him as the glue which held Flintlock Lodge together, but Eddie could not disagree more. They didn’t need a leader like him - a man so inundated in his own personal trauma that sometimes it felt like he was drowning. He was far from perfect, he did many terrible things which he knew that he’d someday come to regret, and this wasn’t a man who people should look up to.

What happened to the courageous and motivational man who led by example? All Eddie seemed to be doing nowadays was inspire fear and aggravation; perhaps he deserved it, though. A leader was supposed to be like a shepherd, staying behind the flock whilst gently guiding them forwards. Instead, he had led himself astray - where was his flock supposed to go without him?

He was supposed to improve people in his presence, leaving an impact in his absence. Eddie was supposed to be the glue to hold people together, yet instead his absence was causing even himself to fall apart. How could Eddie forgive himself for all of things that he did not become?

❝ Strangers heading towards the lodge. ❞ Freddie’s voice buzzed on his walkie-talkie, his cousin’s words causing Ed’s brows to bunch together before striding out of his office. ❝ Find a medic. ❞ Eddie barked, pointing over towards a group of Flintlockers who all sat around in the lounge before Eddie was out the front door, tugging his coat on. Rifle slung over his shoulder, Eddie approached the silhouette of his cousin alongside two newcomers until his eyes could focus on the faces.

Oh, when would the Van Dorens ever get a break?

Holding his breath, eyes darted across Maxine’s panicked features stoically before approaching, turning his head to look at Freddie who was helping Seb. Oh, Eddie knew the Van Doren family very well; he could still remember accompanying Alfred when he would meet up with the Van Doren’s Boss, slowly finding himself with a newfound opportunity to grow a lot closer to certain Maxine and eventually-

Now wasn’t the time to think about his past love affairs.

❝ Frederick, help Seb back into the lodge. I think a medic is on their way. ❞ He commanded firmly, nodding his head at his cousin before shimmying his coat off instinctively and placing it around Max’s shoulders. ❝ He’s going to be a’right. Our medics are good people. ❞ He assured quietly, hand on her back as he began to lead the group back up to the lodge.

[align=center][div style="width: 430px; text-align: justify; font-family:verdana; font-size: 7px;"][spoiler=tags :: updated 03/06]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
⋟ captain 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 - 100% // current injuries: n/a
⋟ mental health - 60% // 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
⋟ ex-husband to blake kegan // was caught cheating
⋟ 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]

[𝐊𝐈𝐃.]

[align=center][div style="width: 450px; text-align: justify; font-family: times new roman; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 1.4; color: #333; word-spacing: 1px;"]leaving maxine to drag dickie by herself wasn't ideal ,  but he'd be damned if he didn't check around and make sure no one had followed them .  he didn't want either of his siblings to get hurt any more ,  especially poor dickie  ( fear gripped his heart again ;  he couldn't think about the worst possibility ,  the one that was more probable than dickie living through his injuries ) .  so instead of helping ,  he'd just turned and scampered off without actually telling max what he was doing .  he felt a little bad ,  but they had no time to waste .  max was strong enough to carry dickie's weight ,  and they were close enough that other people were surely to spot them and come help .

he hoped so ,  anyway .  he hated leaving them alone like this .

cass felt just a little stupid hiding behind trees and peering out from them like he was playing a game of hide and seek ,  but he'd make himself look like a fool if it were to keep other people safe — especially his little siblings .

after awhile of running around making sure no one was following them ,  and making a hurried attempt to cover up at least some of max's and dickie's tracks ,  cass finally turned back to follow their trail .  his lungs burned and his chest felt heavy with anxiety ,  but he jogged as fast as he could without tripping over his own feet and falling face - first onto the ground .  the last thing he needed was to be embarrassed ,  even if no one could really see him yet .

once he could see who he knew to be max ,  and a few others he couldn't quite make out yet ,  one taking dickie away ,  he sighed out in relief .  he slowed his jog until he was close enough to fast walk the rest of the way to max's side ,  recognizing the other two who'd come to their aid almost immediately . before he could say anything ,  his eyes locked with max's and she let out a " glad you could join us ,  you dick , "  only half serious .  despite the lack of seriousness ,  his own response was nothing but serious .

" watch your fucking language ,  maxxie . "

and then he turned back towards edmund ,  then to the hand on max's back that helped lead her ,  and back up again with a tight smile and a nod of greeting .

" sorry i'm lagging behind .  had to make sure nobody was following .  is- is dickie gonna be okay ? "

[MAXINE.]

[align=center][div style="width: 350px; text-align: justify; font-family: helvetica; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 1.4; text-transform: lowercase;"]max let out a sigh of relief when someone walked out to help them. she looked down to seb for a moment, brushing some of his hair out of his face before she nodded lightly and let freddie take over carrying him. "thank you," she said, nodding her head towards him before another figure emerged from the lodge. this time it was the stirling family member that she had grown the closest to - eddie. she felt herself fall into a more relaxed state with the familiar faces appearing at their arrival, finally taking a moment to catch her breath. she gave him an appreciative smile when he placed his jacket around her shoulders, her hands going to hold it closer around her frame.

when max felt him place his hand on her back, her instincts from past events with someone else almost made her jerk away from it. she told herself that it was a harmless gesture and soon found herself walking a bit closer to eddie than she normally would with someone, feeling a warm comfort from it.

maxine looked back towards the footsteps behind them, noticing cass finally catching up to them again. he had found her and seb a few minutes after they had initially started for flintlock lodge and she thought he was going to help her carry their brother up here, but boy was she wrong. he instead took off into the trees when she was in the middle of a sentence, leaving the two of them standing there without saying a word on what his plan was. at first, she was pretty annoyed by it, but that soon was replaced with curiosity. what was cassian up to? he did things for a reason, he wasn’t just ditching his siblings, max knew he wouldn’t do that. he walked closer and her eyes locked with his.

"glad you could join us, you dick." her tone wasn’t snappy or harsh, there was a hint of lightheartedness laced within it. his response was as expected, her eyes rolling slightly. typical cass.

”had to make sure nobody was following.” so that’s what he was up to, he was looking out for them. she should have figured it was something like that. when it came to protecting all of his younger siblings, he definitely fit the eldest child mold. she didn’t respond to his question at first, just looked ahead for a second. eddie said he was going to be fine, that their medics were good and yet max couldn’t shake the bad feeling that started to fester in the pit of her stomach. finally, she looked back towards cass and offered him a small smile.

"i hope so." it probably wasn’t the answer he was looking for, but it was the best one max could manage to give him. she didn’t know what would happen to their younger brother and she didn’t want to promise him something that she was wasn’t sure on, even if she wanted to do so. "did you see any of the others?" her eyes wide with anticipation. she didn’t have a chance to see if they had gotten away, but maybe cass did.

once they were inside the lodge, she watched as they took seb away to tend to his wounds. her attention was back on ed, eyes looking over him briefly before she spoke. "sorry for springing this on you, we didn’t know where else to go." it was true, they didn’t have very many allies that would help them like the stirlings, especially ones that were as close to them as flintlock was. "a group attacked us and we were outnumbered." she explained to him.

[EDMUND.]

Ah, of course Eddie should have expected another Van Doren to appear soon afterwards. The family were attached by the hip most of the time, despite frequent bickers and squabbles. They reminded Eddie of him and his brothers when there were still five of them. Nowadays, rooms almost seemed vacant (not quite quiet with both Alfie and Tommy of all of the brothers to live with) with the absence of Dominik and Frank. Whilst perhaps Frank could visit from time to time, maybe even come out of whatever ❛ early retirement ❜ malarkey he’d settled down into in Bluestem Prairie, Dominik was not as lucky.

At least Eddie got to see Dominik at least once daily. His resting place was marked with nothing but a nearby conifer and boulder, the snow quick to hide the evidence of a shallow grave.

From the hurt that Eddie felt every day when he’d visit his brother’s grave, he couldn’t wish the grief upon anybody, especially the Van Doren family. And so, he would refuse to allow Seb to die. Seb was not going to be buried upon this mountain today, or tomorrow, or any day in the foreseeable future. Eyes darted around as Cassian arrived, Maxine making a sly comment as Eddie’s eyes followed Cassian’s gaze down to the leader's hand on his sister’s back. Ed almost felt obliged to pull his hand away quickly, instead removing the light pressure of his touch and instead hovering his hand nearby as he walked with the others back towards the Lodge.

❝ Is Dickie gonna be okay? ❞

❝ I hope so. ❞

❝ My medics will do anything in their power to save him… but I can’t make any promises. ❞ Eddie admitted, and perhaps he should’ve come across a little more sympathetic. At least he attempted to come across as soothing.

Eventually, the group stepped into the lodge and only then did Eddie move away, slowly removing his gloves as eyes darted over towards Freddie with Seb. ❝ Let’s get him to the infirmary. ❞ And then he raised his walkie-talkie from his belt up to his lips. ❝ I need medics at the front entrance now. ❞ He uttered before soft blues shifted back towards Max as she explained the family’s situation.

❝ It’s fine. ❞ He dismissed in a soft breath, brows bunching together before glancing towards Cassian. ❝ Do you know whether your other siblings made it? ❞ He questioned; although words were blunt, they were also considerate. After all, if they did make it, then Eddie could be sure to look out for them. If not, then he would be desperate to know more about this group that attacked the Van Dorens - he’d be interested in paying them a little visit on the Van Dorens' behalf.

[align=center][div style="width: 430px; text-align: justify; font-family:verdana; font-size: 7px;"][spoiler=tags :: updated 03/06]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
⋟ captain 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 - 100% // current injuries: n/a
⋟ mental health - 60% // 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
⋟ ex-husband to blake kegan // was caught cheating
⋟ 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]