#➤ lieutenant nathan forbes. ┊ to death��the best of all possible worlds.

[widowshill]

DARK SHADOWS AND THE TELEVISION CODE, part two.

[widowshill]

DOSSIER: NATHAN FORBES

studies in: Caribbean fuckboys, greed wed to desire (perhaps they are one and the same), militant hubris, the written record vs. the oral history

FULL NAME: Lieutenant Nathan Forbes AGE: 25 BIRTH DATE: June 6, 1770 ETHNICITY: white GENDER: cis man ROMANTIC ORIENTATION: biromantic, preference for women SEXUAL ORIENTATION: bisexual, preference for women RELIGION: eh SPOKEN LANGUAGE: English CURRENT LIVING CONDITIONS: varies: primarily, in a room at the Eagle Inn in Collinsport while on leave ashore, though moves to Collinwood after his marriage to Millicent Collins. in service of the merchant ship Starling, then the USRC Scammel, and assigned a posting to the USS Constitution, though he dies before the ship is completed

RELATIONSHIPS

PARENTS: Alexander and Lydia Forbes SIBLINGS: two older brothers, Patrick (deceased) and Richard SIGNIFICANT OTHER: Suki Welles Forbes (1792-1795), Millicent Collins Forbes (1795-d.) CHILDREN: none that he knows about. probably a handful that he doesn't.

PHYSICAL TRAITS

EYE COLOUR: teal HAIR COLOUR: brown HEIGHT: 6'0 BODY BUILD: athletic TATTOOS + PIERCINGS: a few sailor's tattoos, including a compass rose on his back shoulder, a sparrow for crossing the equator on his bicep, and an arrow on his hip NOTABLE PHYSICAL TRAITS: dashingly handsome with pretty, light eyes. when on leave, his hair is very carefully tended to, voluminous and wavy when washed (and not exposed to constant salt water.) at sea, he keeps it cut much shorter. almost always wearing his issued uniform: he has very few other clothes to speak of, other than one coat he wore to his first wedding, which he keeps for funerals, and to wear to church (whenever he's made to go)

PERSONALITY

INTELLIGENCE: wickedly quick-witted. knows people and how to manipulate them. decently accomplished sailor with genuine talents to recommend him at sea, although his friendship with the Collins heir didn't hurt. knows navigation, geography, and the stars, as well as anyone, as well as a knack for predicting the weather and sensing an oncoming storm. not so well-read, though he does read and write, keeps it confined to newspapers, mostly, and reports. could do certain complex calculations without thinking, like the tonnage of a ship, the angle of cannons, etc, but doesn't think of himself as particularly mathematic and definitely not scholarly. LIKES: ships and the sea, pretty women, rich women, the smell of salt, fresh oysters, fresh cod, the smell of gunpowder, the smell of ladies' perfume, violence, drinking (typically rum, but greatly enjoys the chance to drink (someone else's) fine sherry or port), fresh fruit, fall foliage and regular seasons, sea shanties and work songs, plays –– nothing fancy, just some contemporary satire, working with his hands: great at knots, carving, and sewing; enjoys dancing with young ladies though not on his own DISLIKES: the pretensions of high society (but at the same time desperately wants to be one of them, and consumed with envy), shellfish and crab meat unless that's the only fresh option available, watered-down rations and hardtack, the smell of tar, the prospect of poverty, getting his hands dirty (metaphorically and literally), being landlocked, church, the English, pirates –– especially the Barbary Coast, stuffy colonial politics, long letters, debate, opera, Shakespeare, too much order and too much disorder: he needs a good balance DISPOSITION: suave ladies' man, and a bit of a conman, too. easygoing and a good liar. slightly unnatural gait on land due to being raised mostly on the water, but it gives him a bit of swagger.

Bio:

Nathan was born the third son of a modest family in Boston, with all three following in their father's footsteps as shipbuilders. His two brothers enlisted at the onset of the Revolutionary War: the oldest, Alexander, was killed in the line of fire and was buried in their churchyard in Boston. the middle son, Richard, survived him, though would have a limp the rest of his life: he took over bookkeeping and finances from his father, and stood to inherit everything. Nathan, the only boy who had not been old enough to enlist during the war, was desperate for action and adventure, but with the disbandment of the navy his hopes were temporarily put to rest. not one to be discouraged –– and not eager to spend the rest of his life building ships for his older brother –– Nathan put to sea as a carpenter's mate on the Dolphin. ostensibly it was a fishing vessel, but there was far more money to be made in smuggling. now that the navy had disbanded, the waters were rich and open for the taking.

After a run-in with port authorities, the Dolphin ran north-east hoping to make it to Portsmouth, but a storm blew her of course and she was wrecked on the coastal islands of Maine. Nathan survived, and made his way to Collinsport, where he jumped ship to one of the Collins family's own fleet. He was able to secure a decent position as a mate after fudging a few details and proving his knowledge of ships and the sea (very few remained to contradict him). Aboard the Starling, Nathan would meet soon-to-be-friend (and heir to the Collins name and fortune), Barnabas Collins. The ship traveled to the West and East Indies, where Nathan would meet his future wife, Suki Welles, the daughter of an East India Company merchant. Suki promised him the wealth and lands of an EIC merchant heiress, and Nathan promised her the honor, love, and stability of an American sailor. neither delivered on their promises. Nathan separated from her without a formal divorce, sending her a small bit of his pay but without much friendly contact.

In 1792, with the good word of the Collins family behind him, Nathan joined the newly-formed Revenue-Marine as an officer on the Scammel based out of Collinsport. On the Scammel, he traveled along the coast of Maine and New Hampshire to intercept smugglers and enforce tariffs and customs: Nathan quickly learned it was easier, and more profitable, to maneuver his way into remaining ashore more often than not by using his knowledge of local smuggling operations and snitching on a few old friends. his superiors were impressed with his rapid success and his dashing air, and Nathan was promoted to lieutenant. when the Navy was reformed in 1794 and six new frigates contracted, Barnabas helped him secure a valuable position as second lieutenant aboard the USS Constitution. while the Collinsport shipyard constructed the frigate, Nathan remained in town, seducing all the local women to be had including the eligible Collins heiress, Millicent, who laid claim to fortune and vast New York real estate. and she was pretty enough.

Nathan had set his sights on his next wife, but Suki's arrival spoiled his well-made plans entirely. Nathan presented her as his sister to disguise their connection, but the secret wasn't to last: Suki was murdered upon finding out Barnabas's vampiric secret, and Millicent, going through the deceased's belongings, discovered their marriage license. she was incensed, and not only called off their engagement, but demanded Nathan be killed in a duel. Nathan was able to avoid another untimely death by aligning himself with the local religious fanatic, Reverend Trask, and worming his way back into the Collins' family favor with a combination of lies, blackmail, and shenanigans, until Millicent at last, heartily (and her cousin Joshua, reluctantly) agreed to take Nathan as her husband.

But this marriage, too, was not to end happily. Millicent, in effort to prove how much Nathan loved her for herself and not her fortune, had bequeathed all inheritance to her brother, Daniel. Nathan, naturally, only wanted her for her fortune. in retaliation, he pushed his new wife to insanity and secured guardianship of her younger brother, Daniel. the attempt to order Daniel's murder failed, but only barely, and Nathan was not long to survive the mess he'd made.

[widowshill]

tag drop part 2.

[widowshill]

navigation.

MUSES.

THE MATRIARCH. elizabeth collins stoddard. dark shadows. dossier. ic. THE PRODIGAL. roger collins. dark shadows. dossier. ic. THE GOVERNESS. victoria winters. dark shadows. dossier. ic. verses. THE LOVER. josette dupres. dark shadows. dossier. ic. THE SAILOR. lt. nathan forbes. dark shadows. dossier. ic. request: THE BYRONIC. captain bartholomew gore. the haunted mansion. dossier. ic. THE PROPRIETRESS. eleanor guthrie. black sails. dossier. ic. THE STARLET. magdalena temor. tower of terror. oc. dossier. ic.

BLOG NAV.

➤ meme. ┊ have your ghosts been talking to you? ➤ meme responses. ┊ boo ! ➤ answered. ┊ Collinsport 4099. ➤ edits & art. ┊ the evans cottage art gallery. ➤ atmosphere. ┊ welcome to the beginning and the end of the world. ➤ queue. ┊ the devils of a forgotten time have found their home. ➤ ooc. ┊ she’s nauseous，she’s hysterical，and she’s exhausted. ➤ music. ┊ the blue whale jukebox.

CHARACTER TAGS.

➤ roger collins. ┊ I and my ghosts want a drink. ➤ elizabeth collins stoddard. ┊ I belong to the house. the house belongs to me. ➤ victoria winters. ┊ because she’s lost and lonely. because she looks in shadows. ➤ josette dupres. ┊ it was a scent，not just any，it was hers: jasmine，seabreeze mixed. ➤ lieutenant nathan forbes. ┊ to death，the best of all possible worlds. ➤ captain bartholomew gore. ┊ there is no world beyond，it seems，only the waves and the wind. ➤ magdalena temor. ┊ I am queen of all my sins forgotten. am I still lost? once I was beautiful. now I am myself. ➤ eleanor guthrie. ┊ and it does not prosper，that sort of love. the love that a man can bear for his soil，his little kingdom.

RELATIONSHIPS: ROGER.

➤ roger collins & victoria winters. ┊ pain sometimes precedes pleasure，miss winters. ➤ roger collins & burke devlin. ┊ call me a sinner，mock me maliciously; I was your sleeplessness，I was your grief. ➤ roger collins & david collins. ┊ when the foundation’s laid so badly the whole house tilts，the sons inherit … grief. ➤ roger collins & elizabeth collins stoddard. ┊ how can I? these walls are my skin. this room is my heart. besides，I have a sister. ➤ roger collins & laura murdoch collins. ┊ to tell me that I had already a wife is empty mockery. ➤ roger collins & cassandra blair collins. ┊ incapable of love，of tenderness，of decency. she was not even normal. ➤ roger collins & carolyn stoddard. ┊ I didn’t know you had the choice.

RELATIONSHIPS: VICTORIA.

➤ burke devlin & victoria winters. ┊ look at me，what a soft thing i have become. so much of me is about you now. ➤ barnabas collins & victoria winters. ┊ I live in your warm life，and you shall die––die，sweetly die––into mine. ➤ maximilian de winter & victoria winters. ┊ I do love him so … his dreadful energy，and his blind，frustrated rages. ➤ anthony j. crowley & victoria winters. ┊ because I prayed this word: I want. ➤ victoria winters & carolyn stoddard. ┊ here，alone with you，I can’t pretend. ➤ victoria winters & david collins. ┊ the important thing is you and me. ➤ victoria winters & maggie evans. ┊ we rise graceful and resilient as flowers growing through the stone. ➤ arc: mrs. collins. ┊ collinwood will always mean home to me.

RELATIONSHIPS: ELIZABETH.

➤ elizabeth collins stoddard & annette ‘ned’ calder. ┊ only in that one way. ➤ elizabeth collins stoddard & betty hanscombe. ┊ death always comes more than once. every wound is both itself and its reflection. ➤ elizabeth collins stoddard & carolyn stoddard. ┊ persephone belonged to her mother. that was demeter’s gift to herself.

RELATIONSHIPS: JOSETTE

➤ josette dupres & jeremiah collins. ┊ learn the rapture of that cruelty，which yet is love. ➤ josette dupres & barnabas collins. ┊ but to die as lovers may –– to die together，so that they may live together. ➤ victoria winters & josette dupres. ┊ the dead after all，do not walk backwards but they do walk behind us.

AFFILIATIONS.

➤ collinwood. ┊ then who shall tear the curse from their blood? the house is glued to ruin. ➤ re: barnabas collins. ┊ luring me to a past that never was. this is the treachery. ➤ re: dr. julia hoffman. ┊ you're not blessed，or divine，or burdened. you're a science experiment. ➤ re: maggie evans. ┊ a peach tree growing in a coffee can. ➤ re: angélique bouchard collins. ┊ lovely-eyed. death-touched. witch. ➤ re: nicholas blair. ┊ I hate to bother you，but I am talking about evil. it blooms. it eats. it grins. ➤ re: burke devlin. ┊ I am stranded in a hungerland of great prosperity. ➤ re: carolyn stoddard. ┊ never the same girl twice. ➤ re: david collins. ┊ he's just been afflicted with the family disease. he's been seeing ghosts. ➤ re: laura murdoch collins. ┊ I want to watch a girl on fire with ruin on her lips. I want to see everything burn. ➤ re: joe haskell. ┊ on two wheels in the land of vampires. ➤ re: chris jennings. ┊ the wolfsong is the sound of the rending you will suffer，in itself a murdering. ➤ re: bill malloy. ┊ just the water. it pays us，and then it claims us，swallows us whole. ➤ re: quentin collins. ┊ merely a man of larger expectations than life has hitherto offered me. ➤ re: paul stoddard. ┊ then mourn not for thy husband's loss too much，nor waste thyself away.