#Talfrin Liddick

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Elystan lay on the sofa in his sitting room. His hair was still damp from the bath his mother had insisted on, and over fresh, ill-fitting pajamas he wore a purple dressing gown (she had claimed he didn’t own the black one he had demanded).

Elystan isn't insisting on a black dressing gown because he's finally entered his goth phase or something; it's because he considers himself in mourning for his father, who was executed several months before this story. The social customs of this day required one to wear mourning for a year after the death of a parent, 8-10 months in black and 2-4 months in half-mourning. This didn't always apply to children, but the nearly thirteen-year-old Elystan probably doesn't see himself as much of a child anymore.

Nothing happened to that black dressing gown. It was probably hanging up in his wardrobe alongside all the rest. But Bethira isn't about to let him wear it, because she knows what statement he's trying to make, and she can't encourage that. Due to the nature of Talfrin's death, it wasn't considered appropriate at court for his family to dress in mourning, even though normally it would have been expected for Bethira as his widow in particular, and also for Delclis as his stepson.

Elystan's been wearing mostly pajamas for the past several months and hasn't been anywhere much, but when the Prime Minister sent for him back in January, Elystan did make a point of showing up in deep mourning, and that probably did not make Sir Jowan any more kindly-disposed toward him.

The purple dressing gown is a compromise. Elystan is not allowed to acknowledge the extent of his grief because of the ignominious nature of his father's death, but instead Bethira offers him something in a color associated with half-mourning, when clothing transitioned away from black toward grays and purples. Somber enough to fit what he's feeling but not flagrantly dark enough to be socially inappropriate (even though he's in the privacy of his own home now).

Elystan has lost the person he loved most, but he's not being allowed to engage in the usual rituals of his culture that would be intended to help him deal with that loss. Even talking about his father seems to be taboo now--in the entire conversation between him and his mother in "A Visit from the Murderess" they do not directly mention Talfrin even once, even though he's the reason for all this tension. Instead, he's being expected to just carry on like Talfrin never existed, like he never mattered, like the whole world would have been better off without him. If that's the case, Elystan as his offspring is by implication a waste of space also.

And sure, Talfrin was not a good person. He hurt his entire family deeply. But Elystan's affection for his father is very real, even if it was complicated by treatment that Elystan still doesn't realize was horrible, and his grief is real too. And at the moment it has nowhere to go.

[fictionadventurer]

Percy Blakeney

Bugs Bunny

Loki

The Doctor

Avvakir "Kiro" Velkhirin

Sherlock Holmes

Lord Peter Wimsey

Talfrin Liddick

Trickster kings:

Peeta Mellark

Eugenides Attolis

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Hundreds and hundreds of years ago, the region of Arclis in the nation now known as Corege crowned their first Prince, who happened to be a ten-year-old boy named Elystan. Despite his youth, he grew into quite a capable ruler and has been highly regarded historically. Over time, the title "Prince of Arclis" came to be applied to the eldest son of the monarch of Corege, and although the title is used from birth, it is officially granted at an investiture ceremony. Traditionally, the investiture takes place when the new Prince of Arclis is ten, in memory of the original Prince.

Elystan Liddick, Prince of Arclis, ought to have had his investiture ceremony around October 1905, when he turned ten, but autumn and winter were a difficult time of year for him, hard on his asthma, so the ceremony was put off until March 1906. Then April. Then May (during Book 1).

Everything was in place to happen. Invitations sent out, ceremonial garments made, even a rehearsal played out.

And then the night before the ceremony Elystan had an asthma attack. A particularly bad one. There was no way he could possibly handle a lengthy public outing in the aftermath of that.

And Talfrin, who had to cancel the ceremony and make evasive excuses to everyone, was furious. This had been put off a few too many times for him, and people were starting to talk. Elystan was the only heir Talfrin had, and if he couldn't make it to his own investiture ceremony, what did that say for the future of Talfrin's very new and still tenuous dynasty? This could not be allowed to continue.

So Talfrin did something that he had never before done as a father--stormed into his son's room and gave him a thorough tongue-lashing. It was high time Elystan outgrew this nonsense that his mother's putting into his head about being delicate. A future king of Corege cannot--must not!--be weak. Elystan could be as strong as he made up his mind to be. But clearly he was choosing to wallow in this effeminate laziness. He was not ready to be King of Corege someday, let alone Prince of Arclis, so he could forget about that investiture ceremony. That honor was only for someone worthy of it, and until Elystan could prove that he had what it took to succeed a man like Talfrin, he would have to wait. If he didn't want the Liddicks to be the laughing stock of the Continent, he would need to start putting some effort into building himself into what a Prince of Arclis ought to be. He could conquer the asthma, or let it conquer him. His choice.

Elystan had another attack later that afternoon.

Shortly afterward came the events that led to Talfrin's forced abdication, so Elystan never did get that investiture ceremony.

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A thing I am figuring out about Talfrin: quality time equals love for him. He grew up an only child with parents who were often too distracted with their own concerns to bother much with him, so he learned to place a lot of value on getting meaningful attention from them, although he finally figured out he'd have to go elsewhere to find it, and that has come to be how he connects (or doesn't!) with other people.

Although Elystan lives in a separate household from his parents, Talfrin (as long as he's king and still in Corege) has made it a point throughout his son's childhood of visiting as often as he can. During family vacations, he's always the one with some kind of activity planned, and he wants everyone to participate. Whenever he wants to connect with Delclis, he'll talk with him one-on-one or take him on hunting trips--which can also double as a way of punishing Elystan for failure to live up to expectations by leaving him out of quality time with his father. Similarly, he will spite Bethira by denying her access to her sons. The more their marriage suffers, the less time he bothers to spend with her, and they haven't shared a room in years by the time they first appear in Book 1.

Exile is particularly hard on him in part because he's not able to spend time with his son anymore. And once he's in prison for treason and awaiting his fate, one of his last requests is to see Delclis one more time.

Delclis declines.

Whether or not Elystan gets a last visit with his father before losing him--whether or not Talfrin even wants to see him at that point--is something I'm still deciding.

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Unfinished Bethira story, please?

This story would be about a young Bethira, in her late teens or early twenties, on her way home to inform her family that she is serious about pursuing a nursing career rather than becoming a socialite as her parents expect her to be (for their own social advancement). But they're not there to meet her at the platform; instead, she meets her older sister's gentleman friend, Talfrin, who at the sight of her grabs her up and kisses her. She is of course outraged. He claims that he mistook her for her sister and expects to be blithely forgiven. Bethira is not impressed, but she has no choice but to let him drive her home.

I honestly don't remember a lot of what I planned for the rest of it, but the point would be to demonstrate Bethira's early impressions of the man who will become her second husband and what their initial relationship is like. She's not impressed on the whole but still a little taken in with his charm. He is taken with her (or with an idealization of her) and transparently flirting despite being all but engaged to her sister.

It's unfinished because it's mostly just Vague Ideas without a plot. And I struggle with writing Talfrin as just the right balance of awful and personable (I lean too much toward the former for the latter to feel plausible).

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Elystan's ninth birthday celebrations were postponed. The official reason was bad weather, which puzzled the public; October 31 hadn't a cloud in the sky that year.

The truth was that Elystan wasn't well enough to attend. He was recovering from an illness and it was thought best that he stay at Endean until fully himself again.

Nevertheless, his mother had no intention of letting the actual day of his birth go unnoticed. She planned to go to Endean and celebrate with him quietly there. But Talfrin reminded her how many obligations they had that day. Functions, diplomatic visits, meetings, people whom it would be unthinkable to put off. A trip to Endean would be out of the question. Of course the poor boy might be disappointed, but he would still get to celebrate properly once he recovered, so it would all work out in the end. This shouldn't come as a shock to Bethira. After all, she knew when she chose to marry a king that important obligations came with the role, obligations that cannot be disregarded for mere personal concerns. A proper queen must stay and do her duty, and a proper prince would have to understand.

She stayed. She attended every single thing on the schedule...by herself. Talfrin woke up very early that morning before she was up and took the train to Endean.

When Elystan asked where Mother was (not, of course, that he cared to see her, no! but she and Father often came to visit together and he was idly curious why the change), his father told him that Bethira didn't want to come, that she was too busy. Not to worry, though! Talfrin didn't want his boy to be alone, and they were going to have a fine time together, just the two of them.

Elystan is still angry at Bethira about this.

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"Curative" (one of the earliest Elystan stories, in which his father teaches him to smoke) is one of the short stories I'm eventually going to revisit. I'm not particularly satisfied with it, especially its portrayal of the effects of stramonium (my research was shoddy), so there would have to be some significant changes. One possible alteration that occurred to me recently is...what if it were no longer from Elystan's POV, but Talfrin's? I'm not sure I'll do it, but it would certainly be something different from anything else I've written, and allowing Talfrin a more human side (yes, he's horrible, but he is still a father, and he genuinely is concerned about Elystan and wants to connect with him) would be an intriguing challenge.

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The entire Liddick-Phemister family as drawn by @scarvenartist!

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For @fictionadventurer, @scarvenartist's Bethira and Talfrin, side by side.

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Another commission from @scarvenartist: Talfrin I, one-time King of Corege, beloved father of Elystan, beloathed husband of Bethira, inveterate political schemer, major contender for the top spot among the Problematic Dad™ OCs.

Perhaps this is the portrait from the Cobalt Room that got taken down and replaced with Delclis? Whatever the case, this is an official portrait, meant to be publicly distributed, and an image which would be immediately recognizable to his subjects.

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4 for any of the adults if it matches! Also, 3, 7, and 8 for Tamett.

4. Do they have any scars or tattoos?

Tietra as a child got a small cut by her eye while playing with her brothers. It's still faintly visible but not especially noticeable.

If Bethira has any particular scars, they are not publicly visible. Maintaining a seemingly flawless appearance has been part of her role for a very long time.

Talfrin has an assortment of minor scars in various places, mostly as a result of dumb things he did as a child and playing sports in school and at university.

Edmara has a few marks on her hands and forearms from where Elystan has bitten her.

Levico got a few minor burn marks on his face and hands from when he worked in a theatre and some special effects went wrong.

Odren has a tattoo. No one living (besides his valet) knows exactly where or what it is because he is very careful to hide it in public and around his family. It's leftover from his days of traveling as a young man--a rash choice and rather an embarrassment.

There's a small mark on Antavia's forehead that she claims comes from Andras shoving her down on gravel when they were children. It's unclear how true this story is.

3. What was their most expensive purchase/where does their disposable income go?

Tamett has a moderate allowance while he's at school, and he mostly uses it on frivolous schoolboy-type purchases. Snacks from the school shop or a popular tea place in the nearby village. Funny papers and magazines with adventures stories. Small toys/amusements. He frequently writes to his parents asking for more money. Probably the largest purchase he's recently made is Christmas gifts for his entire immediate family, which required a lot of difficult saving up.

7. Describe the shoes they’re wearing.

Tamett's typical shoes, like everything else he has worn since living with Josiah's family, are well-made and high quality, although not fancy. They're black lace-up boots. He did not choose them. He is expected to keep them clean himself, which is rather a chore since he tends to be careless about where he wears them. They've been exposed to a lot of mud when he plays outdoors.

8. Describe the place where they sleep.

At the palace, Tamett has a comfortable but small room. He decorates it with photographs of his family and mementoes from home. He is expected to keep it neat and tidy so that the palace staff only have to clean it occasionally, during their monthly deep cleans, but this is very difficult for him. He stashes insects he has collected in unexpected places, and no one much likes going into his room.

At home, his room is larger, with older, shabbier furnishings and a lot more personalization. Even though he's hardly there, it's usually very messy.

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I'm not trying to write at this point, but something about the hypothetical Bethira POV continuation of the Christmas Chapter clicked into place recently.

The conflict wouldn't just be her having to manage all the technicalities of two unexpected visitors, one of whom is the son of a foreign monarch who doesn't have his father's permission to visit. It would be her struggling with her relationship with Elystan. Here he's done this reckless thing on a whim, didn't think it through, didn't bother letting her know ahead of time, and seems to be enjoying how much it's making life difficult for her. And it reminds her of something his father would have done, which opens up a lot of old resentments. Of course Elystan is not his father and it's unreasonable to hold that against him, but she's finding it hard to have much patience with him. And although nominally she's understanding of Josiah and Tammett's need for a place to stay, it's easy to resent them on some level too, privately.

So it'll have to be a matter of getting her to see all of these children from a different angle and realize that, even if this abrupt invitation was poorly executed, it's ultimately the best option--for the Liennese boys, for Elystan, for her too.

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Who is Elystan?

Today, October 31, is my OC Elystan's birthday.

Bio

Elystan Allister Philimond Talfrin Liddick is the only surviving child of King Talfrin of Corege and his wife Bethira. Just barely surviving, actually--he has a variety of health problems, including severe asthma and a heart condition. For the sake of his health (and to keep this embarrassing fact as much out of the public eye as possible), he has grown up in a separate household from his parents, at a country estate alongside his half-brother Delclis and cared for a full-time live-in nurse who has become more of a mother figure to him than Bethira. Elystan is bright, imaginative, and eager to explore all life's possibilities and someday become the dynamic monarch his father wants him to be, but he's also physically limited, socially isolated, and struggles with his father's inconsistent affection and dismissal.

So he's developed a mixture of denying his illnesses or using them to manipulate, depending on the situation. The combination of being heir to the throne and a semi-invalid who mustn't be upset in any way hasn't been good for him, and he's rather a self-centered, conniving little jerk when introduced.

And then his father unexpectedly is forced to abdicate. The throne goes not to Elystan but to Delclis, and Elystan is left without a title and without his beloved father after Talfrin goes into exile. But before long, Talfrin heads a revolt to retake the throne and enlists Elystan's ready assistance. They do not succeed.

From there, things go from bad to worse for an increasingly embittered Elystan, culminating in a rashly written and treasonous letter that leads his mother to get involved and send him off to boarding school, where he'll be sure to make plenty of friends, stay busy with his studies, and won't be able to cause Delclis any further trouble--won't he?

Why I Love Him

He's probably the least likeable of my main cast. He's a total jerk. He persists in being a total jerk. He wants friends but is horrible to every potential connection. He wants to be loved but is nothing but difficult to his entire family, except his father, who is the worst possible influence. All his attachment figures leave him. He's afraid of death but pretends he isn't. He acts superior but privately hates himself for not living up to the model of vigorous masculinity that his father wants him to be. He thinks he's the smartest person in the room. He usually isn't. He has an active sense of humor and loves the sound of his own voice. He wears ridiculously garish dressing gowns. He's the worst. Maybe he doesn't have to be that forever. Maybe he can grow. Maybe even someone like him can be worth caring about.

Description

For someone so small for his age, Elystan had presence. He was as slight and fragile as if constructed out of paper, but he held his head high, his scissor-snipped features in their narrow face on full display, pale against his black hair. His large blue eyes and the crook of amusement in the corner of his mouth did not seem to belong to the same face. He chattered authoritatively, with no apparent concern for the breathless thinness of his voice and the coughs that often punctuated his sentences. Very few people ever came close enough to notice the faint blueness in his complexion or the dark rims of his eyes, and even fewer had ever caught the times when his carefully trained regal posture slipped into a bent back and high shoulders, as if he were transforming into a question mark.

Further Info

There is a list of random OC facts for him here.

Appearances

In a Nutshell (at age ten)

Curative (also at age ten)

Book 2 Chapter Eight from Elystan’s POV (probably will not remain canon since I need to overhaul this story but I still think his POV here is fun)

Elystan's Infamous Lamplight Letter (shortly before Book 3)

A Visit from the Murderess (shortly before Book 3)

Elystan meets Morstyn Hollock (some point during Book 3)

A Christmas Chapter (Elystan’s POV) (some point during Book 3)

He also has supporting/minor roles in

Seeing the Elephant

A Building Project

Prequel scene for Book 2

Book 2 Chapter Two

Book 2 Chapter Three

Book 2 Chapter Four

Book 2 Chapter Six

Picnic in the Clock Tower

Book 3 Chapter Two

A Christmas Chapter: Tamett's POV

A Christmas Chapter: Josiah's POV

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10 for Josiah (possibly along with the rest of his family?)

What’s an AU that would be interesting to explore with your OC?

Why are AUs so hard to think up

How about a reverse AU in which Josiah was born the only child of Talfrin and Bethira and Elystan was born the eldest of Odren and Nyella?

Josiah Liddick would be a healthy male heir, which is what Talfrin needs, but he and his father don't really get along due differences in temperament (Talfrin is high-energy and intense; Josiah is reserved and studious) and the close relationship Josiah has with Bethira. Bethira's influence would have a strong impact on his upbringing and education, and he grows up a bit full of himself but highly principled and serious about the role he's supposed to inherit.

...and then Talfrin is forced to abdicate under ignominious circumstances, which costs Josiah the throne too, and he's furious at his father for his bad choices and for robbing him of everything he's been working toward. So when an uprising wants to put him on the throne, he jumps at the chance. Here's his opportunity to right a wrong, to give Corege the right-minded ruler that it deserves. He has no particular animosity toward his half-brother Delclis, but they've never been close (too similar in nature), and besides, anyone can see that Josiah is the logical choice to be king. It doesn't work out, and Josiah is sent to boarding school in disgrace as an alternative to a more severe penalty. From there, he has to learn to rebuild his reputation on his own account and to figure out who he is and how he can contribute without the future that was promised to him.

Meanwhile, Elystan Callon may be the Crown Prince, but it's his little brother Mikaiah who is the real Hope of Lienne. Odren doesn't think it's worthwhile to invest in preparing a child with frail health for a job he may never live to take on, so Mikaiah is being raised with High Expectations, and Elystan gets to have the fun of his official position without the responsibilities. It sounds nice, but he still resents that Mikaiah gets to have a closeness to their father that Odren is reluctant to bestow on him (losing Liane and Nyella was hard enough, best not get too attached to someone who's also likely to die). Nevertheless, Elystan and Mikaiah are good friends. The sibling dynamic is very different from Josiah's version of the family. Elystan and Ayra are close, since they've been able to bond over being elder children who are for various reasons unable to live up to the role expected of them. Ateva stepped in as his mom-figure after Nyella's death, so they're pretty attached too. This Elystan is still a difficult little brat in some ways, but his good relationships with his siblings have made him more empathetic and affectionate.

Then Odren dies, leaving a young, unprepared, and very much not deceased yet Elystan to inherit the throne. And that's where things really get complicated.

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A Crash Course in Major OCs

(featuring art by @praise-the-lord-im-dead, @scarvenartist, and @lady-merian)

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@fictionadventurer was curious about background for the adult OCs' names, so here it is! Plus Josiah's siblings since they didn't make it into the other post.

Marielle Tietra Valencourt (nee Mariella Philene Gremondi): All the Gremondi sisters, like many Otionovian women, have the first name "Mariella" and use their middle name instead. Philene was named for her great-grandmother. That name didn't translate well into Faysmondian, so she chose "Tietra" as an anagram of her fiancé's name.

Etriat Donatien Odilon Valencourt: As the only son of his parents, ended up with a high-pressure name, in honor of his grandfather, father (named for one of Faysmond's patron saints), and a deceased uncle.

Antavia Edella Ellaset Phemister: Lots of pressure here too! She is named for the descendent of Gearalt III from whom the Phemisters get their claim to the throne, her grandmother (a much-beloved and -respected queen consort who did a lot for Corege), and the arguably greatest reigning queen in Coregean history. Probably went by Tavie in childhood. Since taking a different title after her abdication, she encourages people to refer to her as "the Duchess." Hardly anyone gets to call her Antavia anymore.

Andras Marbert Adrend Phemister: Named for an obscure early king of Corege, the king who founded Hollingham College (his mother, Edella, was of course very interested in education!), and one of Edella's many brothers who died young. As a second son, he didn't have expectations of inheritance placed on him, so his parents could use names with more personal significance for him.

Bethira Catrin Liddick (nee Goswick): The Goswicks gave their daughters names that were stylish among their peers. Bethira's common name has made her seem more approachable to Coregeans.

Talfrin Gearalt Stamwell Liddick: His middle names are for his father and Gearalt III (the common ancestor of the Phemisters and Liddicks), but I have no idea where his first name came from. His mother might have just liked it.

Edmara Nelsie Melbray (nee Delford): The family names were all used by the time she was born (fourth of five), so she has a normal, down-to-earth Coregean middle-class name with no more to it than her parents' preference. As a child, she was Edie to her siblings; Elystan is literally the only person who calls her Mara.

Levico Dermond Melbray: Probably the same goes for him. He was also fourth of five (all brothers!), so who knows where his name came from. I don't think he's ever cared much for it though, hence the use of initials professionally.

Odren Linnaf Norlo Adrend Callon: Named for his father, because the Liennese are big on carrying on tradition. His middle names are for his uncles who died young (yes, that's the same Adrend Andras was named for--Edella was Odren's paternal aunt), a sentimental choice on his father's part. Maybe the association with lost brothers had a subconscious effect on the elder Odren's reluctance to get close to his heir.

Mariele Liane Rosanna Callon (nee Marielle Liane Rosanne Valencourt): Liane, as the youngest of a large family, was given fashionable rather than dynastic names (Faysmondians often use "Marielle" as Otionovians do "Mariella"). When she married, her name was simply translated into Liennese; lee-AHN became LY-uh-nuh.

Nyella Josefa Callon (nee Mellsbach): Her middle name (pronounced yo-ZEH-fa) was chosen for its resemblance to her father's first name, Josia.

Ayra Liane Edonora Callon: Named for her aunt, mother, and great-grandmother. All safe, conventional choices, with dynastic significance in case this child ended up having to inherit.

Ateva Edella Rika Callon: Named for her paternal grandmother, great aunt, and distant cousin Rietta. The first name was an attempt on Liane's part to mend a damaged relationship, and the others were useful for pleasing international connections.

Nyel Mikaiah Tilo Callon: Named for his mother and her two brothers. Nyella and Odren had not chosen names before the birth. Not knowing what his wife would have wanted, Odren chose all names of significance to her. No one has been able to bring themselves to call him Nyel, so he has always been Mikaiah, or Miki.