Poor dear, died before her time... literaly.
Otherwise a nice call back to the older chapters... and a reminder that a reread might be in the cards.
Stupid Luck and Happenstance, Thread III
- Thread starter Peabody-Martini
- Start date
Otherwise a nice call back to the older chapters... and a reminder that a reread might be in the cards.
Part 155, Chapter 2835
Chapter Two Thousand Eight Hundred and Thirty-Five
17th July 1980
Kashmir, North-West India
For the last several days Malcolm had been hiking ever upwards, gaining in elevation as well as distance. The forested slopes had given way to snow covered mountains towering over steep baren valleys strewn with rocks. Gerhard Schmatz, the expedition’s leader had told them the old military dictate “Sweat saves blood” when he had told them the amount of gear that they would be packing to the base camp. While they had the help of dozens of porters who had been hired for the expedition, everyone had a part to play. Malcolm was reminded of this as he felt the straps from his backpack against his shoulders.
“Bloody Hell” Malcolm heard Fennel mutter as they came around a bend in the trail.
Looking up, Malcolm noticed that the overcast that had loomed over them all day had broken. Through the clouds he could see the mountain itself looming. It almost looked serene, except Malcolm knew her reputation.
When Fennel had asked to join the expedition, Malcolm had been certain that he would be told no by either Gerhard or Hannelore after what had happened last time and afterwards. Instead they had welcomed him. It seemed that an experienced climber with experience in the Himalayas, particularly on this mountain, was always welcome. Reaching into his coat pocket, Malcolm pulled the compact Leica camera that had been specially made for the expedition. When Malcolm had received it from the company they had not charged him, telling him that if it reached the summit then they would sell identical cameras by the thousands. If not, then there was a good chance that paying them back for it would be the least of his worries. With that cheerful thought Malcolm snapped a photograph of K2 with George Fennel in the foreground.
Detroit, Michigan
There had been a whole lot of mirth going into the Republican National Convention. With everyone amused by the Democratic Party not having a clear candidate as they went into their convention at Madison Square Garden next month. What no one had seem coming was that Montana Governor John S. Brenner, the presumed Republican nominee, had unexpectedly withdrawn his name for undisclosed health reasons. Suddenly they were in the exact same situation as the Democratic Party, only they didn’t have a ready list of candidates and it turned into a messy floor fight on National Television. None of this was helped by news that Richard Nixon was waiting in the wings to be renominated in the very likely event that Democratic Party couldn’t reach a consensus about a different candidate. No one wanted to face the prospect of facing an incumbent President during good economic times whatever their ambitions might be.
What followed was a surreal three days of arguments about who would be the nominee, eventually settling on Mark Felt, the Junior Senator from Idaho. Felt had originally put his name forward for the Presidential nomination, not because he had actually wanted it but had been advised that it would improve his stature in the National Party. When he gave his acceptance speech it was compared to the coerced public statement made by the Aegean Airlines Pilot during the Hamburg Airport incident a few years earlier. The only difference was that there wasn’t a group of heavily armed Turkish Nationalists just out of frame. Unfortunately for Felt, he remembered what had happened to the Pilot and the Turks when the German Federal Police’s Counterterrorism Unit had used the distraction to blast their way into the Airport Terminal. The whole world had watched that play its way out.
Near Tyson, Vermont
“Get your feet up!” The Counselor yelled as they ran towards the buildings that made up Camp Laconia. As Stevie had come to figure out, they were expected to run everywhere.
The Instructor almost looked embarrassed as he dismissed them to get cleaned up before going to lunch. When they had arrived at Laconia, Stevie had assumed that their Counselors were just more of the grown ups yelling at them. Then he had noticed that the Head Counselor was yelling at many of them the same way that he was getting yelled at. It had been a bit jarring to notice that many of the Counselors were teenagers, kids who had been sent to Laconia in prior years not much older than he was. Stevie pushed that thought out of his head as he followed the others into the showers. It was painfully obvious if you didn’t bathe every chance you got and there had been some of the others who had gotten into trouble over that. “Act like a pig and be treated like one” had been how the response had been termed and the punishment had involved crawling through mud. After that, if anyone had hang-ups about the situation they got over them very quickly.
The showers themselves were always lukewarm because the tanks that fed them were up on the roof and painted black, extremely cheap passive solar heating was how it had been termed and one of their “afternoon activities” had involved siphoning well water up into the tanks. Doud had joked with everyone about how it would really suck to be here during the winter, only to have it pointed out to him that no one had any reason to be by one of the Counselors. One of the last things that they would do at the end of the summer before they went home would be to drain the tanks so they wouldn’t be damaged by ice forming inside them over the winter.
That was a bit of a bewildering moment for Stevie. Until that had been said, it had not occurred to him that the summer would end eventually. After grabbing fresh clothes from his locker, he ran to join the others waiting in line for lunch.
17th July 1980
Kashmir, North-West India
For the last several days Malcolm had been hiking ever upwards, gaining in elevation as well as distance. The forested slopes had given way to snow covered mountains towering over steep baren valleys strewn with rocks. Gerhard Schmatz, the expedition’s leader had told them the old military dictate “Sweat saves blood” when he had told them the amount of gear that they would be packing to the base camp. While they had the help of dozens of porters who had been hired for the expedition, everyone had a part to play. Malcolm was reminded of this as he felt the straps from his backpack against his shoulders.
“Bloody Hell” Malcolm heard Fennel mutter as they came around a bend in the trail.
Looking up, Malcolm noticed that the overcast that had loomed over them all day had broken. Through the clouds he could see the mountain itself looming. It almost looked serene, except Malcolm knew her reputation.
When Fennel had asked to join the expedition, Malcolm had been certain that he would be told no by either Gerhard or Hannelore after what had happened last time and afterwards. Instead they had welcomed him. It seemed that an experienced climber with experience in the Himalayas, particularly on this mountain, was always welcome. Reaching into his coat pocket, Malcolm pulled the compact Leica camera that had been specially made for the expedition. When Malcolm had received it from the company they had not charged him, telling him that if it reached the summit then they would sell identical cameras by the thousands. If not, then there was a good chance that paying them back for it would be the least of his worries. With that cheerful thought Malcolm snapped a photograph of K2 with George Fennel in the foreground.
Detroit, Michigan
There had been a whole lot of mirth going into the Republican National Convention. With everyone amused by the Democratic Party not having a clear candidate as they went into their convention at Madison Square Garden next month. What no one had seem coming was that Montana Governor John S. Brenner, the presumed Republican nominee, had unexpectedly withdrawn his name for undisclosed health reasons. Suddenly they were in the exact same situation as the Democratic Party, only they didn’t have a ready list of candidates and it turned into a messy floor fight on National Television. None of this was helped by news that Richard Nixon was waiting in the wings to be renominated in the very likely event that Democratic Party couldn’t reach a consensus about a different candidate. No one wanted to face the prospect of facing an incumbent President during good economic times whatever their ambitions might be.
What followed was a surreal three days of arguments about who would be the nominee, eventually settling on Mark Felt, the Junior Senator from Idaho. Felt had originally put his name forward for the Presidential nomination, not because he had actually wanted it but had been advised that it would improve his stature in the National Party. When he gave his acceptance speech it was compared to the coerced public statement made by the Aegean Airlines Pilot during the Hamburg Airport incident a few years earlier. The only difference was that there wasn’t a group of heavily armed Turkish Nationalists just out of frame. Unfortunately for Felt, he remembered what had happened to the Pilot and the Turks when the German Federal Police’s Counterterrorism Unit had used the distraction to blast their way into the Airport Terminal. The whole world had watched that play its way out.
Near Tyson, Vermont
“Get your feet up!” The Counselor yelled as they ran towards the buildings that made up Camp Laconia. As Stevie had come to figure out, they were expected to run everywhere.
The Instructor almost looked embarrassed as he dismissed them to get cleaned up before going to lunch. When they had arrived at Laconia, Stevie had assumed that their Counselors were just more of the grown ups yelling at them. Then he had noticed that the Head Counselor was yelling at many of them the same way that he was getting yelled at. It had been a bit jarring to notice that many of the Counselors were teenagers, kids who had been sent to Laconia in prior years not much older than he was. Stevie pushed that thought out of his head as he followed the others into the showers. It was painfully obvious if you didn’t bathe every chance you got and there had been some of the others who had gotten into trouble over that. “Act like a pig and be treated like one” had been how the response had been termed and the punishment had involved crawling through mud. After that, if anyone had hang-ups about the situation they got over them very quickly.
The showers themselves were always lukewarm because the tanks that fed them were up on the roof and painted black, extremely cheap passive solar heating was how it had been termed and one of their “afternoon activities” had involved siphoning well water up into the tanks. Doud had joked with everyone about how it would really suck to be here during the winter, only to have it pointed out to him that no one had any reason to be by one of the Counselors. One of the last things that they would do at the end of the summer before they went home would be to drain the tanks so they wouldn’t be damaged by ice forming inside them over the winter.
That was a bit of a bewildering moment for Stevie. Until that had been said, it had not occurred to him that the summer would end eventually. After grabbing fresh clothes from his locker, he ran to join the others waiting in line for lunch.
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That photo is going to become famous, isn't it? Hopefully in a good way.
Felt: "Why do I get the feeling that, win or lose, I'm fucked?"
Love the reference to Sparta and more than half expecting for one of the kids at the camp to be called Percy.
And when they find out that the photographer is the son of the famed war photographer Malcolm Blackwood, he may find himself receiving more cameras.
The only difference between winning an losing is if he gets dinner and flowers first or not.
It is more likely than not only does the camera company already knows that Malcolm is the son of Douglas Blackwood, but also Doug made some inquires to various camera and film companies to provide the equipment.
This is because if the summit is reached on the "Killer Mountain" the picture is going to be one of the most famous photos of the 20th Century and the camera will become a hot ticket item for those who will want a high quality, rugged, compact camera that takes great pictures under extreme stress.
The chaos the Republican Convention only ensures that the "Draft Nixion" campaign is going to win on the first ballot after a series of "Spontaneous Demonstrations" erupt from the convention gallery and floor with shouts of "WE WANT NIXON" and "FOUR MORE YEARS".
Of course, a "very reluctant" Nixon will very "humbly" accept the nomination.
BTW the IOTL Mark Felt was not a good person as he was convicted of violating the Civil Rights of members of the Weather Underground and was pardoned by President Reagan while appealing his conviction.
He was passed over by President Nixon for the FBI director after the death of J, Edgar Hoover because Nixon wanted his own people in charge and have more control over the FBI.
Because of that, Felt as the Number Two person in the FBI, became the " Deep Throat" source to Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward as a way to get back at Nixon for passing him over.
Still don't see the reason for Stevie and Doud spending practically the whole summer at this camp, maybe a two- or three-week camp would have been more reasonable, but six to eight weeks seems to be extreme to me.
Of course, with the new baby, not having Stevie around takes some extra pressure off of Ritchie and Lucia, and I am sure that Krissy doesn't mind not having Stevie being a pain to her over the summer.
As for Doud, he seems to be the Odd Duck of the Eisenhower Family, and they hope that a summer at this camp will straighten him out and fit in with the rest of the family.
Part 155, Chapter 2836
New
Chapter Two Thousand Eight Hundred and Thirty-Six
19th July 1980
Munich, Bavaria
“You are flying out on Monday?” Vicky asked, with a bit of trepidation. She was seven months pregnant and Kiki had present at the births of her other children. She knew that she could trust Kiki without reservation to mind her interests. This time though that would not be the case.
“I think that you will be fine” Kiki said, “Even if you have Frau Aue, Franz, Anna looking out for you this time. Charlotte is also planning on coming down to Munich.”
Kiki was talking about Frau Aue, the Midwife who had delivered most of the babies born to this generation of the women of the German Imperial Family. That was a staggering thing to consider, but they needed someone they could trust and Ermintrude Aue was exactly that. Prinz Franz von Bayern was Vicky’s husband, though the two of them had a mutual arrangement necessitated by the conservative society within Bavaria. Oddly, the two of them had a caring and supportive relationship that was actually better than most of the Royal marriages that Kiki had watched over the years. Anna Muller was Vicky’s actual partner, though to the outside world she was Vicky’s Courtly appointed Friend and Companion. Whenever Kiki considered that term, she always thought that it was a bit too suggestive of what was actually happening. Of course, Kiki had Zella and Aurora as appointed friends and companions. Regardless, Vicky and Anna had been together since they had met in an extracurricular Pottery Class when they had both been at University in Jena fourteen years earlier.
“I am really hoping for a girl this time” Vicky said, changing the subject. The scans had been inconclusive and Vicky was hoping for a little girl to round out her family.
“If not, Max and Bert would probably love having a little brother” Kiki replied.
Vicky frowned, “My God!” She exclaimed, “Do you have any idea what boys are like? Especially when they have been around their grandfathers. To have another one.”
Kiki knew what boys were like, unlike Vicky she had grown up with their brothers without a twin sister to act as buffer. She also had a five-year-old who had stayed in Berlin with his grandparents. The problem with grandfathers in this case was plain as day. King Albrecht of Bavaria, Vicky’s father-in-law, prided himself on being a man’s man. Gambling, hunting, every kind of outdoor activity and sports of every type. When he wasn’t doing that, he was pursuing the sort of strange intellectualism that was perfectly in keeping with his other activities. He had recently earned a Doctorate in Biology from the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich after publishing a thesis on the distribution and management of Fallow Deer. It was Kiki’s understanding that Albrecht could have received an honorary Doctorate from the same University but had earned it instead to set an example for his grandchildren, as he had made sure to tell the press. Kiki’s father was a whole lot less bombastic. Still there was his love of classic Mercedies-Benz racecars and vintage airplanes, a number of Hollywood and Babelsburg actors who he had as friends, and finally a large number of associates from Médecins Sans Frontières. Things a child would find extremely fascinating, much to the complete mortification of a straightlaced parent like Vicky. Kiki knew that Vicky was deluding herself if she thought that a girl would not be as interested in those things. There was also the aspect of Kiki having worked in various Emergency Departments over the last two decades, she knew that the world could be a very unkind place for children, especially girls.
“Having a daughter is different set of complications” Kiki said, “There are times when Nina is going out of her way to be a real pill and I am not looking forward to when she gets older, the moodiness and drama. I can already see that coming. Then there is Elene, she isn’t going to remain a small child forever despite what I might wish.”
“It would be nice to find out for myself” Vicky replied. She had been advised by the Doctor that had overseen the process that Vicky and Franz had used to get her pregnant that any future pregnancy would not be advisable. They had told the Doctor that his efforts were due to a wound that Franz had sustained in Korea which made conceiving naturally impossible for them. Kiki had to believe that the Doctor suspected something was off with that but had the good sense never to bring it up. Regardless, this was the last time that they would need his services.
“I know” Kiki said, “And even if this is another boy you have other options. You could always adopt, like what Poppa and Charlotte did with Annette. There are entirely too many children out there like her.”
That gave Vicky pause. “I cannot imagine that there are too many children that come from a situation like hers” She replied.
Their youngest sister, Annette, had been adopted by their father and stepmother after coming from a situation that was like something from a Horror movie. While she had not been physically harmed by what she had gone through over the first few years of her life, Kiki had seen how it had taken Nan years to get past the trauma. Much later an act of legal trickery performed by Friedrich, their oldest brother, had resulted in Nan being proclaimed as the Margravine of Brandenburg, freeing her to become engaged to the Crown Prince of Italy. It truly was Kiki’s hope that Nan would get the sort of happy ending that she probably deserved more than anyone else.
“I doubt that there would be too many who might come from the sort of notoriety or extreme circumstances that Nan endured” Kiki said, “What I mean is those who have no one else.”
Vicky just smiled at that. Kiki knew from experience that her sister seldom took a suggestion directly. Vicky would think it over and when she eventually came to a decision, she rarely mentioned that it had originally been someone else’s idea.
19th July 1980
Munich, Bavaria
“You are flying out on Monday?” Vicky asked, with a bit of trepidation. She was seven months pregnant and Kiki had present at the births of her other children. She knew that she could trust Kiki without reservation to mind her interests. This time though that would not be the case.
“I think that you will be fine” Kiki said, “Even if you have Frau Aue, Franz, Anna looking out for you this time. Charlotte is also planning on coming down to Munich.”
Kiki was talking about Frau Aue, the Midwife who had delivered most of the babies born to this generation of the women of the German Imperial Family. That was a staggering thing to consider, but they needed someone they could trust and Ermintrude Aue was exactly that. Prinz Franz von Bayern was Vicky’s husband, though the two of them had a mutual arrangement necessitated by the conservative society within Bavaria. Oddly, the two of them had a caring and supportive relationship that was actually better than most of the Royal marriages that Kiki had watched over the years. Anna Muller was Vicky’s actual partner, though to the outside world she was Vicky’s Courtly appointed Friend and Companion. Whenever Kiki considered that term, she always thought that it was a bit too suggestive of what was actually happening. Of course, Kiki had Zella and Aurora as appointed friends and companions. Regardless, Vicky and Anna had been together since they had met in an extracurricular Pottery Class when they had both been at University in Jena fourteen years earlier.
“I am really hoping for a girl this time” Vicky said, changing the subject. The scans had been inconclusive and Vicky was hoping for a little girl to round out her family.
“If not, Max and Bert would probably love having a little brother” Kiki replied.
Vicky frowned, “My God!” She exclaimed, “Do you have any idea what boys are like? Especially when they have been around their grandfathers. To have another one.”
Kiki knew what boys were like, unlike Vicky she had grown up with their brothers without a twin sister to act as buffer. She also had a five-year-old who had stayed in Berlin with his grandparents. The problem with grandfathers in this case was plain as day. King Albrecht of Bavaria, Vicky’s father-in-law, prided himself on being a man’s man. Gambling, hunting, every kind of outdoor activity and sports of every type. When he wasn’t doing that, he was pursuing the sort of strange intellectualism that was perfectly in keeping with his other activities. He had recently earned a Doctorate in Biology from the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich after publishing a thesis on the distribution and management of Fallow Deer. It was Kiki’s understanding that Albrecht could have received an honorary Doctorate from the same University but had earned it instead to set an example for his grandchildren, as he had made sure to tell the press. Kiki’s father was a whole lot less bombastic. Still there was his love of classic Mercedies-Benz racecars and vintage airplanes, a number of Hollywood and Babelsburg actors who he had as friends, and finally a large number of associates from Médecins Sans Frontières. Things a child would find extremely fascinating, much to the complete mortification of a straightlaced parent like Vicky. Kiki knew that Vicky was deluding herself if she thought that a girl would not be as interested in those things. There was also the aspect of Kiki having worked in various Emergency Departments over the last two decades, she knew that the world could be a very unkind place for children, especially girls.
“Having a daughter is different set of complications” Kiki said, “There are times when Nina is going out of her way to be a real pill and I am not looking forward to when she gets older, the moodiness and drama. I can already see that coming. Then there is Elene, she isn’t going to remain a small child forever despite what I might wish.”
“It would be nice to find out for myself” Vicky replied. She had been advised by the Doctor that had overseen the process that Vicky and Franz had used to get her pregnant that any future pregnancy would not be advisable. They had told the Doctor that his efforts were due to a wound that Franz had sustained in Korea which made conceiving naturally impossible for them. Kiki had to believe that the Doctor suspected something was off with that but had the good sense never to bring it up. Regardless, this was the last time that they would need his services.
“I know” Kiki said, “And even if this is another boy you have other options. You could always adopt, like what Poppa and Charlotte did with Annette. There are entirely too many children out there like her.”
That gave Vicky pause. “I cannot imagine that there are too many children that come from a situation like hers” She replied.
Their youngest sister, Annette, had been adopted by their father and stepmother after coming from a situation that was like something from a Horror movie. While she had not been physically harmed by what she had gone through over the first few years of her life, Kiki had seen how it had taken Nan years to get past the trauma. Much later an act of legal trickery performed by Friedrich, their oldest brother, had resulted in Nan being proclaimed as the Margravine of Brandenburg, freeing her to become engaged to the Crown Prince of Italy. It truly was Kiki’s hope that Nan would get the sort of happy ending that she probably deserved more than anyone else.
“I doubt that there would be too many who might come from the sort of notoriety or extreme circumstances that Nan endured” Kiki said, “What I mean is those who have no one else.”
Vicky just smiled at that. Kiki knew from experience that her sister seldom took a suggestion directly. Vicky would think it over and when she eventually came to a decision, she rarely mentioned that it had originally been someone else’s idea.
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Vicky in the SL&H universe, is going to have a girl but she will be very much a cisgender heterosexual tomboy whom Opa Albrecht will love to bits, and this will cause a revolution in women sports in Bavaria, as Opa Albrecht will support an increase in access to traditional sports like football among other things for girls because his beloved granddaughter wants to play them on a more competitive level.
IOTL in the United States, because of Title IX, which mandated equal access to things like admissions to law and medical schools, and other academic endeavors, university athletic departments were forced to expand their offerings in sports and athletic scholarships to women on par with the men and sports like soccer were very cheap to fund which led to the dominance of the US Women Soccer team in international competition until recently.
IOTL in the United States, because of Title IX, which mandated equal access to things like admissions to law and medical schools, and other academic endeavors, university athletic departments were forced to expand their offerings in sports and athletic scholarships to women on par with the men and sports like soccer were very cheap to fund which led to the dominance of the US Women Soccer team in international competition until recently.
What would be even more funny would be she is straight but at the same time can out shoot, outrun, outfight, is a genius, rides like the wind, drives and flys like its nothing to her and does all this better than her Opa ever could.
The King would probably say that many parents talents and skills skip a generation only for them to re-emerge with the grandchildren…
Part 155, Chapter 2837
New
Chapter Two Thousand Eight Hundred and Thirty-Seven
21st July 1980
Moscow, Russia
Blood doping and testosterone were the words that were on everyone’s lips as the Summer Games moved into their third day. It seemed that the IOC had developed the means of detecting their use but had not told anyone until a good portion of the several nation’s Olympic teams had been caught in the act, the teams from the United States and Russia had been hardest hit. Germany and England had not been spared either. There had already been a large number disqualifications with the IOC promising that suspensions and even arrests were going to follow. Everyone knew that the IOC was not messing around this time and This was particularly embarrassing for the Russian Government. They had wanted this to be a showcase of their reemergence on the International stage. Instead jokes were flying around about how these were the “Chemical Games” and how the cheating was sign of a fault in the character of the Russian people. For Anatoli Starostin it was the sort of distraction that he did not need. That was before his rival even entered the picture in the first round of fencing.
The thing about Modern Pentathlon was that it had been geared towards the skills that an Army Officer might need while riding through hostile country as seen in the second half of the Nineteenth Century. The German looked like he had stepped out of an old Soviet propaganda poster and he was an actual Cavalry Officer, which had meant German Panzer Corps as they had been founded to carry on Cavalry traditions by von Wolvogle, who Anatoli’s father had said had been the Devil himself. The artists back in the Stalinist era had loved to depict men like Anatoli’s opponent as aristocratic killers who commanded companies of cutthroats recruited from prisons and insane asylums as they mercilessly slaughtered their way across the countryside. What did someone like that do to control that sort of men? The answer to that question was self-explanatory. They were far worse. While Anatoli didn’t put too much stock in Soviet propaganda, it was sort of hard not to notice these things.
The day before Anatoli had seen the German Prince in the equestrian part of the Pentathlon. It had swiftly become apparent to every competitor that Nikolaus von Richthofen was one of those rare individuals in this era who appeared to have been born in the saddle. Watching Nikolaus entering the ring to face a Swedish competitor, Anatoli saw how fast he moved, a swift parry followed by a reposit that ended the match in seconds with a touch. As Nikolaus took off his mask and stepped out of the ring, he was spoke with his coach before going over to talk with two girls sitting in the front row of the spectators. One looked like a teenager, a striking beauty regardless with black hair and grey-blue eyes. The other looked like she was nine or ten and she chattered excitedly with Nikolaus but they were too far away for Anatoli to hear what they were saying.
Montreal, Canada
After finding the house on Langeoog being besieged by journalists and photographers after the latest round of announcements, Marie Alexandra had found that she had needed to get far from their before they drove her insane. She still had Suga’s planned trip to Japan next month to contend with, which she was not looking forward to. The overnight from Hamburg to Montreal had been exactly the sort of escape that she needed at that moment.
This was the first time that Marie had been back in her grandparent’s house near Westmount Park since she had moved out after her grandmother had pushed her a little too far over a bit of graffiti painted on a wall across the street from the front entrance of a local church. It was a stupid, tasteless joke with “The dildo of accountability is rarely lubricated” spelled out in large hot pink letters at a time when there had been a scandal in Montreal of the sort that had become entirely too familiar to Marie over the last two years. That set off Marie’s grandmother and she had taken it out on Marie.
That had been in December, now it was July and Marie was looking out the window of the taxi that was taking her here from the airport. She had forgotten how beautiful this neighborhood was in the summertime with the stately homes and tree-shaded streets. Then her grandparent’s house came into view and that instantly soured the mood. Taking time to pay the cabby, Marie was annoyed that he kept the meter running as he took his sweet time presenting her with the bill as the car was parked on the street. When she kept all the change, he looked at her accusingly. Well, he had already paid himself the tip.
Jack Kennedy had told Marie a little secret that Margot would have slammed headfirst into when Opa Blackwood had suffered a stroke. A few years earlier Marie’s father and Bert Lane had arranged with her grandfather so that in the event of his death or incapacitation then Margot would be taken care of, but she would not be allowed to make any of the important decisions. That had gone over about as well as one might have expected when Margot had learned about it well after the fact. It was also the reason why Marie had made the trip to Montreal. If Margot was given any say in the matter then she would never have allowed Marie to make this visit.
Knocking on door, Marie was greeted by a housekeeper who gave her a questioning look. “I am here to visit” She said awkwardly, “I’m Sir Malcolm Blackwood’s granddaughter.”
“I know who you are” The housekeeper said, “We don’t want trouble.”
Too late, Marie thought to herself.
“That depends on Margot” Marie replied.
With an exasperated sigh, the housekeeper stood aside and let Marie into the house. It was darker inside than Marie remembered, it was also uncomfortably warm.
“You understand why the Lady doesn’t want to see you?” The housekeeper asked as Marie followed her up the stairs.
“That is on her” Marie said, weary of her grandmother’s stupid games.
They entered a room filled with bright sunlight and Marie saw Sir Malcolm sitting in a wheelchair watching a television news show. Taking his eyes off the screen, he looked at Marie with a tired smile. It was obvious that he had lost any extra weight that he might have had and there was something off about his movements, like if he couldn’t control parts of his body.
“I knew you’d come” Sir Malcolm said, his voice hardly more than a whisper.
“Wouldn’t miss it for the world” Marie replied.
“Margot was in a tizzy earlier” Sir Malcolm said, “Counting the silver ahead of your visit. My DSO is missing if you’d believe that.”
“What did you do with it?” Marie asked.
“That’s a question your grandmother didn’t think to ask” Sir Malcolm said with a wan smile.
21st July 1980
Moscow, Russia
Blood doping and testosterone were the words that were on everyone’s lips as the Summer Games moved into their third day. It seemed that the IOC had developed the means of detecting their use but had not told anyone until a good portion of the several nation’s Olympic teams had been caught in the act, the teams from the United States and Russia had been hardest hit. Germany and England had not been spared either. There had already been a large number disqualifications with the IOC promising that suspensions and even arrests were going to follow. Everyone knew that the IOC was not messing around this time and This was particularly embarrassing for the Russian Government. They had wanted this to be a showcase of their reemergence on the International stage. Instead jokes were flying around about how these were the “Chemical Games” and how the cheating was sign of a fault in the character of the Russian people. For Anatoli Starostin it was the sort of distraction that he did not need. That was before his rival even entered the picture in the first round of fencing.
The thing about Modern Pentathlon was that it had been geared towards the skills that an Army Officer might need while riding through hostile country as seen in the second half of the Nineteenth Century. The German looked like he had stepped out of an old Soviet propaganda poster and he was an actual Cavalry Officer, which had meant German Panzer Corps as they had been founded to carry on Cavalry traditions by von Wolvogle, who Anatoli’s father had said had been the Devil himself. The artists back in the Stalinist era had loved to depict men like Anatoli’s opponent as aristocratic killers who commanded companies of cutthroats recruited from prisons and insane asylums as they mercilessly slaughtered their way across the countryside. What did someone like that do to control that sort of men? The answer to that question was self-explanatory. They were far worse. While Anatoli didn’t put too much stock in Soviet propaganda, it was sort of hard not to notice these things.
The day before Anatoli had seen the German Prince in the equestrian part of the Pentathlon. It had swiftly become apparent to every competitor that Nikolaus von Richthofen was one of those rare individuals in this era who appeared to have been born in the saddle. Watching Nikolaus entering the ring to face a Swedish competitor, Anatoli saw how fast he moved, a swift parry followed by a reposit that ended the match in seconds with a touch. As Nikolaus took off his mask and stepped out of the ring, he was spoke with his coach before going over to talk with two girls sitting in the front row of the spectators. One looked like a teenager, a striking beauty regardless with black hair and grey-blue eyes. The other looked like she was nine or ten and she chattered excitedly with Nikolaus but they were too far away for Anatoli to hear what they were saying.
Montreal, Canada
After finding the house on Langeoog being besieged by journalists and photographers after the latest round of announcements, Marie Alexandra had found that she had needed to get far from their before they drove her insane. She still had Suga’s planned trip to Japan next month to contend with, which she was not looking forward to. The overnight from Hamburg to Montreal had been exactly the sort of escape that she needed at that moment.
This was the first time that Marie had been back in her grandparent’s house near Westmount Park since she had moved out after her grandmother had pushed her a little too far over a bit of graffiti painted on a wall across the street from the front entrance of a local church. It was a stupid, tasteless joke with “The dildo of accountability is rarely lubricated” spelled out in large hot pink letters at a time when there had been a scandal in Montreal of the sort that had become entirely too familiar to Marie over the last two years. That set off Marie’s grandmother and she had taken it out on Marie.
That had been in December, now it was July and Marie was looking out the window of the taxi that was taking her here from the airport. She had forgotten how beautiful this neighborhood was in the summertime with the stately homes and tree-shaded streets. Then her grandparent’s house came into view and that instantly soured the mood. Taking time to pay the cabby, Marie was annoyed that he kept the meter running as he took his sweet time presenting her with the bill as the car was parked on the street. When she kept all the change, he looked at her accusingly. Well, he had already paid himself the tip.
Jack Kennedy had told Marie a little secret that Margot would have slammed headfirst into when Opa Blackwood had suffered a stroke. A few years earlier Marie’s father and Bert Lane had arranged with her grandfather so that in the event of his death or incapacitation then Margot would be taken care of, but she would not be allowed to make any of the important decisions. That had gone over about as well as one might have expected when Margot had learned about it well after the fact. It was also the reason why Marie had made the trip to Montreal. If Margot was given any say in the matter then she would never have allowed Marie to make this visit.
Knocking on door, Marie was greeted by a housekeeper who gave her a questioning look. “I am here to visit” She said awkwardly, “I’m Sir Malcolm Blackwood’s granddaughter.”
“I know who you are” The housekeeper said, “We don’t want trouble.”
Too late, Marie thought to herself.
“That depends on Margot” Marie replied.
With an exasperated sigh, the housekeeper stood aside and let Marie into the house. It was darker inside than Marie remembered, it was also uncomfortably warm.
“You understand why the Lady doesn’t want to see you?” The housekeeper asked as Marie followed her up the stairs.
“That is on her” Marie said, weary of her grandmother’s stupid games.
They entered a room filled with bright sunlight and Marie saw Sir Malcolm sitting in a wheelchair watching a television news show. Taking his eyes off the screen, he looked at Marie with a tired smile. It was obvious that he had lost any extra weight that he might have had and there was something off about his movements, like if he couldn’t control parts of his body.
“I knew you’d come” Sir Malcolm said, his voice hardly more than a whisper.
“Wouldn’t miss it for the world” Marie replied.
“Margot was in a tizzy earlier” Sir Malcolm said, “Counting the silver ahead of your visit. My DSO is missing if you’d believe that.”
“What did you do with it?” Marie asked.
“That’s a question your grandmother didn’t think to ask” Sir Malcolm said with a wan smile.
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For those who don't know, DSO, or Distinguished Service Order, was a British Military Order that was awarded to Officers for Operational Gallantry and Leadership just short of being awarded a Victoria Cross.
It won't take too many guesses as to where Sir Malcolm's went.
It won't take too many guesses as to where Sir Malcolm's went.
It has been 36 years since the fall of the Soviet Union, and the Soviet bureaucrats who were in their twenties through their late thirties who were able to survive the purge and show that they were needed for the restored Second Empire, are still having a large influence on the cultural psyche of the Russian people.
For Anatoli Starostin, it is worse that his opponent is Prinz Nikolaus von Richthofen zu Breslau whose grandfathers are the notorious Air Pirate Manfred von Richthofen who devastated the Soviet Union through the air, and his other grandfather is the Gangster Leader and lacky of the ruling class, Otto Mischner, whose criminal influence reached all the way into Siberia after the war.
It is great to see Marie visit her beloved Grandfather, Sir Malcolm, but it is still very blasphemous to me that Margot is still alive...
I think that Bert and Doug through Kat used Jack Kennedy as a way to thwart Margot and her plans to take control over Sir Malcolm's care and/or estate after any possible emergency.
I think that Doug has the DSO and will keep it hidden until Margot dies and then the medal will be donated to a Canadian War Museum as part of an exhibit honoring Sir Malcolm.
I think that Marie is underestimating the experience and impact that the trip to Japan will have on her.
I also think that Suga remembering the time that Kiki spent in Japan with her may be having one of her children stay for a year in Japan to get to know the culture and heritage of their Japanese side of the family.
For Anatoli Starostin, it is worse that his opponent is Prinz Nikolaus von Richthofen zu Breslau whose grandfathers are the notorious Air Pirate Manfred von Richthofen who devastated the Soviet Union through the air, and his other grandfather is the Gangster Leader and lacky of the ruling class, Otto Mischner, whose criminal influence reached all the way into Siberia after the war.
It is great to see Marie visit her beloved Grandfather, Sir Malcolm, but it is still very blasphemous to me that Margot is still alive...
I think that Bert and Doug through Kat used Jack Kennedy as a way to thwart Margot and her plans to take control over Sir Malcolm's care and/or estate after any possible emergency.
I think that Doug has the DSO and will keep it hidden until Margot dies and then the medal will be donated to a Canadian War Museum as part of an exhibit honoring Sir Malcolm.
I think that Marie is underestimating the experience and impact that the trip to Japan will have on her.
I also think that Suga remembering the time that Kiki spent in Japan with her may be having one of her children stay for a year in Japan to get to know the culture and heritage of their Japanese side of the family.
Either a museum, or one of Kat's vaults so it can stay with Doug and his bloodline?
I'd honestly expect it to have gone to Doug specifically.
Like, Doug did a lot while nominally in service of the Crown. It's overshadowed by Kat, but the fact he hasn't been in receipt of serious rewards from the British authorities is telling about how classified it all is.
Honestly an update of Doug getting an OBE publicly for his photography work/charitable work, but understood by all in the "know" as a reward for his work during and just after the Soviet War makes sense
Bert has it somewhere in Canada, if not at his "Insurance Office safe" then it is in his home safe, safety deposit box, or somewhere like Paddy Maynes little resort in one of their safes. I wouldn't be surprised that when Sir Malcolm dies that Marie might be named Executor, just because Doug won't have to involve Kat in it and Marie already know most everything anyway and have the services of Bert's insurance company providing their Solicitors and such to help.
I agree with all of this, but at the end of the day, Kat would make sure it was securable, right?
Also plausible.