rzrgull

[rzrgull]

     ❝    ⸻  they’ll  take  me  dead  if  they  ever  take  me.

roan  wensink ,    he/they  —  grifter  +  surviving  razorgull .

a  forgotten  sibling,  banking  on  being  underestimated ;  lips  that  simply  think  lies  taste  sweeter,  letting  them  spill  and  paint  the  world  in  a  brighter  color ;  a  patchwork  persona,  desperately  crafted  —  rings  on  every  finger  and  cheap  cologne,  battered  playing  cards  and  the  too  loud  ticking  of  a  stolen  watch  —  in  the  attempt  to  undo  an  old  mistake.

amicable,  clever,  and  eloquent  —  paranoid,  dishonest,  and  ostentatious

the second child of bram and marit, roan is born in ketterdam. despite being acceptable parents, the two will fail to connect well with their children. even now, despite bram and marit likely still living in the same apartment they did when roan was born, he thinks of only kacper, rotting in a cell somewhere, as his family. they didn't do anything wrong, the siren song of the city simply called louder.

at  only  six,  roan is brought into his brother's schemes. people take pity on children, especially young ones with sob stories. with the way the city is, it was easy to convince marks that they were orphans, in need of coin to find a meal. kacper would take the money to a gambling club. sometimes he would double their earnings and they would celebrate. others he would lose it all, and roan learned not to ask questions.

roan figures out the hard way why his brother is so careful about where he runs his cons. getting caught in dime lion territory leaves him with a black eye, a number of scrapes, and a reminder that he was handled lightly given his age. kacper cleans his wounds and tells him he's lucky. it could have been worse or the stadwatch. roan learns that bruises and blood are preferable to jail time, but decides he'd like to avoid both if he can.

kacper doesn’t take his own advice.

kacper never comes home one night and roan doesn't think much of it. however, when he's still missing the next day, nerves begin to rise. it takes two weeks to piece everything together, and even then all he really knows is that there was a job, his brother was involved, and it did not go well. his stomach turns when he realizes how much his brother likely left him out of. all the answers point to him being sold out, and roan starts picking at the threads, getting closer.

every spool goes up in flames and roan’s search is left fruitless. they’re lost, a walking ghost of what they once were. 

—

roan is quite good at what they do. they're a confidence man, and they make others feel confident; confident enough to trust them when they really shouldn't. but why wouldn't you? an amicable young man who feels like he could be your little brother. yet, it's partially a rouse. it's easier to trust someone who appears to be foolish; you assume you can trick them, so you don't observe them with as much scrutiny. everything is carefully curated. even the clumsy way they appear to dress, nice pieces that don't quite match, as if they're playing at being something their better. trust them. what do you have to lose?

kacper was the only other teacher besides the city itself that roan knew. while the library of cons they run has expanded somewhat since kacper ... left, most are variations on the original set that their older brother taught them.

a conman would be nothing without the lies they tell. thankfully, roan is very good at appearing sincere. not only sincere, but playful, welcoming, warm. they make people want to trust them. the hard part is finding where the line is when the marks leave the room. what's left when you take away the pieced together persona they've created?

while it's not they're usual modus operandi — they prefer to convince you to hand them your watch, rather than take it — roan maintains some slight of hand skills. at the very least, it makes for an amusing party trick. watch the card disappear. pay no attention to my compatriot who will likely strip your pockets clean while you're distracted.

roan made a promise to themselves that they would never be the last person to have information again, and for the most part they've kept their word. they're a good listener. it's not that they make other people want to share their secrets, but often they're comfortable enough they don't realize they're doing it. even scraps of secrets can be worth something in the barrel, especially if you keep putting them together.

[rzrgull]

[rzrgull]

So tell me everything. Who are you seeing, ignoring, fucking? Seriously, how have you been?

[rzrgull]

[rzrgull]

roan  wensink.   grifter  for  the  razorgulls.   breathing.   as  gulled  by  logan  (  she/her,  twenty  four,  eastern  us  )