royal-catrina - Tumblr blog

[royal-catrina]

// So I just finished the third American Royals book and while I have to wait UNTIL AUGUST to find out how this goes, Catrina is now wide awake and screaming at me from the void.

[royal-catrina]

ghxstwrxter​:

“Prague sounds nice right about now,” though if he tried to take off in the midst of the chaos right now, their father would likely have his head. Or worse. Hell, right now his security detail would probably be sticking closer to him than his jeans if he dared to step out of the palace. 

“You should,“ John found himself agreeing, “Go blow off some steam, have a drink or two on me, get away from all this circus shit.“ She didn’t need to be on lockdown because of his actions.

She could get used to this, to not being the one on the Palace PR’s shit list. Was this often how their sister felt? Just...free to go about her business, unfettered by meeting after meeting concerning her image and the level of decorum expected in a member of the royal family.

Maybe if her brother kept seeing Cierra she could have this sort of freedom all the time.

“Will do. You know...provided I make it to the airport...” As he security detail was getting better every day, learning the various tricks she used to ditch them. “Wonder if I can somehow trick Amelia into helping me.” Seeing as how they were twins and all.

[royal-catrina]

ghxstwrxter​:

She could have fun trying to do that; as far as he knew, there wasn’t any other information out there that she could find. Unless she found out what hotel they had been at one night but he hadn’t been completely stupid; he’d used a pseudonym when he had checked them in for the night.

It had been worth hiding within a hotel room, away from the expectations of everyone else and it had just been the two of them. 

But the media circus that had hit once they got a whiff of them spending any sort of time together? It was debatable whether or not the trouble was worth that mess.

“He’s making me read through a list of official statements they’re having typed up and I’m on lock down until he deems me able to be free except for whatever events he’s coming up with to get me in front of cameras.”

“So what I’m hearing is I should take advantage of this and disappear quickly and quietly. Cause with the chaos you’ve stirred up, I could probably make it to Prague before anyone even knew I was gone.” Provided, of course, she could ditch her guard long enough to get to the airport. But given past experiences, she had hope.

“You know...I might just do that. Europe’s always so pretty in the fall. And the Signal Festival starts this week...might not be a bad idea to drop in. Lay low til your whole thing blows over.” She was sure her friends would want to join. And the number of Eurotrash Hotties awaiting her over there was endless.

Tons of fun to be had, trouble to get into. And all while her family was looking the other way.

[royal-catrina]

thrownawxy​:

“I find myself quite immune to alcohol,well other then the headaches but I get those even when I am sober not nearly as piercing though.I am chipper because it’s just illusion.”

“I need to work on that...the whole ‘becoming immune to alcohol’ thing. It would make my mornings go so much smoother. The illusion thing, however. That I’ve got down.” Because wasn’t that what she had been doing for the past several months? Pretending like her mother’s death hadn’t absolutely destroyed her?

[royal-catrina]

ghxstwrxter​:

Of course she would. What else would his little sister do with the information? Though the majority of what she could find for blackmail was likely already all over the internet. But she could try.

If they had been any other two people, no one would have cared one way or another whether they talked, hung out, or hooked up. Whether it was just for a night or for longer. Whether either of them were looking for something more than whatever it was. But he was the prince and she was of lesser stock in the minds of those nearest to the royal family. Let alone to dredge up her family’s past history with his.

John sipped his coffee. “We’ll see…”

There had to be somebody out there. Someone who was at the bar or the club -- wherever they had been -- that recorded something with their phone. Something the palace and/or the tabloids had yet to see. All she had to do was find that person. And convince them to send her the footage.

Looked like she knew what she’d be doing with the rest of her day. Once she ditched her detail, of course. Taking guards along on a blackmail mission was just tacky.

That was the problem though, wasn’t it? They weren’t just any two other people. They were the crowned prince and a daughter of the Hamilton-Burr family. Which meant everything they did was considered newsworthy. 

Everything.

“Suppose we will. How much damage control does Dad have you doing today?”

[royal-catrina]

ghxstwrxter​:

As if their father and the Chief Steward needed anymore ammunition than what social media and paparazzi had already given them. Anything she could be armed with, they likely already had knowledge of. 

“I don’t know. We just started talking and we’d had a few drinks. A couple of times. It was a little bit of fun,” John shrugged it off. If it hadn’t been for the evidence, none of his family needed to know he had cozied up with the Hamilton-Burr. There was a small, passing thought of whether or not she was going through the same, or worse, that morning. 

But did he see her sitting with him and hanging on his arm at state dinners? Maybe, maybe not. But so far, John hadn’t even started to consider marriage, let alone what their father may want. 

Unfortunately, that was true. As she had learned about her brother and Cierra with the rest of the world, she had not yet had time to cultivate her own little collection of blackmail material. But she would. Worry not. She would.

And yes, for the record, Cierra was getting it just as bad. Perhaps even a little worse. As the tabloids were surely calling her a gold digger. Accusing her of using the prince to elevate her family’s status. Sure, the Hamilton-Burrs had titles. As so many of the founding families did. But they were lesser nobles. Below other families such as the Jeffersons. Something that becoming the girlfriend of the prince would surely fix.

And then there were her parents. Upset that she had brought the tabloids down upon them. Highlighting once again the bad history between them and the royal family.

“Are you going to see her again?”

[royal-catrina]

thrownawxy​:

@royal-catrina​

“I stand here feeling a bit refreshed for once, I can’t hear the hammering in my head right now.”

“How? I saw what you drank last night. I matched you drink for drink. So how is it that I’m ever so slowly dying and you’re standing there chipper as ever?”

[royal-catrina]

ghxstwrxter·:

John tried hard not to laugh at the horrified faces of the kitchen staff at Catrina’s joking. One of them was bound to let their father know what had been said and the odds were good that she’d be facing her own lecture later in the day. Though at least their father would have something else to focus on for five minutes. 

“We both know I don’t want that yet,“ it would mean the end of life as he knew it and far more responsibility than he was ready for yet. No matter how many classes, lectures, or meetings he sat through. And losing their mother had seemed to make it worse. 

“If you’re lucky, Dad’ll be too worried about me and Cierra to worry about something some member of the staff overheard and took wrong.“

Yeah yeah yeah. Go on. Laugh it up. Maybe she’ll just go to said lecture armed with pictures of him and Cierra. Keep their father and the Chief Steward’s focus where it should be. 

Speaking of which... “So this thing between you and Cierra, is it like an actual thing? Should I be expecting to see her at state dinners and such? Or are the two of you just seeing how many people you can piss off?” Not that she cared which the answer was; she was just curious. If her brother had found love, great. It he was just fooling around...well that was good too.

At least until their father started pressuring him to lock down a suitable candidate for marriage. Something that couldn’t be all that far away. Though still in relative good health, their father was getting older. (As all parents do). And he’d want to see John married and settled before he took the throne. Of that Catrina was almost certain.

[royal-catrina]

Rachel Weisz – Harper’s Bazaar (June 2020)

[royal-catrina]

Wanted Connection: Princess Amelia [Insert Middle Name Here] Adams

Younger sister of the crowned prince (John the Fifth) and twin sister of Catrina, Amelia seems to be the one member of the royal household not attempting to run their father into an early grave. Of course, that doesn’t mean she is without her secrets...

FC: Troian Bellisario.

[royal-catrina]

ghxstwrxter·:

The sun had barely risen for the day when the vibrations of his phone against his night stand had caught his attention, the palace PR staff already ranting about the damage control they would have to do and asking what he had been thinking. Barely awake and coming out of his room, their father had stopped him and read him the riot act.

Eventually he had made it to the family’s private dining room and grabbed himself a cup of coffee, silencing the staff with a look as he made his way to the table and poured himself into one of the chairs.

At the sound of his younger sister’s voice, John shook his head and took a long drink from his cup. “So much,” the early part of the morning recalled mixed with the memories from before he had made it back to the palace. “Think he said something along the lines of ‘you really want me to join your mother so you can be king, don’t you?’”

Taking her place across from him, she sipped at her own coffee as she listened. “Damn...” If their dad brought their mother into it, it meant he was well and truly pissed. “Though, if you did want to be King, this would be the way to go about it. Heart attack leaves no evidence. Unlike poison.”

At the horrified faces of the staff, Catrina rolled her eyes. “I’m joking. I’m joking. They do know I’m joking, right? I would never advoca...oh that’s going to get me a lecture later. If not from Dad then from the Chief Steward. Looks like once again Amelia is going to win favorite child of the day.” Unsurprising. Amelia had pretty much won that one ever since their mother died.

Since both John and Catrina seemed to stop giving a shit. But hey. At least her comments wouldn’t end up all over the internet?

[royal-catrina]

In which John Adams is amazed Burr hadn’t shot Hamilton sooner

Hamilton and Burr, in point of ambition were equal. In principle, equal. In talents, different: Hamilton superior in literary talents, Burr in military. Hamilton, a Nevis adventurer. Burr, descended from the earliest, most learned, pious, and virtuous of our American Nation, and buoyed up by the prejudices of half the nation. Burr found himself thwarted, persecuted, calumniated by a wandering stranger. The deep malice of Hamilton against Burr, and his indefatigable exertions to defame him are little known. I know so much of it for a course of years, that I wondered a duel had not taken place seven years before it did. I could have produced such a duel at any moment for seven years. I kept the secrets sacred and inviolable, and have kept them to this day.

- John Adams, in a letter to Benjamin Waterhouse on July 12th, 1811.

[royal-catrina]

Mental Casting: Madeleine Mantock as Lady Cierra Hamilton-Burr. Daughter of the Duke of New York. 

[royal-catrina]

@ghxstwrxter is getting a starter cause SCANDAL

Any day when the wrath of the palace PR staff was no directed at her was a good one. And her brother’s latest antics? Well, they blew anything she had done over the past, oh, six months out of the water.

Coming down the hall to the family’s private dining room -- a much smaller and more private affair than the state dining room -- she couldn’t help but smirk as she saw John, moving past him to pour herself some coffee and shooing off the servant who tried to do it for her. They never put enough sugar in.

“Cierra Hamilton-Burr, huh? Bet Dad’s loving that...” Overnight, pictures of the pair had appeared all over the internet -- twitter, instagram, any and every celebrity gossip/royal watching site you could imagine. The prince’s secret affair.

AMAZING.

[royal-catrina]

ofimminence​:

@royal-catrina​ x

“Bad news. I gotta go home in the winter.” Home, a place far away, far colder than where he was now, and one that he’d have to make his first public appearance at since he was 9. Finnick hadn’t been in the public eye–much like his twin brother–and for that, he was thankful. He’d lived a pretty normal life, traveled some, and met people that had stuck with him. All in all, it was meant to make him a better leader. “And I don’t know when I’ll be back.”

“What? Why? I mean...is everything okay?” Funny, two months ago Catrina had been doing everything she could to get rid of Finnick and now? Now she didn’t know what she’d do without him. In the short amount of time that he had been with her, he’d become an integral part of her life. One of the few people she felt she could truly depend on (probably because she hadn’t been able to get rid of him). The idea of him leaving. It was...well...she didn’t like it.

[royal-catrina]

Plotting Tips

Something I’ve seen people complain about often is that they want to plot, but potential partners rely on them to do most of the work. This is generally frustrating for everyone involved, so here are some helpful things to keep in mind when approaching someone to plot if you’re drawing a blank:

Threads

Establish a basic dynamic between characters. Discuss with your partner whether or not your muses should have already met (as not everyone enjoys first encounters as thread material), and regardless of the answer, take a moment to work out basic thoughts, feelings, and relationships. Are they likely to get along? What would their basic opinion of each other be? What reasons would they have to meet each other, and more importantly, to see each other again after that?

Ask about your partner’s muse. This is extra true if it’s the first time you and your partner are writing together. Things go smoother when you understand each other’s portrayal well. Get a feel for how your partner writes their muse to avoid awkwardness early on.

Talk about verses. It’s always nice when interactions fit neatly within both yours and your partner’s main verse, but sometimes you might find other verses work better. Don’t be afraid to explore those possibilities.

Discuss preferred genres. Everyone has something they love to write. Try to find common ground with your partner. Maybe you both like angst. Maybe you both like action. Whatever you prefer, it will be easiest to write if you aim for something that appeals to both of you. On that note…

Ask for their wishlist. A lot of people are too shy to ask for specific kinds of interactions they enjoy, but may have a tag for posts detailing exactly what they want. It’ll save both of you a lot of trouble to just read through a list of scenarios your partner wants to explore, and pick whatever happens to appeal to you.

Ships

Learn to take no for an answer. The first rule of asking someone if they want to ship with you is that you have to be ready to be rejected. Do not reach out to anyone for shipping if you aren’t willing to be mature and back down if they say no!

Be honest about what you want out of a ship. There’s some reason you want to ship with your partner, so go ahead and bring that up with them.

Be open to developing the ship. Not everyone wants to jump right in, and sometimes, they may not even be sure they want to write a ship at all. Try starting with a one-sided crush or something similar so their muse can decide how they feel after interacting for awhile.

Value their portrayal. It’s fine if you’re asking to ship simply because you like your muse with a certain character, but remember that each mun has their version of that character and is more than just a blank slate for you to force your ship bias onto. Understand that they won’t necessarily act out your every fantasy with you. If you cannot accept that their portrayal is still their own even while shipping, don’t ask to ship.

[royal-catrina]

// Here’s an alternate history question for you all...in a world where America becomes a monarchy instead of a Democracy, would we still have Renaissance Faires? Or would we, instead, have Colonial Faires, celebrating the early days of America’s Royal Family?