fankids appreciation week: family dynamics - the somerset family (920-present)
featuring: odalric the red, denegifu of scotland, juliana of york, akelda the tragic, cuthfelda of ireland, hilda the smith, agatha of kent ( @that-scouse-wizard ) vincent somerset, alexandra somerset, lenore somerset, jocelyn somerset, morwenna somerset, gia somerset ( @gaygryffindorgal ) lawrence somerset, philip somerset, elizabeth somerset, gia somerset ii, ruby somerset ; diana somerset & beatrice somerset ( @camillejeaneshphm ) felicity, constance & meredith somerset
so the narrator of all of tales from under the bay is Phthisis V the God of Decay AKA Hope AKA Sylvia Graves. shes first introduced in a short story where her mother, Gloria Graves, basically sacrifices her to Phthisis III (the previous god of decay before her) which pisses It off blah blah blah
ANYWAYS who tf is Sylvia's father though,,,
i have TWO IDEAS
Vincent Victoria. The man is already an established manwhore and the timeline of events does allow him to have a kid (((and flee the scene))) before meeting Andie which leads to Celia, the main character, being born. this means the main character and the narrator are half-sisters which i think is neat :^) and also if Celia ever found out itd be crazy because imagine not only finding out that your mother killed your dad before you were born but that he had another child before you who is a literal god
Phthisis III, through some sort of immaculate conception, basically planned Its own eventual death but first had to make sure there would be someone to take Its place. Since Gloria lives in Dusty Grove Road, where supernatural shit happens constantly to the point where no one ever dares to question it, this wouldnt cause any plot holes really. It also implies through the rage Phthisis III had at Gloria throwing Sylvia into the furnace that It needed her to reach adulthood before ascending the Lead Throne as the new god of decay, probably so she could experience life to better understand the nature of death and decay. This explains why as Phthisis V/Hope, She's almost careless with her duties, preventing everything from decaying after the death of The Internet and eventually destroying most of the world through the Great Wind
tbh im almost leaning more towards Vincent Victoria being her father just because it makes Celia's whole thing about not being special in the grand scheme of the death of the multiverse even more,,, idk how to word it. like, yeah shes able to traverse the multiverse, shes effectively immortal (to an extent), and is related to a god of death and decay but is still less than a speck in history on earth, let alone the universe, let alone the multiverse.
During March, the old viscountess told her dear friend, the Dowager Duchess of Aldery [Cora] that she felt her organs failing and betraying her and that she was certain that she wouldn't make it to Christmastime. The Dowager told her not to get ahead of herself, and went to see a doctor, and indeed, she had only seven months left.
On the 18th of July, 1968, she celebrated her last birthday [87th] with every single relative. The Countess of Harrendale and Helwater, her dearest and most favourite daughter Alexandra was suspicious of such grandeur and melancholic tone, but daren't say nothing. Days later, she called to make a last rewrite of her will and began to stay more at home and rarely left Winbourne. Her son, the viscount – though not considered such yet– began asking, but she wouldn't budge.
By the end of October, it was clear that the viscountess' death was deteriorating and would die at any given moment.
On the 14th of November, all of her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren reuinted at her deathbed to bid the magnificent viscountess farewell and expressed her personal wishes for each of them.
On the morning of the fifteenth, she was found on her bed, with signs of having died peacefully on her sleep. The funeral was fit for the woman she had been in life: heroic, magnificent, perfect and very much loved. They mourned her for three months, making her the most cried Somerset in history.
Lady's maid of Primrose Gray, she was six years her senior and since childhood the two of them were friends until, at fifteen, she asked to be in her service and was accepted when the Lady Gray was only nine.
The two of them were like sisters to her and was the only servant willing to follow her to Hogwarts despite being a muggle, refusing to leave her lady to fend for herself. There, she fended off the opportunists and curated her experience, being the older sister she always wished for. She retired in 1935 due to an illness and passed away in 1938 with Lady Gray by her side, holding her hand. She was 63 years old
Alfred Carrow (1898-1986)
A cunning grandson of a miner who aimed for more, he was sent to a boy's school where he learned to write, read, basic English history and politics.
After job-hunting for three years, he heard in a gentleman's club that Lord Vincent of Winbourne was looking for loyal men to support him against his powerful and influential mother and take his place as the heir back, and Alfred did not miss his chance.
At first he was indifferent of Vincent, but with time and being his butler, he grew fond of the boy (despite being only three years older than him) and ended up being his most loyal manservant, and dying at Winboune at the age of 88.
Ansel Heredia (1928-2001)
Son of a Spanish immigrant, Ansel was born in Winbourneshire and raised near the Somersets, and soon his wit, intellect, sense of duty and iron will attracted Lord Lawrence, who soon hired him after his 18th birthday and made sure he knew how to read, write, talk properly, manners, protocol and politics.
He made an excellent service and was soon rewarded by being married to the granddaughter of the beloved and late Emma Barry, Mary. They had a happy marriage and he served the viscount until his death. He died years later in 2001, aged 73
Scott Hudson (1948-????)
A highly smart, ambitious, cunning and extremely loyal and man, he always knew he'd either serve the nobility or marry into it, for they still ruled England. He was hired by the Viscountess Millicent so her son Charles would have help to be shaped into a smart man.
He served with admiration and loyalty to Charles and was like a brother to him, and even admired and appreciated by Viscountess Ismene. He is still alive and serving Charles even after retiring as a viscount.
Annita May (1970-????)
Secretary of Valentina, she's still her most loyal servant and handles the difficult affairs of Winbourne and makes sure everything's in order and hires the other staff and makes sure that 90% of the staff is loyal to the heiress and nothing goes out without a hitch.
She's still alive and serving the viscountess until she steps out
First and eldest daughter of Primrose Gray and Malcolm Stolberg-Burke, born in 1903, she was her mother's daughter through and thorough.
Growing up, she aspired to be like her mother, and soon began mimicking her same behaviour and taking onto the role of taking care of her sisters who'd be born every two years.
In 1914, she began her Hogwarts year and soon began bonding with her brother Vincent, two years her senior and the heir of Winbourne. Soon, they had a deep bond and were each other's confidants... Or that's what she thought.
On June 1919 a terrible tragedy happened: her brother Vincent eloped with Beauxbatons exchange student Clarice Renaux without a warning, leaving a note to the 16 year-old Alexandra, who was horrified.
She was quick to ride her loyal horse for more than 14 years, Marathon, and rode for a week until she reached Winbourne. Tired and in tears, she told her mother what happened and while she recovered and made her way back to Hogwarts, Viscountess Primrose and her husband went on the quest to find their son.
Winbourne wasn't the same again. They came back two weeks later, and Vincent was striped off his title and claim to Winbourne until their mother saw it fit, thus making Alexandra the new Lady of Winbourne, like her mother had been. She received the education meant for her brother and, for four years, she made an excellent job as the heiress. Meanwhile her brother was exiled in shame to the USA to work for MACUSA.
In 1921 she declared her love for the neighbor Lord Francis Fersen, a family friend whose father's support during her claiming in 1899 had helped Primrose earn respect within the peerage. The two of them courted and soon married in 1923, a year before Vincent's restoration to Winbourne.
Indeed, in 1924 Vincent was restored as Lord of Winbourne and the heir of the estate. That year, he'd meet in an outdoor activity his future wife, a far more suitable woman who everyone approved despite the initial reluctance.
With her brother restored, she continued being the heiress of Harrendale and the new future Countess of Helwater, making her a very powerful woman. In 1936, her father-in-law stepped down as earl months after King George V's death.
She spent the rest of her life raising her children and being a devoted wife and a politically involved countess, enriching further both Harrendale and Helwater.
She passed away peacefully in 2002 on her bed in Harrendale, surrounded by her children and grandchildren.
Tagging @gaygryffindorgal since Malcolm belongs to her