Post by LADY MARGUERITE BLAKENEY on Aug 30, 2015 19:26:58 GMT
Lady Marguerite Blakeney
Character History
Marguerite was born in the month of August. Her family was by all standards middle class and her father and mother worked upon the lands of the St Cyr family, but were poorly paid and mistreated for their efforts. At the age of 3 her younger brother Armand was born and, despite the poverty the family suffered, the children grew up in a warm and loving environment. Upon the arrival of Marguerite's 12th year her father sought out the head of the St Cyr family in order to request more money for the services that the family provided to them. Lord St Cyr quickly saw this as an opportunity and made an example of Marguerite's mother and father hanging them before herself, her brother and the other tenants. Marguerite swore vengeance on the family but assumed she would never truly be able to have it due to her lower social class. In the absence of parents to care for them Marguerite was sent to a convent in order to grow in a healthy and stable environment. Here Marguerite learnt to understand the Upper Classes as many of the women she was surrounded by were the children of Lords and ladies, including her friend Suzanne De Tourney. One could also argue that this was the place Marguerite learnt to act so perfectly, showing one face to her friends and another to the Nuns guiding her lessons, conveniently learning the forms of different people and classes and how to play into each ones ideal with the littlest of effort. Within the convent she never lost contact with Armand quickly replacing her parents in his eyes as Mother, Sister and even best friend. The two were inseparable and told each other everything and it was Armand that encouraged her to peruse her dream of becoming a popular actress.
By this point Marguerite had grown into quite a beautiful woman and was in no real doubt about this fact herself. Her height was slightly taller than most women her age and that lent her a commanding presence on the stage and with dark brown hair and ever changing blue eyes offsetting pale skin she was quite a sight to behold. Joining the Comédie Française was no difficulty with her looks and she quickly grew in popularity until she was the lead actress. Her fame and looks quickly gained her many a fan and with it many a proposal but Marguerite was a woman who was disillusioned with love, believing it must be like in the books to be true, as a result turning down every proposal that came her way. Deciding that wealth or class did not define a person instead preferring intelligence and action in the man she would marry. Finally she took on a lover called Paul Chauvelin. Chauvelin encouraged her to lend her voice to the revolution that was growing in the streets of Paris and quickly Marguerite became one of the many faces of the revolution, her theatre showing only shows that supported the revolution and Marguerite's fame growing further as she became a darling of the revolution.
Chauvelin and Marguerite continued their relationship until Marguerite met Sir Percy Blakeney. Percy appeared at first to be everything Marguerite despised rich but with a common wit and seeming little intelligence. Marguerite eventually dropped Paul in the face of Percy's blind devotion. Marguerite did not believe in love but she silently wondered that with a man so devoted perhaps he would be able to sway her. Hypocritically she understood that he was rich enough to keep her in a contented manner and she longed to return to England having spent a few summers there before joining the theatre. The two began courting and despite Marguerite protests on not believing in love she quickly found herself falling (Though naturally denied this and simply stated she was fond of him.), her mind was further convinced when Armand took an instant liking to him when the two met and when Percy requested her hand in marriage she quickly said yes. Marguerite's apparent perfect life was shattered when she denounced St Cyr to the Justice courts. In hindsight Marguerite could not explain if it was anger or innocence that made her step forward upon hearing he had been captured but when the St Cyr family was led to the guillotine Marguerite looked on in horror as the two children of the family were killed. Hating what she had done and fearing the backlash Marguerite sped up her removal to London and settled herself in Percy's house.
Her horror's followed her. As if in punishment for what she had done her husband grew cold and threw only barbed wit at her overnight. She had banked on his devotion to remain regardless of any of her faults and was distraught when she was proved wrong. She wondered idly if she had only been a prize that Percy had wanted to win but stubbornly her mind declared that he had been truly devoted to her and one day would return to that state. Marguerite threw herself stubbornly into being the perfect wife. Throwing vast balls and remaining a witty host and attentive wife at them, alone Marguerite satisfied herself with pretty jewels and dresses in replacement of her husband’s affections. She grew close with other ladies in court but never felt comfortable explaining her situation to them, this discomfort extended to her brother Armand as in many ways she felt equally uncomfortable talking to him about these things and quickly cut out conversations that led down that path, isolating herself further.
It was not until her 25th year that Marguerite was reintroduced to Paul Chauvelin. He arrived at a party for the Prince of Wales and informed her that Armand had been taken to La Force as a traitor of the revolution. Marguerite was distraught and begged Chauvelin and Percy respectively for help. Chauvelin offered her a deal, her brother would be saved in return for the name of the Scarlet Pimpernel, Percy dismissed her and with a heavy heart she agreed to Paul's demands. She informed him of a location of one of the Pimpernel's safe houses (Information given to her by her dear friend Suzanne) and he returned the favor with knowledge that the Pimpernel had been shot in his right side. Realizing that Percy had a similar injury she rushed to France as quickly as she could but was caught by the Border guard and sent to La Force. Finally getting to speak to Percy when she was reunited with him in her cell, Marguerite was finally able to talk honestly with her husband and the two reconciled with each other. She was later tried as an enemy of France and sentenced to the guillotine. The Pimpernel's men and the Pimpernel himself saved her by creating a distraction and Marguerite escaped to England once again.
Now in her 41th year Marguerite has mastered the difference between Lady Blakeney and Marguerite and reserves the latter only for her friends and her family. She places an even greater level of importance on being the perfect hostess and wife as it creates a good cover for her husband. Marguerite is an honorary member of the Pimpernels gang and, despite her husbands protestations that "it's unsafe", often joins them in particular events. The two still have no children and Marguerite fears that she may be barren, but a small bit glad as perhaps raising a child might not be the best idea in these troubled times.
Roleplay Sample
The deep clang of the clock at the end of the reading room startled Marguerite from the book she was reading, a study of classical operetta and the common themes within it. The two clangs informed her before she had even glanced at the clock to confirm the time that it was far past the time she should be abed. She was aware that in some ways there was no point in returning to bed. In many ways she would be better off just waiting for the servants to arise and help her change into a fresh days clothes. Her make-up would cover any dullness or other signs of tiredness and this way she did not risk waking Percy and suffering his disdain. However that latter reason was also made her want to go to bed. The moments when he slept, when his face softened from the cruel smiles and all pretense of exhibitionism slipped from his shoulders, were the few moments she treasured more than anything, the moments where she saw the man she had chosen to marry, the one who's affections she had felt secure in. The fire was down to a few flickering embers and without any real consciousness of her movements she stepped forward and settled one or two logs onto the fire before settling back on the couch and bringing her legs up beside her. It took barely a few moments for a flame to ignite around the logs and despite the lack of heat in the room Marguerite felt instantly warmer looking at it.
The book had been placed lightly beside her on the couch but she felt no urge to reach for it. Her mind was tired and longed for the softness and ease of sleep despite its protestations about movements towards the bedroom. She contemplated the notion of sleeping here but dismissed it as incorrect for a lady of her status, before rejecting a small thought that she wasn't a lady of status anyway. Picking up the candle from the table, Marguerite stood and took a quick moment to suppress any shivers before moving out of the library. Moving down the dark and quiet hallways a fear clenched her throat as she could not stop her mind commenting that they were a perfect representation of her life. Cold, alone, empty...she pushed the words away with as much strength as she could muster and the small hope she had never been able to crush ached for Percy. She would crush it in time she was sure. They had only been married a few years, surely a few more would clarify in the depths of her soul that every word uttered in the courtship had been a lie. She stumbled to a surprised halt bending over to clutch at her suddenly winded chest before pushing herself upright and moving on. Moping would get her nowhere. Moping hadn't brought her parents back and it certainly wouldn't bring Percy back. Life was for living not lamenting after all.
With careful steps she made it to the bedroom and opened the door quietly. Silently thanking God Percy was asleep, she placed the candle on the dresser and quickly undressed herself wary of the cold air that plagued the room. She lightly washed off her face nearly spilling the water down her nightgown in her haste. She blew out the candle and with light steps moved to the bed before dropping onto it as gently as she could (Which in hindsight was graceless as possible.). Turning her head she looked to her husband and through half-lidded eyes he appeared to be smiling in amusement, reaching out she touched his cheek. Falling asleep without a seconds thought with her hand on her husband’s cheek, the duvet beneath her and Percy’s name on her lips.
General Notes
My Marguerite is based largely on the 1999 BBC series, but in certain areas is more like the novel.
Your Alias: Shelly
Age: 23
Gender: Female
Time Zone: GMT
