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tehuti88-art · 2 days

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4/26/24: r/SketchDaily theme, "Free Draw Friday." This week's character from my anthro WWII storyline is Amelia de Groot, without hat (top drawing) and with hat (bottom drawing). She's a newer character though she's been around for some months now, just without a name. She's a rich heiress who fosters troubled children; she appears in Gold Rat's backstory, taking him in after the authorities remove him from his home, and helping him deal with his dyslexia. She's flamboyant and odd, but well meaning. There'll be more about her later in my art Tumblr and Toyhou.se.

Regarding her design, based on Gold's approximate age I gave her a Twenties-type hairstyle. She's a bit overly glamorous and so often wears jewelry and ridiculous hats--the design of this one doesn't make much sense to me, but oh well. It's a modified version of the one from my "Fancy Rats" art.

TUMBLR EDIT: I already covered most of Miss Amelia's (guess I'll call her that?) part in the backstory in Gold Rat's entry. I don't know her personal backstory yet, and possibly never will. I'm assuming, based on the details given in Gold's entry, that she, too, loses her family at a relatively young age, inherits their vast wealth, and is left with her own ideas on what to do with it all. She's an eccentric, outgoing sort, so I imagine she spends a good deal on herself first of all--she likely already owns the lavish family home, so she probably buys herself fancy clothes, throws parties, attends galas in her ridiculous hats and jewelry, all that. Lots of old money folks kind of look down their noses at her, but she's fun and well known.

Somewhere along the way, though, she gets a new idea about how to spend her money: fostering children who need a special touch. There has to be some reason Gold, and the others, hit her so hard, though I'm not sure what it is. I have the feeling it's more personal than simply witnessing the suffering of others. Her knowledge of what exactly Gold's problem is, when she meets him at the group home, hints that she either knew someone else like him, or has similar issues herself.

It's never indicated in his entry, though based on Gold's behavior, I suspect he has more than simple dyslexia going on; it often goes hand in hand with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, which also fits Gold pretty well. AND, Miss Amelia could fit such a description; she's superficially charming, yet seems to have difficulty forming meaningful connections to others (aside from her fosters); she easily covers up her insecurities and shortcomings by talking fast and tossing money at things. (Gold hasn't money to toss, but he's a damn good fast talker.) Anyone who doesn't know either of them well could describe both as frivolous, shallow, hyper, insincere, impulsive, scatterbrained, and desperately attention seeking, when none of this is the truth, these are just the side effects of the underlying issue. If Miss Amelia is indeed dyslexic, I think her case is milder than Gold's, and she copes with it better. I'm just about certain that at some point, however, either she or someone close to her was called stupid. And so when she first encounters young "Arthur," and learns how everyone has written him off as stupid, this hits home, and she's determined to make the most of him.

As I said, for whatever reason, Miss Amelia decides to supplement her parties and social events with some good works, and she makes looking after problem foster kids her good work. Others are skeptical of this at first--she has no children of her own, no husband, doesn't seem to have a maternal bone in her body--but what she does have is lots of money, a huge brownstone, and perseverance. She uses her numerous connections to smooth out the foster process and be given access to children that might not otherwise be so easily granted; the fact that she targets difficult children who nobody else wants to deal with makes the process even simpler. She's just a silly rich lady in a big hat, what harm really could she do, especially since many of these kids come from abusive or broken homes. Luckily for them, she has no sinister motives, and many of her kids are grateful to be given a room of their own, three warm meals to eat, and to not be beaten or called stupid all the time.

Miss Amelia soon proves to be up to the task. Due to her personal experience, whatever it may be, she has a magic touch when dealing with children and adolescents that others may have given up on or see as not worth the trouble. She fixes them up (though she herself would never use such language, never viewing her kids as broken or in need of fixing), then they move on, either back to more suitable family, or to official adoption. Miss Amelia doesn't keep them, she can't, as most aren't hers to keep--they have family still--and she isn't a motherly sort, so she doesn't adopt. She's always wistful to see them go, but keeps in casual touch when she can, and accepts it when family asks that she refrain. She keeps an album with photos of all her fosters (a picture from when they arrive, and one from when they leave) and browses it fondly from time to time, and holds on to and cherishes the crafts and gifts her kids made or gave her. The sadness she feels whenever her time with a foster comes to an end is offset by the good she tells herself she must be doing, based on the faces in the photos in her book, the heartbroken "befores" and the hope-filled "afters."

Then, along comes Arthur, the boy with no one left to take him, the boy everyone has given up on, even his own father. Miss Amelia acts on impulse, because this time, it feels justified. Tells the quiet, withdrawn little boy that she can help him, if he comes to stay with her, and after she works her magic, and makes the words on the pages make sense, invites him to stay with her for good. (She does cover her bases by visiting his father to ask if he's indeed relinquished custody of his son to the state...his unequivocal response is given in Gold's entry.) The look on Arthur's face, as always, is what tells her she made the right choice. I'm not sure if she officially adopts him or not (his entry says she "officially takes [him] in," though the phrasing's a bit odd), but he effectively becomes her son, the only one of her fosters she keeps. He thrives under her care, comes to call her "Mom," and promises to keep in touch with her after he enlists in the military and heads off to war. And he does so, even though he's never been big on writing or reading letters.

Miss Amelia's magic touch remains with Corporal (then Sergeant) Gold Rat during his time in service. He befriends Lance Corporal Mahogany Rat, whose social awkwardness often inadvertently offends others, and helps steer him in the right direction, without making him feel like an idiot, to avoid such complications. He treats rescued test subject Kolten, a proposed Nazi superweapon who's widely regarded with terror, with empathy instead, realizing that he has the mentality of a young child, and replacing his black badge reading "Blöd"--stupid--with a new patch emblazoned with his name. He chats with and gets to know Kolten's father, former SS Captain Otto Himmel, while transporting him back to his son following his trial; Himmel takes few of his belongings with him, but they include Kolten's art, the book Frankenstein (which Gold has read), and a box stuffed full of letters. In this one way, Himmel is Gold's polar opposite: He's extremely well read, fluent in multiple languages, and a prolific and gifted letter writer, having maintained a one-sided correspondence with his deceased wife for many years. Gold marvels over his dedication to the written word. Himmel, picking up on Gold's reluctance with the same, declines to treat him with disdain; "My Kolten can't read a word," he says, "yet he's the brightest person I know. He makes up for what he lacks with other talents. He's never once disappointed me." Gold recognizes the look he sees in Himmel's eyes--pride, and love so strong his heart must want to burst--because he remembers seeing the same look in Miss Amelia's eyes. He tells Himmel about her, how she wasn't his true mother, yet felt like she was; Himmel replies, "Some of the strongest family do not have to share blood."

A more recent development is Gold meeting Miss Amelia again. He decides to remain in Germany after the war, having begun a relationship with Romani resistance fighter Mirela, yet makes plans to pay Miss Amelia one last visit in the States. Mirela's never traveled far from home, and helps care for her father Nikolas, so stays behind, though she's anxious whether he'll truly return or not. Gold sails to the US and disembarks in New York; while wandering the dock looking at the signs and trying to find the agreed-upon meeting place, he hears a voice advising him to take a breath and take his time to let the letters sort themselves out. He turns to find Miss Amelia--her formerly red hair much grayer now--and the two embrace. They spend his entire time there catching up and visiting familiar spots. Gold is wistful when the time comes for him to return to Germany; Miss Amelia surprises him when she asks if it's all right if she accompanies him. She already bought herself a one-way ticket. "My foster days are long over," she muses; "I don't have anything left keeping me here. I do, however, still have you." When Gold warns that the process of moving to Germany may be complicated--the country is being divided between the Allies, and the area Gold and Mirela live in is largely going to the USSR--Miss Amelia brushes this off, saying she has plenty of money and connections still that can help. (The Trench Rats have their own agreement with the Soviets.) She inquires if Gold doesn't want her to come along; she'll honor his request, if so, and take no offense--yet she means it when she says she'd like to go with him. Once he's sure she means it, Gold agrees, and they set off.

Mirela is of course surprised when Gold returns with a fashionable older woman in tow; once he introduces her, however, she gives Miss Amelia a big hug. Gold has told her about Miss Amelia before, and Mirela knows just how important a role she played in his life. She introduces Miss Amelia to her father Nikolas, and he smiles and shakes her hand warmly. They stop by Himmel's house, where he lives with Kolten and a group of children he's adopted following the war--like Miss Amelia, he loves children, and his large house is constantly full of their presence. He and Miss Amelia, and Himmel's partner Johanna (a former schoolteacher), get along especially well. Gold doesn't mind that they enjoy discussing books together at length...even though he's not really into it himself.

[Amelia de Groot 2024 [‎Friday, ‎April ‎26, ‎2024, ‏‎12:00:06 AM]]

[Amelia de Groot 2024 2 [‎Friday, ‎April ‎26, ‎2024, ‏‎12:00:34 AM]]

#artists on tumblr #ibisPaint x #SketchDaily #original characters

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tehuti88-art · 9 days

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4/19/24: r/SketchDaily theme, "Free Draw Friday." This week's characters from my anthro WWII storyline are Lieselotte and Fredrik Albrecht. They aren't major characters, but they do play an important recurring background role; they're the well-off farm couple who take in Otto Himmel's disabled son, Kolten, following his rescue from Project Doomsday by the Trench Rats. Kolten is sweet natured but difficult to handle (he was intended to be used as a superweapon), but fortunately the Albrechts are well equipped (for a sad reason) to care for him. There'll be more about them later in my art Tumblr and Toyhou.se.

Regarding their designs, Lieselotte is on the plump side, and I decided to make Fredrik a rather big but gentle-natured guy too. (BTW, Lieselotte's hair isn't pinned back under her ear, that's just an oddly placed earring.)

TUMBLR EDIT: I haven't any lengthy entry to go for the Albrechts (EDIT, though I guess I've written one anyway!); if they do have any extended history, it hasn't emerged yet. A bit of it appeared, though, as I was browsing my "to-draw" list, so I decided to do them next. They're relatively minor background characters, yet they reappear repeatedly and play an important enough role to deserve mention.

I'm not ENTIRELY sure of their social status. I've described them as farmers, though I don't think that's quite accurate; I think, rather, that they OWN a farm, and once employed people to work it for them. They have a big tract of farmland, and are relatively well off, living in the midst of what's generally considered Junker territory...yet they don't seem to be Junkers. I'd assume some kind of wealthy non-noble hereditary farming family, but I don't know that that's a thing. *shrugs* All I can really say is they're financially well off, even if not rich, and they live in a big fancy farmhouse-mansion thing, with similar houses scattered around the area (a recently abandoned one nearby plays a big role in the afterstory), and they own farmland. Anyway, by the time they appear in the story, the farm has gone defunct and the workers are all gone, presumably off to war-related things, so the Albrecht couple are the only ones left living there.

At some point in the story, while Project Doomsday subject Kolten is being transported between locations for some reason by a German escort, they have a run-in with the Trench Rats, who've received information about the project--and Kolten--from other escaped subject Jakob Wolfstein and Lance Corporal Silver Rat. Wolfstein insists that Kolten is not the threatening superweapon the Americans have been led to believe he is. Yet they're still skeptical; reports claim Kolten, or "Subject Zero," is huge in stature, possesses immense strength and resistance to pain, is full of explosive rage, and oh yeah, is insane. So when word comes through the grapevine that here's a chance to kidnap and potentially nullify him, the Rats seize it, and ambush the German convoy.

It doesn't go quite as planned. The Germans put up a bigger fight than expected, and both parties end up in an area riddled with old abandoned trenches; the Germans remove Kolten from the vehicle he's being transported in and attempt to get him to safety but have to keep evading gunfire. The Trench Rats finally manage to separate Kolten from his guards and take shelter in a trench. Kolten ends up in the company of LC Doomsday Rat, who, as a former subject of Project Doomsday himself, has come along to attempt to control Kolten if necessary. Kolten, his wrists in loose shackles, offers up no fight, just watches with a sort of dumb curiosity as everything happens around him. They're alone in the trench, waiting for the skirmish to end, when a German soldier abruptly appears above them. Ostensibly he's there to get Kolten back...except that Kolten had previously violently attacked him at project headquarters. Seeing him as vulnerable as a fish in a barrel, he instead raises his gun and takes aim. Kolten blinks. Just as the soldier pulls the trigger--D-Day launches himself over the lip of the trench and at him. The soldier, surprised, jerks back, but the gunfire meant for Kolten slams repeatedly into D-Day instead, and he collapses back into the trench, landing crumpled and bloody at the bottom.

Several Trench Rats converge on the spot at that moment, aiming at the German, when with a shattering roar Kolten then launches out of the trench and with a single swing sends the German soldier flying. Guy tumbles head over heels before crashing to the ground; the Trench Rats stand stupefied for a moment as Kolten grabs him by his arm, hauls him up, and hurls him over his head like a ragdoll. He tosses the soldier around and slams him into the ground a few times, bellowing in rage the entire time, before the Rats come to their senses and start yelling for him to stop. It's only when one of them gets close enough to the trench to see D-Day lying at the bottom, and calls out, that Kolten finally stops his assault, panting and sweaty, noticing the Trench Rat's distress at being unable to reach his companion, then glances down into the trench himself. He stumbles heavily back down the earth wall and splashes into the water, making a beeline for D-Day. The Trench Rats raise their voices and their guns, warning him to get back, yet he ignores them and reaches for the unconscious Rat. To their surprise, he stoops down and picks D-Day up--as gentle and careful as anything, cradling him to his chest almost like a baby. He turns back to the Rats and manages to trudge halfway up the earth wall, chunks of it crumbling away under his weight; unable to climb over the top without the use of his hands, he stretches out his arms, holding D-Day up for his companions to reach him. They quickly retrieve D-Day and bustle him off to get medical aid.

A few Rats remain to order Kolten out of the trench; he climbs out and they surround him, herding him toward one of their transport dogs, which he looks at in almost childish wonder. He's told to climb in the side compartment of its saddle. Kolten responds by snapping off his shackles. The Rats react with alarm, shouting for him to hold still; assuming his old restraints must have been damaged in the fight, one of them places on a new set. Kolten then promptly snaps them off as well. Realizing they have nothing on hand that he can't simply break out of, they place on one last set, and order him not to break them off, having to just hope that he'll behave himself. Kolten appears to understand basic English, or else he understands their tone of voice, for he doesn't break the shackles a third time, and instead awkwardly climbs into the compartment. The Rats close him in and follow the others back to Headquarters.

Kolten is placed in a barred cell at Trench Rat Headquarters; they're unsure if the bars can hold him, so tell him to behave, and set up armed guards nearby. Kolten simply sits, and does as he's told. It quickly becomes apparent he's...not quite the superweapon the Nazis have claimed. Yes, he's physically huge, immensely strong, resistant to pain, and full of rage. He's not, however, insane...he addresses the Rats in broken, simple English, and even his native German is stilted and plain, but aside from that, his thought and speech patterns are pretty normal. He has an astonishing memory, especially for faces and for the layouts of buildings--despite being blindfolded when led into Headquarters, he accurately provides a map of his route there, doodling it on the floor of his cell--yet lacks the proper words for many basic concepts, having to use roundabout ways to explain what he means. And his rage seems to be limited to what are basically temper tantrums; his normal state is placid and obedient, and he shows an eagerness to please. He even asks for blocks to play with. If it weren't for the fact that he's built like an ogre, and can snap metal shackles like they're twigs, and toss trained soldiers through the air like feather pillows, anyone observing him might mistake him for a child barely older than four or five.

Sergeant Black Rat goes to see him, waving off the guard who warns him to keep back; he rolls in an apple, which Kolten consumes, core and all, in two bites. When Black mentions Doomsday, Kolten asks if "the little Rat" is all right. Black explains that D-Day has lost a lot of blood, and needs a transfusion. Kolten promptly stands and lumbers forward, thrusting his arms out through the bars so the guard and Black jump back--yet all that Kolten does is turn his hands palms upward. "Magic blood," he exclaims, bobbing his outstretched arms. "It fix little Rat. I have lots. Bitte, take magic blood, bitte." The Trench Rats have figured out that D-Day and Kolten, as subjects of Project Doomsday, must share the same rare blood type and mutation, and Kolten is the only one on hand who can help. Kolten understands this too. He's offering his own blood willingly. The Rats take him to the medical ward, where the surgeon, Burgundy, warns him not to break the equipment. Kolten is led to a bed beside the one D-Day is in; it sags and creaks ominously under his weight, but holds, and Kolten remains still as he's hooked up to an IV which is also connected to D-Day. He sits quietly in his bed and stares at D-Day the entire time he's there, until Burgundy removes the IVs and bandages both their arms; he's then taken back to his cell, without incident. He's given another apple which he downs as quickly as before. D-Day gradually recovers.

The Trench Rats meet to discuss what next to do with their unusual prisoner. Keeping him confined in his small cell no longer seems feasible; it seems cruel. What they'd assumed was insanity appears instead to be a combination of the effects of the Doomsday serum, and some sort of developmental disability. Some of the Rats argue that no matter what his actual condition, Kolten is still a threat, and can't be released; others, such as Corporal Gold Rat, insist that he's safe to be around as long as he's treated properly. Kolten himself is aware of his condition; when Gold asks, he explains the black triangle patch he wears, saying it means that he's "stupid." He mentions spending much of his life in an institution before going to stay with "Doktor-Vater," the doctor in charge of the project, and being prone to tantrums even before the serum was used. Despite the awfulness of being subjected to human experimentation, it's likely this helped spare him from being exterminated by the Nazis as a mental defective. He even pleads with the Trench Rats to not send him back to the psychiatric clinic: "The men in skull-hats will take me away to the bad place. When they do, you never leave, except through the chimney. Bitte, let me stay, I'll be good." The Trench Rats assume that the "men in skull-hats" are the SS, and Kolten will likely be gassed and cremated if they let him go. They can't keep him where he is; they ponder where they should send him next.

LC Mahogany Rat tentatively offers a suggestion. He has a contact in the Abwehr, who in turn has put him in contact with others of anti-Nazi sentiment. Through this contact, he's been introduced to a couple who might be in the perfect place to handle this situation. Fredrik and Lieselotte Albrecht themselves had a son whose mental condition was much similar to, if not the same as, Kolten's; he lacked Kolten's skill with memory, but was prone to tantrums and like Kolten was incapable of learning how to read. Also like Kolten and his building blocks, he developed certain specific fixations, such as obsessing over Fredrik's old model trains, which he would carefully tend to and play with in the former large sitting room of their house, which they'd converted just for him--he would do this for hours, erupting in a rage if anyone tried to take the trains away from him. Mahogany's Abwehr contact, a rather nerdy, well-read man, says that the Albrechts' son never received any formal diagnosis aside from being "slow," but based on his own browsing of medical journals, current studies suggest a condition called autism. Mahogany (who has autistic traits himself) can't adequately describe this concept in a way his fellow Rats understand, though he does insist that this means Kolten is neither insane nor "stupid." Gold Rat is particularly touched by this info, as he'd told Kolten he wasn't stupid, while offering to take his black triangle from him; Gold is dyslexic, and grew up in an environment that treated him as if he were an idiot. The word "stupid" hits him quite hard and he tries never to use it. He asks what became of the Albrechts' son. Mahogany reluctantly replies that, similar to Kolten, he ended up being taken away by the state...some time later, the Albrechts received his death certificate and ashes. Just as Kolten had claimed would happen to him, he was taken by the SS men, and never came back.

Gold pales; he hadn't expected the Albrechts' story to end so gruesomely. Mahogany says that if they're looking for anyone who might be best equipped to handle someone like Kolten, it would be either his family/parents--presumably "Doktor-Vater"--or the Albrechts. Returning Kolten to Project Doomsday is out of the question, so Mahogany offers to ask the Albrechts if they'd be willing to take Kolten in, at least until the end of the war, when a more stable/suitable environment might be found. This proposal is accepted, and the Trench Rats travel out to their farm. Fredrik and Lieselotte seem reluctant and conflicted when presented with this decision; the knowledge that Kolten is the proposed Nazi superweapon is what makes them uneasy. Still..."What if it's like they say," Lieselotte says, "and he's just a frightened boy? Our son never meant any of the harm he did. He didn't understand. What if this one is the same? He deserves a chance...wouldn't you think?" Fredrik is a bit more cautious, but the memory of the loss of their son stings; "Maybe this is a sign," he muses, "maybe Herr Gott is sending us a second chance, another chance to get it right? If we can keep him safe, unlike before...maybe we can do some little bit of good."

The Albrechts soon convince themselves to take Kolten into their home until the war's end. The Trench Rats give them what little information they have, and they prepare their home for his arrival, their spirits and anticipation rising. They fix up their son's little old room at the top of the house, and Fredrik repurposes the unused sitting room yet again, removing the old train sets--wiping at his misty eyes more than once--and clearing the large table; he replaces the trains and scenery with a multitude of wooden blocks of all shapes and sizes, and Lieselotte fills the shelves with picture books and drawing pads. They childproof the home to the best of their ability, and Lieselotte lugs bolts of cloth into her sewing room, prepared to sew new clothes for Kolten as they've been warned about his unusual size. They put away all of their more expensive or sentimental fragile items, and stock the pantry with a good deal of food in case his appetite is unusual to match. They then anxiously await their new guest.

The Trench Rats finally arrive in a military truck. They open the back and Kolten steps out, practically on tiptoe, huddled in on himself, peering about uncertainly. He's never looked more like a child before now; when the Rats lead him onto the Albrechts' porch, and they open the door to greet him, Lieselotte's eyes tear up. "H...hallo, Kolten," she says when the Rats introduce them, and, "Hallo," Kolten says in a very small voice, quite unlike his hulking stature. The Albrechts invite him in; he's reluctant to enter, glancing at Gold, who goes in so he does himself. The Albrechts show him around, speaking softly, moving softly, so he doesn't feel threatened or startled; Kolten keeps his head down and his arms drawn in and doesn't speak the entire time, until they reach the little room under the roof; "I'm sorry the bed is a bit small," Lieselotte says, a little ashamed, "but maybe we can fix up a more comfortable cot for you?" To which Kolten pauses, then peers at her and murmurs, "This...this is my room? For just me?" Lieselotte confirms this, and asks, "You don't like it...?" "Nein," Kolten replies, "just...I've never had a room for just me...only ones with bars on them." Lieselotte has to wipe at her eye.

Lastly, they show him the sitting room with its large table and wooden blocks. For the first time, Kolten lifts his head, and his eyes light up. "For me?" he asks, and Fredrik confirms. "There are some rules, though," he adds; "You can't use the blocks all day," he says, "first you have to take your meals with us--breakfast, lunch, supper--and wash yourself up before bed, same time every night. Liesel can read to you a story before you go to sleep. And you will have chores...you know chores?" Kolten nods--"Ja, I know chores." "Not too hard chores," Fredrik goes on, "just you'll help Liesel and me around the place. If you don't know how to do something, I can teach you. And whenever you're not doing that, you can use your blocks and your books. When it's time for you to do something else, Liesel or I will tell you, and then you have to leave your blocks until you're done. There won't be any argument. You can leave your blocks exactly where they are and no one will touch them until you come back. Can you do this, Kolten...?" "I can," Kolten promises. He points at Gold, who seems surprised to be brought into the conversation, and says, "He says I am not stupid, I can learn," and Gold blushes. "That's right, Kolten," Lieselotte agrees, "there's no one stupid in our house. Just do your best, and that's enough." Kolten is starting to look hopeful, though he pauses, lowers his head a bit again, and murmurs, "May...may I ask one question?" Lieselotte says yes, and Kolten meekly asks, "Are...are there guards here?...and do they hit? Doktor-Vater tells them not to hit...but once in a while, they do." Lieselotte assures him there are no guards, before briefly excusing herself to sniffle and dab a handkerchief at her suddenly streaming eyes.

Kolten handles the introduction to the Albrechts' home well. He grows plaintive when Gold says the Rats have to leave now, and asks if they'll ever come back; Gold replies that he'll see him again, though he's not sure when. Noticing Kolten's dispirited state upon the Trench Rats' departure, Lieselotte asks if he's hungry, thinking to try to distract him; "Nein," Kolten says gloomily, then, oddly, "Danke." He adds, "Herr Hauptsturmführer taught me you always say 'danke' to be polite. Sometimes I forget, but I try." Lieselotte has no idea who "Herr Hauptsturmführer" is, figures he's some SS officer who's interacted enough with Kolten to have made an impression, and replies, "Well...if you forget, you won't get in trouble here, Kolten. So don't you worry if you miss a word here and there. Fredrik and I won't mind."

Over the next days, the Albrechts and Kolten get to know each other. And it's exactly as Mahogany and Gold had suggested. He's huge and incredibly strong, with a deep voice and a glowering look, having to duck his head when stepping through doorways...yet he speaks and thinks and acts much like a child, curious and naive and simple. He has a long memory for slights--he remembers every promise made and broken, and seems to have a strong anxiety of being abandoned, frequently asking them if they're going to leave and not come back, or send him away if he's bad--yet he doesn't carry grudges, and readily accepts apologies when they seem sincere. He doesn't understand written words no matter how much Lieselotte tries to teach him--the only words he appears to know are Blöd, "stupid," the word he wore for years on his chest, and his own name, Kolten, which Gold taught him when taking his black badge--and even with these, Lieselotte theorizes that it's the order and shape of the individual letters that he associates with those words, he isn't actually reading; and he has difficulty with complex subjects and long spoken words. Yet he's always eager to learn new things, and remembers most things he learns, as long as Fredrik and Lieselotte use short, simple words to explain them. He does best with routine and repetition, thus why Fredrik's rules, and chores like woodchopping, are so easy for him (he splits logs with Fredrik's ax as effortlessly as anything, indeed, chopping and carrying wood is the chore he seems to like most); change and the unexpected, he doesn't handle so well, and at such points tends to retreat until things return to normal. He does well without the need for friends other than them; he prefers playing alone, with his blocks or his picture books. He's more interested in objects than people, though he does seem to like and look up to the Albrechts.

This isn't to say there aren't hiccups. The Albrechts learn by trial and error what sort of things set off Kolten's rare but explosive and terrifying rages, and his somewhat more common blue moods. He asks Lieselotte, while sitting in his absurdly tiny bed (it sinks and creaks beneath him, and Lieselotte promises to provide him with something better, at which he insists, "It's fine, it's all right, look, I can fit," perhaps worried that she plans to get rid of him instead), if she'll read him a story like was promised. She asks what kind of stories he likes; he can only say he likes lots of pictures of pretty buildings. Doktor-Vater apparently never bothered reading him bedtime stories. Lieselotte ponders this before fetching a book by the Brothers Grimm; Kolten's never heard of them, but the lush illustrations she shows him capture his attention, especially the gingerbread house in "Hansel & Gretel." He asks all sorts of questions during the story--why are the children abandoned, why is the witch bad, how does she live in a house of gingerbread. Lieselotte has to think up answers to everything ("Magic gingerbread! She's a witch, ja?--obviously, the gingerbread is hexed!"--at which Kolten then asks, "Can you eat hexed gingerbread, is it safe?--does it taste like gingerbread?--does it do anything funny to your insides?"). She then comes to the end of the story, where Gretel shoves the witch in the oven and the children escape with the witch's riches and run back home, not even noticing at first how Kolten's questions have suddenly stopped; she closes the book and smiles at him, though her smile vanishes the instant she sees the look on his face. Kolten's mouth is quivering and his eyes are full of tears; he lets out a little whine and lowers his head into his arms. "Kolten--? What's wrong?" Lieselotte asks, confused and dismayed. To which Kolten whimpers, "Maybe she's a bad witch...but not even a bad witch deserves to be robbed and pushed in an oven. Bitte, I'll be good, don't ever let anyone push me in an oven."

Lieselotte blinks, sucks in a breath. Sure, the Grimms' fairytales have always been gruesome...but the significance of this particular one never struck her before now. Aghast at herself, she fumbles to reopen the book, flips around a bit, then exclaims, "Oh--oh! Look what happened--the pages stuck together! Silly me! That isn't the ending, there's a little bit more! Here, here, let me finish it for you." And she sits and pretends to read, making up an entirely new ending for "Hansel & Gretel," one where the children feel bad about what they did, taking their stolen goods back to the witch's house and letting her out of the oven ("She's a witch, the oven was hexed just like the rest of the house, of course it didn't burn her!"), the witch apologizing and saying she never meant to eat the children, she was just playing a game that went too far but she promises she won't do it again, all of them then returning to the woodcutter's house, the witch and the woodcutter marrying ("See, look!--she's not a bad witch after all, just lonely!") and raising the children as their own. Kolten slowly lifts his head as the story goes on, sniffling a little at first, though by the very end he's rapt; Lieselotte closes the book again with a deep breath, seeing that Kolten is finally mollified, and he obediently lies back and pulls up the covers when she tells him it's time for sleep. He does ask one more question as she gets up to leave: "So, Woodcutter and Witch and Hansel and Gretel, they are a family now?--Vater and Mutter and Kinder?" To which Lieselotte replies, "Ja...I suppose they are a family now." This news seems to satisfy him; they wish each other goodnight, and she shuts the door.

On another occasion, Lieselotte asks Kolten if she can sit and watch him play with his blocks; he consents, and she marvels over the huge, elaborate building he's created. The Albrechts never cease to be amazed by his ability with the blocks, the palaces and complexes and castles he constructs; he dedicates hours of single-minded attention to their construction, then carefully takes them apart when he's done, to start another. When shown pictures and layouts of buildings from books, he can replicate them perfectly, if he has the right blocks; he gets a bit fussy if he doesn't, so Fredrik makes a point of shaping and smoothing all the stray bits of wood from the chopping, and adds them to Kolten's collection. As Lieselotte watches him build this day, she notices an unfinished section missing its keystone; assuming it's in danger of falling apart (Kolten erupts in a bawling tantrum if one of his creations collapses before it's done, and takes hours to settle down again), she reaches out for the block in question. Then gasps and jerks back--quick as lightning, Kolten's hand darts out and grabs the keystone, and he clasps it to his chest, wailing, "NEIN! MINE!" He holds the block away like a jealous parent protecting its child and continues to yell, "No one but he or I can place it! No one else! My keystone! No one else!" It takes quite a long time for Lieselotte--and then Fredrik, who comes running at Kolten's yelling--to calm him down, Lieselotte apologizing profusely and promising not to touch the block again. Then, after Kolten at last stops yelling and relaxes somewhat, his face crumples up and he starts sobbing. "Only he or I can place it," he wails, and "He said he'd come to see me"--and he cries even harder as he clutches the block. The Albrechts realize he's upset not so much about the block anymore, as about whoever is allowed to handle it--they assume Doktor-Vater--and aren't sure how to allay his obvious distress. Fredrik finally coaxes him into helping him chop wood, and Kolten reluctantly sets down the keystone--only after Lieselotte vows not to touch it again--and follows him out, rubbing at his eyes and snuffling. His mood returns to normal by bedtime, though he does beg Lieselotte, before she wishes him goodnight, not to send him away to the place with the chimneys--"I promise I'll be good, I promise I'll try harder." She manages to reassure him, though she does tearfully confide in her husband afterward, "That poor boy...always thinking everyone will turn him away! I don't know how to convince him. He must have gone through so much. The poor thing."

Despite Kolten's fragile moods and occasionally destructive outbursts (he apologizes after each one, begging not to be sent away), the Albrechts learn how to handle him quite well. He never calls them Vater or Mutter (Mahogany, on a visit, suggests that he doesn't really understand the concept of parents--he was raised by the state, and Doktor-Vater is Dr. C, the one behind Project Doomsday, who apparently has the odd habit of requesting all his test subjects to call him Doktor-Vater--he's not Kolten's actual father after all), but he grows to trust them, so much so that Lieselotte shows him a photograph of their son and tells Kolten about him. "He...was like me?" Kolten murmurs; "I did not think anyone was like me." He stares at the photo for a long while. Lieselotte afterward comes across a sketch Kolten made on one of his drawing pads; the lifelike appearance of her son is in stark contrast with Kolten's childish drawings of other things. The Trench Rats check in from time to time, and Kolten adjusts to his new life, which is simple and uneventful and unchanging, the very things he needs to thrive. His tantrums become fewer, he learns some new skills, but most of all, he feels useful; in Dr. C's lab, he says his only use was as a test subject, that otherwise, he was worthless. He says this with such matter-of-factness that Lieselotte's heart hurts...but it helps knowing that he's safe, in a much better place, now.

Late in the war, the Trench Rats contact the Albrechts with news, and a strange request. They've raided Project Doomsday headquarters, finding both other captives/test subjects--including Trench Rats Corporal Drake and LC Teal--as well as taking two captives of their own: project head Dr. C, whose real name is Dietmar Kammler, and Hauptsturmführer, or Captain, Otto Himmel, who apparently oversees the project to ensure that it continues getting funding. Dr. C is killed by Teal while being taken into custody; Himmel, as a high-value captive, is placed in a cell under strict supervision. The Albrechts wonder why the Rats are telling them this; the odd request, it turns out, is because of Himmel, and relates to Kolten. Himmel at first shows no inclination to cooperate with the Trench Rats' own request for information, until he hears someone mention Kolten. He says he'll hand over all the information he has on Project Doomsday--and as overseer, it's quite a lot--for just one thing: A visit to Kolten. He doesn't elaborate, and refuses to say anything else unless they grant this request, then stubbornly falls silent. The Trench Rats debate this for a bit before deciding to grant the request--Himmel will be restrained and accompanied the entire time, surely it can't hurt?--but only if the Albrechts agree. Fredrik and Lieselotte ponder the request; Lieselotte, especially, is uneasy: "What interest does this man have in Kolten, why would he possibly want to see him?--does he want to take him back to the project?" Fredrik reminds her that the Rats insist Project Doomsday is done for good with Kammler's death, and Himmel is a prisoner of war--there's nowhere for Kolten to return to. He suggests they just grant the request and get it over with. Lieselotte finally agrees; the Albrechts give the Rats their answer, and anxiously await their arrival.

The Trench Rats arrive like the first time, in a military truck, and pull someone out of the back--a blindfolded, shackled man in a dusty, bloodstained SS uniform. They pull his blindfold down and he blinks the glare out of his eyes, peering around, his stare falling on the big farmhouse. He glances at the Albrechts--Fredrik draws himself up, trying to look imposing, while Lieselotte cowers a little--and something odd happens--the SS officer lowers his head and draws in on himself a bit. Lieselotte gets a strange feeling she can't explain. A Trench Rat nudges him forward and they make their way to the porch. "Come in," Fredrik says shortly, and they all go inside.

"Kolten's in the sitting room," Fredrik says, "let me fetch him," and he heads up the hall. The group can hear him call out, "Kolten--? Kolten...a visitor to see you." Himmel's expression changes--a mixture of curiosity, hope, anxiety--again, it reminds Lieselotte of something she can't place. Fredrik returns alone, saying, "He's with his blocks...he might get upset if I try to push." To which Himmel promptly responds, "May--may I go in and see? I promise I won't bother him." Fredrik hesitates, then steps aside. The Rats escort Himmel to the doorway and he peers within. His face immediately lights up when he sees Kolten absorbed in assembling a castle; he takes a step, then halts, as Gold Rat pauses to undo his shackles. "Don't try anything," he says under his breath, and steps aside so Himmel can enter.

The Trench Rats and the Albrechts look on as Himmel hesitantly approaches Kolten's table; he pauses to cast the towering castle an admiring look, then looks at Kolten. Kolten doesn't acknowledge him, just keeps building. Himmel sits down across from him and watches him for a while, not speaking. He looks at the loose blocks still scattered across the table before his stare focuses on one in particular--Lieselotte recognizes the keystone immediately--and before she can speak, Himmel reaches for the keystone and puts it in place.

Lieselotte and Fredrik gasp and flinch back, Lieselotte's hands going up to her mouth; Gold glances at them with a puzzled frown. Kolten's hand freezes placing a block, and he stares at the keystone for a beat, then his eyes shift to Himmel. Himmel says softly, "Hallo, Kolten." There's a very long pause.

Kolten: *pause* *sullenly* "You said you would come to see me."

Himmel: *resigned* "I know."

Kolten: "You didn't. I waited for you, but you didn't."

Himmel: "I know, Kolten. I'm so sorry."

Kolten: "Why didn't you come...?" *lowers head* "Did...did you not want to see me...?"

Himmel: "Nein, Kolten, that's not it at all, I wanted to see you, I would have if I could have. But I didn't know where you were. And...I knew that wherever they took you, it had to be safer than where you were before."

Kolten: "With Doktor-Vater...?"

Himmel: "Ja, with him. Have they treated you well here...?"

Kolten: "Herr and Frau Albrecht treat me all right. They give me chores, but not too hard, and books to look at, and blocks to build with, and a sweet sometimes when I'm good. They aren't you, though."

Himmel: "I know. Are you happy here?"

Kolten: "I guess I am. It's nice here, they don't yell at me, not even when I'm bad...they aren't you, though."

Himmel: "I know, Kolten...I'm sorry I didn't keep my promise. But I'm here now."

Kolten: "Does...does this mean I am going back to Doktor-Vater, now...?"

Himmel: "Nein. Doktor-Vater is gone. The project is over."

Kolten: "He's gone...?"

Himmel: *nods* "You're not going back there."

Kolten: *long pause* *uncertainly* "Then...does this mean, I am going with Hauptsturmführer-Vater, now...?"

Himmel sits bolt upright. Fredrik and Lieselotte glance at each other, stunned, as the Trench Rats do the same. Himmel looks just as surprised as the rest of them; he blinks and stammers.

Himmel: "You...you know...?"

Kolten: *shrugs* "I have always known."

Himmel: "But...how? They said at the clinic I couldn't tell you, it would confuse you..."

Kolten: "I remember you. From before, when I was little. I remember the woman too, and Doktor-Vater."

Himmel: "But...you never called me...how do you know who I am?"

Kolten: "I did not know what to call you. In the clinic though, they taught us about family. About Vater and Mutter and Kinder. I asked if I had a Vater or Mutter and they said everyone does so I asked where mine were but they wouldn't say. But when they taught us, they said that a Vater and Mutter love their Kinder..." *looks upward & recites slowly* "...un-con-di-tion-al-ly. That means no matter what." *looks at Himmel* "That's how I knew. You were the only one who loved me un-con-di-tion-al-ly."

Himmel: *tears in eyes* "That's right, Kolten."

Kolten: "Do I go home with you, now? Herr and Frau Albrecht are nice, but I want to go with you."

Himmel: "I'm sorry. You can't come with me right now."

Kolten: "Do you not want me to...?"

Himmel: "Nein, Kolten, that's not it at all. I want you with me more than anything. But I have nowhere to bring you. And you can't come with me where I'm going."

Kolten: "Why not...?"

Himmel: "I've done some bad things...and now I have to go and take responsibility for what I've done. You understand responsibility...?"

Kolten: "Ja, I understand. When I get mad and break something, I take re-spon-si-bil-i-ty."

Himmel: "That's right, Kolten."

Kolten: "You broke something?"

Himmel: *pained look* "That's right. And now I have to take responsibility. You can't come with me, you have to stay here, if the Albrechts will keep you."

Kolten: "Are you going to come back...?"

Himmel: "I don't know, Kolten. But if I can, I will. I'll do everything I can to come back here."

Kolten: "You promise...?"

Himmel: "I promise. I know my promises mean little, now, but I mean it. If I can come back to you, I will."

Kolten: *pause* "You are here now...I believe you."

Himmel and Kolten share a tearful goodbye--Himmel assures Kolten he loves him and Kolten has never disappointed him, at which Kolten surprises him with a hug--and Himmel then returns to the Trench Rats, holding up his arms to be cuffed again. "Danke," he murmurs as they do so, and Lieselotte remembers the time Kolten said, "Herr Hauptsturmführer taught me you always say 'danke' to be polite. Sometimes I forget, but I try." She finally understands: Kolten's father had been teaching him manners. How to be kind. They've been separated most of their lives, but they do remember and love each other.

Himmel is taken back into Trench Rat custody, and provides the information he promised. Dr. Kammler was his brother-in-law--his late wife Dagmar's brother--who attempted to have him killed, so he could take custody of Kolten for use in Project Doomsday. For this reason, when Kolten was liberated by the Trench Rats, Himmel didn't try to get him back, knowing he would be safer with them. Kolten's absence still devastated him, however. He outlines his activities as overseer of the project his own son was in, and these include the execution of a Trench Rat named Corporal Anna Julian. This incident, so abrupt and out of character, has never been explained before now; Himmel claims Julian was in fact a spy working for the Waffen-SS, meaning he killed someone who was technically on his own side. Kolten had repeated, verbatim, comments and conversations he'd overheard Julian make, in which she made it clear she not only embraced Nazi ideals, but was looking to have Kolten struck from the project as useless and, presumably, killed. Himmel did the only thing he could think of to save his son without blowing his own cover--he'd been furtively sabotaging the project from the inside ever since Kammler's attempt on his life--and eliminated the threat. He's been racked with guilt ever since--the only reason he joined the SS was to prevent Kolten from being euthanized--but vows that if he had it to do again, he would. "No one was looking out for my son but me," he says. "I would do anything to keep him safe. Anything."

Shortly after the war ends, Himmel is brought before a military tribunal. Fredrik attends the public event to see for himself what sort of person Kolten's father is. He, and from the sound of it some others in the gallery who've also known Himmel at various points in life, expect some sort of extreme to emerge--either a saint who can do no evil, or a monster who can murder without a second thought. All of them are proven wrong. Himmel is simply a flawed father who chose to do something awful to protect his family. While he does defend his actions, he doesn't protest receiving whatever punishment he's given. His aid to the Trench Rats is taken into account--he massively enhanced their knowledge of Project Doomsday, and pointed them out to what SS records still exist, which may help reunite survivors of the camps--and the verdict is reached; he's found guilty of belonging to a criminal organization, yet is cleared of the charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. While the tribunal rebukes him for the extrajudicial killing of Corporal Julian, they reviewed enough evidence and similar testimonials--including Kolten's--to show that it's highly likely her death spared some lives. He's stripped of his SS and military ranks and honors, has his weapons confiscated, and is let go. Gold Rat helps him retrieve what few of his belongings he wishes to take with him, and when asked where he'd like to go, Himmel quietly replies, "The Albrechts' farm, bitte."

Fredrik has since returned home to fill Lieselotte in on things. They both think they couldn't possibly kill someone even for the greater good, yet when they think of killing someone to protect their son, they find they aren't so sure. They've spent all of Kolten's time here assuming his absent father must have been a despicable person, to just let his son go like that...but the truth is much murkier. Based on Himmel's testimony, he did everything he could for Kolten, including things that went against his very nature--even his refusal to come fetch Kolten back, thus breaking his promise, was motivated by his desire to keep him safe. "That's love," Lieselotte says, simply, and they both look toward Kolten, playing with his blocks.

A military truck arrives. The Albrechts know who it is before anyone even exits. Himmel and Gold get out, Gold carrying the box with Himmel's belongings, and approach the porch. Lieselotte opens the door before Himmel can knock, and to his surprise, hugs him. She leads them inside, calling for Kolten. He appears in the doorway, head ducked; Himmel's face lights up and he raises his own head just like before, and Lieselotte finally realizes what it was she saw in Himmel's lowered head and drawn-in posture when he last visited: He'd looked exactly like Kolten, when Kolten first came to stay with them. "Hallo, Kolten," Himmel greets him, and Kolten wraps his arms around him, dwarfing his father.

Himmel stays with Kolten and the Albrechts throughout the evening. He asks about the home some distance away, noticing no smoke coming from its chimney; they confirm that it's abandoned. Himmel decides that he'll stay in the abandoned house for now, while Kolten continues living with the Albrechts; they've grown quite fond of him, and have much more to offer him than Himmel currently does, which is basically the shirt on his back. The Albrechts (and Kolten) try to convince him to stay with them as well, but he seems too ill at ease to do so; after nightfall he departs, but promises Kolten he'll return in the morning. And he does, taking breakfast with them, watching Kolten do his chores, joining him as he plays with his blocks, reading to him from a picture book. He heads back to the abandoned house at night. This remains the situation for a while, as Himmel struggles through a long deep winter and an equally deep depression, eventually being drawn out of it by the intercession of some old acquaintances from the war. They arrive in the spring to fix up the house, and Kolten goes to stay with his father--and Himmel's companion Johanna Wolfstein, sister of one of Kolten's fellow test subjects--though he does return to the Albrechts' house every day for chores, and to get sweets and new blocks from "Aunt and Uncle."

Over time, Himmel adopts a handful of children from orphanages, and his acquaintances bring their children to visit, and the Albrechts welcome them as guests, also. Kolten, older and much bigger than they are, is a doting and protective playmate, making sure they never get hurt. The air, previously so still following the loss of the Albrechts' son, fills with childish shouts and laughter. Lieselotte and Fredrik take to sitting out on their porch on warm days, listening to the sounds and smiling wistfully, that at least one parent and child have a happy ending.

[Lieselotte Albrecht 2024 [‎Friday, ‎April ‎19, ‎2024, ‏‎12:00:06 AM]]

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