rthstewart | Meta, Hijacking, Give the Pevensies A Friend

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Meta, Hijacking, Give the Pevensies A Friend

Some rambling meta, over here rather than clogging up animus_wyrmis's LJ on Give the Pevensie A Friend. Given the number of OCs who run around in my stories, the creating of friends (or even more of them) wasn't a problem. It was shutting up about them.

Peter and the cool Tril -- I think that one is self explanatory and no real surprise. The Oxford swifts do indeed roost in the Museum towers. Once Animus moved them to a pub, I gave Peter a whole crew of chums and he's helping little old ladies whose husbands and sons are dead and whose daughter has a baby left behind by a Yank from the D Day buildup. Rather typical slice o' life, I should think.

Susan and Agnes was an old idea and I loved the idea of the two of them bonding over North American-oriented girls' books. I really wanted Susan to help Agnes write a Little Women fan fiction where the March girls are all of African descent and Jo married Laurie. And lurking beneath, maybe Susan doesn't think that a romance with and marriage to a young, dashing, handsome, passionate, intelligent man is such a good thing.

Lucy- I really wanted to do a sort of reconciliation with Marjorie Preston to show Lucy not being the unfaithful friend. I also wanted Lucy to have more friends but I started Marjorie and Jane out as weak and I'm glad that commentors fixed them and they are all more fun. Alice is, of course, a thinly disguised insert -- some combination of metonomia , l_a_r_m , lady_songsmith , and ilysia_039 . More to the point, in this you see a lot of the Lucy that is to come in Part 3, if I ever make it out of Part 2. Lucy in this vision is the true revolutionary. It's already laid out in Parts 1 and 2 and this gives a good flavor for where I see her going in Part 3 (assuming I ever get there, see above).

Polly and Richard go way back. I had wanted to do this one as a part of a Valentine's Day series It is during this trip that he tells her that Mary has been asking him to marry her and Richard gets all seductive manipulative and Polly will have none of it. I think, Richard always longs for Polly and never gets what he wants. Back a chapter or two ago, when Polly goes to Russell House, the implication is that Mary wants to get Polly drunk and seduce her and Kwong Lee enables it. I'm not sure what's in it for Polly, but Mary clings to those who are closest to Richard. Richard loves Polly, so Mary will love Polly. I wrote before that I was getting mad at Richard and this little story was part of why.

Susan and George. There were some questions about this one. This one, of all of them, is the least compliant with the overall vision. The Soviet moles were recruited in the 30s and burrowed into the British SIS and were in place by the War and stayed there for decades. Burgess and Maclean defect in 1951. Kim Philby, however, remains in the West until 1963. "Stanley" was Philby's code name. What I wrote more closely follows the events that lead George Smiley, the old fat spy of le Carre's Tinker Tailor story, out of retirement and on to the trail of Gerald the mole. le Carre's story is the fictionalization of the chase for Philby.
I don't know how much of this I will or could use. The Colonel is too old in 1942 to be called out retirement in 1962. The timing for Susan isn't quite right either. The bullets in Tebbitt's back and winding up in the girls' school are taken straight out of Tinker Tailor and the story of the super spy Jim Prideaux (working name Ellis) who is betrayed by the mole, Gerald, in order to deflect the hunt for him being brought by the head of the intelligence service.
The idea that Susan and Tebbitt are galloping across the globe recruiting agents in South American, Asia, and Europe sounds fun in concept but could be very dull to read and write. I did come up with an idea last night along these lines, however, so (again, assuming I ever make it out of part 2) I now have an idea for Part 3 (or, in truth if 3 is too long, Part 4 GRRRRRR). Yes, it is post-train wreck -- it must be. Once I committed to Susan's story for Part 3, it was always going to involve spies, though I won't be using the Narnia/Tashbaan conceit. As I said to LARM the other night, this bit about the Cambridge 5 has been in the story since Part 1. Once you introduce British intelligence in this time period you have to deal with it as it overshadows everything. It's a terrible tale.

I felt badly I hijacked another person's thread, so thought it better to move it over here.

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I'm glad you summarized the thread jacking here. It's easier to keep track of it this way. :-)

Since Mary is okay (I assume she is) with Richard and Wangari together, would this mean she'd be fine if Polly ever had a fling with Richard now? Polly and Mary have things in common and yet they are so very different -- is this part of the attraction Richard has for Polly?

As for Susan, the Colonel and Tebbitt -- an AU of the TSG timeline? Like the chapter where Susan and Tebbitt performs the break-in? It's still an interesting idea even if it's outside of the regular world-building.

Ahh Lucy. It is good to see her interacting with others unfamiliar with Narnia. We've had Peter and Oxford crew (the university students and Russell Hall); Susan's surrounded by British Intelligence, and even Edmund has had some interaction with Asim.

And speaking of Edmund.... have Harold and Morgan truly tied the knot? An official bonding ceremony has taken place in Narnia, or something Lucy says to stem her friend's curiosity about her brother? Or would your rather not answer that and let us make up our own minds? :-)

Since Mary is okay (I assume she is) with Richard and Wangari together, would this mean she'd be fine if Polly ever had a fling with Richard now? Polly and Mary have things in common and yet they are so very different -- is this part of the attraction Richard has for Polly?

"Richard, let this be our compromise then. I shall not expect fidelity from you and you shall not expect obedience from me. Though..."

Propped over him on an elbow, her fingertips paused in their thorough explorations; a scowl marred her young face. "Though, might you at least promise to avoid sex with the stupid women? I would be irritated with you then."

A guffaw escaped him, though really, he should not have been surprised. Richard settled back against the hotel pillows. "I shall have the solicitor include administration of an aptitude test in the section of the pre-nuptial entitled Philandering?"

"Though, might you at least promise to avoid sex with the stupid women? I would be irritated with you then."

Ah Mary, ever so openminded and forward thinking; she's definitely way ahead of her time.

It is during this trip that he tells her that Mary has been asking him to marry her and Richard gets all seductive manipulative and Polly will have none of it. I think, Richard always longs for Polly and never gets what he wants. Back a chapter or two ago, when Polly goes to Russell House, the implication is that Mary wants to get Polly drunk and seduce her and Kwong Lee enables it.

WAIT WHAT OMG HOW DID I NOT CATCH THAT AND ALSO ADDITIONAL FIC ALONG THESE LINES MAY BE REQUIRED

*scampers back to read*

The Richard, Polly, Valentine's Day piece is over on Animus' LJ, along with some other things. As for the implication regarding Polly and Mary:

Weary of the perpetual summonses, Edmund sat at the bottom of the stair, skimming Lady Chatterley’s Lover.

Peter loomed at the stair. “What are you reading?”

“Lady Chatterley’s Lover I really don’t understand the fuss.”

“Really?”

“It's very stupid. Inaccurate, too. “

Edmund handed Peter the book. “There, for example, bottom of the page.”

His brother skimmed the paragraphs in question. Peter shook his head and handed it back. “A bit pathetic, isn’t it? I’d never thought basic biology would be such a confounding mystery.”

“I thought I’d give it to Eustace.”

“No, brother, you will not.”

Edmund got a Most Royal Frown for that one.

“I’ve got a better idea, Edmund. Send it to Aunt Polly.”

“You’re joking!”

“Oh no. Not at all. I’m sure she would welcome it. Probably share it with Mary. And I’m going to stop right there, and not go a word further insofar as that is concerned.”

“Swaying as the Dryads do?”

“I couldn’t possibly speculate.”

Right. Except you have already done so, and have now shared it with me.

“Or … Polly and .. the Professor?”

His brother rolled his eyes. “You are disturbed, sometimes, Edmund. I will say that Aunt Polly has led, by my judge, a very full and adventurous life.”

Peter did have an astute eye in this regard. Years of catching swooning princesses and dodging their persistent dowager mothers had trained him up well.

“Really?!”

“Oh yes. Ask her to tell you about the time she and Richard Russell were on the Nile and a crocodile ate their guide.”

“Wait. Doctor Richard Russell? With Aunt Polly? In Africa?”

“And mosquito netting for only one camp cot.”

HOW DID I NOT CATCH THAT
Polly gets amorous when she drinks (See the Christmas story). In TSG Part 1, Chapter 15, the last chapter, before Peter hares off to Oxford, Mary notes that she wants to break out the gin with Polly that evening at the house as Richard is in the hospital. In Chapter 18, Moles in the Garden, it's a continuation of the same day, but now at Russell House. Polly is there in the kitchen and Mary and Kwong Lee are conspiring to get her drunk. The scene is from Asim's point of view, so he, of course, doesn't see it.

“I thought I’d give it to Eustace.” -- Supposing that Edmund did do so, I wonder what Eustace would think of it all (let's disregard his initial reaction to the story as Ed had described it in the pub with Asim listening in). As Peter had thought, Edmund discussing the necessary company of woman with their newly converted cousin would be most alarming.

I must tell you that you have been influencing my book reading. I went to the bookstore yesterday and now Lady Chatterly's Lover is awaiting my attention when I finally have some time to read it.

I am a part of Alice? *blushes* I feel as if it makes me part of some super awesome secret rebel club. Sweeet!

Thank you for this! I always pester you for more info about your fabulous characters and here we have nice linear explanations laid out for us. Agnes writing fanfic! Susan and George (yes yes YES)! (Timelines be damned, this is so fabulous. PLEASE WRITE!) From what you've said, I suspect Richard always longs for Polly *because* he never gets what he wants.

Part 4. OMFG YES. This would be the fulfillment of my life. It would be like, beyond perfect. Imagine the dramatic summaries! The titles! I'll write them for you. Something along the lines of "Part 4: The Story Never Meant to be Told" or "Part 4: Beyond Death - The Fight Continues" or "Susan: The Untold Story". I've got a ton. Lols! But really, it would be so brillz. Because Susan's story after never *was* told. Please please please! And remember you owe Tebbitt that leading role.

Yes, that's the part I went back to read, with them wandering off to the library with booze and Lee making the choice of guest rooms complicated.

Teehee, they all have such interesting relationships.

OH YES, this part. I remember now.

“You are disturbed, sometimes, Edmund. I will say that Aunt Polly has led, by my judge, a very full and adventurous life

I am quite sure that this is indeed the case, and now am speculating delightedly on Polly growing up and having all those varieties of adventures. After all, she wandered into several other worlds as a little girl and it turned out alright- what's the worst that could happen around here? :P

(Random thing I remembered: did you ever read

montycrowley's story "Lights Across the River"? Because it is good.)

One word: Yes. That is all. This is so wonderfully amazing... (and, on the side, being even a small part of Alice makes me blush and feel amazingly wonderful. So.) All of this will get much more- much, much more- attention when the world stops throwing things at me. Until then, simply: YES.

Like the others, OMG! Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant. I love it all. So I assume that university Peter has done his duty, found it awful, and is finally seeking his true path? And the suggestion of another Susan not-chapter is an excellent one, too. Oh, my -Polly. Missed it too. So should we ask if Mary was successful in her devious plan, or do we just go with Ed's 'not relevant'?

I just want to encourage you - do go on writing, I'll read all I can find!

We will see you on the other side! Oh yes, Alice was totally all you amazing women who would of course be fabulous friends to Lucy and Susan.

The Polly thing is only there is someone knew I intended it. It's deliberately not obvious for all the obvious reasons. I did see Polly as being very libertine about it all, possibly even preferring female relations, at least for a time, to avoid complications. It was, however, something I'd considered for a really, really long time. The dialog between Peter and Edmund (I have circulated it among a few people -- I don't think I posted it here) is something that I also wrote a long time ago, but never included and a version of it might show in Part 3 (assuming, all together now, I EVER GET THERE). It's not relevant to the story at all, but only to the characters and their interactions with one another. It's really about Richard being a jerk to women, Polly emotionally careful enough to avoid it, Mary not caring because she loves him so much, and Mary's not unfounded insecurities. I spend way too much time thinking about the OCs obviously -- the first sign that an author has created a Sue, though I continue to think of Mary as a parody on the convention in that she WANTS the world to revolve around her, and it never does, to her everlasting irritation.

Awww, thanks!

You all would be totally awesome friends to Lucy and Susan. You've nailed it about Richard and Polly is emotionally careful enough to keep the distance that allows her to maintain their relationship and her emotional self-respect. I can't help thinking that Digory might have been a very useful friend and model for her in this. For all that Digory is very Victorian in outlook with no interest in sexuality at all, he is a very keen and sensible observer.

As for Tebbitt, you need to watch a few minutes of Parts 1 and 2 of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. I saw bits of Tebbitt in the agents Jim Prideaux, Peter Guillame, and Ricky Tarr. I see a lot of the Colonel in the George Smiley

It gets even more interesting when you consider what Digory's role is in all this. I really see him as helping Polly keep her head. He's not emotionally evolved, he's not involved in these games, but he sees very, very clearly and I think that if Polly ever waivers with "foolish romantic" ideas, Digory is there to ground her.

I've not read that story and will add it to the list! Thanks! And yes, I think Polly has done all sorts of interesting things and experimentation. She and Digory are both very unique and eccentric individuals, for all that they express it very differently.

I read LCL in high school a very (very) long time ago and didn't think much of it. DH Lawrence seemed rather focused on over the top metaphor.

Yes, I know, I didn't answer your other questions. H&M is to come, though the basics of it are already in place.

I don't really know about the Colonel/Susan story. It's a different story, it doesn't quite fit, but I'm sure that some elements will show up eventually. It would obviously not be a short story and I'm not sure if I'd have the energy or if there would be the interest in a story that is post crash and so heavily reliant upon OCs. I still have to get to Part 3, which means, still having to get to Part 2.

Ooooh, these all sound AWESOME. Clearly I need to actually read your fic, because it is WICKED EXCITING and sounds excellent. :D :D Your OCs are really cool--how much research do you do for them, and where do you go for information?

Oh Gawd. Which ones? The full cast of characters is here, http://rthstewart.livejournal.com/17369.html

The Good Beasts and others of Narnia come from biology, mostly, and from YEARS of tromping through zoos, aquariums, and natural history museums with the kids. I do lots of animal research. The irritable, potty-mouthed Otters, for instance, came about during my kids' zoo summer camp when we learned that keepers would never go in the enclosure with the otters because they were so nasty.

The Spare Oom side comes from a lot of things. With Richard Russell, I wanted a "last of the Great Victorian explorers," a man of faith who is also a scientist and ethologist and a sort of homage to Darwin. He meets Polly because she has devoted her life to wildlife conservation and is a keeper at the Whipsnade Zoo. Richard's wife, Mary, is a sort of tribute to Great Women of British Archaeology -- people like Mary Anning, Dorothea Bate, and Gertrude Bell. Asim bin Kalil, the Muslim spy and mystic, is there in part to explore how the vision of Narnian inclusiveness is not limited to evangelical Christians.

The characters in The Queen Susan in Tashbaan are taken in part from the book, The Irregulars: Roald Dahl and the British Spy Ring of Wartime Washington. Tebbitt is based loosely upon Dahl himself.

I do LOTS of research. As I slog through Chapter 20, I have windows open to:
An African American funeral program from 1933
http://www.negrospirituals.com/song.htm
Wiki entries about soul food, West African and Caribbean cuisine, dumplings across the world,
Wintley Phipps singing Amazing Grace at Carnegie Hall (playing "negro spirituals" on the black notes of the piano
The order of service in an Anglican service
All sorts of fun mythological stuff about satyrs from theoi.com

Sometimes I think we only really write as an excuse to research anything and everything that catches our interest :-)

Mostly I was thinking of your OCs this side of the wardrobe--fantastic!

!!! I love sources for things. theoi.com is one of my favorite sites.

ALSO OMGOMG FEMALE ARCHAEOLOGISTS THAT IS WHAT POLLY IS DOING WHY DID I NOT REALIZE THIS BEFORE OMG I NOW KNOW WHY SHE AND LUCY ARE SUCH FRIENDS YES. I love this fandom, I get plot bunnies just from listening to people talk!

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