City of Spies

"Die Mauer wird in 50 und auch in 100 Jahren noch bestehen bleiben, wenn die dazu vorhandenen Gründe noch nicht beseitigt sind." -- Honecker, 1989 (An rp blog for my OC, Dr. Liliane (Lily) Beilschmidt, (East) Berlin.) Member of Off-Brand Nations

[mauerfrau]

Blog || Rules and Info

An independent RP blog for (East) Berlin.

I also do spy stuff. HMU for spy stuff. Please.

[paperworkanddogs]

"..... Because I need a dumb woman?" The question was confusing. "Do you not have dumb secretaries?" Foolish, someone had to sort out his states' hiring processes

[mauerfrau]

"First of all," said Katharina, "clerks can be of any gender. Secondly, they are not stupid. Again, I ask, why are you being so derogatory."

[ourfairdominion]

"Lama lawyer?" Matthew couldn't help but laugh at that.

[mauerfrau]

She gave him a confused look, as if his laughter made no sense at all. "Yes, of course, a llama lawyer. Whom else would I get in a paternity case for a llama?"

[paperworkanddogs]

"The kind of place that sells good beers," he said plainly as he started walking again

[mauerfrau]

"And what? You're not going to share this magical place with me?"

[ourfairdominion]

@mauerfrau

"Maybe you owe her child support."

"I'll put out extra lettuce for her then. I don't know if I'm ready to be a father."

[mauerfrau]

She put her hand on his shoulder. "It happens to the best of us. Even I was a father once. But then I met a good llama lawyer and that took care of that."

[mauerfrau]

@paperworkanddogs

She happily takes the beer and opens it up with ease before taking a drink. "A new place? What kind of new place?"

[mauerfrau]

He's wearing a shirt that says "God forbid I carry on my mother's legacy" with pictures of a pair of grippy socks and a bottle of medication. He's also wearing cargo shorts, long white socks, sandals, and a sun hat. Aster and Malva bound after him, both with backpacks. Ludwig has a case of beer on wheels.

"walk back to my house with me," he tells her as he pops open a new bottle

@paperworkanddogs

She's over questioning his life and fashion choices. She just can't be bothered to anymore. So she starts walking with him. "What's up?"

[bitterteaneedsmilk]

Arthur caught the wallet and tucked it into the interior pocket of his coat's front this time, where he normally kept the thing. Shame a lapse of judgement and being distracted by his phone's GPS had made him a laughing stock today. Oh well. "Hmph, normally I'm quite on guard. It's just a shame that this doesn't want to work like it should today." He sighed as he gestured to the phone in his hand.

"Love Story of Berlin is the name of it. Heard it had a good selection of English titles and I was admittedly curious as to if that was true." He gave a small shrug and chuckles a bit, "then I was going to see if I could find a good pub afterwards on my way back to the hotel."

[mauerfrau]

"Oh sure, sure, blame the phone. That's what we all do anyway," she said with a laugh. As soon as he mentioned the name of the store, she nodded. "Oh sure, I know where that is. It's easy enough to find from here. I'll take you there myself. And afterwards, I'll lead you to a good pub and you can buy me food and beer, alright? Fair's fair. Consider it a trade offer." She grinned and stuck out her hand to him to shake.

With that taken care of, she turned around and walked in the opposite direction of where he'd been heading. "Come on then. Don't get left behind."

[paperworkanddogs]

"my current secretary is quitting to be a stay at home monther," he explained. "So I need a new one"

[mauerfrau]

"You didn't answer the question," said Katharina as she pushed her glasses up on the bridge of her nose. "We asked you what you meant by, 'dumb women.' Why are you being so derogatory?"

[paperworkanddogs]

"give my wallet back, you have enough"

[mauerfrau]

She pulled out a wad of cash and one of his cards and then tossed his wallet back to him. "There. That thing is ugly anyways. Wouldn't be caught dead with it."

[mauerfrau]

//Happy Easter. I swear I'm not dead. Teacher life has just been killing me in terms of time, energy, motivation, will to live, etc. But only 7 more weeks of school left. If I survive them, I'll be back on here soon.

[mauerfrau]

"I don't know if I believe in karma, but today's hockey game might have been proof of that..."

[mauerfrau]

@paperworkanddogs

As Lily set down a case of beer for her aunt and brother on the table in front of the TV, Ludwig just had to go and open his big, dumb, mustached mouth.

"Do either of you know any other dumb women I could hire as a secretary?"

If there had been a record playing, it would have scratched to a standstill. Katharina and Lily looked at each other, and then at Ludwig.

"What, exactly, do you mean by 'dumb women,' Ludwig?" asked Katharina, her voice measured and controlled.

"Yeah," said Lily, "Care to elaborate?"

[paperworkanddogs]

@mauerfrau

"I didn't mean for you to steal my money," he complained. "I meant Berlin has everything"

[mauerfrau]

"I'm not stealing your money. I'm just pulling out what I'm owed."

[mauerfrau]

It had become far too easy to spot a tourist in Berlin at this point, that it was hardly even fun anymore. Most of the time, Lily ignored them, unless they tried to stop her for directions to the Berghain. In that case, she usually gave them directions to some overpriced tourist trap bar instead and went on her way before they could stop her again.

However, when she happened to spot England wandering around looking like a lost chicken with his head cut off, well, she just had to have some fun, right? She followed him at a slight distance for a bit, keeping just out of his sight like the trained spy she was. When he stopped in front of a park bench to look at his phone again, she snuck up behind him. Before he could notice her, she slipped his wallet out of his pocket. Then, she leaned in close to his ear and said, "Lost your way, old man? Don't tell me you're looking for a club this early in the day."

She grinned at him and started looking through his wallet right in front of him. "Hmm. You don't have nearly enough in here for a private city tour, you know. But maybe I can cut you a discount."

[bitterteaneedsmilk]

Honestly, he was beginning to wonder if his phone's GPS was broken with how it seemed to keep taking him in random directions. Naturally though it was likely due to the buildings around him causing interference but damn if it wasn't infuriating. Seriously he was about ready to find a local, be it human or one of magical persuasion to guide him to the damned bookstore he was trying to find.

As he was being followed his own spy instincts were starting to send out little alarm bells but he couldn't see anyone following him obviously so he tuned it out for the most part. Plus it didn't help he was fairly distracted at that moment as well. So imagine the poor man's surprise when he felt something right behind him mere seconds before he heard the voice next to his ear.

"Egads woman, are you trying to give me a heart attack!?" The poor nation jolted forward a step, trying to keep his fight or flight instincts in check so he didn't accidentally throw a punch at the other. It took his startled mind a few moments to fully process whom he was seeing and he huffed out an angry sigh. Right, she was like him in a way, like his own friend who personified London actually. Damn he had to admit she got him good at least.

"Oi, give that back! And hardly, I'm looking for a certain bookstore in this general area." The blond went to snatch his wallet back from her hold, rather embarrassed she'd managed to swipe it from him in the first place.

[mauerfrau]

Lily laughed as she tossed the wallet back to the Englishman. "You should consider yourself lucky I wasn't a more nefarious stalker then. You left yourself wide open there." She said, shaking her head a bit. Then, she hopped over the back of the bench to stand next to him.

"Which bookstore are you trying to find. Bet I can lead you there faster than the brick in your hand," she said, pointing to the phone he was holding."

[bitterteaneedsmilk]

@mauerfrau liked for a starter

It isn't like he was bad with directions but given how he hadn't visited the city in quite a while. Berlin was huge and while he could read and speak German it wasn't like he instantly knew where everything was. Good thing he had a GPS on his phone. Even then he probably still looked like a damned tourist with how often he checked it. Maybe he should stop and ask for directions.

[mauerfrau]

It had become far too easy to spot a tourist in Berlin at this point, that it was hardly even fun anymore. Most of the time, Lily ignored them, unless they tried to stop her for directions to the Berghain. In that case, she usually gave them directions to some overpriced tourist trap bar instead and went on her way before they could stop her again.

However, when she happened to spot England wandering around looking like a lost chicken with his head cut off, well, she just had to have some fun, right? She followed him at a slight distance for a bit, keeping just out of his sight like the trained spy she was. When he stopped in front of a park bench to look at his phone again, she snuck up behind him. Before he could notice her, she slipped his wallet out of his pocket. Then, she leaned in close to his ear and said, "Lost your way, old man? Don't tell me you're looking for a club this early in the day."

She grinned at him and started looking through his wallet right in front of him. "Hmm. You don't have nearly enough in here for a private city tour, you know. But maybe I can cut you a discount."

[mephistosfaust]

I drum my fingers on the kitchen counter, then finally give up and do a full turn back to the stove to reheat the Glühwein. The steam rising from the pot feels like an open invitation to drown my thoughts in spice and alcohol. On a scale from one to ten, I wonder how much I’ll regret this act of benevolence.

I’m already aching for that hollow, quiet space zwischen den Jahren—the gray, suspended stretch between Christmas and New Year’s. I want to vanish between plates of Rouladen and the smoke of fireworks. Just for a few hours, I want to pretend I don’t exist. No obligations, no drama, no nothing.

Then hits me: I’m still missing a gift for Gilbert. What do you get a man who’s lived with nothing for decades and claims I owe him everything?

I turn the heat down low and refill my mug when an idea strikes me, Lily lives with a version of Prussia; perhaps she has a perspective I’m missing. I can’t keep buying him a new Leuchtturm journal every year, just so he can use it as an excuse to pull out the old one and read my failures back to me, then ask what Knecht Ruprecht thinks I deserve.

“Say, Lily,” I start, leaning back against the counter. “If you had to get—hypothetically, of course—but if you had to get a gift for—”

The words die in my throat. My frown deepens. Lily isn't just baking anymore; she’s trapped in a manic delirium, coating the same Pfeffernuss over and over until the cookie is buried under a mountain of glaze, her eyes fixed on a point miles away from this kitchen.

Concern cuts through my cynicism. I start to reach out, to place a hand on her shoulder, but she startles violently before I can touch her. She gasps for air as if she’s been underwater, her eyes wide and searching as they lock onto mine. I give her a long, silent look—the kind that asks 'Is everything alright?' without needing the words.

She tries to deflect, complimenting the smell of the Zimtrollen, but the mask is slipping. I set my mug down on the counter with a soft thud.

“You know,” I say. “I didn't agree to that Christmas dinner because I have any desire to see your father again. I agreed because you asked me. I’m trying, for once, to be the 'nice guy' you seem to think I am.”

I take a step closer, looking down at the mangled, over-glazed cookie in the box. “But if this is stressing you out to the point of... this? You don’t have to do it, Lily. You know that, right?”

[mauerfrau]

Damn. So he had noticed and he was not going to let me get away from talking about it so easily. I looked down at the bowl of cookies I still had to coat and picked up another one. At least I was almost done with them. Then I could leave. I started to methodically coat the remaining ones.

I frowned as I thought about what he was saying, and then shook my head. "No, I do need to do it. We need to do it. All three of us, that is. We need to make things better." I have to make things better, I thought. "It will be fine. As long as neither of us says anything stupid this time. Or pretends like we're dating," I added, just almost grinning. At the very least, the corner of my lips rose, albeit awkwardly.

As soon as the last cookie was coated, I closed the box and turned to the sink to wash the items I had used. As I scrubbed the bowls clean, I glanced over my shoulder at Ludwig. "It will be fine. I'm mostly sure of it. Listen, don't breathe a word about this to anyone, but...I feel like, well, things are changing for the better. I wouldn't say he's growing soft or anything, but he's..." I frowned to myself, trying to find the right words to describe what I wanted to say.

"Well, it's just, he lets me call him, 'Papa' now, instead of, 'Herr Beilschmidt,' or, 'Herr Vater,' or, 'sir.' He lets me hug him much more now. Sometimes, just sometimes, I think he likes it more than he'll admit to even himself. Of course I know that that doesn't suddenly make him a perfect father. But what I mean is that something has changed for the better, I think, or at least I hope. If I can appeal to him in the right way, he'll make this work, I think."

I looked at Ludwig sternly then. "But, as I said, don't you dare say so much as a word about that to anyone. Especially my father himself."

With the last utensil now clean, I dried my hands and took off the apron I had been wearing and set it aside, neatly folded. I walked up to Ludwig, looked at him for a moment, and then wrapped my arms around him and leaned my head on his shoulder. "It will be fine. You'll see. Things will get better with this." I lingered for a moment, then stepped back, smiling at him.

I glanced at the clock on the microwave and turned to pick up my box of baked bribery. Before I left, though, I looked at him one more time. "Thank you, Ludwig. For being a nice guy sometimes. Maybe even more than sometimes. I'll see you soon then."

I left quickly after that, although I tried to make it not look quite as quickly as I wanted it to be. I even stopped to give Frieda a goodbye pat before exiting his penthouse. When I got downstairs and outside, I breathed in the cold air deeply, letting it fill my lungs and invigorate me with a new sense of hope and bravery. Things were going to be fine, I told myself. I needed them to be. Because, if they didn't go well, I would never face the end of it.