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von Staden Blog Entry |
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November 8, 2024, 12:00:36 AM 11/8/24: r/SketchDaily theme, "Free Draw Friday." This week's characters from my anthro WWII storyline are Herr von Staden and Frau von Staden (first names never given). They're the parents of Adalard and Constanze. They play a somewhat background role in Adalard's story, which I've mostly gone over already in his Tumblr entry. There'll be more about them later in my art Tumblr and Toyhou.se. Regarding their design, they have the same general color pattern as their kids, the dad has a small mustache, and the mother has an ear nick and a scar over her eye. TUMBLR EDIT: Entry edited to avoid repetition hereafter. Always so encouraging to know absolutely nobody looks at this thing even when I try using appropriate "seeking support" hashtags. 😃 Anyway...I've already covered the von Stadens' basic role in the main story in their son Adalard's entry, HERE. Without looking back at it, from what I recall, the von Stadens (I haven't bothered naming them yet, if ever) are minor Junkers and, although they disagree with the regime in general, they're good little obedient folk, always watching what they say, parroting the party line, keeping their heads down, their noses clean, and fake smiles on their faces. They don't want trouble. They just want to get by. These plans take a major hit when their son enlists in the Luftwaffe and then suddenly goes missing in action. It's customary for young Junker sons to join the military, and though Adalard is their only son (Constanze is his older (I think?) sister), still, they're proud of him for his willingness to serve the Fatherland. Adalard doesn't care for the Nazi rhetoric either, he just loves his country and falls for the propaganda and wishes to do his part. Although only a corporal, he serves with distinction, earns numerous medals, receives boundless praise...then vanishes. The von Stadens are beside themselves with dread, unsure which is worse--to find out he's dead, or to continue not knowing. For no confirmation is forthcoming from military officials regarding his fate; all they can say is that his plane went down, yet as for Adalard himself, he's just...gone. It's months before military officials get back to them with news: Adalard has been found--alive. He'll be returning to them soon. His parents are overjoyed...but then confused, once they learn WHERE it is he's been. Turns out he's been a prisoner in a labor camp. Oh goodness!--was he captured by the British? Or...God forbid...the Soviets? Well...no. Adalard was located in a German labor camp. He's been held there as a suspected political dissident and traitor. The von Stadens are beyond perplexed by this. Political dissident?? Traitor?? Adalard is the least political person they know. Sure, he never registered as a member of the Nazi Party, but...but...he's still a good, loyal German citizen, he would never, ever speak ill, or act, against his homeland or its government. How did this happen? The official who speaks with them personally actually seems rather embarrassed; he can't give them many details, so they learn things in bits and pieces. After Adalard's plane was downed, he was briefly taken captive by an American unit known as the Trench Rats. He wasn't among them for long at all before he managed to escape and make his way back to the Germans. It was while he was giving his statement to officials that suspicions started to arise, and then the SS was called in to interrogate him further. The von Stadens are alarmed at this revelation--why is the SS involved?? They don't dare ask many more questions now that they know just how deep this goes; all they find out is that Adalard's loyalties were questioned (how he succeeded in escaping the Trench Rats is highly suspicious), he was charged (though never tried) and placed in the camp, and now...somehow, a mistake was made, a dreadful mistake, and both the military and the SS admit he does not belong there. Adalard is accordingly released back to his family. With apologies for the mixup. It's horrifying that such a thing could happen...yet knowing the SS is involved, the von Stadens don't raise a fuss. They accept the apology and welcome back their son. Adalard returns home. Frau von Staden can barely contain her tears; their son has been dressed in his uniform, but it doesn't fit him anymore, the clothes just hang on him. They can make out his wrist bones, his ankle bones--his face looks like a skull, cheeks sunken in, eyes hollow and glassy. Worst of all, even more than him looking like a walking corpse, is the vacant, dazed expression on his face; he barely reacts to his family's cries and hugs, just blinks as if confused how he ended up here. Frau von Staden's already had a big dinner prepared to welcome him back, yet this doesn't go quite according to plan, as they try--and fail--not to argue about the situation over the meal, the dispute cutting off short when Adalard throws up everything he's eaten. Constanze rebukes her parents for forcing too much on him too soon, having to coax him away from the mess as he won't stop apologizing and trying to clean it up himself. He flinches away when Constanze grasps his arm--at first they think the touch hurt him, yet his endless apologizing makes it clear that he's trying to avoid punishment. For some reason he expects to be beaten. Constanze leads him away to his room as Frau von Staden calls a maid to clean up the mess. When the von Stadens retire to bed themselves, she cries into her hands as her husband tries to console her. "My poor boy," she weeps. "What's happened to him! How? Why? He's only ever been a good son. A good German. Now look at him. Can't even eat. Can barely even talk. Looks at us like we're strangers. How could this happen? He's no criminal. He's a good boy." She briefly loses her temper, raises her voice: "They took him and broke him! My boy! He never did a thing wrong so what is this? Why did they do this to my poor boy--?" "Liebe! Hush!" Herr von Staden hisses, grasping her arm. In barely a whisper, he reprimands her: "Feind hört mit! You never know where! Our son is back--this is what matters. Focus on that, and forget the rest. All we can do is help him come back to us completely. Nothing else matters, understood...?" Frau von Staden pulls herself together--"Of course...of course. I'm sorry, Liebe"--and drops the matter. Obviously, even if they admitted a mistake, the SS isn't to be questioned--to question authority is how one ends up in such a situation. They don't want to lose their son again, or to meet a similar fate. They decide to act as if nothing is amiss, no terrible wrong was done, and try to move on with their lives. Adalard eventually takes a desk job as it's uncertain whether he'll ever be able to resume flying, what with his precarious health; they deem this a good sign, at least he's up and about again. Constanze, meanwhile, starts dating a member of the SS; the von Stadens aren't thrilled with that, but don't speak up. Life goes on, uncertain but hopeful. The von Stadens have no idea just HOW MUCH life goes on. Constanze is actually up to a whole lot more than they know...and once Adalard has recovered and gotten back in a plane, she ropes him in as well. The von Stadens are so caught up in their fearful bubble that they overlook all the signs that their own children have started to actively rebel against the Reich; while Constanze, more patient and calculating, is the brains behind the effort, Adalard is driven by pure rage over how his own country wronged him. He ends up aiding Vischer, the same semi-willing resistance collaborator who helped rescue him from the camp, and this lands them and Wehrmacht officer Harald Altermann back in Trench Rats custody...the main difference this time being that they're now helping the Trench Rats. Adalard assists in the medical ward to make himself useful until Constanze is also taken into custody and they're reunited. Their parents, however, are unaccounted for...and Allied armies have arrived. The younger von Stadens are anxious about their parents' fate--the Allied armies have no way to know whether they support the Nazis or not. The Trench Rats, who are mostly uninvolved in the fighting, send out some inquiries, but all they can determine at first is that the von Stadens aren't in their home. They can only assume they've been taken prisoner. This is indeed the truth; the elder von Stadens are caught up in the sweep, and end up behind fences, much like their son, with no means of contacting their children. An odd ally comes to their aid, however. A guard watching their section of the temporary prison calls them forward and when they fearfully approach the fence, they're pointed out to somebody they don't recognize; he's wearing a field cap, has a lieutenant's collar tabs, and is carrying a rifle slung over his shoulder, yet also wears a civilian coat over his tattered uniform, and doesn't look like anyone who would've been suitable for military duty any time recently. He blinks upon seeing them, as if surprised, and says, "Herr and Frau von Staden--? Parents of Herr Adalard?" Upon hearing their son's name, Frau von Staden clasps her hands together and exclaims, "Ah mein Gott! Our boy! Tell me he's still alive--? And Constanze? Bitte, Herr Oberleutnant, tell me they're still alive!" The lieutenant's reaction is unexpected; upon receiving this confirmation, he turns to the guard and lays into him: "What are they doing in here--? They're civilians, good German citizens!" When the guard protests that they need to take even civilians into custody as suspected Nazi collaborators, the lieutenant is incensed: "Check their papers! I guarantee you they are not Nazis. Their son can tell you so. If you don't get them out of there right now, I promise I'll make every minute you serve here absolute hell." The chastened guard promptly releases the von Stadens into the lieutenant's custody. They have no idea who this guy is or why he's invested in their case, but gratefully follow him. Frau von Staden begs again to know what's become of their children; the harried lieutenant assures her that Adalard is all right and he'll take them to him. He gives his name as Adel, and says that he was the one who first ran across Adalard following his escape from the Trench Rats, and helped him back to the authorities. He's ashamed to hear of what happened to Adalard afterward, so hopes he can help set things right this time around. The von Stadens are just grateful to be heading back to their family. Adel brings them to some American soldiers and there's a brief moment of confusion--he barely speaks English, they don't speak German, and they seem skeptical of his apparent request (he awkwardly pantomimes) that they take the von Stadens with them; then one of them seems to belatedly recognize him, though he calls him "Ratdog." More gesturing, and Adel flushes and looks rather disgruntled while pulling back his coat collar and showing off a badge on his uniform, a black eagle head with oak leaves. "He's a sniper," Herr von Staden whispers to his wife, perplexed; the American soldiers seem to know who he is now, though, and gesture the von Stadens forward. "You're not coming with us--?" Frau von Staden asks; Adel shakes his head, says he has business elsewhere, wishes them luck, and they part ways. The Americans transport them out of the city and into the woods. They're brought to a strange half-buried complex and guided through a lengthy series of concrete tunnels before entering a large, well-lit room with numerous medical cots. A few wounded residents glance at them, lose interest. Then--Frau von Staden gasps and exclaims, "Adalard--? Adalard!" At the other side of the room, holding a metal pan of medical instruments and wearing a white smock over his uniform, is her son--he blinks upon seeing her--"Mutter?" he says, sets down the tray, and a moment later they're hugging, Herr von Staden joining in. Constanze appears and Frau von Staden showers her with kisses. As quickly as they were separated, the little family is reunited. There's a remaining bit of hassle as Allied officials from all sides argue over papers, try to figure out what to do with them. Adalard is an enemy combatant, argue the Soviets, and should be treated as a prisoner of war...yet he has no records of committing any war crimes, and is pretty well respected by the American and British Allies. There's also the little detail that he and Altermann actively turned on their own side while aiding Vischer. The von Stadens are stunned to learn that Adalard started helping the resistance some time previously, using his plane to drop supplies; they're even more shocked to learn that it was Constanze who recruited him for the effort. That SS guy she was dating?--all a ruse to get information. The von Staden children had been working against the Reich for months, Adalard out of pure spite for how badly he was treated, and their parents had absolutely no idea. They've always been so well behaved, so outwardly loyal to the Reich, that it's nearly incomprehensible. The von Stadens actually feel a bit ashamed that while they were busy keeping their heads down and being good compliant citizens, their children were defying the Nazis. After the dust settles--the Trench Rats vouch for Adalard, who despite his escape behaved pretty well while in captivity--the Soviets relent in their bid to have Adalard tried and imprisoned, and the family is set free. They're at a loss for what to do next, however...they've lost their property and home, and the thought of living in Soviet territory doesn't sit well. While allowed to stay for a time on the Trench Rats' property, Herr von Staden makes some calls and writes some letters, and finally lets Frau von Staden in on what he's been up to: He's managed to contact an old friend who lives in the western half of Germany, which won't fall under Soviet control, and his friend knows of a vacant house the family can buy to make their own. They run the idea by their children. Constanze doesn't care either way; Adalard has mixed feelings. He hates leaving his home, the only one he's ever known...yet it feels impossible to stay. He still has so many bad memories and feelings about his treatment, and the thought of putting distance between himself and the source is tempting. He mulls it over before agreeing that to start over elsewhere might be best. The von Stadens accordingly pack what belongings they have left, secure documentation from the occupying military that will allow them to travel, and book passage on a train. For a long while Adalard stares out the window, back at their disappearing homeland, until Constanze takes his hand; he blinks, shakes it off, looks ahead. Not long after, he's dozed off, his head resting on his sister's shoulder. Across the compartment, Herr and Frau von Staden peer at each other, then clasp each other's hand as well. They're not sure what will come next, but it'll surely be more promising than what they left behind. Please see also Frau von Staden's entry for a bit more info. [Herr von Staden 2024 [Friday, November 8, 2024, 12:00:36 AM]] |