Merlot
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Merlot |
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Baroness of Castle Draclugia |
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| Full Name | Merlot Brie Draclugia | ||||
| Affiliation | Draclugia | ||||
| Role | Baroness | ||||
| Usual Location | Castle Draclugia | ||||
| Species | Template:Species | ||||
| Gender | Female | ||||
| Age | Really, Really Old | ||||
| Trait | Quick-tempered | ||||
| Nature | Adamant | ||||
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| Related Stories | Story of the Captain Resignation Unreasonable Bitter Tears |
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| Links | Merlot's Interview | ||||
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Merlot is a Lugia, the lady and caretaker of Castle Draclugia. Like most legendary Pokemon, rumors abound about her: from her age, weight, and dietary habits to other more scandalous secrets involving her servants and backroom deals with the local guild leaders, Merlot is a riddle wrapped in an enigma inside a fashionable velvet cape. While all rumors about her being a vampire have been confirmed as false, it is true that she loves Dragon-type Pokemon and dressing her servants up as maids, for whatever reason.
Contents
Background
During Chuck's interview, he discovered that as a young child, Merlot only had a single friend: a noble Marowak, having disappeared long, long ago. Beyond that, no one knows much about her early life, as she's known to be at least a couple of centuries old and there are no known reliable sources for that timeframe (outside of perhaps Merlot's library, or Merlot herself).
Merlot has lived in Castle Draclugia for her entire life. Usually, she keeps to herself and stays out of outside affairs, sending her servants to do errands for her when necessary. Throughout her life, she's collected an assortment of helpers who usually end up staying with her for the rest of their lives, by choice. Despite not needing the funds, Merlot charges a toll for usage of her castle as a passageway to Sapling Village.
At the moment, her most trusted servants are Udon and Magnolia. Coincidentally, their lives were both saved by Merlot prior to their servitude.
Before PK's ascension to becoming a Guild Leader, she had a brief encounter with Merlot. After having failed to scale the castle undetected and was imprisoned briefly. During this time, she quickly and easily became friends with Merlot's maids, Udon and Soba. Their interaction with PK led Merlot to reconsider. They succeeded, PK was released, and she and Merlot parted ways on amicable terms.
Mission and Events
Mission 2
Prior to Mission 2, Merlot seemed to spontaneously decide to kidnap villagers from Sapling Village. It was later revealed that she was in grief, thinking that her trusted Magnolia had passed away. Angry and unable to accept the fate of her lovely maid, she wanted to fill the castle with the presence of Pokemon that would help fill the hole in her heart. It made her transactions with the Merchants even more difficult than they would have been otherwise. Happily, a Rescuer team revealed that Magnolia was not dead, but she had merely been frozen due to an encounter with Slasher. She allowed the kidnapped Pokemon to return to their hometown afterward.
Event 3
Resignation
Slasher approached Merlot near the end of Event 3, exclaiming that the Merchants had stolen property from her. She dismissed them as soon as she recalled Shroomsworth, citing that he wouldn't do such a thing.
Mission 4
During Mission 4, several Pokemon from Tao Village intruded upon Merlot's castle in search of a certain book from Lexy's library. This led to one of the library's clocks being damaged, and Caldera summoned Merlot to assist in the cleanup. Upon learning of the intrusion and Lexy blaming her for the lax security, Merlot became agitated, inferring that the two librarians are at fault.
Mission 5 Epilogue
In the Mission 5 epilogue, Merlot was first seen yelling at Auvin, a Moltres wishing to marry her. Their argument was cut short by Prosphora chastising Merlot for her lack of action in the fight with Sorbet. By the time he leaves, Udon comes rushing in desperate for Merlot to come to the library; Pokemon from Tao Village were entering her library through a secret passage. At first she was angry, but she was brought to tears at the sight of Devonshire, whom she apparently knew. Together they went off on a talk. Merlot was desperate to help her friend, who couldn't stay for long, but was denied that power and instead offered Lexy's aid in helping him with research.
Unreasonable
Merlot was seemingly desperate for Devonshire to remain at the castle with her, deeming him to be an unreasonable sort for having turned down her offer. After nearly a century of having no one to be with her who could see her true nature, she tried her hardest not to break down, but did after a quick invitation from Devonshire to have lunch later.
Mission 6 Prologue
Merlot, per request of Devonshire, was willing to allow the residents of Tao Village to stay within her castle. At first, she jokingly expressed to Shroomsworth that she will be playing with him that night but was interrupted by Sandy asking if Merlot was going to force her to stay. She assured to the Deino that she would never force a servant of hers to stay, putting Sandy's mind at ease. Soba then came rushing in, fussing over having so many mouths to feed. Merlot reassured Soba that she would send help his way, after which, Merlot again went off for a talk, this time with Gunpowder.
Bitter Tears
Merlot invited Gunpowder to take a stroll with her. She lead the Gabite through her old room, the castle courtyard, and into a hidden cave, which lead the pair to a ledge overlooking the Creeping Forest. She demanded Gunpowder tell her about Devonshire and listened eagerly to his stories for hours. After a small break for his voice, Gunpowder asked her why she didn't go out to Tao Village to look for the Sableye. The question had struck a nerve with the Lugia as she recalled how those for whom she cared about left the castle and would never return to her.
Tasks
With some children from Sapling Village missing, Merlot was accused of kidnapping them. Udon proudly defends her lady, stating the Baroness did not practice that anymore. For this task, Rescuers were asked to look for those missing children in the Creeping Forest.
In addition to those accusations, Merlot is left to deal with the disappearance of her dear friend. Udon feared that her sadness may eventually lead to insanity and asked in this task for any guild members to try and cheer her up in anyway they could.
As a Child
Story of the Captain
Merlot in her younger days displayed a strong sense of opinion, even in naivety. Despite this, she did not have many friends, let alone acquaintances, and kept to herself in her room until recently. The Captain encouraged her socially, and the two begun to spend time together on a regular basis, such as having lunch. A year after The Captain and his brigade's arrival, Merlot grew more than twice her original size. Slowly, she picked up on other Pokemon's social cues (i.e. Captain's sarcasm). Her affinity for French maid outfits manifested and forced the Marowak to a game of dress up. He managed to get away without wearing the uniform, obtaining a frilly bow and cape from her. Merlot's matured a lot after becoming conscious of her father's disappearance. However, the night the Captain was to depart was the straw that broke the camel's back and she shedded tears.
Mission 8 (Past)
In the prologue to Mission 8 (Past), Merlot was the only one to have spotted Devonshire before he could sneak into the library with the help of his old self. She was told by Devon that the Sableye was a messenger.
Gallery
Find more images here.
Official V-Day Card!
Sculpture of young Merlot with The Captain
Early influences
