1. his latest research involves the Correspondence and gestural language --
1.1. oh -- that was the Mute Naturalist? Narci was just speaking? well, that makes sense
1.1.1. the Naturalist traded his voice for the knowledge
1.1.1.1. he and N have a pact that N will get his voice back in exchange for secrets
2. he came to the Neath because
2.1. he was abducted by a jealous admirer
2.2. his lover died and he came down like Orpheus, but on his way to Hell he was distracted by the London nightlife
2.3. his family is entrenched in the topside of the Great Game
2.3.1. and he came to continue their work
2.3.2. and he came to hide from their enemies
2.3.2.1. and now their enemies have found him
2.4. he was a con artist, and betrayed by his partner to the authorities
2.5. it sounded like a lark
3. he's an aspiring Marveller and his Heart's Desire is
3.1. eternal youth
3.2. one grand inspiration for his next artwork
3.3. to have a lost love restored to him
3.4. riches, of course -- it's always riches
3.5. to become a woman in body as well as in mind
3.5.1. or to become both, as s/he is both
4. he's a Black Ribbon Duellist
4.1. but only because he dallied with Feducci
4.2. and going to one of his duels is like going to one of his magic acts -- all flash and spectacle, and no one's really hurt
4.3. and that trick with the hansom cab was pretty entertaining
4.4. and plays a fool for show--really quite deadly
5. he's quite mad
5.1. did you see the way he dotes on his hat?
5.2. or hear him sing to that frightful plant of his?
5.3. or attend his comedy act at Mahogany Hall? and the way he 'assisted' that poor illusionist --
5.3.1. and the weasels, dear God, the weasels
5.4. he shudders whenever a cat walks by
5.5. and sometimes he wanders the streets when the lamps are low, humming strange and wild tunes
6. he has a daughter
6.1. and she's so innocent, so sweet, and so worried for her dissolute father -- won't you please help her help him?
6.2. but some people have seen her in entirely the wrong side of town; there's a parrot in a seedy pub in Wolfstack that knows her by name
6.3. just like Clathermont has three daughters
7. he wears a gown as often as he does a suit
7.1. and actually is a woman, under all that
7.2. and actually is ... complicated
7.3. and if you bother him about it when he's having a drink in a Wolfstack pub, he will lay you flat then stun you with a smile
7.4. and he'll show up to a sparring bout or a ring fight in a corset
7.5. and is quite gorgeous in either
7.6. and they call him the Italian Epicene
8. he's a Correspondence scholar
8.1. and his lectures are always a good show, full of verve and passionate handwaving
8.2. and he conducted a run of operatic performances through Veilgarden
8.2.1. which in turn became a run of eye-bleeding bacchanals
8.2.2. and he's like Orpheus, able to work magic through music
8.2.3. and now he's conducting a series of bizarre experiments with primordial shrieks
9. he runs a paper, the Sunday Septentrional
9.1. and there are revolutionaries, bohemians, devils, and other unsavory sorts on his staff
9.2. and no decent Londoner would be caught reading it
9.2.1. but no indecent Londoner would be caught without it
10. on the surface he
10.1. traveled with the Italian opera as
10.1.1. a cellist
10.1.2. an actor who played the part of an actress so well no one would recognize him now
10.2. was a shameless con artist, a corrupter of women, and a profligate gambler
10.3. was the sweetest, most well-mannered gentleman you'll ever meet, with a good family and education
10.4. was a spy
11. he flirts with the Masters at the carnival
11.1. and he's seen what lies beneath Mr Apples's cloak and hood
11.1.1. and he regularly plays Mahjong with it and its fellows, and wins
11.2. and Mr Wines invited him to try on a pair of his scarlet stockings
11.3. and even Mr Iron is warming up to him
12. his lovers include
12.1. the Pugilistic Historian
12.1.1. and his husband the Bespectacled Folklorist!
12.1.1.1. and don't they dance just beautifully together?
12.1.2. and together they've charmed half of London into bed
12.2. the Ambiguous Detective
12.2.1. I saw him go in that Miss Daphne Bay's dressing room!
12.3. the Barbed Wit and the Acclaimed Beauty, at the same time
12.4. an Artist's Model
12.5. a Charming Heiress
12.6. a Once-Dashing Smuggler
12.6.1. and that's who he visits in the tomb-colonies
12.7. an Affectionate Devil and a Quiet Deviless, also at the same time
12.7.1. and that's where his burns come from -- you heard it was Correspondence?
12.8. the Firebrand Revolutionary
12.9. the Provost
12.10. the Secular Missionary
12.11. the Curate and -- yes, it's true! -- his sister
12.12. a Chef at the Shuttered Palace
12.13. several University fellows
12.14. the lead of one of his shows
12.14.1. or the entire cast of one his shows
12.15. the Scarlet Saint, before she was a madam
12.15.1. and he broke her heart
12.15.2. and she broke his
12.15.3. and they're still together, but must keep their love a secret
12.15.4. and they were still together, until Narciso took up with that detective or Scarlet took up with that artist
12.16. the Ginger Inventor in the lizard hat he's been gallivanting with
12.17. -- no! you don't think? and a Rubbery Man? -- the list goes on
12.18. the Anxious Detective
12.18.1. they were canoodling on a park bench!
12.19. the Cyclopean Seamstress
12.19.1. knowing her, and knowing him, would you be surprised?
12.20. the Scarred Dilettante he went honey-dreaming with
12.21. the Sardonic Music-Hall Singer
12.22. the Illuminated Gentleman
12.23. the Mute Naturalist
12.23.1. they study the Correspondence together, that's fair evidence
12.23.1.1. sorcery?
12.23.1.1.1. sexy sorcery
13. he's a Master Thief and budding Crime Lord
13.1. of the 'steal from the Embassy, give to the souless' variety
13.1.1. once he went through Flowerdene singing and giving out bars of nevercold brass (accompanied by his burly bodyguard)
13.1.1.1. and the evening after he attended an Embassy dance, dismissing all suspicion with a smile
13.2. and that's how he collected his stake for the Marvellous, and keeps in such luxurious gowns
13.3. and the Pugilistic Historian is his head henchman (and burly bodyguard)
13.4. and he takes care of his own
13.5. and he works with the Cheesemonger, sometimes, when he feels like it
13.5.1. but secretly he works to undermine the Cheesemonger's operation from the inside
13.6. because he's Sicilian -- aren't they all crime lords?
13.6.1. and that's why you should never go against him when death is on the line
14. he was soulless once
14.1. because he traded it to a devil for his more esoteric musical talents
14.2. because he gave it to a poor spirifer desperate to make her quota
14.3. because he was seduced out of it, like everyone else
14.4. and was banned from Summerset
14.4.1. but snuck into the Feast of the World -- remember the rash of thefts that semester? and the unexpected fireworks?
14.5. and he won it back
14.5.1. through charm
14.5.2. through a card game at the circus -- a preview of the Marvellous
14.5.3. through the efforts of the CVR -- shh!
14.5.4. through the Correspondence -- ask Ascelpius Unbound
14.6. and he never won it back -- under that carefree facade, there's a soulless man
14.6.1. be careful