Stupid Luck and Happenstance, Thread III

Oh and btw neither Bismarck of Wilhelm I were socialists.
Wait what? Have I missed something? Who would be stupid enough to say that Wilhelm I or Bismarck, an emperor and a member of the nobility respectively, would be Socialists? The ideology that openly disdains Monarchy and Aristocracy.
 

ferdi254

Banned
Well there are people in the USA that claim that universal healthcare is socialistic so it might be an idea to remind them that universal healthcare in Germany was introduced by people who were decidedly not socialistic.
 
Well there are people in the USA that claim that universal healthcare is socialistic so it might be an idea to remind them that universal healthcare in Germany was introduced by people who were decidedly not socialistic.
Yeah, well, the average citizen of the USA thinks that anything to the left of neoliberalism is Socialist.
 
Part 114, Chapter 1892
Chapter one Thousand Eight Hundred Ninety-Two



9th November 1968

In transit, rural Rhineland

The Autobahn stretched on ahead of them and Berliner Gutter Blues was blasting out of the car’s speakers making conversation almost impossible. Zella had recently had a cassette player installed in the BMW 700 Coupe Sport that she used for work so that she wouldn’t have to bother with finding radio stations when on the move. The Volkswagen Microbus they might have normally used had been taken by another news crew, much to Yuri’s annoyance. Instead, they had piled their equipment in the back of Zella’s car and had set off for Trier in the Rhine Provence to cover the processions and other activities that were a part of local celebration of Saint Martin’s Eve. “It will be like old times” Zella said, “Without having the smell of manure.”

“Or us getting shot at” Yuri had said under his breath and Zella had pretended not to hear him.

Hours later, Yuri was still sitting in the car and was starting to feel antsy as Zella tapped her thumbs on the steering wheel in time with the music. He had not realized that the drive would take them almost to Luxemburg and would mean eight hours in the car… well, seven with the way that Zella drove. They had stopped for lunch in Erfurt, but that had been ages ago. His thoughts kept going back to his mother’s kitchen and the conversation that had occurred over the family meal with Yuri’s Mother, Stepfather, and his two much younger brothers and sister. His Mother had come to disapprove of the succession of women who he had been dating over the prior two years since he had started working with Zella. Mostly they were her friends and that had been a lot of fun for him. “You are wasting your time with those women” His mother said, “Why can’t you meet a nice girl. You have a good job and a lot to offer a woman who can appreciate who you are as a man rather than to just have a good time with.” Yuri’s Stepfather had shot him a covert grin across the table.

With that the tape reached the end and ejected from the player. The sudden quiet snapped Yuri back to the present.

“Any idea how much longer it’s going to be?” Yuri asked.

“This is a shorter drive than going to Trieste” Zella replied.

“There was something to look at though” Yuri said, “Mountains and stuff. This is just hills, and forest.”

There were also farms, but that hardly broke up the monotony.

Zella just shrugged. “You might recall that we also spent a lot of time at border checkpoints” She said, “So we had a lot of time to look at those mountains.” The journey to the port city on the Adriatic Sea had taken them across several national borders and they had always encountered guards suspicious of their purpose, as if a microbus full of video equipment that had decals from ARD’s Berlin affiliate didn’t spell it out. Nope. Instead they got the border guards who thought it was all a clever ruse of some kind. So, they had endured several long waits as the guards had examined their travel documents and press credentials in minute detail, often phoning in to their superiors. With that, Zella flipped the tape and the music started again.

They sat in silence listening to the music for a while as the Autobahn crossed the Rhine itself. Finally, Yuri turned down the music so that he could address the elephant in the room.

“Why are we doing this?” Yuri asked, “Driving all over Germany, covering fairs, festivals, and now a procession?”

“They cannot all be big stories” Zella replied, “As much as I would like to cover an earthquake or a plane crash, those don’t happen every day.”

“It seems to me that you used to be a lot more aggressive” Yuri said, “You had us in the middle of a battle on the Mediterranean.”

“That was the exception” Zella said, “We only stumbled on that story in Krakow, and that girl…”

Zella trailed off. Her press credentials had been picked from her pocket right before the shooting had started in Krakow and the girl who had done it had been killed by the Polish Army. Over the prior summer as Poland had heated up, Yuri and Zella had basically gone everywhere but there before Zella had taken some time off to attend a friend’s birthday celebration. She didn’t say so, but that incident had clearly made Zella a lot more cautious. Yuri had heard stories about some of the things that Zella had done for a story when she had been younger, most of which would be unthinkable for her now.

“I see” Yuri said, “Still we ought to be trying to break something big.”

“You sound like the suits back at ARD” Zella said, “They want to know what my next big story is going to be.”

“What did you tell them?” Yuri asked.

“That I am working on developing several ideas, but it will take time” Zella replied.

“Anything good?” Yuri asked.

Zella didn’t answer as she turned the music back up.

That suggested that she didn’t have any ideas at all. Was this some weird journalist form of writer’s block? Yuri didn’t know. However, covering unglamourous local events sort of was the bread and butter for ARD. The fact that Zella didn’t turn her nose up at doing them and people liked seeing her on television regardless of where she turned up kept both her and Yuri employed, so the situation wasn’t too bad.
 
Journalism--lots of boredom with moments of sheer terror--even when stupid luck and happenstance doesn't come into play.
 
Hours later, Yuri was still sitting in the car and was starting to feel antsy as Zella tapped her thumbs on the steering wheel in time with the music. He had not realized that the drive would take them almost to Luxemburg and would mean eight hours in the car… well, seven with the way that Zella drove. They had stopped for lunch in Erfurt, but that had been ages ago. His thoughts kept going back to his mother’s kitchen and the conversation that had occurred over the family meal with Yuri’s Mother, Stepfather, and his two much younger brothers and sister. His Mother had come to disapprove of the succession of women who he had been dating over the prior two years since he had started working with Zella. Mostly they were her friends and that had been a lot of fun for him. “You are wasting your time with those women” His mother said, “Why can’t you meet a nice girl. You have a good job and a lot to offer a woman who can appreciate who you are as a man rather than to just have a good time with.” Yuri’s Stepfather had shot him a covert grin across the table.

*Hint Hint* - Zella is right there.

Or so thinks the mother....
 
Potentially something big. Hmmm, how ansty is France over how successful Germany has become since the end of the great war?
So far France ITTL did not go through the IOTL May 68 student uprisings which lasted until 1969.
Could we see the very unlikely return of the Orleans branch to the Throne of France...?
 
Part 114, Chapter 1893
Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Ninety-Three



2nd December 1968

Wahlstatt, Silesia

It was a surprise at how different the reaction by the school was when Manfred arrived versus how it was months earlier when he had toured it with Ilse. He had been here in a different capacity then, merely the Grandfather of a potential student and a former student himself. The School’s Headmaster had known that it was Ilse who had made the final decision in that case and had responded accordingly. Now was different though.

He had come to check on Nikolaus and Sabastian at the request of their respective mothers. Both of whom were fretting over whether or not the right choice had been made and worried that the administration would simply pander to them by telling them what they wanted to hear. It was something they would not dare to do to Manfred in his capacity as Kurfürst of Silesia. A quick word with the School Drillmaster had revealed the two boys were viewed as promising, though hardly perfect. Nikolaus needed to learn to stop bragging when he excelled at something and Sabastian, well, he couldn’t seem to go five minutes without causing some sort of trouble. Something about having absolutely no impulse control. It was Stabsfeldwebel Arbeit’s hope that as the weather warmed in the spring the School could get Sabastian into sports and that would give him an outlet for his energy that was less destructive. Manfred had pointed out that Sabastian’s paternal Grandfather had been an athlete in the 1912 and 1920 Olympic Games, so that was probably the right tact.

As the students were assembled on the Parade Ground, it was planned for Manfred to make a grand entrance from the Headmaster’s office in his Field Marshal’s uniform. From there he would give them a brief address. In recent years, Manfred had enjoyed some renewed fame from his days as the “Red Barron” as movies had started to be made featuring the Flying Circus, his old Squadron, Jasta 11. Both as the protagonist and antagonist depending on just who was doing the production. Both depicted him as this bigger than life figure. The key difference was the productions that depicted him as the antagonist tended to have him as he was in the days after his brother was killed by the British RAF, implacable and ruthless. A figure that the Tommies had whispered about in fear. Thinking back, Manfred remembered that he had wanted the French and British pilots to feel terror at the sight of an all red airplane, much to the annoyance of his superiors at the time. The mechanics in Jasta 11 had not had enough red paint to do the job so they had mixed in black, leaving the plane more of a crimson color.

That of freshly spilled blood.

That had become not just his signature color, but that of Jasta 11 as well. It remained the Squadron’s color scheme within JG-1. The nose and tail painted crimson and the all-red scheme remained the exclusive preserve of Manfred alone. He remained the Squadron Leader of Jasta 11 as far as the men who flew in it were concerned. One of their own just had the honor of filling in for him while he was away. There was also the work of one Charles “Sparky” Schultz, whose comic strip featured the imaginary battles fought against him by a cartoon beagle. One of Manfred’s Aides had shown him a copy of one of the comic strips. Snoopy waving his fist and calling out “Curse you Red Barron!” That Aide had not been amused; Manfred had disagreed though. He had autographed it and mailed it off to Santa Rosa, California where the cartoonist had been rather surprised to have received it.

Walking across the Parade Ground, Manfred was taken back to when he had been a boy and he had stood at attention as some old fuddy-duddy conducted an inspection. Like always in recent years, Rust was at his side. The dog’s majestic bearlike appearance lent Manfred an air of gravitas as he conducted these things. Rust being Rust though, he had other plans. The instant he caught sent of two of his people, he slipped the leash, bolting straight to Nicholas and Sabastian. All sense of decorum vanished among the assembled Class in an instant and they just became Schoolboys, much to their instructor’s chagrin.

Walking over to retrieve Rust, he saw that Sabastian had him by the collar and Nikolaus was scratching behind his ears. The other boys in the Class were looking with trepidation at the massive dog that was suddenly in their midst. This would probably give them something to talk about other than whatever boneheaded thing that Manfred’s boys might have done lately.



Tempelhof, Berlin

Kat was looking at Kora on her desk, the ragdoll that her Aunt Marcella had made for Tatiana when she had been a small child. When Tatiana had grown older, she had thrown aside the old ragdoll and Kat had eventually saved it knowing that Tatiana would probably want something so precious back again someday. Today, Kat had found the doll to remind herself of who Tatiana had been. The little girl who Kat sincerely wished she could have back.

Recent years had taken a heavy toll on their relationship, with Tatiana seeming to make every decision with an eye towards aggravating Kat. Today though, Kat had received a call from Asia saying that in addition to going to University next year, Tatiana had applied to start training at Falkensee with an eye towards joining the BND. Kat had been strongly tempted to order Tatiana tracked down and dragged back to her office so that she could be read the riot act about doing something so utterly pigheaded with her life. It had been the understanding that Kat would probably send Tatiana in the exact opposite direction of what she wanted if she did that which had prevented Kat from doing that.

Kat was completely at a loss for what to do in this situation.
 
Last edited:
That had become not just his signature color, but that of Jasta 11 as well. It remained the Squadron’s color scheme within JG-1. The nose and tail painted crimson and the all-red scheme remained the exclusive preserve of Manfred alone. He remained the Squadron Leader of Jasta 11 as far as the men who flew in it were concerned. One of their own just had the honor of filling in for him while he was away. There was also the work of one Charles “Sparky” Schultz, whose comic strip featured the imaginary battles fought against him by a cartoon beagle. One of Manfred’s Aides had shown him a copy of one of the comic strips. Snoopy waving his fist and calling out “Curse you Red Barron!” That Aide had not been amused; Manfred had disagreed though. He had autographed it and mailed it off to Santa Rosa, California where the cartoonist had been rather surprised to have received it.

Now this is the type of guest appearance in passing that I love this timeline so much for. It's nice to see such a well beloved character as Schultz still getting to do what he was so well known for and that the changes haven't butterflied away such a wonderful creation as the Peanuts world, even if it might be slightly tweaked.
 
The Red Baron might watch out. If Peanuts gets to be internationally famous as in OTL he might be inundated with requests for autographs of a certain comic character.
 
Kat needs to arrange a private meeting with Tatiana; the kind where Tatiana comes in all full of righteous, pig-headed indignation, only to find Kat sitting in an armchair looking melancholic, a glass of something alcoholic in one hand, an empty glass on a side table and the rag doll.

The following conversation should be... interesting.

As it is, the levels of sheer bowel loosening dread within the BND must be at near record levels as they ask each other The Question: "How will The Tigress respond?"
Hopefully, someone has a plan to distribute the contingency cyanide pills on the off chance that any of Tatiana's possible missions go tits up & she gets hurt. To say that Kat would not be happy in that event, would definitely set world records for understating.
 
Recent years had taken a heavy toll on their relationship, with Tatiana seeming to make every decision with an eye towards aggravating Kat. Today though, Kat had received a call from Asia saying that in addition to going to University next year, Tatiana had applied to start training at Falkensee with an eye towards joining the BND. Kat had been strongly tempted to order Tatiana tracked down and dragged back to her office so that she could be read the riot act about doing something so utterly pigheaded with her life. It had been the understanding that Kat would probably send Tatiana in the exact opposite direction of what she wanted if she did that which had prevented Kat from doing that.

Kat was completely at a loss for what to do in this situation.

I think Kat has only one option.
To sit Tatiana down, leave the doll on one side and simply say something along the lines of "I had hoped you'd stay out of this business, I've seen what it does to everyone who gets involved, but that won't stop me being proud of you, nor will it stop me being there for you if, not when, only if, you want it. Now, would you like a drink"?

That will totally throw Tat off balance, and it will give them both an opportunity to get things back on track. The only other think Kat might suggest is taking a leaf out of Kiki's play book and enlisting under an assumed name like Schwartzholz. Of course, if she is really pissed off at Kat, I could see her enlisting under the name Schultz instead...
 
Now this is the type of guest appearance in passing that I love this timeline so much for. It's nice to see such a well beloved character as Schultz still getting to do what he was so well known for and that the changes haven't butterflied away such a wonderful creation as the Peanuts world, even if it might be slightly tweaked.
Charles Monroe Schulz is likely to be a very stable character in any timeline where the early twentieth century USA exists. He is from a provincial town, the child of two locals and wanted to be a cartoonist before his military service, was a cartoonist for the forces magazines during his military service and was a cartoonist again after his military service. Any TL where he isn't killed in WW2, he very probably exists and becomes popular just like OTL. The strip may not be called "Peanuts" in other TLs though. Schulz disliked the title and thought that it demeaned small children.
 

ferdi254

Banned
Any way if there is a classic than it is the Peanuts and I am more than happy they made it into TTL. I even have all the videos on DVD.
 
Last edited:
Part 114, Chapter 1894
Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Ninety-Four



4th December 1968

Tempelhof, Berlin

There came moments when you discover that your parents are human. There were also moments when you also realize that you have pushed things way too far. For Tatiana both those moments happened at the same time. Her mother had found out that she had applied to join the training cadre of the BND at the same time she started University. She had expected her mother to go through the roof when she found out. That hadn’t happened.

Instead, her mother had asked her if it was true. Tatiana had answered truthfully and had seen the look of pain on her mother’s face. She had expected to be yelled at, the same way that her mother had in the past. Or being forced to do the most grueling household chores as had happened when Tatiana had gone way over the line. “You made a choice Tat” Her mother said, “I just don’t think you fully understand the personal costs involved, but I cannot stop you.” And that was all she said.

That was when Tatiana saw her old ragdoll on her mother’s desk, the one that she thought that she had thrown away years earlier when she had thought that she was beyond such things. They had sat there in silence for several minutes before Tatiana got up and left, her mother didn’t stop her.

“What the Hell have you done this time?” Malcolm asked as Tatiana passed him in the hallway outside the parlor in an accusing voice. It was rare that Malcolm was angry about anything, this time was different. Sophie and Marie were staring at her from the landing above. In the past, she could always count on her siblings to at least stay out of the way. This time it was clear that they thought that Tatiana’s actions had gone beyond the pale.



6th December 1968

Mitte, Berlin

Rauchbier heard the footsteps before Kiki did, his ears perking up as he woke from sleeping on the couch next to Kiki. Someone was walking down the gangplank onto the ML Meta. She had been brooding about the rotten week that she had just survived and wasn’t really interested in company. All she wanted was a quiet night with a book to read. There was a knock on the door to the pilothouse and Kiki pretended that she couldn’t hear it.

“Come on Kristina!” Kiki heard a familiar voice yell, “I know you are in there!”

Kiki looked at the small stove that heated the saloon of the Meta and was a bit annoyed. That would give away her presence like few other things. At the same time, it was cold on the water and the weather report had predicted that it might snow, Kiki didn’t want to had hypothermia to her already extensive list of problems. With a sigh, she threw the blanket off her lap and put her book aside. Climbing the ladder to the pilot house, Kiki saw Peter Holz with a smile on his face in the window.

“So, this is the infamous Berlin night life I’ve heard so much about?” Peter said as he stepped through the door in a misguided attempt at humor.

“I just wanted a quiet night” Kiki replied, “I doubt I can make a mess of that like seem to do with everything else.”

“You’ve no reason to be so pessimistic” Peter said as he took off his coat as he followed Kiki down the ladder.

“I can get that” Kiki said, taking the coat and hanging it on a rack next to the door.

“Love what you’ve done with the place” Peter said as he gave Rauchbier a pat. The dog had no interest in getting up from the couch, so his tail beat on the cloth surface.

“Here to tell me what the damage is?” Kiki asked as she fumbled around in the gally as Peter took a seat at the table. There was hot water in the boiler. Normally you should offer a guest tea, Kiki thought to herself, but found that much was difficult.

“Defending your dissertation could have gone better” Peter said, “But it was nowhere near the disaster that you are making it out to be.”

Kiki had completed her Doctorial thesis and had found herself having to defend it in front of a committee. How much of it was based on her actual observations in the field versus research culled from accident reports. The photographs that Kiki had included in her thesis had been described as disturbing among other things. What happened to an unsecured body during an accident at highway speeds was not pretty. It had been asked if Kiki understood the policy implications of her conclusions. She had, but never thought that her thesis would be read by anyone in a position to ever implement those policies. It seemed that Kiki had been wrong about that and was personally responsible for the SPD considering mandates for seatbelts and other safety devices. Car manufactures already included them, but there was not a law that said that people had to use them. It seemed that might be changing in the near future because of her. In front of the committee, Kiki had become tongue tied at times and had nervously answered the questions as best she could. It had dragged on for nothing short of an eternity.

Peter Holz was her Doctorial Advisor, so of course it was his job to put the best spin on things. Aside from the classes she was obligated to attend, Kiki had only left the Meta to walk Rauchbier since she had made it back from Jena a several days earlier.

“When are we going to hear back from them?” Kiki asked, giving up on tea.

Peter just shrugged.

“They move at their own pace Doktor Prinzessin Kristina von Preussen” Peter said, “I was interested in knowing if you wanted to go get a drink to celebrate.”

Was he making fun of her?

“Why?” Kiki asked.
 
Last edited:
Top