Duck

## Montague L. Montague

Isabel [cat, burmese]

Dulcie [cat, siamese]

Alice [kitten, egyptian mau]

> *"Hmph! 'Quack' yourself!"*
>
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As an only child with no father– he died before Duck was born– Duck grew up extraordinarily close to his mother. She was, and is, very protective of him, sometimes to a fault- especially once he was diagnosed with autism. Duck experienced a lot of bullying as a child, mainly for his body and his mannerisms. He’s resilient though, and his interest in trains and railways never wavered. He was a Scout very briefly, but it was enough to give him the confidence to start volunteering on the Great Western Railway. He’s deeply faithful to his roots, but he couldn’t handle volunteering on top of a full-time job.  The North Western Railway offered a paying job, which he accepted. Moving so far away drove a rift between him and his mother for a time, but he visits her often, determined to repair their relationship.

 Biography

### *Past*

Montague was born in Swindon on Christmas Eve. Although the holiday on which he was born is traditionally a happy one, tragedy would strike the Montague family when, shortly after the birth of his only child, Luther Montague passed away. As a result of these circumstances, Montague was raised always by the side of his mother, Holly, and the two grew to have a very close and special bond. Holly's protective nature naturally extended to her son, and this was an attitude that would increase once Montague was diagnosed with autism.

Due to both his mannerisms and his physical appearance, the young Montague was subjected to bullying and insults throughout his childhood. Despite this, Duck remained a resilient child, with his confidence gradually growing - and eventually receiving a boost in the form of his participation in the Scouts. This resiliency and determination, alongside his unwavering interest in railways, eventually pushed him to begin volunteering at the South Devon Railway- when he wasn't working as a conductor on the Great Western Railway, that is.

Slowly ascending through the ranks - having first begun volunteering in the railway gift shop, among other more menial tasks - Duck soon found himself working with the engines themselves. Although there were hurdles - in particular, becoming a fireman was rather problematic due to the challenges posed by his disability - Duck's determination eventually ensured that he triumphed over the various obstacles presented to him. Throughout ten years, Duck continued to grow and develop in his skills, and became a proficient engine driver.

Eventually, however, there arose a problem that didn't seem to have a satisfying resolution either way. The engine that Duck had worked on for years was going to be sold to another railway. Having done a bit of research, Duck found that the railway in question - the North Western Railway - was offering a paying job. Although he loved the Great Western Railway, he decided to take up the NWR's offer and begin working there.

As rewarding as this would prove, the offer had its downsides; in particular, Duck's decision to leave his mother's side would cause his mother a great deal of hurt, and eventually drive a rift between the two.

### *Present*

* much better relationship with his mom at the moment, he's come out to her and told her Donald's his partner, and she regularly visits him now
* accidentally ended up as a mentor to percy
* very content where he is, doesn't want things to change
* often caught in the crossfire of the twins pranking each other

### *Future*

* he'll have a daughter with Donald, Lacey Montague McCrumb

## Occupation

### *Past jobs*

Prior to his current position with the North Western Railway, he worked on the Great Western Railway for nearly 10 years. He was a conductor on the commercial passenger trains, but he also volunteered on one of their heritage lines as well: South Devon Railway. Initially he worked in the gift shop, then gradually became more involved by helping to organize events and order supplies, and eventually started volunteering on the engines themselves- starting as a cleaner.

Because of his physical disability– a weakness in his leg– Duck took longer than most volunteers while learning how to be a fireman. Shoveling was particularly challenging, and his superior did offer to let him a sort of "adjusted pass" so he could focus on driving, but Duck insisted on going through the standard procedures. He was unable to fire for larger tender engines, but could just manage smaller tank engines. Because he proved he knew how to fire, and that the only reason he couldn't do fire in practice was his disability, Duck was promoted to assistant driver. Bypassing firing is practically unheard of among railways, but Duck was permitted an exception as he showed great determination, dedication, and perseverance.

### *Current job*

* Primarily drives the number 8, dislikes driving other engines but will do so if needed. he doesn't fire much anymore, but he can help teach the younger drivers how to do it properly through practice
* works on the Lil Western with Oliver I think

## Relationships

### *Familial*

* mom, Holly Montague, very close with his mom, though she was hurt when he decided to move to Sodor
* Duck lived with his mum until his mid-20s when he wanted to get a little place of his own. It was still close to his mother, though, and she helped him to buy it.
* cousin, Oliver
* another cousin, Jackie Montague
* extended family isn't so kind with him, and especially his mom
* Douglas is basically family by this point

### *Platonic*

* good friends with Edward and Toby
* gets along well with Thomas and Percy, mentor in particular to Percy

### *Romantic*

* in a relationship with Donald
* when he first started dating Donald, things got kinda tense for awhile
* Douglas was super jealous because Donald was spending all his time with Duck
* got so bad that Douglas straight up hated Duck for awhile
* then Douglas saved Oliver (somehow) and Duck was so grateful he took him up in a hug
* after that Douglas started to warm up to him more

### *Negative*

* Diesel
* Gordon, Henry, James when he first started working on the railway
* Very occasionally, he and Percy can butt heads when debating about railways

## Current Design

### *Personality*

Duck dedicates himself to everything he does. He's unintimidating to look at, but he's very stubborn and refuses to be pushed around. While this can make him reluctant to change, Duck is gentle at heart and always means well, and isn't afraid to admit he's wrong.

* Anxiety doesn't run in Duck's family, much less social anxiety but growing up autistic, heavyset, and openly adoring of his mother, a lot of the other children weren't very kind to him, and he developed trust issues towards new people
* his extended family being unkind to his mother didn't help
* Nowadays he tends to be wary of new people he meets, and very guarded. He was even suspicious of Donald at first. He thought Donald's flirty advances were insincere, as Duck had been flirted with as a joke in school

### *Interests*

* cats
* astronomy
* the seaside
* railways
* fairytales

### *Physical description*

* naturally fat, stretch marks on his belly, thighs, and backside
* blond hair, green eyes
* part albino, so very pale and any blush or sunburn is very visible and prominent. His cheeks are rosier than most people's just by default
* because of his bad leg, he needs a cane sometimes, but not always

#### Uniform

Please see the following visual reference:

## Quotes

* "There's two ways of doing things– the Great Western Way, and the wrong way."
* "You may be 'good-gracious', but-"
* "I only wish, sir, that I'd thought of those names myself!"
* “Beg pardon, sir, but I’m from Great Western. We do our work without fuss.”
* “I wish I could sail to faraway lands.”
* “You win, Donald, it’d take a clever engine to get the better of you!”
* "You're just trying to butter me up so you don't have to wash *this* up."
* "It’s not often that people take an interest in me.”

## Trivia

* Duck's middle name is Luther, named after his father. He prefers to abbreviate it as "L." though

## Gallery

Duck reference wip, from 2019 anniversary post