Annalise White

* Annalise
* Concept Image

## Introduction

**Annalise Marie White** ( *Born January 11th, 1881* ) is a wrangler and owner of the Saint Denis Stables. Annalise left home to find adventure and purpose far away from her family's small town pig farm.

## Appearance

Annalise is a blue-eyed, short, and thin young woman with an undernourished appearance due to her family's lack of wealth and overworking lifestyle. Her complexion is very fair with her face frequently sun-scorched. (This is usually covered up with make-up.) Her hair is long and a bold black color, worn half-up, half-down, usually pretty wavy.

She is usually seen in a white blouse and a red hitched skirt with a corset and gloves and to a pair of custom-made riding boots. Eva Hartford made her a native-style beaded bracelet with a running horse charm as a birthday present, which she now wears constantly. This bracelet is paired with a leather rope pendant with a bejeweled horse made out of cherry wood. (A hand-crafted gift from Lena Shaw.) Occasionally when she dresses up, she wears a silver horsehoe brooch (A gift from Ada Milton.) or a white and blue flower gemstone necklace. (A gift from Andrew Weaver.)

Since coming to Odessa, Annalise has earned herself a number of scars.

* Wolf teeth marks on her left shoulder and right side
* A buckshot blast from a double barrel on her lower back, surrounded by pellet scars
* Surgery scar around mid-back from a broken rib repair
* A bullet wound from a pistol in her right side
* A bullet wound from a rifle in her left thigh

There are a number of important items that Annalise always carries with her in or on her bag. All of the fragile valuables are wrapped in thick deerskin to keep them dry and safe.

* A golden Hand of Fatima charm with a turquoise stone inlaid in the center, hanging from the strap of her bag
* An expensive silver pocket watch belonging to Andrew Weaver
* A book containing her collection of pressed flowers
* A notebook containing her horse records, business ledger, and a list of contacts
* A first aid kit, always stocked
* Various candy from the Saint Denis candy shop
* A Schofield revolver with ammo (When not in a gunbelt)

## Biography

Annalise was born into a family of pig farmers in Yellowspring, West Virginia. From a young age, she was forced to assist the family in the day-to-day chores around the farm while being homeschooled by her mother.

Both parents tried to raise Annalise to be as proper of a young lady as they could, grooming their children to take on the family business and to become good husbands and wives in the future. To their dismay, Annalise was more of a free spirit than her family could have possibly imagined. This led to tighter restrictions on her compared to her brothers, as their only daughter was terribly clumsy and smaller than the boys. Her father was adamant on banishing her from any sort of dangerous activities, scaring her away from guns, keeping her away from large farm animals, and making sure she wasn't sneaking away from the farm to get into mischief. Confined to the farm, Annalise spent her free time reading, experiencing the outside world from the pages of books instead of in person.

By the time Annalise was a grown woman, these tight restrictions all throughout her childhood lead her to become rebellious, breaking their excessive rules whenever she got the chance. When adulthood and a chance at freedom came, she took it. After saving enough money from doing odd jobs for her neighbors, Annalise snuck out of the farm in the dead of night to the nearest train station and headed out west, finding herself in the State of Odessa.

## The Story So Far...

### **First Lessons**

Upon arriving in Odessa, the first few weeks were full of nothing but trial and error, the young lady pulling herself out of the frying pan and tossing herself right into the fire. After arriving in Odessa at Valentine Station, she walked her way all the way to Rhodes and got right to work inquiring on riding lessons and work. Thanks to Amelia Sanders giving her her first horse Bosco and a quick lesson on how to actually control and steer the animal, she was on her way to her dream of becoming a wrangler! Still...it wasn't without it's challenges. The rest of her riding skills were self-taught and the Kentucky Saddler did not take to his new rider, meaning she was frequently kicked, bucked off, or quite often running into other riders. She had to train and teach Bosco through tactics she learned through observation and advice from others, setting the groundwork for her future training needs.

A few days into her stay in Odessa, a chance meeting with a native by the name of Whitecrow gave her a chance to learn to actually wrangle and break wild horses. The old native woman taught her a better method than the standard chasing, roping and breaking method, instead teaching her to approach the wild horse with a calm energy and soothing words before the breaking process occurred, leading to freshly broken horses that were much more comfortable with her and more amenable to being trained. Soon enough, she was starting to collect a good stock of wild horses of various breeds to practice working with, and eventually sell to the people of Odessa to earn her living. It was in these early days that she also wrangled her faithful steed Storm, a grullo dun mustang mare that took to her instantly...and no one else. She kept the horse as her own, and it's her favorite horse to this day.

*"You need a horse? You should talk to the woman to your right."* -Henry Baptiste

### **Rhodes & The Caravan**

The motel in Rhodes was the first place Annalise settled thanks to Amelia and her wonderful assistance on her first day, as well as the warm welcome she received from the Rhodes Sheriff's Office and the members of the caravan just outside of the small town. Siobhan and Vedoyma (also known as *Vero*) soon invited Annalise to join them and move in to the last unoccupied caravan as well as giving her a job helping her with their shop. In turn, they would help her advertise her horse business. Now, Annalise had a home and the sisters she always dreamed of having. They were...different. With their Romani culture, it took a bit for her to get used to it all, but the two girls sensed in her a kindred spirit.

"*...That's not strange at all. It means you're a wind spirit, a traveler that goes where she pleases."* -Siobhan O'Connel

### **Meeting Andrew Weaver**

Another fateful encounter came in the form of Andrew Weaver, a law school graduate who was sent to Odessa by his parents to conduct a survey in Odessa. After their first encounter in the Rhodes Saloon with Noah Alston teasing Andrew about "asking Annalise out to dinner", their next encounter ended up with something neither of them expected. Andrew had an unfortunate run-in with the dock workers in Saint Denis, his survey questions angering the lower class men. This resulted in a prompt thrashing, Andrew turning up at the saloon with quite a few bruises. The night evolved into quiet conversations at the caravan with drinks and friends aplenty, until just Annalise and Andrew were the only two remaining. Just a simple conversation and Annalise's concern for his safety sparked something between them. After a first date with Andrew showing Annalise the city, the two started officially dating.

*"...It's only natural to beat the woman you love."* -Andrew Weaver

### **The Peaky Blinders & Rhodes Finest Horses**

Annalise's wrangling dreams were met with one big speed bump: The Peaky Blinders of Saint Denis. Robert Redson, also known as "Bobby" by everyone, caught up to Annalise and gave her a *deal that she couldn't refuse*. Either work for him, or work in association with him. Redson was known to cause trouble for horse sellers that didn't submit to their monopoly they had created in the horse business (including the murder of competitor horses) so Annalise gave in to his demands. She joined Amelia as partners and they created their business, Rhodes Finest Horses, associating themselves with O'gara and Redson's company. Half of each horse sale had to go to Bobby, crippling her income. Over the next few months, the Blinders disappeared, leaving Annalise and Amelia to run their business in peace, and with full income.

*"Bobby...doesn't like competition..."* - Vedoyma

### **The Dangers of Odessa**

Annalise learned VERY quickly that becoming independent and moving to a dangerous place like Odessa meant she had to make a few changes to her peaceful and naive lifestyle. Very shortly after arriving, it became clear that her clumsiness and just downright bad luck made her a target for trouble, ranging from accidents to hostile criminals. After finally getting the hang of riding, the wildlife was the first danger that she had to deal with. One incident involving a violent wolf attack on Annalise and Andrew's second date made her pick up the bow for self-defense purposes...though she wasn't very good at using one whatsoever.

It was only when the multitude of criminals in Odessa started pointing guns at the innocent young lady that she finally decided to step away from her fear of guns and start fighting fire with fire. Jimmy Lightfoot gave the wrangler her first revolver, with lessons on how to use it provided by Andrew. It was only with repeated practice in her free time that she conquered her fear of a loaded gun, and gained confidence in herself to keep herself safe.

When her partner decided to take up the badge and doctors were becoming more and more scarce in Odessa, Annalise started to take interest in another topic: first aid. Siobhan started her down the path in her early days in Odessa, the Scottish woman showing Annalise a few minor treatments with natural remedies to help the clumsy girl when she injured herself. When Andrew received his deputy badge, she started on her own self-study of first aid treatments using the books in his library. Unsatisfied with her self-taught information, eventually the young lady sought lessons from Doctor Jules Nez of Staint Denis. It's become well-known that she knows enough first aid to keep the severely injured alive, and she is willing to treat both friend AND foe.

*"I came out here to do what I love. I can't be afraid to leave the house and live my life!"* -Annalise White

### **Saint Denis Stables**

After months of making a name for herself in Odessa as a fine horse wrangler and a massive increase in business, it was time to expand. Amelia withdrew from wrangling, and it left Annalise the sole horse seller for Rhodes Finest Horses...and things were starting to get overwhelming. Even with help from her fellow wrangler and business partner, Lena Shaw, the workload was piling up. She took interest in the idea of purchasing Saint Denis Stables. It was her primary location for stabling her horses, both personal and sale. It would decrease her running costs and her workload, leaving the stablehands to deal with the day to day care of the sale stock. The Blinders had full ownership of Saint Denis Stables for quite some time, but with their timely disappearance, the deed was practically up for grabs. After talking to Sheriff Cedric Worth about the idea, the Sheriff legally secured the deed for Annalise, and the new chapter of her horse business began.

*"If all of your horses are in that stable...might as well buy it."* -Lena Shaw

### **The Father's Arrival**

Disaster struck Annalise's newfound paradise when Jeremy White arrived in Odessa. After finding out her location from the correspondence letters between Annalise and Samuel, he immediately hopped on a train and came down to St. Denis to retrieve his wayward daughter. His initial behavior towards Annalise and her newfound home was...less than spectacular, Jeremy admitting to crushing her brother's hands as punishment for their letter exchange and telling her that her "fooling around was over". He immediately demanded her return to Yellowspring. According to him, the farm back home was failing due to pork prices dropping, and that marrying their neighbor's son, Mr. Thomas Abernathy, would save the farm. The Abernathy family had a successful farm that raised cows for beef, and marrying into their family would solve all of their monetary troubles. Not only did he completely disapprove of Andrew and his line of work, he put Annalise in a tough spot, knowing that her family would eventually starve without support.

With Andrew's support, the trio talked about the situation over dinner and Annalise rebuked her father's "request", offering instead to send money home to help the family each month until the pork sales went back up. He initially refused, becoming irritable and angry towards his daughter as well as Andrew himself before he dismissed himself from dinner. Just as he was leaving the manor, however, Mr. White ended up suffering from a severe cranial aneurism, ending up in the St. Denis clinic until a surgeon from Annesburg could come down and repair the damage with a risky and expensive surgery. Annalise, of course, paid for the surgery and for his safe passage home with a licensed attendant that could care for him until he was back at home with his wife.

The narrow brush with death seemed to completely change her father's demeanor, as he accepted Annalise's monetary help, as well as Andrew's affections for his daughter. He even wrote out the word "son" on his blackboard that he required to communicate with. Jeremy White was sent home peacefully, and the situation was resolved. Only time would tell if he changed his ways completely.

*"He is my blood...and I will do with my blood as I see fit..." -* Jeremy White

### **Putting On The Badge**

With the The Dead West's uprising in Odessa and their spree of killings and robberies happening while the law offices were dwindling in numbers, Sheriff Cedric Worth of New Hanover gave Annalise a risky proposal: put on the badge as a temporary solution to help out the offices until she was no longer needed. With some deliberation, Annalise accepted, telling Cedric that she would wear the badge until Hawthorne himself was caught or his office filled out with new law officers. Annalise, personally, feels she made little to no impact with how few arrests she made and how many blunders she found herself committing, but Sheriff Worth had his own opinion. When the Dead West was taken down and Annalise finally pulled Cedric aside to turn in her badge, he told her that she was "...the best lawman or woman I've seen in the state of Odessa in a long time." It was a bittersweet end to this hair-raising chapter, but a necessary one. Annalise felt like she wasn't good enough for the job, and working as a deputy (later promoted to Sr. Deputy) left her an irritable mess on a daily basis and neglecting all of her personal relationships.

## Relationships

### **Undersheriff Rhett White**

Rhett and Annalise made an instant connection upon their introduction. The two quickly realized that not only did they have the same last name, but they also came from the same state! Annalise took to calling White her "unofficial cousin" every chance she gets. When White transferred from the Valentine office to the Rhodes office and eventually became Sheriff, the two only grew closer from their constant teasing back and forth and working together to maintain justice in Rhodes. Annalise always shared any bit of useful information involving criminals and became a reliable helper, and the sheriff returned the favor by giving Annalise lots of business and looking out for her whenever he could.

### **The Caravan Girls**

Siobhan and Vero grew very close to Annalise in her early days in Odessa, and the bond only grew stronger as time passed. It was a normal sight to see the three girls around town, getting into mischief and gossiping like hens. Until the two caravan girls left Odessa, they were practically inseparable.

Siobhan was many things to Annalise: a mother, a sister, a teacher. She was the wild one, releasing Annalise's fiery inner spirit that had remained dormant under the teachings of her father her whole life. The Scottish woman helped her to bloom into her true personality once she was free from her restraints. Annalise believes that many of the things that she accomplished could not have been possible without her guidance and encouragement to get her on the right track to success. From the moment Siobhan welcomed her into the caravan and gave her one of her handmade shawls, Annalise felt like that she had finally come home.

Vero was the more level-headed one, passing her wisdom from her travels on to Annalise. She was the voice of reason with a sharp wit and an even sharper tongue that could outmatch anyone. Vero kept her smart, and gave her the backbone to stand up for herself when push came to shove. Annalise envied the way that Vero carried herself, and strove to mimic the bold confidence that she saw in her. Those lessons of wit have served her well when it came to dealing with criminals and other dangerous situations.

### Lena Shaw (Cornell)

Annalise sees Lena as someone who is very much just like her. Both girls work with horses, they are quiet and have a hard time starting conversations, but when push came to shove, they are both spitfires that bared their teeth without a second thought. When Siobhan O'Connel left Odessa to find her brother and Laila Clay left to handle family matters, the two found themselves to be in each other's company more often than not, filling the void their friends had left with each other. The girls are more often than not seen together training and racing their horses, or just enjoying each other's company. Not only did they become great friends, but cooperative business partners. Lena was one of Annalise's major supporters when she considered buying St. Denis Stables. Annalise was absolutely flattered when both Lena and Deputy Virgil Cornell left all of the details of planning their wedding to the wrangler and Lena made her the maid of honor for the ceremony.

### Beatrice De Lacy **& Ada Milton**

Annalise originally met Ada Milton through Andrew's friendship with the woman's former fiance, Tommy Winston. Even though the two girls came from two different worlds and didn't have much in common, just the fact that they both had such bright and friendly personalities helped them to mesh together really well. When Beatrice came along to Odessa, it became even more of a party. Beatrice was thoroughly welcomed into Odessa by Annalise and Andrew, leaving a lasting impression on her. Even when Beatrice fell into a tricky situation involving the Dead Rabbits in Blackwater, Annalise did her best to give her sound advice and kept her hiding place a secret. There is always a supportive and positive atmosphere between all of them. The trio tend to get into harmless shenanigans every time they are together, jokes and laughs aplenty going around.

### Noah Alston

Noah, as Annalise described it, was always the annoying older brother figure. He was always picking on Annalise, as any brother does, but he was much more than that. He was always surprising everyone with his wit and his talents every time their guard was down, showing that his playful nature didn't necessarily mean he was immature or lacking intelligence. Time and time again, he was there to help Annalise with his handmade crafts, or just a bit of advice from someone who had lived off of the land his entire life. Annalise believes that her relationship to Andrew Weaver started with Noah, just from an 'offhand joke'. When asked later about it, Noah stated that he had seen something between the young pair, and he just 'called it like he saw it'.

### **Eva Hartford**

Eva and Annalise were both just a pair of girls that connected over horses. While Annalise didn't get the chance to socialize much with Eva in the girl's early days in Odessa, it was later on when the two were attempting to help Siobhan through her 'trial' that they started to bond. Spending two days searching for a missing person gives you lots of time to talk, and talk they did, several raw emotions coming out over the journey. To Annalise, their relationship started drifting apart when Eva's friend, Tradewind, was arrested, and the native woman started spending more time alone and it felt as if she withdrew from the rest of Rhodes. Still, Eva became an unforgettable friend.

### **Zip Taylor**

Zip Taylor was the surrogate brother figure Annalise relied on until he disappeared from the state. More often than not, Annalise had a very hard time approaching him and striking up a conversation when he was alone. Zip didn't talk much, and in general, the wrangler found him to be an intimidating entity. Still, she understood that he was a man with a past in which he had his heart broken, and he was a very dear big brother to Siobhan. Even if it was hard for her to reach out to him, she did her best to reach out to him when he needed help, or just someone to listen. Zip was always the dependable guardian within their circle of friends, always looking out for every single person within their tiny dysfunctional family. Zip even went so far as to aid Dr. Penny Braithwaite in performing emergency surgery on Annalise when Beatrice's horse kicked the injured girl in the chest and forced a broken rib to be jammed into Annalise's lung. The former deputy saved and defended Annalise more times than she can count, and she will forever be grateful for that.

### Emile Bouillon

Emile Bouillon has been a constant source of shenanigans and tomfoolery since the day she met the famous French chef. From his eccentric tastes in food, to his troubles with courting women, Annalise has been dragged on all sorts of adventures with him and every one has always ended in some sort of social disaster. Despite this, Emile has always been a loyal friend to Annalise. He always has an ear to lend, or a delicious snack to offer to brighten up the day! Often, he is a source of joy with the strange social games he comes up with or the stories he tells. Emile enjoys and encourages the sharing of memories and cultures, which naturally brings the people around him closer together through strange bonding experiences. While Annalise DOES have to be harsh with Emile when he behaves recklessly or he's about to make a major social blunder, she does adore him for his strange but welcoming personality.

### Hawthorne West

Despite Hawthorne's criminal activities, Annalise used to think very fondly of him. When he lived in Rhodes, she only saw him as the happy old man that was always good for a laugh or some advice from someone far older and wiser than her who had seen much more of the world. When Hawthorne was revealed to be sick with tuberculosis and slipped into criminal activities, Annalise could only feel pity for him. She was still there for him when he needed help, and she was more than happy to lend an ear when he tried to explain his actions to her and how he felt. She sees him as "...a good man that does bad things for good reasons." When Hawthorne confessed to Annalise that he wished his daughters would have grown up to be like her had they not died young, she personally wished that she had had a father like Hawthorne. Sadly, those mentalities changed when Hawthorne began his ruthless killing spree and murdered Alberto Villaneauva (Lazy Al) in front of her with a pistol shot to the head. When Hawthorne was finally killed in a shootout in Blackwater at the end of July, Annalise thought that she would have been ecstatic that he was deceased. Instead...she shed a few tears. Annalise promised herself that she would remember him for the man and friend he was...not the monster he became.

### **Jeremy White**

Annalise's relationship with her father is...rocky. The two of them never saw eye-to-eye throughout her childhood, and the traditional patriarchal way he ran his household was what eventually led to her running off in the first place. Where he was order and discipline, she was chaos and freedom. The only commonality that they shared was that they both had terribly short tempers, which often caused "emotional explosions" in the household when the two were having one of their many arguments. Still, even if they never got along, Annalise still respected and loved her father. He still raised her and took care of her from the second she was born until the day she left home.

Thanks to his methods of child-raising, there are a few of her strange behaviors that he was solely responsible for, namely why she is always wearing a skirt (unless she is working), her issues with controlling her own emotions, and the respectful way she treats men of authority until she becomes comfortable enough around them to treat them as friends.

### **Elizabeth Sinclaire**

Annalise's relationship with the "Hell Bitch" of Odessa has been a tricky one. She never had a problem with Maria Spactio, her other more passive personality, but Elizabeth herself has proven to Annalise time and time again that she can't be trusted. From trying to frame Siobhan and Bryce for the burning of Texas Ranch, to telling the law about her own act of arson against the monster hunter Aloysius even though the matter had been settled quietly, she learned quickly to keep Elizabeth at arm's length. She tried to give the woman a chance and treated her cordially even after all the things the woman had done, but when Elizabeth betrayed her yet again and acted so friendly towards Annalise's wicked father, Annalise exchanged a few blows with her and wrote her off completely.