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MFU 30-Day Meme: Day 11
Day 11 – Favorite innocent: Cecille Bergstrom (from THE BRAIN-KILLER AFFAIR)
She isn't your typical innocent. She sure as hell really isn't concerned about U.N.C.L.E.'s moral "good fight" or Thrush's ongoing plans for world domination. She has more personal concerns: managing to keep body and soul together in order to look after her mentally handicapped brother.
Money is her motivator to help out U.N.C.L.E. Yet still she isn't the hard-baked sort. Her prickliness is a natural defense to hide her vulnerability. Hell, she can't even walk the streets of her neighborhood with her brother in tow without them being made fun of (as she references in a conversation with Solo). Hence that thorny shell.
That the thousand dollars Napoleon offers her to help in his scheme to trap out Dabree puts her a little-girl tizzy with imagining a sort of Cinderella moment for herself is endearing. Just as her realization that moment still wouldn't be possible is heartbreaking. (And it does say a lot about Napoleon's empathy with others -- something he showed often during the series -- that he offers to treat her to that "Cinderella moment", since we don't get the impression at any point that he is attracted to Cecille in a sexual way.)
Cecille's hysterical screaming while in Dabree's clutches is realistic. She isn't suddenly super-brave like most innocents turn out to be. She's scared and she isn't hiding it. The whole scenario has nothing to do with her actual life and she just wants out of it. That's an honest reaction. Still, she does manage in the end to turn on that brain machine at the needed moment because she isn't frozen in terror either: she adapts as she has to her life with taking care of her handicapped brother.
My own hope was that after the affair Cecille received more from U.N.C.L.E. than just the gift of a fancy night out to which Napoleon personally treated her (no organization involved there). That the organization itself provided for regular weekly recreational therapy for Niels that allowed for Cecille to have occasional "me" time free of having to care and worry about her brother.
She isn't your typical innocent. She sure as hell really isn't concerned about U.N.C.L.E.'s moral "good fight" or Thrush's ongoing plans for world domination. She has more personal concerns: managing to keep body and soul together in order to look after her mentally handicapped brother.
Money is her motivator to help out U.N.C.L.E. Yet still she isn't the hard-baked sort. Her prickliness is a natural defense to hide her vulnerability. Hell, she can't even walk the streets of her neighborhood with her brother in tow without them being made fun of (as she references in a conversation with Solo). Hence that thorny shell.
That the thousand dollars Napoleon offers her to help in his scheme to trap out Dabree puts her a little-girl tizzy with imagining a sort of Cinderella moment for herself is endearing. Just as her realization that moment still wouldn't be possible is heartbreaking. (And it does say a lot about Napoleon's empathy with others -- something he showed often during the series -- that he offers to treat her to that "Cinderella moment", since we don't get the impression at any point that he is attracted to Cecille in a sexual way.)
Cecille's hysterical screaming while in Dabree's clutches is realistic. She isn't suddenly super-brave like most innocents turn out to be. She's scared and she isn't hiding it. The whole scenario has nothing to do with her actual life and she just wants out of it. That's an honest reaction. Still, she does manage in the end to turn on that brain machine at the needed moment because she isn't frozen in terror either: she adapts as she has to her life with taking care of her handicapped brother.
My own hope was that after the affair Cecille received more from U.N.C.L.E. than just the gift of a fancy night out to which Napoleon personally treated her (no organization involved there). That the organization itself provided for regular weekly recreational therapy for Niels that allowed for Cecille to have occasional "me" time free of having to care and worry about her brother.
no subject
Guess it's the influence of my favorite U.N.C.L.E. guy. [wink]