Rosie Baxter

Theo's Mother

Backstory

Known to those in the northern Egypt region as the always victorious Nasr family, Rana was born for glory and ease. Most would see this as a blessing given at birth, but Rana saw it as the shackles that held her back in life. Always forced to play the perfect Sat-nesu (princess) for her parents and attend extravagant events, she was never allowed to be herself. She dreamed of excitement outside of the rigid, constant routine set for her.
It was not as though she didn't try to keep herself busy. She read hundreds of books her parents bought her, hung out with the other wealthy kids of Alexandria, and, as she grew older, would occasionally travel to nearby cities. Travel was when she had the most fun. In neighboring cities, people didn't immediately recognize her, allowing her to dress down out of her expensive apparel and blend in with the casual crowd. Each time she did, she felt the thrilling rush of escaping the persona forced upon her.
This was how Rana's secret life began. When visiting other cities, she would lie to everyone about who she was—secretly hoping to get caught—and eventually started leaving stores without paying for items. As time went on, her ambition grew; she began stealing increasingly expensive items and tricking people out of their own belongings. As a daughter of wealth, she knew exactly how to manipulate people, learning how to get them to give her whatever she wanted with just the bat of her eyelashes.
One day back home in Alexandria, Rana was walking along the port. As she strolled by, she spotted a man sneaking off a ship after the crew had already departed. He looked like he hadn't eaten in months, but somehow, he still carried a grin on his face and a sharp sparkle in his eye. Continued in The Story of Rosie and Asriel

Asriel Baxter

Theo's Father

Backstory

Born to the respected and hardworking Stoyanov family in Varna, Bulgaria, Asriel was always the eccentric type. Even though he was born into poverty, he always sought grandeur. He spent his childhood talking to his older brother, Klaus, about the castle they would live in one day, and trying to convince his parents to buy products so he could "make them millions." Asriel never wanted the hard life of working for others, and he hated watching his father come home with barely enough scraps to feed the family.
When Asriel was around eight years old, Varna began to explode with tourism. The rest of his family saw this as a new opportunity for standard labor; however, Asriel was both too young to work a real job and too ambitious to settle for a quick penny. As time passed, he continued to watch his family work merely to survive, not to live. He watched wealthy tourists spend high money on products and shows, returning year after year with riches he had only dreamed about.
By the time he was fifteen, Asriel’s first big plan came into play. He had spent the last seven years peddling small trinkets and putting on unwinnable street games. When word got around that former U.S. President Richard Nixon was coming to Varna to discuss the Soviet Union, Asriel knew this was his best chance to score big.
Asriel's group of "friends" set the trap, telling him that Nixon was arriving in July and wouldn't be bringing any guards. They insisted he had to do the job alone to keep it covert. Asriel was packing his bags to head to the hotel when Klaus came bursting into his room. The door barely opened before Klaus began lecturing him, calling him rude for not helping around the house and telling him that if he couldn't get a real job, he should just leave. But then Klaus looked down, seeing the packed bag filled with weapons and clothes. When questioned, Asriel confessed that he finally had the ultimate score. He promised Klaus that if he came along, they would split the wealth and leave home forever.
Klaus agreed. The two rode their motorcycle to the hotel where Nixon was staying and snuck all the way up to the massive suite. But the moment they picked the lock, a silent alarm triggered. Heavy footsteps echoed from the adjacent room. Klaus yelled at Asriel to run, promising to deal with them. Before Asriel could argue, guards rushed out of the room and tackled Klaus. Asriel barely slipped by, sprinting into the night.
Asriel fled on his motorcycle all the way to the harbor and snuck onto a departing cargo ship. As he sailed toward an unknown destination, his mind raced with guilt, wondering if his brother would be alright and if he could ever amass enough money to save him. When the ship finally docked, Asriel snuck past the crew and stepped off into the bustling coastal city of Alexandria. Continued in The Story of Rosie and Asriel

Klaus Baxter

Theo's Uncle

Backstory

As the older brother of Asriel Stoyanov, Klaus felt the crushing weight of the family’s poverty long before his younger brother did. While Asriel dreamed of grand castles and empty promises of millions, Klaus was the one facing reality, working tirelessly at any odd job he could find to keep food on the table and keep his eccentric younger brother in line. He watched with a mix of frustration and fear as Asriel spent years running street scams and refusing to settle down. Klaus knew his brother's untamed ambition would eventually lead to trouble, but he never expected how quickly the floor would fall out from under them.
The breaking point came on a hot July evening. Furious that Asriel had been neglecting his responsibilities around the house, Klaus burst into his brother's room to confront him, only to find him packing a bag with weapons and clothes. When Asriel confessed to a massive, covert heist targeting a visiting former U.S. President, Klaus's initial instinct was to stop him. But Asriel’s desperate plea and the promise of a split score that could lift their family out of poverty forever finally broke Klaus's resolve. Convinced that his brother would get himself killed if left alone, Klaus agreed to go with him, purely to watch his back.
The decision cost him everything. When the lock clicked on the hotel suite door and the silent alarm sounded, Klaus’s protective instincts instantly overrode his fear. Hearing the heavy footsteps of guards approaching from the next room, he didn't hesitate; he ordered Asriel to run and threw himself into the doorway to block the path. Tackled to the ground and arrested on the spot, Klaus took the entire fall for the botched heist, ensuring his brother had the precious seconds needed to escape to the harbor.
Klaus spent the next several years behind bars in a harsh Soviet-era prison, enduring the consequences of a crime he never wanted to commit. Yet, despite the bitter betrayal of his circumstances and the years of his youth lost to a cell, his thoughts never truly left his brother, wondering if his sacrifice had bought Asriel a genuine chance at a life worth living. Continued in The Story of Klaus and Lyra

Lyra Baxter

Theo's Aunt

Backstory

The salt spray of the Atlantic still lingered on the collar of Lyra’s woolen coat when the ship finally glided into New York Harbor. She was just a baby, wrapped tightly in her mother’s arms, oblivious to the massive copper statue passing by the window or the heavy sighs of relief escaping her parents' lips.
Back in Paris, the echoes of World War II refused to fade. The city’s beautiful boulevards felt weighed down by a new kind of silence—an underlying political tension that hummed through the cafes and street corners as the world fractured into new alliances. Lyra's parents, hardworking and fiercely protective, looked at their newborn daughter and knew that the remnants of an old, scarred Europe was no place to build her future. They packed their lives into three worn suitcases, left the familiar cobblestones of France behind, and boarded a vessel bound for the unknown.
New York City in the late 1940s was a shock to the senses. It was a symphony of screeching yellow cabs, towering steel skyscrapers that blocked out the sun, and a dozen different languages colliding on every street corner.
They settled into a cramped apartment in a neighborhood filled with fellow immigrants. Money was scarce, and the language barrier was a daily mountain to climb, but the tension that had suffocated them in Paris was entirely gone. In its place was a vibrant, chaotic energy. Lyra grew up listening to the rhythm of her parents' native French spoken at the dinner table, juxtaposed against the sharp, fast-talking English accents echoing from the streets below her window.
For Lyra Belacqua, born in the shadow of war but raised in the bright light of American opportunity, the city became her playground. As she grew up through the years working odd jobs trying to continue to help her parents and the rest of her family make it in this country of promise. While working at a similar place to the one her parents had immigrated to she saw many of unique individuals from all across the world looking for a new life. None stood out quite as much as the young man who had grey hair and piercing green eyes. Continued in The Story of Klaus and Lyra

The Story of Klaus and Lyra

Image represents the love and clarity the brought to eachother.

Starting perspective Klaus
Five years stuck in a prison is not as long as some people think. When you have met inmates who will never leave, the date of your own release always seems right next door. Although I will never forgive my brother for getting us caught, I do hope that he has continued to live his life. The pain that I will feel tomorrow, of being released but banned from returning home, will haunt me until the day I die. I was told that I will be leaving for America to start a new life, as a deal was struck between my father and the police. I do not know what kind of bargain he made, but I will make sure I do not squander this chance. My hair has grown almost completely gray. They say it is due to the stress, but at 25 years old, it is hard to believe.

Continued in 1987
Upon his arrival in America, Klaus had to legally establish his identity. When first trying to register for a new name, Klaus had given his real name and learned that his younger brother was still alive and had taken on the last name Baxter. Wanting to stay connected to his brother in whatever way he could, Klaus took the name as well.
By then, New York City was a booming environment for everyone involved in 1987. With the smell of industry, tobacco, and street food, alongside the sight of thousands of people constantly moving, there was almost too much for some to handle. Though when Klaus arrived at his destination, none of that seemed to bother him, for the sight that stood before him blocked everything else out. He saw a woman with brown eyes that made every light glimmer off them, and strawberry blonde hair that looked as soft as a cloud. When Lyra looked back at this man, who stood there with just a bag over his shoulder and old clothes wrapped around him, all she could think was that this was the most handsome man she had ever seen. For both of them, it felt like the hard work they had put into their lives had finally paid off. When first trying to register for a new name Klaus had given his real name and learned that his younger brother was still alive and had taken on the last name Baxter.

Continued several years later
From the first moment they met, Klaus and Lyra became inseparable. Lyra and Klaus found a small apartment in New York where they could live together with her parents while they saved up some money. They constantly talked about their shared love for literature and the arts. After five years, Lyra's parents had sadly passed away, and the couple had managed to save a significant amount of money. The two traveled west in search of a new place where they could settle down and call home. Eventually, they found themselves owning a small bookstore in the quaint town of Thorncross, Colorado. After 15 years of living a beautiful, quiet life there, Klaus's phone rang. On the other end, his brother exclaimed how happy he was to have finally found him, and before Klaus could say anything, Asriel told him he wanted him to meet his nephew.

The Story of Rosie and Asriel

Image represents the uncertain future they had but the color and life the brought.

Starting Perspective Asriel
How many months has it been since I snuck onto this disgusting ship? Some days I think that my brother got off easier the night that we got caught. He is probably sitting in a jail cell with meals all the time and solid walls. Even though he might have it better in that way, at least I will still have my freedom once this ship docks. I have been living off of random scraps that I have been able to find all around the lower deck. I must survive so that I can make enough money to both save my brother and prove him wrong.

The Port of Alexandria
As the boy snuck off the ship, Rana became almost immediately infatuated with him. This ordinary boy seemed to have so much life and excitement in his body, even while looking like he had just been scraped off the bottom of the boat he got off of. She couldn't help herself from running up to him and asking what he was doing. Her heart beat louder than the drums at the Sham El-Nessim Festival with the excitement of something new finally happening in her boring life. The boy looked at her with eyes as black as the darkest nights and said, "I'm here to live my life as free as the birds that dance upon the clouds." With those words, Rana felt her heart beat even harder. She told him that if he needed a place to stay, she had a home here in Alexandria where he could stay as long as he wanted. At first, her parents did not want some random boy living in the house with their daughter, but with enough persuasion and convincing, Rana, like always, got her way.

Even though Rana knew that Asriel was lying to her about the real reasons he was here, she didn't care. She knew that one day, hopefully soon, she would learn the truth, but for now, the joy she had when she was with him made her the happiest she had ever been. They learned that they enjoyed the same hobbies on a trip to a nearby city, where Rana showed him her secret life and who she truly was. This only made Asriel fall in love with her more, seeing that she, like him, loved to make money in unconventional ways. This was the start of their partnership. They worked through different cities, combining their brains and strategies to score big off some of the wealthiest people in northern Egypt. Until, like always for Asriel, his luck caught up to him. During a smaller scam on some tourists, the couple was caught, and instead of giving in, they ran together. He taught her how to easily sneak aboard a ship, and she agreed to go with him to start a new life, a real life together.

Continued a few years later
After they had traveled across the ocean, through different ports, and through different cities, jumping from ship to ship, Rana and Asriel found themselves in New York City in 1985. Confident that they had found a place they could call home for a while, the couple registered as a new family. They changed their last name to Baxter, and Rana wanted to ensure her old life was left completely behind, changing her first name to Rosie. The two started out in New York using their old tricks to continue bringing in money, eventually buying a used Vista Cruiser. This car was their ultimate ticket to being free and traveling the country. A few years later, in the back of that Vista Cruiser, they welcomed a baby boy named Theo.

Major Locations

Varna, Bulgaria - Birth place of my father and uncle
Paris, France - Birth place of my aunt
Alexandria, Egypt - Birth place of my mother
New York City - Where my aunt and uncle met
Thorncross - Where my Aunt and Uncle moved