“ | A Rainsworth woman should not shed tears so easily. | ” |
—Retrace LXXXI: CHILDREN |
Introduction
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Sheryl Rainsworth (シェリル=レインズワース, Sheriru Reinzuwāsu) is a supporting character from Jun Mochizuki's Pandora Hearts. She is the Duchess of the Rainsworth Dukedom, and thus grandmother to Sharon Rainsworth and served by Xerxes Break. She is Legally Contracted to the Rainsworths' Black Winged Chain, Owl. She is one of the older members of Pandora and uses a wheelchair, but nonetheless she is feared across the entire organization for her no-nonsense attitude. She provides stern, guiding, and almost maternal support for the protagonists through their journey, primarily for Sharon.
The Rainsworth family is a lineage connected to the royal bloodline, thus Sheryl had attended Lutwidge Academy as a child. It was there where she met Rufus Barma, heir to the Barma Dukedom and her upperclassman. The two never got along, constantly bickering, but she still treated him with considerably more respect than others, never minding his foreign blood. Rufus ended up falling in love with Sheryl, but she did not return his advances and constantly rejected his marriage proposals. Regardless they remained trusted friends for their entire lives. In their youths, the two secretly swapped their Keys to the Doors, the lifelines for each of the Four Great Dukedoms, to not only guarantee their loyalty to one another but also represent the promise they made. To always work in tandem as Rainsworth and Barma and never allow another Tragedy of Sablier to come to pass.
Approximately 15 years before Oz Vessalius is cast into the Abyss, a bloodied and half-dead man appeared at the Rainsworths' Door to the Abyss, discovered by a young Sharon and Reim Lunettes. This man was Kevin Legnard, former knight of the Sinclair Family who had become an Illegal Contractor in order to change the past and save his masters from being killed. Despite his efforts, the Sinclairs had long since been dead, and he was thrown into despair. However Sheryl's daughter Shelly helped him regain his will to live, and he went on to faithfully serve the Rainsworth family as Xerxes Break. After some time however, Shelly contracted an illness that she could not recover from and died. Sheryl then began to raise Sharon to inherit not only the position of their family's head but also the principled leadership required to maintain it.
Appearance[]
Sheryl Rainsworth appears as a wheelchair-bound elderly woman in her mid to late sixties with graying caramel-colored hair and small, squinty eyes. Sheryl's hair is tied back using a series of ribbons tied in a bow, having her bangs pulled back, trailing over the sides of her face and being tied with the rest of her hair at the back of her head.
Sheryl most commonly wears a dark business vest underneath a floral-style overcoat which ends in black cuffs, a flowing dress and occasionally a shall tipped with a lining of fringe. Sheryl also wears earrings, which double as her Key to the Abyss which appear to have been pearl earrings embroidered with a thin drop-shaped piece of metal dangling down.
Personality[]
Sheryl's personality is cheerful at most times, often teasing those around her during their conversations. Sheryl has displayed great amounts of loyalty and bravery, as well as raw power. This type of raw power has earned Sheryl great amounts of respect and fear from those around her. One of Sheryl's main priorities also seems to be upholding the reputation of the Rainsworth family, often reminding Sharon that Rainsworths do their best to be cheerful, delicate and beautiful no matter what the circumstances are. Sheryl also has displayed that she's very concerned about the well being of her family, taking serious action when she discovered that Sharon had been kidnapped. Sheryl often acts very maternal towards other characters, focusing her care on Oz the B-Rabbit occasionally, and especially Reim Lunettes, whom she allowed to stay with her and her family for two whole years because he was afraid to return to Rufus after he'd failed his master's request.
Sheryl also seems to be a fan of the character 'Jyanta', a trait she shares with Echo and Lottie, as she has been shown to own some figurines of Jyanta as well as a small Jyanta charm.
Sheryl's preferred weapon is her harisen, which she wields right-handed, having a less complex design than Rufus' fan and a Jyanta charm tied around its handle with a ribbon.
Powers and Abilities[]
- Chain Owl - Sheryl controls Owl which she contracted with Legally after Glen Baskerville's Soul was sealed. Though Owl, Sheryl can create ties to people which will lead someone directly to them at any given moment.
- Sheryl has displayed that she has phenomenal strength, being able to embed her harisen in a stone pillar. (See Trivia)
Quotes[]
- "Oh dear I thought we might finally be able to begin the conference now that I'm better, but... there seems to be quite the spot of trouble now, hmm..."
- "Fu fu fu fu! They seem to be having fun." (About Oscar and Reim)
- "It would seem that you've been a bad boy, hmm...?"
- "You have been bullying a child of my house... you naughty lad!"
- "My, my, my, my even after I have told you time and again that I will not stand for you creating illusions of me... Has your brain stopped maturing along with your body due to your contract, I wonder...? Hmm, Ru-kun?"
- "Just what exactly are you planning, Ruf?"
- "Do you remember, Ru-kun, the promise we made... all those years ago? Even if our outlooks should come to differ... the Rainsworth and Barma houses... would carry out the duties of the Four Great Dukedoms to prevent an event like the Tragedy of Sablier from happening ever again."
- "If the threat of conspiracy loomed, I should hope that we'd discuss it thoroughly together."
- "You are five minutes late, Duke Vessalius."
- "That family is no more. It was likely the doing of aristocrats hostile to the Sinclair house. The eldest daughter of the Sinclair family was murdered by an unknown hand... and in her grief, the youngest daughter fell to becoming an Illegal Contractor. She sacrificed members of her house to her Chain... and is said to have been dragged into the Abyss in her final moments."
- "You treat her like a child, Xerx-kun." (About Sharon)
- "Daughter? I think you look more like an older brother who can't bear to be separated from his little sister!" (About Sharon)
- "You tell her about your eyes soon, you hear? She... will be all right." (About Sharon)
- "Seeing the same things doesn't necessarily mean walking together. Sometimes, people can follow different paths and yet still meet."
- "Oh no, that really sounded like the lecture of an old lady!"
- "Forgive me, both of you... because of my negligence... Ru-kun stole the Key to the Abyss belonging to the Rainsworth house."
Gallery[]
Appearances[]
- Retrace II: Tempest of Conviction (Mentioned only)
- Retrace XVII: Odds and Ends (Mentioned only)
- Retrace XXI: Discord (First Appearance)
- Retrace XXIII: Conflict (Mentioned only)
- Retrace XXIX: Rufus Barma*
- Retrace XXXII: Snow Dome
- Retrace XLI: Where am I?
- Retrace XLII: Stray
- Retrace XLVI: Persona
- Retrace XLVII: Unbirthday
- Retrace XLIX: Night in gale*
- Retrace LIX: Couldn't put Humpty together again
- Retrace LX: Egg Shell
- Retrace LXI: Demios
- Retrace LXII: Repose
- Retrace LXIII: Purpose
- Retrace LXIV: Tarantelle
- Retrace LXV: Collapse*
- Retrace LXXIII: A note*
- Retrace LXXXI: CHILDREN
- Retrace LXXXIII: After the Rain*
- Retrace LXXXIV: Trickster
- Retrace LXXXV: Reverberate
- Retrace LXXXVI: Wager
- Retrace LXXXVII: Starting Point
- Retrace LXXXVIII: Answer
- Retrace LXXXIX: Staccato Drop
- Retrace XC: Clock Tower
- Retrace XCI: Juror
- Retrace XCII: A Story*
- Retrace XCVIII: Reverberate
- Retrace C: Ossia*
- Retrace CIV: Will (†)
- Episode 22: Countervalue of loss*
- Magical Girl Ill-Omened❤Lacie (Non-Canon)
- Pandora Academy (Non-Canon)
(*) - Denotes that the character did not appear physically, but as a part of another character's memories.
Trivia[]
- "Sheryl" is an alternative spelling of the name "Cheryl," which may be the anglicized form of the French name "Chérie" or the Welsh name "Carys." Both names derive from the Latin word "cārus" which translates to "dear" or "beloved."[1]
- Her likes are, in order, fashionable things, tea, and sweets. She dislikes riddles and puzzles.
- Her skills include chastising others. She is weak when it comes to riddles and puzzles.
- Mochizuki's comment on her is that her exchanges with Rufus Barma were fun to draw. To the two of them, the sense of distance that had been maintained between them was likely more precious than any other feeling.
- Although never being formally introduced in the anime, Sheryl did make several cameo appearances.
- It is unknown whom Sheryl had Shelly with and it is also unknown whether they were of respectable lineage (although it is assumed that they would've been because of the standards of the Rainsworths) and whether or not they are still alive.
- Sheryl's using wheelchair estimated with type 'Lightweight wheelchair' and with model like a New Zealand-wheelchair which made in 1900s.