Fernald's age?

[moirrey]

I was looking at these two pictures
( upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/ff/Marvelousmarriage1.jpg ; 24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m5f74hwNSt1r0hx0so1_1280.jpg )
and Fernald just looks...older than I pictured him? I mean, they're for TBB, so maybe it was before he had a legitimate personality. Does anyone have any sort of idea of how old he's supposed to be?

[Christmas Chief]

He was old enough to train salmon with Captain Widdershins when Fiona was "very young." We also learn from Chapter Five of TGG "[Fernald is] much older, of course, and he's been missing for years ...". I think those are the only indications of his age we get from the text, but it's often inferred he's at least several years ahead of Fiona, and probably aged by villainy, too.

(The link to the second image has an extra right parenthesis. Try removing it to activate the link.)

[Hermes]

On the other hand, we are told (in TVV) that he doesn't have the eye tattoo, which suggests that he is somewhat younger than Lemony and co., and was recruited to VFD later than them.

[Dante]

TGG also tells us (in relation to the Widdershins family photograph) that Fernald was a teenager when Fiona was a baby; since Fiona's a teenager now, that puts Fernald in roughly his late twenties or early thirties. I think what we have here is a case, as you say, of the illustrations preceding his having a legitimate personality. Although, that said, The Loathsome Library came out in 2005 (just before TPP's release). Probably best not to look at it too hard - Olaf's probably younger than he's drawn, too.

[Seymour Glass]

That is a very good question.