Ari'sora
Name: Ari'sora
Age: 19 arcs (after being deaged 4 arcs when Vega gave her a fresh start in Ashan 721)
Race: Mixed Race; half Sev'ryn, half Avriel
Height: 4'7"
Weight: 85 lbs
Date of Birth: 33rd Ashan 699
Marks: Gwelliph; Favored
Factions Joined: none yet
Languages Spoken: Fluent; Common, Dehasin, Haltunga, Scalveen, Xanthea, Conversational; Lorien, Broken; Common Sign, and Rakahi
Face Claim: Han Hyo Joo, Formerly Mikako Tabe
Initial Languages: Fluent Scalveen, Broken Lorien
Novice Linguistics: gain Broken Xanthea, and Common
Competent Linguistics: gain Broken Rakahi and Common Sign
Skill Points: use 20 skill points (at Competent level linguistics) to gain Broken Dehasin
Skill Points: use 18 skill points (at Competent level linguistics) to gain Broken Haltunga
Expert Linguistics: rank Dehasin and Haltunga up to Conversational level
Skill Points: use 22 skill points (at Expert level linguistics) to rank Xanthea up to fluent
Skill Points: use 22 skill points (at Expert level linguistics) to rank Common up to fluent
Skill Points: use 19 skill points (at Expert level linguistics) to rank Dehasin up to fluent
Skill Points: use 15 skill points (at Expert level linguistics) to rank Haltunga up to fluent
Age: 19 arcs (after being deaged 4 arcs when Vega gave her a fresh start in Ashan 721)
Race: Mixed Race; half Sev'ryn, half Avriel
Height: 4'7"
Weight: 85 lbs
Date of Birth: 33rd Ashan 699
Marks: Gwelliph; Favored
Factions Joined: none yet
Languages Spoken: Fluent; Common, Dehasin, Haltunga, Scalveen, Xanthea, Conversational; Lorien, Broken; Common Sign, and Rakahi
Face Claim: Han Hyo Joo, Formerly Mikako Tabe
Language Ledger:
Initial Languages: Fluent Scalveen, Broken Lorien
Novice Linguistics: gain Broken Xanthea, and Common
Competent Linguistics: gain Broken Rakahi and Common Sign
Skill Points: use 20 skill points (at Competent level linguistics) to gain Broken Dehasin
Skill Points: use 18 skill points (at Competent level linguistics) to gain Broken Haltunga
Expert Linguistics: rank Dehasin and Haltunga up to Conversational level
Skill Points: use 22 skill points (at Expert level linguistics) to rank Xanthea up to fluent
Skill Points: use 22 skill points (at Expert level linguistics) to rank Common up to fluent
Skill Points: use 19 skill points (at Expert level linguistics) to rank Dehasin up to fluent
Skill Points: use 15 skill points (at Expert level linguistics) to rank Haltunga up to fluent
Appearance
Ari'sora is tiny. Standing at 4'7", and having a slender, graceful build, she looks like a child, not the nineteen arc old young woman that she is. Arcs of being fed only when her guardian decided she had earned a meal has taken its toll on her, and makes itself known in her diminutive stature, small breasts, and waif like appearance. If she were to cut her hair, or hide it under a hat, or scarf, and bind her breasts, it would be very easy for her to disguise herself as a boy.
Her mixed heritage is impossible to deny. The most obvious sign of her Avriel nature is her wings. They are a deep black, and they have a glossy sheen to them that makes them look deep blue or purple when the light hits them the right way. Ari'sora also has her father's eyes. Her eyes are a deep twilight blue that can darken into black at times. They are the eyes of an Avriel. Instead of pupils, they have the strange white core that the Avriel call the "presence of the wind." And like a full blooded Avirel, she is able to see the currents and flow of the wind. Most of her body is free of hair like an Avriel's would be, but her Sev'ryn blood has given her some hair in the form or her eyebrows and lashes, and the hair on her head. Her fingers are slightly longer than normal, and her nails are somewhat stronger than usual, but the differences are slight enough that it can be difficult to tell whether those are inherited from her Avirel blood or not. From her mother, she inherited her fair skin, her black hair, her rounded face with an angular chin, her delicate ears, and the shape of her facial features.
If one were to ask Ari'sora what her favorite feature was, she would be hard pressed to find an answer. She loves her wings, and the freedom that they represent dearly. And she also loves being able to see the wind currents, and the fascinating patterns that she sees in them. But she grew up with a firm belief that Avriel were evil, and that has instilled a deep sense of shame in taking pride in that part of her heritage. Ari'sora also loves the straight black hair that reaches just past her shoulders. She feels that it is one of the few things about her that can be called pretty. Better yet, it is one of her mother's gifts to her, and something she can like freely, unlike the wings and eyes she has been brought up feeling that she should hate.
In Zi'da of 718, Ari'sora was blessed by Pier and Pre. Her mark is a glowing tattoo on her forehead. Since she is currently Favored by the Twins, her mark is a small one located in the center of her forehead. That mark was lost on the 30th of Ashan 721 when Ari'sora accepted Vega's offer of a fresh start in life along with her memories of the past and she was given a completely new appearance to go with her fresh start as well as being deaged back to the age of 18.
On the 16th of Cylus, 719, Ari'sora was branded. The mark takes the form of a palm sized lotus, and is located on the small of her back. While she was never registered as a slave due to slavery being illegal in Scalvoris, the brand is a constant reminder of her season of captivity at the hands of a man who claimed to be her father's friend.
On the 29th of Cylus, 719, she was branded eight more times. One was shaped like a lotus, identical to the one that she had been branded with on the 16th of Cylus. The others were a lotus growing under a full moon, a lotus in front of two crossed swords, a lotus floating in a pool of water, a lotus surrounded by feathers, a lotus in front of two crossed wings, a lotus surrounded by flames, and one shaped like three crossed weapons with a sword in the center and an axe and a spear crossed in front of it. Each one is palm sized. The lotus, the lotus surrounded by feathers, and the lotus surrounded by flames were branded into the inner thigh of her right leg. The lotus in front of two crossed swords, lotus in front of two crossed wings, and the three crossed weapons were branded into the inner thigh of her left leg. And the lotus growing under a full moon, and the lotus floating in a pool of water are located on her rear, one on each side. She was also given a tattoo in the shape of a lotus floating in a pool of water under a full moon surrounded by three weapons; a sword, an axe, and a spear. It is located on her abdomen.
Comfort and freedom of movement are key when it comes to Ari'sora's choice of clothes. Loose fitting garments are preferred over form fitting ones that cling to her body. And anything she wears must be adapted to allow her wings to be free. Materials that are light and airy during the heat of Saun, and ones that are warm during the icy chill of Zi'da and Cylus are of far more importance to her than whatever might be in fashion. Ideally, her choice of outfit would be a simple sun dress like gown with slits in the back to accommodate her wings. But when flying, she always makes sure to wear pants for modesty's sake. As far as colors go, Ari'sora prefers dark or neutral ones over loud, bright colors. She has simple tastes, and likes plain, solid colors, or simple patterns more than anything too elaborate.
Ari'sora's taste in hair styles is as simple as her taste in clothes. Her favorite thing to do is simply wear her hair down. When not doing that, she usually wears her hair in a simple pony tail, or braid. Ari'sora loves pretty things. As a result, she likes jewelry, though she rarely wears much of it at a time. A single ring, a pair of earrings, or a necklace is about as elaborate as it gets. And her simple tastes find her more attracted to a pretty glass or wooden bead than a large, bold gem. When she was a child, her guardian pierced her ears because he thought it made her look prettier. When she does wear earrings, she prefers simple studs rather than large hoops and the like.
Family
Ari'sora never knew her father. She doesn't know if he is alive or dead. She doesn't even know his name, or what he looks like. All that she knows of the man is that he is an Avriel who owned her mother for several arcs until she managed to escape while in Scalvoris.
Mi'aris was a Sev'ryn who had the misfortune of being captured and enslaved in Athart while searching for her ose-bori. She had just finished bonding to her familiar before she was captured. Her first master was a cruel Avirel man whose name she refused to even mention to her daughter. The man owned her for many arcs before bringing her to Rynmere to serve him while he was on his business trip. She was pregnant with Ari'sora at the time, but when the chance presented itself, Mi'aris made her escape. Since people distrust Avriel in Rynmere, they were reluctant to help him find and reclaim his property. But Mi'aris's luck took a turn for the worse when she escaped one master only to be captured by a group of slavers who needed one more slave to fill their quota for transport to Scalvoris.
Mi'aris was given to a trader who was more drug trafficker than honest merchant in payment for enough drugs to keep the rest of the slavers' merchandise quiet and obedient until they could be sold. Ari'sora was born a few seasons later. Although she gave her daughter the minimum amount of care needed to keep her alive, Mi'aris couldn't bring herself to like her daughter, much less love her. As a result, Ari'sora's earliest arcs were filled with neglect alternated with abuse, and the absolute certainty that she was neither loved nor wanted by the person who should have loved her the most.
Her new master used her in much the same way as her old one did. Unlike Mi'aris, he did like Ari'sora. Or rather, he saw a potential use for her in the future. And where one was good in his mind, two would be better. So with the use of Saikuru, he ensured that his new slave gave him another child exactly two hundred and seventy trials after she bore the first. Mi'aris never recovered fully from the stress of giving birth so soon after the birth of her first child. Arcs of hard use weakened her further, and when Ari'sora was nine, she lost her mother to a miscarriage.
Ren'zar is an opportunistic man. Part trader, part drug trafficker, part smuggler, he is a business man who wears many hats. While Sev'ryn by birth, he has rarely been to distant Desnind. That didn't stop him from adding "genuine crafts and art straight from Desnind" to his wares once he got his hands on a Sev'ryn slave who could be forced to make him some. He is a cruel, cunning man who knows what he wants, and knows how to get it.
From a very young age, Ari'sora had to serve his needs and whims. As a child, this meant cooking, cleaning, and making "rare Desnind artifacts" for him to sell. As she got older, and showed a skill in languages, translation became a part of her duties. And when she was old enough, he had other uses for her as well. His own daughter was treated no differently.
Although Ari'sora was never branded and enslaved officially, Ren'zar treats her as if she truly is his slave.
Personality
Ari'sora's mixed heritage plays a part in her personality much the same way that it does in the way she looks. Unlike full blooded Avriel, she never went through a time in her adolescence where she was utterly wild and uncivilized. Her Sev'ryn blood protected her from that extreme. But she does tend to be ruled by her emotions. She feels everything very strongly. If she likes something, she becomes fascinated with it. She needs it in her life in some way. In this, things that she likes are almost like a drug to her; she needs them in order to function properly. Going too long without making the time to do something she enjoys will leave her unable to think of anything else. In some ways, she has a rather obsessive nature; deny her the thing she needs, and she will reach a point where she can't function properly again until she has spent enough time doing it. And the longer she has been denied it, the longer she must spend doing what she has been denied before her mental and emotional equilibrium can be restored. Conversely, if she dislikes something, she tends to avoid it. Learning anything she isn't interested in is far harder for her than learning something she enjoys. She will put the lessons off in favor of something she does enjoy, and she doesn't retain the information she does learn as easily as she would if it interested her. Learning about something she actively doesn't like is harder still.
If she is hurt, she will not necessarily seek out revenge against the one who hurt her; any aggression she might have had has been beaten out of her over the arcs. But she cannot simply forgive and forget, and work with the person who hurt her as if it never happened. If someone hurts her in some way, she will avoid them at all costs, even if working with them becomes necessary for some greater goal. This instinct can be overcome if the need is great enough, but it is very difficult to do so, and it causes her to feel the need to avoid the source of her pain even more in the future.
Instinct plays a big part in Ari'sora's life. She trusts what she feels about a person in their presence far more than anything she might have heard about them. And if something triggers a warning in her instincts, it takes an act of will for her to ignore that warning and do whatever her instincts are warning her against, or stay in the company of whoever she instinctively distrusts. This too is a part of her Avriel nature.
But her Sev'ryn nature plays a part in who she is as well. It acts as a calming influence on her instincts at times, and it allows her to focus far more on a single idea or belief than a true Avriel is able to. Unlike most Avriel, she does tend to be a deep thinker, preferring to think long and hard about every angle of a situation before making any final decisions if given the chance to do so.
Her Sev'ryn nature also gives her a deep love of and respect for nature. She loves plants and animals equally, needing them around her in order to truly be happy. She loves spending time surrounded by nature, and working with plants and animals is very calming to her. The smell of flowers or of fresh earth after a good rain are far more appealing to her than any perfume. And she tends to find more beauty in nature than she would in the most valuable of gems.
Ari'sora's love of nature is rivaled by her love of stories. Both the Sev'ryn and the Avriel love telling stories, and she is no different. One of the things that give her true pleasure is making up fanciful stories. It is an escape for her, as she indulges the urge to imagine herself living in the world created by her stories. Her love of reading is an extension of this. Reading is a means of indulging her need to learn interesting new things. But it is also an escape where for bits or breaks at a time, she can escape into the world of her books.
Another love equal to that of nature, reading, and learning about things that interest her is a love of creating new things. All crafts hold an interest to her for that reason; the idea of creating something out of nothing, or out of unwanted scraps is fascinating to her. Creating something beautiful is even more amazing in her eyes. Working with wood is one of the crafts that she loves the most because it allows her to combine her love of nature with her love of crafts. Making quilts is another of her favorite crafts because it allows her to take rags and unwanted scraps of cloth that most people would discard as trash, and turn them into something beautiful.
Ari'sora has been kept very isolated for most of her life, and that has affected her very deeply. She is unused to people in general, and as a result, they make her nervous. This can come across as shyness at times. She also tends to be awkward around people she doesn't know well because she isn't sure how to act around them. Unless her instincts tell her that a particular person can be trusted, it can take a long time for someone to earn her trust. And without that trust, she tends to be wary and keep people at a distance. But once she has warmed up to someone, Ari'sora will do just about anything for them if it is in her power to do so. Anyone Ari'sora counts as a true friend will have a loyal friend for life.
Large crowds tend to be even more intimidating to Ari'sora than people in general are. She finds them horribly claustrophobic, and the desire to escape being trapped is very strong when faced with one. She can endure them if she must, but afterwards, she needs some time to herself to do something she enjoys to calm her nerves. Failure to indulge this need will leave her feeling anxious, skittish, and unable to focus properly until she is allowed to unwind. And if she is trapped in a crowd for too long, she may be driven to panic. Should this happen, she will lash out blindly at anyone around her until she has enough space to spread her wings and escape into the air.
Ari'sora is a very bright girl. She tends to learn quickly if she is interested in what she is learning. Learning anything that she has a passion for is a need for her as much as food or air are. In her pursuit of new things to learn, there is little she will not try at least once. If she doesn't enjoy it, she will discard it soon after that first attempt. But in constantly trying new things, she is always finding new things to enjoy. Her desire to try new things is a result of her isolation as much as her fear of crowds and wariness of strangers is.
She is also very observant. Most of her life was spent in a situation where judging her guardian's mood correctly meant the difference between being given a task she enjoyed doing to keep her busy and out of his hair, or a beating just because she was there and he needed to work out his frustrations. This has led her to be something of a people watcher. When given the chance, she likes to observe a person and get a feel for them, or observe a situation and gauge how dangerous it might be before getting involved. Sometimes, when bored, she will watch someone for a few bits, and try to make up a story about who they are and what they are doing based on what she observes of them in that time.
Prized Possession
Hotaru is a baby Nightpup. She is mostly black, but her paws, ears, tail, and muzzle are white, and she has a white star shaped mark on her chest. Her eyes are a bright sky blue, ans both the inside of her ears, and the base of her tail are a deep twilight blue.
Hotaru is a very bright, curious puppy. She is also very loyal. But she is very much a one person dog. Ari'sora is her world, but she will only ever tolerate anyone else that Ari'sora cares about. And that much is only guaranteed if the other person has proven that they aren't a threat to Ari'sora.
Hotaru's mother, Haru bonded to Ari'sora when she was just a pup. Ari'aora loved her more than most of the people in her life. The Nightpup saved her life more than once, defending her from the worst of her guardian's rage when his anger overwhelmed him. The last time it happened, Haru sacrificed her life to save Ari'sora. As Haru's only surviving puppy, Hotaru is Ari'sora's only link to Haru. For that reason alone, Ari'sora would love her deeply. But in their grief at the loss, Hotaru bonded to Ari'sora as well. The bond they share is just as strong as the one Ari'sora had had with Haru.
*Nightpup Prices: Pup: 20gn, Untrained: 30gn, Trained: 60gn