I hope this is okay!
Aisling Kavanagh
Aisling Kavanagh
Age
16
Class Year
4th
Nationality
United Kingdom of Albion, from the island of Éire
Appearance
There's nothing elegant or refined about Aisling's appearance and at a simple glance it's easy to detect the presence of a pauper amongst princesses. It starts at the top with her hair. A messy mop of dark red that looks as if it hasn't known proper brushing or washing and the uneven bangs suggest someone cuts with a mirror in one hand and scissors in the other. Her height is almost the only thing of note, at a flat five foot five, and even then it hardly makes up for anything. Her posture doesn't do her height any favors nor does her physique which is gangly slender on the best of days. Often she had been known to attire herself in the rags of a newspaper boy, suspenders, trousers, a newsy hat, and a scruffy shirt. She's more comfortable in clothing like that due to familiarity even as it makes her appear boyish at a cursory glance. She never quite learned the proper ins and outs of femininity. A bright spot on her otherwise dirty peasant appearance are her eyes which have a sparkling seagreen gleam to them. Her fingers, perhaps her most important trait, are small and slender and the pads of her fingers are rough from prior callusing. Even should Aisling be dressed in attire befitting that of noble or wealthy birth, it would only be like putting a mud soaked pig in a ballgown.
Background
If the hair didn't make it clear, her rough manner of speaking along with the obvious Celtic brogue paints her as a native of Éire, an island nation of the United Kingdom of Albion noted for its hills and greenery of which Aisling never really got to see. Her mother died delivering her and her father, even before taking to the drink after losing his wife, was never one to hold a job for more than a few months at a time. Aisling thus spent her childhood without the comfort of a stable house relying on the kindness of strangers or the sailors and shipmen that often made port in the city. Begging was what she knew until a better way presented itself.
Aisling, finding an old violin left to decay in an alley, took to the instrument immediately. The strings needed replacing and tightening and the bow was snapped, but a few odd jobs for the locals - delivering foodstuffs mostly - resulted in Aisling trading upwards in order to fix or replace the parts. It was not perfect, but it was hers and she played it daily and nightly. At first it was atrocious, but having little else to do during the day meant she had time to practice. By the time she was thirteen she had been playing in the streets,
busking her way to warm food at night.
It wasn't all daisies and roses. Busking was hardly a means of living and Aisling's father was unreliable and increasingly angered by his young daughter making more money than he was, even if it wasn't much at all. Always thinking Aisling killed his wife, he made a deal with a trade vessel. A quick payday for Aedan Kavanagh came at the cost of Aisling working for food on the return voyage to the main island of Albion as the ship musician. She was dumped unceremoniously in Albion with only a violin and small hands and a few tricks of the trade picked up on the voyage over.
Busking was much harder here so Aisling turned, like many of the urchins of the day, to sleight of hand and pickpocketing. She only took enough to feed herself, but the reputation of a thief caught up with her after picking the pocket of someone she really shouldn't have. She tried to run away to no avail and her punishment was her violin being smashed to pieces in front of her.
How a girl like Aisling ended up at The Academie de L’Espoir is anybody's guess and only Aisling and the one who brought her there know what went down, though her only merit is that of her musical ability. Perhaps someone saw potential in a little street urchin. She stands out for all the wrong reasons but at least there's a roof and food, provided she keeps her nose clean.
Affinities & Talents
Musical Aptitude
Physical Athletics
Economics
Additional Information
Nothing at the moment, but perhaps more to come down the road.
