In looks, height, and style, Kyōya is exceptionally average. He doesn't have any particularly interesting physical features - he isn't muscular or marred with scars, he has no farmer's tan nor callouses from field work, and his brown hair is cut in a common masculine style with no fancy accessories in it. The only thing that sets him apart is his glasses, sitting over deep green eyes, proof of a life of study.

Kyōya stands at the same height as most of the other adults in the village, and though he's on the skinnier side now the older women in town tease him about his sweet tooth, telling him he'll start to put on pudge as he ages if he keeps it up. It's already starting to show a little, though it's hard to tell since Kyōya is always wrapped up properly in robes and yukata except on the very most humid of days.

A young scholar. Kind and helpful, Kyōya puts his love of learning to use instructing the children in town. He plans to take over the schoolhouse once the current head instructor steps down (although that man is a stubborn goat and claims to have another decade in him before he'll retire). Kyōya has a particular interest in history, nature, and the supernatural. Like many people he also loves animals, and keeps an unusually smart feline companion named Kōshaku.

Kyōya grew up in the heart of Heiseina, living a simple, modest life as an only child with his mother and father. The Hamano family come from a tradition of bakers; Kyōya being the black sheep with abysmal skill with any kind of cooking no matter how many cookbooks he'd read. When Kyōya got older and decided to dedicate his life to one of study instead, his family had no qualms at all.

A bright pupil, Kyōya was welcomed as an assistant in the school house. He gets along with the staff and the students - as well as most everyone in Heiseina. Kyōya is living his dream life; he lives in peace and safety, he enjoys his job, and he's happy to listen to everything the elders speak about and learn the anything the yokai in the Mumbling Wood feel like teaching. He is content to spend the rest of his life in the village.

...well, he'd be lying if he said he wasn't curious about what was outside of the valley. If nothing else, his scholar's heart longs to know. Kyōya isn't a coward and if there's one think he definitely does not fear it's the unknown, but the thought of actually leaving feels strange to him.
So character concept: a simple young nerd who trusts in everyone. He has a strong heart and if presented with a tough situation he will rise to the occasion, he just doesn't know it yet. Most of his connections in the village are neutral or good, as he's passively built his reputation as someone who can be relied on. There are likely a few he doesn't get along with, but he doesn't seek out conflict with them. When conflict eventually reaches him I'd like to think that Kyōya will have a hard time at first but eventually grow into a courageous individual.

He likely will not have much physical utility (though I can see him being the type to throw himself in harm's way to protect someone else). His worth will lie in his ability to connect to others, to handle animals and yokai, and willingness to get things done.

Kyōya knows a few signs:

• Calm
• Glow
• Pull

Also his cat may or may not be a bakeneko (or similar).

About a dozen centimeters shorter than the other women her age, Sumiko still stands out with her shockingly pale hair and her large blue eyes. The mole on her face is one of many all over her body, and she boldly calls them all "beauty marks." Her natural appearance is homely, but so she paints her face with varying degrees of make-up even at home some it's hard to tell. She enjoys dressing up like that, making an art piece on her own skin. She also wears elaborate and stylish clothing as well, including the frames she wears over her eyes. It's common to find ink stains on her hands and arms, and sometimes ever her face.

Painting! Poetry! Dance! Drawing! Acting! Storytelling!

...stilling working on the music!

Even small towns need entertainment. Sumiko takes it upon herself to provide that. She's a "jack of all trades" type when it comes to the arts, with the notable exception of song and instrument. Please, don't call her tone deaf though, she will vehemently deny it. She also is rubbish at pottery, but that's more fun to fail at.

She was born in Heiseina, her family the last of the dying Hayashi clan. Once well respected, they fell into debt and after climbing out they never made it back to their former glory. When her father passed after having two daughters, the clan's fate was sealed. Honestly it was as freeing as it was sad. Their mother passed a couple of years later, and from then on the Hayashi sisters lived on their own in a large empty estate. To provide for themselves, and to feel less lonely, they leased their land for the cultivating of crops and often hosted others in their home. Sumiko, the younger and more rambunctious child, enjoyed listening to all the stories and gossip being thrown around. This sparked her desire for travel and art.

Though she's never been outside of the valley, Sumiko has traveled to most of the tiny villages and homesteads around it peddling her trade. She offers custom portraits, pre-made art pieces and poem compilations, all inspired from things she's seen and heard during her "mini adventures." Have you heard the story of the giant earth spider that was spotted a few miles away? Well here is a painting of it. Have you heard the news about the Kobayashi and Teruko clan marriage? Here are some haiku written for the occasion. Inadvertently she spreads news of Heiseina to the surrounding hamlets, and from the hamlets to Heiseina, through her stories.

When she returns to Heiseina she stays at her family home and mooches off of her more responsible and respectable elder sister. She always makes it back in time for festivals, where she insists that she put on the newest play she's written, play a role in local re-tellings of myths and legends, and participates in dance until she can barely move. Though she has a strong passion for all kinds of art, dance and Kabuki is her favorite pastime, so when she can she goes all out.

Lately, life in the valley has been slower and more peaceful than normal. There hasn't been as many interesting stories to create art about. Sumiko has been going out a lot more and pestering others in search of something to spark her creativity.

Yaya is a rather plain girl as far as most are concerned. Her black hair is straight and usually pulled back into a ponytail, with straight bangs framing her black eyes. Her skin is tan from spending most of the day outdoors and often she comes home with tan lines from her yukata. Yaya is taller than most of her female peers, being of five feet and eight inches, and her body is toned from hiking for herbs. For the most part, Yaya doesn’t concern herself with pretty outfits, but she can’t resist plucking flowers and tucking them into her hair or obi.

There is something deeply ironic about being the most proficient healer in Heiseina and being unable to save the one most close to you. Of course, the irony is lost on Yaya and her father, Hanaoka, as most tragedies are.

Hanaoka liked to call Yaya his miracle, her name given to her to signify double prosperity. And she was a miracle, in the way that only newborn babies that outlive their mother can be. Hanaoka’s wife died during childbirth, and despite having all his knowledge of medicine, Hanaoka failed to save her. So, she’s a miracle, and Yaya preens under the compliment despite all of its implications. She’s only a miracle because her mother died.

But Yaya doesn’t think about that and some may joke that Yaya doesn’t think at all. They’re wrong, of course, because Yaya thinks. She thinks only in the way that philosophers and scientists and adventurers can think. She thinks like she’s ravenous, consuming knowledge and demanding more. Because the only thing that drives Yaya more than her thoughts is her need to know. Yaya wants to know the secrets of the universe, the world beyond the valley, the truth behind magic. She wants to know the history long hidden and stories only Yokai can tell.

She can’t know, though. Yaya is bound to Heiseina and her duties as a gathering herbalist as well as an apprentice to her father. That doesn’t stop her from pretending she’s venturing into the wild as she picks and plucks herbs, or that she’s scaling the tallest mountain when she’s climbing up the crags for only the hardiest of roots. It’s not much, but her imagination keeps her preoccupied enough. Her father sometimes criticizes her for being too naïve, and seeing the world through a child’s eyes when she’s a woman grown. It is mainly out of concern, as her father knows how being a healer can change someone, but Yaya ignores him.

Yaya can’t say her life is the worst. She’s happy helping people, and she is quite the social butterfly when it comes to the other villagers. Everything is mostly good. Mostly. Because for all the good she can do with her medicinal and herbal knowledge, Yaya knows she could do better with Signs and she can’t do them. Yaya has an astonishing ineptitude for magic and it took her longer than it should have to learn one Sign. Yaya doesn’t know what’s more crushing, the fact she can’t help people more or that she’s so close to answering one of her questions and she can’t do it.

The only Sign that Yaya knows is Water, it's weak at best but it comes in handy when a rag needs to be wetted or a patient is thirsty.

Lady Oyuki, as she is often called by the other villagers, can be decisively called striking at a mere glance. Her skin is as fair and pale as the snow she is named after, while her long, straight hair is a sharply contrasting shade of jet black. Meeting her gaze, one will find large, rounded eyes of a pale, icy blue framed in long, elegant lashes; eyes that peer keenly out from between a high-set brow above and rounded, rosy cheeks below. Her gaze is tranquil, pure, and piercing; it is almost more like looking back at one's reflection in the mirror-like surface of a frozen lake than meeting the eyes of a fellow human being. Serving to offset her eyes' pale color, however, Oyuki's full lips are a lush red, and the narrow, sharp jawline beneath them serves likewise to counterbalance the roundness of her cheeks. Her whole countenance is a synthesis of opposing extremes both physical and chromatic that all somehow exist in an almost perfect balance of harmony with one another, creating a sense of beauty that is wholly her own.

Despite the intensity of her facial features, however, her build is rather lean, and in certain aspects rather petite. She is tall for a woman, but with narrow shoulders, somewhat short arms, and small, dainty hands. Her figure, too, could best be described as shapely but modest, possessing only a humble bustline, but with wide hips and long legs. However, unlike most of the other villagers, she is rather scrawny, having lived a sheltered life with little to no exposure to the sun or to difficult manual labor. She lacks muscle almost entirely, save what little she has accumulated from simple household chores and occasional walks in the woods around the village. What's more, it wouldn't be difficult to pick out the locations of most of her ribs if one looked closely, as her current frugal lifestyle and overly-diligent mentality has caused her to forgo meals on a rather alarmingly regular basis.

Thus, all these factors combine to create a beautiful woman who, while not exactly diminutive, seems as graceful as a crane, as fragile as glass, and as fleeting and ephemeral as snow.

She favors modest, rather conservative attire, almost all of which is either of her own making, or a hand-me-down from the previous shrine maiden. Almost all her outfits feature multiple layers and show off very little skin, with the long, flowing, curtain-like sleeves of her furisode often hiding even her hands from view, while various hooded gowns, cloaks, and mantles serve to cover her neck and head from the elements, and long skirts trail almost clear down to her sandal-clad feet. Most of her kimonos do not display any ostentatious patterns or eye-catching ornaments, however, and they also lack a clan seal or personal crest of any kind. Pure, simple colors in complimentary hues make up the bulk of her wardrobe. But, of all the colors she wears, blue suits her best - and thus most often finds its way onto her person.

As far as accessories go, she does not often wear them. However, on special occasions, she will occasionally don a small hairpin, decorated with a few colorful stones and an ornament carved in the shape of a lily. It's a cherished possession that formerly belonged to the previous shrine maiden, and she thus takes great care of it. Other such heirlooms make up the bulk of her accoutrements: a roughly-whittled reed flute, and a tall walking staff adorned with a brass head, with several rings and consecrated bells attached by strands of braided cord, said to help pacify spirits and ward off evil. This, in particular, is her constant companion on her walks, and its jingling often heralds her arrival.

A mysterious, beautiful young woman who has lived at the Heiseina shrine for as long as most children of the village can remember. Though the older members of the village often respectfully but distantly call her "Lady Oyuki," it's unclear to the village children and adolescents precisely where this respect -- or perhaps fear -- comes from. The adults, however, know better, and often look to the high slopes of the valley when they speak of her, where a ruined manor house sprawls upon a high plateau, overlooking the village from a perch blanketed almost year-round by snow.

The Tsurugamine family was once a respected, wealthy house. They had settled upon land blessed by the spirits of the valley, where their flocks and herds could graze and eat their fill upon grasses that grew perpetually. They looked down on the other villagers from the comfort of their manor, and their words carried great weight among the elders of the town. The daughter of this blessed house, rumored to be a great beauty, would surely one day have been the most beloved and sought-after bride in all the village.

But something about her attracted the attention of more than just humans. There was an evil spirit from beyond the valley that longed for a child to call her own, and would stop at nothing to claim one; to raise, to bend to her will, and then, ultimately, to feed upon as she came into maturity, to restore the hag's own lost youth. Catching sight of this beautiful girl as she gazed from her balcony into the woods, the ancient hag's wicked soul was filled with desire. If she could claim such a child's vitality, surely her own aged body could be restored. And so, in the dead of winter, the ancient hag stole into the valley, violating the sanctity of the spirits and cursing the land with her intrusion. A thick, heavy snow began to fall without end, chasing out the spirits who would protect her prey from her, and scourging the once-verdant hill of life.

The great manor was frozen in ice, and the child was snatched from her parents' grasp. Though they struggled and screamed, they could do nothing to stop the ancient hag or her magic - and were at last frozen to lifeless husks where they stood. But before the child could be dragged back beyond the valley and into the realm from whence the evil youkai had come, the spirits she had chased away returned, bringing with them their staunch ally.

The sound of bells ringing amidst the stillness of the snow.

The sight of a proud back, standing between her and the unknown that threatened to devour her very existence.

The feeling of a warm cloak wrapped around her as she was carried from the crumbling halls of her once proud home, and a reassuring, gentle voice telling her that the world had not yet ended.

It was thus that the trembling, confused little girl came to find herself brought to the shrine. She didn't know what had happened, or why she had to lose everything -- but at the very least, she was not yet alone. Her new guardian treated her with the utmost kindness, consoling her for her loss and raising her as if the young Yuki was her own child. And as she grew older and came to understand her circumstances, she did not do so with bitterness, but with gratitude.

Her parents had been willing to part with their own lives to save her. Her dear, precious obasama had rushed to her side to save her, and was always there to protect her whenever she was afraid. No matter how much she had lost, she knew above all else that she was loved. Thus, above all else, she desired to return that love. To repay kindness with kindness became her motto, and she worked harder than ever to provide whatever comfort she could in return to the hero who had saved her life. She learned to cook, to sew, to embroider, and many other things, all so that she could provide gift after gift to her cherished obasama. As the only family she had left, and knowing that she could lose that family in an instant, she showered her mentor with all the childish affection and admiration she could, and was doted upon in return, prompting her to redouble her efforts to repay her ever increasing debt of gratitude.

In short, no matter what darkness she had seen, her childhood was happy. Yet, it was also shallow. The hag had been driven away, but was far too powerful to be sealed or slain. If she left the consecrated grounds of the shrine, then surely, the tragedy of her youth would be repeated. And so, she was kept sequestered within the shrine itself, from the time she was a child all the way up until she came of age, deprived of the company of all save for her guardian.

But this all changed when she at last came of age, and shortly thereafter, her dear, cherished mentor and protector passed away, as if her purpose was now fulfilled. So it was that the confused Yuki, the long-rumored daughter of a family now thought dead for at least a decade, came to have dealings with the village itself after her long seclusion.

The reactions her appearance garnered were mixed. Some thought she could not have been real -- that it was a ghost rather than a real girl that the old miko had so painstakingly kept hidden, that she was made of ice and would suck the life out of those who got too close to her, or spirit them away as she herself had been taken as a child. Others pitied her for the tragic life she had lived, offering to take her in and grant her sanctuary now that her guardian, too, was gone. Still others admired her for her beauty, and even went so far as to seek after the hand of this fair, mysterious maiden. Yet she, too shy to meet such fervent affections, retreated back to the safety and the familiarity of her shrine, and refused those who sought to court her as well as those who sought to take her in and offer her shelter. After all... she still had a debt to repay.

This shrine was her home. It was the place the person she had cherished more dearly even than her own parents had lived to protect. It was her duty, then, to see it taken care of. She could not leave. She would not betray her savior's memory. She would show her gratitude through her earnest devotion, her prayers, and her hard work. So it is that she has continued to maintain the shrine and follow in her mentor's footsteps, up until the present day.

And so, when one walks in the woods around the village, one often hears the jingling of bells and distant footsteps just a little further ahead. When one goes to market, one can see a hooded young lady buying fabric and selling clothes. And when one approaches the shrine on the edge of town late in the day, one can sometimes hear the mournful sound of a reed flute echoing between the cliffs overhead, like the song of a bird. So it has always been. So it will always be. Like a crane said to live a thousand years, the mysterious Lady Oyuki continues each day as she always has, living with constancy, with honesty, with duty, and with gratitude.

In that sense, perhaps she isn't so dissimilar from the spirits she seeks to appease - and perhaps that is why they are content to accept her ministrations, inexperienced though she may be.

Kenichi, at first, is physically unremarkable. He stands at around 5' 6", and is rather skinny. He lacks any clear muscle mass, though his upper body strength has been improved greatly as he has been unable to rely on his legs as much as he had in the past. He has a crop of brown hair that is usually somewhat unkempt, and he wears finely crafted warm clothes in layers (since he tends to get cold fairly easily). His striking blue eyes and angular face (helped, in part, by his lean diet) are stunning, but his expressions are often stoic or somewhat distant. He is never seen without his trusty wooden crutch, painstakingly carved by his father, and often carries a small pouch with his pain medicine for when his nerves start acting up.

Kenichi was born as the older twin of Mako into the prominent Masaki family. Hanako and Akio were pleased to have twins, and hoped that in these two children they could instill their values. Hanako was Heiseina's second physician, serving under her mother-in-law (and therefore Kenichi's grandmother). She wished to instill in her daughter a love for medicine and treating the community's ailments. Akio, an herbalist and outdoorsman who helped to support his wife and mother's practice, was a more adventurous and wild soul at heart. He was excited to have a son he could take out into the valley to find rare medicinal herbs and take in the sights. Perhaps he would even take up an interest in hunting.

Kenichi, however, was far too sickly of a child to go out adventuring and exploring. He spent a lot of his childhood at home, watching his mother work and asking far too many questions. He developed his father's curious spirit, but his curiosity was geared towards why he always felt so feverish and sick. His mother was pleased to have her son take such an interest in her work, given Mako seemed far too interested in what was in the valley and the woods. It even helped to have another set of hands around, as she herself was born with only one arm. Kenichi, by the age of 10, had clearly been marked as the next Apprentice Physician when his grandmother passed away.

He spent 2 years learning the basics of cleaning and tending to wounds, to help take some of the burden off of his mother. He had very steady hands, and had a penchant for stitching or bandaging up wounds. Around the age of 13, Kenichi began to study his first sign: restore. It took him around 20 months to learn his first sign, but was pleased when he had finally gained the ability to begin speeding along the process of wound closure. He continued learning the basics of tending to wounds and beginning to develop a better understanding of diagnosing diseases for a few years. When they were 15, Mako finally began to learn the purify sign as well. With Mako studying full time, Akio took this opportunity to try and bond more with his growing son. Akio took Kenichi out on a small hunting trip.

Of course... Kenichi was always the one to try and please those around him. He wasn't a particularly strong or athletic child, having a rather gaunt figure due to his intense studying and rather sickly demeanor for much of his life. When Akio suggested Kenichi finally climb a tree while he was still young, Kenichi obliged without much thought. Kenichi climbed higher and higher, struggling and sweating his way up. His heart was pounding so loud he couldn't really hear his father shouting for him to get down and that he was joking. Of course, Kenichi did hear the squawking of a giant eagle passing nearby, and his feet slipped in his startled state. Kenichi had seen people with broken bones, and people who had injured themselves falling from a decent height. His mother had reminded him, time and time again, what not to do. But in his startled state of fear, Kenichi's right leg locked into place as he fell to the ground. He couldn't really remember what happened after that.

The next week was just fever dreams and pain. His leg had practically been shattered, and setting it appropriately was a great challenge. The weak Kenichi grew a bit weaker over the course of those months he spent at home trying to do his best not to move his leg. The leg healed remarkably well, all things considered. But Kenichi still has to walk around with a crutch and a limp everywhere he goes. He can't carry heavy things, run quickly, or climb well. Granted, this doesn't bother Kenichi too much in the grand scheme, given his implicit fear of the wildlife of the valley that is associated with the incident.

All the time bedridden and immobile gave Kenichi plenty of time to delve deeper into his studies. Time not spent relearning how to walk with his injury and succumbing to the white hot pain coursing through his leg was spent learning about diagnosing diseases and learning more about how to create his own pain medicine. At the age of 17, Kenichi began learning his second sign: Purify. He finds it both helpful in the preparation of some medicines, but also in combination with restore to help clean wounds.

Kenichi, a young adult now, is still haunted in part by his own limitations and his desire to surpass people's expectations of him. He is someone who desires to improve himself despite his current condition, and yet finds himself limited severely by chronic pain and a somewhat lame leg. He lives a slightly isolated lifestyle, but wants to learn and grow to be more of a member of the community as a whole than just "Doctor Lame Leg." His isolated lifestyle petrifies him with fright at the thought of conflict, either physical or verbal... which is something he will almost certainly have to confront moving forward if he's going to help cleanse his home.

Signs:

Purify: Casting Purify will make something safe to consume for the caster.

Restore (Pending): Casting Restore will significantly reduce the time it takes a wound to heal.

Chuma Onyejekwe is extremely fit and healthy. Years of hard manual labor have greatly built up the muscle and structure of the man’s body. He has many calluses and scars on his hands, feet, and elsewhere from grueling work. The man is also bald and often wears no clothing but his pants. The man is built like a stone, and he acts like a stone. The way he moves is very rigid and methodical. Nothing is smooth or elegant about this person's appearance. He seems very brutish and uncaring from the outside.

Chuma has nothing. He does not own a house, tools, land, or anything. Even his clothes are not his, owned to someone else wholly. Chuma hails from outside of the Heiseina village, belonging to a single family that just lays outside of Heiseina proper. Chuma and his family never bothered the people of Heiseina, and the folks of Heiseina did the same. The relationship between Chuma’s family and the Heiseina village was not a friendly one. From time to time, arguments over land and other items broke out. Most of these arguments never amounted to anything besides harsh words being thrown. To Chuma, it seems odd that the Heiseina village was so hostile to outsiders, but he never really cared. He was outside of their territory, even if it was a bit too close for comfort.

Life continued and Chuma gave little thought to this strange arrangement. Sadly for the man, a tragedy struck Chuma's whole family. A disease of unknown origins claimed brother, mother, sister, and father. For one reason or another, Chuma found himself unaffected by the disease. For a time, Chuma lived alone and farmed the land himself. That was until a swarm of bugs caused many crop failures, forcing Chuma to ask for food from the village. At first, the folks of Heiseina did not want anything to do with the stranger. He was an outsider, a threat. Fearing for his life, mainly the fear of starvation, Chuma offered a deal. He was to take on debt, and he would be forced to pay off that debt by hard labor. Takamori Kenji accepted the offer. From there on, life became much harder for poor Chuma.

Of course, Chuma also had to accept the customs, history, and beliefs of the village. If not then he would have died already since that was also apart of the deal. Chuma was sent out to the farthest part of the village, away from anyone, and was left alone in his own part of the village. He then handed various farming tools, food, and sugarcane seeds, told to farm and process sugar for the village. Chuma was also told that he did not own a single item that the village gave him as it was the property of the village. Not only that, he was expected to meet quotas or be forced not to eat. For the next 10 years, Chuma had his work sorted out. Wake up in the morning, stretch, go to the field, and work the land. If harvesting or the planting season was done then the processing of cane into sugar was the task of the day. If his tools were broken then he also had to fix them himself, forcing Chuma to take up blacksmithing in order to repair or make new tools, as the village did not like a stranger to be using their fine toolsets besides the first set that they gave him. If that was also done then the village always had something for the poor man to do. Chuma was never talked to by anyone, and in the rare case that someone did talk to him, it was always commands for him to do something.

This was not a pleasant experience for Chuma. The whole day was just grueling work and isolation. This has dehumanized the man and allowed Chuma to lose his social touch with others. He now has a hard time trying to socialize with others. 10 Years of near-isolation has greatly rusted any form of past social skills that Chuma once had. Chuma just feels powerless in his arrangement. There is nothing for him to do but to pay off his debt. At this point, he does not know when he will be done with it.

There is no joy in life now. It is just work, loneliness, and verbal abuse. This is existence for Chuma Onyejekwe.

N/A

Long red hair that is most commonly done up in a simple high ponytail, but has been used to being in some more 'feminine' updos for formal occasions. Her eyes are a sparkling dark green within a diamond-shaped, symmetrical face. Stature wise, she's only slightly on the taller side, but has the muscles to match her activities.

Sakimoria is the daughter of one of Master Takamori's relations that live within his manor. Her father and mother, Takamori Ryuji and Takamori Tanith, are a fairly matched couple, strict and scheming for the prosperity and status that would be theirs's if Ryuji inherited the title. Therefore, they've raised Sakimoria to be everything they've thought a woman should be in order for her to not disappoint them and to have a marriage that would help them with their goals. However, their scheming also meant that they weren't around much in her life, meaning she was left to be watched by maids in her early years that told her stories and legends of long ago. From the moment she first heard them, she was spellbound. Her imagination was captivated, and from that moment on she could not imagine anything but to be one of those heroes.

Of course, her parents did all they could to squash those dreams anytime she talked about them. She was a Takamori woman, in a time of peace. There would no talk of fighting or trouble from her. All they allowed her was to learn how to better be a future wife and mother, suitable for high society. And so, she stopped talking about heroes and her dreams with them. Instead, she simply used any moment she had free to explore along the mansion grounds and continue her make believe, doing what she could to train for being a hero whether from doing all she could to become more athletic to reading about everything she could get her hands on that revealed more about what ancient times and ancient heroes were like. Sometimes though, she'd go and look at Master Kenji's sword in its sheathe, daydreaming that one day, something might happen where she would be the one wielding it to save the village. If she was feeling bold enough, she'd go and ask him herself if he could take her on as his apprentice to be the next Master. She'd only be denied, but she's kept persisting, doing what she could to convince him to take her on, learning his ways in order to be more like him. If she was ever sent out to the village, she'd also go out of her way to see Seimei Tomo, having enjoyed learning signs under her and admiring the quiet confidence of her being, how even her parents had to respect her. She understood that she likely was outside Seimei's notice or remembrance, but she soon became another model for who she wanted to be like.

As the days have passed, the dream hasn't died, but she's had to put up with more and more of what her parents want, dreading the day they'd choose out someone to be her husband. Fortunately, they so far have not agreed on one person long enough to come close and anytime someone came anywhere close, she'd quietly figure out a same to sabotage it. Most of her make believe though now is sequestered to her journal, the times she's able to break away becoming fewer and fewer. Part of her just wants to get away from it all, leave the valley entirely and see someplace new. Another part wants her to just accept what her life is like and prepare herself for what she'll have to be. Still, the third part still wishes that she could be made the Master, be the ultimate hero of the village, or that something would happen that would allow her to become a true hero. However, she's about to learn that its better to be careful what you wish for...Because you might get it.

Takamori Kenji: Basically her distant uncle. She looks up to him and hopes to be a hero like him.
Seimei Tomo: Another person she admires and wants to be like. If Kenji never took her on as his apprentice, she would hope there was a chance that Seimei might. However, she knows that even less chance of that happening.
Takamori Ryuji and Takamori Tanith: Her parents, distantly related to Kenji through one of his brother's. Don't truly care about Saki at all except as a means for their ends. Saki obeys them mostly because she has to honor and respect them, but part of her still wants their love and approval. She knows that that's impossible, but the heart wants what the heart wants.
Signs she knows: Heat, Water, Purify, Mend? (pending, would basically be a Sign to fix things that have minor breaks like a basket)

Standing at a height of 5’5, Fumiko is about average height for a girl of her age, but that is around where the scale of being ‘average’ ends for her. With rather striking facial features, Fumiko has always been a sight easy on the eyes. With her face typically being adorned with a dazzling smile that showed even in her eyes, Fumiko is like a ray of sunshine throughout the village. Those very brown eyes were like windows into her soul, as getting lost in them would easily betray all the hope, joy, and whatever other myriads of emotions she might be feeling. Her elegant facial features, mixed with her fair, flawless skin framed by long, curly, brunette hair that flows just past her shoulders all help to create quite the beauty. The kind that is rare in that her beauty is rather effortless to maintain.

With a lean form and sporting elegant curves, Fumiko’s face is not the only striking thing about her appearance. While she is not toned as other villagers might be, the young girl does keep herself in shape through various activities. Though her clothing choices are not ones chosen to showcase her body, the girl favors outfits that are more comfortable for whatever task is at hand that day than ones that are meant to be ‘pretty'. As such, Fumiko is often seen wearing her favorite yukata, one which is pink and embroidered with flowers along the outside edges. Outside of this, the girl tends to favor simplistic clothing choices, a pair of trousers or shorts accompanied by a simple tunic, if she is going to be spending the day doing labor. On the rare occasions where Fumiko is to dress up, the girl will typically wear a kimono of the same colorings and design as her Yukata, accompanied by matching flowers braided into her hair.

Fumiko’s life is one without struggle, the girl having grown up in a loving home that was absent of strife. At least, strife that a young girl would recognize. A home life that she would later learn many would have done just about anything to have themselves.

Fumiko has enjoyed a close relationship with her Great Uncle, Takamori Kenji, or her “Uncle Kenji” as she often refers to him. As a result of their close relationship through the years, Fumiko has taken on quite a few of his own qualities and world views. These show in her unending optimism for their village and their people thriving together, and how eager she is to put every ounce of her being into working to ensure this comes true. Even if her actions are as small as simply going out to the fields to help the farmers with their harvest for that day, Fumiko does this action with pride.

For much of the years spent in schooling, Fumiko managed to stand out among her classmates. In part for the easy way she went about making friends, part for her excellence in her studies, and in part for just who she is related to. In addition to her studies, Fumiko also had a nasty habit of worming her way into arguments between students and trying to mediate to settle their differences. A task that has met with varying success, and certainly affected the opinion of at least some in her class. These years in her schooling are part of what helped build the girl’s reputation as one of the forefront options to take over after her uncle and helped draw his attention to consider her as one of the few serious candidates.

Around the village, Fumiko has taken on the role of a ‘caretaker’ as she describes it. That is, she watches over and cares for both the children and elderly during the days their families must tend to other responsibilities. As such, Fumiko has used her slight aptitude for signs to learn two very basic signs. The first being fire, which she uses to help light a flame when she is preparing meals for those she is caring for, and to help add a dramatic effect to legends or stories she might tell children for entertainment. The other, glow, is used much the same as the latter effect of fire, more entertainment for the children. Fumi spends much of her time not spent taking lessons and acting as her uncle’s assistant filling this role as a caretaker. As such, much of her time is spent with either the youth or elderly of their village. The elderly who she often spends time listening to their stories and eagerly absorbing their tales instead of telling her own.

In what little free time Fumiko can scrape together, she is doing one of a few different things. She likes to spend that free time either dancing, singing, or out exploring to find beautiful scenes to sketch in her sketchbook. Though her skills with the latter are described best as amateur. Although, exploring might not be the best term. Fumiko very rarely strays beyond the village borders, and even then she does not let her home out of her sight. Unlike her sketching, however, Fumiko is quite adept at both her song and dance. Though she very rarely performs either outside of the privacy of her own chambers, only the children she watches are able to convince her to perform for them.

Despite how pure her life may seem, that does not mean that the girl is without flaws or tragedy in her life. Fumiko lost her mother to illness when she was 14 years old, and despite her firm beliefs to the very end that her mother would recover… Fumi was in the room as she drew her last breath. The girl almost completely shut down and withdrew from the outside world for nearly two months in the wake of this tragedy. Very rarely was she seen outside of her room, and when she was… Fumiko was a skeleton of the girl she used to be. This tragedy haunts her until this very day, with the very concept of death causing Fumiko to quickly retreat back into herself just as she had in the wake of that horrific day. Outside of the tragedy, Fumiko has a few other flaws that mar the image of the perfect young girl she tries to present. She has become so reliant on her perfect memory, that she rarely will listen to the advice of others (save her Uncle) on things she believes to already have knowledge about. Her habit of forcing herself into disagreements between others to try to mediate still persists, and has earned her a few foul points on her reputation.

Though, perhaps her darkest secret is that despite the carefree persona she likes to portray to the world, inside her mind things can get much darker. She battles with a shocking lack of self-confidence, a scar left on her mind from her mother’s passing. Though not a constant companion, when that dark voice raises in the back of her mind, Fumiko has nothing she can do to quiet it. Despite her hopes and beliefs for everybody else in the village, Fumiko’s belief in herself is completely lacking. This shows through the cracks in her facade in the way that Fumiko so wholly dives headfirst into any situation she believes will help others. No matter the cost to herself, a way to subconsciously settle the debt she owes for failing to help her own mother. After all, surely there was something she could have done to save the woman. In addition to this, Fumiko often refrains from giving herself much praise, doubting that she is worth said praise.

Despite her inner demons, Fumiko’s strong desire to serve and help the people of her village still burns just as bright. The girl is vying hard to be chosen to fill her Uncle’s position so that she can play such a helpful role to her home as he had, and without even a second wasted on selfish thoughts of how the position might benefit her. Her innocence to the world also continues to strive onward, as she lacks enough experience to tell her anything outside of her personal tragedy could be remotely commonplace. After all, things had been so ideal and wonderful in their village till now… why would they ever change?

Fumiko knows two signs:

• Fire
• Glow

Fumiko is the great-niece of Takamori Kenji.