Name: Katherine "Kathy" Amilia Simen
Age: 27
Occupation: Newspaper Reporter
Appearance: Dark brown hair, blue eyes, fair skin. Kathy dresses in business casual, and if it is cool out wears a pea coat. She prefers slacks while out in town but will often wear a skirt if in the office. Her shoes tend to be dress boots with a slight heel, or kitty heels. She doesn't usually wear high heels unless she is dressing up for a special event.
Personality: Tenacious, Pessimistic, Adaptable, Vindictive, Strong-willed, Opinionated
Kathy has a strong sense of duty. She is determined. She doesn't write articles about crimes as she knows she would not be able to keep herself from writing her opinion. Kathy is active in the community, partially because of her writing and because she believes in duty to the community. She's just as likely to be volunteering somewhere as she is to be at an event for the paper.

Background: Kathy's family has deep roots in Havenwood. They've been here since the town was founded. She was the only child of one of the town's cops. He was a single father. Her mother had left him when Kathy was still an infant. He had woken up one morning to Kathy's cries and his wife gone, bag packed, car missing. He spent some time looking for her but gave up when she sent a card with cash but nothing written on it.

During college, Kathy and her father had a falling out, but by the time she graduated, they had figured out their relationship. They are now close to each other. She doesn't live with him but checks on him several times a week, especially since he retired. In college, Kathy studied Communications and Journalism. She's been working at the town newspaper since graduation. Kathy made her name by writing articles about local history. She would tie in current events, such as a centennial celebration, with historical facts. Her articles are interesting, and while her boss at first was hesitant, he now lets Kathy choose her topics.

Currently, Kathy has a 'will they, won't they' relationship with the older brother of her high school best friend. He is one of the Librarians, and she often goes there to work on her articles. He doesn't think she'd like him that way, and she thinks he sees her as a little sister rather than anything more.

The Touch: For years, Kathy sees a figure in the corner of her eye. She can never get the figure in view.
Weaknesses: Her father, Gus, is older, and she cares for him a lot. This is both money, time, and emotional investment for her.
Motivations: Kathy's strong sense of duty has kept her in Havenwood for her father and her job. She likes her job a lot and doesn't think she'd find one in a bigger city she likes more.

Name: Michael Huether
Age: 36
Occupation: Furniture delivery/repair man.

Appearance: Standing at 5'10 Michael can be considered somewhat heavy-set with a pot belly. Though the nature of his job gives him nice arms and legs. His hair is copper brown. His eyes a dark hazel. He has a red mustache/goatee that is beginning to have strands of white in it. If he is working. He is always wearing a black polo with his company's logo on it and black cargo pants. If he's off it usually tends to be a random T-shirt with funny sayings or pictures on it and faded camo cargo pants. He is also wearing blue light glasses to help him see.

Personality: Michael is one to express confidence aloud in group settings but suffers from imposter syndrome when alone. He belittles himself a lot and never feels what he does is enough even when he is doing his best. While kind to others because he does not want people to feel the way he feels, he does not usually go out of his way to be friendly because he is introverted. Prefers to be alone, but because his job forces him to be with the public of Havenwood on a near daily basis he can fake being an extrovert for a bit. Is willing to take the lead in a situation if forced but would much rather be a follower.

Background: Michael has been in Havenwood for about twelve years. He moved down here when his grandfather grew ill and could no longer work. So, he moved into his grandparents' large old house and has been helping them since. His grandfather died three years ago and now it is just him and his grandmother whose health is declining despite her smiles. The house is thankfully paid for but some of it is in disrepair due to financial struggles. Michael repairs what he can when funds come up though. It always feels like two steps back for every step forward.

The Touch: Michael's grandfather Otto had always been a large bear of a man that worked for the Havenwood Lumber Company. Until he became unexpectedly sick. When Michael arrived, his grandfather had become a shell of man. Sickly thin with flaps of skin being the only evidence of all his muscles. His eyes forever twitching, searching for something he could not see. The night Otto died, he apologized to Michael but Michael didn't understand why he apologized. It was only after Otto breathed his last that Michael felt a strange heaviness descend upon him. It was like something was resting on his shoulders, but there was nothing he could do to remove this feeling. Checking in the mirror would come up with nothing strange. Now there are unexpected times where Michael could be alone in a room or in a crowded place and hear breathing behind his head but no one else seems to notice it. Occasionally if he is moving deep in thought, he will find himself heading to strange places and have to stop and move back to where he needs to. Randomly he can catch a glimpse of something in the mirror resting on his shoulders when the room is dark.

The feeling never fades. It doesn't matter if he is sleeping, working, sex, whatever. It never vanishes.

Weaknesses: Lacks confidence even if it's something he's done hundreds of times. Struggles with what he's going to do when his grandmother passes and is now alone in a house he can barely keep up. If you have ever heard the expression can make a mountain out of a mole hill? Michael can talk up anything in his head and make it twenty times worse. Feels like hes a slob even when he tries to be healthy and attempts to work out. His grandmother.

Motivations: Wants his Grandmother Joyce to enjoy what life she has left without having to worry about him or really anything. This forces him to constantly be working or trying to find odd jobs for more cash. Would love a newer car but will probably never buy one because it's a want and not a need. Will not leave Havenwood no matter what as long as his grandmother is alive. Feels he owes it to his grandparents to care for them.

Theme:

Name: Beth Brown
Age: 31
Occupation: Motel worker

Appearance: An unassuming looking woman with a soft face and body. She wears poorly fitted floral dresses and loose cardigans that are largely unflattering, and she keeps her hip-length ginger hair tied back in a simple plait. Her expression defaults to kind, although her eyes often give away an underlying anxiety.

Personality: Previously an ambitious and extroverted woman with a love of music and travel, she now does her best to push down any feelings that could try to push her outside of the safe world she has built. She is helpful and friendly with those she interacts with, if largely quiet, but carries a slight air of unease that can be off-putting to those perceptive enough to detect it.

Background: Beth grew up in a middle-class family in Wales. Her parents were loving but controlling, and when she decided to apply to study at university they pressured her to attend a poorly-ranked local institution so that she would be close to home. On her first day she met Talia, an American student in her final year, and they entered a whirlwind relationship that took over Beth's life. But coming out to her parents led to fury and, unhappy with her life, she agreed to follow Talia back to East Coast USA. The relationship quickly became abusive, and with no college education and very little freedom Beth settled into a life of miserable monotony. After eight years of worsening treatment she decided to flee, taking the car in the middle of the night and driving aimlessly. She found herself several states away in Havenwood where, as she was passing through, debilitating exhaustion hit. She booked a room at a motel and never left. Four years later she works a job in the motel she first landed in and rents a small, grubby apartment by the main road.

The Touch: Nothing ever looks quite real, as though the moment she stepped into Havenwood everything became too flat and too vivid, like the world is a picture. The more she tries to remember what 'real' looks like the more panicky she feels, so she tries to ignore it. She puts it down to the Kansas sunlight.

Weaknesses: Her biggest fear is that Talia will find her. To maintain emotional stability she generally avoids thinking about the past or the future, and is terrified of facing her emotions. She often resorts to food and alcohol to help in this avoidance.

Motivations: She wants above all to have a stable life. She is working towards buying one of the small houses in a nicer part of town, and has her eyes set on a promotion at the motel. There's a stray cat called Billy who she's been working on befriending. Her life is small but safe here, and she can convince herself that she's beginning to fit in; if she left she'd lose all of that.

Name: Bronwyn Whytewood

Age: 24

Occupation: Busker/Barista

Appearance: Bronwyn has long, dirty blonde hair and light gray eyes. She has some freckles on her nose and cheeks. She has light peach skin. Bronwyn is 5'6'' and has a slender build. Typical clothes range from darkwash jeans and off-shoulder tops to dresses. She wears darker colors in reds, pinks, purples, blues, and blacks. Her favorite pair of boots are her knee-length dark brown leather boots. She usually wears her hair down or tied up with a scarf. Make-up is lipstick and eyeliner and she normally wears a dark red color on her lips. She wears a silver locket with a picture in it though she hardly ever opens it.

Personality: Bronwyn is not easily tied down. A free-spirit who prefers sticking it to authority versus following the rules. Bronwyn does not trust easily, having been bitten before, and she often meets people with a dry wit and a gallon of sarcasm. Underneath the somewhat prickly exterior beats a heart of someone who wants to be there for people but does not fully know how to do that. Bronwyn is not afraid to call someone out for being a jerk (just ask the coffee shop customers) nor is she afraid of getting her hands dirty in a squabble, especially if it is defending someone else.

Background: Bronwyn is on the run.

That sounds more dire than it is. Bronwyn isn't being chased, but what she knew back then is a powderkeg she would rather not be near. After losing her mother when she was very young it was just her and her father. He tried his best to raise a young girl, but admittedly mishandled a lot of situations, especially when Bronwyn came out to him when she was 15 years old. He claimed to be supportive but comments made growing up around him did not instill confidence in Bronwyn.

Bronwyn did okay in school, passing her classes but not excelling in much apart from drama and music. The goal was to go to Broadway and audition for musicals.

Then she met Chrissi.

Chryssi seemed like she had everything Bronwyn was missing. She supported her endeavors. She came to Bronwyn's shows when she would sing at open-mic nights when her father couldn't be bothered. She made Bronwyn feel like she was the only person who mattered. So when she was 19 years old, she moved out of her father's house and in with Chryssi. It started well at first, as these things go. Soon, it became apparent the Chryssi Bronwyn met was not who she really was. Control took over: what Bronwyn could wear, who Bronwyn hung out with. It all came to a head when Chryssi laid hands on Bronwyn in a heated argument.

With no place to call home and no place to go, Bronwyn moved around in her car, living in motels when she could. She worked odd jobs and would sing when she could. New York never seemed so far away. Havenwood seemed like a nice place to get lost so Bronwyn stuck around, hoping to never meet up with her past again.

The Touch: Bronwyn has a feeling of dread that she is being watched at all times. While this can be played off during the day (she IS a performer after all) the feelings grow the darker it gets. She can never quite catch who or what it is, though there always seems to be a shadow present. Or what she thinks is a shadow.

Weaknesses: Bronwyn has no real ties to the town. While she may recognize some people, like regulars, there is no one here she can claim support from if she needs it.

Motivations: Bronwyn wants security, both internally and externally. She wants to make a name for herself and achieve the dreams she held on to from her youth. She wants to be surrounded by people who care for her and feel safe in her own skin.

Name: Brandon Robert Wilson Jr.
Age: 31
Occupation: Police Officer

Appearance: When out uniform, his attire is usually business casual and a polo or at worst - regular shirt and light windbreaker when there's a slight windchill. He is an African-American man with a stocky build and naturally strong, wide facial features and slanted brooding eyes. He is "fit" enough to run two miles at the same rate acceptable according to decent PT standards he doesn't quite remember scoring during his 'more physical days' as an MP during this days in the Army. Alas, his later age just fainting at him as glimpses is still nonetheless slowly catching up to him now in his small moustache.

Background:
Born to a aviation mechanic, Brandon Sr, and Miranda Cosgrove in the last few months of being a toddler, "Junior" was born in 1975 over at the US Naval Hospital in Guam during the years his father was still in the Navy amidst the aftermath of the Vietnam War. He is the second-born to an older, nonsensical sister. Him and his immediate family located to Inglewood, far from their own southern Louisianan background and into the thresher of the growing Crenshaw dominated area. After an interesting upbringing and discourse of a rather confusing part of his life, the death of his mother in a DUI sparked the young man into chasing something that would make sense of the few turmoils was troubled by.

Wilson enlisted in the Army in 1993 at the behest of his father, opting in for six-years of service predominately spent in Baumholder with a few deployments and TDY's under his belt for about three years while the remainder of his service was spent in Fort Bragg, closer to his family. Married to a Romanian woman, divorced in only the course of several years upon moving to Los Angeles. Seeking some sense of retribution and solace, he sought out a quieter yet flawed life in the hick American countryside against the bickering of his older sister wishing for him to stay around and only now coming to haunt him in some unexplainable malignant form.

In 2003, he was 'reassigned' to Kansas. Far from home, far from everything believing it more of a calling. It was after years of introspection that he slowly begins to realize the tantalizing nightmares that haunt him with seemingly no origin. After spending less than a year in the middle of this Kansas city, would he later realize it was a lot larger than he had ever imagined the longer his stay is.

Personality:
Clever, personable, nearsighted, opinionated, reserved, self-reliant, stoic, kind.

The Touch:
Brandon is haunted by something he cannot put his mind to. When he is deeply in thought, a metaphysical phantom lurks in the dark which he inevitably believe it traces back to his childhood and reluctance to indulge in hedonistic pursuits though something else tethers him especially to Havenwood. An interesting sounding town far from the place in name or he seeks solace in which he experiences as deja vus he simply disregards some false sense of precognition albeit an ominous one that won't leave him alone. Regardless, despite still being newcomer to this only slighty sleepy town there still irks a harrowing nightmares lingering in the background to his own dismay.

Weaknesses: His disciplinary mannerisms are at times his downfall, without realizing ultimately from time-to-time how easy it would be for him to befall into addictive or impulsive behaviors while at times having a disdain for himself for doing so. His emotions are kept stable under the guise of psychological structures he's built to keep himself under control.

Motivations:
Occupationally, Mr. Wilson is hoping to make Sergeant after almost hitting his five-year mark within the police force and perhaps with the help of his prior Army service will earn him into a detective.

Name: Juan Francisco Perico
Nickname: Juanfra, Peri
Age: 29 (1975)
Occupation: Owner of the bodega (corner store) in town
Appearance: Juanfra is almost 6ft tall and has a rather strong build, owed to the physical nature of his work. He likes shaving his head bald, but keeps a nice full beard and has dark brown eyes. His go-to outfit is a pair of comfortable sneakers or boots, a pair of dark jeans and either a plain hoodie or sweater over a band or retro gaming shirt. Always wears his silver skull with green eyes earring, sometimes adds a cap or woollen hat depending on the weather. Has a small tattoo of a cute snake on his left wrist.

Personality: Juan is an optimistic and extroverted person who is usually cheery and very chatty. He likes striking up conversations with people in his bodega and is a good listener. However, he also tends to overanalysing what others in town might think of him and has difficulties forgiving people once they have wronged him. Juan is not easily angered and can take jokes just as much as he likes making them, but if you do push him too far he might end up exploding in your face.

Background: Juan is a 2nd generation immigrant to Mexican parents, born and raised in Santa Fe (NM). He had a sheltered and "normal" upbringing up until a tragedy struck his family when he was a senior in high school: His younger sister Laura went missing and was never found, which sadly also ended up tearing his family apart due to grief and anger. After the divorce, his dad stayed in Santa Fe while Juan and his mother moved to Havenwood to take care of his grandma Maria, who owed the bodega at that time. He started helping out there as his mom took over, as his grandma had gotten too old to manage it herself. This also meant he had to sacrifice his dreams to go to a large college and make something out of himself, but he accepted that to keep at least a part of his family together. Since then he has become the manager of the bodega to allow his mom to take of grandma full-time and has moved to a small but nice little apartment right above it. He has also made a few friends since moving here and does feel integrated in his nearby community, but is unsure if this is really the place he wants to spend the rest of his life. He dreams of one day leaving Havenwood and see as many parts of the world as possible, but is scared of what might happen to his family in his absence.

The Touch: Ever since they were children, Juan and his sister Laura have suffered from auditory hallucinations. They would hear voices speaking in soft whispers, but couldn't understand the words the majority of the time. More unsettling, every now and then the soothing whispers would be replaced with guttural sounds that seemed to be a song, and although they could make no sense of it, these songs felt soothing and familiar. As children they talked to their parents about this on multiple occasions, but no doctor could ever confirm anything to be wrong with the siblings. Eventually the pair stopped mentioning it to others, but would talk about it at length amongst them if the sounds got too intense or weird. After Laura disappeared, it became easier for Juan to understand the whispers, sometimes able to make out words or even sentences. Most of them end up being nonsensical listings of seemingly unrelated words.
Weaknesses: Juan's biggest weakness is that he can react emotional a lot of times he should be rational, and is prone to overreaction rather than taking things calmly. He is confident in his day to day, but can get down and have bouts of self-doubt when alone at night, plagued by questions regarding his future and if he is wasting his life in this town. The fact that his sister's disappearance was never solved has created a need to protect what remains of his family and a big hole he has never been able to fill despite his tries to distract himself with alcohol or the occasional drug.
Motivations: He hopes to be there for his family and protect them from anything happening to them. At the same time, he has dreams of one day visiting all the interesting places he has seen in books and movies, yearning for freedom and not feeling bound to a specific place or obligation.

Name: Jennifer "Jenna" McAvoy
Age: 27
Occupation: Private School English Teacher

Appearance: Jenna has shoulder length, wavy, dark brown hair, fair skin and green eyes. She's 5'6" and though she would say she is a bit overweight, she carries herself confidently enough that most people don't seem to notice. She wears cat-eye glasses and academic yet colorful clothes (think sweater-vests, pencil skirts and argyle socks).

Personality: Bookish yet bubbly. You could just as easily find her spending her evening nose deep in a leatherbound piece of classic literature as you would hanging out with the girls for a couple of drinks. While most enjoy her congenial attitude, others can get quickly annoyed with what might be viewed as toxic positivity. She is always the person encouraging others to see the silver lining or look on the bright side, and often finds herself being the mediator when there are conflicts in her life, whether they be socially or professionally. Although she is socially gregarious, Jenna has no true friends. In fact, she tends to people keep people at a distance hiding behind her overtly-chipper demeanor. The truth is, she struggles connecting with people and uses her smiling facade to coast through life and keep her mind off the disturbing thoughts that creep up on her every day like clockwork.

Background: Jenna grew up as what you might call trailer trash in poor area of Western Michigan. Her mother got pregnant at 17 and she knew nothing about her father because her mother didn't care to talk about him. In fact, her mother didn't really care to talk to Jenna about much at all. She mostly spent her days drinking and watching television. It was her grandmother, Pearl, that took care of her. At some point, one of Jenna's teachers told Pearl about Jenna's alarming behavior. She would turn in assignments with disturbing themes and imagery. Despite this, Pearl was also informed of Jenna's academic potential and it was Pearl that encouraged her to "blind the dark thoughts with a smile," and focus on creating a new life for herself after college. But, even with scholarships, college is expensive. Because of that, after she graduated and received her teaching credential, Jenna entered a program that would match her with a school anywhere in the country that needed teachers. She did not expect to be matched to Havenwood Preparatory Academy, a private school, but they had been having trouble hiring a new English teacher since their last one disappeared under mysterious circumstances.

The Touch: Jenna has always been plagued by intrusive disturbing thoughts of violence, death, and gore. She never acted on these thoughts, but they always crept their way in. Since moving to Havenwood a few years ago it has only gotten worse. Not only are the thoughts more frequent and persistent, but they are also more strange and surreal in nature.

Weaknesses: Jenna has only ever felt true human connection to her grandmother, who passed away while she was still in college. She has no contact with her mother, and the friends that she does have are surface level social companions at best. She is afraid that if she gets too close to someone that she might let the truth of her mind be revealed and be seen as a monster. Moreover, she is afraid that if she lets someone see the dark part of her mind that it might make it more real, and if it becomes more real then perhaps it could take over.

Motivations: Despite her fears of getting close to people emotionally, she has been taking small steps to put down roots in Havenwood and make good on her promise to her grandmother to create a good life for herself. Although it's been difficult, she's been trying to become closer friends with Maggie, one of the secretaries at Havenwood Prep, who she occasionally has drinks with after work. Maggie has even encouraged Jenna to start dating, although for one reason or another she finds some reason not to have a second date with any guy she's gone out with. Still, she's hopeful that with slow and steady steps that she can find some sort of life here in Havenwood. That is if the darkness doesn't claim her first.

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