Full Name: Evianna Noelle Rinaldi
Nicknames: Yvaine
Race: Human
Gender: Female
Age: 18
Hair: Blonde
Skin: Fair
Eyes: A light blue that darken noticeably when she's upset
Height: 5'3"
Weight: 99 lbs
Place of Birth: Khloris (more commonly known as The City of Flowers) is located in the southeastern province of Aega. It is built atop a large hill that overlooks a valley of flowers, hence its moniker, and is enclosed in concentric tiered walls that split the city into four sectors, culminating with the Fortress at the summit. There is an apparent caste system that arose from this division, wherein proximity to the Fortress signifies social standing. As such, the outermost sector (called the Roots) houses the lower-class citizens, and the two middle sectors house the middle and upper class respectively.
In addition to its chivalric repute, Khloris is well-known for its grand, season-long flower festival during springtime. Many travel from all over Aega for a glimpse of the valley when all the flowers are in bloom, as they are said to rival in beauty and magnificence even those found in Siilara. An even grander festival is held every seven years, when the rare, night-blooming Aegan fireblossom sets the whole valley alight for exactly thirty-two hours before withering instantaneously.
Khloris has been presided over by the Rinaldi family for six generations now, having steadily risen as prominent figures in the lands of Aega because of their vast resources. They currently have dominion over most of the verdant farmlands of southeastern Aega, and are the primary providers of the lands' grains, fruits, and wine.
Appearance:A lady in every sense of the word, Yvaine possesses feminine graces that make her beautiful, or so her mother boasts. Her blonde locks fall in loose waves past her lower back and curl tighter at the tips; as per her mother's insistent request, upon her ardent belief that short hair does not become a lady, she is prohibited from shearing even an inch off. It can get unmanageable if not properly maintained, and she rouses an hour earlier for her handmaidens to style and set her hair for the day. Her fair complexion is layered only with an ever-so-slight hint of gold despite the persistent sunny spells in Khloris. If there is one thing that points to her life of luxury, it is this; smooth and unblemished, nary a semblance of toil. Her light blue eyes are honest and far too expressive, very much unfit for deceit. Try as she might, she never could properly hide what she feels from others. Her attempts to conceal disdain, as she is told a lady must always do, are laughable.
Yvaine carries herself with a certain poise that harkens to her noble upbringing: head held high in a self-assured manner, yet not without a hint of demureness; gait purposeful but airy. There is something in that way she moves that is almost melodic, as though her actions are performed in time to a song (should one ever ask her, she'll say that they are).
Occupation in the frontier forces: Emissary
Gear of choice: Yvaine is woefully unprepared for travel. Before hightailing it out of the city, she thought only to take with her two sets of spare clothes; they are, at the very least, among her simplest pieces. One is a deep red made from cotton, with shorter sleeves and a shorter hemline for the warmer weather. The other is a light shade of blue; made from a thicker material, with its skirts dragging and its bell sleeves flaring out, she hoped it would be enough to ward against the cold. She also has a long hooded cloak.
Her only weapon is a finely crafted staff made from durable, lightweight metal, sturdy enough to withstand a fair amount of force while doing little to encumber her. It is enchanted to project her voice, and as such, increases the range and effectiveness of her spellsinging. The two gems embedded within the staff serve as her surplus.
She has also brought a few precious trinkets (two golden rings with gemstones and an enchanted necklace that glows like the fireblossom, a rare Khlorissian product) from home that she believes might fetch a high price in the right market, all safely tucked away in the deepest recesses of her satchel, and two of her favorite books (
The Herald and the Crown, the story about the love between the queen and the enemy kingdom's royal messenger; and
The Seventh Light, a page-turner of an epic about the brave knight Owain).
Positive Personality Traits: Genial, resourceful, curious, honest but tactful, empathetic
Negative Personality Traits: Impressionable, indulgent, starry-eyed, stubborn, too easily swayed by emotions and whims
Misc. Quirks: Fifteen years of etiquette lessons have become so finely ingrained within her that she is mannerly to a fault. Should she extend the same courtesies to an enemy that she would a friend, it is because it has become a conditioned response. Likewise, Yvaine cannot bring herself to use profanity—as a child, it only brought her painful slaps on the wrists and nights without dinner, which at the time, was just
the worst. She reflexively lectures those that do.
Yvaine
Likes: Songs and stories in general, but nearest and dearest to her are the ones about romance and adventure; Yvaine knows hundreds by heart, and is likely to use them as references. Good, honorable people who protect others. Learning about the different cultures in Veruulis.
Dislikes: Cold weather (temperate Khloris has unfortunately given her little resistance to lower temperatures); any affront to her hero's honor; enclosed spaces; restraint of any form.
Hobbies: Singing, for entertainment and not just for magical purposes; reading (and she is wont to get overly engrossed, to the point that she may ignore her surroundings); collecting flowers she hasn't seen in Khloris and pressing them.
Paired character: Luched (Nevis)
Connection with paired character: Childhood friend and her personal hero.
Yvaine adores Luch and holds him in the highest regard: to her, the righteous Luched is even better than the heroes in the songs and stories she loved so much. She sought him out after running away from home, but ran into trouble before she could find him. As luck would have it (or destiny, as the romantic in her likes to think), it was
him who found and saved her. She asked to join him in his travels, and he relented.
fantastico
History: Evianna Noelle Rinaldi is the fourth child and only daughter of Florian and Isabelle Rinaldi. Born to a mother whom had long since yearned for a daughter, Yvaine found herself the recipient of her undivided attention. She has three older brothers and two younger ones, but it was only she that their mother openly fixated on. The proud and vain Isabelle wanted nothing more than to raise the perfect lady, one that every noble family would envy, and she finally had her chance. At first, their mother's special treatment earned Yvaine the ire of her brothers, but as they grew older, they realized that being at the receiving end of their mother's obsessive devotion was not at all something to be envied.
For one thing, her early childhood was nothing but a haze of lessons: etiquette in the morning, academics at noon, magical arts in the evening. Impossibly high expectations were forced upon her as she was shaped to be what her mother considered the epitome of a lady. Graceful, refined, and prudent all at once, always presentable and never homely, armed with an ever-present winning smile—Yvaine thought it silly to have to strive for perfection, but fear of disappointment compelled her to obedience. She did as she was told, if only to make her mother happy.
Paranoia (and a sense of elitism) also gripped at her mother's heart, and it made her irrationally overprotective. Unlike her brothers, free to roam where they wish so long as they heed caution, Yvaine was not allowed to venture past their gardens without an escort, or past the city gates at all. Her mother even refused to take her to the lower districts. "My precious flower will just get tainted," she would say every time Yvaine asked why. She thought nothing of it at first, brought up to believe that such wariness was essential (lesson twenty-seven: "a lady must always proceed with caution, no matter the circumstance"). But as she grew older and fell in love with stories of adventure, curiosity and longing stirred within her. She wanted to see the world beyond Khloris, the world that she knew only through songs and stories. Suddenly, the palace walls became stifling. The palace she thought to be a haven, protecting her from the evils of the world, seemed more and more like a prison. A dollhouse for her mother's favorite doll.
Yvaine was nine when she first stole away to the lowest Khloris district, the Roots. She was in a particularly petulant mood after being punished repeatedly for horrible posture (each time her shoulders sagged even the slightest bit, her governess would touch her with her shock-inducing wand; it doesn't cause injuries, but it certainly stung) so she decided to rebel by running away. Escaping was surprisingly easy. There were passageways scattered throughout the palace, some of which were only known to members of her family. She took one that led directly to the Roots and used her two hour self-study and reflection session in the afternoon—a time for herself when no one was allowed to disturb her, not even her mother—to explore.
It was there that Yvaine first encountered Luched. As she roamed the streets, she happened by a brawl between two children, one big burly, the other small and slight. There was a crowd that gathered around them, whether they were vociferously cheering or heckling them, she couldn't quite tell. Yvaine felt duty-bound to stop the fight, but she was oddly fascinated by the slight boy's quick and precise movements. It looked as though he was at a disadvantage, but it would be he that emerges victorious. A clearly wonderstruck Yvaine approached him after the fight, offering to soothe his injuries with her magic, and although he seemed hesitant to accept her aid at first, he eventually relented. She had to leave before they could get better acquainted, but she sought him out the next time she snuck away to the lower districts.
From then on, secretly escaping to the Roots and trailing after Luched became routine. The two quickly became friends, and it was Luch who taught her all about the world she didn't know. He even defended her from those that picked on her, and silenced those that wanted to tell her family of her actions. But even after he disappeared without a word one day (as upset as she was, she knew full well that he longed to travel, just like her), Yvaine never stopped visiting the lower districts. The few hours she spent there each day felt like an adventure, and she came out of it knowing something new each time. This went on for years without her mother ever knowing, and her brothers acting as accomplices. Then one day, she came out of the passageway's exit to find her mother angrily waiting, a small battalion of palace guards accompanying her.
Yvaine was heartbroken. She had at last arrived at the end of her little adventures.
Her mother did not take her act of disobedience well. It was shameful and dishonorable, she said, to deceive family to play with vile lowborns. Her mother saw only one fitting punishment for such egregious behavior: total confinement within the palace until she deems her a presentable candidate for marriage. Until such a time, she would be under constant watch, with lessons doubled to ensure it properly sticks with her this time.
Before her mother could subject her to a life of imprisonment, Yvaine allowed herself one final act of rebellion. She ran away once again, this time escaping from the city, as she had always longed to do. It was time for a proper adventure. She dreaded the thought of disappointing her mother once again, but she knew this was something she must do or regret would consume her.
After successfully fleeing from Khloris, the first thing she thought to do was to seek out Luch, like she did as a child. She remembered vowing that she would join him in his travels one day, even as he brushed it off as an impossible endeavor, and she intended on fulfilling that vow. Unfortunately, Yvaine all but made it halfway to the neighboring city before a couple of drunken, lecherous guards cornered her. They advanced on her all at once, and as one had their hands clamped against her mouth, she was unable to cast any sort of protection spell. She struggled to break free, desperately kicking and clawing, but it hardly affected them. Just as she started fearing for the worst, there it was: a miracle.
It happened so suddenly that she never managed to properly process it. Blood pooled where the four guards laid, utter shock permanently etched on their faces. She was saved. When she realized that her savior was no other than Luch himself, Yvaine collapsed from relief, a cross between a sob and a laugh bubbling in her throat. Still completely shaken up and fearing she'd be left alone, she asked to join him, caring little about his destination.
