Name: Linnea Falk
Age: 11
Sex: Female
At around 4 foot tall, Linnea is a thin and tiny girl with a kind face that is used to smiling and vivid light-green eyes that hide Linnea's yearning for freedom from the prison that is her frail body. Slow of movement, a quiet voice and long, ethereal white hair give her the feeling of a wintry ghost in slow motion. She wears oversized hand-me-down dress shirts and sweaters over dresses and skirts for convenience sake, but prefers jeans and pants whenever she has the strength to put them on.
Personality: Linnea is a melancholy mix of kindness, sadness, curiosity/naiveté, and in stark contrast to her weak body, an iron will and determination. She has found it her personal calling to be kind-hearted and almost always has a smile on her face and a greeting for others. But, Linnea doesn't really laugh. She smiles often, most of them forced, but she's used to it. Her sadness and anguish comes from the fact that she feels she is a burden on her family, and that she misses them so much. Her smile is a way for her to hide/push away the sadness so that others wont worry over her and to show how appreciative she is.
Because of her sheltered upbringing, she is very curious about the outside world, it's peoples and cultures. She can be very curious about strangers, but too shy to ask too many questions. She loves all cuisine and is always willing to try new food. She also really loves flowers! Her most used color is white, but her favorite color is yellow. She has a strange and almost unconscious habit of picking up small objects to fiddle with while she is deep in thought or engaged in conversation, and then later realizing she has the object and not knowing where she got it from.
Background: Linnea grew up in a loving but struggling family with a single mother who worked herself to the bone, and an older brother who dreamed of going to college, then making it big and bringing prosperity to their poor family. Linnea always had a weak health and constitution, but a year ago she was diagnosed with a rare muscle disease. She could still walk, but she got tired very quickly and easily, and the doctors said it would only get worse.
It was then, because of expensive medical costs, that her brother decided to quite school to take on multiple jobs and help out the family, but the mother wouldn't allow it and there were many arguments. They finally decided that the brother would at least finish high school before joining the workforce, but even then, the mother was heart broken that her hard work couldn't even allow her son to go to college. Linnea saw all this. Saw how much they loved her and worked hard for her. She loved them So much! But she could do nothing for them. So she smiled for them. Even if she would cry and cry on the inside, she would and least smile and show her appreciation for being loved so much.
On her eleventh birthday they took her to a nearby flower plantation where they had a fun and peaceful day enjoying the flowers, the sun, and a picnic. Her mother and brother both got her a white poppy flower each, which made Linnea really happy. But then, her mother cried. She cried and begged for forgiveness for not being able to give Linnea a better birthday, a better life. Linnea and her brother both tried to soothe her, but they both ended up crying instead, all of them holding onto each other.
The next day, Linnea packed a duffle bag, left a loving goodbye note on the kitchen table, and left home...
Powers: Linnea's powers basically give her stereotypical ghost abilities. She can hover as if she is in a zero-g state, but she can control her direction and orientation with ease. She can't fly very fast (yet), only at normal walking pace. She can also become immaterial and phase through objects and people. Eventually, she may be able to make objects and other people fly and phase like she can, as long as she is touching it/them.
Personal Motive: Linnea doesn't know how she will ever be able to do it, but she wants to one day become able-bodied and financially successful so that she can take care of her mother and brother, who have both sacrificed so much to care and love her. She wants to return that 10 fold.
A small goal in her life is to sample/experience all the types of food from around the world.
Mementos: Other than a duffle bag of clothing, she brought with her a family photo album with 2 pressed white poppy blossoms in it (one with a blue ribbon, and one with a green ribbon). Linnea felt really bad for taking the photo album, but she needs it, and will occasionally look through it to reinforce her determination.
