(josephine langford, 24, cis female, she/her) PRINCESS CALISTA LOCHTREE is a MEMBER OF THE ROYAL LOCHTREE FAMILY. They are HIGH FAE. They are UNOBSERVANT, but they are also STUDIOUS. In their spare time, you can find them READING IN THE ROYAL LIBRARY.
calista is smart as a whip. she wants to follow a historian’s path, as she’ll likely never see the queen’s throne. so, what’s the harm of an outside job?
of course, she knows her mother would support her. she’s just so shy about what she wants, that bringing up the topic scares her.
she spends so much of her time in the library, though, reading whatever she can get her hands on. fiction, non-fiction, historical, anything. she loves to read. she’s often found in cozy sweaters and slippers in the library, reading by lamplight.
for someone who tends to stick to the shadows, it makes sense that her high fae power would be shadow melding.
despite being shy around new people, she loves when a ball sweeps into her home, or into the neighboring madan castle, as she loves to get dressed up into a glittering gown and people watch. it’s intriguing to her and, if she’s honest, it helps her prepare for the book she wants to write by seeing people interacting, especially when champagne is involved.
calista is planning on enrolling in the academy so she can become a historian and continue learning as much as she can. she hopes to study the history of atherion and other lands that are close in proximity.
(jamie campbell bower, 27, cis male, he/him) JAMIE HELLSTRÖM is a BOOKSELLER. They are an ELF. They are CODEPENDENT, but they are also POETIC. In their spare time, you can find them WRITING POETRY IN THE TAVERN.
jamie was always the athletic one in school. captain of his dueling team, he was always doing something to be seen as the sporty, athletic one. he was always the golden boy. he never did anything that could get him into any known trouble.
known being the operative word. he was always doing something stupid to get himself into trouble, his parents just didn’t know about it. and he liked it that way. he thought that if he were the perfect child, they might stop arguing for five seconds and remember that they had kids that depended on them.
a lot of the shit he got into was because he was defending his twin sister from people who shouldn’t have been talking shit about her in the first place. sure, she could fight her own battles, and when it came to the really big stuff, she did, but if jamie ever heard anyone say anything about her, he’d swing first and ask questions later. it didn’t matter. nobody talked shit about jules, especially not where he could hear.
jamie is bisexual, and although he’s not closeted, he never really came out to his parents. he never thought he needed to. he never brought a boy home while in high school, but he never sat down and had a conversation with his parents saying hey, i also like guys, and if that’s a problem, you’re just gonna have to deal with it.
jules, being the other half of himself, was the only person he ever felt like he needed to come out to, and not because he thought she might think of him any differently, but because he thought she’d be the one person that would understand him and not judge him. because she was the only person who he ever really cared enough to tell.
he once broke his arm climbing a tree, because he got a dueling sword stuck super high up, and really wanted it back. he didn’t care that his parents had told him no. he didn’t care that it was higher than he’d ever climbed before, or that the branches got super thin that far up. he fell, hit a lot of branch on the way down, and ended up with a splint.
over the years, he did a lot more stuff like that, adding broken bone after broken bone to the list. he wasn’t careful and he was an idiot, always getting himself into places and things that he definitely shouldn’t have been getting into.
jamie is a bookseller, but he is also a writer, and loves to write poetry. he always has. while he was always a big jock in school, he secretly loved to make beautiful things out of words. he writes them all down in a notebook and keeps the notebooks in a box in his bedroom.
( jessica mei li, age 26, cisfemale, she/her ) ARIELLA LOCHTREE is a MEMBER OF THE ROYAL LOCHTREE FAMILY. They are HIGH FAE. They are UNCOMFORTABLE, but they are also SENSITIVE. In their spare time, you can find them SEARCHING FOR SECRET PASSAGEWAYS IN THE CASTLE.
headcanons
past / ariella has absolutely no recollection of her adoption process. she knows she is certainly fae, knows that her mother loves her dearly, knows that all of her siblings are also adopted, but she can’t help but wonder if she could just remember her past, maybe it would be easier to let it go. she has a few early memories, flashes of color and light, but the first concrete memory she can access is her stumbling towards her eldest brother, absolutely elated to see him.
present / when ariella isn’t lurking around the treehouse castle, seeking out secrets hidden in the walls, she frequently visits town. she’d never admit this to her family, but it’s there she feels most comfortable. she especially enjoys visiting her old governess, a woman ariella loved almost as much as her own mother. she only moved out of the castle when she married one of the town’s bakers. the fresh bread might have some influence over how frequently ariella visits.
future / ariella is almost obsessed with understanding more of her background. she wants to know why she doesn’t fit in, if there’s something she’s lost. one connection that could be really interesting is someone from that past (biological family, people who knew her bio family, someone willing to help her seek answers)
abilities
powers / she has all the abilities of the fae, namely flight, allure, glamour, delayed aging. as a high fae, a blessing bestowed upon ariella when the queen adopted her, she has an extra ability: tbd.
personality
if it wasn’t evident before, ariella has what some would call middle child syndrome. far from the only middle child in a family so vast, ariella is more than simply forgotten–she doesn’t fit. she doesn’t remember when she first became aware of the difference between her and the rest, aware of the discomfort from the scrutiny, but thinks maybe it was around the time she started visiting the town more and court less. she’s generally quiet in the castle, coming across as shy or maybe snobby, unless she’s around those she’s most comfortable with. sometimes her giggle can be heard into the wee hours around their home as long as she’s with the right sibling.
those who are privy to moments like these might on occasion describe ariella as devilishly sneaky and curious, too. while she’ll never own up to it, if there’s trouble, it probably leads back to ariella whispering in someone’s ear. she only needs a few words to get what she wants. that was the benefit of spending ninety percent of your time observing–you learn people. that being said, ariella is generally not manipulative or malicious. it’s either a testament to ayesha’s parenting . . . or her sheltering skills, but ariella is kind and believes in the best of others (almost to the point of naïveté).
wanted connections
someone who acts almost as her babysitter, who encourages her back into the fold. they just want what’s best for her ( what’s safest – after all curiosity did kill the cat ! ). they’re responsible, a good example for ariella to follow. unfortunately, they’re also one of the few people to see past her mask of mediumness. somehow she isn’t invisible to them, making sneaking all the more difficult.
the exact opposite !! someone who actively encourages the chaos dwelling in ariella, encourages her to question authority. someone who sees her just as clearly as above but doesn’t discourage what they see–in fact, they like what they see. maybe they’re just sneaky buddies or maybe this person purposefully brings out ariella’s more negative characteristics.
someone who maybe sees her naive nature and wants to use it to their advantage. listen, she’s a young, sheltered little princess who thinks she’s more badass than she really is. someone looking for some easy favors from the royal family might see her as a target.
someone she grew up with/around !! either nobility around the castle, or townsfolk she met through her governess whenever they visited town for some errand or another (their family members, neighboring kids, etc). i imagine she begged to go to town a lot as a child, so think childhood friends type of deal.
frenemies!! people who were everything she tried to be growing up, people who fit in just a little bit better. of course, no one wants to get in trouble for being mean to little princess ariella, so they’re polite. there’s maybe an occasional bonding moment where there’s potential for real friendship, but something always gets in the way.
and literally anything else you’d want to give me!! please!!
tl;dr: a gold-hungry dragonborn (shocking) is raised to bring honor, wealth, and prestige to his clan, to distrust peace, to be the best, and takes it all really, really seriously. works off-continent as a soldier-for-hire, bodyguard, monster-killer – anything, really, until he comes home to safe, perfect atherion, happily letting himself become a local legend in hopes of one day securing a prestigious (and expensive) contract when all this perfection goes to shit.
trivia: has many tattoos - some in the form of strength or protection runes, some detailed as if dragon scales && stows his sword when in atherion, so as not to spook the locals, but always has a dagger (or three) hidden on his person, for obvious reasons && can’t turn down a game of cards, but is a terribly sore loser. tries to mask it. && loves telling his work/war/scar stories, the gorier and more near-fatal, the better && travels often, still gets seasick
wanted connections: a nobleborn/well-off who seeks him for personal training off a gut-feeling that they may need it soon && someone travelling off-atherion, who plucks mars out for a companion or protector, and who forces him out of his usual character a bit (and into wacky hijinks, i can only assume!) && a beautiful dryad or aasamir or anything, really, who won’t give him the time of day, which sets off every bit of competitive spirit in him && a fomer employer/paramour/drinking buddy who vouches for his character when he gets in trouble, landing him in a lot of desperation to pay them back, but who won’t have any of it, because it’s more fun to watch him squirm && any work-related plots, please, your boy loves the coin but loves to show off even more
(kaylee bryant, 24, nonbinary, she/they) KINSEY NIGHTBROOK is an ARTIST. They are a SIREN. They are CALCULATED, but they are also ARTISTIC. In their spare time, you can find them PAINTING IN THEIR STUDIO.
kinsey sells her paintings in a gallery beneath the studio apartment she works painting in. they are often up at all hours of the night painting and working on new pieces.
she has a lovely singing voice and often finds herself singing at night while she’s getting ready for bed.
they’re always up for a swim in the river. they love to feel the water on their skin.
they come from a long line of sirens who have lured sailors to their deaths, and they’re particularly proud of their ancestors for the way they handled themselves.
kinsey’s family is no longer around, both her parents having passed when she was younger, leaving her to fend for herself from a young age. she has no siblings, so it’s just her. she does have a distant cousin somewhere in atherion, but they were never close.
kins loves to get dressed up and go to events at the castles. she doesn’t care which one. when there are big events that call for talents to be shown off, she takes her paints and her canvas and she paints publicly, letting everyone see what she can do in real time, and then sells the painting to the highest bidder.
they have often thought about moving out of atherion and into a cottage in the woods, away from the activity of the village, and only coming into town to sell their paintings, but they don’t know if they could get by on that little social interaction. then again, they want to be able to sing when they’re doing things besides getting ready for bed, when they can’t be heard. knowing their voice can lure men to death puts a real damper on things when they don’t want to actively hurt anyone.
(khadijha red thunder, 27, cis female, she/her) DEVLYN DARKBLOOD is a DRAGON RIDER. They are HUMAN. They are CAREFUL, but they are also DETERMINED. In their spare time, you can find them TRAINING DRAGONS IN THE KEEP.
devlyn has always loved dragons. her favorite dragon in the keep is one named aza, who she has been training with love and care since the dragon was just a baby. they’ve become a bit bonded.
dev is from a farm family and very into living off the land, even if she doesn’t really do much of that anymore. she’s gotten into the habit of buying her food daily or keeping a loaf of bread in her little cottage instead of baking her own bread.
she hasn’t visited her family in queen knows how long. hasn’t been back to the family farm in almost a decade’s time.
she spends most of her time in the keep, surrounded by dragons. it’s her absolute favorite place to be. she loves nothing more than to fly on the back of a dragon.
queen willing, she has high hopes to join the knights of madan. she’s always wanted to be one. she couldn’t believe when she actually got an invitation to a ball at the castle. she knew that was her ticket inside. her ticket to the knights.
she wants to get back to her family’s farm and see her parents again but doesn’t know if she has the time or the money to take off from her job training dragons to do so, as it’s a bit of a travel to where her parents live in their little town.
( anya chalotra, 27, cis woman, she/her ) PRINCESS KAYA MADAN is a MEMBER OF THE ROYAL MADAN FAMILY. She is HALF HUMAN/HALF FAE. She’s a little HOTHEADED, but she’s also a STRATEGIC PLANNER. In her spare time, you can find her MINGLING WITH THE PEOPLE OF ATHERION. ( lauren, 25, cst, she/they )
Kaya is anything but traditional, starting at the moment of conception. She’s only half-human, fae for a father whose relationship with the queen never panned out, but her family has never made her feel like she’s only half Madan. Just because she was born out of wedlock with a non-human, doesn’t mean they’re going to take the crown away from her. One day, she is going to become queen.
Her presence can be a little intimidating, between her personality, and the fact alone that she is a royal, but she doesn’t intend to be. In fact, she has a heart that aches to care for everyone that she can. No one should feel unloved, and if she could mend every broken heart in Atherion, every wounded soul, she would — and being a sanctuary, there’s a lot of them.
That’s why she spends as much time out of the castle as she can physically and mentally afford. The people need to know that the leaders of Atherion care about them. That this is a sanctuary, and they are there for them.
She’s personable, and you can catch her smiling more often than not. Angering her is not in your best interest, however, as she can be more terrifying than a hurricane on a bad day.
As things worsen in Atherion, she’s going to be gripping on white-knuckled, terrified of what it means for her people and the land she loves. This is going to weigh very heavily on her, because she cares so much it hurts.
WANTED CONNECTIONS —
eagle: someone who keeps their ear to the ground and their eye in the sky for any happenings that Kaya could miss when busy with royal duties and should be aware of
fun-loving: a friend in town that always makes Kaya laugh. as things get more rough, she’s really going to need this friend to keep her from falling into an abyss
( aiden turner, age 38, cisgender male, he/him) DRAKO SOROEMON is a FARMER. They are a HUMAN. They are ENTHUSIASTIC, but they are also MONOTONOUS. In their spare time, you can find them READING IN THE GARDEN. ( blade, 27, est, she/her )
Drako is a lover of nature. He is proud of the land he owns and spends his time outside from dawn to dusk. His pride comes from the stories told by his mother and father. He understand it's the uttermost responsibility at remaining a source of nourishment for the people of Atherion. Nonetheless he often wonders if remaining true to his family has provided him the life he wants.
His mother is everything to him. He wish he could say the same for his father. Disdainful. Drako would never be enough to him. His sister was the jewel of their fathers eye. Drako knows the intentions of his father have always been that of a foe. The legends he spoke of were laced with venom. He wanted to be a great. How is any child of a chimerical father happy?
Drako is a man of loyalty. He is the trusted friend and the Armor-less warrior. He would die for his family and loved ones. His silence may easily fool those who have yet to understand him. Drako is of good nature. He will be better than his father.