Wanted to take another crack at drawing Zephrine's second eldest child, Marciel, to better reflect their vibe.
They're very flashy, love adventure, can be hedonistic and enjoy their luxuries, but they have an altruistic, compassionate side beneath all their bullshit and bravado. Of which there is a lot.
after visiting 26 in their state, staying in their house, being in their room, exploring their hometown, and living off starbucks for a week - as a system, we have come to the conclusion that we would really benefit from moving across the country to live with them and experience all the changes that come with it.
the last visit (the most recent one) was a big step for our relationship, i tried a lot of things that i never though i’d do while i was with parker.. and it was great! i had a lot of fun, and valérie had a good time too, seeing as we’ve gotten a good schedule down for him now. and parker and i worked out a way to give riley and valérie time together during the days when me and him have things to do, and can’t let them out later or earlier. things are really coming together
the most recent trip was a big step for me and parker as partners. we both agree that we feel a lot closer to one another, more than we did before - and we seem to only keep growing closer and growing upward together. just when we thought we couldn’t be better friends or better partners together, we always somehow grow more as soon as we think we may have hit the top. it’s wonderful, really. i couldn’t be happier with where things are between me and parker.
as a system, the most recent trip confirmed a lot for us. that we need a change of pace, scenery, and people. we have always generally flourished in a stream of change. (back when valérie was the host, he would constantly rearrange our room because he hated that it was always the same - it drove him crazy.) as a system, that craving for change seems to flow to everyone to some degree, including me. we think we will do very well with 26, in their state and with them.
this is a bit of a bummer, but we’ve recently gotten major confirmation that we’ve been a system for a long time, and we’ve had an almost constant stream of trauma since we were very young... which is a lot to take in. i can’t wait to start therapy, and maybe even dig more into our past somehow. we’ve been getting some childhood memories back, but not anything really “significant”. though, i’m happy to remember any of our life from before we were 11. it’s progress
So now that the campaign is over (And before the dragon age brainrot overtakes me tomorrow), I can actually show off Zephrine's no-longer-hypothetical children! Zephrine adopts her first right after the campaign and then has her first bio kid about 10 years post-campaign, and goes from there. She doesn't exactly settle down in that she's still very very very politically active as that's her life's passion, but she does enjoy a nice, if unconventional family life while she's continuing to be a girlboss.
The art is a bit old for most of these but you'll get the idea, have a rough summary of each below:
Arrian Shaxarn- lawful neutral -they/them. fire genasi- blue draconic bloodline sorcerer/assassin rogue. (belongs to @greyfen)
The first of Zephrine's children, a former assassin who was reincarnated by Zephrine after they met their gruesome end at the hands of a vampire. They're in their mid 20s(late teens equivalent for fire genasi) when they meet Zephrine, which initially made her a bit bemused and apprehensive when her newlywed husband Viseryn suggested they adopt them after the defeat of the Midnight Sun. Initially it was proposed as a means to grant them citizenship in Tiamyra faster, but ultimately the two consider Arrian as one of their own and are very supportive and close. As far as Arrian themself; they're very thoughtful, polite and kind, though they do have a slight vain streak befitting someone with dragon blood. They end up being quite politically active and have similar views to Zephrine, which means they get along quite well, and they're very supportive of each other. Overall they're quite grateful to both Zephrine and Viseryn for the opportunity at a literal new life that doesn't involve being a tool of an assassin guild.
Marciel Celestine DuPrei- she/they/he- gold dragonborn -chaotic good- swashbuckler rogue/circle of the shepherd druid
Marciel is Zephrine's first biological child and only child with Florian. She was unplanned, which combined with Zephrine's political career meant that socially she may as well be a bastard (Zephrine is married to Florian but unofficially, her official marriage is to Viseryn, though she loves them both. The polycule isn't entirely secret but not publicly broadcast either. It's complicated), and therefore she was mostly raised by other people, predominantly Therila and Florian. She has a bit of a complex about this and thus her relationship with her mother can be a bit contentious and Marciel generally avoids her when she can. As for them, they're rebellious, hedonistic and arrogant but good-hearted and fall into the life of an adventurer quite easily as they very much enjoy fighting monsters, helping the downtrodden, and being the center of attention.
Circe is the first bio child that Zephrine has with Viseryn, and due to her lineage + being an aasimar, she has a lot of expectations placed upon her shoulders. While her parents are very supportive and understanding, she unfortunately is somewhat of a public figure and some people get pretty weird ideas about her and her future. Some even go so far as to believe she's some sort of Chosen One, which Circe, as someone who wants to succeed on her own merits, hates. She's an intellectual and very passionate about magic and faith, but lacks the charisma of her mother or her siblings and hates being the center of attention. Despite being a bit grumpy as a person, she still shares Zephrine's more idealistic version of Tiamat, and is quite idealistic in general, even if she's bad at showing it. She wants to invoke change, but she wants to avoid harsher methods of doing so where she can. She argues a lot with Kallista and Marciel but gets on well with Arrian.
Kallista Shaxarn- she/her, red dragonborn, true neutral, green draconic bloodline sorcerer (belongs to @greyfen)
The second bio child between Zephrine and Viseryn and the youngest overall, Kallista is charismatic, mischievous, and ambitious. Feeling somewhat in the shadow of her other siblings, she's definitely the Loudest of them and like Circe wants to stand on her own merits as opposed to her lineage. She's also the most politically minded of Zephrine's children and has a lot of potential on that front, something that makes her parents both very proud and somewhat wary. She’s also probably the most ruthless of the children when it comes to her goals, but she matches that ruthlessness with an equally gregarious personality and a strong loyalty to those who’ve earned her trust. She looks up to Arrian but idolizes Marciel and tends to clash a lot with Circe, who she often accuses of being boring and no fun.