Name: Kore Matsui Occupation: Jeweler Age: 41 (December 24) Sexuality: Pansexual / Polyamorous Pronouns: She/They Species: Witch Clan/Pack/Coven: Circle of the Augury Hometown: San Francisco, California Relationship Status: Single Personality Traits: Creative, neurotic, abrasive, practical, generous
Biography (tw: mentions of Japanese internment, murder, mutilation, slight descriptions of gore)
Kore never felt like they knew enough of their family history, and have always been desperate to learn more. As a child, they didn't understand why their grandparents avoided speaking Japanese even in their own home, why their parents hadn't even learned the language. Even as she gets older and learns about the violence that her grandparents faced at the hands of the federal government, it spurs her to chase after what was lost.
The first grimoire she comes across is after her grandmother dies, leaving behind an old house and an attic full of dusty belongings. Her single mother doesn't have the stomach to go through it all and asks Kore to step up at the tender age of 15. She does what she can to spare her mother further heartbreak and finds her grandmother's journals. They're filled with magical theory and personal anecdotes, painting a picture of a woman Kore had never been able to meet. She finds her old supplies, the tools she had painstakingly saved through the raids and the internment, kept secret even from the husband she had met inside, and the children she raised to be upstanding citizens.
They move to Port Leiry in the aftermath of her grandmother’s death, the city where the older woman had grown up before she and anyone who looked like her were rounded up and carted away. It's the first time in her life that Kore feels like she can actually put down roots. While many seem desperate to escape to confines of the city, she finds herself in it. What Kore didn't realize however, was that they were only scratching the very surface of it all.
They are just shy of their nineteenth birthday when they meet their first vampire, someone who can smell the witch in them before they even had a name for these secrets they were uncovering. The vampire takes advantage of her youth and naivete, dangling promises of power and knowledge in front of her. She swears up and down that compulsion influenced her, regardless of whether or not anyone believes her. Kore quickly learns to barter her blood for more and more and the vampire teaches her of dark, forbidden magic that is rooted in death. They describe the balance of magic, how many want to pretend that death has no place in something so pure, but explain that all power is derived from the cycle of life and death. They teach her haruspicy, the inspection of the entrails of a ritual sacrifice to discern the intent of the gods.
Together they make a ruthlessly efficient team. Each kill is more than just prey for the vampire, but a divine message. She is convinced of the necessity of their sacrifices, as tragic as they might be, for the greater good. For years, Kore finds her balance in this mutually symbiotic relationship. The vampire spills blood, and she reads the visions in the remnants of their victims' flesh. She tells herself there is no other way because she's given no reason to question their gospel.
Then one day, her companion disappears. She doesn't even know if they are dead or alive, whether they've fled for good reason or simply abandoned Kore, but Port Leiry feels empty without them. She had spent years under their thrall, willingly so, yet it all feels for naught. She tries to continue their work on her own, but she is not ruthless enough. Spilling blood, while necessary, is something she cannot stomach to do herself and she learns that the hard way. All this before turning twenty-five.
For a while, she is aimless, searching for something to pour her devotion into. Joining the Circle of the Augury was an attempt to find that connection again, but she has little interest in tea leaves and tarot decks. Throwing bones at least connects her to a life, but Kore finds that bringing up references of haruspicy are almost as forbidden as conversations on necromancy. She sees the prejudices and misconceptions that the vampire warned her about and never fully seems to find her footing within the coven. Occasionally she takes advantage of what nature provides. Roadkill, or the prey of a wolfpack. It's an imperfect method; their corpses are usually cold and graying by the time she reaches them, and their organs shredded or barely suitable for what Kore needs, but she continues to try all the same.
To pay the bills, Kore goes into trades, working with wood, metal, gemstones, and other materials to create things from furniture to garments, but her specialty eventually becomes jewelry. She starts out as an apprentice to an old goldsmith/watchmaker, a man with no heirs who was just happy that someone was interested in learning a dying trade. Eventually, Kore buys the man out when she's learned all she can from him. It's mostly honest work that keeps the lights on, but Kore has never fully stopped searching for a way to be able to practice their preferred style of magic once more.
The Game So Far
When an ancient vampire offers help in trying to restore her magic, Kore knows not to refuse. She has no illusions that there is something that Lana wants from her, but she doesn’t care if it means finding that spark that has eluded her for so long. Through her search to restore her magic, Kore and Lucia Mazzoni were led to the existence of an old artifact in the possession of hunters. A heist was organized, the item lifted, and for the first time in twenty years, is able to tap into a side of her magic that lights her up from the inside out.
Plot Ideas
Clients - Kore is a skilled artisan who runs a small shop that specializes in jewelry and watch repair, and she often takes on custom jobs for well-paying clients. These can be humans who are looking to fix up old heirlooms, or supernatural creatures who need a magical item to look nice and some extra juice. She has a reputation for not asking any more questions than she needs to, and having impeccable work product.
Fellow Witches - As witches tend to be split on the topic of haruspicy and the general use of sacrifices in their magic, Kore is not one to bring up her magic unless she's aware that the other person has the appetite to discuss heavy topics with actual nuance. To those limited few, they are privy to a side of Kore that most others do not see. To the uninitiated, Kore is a lonely witch who does not often participate in coven life.
Dance With Me - Kore is classically trained in ballet and contemporary dance, though it’s something that she doesn’t have much time to dedicate to these days. However, that community was there for her when the witches weren’t, which is why she continues to engage.
Walking [i]n Sunshine - As the local jeweler and the witch to crack the code on daylight jewelry, word of mouth has spread around Port Leiry (and perhaps surrounding areas) about Kore’s involvement with the task. Their work doesn’t necessarily come cheap, but they are both willing to teach other witches the ritual or make the jewelry for vampires if the price is paid.
Connections
The Temptation (Lana Lomidze) - A new vampire that has come in to occupy most of Kore’s thoughts. They have a mutually beneficial relationship that extends from bodies to sex, and Kore’s not sure why this ancient vampire has found such a fascination with her, but she is certainly not complaining.
The Witness (Tressa Shaw) - Kore personally doesn't have the stomach to kill people but they were an accomplice and ally in plenty of murders. One such sacrifice included a man, but what set him apart was his child who witnessed the entire thing. The vampire they were with spared her life, compelling her never to speak of what transpired that night.
The Wards (Jamie Miller, Declan McCormick, Thera Wendell) - Despite keeping herself away from the majority of witches, Kore is also one of the elders of the Circle of the Augury, especially after the recent and abrupt passing of their most recent coven leader. She might not care for witches, but Kore does has a soft spot for younger people who never had a chance on their own before the world tried to swallow them up.
TBA
