The Academy For Mythical Creatures discussion
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[ POWER OVERVIEW ] ───────────────────────────────────────
LUCYDA ✦ primordial
(view spoiler)MINGZHU ✦ qilin
(view spoiler)BOTAN ✦ oni
(view spoiler)ANJA ✦ banshee
(view spoiler)JUNFENG ✦ dragon god
(view spoiler)KAI YUN ✦ jiangshi
(view spoiler)NARIKO ✦ demigod
(view spoiler)TU ✦ ho ly tinh
(view spoiler)
[ ROLEPLAY STATUS ] ───────────────────────────────────────
hover for descriptions
note !! I tend to write with a lot more detail ( anywhere from 1-3 paragraphs ) and while I don't expect the same, I would appreciate some effort in replying to me.
( teachers )
( students )
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AS A PROMORDIAL, Lucyda is, well — the beginning. She's the first deity of her aspects, with some reach into other domains, but all her powers will be stronger than any other creature that has abilities under her purview. That being said, her own power is quite extensive, but limited with the remaining seals from her time of imprisonment still intact. Her aspects of wishes, desires, and the night can bleed into other concepts, such as dreams, fear, and sleep. Prior to her initial sealing, she was sometimes referred to as "The Mother of Wonders and Horrors."
(view spoiler)
LUCYDA is not by any means one of those terrible, awfully boring teachers. No, never! She considers herself to be particularly fun-loving, with an attention to the potential of her students. That is to say, she tends to be the type that picks on her students. Not all that hard to do, given the class she teaches. Formed from the primordial chaos of the cosmic soup, her primary belief in teaching students is that if they're going to learn, they have to be tested. So...maybe she might get a little rough with her teaching. Maybe.
She likes to think that while she's old-fashioned, she's doing a lot better than a human teacher would do. Her concept of the world today most baffles her, with people being as restrained as they are in their desires and yet so very clear in their ambitions to obtain them. Everyone is so...polite. Perhaps it is that has not been around for several millennia, sealed away as she was, to see the evolution of societal behavior, but she's on the whole: unimpressed. Her general effect around others is that she remains a superior being (which is true in very many cases). She has little time for those that wish to challenge her, and they will be reminded swiftly of where their place is on the power totem pole, even if she does answer to a child.
This particular primordial has always been relatively easy-going, with a penchant for spending her afternoons and evenings drinking. Usually wine, and it is considered one of the best gifts one could think of giving her. However, in her merriment and drunken state, she has a tendency to create mischief and get others wrapped up in it. Consider it a pop quiz for the students and a refresher for fellow teachers.
ancient goddess ✦ vice-principal + teacher of power control + head of cooking club
SEVERAL eons ago, Lucyda would not have been known as Lucyda. Her true name has been lost to time, generally around the same time that she was sealed away. You see, the gods of her time were all formed in a primordial soup of cosmic chaos and absolute disorder. So much disorder, in fact, that they had been mostly free to do as they pleased. Which included playing politics among themselves and taking credit for things they had no hand in. As the generations continued, rolled around, the older gods had grown complacent and allowing with the younger gods. So much so, that they deemed it fit to overthrow beings that had been around since time immemorial.
Lucyda had been lucky, she supposed, that the decision to kill her had not crossed the mind the gods that overthrew her. They told her to think of it like a retirement, and sealed her within many layers of a godly trap. They should have killed her, or at least tried to. Try as any of the younger gods might, they would find that the originals were immortal and that sealing them was the only option. Most of them, anyways. At the very least, they could have done a better job at sealing her as they might have other gods. Those same gods stumble about now and she watches them, waiting for all her seal to errode so she can take back what is hers. But she's getting ahead of herself; she'd been locked up for centuries, millennia. Screaming out in tongues that mortals began to forget with each passing generation until she was nothing more than a story, a myth.
Until a decade ago.
The usual story: a mortal stumbles upon her trap buried deep in the ruins of some long-forgotten civilization. While a good number of her seals were broken, not all of them were. This leaves her trapped in a state where her true potential is just in reach. But, with the breaking of her seals came the erosion of the rest, and it's only a matter of time before the last seal breaks.
BANSHEE : a fairy that foretells a death within the family that hears their mourning keen.
POWERS : as a banshee, Anja is gifted with several abilities that concern death, and undeath. Chief among them are her death sense and prediction, where she is able to sense when a death occurs as well as predict an individual's demise. She also has a sonic scream that she can manipulate the frequency and power of as an offensive, defensive, and predictive (as per her screams of death). More of her abilities are listed here.
ANJA is just like any other girl. Spirited — never mind the ghosts she might speak to on occasion — and vivacious, she's full of life. She can be sociable enough when she wants to be, even if she might happen to know when everyone around her is going to die. At least she can plan the funeral in advance, right? Her general affect of somewhat positive energy can be a bit offputting for someone that knows of her species, or happens to hold the classic stereotyping toward her. She's not one to stay within the mold of her kind, and is known to hang around with those outside of the undead spheres of existence.
If anyone were to ask, there would be a general consensus that Anja has a certain flair for the dramatic. They would also say that this was why the choir passed her off to the drama club — and not at all because a single high c from her could turn brains to mush. Totally not that. Her ability to be expressive has allowed for many a spectacular performance, and the boom of her voice ensures that not a single line is missed by any member of the audience. While she might not have the silky tones of a siren, she's not one to be easily missed in any venue with the way her voice projects. And also isn't all that great at whispering, but that's what passing notes is for.
Despite all of this energy and rowdiness, Anja does have her moments of being particularly moody. While on a certain level she is used to it, there is always this overwhelming sense of grief that comes with her being. A single tingle of death sense has her begin to bawl, and she is mostly inconsolable in this time as she feels the last moments of someone she may or may not know. Overall, these moods can put a damper on any situation and she usually excuses herself when they occur. Anja tends to ignore the confusion when she returns as if nothing has happened.
HER FIRST experience of the world was grief. A burdening sorrow that had the young banshee screaming in the hospital room she'd been born in. Her parents, immune to the screams as they were, watched with a knowing horror as the hospital staff collapsed and glass shattered. As soon as her mother was able — they fled. A hospital is no place for a banshee, after all. Anja would be tucked into a little basket, swaddled in blankets when they'd gotten far enough away that she wouldn't pick up on the deaths that had resulted from her own screams, as her parents ran back toward the hills from whence they came.
In myth, a banshee will always remain tied to a family. The Kovalyov clan had long since evaded such a fate, outliving the family for which they were tied to. It had been her grandfather that had bellowed to toll the last death before he moved the family over to Germany from their Russian abode. She was six when they attempted a move from the rural confines they had restricted themselves to, into the city.
Let's just say it didn't go well for any of them.
Driven out by the madness they wrought and the madness they were assumed to possess, the Kovalyov clan came to the decision that they would remain on the outskirts of civilization as they had always done. Several mistakes were made with this decision, as a sickness swept through the rural village they lived in and decimated a percentage of the population. Their mourning was long, bitter, and loud. In places like these, superstitions had a steady hold on the villagers, and thus the Kovalyov clan was faced with yet another problem, especially as Anja and her older brothers began to mature in their powers.
While the villagers had adjusted, there was still this need of isolation. No one truly likes hearing bad news, and Anja's family was the bearer of the worst kind. One by one, her brothers were sent off to academies globally that would allow for them to have better control. With the eldest sons out of the way, it left Anja and her youngest older brother in the care of their aging and tired parents. It was at her suggestion to be sent off next at fifteen that seemed to breathe life into her parents, as they realized they would not — at the very least — need to worry about their daughter taking the initiative.
parents: henrik and vera; alive brothers: anton, peitro, aleksei, ilya, joannes; alive
friends: open
AS A DRAGON GOD, there are several things that Junfeng must always correct. For one, he is an Eastern dragon, separate from the ilk of the Western dragons known to terrorize their people. He is a protector and bestowed of wisdom, far removed from the undignified likes of the dragons in the West that burn villages to the ground and steal away gold. While he does have a horde, as any dragon may, it is of porcelain teasets and old historical tomes. These are suitable horde items for a god of mountains and wealth.
(view spoiler)
JUNFENG may seem, at first glance, stoic — but he is ever the easygoing individual. He takes most things in stride, with careful assessment of the situation to avoid overreacting. While his approaches may be logical, there is a measure of emotional connection that he shares with others in their plights. When he still functioned as a god, his temples were full and his altars laden with offerings for the generosity he displayed and still does to this day.
While Junfeng may have some emotional attachment to mortal beings, there are times when he finds that he has some measure of trouble understanding them. To many of the students, he seems more like a benevolent grandfather figure than a teacher, though he does have very rare moments of showing his authoritativeness. Most often, when he is not teaching or reading, he can be seen sharing the wisdom he has learned through his long life with the students. It comes off a little preachy, and there may be a tangent, but the students seem to like it. And he is more than willing to share some of the stories he has heard in his time.
While Junfeng may know a great, there a lot more out there that he still doesn't quite understand. He has a certain level of curiosity for these novelities and how they have managed to changed the world. His interest in economic and fiscal change has always been present, but he's been branching out into understanding more of the literature being published, hence his interest in becoming the head of book club. Sure, there are some novels he really can't understand, but he enjoys having the students explain what they know to him despite this. The sharing of knowledge is, of course, a sort of sharing of wealth and prosperity.
ancient dragon god : nov 23 dedicated day ✦ teacher of history + head of book club
WHEN Junfeng was born, he took the place, quite quickly, of the god that come before him. Hatched from the egg of their skull, he was upheld as a dragon capable of a great many things. The god before him had domains that were far-reaching, but what was desired was something simple. From a tiny whelp of a dragon, the other gods schooled him, teaching him how to be the benevolent god he has become.
Time, however, is kind to neither mortals or gods. Unlike the original deities of the world, gods must turn to dust as all things do. He watched, solemnly, as his teachers died and were replaced. He took the mantle of teacher just as they had with a bittersweet eagerness. It struck him, once, that this must have been what they had felt when he had been born. Watching the rise and fall of gods in to their folly and old age was a tough thing to do. Particularly for once so blessed with longevity as a dragon of his kind. The divinity of a god and body of a dragon ensured he would not be met with the clutches of Death for a very, very long time.
Junfeng watched as civilizations, too, came and went. The fall of mortals as they toiled in the fields and sweat into the earth. He would often walk among them in disguise, listening to their tales and living their histories with them. He would gather names and mark them down, blessing their bloodline to be fruitful and prosperous. He watched villages turned into cities, into nations. He watched wars that leveled kingdoms, turned brother against brother. Ripped families apart. And while he could not fully interfere, he helped where he could. Brought rains to wash fields anew, shifted mountains to shield the innocent from the terrors that lay beyond.
It was, and remains, tiring work to be a god. But it was rewarding all the same, as he marked down new names in his books and listened to the tales spun of the gods he had known and would be to come.
JIANGSHI are considered a subspecies of vampire or a subspecies of necromantic thrall, depending on who's asking and who's answering. But let it remain perfectly clear: both options lead to the ultimate result of undeath. As a Jiangshi, which literally translates to "stiff corpse," Kai Yun is required to subsist on life energy, be that through the literal soul or consumption of blood. For easier acquiring, blood is generally the go-to. There are no other substitutes. POWERS of a Jiangshi include general passive immunity to all physical weaknesses; minus the need for rest and vitality of others, they cannot be harmed through normal mortal means. They cannot succumb to illnesses and most magic does not affect them. All Jiangshi are gifted with natural weaponry to allow them to hunt, with soul absorption for them to feed off their victims. There is also the passive ability to remove limbs and organs from their body at will with no harm to them. They can easily put it back and heal the incident with some good ol' stitches. Kai Yun is also gifted with a prehensile tongue, which she guesses is kind of useful for messing with her piercings. When she is not able to feed for extended periods of time, she will go into hibernation, as some Jiangshi are known to do. A full breakdown of her abilities can be found here.
KAI YUN thinks, up to a point, she had a good run. She might have been, at some point, complacent living in a space of a sort of undeath while she was still actually alive. And then she died. If that doesn't change someone's perspective on life, you can't really be sure of what does. She doesn't make the state of her undeath her whole personality, but she sees it much like an opportunity. One where she can do all the things she couldn't do before. Like exist in her own body the way she had wanted to, once upon a time. She's not someone that goes looking for confrontation, and while she would like to live — er, you get what she means — an uncomplicated unlife. It's not quite her fault that people seem to see a challenge in her.
Having been born in a time of very different from when most of the students were born, Kai tends to have a couple notions that are considered outdated by the current generation. While she thinks these new social advances are great and all — where does that leave her? She's strived her hardest to be, essentially (based on these outdated principles), the best wife anyone could ever ask for. She finds absolute peace doing typically domestic tasks, excelling as a cook and housemaker. Which, tends to contrast wildly with her appearance.
She can come off as being a little abrasive in her confusion of the current times, but she means well, really. Just think of her like any other senior citizen, stumbling about and learning something new each day. Which — she's getting a little annoyed by, at this point. Some of it — too complicated. Could be simple. Kai Yun likes simple.
LET'S rewind time. Take it back a couple decades. Most people don't even really think about it; how recent some things are. How ancient. Kai Yun's life was misery. Born a sickly baby boy, who grew strong and stubborn as an ox. Almost as if it had wanted to defy the very thing that would later make it whole. It grew and it grew until it was just at the edge of becoming a fine young man. But here's the thing, where it went a little...wrong.
There was a wrongness in its bones. An unease in the words and expectations set upon its shoulders. Its voice deepened and it panicked with each crack of their words. It stumbled as limbs grew and eyes turned on them. Expectations. They expected the flutter of their heart with the words of pretty girls flung their way, but not the mindless remarks of how pretty they were. That tang of nervousness turned to the venom of envy and resentment, even with the flowers of affection bloomed. Like a rotten fruit.
By the time it was sixteen, it had decided. The body that was Kai Yun wanted something else. She, in her isolated little fishing village, had grown up around plenty of girls. Plenty who sometimes openly wished that they could have been a boy. But none quite like Bolin. That was the name she had been told to call him by. Two kindred souls that were inextricably connected. Their shared plights were their initial source of connection. They traded things; facts, secrets, wishes. Traded hopes. They had only each other with these things, and that made them stronger. To those on the outside, they looked like lovebirds. But they were — conspirators, aside from being in love.
At eighteen, the two of them took off for the nearest big city. Or the only one they could think of: Shanghai, where the girls were pretty and the men were handsome. Where the money flowed and you could start anew. No one would know them there, which was what they wanted. In Shanghai, they scraped coins together and bought an apartment. Kai Yun was still uncertain of what she would look good in; rebukes in the early stages had scarred her confidence. During the day, she remained home to keep the apartment clean, and work on spare sewing projects. Bolin was terrible at sewing, but Kai Yun quite enjoyed it. Her embroidery was neat and ornate, and her eye for interior had most people that visited envious. What she'd wanted, of course.
Two months into their arrival at Shanghai, they got married. Their wedding portrait shows only nerves and the promise of a better future. They found a community for themselves. They were — happy.
But it was a happiness that only lasted six months.
Kai Yun might not have looked overly feminine, but she acted enough like it. That was what they said when they'd stood over her body. Something in the swing of her hips that reminded them of a temptress. What utter disappointment to see the broadening taper of her shoulders, to here the forced raise in octave of her voice as they drew closer. The men that had beaten her bloody and bruised had not thought to consider that the depraved ones were them. The last thing Kai Yun remembers of her life was Bolin weeping over her, her head cradled on his lap.
The first thing she remembers of her undeath is the opposite. Bolin, crying his last tears, as Kai Yun looked down at him. First-time feedings are messy. Being turned — neither of them fully aware of the repercussions — requires a very certain type of sacrifice. Humanity, and blood. A Jiangshi is created through a number of means. Conversion, necromancy. Bolin had chosen the second route, and missed the part where he ought to cover his face. Kai Yun's senses had only returned when she was satiated, for the moment, but it was already too late. The talisman with Bolin's blood on it was promptly stuck on her forehead as the priest had finally returned.
Kai was forced into hibernation and sealed away, until a couple of paranormal eccentrics bought her casket; ornate like her embroidery and morbid like what had put her in it. Upon realizing that they'd bought a genuine creature, the eccentrics had quickly rethought their purchase and gave her the funds to go wherever she wanted. Anywhere, but where they were. The Academy was decided upon by chance, and she's not sure she has the same hope she had all those years ago.
DEMIGOD : the offspring of a god and a mortal being.
POWERS : as a demigod, Nariko has been gifted with the abilities of both their mother, a tengu, and their father, the god Hachiman. their most displayed abilities include weapons manipulation and expertise, where they are able to create and master any weapon upon sight. while teleportation is useful, they much prefer the sensation of flight, which they are able to do with the use of their four wings and air manipulation. as they are no longer in a wartime state, they have had more recently put their agricultural expertise to use as opposed to their other abilities, which can be found here.
NARIKO is not one to be trifled with. if their lineage doesn't already make it abundantly clear, they are most often — without a shadow of a doubt — looking for a fight. As much as they're a master tactician, they have never been one to "choose their battles". Every battle to be had is one worth fighting, especially when the demigod is the one to come out the victor. Of strong opinions and stronger still fists, there is little room to question or doubt them or any stance they may take. You can be sure that they will be as stubborn as they can be, and that they won't pull any punches. Students are more likely to get injuries from taking their course than from anything else, and that's still not the best of what they can do.
Among the things they've inherited from their father, their hotheadedness surprisingly came from their mother. They are of a passionate sort, with all the emotion and energy of a fierce storm. However, this emotion doesn't often cloud their judgement. They remain, for the most part, someone of tactical thought. Nariko doesn't, though, have much consideration for others unless they are very close to the demigod. Often they must be reminded of others' needs and considerations multiple times before it becomes set in their mind. There have been few individuals who have made an impression very quickly, their fiance among them.
While they may not be the best with remembering this care of others, Nariko is a firm believer in tough love. In and out of class, they tend to be stern with others that fall under their care. Forged on the battlefield, they are used to the growth that occurs in strife, and thus believes that everyone must encounter their own conflict in order to grow as a person. However, this does not mean that they are not capable of tenderness. It just might not take the form that someone is used to. Combined with their strict adherence to hierarchical structures and order, they treat most with a militant mindset of being their commander that must ensure they live a long and successful campaign of life.
THE STORY begins centuries ago. Nariko's grandmother, by then a fully matured tengu, had been found by a young man of the Date clan. Entranced by her beauty and grace, the man pledged to marry her. Unaware of her being a yokai, the two wed. They lived happily for a time, until their grandfather's untimely demise on the battlefield while their grandmother was pregnant with their second child: Nariko's mother. Stricken by grief, their grandmother gave up Nariko's mother to Date clan and fled back to the mountains for solace. Her body was later found drifting peacefully down a stream and stunned the clan as she was forced into her true form in death. Nariko's mother was cared for diligently following these events, as the clan feared what the death of the tengu child would bring. Her older brother, who had been sent away for schooling, was directed to his tengu family.
Nariko's mother came of age for marriage as war broke out. A burdening spirit of unrest settled within her as all the men in the Date clan prepared for battle. She, though not human like the rest of them and showing signs of fully realizing her abilities, was made to stay behind. Her contributions, however, would not be stopped. As Date Masamune would make his mark on history, it would be Date no Haruka that would catch the favor of Hachiman. The god would court her following several consecutive victories, and the two would have a child: Nariko.
The demigod's birth brought many mixed reactions. Strife within the family, among those who could not abide by the presence of a yokai within their household, proceeded to rise up in dissent. Others that found Nariko's birth as a blessing were greatly displeased with this difference and views, and as both sides threatened to reach for blows, Nariko's mother left. While she enjoyed the war games, she would not have her child be fought over as a mere symbol of prestige or devilment. She reconnected with her brother and was accepted by the tengu part of their family.
Nariko was raised here until they reached the age of seven, when their training as a warrior began. In this time, they were given several other siblings as her mother remarried but kept her clan association with the Date clan. Their youngest brother would be born with an unfortunate mutation in which his wings were placed too long on his back and inhibited his ability to fly. While he had no problems teleporting, this was a cause for much bullying. Nariko took the stance of being his protector until their father came to call.
The demigod was fourteen when Hachiman took them to the seat of the gods. Here, they were made to partake in the wargames of gods and demigods, fighting those much stronger and more skilled than they. Under the careful watch of their father, they were beaten and bruised into victory and triumph. On one such occasion, they had gone so far as to cripple another demigod. It was at fifty-three that they were sent off to preside over a tiny province. They oversaw the war efforts within the area and kept bandits at bay. Here, they could realize more of their lesser-used abilities. For a time, they were worshipped with offerings of food and valuable jewels before larger wars called for their presence.
As time shifted and warfare began to change, there became less of a need for their presence within the mortal realm. They returned to the small province to find that it had been decimated in their absence, with a dying village left behind. Striving to rectify this, they returned it to the splendor it had once had and accompanied the yokai children of the province as they were sent to the Academy for their safety. They remained, caring for more children who recognized them from the tapestries and painting from that tiny province in rural Japan.
parents: hachiman and date no haruka; alive siblings: rai, inazuma, keiji; alive
friends: irrelevant fiancee: oda no chikako-hime; alive
HO LY TINH : a fox spirit of great power, but not yet of nine tails
POWERS : as a ho ly tinh, Tu isn't at his most powerful. In fact, a majority of what he can do is weakened even with the passage of a hundred years. Make no mistake: he is still powerful. At present, he possesses only two tails, which means that he has limited access to his many innate abilities. He can only use his illusion manipulation to create illusions that are hard to distinguish from reality, his pyrokinesis, and his use of paper charm magic and inscription casting. More on his abilities can be found here.
TU isn't exactly a nice person. He's well aware of how his behavior might affect others, but: he simply doesn't care. To him, those who are not of his kind just aren't worth the effort of caring. He may put on a front of doing so, being polite and cordial in public. But there's every chance that he's got nothing polite or kind to actually say to you. It just sounds pretty because he said it. It's, in all honesty, strange that anyone could like him, but he does make for a particularly blunt voice of reason.
The fox spirit is known for being a trickster, and Tu is a notorious one. Of course, his harmful pranks are considered humorous only to him. Often times, he disregards entirely the safety of others. As long as he laughs in the end, he doesn't particularly care. His main targets happen to be freshmen and transfers that haven't quite picked up on his almost nefarious habits. If anything, he looks like the cool, level-headed senior that you find is just too intimidating to approach. Which is just as well; he likely wouldn't want to talk to you, either.
Tu is a liar, and a very good one. His compulsive habit of lying almost immediately is problematic for those around him. Many people have been mislead by his faulty "information" and very pointed lies. But you will never catch him in his lies. He prides himself for his masterful usage of deception; it's an evolutionary boon, he'd say. It has certainly helped in his interaction with humans and those he doesn't want to be around very much. Typically — humans. He can't stand them, and any sort of association with them inspires a rage in him. Or hunger; he's not quiet about his like for human meat, as it is one of the main sources of food for his people. The same wiles he uses to trick humans into their doom is used to get him out of sticky situations in MC.
TU'S PAST is nothing particularly special. If anything, one should think more on his family history. They were revered as deities, guardian spirits for the small Vietnamese village he was born in. Somewhere along the way, though, something changed. Lines were crossed as new religions were introduced. The once peaceful relationship of guardians and their charges shifted. Tu had not yet been born when the first of his kin to be struck down had died. But the stories of it lived on.
From his mother's generation, came bloodshed. The Ngo family had turned. A brutal war was waged in the wilds. Both sides faced losses. Tu's own father, who had then had five tails, had three taken from him as a show of power. Peace did not come all at once. In fact, many wonder if it ever came at all. But a victor had been decided and it had been the ho ly tinh. They reclaimed the land which many of them had shed blood for, expelling the humans from their land. Those same humans would try several times to return, but to never permanently stay.
By the time Tu was born and entering into his fiftieth year, humans had gone from charges to prey. The other fox spirits that would have been warded off to protect those humans were bargained with, the humans as their bargaining chips. Tu's family did not expand, their power consolidated into the remaining foxes that had survived the war. He grew up on these stories, the things he could not participate in. His first hunt was of humans, shown the best ways to charm them. He excelled at this, leading them right onto what might as well have been a silver platter.
It was through whispers that he learned of the Mythical Academy. But he had no interest in mingling with other species; he was content where he was. He was content to be the apex. Tu was marked as next head of the family before the current head decided that he would send the young(er) folks out into the world. As upsetting as this decision was, Tu couldn't fight it. So he, and several others, were sent to MC for the sole purpose of displaying the prowess of the Ngo family.
parents: ngo bian and duong ; alive siblings: cai, diep, duy; alive
friends: you wish
[ AKAHIGE GOODFELLOW > puck ─ faerie / 19 ( feb 9 ) / senior / bi / (view spoiler)
Puck, as he likes to be called, is the result of the marriage of a miko, a human spiritual medium, and faerie. As such, he has inherited a somewhat equal spread of their abilities, though he doesn't have full access to all of them. One of his greatest hindrances in inheriting his mother's position is that he cannot see spirits, which is fairly important in her line of work, though he has a general sense of them.
powers: shapeshifting, spiritual cleansing, illusion manipulation, forcefield generation; detailed here.
[ PERSONALITY > Puck turned a lot more like his father than his mother expected. He's a natural born prankster, with an air about him that most people would say reminds them of an older sibling. He thinks that works out just as well; it's not like he wouldn't be there for the people he cares about. He's fun-loving and energetic, probably from his very strong caffeine addiction. Anyone who knows him swears he chugs it like it's water, which really isn't all that healthy. But while all these things make him a great person to be around...he can also be exceedingly nosey.
He supposes it has something to do with the fact that he's so used to spirits speaking to him constantly. While he's unable to actually see any of them, it doesn't mean they can't see him. Puck's grown used to having people tell him anything and everything on their mind, and it's not uncommon for him to end up having several conversations at once with the living and the dead.
If there's one thing that Puck excels at most, it is procrastination. He tends to push things off to the last minute, usually flustered by it and somehow it works out. This isn't just limited to his schoolwork; his interactions with others and getting ready for activities can be pushed back for as much as he can manage. Puck isn't all that great with speaking on his own emotions, so heart-to-hearts, where he happens to be the focus, are usually brushed off or delayed until they're inevitable. Because of this, most people find it hard to really connect with him, or see him more as a source for venting rather than them being on mutual standing in those regards.
[ HISTORY > Puck learned early on that he was different. His father, a man that went on inexplicably long "business trips", was a distant figure that he never quite understood from an early age. He had his mother and grandmother, and the monks and other miko she worked with. To him, that was all the family he needed, but there was always something a little different. At the age of six, this difference was first made clear when he said someone's name aloud.
Faeries have always been...interesting when it comes to names. Puck was no different. The moment he'd said a miko's name — her given name and not her title or a babyish nickname he might have contrived for her — she had fallen into something of a stupor. A lull in her consciousness that made her susceptible to doing anything that he'd asked her. And every request would be taken quite literally. While it was a request as harmless as their usual horse-riding game, he was still dumbstruck by how literally she had taken it. What was closer to a piggyback ride turned into her full-on behaving like a horse. It was only until he'd told her to stop that his mother had arrived to fix the situation. The distant father returned for a spell to explain his heritage to him in as simple terms as he could. From then on, Puck had learned to never use someone's true name. Nicknames were deemed safest, even for him.
Following this, his father would remain distant, but visit much more frequently. Puck lived with his mother at the shrine where she worked, and it was here that he became enamored with the spiritual arts she practiced. While he was a bit of a mischievous child, he found a certain kind of peace in being able to speak to the spirits that might have lingered in the halls. As the shrine was continuously purified, he never had any exposure to anything negative. Most of the spirits he spoke with were passing through or seeking aide in getting to the afterlife. Kind people who had lost their way. He'd watched his mother guide them, cleanse them. Puck never once questioned any of this as being out of the ordinary.
When he was ten, the shrine hit hard times. While his education had been predominantly carried out at the shrine, the things that they needed for it were become harder and harder to find at better prices. His mother made the decision to send him to a local elementary school. Puck fought this decision, throwing tantrums. The facade of being a big kid — the kind that could assist his mother in her work around the shrine — dropped in favor of trying to stay with her. He'd gone so far as shaving his head to make an official declaration that he would be a monk. But this did nothing and he was sent to school with human children.
This was the first time that Puck would be exposed to the negative energies and spirits of the world. He knew, on some level, that these things existed. It was just — he had never encountered them. For a good while, he found it hard to fit in with the other students. Mostly in that he struggled to ignore that chill down his spine and the sudden fear of entering certain spaces. He was dubbed as odd, citing the way he would freeze in doorways and the terror that would take his expression.
It took him a long while, and a visit from his mother to the school, to get truly settled. He went through the process of cleansing every room in the school with her. The painstaking, exactness of it all left him feeling shameful. His classmates, who had seen him as an odd duck, weren't ostracizing him, but they did take an interest in him for the things they were realizing he could sense. He would grow to become friends with them all, though it was mostly them asking him to places to see if it might be haunted.
When he was fourteen, his mother was hired for an exorcism. Another side duty that wasn't often done when he was younger, but with Puck coming of age, she had taken on more work. His mother decided to take him with him this once. In part, she wanted to see if he would be able to see the spirits, as they were supposedly strong ones. Her own spiritual prowess wasn't enough, and she was joined by several other miko from various shrines in the region.
It was — a disaster would be putting it lightly. The spirits had been strong, and morphed together into the beginnings of a demon stronger than they had anticipated. While his mother had been strong herself, the other miko had not been. Some had not even had any sort of spiritual ability to begin with, hired under the pretense that they were professionals and not scam artists by a desperate mother. Puck's mother had tried her best to protect everyone, and she paid the price for it. While the demon had been subdued, it was trapped in her body and she was taken back to the shrine.
News of this traveled fast. Faster still to his father, who even in his absent nature had truly loved his wife. He had known their lifespans would be different, but he had not thought that this would be the way she was taken from him. Puck was taken to his father; agreed upon because they couldn't stand the thought of leaving him exposed to his mother and the demon within her. He spent a year with his father before both of them felt the restless stirring.
Puck learned, in this time, where his own nickname had come from. Taken from his father, who had also given him his first name as a way to always still connected. The faerie explained that he had felt every time his name had been called, and while he might not have always been present, he'd cared. Which, Puck wasn't sure he really believed, but the sentiment was nice.
Puck, though, wanted to be stronger. That was the problem with his restlessness; the shrine had afforded him much to learn and constant means of practice. The only reason he survived that night of the exorcism, they'd said, was because his shield had been so exceptional. His father noticed this restlessness, and with a smile, had told him they should talk. It was then that he learned of the academy and was told he could enroll if he wanted to. In his time with his father, he'd seen a lot of things. People, places; his father was not one to remain in one place for too long and as such was a bit of a wanderer. It just so happened that Puck had been taken along for the ride.
This was how it came to be that Puck, on the edge of his sixteenth birthday, would be enrolled in the academy. His father dropped him off at the front gates, and promised to visit often. Taking this at face value — and he did visit, quite literally dropping by at the worst times over the years — Puck walked through the gates to begin his school life at the academy.
[ B A S I C S ]
Name: Astrylea Vargus
Nicknames: Lea; Ashtray; Ash; Aster
Age: 467
Date of Birth: Unknown
Place of Birth: Unknown
Gender: Agender
Sexuality: Aromantic Pansexual
Position: Third Librarian; in charge of acquisitions and shelving
[ S P E C I E S ]
Species: Jinni
Powers: shapeshifting; reality distortion; illusion manipulation; wish granting; dimensional shifting; elemental manipulation; possession; invisibility; typhokinesis; pyrokinesis
[ V I S A G E ]
(view spoiler)
Height: 5'9
Eye Color: Blue
Hair Color: Black
Desc.: Astrylea's form doesn't vary much. The glamour it casts hides only a set of golden horns and hooves, to match. Skin that is usually a pale blue is replaced with a paler, more human skin tone once the glamour has been cast. His eyes, though, remain unchanging. It isn't exactly the tallest jinni to grace this plane of existence but it is content with the way its form has come out. After all, there are plenty of occasional lovers that have seen its size as being almost delicate. Human and supernatural standards have never been something that it cares for, allowing for a healthy consciousness of appearance that results in the many tattoos and piercings it boasts. Some of these remain from its youth, as part of its own distinct planar culture. Aster is known for being particularly fluid in style, with hair that has grown as long as the back of its calves, to have it shorn it off into a buzz. It is not bothered by most styles of dress, though its own might be seen as rather peculiar for that of a librarian. There isn't much of a difference in what it wears during work hours versus out-of-work hours.
[ I D I O S Y N C R A C I E S ]
Even before Astrylea had set foot on the campus, it'd been a messy creature. Someone with flawed connections and horrid skills at handling emotional relationships, it thrived on the chaos it left in its wake. But that doesn't always sit well with the people around it. It has seen many a relationship crumble into dust, or go out in a spectacular blaze of glory that would leave anyone watching with secondhand embarrassment and the sort of queasiness that comes from watching a car crash. This side of it tends to be something that surprises everyone when they first encounter the jinni. So composed and put together, but somehow a complete and utter mess once you get to know it. It would say that it can't be blamed; its only purpose sometimes seems to be the vehicle for someone learning a lesson when it grants a wish. People make wishes so recklessly; shouldn't it get a pass for being a little out of control sometimes?
Not quite.
Aster's primary source of energy is the very thing that it loathes: people. Funny; given its penchant for getting involved with others. The jinni claims no interest in people, preferring solitude and a good pack of cigarettes — the one thing invented by humans that it quite enjoys. Its reminiscent of things from its home plane, which...it won't go into too much detail about. Most often than not, it handles the discomfort of being around others with a biting critique of anyone that dares draw to close, or perish the thought: criticize it, and a very stiff drink. It's not uncommon to find the jinni with a cup that might suspicious smell of alcohol outside of whatever caffeinated beverage it was supposed to be.
With a drinking habit like Lea's, it's not uncommon to find it passed out in random spots on campus. It's used to showing up from wherever it might have gone for a drink or a party, sometimes summoned into being by all-too-curious humans that just can't get their hands out of the arcane. It tends then, to be in a rather sour mood. But then: it's always in a sour mood when it has to think about work and interacting with the students of the academy. Now why in the world did it take this job again?
Likes: Whiskey; Parties; Cheyenne Cherry Flavor + Malboro
Dislikes: Granting Wishes; Working; Freshmen
Strengths: Eidetic Memory; Good Judge of Character
Weaknesses: Heavy Drinker; Chainsmoker; Nosy
[ B I O G R A P H Y ]
Aster's life isn't exactly an exciting story. It was formed from the dust of the planes it called home by the hands of a mother and father. Crafted like a piece of clay until it came into perfect existence...and remained in a state of homogenous events for almost a century. It grew like children grew until it stopped aging and started filling up with the warmth of power. The jinni had never thought to leave its home, uncaring for the so-called mischief that the others of its ilk had decided upon. Even then, it was not quite so caring to interact with its own kind. The solitude had fit it well, and it thought it would always be like that. But, things change, don't they? At the cusp of Astrylea's 120th year, it was forcibly shifted onto the mortal plane.
To be summoned was not something so easily done when one was jinni untraveled in a world that moved differently from its own. The jinni had been struck with a remarkable sense of disorientation as it senselessly granted the three wishes asked of it before it was sent on its way back home. Dumbstruck, it fell into a bit of stupor, a fixation. It wanted to see more. The voluntary leaving was what surprised everyone. There was the expectation that Aster would be back but — that never came, did it?
The jinni had taken to this new world, but somehow grew to despise it. The wonders it beheld were overshadowed by the troublesome toils of politics and greed. It didn't matter what species a thing was; if it drew breath, it wanted. Like Aster had, but maybe worse. A simple curiosity for them was held as an obsession for others. It found itself trapped in a lamp by a curse of a witch. Naive as it was, it had thought that fulfilling his wishes would allow it to be set free. It didn't happen then, of course, but eventually. When the witch drew his last breath, he freed the jinni and Lea was left to roam.
It had come, in the many decades it had been trapped, to hate the creatures that roamed the Earth, but appreciate the creations that arose from their hands. A separation of artist from the artwork. It could enjoy a number of things without having to think about the things that had produced it. It granted wishes to those that sought creativity and inspiration for their works, scorning those that would bring nothing into the world but more whelps to seek greed and start the cycle anew. Its pickiness lead to a spell of time where none would find it, disillusioned by the requirements needed. And in that time it learned what starvation was. Unquenchable thirst as it wandered and begged and was kicked to the side as most of the unfortunate are in this world it had come to know.
So — Aster was forced to work. It did not help that it didn't have an intimate knowledge of the mundane workings of the world. Each job it would be hired for would see it booted within less than three weeks and it would need to find another. It began to take on odd jobs, and was forced into social interaction it so abhorred. While a tolerance was built up and "friendships" were formed, it tried and failed to meld into the society around it even with a biting dislike for all that it was.
Years — almost a full two centuries since its voluntary return — it found itself wandering onto the grounds of the academy after a particularly busy night. A job was offered when it was mildly conscious and Lea accepted. Only to wake up hungover, confused, and in the process of sorting a variety of books for the library. It decided to stay, entirely bribed by the presence of the artwork around it, and hasn't left since. At least, not yet; the students are compelling enough reason to want to leave.
Family: a mother and a father; names unpronounceable by Earthern standards — alive
Friends: good luck
wrestling + swim
(view spoiler)
PERSONALITY »
. walks around as a giant frog in most occasions unless expressly forced to transform + random situations
. very ignorant of social and technical conventions
. easily lost but will always find water
. happy-go-lucky
. a bit of a crybaby+ like / strength
- dislike / weaknessPOWERS : water manipulation; intangibility; aquatic adaption; water walking; illusion manipulation; shapeshifting
HISTORY »
. princess of a large kappa tribe
. sent for her protection following the dirtying of their rivermother:
father:
members of guard:
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