Appearance

Physical Description

Lithe on a good day, scrawny on a bad one; quick-footed and small, but could easily be overpowered in a fight; as her "bad mom" once told her, she could've been so pretty in a different life.

Body Features

Lots of scarring (cuts, burns, abrasions) across her whole body. Some came from punishments in foster care, some from being roughed up on the streets. A few striking scars cross her face and collar, thin cuts from years ago. She doesn't talk about those.

Facial Features

Short brows; eyes that have recently gone cloudy for an unknown reason; prominent scarring; usually some dirt and grease that she tries her best to clean up; a couple dirty teeth; often making a defensive, agitated expression.

Physical quirks

Tight posture, as if she's ready to back away and make a run for it at any moment; one eyebrow that moves more when she's thinking.

Apparel & Accessories

Plain white blouse and brown skirt, likely pocketed from a clothesline somewhere; black, dirty boots with holes in them; a couple leather straps where she keeps a small amount of personals; a sling; a locket from her "good mom" for when she's down.

Special abilities

Sorcery, obviously; a talented performer and liar.

Mentality

Personal history

Cecily's life has been a mess. From hopping villages, to living under bar awnings for weeks at a time, to being reprimanded daily in orphanages, to being abused in foster home situations, to stealing daily pay from town guards just to avoid starving in the middle of the night, all along never knowing where she came from, why she exists, or what the point of all this suffering is when it's probably never going to get better...yeah, it's been bad.
 
To simplify, however, Cecily can recall a few big figures in her life. Amid all the headmasters, guards, rival street rats, and the hundreds of people who have denied her food or shelter throughout the years, she looks back and sees three main influences: her Real Mom, her Good Mom, and her Bad Mom.
 
Firstly, she has only one memory of her Real Mom, and it's so hazy, it could've just been a dream. Around the time Cecily was 3, her mother held her and told her some bedtime story about an owl. She thinks they were homeless, since she can't remember a bed. But she was happy in that memory. She tears up seeing owls to this day.
 
Second, her Good Mom. After something happened (she can't recall), Cecily and her Real Mom were separated. She might've died, left, or even never existed, but Cecily was left with no information or mementos from her. Her first real memories are around age 5 in an orphanage. But when she was 7, she was taken into a kind and loving foster home. A young but sickly elf woman named Denyr took her in and raised her alone for five whole years. Those were Cecily's happiest times, and the times where she learned the most about how to be a person.
 
But before she could teach her too much, she passed away suddenly and without explanation, another horrible mystery in Cecily's life. 12-year-old Cecily found herself homeless for another year, then taken into another foster home after getting into some serious trouble with the local guard. This was her Bad Mom, the one she just ran away from. Cecily hated her from the beginning, but she was in so much trouble, and she was willing to take anything over the streets again. But she shouldn't have. Bad Mom, who's name she won't even say, was a wicked woman. She sought to "fix" Cecily and her lying, pick-pocketing, talk-backing ways by enforcing strict rules and punishments on her.
 
Cecily wouldn't budge, because she knew from Denyr that she deserved to be treated more tenderly. The punishments only got worse, however, and she gradually began to crack, developing stress problems and spending most nights in tears. One day, it was just too much, and she tried to slap her Bad Mom across the face...only to realize that she was capable of conducting lightning through her fingertips.
 
Bad Mom lay dead, or at least dying, on the floor, and Cecily was so dumbfounded that she didn't know what else to do but run. The smallest part of her feels bad for what happened, but if anyone deserves that, it was her.
 
Now, Cecily is hiding from the guards in the nearby city of Summersrest, where she can hopefully blend into the crowds long enough to avoid trouble and figure out what the flying fuck is going on with her body.

Education

Nothing formal. She likes to think she's street smart, but...she's not that, either.

Employment

Nope.

Accomplishments & Achievements

lolololol

Failures & Embarrassments

Everything? She honestly hates herself quite a bit, but wouldn't show that. It's easy to start blaming yourself when so much goes wrong for you.

Mental Trauma

Cecily has two strong forces pulling on her from all her trauma: a desire to be loved, to be held tenderly by a mentor figure and told everything will be okay again, or to become independent and not have to worry about needing people ever again. It's these opposing desires that cause her to mask her troubles, in hopes that everyone will see her as tough and needless, never guessing how much she must be hurting underneath. Being 15, though, she's not great at it.

Intellectual Characteristics

Despite a lack of traditional smarts, she's a very good performer because of her ability to mimic emotions and tell good lies. She also has some natural affinity for the workings of magic, but she still hasn't figured out how to tap into that yet.

Morality & Philosophy

Cecily is Chaotic Neutral, not out of a desire to be reckless, but out of the deep-rooted belief that there's no reason to have loyalty to others anyway. Everyone has either died on her or abused her, so why give anyone the benefit of the doubt? Why open yourself up to hurting again? Her morality, therefore, is defensive. She always looks for a way to benefit herself and never be too vulnerable.
 
But maybe somewhere along the line, the selfless kindness that Denyr gave her will start to guide her decisions. Maybe the good graces of her new allies will convince her that it's sometimes worth sticking your neck out for someone.

person.sexuality

Questioning. She's definitely had embarrassing thoughts about a couple people, but it's never been worth considering too deeply with everything else going on in her life. But when she crushes on someone...it's bad.

person.gender_identity

Cis female.

Taboos

VULNERABILITY IS GROSS.

Known Languages

The common tongue, and a good deal of Elvish that her "good mom" taught her.

Personality

Motivation

To form independence and figure herself out with no help from others.

Savvies & Ineptitudes

Good at lying, performing, sneaking, stealing, etc.
 
Bad at being polite, figuring out logical problems, talking about her feelings, etc.

Likes & Dislikes

Likes pulling off a good plan. REALLY goes wild for fresh bread. Like, she'll melt.
 
Dislikes anyone objecting to her (isn't that agreeable?), being slowed down, and especially being reminded of her limitations.

Virtues & Personality perks

Down for anything risky if there's a clear reward. Not smart, but crafty (there's a difference).

Vices & Personality flaws

Will be stingy with her things, and can be reckless and inconsiderate when deciding a course of action.

Personality Quirks

Fidgety, guarded, and very gestural when set off.

Hygiene

Not awesome.

Social

Birthplace

somewhere near Waterswake

Current Residence

Summersrest

Contacts & Relations

Nothing useful.

Honorary & Occupational Titles

Nope.

Wealth & Financial state

That's funny.

Family Ties

Wow.

Religious Views

The Gods? Why would I worry about them? Do they have food?

Social Aptitude

No manners whatsoever.

Mannerisms

Lots of swearing and angry gestures; very easy to set off.

Hobbies & Pets

Surviving?

Speech

Whatever the opposite of polite is.