Charmeine Blaney (shar-mayne blay-nee)

Bard Charmeine Blaney (a.k.a. The Angel)

History

Charmeine grew up in a small, remote village in Brushling Fief. From a very young age she loved singing more than anything else. Since she grew up in the middle of nowhere, it was a miracle when she got accepted into the Bardic College, the school of magic that incorporates music (or the school of music that incorporates magic, depending on who you ask). Her family barely had enough money for food and clothing, but her natural talent awarded her a full scholarship.
In school, Charmeine always did well. After completing the standard 3-year education at 16 and completing several advanced courses, Charmeine realized she wanted to do something more, something big. Joining up with two of her friends from school, Harper, who specialized in violin, and Jean, who specialized in drums, the three formed a small bardic band, the Smooth Society. They began traveling to small rural villages, but they really found their place in the towns lining the Shipri and Navimar rivers, the major trading routes of the country.

Harper:

Jean:

The Smooth Society did well and were welcomed everywhere they went. Commoners and nobles alike went to their performances and enjoyed their music. One thing they did that everyone loved was how they used their magic to enhance their performances. Charmeine and Jean both used their magic to make their hair glow and appear in unnatural colors, though Jean did so far more drastically than Charmeine. Charmeine also used her magical capabilities to make her voice louder and give it an exotic quality. Harper used her magic to color the tone of her violin, emitting a cool blue flame out of the tip of her bow. Jean created colors and vibrations from her drums with her magic, as well as enhancing the acoustics of whatever area they were in to fit their music better.
The group played common folk songs at first, but soon they began writing their own songs, including their first hit “The Warrior of Sahri,” followed closely by their biggest hit “All the World is Gone,” which explored a new style of music otherwise unknown to the country of Alia. This style of music was truly revolutionary and caused a new generation of musicians to do things a little bit differently than the traditional. As the Smooth Society’s popularity grew, they realized they needed to grow the size of the group itself, too, though Charmeine, Harper, and Jean would be the only three to be magic-wielders from the Bardic College to be part of the group. The first addition to their group was a man named Jonas, who was excellent with the lute and added a deep resonance to singing harmonies. He would also go on to become Charmeine’s boyfriend. Soon, he brought his friend, Horace, into the group, along with his ability to play the serpent horn.

Jonas:

Horace:

The next two additions surprised most people. A pair of runaway lesser elf slaves were escaping from their horrible life when they came across the Smooth Society. Charmeine recognized the brother and sisters’ potential for music and empathized with their plight. She thus waited for their master to catch up with them so she could buy their freedom. Skylar turned out to be a natural on the reed flute, and Forrest was quite good with a lyre.

Skylar:

Forrest:

Especially after adding Skylar and Forrest to the Smooth Society, the group worked to promote the rights of lesser elves. Many people found it controversial and even scandalous that the lesser race was eating and performing with humans, but some of their next big songs helped to convince them otherwise, including “The Shape of Our Hearts” and “The Lesser Worn Road,” which featured beautiful instrumental solos by both of the lesser elves.
After expanding the group so much, the musicians realized they needed a manager. This person came in Camilla. A few years older than the rest of the group, Camilla carefully managed their schedules and organized lodging wherever they went so that the rest of the Smooth Society could do what they do best — playing music.

Camilla:

Physical Description

General Physical Condition

Charmeine is on the thin side, mostly as a result of often skipping meals to work on writing songs. She has excellent breath support and a shocking amount of core strength, but she isn’t necessarily fit or athletic in any way.

Identifying Characteristics

Charmeine usually keeps her hair a nice white-blond with hints of blue and pink to give it a phosphorescent shine. She has also been described as having a confident, serene glow.

Special abilities

Charmeine can use her magic for a handful of things, mostly music-related. She primarily uses it to change her voice to make it louder and more interesting to listen to, but she also uses her magic to color her hair.

Mental characteristics

Education

Charmeine completed the standard 3-year course at the esteemed Bardic College and got top marks. She then completed a few additional advanced courses before forming the Smooth Society.

Employment

At a young age, Charmeine worked on her family’s small farm. After leaving the Bardic College and doing a few internships there, Charmeine founded her own band and became self-employed.

Intellectual Characteristics

Charmeine is generally cheerful and friendly, but she isn’t afraid of expressing her emotions. Many years away from her parents at an early age caused her to become quite independent. She is also sometimes impatient and impulsive (a good example of this is the formation of the Smooth Society), and that sometimes leads to her wanting to be in control of everything. However, once she trusts someone, she trusts them to do their job, hence how she was able to cede organizational control of the Smooth Society to Camilla.

Morality & Philosophy

Charmeine never worries about anything. She believes worrying is a waste of time because there’s no use worring over things that may or are goin to happen; if they’re going to happen, they will, and no one can change that. She believes that if she can explain an idea, then it’s worth doing, and nothing can get in her way of getting it done. She also believes in making a difference, and therefore many of the Smooth Society’s more recent songs have tended toward the political.

Social

Social Aptitude

Charmeine exudes confidence at all times. She is very good at talking to people and loves doing so. When a person leaves a conversation with her, they often walk away feeling better about themself and with small seeds of her goals and ideas planted in the back of their mind. In a position like Charmeine’s it would be nearly impossible not to have a big ego. It would be a lie to say Charmeine didn’t think very well of herself, but she always manages to do so without thinking any less of anyone else.

Ethnicity

Alians

Date of Birth

17th of Jiniyonis, 676 IA

Birthplace

A remote village in Brushling Fief

Family

Organization

Current Residence

Shipley Fief

Gender

Female

Eyes

Dark blue, oval, kind, open

Hair

Shoulder length, slightly wavy, white-blonde with blue highlights

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

Tanned

Quotes & Catchphrases

“Why worry when you can sing?”
“The shape of our hearts matters so much more than the shape of our ears.”
“Let’s play!”

Belief/Deity

Jiniyone, goddess of patience

Aligned Organization

The Bardic College

Other Affiliations

• The Elven Rebellion

Known Languages

Charmeine is fluent in Alish. She also knows just a little bit of Elvish and occasionally incorporates it into her music to give it a slightly exotic sound.