Coran

As the fourth Serayin, Coran was practically created with a lot already on their plate, and they wouldn't have it any other way. They dragged their three older compatriots kicking and screaming into what became known as the traditional architecture and fashion sense of the Aravun Yashelin.
When Coran isn't wearing a hardhat and wielding a hammer, they spend nearly as much time as a fiber artist focused on practical clothing and household goods. That is if their best friend and Decenir, Jo, doesn't drag them away on an artistic wild goose chase.
Although unceasingly busy, Coran always makes time for their family and friends. The moment they cross the threshold of their home, it is as if they entered a holy space where the outside world doesn't matter anymore. They share their home with their spiritmates, Seri and Petal, and together they care for one another and anyone else who happens to stumble through their door.

Physical

General Appearance

Coran's appearances is dominated by their jet black feathers, many of which appear to shine an iridescent maroon and brown even in low light. They have a broad build for a Yashelin, and their wingspan remains the longest of any. All of their clothes fit perfectly, since all of them were tailor made by them for them. Their sun-weathered skin and callused hands indicates a life spent working hard.
While they are in theory able to use their strong, sleek appearance to intimidate, the rest of their comportment is more likely to exude a sense of security. Despite their best efforts, they almost always appear disheveled in some way, at worse as if they perhaps fell from a tree or at best as if they got their shirt caught on an insistent doorknob.

Special Abilities

Durability

Anything created by Coran is more durable than an average item. Their clothing is less likely to tear. Few of the buildings that they built themself have ever fallen for any non-purposeful cause short of a natural disaster. The impact of their power lessens with time, and as such, items made by Coran (if meant to survive long-term) must also be upkept by them as well.

First Impressions

If Coran had a stealth ranking, their name would be found at the very bottom of the list. Everyone notices Coran when they walk into the room, whether they like it or not. This special ability also means that their actions may have long-lasting impacts on other people regarding Coran's demeanor.

Mental

General Personality

• Boisterous
• Quick to laugh
• Hard worker
• Exacting
• Protective and loving
• Fiercely loyal
• Brash

Likes & Dislikes

Likes

• Family time
• Bubbly alcohol
• Working with their hands
• Children
• Weaving
• Cold weather

Dislikes

Idle hands

Meat

Unnecessary meetings

Their own hypervigilance

Carelessness

Sunny days

Savvies & Ineptitudes

Savvies

• DIY shenanigans
• Math
• Fiber craft jack of all trades
• Natural dyes
• Emergency deescalation
• Building construction

Ineptitudes

Emotional conversations

Foreign languages

Gardening

Chainsaws

Getting sick and not whining as if they are actively on death's door.

Education

At the start of Coran's life, the majority of their education came either from their three elder Serayin, the Ida itself, or from their own experience. Nowadays, they usually either stick with what they know works already or learn from one of their flock's specialized experts.

Spiritual

Self Perception

Pride vs Humility

Coran takes a lot of pride in that which they have built from the ground up, with the city of Heshi Ariko at the top of the list, and their ability to maintain it for future generations. Their pride is tempered, however, by a great deal of personal humility. Their feats of engineering were achieved on the backs of failure after failure. So, although they are proud and they know they should be, they also have a habit of viewing themself as much less valuable or skilled than others perceive them as. They are also vigilant for ways to improve upon their work.

Brains vs Brawn

They view themself as the least cerebral of the Serayin. Rather than actively participate in most meetings with their compatriots, they prefer to sit back and listen to the brainy folks until they hear their cue: the actual act of doing or making something happen. They approach their relationship with their partners, Seri and Petal, in a similar manner.
They may not view themself as especially intelligent, but they know what they know, and they know that their brawn is valuable in its own right. They put their brawn to complex and necessary tasks to keep everyone safe and warm.

Needs & Dreams

Needs

• The support, patience, and space to process and come to terms with, well, everything that has changed recently.
• Mental and physical activities to occupy their hands and mind, ideally a new architectural or fiber art related puzzle.

Dreams

• For the world to go back to how it was before.
• Unconditionally assured safety for their family and friends.
• Taking a break from their Peli Flock and shadowing the Shushani Flock's dye makers for a few years.

Beliefs

Coran does not easily believe in someone or something which they cannot see with their own eyes or manipulation with their own hands.
They have a strong faith in the Ida as the creator, most of all because they see themself reflected in It. Coran views the Ida as a doer first, like them. Their identification with the Ida has also resulted in a relaxed faith, one that does not expect ought else deific from It besides creation. That doesn't mean they don't have standards, though, and they very much dream of the chance to punch It in the face.
That being said... If nothing else, they believe strongly in the power of perseverance.

Personal

Personal History

Before There Was Time

Coran is the fourth Yashelin created by the Ida. Life at the dawn of Aravun Yashelin civilization was akin to a slow scramble. They scrambled to survive, yet with fewer people to care for, there was less need to rush and more time to explore.
Coran was a consistently creative and hard worker from the outset. The only time their hands weren't moving towards some goal, be that making a new blanket or a new shed, was when they slept.
With fewer people, there was also much more time to get to know one another, for better and for worse. Even someone as occupied with their projects as Coran couldn't escape the reality of living in such a close-knit community. Mostly because Seri took it upon themself to follow them around and offer their unsolicited opinions. Literally. Everywhere.

"You missed a spot."
"Shut up, sunshine," Coran snaps. "I didn't ask!"
"Oh, shut up, Cora," Seri mocks. "You know you love me."
"I love you so much," Coran agrees, sarcastically.
Seri pauses with their head cocked to the side, and Coran resumes their work with an eye roll, until Seri drawls, "Cora, do you wanna prank everybody with me?"
Suddenly at attention, Coran leans in. "That depends. What's the prank?"
"Let's pretend we're in love."

They had convinced themselves that they were enemies. It was only a surprise to themselves when they found themselves enamored with one another.

Earning the Peli Crown

~1 - 10,000 years After Time
After the advent of time, the main change Coran experienced in their day-to-day routine is that they became critically aware of the passage of time. How much time had they spent working on their own projects? The Yashelin who flock to them had become needier by the day, as their numbers grew.
The largest catalyst for change came in the form of a newly budding relationship. Clearly, their relationship with Seri had begun to suffer. After all, they went and acquired another lover - Petal, a young but intensely focused minty green Yashelin.
Coran fought the necessary changes in their routine, in a frequently stubborn, childish manner. Their petulance ended when Petal finally put their foot down:

"Feet up," Petal commands.
Coran puts their feet up on the chair for Petal to sweep underneath, all the while groaning, "It's clean, already!"
"No, it's not."
"It's got what? A few specks of dust? You swept this morning!"
Petal does not rise to the challenge, lips pressed together in a firm line. They turn away to sweep the rest of the house and escape Coran's tyranny.
"Fuck, I hate you," Coran grumbles, stomping their legs back down with force. More dirt flakes off of their shoes to shower the ground.
A dusty broom brush smacks their chin up, wielded by a shaking arm.

Coran learned a hard lesson that day, a lesson that they had to continue to learn for years until it became a habit. They started to make amends to Petal and Seri and to reinvent what it meant to be Coran, the Serayin.
When Jo approached them with the black diadem which marked the first Peli Festival, they hadn't seen it coming. They accepted it, dumbstruck.
Their life had changed so gradually, with the patience of their loved ones and the eagerness of their flock, that they hadn't realized just how much they had grown into a respected lanyin.

A Life Together

Having settled into a comfortable life, Coran rolled with the changes which naturally came as Aravun Yashelin society grew and evolved. People traveled and settled new areas. Coran, Seri, and Petal's home stayed put in Heshi Ariko, even as their places of work changed locations.
The Peli Flock centered in Shushani Pithin, and Coran commuted to them. When it was only Heshi Ariko and Shushani Pithin, it was fine - but then yet more settlements were added. Coran, along with everyone else, were spread thin. It hadn't helped that some of the Yashelin 'wasted' time on the foreign Kivria, either.
Then Areta Maikir, that bratty little genius, goes and develops a plan to use Kivrian spiritual energy to produce energy. Suddenly, the sky was the limit. They, and their flock, were ready to pounce when Chamu proposed the Chamatoye Public Railway.
Just as Coran had sunk their teeth into that project, Ezeki and Seri approached them with another tantalizing project: the building of the Kotuye Library and Education Center.
It took a few thousand years to complete both projects, but the Yashelin had nothing but time and energy now that they no longer had to power their infrastructure themselves.
During this exciting time, Coran never forgot their family. It was difficult to leave work at the door for all three of them, until Coran adopted Lulu.
As time went by and society settled into their new normal, Coran, Seri, and Petal's family grew. Coran later became the proud wanuye of Opa Firalan and, much later, Ozim Laila. They cared for Seri and Petal's children as if they were their own, since in a way, they were.
If family life was invaluable before, it became downright sacred.

Hard Times

Coran hadn't realized that something was severely wrong with where Aravun Yashelin society was heading until it was too late.
Opa came to them in labor, desperate for medical help. Petal had the audacity to try to turn them away. Thankfully, Coran and Oz were home. Coran yelled Petal right out of their house while Oz assisted Opa through childbirth. Sick, but also amazed, Coran watched as Oz lifted a bloody winged lump of a creature, so tiny but so loud.
Apparently, this was Opa's third birth. Why didn't Opa tell Coran about the other two? Sure, they're weird looking, but any family of Opa's is family to Coran! Besides that, this was the first Astris born on Aravu! So, why did Opa and Oz look so scared? That's exciting! Right? ... Right?
The Astris Genocide ripped Opa, the baby, and many more friends and acquaintances from Coran shortly after, never to be seen again.
What the Astris Genocide didn't take, the First War and the subsequent exiling took with a vengeance. Lulu was exiled, along with several of Petal and Seri's children.

“What about Heyir?” Coran bites the bullet, at the end.
The Ida-in-Ezeki's smile is not gentle, “What about Heyir?”
“Where do the exiled go? How will you retrieve Heyir's spirit seed for their, um, reincarnation?”
“Would you like to visit with me, Coran? Witness in answer.” . . . The exiled scatter from the Ida-in-Ezeki as it appears. Coran stands tall beside it, projecting the cool defensiveness the Ida created them for.
They find Heyir in the thick of the confusion. When they see Coran and the Ida, they rise to their feet, unsteady and on the offensive.
If Heyir attacks the Ida, what would Coran do? They realize they don't know, anymore.
“Peace, Heyir.” The Ida-in-Ezeki quirks a smile. Not quite. “You have three questions.”
All the curses on Heyir’s tongue scatter and fly away. “Where are we?”
“This is your new home.”
“We will make it so, then.” Heyir accepts with finality, for everyone else’s sake.
“See that you do, because no one leaves. Second question.”
Heyir must ask, and only a few fault them for it: “Where is Areta?”
The Ida-in-Ezeki frowns. Where is Areta? Ve wasn’t due for exile to begin with, but, well. Cross-fire was inevitable. If he had been exiled, the Ida would have considered it an acceptable, if unfortunate, loss.
If ve is not exiled, then... Yes, there is only one possible answer.
“You killed ver, Heyir. I didn't hurt ver, that is your doing.”
Heyir lowers their eyes. They hadn’t ruled out the possibility, but to know it…
They steel themself, drawing themself visibly back up for their last question. “May we have medical help? A lot of us are injured.”
“No. No help is coming, no one is. You have something I need.”
It pulls a spirit seed from Heyir and turns to leave, no explanation forthcoming. Coran follows behind, looking back at Heyir in mute horror. They let their bag droop off of their shoulder and fall on the ground.
When the Ida and Coran have left, Heyir lunges for it.

Navigating in the Dark

At the end of the day, though, what haunted Coran wasn't so much Lulu, or even Opa, but Oz. She went for a walk in the dead of night and was never seen again. Oz was lost to the wind without explanation.
Not even the night was safe. Coran spearheaded the Nightly Curfew to protect the young from unknown danger in the darkness Heyir's exile left behind.
Everything piled up so quickly. Coran was devastated beyond words.
They had never thought of time as finite, before.
They hide notes and suppies for Heyir and the others in the clothes of those due for exile, until they begin stripping them.
Grief turned them into a fascimile of their former self. Life adapted and Coran pushed forward externally, but inside, Coran couldn't move on. They held onto slivers of hope. Even by the time Lulu was found on Kivria and Oz reappeared, they couldn't wrap their mind around everything that had happened.

Current Status: Blinding Light

Life goes on, and yet internally, precious little feels the same. The world has changed and left them behind.
They grieve for the world the way it was before the strife. They grieve for their lost family and friends, those who were lost forever and those who are still here. Nevertheless, Coran puts a brave face on it for the sake of their loved ones (and for themself).
They grieve as they did before, even as they stumble into a new era with everyone else. They hope that the new era brings the peace it promises.

Important Personal Relationships

Romantic Relationships

Coran and Seri

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Coran and Seri have been through just about everything together. They began as "mortal enemies," but managed to speed run into inseparable lovers. These two busybodies have kept each other in check since before the advent of time. The brown in Coran and Seri's spirits comes from their spiritual union.

Coran and Petal

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Coran fell in love with Seri by accident. They fell in love with Petal on purpose. Their relationship has taken painstaking work to achieve the level of faith that these two have in one another. When Coran is the one who needs covered, they turn to Petal first. The maroon in Coran and Petal's spirits comes from their spiritual union.

Familial Relationships

Coran and Lulu

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Coran didn't choose to raise Lulu, Lulu chose Coran to raise them. They were created in a time before the standard wanuye-kabi relationship dynamic as it is known today. In a way, the two of them helped set the standard for future Yashelin to follow. Their relationship is strained after Lulu's exile, but they had a warm relationship prior.

Coran and Opa

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Coran will never stop mourning Opa's death. They are haunted by the knowledge of the circumstances of Opa's death and by the fact that there is nothing they can do to save them or get them back in their arms.

Coran and Oz

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These two have one helluva strained relationship. They care about one another, but trying to communicate with one another always seems to end in hurt feelings. This has improved enormously in recent years, but they still have work yet to do to salvage their relationship with their once-lost kabi.

Coran and...

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Coran is wanuye to three kabi. Petal and Seri are wanuye to three each, as well, and Coran is also considered part of their family in various iterations. That doesn't include extended family, either. Suffice it to say that if you're family, you're always welcome in their home and safe under their wing.

Platonic Relationships

Coran and Ezeki

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Out of all of the Serayin, Coran is the most likely to go toe-to-toe with Ezeki. Although they bicker frequently, the two spend even more quality time together over drinks and laughter. They were even lovers, at one point in time, but it didn't last for long.

Coran and Heyir

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They've been close since the day Coran was created. They used to spend a lot of time together, plotting their future with bright eyes. Coran had only just begun to accept Heyir's "permanent" exile. They are having a hard time readjusting to Heyir back in their life, especially since they've both changed in such a short amount of time.

Coran and Uri

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Uri jokingly refers to Coran as a benevolent parasite, owing to their dependence on Uri's flock for dye for clothes and raw materials for building with. They are best friends, two out of the big three artists of Aravu along with Jo.

Coran and Jofim

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Jo is Coran's decenir or, as Coran likes to call them, their stressmate. They are incredibly, almost excessively, close friends. They hype each other up in their artistic pursuits. They keep each other sane through the sometimes grueling work required of them and of maintaining their flock.

Coran and Domini

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Once thick as thieves, Coran no longer trusts Domini with a nickle (and vice versa). They know that Domini murdered Opa, and they will never forgive them nor allow them to continue the work they had done previously as if nothing happened, no matter how much people try to insist that they have a responsibility for them as a Yashelin who flocks to them.

Coran and Ravi

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Coran and Ravi are on friendly terms with one another. They aren't Ravi's official Ayiru, but they fill that role from an artistic perspective. Coran blames themself for not preventing Ravi's exile. They do their best to make it up to them now that they have returned.

Communal Relationships

Peli Flock

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Coran is the Serayin of the Peli Flock. They take their responsibility to the people under their care seriously. They love their flockmates, and their flockmates rowdily return the love tenfold back at them.

Ezekoru

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The other Serayin and their respective decenir make up their primary social group outside of their own flock. Despite their big public personality, they tend to be one of the quietest members. They approach the Ezekoru with the ethos that others can do the thinking, but Coran will do the, well, doing.

Heshi Ariko

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Coran is an active member of Heshi Ariko's community's culture. They are present at almost every community wide event, and they enjoy volunteering to organize them so long as they don't have to actively work during them. Every blizzard, they open their home to any of their neighbors, who often come because they know it'll be one happy, safe party.

Shushani Flock

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Coran and Uri work closely together, and as such, that means that the Peli and Shashane Flock do as well. Collaboration between the two is extremely common. Coran feels at home with this flock. They view working with the Shushani Flock as a vacation from their own.

External

Occupation

Coran is the Serayin of Architecture, Safety, Fibercraft, and Art. Their responsibility as a Serayin and a member of the Ezekoru is to ensure that these facets of Aravun Yashelin society are running smoothly. Their first priority is the health and well being of the Peli Flock, or the flock of Yashelin who are drawn into Coran's orbit, and their second is to the wider community.
When not otherwise occupied by their flockmates, they occupy themself as a weaver and seamstress on one hand and an architect on the other. They take great pride in their work as an architect, but they find true fulfillment in their fibercraft.
They share in their work with their Decenir, Jo, who lessens the burden via hard work and eccentric hijinx.

Location

Heshi Ariko isn't just Coran's home, it's a testimony to their architectural prowess. Every building has been touched by them in some way. Some of the oldest surviving structures were built entirely by them, while the newer ones are built under their supervision.
Their work takes them into just about every Aravun Yashelin settlement across the Kotuye Continent. Their primary base of operations is in Shushani Pithin, where they are in begging distance of Uri's Shashane Flock.

Public Perception

Coran has a nearly impeccable reputation amongst the general, Aravun Yashelin public. They are arguably the most beloved of the Serayin, or at least their flock is loudest and proudest about it.
They have come under fire in recent years due to their alleged discrimination against two Yashelin of their flock, Domini and Fulyer. This criticism is part of a wider conversation in Aravun Yashelin society regarding how to handle those who are difficult or otherwise different.

by Midjourney

Also Known As

Cora

Name Meaning

Covered

Purpose

To Provide Sanctuary

Spiritual Color(s)

Black (hereditary), maroon (acquired), brown (acquired)

Pronouns

they/them

Species

Yashelin

Ethnicity

Aravun Yashelin, Idin

Homeplace

Heshi Ariko

Romantic Partner(s)

Seri, Petal

Children

Lulu Shayera, Opa Firalan, Ozim Laila (Wanuye-Kabi)
Kiyal-Lantana (Elevu-Kabi)
Nanatu Zylpeiros (Ayiru-Kabi)
Yasmine Pine (Reincarnation)

Profession/Rank

Serayin of Architecture, Safety, Fibercraft, & Art