Vivienne
Vivienne (a.k.a. Viv)
Physical Description
General Physical Condition
Lean and toned.
Facial Features
Squared jawline with sharp cheekbones, semi-full lips, almond shaped eyes with thin brows, and a rounded nose. Vivienne's facial structure is androgynous though she tends to emphasize her eyes with dark eye makeup.
Identifying Characteristics
Pierced slightly pointed ears, snake bite piercings, septum piercing. She has one long scar from her left temple across her nose to her right cheek and a smaller scar from below her left eye across the bridge of her nose.
Physical quirks
She licks her lips when she's thinking or focused
Apparel & Accessories
Though she wears no jewelry aside from her piercings, Vivienne does prefer to dress well put together when she can. Tight trousers, long boots, and looser blouses make up the majority of her wardrobe along with the occasional set of suspenders, chest harness, and leather gloves.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Though her parents knew the risk of their relationship, Vivienne was not a planned birth. Shortly after she was born her family was officially excoriated from their houses. She was an only child for a few years until her younger brother was born, and the two became inseparable.
For much of her childhood Vivienne hoped she would manifest a dragonmark despite the high likelihood of it being unstable. She thought that if she manifested the power of one that it would prove to her parents and their former houses that her existence was for a reason, and that their family was just as important and influential as the houses, especially in a time of war.
Knowing she would have to be able to fend for herself in this world at some point, her parents made sure her and her brother had some knowledge of self defense. During that time Vivienne found she had a knack for sword fighting and was quite dexterous. She didn't think these skills would come in handy at an occupational level at first, but everything changed when her brother fell ill.
Her family was never quite impoverished but they weren't wealthy either, and it became clear to Vivienne that her parents were struggling to pay for her brother's treatments over time. She began working extra time at a local tavern and during one shift caught wind of a shady yet promising sounding opportunity. Ever charismatic, Vivienne managed to secure a spot working the simple heist job.
With more coin in her pockets than she made in a tenday at the tavern and connections to people that saw value in her skills, Vivienne was hooked. She took on more and more under the table jobs especially after the war ended, found herself under the tutelage of a roguish member of the group that employed her, and managed to help pay off her parents' debt over time.
Things got complicated when her brother was old enough to get suspicious of where the money was coming from and where she was sneaking off to at odd hours day and night.
Gender Identity
Vivienne identifies as a cisgender woman.
Sexuality
Vivienne is bisexual.
Education
Vivienne has a basic education and standard schooling.
Employment
Currently employed by a branch of a crime syndicate in Breland.
Accomplishments & Achievements
Vivienne is a newly trained rogue and has had a handful of successful solo missions under her belt.
Failures & Embarrassments
- The botched attempt to steal from House Jorasco, in which she is now indebted to Doc Martin.
- She failed a job in which her group was supposed to steal important war documents from one of the Houses. In her escape she planted her knife on an innocent bystander who was then taken into custody for the death of the guard that Vivienne killed. Vivienne is not particularly bothered by this fact.
Mental Trauma
Her family has been consistently treated poorly by dragonmarked houses for being excoriated from both House Cannith and House Medani.
Morality & Philosophy
Morally grey at best. Vivienne believes if you want something you have to earn it, and it doesn't matter what you do to earn it.
Personality Characteristics
Motivation
- Power. Where there is power, there is success.
- Wealth. Where there is wealth, there is power.
- Freedom. Without freedom, power and wealth are useless.
Social
Contacts & Relations
Father - Kyrenic Redgrave, formerly d'Medani
Mother - Mara Redgrave, formerly d'Cannith
Brother - L3
Mo Boom - helped acquire gunpowder a time or two, also knows him through her little brother.
Nyx - has done a job with her, frequents the same tavern
Doc Martin - owes him money for not sending her straight to jail Selene - former lover, aspiring pirate bard, likely the only person Vivienne may have truly fallen in love with
Mother - Mara Redgrave, formerly d'Cannith
Brother - L3
Mo Boom - helped acquire gunpowder a time or two, also knows him through her little brother.
Nyx - has done a job with her, frequents the same tavern
Doc Martin - owes him money for not sending her straight to jail Selene - former lover, aspiring pirate bard, likely the only person Vivienne may have truly fallen in love with
Half-elven, rakish rogue with a sharp tongue and even sharper blade.
View Character Profile
Age
25
Birthplace
Breland
Children
Current Residence
Breland
Gender
Female
Eyes
Green
Hair
Blonde
Skin Tone/Pigmentation
Medium tanned
Height
5'10
Weight
145lbs-ish
One Sent, One Burned
Dad,
First, just want to say I’ve got the kiddo and he’s safe with me. We decided to do some traveling together, you know, brother sister bonding. It’s been a while since we got to spend any time together and I had some extra coin, so I figured why not treat him.
Not sure where we’ll end up but I’ll write as often as I can. Things have been pretty typical so far. He’s only gotten on my nerves a few times. I’m making sure he stays out of trouble. We’re heading towards the coast I think to see if we can make it there, you know how obsessed he is with ships. I’ll send along a trinket for Ma if we find anything nice.
I’d tell you not to worry about us but I know that’s a futile attempt. So I guess try not to worry too much, okay?
Love you.
Vivienne
She sets down the quill with a sigh, reading over the words again. Yeah, that sounded convincing enough. Vivienne stuffs the letter into an envelope and seals it with blood red wax, writing her parents’ address on the outside. Surely there’s a post office at this port, and if not she’d just have to look for one wherever they end up next. Either way, she hopes this will keep them from trying to find her and her brother. The last thing she needed was them interfering with…whatever it is they find themselves doing now, far too dangerous work to get them involved.
The ruse would only work for so long, she assumes, with how intelligent their father is, but maybe this would buy them some time.
Vivienne goes to put away the ink and paper but pauses, brow furrowing as she stares down at the blank page. She slowly dips the quill again.
Sweet Moon,
You wouldn’t fucking believe what I’m doing right now, you know. And, by the way, it’s nothing like the stories. Being a pirate is grueling, filthy, cutthroat, exhausting work. Especially when you’re forced into it.
It’s nothing like you dreamed of, either. I’m not your first mate, sailing into sunsets and raiding idiot travelers with you. I’m the captain of a crew filled with chucklefucks that have about as much knowledge of what they’re doing as I do, which is to say, fuck all. No one tells you being in charge of people would suck so much.
I don’t know what the fuck I’m doing anymore, Selene. Part of me wants to take this and run with it, and I know I could, someday this could be my legacy. But right now I feel like I’m barely treading water.
I hope you’re doing better than me. I hope you’re living your dream as the gorgeous bard that you are, on a fancy ship, eating weird food and bedding all the nobles that won’t notice their coin purses missing ‘til it’s too late. Or something like that.
Miss you.
Your Violet
Vivienne stares at the words, reading them over and over again until they’re nothing but shapes swimming in her vision. She shakes her head and frowns, carding her fingers through her hair. For a long time there is silence in her quarters, no scratching of pen on paper, just her contemplative breathing.
She takes the letter and folds it up neatly before holding it over the flame of the candle she was writing by, tendrils of fire immediately taking to the page. The light reflects in her piercing eyes as she watches it burn, words never spoken turning to ash on the desk.
Selene
“You know, I’ve seen you at this tavern so often and I still don’t know your name.”
Vivienne’s comment elicits the bubbly laugh she had come to look forward to hearing over the regular din of the tavern on busy nights, and long lashes fluttering at her playfully.
“Well, dear, you never asked. That’s usually the rule, isn’t it?”
“Right, right, I forget my manners sometimes in the presence of beautiful women.” Vivienne winks as she sets down the glass of wine the woman had ordered. “I’m Viv, what’s your name?”
“Hmmmm, I’m not sure I should tell you. How do I know you’re not some fey that’s going to steal me away in the middle of the night once you have my name?”
“Oh, I fully intend to steal you away, but I assure you I’m nothing fancier than a half-elf.”
The woman chuckles into her glass of wine, sapphire eyes roaming over Vivienne as if to see if she passes some unspoken test.
“Mm, at the very least you’re far more interesting to talk to than most of the people that have been trying to chat me up here. My name is Selene.”
“Selene,” Vivienne repeats, committing it to memory, “Well, Miss Selene, if you find yourself bored of the usual rowdy assholes, my shift ends at midnight. I’d be happy to invite you to somewhere more private for the evening.”
She could feel the blood pounding in anticipation in her ears, the pause from Selene giving her a rare moment of doubt.
“I’ll see you at midnight then, Viv.” Selene raises the glass to Vivienne and winks.
---
Sunshine spills across raven curls and freckled skin as Selene grumbles sleepily from the pillow beside her. “Five more minutesssss…”
Vivienne chuckles and leans forward to kiss her forehead. “C’mon, rise and shine, sleepyhead.”
An arm emerges from under the covers and half-heartedly latches around Vivienne’s torso, trying to pull her back. “The outside is cold, come back to the warm place.”
“Cold? Selene, babe, it’s the middle of spring.”
“Frigid. Ice cold.”
“It’s sunny and beautiful, look out the window.”
“Positively deathly freezing.”
“You do this every time you stay over.”
“So one would think you’d be used to it by now, hm?” Selene finally cracks open an eye and gives a cheeky smirk. “You’re no fun, Viv.”
“Really? That’s not how you felt last ni– hey!” Her comment is cut short with a pillow to the face followed by a string of giggles. “Now you’ve done it, now this is war.”
Selene shrieks and tries to wriggle out of Vivienne’s grasp as she’s wrapped up in a blanket, the taller woman trying to lift her from the bed without dropping her. “Vivienne! Don’t you dare!”
“You’re so squirmy, stay still! I’m just going to plop you into the bathtub since you’re soooo cold.”
“Don’t. You. Dare!”
“Sorry, I can’t hear you over the sound of your teeth chattering, gotta do somethin’ about that.”
Vivienne kicks open the door of the bathroom, hovering the still squirming Selene over the empty bathtub. She looks down at her with a raised eyebrow. “Are you warmed up yet?”
She’s met with a pout from perfect lips. “Yeah, yeah, you’ve ruined the fun.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll make it up to you later. Did I tell you the news yet?”
Selene perks up, entirely forgetting her loss and suddenly all ears. “No, there’s news? What news? Wait, you let me be all sleepy when you’ve had news this whole time?!”
“Shhh, so loud right in my ear. Yes, I have news.” Vivienne smiles genuinely, though her excitement is more contained than the bundle of energy in her arms. “I…got a new job.”
Selene lets out a dainty gasp. “You did? That’s wonderful! Doing what, where at? I wanna know all the details!”
With her arms starting to get tired, Vivienne backtracks to the bed and plops Selene down onto it, taking a seat at the edge next to her. “Well, that’s kind of the tricky part…it’s all over the city, in a way.”
“Mhmmmm, doing what?”
A beat goes by where Vivienne considers telling her the truth. So much of her time with Selene thus far had been mostly devoid of lies, at least more than usual for her. She wasn’t entirely sure why. Probably something about the way those doe eyes coaxed only sweet words from Vivienne in a way that made her want to shield Selene from her sharpness.
“I’ll be working deliveries. You know those shipping facilities over at Cliffside? I’ll be helping with deliveries all the way to the upper city if they need me to. It pays well, better than the tavern.”
“So…that means I won’t see you around the tavern anymore?”
“Well, not as much anyway. I might still be able to work a couple of shifts.”
Selene hums as if mulling this over, curling a lock of her hair around her slender fingers. “I’ll miss seeing you there, but this sounds like a great opportunity, Viv! I’m happy for you. Maybe one day you’ll be on one of the ships, hm?”
Vivienne snorts. “I don’t know about that…”
“What, you’ve never wanted to sail? Feel the salty sea air on your face, smell the freedom of the waves?” Selene opens her arms wide and flops down on the bed dramatically, her curls bouncing into her face before she brushes them aside. “See new places, fight pirates?!”
The snort evolves into a curt, amused laugh. “I don’t know about the ‘delivery worker to sailor’ pipeline is so direct, babe. The freedom part, that does sound fun though. Not having to answer to anyone but the crew you trust.”
Selene grins up at Vivienne, turning over on her side to rest her head back on the pillow. “Someday, I’d like to sail. Maybe even be a pirate. Would you come with me, be my first mate?” She winks, earning another chuckle from Vivienne.
But for a moment, she does try to envision it. She had never seen a life for herself outside of the city, outside of Breland, away from her family, from her brother. For as beautiful and enrapturing as Selene is, she isn’t sure it’s enough to warrant the risk.
“Oh, I think we both know I’m not your first mate.”
“You know what I mean!”
She leaned over to press a kiss to Vivienne’s scarred cheek, wrapping her arms around her and the two women fell into the covers in a laughing heap. Vivienne might have protested more, but whatever kept sweet, innocent Selene from asking about details she couldn’t disclose made the following months easier to bear.
---
The door silently clicks behind Vivienne, careful footfalls soft against the ground. She makes her way across the room to the bundle of blankets in the bed but to her surprise, it is otherwise empty.
“Hm…” she muses out loud to herself. This wasn’t the first time this month she came home to not see Selene hunkered into the plush pillows with the blankets tucked up to her chin, letting out little snores. At least she didn’t have to worry about Selene catching the lingering wisps of iron and grime on her that she hadn’t had time to clean off.
She had been able to sate the young bard’s curiosity with minimal details. General locations in the city, made up co-workers, mostly fabricated tales of her night shifts to conceal the fact that in actuality she had been honing her skills with daggers and lockpicks. It was getting increasingly difficult as she asked more intricate questions, some of which were met with annoyed and brief responses. Long days and longer nights were making Vivienne’s temper shorter.
Running wet hands through her hair to somewhat wash it, Vivienne’s lips press to a thin line. Why did she even care what Selene thinks or knows? It shouldn’t matter. She doesn’t need her approval to do what she wants, what she knows will benefit her family. Then why was there a tightness in her chest coming back to an empty apartment?
Vivienne meets the cold gaze of her reflection in the cracked mirror, combing her hair back to be somewhat presentable for her shift at the tavern. Her calloused fingertips brush over the fresh scar across her nose with a wince. Didn’t have anything to cover that with. She sighs and pulls on a clean shirt, gingerly stretching her bruised arm through the sleeve. The less anyone knew, the better.
---
The cycle continued for another handful of months; mornings at the tavern, nights at the syndicate, a complete gamble if she was coming home to a warm bed or an empty one. She learned to steel herself for the latter, convincing herself that it wouldn’t have mattered had it been anyone else, so she should ignore that little pang in her stomach. And besides, the time she did still get to spend with Selene was still fun, as if nothing had changed when clearly so much had.
Had she been a more insightful person, Vivienne may have spotted the little differences before it had been too late. The way Selene’s grumpy morning banter had waned, that the questions were replaced with defeated silence, fewer kisses, fewer little flirty songs sung under her breath as Selene helped Vivienne do her makeup. They had settled into this dance of almost strangers again, keeping each other at arm’s length, one to protect a truth and one to protect a heart.
And then the war ended.
Selene had burst into the tavern on the otherwise quiet morning, the bard a whirlwind of skirts and curls. She slammed her hands on the bar top in front of Vivienne, eyes wide and a smile spread across her rounded face. “The war! Is! Over! It’s over. V-Viv, it’s over. I can go home.”
The glass she had been polishing nearly slipped from Vivienne’s grasp and she set it down on the table to steady herself, processing Selene’s words.
“Really?”
“Really!”
The silence that hung between them was palpable. Selene practically vibrated with excitement while Vivienne tried to connect all the pieces in her head. She had forgotten that Sharn was not Selene’s home. The war pushed many people from their homes and she had been separated from her family, forced in different directions to escape.
“That’s…that’s great, Selene! I’m so happy for you. Surely it’ll take some time to secure passage, but, I mean. You’re really going home?”
Selene paused with a quizzical smile. “Of course I am.” She reached out to take one of Vivienne’s hands in hers, “You could come with me, if you want.”
“I…” Vivienne let out a sigh and squeezed Selene’s hand. She couldn’t. She couldn’t leave her family, everything she had already worked for, and for what? A pretty face? A pretty face with a warm smile that made her feel impervious, a voice that melted her worries away, a soft touch that made the world feel a little less harsh. Vivienne didn’t know what to do with that, with the feelings bubbling up in her throat as she tried to find the right words.
“You can’t.” Selene finished for her, the edge of disappointment in her tone nearly causing Vivienne to wince. “I understand, Viv. Sharn is your home, you have a life and people you care about here. Just…think on it, okay? I’m going to try to secure passage out as soon as I can but surely I won’t be the only one, so there’s still time. And if you don’t, well…don’t forget about me.”
“Forget you? Never.”
Selene had pressed her cheeks together and pulled her in for a kiss before rushing out of the tavern again, likely to try to make arrangements. As soon as the door closed behind her, Vivienne’s stomach dropped. A clean cut is always best, the voice of her mentor whispered in her mind, less messy.
That was the last shift she took at the tavern, and the last time she saw Selene. But every now and then Vivienne swears she hears her laugh on the wind through the sails, catches a glimpse of her curls rounding a corner, a phantom warmth in her hand. And each time that knife digs deeper into her chest. She didn’t have a name for it until it was too late.
Unusual Allies
The words seized Vivienne's breath in the chest, the weight of them only further burdened by the genuine tone in which they were delivered.
Best friends.
Best friends?
This was wholly unexpected. What does that even mean? Especially coming from a simple man who was likely taken advantage of at every turn in his life. She wasn't taught how to have friends in the syndicate; people were tools, a means to an end, all in various stages of fucking each other over. The spider among roses weaving her web to pull at the strings when needed and cut them loose after their purpose was served. Outside of her little brother, she hardly considered anyone in her life to be her friend, let alone best friend.
A smile crosses her lips, its warmth practiced but perhaps this time a touch more sincere, her reply hopefully securing her a brick house of an ally on this damned boat.
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