Character InfoName: Gwynimere Aeris, “Gwyn” for short
Race: Magical Human
Sex: Female
Age: Just turned 30
Faction: Old Magic
Power: Wind
Rune or code: Raidho (Ride-ho): Travel, both in physical terms and those of lifestyle direction. A journey, evolution, change of place or setting. Seeing a larger perspective. Seeing the right move for you to make and deciding upon it. Personal rhythm, world rhythm, dance of life. Perspective is gained from a new vantage point. Movement, motion, taking charge, being in control, initiative, adventure, decision-making, direction, living in the present, movement within one’s natural limits, establishment of creative rhythm in activities.
Appearance: Just slightly above average height (around 5’7), Gwyn is lithe and gracefully put together with willowy, deer-like limbs: slender, but strong. She has an oval face with high cheek bones and a femininely strong chin which gives her a regal, aristocratic sort of appearance. Pale skin is juxtaposed against raven-black hair that’s kept short (about chin-length) and often messy; aside from the naturally unruly curl she has in her hair, Gwyn is a Wind Elemental, and wind + long hair just don’t mix. Her eyes are a slate gray, sometimes with an underlying hint of blue, and they pretty much always have a sparkle of impish mischief in them.
Personality: It would be easy to believe Elementals were descended from faeries, for Gwyn’s sprite-like disposition holds all the flighty mischief of the little people. She is impulsive, flirty, daring, playful, and full of laughter, always ready for an adventure and never happy staying in one spot for long. As a child, she was nothing but trouble, way more than a handful for her family and her teachers combined. As an adult, she has lost none of the impish play she possessed as a child; she laughs often and doesn’t take anything very seriously. Despite this happy-go-lucky, extroverted appearance, Gwyn actually remains quite guarded on the inside; having grown up fairly self-reliant, she dislikes divulging her whole self to any one person, as that type of vulnerability is exceptionally uncomfortable to her.
Strengths: Conjuring and weaving the wind is her specialty, and her craft is as natural to her as breathing. Gwyn is also extremely disarming, what with her playful smile and good humor, and she has learned to use this to her advantage. Additionally, despite her fairly impetuous behavior, Gwyn is extremely observant and strangely rational which helps to keep her friends level headed, though it doesn’t always work on herself. She’s also fairly perceptive about strangers and has a good eye for picking those with magic in their blood from a crowd of non-magic folk.
Weaknesses: Capricious and spontaneous, Gwyn is not always the most reliable person and was a terrible student. She rarely takes anything seriously, even those topics/situations which she should. This lack of seriousness often makes her come off as disrespectful, lazy, or ungrateful, and although she is none of these things, it has kept her from getting as far in life as she could have gone. Finally, although Gwyn is friendly with nearly everyone, she is exceptionally guarded and would always rather suffer through problems alone than admit vulnerability by confiding in another.
Biography: Nobody is quite sure how Gwyn mastered her element, considering her flighty personality; she was hardly consistent in class and had neither the focus nor the drive to practice diligently. Yet master the wind she did; perhaps she was just so in tune with her element that it came to her naturally, but whatever the reason, Gwyn was as comfortable and natural with moving the air as she was moving her own body. This innate gift has been her only saving grace, otherwise she might’ve been chucked out of the Elemental camp ages ago. It’s not that Gwyn is bad, or unhelpful, or anything even remotely like that, but war is a serious business and there’s never been a serious bone in that girl’s body.
Let’s start with her parents. Both were Wind Elementals, with her father having descended from an extremely old and reputable wind family. Her mother, on the other hand, was descended from a family not quite as old or reputable. However, they were a truly happy couple, and both were eager to see the war ended and a new life begun, especially since they were pregnant with Gwyn at the time the rift was opened. Of course, peace and prosperity did not come with the brand new world.
Gwyn’s father was killed in the Great Betrayal, but Gwyn’s mother, at 7 months pregnant, was able to run and hide until the most brutal part of the slaughter had passed. That day, Gwyn lost most of her family. The sole survivor on her father’s side was her stately and unforgiving grandmother (she lost all three of her children in the Great Betrayal), while on her mother’s side she kept both grandparents and an aunt who was only 15 when she came through the rift.
And so Gwyn was born into her mother’s family who took them in and helped care for her and her mother. Being raised primarily by women, Gwyn was taught to be self reliant from the start, and she was always the kind of child who was happy to take care of herself…a bit too much, actually, as she was constantly wandering and getting into trouble. Her greatest joy was making her mother laugh, for her mother always looked so sad.
When she came of age and began her training, Gwyn was… all over the place. Her wind magic was unreliable, sometimes nonexistent and sometimes a downright gale. She was petulant and frustrated and hated the repetitive regularity of school which she found to be stifling and boring. At first, her progress was slow, but as she came to intuitively understand the magic that flowed in her veins, Gwyn rapidly began outstripping her classmates. Gwyn always said she had decided to make an alliance with her element, rather than conquer or control it; her teachers just called her naturally gifted. Whatever it was, it worked, and Gwyn became an extremely talented, borderline artistic Elemental of the Wind.
She loved the wind- not so much for fighting, just for being there. It was comfortable for her, like a fuzzy pair of socks or a cup of mom’s most soul-warming soup. Had she been a truly dedicated soldier, there is no telling how far Gwyn would have gone. As it were, Gwyn enjoyed using her gift for fun and tricks, and she preferred talking and connecting with people over fighting and killing them. Through a string of strange events, including her grandmother (who, although entirely flustered by Gwyn’s behavior, was damned determined her granddaughter and the sole remaining Aeris would do something honorable with her life) pulling some weight, Gwyn ended up as a diplomat. The job of scouting for new recruits suited Gwyn quite well, and she enjoyed trips into town (and occasionally even the city) and meeting new people.
Gwyn cherishes and loves her people and her history, and she, like most of her kind, does not trust the ESPs and their dependence on technology. However, Gwyn would be more than willing to take a chance and try for peace if given the opportunity. She believes anybody can be good if given the chance, and she prefers a cautious tolerance over bigotry.
Other: Gwyn is Aria’s cousin. Their mothers are sisters.
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