Name: Fiora Lucilia Cenelys
Age: 19
Gender: Female
Personality: Characterized by a refined composure and an unflinching gaze, Fiora exemplifies a quiet sophistication and majesty that is often only found in the bloodlines of long-standing aristocratic families. Appearing to possess a sanguine outlook towards the world around her, she outwardly expresses a recurrent cheerfulness, and acts with plaisance and courtesy alike in social situations in regards to those that she is not particularly familiar with. While she may seem to be rather likeable because of these traits, she is in fact a much more sharp-tongued and critical character in private life, more demanding than not with her words and very condemnatory with respect to anyone who is unlucky enough to become the subject of her ire. Highly capricious and mercurial in her behavior, she might be entirely satisfied one moment and yet vehemently cynical the next; though she has a certain set of expectations for those she knows well, no one is quite sure what they constitute, and her advice to others is often very vague.
Supremely confident of herself and her abilities, she exudes an aura of imperious command. Although not an individual that would be classified as extremely talkative – in fact largely reserved, in spite of her exacting nature – she nevertheless manages to impress upon others, with only a few words, what actions she requires of them with perfect forthrightness; this is, perhaps, a variety of egoism, but she walks with a resolute self-righteousness that is difficult to dispute, and in any case, her judgment is usually not impaired enough for her to issue directives to those who would take offense at it or otherwise be noncompliant. Preferring to lean towards concision rather than verbosity, she states her intent with only a few words, but does not differ very much from others on the total number of statements made.
Contrary to her ephemeral form and neatness of style, however, she has a tendency to become somewhat nervous when the situation at hand spirals out of predictability; her normal impassiveness and clarity is shaken when under abnormal circumstances, and almost seems to dissolve entirely under immense stress; she retreats into a kind of awkward silence, stunned by uncertainty and doubt. Yet, her overall personality has not yet abolished its few fragments of innocence, and her mind, though somewhat alien compared to those of ordinary people (like that of all clairsentients), still retains a rare fairness that only remains because of her sheltered upbringing.
Appearance: Graceful without seeming particularly delicate, Fiora's physique is well-defined and her features, smooth. Free-flowing hair, a shimmering spectrum of lightly aureate - almost sterling - strands, cascades down past her waist; parted into two in the front, they toss about in a carefree way, their only restrictions being a crimson bow, loosely tied at the back of her head in order to impart some shape and semblance of organization to her locks, and a velvet half-beret, placed at an angle at the crown of her head. Her skin is a pale cream, and her hands, gossamer-like, reach out lightly but strongly towards whatever she happens to be paying attention to at the moment. Her eyes are a clear, perceptive sapphire, representative of her personality, and brim with determination. A self-assured smile hangs on her lips perpetually, at times a sign of mockery and others, of encouragement.
Shrouded in glowing azure, accentuated with vivid garnet, Fiora's attire is exquisitely designed and capably woven. A two-layered cerulean taffeta dress with a threefold hem, the lowest of which reaches down to her ankles, is her outermost garment; adorned with short Juliette sleeves and bordered with gold thread, its translucent color sets the tone for the rest of her clothing. The petticoat beneath, fabricated from burgundy satin, exhibits a glossy sheen, and seems to add something which is at once harmonious and discordant with the blue of the dress; a hint of emotional intensity and passion, perhaps, or the invisible implication of a storm of rose petals.
A brilliantine corset, clasped with ornate fasteners, sits at her waist, though it does not look extremely uncomfortable, being only sparsely reinforced by ivory, and thus is mostly cloth. Beneath her dress, she wears a simple white linen chemise, decorated with patterns of clusters of snapdragons and freesias.
Other minor articles serve as garnish to her ensemble; chiefly among them in importance of function are a pair of ultramarine leather platform shoes, a fashionable pair of footwear and a useful booster of her apparent height alike. A brooch at her neck, gold inlaid with blue tourmaline, holds the mantle part of her dress in place. A platinum necklace, decorated with shards of chipped ruby, is hidden beneath her dress's mantle and out of view most of the time; it holds a certain degree of significance for her, and its pendant - a resplendent faceted carving of a phoenix from pyrope garnet, remarkably free of impurities - is a rather conspicuous sign to others of her heritage, being also found on the heraldic crest of her house. Finally, a silken rose is often found in her hands, or in one of her pockets; an otherwise ordinary object, this serves as a focus for a few of her specific applications of arcana, having been imbued with various lengthy incantations to shorten their casting time.
Background: The only daughter of Lord Marcus Herenius Cenelys and his wife, Elaine Menesthia Cenelys, and thus the sole heiress of House Cenelys, Fiora was born into a position of great power, though perhaps not a position that many would truly desire, if they understood the risks. She had a peaceful childhood; the Cenelys estate was vast, and she had essentially free rein over its grounds, so naturally she put it to good use by spending her hours frolicking among the fragrant wildflowers. However, beginning at the age of six or so, she began to exhibit signs of clairsentience, that psionic art which often drives its users into insanity and a gift (or a curse, depending on one's perspective) that has been passed down the House's bloodline, though its occurrence is not particularly frequent. Marcus recognized its signs immediately, and sought out a Nemaesian scholar of renown and professor at the Collegium Magiae, Darien Asmaris. The mage bestowed upon the girl a single gift, a pyrope garnet in the shape of a phoenix, and bid her parents keep it close by her in order to suppress the madness that would often surface in practitioners of clairsentience; in addition to this, he presented them with two options – either keep the girl's gift dormant, and teach her another magic; or else develop it and in time come to learn to embrace it. Her parents chose the former, knowing fully well that though the latter might grant her great power, it will also eventually lead to her undoing. Darien acquiesced, and set the gemstone into a platinum pendant – having the appearance of an heirloom only, it serves as a seal of sorts.
Life returned to a semblance of normality, and Fiora was happy for a time; a tutor was hired to school her in mathematics, grammar, and the arts, but she was left to her own devices a great amount of the time. Thrilled at being allowed by Elaine to peruse whatever she wished to study, she became increasingly interested in the performance of music after sampling a wide variety of disciplines; however, her period of intensity lasted but two years – music is a cruel pursuit, and her fiery energy and consuming eagerness had been worn away by the relentless practice and grueling exercises that were the lot of a musician. Though even many of the untalented force themselves along the path, it is far too much to expect of an eight-year-old girl to possess such determination, and her desire to produce music had faded away, replaced by an unwillingness to interact at all with the outside world. Worried about their daughter's well-being, Marcus and Elaine consulted their close friends; and so, one misty morning in early Meselo, a violet-robed, dark-haired woman appeared on the doorstep of the Cenelys mansion, with a large triangular case containing some sort of instrument slowly following – Thalassa Azorea, a famous harpist and a former schoolmate of Elaine's, had taken an interest in the family's plight. Elaine's verbal efforts at persuading a meeting were futile at first, but unbeknownst to anyone else, Thalassa had been present at one of Fiora's earlier recitals, and had sensed remarkable ability and talent from the girl; persistence, thankfully for all parties involved, eventually provoked a reaction from the then-withdrawn Fiora, and after hearing about the identity of the musician in front of her, she agreed tentatively to become her protégée for a time.
Thalassa was a teacher with very high standards, though not by any means unkind; she strived to become an exemplar of excellence in all that she did, regardless of any particular difficulties. The young Fiora was inspired by her personality, and the two developed a very close relationship, akin to that of one between mentor and pupil; they would meet twice every month on the afternoons of the first and thirteenth days, under the colorful awning of a tea shop by the name of The Sparkling Marzipan, and often the two would simply enter into casual conversation instead of focusing on music-related topics. It is not a coincidence that behind many great successes, there are masters who have passed on their knowledge, experience, and wisdom in a positive way to their disciples, and under Thalassa's guidance, Fiora developed the skills necessary for her to be recognized by society. As she continued with her studies and grew older, she began to accumulate a variety of awards, culminating in an invitation to become an orchestral performer for concerts funded by the emperor, an enthusiastic patron and dilettante of the arts. As an artist financed by the imperial treasury, Fiora was able to travel across the entirety of Helvenand, gaining experience and knowledge as she did so that could not ordinarily be accumulated through practice and self-improvement alone; when she returned to her home in the capital a year later, her skill much-enriched, she began to rise in popularity quickly as a young virtuoso. Surpassing in beauty as well as aptitude, she garnered a large amount of adulation from the populace. With fame, however, comes unwanted attention as well; five months prior to the present, during the widespread chaos in the capital during Caspenalia, some of her personal effects were lost, among them a certain piece of jewelry – it is still not known whom the perpetrators were. Since that time, she has begun to experience, at times, strange psychological phenomena; when queried about this by her father, Darien would only offer her a garnet with the exact same appearance as her previous, and a cryptic piece of advice: in order to find the answers to the questions posed by her visions, she would have to travel in the direction indicated by the gem he has given her.
