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Name: Harper Rafferty
Nickname: ----

Age: 16

Birthday: November 23

Sign: Sagittarius

Gemstone: Topaz

Blood Type: AB+

Fav. Food: Brussel Sprouts

Hated Food: Bananas

School: Crystal Academy


Hobbies:
Horseback Riding - Harper has had intermittent lessons in the caring and riding sports of horses from the time she was 10, and was interested in horses long before then. Her parents greatly approved of the hobby and found ways to work it into the budget whenever possible, partially because it made their daughter happy, but also because it increased her chances of receiving an acceptance letter from the prestigious Crystal Academy. Though the esteem for the school was passed down to Harper, her main motivation remained simply to work with the horses. To pick up extra funding, she has been working at a barn in the urban sprawl of Destiny City since she was 14. There, her work usually consists of mucking stalls, grooming, and cleaning the riding equipment; however, it is always an extra-gratifying day when she is assigned to give riding exercise. Riding is a combination of exhilaration -- going for that perfect show hunter run -- and relaxation -- just trotting about the ring. Of course, once at Crystal, Harper had to be a part of the Equestrian Club and now participates in regular lessons through the school. She is strictly an English rider and her favorite horse is Janissary, a lightly-expressed bay roan Arabian.

Old Movies - Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, Bing Crosby; A Star is Born, starring Judy Garland; Laurence Olivier in Wuthering Heights; and even the occasional Plan 9 From Outer Space. When Harper has a spare moment, she'll usually be relaxing with an old, classic movie with an emphasis on the 'old' -- her favorites are always black and white! The genre doesn't matter much from there, whether it be one with spontaneous song and dance backed by a big band ensemble or a suspenseful drama that ends in tragedy. They're a wonderful, often sappy escape from everyday life. For those Harper knows very well, she'll pop in the DVD and attempt to sing and along to while she does other work.

Supernatural / Paranormal: All kids have certain magazines and books hidden underneath their beds, at the back of the closet, or in any secret crevice away from all sorts of prying eyes. For Harper, those hidden reading materials are all about the supernatural. She thinks, rightly, that her parents would frown on the interest and do their best to forbid her from further useless diversions. Thus, she also feels a little guilty about it, herself, when she realizes that time would probably be better spent catching up on geometry rather than the latest "spook story" -- just not guilty enough to stop. Harper's interest is mostly in the realm of urban legends and horrors, with gray aliens and such taking up the fringes. Not nearly a zealot, she also keeps this hobby to herself... unless, perhaps, someone else showed a similar interest. With all of the strange activity in Destiny City, it's understandable to want to share!

Archery - Though she only first held a bow and arrow upon attending Crystal Academy, Harper developed a liking for the sport, which required patience, a keen eye, and, if the wind was particularly bad, a bit of luck. She was introduced to the sport during 'club week,' when the clubs on campus would have something of an exhibition fair to attract new members. About fourth on the laundry list of things she wanted to try, it somehow managed to distinguish itself even as she failed at any semblance of skill in a clumsy mess at the try-out. Afterward, Harper continued to stop by the range in her free time to improve herself, mostly through books, online demonstrations, and help from anyone on the range who felt like helping. She really likes the exact nature of the sport, which appeals to her scientific side. She uses school equipment out of necessity, but hopes to save up for her own set.


Virtues:
Diligence: Whether it is writing a paper or cleaning her room, Harper has a determined focus on the task at hand. That focus includes completing the task and completing it well -- her scruples say that leaving something sloppily done is just as bad as having not done it. Any outward complaints about the work are rare, though she does not consider constructive criticism and her frank opinion of the matter to be a complaint. Of course, not all things in life are fun, which Harper tries to answer by making it fun! Sometimes it's simply envisioning the result ("a nice, clean room will feel great!"). Other situations require being more elaborate, with imagined dramatic circumstances like saving the world depends on cleaning the fridge. Harper prefers to finish one task before starting another, though she does juggle distractions in terms of importance.

Ambition: Possessing a great personal drive, Harper eagerly jumps into new projects and challenges. She earnestly wants to make the world a better place -- so what if the most she can do right now is make someone's day a little easier by doing her best on school assignments and work? For her, the payoff is being able to sleep more easily at night knowing nothing is hanging over her head.

Creative Solutions: Harper approaches issues from many angles and isn't concerned about not adhering to the standard if it seems to get the job done right. It's not so much that she dislikes the mundane, but that she does not see the options in terms of 'typical' and 'atypical.' Each satisfactory option is as valid as the other, simply with different approaches. This means she's very goal oriented! If anything, Harper sees options in degrees of 'efficient' and 'meandering.' Ironically, this is part of the reason she enjoys the hard sciences in school -- results are created very efficiently, with numbers and chemicals, yet they can be manipulated in new and, sometimes, unexpected ways for different results.


Flaws:
Escapism: Sometimes coping with what life throws at you can be too hard, right? So, why deal with it when just shunting the real issue to the side is much easier? Rather than confronting an issue bothering her, Harper instead tries to ignore it and hopes it will disappear on its own with time. This is usually accomplished by taking up a different, easier, more black-and-white, or simply less pressure-sensitive task that she can pour all of her attention on instead. This might mean reading a book or pulling weeds up in her mother's garden -- it may not be something Harper necessarily enjoys on its own, but it's something she can complete. This attitude feeds into her tendency for romantic (in the classic sense) naivety, where she will believe in what she wants to be true.

Personal Honour Code: Harper's honour code generally aligns with common human ethics -- killing, stealing, maiming is wrong, etc. However, they can also be drastically out of sync. Perhaps a dog deserves to be saved from the train tracks more than a thief, because the dog is innocent. Perhaps that victim was due the arson on their property because they didn't donate blood. The real danger is not knowing when these judgments may come about or how they may manifest -- to an outside observer, she may appear somewhat chaotic, but in Harper's mind it is all quite structured. Because of this "gray area"/flexible code, Harper can also be influenced by those who manage to gain a certain level of respect; which means she is more likely to bow out her own judgment, supplanting it with the other person's.

Severe: When carrying out a task, Harper can be a little too goal-oriented. She has learned to play nicely with others -- and usually does not mind doing so if it gets the job done -- but the option of "quick and harsh" is never completely removed from play. If there is a weak link, she thinks about how to cut it loose before how to help it and, if it's left up to her, that's exactly what gets done. It's nothing personal! ... Which is part of the problem.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION

Eyes: brown (any shade)

Hair: teal/turquoise (any shade except neon), soft / fluffy pixie cut
x, x

Face: heart shaped; fair skin

Clothes: Crystal Academy uniform, with the dress code strictly followed everyday. When not attending classes, Harper wears comfortable clothes. She does not have an eye for fashion, so most of her wardrobe is t-shirts and jeans or khakis.

About Nyx As ganked from Wikipedia.




About Phantasmagoria As ganked from Dictionary.com.


About Phantasmagoria by Sierra


Phantasmagoria Sphere

I read over this concept, and I just wanted to tell you that I bloody love your idea. Seriously. XD

For your worries, it looks like you're specific enough with your attacks to get across the idea that you're looking for without stepping on any toes or becoming more powerful than your level. Obviously since this is just a basis, no need to tell you to look for weaknesses and such yet, haha. I love the way it progresses gradually into something more frightening.

One thing though: I think you meant, for "Bellow of the Oilliphéist!" to say that she invokes the Oilliphéist, not the Pooka? <3

I like what you have going so far! Keep up the good work!

Also, I just wanted to let you know that the name "Connolly" is already taken by an existing character.

So, trying to wrap my head around your concept: "The Fili" = shadowy creatures lurking at the edge of one's imagination, would that be a good way to put it concisely? o:

Awesum, that works alright in my book! :> Starter and Super attacks seem good, but the Eternal attack should ideally be a bit different. Think of her attack at that level as the ability to channel her sphere to its full potential. Maybe do something like invoke the realm / domain of the fili in a certain area instead of an individual creature?

Aaaand back from hiatus! I'm going to start organizing the thread so it doesn't look so much like it was run over by a bus, while implementing more of these crits. heart


That's a good point -- I was initially scared to make it change because of the nature of her sphere, but I'm feeling much better now after having some crits and you mentioning it. I'll put some thoughtwork into and see what I can come up with. C:


'Pholus' was chosen because he was a centaur (emphasis on person/horse aspect) who was more civilized than the others (taming aspect). Further, there was the matter of his myth taking place in a cave, and the darkness and storytelling elements inherently related to that, especially in Greek mythos. So basically, her name is a remnant of an (much) earlier version of the sphere, where I was looking at more general bard and wild-myth controlling qualities. I wish that could have built up to a more inspiring explanation, but there you have it. xD;;

I'm glad you have brought this up, though, because it is more or less a remnant. I wasn't aware of Irish/Celtic named heavily bodies, so I'll do some investigating to see if any fit! I realize that I was never married to using 'Pholus' and by now I probably should have been. If there is one concern with the Celtic names, it is making sure they are somewhat easy to pronounce to English speakers. *nod*

I welcome any suggestions you may come across in your class, too! I've had to self-teach myself a lot of this, so I realize that there could be blind spots I'm not aware of.

Turns out that jumping off of the hiatus wagon was a bit premature last time, so here we go again! I hope, at least, in the meantime I was able to drag the thread out from under the aforementioned bus. I'm really feeling on board with Harper now, so things are coming more naturally. Of course, I still welcome any and all crits, for I'm sure there are places to improve. Some areas I'm especially interested in are: attacks and flaws.

One big change that I feel I should outright address is her senshi name. While the Celtic/Irish-influenced heavenly bodies were very scarce (which is a tragedy), I discovered that Nyx was still unused. Since outright darkness is an unavailable sphere anyway, I didn't feel too guilty plucking it up. After all, very few lurky, paranoia-inducing critters found in sunny fields. ;3