Name: Arima
Stage: Prentice
Race: Earthling - Water
Gender: Girl
3 Base Traits: Proud, Shy, Quiet, Dreamer
Personality: Despite the realization that Arima is indeed a Matori, the girl was raised to be proud as any Oban Noble. Due to this she was previously quite high strung and would come off brashly to those who questioned her - perhaps a bit of that was fueled even by her insecurity as she began to grow older and realized that yes she did look different from other Obans. Yet, Arima still was proud in the fact that she is the Lady's daughter and is quite knowledgeable. When it comes to discussing literature and other things that can be found in books the girl will quickly find an answer. Herbs, mathematics, stories, potions, magics, anything that has ever been recorded she may know as the Lady's personal library was quite vast. Such pride, however, still does not prepare her for the true outside world as there is much that she needs to learn. However, after learning about the truth - the fact that she was basically a slave in this society where she had believed herself a noble- the girl became more of a recluse. She would prefer to stay with her books than to even dare interact with anyone outside of the family...
It is to be noted that through her vast amount of reading, Arima has gained a significant amount of intelligence over the years, giving her an elevated vocabulary, an active imagination, and an open mind. Despite being quiet and less trusting of others, Arima still has a mind of her own and often prefers to make her own decisions. The only person she truly listens to is the Lady, as she is her mother who has accepted her without hesitation and for that the girl will forever cherish her opinions and decisions.
As it is Arima is a dreamer. Her passions and hopes allow her to conjure up images of an ideal world. The stories that she reads in her home as well fuel a passion for adventure and fantasy. Magic has always captivated her and hearing stories about spirits and other acts fill her with delight. While it is a nice escape from the reality of her cage-like situation the girl still may one day get easily manipulated into a situation by someone who takes advantage of such a pure and innocent heart. Also being a dreamer may be nice, but it may result in the girl being too confident in her own ability to fight/survive in the world (something greatly hindered in her pampered life) - hinting at another harsh lesson of reality upon the horizon.
That is if someone could steal her away from the library of books that she has retreated into. Pulling Arima out before her encounter with the Lady's relatives may have been an easy task, but now the girl is a bit more skittish of the outside world. Even now she speaks quietly and often holds her tongue whereas in her earlier years the girl may have even spoken out boldly about the things she believed in. Now she's more keen to just keep her eyes glued to a book rather than a crowd of people. So while she enjoys curling up with a book beneath the grove of trees in the Lady's private gardens venturing back outside is another story...but perhaps with time a bit of her own spirit will return and curiosity will take root once more pushing Arima to take a chance.
Description: Arima is an albino Matori and due to that is naturally a super pale version of most matori with light blue two toned coloring and almost white-yellow eyes.She still looks childlike and is very petite with delicate features and big, childlike eyes.
Her hair is white with some hints of faded blue/green with long curls that when let loose hit her lower back.
Clothing:
Her outfit/hair/accessories are similar to this...
[xb]
Can be mixed with these ideas as well for clothing/hair...[x] and [x2][x2]
Arima is often dressed like a doll and is always covered in long, loose silks. While she needs breathable fabric for the hot deserts, her skin also needs protection against the sun so it is not strange to see her hiding away in a cloak similar to this [x] - Mostly only when out for long periods, else she is inside the home of the Lady and therefore is less covered.
She does typically also wear golden hair pieces and armbands, anklets, bracelets, and etc.
She always wears a golden collar gifted to her by the Lady - from when the Matori were still slaves as it protected her as the Lady's property at the time, even so Arima still cherishes it as a valuable gift even after learning its true intent-
History:
Arima had a cursed birth.
Arima never was told the pain that her mother went through in order to give birth to her. She never knew the instant rejection that his father had towards her once his wife passed in childbirth and left him with a ghost for a child. What type of sign was it to have a child not only kill their mother, but also for her to be drained of color save for crimson eyes? Not to mention that even should he keep the babe it appeared weak and almost on the verge of death itself...
It was because of his fear and superstitions that were passed between the slaves that she was tossed out. Many would have taken her for dead due to her small size and still state, but it was as the moon rose that a fateful desert breeze finally caused the chilled baby to cry out.
An older Oban of noble birth was walking around the edges of the oasis that night. Having left her guard behind at home the Lady Cyrillia was grieving for the loss of her only daughter. Sickness had taken the frail girl from her and the lady felt hopeless. Years after years she had been warned that she would lose her daughter early on, but she had lived in denial. She had fought fate tooth and nail by bringing in all the medical specialists she could find. Eventually though her daughter's lungs had finally given out as promised and she passed away in her sleep.
Hearing the cries she felt an ache in her heart that had become so numb. What was the crying? Was that the tears of her lost daughter? Delusional and still in mourning the lady ran through the sands to find the source. There tucked away in a ragged bundle was the pale figure of a baby crying out. "Did I find a ghost?" Amazed she reached out to cradle the pale creature in her arms, "What are you little one?" At her words the crying stopped and a pair of ruby eyes opened to stare at the Oban in wonder. As Cyrillia moved her hand towards the face the tiniest of hands opened to grab onto a finger. Instantly a smile lit up the baby's face and the Lady found herself in love.
Even though pale fins peeked out from the snow white hair the Lady did not care. This little girl was a present from the gods for her to find. I am no longer without a daughter. The Lady made certain to raise her Arima, her spirit, up with just as much love as she had once held for her other daughter. Not worried about Arima being a Matori Cyrillia used the guise of a slave to keep her new daughter safe.
It was fortunate for Arima that she was found by the Lady. A kind, hearted woman she stood out against the crowd and always believed in helping those beneath her. So despite having the Oban pride, the Lady used her superiority instead to bestow generosity among others. Her husband, a stern man, had never the heart to go against his loving wife after their daughter had passed. So instead of going against her wishes he allowed her to have a separate home in Jatine where she could live freely away from the high pressures of Oban society. He, himself, would retire there during quieter months of the year before returning to business in Sulburi.
Arima was never allowed to leave their home in Jatine and often due to her fatigue under the sun would willingly stay indoors. As a security the Lady placed a collar around Arima's neck as a present for one of her daughter's birthdays. Not having the heart to tell her the true reason behind the collar, the Lady watched on as Arima cherished the present and never took it off.
Books filled her life as she could rarely venture outside as the sunlight harmed her eyes and easily burned her skin. Despite fears that her sight may be affected by her strange condition, Arima has proven that she could actually read and learn writing. Her sight, miraculously, has also stayed strong - save for in the sunlight where the brilliant light easily gives her headaches.
Despite it all Arima loved life. She had a home with a loving mother and did not mind being confined to the walls of the house. The outside world was apparently a scary place and it was rare that she got the privilege of venturing outside. She was raised and taught as any noble of her age would be. In fact while she was a child the girl actually called herself an Oban several times. It made many of the Matori servants laugh to themselves, but none had the heart to break it to her. She was not truly her mother's daughter, but some strange creature that had been picked up by the mistress into their home.
Still it was a miracle. With Arima living there the halls lit up again and life was back into the house. The Lady was happy and rather than mournful she found that the bright eyed spirit of hers was full of life. "Momma, momma!" Arima would call at as a toddler before bolting down the stairs to latch onto the Lady, "Welcome home!"
When she was a bit older relatives came into the house and that was the first time her beautiful world was shattered. The Lady's distant cousins had come for an impromptu visit so Arima was out in the courtyard when the party came in. She did not understand the strange gazes or why she was being sneered at. "Who are those grumpy people?" She found herself asking.
"My relatives."
"They don't seem anything like you though."
A small laugh left the Lady's strained face, "I know."
That evening Arima found one of the Lady's cousins breaching into her quarters. He demanded favors from her and approached her with such ill intent that the finally felt fear. "Stop it what are you doing!?" Outraged she found herself flailing against his much sturdier body, "Let me go! I'm the daughter of the Lady!"
"Shut up you Matori." A sneering gaze looked into her eyes, "You aren't an Oban, you're a slave. A valuable one at that."
Arima fell back in silence. A slave, her? But her momma was the Lady...it made no sense. Hours of fighting and of listening to dirty slavers talk about her placed the puzzle together. Oba wasn't a sanctuary for the Matori like she had thought. Her mother wasn't her mother...she wasn't....Arima felt tears burning in her gaze. She was alone and scared. Was she going to be stuck in chains now?
Only a child Arima didn't understand the complexity of the world she lived in. The reasons that the Lady kept her inside and didn't get along with other Obans was simple. She wanted her adopted daughter to live a free and innocent life - something that her noble relatives would never understand. How could a Matori even be considered a daughter of such an elite noble? Even though her husband had passed on the Lady still had a rich inheritance which in the eyes of her relatives included such a rare slave as Arima. Indeed, Arima was fortunate to have been taken in by her rather than being sold as a rare prize.
Her screams thankfully alerted a few more of the Matori who lived in the great house.Their presence protected her from the male until the Lady could be alerted. Thankfully when she brought her guards there was no harm done, but Arima had passed out in a fit and was laying on the floor from all the shock... It was the next morning that she woke up in her familiar bed with the sleeping figure of the Lady leaning against the wall. Her mother was here! She hadn't been taken away by that man after all. Still the girl was broken hearted as her peaceful world had been destroyed. She talked with the Lady for hours to find out the truth and was disappointed that there was no trace of her Matori family.
Her heart was shattered to learn of such barriers that prevented her from being an Oban noble that was her mother's true daughter, but still Arima stayed strong. The Lady had taken so much care of her and obviously loved her...while she stayed here then her life would be safe. Even once the Matori were freed and the war was over the girl found herself taking more and more care of the ailing woman. She was the one always by the Lady's side to help her when her old age slowed her down. It was not uncommon either for others -those that stayed as servants in the household and didn't return to Matori or elsewhere- to find Arima with the older lady by her side as she would read stories to the weakening Oban.
And currently Arima still chooses to stay with the Lady. Even though she has a curiosity of her homeland the girl doesn't want to leave the only mother she has ever known in her time of need. Since the Lady's husband passed away while Arima was just a child, she is the only family that the Lady has left - save for those distant relatives that are held at bay, especially those who visited on that fateful day.
Notes: Yes, I did get permission in advance for the Albino traits. x3
