Age: 17 (Nameday 3557.01.14)
Sex: Female
Sexual Orientation: she hasn't figured it out yet and really doesn't care
Craft: none formally, purveyor of jewelry and other items that she makes/trades for
Rank: Trader
Location: Rivercrest Hold and surrounding minor holds, wherever there's a Gather (including Western Weyr)
Physical Description: A little above average height (about 5'9" or so), long sun-streaked auburn-brown hair that's usually tied back in a braid, fair skin tanned golden and littered with freckles across her cheeks and nose and shoulders, built slender and stronger than she looks, large blue-green eyes set in an oval face with a small determined mouth and a small, slightly upturned nose (and a dimple in her chin). She's acquainted with enough courtesans to know how to make herself appear older than the teenager she is. She usually wears comfortable shirts belted at the waist and pants tucked into boots, though she has been known to dress up on occasion; she usually adorns herself with some of the jewelry she makes, necklaces and cuff bracelets and the like.
Personality:
A spitfire with the instincts of a trader twice her age, Nerri is not someone to be taken lightly. She's lost both her parents to Thread, she's been kidnapped by pirates, thieves, and rival caravans, and she has come out of all of it a tough, fearless young woman who's more than capable of taking care of herself. Nerri is bright, friendly and personable with customers and friends alike, but she is also no-nonsense and can hold her own when cutting a deal or arranging a sale. She's doing quite well for herself, thank you very much.
Above anything else, Nerri is a survivor. She has learned how to be one the hard way, and she's very good at it. Fierce and determined, anyone who crosses her path soon realizes they're dealing with the human equivalent of an enraged tunnelsnake. This girl holds no quarter nor asks for any in a fight, or in anything really, from bartering to drinking contests (she has been known to drink the hardest pirate under the table just to show them). Nerri knows how to defend herself, too -- she's not afraid to kick, bite, claw and scream her way out of trouble. And she's pretty good with a knife. She has a volatile temper and a stubborn streak a mile long; if she doesn't get the kind of deal she wants, she will let you know in no uncertain terms. And loudly. VERY loudly. Nerri was loud as a child, and she's loud as a teen as well. It's one of her best defense mechanisms.
She does have a soft, vulnerable, romantic streak, one that likes to dress up and put on makeup and read trashy romance novels. This is the side that coddles her flit Baby like a baby, cooing at the little green beast and feeding her only the best cuts of meat. Nerri is also fond of running with the courtesans on occasion; she's as nosy as a curious cat and they always have the best dirt on people. She's not above using that dirt to further her business dealings, either.
Nerri loves fun, too! Going out drinking with the pirates, playing dress-up with the courtesans, fussing over Baby, driving her vardo out on the road to a Gather, all of these things are fun to her. She's still a teenager, after all. There are times, though, when she wishes she had someone to share it all with. These times are few and far between, though, and she shakes it off and gets on with life. That's what she does.
Positive Trait List independent, fierce, fearless, determined, romantic, survivor
Negative Trait List loud, stubborn, hot-headed, nosy, hard drinker, gambler
History:
Born in a trader caravan, Nerri was raised on the road. Her parents Zern and Mauri traded in everything: clothes, leather goods, housewares, tchotchkes, and jewelry, which Mauri made and taught her daughter how to craft -- mostly simple pieces, nothing too elaborate. By the time Nerri was 10 turns old, she was creating the bulk of the jewelry herself, adding her own flourishes to increase the appeal. They traveled between the major Holds of the Western continent in their vardo, vying for customers against other caravans wherever they stopped to vend their wares.
And that competition was fierce and dirty. Hostages were often taken in the middle of the night by rivals, and on more than one occasion Nerri was kidnapped and held on condition her parents yield the pickings to them. Nerri never went quietly or easily, though, using every tool at her disposal to protect herself even as a young girl. At length Zern and Mauri had enough of the cutthroat nature of caravan life, and they settled in Rivercrest Hold, buying a small house and setting up shop in front of their new digs just as they had out the back of the vardo. Soon they had a regular clientele from amongst the courtesans and fancy folk of the Hold.
Living in the Hold was so much more civilized, despite Rivercrest's rough and tumble reputation. The family still traded on the road, though, with Zern and Mauri taking the vardo to the smaller holds and to Western Weyr for Gathers and such, leaving Nerri to run the shop by herself. She had proven herself quite the trader by now, able to haggle and bargain with customer and supplier alike. Nerri also began to become familiar with some of the pirates who supplied some of the goods she sold, and would frequent their ships and the pubs in the Hold that they hung out at. The pirates taught her how to drink and gamble, and soon she was not only holding her own with them but sometimes besting them. She became the mascot of a particular group of them, and they would rescue her from rival pirate crews who would occasionally try to kidnap or rob her. Not that she needed any help; by the time her friends showed up, the kidnappers were usually more than happy to hand her back.
Nerri had only heard of Thread in the stories and songs she heard from the Harpers. Heck, she'd never seen a dragon up close, though she thought she had seen them in silhouette in the sky. She thought Thread was something mythical, like a story to scare children. Then the Red Star returned, and with it Pern's ancient enemy, and she was terrified. Her parents were caught out with the vardo when the first Thread fell on the Western continent and they didn't stand a chance. Nerri didn't know what happened to them for a few days, until another trader who had managed to find shelter returned to Rivercrest and told her. Devastated, the girl vowed to carry on with the business -- it was what Zern and Mauri would have wanted.
She managed to recover and repair the vardo and bought a new draft runner to pull it, so she still makes the rounds of the Gathers and larger celebrations in the area where vending goes on. Sometimes she even allows herself to have a little fun at these gatherings!
Other: She has a little green firelizard named Baby that she hatched from an egg (payment for a particularly elaborate pendant) and that she absolutely adores.
Proof of firelizard obtainment:
Candidate Specific Questions
Do you want them to have an official Search RP? No
Do you understand they will age every passing year regardless if you're there to RP the or not? Yup
Do you want them to have a possible Stands Impression? YES ABSOLUTELY
