Of Monsters and Men - Your Bones
Steven Curtis Chapman - Beauty Will Rise
Azure Ray - How You Remember
Needtobreathe - Slumber
"Oh... H-hello. How... How long have you been there?"
"I'm... not all that pretty, honestly. My scales aren't as brilliant as my mother's and my pattern isn't as intricate as my father's. My eyes are too big for my face, my hair is always too messy, and my mouth is too small..."
Despite the pleas to the contrary, Bailiona is pretty. A waterfall of auburn brown hair falls to her mid-back in messy tussles. The rest is cut to perfectly frame her face and to keep it out of her large golden eyes. Her face seems to always wear a shy or awkward expression, when it's not turned to the ground or away from the viewer. At places in her hair are gold cords wrapping around her crown, giving her a regal appearance. The same goes for her small mouth and nose. A snake princess. Her body isn't thin, but rather full-bodied. She isn't frail and gives off a healthy appearance, and her thickness doesn't detract from the rest of her beauty. Her scales, while not as brilliant nor intricate as she'd hope are patterned in brown and green splotches, with a gentle tan underbelly. Her tail is long, perhaps twice the size of her upper body. Whatever she might say about herself, she has the body any Naga would be proud to have.
Clothing Style:
Bailiona is garbed in the finery of an upper-class Naga family. Her clothing consists of greens and golds, her shirt of a silk-spun variety. It's loose and airy in the sleeves and chest to allow for the maneuverability and flexibility of her race. Underneath her shirt, she wears a white wrap that keeps her bust under tight control and to keep herself decent if she decides to wear her shirt low cut. There's a simplicity about her clothing, but there's an elegance there as well. Along with her shirt, she wears a pink sash with gold trim in order to keep her ensemble together without it just slipping off her scaly skin. She tends to keep her clothing clean and washed. She's used to being dressed in fine fabrics and tends to side toward the more pretty and extravagant clothing. She like's to be pretty, but what girl doesn't?
Height and Weight:
It depends on where she sits on her tail. The tallest she gets is 7 foot when sitting as far as she can on her tail without buckling. Usually though, she's shorter than that, hovering around a even 5 foot. She weighs around 200 pounds.
"Um... Well, my name is Bailey Krysanthe and I'm a Naga, but... You probably already knew that. The... The tail tends to give it away."
Lady Bailiona Naedrie Anguis Krysanthe.
"Anguis" is derived from Latin for Serpent. Bailiona is a stylized noble version of Bailey. Naedrie is derived from nĂŠddre which also means snake, and Krysanthe is greek for golden. Her name is so long because, as Lady denotes, she is of nobility class.
Nicknames:
Bailey. It rolls off the tongue a lot smoother than Bailiona and it makes her seem less foppish. In fact, it's a name her father gave her, as saying Bailiona one too many times can twist even the most forked of tongues-- especially the forked tongues. She actually likes it better than her given name, as it doesn't sound near as regal. Princess she may be, doesn't mean she have to go parading it around.
Gender:
Female
Age:
17
Race:
Naga
Sexuality:
Unbound
Love Interest:
~
"Daughter to a strong and proud Lord. Daughter to a beautiful and wise Lady. While I may not be as great as they, I will not let them down. I will not fail my people. I am a Naga princess."
Bailey doesn't see herself as a powerful individual, though what one sees and what one [i]is are two entirely different things. She is learned somewhat in the use of a spear, but a juggernaut, she is not. She's good enough to ensure she doesn't lop her own head off. More subtly, she has a knack to just vanish from view when in fact she hadn't moved. Naga have an innate ability blend in the environment around them and just end up... Overlooked if they so desire. Bailey also has a prehensile tail. So when the world only sees two hands, she sees three. She has the control in her tail that she does in one of her fingers, able to grip anything if she can manage to wrap around it. She has yet to put anyone in a vice though... One last feature, or features rather, are in her mouth. She has a pair of retractable fangs hiding in her gums, able to sprout and bite something if she needs to resort to something like that. The fangs are like hypodermic needles, letting her inject her prey with her own blend of venom. While the venom isn't deadly in itself, it is strong enough to paralyze the body, while keeping the senses intact long enough for her to either escape, or end the threat. It's not as excruciatingly painful as her fathers, nor as silently deadly as her mothers, but it gets the job done.
Personality:
Bailey's a awkward thing and an exceptionally shy creature. She hardly speaks above a whispered hush, if she speaks. She prefers to watch and listen over speaking. Make no mistake, there's a set of lungs deep within her breast somewhere, it just takes a lot of pushing and prodding for her to raise her voice. It's not even clear if she has a temper, she'd never been pushed hard or far enough for it to show. She has low self-esteem, not believing that there is much she can do. What possibly does she have to offer the creatures of the world? Not that she's entirely antisocial, she enjoys the polite company of a few others. Even the likes of her suffer from the odd bout of loneliness. If she had her way about it, she'd be surrounded by two or three of her closest friends, though life doesn't make concessions on her behalf. There's a friend beneath those scales if someone is willing to take the time and search for her. She's loyal to friends and family, and to those she feels understands her.
In her chest beats a kind heart. Bailey is a sweet girl, there's always a polite and kind word sitting on the tip of the tongue. Apt to apologizing profusely and taking minor slight far too far, she has an innocent soul so rare in these days of war. She speaks with a learned and regal manner, except for a lisp inherent to her people, though she does try to hide it. Her lisp becomes increasingly pronounced the more stressed she becomes. There is an uncommon spark of loyalty within her heart as well. She quietly strives to become better, something more. She strives to become more like her parents. She desperately wants to make them proud. She nary has an ill thought about anyone or anything-- except for the war. She hates the stupid thing with a burning passion unbecoming of her. A foolish venture for nothing more than some blood on the ground and an old crumbling book.
Unsurprisingly, she has a natural aversion to fighting and bloodshed, but being born in the time of war she has come to accept and acknowledge it, though not willingly. Fighting is a necessity at this point, to survive and to protect. She is not so naive as to be unaware of this fact, knowing it and liking it are two very different sides of the coin. She'd rather talk (yes, talk) over fighting for something foolish-- but fate decides for her, and the only thing she can do is go along with it. Despite all of this, there still lingers a flame. Something about the girl just will not give up, it won't go quietly, and it won't break. She's strong, inside. She won't give up. She can't.
Likes:
+Sweets+
She's still a child at heart and she loves her sweets. Cakes, cookies, creams, pies, it doesn't matter. If it has sugar in it then Bailey wants it in her mouth. Child at heart or not, she's at that age where it's entirely possible she can cook up her own treats-- and she does. Quite often whenever she's given the chance. Her pies are to die for.
+Sunshine+
Nothing quite beats basking out in the open under the watchful gaze of the sun. She says it makes her scales feel warm and alive, and she seems a lot more active in the sunlight than she does at night. Even when it's overcast out she seems down and depressed.
+Stories+
Bailey loves a good story, particularly if there's a cookie to go along with it. Whenever her father was home, he'd used to tell her all sorts of stories about the world they lived in. Stories of other creatures, of heroes old and young, wise and silly, strong or clever, it didn't matter she loved them all. He'd always tease her about being the subject of a story of her own one day, but she never believed him. Who would want to recite a story about a Naga who couldn't even talk to strangers? Still, it was a fascinating dream of hers...
+Her Father+
While Bailey loves her mother just as much, she is very much a daddy's girl. She still remembers coiling up in his tail when she was young as he told her stories of the world. She proud of her father, proud of what he's done. She just wishes he could be safe, wishes he would be home more often. She wishes that the stupid war wouldn't to tear them apart as it does.
Ability
+Friends+
What's the point of walking (or slithering, in her case) through life if there's no one to walk beside her? Quiet and awkward she might be, but she would rather be shy in front of someone instead of being by herself. Another heart beating, another's breath on the wind, if she can call that person a friend, then they have earned the most loyal of companions. She would not willingly leave behind a friend and she would always be there for that person, even if she's in the shadows.
Dislikes:
~The War~
She hates the conflict more than anything else.
~Feeling Helpless~
So often Bailey feels like she can do nothing but wait and watch, and while sometimes that's fine, it's not when lives are lost daily while she sits around and worries. She wants to do something, she just doesn't know what. What can she possibly do but get in the way? No matter, she'll try. She'll find some way to be of help. She will do something.
~Pain~
Metaphorically and physically, Bailey doesn't like pain. Feelings getting hurt, scraping her elbows on the ground it doesn't matter, pain is pain, and she wishes to avoid it at all costs. Perhaps it's a naive notion, invisioning a world with no pain, but every heart needs a bit of childish innocence. What's the point of fighting if the reward comes with broken hope and dirty souls?
~Fighting~
A foolish thing, the contest of arms. All it ever determines is who can wield a weapon better. It doesn't measure the wisdom, the intellect, or the heart. Only who's faster and who's stronger. That's whats wrong with the world now, too many creatures with more muscles in their arms than the thoughts in their head. If only such thoughts could change world, then the world would be at peace. If only.
~Her Spear~
Well, it's her father's technically, but he passed it on to her. It's a symbol of the time of violence they live in. The death that always surrounds them, and the blood that must be shed in order for one to survive. She hates it, but she carries it all the same. Always meant to be used in self-defense, she will not part with it, but she'd exhaust all other options before resorting to the thing.
Fears:
-Blood-
Bailey has a slight case of hemophobia, and as such she's uncomfortable whenever blood's present. Usually she'll just avert her eyes, avoid her staring at it and try her best to just not think about it. She's not foolish though, more blood will be shed before this foolish war is over, but if she can help it, no one has to bleed when it's over.
-Losing Loved Ones-
Her father, her mother, her friends, family, the war threatens to take them all away from her and she hates it. Her father faces that threat everyday that he's away from home, as do her people out on the frontlines. Bailey just wishes it would all just stop, and everyone could just come home safe. Life is funny like that, in that it never does what she wants, only what it wants, no matter the consequences. It weighs heavily on her heart
-Death-
Hers, her friends', her family's, even total strangers. She doesn't like that idea that in a blink of an eye someong can just simply cease and be gone forever. It's a frightening thought that everything she knows and loves can just as easily turn into dust as breath disappears into the wind. She simply does not think about this possibility, believing that everything will be fine, life will be fine, when in truth it's up to fate. It's easier that way. It's kinder.
History:
Born to Naga nobility, Young Bailiona Krysanthe was brought up far away from the war, though that does not mean it didn't affect her. Since she was a little girl, her father has left to fight in the war more times she could count. He was always away for long stints, with neither Bailey nor her mother knowing if he would return. He did, fortunately, though some times he returned injured. As sad as it sounds, Bailey was always relieved during these times. He was injured, yes, but he was alive and for that she was grateful. It also meant that he could stay home longer in order to heal before he left again. Bailey loved these times, as she would coil up on her father's tail and he would tell her stories until they both fell asleep. She loved her father, but she hated that the war had to drag him away from her mother and herself.
Bailey was doted on as a child, her mother and her caretakers always looking after the young woman. She was privately taught and rarely spent time with others. One of the reasons of her social awkwardness perhaps. Maybe she would still have been a quiet child even if she wasn't sheltered. It doesn't matter now, as what's done was done. She did, however, soak her teachings. She became an intelligent young woman in her own right, the jewel of her parent's eyes. They were proud of their daughter, and she was proud of them.
Even one naturally averted to fighting as she was, her father demanded that she learn to defend herself. Her mother reluctantly agreed, though both wished that they didn't have to live in a time where it had been necessary to teach their daughter to take a life in order to defend herself. Her father had always told her fighting should be a last resort, if no other option was available. Hide if she could, run if not, but when push came to shove, her father would make sure that she could defend herself. She learned her way around it decently enough, though her heart was never in it. She can defend herself, and that's good enough. No use in taking another life without reason.
In time, the world around her and the war began to weigh on her soul. Bailey began to feel helpless, useless. As she sat at home, safe and sound, her father and a hundred more like him fought day-in and day-out. It wasn't fair. Nothing was fair. Perhaps it was out of this helplessness she decided to do something. She personally volunteered to find this book and to end this war. It's said to be dangerous, that she might not make it out alive. It didn't matter. She'd find the book, she'd end the war, and she'd bring her father home. It might be scary, but the destination outweighed the journey.
"I won't fail."