"You don't even need to open your mouth. Your mere silence reeks stupidity."
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Name:
Babayaga Elvira Gothel
Nickname:
Babs (mockingly). Also known as The "spirit of the forest", as well as Dame Gothel and Mother Gothel to her adopted daughter, Rapunzel.
Age:
Who knows? Even Babayaga herself doesn't know her age. It's not that she is immortal or anything like that, she just doesn't keep track. To her, age is unimportant.
Sexuality:
Claims by all means to be asexual. However, she did have a relationship with a man a long, long time ago...
Story:
Vasilisa the Brave, and Rapunzel
Character:
Babayaga (Vasilisa the Brave) and Dame Gothel (Rapunzel)
Likes:
Peace and quiet | The forest | Alchemy | Taking a walk | Rapunzel, her daughter | Darkness | Pumpkins | Animals | Spirits | The cold | Nighttime | Sarcasm | Relaxation | Magic | Explosions | Her garden | Family traditions | Curses | Speaking her mind | Spiders | Her pan flute | Nature | Books |
Dislikes:
Visitors | Loud things | Liars | Cheaters | Failure | Hot climate | Disobedience | Children | Public places | Royalty | Snow White | People | Her past | Forest fires | The undead | Distasteful music | Prison | Judgement | "Love" | Rumors | Being annoyed | Ignorance and stupidity | Dwarves | Knights | Animal cruelty | Explosions | Aristocrats | Bright colors | Parties | Alcohol | Thieves | Vasilisa |
Strengths:
Spell-casting~ A master at magic, Babayaga is capable of producing a variety of spells from staffs, wands, and from her fingertips. She primarily uses earth-based magic, as she has been protecting the woods since a young age. She also occasionally uses dark magic when she is angry. This includes using curses, highly destructive spells, and the worst of all, possession.
Alchemy~ She is skilled at potion making, and can even create deadly poisons, as well as rejuvenating medicines. Even without a cauldron, Ms. Gothel can still improvise with what she finds in the wild.
Survivalist~ She can make do with whatever she finds in the wild, and knows how to survive by herself in even the roughest of conditions.
Tamer~ Babayaga is good with animals, of course, as she is an ally to mother nature. Animals tend to be attracted to her, and she can call upon them for help when needed.
Intelligent~ Now that Vasilisa's done it once, it's hard to trick Babayaga. She is intuitive and highly clever. She can be considered a mastermind among humans, demonstrating strategic plans and a practically photographic memory.
Spirits~ Babayaga demonstrates the rare ability to see spirits and ghosts around her. She often talks to them when she needs advice or is feeling...lonely.
Weaknesses:
Wanted~ Being a witch, Babayaga is a wanted criminal by decree of Snow White and her kingdom. She must always be cautious. Showing her face at the wrong time can be the difference between life and death.
Aggresive~ It's just so incredibly hard for her to make friends. Being hot-headed, cynical, ignorant to the unintelligent and a disbeliever of true love, she turns more people away than an ugly troll. She is thought to be a misanthrope, as she screams in people's faces more often than she actually talks to them.
Gullible~ MANY times in her life has Babayaga been tricked. She's gotten better about asking more questions and being skeptical, but still, she can be hoodwinked...
Stoic~ She lacks physical strength, and without magic to protect her, she'd be a sitting duck in a duel. Although she can climb quite well, she can't run very fast and she CERTAINLY can't lift anything too heavy. And don't even get STARTED about defending herself with a weapon; she has terrible aim, and is often clumsy enough to hurt herself with any sharp object rather than hurting her opponent with it.
Fears:
Rapunzel escaping her tower and being exposed to the outside world | Her past coming back to haunt her | That she won't be able to fix the mess that she's made in time | Being burned to death | Execution |
Memory:
"Memory? Really? I'm the one who STARTED this you pea-brained imbecile! I can't stand stupid questions!"
Opinion on the War:
"Are you really asking me that? And you expect me to ANSWER it, too?!"
It's a no-brainer that Babayaga is clearly sided with Sleeping Beauty and her kingdom/army. Having used magic all of her life, she hates Snow White's views on sorcery. Babayaga has never really used her magic on anyone else, except for self-defense. She mostly uses it to take care of the forest and creatures that thrive in it. That being said, she hopes to see Sleeping Beauty win the war, and cannot wait until the day when she can practice magic in public without suspicion. (not that she'd ever be in public anyway...)
Personality:
Aggressive | Lonely | Somewhat caring | Clever | Sarcastic | Cunning | Determined | Selfish | Emotional | Humorous | Cautious | Overprotective | Cynical |
There is a big difference between Babayaga's assumed personality and the personality she really has. To those who have never met her, she is often depicted as an ugly, stingy, uncaring, and destructive woman who attains cannibalistic tendencies and will kill anyone who steps foot into her forest and garden. That, of course, is not true. However there is a little bit of correctness in each of the many rumors that appear when the name "Babayaga" is brought up in conversation.
If anything, Dame Gothel is woman who's experiences have turned her into someone who distrusts the human race. She hates the word "love" because she does not believe in it like she used to. She feels as though she has disproved love through learning how to become indepenent in the midst of loneliness and solitude. That's not to say she likes her independence, as she can be very brooding at times, but she has learned how to survive without the support of other people. She's a very organized, clever, cunning, strategic and plan-oriented sort of lady. She'd rather sit back and analyze a situation instead of jumping straight ahead and improvising. That's not to say she wouldn't do so, as her violent, aggressive, unnatural, and over-all terrifying temper can make her do almost anything. She carries her temper around with her as if it is an article of clothing she wears at all times.
However, despite the coldness she seems to project, Babayaga truly is a caring woman. Or at least, she tries to be. She's just been scarred, that's all. An example of her kind nature (and even her overprotectiveness) can be seen through the relationship she holds with her daughter, Rapunzel. Sure, she may have locked her in a tower and shut her away from the rest of the world, but she doesn't scold her or beat her. To Babayaga, that is true parenting. She sees Rapunzel not as an experiment, but as a daughter whom she wants to be pure, and not hurt by the dangers of the outside world. Of course, Dame Gothel does not see this as manipulation of sorts. In conclusion. Babayaga's personality has been twisted to that of an insane person's mindset. If only she'd see some kindness for once, perhaps she'd change...
History:
Much of Babayaga's personality is shaped by her childhood and early years. She was born to a fairy and a mortal man. Because of this, she attained her mother's powers, but had the looks and characteristics of a human. Born in the very same cottage that she still lives in today, Babayaga's family was very poor, and could not afford most things that were needed for living. However, the tight-knitted Gothels had a secret: the garden that was planted all around their tiny house was magical. Ancient and full of mysterious fruits and vegetables, the garden had become the family's prideful tradition. The little witch learned from a young age to always be protective of the garden. If any of the greens got into the wrong hands, things could become chaotic. (As demonstrated with an old man one year as he stole some of the garden's magic beans)
Anyways, Babayaga's childhood was very lonely, as many children saw her as a "freak" due to her magic powers. She did have the comfort of the animals, in the forest, however. One year, there was a terrible famine, and so even the magic garden had a hard time producing any fruits/vegetables. Because of this, Babayaga's father resorted to stealing, and was later jailed for trying to steal a loaf of bread. Furious for the unreasonable punishment and depressed that she couldn't see her husband, the girl's mother started to practice the dark arts. This eventually had her jailed as well. Fortunately, Babayaga was old enough to take care of herself, but still, times were extremely tough. It was this period in her life, when she encountered her darkest darkness, that the witch learned how to talk to ghosts and spirits.
As she grew older, Babayaga showed her face around the village where many people gathered. Although she was a peasant, she somehow managed to attract the attention of the prince. They married, and soon enough, she was living an extravagant life, and never had to suffer with the burden of starvation. However, as time passed, Babayaga realized that her husband was starting to change. He mistreated and abused her, as he hated the fact that his wife was more powerful through magic than he could ever be through riches and force. Having to suppress her magic made the young woman grow extremely hateful, as well as doubtful. The couple had a son, whom they named Raphael. Babayaga was happy...at least until she heard plans from a messenger that her husband wanted to throw the boy into the wilderness because he had attained his mother's powers. Furious, the woman left his side and planned to return to her cottage. She went to the jail in order to bail out her parents, only to learn that they had died in prison many years ago. A few months later, the entire kingdom had been invaded, and Babayaga's former husband and her son had been killed.
The amount of loss in her life made the witch grow cold, hateful, and unkind. One day, she had seen a man trying to steal one of the vegetables in her garden. He begged her not to do anything to him, as the food was for his pregnant wife. She made a deal; if he surrendered his child, she'd spare him. He agreed, and so when the babe was born, Babayaga took the girl and named her Rapunzel, in remembrance of her dead son, Raphael. Unlike the young prince, the witch would not see this girl die at an early age. She built an extremely high tower in order to protect the girl from the outside world, and placed her in it when she came of age and could take care of herself. Still to this day, Babayaga calls for Rapunzel to let down her golden hair so that she may climb up it and check on her daughter. After losing their child, the couple that surrendered their Rapunzel told their friends about what had happened. The story got so out of hand, that people accused Dame Gothel of being a cannibal; due to rumors, Babayaga had taken the infant and ate her, explaining why Rapunzel was never to be seen again. This made the witch feared across the land. Nobody was to be seen around her house ever again...except for a young maiden named Vasilisa many years later.
The beautiful young woman came to Babayaga's house in order to ask for a candle that her evil stepmother required. Skeptical and angry, the enchantress gave her three tasks to complete. She knew they were impossible, and had a good feeling that the girl would fail each one. However, once she had returned to her cottage after visiting Rapunzel each day, Vasilisa had completed the tasks. Baffled, Babayaga asked the maiden how she had done each one. Then the girl replied "by my mother's love". This repulsed the witch, as she had lost belief in true love after having been mistreated by her husband. She dismissed the girl, never to see her again, and lived a few quiet more years in the forest and in the cottage. She found a piece of beautifully woven thread on the floor, and kept it upon the girl's departure.
Eventually, Babayaga had heard about the great Vasilisa the Brave once again, how she had married a tzar, and how she had once outwitted a witch by using a magic doll. Shocked and curious about the doll, Babayaga dropped the thread she had kept into a cauldron of bubbling green liquid, only to see a flashback of Vasilisa's doll doing each of the three tasks the witch had assigned for the maiden. Furious beyond words, Dame Gothel had a plan to make a potion that would turn back time so that she could kill the girl. However, due to a couple of crows causing an unpredictable accident, the enchantress's alchemical mix backfired, and caused an explosion throughout the land. After being awakened by a spirit on horseback, the woman found her cottage destroyed, yet her garden still in good enough shape. Now, after hearing about the pandemonium she has caused, Babayaga Gothel is forming a plan in order to restore each of the fairytale characters' memories. She knows that it won't be easy in 48 hours, but she has promised herself that she will do it, or die trying.
Other:
Anything else you'd like to add. You can put fun facts if you want to :)
