âSometimes, things fall apart, but the real tragedy is acting like that's the end of the matter. The truth is, there's usually an opportunity to put them back together again, if you're brave enough to take it.â
Name: Ainsley Harper Hale
Age: 23
Race: Human
Role: Bystander
Height: 5'4"
Build: Trim and svelte, somewhat toned from work.
Hair: Golden blonde.
Eyes: Mist blue.
Skin/Markings: Ainsley has a triangle of beauty marks on her left cheek, but aside from those and a smattering of freckles over her shoulders and arms, her skin is without blemish, and uniformly a fair, sun-touched alabaster.
Appearance: A fair young lady, is Ainsley Hale, though from the way she conducts herself, one would never guess that she knew it. She is rather humble, both in presentation and outward demeanor, preferring layers of clothing in soft colors or neutral tones, with sturdy work boots or practical sandals, all a reflection of the work she does to help her parents run their farm.
She has, from a rather young age, attracted a fair amount of attention for her appearance, which is, in the small community her family is part of, is rather extraordinarily lovely. As sometimes happens in circumstances like that, sheâs gained a bit of local notoriety for being so, though she doesnât think much of it, if indeed she even knows that she has this reputation.
Her hair is a sunny blonde, slightly wavy and worn to the small of her back, often left loose but sometimes pulled into place with pins and ties. Her eyes are big, long-lashed and a misty light blue. The most common expression on her face is a small smile, and she seems generally to go about her business with a warm optimism, even if it isnât exactly what sheâd been expecting to do with her life.
Her activity keeps her trim and fit, and even if it wouldnât, the extra hiking and so on that she spends her free time engaged in likely would. Sheâs never been especially thin or heavy, but her lifestyle has given her a well-formed medium build for a female.
Dislikes: Of a temperament to accept and tolerate a wide range of demeanors, Ainsley has a difficult time spontaneously thinking up things to not like. If pressed, she will admit that Rothen soldiers (though not the Rothen in general) make her nervous, and she doesnât really have the palate for anything spicier than a mild curry. Other than that, the medical professional in her hates seeing people suffering or in pain, but this isnât anything sheâd pick out as extraordinary about herself. As far as she knows, just about everyone hates that. Though she endeavors not to let it get to her, she does have a fear of spiders and large flying insects, though she knows that all of these things have a place in the ecosystem and does her best not to kill them.
Strengths: Sheâs quite smart, Ainsley, and not just for her small town, either. She spent a large portion of her recent years studying to be a doctor, though she was called home to the farm before she could complete her residency, and as such, does not have an official license to practice medicine. That said, thereâs no doctor in her community at all, so when one of the locals is injured, she is usually the one they go to. Beyond that, though, she has always been inquisitive and interested in the world around her, and her persistent good health has proven to be another strength of hers. Trained for combat, she is not, but she is hale and vivacious, and can climb trees or hike or run long distances with the best of them.
Perhaps her single greatest strength, though, is her gift of empathy. It is nothing supernatural, of course, though it may seem so at times. Rather, she has made a careful study of people and animals both over her lifetime of knowing them, and has come to understand how to present herself to people so as to appear nonthreatening and benevolent, and more importantly how to relate to them, even if she has almost nothing in common with them. She is sensitive and careful, gentle and kind, and perhaps more crucially, this easily comes across, such that no one ever feels threatened by her presence. Perhaps this isn't a trait that is conventionally called strong, but when coupled with a mental resilience rare in anyone, it makes her formidable, in her own way.
Weaknesses: For all her intelligence, Ainsely has a tendency to think with her heart first and her head only afterwards. Itâs the same impulse that, over the years, has led her to trusting people she should not have, or bringing home injured animals that were probably better off put to a merciful death. But thatâs the catchâsheâs nothing if not merciful, and willing to obstinately insist on taking the hard way to the better outcome rather than the easy way to a result thatâs only passable. She wants to do good in the world, and sometimes, that desire can overshadow practical considerations she should be paying attention to.
Sheâs also not the type of person capable of being ruthless or utilitarian. Itâs difficult for her to accept that sacrifices have to be made to ensure the best outcomeâsheâd rather keep trying until the same thing can be achieved without the sacrifice, and she has yet to be really put into a situation where she has to choose. It would undoubtedly be greatly distressing for her if such a thing happened.
Last, but not least, perhaps, Ainsley is deaf. She hasnât always been, and in fact had her hearing up until a couple of years ago, so she isnât mute and can speak with the same tone and inflections as another person, but she can no longer hear. She has learned to compensate for this somewhat by reading lips, and can do this over surprisingly long distances, but of course not being able to hear has repercussions that cannot be completely compensated for.
Thoughtful | Generous | Kindhearted | Impulsive | Empathic | NaĂŻve
If she were asked to describe her personality, Ainsleyâs first stab would be to characterize herself as uncomplicated. Indeed, many of her traits and mannerisms seem to indicate that she favors the simple, clean, ordinary things in life that don't come with the complexity of too much ambiguity. She is categorical in her kindness and equal in her favor, never really showing any propensity to bias herself against any person or group, even when treated less-than-ideally by them. Itâs as if grudges and petty disagreements are simply too much bother for her to even consider worrying about that kind of thing, and it makes her in turn rather difficult to hold a grudge against.
Upon closer inspection, however, one comes away with the impression that, rather than this attitude being a lazy one, or one borne of her inability to be upset, it is instead the reflection of a conscious decision: to treat everyone as though they had never hurt her, even if they had. How she reached this decision isnât clear, and a fair few people have supposed any number of things, but most just assume that itâs simply Ainsleyâs way. And she is the kind of person who has a way, and is rather good at sticking to it. She can be surprisingly stubborn for someone so seemingly pliable, but as most of those that know her would put it, the only things Ainsley will ever force on anyone are the things they need, whether they know it or not.
These traits have endeared her to those who know her well, though they can admittedly be off-putting to those who don't. She doesnât talk much; communicating verbally is a fading habit, made less frequent by her deafness. Sheâs still perfectly capable of conversation, of course, and happy to have them with people if they like, but itâs less easy than it was before. Talking is something she has to think about now, to modulate the vibrations she can feel herself making so as not to be too loud or too soft, and in many cases, it simply isnât worth the effort. Where before she carried on conversations even with animals or inanimate objects as she went about her day, now she more often saves the use of her voice for those situations where itâs really needed, and lets nonverbals, including sign language, take care of the rest.
History:The majority of Ainsleyâs history is nothing interesting. She grew up on her familyâs small ranch/farm, went to school in the nearest town, and eventually moved to the city to study medicine, something she was extremely good at. But her mother took ill partway through Ainsleyâs residency, and as an only child, her father needed her help to keep the ranch running, and so she returned before her degree was complete, about six months ago now. She gets along well with her family and the folks in town, though part of her has not forgotten what it was like to live someplace beyond this small world of theirs.
