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SETTING INFO
- there isn't actually much setting info yet i only had character thoughts for this one
- it's not victorian england tho bc i don't want to. probably some kind of fantasy pseudo-european setting but i haven't even decided on comparable time period. it could be some sorta fantasy empire/cyberpunk future fusion. we just don't know.
- it is however an empire with appropriate social hierarchy and nobility
- gender roles are weird. namely within the nobility there is no male/female role divide, it's based on whether someone is a candidate for the family heir vs intended to be married off to another family as a bartering tool
- the latter is unkindly referred to as "capital" in common parlance; because it's not only boys that can inherit, sons and daughters alike can be capital, just as a daughter could be the family heir. some noble children who know they have no chance at becoming heir will pursue other lifelong commitments (e.g. military or religious positions) specifically to avoid becoming capital
CHARACTER HISTORY
- Renata is the daughter of a Margrave, and one of five children; two boys, three girls. she's the fourth child, with only a younger sister, and labelled as capital early on in her life because her oldest brother and elder sister were considered exceptional candidates to be heir.
- the D'Ambrosio children by order of birth: Loredana (F), Carmine (M), Ignazio (M), Renata (F), Eulalia (F)
- she had a strict upbringing and wasn't given a lot of time by her busy parents, who also encouraged competition between the children to determine the most suitable heir. her parents weren't particularly cold or cruel, but had high expectations; Rena was eventually able to secure affection from her mother in the form of being treated as a precious doll or piece of artwork, and happily accepted that love
- any abuses came from her teachers, though it was what was considered normal for the environment, most often beatings from a cane on the palms or soles of feet for misbehaving. she grew up in luxury and at the same time was crushed under pressure.
- the children were known to sabotage each other at times; they would contaminate another's meal with mild poisons to disrupt plans for social gatherings, steal each other's friends and allies, intercept letters or forge false replies, etc. which isn't unusual in a high-ranking nobility household
- for the most part, Rena ignored the sibling rivalry, and rather than competing via sabotage she would just try to keep her own movements a secret from the others. her eldest brother and older sister were never particularly concerned with her because of her lack of ambition, and she was distant from all her siblings.
- from an early age, she also accepted her status as capital and leveraged it, putting her time into becoming an ideal bargaining chip so that she could rely on her parents seeing her as valuable. the one time her second elder brother tried to seriously harass her, she asked him if their mother would react kindly to him putting a scratch on one of the priceless vases on the estate, and declared that she was the most expensive item that their mother owned.
- when Rena was 14, the entire family was essentially wiped out.
- many years later she learns that it was the work of several other noble families (though it takes longer to determine which ones) working together because the D'Ambrosio family had amassed too much power, already in talks to marry one of their children into the imperial family.
- both parents are killed, and the children are separated; their fates are unknown to Rena, though after later investigations she assumes they're all dead. (they are not)
- Renata is sold to a Count family who intend to keep her as a servant until she comes of age, and then "miraculously" find her alive elsewhere as the sole survivor of her family's massacre and marry her to their son so they can usurp her family status.
- she suffers at the hands of both the family and the household servants for years, neglected by some and bullied by others. any servants who show her kindness are either punished severely or killed, since they can't afford anyone who shows sympathy for her to leave. her worst tormentors are the parents of the family, who have long held a grudge against the D'Ambrosio family due to the gap in their status.
- the family's son and fiancée-to-be, Anastasia, is unsettlingly courteous to her; he behaves as though he's courting her under completely normal circumstances, and seems to be utterly indifferent to her situation. there are days when he will spend hours with Rena laid out on his bed, fully dressed, just looking at her or arranging her hair. he gifts her an engagement ring even though his parents have yet to make it official.
- at 17, only a few months before her 18th birthday, Renata summons a demon. on her command, the demon kills every single person in the manor.
- the only one who goes unscathed is Anastasia, away from home for a time. he returns to find his family dead, and regrets that he wasn't able to kill his parents for Renata as he had intended to do as a wedding gift as soon as they had gotten married.
- Renata retreats to her family home and spends two years in isolation, learning to take over the responsibilities that were never meant to be hers.
- [PLOT DETAILS i hate plot]
- eventually one of her older brothers resurfaces: Carmine, her oldest brother and the second eldest of the D'Ambrosio children. Renata welcomes him into the manor but refuses to relinquish her position as the family head.
PERSONALITY
- character inspirations: ciel phantomhive, kalmia
- behaves very proper but arrogant in company; far more bitter and irritable in private. she's snappish, insulting, has a short temper, and complains a great deal. if she loses her temper in a public setting it's a sure sign that something has gotten badly under her skin
- she has an additional layer of personality between public & private: false vulnerability, which she pretends is what she's like in private but is actually just pretending to be sincere and exposing her "weakness" in order to fool someone into thinking they've gotten a glimpse behind her mask
- both cruel & guilty at the same time babey!! she feels guilty about everything she does but that in no way obstructs her cruelty. just because she feels bad about it and hates herself doesn't make her act on those feelings. she will still do terrible shit without hesitation, she'll just despise and punish herself for it later
- fixated on appearances due to the way she was raised, even in private. no matter what her actual personality is like behind closed doors, letting herself become unkempt is a major red flag in any situation
- very low & high self esteem at once. she's extremely confident in areas like her looks and etiquette; but because of how she was raised, she still views herself as an expensive doll at times, and never sees herself as a suitable head of the D'Ambrosio family
- stubbornly obsessed with revenge as her only purpose in life and the reason she survived her family's massacre, which is why she won't give up the position as family head even once a sibling more suited to the role turns up. she knows it'll be the end of her once she achieves her revenge, so she's only temporarily occupying the position until then and he can just wait for her to be gone
OTHER CHARACTERS
- ANASTASIA: Renata's would-be fiancée, although he sees their engagement as legitimate and still in effect. in the time since Renata left his family home, he's taken over as the family head and put a great deal of time and resources into making connections with not only fellow nobility but also merchants and craftsmen in order to increase his wealth and power. Ana is a quiet young man with a formal bearing, casual speech, and an obsessive personality. he relentlessly pursues things that capture his interest, whether that be particular hobbies, knowledge, or people; he adores the feelings that his interests inspire in him because without these things, he is a passive void.
- [DEMON]: as far as it's concerned, it fills every role in Renata's life as needed; master, butler, maid, mother, father, brother, sister, husband, wife.
- CARMINE: Renata's oldest brother and the second child in the D'Ambrosio family. he had little regard for Renata when they were younger, too focused on the pressure of his position in the family and his vicious rivalry with Loredana; where Ignazio was an active annoyance, Renata and Eulalia were essentially decorations to him. now he and Renata clash often; he's well aware that Renata is up to more than simply managing the D'Ambrosio household and is determined to figure her out, and Renata wants to shoulder the burden of revenge alone.
- there isn't actually much setting info yet i only had character thoughts for this one
- it's not victorian england tho bc i don't want to. probably some kind of fantasy pseudo-european setting but i haven't even decided on comparable time period. it could be some sorta fantasy empire/cyberpunk future fusion. we just don't know.
- it is however an empire with appropriate social hierarchy and nobility
- gender roles are weird. namely within the nobility there is no male/female role divide, it's based on whether someone is a candidate for the family heir vs intended to be married off to another family as a bartering tool
- the latter is unkindly referred to as "capital" in common parlance; because it's not only boys that can inherit, sons and daughters alike can be capital, just as a daughter could be the family heir. some noble children who know they have no chance at becoming heir will pursue other lifelong commitments (e.g. military or religious positions) specifically to avoid becoming capital
CHARACTER HISTORY
- Renata is the daughter of a Margrave, and one of five children; two boys, three girls. she's the fourth child, with only a younger sister, and labelled as capital early on in her life because her oldest brother and elder sister were considered exceptional candidates to be heir.
- the D'Ambrosio children by order of birth: Loredana (F), Carmine (M), Ignazio (M), Renata (F), Eulalia (F)
- she had a strict upbringing and wasn't given a lot of time by her busy parents, who also encouraged competition between the children to determine the most suitable heir. her parents weren't particularly cold or cruel, but had high expectations; Rena was eventually able to secure affection from her mother in the form of being treated as a precious doll or piece of artwork, and happily accepted that love
- any abuses came from her teachers, though it was what was considered normal for the environment, most often beatings from a cane on the palms or soles of feet for misbehaving. she grew up in luxury and at the same time was crushed under pressure.
- the children were known to sabotage each other at times; they would contaminate another's meal with mild poisons to disrupt plans for social gatherings, steal each other's friends and allies, intercept letters or forge false replies, etc. which isn't unusual in a high-ranking nobility household
- for the most part, Rena ignored the sibling rivalry, and rather than competing via sabotage she would just try to keep her own movements a secret from the others. her eldest brother and older sister were never particularly concerned with her because of her lack of ambition, and she was distant from all her siblings.
- from an early age, she also accepted her status as capital and leveraged it, putting her time into becoming an ideal bargaining chip so that she could rely on her parents seeing her as valuable. the one time her second elder brother tried to seriously harass her, she asked him if their mother would react kindly to him putting a scratch on one of the priceless vases on the estate, and declared that she was the most expensive item that their mother owned.
- when Rena was 14, the entire family was essentially wiped out.
- many years later she learns that it was the work of several other noble families (though it takes longer to determine which ones) working together because the D'Ambrosio family had amassed too much power, already in talks to marry one of their children into the imperial family.
- both parents are killed, and the children are separated; their fates are unknown to Rena, though after later investigations she assumes they're all dead. (they are not)
- Renata is sold to a Count family who intend to keep her as a servant until she comes of age, and then "miraculously" find her alive elsewhere as the sole survivor of her family's massacre and marry her to their son so they can usurp her family status.
- she suffers at the hands of both the family and the household servants for years, neglected by some and bullied by others. any servants who show her kindness are either punished severely or killed, since they can't afford anyone who shows sympathy for her to leave. her worst tormentors are the parents of the family, who have long held a grudge against the D'Ambrosio family due to the gap in their status.
- the family's son and fiancée-to-be, Anastasia, is unsettlingly courteous to her; he behaves as though he's courting her under completely normal circumstances, and seems to be utterly indifferent to her situation. there are days when he will spend hours with Rena laid out on his bed, fully dressed, just looking at her or arranging her hair. he gifts her an engagement ring even though his parents have yet to make it official.
- at 17, only a few months before her 18th birthday, Renata summons a demon. on her command, the demon kills every single person in the manor.
- the only one who goes unscathed is Anastasia, away from home for a time. he returns to find his family dead, and regrets that he wasn't able to kill his parents for Renata as he had intended to do as a wedding gift as soon as they had gotten married.
- Renata retreats to her family home and spends two years in isolation, learning to take over the responsibilities that were never meant to be hers.
- [PLOT DETAILS i hate plot]
- eventually one of her older brothers resurfaces: Carmine, her oldest brother and the second eldest of the D'Ambrosio children. Renata welcomes him into the manor but refuses to relinquish her position as the family head.
PERSONALITY
- character inspirations: ciel phantomhive, kalmia
- behaves very proper but arrogant in company; far more bitter and irritable in private. she's snappish, insulting, has a short temper, and complains a great deal. if she loses her temper in a public setting it's a sure sign that something has gotten badly under her skin
- she has an additional layer of personality between public & private: false vulnerability, which she pretends is what she's like in private but is actually just pretending to be sincere and exposing her "weakness" in order to fool someone into thinking they've gotten a glimpse behind her mask
- both cruel & guilty at the same time babey!! she feels guilty about everything she does but that in no way obstructs her cruelty. just because she feels bad about it and hates herself doesn't make her act on those feelings. she will still do terrible shit without hesitation, she'll just despise and punish herself for it later
- fixated on appearances due to the way she was raised, even in private. no matter what her actual personality is like behind closed doors, letting herself become unkempt is a major red flag in any situation
- very low & high self esteem at once. she's extremely confident in areas like her looks and etiquette; but because of how she was raised, she still views herself as an expensive doll at times, and never sees herself as a suitable head of the D'Ambrosio family
- stubbornly obsessed with revenge as her only purpose in life and the reason she survived her family's massacre, which is why she won't give up the position as family head even once a sibling more suited to the role turns up. she knows it'll be the end of her once she achieves her revenge, so she's only temporarily occupying the position until then and he can just wait for her to be gone
OTHER CHARACTERS
- ANASTASIA: Renata's would-be fiancée, although he sees their engagement as legitimate and still in effect. in the time since Renata left his family home, he's taken over as the family head and put a great deal of time and resources into making connections with not only fellow nobility but also merchants and craftsmen in order to increase his wealth and power. Ana is a quiet young man with a formal bearing, casual speech, and an obsessive personality. he relentlessly pursues things that capture his interest, whether that be particular hobbies, knowledge, or people; he adores the feelings that his interests inspire in him because without these things, he is a passive void.
- [DEMON]: as far as it's concerned, it fills every role in Renata's life as needed; master, butler, maid, mother, father, brother, sister, husband, wife.
- CARMINE: Renata's oldest brother and the second child in the D'Ambrosio family. he had little regard for Renata when they were younger, too focused on the pressure of his position in the family and his vicious rivalry with Loredana; where Ignazio was an active annoyance, Renata and Eulalia were essentially decorations to him. now he and Renata clash often; he's well aware that Renata is up to more than simply managing the D'Ambrosio household and is determined to figure her out, and Renata wants to shoulder the burden of revenge alone.