Wilhelmina Ross

Character

Name: Wilhelmina "Murmur" Ross
Player: Aeon
Campaign: Changeling: The Lost
Concept: Spooky Audiophile
Virtue: Prudence
Vice: Sloth
Seeming: Darkling
Kith: Hushwight
Court: Autumn

Appearance

Mask: To the casual observer, Mina appears to be a petite, slender young woman in her early twenties, barely a whisper over five feet tall. Her features are delicate, almost to the point of seeming fragile, with pale skin and large, dark eyes. She wears her jet-black hair long and straight, with little adornment save for the occasional ribbon or clip to help keep it out of her eyes. She prefers loose, dark clothing with plenty of pockets, favoring hoodies, cargo pants, long coats and warm hats. She is almost never seen without a pair of headphones on her person - either clamped over her ears or slung around her neck.

Mein: Beneath the Glamour of Mina's Mask, her features take on a distinctly unsettling twist. Her pallid complexion turns a dusty ash-grey, while her eyes become unnaturally large and black - like polished balls of jet set into her skull. Her hair takes on an eerily fluid quality, shifting and undulating strangely, like a river of ink, with every movement and gust of wind. Her ears become long, pointed and leaf-shaped - like those of a bat - and her fingers appear inhumanly long and thin. Light and sound seem slightly muted in her presence - though she often tries to counter this by humming, whistling or murmuring to herself incessantly whenever things grow too quiet.

Backstory

As a young girl growing up in Victoria, British Columbia, Wilhelmina Ross would often spend the weekend visiting her grandmother in her rambling, Victorian home. A relic from a bygone era, the old house was never completely silent. Floorboards creaked, plumbing moaned and furnaces growled long into the night, filling young Mina's mind with all manner of unseen terrors. Only one part of the house seemed devoid of noise - the attic and the area immediately beneath its entrance, which Mina's grandmother kept bolted and locked at all times. She never explained why, even when questioned incessantly, stating only that the attic was 'not safe for children'. She did, however, make her grandchildren swear never to enter the attic for any reason, unless she was by their side, with a bell in her hand. Such cryptic secrecy only fueled Mina's curiosity, but her grandmother understood the workings of a child's mind all too well, and was careful to keep the key to the attic door hidden away where curious hands could not reach it.

When Mina was fourteen years old, her grandmother passed away suddenly, and ownership of the ancient house fell to Mina's parents. Unable to properly care for the crumbling old building, Mina's family reluctantly decided to donate it to the local heritage society. As they went about the long, laborious process of clearing out her grandmother's possessions, Mina was entrusted with a ring of keys - one of which fit the lock on the attic door. On a dare from her younger brother, Mina opened the lock and clambered up into the attic's dusty depths, convinced that her grandmother's fears had been nothing more than the silly superstitions of an over-protective old woman.

It wasn't until she felt the shadowy talons of the attic's inhabitant close around her waist, that Wilhelmina Ross realized how wrong she had been.

Spirited away by a mute, tenebrous thing of depthless cruelty, Mina was dragged through the Hedge to the darkest and most nightmarish region of Arcadia, where she was put to work as a slave and plaything. She soon discovered that her captor - a creature known only as the Soul of Silence - possessed a deep hatred of all sound, and would punish Mina viciously for the even the slightest noise. Sometimes the mere sound of her breathing was enough to incite her master to anger, and the young woman quickly learned how to move - and live - in utter silence. Frightened and alone amidst the writhing shadows and unearthly silence of her master's lair, unable to so much as weep over her miserable fate, Mina's grip on reality and sanity began to slip. At times, she felt as though she was being consumed by the silence around her, her soul gradually draining away into the hushed stillness and chilling dark, until only a hollow shell remained, filled with the lingering echoes of fear and loneliness.

Eventually, in the course of going about her duties, Mina made a curious discovery among her master's possessions - a handkerchief-sized square of midnight black fabric that seemed to swallow all sound that touched it. In an act of startling boldness and defiance, Mina pilfered the cloth, concealing it within the ragged folds of her clothes. Whenever she was alone, she would hold it to her mouth and scream, sob, or simply whisper into it, pouring out her fear, grief and misery into its muffling folds. This act, however small, provided Mina with a much-needed outlet for her despair, helping to preserve what sanity she had left, if only for a little while longer.

Inevitably, Mina's theft was discovered, and her master came after her in a rage, its shadowy form seething with silent fury. Without thinking, the terrified young woman hurled the cloth at her attacker. As it tumbled through the air, one of corner's happened to snag on the monster's outstretched claws, ripping a hole in the inky black fabric. All at once, every noise that the cloth had ever consumed - every scream, sob, wail and whimper - was unleashed. The combined sound of a hundred lifetimes worth of fear and suffering poured forth in a shrieking, howling cacophony. The Fae's wraith-like body shuddered violently under the onslaught, like an abused tuning fork, its attempts to dislodge the cloth only serving to widen the tear, unleashing even more hellish noise. Finally, with a sharp, keening wail, the Soul of Silence screamed, then shattered like a black glass statuette, cascading to the floor in a shower of obsidian shards.

Mina does not consciously remember her flight from her captor's lair, nor can she say how long she spent crawling through the Thorns of the Hedge, clinging to the shadows and cowering at the slightest noise. Navigating more by sound than sight, with no sun, moon or stars to mark the passage of days, her sense of time and space became distorted. When she finally emerged into the mortal world, somewhere in Northern California, she was ragged, confused, and severely malnourished. She spent several weeks living as a vagrant, surviving off of hand-outs and scavenged goods, as she struggled to come to terms with what had happened to her, and what she had become. Although she had aged nearly a decade during her captivity, she quickly discovered that less than a year had passed since her abduction. Even without the changes wrought upon her body by the magics of Arcadia, her friends and family would never recognize her.

She could never go home.

Refusing to give in to despair - if only to spite her former captor - Mina gradually made her way to Illinois, seeking to put as much distance between herself and the painful memories of her former life as possible. She eventually took up residence in a modest, suburban apartment in Chicago, where she struggled to build a new life for herself, eking out a meager existence by doing odd jobs for local businesses, and the Autumn Court.

After so many years spent languishing in the suffocating silence of her master's lair, Mina has become something of an audiophile, and has developed a passion for music and radio. She is almost never without her iPod, and can always be found listening to some new tune or another. This is, perhaps, fortunate, as Mina cannot stand silence. Although she watched her master die with her own eyes, she is not entirely convinced that the Soul of Silence is gone for good, feeling his presence in every long, looming shadow or moment of unnatural stillness. Should things grow too quiet, she becomes extremely jumpy and nervous, and will often attempt to alleviate the silence by humming, whistling or muttering to herself - a trait that has earned her the nickname 'Murmur' among her fellow Court members.

Vital Characteristics

Health: 7/7
Willpower: 3/4

Wyrd: 1
Glamour: 10/11
Clarity: 7

Size: 5
Speed: 10
Initiative: 6
Defense: 3
Armor: 0

Glamor Spendable per turn: 1
Goblin Fruit Inventory: 0/3
Vows: 0/4

Inventory

• Cellphone
• Bicycle and helmet
• iPod with padded headphones (hates earbuds)
• Small, portable AM/FM radio
• Whistle
• Switchblade knife
• Flashlight

Mina's apartment is a small, cramped affair, littered with books, records, tapes and CDs of every imaginable variety. Though disorganized and graced with a liberal amount of dust, it is otherwise surprisingly clean. Despite the chaos, Mina seems to know instinctively where everything is, and will become frightfully annoyed should anyone attempt to 'organize' the mess.

Statistics

Attributes

Mental

• Intelligence: 3
• Wits: 3
• Resolve: 2

Physical

• Strength: 1
• Dexterity: 4
• Stamina: 2

Social

• Charisma: 1
• Manipulation: 3
• Composure: 2

Skills

Mental (-3 Untrained Penalty)

• Academics: 2
• Computer: 1
• Investigation: 2 (Enigmas)
• Occult: 2 (Folklore)

Physical (-1 Untrained Penalty)

• Larceny: 2 (Sleight of Hand)
• Stealth: 4 (Moving Silently)
• Survival: 1 (Navigation)

Social (-1 Untrained Penalty)

• Empathy: 2
• Persuasion: 2

Advantages

Seeming Boon: Mina can spend Glamour to add dice to her Wits, Subterfuge and Stealth pools, with each point of Glamour spent adding one die. Mina also benefits from the 9 again rule on all dice pools involving Stealth.
Seeming Curse: Mina suffers a -1 penalty to all Contract rolls during the daylight hours, with the penalty rising to -2 if she is in direct sunlight.
Kith Boon: Silent Shroud - By spending 1 point of Glamour, and making a successful Composure + Stealth roll, Mina can create a circle of perfect silence around herself (radius equal to her Wyrd) for a number of turns equal to the number of successes rolled. She also gains +1 to all Stealth rolls at all times.
Mantle Boon:

• Mina receives a +2 dice bonus on all Social rolls when dealing with members of the Autumn Court. She also receives two bonus dice on any Contract activation roll that uses Occult.
• Harvest of Whispers - Once per session, Mina may take a moment to reflect on what she has learned thus far that session. For each significant piece of information she has uncovered (up to a maximum number equal to her Mantle rating), she receives two temporary Glamour points, which are placed in a special pool separate from her normal Glamour points. This harvested Glamour may only be used to power Contracts, activate Tokens, facilitate Dream Travel, or cross into the Hedge. Any unspent Glamour in this pool vanishes at the end of the session.
  

Merits

• Harvest (Fear) [2] - In her spare time, Mina follows the exploits of a local team of paranormal investigators, known as the Horror Hunters, keeping tabs on them via their Youtube channel. Unbeknownst to the team, Mina herself is actually responsible for many of the so-called 'hauntings' they have been sent to investigate, using her Darkling powers to simulate the presence of a ghost, then harvesting Glamour from the team's fear.
• Hollow [1] - Shortly after arriving in Chicago, Mina discovered a small underground chamber beneath the local rail line, which she claimed as her Hollow. She finds the frequent rumble of the trains overhead soothing, and has modified the chamber for her comfort with various scavenged odds and ends, using it as an occasional refuge from both the Fae and mortal world. She often stops here before heading out to stage her fake hauntings.
• Mantle (Autumn) [2] - Mina's experiences in Arcadia have left her with a keen understanding of fear - how to use it, and how to ward against it - making her induction into the Autumn Court an almost forgone conclusion. This affinity for the Court's defining emotion grants Mina certain benefits when interacting with her fellow Courtiers, and allows her to perform the Harvest of Whispers once per session (see Mantle Boon).
• Direction Sense [1] - When Mina fled through the tangled gloom of the Hedge, she was forced to navigate more by sound and instinct than sight. The lessons she learned during this ordeal have left her with an almost unerring sense of direction, allowing her to orient herself and navigate without references, even in unfamiliar territory.
• Fast Reflexes [1] - While not strong, Mina is small and nimble, granting her a +1 to Initiative.

Contracts

Darkness [2]

• Creeping Dread:

Cost: 1-2 Glamour + 1 Willpower.

Dice Pool: Manipulation + Wyrd - Resolve

Action: Instant

Catch: Mina is using this clause to frighten intruders into her dwelling.

Mina causes those affected to become less resistant to fear or intimidation. The target or targets initially fees a mild shudder of fear and then becomes considerably more susceptible to any event that could make them afraid or intimidated, including anything that might trigger a Phobia derangement. Affected targets suffer a penalty equal to Mina's Wyrd to all Resolve or Composure rolls to resist fear or intimidation. Lasts one scene.

• Night's Subtle Distractions:

Cost: 1 Glamour

Dice Pool: Wyrd + Stealth

Action: Instant

Catch: The clause is invoked outdoors at night.

This clause allows Mina to avoid notice by enhancing physical conditions that limit perception. A dark night seems darker, background noises that obscure her footsteps seem louder, distractions become more distracting and strong smells can even block a bloodhound's ability to track her. All affected targets within 50 yards of Mina suffer double the normal environmental penalties to all rolls involving Perception. Lasts one scene.

Smoke [2]

• The Wrong Foot:

Cost: 1 Glamour

Action: Instant

Catch: Mina licks her thumb and smudges it on a mirror, thereby leaving another mark of her own passing.

This Contract allows Mina to change the nature of the marks she leaves when passing through a certain locale. Upon taking effect, all evidence of her passing changes to resemble something other than the visitation of a human-like entity. This may be tracks similar to a bird's three-toed foot, a bloody mist, drips of lavender extract - whatever Mina chooses. Lasts one scene.

• Nevertread:

Cost: 1 Glamour

Dice Pool: Intelligence + Wyrd

Action: Instant

Catch: Mina must have spent at least an hour barefoot within the past day.

When Mina invokes this clause, all traces of her passing vanish. She leaves no footprints in mud, sand, snow or any other surface that would normally hold a mark. Likewise, her wet feet leave no prints on dry ground. Even grass trampled underfoot or flour scattered on the ground leaves no evidence of her movements.

Fleeting Autumn [1]

• Witches' Intuition:

Cost: 1 Glamour

Dice Pool: Wits + Wyrd - subject's Composure

Action: Instant

Catch: The Contract's subject does not know Mina's name.

Mina dredges knowledge of one fear from the subject's mind or subconscious.

Pledges

- Oath to Save the Autumn King's Kin - +1 to Subterfuge, Investigation and Larceny.

XP

Saved: 15
Spent: 0