Difference between revisions of "Gloria Wynsee"

"I could not imagine where we would be without the laboring class; they are a hard-working sort, condemned to bloody their hands and blister their feet with toils that scarcely pay their way. And yet, when the work has been done, the shops are bolted and the bazaar is closed, they return to their secret lives in their secret homes, with secret children and secret loves, counting the hours until they can once again be themselves -- the laboring class."
- Sol Paulis, politician, philosopher, poet, historian

Description

"I am a Seamstress of Great Prowess, and while I am not necessarily a Tailor or Dressmaker by Trade, I have found my way about the Foibles of garment-making for some Time, though my Expertise lies specifically within Hems, and Embroidery, Trims and Trains, and Elaborate Schemes of the Threaded Sort."
- Gloria Winsee, in a dictated missive to Marshall Ariane Carnath-Emory

It would be easy to lose Gloria Winsee in a crowd of Myrken commoners. Round about the edges, plump in hips, cheeks, and hands, she has the appearance of a well-fed plainsgirl, her conservative dresses, long sleeves, and bonnets dirty with dust and old stains. Her skin is often gritty with grime, and her dark hair, instead of spilling free, is regularly bound into a number of fist-sized knots. Like many commoners, her attention to hygiene is unfortunately lacking -- the mud of filthy streets, the blood of the butchers, and the sweat of daily toils are often ignored for weeks at a time. Despite her proficiency with thread and needle, her few garments often go threadbare, thin, and frayed. A thin, black glove is her only peculiar trait, worn only on the left hand.

A girl of middle teenaged years, she wields the exacting vocabulary of a foreigner still not yet used to the Standard tongue and adheres to stringent concepts of right and wrong. What she lacks in personal organization -- her thread-satchel is often a mess of bobbins, needles, and scribbled notes -- she makes up for in conviction. In conversation, she speaks with honesty and abruptness, often not fully recognizing the consequence of such freed speech. She is intensely fond of poetry and prose, but prefers Jernoan literature over the bland styles of Myrken's few authors.

History

The seamstress is no native of Myrkentown. She was born and raised in the deserts of Jernoah, a distant country known for its exports of bonework, dried smoke-leaf, glassware, and sculpture. She clings firmly to customs of her homeland: she is a devoted follower of the Nameless, a pantheon of Jernoan deities; water is rarely wasted on baths or clothes-washing; she openly supports authoritative, if not tyrannical governmental structures, like other Jernos, who believe stringent politics and laws have significantly reduced thievery, murder, and other crimes.

Like her fellow Jernos, she has a love for literature and poetry and can write with great skill -- if only in Jernoan. Her ability to grasp the artistic and literary sensibilities of Myrken and its surrounding provinces is limited, and she relies often on dictation for formal correspondence. Native words often litter her grasp on the Standard tongue, a habit she induces in herself to resist forgetting her homeland.

Her original exile from Jernoah was self-imposed. In her home town of Bridlespear, she was an active member of the jerethedral choir and a student among many under the harsh tutelage of various Mother Sempstresses.

Interactions

Gloria has become quick friends with Master Cherny and Catch, both of whom she respects a great deal -- the former, for the boy's kindness, logic, knowledge, and work-ethic, and the latter for his vulnerability, his wildness, and his uncanny, child-like mentality. Both instill in the young woman a particular sense of responsibility, and she is quick to defend their sensibilities -- if sometimes to a fault.

The elfling Solena has expressed particular hostility toward the young woman, and their squabbles -- which often descend into matters of insults and physical altercation -- have become disquieting events for the seamstress.

Previous interactions have suggested silent contract with Altias Bromn, the likes of which are not publicly known.

Governor Glen Burnie and Ariane Carnath-Emory are respected highly, especially given the young woman's penchant for aligning herself with strong figures of governmental authority -- a persisting (if occasionally misplaced) quality from Jernoan culture.

Other compatriots of Gloria's include the bard Descant, his lover Zerdali, the school-teacher Rhaena Olwak, the couple of Aleksei River and Agnieszka, and the barman Tennant, among other. Those who have drawn ire from seamstress (or in whom she has inspired dislike) include (but are not entirely limited to) the spearwielder Niall, the deaf-mute Radeorin, and various others.

Jernoah

Jernoan culture is regularly regarded as primitive, if not barbaric. Uncertain country borders have led to a constant flux of war at the country's perimeter. Because of the rapidly declining Jerno population, women between the ages of twelve and eighteen are entered into a mandatory birthing lottery by governmental edict, and if chosen, are required to submit themselves to male members of renowned family lines to produce children. Stories are abound in the available literature. Sol Paulis, renowned Jernoan historian, once wrote: "When the Chosen are shuffled off to the Birthing Pens, you can often hear their screams for days at a time as the men make their bedding rounds. The girls are fed exotic fruits that the Nameless have given us, which enhance their fertility and broaden their minds. Only when they are bulging with child are the soon-to-be mothers released to their families. They are praised and heralded with great reverence. They are fed to fatness. These young women are the saviors of our dying culture."

Jernos are often left unclothed until the age of ten so that their bodies can adjust to the harsh, dry climate of the desert. At ten, they are given their first garments and are ritualized as an adult in a mass ceremony (often highly-attended, for the birthing lotteries ensure many children of very similar birthdays). Regarding the physiology of the Jerno, Sol Paulis wrote that "Jernos are unique for their bodies' peculiar enhancements. Centuries in the sun has caused magnificent, Nameless-blessed evolution: tarsweat has become a common term for the black, oily sweat always glistening on a Jerno's body. When excreted, a layer of tarsweat can resist the sky's harsh rays and can insulate against the icy, cracking nights of the Glass Sands." As such, common hierarchies in Jernoah embrace the benefits of tarsweat -- those of a greater odor are often seen as strong and unyielding, and even in the circles of the dantiest, most proper women, bodily scents are regarded with pride.

In Jernoah, the average lifespan ranges from between twenty-one years to thirty, ensuring viable adulthood at a very early age. Desert predators such as vile dune-bugs, mythical stonebears, voorbears, and any number of unnamed beasts regularly ensure death as a commonplace occurrence. Again, the Jerno tarsweat is seen as an advantage -- predators are often driven away from Jerno cities and villages by their overwhelming odors, and tarsweat has proved even poisonous to certain creatures. Elder Jernos (often referred to as Greatmen or Greatladies) are highly respected for their fortitude, constitution, and wisdom, and their word alone can often overthrow any ruling in a Jernoan village council -- if they care enough to attend, and are not being glutted into stupor by incense, hallucinogens, and other bodily pleasures.

The staple of Jernoan cuisine is the jah'zoon, a grazing, deer-like creature whose meat is valued for its abundance at certain times of the year. Jah'zoon hide and bone is a major staple of craft and necessity. They are regularly herded around towns and cities, for their bony, extendable snouts can often find pockets of earthen water. Their urine and sweat is regularly farmed so that it can be boiled and cleansed over fire, and is regularly used as stock for cooking and other essentials.