Post by COSETTE FAUCHELEVENT on Nov 15, 2013 16:01:34 GMT -5
FULL NAME: Euphrasie (Cosette) Fauchelevent
NICKNAMES: Ursule, the Lark, Mademoiselle Lanoire
HERITAGE: French
AGE: 17
GROUP: Citizen
CANON: yes
PLAYBY: Amanda Seyfried
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{{OOC: This app is a mixture of novel and musical, tied together with a small bit of AU. If anything needs changing, I will be happy to edit accordingly.}}
PERSONALITY:
Cosette is a demure and obedient young woman with a sweet disposition, who believes that all people are basically good. She tends to ignore what she doesn't want to see if it interferes with her idealistic view of the world. Sheltered from the harsh realities of life, she is naïve and inexperienced in the ways of the world, and lacks wisdom. She trusts far too readily, and can be a bit gullible at times. Despite her vulnerability, there is a quiet strength about her which she has yet to discover.
She is highly intelligent, well-educated, and insatiably curious. Cosette loves to read, embroider, sing, draw, and play the piano. She is not at all shy; it just takes a while before she warms up to someone enough to open up to them. The young woman is always polite, but a bit reserved until one gets to know her. Then she is delightful and witty, and quite enjoyable to be around.
She has very vague memories of her mother, and wishes to know more about her. Her father's refusal to speak about her frustrates Cosette and she also doesn't understand why they have moved so many times. She loves him and does not wish to disappoint him, but he treats her as if she is still a child, and she wishes he would not be so overprotective and that he would allow her more freedom. Then she would not have to sneak away to meet Marius Pontmercy, the man she loves, in secret. Cosette does not believe her father would approve of the young man or of his political views.
Cosette is a very compassionate young woman and enjoys helping the less fortunate, often handing out money to the poor or buying food for starving street children. She wishes that life was fair to everybody and sometimes feels guilty that she has so much and others have so little.
She agrees with Marius that things need to change, but she wishes it could be done without violence, which is something she abhors. She fears for Marius and wishes they could just run away together, but she loves her father too much to leave him and loves Marius too much to ask him to give up the cause he believes in.
APPEARANCE: Cosette is a lovely young woman of average height. She has a flawless complexion, beautifully-sculpted features, and eyes the color of a summer sky. Her golden-blonde hair is long and softly curled, and her attire is tasteful, fashionable, and speaks of wealth. She walks with elegance and grace, and she is one of those women who attract attention without trying. It simply comes naturally to her.
GOALS:
Cosette wants to learn more about her mother, as well as her father's past, to prove to her father that she is not a child anymore, and she wants his blessing to marry Marius.
HISTORY:
Cosette was born in poverty and sorrow. Her mother Fantine, a young grisette, had fallen in love with a wealthy student by the name of Félix Tholomyès, but he left her after he found out she was pregnant. Alone and forgotten, she had nothing to live for but the tiny life growing inside her. When her daughter burst into the world on a bright summer morning, Fantine was smitten with the tiny fair-haired infant and vowed to do everything possible to give Cosette the kind of life she deserved.
She was barely able to make ends meet in Paris, and when Cosette was two years old, Fantine decided to move back to her hometown, Montreuil-sur-Mer, hoping to find work there. She knew it would be difficult to get a job if it was known that she had an illegitimate child, but she wasn't about to abandon Cosette the way she had been abandoned by the girl's father. On the way, she passed through a village called Montfermeil and stopped at an inn where two well-dressed little girls around Cosette's age were playing. Fantine struck up a conversation with their mother, and after staying with them for a few days, she asked the woman and her husband to look after Cosette, promising to pay them well for her care. The Thénardiers agreed to take care of Cosette as if she were their own daughter. After a tearful good-bye, Fantine continued her journey, certain that she had made the right choice and that her beloved little girl would be lovingly taken care of.
She would never know that it was one of the worst decisions she had ever made.
Cosette's earliest memories were of hunger, cold, and pain. Instead of caring for her as their own child, the Thénardiers treated her like a servant, forcing her to work from morning until night. They fed her only enough to keep her alive and her clothing was threadbare and not enough to keep her warm. When she displeased them, she was slapped or beaten. Following their parents example, the Thénardiers' two daughters, Eponine and Azelma, were cruel to little Cosette, taunting her, blaming her for trouble they caused themselves, and refusing to let her play with their toys.
It was a miserable existence for such a young girl. Cosette was thin, malnourished, and dirty, and solace was only found in the oblivion of sleep and the vague memories of loving arms holding her tight, a woman's voice singing softly, and the sweet smell of perfume. She cherished those images, believing they were of her mother. One day, she thought, her mother would return for her and take her away from the horror that was her life. Those dreams made her hardships a bit easier to bear.
On Christmas Eve when she was seven, she was sent into the forest after dark to fetch water. A strange man approached her, frightening her immensely, but the bucket was so heavy that she could not run away from him and she knew that if she left it behind, she would be beaten by the Thénardiers. Her heart hammered in her chest as he stepped toward her, speaking to her gently, and she was quite surprised when he took the bucket and followed her back to the inn.
The mysterious stranger stayed at the inn that evening, and Cosette could feel him watching her closely. Whenever she glanced nervously in his direction, he had a warm smile for her. The Thénardiers gave her more work to do, and when she was finally excused, she picked up a doll that had been discarded by Eponine and Azelma, and started to play with it. The two girls noticed this and ran over to their parents, accusing Cosette of stealing their doll. She was slapped across the face and forced to give it back. The visitor gazed at Cosette compassionately and left. She was sure he was gone for good, but he returned with an expensive new doll, which he held out to her. The young girl was afraid to take it at first, but his smile encouraged her and she finally accepted it and took it back to the filthy corner she slept in.
On Christmas Day, the man demanded to take Cosette with him. She did not understand the negotiations, but gathered it had something to do with her mother's wishes. After a lot of haggling and money changing hands, Cosette was given into the man's care and she left the inn for the last time.
He took her to Paris and they rented rooms in a place called Gorbeau House. She was given beautiful new clothes and for the first time in her life, she was neither hungry nor cold. She was also able to sleep in a real bed instead of a dirty pallet in a drafty corner. The man, whom she already called 'Papa,' began to teach her to read and write. Cosette felt as if she were living in a wonderful dream.
She was happy there, but after a few months, her father told her quite suddenly that they must leave. They fled into the night and eventually found themselves in the garden of the Petit-Picpus Convent. Cosette was so sleepy that she did not understand what went on that night, but in the morning, she woke up in a soft bed with her father by her side and was told that they were going to stay at the convent indefinitely.
Cosette attended the convent school, and the memories of her time with the Thénardiers eventually disappeared. By the time she was fourteen, she did not remember anything about her life before arriving at the convent. She devoted her time to her studies and to her hobbies, which included reading, embroidery, singing, and playing the piano, among others. Eventually she began chafing at the convent's rules, and expressed interest in life beyond the nunnery's walls. Her father agreed that she needed to experience more of the world, and they left the convent and moved to one of the houses he owned when she was fifteen.
The Paris lifestyle intrigued Cosette, and her days were full of delight and discovery. Eventually she met a young man named Marius Pontmercy and they fell in love with each other. Despite the fact that her father kept moving them to different locations, he always seemed to find her and they continued to meet in secret, sharing kisses and sweet embraces.
After an attack on their most recent residence, her father has told her that they will be moving to England, but Cosette does not want to go. She believes he wants to remove her from the danger of the coming revolution., and while she appreciates his concern, she wants to remain in Paris with the man she loves. Will she accede to her father's wishes or will she dare to follow her heart?
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ALIAS: Lissa
AGE: ancient
GENDER: female
OTHER CHARACTERS: none yet
HOW DID YOU FIND US: former member
ROLEPLAY SAMPLE:
from a Merlin RPG
Crumpled and forlorn, the letter lay lay across the room by her wardrobe, where she had thrown it last night in a rare fit of anger.
Sophia sighed and picked it up, carrying it to the desk in her small sitting room. The chambers she had been provided in the castle were more than adequate, and for that she was grateful. In fact, there was no reason to leave her rooms if she did not wish to, and most of the time she was content to remain secluded in this small refuge. Meals were sent up to her, a bathtub sat in its own concealed space, and she could send her maidservant for anything else she required.
Yet now that must change.
Because of the letter.
Sitting down, the young woman lay the crumpled paper on the desk and smoothed it out, hoping the words would still be readable among all the crinkles. Why she even attempted to read it, she did not know. The words were engraved on her mind and in her heart.
Her father wanted to know what progress she had made concerning her seduction of Prince Arthur. She had been at Camelot for two months; certainly the prince was groveling at her feet by now.
Right.
She had only spoken to Arthur once, on the day that she had arrived. If he had been impressed with her, he had certainly not shown it. Yet what had she expected? That he would be so entranced by her that he would ask her to marry him right there on the spot?
Sophia sighed. It would certainly be easier for her had he done so. It would have been easier for her had he shown any interest in her whatsoever. She doubted that he was immune to her beauty, but there were many beautiful women in the kingdom. He could have any one of them that he wished.
Why should he pay attention to her, an unsure and inexperienced girl of not quite sixteen? Somehow, she had to make herself stand out, make herself so appealing that he could not resist her.
But how?
Her thoughts were interrupted as Cedric came bounding over to her. The wolf cub was a little over two months old and finally able to eat on his own. She had arranged for the cooks to provide him with small pieces of raw meat several times a day, which were usually brought up to her room by her maidservant Kerensa.
After dressing her mistress his morning, the woman had asked to be excused for the day. Sophia had agreed. Kerensa had little free time, and she knew that her maid was seeing a man she had met a few weeks ago in the city. The woman had been with her since Sophia was six and Kerensa twelve. They had practically grown up together and Sophia considered her more of a friend than a servant. She certainly did not begrudge her a day off to spend time with her beau.
At least one of us knows how to attract a man's attention, she thought bitterly. Prince Arthur probably dismissed me from his mind as soon as he met me and no longer even knows I exist.
Closing her eyes, she sighed in frustration. And he never will, as long as I stay ensconced in my room.
Sophia picked Cedric up and stood. After licking her cheek with his slick little tongue, he settled down into her arms. Despite her morose mood, the girl laughed as she picked up a handkerchief and wiped her cheek. “It looks like I will be responsible for feeding you today,” she said.
Instead of bringing the bowl of meat up to him, she decided to take him down to the kitchen to eat. At least it would get her out of her chambers. Cedric was a friendly little fellow and she doubted that the servants would have any problem with him. If they did, she would simply collect the food and let him eat once she returned to her chambers.
Leaving the room, she wandered down the hall. Sophia had no idea where the kitchen was, but she did not think it would be too difficult to find.
Unfortunately, she was wrong.