[ fade rift app ]

[vorbratta]

PLAYER

Name: madi
Age: 30
Contact: runawayballista
Other Characters: na
Interests: I’m in it for the CR and player/character-driven plots, but a chance for Sonia to flex (and improve) her diplomatic skills would be fun, especially if there’s intrigue involved. I’d like for her experience in the Inquisition to challenge her worldview, and throwing her into little adventure would be cool too.

CHARACTER

Name: Sonia Titania Barra
Canon/OC: OC
Journal: vorbratta
Race: Human
Nationality: Fereldan
Occupation: Noble lady, socialite, all-around-good-time-haver
Division: Diplomacy
Mage or Not: No
Age: 27

History

• The Barra family are the Banns of Wildcrest, located just north of the Hinterlands. Here’s a handy family tree! They’re a little bit more sprawling than that, Hector having siblings and cousins out there, but there’s the important part. The Barras have been staunchly loyal to the Fereldan throne for generations. They have a reputation as a family of fierce, even savage, warriors—her uncle, father, and grandfather all fought in the Fereldan Rebellion, and the Barras fought just as aggressively against the Orlesian invasion before that. It cost them a fair bit of territory, but their dedication was rewarded after the end of the rebellion when Maric restored their lost lands.
  
• As lords, they’re known to be strict but fair, and since Hector assumed power, Wildcrest’s freehold population has been fairly stable. The Barras are not particularly known for their religious devotion but they ARE known for being DTF (down to fight) at pretty much any given time.
  
• Sonia’s childhood was more or less a happy one; she enjoyed a close relationship with her siblings and parents as well as her grandfather, who likes to dote on his youngest grandchild. When the Fifth Blight struck and the Fereldan Civil War began, however, things took an abrupt turn into the macabre. She lost her brother, aunt, and more than one cousin to the all the fighting and terror, and thereafter, family relations cooled. Verus was set to succeed his father, but with no heirs left of his own, things between him and his brother Xavier became strained.
  
• All the death and subsequent tension felt oppressive to her; while her older sister became steely and more reserved, Sonia stubbornly doubled down on her sunny outlook and determination to embrace life to the fullest. Life’s too short not to pursue your passions.
  
• Sonia was never particularly inclined to warriorhood, and her father, more of a diplomat than his brother, gave her education as such. She’s spent a considerable amount of time at court, and with her natural charm and social savoir-faire, she has a flair for the diplomatic—to a point. Sonia enjoys the perks of being a noble lady of a young and festive age at court, and if there’s a party, she’s almost certainly there. That’s where she tends to work her own brand of diplomacy—some of the best secrets are spilled over wine cups, and a strategically placed rumor here and there can catch like wildfire.
  
• Tensions between Verus and Xavier have only grown the last few years; Sonia’s sister is now married to the son of a nearby bann, but Xavier suspects that his brother sees Sonia as some kind of looming threat to his inheritance. Worried for her safety and hoping to avoid a feud with his brother, Xavier sends Sonia to the Inquisition to lend her diplomatic skills to the cause.

Personality
Sonia is the bratty little sister all grown up. Mischievous and easily bored when she had no one to entertain her, she began playing tricks on her older siblings at a young age—at first for attention, and then just for fun. She delights in starting (mostly) harmless rumors, and she’s good at it, too. She has a remarkable talent for making up outrageous lies on the spot with a totally straight face, something she started as childhood hobby and perfected at court. She’s been in a vicious prank war with one of her cousins for nearly two decades. She’s mellowed out as she’s gotten older, but she still has a surprisingly effective pout for a lady. She’s (mostly) outgrown tantrums and has found other means of getting her way.

All mischievous distractions aside, Sonia’s really a very sweet and warm person, and her demeanor tends toward girlish and cheeky. She’s just a fun-lover at heart, and likes to laugh and have a good time, and she’s just a little bit vain—what girl doesn’t like to be told she’s pretty, anyway? Despite her impish streak, she holds integrity and honor in high regard, and she’s determined to find the good in everyone, no matter the first impression.

To Sonia, life is precious and should be celebrated—preferably with a fine bottle of wine in hand. She’s quick to share a smile and a good story (if one of dubious authenticity), and among some circles she’s known as a notorious flirt. But it’s all in the name of good fun; it always is with Sonia.

She’s a bit of a bleeding heart, and when she feels, she feels deeply. After seeing how the Blight ravaged her family and so much of Wildcrest, she developed a deeper sense of compassion and a keener awareness of misfortunes of others, especially those of the freeholds of Wildcrest. Sonia has very little desire to rule (that would almost certainly get in the way of having a good time, and she’s well aware that being in power automatically paints a target on your head), but she very much wants to help, however she can. Those are Sonia’s priorities in life: not dying, and having a good time. Despite her awareness that she’s being sent away for political reasons, she doesn’t resent joining the Inquisition; it serves to stand against an even bigger crisis, and if Sonia can find a way to help keep others safe, she’s there, even when it means a little danger.

Opinions & Affiliations
Chantry: The idea of spirituality is more enchanting the reality. As a child Sonia took the ideals of the Chantry at face value, but as she gets older she is increasingly unsure about some of the Chantry’s more aggressive tenets, such as converting the rest of the world. She’s not particularly observant, but it has influenced her view on magic, which is mostly: it’s kind of freaky.
Qun: Sonia finds the lack of free will/choice depressing and the blind devotion to their social order unnerving. It seems very unfriendly to her.
Mage/Templar War: Conflicted. She understands that magic can be dangerous, but she’s also heard of the abuses of Circle mages. The whole thing is heart-wrenchingly tragic to her—almost romantically so.
Elves: She sees the Dalish as intriguing and a little bit romantic in their diasporic society; city elves deserve better and are to be pitied.
Dwarves: She’s never met a dwarf she found disagreeable, but life under a mountain sounds terribly dull to her.
Qunari: She finds the Qun off-putting, but she finds individual qunari intriguing and they pique her physical curiosity.
Ferelden Nobility: She enjoys court life and the social life that comes with it, but she’s still acquiring a taste (and tolerance) for the more intense court politics.
Orlesian Nobility: Considering the Barras’ fierce opposition to the occupation, they’re not really a fan, and Sonia has a bit of a kneejerk dislike for Orlesian nobles.



Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths

• SHE’S GREAT AT MAKING CONNECTIONS; her diplomatic skills outside the party scene are decent but still developing, she still has quite a bit to learn
  
• Charming, coy, and quick on the uptake
  
• Good at finding the good in people, even if she has to dig deep — and she will
  
• Excellent liar, good at keeping secrets

Weaknesses

• Mostly useless in a fight
  
• Occasionally prone to bouts of stupid recklessness
  
• Emotions come in extremes, both good and bad; she’s very emotion-driven and this makes her susceptible to some kinds of manipulation
  
• Unfortunately still a little naive; sometimes blinded by her idealism

Inventory
Just some personal effects, including some small/portable painting supplies. And liquor. She will have brought some liquor with her.

Motivation
Aside from her father sending her away from an uncomfortable family situation, Sonia genuinely just wants to help. She felt helpless during the Fifth Blight and the Civil War, and now that she’s an adult and has some diplomatic training, she can actually make herself useful and serve the greater good in a meaningful way.

SAMPLES

SAMPLE 1:
“You’re sending me away?” Sonia’s voice has a distinct plaintive note to it, almost childish in its incredulity, as she leans against the edge of the table and crosses her arms. “Just because Uncle Verus is in a bad mood, I have to pack up and leave?”

Her father, sitting at the other end of the table, gives her a tired but patient smile.

“I’m not sending you away—”

“You told him you were sending me away. I heard you.”

“That is what I told him,” Xavier says mildly, but the look he gives her is knowing. “It was what he needed to hear at the time. Your uncle…needs some space just now.”

“Space,” Sonia says, flinging her arms up over her head with just a touch of theatrics, gesturing at the grand house all around them. It feels so achingly empty these days. “Right, space, he hasn’t got enough of that, surely.”

Xavier sighs, pushing away a half-drunk glass of wine. Sonia contemplates whether a well-placed pout would do her any good right now.

“It’s been harder for him than it has been for us,” he reminds her gently, but firmly. “He’s…been in a bad place, as of late. A lot is on his mind. He and I have some things to sort out.”

“I don’t want to rule this place,” Sonia declares flatly, “not now, not ever. He does know that, doesn’t he?”

“It’s more complicated than—”

“Why doesn’t he just pick a successor and be done with it?” She swipes her father’s glass for herself with a vicious drink of it; he only smiles slightly. He’s in the wrong mood for a pout—it works so much better on exasperation. “We’ve got loads of cousins. One of them has to be qualified.”

“It’s more complicated than that,” Xavier says, with unending patience, “and you know that. Don’t pretend like you don’t understand. And may I remind you that joining the Inquisition was your idea?”

She tries the pout anyway. Xavier delicately lifts a single eyebrow.

“I know,” she says, because it was—Byerly’s fault, perhaps, for including that in his latest melodramatic letter. It had put the thought in her head, and it hadn’t taken much for it to take root. Life at court is entertaining, but not nearly so entertaining without her dear old friend, but more than that—so much more—it’s not nearly as meaningful. They take all sorts at the Inquisition. (They’d taken Byerly, after all.) She could do something. She could help.

“I know,” she says again, blowing the word out on a sigh, and she leans on the tabletop with her free hand. “But there’s a difference between going because I want to and being sent away. It’s very important.”

She considers tossing the rest of the wine back as pointed punctuation, but it’s too good to waste. Xavier lays a hand over hers and gives it a gentle squeeze.

“Don’t worry about what your uncle thinks. The Inquisition can use every sharp mind and pair of able hands they can get, I’m sure—fortunate for them that they’ll be getting yours.” He smiles at her, and this time it’s less tired, warmer and more familiar. “Go, Sonia—because it’s what you want. I’ll take care of things here.”

Sonia sighs and sets the glass back down, hitching her hip over the edge of the table and covering her father’s hand in both of hers. “And you promise you’ll still be here when I come back?”

Whenever that is. There’s a little bit of terror in putting oneself so close to the source of danger, in the uncertainty of it, but Sonia doesn’t think she can bear to sit idle for long. Xavier pushes himself out of his chair and to his feet, and comes around the table to firmly put his hands on her shoulders.

“Dear child,” he says, a slightly wry quirk to his mouth, “when you come back, everything will be as you left it. Better, even. But only if you make sure to write—your grandfather would be heartbroken if you simply disappeared into the wind.”

“Ah, but my heartless father could care less,” Sonia says archly, but there’s a laugh in her voice as her father wraps her in a warm embrace. She knows she’ll miss him, but she doesn’t know how much just yet. “Don’t worry, Da, I’ll write. Pages and pages, you’ll have to read. You’ll get all the most fantastic gossip from the front lines.”

SAMPLE 2: in another life, Sonia was a lonely princess, and Byerly was a time-traveling spy