Aija Ganiņš ***
***
Name: Aija Ganiņš
Age: 18
Kingdom of Origin: The Northern Kingdom
Territory within the Kingdom [canon nation]: Latvia
Rank: Serf
Profession: Keeping house, works in the house of a German baron.
Control of an element?: Slight control of snow, can't do much with it.
***
Appearance:
Aija is a girl of short stature, standing under 5 feet tall. She is petite, and to some, appears to be younger than she is. While she is very thin, she doesn't appear to be very developed, and instead seems like a young girl still. With a round face and soft features, Aija almost always has a worried look on her face. She has pale skin, though she doesn't tan or burn very well.
Aija has light, sandy blonde hair, reaching to about her mid back at it's longest point. It's thick and curly, and almost always is in a mess. Her bangs are parted on the right, and pushed to the sides, out of her eyes. She doesn't take a great care in styling her hair, finding that she needn't spend time much on it due to her lower social ranking. Occasionally, she will wear her hair in braids, in an attempt to keep it out of the way when she's doing something more taxing than just cleaning up or cooking.
Her eyes are a light, very clear blue. She has light coloured lashes, matching her hair, though they aren't very long. Usually, she doesn't appear to be very relaxed or calm, instead having a perpetual look of apprehension upon her face. She dresses simply, not having the money to wear anything very elegant, and she really has no reason to wear anything past what is necessary for her job.
Personality:
Aija is a worrisome girl, apprehensive and pessimistic. Born into a life without much hope of ever being free, she takes most everything with a frown and prepares for the worst. She isn't one to really have too much faith in others, and tries her best to be self-reliant when she can. She is a bit naïve in her distrust of others- for while she was born into serfdom, she was sheltered quite a bit from the world outside the house she worked in. She doesn't have much political or social drive, and instead her distrust is mostly one suspecting others of wanting to trick her into doing something embarrassing so they can mock her, or steal something from her...she has almost no interest in building up a reputation, of becoming a 'favourite' to get better treatment- nor does she have much interest in current affairs or news of any sort. She is as clueless on those subjects as she is on most anything scientific.
Aija is hard to impress, not because she is condescending, but because she simply doesn't see the good in most things. Money and expensive things aren't to her tastes, she sees them quite enough where she works and finds them to be valueless. Even with nice people, she has difficulties trusting; kindness and compassion aren't enough for her to open enough, she doesn't have a lot of faith in people. She keeps her simple self bottled up, for she's learned, and believes that, the individual doesn't matter, the individual doesn't have power. And because of this, Aija is a very secretive person. Even under the rare circumstance that she decides not to be as holed up as normal, she really wouldn't be a spectacular person to learn about. Not adventurous, and honestly a bit of a coward, the most interesting thing that's happened to her is witnessing fights between the German baron she worked for and his wife...and occasionally, concubine, for as a maid, she did see what happened behind closed doors. But about herself, she really doesn't think there's much that would interest another.
Aija does have a soft spot for some things though, flowers in particular. It was in her blood, as some of the older servants told her when she was younger, she was Latvian, Latvians were good with flowers. Maintaining a garden, even in the harshest of weather, Aija found she had a talent with gardening- and it was really, one of her only natural talents. Along with gardening, Aija always had loved to dance, something else the elder servants told her was in her blood. On days when she finished her work early and had free time, she would always dance with those she worked with. Occasionally, when she was let out of the house during a festival, she would dance with complete strangers as well. Aija found that she was most open with a person when she could dance with them; she never understood why, but dance seemed to be the one road to her heart. Aija always had a secret appreciate for music and art as well, though it was never as strong as her love for dance.
Because there really was no room in her life for romances or frivolous relationships, Aija secluded herself to just the people she worked with most of her life. She tried never to form too deep a bond with someone, for she knew all too well how one mistake could tear that person away from you. She put all her efforts into being a good worker. She was always observant, but not a quick learner. As a child, it took her longer to learn how to properly do laundry, to clean dishes, to fold clothes...she was a hard worker, but things simply were hard for her to learn. Because of this, she comes off as a clumsy girl, but really, she's not. Once she understands something, she rarely makes mistakes. Only in the learning process is she klutzy.
On a personal level, once Aija has worked past her rather reclusive, quiet nature, she is quite a talker. She can talk quite a bit, and manages to pull conversations out of nowhere if she really has to- but more likely than not, if a conversation has dropped Aija will simply excuse herself, for she really isn't a big people person. Aija isn't as awkward as she might seem; she has no problem with speaking to others, it's just a matter of them keeping her interest long enough for her to want to speak with them. She isn't rude though, she knows when to keep her tongue and when she can joke. Aija though, faced with an argument of any sorts, would back down from it as quickly as she could. She doesn't like arguing in the slightest, and finds talking to an angry person is completely pointless. She is afraid of confrontation, and won't oppose people very often, not until it's under the most dire of situations.
Overall, Aija is a calm girl, though naive at times. She isn't much of a deep thinker, not a philosophical person at all. While she is very skeptical and suspicious at times, Aija is happiest when she can just appreciate the simple things in life, and not have to worry about money or security. She doesn't like to rely on other people, nor does she like getting very close with others; because of her social standing, Aija doesn't value herself very much. Not to be mistaken as low self esteem, because she is rather solid in trusting and believing herself, but she doesn't see herself as an important part of society. Aija isn't one to fight, and prefers the peaceful method of talking things out over yelling. She is quite level headed, albeit when frightened she gets a bit frantic and can lose her cool. She doesn't do well under stress, and her usual composed self can start to fall apart when it becomes too much. She isn't out for attention, money, or fame...no, all Aija really wants is just a quiet little life that allows her to do what she wants.
Strengths:
- Resilient; Aiji can take a lot of wear and tear before it really starts to effect her.
- Determined; Aiji is good at committing, when she says she'll do something, she does it quickly and gets it over with as soon as she can.
- Communication; While she may not always jump into a conversation head first, she really doesn't have as hard a time talking to people as some would think.
Weaknesses:
- Physically weak; In shape, but just not strong, Aija was never very muscular or well built.
- Apathetic; She has a hard time relating to others sometimes, and other times, just doesn't care about people.
- Poor at handling stress; When things become too much for her, she doesn't know how to unwind, sometimes things get to a boiling point and she has a breakdown.
Likes:
- Gardening; A little knack she had since when was young, her favourite thing is to plant and grow flowers.
- Dance; Her escape from reality, she'd enjoyed dancing since she learned how to do it.
- Cold weather, Winter time; The winters where she lives can get bad, but she's grown up with it and anticipates it now. Summer time is nice, but she always likes a snow storm more than sunshine.
- Mindless small talk and chatter; Only of course, when she's not working. She likes to just chat about insignificant little things, it's a way to relax for her.
Hobbies:
- Listening to music; music always makes her want to dance, and she loves to have music around her, whether it be vocal or instrumental.
- Window shopping; she may not want pretty, frivolous things, but that doesn't stop her from looking at them and appreciating them.
Dislikes:
- Silence; It's unsettling for there to be no noise to her, even just the sound of a storm or people talking is better than no noise.
- Arguing; While some people like to argue just for the fun of it, she despises it. She tries to be agreeable, and avoids even just playful or sarcastic arguing.
- Fire; true to her kingdom, she's a girl that loves snow and ice. She hates even lighting candles, having burnt her fingers too many times before.
- Royalty; Aija is for the most part, indifferent towards expensive things, but even so, she can't help but hold a bit of contempt against those high in power and rich, something she'll never be.
Fears:
- Losing her home; Aija has never left her village, and even thinking of doing so is a scary thought. She wouldn't know what to do if she was thrown onto the streets.
- Violence; While Aija can handle getting out of arguments well enough, when things escalate to violence, she isn't sure what to do.
- Theft; She's seen how desperate people can get when there's little food and everyone is poor, she's always on the look out for pickpockets whenever she's outside of the mansion.
Quirks:
- Comes off as a worrywart; She is always somewhat anxious, but she always looks a tad more worried than she really is.
- Tends to drop conversations; Once you've become boring(if you're not an important person, or someone she likes), Aija will excuse herself from the discussion, and either find someone more interesting or occupy herself elsewhere.
- Jittery about people grossly taller than herself; Well, as short as she is, it's just a bit nerve wracking to look up at somebody a full foot taller than yourself.
- Illiterate; as a servant, she was taught neither to write or read, in any language.
***
Biography:
Born into a family of servants, Aija lived in the house of a German baron with his wife and family herentire life. The house was large, and all the many serfs that were 'employed' there lived in the basement, all put into one large room. There wasn't much space, but they were a pseudo-family, all working together and avoiding the wrath of their Baron. Aija's parents had met and lived together in the safe house, though her mother had recently come to the house, while her father had worked there most of his life. When Aija was born, it was kept secret by the little 'community' of servants working together; they took turns taking care of the infant girl, when her parents couldn't, and they all tried to protect each other. When Aija was about two years old though, famine struck her country. The baron she worked under was never known for anything but strict spending, and immediately, he began firing and throwing out workers who he couldn't afford to feed. Aija's parents were among those thrown out. Though she was too young to understand what had happened, she also wasn't greatly affected. So young at the time, and still surrounded by others who'd taken care of her, they quickly faded from her memory.
Aija was in danger during the famine, for those who were kept to work, became colder and more distant from the young girl as food got more scarce, and the Baron more strict. Only a toddler that could barely walk, Aija could hardly work, and she stayed in the servants' quarters more of the time, playing with whomever was down there and could watch her. Soon though, she was left alone, as there was work to be done, and not enough people to do it. She was given less to eat- why feed a child that couldn't work? Aija didn't understand any of what was happening, but she did notice the change in people, the change in how she was treated. She became more fussy, as most children who lacked the proper attention would, and eventually, she found her way out of the servants' quarters. She was discovered at the age of three by the Baron.
For a limited amount of time, Aija was allowed to actually play and be friends with the daughters of the baron; she may have only survived because of his soft spot for children. This favourable treatment only lasted a short while though, at the age of 6 she was sent back down to work with the other serfs. She wouldn't be allowed anymore to associate with the daughters of the baron, and was nothing more than a servant at this point. Aija though, in later years, would realize how lucky she was, not to be thrown out, or starved to death.
As Aija grew older, the people she'd trusted only as a small child were replaced. One mistake, and they were turned out into the cold. If one broke a dish, the only way to escape punishment is hope no one that would inform the Baron of the misdeed, saw. Aija learned slowly, but forced herself to keep trying, because she knew she wouldn't last long if she was a clumsy person. Her mistakes were made early on, but eventually, she stopped making them. If she did have an accident, she had learned how to cover it up; it was survival. A serf thrown out into the world with only the clothes on their back, would never survive. One would be lucky to be rehired, and the money they made was too meager to make a living.
Aija and a select group of others knew the ins and outs of the mansion they were in well enough to survive. Aija wasn't a cold person, but she wasn't an extrovert by any means. When she was working, they were professionals. Professional slaves. They were bugs that could be squashed and replaced, easily. It was too serious of a job to have any sort of silliness or joking. When they weren't working, Aija enjoyed herself quite a bit more. Those who had worked there long enough were allowed to leave the house on festivals and occasional holidays, Aija was one of those people. She'd been there long enough to know the consequence of running away. It was foolish. So that little bit of freedom she was given, she didn't abuse. The festivals were her favourite things to attend; she always had a great time whenever she went to one, almost nothing could sour her mood then.
When Aija was 18, she was allowed much more freedoms, for she was one of the few people that'd lived in the house all her life. She was trusted enough not to run away, and almost always now, it was either Aija or one of another servants that ran errands outside of the house: shopping, picking up deliveries, sending mail or picking it up, showing in visitors(this particular one though, was left to those who groomed themselves to be a bit 'prettier' than she did). Aija was not very restricted in her life the older she got, but she still had to be careful. She'd seen things she knows she was never meant to see; glanced upon the baron as he took a lady to his room while his wife wasn't present, carried a tray of food up to him when he was discussing a 'deal' with a politician friend. Aija was lucky to still be there, and she had to be on her toes, for if she wasn't, she wouldn't survive. *
RP Sample:
Raivis quite loved being able to go to Hogsmeade...back in his school in Latvia, the school had been underground, and there was no little town to wander off to on the weekends. In fact, the students only went above ground for certain classes and flying lessons- even then, there had been a large, underground Quidditch field that Raivis absolutely loved when the snow was too heavy for him to be flying outside. It was cozy and nice- and there wasn't even a chance of muggles finding them! In fact, there wasn't a chance of anyone uninvited finding them, they would really need an escort to lead them to the entrance to the school, as was as one to show them which tunnels to go through, and everything. It was quite well hidden. But, it was lonely. Raivis enjoyed this crowd quite a bit, it was a breath of fresh air, and there were always interesting things around...if he was ever going to run away, Raivis would want to live here.
He mostly liked to take trips down to people watch- finding a nice place to sit and observe the people was always interesting. There was such a difference in clothing on the wizards and witches here compared to the ones he'd seen back home(who, he would admit, dressed a bit scarier and darker...but Raivis still thought they were pretty cool). He also liked simply wandering, exploring around and seeing what he might have missed. He wasn't much for window shopping, since he really didn't have all that much money, and he had to save the allowance he got for things he really needed. His family wasn't the richest, and his father was even working two jobs(one was a muggle job, the other was a wizarding position in the Latvian Ministry), so Raivis tried not to be too greedy or anything...he just asked for only what was necessary! ...But he really did want to spend his whole allowance on chocolate frogs, those things were delicious and entertaining.
But, while caught up in his own thoughts, Raivis strolled, unobservant, through Hogsmeade, thinking about the candy he really wanted to try this weekend(he only bought a few kinds each weekend, but tried to rotate the kinds so he could try everything they had!), Raivis felt himself collide into another person. Immediately after hitting the ground, Raivis apologized, realizing he'd run smack dab into this other person, who...he hadn't met, but could see was a blond girl. A string of stuttery apologies escaped his mouth, and Raivis tried to get up, then offered her a hand to get up as well. He felt a bit silly, he was shorter than her, she probably thought he was some unruly kid now and was going to hex him...
*The German Baron used throughout the history is not a Hetalia character, but instead a historical reference to the serfdom of Latvians to many German and Russian barons until the abolishment of serfdom in 1816 in Latvia(at that time part of the Russian Empire; Latvia was the first of the Russian Empire to abolish serfdom, however, because of lack of means to support themselves, many serfs were still stuck in servitude after 1816.)
***
OOCName: Allen
Age: 17
Timezone: GMT - 7
Anything else: Desserts make my tummy go slkdjf.
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Thu Dec 29, 2011 2:53 pm
