Junia Amarie D'Haughtin (Jue-Nee-Ah-Ah-Mah-Ree-Deh-Haw-Tin)

Mademoiselle Junia Amarie D'Haughtin (a.k.a. Shaeda (among Gran Taliès' Elves))

Junia Amarie D'Haughtin, nicknamed "L'Mademoiselle", is a famed Half-Elven actress, duelist, adventurer, philanthropist, and romantic from the City of Gran Taliès, capital of the Kingdom of Calieux in Western Moureve. Her tumultuous life has become the subject of numerous stories and songs, which vary in depicting her as either a heroic rebel who uses her quick wit and swordplay to protect the common, downtrodden folk of Gran Taliès and court the most eligible people in the city, or as a walking disaster who's flamboyant lifestyle ruins Gran Taliès' reputation by her mere existence. She is commonly seen being pursued throughout the city the Bailiff dè Yardè, self-appointed rival to Junia, commander of the Guard of Gran Taliès and the Calian King's number 2 in the capital.
Born in the D'Haughtin family's countryside château in AP 1505, Junia's father Thèon served as a judge in the Tribunal of Gran Taliès, and thus came from a long line of Nobles of the Ring. However, he was an unofficial confidant and assistant to Monsieur le Duc Oleivar D'Mourtimier, the Grand Squire of Calieux, in charge of the Calian King's personal retinue, as well as all the stables and horses of the realm, giving the lower-ranking noble a golden opportunity to advance his family's position in Calian society. Her mother, Jolana Ravas, was a travelling High Elven mage from Chotas skilled in the art of "Bladesinging". Settling down temporarily in Gran Taliès to raise her daughter, Jolana began to foster a love of song and dueling in her- the main principles of Bladesinging. Junia was read stories of ancient Elven heroes from around the world, who worked to protect all of Dhia's children and their ways of life. Thèon, when not working, also helped raise Junia, ensuring her a good education and a knowledge of Calieux's storied history as a nation, as well as some tutoring on court life and affairs. However, Junia felt pressured by both her parents to accept one side of her heritage over the other. Jolana inherently wanted her daughter to accompany her back to Chotas and to become a Bladesinger, while Thèon wanted his daughter to join him in the court affairs of Calieux, acting as the D'Haughtin family's representative in High Society. This pressure eventually boiled over into rebellion, and Junia fled the château on one of her father's horses at the age of 16, heading to Gran Taliès to start a life away from her parents. It is said that Thèon died of a broken heart after finding out about his daughter leaving, and Jolana left the city in disgrace to return to Chotas.
After arriving in Gran Taliès, Junia was scared and frightened, unable to survive in the city despite her "good" upbringing. She took to begging, but in her own way, creating lavish stories of woe in order to invoke sympathy from passing strangers. One day however, a chance encounter changed her life for good. Junia attempted to use her stories on a foppish, mercenary-looking fellow walking past her spot. This mercenary happened to be on the run from some unsavoury characters, and Junia was forced to run away with the mercenary as these unsavoury characters thought that she was his accomplice. After the two escaped outside the city limits, the mercenary explained his predicament. His name was Liberi, and he claimed to be a travelling fencing instructor from the neigbouring nation of Tiscona who had recently returned to his homeland after a tour of Moureve, Chotas and the Island of Kquimlar. Liberi also revealed the reason he was being hunted- he followed the god of love, art, song and freedom known as Amora, a deity not welcome in Tiscona or Calieux. He endevoured to travel away from Western Moureve, but let his faith be known one too many times, leading to his being hunted. Junia took a shine to the idea of worshipping Amora, and felt that devoting her life to the godess could provide a sort of 'third path' outside of following in the footsteps of either her father or mother. Over a couple of months, Liberi converted Junia to Amorism, and the two became friends, with Junia finding the charismatic man to be quite funny, full of endless anecdotes and stories of his great travels around Moureve.
A few years went by, during which Junia and Liberi stayed away from Gran Taliès, instead opting to gain money by performing exhibition duels (which Junia was getting quite good at) and singing traditional Amoran love songs (which Liberi was suprisingly good at) in taverns and fairs in the rural regions of Calieux, with the intent of saving enough money to head East to Suwidland and then North to the great city of Rathral in Chotas. It was around this time that Junia started to dress in overtly masculine clothing. However, she did not do this in an attempt to pass as a man and disguise her femininity- she was, as she was known to say at the time, "simply sick of dresses and their ghastly pleats". The rural Calians loved Junia and Liberi's performances, with many finding themselves attracted to Junia's style and charm. The business partnership between Junia and Liberi was not to continue, however, as Liberi was hired by a baroness from Oridan to train her in self defence. Liberi left on good terms with Junia, and the two wrote eachother letters for a while after Liberi's departure. Junia was once again on her own, but with a new purpose and new skills. She would live to her heart's content, not wasting her life slaving away for her family's social standing or some dusty old warrior order, but spending her time in love with simply living (as well as a nobleman's daughter or two). Before he left, Liberi pulled a few strings and got Junia an audition at the Marquis de Macy Theatre back in Gran Taliès. After a rollicking musical and dramatic performance of Seltzhan's "The Pirates of Aldran", she was accepted as a part of the eponymous Marquis' company as an actor. Since her debut on the Gran Taliès social scene around AP 1523, the city has not been the same.

Age

27

Sex

Female

Presentation

Androgynous (Junia may present primarily in a masculine or feminine way depending on her mood/the situation at hand. Ergo, she will be classified as presenting androgynously)

Eyes

Sapphire Blue

Hair

Ginger, Medium Length, Naturally curly but has been straightened

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

Fair-skinned

Height

5ft 7

Other Affiliations

• Kingdom of Calieux