APPLICATION ❧ magicdrafted
This application contains spoilers for ASoIaF regarding ASoS book 2.
PLAYER INFORMATIONNAME: Eilidh
AGE: 21
JOURNAL: loisneach
AIM/PLURK/EMAIL: aim: fleijaing | plurk: loisneach | email: inhyacinths@gmail.com
CURRENT CHARACTERS: None
CHARACTER INFORMATIONSERIES: A Song of Ice and Fire
NAME: Alayne Stone (An alias, as her real name is Sansa Stark.)
RACE: Human
AGE: 15. (She's 13 at this point in the books - claiming to be fourteen - but in the tv show she'd be 15, which is closer to the age GRRM intended her to be at this point.) I understand that I will be unable to have this character engage in sexual acts within the game while they are underage.
CANON POINT: The end of book 4, A Feast for Crows.
REFERENCES: Wiki page, contains spoilers.
GENDER: Female
APPEARANCE: Alayne is a girl in her mid-teens, though she carries herself as a grown woman would, and looks older than her years. Tall, willowy, and graceful, she is considered to be a striking beauty by many, with high cheekbones, vivid blue eyes, and thick brown hair. (Her hair, however, is dyed to that colour, and the natural shade is rich auburn.) She blushes easily and prettily, and knows how to wear fair smiles for others - all part of the airs and graces expected of her. However, another character notes that "Grief had given her a haunted, vulnerable look; if anything, it had only made her more beautiful."
She takes a notable care of her appearance. It would be rare to find her hair anything but gleaming, her expression lacking composure. The gowns she's used to may be a far cry from a Hogwarts uniform, she knows how to dress, as well, not just in accordance to her station, but flattering to her shape and colour too - in fact, this seems to be something she still takes pleasure in.
PERSONALITY & HOUSE REQUESTS: "Life is not a song, sweetling. You may learn that one day, to your sorrow."
There was a time when Alayne Stone believed she was living the life of a legendary heroine, a time when chivalry and beauty were sovereign over all. The knights were gallant, the ladies fair, and in her naivety, she could not have been happier. She was blissfully (and at times, willfully) ignorant of the reality of things, particularly those surrounding her. She lived in a castle and dressed in gowns of samite and silk, she ate lemon cakes when she wanted, and she was betrothed to a sweet and handsome prince who loved her well. There was a time when Alayne Stone was not Alayne Stone, but Sansa Stark.
But that time is far behind her, so far behind it now seems out of reach, distant and vague. Sansa Stark feels almost like another girl. Another girl, another life. Sansa Stark was naive, Sansa Stark wanted joy and love and a sweet life, and Sansa Stark tasted sorrow. Her family is, to her knowledge, dead. Her prince had her abused, had her beaten. Her home was razed and sacked. The song that Sansa Stark sought turned out to be a tragic one indeed.
Yet that was Sansa Stark, and not Alayne Stone.
Alayne is the alter ego she adopts at the instruction of her current guardian, the one playing as her father, and Sansa takes on the role to the point where she thinks of herself as being Alayne Stone, 'bastard brave'. Tragedy and deception have begun to shape her from the naive girl she was. She is being made wiser and shrewder. She is learning to adapt her skills to suit the game being played all around her - and in doing so, she's beginning the transition from piece to player.“Always keep your foes confused. If they are never certain who you are or what you want, they cannot know what you are like to do next. Sometimes the best way to baffle them is to make moves that have no purpose, or even seem to work against you. Remember that, Sansa, when you come to play the game.”
“What...what game?”
“The only game. The game of thrones.”
Alayne is sweet, polite, and oddly beguiling for it. Though shy, she is unfalteringly courteous, ("A lady's armour is her courtesy," Sansa Stark was taught), and she knows how to speak to people, how to be friendly and likeable. She is good at selecting which smile to wear for each person she encounters, and she seems warm and amiable to everyone from royalty to servant. She's careful, moreso than her family (correction: Sansa Stark's family) were - she has an even-temper and seldom ever crumbles under pressure. Sansa was accused of being foolish, vacant - in Alayne, this only becomes further and further from the truth. Behind that armour of hers she hides the fact that she is a keen observer, seldom ever overcome with emotion even when faced with so much grief, and a strong desire to understand the people around her.
It's because of these qualities that I believe Ravenclaw is the best fitting House for Alayne. She still has some level of naivety, yes, but she remains a thinker, prone to study and reflection. She may not be a great strategist, but she remains intelligent, and possesses an eye for detail. We're repeatedly shown that she applies herself to learning that which is important to her - she excels in the ladylike talents taught by her septas, and though criticized as being a 'little bird', capable only of repeating what she's taught, it's clear that she pays attention to what goes on around her and learns from it. Alayne's courtesy and friendliness belie a cleverness that's being honed over time, and although her teachings have largely been regarding people, not academics, she would likely apply herself to new subjects.
Which in turn ties in to her desire to please the people around her. In fact, Alayne is generally conflicted. She would show her true colours, but instead chooses to hide it out of necessity. Experience has instilled in her a grim realism, though part of her (Sansa) still clings to the idealism of days past. But despite this conflict - and the conflict that has raged around her - Alayne has come from being frightened and vulnerable to someone with burgeoning courage, far more than she herself realizes. Instead of being crushed by the weight of circumstance, she has instead turned herself to steeling her heart and her head. This young girl (for when it comes down to it, really, Alayne is Sansa) has seen her father's head on a pike and lost her every shred of home and family. She has been beaten by men sworn to protect her. She has been threatened and abused. Surely, her endurance to pull through these things is extraordinary. Because of that, my second choice for Alayne is Gryffindor.
At a glance, Alayne appears friendly and sweet and beautiful, warm and open, but the reality runs deeper than that. In fact, she is a guarded person, and her trust is not to be so easily won now. Though she dons the name and life of Alayne, she remains fiercely, privately proud of who she really is. And she is stronger, both in heart and mind, than it seems.
COMMUTER DETAILS: Untapped.
POSITION: Student.
ORIENTATION: Most likely heterosexual. In her POV chapters, there's no indication of any romantic or sexual interest in other women, though she is attracted to men.
ABILITIES & POWERS: Alayne has no inherent powers in canon and is an average human being. (Apart from possibly being a skinchanger, though her wolf is killed far too early to see if this would develop at all.) By reference to her character, however, her aptitude for magic will lean towards:
- Charms/Transfiguration - altering the state of things. This reflects her own ability and desire to adapt and grow, and also her skill for understanding situations and acting accordingly.
- Counter-spells - inhibiting the effects of another spell. Linked to the above, this also ties in to the idea of changing the state of things around her, in this case usually for the better. Alayne is, in her canon, essentially being groomed to take back what is hers, so counter spells will be of note to her.
- Healing - Based on her genuinely caring, altruistic nature, and the desires she has had to see wrongs undone, Alayne could also develop a knack for healing. This would depend on what opportunity she was given, however.
Aside from these, Alayne's abilities might be considered few. Her teaching prior to arriving at Hogwarts was aiming to sculpt her into the perfect lady - she excels with embroidery, with dressing and dancing. She can play the high harp and sing, and - if she must - she can ride a horse. More pragmatically, she has been gaining experience of leading a household, possesses a head for detail, a sound memory with which to store it all - and she can act.
WAND: Hawthorn and unicorn hair, 11¼", fairly flexible, good for charms/healing magic (or, alternatively, hexes and curses).
- Hawthorn - a wood known in folklore for being duplictous and being associated both with life, rebirth, and death, decay. In HP wandlore, hawthorn wands are complex and difficult to master, but "seem most at home with a conflicted nature, or with a witch or wizard passing through a period of turmoil". Alayne's life is in a currently highly uncertain and dangerous state of flux, and she is essentially maintaining an alter ego, inkeeping with the duality of hawthorn wood.
- Unicorn hair - it seems the best fit for the girl who wanted to live in song and story, and the connotations of purity and faithfulness also fit her well.
- Fairly flexible - Reflects her ability to adapt with whatever circumstances she finds herself in. Also ties in with the idea that she is still very much learning, something she's entirely aware of.
- Strengths - The split in magical strengths relates both to the wood and to Alayne herself. She certainly won't intend to use it for hexes and curses, but prior to arrival she was being taught that sometimes, underhanded means are necessary to achieve the desired end. The potential is there.
MISC.: Regarding Alayne's name, I was wondering how teachers will address her. I assume some, at least, would know her actual identity - would they still go along with it?
WRITING SAMPLESFIRST PERSON:[video.]
[Seated on the edge of her bed, a set of blue robes are laid across Alayne's lap, her brown hair pinned back from her face. She's slowly running the tip of her wand over the hem of the fabric, at the throat.]
It is so strange, here. [She says it with a small smile. In the wake of her wand, bronze coloured embroidery thread snakes through the fabric. Alayne takes her eyes from the camera to focus on the spell, watching closely as the thread splits and forms a pattern.] That is, to think that so much can be done with magic. That we have been brought here to use it - I wonder how different things might be, at home, if we each had a wand.
[Her voice is light, wistful - but there's a distance to it that suggests she's talking about more than embroidery. She's quiet for a moment, before drawing the spell to an end, and then she looks to the commuter once more.]
There is to be a Quidditch match this afternoon, isn't there? I would like to attend. It has been a while since I saw such a spectacle. [A bittersweet memory, but that doesn't show in her expression - hopeful, but still withdrawn, as she so usually is.] Perhaps someone might explain the rules to me in advance? I would appreciate being forearmed.
THIRD PERSON: It reminded her of Winterfell.
That in itself was a strange thing. It was comforting, in a way - the lofty halls were seldom ever cold, and they were filled with people, with laughter and talk, just as she'd longed for - but it was alienating for precisely the same reason. Could she belong in Winterfell anymore? Could she belong here?
Anxiety twisted in her gut, cold and sharp. What could she do, withour Petyr here to direct her? What if she slipped up? Would it even matter? Alternatively, she found her mind racing to another conclusion - here, she could be Sansa. What if she threw off the shroud, and told it true? They would not take her head off for that, here. They had no reason to.
The thought of such a freedom was a little dizzying. She rose too quickly, breath shaking with the wild giddiness of wondering in a way she'd been unable to. Alayne crossed to the window to look out at this new, strange place, this place that so reminded her of Winterfell. There was nothing but wilderness before her eyes - moorland and mountains. That, too, reminded her of home. The mere sight of grey skies was enough to soothe her, to make her wistful again. Calm, she fingered a strand of brown hair.
Sansa Stark would remain locked away, as she had to. Alayne could not account for the future here, but what if one of them did show up? She would need to be prepared. She could not throw aside everything that she and Littlefinger had already built. She would not disgrace him - nor herself. Vaguely, she wondered about dye. Could she get it here? Would she need to ask? Or - and her eyes slid over to the long, pale wand that lay in the open box upon her bed - could she rely on other means?
She found herself drawn back to it, as if it had pulled her. The idea of magic, of being a witch, was stranger still than all the rest. They named me 'hero', but there are no heroes. Certainly none found amongst bastard girls.
But raising the wand felt different. She gave it a wave, let the handle settle in her hand, as if it was meant to be there, an extension of herself. It made her feel lighter, braver. Was this how knights felt, when they held a sword?
Perhaps she could be a brave and beautiful sorceress, as in a story. Perhaps she could use her magic - oh, if she'd had magic, how different things would have been, she'd never have had to be afraid - to bring her home. Home, with her family.
Wishful thinking for a wishful girl, and Alayne could not afford to be wishful. She had to be as strong as a stone, and as clever as a raven - a raven, yes. Blue and bronze - colours she suited. Such dreams might be stupid, but she couldn't help but wonder what she would be capable of. Handling the wand made her feel like that could be anything, anything at all.
Perhaps she could learn how to turn into a bird. She remembered, once, she'd wished for that.