Benessa Mariposa

## Benessa Gibby

"*Shine Anew.*"

Benessa is a Breton illusionist and enchantress who is working with The Company and in The Arcane Forge.

## Appearance

Benessa ~~Glenn~~ Gibby is a raven black haired young woman, with a face half-covered in gnarly burn scars, though beyond her scars, her face seems to be traditionally pretty. She is a Breton of medium height and petite build. Despite being an Illusionist, she does not use any illusions to change her appearance whatsoever. She has bright blue eyes.

The left side of her body, much like her face, is covered in burn scars. She is almost always seen wearing blue, and loves to wear all kinds of dresses she can get her hands on.

## Personality

Nessy is a cheery, upbeat young woman filled with joy and almost childlike excitement. She is playful, caring, and compassionate, and is a dreamer and a romantic. Though she was distrustful, cynical, and bitter in the past, her loved ones turning her life around has made her optimistic and hopeful.

Ness enjoys acting, dancing, sweet food, pretty dresses, and most of all, spending time with her new family and girlfriend. She has great empathy for those who have suffered in life, and is described as kind and caring. She is loyal to a fault when someone earns her love, though due to not being used to receiving it, she easily becomes obsessed, and even jealous.

Benessa is plagued by a greatly troubling history, leaving her deeply traumatized. She has trouble connecting with or trusting people, has terrifying night terrors, and has a plethora of triggers. Despite that, thanks to help of her loved ones, she has been improving significantly, becoming much more trusting, confident, and joyful over time.

## Biography

Benessa was born in Wrothgar at Sierra Mariposa, the barony that was owned by her family, House Mariposa. When High King Emeric decided to give Wrothgar to the Orcs, House Mariposa refused to leave, thus being branded as traitors by the rest of the Covenant. Although House Mariposa managed to hold out for years, eventually, their home, Castle Chrysalis, was besieged by Orcs, and the entire House was butchered...except for Benessa.

Benessa, at the young age of 8, after watching her family die, was forced to flee from her home and live on the streets, from a noble to an urchin. She was eventually taken in by an elderly couple in Stormhaven, in exhange for helping them out on their fishing trips. This respite was cut short, however, as during a fishing trip, Nessy and her guardians were attacked by Dunmer slavers, Benessa being captured in the process.

After suffering years of slavery and abuse in Morrowind, the young Benessa, in a fit of rage and great desire to escape, managed to burn down the entire village she was being kept in. Slaves and slavers alike were burnt to death, as during the confusion, Nessy managed to make her escape - but only barely. Caught in the fires of her own making, Benessa was burnt significantly before she managed to jump into a river. She was later found, drifting, by Ashlanders, and nursed back to health by them.

After she had recovered, Nessy snuck herself on a boat headed for High Rock, and returned to her homeland once again. Over the years, she became a trickster, a thief, and a con woman. Her life devolved into that of thievery and scamming people with her ridiculous scams. She eventually found like-minded urchins like her and together, they created a troupe called "The Critters." They travelled High Rock, acting out plays and shows, all the while secretly relieving their audience of their purses.

The troupe, however, was destroyed in a chain of betrayals after they found an extravagantly valuable lockbox in one of their heists. As her friends laid dead by each others' blades in front of her, Benessa once again realized she was all alone - and that she could trust no one.

This drove her into seeking power - power strong enough to help her survive on her own, and to achieve her dream she was working for all along, all these years: To take back her home of Sierra Mariposa. To accomplish this, she set out to make a deal with the Prince of Bargains, and, of course, she got more than she asked for.

Awakening five years later, Benessa was told by what is, to her, complete strangers, that Clavicus Vile shattered her memories and her very being, turning her into a man named Benny Two-Thumbs. According to them, Benny Two-Thumbs had only scattered memories about Benessa, and was trying to find a way to return to his old self, which, with help from them, he had achieved, at the cost of sacrifing his own memories.

Although it took some convincing, Benessa decided to trust the strangers for the time being, and joined them and their Company, to get herself acclimated to this new reality she found herself in.

Before long, she started to fully trust the Company, forming bonds with them, especially with Fairna Gibby, who became something of a mother figure to her. Not long after, she was formally adopted by Fairna and her husband Kaenag, finding her place among her new family.

## Rumours

**Tsaesci Oil Elixirs**

Benessa lead several travelling scams, such as her ~~in~~famous Tsaesci Oil Elixirs, said to "Let you live as long as the Potentates!" This and several other scams by her, although usually done under a persona, could be traced back to her.

**The Locust**

Nessy spent several years performing as "The Locust", a character famous for its illusionary tricks, dancing, singing, and jokes. Although she has stopped acting for many years, her old troupe, "The Critters", may still be remembered as travelling thieves who tricked people with their shows.

**House Mariposa**

Benessa used to belong to a noble house that was struck from all records due to their treachery to the crown...but perhaps some things are best left forgotten?

## Relationships

### Fairna Gibby

*Adoptive Mother*

Nessy deeply loves her adoptive mother, Fairna. She constantly seeks her affirmation, greatly idolizing her. Though she often doubts her worth, she is slowly learning to accept that she is genuinely loved. Ness feels almost indebted to Fairna for all of her support, and seeks to repay her kindness any way she can.

### Kaenag Firewolf Gibby

*Adoptive Father*

While Nessy is a bit less close to her father than she is to her mother, she still loves Kaenag and enjoys spending time with him. She works alongside him in The Arcane Forge, where she works as an Enchanter. They study often together, and Nessy also feels comfortable enough to confide about most of her feelings with him.

### Calion & Ardalia Gibby

*Adoptive Siblings*

Nessy absolutely adores her little siblings, showering them with love. She feels guilty for having been a "bad" big sister to her birth sister, and sees Calion and Ardalia as a second chance to be a better big sis.

### Valentina Redoran

*Girlfriend*

After she arrived, Nessy warmed up quickly to Valentina, happy for an opportunity to have a girl friend her age. Spending time with Val eventually made her realize and come to terms with the fact that she was into women, culminating with Ness asking her out on a date. Nessy was overjoyed when Val asked her to be her girlfriend, and the two are now in a romantic relationship.

### Clement Jeunaeu

*Surrogate Little Brother*

Nessy sees Clem as basically a child, often coddling and babying him. She doesn't like the idea of him exposing himself to danger, but knows she doesn't have the right to stop him. She is gentle and caring with him, and sees her basically as her little brother, even though he is a year older than her.

### Tyrrosh Firewolf

*Uncle*

Ness enjoys spending time with Rosh, seeing him as a comfortable person to be around. Rosh was romantically interested in Ness, which she was completely oblivious to, but he has long stopped pursuing that, especially after her adoption made them relatives.

### Fiinil Gibby

*Uncle*

Nessy has always been confused on what to feel about Fin. His past relationship with Benny, their trip to a lake which she assumed was a date, and a misunderstanding about expectations, caused Nessy to feel confused, angry, and bitter towards Fin. With her mental situation improving, her adoption making them relatives, and her being in a relationship Val, Nessy now simply sees Fiinil as a cool uncle of hers.

### Elarynia

*Mentor*

Ness was scared of Elarynia at first, due to what she knew about her from Benny's words. However, she has warmed up to Ryn, and she gets magic lessons from her. Nessy thinks Ryn is an extremely smart, if a bit odd, teacher.

### Mankarion Direnni

*Bullying Victim*

Nessy thinks Mankar is nice, but dumb. She enjoys messing with him, the Altmer not taking her jabs personally. While they don't exactly hang out with each other, they're still friendly and playful.

### Rah'tha-do

*Acquaintance*

Due to her fickle nature and the black and white way she perceives the world, Nessy is absolutely lost on what to feel about Rah, who is a blunt Khajiit with an almost nonexistent filter. Though their relationship had really bad lows, they're at a point where they're both more comfortable with each other.

### Alexis Ashwing

*Acquaintance*

Ness and Alexis' relationship started very badly, with Nessy absolutely hating the guts of Alexis. While she hasn't completely gotten over her hatred of Alexis, Nessy is starting to slowly tolerate her.

## Timeline

* **2E 565, 12th of Evening Star:** Benessa is born in Castle Chrysalis to her parents, Lord Benedict Mariposa and Lady Cynthia Mariposa.
* **2E 567:** Due to their support in Ranser's War, High King Emeric gives Wrothgar to the Orcs. Outraged by this sudden treachery of their lands being given away to the Orcs, House Mariposa refuses the orders of the Covenant to evacuate Wrothgar, and instead entrenches themselves to prepare for the arrival of the Orcs. As a result, House Mariposa is struck from all records, and is excommunicated by the Covenant.
* **2E 573:** Castle Chrysalis is besieged and attacked by Orcs, the only survivor being Benessa herself.
* **2E 574:** Benessa is taken in by the McDale family.
* **2E 575:** During a fishing trip, Benessa is attacked and captured by Dunmer slavers. She gets enslaved and sent to Morrowind.
* **2E 579:** After years of suffering enslavement and abuse, Benessa lashes out and burns down the entire village she was being kept in to escape, burning herself in the process. She is nursed to health by Ashlanders who found her, and stowaways herself on a boat to High Rock after her recovery.
* **2E 582:** After years of surviving on the street by herself, Benessa finds other urchins like her, and together, they create a troupe called "The Critters."
* **2E 584:** When a chest filled to the brim with riches tempts the group to betray each other, Benessa is left alone once again, and swears to stay that way.
* **2E 585:** Benessa makes a deal with Clavicus Vile - to gain the power to make Reality a Falsehood. Tricked by the Prince of Bargains, her "Reality" now being a "Falsehood", she spends the next five years as man called Benny Two-Thumbs, who only has disjointed memories of his past as Benessa.
* **2E 590, 10th of Sun's Dawn:** Benny Two-Thumbs manages to bullshit his way into joining The Company, even though he had attacked them earlier while working with The Riven Triad.
* **2E 590, 13th of Mid Year:** After years of searching for the truth, thanks to the help of his friends, Benny returns to Clavicus Vile and asks for another deal to become his old self again. After succeeding in sick challenges provided by Vile, the Prince of Bargains accepts to make a deal. Unfortunately, the deal includes that Benny would forget everything he had experienced as himself. Benny still accepts the deal, and after saying his farewells, returns to being Benessa once more. Benessa, confused, not just about five years passing with no recollection of it, but also by these strangers who know so much about her, managed to get convinced by them to join their group.
* **2E 590, 11th of Last Seed:** Benessa gets officially adopted by Fairna and Kaenag Gibby.
* **2E 590, 24th of Hearthfire:** Benessa and Valentina become a couple.