Yvaine d'Deneith

A figure stands very still, very steady, ever watching. Her name is Yvaine d'Deneith.

## Yvaine d'Deneith

### Affiliations

The Wayfinder Foundation, House Deneith, The Defenders Guild

## Personal Details

### Known Relatives

Yvette d'Deneith (mother), Alain d'Deneith (father), Perrin d'Deneith (younger brother; deceased)

## Physical Description

### Remarkable Features

Freckles—smatterings of freckles all over her skin, shifting cream hair that carries stars in its shadows, and dark, studious eyes.

## Appearance

When the sun is bright, the most noticeable feature gracing Yvaine is a rather steady smile—a subdued one, knowing but confident. This 5'5.5" woman, who considers that half inch *very* important, stands with the rigid, assured posture of someone far more foreboding than she. Everything about Yvaine is purposeful: her body language is intent, her clothes suggest both functionality and elegance, and her belongings receive the utmost care.

In dim lighting, the story is quite different. A number of glimmering freckles seem to spread her face, arms, and shoulders, and her hair hides a similar shimmer in its shadows when she moves. The effects are subdued—but Yvaine has always been about *subtle* messages, and they are often, to the sharp observer, just as effective as loud ones.

## History

Yvaine d'Deneith was born to Yvette and Alain Durand d'Deneith, two members of House Deneith with power that was... *middling* at best, though certainly on the up. Yvette was an accomplished soldier from Korth, and Alain's martial training led him to oversee not just Yvaine's training, but the training of many who would serve House Deneith. Yvane and Perrin, her younger brother, trained diligently and passionately. From the beginning, Yvaine wanted to *do;* she was never one to sit still. She had to *do,* or *see,* or *make.* And, in House Deneith, she had to fight.

Though lacking in strength, she had will, and that passion and stubbornness are what led her parents to believe that she would pass the Test of Siberys and manifest the dragonmark. She passed, but the dragonmark did not manifest.

Yvaine does not willingly talk about the Test. Often, when pressed, she merely responds, "There are many ways to protect someone." (See **Secrets** below.)

### Tragedy

Yvaine's simplistic childhood met its first upheaval when she was only 18. Preparing to join the Blademarks should have been a period of triumph—instead, she lost Perrin to a bloody, merciless clash between the local guard and a band of criminals.

She remembers the darkness, more than anything. She remembers seeing his bright hair in the moonlight, and realizing too late that the splatter on the ground was not rainwater, but blood. She remembers not seeing the knife until it glinted in the silver light. She remembers arcane ferocity surging in her, *hurling* a glimmering force that could have—should have—stopped the blade. It was seconds too late.

She barely remembers the dragonmark manifesting between her shoulderblades. More than anything, she remembers the darkness in Perrin's eyes as his life flickered out.

He was only 16.

### Training

The months that followed were darker, as rumors began to spread that Perrin wasn't putting *down* the criminals, he was *involved* with them. Their family's reputation bore what seemed an insurmountable taint that joined their *grief.* Yvaine completed her year with the Blademarks, but she didn't return to her parents—Korranth held nothing for her but pain. She instead went to Breland, hoping to bury herself in the noise of Sharn as a simple guard for hire. Sharn allowed her to forget about the magic that sang in her at the moment of Perrin's death. Sometimes she missed it—it was like a void she was missing. Other times, she wanted only to forget.

But she could not forget, as an artificer named Jesiah d'Cannith hired her on for a simple caravan guard detail. His work seemed not familiar, but *right* in a way she still struggles to explain. Her next few years were spent learning from Jesiah—something that started as a simple side hobby and quickly evolved into something far more.

### The Last War

Jesiah's training was a curiosity, then a desire, and then a *need* as the Last War continued long into the years, as the wares his workshop produced became necessary. Yvaine was not just learning from him; she was producing, improving, and aiding in war efforts, though distantly.

Eventually, Jesiah was too capable to leave in Sharn. He was called to Cyre to support directly on the battlefront, building and repairing the constructs that fought. Yvaine does not know if he survived the cataclysmic Day of Mourning; she cannot search for another dead body. Not after failing to save Perrin.

The call of the magic in her blood seemed more and more out of reach.

### Aerenal

Yvaine returned to taking jobs over the next few years as a Defender for House Deneith, and she proved to be good at them—mechanically, distantly, detached. While she still had the training and magic she learned from Jesiah, it felt more like a cold tool against her palm than anything else. For her growing reputation, she was selected to guard an ambassador from the Ambassador Towers traveling to Pylas Talaear in Aerenal. The graying woman, Lavinia Shevere, represented Karrnath, an origin that may have drawn her eyes to the Karrnathi guard. But even still, she did not share many details with Yvaine about the purpose of her visit, though Yvaine suspects that her meeting with Syraen Melideth was meant to seek alliances—or at least gauge where the Undying Court's loyalties may fall.

She spent the next few years in Pylas Talaear, as something about Aerenal felt more familiar to her than any place she had been. The mounting letters from her parents, delivered through the House Deneith outpost, were only occasionally answered, just enough to keep her ties to the House and to assure them that she was in their service as a capable member of the Defenders Guild. Yvaine didn't have words to *explain:* to explain that she had lost herself when Perrin died, that so much leaving and death had left a hole in her, and that this gaping wound only widened with the ache of a magic she couldn't understand. She was Yvaine d'Deneith, but for so many years, *Deneith* had been the only name she could bear wearing. And even then, it tasted bitter.

She gained the trust of the elves of Pylas Talaear and even took jobs serving them and protecting them when other dignitaries would arrive. This was more comfortable—not truly home, but separated enough from her past that she could breathe. From the elves, she learned the sense of elegance and grace that define her now. While Yvaine is still a passionate, stubborn defender, she holds herself with an air that could not have been learned in Karrnath.

An assault on Syraen's court is what started spreading Yvaine's name far beyond the shores of Aerenal. Invisible creatures slashed and slaughtered their way through the port, and weaponry barely cut through the creatures when it met anything but open air. Before Syraen could arrive to maintain order, Yvaine felt something stronger in her blood than she had ever felt before—she felt *magic,* and she wove her assault through the streets with elemental assault that drove off the shrieking creatures.

She remembers panting, bleeding, and feeling so, so *alive.*

 The elves told her later that the connection to the Irian plane is stronger, and that the arcane traces that cloaked her were that brimming planar light. Yvaine found a skilled arcane transmutation artist to shift the appearance of her hair and skin to reflect glimmering stars, if only to keep that connection with something that, for once, felt *right.*

 She can't feel it quite as strong any more, but it was something. It was something.

### Invitation

With a House Deneith outpost in Pylas Talaear, it didn't long for word to spread to Yvaine's parents that she had saved not just the port town, but stopped an attack on, potentially, Syraen herself. Between some key contacts in Pylas Talaear and a few nudges from House Deneith, the Wayfinders put a prompt invitation into Yvaine's hands, luring her away from Aerenal.

### Experience

While Yvaine's wanderings are not *particularly* liked by some within House Deneith, none can deny that she finds a way to be effective wherever she is. With an impressive track record in Korth, Sharn, and Pylas Talaear, it's clear she can be trusted. Stopping an attack on Pylas Talaear with a surge of arcane protection was what sealed her reputation as a capable defender.

### Motivation

Yvaine is driven by several things. Not only was duty and responsibility written into her as a child, but she spends much time feeling as though she is "making up" for some perceived failure, and the two in combination create a very driven woman. On a more subconscious level, she is desperately seeking to figure out her place in the world and what she's supposed to be. She has never truly felt like she has fit anywhere, and so she fills that hole with accomplishments and fulfilling the needs of others. It... mostly works.

### Future Goals

Deciding to join the Wayfinders was harder than Yvaine might've thought, but the draw of resources, connections, and allies is ultimately what brought her into the fold—and the need to not displease the House. The chance to work with others was also a draw, as she has done much work alone. She wants to learn more about magic and to understand why she connects so much more to it than anything else. She wants to prove to herself that she is a capable sentinel and a valuable ally to others. She has started praying to Onatar to discover if Jesiah's god has any love for her. Most of all, she wants to find a sense of purpose: the Wayfinders offer to her the chance to be a part of something greater, and Yvaine is seeking the feeling that she might have a purpose more than this.

### Secrets

The truth that Yvaine has not told anyone: she nearly died during her Test.

Without physical strength and lacking the magic that might've saved the small boy she was tasked to defend, Yvaine's choice was to sacrifice herself for the boy's life. She took injury after blow after *injury,* and had the House members intervened a moment sooner to stop her, she might not have passed. Only by nearly dying was she deemed worthy.

It has left her with some pain—some lingering idea in the back of her mind that, as a Deneith, she is just a faceless guard, and that those she protects are worth far more than she will ever be. She thinks on her Test with shame.

### Enemies

* If Perrin was indeed working with criminals in Korth, Yvaine has no doubt that he made enemies of both criminals and House Deneith members. She does not know any specifics.
* Whoever was assaulting Pylas Talaear, for whatever reason that may be, may have issue with the artificer who slaughtered the invisible creatures.
* There may have been a hopeful artificer or two that were not pleased that Jesiah started training his *bodyguard,* not them.
* Some higher ups in House Deneith may not be pleased with Yvaine's tendency to leave when things go horribly wrong. She's trying to fix that... *but.*

## Personality

**Personality Traits**

* Yvaine has a very confident exterior; she has a firm handshake, a knowing tone, and a steadiness about her.
* She is rarely quick to emotion unless it's a very *strong* emotion. She keeps a cool head.
* Yvaine likes to laugh, she just doesn't make jokes herself much first. Her sense of humor, when it crops up, is somewhat wry and even conspiratorial.
* She takes great pride in her appearance.
* Yvaine tends to either not indulge or slightly over-indulge. She is not great at finding a middle ground.
* Her steadiness makes for a great listening ear, and she is generally good at advice, even if she is somewhat overbearing about it.

**Ideals**

* Yvaine believes that people are their actions, and that those can be trusted far more than words.
* No one will be harmed when she's around so long as she can help it.
* Protectors of all kinds are needed.
* Yvaine believes strongly in hard work, but she also believes people should be recognized for their efforts.

**Bonds**

* Yvaine feels a calling to the Irian plane and to that part of her magic. What that means she does not know.
* Despite Yvaine's mistakes, she feels a deep responsibility to House Deneith and does not want to displease them any further.
* Perrin's death has left Yvaine determined to believe his good name and to make sure none die on her watch ever again.
* Yvaine feels her artificering honors Jesiah's teaching, but she longs to do more.
* She feels that anyone she works alongside deserves her full effort of protection.
* While she doesn't have full-on abandonment issues, Yvaine is scared of being left.

**Strengths**

* Yvaine is incredibly adaptable and has learned how to apply herself in most situations. She is a "lift where you stand" kind of person.
* She is *deeply* loyal. Her word means everything; once she has given it, she will not break it.
* In most things, Yvaine is responsible and ordered.
* Yvaine always puts others before herself.

**Flaws**

* Yvaine struggles to deal with grief, and despite her bravery facing all else, her first instinct when grieving is always to *run.*
* Grey areas are difficult for Yvaine, who feels like she needs a "right" answer. She tends to be certain of herself, and it takes a lot to change her mind. She *hates* uncertainty when she feels it.
* Yvaine turns her nose up quite readily at folks who are unsavory, irresponsible, or criminal.
* She struggles strongly with self-perception and blames herself for every failure.
* Unwinding and having fun? She does not do those easily.
* Yvaine *always* puts others before herself.

## Completed Missions

### Between the Cracks

Yvaine investigated a mysterious door that had appeared in an apartment in Sharn, accompanying Brill, Ketaal, and Cinnabar. The door led them to a great place of lost and abandoned things. Navigating strange creatures, forgotten children, and eerie caretakers, Yvaine eventually found a forgotten letter from Colonel Syele Durand d’Deneith—one that congratulated her on passing her Test of Siberys and manifesting her mark, the latter of which she did not do. It was a moment of great shame and embarrassment for Yvaine. After exploring the castle, Yvaine and the others met the Prince of the Forgotten, who they carefully questioned and determined to be largely innocent. Rather, it was the mysterious "I" who had hoped to set the Wayfinders and the Prince against each other, and Yvaine and Cinnabar tag-teamed hunting down I and stopping his escape. Yvaine returned home, but not before being dropped in Karrnath, where, remembering Syele's letter, she stole her father's decorated military jacket and fled without greeting her parents to return to Sharn.

### Castle Crashers

Yvaine joined a mission as a bodyguard for Darin ir'Borsa—initially, at least. The lord had been invited to a gala at Thronehold and wanted protection. While she, Thak, Adera, and Aiden stewed along the way about possible threats, a fortune teller hinted that there would be a much darker threat at the gala. Yvaine met up with Jovan Bulsara, an old friend of hers, and found that the culprit involved something she was desperately hoping it didn't: House Deneith. Facing people she had trusted and argued for, Yvaine helped uncover a scheme by the Emerald Claw to restart the last war and claim the throne they had been guarding for so long. Disillusioned and frustrated, Yvaine finds her faith and reliance in her name as an identity crumbling. But with that gone, she's not sure what's really left for her.

## Crunch

### Inventory

* Studded Leather Armor
* Light Crossbow
* Dagger
* Spear
* Shield
* Thieves' tools
* Tinker's tools
* Carpenter's tools
* Weaver's tools
* Platinum ring (for *warding bond)*
* Ring of Arming
* Uniform in the style of your unit and indicative of her old rank
* A horn
* A set of manacles
* A very fancy dress

### Character Sheet

* https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JTG\_xsbyWSco5ym76Uq3W72b1FZbMR34/view?usp=sharing