Mélie

*Try to be a bit more enthusiastic, will you?*[src]
Mélie

**Mélie** is Arthur's twin sister. She is a young thief and looter with a particular penchant for lock-picking.

## Biography

### Background and Early Life

Mélie and her brother, Arthur, once lived with their abusive father. After "one beating too many", they ran away and since then have been living on the run. Turning to thievery to survive, they combined her gift for lock-picking and Arthur's talent for causing distractions.

### The Ravens' Spoils

In November 1348, Mélie and her brother were attempting to loot the bodies of a recent battle but were caught by an English soldier. Spotting Amicia de Rune, her brother Hugo, and their friend Lucas trying to sneak past, she ratted them out to distract the soldier, allowing her and Arthur to knock him out and run; this, however, resulted in the de Runes being captured, and Lucas struck a deal with the twins. He claimed Amicia, a rich nobless, would reward them for their rescue—a lie, as no such reward would be forthcoming.

### Damaged Goods

Sneaking into the English camp in broad daylight, Mélie found and freed Amicia. She stayed right beside Amicia and helped lead her through the camp, careful to avoid the soldiers with Arthur's help. Finally, showing her talent for lockpicking, she opened a box containing Amicia's sling with allowed the two to free Hugo. When Nicholas of the Inquisition arrived to capture the children, Arthur distracted the English and the Inquisitor with explosions while Mélie and the de Runes escaped but she got separated from her brother.

Although suspicious of their ties to the Inquisition and frustrated to learn the children were bereft, she let them rest at her hideout in the ruins of an ancient village. She grew concerned that Arthur had not yet returned, but followed the de Runes and Lucas to the Château d'Ombrage, where they made their new permanent hideout.

### In the Shadow of Ramparts

When she learned that her brother had been locked up in the town Bastion, she helped Amicia sneak into the town so she could find the Sanguinis Itinera, a forbidden book. She joked with the young nobless that the best way to subdue a man was a blow to the groin. Before they parted ways, she came across an executed young thief she had once known and worked with, which made her briefly sorrowful. Mélie later successfully freed Arthur, who had news for Amicia that hers and Hugo's mother, Béatrice, was still alive.

The twins stayed at the castle and helped maintain the defenses, but while Arthur wanted them to leave and live on the run as they always had, Mélie had become attached to the group and wanted to stay.

### Remembrance

In January 1349, the château was overwhelmed by a horde of rats so massive it overflowed the castle's pitfall defenses. The assault was directed by Hugo at Nicholas' command. Mélie, Lucas, and Rodric took shelter within the castle while Arthur and Amica defended against the rats. Although Arthur managed to knock down Nicholas with a trap, when the boy was distracted, the Inquisitor ran him through with a sword. Mélie was left devastated and enraged, and she joined the others in their mission to wipe out the Inquisition for good.

### Coronation

With the Inquisition defeated and the plague ended, Mélie, in her grief, decided to make her own way, leaving for parts unknown.

## Physical Appearance

Mélie is every inch Arthur's twin. She cuts a slender figure with bright red hair, pale skin, and blue eyes. She dons roughed-up, dark green/blue clothing with shawls and cowls to hide her face while in the act of stealing or otherwise not wanting to be seen. She is barefoot and also wears a thin leather circlet around her brow and has a scar across the left side of her mouth and cheek.

Mélie's most noticeable difference is that she does not wear a hood like her brother, leaving her long hair, which she keeps in a ponytail, more visible.

## Personality

Like her brother, Mélie is a survivalist who was not above stealing what she needs to live, even going so far as looting from the corpses of a recent battle. As any good thief must be, she is clever, quick on her feet, and very observant.

Despite her occupation, Mélie has good intentions and does her best to do right by those who do right by her. She likes to tease, curse, and laugh with others, and often makes sarcastic remarks. In time, she became very fond of her new friends, especially Lucas, who she jokes is attracted to her.

She was likely left heartbroken by the loss of her brother and scarred by the battle against the Inquisition. Her mental state deteriorates noticeably after the deaths of Arthur and Rodric, and she becomes increasingly violent and unstable. Hugo remarks that Mélie had looked at him funny before she left, scarred by the events of the game and likely partially blaming Hugo for Arthur and Rodric’s deaths.

## Abilities and Skills

Mélie prefers to not be seen and is unable to engage in combat; however, she has talents that make up for this.

* **Practiced Thief**: Having turned to this unsavory trade to survive, Mélie has become quite good at it. She is light on her feet, observant, clever, and knows how to avoid gaining attention. She is quick to spot things of interest or enemies, finding paths to best avoid them.

* **Lockpicker**: Mélie can unlock virtually any lock, be it on a door, a box, or anything at all. This allows her—including whoever she is with—to sneak into previously inaccessible areas.

* **Devorantis**: While not schooled in alchemy, Mélie would be a fool to not appreciate a useful substance. She shares this mixture's recipe with Amicia, allowing her to take down isolated helmeted enemies.

## Relationships

### Arthur

As twins, Mélie and Arthur have always stuck together from the moment they left home. She largely would follow his lead, but having met the de Runes she found herself disagreeing with Arthur's desire to live on the run, saying she no longer wanted to live like an animal. They were a successful team, and both siblings were very protective of each other. Mélie tells Amicia to look after Hugo because, someday, just like with her and Arthur, the boy will save Amicia in return. With Arthur's death, Mélie was devastated and enraged, desiring to rip her enemies to shreds and eventually striking out on her own, now bereft of her once-always dependable partner.

### Amicia de Rune

Their relationship began as merely a sort of contract to Mélie, for she was of the understanding that Amicia would reward her with riches. They came to regard each other as very good friends through playful banter and interactions; Amicia sided with her against Arthur in favor of the twins staying at the hideout for the long term - displaying the growth in their relationship. She advised Amicia to take good care of Hugo like she had to care for Arthur at times, even if he can be a "pain in the arse".

### Hugo de Rune

Mélie did not interact with the boy much, finding him strange: even more so once she discovered his ability to control the rats. She seemed to want the best for his future, encouraging Amicia to look after him well; however, she quickly became estranged from the de Runes after Arthur's death, and Hugo said she looked at him funny before leaving.

### Lucas

Given her lack of education and Lucas's learnedness, she would tease the boy albeit in a friendly way. They eventually developed a repartee, Lucas even trying to impress her. Despite this friendship, it was not enough for her to stay with Lucas and the de Runes after the Inquisition was defeated.

### Rodric

Although they rarely interacted, Mélie seemed to respect the young blacksmith and trusted him to do his work. When he was killed ensuring they could proceed, right before her eyes, she became distressed and even more angry than before.

### Vitalis Bénévent and Nicholas

Even before meeting the de Runes, Mélie is wary of the Inquisition and grows a little suspicious of the order's interest in the siblings. This awareness developed into a blinding hatred after Nicholas murdered Arthur after assaulting their hideout, giving her the righteous fervor to take the fight to the Inquisition and kill Vitalis once and for all.

## Trivia

* The name **Mélie** comes from Amalia, a Germanic name meaning "worker".
* At sixteen years old, Arthur and Mélie have the oldest confirmed age out of all the young characters; older than Lucas, the de Runes, and possibly Rodric.

## References

1. ↑ *"I'm currently writing a fanfiction based on A Plague Tale: Innocence. I know the ages of Hugo and Amica but how old are the other characters? Specifically Mélie and Lucas."* Posted on June 2, 2019 on *Twitter*.