Akane Amaranth

* Mistral
* Vale

**Siblings:** Miyako, Nanako, Kasumi, Akiko, Sakura, Natsuki, Ayano, Hana, Umeko

## Media

### Music Theme

1, 2

**Akane Amaranth**is a student from Haven Academy and a member of Team RAIN, alongside Robin Lincoln, Irving Hawthorne and Nyssa Noirette. She is the eldest daughter of **Aka** and Yukiko Amaranth, and has nine younger sisters, including fellow huntress Nanako.

She first appeared in the "Umberquest" Arc following her team's loss during the doubles round of the Vytal Festival Tournament. The team then pursues a mission to locate and apprehend rogue huntsman Otso Umber, though it turns out the mission was fabricated by the mysterious Braith Family to deceive a team of huntsmen into fighting one of their experiments - an attempted Grimm-Human fusion. Robin, Akane and Irving barely escape, with Nyssa having fled prior, and commit to taking on the Braith family once they recuperate in Mistral.

Akane's initial weapon, Shishikiri, is destroyed by Gardner Braith during the Braiths' attack at Knothole, Robin's ancestral home. After escaping, she recognises the Braiths are after her teams' families and makes efforts to protect the Amaranths along with her sister Nanako and William Lincoln, Robin's brother. She eventually succeeds in convincing her **father** to hire huntsmen to protect her sisters and evacuate their ancestral home of Unsei Ridge, as well as confronting and ousting her abusive mother.

Akane lays a trap at Unsei Ridge for Sterling Braith, but it is anticipated and the plan falls into chaos. Akane succeeds in getting the upper hand on Zelena Braith, using the girl's semblance-stealing power against her to enforce the truth that she is not loved upon her.

Following the battle at Unsei Ridge, Akane remains in Mistral with Robin to recuperate while Irving and Nyssa head to the town of Avon to protect Irving's family.

## Appearance

### Current

Akane is a slightly taller-than-average girl with pale skin, pink eyes and pink-red hair with a natural ombre along its length. Her fringe is kept straight, with two long strands by each side of her head.

Her current outfit is comprised of a pink-red, long-sleeved minidress with brown-grey accents, over which she wears a silver chestplate with her emblem emblazoned on it. She also has silver couters and bracers, as well as dark brown gloves and pauldrons and kneepads with silver trim.

She wears silver high-heeled over-knee boots with brown soles, which are held up by suspenders that are secured with a buckle.

### Original

Akane wears a tight pink shirt with dark brown trim and a tail which flows to the back of her knees, as well as a red-brown undershirt and shorts which are secured with a buckle. She also wears dark brown gloves and socks which reach her elbows and knees respectively.

On top of her outfit, Akane is armoured. She has a silver breastplate and pauldrons, and wears similarly coloured knee-high boots which are fastened on the backs of her legs.

## Personality

Akane has quite a strict personality, usually sharing an almost businesslike relationship with her teammates. She is often emotionally withdrawn, not keen make friends, but is not immune from warming up to those she spends time around. She can often seem very blunt, and is easily irritated, particularly when those she is working with do not keep their eyes on their goal.

Despite her frosty outer shell, Akane cares deeply for her teammates. She particularly acts as a pillar of support for Irving after Nyssa deserts the team, encouraging him not to give in to a self-destructive lifestyle. Though it appeared she and Robin were initially at odds due to their differing personalities, the two have grown closer over the course of the story and rarely butt heads any more.

Akane also cares immensely for her younger sisters, whom she desires to rescue from their emotionally manipulative mother. She particularly dotes on Nanako and Natsuki, acting towards them as a mother would herself.

## Background

Akane was born at Unsei Ridge in Mistral, and is the eldest child of Aka and Yukiko Amaranth, as well as the sister of Miyako, Nanako, Kasumi, Akiko, Sakura, Natsuki, Ayano, Hana and Umeko. She was initially raised as her father's protégé, influencing her blunt and business-like attitude.

    Perhaps a side product of her mother's emotional abuse, Akane was considered her mother's favourite until she began associating more with her younger sister Nanako, to whom her mother had an extreme dislike. Akane's constant defence of Nanako prompted her to unlock her aura and semblance, seeing through her mother's lies. The two sisters then committed to becoming huntresses to protect those who could not protect themselves.

Following her committal to becoming a huntress, Akane was trained by her father's personal guard, Makkuro Sekinetsu. It is likely that Makkuro's glaive weapon inspired Akane's own Shishikiri, and later Dankotoryu. Makkuro seems to fill both a maternal and sororal role to Akane.

Like Nanako, Akane attended Sanctum Academy at age fourteen. It is likely she knew of Irving Hawthorne, who also attended the academy at this time, but less likely that she knew Robin Lincoln who only briefly attended.

When Akane turned 17, she enrolled in Haven Academy. Following her initiation she was cast as a member of Team RAIN, her partner being team leader Robin Lincoln, and her teammates being Irving Hawthorne and Nyssa Noirette.

During her time away from her family, Akane's youngest two sisters - Hana and Umeko - were born.

She took part in the 40th Biennial Vytal Festival in Vale, winning the Teams round. She and Robin ascended to the doubles round, but lost to Arvin Armand and Krista Dunn of Team ALMD.

## Abilities and Powers

Akane's fighting style weapon is firmly centred around close-quarters combat, but during Arc 3 her employment of a new weapon containing a ranged rifle form allows her to attack from a distance.

### Semblance

*Main article: Truth*
Akane's semblance allows her to see through any lie, developing in response to her mother's emotional abuse from a young age. Despite this, it does not take belief into account - if someone tells her something they believe to be the truth, she won’t be able to detect a lie. She can’t protect herself from the truth either - if someone lies to her to protect her she’ll know they’re doing so, which can be more of a curse than a blessing.

Akane's semblance brings with it a complete inability to lie herself.

### Weaknesses

Akane fares well against the Grimm hybrid form of Otso Umber, but is less fortunate against Gardner Braith. This implies that she is better against large, unthinking Grimm as opposed to combatants who possess a degree of strategic thinking.

## Trivia

### Allusion

* Akane alludes to legendary figure Saint George.
	+ She shares red motifs with the character, her symbol references the dragon Saint George is famed for slaying, and both are seen fighting with a spear.
	+ At the end of Arc 3, Akane and Nanako slay a Mountain Feilong, which is reflective of the dragon in the St. George story and the snakes in the St. Patrick story.
	+ Her sister Nanako alludes to a different patron saint, Saint Patrick.

### Colour Naming Rule

* Akane's forename means "deep red, dye from the rubia plant".
* Her surname is a pink-red toned plant.

### Miscellaneous

* Akane's zodiac sign is Leo.
	+ Lions are often used as a symbol of British culture, reflecting her allusion.
* Akane's name was inspired by Akane Tendo from the manga/anime Ranma 1/2

## References

1. ↑ http://neopoliitan.tumblr.com/post/158719283904/team-rain-character-bios
2. ↑ https://neopoliitan.tumblr.com/post/184990898344
3. ↑ https://neopoliitan.tumblr.com/post/186986577824/team-rain-pages-565-567-links-first-page
4. ↑ http://neopoliitan.tumblr.com/post/158243422909/hello-there-ive-some-questions-for-team-rain-1
5. ↑ https://neopoliitan.tumblr.com/post/181526537159/honesty-hour-akane