Vasilisa (Character)

*Looking for the Sea Tsar, Vasilisa the Wise, see Vasilisa*

*Or looking for one of the stories of Vasilisa? See Vasilisa (Stories)*

**Vasilisa** is the seventh princess introduced in the series. She is the protagonist of a number of stories.

## Appearance

Vasilisa is a beautiful young woman with a rosy complexion, turqouise eyes and strawberry blond hair.

She wears a dark blue dress with a white dress shirt and a golden sash around the waist, as well as a headdress reminiscent of a peacock's feathers.

## Personality

Vasilisa is described by the Baba Yaga as brave and obedient. An accurate assessment, as Vasilisa was willing to wander into the dark woods and ask the Baba Yaga for a light, just because her stepmother asked her too.

Due to her tragic past and her second identity as the firebird, Vasilisa is rather pessimistic and at times paranoid. She believes that her being the firebird will keep people from truly loving her and despises her powers, as evidenced by her saying a feather of the firebird's was anything but beautiful.

## Synopsis

### Before Forever After

Vasilisa lived with her stepfamily at the edge of the Baba Yaga's woods. One day, all the candles in their home mysteriously went out leaving them in the dark. Brave, obedient Vasilisa was sent to acquire a new light from the Baba Yaga. Vasilisa embarked on the journey, taking nothing but her beloved doll with her. When she arrived at the Baba Yaga's house, she told the old witch of her family's plight and asked for a light. The Baba Yaga agreed, but told Vasilisa that she would have to perform a number of chores around the house for her first. Vasilisa used the magic of her doll to perform the tasks to the Baba Yaga's satisfaction and the Baba Yaga, keeping up her end of the arrangement, handed her a skull that carried flames inside it. Unbeknownst to Vasilisa, the skull contained the power of the firebird, a being made of flames that would burn anyone not worthy. Vasilisa was engulfed in the skull's flames, but did not die, despite still feeling the pain of burning, as she was good and therefor worthy. Instead the power of the firebird went into her body, leaving her unharmed. Vasilisa then returned home to her family, happy to have fulfilled her task. However when nighttime came, she once again transformed into the firebird. As Vasilisa was unable to control her flames, her fire burned both her house and her family, who were unworthy, to ashes, leaving Vasilisa devastated and alone.

Vasilisa fled her destroyed home, causing devastation across the land as the firebird every night for months. At some point, while transforming back and resting on a hill, she was watched by a young Tsar. Desperate to save his tsardom, the Tsar courted Vasilisa in her human form, not letting her know he was aware of her identity as the firebird. Vasilisa fell in love with him. When he eventually asked her to come with him, she happily agreed and let him take her to his palace. The Tsar lured her into a tower, then had it sealed off by the Baba Yaga, effectively caging the firebird with Vasilisa. Vasilisa was heartbroken by this betrayal and would never forgive the Tsar for what he had done.

### Forever After

Sometime later, Vasilisa's tower would be visited by the hero Ivan, who was on a quest to find his true love. He was accompanied by Robin, a Prince Charming and her fairy assistant Tank. Ivan scaled the tower, believing Vasilisa to be the true love he'd been searching for. He made a crack in the glass-roof, enabling Vasilisa to hear his voice. Though at first put off by his approach, Vasilisa soon found herself bemused by Ivan's clumsiness and earnest nature. Ivan asked her for the reason for her imprisonment, to which Vasilisa joked that it certainly wasn't because the tower was a safe place form vagabonds. Ivan then gifted her a feather he'd found on the way, unaware that it was one of the firebird's feathers, calling it almost as beautiful as Vasilisa herself. Vasilisa gloomily replied that the feather was not beautiful at all and informed Ivan of it's origins then asked, with a sorrowful expression, if Ivan had come to kill the firebird. Ivan proclaimed that he'd come for her and stated his intention to break her cage and free her. Vasilisa merely responded that she belonged to the Tsar and that if she fled he would "hunt [her] to the ends of the earth." Ivan, refusing to be discouraged, stated that he would do anything to convince the Tsar to free Vasilisa, despite Vasilisa insisting that the Tsar would not let her go under any circumstances. Vasilisa notices the sun setting and implores Ivan to leave, as there is a nighttime curfew on the city and the punishment for breaking it is death. Ivan is reluctant to leave Vasilisa, but eventually agrees to return in the morning to negotiate Vasilisa's freedom with the Tsar. The two of them exchange names and Vasilisa wistfully watches as Ivan climbs down the tower again, convinced he would abandon her if he knew the full truth.

That night, Vasilisa again transformed into the firebird. Due to the crack Ivan made in the roof of her prison, she was able to escape, her flames once again ravaging the tsardom in her flight.

She wandered the land aimlessly, until one night she spotted her magical doll again, the sole thing left of her old life. As Vasilisa, in her firebird-body, touched down to retrieve it, she was tackled by Ivan, who was still unaware Vasilisa and the firebird were one and the same. Ivan violently subdued and choked her, leaving a bruise around her neck. Her fire did not burn him, as he was considered worthy. As the sun came up, Vasilisa transformed back into her human form, shocking Ivan. Horrified that Ivan would so readily hurt the firebird, which would forever be part of her, Vasilisa told Ivan that he had broken her trust. Although Ivan tried to apologize, Vasilisa did not believe he meant it and took off as the firebird once again. She fled to Crystal Mountain, isolating herself from the world.

A few days later as she slept in her nest, Vasilisa was awakened by Ivan, who had scaled the mountain to find her again. Ivan apologized for hurting and scaring her as the firebird, but Vasilisa was wary of him, asking how he'd found her and how he'd managed to climb Crystal Mountain. Ivan told her of the deals he made with Baba Yaga and Jack Frost. Vasilisa noticed that his hand was bleeding. Ivan insisted it was nothing compared to the pain he'd caused her, but Vasilisa argued that pain should not and could not be measured and weighed like sacks of grain and that no one deserved to be hurt. Ivan protested that he would be happy to let Vasilisa burn him if that was what she wanted and that although he truly loved her, he knew he couldn't make her love him. Vasilisa agreed, but said that she too had feelings for Ivan and could bring herself to forgive him if he found it in himself to forgive her for the damage she'd done as the firebird when her powers went out of control. Ivan took her into his arms and they agreed to leave their tragic pasts behind them and left for the destinies their future had laid out.

## Relationships

### Ivan

Ivan and Vasilisa meet when she is still being held captive by the Tsar. Ivan is immediately smitten with Vasilisa and despite the unusualness of their first meeting, Vasilisa finds herself liking him, too. Though she is convinced he wouldn't like her as much if he knew she was the firebird. When Ivan, in a misguided attempt to fulfill a quest the Tsar gave him, violently captures her, Vasilisa loses her trust in him and leaves him behind. Though when he catches up to her a second time and shows honest sorrow and regret over hurting her, Vasilisa forgives him and the two get together as a couple.

### The Tsar

The Tsar used to be Vasilisa's lover and she seemed honestly in love with him. However, when he imprisoned her those feelings turned sour and she never forgave him for the betrayal. In the present she considers herself nothing but his prisoner.

## Abilities

### Firebird Form

Vasilisa has the power to turn into a firebird every night. In this form she is capable of flight and pyrokinesis. However, due to Vasilia being unable to control her flames, she often destroys anything that comes in contact with her until she turns back by the next day. When she is the firebird Vasilisa also cannot be touched by anyone who is not "worthy", as her fire will burn any who try to cinders.

### Magical Doll

Vasilisa once possessed a doll with magical properties. What exactly the doll can do isn't specified, but it helped Vasilisa to perform the tasks the Baba Yaga asked of her.

## Etymology

* Vasilisa is the Russian feminine form of "Basil".

## References

 **Story**
 The Golden Key | • Tangle • Mossy •Mean Fairies •Mossy's Auntie •Grandma •Old Man of the Sea •Old Man of the Earth •Old Man of the Fire
 Other