Marcelyn Winter
Background
Marcelyn's mother died in childbirth and her father, who ran a small tinkering and repair buisnes found it difficult to work and raise her himself without help. He remarried, and had two more children with his new wife. When Marcelyn was just about six, he took ill during the winter, and died. That spring, her stepmother put her out on the street, opting not to burden herself with raising a child that was not her own (But not quite so cruel as to oput her out in the freezing cold to die of exposure). She hooked up with a wandering band of vagrants, migrating through the countryside doing fieldwork when there was some and begging or stealing when their was none, and winding up back in the city to seek shelter when they could during the cold winter months. She kept up this lifestyle for a few years, sticking with a larger group to increase her chance of survival.
When she was about nine, her cleverness caught the attention of Yesoff Brinde, an aging sorceror vagabond who occasionally travelled with their group. Yesoff had been expelled from the Castalia many years before when it discovered that his claimed parentage was a lie and he was actually houseless. The publicity of his exposure cause him to be pushed to the fringes of society, until he becaume used to the wandering life. His fellow vagabonds didn't care much about his lineage, but they were somewhat intimidated by his magic: while he was considered a figure to be respected, it was also thought that he was best kept at a bit of a distance. Being kept at such a distance from people so much of the time made him lonely for some kind of comanionship. He had many regrets about the path of his life as well, one being that he never had (or at least never knew) any children of his own. Marcelyn was young, bright, and curious. He taught her how much easier magic could make her life, and offered to teach her. She accepted after he gave her some demonstrations of his power and its uses.
The informal apprenticeship brought her to the margins of the margins as well, but it was a price she was more than willing to pay. Magic, even basic magic, made her life much easier. She could enhance her performances with light trick to earn more money busking, make simple repair to her clothing and her other few wordly possession to prolong their usefulness, and stun anyone who got too close so that she would have a better chance to escape if threatened. As her magical education progressed, she leared other tricks to lessed the hardships of the transient life, and found that it was a rare time when she could not find a way to earn or scheme her way into relative comfort. One of her favourite tricks is to change her appearance magically to look like a member of a noble household, and make purchases charged to the family's account. This lifestyle change meant that didn't have to wander with the seasons as much (though they still did to some extent), and could stay closer to the city. It also meant that her relationship with other street folk is less close than it was when she was younger. Some envy her magical talents, or resent the ease with which she can take care of herself. On the other hand, she is quick witted and fun, and can be very generous with what riches she manages to amass (maybe too generous, as they never remain amassed for very long).
Yesoff filled the father role very well, and in recent times, perhaps too well. As she became more adult in her own eyes and opinion, she became more rebellious, and wanted more independence. She is fond of the old man, but at this point doesn't feel like she needs to be tied to him forever.
She is also strangely protective of her own family, or at least of her stepsiblings. She enjoys the sport of antagonizing her stepmother by dropping into their house unnanounced and univited, bearing presents for her half brother and sister, to remind them all of what a bad mother she is, and to flaunt whatever good fortune has come her way. She is defensive of her own herritage as well.
Personality
She is generally good-natured and fun-loving, but has litle respect for authority, and believes that it is okay to take things if you want them. She is a little bit emptionally immature, especially when it comes to dealing with things like sex and romance. She knows about sex, of course, but she doesn't form close attachments very easily, and is really independant. She tends to see her self as better than some girls because she hasn't had to give anything of herself, in that sense, in order to survive, and tends to view sex and relationships as a blow against her personal independence which she is not willing to endure. She in general, and especially about people. She can be quick tempered but doesn't tend to hold grudges (her stepmother being a major exception), and doesn't always understand why other people would. She tends to live very much in the moment and let the future take care of itself.
Physical description
Marcelyn is a natural blonde, and many hours of exposure to the elements have bleached her hair to almost a platinum white. It is very fine and straight, and falls to about the middle of her back. she usually keeps it tied back or bound in fabric of some kind. She is small for her sixteen years, due to malnourishment in her youth, but athletically built. Her naturally fair skin has been burned and tanned until it is a freckled golden brown. Her eyes are a pale icy blue. She dresses in mitchmatched clothing that is in good repair but probably wearing out from use. She does her best to keep herself clean (Prestidigitation showers! If Loch can do it, so can she!). She also has a rapier that she carries, usually hidden under a cloak. the basket of the hilt is emblazoned with a stylized 'W' ("For Winter!") and a coat of arms which she has tried her best to stamp out. She acquired this while its previous owner was distracted at a brothel.
