Vesper Caraway
From Crossroads Wiki
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Courtesan of the House of Blushing Petals
| Vesper Caraway | |
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| IC Information | |
| Full Name: | Vesper Caraway |
| Function: | Courtesan |
| Gender: | Female |
| Species: | Human |
| Age: | 18 |
| Height: | 5'9?" |
| Weight: | Tsk. |
| Eyes: | Blue-Grey |
| Hair: | Dark |
| Date of Birth: | May 28, 487 |
| Place of Birth: | Miller's Isle, Draught. |
| Marital Status: | Courtesan |
"Anyone whose goal is 'something higher' must expect someday to suffer vertigo. What is vertigo? Fear of falling? No, Vertigo is something other than fear of falling. It is the voice of the emptiness below us which tempts and lures us, it is the desire to fall, against which, terrified, we defend ourselves."
--Milan Kundera, The Unbearable Lightness of Being
Themesong: Never Fall In Love, Emilie Simon
More: Purest One, Etro Anime
Public Knowledge:
Vesper Caraway is a courtesan of the House of Blushing Petals, a young woman only recently come into her own and set before Gateway for her official debut. Plucked from obscurity on Draught at a young age and cultured for long years by deft instructors to the exacting standards of the House, educated on a broad variety of subjects and instilled with the discipline and poise suited to the loftier social strata of the nobility she is intended to entertain, there is little question that the girl is preternaturally lovely and exceptionally mannered. Until recently hidden away in the depths of the House itself, there's very little known about her, though wagging tongues speculate as to what unknown aristocratic scandal might be responsible for her striking appearance. Accompanied everywhere in public by at least one martial guard as an escort, she presents an inaccessible and enigmatic figure, to say the least. Those who've had the good fortune to meet or speak to her directly, however, will attest to her warm and welcoming personality.
Personal Details:
Things better known to clients, colleagues and friends:
Vesper Caraway doesn't know who her parents were or even remember much about the Isle on which she was born. The circumstances of her birth may or may not be known to the Mistress of the Petals; there are rumors that the girl is the illegitimate result of a noble affair between powerful houses thought to be in conflict with one another, but as there is absolutely no evidence to support any such wild claims it's equally as likely that her aristocratic appearance is just the result of good luck in the genetics lottery of life. Whatever the truth the girl was deposited in a fairly decent orphanage where she remained until the age of ten, when a scout for the House snatched her up and brought her to Gateway to begin her studies.
She's a sweet girl with an even temperament, often placed in a position of mediating conflicts between her friends. She likes people, makes friends easily and although she tends to lean toward an academic frame of mind she's not above indulging in girlish flights of fancy, making up stories for the entertainments of others and being, when levity is called for, silly enough to make other people laugh -- something she enjoys doing and tries often. She has an obvious penchant for things of complexity that's reflected in most of her personal tastes: her outfits are always an elaborate showpiece of themes and include (as a hallmark) extravagant hairpieces of custom design, making the most of her very long, very thick dark hair. She prefers complex and subtle sauces in her dishes, wines with complicated bouquets, men who have layers and depths to them, intricate musical scores, difficult puzzles and choreographies and her favorite flower - the one she's chosen to be her own - is the orchid, a flower that is itself often elaborate and sculptural.
She's insatiably curious about everything but thus far her lifestyle at the House has prohibited her from experiencing many things, hungrily learned about instead through the books she constantly seems to be reading. As an undebuted courtesan she hasn't had the opportunity to travel abroad the way Esme has, and looks forward to the day when she'll be permitted to travel beyond the barrier and experience those other locations herself, living vicariously through the letters sent to her by her better-traveled sister. The pair are fast friends and extremely fond of one another.
If she has a failing, it's that she's drawn to that same complexity in men who tend to be inaccessible, fascinated by the layers of armor that often conceal something dangerous beneath and undeniably captivated by the process of unearthing new facets of complicated personalities...and the risk involved in doing so.
*OOC
- Intrigue? Need someone to drop a word somewhere? Need someone to keep a secret, fulfill a task, carry a package to someone of status, be a distraction at the right time in the right place? Courtesans are good for that. They're not uncommon to see in a wide variety of locations with a broad cross-section of people; discretion is of the absolute utmost importance, and courtesans as well as their clients have been known to...disappear...rather unfortunately when suspected of abusing the confidences placed in the House. As such, Vesper is to be considered most excellent fodder for dangerous things (and is deathOK, though obviously I really would prefer there to be good reason, so that is not an invitation to just jump her outside of an alleyway to see if I mean it!).
*Important:
Vesper is a courtesan of the first water. Whatever courtesans are and have been in the city of Gateway, those educated at the House of Blushing Petals are a cut above and a breed apart; these are not women in the sex trade. They are luxuries for the rich and the powerful, women of great beauty educated in a wide variety of entertainments, intelligent and charming, well up on the social graces needed to navigate political channels. They are items of social status, like fine bottles of wine or liquor, jewelry or clothing, to be paid for and admired as a novelty. In order to alleviate some confusion or misunderstanding, this +info is intended to outline better the role of courtesans like Vesper in Gateway's wealthy society.
Sex does not enter into the relationship that a Blushing Petals courtesan has with her clients very often. Considered crass fodder for whores and heavily regulated, it's only when a patron of significant enough wealth or esteem to support the courtesan takes interest in her that those matters are given consideration. What a courtesan does of her own volition is her choice, but indiscretion is often the downfall of what is otherwise a very lucrative career, and so not only is it frowned upon for one of the girls to be careless in this regard, it's also damaging to her image and therefore generally avoided. As such, casual propositions of this nature are rarely received well, and the girls travel with well-armed escorts who do not take kindly to uncouth behavior directed toward them.
Canny courtesans in history have often been the quiet counsel of great men, providing solace and ease and an open ear for those they see regularly. The House of Blushing Petals rigidly enforces a code of discretion and client confidentiality, and what secrets pass into the hands of its courtesans absolutely do not leave its doors: this is a code of honor that absolutely cannot be broken, at the peril of the girl responsible, as this privacy is the foundation upon which the entire enterprise operates.
Female courtesans are primarily employed by men, but certainly not exclusively. Educated in all manner of academia and artistry, they are capable of providing elegant entertainment to a wide variety of social functions and are as bound to respecting and pleasing female clients as they are to male: lonely noble women may find in a courtesan a social companion whose education is on par with her own to help fill any empty hours. A less common circumstance, to be certain, but not entirely unheard of.
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Logs
Oldest at the top.
- Oil and Water : A hopeless mismatch, an inevitable misunderstanding, and a very confused dockworker.
- A Shoe-In : Vesper meets Lord Stone's Throw in the castle's open courtyard.
