Friendly Opportunist

RAHUI CERVANTES

GENDER: Female (she/her)

SPECIES: Animal Spirit (Coyote)

AGE: 85 years

SEXUALITY: Lesbian

OCCUPATION: Part-time bartender at a small pub in The Shipyard & Founder of a Jiu-jitsu gym

DISTRICT: The Shipyard

BACKGROUND:

Rau remembers much from her life, it is both a point of conflict and pride within her. She remembers the grasslands, the hills, the parents that raised her, the siblings she grew up with, and those who died young, the taste of blood and rotten meat stuck between her teeth, and the howling of wolves always lurking nearby.

Her last living memory, however, was being torn apart by a dog.

Rau then woke, during a sunny day, staring at a trash bag that held her mortal body. She sniffed it, decided it was disgusting, and then walked away. For several years, she haunted the countryside of Chihuahua, Mexico. She would watch from a distance, quietly, as other coyotes attempted the same maneuver as her: to steal a chicken from the nearby farms, and died all the same. She would approach the dying animals, torn open just like her, and sit by their side. She wasn’t aware if the dying creatures could tell she was there, but she stuck by their side all the same, waiting and watching until they drew their last breath. Some of their spirits passed peacefully, others lingered like her, and eventually, she had her own family of undead. Coyotes of all ages, those who died of old age, others of hunger, and others of violence, they stuck by her side for some reason, she watched over them, and told them where to go. Local farmers turned the pack into a folk tale, and people would start leaving ofrendas for them, to make sure no bad energies would fall upon them. 

Rau grew curious about the ofrendas given to her pack. Jerky, mezcal, chocolate, would be found by the edges of farms, and coyote bodies would now be buried by farmers rather than tossed in trashbags. Bodies were treated with more respect, and this led to less roaming spirits. Rau felt the first sparks of human curiosity within her. She wanted to know what these offerings meant and how they were made. She began to watch humans and their habits. After many years, she developed the ability to shift into a human, but chose to live in the wilderness for a few months with her spirit family, before finally joining human society.

The only civilized area near her was a little farming town in the middle of nowhere, and her sudden arrival was noted by the locals. People thought that this naked, quiet lady was insane, and she roamed the streets until an old lady picked her up from the streets. Rahui was fed, clothed, and finally given the opportunity to form a true human bond. Xiomara, the lady who found her, practically taught her everything she knows about being human. Rahui discovered how to show affection, joke, laugh, tease, and live in a way that she never knew possible. She became addicted to all the depth that human life possessed, but she also never tamed her bestial side. Deceiving, territorial and always fleeing from conflict, at heart she would never be able to lose the essence of what she was. And on off-days, she would still stumble into farmers’ homes and toss their things about if they didn’t properly bury the bodies of wild animals they had to put down. 

She would also never lose her crippling fear to dogs or wolves, just looking at them made her uneasy, like she would be torn apart all over again. 

Xiomara eventually died of old age, and Rau, who was horribly unprepared to deal with loss as a human for the first time, shattered. She left town almost immediately after Xiomara’s death, leaving behind confused friends she had made during her life there. She took a one-way bus to Mexico City, a promise kept to the old woman. Xiomara had asked Rau to get an education, and even though Rau saw no purpose to it, she agreed. 

Life in Mexico City was wildly different to anything she had ever known, and she fell in love with it almost immediately. Rau loved the colors, the music, the people, everything. She took a gig as a bartender and began to save money for her studies, and in the meantime discovered new desires and opportunities. The girl danced, drank, partied, and left all around her a trail of broken hearts. She discovered her affinity towards brazilian jiu jitsu, and began to fight in tournaments and train avidly, and she got her purple belt in around three years. 

Rau met the right people, and eventually found out about Vievecor through other spirit friends. Rau used up part of her savings to move to the magical city, and is currently in the process of settling down. The girl found a jiu jitsu academy in The Shipyard, near the border to Garond, a large gym with a wide variety of students, supernatural and human. Rau spoke to the mestre, who had a spare room in the gym due to his own daughter living there before moving out, and gave it to Rau. Rau now lives in a small bedroom at the second floor of the jiu jitsu gym she trains at, and she currently works part-time as a bartender in a dingy little bar in the Shipyard. 

PERSONALITY: Friendly, goofy, intense, gossiper, opportunistic

CHARACTER TYPE: Original

It felt impulsive and animalistic, her instincts taking over in a way they hadn’t done so in decades. How many years had passed since she last tasted blood? The flavor briefly reminded her of her life in the wilderness, eating a fresh kill. However, the flavor was quickly dampened by the taste of alcohol. It made her recoil, and she pulled out a napkin from the bar to spit out the drink. She quickly extended it back to Chris. She looked startled, those had been too many feelings for such a short moment. “The alcohol ruins it.” She simply said, shaking her head a little bit before looking at him again. He really was a vampire, how interesting. She quickly realized that she could learn some things from him. “Do you like hunting?” She’d never tasted human flesh or blood, but she missed the taste of fresh meat, tearing into a warm carcass and letting the blood cover her snout. He seemed friendly enough, and she’d never met a vampire up close before, but she assumed that if they enjoy the taste of blood, they probably enjoy the thrill that comes with a good hunt.

He stayed still while she seemed to look him over, waiting to see where it lead. "Do you mean for blood or as a hobby?" Chris had a feeling he was going to disappoint her. "I never hunted for sport as a human. And now I tend to go more for luring people in rather than trying to chase after them. Go for the good old 'little too intense eye-contact' and let someone convince themselves that it's a good idea to approach." There was also something nice about having someone come to you rather than the other way around. And it meant he hadn't had any problems with the new artemis rules requiring consent.

She listened intently as he explained how he got his fill of blood, but it wasn’t as thrilling as she had hoped. Maybe it was the animal in her, but she enjoyed a more dangerous approach… hunting other animals at least, as she had never truly attacked a human like that before. Well, she could just go back to chasing the local pigeons in her coyote form. She hoped her huff of disappointment wasn’t too obvious, but she still attempted to look interested and curious. “Oh! And they just let you take their blood, no questions asked?” How curious. “Well, you do need to feed after all.”

Rau crossed her arms at chest level and glanced around. “I got here a few hours ago. I don’t know anyone.” She said with a shrug, turning to look at him again. “You like scaring people with fire? I like scaring people sometimes too, but by tossing their things around.” She said with a grin, remembering how she would enter the houses of rude farmers or animal beaters, and just toss their shit around their home. It was thrilling, and it often led to a lesson learned and new behaviors. “You want to scare someone tonight?” She asked casually, as if she were inviting him to grab a coffee.

This woman sounded a bit strange as she described what she liked doing. As far as Matthew knew, she seemed like a human being with strange habits. "That's an odd request. And I'm not some common criminal the way you sound like you are," he scoffed. "What would scaring someone tonight do for me in the long run?" It certainly would not help him get his powers back, Matthew griped internally.

His next words made her chuckle softly and shake her head. “So you are the uncommon sort?” She asked. She knew that teasing and bothering strangers could end badly, especially those who looked as frustrated as this one, but Rau liked to push limits sometimes. Besides, she never really saw her hauntings as something illegal or criminal, it was more like a very enjoyable duty to her. Living beings needed to be reminded about respect towards the dead sometimes. “Is more enjoyable than sitting alone grouching. What about a walk, then? You can teach me about the city, and I promise you, you’ll be more relaxed by the end of it!”

The suggestion of dancing made her grin in excitement. That was exactly what she’d been hoping for. “See? Good instinct!” She said. She didn’t need more confirmation after that. Rau settled her drink down at the bar before grabbing one of Atlas’ hands and leading them down to the dance floor. Rau found a good spot on the right side of the floor, where it wasn’t too crowded, so they could dance without repeatedly bumping into people. Once they settled in a spot that Rau approved of, she turned around, facing Atlas. She wrapped both hands around Atlas’ hips, and pressed their bodies together. The rhythm of the song was a little slower, another RØZ song that was good for dancing. Rau grinned at Atlas, then brought her face closer to their ear so she could be heard over the music. “How’s this for repaying?”

Rau tensed up slightly when she was brought closer to the guard. She knew that she could bolt from this situation by turning invisible and immaterial, but that would also reveal to them what she was, and she was unsure how wise that could be right now. She stuck to her usual game plan, to exhaust all alternatives before doing something too risky. “If we skip the guards for now, I can offer you something.” She started. What would a person like them possibly need with her? No clue, but she’d dealt with nasty people in her life before, and she was good at using her words to get herself out of situations. Empty promises were necessary right now. “Come on, I just got here like- yesterday! I’m really not trying to spend my second night here in jail. I’d escape anyway, but still!”

She stared at the guard for a moment, then at Ayumu. “I don’t exactly know what I’m dealing with here.” She used a hand to gesture at all of them. “Maybe I need to know first what your skills are, then I can know what I can offer you.” She wasn’t about to downright tell them that she was a spirit. No, she still had a way to work around this, and she wanted to get a confirmation on what exactly she was dealing with. The hand that Rau had placed on Ayumu’s shoulder now gently slid down to their waist, squeezing them a little closer to her hip. The hold seemed innocent, maybe even flirty, but its purpose was different. The grip gave her an advantage, a quick and easy judo throw could be achieved from this position. All it took was the right timing, and Ayumu would be sent flying down to the floor and Rau would make a run for it. But she kept still, she didn’t want to make an escape yet, not if she could talk her way out of this.

His comment about the lighters brought a small smile to her face. “No fires. But you look like you’d enjoy burning something other than that cigarette, huh?” She suggested. If there was mischief to be had, Rau was the correct person for the job. She knew it was a joke, of course, but she wouldn’t be opposed to the idea of creating some chaos, so long as they found a proper victim. “Why are alone during the festival?” She asked curiously.

The fallen deity frowned at the woman's question. "I'm taking a smoke break. This is usually the time when I wish to be alone," he replied as he exhaled another plume of smoke. "I could be asking you the same thing."

Rau crossed her arms at chest level and glanced around. “I got here a few hours ago. I don’t know anyone.” She said with a shrug, turning to look at him again. “You like scaring people with fire? I like scaring people sometimes too, but by tossing their things around.” She said with a grin, remembering how she would enter the houses of rude farmers or animal beaters, and just toss their shit around their home. It was thrilling, and it often led to a lesson learned and new behaviors. “You want to scare someone tonight?” She asked casually, as if she were inviting him to grab a coffee.

Open starter for @vievecorcitystarters

Location: Absynthia

Rahui was thrilled to hear that she would arrive to Vievecor just in time for the festival, she loved live music, and was a big fan of various of the bands playing at the Absynthia.

She put on an all black outfit consisting of a cropped tank, jacket, cargo pants and boots. She arrived early in the day to drink, dance to Røz, and cause problems. The mischievous spirit switched between dancing, and walking around stealing lighters and cigarettes, only to put them back at random people’s pockets, for no good reason other than wanting to fuck with people’s heads in a harmless way. Eventually, she grew tired of that, and tried to switch her activity to lurking at the bar for a while, and snatching drinks out of the table whenever a bartender set one down. However, her activity was cut short when she stole her second drink, as a hand settled firmly on her shoulder before she could bolt. The spirit turned around, grinning at the stranger and taking a step closer to them, with their stolen drink still in hand. “Thank you for buying me this, you know I really appreciate it.” Her speech wasn’t entirely fluent, and her accent was strong, indicating she wasn’t too used to speaking in this language.

It felt impulsive and animalistic, her instincts taking over in a way they hadn’t done so in decades. How many years had passed since she last tasted blood? The flavor briefly reminded her of her life in the wilderness, eating a fresh kill. However, the flavor was quickly dampened by the taste of alcohol. It made her recoil, and she pulled out a napkin from the bar to spit out the drink. She quickly extended it back to Chris. She looked startled, those had been too many feelings for such a short moment. “The alcohol ruins it.” She simply said, shaking her head a little bit before looking at him again. He really was a vampire, how interesting. She quickly realized that she could learn some things from him. “Do you like hunting?” She’d never tasted human flesh or blood, but she missed the taste of fresh meat, tearing into a warm carcass and letting the blood cover her snout. He seemed friendly enough, and she’d never met a vampire up close before, but she assumed that if they enjoy the taste of blood, they probably enjoy the thrill that comes with a good hunt.

Open starter for @vievecorcitystarters

Location: Absynthia

Rahui was thrilled to hear that she would arrive to Vievecor just in time for the festival, she loved live music, and was a big fan of various of the bands playing at the Absynthia.

She put on an all black outfit consisting of a cropped tank, jacket, cargo pants and boots. She arrived early in the day to drink, dance to Røz, and cause problems. The mischievous spirit switched between dancing, and walking around stealing lighters and cigarettes, only to put them back at random people’s pockets, for no good reason other than wanting to fuck with people’s heads in a harmless way. Eventually, she grew tired of that, and tried to switch her activity to lurking at the bar for a while, and snatching drinks out of the table whenever a bartender set one down. However, her activity was cut short when she stole her second drink, as a hand settled firmly on her shoulder before she could bolt. The spirit turned around, grinning at the stranger and taking a step closer to them, with their stolen drink still in hand. “Thank you for buying me this, you know I really appreciate it.” Her speech wasn’t entirely fluent, and her accent was strong, indicating she wasn’t too used to speaking in this language.

Open starter for @vievecorcitystarters

Location: Absynthia

Rahui was thrilled to hear that she would arrive to Vievecor just in time for the festival, she loved live music, and was a big fan of various of the bands playing at the Absynthia.

She put on an all black outfit consisting of a cropped tank, jacket, cargo pants and boots. She arrived early in the day to drink, dance to Røz, and cause problems. The mischievous spirit switched between dancing, and walking around stealing lighters and cigarettes, only to put them back at random people’s pockets, for no good reason other than wanting to fuck with people’s heads in a harmless way. Eventually, she grew tired of that, and tried to switch her activity to lurking at the bar for a while, and snatching drinks out of the table whenever a bartender set one down. However, her activity was cut short when she stole her second drink, as a hand settled firmly on her shoulder before she could bolt. The spirit turned around, grinning at the stranger and taking a step closer to them, with their stolen drink still in hand. “Thank you for buying me this, you know I really appreciate it.” Her speech wasn’t entirely fluent, and her accent was strong, indicating she wasn’t too used to speaking in this language.

After hours of standing, he decided it was finally time for a drink of his own - surely that was the best way to remain undercover, after all? So, he'd pushed his way through the huddle of bodies to the bar, finally managing to get close enough to order a vodka and coke. He'd looked briefly back out towards the stage for just a second, and by the time he glanced back it was just in time for him to catch Rahui midst pinching of his drink.

His hand lands gently on her shoulder - though she doesn't seem to care much about being caught in the act as she moves closer. "You know, I could have you arrested for that." His tone is teasing, a small smirk forming at his lips. Kiran had never actually arrested anyone, anyway. The tech guy wasn't exactly used to time out in the field. His held tilts as he observes Rahui, before a brief chuckle escapes him. "How about, instead of having my boring drink, I order you something you actually want? Call it the festival energy making me generous."

"Which would you prefer, my dear?" they asked with a quirk of their brow as they steered them closer to where a security guard was standing watch. "I don't think you're in a position to bargain with me in a place like this. I would've thought me letting you take that drink would make the answer to your question rather obvious." Seeing what she would do would be entertaining enough.

Rau tensed up slightly when she was brought closer to the guard. She knew that she could bolt from this situation by turning invisible and immaterial, but that would also reveal to them what she was, and she was unsure how wise that could be right now. She stuck to her usual game plan, to exhaust all alternatives before doing something too risky. “If we skip the guards for now, I can offer you something.” She started. What would a person like them possibly need with her? No clue, but she’d dealt with nasty people in her life before, and she was good at using her words to get herself out of situations. Empty promises were necessary right now. “Come on, I just got here like- yesterday! I’m really not trying to spend my second night here in jail. I’d escape anyway, but still!”

Rau used the public transport to explore various areas of the city, trying to recognize which ones would be interesting to explore in more depth, and which ones to avoid entirely due to potential dangers. Her touristic adventure eventually took her to Klin, where she found a wine bar that she would definitely be visiting one day. The girl whipped out her phone to write down the name of the bar, when a sudden low voice made her jump and instinctively stick her phone in her pocket. “Dios santo, where did you come from?” She asked, just a little startled. It was in her nature to be alert and weary of any sudden dangers, and something about this man’s voice made her weary. Against her instincts, she didn’t immediately run, but instead stayed, stared at him for a second, then whipped out a cheap blue lighter from one of her pockets, extending it to him. “You can keep that. I like have ten more.” She said softly.

"It's fine." He held the lighter back towards her, not wanting to be caught dead with something like this in the pocket of his expensively tailored suit. The woman had done him a favour though, however small, so she did not deserve the full force of his wrath. Perhaps a short stint of small talk would suffice.

"What could you possibly be doing with eleven lighters? Not planning to any fires, are you?" he asked with some level of suspicion before exhaling a plume of smoke.

His comment about the lighters brought a small smile to her face. “No fires. But you look like you’d enjoy burning something other than that cigarette, huh?” She suggested. If there was mischief to be had, Rau was the correct person for the job. She knew it was a joke, of course, but she wouldn’t be opposed to the idea of creating some chaos, so long as they found a proper victim. “Why are alone during the festival?” She asked curiously.

Open starter for @vievecorcitystarters

Location: Absynthia

Rahui was thrilled to hear that she would arrive to Vievecor just in time for the festival, she loved live music, and was a big fan of various of the bands playing at the Absynthia.

She put on an all black outfit consisting of a cropped tank, jacket, cargo pants and boots. She arrived early in the day to drink, dance to Røz, and cause problems. The mischievous spirit switched between dancing, and walking around stealing lighters and cigarettes, only to put them back at random people’s pockets, for no good reason other than wanting to fuck with people’s heads in a harmless way. Eventually, she grew tired of that, and tried to switch her activity to lurking at the bar for a while, and snatching drinks out of the table whenever a bartender set one down. However, her activity was cut short when she stole her second drink, as a hand settled firmly on her shoulder before she could bolt. The spirit turned around, grinning at the stranger and taking a step closer to them, with their stolen drink still in hand. “Thank you for buying me this, you know I really appreciate it.” Her speech wasn’t entirely fluent, and her accent was strong, indicating she wasn’t too used to speaking in this language.

Open starter for @vievecorcitystarters

Location: Absynthia

Rahui was thrilled to hear that she would arrive to Vievecor just in time for the festival, she loved live music, and was a big fan of various of the bands playing at the Absynthia.

She put on an all black outfit consisting of a cropped tank, jacket, cargo pants and boots. She arrived early in the day to drink, dance to Røz, and cause problems. The mischievous spirit switched between dancing, and walking around stealing lighters and cigarettes, only to put them back at random people’s pockets, for no good reason other than wanting to fuck with people’s heads in a harmless way. Eventually, she grew tired of that, and tried to switch her activity to lurking at the bar for a while, and snatching drinks out of the table whenever a bartender set one down. However, her activity was cut short when she stole her second drink, as a hand settled firmly on her shoulder before she could bolt. The spirit turned around, grinning at the stranger and taking a step closer to them, with their stolen drink still in hand. “Thank you for buying me this, you know I really appreciate it.” Her speech wasn’t entirely fluent, and her accent was strong, indicating she wasn’t too used to speaking in this language.

She was just getting another drink when she watched a pretty girl snatch it up. Eun-ji was paying too much attention to let that slip by, grabbing her shoulder before she could take off. Still, she already had a drink earlier that relaxed her, on top of the fact that she could never stay mad at a pretty face for long. "You could have asked, I would have gotten you something more suited to your tastes."

“And how do you know that this isn’t suited to my taste?” Rau asked, taking a sip from the drink. It honestly didn’t matter if the drink was to her liking or not, the reaction was all the same. The spirit made a satisfied sound and then smiled at the stranger. “No, seriously you have to try this, the bartender here made it perfectly, look.” She shamelessly got a little closer to Eun-ji, and gently brought the glass to the other woman’s lips. “Taste it.”

for: anyone and everyone~ @vievecorcitystarters location: the sidewalk outside liber (klin)

While there were no official Vibe Fest parties in Klin, it did not stop various bars and clubs from throwing many of their own to take advantage of the revelry. Matthew hated Vibe Fest just as he hated most forms of merriment, but the hate was especially strong that evening.

He had stupidly chosen this weekend to come by Liber again after being a recluse at home for so long and he was starting to think that it was a terrible idea. It did not help that he was still depowered and opening himself a portal to go home was not an option.

Liber was very lively, which was always a good thing, but Matthew still felt the need to step out for a moment. He exited his wine bar and walked a bit of the ways down before pulling out his sleek silver cigarette case to fish one out to place between his lips. He would normally have lit it magically with a flick of his fingers, but alas... The fallen deity growled in annoyance and flagged down a passing person to ask (rather menacingly)...

"Do you have a light?"