Arryaleiana was raised in northern Ireland in the idyllic setting of De'Ineace. There were no raids by the IRA or counterattacks by the British here, no famine or poverty. Life was a picturesque view of green rolling hills and crystal streams flowing lazily through the woods. It was a land of milk and honey - and magic. De'Ineace was separated from the usual troubles of Ireland by the powerful magics of the fae who inhabited the town. It was idyllic because it went unnoticed, as reality turned a blind eye to the town because of the magic. De'Ineace was at both counts a freehold and a caern, and the changelings and garou lived in harmony there, intermixing their cultures and kinfolk. It was gently warm and the land was touched by the soft glow of Luna's rays on the evening Arry was born, first in a litter of five. Her brothers and sisters emanated their dire heritage, being black or red, yet even before being confirmed as the newest shapeshifter born into the Fianna tribe, Arry's difference was evident. Generations of intermingling Sidhe and Fianna kinfolk was the cause of her peculiar gleaming silver coat and likewise icy eyes: she reflected the moon above in all her glory. Gailen Cuilysihfaidh, pack beta, and his best friend, young Lord Eliam Eveningblade Fiona, attended her birth along with other kinfolk and garou, and Eliam was taken instantly by the pup's ethereal appearance, swearing that the black star mark upon her forehead - the only mar in her liquid-steel-colored fur - was a sign from Arcadia. He swore to Arry's garou brother Gailen on that day to be forever by Arry's side. Life proceeded smoothly, and two years flew by in a kaleidoscope of warm days spent in meadows and nights spent in the forest. One night Eliam and Arry were enjoying a playful game of chase through the forest when it happened: her joyous wolfsong was cut short, and Eliam stopped suddenly, realizing she was lost to him. Arry had been farther ahead, and suddenly she wasn't there at all. He began calling out her name in earnest and began to commune with the trees around him, when out of the corner of his eye Eliam caught a glimpse of a massive silver beast hiding within the shadows. He paused for a moment in awe. The crinos stood at least 11 feet tall, and its silver coat reflected the moonlight like a beacon. She tilted her head up to the gibbous moon and let loose a howl so pure and heartrending in its glory that Eliam was enraptured with admiration for the crystalline sound. Before he could move, a pack of garou flooded through the woods and spirited Arry away. It was two weeks before she reappeared, freshly christened from her pack's Rites of Passage. She was a new being, neither wolf nor human, and that was both confusing and exciting for her. She found her companion in the courtyard of De'Ineace practicing with the swordmasters, his attention diverted: a perfect opportunity for a new game of hide and seek! A sleek young wolfess slipped into an open doorway, and a beautiful young woman slipped out. She stood there for an eternity within a minute watching the sidhe's unearthly grace and talent with a sword, and felt her voice catch within her throat. The setting sun was blazing red, the exact color of Eliam's long hair, and its crimson glow surrounded him in a fiery aura as it touched upon the horizon.
Eliam was gone. Arry ran back to where she had left him, and only his flame-red hair allowed her to identify his body. He had been torn asunder, his own sword thrust through his back - the back she should have been guarding. The wail that tore from her throat echoed against the hills, and even the clouds in the sky parted to allow Luna to see what had happened. His kinain would not allow Arry a funeral for her love, and infuriated by their customs, she decided it was time to leave the only home she had ever known. On her leaving De'Ineace, SpiritDancer presented her with the klaive holding her brother's spirit. It had been Gailen's wish that he be allowed to continue his fight against the wyrm in this form.
Pushing her thoughts of Eliam into the back of her mind, she roamed far and wide, eventually leaving Ireland to fight the wyrm across the world. She made alliances within other tribes and friends within other packs. Stories of her fierce dedication began to spread. Her talents as a Galliard were renowned from the alleyways of the Bonegnawers to the courts of the SilverFangs, spoken of as much as her prowess in fighting. But she never found a new home. Eventually, disillusioned by the politicking and hypocrisy rife within garou society outside of De'Ineace, she declared herself a Ronin - the lone wolf separate from pack, sept, even tribe. And today this is where she finds herself: older, cynical, haunted by the oppressive despair of harano, and covered in scars she no longer feels. And deep within her heart - still hurting from the wounds of a long-ago night in Ireland. Arryaleiana - or DireDeath - is Fianna ronin garou, and Sidhe kinain by way of house Fionna. She is tall and slender. Her lithe body is powerfully sinewed with muscles born of good genes rather than from working out. In homid form she is almost six feet tall, her hair silver, her eyes silver-grey. In crinos she is nearly 11½ feet tall. She is Gaelic caucasian in homid and dire in lupus. Dire dresses very casually for practical reasons, typically in a T-shirt tucked into broken in and faded jeans, along with a pair of hiking boots and worn-soft retro leather coat which hits her near mid-thigh. She wears her slightly wavy and preternaturally silver hair usually back in a low ponytail or loose, hanging to her waist, except for the two small tribal braids framing her ivory-complected face, which are ever-present. She rarely wears makeup unless it is the pale blue, black and faun shades of warpaint. Her modest clothing covers a bevy of scars from past battles. Three thin, straight scars run from the bottom of her left jaw down across her neck; her right side and lower abdomen are jaggedly roadmapped by pale pink reminders of silver knives and others' claws. She walks with a slight limp from a silver bullet lodged in the head of her left hip. Dire always wears seven small silver hoops in her left ear, and a primium and emerald Fianna earring in the right; these are visible in both her human and wolf guises. Crisscrossing her right forearm is a tattoo woven with blue, black and green into a Celtic eternity band; a similar thin tattoo encircles her head right at the hairline. Another tattoo, rarely visible to the public, starts at the back of her left shoulder, wraps itself around her and over her bosom, across the abdomen, and finally stops as it curves gently over the swell of her right hip. In vivid color it delicately depicts a scene within an enchanted forest inhabited by faeries and solves. Hidden among the flowers in this tattoo are the words "Tuatha de Fionn" in deep blood red. DireDeath gives her occupation as Ronin Galliard, Lorekeeper, and Warsinger. Her goals, she says, are three:
Currently Dire suffers from extreme harano, a form of anguish and depression, which appears not to be receding. Her condition was worsened by her last battle, in which she was nearly crippled. There is no known cure for harano, and at present she seems only to be falling deeper into despair. Dire is often lost in thoughts of the past, distant and aloof. She spends hours on end singing dirges of sorrow for fallen companions which echo the pure anguish in her heart. Oftentimes her songs are without words for the true love she lost long ago and could not mourn, because of Sidhe tradition, with a proper funeral; to this day that sorrow lingers within her. What little she has left to treasure in life is quickly slipping away. When not overcome with ambivalence, her temper is short. She despises injustice and hypocrisy, and her sense of honor is a priority for which she would willingly lay down her life. Deep down she is warm and caring, cherishing all living things natural to mother Gaia. When things she loves are threatened she is fiercely protective, and her rage has no end. Harano keeps her from getting too close to anyone, but she respects the strength of Stands in Darkness; cherishes the company of Moonshadoh and Amber; sees a reflection of her own impetuousness in Luc S'ndor; admires Lady Chantaclair's kindness; and understands the strangeness of Grendel Faust. Her only remaining family is her niece, Ityanais Cuilysihfaidh.
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