Tamaya Ayashe

[Tamaya Ayashe]

Name: Tamaya Ayashe
Player: Breda Dreaughan
Age: 20
Race: Black bear shapeshifter
Gender: Female

Physical Description:
As humanoid: Around 165 cm and 55kg. Slender face with high cheekbones, large, brown eyes and somewhat Roman nose. Short, spiky black hair. Pointed ears, slightly larger than those of a human. Slender build and expressive face. Dresses mostly in leather.
As black bear: Very much like your average Ursus americanus. About 85kg and 80cm at shoulder. Black fur, slender face with narrow, brown muzzle and large jaw hinge. Small, round ears at the back of the head. Tail about 12cm long. Short and rounded claws of grayish brown colour.
Possessions: Simple travel gear with spare clothes, bed roll and some other camping equipment. Heavy, about 170 cm tall stick she uses for hiking and sometimes as an impromptu weapon.

Powers or Strengths:
Bear shape: Obviously. Can change at will, but the shift might happen instinctively if she is overcome by strong emotions or pain. Grants the strength, speed and senses of a black bear, but preserves humanoid intelligence (which must then negotiate with the bear senses and drives). Can also induce partial humanoid-to-bear transformation, which leads to heightened senses and sometimes changes in teeth, eyes and nails (claws), but this requires somewhat more concentration and practice. With bear-to-humanoid transformation partial shifting is not possible.
There are also some weaknesses to this skill, as spontaneous shifting can sometimes cause problems. For example, an injury that is bearable in bear form can be life-threatening in humanoid form.
The shifting is mostly painless. However, it leaves an ache similar to that felt in muscles the day after heavy exercise. The ache accumulates if shape is changed often, and the shifters prefer not to shift too many times a day. Constant partial transformation has been known to cause headaches.
Resilient: Tamaya’s mother did her best to teach her daughter resolution, courage and optimism. Thus, Tamaya is not easily discouraged, even in desperate situations.
Sociable: She likes meeting new people, and makes friends fairly easily. Only as long as she isn’t exposed to more than two or three new people at a time, though.

Weaknesses:
Low vision: Her eyesight - in both forms - started fading in her early teens. By now she is almost unable to read or recognize faces, and she is likely to go completely blind within the next ten years. She has learned to compensate by inducing partial transformation, thus gaining the use of the bear sense of smell and better hearing also in humanoid form. She also uses a walking stick to steady herself on rough terrains.
Ignorance: She has spent three years touring Eyropa, but there is still plenty to learn as she moves to new territory. Her slightly foreign appearance and accent, combined with her handicap, also make her a tempting target to those who wish to exploit her and her ignorance.
Dislike of crowded spaces: Not quite agoraphobia, but she is not comfortable in large crowds. This is simply because she has very little experience of such situations.

History: Most of the black bear shifters live in northeastern Ayana, alone or in small communities. Their origins are not entirely clear, but most bear features of native Ayanan humans. If nothing compels otherwise, individuals usually spend roughly equal amount of time in both forms. Females shift to bear form in early stages of pregnancy, and remain such until childbirth. Aside from very few exceptions, the cubs - usually two or three - are born in bear form, and don’t shift during their first year. The first shift is considered a significant step in child’s development, but as shifting at will requires certain level of concentration, it might take up to two years until the child shifts back to bear form again (unless the shift is triggered by strong emotional or physical reaction). From around three or four years old, the children are gradually taught to control their shifting, and most gain fairly good control by the age of eleven. Puberty, however, may cause a temporary decline in the skill. Although there does not seem to be any clear biological imperative for the black bear shifters to shift, generations of experience has shown that those who stay in one form their whole life tend to develop severe psychological problems, to the point of insanity and/or suicide.

Tamaya was born second and smallest of three cubs. Her loner mother had joined a community of eight shifters before delivering the cubs, and, as is customary, the cubs were brought up by the whole community, alongside four others of roughly the same age.

Tamaya’s childhood was largely uneventful. The black bear shifter cubs are traditionally kept tight within the community, away from outsiders and major disturbances to avoid uncontrollable shifting until the cubs are ready. Her very down-to-earth mother was not too distraught even when it became obvious that her only daughter was irreversibly going blind. Instead, she did her best to teach Tamaya to take care of herself independently, and to not let life’s potential hindrances to stop herself.

As the life of a young black bear shifter is very sheltered, they all are encouraged to leave home around the age of seventeen, to see what else is there in the world. So was also Tamaya, although some of the community members had doubts about how she would fare. Encouraged by her mother, Tamaya left the community with her two brothers.

All three young shifters were determined to go west, and they took a ship towards Eyropa. After a long and difficult voyage, during which the youngest brother nearly died of seasickness, the ship arrived at Cenciu Balleza in the western Corezo. There the three siblings bid tearful farewell, vowing to meet again in the same place after five years. The youngest brother took to south, the oldest to northeast towards Zhaltev, and Tamaya took to the east towards Thar Shaddin.

[Saruna]

Yeah, I know. >< Frug is a busy bee, and we've been heckling him to add more cities to the maps. Personally I'd love to see Trelham disappear from its face, but y'know. . .

Looks good, approved and have fun!