Yalena Saddler

Details

The blonde woman stands quite tall, especially for a woman, making her height one of her most notable traits. She boasts a cascade of blonde locks that play with shades, transitioning from a darker, almost earthy-brown hue at the roots to a lighter, sun-kissed blonde tone towards the ends. Her hair is often pulled into a practical braid, a testament to her active and adventurous lifestyle. Yalena's eyes are like a tranquil, overcast sky on a calm day. They are a soft, greyish blue, more reminiscent of a stormy sea than a brilliant, clear summer sky. They hold a quiet depth and an aura of mystery, a window to her inner thoughts and emotions.

Clothes

Yalena's practical wardrobe reflects her rugged lifestyle as a huntress. Her clothing choices prioritize functionality and durability over fashion, mirroring her family's modest means. During the winter months, she relies on the warmth of furs to shield her from the biting cold. These furs, often sourced from animals she's hunted, serving as her first line of defense against the elements. Many of her clothes are often weathered, bearing the marks of wear and tear, showcasing the battles she's faced in the wild. During the warmer seasons, the woman switches to cotton-based garments that allow her body to breathe. On special occasions, Yalena may even don a dress, revealing the softer side of her character.

Demeanor

Yalena's not the most graceful of women, and her upbringing has instilled her with a certain toughness that sets her apart. This is because she was raised in a household predominantly filled with boys. It had made her stronger and more resilient since her brothers loved to show rough displays of affection. Her posture exudes strength and self-assuredness. And when she's out hunting or engaged in combat, her agility and calculated movements come forward. She's swift on her feet and possesses a keen sense of strategy, allowing her to be a formidable and capable fighter.

Honest/Direct/Stoic
Yalena doesn't sugarcoat her words, and this straightforwardness can sometimes make her appear rather stoic and direct. Her interactions with others are often marked with brutal honesty, as she values truth over comforting lies. However, once one gets to know her better, one might discover that she has a depth of her emotions hidden behind her walls. Walls she builds to protect herself.

Guarded/Vunerable
Because of those walls, Yalena can come across as guarded at times. These walls can make it challenging for her to connect with others on an emotional level, but those who break through them will find a person who feels deeply and profoundly. Someone who has been broken many times, by many people, and who knows what it feels like to hurt. Who can sympathize with those who are suffering as well…Yet, with the right words and the right questions, using the knowledge that she won’t ever lie about anything, you can make her walls come down easily once she believes she can trust this person.

Stubborn/Determent
Her stubbornness is often a double-edged sword, both a strength and a weakness. When she sets her mind to something, it's nearly impossible to dissuade her. She follows her heart's desires with unwavering determination, doing what she believes is right, regardless of the odds stacked against her. This resolute determination makes her incredibly brave and, most of the time, willing to face adversity head-on to achieve her goals.

Loyal/Protector
When it comes to the people she cares about, Yalena becomes a fierce guardian, willing to make great sacrifices to keep them safe. Her dedication to the well-being of her loved ones is admirable as she would not hesitate to put herself in harm's way to shield them from danger.

Spiritual/Religious
Yalena is also extremely religious. She is a firm believer in Raanan and feels like she has a close connection to her deity. The woman is quite good at trusting her own instincts, usually acting on those while also listening closely to nature. She has a fair amount of knowledge about her faith and can come across as very wise.

Yalena is, as a druid, able to shapeshift. She possesses this talent from her mother, who was also a druid and who taught her in secret. Ever since she was five years old, she could turn into a snow leopard. In the beginning, she would only shift for a couple of minutes, and only into a little cub. But now she can spend a couple of days within the body of a full-grown snow leopard. However, most of the time, the woman won’t push it that far, usually spending only a couple of hours in her animal form, not wasting more energy than absolutely necessary.

Besides being able to shapeshift, the woman is rather interested in learning about extracting healing properties from plants and herbs, but she still needs someone to teach her. Yalena’s mother tried to teach her once, however, at that time, she found those teachings to be quite boring and showed little to no interest in learning this practice. Now, she changed her mind.

Yalena was born the daughter of Torsten Saddler and Ingrid Saddler, and she became their second child, birthed into the world right after her parents had to flee their burned-down village high up in the north of Ravaryn. She has one older brother, who had to flee along with their parents, Ingrid being pregnant with Yalena at the time. They all ended up in a village called Woodpine, but because they lost almost everything they owned, they had to build everything back up from the ground again. Torsten, their father, had to work extremely hard to keep everyone well-fed and warm, making this time difficult for all of them. Her brother tried to help as much as he could, whenever he could, even though he was still very young.

But, no matter how hard life had been on them, they continued to have a loving connection to each other. And while Torsten worked to keep everyone alive, Ingrid taught her children everything she knew about the world. Yalena and her brother both learned to shapeshift into different animals, which eventually allowed them to help their father with hunting. It made everything a lot easier for all of them, and a few years later, Ingrid became pregnant with a third child. Another girl was born when Yalena was nine years old, but she died three years later from a sickness. The grief was intense, and this time, they were not able to make a full recovery, causing the family to break apart. Silence began to grow inside their home, and happiness began to fade with the years to come.

To deal with this, Yalena began to spend more time away from her family, seeking company elsewhere. There was this one young boy who seemed to suffer almost as much as she did, and they began to grow closer. But as the years went by, he became colder as well. However, she still sought him out whenever she felt lonely, sneaking off with him into an abandoned barn when she reached a certain age. This went on for some time until her father decided to arrange a marriage for her. She never expected this to happen, mostly because her father usually allowed her and her brother the freedom to choose their own paths, but she did not know her father owed a lot of money to the family of her betrothed. He was being pressured into this arrangement, and if he did not deliver, the cost would be too great.

This meant that he had to force Yalena to spend time with her betrothed so they could get to know each other before the marriage, but during her time alone with him, she quickly discovered that her fiance had an awful temper. She begged her father to stop the arrangement, and when her mother joined in on the fight, he admitted to his dept. They were all shocked, unable to respond. But there was nothing to be done about this, and Yalena simply had to swallow her pride.

However, not long after this happened, she found out that she was already pregnant with a child that did not belong to her betrothed, and he began to notice some strange behaviors. Yalena could not lie about this, so she told him the truth, even when she knew he thoroughly hated the young man who was supposed to be the father of her child. A man who had already left town at this point, right after his father had been accused of murder. She never got the chance to tell him due to her finding out after his leaving. But her fiance did not take kindly to the news, and when he tried to take advantage of her, they fought.

The fight became bloody real quick, and near the end, Yalena was forced to take his life, for she might not have survived if she didn’t. Knowing the reputation of his family, she quickly made a run for it, for they would surely blame this on her. Shifting into her snow leopard, she managed to stay hidden for quite some time, traveling further north, where she eventually found some shelter. Her back had been badly wounded, but it had healed by the time she gave birth to a baby boy. This happiness was not long-lived, however, as the child had been weak. He died not nearly a week later.

- Yalena is a skilled huntress.
- She can hunt with a bow and arrows but is much more successful in her snow leopard form.
- Her preferred choice of weapon is a sword.
- There is a huge scar on her back in the shape of a cross.
- The father of her child was… Well, if you know, you know.
- More will be added later.