✸ STATISTICS.

  •  NAME    Kasumi Ashikaga
  •  ALIAS    Madame of Death
  •  BIRTHPLACE    Kugane
  •  BIRTHDAY   24th Sun of the 5th Umbral Moon
  •  AGE    32
  •  SPECIES    Au Ra Raen
  •  MARITAL STATUS    Single but unavailable
  •  PARENTS    Tarō, father | Matsu, mother
  •  OCCUPATION    Matriarch of Clan Ashikaga & Madame of the Ruby Palace, a brothel and bath house that is the main hub of Clan Ashikaga's operations.
  •  HEIGHT    4'11" (150 cm)
  •  EYE COLOUR    Ash gray
  •  BUILD    Curvy, lightly muscled, athletic.

✸ FULL PROFILE.

  •  PRONOUNS    She/Her
  •  ORIENTATION    Pansexual, femme lean
  •  PATRON GODS    The Kami, Azeyma
  •  ALIGNMENT    Lawful Evil
  •  POSITIVES    Adaptable, resourceful, decisive, disciplined, patient, determined, discerning, resilient.
  •  NEGATIVES    Controlling, manipulative, selfish, jealous, judgmental, suspicious, vain, aloof.
  •  NEUTRAL    Confident, possessive, noble, logical, independent, brave, mature, observant.
  •  SKILLS    The arts of the Ninja and Samurai, networking, knowledge of the criminal underground in Kugane, manipulation & deceit.

✸ BITE MY TONGUE, BIDE MY TIME

  ✸  I'M GONNA RUN THIS NOTHING TOWN    Born to the prestigious Ashikaga clan, Kasumi grew up with teachings of nobility and sacrifice. The clan placed great importance on their role as warriors and protectors in service to the noble Watanabe family, and Kasumi was expected to follow that hundreds-year-old tradition. She was trained in the way of the Samurai from a young age, taught diligence and patience and honor. As the only child, it was known that she would take over her father's duty and continue to maintain the Ashikaga's relationship and service to the Watanabe.Kasumi, however, was a particularly rebellious spirit. Lessons on humility didn't sit well with her - she felt as though her clan was powerful, capable of so much more than serving another. Her training as a Samurai held little interest for her, and she spent her days wandering the streets of Kugane, experiencing lives very unlike her own. Her family lived in wealth and comfort, but there were people on the streets with nothing. It confused and upset her that so many people could have such hard lives, and she found herself helping them where she could. Money, food, attempting to help them make connections to find places to live, even from a young age Kasumi did her best to make a difference.Around the age of thirteen, Kasumi got into trouble on the back streets. She was surrounded and threatened by a gang of men who had plans for her. She fought for her life viciously and ferally, but with a knife held to her throat she was unable to win. Before the gang's plans for her could go further, a shadow in the shape of a woman dropped down from above and wiped out all five men. Kasumi could see nothing but blades, the bite of fire aether, and the strike of lightning. The woman introduced herself as Hama, a shinobi from Doma. Kasumi was entranced, starstruck by her savior. Though Hama attempted to move on with her life, Kasumi followed along after her and begged her to teach her the shinobi way. By sheer stubbornness, Kasumi ended up getting Hama to agree to teach her. Kasumi threw herself into this training, letting her Samurai lessons fall to the wayside while she learned all she could about the way of the shinobi.For three years, Kasumi's only focus was her training. At sixteen years old, she met a commoner's daughter named Hisa. The two hit it off immediately, and Kasumi soon found herself swept up in her first love. Though neither of their families approved of the other, the two of them would frequently sneak out to meet in the dark of the night. Less than a year later, Hisa's parents sold her to a young nobleman to serve under contract in his household. Kasumi was devastated, and while the two of them continued to try and see one another, the lord was cruel and kept them apart. Kasumi fought to free her love, but she was too late. The nobleman had Hisa beaten for disobeying him and she didn't survive the injuries.Losing Hisa was a turning point for Kasumi. She threw herself even harder into her training, stopped helping those less fortunate than herself, and began to obsessively save gil outside of her family's influence. She'd seen how ephemeral life was - she couldn't trust anyone or anything to secure her future. She had to do it herself. It was at this time that Kasumi began to dip her toes into criminal activity. First it was petty thievery, then it was intimidation, then it was drug running. She began to build her reputation brick by brick, and over the years she solidified her place next to some of the worst in Kugane's underground. However, it wasn't enough for her. She wanted more. She needed to make money consistently.At twenty, Kasumi took some of the money she'd earned and some of her family's money to purchase a building in Sanjo Hanamachi. This was the humble beginnings of her bath house and brothel, the Ruby Palace. Kasumi could feel nothing but a burning hatred for those that trapped vulnerable women into forced contracts to sell their body, so her first line of business was to ensure that all of those that worked for her did so willingly and with protection. It started out small, with only a handful of women offering themselves, but within a few years it grew until Kasumi was forced to upgrade the premises to a larger building. By the time she was twenty-five, the Ruby Palace had become a premier bath house in Kugane that Kasumi used as a base of operations for her criminal activity.Not long after her thirty-first birthday, the Ashikaga clan suffered a great tragedy. One of the Watanabe's enemies struck at the family, and many of Kasumi's kin were cut down in the battle that followed, including her father. The killers pressed their advantage and continued on to attack the Ashikaga's ancestral home, burning it and all of their assets to the ground. By the time Kasumi learned of what had happened, it was much too late. Only a few members of her family had survived, and she was thrust into the role of Matriarch of those that remained.Unwilling to let the Ashikaga name turn to dust, Kasumi has since begun to rebuild her home and clan. Though they will never serve another family ever again, Kasumi has new, lofty plans for those that are left. Now, instead of a noble group dedicated to protect another, the Ashikagas will be known as one of the greatest criminal families in Kugane - and Kasumi will be at the head of it all like a queen upon a blood-drenched throne, the Madame of Death.

✸ HOOKS.

WAIT TIL THE WORLD IS MINE

  III  KUGANE NOBILITY.    The Ashikaga family is an ancient Samurai clan that has served the noble Watanabe family for hundreds of years. As such, the Ashikagas are well-known in Kugane. Is your character from the Watanabe family? Do they have ties to other nobles in Kugane? They're likely to have heard of Kasumi, who has made a name for herself outside of her clan. Maybe they've even had dealings with her.  III  CRIMINAL UNDERBELLY.    Having gained a vicious reputation as the Madame of Death, Kasumi's main source of income is her criminal activity. Now that her clan has been betrayed and Kasumi is left to pick up the pieces, she's leaning hard into her reputation to forge alliances and make money. If you'd like to plot your criminal character with her, I'm sure we can strike up a deal. Kasumi explicitly deals in assassination, smuggling (of both people and items), spying, forgery, and counterfeiting.  III  THE RUBY PALACE.    Located in Sanjo Hanamachi in the Rakuza District, the Ruby Palace is Kasumi's bath house and brothel. It also serves as the main hub for her operations. She's got plenty of people working for her in a variety of roles, but she gets a steady stream of clientele as well. Perhaps you're in need of a long-term job, or perhaps you're a long-standing, loyal servant. Maybe you merely want to find comfort in the arms of a stranger. Come do business through the doors of Kugane's premier bath house.  III  WOMEN UNDER CONTRACT.    One of Kasumi's few weaknesses (and money drains) is her fury at the women forced into servitude and to sell their bodies in Kugane. She'll pull strings, spend gil, and twist arms to break innocent women free of their contracts and allow them an opportunity to escape the city or to work for her in the Ruby Palace. Are you one such woman in need of help, or someone willing to assist in this endeavor?

  III  KUGANE SECRETS.    Informants abound...and Kasumi wants to befriend all of them. She'll pay well for any juicy secrets or classified information that you have about any of Kugane's most notable members of society. Anything could be used to get a leg up on her enemies. Perhaps you'd like a long-term relationship with her that digs up dirt on the people she hates the most? You'll be paid well for what you know.  III  FOREIGN CURIOSITY.    In truth, Ijin matter as much to Kasumi as they do any other native to Kugane. However, she frequently has foreigners in her place of business, and she does find herself interested in them on a superficial level. She loves learning, languages in particular, and it'd be neat to have one or two people that she's kept in contact with after visiting Kugane. Maybe your character deals in foreign trade and always has a good Eorzean book for her to read. Maybe you're pen pals!  III  LOYALTY & LOVE.    Kasumi hasn't lived life entirely alone. She has friends, past lovers, old relationships, and a certain familial feel with those that work closely with her in her inner circle. If you'd like to establish yourself as someone Kasumi knows well and trusts, there are plenty of opportunities for it. I'd love to flesh out those loyal to her, and to whom she's loyal in return. Though she's a selfish person, she does love and love deeply.  III  GOT SOMETHING ELSE IN MIND?    If you thought of a different connection while reading through, please let me know! Kasumi has deep roots in Kugane, but I'm very flexible with trying to make things work.

WATCH ME MAKE 'EM BOW

✸ OOC.

I LIKE THE WAY THEY ALL SCREAM

  001.  AGE LIMIT 21+    Simply put, I am over 21 and I want my writing partners to be as well.  002.  WRITING STYLE    I write in third person, present tense, but I'll write past if necessary. Expect paragraph replies with detailed emotions and reactions.  003.  ROMANCE & ERP    These are both completely off the table, as Kasumi is plotted to be with someone serious and long-term.
 
 
 
     DISCORD:  nyxie.lunae | BSKY: nyxieffxiv    

  004.  DISCORD OR IN-GAME    I tend to prefer discord over in-game RP. My schedule can be a little rough so discord tends to be easier, but I really love using in-game scenery as well. It depends on if our schedules align. When writing in-game, I prefer to create a private party and send responses through party chat.  005.  OOC INTERACTION    I absolutely live for character talk. I love to become friends outside of the RP! Please chatter with me about our characters and what situations we want to write. I'm also totally down to run content!  006.  MARE    Though in general completely unnecessary for great RP, I do use Mare and would love to meet others that do as well.

nyxie21+she/herCST