OOC INFORMATION
Name: Corie
Contact: plurk: rabbithearted 
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CHARACTER INFORMATION
Character Name: Aveline Vallen
Age: 37
Canon: Dragon Age
Canon Point: Early Dragon Age Inquisition
Character Information: Wiki!

Personality:

Aveline was raised to be a knight, from the very stories she was raised on, to her namesake. It was the life her father wanted for her, however. She was raised by him to regain old glory, to be that true knight. Instead, she took a place in the army and married a Templar, something which her father believed to be beneath her. But it is her choice, she'll live her life for her and what she wants. She is no knight. No higher morals and lost causes, no sense of honor will guide her hand or heart, better than to serve and protect than to lose lives over silly senses of morals and lost causes. No callings of a higher power for her, what she does, she does because it is her duty to do it. She is a protector, and a true friend should you manage to earn the title of a friend.

She can also be an enemy should you earn that title instead.

Her first months in the guard, during her free time, she spends it keeping tabs on Hawke and her family. They're friends now, and she looks out for her friends. They'll be no more failing them on the same level as before, during the battle that would cost her former life, home and husband. Ostagar, where everything had gone wrong - from the backup that never arrived, the king falling, and then losing her husband. When all seemed lost, Aveline fled and to this day feels guilt over as much, going out with a whimper. Shortly after it was luck that she would reunite with her husband, to be saved by Hawke and family - only to find that Wesley's injuries were beyond help. Wesley's death - is a very heavy weight on her, she chose to end his life herself rather than let him suffer a slow death, to become a ghoul. She failed to save him, but she remembers him and carries on with her life - she moves forward. She lets him rest, but she doesn't give herself that same mercy. There will be no more failures on her part.

She has a strong sense of loyalty to the people she comes to see as a family to her – Hawke and co. While she believes in the word of the law, and does not look on criminal activity, corruption and selfishness lightly, occasionally, for a friend (Isabela) she may turn her head ever so slightly to let lighter infractions pass her by or when a serious injustice is being committed. Namely, corruption. The guard captain that she replaced was dealing dirty and she put a stop to that as soon as she had a hunch about it. Fenris comes to her with tips on slavers in Kirkwall and she, as a friend and as captain will dispose of them. When needing the money to get her way into Kirkwall, she reluctantly has to take on a job that is not something ideal to her or exactly legal, but once in the city she managed to escape that by getting a job with the guard. She doesn't always approve of all of Hawke’s actions, and should Hawke chose to deal in dishonesty and selfishness instead of helping those that need it, it is a sure way to get on her bad side.

Blunt, ever so much to the point, when she disagrees with something, she will say so. There’s no straying her tongue or softening her words, heck sometimes all it will take is a severe look in the offender’s direction – but she is a woman strong and heavy set in her convictions. And if she thinks that is an incredibly stupid act, then she will make sure you know it. Loudly, too. She is … somewhat less so when it comes to dealing with people in higher positions than her. It’s hard to miss that she has an incredibly dry sense of humor and an occasional bout of sarcasm. There's also a heavy streak of judge-mentality. A very wide streak of that, she'll give you her advice whether you want to hear it or not - ranging from stern yet well meaning (Merrill) or downright nasty (Isabela, most of the time).

Her relationship with the pirate in question is an odd one, going from heated arguments and name calling when Isabela taunts and manages to get under her skin (usually with barbs that cut deeper than she lets on, and on occasion ring true) - to an eventful understanding and respect and well... friendship. From Isabela she learns a thing or two about being true to herself, about being confident in her actions and who she is. She's a do gooder, and a woman shaped battering ram. There's no shame in that. Drinks are shared in her office and she's not opposed to little anecdotes about her marriage letting slip, the name calling remains but the heat behind it is gone.

From her appearance – hair always back and pulled from her face, heavy armor, and stern expression, she is someone to be reckoned with. Nothing fancy clothing or jewelry wise, everything about her screams a figure of authority or at least someone not to be trifled with or crossed. She doesn't mourn a life that she could have had, that of an Orlesian noble, it wouldn't suit her. She's glad that she can make a difference, as opposed to knowing fashion or proper dancing. Under all that armor, she is kind and caring (don’t let that one get out), she is just not always so good at expressing that. It just might come out sounding wrong or insulting. She means well, though. Mostly.

Aveline is dedicated to her job, so much so that occasionally forgets how to relate with regular people she does not work with or talk to them in a non-Captain of the Guard way. A clear example of this is when it comes to her disastrous attempt at courting one of the men of the guard she has feelings with, she enlists the help of Hawke, and winds up panicking to the point where she does not even turn up to the initial meeting. Then when alone with him at last, starts trying to engage in conversation much to hysterically bad results. This is not something that can be handled with a sword, this is her trying to relate as a human, to express her feelings and she struggles with it. It's insecurity. She is confident with a sword, during a fight but this is a whole different beast. She's a good leader and she knows it. So focused on her job during this time is she, that personal matters of the heart have come second, or perhaps third in her life for nearly three years. Married life is a different matter, and gives her several different perspectives - there's a more relaxed, openness about her. She'd been a good leader before, if not very controlling of her men under her command, including training them personally. They were more of an army, then.

Being married to one of her guards gives her a different outlook, she starts to give them somewhat more freedoms and trusts them more. It earns her a solid reputation with her men, so that when Jevan returns to try and rally them against her, they will not have it, and even keep the knowledge hidden, until her position is threatened by anonymous complaints and the Knight Commander's order to have it terminated. Stubborn, extremely so, once a task is appointed to her (or not appointed to her), she will not back down. When stumbling onto some suspicious activity, she takes it onto her to investigate and winds up with the help of friends yet again, a plot that would have had a guard in the order killed, which is how the position of the captain is given to her. She feels shame, at having fled Ostagar when it got bad, and never wants to feel that way again. She needs to feel useful, like she is doing something. Sometimes, things fall through the cracks however or escape her notice completely - even with Hawke helping her out. The attack on the elves that led to a murder of a guard, and their subsequent joining of the Qun to escape punishment, for example. She doesn't get on the trail of that until they're in the Qun (the religion of the Quinari), and when she and Hawke go to retrieve them everything goes to pieces.

Aveline has a slight wariness towards magic and things of the unknown - things that are out of her control (going to places where the law is different or lacking such as the Deep Roads or Sundermount). She doesn't have any hatred towards mages, but does see that they are dangerous, and that some of them are indeed not stable enough to be allowed to walk free. As guard captain, she turns a hand full of them in, and as someone who goes around with Hawke, has faced and had to kill more than a few of them that attacked them. When brought into the Fade, she can fall to a thrall of a desire demon (if Isabela is not present) and attack her friends, believing that she could erase her failure with Wesley. It frightens her, and leaves her visibly shaken for a period of time afterward. Because maybe they're a lot less like regular people, and she isn't so certain she's really all that opposed to the circle and mages being more regulated if that is what they contend with daily. Regarding Anders' actions with the Chantry, she absolutely doesn't believe he took the right path because even if his intentions were to help the mages, it was still murder of innocent people. She believes that other peaceful methods could have been achieved. If he is spared, she will demand he turn himself in.


5-10 Key Character Traits: Stubborn, brave, loyal, aloof, judgmental, caring, proud, responsible, hard working.
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