Leonarrie [Ready]

[Solaria]

Roleplay Type: WoE
Name: Leonarrie
Sex: Female
Age: Mare
Species: Earth Pony
Eye colour: Bronze
Coat: White
Mane/Tail: Blonde
Physique: Tall and moderately fit, though her lifestyle is slowly softening her
Residence: None
Occupation: Ronin/Wanderer, so none
Cutie Mark: A stylized lion's head

Spoiler

Unique Traits: Naturally in tune with the world around her. One of the few practitioners of a hidden sword style, though her ability to use its most powerful techniques has considerably diminished. She still carries her katana and wears her kimono untied, though they're just as slightly scruffy as the rest of her. The kanji on the back, standing for courage, looks meticulously cared for and maintained in comparison.

History: Leonarrie doesn't know much about her early life. For as long as she can remember, she has been an orphan. Normally such a filly would have been taken in by a shelter of some sort, or a particularly generous somepony. Unfortunately, in the deep woods of the Badlands, it's quite easy to misplace entire groups, much less a single tiny pony.

 

Thankfully, Leo has always been resourceful. She did in fact have a roof over her head. It was a small cottage with a cozy if simple interior, and the filly experimented with various berries and herbs until she had learned (often the hard way) which were edible and which would result in a long night of a gurgling unhappy tummy. On these long nights, with nothing better to do, Leonarrie would try hard to remember how she had come to be in this empty cottage. Sometimes she could recall whispers of laughter, echoes of the family she'd had. It had been so long that this was all she could conjure from her memory.

 

One thing she did remember was that there was a terrible dragon somewhere in the vicinity. She knew for a fact that her mother had told her about it in warnings, even if Leo couldn't recall her face. There was no denying the truth to the cautionary tale either: the filly could frequently feel the ground shake, hear distant roars, and on rare occasions spot a plume of flame in the distance. Thankfully she never encountered the beast, until one terrifying afternoon in a secluded field.

 

Leonarrie was picking her favorite grains for dinner when the nearby treeline cracked and splintered, leaves and shards of wood flying everywhere. In one single moment of clarity, the pony realized she had wandered very close to where she had supposed the dragon's lair to be. It was even more mane-curdling to actually see the creature. Legs as thick as tree trunks. Scales as black as night. Gleaming teeth like swords. As Leonarrie sat awash in its titanic shadow, she watched as one slitted eye rolled to study her.

 

As luck would have it, apparently giant dragons have little time to waste on fillies smaller than their toenails. With a grunt of something that sounded like "Narrie" (she has no idea what it really said, she was petrified), it snorted a small gout of flame and rumbled back from whence it had come. It was a long while before Leo chanced move again, before galloping full tilt back to her cottage.

 

That night, during a feeling of euphoria at having survived such an encounter, the pony looked over her only two possessions: a plumed golden helmet with a dent in the side, and a blunted shortsword with the name "Leo" engraved upon the hilt. She had no idea what they were, but assumed they had belonged to her parents. There was a small forge behind her dwelling, which she assumed one of them had used.

 

At this point, the filly made up her mind. She couldn't live in the complete solitude of the Badlands any longer, not with only a dragon who may or may not choose to eat her the next time it saw her. Despite having no idea which way civilization laid from her home, she had to at least try. But first, she'd need a name.

 

The pony not only failed to remember her parents from such prolonged isolation, but her very name. Who would refer to themselves in the third person anyway? In the end, she settled upon Leonarrie: a combination of the engraved name and what she had thought the dragon had muttered when seeing her. She wasn't even sure it was a proper name, but a sword and a dragon combination sounded mighty to her! Filled with purpose, she packed as much food as she could carry and trotted off in a random direction.

 

Thus began her history of wandering. Having been self-sufficient for as long as she could remember, life on the road was rather easy. She did in fact find civilization, but never stayed long enough for residents to discover she was traveling alone. For someone to have had as much freedom as she was accustomed to, she didn't really find any interest in the idea of being taken in by somepony now.

 

One town that caught her attention was a community that was almost entirely focused on producing recruits for the REA. Ponies here were proud to have their foals train to one day be valiant soldiers. As Leo had had no instruction in her own abilities beyond what she had discovered herself, she labored to join the academy there and was admitted after arduous consideration. She now had her second home in the dormitories.

 

Over time, the growing pony began advancing quickly through her courses. Most of it was foal's play compared to how she had lived on her own in the Badlands. After her first major examinations, she scored top of her class for acute situational analysis and decisive course of action. It turned out she was a natural leader. This was her official observation summary, though her teachers all mentioned at one time or another that she seemed to express at least some sort of talent in nearly every subject.

 

In response to this personal victory, her cutie mark appeared. She hadn't bothered worrying about it until that point, despite several of her classmates having theirs, but she was pleased all the same. A lion. A symbol of strength and courage. Leo vowed to live up to it.

 

A few more years passed in training, with the now mare continuing her high scores and graduating top of her class. It was assumed by anypony who knew her that she'd be headed straight into a long and storied career in the REA. That's why they were all shocked when she packed her bags and left without much ceremony at all. Over time her ignorance over her previous life, her parents, everything had gnawed at her. She knew that who she was now was impressive, and such thoughts shouldn't bother her, but knowing and feeling are often separate.

 

Leonarrie became a traveler once more, meandering the span of Equestria and eventually moving past her borders. Through her journeys she became rather infatuated with Eastern civilization, and came to wander Neighpon. Each community she visited furthered her attraction. Such was her fascination that she eventually completely adopted its culture as her own.

 

Over time she had come to wear a faded, scruffy white kimono with the kanji for courage upon its back, a single katana, and her prized takuhatsugasa for keeping the sun out of her eyes. Plus, she enjoyed looking mysterious with the brim pulled low. She visited several dojos and schools along her way, picking up various techniques and above all, the samurai code of honor. Despite leaving her accomplishments behind in Equestria, some small part of her still wanted to learn, to achieve.

 

It was during her wanderings that she came to know a ryuma by the name Rakuen Ryuichi. She was working part-time in the kitchen of a somewhat secluded inn and hot spring at the time, mostly using it as an excuse to perfect Eastern cuisine rather than needing the bits. Their interactions were somewhat infrequent, but she decided she liked the fellow. She would go out of her way to speak with him each time he visited. Of course they lost contact eventually, but she did learn that he had risen to become shogun of Neighpon.

 

This would seem to imply that Leo was almost industrious during her time traveling. This was not so. While charismatic and talented when she chose to be, the mare was often fired from jobs for sleeping, staring into space, or eating her own cooking in the kitchen. This resulted in many jobs over time, but also many acquired skills. She even learned how to make her own sake, which was great considering how much she enjoyed the drink.

 

Despite Leo's best efforts, however, she eventually became forlorn. Most of her life had been on the road or bouncing from place to place. She never had any lasting relationships with anypony, any enduring friendships. No family that she knew of. Distraught, she retreated into the mountains in the remote recesses of the province and essentially became a hermit. Days passed without fanfare, she simply existed in the quiet serenity of snow and rock while living out of a roomy cave. Her only entertainment came from trying new manestyles using her reflection in mountain streams, and from caring for her katana.

 

She might have continued that way indefinitely if not for a twist of fate. While out gathering ingredients for stew, she saw signs of an incoming blizzard. Thankfully she had packed a heavy cloak, and quickly began the trek back to her cave. The storm hit not long after, and she nearly tripped right over a pair of huddled forms in the blinding snow. Travelers, lost in the flurries. Not having lost her compassion, the mare took them into her cave for a warm fire and a helping of stew.

 

The younger of the two visitors, the daughter, caught Leo's attention. She seemed somewhat a kindred spirit, a mind buzzing with curiosity. Late into the night the pony shared with the kirin her prized possession: a written code of samurai honor. Leonarrie had rarely pulled it from its protective trappings, fearful that the harsh environment would damage it beyond repair. Once the travelers had fallen asleep in their exhaustion, she was gazing upon her companion, Hanari Rua, with strengthening resolve. This one had the fire she herself had once possessed. What had happened?

 

Before morning broke, Leonarrie had left her cave for the final time. Kimono, blade, and hat were in hoof. Her treasured code, however, she left next to the sleeping Hanari. One sentence she had circled: "Righteousness is its own reward." It was her favorite line in the chronicle, and one that the kirin had inspired her to live by again. A spark of the young pony who trained hard at an REA academy had flared in Leo's heart once again.

 

Nowadays she still wanders, but is much happier for it. She knows that being the best Leo that she can be will result in everything falling into place eventually. Until then, dumplings, sake, and friends made on the road fill her time. On occasion, she even wanders into Kyoma to rekindle her friendship with Ryuichi. She hopes to eventually see Hanari again someday as well.

 

Leonarrie knows that she holds great potential within herself, and that someday she'll need to rise to prove herself worthy of the lion on her flanks and the courage on her back. That day isn't today, however, and thus the sake flows.

 

Character Personality: Lazy. Leonarrie is the ultimate in wasted potential. Her list of favored activities is always topped by snoozing, eating, drinking, and generally fooling around. While there are a great many things that the pony is actually very good at, she finds that the effort is usually not worth the reward. That being said, those things she does focus her attentions on usually wind up very fun or fulfilling.

 

Often quite light-hearted and slow to take most anything seriously, Leonarrie is usually first in mind when other creatures want to have a good time. Seeing as how she rarely has somewhere to be afterward, she puts her heart into enjoying whatever she's currently doing. That mood tends to be infectious, leading her to have quite a few friends.

 

When alone for extended periods of time and feeling introspective, the pony will occasionally turn her thoughts toward her past and her current existence. This leads to one of the few things that will make her rather closed-off or vague, resorting often to one-word answers or quickly changing the subject. In a related note, those who force their opinions of what should be onto others who don't necessarily share their viewpoint is a sure way to rouse Leonarrie's ire. That, or spilling her ramen bowl. Many a site of devastation has been assumed to be the work of a natural disaster, only for it to be revealed that some jerk wasted the ronin's precious noodles.
 

Character Summary:

Despite her lack of motivation in most things, Leonarrie is deceptively skilled. Being quite taken with Eastern culture and tradition, she has become well-versed in sake production and the serving ceremony, cooking, and calligraphy to put her philosophical musings to scroll. She knows various martial styles, honorific mannerisms, and can adeptly care for her katana. She can even darn her kimono back into working order after patches wear out during travel.

 

She can often be found in eateries off well-traveled roads if in the countryside, or snoozing in the shade when in towns or cities. True to her calm demeanor, rare is the onlooker who has seen her actually draw her blade for anything. Her favorite companions are those who share her admittedly hedonistic outlook on life, or at least those who know how to have fun. It's the moments where she's truly invested in something that are a wonder to behold, as her innate talents come to the fore. If nothing else, Leonarrie is at worst a great friend to have and at best a very reliable companion. In her own way.

[RainbowFoxxy]

Howdy! How's this app coming along? Need more time sugar cube? 

[Solaria]

Sweet honey biscuits that history took forever. And I knew it would. I'm sure I became disjointed and jumbled at some point between that and the character summary, so feel free to poke holes in it.

 

I should probably also note that character interactions were used with permission from Zeig and Pretzels.

[Bellosh]