Swift Kite

[The-Jaded-Bug]

Name: Swift Kite (nicknamed Kite, used to go by Swift)

Sex: Female

Age: Older filly/young mare

Species: Pegasus

Pelt Color: A vivid, medium/dark reddish pink (#BF2455)

Mane/Tail/Markings Color & Style: Dodger blue (#1E90FF), somewhat windswept mane and tail with curved, narrow spikes. Not including the braid peeking at the side of her face, her mane (including another longer braid) is almost always held back by a pastel/teal-ish bandana made from the left over fabric of a damaged kite (#83FFE8, #6DFFA0). Her two braids and tail are also tied in place with the same material as the bandanna, and both braids have deep sky blue streaks in them (#00BFFF).

Eye Color: The same deep sky and dodger blue of her mane, her eyes appear to show up in both of said shades, depending on the lighting (think of them showing up as a gradient, similar to how Apple Bloom's eyes appear to be a gold-ish orange and reddish pink).

Cutie Mark: A basic, red and green toy kite with a slightly curved kite tale.

Physique: Slender, well-toned, and only an inch shorter than Sapphire Shores. In other words, she has a slightly taller build than the average mare.

Origin: Used to live in Cloudsdale. She now takes residence at Joy’s Toy Shop on the side of a small path in Saddleveil Plains, one of many that lead to Fillydelphia (the shop itself is part the shop keeper’s (Joy Spinner's) house, whereas Kite is something of an apprentice to the shop owner).

Roleplay Type: FiM/Show Roleplay

Occupation: Toy maker and designer at Joy’s Toy Shop though she's normally geared towards flight-oriented toys, as she is somewhat of a self-proclaimed kite enthusiast. She also runs errands between the shop and farther away towns for supplies, or will sometimes trade in bits for other hoof/unicorn-crafted toys to supply the store (as it usually costs less than having them mailed via normal Pegasus delivery). This is mainly since Joy Spinner is a much older mare, and since Swift Kite is the only Pegasus working there. That and she's the only winged being employed at the store who knows how to and isn't afraid to fly, unlike the teenaged dragon, Patches, who is the shop keeper's only other employee/assistant as of yet.

Motivation: Swift Kite is motivated by a stable balance between her proficient work ethic and her artistic drive when it comes to making toys, especially when it comes to kite crafting. She loves her job at Joy’s Toy Shop, and she feels very close to the older unicorn mare, Joy Spinner, and dragon assistant, Patches, that run it. She is striving to make the shop more well-known to others when assigned to gather supplies and to find inspiration - for custom toys and her kite designs. . Swift Kite is determined that someday, with enough bits raised and some willing employees, that she can help the mare in charge open up a second ‘Joy’s Toy Shop’, one that maybe she herself could run.

Likes: Unique and well-designed kites, pretty and alluring patterns, creative ponies and creatures, shiny and colorful things, pulling off successful aerial stunts while kite flying during her spare time, strange and eye-catching knickknacks or toys, moderate yet not overtly windy days (for kite flying, of course), and has a huge soft spot for foals and sometimes younger fillies and colts.

Dislikes: Stormy weather, somepony (especially older ones) destroying one of her hoof-made kites without a justifiable reason (or any toy from the shop, and larger/more detailed kites), stiffs, those who would hurt or talk down to a foal out of sheer spite (species regardless), and her dedication to the shop rudely being slighted as a waste of her time.

Character Summary:

History:

]

As with any Pegasus who lived in Cloudsdale, little Swift, as Swift Kite was formerly called, used to go to a Flight School. Being the daughter of two weather ponies - and the father was a former Pegasus racer, mind you - it was generally assumed that she might follow in the latter's hoofsteps. Just like anypony with the right mind, lineage, and the right wings to fly. Right?

Well, not exactly.

You see, little Swift didn't really get into the whole flying hype, at least not competitively. Sure she would cheer on her foal friends when they competed for fun, and maybe she had a nice grasp on basic flying lessons and then some, but it was never really her true calling so to speak. At most she would muse on just how flying worked on a technical stance, and often found quirky and flight-oriented toys especially attention grabbing...but really, who gave a flying horse's flank about that? Swift used to be a rather spacey little thing, who would try to keep her imaginative, curious thoughts to herself, yet she was friendly and (usually) competent enough to gain a few allies at school - Well, at least enough of them to distract herself from the constant teasing she received for her rather gangly appearance as a foal. Still however, as everypony in her class started to get their Cutie Marks but her, she couldn't help but feel like she stuck out like a sore hoof among her shorter, non-Blank Flank friends.

No matter how hard she tried pulling off amusing tricks, small stunts, or would volunteer to preform them in front of class, nothing ever seemed to make it appear. She was an alright flier and all, but what she hadn't realized yet was that actually flying on its own just wasn't something that that would completely fulfill her later on. Swift's life since birth was practically surrounded by that one thing, and because of that she hadn't taken the time to really piece together what really inspired her - and instead would try too hard to focus on what she thought others expected her to fulfill.

The day she met Joy Spinner had slowly yet surely begun to change that, however.

Early in the summer her mom and dad thought it was high time that Swift had a peek of the world, outside of their beloved city of Cloudsdale. Still too young to go out on her own, her parents had used their vacation hours so they and her could visit a few relatives down in Fillydelphia for a week. On their way there the foal had become restless as they hovered above Saddleveil Plains, so they landed near a lone structure by a small path within the area and took a break from flying. With a better view of said-structure, the place turned out to be a small yet welcoming building, a colorful sign with the words 'Joy's Toy Shop' placed neatly above the double doors and display glass. When Swift saw a simple yet well-crafted pale teal and pastel green kite behind the glass, she became even more restless - this time out of wonder and awe instead of impatience for the trip, to the relief of her parents.

Intending on buying her the kite depending on the price, they went inside the store with their daughter happily trotting behind them. They were in there for a good 20-30 minutes, but rather than spending their time finding a lower priced toy (the kite on display had a nice and affordable price, in fact), they ended up having a pleasant and engaging conversation with the shop's owner, a kindly old unicorn mare named Joy Spinner. Even the absent-minded Swift had listened and said a word or two towards the shop keeper, quickly taking a fondness towards her and the store.

Once all three of them left the little shop, the only thing keeping her from wanting to stay longer was the store assistant, a teenaged dragon named Patches, who seemed almost as large as the double doors in front of the shop. He was an intimidating and almost frightening site for a foal such as herself, but at least he was arranging toys on the shelves, seeming to avoid the others in the store as though afraid to approach them.

With her brand new toy and her first kite bought - or at least, her first one from a certain small store - the foal started to think that maybe, just maybe, that one kite could be the key to her Cutie Mark. She had gotten flight-related toys before, but had never really used them too much in fear that they might break, or accidentally fall down from the city in the sky that she called home. The new location and that one visit at Joy's Toy Shop, however, had started to make her reanalyze her other attempts to get it. Maybe, instead of flying and doing whatever stunts and tricks she could successfully pull off, her purpose had to do with kite flying! At the time Swift had somewhat missed the point of her affinity towards the object, among other things, but at least it was a start. Almost every day she would ask her parents - or her aunt, who let them stay at her apartment complex - to take her to the lush and open spaces of the city park for an hour, to try out and practice flying her new kite. It was tricky at first, to keep it up in the air and to fly it without crashing, but she got the hang of it quickly and, quite literally, could fly in the air with the kite by the time her second day at the park started.

Despite her vastly growing talent for kite flying, however, she still hadn't gotten her Cutie Mark. And by her fourth park visit and still no success, Swift had started getting fed up with her unsuccessful attempts. When her aunt, who decided to bring her that day, wasn't looking, the foal wandered towards a more woodsy area to really push her kite flying skills to the test. It was only a matter of time before the fabric of her teal and pale pastel green kite was ripped from its base, not to mention that the foal herself had crashed into a pine tree and gained plenty of uncomfortable pricks and scratches.

When Swift's aunt heard the crash and rushed to find her, the Pegasus mare immediately took the foal and the damaged kite back to the complex, tending to her niece’s many yet minor bruises along with two upset parents. On the next day, or on the second to last day of the trip, little Swift and her parents went back to Joy's Toy Shop, for the old unicorn had told them on the day they met that she would be more than happy to forage and recycle broken toy materials. She had also mentioned that she could fix up broken toys when they’re not too scathed, and Swift’s parents thought that the foal could get the kite fixed too - but only if she was on her best behavior that day.

When they arrived it turned out that the toy was still fixable, but she would need to completely replace the remaining material overlapping the base. As the unicorn started gathering materials with her magic - cloth, scissors, measuring instruments, and the like - the foal asked the old mare out of curiosity if she (Swift) could help her, also knowing that it could help make up for the trouble that she caused the day before. With a friendly "Yes m'dear!" from Joy Spinner and with permission from her mom and dad, the kite was worked on and finally fixed. Little Swift worked on laying out the cloth and marking some of the measurements from a craft book on kites that the mare pulled out, while Joy used her horn to assist her and to cut the cloth (which was a complimentary red and green) and to sew it onto the base.

The dragon Patches, being a little less shy that day, had also chipped in, making sure Joy had sewn in the right stitches for the kite, of all things, for the unicorn had grown farsighted over the years. At first the foal backed away in fear of the creature, but with Joy's calming reassurance she convinced her and her parents of the dragon's gentle nature - a trait of his (Patches) that proved to be more than true as they finished it.

Growing fascinated by the process as they finished - and becoming awestruck when she peaked at pictures of various kite designs while the unicorn helped her find out the kite's measurements - something started to 'click' in her mind. The way she lit up when she saw smaller and flight-related objects, her interest in flying technicalities and her good eye for unique patterns and eye-pleasing colors, everything started to make sense to her. These quirks weren't just some insignificant setbacks on her end, but were a part of a passion that she never took the chance to explore or really knew she had, at least until that very moment. As the foal brightly grinned after a kite well fixed, her Cutie Mark had finally appeared, to the shock and amazement of the dragon and other three adults - especially that of her parents. It looked strikingly similar to the then repaired kite, down to the green and red colors and its diamond-like shape.

She knew exactly what she wanted to do: Kite making! She felt as though she could go beyond just fixing them, that she could learn about the construction of different kite builds and even create custom kites – she knew she could do it! While her parents were surprised by the artisan-like twist of her newfound talent, they had accepted it happily with open hooves. She was still her parents’ pride and joy, and while introducing her to possible talents beyond 'normal' Pegasus affinities was a weak point of theirs, they never had too many qualms about her taking such a direction.

Staying in touch with Joy Spinner, the rest of that summer was spent with many trips between Cloudsdale and inside that small toy store in Saddleveil Plains, the only detour being a good two-plus weeks at Summer Flight Camp (she had been signed up earlier in the year and it was already too late for her to pull out of it). Even after that summer her parents would let her visit the old mare and teenaged dragon, but still attending her Flight School she mostly came over during the weekends, and whatever vacation time there was available.

Swift (now going by Swift Kite) acquired books on her craft and materials for kite making, and between her time at the shop, living in Cloudsdale and absorbing whatever information she could on the mechanics of flying at school, she had perfected and studied profoundly in the craft, and she even absorbed some knowledge on making other hoof-made toys. She even managed, with the help of both Joy and Patches, to turn the former scraps of her now fixed kite into a bandanna and hair ties, having kept them as a reminder of how she got her Cutie Mark. As she wormed herself through her filly years and into her now young mare hood, Swift Kite became the unicorn's beaming and confident apprentice that she is today. A Pegasus who is very likely to be Joy Spinner's successor as the shop's owner as time goes by - and with the determination to start a small chain of stores too, for the older mare doesn't have any grandchildren or willing relatives that want to take on the responsibility.

Zhe character in zhe nutshell:

Swift Kite, while not always as 'spacey' or 'absent-minded' like in her filly years, has a tendency to be easily allured by quirky or eye-catching designs of any sort, and becomes either really exited or really nervous while at someplace new - sometimes both at once, until she manages to meet somepony with a friendly disposition. These behaviors can sometimes earn her a few odd looks from strangers, maybe even a few scoffs from ponies who see the glass as half empty, but these days she has learned (for the most part) not to let their thoughts bother her. It's not as though she isn't capable at what she does best, and her diligence for her craft and the close bonds she's formed with Joy, Patches, or anypony she's met with an open mind is more than enough to show that she’s more than a seemingly flighty, wide-eyed Pegasus with an attention deficit. After all, she's grown to be a rather spirited pony, one who isn't willing to give up easily on her goals.

((Note: The reference below may or may not be temporary, though I will likely add another picture once I make one.))

[MyLittlePonyTales]

How is this character coming along?

[The-Jaded-Bug]

How is this character coming along?

Oh! Right now I'm just finishing up the later that hasn't been filled yet. It should probably be done by either tonight or within the next few days. :smile:

[MyLittlePonyTales]

Alright, just don't forget to leave a comment once updates are made!

[The-Jaded-Bug]

Added in what I have for Kite's character summary so far, edited a few grammar/spelling errors, and updated some things here and there. Will reply later with more updates, as well as when I finish this.

[MyLittlePonyTales]

How is this application going?

[The-Jaded-Bug]

How is this application going?

I just added more to her character summary, though again, it's still not finished. I already know what I'm going to ut down for the rest of her summary, it's just that a few real life events (coughschoolcough) are taking up a little more time than I previously thought. I garentee that I'll the rest of it down though, it just might take some time. I'm not sure if I should shorten it up considering that it's pretty wordy.

[MyLittlePonyTales]

How is this application coming along?

[The-Jaded-Bug]

How is this application coming along?

Just finished up her character summary and fixed some more grammar/spelling errors. The application is up and ready for approval/possible fixing up if needed!

I still feel that I should try to shorten this, however. I'm kind of a detail fanatic, but I don't want to make it harder on you guys either.

[brianblackberry]

Wooow, that is an impressive backstory! Not just detailed but very creative too.

For Great Justice!

[Skye]