☀ scorched application

[a_summer_child]

Out of Character Information

player name: Nina
player livejournal: lafemmenina
playing here: Cersei Lannister ;; ASOIAF
where did you find us? atp
are you 16 years of age or older?: yes; 29

In Character Information

character name: Shireen Baratheon
Fandom: ASOIAF
Timeline: ADWD; after meeting Val
character's age: 11

powers, skills, pets and equipment:
Canon: Nothing… She is just a child, and a female to boot, so she would not have been trained in weaponry. If anything, just skills that a shy girl of eleven would know.

Animal Empathy

In the beginning, this will start with Shireen being able to weakly sense the emotions of animals- specifically mammals- and they are able to sense hers. So, if she happens to be near an animal, she will get a sense of what their emotions are- whether they are happy or sad, etc. Over time, it will grow to her being able to understand them more clearly. They will be attracted to her and grow more calm and passive when she is around. Again, this will start off weak but as the months pass, growing stronger. So in the beginning- and even later depending upon the mammal- aggressive creatures can still attack and harm her, but as time passes, they will grow more docile in her presence. She cannot force them to do things, such as attack someone or stampede, but she can calm them and feel what they are thinking- starting with just general emotions like fear, until it grows strong enough so that can understand with greater clarity what this fear is.

canon history:
Shireen was born in 289 AL, to Stannis Baratheon and Selyse Florent. She is considered to be a summer child, as that was when she was born and has yet to see an actual winter. When she was still in the crib, she became ill with greyscale. While it has been known to kill, with Shireen it just left her disfigured. She still had her sight, which was a small blessing, but along one cheek and well down her neck, the flesh was dead and stiff and stony to the touch.

As her mother had little desire to see King's Landing and Shireen was too young to travel without her, she spent her years at Dragonstone, a place described as grim and lonely. Yet, despite this, Shireen seemed happy enough. She had a constant companion in the castle's fool, Patchface, and others, such as Maester Cressen, denied her little as she had been denied much.

Shireen is not a point of view character, and so the rest is just glimpses of her through other's eyes. She played in Aegon's Garden with 'Patches' and her cousin Edric, seeming quite happy to chase after the fool and have her relative join in. She grew quite fond of the boy, even growing wide-eyed when he spoke of Robert and his accomplishments. She was a silent figure between her parents as thanks was given to R'hllor and when her father set sail, she went along with her mother, remaining behind at Eastwatch, although eventually her mother would bring her to Castle Black.

personality:
While appearance is not the end all of a person, in Shireen's case, it does play a significant role in her personality. As stated, as a babe she became ill and had greyscale. While it did not kill her, it did disfigure parts of her left cheek and her neck. Now, for the most part in the series, she did not venture from her home, as children don't. Yet, how others think of her can be seen with the Wildling Val when she does go out into the world beyond where she was born.

Although Val does not say it to Shireen's face, she does state that she is not clean and that it would have been better off had her parents killed her as a child. She is firm in her convictions, even saying that the grey death sleeps but that it will awaken again. Thankfully, Shireen is surrounded by those who do not mock her, although in the world at large, there are more likely than not going to be those who have Val's thoughts, or even worse.

Yet, even if she is not laughed at or mocked, you can see that Shireen knows of her looks. The first impression that the reader gets of her is that she is 'as shy as ever' when she went to meet the Maester. Most people often note her looks first, saying that she did not have a pretty face or that she was homely to look upon. Later, she is curled up in a window seat with her hood drawn up to hide the worst of her greyscale. Yet, by no means is she confined by her appearance.

Shireen is like any other child. She is said to be guileless; innocent and without deception. While it is said that she is denied often, she is a courteous child and inquisitive, and doesn't come across as rude or spoiled like some other children in the series. That could also be due to who her parents were... Yet, although she earns pity, she has been shown to smile and giggle and laugh, especially with the jester (that no one else finds amusing), whom she fondly refers to as Patches.

She is like any other girl, as she would like a gown of silver-seaweed and she gives a cry of delight when she sees the white raven, and her mouth gaped open when she realized the bird could talk. Later with the giant too, her eyes are as wide as saucer-pans, for she has seen something that otherwise only exists in stories. She can be brave as well, even asking if she could pet the giant, but it still young and scared, hiding her face against her mother's skirts when the giant starts to become too loud. It can be noted that she also has nightmares that wake her up. In these bad dreams, dragons are coming for her and are going to eat her...

She enjoys playing games, is good at her lessons, and can be an active child, for when she grows restless, she runs and dashes ahead, with Patches trailing behind her. Her cousin grows quite fond of her, and even though he finds her games childish, he is more than happy to play them with her. She's often referred to as a sweet and gentle child, and she grows wide-eyed and rapt when Edric starts to speak of the exploits of his father. She was also shown to flush as Jon when he welcomed her and said that they were at her service. And even though she knows her manners and how to act, her childish side can still come out. She is curious about Val, and even goes so far as to say that she never had a sister, but she did have a cousin. While there is nothing wrong with that, she further continues, saying he sailed away and that even though he was just a bastard, she liked him. After this, her mother did send her to her room...

Overall, she is not a pretty girl to look upon, even if she didn't have greyscale, but she is pleasant and kind, and enjoys playing games. If anything, she is rather sheltered in a way and earns pity for being such a sad looking child. She can laugh and giggle though, and finds childish delight in the simple things.

why do you feel this character would be appropriate to the setting?
Shireen is a child and if left on her own with only a weapon and a group of monsters, the outcome would not be in her favour... The game isn't exactly set up like that though. Yet, even if there was no one from ASOIAF in the game, Shireen herself is a pleasant and sweet girl. Those who look beyond her looks will note that right away and the friends she does make in canon are so because they enjoy her company, such as her cousin Edric. After all, had it only been one sided, he would not have asked if Shireen was going too and been so upset that he wouldn't get to say good-bye.

She is guileless, but she is not stupid. She might be sheltered from the brunt of the war and not know everything that is going on, but that does not make her ignorant of death. She's had nightmares about dragons killing her and has grown up with her face disfigured, but she can still laugh and play. She has also been taken from her home and moved to the North- a place which is not at all tame or settled. If anything, it is even a greater threat than King's Landing, given what lurks in the dark.

Anatole would give her room to grow, to experience life, even if it is not always joyful. She likes to read, and I think she would be interested in learning about the way of life here, and she is a Baratheon. With parents like hers, she would now how to conduct herself and how to act, and would act accordingly as to how one of her House should. She is now a princess, after all, but whereas some characters toss this on your face, Shireen doesn't go about it in that manner. If push came to shove, she might require aid to live, but she is not lazy and would learn what was needed to learn to survive. She can hide her face in her mother’s skirts, but she can also be a bold child.

Currently, there are a fair number of canon mate characters in game. So, she would live with her father. Yet, if he were to drop, there would be others who would take care of her. If all happened to drop, Shireen would likely

Writing Samples

Network Post Sample:
[The face that is shown is half cradled in darkness, a hood partially blocking the left side. Even so, she is not one who would win any beauty contests, though her eyes are soft and innocent. When she finally speaks, it is with a soft voice, a hesitant one.]

Good…

[Before a pause. A touch more confidence now, as the child continues to speak.]

Good morrow to you. I am Shire- Princess Shireen of House Baratheon, and… [And should she have said that? She knows her family has enemies, but she has not been harmed yet… Uncertainty flashing through her blue eyes, but she continues again.]

And I would ask where I am. [Finished somewhat hastily, and again she pauses.]

I am afraid that I am not familiar with the city I see outside my window, and I do not desire to worry my lady mother with my extended absence. I- I would appreciate any assistance that may be given… and, and I am sure that my lady mother would be appreciative too…

[And, she fidgets for a moment, because she has to know.] Has- has anyone seen Patches? I haven't been able to find him...

Third Person Sample:
She must have been having a bad dream, but in this dream it wasn't a dragon that came for her. No, it was a door, and she knew that should be foolish, but somehow, the door didn't feel right, and when she had looked at it, she had not seen what she should have seen. It should have shown the other side of the square, she thought, but instead she say things- places.

It made no sense, but she was awake now, if not up.

She snuggled back down into the warmth of the sheets, trying to regain that lost sense of comfort, her nose inhaling the fresh scent- but her eyes snap open. Why did the sheets smell so nice? Shireen had not been warm for quite some time. No, she often had to go around bundled in layers of furs to keep the chill of the cold from her and even at night, there had been more furs. Dragonstone had never been the warmest of places, but the North... She had not known true cold until then.

Feeling a rush of fear spread over her, Shireen's eyes slowly moved around the room. Where was she...? She had not seen a room like this anywhere along the wall, either at Eastwatch or Castle Black. Swallowing hard, she bit her lower lip, and cast her eyes, looking for something, anything, familiar.

"Patches...?" she called out, hesitantly. He would be around, wouldn't he? But why hadn't anyone woken her up? And how did she get here? There were too many questions for her, and she felt herself sink down below the sheets. Had... had something happened to everyone? But, she would have remembered that or heard something... Someone would have come for her, whether Patches or one of the guards, or even one of the Black Brothers. Some of them were a bit scary, but some of them were nice, and someone would have come.

Steeling herself, Shireen slipped from the bed, trying to be silent. She didn't want to get into trouble, but she also didn't understand. Mother had told the guard that she should be taken to her room, and that was where she had been heading. The rest was fuzzy though and she knew this wasn't her room.

Should she just wait some more? She wasn't sure... But she was growing restless. Making up her mind, she moved toward the window, hoping that would answer some of her questions. Yet, when she pulled back the curtain, all that Shireen could do was gasp. Her mouth dropped open and it was almost as if her eyes could not understand what they saw. She did though, but it didn't make sense...

It wasn't the Wall. Shireen knew that. She might not have been all of it, but she had seen enough. No, it was a town- what looked to be a fairly big town- but it also seemed to be misty outside, blocking some of her view. But, what did that mean? Had she been kidnapped? She knew she was a princess now, and heir to the throne, but was that it?

She called out again for Patches as she moved around the room, wishing he was there. He could make her laugh and smile, even if she didn't like all the songs he sang sometimes. She had told him to stop, but he never did... Still, he was her friend. Having snooped around the room though, Shireen didn't find any evidence of him or of anything really. It was a sparse room and there weren't even any banners on the walls.

Building up her courage, she peeked out the door, only to see another room- an empty room. She thought it over for a time, listening, before calling out a hello again, but no one answered. Shireen couldn't say she liked this anymore, and felt a sinking feeling in her stomach that only seemed to grow. As she crept around the place, she found that it was empty, save for food in the shelves, an odd little piece of... she wasn't even sure what it was and a purse with some strange coinage.

She had a choice then. Shireen could sit there and wait- wait until someone came for her, but she wasn't even sure what had happened. The front door hadn't been locked when she had opened it to peer out. Or she could try to find an answer. If her lady mother didn't know where she was, Shireen knew that a ruckus would be raised, and she didn't want or mean to be troublesome. She hadn't even meant for any of this to happen. But, she had seen some people out in the streets, so maybe they could help?

She wasn't a bold child by nature, but she did know that something funny was happening. She would not have been left unguarded. Maybe if she asked politely, someone could help her...?

Anything else? As a note, I don’t really see a reason for Cersei and Shireen to interact- unless Joff does something, but then Cersei would talk to her son about not playing with unclean things 8) while ignoring said unclean thing. Cersei would probably rather bother Stannis with threats. So I won’t rp with myself… :3