The Strongest Country Girl

Drabbles detailing some of Nephenee's initial reactions to each of The Changes she goes through each month are linked below.

Consider a Content Warning for Body Horror in full effect for each one, especially as the transformation into a silver dragon advances.

⁂ Month One (Scales sprouting, nails sharping, eye changes, the beginnings of The Presence making itself known, hot/cold flashes)
⁂ Month Two (The Presence reveals and names herself as "Persvek Janklee", scales continue to spread and itch, start of a tail and wings, horns grow, claws fully-formed, breath weapon accidents)
⁂ Month Three (Scale coverage is complete, claws are stronger, horns full formed, tail and wings obvious but not useful, better breath weapon control)
⁂ Month Four (Wings and tail are completely grown, flight is learnable, steady control over breath weapon; looking like a half-human/half-dragon)
⁂ Month Five (Full Transformation: Can shift from beorc (human) to dragon or in-between; close bond with Persvek, shares memories and experiences with her)

OOC INFORMATION
Player Name: Arna
Pronouns: She/Her
Contact: Plurk: Arnavet , Discord: Arnavet
Characters Played: N/A

Out of Character Information
Name: Dassa
Contact: lil_rebbitzen/lilrebbitzen
Current Characters: Nada
Do you need a Dreamwidth Invite? Nope

In-Character Information
Name: Nephenee
Series: Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance/Radiant Dawn
Canon-Point: Post-Radiant Dawn’s endgame
History: Here be 3 links, but I’ll post a summary here for Neph (also, there are some headcanon bits, and I've outlined those, but they are mostly fleshing out canon stuff, with one exception):
     Little is known about Nephenee’s history prior to Path of Radiance. Originally from Ohma village, Nephenee lived with her mother and siblings -2 sisters, triplet brothers- and, like the rest of the village, supported her family by tilling the spoil and reaping its fruit. Up until the war between Crimea and Daein, her life seems to have been fairly calm. However, prior to the harvest season one year, Daein suddenly attacked the Crimean capital of Melior, beginning the events of Path of Radiance. In preparation to defend their village, a local militia was put together, which Nephenee joined in order to defend her family and livelihood. It was there that she met fellow villager Brom, who she would serve beside in the Greil Mercenaries later. However, unlike the mercenary group they would serve in later, this militia was quite ill-prepared, as it was put together right after war broke out, and consisted entirely of farmers and villagers, with no experience in battle. It was so ill-prepared, in fact, that we learn that they only learned to stand for roll call, had to share equipment, and when they marched, people got lost or fled. But Nephenee and Brom went on, to fight for their village. One fateful day, the militia was engaged by Daein troops, and Nephenee and Brom were helped in some way by the bishop Sephiran. However, the three were captured by the enemy, and imprisoned in Canteus Castle, where they stayed until they and another prisoner were rescued by Ike and his band of mercenaries. Meeting with Princess Elincia, they became convicted, and swore to help her take back the throne. Traveling in the band, which later became known as the Crimean Liberation Army, Nephenee fought with her lance and shield and gained battle and life experience, until Ashnard was finally put down, and Elincia became queen of the realm. After the war, she returned to her family, boasting of serving the queen, and fighting under the great Commander Ike.

     All was well for several years. Nephenee went back to working the fields of the Crimean countryside, her armor and weapons ever at the ready in case of need. A good thing too, as three years after the country was liberated, a man named Yeardley came to Ohma and stirred the youth of the village, in an attempt to put Ludveck, the duke of Felirae, on the throne. Seeing the crowd and incited youth, Nephenee quickly donned her armor and grabbed war buddy Brom. Together with the thief Heather, they defeated the rebellious youth and Yeardley, and set out to warn Elincia of the impending rebellion, joining back up with Ike eventually to stop it for good, as well as stopping a corrupt Begnion, and defeating the goddess Ashera. After the war ended, Nephenee moved her family to Melior, where she continued to protect her country.
Sometime after she moved her family and farm, Nephenee came across an injured white dog, and, having a good knowledge of animals, she nursed her back to health. The dog decided to stick around, and Neph named her Daisy.

Personality:
     Shy, dependable, strong: such words undoubtedly describe Nephenee. Originally, she was even more softspoken for fear of being mocked for her strong Southern accent, but in the intervening time, she gained quite a bit of confidence in her speech as she strives to become more refined. This was helped not only by fighting alongside people from far away that didn’t ridicule her for her accent, but also by her friends Brom and Calill, who once was from the country herself. Seeing Calill’s refined mannerisms gave Nephenee the drive to work on herself. After all, if Calill could do it, why couldn’t she? By the time Radiant Dawn rolls around, it’s apparent she has gained quite a bit of confidence in herself, both on the battlefield -her lance impaling the enemy easily, though she gains no pleasure from killing- and off. It’s safe to say, though, that while she has come a long way from the quiet young lady she was in Path of Radiance, she is in no danger of over-confidence any time soon. She still hides her face often, whether with a helmet, or perhaps a hat.
     It should be mentioned, however, that the shyness doesn’t apply to the battlefield. Really at all. When she is fighting, the shyness retreats quickly, and she becomes extremely focused, brave, and capable of wiping out enemy after enemy. By the endgame, it is entirely possible for her to take out a full-blown dragon within a few hits. But it should be noted that she really doesn’t enjoy killing. It is a necessary evil in her mind, and she is willing to do what must be done to defeat the enemy and protect her family and country, not to mention Queen Elincia. After the story’s end, she moves her family to the Crimean capital of Melior, both to be close by in the event of trouble, and to provide for her family better, leaving behind her village, but never forgetting them. We also know that unlike her friend Brom, she was always ready to help, and that many times she went back onto the battlefield to protect all she loved.
     Tilling the land, they say, builds strength of character, and being the main worker and helping her mother take care of the family has made Nephenee strong and reliable. Quick to help her friends and family, she will defend them at a moment’s notice. Though it’s not to say she enjoys fighting, but she knows it is needed at times- a realistic pacifist, as it were. She is a calm individual, and rarely complains; while Brom complained about the hardships of marches and army rations, she merely shrugged and tells him they will get used to it. Strong of will and brave (in battle motly), she refused to give in to despair during their imprisonment, and was ready to fight shortly after being rescued. This seems to reflect her positive attitude a bit, and she easily reassures those she calls friend, which, despite her introversion, she seems to make quickly. And despite what it seems, she is far from stupid, quickly figuring what to do in battle and practical things. She is a bit ignorant and naive though, having little or no official schooling. What little schooling she does have is either entirely self-taught, or from her parents, so she has about a 5th grade reading level, if that, and a basic knowledge of arithmetic, but not much more on the education of such things. She’s just a simple girl who has farmed for her livelihood, after all.
     On that note, Neph demonstrates a lot of dependability and responsibility than one might expect from one her age in the modern era. Most of this seems to come from being forced to grow up very fast in order to help her mother with not just her siblings, but the farm, which is their livelihood. We know ingame that her mother is alone in raising the kids without her there, and this is because her father passed away around 8 years before Radiant Dawn of illness. Suddenly being the eldest child of the family (which is 7 people strong), she quickly took the reins and helped her mother with the farm, and, when she was old enough, taking over many of the duties her father had. While she has the help of her siblings, they are all young, the triplets being 9 as of RD, so she is the primary breadwinner for them, as it were.
Powers: While endgame Nephenee is pretty much ridiculously powered in battle, especially with the right Skills (abilities ‘bought’ with Skill points that strengthen the character in some way), most won’t come into play at all. The only one I can think of is that, per permission by Usagi, she can teach her Pokemon to aim for weak spots a bit better, upping their crits by about 5%. Not much, but it is a reflection of her Crit +10% skill.
Starter Pokemon: She’ll get Daisy in the form of a Lillipup. :)

Writing Samples
First-Person Sample:
[There’s a blank, stacticy feed for a bit, along with some fumbling audible on that side of the transmission.]
Oh...how do ya work this goshdarn doohickey...
[After a few moments more, the picture snaps on, and reveals a teal haired young lady staring intensely at the screen, looking confused. The professor can be heard in the background telling her it’s now on, and she nods, still confused. Upon being instructed to try speaking into it, she does so:]
Uh...hello, y’all...
[Also, have a fairly strong southern accent, reminiscent of South Carolina for those familiar with that accent. She turns a little red. Her shyness starts coming in fairly strong, especially since she’s in a new place, that is wholly unfamiliar.]
Ah’m Nephenee, and uh...ah just popped up here all a sudden...[she looks around] All this is so...weird...
Are there really people on the other end of this here thing?
[She starts pushing more buttons in her confusion, and accidentally taps the off button. Oops.]

Third-Person Sample:
     Birds twittered overhead in the oak tree Nephenee sat against, resting her legs from the march as the company took a break. Yesterday’s been another battle, and they had been blessed to not lose anyone. Today they marched on, getting closer to what was to be the final battle in the capital. 

     The past few battles had been difficult, but she could only imagine what awaited them in Melior. They would face Ashnard’s best, maybe Ashnard himself, and that thought sent a chill down her spine. For a moment, she wondered if everything would be fine. After all, his best knight had taken down Commander Ike’s father, who from what she heard had been an amazing combatant in his own right… But wait, Ike had defeated that knight.

      So that had to count for something…right?

    She shook her head in an attempt to clear it of doubt. No matter what, this’d be their greatest trial, and no worrying was going to help that. She closed her eyes, praying for strength, that they would overcome the evil King, when she was interrupted by a familiar voice.

“Nephenee, we’re starting back up, ya ready?” Brom asked, looking down at her.

“Yep, just praying for the battle to go well.” She replied, standing up with the help of her lance.

“Don’t worry, we’ll beat em! Come on.” As she followed him to the large group, she saw Ike rallying the troops, their cheers loud and strong, and she smiled.

With Commander Ike leading them, they’d be just fine.

[Nephenee's on the road again, and she's been training and working hard and she's caught two more Pokemon it seems! A Ledyba sits on her head, and a Spinarak is on her lap with Senamon. WAITAMINUTE did Senamon and Chrys evolve?!]

Well, I got two more Pokemon~ This is Rosa [The Ledyba waves her arms happily] and Oleander [The Spinarak shoots a little web in the air. Show off]
And Chrys and Senamon both evolved! Chrys did it twice! I'm so proud of 'em!

[Neph hugs her team tight, and grins even harder]

Do ya'll think maybe we're strong enough to take on the first gym leader now?

[Well, look who popped up out of the dark again. Nephenee is wearing a waitress outfit, but Chrysanthemum seems to be tugging off her hair bow. Maybe she just got done?]

Oh boy...so tired.

Ah've been hangin' 'round Cherrygrove for a bit, after trainin' Chrysanthemum for awhile...we got a bit stronger, and we made a new friend!

[she tiredly beckons to something off camera, and a little Sentret climbs up onto the bed]

This is Senamon. She's our newest family member. I think ah'm gonna start training her in a few days...I gotta finish this week's work.

[She takes off her apron and sighs]

Who woulda thought  servin' people was so hard?

Anyone else in Cherygrove hangin' out?

It's nice ta see that things are startin' to calm down a little 'round here...puppies are doing well, too! Still pretty little, though... Anyone know a good way to keep 'em warm, sides blankets an' them sleepin' on me?

Whoops, it's been so crazy earlier, I forgot Tuesday was my birthday!

 Oh my gosh guys! It's the weekend! And you know what that means...

TIME TO HIT THE MALL AND GO DRINKING AFTER!

So, who's coming with me? Cool kids only~

Well, okay, you new kids can come too.