Sisters of the Shadows

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Random Facts:

1. Madalynn is a member of the History Club, and she plays flute in AOA’s marching band. She’s considered joining the charm club, but she’s worried that someone will discover her uncommon lineage. The only person she’s confided in is Rafael. For no particular reason…

2. She’s been trying to learn how to cook traditional Vietnamese dishes in honor of her maternal heritage, but she’s finding it difficult when she’s never cooked before. Her com tam isn’t half bad, in her opinion; however, if you ask her father, then every dish she makes is exquisite. Her coyote familiar, Credo, is also a fan–particularly of seafood dishes.

3. Roland Henry Blake III, better known as Rory, is Madalynn’s father, primary guardian, and the current head of the Blake family. He has followed in his father’s footsteps and entered D.E.A.D., or the Department of the Enforcement of Afterlife Domestics, which ensures that the needs of Haunters that have passed away prematurely (before becoming legal adults–the dark dimension’s universal age of majority is eighteen) are being met. They also handle legal disputes between the classifications, with certain smaller departments focusing on individual lawsuits. In other words, if L.O.R.E. is the dark dimension’s intelligence agency, then D.E.A.D. is its police force and judicial system all in one. With that in mind, Roland Blake II is a renowned judge, much like his father and his father before him, while Rory is still a prosecutor working his way up. In spite of their family history in D.E.A.D., though, he encourages Maddy to pursue her dream career, whatever that may be.

4. Maddy’s father spoils her constantly; a day doesn’t go by when he isn’t buying her gifts or taking an interest in her hobbies or extracurricular activities. She was only ten when she begged him to stop buying her extravagant presents, such as a circus or toy store, resulting in smaller–yet equally expensive–purchases. As a teenager, she’s learned to contain his doting nature by simply adding him to her Karma wishlist, which she updates a few times a month. (Karma = occult Amazon.)

5. Madalynn was born under the name Hua My-Duyen to Hua Huong and Rory Blake. Before her birth, Rory had no prospective wives to bear the Blake family name, and he was traveling the world when he met and fell in love with Huong. She was a daughter of Hua Dai Nuong, one of the twelve 12 Bà mu–in other words, a fairy. Huong was not allowed to leave her home and family, resulting in Rory taking custody of My-Duyen. The elder members of the Blake family, though relieved to finally have another heir, were furious at Rory for her fairy lineage and threatened to cut them both off. It wasn’t until Clara de Ardo offered the family a place in her growing coven, and promised Rory a safe and welcoming environment for My-Duyen, that they backed off. Even so, he wanted her to fit in with the other children in the coven, so he gave her the alias Madalynn Blake. Hua My-Duyen is still her legal name; he did not have the heart to change it.

Photo by Henri Pham on Unsplash

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