Runa, The Fire of Edoras

Character Name: Runa

Name Meaning: “Secret lore”.

Age: 27

Date of Birth: May 13th.

Race: Man

Residence: Edoras, Rohan

Profession: Healer, and rudimentary occupational therapist.

Appearance: Runa’s blonde hair paints her as one of Rohirric blood, and her blue eyes blend her well with many of the others of the city also. It’s her somewhat delicate and feminine facial features paired with a rather wintry fierceness that makes her memorable. She is of average height for a woman, standing around 5’6”, and a solid build that is more muscle than slender from her hours of practicing with axes, swords, and shields.

Personality: 

Runa appears confident and headstrong, stubborn, and every inch worthy of being considered the "man-woman" many claim to think her. She is less fond of dresses as she is of swords and axes, and she has grown up training with the shield alongside her uncles, regarding little the complaints of her brother and her grandmother over the matter. 

In truth, Runa is sensitive. She uses her confidence and stubborn, fiery nature as a mask to hide her massive anxiety, and there are few in Edoras who can settle her. She is compassionate, caring deeply about people, and has no patience for cruelty. She comes across cold, rarely smiling unless it is in the presence of her family or her Ceolmund, and while she will always defend the weak, will never be the one to throw the first attack. She is a defender, not an aggressor. 

While she pretends it is of no bother to her, Runa is lonely. She has very few friends in the city that she can call her own, and as such, treasures the ones she has very dear. 

Despite being Rohan-born, Runa is afraid of horses. When she was a child, one of her brother’s friends was killed after an unfortunate accident with his family’s stallion, and she has never been able to look at their powerful legs and hard hooves the same. She works hard to try and keep as many people in the dark over this particular quirk as she can, because it is almost unheard of in Edoras and she is very embarrassed by it.



Parents:
Amalric, father. 60. Shoemaker.
Hildred, mother. 54. Healer.

Sibling(s):
Beorhtric, brother. 33. Soldier. She calls him “Bear”, a leftover nickname from when she was very small and his name was too hard to say.

Other:
Torsten, paternal uncle. 55.
Brandr, "Brand", paternal uncle. 50.

Ishild, maternal grandmother, 73.

Spouse: Ceolmund

Children:
Paega, 4. Adopted.
Eormund, "Yomie". Newborn.

History:

Runa was always a spunky child with dirty dresses and a collection of sticks that were well-suited for sword practicing against barrels. Her mother always seemed a little sad that she didn’t have a perfect lady for a daughter, but her father did anything he could to encourage her to learn those arts that set her apart as a shieldmaiden in her adulthood.

She worshipped her brother, and was a constant shadow trailing behind him and his friends. Some of the boys were meaner than others, asking her to do things that would get her into trouble, or ignoring her presence all together. When she was six, her brother’s best friend, Ingulf, was the kindest to her. In some cases, treating the little tagalong better than her own brother. He was her first crush, even before she truly understood what that meant.

When Ingulf was killed due to a mishap with his family horses, Runa’s world became a much scarier place. Not only did she mourn the loss of a friend, she now looked at the beautiful staples of Rohan’s very spirit and grew afraid. It was in this time that Runa decided she needed to take it upon herself to make sure she was never helpless, and when she threw herself wholeheartedly into begging her father to teach her everything he knew about weapons alongside her brother. He was happy to oblige, though her mother was less fond of the idea.

When he was 18, her brother joined the cavalry Rohan was known for, and when he returned from the first day of training, she begged him to spar with her. Beorhtric obliged, as he had grown to have a soft spot for his spunky, fiery sister. These lessons continued regularly, and in between Runa’s meager tutoring and lessons in healing from her mother, Beorhtric schooled her in the thing she loved the most.

When she turned 17, it was the first time she was able to best him. And that marked a moment of change in their relationship. Beorhtric halted their studies, suddenly becoming too busy to cross blades with her, and he began to encourage her to spend more time with their mother and in the healing houses. He began to speak of her getting married, also. Runa didn’t quite know how to take it, and while she ended up having no other choice but to go into healing, she has hitherto managed to avoid marriage, despite Beorhtric’s efforts in bringing soldiers home to meet her.

She works now as a healer, specializing in helping wounded soldiers or workers get back into shape to use axes, swords, or even lift items.

Her mother and brother still urge her to settle down, but her father recently gave her a new bearded axe for her nameday, and she’s been itching to use it.