IC Info:
Character Name: Harper Persaud
Character Journal Username: ~acontradiction
Age and physical description:  Born March 20th, 1982 (28).
Harper isn't what you'd call a stereotypical beauty. Her forehead is a little big for her otherwise petite body, and spending most of her time working in a morgue has left her paler than most. Still, there's something about her. She stands at an average 5'6", not tall enough to stand out, not short enough to blend in. Her hair is usually a darker shade of brown or black, though there was that one year in college when she dabbled with blond (for the record, she did have more fun, but that probably has more to do with that being her senior year of college--the year before she sold her soul to medical school--and less to do with her hair color).

Harper carries herself with a confidence that most seem to lack these days. She knows who she is, and she's incredibly comfortable in her own skin. Her blue eyes are sharp and observant, and she tends to hide what she's thinking behind a mona lisa-esque smile.
 
Former Deity Name and Pantheon: Persephone | Greek Mythology

Personality:  Harper has always been a contradicting ball of emotions. She's out going and lively in a crowd. Affectionate, and loving to those close to her, and yet aloof and reserved when she doesn't have to be in the public eye. She isn't what you would call a people pleaser--she doesn't go out of her way to make others happy--but she talks and entertains as a way of keeping any uncomfortable silences at bay. She fears awkward social interactions, and will do all that is in her means to avoid them. It doesn't help that she's always had an oddly beautiful look to her. Beauty attracts attention whether you want it or not, and she's always gotten her fair share. She's gracious about this, and is good with the people who choose to interact with her, but that's never really where she prefers to be.

Truth be told, Harper's happy place is at work, or being alone outdoors with nothing but her dog Chester running up ahead of her, and the ground beneath her feet. She is a solitary person at heart, and that's something she's always known. She can smile and laugh and joke when it comes to being around others, but she simply prefers not to. She is content in her own skin, and she's always been reasonable and level-headed.

History:
If Harper Persaud knew her true origins, her current life would seem fitting, and a little more than coincidental. Born to an undertaker and his wife, she has spent most of her life (lives really) around the dead. She's always considered that to be the reason she's so comfortable around the dead. They have been part of her life since she could remember. Her parents weren't morbid, and she had a great childhood, but it was unavoidable sometimes, and she's never really thought of her upbringing as anything but normal. Her parents worked hard, they loved her, and she grew up fairly well adjusted. The same can't be said for many of her peers.

When Harper was 16 she decided that she wanted to go on to be a doctor. She wasn't sure the family business was exactly what she wanted to do with her life. She wanted to get into the business of life. Saving people, one health issue at a time, seemed like a better alternative. She felt that way through undergrad at Dartmouth, and Harvard Medical School. It wasn't until her first year of residency, finally back in her hometown of Washington DC that she started to realize she was just better with the dead than she was with the living. Losing her first patient--having that first death on her hands--well, it just seemed easier to deal with the dead. The dying were...harder. She wasn't about to chuck 8 years of school on a crisis of faith, so she switched her focus. The morgue suited her better, and she still got to offer some closure to people's lives.

In the beginning the transition wasn't easy. Harper was demoralized taht she couldn't make it in a life or death situation. Still, she was good at her new modality and soon enough her spirits were up, and she had accepted that  maybe this was just one of those door/window situations.  Fast forward 2 years, and she's halfway to becoming a Medical Examiner, and she couldn't be happier...well she probably could be happier, but she's focused more on her work life than her lack of a social life. Frankly, she's always had an aversion to dating that she can't really explain. She has tried before, but now...well she'd rather just focus on her career for a little while. Once she's settled in there, there will be time for something else.

Strengths:  An incredible green thumb. She can get almost anything to grow.  This is an odd strength, but she is strangely comfortable with the dead. It's what led her to pursue a career as an M. E. She can fit in almost anywhere if she really tries.
Weaknesses: The only downside to her green thumb is if she leaves her plants for an extended period of time they seem to wilt and die, even if she has someone else watching them. She tends to be a workaholic. She feels completely at home in a morgue and she spends more time there than she probably should.

General Deity History: In Pride and Prejudice it might have been a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife, but for the greek gods, the universal truth was this: most gods were giant dicks. They saw something they wanted, they took it. This was not limited to property. Everything was fair game back then, and I do mean everything. Persephone was aware of this fact, but she thought her mother was terrifying enough to keep everyone in line when it came to her. Who would have guessed that Hades had balls of steel?

One minute, there she was, chillin' out, maxin', relaxing all cool with some lady friends, the next, *BAM*!  Underworld city. Not. Cool. Still, she figured she'd make the best of it. Her mom wasn't the type to let that sort of thing slide, and the underworld was big enough that she wasn't saddled with Creepy McBridegroom the whole time. Instead she hung out, explored around, and snacked on one teeny tiny handful of pomegranate seeds. For that she was sentenced to an eternal cycle of 6 months in the Underworld. Did the punishment fit the crime? So not even close.

The underworld, wouldn't have been Persephone's first choice of future kingdoms, but it did have some benefits. First? Her mother never came for a visit. Thank gods. Yes they were close, but come on! Demeter went a little crazy on the whole protective mother vibe. Hell, if she'd just let Persephone date, maybe that whole kidnapping thing would have never happened. Still, it did, and hypotheticals will get you no where. Considering that Demeter went into super crazy person protective mom overdrive when Persephone was out of the Pit, Persephone took time to enjoy some of her new surroundings. It wasn't heaven, it wasn't hell, it just was. Maybe it was a little darker and danker than her tastes preferred, but she got used to it after a while. She got used to Hades too. Whether or not she ever really loved him is debateable, but she did stick with him, and rule with him moderately well, so what more could you ask of her?


Played By: Olivia Wilde
Other Pertinent Info As Needed: She doesn't know she's the reincarnation of Persephone, and she doesn't want to know. She's happy living her mortal life free of all that drama and chaos, and she will not be happy when she's forced to face the facts.

Role Playing Sample:
Harper sighed, shifting her weight as she watched the light from the sinking sun bounce off the waters in the reflecting pool. There was something semi-magical about the Lincoln Memorial at the end of the day, and whenever she had a lot of her mind, she always found herself at the feet of the man who stood for liberty and freedom. At the moment she had a lot on her mind. Tomorrow she began her first day of her medical residency. As cliche as it might be, she felt like tomorrow would be the first day of the rest of her life. Years of schooling had boiled down to this one moment, and she felt on edge waiting for it to start. Then again the double espresso she was sipping probably didn't help the jitters.

"I know you."

Harper's revere was ruined instantly, but she kept her focus, hoping the speaker would take the hint, realize she'd made a mistake and move along. No dice.

"Yeaaah. I know you." The woman in the eclectic outfit pointed a bony finger in Harper's face.

"I'm sorry." She shook her head, rejecting the woman's statement. Harper had a good memory for people, and she'd never come across this woman before. "I think you're mistaken."

"Bah." The old crone of a woman dismissed her. "Queenie, I'd know you anywhere."

This made Harper laugh. "Now I know you've got the wrong girl. I'm not Queenie." She pushed herself up, smoothing her pants as she stood, wanting to escape the uncomfortable encounter. "Have a good day." She offered the woman a genuine smile.

"Aye," The woman took a hold of her arm. "What do you mean you're not Queenie?" She scanned Harper, scrutinizing her. Harper shifted uncomfortably, leaning away from the woman, not yet pulling her arm from her grip. She didn't like the close contact, and she didn't like the way this woman looked at her. She jumped, startled when the woman burst out laughing. "You don't know, do you."

"No." Harper insisted, growing flustered. She tugged her arm free, pulling it a little harder than necessary as the woman released her. "That's what I've been trying to tell you. I don't know you." She took a step down, backing away from the crazy woman and ran a hand over her hair, trying to regain her composure. "You have a nice day." She added, taking another step back, preparing to turn and make a hasty exit.

"Whatever you say Queenie." The woman called after her. Harper just flinched, her shoulders hunching momentarily, unusually agitated by the nickname and walked away as quickly as she could without running.

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