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Danae of Stravos is not and would most certainly never be the ‘perfect’ Athenian girl. She was not demure or sweet like other nubile girls her age ought to be. The girl took no interest in the nuances of court life. Most strikingly though, this Stravos had no intention of living her life on the sidelines; being a pawn for other players in a game that should be her own. With a brain twice as bright as her sister’s and a knack for business that rivaled her brother, she was the heir that her father should have sired.
Danae was her mother’s worst nightmare come to life.
Granted, the girl did indeed try to play the part that the Gods decided she should be cursed with. She tried to ignore the pain that came with small chatter and not cringe at the thought of spending another evening sitting at a loom, but the girl was no actor. She could fool those who did not know her well. The courtiers, for example, didn’t know what was behind the grumpy facade and false smile anyone could see through. She could do the bare minimum and nothing more. Her heart knew where it should be and it was not within the sphere of women.
So, why on earth did her family continue to bother with lavishing her in jewels?
If they honestly thought that a golden band or sparkling gem would be enough to turn her into the little court lady they hoped that she would be, the whole lot of them were sorely mistaken. After all, she had her mother’s iron will. They should be more than aware that if she did not want to be their doll to dress up and parade around then she would. not. do. it. Danae had told them countless times that their gifts of necklaces and bracelets were wasted on her. She didn’t want them. She wouldn’t wear them. Yet, they kept coming only to sit uselessly in her drawers for years.
That was until she found a use for them.
At first, her family had no idea that Danae was quickly becoming an expert in how much a brooch could fetch at the local jewelers. She never wore the blasted gems, to begin with, so naturally, no one noticed whenever one or two of them would go missing. By her sixteenth birthday, the majority of her childhood accessories were gone, keeping only the truly sentimental ones or those that her mother would notice were gone. It was a brilliant system in her eyes. After all, it rid of her of a certain annoyance in her life and further boosted her coffers in the process. This allowed her to invest in her other business ventures and brought in more profit to add to her secret personal fortune within a few months. To her, it was foolproof and was not that terrible of a thing to do. They were hers to do with what she fit.
Of course, her mother would have to disagree. Circenia was a woman of fine taste and firmly believed that jewels were meant to display the wealth of a girl’s family, not to be traded like some meager coins. For the longest time, the girl honestly thought that if her mother discovered what she had done with the jewels, she would have a heart attack then and there… so the Xanthos princess was not made aware of how Danae was supplementing her ledgers. If Danae had her way, this would not have changed under any circumstances… but unfortunately for her, the woman had discovered her daughter’s dirty little secret. There was nothing that the girl could do to hide the truth once Circenia had gone through her jewelry boxes and discovered how pitifully meager they were.
She had thought that there would be hell to pay, but Circenia did not unleash the fury of Hades upon the girl. Perhaps she hadn’t been able to piece together the truth? Or maybe the last sixteen years had shown her that her youngest was unlikely to ever change her ways. Whatever it was, Danae had escaped unscathed, but she knew that she was far from being out of the woods. In the time since that fateful day trip to the market, she had not received so much as a bangle as a gift. Though whether this was an indication of the dire straits her family was in or if it was her mother’s way of dealing with this issue, Danae didn’t know. Nor was she tempted to find out.
This could have been a minor inconvenience most months, but having this happen right after the girl had come out of her pitiful stupor? When she was trying to financially recover from the blow that had been dealt with her ledgers after her brother’s careless actions? Right at the moment where she needed the easy money the most? Danae didn’t know what she could do. She needed to sell something in order to recover what had been lost. Pilfering what she had left was not an option. Circenia was surely watching her daughter like a hawk, or at least Danae thought she was, and it was far too risky to try something like that. There was no way she could escape her mother’s wrath twice if she was caught in the act. The girl had spent days since then trying to think of some other way out of this mess, but she couldn’t think of one. Every day that passed by with a loyal business partner receiving nothing was a chance of them losing their trust in her and having that relationship fall apart… but what could she do? With no options left open to her and her pride is far too strong to ask for help; Danae felt that there was only one thing that she could do.
She would have to steal from her own family.
It killed her inside, especially as she knew that the jewelry boxes of her sister and mother had been bought by her father (so in a roundabout way she was stealing from him), but she firmly believed that she had no other choice. She needed the quick cash to supplement what she had lost in recent months and the only way she knew how to get that was selling valuable items to folks who would ask no questions about where this dirty orphans she hired had acquired such finery. The act was evil and damnable, but it was something that had to be done.
So, one evening while the other women of her household were out of the Archontiko, Danae snuck down the hall to her elder sister’s room to see if there was anything that Chara did not care for. (Stealing from her mother had never been an option. Danae was sure that her mother would not think twice about strangling her if she was discovered to be doing such a thing,) With the house empty and her sister’s room overflowing with the trappings of a proper noblewoman, Danae knew that she could very easily get away with what she had planned to do.
After she was sure that she would not be discovered in her sister’s chamber, Danae set about in her task. It took nearly ten minutes of searching, but the girl found a box of jewels she was sure that she had never seen her sister wear. However, finding this had been the easy part. Her greedy fingers needed to decide what exactly she would take. The girl knew that it had to be small enough and unimportant enough that its absence would never be noticed; but also substantial enough that the sale of it would be enough to ensure that she never had to do this again. When she had decided on this plan, those parameters had been simple enough, but now that she was here and faced with the decision… it seemed impossible. Golden bracelets, silver necklaces, and bronze earrings overwhelmed her. There were just too many possibilities. Too many chances to strike it rich. Too many opportunities to be caught.
She was half tempted to close the damn thing and leave. There would be consequences to doing that, of course, but it seemed far easier than what was before her. However, that was until she noticed what was hidden in the very back of the box; a simple pair of rings.
Picking them up, Danae could see that they had been forged from gold and had several small blue stones inlaid in them. Although they were gorgeous and stunning in every sense of the word, Danae knew that her sister would never wear them. They were fair too simple. Not to mention that they were just not the girl’s style at all. Out of everything in this room, these would not be missed. These were the ones that she had to take.
With the decision made, Danae slipped the two rings into a small coin purse that she had brought with her. Drawing it tightly shut, she set her sister’s room back to rights before making her way back to the door. After waiting for a moment with bated breath, just to ensure that the coast was clear, Danae left the bedchamber that she had never been invited into and stole away into her own. She had already long ago decided that she would hide her stolen treasures in the box that she had also stolen from her brother what now felt like a lifetime ago. Hopefully, there it would not be found until she could arrange for them to be sold within a few days and her family would be none the wiser.
Until then, she would just have to put on the guise of an innocent sister, so that she may hide the thief that she was.
This character is currently a work in progress.
Check out their information page here.
This character is currently a work in progress.
Check out their information page here.
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Danae of Stravos is not and would most certainly never be the ‘perfect’ Athenian girl. She was not demure or sweet like other nubile girls her age ought to be. The girl took no interest in the nuances of court life. Most strikingly though, this Stravos had no intention of living her life on the sidelines; being a pawn for other players in a game that should be her own. With a brain twice as bright as her sister’s and a knack for business that rivaled her brother, she was the heir that her father should have sired.
Danae was her mother’s worst nightmare come to life.
Granted, the girl did indeed try to play the part that the Gods decided she should be cursed with. She tried to ignore the pain that came with small chatter and not cringe at the thought of spending another evening sitting at a loom, but the girl was no actor. She could fool those who did not know her well. The courtiers, for example, didn’t know what was behind the grumpy facade and false smile anyone could see through. She could do the bare minimum and nothing more. Her heart knew where it should be and it was not within the sphere of women.
So, why on earth did her family continue to bother with lavishing her in jewels?
If they honestly thought that a golden band or sparkling gem would be enough to turn her into the little court lady they hoped that she would be, the whole lot of them were sorely mistaken. After all, she had her mother’s iron will. They should be more than aware that if she did not want to be their doll to dress up and parade around then she would. not. do. it. Danae had told them countless times that their gifts of necklaces and bracelets were wasted on her. She didn’t want them. She wouldn’t wear them. Yet, they kept coming only to sit uselessly in her drawers for years.
That was until she found a use for them.
At first, her family had no idea that Danae was quickly becoming an expert in how much a brooch could fetch at the local jewelers. She never wore the blasted gems, to begin with, so naturally, no one noticed whenever one or two of them would go missing. By her sixteenth birthday, the majority of her childhood accessories were gone, keeping only the truly sentimental ones or those that her mother would notice were gone. It was a brilliant system in her eyes. After all, it rid of her of a certain annoyance in her life and further boosted her coffers in the process. This allowed her to invest in her other business ventures and brought in more profit to add to her secret personal fortune within a few months. To her, it was foolproof and was not that terrible of a thing to do. They were hers to do with what she fit.
Of course, her mother would have to disagree. Circenia was a woman of fine taste and firmly believed that jewels were meant to display the wealth of a girl’s family, not to be traded like some meager coins. For the longest time, the girl honestly thought that if her mother discovered what she had done with the jewels, she would have a heart attack then and there… so the Xanthos princess was not made aware of how Danae was supplementing her ledgers. If Danae had her way, this would not have changed under any circumstances… but unfortunately for her, the woman had discovered her daughter’s dirty little secret. There was nothing that the girl could do to hide the truth once Circenia had gone through her jewelry boxes and discovered how pitifully meager they were.
She had thought that there would be hell to pay, but Circenia did not unleash the fury of Hades upon the girl. Perhaps she hadn’t been able to piece together the truth? Or maybe the last sixteen years had shown her that her youngest was unlikely to ever change her ways. Whatever it was, Danae had escaped unscathed, but she knew that she was far from being out of the woods. In the time since that fateful day trip to the market, she had not received so much as a bangle as a gift. Though whether this was an indication of the dire straits her family was in or if it was her mother’s way of dealing with this issue, Danae didn’t know. Nor was she tempted to find out.
This could have been a minor inconvenience most months, but having this happen right after the girl had come out of her pitiful stupor? When she was trying to financially recover from the blow that had been dealt with her ledgers after her brother’s careless actions? Right at the moment where she needed the easy money the most? Danae didn’t know what she could do. She needed to sell something in order to recover what had been lost. Pilfering what she had left was not an option. Circenia was surely watching her daughter like a hawk, or at least Danae thought she was, and it was far too risky to try something like that. There was no way she could escape her mother’s wrath twice if she was caught in the act. The girl had spent days since then trying to think of some other way out of this mess, but she couldn’t think of one. Every day that passed by with a loyal business partner receiving nothing was a chance of them losing their trust in her and having that relationship fall apart… but what could she do? With no options left open to her and her pride is far too strong to ask for help; Danae felt that there was only one thing that she could do.
She would have to steal from her own family.
It killed her inside, especially as she knew that the jewelry boxes of her sister and mother had been bought by her father (so in a roundabout way she was stealing from him), but she firmly believed that she had no other choice. She needed the quick cash to supplement what she had lost in recent months and the only way she knew how to get that was selling valuable items to folks who would ask no questions about where this dirty orphans she hired had acquired such finery. The act was evil and damnable, but it was something that had to be done.
So, one evening while the other women of her household were out of the Archontiko, Danae snuck down the hall to her elder sister’s room to see if there was anything that Chara did not care for. (Stealing from her mother had never been an option. Danae was sure that her mother would not think twice about strangling her if she was discovered to be doing such a thing,) With the house empty and her sister’s room overflowing with the trappings of a proper noblewoman, Danae knew that she could very easily get away with what she had planned to do.
After she was sure that she would not be discovered in her sister’s chamber, Danae set about in her task. It took nearly ten minutes of searching, but the girl found a box of jewels she was sure that she had never seen her sister wear. However, finding this had been the easy part. Her greedy fingers needed to decide what exactly she would take. The girl knew that it had to be small enough and unimportant enough that its absence would never be noticed; but also substantial enough that the sale of it would be enough to ensure that she never had to do this again. When she had decided on this plan, those parameters had been simple enough, but now that she was here and faced with the decision… it seemed impossible. Golden bracelets, silver necklaces, and bronze earrings overwhelmed her. There were just too many possibilities. Too many chances to strike it rich. Too many opportunities to be caught.
She was half tempted to close the damn thing and leave. There would be consequences to doing that, of course, but it seemed far easier than what was before her. However, that was until she noticed what was hidden in the very back of the box; a simple pair of rings.
Picking them up, Danae could see that they had been forged from gold and had several small blue stones inlaid in them. Although they were gorgeous and stunning in every sense of the word, Danae knew that her sister would never wear them. They were fair too simple. Not to mention that they were just not the girl’s style at all. Out of everything in this room, these would not be missed. These were the ones that she had to take.
With the decision made, Danae slipped the two rings into a small coin purse that she had brought with her. Drawing it tightly shut, she set her sister’s room back to rights before making her way back to the door. After waiting for a moment with bated breath, just to ensure that the coast was clear, Danae left the bedchamber that she had never been invited into and stole away into her own. She had already long ago decided that she would hide her stolen treasures in the box that she had also stolen from her brother what now felt like a lifetime ago. Hopefully, there it would not be found until she could arrange for them to be sold within a few days and her family would be none the wiser.
Until then, she would just have to put on the guise of an innocent sister, so that she may hide the thief that she was.
Danae of Stravos is not and would most certainly never be the ‘perfect’ Athenian girl. She was not demure or sweet like other nubile girls her age ought to be. The girl took no interest in the nuances of court life. Most strikingly though, this Stravos had no intention of living her life on the sidelines; being a pawn for other players in a game that should be her own. With a brain twice as bright as her sister’s and a knack for business that rivaled her brother, she was the heir that her father should have sired.
Danae was her mother’s worst nightmare come to life.
Granted, the girl did indeed try to play the part that the Gods decided she should be cursed with. She tried to ignore the pain that came with small chatter and not cringe at the thought of spending another evening sitting at a loom, but the girl was no actor. She could fool those who did not know her well. The courtiers, for example, didn’t know what was behind the grumpy facade and false smile anyone could see through. She could do the bare minimum and nothing more. Her heart knew where it should be and it was not within the sphere of women.
So, why on earth did her family continue to bother with lavishing her in jewels?
If they honestly thought that a golden band or sparkling gem would be enough to turn her into the little court lady they hoped that she would be, the whole lot of them were sorely mistaken. After all, she had her mother’s iron will. They should be more than aware that if she did not want to be their doll to dress up and parade around then she would. not. do. it. Danae had told them countless times that their gifts of necklaces and bracelets were wasted on her. She didn’t want them. She wouldn’t wear them. Yet, they kept coming only to sit uselessly in her drawers for years.
That was until she found a use for them.
At first, her family had no idea that Danae was quickly becoming an expert in how much a brooch could fetch at the local jewelers. She never wore the blasted gems, to begin with, so naturally, no one noticed whenever one or two of them would go missing. By her sixteenth birthday, the majority of her childhood accessories were gone, keeping only the truly sentimental ones or those that her mother would notice were gone. It was a brilliant system in her eyes. After all, it rid of her of a certain annoyance in her life and further boosted her coffers in the process. This allowed her to invest in her other business ventures and brought in more profit to add to her secret personal fortune within a few months. To her, it was foolproof and was not that terrible of a thing to do. They were hers to do with what she fit.
Of course, her mother would have to disagree. Circenia was a woman of fine taste and firmly believed that jewels were meant to display the wealth of a girl’s family, not to be traded like some meager coins. For the longest time, the girl honestly thought that if her mother discovered what she had done with the jewels, she would have a heart attack then and there… so the Xanthos princess was not made aware of how Danae was supplementing her ledgers. If Danae had her way, this would not have changed under any circumstances… but unfortunately for her, the woman had discovered her daughter’s dirty little secret. There was nothing that the girl could do to hide the truth once Circenia had gone through her jewelry boxes and discovered how pitifully meager they were.
She had thought that there would be hell to pay, but Circenia did not unleash the fury of Hades upon the girl. Perhaps she hadn’t been able to piece together the truth? Or maybe the last sixteen years had shown her that her youngest was unlikely to ever change her ways. Whatever it was, Danae had escaped unscathed, but she knew that she was far from being out of the woods. In the time since that fateful day trip to the market, she had not received so much as a bangle as a gift. Though whether this was an indication of the dire straits her family was in or if it was her mother’s way of dealing with this issue, Danae didn’t know. Nor was she tempted to find out.
This could have been a minor inconvenience most months, but having this happen right after the girl had come out of her pitiful stupor? When she was trying to financially recover from the blow that had been dealt with her ledgers after her brother’s careless actions? Right at the moment where she needed the easy money the most? Danae didn’t know what she could do. She needed to sell something in order to recover what had been lost. Pilfering what she had left was not an option. Circenia was surely watching her daughter like a hawk, or at least Danae thought she was, and it was far too risky to try something like that. There was no way she could escape her mother’s wrath twice if she was caught in the act. The girl had spent days since then trying to think of some other way out of this mess, but she couldn’t think of one. Every day that passed by with a loyal business partner receiving nothing was a chance of them losing their trust in her and having that relationship fall apart… but what could she do? With no options left open to her and her pride is far too strong to ask for help; Danae felt that there was only one thing that she could do.
She would have to steal from her own family.
It killed her inside, especially as she knew that the jewelry boxes of her sister and mother had been bought by her father (so in a roundabout way she was stealing from him), but she firmly believed that she had no other choice. She needed the quick cash to supplement what she had lost in recent months and the only way she knew how to get that was selling valuable items to folks who would ask no questions about where this dirty orphans she hired had acquired such finery. The act was evil and damnable, but it was something that had to be done.
So, one evening while the other women of her household were out of the Archontiko, Danae snuck down the hall to her elder sister’s room to see if there was anything that Chara did not care for. (Stealing from her mother had never been an option. Danae was sure that her mother would not think twice about strangling her if she was discovered to be doing such a thing,) With the house empty and her sister’s room overflowing with the trappings of a proper noblewoman, Danae knew that she could very easily get away with what she had planned to do.
After she was sure that she would not be discovered in her sister’s chamber, Danae set about in her task. It took nearly ten minutes of searching, but the girl found a box of jewels she was sure that she had never seen her sister wear. However, finding this had been the easy part. Her greedy fingers needed to decide what exactly she would take. The girl knew that it had to be small enough and unimportant enough that its absence would never be noticed; but also substantial enough that the sale of it would be enough to ensure that she never had to do this again. When she had decided on this plan, those parameters had been simple enough, but now that she was here and faced with the decision… it seemed impossible. Golden bracelets, silver necklaces, and bronze earrings overwhelmed her. There were just too many possibilities. Too many chances to strike it rich. Too many opportunities to be caught.
She was half tempted to close the damn thing and leave. There would be consequences to doing that, of course, but it seemed far easier than what was before her. However, that was until she noticed what was hidden in the very back of the box; a simple pair of rings.
Picking them up, Danae could see that they had been forged from gold and had several small blue stones inlaid in them. Although they were gorgeous and stunning in every sense of the word, Danae knew that her sister would never wear them. They were fair too simple. Not to mention that they were just not the girl’s style at all. Out of everything in this room, these would not be missed. These were the ones that she had to take.
With the decision made, Danae slipped the two rings into a small coin purse that she had brought with her. Drawing it tightly shut, she set her sister’s room back to rights before making her way back to the door. After waiting for a moment with bated breath, just to ensure that the coast was clear, Danae left the bedchamber that she had never been invited into and stole away into her own. She had already long ago decided that she would hide her stolen treasures in the box that she had also stolen from her brother what now felt like a lifetime ago. Hopefully, there it would not be found until she could arrange for them to be sold within a few days and her family would be none the wiser.
Until then, she would just have to put on the guise of an innocent sister, so that she may hide the thief that she was.