====+Essentials+====
==Name==
Belladonna "Lazarus" Dresden
==Age==
30
==Basic description==
Belladonna stands at a graceful 5'7". Her hair falls near to her waist in thick waves - ebony in most lights, but auburn in the light of the sun ; which, during summer, it is most often a rich and warm auburn with coppery highlights. She has often considered cutting it to hide her personality, but in memory of the cozy nights spent hidden away in her room with her mother and sister, brushing her long hair before the dirty mirror nailed to the wall of their bedroom, she instead chooses to let it grow, pulling it back with bits of cloth whenever necessary. The darkness of her hair is wonderfully contrasted by the creamy, almost porcelain like tone of her skin (hinting at her celtic bloodlines) which first burns and then tans to a soft, sunkissed glow beneath her freckles. Unfortunately, most never see the true beauty in her nearly faultless skin in the midst of raids -- dust, grime, and kicked up dirt do their very best in their combined efforts to hide it - often leaving her with bits of ash smeared across her face and neck.
When 'parading' herself for the simultaneously unlucky and extremely fortunate men of whatever town she found herself in (prior to this camp, anyway), however, Miss Dresden takes quite pride in her appearance. Her creamy skin, scrubbed as clean as is manageable using only bits of cloth just barely cleaner than her own face. Although her relatives often said she was born with her father's eyes, she much prefers to claim them as her own. A shade somewhere between arabica and honey brown, they remain hidden beneath thick, long lashes (and thick black, out of date prescription frames) and framed by, albeit crudely, sculpted brows, her big doe eyes are famous for their ability to ensnare unsuspecting men. Most often, they are icy and harsh with the heat of vengeance and fatigue of survivl, but when turned on a potential lover or partner in arms, they soften, and that ice melts in the face of unbridled mischief.
Those eyes are followed by the strong, pert nose of her Egyptian heritage, high, sculpted cheekbones, and one of her most favoured features - her lips. Full and pouty, they encased nearly straight teeth, and whether bare or chapped and bleeding, can talk any man into near anything. Weighing in at someplace over 115 pounds (after all, a woman never gossips about such things, even if she is one of the last on earth,) she only wears shirts ripped and tied tightly to accent the curves given to her by god and her bloodlines.
She is easily identified by a tattoo of the letters 'A' and 'E' behind each ear, a tattoo of a beating heart with the words '"Villains!" I shrieked, "dissemble no more! I admit the deed! --tear up the planks! here, here! --It is the beating of his hideous heart!".' surrounding it, hence her nickname, in the middle of her (rather lovely, if we're being honest) chest, and tattoos running up and down the lengths of both arms. Most will never know for sure. She prefers to wear men's wifebeaters beneath one of her father's old military jackets, which she has never been seen without - the inside pocket of which in which she conceals a dagger, in the event of an extremely sticky situation; an old par of tight black jeans, old Doc Martens and her hair generally pulled back and away from her face.
==Psychology==
Belladonna is a bit of a loner, of her own accord - she spends her nights listening to nature and writing by ambient light, and her mornings rising early to watch the dawn and practice her targetry. She's got the soul of a poet and appreciates beautiful things, especially since her family's death - therefore he avoids most people, because in a world like the one they currently live in, most beautiful things are grossly overlooked. However, she loves to laugh and discuss literature, art, and culture prior to the war's decimation of the world.
That isn't to say, though, that she gets along with the world at large. While a good-natured, good hearted woman, Belladonna has low tolerance for most survivalists, believing that they are Darwin's finest and therefore the best of the best, rather than the luckiest of the luckiest. She's got a horrible, fiery French temper when faced with these sorts of people, and has never been known to hesitate in the face of a fight with one. Though petite, she can hold his own in a fight, and is unafraid of pain. She's also very well educated, and fluent in French, Egyptian, and English.
==Biography==
Belladonna Devereaux Dresden was born in 1988 to a very well-to-do family in southeast England. Her father, of British and Celtic descent, was a high-ranking member of the british royal Navy, whereas her mother descended from a long line of since-debunct Egyptain royalty. She was trained in basic combat and weapons training as a young child, being the eldest of three young daughters, despite her father's desperate wishes for a son. She took the place of a son and was honed under her father's tutelage learning skill with guns, knives, and her favourite, archery. Her mother, however, demanded brilliance of her daughters and schooled them in various languages and arts, the written word and sewing being the only two that really stuck. Every night before bed, her parents read them Shakespeare by the light of the candles.
Up until the war began, she was an average teenager and young adult. She slacked off in school, rebelled and got piercings and tattoos without permission, and often got into all sorts of trouble. Unlike most 'proper' women of the age, Belladonna uses her body as a weapon whenever necessary - or, quite frankly, enjoyable. To do so, she learned early on that she must like her body in order to use it to her advantage. However, she remained quite close to her father, mother, and sisters Adelie and Cordelia up until their neighborhood became one of the first to be raided.After returning home one night from sneaking out, she discovered her entire family murdered, military execution-style, on their front walk. Wheshe was certain it was safe to re-enter, she raided her father's secret space under the floorboards, filled with his emergency supplies, of which she took his jacket, gasmask & thermos, - her mother's music box, of which she took the jewelled dagger she had always admired and a small copy of their latest family portrait, and her own secret stash - collecting her bow, quiver, sewingkit, knapsack, notebook, and a nearly full ballpoint pen.
In the five years since she narrowly escaped with her life, Belladonna has stayed in the shadows, having sex with those she would otherwise find repulsive to further her journey to rumoured communes. Bartering her body for food, fire, water, boarding, and whatever else she could get her hands on, she has finally made it to the Balcans, nearly dropping with exhaustion the moment she set foot in the commune.
==Other==
•Her personality is generally open - sunny and sultry, though she refuses to discuss her life before the war.
====+Equipment+====
==Weaponry==
She is never seen without her effects: an ornate jewel handled dagger emblazoned with the crest of some long since forgotten egyptian royalty & a lightweight child's bow and quiver filled with makeshift arrows.
==Shelter==
In a worn knapsack ,she carries a small wool blanket.
==Fire==
She can bowspin, a skill she has only honed in the last few years after having grown accustomed to using her bow whenever possible.
==Water==
• Old metal thermos.
==Misc==
•Her father's old gasmask, worn and nearly useless sewing kit, a collection of Shakespeare's greatest plays, and a leather-bound notebook in which she keeps meticulous track of her survival in miniscule, upside-down writing.