"𝕋𝕣𝕦𝕤𝕥 𝕚𝕤𝕤𝕦𝕖𝕤 𝕒𝕣𝕖 𝕛𝕦𝕤𝕥 𝕒 𝕤𝕚𝕕𝕖 𝕖𝕗𝕗𝕖𝕔𝕥 𝕠𝕗 𝕜𝕟𝕠𝕨𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕓𝕖𝕥𝕥𝕖𝕣"

𝙍𝙤𝙡𝙚- 

Eat the Rich

𝙉𝙖𝙢𝙚- 

Wilhelmina Alista Verndari-Devnear

But she just goes by Wila (why-la)

𝘼𝙜𝙚- 

25

𝙂𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧-

Female

𝙎𝙚𝙭𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮-

Straight

𝙁𝙖𝙘𝙚𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙞𝙢-

Cenit Nadir

𝙋𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮-

It can certainly be said that her family's situation has had a profound effect on the person she has grown to be. Wila is as assertive and no-nonsense as they come, used to being a voice of leadership and common sense. She knows just what to say and when to properly motivate or threaten others (especially her younger siblings) to do as she asks. Those who know her in passing would disagree whole-heartedly, but Wila can be quite charismatic when she wants to be, and there's nothing to her quite like convincing a tantrum-throwing toddler to use that frustration in sowing seeds instead. It can be said that she likes to order people around when she gets the chance.

Wila isn't one for smiling at strangers- in fact, her natural countenance seems to consistently be the opposite. While her heritage may have given her good breeding and looks, her prickly and uninterested personality paired with her usually ragged and fatigued appearance have turned around more than one boy looking her way. A friendly hello or goofy pick-up line would usually just grant them one of her famous deadpan looks. Perhaps if she had the time or energy to spare the feelings around her she would, but as it stands, even common courtesy is a privilege she doesn't have if she wants to keep her family fed. The faster she can get one task done, the quicker she can move onto the next, and a boyfriend has never been on her docket.

She isn't entirely apathetic, however. Wila has a sixth sense for knowing exactly when and what is bothering someone, and is persistent, gentle, and, at times, even goofy enough to cheer them up. She's just good at listening to people. Whether she decides to or not is up to her- she tends to be more awkward with strangers, as Wila has been fairly confined to her family and farm her whole life.

She missed her childhood in a whirlwind of early responsibility and independence, and Wila's convinced that her inner child is either dormant or dead. Wila has had to mature quickly- by the age of six, she sold all of her toys to buy more diapers for her baby brother. She practically lives and breathes for her siblings, desperate to provide for them and give them better opportunities than she got- it made her resentful at some points in the past, knowing that she could never live her own life because she had to take care of the farm, her siblings, and eventually her parents, but she's made her peace with it. Wila loves her siblings too much to blame them for a situation out of their control.

There may not be a more hard-working or determined girl in the whole kingdom than Wila- teaching herself to run a farm at age ten is no simple task, especially while taking on the jobs of a full-time nanny. Wila can push through damn near anything, and has never cracked even in the family's most desperate times, days they've had to gnaw on bark bread to silence their protesting stomachs. She's the rock her siblings cling to, and so she's never been able to show the fear and desperation that torments her. Wila just narrows her eyes and gets to work.

Wila tends to hold herself at a higher standard than she expects from anyone else around her. A failure in the crops feels like a personal failure in her ability to provide for her family, and the crying of a heartsick sister or injured brother makes her feel like a failure of a protector and older sister. There's been so much pressure on her since the moment her first brother was born that she doesn't quite know how to live without it- Wila is wound up so tight she's bound to snap soon. She's on a path of self-destruction that even the begging of her eleven siblings can't get her to take a step back off of. Wila needs to take action and be in control, or else she's convinced everything will turn to ruin.

Wila was let down by her parents early in life, and learned that she could trust no one but herself with her expectations. She finds it difficult even to confide in her siblings, never mind a stranger. Her secrets are kept close to her chest, and she would rather they strangle her than be set free. She's clever and a quick-learner, which had helped her determine long ago that strangers couldn't be trusted- even if her family had fallen far, they still had land, which was a lot more than most. This made her family unprepared for the life of farmers and rich in name and heirlooms, targets for scamming and theft. Wila had only gotten through it by deciding no stranger was to be trusted. 

On the rare days that she loosens up a bit, its found that she has a dark and dry sense of humor, stemming from her ability to read people like a book. She's figured out a lot about relationships and psychology from the necessity of determining how to deescalate arguments and fix problems before they pop up. Considering that there are almost seven teenagers currently in the house, Wila is practically a part-time therapist.

𝙇𝙞𝙠𝙚𝙨-

sunsets

It may be hard work to maintain the amount of land they own, but she can see the beauty in it as well. They only time Wila really lets herself breathe is at the end of a hard day's work, watching the sky as it bleeds and fills with light over a rippling wheat field. It's picturesque and rewarding to look out at the beauty that she and her siblings had helped create.

animals

From the biggest horse to the tiniest ducklings, she has a soft-spot for all creatures on her farm and beyond. Wila is one of those girls who scoops up the spider so she can dump him safely back outside, even if she claims she just does it to hear her brother Evander's screams. There's a gentleness inside of her that's difficult to see, but comes out when she's with those more vulnerable than her.

her siblings

She has a strong bond with all of them, and has been called mama more times than she can count. Nothing matters more to her than their happiness, and she would do anything to protect them. Wila has a different relationship with every single one of them, and loves to check up on and talk to her sisters or race her brothers. The closest she gets to letting her hair down is when playing with her siblings, but even then she knows she always has to be the responsible one.

singing

Every time her mother seeks her out it seems to be a check into her 'singing progress,' and Juliana has always told her that it will be her voice that makes her the belle of any ball. Seeing as she wasn't going to attend any balls in the near future, Wila is content using her voice to soothe animals, sing her baby siblings to sleep, or pass time in the field as she works. Wila loves to sing, and it's somewhat of a stress reliever for her. She also enjoys the awe it creates on the faces of little Verndari-Devnears, and the colour it brings to the house when others join in and the little ones dance. Singing is the only levity she has in an otherwise heavy life.

𝘿𝙞𝙨𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚𝙨-

unaccountably/ irresponsibility

This can mostly be traced back to her parents, who like to pretend they're still nobles who's problems will just disappear one day because they aren't peasants. No man who has a family should ignore their plights in favour of getting drunk every morning to forget about it, no mother should take money meant to fill her child's belly to buy herself a new pair of shoes, and no ten-year old should have to roll up her sleeves to keep the family alive when two able-bodied parents are around. Her parents have given her a front row seat into how spoiled nobility could be after growing up in the lap of luxury, and she hates to think that the same sort of irresponsible people run her kingdom.

hot days

The only thing worse than tilling a field is doing it under a burning sun. Wila is closer to irritation and frustration on days that are hot and humid, and her siblings have learned to steer clear of her on such days, lest the fire of the sun stoke her temper- they all have a healthy amount of fear of Wila's fury.

the suffering of others

While staying somewhat isolated on her farm, the moment she goes into town to buy supplies or sell her wares, she can't help but see the suffering of others even less fortunate then her. The homeless line the streets and far too skinny children would pick-pocket for their next meal, and the sight always invoked intense despair in her, though she never gives any outward sign of it. Wila saved her siblings and she wants to save everyone else too, but the practical side of her knows there's nothing she can do, to keep her head down and move on to focus on her family.

𝙃𝙤𝙗𝙗𝙞𝙚𝙨-

horseback riding

Wila doesn't have a lot of time for hobbies, but she loves to ride the family horse, Astrid, when she has the chance. She only bought the horse to help with tilling the fields, but her mother had been overjoyed and insisted on teaching her to ride like a court lady. When Juliana was focused on something, she couldn't be distracted or deterred until she carried it out, so Wila spent a boring afternoon coached by her mother to ride sidesaddle on a rotting saddle the old owners of the farm had left. However, once her mother was satisfied and Wila rode back to the stables astride, she found she quite liked the feeling. She has since bonded with Astrid, uses her to travel to town, and taught her siblings to ride.

𝙈𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙢𝙨- 

- she becomes very still when she's fighting a particularly strong emotion, like anger or hopelessness

- when working hard, she'll either hum or sing, and she isn't always aware she's doing it

- she bites her nails when she's anxious or stressed, although she's tried to break the habit multiple times

- if she doesn't want to be bothered, she'll keep her gaze resolutely fixed on the distance, sometimes unblinkingly

𝙒𝙚𝙖𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙨-

ignores herself

She's so focused on helping and fixing other people that she can't help herself become better. Wila doesn't really see herself as someone who has a purpose in anything except the care taking of the farm and family- she'd long ago dismissed her own passions and trifle hobbies. Building her own identity around who she is for others isn't exactly healthy.

uneducated

Wila knows little about politics or about much of what happens outside of her farm and the surrounding community, and has never had the opportunity to learn. Any books the family had were promptly sold, and her father wasn't interested in educating her or even her brothers in politics, finances, or anything else he had learned in his youth. The only form of education she received was from her mother, who found it of the utmost importance to teach all of her children etiquette and other things Wila considers useless. She hates that this makes her feel dumb and unintelligent.

depends only on herself

Wila is practically allergic to asking for help, and trusts no one for important tasks but herself. It's hard to break the habit, and while she is surrounded by siblings that love her and want to help, Wila is still the oldest who everyone looks up to, and there's some things she just can't talk to them about. Wila distances herself from them somewhat, feeling that she has to shield them from any heartache coming their way. It could be said that she baby's them a bit too much.

uptight

Wila's downtime is little to non-existent, and her mind is always racing with the next tasks that have to be completed and things that need to be done. She honestly just doesn't know how to let go of all responsibility and have reckless fun. There's always a problem that needs to be fixed- she'd rather go searching for it rather than do nothing.

𝙎𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙩𝙝𝙨- 

adaptable

Throw her into practically any situation and Wila will find a way to adapt and even thrive. She was born into a terrible situation, a step away from poverty, but has managed to create steady business for her family through her cleverness and resourcefulness. Wila taught herself every important thing she knows, and is observant and flexible enough to calmly assess and create an action plan for even the most deadly situations. 

leadership

Wila is very used to being the one people depend on and turn to for answers, and she has a natural ability to get people to cooperate and focus. She's commanding and assertive in a way that's motivating as opposed to bossy. Farming is a cooperative job, and Wila is able to delegate fairly in order to get everything done efficiently.

determination

Wila isn't one to give up easily, even if she can't see success anywhere in her near future. She's more practical than optimistic, but even when facing terrible odds, she doesn't let herself consider failure. Wila's tenacity and fierce determination has helped her survive all these years.

𝙁𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙨- 

her siblings suffering

Throughout her life, Wila has been determined to take the brunt of any pain the family has been dealt so her siblings don't have to. The time her father didn't return for three days, Wila was the one who went out to town looking for him. She found him drunk out of his mind and half-unconscious from a brawl in an alleyway, muttering about all the brats he didn't want and the girl he should have married years ago instead. Wila is the one who cleaned him up and pretended that having a father who didn't want or love her didn't hurt, and who told all of her siblings that he had just been away on a spur-of-the-moment trading deal.

not being needed anymore

Her whole life had been spent in the service of those she loves, and she doesn't know what she'll do when all her siblings become self-sufficient and don't need her anymore. Wila doesn't know how to live only for herself, and it scares her that one day she may have to.

𝘽𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙜𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙-

"𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕤𝕜𝕪'𝕤 𝕘𝕠𝕟𝕟𝕒 𝕙𝕦𝕣𝕥 𝕨𝕙𝕖𝕟 𝕚𝕥 𝕗𝕒𝕝𝕝𝕤, 𝕤𝕠 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕓𝕖𝕥𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕣𝕥 𝕓𝕦𝕚𝕝𝕕𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕤𝕠𝕞𝕖 𝕨𝕒𝕝𝕝𝕤."

Both the Verndari and Devnear families had stood as lesser nobles for centuries, tentatively amassing power, wealth, and favour with the royal family. Wila's family tree had been gilded in gold for centuries, but everything changed the year that the current King rose to status. Juliana and Ademar had just had an arranged marriage, and were still too young to actively taking part in politics or finances. Ademar had grown up learning the basics from tutors, along with poetry, public speaking, and music, and was meant to mostly learn from his father in years to come before eventually taking over. Unfortunately, he died of a heart-attack not long after the young couple's honeymoon. Ademar became the new patriarch of the Devnear family, but with his uncles and cousins overseas, he was ill-equipped to deal with their family's precarious position with a new greedy King. Their taxes were crippling, as they were rich enough for taxes to be a big portion of their income, yet not wealthy enough or close enough to the King to benefit immunity. Soon after, the Verndari family, who were in a similar situation, decided to move into another kingdom to avoid bankruptcy- but Ademar was stubborn and arrogant, and his family stayed.

For seven years, things slowly got worse and worse, and Juliana's lavish lifestyle that spoke of denial didn't help matters. They'd had to move to a poorer district years before, but it was still a large house- one that was the target of robbers. One managed to clumsily break in one night, while a five-year old Wila went downstairs to see what was making the noise. He pulled a knife on her and forced her to show him the family's safe. She managed to save some of the money, but most was gone. Wila was terrified, her parents were furious, and they had to move once again. This time her father made the decision to buy some land, as they had to start making money once again. He convinced a hysterical Juliana that it would be like owning an estate where farmhands would be doing all the labour- but that only lasted five more years before the money ran out. Wila looked around her at the parents she admired like only a child could, and saw a mother in denial, still acting and dressed as if she'd be invited to the next ball, and a father who was convinced he was a failure, drinking away his emotions rather than face them. Wila realized her family was slowly dying, and no one was doing anything about it- so she decided to step up.

Wila started skipping out on her mother's etiquette lessons to head to the field where she wouldn't follow, pulling weeds and preparing the ground in the same way she'd always seen the farmhands. When she couldn't figure out how to do something, she'd sneak over to the next farm over and watch how they tended to the crops. She'd walk into town and buy seeds, then stay longer to watch the process of another farmer selling their harvest. It was really hard, but Wila knew that the alternative of letting her, her parents, Max, Anna, Jul, and baby Evander starve was far worse. It was a rocky start, and no one wanted to buy from a child, but she managed to convince her father to take a break from his pity-party to make the sales for her. 

Noble families were typically large to ensure the bloodline would carry through while providing multiple opportunities to make an advantageous marriage, and Juliana had always wanted a big family. Oddly enough, Juliana seemed more happy when she was pregnant than when she wasn't, although she liked to enjoy the cute and fun parts of having a child while ignoring the dirtier and tougher parts- these she dumped on Wila, as she would have done a nanny. Juliana has twelve children, but has not changed one diaper in her whole life (they could still afford a nanny when Wila was a baby). Wila had no choice but to take care of them, and her siblings would often follow her like ducklings as she went through her morning chores, teaching them how to be a family of farmers. Juliana would typically ignore them until struck by boredom or a deep need to dress them up or teach them the finer points of court life.

𝙁𝙖𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙮-

Ademar Maximus Devnear (49)- father

Juiliana Cortez Verndari-Devnear (46)- mother

Maximus Merrick Vendari-Devnear (21)- brother

Anna-maria Elise Verndari-Devnear (19)- sister 

Julius Franco Verndari-Devnear (17)- brother

Evander Winston Vernari-Devnear (15)- brother

Elizabeth Juliana Verndari-Devnear (14)- sister

Augustine Bianca Verndari-Devnear (14)- sister

Isobella Ernesta Verndari-Devnear (14)- sister

Shanelle Angelique Verndari-Devnear (12)- sister

Filius Tyrus Verndari-Devnear (8)- brother

Lilabelle Arwen Verndari-Devnear (6)- sister

Elliot Fernando Verndari-Devnear (3)- brother

𝙏𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙣 𝙎𝙚𝙡𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣-

It hadn't occupied more than a moment in her mind the day it was announced except to decide to steer clear of her mother until the whole affair was over. Unfortunately, her mother had eagerly signed her and her brother Max up (no matter that he already had a boyfriend), desperately optimistic that the event would 'save' their family from ruin. Wila hadn't time to deal with her mothers delusions, and didn't have the energy to stop her- besides, what were the chances that one of them got picked? 

Really good, apparently. Juliana's joy could only have been rivaled by Wila's panic, and though Max assured her that the farm and everyone would be well taken care of, and that she should let herself have a little fun in a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, Wila couldn't help imagining everything that could go wrong while she was gone. Sure, Max knew plenty, but he wasn't as good at thinking on his feet as Wila was, and had never been given Wila's level of responsibility before. There was another, unvoiced reason that she didn't want to participate as well- what if she liked being pampered and catered to for once? Soft noble blood flowed through her, and she didn't want to know what she was missing, didn't want to periodically sob in front of the last vanity mirror left in the house like her mother did. Wila didn't think it would be easy to come back to the dirty, poor lifestyle that was all she'd ever known after being pampered in the palace.