Muireann

Born to a close-knit family of Vaikis, Muireann lived most of her childhood on the family boat off the coast of Ireland, calling the ocean her home as much as the land. Splashing in the waves with her big sister, catching fish with her father, enjoying the salt air with her mother... from her hatching, the sea was a part of her.

But lovely though the ocean could be, she learned at a young age that it was also a powerful, fickle force. Caught up in a sudden storm, their family boat was destroyed, and Muireann nearly drowned. Her family was never found, and presumed dead.

With no other relatives to turn to, Muireann shortly found herself in an orphanage, one of many children from multiple species. Traumatized by her loss, she struggled with approaching others, too afraid of losing anyone else to let herself get attached. She also developed a phobia of the ocean she once called home, torn between her fear and a craving for the life she used to know.

It was one day, when she was trying again in vain to overcome her fears, that she met Lir, who approached her as if from nowhere. Sensing her pain, he offered to bring her with him to his home, believing she could overcome her past and move forward in a world of safety and joy and warmth - And assuring her that, if she didn't wish to stay, she could come and go freely. With little hesitation, she took his paw and let him lead her away, Lir humming a tune he learned as a child.

Muireann soon found herself torn between lives and worlds - Between the land and sea, between mortality and magic. Idir cósta, idir cléibh - Idir mé is idir mé féin.