Tae

Tae was raised as Taeko, the daughter of two high-profile professors. She grew up with the pressure to be perfect pushing down on her since birth. She was considered a gifted student, so every teacher loved her and her robotic, joyless compliance with every rule and painfully boring cranking out of every assignment she was given and then some. Her parents would verbally and emotionally abuse her, reminding her that they only cared for her if she did everything perfectly in school. But even as she broke and lost all sense of happiness or mental stability, she was still a perfect student. Her only safe haven was her neighbor, Jacek, who was her best and only friend. She graduated as the valedictorian and moved far away for college, where her parents wouldn't be able to watch her all the time and where she could discover herself.

Over the summer, she stayed in her college town and got a summer job, but the workplace was raided by the Society of the 17th and she was taken hostage. She ended up being released by none other than... Jacek, who had become a member of the Society while Tae was away at college. She now lives with him and he takes care of her, helping her process the abuse she suffered and why she left her whole life behind while still carrying those toxic ideas with her. She legally changed her name to just Tae because she wanted to keep a part of herself while getting rid of the identity her parents forced upon her. Jacek supported her through all of that, and they're best friends again just like they used to be.