[Scorched Application]

[knowsaboutviscera]

Out of Character Information

player name: Val
player journal: lanoyee
playing here: N/A
where did you find us? Friends whispered your name to me. Loudly. There was flailing involved.
are you 16 years of age or older?: Yep.

In Character Information

character name: Dawn Summers
Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Timeline: Season 7, Episode 6, Him.
character's age: 16

powers, skills, pets and equipment: Dawn is by and large an average human and thus has no supernatural powers, outside of being able to do a very small bit of magic. It's not truly a skill, though, as she doesn't really develop it. The skill she focuses on is languages; she's learning Turkish and Ancient Sumerian in order to translate the books on demons and magic that the Scoobies use for research. She's no fighter, though she knows some martial arts basics and is resourceful enough to help herself out in a pinch. Oh, and she also used to be a ball of energy that could be used to tear down the walls between the dimensions, but that's all in the past now.

canon history: Hey, hey, Wiki.

personality: "No one understands. No one has an older sister who's a slayer."

That lone sentence is something Dawn says within the first few scenes she shows up and does a good job of summing up large parts of her character. She's the younger sister of Buffy Summers, and that alone defines her life greatly. For one thing, there's the typical sibling rivalry; with Dawn feeling a bit like she's under Buffy's shadow sometimes and feeling a need to find her own place in life. Especially seeing as Buffy has supernatural powers. This juxtaposes just excellently with Dawn's youthful powerlessness and puts it into sharp relief, much more so than the average sibling relationship would. When Buffy runs into the forces of darkness, she will come out alive out of her own power (most of the time; more on that later). When Dawn does the same, she has to be saved. Especially if said forces are after her specifically. Thus it follows that Dawn spends a lot of time trying to attain at least some modicum of power or skill for herself. She keeps begging to be allowed to research with the Scoobies and sneaking out at night to walk the streets by herself.

Her hate of feeling helpless is especially strong when it concerns her loved ones. After they lose their mother, and after Buffy herself dies and is brought back to life, Dawn is deeply afraid of losing those dear to her. It results in a certain amount of need for attention. During Season 6, Dawn is constantly trying to keep her family, both by blood and design, near to her and constantly vying for their affection. She develops a habit of stealing born out of these feelings, and is deeply upset when Tara, whom she's come to regard as a mother figure, moves out of the house.

In Season 7, finally, Dawn starts actually getting into research. She seems to really enjoy it. We hear that she's been teaching herself Turkish and Ancient Sumerian, and she excitedly talks about even the more gruesome details of monster research. Not squeamish, this one. Certainly, life as the Slayer's sister has taught her a few things; she's resourceful and quick-witted. Generally, she's very intelligent and picks up new skills quickly, and has professed a love for books and learning early on. This is notably something she doesn't have in common with Buffy, so it's not surprising that this is what she chooses as "her thing" -- both as something that will be her very own, separate thing to do and establish her own identity and as something only she can do and thus contribute to the group. It seems to mean a lot to her to be able to be part of Buffy's life like that. Before, Buffy largely lived her life away from Dawn, which didn't do great things for Dawn's fear of losing her.

Not to mention that her whole existence was why Buffy died in the first place. Seeing as Dawn was originally something called the Key, which a hell-god named Glory was after. At first, learning that she wasn't even human and had, at the time, existed for barely six months weighed heavily on Dawn, but she managed to mostly accept it rather quickly, as she and everyone around her decided it didn't matter where she came from. After the defeat of Glory, Dawn's origin has little bearing on her life. Still, it is part of her and the pain from that year will always be with her. It speaks to her emotional strength and adaptability that she's come out of it (and the following year) relatively stable and confident.

As a person, Dawn is enthusiastic, curious and energetic and often awkward in a very teenage way, in that it often involves trying to be cooler and/or wiser than she is yet. A lot of smartassing is guaranteed, as well as pretending to be superior and have the upper hand always. When she meets you, she will either like you or not, and her first impression will determine her attitude towards you, barring drastic changes. She has a fierce temper and is sometimes a little lacking in sensitivity. Her faible for the morbid will lead to her spouting gruesome trivia in inopportune moments. If she's holding a grudge, she knows how to wield her words effectively and say pointedly hurtful or intimidating things. She's a bit of a romantic and, as not so unusual in kids her age, thinks about boys a lot. Despite striving for independence, she's still in need of parental figures and their guidance and affection. She seeks this in Willow and Tara for a while, as well as Giles or a friend's mother.

why do you feel this character would be appropriate to the setting? Big ball of energy. Once almost killed to tear down the walls between the dimensions. Has been attacked and kidnapped by demons any number of times. She'll deal.

Writing Samples

Network Post Sample:
[video]

[There's a skeptically raised eyebrow adorning this face that is peering into the camera.]

Is this still Sunnydale? [Pause.] Yeah, I didn't think so.

[And a roll of the eyes.] Can I be directed to whoever's in charge here, please? I'd like to get un-kidnapped soon.

[Finally, an addition, muttered to herself:]

So maybe I'll be grounded for only half my life.

Third Person Sample:

Okay, so this thing where she was in one place and then found herself somewhere else entirely? She'd so not gotten used to that yet. Which might have had to do with the teeny fact that she never woke up somewhere that clearly wasn't Sunnydale. Usually, it was just kidnappings to the Bronze or wherever. And how sad was it that she could just recite this as a Fact Of Life? She needed to grow up and become a badass normal vampire hunter, stat. Maybe she'd even get to save Buffy's ass for once. Dawn couldn't wait for that day and the face Buffy would make.

For now, though, she was on her own, and in a place she didn't recognize. Not in the least bit intimidating, nope. Dawn took a deep breath and told herself to stay calm as she inspected her surroundings. She was lying in a bed, that much was clear, as much as that it wasn't her own. The room was foreign and sparsely furnished. Looked kinda rustic. No hint of the pastels she'd been surrounded with at home. It also looked impersonal, as if no one really lived here. A bit like a hotel room.

Okay, so whatever demon had kidnapped her had a thing for hotels? Or maybe this was a demon dimension and she was in a demon hotel. Or a posh demon world prison. At least the accomodations weren't too shabby and she couldn't even see any bars in front of the windows or anything. That was nice on the one hand, but could mean anything from "you'll be eaten anyway" to "I want my future bride to be comfortable" on the other.

Well. Suffice to say Dawn was anything but. Swallowing, she swung her feet off the clean, orderly sheets onto the floor and went about getting better acquainted with her surroundings. Maybe there was something here she could use, as a weapon or otherwise.

She'd be okay.

Anything else? Not that I know of!