Nora Trelawney - Eternus Infinuum

Character Information

Character Name: Nora Trelawney

Codename: Lemur

Aliases: None.

Date of Birth: October 30.

Age: 22.

Occupation: Hospital janitor and nursery volunteer

Current Residence: Chicago, having recently moved from Waukegan, Illinois.

Allies: None she knows of.

Enemies: No personal enemies.

Relatives & Relationships:

Mother - Bess Trelawney, dead at age 40, attributed to advanced lymphatic cancer
Father - Arthur Trelawney, dead at age 45, attributed to complications from lung cancer
Sister - Kiera Singer, dead at age 28, attributed to acute radiation poisoning
Brother in law - Matt Singer, dead at age 29, attributed to acute radiation poisoning
Niece - Katherine (Kitty) Singer, age 7, currently living with Matt's parents

Race: Homo sapiens superior. Fizzy. Mutant.

Physical Description: Nora stands at a wiry five foot five, with a faintly hourglass figure evident in wide hips and a decent sized chest. A slew of cinnamon and cayenne freckles compliment shoulder-length curly fiery red hair and berry-stain red lips, the latter of which are often pursed in a flirtatious manner. A heart-shaped face complete with dimples adds to her younger-than-she-is appearance, something that's proven to be both a blessing and a curse. Eyes are large and expressive, with pale lashes and equally pale eyebrows. Her earlobes have fused to the skin at the curve of her lower jaw, the smooth lines elongating her face just a bit. Long fingers that could have been perfect for classic piano only help in her occasional pickpocketing. Nora's voice is high-pitched, a chirping soprano that is sometimes accompanied by laughter, but lends itself to a soft whisper of a cry when she simply can't keep up the happiness. Nora loves bright colors and tends to dress in layers, and often wears sunglasses to hide her eyes during the days. When she's working at night, she'll tuck her tail into a leg of her baggy pants and cover her ears with either a knitted stocking cap or a hooded sweatshirt.

Distinguishing Features: Nora's eyes were once grey-green, testament to her Irish mother and so many of her Foley ancestors. After her mutation, they brightened to a near-neon color, the pupils engulfing all but a thin ring of sour-apple-green. A third eyelid of a sort also formed, akin to a nictating membrane, that allowed Nora to protect her now overly light-sensitive eyes from normal daylight. The membrane is opaque and always oozes a clear sticky liquid, something that Nora self-consciously keeps in check with a brightly-colored hanky. Her upper and lower canines are slightly sharper than normal, another side effect of her mutation. The lobes of her ears have grown into the side of her jaw, with a soft sheen of extra-fine red hair covering the tops. Finally, her coccyx has enlongated to accomodate a three-foot long tail that is covered in a similar soft red fur.

Superhuman Abilities: Nora has superdeveloped sight, her mutation allowing her to see in extremely dark areas as well as a normal person might see in daylight. With this mutation, Nora's eyes have become exceptionally sensitive to sunlight. As such, she has developed an opaque nictating membrane that covers the surface of her eye during the day or in bright situations. Her agility is also striking, and she can literally 'spring' to a height of five feet without a running start.

Personality: Sweet, optimistic, flirtatious, and so perky you might want to smack her. Yes, you've met Nora. Nora's the kind of person whose default expression isn't just a contented smile, it's an all-out ear-to-ear grin accompanied by laughter. With a bit of sarcasm, a lot of wit, and a smattering of above-average intelligence, Nora is able to provide intellectual humor as well as her usual playfulness and benign tickling attacks.

That's only when she's out in public, though. Unfortunately, Nora keeps most of her past and associated demons tucked away from the rest of the world. When everything began to collapse back home in Waukegan, Nora refused to give herself time to grieve. She had parents to bury and a niece to console, and Nora convinced herself that sitting at the window listlessly was selfish and unnecessary. Besides, it would have upset Kitty to see her in that state. So, Nora learned to put on a big smile, wipe her eyes, and focus on other people in order to avoid returning to herself and her own fears, worries, and burdens. She only allowed herself time to cry at night, and even then, she would often fall asleep before any real catharsis could begin. She'd work herself tired to avoid thinking about her family, throwing herself headlong into other people's problems to occupy her mind. Perhaps that's why she took to the nursery so quickly; babies needed attention and love and happiness. With something that perfect and innocent in her arms, Nora couldn't help but forget everything that had happened since the summer at her aunt's house.

There are times when it becomes too much to handle, and Nora simply has to let it all out. She'll lock herself in a room or pull the covers over her head, and cry silently until she's too weak to do more than sleep. She'll always apologize afterwards, returning to the same sunny disposition. She'll never tell anyone about her 'episodes,' as she still feels guilty about needing to fall apart every one in a while to make things come together again.

About those tickling attacks (and 'back to the happiness,' as Nora might say). Nora is a touchy-feely sort of person, thriving on hugs and other forms of contact. Nora flits from activity to activity, always devoting herself fully to her tasks but coming across as hyperactive. To those who tend to their work with reserve and dogged determination, Nora might appear to have little less dedication or work ethic. Don't let the bubbliness fool you, though. She's got no less heart or smarts compared to the quieter souls she works with. In fact, you can see the energy in her willingness to run errands for people at night or take an extra shift. She has an inherent want and need to help, that's all. If she didn't try to help, she'd have to deal with herself... and Nora's not about to tackle that when other people have bigger hurts (at least, in her eyes).

Nora is an empathetic little soul. She cries when her friends are hurt, laughs when they're happy, and gets angry when she sees them mistreated. While it's hard for Nora to carry a grudge, she manages to nitpick at those people who have offended her "good" friends. She is a firm believer in sincere apologies, something that she stresses among her charges when she's around the pediatric ward. Saying 'sorry' isn't good enough in Nora's eyes; you've got to act like it and truly want to fix what you've messed up or whom you've hurt.

Presented with an obstacle, Nora's initial plan of attack is to find the good parts, and then see how those new pieces can help to break down what's in the way. She has a default "I love everyone" mentality that will only change if that person deliberately hurts someone she holds dear. Hurting her, well... Nora's awfully forgiving when it comes to situations where her feelings get poked. She might lash out or cry a bit, but she'll almost always come back and try to be friends again. When it comes to helping people cope with their own unique challenges, Nora tones down her perkiness and becomes a shoulder to cry on, willing to offer hugs or even some of her carefully hidden peanut-butter on cheese crackers for consoling. Nora sees her well-being as secondary; she knows she's a survivor, so she'll be fine. It's you she'll worry about.

Weaknesses: Nora's eyes are extremely sensitive to ultraviolet light to the point that the surface of her eyes could burn if unprotected. She is also allergic to mold, so penicillin is a no-no. Dank and poorly ventilated areas make her head hurt and bring on nausea, so she just needs to stay out in the open, and keep her living quarters clean. As mentioned, she'll put her emotional well-being second, and that's not always a good thing.

Special Skills: Nora gives great hugs, the kind that can make you feel warm and fuzzy from the inside out. She's extremely flexible (as in, ankles behind her head with minimal stretching) courtesy of a childhood love for gymnastics. Most importantly, she has a knack for dealing with children. Having raised her niece since Kitty's toddler years, Nora understands little ones and has unfailing patience with babbling explanations.

History: Nora was born in Waukegan, Illinois, the child of a steel mill worker and a high school chemistry teacher. She grew up in a blue-collar neighborhood, both sets of grandparents living close enough for after-school snacks and Sunday night dinners. When news of the war reached the town outside Chicago, Nora remembered her father's relief. War meant that the steel mill would be in full operation, which meant extra shifts and more money. Such an attitude from a hardworking man made a definite impression on Nora, who followed her father's example and made it a point to find the good side of any seemingly bad situation.

With public schools closed, Bess began to operate a school of sorts from the house for the children in the neighborhood. She refused to take money for doing what she saw as a community necessity, only accepting donations for supplies and the frequent frozen casserole to provide lunch to the kids who came to the house. Nora and Kiera learned alongside their friends and cousins at home, immensely proud of their parents. It was a sheltered childhood, to be sure, but it was full of love and encouragement. Considering the times, the Trelawney girls were extremely lucky.

An aunt had a house on Lake Michigan where the family would spend a few weeks each summer. Both girls took to the water immediately, playing for hours under the August sun. Unfortunately, the shoreline had been the site of a carefully covered-up chemical spill, courtesy of a ferry that had overturned and Karl and Tracy executives who didn't need any more bad press in the smaller communities. The only signs of trouble came years later, when the steel mill production had ground to a halt for lack of able-bodied workers and Bess' sister Colleen suffered numerous miscarriages, her body unable to sustain more than her own life.

When Nora hit puberty, she began having serious difficulty seeing during the day. Her eyes would become cloudy and the headaches would be unbearable. Rather than sit through the tutoring sessions with her mother, she could only lie in her room, a dark towel over her face to keep the light away. While Nora suffered headaches, her father coughed nonstop and her mother complained of achiness. Kiera, so one would think, had escaped whatever had plagued the rest of her family.

Nora saw Kiera's tiny wedding through dark sunglasses, her eyes and the rest of her body completely mutated by the time she turned fifteen. Nora's playful teasing that Matt and Kiera would be parents sooner than later proved true, and the pair had Katherine ten months later. Nora's nocturnal lifestyle proved a godsend, as she thought nothing of taking care of her niece during the wee hours while mom and dad slept.

Years passed. Both parents succumbed to cancer within a year of each other, and Nora pretended that everything would be fine. Even though the hospital wouldn't release the bodies, and even though she had to move in with her sister and her family in Chicago, Nora pretended that everything was fine. She found solace in her niece and their late-night games of hide and seek. She found odd jobs at night, doing cleaning at St. Luke's and volunteering in the nursery there. Nora woke the moment the sun went down and collapsed in her bed just before ten AM each day, exhausted and unable to afford herself any time to grieve, or even think.

Kiera and Matt had been doing odd jobs as well, the latest one involving a day shift at a warehouse in northern Chicago. Radioactive waste stored in barrels was transported out of the city daily, the job falling to the drifters and the needy who would work for a few dollars and not complain about the smell or the lack of light. An accident involving a disgruntled supervisor, a sawed off shotgun, and a cannister of sludge resulted in an explosion that mercifully killed Matt on site. Kiera suffered for another week, finally slipping away to join Matt and her parents under a heavy dose of morphine. Unable to keep up the facade she'd clung to for five years, Nora approached Matt's family and asked them to look after Kitty. Apologizing over and over when they came to take the seven year old girl to Evanston, Nora maintained a somewhat-stoic expression until they left. Once alone in the Singers' tiny apartment, she sank into an abyss of grief, tears, and blame that had been growing ever since her mother's death four years prior.

She managed to go back to the hospital in three days' time, back to her usual schedule of basic janitorial duties during the third shift. Since Kitty left, Nora spends all of her time at the hospital. She manages to go home to eat and sleep and change clothes, but her nonworking hours are usually spent in the nursery or playing in the pediatrics ward with the younger children. It forces her to be happy and playful no matter the situation and it allows her to feel useful. Most importantly, it keeps Nora from feeling empty.