Ae-cha Chou

For the longest time, Ae-cha was just a simple child who came and went as it wished to in the sacred shrine grounds of the Soul Kingdom. She lived in an orphanage, and while she was a rather easy child to take care of, whenever the caretakers looked away, Ae-cha would often be found wandering. It'd be fine though, since she would always return to the orphanage before evening settled in.

However, this did not keep her from wandering further out. And one fateful day, the thing that happened to catch her attention was a nearby ship settling at the dock, with people bustling all around. Curiosity gripped her, and the next thing she knew, she was already trying to sneak onto the ship. By the time the ship departed, Ae-cha was tucked safely between some quilts, undetected by anyone. The quilts could be lifted juuuust a bit around her eyes, so she'd have a view of the ocean whenever she wanted to. And given the weather was warm and sunny, it seemed that the crew had no need for the quilts just yet. The sun beams warmed her nicely, and the fresh ocean breeze was one she hadn't experienced like this before.

But before much time passed, the weather changed quite suddenly. The sun hid behind layers upon layers of clouds, and darkness began to brew around the ship. Ocean waves that felt gentle and guiding suddenly became harsh and striking, rocking the ship from side to side as if wanting it to flip over. Flip over, it did not - but the momentum of being pushed to the side made the quilts skitter to the corner of the ship, some going overboard and splashing into the raging waves. Amongst those quilts was Ae-cha, a young teenager who hadn't quite understood what was happening to her, until the sea swallowed her whole.

She'd never felt this heavy in her whole life. Even as she struggled, the water gathered around her and pulled her deeper, deeper... until her consciousness faded. For a moment, though, she opened her eyes to catch a breath - finding herself above the waves, being carried through the sea by something. Was she on the back of this thing? Before she could figure it out, her eyes fell to a close yet again, her small body reaching its limits.

…
..
.

"Oh God. Such a frail thing- Come here, come here-"

The next thing she woke up to was a gentle voice speaking to someone near her. Wet sand clung to her body, some digging into her skin and making her come back to her senses fully. Ae-cha coughed up sea water, feeling a warm hand firmly pat her back while another kept her posture steady. People had gathered around her, including a pair of elderly women, who ended up taking her in. Wrapped tightly in loose fabrics, one of them ran their fingers through her damp hair, asking her for her name. But she didn't have one, she was just an orphan after all. One that didn't even know how she came to be.

Ae-cha remembered that she especially liked being at shrine grounds.
She remembered the playful giggling of children, followed by soft scolding from adults.
She remembered the sea breeze blowing into the heavy quilts, she remembered how that gentle breeze suddenly changed to a striking and sharp gust of wind.

But she didn't remember where exactly she came from, and Ae-cha doubts that she ever really knew the name of the village. It was just a place to be at, not quite something like a home, after all.

And so the two women named her Ae-cha Chou and gave her a place to call home.

"What do you like to eat, Ae-cha?"

"Mm... berries. And nuts. And... fruits."

"Alright, my dear."

Ae-jeong Kim and Se-ri Chou were an elderly couple living together. Two women who had spent their entire life together, now willing to extend their shared warmth and love towards her. Ae-cha got to learn the taste of different kinds of berries and fruit, sometimes even of an absolutely luxurious treat called "chocolate".

Se-ri's family had originated from the Sun Empire, a marriage between two people coming from much different islands. It however led to her honoring the shrines of the Sun Empire as much as she honored the ones of the Soul Kingdom, and thus her family lineage had always had a strong connection to both. With several priests and priestesses coming out of the Chou family, Ae-cha was given teachings of spiritual worship and shown the proper ways to honor the Legendaries; with the end goal of her becoming a priestess as well.

During those years, she quickly picked up on the duties of being a priestess. An apprentice at first, a young shrine maiden at best, Ae-cha worked her way up until she'd finally become a fully-fledged priestess.

It was during this time that she was taken along to deal with a malicious spirit. The confrontation was meant to aid her in her final steps, however both her and Se-ri had heavily miscalculated the wrath of the malign spirit. A roaring fire broke out, and Ae-cha ushered Se-ri to safety - then continued the ritual on her own. She could not deny the connection she felt to the sacred grounds, thus finishing the ritual was of utmost importance to her. Luckily, Ae-cha succeeded in both the ritual and keeping her life, albeit not without the burn scars it had left on her skin. Honestly though, Se-ri and Ae-jeong freaked out over the burns much more than Ae-cha herself did.

After receiving treatments from healers, Ae-cha finally opened up about her wishes to go to Gale Spring, to enter the Sun Empire and work at one of the shrines that Se-ri's family was in charge of. Se-ri agreed to this, somewhat hesitantly, under the condition that Ae-cha was to live with her extended family, who naturally resided in Gale Spring. When the necessary arrangements were made, Ae-cha boarded a proper ship for her trip and made her way to the far north of the Sun Empire.

Her time within the Sun Empire passed scarily fast. Ae-cha took on priestess duties within one of the many shrines, and years passed. Se-ri and Ae-jeong eventually passed on, and Ae-cha traveled back for the funeral.

Now, she's still a priestess - still carrying on her duties as she had been taught all those years back.

It's the only thing that allows her to worship both the shrines and the connection to the two women who raised her so lovingly.

Likes: Eating well, dark chocolate, swimming or being submerged in water

Dislikes: Live squid/octopus (as food), climbing up a lot of stairs, people not respecting shrines

Trivia:
▪︎ Ae-cha means “beloved daughter/child”. In other AU's, she usually goes by the name "BAMBI".
▪︎ Her hair is supposed to resemble jellyfish!
▪︎ She likes the idea of having a pet, but unfortunately wouldn't be able to handle it well (especially the cleaning). As such, she's likely to admire from afar…
▪︎ Also doesn't touch pets/animals in general. She doesn't like the feeling it leaves on her hand for some reason… Is averse to touching human hair too.
▪︎ The marks on her cheeks are burn scars. She also has a few on her legs, and some on her right hand. I chose to add the little markings Chimecho has on its cheeks like this!
▪︎ She sometimes still goes to the shores of Gale Spring, wondering if the same creature that helped her get to safety all those years back would show up again one day.