"The darker the night gets, the brighter the stars shine." - Nova Luna.
Nova Luna is a Earth born light spirit created by Manny to guard the Fountain of Youth and collect the star wishes made by children. She is a neutral party in the struggle between Pitch and the Guardians, having refused for centuries to pick a side.
History[]
Early Life in Salem[]
Nova, originally Rachel Bishop, was born in Salem Village in 1670. Her mother passed away when she was three years old while giving birth to her younger sister, Anne. Her father, who had been out of town at the time, was killed in a carriage accident while returning home, leaving the girls to be raised by their grandmother Sarah. Sarah was a herbalist healer and gladly took the girls in, partially out of duty to her deceased son and partially because she saw the girls as a opportunity to pass on her craft. From the time she was young, Rachel had a very unconventional life. She didn't attend the small school house in her home town, as most children did. Rather she was home schooled by Sarah, who taught her everything from reading and writing to what herbs were best used to soothe a new born with colic. Though a family of educated, single women would usually be cause for scandal, the Bishops were the only healers that most of Salem could afford to go to, and were also well liked. The majority of the villagers, save the village priest, just labeled them as eccentrics and left them to their own devices.
What little free time Rachel didn't delicate to her studies -or taking care of her younger sister who had been sickly since her troubled birth- Rachel spent reading and watching the stars. Though healing came naturally to her, astrology was her passion. She'd sometimes skip sleeping just to look at the stars, trying to map them or find shapes. There was something about seeing such pure light shining out of total blackness that gave her comfort and hope.
Later Life and Witch Trials[]
When Rachel was only 15 she officially started her working in her grandmother's shop. As Sarah got older and older, Rachel took a more prominent position in the shop until she was practically running it herself. She would often provide services to the poorer families without charge or for a work trade, especially families with children. Rachel became a important part of the community and was well known for her charity and her good bedside manner. When Rachel was 17, she received a marriage proposal from the town minister, a significantly older Widower who she politely turned down. That didn't stop him from continuing to pursue her for nearly a year afterwards. When he finally realized she wouldn't be worn down, his fixation turned to rage and he vowed revenge.
Rachel was 22 when the trials started, and though she felt horrible for the women who were executed and knew that she would be a easy target to accuse because of her work and her odd life, she was convinced she would be safe. With how little her grandmother worked at the shop any more, she was practically Salem's only healer. She knew the Minster had it out for her, but didn't believe he would target her.
Death[]
Though Rachel was safe, her sister was not. In order to get to Rachel the minister manipulated a young girl into claiming the Anne Bishop had cursed her, making her sick so she would in turn become more healthy. Because the priest played a major part in the trial, Anne was quickly found guilty. Rather than let her beloved younger sister die Rachel decided to lie, confessing in front of the whole village that she was the witch and that she had made a deal with the Devil and cast the spell in the hopes of improving Anne's health. Though no one wanted to believe her, Rachel was found guilty and hung that night. The last thing she saw as she died was the stars.
Rebirth and Life as Nova[]
Similar to Jack Frost, Nova was born with no memories. Manny told her her name and led her to her jobs, but then never spoke to her again. For nearly a year, Nova wandered the Earth, doing her job only because she didn't know what else to do. When Nova met her first fellow spirit, Sandy, she was overjoyed to learn there were others like her. She was slightly jealous when she learned other spirits could be seen by humans who believed in them, but she convinced herself that she'd gain believers over time and tried to befriend other spirits. Though Nova managed to form acquaintanceships with many different spirits, she never really became friends with any of them. As years went by without believers, Nova got into the habit of avoid other spirits and keeping to herself. Nova grew very bitter towards Manny over the years, believing he resurrected her into a life of loneliness for no reason.
When Nova was a century and a half old, Tooth found out she didn't have her memories and gave Nova her baby teeth. Instead of reconnecting Nova with her center, the memories just made her bitterness grow, as she felt Manny had taken her memories from her and then abandoned her for no conceivable reason. When Pitch tried to destroy the Guardians she refused to help either side, disagreeing with what Pitch was doing but refusing to help Manny out of spite. While she doesn't regret her decision not to help Manny, she regrets turning Sandy away in his time of need and that children were put in danger.
Personality[]
Nova is cynical, blunt, and, at her worst, spiteful. She has a very hard time trusting anyone, and often lashes out at people when she thinks they're getting to close to her because she believes that driving them away is better than them realizing her faults and leaving her on their own. Nova has very low self esteem. She believes that Manny made a mistake making her a spirit and that she doesn't deserve immortality. Despite how hostile she can act, she's selfless to a fault and can almost never stop herself from getting involved with people in need.
Nova is very lonely and starved for friendship and contact. Though Nova will never admit to it, when she's feeling especially lonely she'll sit outside a child's window and listen to a parent sing "Twinkle, Twinkle." because it makes her feel less alone.
When Nova opens up, she's almost the same person she was when she was Rachel. She's sarcastic and witty, with a dry sense of humor and a deep love of learning any and everything. She gets easily excited over the things she knows and can talk for hours about the most random topics without getting bored. She's very passionate about silly things, and loves telling stories.
Appearance[]
Nova's tall and slender. She's remarkably pale, and her skin seems to shimmer, like it's covered in glitter. Nova casts a light, but it’s very faint, roughly the strength of a bright nightlight. She has a heart shaped face, with bowstring lips. Her most striking feature, however, is her eyes. They're the color of liquid silver and sparkle brightly, almost glowing. Her hair is black, and she wears it short for practicality's sake. Nova typically wears embroidered pants, a silver belt and a short sleeved white and silver shirt. Over this, she wears a white cloak.
Home[]
The Fountain's entrance.
Nova lives in a small home carved into the side of a mountain near the Fountain of Youth which, despite the name, is not a fountain. It is actually a river that is partially underground, hidden in a high mountain range in the Appalachian Mountains. Nova is charged with protecting it, and collecting and depositing the Star Wishes into the water. The Star Wishes give the water is magical qualities. The fountain cannot actually grant immortality, as it it is rumored. Instead, the fountain protects the magic of youth. If the water was ever corrupted, it would be disastrous.
The underground portion of the fountain.
Relationships[]
Sandy: Of all the Guardians, Sandy is the only one she interacts with regularly. She's very fond of him, and he's probably one of the closest things she has to a friend. She sometimes visits him when he's delivering dreams and either talks or just sits on the cloud and enjoys not being alone. As Nova can talk to the stars, she's one of the few that can communicate with Sandy. She hasn't seen Sandy in several years, and she's ashamed of turning him away when he asked for her help- not that she'll admit it or apologize.
North: Nova has a lot of respect for North, but has trouble dealing with how cheerful he constantly is.
Jack: Nova and Jack bicker constantly, but that's more because they have conflicting personalities than they dislike each other. Nova has a begrudging respect for him, one that she'd never willingly admit.
Tooth: Nova and Tooth rarely interact, but Nova has always looked up to her and has always been grateful to her for returning her memories.
Bunny: Nova and Bunny also rarely see each other. However, Nova always finds a egg near her home on Easter, and she appreciates the gesture.
Pitch: Nova and Pitch have a fairly complicated relationship. Pitch was one of the first spirits Nova met, and they used to constantly get into fights. Pitch saw Nova as a light spirit encroaching on his territory and Nova hated Pitch for scaring humans. After a few decades the two were more sparring partners than enemies, and slowly they built up a sort-of friendship, bickering and sparring when the ran into each other but rarely seeking each other out. However, when Pitch looked to her as a potential ally in his fight against the Guardians she refused him and they had a falling out. They haven't seen each other since and Nova is slightly worried about him, even if she won't admit it to herself.
((If anyone with OCs is interested in being added to Nova's relationships, I would love that. Just please be sure to says so in the comments so we can chat about it before.))
Quotes[]
"When you have three centuries of free time and you live in a cave, you can get a lot of reading done." - Nova.
"Manny created me and abandoned me in one day. I owe him nothing. I won't help Pitch, but I won't help you either." - Nova to Sandy.
"The night is as much mine as it is yours." Nova to Pitch.
"The stars are the best story tellers in the universe. It's not their fault people never listen." - Nova.
"I don't mind being alone at night, because at least then I have the stars. But in the daylight, when they fade away? That's when I'm really alone." - Nova.