Alias/Nickname:
The Witch in The Woods

Age:
867.. Right?

R̵̨͌ì̴̛̱ǵ̶̛̭͔ȟ̷̤͌͜t̶̪̉͗?̵̢̻͛͝?̵̺̰͋?̵͍̓̑?̵̙͖͋̚?̸̬̄

Gender: Female

Role: Resident

Species: Cursed Voodoo Witch | Wendigo

Tiva began as a powerful witch all those decades ago, until grief had forced her to descend into madness. This caused her to lean into the kind of dark arts that no soul should be permitted to use.

Through a blood sacrifice, she allowed the darkness to consume her, and while her end of the deal was paid in full, it was.. not as negotiated. There are legends about the deception that fall hand-in-hand with creating a deal to allow such power. In Tiva's case, it was a trick.

It didn't take long for the dark arts to consume her, as bargained. It grew to the point of corruption and forces her to this day to roam the lands in a mutated wendigo form.

When she isn't in that form all the time, she can be seen in a lesser.. more docile form, that is, until she can no longer fight the voices.

Everything has a price, and Tiva paid hers.

[See more under 'History']

Reputation:
"Beware The Witch in the Woods"

Before the darkness consumed her, Tiva was known as a peaceful witch, offering her gift and sharing tinctures and herbs. That was, however, a very long time ago.

In current times, Tiva is a mere fragment of who she once was. No version of her past self exists. Her reputation is a tainted one, and she roams the Haunted Wood when the night sky emerges and she can no longer fight the voices in her mind. Ominous, eerie, and aggressive, Tiva is not a creature that anybody wishes to come across.

Birsha is often seen before her, leading individuals so that she may feast. Unlike Birsha, within her corrupt wendigo form, she is considered hostile. Tiva has little control over her actions, and even when she does, they won't leave her alone. To feast is the only way to silence them.

Even in her docile form, it is best to avoid her.

On some nights, it is said that if you listen, Tiva's whereabouts may be identified based on her wails of pain. However, be warned. The farther away she is, the louder her screams of agony. The closer she is, well, the quieter her wails.

At that point, it's too late to run.

Appearance:

Docile Form [credit belongs to myself, not free to use]

Tiva's docile form is her most common one, something mixed between a human and wendigo. Many years ago, prior to the curse, she was a rather elegant witch. However, in current times, Tiva is rather eerie and pitiful.

Cloaked in tattered rags, the lower layers of her attire are caked with dust and grime due to her aimless wanderings through the woods. She once cared for her appearance, but it is difficult to do so when your mind does not work properly. Despite retaining an imposing height of nearly six feet, Tiva no longer carries herself with the regal posture she once possessed in her mortal form. Instead, she is frequently observed hobbling along, accompanied by twitches and limps, relying on a large stick for support.

Encountering Tiva may lead one to doubt her human origins entirely. There is no trace of mortality in her, no semblance of humanity. The curse has transfigured her into a grotesque amalgamation, featuring a deer's neck and an elk's skull. The only remnants of her humanity are the two braids cascading from the sides of her head, entwined amidst the numerous horns. Additionally, a cruel memento from the darkness persists in the form of a series of beads adorning her neck, serving as a haunting reminder of her long-lost identity.

Cursed Form
Tiva's cursed form is something no individual should ever witness. Full of darkness, she becomes an eerie, otherworldly presence during certain nights. Towering at an unnatural height that varies depending on how much she consumes, her elongated limbs are twisted and contorted, expressing the dark curse that is bound to her. Every movement she makes is a disturbing, predatory dance that amplifies the terror she instills.

Skinny and starved in this form, rather than walking on two legs, she wanders on all fours. The most haunting aspect of this nightmarish entity is her canine features. Her skull, once elk, transitions into a canine. Empty sockets, devoid of eyes, remain dark, and long, disheveled strands of mattered fur hangs from her skull. More specifically, her head becomes Birsha's old skull, the one he had as a mortal so that she has a constant reminder of what her choices led to.

To make matters worse, atop of her head, where her braids exist in her docile form, they form into two wolf arms. Once more, this part of her has been fused with Birsha's mortal body on the day that she sacrificed him.

The tips of her horns, while still existing in her cursed wendigo form, become claws that can easily grip onto things. On the other hand, her limbs, now elongated and sinewy, resemble gnarled tree branches, with once-human hands being replaced by sharp talons that are stained with the blood of her sacrificed wolf companion.

When running into her, the air becomes dense with an unnatural cold, freezing the breath of those unfortunate enough to be nearby. When she is near, reality may seem to warp, though be warned. You will hear Tiva prior to seeing her. Often, a guttural wail emanates from her distorted, loose jaw, a sound that echoes through the Haunted Woods where the curse took place.

Personality:
Agitated || Crazed || Talks to Self || Unreliable || Destructive || Protective || Dishonourable || Untrustworthy || Isolated || Observant || Unpredictable || Paranoid || Ominous Silence || Controlling || Detached || Tricky || Avoidant || Unstable || C̷̻̑o̵̢̍r̶͈͙̀̎r̶̪̈́̑u̴̡͠p̴̟̖͗t̴̢̖͗̚

Abilities:
Forbidden Arts

D̷̡̬͕͙̼͋̃͜͝á̵̧̟̪̳͇͈͕̇̉̑ͅŕ̷̟k̶͙͇̯̀̑͑̋̓͠͝ ̵̳̿̈́M̸̧̨͍̽a̸̪͑̈́͊͆̕g̶̢̛̺i̴̧̢͕͚̱͕̦͖͑̏̆̔̓̔̂͝ċ̸̺̖͖̝̉̓̎̿͜

Strengths:
𐕣 Magic
𐕣 Birsha
𐕣 Corrupt Form
𐕣 Feasting

Weaknesses:
𐕣 Imari
𐕣 Birsha
𐕣 Corrupt Form
𐕣 Magic
𐕣 Phaedra [Deceased Daughter] and Illiad [Deceased Husband]
𐕣 The Voices
𐕣 Her Mind = Crazed and Delusional
𐕣 Unpredictable
𐕣 Not Feasting

Crush: None, Deceased

Spouse/S.O.:
Iliad || Husband || Status: Deceased, Murdered

Offspring:
Phaedra || Daughter || Status: Deceased, Murdered

Imari || Adopted Daughter || Status: Alive

Kin: Deceased

Affiliations:
Birsha || Familiar || The Sacrifice
Birsha has been in Tiva's life since birth. He had been her companion, her familiar, as most witches have. Her defender, her protector, and most importantly, her friend. He was her closest friend, her oldest one. He had been with her the day her Phaedra and Illiad were killed, and when Tiva, so crazed with grief, wished to seek revenge, was the first to offer himself as a sacrifice so that she may find closure. Plagued by the idea of vengeance, she sacrificed Birsha to gain the power of the forbidden arts. This, however, destroyed her further, as now she truly had nobody left. However, he returned, but he was no longer himself. Rather, he was a creature trapped in a rotting body. If Tiva wasn't entirely crazed prior to the incident, seeing Birsha in such a tortured way did it. To this day, all these decades later, she still attempts to make it up to him, that is, if she can look at him for longer than a few seconds without feeling immense guilt.

Imari || Her Child
It is known that Tiva lost her daughter, Phaedra, in a gruesome manner, but in her time being cursed, she seemed to have gained another. Imari was found by Tiva one day and, despite being known for her hostility, showed none to the child. Tiva had enough mortality to be able to raise her, though there were several flaws. While crazed and not all there, through the muttering and the twitching, Tiva managed to care for Imari and ensure her survival. Even in her cursed form, no harm would come to her. It is clear that she would do anything for the girl and cares for her to the best of her limited ability. There is a softspot towards Imari in Tiva's corrupt, soulless body that even the shadows cannot touch. She lost one daughter already, there would be no knowing what would occur if she lost another. To Tiva, Imari is all that she has left, and god spare anybody that harms her.

History:
Tiva's story begins in an era long past, where she thrived as a once-powerful witch. Hailing from a long lineage of witches, she was renowned for her ability to manipulate mystical forces. However, fate proved merciless when a malevolent force, envious of Tiva's power, orchestrated a sinister plot to ruin her.

One evening, that force infiltrated her home, shattering her world and murdering the life of her only child, Phaedra, and husband, Iliad. The deed was a twisted display of vengeance aimed directly at her, a searing wound meant to bleed her heart dry.

The grief that engulfed her upon their discovery was an unrelenting storm that tore at the seams of her sanity. Slowly, the desperate need for retribution clawed at her, casting aside her morality and causing her to embrace the forbidden arts. In her anguish, Tiva sought solace in the forbidden, delving into the dark arts that whispered promises of power beyond comprehension. They told her she would have it all in exchange for a toll, especially the means to avenge her family, and Tiva, in her grief-stricken madness, willingly agreed.

The ritual unfolded under the shroud of a moonless night. It was on that night that Tiva made a devastating sacrifice following the chants- her loyal wolf companion, and the only family she had left. In a moment of anguish, she took the life of her friend, severing the last remaining link to her humanity and offering him to the whispers.

Birsha, however, did not find eternal rest. The dark magic that now coursed through Tiba's veins reanimated the creature, twisting him into an undead thing that mirrored the unnatural shadow that clung to Tiva herself. And yet, the darkness was not content with her simple exchange.

The forces she bargained with were not bound by honour or fairness.

Rather, it had tricked her.

Unseen by Tiva, the voices whispered corrupted incantations, subtly altering the terms of the pact. The trickery lay in the wording of the agreement. Tiva believed she had negotiated for mastery over the dark arts in exchange for her sacrifice, but the darkness twisted the clauses in its favour. Instead of empowering her as she anticipated, the dark forces infiltrated Tiva's very essence, corrupting her soul in ways that she could not have foreseen.

The transformation was agonizing, leaving Tiva unrecognizable. She became a creature of the night, a mutated wendigo-like creature, and still, driven by a thirst for justice, Tiva used this form to hunt down the individual responsible for the massacre of her family. Yet, as the life drained from his eyes, Tiva found no solace, no closure. Revenge, it seemed, was not the answer for her shattered soul.

The dark arts refused to release their grip, even after revenge had been complete. The corruption within her continued to fester, leaving her as a creature that haunted Aragara's shadows. Haunted by the echoes of Phaedra's laughter and the warmth of Illiad's embrace, Tiva wandered the lands with her undead wolf as a companion.

The voices, even now, taunt her, constantly reminding her of the price she paid for her ill-fated pact. In every step she takes, the weight of her grief presses down upon her, a heavy burden she could never fully escape.

In the quiet moments of the night, through the woods, some may hear Tiva weep for the lives lost. It is on certain nights such as those where she hunts, for feasting is the only way to silence the whispers. It is claimed that her whereabouts may be recognized through her wails, for the louder they are, the farther she is. The closer she is, the quieter. When feasted, she reverts to a more docile form, a mere echo of her former self. Even in those moments, the darkness taunts her, whispering and threatening to unleash the creature within.

For Tiva, the price of power left behind a mere, tortured soul entangled in the web of her own choices and destined to roam the land indefinitely.

Tiva's story is renowned in Aragara, and she is forever known as the once-mighty witch who paid the ultimate price for a taste of forbidden power.. The Witch in The Woods.

The Bewitched said:

Reserving a companion and resident ^^