history

[bitchcrafty]

Basic Information:
Name: Saoirse Kelly
Gender: F
Sexuality: too old to care. (pan)
Birthday: May 4
Age: approx 730 years.
Zodiac: Taurus

Physical/Appearance:
Height: 5'0”
Weight: 97 lbs
Eye color: Blue
Hair: Red
Defining features: Red hair, bright blue eyes that, if you are human, tend to be sharp and a little accusing. Freckles cover her face, most notably on her nose and cheeks. She is tiny – five feet, under 100 pounds.
Wardrobe:

Species: old ass witch
Occupation: Hermit in the Appalachian mountains
Languages spoken: A lot
Hobbies: Reading, journaling, knitting, gardening, cooking, creating potions and teas
Musical tastes: celtic vibes, indie and folk, mountain music
Likes: wine, tea, a warm fire, back porches, mountains, sunsets.
Dislikes: people, food waste, dirty mirrors, excessive humidity.

History: Saoirse (originally Aedammair – she's changed her name numerous times through the centuries) and her twin brother Liam (born Áengus) were born sometime in the late 1300s – at this point in her life, she cannot remember the precise date or year. She'll tell those who ask she's an old soul, a Taurus if you want to get specific.

They were born in Donegal to a young herbalist (aka real witch) named Áine (pronounced Awn-ya), and a sea captain who died when the twins were very young.

Heavily pregnant and young, Áine sought refuge in Donegal and managed to find work at a local butcher shop.

Áine raised the two on her own, though she died under suspicious circumstances when Saoirse and Liam were in their early teens. She managed to teach them about their heritage before passing, making them swear to never reveal their affinity for magic.

Saoirse married husband #1 when she was a tender 15, and she truly did love him (as much as a fifteen year old can be convinced she's in love, anyway). Cormac, though twenty years her senior, was kind and gentle, and treated her well. They bought a local inn together, and began a thriving business out of it, bringing on several employees. They had a home on their property, and several sheep. Money was good, and she eventually gave birth to two children – Patrick and Deirdre.

Cormac died mysteriously ten years later when she was twenty-five, and the second husband Fergus came swooping in to pick up the pieces. It was speculated that Saoirse and Fergus conspired to kill Cormac, but anyone who knew Saoirse knew there was no way she would have ever done such a thing.

Fergus, however...was another story. He was mean and vicious and cruel, old and abusive and likely Cormac's real killer. His children were grown and didn't approve of Saoirse's low born status and her lack of proper parentage.

She did, however, have quite a tidy sum of money stashed away because of her thriving business she'd built with Cormac. It was an attractive prospect for someone like Fergus (who was even older and than Cormac), who didn't have a wife to bark at and control and take care of him. She was distraught with grief, and married him in a moment of weakness at only twenty-five, only to find his love of drink far, far outweighed his love of her.

Still, Saoirse was resourceful and smart, and she squirreled away what money Fergus did give her, using it to build her little empire and start a moneylending hustle on the side. She charged low, fair interest, and what wasn't able to be repaid in cash was charged in goods and/or services (sheep, repairs, carts, wood, etc). She was also the town medicine woman, despite her mothers warnings about showing her talent in the arts of herbalism (witchcraft).

But all things must come to an end, so too did Fergus. One night, after three years of marriage (at the age of twenty eight), he had too many cups and beat her face bloody, and she swore to him he would never see the end of the week. She stole out of the house in the dead of night to see her closest friend Glenna, and the two concocted a poison that would kill him instantly and leave no trace. Saoirse slipped back into her house before dawn, and emptied the concoction into his milk that very morning, watching as the poison foamed in his mouth, choking him on his own blood and spit.

She wiped him clean, dumped the glass, and called the village healers, who could do nothing. Whispers about her became louder. She was never anything but pleasant when out with her husbands, and she was well liked in the community despite the mounting rumors.

A bishop was growing suspicious, though and every move she made from then on was carefully under his scrutiny. Saoise decided marrying again anytime soon would be unwise, waiting six years to marry again.

She married husband number three, Dúngal, at thirty four. He was a landholder, which added to her growing wealth and status. No longer was she a poor woman's low status daughter, but a well known woman of the community with powerful friends. Cormac's younger brother, Coinneach, was on the local council, and shook off every accusation that had been brought upon her so far.

However, when Dúngal died only a year into their marriage (leaving her everything), Coinneach approached a now thirty five year old Saoirse and warned her to be careful. She cried that she had nothing to do with his death, he had been thrown from his horse, but Coinneach told her that didn't matter. Whispers were turning into daily conversation, and would eventually turn into shouts – especially since Saiorse had not appeared to age a day for some time. Her skin was still flawless, her body still tight and soft in all the right places. She couldn't explain it, and neither could anyone else – cries of witchcraft were getting louder.

Still, Saoirse chose to marry once more, and like her first marriage, she married for affection. Her fourth – and final – husband was truly the love of her life, even more so than Cormac. By this time she was forty two, and her own children twenty seven and twenty three. She was no longer what was considered 'safe' child-bearing age, but Marcán already had children, and hers were grown. They stayed married until his death five years later. Attacked by bandits on the road, losing Marcán was the final straw – both for the village and for Saoirse. She swore never to marry again, and the council wanted her brought up on charges for witchcraft.

The children of Fergus and Dúngal accused her of consorting with the devil and poisoning their fathers. The nosy bishop, Richard, was eager to see her burned – she made too much money, had too many assets, and too many powerful friends. With every husbands death, she became more powerful, more wealthy – it had to stop.

Seven charges of witchcraft were brought against her – though Coinneach came through her a final time, and instead of immediately being tried, he managed to get the bishop jailed and questioned.

After several months of no conviction, her dear friend Glenna was brought in, and a confession was tortured out of her. Saoirse tried to free Glenna, but her dear friend gave in under torture (who wouldn't), and confessed to seven counts of witchcraft, including flying through the night and communing with demons. Saoirse had to gather as much of her wealth as she possibly could, and flee in the dead of night with her children. She was tried and convicted in her absence, but she was never seen again in Donegal.

Over the next several hundred years, Saoirse changed her name and identity numerous times, as she is continually accused of witchcraft due to her healing abilities.

Sometime in the 1700s, she immigrated to the colonies in America, heading straight to the mountains of what is now Western North Carolina, along with numerous other Irish and Scottish immigrants. She built a homestead there, and over the years, she has slowly but surely come into her power.

As of 2020, her daughter is still alive, but her son was killed in World War II, fighting against the Germans.

Notes:
* Her brother Liam left Donegal not long after their mother died to join a ships crew. He has been in and out of her life, and is aware of her homestead in the Carolinas.


abilities:

Saoirse's main abilities stem from her witch blood that came from her mother. She is a person who can commune with the natural forces and channel them in order to practice her magic. Witches can be extremely long lived and very powerful, and she hasn't really aged since she peaked out at 25.

She is a hedge witch, which means she has a few abilities.
hedge/garden witch, healer
dimension hopper – ability to open portals to other realms
astral projection
shape shifting (into a red fox)

personality
a little jaded and bitter towards the human race– she has seen war and famine and destruction, and she is not impressed with humans at ALL
thoughtful
jealous lover
sensual
stubborn, immovable and inflexible at times
doesn't change her mind, unyielding
introverted
self reliant
short tempered

brother:
Liam: https://static.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/freckles-redheads-beautiful-portrait-photography-21-583565f56e325__700.jpg