Name: Meredith Alice Bell
Other Names: Meri (nickname) Poppy Part’em (stage name)
Race: Human
Sex: Female
Height: 5’9”
Birthdate / Location: 23rd July, 2000 (21) - Billings, Montana
Group Affiliation: N/A
Position: Student Journalist, Exotic Dancer at American Booty
Meredith is played by Gemma Arterton
Aesthetics and Dress~
Standing at 5’9” in height, Meredith has a very womanly figure - the boobs and bit of a bum that men love and women hate in a world full of Kate Moss wannabes and Slimfast diets. She has mid-length dark brown, (almost black) hair and almost always sports choppy, full bangs that fall into her eyes. Her dark brown eyes and pale complexion give her a doe-eyed, winsome look, while a scattering of freckles across her nose make her appear younger and more girlish.
When not performing at American Booty, Meredith’s standard dress is rather tomboyish, consisting mainly of well-worn jeans, t-shirts, sweaters and trainers. She also wears little if no makeup - a slick of Chapstick and maybe some eyeliner is usually her limit.
Attitude~
Tough and independent, Meredith has had to make her own way in the world and as such doesn’t make friends easily. Because of her upbringing, she tends to be distrustful of strangers or people who appear too immediately friendly. Therefore it can take a while to win over her trust, but once someone does she is a dedicated friend. She also has a strong work ethic born from a sheer determination to succeed, she is devoted to her studies but also applies this maxim to every other aspect of her life.
When she dons her Poppy Part’em persona, Meredith effectively steps into the role of someone else. That person is alluring, sexy and assertive, from the clothes and make-up that she wears right down to her attitude. Poppy is all silk stockings and six-inch spike heels, garter belts and sultry pouting. This fantasy world allows Meredith to let loose her domineering, aggressive side and though she would deny it, she secretly loves the feeling of absolute power and control she has when dancing. .
Lifestyle~
Meredith doesn’t have much of a social life, most of her time is spent studying or sniffing out that next big story that will make her a well-respected reporter. (She has actually had a couple of her articles printed in the New York Post.) Pretty much all of her evenings are spent working at American Booty, (and occasionally she moonlights at another strip club called Titty Slickers.) If she were ever to have time on her hands, she would spend it in the great outdoors - or as close to it as she can get, running or walking or just generally being away from the hustle and bustle of the city.
Meredith as Poppy Part’em
Financially, Meredith struggles to pay her rent and bills while still paying for her college tuition. She’s an ex-smoker, not by choice, but because she couldn’t justify paying out for something she didn’t really need. She lives in a small but cosy apartment with her best (read: only) friend, Gail Adams, in Greenwich Village. But they can rarely afford to have the heating on and so Meredith often has several layers of clothing on to compensate.
Regardless of her situation, Meredith is actually very happy with her life and proud to be earning her own money and making her way in the world.
Background:
Meredith never really knew her parents. At the age of five, her mother and father both died in a tragic automobile collision. Meredith survived, barely, but with no other close family members to take her on she was placed into the care of a succession of foster families. She went through a lot of homes, potential mothers saw in her a quiet girl with big, haunted eyes and saw a child they wanted to rescue and make their own. Of course, when Meredith didn’t open up to them, when she screamed blue murder in the middle of the night and wet the bed, when she didn’t suddenly become the perfect, sweet daughter of their dreams, they gave her back.
As she grew into adolescence, her childish beauty and fear attracted attention of the less altruistic kind from a few foster ‘fathers’ and ‘brothers’. She became the favoured choice of male sexual predators who were looking for a very special kind of child. Usually it was nothing more than a peek in the bathroom, or a hand that lingered too long on her bare legs. Occasionally, it was worse. Much worse.
Though she became angry and withdrawn, somehow, Meredith found an inner strength. The men who abused her, she realised, weren’t scary monsters but weak, terrified creatures afraid of exposure. Though she despised them and their equally weak and conveniently blind wives, she decided not to waste her anger on them. She realised the only way she could truly escape wasn’t to run away, but to stay, to survive. The best way to accomplish that was to study, hard, to get good grades, make the honours list and gain acceptance into university. That she did with a single minded determination, spending as much time as she could in extra classes even if they didn’t particularly interest her. She joined the track team, the gymnastics team, even the chess team. The rest of her time she divided between the library and working part time as a waitress to try and earn some money for college. Things didn’t get easier at home, but eventually, as she became physically stronger and more able to defend herself, her foster fathers lost interest. She wasn’t anyone’s idea of a victim anymore.
Her hard work paid off when she won a partial scholarship to NYU to study journalism. In her third year she found herself without a place to live though, thankfully, she was able to move in with a close friend - her only friend - Gail Adams, a sports major and fellow scholarship recipient who was also on the track team.
She and Gail moved into a cheap but cheerful 3rd storey apartment in Greenwich Village. Even so, Meredith found it hard to pay her share of the rent. Eventually she found herself juggling three part-time jobs and struggling to keep up with her studies. She was close to losing her scholarship and being kicked out of college when her roommate took her to meet her boss at American Booty. Meredith was reluctant to say the least, and while the owner wanted her on the stage, she settled for waiting tables. After a few months she finally relented when their apartment was broken into.
Her big debut was nothing to write home about, she was nervous and it showed. Still, never one to be defeated, Meredith persisted, watching the other dancers and getting tips from her roommate, Gail. She is now one of the most popular acts in the club and has her own regulars who never miss a show - and while it hasn’t solved all of her money worries, she has more time to devote to her true dream of becoming a real Journalist.
Items: Rental apartment in Greenwich Village, a cat called Thomas J.
Powers: The ability to turn grown men into slack jawed zombies.
Secrets: None as yet, though she is a very cautions, wary girl and doesn’t talk about her past.
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Can think of nothing to say,
Can think of nothing to say, other than I like; looks like a very good, and interesting, concept. :)
I like her too. Wow, this is
I like her too. Wow, this is getting great!!! :D Already thinking ways to meet her...
love it
Very nice! Titty Slickers...pure genius!
Hmm, Meredith could be a protege.
Even right down to the fuller figure and the NYU scholarship, Meredith is very much like a younger version of Alison. I don't know if you wrote this planning that they already knew each other, but that could work if you wanted to. Or maybe you didn't read my character first and this is just amazing coincidence. Either way, Alison could take Meredith under her wing if you wanted.
I had the thought of her
I had the thought of her being a sort of aspiring 'rookie reporter', though she is still a student at NYU (I would have chosen Columbia but seeing as that's a lot further away from the 'game site' it seemed unlikely she'd work and live on the other end of town). The figure is more down to choice of actress than anything else as I was initially looking for someone a bit more athletic. Alison seems to be the success that Meredith would aspire to (though I doubt they move in similar circles socially). I guess it's very likely that Alison has spoken at the university at some point too?
With cheap public transport
With cheap public transport anywhere in Manhattan is fair game. My character lives in East Harlem uptown and more than half the city away from his office.
Wow, in fact, reading more -
Wow, in fact, reading more - even down to the sexier alternate persona.
You know, if Lou wants to play the fuller figured journalist who has an alter-ego that's sexier and more alluring (and even lives in the same neighbourhood), then she can go for it and I'll just come up with a whole new character.
Do we need two reporters? I
Do we need two reporters? I can see her being a student working her way through school but could she be studying archaeology (lots of ancient and magical artifacts) at a Museum in the city?
Possibly not, though I know
Possibly not, though I know diddly squat about archeology. Not that I'm opposed to research, but last time I did that it took over and I ended up not writing anything.
We're all experienced
We're all experienced roleplayers here; honestly, I take a look at the two backgrounds, and I see things that, I think, are going to lead to the two characters being played quite differently. And do expect them to also evolve differently as well.
Yes, but what we lack is
Yes, but what we lack is breadth of knowledge. A Cop, a Reporter, A Vampire Club Owner, a Body Guard, and a Waitress/Slayer and to that we add A Reporter/Stripper? I think we need an academic, a mage, a demon, another vampire, an unemployed Watcher, a research assistant, a biologist, a Crime Scene investigator,
a...well anything but what we already have. This is about more than just the role-playing. It is about Identity
Actually, Lou, I think you could come up with a more unique concept:
Adding Breadth of Characters
I'm reposting since there
I'm reposting since there seems to be an overlap of threads -
If you're dead set against my charrie Heather then I can bow out. Afterall, your character has been accepted, mine was just a proposal, and I'd hate for you to throw in the towel because of me. I'd rather not bring that bad feeling to the game before it's even started. Personally, I don't think they are huge similarities, my charrie is a student, i could always change her major, her 'curvy' figure is based on the actress and I hardly think that's gonna affect her personality, and the 'alter ego' is just another persona for the purpose of her other job which I think is pretty reasonable concidering. But if you're still against it, I'll bow out. As I said, I don't want to upset anyone.
That said, I do find it a bit upsetting that Heather has practically torn up her character without even just talking to me reasonably. I understand there may be some upset, personally, I don't see Meri as a curvy reporter with an alter ego. She's an impoverished student trying to make ends meet. So I am open to suggestions on majors leading to career. But nothing too high brow, cos as I said, writing a doctor really put a strain on my writing.
Well, I appreciate it. I'm
Well, I appreciate it. I'm not sure how I was supposed to react. As I said in the other thread, it was a bit of a shock to be reading your character and seeing so many similarities right off the bat.
This is from the other thread:
I know we talked about having a few of the characters being connected already and whatnot, but if you wanted to make a charrie that Alison could mentor, it would have been nice if you'd talked to me about it first. :)
It's not any one aspect that's the issue - it's the whole package. If it was just one or two things similar it would be fine. It was a bit of a shock reading your charrie though and seeing full figure (check), journalist (check), NYU scholarship (check), alter-ego with sexier job (check). The whole package hits just a bit too close to home.
I figured that since you went ahead and wrote such a character without checking with me first, that you must have had your heart set on it. It was my assessment that we didn't need two such characters and despite my prior claim I decided it was just easier to cede the field to you and come up with something else.
Stepping aside from the
Stepping aside from the similitaries to offer other major suggestions. One note: technically, there isn't an Arcaeology major in the United States; American Arcaeology is considered a subfield of Anthroplogy, and I understand there are actually quite signifigant differences. Having said that, Anthropology actually does provide a bit of a breadth. It depends on what kind of career you're interested in.
The three best fields if you decide you want to springboard into some kind of occult research, IMO, are: Anthropology (where Magic and Ritual actually isn't a speciality that will get you laughed out; just look at Tanya Lurhman), History (the Renaissance, especially), Philosophy (less likely; some overlap but magic is a `fringe` topic that very few philosophers address), and Psychology (Parapsychology is still a small field).
Aside from that, other things for leading into careers: Languages, Computer Science, Linguistics.
As sidenote: a CSI type career is actually quite boring in reality, when compared to the show; there are few forensic scientists nationwide, forensics being yet another subset of Anthropology, and requring both a PhD, and certifcation standards which are, technically, logically impossible to obtain (you need 2 full cases under your belt to be certified, but aren't allowed to DO said cases without being certified!).
Will send more later if I get ideas - time to go off to get drunk. :D
Ok, I'm reposting here too...
Ok, I'm reposting here too... let's keep to one thread.
Ok, as Lou said, Alison character was already accepted, so please, Heather, nobody is wanting you to create another character. I don't think we can't solve this problem, if we get our heads together we will find a way, in Kaarin's words, we are all experienced roleplayers.
Maybe just a change in major would do the trick, keeping the rest of the profile like it is.
And I add, physically I don't see many coincidences between Meredith and Alison. Both are beautiful women who have full bodies -Alison more than Meredith, I think, but that's it.
The journalist part is the trickier, but Lou already said that she is open to considering a change of major, so no problem there. She <i>could</i> be studying Archeology, for example, like Dave suggested.