I am the Lady's Artist. No, that is who I was, and who I not am anymore. I create for my own now. Free of Her spite, Her cruel whims, Her desires. Free of Her charms and Her beauty... I am free! I think. I do not quite know. It is hard to remember some things... But I remember my little girls! Like Schneeweißchen and Rosenrot. My perfect little girls. I came back for them. And for... what was her name?

In the Garten I created things of beauty. For Her I painted mirages of light into the midnight sky. I crafted gems and flowers, hedge mazes and winding paths, and wonders beyond compare. And I did more. I painted Her greatest treasures, catching their images, depicting their souls... or was it the other way round? All of them so flawed, and yet so marvelous!
Little perfect paintings. And I still have them! Only, I do not recognize even half of them anymore. Less, to be honest. They all look back at me from their cards... They are mine! I look at them and I guess at memories, shuffle them and make them dance...

The Garten also had occasional guests. Dreamers and lost mortal wanderers. I made portraits out of some of those, too. I still remember their eyes! They looked out from the images. I think I put most of those into a gallery of trees? The Grove of Gazes. Der Hain der Blicke. Augenblicke. Eyes, caught in a moment of time. I understood time once, but I do not remember it very clearly anymore...

Then something happened with the Garten, there was a sound like something shattering, far away or deep under... a hairline crack formed... und die Gärtnerin trat hindurch und verschwand. Causing the crack to widen. Blazing a trail into the Hedge.
Memories of my girls came to me along it, like in some weird backdraft. It broke my bonds and I looked through and beyond my paintings. I followed the memories' scent through the maze She had built, through the traps which sprang up on Her request, and through the deadly riddles She sat up. My girls' smile brought me home.

I beheld my city for the first time since what felt like ever, and tears streamed down my face.

Only, where are they? My house, my wife, my Schneeweißchen and my Rosenrot? Things have subtly changed. I cannot quite find my way. It is only a temporary setback though. Tomorrow I will find them. I am sure.

There are more like me. Refugees from the Garten and others, who smell like winter. Mostly they all give me a wide berth. Perhaps they remember looking at me from their own images? It is as well, they are from the other world and they cannot help me find my girls.

And I will find them. If I cannot find my house, I will find them by walking the streets, or by riding along the dreams of those asleep. I even might start to paint again, turning the world into images I can sift through...

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Mortal Name: Dr. William Land
Acquired Name: Will-of-the-Eyes
Title: The Lady's Painter

Mien Age: timeless
Mask Age: 70ish
Gender: male
Sexuality: straight
Occupation: drifting
Languages: English, German, a smidge of Latin

Seeming: Wizened
Kith: Artist
Court: Autumn
Keeper: The Lady of Midnight and Shadow
Faction: Gartenflüchtlinge

Wyrd: 3
Glamour Pool: 11/15
Willpower: 6/6
Clarity: 5 (reduced to 5 from 7 at character creation)

Concept
A pale and dour artist and dream mage, poised between his art, his dreams, his desire and madness, and rapidly veering towards the wrong end of this balance.


Appearance
Height: 4'11'' (1.50 m)
Weight: 90 lb (40 kg)
Eye Color: black wells
Hair color: white
Hair Style: whispy mop
Complexion: pale, with red skin around the eyes
Body shape: small and thin
Clothing: a white robe, streaked with highlights of brilliant red or gold

Mien (Description):
Will is small and thin, as most Wizened are, with a mop of whispy white hair and a nose which is absurdly long and pointed. His skin is pale and is tainted red around the eyes. His eyes. They are black wells of unknown contend and only a hint of light in their depth.
Will prefers white clothing and owns a hedgespun robe the color of snow, highlighted with intricate patterns of gold and red.
His mien's face is timeless, neither young nor old, and his steps are dogged by the vestiges of autumn. Things grow bright and ripe but finally die. Little red leaves are carried in the drafts around him.

Mask (Description):
Dr. William Land, as Will refers to himself in the mortal world, is a silver-white haired man in his seventies. He seems quite distinguished - learned and well-off, if in contrast to that slightly disheveled - with an occasionally sharp tongue. However, his eyes' gaze is slightly disturbing. They flit from object to object and rarely look directly at you. Except when he studies you to create a piece of art. Then his eyes do not shift one bit, and seem to be able to look into your soul...


Personality
Virtue: Justice - Will-of-the-Eyes might not always be kind, but he is always fair. Do him good, and he will repay you in kind. Likewise if you do him bad. Behind this stands the deep conviction that Fate is and has to be balanced.
Vice: Envy - The downside of the above is, when Fate treats yourself badly and others well, some of that good fortune of the others ought to be yours by right...


Your Story
Passions/Goals: Finding his two little daughters is the single thing of utmost importance to Will. They are sweet girls aged six and five, and he calls them Schneeweißchen and Rosenrot - having forgotten their real names.

History


Relationships
Family: A beloved wife and two beautiful little daughters. Sure he knows who they are! They are his family after all! Will is just the tiniest little bit vague about the details...
Friends: Hardly any
Co-Workers: No work, no co-workers
Lovers: Maybe...
Enemies/Rivals: None he can remember...
Other PCs: to be determined


Pledges
Vows:
Oaths:
Corporals:


Merits and Flaws

Attribute Merits:
I have a sharp and analytic mind. (+2)
And also a vivid imagination! (+1)
I think fast on my feet. (+1)
I have an uncanny eye for detail. (+1)
My. Mind. Is. My. Own. (+2)
I am nimble and quick. (+1)
I am adroit with my hands. (+1)
My poise and composure might be that of a madman - but that I have in spades. (+2)

Attribute Flaws:
I tend to get immersed in art and forget my surroundings. (-1)
I am scrawny and physically weak. (-1)
People sometimes perceive me as crazy. Fools! (-1)


Skill Merits:
I am able to craft objects of otherworldly quality and beauty. (+3)
I am a master of oneiromancy. (+2)
I can look into your soul. (+1)
I know my way around mysticism and symbols. (+1)
I believe I have a PhD in physics. Something about light. (+1)
I can speak a few languages. (+1)
I am good at tinkering with things. (+1)
I am inconspicious if I do not draw attention to myself. (+1)

Skill Flaws:
Sadly, I am no good in a physical fight. (-1)
Cannot point a firearm straight either. (-1)
My sharp tongue tends to get the better of me. (-1)


Background Merits:
My cards mirror the world, revealing and influencing everything encompassed by them. (Token, +5)
My white and red and gold robe is spun from the hedge, and is perceived as a black suit in the waking world. It is never too crumpled. (Token, +1)

Background Flaws:
I cannot remember... my life. My loved ones! What is wrong with me? (-1)
My fetch is a powerful sorcerer on his own. (-1)

Rare Abilities:
I am able to pour my soul into my art and to enchant it with strange powers. For a price. (+3)
I am a Fae Sorcerer. (+1)


Seeming and Kith Abilities

Blessings:
The Wizened are extraordinarily nimble.
Impeccable Craftsmanship: You can create startling works of art and craft.

Curses:
Spite infects the Wizened. It comes out in their appearance, and in their manner.

Frailties:

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Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
A twig of the evergreen holly will ward you against my powers. Wear it visibly on your body or hang it over your head while you sleep.
The sound of church bells striking causes me pain.

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Contracts

Contracts of Dream (5)
 Pathfinder
 Forging The Dream
 Phantasmal Bastion
 Cobblethought
 Dreamsteps

Eternal Autumn Contracts (4)
 Last Breath Isaac
 Withering Glare
 Brother To The Ague
 Riding The Falling Leaves

Fleeting Autumn (1)
 Witches' Intuition

Fleeting Spring (1)
 Cupid's Eye