Name: Claire Lassiter
Born: February 12th, 1997
Age: 22
Nickname: The Lass
Sign: Aquarius
Race: Human
Orientation: Straightish
Alignment: Chaotic Good
Hometown: Kingston, NY
Occupation: Currently Unemployed
Appearance & Personality: Tall and curvy, Claire works hard to maintain an athletic appearance, which is all right as she tends to make her own fun wherever she goes, even if it's just a jaunt to the gym or an hour at spin class. She likes to sweat almost as much as she loves to laugh and doesn't usually stand still long enough to let the dust settle between activities. Favours bold colours that compliment her unusual colouring and trademark red lipstick, fast rides, and absolutely anything that upsets the apple cart.
Hobbies: Music, songwriting, socializing of all kinds, photography, shopping, entertaining, swimming, running, dancing, climbing, etc, etc, etc.
Strengths: Adventurous, fun-loving, creative, personable, artistic.
Weaknesses: Short-sighted, distractible, vain, thrill-seeker, spendthrift.
Background:
Psycho-babblers, know-it-alls, and armchair psychologists of every stripe haven't had a hard time figuring Claire Lassiter out, though the question of how -hard- they really tried has always been an issue. Young, pretty, middle child in a sprawling and successful family full of politicians, lawyers, and bankers. Smart, but not genius-level smart; athletic, but without Olympic prospects; too large to take a real run at modeling (though she did dabble), dance, or gymnastics, young Claire found herself placed in a truly ridiculous amount of summer, pre/post school, and weekend activities to determine what her Thing was going to be.
Well, imagine the general dismay of the Lassiter clan when it became obvious that Claire's Thing didn't have anything to do with physics, economics, or world-class fencing, much less Politics, Law, or Financing which was always the hope. No, instead of sharpening her wit for the debate stage or chess team, the Lass had been seduced by the siren's call of Rock and Roll. Oh, she tried to disguise it at first, sinking herself into piano lessons and vocal training to learn the basics, enduring scores of orchestral recitals, of concerts and symphonies .. which she really did enjoy, but never trusting anyone in her tight-laced family with the secret. She hid it well, sneaking off to play every chance she had and putting off the inevitable confrontation with her parents as long as possible.
Because of course they found out. Of course they lost their shit, made her switch schools and give her guitar away, along with all her magazines and sheet music, every notebook of scribbled song ideas and even her stash of sliced-up nylons, ripped tees, and leather pants. They came down on her so hard that she didn't -dare- put a toe out of line for years. That they could see. Claire was an addict, see, and capable of doing whatever it took to last until her next fix. So she went to the stricter school, pretended to immerse herself in studies and a string of dull boyfriends from wealthy, connected families and planned sporadic 'escapes'
with meticulous care. She studied Political Science with some vague plan of helping some relative or other in the future, but all she was doing was buying herself time. Or that was the plan.
Fast forward to June 2019 and Claire's perfect cookie-cutter boyfriend, knowing how cagey she is about commitment, conspires with her parents to become a perfect fiancé .. proposing at the end of a speech at her own graduation party in front of a hundred guests, family and friends, and one hella annoying videographer. It should have been the happiest day of her life. That's what everyone told her. Repeatedly.
Eventually the endless wedding plans, appointments, fittings, and parties became too much for Claire. Eventually, even the sight of her perfectly handsome, bright, and accomplished fiancé pissed her off. So she left, quick and quiet in the night, emptying her savings account and heading for the open road, hoping her cousins in Washington might be willing to put her up for a while. Give her some time to get her head on straight again and figure out what she's REALLY going to do with her life.
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*Psst! Thanks for hanging out all the way through Claire's story! If there's anyone about that's looking for fam, I'd love a cousin or two that's already established in town. We could even talk about bringing that fiancé in eventually. Ahem.