The Tragic Tale of May Autumnsong

 

Believe it or not, Pandora Mae May Autumnsong used to be a bad character. I mean, an AWFUL one. She was nothing more than a teenager who was neglected by her family and bullied at school because of it, and then she ended up dying (I think I implied she was killed by the same kids that bullied her by pushing her off a bridge) and becoming a ghost who haunted and just looked to get revenge on the people who wronged her. Believe it or not, she also used to be part of this weird haunted summer camp where she hung out with other children/relatives of mythical creatures and monsters (à la Monster High). Groan, CLICHÉD.

Isn't this how, like, 95% of these wannabe creepypasta writers write their OCs' backstories?? lmao

Thanks to the Sims 4, however, I've been able to tweak this character a bit. 

Love that ghostly smoky reaper trail, lol

As you can see, Pandora's still a ghost. Technically, not an actual ghost in TS4, but hey, cheats!!
Specifically, she's now a reaper. I imagine she actually trained under the mythical Grim Reaper himself to ferry the newly dead to the afterlife. She happens to call herself the "Gentle Reaper", as she often says, "Some people are terrified of death. They deserve a comforting presence in their final moments".

In life, she was a young woman (probably in her early 20s) named May Autumnsong (I thought "Pandora" was too edgy and snowflake-ish, lol). I'd imagine she wasn't really "neglected" by her family, per se, but considering the overly-high standards and restrictions imposed upon women at the time, she was usually pushed aside in favor of what her father/brothers wanted. Ironically, I'd imagine she'd be mockingly called "Pandora" due to her being somewhat clumsy and not as "prim" and "perfect" as other women her age.

It wasn't until she was engaged to be married that May's family finally seemed to warm up to her. A well-to-do man had shown interest in her despite all her insecurities, and now her parents were devoting all their time into making sure their daughter was prepared for her wedding.

Unfortunately, a month or so after she and her fiancé announced their engagement, May fell ill. It started with an annoying cough she thought she could shrug off, but eventually, it worsened to the point where she was coughing up blood. She lost weight rapidly and was bedridden. Her worried parents and fiancé summoned a doctor, who confirmed their worse fears: May had tuberculosis.

Her parents didn't have much hope for their daughter's recovery, so they seemingly went back to their distant ways in an attempt to distract themselves from her impending demise. Her devoted fiancé, however, wrote letters to her family almost daily, begging them to tell him when she was feeling better (he'd been sent away to live somewhere else so he'd avoid catching tuberculosis as well).

Within less than a year later, May was dead. She suffered slowly and painfully with no one to physically comfort her, leading her to practically fear dying even though it was inevitable. She woke up seemingly healed, but she was now in a world beyond our own. It was none other than the Grim Reaper himself who would be the first to greet her and attempt to guide her to the afterlife. Still frightened, May wouldn't budge. She was just devastated she wouldn't be able to return to the world of the living.

Funnily enough, that's not even her own gravestone. She's not actually dead in the game, remember?

The Grim Reaper reluctantly decided to make her an offer: she could return to the living world but only to visit those who are about to pass on and later bring them to the underworld. May agreed without hesitation, and she was trained to be a reaper herself.

Clad all in white in contrast to the Grim Reaper's dark robes, May would dutifully carry out her role as a reaper. Whether a terminally ill person's family was there with them or not, May would assure them she would stay with them in spirit to keep them company. The moment they were about to die, May comforted them and promised their suffering would be over soon and they would be at peace. Her angelic appearance also helped the deceased feel more accepting of their passing. 

Her caring nature has led May to call herself the "Gentle Reaper".

I hope you enjoyed reading May Autumnsong's backstory and think it's (at the very least) more decent than her old incarnation, haha.

i made a japanese school idol group because i can (rip elouai)

l-r: Tomoko, Motoko, Kazumi, Aika (in seat), Hanako, Kyoko, Chiyoko, Hotaru, Gina, and Mizuki

Let's talk about some of my new characters for the World of Majestica!

In case this is the first time I have established this, I've revamped my original universe a bit so that it's a blend of life in the modern world and another fantasy world. The main characters (mostly girls) live in a privileged American community and each has ties to various regions of the fantastical universe of Majestica. 

Tomoko Itō is one of these main characters. She spent the first couple of years of her life in Japan before moving to the United States. In Japan, she had several friends who would form an "idol group" in school where they would perform for their classmates. I imagine they'd be pretty popular, but not as much as to the point where they'd be doing gigs all over the world or any of that.

Oh, and that idol group's name?

Well, specifically, it's formatted "♡COLORBLAST!♡". Y'know, because Japanese idol groups are kawaii like that.

Tomoko actually started this group with her cousin (and best friend), Motoko Koizumi! Like her cousin, Motoko is outwardly prim and proper, presenting herself as the model child of a well-to-do family. Unlike her cousin, however, Motoko is secretly into a more grunge and edgy subculture (hence why she decided to form a band in the first place) and is actually slightly power-hungry. She isn't "jealous" of her cousin's influence in their group, per se, but once Tomoko moved to America, she couldn't help but jump into a more domineering leadership role and is determined to maintain the perfection of their performances.

I chose their names unintentionally, but the first three letters of their names are basically switched around!
"Tomoko" means "friendly/knowing/wise child" while "Motoko" means "resourceful child". They have different last names ("Itō" meaning "wisteria" and "Koizumi" meaning "spring, fountain") as I'd imagine Tomoko's father has a brother (her uncle) who married a woman (her aunt) and had Motoko before they divorced and Motoko took the last name of her mother as she was placed under her custody. 

Both girls have dark brown hair (Motoko's hair is slightly darker) and medium brown eyes.

Shortly after Tomoko left Japan, she met the following six girls who just so happened to have their little own friend group. Now, I know in the image above, they have natural hair colors for the most part, but because I've been binging Lucky Star (one of my childhood animes lmao) recently, I think they're going to have unnatural hair/eye colors. I mean, it's probably a good way to explain how they came up with the group name "COLORBLAST!" anyway.

Kazumi Mochizuki is the most musically-inclined in the group, spending much of her free time listening to music on her phone and info-dropping the latest songs and gossip about her favorite band members to her friends. She just so happens to LOVE 80's music for some reason. She also can't live without this one pair of groovy glasses she received from a family members of hers.

"Kazumi" means "harmonious beauty" while "Mochizuki" means "full moon".

She has indigo-colored hair and blue eyes.

Aika Hidaka comes from a particularly well-off family and is practically spoiled by her parents. She dislikes her school's uniform and has always wanted to wear one of her more glamorous outfits she likes to put together when she doesn't have to go to classes. Strangely enough, she doesn't really act like a stereotypical "spoiled brat". She does like to show off her wealth to others (and constantly tries to invite her friends to hang out at her home where she can just show off everything she has), but she doesn't actively put down others for having less money/possessions than her. That's probably why she actually has good friends in school and not cronies to just tag along with her because they want some of her riches...

"Aika" means "love song" and "Hidaka" means "sun, day/tall, high".
As her last name implies, she's one of the taller members of the group.

She has pale purple hair and red eyes.

Hanako Hamasaki is the resident "gyaru girl" of the group. She is obsessed with makeup and jewelry and always has her eyes on the latest trends so she can jump right on them in the hopes that she'll end up on a magazine one day. That's kind of also why she decided to be a part of the band, knowing that their fans will have their eyes on her as she performs. She's also constantly on the lookout for gigs and is often the one to take initiative and get in contact with managers who will hopefully let her group perform with them. She's bubbly and optimistic and just wants to do what's best for everybody, really.

"Hanako" means "flower child" and "Hamasaki" means beach, seashore/cape, peninsula".
As her first name implies, she helps run a flower store with her parents in her spare time.

She has blonde hair (dyed as part of the "gyaru" look - no one really knows what her actual hair color is) and aqua eyes (contacts - again, no one knows what her actual eye color is).

Kyoko and Chiyoko Shimamura are twin sisters who are accustomed to the city life. They love touring and traveling and dream of exploring the world. They are also avid souvenir collectors! This is where their similarities end, however, as Kyoko has a sweet tooth and wants to just sit and eat all the candy she can get her hands on while Chiyoko is an athlete by nature and always wants to be on the go.

"Kyoko" means "child of the city" (I happened to use this name for an old OC of mine but now I've decided to recycle that name for this character since I couldn't figure out how to really revamp her initial design), "Chiyoko" means "child of a thousand generations", and "Shimamura" means "island/town, village".

The Shimamura sisters have light green hair and green eyes.

Lastly, Hotaru Maki is the resident artist of the group. She's a quiet person who knows how to see the beauty in things that no one else could possibly notice. In fact, she is responsible for creating many of COLORBLAST!'s costumes and stage sets. She has a budding talent for graphic design and can often be found creating various things on her computer programs.

"Hotaru" means "firefly, lightning bug" and "Maki" means "shepherd, tend cattle"/"real, genuine"/"tree".

She has salmon/light red hair and purplish-magenta eyes.

A while after Tomoko moved to America, someone from that country would make a return to Japan... in the form of Gina Nishikawa, a highly-trained ballet dancer. Her parents were originally from Japan themselves but eventually decided to move back there once their daughter was ready to enroll in high school. She's responsible for teaching the COLORBLAST! members new dance moves.

"Gina" means "silvery" (in English, the name also means "earth worker, farmer") and "Nishikawa" means "west"/"river, stream".

She has light brown hair and olive eyes.

Lastly, there's Mizuki Furukawa, the standard "girl next door". I actually conceptualized Mizuki (and her family) after watching the Ju-on films (the original Japanese Grudge movies, mind you), believe it or not. She lives with her loving but overworked single father and much younger brother in a modest house and doesn't really get out a lot. She's often picked on at school for being kind of a doormat, and Motoko Koizumi kind of looks down on her too, if she's being honest. But for the most part, COLORBLAST! has welcomed Mizuki into their group with open arms. Now, only time will tell if Mizuki will open up more when she expresses herself through dance...

"Mizuki" means "beautiful moon" (similar to Kyoko, her name was recycled from an old, now-defunct OC) and "Furukawa" means "old"/"river, stream".

She has black hair and dark brown eyes.