<div class="floatleft">(https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/d3/bf/b8/d3bfb808a83b1745fdbeee401de7ff0f.jpg)</div><br/>Juliana Ines de Tomas del Rioja (https://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=1158110)<br/><br/><strong>Personality</strong>: Juliana is a charismatic, out-going woman who loves a good drink, a good story and a warm body to share her bed with.  She is often accused of being overly-dramatic, but that is part of her charm, and even when she is deep in the throes of a romantic flourish or emotional melodrama, she keep her tongue lodged firmly in her cheek.  She adores theatrics on and off the battlefield, knowing that a cape flourish or flashy bit of footwork can easily throw one's opponent off their guard.  Behind the smile and razzle-dazzle lies the heart and soul of a poet, who feels too deeply and suffers from a monumental wound.  There are times her laughter and energy seem frenetic, even desperate, as if she uses them to stave off the well of darkness that threatens to swallow her whole.<br/><br/><strong>Background</strong>:  Juliana was fortunate to have been born in Castille, where her love of warfare was fostered and nurtured.  Her father Tomas was a renown commander in the army, known for his skill with both musket and sword, who had led his men into many dazzling victories.  Juliana's desire to join the army, as soon as she was old enough to hold a sword, was seen as her being a chip off the old block and her father did everything he could to help her become a skilled swordswoman and musketeer.<br/><br/>She was the only girl, with three older brothers who flip-flopped between defending her and despising her.  Two of them were also in the army, and the eldest was a priest.  He and her mother were Juliana's saving grace as she grew into a woman and discovered a romantic soul hidden within her armor.  They encouraged her to embrace both aspects of herself, noting that a poet could write just as easily after a battle as a warrior could fight after composing a sonnet.  The ugliness of the battlefield was tempered by the beauty that Juliana found in he shape of clouds, the shine of sunlight off of water and even the rich ruby of arterial spray.<br/><br/>When she was in her early twenties, she met and fell madly in love with a baker.  He replaced her mother and brother as her soft place to land, and the two were wildly happy.  They had plans to have children, which would mean that Juliana would have to retire from the military, but she had found a new passion.  Then, three years after they were married, she received word during a battle that her husband, Alonso, had fallen gravely ill and was not expected to survive.  Juliana didn't think, she gathered what she would need for the trip and climbed atop her horse, deserting her regiment in the middle of the night.<br/><br/>She arrived in time to spend Alonso's last hours with him, holding his hand and praying for a miracle.  Her brother, Sebastian, the priest, stayed with her the whole time and held her as she wept when her love finally moved on.  Her grief was further compounded by her punishment from the army, the disgrace it brought herself and her family, and the branding of cowardice that she suffered under as a result of deserting.  Her father disowned her, and the only members of her family who would speak to her were her mother and brother.  Her visits with her mother had to be brief and secretive, for fear of her father finding out, and she grew more and more depressed by the vicious whispers and icy glares she received anytime she was in public.<br/><br/>Finally, unable to take it any longer, she left Castille in search of the means to reclaim her father's respect, her family's honor, her reputation and true love.<div class="floatright">(https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/a0/ce/c7/a0cec70966b92bfcdf8c6f34620d7b79.jpg)</div><br/><strong>Stories</strong>:<br/><br/><em>Join Knights of the Rose &amp; Cross</em><br/><ul class="bbc_list"><li>Locate a member of KR&amp;C to begin service</li><li>Find benefactors to garner favor with the Knights</li><li>Complete quests set by the Knights</li><li>Devote myself to justice, righting wrongs and protecting the helpless</li><li>Become a full member of the Knights</li></ul><em>Reclaim my Honor</em><br/><ul class="bbc_list"><li>Prove my merit in battle</li><li>Stand fast in defense of another's life</li><li>Become renown for my heroism</li><li>Return to Castille vindicated and hailed a hero</li></ul><br/><em>Find True Love Again</em><br/><br/><ul class="bbc_list"><li>Heal the wounds that linger from my husband's death</li><li>Find anther who moves me as deeply as he once did</li><li>Fall in love</li><li>live the rest of my days with the person I love</li></ul>