Civilian Form
Name: Corinne Elisabeth Murdoch
Meaning: Corinne - maiden, Elisabath - God's oath, murdoch - navigator
Goes by: Cori, please
Age: 23
Birthday: June 26
Astrology sign: Cancer sun, Sagittarius moon, Libra rising (emotional, loves family, a bit of a rover, and a make-new-friends sort of gal)
Blood type: B-
Lives Where: The farm is located outside of Colchester, on what one might consider the outskirts of the charming town of Fingringhoe. Cori lives there with her parents in their modest cottage, the same cottage she's lived in all of her life. The land is owned by her mother's family and is home to a rather successful fruit orchard.
Occupation: Cori drives a beat-up delivery truck for the orchard and other family farms in the area during the week, running errands and showing up to little groceries and organic stores with her deliveries.
Skills: Singing on key, apple-picking, excellent map-reader, great memory when it comes to names and faces, driving in muddy roads, excellent at saving money, and a very good judge of character. Also, she can't cook worth a lick, but she can take a taste of something and tell you exactly what's missing.
Family
Mother: Margaret Murdoch (pearly navigator - age 43 - Margie is the quintessential peasant woman, petite and round and very down-to-earth. With dark curly brown hair that's greyed at the temples and merry hazel-green eyes, she comes across as one of those mothers who always has fresh baked cookies at the table and pieces quilts in the evenings. And... well, that's not far off. Margie's a farm girl and will always be a farm girl, awake before sunrise and frighteningly practical. Never having gone to school after she turned twelve (and instead, working on the farm), Margie's impressed by intelligence and feels that her oldest daughter should take advantage of her God-given talent by going to uni and becoming a "professional of sorts." She doesn't think any less of Cori (in fact, she identifies with her free-spirited 'baby'), and instead trusts her youngest to keep an eye out for her big sister, rather than the other way around. She loves to travel and has a massive collection of tour guides and picture-books for her coffee table.
Father: Rory Murdoch (red navigator) - age 45 - Rory is clearly the product of good honest outdoor work. Tall and broad-shouldered, he towers over people with his 6'5" stature and screaming auburn hair that has yet to show any grey. Brown eyes are set in a chiseled face, and the man is almost always smiling. Margie was the disciplinarian, as Rory couldn't even say 'no' to his daughters without somehow laughing. Outgoing and very much the storyteller, Rory had no problem living on his in-laws' land and taking over farming responsibilities as they grew older. His own parents now gone, he is extremely close to Margie's father and encourages his daughters to come home often for dinners with their grandparents. He's instilled within both girls the sense of family and the need to look out for each other. Living in the same place for so many years has made Rory a bit itchy to get out of the English countryside for a while, and he's been planning a long trip for himself and Margie to take in the summer, now that their girls are old enough to keep an eye on things every now and again.
Rory and Margie are still embarrassingly in love, which both amuses and frightens their daughters. Cori's often teased them about not being able to handle another sibling this late in the game, only to be told that "there's no harm in practicing." Silly adults.
Sister: Brady Rose Murdoch (rosy big-chested navigator) - age 25 - Brady's one of those girls who thrives on her independence, and yet always wants that additional emotional support to reaffirm her independence/appearance/everything but intelligence, since that's what her parents didn't forget to remind her, throughout years of school. Brady was the one sent off to do her homework immediately after supper, while Cori was sent to do more chores around the farm. There was a fair amount of resentment between the two during their school years (Brady resented the fact that their parents expected so much more, Cori resented the fact that her parents seemed to think that Brady's smarts were so important) and their teenage years were somewhat strained. After Brady's first years at uni in London, the two began to get along a bit better. There are still the usual sisterly squabbles and concerns, but the pair is extremely close.
Brady is emotional and affectionate, with a warm and empathetic personality. She's only 5'5" and not quite as stocky as her younger sister but the two share the same sort of coloring in the skin, hair, and eyes. Brady's also a bit curvier in spots, and she's got a distinct fashion sense about her. She's a full-time student these days, often tutoring younger students for extra money. She's also forever wishing for a boyfriend, something that Cori has made a priority to locate. After all, a little sister should be concerned about the happiness of her big sister, right?
A final family note: Margie always told her girls that they didn't have to be friends, but that they were sisters, and at the end of the day they'd always have each other no matter what. That bit of advice tended to stick over the years. The Murdoch girls are very very close, and they look after each other. Cori's the sort to run off screaming down the roads one morning to take care of her sister. Sure, it might be a long drive, but it's her -sister- and she's worth every minute spent.
Likes
Rainy afternoons, due to the soothing sound of raindrops on the windshield and the way the sky wraps the day in a grey blanket of cool comfort.
Her truck, since it's beat-up and lime-green and cozy. A hand-me-down that she's gotten fixed up, the truck is her very own and fiercely prized. No one gets between Cori and the truck. The truck is named Freddie, with no real reason behind said name other than it seemed to fit.
Sleeping in after a long night of pub-crawling, and the events that lead up to said sleeping-in.
Snuggling on the couch with a good friend while watching old movies.
The Wizard of Oz, especially the character of the Scarecrow.
Other minor likes include: Clydesdales, hard ciders (Mum's granddad came up with the best methods, and Cori swears by her family's secret recipe), homemade quilts, sheepdogs, drinking songs, trashy romance novels, gossip papers and magazines, melodramatic soap operas, and collecting postcards... and her George Michael poster on the back of her closet door that her sister still teases her about ('I don't care if he doesn't fancy girls, he still looks fantastic in that video from the backside.').
Dislikes
Traffic jams. Enough said.
Cranky people, especially cranky -old- people who go out of their way to be gruff and unhappy.
Being dirty, as being clean is entirely preferable. The girl keeps a change of clothes in her truck for especially muddy days.
Prissy girls who can't stand breaking a nail or lifting anything heavier than a girly drink.
People who refuse to act on their own behalf when they have the means to better their situation, and the whining done by said people.
Other dislikes: School (it's just not for her, thanks), black coffee, surly shopkeepers, and being stuck in the mud.
Other Notes
Favorite Food: Chocolate cake, with a glass of cold milk. Generally, anything homemade knocks the socks off of anything storebought for the girl.
Hated Food: Mayonnaise... in fact, Cori has a general dislike for condiments. Good food shouldn't need dressing up with flavored sludge.
Fav. Subject: History was actually not too badly received, and literary studies weren't too horrible either.
Hated Subject: Nothing was truly hated, but anything that resulted in a comparison with her older sister didn't make Cori too terribly happy, even if it was by a teacher in a class she worshipped.
Color: light green/cornsilk (hex code as follows: #90EE90/#FFF8DC)
Hobbies: Collecting Wizard of Oz figurines. Reading trashy music and social magazines. Reading soppy romance novels. Keeping an eye out for men who might be worthy of meeting her sister over a pint. Turning strangers into friends at the local pub.
Aspirations: To be happy and true to herself, which she's managing to do just fine at the moment, thank you. To see her sister happy, which in Cori's mind means that she needs to find her a husband, or at least a steady and long term boyfriend.
Gemstone: Malachite
Appearance
Cori is what most people would call a big girl. Just under six feet tall and 180 lbs, the girl is built like one of her grandfather's Clydesdales. Strong, sturdy, and solid, she's the type who's built for hard work out on the farm. Broad shoulders are from her father's side of the family, while wide hips and a modest chest come from her mother's mother. Dark brown eyes are full of expression, just a few shades darker than her ungodly thick straight hair that hangs just past her shoulders. Her complexion is a slightly darker sun-beaten variety of the typical peaches-and-cream. Her face is oval with a rounded chin and a handsome nose that slopes to a slightly wide and rounded end. Apple cheeks are generally red and windchapped, complete with freckles. Hands are strong and calloused, with long fingers that almost always have a bandage or two around them. There's a bit of padding on her frame, courtesy of a love of pub food and long hours spent at the wheel of her truck. Still, her build and the way she carries herself belong to someone who is used to a simple life and hard work, and who enjoys it.
Clothing is sturdy and oft-patched, and Cori dresses in layers. She has a favorite pair of work boots she stomps around in during the week, seeming to not care about appearance as long as she's warm and dry. Hair is usually pulled back or stuffed under a homemade knit cap, hands covered by well-loved fingerless gloves on those cool mornings. At the same time, due in part to her sister's influence and a handy chunk of self-confidence, Cori can clean up stunningly and enjoys the effect immensely. Heels and short skirts are favorites, since she thinks it's fun to show off long legs while towering over most of the regulars at the pubs.
Cori's voice hovers just above an alto, rich and assured when she speaks. There's a slight lilt to her speech (Dad does still carry a bit of a Scottish brogue and passed it on to both of his girls), but it simply adds a bit of rhythm and melody to her words. She's fond of singing in the car, and manages to do so without breaking glass or irritating the infrequent passenger.
Personality
Cori is one of those good-natured and free-spirited sorts of people. Outgoing, independent, and confident adequately define her general demeanor, and her progressive and forward-thinking nature carries over into how she handles people. Hardly weak or timid, Cori manages to blend honesty and tact in her speech and is never one to beat about the bush. She both gives and demands honesty from everyone, and someone's lack of honestly will quickly invoke Cori's temper. In fact, honest might be the overall theme of this young woman's personality. Cori sees no need to hide herself behind lies or untruths. She is who she is, and she sees no reason to change herself for anyone. You don't like her? Big deal, because her parents love her and her big sister loves her and her grandparents love her... and hey, her Guardian also cares for her. Unless you're family, your opinion really doesn't matter all that much at the end of the day.
One should not confuse Cori's honesty with a completely open personality. Having witnessed friends and family hurt by their openness, she's learned that not everyone needs to know everything. While Cori's an emotional and sympathetic creature, she keeps much of her more complex feelings and thoughts tucked back from her parents. She's tell someone if she's having a bad day, but not everyone needs to be told that it's due to a falling out with some guy for a nasty conversation with a shop owner. It's Cori's way of protecting herself, ensuring that she'd got some barrier between herself and those she hasn't fully taken into her massive circles of friends and family. That being said, Cori has an extensive network of casual friends available for a good conversation, but few people manage to make it to the point where she'll honestly tell how she truly feels.
Cori does tell -everything- to two people, Brady and Tony. Of course, she's kept the Angelus thing from Brady, but that's the only thing. Her parents get the annotated versions of what she tells Brady, as do acquaintances at the London pubs, her various cousins back home, and the regulars on her delivery routes. She makes friends easily, but she does have a tendency to put her acquaintances through a "test" period as she figures out how chatty and open she can be with them. The closer one is to Cori, the more likely that person will receive her honesty in all forms, including her temper and candid observations. Still, Cori keeps her friends at an emotional distance, always telling the facts while not opening up completely about what she's feeling. She's a realist, but not one to deliver her opinions and advice harshly unless that's the only way to knock some common sense into someone.
Hard work and loyalty also factor prominently in Cori's personaliy. Tenacious, she is not the type to give up on a project, even after a few failures. This young woman will doggedly pursue her goals, loyal to leader and cause throughout the process. Cori devotes herself to her job and her friend, and is lightning-quick to defend them. Say something about her, and Cori will reply with a shrug and a cold remark. Direct such comments towards her family (especially her big sister) and be prepared to witness the fury of Miss Murdoch. Mercy 'pon your soul and all that... she doesn't fight fairly when it comes to looking out for her favorite people. She is verbally and physically emotional, and she tends to be rather loud when provoked. At the same time, she's fairly exuberant when happy, and she makes it a point to share her 'good days' with those who need a pick-me-up. Bad days are tucked away from the world, and Cori will take advice regarding these bad days only when she asks for it.
Since she's an Angelus, let's mention that her mother's family is recreationally Catholic (holidays are celebrated, but going to Mass isn't done all that often these days) and that her father's family belonged to the grand old Church of England. Cori is what one might call spiritual but not overly religious. She's sure there's a God, she's sure there's a Heaven and a Hell, and she's not about to do anything of major consequence that would have her sent to the latter. There's a healthy amount of respect there for all of the non-Christian practices that go on in the country, since Cori figures that she might not be completely right and it wouldn't do any good to get on the wrong side of whatever head deity is running the show. Now that she's an Angelus, she's a bit more certain that Mum and Dad were right all along... but the respect is still there for everything else, just because that's the right thing to do.
She thrives on having friends and family around, and she loves being with people. Parties, bustling pubs, open-air markets, family get-togethers, they all provide that delicious social environment that Cori loves. She is the sort of person who seems to know everyone, who strikes up conversations with strangers until they aren't strangers anymore. This isn't to say that Cori doesn't have her own list of people she doesn't like; in fact, she's rather picky about people in general and has no problem informing someone that he or she isn't worth her time.
Independence and freedom factor heavily into Cori's lifestyle. She fears being fenced in or tied to a single place, and prefers to maintain a fluid lifestyle. She enjoys the travel that her job allows, as well as the flexibility of her hours. Although she is a packrat of sorts, Cori prides herself on being able to pick up and move at a moment's notice. One trunk, one knapsack, and a darling handbag made by her Nana are all she needs. This freedom and need to be independent also extends to her love life. Often intimacy poses a problem, and feeling tied down to a person doesn't sit well with her. Honesty keeps her from pursuing multiple relationships at the same time, and she'd never cheat on someone. Still, she's the sort of girl who has romantic friendships, with couch-cuddling and a few kisses here and there, but nothing more intimate. It not that she's not interested, it's just not a high priority.
Overall, Cori presents an image of a loyal and hardworking woman who strives for honestly with herself and with her family. Committed to her own happiness, she doesn't waste time on people or pastimes that would bring her down. Her want for freedom often keeps her from intimacy, something that she sometimes regrets in the late nights after another boyfriend is gone and there's no one to talk to. Her honesty can turn people away, but Cori isn't bothered by this. As long as she has the open road and a tank of gas and the promise to meet a friend along the way, she's content.
History
On a rainy afternoon in June, Cori came into the world to find two loving parents and an excited older sister waiting for her. Her first handful of years were spent tagging along behind Brady, playing dolls, and pretty much keeping Mum company in the small house on the edge of the land that Nana and Papa owned. Her father made an honest living on the farm as part of Margie's family's business, and they managed rather well. With grandparents around every day, Cori wore a path from the little cottage near the barn to the slightly larger cottage near the road with visits to Nana's kitchen. When the time came, she attended school and managed to get decent marks, but she had far more fun running around on the orchards 'helping' than reading books in the kitchen with Brady. Sometimes overshadowed by her older sister's brainy reputation, Cori learned to smile and shrug off the comparisons, preferring to be known as friendly and helpful than simply smart. She did manage to outshine her sister when it came to movie and music trivia, and her fondness for The Wizard of Oz manifested in years and years of make-believe with Brady playing the Good Witch, Cori as Dorothy, and countless stuffed animals and/or barn cats coerced into playing munchkins and other supporting cast members. Margie always told them that they didn't have to be friends, but that they were sisters, and at the end of the day they'd always have each other no matter what. That bit of advice tended to stick over the years.
School years came and went, with summers spent in Aberdeen with her father's Scottish parents chasing sheep and doing chores on their farm. She managed to cultivate groups of friends in Aberdeen and in the little towns that fed into the schools she attended, and pretty much thrived upon the normal teenage happiness and tidbits of angst that pepper the years from age ten until sixteen. She didn't see the need to do more than that amount of education, and her parents respected that as long as she would earn her keep at home. With enough schooling and a desire to simply figure out what she wanted out of life, she spent her time working on the family farm running errands for the family and the other neighbors and relishing the times when her sister would come home from uni in London.
Cori's family protectiveness did get her in trouble every so often, usually in the form of honest opinions directed at her sister's suitors. Few boys were good enough for Brady (so the younger Murdoch believed) and on the monthly overnight visits to London (sisterly bonding weekends), Cori never hesitated to stick up for her sister in that respect. It got the pair into enough fights, Brady usually resorting to the argument that she was smart enough to see for herself and Cori declaring that smarts didn't have anything to do with bad taste in men. This came to a head when a fight broke out between Cori and Brady's almost-fiancé when she walked in on the pair, Brady cowering in a corner while he brandished a leather belt and bellowed about not needing some uppity woman claiming she was better than he was. Taking Brady's "Women of Shakespeare" text to the back of the bloke's head, Cori got in a few swift kicks before shoving him out of the apartment and tending to her big sister. She even managed to sweet-talk the police who came to the flat that evening after the young man had reported an assault. Playing to the older officer's sympathies ("Sir, if you'd see someone wailing on your daughter, what would you have done?") she got off without so much as a reprimand, and Brady's profuse apologies to the officer were met with a fatherly pat on the head and the advice to be wiser about the men she brought home. Unfortunately, this gave Cori a slightly threatening reputation among Brady's not-so-close male acquaintances. It's taken them a while to figure out that she's not out to beat all of them up... just the few who weasel their way into her sister's life and try to make it miserable.
About a week after the incident with Brady, Cori nearly ran over a disheveled wet dog on her way back to the farm. Immediately concerned, she took the creature with her in the truck... and just about ran off the road when the animal started talking to her. A few long rides gave Tony, the Cairn terrier and reincarnation of Saint Anthony of Padua, time enough to educate Cori on her role as Sandalphon. Lucky for the guardian, Cori was rather enamored of the whole Angelus idea, the discovery giving some sort of purpose to her life while hardly restricting the free lifestyle that she doesn't plan on giving up any time soon.
For now, Cori lives at the cottage, watching over things and checking in on her grandparents while Mum and Dad travel the globe on a well-earned vacation. Her father's parents have both passed away, leaving Cori just slightly mopey when she hears sweet little old ladies with thick brogues that remind her of Gramma. With postcards from her parents arriving weekly (and slowly covering the door of her bedroom) and work enough to keep her busy, Cori is content with where she is in life. She's friendly with the locals and manages to get up to London once a month to see her sister for a long weekend. The truck is her constant companion, and she is perfectly content to grow old and merry and gray as a delivery girl for the family orchards.
Senshi Form
Senshi: Sandalphon, Angelus/Archangelus Senshi of Direction
Fuku: Sandalphon wears an ankle-length long sleeved cornsilk colored shift, the front scoop-necked to show a modest amount of cleavage. The sleeves button at the wrist with two buttons of malachite green, billowing out just slightly about her arms. Over this, Sandalphon wears a light green drop waist dress that laces up the front (from just below the hips to just below that 'modesty line' as described for the shift) with cornsilk colored ties. The skirt of the dress is split in the front, with the hems and inner edges embroidered in a black and cornsilk braiding sort of pattern. A flat sash seven centimeters wide is tied about her hips, the ends trailing in the front just past her knees and the sash bearing the same braiding pattern as the hems and edges of the dress. A thinner fabric piece of the same pattern ties about her forehead to serve as a circlet. Cornsilk colored stockings are all but hidden by black calf-high boots, the embroidery on the shoes giving them the illusion of having sandal-like straps over the top of the foot and at the back of the heel. An ankle-length cornsilk velvet-lined kinsale cloak completes the outfit, tied at her throat with a malachite clasp in the shape of her symbol, an equal-armed cross with arrow points at each of the four ends.
Transformation Sequence: Cori's henshin item is a polished circle of black walnut three centimeters in diameter engraved with her symbol (mentioned previously, a cross with equal arms, with each arm ending in an arrow's point). This is usually tied about her neck with a dark leather thong. To transform, she makes the Sign of the Cross and then kisses the index and middle finger of her right hand before pressing it to the carving, saying "Sandalphon Angelus Power, Guide Me!" She is then able to pull the leather piece from about her neck and fling it to the ground. The disk erupts in a burst of cornsilk-cream and green dust that attaches to Cori's figure. Large cornsilk velvet angel wings spread outwards from her shoulders, wrapping about her form in a cocoon before melting into the shape of her cloak, hood over her face. From the disk on the ground grows her walking stick, the top encircled with a ring of malachite. She extends her hand outwards to grasp the walking stick, causing the mist to melt away and bring the rest of her fuku to view. She ends her henshin by pounding the earth with her walking stick, the "crack" causing the hood to fall back and reveal her face.
Powers
Name: Topsy-Turvy
How it is summoned: Sandalphon calls out the words, "Let them be turned backward and blush for shame that seek my soul," before bopping a target with the side of her walking stick. She can hit the target anywhere, but the hit must be hard enough to leave a bruise to begin the attack.
Effect on Target: Aside from being whapped with a stick, the target will suffer immediate nausea, vertigo, disorientation, and an utter inability to figure out where he or she is. This lasts for thirty seconds, with the target unable to judge distance or direction for up to five minutes afterwards, depending upon the target's health and mental condition.
Recharge/Cast Effect: Sandalphon may do this once every ten minutes with no repercussions, or once every two minutes and experience severe dizziness for forty-five seconds afterwards.
Name: Divine Guidance
How it is summoned: Sandalphon raises her staff and says the words, "Direct thy steps in the straight path." A light green glow engulfs her left hand, which is then thrown towards an ally, bathing the target in a pale green glow for a brief second before subsiding.
Effect on Target: This increases accuracy for the target for as long as Sandalphon is henshined. While they can't hit perfectly, any magical attacks suddenly seem to find their mark a lot more often.
Recharge/Cast Effect: Sandalphon can cast this on up to three targets, but the overall accuracy decreases. After three, there's just no added benefit to her casting it.
Guardian
Name: Anthony, usually called Tony. The incarnation of Saint Anthony of Padua, patron saint of travelers and lost things.
Form: Cairn terrier, a small wiry dog popularized by the film The Wizard of Oz. Tony weighs about 8 pounds, his coat a dark wheat color that goes black around his muzzle and the tips of his ears.
Personality: Affectionate, outgoing, and talkative to a fault, Tony is a gentle soul who loves long car rides and Celtic folk music. He is incredibly patient with his Angelus, utterly enthusiastic about her calling, and rather fond of her entire family. He plays the part of a favorite old uncle, and one might imagine his voice belonging to one of the regulars who like to sit and play dominoes over a cup of tea at the local breakfast spot in the morning.
Tony's only true fault is that he loves to talk, and often forgets that he has come back to this Earth as a dog. He has a tendency to gossip about the people and places seen on their daily errands, but his form of "gossip" is a sweet friendly sort of wonder and worry. He has an excellent memory and enjoys reading the daily papers - usually aloud - while he and Cori travel back and forth. He is extremely comfortable about the Catholic faith and loves to talk to people about his beliefs, in a pleasant and cheerfully chatty manner. Tony is not one to condemn anyone for their beliefs, but he has an ability to make his own faith extremely uplifting and glorious. Finding Cori sent him into happy tailwagging fits of thanksgiving for weeks; finding more Angelus would probably have him singing the Hallelujah chorus for days on end... in a very endearing manner, of course.
As for likes and dislikes, Tony adores the rain and children, and would prefer to stay away from horses. Nothing personal, he just has an unnatural fear of being trod upon. He also has a severe sweet tooth, and has had to convince Cori that he is exempt from the usual "dogs can't have chocolate" rule due to the benevolence of a higher power.