“In short, most of you have the mind of a goat”

More then skin and bones...

PERSONALITY TRAITS: Inflexible, Stubborn, Judgmental, Uptight, Stoic (-), Strong-willed, Dedicated, Honest, Reliable, Loyal (+) [ESTJ]
PERSONALITY:

Anoushka is a woman with a strong personality, and most probably when you met her at first you will be faced with her more... strong side.

She's inflexible and stubborn, having her mind made about a vast array of things, and until you can prove by a+b that your opinion is more than just an opinion and it's actually a good idea, she will dismiss it and make things her own way.

She also has strong convictions about what's right, wrong and socially acceptable, things being too black&white for her. She doesn't considers that things could be more complicated than that, or that it might have been more than a 'right way'. She doesn't hesitate to call out those she think are doing something wrong, and while she's loved by her servants by that, keeping that attitude in the middle of pirates might be complicated.

Because she's a woman in a world dominated by men, Anou values a lot respect and she always minds her behaviour and hold tight to her opinions and beliefs, what can make other people see her as uptight. Another consequence about growing up in a logical and fact-inclined environment is that she minds facts too much and doesn't know how to express emotions easily, making her to be perceived as stoic by others.

But she's also a strong-willed lady, so once she put an objective in front of her, she will pursue it with all her strenghts. She's no coward and her dedication and perseverance are outstanding. She doesn't waver faced with a long journey, and waiting and working hard for something she wants is not a problem.

Honesty is another trait of her. Not necessarily being honest on the good-two-shoes aspect, but rather that she's honest with her words even when you don't want it. Count on her to say out loud all the possibilities of not making past that storm, or saying something that everyone's thinking but no one has courage to say. But this also mean that lying is something she wouldn't do unless to protect someone.

What bring us to the traits that make people end trusting and liking her. She's very reliable, and if she says she will help you, don't doubt it. She keeps her word no matter what. And once you win her loyalty, nothing will stop her from comming to your aid if needed. The proof is her journey itself. Everything she's willing to do to find her father again. And don't fool yourself, it's not only because it's her father. She would do the same for anyone close to her.

BACKGROUND: 

Anoushka is the only daughter of Sri Jayesh and his only wife Padma. The Joshi family is also known not only for being of a noble line, but also for their prowes in business and high intellect, what makes them rich merchants and respected academics.

When Anoushka was 2 years old, her mother got pregnant again, but days before giving birth Padma got sick and that affect the delivery. She had complications that resulted not only in her death, but also of the newborn baby, that was posthumously named Amar, because he would be immortalized in their memories

Losing his wife and son made Jayesh devote all his love to his daughter, and made her his sole heir, since he refused to marry another woman after his wife's death. And that's why Anoushka grew up with oportunities that in other families would only be offered to male sons, especialy the elder one.

However, Jayesh's job didin't allowed him to raise his daughter personaly, so who raised her was her late mother's handmaiden, Gita. Gita had also been Padma's best friend and was known for her ethereal beauty, and the fact that Jayesh never touched her more than a sister showed everyone how much he had loved his wife.

Despite the physical distance that ofen put them apart, Anoushka and her dad were always very close because they were very alike and Jayesh was always a supportive father. Gita also always made sure to assure Anoushka that her dad loved her very much, and that her mother also had loved her, even if she was not here with them anymore.

So Anou grew up a happy child, always hearing stories from her father from the places he went, and hearing fantastical stories and songs from Gita. That until she was seven. On the summer of the year she completed seven years old, was also the summer with the biggest storm seen in decades.

The morning was slightly cloudy and Gita left for the waterfront market to do some chores she needed, leaving Anou with a trusted maid, Anika, since the girl had a cold and was still recovering. The rain arrived around midday, fast, windy and powerful. Everyone was running to find cover and chaos rised when the protections around the river bends broke because of the force of the water and it flooded the entire market. Gita would have left unharmed, but she saw a little toddler that got separated from her mother close to drowning, so she saved the child but in the effort she was swept away by the raging river. Other people tried to get her out but the debris made it impossible. The Joshi mansion would only get the news that Gita was gone hours later after the storm passed, when one of the villagers finally made it to the house and transmitted the news of what happened.

The entire house was devastated and for an entire week Anoushka refused to believe that Gita was really gone. Anika was the maid that started to take care of her and who comforted Anou when she finally broke drown crying at the end of the seventh day. For another entire week Anou refused to eat properly and Jayesh then made a deal with her. If she started to eat well again, he would get her a tutor, and she agreed, curious. This was how Sumbhajee Banerjee started to teach Anoushka.

Jayesh's plan worked better than he could imagine. While Anoushka was still sad for the loss of Gita, she poured all of her attention on anything and everything that she could learn from her new tutor. Sumbhajee had barelly finished explaining one of her questions and she had another five to ask him.

Anoushka then grew up breathing and drinking all the knowledge she could learn, and while this showed she was a kind of genius, it also put her apart from other people around her age, especially when she hit puberty. She felt like no one could understand her and thus the sulking period begun. Worried about that, Jayesh thought it would be good to put someone her age around her all the time, so this is how Anou gained another handmaiden, Drishya.

Drishya was far from being intelectualy equal to Anoushka, but her practical view on life was a great contrast to the academic mind her lady had. They quickly got inseparable and the change in Anoushka was visible. She got more confident and talkative and also started to enjoy more simple things in life like a girl her age should do.

Real trouble enssued when she reached eligible age to marry. Suitors came because of her family's prestige, but none of them had any idea what they would face. She kept refusing and rejecting one by one, to the point she said that she wouldn't marry anyone that wasn't at least an intellectual equal to her. After being upset with her because of so many rejections, Jayesh saw the wisdom in that request and accepted. They even found someone that filled all the conditions. The problem was when the guy turned out to be different than he presented himself. He tried innapropriate approaches on Anou, but was't successful. She then proceeded to tell her father, and while the guy tried to make her sound silly and histerical, Jayesh believed his daughter in a heartbeat and immediately called the engagement off.

The fact that Jayesh took her side in a society mostly ist meant a lot for Anou. That was when that she promised him that she would make him proud like no son ever did to their father. She engaged on important communitary services at the temple and was exemplar while dealing with the family bussiness.

When she completed 21, a teen was added on her personal maids, because now she was deemed mature enough to be an example for someone. So that's how Inaaya got added to the close circle.

Anoushka kept being an exemplar daughter, called the true treasure of the Joshi family, and everything was going perfectly well until her father had to take another work trip. One month later when she didn't received any letter from him, she got worried. Usually by this time he would have reached a port and sent news. Two weeks later, came the news of a big storm that had hit the region he was in. One more week and a report from the only surviving ship came to her hands. Her father was not on that ship. He was lost at sea. She tried to calculate all possible routes and places the storm could have taken him to, but while at that she heard the whispers of the servants, stories they heard in town about ships with black flags that sailed along the storms.

From then on she crossed all the information she got about the storm, the wrecked ships from her father's fleet and the pirate tales. She found a name of a certain ship and pulled connections from her servants to find a way to contact someone from the crew.

The last thing she did before going to mett with her connection on one of the taverns in the lower side of town was to ask her tutor to take care of her family business, and promising him that she would come back safe and sound. Deep in her heart she also hoped that she could return with her father.

And from then on she said goodbye to her maids, meet a person that took her to the Captain and bought passage on his ship to look for her father, since the ship had survived the same storm that attacked her father's fleet.

TRIVIA:

✩ Although she's a follower of the Seriph Jade beliefs, both her and her father (and her mentor) are from the smaller group that preffers to use the term 'scholar' instead of 'monk'.
✩ Her favorite times of the day are the sun rising and the sunset.
✩ She loves fruits and condimented food.
✩ She likes to play Chaturanga and Pachisi and is good at both.
✩ She practices Yoga.
✩ She's a skilled administrator and knows how to talk with servants (aka they like her).
✩ She loves when she can have intellectual discussions of any sort.
✩ She doesn't know how to deal with cold and humid places because she lived her entire life in an arid climate.
✩ She's not scared of storms, but she doesn't sleep well through them because the memories it evokes about the time she lost Gita.
✩ She can bargain like no one else. Expects her to get at least 50% of discount.

RELATIONSHIPS: 

                                           
                                                  fc: Aamir Khan
✩ Father -  Sri Jayesh Joshi (54) / rich academic and merchant / visionary, wise, caring / 5 out 5
The apple of his eyes for sure is his daughter. Jayesh loves Anoushka more than anything in this world, specially since his wife died. Because of the fact that he owns a merchant fleet, sometimes he needs to spend long periods of time away from home, and he hated to leave Anou alone. That's why he surrounded her with maids and gave her a teacher. He thought that if she could feel cared and entertained while he's away, it could make up a little for the time he couldn't spend with her. When he stays at home tho, the two are pretty much inseparable and he takes Anou everywhere with him, including work meetings. It has been some years since Anou proved how intelligent she is, so none of the older men question her presence anymore.

           
                          fc: Hema Malini, Rakul Preet, Ananya Agarwal
✩ Handmaidens - Anika, Drishya, Inaaya (45, 24, 16) / personal servants / caring, diligent, loyal / 4 out 5
The three handmaidens are always with Anou, and the three are almost always together. Anika is the oldest and the one that took care of Anou since she was seven. Nowadays she's the mother figure towards Anou and the one that is not afraid to whack the young woman upside her head or poke her hard on the back if that means she will behave better and stop embarrassing others with her extense knowledge. Drishya is the same age as Anoushka and she's the closest of a best friend that the academic woman has. Drishya equaly says brutal truths to Anou and support her on everything. Inaaya is the youngest and she has been with Anou for just a few years now. She's still kind of a maid-in-training, and she's pretty much like a eager younger sister that wants to make the older women happy and proud.

                                             
                                             fc: Marshall Manesh
✩ Tutor - Sri Sumbhajee Banerjee (68) / academic and intelectual / wise, intelligent, just / 4 out 5
Her tutor had teached her for her entire life, so he's pretty much like a family member, something between an old uncle and an young grandfather. He wants to seem tought and strict, but he's pretty much weak for Anou. He had watched her grow from a curious little girl to the inteligent and wise woman she is today. He's proud of having her as his pupil and he doesn't regret accepting his friend's questionanble request of teaching his daughter.

                                           
                                                 fc: Aishwarya Rai
✩ Nanny - Gita (should have been 44 by now) / caretaker / caring, funny, sweet, responsible / 5 out 5
Gita was originaly Anou's mother's handmaid and she promised her lady that she would take care of the girl if anything happened to her. So when lady Padma Joushi died, she basicaly turned into Anou's mother. She was the one that raised Anou and teached her about manners. The most basic traits of Anou probably were oriented by Gita. Gita also was the one that was always around Anou and who sang to her every night before the girl went to sleep. She saw Anou as her own child.

RETURN TO the STORY

BanaWarrior ✩ Bana

LAST COMMENT: I hope her relationships and backstory are not too complicated n.n'

SCENE REQUEST: 

✩ Anou would probably freak out if she sees the mermaid transforming (regaining her tail) in front of her own eyes. 

✩ Gita actually still being alive (and looking almost the same) because she is a mermaid, so she survived the raging river and ended back in the ocean, regaining her tail when comming in contact with salt water. (she was rescued from a beach by Padma many years ago, they got friends and all and that's why she was still disguised after all those years while Anou was a child).

✩ Idk. Some ship battle? Fighting the kraken? Just some good action hahaha

✩ Anou calling Nich "Priye", that means Darling/Sweetheart in Hindi (since he calls her "Waan Jai").

PASSWORD: Pirates will be Pirates (that's the song Gita always sang to Anou)