about
Name: Raina Durham
Species: Selkie or Silkie (Seal Shape-shifter)
Gender: Female
Age: 18 (as of December 7, 2005)
Status: "Bonded" to Bella Swan; single
Orientation: Bisexual
Height: 5'3" / 1.5 m (still growing)
Weight: 120 lbs. / 54 kg
Appearance: Thin and delicate looking, Raina his skinny limbs, not much muscle, and overall has a willowy form, not very suited to athletics. She also stands at about an average height, probably, say, five foot three, and much of her form doesn't show much toning. This is fine, considering Raina's never been much of an athlete or interested in sports, with the exception of horseback riding, archery, cross country, and swimming. Her hands and feet, well manicured, match the color of the rest of her skin - pale, milky white.
Her face can be described as very pretty and innocent looking, with full lips, sallow cheeks, regular lobed ears, and a straight, thin nose. When she smiles, her teeth are very white and straight from years of dental work and braces, something she takes a good amount of pride in. Dark brown, wavy, thick hair cascades from her scalp to her mid-back, which she takes excellent care of and usually keeps it down, though sometimes she keeps it back in a braid or a headband.
Her eyes, normally an expressive gray, turn a bright, deep blue whenever she's near a vampire.
She also is described as having "ethereal beauty", similar to that of a vampire.
She carries her laptop, a blue Sony VAIO, with her everywhere, even on the school campus, where she keeps it in her backpack. Since blue is her favorite color, she often times wears some hue of it as a shirt and matching shoes, along with dark navy jeans. A fan of dyed, artsy scarves and native made jewelry, Raina visits La Push and its artisans often, along with the Thunderbird and Whale Bookstore in Port Angeles.
Personality: Eccentric, intelligent, and friendly would probably be the best three words to describe Raina overall. A nerd through high school, Raina's two loves, reading and writing, stem from her overactive imagination and have caused her reading comprehension and vocabulary to be advanced. Often times Raina will speak eloquently, though still a bit naive, she says things that are truthful, sometimes even downright rude, without noticing.
Still, usually the optimist, Raina always has good intentions and is very polite and well mannered, even when said intentions lead to something bad. Diagnosed with ADD, Raina is often times is active at a very high pace, and loves to be involved in anything and everything that interests her.
Introverted and shy, though welcoming and warm, Raina seeks to get on everyone's good side, forgives easily, and even goes out of her way to cheer up her classmates and make them feel appreciated. She loves baking, horseback riding, swimming, cross country, reading, photography, sketching, writing, cooking, and is very neat in general, careful to organize every last aspect of her school work and studying so she makes sure she does her best.
However, Raina does have a tendency to hold grudges and can be very negative or wary about people who have wronged her in the past, is hurt easily emotionally, and at times seems cold and aloof. She also tends to trust only those who have proven their loyalty, and when some of these said people lies or betrays her, she tend to brood over it.
"Bonded" to Bella Swan, Raina is closest to Bella and will defend her at all costs, even to the death.
More recently, Raina has started to fall for Jacob Black, Bella's childhood friend, causing a rift between her and Bella.
History: Born on December 7, 1987, Raina Rebecca Durham was born to Rebecca "Becca" Durham and Aiden Foster. Conceived soon after her parents met and started dating, it wasn't long until her mother got pregnant, leading Becca and Aiden to marry. Two months later, Becca gave birth to a daughter that looked very much like her, naming the child "Raina Rebecca".
However - according to what Raina's adoptive parents told her - Becca didn't know Aiden as well as she thought she did, and over the next three months, as the honeymoon phase wore off, Aiden's true colors showed. In a complete reversal from the warm, caring, loving father he first seemed to be, Aiden became distant, cold, cynical, and sarcastic, unwilling to even hold his infant daughter. A month later, Aiden filed for divorce and cut all ties with his wife, citing that fatherhood, while appealing at first, was now an obstacle to what he wanted, the carefree lifestyle of a bachelor.
Heartbroken, and unable to pay the bills as a single mother, Becca gave custody of Raina to her older sister, Minverva Durham, and Minverva's husband, Duncan Durham. Moving to Europe to start her life anew, Becca never came back to the United States, settling in London and doing who knows what else.
Minerva and her husband, unable to conceive children themselves, raised Raina as their own flesh and blood, almost spoiling her as an only child. For much of her life, Raina, who took on her adoptive parents' surname, grew up in her parents' large apartment in urban San Diego, California. There, she went to the beach often, learning to swim and developing a special love for the ocean and animals, especially aquatic ones. At the age of seven, she learned to horseback ride English style, and to this day still rides occasionally, making a bit of extra money on the side lounging and showing horses for stables around Washington.
Desiring to be a marine biologist and work at Sea World in San Diego, Raina studied hard in school and has been an excellent student. More recently, her mother's job relocated to Port Angeles, Washington, prompting the family to move to Forks, Washington, into an antique, turn of the century Victorian house. Her mother is currently restoring the structure, as Raina is getting settled into her new home and new school of Forks High.
Arriving for the first time on Tuesday, January 18, 2005 at Forks High, Raina met Bella Swan, another newcomer who had recently transferred in from a high school in from Phoenix, Arizona. Soon, Raina befriended Bella, and kept close to her for the following days.
Soon, Raina learned of - and encountered - the mysterious Cullen family, who had eerie yellow eyes, pale skin that almost matched her own, and who never seemed to eat anything. In particular, she met Alice Cullen, who seemed to be very bubbly towards her at first; Alice's boyfriend, Jasper; and Edward Cullen.
However, strange things began to happen to Raina.
Whenever she was around the Cullens, they smelled "sickly sweet to her", she would become enraged and very nauseated, and felt the urge to attack them.
Things didn't help when, on January 25, Bella was almost hit by Tyler Crowley's van - only to be saved by none other than Edward Cullen. Collapsing, Raina had a seizure, and was taken to the hospital along with Bella and Tyler.
Upon awakening, Raina felt fine, though her father argued extensively with Dr. Cullen, who had treated her. Something was amiss with her father, though Raina couldn't tell what. Thankful for Dr. Cullen for her life, Raina was shocked when her father expressed his hatred of Dr. Cullen, threatening to move her and her mother - yet again - to Cancun, Mexico.
Up until March, Edward Cullen avoided Bella; yet, oddly, he occasionally tried to talk to Raina, along with Alice and Jasper, who soon befriended Raina. Unfortunately for Raina, her symptoms seemed to only worsen...and follow-up appointments with Dr. Gerandy at the hospital merely merited a diagnosis of "anxiety", "irritable bowel syndrome", and "panic disorder".
On March 2, Bella was asked out to the spring dance by Mike, Eric, and Tyler, all of whom she turned down; all three subsequently asked Raina, and she, too, also declined their offers. Additionally, Raina was asked to the dance by Devon, another boy, whom she also turned down.
However, Edward took a renewed interest in Bella, much to Raina's annoyance. Raina was starting to grow closer to Bella, and the two had developed such a close bond, that Raina could sense some of Bella's thoughts and actions. Perhaps, on a deeper level, Raina was starting to develop romantic feelings for Bella.
The next day, when Bella sat next to Edward during lunch, Raina joined them - much to Edward's irritation, as he wanted some "alone time" with Bella.
The next period, Biology, featured blood testing.
For some odd reason, Raina's parents had forbid her from doing blood testing, but she forged her mother's signature on her permission slip anyways. Bella, on the other hand, had gotten her dad's approval...but when it came time for the testing, two things happened.
First, Raina pricked her finger. It stung for a second...and then out came blue blood.
At first, she wondered if it was a trick of the light...but no, she looked at it again, and it was still blue. Shaken, Raina went with Bella, who had also become ill at the smell and sight of blood, to the nurse's office - accompanied by Edward, who insisted it was necessary to carry Bella himself.
The nurse sent both Raina and Bella home.
That night, after Raina told them about the 'blue-blood incident', Raina's parents told her the truth about her parents. Rather than being separated, her father, Aiden, had murdered her mother, Becca, and killed himself afterward.
Distraught with pain and fury at her parents for keeping this secret from her, Raina fled from the house. After running for what seemed like an eternity, she collapsed, shivering, only to be discovered by one of the Cullens. Brought back to the Cullen house, Esme Cullen tried to give Raina a bath...
...and Raina turned unto a giant seal.
Panicking at her new form, Raina was only soothed by the presence of Edward, who conveyed her thoughts to his family; Alice, who soothed her with words, and Jasper, who used his ability to calm her just enough. Dr. Cullen phoned a man named Sam Uley, the first Quileute to turn into a wolf in three generations, who soon arrived at the Cullen house.
Upon seeing Raina, however, Sam balked; nevertheless, his instructions to Raina helped her transform back into her human form.
Driven to the police station by Dr. Cullen, and Mr. Charlie Swan calling her parents, Raina waited there until her parents picked her up.
Confessing to her parents what had happened to her, Raina was shocked when her mother and father weren't surprised, but
expecting her transformation to happen. Her mother told Raina that she was a "selkie" or "silkie", a seal shape shifter...as was her biological mother, Rebecca. They revealed that they, too, were selkies, though it had been many years since they had last "phased" into their seal forms.
Filling in Raina on their species' traits, history, and lore, Minerva and Duncan Durham revealed how Minerva was Raina'a maternal aunt, how they were Raina's godparents before her biological parents' deaths, and how they had vowed to protect her.
Nevertheless, they also revealed that they had been concerned about their family's safety. For the past few months, according to Charlie Swan, people had been disappearing around the Forks area. Though her parents didn't say much, but their fear was palpable; something was wrong.
At one point, Bella had told Raina that she felt like she was being "watched", though Raina had told her it was probably just her imagination. Now, however, Raina took extra care to protect Bella...while keeping her secret from the girl, for now.
Not telling her best friend felt painful, and a traitorous, to Raina, but nevertheless, she promised her parents not to tell Bella. On the other hand, the Cullens already knew what she was - and Alice attempted to help her through it.
Additionally, Sam Uley, along with the Quileute elders, invited Raina to visit their reservation, so that they could talk to her more in depth about the situation, and what she was.
On March 5, a Saturday, Raina went along with Bella, Mike Newton, Jessica Stanley, Tyler Crowley, Eric Yorkie, and Angela Weber to hang out at La Push's First Beach, where Raina met Jacob Black, a Quileute young man. Jacob claimed that he had been a childhood friend and playmate of Bella's, and Bella vaguely remembered who he was. After some coaxing, Jacob told Raina and Bella about the Quileutes' ancestral legend, how they were descended from wolves...and about the antagonistic "Cold Ones".
That night, Billy Black picked up Raina from her house and drove her back to La Push for a bonfire, where she again met Sam Uley, along with Harry Clearwater, Sue Clearwater, and Quil Ateara Jr. They asked her questions about who she was, among other things; the Elders, in turn, informed Raina that her presence confirmed their tribal legends.
Long ago, the Quileute had made contact with the "seal warriors", though they had no been seen in hundreds of years. This gave Raina hope that, perhaps, more of her kind might exist out in the world...
The next day, Raina went to hang out with Bella, who apparently. was researching something she wouldn't divulge. The human girl merely said, "I have a hunch about Edward...though you'd think I'm crazy."
Going on a walk to clear her head, Bella came running back through the woods, telling Raina she'd seen a "strange man" with red eyes.
Fortunately, the man seemed to have disappeared, but just in case, Raina stayed with Bella to calm her nerves, locking up the house tight.
For the next two school days, it was oddly sunny - and Edward Cullen and the rest of his family didn't show up.
On Tuesday, March 8, Bella decided to go shopping in Port Angeles with Raina, Angel Weber, and Jessica Stanley. After going off on their own a bit, the two were cornered by thugs...only for none other than Edward Cullen to blaze up in his Volvo.
Taking the two to an Italian restaurant, La Bella Italia, the three re-encountered Jessica Stanley and Angela Weber, and although she was more than remiss to leave Bella alone with Edward, Raina reluctantly decided to leave with Jessica and Angela.
The next day at school, Edward showed up - and he and Bella made it known that they were a "couple".
Angry couldn't even begin to describe Raina's initial emotions; yet, later in the day, Edward sought her out between classes, taking her a bit outside the school to explain. He informed Raina that he was a vampire - and that he had nothing but pure concern for Bella, keeping her well-being in mind.
For the next few days, Edward allowed Raina to join him and Bella for lunch. Much to Bella's surprise, Edward revealed that Raina "knows", though Raina mostly kept silent as Bella asked questions of Edward, and vice versa. Eventually, Raina revealed to Bella that she was a selkie.
By Saturday, Raina was beginning to feel something she had never profoundly felt - jealousy, distrust, and above all, hurt. After confiding her feelings, and the situation, to her mother, her mother - and discussing with her father - told Raina she might have "bonded".
"Bonding", according to her mother, was when a selkie formed an attachment so profound and deep, that they were closer to that person on a spiritual level than anyone else on Earth. However, her mother warned, the Bonded must protect their bond-ee at all costs...if they were hurt, so was their Bonder; and if they died, their Bonder also perished.
On Sunday, Edward, with Bella in tow, appeared at Raina's house. Inviting Raina over, the three went back to the Cullen house, where the Cullens invited Raina and Bella to join them in a game of "vampire baseball". Curious to see the extent of her newfound abilities, the Cullens allowed Raina to play with them. Astoundingly, she nearly matched their abilities, even in her human form.
However, the game was soon interrupted when three non-vegetarian vampires showed up - calling themselves James, Laurent, and Victoria.
Oddly, James recognized Raina's "fishy" smell - and what she was. However, James
did set his sights on Bella, to which both Edward and Raina responded to with aggression.
After the three nomads left, Alice left for a bit, then returned to say that James was planning on hunting Bella.
After informing Charlie that she was leaving Forks, Bella left with Alice and Jasper, who took her to Phoenix. Meanwhile, the other Cullens tried - and failed - to throw off Bella's scent to James; Raina paired up with Edward, working with him to save the girl both dear to them.
By Wednesday, March 16, Raina could sense something was wrong when she felt pain from Bella. At the time, Edward was driving her in his Aston Martin to Phoenix, and got a frantic call from Alice about how Bella was "gone".
(more to come soon)
CREDITS
Pet Overlay by
twgp
Minion Overlay by
STENCIL
Profile by
boogleloo
Information and "Blue Moon" by
Thunderbird
DISCLAIMER
The Twilight Saga and all related literary characters are © 2003 – 2012 to Stephenie Meyer, Summit Entertainment LLC, etc. This is an unauthorized work of fiction, and should not be regarded as canon or real in any way. Blue Moon, all unrelated characters, including Raina Durham, are © 2008-2012 to me, and are not be used in any other works of fanfiction not authorized or written by me without my permission.
lyrics
Into the Ocean by Blue October
I'm just a normal boy
That sank when I fell overboard
My ship would leave the country
But I'd rather swim ashore
Without a life vest I'd be stuck again
Wish I was much more masculine
Maybe then I could learn to swim
Like 'fifteen miles away'
Now floating up and down
I spin, colliding into sound
Like whales beneath me diving down
I'm sinking to the bottom of my
Everything that freaks me out
The lighthouse beam has just run out
I'm cold as cold as cold can be
Be
I want to swim away but don't know how
Sometimes it feels just like I'm fallin' in the ocean
Let the waves up take me down
Let the hurricane set in motion, yeah
Let the rain of what I feel right now, come down
Let the rain come down
Where is the coastguard
I keep looking each direction
For a spotlight, give me something
I need something for protection
Maybe flotsam junk will do just fine
The jetsam sunk, I'm left behind
I'm treading for my life believe me
How can I keep up this breathing?
Not knowing how to think
I scream aloud, begin to sink
My legs and arms are broken down
With envy for the solid ground
I'm reaching for the life within me
How can one man stop his ending
I thought of just your face
Relaxed, and floated into space
I want to swim away but don't know how
Sometimes it feels just like I'm fallin' in the ocean
Let the waves up take me down
Let the hurricane set in motion, yeah
Let the rain of what I feel right now, come down
Let the rain come down
Now waking to the sun
I calculate what I had done
Like jumping from the bow, yeah
Just to prove that I knew how, yeah
It's midnight's late reminder of
The loss of her, the one I love
My will to quickly end it all
Sat front row in my need to fall
Into the ocean, end it all
Into the ocean, end it all
Into the ocean, end it all
Into the ocean, end it all
Into the ocean (goodbye) end it all (goodbye)
Into the ocean (goodbye) end it all (goodbye)
Into the ocean (goodbye) end it all (goodbye)
I want to swim away but don't know how
Sometimes it feels just like I'm falling in the ocean
Let the waves up take me down
Let the hurricane set in motion, yeah
Let the rain of what I feel right now, come down
Let the rain come down
Into the ocean (goodbye) end it all (goodbye)
(Into space)
Into the ocean (goodbye) end it all (goodbye)
Into the ocean (goodbye) end it all (goodbye)
Into the ocean (goodbye) end it all (goodbye)
Into the ocean (goodbye) end it all (goodbye)
Into the ocean (goodbye) end it all (goodbye)
I thought of just your face
Marsh Ontra
