Gemma Burtier

[Gemma]

Name: Gemma Burtier
Nicknames: Gem, Gemmi, Gemini or Mouse -- Gemma is unaware of the last nickname.
Race: Human - empath
Occupation: Assistant librarian at the L.A. Public Library
Gender: Female
Skin Color: African American
Age: 23
Clothing: Gemma isn’t much for attracting attention, so she keeps her clothing modest, but still semi-trendy. Khaki slacks or blue jeans, the occasional skirt; sneakers, and plain shirts in pastel colors, along with various cardigan sweaters. She owns a few dresses for more formal occasions, but being a bit of a homebody, she doesn’t get out too much. Also, despite owning contact lenses, Gemma prefers to wear a pair of black-rimmed glasses.

Height: 5’7”
Weight: 135lbs
Tattoos: None; she has a thing about needles.
Piercings: One in each ear.
Jewellery: A small Methodist cross pendant of yellow gold.

Body Modifications: An old appendectomy scar, but it’s rather unremarkable.

Hair
Length: Just past her shoulders.
Style: Normally pulled back with some kind of clip or a pair of pencils.
Color: Dark brown/black

Eyes
Color: Brown
Oddities: N/A.

Personality: Other employees at the library don’t call her ‘Mouse’ just for kicks. Gemma is notoriously shy around strangers, which can be a problem when she needs to interact with customers. Those who have managed to break the timid woman from her shell get to see her affectionate nature, and the sharp -- though never harmful -- sarcasm she seems to have been gifted with.

But, despite her introvert tendencies, Gem is a passionate person. She loves her job -- a little too much, some say -- and it definitely cuts into her social possibilities. Not that Gemma cares; the librarian would be just as happy at home, alone, with a good book as any other person would be at a party. Gemma is also fiercely protective of those closest to her. Threatening those she loves is a good way to pull the normally meek ‘Mouse’ from her shell, and not in a pretty sort of way.

Weaknesses: Mortality, for one, and her meek personality has led to her getting walked over by others. Gemma is also too clumsy for her own good, which can be a recipe for disaster in her workplace.
Abilities: Gemma is an empath, meaning that she is effected by the emotions of those around her. If a person is feeling irritated and hostile, she will become snappish; if they are upset, she may start to cry. She hasn’t quite learned how to control this, but she’s working on it, though this is one of the reasons why she much prefers to be on her own; too many people -- and too many emotions -- will overload her and usually cause her to pass out. The librarian is also gifted with eidetic memory -- or total recall -- which can be very helpful when trying to locate a book on the shelf. A former (but still practicing) gymnast, she is extremely flexible and fairly in-shape, as well.

Weapons: Does sarcasm count as a weapon?

Prized Possessions: The gold cross, which belonged to her mother, a few medals she won for gymnastics as a child, her massive book collection, and last -- but not at all least -- her kitten, Wash.

Fuzzy Washburne “Wash” Burtier

Home(s): A small apartment in central Los Angeles.
History: Up until her mother lost the battle with cancer, Gemma was a fairly outgoing and bright child. Her skills in gymnastics had talk of the Olympics flying throughout the family and after being permitted to skip a grade in middle school, it seemed that Gemma’s whole life would be one easy ride.

But, she had voluntarily dropped from gymnastics after her mother’s passing. Her father, Harry, coped well, but Gemma still felt the need to look after him. While she could have easily been accepted at UCLA or any other top college, she chose not to take that path, opting instead to stay close to home. She fell into herself almost, preferring to be more a loner, especially when large groups of people tended to overwhelm her. When the time came, she moved out, got a job, but kept to herself; her circle of friends is small, and mainly consists of coworkers and people from the night classes she takes at a local community college. Most would find such an existence to be dull and depressing, but Gemma doesn’t mind it. She is happy, for the most part, and wouldn’t care to change anything.