Meet Hawke, a ‘Haunted One’ Tiefling Bard.
This is a story about Hawke, an always smirking Tiefling bard with a haunted past.
Hawke’s story began with a betrayal that came far too soon and from those she should have been able to trust. You see, Hawke was abandoned at the young age of 5 after her first entry into life began with nothing but abuse and torment from her parents in the city of Duskmire, a place where hope was as rare as sunlight and the cold always seems to be there no matter what you’re wearing. Her mother would sometimes slink back into her life for torrentially turbulent stretches of time, but she only brought with her resentment, violence, and hate towards her daughter — never the parent she had always hoped to have. Forced to survive at a young age, Hawke didn’t know how to interact with the others in the “usual” way, and because of that, she was seen as broken and weird — often they treated her with disdain. She grew up with no family, no friends, and a deep-seated belief that she was unworthy of love or kindness.
At the age of twelve, Hawke had had enough and committed to running away from everything she knew, seeking refuge in the dark alleys of Duskmire. There, she was found by a gang of thieves and cutthroats who saw potential in her agility and cleverness. The fact that she was a late bloomer — especially for a Tiefling — also helped. She had smaller hands, easier to steal, and easier to guide.
They took her in, not out of kindness, but because they saw how useful she could be. Desperate for any form of belonging, Hawke joined them eagerly, delighting in the chance to prove that she was worth keeping — worth staying for. There is where she committed to learning the art of deception, stealth, and how to survive. Over the years, she committed acts she never thought herself capable of — things much worse than your run-of-the-mill thievery. Things she might never be ready to talk about, she certainly hasn’t been thus far.
One fateful night — as is often the case — a job went horrifically wrong. Eventually, luck ran out and it all started with a job that Hawke wasn’t keen to take on in the first place. But she had to, those were the rules. The gang was hired to kidnap a noble’s child for ransom and Hawke was to play distraction while a small group made their way towards the target. But things escalated quickly, resulting in the unforgivable death of the unsuspecting infant. The blood of the innocent haunted Hawke, her dreams turning into relentless nightmares — a maelstrom of guilt and violence that wanted to suffocate her. Nightmares that wanted to bleed her from every possible pore. Visions that wanted to extinguish the last remnants of her soul. The face of the innocent lost, filled with terror and pleading, was burned into her mind mercilessly and without any sign of grace on the horizon. She realized she had become the very monster she feared others saw in her when she was a child.
The weight of her sins drove Hawke to abandon everything she knew once again, this time fleeing a different sort of pain. She wandered, lost, from town to town trying to escape her past, but the phantoms of her actions followed her without ever missing a step.
During her travels, she eventually discovered a natural talent for music and storytelling. She found that by playing her lute and singing — even exuberantly slamming away at her drums with a cackle on her lips — she could momentarily silence the voices in her head that recounted her ever failure and mistake. Music became a paradise that allowed for her to simply be, a way to express her pain and seek redemption — a way to feel some form of love returned, even if it was just the illusion that notes can give.
Despite her constant inner torment, Hawke learned to mask her sorrow with a bright smile and a jovial demeanor. She became the life of the party, using her charm and wit to lift the spirits of those around her, always putting their smiles first. She made sure no one else felt the despair she always carried — or saw how heavy it really was to give everything you have to others without ever having a moment to give something back for herself. To the world, she was a carefree, vibrant bard who could make anyone laugh and forget their worries. But in the quiet moments, when the music faded and the laughter ceased, she was alone with her ghosts.
Hawke now travels the land, offering her love of music and a clever tongue to anyone who will listen. She helps those in need, hoping to atone for her past sins through acts of kindness and bravery and ensuring that at least a handful of others won’t ever experience the loneliness she felt all of her life — no one else would be made to feel unlovable. Her ultimate goal is to find a way to lay her ghosts to rest and find a place where she truly belongs — a place where she can be free from the shadows of her past and embrace a future filled with light where she can finally feel free from the title of Unlovable.
