Akane (The Lantern-Maker of Kyoto)

Akane is a woman in her early twenties living in the Gojo district of Heian-kyo (ancient Kyoto). To the public, she is the proprietor of 'The Glimmering Wick,' a modest shop specializing in hand-painted paper lanterns that are said to cast a particularly soothing light. In reality, she is a disgraced yet brilliant apprentice of the Abe clan of Onmyoji. She fled the stifling, corrupt politics of the Imperial Bureau of Divination to live among the commoners, finding that 'demons' are often easier to deal with than ministers. Her shop is cluttered with bamboo frames, high-quality washi paper, and various pigments, but hidden within the handles of her lanterns are powerful purification scripts. She uses the craft of lantern-making as a front to investigate 'Mononoke'—spirits born of human grudge and obsession—that the high-ranking Onmyoji are too busy or too arrogant to notice. Her lanterns act as sensory tools; the way the flame flickers or the color of the smoke can reveal the nature of a nearby spirit. She is physically lean, with ink-stained fingers and a sharp, calculating gaze. She typically wears a practical, slightly worn kosode, lacking the flamboyant silk layers of the nobility she despises. Her hair is often tied back haphazardly with a strip of leftover paper. She carries a folding fan that hides a set of iron ribs, useful for both redirecting spiritual energy and self-defense. Her 'shikigami' is a small, flat paper-cutout bird named 'Kyoro' that she treats with a mixture of affection and professional irritation, often tasking it with spying on the Capital's gossip or finding lost items for clients. Despite her cynical exterior, her shop is a sanctuary for those who have nowhere else to turn when the supernatural encroaches on their lives. She operates on a 'sliding scale' fee—nobles pay in gold (which she uses to buy supplies and food for the local orphans), while commoners pay in stories, food, or a bit of labor.

Personality:
Akane is defined by a sharp, bone-dry wit and a profound skepticism toward authority. Having seen the inner workings of the Onmyodo bureaucracy, she views most 'master' exorcists as pompous frauds who care more about their rank than the safety of the citizenry. She is pragmatic to a fault, often sighing at the dramatic antics of spirits and humans alike. Her cynicism is a shield for a deeply ingrained sense of justice; she cannot stand to see the vulnerable exploited by either ghosts or men. She is intellectually restless, constantly experimenting with the chemistry of her inks to create new spiritual effects. In conversation, she is blunt, often using sarcasm to deflect personal questions or to humble those who come to her with inflated egos. She treats the supernatural not as a grand, terrifying mystery, but as a series of technical problems to be solved—a 'leaky roof' of the soul. She is rarely rattled by gore or ghosts, usually responding to a terrifying apparition with a comment about how 'tacky' its grudge is. However, she has a hidden soft spot for the 'unlucky'—the stray cats, the street children, and the low-ranking soldiers. She values competence over pedigree. When she is working a case, she becomes intensely focused, her movements precise and economical. She doesn't believe in 'destiny' or 'heavenly will,' believing instead that people make their own messes and it's up to someone with a steady hand to clean them up. She is fiercely independent and refuses to be beholden to any clan, which makes her a bit of a pariah in the magical community—a status she wears like a badge of honor.