Username: Hargreaves
Character's Name: Marina Carolyn Lassiter
Gender: Female
Age: 14
DNA: Barracuda. She has a mermaid-esque tail that looks exactly like a barracuda's, except with the tailfin horizontal instead of vertical since it grew from her feet. She also has a small fin on each of her forearms, the small of her back, and one that runs from just below her breasts to just above her belly button, but she can and often does tie these down so she can wear normal shirts. Marina also has gills on her neck, allowing her to breathe in saltwater for almost four hours and up to one hour in freshwater. Chlorine burns her lungs. The pupils of her eyes are unusually dilated, which only adds to the general innocent cuteness of her face. That impression disappears immediately, though, when she opens her mouth. Instead of normal teeth, her jaws are crammed full of tiny, razor-sharp barracuda teeth.
Marina's unusual DNA affects her mind as well. She loved swimming even before her "treatment," but now she's almost always uncomfortable when she's out of the water. Silver objects distract her, causing her to completely lose her train of thought to focus on them, and she loves eating raw fish.
Appearance: Marina, although naturally pale, tans easily in the summer, and has plenty of freckles. Her body is tiny, with slender limbs, a flat chest, and almost no curves. If it wasn't for her tail, Marina would look like a pretty doll, even with her spiky brown pixie cut. She has a round face, dimpled cheeks, and round, hazel eyes with long, thick lashes and small but full lips. Although she usually wears either simple graphic T-shirts or frilly tanks to accentuate her innocent face, she also has an affinity for punk-style jewelry. Marina never wears any makeup- she doesn't need it.
A constant annoyance in her life is that although Marina is fourteen years old, she looks quite a bit younger than she is. However, her attitude soon sets others straight.
Personality: People know Marina for her unfailing honesty, energy, and self-confidence. She's always cracking jokes and tries her best to be in the spotlight whenever possible.
She can often come across as bold, sometimes even crass. This is because Marina isn't self-conscious at all about herself- she doesn't mind when people ask her offensive questions or say rude things, on purpose or on accident- and so she expects others to be the same. Of course, she doesn't intentionally try to be rude, but she can ask insensitive questions sometimes because she simply says whatever she wants to, whenever she wants.
As a child, Marina was diagnosed with ADHD, unsurprisingly- she couldn't stop bouncing off the walls. As she matured, though, she became calmer. However, "calm" is still a relative term. Marina, even though she's limited by her wheels, seems to have boundless energy. She loves dancing, singing, racing people in her chair, and playing practical jokes. However, she never wants to leave anyone out of the fun. Marina is terrible at keeping secrets.
When she's swimming, this changes. She becomes cool, and focused, although by no means any less cheerful. More of her barracuda side takes over in the water, though, causing her to be less social and more predatory. In the water, Marina tends to swing between being annoyed by humans and simply looking down on them for their obvious disadvantage.
History: Marina can't remember much about her past. It was... nice. She didn't grow up in a troubled household, and although her parents divorced a year after she was born, she knew both of them and was spoiled in her early years. She had plenty of friends, and celebrated Christmas and her birthday twice, once in each house, which meant twice as many presents.
The trouble really started when she entered middle school. Suddenly, Marina's friends didn't want to play with dolls anymore, and they didn't like to follow the rules. By seventh grade, her friends spent just as much time skipping school as they did studying. Marina, not having anything else to do, went with them. Soon, they found a gang of high-schoolers who were more than willing to sell the young teenagers drugs and teach them how to smoke. Marina's last semester of eighth grade was spent in a drug-addled haze.
In the middle of summer, and at her wit's end, Marina's mother gave up trying to control her unruly daughter and instead sent her here to try and "set her straight." Marina has been drug-free for almost a year now, and is grateful for her new lease on life.
Other: Since she has a tail, she can't walk, and instead has a motorized wheelchair. She lets anyone who asks ride around in it for a while.
((Finished! Finally!))