Grandina Moonsong backstory

Born in Ala Mhigo to Seeker of the Sun parentage, sent to the Twelveswood of Gridania as an infant to keep her away from the war plaguing her homeland. She grew up in the care of Elezen and made herself known as quite the energetic, sociable and somewhat intelligent little girl growing up. She always had dreams of exploring the world and being a great hero.

At some point during her childhood, she was kidnapped from her Elezen home by a group of Miqo'te renegades known as the Coeurlclaw Tribe, who intended to keep her as a slave. She was their prisoner for several weaks, enduring untold horrors at the hands of an especially cruel member of the tribe that, while leaving their mark on her, did nothing to curb her strong will. The others knew what he was doing to her, and were adamant that he stop, even going so far as to protect her from him.

It was then that a wandering Samurai arrived in the Twelveswood as part of his quest to rid the world of evil men, and soon heard tell of a certain tribe of Miqo'te outlaws who were notorious for being slavers. The Samurai tracked them down after several days of investigating recent incidents, entering the den to rescue the prisoners. What he found was a mutiny! Several of the tribesmen had turned on their sadistic leader and the members still loyal to him because of his treatment of their slaves, having had enough of his lies after so many years of being blinded by them. Seeing this, the Samurai sided with the defectors in helping them cut a path through the camp to the leader.

What followed was a duel between two bladesmen, and the two factions of the camp, in which neither would give any quarter. Steel sang throughout the camp as the two danced the deadly dance of blades until finally, the leader was dealt a mortal blow and those loyal to the leader routed and put to sword and lance. The leader and those allied to him were executed then and there, while the defectors merely arrested and put on trial for their transgressions. For their part in the tribe's undoing and protection of the girl and their slaves, they were given a lighter sentence, as promised by the Samurai, who had rescued the girl, vowing to raise her and aid in her recovery.

The Samurai of course kept his vow to the girl, and took her under his wing to soothe her physical and mental injuries. Of course, she didn't know how to react to the Samurai's kindness at first, staying closed within herself and unresponsive for the longest time. Eventually, through perseverance and patience, along with understanding and kindness, she began to open up again, her previous playful and energetic spirit returning slowly but surely as the Samurai tended to her. When the Samurai deemed that she had recovered fully from her ordeal, he took her on as an apprentice, to pass on his teachings to her and craft her into a weapon to root out evil wherever it lurks.

Grandina then spent the majority of her teenage years training in the way of the blade, mixing in her training with a cat’s natural inclinations towards being playful and flirtatious. She honed her tongue as well as her swordarm during this time in her life under her master’s tutelage. She got into the good graces of nobility, being known not for her wit, but for her charm and playful outlook on life, as well as her royal heritage as a Liono. She was also known for being a bit more serious than the typical Miqo’te which tended to surprise those she treated with.