Kerry Dunwood is a Sluagh Wilder and Duchess of the Duchy of the Ozarks in the Kingdom of Willows.
Overview[]
Born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas, Kerry spired to a career as a gymnast. Her agility, small stature, and flexibility were decided assets, and she greatly enjoyed choreographing routines in a partially darkened, quiet arena late at night or in the early morning hours. She was also able to perform extremely difficult maneuvers, practically tying herself in knots; no other gymnast was half as flexible as she was. Problems arose, though, to kill her dream. For starters, she couldn't perform in brightly lit competition conditions. Even worse, whenever her floor exercise music (or anyone else's) was played through the arena loudspeakers, she had to flee with her hands over her ears, deafened and struck by what felt like a car-sized hammer. She couldn't understand how other people could tolerate it.
Kerry underwent her Chrysalis a few years later. She had given up on her Olympic dreams and begun studying politics, though she felt her breathy, whispery voice would never be heard over more assertive sorts. When she became a sluagh, she knew she'd never fit in as a representative either. Capitalizing on her natural grace and fluidity, she danced instead. Weaving ballet, modern dance, and elements from performance art, she was much in demand among the "cool" crowd in Little Rock, at least as long as the music wasn't too loud and the people agreed beforehand not to applaud. That's when she met Brendan.
After a performance, a bouquet of black roses was delivered to her dressing room (well, the ladies room she used as a dressing room). Intrigued by the card, she went to have a drink with the man who sent them and found herself talking to Brendan MacLiam, Duke of the Ozarks. He proved charming company and asked if she would come help him form a council to run the duchy - a council composed of both commoners and nobles. Remembering her desire to enter politics, she agreed.
Kerry blossomed on the council. Though her voice was soft, her ideas were received with respect and eagerness. The Duchy was a small, even unimportant and out-of-touch, part of the Kingdom of Willows. Brendan and his council intended to reform the basic system under which commoners bowed to nobles and lesser houses bent to those who considered themselves better. Though they advocated peaceful means like symposiums, lobbying in the Parliament of Dreams, and petitioning for recognition of their duchy as a commonwealth, Meilge felt threatened by Duke Brendan's popularity and deposed him, citing his disloyalty as the reason. Rather than bothering to send a replacement, he made a move he thought would prove commoners incapable of ruling themselves: he appointed Kerry the new duchess. He believed the other commoners would balk at having a sluagh govern them; he had no idea Kerry was already the elected leader of the Commonwealth Council, whose decisions were almost always ratified by the duke.
Kerry has served as the Duchess of the Ozarks for three years. She pays Jiruna and her sluagh spy network to keep her informed on important matters that she doesn't otherwise hear about. Meilge pays no attention to the Arkansas duchy, nor do most of the other noble Kithain of the kingdom. As far as they are concerned, the Ozarks are out of the loop. The fae there don't care if others see them as backward; while everyone's looking the other way, they're building up a second American Revolution and Kerry's right out front, quietly leading them.
Though Meilge commanded Brendan be exiled, Kerry shelters him. She checks with him before making important decisions, knowing that it was he who originally made the commonwealth possible. She hopes that someday the duchy will be able to declare itself a commonwealth for real and she can welcome Brendan back as a valuable member of the community, if not as duke. She keeps the title herself, for now, only because dispensing of it would bring unwanted attention to her and might prompt Meilge to appoint some officious nitwit in her place.
Kerry is a natural in the political arena. Even whispering, she is persuasive and believable. Her agility makes her a wonderful dancer, and her manual dexterity has led her to develop her skills in archery. She still works out, doing gymnastics exercises, but her wilder's body is not used to the discipline anymore.
Image[]
Only 4'8" tall and slender as a whippet, Kerry keeps her black hair cut very short. She has expressive amber colored eyes and a thin face and pointed chin. Though she likes very ornate and elaborate dark clothing, she usually wears less fussy clothes that speak of her commitment to being just on of the people. With the low lighting she insists on, she's certain most other kithain can't tell how she's dressed anyway.
Personal[]
Kerry loves secrets and intrigue as much as the next sluagh but she's put aside her personal desires to work for the good of all commoners. While it's a surprise to her, she's actually quite good at being in a leadership position. She hates King Meilge for deposing Brendan when the duke was just trying to rectify an old mistake and rid the world of the outmoded concept of rule by the nobility. She laughs every time she thinks about Meilge appointing her as duchess, though. The man is an idiot and the sooner he's removed from his position, the better.
War in Concordia[]
Kerry has no direct connection to the War, but she does have access to Jiruna's sluagh network... and more importantly the crawler matron's trust. If anyone can find out where the High King has been taken, it's Jiruna, and Kerry is just the woman to persuade her to look.
References[]
- CTD: Kingdom of Willows, p. 127-128
