RainaRaina Baronson  Raina is the daughter of a well-known dry goods merchant in Amber. Her parents sent her to Faiella University to study languages so that she could help with her father's growing export business in the Golden Circle realms. She is a naturally good student who has never really had to work at it. She has a good memory, is a voracious reader and writes splendidly. Her teachers in her previous schools considered her a thoughtful (and docile) student. She enjoys language for its structure and beauty. However, because of her shyness, she is not certain she's cut out for the career her parents have planned. Because they are spending their meager savings to send her to college, however, she does not complain. What Raina loves most is dance. As a child, Raina never walked anywhere. She skipped. Or twirled. Or leaped. Or pirouetted. Her doting father placed her in the best dance schools in Amber - or at least the best the family could afford. In the real world, Raina was generally timid and soft-spoken, but in dance, she thrived. Even though she was tiny compared with the other girls, she was fierce and practiced tirelessly. Her confidence and determination blossomed. Even now, Raina dances as if she would cease to live without it. At University, Raina wished to major in dance, but her parents would not allow it, fearing that it held no future. They did allow her to take a minor, and for the first year, she effortlessly kept up with the courseload. Now in her sophomore year, however, Raina is struggling. The courses are more difficult and require something she has never had to do before - study. She is putting in the effort because it is expected of her and because her family has sacrificed much to send her to school, but the strain is beginning to show. For Raina, though, failure is not an option. If she fails in her courses, she will not be allowed to dance. That will not happen.   |
