(no subject)

[zebrarhyme_everytime]

OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
Player Name: Dragon
Player Journal: dragonoflife
Age: 30+ :/
Contact: dragonoflife
Characters Played:

IN CHARACTER INFORMATION
Name: Zecora
Canon: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
OU/AU/OC: OU
Canon Point: Post Season 3
History: Zecora at the wiki
Personality: In broad strokes, Zecora is a classic 'wise hermit' character. She has a great deal of wisdom and knowledge and is entirely willing to share it; she is also quite worldly, having come from a land so far away that zebras aren't even common knowledge to the average Ponyville resident.

Zecora can be quick to anger, or at least annoy -- most of her appearances end up with her shooting a look at somepony who's just messed up whatever she was in the middle of -- but generally that look and possibly a wry remark are enough to work it out. She rarely stays mad for very long; even after her entire house is wrecked, she quickly forgives all involved once the reasons come out, despite the reason being that the ponies responsible had decided she was evil on shoddy evidence. Despite these flashes of irritation, Zecora has immense patience, tolerance, and understanding -- particularly for younger ponies. She is quick to forgive mistakes, and quick to offer aid when ponies are in need.

Though remarkably blase about the very real dangers of the Everfree Forest, which likely are not any more fearsome than her homeland, Zecora is not immune to fear. When Princess Luna makes her ill-advisedly-dramatic entrance on Nightmare Night and Pinkie Pie suggests that Nightmare Moon has come, Zecora takes off in a panic the same as everypony else. Clearly, though perfectly prepared to deal with manticores, basilisks, and even dragons, Zecora very clearly draws the lines at ultimate evils.

If Zecora has a major flaw, it's that she comes off much, much creepier than she intends to. She lives in the Everfree Forest, presumably because it is more comfortable and home-like than Ponyville, which is so feared and incomprehensible to the inhabitants of Ponyville that they close the entire city down and hide when Zecora comes to town every month. Her home is decorated with creepy, ominous-looking masks that are intended to welcome guests; she wears a cloak that covers her face and makes her eyes shine an ominous yellow; her zebra language sounds like evil incantations, and she has a tendency to deliver helpful warnings in a way that sounds like she's cursing the person she's trying to advise.

Once she gains the acceptance of Ponyville, Zecora seems to value it quite highly -- to the extent that when she returns at a time when Ponyville has coincidentally been locked down and evacuated, she believes it's because of her presence and delivers a shockingly bitter couplet about how she should have just stayed home.

Zecora also tells the story of Nightmare Moon with obvious relish and enjoyment... and just a bit of over-the-top glee. She's somewhat theatrical by nature anyway, but when given the chance to really go wild, she does so with delight.

Strengths: Zecora is a master potion brewer, capable of preparing brews for almost any necessity provided she has access to the ingredients. She can also create powers and other substances with supernatural effects such as illusions. She also appears to be, in fact, a subtle and powerful user of magic; though she's only ever been observed conjuring water, Twilight Sparkle states she learns a very great deal from Zecora, and Zecora herself states that she is both powerful and practically unbeatable in magic -- and Zecora doesn't boast casually or talk herself up.

More mundanely, Zecora is incredibly knowledgeable about a wide variety of subjects.

Weaknesses: Zecora has a tendency to obfuscate and confuse even when a clear answer would be better. She isn't quite as good at dealing with others as she thinks she is.

Pony/Animal Type: Zebra
Cutie Mark: Who knows if that mark on her flank is a cutie mark or not?
Pony Picture:

SAMPLES
First Person:

[Call her old-fashioned, but Zecora likes communicating by text instead of the more-magical functions of the scrolls. Still, she is grateful to be given one, and intends to put it to use.]

Ponies who've come her from a far-away land
Tell me of your homes. I wish to understand.
The knowledge you offer could be quite worthwhile
In aiding ponykind, and dealing with the vile.
Reply by text, by this scroll that's been hexed
Or visit my hut in Everfree but
Beware of the creatures that lurk within.
Manticores, dragons, hydras and their kin.
I'll trade word for word and tale for tale
And give you information, accurate without fail.

[So saying, she signs the message with a flourish, and dispatches it throughout Ponyville with a wave of her hoof.]


Third Person:

More and more, Zecora found herself coming into Ponyville frequently these days. She trusted Twilight Sparkle and her other friends to take care of themselves, of course, but nevertheless she wanted to be nearby if her advice or brews were needed. And on the other hand, she had a burning curiosity about these new arrivals to Ponyville; where they had come from, what tales they had to tell, what knowledge they had to share.

Of course, simply going up and asking for it directly, face-to-face, was not her way. If ponies hadn't responded to her request to speak, she had no intention of forcing them to do so, or interrogating them.

So Zecora contented herself with strolling around town, seeking out the herbs and flowers that casually grew there but had such importance to her work. Beneath her raised hood, she kept her ears and eyes open, learning what she could from observation. Every once in a while, of course, she paused to dig at the ground; business came before pleasure, after all.

Still, she stuck out, as she always had -- a cloaked zebra in a town of ponies, albeit ponies that now mostly accepted her presence without fear or alarm. The thought had her smiling and cheerful as she walked. From the outside, her expression looked absolutely sinister.