AK: Elaina Simone Ferris

What do you do when a chapter ends?‬
‪Do you close the book and never read it again?‬
‪Where do you go when your story's done?‬
‪You can be who you were or who you'll become‬!
Oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh oh, if it all goes wrong‬,
Oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh oh, darling just hold on‬!

    Basic Information

Name: Elaina Simone Ferris
Nickname: Lainey, Mom, Ma, Mrs. Ferris
Gender: Female
Age: 49
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 145 pounds
Birthday: December 21st

Colony: Serperra
Occupation: Crafter (Tailor)

    Personality Information

Nature: Careful
Characteristic: Proud of its power
Sexuality: Heterosexual (Widowed)

Theme: "Just Hold On" -- Steve Aoki

Likes:
- Sewing
- Sunshine
- Adventure
- Being with family
- Sweet foods
- Fruits and veggies
- Children
- Gardening
- Playing around

Dislikes:
- Rainy/cold weather
- Crowds
- Loud, noisy places
- Underground
- Haircuts/short hair

Fears:
- Losing her remaining son
- Crying at her son's wedding XD
- Being an overbearing mother-in-law XD
- Earthquakes
- Sickness

Personality:

- Lainey comes off as a sweet, gentle, and very maternal woman when first meeting her. She is polite, helpful, and very tolerant of others, not to mention how often she expresses concern or care for those around her. She also has a playful side, quick to laugh or make a joke, and seems to always do her best to look on the bright side and hold onto hope. Don't be fooled, however; Lainey isn't some timid little granny. It is clear where Judah gets his stubbornness and sass from, since his mother definitely has a fiercer side. She has a very sharp mind and a surprisingly well-trained body for a middle-aged woman, being very fit and having a strong move-set to back it up. Should she feel threatened, or worse, think her family is threatened, she will unleash her literal fiery temper on whoever is in the wrong, and make them regret crossing her.

    Biological Information

- Species: #655 Delphox*  
- Type: /  
- Ability: Magician

- Moveset:

 - Mystical Fire
- Fire Spin
- Psychic
 - Power-Up Punch*

*Power-Up Punch is a move Lainey learned when trying to mimic her husband's fighting-type moves in their youth. It helps her hold her own.

Appearance: Lainey, like her second-born son, is a shiny fox of the Fennekin line. This tall Delphox has a slim, willowy stature and the traits that easily identify her species; big ears with tufts of reddish fur, a sleek tail, and dark-furred legs. Her fur is a soft, greyish lilac color, while her hair is a reddish magenta and grown long so she can keep it in a thick braid that reaches the middle of her back. She has fair skin and a surprisingly youthful face for someone who is nearly fifty years old, with angular, dark golden eyes and soft features not yet hollowed with age, though she does have little wrinkles at the corners of her eyes, most visible when she breaks into a big, eye-squinting smile. She has a thin waist and small curvature of the chest, but these are offset by wider hips, and a bit of chubbiness at her thighs thanks to bearing two children in her lifetime. She is generally seen wearing tunics and leggings, as opposed to the more feminine dresses. She does not have the fur "skirt" of a feral Delphox, though the fur up higher on her legs goes from black to dark violet, with distinctive reddish patches just below her hips.

Family:
- Gardevoir Mother (Unknown)
- Delphox Father (Deceased)
- Gallade Brother (Unknown)

- Joseph Ferris - Pangoro, Husband (Deceased)
- Levi Ferris - Pangoro, Elder Son (Deceased)
- Judah Ferris - Braixen, Younger Son (Alive)

- Penelope Doyle - Tyrantrum, Future Daughter-in-Law (Alive)
- Maxine "Moxie" Ryker - Zigzagoon, Adopted Granddaughter (Alive)

    History

Born Elaina Simone Alexander, Lainey didn't have much of an eventful childhood. She grew up in the Serperran tunnels, raised by a single mother alongside her younger brother, though they visited her divorced father on occasion. Lainey was always a happy, healthy child despite that little detail, and grew into a lovely teenager with tons of self-confidence, enough so to plunge headfirst into an apprenticeship right after her thirteenth birthday. While she would have liked to pursue something adventurous, such as scavenging or hunting, her mother convinced her to become a tailor; it was work she liked, and did well. Her mother was very proud of her as she proved to be a skilled tailor who made not only clothes, but also shoes, bedding, curtains, and anything else someone could need. However, that pride disintegrated when Lainey made a "mistake" in her mother's eyes; she got pregnant not long after her graduation, still only eighteen years old. In response, her mother kicked her out of the family home, insisting that if she was old enough to have a baby, she was old enough to live on her own, and that if she wanted to throw away her career for some boy and the baby, she wanted no part in it.

The distraught teen took a single bag of her belongings and ran off to her boyfriend's house, where he and his own family let her stay upon discovering the situation. And, that night, her boyfriend proposed marriage, insisting that they were going to be a wonderful family no matter what her mother said. Lainey tearfully accepted, and was very grateful for the support she was given by her new family in the months to come. There was a hurriedly prepared wedding, with Lainey giving her vows in a dress made loose enough to fit around her developing baby bump, and then there was the birth of her first son. In the back bedroom of her in-laws' home, the pretty Delphox gave birth to a little Pancham cub who looked just like his Pangoro father. And when Levi was a few months old, Lainey and Joseph were able to get a place all their own, moving out from his parents' home and officially starting their life as an independent young couple.

In the following years, Lainey focused on raising Levi, keeping up with her work, and building up a better relationship with her father, who she had rarely seen in her youth. Little Levi's "Pap" became a frequent dinner guest and the go-to babysitter when she and Joseph were busy with work or keeping up with the house. Once again, Lainey was able to acquire happiness, regaining her confidence in herself. She was no longer a little girl barely old enough to be a mother, but a grown woman in her twenties, with a sweet, helpful son, a husband she adored, and a good relationship with the father she had barely known as a child. And, despite her early entrance into motherhood, she kept practicing her tailoring, making clothing for her family and for customers, when she had the time.

Of course, just as it seemed that things had settled, she found out that she was pregnant again. It came as a bit of a shock for her and Joseph, since it had been nearly eight years since Levi was born, and they hadn't had so much as a potential pregnancy since; but, as the shock wore off, there came elation. They were going to have another child! Levi and his Pap were just excited as the happy couple, and they all began to excitedly prepare for the second-born child of the Ferris family. Lainey got a little carried away, making a ton of baby clothes, blankets, bedding, and even toys, in all sorts of colors and styles, since she had no idea if she was having a boy or a girl, or a Fennekin or another Pancham. It didn't matter, though, because this was a pregnancy she was well and truly prepared for!

Or... not. None of them could have been prepared for what lay ahead when Lainey began to have labor pains a month prematurely. Doctors did their best to try to stop her early labor, but nothing could be done when her water broke in the infirmary, and they all prepared for the ordeal ahead. The birth itself was swift and clean, Lainey able to push her second son out without much difficulty... but when he entered the world, he was silent, his little face blue and limbs dangling limply from the doctor's hands. It felt like the world was going to crash down around her as she stared at the newborn fox kit she brought into the world, and watched the doctors struggling to revive him. By some miracle, the gods decided not to take her child away that day, and after several agonizing moments, her little Judah gasped and drew in his first breath, kicking his tiny paws as he let out a thin, shrill cry. The tiny, feeble infant was finally placed in her arms, and she held him close, feeling a protective instinct she hadn't even had with Levi... this baby was not big, strong, and healthy. He was small, too small, and seemed to fight for every breath he took.

Starting from the day she and Judah got to go home, Lainey developed a different lifestyle that focused heavily on her younger son. Her paranoia was not mocked, either, because as Judah grew, it became obvious that he needed more care than Levi ever did. He was small and sickly, prone to chest infections and other such ailments, and he had his first asthma attack when he was just a toddler.

Levi, too, was protective of his brother, but he also wanted him to get a chance to explore and have fun like all the other little boys. Lainey would never forget the day her elder son made the mistake of sneaking out of the village with his brother, when they were about sixteen and eight. That was when they discovered Judah not only had weak lungs, but a severe allergy that targeted that weakness; he breathed in fungus spores in the tunnels, and by the time Levi was able to carry him back home, he was gasping for breath and spitting blood. His mother just about had a heart attack at the sight of him, rushing him to the nearest doctor. She very nearly didn't forgive her firstborn for endangering his brother, but upon seeing how distraught he was by his own actions, she comforted him and assured him that it would be okay... they would be okay. They would find out what to do.

From then on, Judah wore a mask over his mouth and nose every time he went out. First, fabric masks that Lainey herself made, lightweight enough for a child to wear for an extended period of time, and the bulkier masks like what miners wore. They weren't perfect, but they filtered the air he breathed well enough to help prevent illness and allergic reactions, giving his lungs a chance to actually properly heal for the first time in years. Finally, her second son began to gain steam, growing in strength and attitude alike.

Both of her adventurous boys sought to make a living as hunters, wanting to go out and explore the world just like she wanted to, once. She worried, of course, as any mother would, but she was so proud of them. Her precious boys, so different but so alike.

What happened next blindsided them all... it was always Judah they worried about. Judah who would get sick or hurt, who would struggle for breath some days, or break out into a fever for seemingly no reason. It was always his fate they were unsure of. But Levi... Levi was suddenly gone.

A cave-in, she was told. It was a cave-in that stole her firstborn from her. He died instantly, they said. There was nothing that could have been done, but he did not suffer. It would have been quick, they promised.

Oh, but did she suffer, along with her husband, father, and younger son. The grief of losing a child was worse than anything she had ever experienced, even if Levi was a grown man at the time of his death. It wasn't even just the death, either... after Levi's passing, she began to lose Judah as well. Traumatized by the loss, her fragile baby began to pull away, withdrawing into himself. He trained himself harder than ever before, stopped going to social events, and began drinking; a lot. Lainey was losing both of her boys, and it was tearing her apart.

But, like always, the sun began to creep out from behind the clouds. Things just seemed... different, one day. Judah stopped by to visit her and Joseph, he began to talk, and smile. And he told her about a girl he met.

Penelope, was her name. Oh, she knew he liked her. She knew he was smitten, and it was the first time she had seen her son express a feeling aside from grief in such a long time. She wanted to meet this woman, but he kept insisting; not yet, not yet. He didn't even know if she felt the same, and he was so awkward with trying to navigate their relationship. It was so cute, and he got so flustered... he was her fidgety little fox kit all over again. She was getting him back, and it was all thanks to this Penelope girl.

Before she got a chance to meet the girl, the Cataclysm struck. It was like Levi's loss, but... multiplied by hundreds. The caverns all began to collapse at once, dozens of people dying by the second as they raced to escape. Lainey's memories of the incident are hazy at best, but she doesn't recall ever getting out of the tunnels. She was severely injured and unconscious, she was told, when a soldier carried her out on his back. Nobody knew what had become of her husband or her son, and she lacked the strength to ask, her horrendous injuries leaving her temporarily paralyzed and unable to speak. Thus, the Delphox was among those transported to Cervior for extensive medical treatment, and that was where she stayed. Days, weeks, months passed... it was only after much healing and physical therapy that she was able to get back to full strength, pushing through the traumatic experience with the hope that she could go home and find out what had happened to her family.

Eventually, after so long, she was allowed to travel. The Delphox made the journey to the new Serperran village, where she stayed at a Caretaker's place while seeking information on her family. She found Joseph's name on a list of those believed to be dead and buried in the tunnels, but Judah... his name wasn't on that list. He was alive.

And she found him. Eventually, she found someone who knew where he was, who knew that he was happy, healthy, and whole. He was living with that Penelope girl, and not only that -- they were engaged! And raising a little orphaned child together!

She found him. Dear gods, she had found him, and their reunion was only one knock on the door away...

    Trivia

- Lainey and Judah look so much alike that it really is a wonder that Judah isn't a girl. The only obvious difference between the two is their height and eye color, and of course his mother being older, but even then, she hardly shows her age. Judah wears his hair long because that is what she had always done, and even Levi wore his hair long. She never let them cut their hair because it just felt wrong to chop it all off.

- Lainey's father, Judah's grandfather, was also a shiny Delphox, and he looked just as feminine as Jude. Lainey always explains that among their species, it is not only common for the men to look more female, but it is desirable. The large eyes, the soft faces, the slim figures; it is the ideal Delphox, and she is absolutely smitten with her pretty son, so proud to have produced such a beautiful child. Said son, however, still angsts over being womanly from time to time. XD

- She does not like going by her whole first name. Either call her Lainey, or Mrs. Ferris.

- Has no desire to remarry, but wants to be involve with her family. That includes getting to know Penny and spoiling little Moxie.

- Judah gets a lot of his habits from Lainey. They share their enjoyment of sewing, taste for sweet fruits, and tendency to use pet names when talking to small children. Not to mention their protective maternal instincts and how they both sleep curled up with their tails over their faces when it's cold. Really, they are so alike it's like Lainey produced him via cloning.

- Lainey lost contact with her mother and brother after she was kicked out of their home as a teenager, but she knows her father died from a heart attack a few years before the Cataclysm. She did consider trying to find them while she was searching for Judah, but abandoned that thought and focused on her son. Neither of her boys ever met their grandmother or uncle due to their alienation.

- Though Judah is pretty good at hiding when he isn't feeling well, due to dealing with it so often, Lainey isn't fooled. If Alderic and Penelope knew just how often he was under the weather, they wouldn't let him push himself the way he does. Lainey herself knows when to let him be, but does interfere at times. She remembers how fragile he was a child, and fears him growing that sick again, wanting to do all she can to prevent that.