Ylaine Taylor Lindsay
Keywords: bitter, haughty, impolite, unfriendly, discerning
Age: ~22 (December 25)
Height: 5' 5"
Build: skinny, slender
Occupation: mother, secretary (retired)
Connections: Harry (husband), Sam (best friend), Ryan (son), Sam (son), Iuri (friend/ex-boyfriend), Miguel (friend/ex-boyfriend), Ed (friend/former boss), Reginald (mentor), Emerson (friend), Lars (friend), James (legal guardian), Grey (legal guardian), Eliam (rival/ex-boyfriend), Gavin (ex-boyfriend), Terry (friend), Brahim (former crush), Benedict (social project)
Age: ~22 (December 25)
Height: 5' 5"
Build: skinny, slender
Occupation: mother, secretary (retired)
Connections: Harry (husband), Sam (best friend), Ryan (son), Sam (son), Iuri (friend/ex-boyfriend), Miguel (friend/ex-boyfriend), Ed (friend/former boss), Reginald (mentor), Emerson (friend), Lars (friend), James (legal guardian), Grey (legal guardian), Eliam (rival/ex-boyfriend), Gavin (ex-boyfriend), Terry (friend), Brahim (former crush), Benedict (social project)
Appearance
Ylaine has dark purple eyes and pale skin. She is small-chested and skinny, with few curves. She does not have any hair; the top of her head is a plastic casing, through which her brain is visible. Instead, she wears one of several wigs: (1) a long blonde wig, (2) a short black wig, (3) a long black wig, (4) a long pink wig, (5) a short pink wig, and (6) a long brown wig with two braids.
Her wedding ring is gold with a pink diamond.
Clothing
Ylaine loves feminine clothing, especially pink, flowy, lacy, or ruffled dresses. She is a fan of 60s mod outfits, preppy styles, and plaid. Please visit her style blog for a selection of outfits to use as reference or inspiration!
Physiology
Ylaine lacks the capacity to feel pain and has a few scars on her legs from accidents when she was small. She can feel when she's injured, it just doesn't hurt. Ylaine is technically twelve years old, but has grown quickly thanks to a growth implant. She turned the implant off when she was physically about eighteen and has aged normally every since.
Her wedding ring is gold with a pink diamond.
Clothing
Ylaine loves feminine clothing, especially pink, flowy, lacy, or ruffled dresses. She is a fan of 60s mod outfits, preppy styles, and plaid. Please visit her style blog for a selection of outfits to use as reference or inspiration!
Physiology
Ylaine lacks the capacity to feel pain and has a few scars on her legs from accidents when she was small. She can feel when she's injured, it just doesn't hurt. Ylaine is technically twelve years old, but has grown quickly thanks to a growth implant. She turned the implant off when she was physically about eighteen and has aged normally every since.
Primary References
Personality
To quote the people who like her: hyperintelligent, logical, emotionally constipated and repressed, cool, neurotic, egotistical, curt, analytical, and passionate. Ylaine is someone with a lot going on in her head, and even though she goes to great pains to keep her thoughts private, it's obvious that the wheels are always turning.
Born with all the knowledge ever recorded in her head and a fully-developed personality, Ylaine strives for certainty in all things. There's no fact she can't spout, no line of reasoning she can't justify. Uncertainty frustrates her to no end. She seeks to eradicate it from her life, even going so far as to restrict her world to things she already knows and understands to avoid unknown quantities.
Ylaine has never felt like she was truly a part of any social groups. Marked by her differences, she brands herself an outcast and rejects the very idea of friendship, willfully downplaying and ignoring the presence of friends in her life. She does her best to push away most of the people that do surround her, leaving her with a small group of friends who are too stubborn and loyal to be pushed aside. While she dislikes people, people don't necessarily dislike her: she is an interesting and articulate individual with a certain degree of natural charisma.
Even to the people who care about her and try to make her happy, Ylaine can be incredibly rude. She puts little stock in manners and social graces. She's gradually learned to accept that she may need people from time to time, but don't expect her to ever admit it. Instead, expect her to say that people are generally worthless, annoying, and idiotic, and usually need to get out of her way -- even including her husband in this estimation (though she stops short of saying this about their sons). Being Ylaine's friend requires either great patience or great humor.
The thing that angers Ylaine the most is when people treat her like a junior. She was born with the full knowledge and personality of an adult and has never felt like she was a child, yet was treated like one for the first several years of her life -- treatment she still resents to this day. She has always felt herself the be equal of everyone around her and considers it one of the great injustices that for a large portion of her life she was considered something less.
While Ylaine loves her family, she isn't the type to let it show very much. Her role is more of a sturdy support for her sons. This has occasionally strained her relationship with Sam, but Ryan takes after his mother's personality and the two are very close.
Ylaine doesn't much like laughter, be it hearing laughter or the act of laughing herself. She has warmed up slightly to the sound over the years, mostly because of her children.
Born with all the knowledge ever recorded in her head and a fully-developed personality, Ylaine strives for certainty in all things. There's no fact she can't spout, no line of reasoning she can't justify. Uncertainty frustrates her to no end. She seeks to eradicate it from her life, even going so far as to restrict her world to things she already knows and understands to avoid unknown quantities.
Ylaine has never felt like she was truly a part of any social groups. Marked by her differences, she brands herself an outcast and rejects the very idea of friendship, willfully downplaying and ignoring the presence of friends in her life. She does her best to push away most of the people that do surround her, leaving her with a small group of friends who are too stubborn and loyal to be pushed aside. While she dislikes people, people don't necessarily dislike her: she is an interesting and articulate individual with a certain degree of natural charisma.
Even to the people who care about her and try to make her happy, Ylaine can be incredibly rude. She puts little stock in manners and social graces. She's gradually learned to accept that she may need people from time to time, but don't expect her to ever admit it. Instead, expect her to say that people are generally worthless, annoying, and idiotic, and usually need to get out of her way -- even including her husband in this estimation (though she stops short of saying this about their sons). Being Ylaine's friend requires either great patience or great humor.
The thing that angers Ylaine the most is when people treat her like a junior. She was born with the full knowledge and personality of an adult and has never felt like she was a child, yet was treated like one for the first several years of her life -- treatment she still resents to this day. She has always felt herself the be equal of everyone around her and considers it one of the great injustices that for a large portion of her life she was considered something less.
While Ylaine loves her family, she isn't the type to let it show very much. Her role is more of a sturdy support for her sons. This has occasionally strained her relationship with Sam, but Ryan takes after his mother's personality and the two are very close.
Ylaine doesn't much like laughter, be it hearing laughter or the act of laughing herself. She has warmed up slightly to the sound over the years, mostly because of her children.
History
Childhood
Ylaine was created in a lab, the product of an out-of-control biochemistry experiment. Something went terribly wrong when she was being created. She ended up with all of the knowledge of the universe dumped in her head and became self-aware halfway through the process, even going to far as to name herself Ylaine and choose her own eye color. She sat in an artificial womb for some weeks before the tedious monotony of her surroundings drove her to emerge. She was unaware that the top of her head had not finished its assembly and was born with her brain exposed to open air. The scientists in charge of the project immediately placed a plastic casing on her head and treated her as an anomaly to be poked and prodded and studied.
Ylaine was fully self-aware, but it took her a few weeks to work out how to speak. Her first words were "I am unbroken." She demanded release from the laboratory, but the scientists objected. Ylaine's demands came to the attention of Grey Taylor, a member of the lab's board of directors. Grey legally adopted Ylaine, but declined to grant Ylaine the full independence Ylaine craved. Instead, Grey placed Ylaine in the "Miscreant Motel," a hotel that had been converted into bachelor residences. It was a calculated attempt to convince Ylaine she could not be independent by giving her independence in a setting surrounded by adults as a safety precaution. She was also assigned a chaperone, Reginald Thrash, whom she instantly resented, as he treated her like the child she appeared to be.
The Hotel
The hotel turned out to be a good fit. Ylaine knew every facet and detail of how plumbing functioned, but had never turned a bathtub knob or flushed a toilet. She knew every detail of the history of fashion, but not how to put on clothes. The person who helped connect her knowledge into practical know-how was Sam London, another resident of the hotel. Sam possessed great compassion and patience and became Ylaine's first friend.
For the first few weeks, Ylaine continued to try and establish a fully-independent residence outside of the hotel, but when this quest ended without success, she wasn't particularly disappointed. She had found her place among the misfits that called the hotel home: Emerson, whose gambling operation initially frustrated but ultimately helped Ylaine; Lars Halk, whose pervasive pessimism matched Ylaine's own; Benedict, the train wreck of a lost soul Ylaine felt compelled to unravel; Harry Lindsay, the oafish brute who turned up seemingly everywhere to tease and annoy Ylaine; and of course, Sam. She also connected with several of the hotel's frequent visitors: Pavel Antipov, hotel administrator and the first person to treat Ylaine as an equal despite her age, Terry Parsons, the chatty front desk attendant, and Miguel Laroux, the Muslim chef who cooked for everyone in the hotel kitchens. Grey's husband James, who supplied the hotel with bread, became an` unlikely ally in Ylaine's occasional schemes and plans. Ylaine also developed an acquaintance with Rusak Talietzin, who picked up his bread and food at the hotel and shared Ylaine's disdain for the rest of humanity, and Brahim Fallali, a scarred security guard who would appear out of nowhere at the first sign of violence. Ylaine was attracted to Brahim because of his physical deformity, which reminded her of her own physical abnormality, and he was her first crush.
Social Integration
Given the extent of her knowledge, Ylaine was highly resistant to the idea of attending school. She wanted to take the GED test as a step towards legal independence, but upon learning Harry (whom she hated) had a GED, she dropped the idea and agreed to attend a school for unusual children. Even there, Ylaine stuck out. She did not make any friends, instead making several enemies. One girl, Jacoba, stole Ylaine's first wig. Ylaine had to hire Harry to retrieve it for her.
A side effect of Ylaine's laboratory origins was accelerated physical growth. (What's the point of making people from scratch if you have to wait twenty years for them to grow?) Ylaine set her growth implant to the max setting, trying to force her physical body to match what she felt was the maturity level of her mind. The effects were remarkable, but did necessitate the frequent purchase of new clothing. Ylaine became quite the fashionista, going so far as to convert the suite adjacent hers into a closet to accommodate her vast wardrobe.
Ylaine took an interest in some of her neighbors, notably Benedict. Benedict had lost the love of his life and spent his days sitting despondently in the hotel lounge. Using the data in her head, Ylaine ascertained the whereabouts of Benedict's love and reunited them -- not out of any particular concern for Benedict, but out of curiosity to see what would happen. Unfortunately, the experiment backfired on Ylaine, as she found Benedict's resulting gratitude rather unbearable. Thankfully, he moved out of the hotel shortly after.
As Ylaine grew physically into a preteen, her attraction shifted from Brahim to Miguel. Miguel was handsome and charismatic and fond of Ylaine, though he wasn't interested initially, seeing her more as a little sister than a potential romantic partner. Ylaine distracted herself from this frustration with various endeavors, including trying to fix Lars Halk as she had fixed Benedict. She wasn't entirely successful, though her careful deconstruction of Halk's past did serve to help him deal with some of his demons and they ended up sort of friends.
Through Reginald, Ylaine was introduced to Iuri Gavrilenko, a powerful mage whom Reginald hoped might ascertain the source of Ylaine's immense knowledge. Iuri had no insight to offer on the issue, but he recognized Ylaine's position as a subject of academic scrutiny, having been subjected to the same during his youth. He therefore became a key advocate in Ylaine's quest for emancipation and privacy. Iuri helped to convince Reginald to give Ylaine more freedom in her personal life.
The Pool Incident
One day, a very bored Ylaine decided to test the limits of intrinsic knowledge versus experience and jumped into the pool despite having no practical swimming experience. She might have drowned had Harry not happened by and rescued her. He was understandably furious about the incident, igniting an argument between them that lasted for several weeks. More problematically, in the course of this ongoing fight Ylaine found herself turned on by Harry. The more they fought, the more she wanted him. Figuring Harry to be the type of lowlife who would engage in relations with young girls, Ylaine attempted to transform the argument into a sexual encounter, only to be flatly turned down by a thoroughly-disgusted Harry, who promptly cut all ties with her.
Ylaine was created in a lab, the product of an out-of-control biochemistry experiment. Something went terribly wrong when she was being created. She ended up with all of the knowledge of the universe dumped in her head and became self-aware halfway through the process, even going to far as to name herself Ylaine and choose her own eye color. She sat in an artificial womb for some weeks before the tedious monotony of her surroundings drove her to emerge. She was unaware that the top of her head had not finished its assembly and was born with her brain exposed to open air. The scientists in charge of the project immediately placed a plastic casing on her head and treated her as an anomaly to be poked and prodded and studied.
Ylaine was fully self-aware, but it took her a few weeks to work out how to speak. Her first words were "I am unbroken." She demanded release from the laboratory, but the scientists objected. Ylaine's demands came to the attention of Grey Taylor, a member of the lab's board of directors. Grey legally adopted Ylaine, but declined to grant Ylaine the full independence Ylaine craved. Instead, Grey placed Ylaine in the "Miscreant Motel," a hotel that had been converted into bachelor residences. It was a calculated attempt to convince Ylaine she could not be independent by giving her independence in a setting surrounded by adults as a safety precaution. She was also assigned a chaperone, Reginald Thrash, whom she instantly resented, as he treated her like the child she appeared to be.
The Hotel
The hotel turned out to be a good fit. Ylaine knew every facet and detail of how plumbing functioned, but had never turned a bathtub knob or flushed a toilet. She knew every detail of the history of fashion, but not how to put on clothes. The person who helped connect her knowledge into practical know-how was Sam London, another resident of the hotel. Sam possessed great compassion and patience and became Ylaine's first friend.
For the first few weeks, Ylaine continued to try and establish a fully-independent residence outside of the hotel, but when this quest ended without success, she wasn't particularly disappointed. She had found her place among the misfits that called the hotel home: Emerson, whose gambling operation initially frustrated but ultimately helped Ylaine; Lars Halk, whose pervasive pessimism matched Ylaine's own; Benedict, the train wreck of a lost soul Ylaine felt compelled to unravel; Harry Lindsay, the oafish brute who turned up seemingly everywhere to tease and annoy Ylaine; and of course, Sam. She also connected with several of the hotel's frequent visitors: Pavel Antipov, hotel administrator and the first person to treat Ylaine as an equal despite her age, Terry Parsons, the chatty front desk attendant, and Miguel Laroux, the Muslim chef who cooked for everyone in the hotel kitchens. Grey's husband James, who supplied the hotel with bread, became an` unlikely ally in Ylaine's occasional schemes and plans. Ylaine also developed an acquaintance with Rusak Talietzin, who picked up his bread and food at the hotel and shared Ylaine's disdain for the rest of humanity, and Brahim Fallali, a scarred security guard who would appear out of nowhere at the first sign of violence. Ylaine was attracted to Brahim because of his physical deformity, which reminded her of her own physical abnormality, and he was her first crush.
Social Integration
Given the extent of her knowledge, Ylaine was highly resistant to the idea of attending school. She wanted to take the GED test as a step towards legal independence, but upon learning Harry (whom she hated) had a GED, she dropped the idea and agreed to attend a school for unusual children. Even there, Ylaine stuck out. She did not make any friends, instead making several enemies. One girl, Jacoba, stole Ylaine's first wig. Ylaine had to hire Harry to retrieve it for her.
A side effect of Ylaine's laboratory origins was accelerated physical growth. (What's the point of making people from scratch if you have to wait twenty years for them to grow?) Ylaine set her growth implant to the max setting, trying to force her physical body to match what she felt was the maturity level of her mind. The effects were remarkable, but did necessitate the frequent purchase of new clothing. Ylaine became quite the fashionista, going so far as to convert the suite adjacent hers into a closet to accommodate her vast wardrobe.
Ylaine took an interest in some of her neighbors, notably Benedict. Benedict had lost the love of his life and spent his days sitting despondently in the hotel lounge. Using the data in her head, Ylaine ascertained the whereabouts of Benedict's love and reunited them -- not out of any particular concern for Benedict, but out of curiosity to see what would happen. Unfortunately, the experiment backfired on Ylaine, as she found Benedict's resulting gratitude rather unbearable. Thankfully, he moved out of the hotel shortly after.
As Ylaine grew physically into a preteen, her attraction shifted from Brahim to Miguel. Miguel was handsome and charismatic and fond of Ylaine, though he wasn't interested initially, seeing her more as a little sister than a potential romantic partner. Ylaine distracted herself from this frustration with various endeavors, including trying to fix Lars Halk as she had fixed Benedict. She wasn't entirely successful, though her careful deconstruction of Halk's past did serve to help him deal with some of his demons and they ended up sort of friends.
Through Reginald, Ylaine was introduced to Iuri Gavrilenko, a powerful mage whom Reginald hoped might ascertain the source of Ylaine's immense knowledge. Iuri had no insight to offer on the issue, but he recognized Ylaine's position as a subject of academic scrutiny, having been subjected to the same during his youth. He therefore became a key advocate in Ylaine's quest for emancipation and privacy. Iuri helped to convince Reginald to give Ylaine more freedom in her personal life.
The Pool Incident
One day, a very bored Ylaine decided to test the limits of intrinsic knowledge versus experience and jumped into the pool despite having no practical swimming experience. She might have drowned had Harry not happened by and rescued her. He was understandably furious about the incident, igniting an argument between them that lasted for several weeks. More problematically, in the course of this ongoing fight Ylaine found herself turned on by Harry. The more they fought, the more she wanted him. Figuring Harry to be the type of lowlife who would engage in relations with young girls, Ylaine attempted to transform the argument into a sexual encounter, only to be flatly turned down by a thoroughly-disgusted Harry, who promptly cut all ties with her.
Teenage Romances
Ylaine vented her frustration to Miguel, who came from a Medieval time period and had a different perspective about the suitability of teenage girls. He personally believed that a woman should wait until marriage, but wasn't about to enforce his religious beliefs upon Ylaine. Thus, Ylaine began her first serious relationship.
Miguel was a gentle partner, someone Ylaine could trust and share her thoughts and feelings with, but it wasn't really anything more than a physical connection between two close friends. After a year, they broke it off romantically, though Miguel remains one of Ylaine's best friends.
Ylaine ran into Iuri a few times after that. It took some convincing for Iuri to accept the attentions of a girl who was physically sixteen years old, but he didn't have many people he could talk to in his life and Ylaine proved herself to be exceedingly trustworthy. Though she knew the terrible details of his life, she never once used it against him, and Iuri came to value her companionship and company.
Ylaine vented her frustration to Miguel, who came from a Medieval time period and had a different perspective about the suitability of teenage girls. He personally believed that a woman should wait until marriage, but wasn't about to enforce his religious beliefs upon Ylaine. Thus, Ylaine began her first serious relationship.
Miguel was a gentle partner, someone Ylaine could trust and share her thoughts and feelings with, but it wasn't really anything more than a physical connection between two close friends. After a year, they broke it off romantically, though Miguel remains one of Ylaine's best friends.
Ylaine ran into Iuri a few times after that. It took some convincing for Iuri to accept the attentions of a girl who was physically sixteen years old, but he didn't have many people he could talk to in his life and Ylaine proved herself to be exceedingly trustworthy. Though she knew the terrible details of his life, she never once used it against him, and Iuri came to value her companionship and company.
Young Adulthood
Ylaine left school, thoroughly bored of it, and answered a job posting for a secretary. It turned out to be a position working for Ed Autry, who was also Harry's boss, making Harry and Ylaine coworkers. Ylaine proved to be an exceptional secretary. Ed came to rely heavily on her skills and discretion. Harry ignored Ylaine, so she took revenge by tormenting him: leaving crass post-its on his desk, bothering him when she had nothing to do, even going so far as to steal his pornography.
Though Ylaine and Iuri were highly compatible emotionally and intellectually, their relationship lacked a certain passion Ylaine craved -- that feeling she'd had for Harry when they were fighting. Iuri was disappointed, but understood Ylaine's reasons, and the relationship ended.
Ylaine left school, thoroughly bored of it, and answered a job posting for a secretary. It turned out to be a position working for Ed Autry, who was also Harry's boss, making Harry and Ylaine coworkers. Ylaine proved to be an exceptional secretary. Ed came to rely heavily on her skills and discretion. Harry ignored Ylaine, so she took revenge by tormenting him: leaving crass post-its on his desk, bothering him when she had nothing to do, even going so far as to steal his pornography.
Though Ylaine and Iuri were highly compatible emotionally and intellectually, their relationship lacked a certain passion Ylaine craved -- that feeling she'd had for Harry when they were fighting. Iuri was disappointed, but understood Ylaine's reasons, and the relationship ended.
Seeking that passion, Ylaine began dating Eliam Haymarket, a pupil of Reginald's who had long considered Ylaine a rival. She had hoped the rivalry would spark something, but all it inspired in Ylaine was annoyance, and they broke up after six months. Ylaine then dated Gavin, one of Emerson's frequent customers. Gavin had some alcohol problems and Ylaine thought going into it that she could hold her own, only to discover she could not.
When her relationship with Gavin began, Ylaine stopped bothering Harry. Harry was relieved, then concerned. Ultimately, it was Ed who took it upon himself to have a long conversation with Ylaine and convince her to leave Gavin. That conversation was one of the rare times in Ylaine's life that she cried.
Ylaine took her anger out on Harry, pointing out that if he hadn't rejected her in the first place, none of it would have happened. Harry had no problem with outlining all the ways in which she was wrong and making the argument that she was only lashing out at him because she was mad at herself. Their daily fights drove Ed up the wall. Ylaine, frustrated because she still had feelings for Harry, wound up back with Iuri for a night. Eventually Ed hit his breaking point and stormed out of the office, firing both of them and quitting in the same move.
When her relationship with Gavin began, Ylaine stopped bothering Harry. Harry was relieved, then concerned. Ultimately, it was Ed who took it upon himself to have a long conversation with Ylaine and convince her to leave Gavin. That conversation was one of the rare times in Ylaine's life that she cried.
Ylaine took her anger out on Harry, pointing out that if he hadn't rejected her in the first place, none of it would have happened. Harry had no problem with outlining all the ways in which she was wrong and making the argument that she was only lashing out at him because she was mad at herself. Their daily fights drove Ed up the wall. Ylaine, frustrated because she still had feelings for Harry, wound up back with Iuri for a night. Eventually Ed hit his breaking point and stormed out of the office, firing both of them and quitting in the same move.
The Source
Harry and Ylaine found themselves back at the hotel and no less angry, Harry now blaming Ylaine for the loss of his job. Poor Sam was stuck in the middle of it, since he was friends with both of them. After a couple weeks things were finally starting to calm down, but then Ylaine woke up one morning and discovered the hotel was completely empty. Sam, Harry, Emerson, Lars -- all gone, and no sign of any of the hotels visitors. Ylaine searched everywhere and ran into Harry's best friend, Jack. Ylaine had interacted with Jack only a handful of times and hated Jack, but there was no one else around, so they decided to work together.
Together, they investigated the rest of the neighborhood and discovered that it wasn't merely the hotel. Everyone had disappeared everywhere except praetorians, like Jack and Grey, and Ylaine. Grey told them about the Source, the center of the Many Worlds, the reason everyone and everything existed. Ylaine and Jack sought it out.
The Source was a place, but it was also a person. He was tall and thin, with pale hair and features, and went he looked at you it was as if his eyes saw straight through you and down to the atoms of your being.
Ylaine discovered, rather shockingly, that he was her father.
He had once passed through the laboratory where Ylaine was born, and in his passing he had left ripples in reality. One of those ripples was the reason Ylaine possessed all of the knowledge ever written in her head. He was able to explain to Ylaine something of her true nature: like him, she was capable of being the center of the universe. In fact, totally unbeknownst to Ylaine, she was like a backup copy of the world and everyone in it. The Source therefore was able to use Ylaine to restore the world back as it had been, once he ascertained that this was what Ylaine wanted.
Harry and Ylaine found themselves back at the hotel and no less angry, Harry now blaming Ylaine for the loss of his job. Poor Sam was stuck in the middle of it, since he was friends with both of them. After a couple weeks things were finally starting to calm down, but then Ylaine woke up one morning and discovered the hotel was completely empty. Sam, Harry, Emerson, Lars -- all gone, and no sign of any of the hotels visitors. Ylaine searched everywhere and ran into Harry's best friend, Jack. Ylaine had interacted with Jack only a handful of times and hated Jack, but there was no one else around, so they decided to work together.
Together, they investigated the rest of the neighborhood and discovered that it wasn't merely the hotel. Everyone had disappeared everywhere except praetorians, like Jack and Grey, and Ylaine. Grey told them about the Source, the center of the Many Worlds, the reason everyone and everything existed. Ylaine and Jack sought it out.
The Source was a place, but it was also a person. He was tall and thin, with pale hair and features, and went he looked at you it was as if his eyes saw straight through you and down to the atoms of your being.
Ylaine discovered, rather shockingly, that he was her father.
He had once passed through the laboratory where Ylaine was born, and in his passing he had left ripples in reality. One of those ripples was the reason Ylaine possessed all of the knowledge ever written in her head. He was able to explain to Ylaine something of her true nature: like him, she was capable of being the center of the universe. In fact, totally unbeknownst to Ylaine, she was like a backup copy of the world and everyone in it. The Source therefore was able to use Ylaine to restore the world back as it had been, once he ascertained that this was what Ylaine wanted.
Reunion and Harry
Upon returning to the hotel, Ylaine and Jack found everyone was there -- including Harry. Upon learning that it was Ylaine and not Jack who had saved him, Harry finally realized Ylaine had grown up. He still had a bit of trouble getting past the age difference, but he agreed to give Ylaine a chance and they started dating.
While Ylaine's initial attraction to Harry had been predicated by disagreement, there was a surprising lack of discord in their relationship. Arguments were brief flareups without any lasting effect, often ending in mere minutes. At the end of the day, anything they disagreed or fought about simply wasn't important.
With Miguel, she had known a gentle, understanding kind of love. With Iuri it had been an intellectual partnership. Harry had the capacity to make Ylaine happy. He was a dork, he was a lout, and probably as close to her opposite as she could get, and that only made her love him more. He had every trait she lacked, and she had every trait he lacked, and somehow that made them a perfect set. It certainly helped Ylaine had known Harry for nearly her entire life and understood him better than anyone, and he understood her just as well. After nearly three years of dating, they concluded that what they had worked and they married and moved out of the hotel into a house of their own.
Parenthood
One factor in Ylaine and Harry's marriage was their desire for children. At the doctor's office, it was suggested Ylaine consider the use of an artificial womb, which was how she had been born. Ylaine was vehemently opposed. She did not trust the technology because of her physical abnormality and chose fertility treatments and a normal pregnancy instead.
Ylaine didn't love being pregnant, but she didn't hate it. She disliked the morning sickness and found the sensation of a life growing inside her odd but fulfilling. She enjoyed how happy it made Harry in particular.
Things were fine until a scan revealed that part of her baby's skull had not fully formed. Ylaine had passed on her deformity to the baby. She was devastated and blamed herself. Had it not been for Harry's unwavering support and comfort, she would not have gotten through it.
Despite the deformity, the fetus was otherwise healthy and Ylaine gave birth to a baby boy by C-section. They named him Ryan. Harry, for his part, loved that Ryan shared his mother's characteristics and thought their son was perfect. Ylaine continued to feel guilty and upset. All she had wanted was to deliver a perfect baby boy and she had failed. She approached the lab where she had been born and demanded reparations in the form of a perfect child. The director of the lab granted the request, mostly to make her go away, and the process was initiated in an artificial womb.
Harry was initially upset to learn Ylaine had gone and done this suddenly and without his knowledge, but he was able to understand why she had done it and as frustrated as he was by her actions, he couldn't help but be excited at the prospect a second child. The couple soon welcomed a second son, named Sam after Ylaine's best friend, Sam London.
Raising Sam & Ryan
After Sam was born, Ylaine assumed the role of primary homemaker. She was not a particularly natural mother, but she was effective at managing a home with two young boys despite her chilly demeanor. Problematically, she favored Sam, as Ryan reminded her of her own failings. Sam was the easier child to care for, cheery and optimistic. Ryan was more like Ylaine: dark and acerbic in demeanor. He craved his mother's approval but did not often receive it. In Ylaine's eyes, golden child Sam could do no wrong, while Ryan could do little right.
Ylaine's frequent approval gave Sam confidence and helped him succeed, while Ryan -- inarguably the cleverer of the two -- developed a deep-seated need to strive for greatness but rarely saw things through to completion because of his expectation of failure. Sam did well at school, making friends and modest but generally good grades, while Ryan's grades varied wildly depending on teacher and subject matter and he developed a reputation as something of a loner.
Upon returning to the hotel, Ylaine and Jack found everyone was there -- including Harry. Upon learning that it was Ylaine and not Jack who had saved him, Harry finally realized Ylaine had grown up. He still had a bit of trouble getting past the age difference, but he agreed to give Ylaine a chance and they started dating.
While Ylaine's initial attraction to Harry had been predicated by disagreement, there was a surprising lack of discord in their relationship. Arguments were brief flareups without any lasting effect, often ending in mere minutes. At the end of the day, anything they disagreed or fought about simply wasn't important.
With Miguel, she had known a gentle, understanding kind of love. With Iuri it had been an intellectual partnership. Harry had the capacity to make Ylaine happy. He was a dork, he was a lout, and probably as close to her opposite as she could get, and that only made her love him more. He had every trait she lacked, and she had every trait he lacked, and somehow that made them a perfect set. It certainly helped Ylaine had known Harry for nearly her entire life and understood him better than anyone, and he understood her just as well. After nearly three years of dating, they concluded that what they had worked and they married and moved out of the hotel into a house of their own.
Parenthood
One factor in Ylaine and Harry's marriage was their desire for children. At the doctor's office, it was suggested Ylaine consider the use of an artificial womb, which was how she had been born. Ylaine was vehemently opposed. She did not trust the technology because of her physical abnormality and chose fertility treatments and a normal pregnancy instead.
Ylaine didn't love being pregnant, but she didn't hate it. She disliked the morning sickness and found the sensation of a life growing inside her odd but fulfilling. She enjoyed how happy it made Harry in particular.
Things were fine until a scan revealed that part of her baby's skull had not fully formed. Ylaine had passed on her deformity to the baby. She was devastated and blamed herself. Had it not been for Harry's unwavering support and comfort, she would not have gotten through it.
Despite the deformity, the fetus was otherwise healthy and Ylaine gave birth to a baby boy by C-section. They named him Ryan. Harry, for his part, loved that Ryan shared his mother's characteristics and thought their son was perfect. Ylaine continued to feel guilty and upset. All she had wanted was to deliver a perfect baby boy and she had failed. She approached the lab where she had been born and demanded reparations in the form of a perfect child. The director of the lab granted the request, mostly to make her go away, and the process was initiated in an artificial womb.
Harry was initially upset to learn Ylaine had gone and done this suddenly and without his knowledge, but he was able to understand why she had done it and as frustrated as he was by her actions, he couldn't help but be excited at the prospect a second child. The couple soon welcomed a second son, named Sam after Ylaine's best friend, Sam London.
Raising Sam & Ryan
After Sam was born, Ylaine assumed the role of primary homemaker. She was not a particularly natural mother, but she was effective at managing a home with two young boys despite her chilly demeanor. Problematically, she favored Sam, as Ryan reminded her of her own failings. Sam was the easier child to care for, cheery and optimistic. Ryan was more like Ylaine: dark and acerbic in demeanor. He craved his mother's approval but did not often receive it. In Ylaine's eyes, golden child Sam could do no wrong, while Ryan could do little right.
Ylaine's frequent approval gave Sam confidence and helped him succeed, while Ryan -- inarguably the cleverer of the two -- developed a deep-seated need to strive for greatness but rarely saw things through to completion because of his expectation of failure. Sam did well at school, making friends and modest but generally good grades, while Ryan's grades varied wildly depending on teacher and subject matter and he developed a reputation as something of a loner.
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