[application]
[character]; Sonshou Shoukei
[series]; The Twelve Kingdoms/Juuni Kokuki
[age]; Physical age is 16, her true age is over forty-five years old.
[gender]; Female
[sexuality]; Heterosexual
[species]; Sennin
[appearance];
Shoukei is a pretty girl with a pale complexion. She is at a normal height for a sixteen year old girl. Her eyes are lavender in color. Her hair is long, reaching her waist. It's a dark bluish color and manages to look very natural despite the initial oddity of the color. Shoukei is considered very pretty and is often noted for being beautiful. [IMAGE]
[personality];
In the beginning Shoukei lived the life of a sheltered princess. Her father put most of his effort into shielding her and so she became ignorant of everything outside of the palace walls. She wrapped herself up in her spoiled and rather selfish life as a princess. Not only did she do nothing for her kingdom but she knew nothing about it either. Although a spoiled brat at this point in her life, Shoukei was also seen as very innocent and pure. Her father despised corruption and so another thing he poured effort into was to keep Shoukei from corruption as much as possible. As a result she could not spot the corruption around her and believed her father was just in slaughtering the people for very small crimes. Again this showcases her extreme ignorance.
After the murder of her family, Shoukei grew very bitter. Although she began to work as a common person she refused to see herself as one and continued to look down upon them. In fact she resented those around her and seethed with silent hatred for the rebels that had done this to her. Shoukei developed a very strong entitlement complex as a result. It was her right to be the princess and her right to be royalty. She did not deserve this kind of treatment in her mind because she was ignorant that her father was a tyrant. She is also very unsympathetic for the townspeople who have lost family memebers. Shoukei is, at this point, still too ignorant to see what's going on. She insists that no one has suffered more than she and believes her ignorance means she should not be held responsible for her father's actions or the suffering of the people.
Shoukei continued to remain proud and stubborn. Upon being taken in by the Queen of Kyou when she is run out of her home kingdom, Shoukei still cannot let go of her pride as royalty. She resents bowing her head to even a queen. During all this time Shoukei also grows jealous Youko, whom she believes has taken what Shoukei was entitled to. The turning point for Shoukei comes when she meets Rakushun. Thanks to him she slowly becomes less ignorant and he opens her eyes to how foolish she has been acting. She comes to understand she really doesn't know anything about even her own kingdom and as Rakushun puts it, "I think that should be more shameful than wearing what you call rags". She starts to understand that it was her responsibility to question her father and know about Hou. She should have been involved with her kingdom but she was not, hence why the blame for Hou's state is on her as well. This brings Shoukei out of her entitlement complex and she becomes much more humble. Because she does she finally understands why her father was killed, why the people of Hou blamed her and why she had been allowed to live.
The Shoukei of the present day is much more mellow than the spoiled princess of the past. She is calmer and more humble, no longer believing she is entitled to anything. She is also much kinder and takes on responsibilities she would never have in the past, such has doing common chores. Additionally Shoukei's pride has been subdued greatly and she no longer minds wearing clothes that aren't made of silk. She's more eager to mingle and be with common people as well. What Shoukei retains is her stubbornness. She's still hardheaded in every sense of the word but no longer to the degree where she can't see her own shortcomings. Shoukei retains her lady like qualities and mannerism as well, always formal and addressing those by their title unless allowed to call them otherwise. Yet Shoukei is equally like her friend Youko and doesn't mind getting her hands dirty if she must. One could say she's a bit in between both worlds.
One thing Shoukei has always had from the beginning is a devious streak. She has a skill for getting things her way, for better or for worse. In a battle of wits Shoukei would more than likely be someone who comes out on top. She's quite cunning with things like strategy and politics from her days as a princess. She knows how a royal court works and how ministers operate. Mostly she's rather intelligent but also has the tendency to act before thinking things all the way through. Although she has smarts in the area of the high courts she still lacks a lot of street smarts. Overall Shoukei is now a kind and gentle person, able to admit to her shortcomings and acknowledge all her past mistakes. She believes always in moving forward and becoming a better person each day.
[abilities/strengths];
Shoukei is a sennin, which means she's immortal. She does not age or get illnesses like normal people. Killing her is equally difficult. Even left without food or water for months she would keep on living. The only way to kill Shoukei would be using special weapons to cut her body in half or cut off her head. Thus killing her is by no means impossible but it is also no easy task. Shoukei is rather cunning and has obtained a streak of deviousness during her journey. She uses this to her advantage at times. Additionally Shoukei knows how the court systems work and has vast knowledge of ministers and their affairs. In the series she is shown to anticipate the actions of several Kei ministers even without knowing them, solely based on a general knowledge. Additionally she also has a beautiful voice and enjoys singing. She's very good at it and her homeland's traditional dance style.
[weaknesses];
She is overall a normal girl. She has no skills with weapons or any kind of fighting ability. If it came down to it she could probably defend herself with a small knife or dagger, however if she met someone with even a little bit of skills she would be easily outmatched. Additionally her tendency to leap before she thinks has gotten her into trouble numerous times.
[history];
Sonshou Shoukei was the daughter of a government official named Sonken. Along with his wife Kaka they lived a relatively peaceful life in the Kingdom of Hou. Sonken was rather infamous for hating the corruption of the world and demanding strict punishments for those who broke the equally strict laws. He and the lord of the Kei Province, Gekkei, often did not see eye to eye. Eventually Sonken was chosen by Hourin, the kirin of Hou, to be the next ruler. Adopting the name Chuutatsu, he begins to order strict laws and strict punishments for his people. Additionally Kaka takes advantage of her husbands hate for corruption and often had individuals within the court whom she doesn't like killed under false charges. As the kingdom suffers, Shoukei remains ignorant to all that is happening. For a long time Shoukei lives the life of perfect luxury.
The peace doesn't last long. Eventually tired of the strict laws and punishments, the people of Hou rise up against their king. Led by Gekkei, they storm the palace and murder Chuutatsu by cutting off his head. Gekkei confronts Kaka, Shoukei and Hourin next. He murders Kaka in front of Shoukei and then kills the shitsudou stricken Hourin. Shoukei is terrified and is unable to understand the reason for the revolt. Her sheltered life makes her unable to comprehend the suffering of the people and thus she sees Gekkei only as a murderer. For this reason Gekkei spares her life, however he revokes her status as an immortal and sends her to live the life of a commoner. Her identity is kept a secret and Shoukei is forced to work and live at an orphanage. She begins to age for the first time in centuries, her skin becoming tan and her hands calloused and dirty. As she works Shoukei hears about the newly enthroned Queen of Kei, Youko. Learning that she is only sixteen like herself and yet has everything Shoukei lost, she grows jealous and begins to hate Youko. She vows to get to Kei, get close to the queen, and then kill her. Eventually her identity is discovered and Shoukei is stunned at the amount of hate she gets for being the princess. They begin to beat her and tell her how her father executed their families for ridiculous things. Shoukei insists that she did not know about any of this and that she should not be punished, but no one believes her. As a result she is nearly executed herself, but Gekkei's men save her and return her to him.
Gekkei shows no sympathy for Shoukei's suffering and exiles her from Hou in order to keep her safe. Shoukei is sent to the Kingdom of Kyou and meets with the Queen there. The Queen of Kyou, Shushou, is only twelve in physical age. Having to bow before her and work for her as a servant just makes Shoukei more angry. Purposefully Shushou treats the former princess rather cruelly, believing Shoukei has too much pride and needs to be broken. This backfires when Shoukei, unable to stand the treatment anymore, steals some of Kyou's royal treasure and flees to the Kingdom of Ryuu. For the first time since her family's execution she is able to buy rich clothes and sleep in expensive inns. During one stay she meets a hanjyuu named Rakushun. At the same time her luck runs out and the officials of Ryuu find her stolen goods. Shoukei blames Rakushun for it and so both are locked up.
Shoukei manages to escape prosecution by bribing the officials and meets up with Rakushun once again. This becomes a major turning point for Shoukei. Rakushun's overwhelming kindness towards her begins to break Shoukei's attitude. Additionally he opens her eyes to how foolish she has been this entire time. As they travel together through the kingdoms of Ryuu and En, Shoukei does a lot of thinking and soul searching. She mellows out, becomes more accepting of common clothes and lifestyle, and realizes she was wrong all along. She thanks Rakushun for everything and the two part in En. Shoukei continues on to the Kingdom of Kei, still hoping to meet with the queen she use to hate so much. While in Kei Shoukei stumbles into the Province of Wa where she witnesses the beginnings of an execution. Remembering her own father's cruelty, Shoukei becomes angry and throws a rock at the soldiers. The soldiers give chase and in the confusion she is rescued by Youko under the guise of Youshi. She is then rescued by a man named Kentai.
As it turns out Kentai is part of a resistance group that has been planning a rebellion against the head of the Wa province. Shoukei learns that the man is corrupt and evil, killing citizens and then covering up his crimes from the queen. Shoukei starts living with Kentai and so she becomes a part of the rebellion over time. In a twist of fate she meets Suzu, another girl her age who has also undergone a very long journey. Suzu is part of another rebellion force and the two girls quickly realize they're all after the same target. They become fast friends, but have to part ways. Their friendship, however, allows Shoukei to come to the aid of Suzu's resistance group during the final showdown. With her she brings Kentai and his group. As the two rebel forces join together, Youko, Suzu and Shoukei begin to form a close bond. Youko, who has also joined the same resistance group as Suzu, reveals herself to them as the queen. The two believe her and are able to convince all the gathered rebels as well.
Youko manages to put an end to the corruption and save the rebels from being killed by the royal army. With this sorted out, Youko comes to Shoukei and Suzu and asks them to stay in the Kei palace with her as ladies in waiting. The two agree and Shoukei regains her status as an immortal, traveling to the palace and becoming a new citizen of the Kingdom of Kei.
Shoukei also plays a minor royal in the novel 'A Shore in Twilight' in which Youko puts together a multi-kingdom rescue mission to retrieve a sixteen-year-old Taiki from Hourai. The most Shoukei does is cater to the King of Han and offer moral support to Youko and the various kirin searching for Taiki.