Info. (FINALLY.)
Name: Kaitlyn Eileen Santos.
Nicknames: Only Katie, please. Unless you're a member of her family, then you may call her Kitty. She's been called Kate once or twice.
Age/Birthdate: Eighteen. October 27th, 1989.
Occupation: Senior in high school. Cashier at her mother's book store. Working at The Frogging Pond. Quentin Ambroise's assistant.
Fairytale: The Little Mermaid ; The Little Mermaid.
Ability: Underwater breathing, which lasts anywhere between three and fifteen minutes. Also, she's got a very good singing voice, if that counts at all.
History: Katie was never supposed to be adopted. In fact, she was never even supposed to be called Katie. Hyo-ah was born to Jun and Sun-min Song, the couple's first child, after trying to become pregnant for a good two years. The Songs lived in Eastern Washington, and had a small white house, with an American flag on their door. They had only been living in the United States for a year or two, and were planning on opening up a restaurant. And one day, they went out for the first time after their girl was born, and ended up getting into a fatal car crash on their way home. Katie, still Hyo-ah, was only eleven months old, and was with a baby sitter. She was brought to an adoption center shortly after officials realised there was no way they could contact her relatives in Korea, and stayed there for the next half-year of her life. Eventually, Amy and Joseph Santos adopted Hyo-ah, and changed her name to Kaitlyn Eileen soon after.
The story of her adoption isn't one Katie knows - she was far too young to remember, and her parents, the adoptive ones, never really told her about it. She inquired after it, but they never told her anything more than this: "We loved you the first moment we saw you." Katie, for the longest time, resented being unable to know more about her life before the Santoses. But she realised, and not easily, either, something - maybe they were trying to keep both parties from suffering more than they had to. Of course, this won't stop her from trying to figure out the mystery of her past.
Katie, aside from adoption questions, grew up normally. Well, as normally as she could. She took violin lessons from age six, ballet until she was nine, and karate, which she immediately quit - the fighting scared her! She started school like normal, and her life was just normal, until she was twelve. A week before Christmas, she had ventured off with a few friends, and went to a pond near their neighborhood. Convinced it was completely frozen over when her friends crossed over it, she timidly stepped onto the ice, and grinned triumphantly when she didn't fall. She took another step. And another. And -- the ice cracked, and down went Katie. She had never learned to swim, and as she sank to the bottom, thrashing around for dear life, she knew she was going to die. But then, a voice inside of her whispered gently; breathe. Against all logic, she took a deep breath, and was surprised to find that she could breathe underwater. About five minutes later, she was fished out of the freezing water by a gaggle of teenage boys, and ended up in the hospital. Delirious from the cold, she assumed at the time, she had constant visions of being underwater, and a prince, and mermaids. Her fever finally fell, and she figured her visions were all some sort of weird hallucinations. But when she finally got to move off of the bed, it felt as if needles were pricking her legs the moment her feet hit the floor. Soon after, she was diagnosed with Restless Leg Syndrome, but she knew, she knew what she was. And she has been, to this day, trying to deal with her being a tale, along with juggling academics, sports, family, and work. It just ain't easy being a mermaid.
Personality: With Katie, you get what you see - at least most of the time. A student at a prestigious private school, and a near-sighted one at that, she appears to be some sort of supernerd. And, well, she is. But, and this is the deceiving appearances part, she's also a star athlete. One, it may be interesting to know, who is sometimes violent enough to give Zidane a run for his money. Impossible, you say! Yes, on the outside she appears bookish and nice, but far too shy, when in fact... Well, if you were to transfer into her school, you'd be puzzled upon hearing jokes made at her (something about just how rough she can be), then shrug it off as teasing about an unfortunate gym accident, when she responds only with a blush and a shrug. But sooner or later, you'd understand. Only, of course, after going to a, say, tennis match where someone provokes her, and said match is cut short when she throws her racquet at them. She isn't always a hothead when she's playing, and sports are the only times she gets so... violent. Her temper, which would probably be explosive if it weren't for her sporadic outbursts, never seems to rise over the setting of flustered - a rather loud fluster, admittedly.
With intelligence came prudish behaviour, at least in Katie's case. For the longest time, the mere mention of the word "intercourse" would be enough to set her cheeks ablaze, and you'd have to forget about conversation if you said "penis". Why? Well, because she'd have been too busy flailing - genitalia is just so embarrassing. Now, however, there's been a change in young Katie - attributed mostly to one Skip Blumstein, she would assure you - that has caused her to figuratively let her hair down. Anyhow, there are a few other things that cause her to become flustered: arguing with people, explaining her, how to put it, tantrums on the court, and dealing with really, really ridiculously stupid people.
the obligatory bit
Katie, to be quite honest, thinks that her tale was a little dumb. Enduring horrible pain and trading her tongue for legs all for a prince who didn't even appreciate (because he didn't know, admittedly) the fact that she saved him? And then, of all the stupid things - sacrificing herself for her prince, even when he marries another. Of course, she might be a little hypocritical. She'd do just about anything for her parents and friends. The fact that it's a boy is probably why it bothers her. She can hardly even stand couples who need to be around each other all the time, it hads to be said.
Also, Katie knows about The Little Mermaid statute in Copenhagen, and hates that it's constantly being vandalised. As much as she thinks her tale is a little off, she just can't hate it, and seeing what's been done is just hurtful.