CIVILIAN . MATTHEWS, RACHAEL

FEMALE

HETROSEXUAL

TWENTY

OCTOBER 13, 1992

AUSTRALIAN

• ENGLISH

RACH

THIS IS STAFF EDITABLE ONLY. DON'T TOUCH THIS. WE WILL EDIT PROFILES ACCORDINGLY. IF YOU TRY ANYTHING WE WILL EAT YOU D<

THIS IS STAFF EDITABLE ONLY. DON'T TOUCH THIS. WE WILL EDIT PROFILES ACCORDINGLY. IF YOU TRY ANYTHING WE WILL EAT YOU D<

THIS IS STAFF EDITABLE ONLY. DON'T TOUCH THIS. WE WILL EDIT PROFILES ACCORDINGLY. IF YOU TRY ANYTHING WE WILL EAT YOU D<

THIS IS STAFF EDITABLE ONLY. DON'T TOUCH THIS. WE WILL EDIT PROFILES ACCORDINGLY. IF YOU TRY ANYTHING WE WILL EAT YOU D<

THIS IS STAFF EDITABLE ONLY. DON'T TOUCH THIS. WE WILL EDIT PROFILES ACCORDINGLY. IF YOU TRY ANYTHING WE WILL EAT YOU D<

SCRATCH

ASHLEY K. STRONG

YES

SHINTA FUKUDA from BAKUMAN

Rachael is an Australian who has come to the land of the free and flying eagles in order to get a fresh start. She is best classifed as a lower class entertainer, although she's always hoping the next big break is around the corner. She resides in a rundown rental house on Skid Row, with what she deems to be the worst roommates from around the world crammed under the same roof. Just like Skid Row, the place is dirty, nasty, and cheap. Just the reason why she decided to house herself there. The roommates, however, are more 'roomfoes' than anything. She only visits when she has to, and always keeps her room locked up tightly with at least three locks. After all, as much as she loves insanity and chaos, she'd rather not have her limited possessions pawned off for less-than-legal pasttimes. Otherwise, she is more likely to be found sleeping on friend's couches. Although, in all honesty, Rachael is extremely content with her lifestyle as long as she has the neccessities - her skateboard, phone, wallet and backpack full of clothes.

And just as long as she doesn't have to go back 'home'.

Arcade Game Clerk: Rachael has obtained a job at the local arcade to keep a solid income for herself after much hunting around. It’s rather boring, especially since she can’t afford to mess up on the job, but she gets to play video games in her breaks. So it evens out in the end. More often than not she is needed during the peak hours when school kids are released into the wild in droves and herds, often making bee-lines for any place with bright lights and the slim chance to win really poorly made toys freshly shipped from China. Rachael loves to tease with these kids, using them as substitutes to her younger brother back at home. They are often really interested in Australia, and usually ask her if it is true that they ride kangaroos and emus instead of cars. Rachael, once amused by this assumption, and now simply incredibly annoyed, will always answer with increasingly sarcastic replies revolving around yowies, bunyips, snakes, and other crazy Australian mythological creatures and animals she can remember from grade school.

She accidently made an entire group of friends fail a history project because of this.

Also, never challenge her to a round of Street Fighter. She has had plenty of practice on the machines in her breaks. Your ass will be toast.

Professional Skateboarder: Her real passion, and in all honesty, her real job. While working at the arcade is always her main source of income, skateboarding is her life. Having practiced riding a board from a very young age, it is not surprising to know that she has a vast array of tricks that she can perform. Or that she can keep a cool head while flying above everyone's heads on the halfpipe. While a job will only present itself once in a blue moon, she will always take it, no matter what. Back in her home town she had a number of small shows under her belt. But here in California? She has had a lot more luck with bigger gigs. And the pay is much better to boot. She keeps skating and hoping that this is the start of what is going to be the rest of her life. Or… at least until she is 35 or 40. She’ll worry about what to do later.

Standing at a rather average 5'8", Rachael is rather notable in how little she resembles your typical female. She has sharp features with tanned skin, piercing teal eyes, and a thin lips that are often screwed up into a sly grin or twisted in an annoyed frown. Her hair is a limp and dull brown that hangs about her face like a collection of shaggy rags. Often this mess is pulled out of her hair with the constant presence of a watch cap. No one is sure if she just has a bunch of these, or if she just reuses the same one over and over again.

She is rather lanky, and most certainly built for speed. In fact, Rachael often boasts that there is no one that can outrun her. Or outskate her. However, she does not like how she often looks unhealthily underweight, or how her build has left her severely underdeveloped in the bust area. The latter often means she gets hit with a bunch of boob jokes that she, despite her speed, can never outrun.

Rachael is often found dressed extremely casually, ready to kick back and lounge, play video games, or just break out into a run. Function reigns over style for her, and anything restricting movement isn't worthy of being a part of her wardrobe. If she feels like dressing up, chances are it would be more chains and belts than skirts and frills.

As for herself, Rachael often walks with her hands in her pockets. Or with a hand wrapped around her smartphone listening to music with her head hunched down as she looks through her playlist. While on the go she usually has a set of headphones on, and is more than likely to respond aggressively if someone takes her away from her music without warning.

Uncensored and unashamed. Volatile, violent, and vulgar. There are many colorful words you can use to describe Rachael, and most of them aren't nice. She is a complete tomboy at heart, with a love for getting her hands dirty, a breeze on her face and video games on rainy days. And sunny days. And just days in general. But when she gets outside, hot damn does the world know it. Loud beyond belief, unafraid to piss people off, and certainly not afraid to pull punches, Rachael is far from the typical “girl next door” that you would like your sons and daughters to grow up next to. Anyone who encounters her better should know what they are in for, or else they could be ending their night with a literal 'bang'.

+ LOYAL: While she certainly has her bad points, the first thing to know about Rachael is her unquestionable loyalty to anyone close to her. It’s hard for people to break through and obtain true friendship from her, but once you do, odds are that she would not hesitate to run into a fire to pull you out before running back in to save your computer and possibly a few kittens that were living in your closet that you never knew you had. Well, that last bit may be blowing it out of proportion a bit, but she certainly would have your back through thick and thin if you call for her. She also wouldn’t hesitate to swallow her pride for you in times of need, which is something that some might find to be impossible if they were to ever meet her.

+ ENERGETIC: Constantly full of energy and not being able to sit still, the odds of you magically being whisked away on an adventure downtown with her is pretty damn high. Rachael loves doing anything to liven things up for other's amusement, and (of course) to entertain herself. She loves to spread that energy of hers around, and people are usually swept up by her antics as a result. For better or for worse. There are at least three people who had to take a trip to the hospital because of her bright idea to steal some shopping carts and race them down one of Los Angeles' largest hills... all because she was faced with sitting still for an hour for a carpool.

+ INGENIOUS: Rachael is extremely resourceful. At least, when push comes to shove. While she may not be able to show it too often, if she is backed into a corner (or just really finding a challenging boss battle in a video game), you can count on Rach to be able to do something so crazy and out of left-field that it works. She often chalks it up to luck, but others aren’t so sure… Either way, it gets her out of sticky situations, so no use to question it.

+ STREET SMART: Being someone who hits the pavement a lot, Rach is also very street smart. She’s had to learn a bit since moving to Los Angeles, but in the end, most people are the same. She knows how to talk to people easily, and can pick up on slang and terms rather quickly. While she can be stubborn at times, she certainly knows how to play her cards right when it comes to dealing with gang members and shady characters. Not only that, but she knows just when to run, good places to hide if you need to get out of sight, and often is able to easily navigate new places without aid of a map. After all, as someone who was frankly a vandal in her youth, Rach needed these skills to make sure she didn’t get hauled to the police station every night.

+ PASSIONATE: Not many interests are closer to her heart than skateboarding and video games. It doesn’t take much to get her blood heated about subjects either, for better or for worse. But if you give her a reason to take an interest in something? You know her eyes are just going to light up and her heart would be soaring.

+ COURAGEOUS: She will always stand her ground in the face of danger and refuse to back down. Ever. She has stood up to people twice her size, people half her size, and people maybe half an inch taller or shorter than her. Give or take. But no matter if she were talking to someone with a gun, a bat, or even a restraining order in their hands, Rachael would never back down, and most certainly never would show any fear or worry. You only live once, right?

Sadly, that is about as much good as you can say about her.

- VIOLENT: Rachael, despite using video games as something akin to a place to blow off steam, is quick to anger and even quicker to react before thinking about anything. It is not uncommon for her first reaction to unpleasent social encounters is to "hit the thing". When most people threaten physical violence, it is mostly for show. But when Rachael threatens it? You can bet your money on a punch being thrown in the next 10 seconds unless things go her way. This attitude has seen her legal record get dotted with trips to the police station back at home, although she has been trying to keep out of the local precent's hair as she settles in. So far.

- HEADSTRONG: Quick to act and even more impossible to reason with, Rachael's headstrong nature has gotten her into trouble in the past. And most certainly will again in the future. Once she decides something, she will act upon it without any other thought. The times she might just think before acting would be if a friend would get hurt. Often people would describe her like a bull at a gate, and that certainly wouldn't be far off the mark.

- ABRASIVE: To say Rachael is 'harsh' is putting it extremely kindly. She is someone who couldn’t give a rat’s ass about authority, rules, and falling into what is considered ‘socially acceptable’. She will swear her head off without a care in the world, and never give a flying phallic object about what anyone thinks of her. After all, she knows just what she wants to be. Why should she conform to what anyone else thinks of her?

- RECKLESS: She has little reguard for her own safety. Despite having a very close brush with death in her life, she sees it as all the more of a reason to be living her life without fear or regreat. As such, it makes her prone to make rather reckless choices. Even if it means coming close to harm. However, if the payoff is worth it and the odds are that she would be still able to walk afterwards? It is of little concern to her.

- THICKHEADED: While not exactly a nickname, Rach has been no stranger to the term 'bonehead' being chucked at her a lot throughout her life. Extremely simple in her thought process, she often is unable to grasp the more intellectual topics that might crop up around her. More often than not, if anything needs explaining to her such as science or mathematics, someone would have to find a way to break things down very simply to her. Otherwise everything would go right over her head.

- BLUNT: Rachael certainly won't hold back if something is on her mind. As soon as she wants to say anything, she will say it without any reguard to the consequences. She would rather cut to the chase and say what she thinks needs to be said rather than dancing around the bush.

It was an oddly warm October 13th when Rachael Morgan Matthews was born just south of Brisbane.

The nature of her birth was a bit of an impossible event within itself. Her father, a 17 year old American who was in love with the 90's skating scene and the 70's punk movement, and her mother, a 19 year old woman who was well off but often struggled to find her true calling in life, met at a party. It was lust at first sight. They were clearly from two very different worlds, but lust gave way to love, and that chance encounter gave way to something more. Despite protests from the mother's side of the family, the two were inseparable. In fact, things moved so quickly, no one was sure what came first - the pregnancy or the engagement.

Rachael, as tiny as she was, already was proving to be a trouble maker as soon as she was able to crawl. Having settled on getting a house in the suburbs, her parents were always struggling trying to keep the young tot out of harm's way. The neighbors often would hear yells from her parents as they yanked their young girl out of harm's way, along with the gurgling giggles of a child who found everything far too amusing for her own good.

It was clear that her parents were not prepared for what their daughter was going to bring into their lives.

After figuring out how much of the house to baby-proof, Rachael quickly grew from a toddler into a young child ready for her first day of school. Incredibly shy, she would often keep to herself and often puzzle at the world around her. The class was divided into girls and boys in order to socialize. The girls and boys were quickly forming groups amongst themselves and their respective genders. But a few, like Rachael, were lingering back as they were overwhelmed with the sensory overload. This group quickly banded together and quickly became fast friends when one of them found a pair of safety scissors and old Barbie dolls.

They were thick as thieves, and were never far from each other's sides. They would often bring their toys to school and keep to themselves, quite content with being the outcasts as the alpha boys and girls started to quickly take shape and form. Rachael herself was a voice and a face to remember. Often dirty from scampering about in the playground after lizards and bugs, she always loved catching them and moving them to trees and bushes. Well away from stomping feet. Whenever anyone wanted a message delivered in a hurry, they would often call upon her for aid. Although this skill of hers eventually lead to her group of friends breaking away.

In her fourth year, a popular group of girls got Rachael to deliver a note to another group of girls during recess. She never got to see the contents of the note, but whatever was on it concerned a few of her friends and some nasty names. Her friends thought that she was conspiring against them and trying to get people to bully them. Rachael tried to prove to them otherwise, but it was too late. The group was being teased, and Rachael was shut out and ignored. Enraged, she confronted the popular group of girls that gave her the note to deliver. Laughing, the leader told her that it was all in good fun, and that she was a dummy that should just let them have fun.

Thinking long and hard over the words as they all laughed at her, Rachael came to a realization - all of these girls were cruel. They would not stop using her unless she stood up for herself.

It was with that logic that Rachael punched the ringleader square in the nose.

It was also with that logic that Rachael had her first of what would be many visits to the Principal's office.

The girl's nose was broken even after it was reset, and Rachael was given a horrible lecture and grounding from her parents. But despite her tears, she felt like that it was the right thing to do. After all, the girls never bothered her again, and that girl forever would have been taught a lesson when it came to telling lies.

Children's television was a lie. Empathy was for the weak.

Over the next few years it became clear that Rachael was setting down a very dark path. Not many children spoke to her any more, and those that did would end up getting verbally attacked, or physically. Bullies soon became the bullied, and Rachael soon started to seek out fights for the thrill of it instead of using it for self-defense, or to help others. She silently longed for it, and any hint of a fight on the playground would draw her near (and, ironically, break it up). Her visits to the staff room became more and more frequent as well, and hope started to grow weak for the young girl's attitude.

The final straw came when she started to pick on a boy who wouldn't stand up for himself. She was angry because he never defended himself from the teasing from the other kids. After she chased them away, she started yelling at him and hitting him for not even attempting to fight back. Saying how weak he was. The boy, who was rather passive in nature, could only silently cry as the young girl used him as a punching bag. A teacher's aid found the two and decided enough was enough.

Rachael was suspended from the school for a week. She was only going to have one more chance before she would be not allowed to come back to the school.

Her parents were at a loss. She was now twelve years old, almost ready to go into high school, and no matter what they did she was completely unresponsive to them. In one last attempt to try and curb her destructive nature, her father got out his old skateboard and took him to the top of a hill nearby. Honestly, Rachael was frightened. Was he going to send her away after trying to yell and reason with her to stop being a bully and start being her old self again? When that young girl in her heart died a long time ago so that she could survive? What could she say? What could she do?

But it was here where Rachael would find freedom for the first time in a long time.

He told her to strap on the safety gear, get on the board, and he would push her down. While Rachael had been on a skateboard before, it was only ever on flats, and she never understood any of the appeal. But she was utterly terrified of the thought of flying down that hill with only a piece of wood on wheels between her and the hard road. Still, with enough encouragement from her father she took a deep breath and pushed off.

She was flying.

It was as if all of her hate and anger and mistrust at everyone was melting away, leaving nothing but pure exhilaration in its wake. She skated down the hill not moving until she came to a complete stop. As soon as that happened, she grabbed the skateboard, ran up the hill, jumped on and went down again. Only after the fourth time she skated down that hill her father stopped her. He told her to skate whenever she felt angry. To skate when she felt like yelling or hitting someone. Because he had taught her better than that.

And so she did.

High school came, and she would often be found running up and down hills like this. After her first day where she was teased for being too short to reach a book on a shelf, she skated. After her first week where she boasted about her running skills, only to come in fourth place in their first P.E. class, she skated. Her first month where she felt like she never understood anything? She skated. She skated and skated, and only if she kept skating would things feel okay.

Trouble started not long afterwards though. Her father and mother were starting to argue. They shouted and yelled at each other until their voices were hoarse, and then they would shout and yell some more. For it seems when a marriage that was built off lust and love only lasted for as long the lust remained. And, as it seemed, her mother's lust for her father had long since left, and was only reinvigorated by other men.

Rachael was barely thirteen by the time her father had officially divorced from her mother.

She wanted to go with him. Or at least see him. But the man wanted a fresh start away from the love of his life, and as much as he loved his daughter, couldn't bear to live in the same country as his ex. So he took flight for England, leaving his daughter with one last gift - an online video game subscription. Rachael quickly fell into a world of escapism that was given to her by her father, battling creatures that she could never imagine and letting out whatever anger skating couldn't take away by slamming swords into undead ghouls.

Wanting a fresh start herself, Rachael's mother moved into the city in an apartment. It was here where Rachael's life, which her father had helped get back on track, quickly fell apart again. The girl had changed into a brand new high school, but it didn't take long for her to start cutting classes. She always would grab her skateboard and head straight for the local skate park, looking for any chance to get the feeling of flying free once again. She quickly became acquainted with a few locals, including a particular group of skate freaks like her. They were all kindred spirits - troubled youths looking to skating and rebellion as their only love in life.

Likewise, it didn't take long for her mother's eye to catch a new husband. They got married when Rachael was fifteen, bringing not only a new man into the house, but a boy as well. Rachael's new step-brother was only five years old, but he quickly grew to be a blessing and a curse for her. While he never shied away from running into her room and inspecting all of her things, Leo always knew what to say to cheer her up completely.

The days that his father went away on business and decided to take his only son along, however? Those were bleak.

She would often run out to the skate gang with baked goods from down the road of her apartment. The gang of eight quickly became well acquainted, and it wasn't long before they were planning events at night for when the days grew too short for their ambitions.

Rachael's step-father started to encourage her back on the path of education again. They both knew that he wasn't her father, but that didn't mean he didn't refuse to be responsible for her either. Despite the arguments, shouting, and almost coming to blows with each other, the two seemed to settle on an agreement - she could keep skating as long as her homework was done.

Although he never knew about her skating friends, but hey, that was another story.

The leader of the gang, Mike, was the eldest of the group and held a soft spot for her. After all, she was the youngest. He would train her and help develop the skating skills she never got to learn from her father, and she would keep him hooked up with the freshly baked cookies from down the way. Even on the days they couldn't meet he would always send her messages and texts, and the agony of study seemed to go that little bit faster when there was someone to talk to.

Really, he was her Superman.

Several times while skating she saw him fall and hurt himself. But no matter how much blood he spilt, or cuts and scars he gained, he just got back up on that board and kept skating. Just like she knew he would. And like she knew she should. It wasn't hard to do when you had so many people there around you... and with a guy like Mike there... it was like spending time with a younger version of her father. The father she missed. The father who she no longer got to see, or even talk to for months at a time. One day she was terrified of never being able to speak to him again altogether. But she had Mike in her life now... and he just seemed to let that loss sting that little bit less.

Everything was uneventful until a few weeks after she had officially left high school. It was official - she had beaten the odds and was served with a clean plate of freedom. To celebrate, Mike had bought some spray cans so she could try her hand at tagging and amatuer street art. She had always been curious about it, and she was finally going to have a proper taste of it now that she wasn't governed by curfews and homework.

It was a big mistake.

The few members of the skate gang that wanted to hang around eventually went home. Only Rachael and Mike remained. They were marking a wall when a police officer caught sight of what they were doing. He asked them to stop.

They stopped.

They dropped the cans.

They ran.

Jumping on their skateboards, the two took off along the side of the building and out onto the sidewalk. The officer gave chase on foot, so they skated faster. And faster. Rachael couldn't resist gloating, turning back to taunt the officer as he barely caught up.

She should have kept her eyes on the road.

Within seconds her skateboard had carried her onto the road, and a truck was speeding down the road. Mike, seeing the truck, jumped off his board and ran onto the road to push Rachael out of the way.

He was hit and hurt badly.

Rachael left the scene with scraped arms, knees, and a horrible feeling of guilt on her heart. Mike on the other hand had far too many injuries to his head and internal organs. It was highly unlikely that he would survive. Refusing to leave his side, Rachael followed him into the ambulance and never let go of his hand. She didn't even think as she answered the questions by the police as they inspected the scene. It didn't register in her head either when they asked for her home phone number. She never thought about what would happen when her parents were added to the mix.

The accident had forced Rachael to come clean to her mother and step-father about what she had been doing the past few years - that she had been skateboarding with some of the best friends in the world. The fallout from this revelation was trumendous, with her mother refusing to talk to her for weeks while her step-father could not find it in himself to stop yelling. Their trust in her was broken beyond repair.

But they never stopped Rachael from visiting the hospital every day as she watched her dearest friend's health decline further and further.

And then... nothing. No pulse, no heartbeat, no breath.

Superman was dead, and she killed him.

She was unable to look her friends in the eye any more. She had to do community service for the wall that she and Mike had defaced. But it was barely any punishment compared to the knowledge that if she had paid a little more attention, he would still be alive.

Socialising less and less, Rachael once again threw herself into the virtual world of online games, trying to forget about what happened in reality. But every night when she went to bed she could only see the events playing out in her mind over and over again.

She had to get away from it all.

Taking the cash she had saved over her life, Rachael decided that a fresh start was what she needed. While going to England like her father sounded like a good plan, she felt like that America was the place for her to be. Besides, she wasn't doing anything good at home... there was nothing for her here at all.

Gathering her money and her passport, Rachael had organised to move in with one of her online friends in the vibrant city of Las Angeles. However, when she moved in, it was clear that the house did not hold the best of roommates.

Located on Skid Row, the tennants included herself, her friend who frequently got drunk, a man from India who seemed to make a lot of money from betting on fixed horse races, and a Chinese youth who had a hair trigger temper and a tendancy to go through people's things.

Rachael is hoping to find a new place once she saves up enough money. Until then, she is quietly paying her rent while avoiding the house as much as possible.