Dandelion

The sixth Sawyer child and the second of Mortimur Sawyer and Mana Murillo. Her elder brother, Malachai, was born very much blessed and very much what the Haven priests wanted in an heir. His potential was unmatched (and they didn't even know about his second mutation) and his personality sweet. Maddy didn't really have much of a chance to top that. Even more unlucky for her was the sickness. She was still young when it happened- a regular fever which grew and grew until she was bed-bound, and then she couldn't eat, and slowly her life slipped away from her. She closed her eyes and was gone. Until she woke up three days later. It would miraculous, a wonderful mutation of the blood, if not for the fact that it made her the perfect person to train Malachai with.

At first, she was dubious, frightened. But her mother told her this was what the Plaguebringer wanted, and what the priests wanted, and she had to listen to the both of them. So she did. It hurt. Dying hurt, losing bits of her body hurt, even if she grew very experienced at stitching herself back up with tiny shaking hands. She remained optimistic, trying to commit herself to Haven's teaching and accept her place as a stepping stone in making Malachai stronger. She shrunk into herself over time, her once bright personality dimming in tandem with her brother's, his sweet nature corrupted by the wandering hands pulling him in every direction. And then, her papa disappeared overnight.

There was no sign of what had happened. It didn't seem as if he would simply leave, but at the same time, there was no struggle, no noise. Magdalene was devastated, of course. The leadership moved to her mother, Mana, who struggled to lead without Mortimur's help. Whilst she had always been unerringly loyal to Haven's vision, she was beginning to notice the cracks. It was far too late, but she realised that she was not being told everything, being shown only a tiny piece of the whole picture- what they were doing to her children, for one, was not something she was privy to in its entirety. She began to ask questions, push, and fight back against the priests. And then she disappeared too.

The priests told Magdalene and Malachai that their parents were wicked, that their lack of faith had killed both of them. In reality, Mortimur had been kidnapped by the chevaliers of Damask Rose, scouting for unique and powerful mutations to bring back to the Grand Duke to be studied; and Mana had been brutally killed by the priests themselves for challenging their authority. Either way, it was now turmoil. Malachai was too young to lead, and so the priests led in his stead- something that Mortimur's previous partner, Melanie, had a problem with. The tension would rise and rise. Malachai would soon follow in his parents footsteps and disappear, this time being rescued from the erupting coup by Killian Damascena, who had been watching Haven ever since is now-stepfather had been kidnapped from its surrounding forests.

Magdalene was not so lucky. No one came to her rescue, and she was no longer welcome in Haven. So she ran.

Changing her name to her childhood nickname of Dandelion, she fled into the woods surrounding Haven and attempted to navigate the world that had been hidden from her for so long. She ended up stumbling upon the Sawyer gang. Recognising her blood, and they her in turn, she would stay with them for a number of years. She was desperate to be strong, strong enough to fend for herself, strong enough to fight back against the ghosts of her past.

But such things are easier said than done. Whilst she slowly began to thrive in the gang, her old, bright personality re-emerging, Malachai returned to Haven. He forced Melanie and her supporters out, re-established the cult as it once was. Although no one understood why, Dandelion would leave the gang to return to Haven. Back to Malachai's side.

It is equal parts obediance and fear to loyalty and love. They have always been together. Only Dandelion remembers who Malachai once was, and she sees it as her duty to stay by his side no matter what. That and, sadly, the sickly tendrils of indoctrination are sturdy in her brain.