PLAYER: Vivi Emmeret	CHARACTER: Emery V.
PRONOUNS: she/her AGE: 19 ORIENTATION: pansexual LOCATION: London, UK OCCUPATION: Uni Student/Wedding Photographer	GENDER: F AGE: Teen ENABLE PKMN SPEECH? Yes PAIN THRESHOLD: Realistic TRAINER CLASS: Swimmer

OUT OF THE GAME     Vivi was adopted at 8 months old by a genius Hong Kong prosecutor-turned-acupuncturist (Dad) and a British flight pilot (Papa), both of whom now live permanently in Hong Kong. Her two fathers always seemed to change the story of how they met whenever young Vivi asked, but through careful observation, she’s determined it to be something involving a high society gala, a friend-of-a-friend-of-a-friend, and a late-night bar in the middle of Cardiff.     Dad abandoned his wildly successful prosecution record to raise Vivi, as Papa’s career was more difficult to put down. To fill in what idle hours he had, Dad picked up acupuncture, which was his family background anyway. Given that it seemed a hefty hippocampus ran in his genes, he was successful at that, too, and now works at his elderly parents’ small, but renown establishment. He sometimes jokes that if anyone from his former career comes back with a grudge, he’ll “treat” them for free. Papa visits and stays for as long as he can each time, but the benefits of being a pilot are enjoyed by the entire family.     Vivi herself was a vivacious, mischievous child, always sticking her nose in places where it didn’t belong and doing it with flair and gusto. She frequently landed herself in trouble at school, which did not endear her to her teachers, but made her a little star amongst her peers. If she had continued along this path, Papa hypothesised that Vivi would’ve turned out a bit more normal than she ended up. He blames himself for this.     She never stayed in one place for very long in her early years, as her fathers moved around often enough to warrant yearly school changes back then, so she shone bright and faded into glittering obscurity twice as fast. In turn, Vivi began to see her schoolmates as transient, immaterial figures that never held much for her. Dad decided to home-school her from 10 onwards. Then, Vivi’s “peers” came to consist of Dad’s nieces and nephews and extended family members, all of whom were varying levels of apprehensive about this new, permanent fixture in their house.     Her social skills are, therefore, extremely stunted, but she’d assure you that it’s all in good ways. Very familial ways; Vivi has no concept of “acquaintance”, since most people she’s known have been by default close in one way or another. It’s easy to become fast “friends” with her, or rather the other way around. Many describe her as “weird”, like she’s never really talking to them. Like she’s talking to something else slightly above their shoulder. She also has a tendency to create stories, harmless lies that are meant to awe and entertain and mislead, but are ultimately untruths. Papa’s constant stream of tales in the air and on distant lands serve to fuel the flames. Does she believe the things she says, at some point? It would surprise no one if Vivi of all people was able to maintain constant cognitive dissonance. Finally, if there is ever a chance for her to distinguish herself in some way, especially in a way that may be fun, well, that particular trait hasn’t been extinguished yet.     Dad is very proud of that, and attributes it to his influence.    One might say that Vivi’s cutthroat tactics and cunningly self-serving turn of mind are due to his influence, too. In typical Asian fashion even moreso when you consider that Dad was a genius father and teacher who expected his daughter to turn out in the same way. Vivi was entered into all sorts of competitions, from sports to music to art to every cognitive ability imaginable. She wasn’t meant to excel at all of them—that would’ve been absolutely grand, though—but it was a way to find out what she had an inclination to do.     It wore her out. Not that she failed; Vivi excelled at many things, in fact, and was one to enjoy challenges and crushing opponents for glory. The problem was that she found a lot of that stuff just plain boring, especially when she was pushed to do it again and again. She kept at two or three—the saxophone, darts, and high-jump—and abandoned the rest. It was when Dad found her perusing through his old books that Vivi’s potential for a law career was “revealed”. And so, she was encouraged to go to law school in the United Kingdom (because Papa wanted some influence, too).     Vivi even asked if she could pursue acupuncture as well. Dad said that she could do it once she retired like he did. If there was a person she would never argue with, it was Dad, so off she went to UCL, in Papa’s hometown of grimy, overly pricey London. She goes back to Hong Kong for summers and breaks, though.     Somewhere along the line, she picked up wedding photography as a way to get free food from time to time. It helped that she was decent, and only getting better with each shoot. Her bright attitude sits well with guests, too. Uni…could be better. Vivi’s heart is very much not in it, so she coasts when she can. Every now and then she’ll exert some effort and make out with the highest marks, but like always, she simmers down quickly into just another bored face in the lecture hall.     Vivi has come to realise that, despite it all, her constant contest smorgasbord of a childhood enriched her more than anything else ever did. Every club or society at UCL was nowhere near as exciting as she needed it to be, especially since she had failed to make any substantial friends. Everyone keeps her at arms-length; Vivi has developed a rather unsettling, unsavoury air about her. The vivacity and charm remains, of course, but people sense a strange detachment behind it, especially through eyes that look into people like they’re not real. Perhaps all that competition made her see others differently, as if they were just beings that existed for her to compete against rather than sentient existences.     That’s just a theory, of course.     Pokémon was never a big facet of Vivi’s childhood, but when the VR game released and she happened to see an article describing its features, her interest was immediately piqued. Competition. On an unfamiliar, fantastical stage, no less. Further research came hard and fast, those orange eyes scanning over numbers and names and pixels and secrets. There was enough there to keep her occupied for a good while, she figured, and it was far more interesting than law or people getting married. The immersive experience was a draw enough for her, she who was vaguely dissatisfied with her daily life.

INSIDE THE GAME     Vivi is Emery. If anything, Vivi’s sense of self is the strongest aspect about her and she’s damn proud of it, so Emery functions as an extension of Vivi. In fact, it took a bit of time for her to get used to being known as a name she’s not. The largest difference is probably that she is much less restrained by social norms now, as most would be in an MMORPG. Her exuberance and particular brand of joie de vivre are set to the max, but Emery acts as if she knows this is a false reality.     That is to say, Emery treats this world like the playground it is. Sure, she’s interested in discovering new things and, more importantly, partaking in “animal battles”, but she holds no love for the IP, so to speak. Nothing is real, so ultimately it doesn’t matter what she does as long as it’s fun. As long as she wins. As long as she gets to fight, honestly: win or lose, Emery relishes a challenge. It’s something to do—something to feel and delight in. There are still rules here too, of course, and she gleefully abides by them, because that’s what makes it a game.     As for the Pokémon, Emery/Vivi views all animals as if they are people in and of themselves. And these VR ones won’t shy away, not all of them, which makes them even better than real humans, ironically. They make her feel calmer and happier for some reason, a kind of therapeutic presence no matter the species. Sometimes, you’ll find her snapping shots of the digital landscape or perhaps with one of her Pokémon (“animals”, she calls them); probably one of her most serene moments. But don’t let Emery see you, unless you’re willing to start with a fight and end as whatever her definition of “friends” is.     Over the course of playing, however, the freedom afforded by the platform has triggered some faint changes—or at least reflections and considerations—in Vivi. In a place where the invisible, taut strings holding her back are mostly cut, what does she see of herself? In a place of unreality, which is what the real world has grown closer to being, Vivi feels closer to actuality than before. Yet she knows it’s not real. Confusion is creeping into her brain, bringing with it the threat of loss. But loss of what?

FACE CLAIMS IRL CHARACTER [u]FATE/GRAND ORDER[/u] Gudako as [a href="https://unovr.boards.net/thread/2399/emery"]Vivi Emmeret[/a] PLAYER CHARACTER [u]FATE/GRAND ORDER[/u] Gudako as @mm V.

OOC NAME MM / 5月  (discord)

STARTER PKMN Do you want to receive your starter in-character at the Starter Lab? YES, AND RANDOMIZE MY STARTER!