Kirit Harper

Early life
Kirit Harper was born on October 12th to Joya and Derin Harper, two farmers in Lordaeron. She was the third to be born to the parents. Her oldest brother, Geralt, was seven years her senior and Errik her elder by four. Unassuming, her childhood was filled with learning to tend to the few chickens they had for eggs, their single pig, and how to care for the ox used to till their grain fields. Her days were long and hard, spending almost every waking hour busy with work. When she could find time to sneak away from her duties she pretended to be a brave warrior, swinging thin sticks around to murder tall stalks of grass. When she was eight Kirit wandered a little too far from her home and stumbled upon a couple of hunters. Lost in the woods and alone the two men took her with them while they pursued a great stag. Curious and intrigued at their hunt, young Kirit asked many questions about bows and archery. The hunt lasted only the day and - with their kill in tow - the hunters safely returned Kirit to her home, where they were given a bed and generously shared some of the meat with the Harper family. More impressively, the older of the two hunters bequeathed his short bow to Kirit, telling her that with practice she could learn to hunt for her family, too. Eager to test out her new toy, Kirit spent every day aiming at a small hay target her father built for her. For the next two years Kirit practiced, her aim ever improving. She was filled with joy and pride every time she held her bow in hand and cared for it as though it were her own child, never letting it out of sight. On her eleventh birthday, after much arguing with her father, Kirit was granted permission to venture out and hunt small game - squirrels and rabbits. On one such day, a year later, Kirit was out for a hunt. Her brother, Geralt, had recently been talking to a hooded man about the unfair discrepancies between wealthy and poor. None could deny that Geralt wasn't proud of being trapped on a farm; he yearned for a more comfortable life filled with far less labor. Tempted by the man's promises of poisoning the elite to make way for a better life, Geralt succumbed to his cruelty and freely gave the man a barrel of his family's grain. As Kirit returned home the sight before her would begin a series of events that would spell the end of Lordaeron.

The Scourge Plague
Kirit returned from a day of rabbit hunting to find her family had been slaughtered, their farm burned and their grain plagued. She saw the terrified looks on the faces of her mother and father and brother, Errik, forever carved in their corpses. Not to far away she heard voices and grabbed her bow and quiver of arrows to flee. She ran despite her tears and tired, aching heart. Several hours later she relented and fell to her knees to cry. Alone in the Lordaeron woods she had to survive and made her way to the next town. To her dismay and horror the village had already fallen. Strange, shambling horrors patrolled mindlessly around the ruined buildings. The flesh from their bodies hung loosely on their exposed bones. Terrified, all she could do was hope to find sanctuary in Stratholme, but once more she found herself arriving too late. In the distance she saw smoke and fire billowing up in monstrous plumes above the city. The sound of swords clashing with flesh and steel rang out through the countryside. Before her was the ruined waste of her country and home, but desperation drove her to continue her search for safety west, towards the capitol. For a brief time the city proved safe, though she was forced with the other refugees to linger on the outskirts to not overcrowd the city. Upon Arthas' return to the city she found hope once more in the knowledge that her prince had traveled north to end this threat and returned. Of course, such hope was crushed after mere hours. Once again fleeing, Kirit spent several months hiding by herself while in search of somewhere to keep from the Scourge. For one so young, her early dabbling in hunting made her quick on her feet and silent when she needed to be. She could avoid sight with ease. At thirteen, her newest hope was Gilneas, but once again she found only trouble. The great wall that had been erected blockaded her from ever entering the kingdom and she was forced once more to find her own way. For the next few years Kirit was alone, seeing no other people as she learned the true horrors of the world she lived in. When she was sixteen Kirit met a young man whose experiences were similar to her own. Introducing himself as Walter, he helped to look after her and she'd watch out for him. Together they'd hunt and had found a small house nestled deep in the Silverpine Forest to reside safely in. Perhaps it was real, or perhaps the fact that they only saw each other, but the two fell for one another and, despite the risk of death every day, Kirit found joy. Over the next two years, however, Walter became more and more aggressive with her. He turned abusive and demanding, taking her as he'd like. Solitude affected him far worse than Kirit, and on one particular night Walter came at her with a knife. In a desperate but brief struggle, Kirit managed to wrestle the deranged man and lodged the knife in his neck. Fleeing the scene, Kirit made her way south towards the kingdom of Khaz Modan, hoping to find safety in the mountains. ==