Name: Ridley Ann Sommers
Faceclaim: Emily Rudd
Age : Looks - 25
Actually: 45
Gender: Female
Species: Instar Diviner - Light
Family: Malachai Sommers, Charlotte Sommers

Ridley always believed that stories are like gems — radiating out a different perspective from every side. Everyone knows her brother, Malachi’s story, but there are different sides to every family and her story — the one belonging to Ridley Ann Sommers hasn’t ever been told before. Ridley have reasons for keeping quiet and certainly for staying away from a group of people who just happen to bring out the worst in one another. This is what she remembers and although Ridley know memory is as tricky as magic, she often write in journals to help them not fade. She was born to Lindsey and Charles Sommers, both light diviners, who were so in love that it overflowed in the birth of their first son, Malachi. The early years were filled with typical family bumbles. Ridley’s parents raised him with the hopes that he would follow in their footsteps and embrace the gentle magic that he had grown up with, but as Malachi grew older their differences became apparent. Although no child is a carbon copy of their parents, it disappointed her Mom and Dad that Malachi had an interest in the dark arts. Her Dad, especially, seemed to change. He became harder and colder to his son than thier once sunny family had ever felt before. Ridley’s parent's worries were not without reason and on his eighteenth birthday, Malachi was chosen to be a dark Instar Diviner. Her Mother grieved, but ultimately still loved her son. However, her Father saw Malachi’s choice as nothing but the deepest of betrayals and cut off all contact with his firstborn child.

Still hoping to have someone to carry on their legacy, their parents began to try for a second child, and three years later she was born. That was her sister Charlotte. She was gentle and good,  responsive to my parent’s teachings. However, her eighteenth birthday was a time of tension and little enjoyment, despite Ridley sister’s excitement over her ceremony. However, they had little to fear. Charlie stood true and proud to embrace the light and become a Fae, just like the rest of her family! Despite that it was typical for the eldest child to be groomed for being the leader of the coven, her older sister began the work.

Ridley was born when her sister, Charlotte, was well into her teen years. It was obvious from her early days that she more resembled her older sister than her older brother. Overall, she  was a happy and bright child. Although sometimes she made rash decisions, it was almost always in defense of others. It was difficult for her to see others being hurt. Perhaps that was why Ridley couldn’t understand her Father’s disposition towards her older brother. Maybe it was the was blind loyalty of childhood to the brother she so infrequently saw or perhaps true affection, but it made Ridley angry the way he could be cast aside just for being different. Ridley studied and learned all she could about their families and often reached out to her brother, but heard very little about or from him except in whispers of overheard conversations. The more he tried to push me away, the more she tried to win her brother’s love.

When Ridley was eleven years old, her parents gave her a gift that quickly became the first love of her life and would take me on many adventures over the years. It was a Polaroid camera wrapped in a red bow. Ridley was enraptured by the small device that could freeze moments in time. She did well in school and Ridley parents raised her very similarly to Charlotte, however, once they found out her interest in Malachi, the strict side of her Father began to feel smothering. Ridley’s Mother was kind, but she never dared to stand up to him when he wanted something done a certain way. Ridley truly loved my parents, but no one can raise a child perfectly. They’ll  all end up with some bruise, despite whether it shows or not. Being favorited didn’t aid Ridley getting through to her older brother, although she did sometimes succeed in writing him letters or notes and leaving them in a clearing way outside my home in the Coven. She don’t know how he knew when she placed them there, but it made her feel glad that he watched and waited for some news from his little sister. Perhaps, she weren’t as different as everyone said. Ridley’s camera was constantly by her side and she even have a few pictures of Malachi. No one else does.

Everyone held their breath as Ridley’s eighteenth birthday approached. There was more than one time that her Father sat her down in his office and would not let her leave until she promised to be good. Ridley didn’t recognize the look in his eyes and she didn’t like it. With the clear divide in her family, Ridley struggled to be a part of it. How could she be of light and yet have to shun her own flesh and blood? The light inside Ridley ultimately won over the dark. She chose good deeds and often put others before herself. With all her empathy, she could never wish ill will on anyone, not even her brother when there were long gaps in the barest form of communication or her father who had begun this. Something stirred in Ridley. A rebellion, a frustration with an age-old system that only recognized evil and good. Why was there no space of safety where you could rest without being attacked for who you were?  She was beginning to be bored in the safety of the coven.

Ridley wanted to explore and find new places to see and new people to greet. She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t pledge her name to either the light or the dark. The light claimed goodness yet held my father’s anger over my brother’s past and the dark held Malachi’s choice which should have been so simple and instead had started a war in my once simple, loving family. Instead, she did what no one else dared to do, Ridley left. On the night before her ceremony, she laid out two pair of clothes. The first was a dainty dress chosen by her Mother to wear to her ceremony. It had been passed down in Ridley’s family for ages. Charlotte had worn it and so had her Mother before her. The second was a sturdy pair of dark jeans, a black tee, and a leather jacket. It didn’t suit her usual style but it suited the road. Ridley wasn’t sure that night if she would have the gall to go through with leaving, but packing her bags with the first step towards freedom.

That morning, while staring at the bags she had packed, Ridley  realized that the ceremony wasn’t only abouther family. Being chosen by her clan was something she’d waited for with excitement since she was a small child. Ridley  couldn’t let her family take away her ceremony, just because she disagreed with their behavior. Ignoring her mother’s choice in dresses, Ridley weeded through her wardrobe before finding a white gown of her own making that she’d completed in the last course of Home Economics. Simple, and clean, but elegant: it seemed to call her name that day. Ridley was chosen by the light in a quiet ceremony that was soon crowded with quibbling relatives who threatened to take her peace away.

It was then that Riley realized:  she couldn’t be in a family where she was light and had to shun her brother. So off on her own, Ridley began to travel the world withher trusty camera at my side. There were so many places that she wanted to go, but with a limited budget, Ridley wasn’t going to be able to jet off to Europe. Her first adventures were in the golden state of summery California. Even in December, it was warm and welcoming. Here Ridley fell in love with fashion, especially street style. After a year working for an In-style magazine, as a photographer, she decided to set down her camera and focus on the actual design of the business. She’d always enjoyed sketching the designs I saw the others at the magazine working on and by now had saved up quite a nest egg from my work. Ridley moved to Paris and was accepted into a design school at the Paris College of Art.

While she wasn’t exactly a social butterfly at school, Ridley made a lot of friends. However, her main focus was on work and proving to herself that she could really succeed in life and get where she wanted to go apart from my family. I started to build a life for myself and eventually, people started to fall into it. Ridley met Colin Roberts one night when a group of girls decided on a night out before exams. He was a lawyer and they found themselves quickly attracted to one another. They both enjoyed busy lifestyles and working hard, but had secret bright inside lives that were cloaked in magic. Ridley always enjoyed his company and found that he often made her laugh, despite that we were very different. The next two years of school were difficult, but their relationship continued despite both of their hectic schedules. When Ridley finally graduated, Colin and her moved to London and rented an apartment, which despite how long they'd been together all of a sudden made things feel real and moving very quickly. In London, she was approached by a successful brand to design her own clothing and began working day in and day out to make the launch successful. Slowly, her relationship began to take the back seat.

Despite how busy Ridley was, it was a joy to reconnect with her sister Charlotte in London. It was a heavy reunion for many reasons as her space from the family had created more than just a physical distance, but an emotional one as well. She carried news with her that she never would have wanted to hear, but had to learn to accept. Their father was dead and her brother had killed him. For the past while, she and my mother had been on the run and she had been completely lost in her own world of ruffles and pretty dresses.  While everyone mourned her father, Ridley think that she was the only one mourning their brother too. Where had her family gone so wrong for this tragedy to take place? Perhaps her parents had been right about him all these years, but a tiny whisper of denial whispered — maybe not. Ridley had missed the funeral and had to find her own way to get peace with his passing. He was her father and despite his flaws with Malachi, he was the one who had bounced her on his knee and sung to Ridley whenever she was sad. In truth, part of Ridley wished she could have seen Malachi. Perhaps, she could reason with him, but despite all her wishes for that to be true, Ridley  knew it wasn’t going to happen.

Life with her sister Charlotte and my Colin continued as normal as she learned to adjust to a world that had been completely shaken. They were sharing a one bedroom apartment with a pullout couch. London rent was expensive and while Charlotte eventually found a job, it wasn’t enough that they could afford either a two bedroom or a new place for her sister. Despite that she was older, Ridley suddenly felt responsible for her and for all of the pain that she had suffered. Perhaps, if only she had stayed with her family, things could have been different. Ridley responded to her own intense emotions the only way she knew how: by throwing myself further and further into her own work. Ridley wasn’t blind to the late night conversations she saw Colin and Charlotte entertain. She understood that her emotional availability was limited and for some reason, they had found each other. It wasn’t exactly a secret, so when they approached her to have a conversation, she knew exactly what words would come from their lips. However, knowing a truth doesn’t ever prevent it from hurting you in the long run.

Ridley knew exactly what they wanted to tell her. They had fallen in love. As they sat across from one another on the couch and Ridley looked at my older sister, it was hard to tell if things would ever be the same between us, but before either of them had the chance to speak a blinding light flashed throughout the apartment. There was a searing pain in their heads, but thankfully it didn’t last too long before they all passed out. The last thought Ridley had was wondering what she was doing with her life. When she woke up on the floor, it was dark outside. The sun had already disappeared into the moon, presumably hours ago. Colin and Charlotte were still collapsed on the floor holding hands. When they finally all awoke, the negative pull from Colin’s dark magic seemed to be gone. The conversation from hours ago was long forgotten as they surged together to understand what had happened.

They all found answers in Evermore, with their Mother. However, the guilt weighed heavily on Colin and Charlotte after they all but confessed to their little affair which they had no plans in splitting up. As it turns out, the betrayal of a sister is a hard one to repair. Despite that Ridley’s relationship with Colin wasn’t a romance for the history books, it was solid and comfortable and quiet and she cared for him deeply. Ridley’s heart was shattered and her entire world was crumbling. Her father was gone, her mother was missing, her brother a killer, and now Ridley's sister was a homewrecker.

Long Before either of them had time to speak Ridley was up and running to her bedroom. Packing a bag as quickly as she could Ridley  grabbed the camera that her father had given her, feeling so lost. She screamed out for them not to follow her, to allow her to do this all on her own. Ridley decided to go to the place where people who had no clue where to go. Just that they needed escape goes. The airport. As she arrived she scanned at all the flights soon taking off. Taking a pick at where she wanted to go. New Zealand. The other side of the world. Furthest place to get away. Spending how many hours on a plane, when arriving she took off to find where she wanted to go. So many different places. The beaches were her favorite. The soft, sandy beaches of Karakare, New Zealand. It was a place her family had once vacationed where the sand had tickled her toes and the waves chased her in the bright sunlight.

Ridley arrived in a storm; or maybe, she brought it with her. Either way, the waves were crashing to the thunder in a way that she never remembered them doing so before. Loud and lively, they were big enough to conceal however much Ridley needed to bury her head in the sand and just scream. She  had no family left and was completely on her own in a world that so often seemed unfriendly to the light. Ridley slept on the beach that night and only woke up when the sun beat to beat upon her shoulders warming them to an uncomfortable heat. As she opened my eyes, she stared into the curious gaze of a stranger. Her hair was windblown and naturally blonde, while she had freckle spotted cheeks and a slender build.

Later on, when she was more hydrated and better rested, Ridley was surprised she didn’t recognize the grown version of her summertime best friend, Aster Gallagher, whose family owned a farm on the island. The next few weeks were rough while her system fought the stress she had encountered both emotionally and from building a portal with no preparation. Aster was kind enough to let Ridley stay on in her family’s home and we slowly began to become reacquainted. They started as friends when she whisked her away to travel as far away from my family’s past as she could get. It was good to get away and see new things, especially with someone she so enjoyed beside her. Bonding over favorite films and family tragedy is a good way to become close. Asrar  explained to me her ongoing search for her cousin and together they began crossing off islands starting near New Zealand and heading towards the Indian Ocean.

Ridley took a break from fashion after knowing what she did to pursue it and what relationships it nearly cost her and decided to return to the steady quiet of just myself and her camera. The time of healing was difficult and Ridley had to learn how to love her again after everything that she had gone through, but even after everything, Aster still loves Ridley and keeps her steady. She filled the void in her heart that was missing after being the square peg in a family of round holes. Ridley’s entire life changed as they built a life together. Ridley took so many photos of their adventures that she  began to lose track. Weeks with her felt like years and she helped her see the light in the hardship that Ridley had experienced. Aster made her believe that her brother could be saved, that Colin was never meant to be hers, and that her sister hadn’t meant to harm her. Ridley believed her although it still hurt sometimes to think the people she loved could do such harm.

Upon finding Avalon, Aster and Ridley moved to Evermore city to be with her family to help with her cousin’s transition into the supernatural world. The three of them became inseparable like three peas in a pod. The family Ridley was missing felt like it was slipping away when she got news that a man matching Malachi’s description was right there, in Evermore. Could it be true? If so her hunt wasn’t over and she needed to find Malachi and try to redeem her brother... if it was possible. Ridley hoped could she find him and can stop his quest to harm their mother and sister before it was too late. Coming so close to danger worry Aster as over the years, she’s become fiercely protective of Ridley.  Her entire family, old and new, was all right here in Evermore threatening to collide. Where the lines overlap between the family Ridley built and the one she was born with is complicated but the feeling of loss over the old subsided over time, as she had built a new family who loved and cared for her in ways Ridley had never understood before. Ridley walks the streets with more confidence than she did years ago. What happens in the future is undetermined, but that is what makes adventures happen. She’s ready for the ride…