Background

Emily and her parents Clyde and Allison had a relatively stable life by what is now known as "Old Springfield" Missouri. Clyde, enjoyed his position at the local cannery as a warehouse hauler. Allison ran a small cart at the sidewalk of our small apartment. The leap-frog was that Pa would bring home dinged and discounted cans of assorted meats, fish, beans and various goodies and Ma would cherry pick and keep for us what she wanted, and sell the rest at the the cart & kiosk. At 11 years old, Emily would accompany Allison as often as she would allow, and Emily would learn the tricks of the trade. Both of Emily's parents were fluent in English and Spanish and made sure that Emily understood both languages as well as possible. With the arrival of the 1999 outbreak, the cannery closed its doors and Clyde was let go without notice. The whole plant suddenly closed it doors the entire workforce was sent into a scramble. Clyde did what he thought was best and snuck in and took as much as he could, knowing that there could be a long while before the next job or paycheck would show its head again. Allison and Emily would go through this much larger haul of goodies and with a sigh and a statement, Clyde would drop the bad news. Thereafter Emily would take it upon herself to assist in her own way. From watching the chaos erupting within Old Springfield, the town was converted into a QZ with the guidance of the CDC, and Emily saw an opportunity to fleece the new-commers from their cash, and various goodies. With a silver tongue and a gift of gab Emily would ensure that her home didn't go without. Then, Emily's poor choices would come back to haunt the family as gangs started to grow and theft became almost second nature. Clyde confronted a thief at the kiosk, and a single shot erupted. Almost as soon as it began, the crying and wailing from Allison was almost too much to bare. As Emily would come home with a few trinkets, she would notice a small crowd outside of the apartment and an ambulance roll off, sirens blazing and lights flying. Emily would head inside, unknowing of the incident that had occurred. As the door opened, the apartment lay empty; No one was inside and no note was left. Emily would then try to contact friends and neighbors to find out where everyone had went, but the lead was that the ambulance took both her father and mother after a shot rang out. And the hunt to find her parents would begin after a rough nights sleep and a small notepad to lead her way. Emily would stay in the empty apartment for as long as she could. Her silver tongue allowed Emily to convince the landlord to waive a few months rent and buy herself some time. But as the outbreak grew in intensity, earning more than just the bare minimum became much harder. Having to resort to avoiding police and checkpoints after stealing, she would do her best to avoid prying eyes and curious questions. Emily had turned 15 and had grown accustomed to the notion that her family was long gone. And as more people were coughing and falling ill far more often, doors were shutting almost everywhere and pickings became more slim. Emily would start to recluse herself from the world. Her reclusive nature resolved her to steal more often and manipulate others to survive, and at one point she almost forgot to speak normally. But as luck would have it, she swiped a book from the table of one of the merchant stalls and hoped to pawn it for a bite to eat; But the book ended up being an educational book for American Sign Language. And intrigue overwrote hunger for just a moment, as Emily opened the book and studied a whole new world of manipulation. Months went by and the book became worn down, and practicing this new language was quite difficult. Then one day, she decided to mimic a mute and showcased her sign language to a random merchant within Old Springfield. He laughed to himself, and replied back to Emily in sign that was much too fast to understand. Emily tried again but this time, projected just a little slower; And the merchant also responded slower, as to coach Emily through. And it was this moment that Emily realized that she didn't practice for nothing, and through careful communication- struck a deal. Feeling incredibly proud of herself, Emily continued to practice the art of ASL and written notes to many more before her until the ruse went on for so long, that speaking became quite difficult. And thus, reclused her speaking abilities out of insecurity and would only speak to those she trusted; As the habit had become the norm. After her successful ruse, Emily returned to the merchant and showcased what she had done as a bragging gesture; Figuring that the merchant would either dismiss her or open a backhand towards her. But surprisingly, the merchant smiled and signed his own mask towards Emily, as the item that he had sold her was a counterfeit trinket. Emily and the merchant developed a friendship of sorts, and the merchant allowed Emily to stay for a short while and even participate with the merchants stall from time to time. And that short stay would ended up lasting years. Then as the uptick of refugees entered the newly formed QZ of Old Springfield, and the customers eb'ed and flowed like waves. One of these refugees was a woman named Gwenhyfar who stumbled upon the merchants stall. Both Emily and Gwen instantly hit it off as friends. And after getting to know Gwen, Emily discovered a new love for life as Gwen had earned her trust. Two happy years went by as trials and tribulations tested their friendship, and then that friendship blossomed into a strong relationship; That led to Gwenhyfar asking Emily to marry her and Emily happily accepting. As the pair moved on to Knox County to start their new life, they both arrive with spirits high and hopes a fancy. And with a little luck, both of them will settle down and prosper for as long as time will allow.