the worst nightmares are ones

you cannot wake up from.

SEO MIN.

adoptive daughter of the house of roses.

early years: 1843-1849.

born to a shaman family as the eldest, she was quite a sickly child in the first 6 years of her life. unable to do much at that time, she vowed to help her family as much as she could once her health improves. in addition to her frequent illnesses, min possessed a connection to the spiritual realm, able to predict certain events and see spirits from time to time. the rest of her childhood was dedicated to aiding her mudang mother with her rituals and taking care of her younger brother, who was 5 years younger than her.

winter, 1855. (tw: sa + abuse)

she lost her innocence from one of their regular clients. despite telling her parents about it, they couldn't believe her—if they did, they would not be able to do much about it because he was of a higher class. she continued to suffer this abuse from him for almost four years

summer, 1858.

she began to suffer from nightmares and hallucinations in the night due to these traumatic events. the significant damage to her mental health led to partial soul loss and rendered her more susceptible to possession of malevolent spirits.

misfortune is often a prerequisite to becoming a mudang. due to her illnesses in the past and her abilities that appeared to be heightened because of her trauma, min was forced against her will to begin training as her mother's apprentice—a sinddal. every attempt to perform the initiation ritual, naerim kut, resulted in catastrophe. these possessions were violent at times and sometimes required intervention by her family, either by tying her to a structure or locking her in a room. they remained oblivious to the root of her problem and trained her more intensely in an attempt to help min control her "spiritual power".

march, 1860.

she attempted to fight against her abuser's advances, accidentally scratching his face in the process. enraged by her defiance, he began to lie to the villagers, spreading a rumor that her family worked with evil spirits and cursed his family.

“it won’t be long until they do harm to your family too.”

riling up the town with fear, in april, their home was set on fire by some villagers in the middle of the night to force them out of the village. unfortunately, the entire family was fast asleep at the time. barely escaping their small house alone, she quickly realized that she was the only survivor of her family as she watched her home collapse in on itself.

with no family left min helplessly wandered the streets before collapsing in pain and exhaustion. unable to get up and fearful of the villagers to find her, she gives up on begging for help, allowing herself to begin to succumb to the painful burns and wounds that riddled her body.

“everything hurts.”

lying in front of sook, she is discovered and taken in by seo rim while on the brink of death.

𝚑𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚢.

家族

cheonmin branch.

bae yeonwoo

father.

eldest, only daughter.

sangmin branch.

bae eunhyuk

bae, house of the daisy.

a sangmin clan from goyang, their roots are in the arts. known for their excellent painting skills, specializing in portraits, they are a popular choice for those who would like to have a portrait done, regardless of class. not much is publicly known of this clan, and they have had a clean reputation since their establishment, until a fracture formed a cheonmin branch, which has since been eliminated, save for one surviving member who is rumored to be working as a gisaeng under a new name.

second son.

youngest, only son.

bae eunji

youngest daughter.

seo, house of roses.

a cheonmin class of ilpae gisaengs. they are the flowers of hanseong known for their beauty and artistic prowess in singing, dancing, and poetry. they are of the highest tier of gisaengs and are unable to entertain after 30. it was first established by a woman by the name of "seo jinhye" and while her background remains a mystery to most, it was said that she was revered as a lady who brought men from all over the country to her doorstep when she danced. she was a madame but she was also a mother to most girls she adopted. they all had one thing in common: the want and desire for a new beginning. after her death, the gisaeng house, sook, and title of madame went to "seo rim", her eldest and longest adoptive daughter, who after leaving for tamna, passed her title onto her adoptive sister, seo min.

min is a rather reserved person when it comes to strangers, opting to be more of a listener than a talker. she's rarely satisfied with anything she does. careful of who she trusts, she's fiercely loyal to those who have earned it and is willing to give anything of hers if they need it.

she's like a two-sided coin. sometimes, she can be very warm, while other times, she can be cold.

she constantly craves happiness because her condition and past trauma often force her into dark places. as a result, she is easily amused and seeks out opportunities that could provide her with enjoyment. min enjoys the company of others and takes great pleasure in making people laugh.

she suffers from sinbyeong. she has episodes from time to time when a spirit (malevolent or not) possesses her. during her episodes, she's overcome with physical pain, hallucinations, and is unable to stomach food. to alleviate her symptoms. she refuses to accept the spirit and dedicate her life to shamanism, so, she must visit a shaman to receive an exorcism. for this reason, min has a lock on the inside of her room for when she cannot immediately visit a shaman.

she devotes her utmost effort to conceal her sinbyeong as she is ashamed of her condition. (people who are aware: seo rim, ryu songmin, and seol juhwan.)

裵軟祐

(+) loyal, talkative (when comfortable), practical.

(=) tsundere, often tired, secretive, guarded, curious, perfectionist.

(-) melancholic, clumsy, easily distracted, temperamental, stubborn, unpredictable.

likes : bad jokes, snow, yakgwa, acorn jelly, music.

dislikes : the sound, sight, and smell of fire, sleeping alone, prying into her past, dark rooms.

hobbies : admiring the stars, cooking, reading, playing the gayageum, calligraphy.

love language (giving) : quality time + acts of service.

— with customers, her clumsiness somehow turns off. outside of work, she often trips or knocks things over.

— her scars periodically itch and burn, which drives her crazy. her only relief comes from soaking in cold water.

— she's an insomniac. when she does sleep, she has nightmares and occasionally sees figures in the dark.

— due to previous experiences, she's fearful of being alone in a room with an older man (middle-aged/40+).

— she has a soft spot for those who are rambunctious as they remind her of her younger brother.

— it was only until becoming a gisaeng that she learned to fully read and write.

— most of min's income goes towards her exorcisms.

— although she likes to do good, her sense of survival is intense and is willing to do anything to survive.

— because of her partial soul loss, she is plagued with bad luck.

— min has no dreams or aspirations. she never had the chance to think about it.

— she knows a lot of people and knows all about the gossip and other information floating around hanseong.

— as a gisaeng, she's renowned for her gayageum skills and composed nature.

淑

as hanseong's oldest and finest gibang dating back to the goryeo dynasty, sook is known for its elegant interior and skillful gisaeng. with a constant influx and efflux of nobles, sook is one of hanseong's busiest establishments, especially after sunset. sook is a large, two-storey establishment that is closely associated with hanseong's gyobang. the current madame of sook is seo min, hailing from the house of roses, a prominent clan of ilpae gisaeng established by the legendary and mysterious seo jinhye of sook. despite its high reputation, not everything is roses at sook.

⤷ public establishment; government-owned.

⤷ location: outer city of capital.

⤷ opening hours 15:00—3:00. daily.

⤷ members:

madame + haengsu (행수) — seo min.

ilpae (일패) gisaeng/highest-tier — seo eun, seo hwa, seo jung.

ipae (이패) gisaeng/middle-tier — npcs (approx 60; open).

chef — kim byungjun.

bodyguards, handmaidens, etc.— npcs (open).

⠀

⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀:¨ ·.· ¨:

⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ `· . ꔫ

the mun

you can call me gude, gudetama, or by my character's name :)

pronouns : she/her or the pronouns my character has

timezone : gmt-5, but my sleeping schedule is horrendous

age : 20+

— third pov only.

— i usually mirror. i can do from para to multi-para.

— open to all genres, my favorites are angst, comedy, romance, drama. endgames are discussed, not implied.

— no smut. if the plot/connection requires it, i'm okay with implying that something nsfw occurred if you are 20+ ooc.

— i find it difficult to write/understand purple prose, so i greatly prefer writing styles that are more straightforward. i'm completely fine with being detailed, but purple prose is like a different language to me most of the time.

— i am a very busy person because of work and classes, so please be patient and understanding if my replies are slow!

— please do not poke me.

current activity level : 3/10