Name
Elena Nicole Castellanos
Shining Light | Victory of the People | One Who Works in a Castle

Nickname
Lane
(those outside her family who cannot pronounce her name properly)
To Move On

Age
20

Gender
Cisfemale

Sexuality
Heterosexual

Pronouns
She/Her/Hers

Province
Honduragua

Caste
5

Face Claim
Rachel Zegler

Personality
𝕴'𝖒 𝖘𝖙𝖎𝖑𝖑 𝖓𝖔𝖙 𝖘𝖚𝖗𝖊 𝖜𝖍𝖆𝖙 𝕴 𝖘𝖙𝖆𝖓𝖉 𝖋𝖔𝖗
INTJ-T | The Architect
Introverted • Intuitive • Thinking • Judging • Turbulent
These thoughtful tacticians love perfecting the details of life, applying creativity and rationality to everything they do. Their inner world is often a private, complex one.
Enneagram 5 | The Investigator
Intense • Cerebral • Perceptive • Innovative • Secretive • Isolated
Fives are alert, insightful, and curious. They are able to concentrate and focus on developing complex ideas and skills. Independent, innovative, and inventive, they can also become preoccupied with their thoughts and imaginary constructs. They become detached, yet high-strung and intense. They typically have problems with eccentricity, nihilism, and isolation.
Enneagram 5w4 | The Iconoclast
In Stress E7 • In Growth E8
Elena possesses a sarcastic, cold sense of humor when she first meets people, and she may intentionally provoke people to see how they will act, a tool that she calls experimenting. Her bright, warm heart stands in stark contrast to her calculating exterior, which she wears like a shell of armor. Though she claims to live in reality, a psychologist might term it survivalist mode. She does what it takes to survive.
In stress, Elena becomes reclusive, and on her worst days, she retreats into a quiet place in her mind where she simply disassociates with all reality. It feels quiet there. Safe. People talk about out-of-body experiences as a bad thing, but Elena loves it because she feels as though the floating perspective gives her fresh perspective.
In growth, Elena taps into her artistic tendencies and becomes a visionary. While she still finds that quiet place to visualize and reach the truly abstract, creative core that births her music. She sees scenarios of what could be rather than what has been, and this idealism drives her relentless hope for her sisters' brighter future. Everything she does, she does with a dedicated, furious passion.

History
𝕿𝖍𝖎𝖘 𝖎𝖘 𝖎𝖙, 𝖇𝖔𝖞𝖘, 𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖘 𝖎𝖘 𝖜𝖆𝖗
Elena was born in one of Bonita's large cities, but close enough on the border of Honduragua to blend the two cultures, to a struggling mother and father. Any nobility and pride to which the Castellanos family once laid claim disappeared long ago at the hands of her ancestors, forcing the family of six to fight for what they had and covet what they did not.
They eschewed the formal education system, finding neither the time nor the value. Their mother chose to teach them what they needed as she found the ability. While Elena never loved academics, she found herself drawn to the creatives. Especially the writing.
While their mother taught the languages of written and spoken word alongside the crafting of pottery and sculpture, their father taught the languages of the streets: caution and self-defense. All four children grew up with an innate mistrust of others. At the base of that core lay the reminder that family meant everything and no one else mattered. Not the nobles, not the royals. No one.
𝕴 𝖜𝖆𝖘 𝖓𝖊𝖛𝖊𝖗 𝖔𝖓𝖊 𝖙𝖔 𝖇𝖊𝖑𝖎𝖊𝖛𝖊 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖍𝖞𝖕𝖊
On her tenth birthday, Papá left, supposedly for Angeles, to seek financial stability. Their mother hated it, but she tolerated it for the family's sake. Mamá tolerated it, and, as her second-eldest later found out, lied to her daughters about it.
Elena turned thirteen on the day she learned of her father's death, the worst day of her life. Her knowledge came from her older brother, Javier, as he explained that when Papá failed to deliver on a lucrative drug deal after the twins' contraction of a deadly illness, the crime lord released a hit on their father because, after all, no one crossed a lord. During that same conversation, Javier promised to look out for the family, supposedly through his music: the classical music, what he taught to Elena. After all, they only had each other.
Two years later, Elena found out that Javier's idea of taking care of them involved another deal with another ring, a rival ring to the one from Papá's involvement. In return, the family would receive protection from the first gang, a safe place to live, and a monthly stipend for the youngest three Castellanos children to finish their formal education. Mamá, furious, forbade him from sealing the deal, but he cared not for her warnings, choosing to seal it in blood, and Elena could only watch as her brother gathered his meager possessions and stormed out of their childhood home to become an Eight. A well-off Eight due to his deal, but an Eight all the same.
𝖂𝖊𝖑𝖑, 𝖘𝖔𝖒𝖊 𝖓𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙𝖘, 𝕴 𝖜𝖎𝖘𝖍 𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖘 𝖆𝖑𝖑 𝖜𝖔𝖚𝖑𝖉 𝖊𝖓𝖉
She disassociated for a long time after his departure, self-isolating and attempting to make sense of both Papá's death and Javier's betrayal. None of it made sense, so Elena let that quiet place take over and began to live her life in a robotic manner, eating only when told, speaking only when addressed, sleeping only when her body demanded. A condition that, had they been able to afford it, a Caste Three doctor might have diagnosed as clinical depression. No music emerged during this period. Neither did any new observations via their schoolwork or street experiences.
If Elena were honest, she might admit that only the twins' steadfast patience carried her through it. Even Mamá failed to notice. Not entirely. Catalina's gentle touch physically grounded her to the present moment, and Mariana's eager intellectual chatter mentally grounded her to the conversation. Should the twins be confronted on the topic, they would likely express fear but reassurance: a dark time, to be sure, but not one during which they lost their sister. However, despite their best remedial efforts, the two of them failed to bring her back completely.
𝕴 𝖘𝖙𝖎𝖑𝖑 𝖘𝖊𝖊 𝖞𝖔𝖚𝖗 𝖌𝖍𝖔𝖘𝖙
Months passed in this way until June 1 arrived. Elena's sixteenth birthday. A beautiful hand painted guitar arrived on their front doorstep. Elena knew instantly who had sent it when Mamá informed her of the delivery, and she wanted nothing to do with it. However, her love for all things music drove her to it until she finally picked it up and began to play.
It was this music that finally managed to ground her again, to give her a firm tie that would anchor her to this side of reality. Though she still struggled with both depression and the clinical anxiety that developed from it, she poured her heart, those emotions and that darkness, into the music itself, and when she found them, she put words to it.
Elena learned to write stories with her sisters to pass the time, and eventually, she learned to set those stories to music, pulling not only from her own experience, but from the stories of those whom the twins wished to hear. And she sang. The voice of an angel, perhaps not, but she loved it, and it brought enough. Enough for them to send her younger sisters, the twins, to formal school without the need to drop out and pursue an art that they did not enjoy. Enough for them to buy what they needed...and bribe what the sellers refused outright. Enough.
𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝖒𝖔𝖘𝖙 𝖆𝖒𝖆𝖟𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖓𝖌𝖘 𝖙𝖍𝖆𝖙 𝖈𝖆𝖓 𝖈𝖔𝖒𝖊 𝖋𝖗𝖔𝖒 𝖘𝖔𝖒𝖊 𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖗𝖎𝖇𝖑𝖊 𝖓𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙𝖘
Through it, Elena assumed the role of breadwinner, sharing it with Mamá to save her hands from saturating themselves in clay, water, and glaze day in and day out. And, though she might never admit it openly, she gave up chances for her own future to deliver those same opportunities to her sisters instead.
The twins brought home their books and shared the information with her, enabling her to continue growing, but she refused to let them follow in her footsteps. Mariana possessed such a brilliant mind, the mind of a Three in science, and Catalina an imaginative one, the mind of a Three in writing. They both deserved a brighter future, and she was determined to get it for them. To give them the money to buy their way up. To give them the freedom to choose what she could not.

Medical Issues
She suffers from undiagnosed clinical depression and anxiety. It can be debilitating at times, but, as a relatively private person, she always keeps it to herself. (Refer History for more information.)

Strengths
𝖂𝖍𝖊𝖓 𝕴 𝖍𝖊𝖆𝖗 𝖘𝖔𝖓𝖌𝖘, 𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖞 𝖘𝖔𝖚𝖓𝖉 𝖑𝖎𝖐𝖊 𝖆 𝖘𝖜𝖆𝖓
•rationality
•independence
•originality
•perceptiveness
•retention of information

Weaknesses
𝕱𝖎𝖛𝖊 𝖒𝖎𝖓𝖚𝖙𝖊𝖘 𝖎𝖓, 𝖆𝖓𝖉 𝕴'𝖒 𝖇𝖔𝖗𝖊𝖉 𝖆𝖌𝖆𝖎𝖓
•impatience with others
•self-assuredness
•eccentricity
•inability to confront key emotive issues
•obsessiveness with niche topics

Likes
𝕴 𝖈𝖔𝖚𝖑𝖉 𝖚𝖘𝖊 𝖘𝖔𝖒𝖊 𝖋𝖗𝖎𝖊𝖓𝖉𝖘 𝖋𝖔𝖗 𝖆 𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖓𝖌𝖊
Elena loves animals, given all the strays that roam the streets. If she has a spare piece of bread, she will share it with them. It probably does not hurt that cute puppies also draw crowds who subsequently draw a stronger income.
Music also proves a huge part of her life. She might never admit it, but she loves it because it allows her to imagine a better world and a better life. In other words, it serves as the escapism that she so eschews.
Story also associates itself with her love of music because she loves telling the stories that matter to her, and if she disguises it through song, then it conceals itself from everyone. Even if it is a forced occupation due to their caste, she still loves it. It is all she has ever known to love.
In addition, Elena enjoys laughing with her sisters. Or rather, enjoyed. It does not happen much anymore, given the way in which her focus transferred to caretaking rather than sister-ing.

Dislikes
𝕿𝖍𝖎𝖘 𝖎𝖘 𝖎𝖙?
The four things that Elena hates with a burning passion and in no particular order are dictators, the cold, her brother, and expectations.

Family
𝕾𝖔𝖗𝖗𝖞 𝖙𝖔 𝖑𝖊𝖆𝖛𝖊, 𝕸𝖔𝖒, 𝕴 𝖍𝖆𝖉 𝖙𝖔 𝖌𝖔
Overview
Deceased biological father || Single biological mother || Two younger twin sisters, both single || One older estranged brother, single
Elena loved her father dearly until she realized his lies, but to speak ill of the dead is to succumb to guilt. Her brother lies in the same area, but no dissonance exists in this distaste as he still lives. For her mother and sisters, she would sacrifice anything.
Names and Occupations
•Father, deceased: Pablo Luis Castellanos, Classical Musician
Humble | Warrior
•Mother, age 51: Lidia Soledad Castellanos, Sculpter
Beautiful One | Solitude
•Brother, age 26: Javier Nicolas Castellanos, formerly a Stagehand, now an Unmentionable
Castle | Victory of the People
•Sister, age 17: Mariana Isabel Castellanos, Student
Of the Sea | God is Perfection
•Sister, age 17: Catalina Mar Castellanos, Student
Pure | Sea

Thoughts on the Selection/Royal House
𝕴 𝖘𝖔𝖑𝖉 𝖒𝖞 𝖘𝖔𝖚𝖑 𝖋𝖔𝖗 𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖘?
For the most part, Elena perceives the royal house of Schreave as pretentious socialites with little true understanding of how their country functions. While Mamá always takes care to recall the humble roots of their previous queen in the same caste as themselves, Elena always counters with the recognition that their previous queen had not effected a lasting change from those roots. If the queen truly understood, she counters, then the castes and its systemic inequalities should not still exist.
Likewise, she believes that, if the previous queen truly cared, she would have passed those sentiments along to her children. These children are no better than their parents, and they seem not to want public change. Indeed, King Calen has miserably failed in his objective as a representative of the people, and she doubts that physical proximity to the situation will aid in leveling this perception.
Stemming from this perception, Elena views the Selection as little more than an event to boost the royals' images in the eyes of their people. They want to appear as leaders who understand the common society, so they invite young women and men from around the country, from all castes, to compete for their hands. Yet again, Elena poses, if this Selection were truly to equal the field created by the castes, then it should expand to include all castes, not simply Two through Seven.
Despite these cynical ideals, Elena did not balk at entering the competition, though she harbors no notions of love. The practicality of her nature demands that she do her best to forge a path for her sisters, understanding that even losing the prince to the other entrants would leave her as a Caste Three with the ability to boost her sisters with trickle-down theory. The romanticizing piece of her nature, however, reminds that, perhaps, there might be room for caste advocacy while there. She does not intend to trap either herself or the prince in a loveless marriage, but a partnership of mutual goals could be tolerable.

Quotes
𝖂𝖍𝖊𝖓 𝕴 𝖘𝖊𝖊 𝖘𝖙𝖆𝖗𝖘, 𝖙𝖍𝖆𝖙'𝖘 𝖆𝖑𝖑 𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖞 𝖆𝖗𝖊
•Cry me a river, build me a bridge, and get over yourself. Life has enough trouble without you crying over it.
•Fantasies are for the weak.
•Do not give yourself so much credit. I made myself.

Theme Songs
𝕿𝖊𝖓 𝖞𝖊𝖆𝖗𝖘 𝖔𝖋 𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖘, 𝕴'𝖒 𝖓𝖔𝖙 𝖘𝖚𝖗𝖊 𝖎𝖋 𝖆𝖓𝖞𝖇𝖔𝖉𝖞 𝖚𝖓𝖉𝖊𝖗𝖘𝖙𝖆𝖓𝖉𝖘
•Some Nights by fun.
But here they come again to jack my style
•Princesses Don't Cry by Carys
Yeah, I'm fine, I won't waste my time
•It Won't Be Long Now by Melissa Barrera, Anthony Ramos, and Gregory Diaz IV
One day, I'm walking to JFK, and I'm gonna fly, any day
•Hey Brother by Avicii
The water's sweet but blood is thicker
•Rockabye by Clean Bandit (ft. Sean Paul & Anne-Marie)
Your life ain't gon' be nothin' like my life, you're gonna grow and have a good life, I'm gonna do what I've got to do
•Warriors by Imagine Dragons
As a child, you would wait and watch from far away
•Demons by Imagine Dragons
Look into my eyes, it's dark inside
•Fix You by Coldplay
When you lose somethin' you can't replace, when you love someone but it goes to waste, could it be worse?
•Labyrinth by Taylor Swift
You know how scared I am of elevators, never trust it if it rises too fast
•Mine by Taylor Swift
You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter
•Midnight Rain by Taylor Swift
I broke his heart 'cause he was nice
•Daylight by Taylor Swift
I don't wanna think of anything else now that I thought of you (Things will never be the same)
•Big Bang Theory Theme by Barenaked Ladies
Our whole universe was in a hot, dense state
•Mastermind by Taylor Swift
I'm only cryptic and Machiavellian 'cause I care
•We Didn't Start the Fire by Billy Joel
No we didn't light it, but we tried to fight it
•I'm a Survivor by Reba McEntire
And when the deck is stacked against me, I just play a different game

Hobbies
𝕾𝖔𝖒𝖊 𝖓𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙𝖘, 𝕴 𝖘𝖙𝖆𝖞 𝖚𝖕 𝖈𝖆𝖘𝖍𝖎𝖓' 𝖎𝖓 𝖒𝖞 𝖇𝖆𝖉 𝖑𝖚𝖈𝖐
Reading
When she had the time, back before she assumed the role of key caretaker, Elena loved to read, isolating herself within the back room of the hovel they called home to escape into another world away from her own. And, when no one was watching, she slid into her own mind, away from those worlds, and wrote stories that no one else saw but her.
Trivia Games
Elena excelled at trivia because she remembered every little detail available to her sponge-like mind. Even with their family's imminent poverty, Mamá always took the time to quiz her children on their schoolwork, and Papá always found time to test what they recalled from his lessons. After all, knowing the environment is half the battle of self-defense.
Songwriting
These days, her only form of self-expression appears through song, the lyrics in particular. Those lyrics simply appear through the worlds Elena creates and erases in her mind, and even amidst the dozens she chooses to share with the world, she holds back dozens more for herself.
Composition
Alongside Elena's lyrics is the composition, absent of full orchestration, but even the absence of full written orchestration cannot erase it from her mind.

Aesthetic

𝕿𝖍𝖎𝖘 𝖔𝖓𝖊 𝖎𝖘 𝖓𝖔𝖙 𝖋𝖔𝖗 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖋𝖔𝖑𝖐𝖘 𝖆𝖙 𝖍𝖔𝖒𝖊

𝖂𝖊𝖑𝖑, 𝖘𝖔𝖒𝖊 𝖓𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙𝖘, 𝕴 𝖜𝖎𝖘𝖍 𝖙𝖍𝖆𝖙 𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖘 𝖆𝖑𝖑 𝖜𝖔𝖚𝖑𝖉 𝖊𝖓𝖉

Fears
𝕸𝖔𝖘𝖙 𝖓𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙𝖘, 𝕴 𝖉𝖔𝖓'𝖙 𝖐𝖓𝖔𝖜 𝖆𝖓𝖞𝖒𝖔𝖗𝖊
Though Elena refuses to admit her fears to anyone—motivated by the fear of trusting others and the fear of overwhelming herself in a sea of emotion—she might, if pushed, be convinced to reveal an innate fear of losing Mamá, Mariana, and Catalina.
A close second and surface fear would be that of her ease when disassociating with reality. Some days, Elena wonders if any of her life might be real, and there have been days on the street when she disassociates so easily that she finds herself struggling to separate her own mind from reality—or, worse yet, she struggles to leave that quiet place at all. It scares her to know that one day, she might retreat and never return.
If boxed into a corner, she might also be pressed into revealing a conflicting fear between receiving news of Javier's death and receiving news of his safety in the gang's territory: afraid that he might die, but also afraid that she might feel relief if he does.
Elena might also be more openly willing to admit a fear of failing her sisters, or, in less emotional terms, a fear of seeing the twins continue their family's generational legacy of failure by seeing them fail to achieve their dreams. Even at that, she knows, inherently, that if they fail, it is because she failed them first.

Recurring Nightmare
𝕴 𝖘𝖙𝖎𝖑𝖑 𝖜𝖆𝖐𝖊 𝖚𝖕
Most nights, Elena finds herself too exhausted from working the streets to dream, but on rare occasions, all she can see is a variation of what she believes constituted their father's last moments.
A dark alleyway. A sharp movement. A gunshot.
Sometimes, if she has been thinking, it is a knife rather than a gunshot, or a mob of gangsters rather than a knife.
And on very, very rare occasions, she dreams of her other family members in their father's place. Of Mamá, beaten and limp. Of Mariana, bloodied and weak. Of Catalina, broken and torn.