Bronwyn

Mortal Days

Bronwyn was born in 1437 to a pair of innkeepers in a small Scottish town. They co-owned the inn with the McDonoughs, whose daughter Corbin was Bronwyn’s age. When Bronwyn’s parents died, the McDonoughs took her in and raised her as their own. Bronwyn and Corbin grew up close as sisters and thick as thieves.

When the girls were older, the handsome Sir Edward Warren stopped at the inn. He was charming, and Bronwyn found herself quite smitten. When Sir Edward proposed to Bronwyn, her father approved of the match, and that night opened their finest wine to toast the couple. Corbin served them herself, and was the first to raise a glass. Shortly after, Bronwyn felt her eyes grow heavy. She remembered being helped up to bed, then nothing until a commotion the next morning woke her. Rushing to see what had happened, she found several people in her betrothed’s room, where Sir Edward and Corbin lay entwined, the evidence of her friend’s lost virginity staining the sheets.

Corbin’s father insisted Sir Edward had no other course but to marry his daughter. Unable to bear her friend’s triumphant smile, Bronwyn fled deep into the Highlands. She wandered aimlessly in her grief, until hunger and exhaustion forced her to rest. A gentle-voiced man emerged from the shadows, telling her not to cry. He introduced himself as Bryan and asked for her story. Telling the tale made her feel a little better, like draining poison from a wound.

Kindred Nights

Bryan spoke about the tranquility he’d found in undeath, and offered her the gift of it. She accepted, not realizing it would rip her so harshly from life. Corbin’s betrayal was never far from Bronwyn’s mind despite Bryan’s promises of peace and calm, and she often imagined exacting her revenge. The time came when she felt strong enough to carry it out. After a fraught reunion, Brownyn killed Sir Edward and Embraced Corbin, leaving her rival to deal with the guilt and grief. Over the next two centuries, Brownyn traveled through Europe, where she learned the nuances of Kindred politics and kept company with nobles. In the 18th century, rising Kindred tensions in Europe caused Bronwyn to seek another new start and sail to the New World. She settled in Chicago in the early 19th century. She helped Lawrence Ballard destroy Gary’s steel industry, which convinced Lodin to agree to help her keep her presence in Chicago a secret.

In 1972, Bronwyn founded the Blue Velvet nightclub. At times, Blue Velvet threatened to rival the Succubus Club as Chicago’s premier Kindred establishment, though the other business stayed slightly ahead until its destruction in 1993. Rumors swirled about Blue Velvet’s anonymous owner, but Bronwyn refused to reveal herself until Prince Jackson took the throne in Chicago. Bronwyn was pleased at the popularity her reveal garnered, but simultaneously found the limelight distasteful. Even now, after five years as a public figure, Bronwyn struggles with social anxiety and rarely trusts another vampire’s purported motives.

Bronwyn’s desperation to overcome her anxiety forced her into a new business arrangement taking the Kindred world of tonight by storm. With five other Kindred, Bronwyn co-founded the Circulatory System. The group traffics vessels of rare or sought-after vintage throughout Chicago and beyond. She holds tastings at exclusive, invite-only parties at Blue Velvet, storing a herd in its cellar, and selling the blood to the highest bidders. Though she keeps a lower profile than some of her fellow System operators, her paranoia over the trafficking’s possible failure compels her to sometimes attend a tasting or accompany the cattle on their way to the slaughter.

Of greatest concern to Bronwyn is the rumor of Corbin hiding in Chicago, waiting to disrupt her careful operation. If she interferes with the club, the trafficking, or any of Bronwyn’s business interests, the Malkavian may destroy her rival once and for all.