background

life

Haley was a kind and sweet girl loved by all that knew her. She was born completely blind, but she had a wonderful singing voice. Even at a young age her parents were signing her up to sing at restaurants and bars after school. They used the extra money they got from her gigs to support her and her education, especially investing in music lessons. She met Ryder relatively young, as he owned a high-class restaurant that she performed at often. His wife died shortly before Haley hit legal age, and he began dating her instead as soon as he could. Her parents initially didn't approve, but he got them to shut up by promising to lavish them with money and gifts if they agreed to only have Haley perform at his restaurant. Although her opinions on Ryder himself are unknown, plenty of testimony indicates that she had a good relationship with his daughter. Ryder proposed five years later, and Haley accepted. Their wedding was lavish. Even though Ryder had paid for the whole thing, however, the groom never showed up. Haley's body was found under the table holding the wedding cake very clearly dry-drowned, and Ryder completely disappeared along with the rings for the wedding. Aurelia was put into foster care. It was obvious that Ryder had killed Haley, but with no evidence as to his whereabouts there was no way to sentence him for the crime. It was a massive news sensation. This all happened five years before Seth was born.

life after death

Haley's soul tethered itself to her wedding ring. Ryder has been carrying it around with him as he dodges all his responsibilities. Why he hasn't gotten rid of it despite Haley constantly trying to kill him when their paths cross is uncertain, especially since he knows that it's the ring causing problems for him. As long as he has it on his person, however, Haley orbits around him instead of directly challenging him. She has, however, been causing problems for everyone around Ryder and thus caught the attention of the Guide. Children in particular seem vulnerable to dying due to Haley, with many reports of mysterious dry drownings in the past 30 years.

personality

Haley is a sad and mournful spirit that switches back and forth between two moods. She's typically in her mournful mood, where she wanders around in large circles around her tether reenacting moments of her life. In this mood a trail of water follows her wherever she goes and she has a habit of wailing, but she is completely harmless. When she becomes aware of a presence she becomes aggressive. This aggressive stage actually has two different variations. The first version of her aggressive stage is one in which she doesn't recognize the presence as Ryder and automatically treats them as a child. She will play hide-and-seek with her target, completely unaware that said target is trying to avoid being killed by her. The deaths of her victims in this stage are an accident, typically a result of her accidentally dry-drowning them. In her second stage, if Haley recognizes Ryder she becomes a wrathful poltergeist and actively chases him down in an attempt to kill him. The amount of water that surrounds her begins dramatically increasing when she enters this mode. This water is a part of her and can thus be manipulated by her like limbs. Haley is completely blind and navigates via sound, so humming typically accompanies her when she's in her aggressive state even when in her angrier version. When in her mournful state she stops humming because her consistant path doesn't require her to actively navigate. She cries instead.

relationships

seth rioux♡♡♡♡♡

Haley is relatively unaware of Seth's presence until entering her aggressive stages. In her aggressive stages she tries to kill Seth.

the guide♡♡♡♡♡

Haley is completely unaware of the Guide's presence and thus cannot follow him. When in her aggressive stages she continues to ignore his presence.

ryder wells♡♡♡♡♡

Ryder is her killer, and she remembers this vividly. She often wails his name while wandering, especially in her aggressive stages where she tries to kill him.

aurelia wells❤❤❤❤♡

Haley is incredibly fond of children, especially of the child that was to be her stepdaughter before her murder. Sometimes Haley still thinks she's playing hide and seek with Aurelia.

relevant world lore

ghosts

Souls that live in the realm of the dead can interact with the realm of the living in limited capacities. Their interactions can include lifting objects, breaking objects, and even powering electrical appliances via touch. Ghosts that died particularly traumatically are influenced by their deaths, such as Haley constantly dripping water. This can provide additional interactions with the realm of the living, but it's usually just for flavor. Though humans cannot directly see them, some ghosts have very detectible presences such as Haley's cold spots and water trails. While poltergeists exist, most ghosts are simply peaceful spectators to life that haven't moved on to their next path yet.

apparitions

Apparitions are ghosts that appear as the being they were in their previous life. They cannot interact directly with objects, but they have effects on the environment around them. Most commonly this is just a cold spot, but the presence of very powerful apparitions can also change the environment in more obvious ways or leave trails where they travel on the floor or walls. These spectres can be seen by average humans, but typically not very well. They may appear as shadows, brief flickers of light, or in some cases orbs. They are, however, just apparitions and will not respond to stimuli. They simply tread familiar paths over and over, completely ignorant of the current state of their surroundings. Like poltergeists they have a tether, which usually marks the center of their path. The tether object can be moved and it will bring the apparition with it, but the shape of the apparition's path will remain the same. For example, an apparition tethered to the knife that killed them may walk circles around the kitchen the knife is stored in. Once this knife is donated to a thrift store, the ghost will now wander the thrift store but will still follow the same circular path. Apparitions can be nonhuman, unlike poltergeists which are almost exclusively human. A human apparition can sometimes become a poltergeist if prompted, but this is rare and they will typically return to a passive state shortly after the prompt is gone.

links

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trivia

• Haley originally came to me in a dream. I played the role of Haley in that dream, and her name was included. This makes Haley the second OC of mine that I can directly trace to a dream, the first being Cyrus.
• Being unable to see the Guide is not the reason Haley hasn't come with him to her next path. She can hear him just fine, she simply cannot acknowledge him due to her emotional state.
• Walking through Haley without triggering her aggression is possible, and it feels like walking through cold mist.

gallery images

by me

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by others

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