From SuspireWiki
No, I don't think you know who I am. I'm not Paris or Nichole or one of the Kardashians. I'm not a media sweetheart trying to live off the name that I was born with. Oh, I was born with a name. My name is Jennifer Banks, yes, that Banks. No, I don't go by that name anymore though, I'll get into that later.
I'm not going to get all woe is me on you, I don't expect you to understand, but really growing up like I did -- it isn't everything you think it is.
I was born in New York, on December 20th, 1982, first child and heir apparent of the Banks fortune. Can you believe that my father was actually disappointed about me not being a boy? He's the first son of a first son of a first son and so on and so forth so it was a shame to the family that his first was a daughter, but that didn't stop him from treating me like a princess.
I grew up between a few different homes, well, estates and hotel suites really. My Barbies had their own bedroom and we vacationed in places that most people only ever see on TV. I grew up with people who grew up to be people that you know. I went to schools with tuitions that would make your check books cry.
But none of that is who I am. I'm just trying to give you a sense of the backdrop of my life. It was all pretty things and glitter and loneliness, like Christmas lights all twinkling and beautiful but giving no actual warmth. I didn't notice this right away... No one can. I guess it was part of my teenage rebellion? You know when you start to actually see the world around you for what it is? That's when I got bored. I tried to fill my life with things and people and for a while I was happy. Every once in a while that coldness would seep in and I would either withdraw and mope or throw myself into the party again, jet-setting and visiting resorts all over the world (that looked exactly like every other resort in the world). Blah blah blah, my life was amazing.
It was the night of my 25th birthday party when everything got flipped upside down. It was a big deal, the party. Everyone was there and it was fabulous and I was drunk and bored. I was about to leave when I heard the words that would change my life.
"What do you give the woman who has everything?"
It was just a whisper in my ear but it was like his voice was my whole world at the moment. Richard Pearce, a true Renaissance man. He was an artist, an actor, a singer and a musician. We spent the rest of the night together and when he left he gave me a small simple gold bracelet. It was like that every time we met. We would spend all night making love and he'd leave me with a little trinket. Nothing extravagent or expensive, just tokens to let me know that he'd thought of me. It was a whirlwind and it was wonderful. It's amazing to think now that it was only two months all said and in retrospect it's amazing that he was able to hold off for two months and maybe the downfall was that he did wait so long.
He fed. He fed and found himself so lost in the act that he didn't stop when my heart beat started to flutter and become faint. He didn't stop when I started to tremble and shiver. He didn't stop. And only when I died did he realize what he'd done. When I woke he told me what he was, what he'd done, what I was now. He told me about his world and for a week he kept me secreted away. We liquidated some of my assets to cash and then he arranged my tragic death. A plane crash. We left New York together, I couldn't stay. For such a big city it is really a small town and it would have been only a matter of time before I was recognized. I took my mother's name and added his to mine, an homage of my old life and my new life.
We moved to Richmond, Virginia. He'd heard rumors that Kindred life there was a series of parties and fabulousness. He thought that I would get along perfectly there and he's right. I did. Using my name we were quickly ushered into society where nightly parties were more important than much anything else. We drew money from my account, buying lavish things so that we wouldn't have to endebt ourselves to the Almoners to keep up. Richard invested some, used some money for his art projects. Or so I thought.
It was in Richmond that everything fell apart. It took months, it's difficult for things to move quickly there which is why I guess it took so long for everything to come to light. Richard Pearce wasn't really Invcitus, he wasn't really a Player and his art didn't exist. My scheduled Manumission was a sham. Everything Richard taught me about the Invictus were things that he'd learned from studying them and most of it was wrong. Richard was blood hunted and I was broke and badly educated.
And for me? The possibly illegal childe of a man who made a mockery of the Invictus? One of the local Invictus was kind enough to take me in as hers and only then because it was me that brought Richard's ashes to Her Grace. She acted both as my sire and my sponsor. It wasn't free of course, but it was worth it. I endured the taunting and the ridicule of the city as I learned everything that I could from Madam Monica Hyde. It could have been worse, I think, had my sponsor not been who she was.
I put in my year and took the function of Advocate. It was a purely political decision, thinking that if I could help the standing of the Invictus in Richmond by bringing in some new faces that I could repair my reputation. It didn't work. Oh, I tried but in the end the parties were more important than political discussions and I wasn't in any position politically get anyone to pay attention to me. And even still I was ridiculed and mocked, obviously only when my Lady wasn't around to hear. So I waited. When the time of my oath was over I packed a few bags and scrapped together what little money I'd managed to get together by dabbling in stock market and left.
I've been invited back to New York by my grandsire. I've thought about going but it's still too soon after my "death." Besides, though I've redeemed my lineage I haven't gotten back everything that bastard stole from me.
I will get it all back, my station, my name, my life.