Daria Rykov

Dasha Rykov is blonde with a Russian accent. She always wears a slight frown and looks eager to pick a fight. When nervous, she will play with the ends of her hair.

Background

 * Born Daria Rykov in St Petersburg, Russia, to Grigori and Irina. The Rykovs come from a long line of oil tycoons, so money has never been an issue for them. Grigori is an entrepreneur, and is training Dasha's older brother, Andrei, to succeed him. Irina is an artist, and spends all of her time at home.


 * One of Grigori's many siblings, Nikolai, was a KGB agent and learned many important skills with them. Seeing much of himself in young Dasha, he decided to train her to fight. In his mind, it was all to protect her, to give her the skills she'd need when she got into a tricky spot. He began to train her by the age of 6, always hiding this fact from her doting parents. Nikolai is also a mutant.


 * Once Dasha hit puberty, her mutation became apparent. Her natural brown eyes shifted to a bright yellow and she became increasingly hostile to those around her. Right before her first period, she accidentally shape-shifted for the first time. The mental shock of doing so, then slipping back to human, bleeding, scared her for some time. It wasn't until her Uncle Nikolai comforted her and informed her of the world of mutants was she able to accept herself.


 * As business ventures go, her father accepted a powerful position in an American company. He moved the four of them to the United States, where Dasha began Middle School. Settling into a new environment is tricky for any child, but being paired with her new-found powers and also separated from her uncle, she began getting into fights on a daily basis.


 * When The Crisis was happening, Dasha stayed with her family to protect them. The "loss" of the superheros opened a pit of despair inside her, which made her fight all the stronger. She did not believe that she, or the rest of the world, had been abandoned, but that something truly catastrophic must have happened for them all to disappear. While unhappy and disappointed, she didn't give up hope that they would one day return.


 * Still uneasy with her powers, and her increasing outbursts at school, her parents decided to enroll her at Xavier Institute, hoping this would help her into her way.

Personality
Don't Cross a Black Cat's Path: Dasha is a stubborn girl, and her headstrong ways often put her on the opposite side of any argument. Right or wrong, she'll keep her stance. If you decide to side against her, careful! Even in petty things, she'll hold a grudge for a long time.

Tomboy: Aside from her love of self-decoration, Dasha is a stereotypical tomboy. She loves to be rough and tumble, often giving small punches, scratches and bites to those she's fond of. To her, it's all in good fun.

Loyal: Dasha comes from an affluent Russian family, where loyalty is bred in from birth. She fiercly protects those she considers family, and once her mind is made that you are friend, you're as good as blood.

Superhero Admiration: When younger, Dasha and her mother would frequent a nearby church (while not overly religious herself, Dasha would do anything to please her Mother). One Sunday morning, a group of vandals accidently set fire to the church, trapping the congregation inside. A lesser known local superhero rescued them, without wanting reward or even praise. She became struck with how beautiful the idea was: to protect the innocent, rescue the weak, guard the flock. In her mind, this became the ultimate ideal, and she upholds this childhood dream to this day.