Yeva Luchova was the beautiful daughter of Duke Luchova of Velisyana.
Biography[]
Yeva was born so beautiful that midwives and nurses kept trying to steal her away, until her father hired a blind nursemaid. On Yeva's twelfth birthday, her father had a portrait artist from Os Alta come to paint Yeva's portrait to be used as advertisement for Velisyana. The artist tried to kidnap Yeva, but her father found them in Arkesk. By age fifteen, Yeva was confined to the palace due to the chaos her beauty incited among the people. At noon daily, she appeared from her window to listen to her suitors, until several deaths ended this practice, too.
After a three-way duel between suitors on Yeva's sixteenth birthday, the constable encouraged the Duke to choose a husband for her. The Duke orchestrated a task: whoever could clear the forest and make the biggest pile of lumber would win Yeva's hand in marriage. When Semyon the Ragged won the contest, the Duke added a second: retrieve a mirror from Baba Anezka, then a third. Each time, Yeva asked her father if his tasks would give her a good man, and each time, the Duke did not offer a satisfactory answer.
When Semyon returned with the ancient magic coin from the third trial, Yeva was dressed in finery and led down to the river with her father and the priest to be married. The river revealed its true power, and Yeva asked what it wanted. It told her that it, not Semyon, had completed her father's tasks, and asked Yeva to become its bride. Tearing off her veil, Yeva jumped into the river. It wrapped her in its arms and carried her away to the seashore.
Yeva grew old in happy solitude by the ocean, saying prayers in a tiny chapel and watching the tides. When her beauty faded, Yeva did not worry, because she knew she was a free woman.[1]
Personality and traits[]
Yeva was kind and thoughtful. She was a pious girl who always said her prayers. She wondered why she was the one who had to hide her beauty, and valued the freedom that the river offered her. Yeva understood the importance of asking someone what they want rather than allowing one's own greed to dominate.[1]
Physical description[]
Yeva was incredibly beautiful. Her beauty was so powerful that it incited people to absurd actions for the chance to see her more. According to folktale, the particulars of Yeva's appearance are unknown, and she may have had gold or black hair, and blue or green eyes. She walked with incredible grace. When she was fifteen, she tried cutting her hair and covering her face in ash to reduce her beauty, but it had the opposite effect. On her last day in Velisyana, Yeva wore a gold silken dress and a jeweled kokoshnik in her hair.[1]
Appearances[]
Gallery[]
