Raif Sevrance



Raif Sevrance is the main protagonist of a Sword of Shadows. At the beginning of the series he is just shy of sixteen, and a member of the Blackhail Clan.

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Description

Raif isn't noted to be particularly tall, and lacks the muscular build of his brother. Instead he is lean and solid. He is described as having long dark hair pulled back by a silver clip, and is noted by his little sister to lack the looks of his family.

As the story progresses, the many trials and tortures Raif experiences drastically changes him both physically and emotionally. He becomes gaunt, his eyes haunting and angry, his emotions flat. He goes from being an outspoken and brash kid to a hard and quiet man.

Regardless he is unerring in his loyalty to those he cares for, putting his own life at risk several times to protect them.

Raif's lore is a raven beak on a strip of leather. He often thinks of how he is the only clansman to have been given the lore, hating the old clanguide for gifting him it. The weight of the lore's meaning often lays heavy on his mind.

Biography

Raif is the second eldest of three children, born to Blackhail clansman Tam Sevrance, and a city woman Meg. His brother Drey is two years older than him, and his sister Effie eight years younger.

Raif's age is debatable, and he may have in fact been adopted by Tam and Meg. However, no one ever questions that he is in fact a clansman, nor are there tales of his parents unexpectedly appearing with a baby. However, since Meg has a brother Angus who is a city man, it's possible the couple found Raif as a baby and returned with him, claiming him as their own blood.

The evidence for this is the conflicting information of his birthday, as well as a raven stalks Tarissa in A Cavern of Black Ice's prologue, and Raif's lore is a raven; something no one else in the clan has ever possessed.

When Meg died birthing his baby sister Effie,at age eight Raif was locked inside the guidehouse with her corpse. At age fourteen, he had fallen from a foxtail pine, breaking his ankle. Drey, fraught with concern, had held him so tightly as to break two ribs.

Raif thinks that he hadn't become a better archer than his brother until the last winter had passed. This mirrors how Ash had begun having nightmares and headaches recently before the series begins, furthering the idea that they're connected.