As the child of two professional
diplomats - one English, the other Arabic - Kumla grew up used to moving across
the world at a moment's notice. She also had the good fortune to have kinfolk
on both sides of her family, so there were no unpleasant surprises when she
went through her first change - it was just a case of resolving the betting
pool that had been organized to see if she would take after her Fianna uncle or
her Silent Strider great-grandmother. The Silent Striders won, although Kumla's
uncle claims her Fianna heritage shows through in her galliard auspice.
With a natural facility for
languages, Kumla initially followed her parents into government service shortly
after she obtained her Masters' Degree at Georgetown University. But Kumla soon
decided that her temper was just a little too quick for the diplomatic corps
and she soon started another career as a translator - usually for visiting oil
executives from the mid-East. With a little careful manipulation of
circumstances, Kumla was able to keep an eye on some of the more grotesque
actions against Gaia by ensuring that she was the first person called upon
during those delicate OPEC negotiations.
Staying true to her roots, Kumla has
travelled the globe in her self-appointed task, collecting information and
stories where-ever she goes. She is never happier than when she can drop her
professional demeanor and relax with her friends - of whom she has few, but she
holds them very close to her heart. She prefers to fight the Wyrm by educating
cubs and kinfolk about its myriad schemes and guises, but she hasn't shrunk
from violence when the occasion called for it.
Kumla joined Luna's Mist five years'
ago when she realized that she needed a place to call 'home' that wasn't a
transitory apartment or hotel room. Greymist's laconic style easily countered
her occasional moments of frenetic activity and they have discovered that,
between them, there is little they can't cope with. Although they still flip a
coin over who has to deal with the rambunctious cubs…
Further
details.
Father was part of the diplomatic
staff for the ambassador from the United Arab Emirates. Her mother worked for
the British Foreign Office. Kumla's mother stopped working for the Brits when
she married Kumla's father and, after a thorough background vetting, she was
allowed to take a minor administrative role in the UAE's diplomatic corps.
When Kumla reached college age, the
family was in Washington DC and she chose to go to Georgetown pretty much by
default. She majored in languages, with a minor in liberal arts. She is fluent
in English, French and Arabic. The summer between her sophomore and junior
year, she spent in Cairo – supposedly hiking down the Nile with some history
students, but she spent most of her time with some of her Silent Strider
kinfolk, where she picked up her initial training in matters garou-ish.
Kumla's Master's Degree is in
political science, with her thesis focusing upon the cultural/political
pitfalls of the mid-east oil industry - she already had her future plans in
mind. She spent one year pushing papers for her father's embassy mostly to keep
him happy. Once she explained her intended purpose, she left government service
with Papa's blessing. Her parents have retired to Spain - a favorite holiday
place for both of them.
Two years ago, Kumla made the
acquaintance of Miriam El-Suufi, in Chicago. Kumla thought she was on the trail
of a lost cub who had gone through his first change and was wreaking havoc.
Miriam thought she was on the trail of a newly arisen hajjrite. They ran into each other - literally - at the Egyptology
exhibit at the University of Chicago. Explanations were quickly exchanged and
Kumla gladly accepted Miriam's offer of assistance (and vice versa). The
situation was soon resolved - the young man in question was, indeed, a newly
arisen hajjrite in need of
assistance. Kumla's presence was invaluable - two tongues can talk faster than
one, particularly to bewildered and annoyed curators - and they parted ways on
good terms. They catch up with each other from time to time - every few months.
Angsty
stuff: When Kumla fell in with Luna's Mist, she was one burned-out cowpoke.
Even Silent Striders get lonely and Luna's Quest provided some much-needed
security and grounding. Kumla flatly refuses to talk about the six months of
her life before she joined the pack.
Kumla is sterile, following a nasty
encounter with an unpleasant umbral beastie. Frankly, she thinks that's best,
as she's afraid that if she did become pregnant, the child would have too many
heads and not enough limbs (it was a very nasty umbral beastie lurking around a
defunct nuclear power plant). It's also upped Kumla's chance of developing a
nasty cancer by an order of magnitude, but that
she has a ritual for...