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Information
Name/Nickname: Didrika (last name never given); Didi; the Scarlet Gypsy; Die Scharlachrote Zigeunerin; Rifle Broad; Flintenweib
Gender: Cisgender female
Birthdate/Age/Sign: NA; thirties/forties; Aries
Orientation: Heteroromantic heterosexual
Relationship Status: Involved (Boris; Adel von NN)
Race/Ethnicity/Nationality: Romani; Romani-Germanic descent; German
Class: Working (blue-collar poor)
Religion: Roman Catholic/traditional Roma folk belief (lapsed)
Profession: During the war--partisan leader, sniper; after the war--housewife
Birthplace/Residence: Germany (deceased after Ultima Thule)
Personality/Characteristics
[Coming soon.]
Appearance
Didrika is of average height; with a slender but curvy body type; has dark brown eyes; and has tan fur and dark brown hair.
Didrika has an eye tattooed on the palm of her left hand, which she uses to intimidate superstitious parties. She wears casual but utilitarian clothing, usually a loose blouse, jodhpurs (she never wears skirts or dresses), and boots; and gold hoop earrings and various charms, including a death's-head pendant. She comes across as flirtatious and seductive, often inappropriately so.
Family & Relationships
Boris (Lover/Partner)
Red Army deserter whom Didrika rescues from capture and torture by a German army unit. He doesn't believe her at first when she insists she did so alone, but gradually comes around, and convinces his other men to ally with her. He's quite chauvinistic toward her in the beginning but she earns his respect, and the two grow close; despite Didrika's promiscuity, she considers Boris her only genuine love, and he remains faithful to her, serving as her loyal second-in-command. He gives her his rifle and she uses it as her weapon of choice.
Adel von NN (Partner)
German sniper known as Ratdog; he's one of Didrika's primary enemies and rivals throughout the war, the two often clashing with each other. They develop a grudging respect for each other's skills, and several times Ratdog and his companion Klemper send escaped victims of the Nazis her way for safety, hinting that they don't agree with the regime. The two of them meet again after the war and although they never marry, they do start a family, and Adel mourns her death.
Copper Rat (Ally/Casual Lover)
Trench Rat with whom Didrika is briefly involved; Boris expresses disgust, solely because he's a Trench Rat.
Godfrey von Adel (Son)
Didrika's and Ratdog/Adel's firstborn child and son. He's named after Adel's deceased lover, Godfrey Klemper.
Tatiana von Adel (Daughter)
Didrika's and Ratdog/Adel's secondborn child and daughter. She's named after the deceased Boris's sister Tatiana.
History
[Coming soon.]
Didrika In Heaven
[Coming soon.]
Trivia
*Following her rape by a gadjo (non-Roma man) as a teenager, Didrika is considered "marime" (unclean) and banished from her community. Although she never gives up her traditional beliefs, she decides to lean in to her disgraced status and use it to achieve her own ends, including working as a prostitute to earn enough money to become independent, taking up a rifle as a female partisan and sniper (in defiance of German custom), and using her sexuality to influence and intimidate men. She's highly superstitious, yet sees nothing wrong with using others' superstitions against them.
*She tests men she comes in contact with by flirting with and sometimes attempting to seduce them; ironically, those who resist earn her respect.
*For the above reason, she has grudging but sincere respect for Captain Otto Himmel, who both rejects her flirting and stands up to her when she taunts him. The two maintain guardedly cordial relations throughout the war, as Himmel is one of the very few members of the Nazi Party who actually honors his promises; the two also share many similar spiritual beliefs, and become friends after the war. Much later, Himmel is named godfather of Didrika's grandson, Hans.
*[Coming soon.]
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