some notes on my newly minted a/soiaf au, mostly for my own reference

Lord Rafael de Sevilla is a warlord of Braavos who commands a respectable fleet of ships and pays allegiance to the Sealord. He himself commands a large, 2-deck dromond as flagship named The Talion, which formerly belonged to the royal fleet at Dragonstone as (under the name Sea Falcon) but was abandoned in the stepstones with her entire crew lost to the butterfly fever. she still bears Targaryen colors, with a dark hull and sails dyed red rather than the traditional Braavosi purple –– as such, she can occasionally be mistaken for a royal Westerosi ship. Esmeralda remains with Rafael almost constantly, and serves as an officer on The Talion when at sea. Rafael's right hand is a Tyroshi lieutenant by the name of Luis Montoya, who has died the tips of his mustache and beard maroon.

The Sevillas have a legacy as an ancient family of Myr, having built their wealth through trade, particularly in lace, fire wine, and fruit. Unlike much of Myr, the family did not utilize enslaved or Unsullied labor, which attracted attention from freemen and fostered rebellions among other enslaved populations in Myr. Although Rafael did not campaign for the end of slavery personally, considering such revolutionary sentiment as a threat to his own power, the lord's influence, along with the richness of their holdings, threatened the rule of the magisters. When Gabriel chose a formerly enslaved Naathi bride, Zephyranthe, and named his daughter his heir, the magisters were incited to turn against Rafael (though unwilling to dirty their own hands) Hired sellswords killed Gabriel and Zephyranthe, and razed their home and set fire to Rafael's fleet, of which only one ship survived. Rafael escaped with Esmeralda, only a child, and her Naathi nurse, on this ship and fled to Braavos.

The Sevilla family have worshiped R'hllor for generations, Esmeralda included. After the fire, from which they were both reborn, their faith grows ever-stronger: Don Rafael believes that Esmeralda's unlikely survival marks her as uniquely protected by the Lord of Light, and sends her to study in Volantis as a ward where she becomes practiced in the arts of the faith. But she rejects the prospect of giving herself over entirely to the Temple and flees to Braavos to find freedom with her grandfather as a teen. Having since grown to adulthood in Braavos she also acknowledges deities such as The Merling King, The Moon-Pale Maiden, and the love goddess of Lys, although they rank far below the Red God. she tends to believe in their suspicions, rather than dutiful practice.

While in Braavos, Esmeralda trained extensively in the water dance style of swordfighting, and became a better swordsman than even her grandfather (who was schooled in a heavy-handed, old-school warrior style of combat, as opposed to the deadly elegance of Braavosi dueling). though she is not technically a bravo (as Lord Rafael cherishes her much too closely to let her be so reckless in silly fights) she adopts many of their attitudes, including their sense of style. Esmeralda tends to either dress traditionally, in the style of a Myrish lady, or crossdressing as a swaggering bravo with sword on her hip. she has a Volantene flame of R'hllor tattooed on her hip, in commemoration of her faith as well as the slaughter that lead to her true birth.

Politically, the pair of them seek to enact revenge on the magisters and their abetters, within Myr and the other Free Cities. Lord Rafael is very careful to maneuver through channels of power and to leave the chosen target vulnerable before any physical violence is enacted; Esmeralda tends to err on the side of bodily impulse, whether that be violence or seduction to achieve what she wants. Rafael also wants to see Esmeralda restored to the proper status owed to her, and aims to marry her well, which is easier achieved as they grow more successful, restore their wealth, and ruin their opponents in Myr, but occasionally threatened by their forays into less-legitimate violence and piracy. Esmeralda has less ambitious goals in that regard, and would much prefer to find love than power in her own hand. but she serves first and foremost her loyalty to Lord Rafael, and though occasionally rebellious, opposes him openly on very little, including marriage schemes.

She's distantly related to Bellegere Otherys through her mother: among the few memories Esmeralda has of her are hearing her stories of the pirate queen.