Il y avait soixante pour cent de chance que tout cela était juste un rêve très étrange, très élaboré. Quelle autre explication pourrait-il y avoir? Des choses comme ça ne lui sont pas arrivées, pas à Piper. Bien sûr, la cuillère d'argent est venue standard avec le berceau et tout, mais même ainsi c'était sur un niveau entièrement différent - au point où la seule façon logique de l'intégrer était qu'il était, eh bien, un rêve. Ça expliquerait tellement et si facilement de démarrer. Cela expliquerait pourquoi elle était dans le Colorado de tous les endroits plutôt que de soupirer et de rouler les yeux à travers un autre dîner de famille Chapin. Cela expliquerait pourquoi cette résidence semblait beaucoup plus palatiale que sa propre maison, qui était encore plus grande que la plupart des maisons dans lesquelles l'homme ordinaire s'installe. Mais surtout, ça expliquerait comment elle était là avec le bras d'Elaine Carrington.
Quand leurs chemins se sont croisés à Strathmore, Piper n'a pas quitté leur première réunion en pensant qu'ils deviendraient n'importe quoi, le moins de tous impliqués. Même parmi les Strathmore Elite le nom Carrington tourna la tête tandis que le nom Chapin volait jusqu'ici sous le radar c'était une merveille quand quelqu'un a pris note du tout. C'est peut-être pour ça qu'ils ont réussi. Piper n'avait ni ne se souciait d'une certaine réputation familiale et ne ressentait pas le besoin de fréquenter Elaine à cause de qui et de ce que voulait dire sa famille. Piper était juste heureux de la perspective que quelqu'un soit capable de tenir son propre dans un jeu de pick-up pour un changement. Certes, les chances d'un match de pick up qui se passait ici au Colorado semblaient minces, non seulement à cause des conditions de neige, mais parce qu'il semblait juste que beaucoup de la famille Carrington se moquerait de la notion de transpiration dans l'athlétisme.
Au choc de Piper, il a fallu plus de persuasion au nom du père Carrington pour qu'elle vienne que sa propre famille. La pause de vacances était généralement une fois Piper a trouvé une excuse pour ne pas prendre le vol à la maison; sa famille était plus que ce qu'elle pouvait demander - Connor à part, bien sûr - mais maintenant qu'elle était plus âgée, un peu plus sage, et dans cette petite période après la colère et avant la responsabilité la dernière chose qu'elle voulait faire était de passer la pause dans une maison vide. Une chambre vide était plutôt préférable. Tout ce qu'il fallait, c'était un coup de fil. Une fois que Vera a appris la nouvelle, que Piper sortait avec Elaine Carrington, Vera n'aurait pas pu accepter l'arrangement avec plus d'empressement. C'était presque inquiétant.
Rencontrer le reste du clan Carrington devait certainement être préférable à se blottir les pouces dans une chambre de dortoir, en regardant ce qui s'est passé sur une alimentation ESPN. Et sinon... eh bien, il y avait toujours des échecs et des boissons avec Elaine - Piper avait étudié les techniques et était obligé d'obtenir cette victoire illusoire un de ces jours.
La fille aux cheveux corbeaux se tenait devant la porte de la loge avec des nerfs et des questions tourbillonnant dans sa tête. Et s'ils me détestent? Et s'ils m'ignorent? Une série de ce que si des scénarios jouent négativement dans son esprit. Elle ne pouvait pas le montrer, pour l'amour d'Elaine. Ce ne serait pas bien pour Piper d'avoir l'air intimidé; ces types riches pouvaient le sentir chez une personne, du moins c'est ce que son père disait toujours. Dans une mer de requins, c'est-à-dire ceux qui dépensent beaucoup d'argent, c'est nager ou mourir. Piper était là pour nager.
Le sourire qui lui a été donné par Elaine avant d'ouvrir les portes du pavillon a certainement donné à Piper de plonger dans la tête des eaux.
Maintenant, elle savait qu'elle devait rêver. Cela semblait surréaliste, mais cela devait rester à l'intérieur de son propre esprit - la réalité était claire. Piper était là. Piper était ici en tant qu'invité d'Elaine. Piper était ici BECAUSE d'Elaine, et Piper était ici POUR Elaine. C'est ce que les amis ont fait. Surtout les petites amies. Même maintenant, alors qu'elle suivait dans la loge proprement dite, Piper n'était pas sûr quand cela s'était produit, elle et Elaine devenant une « chose ». Une simple réunion sur un jeu d'échecs qui serait amical (que Piper a perdu assez rapidement) s'est transformée en plus de réunions à des fins diverses. Un autre genre de jeu. Une demande de tutorat. Une invitation à regarder du basket. Passer assez de temps avec quelqu'un et les gens peuvent parler. C'est Piper qui a abordé le sujet. Au cours d'une partie d'échecs, comme elle se souvient. Juste avant que Piper ne perde encore une fois, avant que son coéquipier ne soit appelé, la question est tombée d'elle. "Hé, est-ce qu'on sort ensemble?"
Si la réponse n'était pas assez, le sourire et la présence de Piper ici au Colorado l'étaient certainement.
Piper garda le silence pendant qu'Elaine s'occupait de l'aide louée - qui sonnait mieux que le majordome ou le serviteur ou quel que soit le terme, mais prit les vues dans le hall, à savoir le décor et l'architecture. C'était certainement impressionnant. C'est là qu'Elaine a grandi? C'était comme un endroit où tout faisait écho parce que tout le monde passait du temps seul. La neige est peut-être sur le sol, mais à l'intérieur de la loge, tout se sentait... un condieux, d'une certaine façon. Peut-être qu'elle y pensait trop. Elle l'a fait quand elle a eu le temps d'être seule avec ses pensées.
"Nous ne partageons pas une chambre?" Piper a demandé à Elaine d'attraper la queue de la conversation d'Elaine avec l'aide. Bien sûr, c'était logique, étant donné leur âge et la présence de chambres d'hôtes, mais c'était encore une surprise. « J'espère que vos frères et sœurs n'apportent pas de conjoint ou autre chose; rien ne tue l'humeur comme des chambres séparées. » Piper a essayé de garder une lèvre supérieure raide sur toute la situation de la seule façon qu'elle savait comment. En prenant des petits jabs et des blagues quand elle pourrait s'en sortir avec eux. Quelqu'un a dû avoir une cravate lâche.
"Tu ne veux pas dire bonjour à tes parents d'abord? En fait, qu'est-ce que je dis, qui veut faire ça d'abord? Bien sûr, sortons les chambres et puis je sais pas, peut-être que tu peux me faire la tournée? C'est la pièce où ma mère a tiré un majordome pour avoir mis la fourchette de salade du mauvais côté de l'assiette. Une attitude positive a fait un long chemin avec Piper, c'est comment elle a pu continuer à défier Elaine aux échecs.
"Mais sérieusement, Elaine, merci de m'avoir amené. Si rien d'autre, au moins cette chose ne va pas tout à fait sucer avec moi autour, n'est-ce pas?" Piper regarda vers Elaine, voulant revenir le sourire antérieur donné avec une éraflure d'épaules et une expression d'espoir dans ses yeux. Piper Chapin n'était plus qu'un visiteur et c'était tout ce qu'elle pouvait faire pour éviter d'être jeté dans le froid.
N A M E
Piper Jane Chapin. If she's on friendly terms with someone she won't get upset if they call her 'Pip'. She might even let someone call her P.J. if they were feeling bold and she was in a decent enough mood.
A G E
16
G E N D E R
Female
O C C U P A T I O N
It's hard to call it an occupation but sometimes the work load at Strathmore Academy for Higher Learning and the Arts can start to feel like a job. It doesn't help that her extra-curricular activities take up so many hours in a week. Presently she is in her second year. 
S E X U A L I T Y
Bisexual
R E L A T I O N S H I P S T A T U S
To the surprise of her own self (which is nowhere near the level of pleasant surprise of her parents), Piper is currently in a relationship with one Elaine Carrington.
F A M I L Y M E M B E R S
Vera Chapin, nee Trevino. (53) Piper's mother hasn't worked a day in her life once she married the only member of the Chapin family to make a name for themselves. Some have called her a gold-digger and the claims are certainly warranted, but the money was only what got her to agree to a first date all those years ago. That little thing called love kept her around, even if the love has passed from her husband onto her daughter. She spends much of her day to day keeping up to date on the world via the media while also befriending the live-in butler.
Jason Patrick Chapin. (55) Jason once had a promising future in major league baseball but a career ending injury sustained just three years into his professional contract put an end to that. Once he was forced into retirement from the sport he enjoyed, Jason turned his sights onto a different career path: that of an entrepreneur. While not exactly making the list of billionaires, the nationwide chain of athletic stores has turned Jason Chapin into a hugely successful business owner. Nationwide chains and sponsorship deals across multiple sports has paid very, very lucratively.
Connor Chapin. (20) Piper's older brother and only sibling. Jason wanted Connor to follow in his footsteps but instead Connor is still mooching off of his parents while he does very little. Most days find him sleeping while most nights find him in front of a computer monitor.

 
A P P E A R A N C E
At a quick glance, Piper doesn't look like someone that comes from money at all.
Not that wealthy children have a certain look about them, but there is often a certain...air about those that come from a lot of money and it's clear in most of the student body at Strathmore; yet Piper, despite her name being Piper, vastly prefers keeping it as casual and low-cost as possible. On a typical day, which is to say when not in the formal attire of a Strathmore dress code, Piper wears a lot of jeans, each one just a tad on the snug side and some that look a few bad trips away from tearing away completely. Her absolute favorite article of clothing is the casual vest, which she will wear over her shirts unless she decides to go sleeveless for a day. A vest and sleeveless shirt? That's for weird people.
Her skin is naturally tan, a biracial child which often raised eyebrows with her extended family considering both of her parents are caucasian and she is about half. Piper's parents have never said why this is but Piper's not dense. Her hair, which is naturally curly unless she spends a fair amount of time in the morning making it look presentable, is a rather dark, muddy brown naturally though she's tried to lighten it up.
While not abnormally tall at 5'5", her physique stands out. No surprise for one that is more focused on the more...physical aspects of the Strathmore curriculum, Piper's body is rather taut. She won't be doing a lot of bench pressing - hers is more of a cardio menu with plenty of stamina and limber limbs to show for it - but it's clear from her arms and the tight curves that her presence on the tennis courts or on the track course are well earned.
Piper is slightly self conscious about her face; she's not a fan of her lips which she swears are puffy and unflattering, nor her smile which she swears is buck-toothed, and even her high cheek bones has her covering them with her hands if someone were to point it out. 
 
P E R S O N A L I T Y
There's a saying about looking gift horses in the mouth and that's something Piper does on a regular basis; the horse, of course, being her background. Piper might belong among the rich and elite of Strathmore but she doesn't seem to have the same style of manners that many of the stuffier, Hampton summering types do. Not to say that she's impolite, a couple of vulgar slips into conversation aside, but rather more...casual. She doesn't put her silverware in the proper order, still sometimes slurps her soup, and would sooner tell an amusing (sometimes potentially...insensitive) joke rather than an anecdote.
In a sense, Piper is a bit of a tomboy, though she loathes the term and people that use it as if that's all there is to her. Piper enjoys athletics, following in the footsteps of her dad, and if it wasn't for the insistence of her mother, Piper would've gone to a high school with a much better sports program. Still, her time at Strathmore has found her enjoying tennis and engaging in many a pick up game of basketball. Piper knows she'll never be the valedictorian, her academics are hardly anything to write home about - her last report card had one A on it and then a smattering of Bs and high Cs - but that doesn't stop her from being more than a little bit competitive.
Athletics are where she shines, which allows her to avoid catching the ire of those who pride themselves on their 4.0 status. So long as she's there making the tennis and basketball clubs look good, she can get away with having a C in Chemistry. Though Piper enjoys and even relishes 'schooling' people on the courts, when the whistle blows she's the first to offer a slap of the hand. It's all in the spirit of hopefully friendly competition, and the trash talk that comes with it is just part of the game; but the game ends at some point.
Though not a top student, Piper is hardly an idiot. Her best subject in school is math with Spanish taking a close second (though in the case of Spanish she has a bit of an advantage given that her mother is fluent). The only reason she does so poorly in Chemistry despite the presence of math is that Chemistry deals in way more complicated formulas whereas math is 'just numbers'. Piper, however, refuses to ask for help, seeing the sheer notion of asking for tutoring to be an admission of stupidity. It's not a matter of pride, more of Piper being incredibly stubborn. She wants to enjoy herself by being irreverent and being slow at chemical formulas and the scientific theory is just fine in her eyes. Leave the academics to the over achievers.
Piper considers herself to be funny and her social nature has her seeming like something of a chameleon, blending in with groups and engaging in conversation. She doesn't command a room but she can lighten the mood. Piper appreciates the value in a sudden injection of humor even at the more inappropriate of times. Of course, her irreverence and casual attitude comes with its own internal complications; Piper might be quoted as saying she doesn't care what people think of her, but there's only so long that lie can work..and it stopped working with Piper years ago. Piper assumes no one thinks highly of her, but for all her swagger and competitive nature, Piper has a glaring lack of self confidence that she can't let show. People believe in her. Maybe she can start believing in herself. 
L I K E S
Watching NBA games, preferably with someone who knows the sport.
 Stand up comedy specials and raunchy comedy movies. She has to steal her material from somewhere.
 Freshly made horchata. In a pinch, some horchata from an 'authentic' restaurant will suffice.
 Pineapple on pizza. Or just pineapple in general.
 When it's raining at night and the rain hits the window softly and she can count the thunder. Which is to say she likes storms.
D I S L I K E S
Stock car racing. Generally she enjoys sports but there's something about racing that she doesn't enjoy. That goes for horse racing as well.
 Winter in all of its forms. Christmas is okay, though, but other than that winter is a nuisance.
 People that can't be real. Keep it real is more than just an outdated phrase, it's a way of life.
 Losing, specifically if the loss comes as a result of being completely steamrolled. A close loss is better than an easy win.
H I S T O R Y
Piper is just waiting for the day her parents can admit that she is adopted.
Of course she considers Jason and Vera as her parents because they are, but it would be nice to hear it from the source. She's never really sought out her biological parents since the family she has now is more than she could've ever hoped for. Piper doesn't remember much of her early childhood, and doesn't remember much of the orphanage since she spent so little time there; her earliest memories were of Connor being a brat and pushing her onto the floor when she was learning how to walk.
The Chapin name is not a known one to the well-off sorts. Jason is among the Nouveau riche and is the only Chapin that has done something of note. It's mostly because of the influence of Jason that Piper doesn't really see herself as having a silver spoon despite it being planted firmly in her hand. When Piper was approaching the age of ten, choices as to her upbringing were being made without her input. So much of her choices in life were made by her mother who, after writing off Conner due to his eagerness to spend money like it was free flowing, wanted Piper to make something of herself. "You have to overcome your adversity" was the way Vera phrased it and Piper still isn't sure what that adversity is and by now she's too afraid to ask.
It was Vera who wanted to groom Piper into being a well educated, proper sort, starting with private tutors that didn't take. Piper was far more interested in her father and his past glory. Some of her happiest memories were just sitting on the front stoop and watching a baseball game on a portable television with her father. Her relationship with Conner remains strained as Conner, even from a young age, never saw Piper as his sister and more as "a guest".
After the private tutors failed to make much of a dent in Piper, Vera convinced Jason to give boarding school a chance. Piper never wanted to go and even getting her to attend a private junior high school was an ordeal that involved scissors and hundreds of wasted dollars on uniforms. While she hasn't mellowed with age, she's learned to just accept her mother's wishes.
Strathmore Academy was not immediately welcoming. Piper's casual attitude and willingness to inject herself into the conversations of other people was seen as strange at first, though she began to change minds with her athletic talents. Her circle of true friends is still rather small but she's been able to find a way to fir in: by making others fit in with her. Piper has found her sphere of influence expanding ever so slightly since she's started dating one Elaine Carrington.
Piper met Elaine over a game of chess. Piper was checking out some extra-curricular activities and came across students playing the game. Wanting to see what the fuss was about, she challenged Elaine to a game - at the time Piper didn't know who Elaine or the Carrington's were. The chess game did not go well for Piper despite her best efforts. The next day, Piper challenged Elaine to a game of tennis. Then to a one on one game of basketball. Piper can't pinpoint the exact location that they became a couple, but it was probably some time after Piper asked "Are we dating?" during lunch period.
Piper still doesn't much know about the Carrington family; she likes Elaine because she's Elaine, not because she's Elaine Carrington; however, when her mother found out who Piper was dating, Vera insisted that Piper invite herself along to the Carrington reunion. A good impression to the Carrington family could certainly open a lot of doors. But Piper is just going because she figures Elaine could use a friendly face in her corner at this reunion.
M I S C E L L A N E O U S I N F O
Piper really hates her name. She's named after her grandmother (on her father's side) but she still hates it. Piper. Just sounds weird.
Piper is also secretly reading up on chess in order to one day beat Elaine at the game, something she has yet to do.
 

Lee Carrington
"My mom says he's kind of a big deal. She's not wrong, but the reason I think he's a big deal is different than why she thinks he's a big deal."
Piper has no true opinion on the Carrington's yet. She does, however, hope that the heads of the family will approve of her if only so she can keep dating their daughter. Hell of a way to make an introduction.
Cassiopeia Carrington
"I wonder what my opening line should be? 'Hey, Mrs. C...I'm dating your daughter' seems a bit...forward?"
See thoughts on Lee.