PrepMo 2023 Protag backstory

Icerna Frostbane is my protagonist. She is an ice mage. She was born into the kingdom now ruled by Lord Malachar Shadowbane. The Shadowbane empire looms large over the Glaciara Citadel, where Icerna was born. The Citadel was once known as the City of Mages. However, when Malachar Shadowbane took over the regime, all magic was forbidden. Any references to magic in any business or municipality were forced to be changed. Many mages were killed or driven from the lands where their ancestors had lived peacefully for decades.
Icerna’s childhood was a happy one, with a doting mother and a father who did his best to provide for his small family. He worked as a public servant and sat on the Mage Panel, the ruling body of the day
Icerna excelled in school and became proficient at summoning familiars much earlier than other children. She also had the ability of ice manipulation that got her into mischief from time to time as a pre-teen. Icerna did well in all of her studies, with her favorite being long-days history.
Icerna fell in love as a young adult with a fire mage, Ignatius Flameheart. The two were inseparable for over a year. As war loomed, and Shadowbane’s men were seen infiltrating the City of Mages, attempting to fit in with those who held real magic. Icerna’s father was unsure of her love for the young fire mage, so the two only saw each other under cover of darkness.
One particularly cold night, Icerna arrived at the meeting place in a hollow just outside of City of Mages. Ignatius was to meet her there at midnight. The two had talked about eloping, and Icerna was sure tonight was the night Ignatius was going to ask her to marry him. But he never showed. She waited until almost daylight, but he never came to her. She ran home and went directly to her room, crying into her pillow.
Icerna’s mother came to her room, hearing her weeping.
“It is for the best,” Icerna would remember her saying. She would remember that cold response for the rest of her life. Even her own mother would not support the love these two young mages had for one another. And now it seemed Ignatius truly had no thought of marrying her. He had gotten what he wanted from her and walked away. She cursed her own stupidity and kept her secret. She dared not tell anyone she had lost her virginity to the fire mage. As days went on and Ignatius did not come to her, she knew for certain that he had used her and dumped her like a sack of useless Farrn.
Icerna has one brother, Thalric. She has not seen him in many years, but his daughter, Lysandra, and Icerna have been close all of the girl’s life. Thalric went off to fight with the rebellion, a passion he had found as a youth. Icerna did not believe in war and hoped it would always stay away from her and her life. Thalric, on the other hand, preferred to be at the leading edge of war. Icerna feared he was likely killed by Shadowbane’s men as a traitor.
Since Lord Shadowbane has become ruler, Iverna has lived a quiet life. She now teaches mages at a small, private school. The school’s charter declares them as simply a learning institution, but Icerna and several others are teaching magic and instructing children on the old ways.
She will soon find herself embroiled in the rebellion against the regime. But, for now, she lives a quiet, solitary life.