History[]
Zoe Maria Harris was born to Maximillian "THE THUG" Harris and his teenage sweetheart, Zoe Adams. Two kids straight off the streets, Max was barely 18 when Zoe was born and her mother died due to complications at birth. With nothing more than the clothes on his back and a job working night duty at a local factory while going to school during the day, it was a miracle the young man managed to hang on to his new infant baby girl without the state taking her. A threat was very real a few times but Max's dedication to his daughter never wavered even through the tough first months as they both struggled to find a balance.
A balance that came in the form of Carl Ryan and his eye for talent.
With boxing as one of the very few things Max allowed himself, the young man always managed to get in at least an hour or two of practice at one of the backdoor gyms. One such night, he found himself the recipient of an odd proposal that landed him a gig fighting in middle weight boxing rings. Before he knew it, he'd quiet his job at the factory, moved up to a better apartment for his baby girl and was fighting three fights a week making good damned money. After a couple years of that, he was fighting for the real title and walking away with the gold belt, paying back Carl Ryan every dime he ever loaned him for the process.
From there, it seemed as if a fairytale. His baby girl was growing and she followed him around like a little puppy. Between the boxing rings, Carl's establishments, and his new gig as fight manager for a new operation the boss man wanted to try, life was good. Money was coming in regularly and he no longer had to worry about where Zoe's next meal was going to come from or if they'd be able to make the rent. The threats from the state stopped and his little girl grew in his shadow learning everything there was to know about the sport and its intricacies.
As Zoe grew, she began to operate as "one of the guys" around the club and she and Lily Ryan found themselves in each others company more often than not. Their first meeting was quiet memorable as the little blond girl had found herself cornered by a couple of the meaner older boys with Carl wasn't looking and the little girl was to stubborn to back down. The cause of the encounter? The ugliest, mangiest looking puppy ever known to grace gods green earth. Bedraggled, flea ridden and skinny to the point of starvation, Lily had managed to find it and drag it home only to get accosted by a pair of boys who thought the puppy would be better off tossed over the bridge in a gunny sack. Lily was having none of it though as she protected her "dog" and screamed like a banshee every time one of the boys tried to take it. What was Zoe supposed to do when faced with such a choice? She couldn't very well ignore the young girls trial so without another thought, she dived right into the fray. As one of the boys pulled her ponytail, she bloodied his nose and was satisfied to hear him start to cry. Without much ado, the bullies were running away crying like a bunch of pansies and the two girls friendship was cemented over a mutt that grew up to be the greatest protector either of the could ever hope for.
They were three and five years old respectively.
The years flew by from there and things seemed about perfect for the two friends. Tomboys to the core, they constantly drove their fathers nuts with some of their antics but they wouldn't have had it any other way. Although the men might have wanted sons, they were happy with their daughters and taught them everything they knew. At least, until the fateful night when Zoe's world went dark with pain and fury.
Having spent the evening at Lily's house while her father worked, Zoe was walking home when she heard a commotion in the parking lot of their apartment complex. Looking up, she saw three men beating on another with what looked like steel crowbars and other things. It took her a full moment ot take it all in and then she realized that it was her father they were battering. Dropping her bag, the young girl started to shout and yell only to have the men look up and then jump in an old van. Squealing out of the lot, the men took off and left Zoe to find her father bleeding profusely. Screaming for help, the young girls tears mixed with the blood on his face even as she held him through his last breaths. His last words still rang in her head as the medics pried him out of her arms and took him away.
WOrds shes never forgotten even as she was forced to go one without him.
IN the years since then, Zoe has become a part of the Ryan family and dedicated herself to learning everything she can. After her fathers death, Carl and Lily took her in as one of their own and she feels she owes them a big debt. Like her father before her, loyalty and honor are a major part of what she believes in and recently, shes been given a chance to prove that as she follows Lily to Reno.
