Tabitha Denholm, orphaned at age 4, ran away from her loving foster parents at age 16. After a period of homelessness ended by luck and the kindness of others (which she attributes to her own gumption, intelligence, and drive) she was able to scrounge up a degree in social anthropology from a small-time no-name university.
Having a knack for networking (due to a sense of confidence easily mistaken from a distance as competency) she was able to get a low-level position as a cultural researcher in an international organization.
Personality
If you asked Tabitha to described her personality, she would respond, after a careful pause to let you know how measured and introspective she was, with words like “driven”, “bold”, and “efficient”, seemingly unaware that someone else might describe those same traits as “shortsighted”, “reckless”, and “negligent”.
Although quite willing to (privately) obsess on the loss of her birth-parents and her several months of homelessness, Tabitha has ironically led a rather charmed life. The success she has found so far is due almost entirely to several instances in the right place at the right time.