Your name: Yubi

Pretty uncertain between these. I may app more than one of them, but not for some time since I've been out of the RP loop for months. Though, all three have common personality traits (being inquisitive and strong-willed and stubborn) so if I choose one I might not play the others. Depends!

Character name: Digger, or, Digger-Of-Unnecessarily-Convoluted-Tunnels
Fandom: Digger (webcomic)
City life: She's used to hard work and is basically a born engineer/geologist, so she might be engaged in that... at worst she'd do construction or heavy lifting at the supply depot.
Powers: Some kind of more-than-mortal strength or fortitude. In-canon, wombats are basically all muscle and thick hide (she takes a dagger to the rear at one point). While she would translate into a very physically tough human, something like... idk, Stoneskin from D&D would be apt.
Do you think they'll be active? Digger is all about poking her nose into things against her own better judgement. She isn't super extroverted, but she's big about common decency and pitching in to help folks out. Short answer: Yes.
Do you think they'll participate in plot? See above. Def. yes.
Why this character interests you here: She's very straightforward and no-nonsense and has zero sense of awe, and is just... really good fun to throw at weirdass situations.
Potential concerns: In wombat culture, magic is irresponsible and tacky, and using such to mess with people's minds and bodies is very OHGODNOPE. Left alone, Digger would pretty much rack up a zillion infractions for asserting her "real" self and past. This should be solved with someone metaphorically grabbing her by the shoulders and going SHHHHH NOT SO LOUD MORON, though. also of concern: drawing all the sodding human icons. >:|

Character name: Emily A. Stanton
Fandom: The Protomen (rock opera depicting a dystopian AU of Megaman Classic)
City life: Emily is a factory worker, pretty much working hand-to-mouth, so she'd be doing much the same here. Perhaps saving up to go back to school?
Powers: THE POWER OF ROCK B| Really, she doesn't have any canon superpowers... That said, there are strong themes of light and keeping the darkness at bay in the canon, and Emily is significant for being one of the very few humans who could see through Wily's bullshit and stand up to him, so... maybe some kind of ability related to seeking out the truth and recognizing lies? Though that's a bit too metagamey. maybe the power of rock isn't such a bad idea.
Do you think they'll be active? Yes.
Do you think they'll participate in plot? Yep yep, particularly if it's something regarding getting to the bottom of What Is The Deal With This Place.
Why this character interests you here: The City in the Protomen universe shares some cosmetic similarities to the City here -- a metropolis in a wasteland -- which would easily compound on the weird "this is freakily familiar" feeling Emily would have upon entering the game. (If she hadn't died, the Spire would also remind her of the control tower, but that's after her time lol.) The "fish not quite out of water" is part of my interest in apping her.
Potential concerns: Let's face it, Emily is a background love interest designed to be killed off as soon as possible to act as Dr. Light's dead muse. I've been able to extrapolate some to flesh her out, using stuff from the Protomen liner notes, but it's up to the mods to say if this is kosher.

Character name: Madotsuki
Fandom: Yume Nikki (indie exploration game)
City life: Almost certainly in school, since she's about thirteen. Alternatively, she may have been hospitalized in her "city past" for some kind of accident or trauma, maybe even put on suicide watch, and become an invalid for some time.
Powers: The Effects in YN are almost all cosmetic, turning her head into a frog's, giving her kitty ears, creating a flute out of thin air, etc. A general illusionary ability, maybe, that temporarily changes her appearance, with maybe a few trivial side-effects, like being able to play the flute as if it's a tangible object, or the stoplight-head effect actually giving off light. The only Effects that really do anything substantial are Bicycle (not like she can't find an actual bike) and Knife (ditto).
Do you think they'll be active? Tricky, she's introverted and pulled-in on herself, but also endlessly curious. Yes, with careful CR to shove her out of her comfort zone.
Do you think they'll participate in plot? Like above, yes, though there'll be limits in what she can do, given her young age.
Why this character interests you here: I really think that Mado is one of the few people in the game who might honestly accept that her life has all been a dream and this is as real as it gets. At the same time, she likes to take things at her own pace, so prodding her too hard to believe one way or another would be counterproductive. There's also the likelihood she'll see the city as just another dream, which will affect how she interacts with it -- in dreams, she's fearless and almost invulnerable. It could go any way, really.
Potential concerns: There isn't a lot of actual canon that definitively states her past and history (though a lot can be inferred from the messed-up crap she dreams about) and is like 80% headcanon. (For instance, I've come up with no less than three different backstories, all entirely valid given the evidence in the game; though in this setting I'd be going with the typical "traumatized girl who used dreams as an escape from reality" explanation.) Like Emily, she's in a grey area regarding appability.

Digger: The icons aren't a big hurdle, really, my style isn't far from the one used in the comic, but it is one more consideration.

Emily: Oh my god. Together they might turn the place into a musical. I am horribly okay with this. I MEAN THANK YOU FOR CONFIRMING MINOR CHARACTERS ARE OKAY. YES.

Mado: I wouldn't mind not aging up Mado, given that there doesn't seem to be many children in the City yet, so it creates some variation. shrug! I'll sit on the idea.

Thanks for the advice!

FELLOW FAN. [reaches out grabby arms]
god, I only know a handful of protobros on tumblr and elsewhere.

The problem with a music-based power is that it's a rock opera, so everyone sings. It'd be like apping Misto from CATS and giving him a dance-related ability. Which, yes, he does get an impressive dance solo, but... everyone dances. It's more part of the medium than anything.

I could swing with a literal light-related power... I'm a big fan of The Deed of Paksenarrion, where creating light is one of the classic signs of a paladin, so the allusion to that would make me happy. I-- oh god, I'd be turning Emily into Jubilee.

/dweeb

You're correct that Digger would be the easiest sell, so to speak. She has the benefit of having the canon be from her POV and so has the most defined voice out of all three. :| But yes, in terms of having her integrate with the existing characters and the plot, she comes out on top. I know that icons are ultimately not a big issue, but it really is jarring to have a cartoon wombat appear next to human PBs and anime/manga faces.

Much thanks for the input!

ahahaha I was wondering when someone would recognize the comic. HELLO. Would you believe I was going nuts trying to choose just one person from that? I would not mind playing Shadowchild or Ed at all. Didn't go with them because I don't want to humanify Ed (I like the disconnect with this enormous softy also being a big hairy hyena monster), and Shadow is a little too mysterious/OP and I don't really know how to handle the 'Shadolescent' form. And I could easily spend hours trying to boil down the eating shadows thing into a... thing.

Digger's unique perspective is a big pro, yes.