Post by Stranger on Oct 13, 2010 3:43:22 GMT -8
Name: H'tio (formerly Horatio)
Age: 17 years (born late spring)
Gender: Male
Sexuality: Heterosexual
Rank: Blue winglet
Location: Eyrie
Personality:
A hard worker of few words who prefers to keep his own counsel and speaks mostly when spoken to first - such is the first impression most get of H'tio, and it would not be far from the truth. A quiet and intense personality, he often finds it preferable to sit back and let others do the talking, constraining himself only to the bare essentials of polite conversation and genial chatter. Not that he does not know how to speak - amongst family and friends he is a good deal more talkative and very loyal to those he calls his own. However, his penchant for remaining quiet around people he is not close to will at times given rise to awkward silences, though H'tio is usually too perceptive to allow such a silence to carry on for too long. Unfortunately for him, his intensity also tends to come across as poise and collection, and coupled with his usual introversion and the stern cast of his features it is easy for an outsider to believe he is aloof. Arrogant even, if one wanted to be mean and reflect him in a bad light.
Though nothing could be further from the truth, of course. In spite of his driven nature, H'tio is at heart a gentle and caring soul. His main passion in life is his craft, and he pours his heart and soul into it at the expense of nearly everything else. Which is why being an introvert makes life much simpler for him as well - less fuss in trying to keep track of too many friends or family members. As mild as he is principled, he doesn't have much of a temper either. Few things can ruffle his patience, and much of what can do so has to do with injustice or the unfairness of life. Known amongst his close circles for his sense of organisation and uncanny ability to spot patterns, he is adept at understanding others' capabilities and discerning what they are good for. This capacity for managing people might give rise to the notion that he is manipulative, and indeed he can be - but only in a situation where no other recourse is available and he must break his strictly-held principles to protect himself and those he loves. For the most part he prefers to take the back seat on such matters, allowing others to run the show while he simply observes. And steps in to handle things when needed.
Appearance:
A relatively slender boy of medium build with a tendency towards light bones, H'tio's height is nothing spectacular at a decent 5'10", but his poise and figure tend to make him seem taller than he is. Despite his slenderness his frame is rugged from his boyhood days and possessed of enough muscle to give him solidness, yet the way he carries himself emphasizes light elegance rather than strength and weight. Strident black hair, straight flowing and worn short for neatness, add weight to the strength of his angular, aquiline nose and jaw and make him appear rather stern. Arrogant even, perhaps. Dark brows form a strange contrast to his dark gray eyes which tend to give the impression his mind is constantly elsewhere, a feature of his father even as his lighter build comes from his mother's heritage.
H'tio, true to his personality, also prefers muted colours of dull green, cream-beige or gray in his choice of clothes. A simple tunic and leggings with leather boots suits him fine, so long as they can be matched with a belt and a pouch or knapsack to hold all his personal belongings. That’s not to say he doesn’t know how to dress to the occasion - he usually has three or four brighter shirts and breeches set aside for special events. He simply prefers to be simple in his daily wear.
Family:
Horden (father), Musician - Violinist
Dorita (mother), Baker
Verita (older sister) - Apprentice Baker
Hortha (older brother) - deceased
Gallion (younger brother)
Jorrisa (youngest sister)
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Simourv Name: Ourobeph
Simourv Color: #AABCC0
Simourv Age: Hatchling
Personality:
friendly, materialistic, obstinate, pack rat
Appearance:
- good sized blue, healthy and strong
- feathers light slate blue
- head has a hood of snowy white
- light blue stripes circling eyes in tight rigid patterns
- two patches of slightly darker blue marked his cheeks
- back of his neck and rump marked with slightly greenish blue accents
Parentage:
Gray Eceph X Black Alianph
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History:
H'tio was born as Horatio, the third of five children of a Musician father and a Baker mother. Even as a child he was a very private person, preferring the company of his family, a few close friends and the many books he took to as a duck takes to water. In spite of his introversion, however, he was a happy child; and the subject of a playful debate between his parents. Horden his father was hopeful the lad would take after him as a violinist, and Dorita his mother naturally countered that the boy had a flair for Baking and would follow her instead. The two older children, a girl named Verita and another boy named Hortha, had already made plain their interests from the start. While Verita had always been a natural cook, Hortha was an avid liker of horses, and especially the spectacular, powerful racehorses so prominent in Sayaie in the south. When he had grown old enough to be apprenticed he left Chydyn to a racehorse trainer in Sayaie, leaving behind a wistful Horatio who now had to find a new friend in place of the older brother he had always been close to. This he did find almost immediately in the form of Jhorna, a boy of the same age and the child of Lenaria, an old friend of Dorita. Jhorna's light, gregarious nature balanced out Horatio's stern quietness like light balances darkness, and the two became firm friends almost from the start.
The playful debate of Horatio's future, however, would eventually be decided in the midst of tragedy. He was 12 years of age when Hortha was trampled and killed by one of the racing horses he loved so much; a freak accident that shocked everyone as the stallion which perpetuated it had never been known as a trouble-maker. News of the accident took a while to reach the family in Chydyn, and when it had it hit them hard. But none as much as Horatio who loved his brother; and in the aftermath of Hortha's funeral the boy decided that he would become a Healer as his uncle was, dedicating his life to saving and preserving the lives of others. So adamant was he about this that he had pressured his father into apprenticing him to a Master Healer by the following year, and began to pour his soul into the learning of the craft.
The year after that passed with relative haste as Horatio tuned out nearly everything else in life but his study of the medical arts. That year was particularly hard on his friends and family as he all but disappeared under his stacks of books and notes, shunning interaction with nearly everything except the people and the field trips and the carefully made annotations required for the mastering of his craft. He became a night owl, burning up many sticks of candles as he poured over the day's lessons. His results were excellent those first two years, but the toll it took were also readily apparent. The boy, only 13 years of age, lost enough weight to become almost stick-like; he even considered getting glasses for his ever more blurry vision at night, and his writing hand developed calluses at the middle finger and thumb where he constantly held a pen to take numerous notes.
It was Dorita with the help of Verita who eventually managed to wean him off the intensity he gave to his work. The pair forced him to take long evening walks with them to get away from the books, made him eat his meals and even chased him out of the study with a broom (literally) when it was clear he could no longer stay awake at night. And it was Jhorna, infinitely patient with his solitary friend, who finally convinced him that birthdays were really not a waste of time after all and he should consider starting to celebrate his own again soon. Perhaps the wearing of time helped as well, as the memory of Hortha's death began gradually to fade into his subconscious. However it was, it was still nearly two years before Horatio let himself be dragged to a celebration of any sort once more. And in the third year after Hortha's death, Horden sent him to Sayaie to study under his Physician uncle for a time.
It was here that Horatio would face grief once more; grief of the sort that had so haunted him since he was twelve. His uncle Rhemden had intended to take him to the great racetracks of the city so he might face up to his old hurts under his supervision. But he was interrupted that evening by an emergency of another sort: a lone koxi had penetrated the outskirts of the city, killing one child and leaving a young woman seriously wounded.
As the closest doctor in the vicinity Rhemden came at once, with Horatio tagging along to observe. The sight of the young woman's delirious raving of the sister she could not save, however, struck a chord - and the young apprentice abruptly found himself outside the farmhouse throwing up the contents of his dinner. But in spite of his uncle's concerns Horatio came back the next night to assist; then the night after, the next day, and so on until he was a frequent visitor and the woman's brother, Kendrick, would let him in without question. Rhemden, as perceptive as he was skilled with healing, encouraged discussion on these visits, getting the boy to sketch out his thoughts and emotions in written words, pictures and long conversations about life and death. It was a watershed moment for Horatio, understanding that life would continue; and he could finally come to grips with his brother's death, accept it and move on. Though he kept focus on his studies, much of the fierce devotion he had once given it fell away and was replaced by mere studiousness instead. Horatio, for the first time in years, was healing within.
He continued to keep a cordial relationship with the young woman, whose name happened to be Rainer, until the family moved to Chydyn the following year. He himself moved back to the treetop city in the Year 58 and was welcomed back by family and friends who were relieved to note he had lost some of his intensity during his time away. He was still a quiet character, still a hard worker dedicated to his studies; but he always had time now for Jhorna, for his family, and for Rainer as well, having renewed their friendship on his return.
