character survey meme thing

[shenandoah]

i am still working on writing up this guy's actual history and everything else but in the meantime...

Body and Appearance
1. Describe the character's height and build. Is he heavyset, thin, short, rangy?
Under his human disguise, he's a bit on the tall side, of lean and wiry build. In his natural state, though, he's massive: approximately ten meters high, twenty-five meters in length, and boasting a proportionately large wingspan.

2. How old is he?
He isn't sure of his exact age, but he was hatched in the 1700's, which puts him on the older side for dragons of his species. While posing as a human, he presents himself as 42 years of age.

3. Describe his posture. Does he carry himself well or does he slouch?
It depends entirely on his environment. If he's out and about, presenting himself to the public, then he carries himself with impeccable posture without fail; in his home, however, he could not give less of a shit.

4. How is his health? Is he fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities?
His health is as good as it can be for a dragon of his species and age (which is to say very good). He has no "conditions" except for one shared with most other dragons the world over, which is an acute sensitivity to comfrey plants, especially the mountain variety, symphytum montana; though considered a medicinal herb by much of human culture, it is notoriously toxic to dragons, to the point where many species (including Cyrus's) avoid it instinctively.

5. How does he move? Is he clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid?
Except when he's under duress or especially tired, he tends to move with a particular amount of grace and control, never once seeming to be off-balance in all that he does. It's through this control that he's successfully passed himself off as human for many years, but in his smaller, unconscious motions, he is still very evidently a dragon; to those unfamiliar with exactly how a dragon looks when it goes about its daily business, these motions may at times seem avian — the particular crane of his neck and tilt of his head, or the way he might carefully pluck at an object — and at other times, even feline in nature — the way he stretches himself in repose, or the predatory gaze he might give to a precious item.

6. How attractive is this character physically? How does he perceive himself in the mirror?
He is a very vain creature, but that vanity has less to do with his attractiveness to humans and more to do with his age, power, and cunning.

7. Describe his complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred?
His skin is very fair, the sort of fair that burns with minimal exposure to sunlight. His complexion is mostly clear, save some lines on his face that belonged to the human whose identity he assumed, as well as a single (but notably large) lash on his back, received when he was captured in a joint effort by Sophia Byrne and Jesse Morrow; his healing capabilities are such that any superficial wounds he receives normally heal quickly and entirely, but as his magic ability was severely compromised at the time, a very visible scar remains.

8. Describe his hair: color, texture, style.
Short, fairish, straight and often floppy. Only very rarely (if ever at all) does he take the effort to style it.

9. What color are his eyes?
Light brown.

10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features?
As a dragon, his scales are entirely black (with an iridescent sheen when wet), and his eyes are a tawny gold.

11. What are his chief tension centers?
His back, particularly around his shoulder blades.

12. What is the character's wardrobe like? Casual, dressy, utilitarian? Bright colors, pastels, neutrals? Is it varied, or does he have six of the same suit?
Again, it depends entirely on his environment. He dresses fairly nicely when going about his daily business in public, opting for slacks, button-downs, or perhaps even a sweater vest and jacket in colder weather; at home, however, it's wifebeaters and sweats 24/7, if he even bothers wearing clothes at all.

13. Do his clothes fit well? Does he seem comfortable in them?
He wouldn't bother wearing something if he wasn't comfortable in it, and he usually takes the time to ensure that the fit is precise.

14. Does he dress the same on the job as he does in his free time? If not, what are the differences?
As mentioned above, he certainly does not.

15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando?
Briefs, when he doesn't forego underwear entirely.



Speech
1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse?
Deep, smooth, with a bit of a rumble if he's feeling particularly relaxed.

2. How does he normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does he talk easily, or does he hesitate?
As loudly as he needs to, though the pace of his words is usually slow, even, and without hesitation.

3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics?
He speaks with a Virginian accent, by virtue of having lived in and around the mountains of Appalachia his entire life.

4. What language/s does he speak, and with how much fluency?
He's fluent in English, and while he can easily communicate with other dragons, he doesn't know any other human languages with any significant skill.

5. Does he switch languages or dialects in certain situations?
No.

6. Is he a good impromptu speaker, or does he have to think about his words?
His words are always carefully chosen.

7. Is he eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change?
Very eloquent, usually; if he's sleepy, intoxicated, or aroused, then he is definitely much less so.



Mental and Emotional
1. How intelligent is this character? Is he book-smart or street-smart?
Very intelligent. He's had many, many years of living amongst humans to educate himself in the various facets of human culture, history, and way of life. (However, he's not quite so educated when it comes to the ways of his own species.)

2. Does he think on his feet, or does he need time to deliberate?
He prefers taking the time to formulate a plan of action, but his cunning is such that he's able to act quickly and capably when the need arises. (Most of the time, anyway.)

3. Describe the character's thought process. Is he more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical?
Logic, rationality, and practicality rule over all — except when it comes to his personal pursuits and pleasures, of course.

4. What kind of education has the character had?
Nothing formal; almost everything he knows he taught himself, either through reading or firsthand experience. The exceptions would be what he knows by instinct and what he was taught by his "mother", the latter of which would include magicks and human communication.

5. What are his areas of expertise? What, if anything, is he interested in learning more about?
Being a dragon, he has an acute sense for precious metals and an intense fondness for precious (and semi-precious) stones; as such, he has learned to identify them by human recognition and appraise their worth. He also has an instinctive skill for identifying enchantments, fey, and other things that are magical in nature, but he's found more monetary worth and personal satisfaction from the prior.

6. Is he an introvert or an extrovert?
Definitely an introvert.

7. Describe the character's temperament. Is he even-tempered or does he have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven?
Usually he's pretty calm and laidback, and he keeps a tight rein on his visible emotions, rarely expressing anything more than a mild, pleasant temperament. His emotions tend to be much deeper and more intense than anything he allows to show through, whether it's rage or sorrow or joy, and only rarely does he allow his tight rein to slip.

8. How does he respond to new people or situations? Is he suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic?
Always, always, always with caution.

9. Is he more likely to act, or to react?
React.

10. Which is his default: fight or flight?
It depends. If victory is assured, then he'll go for it; if not, he won't bother taking a chance.

11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does he appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks?
His preferred brand of humor (and the one he prefers to employ himself) is most often sarcasm and dry wit.

12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders?
No.

13. What moments in this character's life have defined him as a person?
The arrest of his "mother" and his flight from her home; his discovery of the human whose face he now bears; his capture by Byrne and Morrow and subsequent escape from them; and just about every other time he's narrowly avoided detection and certain death or imprisonment.

14. What does he fear?
Detection, as that would lead to him being uprooted from his home.

15. What are his hopes or aspirations?
All he wants is to live in peace, and to do it as pleasurably as he can.

16. What is something he doesn't want anyone to find out about him?
That he's a dragon. Obviously.



Relationships
1. Describe this character's relationship with his parents.
His actual biological dragon parents are likely dead, having long ago been poached for their various parts and clutch of eggs. The only person he recognizes as his parent would be the witch who brought him across the Atlantic, raised him from a hatchling, and taught him how to use magic and disguise himself as a human. Though she certainly intended to use him for his various parts once he was grown to an unmanageable size, she still treated him with kindness and care, and to this day Cyrus considers his separation from her to be a bitter loss.

2. Does the character have any siblings?
He might, as he was certainly not the only egg of his clutch, but he wouldn't have any idea as to their fates or identities.

3. Are there other blood relatives to whom he is close?
No.

4. Are there other, unrelated people whom he considers part of his family?
No, as he presently doesn't have anyone in his life whom he would consider on the same level of importance as his "mother."

5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet?
Though he has had some friends over the course of his (pretending to be human) life, he hasn't met anyone whom he would consider a "best friend."

6. Does he have other close friends?
He might consider himself "close" with the old woman who owns the apartment in which he currently resides, though considering he glamored his way into her good graces in the first place, only in the loosest sense of the term.

7. Does he make friends easily, or does he have trouble getting along with people?
He doesn't usually have trouble getting along with anyone, though if he senses the slightest amount of social friction, he tends to not want to even bother with any kind of positive interaction.

8. Which does he consider more important: family or friends?
It doesn't exactly matter given how few he has of either one, but family.

9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed?
Presently single.

10. Is he currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse?
No.

11. Who was his first crush? Who is his latest?
He doesn't exactly have crushes, as the particulars of human attraction are somewhat beyond him; when he does experience attraction, it's most often in the heat of the moment rather than anything he's left to dwell upon.

12. What does he look for in a romantic partner?
He doesn't look for romantic partners, but even if he did, he wouldn't exactly know what to begin to look for.

13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does he relate to them? If no, does he want any?
The concept of rearing children, or even simply of securing his lineage (and the survival of his species), isn't really one that appeals to him.

14. Does he have any rivals or enemies?
He's probably made a few enemies in his time amongst humans, but the only ones worth noting would be (the descendents of) Byrne and Morrow.

15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does he fall on the Kinsey scale?
He doesn't give much consideration to his sexuality, but he'd be around a 3 on the Kinsey scale.

16. How does he feel about sex? How important is it to him?
As a dragon, the act of mating is arduous and not something he is even remotely eager to undertake, particularly considering just how little exposure to other dragons he's had during his entire life so far. As a human, however, it's a far different story; while sex isn't important enough in his mind for him to actively seek it out, he revels in it when he can, and rarely turns it down when he has the opportunity.

17. What are his turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits?
He hasn't yet discovered any particular or significant turn-ons or turn-offs, though he is leery of allowing his partner to be on top. He also has a noted preference for biting and using his teeth whenever possible.


Beliefs
1. Do you know your character's astrological (zodiac of choice) sign? How well does he fit type?
The exact date and year of his birth is unknown, even to himself.

2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in his life?
Neither; the religious and spiritual aspects of humanity are puzzling to him, so he prefers not to pay them much mind.

3. Does this character have a personal code of morals or ethics? If so, how did that begin? What would it take to compromise it?
Despite the fact that his species is unquestionably biologically superior to humanity in most every way, he is reluctant to bring any kind of harm upon any human being, due to the way he was raised by his "mother." Of course he would be willing to maim or kill a human (or several of them) if his own safety was at stake — or, hypothetically, if the safety of someone precious to him was at stake — but it isn't something that sits well with him.

4. How does he regard beliefs that differ from his? Is he tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent?
Unless they interfere with his own affairs, he sees no reason to pay any mind to beliefs that are not his own.

5. What prejudices does he hold? Are they irrational or does he have a good reason for them?
He doesn't really hold prejudices so much as he has some very particular pet peeves, which, for the sake of propriety, he often keeps to himself.


Daily Life
1. What is the character's financial situation? Is he rich, poor, comfortable, in debt?
In pure monetary terms he doesn't have much to speak of, usually only as much as it takes for him to survive. The amount of fine gems and jewelry he's collected over the years, however...

2. What is his social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected him?
The closest thing he has to a social status is "trying to keep as low a profile as possible."

3. Where does he live? House, apartment, trailer? Is his home his castle or just a place to crash? What condition is it in? Does he share it with others?
At present, he lives in an apartment above a mom-and-pop apothecary; it's small, but he considers it cozy. His home environment has always been of immense importance to him, whether he's living in a mountain cave or a cramped apartment, and as such, he keeps it well-maintained and warded against unwelcome trespassers. ("Well-maintained" is relative, as he is both wont to accumulate clutter and too lazy to do much to address it, but apart from that he keeps his home meticulously clean.)

4. Besides the basic necessities, what does he spend his money on?
Things that bring him pleasure, and things he considers valuable — again, in purely relative terms, as the things he considers pleasurable and valuable might not seem so much to anyone else.

5. What does he do for a living? Is he good at it? Does he enjoy it, or would he rather be doing something else?
At present, he runs a side business out of the apothecary that involves appraising, buying, and selling fine jewelry and enchanted trinkets. With his previously mentioned skills, he is very good at this practice, and he enjoys it quite a bit considering most of the precious objects that pass into his hands ultimately end up lining his pockets.

6. What are his interests or hobbies? How does he spend his free time?
He occasionally likes to read, but mostly he prefers to spend his free time eating, sleeping, or generally lazing about.

7. What are his eating habits? Does he skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods?
If he could, he would eat all the time; as it is, he does tend to eat as much as he can as often as he can. Despite this, though, he doesn't have much of a talent for preparing his own food, so most of his meals are either take-out or something that can be made with minimal effort.



END
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