Post by storm on Nov 13, 2012 15:26:33 GMT -5
The Character
Country Name: North Italy (Veneziano)
Human Name: Feliciano Vargas
Gender: Male
Appearance:
Personality:
When one first spies him, his personality seems pretty straight-forward. He tends to bounce around as if his feet were made of springs, a bright smile tends to try blinding you, and a babble so insistently cheerful that it tends to border on irritating. His eyes are always closed, almost as if he were hiding from the world, but it’s such an innocent look that he just comes off as completely oblivious. ...though some people might think of him as idiotic. For some reason, he cannot seem to understand the atmosphere about people, often being his ridiculous self when it would be obvious to others that the air was exceedingly tense and that he should be keeping quiet. Of course, Feliciano isn't the kind of person to worry about those types of "social obligations" anyway! He's a creature who thrives in the now, who doesn't want to worry about past fights or future mishaps or so he likes to portray! Sleep when you're tired, eat when you're hungry, do what you want when you want, and enjoy what you have in life! No need for serious responsibilities, something that the Italian likes to shirk so long as he doesn't get caught or into trouble, no need for fighting, even being too serious for too long is a bad thing in Feliciano's book! He can always be seen clinging to one of his friends, more often Ludwig than anyone else, begging for pasta or a game of football, or even to leave the meeting so that they can go try the cupcakes at the coffee shop down the street. Because what you want, and your happiness, is what matters most in life. It matters so much to Feliciano that often he'll drag off even the most volatile nations (e.g. his brother) from their offices by the cuff of a shirt, their ankles, sometimes even lifting them up to literally carry them away for a fun-filled adventure involving good food and relaxation. Surprisingly enough, this unorthodox measure works wonders, since most nations are too stunned by the fact that Feliciano is strong enough to drag them away.
Really though, Feliciano is much more than his bubbly, overly-sweet persona that cries over squished butterflies and spilled sauce-pans. While it's nice to be able to cry over the sad little things in life, in order to get over them faster, of course, Feliciano can be very strong-hearted when he needs to be. Well... He can bottle up his sadness, hurt, pain, as well as irritation and anger up in order to keep his mind level and in thinking condition during a serious situation. Granted, even beneath the surface this Italian's definition of "serious" tends to greatly differ from most, and, because he is a person who by nature throws himself fully behind a decision, he...overreacts. If there's a dilemma in the government that needs to be handled, Feliciano will often lock himself in his office for weeks, sometimes even months on end, until the problem is solved properly, or he's at least put in all the work and effort his body could possibly generate before shutting down for much-needed rest. Because of this tendency to throw himself into an idea, oftentimes seemingly backwards from what the other nations feel that Feliciano would do, he's often heard that he's a tad "bipolar". Which is simply untrue, mind you. Everything that Feliciano does, even if it goes against his initial principles or his supposed thought processes, is because he wishes to help people.
Weapon: Having no preferred weapon and no real, lasting experience with anything that could be considered one, Feliciano's 'weapons' are really just tools he brought along that are capable of working against the monsters if used creatively. The most important weapon is a book eerily reminiscent of a Bible- the journal of Ryuuzu no Ko. The journal is critical to the mystery of the mansion, and by taking it Feliciano has indicated himself to be the new Ryuuzu. Feliciano also has several white flags of varying size due to his tendency to surrender- while they appear to have no combative use whatsoever, it's surprising what the nation can come up with while in a pinch.
Likes:
+Food, Especially Pasta: Feliciano is a connoisseur of food, extremely focused on both the presentation and quality of the dishes he creates. While he has strange tendencies with which to be picky, since he can stomach German cuisine with the greatest smile but one glance at any American food puts him off his meal for hours, he also greatly enjoys some of the simplest dishes: such as pasta. It is a meal created by his elder brother’s people due to a lack of supplies for more elaborate dishes. And he is more than addicted. There are so many ways to make this delicious dish, even Ludwig made a delicious pasta dish using potatoes! Eating pasta makes him feel closer to his estranged brother, and it’s just delicious.
+Close contact with others: Words are only so trustworthy, something Feliciano knows from experience. It is much harder to teach your body to lie than it is to teach your tongue, and using your body is a much truer expression of emotions than simply explaining them. So this Italian adores being close to those he cares about, in order to be able to show his affection when his limited vocabulary fails him. Even if it often goes not only unreciprocated but downright rejected.
+Art: Feliciano loves any and all forms of art. From the ancient pottery of the Etruscan peoples to the contemporary sculptures Alfred’s people keep spitting out. Even if they aren’t the best drawings in the world, or the perfect ceramic bowls, art is an expression of the emotions buried deep in your soul. You cannot create a masterpiece without placing a little of yourself into the art. It is a true representation of yourself, and Feliciano adores how it shows the true nature of others. (He just wishes that fratellone Francis would return his paintings already, they belong to him and really, when your most famous museum is filled with more Italian pieces than French, isn’t it time to return some of them?)
+Fashion: Regardless of what Alfred and Francis might think, Italy is the center of the fashion world. Dolce & Gabbana, Armani, Gucci, Prada, Fendi, Dior… All of these famous brands are Italian. Not to say that he doesn’t absolutely love fashion designs from his big brother or even some of the designs from Arthur or Alfred, because he truly does, he just has a very heavy hand in the world of fashion and is proud of it.
+Family/Friends: Family is the one thing you trust above all others, in Italian philosophy. You do not trust the government, you do not trust the police, you do not trust anyone except for those who are in your circle of friends and family. And when you do trust someone, you trust them with your life. Feliciano practically embodies this mindset. He loves his brother despite his faults, often gets into light arguments with other nations about his Nonno Roma, and would defend his friends with his life. Because to Feliciano, friends and family…they are his life.
Dislikes:
-Being called a coward: Feliciano hates being called a coward. Sure, he scares easily sometimes, but he has seen just as many terrible things in life as any other nation, and he has done so without a flinch. Violence does not bother him because it terrifies him, but because it makes him sad, and sometimes even angry. When people make the mistake of calling him a coward, it hurts and upsets him. Granted, he can be a coward, especially if he knows that he cannot fight a fight being presented to him, but that does not make him only a coward.
-English food: Actually, it shouldn’t even be called “food”. The garbage that Arthur makes, the over-spiced foods his people are addicted to now due to Indian influence…None of it is worth being called food. It’s either exceedingly bland or too spicy to be considered real cuisine. It makes him sick to his stomach to even think of the food that is made in those lands
-Being left alone: Solitude is not something that settles well with Feliciano. He has gotten used to having people around, and that urge he has to “unify” with Lovino makes it even harder for him to be away from his brother as opposed to anyone else. He was left alone after “Nonno Roma” died, then “Zio Germania”, and none of his allies ever stuck around long during his many war-torn years of the Renaissance. Holy Rome left him, and…he simply cannot handle an extended lack of human contact. He thrives on being able to interact with others, and without that chance.
-Bullies: People who have to put down others in order to make themselves feel better…they make him ill. As a very frequent victim of the teasing and not-so-nice bullying of his fellow nations, Feliciano cannot help but be bitter. It’s not that he holds the past against his brothers and the other nations, but when some of them continue to do so--Not that Lovino counts into that equation anymore, Feliciano understands that Lovino just has this habit of sticking his foot in his mouth and making shit worse--for no other reason than they think it’s fun and it makes them happy…Feliciano can’t stand it, even if he never says a word to stop it.
-His curl being touched: His curl is his erogenous zone, and he hates it being touched. Well, unless he’s in a situation where getting it on is what he wants, of course, but otherwise he hates it. It’s incredibly bothersome, and he gets so embarrassed by how much it affects him. To him, touching his curl without his permission is the same as groping someone without their permission, only it unwillingly arouses him and he often can’t force you off. So please don’t pull it.
Strengths:
+Ability to cope with tragedy: Despite his sweet nature, Feliciano has seen lots of bloodshed and death. But what nation hasn't? He is by far too used to dealing with death and seemingly hopeless situations, and in the face of such dilemmas he can easily smother the bad feelings and press on as long as his momentum will keep him going.
+Cooking: As a master chef in several cuisines, this Italian can make anything taste good. Even some of Arthur's culinary miscarriages he's managed to taste...decent. Not delicious, but at least edible. So long as he has the chance, no one will go hungry when he is around.
+Running/Stealth: Due to all the fleeing that Feliciano has been doing in the past centuries, he has developed quite an ability to sprint away at speeds where he's exceedingly difficult to catch. But also because of this he knows that mindlessly plowing around like scared cattle does not induce a successful retreat. So he can also skulk around like no-one's business, not only to flee but also to creep up on people and...do what needs to be done.
+Mental Flexibility: Rather than just being a creative being, this small brunette is also incredibly adept at accepting the oddest things without so much as a bat of an eye. Some might say it's obliviousness, but he just is so open-minded that his surprise tends to only last a few seconds.
+Stubbornness: After spending so many centuries around his brother, Ludwig, and several of their other friends and family, Feliciano has learned to be stubborn in his own way. When he puts his mind to it, he is even more pig-headed than his brother.
+Creativity: Feliciano has an extremely active imagination, and that tends to come out in every aspect of his life. It not only makes creating new dishes or artwork an easy task, but even in dangerous situations he can think on the fly and come up with a new, insanely effective way to flee if he can't find a way to survive or even win the fight/challenge at hand.
Weaknesses:
-Full-Out Fighting: Despite his stealth and great aim with a projectile weapon, Feliciano cannot hold his own in a full-on fistfight. He's too small and thin to truly overpower anyone. Even if he might be able to wear his opponent down, he would only tire himself out too and he just doesn't see things that way.
-Guilt: When he isn't able to smother his emotions, Feliciano is often plagued with guilt over things of the past. Whether he should feel guilty or not is up for debate, but often these vicious bouts of depression could last for weeks, if not months, and during so he completely neglects himself. It could...end even worse, depending.
-Temper: Oftentimes smothering his irritation or anger in order to keep his composure, Feliciano has quite a lot of pent-up rage hiding beneath a sweet smile. It's very hard to dig up those violent urges, but when they're brought to the surface... He completely keeps his mind, not going through a "red-out" like many berserkers do, but he is exceedingly cruel, biting, and borderline murderous. He always greatly regrets these moments and realizing what he'd done sometimes sends him into guilty depressions, completely debilitating him.
-PTSD: ...Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. This doesn't affect Feliciano when he's awake unless he's put in a stressful situation, but night is a completely other story. He has extremely vivid nightmares about his past, unless he has someone nearby to sleep with. These flashbacks and night-terrors put extreme strain on his mind and can make him snap completely if he isn't able to rest, mentally recuperate, and have some good things happen.
-Bottling Emotion: An actual cause of his PTSD, Feliciano has the very bad habit of taking all of his negative emotions and generally bottling them up in the back of his mind. It helps him get through some tough times, but the moment he's given no distractions or a peaceful way to let the feelings out, the bottle overflows like a freshly-shaken soda and causes some very bad things.
-Friends/Family: Not only can his friends and family influence Feliciano into doing things he probably shouldn't do, the moment something happens to them, be it good or bad, he'll immediately drop whatever he's doing to focus on them. Oftentimes he'll do so even at the neglect of himself. And if something bad were to happen to those he cares for...The Italian would completely shut down on an emotional level.
Sample Post:
By the end of his babbling, half the trembling of the Italian's shoulders and hands was from oxygen deprivation. If not for the tears blurring his vision he would have sworn that there were some black spots dancing in front of his eyes. He had been so grateful for the fact that Joseph had turned them slightly so he was almost completely hidden from the entryway. He didn't want to be seen like this, really he didn't. Granted, anyone walking in would immediately see something was wrong, hear him crying his eyes out over something as ridiculous as wanting his friendship with Ludwig to become something more. …Wouldn’t that just be sad? His best friend coming in and learning about Feliciano’s feelings because he was bawling them out to the blonde’s older brother? Absolutely pathe--
But then large hands, just moments before gently combing through his hair and cradling him close, wrapped tightly around Feliciano's shoulders and jerked them back so he wasn't slouched forward anymore. Squeaking slightly in shock, amber eyes snapped up to lock onto stern green, only standing out from the rest of the Germanic's blurry features because they were so bright. His surprise only slowed the tears from raging rivers to trickling creeks, but the harsh tone coaxed a slight wince from the brunette, as well as a few extra tears. He wanted to interrupt, he really did. Felicano was happy being friends with Ludwig, it was one of the best things that had happened to him, but the strong grip on his shoulders and the look boring into his eyes like a drill were great deterrents for the Italian, keeping him so silent he couldn’t even manage anything louder than a hiccup every now and then. Shifting just the slightest bit, eyes slowly drawn from the angry green eyes down, stopping on the lips that were spewing the words assaulting his ears, Feliciano could do more than see the tears. They were splattered on his thighs and he could feel one small puddle slowly beginning to soak the knees of his pants. "I-I really am happy t-to be friends..." He repeated one last time, voice shaking so badly and sounding so soft he was barely audible even to himself as his eyes welled up with even more tears. ‘Joseph, how am I supposed to just stop feeling guilty, though,’ he wanted to ask. Guilt is not a rushing emotion you can just turn on and off. Those emotions are parasite that eat at you and eat at you, until you’re a simple husk of a person filled with naught but regret and pain. They’re almost impossible to kill, so how do you just sto—
The Italian's attention was immediately dragged back to his cousin when the firm grip on his shoulders shook him once in a slight but still powerful move. Shoving away thoughts of guilt as best he could, amber eyes tried to focus on the swimming, blurry image of his cousin giving him what he assumed was still that stern, angry expression from before. But then he wished he hadn't. The first mention of 'coward' poked a flinch out of Feliciano, but the second tore a violent shudder from him as he lost focus on the rest of his cousin's words. Cowardice, coward, weak... those words were always tacked on him, weren't they? He was weak for accepting help during the last Italian wars. He was a coward for deciding to be a pacifist… And now a coward for not admitting his feelings for Lovino sooner, and now for trying to hide the reoccurring love for Ludwig again. Weak, coward, pathetic… Isn’t there a saying though…? The people, they say that cowards lived the longest, don’t they? They’re the ones who survive wars, live through controlling regiments, and manage to escape the horrors of life without much damage to themselves. The real question, though… Would he be able to live life like that, with the doubt and the-- He hadn't realized that he was drifting away again until one of those hands wrapped around his chin and painlessly jerked his head back up so he was facing Joseph again, this time unable to look away. No matter how much he wanted to. While the grip was painless, it hurt the brunette to have these words and truths shoved in his face. He felt too open, too exposed staring up into serious green eyes, but the grip on his jaw tightened slightly when he first tried closing his own so he had to deal with it, though he couldn't help letting out a soft sob and a few extra tears. He wanted to babble something about not being young, since he was only a century or two younger than the Bavarian, but the words wouldn't come. All that left his lips was a hoarse "Mi dispiace" as his chin was finally released. Curling in on himself just a little, arms going back to wrapping around his torso protectively, Feliciano could only continue to sob. He couldn't handle this. He needed those lies, didn't Joseph know that, wasn’t it obvious that having them torn away like this not going to end well?! He needed them to hide behind, to protect himself from the pain. They encased the hurt clawing at his chest , bundled it all up into a little bag so that he could hide each and every insecurity in the furthest corner of his mind. It was the only way the brunette could be usual self for everyone even when there were no distractions to be had. But now...now he couldn't even believe them anymore. Joseph's reasoning had completely smashed his flimsy foundations to the ground, leaving the 'structure' he protected himself with to crumble and burn away to ash. The heavy, numb but still so painful sensation in his chest felt like a Siberian snowstorm raging against his heart. He wasn't sure he could even speak anymore, his throat was so sore and his eyes ached and he was never going to be able to hide this from Ludwig when the blonde finally came downstairs.
The ice in his veins thawed slightly when once again he was pulled into a warm, though somewhat exasperated hug, and it did help him stop crying quite so hard as he curled against him again, still self-consciously hugging himself. "...I-I don't know if I can, Joseph..." He croaked, the words sounding so pained and raw and making his throat ache all the more for forcing them out. "I-I thi-- J-Joseph is r-right, h-he's always right, but... I don't k-know if I can..." There was no fight in him right now, not even to stop the tears from filling his eyes again as his cousin brushed them away from his face. He was so tired now, limbs and head feeling like they were made of lead as he slumped against Joseph's frame for support.
Did you read the rules?:
★ Eyebrows
★ Knife
★ Tomatoes
★ Rose
★ Freedom
★ Maple
The Player
Name: Storm
Timezone: GMT- 5 Eastern
