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Harrison Arbuckle

Started by Griznuq, March 22, 2008, 09:51:38 PM

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Griznuq

NAME: Harrison Henshaw Arbuckle
AGE: 15
BIRTHDATE: 10.23.2116
SEX: M
CLASS: Cleric / Druid
HOUSE: dunno. Haven't read that thread yet. I'll get on it.

ATTRIBUTES: Harrison is 5'9" and 125lbs. His hair is a wavy light brown, his eyes are green. Very smart, very wise, and charismatic.

APPEARANCE: Harrison likes to be clean, Always has a fresh robe on. He typically wears his school robes. He wears glasses, and he's commonly seen with a book in one hand, and a critter at his side. He doesn't have a beard growing just yet, but a light sheen of peach fuzz.

REMARKS: Harrison is always sincere, but has a mischievous streak. If left alone, he'll likely try to make sure he runs into Emma. If that's not possible, he'll be out with one pet or another.

Harrison thinks that every animal should have a name. Naming them is like welcoming them into your family to him. He names just about every animal he comes in contact with, and remembers them all clearly.

FAMILY: Read below.

Note: Harrison will deny having a last name, so as not to associate with his father.




Harrison's Background




It was hot this summer, more so than usual, or so they said. It didn't bother Harrison much though. This was only his fourth summer, but he loved it! The crop was sparse this year, but Harrison was out there with a watering can nonetheless.

Jonah, Harrison's father had taken a job with Our Common's clergy. He was their newest priest, and proud as a peacock. Jonah's love for Kaine was almost as devout has his love for Harrison, and Harrison's mother, Eliza.

Today was Jonah's first trip of many into the town as a Priest of Kaine. He was to make the two day trip three times a month to help out in the city. He was talking of moving the farm closer to the city, but Harrison had no idea how such a thing was possible.

You couldn't just move a house, could you? His father always answered that question with "Of course," but Harrison suspected his father didn't understand the question... Either that, Harrison didn't understand the answer.

Eliza always had grown the most vibrant flowers in the window boxes that Harrison had ever seen. Granted, he hadn't seen many, since most of the plans he saw were to bear fruit and vegetables, but even still, her flowers always seemed to bloom larger and brighter than anyone else's.

Jonah left just after lunch for the City, so excited he almost forgot to hug Harrison on his way out. "You be good lad. Make Kaine proud while I'm gone," he said, mussing Harrison's hair. Jonah stood, put on his favorite riding cap and scooped a loaf of bread from the counter. Eliza had baked it for him and wrapped it in wax paper to keep it fresh.

Over the next two years, Harrison learned a lot. His mother began to teach him about plants, and Animals. "Nature's children," she called the animals. She showed Harrison how to care for animals, and how to grow plants.

When Jonah was home, he taught Harrison all about Kaine, and all about being a devout follower. Harrison could recite the stories back and forth, and even helped his father make healing salves for the patrols. Harrison thought that one day he would be a High Priest of Kaine.

While Jonah was not around though, Eliza talked to Harrison differently. When the lessons about caring for plants and animals had finished, she too talked about Kaine, but differently.

"Don't you find it a little farfetched," Eliza asked Harrison one fall  evening as they sat by the open wood stove. Harrison was seven years old now, and had a large Saint bernard, whom he liked to use as a giant pillow while he watched the flames.

"Fine what Farfetched, mother?"

"The stories about Kaine. How one man could possibly do all these things? Sometimes I think the stories are made up just to teach us all some morals."

"Mother!" Harrison exclaimed shocked. "Kaine is the reason we are all alive! To doubt him is blasphemy!" Eliza's face melted a little bit. "Harrison, it is human nature to ask questions. I'm not without belief, I just could imagine having to do what Kaine did."

She sighed, "I guess that's why he's Kaine and I'm not, huh?" Her tone was bland, even to seven year old Harrison. He was a little bit confused by the discussion and her manner. If she believed, why ask questions like that?

He settled back down into Gunthar's sleeping furry belly. Harrison loved both of his parents very much, and never doubted either one. His mother's next words were very difficult to understand, but he obeyed them. "We can talk about things like this Harrison, you and I. But you must understand, your father's job makes it difficult to talk to him about these things. Don't ever mention anything like this to him. You understand?" Harrison agreed.

When Jonah returned the next day, he did not wear the usual look of satisfaction he always wore when returning home. Tonight, he wore a look of concern.

Harrison went to bed that night as usual, but stayed awake and listened as hard as he could. His parents were talking in very hushed tones, and they were hard to hear. All Harrison could gather was that his father was confused by something.

"Ah, it's probably just my imagination wandering away with me. A silly fancy, nothing more," said Jonah, no longer hushed.

"You should always listen to your gut, beloved," Eliza said. "But enough of the business talk, I've missed you. Come relax by the fire."

Over the next year, each time Jonah returned he seemed more and more distant. He wouldn't talk about it with Harrison, and talked less with Eliza. By Harrison's ninth birthday, Jonah would arrive home and go into his study. Harrison was no longer allowed in that room.

Discussions between Eliza and Jonah became heated, Jonah clutching to his faith, Eliza telling him his instincts might not be wrong.

"Harrison," Eliza said one night, a couple hours after Jonah had left for one of his trips into the city.

"Yes mother?"

Eliza drew the boy in close, and looked into his eyes. Harrison could read the concern in his mother's face. "Something is wrong, isn't it mother," Harrison stated, more than asked.

She was quite for another few moments, and finally answered, "Yes. Something is wrong." She took a deep breath and released her son. "It's time for you to learn a few things, my son."

Eliza handed Harrison a small bowl full of soil, and held in a seed in front of him. "Look at it," she said.

Harrison studied the seed until his mother pushed it down into the soil in the bowl Harrison held. "Look at me," she instructed. He looked at his mother, locking stares.

"Think of the seed, Harrison. Feel the bowl in your hands, the soil in it moist with life giving water. The seed is absorbing the water. Feel the seed... feel it as though it were a part of you, drinking water, absorbing nutrients, growing roots...

Harrison's gaze was locked by his mother's, though he saw nothing. In his mind, the seed sat in darkness, changing.

"Harrison," Eliza's voice shook him from his trance. He looked at the bowl in his hands. A foot long stem jutting out of the soil wagged in front of him. Shocked, he dropped the bowl, and it crashed to the floor. Harrison thought for sure his mother was going to be angry. She barely seemed to notice.

Eliza watching his face as he tried desperately to comprehend what had just happened. "It's you son, you made that grow. You are something this government and religion says is wrong. I've known for a long time, I saw the same spark in you that I have in me."

Magic! Harrison could perform magic, and from what he just heard, his mother could to.

"Harrison, no one knows, but you and I. Not even your father. Telling him would complicate things, and he's confused right now anyway. I don't know where it comes from, but I know it's not from Kaine. I can only show you what I know, if you're willing to learn it." Her eyes pleaded with him.

Harrison nodded. Over the next couple of months, Harrison learned more than he ever thought possible. By his tenth birthday, Harrison knew everything his mother knew.

The spring of his tenth year, his mother stood at the window in the kitchen, looking at a small sparrow that had landed on the sill. She was sad. Harrison knew something was very wrong. His father was due back the night before, but hadn't returned.

Harrison went to bed that night, tucked in by his mother. She hadn't tucked him in to bed in years. "Hold on to what you are, Harrison. Never let go of it. Do what they tell you, but don't believe it all. Keep the children of nature at your side, for they know something's amiss." She kissed his forehead, and he went to sleep, hearing her last words, "I love you."

The next morning when Harrison woke, his mother was not there. Instead, Jonah stood at the foot of the stairs wearing his ceremonial robes. "Come down here son," he said. There were two other men with him, both priests.

"Your mother is dead, Harrison. I'm sorry. Wolves apparently attacked the sheep in the night and she went out to fight them off. She was unsuccessful." There were no feelings in Jonah's words. Harrison didn't believe it, but he remembered her words from the night before.

"You will be placed in the care of the Orphanage, son. I cannot raise you myself, Kaine requires... Deserves too much of my time.

Harrison took his father's words as affirmation; Jonah was no longer Harrison's father. "Ok Jonah," Harrison tested, fully expecting the priest's hand to fly. Nothing had come.

"Come Gunthar," he called the dog, who obediently obeyed. The other priest grabbed Harrison's arm roughly. "Listen here boy, I'm in charge of the Orphanage. You will obey our rules. That dog stays here. Your father will take care of it." The words hung in the air with more meaning than Harrison cared for.

Harrison defiantly looked at the man's hand, and then at his father. Jonah stood rigid, though he looked away from Harrison's judging stare.

"If those are the rules, I shall abide them," Harrison said in a tone that spoke of obedience, though his face scowled in contempt. The man returned the glare with a similar one. Satisfied, the man let go, and ushered the boy out the door, to a waiting carriage.

With a quick gesture, and a small grunt, Harrison pet the dog's head, and Gunthar made a break for the door. The big dog was out the door and gone.

The man looked at Harrison piercingly. Harrison said only, "I think he saw a rabbit."

There were tracks beside this one, only they were different. They were not made by the wheels of this carriage, they were just a bit thicker. There was a second carriage, one that no doubt left with his mother.

Harrison looked to the sheep pen. There was one dead sheep, and one dead wolf. Harrison knew that wolves only hunted in packs. If his father's words were true, there'd be more dead sheep.

"One wolf got away Harrison, a cub. You'll be safer at the Orphanage anyway," Jonah explained. Harrison rolled his eyes. As if he'd be afraid of a wolf cub. Harrison never noticed how out of place his father really was this far from the city where he'd grown up. Jonah didn't belong with nature's children.

Harrison let himself be lead into the wagon. The man climbed into the driver's seat.

"The trip to the city is a couple of days by Wagon, there's food in the chest," Jonah said through the window. "Good luck, boy," was the last thing his father said before turning back into the house. Harrison heard the sound of breaking glass from inside the house. Harrison knew it was his mother's oil lamp. Harrison knew that his father must have found out about the magic, but he didn't know it was in Harrison too. Harrison's mother had pushed too hard.

Looking out the window as the wagon rolled away, Harrison saw tendrils of smoke rising from the house. He knew it wasn't from the wood stove.

He looked away from the house at the country side. A flash of gray caught his eye, as a wolf cub darted from behind tree to tree, easily keeping up with the wagon. Harrison hoped that the driver never saw it.

Over the next few years, Harrison spent as much time as possible as far from the orphanage as he was allowed, and he played with the wolf cub, which he named Logan, as often as possible.

Harrison never saw the man who claimed to be in charge of the orphanage again, though he suspected he would, and when he did, Harrison would have a nice surprise for him.

Jonah never came to see Harrison, which frankly was fine by Harrison.

The youngster took every opportunity to learn. He was always reading books. He surrounded himself with animals when possible.

He also keep the abilities he'd learned from his father so many years ago, but privately taught himself to shape them for his own purposes. These things were separate from the things he learned from his mother.

He learned he had a power over life. He could use it to help him influence people, gain knowledge, heal wounded children of nature, or even help them pass from this life to the next when they were too badly hurt.

All of this, he kept a secret. There was no one he could trust, though he had his eye on one girl. Emma seemed different than most. He liked her, he found. She would become a good friend of his, and eventually introduce him to the Whisper Guild.

In a world where he felt he was the only biped of his kind, the revelation that there were many others was exciting. Harrison decided that he'd give this Guild a shot. Especially since that meant he could spend more time with Emma.

(BTW. Harrison doesn't want to be associated with his father, so he typically claims not to know his last name.)
=]V[=

Dray

Please give me a birthdate (insert above). FYI, you were 10 during 04.19.2127 - "White Rascal" which is a thread that spans about a month. So some day 11 years minus a few months after this thread occurs would be good. (That statement brought to you buy Calculus II at NEU).

Johan

You might even consider to make it BEFORE the White Rascal thread, not AFTER, as the GM suggests.

Just spitballing here...
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