Character Survey of Doom

[bitterguardian]

Body and Appearance
1. Describe the character's height and build. Is he heavyset, thin, short, rangy?
According to IMDB, Alfred Molina is 6-foot-two-and-a-half-inches, and he's a big guy in general build.
Horvath is kind of a bear of a man, tall and heavy, just a little overweight but with the kind of stocky build that means he'd still be a big guy if he lost weight. If he were actually fit he'd be intimidating, but he's slow-moving and has some extra padding so he doesn't usually give the impression of being hulking or imposing much. Still, big.

2. How old is he?
Physically, he's somewhere around forty or maybe just a little past. There may be a tiny hint of grey here and there.
Chronologically he was born in 534AD, and he's living in 1998 right now so that puts him at... really too damn old. 1,464 according to my calculator. Some days he feels like it.

3. Describe his posture. Does he carry himself well or does he slouch?
He's fairly straight-backed and dignified, even though he uses a cane.

4. How is his health? Is he fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities?
Horvath is just slightly overweight but definitely out of shape. This isn't entirely his fault. His left leg is missing from just a little below the knee, and although he has a very nice prosthetic that lets him look fairly normal, it means he's not a fast or agile mover. Exercise is downright difficult. He's heavy because he's a slow mover and spends a lot of time sitting with his books. He's also got a stocky build so there's probably some genetics at work there, too. He's not an especially big eater, and he does try to watch his cholesterol and weight in a half-hearted way. He's pretty average on the 'getting sick' scale, or maybe a little better than average because he's not social and therefore not exposed to germs as much.

5. How does he move? Is he clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid?
Walking, he has kind of a slow almost rocking limp. The prosthetic leg supports him just fine, although it's not the most comfortable thing in the world, and it affects his balance which is more what the cane is for. Apart from his walking speed, though, his movements are fluid and controlled and usually very confident. Anyone who sees the limp and thinks of him as generally infirm may be setting themselves up for trouble. He can also walk short distances without the cane, although it takes more effort and is a little clumsy. Horvath prefers not to be clumsy.

6. How attractive is this character physically? How does he perceive himself in the mirror?
Attractiveness is so subjective. He's a big guy, with heavy eyebrows and a full face, but a narrow pointy crooked nose that looks like it may have been badly broken once. These are not classically attractive features. On the other hand he's always very neatly groomed, with a trimmed goatee and mustache and his hair is kind of wavy/curly and if you can get him to stop being dour for a few seconds and really smile he just could be a great big teddy bear.
Horvath knows he's not typically handsome, but he's resigned himself to that a long time ago. He does the best with what he has, and considers himself average enough. It's not something he worries about anymore, since he doesn't have even the remotest designs on romance.

7. Describe his complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred?
Clear and somewhere in the middle of Caucasian, neither dark or light. There's a whole lot of scars, in fact, but not on his face. He's been on more than one battlefield so he has more than his share, but mostly from the neck down and not much on his hands.

8. Describe his hair: color, texture, style.
Very, very dark brown to almost black, depending on the light and/or who you ask. It's wavy and even a little curly at the current length. He's worn it from long and loose to short and slicked back, depending on era. These days he keeps it fairly short, lets it be curly and do its own thing as long as it looks decent.

9. What color are his eyes?
Dark brown, but he has very thick, heavy eyebrows and frowns a lot, so in shadow they may read as black.
There is some serious baggage under them.

10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features?
Well there's the missing leg, and the pointy/crooked nose, and the general bigness. He's actually a noteworthy guy, if someone needed to describe him to somebody else, physically.

11. What are his chief tension centers?
Mostly his back, which may partly be because of the prosthetic leg. His shoulders and neck get stiff after long nights over books.

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?
Horvath tends to dress in neutrals and dark colors, but he goes for very tailored, well-made clothes. There's a lot of suits and vests in his closet, some of them pretty old but well made enough that they're still in decent shape. He's not exactly a fashion plate, but he does tend to come off looking like a wealthy businessman. Possibly from the 1940's/50's. He figures he can get away with that because styles haven't changed all that much. A lot of his stuff is custom tailored, partly because of his size and partly because he does care.
At home he may relax and dress a little more casually, which means slacks, a button-down shirt, and usually a vest. That and rolling up his sleeves is about as casual as it gets. Most people never get to see him that way.

13. Do his clothes fit well? Does he seem comfortable in them?
See above about the custom tailoring, I think I covered this already.

14. Does he dress the same on the job as he does in his free time? If not, what are the differences?
He doesn't precisely have a job, in the traditional sense. Out of doors he usually wears a nice long coat and a hat, unless it's summer, in which case just a suit will do.

15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando?
I'm thinking boxers would be easier with the prosthetic.

Speech
1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse?
It runs the full range of baritone, but mostly the deeper end, very rich and smooth.

2. How does he normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does he talk easily, or does he hesitate?
When Horvath gets going he's almost melodious. He's never particularly taken to music but his speech tends to be very fluid and expressive, emotive. He likes to talk, and he does it well.

3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics?
To the American ear, he has an indistinct European accent, not really British but definitely well-traveled. On the other hand anybody European would probably notice a few Americanisms slipped in. He's very eloquent, but he does ramble sometimes.

4. What language/s does he speak, and with how much fluency?
Lots, because he is very well-traveled. English is his default these days, but he does know German, Russian, Welsh, Spanish, French, Greek, Mandarin, and who knows what else. He may be rusty on some of these, but he has spoken them each fluently at some point in his life. Also Latin.

5. Does he switch languages or dialects in certain situations?
He'll switch to whatever language seems appropriate to the situation, assuming he knows/can remember it well enough.

6. Is he a good impromptu speaker, or does he have to think about his words?
He's a very good impromptu speaker, although at times he may start to ramble off topic and have to corral himself back in.

7. Is he eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change?
Generally he's very eloquent, and he's really not given to swearing much, apart from the occasional 'damn'. Extremely emotional moments may make him falter, but he tries to avoid those for a lot of reasons, that among them.

Mental and Emotional
1. How intelligent is this character? Is he book-smart or street-smart?
High IQ and sorcery go hand in hand, at least in his world. He started out clever and observant, and later got the book learning and practical education to push him further. He's both book-smart and street-smart, although he's a little behind the times on what the modern street is like. He can handle muggers, for instance, and come out ahead, but he has no idea what they're saying when it comes to the lingo.

2. Does he think on his feet, or does he need time to deliberate?
Horvath is slow on his feet physically, but mentally he more than makes up for it. He prefers to research things and form plans, but if there's no time for that it doesn't really bother him, and he's fairly used to having to come up with things on the fly.

3. Describe the character's thought process. Is he more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical?
Very logical and pragmatic, to the point where some people find him too cold and practical.

4. What kind of education has the character had?
A wide variety, really. In his early life what passed for a fine education was reading some and knowing the basics of swordplay and courtly manners. From that he went to Merlin's tutelage, where he learned to read Latin and English and other languages besides, sorcery, and the very real-world practical lessons that came with that. Merlin didn't just teach by the book, he also took his apprentices with him out in the field where they sometimes had to apply what they knew to save their own skins, or other people's. He's gone on with both book learning and hands-on not-always-voluntary learning through the rest of his life.

5. What are his areas of expertise? What, if anything, is he interested in learning more about?
Magic in general is his area of expertise, but that's still a very broad field. He likes elements, and physics and how they interconnect with magic. He used to be quite a good swordsman, but gave it up due to both the change of times and the injury that's made it more or less impossible to pursue.

6. Is he an introvert or an extrovert?
He's an introvert, content to be shut up alone for days or even weeks at a stretch. While he doesn't actually dislike people, he does find that he has a habit for rubbing a lot of people the wrong way, and he refuses to change himself to the point that would fix that, so it's easier to just get on with things alone. He does love to talk at people. It's possible that's partly because he spends so much time alone.

7. Describe the character's temperament. Is he even-tempered or does he have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven?
For the most part Horvath usually comes off as very dour and grim, even cold. He came from a very serious upbringing, lived in very serious times, and leads a very serious life. This doesn't mean he's humorless, but even that tends to be sarcastic and dry so people don't always catch it for what it is. He's not driven, exactly, although he takes his quest in guarding the Grimhold and seeking the Prime Merlinian very seriously. He's better at the guarding part, and not too proactive about the second half. His cool, dignified manner has made for conflict with a lot of apprentices before, so he dreads having to teach another one, especially one that's so important. Privately he's afraid he'll eff it up.

8. How does he respond to new people or situations? Is he suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic?
Outwardly he may seem relaxed, but he tends to take his mental space and assess any new situation at first. He may do this while actively conversing, but he tends to be pretty reserved until he knows what's what. He also projects confidence and dignity whenever possible, which can put some people off.

9. Is he more likely to act, or to react?
Despite all the confidence and how in-control he likes to be of situations, he's more of a 'react' person in the broader scale of life. He has a history of hiding and guarding and taking on Morganians when they come after him, rather than seeking out fights. There have been some deviations from this, but the most notable was his taking a more active role in fighting in World War I and an attack from an old enemy lost him part of a leg there, so that may have left him more circumspect again.

10. Which is his default: fight or flight?
He'll go for flight if the danger isn't immediate, preferring to retreat to a spot of safety, but if it's any kind of situation where a fight can't be avoided he's very capable of standing up to it. Again, he prefers to choose his ground if possible. He also feels that his ability to flee is severely hampered in a very real sense, anyway.

11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does he appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks?
Horvath can come off as a very humorless guy to anyone that doesn't know him, but he actually has a very strong sense of humor that just tends to dry wit and sarcasm. Wordplay and more sophisticated jokes appeal to him, and he's been known to toe the line between teasing and insult. If his sense of humor is a little dark and bitter, that's only a reflection of what his life has been like.

12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does he deal with them?
Diagnosable, or diagnosed? Horvath definitely has some personality quirks that are borderline tendencies. He also suffers from depression over his past and current situation, but he's very much of the 'bottle it up and keep going' school of thought.

13. What moments in this character's life have defined him as a person?
Well this could take a while...
The first event that shaped Horvath's life happened before he was born, in the form of his father not being his mother's husband. His father was a lord, a landholder with a title if not a big one. Whether his mother had an affair or was raped by another man he's never really known, although his father was quick to imply it was the first one. She died shortly after giving birth to him, so he never knew her side of things. There was an older brother who was a legitimate heir, and he was frequently reminded, growing up, that he was illegitimate and second born and basically still in the family only by his father's charity. He was a very serious, reserved child because of this.
When he was roughly eight Merlin discovered him while passing through the area, and staying in his father's castle. His power was significant enough and his situation distressing enough for Merlin to take him on as his own apprentice, possibly afraid of what dark paths the boy might go down otherwise.
For six years he had Merlin to himself, but when he was around fourteen Merlin apprenticed a boy named Belshazzar Ap Lake. He resented having to share attention, but the younger apprentice managed to win him over and they became both best friends and competitive rivals. Not too long after, Merlin brought the number of his apprentices up to three with Veronica Gorloisen, and the trio were close friends and partners through a number of disasters. Over time, Horvath became aware that Veronica and Belshazzar had something more than friendship growing between them, and in turn a slow rift came between him and the pair of them. Unfortunately just as Belshazzar had fallen in love with Veronica, so had Horvath, but her choice was clear. If he hadn't been so resentful, he might have caught on sooner that Morgana had caught Belshazzar (now anglicized to Balthazar) apart from them, on a mission, and revealed to him that a fight of Merlin's had caused the fire that killed his family, of which he was the only survivor and just after which Merlin discovered him. Whether or not it was true, the idea ate at Balthazar's mind and soul, and turned him away from their teacher. First to see the path he was turning down, Veronica first tried to convince him otherwise, alone, then tearfully told Balthazar she would not follow him down the dark path he had chosen. The trio was thoroughly broken, and although Veronica turned to Horvath for comfort as a friend, it was obvious to him there would never be any romantic feeling for him from her. He felt responsible for the mess though, as the eldest, as Balthazar's best friend, and because his own jealousy had kept him from realizing what was going on until it was too late.
Balthazar betrayed them both and Merlin by letting Morgana past wards to create a confrontation between her and his own teacher, in a misguided sense of justice. This resulted in Merlin's death, and Morgana and Veronica being imprisoned together in the Grimhold. The only one left loyal and able, Horvath was tasked with guarding the Grimhold and seeking the prime Merlinian.
The subsequent running and hiding and battling Morganians certainly shaped Horvath's life. Over time he came around to deciding this defensive position really wasn't in the spirit of what he should be doing, and he started to take a more proactive approach to life in general. This culminated in his fighting for England in World War I, but in the aftermath of a fight he encountered Balthazar on the battlefield. Their encounters over the centuries had shown his former-friend-turned-enemy progressively more unhinged, and on this encounter their brief but vicious fight severely injured Horvath. Balthazar fled the scene, and medics coming for the injured assumed Horvath had been near a landmine. The lower portion of his left leg was amputated and he spent long months recovering. On being released, he worked hard to get himself mobile and healthy enough, then sought out his old friend and imprisoned him in a kind of temporary stasis, deep in an ancient vault with magic wards.
In World War II Horvath was in America, helping scientists and peacemakers behind the scenes, and after he worked trying to convince scientists not to pursue nuclear weapons, albeit subtly and unsuccessfully. When he found the chance to return to deal with Balthazar, he was still unresolved on what to do to help him, and found he had arrived just a little too late and his friend was loose in the world once more.
Since then he's been sticking closer to his new York home, keeping his head down and worrying what to do about a lot of things.

Long history is long.

14. What does he fear?
I could probably come up with a handful of things, at least, but probably the biggest fear is that when it comes time to train the Prime Merlinian he will eff it up big time.
Horvath has had a number of apprentices over the millennium and some he's been alive, but because of his grim, serious manner, his lack of praise, and his generally hard-nosed approach to things he's run into a lot of trouble with most of them. A few times they outright turned against him, and a few others simply fled his teaching. It's not that he was intentionally mean to any apprentice, ever, but he's never properly learned how to be a warm and loving figure, which is what many apprentices are at least subconsciously looking for. It's ironic because that's something he himself looked to Merlin for, as a boy, and he was ultimately disappointed to realize his master was better than, but no replacement for the father he so wanted. Due to his bad experiences with apprentices, he hasn't taken on students any more often than he has to, and because he's not clear on why he's had such poor luck with them he's afraid the Prime Merlinian's apprenticeship will go badly, too. So much depends on the Prime Merlinian, though, that failing them as a teacher would be one-hundredfold the bad that it's been with any of his previous students.

15. What are his hopes or aspirations?
He has few to none left, which is probably a bad thing. Finding and training the Prime Merlinian without it ending in disaster, seeing some kind of peaceful resolution to Balthazar and Veronica's... thing, and retiring quietly are about all he hopes for, and his hope is a tenuous flimsy thing.

16. What is something he doesn't want anyone to find out about him?
Well he doesn't really like bringing the prosthetic leg to anyone's attention, but it's not really something he can get away with people not noticing. There are probably things in his past he'd rather not go into with anyone, especially the way he played run and hide for so long after Merlin's death. He feels like a coward for that, still.

Relationships
1. Describe this character's relationship with his parents.
Horvath never knew his real father, and his mother died from complications of his birth, so his stepfather was his only parental figure. He could have easily passed Horvath off to some peasants, or otherwise disowned him, since he was illegitimate, but he did not and that was a fairly impressive kindness for their time and station. On the other hand he was cold and distant and careful to remind the boy he was lucky to live under his roof.
When Merlin took him on as apprentice, Horvath subconsciously looked to him to be the affectionate father-figure he needed, but although he was much kinder to the boy, there were always subtle reminders it was a master-student relationship.

2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like?
Horvath had one half-brother, older, and it was always an antagonistic relationship. Even though Horvath was never a threat to his brother as the proper heir, he was subject to pranks and teasing, and if any trouble could be blamed on him it was.

3. Are there other blood relatives to whom he is close? Are there ones he can't stand?
No other blood relatives to speak of, period.

4. Are there other, unrelated people whom he considers part of his family? What are his relationships with them?
Balthazar and Veronica, and Merlin, were all more of a family to him than his blood relatives ever were. When they were younger, he thought of Balthazar and Veronica almost as brother and sister, until hormones and time made his feelings for Veronica evolve, and then jealousy drove a wedge between them and him. He still feels a kind of older-brother responsibility for Balthazar, even now that he's more or less an enemy.

5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet?
Balthazar has been Horvath's best friend almost since they first met. Initially he was leery of him and jealous of having to share Merlin's attention, but Balthazar was so unfailingly friendly and kind in the face of his cold shoulder that he won him over.

6. Does he have other close friends?
Not anymore. Veronica was still a friend, even if he wished she was more, but she's locked up in the Grimhold with Morgana.

7. Does he make friends easily, or does he have trouble getting along with people?
People have a hard time getting close to Horvath, because he's so grim and reserved, but if they're willing to fight their way through that he's not an unkind or cruel person. He's not completely aware of how off-putting his normal manner is, though, so that can make a lot of his interactions with people hard.

8. Which does he consider more important: family or friends?
Horvath would probably describe Merlin, Balthazar, and Veronica as family, even though technically they're not. Either way, they're the most important people in his long life.

9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has he been married more than once?
Single, and not looking. He's never been married, but he did have other romantic liaisons before he realized it was Veronica he really wanted.

10. Is he currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse?
Well since he doesn't have a spouses this question is kind of invalid. He may have had a few very brief encounters over the centuries, but nothing momentous.

11. Who was his first crush? Who is his latest?
Ohhh... probably some pretty handmaid or something when he was still a boy. Veronica is the last woman he's ever loved.

12. What does he look for in a romantic partner?
Strength of character, kindness, generosity, the patience and warmth to put up with him.

13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does he relate to them? If no, does he want any?
Nope... on all fronts. He does badly enough with apprentices, he'd be terrified of fatherhood. The thought really doesn't cross his mind anymore, though.

14. Does he have any rivals or enemies?
Balthazar is both, since Veronica chose him over Horvath as her love interest. That choice put a wedge in the friendship. It's possible the rift could have been mended, although not easily, but then Balthazar's choice of path made Veronica let him go, and turned to Horvath as a friend and older-brother figure, which probably didn't help. Spurred on by anger and despair, Balthazar betrayed them and Merlin to Morgana to force a confrontation, but he wasn't present for the fight. What he did learn was that Horvath was the only one to walk out of it alive, and knowing he'd caused the death of Merlin and possibly Veronica snapped Balthazar's mind. Much later he learned Veronica was trapped in the Grimhold with Morgana, and he turned to blaming Horvath for that act.
Since then Horvath and Balthazar have had a handful of vicious fights, with Balthazar's goal to get the Grimhold not for Morgana's sake, but for Veronica. He's no longer together enough to give a damn about Morgana or what might happen if she were accidentally released, he just wants the chance to have Veronica back and try for her forgiveness.

15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does he fall on the Kinsey scale?
Probably 0-1, just because that seems most likely...

16. How does he feel about sex? How important is it to him?
He's learned to get by without, and he learned that pretty early. Merlin's demands on his apprentices made them soldiers in a constant magical war, and they were all encouraged to put romance out of their minds. He's no virgin, but sex is something he generally doesn't look for or expect in his life.

17. What are his turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits?
Dark long hair, strong women, and warm-but-not-overly-squishy ways are a turn on, and bad manners, and soppy, maiden-in-distress stuff turns him off. He prefers women who are ladies but know their own mind over the willowy, frilly type.

At night, before bed, he takes off his leg. He usually leaves the sock and shoe on though, because it saves time in the morning.

Beliefs
1. Do you know your character's astrological (zodiac of choice) sign? How well does he fit type?
There's actually no canon birthdate for Horvath, but Taurus fits him perfectly, and not just because of the bull statue in the movie. That puts his birthday somewhere in Late April-Early May. Taurus is all about stubbornness, practicality, possessiveness, hard work and appreciation for material things. Possessiveness can turn to jealousy in romantic relationships, too, so that's all him all over.
By the Chinese zodiac he's the Tiger, which says he can be sensitive and deep (he is, under the cool exterior), with the stubbornness again.

2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in his life?
I'd sort of have to go with neither, although magic is possibly a kind of spiritualism. He appreciates some of the half-pagan half-Christian traditions he grew up with for holidays, but he's really not tied to any religion.

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?
He tries very hard to be in the moral/ethical right, and follow Merlin's teachings, but he's also acutely aware that even Merlin himself couldn't always hold to his own standards. Being conscious of his old master's failings doesn't really give him any excuse for himself, though, so he's his own worst critic there.
Sometimes he's had to make sacrifices of his ideals, such as choosing what's best for a greater majority over what's best for an individual, and it hurts and he may lose sleep over it for years, but he'll do it. He tries to choose the path that does the most good, but that's not always easy.
It's possible he'd compromise some of his ideals further to help the Balthazar of his world, because he feels he owes him, and failed him in the past for not realizing what was going on with Morgana bending Balthazar's ear until it was much too late.

4. How does he regard beliefs that differ from his? Is he tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent?
Living a long time and traveling all over has a way of building tolerance and respect for other cultures.

5. What prejudices does he hold? Are they irrational or does he have a good reason for them?
He's got a few old-fashioned ideas about a number of things, like chivalry and manners, but he's usually at least somewhat flexible and willing to move with the times. I wouldn't say they're irrational, just holdovers from earlier times.

Daily Life
1. What is the character's financial situation? Is he rich, poor, comfortable, in debt?
Horvath is very comfortable, with a stockpile of wealth in scattered bank accounts. He doesn't live extravagantly, although he does have a lot of nice things, but his possessions like his money are partly just a side effect of living a long time and being very practical. He doesn't draw on his savings any more than he needs to, and he does paid research work intermittently for both the non-Morganian magical community and non-magical clients. He's likely to be able to continue his current lifestyle indefinitely.

2. What is his social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected him?
I'm not sure social status is something that even applies to him. He came from the house of a wealthy landowner, but he didn't really stand to inherit much, and his role as a sorcerer has mostly put him outside the conventional status order. Among sorcerers who know what's what, he's the kind of figure talked about in hushed tones and looked on with awe or contempt, depending if the people talking are Morganians or not, but apart from that he's pretty much without a specific place in things.
Somebody ordinary passing him on the street would probably take him for a wealthy businessman, and treat him as such.

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?
He's lived a lot of places over the years, but he's currently turned an abandoned subway station into a big comfy underground lair, cut off from most conventional and magical entry. There's only one physical entrance, which involves several heavy locked doors and is accessed through a tunnel nobody is likely to go down, and his magical wards are a force to be reckoned with.
The original center of the place is a vault, in every sense of the word, where he keeps most of the more volatile magical artifacts he's been unlucky enough to collect over the years. He doesn't use them, he's just guarding them against anybody else who might do harm if they got their hands on them. There's a second, slightly newer and less heavily guarded vault for the stuff he does sometimes use, more of an armory. The rest of the place has been adapted into a big library/study that takes up the largest space, bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen. It's all a little clumsily spread out because of the existing structure he had to work from, and the kitchen was once upon a time a public bathroom, but he spent a long time remodeling to the point where it's a very nice place. There's no windows, of course, and it's very deep underground.
He shares his home with two cats, Whisper (grey and white) and Smoke (all grey), sisters of the same litter. There were feral cats in the place when he moved in, but he decided that letting them come and go was a dangerous breach in his magical security and ejected them all, except a pregnant one that hid in his closet. Eventually he sent her and the rest of her litter on their way, after the kittens were weaned, but he kept these two to control the vermin population, and because he is secretly a cat person.

4. Besides the basic necessities, what does he spend his money on?
Horvath does buy nice, tailored clothes, but only as needed. He's such a big guy, off-the-rack stuff doesn't fit him well enough for his taste. Apart from that, he does keep some alcohol stocked, which could be considered a luxury. Mostly vodka. He really doesn't buy much beyond the basics, except when he needs to buy a magical artifact to keep out of the wrong hands or something.

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?
He does research, magical and non-magical, for exclusive clients, and he's very good at it. It also helps him learn more about things he might not otherwise.

6. What are his interests or hobbies? How does he spend his free time?
Reading, mostly, and he does a lot of that, both for recreation and work. His free time doesn't usually look much different from his working time, really. He used to like swordplay, but losing a leg ruined his footwork so he had to give it up.

7. What are his eating habits? Does he skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods?
Horvath drinks at least a few times a month, but not to excess more than a few times a year, if that. He's got a high tolerance, but he doesn't mind a drink to relax after he's retreated home to patch up from a fight or something. Left to his own devices he forgets the schedule of days and nights, so he eats when he's hungry and sleeps when he's tired. He tries to eat in a marginally healthy fashion, avoiding too many eggs and trying not to load up on cholesterol or fatty things, and he's really not into junk food, but he's not strict about it either. He does do a lot of canned soup and sandwiches, because that's easy.

Associations
Which of the following do you associate with the character, or which is his favorite:

1. Color? Blue, brown, dark neutrals
2. Smell? Books and tea
3. Time of day? Evening
4. Season? Winter
5. Book? Unhhhh... his Encantus
6. Music? Medieval chamber music
7. Place? New York
8. Substance? Metal and paper
9. Plant? Trees- oak maybe?
10. Animal? Cats

END
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Well that only took 4 days.