oraxia
in
calico_dnd
Dulzon Kaneel of Terkat
OOC Stuff: The background of Selville-Terkat is changing and shifting a bit--I still haven't nailed that part down to my liking, but I'm fleshing out some of the people that I like in the city. I wasn't originally going to do much of a background on the Dragonborn baker mentioned in Yvada's background, but he's grown on me a bit.
IC Background: The head baker and owner of Red Dragon Bakery, Dulzon Kaneel, was born human in New Calphanr, but is currently a red Dragonborn. His father, Bolo, ran the family bakery (Kaneel Bakery) and his mother, Maisy, was a local herbalist. Maisy had the misfortune of supplying the wrong herb to a powerful witch (both plants look very similar, and it was a case of mistaken identity), and the witch put a curse on her husband and toddler son, her most precious people, as a punishment for the problems the misidentified herb caused the witch (it made her gravely ill for a while). As such, Dulzon has only the vaguest of memories of being human and cannot himself remember what it was he looked like, although the family surmises that Bolo and Dulzon were turned into red Dragonborn on account of their red hair (Maisy is blonde).
While the morning this occurred was quite terrifying for the whole family, their love for each other kept them all together. The fear of the other citizens of the city, however, caused them to gather up their life's savings, sell the bakery, and take up the long journey to Terkat to start anew there, where they knew Bolo and Dulzon would be accepted and where they also might find a cure to the curse. They set up shop in the Warrens district of Selville-Terkat (behind the fire station), being the only place they could afford, and made do for several years as Dulzon grew up and began learning the trade of a baker from his father. Burdened by the guilt of her mistake's cost to her beloved husband and son, Maisy turned to religion and swore off gathering of herbs from the wild. Within a year of moving to Selville-Terkat, she was hired to tend the herb garden at Svedala's Spire, the temple to the eponymous goddess of wind, making friends with several of the priestesses there and spending a lot of time in prayer for help with her family's condition. While Bolo is openly unhappy with his condition, he has never blamed his wife, whom he continues to be just as deeply devoted to as she is to him. While Maisy and Bolo never stopped seeing the curse as a curse, growing up in the mixed city of Selville-Terkat and making friends like Mar Kua'Asta at Svedala's Spire through his mother (Mar had a very positive view of her different-ness) gave Dulzon a much healthier perspective on his so-called plight and, by the time he was a teenager, requested that his mother stop praying for him to be changed back because he was quite content with his Dragonborn body. She still prays for Bolo, and is still the gardener at Svedala's Spire. Mar Kua'Asta the Leonal is, to this day, probably Dulzon's closest friend and is something of an older sister figure to him.
In his apprenticeship to his father, Dulzon started off with never needing to use oven mitts to hold hot pans or place things in the oven (the way a human would) and quickly began creatively using his fire breath to modify/enhance the temperature of the traditionally wood-fueled bakery ovens. By the time he was in his late teens he had surpassed his father in baking skill, partially due to acceptance of the abilities his "cursed" form gave him and partially due to natural creativity. The business this brought to the new Kaneel Bakery in the Warrens eventually allowed the family to move to a nicer location in the Dandelion Quarter (district) of the city, close to the main drag of Terkat. Dulzon named the new bakery the Red Dragon Bakery, as someone proud of heritage-of-sorts, and his keen eye for presentation paired with catchy names for some of his confections has made the Red Dragon Bakery the most sought-after bakery in Selville-Terkat. His father was able to retire, and while he drops in from time to time to help his son out, Bolo is most often found fishing by Brackmoor Lake and occasionally in the sea.
At Red Dragon Bakery, Dulzon runs a tight ship and is known for his impeccable timing (and sense of time). He has several apprentices of his own now, as well as an accountant who keeps his financial records in order and helps him with budgeting, as Dulzon is not great at math. He is, however, literate and has wonderful penmanship, which adds to his confectionery decorating skills; he hand-writes all the item labels in the store-front portion of the shop, as well, as part of his fantastic presentation of his wares. While Dulzon will not hesitate to take command or be strict with his apprentices, he is typically jovial, generous, and also somewhat shy (at least when the topic is anything outside of the realm of the bakery). Growing up as a Dragonborn meant he was seldom picked on by anyone due to his intimidating appearance, and his naturally soft-spoken and gentle nature (inherited from Maisy) kept him from becoming a target for "alpha male" types--he has a reputation as a gentle giant. The Red Dragon Bakery is known for its sweets, but Dulzon's personal passion is bread (especially sourdough, where the crust is nice and chewy and the inside is fluffy and flavorful). He dislikes eating fish or really seafood of any kind, and his favorite color is red. Dulzon also cannot swim. He is not a braggart, but he does take a tremendous amount of pride in his skill as a baker and will not rest until he's managed to prove his skill if criticized. Thankfully, Dulzon understands very well that different people have different tastes and doesn't take offense if someone doesn't like a particular pastry or item--in fact, he is known for replacing the disliked item with something more to the customer's liking. (Legendary customer service!) He has a knack for figuring out a pastry/good that will be to a person's taste after asking just a few questions, although to be fair most people love most of his food so it doesn't happen all that often. Dulzon also has excellent memory and name recall, often remembering what a customer ordered on their last few visits, which can lead to him making suggestions or sneakily adding an extra new item he thinks a regular patron might like into their orders. Flattery, at least when pertaining to his baking skill, is something Dulzon enjoys deeply (perhaps as a function of having been changed into a red Dragonborn), and that is sometimes a good way to ensure you'll be getting an extra pastry for free in your order. Like most Dragonborn, however, you really can't tell what he's feeling from his facial expressions, but those who know him can gather his emotional state from his body language, which is still rather human.
While still working at the new Kaneel Bakery in the Warrens, Dulzon developed a deep crush on a young Tiefling Fire Brigadier with a penchant for cinnamon buns who would stop by the bakery on a regular basis. This Tiefling, Yvada Jacobsen, is now currently the Fire Chief of Selville-Terkat, and in spite of the trek from the fire station to the new bakery, she still goes there fairly regularly for cinnamon buns and other treats. He has thus far been too shy to make any move to make his feelings known or formally court Yvada (unless the occasional free cinnamon bun can be considered courting), but essentially the entire bakery and a good chunk of his clientele know about it to the point of occasionally applying some gentle ribbing (and the occasional playful threat from Mar to go tell her). It is probably a good thing Dulzon can't blush.
IC Background: The head baker and owner of Red Dragon Bakery, Dulzon Kaneel, was born human in New Calphanr, but is currently a red Dragonborn. His father, Bolo, ran the family bakery (Kaneel Bakery) and his mother, Maisy, was a local herbalist. Maisy had the misfortune of supplying the wrong herb to a powerful witch (both plants look very similar, and it was a case of mistaken identity), and the witch put a curse on her husband and toddler son, her most precious people, as a punishment for the problems the misidentified herb caused the witch (it made her gravely ill for a while). As such, Dulzon has only the vaguest of memories of being human and cannot himself remember what it was he looked like, although the family surmises that Bolo and Dulzon were turned into red Dragonborn on account of their red hair (Maisy is blonde).
While the morning this occurred was quite terrifying for the whole family, their love for each other kept them all together. The fear of the other citizens of the city, however, caused them to gather up their life's savings, sell the bakery, and take up the long journey to Terkat to start anew there, where they knew Bolo and Dulzon would be accepted and where they also might find a cure to the curse. They set up shop in the Warrens district of Selville-Terkat (behind the fire station), being the only place they could afford, and made do for several years as Dulzon grew up and began learning the trade of a baker from his father. Burdened by the guilt of her mistake's cost to her beloved husband and son, Maisy turned to religion and swore off gathering of herbs from the wild. Within a year of moving to Selville-Terkat, she was hired to tend the herb garden at Svedala's Spire, the temple to the eponymous goddess of wind, making friends with several of the priestesses there and spending a lot of time in prayer for help with her family's condition. While Bolo is openly unhappy with his condition, he has never blamed his wife, whom he continues to be just as deeply devoted to as she is to him. While Maisy and Bolo never stopped seeing the curse as a curse, growing up in the mixed city of Selville-Terkat and making friends like Mar Kua'Asta at Svedala's Spire through his mother (Mar had a very positive view of her different-ness) gave Dulzon a much healthier perspective on his so-called plight and, by the time he was a teenager, requested that his mother stop praying for him to be changed back because he was quite content with his Dragonborn body. She still prays for Bolo, and is still the gardener at Svedala's Spire. Mar Kua'Asta the Leonal is, to this day, probably Dulzon's closest friend and is something of an older sister figure to him.
In his apprenticeship to his father, Dulzon started off with never needing to use oven mitts to hold hot pans or place things in the oven (the way a human would) and quickly began creatively using his fire breath to modify/enhance the temperature of the traditionally wood-fueled bakery ovens. By the time he was in his late teens he had surpassed his father in baking skill, partially due to acceptance of the abilities his "cursed" form gave him and partially due to natural creativity. The business this brought to the new Kaneel Bakery in the Warrens eventually allowed the family to move to a nicer location in the Dandelion Quarter (district) of the city, close to the main drag of Terkat. Dulzon named the new bakery the Red Dragon Bakery, as someone proud of heritage-of-sorts, and his keen eye for presentation paired with catchy names for some of his confections has made the Red Dragon Bakery the most sought-after bakery in Selville-Terkat. His father was able to retire, and while he drops in from time to time to help his son out, Bolo is most often found fishing by Brackmoor Lake and occasionally in the sea.
At Red Dragon Bakery, Dulzon runs a tight ship and is known for his impeccable timing (and sense of time). He has several apprentices of his own now, as well as an accountant who keeps his financial records in order and helps him with budgeting, as Dulzon is not great at math. He is, however, literate and has wonderful penmanship, which adds to his confectionery decorating skills; he hand-writes all the item labels in the store-front portion of the shop, as well, as part of his fantastic presentation of his wares. While Dulzon will not hesitate to take command or be strict with his apprentices, he is typically jovial, generous, and also somewhat shy (at least when the topic is anything outside of the realm of the bakery). Growing up as a Dragonborn meant he was seldom picked on by anyone due to his intimidating appearance, and his naturally soft-spoken and gentle nature (inherited from Maisy) kept him from becoming a target for "alpha male" types--he has a reputation as a gentle giant. The Red Dragon Bakery is known for its sweets, but Dulzon's personal passion is bread (especially sourdough, where the crust is nice and chewy and the inside is fluffy and flavorful). He dislikes eating fish or really seafood of any kind, and his favorite color is red. Dulzon also cannot swim. He is not a braggart, but he does take a tremendous amount of pride in his skill as a baker and will not rest until he's managed to prove his skill if criticized. Thankfully, Dulzon understands very well that different people have different tastes and doesn't take offense if someone doesn't like a particular pastry or item--in fact, he is known for replacing the disliked item with something more to the customer's liking. (Legendary customer service!) He has a knack for figuring out a pastry/good that will be to a person's taste after asking just a few questions, although to be fair most people love most of his food so it doesn't happen all that often. Dulzon also has excellent memory and name recall, often remembering what a customer ordered on their last few visits, which can lead to him making suggestions or sneakily adding an extra new item he thinks a regular patron might like into their orders. Flattery, at least when pertaining to his baking skill, is something Dulzon enjoys deeply (perhaps as a function of having been changed into a red Dragonborn), and that is sometimes a good way to ensure you'll be getting an extra pastry for free in your order. Like most Dragonborn, however, you really can't tell what he's feeling from his facial expressions, but those who know him can gather his emotional state from his body language, which is still rather human.
While still working at the new Kaneel Bakery in the Warrens, Dulzon developed a deep crush on a young Tiefling Fire Brigadier with a penchant for cinnamon buns who would stop by the bakery on a regular basis. This Tiefling, Yvada Jacobsen, is now currently the Fire Chief of Selville-Terkat, and in spite of the trek from the fire station to the new bakery, she still goes there fairly regularly for cinnamon buns and other treats. He has thus far been too shy to make any move to make his feelings known or formally court Yvada (unless the occasional free cinnamon bun can be considered courting), but essentially the entire bakery and a good chunk of his clientele know about it to the point of occasionally applying some gentle ribbing (and the occasional playful threat from Mar to go tell her). It is probably a good thing Dulzon can't blush.