.ooc [ stats. ]
APPEARANCE: One look at Peony would reveal something rather obvious about him - he looks nothing like what you would expect in someone of such a high position. The one true thing he has going for him is the somewhat noble quality to his facial features. He is quite the handsome man, and doesn't bother to hide that fact in his speech. Not that he's overly concerned about his looks, nor does he mention it all that much. Facial appearance aside, he could be considered a very strange man, indeed. His skin has a very tanned look to it, giving him an almost exotic vibe. That, or he most definitely spent a good amount of time in a town where snow didn't almost constantly fall from the sky. Despite his skin tone, he has stick straight blond hair, varying in length from his forehead, where it falls over his eyes in long bangs, to just below his shoulders. A medium-length piece of hair to the left of his face constantly displays a dull aqua, inch-long bead.
When it comes to his dress, the Emperor is rather... Eccentric. Instead of the finest of finery a fine country like Malkuth could offer, he wears something that looks like he stole off of a homeless man. Well, a rather clean homeless gentleman who happens to be a hippie. The top of his body displays a three-quarter sleeve navy blue shirt, on top of which is a baggy, slightly bluish tinted shirt. A gold, decorative border circles the neck and sleeves of the upper shirt. His lower half, however, is far more decorated. Sandals are almost always on his feet, above which brown pants with yellow, criss-crossed straps cover the majority of his legs. Over his pants, a not-quite-blue wrap is held around his waist by a belt that's... Not quite a belt. More like an excuse to include more gold in his outfit, with straps draped off the side of the belt, off of which thin, rectangular gold pieces hang.
PERSONALITY: To put things rather simply, Peony is the sort of person that you either find yourself admiring, or quickly wanting to push away. He's a rather boisterous man that has no fear in sharing his opinion, whether or not it will end up fairing so well in the mind of others. And his opinion, usually, is the sort you may not be so willing to hear. Nevertheless, his laid-back manner of speech drags people to him, giving everyone that sort of relaxed feeling that you certainly wouldn't expect to feel around someone of such a high status. That is, if he isn't saying things to purposely make you feel a little uncomfortable, wanting to eventually produce a laugh from his ridiculously un-Emperor-like behavior. The better reactions you give, the more he will attempt to get under your skin, to pester you until you're either both in laughter or one of you has given up and changed subjects for the better. Peony isn't really one to simply let things drop, so expect such a thing to take a good, long while. Actually, expect any conversation to last beyond what you would expect with him. His naturally charismatic and flirty nature isn't something you can so easily look away from, and he's not one to let someone go so quickly. And rarely, if ever, does he think a situation has gone awkward before the other party had.
Getting his way doesn't take an awful lot of effort with him. Thank that same charismatic nature mentioned above, it's almost impossible to talk Peony out of a decision after he's made it. You have to be really lucky or extremely close to him in order to have your way so quickly. Otherwise, expect it to be the Emperor's way or the highway. On the same note, it can be rather difficult to talk him into doing something. He needs some massive persuasion to sometimes do the simplest of things.
One look at him would reveal him to be a rather eccentric man with very odd tastes. His clothing is just one example of how strange a person he can be. There's also the massive weapon collection strewn around his bedroom, and the dear little rappigs that occupy the same space. Being sickeningly normal just isn't something that he was meant to be, and he makes no effort to change himself as so many would like him to.
As a special note, Peony considers himself to be best friends with Jade Curtiss. To accomplish such a feat is remarkable in and of itself, particularly considering how long they have been friends. He is truly one of the only people alive that can prod a reaction out of Jade that isn't some sort of snark, which is quite the accomplishment in and of itself. It's just one way to show the kind of person that the Emperor is; He's loud, he's daring, he's over affectionate in his words, and he is absolutely, positively not afraid of anyone, particularly Jade.
ABILITIES/STRENGTHS: While lacking the ability in his manner of dress and way of speech to show that he's Emperor material, he comes through and breaks all doubt with his sheer dedication to the position. Peony wants to be in charge of his dear country of Malkuth. He has dedicated his life to gaining the position, and didn't exactly slack off when it finally came to be. He may seem lazy to those that have no idea what he's contributed to the world of Auldrant, yet to those that do know, he's absolutely perfect for the position. His charismatic nature lends to the perfect personality for the job to get done. Paired up with the knack for making the best (although, as it were, many people tend to insist they are the worst until proven utterly and completely wrong) decisions for his country, he truly is the right man to hold the title of Emperor. (Now, if he could only be immortal...)
To go along with that, he's actually rather intelligent despite his ability to not bother showing it. Of course, he's no where near Jade or Saphir, just close enough to have fit in perfectly within Gelda Nebilim's classes. He particularly excels in the field of witty humor that even is enough to stop words from leaving Jade Curtiss' mouth.
Also, he gives rappigs a good name. Please to be not eating the precious babies.
WEAKNESSES: A major weakness he has is his inability to move on from the first love of his life, Nephry Balfour (now Osborne). So focused in marrying Nephry was Peony that to this day, he has nearly refused to find someone that could possibly fill her place in his heart. This leaves him in a very vunerable position considering who will be the one to take over his place on the throne once he passed from the world. His family wouldn't certainly be let down, and the Malkuth line would come to an abrupt end. Peony was so focused on finding Ms. Right that he looked past the idea that a man in his position shouldn't so much be concerned with love and more the future.
There's also the fact that he's sometimes looked at as inferior for his relaxed manner of speech, even to the most important of individuals. His idea that his way of speaking shouldn't matter next to his ability to rule has a good way of coming back to bite him in the ass.
Oh, and have I mentioned that he's not so good at protecting himself? Although he has some ability to wield a sword (and a slight ability with a spear, thanks to a certain Colonel), he's not so amazing as to be able to win a battle with those that would be likely to target him. This specific weakness was what eventually cost him his life.
HISTORY: There's nothing all too amazing or grand about Peony's history... Sort of.
Unlike emperors before him, he did not grow up within the city of Grand Chokmah. Because of disputes over who would rightfully take over the position once there was no one to fill the space, Peony was whisked away to live in the always cold town of Keterburg. Some would question this judgment, considering the town was also very much a resort town for nobles, but no violence or otherwise terrible acts were committed upon young Peony while he grew up there. The closer you are to danger, the farther you are from harm, so to speak.
Having the experience of living in Keterburg brought forth an interesting mixture of very good and very bad for the future emperor. He was almost confined within a home of his owns, guards positioned outside at all times of night and day to keep those that intended to harm the young heir to the throne out, and keep him inside. Peony, however, simply couldn't have allowed this to happen. After a certain Jade Balfour used young and gullible Saphir Wyon Neis to distract the guards outside of his home, thus sneaking in and meeting young Peony, his rebellious attitude was suddenly sparked. It wasn't long until he was sneaking out of his house by day to attend school along with Jade, masquerading under the name of his older brother, Franz. Paired with the story of having Chesedonian merchants for parents, no one seemed to do much questioning of him. He continued to sneak out to spend time with Jade, Jade's younger sister Nephry, and Saphir, and continued to attend classes as he wanted. They all seemed to be growing up well enough, and growing up among the three was bringing much good to the Emperor-to-be.
Until the untimely death of Professor Nebilim, that is. A lot of more things than he ever wanted seem to change with that one incident. He could only watch from the sidelines, entirely unsure of what exactly it was that Jade and Saphir were trying to accomplish. With not much excuse for him to sneak out of his prison of a home anymore, he spent more and more time indoors. Eventually, Jade was adopted into the revered Curtiss military family, and was soon whisked off to attend more schooling in a place that most definitely wasn't Keterburg. Saphir predictably followed after him. He was left alone in Keterburg with Nephry, though they did not spend much time together. Time passed, and it eventually became known to Peony that Jade had moved on from school and into the military. Knowing that Nephry would be well aware of the same thing and still considering their friendship very much in-tact, he used a trusty source of his to gain information as to her brother's where-abouts and his safety. This is when his habit of sneaking out began once again, and he would go to her window by night to deliver her the information he had gathered. There time spent together in this way was severely constrained, which led to the eventual trading of letters between the two of them.
And, thus, the tragic love story between Peony and Nephry began.
Years passed and letters continued to be exchanged between them. They grew closer and closer, eventually breaking past the lines of friendship into something much, much more. As luck always has it, it was around this time that the brother he had been pretending to be all those years died, leaving the throne unoccupied. Peony's time in Keterburg came to a close, and he was brought back to Grand Chokmah to be prepped to take the position that was rightfully his. Despite being reunited with what had been his childhood best friend, Jade, and being busy with learning the true law of the land, he kept in close contact with Nephry. He very much loved her with every bit of his heart, and had every intention to eventually marry her. Except, you know, until the news that he couldn't possibly marry a commoner such as herself was broken to him. Followed up by the Score declaring that Nephry would be marrying a man that wasn't Peony within the next year, their relationship had come to a brick wall. Despite all attempts to get Nephry to change her mind, it failed. She married another man, leaving Peony alone, unwed, and the new Emperor to the country of Malkuth.
There wasn't much that happened in the long years to come. Even while his best friend was off helping to save the world from destruction, he spent the majority of the time within the safety of Grand Chokmah, again forced to watch from the sidelines. He was surely living the boring life of someone who ruled a country (if you completely ignored the few and far between assassination plots and scandal - that's where the real action lie). Nevertheless, he was mostly happy, and grew to be even moreso when the entire of Auldrant was freed from the grip of the Score.
It's entirely too difficult to insure the happiness of an entire country and its people. It's even more difficult to keep in the good light of the citizens of another country, peace treaty or not. Peony's downfall came with a trip he was greatly urged to make in-person to the neighboring country of Kimlasca. While the meeting of officials there went smoother than he could ever have hoped for, the trip back home proved more difficult than he could have imagined. Wanting to satiate his curiosity as to what more parts of the country looked like, he made the quick decision that he would travel with his party across the land of Kimlasca, not stopping until he deemed his needs satiated. A none-too-happy citizen, highly trained in the art of hand to hand combat, somehow caught word of this. The Emperor's constant need to escape the watchful eye of his body guards brought him away from them that night, where he happened to be accompanied to a small tavern by Jade himself.
Only one of them was saved from the wreckage of the establishment alive.
Hint: It wasnt the Emperor.
When it comes to his dress, the Emperor is rather... Eccentric. Instead of the finest of finery a fine country like Malkuth could offer, he wears something that looks like he stole off of a homeless man. Well, a rather clean homeless gentleman who happens to be a hippie. The top of his body displays a three-quarter sleeve navy blue shirt, on top of which is a baggy, slightly bluish tinted shirt. A gold, decorative border circles the neck and sleeves of the upper shirt. His lower half, however, is far more decorated. Sandals are almost always on his feet, above which brown pants with yellow, criss-crossed straps cover the majority of his legs. Over his pants, a not-quite-blue wrap is held around his waist by a belt that's... Not quite a belt. More like an excuse to include more gold in his outfit, with straps draped off the side of the belt, off of which thin, rectangular gold pieces hang.
PERSONALITY: To put things rather simply, Peony is the sort of person that you either find yourself admiring, or quickly wanting to push away. He's a rather boisterous man that has no fear in sharing his opinion, whether or not it will end up fairing so well in the mind of others. And his opinion, usually, is the sort you may not be so willing to hear. Nevertheless, his laid-back manner of speech drags people to him, giving everyone that sort of relaxed feeling that you certainly wouldn't expect to feel around someone of such a high status. That is, if he isn't saying things to purposely make you feel a little uncomfortable, wanting to eventually produce a laugh from his ridiculously un-Emperor-like behavior. The better reactions you give, the more he will attempt to get under your skin, to pester you until you're either both in laughter or one of you has given up and changed subjects for the better. Peony isn't really one to simply let things drop, so expect such a thing to take a good, long while. Actually, expect any conversation to last beyond what you would expect with him. His naturally charismatic and flirty nature isn't something you can so easily look away from, and he's not one to let someone go so quickly. And rarely, if ever, does he think a situation has gone awkward before the other party had.
Getting his way doesn't take an awful lot of effort with him. Thank that same charismatic nature mentioned above, it's almost impossible to talk Peony out of a decision after he's made it. You have to be really lucky or extremely close to him in order to have your way so quickly. Otherwise, expect it to be the Emperor's way or the highway. On the same note, it can be rather difficult to talk him into doing something. He needs some massive persuasion to sometimes do the simplest of things.
One look at him would reveal him to be a rather eccentric man with very odd tastes. His clothing is just one example of how strange a person he can be. There's also the massive weapon collection strewn around his bedroom, and the dear little rappigs that occupy the same space. Being sickeningly normal just isn't something that he was meant to be, and he makes no effort to change himself as so many would like him to.
As a special note, Peony considers himself to be best friends with Jade Curtiss. To accomplish such a feat is remarkable in and of itself, particularly considering how long they have been friends. He is truly one of the only people alive that can prod a reaction out of Jade that isn't some sort of snark, which is quite the accomplishment in and of itself. It's just one way to show the kind of person that the Emperor is; He's loud, he's daring, he's over affectionate in his words, and he is absolutely, positively not afraid of anyone, particularly Jade.
ABILITIES/STRENGTHS: While lacking the ability in his manner of dress and way of speech to show that he's Emperor material, he comes through and breaks all doubt with his sheer dedication to the position. Peony wants to be in charge of his dear country of Malkuth. He has dedicated his life to gaining the position, and didn't exactly slack off when it finally came to be. He may seem lazy to those that have no idea what he's contributed to the world of Auldrant, yet to those that do know, he's absolutely perfect for the position. His charismatic nature lends to the perfect personality for the job to get done. Paired up with the knack for making the best (although, as it were, many people tend to insist they are the worst until proven utterly and completely wrong) decisions for his country, he truly is the right man to hold the title of Emperor. (Now, if he could only be immortal...)
To go along with that, he's actually rather intelligent despite his ability to not bother showing it. Of course, he's no where near Jade or Saphir, just close enough to have fit in perfectly within Gelda Nebilim's classes. He particularly excels in the field of witty humor that even is enough to stop words from leaving Jade Curtiss' mouth.
Also, he gives rappigs a good name. Please to be not eating the precious babies.
WEAKNESSES: A major weakness he has is his inability to move on from the first love of his life, Nephry Balfour (now Osborne). So focused in marrying Nephry was Peony that to this day, he has nearly refused to find someone that could possibly fill her place in his heart. This leaves him in a very vunerable position considering who will be the one to take over his place on the throne once he passed from the world. His family wouldn't certainly be let down, and the Malkuth line would come to an abrupt end. Peony was so focused on finding Ms. Right that he looked past the idea that a man in his position shouldn't so much be concerned with love and more the future.
There's also the fact that he's sometimes looked at as inferior for his relaxed manner of speech, even to the most important of individuals. His idea that his way of speaking shouldn't matter next to his ability to rule has a good way of coming back to bite him in the ass.
Oh, and have I mentioned that he's not so good at protecting himself? Although he has some ability to wield a sword (and a slight ability with a spear, thanks to a certain Colonel), he's not so amazing as to be able to win a battle with those that would be likely to target him. This specific weakness was what eventually cost him his life.
HISTORY: There's nothing all too amazing or grand about Peony's history... Sort of.
Unlike emperors before him, he did not grow up within the city of Grand Chokmah. Because of disputes over who would rightfully take over the position once there was no one to fill the space, Peony was whisked away to live in the always cold town of Keterburg. Some would question this judgment, considering the town was also very much a resort town for nobles, but no violence or otherwise terrible acts were committed upon young Peony while he grew up there. The closer you are to danger, the farther you are from harm, so to speak.
Having the experience of living in Keterburg brought forth an interesting mixture of very good and very bad for the future emperor. He was almost confined within a home of his owns, guards positioned outside at all times of night and day to keep those that intended to harm the young heir to the throne out, and keep him inside. Peony, however, simply couldn't have allowed this to happen. After a certain Jade Balfour used young and gullible Saphir Wyon Neis to distract the guards outside of his home, thus sneaking in and meeting young Peony, his rebellious attitude was suddenly sparked. It wasn't long until he was sneaking out of his house by day to attend school along with Jade, masquerading under the name of his older brother, Franz. Paired with the story of having Chesedonian merchants for parents, no one seemed to do much questioning of him. He continued to sneak out to spend time with Jade, Jade's younger sister Nephry, and Saphir, and continued to attend classes as he wanted. They all seemed to be growing up well enough, and growing up among the three was bringing much good to the Emperor-to-be.
Until the untimely death of Professor Nebilim, that is. A lot of more things than he ever wanted seem to change with that one incident. He could only watch from the sidelines, entirely unsure of what exactly it was that Jade and Saphir were trying to accomplish. With not much excuse for him to sneak out of his prison of a home anymore, he spent more and more time indoors. Eventually, Jade was adopted into the revered Curtiss military family, and was soon whisked off to attend more schooling in a place that most definitely wasn't Keterburg. Saphir predictably followed after him. He was left alone in Keterburg with Nephry, though they did not spend much time together. Time passed, and it eventually became known to Peony that Jade had moved on from school and into the military. Knowing that Nephry would be well aware of the same thing and still considering their friendship very much in-tact, he used a trusty source of his to gain information as to her brother's where-abouts and his safety. This is when his habit of sneaking out began once again, and he would go to her window by night to deliver her the information he had gathered. There time spent together in this way was severely constrained, which led to the eventual trading of letters between the two of them.
And, thus, the tragic love story between Peony and Nephry began.
Years passed and letters continued to be exchanged between them. They grew closer and closer, eventually breaking past the lines of friendship into something much, much more. As luck always has it, it was around this time that the brother he had been pretending to be all those years died, leaving the throne unoccupied. Peony's time in Keterburg came to a close, and he was brought back to Grand Chokmah to be prepped to take the position that was rightfully his. Despite being reunited with what had been his childhood best friend, Jade, and being busy with learning the true law of the land, he kept in close contact with Nephry. He very much loved her with every bit of his heart, and had every intention to eventually marry her. Except, you know, until the news that he couldn't possibly marry a commoner such as herself was broken to him. Followed up by the Score declaring that Nephry would be marrying a man that wasn't Peony within the next year, their relationship had come to a brick wall. Despite all attempts to get Nephry to change her mind, it failed. She married another man, leaving Peony alone, unwed, and the new Emperor to the country of Malkuth.
There wasn't much that happened in the long years to come. Even while his best friend was off helping to save the world from destruction, he spent the majority of the time within the safety of Grand Chokmah, again forced to watch from the sidelines. He was surely living the boring life of someone who ruled a country (if you completely ignored the few and far between assassination plots and scandal - that's where the real action lie). Nevertheless, he was mostly happy, and grew to be even moreso when the entire of Auldrant was freed from the grip of the Score.
It's entirely too difficult to insure the happiness of an entire country and its people. It's even more difficult to keep in the good light of the citizens of another country, peace treaty or not. Peony's downfall came with a trip he was greatly urged to make in-person to the neighboring country of Kimlasca. While the meeting of officials there went smoother than he could ever have hoped for, the trip back home proved more difficult than he could have imagined. Wanting to satiate his curiosity as to what more parts of the country looked like, he made the quick decision that he would travel with his party across the land of Kimlasca, not stopping until he deemed his needs satiated. A none-too-happy citizen, highly trained in the art of hand to hand combat, somehow caught word of this. The Emperor's constant need to escape the watchful eye of his body guards brought him away from them that night, where he happened to be accompanied to a small tavern by Jade himself.
Only one of them was saved from the wreckage of the establishment alive.
Hint: It wasnt the Emperor.