Application
For sirenspull
Player Information
Name: Dea
Age: 23
AIM SN: dealiberty
email: dea.liberty (at) gmail.com
Have you played in an LJ based game before? Yes
Currently Played Characters: Sharon Rainsworth | shadowsinform
Conditional: Activity Check Link: here
Character Information
General
Canon Source: Loveless
Canon Format: Manga
Character's Name: Soubi Agatsuma
Character's Age: 20
Conditional: If your character is 13 years of age or under, please clarify how they will be played. N/A
What form will your character's NV take? His cellphone.
Abilities
Character's Canon Abilities: On his own, Soubi doesn't have any abilities except the ability to withstand large amounts of pain without being affected by it - at least, without being too affected by it. Actually, he probably rather likes it to a certain extent.
His canon ability comes into play when he, as a Fighter unit, is paired up with a Sacrifice. Usually, this Sacrifice would be someone who shares his true name, such as Seimei Aoyagi, Ritsuka's brother, whose true name was "Beloved". Soubi was not actually Seimei's Fighter. He was actually a blank Fighter - meaning he had no true name and therefore had no destined pair, who became Beloved when Seimei carved the name onto Soubi's neck. Usually, a name appears somewhere on the Fighter and Sacrifice - in exactly the same place - unless they are a blank, such as Soubi. These two are therefore destined to be paired up together and to fight together because they share the same "true name" and, thus, the same soul; they're made for each other. When a name is written on a blank fighter, they become the Fighter of that name even though they were not born for it - and even if another Fighter of the same name is later found. Fighting with another Sacrifice (or Fighter, if one is the Sacrifice) is usually not done and definitely frowned on by other Fighter-Sacrifice teams, first and foremost because it hurts the Fighter, as seen by the fact that Soubi's name bleeds when he fights for Ritsuka, and because the bond is less strong that way therefore halving the pair's power.
The team functions as a pair; the Fighter fights the battle and the Sacrifice takes the damage, both physically and by being bound by chains when the pair is attacked. The battle is lost or won when one of the Sacrifices is completely immobilised and/or is in enough pain that they cannot keep fighting any more.
These battles are fought with the use of words. In Loveless' canon, these words are what make up the spells. The number of syllables controls the strength of the spell, and how one uses those words as well as how one twists the words of the opponent, and how fast this is done, determines how strong the spell is and what effect it has on the opposing team.
Soubi is canonically one of the strongest Fighters to have ever been trained due to both his ability to withstand pain as well as his ability to twist the opponents' words into something more complex and into a spell much stronger within an incredibly short space of time. His power has, according to everyone, been considerably lessened due to the fact that he's now fighting as Loveless' Fighter when the name on his body is Beloved, thereby technically fighting against his own name. It is said that his power is about halved, more so when he fights alone - which is something he occasionally does simply because he is incredibly protective of Ritsuka and would rather spare him pain if he can.
Less important is the ability to hear other Fighter-Sacrifice teams when they're expanding their areas and searching for other teams nearby. Soubi is able to both detect these, as well as expand his own area, thereby sending out a warning to whatever pair might be out there.
Conditional: If your character has no superhuman canon abilities, what dormant ability will you give them? N/A
Weapons: N/A
History/Personality/Plans/etc.
Character History: When Soubi was six years old, his parents died in a car accident, leaving him an orphan. Though his father had no abilities, his mother was a Fighter who was paired with Ritsu Minami, a man who took Soubi in after his parents' death, and who became Soubi's teacher at the Shichisei Gakuen - or the Seven Moons Academy - the school for Fighters and Sacrifices. Soubi had not only received his mother's looks - the blond hair and bright blue eyes - but he'd also inherited his mother's abilities as a Fighter. It is strongly implied that Ritsu was in love with Soubi's mother, his Fighter, who of course did not return his affections and, instead, loved Soubi's father, and it seems that Ritsu's obsession with Soubi's mother extended to Soubi himself.
Ritsu trained him hard at school, going so far as to give him special "training" on his own after classes, beating and whipping him, teaching him to take more and more pain and, therefore, to become the perfect Fighter. He still carries the scars from that time - and they aren't just the physical marks on his back. When he was fifteen, Ritsu took his ears. Canonically, in this universe, all people are born with ears and a tail, which are then lost when they lose their virginity. Soubi's relationship with Ritsu is strained and difficult, and Soubi carries the clear signs of childhood abuse throughout his life, including a strange almost-affection for his abuser, who was also his parental figure.
When Soubi was seventeen, was given to Seimei Aoyagi, a fourteen year old Sacrifice. When asked later, Ritsu would say he was tricked into giving Soubi to Seimei, who proceeded to carve his name into Soubi's neck. Not a lot is known about the years he spent with Seimei, only that they were one of the most powerful teams to have ever been trained. It's also clear that Seimei abused him; Kio, Soubi's best friend from university, for one, hated Seimei because he hated what Seimei did to Soubi on a regular basis. It isn't clear whether this is from Seimei's abuse or whether from the battles they fought together, but judging by how easily Soubi tells Ritsuka to punish him, it was probably a mixture of both. According to other Fighter-Sacrifice teams, Seimei treated Soubi like a dog.
At university, he was always alone and so bad-tempered that other people didn't even come close to him. All he seemed to care about was painting. Kio, however, noticed the bandages on him all the time and how he was always injured, as well as alone, and eventually tagged along until Soubi reluctantly became friends with him.
When Seimei died, he ordered Soubi to fight for his brother, Ritsuka - Loveless - instead. So Soubi turns up at his school gates when Ritsuka (who doesn't know anything about the world of Fighters and Sacrifices at all) doesn't come for him.. He was surprised by how different Ritsuka was from Seimei and, at first, was only clearly fighting for Ritsuka, as well as claiming to "love" Ritsuka because they were Seimei's orders, and Fighters cannot disobey their Sacrifices. This, however, changed the more time Soubi spent with Ritsuka, who really was nothing like Seimei at all. He began to feel real affection for the boy, much to Kio's horror - but even Kio was surprised at how different the two Aoyagis were.
As Ritsuka and Soubi began to bond, the world Seimei lived in started to get closer and closer. Ritsuka soon discovered that Soubi knew far more about Seimei's death than he was letting on, but Soubi wouldn't tell Ritsuka any details about an organisation called the Septimal Moon - the organisation that supposedly killed Seimei.
Fighter-Sacrifice teams began to be sent after Ritsuka and, each time, Soubi managed to deflect them. In the beginning, he did it without Ritsuka, both taking and dealing the damage himself, though this began to wear on him when the Zeros - two pairs that could feel no pain - came after them. Eventually, after watching Soubi get hurt and sneak off to fight alone too many times, Ritsuka cornered him and made him see reason, made Soubi truly accept Ritsuka as his Sacrifice and let him take some of the damage. Though Soubi remained (and remains) incredibly protective of Ritsuka, he realised that they needed to fight as a pair.
Their bond continued to grow, and as Ritsuka continued to surprise him, befriending teams that came to take him away, as well as just by being Ritsuka himself - his kindness, his consideration, his strange forms of affection - all things that were so different from the frightening and controlling figure that Seimei had been.
One day, however, something went incredibly wrong. After finding out that Ritsuka was being held captive by his mother, who had slowly broken down after Ritsuka lost his memories and become even more unstable when Seimei had died, Soubi went to rescue Ritsuka, only to come face to face with someone claiming to be Seimei's Fighter. To prove this, Nisei - Beloved's real Fighter - called Seimei up and, over the phone, Seimei told Soubi that he was no longer needed. Soubi broke down, not knowing what to do. Discarded by his previous owner (because that was essentially how it really was) and still bearing Beloved's name despite being Loveless' Fighter, Soubi felt himself at a dead end and begged Ritsuka to run away. Ritsuka, however, convinced Soubi to stay and that they would be okay provided they stuck together, to which Soubi reluctantly agreed.
Things, however, were far from over. Ritsuka was finally convinced to go to Shichisei Gakuen - to get answers and to see what things were like there - and Soubi, of course, went with him. Though at first, things seemed normal, Soubi remained somewhat wary, especially when the visit brought him back to his school, to his childhood and therefore back to see his old teacher, Ritsu. Things seemed fairly normal as a training session began until Seimei cut the power supply to the school and began his assault.
Having been called by Ritsuka to fight against Nisei, Seimei's actual fighter, Soubi came to Ritsuka and Breathless' - the Fighter-Sacrifice team that Ritsuka was with - defense. At first, they struggled against Nisei because of Soubi's lingering connection and doubts to the name Beloved but, during the battle, Ritsuka claimed Soubi as his own Fighter - reinforced by the fact that, when Ritsuka called him, Soubi heard. However, it was also proven shortly after that despite wanting to be Ritsuka's Fighter and wanting to discard the name of Beloved, Soubi still couldn't disobey Seimei's orders. After trying to protect Ritsuka from Seimei's particular form of power with words, Soubi broke the windows at Seimei's orders and allowed Seimei to escape.
Ashamed and disgraced, Soubi followed Ritsuka back to the room that the Zeros had prepared for them but seemed not to respond to anything anyone was saying - until Ritsuka finally told him that it didn't matter that Soubi still couldn't resist Seimei because some things simply couldn't be changed. Once again, Ritsuka surprised Soubi with his willingness to forgive and, after he ordered Soubi to undress, Soubi managed to actually fall asleep, only to wake up and find out that Kio had been kidnapped by Seimei the next morning.
He and Ritsuka, as well as the Zeros, go to Kio's rescue and battle against Bloodless, a Fighter-Sacrifice team that seemed to hate and resent each other, and who were known as Bloodless not because they didn't have any blood in them but because they could win a battle without drawing blood; they didn't wound the body; they fought to break the heart.
After defeating Bloodless - a battle that brought both despair and hope as Bloodless drew out everyone's fear - only to be countered with resolve and determination, and the proof that sharing a name didn't necessarily mean they had a stronger bond, Soubi and Ritsuka won the battle and rescued Kio. Everything went back to normal; Ritsuka went to school the next day and Soubi… Soubi stayed in bed. The thought of the next meeting with Seimei continued to haunt him, and he still felt like he'd betrayed Ritsuka by not being able to fight Seimei's order. Ritsuka, however, seemed to know exactly what his Fighter was thinking and soon arrived at his door to hug him, and to make him an omelet - along with a promise to "take care" of his brother.
Dinner was interrupted with the arrival of the Zeros, however - sent by Nagisa - much to Soubi's despair. Despite their help during the time at the school, Soubi didn't trust Nagisa and, after telling the two boys to get into bed, he decided to go out for a smoke - and to give Nagisa a call.
Point in Canon: Chapter 84, when Ritsuka has gone home and Soubi has left the apartment to buy cigarettes.
Conditional: Brief summary of previous RP history: N/A
Character Personality: At first, Soubi comes across as being cold, aloof and completely uninterested in anything. When he does talk to someone, he seems to be proud and arrogant, and to see everyone as beneath him or somehow lacking in some way. People generally feel like he thinks they're wasting his time and, therefore, Soubi has never had a lot of friends.
While this is true if he is just a passing acquaintance, there is far more to Soubi than just that. The aloof exterior is partly a result of the abuse he's suffered throughout his life. Being Ritsu's favorite student didn't exactly endear him to others, and also gave him a somewhat twisted view of relationships in general. Being Seimei's Fighter only cemented this view; there is no love or friendship, no need or desire or affection - the only thing that will always be left in a relationship is control. That is how relationships are defined in Soubi's mind, as told to him by Seimei. Seimei wouldn't even let Soubi touch him, claiming that his touch hurt him, and always ordered him to be alone because the loneliness of Soubi's expression pleased him. Seimei was the only name in Soubi's phonebook, and thus Seimei was his entire world. It was almost as if he didn't need anyone else but, perhaps, it was more like he didn't have anyone else and didn't know how to go about making friends.
Underneath the antisocial, cold front, therefore, is an incredibly lonely person who mistakes control and the desire to control with love and affection. He is definitely badly affected by the way he was treated by Ritsu and Seimei, even if he doesn't see it that way. At first, he doesn't understand simple affection, and continues to push for Ritsuka to own him the way Seimei did because, somehow, that seems to prove something to Soubi. Ritsuka's way of showing affection, however, is something that is completely new to Soubi, but something that he is learning to understand and learning to appreciate more and more.
In addition, Soubi needs to be needed. When it comes to light that he's been abandoned by Seimei because Seimei has found his real Fighter, Soubi is absolutely devastated and really doesn't know what to do with that information. He is also scared for Ritsuka but, clearly, he feels Seimei's rejection strongly - especially when Seimei does it a second time when they come face to face. He is harder on himself than others are on him and, even when Ritsuka tells him he is doing all right, Soubi often thinks he hasn't done well enough. An example of this is how hard he takes his own betrayal of Ritsuka when he breaks the window on Seimei's orders. He believes deeply that he should be punished for these kinds of actions and doesn't understand Ritsuka's easy forgiveness of him. This may partly come from the fact that Seimei clearly considered and constantly told Soubi that he was dirty, and that was his reason why he never touched Soubi if he could help it.
Another reasoning behind this is Soubi's fear of abandonment. His parents died; Ritsu gave him away to Seimei despite Soubi thinking that it would be Ritsu who carved his name somewhere on Soubi; the Zero boys, whom Soubi had grown fond of, left him and returned to school; Seimei cast him away when he "died" and also again when he came back - and above all, Soubi is afraid that Ritsuka will leave him too in the end, when Ritsuka finds Loveless' Fighter.
Soubi can be quite contrary. He says one thing while doing another, and doesn't always tell Ritsuka - or others, like Ritsuka's teacher from school - everything and is almost never straightforward. His ability with words extends beyond the spell battles and is also part of Soubi's every day battles. It is what he uses when he thinks someone is getting too close or trying to pry into things that have nothing to do with them. Or when someone is just annoying (in Soubi's view). There are those, like Kio, who don't fall for the facade, but most people are repelled by his apparent nature. It is, however, just another layer Soubi has formed to protect himself from everyone else.
This is also something Soubi is good at - closing himself off from the world. He becomes withdrawn and easily depressed and is not likely to let anyone in to help him, not really knowing how to accept their help. He spends a lot of that time figuring out what it is that he might have done wrong - because, much to his displeasure, he is not perfect - and silently punishing himself for it. It has only been with Ritsuka that he hasn't had much of a choice but to let Ritsuka in, and Ritsuka's own way of showing Soubi affection is effective in these situations.
Soubi, however, is incredibly capable of love when he is given the chance, as seen by how he is with Kio and Ritsuka, especially, but also with the Zero boys and Ritsuka's friends whenever he meets them. He's a caretaker by nature and, when faced with Ritsuka's innocence, he is unable to do anything but desire to protect it as best as he can. He genuinely comes to care about the people he's in contact with and lets into his world, going so far as to stand up to Seimei in order to try to stop Seimei from damaging Ritsuka even though he is clearly afraid of Seimei's reaction. With others who, unlike Seimei, Soubi has no fear of and whom he is not connected to, Soubi can be completely ruthless in his need to protect Ritsuka and, more than once, Ritsuka has had to step in to keep Soubi from doing real damage.
He also isn't afraid to show his affection - at least, when it comes to Ritsuka. Though at first, it was just to strengthen the Fighter-Sacrifice bond between them, as time has gone by and Ritsuka has really become someone of great importance to him - enough that he would rather die than follow through with any order from Seimei to kill Ritsuka - the affections have been more honest, sweeter, but no less frequent. It might also be to mask his own fears of rejection and reassure himself, seeing as these were things Seimei never would have let him do - and yet, Ritsuka lets him do it with only a little bit of complaining. Perhaps this is also because Soubi isn't quite sure how to show affection any other way; once again, this is something he's learning to do slowly.
Essentially, Soubi is almost a blank personality, moulded and affected by the people around him and the people close to him. Ritsu and Seimei both made him into their ideal, taught him to strive for a perfection that is almost impossible, and shaped his personality while he was with them, playing on his desire for love and acceptance and controlling almost every aspect of his life and personality. Ritsuka, however, has a much softer hand than both of them and, instead of making Soubi into something he isn't, is encouraging him to discover himself more and more, and to learn to make his own decisions and stand on his own two feet. Though the old lessons can't be unlearned and still show through in a lot of things that Soubi does, the new personality is slowly forming. His character, therefore, is still developing, and there is still some distance to go before Soubi finally finds what it really means to be himself.
Conditional: Personality development in previous game: N/A
Character Plans: For him to learn what it's like to live in a world that isn't defined by Fighters and Sacrifices. It's going to be really strange for him at first because his whole life has basically been defined by these things and, while there's still an element of this kind of life in his relationship with Ritsuka, it's going to have less meaning here. It'll be a chance for him to grow as a person and develop as a character without those lines he's drawn around himself all this time, and therefore perhaps enabling him to expand his world and view of himself a little more. Ritsuka, of course, will remain an important part of his world - the most, even more so in this new world - and he will continue to do whatever is necessary to protect him but, hopefully, without the other Fighters and Sacrifices around, and without the complications of how people view their bond because of their names etc., this relationship will be able to develop in a different way as well.
Appearance/PB: An icon set.
Writing Samples
First Person Sample
[There's silence except for breathing for a moment as the feed comes on before the clipping sound of someone picking up the NV. The voice seems to be recorded from a small distance away when the owner finally talks.] What… Tcht, why has this thing connected itself? I didn't dial --
Wait.
[The voice is closer now, like Soubi's talking directly to the microphone.] Nagisa?
[Pause. Clearly awaiting an answer. When nothing comes, there's a whir of wind like the NV's being shaken. Another small pause. The voice is slightly further away again when it comes back.] But no, that doesn't sound right. It doesn't sound like the sort of thing she'd do. Sending Zero, yes, but the blackout - that strange feeling - this place…?
No.
Something isn't right.
[Another pause, longer. There's the sound of someone getting to his feet, a barely muffled curse as he almost drops back to the ground again before he regains his footing.
There's the click-clacking that's clearly someone fiddling with the buttons on the cellphone - the NV - and then the picture comes on, showing a surprised look on Soubi's face before his schools his features.
He knows it's recording - at least broadcasting somehow - now.]
Someone has even messed with my cellphone.
Tell me; who are you? What do you want?
Third Person Sample
Soubi didn't know this place. That was the first thing that registered in his mind when he opened his eyes. These weren't the streets he'd been walking along a few moments ago. At least, he thought it had only been a few moments ago; he couldn't have been out for that long.
He looked sat up slowly and looked up at the sky for just a moment, before his attention dropped back to his surroundings.
A baseball field? Where was this place? How had he -- He expanded his system immediately, searching for other Fighters, searching for those who might be trying to hurt him -- for Beloved -- but found nothing.
Nothing but a sharp pain shooting up inside him, making the world spin, making his stomach turn. What was this spell? What was this place? And --
Ritsuka! Where was Ritsuka? He'd sent him home earlier, let him walk home alone with the Zeros had turned up at his door, claiming to have come "home". Soubi had let Ritsuka walk home alone. What if this mysterious attacker had been out to get them? Not just Soubi but Ritsuka, too.
"Who are you!?" He called out despite the nausea, the lingering feelings of motion-sickness and that strange, tugging sensation in his stomach. Despite everything, he needed to know.
He needed to know what they wanted. And he needed to know if they'd touched Ritsuka. "Show yourself. Who are you? What do you want?"
There was no answer except the distinct growl of something not entirely friendly. Whatever it was, Soubi had never heard anything like it before. It couldn't have been another Fighter - he would have picked that up - and it wasn't something that sounded entirely normal either.
And whatever it was, it was coming closer.
Soubi's eyes finally focused on some of the writing on the walls around him, the squiggles and lines finally resolving themselves into words, his mind finally reading them instead of just looking past them in confusion.
Run, one sign said, clear as day, written in something that could have been blood. Run for your life.
Soubi ran.
Player Information
Name: Dea
Age: 23
AIM SN: dealiberty
email: dea.liberty (at) gmail.com
Have you played in an LJ based game before? Yes
Currently Played Characters: Sharon Rainsworth | shadowsinform
Conditional: Activity Check Link: here
Character Information
General
Canon Source: Loveless
Canon Format: Manga
Character's Name: Soubi Agatsuma
Character's Age: 20
Conditional: If your character is 13 years of age or under, please clarify how they will be played. N/A
What form will your character's NV take? His cellphone.
Abilities
Character's Canon Abilities: On his own, Soubi doesn't have any abilities except the ability to withstand large amounts of pain without being affected by it - at least, without being too affected by it. Actually, he probably rather likes it to a certain extent.
His canon ability comes into play when he, as a Fighter unit, is paired up with a Sacrifice. Usually, this Sacrifice would be someone who shares his true name, such as Seimei Aoyagi, Ritsuka's brother, whose true name was "Beloved". Soubi was not actually Seimei's Fighter. He was actually a blank Fighter - meaning he had no true name and therefore had no destined pair, who became Beloved when Seimei carved the name onto Soubi's neck. Usually, a name appears somewhere on the Fighter and Sacrifice - in exactly the same place - unless they are a blank, such as Soubi. These two are therefore destined to be paired up together and to fight together because they share the same "true name" and, thus, the same soul; they're made for each other. When a name is written on a blank fighter, they become the Fighter of that name even though they were not born for it - and even if another Fighter of the same name is later found. Fighting with another Sacrifice (or Fighter, if one is the Sacrifice) is usually not done and definitely frowned on by other Fighter-Sacrifice teams, first and foremost because it hurts the Fighter, as seen by the fact that Soubi's name bleeds when he fights for Ritsuka, and because the bond is less strong that way therefore halving the pair's power.
The team functions as a pair; the Fighter fights the battle and the Sacrifice takes the damage, both physically and by being bound by chains when the pair is attacked. The battle is lost or won when one of the Sacrifices is completely immobilised and/or is in enough pain that they cannot keep fighting any more.
These battles are fought with the use of words. In Loveless' canon, these words are what make up the spells. The number of syllables controls the strength of the spell, and how one uses those words as well as how one twists the words of the opponent, and how fast this is done, determines how strong the spell is and what effect it has on the opposing team.
Soubi is canonically one of the strongest Fighters to have ever been trained due to both his ability to withstand pain as well as his ability to twist the opponents' words into something more complex and into a spell much stronger within an incredibly short space of time. His power has, according to everyone, been considerably lessened due to the fact that he's now fighting as Loveless' Fighter when the name on his body is Beloved, thereby technically fighting against his own name. It is said that his power is about halved, more so when he fights alone - which is something he occasionally does simply because he is incredibly protective of Ritsuka and would rather spare him pain if he can.
Less important is the ability to hear other Fighter-Sacrifice teams when they're expanding their areas and searching for other teams nearby. Soubi is able to both detect these, as well as expand his own area, thereby sending out a warning to whatever pair might be out there.
Conditional: If your character has no superhuman canon abilities, what dormant ability will you give them? N/A
Weapons: N/A
History/Personality/Plans/etc.
Character History: When Soubi was six years old, his parents died in a car accident, leaving him an orphan. Though his father had no abilities, his mother was a Fighter who was paired with Ritsu Minami, a man who took Soubi in after his parents' death, and who became Soubi's teacher at the Shichisei Gakuen - or the Seven Moons Academy - the school for Fighters and Sacrifices. Soubi had not only received his mother's looks - the blond hair and bright blue eyes - but he'd also inherited his mother's abilities as a Fighter. It is strongly implied that Ritsu was in love with Soubi's mother, his Fighter, who of course did not return his affections and, instead, loved Soubi's father, and it seems that Ritsu's obsession with Soubi's mother extended to Soubi himself.
Ritsu trained him hard at school, going so far as to give him special "training" on his own after classes, beating and whipping him, teaching him to take more and more pain and, therefore, to become the perfect Fighter. He still carries the scars from that time - and they aren't just the physical marks on his back. When he was fifteen, Ritsu took his ears. Canonically, in this universe, all people are born with ears and a tail, which are then lost when they lose their virginity. Soubi's relationship with Ritsu is strained and difficult, and Soubi carries the clear signs of childhood abuse throughout his life, including a strange almost-affection for his abuser, who was also his parental figure.
When Soubi was seventeen, was given to Seimei Aoyagi, a fourteen year old Sacrifice. When asked later, Ritsu would say he was tricked into giving Soubi to Seimei, who proceeded to carve his name into Soubi's neck. Not a lot is known about the years he spent with Seimei, only that they were one of the most powerful teams to have ever been trained. It's also clear that Seimei abused him; Kio, Soubi's best friend from university, for one, hated Seimei because he hated what Seimei did to Soubi on a regular basis. It isn't clear whether this is from Seimei's abuse or whether from the battles they fought together, but judging by how easily Soubi tells Ritsuka to punish him, it was probably a mixture of both. According to other Fighter-Sacrifice teams, Seimei treated Soubi like a dog.
At university, he was always alone and so bad-tempered that other people didn't even come close to him. All he seemed to care about was painting. Kio, however, noticed the bandages on him all the time and how he was always injured, as well as alone, and eventually tagged along until Soubi reluctantly became friends with him.
When Seimei died, he ordered Soubi to fight for his brother, Ritsuka - Loveless - instead. So Soubi turns up at his school gates when Ritsuka (who doesn't know anything about the world of Fighters and Sacrifices at all) doesn't come for him.. He was surprised by how different Ritsuka was from Seimei and, at first, was only clearly fighting for Ritsuka, as well as claiming to "love" Ritsuka because they were Seimei's orders, and Fighters cannot disobey their Sacrifices. This, however, changed the more time Soubi spent with Ritsuka, who really was nothing like Seimei at all. He began to feel real affection for the boy, much to Kio's horror - but even Kio was surprised at how different the two Aoyagis were.
As Ritsuka and Soubi began to bond, the world Seimei lived in started to get closer and closer. Ritsuka soon discovered that Soubi knew far more about Seimei's death than he was letting on, but Soubi wouldn't tell Ritsuka any details about an organisation called the Septimal Moon - the organisation that supposedly killed Seimei.
Fighter-Sacrifice teams began to be sent after Ritsuka and, each time, Soubi managed to deflect them. In the beginning, he did it without Ritsuka, both taking and dealing the damage himself, though this began to wear on him when the Zeros - two pairs that could feel no pain - came after them. Eventually, after watching Soubi get hurt and sneak off to fight alone too many times, Ritsuka cornered him and made him see reason, made Soubi truly accept Ritsuka as his Sacrifice and let him take some of the damage. Though Soubi remained (and remains) incredibly protective of Ritsuka, he realised that they needed to fight as a pair.
Their bond continued to grow, and as Ritsuka continued to surprise him, befriending teams that came to take him away, as well as just by being Ritsuka himself - his kindness, his consideration, his strange forms of affection - all things that were so different from the frightening and controlling figure that Seimei had been.
One day, however, something went incredibly wrong. After finding out that Ritsuka was being held captive by his mother, who had slowly broken down after Ritsuka lost his memories and become even more unstable when Seimei had died, Soubi went to rescue Ritsuka, only to come face to face with someone claiming to be Seimei's Fighter. To prove this, Nisei - Beloved's real Fighter - called Seimei up and, over the phone, Seimei told Soubi that he was no longer needed. Soubi broke down, not knowing what to do. Discarded by his previous owner (because that was essentially how it really was) and still bearing Beloved's name despite being Loveless' Fighter, Soubi felt himself at a dead end and begged Ritsuka to run away. Ritsuka, however, convinced Soubi to stay and that they would be okay provided they stuck together, to which Soubi reluctantly agreed.
Things, however, were far from over. Ritsuka was finally convinced to go to Shichisei Gakuen - to get answers and to see what things were like there - and Soubi, of course, went with him. Though at first, things seemed normal, Soubi remained somewhat wary, especially when the visit brought him back to his school, to his childhood and therefore back to see his old teacher, Ritsu. Things seemed fairly normal as a training session began until Seimei cut the power supply to the school and began his assault.
Having been called by Ritsuka to fight against Nisei, Seimei's actual fighter, Soubi came to Ritsuka and Breathless' - the Fighter-Sacrifice team that Ritsuka was with - defense. At first, they struggled against Nisei because of Soubi's lingering connection and doubts to the name Beloved but, during the battle, Ritsuka claimed Soubi as his own Fighter - reinforced by the fact that, when Ritsuka called him, Soubi heard. However, it was also proven shortly after that despite wanting to be Ritsuka's Fighter and wanting to discard the name of Beloved, Soubi still couldn't disobey Seimei's orders. After trying to protect Ritsuka from Seimei's particular form of power with words, Soubi broke the windows at Seimei's orders and allowed Seimei to escape.
Ashamed and disgraced, Soubi followed Ritsuka back to the room that the Zeros had prepared for them but seemed not to respond to anything anyone was saying - until Ritsuka finally told him that it didn't matter that Soubi still couldn't resist Seimei because some things simply couldn't be changed. Once again, Ritsuka surprised Soubi with his willingness to forgive and, after he ordered Soubi to undress, Soubi managed to actually fall asleep, only to wake up and find out that Kio had been kidnapped by Seimei the next morning.
He and Ritsuka, as well as the Zeros, go to Kio's rescue and battle against Bloodless, a Fighter-Sacrifice team that seemed to hate and resent each other, and who were known as Bloodless not because they didn't have any blood in them but because they could win a battle without drawing blood; they didn't wound the body; they fought to break the heart.
After defeating Bloodless - a battle that brought both despair and hope as Bloodless drew out everyone's fear - only to be countered with resolve and determination, and the proof that sharing a name didn't necessarily mean they had a stronger bond, Soubi and Ritsuka won the battle and rescued Kio. Everything went back to normal; Ritsuka went to school the next day and Soubi… Soubi stayed in bed. The thought of the next meeting with Seimei continued to haunt him, and he still felt like he'd betrayed Ritsuka by not being able to fight Seimei's order. Ritsuka, however, seemed to know exactly what his Fighter was thinking and soon arrived at his door to hug him, and to make him an omelet - along with a promise to "take care" of his brother.
Dinner was interrupted with the arrival of the Zeros, however - sent by Nagisa - much to Soubi's despair. Despite their help during the time at the school, Soubi didn't trust Nagisa and, after telling the two boys to get into bed, he decided to go out for a smoke - and to give Nagisa a call.
Point in Canon: Chapter 84, when Ritsuka has gone home and Soubi has left the apartment to buy cigarettes.
Conditional: Brief summary of previous RP history: N/A
Character Personality: At first, Soubi comes across as being cold, aloof and completely uninterested in anything. When he does talk to someone, he seems to be proud and arrogant, and to see everyone as beneath him or somehow lacking in some way. People generally feel like he thinks they're wasting his time and, therefore, Soubi has never had a lot of friends.
While this is true if he is just a passing acquaintance, there is far more to Soubi than just that. The aloof exterior is partly a result of the abuse he's suffered throughout his life. Being Ritsu's favorite student didn't exactly endear him to others, and also gave him a somewhat twisted view of relationships in general. Being Seimei's Fighter only cemented this view; there is no love or friendship, no need or desire or affection - the only thing that will always be left in a relationship is control. That is how relationships are defined in Soubi's mind, as told to him by Seimei. Seimei wouldn't even let Soubi touch him, claiming that his touch hurt him, and always ordered him to be alone because the loneliness of Soubi's expression pleased him. Seimei was the only name in Soubi's phonebook, and thus Seimei was his entire world. It was almost as if he didn't need anyone else but, perhaps, it was more like he didn't have anyone else and didn't know how to go about making friends.
Underneath the antisocial, cold front, therefore, is an incredibly lonely person who mistakes control and the desire to control with love and affection. He is definitely badly affected by the way he was treated by Ritsu and Seimei, even if he doesn't see it that way. At first, he doesn't understand simple affection, and continues to push for Ritsuka to own him the way Seimei did because, somehow, that seems to prove something to Soubi. Ritsuka's way of showing affection, however, is something that is completely new to Soubi, but something that he is learning to understand and learning to appreciate more and more.
In addition, Soubi needs to be needed. When it comes to light that he's been abandoned by Seimei because Seimei has found his real Fighter, Soubi is absolutely devastated and really doesn't know what to do with that information. He is also scared for Ritsuka but, clearly, he feels Seimei's rejection strongly - especially when Seimei does it a second time when they come face to face. He is harder on himself than others are on him and, even when Ritsuka tells him he is doing all right, Soubi often thinks he hasn't done well enough. An example of this is how hard he takes his own betrayal of Ritsuka when he breaks the window on Seimei's orders. He believes deeply that he should be punished for these kinds of actions and doesn't understand Ritsuka's easy forgiveness of him. This may partly come from the fact that Seimei clearly considered and constantly told Soubi that he was dirty, and that was his reason why he never touched Soubi if he could help it.
Another reasoning behind this is Soubi's fear of abandonment. His parents died; Ritsu gave him away to Seimei despite Soubi thinking that it would be Ritsu who carved his name somewhere on Soubi; the Zero boys, whom Soubi had grown fond of, left him and returned to school; Seimei cast him away when he "died" and also again when he came back - and above all, Soubi is afraid that Ritsuka will leave him too in the end, when Ritsuka finds Loveless' Fighter.
Soubi can be quite contrary. He says one thing while doing another, and doesn't always tell Ritsuka - or others, like Ritsuka's teacher from school - everything and is almost never straightforward. His ability with words extends beyond the spell battles and is also part of Soubi's every day battles. It is what he uses when he thinks someone is getting too close or trying to pry into things that have nothing to do with them. Or when someone is just annoying (in Soubi's view). There are those, like Kio, who don't fall for the facade, but most people are repelled by his apparent nature. It is, however, just another layer Soubi has formed to protect himself from everyone else.
This is also something Soubi is good at - closing himself off from the world. He becomes withdrawn and easily depressed and is not likely to let anyone in to help him, not really knowing how to accept their help. He spends a lot of that time figuring out what it is that he might have done wrong - because, much to his displeasure, he is not perfect - and silently punishing himself for it. It has only been with Ritsuka that he hasn't had much of a choice but to let Ritsuka in, and Ritsuka's own way of showing Soubi affection is effective in these situations.
Soubi, however, is incredibly capable of love when he is given the chance, as seen by how he is with Kio and Ritsuka, especially, but also with the Zero boys and Ritsuka's friends whenever he meets them. He's a caretaker by nature and, when faced with Ritsuka's innocence, he is unable to do anything but desire to protect it as best as he can. He genuinely comes to care about the people he's in contact with and lets into his world, going so far as to stand up to Seimei in order to try to stop Seimei from damaging Ritsuka even though he is clearly afraid of Seimei's reaction. With others who, unlike Seimei, Soubi has no fear of and whom he is not connected to, Soubi can be completely ruthless in his need to protect Ritsuka and, more than once, Ritsuka has had to step in to keep Soubi from doing real damage.
He also isn't afraid to show his affection - at least, when it comes to Ritsuka. Though at first, it was just to strengthen the Fighter-Sacrifice bond between them, as time has gone by and Ritsuka has really become someone of great importance to him - enough that he would rather die than follow through with any order from Seimei to kill Ritsuka - the affections have been more honest, sweeter, but no less frequent. It might also be to mask his own fears of rejection and reassure himself, seeing as these were things Seimei never would have let him do - and yet, Ritsuka lets him do it with only a little bit of complaining. Perhaps this is also because Soubi isn't quite sure how to show affection any other way; once again, this is something he's learning to do slowly.
Essentially, Soubi is almost a blank personality, moulded and affected by the people around him and the people close to him. Ritsu and Seimei both made him into their ideal, taught him to strive for a perfection that is almost impossible, and shaped his personality while he was with them, playing on his desire for love and acceptance and controlling almost every aspect of his life and personality. Ritsuka, however, has a much softer hand than both of them and, instead of making Soubi into something he isn't, is encouraging him to discover himself more and more, and to learn to make his own decisions and stand on his own two feet. Though the old lessons can't be unlearned and still show through in a lot of things that Soubi does, the new personality is slowly forming. His character, therefore, is still developing, and there is still some distance to go before Soubi finally finds what it really means to be himself.
Conditional: Personality development in previous game: N/A
Character Plans: For him to learn what it's like to live in a world that isn't defined by Fighters and Sacrifices. It's going to be really strange for him at first because his whole life has basically been defined by these things and, while there's still an element of this kind of life in his relationship with Ritsuka, it's going to have less meaning here. It'll be a chance for him to grow as a person and develop as a character without those lines he's drawn around himself all this time, and therefore perhaps enabling him to expand his world and view of himself a little more. Ritsuka, of course, will remain an important part of his world - the most, even more so in this new world - and he will continue to do whatever is necessary to protect him but, hopefully, without the other Fighters and Sacrifices around, and without the complications of how people view their bond because of their names etc., this relationship will be able to develop in a different way as well.
Appearance/PB: An icon set.
Writing Samples
First Person Sample
[There's silence except for breathing for a moment as the feed comes on before the clipping sound of someone picking up the NV. The voice seems to be recorded from a small distance away when the owner finally talks.] What… Tcht, why has this thing connected itself? I didn't dial --
Wait.
[The voice is closer now, like Soubi's talking directly to the microphone.] Nagisa?
[Pause. Clearly awaiting an answer. When nothing comes, there's a whir of wind like the NV's being shaken. Another small pause. The voice is slightly further away again when it comes back.] But no, that doesn't sound right. It doesn't sound like the sort of thing she'd do. Sending Zero, yes, but the blackout - that strange feeling - this place…?
No.
Something isn't right.
[Another pause, longer. There's the sound of someone getting to his feet, a barely muffled curse as he almost drops back to the ground again before he regains his footing.
There's the click-clacking that's clearly someone fiddling with the buttons on the cellphone - the NV - and then the picture comes on, showing a surprised look on Soubi's face before his schools his features.
He knows it's recording - at least broadcasting somehow - now.]
Someone has even messed with my cellphone.
Tell me; who are you? What do you want?
Third Person Sample
Soubi didn't know this place. That was the first thing that registered in his mind when he opened his eyes. These weren't the streets he'd been walking along a few moments ago. At least, he thought it had only been a few moments ago; he couldn't have been out for that long.
He looked sat up slowly and looked up at the sky for just a moment, before his attention dropped back to his surroundings.
A baseball field? Where was this place? How had he -- He expanded his system immediately, searching for other Fighters, searching for those who might be trying to hurt him -- for Beloved -- but found nothing.
Nothing but a sharp pain shooting up inside him, making the world spin, making his stomach turn. What was this spell? What was this place? And --
Ritsuka! Where was Ritsuka? He'd sent him home earlier, let him walk home alone with the Zeros had turned up at his door, claiming to have come "home". Soubi had let Ritsuka walk home alone. What if this mysterious attacker had been out to get them? Not just Soubi but Ritsuka, too.
"Who are you!?" He called out despite the nausea, the lingering feelings of motion-sickness and that strange, tugging sensation in his stomach. Despite everything, he needed to know.
He needed to know what they wanted. And he needed to know if they'd touched Ritsuka. "Show yourself. Who are you? What do you want?"
There was no answer except the distinct growl of something not entirely friendly. Whatever it was, Soubi had never heard anything like it before. It couldn't have been another Fighter - he would have picked that up - and it wasn't something that sounded entirely normal either.
And whatever it was, it was coming closer.
Soubi's eyes finally focused on some of the writing on the walls around him, the squiggles and lines finally resolving themselves into words, his mind finally reading them instead of just looking past them in confusion.
Run, one sign said, clear as day, written in something that could have been blood. Run for your life.
Soubi ran.