Bigass meme
8| oh my god. i can't believe i spent my free time the last few days doing this. 8|
Body and Appearance
1. Describe the character's height and build. Is he heavyset, thin, short, rangy?
Well at the moment, his PB is Naveen Andrews so I guess you could just look that beautiful man up on Google and you'd have a pretty good idea of what Tanvir looks like. 8D
But okay no really.
Tan's 6'3", 186 pounds. He is tall like...a...tall thing. And he is lean like a swimmer. He has arms of steel. And a scruffy, stubbly beard that is the envy of King everyone.
2. How old is he?
23 whole years old! So it's pretty funny when he refers to people as "kiddo" considering he's really not old enough to say that.
3. Describe his posture. Does he carry himself well or does he slouch?
Tan stands pretty straight. His stance tends to be pretty open, wide legged and relaxed hands. There are two reasons for this: first, it makes him look like a non-threat, which means people are more likely to open up to him/listen to him, and second, because he can move quickly from that stance and because he's very stable in it.
4. How is his health? Is he fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities?
He's pretty goddamn fit. 8]b He used to work out more actively than he does now, and he used to fight in matches a lot in high school (not anymore, obviously), so he's still in pretty good form. He's got some nerve damage in his right arm, though, that occasionally causes him pain, so he does favor that side a little bit. The e-trach also did some irreparable damage, so he sometimes has trouble breathing. Stubborn bastard doesn't let that stop him, though, even when it should (and mmm, boy, the first time he blacked out because he kept working out even though he couldn't breathe was fun). He also drinks, probably more than he should, but never when "on duty". He's been known to smoke on occasion, though not often and only socially.
5. How does he move? Is he clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid?
Years in martial arts mean he's pretty fluid. He's smooooooth.
6. How attractive is this character physically? How does he perceive himself in the mirror?
Messy throat scar aside, Tanvir's pretty good looking. (Personally, I think he's drop dead gorgeous, but ymmv. 8D) Not only is he good looking, he knows he's good looking. Now, take out the dental implants, and it'd be a bit (or a lot) of a different story, but as he is now, he's pretty attractive, and he's more than happy to use that to his advantage.
7. Describe his complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred?
Tan is dark-skinned. It's like. A milky-chocolatey something. Idk. He's lucky in that he doesn't have any kind of acne scarring. ...Other scarring, however... Oh yeah. His neck is pretty jacked up.
8. Describe his hair: color, texture, style.
It's dark, coarse, thick, and curly. It's gorgeous. It hits right about chin length and gets in his face all the damn time. He'll cut it eventually. Maybe. He also has a stubbly beard. :3
9. What color are his eyes?
Dark, dark brown.
10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features?
The big scars are the noteworthy ones. The jagged, defensive scar on his right arm. The equally painful looking one that covers most of the right side of his neck and the underside of his jaw. The trach scar is less obvious, maybe, but it's there, too. Other than that, no piercings, no tattoos, and no major scarring beyond the usual childhood scrapes.
11. What are his chief tension centers?
His whole right side is a tension center. He's generally pretty okay but when he gets wound up, he tends to tense up his right arm and right leg. Which, as you might expect, makes his shoulder and his hip pretty damn sore after a while.
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?
Jeans. T-shirts. Sneakers or barefoot. Usually a belt, sometimes not. He's a simple kind of guy with simple tastes. He has to be able to move and move quickly in his clothing, so he's more for function than form.
He hates formal clothing, too. Hates it so much.
13. Do his clothes fit well? Does he seem comfortable in them?
Oh yeah. If there's anyone who looks like he feels comfortable in his own skin/clothes, it's Tanny.
14. Does he dress the same on the job as he does in his free time? If not, what are the differences?
Pretty much exactly the same.
15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando?
Boxer briefs. BEST OF BOTH WORLDS.
Speech
1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse?
Incredibly hoarse. I like to say he sounds like a super-villain with a terrible case of laryngitis.
2. How does he normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does he talk easily, or does he hesitate?
Quietly. Talking for him is hard, and he shouldn't push it, but he inevitably does. The longer he talks, the quieter he gets, and he starts repeating himself to be heard.
3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics?
He's from upstate New York, a small town outside of Syracuse (and his parents, they are horrified by this), so he occasionally drops his "r"s, but not nearly as obviously as someone from the city would. It's a much more subtle accent than most people expect from someone from New York, so it gets missed a lot. He also says "tuhmarrah" instead of "tomorrow". 8D He says "nah" a lot, and calls women "sweetheart" a lot, buuuut other than that, not really? Most of his tics aren't verbal.
4. What language/s does he speak, and with how much fluency?
American English and ASL, both fluidly.
5. Does he switch languages or dialects in certain situations?
Since speaking aloud gets tiring for him pretty quickly, Tan learned ASL. It was mostly a practical consideration, at the time. When he feels his voice starting to go, he tends to switch to sign language. He also has a few particular signs that he uses frequently even when he's using English; please, thank you, glad to help, and so on.
6. Is he a good impromptu speaker, or does he have to think about his words?
He would be if he were a good speaker. He's pretty sharply sarcastic, though, I guess that counts.
7. Is he eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change?
I wouldn't call him either? He's no master speech-maker, but he's perfectly capable of making himself understood. He's your average Joe on the street, in that regard.
Mental and Emotional
1. How intelligent is this character? Is he book-smart or street-smart?
Tan's definitely street smart. The further he got in high school, the more his grades dropped (admittedly more due to neglect than any lack of intelligence--he was bored!), and he ended up running from home his senior year, so he never graduated, and he never went to college, either. He could be book-smart if he tried, but he doesn't care enough to try, generally speaking.
2. Does he think on his feet, or does he need time to deliberate?
Thinking on his feet was practically a requirement of his job. He's perfectly happy to make snap judgments and operate purely on instinct when he needs to.
3. Describe the character's thought process. Is he more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical?
Instinctive? Tan reacts pretty well to changing circumstances, so I guess that'd make him intuitive. He's no idealist, though, he's definitely on the practical side.
4. What kind of education has the character had?
See the first question! He's a high-school dropout who stopped paying any kind of real attention in 9th grade.
5. What are his areas of expertise? What, if anything, is he interested in learning more about?
Self-defense and take-downs? Tan is good at beat downs. He's good at giving and getting punches. Does this count as an area of expertise? He's also a pretty decent dancer, but uh, probably not many people are ever going to see that. He's actually pretty interested in learning to cook, since he is utter fail in a kitchen. Boy survives off the kindness of others, take-out, and ramen. Lots of ramen.
6. Is he an introvert or an extrovert?
Definitely an extrovert. Tanvir loves people, he really does. Function of his job? Well, yes. But he also genuinely likes people.
7. Describe the character's temperament. Is he even-tempered or does he have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven?
Tanvir's superficially even-tempered. He's laid-back and easygoing for the most part. In fact, if you don't know him well, you'd never know about the almost incoherent anger that's almost always bubbling right under the surface. In reality, he's got one hell of a temper, though he's a lot better about not showing it openly than he was when he was younger. Martial arts helped that a lot.
He's still put a few holes in walls, though. Broken his hand hitting things more than once.
He doesn't like being told "you will do this" in no uncertain terms. Ultimatums are a good way to get him to do exactly the opposite. (If you can convince him it's his own idea, though, that's a different story.) In short, there's a part of him that's still a ridiculous, immature, rebellious teenager. It's not something he likes about himself, but it's also not something he hates enough to change. Yet.
8. How does he respond to new people or situations? Is he suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic?
He responds pretty well. He likes to observe people and he likes to interact with people. I'd classify him as "watchful" more than anything else. If he's guarded, it's only because he's still working someone out. After that? He'll either be friendly, largely standoffish, or openly hostile. Tan does not really hide how he feels about individual people.
9. Is he more likely to act, or to react?
That's totally dependent on the situation. In some situations, he'll act. In others, he observes and reacts. It really, really depends.
10. Which is his default: fight or flight?
Fight. Definitely fight.
11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does he appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks?
He grew up watching Looney Tunes and the Three Stooges. Guess.
12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does he deal with them?
No, he's pretty good on that front. He's got some anger issues, though.
13. What moments in this character's life have defined him as a person?
Dropping out of school and running from home is a big one. That was the point where he finally consciously and obviously rejected every societal ideal his family was trying to pin on him. That was the point where he finally realized that no, he couldn't just fly under the radar for the rest of his life, and that he was unwilling to compromise certain aspects of himself (the gayness is a big one) for his parents' peace of mind.
(The less attractive side of that realization manifested itself in him telling them that they already had three other "successful" children, so even with one failure, they were still doing pretty well by stock market standards. Not very nice of him.)
The other major marker in his life is the night he stopped the drunken asshole from drugging a girl. Until that point, he'd overlooked a lot of really questionable behavior from bar patron, and that night he kind of got it rubbed in his face that he was partly responsible for what (nearly) happened to her. If he'd nipped the assholes in the bud, while they were still "just" being slightly creepy, maybe nobody would have ever tried that in his bar. He still feels a little filthy about that.
14. What does he fear?
On a surface level, not breathing. Not breathing is Kind Of A Big Deal for him. Pain? Not so much. I mean, he's not going to go looking for another crowbar to the face, but he's not going to run screaming from the possibility, either. On a deeper level, he's a little afraid that he will never find someone to really love. He was raised in a fairly conservative household that had certain expectations for him, romance-wise, and these expectations didn't fit him. He's a little afraid that maybe, just maybe, because he refused to fit himself into that particular mold, that he'll never find the right person to settle in with. He covers that one up by being a total slut, and by being flippant about things like True Love, as if by treating it like a load of horseshit, he can talk himself out of wanting it. Self-fulfilling prophecy much? There's a reason his longest relationship to date lasted a week.
15. What are his hopes or aspirations?
He...doesn't actually really have any concrete ones right now? He'd like every person who walks into his bar to get home safely, and that's about as much as you'd get out of him at the moment. It's simple, but it works for him.
16. What is something he doesn't want anyone to find out about him?
That he's a high-school dropout rich boy.
Seriously.
Coming from a family that has a lot of money (and even after the market crash, they weren't exactly poor) has a certain set of expectations that Tanvir...doesn't fit into. After he ditched his family and ran from home, he settled into a more blue-collar lifestyle. People treated him differently than they did when they knew he came from some kind of money, and he preferred the new to the old. He...really isn't fond of the idea of that changing.
Shallow? Maybe. But it is what it is.
Relationships
1. Describe this character's relationship with his parents.
It's bad. Basically.
2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like?
He has three older siblings (two sisters and a brother), but he's so far removed from them, age-wise, that they might as well be strangers. Even when he was still at home, he had virtually no contact with them.
3. Are there other blood relatives to whom he is close? Are there ones he can't stand?
Tan's family is the one area of his life where he's a total social recluse. He had one particular maiden aunt he rather liked, who encouraged his Aikido studies, but she was also a familial recluse, so....
4. Are there other, unrelated people whom he considers part of his family? What are his relationships with them?
His boss and Christa. Christa is the big one, really. She's a couple years older than he is, the bartender at his dive, and simultaneously his big sister, little sister, best friend, and ideal lover. Except for the whole female thing. He adores Christa. He misses Christa.
5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet?
S-see the above. Christa started working at the bar not too long after Tanny did. He hated her at first, mostly because he didn't like the idea of people honing in on his territory, but Christa is as stubborn and sarcastic as Tan. Somewhere along the line, their violent, mutual verbal abuse became more lighthearted and casual, and by the time Tan's pulled to the boat, she's easily the most important person in his life. No question about it: he'd die for Christa.
6. Does he have other close friends?
Back home, it's only Christa. On the boat...it's too soon to say, but he really likes Bryn quite a lot. And he thinks Giselle is pretty adorable, if a bit dim. And he's definitely fond of Herz.
7. Does he make friends easily, or does he have trouble getting along with people?
He likes people! He likes being around people. He's not a social butterfly, no, but he's generally pretty okay with casual relationships. He doesn't make bestest buddies with a lot of people, but there are a number of people he'll offer cheerful hellos and handshakes to.
You may notice a running theme with Tanny. Casual relationships are easy for him. Deep friendships/relationships are not.
8. Which does he consider more important: family or friends?
Considering his relationships with his family? Friends are more important. His friends are his family, and that's fine with him.
9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has he been married more than once?
Single. Very single. Always been single. At this rate will always be single. 8|
10. Is he currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse?
No, but at any given time he's probably in a sexual relationship with someone.
11. Who was his first crush? Who is his latest?
He hasn't really had crushes, as such. He's had a lot of "I would jump your bones so hard" but nothing that makes his black little heart flutter?
Well, no, I take that back. He had kind of a celebrity fancrush on Jet Li as a kid.
12. What does he look for in a romantic partner?
He...doesn't? Tan has never had a romantic partner. He's had a lot (a LOT.) of one night stands. But never anything that lasted more than a few days or so. He knows how to get someone in bed, but he's pretty clueless when it comes to romance and relationships.
13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does he relate to them? If no, does he want any?
No. And no. God no. Kids are fine but they are not for him.
14. Does he have any rivals or enemies?
None on the boat as yet. I guess the guy that swung a crowbar at him counts off-boat, though.
Wait, wait, no.
His beard has a rivalry going on with King's beard. What? It totally counts.
15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does he fall on the Kinsey scale?
He's gay. Full stop. He kissed a girl and didn't like it. He kissed a lot of boys and did.
16. How does he feel about sex? How important is it to him?
He loves sex.
Like.
He loves sex.
Sex is awesome.
Bad sex is sex and sex is awesome and therefore even bad sex is awesome.
Seriously, he likes it.
17. What are his turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits?
Tan has a service kink. A huge service kink. He will spoil his lover-of-the-moment rotten in the bedroom and love every second of it. He's also a pretty big fan of hair-pulling and scratching. As for turn-offs, honestly? There's nothing he's tried yet that he didn't like at least a little bit.
Beliefs
1. Do you know your character's astrological (zodiac of choice) sign? How well does he fit type?
Tanny's an Aries! He definitely fits the adventurous, dynamic, and quick-witted aspects. Unfortunately, he also fits the quick-tempered, impulsive, and daredevil aspects.
Yeah, I'd say he's a good Aries.
2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in his life?
Tan was raised Hindu, but honestly, it was never anything more than lip-service. If pressed, he would call himself spiritual, but really, religion isn't something he thinks about all that much, if at all. In other words? It's not very important. He talks about god(s) a lot, and he makes references to things that are "holy," but it's not in any kind of reverent way. It's just part of his usual language.
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?
lol forgot to answer this one, i'll get to it later
4. How does he regard beliefs that differ from his? Is he tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent?
Basically, he's completely indifferent, provided nobody tries to convert him. At that point, he becomes combative. He really opposes being told he "must" do something "or else."
5. What prejudices does he hold? Are they irrational or does he have a good reason for them?
He is prejudiced against tradition, especially tradition for the sake of tradition. ...There's not really a good reason for it, he's just a stubborn asshole.
Daily Life
1. What is the character's financial situation? Is he rich, poor, comfortable, in debt?
He's broke. But his apartment is free, and his pay is decent, so he's pretty comfortable, overall. He doesn't have the money for a lot of extras (and Christa helps him cover his cellphone bill), but he's not starving or out on the street.
His family has money, and a pretty significant amount of it, but he doesn't tap into it. It's a deliberate choice on his part, for various reasons.
2. What is his social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected him?
Right now? Pretty blue-collar. He definitely used to be upper-middle class (at least), but when he left home, he left that status behind, too. He is actually...a lot happier. He kind of misses the ease with which money can grease wheels (okay, he misses it a lot), but he's definitely better off separated from it. Being his own person, encountering the world in a more "real world" way has been good for him, as a whole.
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?
Small, one bedroom, usually trashed apartment. It's largely a place to crash and occasionally get laid. Fancy? Like hell. But it's home.
4. Besides the basic necessities, what does he spend his money on?
...Not much. CDs, mostly. Before the boat, he had a pretty decent music collection, spanning a lot of different genres.
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 is a bouncer, he is good at it, and he loves it. I...really can't elaborate on that any further. XD
6. What are his interests or hobbies? How does he spend his free time?
He listens to music, he watches movies and. ...And honestly? Has kind of a lot of sex. 8|
7. What are his eating habits? Does he skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods?
His eating habits are SO BAD. Tan's completely hopeless in a kitchen, so he lives on take-out and the kindness of strangers. And ramen. Lots of ramen. It's only thanks to Christa and his boss that he eats decent food. If they weren't around to feed him, he'd eat like shit. He skips meals sometimes because he forgets to eat, but he wouldn't ever consciously skip them. He also can't tolerate super spicy food like he used to, and that makes him sadface.
Associations
Which of the following do you associate with the character, or which is his favorite:
1. Color? Dark blue
2. Smell? Cigarettes and alcohol
3. Time of day? Evening
4. Season? Autumn
5. Book? Fight Club
6. Music? Queen
7. Place? A bar
8. Substance? Alcohol
9. Plant? Dahlias (freal)
10. Animal? Lionfish!
END
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Body and Appearance
1. Describe the character's height and build. Is he heavyset, thin, short, rangy?
Well at the moment, his PB is Naveen Andrews so I guess you could just look that beautiful man up on Google and you'd have a pretty good idea of what Tanvir looks like. 8D
But okay no really.
Tan's 6'3", 186 pounds. He is tall like...a...tall thing. And he is lean like a swimmer. He has arms of steel. And a scruffy, stubbly beard that is the envy of King everyone.
2. How old is he?
23 whole years old! So it's pretty funny when he refers to people as "kiddo" considering he's really not old enough to say that.
3. Describe his posture. Does he carry himself well or does he slouch?
Tan stands pretty straight. His stance tends to be pretty open, wide legged and relaxed hands. There are two reasons for this: first, it makes him look like a non-threat, which means people are more likely to open up to him/listen to him, and second, because he can move quickly from that stance and because he's very stable in it.
4. How is his health? Is he fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities?
He's pretty goddamn fit. 8]b He used to work out more actively than he does now, and he used to fight in matches a lot in high school (not anymore, obviously), so he's still in pretty good form. He's got some nerve damage in his right arm, though, that occasionally causes him pain, so he does favor that side a little bit. The e-trach also did some irreparable damage, so he sometimes has trouble breathing. Stubborn bastard doesn't let that stop him, though, even when it should (and mmm, boy, the first time he blacked out because he kept working out even though he couldn't breathe was fun). He also drinks, probably more than he should, but never when "on duty". He's been known to smoke on occasion, though not often and only socially.
5. How does he move? Is he clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid?
Years in martial arts mean he's pretty fluid. He's smooooooth.
6. How attractive is this character physically? How does he perceive himself in the mirror?
Messy throat scar aside, Tanvir's pretty good looking. (Personally, I think he's drop dead gorgeous, but ymmv. 8D) Not only is he good looking, he knows he's good looking. Now, take out the dental implants, and it'd be a bit (or a lot) of a different story, but as he is now, he's pretty attractive, and he's more than happy to use that to his advantage.
7. Describe his complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred?
Tan is dark-skinned. It's like. A milky-chocolatey something. Idk. He's lucky in that he doesn't have any kind of acne scarring. ...Other scarring, however... Oh yeah. His neck is pretty jacked up.
8. Describe his hair: color, texture, style.
It's dark, coarse, thick, and curly. It's gorgeous. It hits right about chin length and gets in his face all the damn time. He'll cut it eventually. Maybe. He also has a stubbly beard. :3
9. What color are his eyes?
Dark, dark brown.
10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features?
The big scars are the noteworthy ones. The jagged, defensive scar on his right arm. The equally painful looking one that covers most of the right side of his neck and the underside of his jaw. The trach scar is less obvious, maybe, but it's there, too. Other than that, no piercings, no tattoos, and no major scarring beyond the usual childhood scrapes.
11. What are his chief tension centers?
His whole right side is a tension center. He's generally pretty okay but when he gets wound up, he tends to tense up his right arm and right leg. Which, as you might expect, makes his shoulder and his hip pretty damn sore after a while.
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?
Jeans. T-shirts. Sneakers or barefoot. Usually a belt, sometimes not. He's a simple kind of guy with simple tastes. He has to be able to move and move quickly in his clothing, so he's more for function than form.
He hates formal clothing, too. Hates it so much.
13. Do his clothes fit well? Does he seem comfortable in them?
Oh yeah. If there's anyone who looks like he feels comfortable in his own skin/clothes, it's Tanny.
14. Does he dress the same on the job as he does in his free time? If not, what are the differences?
Pretty much exactly the same.
15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando?
Boxer briefs. BEST OF BOTH WORLDS.
Speech
1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse?
Incredibly hoarse. I like to say he sounds like a super-villain with a terrible case of laryngitis.
2. How does he normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does he talk easily, or does he hesitate?
Quietly. Talking for him is hard, and he shouldn't push it, but he inevitably does. The longer he talks, the quieter he gets, and he starts repeating himself to be heard.
3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics?
He's from upstate New York, a small town outside of Syracuse (and his parents, they are horrified by this), so he occasionally drops his "r"s, but not nearly as obviously as someone from the city would. It's a much more subtle accent than most people expect from someone from New York, so it gets missed a lot. He also says "tuhmarrah" instead of "tomorrow". 8D He says "nah" a lot, and calls women "sweetheart" a lot, buuuut other than that, not really? Most of his tics aren't verbal.
4. What language/s does he speak, and with how much fluency?
American English and ASL, both fluidly.
5. Does he switch languages or dialects in certain situations?
Since speaking aloud gets tiring for him pretty quickly, Tan learned ASL. It was mostly a practical consideration, at the time. When he feels his voice starting to go, he tends to switch to sign language. He also has a few particular signs that he uses frequently even when he's using English; please, thank you, glad to help, and so on.
6. Is he a good impromptu speaker, or does he have to think about his words?
He would be if he were a good speaker. He's pretty sharply sarcastic, though, I guess that counts.
7. Is he eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change?
I wouldn't call him either? He's no master speech-maker, but he's perfectly capable of making himself understood. He's your average Joe on the street, in that regard.
Mental and Emotional
1. How intelligent is this character? Is he book-smart or street-smart?
Tan's definitely street smart. The further he got in high school, the more his grades dropped (admittedly more due to neglect than any lack of intelligence--he was bored!), and he ended up running from home his senior year, so he never graduated, and he never went to college, either. He could be book-smart if he tried, but he doesn't care enough to try, generally speaking.
2. Does he think on his feet, or does he need time to deliberate?
Thinking on his feet was practically a requirement of his job. He's perfectly happy to make snap judgments and operate purely on instinct when he needs to.
3. Describe the character's thought process. Is he more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical?
Instinctive? Tan reacts pretty well to changing circumstances, so I guess that'd make him intuitive. He's no idealist, though, he's definitely on the practical side.
4. What kind of education has the character had?
See the first question! He's a high-school dropout who stopped paying any kind of real attention in 9th grade.
5. What are his areas of expertise? What, if anything, is he interested in learning more about?
Self-defense and take-downs? Tan is good at beat downs. He's good at giving and getting punches. Does this count as an area of expertise? He's also a pretty decent dancer, but uh, probably not many people are ever going to see that. He's actually pretty interested in learning to cook, since he is utter fail in a kitchen. Boy survives off the kindness of others, take-out, and ramen. Lots of ramen.
6. Is he an introvert or an extrovert?
Definitely an extrovert. Tanvir loves people, he really does. Function of his job? Well, yes. But he also genuinely likes people.
7. Describe the character's temperament. Is he even-tempered or does he have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven?
Tanvir's superficially even-tempered. He's laid-back and easygoing for the most part. In fact, if you don't know him well, you'd never know about the almost incoherent anger that's almost always bubbling right under the surface. In reality, he's got one hell of a temper, though he's a lot better about not showing it openly than he was when he was younger. Martial arts helped that a lot.
He's still put a few holes in walls, though. Broken his hand hitting things more than once.
He doesn't like being told "you will do this" in no uncertain terms. Ultimatums are a good way to get him to do exactly the opposite. (If you can convince him it's his own idea, though, that's a different story.) In short, there's a part of him that's still a ridiculous, immature, rebellious teenager. It's not something he likes about himself, but it's also not something he hates enough to change. Yet.
8. How does he respond to new people or situations? Is he suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic?
He responds pretty well. He likes to observe people and he likes to interact with people. I'd classify him as "watchful" more than anything else. If he's guarded, it's only because he's still working someone out. After that? He'll either be friendly, largely standoffish, or openly hostile. Tan does not really hide how he feels about individual people.
9. Is he more likely to act, or to react?
That's totally dependent on the situation. In some situations, he'll act. In others, he observes and reacts. It really, really depends.
10. Which is his default: fight or flight?
Fight. Definitely fight.
11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does he appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks?
He grew up watching Looney Tunes and the Three Stooges. Guess.
12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does he deal with them?
No, he's pretty good on that front. He's got some anger issues, though.
13. What moments in this character's life have defined him as a person?
Dropping out of school and running from home is a big one. That was the point where he finally consciously and obviously rejected every societal ideal his family was trying to pin on him. That was the point where he finally realized that no, he couldn't just fly under the radar for the rest of his life, and that he was unwilling to compromise certain aspects of himself (the gayness is a big one) for his parents' peace of mind.
(The less attractive side of that realization manifested itself in him telling them that they already had three other "successful" children, so even with one failure, they were still doing pretty well by stock market standards. Not very nice of him.)
The other major marker in his life is the night he stopped the drunken asshole from drugging a girl. Until that point, he'd overlooked a lot of really questionable behavior from bar patron, and that night he kind of got it rubbed in his face that he was partly responsible for what (nearly) happened to her. If he'd nipped the assholes in the bud, while they were still "just" being slightly creepy, maybe nobody would have ever tried that in his bar. He still feels a little filthy about that.
14. What does he fear?
On a surface level, not breathing. Not breathing is Kind Of A Big Deal for him. Pain? Not so much. I mean, he's not going to go looking for another crowbar to the face, but he's not going to run screaming from the possibility, either. On a deeper level, he's a little afraid that he will never find someone to really love. He was raised in a fairly conservative household that had certain expectations for him, romance-wise, and these expectations didn't fit him. He's a little afraid that maybe, just maybe, because he refused to fit himself into that particular mold, that he'll never find the right person to settle in with. He covers that one up by being a total slut, and by being flippant about things like True Love, as if by treating it like a load of horseshit, he can talk himself out of wanting it. Self-fulfilling prophecy much? There's a reason his longest relationship to date lasted a week.
15. What are his hopes or aspirations?
He...doesn't actually really have any concrete ones right now? He'd like every person who walks into his bar to get home safely, and that's about as much as you'd get out of him at the moment. It's simple, but it works for him.
16. What is something he doesn't want anyone to find out about him?
That he's a high-school dropout rich boy.
Seriously.
Coming from a family that has a lot of money (and even after the market crash, they weren't exactly poor) has a certain set of expectations that Tanvir...doesn't fit into. After he ditched his family and ran from home, he settled into a more blue-collar lifestyle. People treated him differently than they did when they knew he came from some kind of money, and he preferred the new to the old. He...really isn't fond of the idea of that changing.
Shallow? Maybe. But it is what it is.
Relationships
1. Describe this character's relationship with his parents.
It's bad. Basically.
2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like?
He has three older siblings (two sisters and a brother), but he's so far removed from them, age-wise, that they might as well be strangers. Even when he was still at home, he had virtually no contact with them.
3. Are there other blood relatives to whom he is close? Are there ones he can't stand?
Tan's family is the one area of his life where he's a total social recluse. He had one particular maiden aunt he rather liked, who encouraged his Aikido studies, but she was also a familial recluse, so....
4. Are there other, unrelated people whom he considers part of his family? What are his relationships with them?
His boss and Christa. Christa is the big one, really. She's a couple years older than he is, the bartender at his dive, and simultaneously his big sister, little sister, best friend, and ideal lover. Except for the whole female thing. He adores Christa. He misses Christa.
5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet?
S-see the above. Christa started working at the bar not too long after Tanny did. He hated her at first, mostly because he didn't like the idea of people honing in on his territory, but Christa is as stubborn and sarcastic as Tan. Somewhere along the line, their violent, mutual verbal abuse became more lighthearted and casual, and by the time Tan's pulled to the boat, she's easily the most important person in his life. No question about it: he'd die for Christa.
6. Does he have other close friends?
Back home, it's only Christa. On the boat...it's too soon to say, but he really likes Bryn quite a lot. And he thinks Giselle is pretty adorable, if a bit dim. And he's definitely fond of Herz.
7. Does he make friends easily, or does he have trouble getting along with people?
He likes people! He likes being around people. He's not a social butterfly, no, but he's generally pretty okay with casual relationships. He doesn't make bestest buddies with a lot of people, but there are a number of people he'll offer cheerful hellos and handshakes to.
You may notice a running theme with Tanny. Casual relationships are easy for him. Deep friendships/relationships are not.
8. Which does he consider more important: family or friends?
Considering his relationships with his family? Friends are more important. His friends are his family, and that's fine with him.
9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has he been married more than once?
Single. Very single. Always been single. At this rate will always be single. 8|
10. Is he currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse?
No, but at any given time he's probably in a sexual relationship with someone.
11. Who was his first crush? Who is his latest?
He hasn't really had crushes, as such. He's had a lot of "I would jump your bones so hard" but nothing that makes his black little heart flutter?
Well, no, I take that back. He had kind of a celebrity fancrush on Jet Li as a kid.
12. What does he look for in a romantic partner?
He...doesn't? Tan has never had a romantic partner. He's had a lot (a LOT.) of one night stands. But never anything that lasted more than a few days or so. He knows how to get someone in bed, but he's pretty clueless when it comes to romance and relationships.
13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does he relate to them? If no, does he want any?
No. And no. God no. Kids are fine but they are not for him.
14. Does he have any rivals or enemies?
None on the boat as yet. I guess the guy that swung a crowbar at him counts off-boat, though.
Wait, wait, no.
His beard has a rivalry going on with King's beard. What? It totally counts.
15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does he fall on the Kinsey scale?
He's gay. Full stop. He kissed a girl and didn't like it. He kissed a lot of boys and did.
16. How does he feel about sex? How important is it to him?
He loves sex.
Like.
He loves sex.
Sex is awesome.
Bad sex is sex and sex is awesome and therefore even bad sex is awesome.
Seriously, he likes it.
17. What are his turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits?
Tan has a service kink. A huge service kink. He will spoil his lover-of-the-moment rotten in the bedroom and love every second of it. He's also a pretty big fan of hair-pulling and scratching. As for turn-offs, honestly? There's nothing he's tried yet that he didn't like at least a little bit.
Beliefs
1. Do you know your character's astrological (zodiac of choice) sign? How well does he fit type?
Tanny's an Aries! He definitely fits the adventurous, dynamic, and quick-witted aspects. Unfortunately, he also fits the quick-tempered, impulsive, and daredevil aspects.
Yeah, I'd say he's a good Aries.
2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in his life?
Tan was raised Hindu, but honestly, it was never anything more than lip-service. If pressed, he would call himself spiritual, but really, religion isn't something he thinks about all that much, if at all. In other words? It's not very important. He talks about god(s) a lot, and he makes references to things that are "holy," but it's not in any kind of reverent way. It's just part of his usual language.
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?
lol forgot to answer this one, i'll get to it later
4. How does he regard beliefs that differ from his? Is he tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent?
Basically, he's completely indifferent, provided nobody tries to convert him. At that point, he becomes combative. He really opposes being told he "must" do something "or else."
5. What prejudices does he hold? Are they irrational or does he have a good reason for them?
He is prejudiced against tradition, especially tradition for the sake of tradition. ...There's not really a good reason for it, he's just a stubborn asshole.
Daily Life
1. What is the character's financial situation? Is he rich, poor, comfortable, in debt?
He's broke. But his apartment is free, and his pay is decent, so he's pretty comfortable, overall. He doesn't have the money for a lot of extras (and Christa helps him cover his cellphone bill), but he's not starving or out on the street.
His family has money, and a pretty significant amount of it, but he doesn't tap into it. It's a deliberate choice on his part, for various reasons.
2. What is his social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected him?
Right now? Pretty blue-collar. He definitely used to be upper-middle class (at least), but when he left home, he left that status behind, too. He is actually...a lot happier. He kind of misses the ease with which money can grease wheels (okay, he misses it a lot), but he's definitely better off separated from it. Being his own person, encountering the world in a more "real world" way has been good for him, as a whole.
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?
Small, one bedroom, usually trashed apartment. It's largely a place to crash and occasionally get laid. Fancy? Like hell. But it's home.
4. Besides the basic necessities, what does he spend his money on?
...Not much. CDs, mostly. Before the boat, he had a pretty decent music collection, spanning a lot of different genres.
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 is a bouncer, he is good at it, and he loves it. I...really can't elaborate on that any further. XD
6. What are his interests or hobbies? How does he spend his free time?
He listens to music, he watches movies and. ...And honestly? Has kind of a lot of sex. 8|
7. What are his eating habits? Does he skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods?
His eating habits are SO BAD. Tan's completely hopeless in a kitchen, so he lives on take-out and the kindness of strangers. And ramen. Lots of ramen. It's only thanks to Christa and his boss that he eats decent food. If they weren't around to feed him, he'd eat like shit. He skips meals sometimes because he forgets to eat, but he wouldn't ever consciously skip them. He also can't tolerate super spicy food like he used to, and that makes him sadface.
Associations
Which of the following do you associate with the character, or which is his favorite:
1. Color? Dark blue
2. Smell? Cigarettes and alcohol
3. Time of day? Evening
4. Season? Autumn
5. Book? Fight Club
6. Music? Queen
7. Place? A bar
8. Substance? Alcohol
9. Plant? Dahlias (freal)
10. Animal? Lionfish!
END
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