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 Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 5:15 pm
 [ i n f o h e r e ]
A thread to harbor the ideas and development of a small family of characters. What fun!
[ c o n t e n t s ]
My Sailboat for You || Introduction
I Heart Octopi || Saul Henderson
Working Hard || Carmen Henderson
Streetlights and People || Backstory
Extended Crowd || Important Side-Characters
A Little Gift || Spark Concepts
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 5:15 pm
 
Name
Saul Kipp Henderson
Sex
Male
Age
9 years
Weight
75 lb.
Height
4'3"
Hair Color
Burnt Red
Eyes
Brown
Physical Description
Saul is a beacon of youth. His face is a broad-based oval seemingly devoid of sharp angles. Likewise, his body seems devoid of sharpening angles, with the exceptions of bony places such as he knees and elbows. His figure is robust in stature, though not to be confused with overweight or particularly plump. He's average for a child with a large bone structure, quite ordinary to stare at if one were to draw his outline and shade him in. His eyes are neatly spaced from his nose. They are small, though not bead-y, resting just beneath thin eyebrows. Saul's nose is, likewise, tiny and rounded at the tip. It falls just below the center line of his face. His ears are visible from nearly every angle, extending outward, not inward. While comfortably small, they appear to be growing in an evolving Dumbo pattern.
Saul is 'olive skinned', as some might put it. He's a rich tan in coloration, if not somewhat oily to the touch. He is not pale by any means, the tan is dark and distinctive, but still recognizable as a moderate tan. His eyes are a dark brown in color, easily mistaken for black when the light hits in certain patterns. His hair is fashioned into a traditional cut; its short and mostly well-brushed. However, there are strands that often cause trouble and will flip up as if tainted by spit. Being rough and tumble, it comes as no surprise that his hair is never perfectly tidy, and he is rarely perfectly clean. The bangs are not parted to one side, although there is a natural swish in which they point to his left-hand side. His hair is a dark reddish-brown, easily described as an oak color. The most notable distinguishing characteristic for Saul is his birthmark. Though ordinarily hidden by clothing, someone could easily identify him if they were to pull out his shirt collar and look down the back of his shirt. There is a large brown splotch that runs down his left shoulder.
In terms of clothing, Saul is mostly casual. Ordinarily, he'd be caught wearing t-shirts (usually with graphics featuring marine animals) and shorts. However, Saul does not wear jeans, as he feels they constrict his movement and are uncomfortable. He prefers cargo shorts, as they have pockets for him to keep things in, and tend to fit loosely. Occasionally he'll be dressed more proper at the discretion of his mother; this is frequent enough to be distinctive. His semi-formal casual wear consists of knitted sweater vests, sweaters, button ups, and dinner vests. Saul doesn't know how to tie his shoes, as he has difficulty understanding the methodology despite his age. His mother, not having time to focus on teaching him, instead began buying him Velcro sandles. Saul does not wear socks with his sandles. His favorite pair of sandles are blue with little manatee scattered all about.
Personality
Energetic and youthful, Saul is the sort of child running up and down the city streets without a qualm. There's a blissful ignorance to his plight and demeanour. He's happy, he's optimistic, he's imaginative as all young children are. The world is his playground - and such an innocent philosophy is what dominates his life. He is the sort of boy to approach the nearest stranger, engage them in conversation, even follow them into secluded alleyways to find their lost puppies. There's nothing cautious about his overall behavior. Curiousity often gets the better of him, or he simply forgets the many warnings he receives in regards to such actions. Saul is inattentive. It's difficult to hold his attention if certain subjects disinterest him, and, as such, he is prone to causing mischief with or without the warnings of authority figures. While he tries to please them and maintain a level of obedience, he has difficulty understanding the expectations placed on his behavior and self. Simply speaking, he's learning and developing. He can be incredibly mature, well-mannered, and intellifent, but he is still a child and sees the world through those eyes.
Saul is an active individual. His greatest past-time being climbing, lumbering over objects without worry. He's a monkey. He enjoys the heights. He enjoys being capable of seeing the vast terrain scattered all about him, as if he were a sailor lodged within the crow's nest of a mighty ship. His games of pretend are often glamorous and involve vast amounts of physical action. He's rough and tumble in his play. Without a doubt, there is a level of consistency in his fantasies, however. Saul loves the ocean and marine life. He loves sailors and the stories they may be capable of telling. The promise of the open sea renders him breathless, and, as the result, he wastes no time in incoorperating his knowledge into play. He loves boats, he loves water, though he himself can't swim nor has he ever had the opportunity to ride on a real boat. Once upon a time, his mother worked as a fisherwoman; it isn't uncommon for Saul to elaborate on stories she told him, or to make up entirely new ones. He's hyperbolic in every sense of the word. Everything is grand. Everything is dramatic. There is nothing plain or lifeless within his colorful little world where everything could potentially make his eyes pop out, 'lest he be deathly bored for the day.
While Saul is a chipper kid, there's something very sensitive about him. He's a reactionist. What happens in his life, to him, to the people around him, affects him on a rather deep level. To be told he is disappointing, or to be yelled at for disobedience, is a sure-fire way to catch his attention and rock him to the core. He doesn't respond well to aggression or real-life violence, even if he may watch those things in movies. The transition of violence on a television screen to violence in real life is keen; Saul knows, and he disapproves of the savagery for fear. He's skittish; he doesn't like confrontation, though he himself may be confrontational under stress or if his temper has gotten out of hand. If he feels he's been wronged, he may very well throw a tantrum, but once the situation has crossed a certain line, he's quick to abandon ship and hide. To pull an example, if a bully were tormenting him on the playground, Saul might shout back, but if the situation escalates, he's quick to abandon the fight for sake of his comfort. There's nothing rough about his reactionary attributes.
As an only child with a mother who often treats him as her equal, Saul gives himself considerable authority and often acts independently. This, however, does not mean he is independent. He is still a child, with child-like logic, and can often over-react to simple things. He's very physical, and if someone were to upset him, its understandable that he might take his anger out in some way. This is not to say that he would hit the person upsetting him, but he would most definitely stomp and scream in a tantrum. His mannerisms are subdued by his reactionary nature. He is a creature of impulse.
Saul's favorite animals are octopi and manatee. He considers the two 'natural friends' even if that's not really the case. He's highly attached to two toys, Squiggles the octopi, and Mop the manatee. They're security items which help him get to sleep, as Saul is afraid of the dark. While he would never admit such things to his classmates, its certainly an avid factor in his life. Dark places are traumatic.
Notes
*Saul loves the ocean; he loves boats. However, he cannot swim. He's fascinated with marine biology, his favorite animals being the octopus and manatee. He wants to grow up and live with manatee.
*Saul has a toy octopus he takes with him everywhere; it's named Squiggles. He also has a manatee named Mop, but Mop is too big to carry.
*Saul would be the guardian, not Carmen. There are a variety of reasons this could be in theory, notably that Saul may have interfered with the exchange and come into contact with the Spark before Carmen did. Or maybe he was simply the one chosen all together - after all, what would happen if something like an Essentic came into the hands of a 9-year old boy?
Regardless, Saul is the primary guardian, and the Essentic's concept focuses on uses relevant to him. His mother assumes responsibility, but ultimately doesn't have dynamic say.
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 5:17 pm
Name
Carmen Lin Henderson
Sex
Female
Age
32 years
Weight
130 lb.
Height
5'2"
Hair Color
Dark Brown
Eyes
Brown
Physical Description
Carmen is short, standing at 5'2" with no dispute; she is, most definitely, short enough that she would need to stand on a chair to reach the back of the top of the refrigerator, or the very top shelf of a cabinet hanging on the wall. This round about hassle, song-and-dance, of being short doesn't seem to phase her. She's of average stature as far as she is concerned, and things other than her physical height tend to cross her mind in regards to her physical stature. She's meaty, having broad hips and broad shoulders. However, like her son, her bony areas, such as her elbows and knees, tend to be knobby. Her shoulders may be described as sharp as well. However, her face is very much rounded with the exception of a sloping nose that ends in a distinctive point. Her breasts are prominent, though not particularly large. Carmen's eyes are situated a short distance from the brim of her nose, medium in size, but not facially consuming. Her most prominent facial feature, perhaps, is the fact that her dark eyebrows have the potential, and often are, somewhat bushy. She does not have a mono brow, but she clearly has large eyebrows.
Carmen could be described as a lighter 'olive-skinned' tone. She is tanned, but its a very dim tan that doesn't compare to the darker tone of her child. Nevertheless, she does not appear even fleetingly as peach; she is a rich and vibrant pale tan, hints of rosy red inhabiting her cheeks. Her eyes are dark brown, easily mistaken for black when the light hits in a certain pattern. Carmen's hair is a frantic array of fluff and frizz. It has an elaborate and lively body structure to it, appearing bouncy and flowing like an ink-splatter upon the head. The texture is more course than smooth. Its a dark, muddy brown in color, and is often pulled back into a loose pony tail. While more hectic in nature than her son's hair, Carmen's comes across as well attended and cared for. The most distinguishing / identifying characteristic on Carmen is a medium sized scar on her right forearm, which she earned as a child learning how to fish. She also has a tattoo often hidden by clothing - a seemingly typical anchor on her right shoulder.
In terms of clothing, Carmen is fairly straight forward and plain. She dresses for warmth, often wearing sweaters with large collars. She is an avid knitter and tends to knit her own clothing rather than purchase it. She enjoys vibrant colors, but typically dresses in more rustic tones. She wears a variety of pants, notably jeans or things intended to withstand gruff manual labor. Having always liked the look of a traditional sailor, she wears suspenders frequently, and also wears any array of working-class boots.
Personality
Slack-jawed and tough as nails - such a description follows Carmen like an affectionate puppy. She's independent and rigid. There's a strong mind and a strong will behind her stature. She holds her ground and bucks like a bronco whenever she feels its necessary to do so. While firm and perhaps a little too stubborn, there is a general politeness to her self-presentation. She's kind and values civility above all else. However, that wildness and that hot-passion within her can not be subdued in the heat of controversy or impatience. She's fairly sociable and engaging. If anything, Carmen has never been shy with people or conversation. She may not always be the initiator of conversation, but she's never ignored anyone for saying hello or making small talk. In fact, one could say she enjoys it. She takes great pleasure in the company of other people, but one can argue that her own insecurities set up barriers. She can be secretive with others. While outgoing and engaging, she is not, and would be hard-pressed to be, one-hundred percent open. Carmen doesn't react strongly to romantical concepts - or, rather, one could say she has a natural hesitance towards them. Likewise, friendships follow in a similar manner. She can be wary, cautious, and analytical with others. Yet its quite clear that she values these relationships above all else. She simply worries that they infringe on her strength and independence.
Carmen is caring. There is no doubt about that. She's loyal, very passionate, despite her hard-hardheadedness. She can be playful, she can be goofy and ridiculous. It isn't uncommon for her to engage in games or pranks. She's childish in this respect. At the same time, she can be stoic, cold, and starkly professional. It depends on who she is engaging. One could say that she wears many masks for many different people, but all of them undoubtedly make out who she is: a hard worker, and a compassionate human being with open-minded principles. She's quite liberal in her politics, and while a little crude in humor, she's clearly an advocate of diversified things and tends to be flexible. However, she is staunchly conservative when it comes to mannerism, and does not tolerate brashness or incivility. In this respect, she is hypocritical. She may snap at someone for being brazen, and then engage in the exact same behavior herself.
She works full-time at a seafood restaurant in the city. While she loves her work and can be fairly optimistic about it, it's clear that being a waitress is not her life's ambition. Carmen often kicks and claws her way forward, having ambitions of one day owning a store of her own. More specifically, she desires a stable paycheck that is more than a few dollar plus tips to feed herself and her son. Even with its downs, the restaurant has its ups. Carmen loves food. She loves customers and making others happy. While she can be gritty and a bit like the 'woman at the country diner', she's hospitable and at least takes professional pride in her job. As she would put it: it pays, and at least it doesn't make it hard to get up in the morning. Usually.
In a nutshell, Carmen can be described as hard-headed, protective, playful, friendly, engaging, professional, and rustic.
Notes
*While Carmen loves food, she is not a good cook. She often buys take-out to store within the fridge at home for sake of her poor cooking skills, though occasionally she may venture an attempt at the expense of a good meal.
*Carmen (and by extension, Saul) live in a small, ratty apartment building. By all means, they are not rich. They manage, but can be described as 'scraping by semi-comfortably'.
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 5:18 pm
Saul's life began in the way all life does. He was born, brought into a world of bright lights and grubby hands, new sensations, new visuals and sounds. The world took him by storm, and it may very well be argued that he accepted its calling. He was a beaming toddler, quick to his feet, and quick to mischief. An innate fascination grew towards his surroundings - those surroundings being what they were leading him down an oceanic path. His mother worked full-time at a seafood restaurant. Consequentially, Saul grew to spend good time within the confines of the cozy little building. The paintings of manatee, octopi, fish, and boats ransacked his imagination though he had never personally seen the water nor the animals. He obsessed over the lobsters within the tanks, the dead fish within the kitchen. The world quickly became an endless venture, filled to the brim with secrets his young mind needed to uncover.
Nevertheless, Saul's life finds itself directly influenced by a past that is not his own. His mother's history follows him, as it would with all young children. She was a bustling woman, striving to make a name for herself in the world. She wanted little more than to survive, to live a comfortable life full of happiness. For a time, she had believed it could be found in the small world of kareokee, serving as an amateur singer for the restaurant she would later tend to as a waitress. For much of her adult life, she followed such a dream, only quitting when the world of music began to lose its glamour and intrigue. Age swallowed it whole, and the aspiration died.
At the age of twenty-two, Carmen fell in love with a co-worker. It was feaverish, flighty, passionate - the relationship ultimately leading to Saul's conception. Despite its enthusiastic run, the relationship began to fall apart at a quickening rate, ending on a sour note when she discovered the man had been double-dating her. No matter the circumstance or the loneliness, she kept Saul. She wanted him, though her reasons had always proven themselves ambiguous. She took pleasure in being a parent and the company of the boy she had, growing to see him as a companion rather than a child.
Such a history envelopes the modern delimma of the Henderson household. With an absent parent, Saul has always harbored an interest in knowing who his father was. Naturally, Carmen's interest is microscopic, the distinction between her son, the past, and herself generating tension. Yet it is not as dramatic nor intensified as the occasional incident may hint; Saul's life has been plainly ordinary, though grand through the eyes of a child. His relationship with his mother is close, loving even. Though their life is not glamorous, it shows itself to be enough. Their small apartment, the mangy and battered old belongings they possess, are enough for their simplistic values and needs.
Saul presently attends one of the local elementary schools and aspires to grow up and study marine life. Both Saul and his mother live in a highly 'oceanic' and seafood oriented portion of the city, his mother working at the same restaurant she has for years with aspirations of her own: to buy her own restaurant.
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 5:18 pm
Edgar Green Henderson
Carmen's father, and Saul's grandfather. Edgar is a retired fisherman and avid writer. He is quiet and seclusive by nature, but often does have interesting stories to tell. He often babysits Saul.
Richard Franklin Jones
A 35-year old man who cooks for the restaurant where Carmen works. The two have a relationship dating back to their childhood, although its exact nature could be described as on-and-off. Whether or not they can tolerate one another depends on the day and each person's mood. Richard is a family friend, however, and it isn't uncommon for him to be at Edgar's home, or to watch Saul under extreme circumstances.
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 5:25 pm
Social Spark
Transforming Toy
-There is nothing more magical to a child than a toy. Saul is often a lonely boy, venturing outside every so often to play with the neighborhood kids, but more often trapped within the confines of his house or his own difficulties. He can be rather insecure and in need of a companion to boost his morale, provide him with entertainment, and, most importantly, be a friend. A 'transforming toy' would be capable of suiting his needs in given circumstances, being capable of transforming into various objects provided it has seen them before.
Service Spark
GPS Style Navigator
- A GPS style navigator would be capable of assisting him throughout his day, while simultaneously locating familiar objects, people, and locations. While vastly limited, the GPS style navigator is capable of locating anything it has seen before (provided there is nothing interfering with its 'signal', and provided it knows a route to travel by).
The Navigator concept serves an interesting potential role in the continuation of Saul's personal plots. It decreases the odds of a highly curious young boy from getting lost, provides him with greater freedoms and independence, and increases the plausibility of Saul one day meeting his goals of finding his long absent father.
Combat Spark
Transporter
-A Transport Spark would serve as a great benefit to Saul, being capable of running and fast speeds. It could safely deliver him to school, help him escape high pressure situations, take him wherever he wants within a reasonable ETA ... All while providing the best piggy-backs in the world. The focus of a Transport is speed over all else, the level of motion and the overcoming of obstacles providing evolution. A nine year old boy could easily provide unique and challenging obstacles to be overcome.
Magicker Spark
Navigator
- Similar to the Service Spark concept. However, unlike the Service Spark, the Magicker Navigator would not be limited by things interfering with its signal, nor would it be limited to needing a route to travel in order to locate something. Provided the Magicker has seen the object, person, or location, the Magicker can locate or provide navigation to it, though it can not 'teleport' to such a location. A Magicker Navigator is best described as an elaborate, ever-expanding map, being much more accessible and functional than a Service-style Navigator.
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 11:37 pm
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