Age: 20
Sex: Male
Orientation: Heterosexual
Craft: N/A
Rank: N/A
Physical Description: I’m not gonna lie, Kaskel is one of those people who are so attractive that it’s intimidating. (Or perhaps the truth is that he’s actually dreadfully common, which seems the case with all those belongs-on-a-romance-novel-cover men in the canon.) At any rate, he’s not hard on the eyes. His face is strong-looking, with prominent cheekbones and an aquiline nose. He has brown eyes and a full lower lip. Kaskel’s black hair is cut almost at shoulder-length, and he usually keeps it smoothed back. He’s also been known to wear pigtails while working or on hot days, which, despite his masculine features, make him look excruciatingly cute. His body is athletic, but not for reasons one might expect. He spends his days hauling baby supplies, sprinting back and forth after wayward toddlers, and carrying bratty five Turn-olds around by their ankles.
Personality: Soft-spoken Kaskel is often typecast as the big brother or father figure sort. As a crèche (daycare) worker who is constantly caring for little ones, he certainly fits the bill. He has a blend of charisma, playfulness, authority, and a great “Or Else” stare that help him get through to all but the absolute worst brats. Where older girls and women are often shy around him, and men threatened by his looks, kids have no reservations and just love him.
He wants to have upwards of a dozen kids someday, and though he will not admit it, this plays into his reasons for trying to Impress. This is probably perverse of him, but he’s thinking about how dragonriders tend to procreate quite a bit, and without being tied down to one woman. Though he doesn’t have a problem with abortions in general, as they are a fact of life for weyrfolk, he will become depressed for a while if any of his potential offspring are aborted between.
Kids are his only real soft spot. As said before, he is usually typecast, but that’s because he always seems to be humming to a baby on his hip while he goes about his business. When he’s alone with adults and older teens, he takes on a crisp, no-nonsense manner. This comes as a surprise to some people, and occasionally offends someone who expects him to behave the same way toward them as he does toward his little charges. Unfortunately, Kaskel works on two extreme levels. There’s the not-friends, whom he treats with cool respect and expects the same in return, and then there’s friends, who are shown the same humor and affection as he would to his own children. This can be both good and bad for the parties involved. He will hug other men, for example, with such enthusiasm that it can be embarrassing, even though he feels only brotherly love for them. Women… well, they can get a bit confused. Not that Kaskel would complain if things got a little romantic.
History: Kaskel was born and raised at Ista Weyr. His mom was the rider of a particularly randy green, and she never did figure out who the father was. She made an effort to stay a part of her son’s life, but had to leave most of his needs to other folks. She was careful to place him with people who had long experience in childcare. Whether this is what led him to be a caretaker, or if it was just in his nature, Kaskel has always loved his job, which began when he was only ten Turns old.
The road of his life was pretty even until about a Turn ago, when he got into a serious relationship with a young woman that he’d been close to for several Turns. She knew all about his desire for children, but she hitched a ride on a dragon and went between, aborting what would have been their first child. When he found out, Kaskel confronted her, heartbroken, but she showed no remorse, telling him that she planned to Stand at the next Hatching, and that she didn’t want to be burdened with pregnancy if she happened to Impress. He distanced himself from her after that, and has not spoken to her since. He does, however, take a bit of comfort in the fact that she never Impressed, and is now too old to be a candidate.
Shortly after that upset, Kaskel was approached by a rider whose dragon thought he might have what it took to join their ranks. The thought didn’t particularly appeal to him at the time, because of that woman, but he decided to try anyway. He’s been to every Hatching since, but no hatchling has chosen him. He was never disappointed, though nowadays he’s been getting more and more warm to the possibility that he might find true satisfaction as one of Pern’s sky-bound saviors.
Pets: One firelizard: Gold Oria, on whose egg he splurged most of his savings. In hindsight, it was a stupid thing to do, but he loves being envied for having a gold, and the kids he tends are often easily entertained by her antics, saving him time and energy. (I’ll have her officially recerted and possibly even RP her hatching once I complete the five required roleplays. Won’t be long now!)
Other/Talents: Kaskel has a natural affinity for infants and younglings of any species. He can also hold an awful lot of wine without any effect, and enjoys a good drinking game now and then.
Will this character be a candidate? Yes
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