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Name: Briel
Stage: Prentice
Race: Lightning
Gender: Male
3 Base Traits: Optimist, Competitive, Laid-back
Personality:
Highly energetic and easily warms up to nearly anyone, he likes attention and being in big groups. He will chat with just about anyone who gives him the time, and is well suited for both small talk and deeper topics. With friends and acquaintances alike, Briel is supportive and sincere. He often jokes about whatever is happening, which can be either relieving or annoying to others if there is a serious situation going on. He is as smart as anyone else, but his playful manner might give the sense of foolishness. Don’t be fooled. He’s simply blessed with a sunny disposition. Very sunny.

He can be brash at times and is always happy to prove himself to other males, especially when it comes to sports. He may not always be the strongest around, but he has his agility and sharp senses to keep him a winner- even when he loses. He prefers winning, of course, but has no patience for acting like a sore loser. Trying to succeed can make him lose sight of his purpose, eager to follow his heart rather than the rules and being his own man.

When he's not wrapped up in competition, the other half of his life is appreciating down time. As much as he loves competing, he always puts his full effort into it and that can be quite exhausting! This more often than not involves being around others, being the social butterfly that he is, and recharging his energy with good company and laughs. Being so laid-back can have its downsides though. He is not the most practical guy, prone to procrastinating and being unable to focus on a task at hand unless it is part of a sport.

Description: Sectional heterochromia accent violet and majority green eyes REF
Hair based on This in a dark orange
Pointed gems, CC for placement

Clothing: Based around This with gloves under the sleeves. Boots similar to This with larger brass buttons and thicker soles.

History:
There is nothing particularly remarkable to outside viewers about the joining of Balok and Mekri. Balok was growing in skill and popularity as a sportsman, and Mekri was a teacher. Mekri, professional perfectionist, saw a sporting event that Balok was participating in, and was instantly hooked by the young man's skills. She instantly started pursuing the athlete, and her passion and boldness had Balok hooked right in return.

Their family began to grow right away, first with a set of twins. The boy and girl had full heads of orange hair and bright emerald eyes, like their parents. After a time, the couple decided to try for more, and this is where the remarkable became a part of their lives.

Briel was born just like his siblings; pale, a head of orange hair, and squalling with dismay at being brought outside of his protected space. His eyes were a different matter though. When the baby opened them up, his parents were shocked to see that they were the same green as their own, but both eyes held a touch of violet as well.

Balok thought it was beautiful. Mekri though.. despite her bold nature, she was still firmly set in the knowledge available to her. Things had a certain way, and two different colors in a single eye was not the way of things. Her first two babies were perfect, but Briel's eyes made him faulty. Both eyes bearing two colors of such contrast was more than the inflexible woman could wrap her head around. Feeling such shame as though she had done something wrong during the pregnancy, and that he was a stain on her flawless life, the majority of Briel’s care was put onto Balok.

To his siblings, he was pretty much just their little brother, ripe for teasing and heckling with friendly sibling rivalry. Minor changes came as they grew older. Treylat was always supportive and ready to help defend his brother. Corlee was a little more finicky on the matter, encouraging Briel when they were alone, but preferring to join in the teasing when her friends were around.

As Briel grew, his eyes became the topic of local gossip. Was he broken? Would he still be able to see when he grew? Shouldn’t he have the colors of his parent’s eyes? Was something wrong with Mekri? The last purple eyes were generations ago on either side of the family! The rumors only got worse with the passage of time. The more mystically toned rumors were quite outlandish in the advanced land of Belrea, most using such rumors to jab fun without actually believing the accusations. Other rumors were less "playful" though, the worst question being... was that even Balok’s son?!

The speculations were enough for Mekri to eventually part ways from her family, essentially running away without word and leaving Balok as a single father to all three younglings so that she could start over elsewhere. Despite Balok having complete faith that Briel was his son, Mekri could not handle the further shame of such speculation. Running away was easier than dealing with such a stain on her reputation. Even if anyone could ever prove Briel was legitimate, the stories of the rumors would still haunt her. Briel was four years old. That moment stung the most. He was old enough that he knew his mother hated his eyes, and that this was why she had left. He couldn’t understand why she hated him so much though, and became even more reserved than he already was. Now that his mother was gone, he and the other two were being taken out more often on Balok’s errands, and his eyes became even more public than before.

The increased interactions meant an increase in heckling; especially from other younglings his age. It started out as basic child immaturity, telling him he looked freaky. Then the younglings started repeating what they overheard the adults saying with their ‘logical’ thinking. He was the boy whose mommy had abandoned him. His mommy didn’t love him. His daddy wasn’t really his daddy, because his mommy was.. a few words that he didn’t understand. Treylat became a determined housemaster, acting more like a butler than a child, and Corlee rebelled with a snotty attitude and hanging out with other bratty youths.

Seeing his children wilting, Balok forced himself through the fog created by his own loss to give his sons and daughters a more stable home. He became more active in sports again, bringing the kids to practices and games. He walked them to and from school lessons. He made sure the kids felt free to talk with him about anything, and that they had something to be happy about every day.. and that they knew he was their father and loved them unconditionally.

With Balok’s efforts, Briel and his siblings began to flourish. By the time the twins came of age, they were ready to start training for fully joining the Sector of Leisure. Rather than sports though, the pair sought the life of performers. Briel is the one who followed his father into the sporting world, finding himself coming alive when competing. Watching his father and siblings grow, he began to forge his own path. First and foremost was remembering that his family loved him as he was. He didn’t want to turn back into that quiet little boy he had been; not ever again.

To combat the harassment that he still got from others, he started using humor. With practice, and the support of his father, Briel’s true nature rose to shine. The harassing insults began to roll off of him like water on a tarp. He let his smile shine through all of it, always looking for the brighter side. When he joked about himself, others found it less and less amusing to do so themselves. What was the point of harassing when the target just laughed?

The passage of time heals most wounds. Briel has come of age himself, and is turning his focus toward being a sportsman like his father. His relationship with his family is strong, though he hasn’t seen his mother since she left all those years ago. For his part, the memory of her leaving is faded, but the pain of her leaving will still sting if he lingers too long on the thought. His life has grown around his father, his siblings, and his humor. As it is, he is happy with what he has.

Preferred Artists: Kana, Miss, Lilia

*Last edit: 9/17

Most of the negative is the procrastination and not taking some things as seriously as he should. He can become quite passionate and excited about things, but generally is not one to lose his temper. Right now it's pretty much just sports. I'm sure something will come along to also fire him up along with the sports, but I don't know yet.

He only hid his eyes when he was very young, knowing his mother didn't like them. Anyone who did like them would rarely approach, knowing that the majority of the town didn't like them. After his father started being supportive again, and Briel found the strength to rise up again, he stopped hiding his eyes both in his acceptance of them and in the hopes that he might find someone who would like them rather than scrutinize them.

At this point, mother becoming a part of his life again is unknown. I'm sure they'll meet again at some point, but it'll be a while coming and gotta see how Briel grows and changes before thinking about that outcome.
It did shake the family for a time. "Treylat became a determined housemaster, acting more like a butler than a child, and Corlee rebelled with a snotty attitude and hanging out with other bratty youths." The older brother essentially took the place of 'mom', and the sister became rather absent from home. Balok went through depression, losing interest in the things he had loved before. It was seeing Treylatt turning into a housekeeper, Corlee becoming a hooligan, and Briel becoming shy and quiet that pulled him back to be the father they needed, picking up work fully again and being more involved with the kids

Mekri left because of the build-up of speculations over time. She was very stubborn about certain things, and she already felt like something was wrong with him because of the eyes. The gossip and rumors of those around her grew and got worse as the years passed, and it was something that dug into her. The accusations were that she had cheated on Balok though ((she wouldn't get pregnant from Balok cheating on her)). Though she knew she hadn't done anything, her focus on social views made her overwhelmed with the embarrassment to herself and the family, so she ran. On that note, Balok did not believe the rumors, but that just wasn't enough for Mekri~

Mom was far too focused on the rumor, and figured "damned if I stay, and damned if I leave, so might as well go and start fresh elsewhere." With no plan to return at the time, she figured that the rumors left behind would not matter because she wouldn't have to face them ever again. She was bold and flirty before marrying, but I don't think she would have been considered "loose" or that type.

Just because it's different and weird. I'm working on the assumption that no one in their town has seen anyone with sectional heterochromia before, and that it's a rare thing everywhere else, so people try to apply what they know to the situation (broken eyes or proof that one parent actually had violet eyes). It was a couple years before anyone mentioned it might be cheating though. Mostly, people were waiting to see if his eyes actually worked.
**The idea of an ex-lover does fit pretty good though. If what's there isn't enough, I could add that she remained friends with an ex who has violet eyes, and others just jump to conclusions because they don't have any other answers.**

As I started to make the changes, I found the ex-lover bringing up a slew of different questions that would need answers. So, I've made the mother more of a perfectionist sort so that she would be more susceptible to fits over what others think and over the 'imperfect' eyes of her own baby. Less actual harassment on the family, and more just mom being a closet narcissist.

At this point, mother becoming a part of his life again is unknown. I'm sure they'll meet again at some point, but it'll be a while coming and gotta see how Briel grows and changes before thinking about that outcome.