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Arien Vieux
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“Okay? No, not by most definitions, but I have a rather good sense of humor.”
Full Name:
{Arien - Shining, pure, poet}
{Holt - Woods, forest}
{Vieux - Old}
Nickname(s):
Ari (Not preferred by any means)
Age:
25
Gender:
Male
“My spirit animal will devour yours, tread lightly.”
Appearance:
Arien is most certainly a prince not falling short of the term ‘striking’. He physically fronts a diamond shaped face that possesses a higher set of cheekbones, well defined jawline, and a rounded chin. It’s a face that is completely clean shaven, and he keeps it this way at all times. Arien’s eyes fall into the realm of both alarming and alluring with the piercing turquoise blue in the shade of a vibrant crystal sea hue. In addition, softer sterling gray and jade green flecks are littered lightly within the color of his eye around the iris. Framed by a thinner but dark and curled set of lashes, his eye type is best described as slightly hooded. They aren’t always expressive in emotion unless he wants them to be, though they usually always possess some glint of subtle amusement. Above are his eyebrows that are thinner yet possess a defined ending arch. Unlike his eyes, his brows tend to be fairly expressive whether he likes it that way or not. Arien’s nose is best described as aquiline -average-; having that of a straight slope and base. In addition, the lips that form his multitude of smiles, smirks, and grimaces are that of a soft shade of rose and possess a slight resting downturn to them.
Arien’s hair is something he takes great pride in as well. With his shade of hair being that of a brighter dirty blond. His locks sit in a fairly straight fashion on top while the sides are cut a little shorter. The longer tufts aren’t long enough to fall into his eyes, with only a few curly wisps curtaining the sides of his forehead from time to time should he not have his hair slicked back, but having no strands ever braving beyond his brows. It’s styled to easily be long enough to comb his hands through, and to be blown astray should he face gustier winds. While it’s lacking in frizz, as well as any semblance of “poof”, evidently his hair holds much natural volume to it.
Standing at a respectable 6’2”, Arien’s height serves his ego little justice. That alone is evident with his confident strides and disciplined yet haughty posture. His primary build is a bit more triangular; starting with broader shoulders and dwindling down into his narrower set hips. Arien doesn’t have an insanely muscular build to him, but he does maintain and keep a very evident presence of toning in accordance with his figure. If he didn’t have that toning to him he could pass as a fairly lanky looking individual. His body possesses its fair share of minuscule marks from training, and other various reasons left unstated, and a few less than honorable stories to go along with a few of his scars. They’re hardly noticeable though unless one is doing quite the thorough look over of the prince. Arien’s complexion can be described as a soft ivory. Complimentary cooler undertones to Arien’s already lighter complexion allow his overall appearance to stand out in a way that’s still very much easy on the eyes as well, and strays far from holding any sickly tint.
Arien’s voice is on the faintly higher end of the vocal spectrum, but it’s not actually that noticeable. Perhaps a bit more lilting at times, especially when he’s making a grand show of his amusement, but otherwise it’s rather relatively modulated and auditorily pleasant.. It carries more of softness to it, but when it matters most Arien can wield a tone of bone-chilling, husky authority.
Attire wise, Arien is a prince who generally dresses by mood. Though he vastly enjoys the splendor of being flashy and flamboyant. He’s rather fond of clothing covering most of his skin, and it’s quite rare to ever catch the prince showing so much as his upper arms. When Arien is expected to be in the presence of people, he wears gloves. Always. They generally will match the attire he’s garbed in for whatever occasion or outing he’s in attendance of, but Arien will not be seen without them.
"By all means I'm a leader, never a follower. Unless of course it's dark, then I'm not opposed to delegating my leadership onto someone else."
Personality:
There are many ways to describe the complexities behind the makeup of Arien as an individual. To some, he’s a dashing and daring soul. Charisma and cockiness are some of his most defining traits, which are only natural considering he’s a being full of pride. A suave charismatic creature is Arien, and amid his many masks, his charm usually fails to waver regardless of circumstance. His charisma has just enough pizzazz to woo who he needs to, and to win over most people he desires. Flashing his dazzling smiles and using pretty words works well in his favor too. And as for his charm, it would be of little value if Arien could not wield the essence of flirting well. And for certain, he is a rather flirtatious individual. It’s primarily his chosen method of communication for amusement, such as to fluster the men or women that are the object of his desire for entertainment, and more often than not he has little warmth or authentic affection behind his antics. It’s led to a few being led on, it’s led to scorned hearts, and definitely more than one fling. Not all lovers take his disinterest well, and this he expects, so once the fun is done… a line of great distance is drawn. Not all individuals abide by this line though, which is rather irritating, but Arien usually manages to carefully dance his way out of any real consequences with exes.
Arien, quite interestingly, is dictated by rather peculiar means seeing as how his persona does little to prepare one for his quirks. The largest of his make-up’s oddities is this; he is a raging germaphobe. It is a horrible irony that he desires and craves so much attention, though absolutely cannot stand most human touch. It disgusts him, and fills him with swells of immense anxiety and repulsion. Should he find himself in prolonged or direct contact with someone, he will not find content until he bathes. It is why he wears the armored barrier of so much clothing when in public, though - so he can feed his craving for attention, whilst staying cleanly.
And on the matter of cleanliness, Arien is quite the perfectionist, and impossibly particular. His mannerisms can dare be said compulsive, but he cannot live comfortably in his skin if his environment is not up to par with his standards. This subjects those around him to either adapting to please him, being sent away, or facing his fits of unreasonable rage. While Arien cannot control people to the level he would find desirable, he has learned quite early on that fear is a rather great motivator for obedience. And he is certainly not above weaponizing fear tactics. As someone who had his own fears, insecurities, and boundaries weaponized against him - it’s only fair in his eyes that he abides by utilizing the same rules.
It can very well be said that Arien is a man who desires amusement through various means. It’s almost cruel the manners of which he derives his thrills from, but he has little shame in laughing at the expense of others. The prince has a crude and dark sense of humor, though he isn't above childish humor as well. Sometimes he finds it in his best interest to be a menace. Getting under people’s skin at least makes him feel noticed through his annoyances. And Arien cannot stand to not be noticed, let alone ignored. It saddens him so much it enrages him, and Arien is not a very forgiving creature when he feels he’s been hurt. Though he tends to be rather horribly passive-aggressive to ensure he does not lose attention, but also to satisfy his need to get even.
Likes:
Ultimately, control; Over himself, his environment, other people, and so on.
Entertainment; Usually found at the expense of other people’s misfortunes or troubles
Alcohol; Not obsessively, but it provides a barrier that allows his more impractical mannerisms to not be so weighing on him
Cleanliness; It’s not so much a like as it is a dire need for his survival, but he needs to be clean at all times, and those in his close company are expected to be just as conscientious of their own cleanliness as well
Learning; Wisdom may be a burden but Arien regards knowledge as a very powerful weapon as well, and he is most usually always going to jump at the opportunity to learn something new in the realm of logistics
Acquiring Attention/Company; Arien deeply craves attention and human connection, even if it is forced. He thoroughly enjoys being acknowledged, and will certainly go out of his way to not be alone should his compulsions allow him to entangle himself fervently in human company
Dislikes:
Animals; They are all filthy creatures and Arien cannot stand so much as riding a horse because of their filth - children count as animals in his perspective, they’re just as disgusting
Stains; Arien cannot stand the sight of stained clothes either on himself or someone else, nor can he comfortably look upon stained floors or furnishings of any kind
Being Ignored; Either his presence or having his needs by others ignored kills him inside
Lack of Control; Arien gets to exercise little control over many aspects of his life due to his parents and station, and even his compulsions are ridiculed and belittled, so he loathes not being in control
Being Barefoot; It is too much of a weird sensation for him to comfortably stomach, the only exception is when he is bathing
Being Underestimated; Call him quirky, strange, or slander his peculiar needs, but don’t call him a fool. Arien knows he covets a mental prowess that dwarfs most individuals, albeit he is very careful about exercising such intelligence, so most often it is expressed through wit or humorously placed condescending remarks
Strengths:
Monetary/Political/People Intelligence; While Arien prefers to tend to his political affairs in private through written words and proposals, when needed, he is quite unafraid to be relentless with his ability to wield politics. The same goes for money - he knows quite well how to both manage and make it, which has at least allowed for him to be the overseer of the royal treasury. When it comes to people, Arien also knows how to expertly wine and dine individuals for both gain, favor, and just to obtain company. He enjoys understanding complex individuals, as men who desire simple things such as just solely power and wealth bore him.
Charismatic; While this is a trait most affiliated with Arien, it’s actually a rather exhausting practice for him with him being a slave to his need for people’s attention and acknowledgment
Thoughtful; In his desperation to understand individuals, Arien tends to feverishly observe or listen to his fixations in order to learn how he can be perceived as a friendly entity by them - this usually leads him to allowing himself to thoughtfully do small, kind things for those he’s looking to befriend, though he will steadfastly deny any kind of kindness
Weaknesses:
Obsessive Compulsions; If it’s not his parents, his compulsions dictate most of his life’s comfort level. He truly wishes he wasn’t so reliant on them, but it’s not exactly something he can help, though it’s easily swept under the rug as he’s so often referred to as just being simply “quirky”
Inability to Defend Himself; The only times Arien has ever played with knives and larger blades have been on his own in secret, or when he instilled the fear of god in various knights to persuade them to teach him in secret. These moments are so few and far between though that Arien could never actually stand much of a chance against an aggressor… unless of course he manages to bully them to death verbally, but that’s not a skill to bet his life on
Attention; The things he would subject himself too if only to gain a friend for a day are impractical and utterly insane. It is a lonely life he knows though - the most friendly of faces to him desire nothing more than to watch him fall so they can feast on his carcass and benefit from his fall in power. While he’s quite aware of the maliciousness behind the smiles he’s given, he’s partial to wanting to see certain people at surface-level, and not daring to look past what he is supposed to perceive so he is not disappointed or wounded by false friendliness
Kin:
Helena Vieux - Mother - Queen of Ailech
Adonis Vieux - Father - King of Ailech
Zaiden Vieux - Younger Brother - Prince of Ailech
Background:
The root of most of Arien’s compulsions are found in his early childhood - between the ages of four and six. A deadly fever had swept over his kingdom, and was killing a startling amount of men, women, and children. As the only heir to the throne, the King and Queen had placed Arien in isolation - the crown prince only ever being in human contact when he was fervently bathed three times a day with a very specific kind of soap, and supplied his meals. It was imperative that no one risk the young prince’s health, not even his own parents. The individuals that were tasked with tending to the prince’s daily needs amid this time period were covered head-to-toe in specially woven garments to deter the transfer of illness they told him. Arien had not even actually seen a full human face in those two years, seeing how his caretakers also wore specially made masks. The fear of needing to constantly be clean was instilled into him for survival, and he has not been able to break away from those habits since.
At six years of age, his brother was born and the kingdom had been deemed safe from the clutches of the fever, and Arien was once again permitted to interact with people. Arien was obsessed with befriending and protecting his infant brother, often speaking to the babe as if he were capable of holding complex conversation. Furthermore, Arien’s grooming of being heir was continued - his father often becoming frustrated and patronizing with the evident emergence of Arien’s odder compulsions. But his grooming ensued, his starved need for connection growing, and his oddities forever woven into his daily life.