"No one can make you change who you are
No one can take one beat from your heart
When you’re standing tall
You’re unbreakable
No one can make you bend, you won’t fold
No one can take your shine, you’re all gold
When you’re standing tall
You’re unbreakable"
~ Unbreakable by Birds of Tokyo
BASICS
NAME: Palico
GENDER: male
PRONOUNS: he/him/his
ORIENTATION: I dunno. Girls, probably.
BIRTHDATE: Late Winter, Turn 2752
AGE: 18 as of Late Winter, Turn 2770
LOCATION: High Reaches Weyr
OCCUPATION: Whiterider
WING: Minuet Wing
APPEARANCE
EYES: Deep Green
HAIR: Short wild red mop
HEIGHT AND BUILD: 6’4 tall, slight yet strong build
PLAY-BY: Donnel (Fire Emblem)
FULL APPEARANCE:
Standing at 6’4” tall, Palico is a strong yet lean lad. He has a short and slightly curly mop of red hair, large dark green eyes, and lightly tanned skin. His is quite the expressive face, adorned with the perpetual twinkles in his eyes and the most cheekiest/mischievous (even flirty) grin you’ll ever find anywhere on Pern!
He also has a cross-shaped scar of medium size on his left cheek, a small straight nose and a pair of eyebrows as equally red as his hair. His hands and fingers are very flexible and nimble due to Turns of using PSL (Pernese Signing Language) with his younger brother, and there are arm ‘bracers’ made of white bandages wrapped around both forearms.
Palico often tends to wear blue tunics (though he will still wear tunics in other colours of course!), paired with slightly well-worn pants or leggings or the occasional pair of shorts - whatever suited the day’s activities and weather best - as well as his favoured pair of sturdy boots. Snug around his slender middle was an ever-present brown belt laden with the usual everyday oddments, such as an small knife and drawstring marks pouch.
PERSONALITY
PERSONALITY:
Palico is a mischievous, cheeky lad! He is one of the local pranksters; the occasional class clown, anytime he felt like causing laughter and chaos. Despite this, he manages to be quite passably literate as well as kind and gentlemanly toward others - he would even laughingly flirt with any girls he fancied!
He is quite protective of his ‘people’ - family, friends, pets, future dragon/whers etc - he would definitely punch first (or get in an verbal or physical fight) no questions asked if he/they are threatened in any way. He adores all dragonkin - dragons, whers and flits - and enjoys the company of felines.
Naturally, Palico is very close to Palindrome, the two weyrbrats as thick as thieves growing up, a tight-knit pair of brothers running rampage through the rabbit-warren-like halls of their home Weyr.
Palico is also a bit of a worrywart sometimes, especially more so once he discovered a tunnelsnake phobia (born out of an certain Pali-led exploring escapade through tunnelsnake-infested corridors beneath the Weyr).
HISTORY
FAMILY:
- blue and green rider parents
- Pali (younger brother)
- Any younger siblings
SIGNIFICANT OTHER: None yet, open
BIRTHPLACE: High Reaches Weyr
HISTORY:
Firstborn in 2752 to blue and greenrider parents near the decline of the Interval War, Palico lived for three Turns in the care of the crèche, until the War ended and his little brother Palindrome was born. Delighted to have a sibling to play with, young Palico endeavoured to spend as much time with him as he could.
Once it was discovered that little Palindrome was in fact completely deaf, Palico set about learning PSL with unusual determination, wanting only to be capable of communicating with his younger brother. Turns went by, and the 10th Pass began almost without him noticing, as they played and led the imagination-fuelled lives of the crèche weyrbrats.
At age 9 (and Pali age 6), their reluctant parents were called upon along with other High Reachian riders to go fight Fort Weyr under Golre’s orders. That Turn, Palico was afraid, though he tried not to let it show while he kept an eye on his brother in the crèche, anxiously awaiting their parents’ return. News came of Golre’s death - and the surrender of the blue and green riders - and Palico quietly rejoiced when he heard that their parents were alive and safe among the first group of surrendered riders.
Upon their return, High Reaches Weyr began to rebuild, and the two brothers blithely went on with their weyrbrat lives over the next few Turns - exploring the warrens of the Weyr with Palindrome, getting the occasional opportunity to fly elsewhere on dragonback rides with their parents, playing pranks on their friends and each other, and so on.
At the age of 15, Palico entered Candidacy. He Stood for a few clutches - passed up each time, though he took it gracefully each time - as the Turns again passed, until the day came he Stood on the Sands confused by the two mysterious eggs that’d appeared from nowhere. Eventually it came to light that the eggs - or rather, the now-hatched dragons - had been stolen from Fort Weyr. Palico was full of consternation over this, feeling troubled by the entire idea.
Not long after, Palindrome became of age to join him in Candidacy.
They Stood for the next clutch - an recently donated clutch from Ista - together, which was a new experience for them.
Now, Palico had heard that there was another Gold clutch on the Sands in Semaca, and together the two brothers decided to temporarily transfer there to Stand for it.
UPDATES
- Early Spring, Turn 2771. The ‘temporary’ transfer for Palico turns into a permanent one, as he ends up Impressing White Himuroth at the The Day Without Suffering Hatching! (Third to hatch—though technically 4th, because of all the twins!—of 9 eggs, 3 of which contained twins!! Gold Nebulaeth x Blue Rauseth clutch)
- Turns 2771 to 2772. Sometime during their weyrlinghood Turn, Palico’s weyrling class suffers an unexpected attack by spotties! Palico and Himuroth are both wounded, among several others (of both weyrlings and their rescuers). Palico now sports scars across the back of his shoulders, and Himuroth’s wingsails bear scars too, though luckily her wings aren’t damaged enough to prevent her from being able to fly. Phew! What an epic case of bad luck for their class, though.
- Spring, Turn 2772. Manages to graduate into Minuet Wing without any further mishaps!
- (I think this was Turn 2773?). Palico’s latest mishap. He accidentally breaks his hip after Threadfall by falling off of Himuroth when she tries to walk away before he has gotten all the way out of his straps. This results in Palico having a mild limp for quite some time after he heals.
- probably Turn 2774, on Dragon Day. Palico & Himuroth helps Nat of Green Minamith (aka Semaca’s new ‘time traveller’) with their Search of a new Candidate! It proves successful, with both dragons agreeing on the chosen human’s potential.
- Summer of 2775: Palico buys a flit egg and promptly Impresses his very own lil baby firelizard! Such an adorable little blue.