Profile
Born with a supernatural ability never quite understood by the people of his time, Ainsley was the middle child born to a family that had recently immigrated with the intent of spreading their business overseas. As a child, random and violent outbursts of power kept him out of the classroom and from recieving the same education of his peers. But as he aged he found use in the military as a frontline soldier, where his abilities were an asset. And he was good at it. It didn't take long for his talents to be recognised and soon he found himself walking in the footsteps of his predecessors, leading troops to battle as a decorated general.
But the war ended, and with it so too did his involvement with the military. Ainsley found himself back where he started, without a goal or motivation, and without that sense of purpose he just... stagnated.
One day he got a phone call--his little brother with a proposition. A school for children with the same strange, dangerous abilities as his own, in need of mentor. And he took it.
Palette
Notes
- He has noticeably tanned skin, darker than either of his brothers
- There is no eye behind his eyepatch
- He often wears billowy, frilly shirts
- Likes to decorate his outfits with brooches, pins and the like
- Often wears long, laced boots, even when it doesn't quite suit his outfit
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Ainsley is a very level-headed, calm man. Despite his history with the miliary, he's the type who would rather avoid conflict if at all possible. After his retirement he mellowed out quite a bit, disliking the thought of physical altercation, for the most part.
With war behind him, Ainsley's great passion in life has become education. He works as a 'skill' tutor, teacher and councellor at Estriya's first school for the gifted and holds a strong sense of pride for his job. He's even more proud of his brother, however, and has a nasty habit of bragging about him to whoever is willing to listen. Their work on this education project tends to take up most of his time; he tends to be a workaholic. When he doesn't have enough to do he gets antsy and a bit self-destructive.
Ainsley tends to get flirty when he's bored. If he isn't kept occupied he becomes impulsive and is more likely to make decisions he'll later regret. His current job has him juggling three roles, though, which helps combat his bad habits. Despite his job he actually isn't very good with children. In time he picks up skills vital for an educator to have but even then there's a part of him that doesn't really know what to do when faced with, say, a crying child or a schoolground fight.
Perhaps a result of Ainsley's position he has a tendancy to put his own needs and safety second to everyone else's. That isn't to say he's selfless, but rather that he doesn't act according to his selfish thoughts. As a person of authority he feels that the responsibility of everyone around him, be they his students or not, falls on him and only him. Because of this he has a naturally protective, fatherly disposition.
Growing up Ainsley wasn't able to interact much with children his age because of the dangerous, unpredictable nature of his ability. Because of a long period of semi-solitude and a rather dry upbringing, he developed a very awkward sense of humour. Oftentimes he'll have trouble distiguishing jokes from honest conversation. He's well aware of this fact and makes a conscious effort to learn the social cues he needs to help him differentiate, but it's an ongoing struggle.
Likes
- The smell of rain
- Reading
- Spring
- A finely aged wine
- Gold jewelry
- Black coffee
- The smell of vanilla
Dislikes
- Solitude
- Snow
- Sweets
- Dolls
- Going to bed late
- Stiff clothing
- Non-combative sports
Quirks
- Will only wear boots, not shoes, especially dress shoes
- Has an affinity for baggy, frilly clothing
- Obsessive about personal hygiene, a bit germophobic
- Needs glasses but refuses to wear them because of his eyepatch
- Hums loudly when cleaning or working on paperwork
- Sits with very straight posture
- Can't keep a steady romantic relationship
Physical Combat
A great physical combatant. Though not refined, he excels at self-taught hand-to-hand combat. He is also profficient at wielding a sword and has experience with flitlock pistols.
Supernaturally Gifted
Ainsley has the ability to collect, absorb and manipulate the energy around him. This energy is the very same that allows his and every other power to work, meaning he can essentially take away the energy they need to use their power and use it against them. This energy is closely linked to life energy; it isn't unheard of for him to cause an opponent to pass out by exhausting them of theirs. His range is poor, though, so he needs to be fairly close to his opponent in order for his ability to take effect.
Knowledge Absorption
A fast learner and avid reader, he is able to absorb knowledge at a fast rate through reading books on whatever subject takes his interest. When he does this he retains that information better than most people, and his excellent memory allows him to recite pages of books that he just read. He used these skills to catch up to the education of his peers and to study for his current position at his brother's school.
Strengths
- Decisive and quick to take action
- Enthusiastic
- Orderly and logical
- Easily adaptable
Weaknesses
- Stubborn
- Mistrusting
- A terrible workaholic
- Cynical
Ainsley is one of the founding members of Great Oak School for the Gifted, the first school in Estriya aimed specifically at teaching students with unique abilities both general education and how to control and utilise their own specific powers in safe, productive ways. He works as one of the school's only current educators, as limited funding means that it'll be a while before they can hire on more than the bare minimum staff. For now his goal is to see this project through to the end, and after that he's not entirely sure what he want's to do. His motivation for pursuing this is his own upbringing. Having had a dangerous, unpredictable power he wasn't able to complete school with his classmates and had to learn fundimental skills separate from his peers. The thought of children still having to go through that because of circumstances beyond their control doesn't sit well with him, and thoughts of where he would be and what he'd be doing if he'd finished school with everyone else are motivation enough for him to want to bring about change.
Ainsley was born and raised in Estriya, a country perpetually on the cusp of war with its neighbour Astaria. Though his parents were from overseas he considers himself a true-blooded Estriyan and can at times be very patriotic. As he aged his power went from feared to celebrated when negotiations with Astaria fell through and war finally broke out after a twenty year struggle. Fortunately the war brought with it one good thing in the form of normalizing the abilities that were demonized during his childhood. Many people were recruited into the army solely based on the powers they displayed, bringing the sheer number of these individuals to the public eye. Suddenly it didn't seem like such a rare occurence, and prejudice against these people lessened, opening up an opportunity for people like Ainsley and his little brother, Thomas Howard, who wanted to impliment programs to aid in the study of these abilities.
Family
Ainsley grew up with both parents, though he no longer keeps in contact with either of them. He was always at odds with his family growing up because he was the first born user in the family. His elder brother Adelheid was born without any odd quirks or abilities. His younger, Thomas, was born with an ability that wasn't recognised until later in life: the nullification of other abilities. Where Ainsley's power could manipulate the energy of others, Thomas's would cut it off completely from just one touch. Currently the only person still in his life is Thomas. In the wake of the war the brothers began their project to create the first school for people like them, Great Oak.
Trivia
- He lost his left eye in the war and is extremely self-conscious of the scars (and obvious lack of eye) left behind, and thus began wearing an eyepatch. Incidentally the injuries were from a user on the other side of the war and the attack, while taking his left eye, also eroded the sight in his right. He now has poor vision overall, and this was part of the reason he left the army after the war's conclusion. Because of this he needs glasses, but he refuses to wear them because he feels ridiculous wearing them over his eyepatch. He won't go without the eyepatch, though, and he finds a monocle looks equally ridiculous, so he regularly struggles to make out faces and text on a day to day basis.
- While Ainsley is known to have a very formidable power on the battlefield, one that helped win numerous confrontations with the Astarian army, his brother's nullification is considered an even greater asset, and even more terrifying a skill. A part of him is also intimidated by it from time to time, even though he's well aware that his brother has no real combative skill.
- When startled his ears pin back and the hair on his tail stands on end in a similar fashion to a cat.
- Though not one for boardgames, chess holds a special place in his heart.
- It takes a lot to startle him. Most of the time Ainsley gives off an air of indifference.
- Even years later Ainsley still adheres to the strict diet he was kept on in the military.
- He is terrible at taking care of himself. If left to his own devices he'll forget to eat or exercise, or even take breaks from work.
- Despite loving food he never had an affinity for cooking, and it was only in recent years that his brother started helping him learn.
- Somehow he manages to be a morning person and always be tired at the same time. When he wakes up he feels refreshed and energised, but within two hours he starts to slow down. It's a known fact that if he tells his class to self study, he's going to fall asleep. It's only a matter of time.
- He isn't one to bring up his military history in conversation. Typically he won't mention it even when prompted, and word is spread only through other people. Because of this the rest of the faculty as well as his students are unaware.
- Ainsley loves food and is likely to eat however much is being offered, having a big appetite to go along with it.
- He was engaged once but his fiancee left him soon after they moved to Vandeur, the capital. He's terrible at keeping a long-term relationship.
- He hates wearing restrictive clothing. Most of the clothes he wears are loose and billowy. He prefers very breathable, thin materials. He also refuses to wear a uniform again, finding them far too uncomfortable.
Irwin Rhodes lover
His newest coworker, Irwin is the one set to take over his responsibility as guidance councellor, much to Ainsley's protests. Thomas insists he needs a lighter workload and when the first budget increase comes about he hires on a recent graduate (mainly because he's the cheapest option). A little sullen over his lost responsibility, Ainsley's slow to take to the new staff member, but over time he finds having this strange little bat... thing around to be a great de-stressor.
Thomas Howard brother
His younger brother, business partner and all-around favourite person. Though they often don't see eye to eye they still work well as a team, even if there is a decent amount of bickering along the way.
Adelheid Howard brother
The eldest brother, Adelheid carries on his parents' legacy and has always been at odds with his younger siblings. The only average child born to a family of power users, Adelheid's ideals could never resonate with his brothers and over time they grew distant.
