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ignore school related things, they're just part of the original profile and I don't feel like cleaning it up :P
The story I'm forever in the process of writing for him originates from basing him upon the Byangoma, creature from indian folklore, using what little facts I could find online as well as my personal spin on how I perceive them/the fiction I want to write involving Som as the main character.
species || Byangoma are bird creatures thought to be strictly of Indian folklore. They are said to be extremely wise, with the ability to tell fortunes, and choosing to help those who they deem deserving. These creatures are blind from birth, but may be granted the gift of sight with just a few drops of blood to drink from a donor.
Naturally, these creatures are not merely fantasy; and of course, the stories told about them aren’t completely on the mark in some regards. Sometimes traits are quite exaggerated though the species blames it largely on the grandeur of storytelling than purposeful lies. They are creatures of myth, after all, according to any not privy to their existence, why should deception come into play?
The act of fortune telling is not necessarily so. Byangoma cannot actively seek future events of one’s life. In fact, the past is often presented instead; sometimes a vision will not be presented at all upon a probing touch, of which skin-to-skin contact is required. These visions last anywhere from seconds to minutes, leaving the byangoma vulnerable as they are subjected to the sight.
They do need to drink blood to see the world around them; however, this is not a one and done kind of deal for these creatures. A byangoma needs to have bloodmeals regularly to keep his sight, or live blindly as consequence. Human blood is preferable as the effects last several days. Animal blood will do in a pinch but the ability to see won’t last nearly the same length, which is already so short. Byangoma do not drink maliciously and will leave their donors alive and well, usually without even an inkling they’ve been fed upon.
That isn’t to say accidents don’t happen, or that a select few become careless once in a while. Where else would the stories of vampires originate but here?
While their avian forms come in many shapes and sizes, their less intimidating forms are all that of a human, typically of Indian descent where their kind originated. This biped appearance is what most choose to keep during the majority of their life spans, which can last more than twice that of a typical human being. This tends to keep them moving around fairly often if they fail to keep low profiles. There are a handful of villages, even towns, across India made up primarily of byangoma, if not entirely. Keeping to their own is simply safer than trying to blend in.
abilities || At will, Byangoma can transform into birds, most of which are generally large predators. Som's avian form has the same piercing golden eyes as his human form. It's huge, has a wingspan of just over twelve feet. The appearance of the bird is a toss up between black crested eagle, harpy eagle, and a bearded vulture, save for the sheer size of him which is only slightly shorter in height than his human form. With a simple touch, which must be skin-to-skin contact, he sometimes sees another person's future; whether he chooses to do anything with the information forced upon him is another matter. More often he sees a glimpse into their past instead.
He takes flight to the mainlands to scour for a blood meal, to keep his sight, regularly not informing Galdridge (his original RP was set at a magical college of sorts that was set on an island off the upper east coast of the US but that is no longer the story I want to tell but I aM LAZY so keep reading semi-incorrect information on my child) staff of his weekly errand. He doesn't like the taste of supernatural or animal blood so he sniffs out humans favorably...and sometimes literally if he's lost his sight sooner than he could find a donor. He never kills if he can help it and also tends to have a bit more fun than he probably should as he feeds. aka frisky business.
physical || He's 22 years of age. Of Indian descent, though his accent is dulled after living in the states a good portion of his life. It does tend to show if he's worked up over something. Som's eyes are a striking golden color, the same as when he's in his avian form. His hair is black, though he puts dye in it for an indigo sheen. He keeps an elastic band on his wrist for when he sometimes wears it in a small ponytail, but more often than not he keeps it down (about shoulder length, part of his bangs swoop from center to his left) Usually his face is clear of facial hair but there are times you'll find a bit of stubble there. Som has glasses that he should wear but he doesn't like them and only puts them on when he needs to concentrate on reading, or when his sight is receding from lack of nourishment. His build is on the thin side and he is nearly six foot tall; skin is a warm medium brown. Often slouches when he sits. His style leans toward comfort over appearance--usually loose jeans and a thin button-up blouse, t-shirt, or hoodie with a pair of plain sneakers on his feet.
there are several hair styles tried below but I prefer the one in his avatar picture as that's what I finally settled on. :T
behavior || One might say he's the brooding badboy type upon looking at him on his own. And he sort of is. He spends a lot of his time holed up alone and seldom makes friends. However, those he considers better than others he's actually a fairly normal guy around. That is, he actually smiles from time to time and doesn't act like everything's just the worst. Looking at him, one also might not think he's much for sports but his stamina is quite high and he enjoys the competitiveness once in a while, but not all of the time. You can't really count on him when it comes to playing games regularly or if you need him in a pinch it's pure luck that he agrees to join in.
He's been at Galdridge since the end of the previous school year so he's technically still a new kid. He lives on this island over the course of the summer as well. This coming year will be his first whole one attending the magical school, and his third of university. Previously, he traveled quite often with his father, having left India when he was nearly 15 and transferring schools as required. They rarely stayed in one place for more than the span of a school year for fear of being found out again, even if they were careful.
Before leaving his birth place he'd run in with bad influences for several years, fellow "monsters" who weren't entirely caring how conspicuous they were to the world. There was a small town that somewhat mirrored Galdridge in that it was for non-human occupants only. However, it wasn't hidden to outsiders like the campus is, and eventually the rebellious group he'd fallen into made enough fuss that humans followed and found their homes. And destroyed the town without a second thought. Many lives were lost, including his mother's, which led his father to drop himself and his son off the map extremely quickly to at least preserve the young one's life.
The memories of this event are vivid in some places and fuzzy in others. Som knows he was part of the reason what happened did but he also knows he wasn't the entire reason. Regardless, he does blame himself when he gets to thinking on the topic too much, often pondering why he was allowed to live through the murders. The fires. Flames have had a deep effect on him since--the sight of them either turning him mad or making him flea without thought.
When his father brought up that he wished to return home to India, to see how things had panned out since their move to the US, Som refused. He didn't think he could handle it. And what if something like that was just waiting for them to come back? No, he would not go back, even to see his mother's grave, which was part of the reason his father wanted to go. They found out about Galdridge by word of mouth from other supernatural beings not long before the present time, and so that is where Som decided he would stay. Possibly indefinitely.
again tho, all the nonsense about Galdridge is just that lol. his story now revolves around confronting his ability to glimpse the past, or more so, the future, to ~save the world~ !
