Profile
• Thoughtful • Creative • Gentle • Fretful • Meek • Resigned
August “Solidago Alyssum Muscari” Valencia is the 2nd heir of the royal Valencia house, son to the celebrated Dokad, September Valencia, and chosen bearer of the Needle of Anguish. Wielding the divine instrument of Doa, deity of judgment, has brought August into the spotlight and given him many unwanted responsibilities. So used to being left in the dark, August struggles with the change and knowledge that the needle has bestowed upon him. Still, the needle has given him power wherein all his life he's believed himself to be powerless. Despite surrounding pressures, both within his own house and outside it, August tries to use the needle for good.
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Among his fellow royals, August is seen as both a pitiful and strange creature that few wish to interact with (lest they seek September’s ire). Because unlike all other Spine-Felines, August only has three front limbs – not four, and even then, his third is much smaller than average and thus deemed as “malformed”. Additionally, he has a rather fragile disposition that causes him to fall sick often.
Due to these perceived imperfections, August has suffered years of isolation and ostracization from his fellow house members, instigated by the head of house, his mother. Throughout his life, August has learned to lurk in the shadows of the Valencia manor, keep to himself, speak only when spoken to. In recent years, August has been allowed to attend social gatherings, but even still September takes measures to keep her shameful son out of the spotlight.
The few who do interact with August find him to be friendly and soft-spoken if not a bit antsy – always ducking his head as a reflex and his tail-spines faintly twitchy. August is fairly socially awkward (his isolation not helping this) and fumbles on his words, sometimes even coming off as a little snappish if caught off guard or overwhelmed (though he will apologize profusely for this).
Crowds have always put August on edge. Really just most of the drama of the royal houses does. He doesn’t do well under pressure or confrontation and would usually rather weather the consequences, even if steep, then draw attention to himself by speaking up (As he also believes that he has little power/influence over things). Still, if he can find even a small way to help another creature, he’ll take it. He has a forgiving heart and tries to believe in the good of other creatures, so when he sees another suffering he’ll attemp to help, try to understand – even if it’s just a small gesture. August doesn't believe his own issues (or himself in general) are worth the same effort though, and mostly keeps busy as a coping mechanism. He can often be found lurking in the Valencia libraries or working on some new research project.
Those who take the time to get to know August will soon discover he is not truly as soft-spoken as he seems. Much of August’s outward reserved nature can be chalked up to anxiety, years of neglect, and an absolute lack of social skills, a lovely concoction. Given the right topic/environment, August can be rather talkative and ramble on exuberantly for quite a time! His close friends can also attest that he's endearingly easy to fluster and is fairly sarcastic once he opens up.
While definitely not encouraged by September, August has a naturally creative mind and a deep love for linguistics, history, and music. He's also great at staying focused and keeping to a schedule for things he wants to do but has a bit of a habit of overthinking/overpreparing for things as well… At the end of the day, August may not always know exactly what to say or how to act, and will most definitely stumble and make mistakes along the way, but he has a gentle disposition and will always try to be there for those he cares about in any way he can.
Likes
- clementines
- reading/writing
- art history and making
- nightime
- plants/flowers/nature
Dislikes
- crowds/crowded areas
- mushy foods
- storms
- loud creatures
- being late to anything
Trivia
Has a lot of overstimulation issues, and being around a lot of creatures/in a noisy place for too long can quickly lead to a panic attack. often Stims by clicking his tongue or sheathing/unsheathing his claws.
Does needlefelting as a hobby! Though he mostly keeps it to himself and doesn't tell others but Amek about it, bc general insecruity issues + September doesn't like it. Amek helps him get wool and other materials for it and lets him gush about his creations :-). Later on bonds with Brutus over it since she also does fabric-based art.
Likes to keep organized and have a consistent schedule. Keeps a journal/diary (of which Amek will never not tease him for). Likes to do things in a specific ordered and calculated way.
He has a talent for the flute and the harp. He prefers the flute, but since the harp is his only interest that September really supports/tolerates, it’s the one he ends up indulging in the most. He plays at events and such.
has a deep fascination for history and linguistics/languages and knows the basics of several different languages! (Though only theoretically, hasn’t had much opportunity to practice with many native speakers). Also has an interest with magic, despite the fact that he doesn’t have any himself, and how it’s affected the history of Pippaf/treated among different cultures/magic ethics/etc. He shares this interest with Brutus and they have many exuberant/intense discussions on magic in general.
August has a loooot of social anxiety, and Ame always lets him practice a conversation or situation on them if August feels like he needs it. Amek helps August logically sift through his anxieties in generaland stop him from spiraling.
Always starts off his morning with a mug of hot chai tea. Amek tends to be a late riser but will join him with his own plum and hibiscus flavored tea if awake. Neither of them are morning creatures though, so they’ll usually just enjoy each other’s company in silence. As in, if anyone attempts to make conversation with either of them, they’ll get eviscerated.
Has a pretty terrible immune system, gets sick often. Also just has weak joints/fatigue issues that ebb and flow as well.
Often likes to chill with others by just hanging out in the same room and both doing their own thing. Has been lead to believe this is strange though, so will often try to talk or do something to make up for it unless told it's okay to just od whatever.
Ameokk often calls August “Lord August” even when alone because August knows they mean it in more of an affectionate/teasing way. August calls them “Lord Ameokk” as well, but not nearly as much.
is very fond of giving those he cares about forehead bumps/smooches. Is usually very hesitant with physical contact (with anyone apart from Ameokk) but is always starving for it. Is very tender.
August is very sentimental and keeps literally everything anyone has ever given him. Gets saddened and upset if these items are lost/damaged. He also keeps these items in a hidden box/place to assure that they won't ever be tampered with (again).
Loves bugs, particularly worms, roaches, ants, centipedes, spiders. The bugs most usually find gross/scary tbh..
Early History
!!TW/CW!!: child neglect, abuse, and isolation. not described in detail.
August was born the 2nd child to Dokad September Valencia. September had struggled for several years to bear another child after July, so the birth of August was a highly anticipated affair, and a dissapointing one.
September's standards were already high, after all, her eldest, July, had all the markings of a royal spinecat. Elongated body, four front limbs, numerous vibrant spines adorning his tail. But his brown fur was that of his father's not his mother's, which was distasteful. August was a completely different story. In her eyes, he was born deformed, clearly meant to have four front limbs, but only retaining three. And that third one was a squished and pathetic thing. Not only that, but while July had his father's fur, August had something much worse. Sure, he had his mother's black fur, but did not have her bold green spines, instead, the crimson spines of his father. Fur-color was a small matter in the long wrong, but spine color? The fact August didn't have her spine color, it made her blood look weak.
In short, September saw August as a disappointment. At a young age, she made this known not only to him, but to clan Valencia at large. August was hidden away, September shamed that her bloodline had produced him, and all clan members were discouraged from interacting with him, some even receiving punishments if they did so. September herself, interacting with August sparingly, and even then she was cold and dismissive with him at best, spitting hateful words or hitting him at worst. Even ignoring his birth defect,August was everything she had not wanted him to be. Scrawny and skittish, over-excitable and much too sensitive. So September hid him away, build an extension of the manor, the underground levels, where he was meant to stay. He was punished for venturing outward, but only if he got caught. September didn't have care enough to even assign others to watch him or pay attention to his whereabouts, and if the kit somehow got himself killed on his nightly adventures, well, September would be pleased. After all, it was only her own religious beleifs that stopped her from disposing of August herself. Even if he was a disgracce, he was her blood.
During this time (Birth-Age 12), most of August’s childlike positivity and excitability was slowly drained out of him. He grew used to being lonely and spent most of his days losing himself within books stolen from the Valencia libraries during the night, or snuck off to the gardens or less-traveled areas in the daylight if he was feeling particularly brave. He longed for some kind of emotional connection, but from his lack of interactions with any children his age, (and the times he had been punished from doing so. and the times his interactions with others had gone poorly, September's opinions of his worthlessness seeping into many other clanmembers as well) his social skills and general self-esteem were beyond abysmal, and he believed it not likely anyone would like him enough to be his friend even if he was allowed to have one.
However, everything changed when Ameokk came along (August age 12). He made his first friend. The storm spirit was prickly at first of course, who wouldn't be in that situation. But they spoke to August, and they didn't realize that August was wrong and malformed. They treated him like any other. And it was wonderful. August talked and Ameokk listened. When he fumbled or rambled, Ameokk's gaze did not harden, and he didn't ever cutoff August mid-word.(See Ameokk's bio part of this, I don't feel like rewritting this bit. Anyways Aug visits Amek for a couple weeks, slowly befriending him, until: ).
When September found out about their friendship things got.... worse. But it was still mangeable. It was still better than before. Because August had a friend now.
Back into the light
!!TW/CW!!: child abuse physical + emotional
(Aug age 13 Amek 15) August's isolation faded, somewhat, after the induction of Ameokk into the clan, and September realized it was not only impossible but impractical to hide August forever. Especially now with Ameokk's attachment to him, August would be more useful to control Ameokk if he was more present. Instead, she sought to morph August into an individual that was at the very least presentable to the other royals. He would never be worthy of being her heir, but she could at least attempt to make it seem that way.
She began to control August’s activities, only encouraging interests she felt befitting of an heir of Valencia and insulting and pushing down any parts of August (whether that was his personality, his mannerisms, his hobbies, his way of speaking – anything) she didn’t like. She treated him lovingly and motherly when out in public (and punished him if he didn’t act the same) but disdainful and distant when alone. She was rarely physically abusive, not believing it to be worth her time, but nearly always verbally abusive and generally manipulative/controlling.
This shift in September's attention towards August left him disoriented and more stressed than ever before. He had grown used to his mother's neglect and being free to go where he pleased, as long as he didn't get caught. However now he was beholden to a schedule dictated by his mother, strict lessons with unkind creatures and being among crowds. Even his siblings, who he rarely spoke with before, were now creatures he regularly interacted with. Early on, Amek explained to him that all of their 'family meetings' were because September wanted Amek to make a connection with July or June like they had with August. They never did. They refused, though only admitting this to August. Though August felt a sick pride that Amek had chosen him over his siblings, often he wished they had been less stubborn. Their refusal to make-friends with June and July only let things fester.
August's only solace for this rapid change in his life was the presence of Ameokk beside him. Because, truthfully, Ameokk had just as much as a culture shock, if not more, than him. They had been Valenica's prisoner for a little under a year before they were integrated and introduced into the clan publicly. Creatures only did a double-take at August after they realized he was 'August Valenica', son of the Dokad. Otherwise, he was just another scruffy spinecat kitling. But Ameokk, with their billowing fur of clouds, was, unmistakably, a storm spirit. Mysterious, powerful, dangerous, and not anything at all like them. Unmistakably, other. It was rare that Ameokk had a creature treat them simply as another creature. When the days were done, both August and Ameokk found comfort in their understanding and kindness towards eachother. As creatures, like any other.
Similar to August, Ameokk had lessons, though much more intensive, and many led by September herself. On politics, combat, economy, decorum. It felt like everything under the sun whenever Amek complained to him, in that way where they smiled to smother their exhuastion. Though stressful, all of this was mangeable. Until it wasn't.
Until September asked Ameokk of something they didn't want to do, didn't want to learn. And they put their foot down, refused. September would hurt Ameokk. And they would curl against August quietly at the end of the day, their moon-grey pelt mottled with gashes. This continued for a time, but September never kept at something that gave no results, so she switched tactics. Ameokk could bare their own wounds, but they could not bare August's.
And so it went.
Ameokk would growl and snap until August was threatened, then they would bend. Obey. Sometimes, if they didn't bend quick enough, August would come to harm anyways, encouragement for Ameokk to behave in the future. When it was over, Amek would cling to him as if their next mistake would erase August entirely. He could feel the guilt, thick, like a string tangled beyond hope of straightening, in his smiles, in his careful touch. As much as August soaked up that affection and returned it, that guilt was a desperate, festering thing between them. And August felt guilty for existing.
-x-
At some point, without speaking it, without needing to speak it, Ameokk had become family, his brother. More than his brother, his best friend.
They both were inseperable, that is, whenever allowed the others' presence. Ameokk's favor of August above anycreature else was well known, just as known as his brother's silver tongue, their charm, their command of wind and rain, and their fighting prowess. Other creatures didn't understand why. Frankly, August didn't either. And, logical minded as September was, August knew it angered her, though she had learned to accept it. It angered her, and August allowed himself an acidic satisfaction at that. There were some things she could not bend.
Because the truth of it was, and what many creatures failed to realize, was that Ameokk depended on August just as much as August depended on them.
!! ALL OF THESE ARE OUTDATED OOP !! Ame Valencia
[ Sibling ] While they may have had a rocky and... traumatic start as kids, nowadays, Ame and August are practically attached at the hip. They lean heavily on each other and have gotten each other through many mutual hardships – they are each other’s anchor (and perhaps... a little too codependant at times). Although to outsiders they may often look like they’re constantly bickering and getting on each other’s nerves, all the teasing is in good fun. Through the nearly 10 years they’ve known each other, they’ve grown more adept at reading one another than anyone else – and while they would know exactly what to say to make something cut deep, they would never dream of doing so. Also I wrote a whole thing explaining their relationship in more depth, so read that if you want.
Brutus Pyridekk
[ Close Friend/Family ] August was introduced to Brutus through Ame, and was beyond scared and intimidated of her at first. Her glares were as sharp as thorns and the confident way she carried herself only reminded August of his lack of the same – and hadn’t she nearly killed his sibling upon first meeting them?? Yet Ame liked her, enjoyed hanging around her, called her their friend. Slowly, August began to see why. Began to see her as a friend as well. Once he was made aware of their mutual love for magical history and research, their friendship quickly hit off. They started to spend many hours geeking out together, discussing obscure magic trivia and history, and August hesitantly recommending her his favorite fantasy novels (of which, they often had to order braille copies to be made, or enchant a book to read itself). Apart from Ame, August had never had another creature around his age who would tolerate his interests – much less also be interested in them. He gradually realized that Brutus cared and looked after him much in the same way Ame did, as siblings. And August loves her the same.
"Ghost" Garvey Amaranth
[ Cool Uncle/Doctor? ] August has only ever interacted with Ghost sparingly, but he is definitely fond of the older creature and counts him as someone he trusts. Even though he is from another house, Ghost is only creature with enough knowledge on Ame’s species to offer accurate/helpful medical advice whenever they get injured or September puts them through some particularly harsh training – so August often sees Ghost in that context. Ghost however pulls no punches when it comes to opinion on the corrupt and often nasty nature of the royal houses and has stepped in to try to help August and Ame when he has had the opportunity. Ghost is also a scholar and shares August’s love for literature and history and is one of the few creatures August can gush to that he knows appreciates the subject of discussion just as much as him.
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