Post by Little Ebony on Nov 28, 2010 23:00:36 GMT -5
"Leadership: The art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it."
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Username: Little Ebony
Character Number: 3
Name: Argent
Nickname/s: None
Age: 23
Gender: Male
Birth Season: Late Fall
Location: Delant Hold
Sexuality: Heterosexual
Rank: Lord Holder Delant
Appearance: Please see here for original deviation. I only resized for the purpose of not stretching this page.
While his younger sister Aurum received the more mischievous-looking features attributed to their father-- his red hair and jovial countenance-- Argent got most of his looks from his mother. He got her straight nose and strong facial structure with a high forehead. His hair is a deep, dirty blonde, bordering on brown. Argent is a big man; he's not overly tall, standing at an even 6'0", but he is broader in the shoulders and chest than is considered normal. Having helped his father build the Hold from the ground up he is well-muscled, making his chest seem that much wider. From there his torso tapers into a slightly narrower waist and long, trim legs.
Argent keeps his hair cropped fairly short for the convenience of it. At the point of his life he is in, convenience will outweigh many things, including many personal wants and desires. This means, more often that not, he can be found with stubble and wearing clothes made for working in.
While it is Aes that resembles Argent more closely, there are a few things he and Aurum have in common in their appearances. The first example is their eyes: all three children have the greenish-brown hued eyes from their mother; Argent's already show signs of the laugh lines at the corners when he smiles. His smile is another thing he has in common with Aurum. They both have fairly full, bowed lips, and it's often commented on that they have the same smile. That same smile, when given, lights up his whole countenance; he seems younger, even though he's only twenty-three turns (most guess he's at least twenty-eight).
Personality: Argent is an extraordinarily hard-working individual. He has a tendency to throw himself into whatever project he's currently committed to. It obvious that he loves to work, no matter what kind it is-- overseeing Hold disputes to expanding the Hold, to running flamethrower drills-- and many label him a workaholic. If asked, he would agree completely, but he would also vow that if he had anything other than his work to share his time with, such as a wife and children, he would be just as dedicated to them as he is to his work.
Argent is a very clever leader; he believes in making people work for him because they want to, not because he told them to. It's a well-practised talent honed by recent years of manipulating his sister, Aurum, into thinking she wanted to take on some of the political responsibilities within the Hold. Discovering he had a knack for it opened a new door for Argent, giving him a world of insight into not only running his Hold, but running the people of his Hold. It's not something he has perfected yet, but he finds himself constantly working on it. People who think they're doing something because they want to do it are happy people, he's found, and happy people make for a happy Hold and a happy Holder.
While this may sound as if it makes him manipulating-- and yes, he would admit it is a form of manipulation-- no one would ever accuse him of doing it for the wrong reasons. Argent has nothing but the best interests of his Hold and people in mind when he does the things he does; that was one of the core values his father drilled into his head from the time he could speak. His father was always warning him to be careful and responsible with his actions, they hadn't been born into Lordship and therefor it could be taken away; so Argent has learned caution and responsibility when dealing with those beholden to him.
Despite how this sounds, he is far from perfect. He's made many mistakes, during his father's time and his own. The consquences have ranged from berating from his father, to death, and Argent has a habit of never letting them go. The downside of being such a responsible person is that those responsibilities weigh heavy on his shoulders and have a tendency to stick. He doesn't forgive himself easily when he makes a mistake and, while able to keep a straight face and calm demeanor in public, often finds himself a roiling pot of guilt in private. He doesn't really have anyone to discuss these emotions with, either. After years of running the Weyr by himself, he finds he can't really bring himself to try and discuss them with Aurum. While he's attempted to approach his younger sister many times, the words have always, somehow or another, found themselves glued to his tongue, unable to escape.
Eventually, he gave up even trying, and instead threw himself into more work.
Argent isn't an overly outgoing man in his personal life. He generally prefers peace and quiet to boisterous parties and scenarios. Outside of work, he is a surprisingly calm and quiet, laid-back individual. He has barely any temper to speak of (though, really, he's used to people doing what he wants, by order or suggestion), and enjoys the company of closest friends and family the most. His bond with his-- Delant's-- watchwher, Brown Delsk, is one of his most cherished. If he disappears at random, which doesn't often happen, he can always be found curled up comfortably in Delsk's den.
History: Argent spent his childhood at Benden Hold, where his father was the Steward. His family had long served in the role for Benden, the Stewardship having passed through her family for a least three generations, and about to be the forth with the birth of Argent. In the turn 185 a council of Lord Holders, Craftsmasters, and Weyrleaders decided and voted upon the appointment of a Lord and Lady Holder for Delant. There had been a big disagreement over this, at the time, since many of the current Lord Holders had wanted their own progeny to take up Delant's reins. At the age Argent was, he'd only just started attending important meetings with his father. This had been the biggest and most important yet, and while Argent didn't understand all of it, he understood most of it.
With the appointment came many gifts for the knew Lord Holder. Among them, Argent's father was given a WatchWher egg, which would soon hatch into Delsk and become an important character in Argent's youth.
After that, his family promptly relocated to the island. For the next two turns Argent spent his time in lessons or helping his father with the Weyr, even doing manual labour as the Weyr grew and grew. His parents were two people very much in love, and out of the two children at the time Argent saw their parents much more than his younger sister. Though Aurum soon started her own lessons, their classes never crossed paths, and it was simply turned into less time he got to see his sister.
When Argent was 13 turns of age, their parents announced the arrival of a third child. Argent, however, never grew excited about the idea. Unsure how to handle the news, and completely ill at ease with it, he went through a phase of rebellion. During this time he made great friends with Delsk, the Hold's young Watchwher, and got in trouble many a time for sneaking off to spend time in the Wher's den. At the end of the long, nine-month rebellion, Argent's uneasiness was proved correct. The birth proved to be a life-changing incident. His mother, a little further on in her years now a 14 turns year old son and 7 turn old daughter, was unable to survive the birth of her third child, a squalling baby girl to be named Aes. Their father did not take his mother's death gracefully, and while the Hold never seemed to suffer for it, their family did. Aurum was sent away to be fostered with other girls at Fort's Harper Hall and hardly saw her father again. Argent really had to pull up his socks at this time, so to speak, and started taking on duties a boy his age never should have had to.
When he finally summoned Aurum back home, it was only at the announcement of their father's death. At the time Aurum returned to Delant she was 14 turns, her brother 20, and their youngest sister a mere 7. Argent had long-since been groomed to become Lord Holder of Delant, and it was he who greeted her at the door, their youngest sister Aes beside him, as Lord Holder Delant. After that, Argent decided to keep Aurum at the Hold. She was old enough, really, to take on the temporary role of Lady Holder, as he was unwed, and for him to begin looking into marriage arrangements for her. Even while he did this, however, Argent could never shake the feeling that Aurum was getting in much more trouble than he could ever catch her at.
He was proved right when he caught her drinking with the guards. Out cold, he put her in bed, swearing he would deal with her in the morning. Oh, how he dealt with her. Argent had never felt more livid in all his life, and has not since. He expressed, very long-winded and loudly, exactly how he felt about her actions. The worst part was, he was uncertain if he'd gotten his point through her head, so he made an extra effort, despite all he already did, to keep an eye on her. He doubted it would stop her.
Finally, he turned back to distracting her with Hold-related issues, getting her involved as much as he could and as much as she would agree to. While he never caught he drinking again, he in no way thought she was staying out of trouble.
Throughout all of this, pressures have been mounting from the Collegium, and MasterCoggler Sayer, against the Weyr. While his father was of the same opinion as Sayer, Argent has never quite felt the same way. With the Collegium being such a big part of his Hold's livelihood, he hasn't put up any arguments. It probably won't be long before Argent must make a choice.
