The Basics
Name:  Terry Alan Hobson
Nickname: Terry
Age: Twenty-nine ( 29 )
Species: Human


The Appearance
Weight: One hundred thirty nine... Ish ( ~139 )
Height: Five feet nine inches ( 5'9" )

Physical Description:
https://imgur.com/nxgPzws (Relative idea)

Lanky, beanpole, questionably-sentient-stalk-of-wheat. Terry's slim and there's little to do about it. Sure, weight could increase to be suitable for his height, but his perpetually-unimpressed visage seems hardly bothered.

From the top, his hair is clean and maintained, but some effort is involved. Sometimes he'll wake up with portions sticking out at questionable angles, sometimes he wakes up and its perfect. It's like a roulette spin every morning. Thankfully, it's black, so there's little to worry about in the long run; Most of it just blends in with itself, so sometimes it passes itself off as some kind of style... Rarely. Shoulder length might be a bit long for his lack of concern, but he seems satisfied to leave it as is, only tailoring it as needed or desired.

Behind the bangs are a pair of unusual eyes. Related to his unusual nature, the eyes stand out. (Described in Distinguishing Features)

His frame, when viewed with a minimum of clothing, is wiry. He has definition in a faint sense of the word, but he does have some strength behind him. He's more for being agile than strong, so thankfully he grew in a method that promotes this lifestyle. Malnourished might come to mind in most who see his lack of weight... They might think this as well when they see the outline of various bones in his body, but his appetite is something to be feared. He could easily eat as much as a horse and, likely, the horse as well... Culture permitting.

The majority of his clothing consists of loose-fitting clothes, half-tucked shirts and pants than seem like they might fall off at any moment. Thankfully, they won't fall off thanks to that wonderful invention called a belt... Or a rope, Terry's not exactly prissy or picky. Fond of ties without a clip, the throat-fabric accessory has multiple uses; Terry's favorite is to use it as a conversation ending indicator by taking the end of the tie and holding it above his head like a noose, mostly to let the other person know that they're rambling and boring him to death.

Distinguishing Features:
As noted above, Terry's eyes are wonky and this is being polite. Blessed with an understanding of magic and the potential to cast it with relative spontaneity, Terry's eyes have taken on an unusual hue of multiple colors. His eyes tend to shift between different colors haphazardly and he's rather tight-lipped about whether there's a pattern to it or any triggers that might alter it. Those who know him, however, can attest that there's all manner of colors.

Additionally, Terry is missing his middle finger on his right hand. Sometimes, spell-casting goes wrong and it leaves a mark.


The Human
Personality:
Terry's about as convoluted as anyone else. He does, however, try to avoid being an open book. He's not fond of people reading into him more than what he's comfortable with, even beyond the scope of magic.

He isn't bothered to be as blunt as needed, often stating whatever comes to mind with little regard for those around him. He doesn't see the world through rose-colored glasses either. Most might call him a born pessimist and they wouldn't be too far off the mark, though he holds a slight form of optimism in the idea that he can still be proven wrong. He's not bothered by social situations, but tends to steer clear of his personal life beyond the basics. Trust isn't something he gives out too freely, but it isn't impossible.

Getting him to react adversely is usually pretty tough. He doesn't seem to get very involved with things, at least not quickly. He favors his patience and often tests the waters first before committing to anything. While he isn't beyond dedicating himself to anything at all, he usually needs to feel comfortable enough doing so in the first place. How long that takes is anyone's guess.

Beyond this, however, Terry attempts to maintain a lackadaisical point of view. He doesn't want to rush into anything without being ready and, as such, takes his days one at a time. He doesn't seem to plan for much, reserving such action for only the most serious instances. Retirement would be a great example; Terry concerns himself with his well-being now and for what it'll be in fifty years, but he seems like he doesn't really give a damn about what he's going to do when he wakes up in the morning. It's mostly his job that makes him roll out of bed.

Mundane Skills:
Terry's talents have allowed him to develop a relatively stable career as a craftsman. He's good with his hands and, as such, tends to work with a variety of items that let him get his hands on the tools. Woodworking, metal casting and even some old-style herbal remedy crafting; If he can get his hands on the tools, he seems to have an intuitive understanding of how to make something turn out just how he wants.

Occupation:
Herbalist... Awkward as it may sound, Terry makes a living by providing physical and spiritual care to those who frequent him. Brewing up remedies and mixing salves, prescribing tinctures to soothe a weary soul, even crafting charms and talismans for whatever might be bothering a person, Terry has a rather unusual career. Still, it pays the bills and he's got a decent stream of customers... Even if a large portion of them aren't exactly standard humans.

Goals:
Terry doesn't have many goals, mostly because you're asking for too much by expecting him to have some grand scheme in mind. If someone were to steal his diary or little black book, they would notice a distinct lack of entries. If anything, a single note once every few weeks might read ... Forgot to update the journal. Fuck it, I'll do it tomorrow..., or something along that idea. This isn't to say he has no goals, but he seems to not panic much.

The ticket he'd received to come to Lapisque Angularis was unusual, but given his understanding of all the ghosts and ghouls o more workut in the world, this was something he didn't think of passing on. From what he knew, this whole place was a hot-spot for networking. Given that likelihood of finding customers, it meant he'd be able to keep himself busier doing something he liked once he left the island. Plus, if there is a God of any kind, only they'd know how long it's been since he took a break for himself.

Fears:
Terry's a little worried about losing his job. Customers are a necessity for him. To that end, he does tend to bring his work with him wherever he goes, just on the off chance that someone notices and asks, prompting an opportunity to open up about wanting customers.

Otherwise, it's tough to have fears when you don't worry about the future.

I'm not afraid of death... I'm afraid of dying. Puzzle that one out and lemme know what you think.

The Not So Human
Species Description: Human... Mage...
Powers and Abilities:
Terry tends to use his magical prowess to craft charms and a variety of tinctures or remedies. While the individual specifics will vary from one client to another, Terry has an impressive collection of tomes and texts that direct him to cast some rather potent items or curatives. While capable of casting spells spontaneously, Terry tends to favor magical artifacts, often enjoying the idea of crafting powerful and complex devices since they take so long and require a fair degree of investment.

Being unaffiliated, Terry cautiously dabbles in alternative arts. During one particular attempt at using transformative magic on himself, he wanted to see if he could turn his hand into a single mass, similar to a tentacle. He succeeded, sort of, but the attempt at reverting his hand wasn't so successful and he wound up reforming his hand... Minus a finger. Fully functional otherwise.

Vulnerabilities:
Terry's just a human... In the eyes of the supernatural, a particularly tasty human. He isn't exactly super strong or super fast, unlike elves or dragons or such. He doesn't have some sort of hyper-intellect and relies on a lot of studying to compensate for the squishy body he has.

Included is the fact that he often tends to exude a definitively magical aura, thanks in part to the majority of equipment he usually wears. Rings, amulets and the like that are magical. He's something of a walking beacon and anyone with magical sensitivity wouldn't have a hard time finding him on a typical day.

The Story
Character Background:
Ever since Terry was able to read, which was about four years old, he was learning to cast magic and reading about magical theory and the beasts that go bump-in-the-night. Born to a family of sorcerers and being the only child of that family, Terry spent years in relative solitude and isolation, many times being prevented from ever forming meaningful relationships with peer groups around him. While his earlier youthful enthusiasm was present, the rather strict lifestyle he was raised under left him wanting for more. Unable to do so, the light of the sun became more like an annoying, blinding blot in the sky. The gentle, flowing breeze was just a chill wind to cool things off and the peaceful, running rivers were just a source of drinking water and little else. Most of the child-like wonders faded early as he studied to understand his potential.

Of course, the occasional beating and berating commentary didn't help. His parents, fearful of him running wild and causing havoc with his power, kept a tight leash on him until he was able to understand just what he was capable of. He was warned more of the unnatural creatures in the world and given rather gruesome details about those who abuse their gifts. While he did learn about the positive elements in the world, such as the joy of friendship and such, his early life had left him wary and reluctant. His awareness and fear of the supernatural had bled over to the normal and boring world, making him hesitant to reach out for help from anyone but himself.

Why on earth he ever wanted to become something like a craftsman or herbalist, who would rely on others to make a living, was beyond anyone except his father. While the training was strict, one thing that Terry did look forward to were the rewarding weekends where studying wasn't allowed. Every weekend, provided he had met his studying goals and passed the rather rigorous weekly examinations, Terry's father would take him into the woods. There, the two would hack away at a tree, taking pieces and making effigies out of small blocks. Little men, almost like dwarves, were common. They would bind twigs together to make little charms for luck, or in other situations, Terry would learn about local flora and herbs. Cultivating plants like a botanist became a passing hobby, which he reveled in since it was a break from the constant books and reading.

Choosing to take one day at a time, since so much fear had been instilled into him in prior days, he figured he'd deal with consequences as they arose as opposed to worrying himself to death with every bit of minutia that he could think of.

How did you come to be at the Island?:
Terry's access to the island would have come to him due to his reputation. While many human clients frequent him, many as a last resort idea due to them requiring alternative medicine ideas, Terry's reputation as an herbalist and craftsman would have caught the ears of various less-than-human individuals. Known for having unusual clientele and a lack of prejudices, Terry's potential was recognized. Even with the tenacious nature of various beings, a magically crafted salve can do wonders and with constant threats in the outside world being present, someone with an interest in charms and devices to ward off those beings might be considered a rare commodity.

While his business hasn't precisely gone far and above anything more than a small personal idea, the fact that he can make his living is equally surprising. His position has been rather well noted as well, with all manner of beings having threats against their lives if they wanted to cause problems. Terry seems to be the kind of person who doesn't care if a vampire and a werewolf have some multi-century blood-feud, they're either going to play nice while on his property or they'll both have a hail of various types of spells being hurled at them. He clearly doesn't want to be involved in the personal drama that anyone has and seems more invested in just providing an essential service to those who need it... The fact that he's surprisingly competent at this also tends to be worth considering, especially since he lacks any clear form of favoritism.

If anything else, he seems like he's got a good enough head on his shoulders to not be biased. Hard facts and an outside perspective could always come in handy during more heated arguments. Especially on the supernaturally political level.

How you came to the island :
Throughout his business life, there's the typical day-and-night idea; Regular customers while the sun's up and, when the sun sets, a whole 'different' type of customers frequent his business. From a fellow sorcerer, Terry would have been gifted with an unusual fruit that had a multitude of uses.

Given the opportunity, cultivating the fruit could easily have lead Terry to an obscenely long lifespan, a physique that was practically as iron and a mental acuity that could have easily matched wits with bleeding edge technology. The issue is that the fruit would have required roughly thirty years of cultivation and care, which in itself was quite the rub. To that extent though, at that time no less, Terry had no reason to refuse or deny the effort; To be in his fifties but have a lifespan that could rival some of the more longer lived beings in the world, hard to pass up.

With that said, he'd spent a good twelve years nurturing the fruit, watering it and ensuring that soil was proper along with all the other necessities that would promote growth. The only known stipulation was that even when it would bear fruit, it would only bear one fruit at a time and, if it was plucked before the thirty year mark, the fruit would no longer grow and, by extension, the roots would shrivel and die and all the invested work would be for nothing.

Which is where Terry wound up. Though he was minding his own business, he'd had a chance encounter with an injured fae. While he wasn't entirely certain of the court, he did at least open his home to see what he could do about helping the fae. Practically on the verge of dying, given a rather serious degree of injury, Terry's only option was to basically throw fifteen years of his life away to mix up a proper curative. The only major setback was that the fae had little time and to make something of serious power, Terry would have needed at least a few months to gather the ingredients and catalysts to amplify the mixture.

On the other hand, he could make said curative by using one powerful catalyst, which in itself would massively amplify the restoring mixture. It just so happens that Terry had a particular catalyst on hand; The fruit.

He'd spent fifteen years caring and raising this plant, which is no small investment. But, at the end of the day, he'd been taught to value a life over something material and, in this case, extending his lifespan and having all sorts of little perks to go with it was, essentially, a materialistic item.

So while it was clear he was depressed to discard that much effort and time, the ground up fruit and roots created a medicine that, theoretically, could have likely even saved someone who had already died but had yet to pass on. No one will ever know and Terry does have his moments of wondering what things might have been like otherwise. On the other hand, watching someone open their eyes and make an almost perfect recovery after an almost guaranteed death sentence... That left him with a pretty good feeling too.

Plus, we can always try again later. If he had one fruit, that means there's got to be more somewhere...