CHARACTER RECLAIMS

[powersthatbe]

From now until endgame, Synodiporia is closed to new applications. However, players who dropped or idled characters but who do not have a behavioral strike against them may reclaim characters at any time. Dungeons and app windows are no longer necessary. Simply comment below with "I'd like to bring [character (username)] back!" And we'll take it from there. Players already at 3 characters who wish to bring back a 4th or 5th may do so so long as they're current on AC. Players wishing to bring in characters above 5 may request special mod permission. If you are uncertain if you qualify to reclaim, please email us at synodiporians@gmail.com and ask!

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[souredsweet]

CANON HISTORY: Here!
CANON PERSONALITY: It could be said that hospitality is an art form, and Kaoru is very dedicated to this craft. As an individual who is well-mannered and pleasant, it becomes obvious within minutes of a first meeting that Kaoru has a strong grasp on social presentation. Hobbies like tea preparation and the arts are not uncommon topics of discussion for elegant ladies of this time period, and Kaoru is no exception. This is the sort of person that can also draw and keep company with relative ease; with a sharp wit, a surprisingly on-point sense of humor and the willingness to lend a hand where possible, few people are left sour after a meeting. While this behavior might indicate a naive pushover, there is also cleverness present which tends to manifest in playful barbs. Kaoru is willing to help, not bend over backwards for everyone, and putting a foot down isn't unusual either. Still, Kaoru tries to be generous with opinion wherever possible, especially in regard to other people, which reflects in both word and action. Serene, unobtrusive and easy to get along with, Kaoru embodies the quintessential upper-class woman of the era.

...The only problem with this is that it's about as far away from reality as possible. Not only is Kaoru male in physique and identification, but nearly every aspect of his outer persona is an act. He is very dedicated to his craft, after all.

Growing up under the thumb of an abusive adoptive family after being traumatically parted from his birth one, Kaoru was told from a young age that he held no worth as a person due to his inability to bear them children. This was heavily internalized and processed in an unhealthy and outwardly violent way, which eventually led to the murder of the Nagumo. While Kaoru still has a number of self-worth related issues that lead to things like his inferiority complex, soured outlook, outer persona and desperate attachment to Chizuru (or rather, the concept of the Chizuru he knew in his youth), these are all normally decently buried; thus, the majority of his negativity manifests in his interactions with others. This can be seen both in the game and anime, where it's clear after he drops his act that he expects disdain and goes out of his way to provoke that reaction, leading to a self-prophecised chain of negative opinion. Along those lines, Kaoru also expects to be dealt a poor hand in all situations. He doesn't trust easily and believes that it's extremely rare for someone to give something for nothing. It surprises him more to run into a genuinely kind and honest person than to run into another like himself, who lies and hurts to get by. He has lived his life being used and using others and views that as an essential truth, something in the world that simply is. This is part of the reason it shocks him so badly to "reunite" with Chizuru again in Kyoto. Having lived in misery since their separation, the thought that she might actually be happy somewhere, experiencing all the better parts of humanity that he hasn't seen, had never crossed his mind.

As someone who no longer gets much enjoyment from life, Kaoru supplements his inability to feel happiness with a penchant for needling people. He is schadenfreude in compact, angry demon form; one of his greatest joys is observing the suffering of others, with Chizuru at the top of the list. The more precious they are to him, the better, but he won't turn down an angry rant or frustrated crying just because he doesn't know the person well. He takes great pleasure in pouring salt on open wounds and goes out of his way to learn which buttons to press to get a satisfactory reaction from his targets. He also has a tendency to use others in order to do this, as seen is Okita's route multiple times. Not only does he offer Okita the ochimizu specifically to make Chizuru miserable, but he returns on several occasions to make the situation worse, first by getting Okita shot with silver bullets (one of a rasetsu's weaknesses) and later tricking Chizuru into feeding him her blood with the lie that it won't create an addiction. It's obvious that he never feels a scrap of remorse for it; with such a severely damaged sense of empathy, he often boxes people into categories like "useful" or "hindrance" and leaves it at that. Likewise, he has no moral qualms with using people as stepping stones and since his attachment is usually not genuine, feeling guilt over it is an extreme rarity.

Even so, despite the emotional trauma that Kaoru has suffered, he is still a very emotionally intuitive person. A successful deceiver needs more than just basic knowledge of how a mind works, and due to this intuition, he is able to read most others well. It creates a strange juxtaposition in that he knows how to act like a healthy, understanding individual and he knows how to anticipate how others will behave with alarming accuracy, but he can't understand the "why" behind most of the emotions he's acting out or observing. Because of this, he can't provide 100% authenticity to his displays, which Okita and even Chizuru pick up on to differing degrees (Okita not being surprised when he turns out to be a little shit, Chizuru noting that something about his smile is off, etc). That said, what he can manage is usually enough to fool most. As long as he can mimic decently and use that to work toward his goals, he's satisfied.

Speaking of goals (getting "even" with Chizuru and creating a demon-only world), these are what drives Kaoru and the moments where we see his largest and most genuine emotional range. His plans are all suitably diabolical for a crazy antagonist and when they're going well, you can bet he's in a ridiculously good mood. However, when the tides start turning against him, the more childish side of his personality is exposed. He has a quick temper and is easier to offend than he pretends. His retaliations are heavy-handed; like a tantruming child, he has no way or desire to measure backlash and will go for the throat if even slightly insulted. This proves to be a large weakness. The angrier he gets, the more his careful mask slips. In at least one verbal tiff with Okita, he reveals some sensitive information about his past in the heat of the fight, handing over ammo unnecessarily and being hurt by it in turn. Despite his intelligence, he is often unable to fully control the emotions that he doesn't fake, and when worked up he can quickly lose his ability to think rationally.

When all the layers are peeled away, Kaoru isn't an artist of hospitality, but he is a right piece of work. Being so wholly damaged has skewed his perception of the world, himself, and those around him, permanently embittering him and leaving him unable to trust. He exacerbates his own issues by being dishonest and two-faced to cope, nurturing a false understanding of others for the sole purpose of being able to hurt them just for a scant amount of happiness. This obsession with "getting even", coupled with his fixation on the better days of his youth, are the coals fueling an unhealthy fire which is more or less the only thing keeping him going. If given enough time, though, it's the sort of flame that won't just consume him, but everything around him as well — and really, there isn't much that Kaoru would love more.

ABILITIES:
› Speed. Like your typical flashstep, fast enough to move without being seen.
› Healing. Can range from instantaneous to over a few hours depending on the wound severity.
› Enhanced Senses. His sight and hearing are much more accurate than a human. Presumably this applies to all five senses.
› Strength/Durability. Somewhat greater than a human but not as impressive as his speed or healing.
› Secondary form. No extra abilities manifest with it, but his already standing abilities become stronger. He also gains the features standard for all demons in his world; white hair, yellow eyes, two unobtrusive horns and pointed ears.
› Swordsmanship. Kaoru knows how to wield his katana well enough to stand his own head-to-head against Okita.

INVENTORY; His katana, a vial of ochimizu and the clothing on his back.