-- JAMES ;; [wip]

[Echo]

james henry manning

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male , nineteen , bisexual[/center]

appearance

[Here]

Standing at 5'9", James is pretty close to average, and he much prefers it that way. He dislikes the idea of others having to look up at him, and he absolutely despises the thought of looking up to others. Besides that fact, he hates being noticed by others. Blending in, and looking like everyone else around him, is something he constantly strives for.

James has a very slim build. Not only does he have very little fat to add any bulk to his frame, but he also has very little muscle mass. Past friends have joked that a simple Butterfree alighting on his shoulder would knock him over, and even though this isn't accurate, it's not terribly far off the truth. He never had the need to do anything for himself and, as a result, he remained thin.

Also because of his incredibly easy life, James has perfectly unblemished skin. Not even his hands or feet are roughened by calluses, leading many to believe that he hasn't worked a day in his life. All of these assumptions would be correct. As a child, and later a teenager, he was never placed into harm's way, and thus has no scars to speak of. Even his face remains clear from acne and the like, as he was given access to the best treatments and preventive options that money could buy.

James, as sheltered as he was all his life, doesn't even have the slightest hint of a tan. In fact, his skin is incredibly pale. There is a slight amount of colour in his skin, so it doesn't look unnatural, but it is definitely lighter than the average person. Because of this, he is very careful when out in the sun, and makes sure that he doesn't burn. With how light his skin is, it tends to burn very easily but, even then, it won't stay tanned. Also, if he gets embarrassed, his cheeks tend to flush a very bright, very noticeable red. James absolutely hates this, and goes to great lengths to avoid embarrassment.

Matching his petite frame, James also has petite hands, with long, lithe fingers. Many have commented before that his hands are perfect for piano, something that James had already known, as he is someone who had been playing the piano from a young age.

While his hands were a musician's hands, they were also an artist's hands. Every so often, his fingertips would be smudged with lead or charcoal, darkening them to varying shades of grey or black. However, he does try to keep his hands as clean as possible, especially when not alone, so this is a very rare sight to see.

Occasionally, James' face will be partially obscured by his long, brown hair. Its exact color differs depending on the light - at time it has a golden hue to it, whereas other times it looks more like chocolate. The style in which it has been cut makes it fall over one of his eyes, but as he quickly gets annoyed by this, he usually tends to brush it to the side with his hand.

Usually, his hair has that "perfectly messy" look, one where it appears that he went to great lengths to achieve. This is rarely the case - on the best day, he'll run a brush through his hair once just after getting up and leave it at that. Usually, he doesn't bother doing anything at all; either way, it looks just fine in his opinion. Out of every aspect of his appearance, James invests the least amount of time into his hair.

James has bright, emerald green eyes that, truly, are like "windows into his soul," or at the very least, into his emotions. His eyes are incredibly expressive, allowing others to read his emotions as easily as they'd read a book. Usually, there is a bright sparkle in them, a happy, curious or mischievous glint. Occasionally, there is a dullness within them, suggesting either a melancholy or serious air. Very rarely, they become cold and cutting -- like actual emeralds -- only seen when James becomes angry or vengeful.

While walking, James tends to take smaller than average steps. Although his walk isn't feminine, it does possess a certain grace and poise not commonly seen in the average male's walk. From a young age, he was taught to walk this way, with his head held high and proud. James meets the eyes of everyone that he meets, and greets most everyone with a cordial smile. Just from the manner in which he walks, he exudes confidence.

James has a gentle face, with soft lines and soft features. A pair of thin eyebrows -- almost looking as if they were penciled on -- curve over his large green eyes. His nose is small with a slight point, the only truly harsh feature of his face, but even that is pushing it. His lips are thin, and almost always curved up into a smile, usually showing off his brilliant white teeth. Almost always, his cheeks have a slight tinge of pink in them, just enough color to be noticed.

The only truly abnormal aspect of James' appearance is the style in which he dresses. Instead of the typical casual look of jeans and a shirt that most males his age wear, he tends to choose a more formal attire. Usually, he wears a white dress shirt with a red tie. James does try to make this look more casual, keeping the top two buttons of his shirt unbuttoned and his tie loosened.

Instead of dress pants and shoes, however, James wears dark jeans and dark sneakers, finding the alternative uncomfortable. He carries a blue backpack with him, keeping a few changes of clothing and toiletries inside. This is also where he keeps his money and the various items needed for being a Pokémon trainer. With his blue bag, and choice of jeans and sneakers, it almost looks as if he is wearing a school uniform.

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personality

Born and raised in a very rich and affluent household, James was quickly taught how to be the "perfect gentleman." Constantly placed into various social situations, from large parties to important dinner meetings, a lot of emphasis was placed on him being perfectly polite to guests. From excessive grooming when he was a young child, he now cordially greets everyone he meets with an introduction - full name included - and a genial handshake. James does tend to take his politeness further than truly necessary, coming off as a bit informal at first.

James also has the tendency to speak with near perfect grammar. Raised by the best private tutors money could buy, he was always expected to speak properly. Every time he, as a boy, would slip up, he was reprimanded, usually accompanied by a harsh rap across the knuckles with a wooden spoon or ruler, whichever was handy at the time. This behaviour has now been bred into him, and he tends to follow grammatical rules that most people ignore. He hardly ever ends a sentence with a preposition, and tends to avoid using contractions if possible. This, too, leads to James sounding a bit stiff.

While charisma is not James’s middle name, it should be. Ever since he was a young child, people tended to gravitate towards James, like a moth to a flame, if you excuse my bad cliché. For some reason, people seem to like being around him and strive for his approval. James seems to know exactly what to say to everyone and, in general, people either love him or hate him.

Another reason for his usual popularity is, the simple fact, that he is quite rich, and shows it. Since he had never wanted something that he didn't get, James is particularly lavish in his purchases. He has no sense for the value of money and, to him, cost is not an option. For anyone who meets him, it is quite clear that he has money, and lots of it.

However, because James had only need ask for something, before promptly getting it, he has grown to be quite spoiled. So used to getting everything he asks for, he doesn't accept no as an answer. While he's grown out of his childish outward temper tantrums, he certainly hasn't grown out of the inward ones. Instead of throwing a hissy fit, which is ever-so impolite, he simply swipes whatever item has been denied of him. Unfortunately, he has become quite good at not getting caught.

James stealing isn't done out of malicious intent. He simply doesn't have any comprehension of the value of money, never having had the opportunity to learn, and doesn't understand the idea that his life of luxury is abnormal. For the most part, the items he steals are virtually worthless - merely an interesting or unusual looking item, that he has never before seen. Having most every expensive and high-tech items, it is usually those worthless, but perhaps sentimental, objects for which he yearns.

Although it may not seem this way, because of how often he is found surrounded by a crowd, James does not enjoy being the center of attention. He would, quite honestly, enjoy blending into the background more than he does, without having people fighting for his attention. Unfortunately, James doesn't really know how to blend in and, because of a combination of his clothing choice and his behaviour, he tends to stick out like a sore thumb.

history

other

Bleh. I'll finish this someday.

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