Post by Henri Legard on Dec 6, 2008 19:45:38 GMT -5
Name: Henri Legard
Age: 17
Height: 6'0"
Gender: Male
Race: D'Angeline (Camaeline)
Home Province: Camlach
Appearance
Henri is the epitome of Legard looks with sunkissed blonde, wavy hair that he wears in a medium length and eyes the colour of the sea as it reflects the sky. He is fairly tall for his age, having not fully grown yet. He stands a towering six feet already, showing promise to be the tallest in his family when his growing ends. He does not have the extremely lean and lithe muscles as his older brother, Pierre, and his father, them having been honed by military maneuvers. Henri has the shoulders of a hard working man, broad and strong, that taper into a smaller waist. His body is fairly defined for a boy his age, measuring comparably against others his age and older who have spent their lives in the Camaeline manner. His nose is straight, and his lips are pouty. He does not have the rugged look that many might attribute to a hardworking farm hand, although he is deeply tanned, his skin not so delicate that he would burn in the sun. He takes boyish pride in his appearance, although he is shy when others regard his beauty. He is the envy of many boys and the desire of many girls in Camlach, although he never really understood or embraced the attentions of women who threw themselves at him, being rather oblivious.
History
Henri is the youngest son of Phillipe and Henrietta Legard. One would think that, as the youngest son, he would be the one to grab the most attention, the one to be pampered and spoiled and fussed over, but such was not the case with Henri. He was always treated simply, never pushed to become more than what he was, or less. He faded into the background of the family, whenever others had their dramas and their exciting lives, Henri's was, by D'Angeline standards, quite boring. However, he never complained.
Henri is different from most Camaeline men in one particular way -- he is not a fighter. He has never been good with a sword, and has never felt the want to be good with a sword. He realised this at a young age, when his older brother, Pierre, would try to engage him in play sword fights, trying to hone Henri's skills, but there was nothing that could be done. Days and weeks of practice would not make Henri a sufficient military man. He balked at this, being the only Camaeline, in his mind, unable to wield a sword. To him, it was the avatar of manliness, the ability to defend one's life and beliefs. No matter how he tried, studied, parried, he could never get the fluency of movement or the proper steps right. Pierre soon gave up on the attempts, realising the futility of it, and promising Henri that he would grow into it, but Henri knew he wouldn't. He was hard bent on finding some way to prove himself a man, to prove himself worthy of the Legard name, and he did.
When Henri was but six years old, there was an odd divide in the family that he could not quite understand. One of his older brothers, Christophe, left for the City of Elua, that much was known, but he never could understand why, nor could he understand why, after that, his name had become taboo in the family. He couldn't figure out what he had done wrong, why his mother and father and Pierre especially seemed to hate someone that was family, but being one who did not like to upset an already teetering scale, he never asked.
As Henri grew, so did his ability to man the farm. While his father and his brother, Pierre, were at war as soldiers, Henri was left as the "man of the house". He looked after the farm with a loving hand, seeming to be a natural at managing it. He worked hard alongside others, proving his mettle. When Pierre and his father returned, they returned to a farm that was not only as good as they left it, but better in many ways. Henri's understanding of his father's land and ability to make the best of it settled that he would be the one to inherit it. He had little love for doing much else, at least not much else that would help him to support a family when the time came. Pierre had the military, Marie would marry, so that left him. After this became evident, he took much responsibility around the house and for the farmlands, learning the ropes, as it were. This left him very little time for friends, male or female. This, plus the fact the Pierre sheltered him and Marie from many life experiences, has made it so that he has remained an innocent in many ways, but not all. He was not what one would consider a playboy at all, far from it in fact. What few interactions he has had with women, have left him blushing and fairly awkward.
Henri was a very quiet lad throughout most of his teenage years. He was good. There was really no other way to put it. He did not create mischief like other boys his age, he did not break hearts or argue. He was a peacemaker. But this did not make him a pushover. After his mother's death, his father became softer, letting go of many grudges he had held onto, but Pierre became harder, especially when it came to his apparent distaste for Christophe. Marie had told him why, after she had found out for herself. He didn't understand why something so simple as that could make a whole family turn against a member. He was loyal, if showing no other signs of a soldier's mentality, and couldn't fathom it. However, there was the other side still tugging insistently on his shoulder that what Christophe had done was inherently wrong. When a letter came from Christophe inviting the family to his estate for a wedding, Pierre was dead set against it. His father seemed indifferent. With Marie excited about and insistent on attending the wedding of the "fallen" brother, and Pierre spitting nothing but venom, Henri wondered even more why what Christophe did was such a slight to the family. A quiet lad he was, yes, but not unintelligent. He knew Elua's precept, and stood by it regardless, and if he were to judge Christophe, he would like to do it on his own terms. Thus, regardless of Pierre's adament disapproval of the whole idea, Henri declared he would attend the wedding that would take him to finally see his brother for who he was, not what, and take him into the City of Elua.