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Name: Nicco Nightstar. I actually took his first name from a combination of nyx and nacht, both of which mean night. The family name is fairly typical of Opal elves.

Age: presently, I think he's 81 years old, but he looks and acts about 20 years old

Hair: black hair

Eyes: wide brown eyes

Race: Opal elf

Family: His grandfather, Orpheus, died about ten years ago. His parents were both killed when he was ten years old. He's married and his wife is expecting their first child. (Update... Luna had her baby, well, babies. The normal pregnancy lasts 18 months, but she was carrying twins, so they enduced labor. They were born July 7 and are named Oren and Selim.)

Appearance: Like most Opal Elves, he has a pale bluish/opalescent skin tone. The color comes partially from the fact that their blood carries hemocyanin (which is electric blue in color) instead of hemocyanin (which makes our blood red). He's also rather short, standing only four feet, ten inches tall. As an added feature he's got freckles across his face, which increase the youthfulness of his appearance. His dark hair is very straight and falls to his shoulders in back. His bangs are sort of... poofy. (Nicco with Luna)

Personality: Basically... he's a sweetheart. There is no one better you could ask for as a friend than Nicco. He's still rather young for his kind, but old enough to be considered an adult. It means that the older elves around him tend to regard him as a child or someone that needs protecting. He acts quiet, shy and rather innocent much of the time. However, he's actually none of these things. He has a vicious sense of humor and is a very warm, affectionate youngster. He has wisdom far beyond his young age and has the sense to pretend innocence in order that his foes will underestimate him. He has very specific rules in regards to his magic that he abides by, however he isn't above hurting someone if he feels they need to be punished. He loves learning new things and has an insatiable curiosity.

History: Before he was born, the forest that served as the religious center of the Jewel elf society was sealed by an evil spell. The leader of the Diamond elves, fearing the magic of the Opal elves, employed a human mage that set a dark cloud over the forest and enchanted the trees to keep anyone from passing. Many of the Opal elves (specifically the clerics) were trapped inside.

When he was ten years old, Nicco - at his parent's urging - used his power to move the trees aside so they could escape the forest. His father was killed pretty quickly and then his mother was killed, but only after using her magic to keep him from moving. Thinking he was dead, the Diamond elves left him alone. His mother's death released the hold she'd had on him and he was able to move, but there really wasn't anything he could do to help them. Instead, he vowed to complete their mission when he was old enough to do so.

Nicco may have waited longer, except that Selene, his grandfather's assistant, told him that the old elf was nearing the end of his life. Without their Elder to guild them, she was afraid that they wouldn't be able to fight against the Diamond Elves, even if they did manage to escape. With that in mind, Nicco set out to find a human mage that was capable of lifting the spell and freeing his people. Eventually he succeeded (see "A Sun-Dappled Path" in my journal) and the island/nation was freed of the Regelus' rule. Regelus, himself, was turned into a tree by Nicco.

After freeing the island, Nicco expected to settle into a relatively quiet life. However, his grandfather finally succumb to his long illness and that meant Nicco had to step up as the Elder of the Singularist Church (the one the Jewel elves follow). The title of Elder had been passed down through his family line for several generations and the rest of the Opal elves decided he was mature enough for the responsibility. He was married shortly beforehand to Luna, the leader of the elves on Opal Island (an island in the center of a lake within Everlund). However, only with his grandfather's death did they really start getting to know each other.

Random other stuff: I've got a second group of stories following Nicco as he collects the chapters of a book that shows the history of his people from the time they left Faerie. (see "Gloaming" in my journal for the first part of this story.)

Tortures: Well, his parents died when he was very young and his grandfather not too long ago. He was also very upset and worried about Arbutus (you'll see why in a bit), but I don't really torture Nicco. He's just a very sweet guy that I like.

**

Name: Arbutus Opengrove His family name is rather typical of his people, so is his first name, in fact. Arbutus is the name of a plant that was one of the first ones I drew. It's very pretty with delicate little flowers all over it.

Age: presently, I think he's 80 years old, but he looks and acts about 20 years old

Hair: bright red (Have I mentioned that I like red hair?).

Eyes: soft lavender-gray color

Race: Ruby elf

Family: His father, Phlox has a small farm. His mother, Holly, helps him run it. They both raise Nicco after his parents died, so Arbutus considers Nicco his brother.

Appearance: Originally, his hair was long and he wore it in a low ponytail. More recently, I've been drawing him with it falling only to his shoulders. His bangs fall in his face and cover one eye. His eyes are more gray than lavender and he has a smattering of freckles across his face. He tends to favor the colors teal and black in his clothes. Like most Ruby elves, he's a tiny little thing and only stands four feet, eight inches tall - that's right, he's even shorter than Nicco. (original current)

Personality: He's very practical and tends to think ahead to what he will need when he goes on a trip - in contrast to Nicco, who forgets simple things like that. He acts quiet and rather shy most of the time. However, once people get to know him, he's actually neither of these things. He has as vicious a sense of humor as Nicco does and is a very warm, affectionate youngster. His experiences dealing with Diamond elves have taught him that discretion is the better part of valor. Bad experiences from his past have made him easily frightened, however, this doesn't prevent him from acting as soon as his enemy's back is turned.

History: Arbutus was raised on a little farm outside the Opaline Woods (where the Opal elves lived). He was raised knowing that one day he would be sent to live in the home of the local governor as a "servant". His life took a drastic change in direction when he decided to go with Nicco to help free the Opal elves. Although they were able to overthrow Regelus, Arbutus was captured by his second in command - an elf by the name of Cassius. Cassius took him to another world and treated him as a general slave. Eventually, he managed to escape and became a stable-hand at a small tavern. (see "The Clear Light of Day" in my journal.)

Random other stuff: Arbutus, like Nicco, has a single magic power. Arbutus has the ability to turn himself and anyone touching him invisible for short periods of time. It comes in handy in a pinch, but it's very tiring so he doesn't do it often.

Unlike Nicco, Arbutus knows how to fight. He can competently shoot a bow (for hunting, mostly), and is a capable fighter both with a staff and a sword (although he's a bit better with his staff).

Tortures: He got kidnapped at the age of 69 by Cassius and held for five years. He wasn't treated very well, which is why he acts shy half the time. Basically, he now scares pretty easily if you threaten him. That's not to say he has trouble protecting others, but he backs down pretty quickly if he's the only one endangered.

He got arrested one time when he was mistaken for a thief, he got drained of his power by a mage and nearly died, his hair got set on fire (which is my explanation for why it's short now). Besides that, he feels this need to protect the people around him, even if it means risking his own life. I've really just begun playing with Arbutus, so I'm sure more tortures will come later.

Artwork:
Early art of Nicco
Disney-escue
Prisoner
Halloween art (Nicco's under the sheet)
More recent Nicco art
Arbutus
Arbutus the crab
Little Mermaid cosplayers
Brotherly Comfort (this was actually the first one I drew of his new look.)
Christmas picture
Sailor doodle
A gift to the one I love - Arbutus
Bathtime - Arbutus
Early morning at the inn - Arbutus
Nicco - Working Hard?
Arbutus- Taking a Break
One last kiss - Nicco and Luna
Nicco and Luna's wedding picture
Character sheets: Nicco Arbutus

When I get the urge to write, I can do as many as three short shories (between 4-6 pages) in a day... Yeah, I don't think anyone can read all of my stuff at this point.

I'm glad you like Arbutus. I really am.

Name: Maple Bonibrae. Maple was suggested as a name for a different character, but it sounded masculine to me, so I used it for this guy. Bonibrae… came from the song Loch Lomond “by yon bonnie banks and by yon bonnie braes” Brae is the Scottish word for hill and bonnie means pretty… so his family name could be translated as “pretty hill”. One thing that I should mention is this: even though I say their family names are English, they really aren’t. They are Faeire – which is a language I’m making up. Nicco’s family name is really Niclen, but it means Nightstar, so that’s what I use most of the time.

Age: Presently, he’s 74 years old, so he looks about 18 years old. I’ve got a table of how these guys age, if anyone is curious.

Hair: Brownish-red/chestnut

Eyes: Green

Race: His mother is a Ruby Elf, as is her husband, but his father is an Emerald Elf (whom he's never met)

Family: Although I haven’t named any of them yet, I have worked out some of Maple’s family members. He’s the youngest of twelve children and his parents (ie - his mom and her husband) are both still alive and well on Everlund. His birth father left his mother - she was just convenient for a roll in the hay.

Appearance: He looked enough like Arbutus growing up that they were often confused by the Diamond Elves who made up the village guard. Their colorings are a bit different, but they are the same height and build and this was the main source of confusion. Arbutus would be quick to point out that Maple’s hair has more of a brown cast than his and he has gray eyes, not green. Nicco would also point out that Arbutus has freckles. The guards honestly didn’t look that close and Maple spends enough time not looking people in the eye that they don’t see just what color eyes he has or notice he lacks freckles. He typically wears short-sleeved tunics over long-sleeved shirts with breeches and boots.
Character picture

Personality: He is rather disreputable by reputation as a thief, but is actually easily frightened and easily led. He’ll agree to do nearly anything if you threaten him. He’s a habitual liar, tending to say whatever he thinks you want him to say. He also has a tendency to lie/tell stories that he thinks will gain sympathy, especially when he gets caught stealing. The only person he doesn’t seem capable of lying to is Nicco.

History: As mentioned above, Maple is the youngest of twelve children. His family was also about the least well off among the families in their home village. They ran the town inn in a village that didn't get a lot of visitors. The result was that Maple didn’t always get enough to eat. On top of this, he's the result of infidelity on the part of his mother, so his older siblings and "father" didn't care to greatly about him.

He started off filching produce and baked goods when he could. Eventually, he graduated up to pick pocketing and petty theft. When he got gold, he’d use it to buy food. When he got valuables (jewelry, what-have-you) he’d sell it for gold and then buy food.

Nicco and Arbutus tried to keep him on the straight and narrow – mostly because he’d get Arbutus in trouble with guards who weren’t interested in looking closely at the thieving young elf. Another young elf, Aurelius, spent a lot of time either scolding him for his bad behavior or protecting him from the wrath of people he’d stolen from. Maple sort of looked up to Aurelius as a big brother, since his own brothers basically ignored him.

One day, Maple was running away from guards and ended up stumbling through the rare portals that exist in Everlund. He ended up in the land of Tolkacoia (which is where Arbutus ends up later). He lived mostly on the streets, stealing what he needed to survive and getting settled in there. He missed his friends and home, but made the most of his life.

Eventually, though, his luck ran out and he stole from the wrong person. His victim turned out to be a mage who pressed him into service for a scary group that wanted to keep the secret history of the faerin from being revealed. They coerced him into stealing things that might lead people to discover their secrets. Through this he sort of crosses paths with Nicco and Arbutus (see “A Bright New Day: Mid-day Difficulties” for details.)

Aurelius is eventually able to track him down (in the events from “Divergent Paths”, which isn’t posted yet) and they pick up where they left off. Aurelius tries to keep Maple safe – alternately yelling at him for stealing things and protecting him from his victims. Maple steals now more out of habit than because he has to. He’s simply not used to having enough, so when he sees an opportunity to steal, he takes it.

He is a skilled thief and most of his victims don’t suspect a thing. However, he steals so often that (just through the law of averages) he seems to get caught an awful lot. If one out of thirty people are able to catch him at it and he steals from sixty people… yeah, he’s going to get caught a couple times. Basically, you don’t stand too close to Maple and, if you do, check your valuables often.

Tortures: In spite of how it seems… Maple’s childhood was a relatively happy one. He’s had a rough time, but he’s learned how to make the best of bad situations and he doesn’t let things get him down too much.
He scares easy and tends to start crying/whimpering/sniveling on the occasions he gets caught and his victim is able to confront him. I don’t torture him often, but I do have fun running him through the occasional emotional wringer. He also causes a lot of grief for anyone that he’s around for any amount of time.

mrgreen I'm glad you like him. *pats Maple's head*