App for R29
Player
Name: Dal
Livejournal Username: slaygirl
E-mail: daletchica[at]yahoo[dot]com
AIM/MSN: AIM: AsylumBred
Timezone: EST (GMT -5:00)
Current Characters in Route: Solf J. Kimblee (explosivecombat). I understand that both characters are from the Fullmetal Alchemist manga and have interacted before, but their canon points are situated such that Kimblee will want literally nothing to do with Selim, and Selim...really doesn't give a damn about Kimblee's affairs unless he's told by Father that damns need to be given. Basically, they're more likely to avoid each other than cause playercest situations.
Character
Name: Selim Bradley/Pride.
Series: Fullmetal Alchemist
Timeline: Manga continuity; just after Chapter 70
Canon Resource Links:
FMA Wiki - Selim Bradley
FMA Wiki - Pride
Personality: As the adopted son of the Fuhrer of Amestris, King Bradley, Selim Bradley is the very model of a mini major-general...in the making. He's very bright, often mimicking formal military mannerisms when talking to soldiers as to seem more "official," and he wants to join the army as soon as he's able; he also expresses a desire to learn alchemy so that he can become a State Alchemist. Overall, however, he isn't nearly as much of a little adult as he would like to be; he's prone to moments of childish insensitivity and bluntness, and he generally displays a lack of understanding of cause and effect as it relates to his actions, as do many children of his age - for example, he calls Ed short despite knowing that it will make Ed angry, just to see if it...well, makes Ed angry, because various reports have said it will and Selim wants to see it for himself. He doesn't mean any harm or malice by his actions, however, and he's actually incredibly curious about others - perhaps understandably so, as he's almost never without several armed guards following him around while he's in public, and he's almost always under the watchful eye of his mother (who, as the wife of the Fuhrer, is probably more awesome than all the armed guards put together); he likes hearing people's stories about the world, and he often asks his father to tell him about his job as Fuhrer and what he does on his time away from the family.
Selim is a very happy and energetic child overall, almost always smiling and laughing; he clearly idolizes Edward Elric, the youngest alchemist to pass the State Alchemy exam, and is very excited when he gets to meet the Fullmetal Alchemist in person. Above all, however, Selim Bradley loves his parents - he says that the reason he wants to become a State Alchemist is so he can help his father, and much of his time at home seems to be spent with his mother, whom he never has any shortage of hugs and general displays of affection for.
It would be nice, really, if any of it were genuine.
Unbeknownst to his adopted mother, "Selim Bradley" is nothing more than a physical container - a vessel for the Homunculus known as "Pride." As the oldest Homunculus, Pride is almost 400 years old, made in the image of his creator, an enigmatic being known as Father - and given that Father started out as a gaseous little blob kept in a flask (and that's not an insult, he was literally a gaseous little blob), this would mean that Pride is basically a thick black mass of sentient shadows that can become corporeal at will, covered in too many eyes, too many hands and what is most definitely too many rows of teeth, all capable of eating you so Pride can absorb your soul into himself. Basically, he's that thing you were convinced lived in your closet when you were a kid - only cranked Up To Eleven and capable of going anywhere shadows fall, meaning that he could pretty much put his container in a hotel hallway and use the shadows to simultaneously be in everyone's damn closet.
(Sweet dreams, by the way.)
Once this is revealed to someone, a lot of his earlier "innocent" behavior suddenly becomes a sick parody of what it had been. He's nowhere near as unwittingly offensive as he'd seemed to be before - rather, he's calculating and shrewd, often using emotional ploys and passive-aggressive behavior to get a rise out of people and manipulate them into doing what he wants. He still smiles and laughs often, but the gestures are mocking, manifesting as Selim smiling broadly and calling people childishly insulting names buried underneath formal titles (ie, calling Ed "Mr. Shortmetal Alchemist" as a taunt). He also uses his container's cute appearance to his advantage; he knows full well that most people will be unwilling to attack a child - and even if that fails, others will likely come to his assistance, because most don't take kindly to a small boy and/or the adopted son of the Fuhrer getting wailed on by someone several times his size.
His primary loyalty lies with Father; Pride respects Father above all others, and carries out his duties faithfully to ensure that Father's plans all go according to...well, plan. He holds Father in a far higher regard than he does the other Homunculi, who are technically his brothers and sister, and he'll turn on any of the others if required to do so; however, he doesn't see turning on them as a negative thing, and seems to interpret it as setting things right. Again, this comes back to Pride's extreme sense of devotion to his creator, as he claims to have no emotional attachment to his siblings at all because they're all parts of Father - by killing and absorbing them into himself, he's simply returning them to being parts of a larger whole.
However, no matter what he claims, Pride does experience thoughts and feelings that are at times almost startlingly human - when asked why he's so devoted to Father, he simply replies by asking "It's only natural that a child would obey his father, isn't it?" More telling, however, is the relationship he has with his adopted mother, Mrs. Bradley - during a conversation with Alphonse Elric, Pride confesses that Mrs. Bradley's acts of selflessness toward him (such as deliberately jumping in the path of an oncoming car to protect him from being hit when he was younger) left him confused. He had a father, but nothing that he could call a mother; as such, he was fascinated by Mrs. Bradley, and her acts of unconditional love toward him made him acknowledge that she was, at the very least, a good mother to him. He still clearly considered her a lesser being, and he spoke of her in a way similar to how one might speak of their favorite pet; however, he also admitted to feeling genuine fondness toward her, and this admission is more than he grants literally anyone else in the series.
His relationship with the Fuhrer is a bit complicated, given that King Bradley is a Homunculus himself, known as Wrath - meaning that Pride is in the vaguely awkward position of being both Wrath's older brother and his adopted son; aside from this technically making Pride his own nephew and the Mrs. having no damn idea about any of the Homunculi whatnot to begin with (which I admit sounds like a grand setup for Hilarity To Ensue, but I digress), they seem to be managing rather well as a family unit; Wrath is even rather affectionate to Pride in front of Mrs. Bradley and in public, though the validity of the bond between Wrath and Pride seems questionable once it's revealed that "Selim Bradley" is not whom he seems to be. However, before Pride ends up getting his memories wiped and his body reduced to his true form by Edward Elric, his "dying" thoughts are of Wrath and Mrs. Bradley, not Father - implying that they were the ones he considered his real family in the end, and proving that despite his arrogance, he can be affected by displays of love and kindness, and that somewhere deep down he actually desires having a family that will offer that love and kindness to him - even if it's only a "pretend" family, and only for a little while.
Strengths/Weaknesses:
Strengths
Even after his Homunculus powers have been stripped (more on that is included below), Selim has several strengths that can be used to compensate for the loss; the first is resourcefulness - he tends to be clever when it comes to utilizing his surroundings in ways that others may not necessarily realize until things have already been set in motion. An example of this is when he was captured and imprisoned in total darkness with Alphonse Elric; after unsuccessfully attempting to escape the area he was trapped in, he sat down with a stick and started playing with the head of Alphonse's armor. Al interpreted this as an idle concession of defeat, or perhaps a childlike attempt at amusing himself; what Selim was actually doing was beating Morse code signals into the ground through the helmet, alerting Father to both his situation and his location so someone could be sent to assist him.
In addition to general resourcefulness, he's very good at analyzing other people and his surroundings and using them to ensure that he's as efficient as possible. The physical appearance of his container is that of a young child - this is useful because it's generally nonthreatening, and provides means to both stay close to the Fuhrer (by posing as his adopted son) and to get all up in people's business without seeming conspicuous. Spending so much time around others has caused him to develop the ability to read people perhaps a bit better than most of the other Homunculi - after all, people tend to watch their language around children, but they aren't always careful of what they say, and Selim is definitely old enough to understand concepts that most children would not.
Despite his youthful looks, however, Selim is very hardworking and good at what he does; he multitasks when he can, often overseeing one activity or another while doing something else entirely himself; he's very driven and tenacious when it comes to the tasks he's given, and if he puts his mind to doing something, he'll do everything within his power to see that it gets done.
Selim is very analytical in all things that he does; his powers require him to be very aware of his surroundings in order to maximize his efficiency, and due to the fact that his powers also tend to center around going Beyond the Impossible in terms of ways to defeat opponents, he sees things a bit differently in battles - basically, he's very good at seeing ways out of situations that most wouldn't think to consider. He knows his own limits, however, and when to back down from a fight if he has to, or switch tactics if backing down or retreating isn't an option; he also tends to be very aware of the sort of people he's fighting, and if he can manipulate them into retreating or otherwise throwing the fight, he'll do so.
Basically, even despite a lack of physical prowess due to being stripped of his powers, Selim has a lot of mental strengths that he knows how to use to his advantage.
Weaknesses
As a Homunculus, Selim has several powers that have been given to him by Father and accessed through his Philosopher's Stone - outside of the spontaneous regeneration that all Homunculi are capable of, Pride also is capable of things such as the manipulation of shadows his container is touching, the ability to see through all of the eyes on his shadows at once, and consuming others and adding them to the collection of souls already within his Stone, gaining the ability to access whatever powers they themselves may have had before he absorbed them. This falls under the Weaknesses category because that's exactly what these powers have become in Johto - he's come to rely on them, and this has made him overconfident in his abilities. Once these powers are stripped from him he'll likely have difficulty adjusting to life without them; he's in the form of a young child, and as such he's going to be incredibly vulnerable. He's not used to this level of vulnerability, and he'll probably be very jumpy and not trusting of anyone for a while.
He's very dedicated to those he actually does trust, however - to the extent that that sense of dedication gets into self-destructive territory. It's less that he's purely self-sacrificing on his own and more that he won't think if told that harming himself is necessary by someone he's close to. He'll often make very transparent arguments for why doing such things is necessary; what it comes down to, however, is seeking approval and validation from the few beings he actually brings himself to feel close to.
In his 'true' Homunculus form (the sentient blob of shadows), Pride is very susceptible to changes in light - total darkness rendered his powers useless, because without light there is no shadow, and too much light tended to harm him badly and could "kill" parts of his body that were outside of his physical container. In Johto, he doesn't have to worry about it to quite that extent, but he'll still be fearfully agitated and very tense in total darkness, equating that with powerlessness and vulnerability. He'll also be very sensitive to bright light, though as a human that will manifest more as it seriously affecting his vision - his eyes will take a bit longer to adjust to sudden changes in light, and he'll be very susceptible to things like snow blindness (though instances of that will resolve themselves within the normal span of time).
...also, given all the sentient-blob-of-shadows whatnot and the fact that his container only looks human but is actually hollow inside, Pride isn't accustomed to a lot of common human issues. Like bleeding. He also isn't used to keeping any injuries he sustains, due to the abovementioned spontaneous regeneration. Basically, while he understands that people get banged-up all the time and injuries generally happen as a result, he's never had to deal with it himself; good luck convincing him that minor injuries are not the end of the world because dear god, he is hemmorhaging.
Selim also displays several traits that show why he's the embodiment of the Deadly Sin of pride - for one thing, even if he knows when to back off, he's a ridiculously poor loser; after all, admitting a loss would involve admitting that he's either wrong or incapable, and he'll avoid that at all costs, thank you very much. This tends to lead to some very stupid, circular arguments on his part while he tries to deny that he's in the wrong; he often tends to resort to childish insults and large lapses of logic as defenses when he's cornered - most of these defenses seem to boil down to "You're stupid", "You don't understand" or the classic "You're not the boss of me", just worded a bit more eloquently. He's also very prone to physically lashing out when he's feeling hurt or angry.
...and about that - despite the fact that he's not technically human, he does still have feelings and emotions; he just doesn't always know what to do with them. Love and caring aren't emotions he experiences strongly enough to understand, though his feelings toward Mrs. Bradley imply that he's capable; if anything, they'll just serve to confuse him until he can get himself sorted out. The fact that he doesn't really understand empathy very well will likely make his Pokémon hate him for quite a while, given that he'll tend to push them far too hard. He tends to be much harder on others than he is on himself - as Pride, of course nothing is ever his fault! - and as such he'll likely be very cruel and abusive toward his Pokémon once he starts actually training them intensively, unless something manages to Power Of Friendship him out of it.
Pokémon Information
Affiliation: Trainer
Starter: Misdreavus ♀
Password: Taco Bell
Samples
First Person Sample:
[Hello hello! This morning is looking to be a chilly one, if the view of New Bark Town over this particular feed is any indication; the ground is covered in a crisp blanket of white, the scenery is undisturbed, and the...uh, well, the feed is suddenly winging upward to shoot you a lovely and vaguely motion-sickness-inducing view of the sky. There's a soft, childish noise of fascination with it before the view shifts again - when it finally focuses on something that isn't the trees or the passing clouds, its camera appears to have settled on a young boy. He looks to be around the age of ten, with messy black hair and dark eyes that seem to be glittering with a violet tint to them.
...he also looks like he's freezing, because what on earth is being dressed properly for this weather. Seems he didn't get the memo that hey, it's cold outside, a coat is probably a good idea.
However! He's smiling despite the cold, offering the brightest 8D expression that a young boy can give through that much shivering.]
Ah, so is this how this works? Um...hello! My name is Selim Bradley, and it seems that I'm...well, a bit lost...
[His gaze shifts a bit, suddenly downcast, and he frowns, thinking.]
I woke up in a strange house, you see, with a woman claiming to be my mother - but I'd never seen her before in my life! My real mother is probably worried sick; she and Father warned me that this might happen one day. My father is a very important person; there was always the fear that I would be kidnapped in the night. So it's really urgent that I get back to them right away!
I'm sure my father would be willing to offer you some sort of reward for helping sort this out - if anyone can tell me how to get in contact with Fuhrer King Bradley, I need to know right away.
Tha-
[He jumps suddenly and stops short, having been interrupted by a godawful screech from somewhere behind him; a Misdreavus is visible behind him when he turns his body to look at it. When he returns to the device, his expression is...more than a little sheepish.]
Thank you for listening, and if anyone knows where I can, um, return this pet that was given to me - wait, is that rude? Because I don't mean to be rude! I just...don't...really want it, and that strange man in town refuses to take it back, he just welcomes me to the world of, um, po-kay-mons again.
...yes, I think that's all. Thanks again!
Third Person Sample:
One in the morning is well past the time when little boys should be in bed, fast asleep; this particular evening, however, sees Selim out and about, wandering the streets of Violet City until he manages to find his destination.
There was something about Sprout Tower that fascinated him; the ancient, gently swaying structure had been calling to him for days, just begging to be explored. As little as Selim had really had time for exploring back in Amestris, having spent most of his time either heavily guarded or serving as heavy guard himself for the tunnel beneath the country...well. Surely he couldn't be faulted for just a little curiosity. And besides, there were sure to be less humans here at this time of night; he would have the place mostly to himself.
Even though the entrance to the tower led him indoors and well out of the snow, however, one of the first things that struck him about the place was how cold it was. There was a constant chill in the air, a sense of odd foreboding; it took Selim a moment to place it, but once he did...well. It was familiar - the same sort of odd, prickling sensation he got from being around Misdreavus, especially when she was feeling playful and positioned herself directly in his face.
"Ghost-types, then?" He could hear himself muttering aloud; the question was accompanied by strange, deep laughter that most definitely did not come from him.
He smiled, the expression crossing his features slow and easy; Misdreavus was released from her Pokéball immediately. "Do you think you could find some of them for me?" he said, reaching out to pat her on the head before offering her a quick, dismissive gesture. "I think it's time for us to catch you some brothers and sisters."
Name: Dal
Livejournal Username: slaygirl
E-mail: daletchica[at]yahoo[dot]com
AIM/MSN: AIM: AsylumBred
Timezone: EST (GMT -5:00)
Current Characters in Route: Solf J. Kimblee (explosivecombat). I understand that both characters are from the Fullmetal Alchemist manga and have interacted before, but their canon points are situated such that Kimblee will want literally nothing to do with Selim, and Selim...really doesn't give a damn about Kimblee's affairs unless he's told by Father that damns need to be given. Basically, they're more likely to avoid each other than cause playercest situations.
Character
Name: Selim Bradley/Pride.
Series: Fullmetal Alchemist
Timeline: Manga continuity; just after Chapter 70
Canon Resource Links:
FMA Wiki - Selim Bradley
FMA Wiki - Pride
Personality: As the adopted son of the Fuhrer of Amestris, King Bradley, Selim Bradley is the very model of a mini major-general...in the making. He's very bright, often mimicking formal military mannerisms when talking to soldiers as to seem more "official," and he wants to join the army as soon as he's able; he also expresses a desire to learn alchemy so that he can become a State Alchemist. Overall, however, he isn't nearly as much of a little adult as he would like to be; he's prone to moments of childish insensitivity and bluntness, and he generally displays a lack of understanding of cause and effect as it relates to his actions, as do many children of his age - for example, he calls Ed short despite knowing that it will make Ed angry, just to see if it...well, makes Ed angry, because various reports have said it will and Selim wants to see it for himself. He doesn't mean any harm or malice by his actions, however, and he's actually incredibly curious about others - perhaps understandably so, as he's almost never without several armed guards following him around while he's in public, and he's almost always under the watchful eye of his mother (who, as the wife of the Fuhrer, is probably more awesome than all the armed guards put together); he likes hearing people's stories about the world, and he often asks his father to tell him about his job as Fuhrer and what he does on his time away from the family.
Selim is a very happy and energetic child overall, almost always smiling and laughing; he clearly idolizes Edward Elric, the youngest alchemist to pass the State Alchemy exam, and is very excited when he gets to meet the Fullmetal Alchemist in person. Above all, however, Selim Bradley loves his parents - he says that the reason he wants to become a State Alchemist is so he can help his father, and much of his time at home seems to be spent with his mother, whom he never has any shortage of hugs and general displays of affection for.
It would be nice, really, if any of it were genuine.
Unbeknownst to his adopted mother, "Selim Bradley" is nothing more than a physical container - a vessel for the Homunculus known as "Pride." As the oldest Homunculus, Pride is almost 400 years old, made in the image of his creator, an enigmatic being known as Father - and given that Father started out as a gaseous little blob kept in a flask (and that's not an insult, he was literally a gaseous little blob), this would mean that Pride is basically a thick black mass of sentient shadows that can become corporeal at will, covered in too many eyes, too many hands and what is most definitely too many rows of teeth, all capable of eating you so Pride can absorb your soul into himself. Basically, he's that thing you were convinced lived in your closet when you were a kid - only cranked Up To Eleven and capable of going anywhere shadows fall, meaning that he could pretty much put his container in a hotel hallway and use the shadows to simultaneously be in everyone's damn closet.
(Sweet dreams, by the way.)
Once this is revealed to someone, a lot of his earlier "innocent" behavior suddenly becomes a sick parody of what it had been. He's nowhere near as unwittingly offensive as he'd seemed to be before - rather, he's calculating and shrewd, often using emotional ploys and passive-aggressive behavior to get a rise out of people and manipulate them into doing what he wants. He still smiles and laughs often, but the gestures are mocking, manifesting as Selim smiling broadly and calling people childishly insulting names buried underneath formal titles (ie, calling Ed "Mr. Shortmetal Alchemist" as a taunt). He also uses his container's cute appearance to his advantage; he knows full well that most people will be unwilling to attack a child - and even if that fails, others will likely come to his assistance, because most don't take kindly to a small boy and/or the adopted son of the Fuhrer getting wailed on by someone several times his size.
His primary loyalty lies with Father; Pride respects Father above all others, and carries out his duties faithfully to ensure that Father's plans all go according to...well, plan. He holds Father in a far higher regard than he does the other Homunculi, who are technically his brothers and sister, and he'll turn on any of the others if required to do so; however, he doesn't see turning on them as a negative thing, and seems to interpret it as setting things right. Again, this comes back to Pride's extreme sense of devotion to his creator, as he claims to have no emotional attachment to his siblings at all because they're all parts of Father - by killing and absorbing them into himself, he's simply returning them to being parts of a larger whole.
However, no matter what he claims, Pride does experience thoughts and feelings that are at times almost startlingly human - when asked why he's so devoted to Father, he simply replies by asking "It's only natural that a child would obey his father, isn't it?" More telling, however, is the relationship he has with his adopted mother, Mrs. Bradley - during a conversation with Alphonse Elric, Pride confesses that Mrs. Bradley's acts of selflessness toward him (such as deliberately jumping in the path of an oncoming car to protect him from being hit when he was younger) left him confused. He had a father, but nothing that he could call a mother; as such, he was fascinated by Mrs. Bradley, and her acts of unconditional love toward him made him acknowledge that she was, at the very least, a good mother to him. He still clearly considered her a lesser being, and he spoke of her in a way similar to how one might speak of their favorite pet; however, he also admitted to feeling genuine fondness toward her, and this admission is more than he grants literally anyone else in the series.
His relationship with the Fuhrer is a bit complicated, given that King Bradley is a Homunculus himself, known as Wrath - meaning that Pride is in the vaguely awkward position of being both Wrath's older brother and his adopted son; aside from this technically making Pride his own nephew and the Mrs. having no damn idea about any of the Homunculi whatnot to begin with (which I admit sounds like a grand setup for Hilarity To Ensue, but I digress), they seem to be managing rather well as a family unit; Wrath is even rather affectionate to Pride in front of Mrs. Bradley and in public, though the validity of the bond between Wrath and Pride seems questionable once it's revealed that "Selim Bradley" is not whom he seems to be. However, before Pride ends up getting his memories wiped and his body reduced to his true form by Edward Elric, his "dying" thoughts are of Wrath and Mrs. Bradley, not Father - implying that they were the ones he considered his real family in the end, and proving that despite his arrogance, he can be affected by displays of love and kindness, and that somewhere deep down he actually desires having a family that will offer that love and kindness to him - even if it's only a "pretend" family, and only for a little while.
Strengths/Weaknesses:
Strengths
Even after his Homunculus powers have been stripped (more on that is included below), Selim has several strengths that can be used to compensate for the loss; the first is resourcefulness - he tends to be clever when it comes to utilizing his surroundings in ways that others may not necessarily realize until things have already been set in motion. An example of this is when he was captured and imprisoned in total darkness with Alphonse Elric; after unsuccessfully attempting to escape the area he was trapped in, he sat down with a stick and started playing with the head of Alphonse's armor. Al interpreted this as an idle concession of defeat, or perhaps a childlike attempt at amusing himself; what Selim was actually doing was beating Morse code signals into the ground through the helmet, alerting Father to both his situation and his location so someone could be sent to assist him.
In addition to general resourcefulness, he's very good at analyzing other people and his surroundings and using them to ensure that he's as efficient as possible. The physical appearance of his container is that of a young child - this is useful because it's generally nonthreatening, and provides means to both stay close to the Fuhrer (by posing as his adopted son) and to get all up in people's business without seeming conspicuous. Spending so much time around others has caused him to develop the ability to read people perhaps a bit better than most of the other Homunculi - after all, people tend to watch their language around children, but they aren't always careful of what they say, and Selim is definitely old enough to understand concepts that most children would not.
Despite his youthful looks, however, Selim is very hardworking and good at what he does; he multitasks when he can, often overseeing one activity or another while doing something else entirely himself; he's very driven and tenacious when it comes to the tasks he's given, and if he puts his mind to doing something, he'll do everything within his power to see that it gets done.
Selim is very analytical in all things that he does; his powers require him to be very aware of his surroundings in order to maximize his efficiency, and due to the fact that his powers also tend to center around going Beyond the Impossible in terms of ways to defeat opponents, he sees things a bit differently in battles - basically, he's very good at seeing ways out of situations that most wouldn't think to consider. He knows his own limits, however, and when to back down from a fight if he has to, or switch tactics if backing down or retreating isn't an option; he also tends to be very aware of the sort of people he's fighting, and if he can manipulate them into retreating or otherwise throwing the fight, he'll do so.
Basically, even despite a lack of physical prowess due to being stripped of his powers, Selim has a lot of mental strengths that he knows how to use to his advantage.
Weaknesses
As a Homunculus, Selim has several powers that have been given to him by Father and accessed through his Philosopher's Stone - outside of the spontaneous regeneration that all Homunculi are capable of, Pride also is capable of things such as the manipulation of shadows his container is touching, the ability to see through all of the eyes on his shadows at once, and consuming others and adding them to the collection of souls already within his Stone, gaining the ability to access whatever powers they themselves may have had before he absorbed them. This falls under the Weaknesses category because that's exactly what these powers have become in Johto - he's come to rely on them, and this has made him overconfident in his abilities. Once these powers are stripped from him he'll likely have difficulty adjusting to life without them; he's in the form of a young child, and as such he's going to be incredibly vulnerable. He's not used to this level of vulnerability, and he'll probably be very jumpy and not trusting of anyone for a while.
He's very dedicated to those he actually does trust, however - to the extent that that sense of dedication gets into self-destructive territory. It's less that he's purely self-sacrificing on his own and more that he won't think if told that harming himself is necessary by someone he's close to. He'll often make very transparent arguments for why doing such things is necessary; what it comes down to, however, is seeking approval and validation from the few beings he actually brings himself to feel close to.
In his 'true' Homunculus form (the sentient blob of shadows), Pride is very susceptible to changes in light - total darkness rendered his powers useless, because without light there is no shadow, and too much light tended to harm him badly and could "kill" parts of his body that were outside of his physical container. In Johto, he doesn't have to worry about it to quite that extent, but he'll still be fearfully agitated and very tense in total darkness, equating that with powerlessness and vulnerability. He'll also be very sensitive to bright light, though as a human that will manifest more as it seriously affecting his vision - his eyes will take a bit longer to adjust to sudden changes in light, and he'll be very susceptible to things like snow blindness (though instances of that will resolve themselves within the normal span of time).
...also, given all the sentient-blob-of-shadows whatnot and the fact that his container only looks human but is actually hollow inside, Pride isn't accustomed to a lot of common human issues. Like bleeding. He also isn't used to keeping any injuries he sustains, due to the abovementioned spontaneous regeneration. Basically, while he understands that people get banged-up all the time and injuries generally happen as a result, he's never had to deal with it himself; good luck convincing him that minor injuries are not the end of the world because dear god, he is hemmorhaging.
Selim also displays several traits that show why he's the embodiment of the Deadly Sin of pride - for one thing, even if he knows when to back off, he's a ridiculously poor loser; after all, admitting a loss would involve admitting that he's either wrong or incapable, and he'll avoid that at all costs, thank you very much. This tends to lead to some very stupid, circular arguments on his part while he tries to deny that he's in the wrong; he often tends to resort to childish insults and large lapses of logic as defenses when he's cornered - most of these defenses seem to boil down to "You're stupid", "You don't understand" or the classic "You're not the boss of me", just worded a bit more eloquently. He's also very prone to physically lashing out when he's feeling hurt or angry.
...and about that - despite the fact that he's not technically human, he does still have feelings and emotions; he just doesn't always know what to do with them. Love and caring aren't emotions he experiences strongly enough to understand, though his feelings toward Mrs. Bradley imply that he's capable; if anything, they'll just serve to confuse him until he can get himself sorted out. The fact that he doesn't really understand empathy very well will likely make his Pokémon hate him for quite a while, given that he'll tend to push them far too hard. He tends to be much harder on others than he is on himself - as Pride, of course nothing is ever his fault! - and as such he'll likely be very cruel and abusive toward his Pokémon once he starts actually training them intensively, unless something manages to Power Of Friendship him out of it.
Pokémon Information
Affiliation: Trainer
Starter: Misdreavus ♀
Password: Taco Bell
Samples
First Person Sample:
[Hello hello! This morning is looking to be a chilly one, if the view of New Bark Town over this particular feed is any indication; the ground is covered in a crisp blanket of white, the scenery is undisturbed, and the...uh, well, the feed is suddenly winging upward to shoot you a lovely and vaguely motion-sickness-inducing view of the sky. There's a soft, childish noise of fascination with it before the view shifts again - when it finally focuses on something that isn't the trees or the passing clouds, its camera appears to have settled on a young boy. He looks to be around the age of ten, with messy black hair and dark eyes that seem to be glittering with a violet tint to them.
...he also looks like he's freezing, because what on earth is being dressed properly for this weather. Seems he didn't get the memo that hey, it's cold outside, a coat is probably a good idea.
However! He's smiling despite the cold, offering the brightest 8D expression that a young boy can give through that much shivering.]
Ah, so is this how this works? Um...hello! My name is Selim Bradley, and it seems that I'm...well, a bit lost...
[His gaze shifts a bit, suddenly downcast, and he frowns, thinking.]
I woke up in a strange house, you see, with a woman claiming to be my mother - but I'd never seen her before in my life! My real mother is probably worried sick; she and Father warned me that this might happen one day. My father is a very important person; there was always the fear that I would be kidnapped in the night. So it's really urgent that I get back to them right away!
I'm sure my father would be willing to offer you some sort of reward for helping sort this out - if anyone can tell me how to get in contact with Fuhrer King Bradley, I need to know right away.
Tha-
[He jumps suddenly and stops short, having been interrupted by a godawful screech from somewhere behind him; a Misdreavus is visible behind him when he turns his body to look at it. When he returns to the device, his expression is...more than a little sheepish.]
Thank you for listening, and if anyone knows where I can, um, return this pet that was given to me - wait, is that rude? Because I don't mean to be rude! I just...don't...really want it, and that strange man in town refuses to take it back, he just welcomes me to the world of, um, po-kay-mons again.
...yes, I think that's all. Thanks again!
Third Person Sample:
One in the morning is well past the time when little boys should be in bed, fast asleep; this particular evening, however, sees Selim out and about, wandering the streets of Violet City until he manages to find his destination.
There was something about Sprout Tower that fascinated him; the ancient, gently swaying structure had been calling to him for days, just begging to be explored. As little as Selim had really had time for exploring back in Amestris, having spent most of his time either heavily guarded or serving as heavy guard himself for the tunnel beneath the country...well. Surely he couldn't be faulted for just a little curiosity. And besides, there were sure to be less humans here at this time of night; he would have the place mostly to himself.
Even though the entrance to the tower led him indoors and well out of the snow, however, one of the first things that struck him about the place was how cold it was. There was a constant chill in the air, a sense of odd foreboding; it took Selim a moment to place it, but once he did...well. It was familiar - the same sort of odd, prickling sensation he got from being around Misdreavus, especially when she was feeling playful and positioned herself directly in his face.
"Ghost-types, then?" He could hear himself muttering aloud; the question was accompanied by strange, deep laughter that most definitely did not come from him.
He smiled, the expression crossing his features slow and easy; Misdreavus was released from her Pokéball immediately. "Do you think you could find some of them for me?" he said, reaching out to pat her on the head before offering her a quick, dismissive gesture. "I think it's time for us to catch you some brothers and sisters."