(no subject)
Full Name: Diya Medellos
Race: Human
Occupation: Minor lordling, layabout
Faction, if applicable: None, but he's intrigued by the Golden Hour.
Reputation & rumors: Diya is well-known in Tartessos' bars and brothels. Gossip says that if his father wants a grandchild to name heir, he has to look no further than the bellies of every whore in the city. Of the supposed children, Diya's acknowledged only two. The story of him trying to present his bastard son to his lord father is well-known in Tartessos and still laughed about. In Tyrol, all that's known about him is that he's heir to his father's prosperous trade business and notoriously irresponsible. Any especially well-informed nobles might know about the incident that scarred his sister, and that Diya was behind it.
Rumors:
* Gambles and drinks to excess
* Bisexual
* Will very soon be disinherited in favor of his sister
* Has pissed away a good chunk of his father's fortune (or alternately, all of it)
* Spends most of his time with sailors and whores
Age: 25
Birthday: August 3rd
Birth Location: Tartessos, Balfour
Height: 5' 11"
Weight: 150lbs
PB (Played-By): Ben Barnes
History: The Medellos family has been a well-known presence in Tartessos for well over a century. They started as shipbuilders, then intermarried into merchant families and combined their two trades. Half the docks in Tartessos belong to Talis Medellos, his brothers, and his nephews. His firstborn and heir, Diya, was the product of his second marriage. The boy's mother came back with Talis from one of his voyages to Greece. She was stunningly beautiful and reportedly of noble descent, but the docks in Tartessos buzzed that she was really a courtesan, bought with Talis' gold and jewels. Whatever she was, Livya quickly gave Talis a son. Spoiled from the moment he was born, Diya quickly gained his mother's love of luxury and excess. Though the Medellos' were 'bought' nobility at best, they had no shortage of money. Diya was tutored by the finest teachers from all corners of Balfour, but the boy showed a distinct lack of interest in what they had to tell him, and when he fled his lessons to play with his pets or terrorize the maids, his mother only laughed. Talis was less amused, but relented under his wife's assurance that Diya would grow out of it.
Unsurprisingly, he didn't. After his sister Merena was born, the two became inseparable. He drew her into his mischiefs, encouraged and dared her to keep up with him. His sister proved slightly more resilient to the lure of irresponsibility than her brother, and was perhaps the first person ever to tell him 'no'. Still, he adored her. He would skip his lessons to hide outside her windows and make faces at her tutors behind her back, tell her the tall tales he heard from the sailors at the docks, dare her to climb the trees in their gardens and pull her into pranks on the servants. Diya never once considered the consequences for what he did. He enjoyed himself and made his sister laugh; that was all that mattered.
When Diya was fifteen and his sister twelve, he coaxed her into dueling him with their father's swords. Diya had been schooled in swordplay; Merena had not. She missed blocking one of his strikes, and Diya's blade caught her full in the face. It severed half her ear and cut her cheek to the bone. Their parents found Merena covered in blood and screaming, her brother pale as a ghost. After that, Diya was sent away. He lived in a small manse in the country with his tutors and one of his father's stewards, and no longer had any means for escape, or a mother to laugh and forgive his indiscretions. He was tutored as his father had intended him to be.
He didn't return to Tartessos until he was twenty-one. His mother was dying, and his father summoned him back to be with her for her last few weeks. Too ashamed to face his sister and frightened by his mother's illness, Diya spent far more time at the docks in bars and brothels than he did at his mother's bedside. She died having seen him again only twice. Diya's grief was well-hidden. He made quick friends with the sailors and merchants on his father's ships, and went with them to all the unsavory places a major port has to offer. He whored and gambled, spent his father's money on dogfights and opium. His encounters with his sister were brief and painful. Merena had grown into a beautiful woman, but it did nothing to soften the shock of the scar on her face. Jagged and puckered, it kept suitors and friendship alike at bay. Diya had no one to blame but himself, and though Merena was gentle with him, he avoided her company as best he could. It was easy to lose himself in the same recklessness he'd had before, even with the constant shadow of his sister and the scar he'd given her. He was not, despite his situation, unhappy. Diya had a knack for ignoring and avoiding unpleasantness, for focusing entirely on the pleasures and entertainment of the here and now. He was delighted rather than horrified when one of his whores bore him a bastard son, and he went so far as to present the boy to his father.
Talis was furious. His only son and heir was proving a monstrous, irresponsible disappointment. Merena, unmarried and bereft of friends as she was, became his only hope. He put his son's indiscretions aside and focused on grooming his daughter to take the business. She proved more than capable, and she helped balance sums and mediate merchants while Diya caroused in the slums. By the time he realized his father's intentions it was far too late. Talis named Merena the heir to the business and told Diya that if he did not change his ways and marry - and marry soon - he'd be stripped of his family name entirely and thrown out. Stunned and bewildered, Diya was packed off to Tyrol. His father hopes he'll find a bride there - hopefully nobility and not one of his whores - and that perhaps being among respectable people will instill some sort of responsibility (or at least fear) in his son.
Personality: Diya does nothing in moderation. Reckless and confident, he's found that most obstacles in life can be overcome by two of his virtues: his status, and his looks. From a young age he found he could wheedle just about anything out of anyone with a pretty smile and a lie. He's clever, but he knows he'd never get by half as easily were he ugly, or poor. He uses his assets shamelessly and without any hint of modesty or, god forbid, dignity. Although proud, Diya takes nothing and no one very seriously, including himself. He can shrug off most insults and ignores all obligations. Any attempts to chastise him or threaten him into responsibility are met with laughter. Understandably, Diya frustrates most people he meets. His flagrant disregard for the well-being of his own house is stuff of scandal, as are the bars and brothels he spends his time in. He's been around the upper class enough to know when to mind his manners and hold his tongue, but as soon as he's out of earshot, whatever impression they'd hope to leave on him is gone. The only exception to this rule is his sister, Merena. He listens to her - half out of shame, half of love - and will generally follow her advice, however grudgingly. But, ultimately, he's a creature of habit. A few days of good behavior fade quickly in the face of an available indiscretion.
Reckless to the extreme, Diya will try anything with enough encouragement, particularly if drink or drugs are involved. He has no qualms about making a fool of himself for the sake of having a good time or getting laughs. His attention to detail in others comes out when he's called to entertain: Diya is very good at impressions, particularly insulting ones. His sense of humor is on the hurtful side, but he's always quick to laugh at any jokes at his own expense - provided they aren't too personal. When angered or offended, Diya is quiet but cutting. He's very capable of being cruel and does his best to hurt when he's angry, often very effectively. Physicality very rarely enters into it; Diya isn't a violent person. Most of his anger is let out through stormy looks and stomping around, or drinking to excess. He's very fond of wine and there's a good chance that he's at least tipsy most evenings and hungover most mornings.
Though he thrives around people, Diya's attention is better suited to focus on a single individual. He learned very early on that the best sort of flattery is attention, and that everyone - regardless of what they say - wants it, and wants it to be exclusive. He's friendly and charming, confident, and remarkably intuitive about the wants and needs of others. Flattery and teasing come to him easily. Coupled with his good looks, being the sole recipient of Diya's attentions is enough to get most people agreeable to anything - particularly women.
Personality Keywords: Arrogant, self-assured, vain, crude, irresponsible, playful, reckless, amoral, sly, impatient, shrewd.
Appearance: Diya inherited his mother's thick hair and dark eyes. Absolutely black, his eyes are startling at the least and unnerving at worst. None of his other features are especially notable, but they're pretty and well-proportioned. Altogether, Diya is extremely handsome and very aware of it. He knows what smiles to give when he wants something, how to look artfully distressed or angry. He moves gracefully when he's not drunk (it happens occasionally), and even after a number of drinks can still usually manage to look capable. His skin is sun-dark, and he keeps his hair shoulder-length. His beard, while thin, is always neatly trimmed. Vanity keeps Diya responsible about his appearance if about nothing else, and he's always washed and well-groomed. He dresses well and knows what cuts and colors flatter him, but avoids anything too extravagant or cumbersome. Simple is best; he believes he's attractive enough not to need any ornamentation.
A youth full of recklessness and bad decisions has left Diya with a number of scars. The largest is on his left forearm, near his elbow, and runs two inches long. He got it by falling on an exposed nail while playing in his father's shipyard, but he likes to say he earned it in a duel with another merchant prince. The rest are scattered; one along his ribcage, a few on his hands, and a large one across the side of his right foot.
Languages Known: English, a few words of Greek, some Latin.
Skills: He knows quite a lot of card tricks (both the fun kind and the cheating kind), can drink like a fish, makes friends easily, blue steel, and has a surprisingly nice singing voice.
Strengths: Really ridiculously good looking, nimble, charming, can sleep anywhere at any time, clever, has zero modesty (kind of a strength??), and good at lying his way through trouble.
Weaknesses: Vain, reckless to the point of stupidity, excessive, willfully irresponsible, stubborn, and prone to tantrums.