Angel with a Flaming Sword

Char's name
Birth name: Nikkou Ayumi
Adopted name: Tsuuriki Naienko; commonly called Naien
tsuuriki=mysterious power; naien=inner flame; ko=child (suffix) ... thus, mangled a bit, meaning 'inner flame child with mysterious power'
Code names: Korat, Koneko
small gray cats with cool apple-green eyes, korats are known to be more mysterious than the general run of felines
also, Naien commonly seems very feline. Now why in the name of anything holy Kritiker decided Koneko was appropriate is anyone's guess.

What is your char?
human mortal pyrokinetic, colloquially known as a pyrokin 'pie-ro-keen' (in japanese - perokin 'perokeen'). Naien possesses the power to create and manipulate fire with his mind.
Affiliation: Kritiker / Weiß Kreuz
Although psychics are more often associated with Schwarz and SZ, they approached Naien and she turned them down flat - this refusal being why they continually hound her now. No-one refuses SZ and lives; even less does that person refuse SZ, live, AND go to Kritiker ... they want her now, willing or unwilling, alive or dead.

What's the best thing that ever happened to your char?
Getting away from his repressive, straight, 'American yuppie' family at age 15 - they couldn't understand him and constantly tried to shove him into the box of the good little Japanese schoolboy drone. He couldn't stand the expensive private school they enrolled him in, hated the entire 'family' game they played, didn't want to be female at all ... it was the 'how' he escaped that was the problem.

What's the worst thing?
His entire family died in a fire. He has believed ever since that they died due to his power raging out of control, and feels constant guilt for their deaths. Thirteen years later he still wakes up with nightmares of flames consuming their familiar faces but somehow leaving him totally untouched. The event fueled both the growth of his powers and his fear of said powers, leaving him strong but often out-of-control.

What's your char's goals within the year? Within the next 20 years? Beyond?
Naien just wants to stay alive. While he has a job at the same florist shop where the other members of Weiß Kreuz work, and he's pretty financially secure, the constant dodging of assassins/recruiters from Schwarz and other cells wears on him, and he walks a blade-edge of fear and fury most of his days. A single day of peace and freedom from fear would be heaven to him, but he knows without a doubt that he won't find it in any cell but that of Weiß Kreuz - or on his own.
As for a farther distant future ... such a thing is not something Naien permits himself to dwell upon at any length, but if pressed, he'd likely snap out something like "World peace and someone to love me the way I am." Such as it is.

What are your char's prejudices?
Intolerance in any form wears on his nerves. Naien represents in himself a whole host of things people are prejudiced against, his status as a pyrokin being the least of it. Add to that cross-dresser, single at 28, working, AND high-school dropout ... well, ouch.
He doesn't care much for stuffed suits, either. The fastest way to get on his bad side, assuming you aren't there already, is to present yourself as an executive. Wearing a suit around him is guaranteed to set him on edge and prejudice him against listening to you.
Casual death is also a problem with him. Despite his avowed distance from the rest of humanity, he genuinely believes that the fire of life is sacred and not to be extinguished without a damn good reason. If he sees you kill without cause, be certain that you'll be getting a much colder shoulder for at least the next week.

What is your char's greatest fear?
Naien is absolutely terrified at the idea of killing with his power. He remains guilt-stricken at his family's death, observes a ritual of passing each year on that anniversary, and renews a vow not to kill with his powers at that time. Death by fire - especially his own - racks his with a primal flight-or-fight response. He despises this reaction in himself, and fights to bury it.

What is the one task your char will refuse to do?
He will not ever accept a task that would involve killing with his power. He will not shrink from killing with a manmade weapon, but killing someone by magick or psychic power is unnecessary, overkill, and deprives the target of any sort of sporting chance, in his mind - relegating the kill to the status of senseless. Also, due to his past, he would undoubtedly choke in a situation requiring him to kill with his power, a possibly fatal flaw.

What is your char's greatest regret?
Naien has imposed a distance between himself and other beings since the death of his family. He fears killing with his power, and thus refuses to permit anyone to get close to him emotionally. He deliberately stands aloof, although a social person, and presents a façade of touch-me-not perfection. He hates it. His essential nature demands far more in the way of social interaction than he permits himself, and denying that nature is a daily torment and daily regret. But he is adamant that there is no other choice.

Weapons
crossbow - a small, hand-crank crossbow that is very probably illegal as hell, but he's damn good with it. Where a longbow-man could get off 5 shots per minute tops, he can only fire 2 bolts per minute - but they are powerful bolts that can go through an inch of anything up to brick or steel, and bore completely through human flesh and bone. In anger, the bolts catch flame ...
[Alternative #1:
shuriken - small, sharp dart-type objects that are usually thrown. He can throw up to 3 at a time, can get them around corners and angles, and generally carries at least 5 in a pouch at his waist. In anger, the darts catch flame ...
Alternative #2:
4" throwing daggers - perfectly balanced throwing daggers with 4" blades and 2" grips. Not intended for hand-to-hand combat. He's fast enough to have 3 in the air at once, and the things are wickedly sharp. He once etched his name on glass without dulling the blade a whit. In anger, the blades catch flame ...
If all else fails ... some type of throwing/shooting/distance weapon. Naien does not like to work close in!]

Powers
Fire call: Naien can summon flame to whatever (or whomever) he chooses, be it dry-as-tinder leaves or pure tempered steel. The less flammable the object, the more energy he expends to set it aflame; conversely, the more flammable the object, the more energy he expends to keep the fire controlled. Control is a huge issue here; he has very little and refuses even the simple exercises to gain more; he fears this ability. Hence, in anger or fear (common emotions), his hair appears to catch flame, his eyes reflect flame, and in extreme situations fire will spark from his fingertips.
Fire control: Naien also possesses control over extant flames. He can encourage or douse them at will. Controlling an existing flame is much easier than conjuring the flame, and hence he actually does have control of it. However, as above, in extreme situations control goes out the window, and nearby fires may rage out of control or die entirely, refusing to be relit.
Fire sight: Given a flame lit by someone's hand (i.e. not set by lightning or another pyrokin), Naien can view current actions within the range of the firelight. He cannot hear anything, cannot see part or future, and cannot go beyond the reach of the firelight, but any fire, anywhere is accessible to him. Essentially this is an out-of-body experience, with all attendant limitations pertaining thereto; he puts his mind in the flame. Dousing the fire Naien is observing from gives him a massive headache and snaps him back into his body in a disoriented state. Naien can only use this ability when standing on solid earth; there cannot be any air spaces between his feet and the ground. Thus standing on a road is fine, but he would have to be in the lowest basement of any building, and hope that it has a solid foundation. His long reach is due to the fact that he uses the internal fire of the planet to traverse to fires in distant locations; air disrupts this contact.

What is your char's favourite motto or saying?
Self is the only prison that can ever bind the soul.
Naien believes that the only person who has a right to bind him or command him is himself. He feels strongly that he should be able to stand alone, and if not completely alone, then virtually so. As he says, "The only walls I'll hide behind are the ones I make myself."
And those who were dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.
A favoured quote to hurl into the faces of his family, and anyone else who attempts to put him into a box not of his own choosing.
You're only as old as you feel.
One of the few things he remembers his grandfather saying before his death when he was young.

Favourite animal and why?
Being that one of his code names is Koneko, it's pretty obvious that the favoured animal of Naien is the kitten (maybe that's why Kritiker gave it his?). Once they grow up, he likes them still, but he adores kittens. A kitten is one of the few beings that can bring out Naien's soft, female side, and he is often seen working with a Korat kitten perched on shoulder or head. Naturally, the little furballs do not accompany him on missions.

What would they want if they could have one wish and why?
Naien's one wish would be to go back in time and save his family instead of trembling in terror at the fire. He believes they died because of him, and nothing will convince him otherwise. There are a lot of things in his life that he attributes to that one night, and in what little time he allows for personal musings he wonders what his life might have been like had he been more courageous.

What's their hobby?
motorbike racing: Despite being a Firechild by name, Naien enjoys the feel of the wind in his hair. Speeding along on his motorbike is often the only feeling of freedom he gets all day, and he takes advantage of it as much as possible. Out where only the winds blow, Naien feels that he doesn't have to think and gains a measure of peace thereby.
arcade dance games: Naien has amazing timing, and can beat down almost anyone in a dance game challenge. If he's not out on his bike, he's definitely down in some arcade, showing the neighborhood how to do Dance Dance Revolution. The kittens aren't so keen on the bouncing around, though ...
kittens: okay, so it's not much of a hobby, but with a house-ful of the creatures, and the constant companionship of at least one at nearly all times, at least they give him something to keep him occupied.

Tsuuriki Naienko checked his watch, measuring its time-difference against the clock on the wall of the back room of Koneko Sumu-le. 3 minutes. Nope. No way he could sneak out early and not get caught. He clenched a fist around the stem of a crimson rose, ignoring the sting of thorns. He HAD to get out before the press of people drove him to something indiscreet - or at least ill-advised.

'Too many people around here ... I have to get out before I blow something up.' Before last night, he had at least felt safe in crowds, safe in the shop. Now ... there was no safety.

Safety was a thing of the past.

Flexing his fingers around the stem of the flower, heedless of the blood, Naien relived the previous night's events in memory.

He had been putting a final shipment of flowers away in the huge fridge, to be sold the next day. There was no one there but him, and the dimness and silence was soothing after the day's bustle. So when a footstep broke the silence, Naien immediately snapped to attention, freezing over the flowers he was sorting. He barely breathed, eyes flicking from side-to-side, scanning the shadows for changes in light. Oh, why hadn't he lit the candle in the front?! At least then he'd be able to look in there without moving ... but regrets were, as always, useless.

A hated voice broke the stillness. "We meet again, Tsuuriki-kun."

"Johann," he whispered.

"I told you we would be back when you didn't expect us." In the light of the single lamp, his smile was a pale mark against shadow.

Naien summoned his courage. He was Weiß now. No more running from shadows. Even if they defeated him here, his teammates would rescue him. They'd rescued Aya-chan, hadn't they? "I always expect you, Johann, and thus am never disappointed. That's your department."

"What, disappointment?" Johann chuckled slightly. "Oh, no. It is you who will be disappointed this night ... Ayumi-chan."

Naien refused, by look or word or deed, to gratify the man with even the slightest reaction - which in itself was a reaction. How, HOW, had he found his deepest secrets? His past was a shadowed thing, given to unpredictable flaring in his dreams ... but it was HIS past, and buried, and he intended it to stay that way!

"That is not me," he replied. "If you seek her, you'll need a time-travel machine." Naien allowed a feral smile to cross his face. "I wish you luck, Johann, in that venture." Sparks began to dance from his fingertips, burning little black holes in the flower petals. He gritted his teeth in that smile and urged the fire over to Johann. He knew there were others, but if Johann left, so would they. He hoped.

Then he forgot everything but the fire.

Slowly, oh so slowly, tiny flames licked at the cuffs of Johann's pants. They vined up around his legs and reached for his arms. He stood stolidly, eyes fixed on his face, while the fires raced up his shirt.

His breath released in a gasp when he finally ripped his eyes from his and fled his fires ...

"Yo, Naien-kun!" The voice snapped his from his reverie. "Shop's closing! Let's go!"

He stared at his hand, spotted with dried dark dots of blood. He didn't remember releasing the rose. Deliberately, he reached out and grasped the flower again, wrapping his hand around the stem. Fresh blood flowed, but he ignored it. 'Remember this, Naien. The rose brings pain ... but that does not diminish its beauty.'

Gently replacing the rose on the table, Naien settled the korat kitten, Midori-san, on his shoulder, swept up his keys, and walked out the door of Koneko Sumu-le to join the other members of Weisß and Kritiker.

The weiß kreuz brought his pain, yes ... but the beauty of companionship far outweighed the pain.

The single most identifying physical characteristic about Naien is his sex - or rather, the ambiguous nature thereof. Both his given name and adopted name are generally seen as female (-ko suffix). However, he tends to introduce himself as either Tsuuriki or Naien, or by one of his code names. In appearance he's very much the bishounen, and even his voice is no giveaway. Appearance, plus voice, plus mannerisms, plus the fact that he is homosexual, all combine to fool most people into believing Naien is in fact male. S/he is actually an appropriate pronoun for him ^_^.

Appearance
Hair: A great many bishounen characters have long hair, and Naien is no exception. Shoulder-length brunette hair sports double spiky bangs, one to either side, and falls in sharp straight lines below. Waves of red highlights chase down it in any light at his movement.
Eyes: Narrow eyes are framed by long lashes the same shade as his highlights. They are a strange and startling shade of blue so pale it almost can't be told as colour. This is especially uncanny when backed by the ghost-flames summoned by his fury or fear. Creases etched around speak of a constant expression - be it of anger or happiness, none can tell.
Face: Naien's face bears a pointed chin, strong jaw, and high cheekbones. His nose is snub and seems dreadfully out of place in such a strong face. Skin is deeply tanned and bears the white marks of many small scars - legacy of the kittens who fill his life. A single long scar traces from near the corner of the eye to end halfway down his right cheek.
Build: Naien is bishounen. Lean shoulders, as little chest as you can get in a female and still BE female (he binds it anyway), long fingers and powerful hands. Naien stands 5'9" in bare feet, and weight does not bear thinking about. He is strong and well-built.
Voice: Alto. Naien's voice falls well below the typical range for Japanese females, who tend to have higher-pitched voices. It commonly bears a snap of anger or irritation, and in unguarded moments carries a tinge of sadness and regret.
Dress: Typically male - i.e. button-front shirts, slacks. When he attended school, he fought to wear the male school uniform.