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Name: Vlademiro
Nickname: Vlad
Species: Kyrii
Colour: Mutant
Gender: Male
Age: Around 90, but looks like late 30's

Appearance: Tall and strong-looking. Claws, fangs and red eyes may give him dangerous look. Ties his long hair in a pony tail. Characteristic part of his clothing are leather pocket-belts where he hides tools, weapons and Batman knows what.

Personality: Calm type who appreciates being left alone, but is polite and acts normal when in a group. Brave. Helps out those in need.

Heritage: His ancestors were vampires, but the curse partially wore off over generations.

The curse: Apples. Taking a bite (or even a single drop of juice) turns Vlademiro into 3 pound critter. To turn back he needs someone's blood.

Occupation: weapon-maker. Crafts only defensive type and cautiously selects customers. He does not want his weapons to get into wrong hands/paws.

Currently lives in: Count's Estate

Personality

He may look like a brute, but he doesn't act like one. He decides to use force only if situation calls for it. And it usually means rescuing someone. He cannot just pass by when he sees someone being robbed, bullied or receiving undeserved punishment - he often treats the last scenario very personally.

He appreciates being alone and not bothered by anyone, but the fate decided that Vlademiro will not get as much peace as he wishes for...

Calm and polite. He is not a total loner (there is a difference between "lone wolfs" and those who just seek some peace - Vlad is more of the second type) and enjoys having a company once in a while or someone to talk to.

The Forbidden Fruit

Cursed children of the night
Who wished to live in light
Through desire and sacrifice
Rigged the game of fate's dice
Miracles do not come for free
There is a price for all mercy
Thus the offspring of this tribe
Shall bear a blemish to remind
Them of their accursed kin
And guard from path of sin
Will there always be a decoy
Which they cannot ever enjoy
Or else follow ancestors' way
A memento of ancient despair

But... apples? At least it's something easy to avoid, right? As long as Vlademiro doesn't eat them it's fine. But even drop of apple juice can transform him. And only turning towards his cursed clan ways can bring him back to normal. To finalize the transaction he needs the "currency of life" - red liquid that flows through veins. Blood. A single drop can do the trick.

The Cursed Family

Vlademiro belongs to an odd kind of creatures which stand on the border of two worlds. His generation no longer belongs to the "children of the night". But some of his features give a hint of his ancestor's cursed past: fangs, red eyes that glow in the dark, his strength.
Furthermore the younger generations had to pay their price for (partially) lifting the spell and thus Vlademiro ended up with his "personal" curse.
Yet he decided to leave his family's grim history and live decently... which is not an easy thing with all that burden.

Yes, you could say Vlad is partly a vampire. But he doesn't need to hide from sunlight or drink blood to survive, he doesn't transform into a bat (although he transforms into somethign else under certain conditions) and he lacks a lot of cool powers that vampires possess. Of course, he is not immortal, although he lives longer and ages slower than others. Also: He. Does. Not. Sparkle.

Craftsman

Does he just wander across Neopia avoiding Faerieland and apple orchards or he does something for a living? He makes weapons.
Vlademiro is a handy craftsman who always seeks improvement. He polishes his skill by studying tools made by others and reading through any schemes and blueprints he can find. His weapons vary in size and way they should be handled, but they have one common feature: all are defensive type. Vlademiro hates wars and decided that his creations will serve only for protection. He is very wary as to whom he sells them.
Despite that he agreed on very limited trade with Schlagring. One very unlucky day he almost got killed by them, then saved, then almost killed again to find himself tangled in a mess and unwillingly signing a pact that bonds him with the team forever. He does not approve of their methods and the squad members mostly prefer offensive strategy.

Crani

This scary-looking petpet matches Vlad's image. But it's not just for show. Crani (short for "Cranium") is quite powreful defensive weapon which can create a shielding barrier much bigger than itself.
Crani is fully obedient to Vlademiro and only he knows how to use its' full power.

Going Home

He spent his early years in a huge, richly-furnished manor. But as in E.A. Poe's "The Fall of the House of Usher" both the family and the residence were in awful condition. After learning all the dark secrets of his ancestors, Vlademiro as a young man tried to break all bonds with his relatives and left the manor.
Traveling got him used to harsh conditions (not that he lived in luxury, sometimes during winters there wasn't even enough woods to heat all rooms in the family's manor), but he always liked to stay in some places for longer periods of time so he could work and study in peace.
His situation has drastically changed, when he found out that an elderly lady he once helped, has gifted him a whole mansion in her last will. Because some other events urged him to move to another place again, he accepted the offer despite his reluctance towards big, old manors. He wondered if the lady didn't have any relative who now might want to get their property back from the hands of a stranger. But arriving at the spot assured him that even if those relatives existed, no one would wish to step inside the gloomy ruin that had its' glory days way behind. He, on the other hand, dared to enter it and soon discovered the reason number two behind the mansions state: it already had a squatter.
It's another long story of how Vlad managed to bear it and make an agreement with the creature, but for now he and L simple exist in the same building, mind their own business and don't interact much with each other. The real trouble have arrived together with a cute-looking little mutant aisha whom Vlademiro is babysitting now. After months of torments he fortunately got aided with a calm young acara.

The mansion in which Vlad lives, is located on the border of Meridell and has no close neighborhood, but not too far away from a town where he goes shopping once in a while. Vlademiro has his own bedroom: the room has a set of basic, classic furniture. But he doesn't spend much time there anyway. He has his own workshop inside of which, besides all the tables, shelves and toolboxes, he has a big, comfy armchair in which he sometimes falls asleep when working too much.

(New) Family and Friends

He moved in a deserted estate... or so he thought. She was already there. Hard to tell whether his phobia applies to L: it's hard to define whether she really comes from this dimension, and WHAT she is or is she a she... Thus L gives chills to everyone. They have their quiet pact not to disturb each other and rarely even meet when passing the old corridors: L spends all days locked in the dark chamber in front of her several computers...

He still doesn't know how this could happen. But through a strange course of events Vlademiro has become Anui's guardian. The Aisha calls him "uncle Vlad" and can annoy to the point at which Vlad looses his calmness (but would never ever do any harm to the child). Having no knowledge about raising children or desire to do so, Vlademiro was really desperate. He does his best, but he dreamed that one day someone would appear to help him out and this dream fortunately came true. Despite times when the kid gets on his nerves, Vlademiro slowly grew attached to the cute little rascal.

When Vlademiro began to fear it's too much for his nerves to take proper care of Anui a savior appeared in his life. True, not the kind that could handle everything – tuition was still left to Vlad, but so patient that even Shenkuu monks could get ashamed. What he still didn't figure out is that Chaucor is a girl. Not that she bothers to inform him. That's probably for the better.

He paid a visit to the Possessed Mansion and left with mixed feelings but having more friends than in the beginning.

At first he was against having anything to do with the gang from The Tower. Especially with the cruel lady Eyrie who is their leader. But then reluctantly he agreed on limited trade with them. They, on the other hand, do not rely much on the defense, thus Vlademiro's weapons come as extra gadgets.

ABCD

I've decided to go in-depth and explore other qualities of Vlademiro's character with this project:http://www.neopets.com/~Biometric.

In this section I will add the tasks which were not something I've already completed on this page, are not complimentary to the previous sections or just couldn't fit them elsewhere.

Task 4: Death

How does your character feel about death? How does your character view their own death? Does this vary from their views on the death of others? Do their feelings towards death effect their life in any way?
~~~~~~~~~
Ladies and gentlemen! Think how wonderful a life can be – having friends, holding parties, going out shopping on such fine day like his one! Don't you want to make it last longer? Now you can, with a bottle of live-long-and-prosper bottle! a yellow aisha in burgundy suit was standing in the middle of the bazaar, trying to catch the attention of the mob that was flowing through the streets on the fair day.Created by the genius Dr Seuss, Live-long-and-prosper elixir is sure to add some shiny days! Selling at half-price today! shouted the aisha, spinning around like a whirlwind to catch an eye contact and then talk them into buying a bottle, two or dozen, almost showing that bottle straight into other pet's faces.
Vlademiro felt tired and annoyed by the crowd, so when some salesman tried to hand him a bottle, he slapped his hand out of the way, just like you do with an annoying insect. Hey! Watch that! You almost spilled wonderful elixir of long-living, you oaf! shouted the aisha angrily, hoping that a little ruckus will bring the attention of the buyers. Bu when Vlademiro stopped and gave the salesman a piercing look with his blood-red eyes, the aisha stepped back Hey, sorry. No worries, I have more of them, ya know?.
Vlademiro continued walking his own way. That elixir that lengthens your life span was surely just some awfully tasting lie, he thought, because it takes much more than just buying a potion with few sovereigns to trick the fate. He knew that all too well. His ancestors put much effort to gain eternal youth. Yet, not only did they fail, but the next generations had to pay the price for their haughtiness. His family's history was a sore wound in his heart, rasped by such thoughts. He has learnt that for some of the clan members death was a liberation from their torments. But it was no solution. It wouldn't erase the past sins, nor would make the world better. Were those wicked demons who had the power to interfere in lives of whole clans awaiting on the other side? Even so, he was ready to face them. But no – it was his great grandfather who crushed the future with his own hands. When his own time comes, thought Vlademiro when he reached the road leading out of town, he might discover all the answers or get nothing, but he decided to never ask too much from life… or death.
End

Task 5: Entertainment

What does your character do for entertainment?

His work is his greatest hobby. Besides designing and constructing he also tests his weapons which gives him some excercise. He enjoys a good book too: historical and literature classics fit his taste most.

Task 10: Jokes

What sort of sense of humor does your character have?

Considered to be grumpy, Vlad does have a sense of humor, but is not easily amused. He finds an intelligent and sharp satire to be most enjoyable. Whenever he goes to town for shopping, he buys a newspaper with extra satire pages. Despite the fact he stays away from politics as possible, he values satirists (both writer's and cartoonists) for their ability to use the most matching metaphors and pinpoint the problems.

Task 11: Kids

What is your character's opinion on kids?

Ok, this task really made me laugh when it came to Vlademiro XD
He wasn't getting along with kids or maybe just never attempted to do that in his life. He used to view them as noisy and problematic creatures... wait, he still does. His problem is, the fate decided to make a fool of him once again and sent him a several year old mutant aisha kid to take care of. Before Chaucor appeared to aid Vlad, he and the kid spent few months together and formed a bond, even if Vlademiro won't confess to it.

Task 12: Love

How does your character view love?

Despite his character and harsh past, Vlademiro is surely capable of love. He shows that by caring about Anui.
Yet, he rather avoids the topic and is cynical: speaking about love from first sight or something among the lines will only get you an ironic remark from him.
He would probably sooner eat a basket of apples than say to someone "I love you". Silly Vlad.

Task 14: Night

How does your character feel about the night? What is their preferred activity at night? What time does your character generally go to sleep - and why at that time? Prompt: When your character was a child were there any night time fears?

When he was a little boy, he did not know much about his family, but hearing what adults were saying, especially the things he wasn't allowed to hear, has created his greatest childhood nightmare. He wouldn't go to sleep if a warm glow of lamp wasn't filling the room. But as soon as he fell asleep the light was turned off: the mansion was big and filled with expensive furniture, but the family was quickly loosing the wealth, being forced to save money on such petty things. But for little Vlad it was not a petty matter. He imagined that someone awaited the moment when the lamp goes out and everyone else is asleep. It was his great grandfather's ghost whom he believed to lurk in the darkness. Demon,. vampire, ghoul or a wandering spirit: those image merged in child's imagination to form one, dreadful figure that would lean towards his bed and wrap his bony, cold fingers around him, taking away far, far away to some land of shadows…

Task 15: Opportunity

How does your character respond to new opportunities?

He likes to have control over everything in his life and plan things out, although it's not always possible. It's probably due to his cursed family issues that he has a strong need to prove his fate is in his own hands.

Task 16: Pet

How does your character feel about pets?

Yes, he has a pet. But it's more like a robot that is faithful and obedient and rather needs check ups and upgrades than affection and hugs. The primary reason Vlad doesn't have a pet is that due to his lifestyle, that involves moving from one place to another (sometimes unexpected) he doesn't have time for a pet. He is used to living alone (of course, all of this was ruined when he had to take care of Anui).

Task 17: Questionnaire

Fill out the following questionnaire from the point of view of your character:
1. How old are you?
2. What makes you special?
3. What is the most normal thing about you?
4. What is the last thing you ate?
5. What is the last thing you did prior to this questionnaire?
6. With whom did you last share a hug?
7. What's the most exciting thing you did yesterday?
8. What will you do after you finish this questionnaire?
9. Who do you want to talk to right now?
10. What are you wearing?
11. What's your favorite color?
12. What do you wish you were doing right now?
13. Do you like pie?

1. What kind of interview is this? You are a spy or what? I can tell you I'm older than you think. I remember when I was when the Battle of the Plains begun. Don't give me that look, you don't know Neopian history? Ok, that was about 50 years ago. Can we move on? I suppose you have more questions written there.
2. If by "special" you mean being cursed and constantly bearing the burden of someone else's sins, then it was my "dear" great grandfather who made me and my whole family special. All you need to know, I don't like discussing family issues with strangers.
3. "Normal" is just another subjective term we use to shape the image of the word accordingly to our vision… Sorry about that, you want more straightforward answer? *sigh* I like peace. To just be able to do your job or relax, without bothering anyone or being bothered. No fights, no wars. I suppose we all long for peace. So that's pretty normal.
4. Blo… *cough* Bolognese. The pasta.. spaghetti. Right. Next, please.
5. I was wondering how to forge a well-shaped cylindrical linking… I'm a craftsman, my job is to construct some things and I often think about it even if I'm away from workshop. Yes, you're right: I do enjoy my job.
6. *almost chokes on the tea he was drinking* What kind of question is that? Do you want to finish this interview right now? I don't like the direction it takes. Oh, ok, if you say so. That's what they written in your guide for making interviews? I know nothing upon the topic, but it's good to get info from different sources *hands you a coin* Here, take it and buy yourself another book. Do you have more questions?
7. For you, I mean most of the young people out there, everything has to "exciting". Why not just casual? It's good to have a peaceful time just for yourself and your tasks. No, actually my time yesterday wasn't peaceful. I'm taking care of a kid who also think everything should be "exciting". No, not my child! Ekhm, I was trusted to be his guardian and teacher and I treat this duty seriously… If you want to know, he tried kissing mortogs… *in quiet voice* That could be material for a whole book… Yes, other questions you have?
8. I have some more work to do at the workshop and if I'm not lucky, and I'm usually not, I'll have to prepare supper too. So can we go a bit faster with those questions?
9. Not sure I want to talk to anyone. Mo offense.
10. You mean this? *pokes his gadget belt* Oh, I like keeping my things close to me, you never know what will come in handy and these small pockets help me keep it all organized – better than throwing everything into a bag and trying to "fish" the item you want from it's depths *chuckles*
11. I appreciate all colors I can see and have no preferences.
12. Again, I don't know much about interviews, but aren't you right now telling me this interview is coming to an end? I just feel that again you direct my attention far away from this conversation. From what I told you so far I think you can figure this question out. Ok, one last question.
13. Yes. You might have expected a more intriguing and complex answer, but that's all to it. Oh, except apple pie. I loath these.

I don't feel I'm good at giving interviews, but if that helped you, then I feel glad. Goodbye.

Task 18: Robots

What's your character's opinion on robots?

Well accustomed with various machines shaped like real pets, but being just a complicated wind-up toys. Even to the point to owning a robot-like petpet (although some magic was also involved in Crani's creation). He knows of the existence of high-tech robots, such as those that are on the space station, but programming and nanotechnology are not something he knows a lot about.
He believes machines are useful and can make life easier, but only as tools and there are things which cannot be replaced with anything artificial. He is against too much technology invading our lives. Robots are things to him. He doesn't believe they could have mind of their own and feel any emotions.

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Adoptables

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Sitely