| William Frederick Cooper | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| William Frederick Cooper | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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William is a loving man and always has been. He is faithful to a fault, preferring to leave behind a sense of honor and duty rather than look out for himself. He is a protector of those closest to him, for which he will gladly give his life in the service of. Many people see him as a rock they can rely on it, stable and down-to-earth while being utterly loyal and very communicative. Others will often lean on him for advice when they are unsure about themselves. For friends, he always has a kind word though will always be honest even if it might hurt someone in the short-term. He is rarely angry and always tries to be well-mannered, though sometimes he becomes insecure when he is out of his depth. He tends to be a quiet man though has a strong sense of individuality and does not like to entirely conform, preferring to at least have something to show for his own personality. William has a keen mind though and thinks strategically when in his element. Perhaps the only shortcoming he truly has is his need to live the way he believes is right, when he cannot he becomes strongly rebellious and his strategic mind can turn against those he believes are forcing him away from his convictions. Though he is rarely angry when sufficiently provoked his anger burns like the sun and is difficult to tamp down, except to a small few who know him well.
Special Abilities
- Naturally High Intelligence
- Strong Empathy
- His empathy is so strong it is potentially slightly supernatural in origin, though this is suspected it is unconfirmed.
- Magical Abilities
- Has a strong aptitude with Fire, Water, and Ice magic.
Special Skills
- Formal Education at the Rose Palace
- This includes reading, writing, arithmetic, art, history, and politics.
- Servant's Education
- This includes proper servants etiquette, the proper way to clean and do a variety of duties in the upkeep of a large estate.
- Knight of the Souls Templar
- Sorcerer of the Souls Templar
- Skilled particularly with Fire, Ice, and Healing Magic
Background
William has been a servant his entire life, his parents and 2 sisters were servants as well. He is the 3rd generation of servants to be employed at the Rose Palace. He enjoys the work and likes helping people, perhaps this is why he can be so quiet. His parents loved him very much, though both were tragically killed in an attack on the Rose Palace from the heavens which killed so many others. The only thing that saved William was the fact that he was Glinan's Hold when the light struck from the sky. He has a strong sense of guild buried deep within for surviving when his family did not. He misses his 2 sisters most of all, both were younger than him. He has been told that they died quickly and did not suffer and it is a small comfort. Though he feels guilty over what happened he knows it was not his fault and buries this feeling when it arrises. Often he will be extra kind to those around him and even extra jubilant to turn his feelings around, though he never speaks of what happened and will quickly shut down if attempts are made to pry it out of him.
When he was young, just a boy of 7, he first set eyes on the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, Regina Ellian, the Phoenix Queen from the Kingdom of Thaentis. She was already a woman of 24 back then an was staying at the Rose Palace with her parents while the Rose Council met. Throughout his life he never forgot the beauty he saw that day, he fell for her instantly. He knew that she would never be his though. They met while he was drawing her a hot bath at the request of her mother and nearly spilled the water all over the floor as his eyes saw her in her dressing gown. They spoke briefly and Regina's father - then the King of Thaentis - thumped him on his ear for staring. Even so, the King and Queen were both amused and allowed him to serve their daughter while they were there.
Later that night, the pair walked through the garden. He was utterly terrified and did not speak much, refusing to even hold her hand lest he touch her the wrong way as he feared her father's reprisal for such an insult. Some time after, the Grand Mistress Lisa Thompson assigned him a private tutor. This was unheard of for servants unless they were bound to serve as scribes. The work would be well paid by the palace and his parents were so proud of him. Doing so he got an education between his duties. His tutor was a miserly old woman by the name of Anastasia Graham, known to be a strict taskmaster and not one to make angry. It took a only a few short days before she boxed his ears enough times that he fell into line and began to learn discipline. From then he was a superb student, studying reading, writing, arithmetic, and later even art, history, and politics.
Though the Grand Mistress never called upon him to serve as a scribe. Instead, she assigned him to train with the sword when he was 11 and when he was 13 she began to train him in the ways of magic. He often wondered why she would do such a thing but never asked. One just did not ask why they were being lifted to such a height, only nobles and rich merchants could afford such an education and he was better for it. From the Souls Templar he learned honor and responsibility, from Mrs. Graham he learned about beauty and poetry. These things changed his life forever and even the lives of his family. He was just started to teach his two sisters to read and write when he started with the Templar.
Little did William know that the Grand Mistress had a plan for him, nor did he know that the King and Queen of Thaentis had approved the plan. He was being groomed, though he suspected this was going on he did not know why. Though he never was told, he earned the rank of Knight of the Souls Templar. No one ever told him that the final test he took was not just any other practice but instead was qualification for Knighthood.
When Mrs. Graham passed away when he was 15, he went under another tutor Gabriella Spencer. Gabriella taught him so many things, she was a fine woman and for a brief time at 16 he thought perhaps he was falling for her - though a fire always burned for the Phoenix Queen, she was unattainable and he knew it in his bones. Gabriella taught him about love and loss, quizzing him on how to treat a woman, dining with him to teach him manners, and even bedding him to teach him the ways to please. She was no common harlot though, she was a courtesan trained in the distant Republic of Shoyque in the ways of not just paltry common sex but in pleasing people not only through touch but through conversation and making others feel at ease.