Garrett Hawke (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
fadedchampion) wrote2011-11-28 05:27 pm
fadedchampion) wrote2011-11-28 05:27 pm
Entry tags:
Hawke's daemon
Form: Lava gull.
Name: Mal, chosen for Hawke’s father Malcolm by mutual agreement.
Personality: Mal’s personality isn’t a complementary force so much as possessing traits which Hawke keeps hidden or restrained. As a gull, Mal enjoys and even needs a certain amount of company, or else she’ll get exceedingly lonely; in that, she and Hawke are similar. However, where Hawke might lack purpose without company, Mal would go out and seek it. That is like the most obvious trait Mal displays; greed and/or gluttony. Hawke’s greatest desire is to have and hold lifelong friends in spite of the risk of his magic, and Mal manifests this as the greed of a seagull constantly searching and scavenging for more.
For Mal, a lot of what she wants is food or company and the ownership of such, but it also comes out as a constant demand for attention. It’s not necessarily a matter of being in a spotlight, as much as being acknowledged, and unlike Hawke, who prefers to be acknowledged for things for which he won’t be feared, Mal doesn’t really care. As a result, she can tend toward acting out and otherwise being annoying just for the sake of being seen.
Coupled with this is the fact that she doesn’t need to be liked and her security in herself. Where Hawke might submit to others in favour of being agreeable and keeping his friends, even if he doesn’t compromise his security, Mal says what’s on her mind (often with as little tact, but more honest harshness, as Hawke would). In her is the freedom to do what she likes whenever she likes, without the consequence of magery being blamed for her conduct hanging over her. However, conversely, she is the cynic to Hawke’s optimism—the doomsday voice which keeps him from getting too happy or complacent. She can be equally as resigned as Hawke is, but for different reasons; while Hawke may be waiting for things to change and then be willing to act, Mal tends to resign herself to her and Hawke’s own interests indefinitely. Since she feels no need to be actively liked so much as acknowledged, she feels less duty to being a good person and more to just being herself, regardless of what that might mean.
Although Mal prefers flight to fight, just like Hawke, she’s far more vicious when push comes to shove. She will fight for survival by any means and in that way is as shameless as Hawke is, if for different reasons; she feels no shame for being who and what she is, and makes no excuses. She is far less flirtatious and cavalier, as well as less forgiving, and although her sense of humour is more dour and sardonic, she seems to take few things seriously, just as Hawke does, unless those things pertain to the two of them.
As far as the bluntness goes, that tallies with Hawke’s own lack of tack; although he’s not deliberately confrontational, Hawke does have a tendency toward inappropriate or tactless humour. Mal, being his far less optimistic side, takes the tactlessness a step further to being purely blunt, without even the desire to try and cover it with humour.
The cynicism and the viciousness aren’t aspects of Hawke’s personality which are obvious, mostly because he chooses not to let them have a grip on him. Many of his reasons for being upbeat and optimistic are chosen and learned—he saw the weight on his father’s shoulders that was magic and chose, even young and perhaps subconsciously, to be as happy as he could be even in the face of the diversity his magic presented. That doesn’t mean he isn’t tempted to lose hold of his optimism; even as ingrained as that optimism is, there is a part of him which needs to remain cynical, to remind him just what could happen if he loses control or gets too arrogant or starts believing he is as controlled as he needs to be. Mal represents that part of him.
Finally, even though Hawke doesn’t let himself fall to the depths many of his fellow mages do, that doesn’t mean he’s not capable of it. In his canon, he’s possibly one of the mages who’s been the most successful at balancing his magic with control; for that reason, there hasn’t been much opportunity to see his darker side, especially since his desires range primarily toward being liked and he goes to a lot of effort to be likable. However, he’s also not as moral as he could be. He has no issues with killing, for instance; he has, on occasion, killed to protect his family’s secret, and has frequently killed bandits and the like even when he perhaps didn’t need to. Most of his desire to be peaceful comes from what he feels is his duty as a mage to protect others from himself, as well as having a point to prove, rather than any inherent self-worth in being a ‘good person’. He has also on occasion been manipulative, especially when trying to get information for a job or manipulating templars to let him help without letting them know he’s a mage.
I’ve said before that I think his desire to be liked would, with corruption, turn into the need to possess other people. In that process I can see his moral mindset changing; right now, it’s at ‘I have a duty to prove mages don’t need to be feared’. The more his desire would take over, the more it would turn into something closer to ‘I need people to like me regardless of the cost’. Though he certainly wouldn’t react with immediate cruelty or viciousness, I can see him being unthinkingly cruel or vicious—that is, doing what he feels is necessary to be ‘liked’, or to have ‘friends’ (‘have’ in the sense of owning, in this case) without seeing how it is cruel or vicious or, even, selfish. Mal’s viciousness would likely be far more pronounced the more they’re both corrupted, but she still represents that possibility in Hawke—the need and drive to do something he feels is necessary regardless of its cost.
Reason for keeping: The main reason is that, although Hawke is a decently open guy once he gets to know a person, getting to know them is a problem. The more the city affects him, the less likely he’ll care about ‘knowing’ a person as opposed to ‘owning’ them. Having a daemon will reveal the things he tends to keep close to his chest, especially with regard to his magic, how he feels about it, and how lonely he’s beginning to feel in ‘the Fade’ and without his friends or family. Plus, because the city potentially affects him more quickly than most people, having a daemon as a sort of emotional and mental counterbalance could offer an avenue for him to keep or regain his sanity. Or it could make it worse. Either way, it would be fun to work out.
I’d also love to play Mal as being connected to his magic in a way that prevents him from hiding it. Not in the sense that she can use it or tap into it in any way; more like she’s a window. Hawke can hide evidence of his magic, but Mal, being a more spiritual form of his being, wouldn’t be able to, so her presence would display the fact he has magic inside him and every time he uses it or it changes or corrupts him would reflect in her in more obvious ways than it would show in him. This would basically make it impossible for him to hide the fact he’s a mage and force him to confront, for the first time, not being able stay under the radar even if he wants it.
In terms of how this works, I’d planned for Mal to look partially like a Fade construct during normally, while keeping her colouring and general solidity. In the Fade, settings and spirits look like, well, that—not quite solid, not quite real, and a bit bleached out. Mal would have overtones of that look, and when Hawke uses his magic it would make the effect worse so that she’ll look completely like a Fade construct.
Name: Mal, chosen for Hawke’s father Malcolm by mutual agreement.
Personality: Mal’s personality isn’t a complementary force so much as possessing traits which Hawke keeps hidden or restrained. As a gull, Mal enjoys and even needs a certain amount of company, or else she’ll get exceedingly lonely; in that, she and Hawke are similar. However, where Hawke might lack purpose without company, Mal would go out and seek it. That is like the most obvious trait Mal displays; greed and/or gluttony. Hawke’s greatest desire is to have and hold lifelong friends in spite of the risk of his magic, and Mal manifests this as the greed of a seagull constantly searching and scavenging for more.
For Mal, a lot of what she wants is food or company and the ownership of such, but it also comes out as a constant demand for attention. It’s not necessarily a matter of being in a spotlight, as much as being acknowledged, and unlike Hawke, who prefers to be acknowledged for things for which he won’t be feared, Mal doesn’t really care. As a result, she can tend toward acting out and otherwise being annoying just for the sake of being seen.
Coupled with this is the fact that she doesn’t need to be liked and her security in herself. Where Hawke might submit to others in favour of being agreeable and keeping his friends, even if he doesn’t compromise his security, Mal says what’s on her mind (often with as little tact, but more honest harshness, as Hawke would). In her is the freedom to do what she likes whenever she likes, without the consequence of magery being blamed for her conduct hanging over her. However, conversely, she is the cynic to Hawke’s optimism—the doomsday voice which keeps him from getting too happy or complacent. She can be equally as resigned as Hawke is, but for different reasons; while Hawke may be waiting for things to change and then be willing to act, Mal tends to resign herself to her and Hawke’s own interests indefinitely. Since she feels no need to be actively liked so much as acknowledged, she feels less duty to being a good person and more to just being herself, regardless of what that might mean.
Although Mal prefers flight to fight, just like Hawke, she’s far more vicious when push comes to shove. She will fight for survival by any means and in that way is as shameless as Hawke is, if for different reasons; she feels no shame for being who and what she is, and makes no excuses. She is far less flirtatious and cavalier, as well as less forgiving, and although her sense of humour is more dour and sardonic, she seems to take few things seriously, just as Hawke does, unless those things pertain to the two of them.
As far as the bluntness goes, that tallies with Hawke’s own lack of tack; although he’s not deliberately confrontational, Hawke does have a tendency toward inappropriate or tactless humour. Mal, being his far less optimistic side, takes the tactlessness a step further to being purely blunt, without even the desire to try and cover it with humour.
The cynicism and the viciousness aren’t aspects of Hawke’s personality which are obvious, mostly because he chooses not to let them have a grip on him. Many of his reasons for being upbeat and optimistic are chosen and learned—he saw the weight on his father’s shoulders that was magic and chose, even young and perhaps subconsciously, to be as happy as he could be even in the face of the diversity his magic presented. That doesn’t mean he isn’t tempted to lose hold of his optimism; even as ingrained as that optimism is, there is a part of him which needs to remain cynical, to remind him just what could happen if he loses control or gets too arrogant or starts believing he is as controlled as he needs to be. Mal represents that part of him.
Finally, even though Hawke doesn’t let himself fall to the depths many of his fellow mages do, that doesn’t mean he’s not capable of it. In his canon, he’s possibly one of the mages who’s been the most successful at balancing his magic with control; for that reason, there hasn’t been much opportunity to see his darker side, especially since his desires range primarily toward being liked and he goes to a lot of effort to be likable. However, he’s also not as moral as he could be. He has no issues with killing, for instance; he has, on occasion, killed to protect his family’s secret, and has frequently killed bandits and the like even when he perhaps didn’t need to. Most of his desire to be peaceful comes from what he feels is his duty as a mage to protect others from himself, as well as having a point to prove, rather than any inherent self-worth in being a ‘good person’. He has also on occasion been manipulative, especially when trying to get information for a job or manipulating templars to let him help without letting them know he’s a mage.
I’ve said before that I think his desire to be liked would, with corruption, turn into the need to possess other people. In that process I can see his moral mindset changing; right now, it’s at ‘I have a duty to prove mages don’t need to be feared’. The more his desire would take over, the more it would turn into something closer to ‘I need people to like me regardless of the cost’. Though he certainly wouldn’t react with immediate cruelty or viciousness, I can see him being unthinkingly cruel or vicious—that is, doing what he feels is necessary to be ‘liked’, or to have ‘friends’ (‘have’ in the sense of owning, in this case) without seeing how it is cruel or vicious or, even, selfish. Mal’s viciousness would likely be far more pronounced the more they’re both corrupted, but she still represents that possibility in Hawke—the need and drive to do something he feels is necessary regardless of its cost.
Reason for keeping: The main reason is that, although Hawke is a decently open guy once he gets to know a person, getting to know them is a problem. The more the city affects him, the less likely he’ll care about ‘knowing’ a person as opposed to ‘owning’ them. Having a daemon will reveal the things he tends to keep close to his chest, especially with regard to his magic, how he feels about it, and how lonely he’s beginning to feel in ‘the Fade’ and without his friends or family. Plus, because the city potentially affects him more quickly than most people, having a daemon as a sort of emotional and mental counterbalance could offer an avenue for him to keep or regain his sanity. Or it could make it worse. Either way, it would be fun to work out.
I’d also love to play Mal as being connected to his magic in a way that prevents him from hiding it. Not in the sense that she can use it or tap into it in any way; more like she’s a window. Hawke can hide evidence of his magic, but Mal, being a more spiritual form of his being, wouldn’t be able to, so her presence would display the fact he has magic inside him and every time he uses it or it changes or corrupts him would reflect in her in more obvious ways than it would show in him. This would basically make it impossible for him to hide the fact he’s a mage and force him to confront, for the first time, not being able stay under the radar even if he wants it.
In terms of how this works, I’d planned for Mal to look partially like a Fade construct during normally, while keeping her colouring and general solidity. In the Fade, settings and spirits look like, well, that—not quite solid, not quite real, and a bit bleached out. Mal would have overtones of that look, and when Hawke uses his magic it would make the effect worse so that she’ll look completely like a Fade construct.
