Fiore Lacere-Ran

Character
Fiore Lacere-Ran
Japanese name:		はなあくむ
Also known as:		"Blood Apple"
Appears in:		Fate/Regalia
Played by:		Egophobia
Voice actor:		Miyuki Sawashiro
Character type:		Master, Kishu Half-Blood
Affiliation:		Japanese Half-Bloods, Dead Apostles
Gender:		Male
Birthday:		November 17th
Height:		177 cm
Weight:		58 kg
Three sizes:		The Clock Tower tried on one occasion to find out - the subject was dropped
Blood type:		O-
Hair color:		Dark Green
Eye color:		Teal
Attributes
STR:	A	CAS:	-
END:	A	PRA:	C
AGI:	A
Fiore's Theme - Perfection and Poison Demonic Surge Active - HER Voice

"Perfection is an unchanging melange of grey - there is no such thing as beauty in perfection."

Fiore Lacere-Ran is a Kishu Half-Blood and Master participating in the Fate/Regalia RP. Seemingly estranged from his own kind both by choice as well as the circumstances of his own heritage, he appears to prefer the company of Dead Apostles, having spent the greater part of his life serving as the attendant to a particular princess of the vampires referred to by him as the "Young Lady". Subject to her whims and inevitably the products of her boredom, he finds himself sent to the floating city of OLYMPUS with no other direction than to come back alive, and even less personal investment in the whole endeavor.

While those with demonic blood may age slower, Fiore appears to have demonstrated some sort of control over the matter, and has yet to do so, being approximately seventeen years old in mind, body, and actual age. Given his predisposition to matters of beauty and grace, it is uncertain if this is because of a desire to achieve a particular body type, or if he wishes simply to age gracefully - regardless, he seems to take particular offense to being asked his age without provocation. More than a little vain, he does not go out of his way to make his appearance affect anyone around him, but he spends a rather considerable amount of time and effort to maintain himself, and becomes extremely upset if his appearance is marred or his clothes get ruined. It is rumored by some that at times, his gender goes from questionable to truly ambiguous.

Despite his vanity, however, Fiore is quick to own up to his shortcomings - in truth, so long as he is stuck on his assignment to the floating academy of OLYMPUS, he would like to meet a few people of interest with whom he can have a little fun. Ostensibly, being away from the Young Lady also leaves him with a desire to have someone to fuss over in his usual way. Though he is more than a little skeptical about how the Young Lady would know about things such as school life and the sort, he is not one to call her out for being a little misguided, and is willing to give life as a "normal" high school student a chance.

Personality

Conversation with Fiore (After Class, Neutral Social Link)

Brought up in the service of a Dead Apostle princess who is more than capable of defending herself, but is absolutely incompetent when it comes to maintaining her home or keeping her territory from falling into disrepair, Fiore possesses all of the qualities of a maid or attendant familiar with the practices of "court etiquette". Yet despite possessing a very thorough sense of professionalism and ability to act in a way befitting the Head Butler of the Young Lady's staff, his true personality is quite a bit less reserved. Underlying everything is a rather stunning sense of apathy and lack of ambition when concerned with his position in the world, not through any lack of excitement in his life or particular yearning, but rather a general lack of interest in most things he deems unexceptional. This creates a sort of dichotomy wherein he can be shamelessly frank or tactless when it comes to pointing out flaws, but at the same time a fairly easy-going and agreeable companion, having very little chance of raising objection with something as long as the promise exists that he'll have fun.

That being said, it cannot be ignored that Fiore has an arguably psychotic obsession with his physical appearance, and his good manners and gentle politeness completely evaporating if his looks are slighted or affected more than once in a short period of time. It is in moments like those where he is perfectly willing to become violent, and at which point he has few reservations towards anything in the way of underhanded tactices or collateral damage. He is, however, either of his own desire or at the behest of the Young Lady, trying to become a bit more resilent to the opinions of other people, and to find someone whose opinions alone matter enough for him not to care terribly much what other people say. When something occurs because of his appearance, however, it tends to take him mildly by surprise - even though he pays quite a lot of attention to how he presents himself, he has spent his life around the Young Lady and the other maids of her household, and is unused to being seen as even remotely remarkable.

When comfortable around someone, Fiore does seem to have something of a flirtatious streak, and he loves being able to get away with teasing someone, using his looks to do so if at all possible. Despite having no experience whatsoever in a romantic sense, he does appear to be very aware of how to act around members of either gender whom he wishes to flirt with, and, oppositely, is more than aware when someone is flirting with him - something which has been the source of a mildly infamous incident during a trip to the London Headquarters of Clock Tower. That being said, he does not actually have any pressing interest in a physical relationship - the notion of flirting and flattery simply entertains him quite a lot. As something of a side note, he seems to enjoy adding titles some peoples' names, such as "Aunt" and "Miss".

When under the inflluence of his demonic blood, however, Fiore's personality becomes much more venomous and he is predisposed towards creating long-term trouble for whoever is making him angry. Unlike most Kishu, his triggers do not seem to be as tied to combat or a desire for violence, but to be something more reactionary. This implies very strongly, though, that despite being very easy-going when in a good mood, he is the type to hold a grudge.

Background

Family

Speaking with Fiore during the day (After Class, Positive Social Link).

The familial order of the Lacere-Ran is an awkward one and an anomaly for which very little information exists. What has been established as their canon through the various ramblings and hearsay of the magi who remember the families to rise out of the ashes of the First and Second World Wars is that no founding member of the Lacere-Ran shared blood with another, and that the children themselves were by and large adopted. A collection of war survivors and refugees who allowed their fame and infamy to fade into obscurity so they could simply enjoy their hard-won peace, it is not quite known how they came to occupy the lands of a powerful lord amongst the Dead Apostles, but the relationship was a simple one - aid him in the protection of his lands, and he would do the same for them.

In the present generation, the only members of the "family" are Fiore himself and the Young Lady, the Dead Apostle who took the place of the original master of the lands, and whom Fiore is on rather good terms with, enough to join her on her flights of fancy while maintaining his status as her attendant. Though she commands tremendous power and respect, and quite honestly could defend herself infintely better than Fiore could, he is quite attached to her and refuses to vacate his position, though she has extended the offer to her "unnecessary butler". Despite this, they appear to be affectionate of one another, and admittedly, without Fiore's constant efforts to maintain her castle, the Young Lady's home would more resemble a bloodsoaked series of catacombs and rotting oaken doors, the entire castle without its tapestries, gardens, or chandeliers blazing merrily at all hours of the night. They have the sort of relationship where they look after one another, but are close enough to insult each other constantly while Fiore prepares her dinner for her.

An acolyte of the nearby branch of the Holy Church has remarked that it is possibly out of acknowledgement for Fiore's ability to maintain her castle that the maids of the Young Lady are neither human thralls nor Dead, but simply those who have become her followers, as he would not be able to organize thralls very well, and she has no reason to disrupt the flow of her own workforce.

History

Much of Fiore's childhood is unknown, shrouded either in the mystery that comes with being raised in obscurity or overshadowed by the looming presence of the Dead Apostles he serves. Most personal reputations that he tends to build in the small communities around the Young Lady's lands tend to stem from his physical appearance. His absurdly feminine appearance and rejection of masculine mannerisms have fequently led to...misunderstandings. He actually had to be struck from the records of the Clock Tower and re-entered into their archives at one point, this time correctly listed as a male following an incident involving a representative of the "Association of Female Statistics".

Factions

A breakdown of the factional relationships he enjoys - subject to update during his time on OLYMPUS:

• Mages Association: Tentative respect mixed with apathy - he's surprisingly approachable for a Kishu, but all the same, both he and the Clock Tower regard each other as being a potential source of trouble. He finds the Sea of Estray and the ATLAS Order to be somewhat unremarkable, but in the case of the former it is on account of the individual schools of Estray being more interesting than the disorganized mess that the whole is. There is a certain level of embarassment discussing him within the lower ranks of the organization, as he has on multiple occasions been approached as a girl.
• Holy Church: To them, he is a heretic and a demonic scion of the vampires; to him, they are zealots and witch-hunters who are as backwards as the nonsensical songs they interpret as "laws." Since an attack on the Young Lady's castle several years ago, his opinion of them has declined further. He does not specifically dislike their religion, but is somewhat cynical about how often they need to revise their teachings upon being notified of how close-minded that they are.
• Dead Apostles: His family is an interesting order to most, and to his liege, they are old allies and associates. The heiress of the current generation is his princess, and despite his apathy, he is devoted to her safety. He also feels a measure of pity for those who were turned against their will. He seems to have very mixed feelings about the Twenty-Seven Dead Apostle Ancestors.
• Demon Hunter Organization: He's just another Half-Blood to them, and to him, they're disappointments amid the otherwise interesting "humans." He does not hate them as individuals, but rather out of their traditions. Given a choice, he would prefer to deal with one of the younger scions of the family, though he doubts that the tradition is permitting enough that even a young Demon Hunter is open-minded.
• Demonic Half-Bloods: While he can relate to them, he finds the vast majority of half-bloods to be brutish and barbaric, simultaneously prosecuted by ancient laws while at the same time remaining so fixed on revenge to realize that they are simply empowering the stigmas against them. To other Kishu, his blood seems almost alien, and much of his disposition and attitude is completely at-odds with their primal nature.

Route Link: "Perfection and Poison"

Cassandra Minx: Level 1

Abilities

Fiore, surprised to being issued a challenge and declining politely.

Not all that much has been revealed about Fiore's combat style, largely due to the fact that his willingness to fight directly coincides with his willingness to kill. His entry on OLYMPUS' Duel Chart suggests that he possesses a rather remarkable physical prowess, even amongst other Half-Bloods. Furthermore, it is rumored amongst certain circles of Dead Apostles and members of the Holy Church that Fiore has practice in manipulating his prana - a form of combat largely ignored by other Half-Bloods.

Outside of combat ability, Fiore has some academic talent purely in that he is fairly well-read, though he has absolutely no interest in anything pertaining to the sciences or magical theories. His time in the service of a princess have left him as a somewhat accomplished cook, though his most remarkable skill seems to be as a tailor. He excels at making dresses in old European styles, and has been known to keep a large tome of designs and several mannequins in his room at the castle. He is also an experienced enough butler to head the upkeep of an ancient castle and keep it pristine with the absolute bare minimum staff.

Quotes

To Protagonist: “Hyne…do you really think that your sorrow is worth a miracle? That Akasha ‘owes you one?’ Snap and snarl all you like, but really…if a sad story and a freakish obsession was all it took, then there wouldn’t be any sorrow in this world. At the end of the day, willpower doesn’t really mean anything, so don’t think that if you want it badly enough you’ll be able to attain it, or anything else, for that matter.”

To Dead Apostle Ancestor: “…hm…no, I really don’t think that I can take you on in a fight…but if this is over the Young Lady, then it would reflect poorly on my family as well as the trust that she has placed in us if I do not at least inconvenience you on her behalf.”

Confronted About Gender: “Aha…that’s an awfully silly question. Really, if you can’t even tell but you’re still curious enough to ask…does it really matter?”

While Resting in the Park: "Mh...it's strange, but I suppose I'm just feeling a bit tired. I hope you do not mind if I lay down, but please, do keep on talking. If I fall asleep, it's because I like your voice; I wouldn't talk to you if I thought you were boring."