Post by Kiku Honda on Jun 4, 2011 13:23:27 GMT -5
over the seas, our quest has begun
[/b][/center][/font][/size][/color]Full Name: Kiku Honda
Aliases: His most loyal customers and (very few) friends call him Kiku, while other customers refer to him as Mr. Honda.
Country of Origin: Japan. His childhood was spent in a tiny village near the water in southern Japan, far away from big city life.
Gender: Male
Physical Appearance: A short, slender man with dark hair and brown eyes that reveal nothing, Kiku is quite the minority, to say the least. He stands at just five feet and four inches and weighs no more than 130 pounds. His facial features are typically Asian and his expression is generally blank. Though he isn't a pirate, he can be seen wearing the garb; he is fascinated by the "western"-styled clothing, thus his wardrobe contains quite a bit of it. If he is not wearing a button up jacket accompanied with a feathered hat, Kiku would most likely be seen in traditional Japanese style painted with vivid colors to attract customers.
Job: Inventor/merchant. He sits at a small booth on the side of the street, selling extravagant items from his home along with his own creations, while clad in kimonos made from Japan's finest cloths. Though he has yet to patent any of his inventions and has little success in selling them, other purchases at his stand earn him more than enough money to get by. If that were enough in the little pirate village he lived in, he may be satisfied- but, like many, he isn't.
Personality and History: Born to poor parents in an even poorer village in southern Japan, Kiku was always moving, though hardly speaking. He began building and fixing things at the tender age of two, and became a machine wizard by the age of five. Everyone in the neighborhood woud stop by the Honda residence if something of theirs became damaged or broken (which happened often as money was scarce), and young Kiku would have it repaired by the time the sun had set. Still, his proud parents did not have enough money to send him to school and were forced to teach him everything themselves.
As a well-cultured and intelligent young adult (his homeschooling turned to be beneficial), Kiku craved more than what he was offered. The hand-made shelves of his bedroom were filled with more hand-made items, crafted specially by Kiku himself, and they were starting to cause clutter. His parents told him that he needed to do something with them- and himself, for that matter. After twenty-two years of saving and gathering as much money as they could, the Honda family sent their only son on a ship destined for who-knows-where. Months later, he found himself among swashbuckling law-defying New World citizens, exotic foreigners not unlike himself, and new walks of life (and other forms of transportation) he had never seen before.
Fortunately, a well-endowed merchant who made his living by selling "herbal remedies" had passed on soon before Kiku had entered town. Kiku seized the opportunity with stealth, before any other man could, and set his stand up where the other man he had never met once sat. A fine location it was, indeed, with hordes of people passing by daily with coins jingling in their pockets. Their eyes would shine at the sight of Japanese delicacies, crafted from wood and porcelain and silk and jade... but not one look was given to any of the Honda Originals. Kiku holds on to the originals still, and hopes and prays that he will make something of them some day, and gain money in such great amounts that he previously thought to be impossible.
and we will not stop
[/b][/center][/font][/size][/color]Roleplay Sample:
One day. One day, all of the waiting would pay off. A man in a business suit, pretty woman in tow, would stop by and offer to patent an invention of his. Just one patent, and he would be set for life. People throughout the town, the country, even the world would use his product. His family would hear his name for the first time in years; they would know of him once again, know that he was more than just a scrawny boy that made "complex" contraptions with sticks and leaves. One day, he would be more than just a Japanese man in a town ruled by criminals and drunks, by men and women who didn't bathe or shave. That day would come soon... or, so he hoped.
Target sighted! Business suit, pretty woman. It was perfect. He looked like an investor, for sure. Kiku's English was not perfect, and his accent made it even worse, but he snatched up his latest creation to put on the clearest display and spoke.
"Sir! Ahh, e'scuse me, sir, but I am ser- selling... something I made! I think perhaps maybe you would r- like it! And maybe invest in more, yes! O-over here, sir..." He shook the contraption for emphasis. As the man walked past, not even sparing a glance, Kiku realized that he had yet to think of a name for the new invention... let alone a function.
With a sigh, he threw the nameless and functionless and altogether useless device back, out of sight, and slumped down on the nearby stool. One day, he thought. One day indeed. Just not today. He had other customers to tend to, after all- a small boy and his mother, looking at small porcelain figurines, right in front of him. Kiku put on his best smile, completely disregarding his previous failure, and turned into the best salesman on the street sides.
_____
OOC:
Name/Nickname: Olivia! No preferred nickname, though many call me Livy or Liv.
Age: 16
Time Zone: GMT -4:00 (aka USA EST derp I live in Ohio)
Contact info: AIM: hikikomorism - Tumblr: discomposing.tumblr.com - email: monkeylover94@msn.com - feel free to ask for anything else like Facebook, Skype, etc.
with the dawn of the sun.
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