Sefton Lowell

=Sefton= name Sefton Michael Lowell.

age 16 (previously aged to 18)

birthday September 20th, 2027

height 5'6"

weight 129 lbs.

hair navy blue

eyes indigo

canon original (Knickknacks)

family mother (Cary) and father (Gabriel)

abilities

sexuality asexual.
 * magnetism (only with other magnets)
 * polarizing (adding or subtracting extra force equal to half of the amount of force applied)
 * mind altering (attracting someone to him through touch)
 * shifting between human and wolf forms

kinks none, see above.

lives either at his two-story house downtown, or at the Le Gode Hostel

player DJ

played-by Ikuto Tsukiyomi (Shugo Chara!)

journal polarisation

threads can be found here.

constructive criticism over yonder.

=history= Sefton was born to the Lowells in 2027, on September 20th. Growing up, Sefton led a very happy life with an extremely-doting mother Cary, and an aloof but loving father, Gabriel. His world was small, restricted to his hometown in Vermont, and he had very few friends aside from a cluster of school friends and his parents.

Sefton discovered his knack early on, but managed to hide it by giving himself a slow, thoughtful demeanor that would keep him from bumping into things and causing some sort of property damage. It wasn't until he was thirteen that he realized his power also affected people: most notably his own mother, dating as far back as her pregnancy with him. By this time, the damage had already been done, and Cary loved her son, bordering on the wrong side of obsession and seemed to have given up many other aspects of her life to always be there for him.

Terrified, disgusted and unbelievably guilty, Sefton was left with a decision: either allow such a gross warping of his mother's mind to continue, or run away from home and hope the effects would fade with lack of exposure. His love for his mother prolonged the decision, but one month before his fourteenth birthday, he packed up what little savings he had and left home on the soonest train out of the city.

Since then, he has taken on any sort of odd-jobs that would hire such a young kid for an employee, until he felt he'd stayed in one place too long and continued on to the farthest town he could, based on whatever funds he had left. It wasn't until he had followed this process for the third time that he met a traveling peddler who seemed to have the knack of knowing a person's true colors and used it in his business. What he presented to Sefton were a pair of shoes infused with cold that would be able to negate his abilities and create a small field that would reach up to his shins, effectively making a safe-zone. The peddler promised to return to that city in two years to replace or renew the shoes, should Sefton need it - a warranty, if you would. After that, Sefton returned to his vagrant ways with his new security blanket in tow.

Seven months of traveling later and Sefton finally met someone who was stubborn enough to try and look after him. Chivason, a boy only a few years older than Sefton, had the knack of finding lost objects - including one Sefton Lowell. After their initial meeting (that is, Chivy tripped on a sleeping Sefton's leg and Sefton eventually high-tailed it out of there), they continued to meet up in the various cities they traveled to. While Sefton would dodge around Chivason's offers of help, Chivason in turn decided to become Sefton's keeper. This sort of give-and-take relationship eventually blossomed into actual friendship, and they currently have an unspoken agreement to meet up in every city they travel to, even though one might leave sooner than the other is prepared for.

Over the months, Sefton celebrated his 15th birthday (and, more recently, Chivy's 18th - which was something of a shock) and had spent nearly a year and a half on the road. Chivy also acquired a pair of gloves that operated on the same principal as his shoes, which forced Sefton to reevaluate his personal space rule... at least where Chivy is concerned. Things started to become more intense for Sefton as have-you-seen-this-boy posters started to pop up in some of the cities he visited. Someone was looking for him, and the contact information was not his parents'. He began cutting his stays shorter and shorter between cities and sleeping in unorthodox places, with his paranoia ramped up even further than usual.

--

(For more information on How I Met My Only Friend Ever, you may want to go here. Warnings include massive amounts of tl;dr, WIP-status, and dorkitude.)

world
The year is 2043, and the planet is Earth. Through a different focus in the concerns of the general public, the world today is much more at peace with nature and the environment than the Earth we know. Thanks to some crazy random happenstances, the countries and most cities we know stand tall in some state or form. Instead of the President of the United States, there are the United Heads, a council of three leaders voted in every five years, for up to three terms.

Much of the technology is based around minimizing pollution and saving energy. To this end, some things are as advanced as we might be used to, while others are much more efficient (i.e., automobiles). Commuting is emphasized, while smaller towns won't even have any paved roads - instead, they have parking lots off the highways where travelers can get out and walk. There is also the technology of infusing elements into objects: refrigerators are not powered by electricity, but infused with the element of cold; some blankets are infused with heat; and other such devices. Things like these tend to be expensive, and many people will donate old things when buying something new so others don't have to pay for an outdated model.

Perhaps most importantly in this world is the presence of those with special abilities: a knack for something, which can vary in power and usefulness. While one person may be drawn to finding lost objects, another might be able to draw thunderstorms to them, or create illusions through the use of ambient sound. These people, sometimes referred to as adepts, are far and few between, but those with extraordinary abilities are often found throughout history as the catalyst for world-changing events. As very few of these knacks are flashy in nature, it's easy for the adepts to live regular lives within society should they wish to do so.

=personality= On the outside, Sefton appears as a chill guy. Distant, perhaps a little too quiet more often than not, but generally the sort to try melding into the background. Rarely will he stick his nose into other peoples' business if it looks like they want any sort of privacy. He'll lend a hand to help if it looks like someone might need it, but would just as soon disappear before he could be thanked. Asking for his name is inviting trouble - unless he sees that refusal would be more of a hassle than not, he'll avoid the subject of names as much as he can. In conversation, he tends to adopt a mostly-disinterested demeanor, but it's easier than it would appear to catch him off guard; it's okay, though, because he might do the same with his quirky logic and thought processes. Whether he means to or not, Sefton can be bossy. Sometimes, he'll stop himself, while at other times, won't realize he's doing it.

In reality, Sefton has a hard time allowing himself to connect to people. Due to the nature of his ability, the only way he can make sure his dealings with someone is legitimate is through distance. This causes him a lot of grief, since he is very much a people-person, making the personality he shows to others forced and manufactured in many ways. Despite liking people, having grown up spoiled left has Sefton a little bereft in dealing with them. He'll expect others to agree with him or at least cede to his point and do what he says if he feels strongly enough about it. He's gotten better about catching himself on it, yet still falls into the trap more easily than he's comfortable with. Sefton greatly values the free will of others - if he impedes on it, it's surely unintentional and something he'll beat himself up over if he ever realized he had done it, and makes it difficult for him to express an opposing opinion. Because of that, unless he finds it too important, he tries to keep himself in check.

While Sefton is strangely observant of other people, he possesses a nice, large blind spot when it comes to himself. Unless he's injured or disabled for some reason, he'll fight against any help someone may offer, sometimes not even realizing that there's something wrong in the first place. Similarly, he can't comprehend when someone might want to be his friend if they had never activated his ability - how could anyone like him if he doesn't make them? (This also has to do with why he's so reluctant to share his name: simply just having someone's name always makes a stronger bond between them, making his ability even more effective than before.) Through all his fear of activating his ability, he's developed a case of haphephoba: the fear of being touched. If someone touches him unexpectedly, he can't help but flinch away.

Sefton operates on a system of guilt and repression. The guilt of what happened to his friends and family is what motivates him to keep going on, either to find a solution to his ability or just to keep from being found. The repression of his more intense emotions is how he keeps functioning. If he were to allow his emotions get the better of him, he would break from the pressure of it all. When something upsetting happens, or he would rather just not deal with life, he copes by sleeping it off. Not exactly the healthiest of methods, but it works well enough. The fact that he's still going through all of his troubles could be called strength of character. Sefton just thinks of it as cowardice.

=powers= First and foremost is Sefton's knack for polarization. This ability works in several different ways, though all have the base property of both repelling and attracting. He has had this ability as early as he was in the womb; it is genetic in nature, not magical. It can, however, be easily sensed by those who can tell when something is off.

Despite it being a genetic quirk, Sefton did not inherit this ability from his parents. Rather, it was naturally infused in him much like inanimate objects in his world can be infused with elements. The science behind it is only two steps away from "magic" in that nobody has found a way to properly infuse anything beyond simple elements into objects, much less into people. All adepts gained their unique ability this way.

The particulars of Sefton's ability can be split into three categories:
 * Magnetism: His body generates a small, but powerful field that reacts to magnets as if it really were a magnet. He has enough control to switch between repelling and attracting other magnets, though he usually repels.
 * Polarizing: Same as above, his body generates a field that reacts to any inanimate object aside from magnets depending on the amount of force applied. If he is repelling, the object's force will be rebuffed by half (things will hit him weaker, he hits things harder); if attracting, it will be amplified by half (things will hit him harder, he hits things weaker). An example of this power in action is that he can gain longer strides when repelling and not wearing his shoes, thus making him faster than average.
 * Mental: Similar to, but not the same as, the above, the field affects organic, sentient beings in relation to how much force is applied. The harder he touches or is touched by a person, the more they like him. This is a subversive effect that the affected will not notice unless they really think about it or have their behavior pointed out to them. Light enough touches do not activate his power. Due to the emotional nature of this particular ability, Sefton has been unable (or unwilling) to learn how to repel.

Aside from all of this magnetic nonsense is the fact that Sefton, due to in-game events, is a werewolf. He is currently part of Dom's pack, and can sense the location of any specific pack member along with if they are alive or dead. Thanks to practicing mental switches with his knack, he quickly learned how to shift between both forms at will. Though still the same person in either form, the wolf ("Sigma") runs more on instinct and less on conscience. So, he trusts the pack and is unconcerned that his interactions with them will cause them to activate the mental aspect of his knack, while retaining his wariness with virtually anybody else.

toys
One of the only two items from home that Sefton takes care not to lose are his shoes. Not because they're particularly lucky or have some sort of emotional attachment, but because they are infused with the element of cold. Normally, infused items are used to lessen the energy strain by pure power conversion and is thus mostly used in household appliances. Sefton's shoes (which are black with ice-blue highlights, by the way) follow this same principle and convert his biomagnetic energy into cold energy, effectively nullifying his power up to his knees... and occasionally trapping his legs in ice. They have a warranty of two years on them that is about to run out, though Rush was working on a way to extend their lifetime.

(The other item, in case you're wondering, is a Christmas present from Chivy: a worry stone. It gets a lot of use, believe it or not.)

With much thanks to Kailani, Sefton also possesses a magical bracelet that will hide his dark greyblue wings as long as it stays around his wrist and isn't deactivated by depressing the blue crystal inside it. She also did him a favor and enchanted all of his clothes (and shoes) to disappear when he transforms into a wolf and reappear when he reverts. No more torn clothes or accidental nudity! Hurrah!

=nicknames=
 * Beem Bleutop Just Lowell McBluehairson der Murrkopf the Grouch. The fourth. Stirred, not shaken (Lowell for short)
 * Beem
 * Bleutop
 * Blueberry
 * Blue-haired misanthropist kid
 * Blue-haired werewolf kid
 * BMK
 * Hey You
 * Kid
 * Pineapple
 * Prickly
 * Princess
 * Princess Sigmagnet Puppy (OOCly)
 * Seffie (OOCly)
 * Sigma puppy (OOCly)

=people= If you think your character should be on here, stick them under the others header and I'll give them a blurb.

pack

 * /|\v/|\ (Bruce): BAT PUPPY. Minister of Justice for the city and currently not-dead. Sefton doesn't know much about him, aside from the fact that he could not cook to save his life and that he helped to save Sefton from Metal Gear. Oh, right, and Sefton is the one who bit him, how about that?

former
After some stressful events, Sefton has broken off from the main pack, leaving several other werewolves behind. (Seriously guys stop dying and/or going crazy. 8|)
 * Α (Rush): The pack member that Sefton has probably spoken to the most. Their first meeting after Sefton became a werewolf was when Rush was in Telford's body. Which was... weird. Also is freaking crazy and turned Sefton into a battery for a giant battle tank. Thanks to that, Sefton now has developed a phobia of Robert Carlyle, not even kidding. It seems Rush left the pack before Sefton did, which was at least one good thing.
 * Δ (Dominic): The former 'alpha' of his pack, though Sefton didn't feel that specific alliance. Kind of a pushy jerk, which is the only way you can be when you want Sefton to do something quickly, so at least he's effective. ... but then he went and shot someone thanks to hallucinatory nightmares, so Sefton led Kirk to him and felt like an awful snitch.
 * Β (Flemming): Was kind of crazy during the zombie invasion, seems okay now. He's not too bad, though Sefton feels guilty because Flemming obviously likes him more than he should. He left the pack when Rush did, even though he still considers himself a part of it.
 * Γ (Dani): If they were vampires instead, she would be his sire. Thankfully for everyone involved, they're just werewolves. He's kind of gotten over the whole turned-you-into-a-werewolf thing, since he knows how hard it is to control yourself properly on a full moon. Otherwise, all he knows is that she's a police officer, which is cool. But then she went and not-died, which is not-cool.

not bad

 * Aimery le Gode: Proprietor of Le Gode Hostel, some kind of medieval nanny. Seems to have transferred some of his protectiveness for his original charge onto Sefton, which is a little weird, but workable if he doesn't think about it too hard. (Who the heck actually names themselves the Good, anyway?)
 * Everett Young: Since Young is affected by Sefton's power, he tries to be something of a jerk to the guy to maybe keep him from liking Sefton anymore than he already does. He seems like a nice guy aside from all of that, so there's definitely bunches of guilt where Young is concerned. Especially now that Young knows Sefton's power has been used on him. Stop trying to help him, dangit!
 * Lance Blackthorn: Probably the person Sefton is closest to trusting in the city, which is ironic when you realize Lance seriously doesn't trust himself. After the incident with Metal Gear, Sefton has been staying with Lance due to some acute monophobia.

others

 * Benjamin, et al: Would have been in the 'not bad' section, were it not for the part where one of Benjamin's personalities, Jace, appeared during wish week and drowned Sefton. Hello, trauma. Aside from that, Sefton actually does kind of like Benjamin, along with another of his personalities, Elijah. He's just not sure he could face him again after Jace.
 * For reference, Sefton has spoken with: Benjamin, Elijah, Nolan, Peter, Jack, Aiden, Zach, Leo and Jace. Whew.