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The Forger
be seen and not heard
Personal Text
middle class
Rank
Blacksmith
Occupation
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Offline
Tag me @blacksmith
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Post by Felix Baxter on Apr 6, 2023 16:49:24 GMT
the sound of silence
is all that is heard
| Felix often felt as if his hearing had grown far worse over time. But having learned to adapt to it as the years went by, resulted in needing to create ways to compensate. While his hearing had grown weaker, his other senses had grown stronger which he used to his advantage. So when he was in the back working, he had attached a device to the door, trailed by a string that led to his workshop. That string attached to a bell and though he could not hear it, he could see it from his peripheral. Removing his gloves and wiping his hands on his apron, he made his way to the front of his shop, though froze in place when he saw who it was. Matilda Ramsbury.
She had been such a dear friend to him, and someone that he was always honored to know. Someone who had shown kindness to a mere lower classman -- at the time. He also knew that her parents could not have possibly approved -- more aware of such things now as an older individual rather than that of a child. So what she went through to build a friendship with him . . . meant the world. "Tilly?" He both questioned and acknowledged out of awe upon seeing her.
His eyes had widened a little at the shock and they had clearly controlled his words for when the shock subsided enough, he realized that what he said, could have caused great offense. Slightly shaking his head upon this realization, he quickly added. "I mean . . . M-Miss Ramsbury." The words sounded so foreign upon his tongue yet, he was not a child anymore. He knew more now and . . . he should have known better. "How . . . " --Was she here? -- Long had it been? -- "Are you?" Was all he could utter upon seeing this wonderful surprise.
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The Forger
be seen and not heard
Personal Text
middle class
Rank
Blacksmith
Occupation
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Offline
Tag me @blacksmith
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Post by Felix Baxter on Apr 1, 2023 20:04:37 GMT
the Sound of silence
is all that is heard
| Mayfair. Felix's shift closer to the city had not been an easy one, but work payed for his lodgings well enough. The art of forging was not a common one so he found himself busy with work. Building a proper reputation among those select few who required his services . . . though he did hope to build his trade to a wider customer base. Today, he had a job that he knew well not to judge. An eager mother who's daughter was debuting next season and . . . the mother wished for a crib for her future child. Confident that her daughter would find a match and marry, and even more confident that she would have a child soon. While carpentry was not his field of expertise, he was able to create what was needed. A tad bit premature indeed, but Felix would dare not remark on such a thing.
As he made his way through the streets, he could only imagine the sounds. The sound of the horses trotting along the ground, some pulling a carriage with them. The chattering of the people. The vendors calling out to advertise their products. While he could hear none of it, it certainly held a different energy than the countryside. And . . . was indeed far more overwhelming than what he was accustomed to. Holding his back close, he lost count of the number of times someone brushed against his shoulder, nary an apology but Felix hardly expected one. He was after all, far outranked by most who populated this area. One particular brush however -- or more of a push -- caused him to stumble a bit, the uneven ground yet another aspect of the city he was unused to. It prompted him to turn his head to see the other and assess if he was upset by the commoner's impact.
Unfortunately, the distraction made him lose focus of what was in front of him, turning his head forward only when he collided into a young woman. Felix's eyes widened in the horror of what he had done. It was with more fortunate luck -- in a rather unlucky circumstance -- that she had not fallen. He could quickly tell she was someone of rank, judging by her attire. Parting his lips to speak an apology, he felt someone grab the collar off his jacket. Turning to see the man who did so -- a man of high rank as well -- he managed to catch the words midsentence. "--me boy! How are you ignore me and act so inappropriately towards the woman!" The man had apparently reprimanded Felix earlier but his inability to hear, nor see the man's lips . . . understandably was interpreted as ignoring him. Fearful of looking away from the man so to miss anything else he may say, Felix continued to stare at him which . . . made the man more angry.
"Apologize!" Felix quickly turned to look at the young woman. "S-sorry." He kept his words short -- yet sincere-- so that his speech impediment associated with his inability to hear would not be known. Feeling the man's breath, indicating he was talking and so Felix turned back to look at him, feeling the gentleman continue to clutch his coat, as if to ensure he would not run off. "Shall I call for a Bow Street Runner to address this man's foolery, Miss?" Whoever this older gentleman was, seemed to take great offense. Felix felt his heart beat heavier in his chest as his eyes met the woman's, wide and hopeful that there would be some compassion within her so to let this horrid mistake on his part, not hold such severe repercussions.
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The Forger
be seen and not heard
Personal Text
middle class
Rank
Blacksmith
Occupation
|
Offline
Tag me @blacksmith
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Post by Felix Baxter on Mar 28, 2023 19:49:10 GMT
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The Forger
be seen and not heard
Personal Text
middle class
Rank
Blacksmith
Occupation
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Offline
Tag me @blacksmith
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Post by Felix Baxter on Jan 31, 2022 18:26:18 GMT
the Sound of silence
is all that is heard
| If there was one thing that had been instilled in Felix at a young age - ingrained even - it was work ethic. Miss Betsy had always pushed him to do his best, knowing he had to work twice as hard as anyone else. It was that work ethic that brought him to success now. He'd left four years ago with a wealth of knowledge and acquired skills to start his own business. To implement what he had learned and run his own forge. It was not the desire for independence necessarily or the drive to work that pushed him. While all those things were indeed true, there was one overarching motivation that was far more important than any other. Love. Specifically, the love of a woman, Isla Smythe.
Her father had not thought him to be a suitable match for his daughter and so he had made a promise that he would return. That he would prove he could take care of her and provide for her. Each day apart had been difficult, having grown so used to her company for the time he spent at Gretna Green. But finally, the day . . . the moment was upon them. After years of work and the pain of separation, he was finally returning to reunite with his love. He paused as he saw the house in the distant, his heart instantly swelling with emotion at the familiarity of it. The peace and solace it had brought him which were all lacking since being on his own. He returned now with the intention to marry Isla and hoped her father would be more agreeable to it. Bracing himself, he flicked the reign of his horse and proceeded forward, heart beating with nervousness, anticipation and pure excitement to see his love again.
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The Forger
be seen and not heard
Personal Text
middle class
Rank
Blacksmith
Occupation
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Offline
Tag me @blacksmith
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Post by Felix Baxter on Jan 31, 2022 17:06:05 GMT
the Sound of silence
is all that is heard
| Felix had not expected any of this to happen. But, that being said . . . nor did he regret it. He wished only that the outcome could be different. After four years of Mister Smythe's tutelage, Felix had been asked to leave. Not because he was inadequate or unskilled in his role as apprentice . . . but because he had fallen in love with the Blacksmith's daughter: Isla Smythe. She was everything that Felix had never thought to find, and had inspired emotions Felix never thought himself capable of experiencing. He had never believed to find someone so caring and understanding towards him. The friendship between them had formed quite naturally at the young age he had come here and as they spend so many months, even years together . . . that friendship transformed into something more.
Felix had fallen in love with her. But her father would not have it. He wanted more for his daughter which Felix could understand and the threat of what could happen if Felix remained here was too great. And so, the young man was told to leave. He would not cause tension nor remain when dismissed however, he could not give up on them either. He had spent his life always knowing he had something to prove, and this was perhaps the most important instance in his entire life. With her father working late at the forge, and Felix being packed, he made his way to their house so that he could give a proper goodbye to his daughter. And offer a promise, should she so wish for this, not to be the end. Taking a deep breath he raised his hand to knock at the door. Had her father told her? Did she believe Felix had to leave on his own accord? He wished to make his intentions clear because while he knew it was selfish . . . he loved her too much to truly let her go.
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The Forger
be seen and not heard
Personal Text
middle class
Rank
Blacksmith
Occupation
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Offline
Tag me @blacksmith
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Post by Felix Baxter on Jan 24, 2022 0:18:38 GMT
| ~ • ~ | Character Basics | ~ • ~ |
.:Name:. Felix Baxter
.:Nick Name:. None as of yet
.:Rank:. Lower Class however with the success of his business may ascend to middle class
.:Age:. 24
| ~ • ~ | Appearance | ~ • ~ |
.:Physical Appearance:. Felix stands tall with a muscular build due to the labour involved in his profession. He has light coloured skin, large light blue eyes and brown wavy hair. His hands are rough from his work and is often dressed in simple clothing that he does not mind dirtying.
.:Height:. 6"2'
.:Portrayed by:. Aaron Taylor Johnson
| ~ • ~ | Personality | ~ • ~ |
.:Personality:. Felix's personality is very much shaped by his . . . condition. Born hearing impaired, Felix needs to twice as hard as everyone else to conform to societal expectations and function independently. This has made him a very labour intensive individual, never turning down an offered job regardless of how little the pay is or how challenging the work. He has seen the fate of those who have such disabilities and he feared being on the street with them begging for coin. It makes him sympathetic to their plight however limited in what he can do to help. He is fairly easy going and kind hearted, rather nurturing as evidenced by the way he cared for Betsy in her old age. Despite his attempt to not show it, he struggles on a daily basis. Mainly when it comes to people's perception of him and communication. In his ability to piece together sentences by looking at a person's lips as they speak, he requires to look intently at them which sometimes causes that person discomfort. Or when he misses a word, may ask for them to repeat it more than once, which tests the patience of his employer or the person he is conversing with. This makes him quick to apologize, even when the fault is not his, in many aspects of his life. It causes him to be quite self deprecating and accepts insults when given. He does not disclose his inability to hear, fearing judgement and the other's refusal to accept him or hire him. While even tempered among others, there are times where he breaks and expresses his anger and frustration due to his lack of capabilities, often demonstrated by breaking things or aggressively engaging in his work which conveniently, involves the shaping of metal.
.:Skills:. highly skilled in his trade as an expert blacksmith, brute strength, ability to read lips -- to an extent -- even from afar, can read expressions and facial/non verbal cues incredibly well, fairly good with numbers so to allow his business to function
.:Weaknesses:. hearing impaired (not completely deaf but enough that he struggles with his surroundings at times, especially when there are multiple people talking), can not read or write, has no family or known lineage thus affecting his status in society, always feels as if he has something to prove
| ~ • ~ | History | ~ • ~ |
.:Birthplace:. Unknown
.:Family:. Blood family is unknown, adoptive mother: Betsy Baxter
.:Occupation:. Blacksmith
.:History:. Felix was born into a family who quickly learned of his condition. He was delayed in speech and they struggled to understand why he was unable to respond to verbal cues. It was at the age of three, that the family consulted a doctor who told them that it was most likely that his hearing was impaired. The doctor spoke of the implications of this and his family did not wish to have an 'idiot' for a son. They sent him with a servant to drop him off at The Foundling Hospital in Bloomsbury and this, is where Felix spent the next few years of his life. An elderly midwife took an almost instant interest in him, quickly developing an affection and strong compassion for the young boy. Over the next couple of years she worked closely with him to take care of him, before deciding to adopt him as her own. She was a widow with no children, and her loneliness was aided with the presence of Felix. As a retired teacher, she worked him hard to develop his speech, and as Felix's had the ability to somewhat hear, he was able to string together sentences, growing more and more fluent. Betsy also taught him how to understand others through reading their lips well enough to piece together words he may have missed. In developing this skill, Felix also learned to read the facial expressions of others and picked up on cues to help understand the tone of voice in which they spoke if he was unable to properly hear it -- which is often the case.
While Betsy did not teach him to read or write, she taught him more practical skills to help him through the world, inclusive of numbers and basic arithmetic. He was fifteen years old when Betsy peacefully passed in her sleep and with no heir, her home was claimed by the landowner. Felix was forced to leave and decided to develop a trade in which he always had an interest in: blacksmithing. He ventured to Gretna Green and was taken in as an apprentice. He spent the next few years learning the trade and the business aspect involved. While he struggled with understanding what people said, he thrived in the actual labour part of his profession. He enjoyed the solitude and having an outlet for his frustrations. At the age of twenty, he returned to England and set up a small forge in the countryside. Where he struggled in basic communication, he continued to excel in his work. He quickly developed a reputation as a skilled blacksmith and gained the attention of wealthier merchants and citizens, even nobility who would hire him for various tasks. Felix's success allowed him to spend a few days in the city to fulfil work -- saving him the travel time -- and continues back and forth between his forge and London to exceed in his work field and navigate through all the challenges along the way.
| ~ • ~ | Member Info | ~ • ~ |
.:Name or Online Alias:. euphoria
.:Your Pronouns:. she/her
.:Are you 18+:. yes
.:How Did You Find Us:. =D
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