B066 - d'Aramitz, Blaise [DECEASED]

[Deamon]

DECEASED


Name: Blaise d'Aramitz
Gender: Genderfluid (Assigned female)
Age: 18
Grade: 12th
School: George Hunter High
Hobbies and Interests: Drawing, sleight of hand magic, vocal impressions, fashion, gambling

Appearance: Blaise's physical appearance is constantly shifting, but stays centered around their small 5'2", 102 lbs. frame. Their body is petite and lithe, and while they have small developed breasts they usually wear a binder to appear more androgynous. Their hands and feet are small to the point of being childlike, and they have slender fingers with nails kept well manicured at all times.

They are shaved bald but nearly always wear a wig of some sort, though rarely the same one more than a day in a row. Their skin is pale white and always well made up to match the look they are cultivating. They have a sharp, angular face with a Roman nose, blue eyes, and thin lips they generally augment with lip liner and lipstick when they are not alone. Their features are typically contoured softer as well unless they have a distinct purpose for their sharper look.

Blaise's sense of fashion is broad and based largely on how they choose to present that day. They enjoy variety and keep a wide collection of styles in their closets at home in addition to the clothes they designed themself. In addition they keep a wide variety of accessories such as wigs, false facial hair, binders, packers, bras, and make-up to accentuate either masculine or feminine presentation as they choose each day.

Their voice changes even more often than their sense of style. While Blaise typically speaks in a low, androgynous range with a pronounced French accent, they are known to use their abilities of vocal imitation to change on a whim for anything from a single word to an entire day. Years of practice leave them with a wide array of impressions of famous celebrities and characters, generic stock accents, and classmates at George Hunter High.

On the day of the abduction Blaise had been cultivating a take on David Bowie's Thin White Duke. They presented male with a slicked back black wig with red highlights along with a white, button-up dress shirt with its first few buttons undone, a black vest with a pattern of thin, red vertical lines to match their hair and a dark ebony and gold chain hanging across the front pocket, silk black dress pants, and white heels spattered with random splashes of red. They also wore a Blackstar necklace hanging on a silver chain around their neck.

Biography: Blaise was born in Rouen, France, to parents Raphael and Sabine d'Aramitz. Their early childhood wasn't notable; their parents had waited until their careers were somewhat stable to have a child together, and as such lived a fairly comfortable if routine existence.  Raphael was a professor at the nearby University of Rouen, teaching physics and specializing in cosmology. Sabine on the other hand was a moderately successful gender and sexuality therapist who was very well regarded in the local LGBTQ+ community. Blaise wanted for little under their care and while they were both often busy Sabine practiced out of an office in the family home while Raphael made sure to clear some time in his schedule to spend time with their child. Blaise was encouraged to develop autonomy and express their own feelings about every aspect of their life as soon as they were able to communicate. Their parents were by no means push-overs, but they strove to always communicate their expectations and reasoning clearly rather than leaning on parental authority.

Blaise spent a great deal of their early development focusing both on how other people felt and why they would want things, particularly around their growing sense of identity. They began attending preschool at the age of three and encountered gendered stereotypes and expectations for the first time; Sabine had been very firm about keeping their home environment neutral and seeing how Blaise chose to express themself without pressure. Encountering the notion not only that boys and girls were inherently different, but that they were expected to be one or the other was confusing for them. This confusion would only grow as they did. Their mother repeatedly reinforced the idea that their identity was their own, but they found as they grew up they were often anxious about what others might think about them or how they might be judged if they acted outside of those expectations.

While their mother tried to encourage them to focus on their own feelings, she also helped them cope in these years by helping them develop hobbies that took attention off of them and onto a performance. While they tried many activities together, the ones that stuck with Blaise most were magic tricks, drawing, and vocal impressions. Drawing redirected attention away from them entirely; others would focus on and analyze their art rather than them, and it was more excusable to ignore interactions with other people when they were feeling frustrated if they were working on something. Drawing also served as an emotional outlet to explore their early feelings on gender presentation. The admiration of their peers, teachers, and parents motivated them as well.

Magic tricks were an easy way to occupy attention and distract from unwanted questions. Any behavior seen as odd could be turned into part of a greater act, and while others could choose not to believe that excuse it was a difficult one to argue. Admiration motivated Blaise's magic similarly to their drawing, though they soon found it to be less satisfying. People would respond to the same artistic subject with awe many more times than they would the same sort of trick, especially if they learned how it worked. Blaise developed a fascination with mystery through this lack of satisfaction that would spread into other areas of their life, particularly their relationships and gender presentation.

Vocal impressions allowed them to sink into entirely different characters to avoid uncomfortable social situations. When they could not hide in art, or did not have a trick readily at hand to distract, throwing on a silly voice was an easy way to divert the topic. This did not work nearly as well with adults as their other coping mechanisms, but with their classmates it was by far their most successful tactic. Their impressions started very broad, but over the years they worked on mimicking particular characters from popular television shows or people from their life. Sometimes these impressions were hurtful to their subjects, but there was always some audience to appreciate their work.

Pursuing these hobbies made it easier to dissociate the expectations of others. By their preteen years, they began to see outward presentation as a sort of game to manipulate the perspective of the observer to experience what they wanted them to experience. At the time this manipulation was not consciously malicious. They usually did not think of themself as lying to other people or trying to get something out of them, but simply showing whatever part of themself someone wanted to see most. It wasn't any different to please a teacher by presenting the attitude they wanted to see than it was to delight someone with the impression they wanted to hear. It made them happier to be accepted than rejected, and as they weren't sure who they were yet it seemed better for everyone if they presented whatever version of themself would get the best reaction. However there were times when they would present a deliberately false image to someone, usually a classmate as part of an impression or trick that took on a life of its own. This was always done with the intent to reveal the lie afterwards, but it was thrilling in the moment to feel like they had deceived someone so thoroughly. They would fantasize that if they could make people believe they were anyone they would never have to settle on any sort of firm identity, which was comforting.

Blaise's new perspective was able to blossom even further when their parents surprised them at age 11 with news that they were moving to Chattanooga, TN. The d'Aramitz family had found their safe and routine life in Rouen to be quite boring for some time and had been looking for a change of pace, but Blaise didn't expect one as dramatic as an entirely new country. However, the U.S. was a logical choice; Blaise had been raised to speak English alongside French given its usefulness in the upper-class circles their parents moved in, and there were many openings for their parents. The University of Chattanooga offered a compelling faculty position to Raphael and Sabine saw the opportunity to open a practice in an area equal parts receptive and in need of LGBTQ+ positive therapy. While the idea of being in a completely new environment caused Blaise a great deal of anxiety, they also saw it as an opportunity to completely reinvent themselves as a blank canvas around people who had never experienced their more awkward years.

To the surprise of their parents, Blaise's experimentation with presentation not only sustained itself through the move but flourished in their new environment. They settled on identifying as non-binary and frequently changed up their appearance to the best of their ability to suit how they best wanted to be perceived that day. While this frequently caused confusion and even discrimination against them by their peers, none of it bothered them. They had taken their mother's advice to the extreme and decided the opinions of these strangers didn't matter to them, whether it was positive or negative. Rather than try to avoid attention from others they would actively try to cultivate and direct it towards things they were prepared to handle. As a side effect, however, they struggled to form any meaningful connections with people in their new home. Getting close to people meant that their opinions mattered, and if they mattered they were capable of hurting them. They developed a casually selfish worldview based around satisfying their own desires with little regard for what others wanted or felt outside of how those feelings are useful to them. Viewing others largely as a commodity in this way could leave Blaise feeling isolated from their peers, but spending so much of their formative years trying to keep people distant left them lacking both the comfort and the knowledge necessary to bridge that gap. Their only close relationship at this time was with their mother, who continued to listen to and support them as need. Sabine's work led her to believe in the strength of a wide network of loose social ties, and she encouraged Blaise not to develop closer relationships unless they felt comfortable.

Despite their self-centered tendencies, Blaise didn't go out of their way to hurt or deceive people. They were often open about their selfishness, which when combined with their eccentric personality and ties into the arts and performance clique of their school helped them lead a comfortable social life. Their confidence, style, and vibrant personality made them at least a curiosity to most, which they were able to develop into popularity. In addition they developed a small circle of friends; Blaise would not have honestly identified any of them as close, but they felt more comfortable with them than with most other students. They also began dating a few months after the move. Relationships during this time were superficial and rarely lasted more than a week at most, but they would inspire a long fascination with romantic intrigue. This combined with the onset of puberty in their middle school years led to many discussions of how their body might change and how they felt about that, as well as frank talks about sex and relationships and the inherent risks and benefits of both. While Blaise was obviously not sexually active at this time they did have questions and their mother felt it was important to help them develop a healthy and respectful understanding of what they might be getting into later in life.

These talks would stick with Blaise more than most; while their relationships tended to be loose and they became prone to hook-ups as they entered high school, they were always conscious of safe sex practices and did their best to remain in safe and controlled situations. Drawing the curiosity of popular social cliques drew them into the party crowd at George Hunter High and this emphasis on control carried over into that setting as well. Blaise was always wary of how much they drank and did not use recreational drugs, as they did not trust others to look out for them and they were uncertain they could trust their own judgement enough to protect themself when impaired. They would spend parties networking, gossiping, flirting, and hooking up instead.

Blaise's interests branched out further through their early years in high school. Drawing went from an unfocused hobby to a potential career skill. They combined it with their love of varied presentation to design their own clothing. While their early attempts in high school were disastrous and unfit to be worn out even as an experiment, they have kept many of them as a reminder of their progress. A combination of dedication, ample free time, and both monetary and emotional support from their parents allowed them to turn it into a passion they intended to pursue for the rest of their life. As their skill grew, so did their social circle, as Blaise would often give out free samples or do custom alterations for those that caught their attention. Money was of little interest to them, and they both enjoyed and continue to enjoy seeing their work around the school whenever possible.

Magic has continued to be a pressing interest for Blaise. They would never consider a career in stage magic, but over the years they have become excellent at sleight of hand. They love to perform tricks both as a way to occupy their hands and mind when they're bored and to captivate interested observers. Their focus on card tricks led to a love of card games, which in turn led to them discovering their love of gambling. It combines their talents in composure and reading others with an element of exciting risk, though over the years that risk has become more of a vicarious enjoyment of other players' discomfort. They find it difficult to get truly worked up over the relatively small sums of money their classmates typically play for, and often supplement their risk by playing side games like attempting to lure or unsettle a particular player or see what kind of cheating they're able to get away with. Much like many of their more selfish behaviors they don't do this out of malice nor do they really want to hurt anyone. They're simply easily bored and don't put much thought into the consequences of their actions.

There are two large expressions of this boredom outside of their gambling. The first is the focus of their vocal mimicry on their classmates in recent years. They spend much of their time trying to perfect the voices they hear every day. While many of them are far from passing scrutiny they enjoy causing the occasional bit of confusion with a mumbled impression in the halls, or sending friends and enemies alike embarrassing recordings done in their voice. The other is a new fascination with pickpocketing; Blaise has often read that sleight of hand magicians make good pickpockets and has taken the practice up out of morbid curiosity. While for the moment they only take very small things from those they're closest with and they always either return them or even better find a way to put them back on their target's person without being noticed, they are cautiously ambitious about expanding their abilities. They realize there could be serious ramifications if they get too bold, but the allure of risk only makes it more difficult to resist their impulses.

From the outside Blaise's anxiety issues have been almost entirely eradicated since moving to Chattanooga, but this is inaccurate. Rather they have become adept at convincing both others and themself that they don't care about much of anything outside of curiosity or amusement, and this coping mechanism keeps them calm much of the time. When they cannot fool themself they let out their feelings in frantic journaling or drafted messages to classmates they talk to frequently, both of which are almost always destroyed as soon at the moment has passed. Sometimes their feelings cannot be controlled and they act impulsively to satiate them. The most destructive instance of this behavior is their relationship with formerly close friend Myles Roux; Roux and Blaise dated for longer than any other partner they've had, and without realizing it they formed a genuinely affectionate connection with him. While they wouldn't describe their feelings as love, they were at least forced to acknowledge that he was important to them in a way they didn't typically allow people to be when he made an offhand remark to a group of friends that they were starting to open up to him. Myles realizing how close they'd gotten to him before they did sent them into a panic and in an effort to burn him out of their life, they outed his LGBTQ+ status to his previously unaware parents in a series of impulsive voice messages. While his parents were accepting, the pair have rarely spoken since, nor have they discussed with anyone why their relationship ended so suddenly or why they hate each other so much. For their part, Blaise recognizes this as the worst thing they have ever done and feels constant regret over it, but is unable to handle their feelings more healthily and unwilling to put in the work to change that.

As a consequence of behaviors like this, Blaise's social life can be complicated at times. They tend to float on the edges of many social groups and have friends in many places, but these friendships are often very loose due to their unwillingness to engage. On the other hand, their often thoughtless actions generate plenty of enemies. A good illustration is that while they are one of the most publicly notable members of the school's LGBTQ+ community, their reputation within the group is rocky at the best of times. Blaise is famously dismissive of both those that have questions about their identity and of non-LGBTQ+ allies who they feel have no real place in any discussion of their rights or struggles. This causes friction both within the community and in their interactions with those outside of it, and they have done little over the years to lessen this friction.

Academics have always come easily to Blaise and high school is no exception. While they are not more intelligent than the average student, having studious parents and few wants or responsibilities in their life makes the relatively easy workload of high school little more than an annoying distraction from their more pressing interests. They maintain good grades and their parents believe that they have solid prospects for college, but Blaise knows realistically that they haven't put the effort in to develop a stand-out application. They view college with the same sort of detached inevitability they view most things that don't immediately interest them; a formality to be completed with minimum effort as a stepping stone to what they actually want. In their mind they are already going to be a successful designer and continue to live a comfortable life pursuing their interests at their leisure for as long as they care to, and they've given little thought as to how that vision could be complicated or what they'll do if it's thrown off track. The prospect of serious life-altering failure is one they can't begin to wrap their brain around without dropping into a panic spiral, and so far they've found it easier to convince themself that's impossible than to confront those feelings directly.

Advantages: Blaise's experience with sleight of hand and petty larceny could allow them to hide valuable assets or take them from others without being noticed. While Blaise's impressions are not perfect, they could be used to distract potential victims desperate enough to look for their friends, or fool aggressors into thinking there are more people present if they do not have line of sight. They are also extremely selfish; they don't actively seek to harm others but don't dwell on the consequences of their actions. In the heat of the moment it would be easy for them to justify abandoning someone in danger or taking something they felt they needed.
Disadvantages: Blaise often deals with stress or inconvenience with denial; they may refuse to take their situation seriously, and if it gets underneath their skin they may act erratically under the pressure. They have fostered a variety of enemies over the years who might hurt them if discovered. Their selfish nature may lead them to burn bridges with those that could help them long term for temporary gain, or to start conflicts that could have been avoided if they were less self-centered.

Designated Number: Male student no. 066
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Designated Weapon: Bottle of old Jack Daniel's whiskey

Conclusion: You're going to end up just like Bowie. Dead. - Josie Knight


DECEASED