Marc St. Yves

Characters approved for pregame are placed here. Please note that characters here are approved ONLY for pregame; characters must be resubmitted for final approval prior to V7 proper, and further edits may be required at that time.
Locked
User avatar
ifnotwinter†
Posts: 295
Joined: Sat Sep 01, 2018 5:22 am

Marc St. Yves

#1

Post by ifnotwinter† »

Name: Marc St. Yves
Gender: Male
Age: 17
Grade: 12th
School: George Hunter High School
Hobbies and Interests: Swimming, music, film, metalwork

Appearance: At 5'10" and 190lbs, Marc's extra weight is most noticeable in his soft abdomen, which shows a slight paunch. A short, stocky torso combined with broad shoulders and thick arms gives the impression of his being slightly top-heavy, not helped by his habitually rounded shoulders. Both upper and lower arms are thickly muscled in direct contrast to his legs, with fleshy thighs and disproportionately slender calves. His hands have obvious burn scars in several places.

His olive skin is lightly pockmarked from acne, particularly over his shoulders, back, and neck. A round face with a slight double chin is lined by dark stubble a little too short and poorly groomed to be called a beard. Indistinct cheekbones frame a crooked snub nose with a prominent hook from a previous break, while thick, coarse eyebrows sit low over deep-set green eyes. A small thick-lipped mouth with a natural downturn completes a face which lends itself more readily to a scowl than a smile, not helped by Marc's tendency to frown whenever he's thinking. When his teeth do show there is a small but noticeable gap between his front upper incisors, made more obvious by the large chip out of the inside of the incisor on the right. His thick black hair is usually kept cropped close in a near-buzzcut, showing off the small wrought-iron spiral dangling from his left ear.

Marc typically chooses clothing for function over style, favoring semi-fitted jeans and graphic or long-sleeve tees, adding a hoodie or down vest depending on the weather and occasion. A deep distaste of shopping means that he wears things for as long as he possibly can, leading to most of his clothing having seen better days and sporting various rips, holes and stains. His footwear is almost solely a pair of Blundstones with scuffed toes, only occasionally traded out for a pair of battered no-brand sneakers during the warmest months. On the day of the abduction Marc was wearing a plain dark green T-shirt with a black down vest and a pair of jeans ripped at the knees and hems from use rather than as a fashion statement, as well as his favourite pair of dark brown Blundstones.

Biography: As a teenager, Maria St. Yves was full of plans for the future, plans which included travel, university, medical school, a wildly successful husband, and eventually, children. These plans were unceremoniously derailed when a wild night and a broken condom led to her giving birth to her first child, contrary to all her plans, at seventeen. Her parents, already struggling to maintain their marriage almost solely for the sake of their daughter, were unable to handle the introduction of baby Samuel to their family and an ugly divorce soon followed. Struggling with the loss of her dreams and the addition of a child she was now solely responsible for — Samuel's father having long since bolted — Maria packed her bags and moved from Maine to Virginia, where an old childhood friend promised her shelter and help with her new son. Giving up her dreams of travel and medical school for a shared apartment and GED night classes, Maria attempted to settle into her new life, determined to raise her son well. But at twenty-five, history repeated itself. A wild night with a stranger, a birth control mixup, and on November 29th, Marc St. Yves was born.

With his mother returning to work as quickly as possible after Marc's birth in order to continue to support her sons and his father having made it clear that he wanted nothing to do with his son beyond court-ordered financial child support, Marc's early childhood was spent being shuttled between various babysitters, mostly Maria's friends and coworkers. When he was old enough to start kindergarten Maria was working long hours as a care aide in an assisted living facility and the same childhood friend who had originally brought her to Virginia, Christina, had become the boys' de facto caretaker. Christina owned the small house they shared, worked from home, and rarely left the house, making her a perfect babysitter. Christina frequently dropped Marc off and picked him up from kindergarten, packed his lunch, got him dinner, and generally kept him entertained to the point that Marc thought of her as a second mother.

However, as time passed, the situation grew more strained. Christina became frustrated and resentful of Maria's expectation that she would always look after the boys, and began to withdraw. By the time Marc was in the second grade Sam had become the one most often making meals, packing schoolbags, and supervising bedtime, a role that the teenager took on grudgingly. Marc, too, had begun to resent his mother's absence from his life and struggled to understand why Christina no longer wanted to look after him. Time he would have once spent with her was now frequently spent watching TV alone while Sam retreated to their shared bedroom and Christina worked behind her locked office door. His reading comprehension, never a strong suit, began to suffer noticeably. At school, embarrassed to find himself behind the class and often requiring extra attention from the teacher, Marc became defensive and frequently made excuses to try and explain why he couldn't keep up. After Maria realized how much he was struggling she did make an effort to try and work with Marc whenever she was home and able to, but Marc was uninterested. Frustrated that his mother only seemed to interact with him when she wanted him to do schoolwork or practice his reading, something Sam and Christina rarely made him do, he would refuse point-blank to work with her. This often led to screaming arguments which would end in Marc taking refuge with Sam to play video games or listen to his brother's bragging stories of girls and parties.

When Marc entered the third grade, Christina sold their house. Her relationship with Maria irrevocably damaged by the conflict between them, she stopped seeing the boys completely after moving out. The loss of what had been one of Marc's earliest parental figures did nothing to mitigate his resentment towards his absent mother, whom he blamed entirely for Christina's exit and the family's subsequent move to a cramped two-bedroom apartment. With Maria working more than ever Marc spent much of his time outside of school alone, occupying his time with the television or occasionally convincing Sam to let him tag along when he went out with his friends. He struggled to make friends at school and when he did, would become jealous and possessive if they hung out with other people. When embarrassed or unsure he would often lash out, trying to build a confidence he didn't feel by taking refuge in anger. He had little respect for authority figures, fostered in part by his brother's own rebellious attitude and disdain for teachers, police, and anyone he deemed to hold any sort of power. In school, his poor reading comprehension continued to be a problem and Marc often needed extra assistance from the teacher and TAs in order to keep up. After being placed in a remedial English program for students struggling for a variety of reasons Marc's reading and writing skills did improve, although more out of a desire to get out of the class, away from the attentions of the teacher, and back into the regular classroom than any real desire to better himself.

The fourth and fifth grades passed much the same, with Marc settled firmly at the bottom of the class and Maria facing awkward parent-teacher interviews which centered around her son's poor performance, sullen attitude and difficulty participating. Each time Maria would attempt to cut her work hours and spend more time with her son in hopes of somehow breaking through to him, but Marc was not cooperative and she was unskilled in dealing with the parent-child relationship. Inevitably she would give up after a short time, frustrated and saddened by their strained relationship but unable and unsure how to fix it. Each failed attempt continued to cement Marc's belief that much of what he disliked about his life — his difficulty making friends, his struggles in school, even how much time he spent alone — was his mother's fault for being unable to fix things between them. He began to cultivate a fierce sense of pride in order to cover up deep insecurities about his life, embracing a quick temper which let him feel angry instead of ashamed and unjustly wronged instead of at fault.

In the summer before Marc entered sixth grade, the St. Yves took their first family trip. Desperate to do something to try and connect with children she felt increasingly alienated from, Maria packed Marc and Sam into her battered Cavalier and drove to Norris Dam State Park, Tennessee. Unseasonably profuse rain made the first two days tense and strained with Sam furious at being removed from his friends, Marc irritated at being forced to spend time in close proximity with his mother, and Maria seriously questioning her plan as both sons alternated between sullen silence and loud arguments. On the third day, the skies finally cleared and the family headed down to the lake. Marc had never had much swimming experience beyond occasionally splashing around at the local community pool, but reluctantly agreed when Sam offered to teach him the basics. Although Sam's version of the basics didn't go much beyond floating and doggy paddling, Marc was surprised at how much he enjoyed being in the water. There was something freeing about the weightlessness of his body, being able to float with his head back and ears underwater, enjoying the silence. He spent as much of the next three days as he could in the lake. When the family returned to Virginia he begged for swimming lessons, a request which his mother granted in the hopes that it would encourage him to develop his social abilities with the other children. While not particularly successful on that front the lessons did strengthen his love of being in the water and throughout most of the sixth grade he spent whatever time not at school or alone at home dragging Sam to the local pool whenever there was a free swim. His tolerance of authority figures seemed to increase and while he wasn't exactly social, keeping quiet in class and staying solitary otherwise, Maria was pleased that his grades had increased and that he seemed to be moving away from his difficult phase.

Marc's entrance into middle school, however, proved this to be incorrect. Faced with a new school and a new population of students to get to know, his already strong solitary tendencies began to morph into active hostility. Long-established insecurities about friendships and connections with others manifested as Marc lashed out with minimal provocation, quick to take offense at any potential slight and all too eager to insult his peers, taking pride in a quick tongue and wide repertoire of insults that built him up as they tore others down. At home he continued to pull away from his mother and grow closer to his brother. He looked up to Sam with something akin to hero worship, seeing the older boy as confidently untouchable, frequently surrounded by friends but never reliant on their presence, always with time for his younger sibling. Sam's recent graduation from high school and acceptance into a heavy equipment mechanic apprenticeship only solidified this feeling, with Marc seeing Sam as independent from his mother in a way that Marc could not be. Although his mother was unhappy that Marc seemed to see Sam as more of a parent than she'd ever been to him, she was glad that at least there was an older figure in his life he listened to and often tried to get Sam to intervene on her behalf when she was concerned for him.

Marc scraped through seventh grade by the skin of his teeth, marks poor and attitude even moreso. Multiple letters went home regarding his conflicts with other students, use of profanity, and near-failing grades.  Although he wouldn't go out of his way to insult or inconvenience another student, any perceived insult or slight towards him would be met with swift verbal retribution. For her part, Maria had begun to give up on ever rehabilitating her wild son and beyond the occasional token meeting with school staff or screaming fight with Marc at home, her discipline was essentially nonexistent. Sam began to take up the slack even more than before and was one of the only reasons Marc was able to pass his classes, reasoning with the younger boy that if he failed out of school he wouldn't be able to get a decent job and therefore out of the house and away from his mother. This discussion succeeded in raising his marks at least to a passing grade but did nothing to help the blossoming anger which, to Marc, seemed to always be simmering below his skin. The only thing which seemed to help even temporarily was spending time at the community pool, occasionally swimming laps but more often just floating in the children's pool.

In the summer between the seventh and eighth grades, Marc got into his first fight. A group of his peers who had been on the receiving end of his ire frequently during the school year were at the pool at the same time as Marc, and heated words were exchanged. On his way home from the pool, cutting through the back of a semi-wooded public park, two boys from the group jumped him. Beyond the occasional cuff or shove from his brother it was the first time Marc had been on the receiving end of physical violence, and he found the sudden release intoxicating. Without adults or teachers nearby and with the genuine threat of serious harm in the back of his mind he let go of any attempt at repressing his anger and fought back with everything he could. When the dust cleared the two boys had been the ones to run, Marc nursing bruises and a broken nose but still standing, elated from the endorphin rush.

Sam was not happy when he returned home, however. With Maria at work he took it on himself to clean Marc's cuts and bruises, all the while lecturing him on the dangers of fighting. Sam warned him about the consequences of fighting including arrest and losing the opportunity to have a good life, as well as the danger of seriously hurting someone or being hurt himself. He told Marc that he would cover for him with their mother this time, but never again. Marc understood but couldn't deny how good it had felt to be angry and have something physical to take it out on. He knew that Sam was right but at the same time he rationalized that the boys had deserved everything they got for trying to hurt him. He decided that he wouldn't start fights but that if he happened to be involved in them he would fight back rather than run.

Eighth grade started calmly. Although he still despised schoolwork he understood that dropping out or failing out would get him nowhere, and consistently put in the bare minimum of effort in order to achieve mostly Cs. At home he interacted almost solely with Sam, Maria having begun to take night shifts in order to save more money. He had very few friends and very little interest in making more, preferring to isolate himself at home and watch movies. His taste was eclectic and varied, ranging from science fiction to epic fantasy. Alone in the living room he could lose himself in CGI explosions and dramatic exposition the same way he'd learned how to lose himself in the water, a temporary distraction from the ever-present anger. As well he found the stories they told to be so much more interesting than they seemed to be in books, dry words and confusing narratives becoming easy to follow and requiring no imagination. Even TV shows could be frustratingly complicated and require patience Marc did not have to follow them week after week, whereas the movies he watched would present a simple, linear narrative that he knew would be wrapped up inside of two hours. The simplicity and predictability were soothing to him, allowing him to lose himself in worlds that made so much more sense than the real one.  

Unfortunately, the calm did not last. In early December Marc had an argument with another student, Luke, who had been partnered with him for a project. Initially harsh words were exchanged before they went their separate ways but later in the day, in the boy's washroom, Luke insinuated that Marc's social isolation and bad temper was the result of repressed homosexuality. Marc chose to leave the washroom before him but couldn't shake the violent anger that rose inside of him at the insult. As soon as Luke left the washroom and entered the hallway, Marc pounced. The resulting fight was decidedly one-sided, Marc giving in once more to his anger while the Luke struggled to defend himself. Luckily it was also short; another student had alerted the teachers to the fight and they soon arrived to drag Marc off of Luke and haul both boys to the principal's office.

A zero-tolerance policy for fighting meant both boys were suspended, Luke for three days and Marc for a week. When Maria received the phone call she immediately came down to the school to find her son slumped in a chair in the principal's office, his knuckles bloody and bruised. Although aware of his poor grades and tendency to anger she had not been aware of just how bad it was getting at school. The principal discussed Marc's social struggles and his sharp words whenever someone said something he perceived as an insult, and their concern with the violence he showed towards Luke. Horrified, Maria assured the principal that he would be dealt with and that nothing like this would ever happen again. She and Marc left the school with the principal's words ringing in their ears: that a second infraction would mean expulsion and that Luke's family may yet decide to press charges.

Back at home, Maria and Marc went for each other's throats, Maria screaming about how Marc and Sam had been intercepting letters from the school and how she didn't know what was wrong with them, Marc firing back that she'd as good as abandoned him and anyway Luke had been asking for it. By the time Sam got home Marc had locked himself in their room and Maria had begged off her shift that night despite the fact that neither one of them was speaking to the other. It took some skillful wrangling to get the two of them into the kitchen at the same time but once they were, Sam was able to facilitate a surprisingly useful discussion. He had become concerned about Marc as well; hearing that from his big brother made all the difference and Marc grudgingly agreed to see a counselor.

Marc's counseling appointments were set twice monthly. Although resentful and feeling like he'd been forced into it Marc did make an honest attempt to listen and respond to the counselor, for Sam if nothing else. Unfortunately almost nothing the counselor suggested helped to take away the simmering anger beneath his skin. The only strategies he found helpful were the suggestion to exercise more and to find a distraction; he continued to visit the pool although he mainly just relaxed in the water rather than swim and also discovered that music made for an excellent distraction. With a pair of cheap headphones covering his ears he could close his eyes and disappear into the pounding bass of hip hop or the violent guitars of heavy metal. Quieter, softer music didn't seem to do the trick the same way and he began to collect songs he knew would immediately calm him, songs with a hard beat, loud enough to drown out his own thoughts. Between the music, the movies at home, counseling, and occasional trips to the pool under Sam's watchful eye, he managed to finish out the remainder of eighth grade without further incident.

That summer a coworker tipped off Maria to a better, higher paying job in Chattanooga, and she saw the chance for a fresh start. Sam was able to transfer his apprenticeship without much difficulty and the family moved into a small two-bedroom apartment in the northeastern developments. Marc was enrolled in George Hunter High School, where both his brother and his mother hoped he could make a fresh start. For Marc, he didn't see much of a difference between the two places. The pool was farther away here, but the way he felt hadn't changed.

What had changed were his feelings about sex. Gradually throughout the summer, most of which he spent as a hermit in his room listening to music or watching movies, Marc became slowly and uncomfortably aware that he didn't feel the way he was supposed to about girls. He could appreciate a good-looking woman but didn't have any feelings of arousal and when he dreamed, he dreamed of men. He did his best to suppress these feelings and convince himself it was just a phase, some sort of issue brought about by his complicated relationship with his mother and his closeness with his brother. Sam didn't help, the casual homophobia and bigotry so common in the trades having firmly rubbed off on him. As Marc got older Sam would frequently tease him about girls and make gay jokes, which led Marc to tamp down even further on his feelings and try to respond with jokes and slurs of his own, desperate for Sam's approval.

Ninth grade passed without any particular incidents. Marc was able to make a couple of friends, people who, similarly to him, lived more on the fringes of the various social groups. The friendships were casual and often based on mutual dislike of a person or thing, but they were friendships and Marc, much to his surprise, found that the heat inside of him was banked when he spent time with them. He also became aware of the few openly queer individuals in his class but rather than leading him to feel more accepting of his feelings, they made him even more certain that he couldn't be like that. He felt strongly that Sam would never accept him if he admitted that he had gay feelings, and couldn't imagine losing what had been his only real friend for so long.

Then in the summer before tenth grade, Sam moved out. He had found a place with a couple of his friends from work and decided that he was too old to continue living with his mother. As well, the continued role of primary caretaker that had never really changed was starting to wear on him. Marc, suddenly faced with the idea of living solely with his mother for the next couple of years and feeling abandoned once again, did not react well. Outwardly furious with Sam for leaving and inwardly struggling with the idea that Sam might have left because of something Marc had done or because he somehow knew about Marc's sexuality, the progress he had begun to make fell apart. Turning his self-loathing outward, Marc began to lash out at everyone he knew. Screaming fights with his mother became a regular occurrence and his friends fell away under his sharp tongue and cutting words. When not in school, he spent as much time as he could at Sam's apartment.

Music, film, and swimming were no longer making much of a dent in the anger, and Marc became desperate to find another release. One of Sam's friends had an old ID that did duty as a serviceable fake and Marc began to hit up clubs and concerts whenever he could get away from home. Without a job he didn't have much money but Sam, who still felt a sense of responsibility for him and was grateful that at least he wasn't fighting again, supplied occasional cash infusions when he really needed it and covered for him with Maria. The thrill of dancing to loud music, grinding up against strangers, and occasionally moshing seemed to be doing the trick and although Marc could still feel the anger, he could at least hold it in for now.

Then, Marc had a drunken sexual encounter with a male stranger outside a bar. Although he struggled to justify his reasoning he still couldn't shake the memory of how calm he had felt afterwards. Over the next couple of months Marc continued to meet the man intermittently for oral sex outside the same club. As time passed Marc began to notice the feeling of calm lasting for shorter and shorter periods of time. Terrified that he was going to lose his one really effective release, Marc allowed the other man to have anal sex with him. Afterwards Marc panicked and lashed out, punching the other man several times before bolting.

After that encounter Marc stayed away from the clubs much to the happiness of his mother, who didn't know where he went in the evenings but was glad to have him home instead of causing trouble, his increased isolation and snappishness written off as teenage hormones. At the start of the eleventh grade and after much begging she allowed him to move in with Sam provided that he still saw her at least twice a week and that she would be kept in the loop regarding his schoolwork and out of school habits. This change alone helped Marc to mellow out somewhat.

Around that time Sam introduced Marc to a friend of his, Trish. Trish was a farrier and metalworker and she and Marc quickly hit it off. Her dry sense of humor and confident, brash, strong-willed personality appealed to Marc and their friendship deepened rapidly. Soon, Marc began to spend his after-school hours at her workshop. Both Sam and their mother strongly encouraged him to spend time with Trish, his mother seeing her son begin to calm down and develop social skills while Sam was just happy he wasn't out fighting or getting into trouble when he was with Trish. When Marc asked for Trish to start teaching him some metalworking she was initially reluctant but after a trial period of teaching him the very basics, mainly forge safety, she agreed to teach him. Marc took to metalworking and smithing easily. He found the repetitive and physically difficult work calming, the concentration it took not to hurt himself or others or damage anything sweeping away any other thoughts in his mind. For her part Trish was pleased; she had been told about Marc's difficulties and seeing him be able to focus so entirely on something and be dedicated to a craft was rewarding in itself. Although she only taught him for short periods during her work off-hours he continued to hang out in her shop while she was working, soaking up knowledge, and often came with her when she went on the road shoeing horses.

After a few months, Marc learned that Trish identified as queer and was in a long-term relationship with another woman. The realization shocked him as Trish did not fit any of the stereotypes he had in his mind; she was strong and worked in a traditionally masculine field but still presented in a very feminine manner. Her matter-of-fact attitude around the relationship and her sexuality, and the fact that Sam knew and didn't seem to care, both contributed strongly to Marc's slow acceptance that he was gay as well. Although he still felt strongly that he couldn't speak about such things to Sam, he began acknowledging his attraction to men and stopped pushing away his feelings quite as much.

The changes he had been experiencing showed in his attitude at school. His grades had picked up slightly to mostly Cs with the occasional B as Trish was firmly pro-education and told him in no uncertain terms that if he failed out, she would no longer teach him. He found that he enjoyed shop class as well as math, numbers coming more easily than he remembered now that he was applying himself and actually studying. He had begun to socialize with his classmates again and although some remained wary of his reputation, he was able to develop a few casual friendships. Perhaps most importantly he met a boy named Mickey Grant. They hit it off quite quickly and Marc soon found that he was becoming strongly attracted to Mickey. They continued to spend time together intermittently throughout the summer and by the start of twelfth grade, had begun a relationship. Marc kept it hidden from his family by explaining Mickey away as just a close friend and spending time with him mainly when Sam wasn't around.

Now in twelfth grade, Marc still has difficulty with his anger but it has been tempered by his time spent with both Trish and Mickey. He has begun to see how harmful it can be to his friendships and relationships, understanding the damage he's done to himself and others in the past. Although lashing out still gives him a temporary rush of happiness it is quickly replaced with guilt and discomfort and as such he is actively trying to take steps to control it. He has voluntarily seen a counselor several times to help with this and has found it more helpful than it was in the past, although he's unsure if this counselor is more effective at communicating and helping or if it's simply because he's more motivated to change his behavior.

His relationship with Mickey is ongoing but rocky; Marc is still mostly in the closet and struggles frequently with his feelings towards Mickey and the idea that people might find out that they're together as well as the direct contrast of feeling defensive of the relationship and strongly possessive of his first real friend in many years. He has lashed out physically towards Mickey during arguments on more than one occasion, frightening Mickey badly. He always feels badly about it after the fact but lacks the self-awareness to stop when he feels the urge coming. This has put a significant strain on their relationship but it's one that Marc is only peripherally aware of, believing that his post-fight apologies and promises to do better are enough to repair the damage. He has frequently considered talking to Trish and getting her opinion about the relationship but is terrified that if he were to tell her, Sam would find out.

He maintains a steady C-average with some effort as studying does not come easily to him. He has a few casual friendships in class, mainly with people who also identify as outsiders. He spends most of his time outside of school at the pool, at the forge, or tagging along with Trish as she works. He no longer fights although he is known at school for being quick to anger and has a tendency to lash out verbally if he feels threatened or humiliated. His relationship with his mother is still distant; although the two argue less since he moved out they still don't really see eye-to-eye and although Marc has dinner with her twice a week, he still vastly prefers Sam's company. Post-school he plans to complete a formal apprenticeship in blacksmithing and go on to a career in custom and artistic metalwork.

Advantages: Marc's upper body strength is somewhat more than average given his work in the forge. His anger issues mean that he may attack proactively in order to defend himself. He has previous experience in fistfights.  
Disadvantages: Marc's conflicted self-image and struggle to overcome his anger issues may lead to irrational behavior and mental breakdown. He has few friends among the class with which to form alliances, and is on poor terms with many. His anger may cause him to act before thinking and get into bad situatio
This is an archival account used by staff to port posts belonging to the handler ifnotwinter. While this handler hasn't been around in quite a while, should they return and wish to take custody of this account and/or its posts, they are welcome to do so by contacting staff.
Locked

Return to “Approved Characters”