RJ Blackburn

[AnimeNerd]

Name: Ra Jin “RJ” Blackburn
Gender: Male
Age: 17
Hobbies and Interests: Reading, writing, singing, slasher movies, comedy, medicine

Appearance: RJ is a boy on the smaller side of things, in both figure and size, standing at 5’ 6” and weighing in at 125 lbs, neither well built with muscles nor horribly out of shape. He is of Caucasian descent, and has an ivory skin tone to match it. His square-shaped head is complemented by a Grecian nose, bushy eyebrows over his hooded brown eyes, nice white teeth, and freckles peppered on his cheeks and across his nose.

RJ enjoys customizing his appearance in odd ways, encouraging his individuality and purposely trying to stand out in his class. On the day of the abduction, RJ’s shoulder length brown hair was dyed two different colors, most of it a light pink, with one streak on the right dyed blonde, styled into a top knot, held in place with a light pink hair tie, with a seamless fade and a heart design shaved on both sides. His left ear, the one that’s pierced, had a silver dangling earring of the male gender symbol. RJ wore a pair of black slip-on dress shoes, dark blue jeans, and a black long sleeved button up under a pastel rainbow ghost patterned sweater, showing the collar and the right sleeve peeking out from under the sweater.

Biography: Ra Jin Blackburn is the second child of Johnathan and Jane Blackburn, a dentist and a nurse respectively, who were sweethearts in high school and through college. He was born to the upper middle class family on June 5th, 2006, in Los Angeles California, five years after his older sister, Eris Tandori. Both children were given the names of Gods, not because they had any real meaning to the parents, but because they wanted their children to have something more interesting and unique for their names compared to their own. They believed that names that weren’t very common would be appreciated and praised more than those that were, and thought their children would like getting to stand out compared to other kids.

While they were correct in thinking the names would stand out, it proved to be a hollow victory, as both children quickly came to hate their names. Not only did they feel alienated from their classmates, but Ra specifically was regularly bullied even in preschool for his particularly unusual name. Though he kept a brave face and even managed to crack jokes and snark about it to most, he cried in secret with his sister. It was a habit she had taught him due to her own experiences with bullying, as most adults had brushed off her concerns, stating it was a part of life, or believing that she was taking simple teasing too hard. When even their parents hadn’t taken her seriously, Eris recognized that the adults in their lives were of little to no help with their problems, and resolved herself into becoming a strong person for herself and Ra.

The end result, Ra never spoke to their parents about the bullying, only telling Eris, who comforted him by reading him stories. While she had a habit of leaning towards young adult novels, Ra didn’t care, enjoying getting stories of any kind. From the half human son of a sea god, to the girl who lit the fires of a revolution, and even the girl who fell hard and fast for a vampire, though that last one was his least favorite. Still, stories like these imbued him with a love for the written word, to the point that, when he was six, he first attempted to create some of his own. While he would later look back on his first writings as cringeworthy, partially due to them being fanfics, encouragement he got from showing them to Eris at the time ensured that he would continue writing.

This was what the first eight years of Ra’s life were like. Then, his maternal grandparents were in a car accident, killing his grandmother and seriously injuring his grandfather, Ernest. Knowing how badly he would take losing his childhood friend, as well as how much assistance he would need living his daily life now, Jane and Jonathan came to the decision to move to Saint Paul Minnesota, where Ernest lived, to care for and live with him. Seeing this as an opportunity to change things, Eris talked with Ra about plans for the plane ride. The whole flight they practiced using nicknames when referring to each other, to the point that when the plane landed, Eris referred to herself as Tandy, and Ra was going by RJ.

After the funeral, the family quickly moved into a new normal. Jane and Jonathan were quickly able to find new jobs at a local hospital and a dentist’s office close to home respectively. While he was still recovering, Ernest proved to be a good influence on the couple, making them take Tandy and RJ’s concerns more seriously, most notably convincing them to use their nicknames. Tandy managed to find a group of friends that helped her avoid bullies, while RJ practically blossomed in his new environment, his jokes and generally friendly demeanor making him well liked with most of his classmates. Even Ernest managed to feel better, believing his grandchildren had brought light back to his life after the loss of his wife.

Though some of the family would bond more as time went on, a few relationships were more strained than others. Tandy was quite distant with Jonathan and Jane, and RJ was hesitant to get closer as well, still wary from his sister’s experiences with them. In an attempt to mend at least one connection, Jane and Jonathan each took up an activity with their son. When RJ was twelve, he needed medical advice for a story he was writing and, overhearing this, Jane offered her assistance. Not only did he appreciate it, but he actually grew interested in the topic, regularly finding a use for it in more of his writings. He would continue to learn medical knowledge from his mother, including assistance into becoming first aid and CPR certified, and though it didn’t completely fix the relationship, it did make them closer.

Around the same time, Jonathan had him watch John Carpenter’s Original Halloween with him. RJ immediately fell in love with the slasher genre, believing that even if they were predictable, they always had a gimmick of some kind to grab interest, and he enjoyed seeing what people would think of. Similarly to Jane, the relationship isn’t perfect, but RJ and Jonathan have still gotten closer since then, their shared interest leading to a tradition of watching one slasher a month.

As the years passed, RJ grew up and outward. Ernest’s impressive collection of records and general piano skills had RJ practicing singing, and he became much more serious about it than just casually singing along with the radio. Ernest even gave him lessons, having been an avid singer himself in his youth. While he grew a great amount of respect for the classic artists, RJ always found himself gravitating to more modern, pop songs. No matter what, though, his singing skill grew as time went on, and RJ earned a reputation for being a pretty good singer. Additionally, his knack for comedy grew as well, and while not always the best jokes due to his refusal to study, his quips were sure to at least lighten the general mood among the people he’s near. He believes a good or bad joke, if it's delivered at the right time, can help a person feel better, and RJ is always interested in making people feel better. Whether it’s light hearted jokes or genuinely funny snark, he’s usually able to get a smile on someone’s face.

Ninth grade proved to have the biggest surprise for RJ and his family, as he came to the decision to change his appearance. He believed himself to be quite boring, having the most common hair and eye colors and plain clothes that didn’t stand out at all. Though an issue previously, he believed he knew how to handle it now, and had friends that would stand by him if he needed it. While his parents were confused at first, as they originally wanted RJ to stand out with his name, they allowed it after being advised by Ernest, as long as he had a choice in the matter, Ernest believed it wouldn’t be a big deal. So RJ colored his hair, let it grow out, and even got one of his ears pierced, using money from chores to buy earrings. He expanded his wardrobe, usually going for things that connected to his interests while also being eye-catching, and he’s enjoyed every minute of it.

While RJ's familial relationships are generally positive, they vary in closeness. Despite leaving for college to become a lawyer, Tandy is who he’s closest with, regularly chatting on the phone and through video chat. Ernest is a close second, being a pillar of support that he’s appreciated for as long as he’s known the man. Jane and Jonathan share third place, because though they’re on better terms now, and always treated him well, RJ always remembered how they treated Tandy’s bullying issues, and felt hesitant to truly open up to them because of it. While they have the movies and medical lessons, interactions outside of them are positive, but short and tend to feel forced on RJ’s end. He wants to get closer with them, but unless they take the first steps, he’s not going to force himself to try it.

RJ's more or less made himself into the kind of person that's friends with everyone in high school, or at least most people. He manages to get on good terms with the majority of the student body, being the funny, friendly guy that doesn't seem to let anything get him down, though it's at the cost of not really being close to many classmates. The people he actually manages to be close to are music lovers, avid readers, or similarly class clown type students, bonding over their shared interests, and in the latter two cases trying out his material to see if a joke or story idea is good, or needs to be thrown out.

Academically, he does well in most classes, English especially, but he struggles with Gym class the most, barely getting a C- in the class he’s regularly joked about being torture. While his family has been worried about his grades, they’ve let the matter be, believing his lack of athleticism wouldn’t hinder his future life plans.

RJ plans to go into writing professionally, mainly for entertainment purposes. He has a variety of ideas for books, a few of them already written up on his computer. While he likes to dip his toes into multiple genres, he tends to stick with young adult thrillers, preferring the familiarity that it was with his childhood. Before that, though, he has planned to major in nursing first, applying for University of Minnesota. Though he hopes going into writing will make this obsolete, he acknowledges that there is a chance things don't work out, and he wants to be prepared just in case that happens. He believes that, since his mother has already helped him learn some things in the field, he may as well focus on this profession.

Advantages: RJ is friendly and sociable, which will make finding and creating allies easy. While unlikely, his creative writing and affinity for slashers could mean even a joke weapon finds some use in his hands. He is likely to be overlooked as a threat due to his small, weak stature, which he could use to his advantage and surprise attack opponents. Additionally, his experience with medical work, however minor, will likely help him if he or any allies he gains get injured.
Disadvantages: While he can use it to his advantage, it still should be noted that RJ is very weak, and any up front confrontation will likely end with his defeat. Though he’s on good terms with most of his peers, most of those bonds not being as close could mean he’s targeted before close friends can turn on each other. Even worse, his desire to stand out amongst his peers means that those who would want to target him would not have a hard time finding him.

Original Profile: RJ Blackburn (TV3)
Permission: Own Character

[MurderWeasel]

Howdy, AnimeNerd! RJ's looking pretty good, just a little before he's set.

What was the Blackburn family's economic situation during RJ's childhood?

We get "Tandy" used in RJ's bio before the nickname is actually introduced, which is a little confusing—could we maybe either move the introduction earlier or hold off the use until after the subject is discussed?

How old was RJ when he first began writing? Did he ever show his work to anyone? What sorts of things does he write nowadays?

How closely has RJ looked into medicine? Is he first aid/CPR certified? (It's something pretty easy to get, just a day of classes at the rec center or sometimes even offered through school.)

What about comedy appealed to RJ? Does he study it intentionally/watch comedians, or is something he purely does for himself in his own time?

It sounds like RJ is planning to go to school for writing, right? This late in the year, he should've already applied (and maybe even been accepted) unless he's taking a gap year or something.

On a related note, nursing is a pretty infamously involved program that tends to eat up a lot of time and attention and can be difficult to pair with anything else—which RJ would presumably know from his mom. Is that a concern at all? Is he set on double-majoring anyways? Is he cool potentially taking longer to graduate?

Post when you've got that tweaked, and we'll give RJ another look. Thanks!

[AnimeNerd]

Tried to to make the requested changes, let me know if it needs more work!

[MurderWeasel]

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