Romulus Vargas - Rome

[Romulus Vargas]

Name: Romulus Vargas
Nicknames: Rom, Rome, Nonno, Perv, Bastard, etc...
Age: Old
Date of Birth: March 27
Gender: Male
Occupation: Chief of Police
Heritage: Barbary Lion
Seed Rank: Heavy Seed
Birthplace: Rome, Italy

Appearance:
Rome has a highly-distinguishable appearance. He stands at roughly six feet and two inches, making him quiet a tall man. Not only this, but ever since he was young he held about him a well-muscled appearance, and still does today. He weighs around 177 lb., most of it built up in muscle... Though he still keeps some softness for the ladies, which possibly also adds to his rather fatherly appearance. If he were all muscle then he might look more rough, but the roughest thing on him now is his daily scruffy chin. Even his hair appears soft with its lovely brown tone and slightly messy curls appearing here and there amongst the wild style. One may even notice that there are two rather distinct curls: one on the upper right side of his head, and one on the lower left.

His eyes match well with his hair, as well, being a fair brown. It all seems to fit perfectly next to his tanned skin, slightly darker than Lovino. That, and the fact that his eyes may take on a green coloring should he be near the color itself, are the only things he seems to have in common with his grandson. Otherwise, the man is most similar to his grandson Feliciano in appearance... or so people say all the time.

Now, a lot of you may think: Man, that guy's old! Well, yes... age-wise, Rome is old... But spirit-wise he thinks himself to be young and... hip... Yes, he may often try to fit in at times with the younger crowd; wearing baggy clothes and backwards hats and whatnot. He means only play by this, though. Normally he wears nice suits in a slightly messy manner and ends up appearing only in his thirties at the most... Or so he hopes. He's kept himself fit and looking good for this long. It must go on!
Distinguishing Features: A multitude of scars little his body.
Sexual Orientation: Bisexual

Likes:

[/b] Rom has taken great interest in other cultures. He tends to be a bit nosy and purposely gets things wrong, at times, but only for the sake of seeing just how important certain cultural attributes are to others.
• ARTS & MUSIC, Having always been a bit of a natural at these things, Rom loves to both create and watch art or music in progress. Music is also something that calms him down from a rage, should he be found in one... hopefully.
• THEATRE, He's an easy sucker for drama. He loves theater, shows, and anything else with dialogue and/or action! It's something that'll easily catch his attention away from nearly anything.
• CONTROL, Another shameful pleasure of Rom's, he just can't seem to give up the lust for it. He has already essentially predetermined his fate...
• SMOKING, ... He may or may not have a slight addiction.
• FAMILY, Despite all his ups and downs, he is still very much a family man... He just has an irrational fear for one of his grandchildren's futures.[/ul]
Dislikes:

[/b] One of Rom's biggest shames are his scars. While outside he typically covers them up with fancy clothes, beneath are far too many to count. These are scars gained by a certain fight, of which he is extremely upset by. He hates the fact that he was a part of something so devastating, though he wouldn't dare let anyone else know.
• TRAITORS, Having experienced such a thing as being stabbed in the back, Rom does not take traitors lightly. He takes is personally, no matter the situation. This is also one of the reasons he has difficulty with commitment, having had someone very close to him do this very thing. He still has yet to get over it, even if he's always smiling.
• ILLITERACY, While he'd love to teach others, he still doesn't think much of those who cannot read or write in any language. He normally hopes most have some level of competency, rather than running around without such a necessary knowledge.
• CLOSED-MINDEDNESS, Being someone who personally loves different cultures, languages, foods, and everything else, those who cannot accept that others are different simply irritate him. While some cultures clash, at the very least he expects others to be respectful of this fact.
• LOSING, Games, fights, family, anything. He hates the sensation of despair after losing. He tends to be slightly possessive, a trait which has lost him many loved ones.
• GIVING UP POWER, He hates even the idea...
• GIVING UP ADDICTION, Just don't ask him to put out a cigarette. He'll do that when he's good and ready. It calms his stress.[/ul]
Interests/Hobbies:

[/b] One of the greatest inventions ever created, Rom makes sure to put this amazing tool to good use. He is a man of beautiful words, thus earning him the nickname of a "snake-tongued man" by an old lover. A rather unfortunate circumstance which causes others to only distrust his words further, but Rom continues the art and keeps it well alive.
• EATING & DRINKING, And cooking and brewing. Man, does this man love to eat and drink. As part of his culture, food is a huge aspect of his life. He finds most cuisine exquisite and has a taste for the finer things in life. He can even stomach most things people might die from, it seems.
• FIGHTING, A guilty pleasure, Rom enjoys getting into fights. Though he puts down war, these days, he was once a... Well, it really shouldn't be spoken aloud. Even his culture involved fights between men, as well as throwing in beasts to battle with. This has given him a rather large lust for blood, in a sense, though he has calmed down a great deal over the years.[/ul]
Aspirations:

[/b] To gain and gain and gain! He wants the world at his fingertips, even if such a thing is a distant dream... It's becoming a bit of an obsession.
• MAKING UP, For lost time... He wants to do his best to make things right with his family in any way that he can, though he does tend to overdo things a lot.
• GETTING BETTER, His illness, that is... Even if he's slowly starting to try and disregard it, he once truly wanted to get better.[/ul]
Fears:

[/b] The secret? You really want to know? Read his history. In there you will find the sole thing that could completely ruin everything that he has become in an instant.
• POWER LOST, He has this irrational fear of losing the power he's gained... He hides it well from everyone, but he has become overly possessive of his things over the years. He even fear retirement and thus will refuse the very mention of it.
• REPEATING HISTORY, Here's something that can be explained: his distance from the grandchild named lovino... Well, you see, Lovino and Romulus are more alike than they appear. Rom had developed an irrational fear when the boys were born that Lovino would end up like himself and thus avoided the child, spending most of his time cherishing Feliciano once he was born.
• PEOPLE BEHIND HIM, After having received a scar from literally being stabbed in the back, Romulus tends to always face people and rarely allows others behind him.
• BETRAYAL, Sort of following after the fear above: Romulus fears betrayal... Why? Well, the person who stabbed him in the back was a dear and loyal friend of his. After that he has grown paranoid of people he knows.
• LOSING IT, Fact: Romulus is starting to suffer from paranoia. He knows this, but he refuses to let anyone else know about it. Signs are beginning to show, but he continues to brush them off if anyone brings it up. He's even slowly starting to believe, himself, that no such problem even exists.
• DEATH, An ultimate end. He fears it, especially considering he has not dealt with so many issues in his life.[/ul]

Personality:
Romulus can be seen in many different perspectives, surprisingly...

One is his professional side; yes, he does have one. Rom can be known to handle business gracefully and without fault. He can keep a straight face and breeze through a meeting in a clean, efficient manner. Most may be shocked to see this in Rom, but only if they know him. Otherwise, he does, indeed, keep up a professional appearance before things such as other heads of households. He stands tall when he needs to. He isn't all fun and games, and this personality actually came about at a fairly young age. It had to, otherwise he would not have reached this point in life... The only downside is he seems to cut off all relations to family in order to get done what needs to be done. One of the biggest regrets in his life is because of professionalism, but he must do what he must do.

However, outside of this he is much the jeste. He loves to pop in on others and make them laugh or smile; laugh when they can, smile when laughing risks popping stitches or the likes. He enjoys good jokes, pranks, and even childish acts such as playing house with the younger children in the town. He doesn't mind at all putting a bow in his hair and having a cup of invisible tea along with Mr. Teddy and Mrs. Bunny if it would make the kids happy... Perhaps the thing he loves most is simply joy, as if he feeds off of it. This is quite possibly one of his most admirable sides.

One of Romulus' less than admirable traits is his player side. He tends to flirt with women and men when he can. He almost always has the faintest smell of perfume on him or perhaps even underwear hidden amongst his things, if not on his own person. He can be known to date once in a while, but he typically has one night stands with every woman he meets. He has only truly fallen in love twice: once with a greek woman, and once with an egyptian woman. Both times ended in failure and thus he seems to stray away from any sort of commitment...

Now, delving a bit deeper, lets look at specific emotions: happiness, sadness, and anger.

Happiness is generally the only thing you will ever see in Rome. He is all smiles and laughs all the time. One may wonder why on earth such a man can be happy after all he has been through, and he simply replies with, "All that I have been through thus far is worth nothing if I don't value today like it's more precious than gold..."

A sad Rome? A rare sight, but not impossible. Though at first he did not shed a single tear for his daughter-in-law's death, and not even for his own son, it only took physically seeing his two grandsons for him to suddenly realize the loss. He doesn't believe they know, but he did break down later that day. From then on he was determined to let that be the last time he ever cried.... Men don't cry!

Angry Rome? Uh-oh. Have you ever watched Hulk? Have you watched Hulk smash? While he isn't one to pick a fight, this doesn't mean that he is without a violent side. Especially when it concerns his family, Romulus will take whatever action is necessary to ensure their safety.

However, a growing feeling in the back of his mind, slowly consuming him... Romulus is getting worse and worse by the day and he knows it, though he refuses to tell anyone. How could he when it would mean explaining the reasoning behind it? No, he has to keep it to himself. No one can know... Ever.

Family:

Brief History:
Have you ever heard of the tale of Romulus and Remus? Founders of Rome? Well, really, it ended as founder of Rome after Romulus took the life of his brother... though there are different versions as to how Remus truly died, in this story it was through murder.

Romulus and Remus were born on separate days: March 27 and 28. Both were twins, born by the same mother who abandoned them in the alleys of Italy's great city of Rome. It was by luck that they were found by another woman who took them in and raised them. She named them after the two brothers of the story, though she likely did not expect their histories to be so similar.

While they grew up with simple means, both were natural born leaders. They acquired much at such young ages, though both eventually grew hostile of one another. While Romulus was a strong, proud leader, Remus was most soft-spoken and preferred brain over brawn. Both were well-known, but not be the people above... Rather, they became infamous in the underground.

It wasn't until they realized one another had divided into different turfs that the fighting started. On one side: Romulus. On the other: Remus. Both had it out for the other's head, though neither of them was willing to actually take a life.

It wasn't until their adopted mother's life was taken that the aggression grew, each boy believing that the other had done it. Both were roughly 18 at the time, Romulus already expecting a son (unbeknownst to him or anyone else at the time). It was at this time where he felt threatened and went through with his deed: he killed his brother and buried his body in a lot where cement would soon be poured to mark the beginning of a new building.

This, however, haunted the man. He was constantly plagued by nightmares to the point of rarely sleeping, making him incapable of doing his job properly. He was eventually ruined by a certain betrayal, losing everything... And, supposedly, his life.

After awakening in the hospital, Romulus took this opportunity to change things. He moved away to France, taking up a position as an officer under the name of Romulus Vargas. It wasn't difficult to get through the schooling, though it would take him some years to reach a respectable position.

Many years had passed, but one day he received word from a woman claiming to be his daughter. As the story went, she was well enough off. Despite her beginnings, she had been told enough stories about the old man to think rather highly of him... Much to Rom's dismay.

By this time he had certainly made a name for himself as an officer, rising up through the ranks of the station quickly. He was a man who had made many connections and his life was more than "well off". Somehow, no matter where he went, Romulus had always managed to do more in a short amount of time than any other man could.

But hearing this... he was stopped short. Just for a small amount of time, however. He'd never imagined he'd be able to have a child, really, let alone... grandchildren.

However, that is where the story really begins again.

Romulus sought out Carmela Vargas, giving her more than the necessary amount of funds to take care of herself. This was roughly after she'd traveled to America, at which point Romulus tried his hardest to be there for her... Especially after the child was born.

Work, though, required a lot of his time. He couldn't always be there for the little boy named Lovino, but when he was he did his best... He had to, in a way, make up for lost time.

Heritage didn't matter to him, anymore... He adored Lovino for who he was, not what he was.

But then Carmela found herself in another situation with a man... Romulus fretted, worried she was too much like himself. He would wonder on and off if there were others like her that he'd left behind...

This all left him when Feliciano was born... No, now his biggest worry was the onset of nightmares plaguing him. Memories of the past... Of two twin brothers, even if Lovino and Feliciano only looked alike. The more Feli grew, the more apparent it became that he was the weaker of the two.

This is where the paranoia set in... Romulus became afraid that history would repeat itself, and thus he took to doting after Feliciano in order to keep him safe. His intentions had been good, but the result was catastrophic.

He still couldn't always be there, but and thus only heard from others about Lovino's worsening temper. He acted, once again, out of fear and only made him worry over Feliciano's well-being more... And then there was the third son.

Rom should have known better, really. He looks back on it wondering why he had even gone to such lengths... But at the time it seemed obvious: he had to protect these children from the child that he thought most resembled himself. He would take no pity on himself, so why take pity on the one who was most like him?

It was all a growing paranoia, though... Fears overwhelming him and causing him to panic... Though he rarely showed it. He kept up the facade of a strong and powerful man, boasting his lineage and carrying on as he always had.

And then Lovino ran away...

Romulus kept tabs on him, though. While he remained at a distance, he would even aid Feliciano in his search.

And, somehow... things eventually ended up here, today.

OOC

Name/Alias; Eli
Age; ∞
Favorite Pairings; RomeXtheWorld
Do you want to be Cbox, Thread, or Both?: Both
Did you read the rules?
I don't wanna be a chicken
I don't wanna be a duck
So kiss my butt!
(QUACK QUACK QUACK QUACK)

The grating noise of glass splitting, pieces shimmering in the light before crashing onto the hard tile. The sound seemed to echo about the close-quarter room, a hum filling the air as everything settled... Only a light pitter patter and the wheezing breaths of the large man that stood in the room gave any life to the dull area. His feet were now covered in the sharp substance, fist already leaking a hot red as he continued to glare into the few pieces that remained as if to curse them for their existence.

To add to the pain, his upright fist against the former mirror slid roughly downward, gathering fragments of the glass as it went. The man stood silently as he continued to stare, his chest tightening with another sharp intake of breath before releasing it in an unsteady manner... Likewise, as he stepped back his footing was less than steady, a hand reaching out to hold onto something in vain as he fell backwards into the tub. He landed with a grunt, though did little to free himself from his current entrapment.

Rather, hand came up to cover his face, a choked sob coming forth.

"Why?" He grieved, feeling that all too familiar warmth trickle down his face and the sharp pain of the remnants still within his hand scratching against his scalp. "I want it... Why? Who is playing with the strings of my heart that I must face such demons? I am but a man, so what god out there is leaving me to my own destruction? Who is it that allows my very mind to think that I so badly desire to be with these people, and yet pulls my soul into the darkness that I may lust after another war?"

Fists come down to slam against the tub before pushing him up and out... Once again he turned to the shattered mirror, looking at his face still smeared with blood.

"... But it always has looked good on me, I suppose... The blood and the gold..." He released a hollow laugh. "I must be mad... dragging my own descendants to whatever form of the worst afterlife there is, be it to Hades or to Hell... And why, then, do I not care? That I am to possibly destroy all that I love, or perhaps die trying..."

[Reed]

Ohwow, that history, man. ;; No wonder Romulus doesn't want people to know about it. I wouldn't want anyone to know about that--especially not the grandkids. This was a really interesting piece, and it was very insightful into the mind of your character. It also greatly shows off your headcanons on the darker side of the Romulus character, which is very good in an app with slightly ambiguous characters like Rome! Make sure to pretty up your account, post a plotter and a tracker, and enjoy RPing in the forum and the cbox!