Post by blackbird on Sept 13, 2021 12:58:00 GMT -7
Mentions of drug use, polyamory, character death, one-night stands, drunkenness, possible alcoholism
Name:
Amos Slade
Gender:
Male
Height:
6'3"
Weight:
150 lbs
Age:
74
Birthday:
December 24th
Home Town:
Olivine City
Orientation:
Polyamorous Bisexual
Likes:
Cooking, cleaning, lazing in the sun, encouraging young'uns
Dislikes:
The feeling of dry sand against his skin, winter cold
Fears:
Losing more people he cares about, being alone
Goals/Dreams:
To show that an old man can be as good at Training as a young one
Skills:
A good chef, he can make almost anything edible
Status:
Trainer
Theme Song:
The House Building Theme
Favorite Types:
Fire, Fairy
Least Favorite Types:
Ice
Personality:
Once upon a time, Amos was a wild man. Hellfire and vinegar, he had all the energy in the world. Would disappear on a lark, go out to take pictures of wild Pokemon, capture and sell them to people around the world who couldn't get ahold of them where they lived. Would vanish for days on end to take hiking and camping trips.
But growing old, getting married, and then losing those he loved have tamed him, turning him into the man he is now. He is easy going, happy to watch the sun go up and down, the days go by. Nothing pleases him more than to sit in a rocking chair, sipping tea, scratching a Pokemon between the ears, watching the sunrise.
Amos loves Pokemon more than anything, and helping others just a little bit less than Pokemon. When he was still a breeder, he dreamed of nothing more than strengthening his lines, breeding strong Pokemon that would help people of all types fulfill their dreams - strong Pokemon who would be capable of taking on Gym Leaders, loyal Pokemon who could help ranchers with their Pokemon, extravagant Pokemon who could help coordinators earn their ribbons. And now that he's become a trainer, he intends to throw himself into it fully as well.
"Once I was seven years old my momma told me
Go make yourself some friends or you'll be lonely
Once I was seven years old"
Amos lived a very idyllic life as a child. His family didn't have much, but they had each-other, and that was enough. His family was large - he had six brothers, and three sisters. He wasn't the oldest, but never could hold the claim of being the youngest, either.
They lived in a small cabin - rickety, too, not nearly large enough for their family, on the edge of a stream. They were packed in like sardines, and shared their beds and fought like Houndours and Meowths, but they spent so much time outside that it hardly mattered. Amos often found himself wandering in the nearby forest, the family's Houndour on his heels, or playing in the stream, the Houndour whining anxiously on the bank. He supposes that that Houndour is the reason he loves Pokemon so much - it was as much a parent as his human parents were.
"It was a big big world, but we thought we were bigger
Pushing each other to the limits, we were learning quicker
By eleven smoking herb and drinking burning liquor
Never rich so we were out to make that steady figure"
Pushing each other to the limits, we were learning quicker
By eleven smoking herb and drinking burning liquor
Never rich so we were out to make that steady figure"
They grew their own food, raised their own meat. Slaughtered Tauros and Miltank, ate wild Oran berries and grew Payapa berries. For the most part, they relied only on themselves. Their mother sewed their clothes, and they relied largely on hand-me-downs. They were almost wholly self-reliant, their family their world.
But, of course, no matter how much you wish otherwise, you can't stick with your family forever. Amos was growing up, and he was allowed to go into town to do chores. And, well, he met some 'unsavory characters' as his Mother and Father would call them. He considered them his best friends, and constantly tried to impress them. He started smoking weed, and cigarettes, and drinking alcohol--although he still remained the perfect child when he was at home.
"I only see my goals, I don't believe in failure
'Cause I know the smallest voices, they can make it major
I got my boys with me at least those in favor
And if we don't meet before I leave, I hope I'll see you later"
'Cause I know the smallest voices, they can make it major
I got my boys with me at least those in favor
And if we don't meet before I leave, I hope I'll see you later"
Amos only got worse as he grew older--he was that teenager, the one who snuck out at night to go to parties, who got drunk and came home hungover, who started yelling and would storm out, disappearing for days on end. Who got high with 'those kids', refused to listen to his parents.
However, he never let his siblings see this side of him. His parents were free game--they knew him better than anyone, after all, and no matter how hard they tried he was set down his own path. He still took his younger siblings out fishing, taught them to ride, helped his older siblings with the chores around the farm despite how hungover he was. Just because he had made poor decisions, his family didn't have to suffer.
"I only see my goals, I don't believe in failure
'Cause I know the smallest voices, they can make it major
I got my boys with me at least those in favor
And if we don't meet before I leave, I hope I'll see you later"
'Cause I know the smallest voices, they can make it major
I got my boys with me at least those in favor
And if we don't meet before I leave, I hope I'll see you later"
When he was twenty, he moved out. He was ready to strike out on his own, to try and make his own way. He never settled down, stayed in hotel rooms in various cities and towns, in tents and in cabins. Did odd jobs here and there-- would go out to take pictures of Pokemon, to capture them and sell them, and even when he was visiting home he would disappear without warning, for days or weeks on end, to do the same, or just go hiking or camping.
Looking back on it, he supposes it was his form of rebellion. He wanted to try everything new, strike out and do everything that his older siblings hadn't. Some of them had left the farm, had found their own jobs, but all of them had been tame jobs, ones where they spent every day in the same office building, the same house, the same apartment. And he did anything but. He got into barfights, got arrested several times for various reasons. Never kept a steady girlfriend, or boyfriend for that matter, only for a few months at the most before finding a new one.
"Once I was eleven years old my daddy told me
Go get yourself a wife or you'll be lonely
Once I was eleven years old"
Go get yourself a wife or you'll be lonely
Once I was eleven years old"
Until Mary.
He had never thought he could fall in love before, and he didn't. She was another one of his flings, until one morning he woke up and realized it had been two months and he hadn't found someone new. And it terrified him--what had happened? But he couldn't imagine life without her, even after only two months. She would never be able to say why she said yes but, when she opened her eyes, he asked her to marry him--and she said "yes".
In most cases, that marriage would have been bound to fail. But it was good for him, despite everything. He found himself settling down, no longer running off to chase this or that Pokemon, or to capture a Pokemon and sell it. Instead, he found himself taking pictures for money, of landscapes and people and their Pokemon. No longer risking his neck for a quick buck. He stopped drinking, stopped doing drugs, stopped getting into fights and stopped getting arrested.
Amos was a changed man.
"I always had that dream like my daddy before me
So I started writing songs, I started writing stories
Something about that glory just always seemed to bore me
'Cause only those I really love will ever really know me"
So I started writing songs, I started writing stories
Something about that glory just always seemed to bore me
'Cause only those I really love will ever really know me"
He was, however, still an impulsive man.
And he had never seen Mary scream like she had when he came home one day with the deed to a homestead in hand. It was a birthday gift for her, and he had been so excited. His father had done the same for his mother, although his father had bought plain land and built the house with his own hands. So surely Mary would be happy? But she was furious, how could he do something this big without consulting her?
It took them a while to cool down, to see eye to eye, but eventually they moved into the homestead. Things were unsteady at first--she was still fairly angry with him, after all--but they quickly grew to love it. It was just big enough for the two of them, and plenty of room for expansion. At first, they had planned on a small farm, some crops, some Tauros, a Rapidash or two, but they quickly decided to make it something more. Before long, he found himself building kennels by hand, and they bought some Growlithe and Houndour after remembering his love for them as a child, and began to breed them.
"Once I was eleven years old my daddy told me
Go get yourself a wife or you'll be lonely
Once I was eleven years old"
Go get yourself a wife or you'll be lonely
Once I was eleven years old"
It didn't take them long to earn a bit of a name for themselves. The Pokemon they bred were strong, hale and healthy, perfectly curated for the purposes they were bred for. Working lines were strong and loyal, incredibly smart and capable of working without direction. Battling lines were powerful, able to give as well as they got. And performance lines were beautiful, with striking colors and flowing fur.
They met their future husband by accident. He was looking to buy a male pup, to add to his own bloodlines. And they found themselves talking, and before long he wasn't a customer as much as he was a partner. And before long, he was their boyfriend in everything but name. Mary and Amos danced around each-other, fearful of the others' reaction, not realizing they both felt the same way. But finally they acted like the grown adults they were, and sat down to discuss it. And they laughed so hard they cried, realizing they had stressed over nothing, and came to a conclusion. While they worried over losing such a valuable partner, and such a dear friend, they needed to clear the air.
And he felt the same way.
Things were awkward, as one might expect. Slotting a third person into their family? Surprisingly hard. But they figured it out, and soon it was as though he had always been there, as part of them as breathing.
"Once I was twenty years old, my story got told
I was writing about everything, I saw before me
Once I was twenty years old
Soon we'll be thirty years old, our songs have been sold
We've traveled around the world and we're still roaming
Soon we'll be thirty years old"
I was writing about everything, I saw before me
Once I was twenty years old
Soon we'll be thirty years old, our songs have been sold
We've traveled around the world and we're still roaming
Soon we'll be thirty years old"
Between the three of them, the homestead continued to grow. Before long, they had brought in more than just dogs, had some Tauros and Ponyta and Blitzle, too. And after buying a few more pieces of land, and building a stable and a barn by hand, they had a full on farm. It was their pride and joy, and they couldn't have been happier. They were getting old, into their middle age, and they no longer needed to worry about themselves. Through breeding, and selling, they could support themselves, and with crops and Tauros they could feed themselves.
"I'm still learning about life
My woman brought children for me
So I can sing them all my songs
And I can tell them stories
Most of my boys are with me
Some are still out seeking glory
And some I had to leave behind
My brother I'm still sorry"
My woman brought children for me
So I can sing them all my songs
And I can tell them stories
Most of my boys are with me
Some are still out seeking glory
And some I had to leave behind
My brother I'm still sorry"
Jacob had been with them for twenty years when he died, dropping of a heart attack while tilling fields. Despite their best efforts, there was nothing they could have done, and so he was buried on their land, only his Pokemon and some trinkets, his grave to remember him by. Despite having spent years without him, it was as though there was a gaping hole where he had been, and things never healed over.
The farm grew into a ranch, with more and more species of Pokemon, more and more buildings built by hand, and before long they had to start hiring on farmhands. People to tend their fields and take some of the Pokemon off their hands, as it was no longer possible to give all their Pokemon adequate attention and care. They had acres of land, rolling fields and pastures upon pastures that they could graze their herds on, a parcel of the past that had never modernized as the world around it changed. Numerous barns dotted the ranch, corrals and coops and stablehand-cabins dotting the landscape. It was gorgeous, an idyllic paradise.
"Soon I'll be sixty years old, will I think the world is cold
Or will I have a lot of children who can warm me
Soon I'll be sixty years old
Soon I'll be sixty years old, will I think the world is cold
Or will I have a lot of children who can warm me
Soon I'll be sixty years old"
Or will I have a lot of children who can warm me
Soon I'll be sixty years old
Soon I'll be sixty years old, will I think the world is cold
Or will I have a lot of children who can warm me
Soon I'll be sixty years old"
And then Amos found himself alone, cancer taking away his wife that he couldn't remember life without. He still had the farmhands, the people who took care of the ranch alongside him, but none of them were 'friends'.
He was old, then, arthritis stiffening his limbs, his beloved Rapidash unable to go on the long rides they used to enjoy. So as much as he hated it, he took a backseat on his ranch, no longer wrangling rampaging Tauros, or breaking in freshly evolved Zebstrika and Rapidash, but riding out to check the fences, paying the bills, arranging breedings. The ranch was all-but self-sufficient. But he still had work to do, some of it busy work provided by the farmhands to keep him off their backs.
"Once I was twenty years old, my story got told
Before the morning sun, when life was lonely
Once I was twenty years old"
Before the morning sun, when life was lonely
Once I was twenty years old"
And then he met a young, trainer breeder in New Bark Town. And he saw himself in the boy, and found himself desperately wanting to get back into his old life--and so he did. While he didn't, and never will, return to the level of work he used to, he still puts a lot of thought into his work. After all, who says an old dog can't learn new tricks?
Appearance/Physical Description:
Amos is an older man, and it shows. His skin is weathered, heavily wrinkled and blotchy, his face lined. Crows feet and laugh lines accentuate his face, more obvious on the frequent occasions when he smiles and laughs.
His face is long, with a crooked nose that has clearly been previously broken. His eyes are bright and cheerful, a deep brown that could almost be black, often alight with a mischievous grin that would be more fitting on a playful child. Amos' is an easy smile, one that doesn't need much of a reason to appear and is difficult to chase away. Despite his best attempts, his teeth have yellowed, and aren't quite as even as they used to be. His facial hair is kept trimmed, never allowed to grow out passed a slightly grey stubble.
As he grew older, his hairline receded. His hair is now the rough grey of steel wool, with a similarly coarse texture, but its always carefully brushed, parted to the left in a way that makes it look like there is more hair than there actually is. His eyebrows have, perhaps, aged more than the rest of him. They are bushy, and white as snow, becoming increasingly more expressive to the point of nearly being their own people.
Amos stands at 6'3", although one would think he is a fair bit shorter due to the stoop his back has developed. He attempts to stand tall, and proud, but is never quite able to get rid of the slight slouch. He is a lanky man, long of torso and limb, and it leaves him looking rather gaunt.
His dressing style is comfortable at home or on his ranch, but he dresses up when heading out. All of his clothes, at home or out and about, are well made, and most are tailored for him. Easily cold, he tends to wear warm clothing, fur-lined jackets and gloves, even in rather warm weather.