Laurent of Vere

□ Name: Prince Laurent of Vere
□ Journal: prince_of_vere
□ Series: Captive Prince, by C. S. Pacat
□ Canon point: Beginning of the first book, or flexible depending on the thread/AU
□ History: Laurent was a younger son who was never supposed to inherit, but when his older brother and father both died in the battle of Marlas, he was forced to adapt to the complex and subtle world of Veretian politics. At thirteen, Laurent was the heir to the throne, with his uncle holding the throne in trust for him as the Regent.
Laurent’s uncle never intended to surrender the throne, and did his best to groom Laurent into a docile and empty-headed puppet king, including inflicting sexual abuse upon the thirteen-year-old prince, but Laurent had a natural mind for politics and manipulation, and quickly learned how to avoid his uncle’s tactics. The two of them played a very dangerous game for nine years, with the Regent holding most of the power and persuading the court that Laurent was an irresponsible and rebellious young teenager.
At the age of twenty, Laurent has become a political mastermind, struggling to avoid his uncle’s traps as he tries to survive the last months before he turns 21 and takes the throne.
□ Personality: Laurent is a tactical mastermind who does not trust easily and tries to avoid ever relying upon others for help. He cultivates an exterior persona of being icy and untouchable, and encourages people to think that he’s nothing but a spoiled teenager, because if they believe it and underestimate him, it gives him an advantage in manipulating them. He’s had to become an excellent actor to survive in his situation, and if he needs to, he can be incredibly sweet and charming in order to sway people to his side.
Beneath his defensive exterior, Laurent is incredibly loyal to his subordinates and allies. He will not break a promise, even if keeping it means substantial risk to himself. He lives by his own personal code of honor, and will never leave an ally to his fate or allow an innocent to be harmed. As the prince, he considers himself responsible for the safety of all his people, and he’s wrecked with guilt anytime his cleverness is insufficient to get everyone out of the situation unscathed. Many people consider him mercenary and heartless, because of the lengths he’s willing to go to to achieve his goals and protect his kingdom, and Laurent even considers himself to be heartless and without honor, but it’s simply not true. Whenever he risks or gambles his allies in order to achieve a goal that will protect them all, he tells himself that he’s amoral and merciless, even while he always puts himself in the positions of most danger and will risk his own life again and again, without question, if it might protect the life of someone he has sworn to protect.
Even farther beneath his ice prince persona, Laurent is a playful trickster. He loves games and jokes, loves setting himself to a challenge and winning. When he starts to trust someone, his smiles and laughter are unrestrained, and he’s reckless at play, glad to push the edges of risk just for the added thrill of adrenaline.
Razor-tongued and witty, either in politics or at play, Laurent loves making sharp jokes. He’s insatiably curious and loves books. If it hadn’t been for his older brother’s death making him the heir and throwing him into politics, Laurent would have been very happy living his life as a bookworm.
While he will endure almost any privation or torment without complaint, he adores luxury and expense, and is actually an extremely sensual and indulgent person if he ever relaxes his tightly-laced and monkish exterior.
□ Age: 20
□ Gender: Male
□ Appearance: Pale and blond-haired, Laurent has a stunning and almost androgynous beauty which is diminished by the very severe and tightly-laced clothing he prefers to wear. His blue eyes are habitually sharp with calculation, and his full, soft lips are kept in a strict, unsmiling line. He is tall (6’0") and slender, with solid upper-body musculature from his tireless drilling at swordsmanship. His face and body are both exceptionally beautiful, an effect which Laurent does everything he can to minimize by covering himself up and keeping his expressions stern and slightly spoiled. He is represented by Jeremy Dufour.
□ Abilities/Powers: No magical or supernatural abilities. He is an adept horseman and an expert swordsman.