[ APP. ]

[obfuscated]

OOC Information; Name; Miru. Personal Journal; databomb Contact; miruvix[@]gmail.com | dash chromatique @ AIM | databomb @ Plurk Other Characters; None. IC Information; Character Name; Shien Mushanokouji, AKA "Kid." Canon; [ Eyeshield 21 @ Wikipedia ] [ Kid @ Eyeshield 21 Wiki ] Canon Point; Chapter 202, right after winning the match against the Misaki Wolves, on his way to the locker rooms. Poor guy didn't even get a chance to change. Age; 17. (Yes, really.) House; It's difficult to say, as Kid doesn't really belong to any of the houses in a clearcut way. However, he probably ultimately falls closest to belonging in the house of Heimdall. The most obvious reason for this would probably be that Kid's entire personality has been built up and broken down because of loyalties and trying to live up to the expectations of others. The high expectations of his father when he was younger, and the desire and obligation to live up to his family's name were what drove him to both strive for excellence, and to despair when he failed. Also of note is the way that he will suppress all ambition of his own, but will fight to the bone to lead his team to victory. (There is, of course, some of his own desire hidden deep in there, but it always comes after the hopes and dreams of his fellow teammates.) Though generally low-key and accepting of any personal barbs or slights that are thrown his way, Kid is fiercely defensive of his teammates and his team -- he places the integrity of his teammates and team far above his own, and he would most likely rather fight out of loyalty than pride. Power; Power Lending. It plays well to his team-sports orientation. Personality; Kid is -- well. Kid is understated. That might be a good place to start. An even better place to start would be a couple years back, when Kid still went by the fancy name of Shien Mushanokouji -- the son of three-time Olympic beam-rifle gold medalist Hajime Mushanokouji and heir to the respectable Mushanokouji bloodline, a family of purebred nobles. A meek and subdued child even back then, young Shien wanted nothing more than to quietly live up to his father's expectations and become a successor to the Olympic gold medal trend. Sure, he might have occasionally snuck out to play football with his only childhood friend (and son of the family driver, a stoic boy by the name of Tetsuma Jou), but he otherwise spent the great majority of his time training under his father's watchful eye. Dedication, hard work and a desperate desire to please were all that drove his life. The pressure was tremendous, but Shien maintained the belief that if he tried hard enough, if he really gave it his all he could attain that coveted title of "best" and maintain his family's affections. Unfortunately, hopes and wishes do not always translate into success. Shien might have been highly talented -- gifted with the pistol, a fast thinker with great aim and superhuman reflexes, trained to make snap judgments and be quick on his feet -- but he was never quite the best. Despite all of his efforts, he placed "only" 5th in a world championship with the beam pistol. His family refused to acknowledge any of his efforts, shunning him for failing to attain the title of "best" -- and the pressure finally broke Shien completely at the age of twelve. It was shortly afterward that Shien cast away the Mushanokouji name, completely abandoned his family register and began calling himself just a "nameless, shitty brat. Just a mere 'Kid.'" This drastic change is identity is pretty much the defining cornerstone of Kid's personality. If one were to go purely by first impressions, Kid comes across as an incredibly likable, but not very special sort of guy. Down to earth and fairly chill, Kid is definitely easy to befriend -- maybe a little bit difficult to get pumped up about anything, but not really a negative nancy. He's pretty friendly, polite when he needs to be, and doesn't have any qualms about getting to know other people whether they be players on an opposing team or not. As long as people are civil to him first -- and he tends to be pretty forgiving about his standards of 'civil' -- he'll be pleasant right back. Not to mention, he has a pretty high threshold of tolerance when it comes to barbs and insults and taunts. Most derogatory remarks tend to just roll off his back, and though he'll give a noncommittal sort of nod when people question his motives or cast doubt on his skills, he'll never really bother to defend himself. In fact, Kid's tendencies to completely downplay his abilities and speak about himself in a self-deprecating light might be the most obvious signs that he isn't completely honest in presenting himself. Though one could call him humble or modest, to put a good spin on it, the degree to which Kid will attempt to deflect positive attention away from himself is a little out of ordinary. Any compliments tend to make him uncomfortable -- and not just the sheepish sort of uncomfortable -- and he'll never turn away a chance to point to others as being above him. It's not that the compliments he receives are undeserved, either. Though he hasn't resumed any proper training with a firearm since he was twelve, Kid still maintains Olympic-level mastery of pistols and revolvers. His reflexes and intuition are prodigal, and while his physical strength and speed are only slightly better than average, his abilities to make snap judgments and carry out strategic maneuvers almost purely through instinct are remarkable. In other words, Kid is almost a genius when it comes to athletics. It doesn't hurt that his school grades are top tier material as well, bolstered by his quick thinking, and Kid's skills as a tactician aren't anything to laugh at either. There's no way that he's stupid enough to really, honestly deny his own skills. The truth is that all of Kid's modesty can be seen as more of defensive measure. Like the way that an animal that's barely escaped from a bear trap with its life will balk at the mere sight of that trap in the future, Kid just wants to protect himself -- wants to keep himself away from any sort of expectations or ambitions. You see, as much as young Shien might have tried to move on from his past by changing his name and running away from his family, the trauma and pain of having been deemed a failure despite his desperate efforts hurt him very, very deeply. And as a direct result of this, Kid will do virtually anything to keep himself from ever having to face that same disappointment and despair ever again. Kid's catchphrase tends to be, "When things are going well, they tend to go badly right afterwards" -- he'd much rather quash any hopes or high expectations right from the get-go, rather than wishing for the best. He doesn't like being praised because the thought of being forced to prove such hopes wrong makes him uncomfortable, and positive attention makes him shy away because he's very cognizant of the fact that he may never be that good. Kid's reaction to encouragement and compliments is to quietly shut them down and state that it's never good to aim for anything lofty -- there's no use in dreaming big when everything might fall apart at any moment, after all. It's not that Kid will go so far as to hide his talents either, or else he wouldn't even be playing football in the first place. Place a gun in his hand and Kid will easily shoot the center out of a target; hand him a football and he can launch it halfway across the field in 0.2 seconds. Sure, he'll dodge any and all questions about why he's got such good aim and reflexes, looking away and slowly saying that he's "just a high school student, it's not a big deal," but he does enjoy the things he's good at -- it's just that he sees no point in putting these skills towards any sort of high goal that he might possibly want. And sure, he'll try hard and give it his very best when on the football field or aiming his gun at the shooting range, but it'll never be for his own sake -- it'll always be for someone else. His own hopes and dreams are nonexistent in his mind, unworthy of any attention. That's not to say that Kid's desires to fulfill his teammates' dreams are insincere, though. Kid really would fight to the bone to give his hardworking teammates what they want and to help them fulfill their dreams. As much as Kid devalues himself, he tends to hold others in very high regard, never holding back on praise for his teammates and readily acknowledging the talents of rival team members. Though never the boisterous, charismatic type, Kid is a good leader and mentor figure to his team -- level-headed, intelligent, quietly defensive. Sure, he may not be the actual leader of the team, but the fact that most of his team looks up to him regardless is probably a good indication of his capabilities -- his presence tends to have a reassuring quality to it, and he's always willing to play support to a teammate's capabilities to put them in a good light. Not to mention, Kid may forgive any sort of insult or slight that is aimed at him, but he'll flare up quite fiercely when it's his teammates that are cast in doubt -- especially if it's concerning a certain Tetsuma Jou. (Tetsuma -- is probably someone very special to Kid, beyond just being his partner-in-crime and the other half of the dynamic duo they form on the football field. The son of his family's driver, the two of them grew up very close, and Tetsuma was most likely the only person that Kid was able to confide him. It's probably a good indication of mutual loyalty and devotion, that Kid and Tetsuma are fiercely protective of each other.) Kid is -- a good person, really. A super nice guy who means well and would really rather not hurt anyone and likes to live a quiet, modest life away from the rah-rah hubbub of his prestigious pedigree. But strip away all the layers, all of his self-deprecating comments and evasive laughs and tendencies to dodge questions about his origins, and the truth of the matter is that Kid is scared. Dig down deep enough, and he does have his hopes, ambitions, and dreams -- he really, actually would like to think that his team can fight to the top and compete in the Christmas Bowl. But he's been so badly hurt by his family, so harshly beaten down by unrealistic expectations in the past that he rejects the very possibility of ever having ambitions again. Kinda sad, isn't it? But it's okay, Kid can live with that. He doesn't mind. All in all, Kid's kind of a strange person. Perhaps fitting with his cowboy aesthetic and his pseudonym, he tends to have that vaguely-tragic air of a drifter from old Western movies -- pleasant, but with the faint undertones of something that's gone wrong in the past. Though as long as you don't dig down too deep, Kid is genuinely a pleasant person. The 'good guy,' if you will. Down-to-earth, modest, good-natured and friendly, he's not a bad person to have around. Especially if you're planning on having a football match any time in the near future. Samples; Network Sample; VIDEO. [ the video feed flickers on. it takes a moment to focus before showing some ... guy in ridiculous clothes. there are those who might recognize it as an american football uniform, but to those who aren't familiar, those ginormous shoulder pads must look ridiculous. at least the helmet's off and tucked under his arm, revealing a head of mussed-up dark hair and a rather bemused, half-hearted grin. ] Ah -- looks like I've gotten pulled into something far above my head. [ a brief pause while he makes sure this thing is working right. ] Hmm. Well -- good afternoon, to anyone who might hear this thing. A pleasure to meet you. I guess I've heard the basics about the situation here, but ... [ he's just going to let that trail off because there's no good way to end that sentence. ] Anyway. I wonder if anyone would happen to know the best place around for procuring clothes? It'd be nice to find a convenient, cheap place for some more normal clothes, if that's not too much trouble. Log Sample; The moment of mixed elation and exhaustion after a match -- is always one of the strangest times for Kid. Not in a bad way, of course. There's no way it could be bad when his teammates are cheerful and pumped and excited to move onto the next round; Kid can't help but grin as he returns the boisterous high-fives and fist-bumps and congratulatory jostling that goes on between his fellow Wild Gunmen. No, it's none of that that's strange -- it's the consequences of what comes next that makes him silently balk as he treads towards the locker rooms. Behind him, the Misaki Wolves might have been defeated, but ahead lies a different team. A stronger team. A harder obstacle that blocks the way to ... a loftier goal. Aah. Such is the nature of tournaments, no? Everyone always wants to aim for the pinnacle. These thoughts are partly the reason for the dry smirk that crosses his features as he strides off the field -- pulling off his helmet and tucking it under his arm, brushing back the long, sweat-slick strands of his hair with his free hand. It's been a good match, and he'd really like a shower now. No use thinking about the next match until the time comes, right? Things have gone well so far, which means the future may not bode too well -- but he'll put off thinking about it for now. No use dampening his team's good mood. And so he pauses only to give his teammates a slow nod and a smile before pushing open the door to the locker rooms and -- ... and? It happens so quickly that Kid, even with his honed reflexes, can't quite comprehend what's going on. Because one moment, he's sure that he's stepping into the locker rooms in the football stadium, and the next moment, he's standing in some strange, clean room that most certainly isn't appropriate to be changing in. His hand's still outstretched from pushing open the door, his eyes wide, and Kid just -- stares and stares. To his credit, he doesn't really panic. Sure, he fumbles and drops his helmet, quickly picks it back up, turns a circle where he stands to observe his surroundings -- stumbles back in his shock until he hits some invisible wall and realizes that he's trapped in a little circle on the ground -- and stands there gawking at his surroundings. But he doesn't panic. (Such inefficiency was trained out of him in the past.) Standing there, hand running through the mussed-up tangles of his hair and brows furrowed, Kid looks around at this monochrome room and just ... laughs. Not a proper laugh, but just a soft, droll exhale under his breath to vent out his disbelief. And when he finally sees some strange, otherworldly lady drawing close, he can't help but mumble under his breath, "-- ah, I knew things were going too well to last." Since it sure doesn't look like he's in Tokyo any more.