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[b]Name:[/b] Dante Veneti "The Grinning Jackal".

[b]Species:[/b] Human Magician. 

[b]Gender:[/b] Male.

[b]Age:[/b] Twenty-seven (27).

[b]Mental Illness:[/b] [list]
[*]Schizophrenia - Dante often hears voices telling him to do things. The voices become louder and more insistent as his birthday draws closer. It drives him mad if he refuses their suggestions to long, especially on his birthday. March thirteenth (13th). On days near his birthday he often sees things that aren't real.[/*]
[*]Post Traumatic Stress Disorder - Ever since losing his sister to a house fire he has never been able to forget the screams. Often waking up screaming in terror, calling out for her. The one thing he can't forget no matter the score of years he will live.[/*]
[*]Insomnia - Because of his PTSD he rarely sleeps, giving him dark circles around his eyes and often worsening his Schizophrenia.[/*][/list]

[b]Appearance:[/b] 
Dante stands confidently at six foot even with a sleek yet chiseled frame. He often keeps a perpetual facade of swagger to his step with a devilish grin to match. His eyes are a deep forest green, their color only brightened by the dark tint that encircles his eyes from the restless nights. His skin is warmly tanned and without a blemish. Golden blonde waves of hair fall neatly down to his shoulders with few strands scattered in front of his face. He often keeps a well kept stubble of hair on his face.

On days when the voices are especially strong it is rather apparent. His eyes almost seem hollow and stare mindless at random things as if lost within his own mind. He becomes sluggish and it becomes exceedingly difficult to hold his attention. His hair is often tangled and messed, mostly from holding his head to try and silence the voices. He facial hair becomes unkempt and shaggy, course from being unwashed. During these times he tries to stay out of sight, mostly staying in his room or off in the shadows where it is hard to notice his episodes. 

[b]History:[/b]
[center][b]~My Story..[/b][/center]
"I was born a normal lad you see, to an Irish mother and Italian father on March Thirteenth, 1930. My mother came down to Sicily with her parents, my grandparents. They were traders with rare goods. There she met my father. I remember when they told me the story as a boy that theirs eyes met and that was the moment they knew they were meant to be. They were always a happen couple, always dancing every night after dinner when they thought I had gone to bed. When my mother got pregnant with my baby sister, Emilia, that was a truly happy time for them. They said they always wanted another child so I would not grow up alone. You see, I knew my parents loved me. I never took a moment to question it. But when Emilia came along I could tell how much they loved her, more than they loved me. I knew that and I understood. Emilia had a way about her, even as a little baby the way she smiled at you and held your finger made you feel special. I was five years old when she was born. When she was just an infant I had gone to a book store. I was looking for something I might learn to keep Emilia entertained whenever she got fussy; I hated it when she cried. That's were I found this little magic book. It was no more than fifty pages long filled with more illustrations than actual words. The first trick I learned was a simple card trick. I was terrible at it but Emilia loved it anyway, though she was only a baby she watched the trick with amusement and delight. I got better, showing Emilia my progress every step of the way. I went to the book store once a week trying to find a new book on magic tricks so Emilia (and admittedly myself) wouldn't get bored.

"The next few years as she grew strong enough to play I brought her all around the Island, showing her all my favorite spots and even some of my hiding spots that I hid candy I bought from the money left over from buying my magic book so mother wouldn't see. I could never deny her when she asked for a piece of my chocolate." He trailed off, his gaze drifting off as if lost in a memory. A sad smile touching his lips.

His gaze snaps back to those who were listening, the smile gone now. "Anyway. Two years later she died. Somehow the house caught fire in the night. It started in my sisters room. By the time we woke up the door was engulfed in flames. My mother tried to run into the room but my father knew it was too late. He pulled her screaming from our house. I still remember the screams that woke me that night. '[i]Fratello! Il fratello salvami! Ho paura! Fratello![/i]' Which means, 'Brother! Brother save me! I'm scared! Brother!' But I was too scared to pass the flames. I woke up my parents who were down the hall. But by the time we got back her voice was gone. Nothing but the crackle of burning wood and my mothers choked screams.

"It wasn't even a week before my mother took her life. Unable to live without her daughter or look at the man that kept her from saving her. I think my father was too drunk to even notice she was gone to be honest. I was taken to a foster home that night. It was raining that night, it nearly ruined my magic cards. I spent hours drying them off and trying to keep them from warping. They were Emilia's favorite kind of trick.

"Years later and still in foster I can continued my magic practice every moment I wasn't doing school work or cleaning up the home with the other children. I had gotten rather good with cards. Easily able to do advanced tricks that most adults couldn't even attempt. It was my obsession. For some reason I knew Emilia was watching, from somewhere, and I wanted to make her smile the way she did when I came home with a new trick. It was rather easy to practice when I couldn't sleep at night because of the nightmares.

"When I turned eighteen I moved out of the foster and traveled, around Sicily at first, doing tricks for whatever change people would throw my way. I eventually made my way to England. Learning English wasn't too difficult. I had a rather sweet set up in England. It is where I got my name 'The Grinning Jackal' from, because of the large hat I wore covered my eyes and all anyone could see with my large grin. Far more people were amazed and intrigued by my magic shows then they were in Italy. I was able to afford a nice room in a local Inn most nights. But eventually a ran out of things to learn. That terrified me. If I had nothing new to learn I had nothing new to show Emilia. If I had nothing new to show Emilia she would leave. I knew she would.

"But one day scouring through book store after book store I happened upon an old book bound in cracked and worn leather. Pressed into the leather it said '[i]Real Magic[/i]'. I thought it was just a ploy, a gimmick to get your attention. Though I bought it anyway. I had never seen the book before so it was possible to have new tricks. As I read through the book it wasn't filled with tricks, but a formula and ritual to attain real magic. I tried not to think about it, but the fear of Emilia leaving became more and more crippling. I went mad, I would try anything to keep my baby sister with me. Even if it were only some feeling in the back of my mind that she were actually there.

"I followed each step. It required a lot of blood. At first it was rather small things to be sacrificed. Bunnies, goats, things of that nature. But the last ingredient was the human heart of a Holy man. And it had to be on my birthday. Something to do with the cycle of my life and being reborn in magic. Something to that effect, I do not recall entirely. What I do remember, very vividly, were the mans pleas. He spoke of God before he went silent. 

"After I ate his heart I convulsed and before I knew it I was home, drenched in blood a week had past. It took hours to wash the tint of red from my skin. I began to notice something different about myself though. I felt surges of energy coursing through me. It was like a bolt of energy struck me and I was left with the sensation still rushing through me. It took a while to actually harness the powers I had been given. I slowly began to control it and learned of a way to create illusions. I learned to cast these Illusions on myself. I brought Emilia back. She was there before my eyes, I held her hands and saw her smile again. But then I noticed the strange occurrences that happen in an illusion. It's always different from each illusion, the stronger the illusion the more subtle the oddity. When I first brought Emilia back it took me awhile to notice but my room had no ceiling. I was too entranced by the fact my sister was back. But once I noticed the oddity it all vanished. I was once more alone in my room. I tried my hardest to get the illusion back but I was too emotion and unstable. I couldn't focus enough to refine the illusion enough to work.

"As the rest of the year past on I grew stronger. But the stronger I grew I began to notice a voice in my head. It was quiet at first, I thought it was just my conscious the first few times I heard it. I later found out it was getting closer to my birthday. That was the reason the voices were coming. Little did I know at the time that the ritual to attain my magic was actually a soul binding curse. Made by an old, evil wizard who gained his powers through eating human hearts. When he grew old with age he created a book, the book I bought and used. It was a ritual to bind his soul within my own. I would gain his powers but he would always be there in my mind. Edging me to do his bidding. I often have little trouble refusing his demands though as the years go on his will gets stronger. Emilia helps settle my mind, silence his screams.

"The last thing I remember before getting locked up in this... Hell. I was out on the streets of London, late at night. Coming home from getting a meal. I heard a scream, it sounded like a young girl. Without a thought I ran to it. I found a hunched over something, or rather, someone. I pulled the man up and threw him against a wall. It was a young girl, her clothes torn and her face beaten in. Her hair was Golden blonde, faintly curled.... Just like my Emilia's. It all became blurry after that. I remember the color red. It was everywhere. I remember the sound of the guards yelling for me to stand down. To not resist. But I am sure I did. I eventually blacked out entirely. Whenever I use to much energy I pass out. My body can't take the full power I have being used at one time. I woke up strapped to a bed getting wheeled down these halls with a strap around my mouth to keep from using my magic. And that's my story... Now you understand Who I am.

[b]Personality:[/b]
Dante, when not out of his mind, is a rather charming smooth talker. Spending his life as a street performer has given him some rather alluring social skills. He has little trouble making friends with his foreign accent and dashing grin. He is generally a kind man though if he had to pick to save himself or someone else, it would always be himself. He loves playing games and giving people a show.

When he isn't exactly right of mind he is rather closed off. Often time he comes off as erratic and unable to set at ease. He often hides in the shadows, avoiding eye contact at all costs. He has been known to cast a wide net of Illusion to make it so people can't see him. Often shuffling through the motions with hollow eyes, fixated on nothing as if lost within the own caverns of his mind. He is known to answer questions no one asked, as if talking to a voice in his head. Because, he is actually talking to a voice in his head.

[b]Sexual Orientation:[/b] Heterosexual.

[b]Fears:[/b] [list]
[*]Young girls with golden blonde hair. They incite memories of his little sister which often leads to violent episodes.[/*]
[*]He is afraid of blood and will do nearly anything to get away from it. It excites the voices in his head.[/*][/list]

[b]Capabilities:[/b] *Note, His more difficult spells needs a verbal queue. Could be anything, even something nonsensical. Only that it has to be verbalized.[list]
[*]Creation - Dante being a magician can nearly create anything his mind can envision. Though his creations can be very much real they are not nearly as strong as their counter part. the more complex the creation the greater knowledge Dante needs on the object. He wouldn't be able to make a gun for he has little knowledge of their intricacies.[/*]
[*]Manipulation - This particular brand of magic allows Dante to change an items physical shape. Changing a block of iron into a dagger and so forth.[/*]
[*]Illusions - Dante excels with illusions and tricks of the mind. Making someone see what he wants them to see, without them even noticing. The only way to break free of his illusion is to know it's an illusion. The person under the illusion has to actually notice something that isn't right, notice something that would give them not even the shadow of a doubt that what they were experiencing wasn't real.[/*][/list]

[b]Miscellaneous:[/b]
He often plays with a deck of cards more often then not. They keep him calm and help me focus on something other than the voices.
When he is in his room he would seem to be alone doing tricks as if someone were there watching. This is often the case when he puts himself under an illusion to see Emilia so he can show her magic tricks.

[b]OOC Notes:[/b] 
Will add to this as things come to mind.