Full Name: Darnell Aldaine
Nicknames/Aliases: Dee, Dee-Ceiver, Ninja, Chameleon are common nicknames. As for aliases, he goes by Simulacrum.
Age: 17
Gender: Male
Primary: Trickery
Secondaries of Interest: Tracking, Shadow Step. Some may find it odd that he's interested in both light and shadow magic, but he sees them as two sides of a coin, as well as useful for his investigation goals.
Description: Darnell stands at 5'11", with a lean lanky frame more suited to agility than brute force. He has messy white-blond hair, and often wears nondescript grey or black clothing that make him look like just another face in the crowd. His green eyes often have a mischievous glint to them.
Personality: Quiet with a playful streak, Darnell seems like a class clown at first glance, which isn't an entirely inaccurate assumption. He likes to sneak around, pulling pranks on unsuspecting people and staying up after curfew. Still, when he wants to be, he can be a serious student, keeping up with his studies and training. The occasional harmless trick, after all, could be considered a form of practice.
Although he appears confident - and he does indeed have a lot of faith in his skill with trickery, magical and mundane alike - his pranks and slight annoying tendencies are partly to hide social awkwardness from having been overprotected as a child. He simply refuses to show any sign of nervousness, or anything that's bothering him, concealment being his speciality.
Crush: None for now
Skills: Stealth, basic combat, observation
Weaknesses: As well as overconfidence, at his current level his illusions and concealments sometimes "flicker" when he's startled or distracted.
Brief History: During the war, which Darnell was born just before the start of, many of his family members served as investigators and combatants. His grandfather, a respected mage, died during the conflict, and Darnell's grieving father became increasingly protective of his remaining loved ones, especially him. Even after the war ended, and his father returned to his regular job as a police officer for the magic community, he remained just as strict, wanting to shield the child from a world rife with uncertainty.
Darnell, especially in his early teens, was having none of it. Using his magic, he'd frequently go behind his dad's back, or at least try to. This led to a great deal of arguments, the friction between them growing over the years... Until the day his dad set out to investigate the disappearances, and went missing himself. Four years went by, with no trace of him. Out of realisation of his respect for him, guilt at not having shown that respect, and a desire to eventually find him, Darnell decided to follow in his footsteps and go the investigation route. The rest of his family agreed that the best way for him to do this, while keeping safe throughout, would be to attend the newly founded Marchand Academy of Sorcery.
Other: As a child, due to social unrest he was too young to fully understand, he'd suffer from frequent nightmares. His dad would go to him and calm him with comforting illusions he called "sweet dreams". Once he displayed a talent for magic, he started making mild ones of his own - the sound of the sea, for example, or a purring kitten. This is something he does to this day when he's stressed, although he doesn't let anyone know.