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[truculentus]

Player Info

Name: Crystal
Age: 24
Contact: thesubrosa
Characters Already in Teleios: Damon Salvatore (untilmydarknessgoes), Amaterasu (byleapsandbounds), Aveline de Grandpré (apparence), & Adam Jensen (ineveraskedforthis).
Reserve: Here!

Character Basics:

Character Name: King Henry VIII
Journal: truculentus
Age: 42
Fandom: The Tudors
Canon Point: 2x03 - 'Checkmate' just after the birth of his daughter, Princess Elizabeth.
Debt:

Class A: 11 years
Class B: 4 years
Class C: 2 years, 10 months

Warmongering, property damage, throwing a tantrum, dismissing/ignoring his wife, & macho pissing contests.

GRAND TOTAL: 17 years, 10 months

Canon Character Section:

History: Tudors Wikia

Personality:

When most think of Henry VIII, they often think of him as he was in his later years: moody, paranoid, ruthless, and tyrannical. But that is more the man Henry will become after his jousting accident in 1536 than the man he is now. The man Henry is is now is only with only traces of the ill-tempered tyrant history would remember him to be. As he is now, Henry is known for his generosity and love as well as his temper. As fickle and moody as he can sometimes be, Henry is also not one to change his mind or heart easily. And as charming and confident as Henry can prove to be, he is also an insecure ruler.

As a young man, Henry is easily ruled by his passions. When Henry feels something, whether it be love or hate, he feels it so intensely that it is enough to override anything else because he is incredibly stubborn. Once Henry's heart and mind are made up, there is very little anyone can say or do to convince him of anything else. This makes Henry's passion a double-edged sword. On the one hand, when Henry loves or desires, the object of his affection gets nothing short of the best care. He showers them with extravagant gifts and sees to it that their every need and whim are met. This is seen as he writes love letters and poems to Anne Boleyn, the titles and lands he bestows on close friends and trusted advisors, and the ways in which he spoils his children. When at the center of Henry's affection, one is most certainly in the center of his generosity and good will. But this only lasts so long as Henry's own pleasure is being met. The moment Henry begins to feel dissatisfied (or if something is standing as an impediment to his desires), he becomes cold and distant at the best, angry and volatile at worst.

Most are rightfully afraid of invoking Henry's temper. There is no one person truly safe from invoking Henry's anger and it does not matter how highly he once regarded an individual. The moment they become a nuisance or Henry perceives a slight against himself, the love he once bore for them quickly turns to anger and hatred at the extreme. In the case of his wives, this loss of affection often results in him seeking out extra-marital affairs like it's nobody's business at a minimum as he is hot then cold, yes then no, in then out, up then down when it comes to his marriages. Worse than that, the king's anger proves to be fatal as he often uses execution as a means of eliminating perceived enemies and those who displease him (including wives). Henry is somewhat aware of the fear most hold for his anger and sometimes uses it to his advantage to coerce submission and compliance with his demands. However, for the most part his anger -- like most of his emotions -- cannot be controlled even by himself because his temper runs on a very short fuse.

There are a few exceptions in which the object of his anger is spared and must simply wait him out. For example, he is often able to forgive his best friend, Charles Brandon, perceived transgressions. Likewise, Henry is incredibly competitive, so he is prone to losing his temper whenever he loses at something or is proven wrong, but more often than not, he's able to let that anger go eventually. He can be somewhat reasonable and realize that heads don't need to roll because he didn't win the tennis match.

Part of the reason why Henry is so incredibly competitive is due to his ego, which is both gigantic and fragile. Henry believes himself to be the best and greatest at most everything, so his sense of self is certainly inflated, but much of this is ego is also a facade as Henry is incredibly insecure. Henry was never meant to be king and so was generally ill-prepared to take the throne when the time came. Although neither his paranoia nor ruthlessness are what they become in his later years, Henry still has a great deal of anxiety about his status as king and goes to extreme measures to insure his station as king through the earlier mentioned executions. Without a male heir, the Tudor hold over the throne is tenuous (because a woman on the throne wouldn't work at all for the times) and civil war would be imminent. The last thing Henry wants to be is the weak link in the Tudor dynasty. Thus, Henry tries to sell the image of a strong ruler to himself constantly and obsesses over male issue, trying to solidify his legacy and be remembered for all time. This is also part of the reason why Henry refuses to be told no by anyone, including the pope. Henry seeks to answer to no one but himself, which also makes him incredibly self-indulgent.

It is important to remember, however, is that although Henry can be demanding, fickle, and have a nasty temper, he is still generally well-liked and loved by those around him. There is an element of fear, of course, but people do want to generally please the king beyond just fear of what he will do if he is displeased. Aside from the earlier mentions of the way in which he can be quite loving and generous to those in his favor, Henry is also a very charming and charismatic leader. People find themselves enamored by his wit, as Henry is very well-educated and clever, and enjoy being in his presence; they also enjoy competing with and against him even if he is a sore loser and/or they often let him win. And although being king certainly doesn't hurt in seeking out these extra-marital affairs, Henry does have a way with women, knowing how to flirt and make them feel at the very center of the universe.

In short, Henry does have a bad temper that's triggered easily and can be cold and ruthless in dealing with those he perceives as being against him. He also can be very demanding and self-indulgent as he protects a fragile ego. But as a younger man, he is not all those things that history tends to remember him as. He can be passionate and loving, lavishing those in his favor with extravagant gifts. And although people do have good reason to fear him, they also still love him in return.

Powers/Abilities:

Aside from some of the obvious skills required of a king that he's sorta managed to pick up along the way, Henry is fluent in Latin and French. He's a skilled athlete and primarily enjoys tennis, jousting, and hunting. Henry also is skilled with music and dancing.

What a cool guy.

Appearance:

Not ginger, fair-skinned, or fat. Watch out, King Hot Calves comin' through.

Samples:

Actionspam Sample:

[Because Henry thinks himself as generous, he decides to give the agent in charge a chance to correct their mistake in bringing him here. His tone is even and clipped, but there is an anger just beneath the surface that pervades each word and threatens to slip out with every pause.]

By what authority do you presume to have the right to hold me? I am the King of England and answer only to God Almighty Himself and no other.

Seeing as how you are neither He nor is there anything weighing upon my conscience at this present moment that I might feel compelled to atone for, you have brought me here unjustly and under false pretenses. I demand that I, as well as my one true wife, be released.

If you do not, I guarantee you, there will be consequences. [There is a heavy pause to let that sink in.] I will give you until the end of the month.

Prose Sample:

Henry or Edward.

Both decent names, strong names for any son he might have. Since the day Anne revealed she was indeed pregnant, Henry has gone back and forth with each name. He asked Anne's opinion, more of a courtesy than anything serious, but she answered as he suspected she would. Whatever will please His Majesty will certainly please her. And then, of course, other sons to follow. So perhaps it is more a matter of choosing one first. Henry certainly prefers that prospect above all else.

Each day he's watched as Anne's belly has grown, alternating between anxious and unrelentingly happy. It drifts into his mind from time to time that something may happen, try as he might to banish such thoughts. It's like irrational to carry such fears, but after the disappointments Katherine had provided him with...

No, it was best not to think of Katherine. It only ever serves to put him in a foul mood. Like most things, Anne is right. It's best not to let her spoil anything let alone the son he knows he is soon to have. Katherine is no longer here and she no longer matters as far as Henry is concerned. It's better to look to the future. And what a bright future lies ahead for Henry. He's going to have everything that he wants and no one, not Katherine, not the pope will stand in his way of his true and utter happiness.