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Description
My OC application for the group Clockhearts. ♥

Edit: Sal was excepted?? Really? *U*
This is my first RP group too~ Thank you! <333
Edit II.: Added a pic of his weapon
and here is a close up of the rings.
Icons & Related links (Gallery & Playlist)

Name: Salem de Santriel
Gender: Male
Age: 22
Faction: Hearts
Role: Noble Jeweler

Skills:
♥ Jewery Craft
- Lapidary (cutting and polishing jewels)
- Appraisal of Metals and Gems. (includes ores and uncut)
♥ Mining (minor skill, self taught)
♥ Business
- Shopkeeping
- Money Management

Weapon:
♥ Santriel II. - (Ref / Rough ) A spiked shield made of diamond, with the Santriel family's coat of arms set on front. Created by Shesta Reinwinds, a blacksmith Salem commissioned to remake it. The original was not made of diamond, but rock crystal (quartz); and was found to be breakable.

Likes:
♥ Himself
♥ Beauty
♥ Comforts (includes living conditions, food, ect.)
♥ Valuables (includes money, self worth and rare or good quality items.)
♥ Sparkles (anything that reflects light, such as: jewels, metals or glass.)
♥ Jingles (anything that sounds like jingling, including: wind chimes, music boxes or coins.)

Dislikes:
♥ Ugliness
♥ Romance (not to say deep down he couldn't "give in" to feeling love or loved;
he just has jaded and hard feelings towards the idea.)
♥ Thieves (counting beggars who are not truly needy)
♥ Accusations
♥ Noisiness (especially loud noises)
♥ Wasting Money

Personality:
♥ Posh
♥ Friendly
♥ Narcissistic
♥ Theatrical
♥ Money Hungry (not enough to steal)
♥ Strong Willed
♥ Presumptuous

History:
♥ Childhood ♥ (Age: 1-12)
Salem was born into a noble family of artisans, the Santriels. They are famous for producing high quality jewelry, among other products in the Heart faction. His father is the head of their company, so Salem was forced to spend most of his childhood training, to take the future position. Being raised by mainly his mother and his younger sister, as well as excelling in jewelry craft, Salem became quite a feminine boy. Their father was often too busy to see them, so Salem and his sister would spend their time crafting things for fun. Oftentimes competitive, but with good sportsmanship. However, Salem was the more talented and willing of the two, and fast became the family's favorite. His sister got restless, wanting to do whatever she pleased. Since her lesser talent went unnoticed, she became somewhat of a black sheep.

As they grew older this caused his sister to have to work twice as hard, becoming more frustrated with work and family life. While Salem felt he had it easy, as if everything came to him generally when he wanted it... at times, it made him feel bad for his sister. Eventually she took it to heart, feeling patronized that he even gave her sympathy. It soon felt that their family was more on Salem's side than her's. On the other hand, Salem had had a very easy going and happy childhood because of this. Still, he felt no guilt for having the family's favor. He did what he was told and in return he earned their approval and his self worth. So he simply gave into honoring their wishes, no matter what.

♥ Adolescence ♥ (Age: 13-17)
The Santriel siblings' relationship grew bitter over the years. They soon came to be opposites, much like night and day. Salem, being the people pleaser and his sister, the self serving one. It had probably been misunderstandings due to their immaturity, or the pressure and stress they had endured which caused such a change of heart in the two. Their competitiveness easily evolved into a rivalry of sorts; as they knew that one day... one of them would be taking over the family business. They now took what their childhood selves had thought of as a game, to a whole other level.

Still, at this time in his life, Salem should have been discovering girls; or at least going on an occasional date. However, his family's expectations always seemed to outweigh that, and due to the stress of focusing on his career and reputation, he had to make excuses not to. He soon lost all interest in the idea, at the thought of the compromise of having a relationship; as well as the many heartbreaks and disappointments that occurred in any attempt to. At first he simply dismissed the idea of love, but then he began to completely reject it. There were just too many broken promises, dates left waiting or missed and not enough time. Plus, having been highly expected of, loved and supported by his family all his life, Salem now preferred not only to be independent, but to idealize and embellish that independence.

♥ Adulthood ♥ (Age: 18)
When both siblings were considered to be adults by age, they were to be given a test of will. The Santriels weren't the best at what they did for nothing! By now they were expected to be well learned in their craft, whatever it may be; and just as Wonderland's rules were set by it's most powerful faction, their family and company production would be decided by it's head. That is, if they could prove that they could handle the choice they made.

In order to make this life-changing decision, they would be put on trial to see who could last the longest at their craft, in it's natural state. Without any help from family, friends or outsiders. Only once they had survived long enough to realize it was their chosen profession, without a doubt; then, like any citizen of Wonderland, they would stop aging. Whoever was able to conduct their craft with precision and a willful heart, would be the victor. The Santriels had done this for years, but the trial's length depended only on how long it took for them to find their true role. Some Santriels would become heir to the company within just a few years, sometimes even co-ownerships were founded when it occurred at the same time.

Of course, this time around most of the family bet Salem would win and his younger sister would lose. So the pressure was on... well, both of the siblings. The rewards would be to inherit their father's position when he passed away, obtain funding from the family to support their production, and claim ownership of the Santriel; their family's prized heirloom. It was said to be a shield made purely of diamond. Nothing could destroy it. Having been used in wars of the past, it was said to be the reason why their family had grown so large and prosperous over the years. It was rumored to be thousands and thousands of years old and was mentioned in many old legends and war stories.

Upon hearing this, Salem became curious; and so, on the morning before the trial, he got through the security and went into the back room. Having worked with diamonds most of his life, he had to see if the rumors were true! Not only was a shield made purely of diamonds impressive, but all of the stories that were told about it made it sound nearly impossible. IF such a shield existed, it would surely be a valuable piece of work! Salem examined it carefully, he knew the only other gem that could scratch a real diamond, was another diamond... So he decided to test it's durability. Afterall, it was said to be "unbreakable". However, just as he was about to try - his sister swung open the door! As the door slammed against the wall, the shield hit the floor and broke into many pieces..!

"This.. this isn't diamond!", Salem exclaimed, staring at the shield which had just shattered across the floor.

His sister stood dumbfounded in the doorway.

She held her hand in front of her mouth and gasped, "SALEM! LOOK AT WHAT YOU--!!"

He quickly grabbed her mouth, then proceeded to pull her in and shut the door tight.
She struggled, yelling muffled words. Salem gritted his teeth, trying to hold her still.

"Don't..!", he whispered in a harsh manner, "Don't. Say. A thing!", he glanced around worriedly.
"Mother and father will KILL me if they hear anything of this!!"

She squirmed against the back of the door for a moment, before realizing what this meant...

Her eyes narrowed, "Then you won't be able to win the trial or the shield~!", she whispered.

"Really?", Salem asked, feigning sincerity, "Neither will YOU!", he finished by scolding bluntly, leaning in towards her.

She shrugged, "It's just too bad daddy's off on business this month and mom's not home yet~", she replied.

"Oh, don't test me...", he mumbled, letting go of her.

"OH I'll test you alright!! It's a test to see who can get to mom first, when she gets home and tell her all about this!", she proclaimed, with one finger in the air.

Her brother slammed his palm against the door. Sweat fell down his furrowed brow, and then...

"Okay then!", Salem smiled recklessly, "I'll play by your rules; but when mother sees the shield in one piece, she'll have nothing more to say!!", he shouted.

His sister looked stunned. She started to open her mouth, but before she could say anything, Salem had already bolted. As she turned towards the doorway, she heard the front door slam.

"....What in Wonderland is he thinking?? Has he gone mad?", she wondered.

♥ Prologue Climax ♥ (Age: 19-21)
From that day on Salem would wake up early, go to the mines and dig up ores. Carry them out, cut, polish and fashion them into jewelry to sell for a living. Within months Salem knew his father would return home and well... his mother would return sooner than that! He could not risk going back, so he had no choice but to leave home, in hopes of finding a blacksmith good enough to replicate the Santriel. Of course, in the meantime he would be on trial, but any spare time he had would be spent searching. This became extremely exhausting, especially for a nobleman who had rarely worked hard in his life, other than simple crafts. Still, Salem had decided he would not return home until the Santriel was restored; otherwise, he would be risking not only his reputation, but his future as well. Now he just needed to work hard enough to earn the money he needed to buy enough materials and hire a blacksmith to create it. It was hard to do from memory and a few old photos and illustrations, but he made some rough drafts of what he liked to call the Santriel II.; a remake of the original shield, but this time made of real diamond. He even adjusted a few minor technicalities, considering he never really knew it's actual make up; but he tried to give it more of an advantage while retaining it's shape.

Luckily Salem was a natural at money-making, and was able to use his strong will and pride in order to salvage the required profits. This took him about 3 years. Still, even under the most meager of living conditions, he made it hard to tell that he'd been roughing it in caverns and forests, instead of living at home in his cozy chateau... Both ecstatic and relieved, he went to the next step: to search for a blacksmith! For his family and himself, it was always the best of the best, so he decided to inquire for only the most skilled of smiths; no matter their age, race, faction or what have you. Living off part of his earnings, he started making visits to every blacksmith he had heard of and comparing their skills to his best ability.

In the end, his search stopped when he heard of a blacksmith named Shesta who was only just starting out. He was surprised to hear that he was any good, as well as the fact that he'd already been doing business with his family for sometime now. A brand new blacksmith with an eye for embellishing gems into his weapons seemed somewhat promising. Though when Salem got to the address in the Diamond faction, he hesitated to enter... thinking the shop was much too small, with lack of decoration and the bustle of customers, not apparent either. Losing his pride momentarily, Salem had no choice but to go in and meet with Shesta. Needless to say he was impressed. It seemed this man had talent in making metals more malleable; but whether he could do that or not with a gem, and a diamond at that, was uncertain at first. It took about 3 months of work, but Shesta was able to complete it... the Santriel II. Now all Salem had to do was finish the payment and maybe test it out, before returning home. He wondered what would await him there, having been gone for an estimate of 3 years and months; he only hoped that his sister hadn't completed her trial before him. It seemed possible with the time that had passed; but of course, we're talking about Wonderland, so for all he knew it may have been less than it felt!

♥ Prologue Epilogue ♥ (Age: 22)

To Salem's delight, his sister had not completed the trial; nor had anyone bothered with the storage room. When he'd asked his mother, she simply told him that his sister had gone off to start her trial and she hadn't seen either of them for so long. She was starting to get worried, but she was sure they'd pull through. He also asked if the shield was still "in place", trying to word his question so that it wasn't suspicious; as if just "checking in" on his possible future reward. His mother happily replied, that no one had gone into the back room, since the trial was a serious tradition in which the rewards could not be tampered with until the victor emerged. It was something that their father had decided; also something that Salem was very grateful for, at this point... Kindly faring well to his mother, Salem slipped into the
back room again. It was a wonder that his sister had only been bluffing. She even left the door closed, without it's lock. Quickly tidying the room up with a broom from a nearby closet, he got rid of the shards from the old shield and found just enough time to replace it with the new replica. Wiping his brow, he turned to see his sister.

What a sight and what a timing! Salem wasn't happy about this. He was caught at the scene of the crime; but then she made the statement that she knew she'd find him here, and continued with the fact that he was lucky she'd been too preoccupied with her trial to stop for trivial tattling. Before Salem could respond, she gave a loud call out to their mother. Salem instinctively faced her, covering the shield with his arms behind him. When his mother entered the room, she immediately asked what either of them were doing here. He now figured, they may as well forfeit the trial, before any worse punishment ensued. However, that was not the case, his mother beamed proudly, that they must have both completed their trials and came home to accept their reward! After all, how could she tell if they had stopped aging in an instant? Salem's sister was confused, but before she could make a remark about how they hadn't finished their trials, Salem quickly pretended to congratulate her on finishing the trial. He went on, loudly, about how proud their father would be if he could see them now; making sure he gave her no momentum, by smothering her. Enthusiastically grabbing her by the shoulders, followed by patting her on the head and back, among other awkward displays of approval... their mother was instantly gratified at the sight. She then asked both of them, what craft they had decided on together... Together; this was not something the Santriel siblings did. In fact, they did nothing together. Not since many years ago. As they turned to face one another, Salem realized he had no excuse for this... and his sister, looked pretty angry.

With no way out of the charade, they both declared their desired role to each other's faces: "Jeweler" and "Seamstress!". Looking disappointed, their mother admitted, she was confused. She wished they could have just said fashion... but the two were different crafts, requiring different materials and methods, even if for the same purpose. Now that they'd admitted their best and long awaited roles, they both stopped aging. However, a co-ownership could not be settled. Even when their father returned, the idea of a boutique or any form of combined efforts were turned down. At this point, their father stated, there could only be one head of family; unless the two worked together for the same goal. Sure their family had in it, artisans of various crafts, but the head of the company, as well as any co-owners, could not choose more than one role. It would decide their major industry. Both of the siblings argued over who would be the head, for a very long time. Then, being fed up with all the confusion and lies from her brother, Salem's sister claimed she would do better than him even if she wasn't part of the family business! After all, what were titles or privileges given to you, by those who never believed in you in the first place? With that, she stated she would leave the Heart faction and start her own life. From now on, she would belong to Diamond faction, where she could live out her dream of being a fashion designer without her family's rules and discouragement. Apparently she'd visited there during her trial and she rather took a liking to it.. It was free, something she would never be if she continued to be part of this family.

Everything after that seemed to pass as quickly as a blur. Salem remembered being accepted as his father's heir, being given many papers and the whole family rejoicing; even if some were sorrowed by his sibling's leave, many of them were too proud of their family to respect her anymore. He was given the shield, though, he honestly felt he deserved it. He was also given a decently sized building, in his name. It included a small shop front, a work room in the back and a few rooms for living in. He'd also received a crew of workers who would supply him with materials and handle the hard work, such as mining, or moving shipments into the shop's work room, as well as delivering jewelry to customers. Salem felt, he now pretty much had his life under control, though... when you're a citizen of Wonderland, the controls may shift at any given time.

Additional info:
♥ Firstname means "Safe; to be safe".
Pronounciation: SAY-Lim.
♥ Surname means "God is my Guardsman".
Pronounciation: San-trEE-el.
♥ Heterosexual.
♥ Height is 5'6" ft. (167cm.)
♥ Weight is 132 lbs. (60 kg.)
♥ Fighting style is "Guardsmanship", much like "Swordsmanship". It includes melee attacks with a shield equipped to the lower arm. Salem's in particular uses charging, swift and weaving movements.
♥ Left-handed.
♥ 2 years older than his sister.
♥ Has no problems with other factions, since he prefers to do business openly.
♥ If his faction has an opposition or enemy, he would still fight against them; but only if the situation endangered another member of the Hearts.
♥ Doesn't care to "Play the Hero" in saving members from other factions who are in danger, unless they're his friend or important to him in some way.
♥ Enjoys a little friendly competition, though even he gets carried away...
♥ When angry or in a pinch, his rashness can make him seem vicious or even sadistic. (Though he does not enjoy causing others pain, he feels satisfaction in overpowering or getting revenge on those who've done him wrong.)
♥ Tries to restrain negative emotions with a smile most of the time, but cracks under pressure easily.
♥ Doesn't like sharing personal information with others. Especially weaknesses, secrets and anything to make him look bad.

Current Relationships : (Non-NPC)
Shesta Reinwinds

♥ Assumes Shesta is too innocent and generally easy to fool, but a good person.
♥ Thinks that the jingling sounds from the chains and gems on Shesta's clothes make him more delightful to be around.

Notes (just to be safe):
I don't know how "big" a chateau is, so if it's too out of line for a regular noble, let me know..
That dialogue was inserted from my attempt at the Writing Application, but I didn't want it to go to waste.
I'm using terms such as months and years as an estimate, for how it felt.. though I know time doesn't exist in Wonderland. Please let me know if you'd prefer I say it in Periods or something instead.
Anything related to Shesta was decided with , his creator.
I made him uninterested in love because I'm not really sure about him having opinions on love/adult topics (should they arise? .///.) or romantic relationships between him and another OC, unless they really want to; then their creator can talk things over with me.
Also, if you're wondering, the image below Role is the Santriel coat of arms. C:

Description
My OC application for the group Clockhearts. ♥

Edit: Sal was excepted?? Really? *U*
This is my first RP group too~ Thank you! <333
Edit II.: Added a pic of his weapon
and here is a close up of the rings.
Icons & Related links (Gallery & Playlist)

Name: Salem de Santriel
Gender: Male
Age: 22
Faction: Hearts
Role: Noble Jeweler

Skills:
♥ Jewery Craft
- Lapidary (cutting and polishing jewels)
- Appraisal of Metals and Gems. (includes ores and uncut)
♥ Mining (minor skill, self taught)
♥ Business
- Shopkeeping
- Money Management

Weapon:
♥ Santriel II. - (Ref / Rough ) A spiked shield made of diamond, with the Santriel family's coat of arms set on front. Created by Shesta Reinwinds, a blacksmith Salem commissioned to remake it. The original was not made of diamond, but rock crystal (quartz); and was found to be breakable.

Likes:
♥ Himself
♥ Beauty
♥ Comforts (includes living conditions, food, ect.)
♥ Valuables (includes money, self worth and rare or good quality items.)
♥ Sparkles (anything that reflects light, such as: jewels, metals or glass.)
♥ Jingles (anything that sounds like jingling, including: wind chimes, music boxes or coins.)

Dislikes:
♥ Ugliness
♥ Romance (not to say deep down he couldn't "give in" to feeling love or loved;
he just has jaded and hard feelings towards the idea.)
♥ Thieves (counting beggars who are not truly needy)
♥ Accusations
♥ Noisiness (especially loud noises)
♥ Wasting Money

Personality:
♥ Posh
♥ Friendly
♥ Narcissistic
♥ Theatrical
♥ Money Hungry (not enough to steal)
♥ Strong Willed
♥ Presumptuous

History:
♥ Childhood ♥ (Age: 1-12)
Salem was born into a noble family of artisans, the Santriels. They are famous for producing high quality jewelry, among other products in the Heart faction. His father is the head of their company, so Salem was forced to spend most of his childhood training, to take the future position. Being raised by mainly his mother and his younger sister, as well as excelling in jewelry craft, Salem became quite a feminine boy. Their father was often too busy to see them, so Salem and his sister would spend their time crafting things for fun. Oftentimes competitive, but with good sportsmanship. However, Salem was the more talented and willing of the two, and fast became the family's favorite. His sister got restless, wanting to do whatever she pleased. Since her lesser talent went unnoticed, she became somewhat of a black sheep.

As they grew older this caused his sister to have to work twice as hard, becoming more frustrated with work and family life. While Salem felt he had it easy, as if everything came to him generally when he wanted it... at times, it made him feel bad for his sister. Eventually she took it to heart, feeling patronized that he even gave her sympathy. It soon felt that their family was more on Salem's side than her's. On the other hand, Salem had had a very easy going and happy childhood because of this. Still, he felt no guilt for having the family's favor. He did what he was told and in return he earned their approval and his self worth. So he simply gave into honoring their wishes, no matter what.

♥ Adolescence ♥ (Age: 13-17)
The Santriel siblings' relationship grew bitter over the years. They soon came to be opposites, much like night and day. Salem, being the people pleaser and his sister, the self serving one. It had probably been misunderstandings due to their immaturity, or the pressure and stress they had endured which caused such a change of heart in the two. Their competitiveness easily evolved into a rivalry of sorts; as they knew that one day... one of them would be taking over the family business. They now took what their childhood selves had thought of as a game, to a whole other level.

Still, at this time in his life, Salem should have been discovering girls; or at least going on an occasional date. However, his family's expectations always seemed to outweigh that, and due to the stress of focusing on his career and reputation, he had to make excuses not to. He soon lost all interest in the idea, at the thought of the compromise of having a relationship; as well as the many heartbreaks and disappointments that occurred in any attempt to. At first he simply dismissed the idea of love, but then he began to completely reject it. There were just too many broken promises, dates left waiting or missed and not enough time. Plus, having been highly expected of, loved and supported by his family all his life, Salem now preferred not only to be independent, but to idealize and embellish that independence.

♥ Adulthood ♥ (Age: 18)
When both siblings were considered to be adults by age, they were to be given a test of will. The Santriels weren't the best at what they did for nothing! By now they were expected to be well learned in their craft, whatever it may be; and just as Wonderland's rules were set by it's most powerful faction, their family and company production would be decided by it's head. That is, if they could prove that they could handle the choice they made.

In order to make this life-changing decision, they would be put on trial to see who could last the longest at their craft, in it's natural state. Without any help from family, friends or outsiders. Only once they had survived long enough to realize it was their chosen profession, without a doubt; then, like any citizen of Wonderland, they would stop aging. Whoever was able to conduct their craft with precision and a willful heart, would be the victor. The Santriels had done this for years, but the trial's length depended only on how long it took for them to find their true role. Some Santriels would become heir to the company within just a few years, sometimes even co-ownerships were founded when it occurred at the same time.

Of course, this time around most of the family bet Salem would win and his younger sister would lose. So the pressure was on... well, both of the siblings. The rewards would be to inherit their father's position when he passed away, obtain funding from the family to support their production, and claim ownership of the Santriel; their family's prized heirloom. It was said to be a shield made purely of diamond. Nothing could destroy it. Having been used in wars of the past, it was said to be the reason why their family had grown so large and prosperous over the years. It was rumored to be thousands and thousands of years old and was mentioned in many old legends and war stories.

Upon hearing this, Salem became curious; and so, on the morning before the trial, he got through the security and went into the back room. Having worked with diamonds most of his life, he had to see if the rumors were true! Not only was a shield made purely of diamonds impressive, but all of the stories that were told about it made it sound nearly impossible. IF such a shield existed, it would surely be a valuable piece of work! Salem examined it carefully, he knew the only other gem that could scratch a real diamond, was another diamond... So he decided to test it's durability. Afterall, it was said to be "unbreakable". However, just as he was about to try - his sister swung open the door! As the door slammed against the wall, the shield hit the floor and broke into many pieces..!

"This.. this isn't diamond!", Salem exclaimed, staring at the shield which had just shattered across the floor.

His sister stood dumbfounded in the doorway.

She held her hand in front of her mouth and gasped, "SALEM! LOOK AT WHAT YOU--!!"

He quickly grabbed her mouth, then proceeded to pull her in and shut the door tight.
She struggled, yelling muffled words. Salem gritted his teeth, trying to hold her still.

"Don't..!", he whispered in a harsh manner, "Don't. Say. A thing!", he glanced around worriedly.
"Mother and father will KILL me if they hear anything of this!!"

She squirmed against the back of the door for a moment, before realizing what this meant...

Her eyes narrowed, "Then you won't be able to win the trial or the shield~!", she whispered.

"Really?", Salem asked, feigning sincerity, "Neither will YOU!", he finished by scolding bluntly, leaning in towards her.

She shrugged, "It's just too bad daddy's off on business this month and mom's not home yet~", she replied.

"Oh, don't test me...", he mumbled, letting go of her.

"OH I'll test you alright!! It's a test to see who can get to mom first, when she gets home and tell her all about this!", she proclaimed, with one finger in the air.

Her brother slammed his palm against the door. Sweat fell down his furrowed brow, and then...

"Okay then!", Salem smiled recklessly, "I'll play by your rules; but when mother sees the shield in one piece, she'll have nothing more to say!!", he shouted.

His sister looked stunned. She started to open her mouth, but before she could say anything, Salem had already bolted. As she turned towards the doorway, she heard the front door slam.

"....What in Wonderland is he thinking?? Has he gone mad?", she wondered.

♥ Prologue Climax ♥ (Age: 19-21)
From that day on Salem would wake up early, go to the mines and dig up ores. Carry them out, cut, polish and fashion them into jewelry to sell for a living. Within months Salem knew his father would return home and well... his mother would return sooner than that! He could not risk going back, so he had no choice but to leave home, in hopes of finding a blacksmith good enough to replicate the Santriel. Of course, in the meantime he would be on trial, but any spare time he had would be spent searching. This became extremely exhausting, especially for a nobleman who had rarely worked hard in his life, other than simple crafts. Still, Salem had decided he would not return home until the Santriel was restored; otherwise, he would be risking not only his reputation, but his future as well. Now he just needed to work hard enough to earn the money he needed to buy enough materials and hire a blacksmith to create it. It was hard to do from memory and a few old photos and illustrations, but he made some rough drafts of what he liked to call the Santriel II.; a remake of the original shield, but this time made of real diamond. He even adjusted a few minor technicalities, considering he never really knew it's actual make up; but he tried to give it more of an advantage while retaining it's shape.

Luckily Salem was a natural at money-making, and was able to use his strong will and pride in order to salvage the required profits. This took him about 3 years. Still, even under the most meager of living conditions, he made it hard to tell that he'd been roughing it in caverns and forests, instead of living at home in his cozy chateau... Both ecstatic and relieved, he went to the next step: to search for a blacksmith! For his family and himself, it was always the best of the best, so he decided to inquire for only the most skilled of smiths; no matter their age, race, faction or what have you. Living off part of his earnings, he started making visits to every blacksmith he had heard of and comparing their skills to his best ability.

In the end, his search stopped when he heard of a blacksmith named Shesta who was only just starting out. He was surprised to hear that he was any good, as well as the fact that he'd already been doing business with his family for sometime now. A brand new blacksmith with an eye for embellishing gems into his weapons seemed somewhat promising. Though when Salem got to the address in the Diamond faction, he hesitated to enter... thinking the shop was much too small, with lack of decoration and the bustle of customers, not apparent either. Losing his pride momentarily, Salem had no choice but to go in and meet with Shesta. Needless to say he was impressed. It seemed this man had talent in making metals more malleable; but whether he could do that or not with a gem, and a diamond at that, was uncertain at first. It took about 3 months of work, but Shesta was able to complete it... the Santriel II. Now all Salem had to do was finish the payment and maybe test it out, before returning home. He wondered what would await him there, having been gone for an estimate of 3 years and months; he only hoped that his sister hadn't completed her trial before him. It seemed possible with the time that had passed; but of course, we're talking about Wonderland, so for all he knew it may have been less than it felt!

♥ Prologue Epilogue ♥ (Age: 22)

To Salem's delight, his sister had not completed the trial; nor had anyone bothered with the storage room. When he'd asked his mother, she simply told him that his sister had gone off to start her trial and she hadn't seen either of them for so long. She was starting to get worried, but she was sure they'd pull through. He also asked if the shield was still "in place", trying to word his question so that it wasn't suspicious; as if just "checking in" on his possible future reward. His mother happily replied, that no one had gone into the back room, since the trial was a serious tradition in which the rewards could not be tampered with until the victor emerged. It was something that their father had decided; also something that Salem was very grateful for, at this point... Kindly faring well to his mother, Salem slipped into the
back room again. It was a wonder that his sister had only been bluffing. She even left the door closed, without it's lock. Quickly tidying the room up with a broom from a nearby closet, he got rid of the shards from the old shield and found just enough time to replace it with the new replica. Wiping his brow, he turned to see his sister.

What a sight and what a timing! Salem wasn't happy about this. He was caught at the scene of the crime; but then she made the statement that she knew she'd find him here, and continued with the fact that he was lucky she'd been too preoccupied with her trial to stop for trivial tattling. Before Salem could respond, she gave a loud call out to their mother. Salem instinctively faced her, covering the shield with his arms behind him. When his mother entered the room, she immediately asked what either of them were doing here. He now figured, they may as well forfeit the trial, before any worse punishment ensued. However, that was not the case, his mother beamed proudly, that they must have both completed their trials and came home to accept their reward! After all, how could she tell if they had stopped aging in an instant? Salem's sister was confused, but before she could make a remark about how they hadn't finished their trials, Salem quickly pretended to congratulate her on finishing the trial. He went on, loudly, about how proud their father would be if he could see them now; making sure he gave her no momentum, by smothering her. Enthusiastically grabbing her by the shoulders, followed by patting her on the head and back, among other awkward displays of approval... their mother was instantly gratified at the sight. She then asked both of them, what craft they had decided on together... Together; this was not something the Santriel siblings did. In fact, they did nothing together. Not since many years ago. As they turned to face one another, Salem realized he had no excuse for this... and his sister, looked pretty angry.

With no way out of the charade, they both declared their desired role to each other's faces: "Jeweler" and "Seamstress!". Looking disappointed, their mother admitted, she was confused. She wished they could have just said fashion... but the two were different crafts, requiring different materials and methods, even if for the same purpose. Now that they'd admitted their best and long awaited roles, they both stopped aging. However, a co-ownership could not be settled. Even when their father returned, the idea of a boutique or any form of combined efforts were turned down. At this point, their father stated, there could only be one head of family; unless the two worked together for the same goal. Sure their family had in it, artisans of various crafts, but the head of the company, as well as any co-owners, could not choose more than one role. It would decide their major industry. Both of the siblings argued over who would be the head, for a very long time. Then, being fed up with all the confusion and lies from her brother, Salem's sister claimed she would do better than him even if she wasn't part of the family business! After all, what were titles or privileges given to you, by those who never believed in you in the first place? With that, she stated she would leave the Heart faction and start her own life. From now on, she would belong to Diamond faction, where she could live out her dream of being a fashion designer without her family's rules and discouragement. Apparently she'd visited there during her trial and she rather took a liking to it.. It was free, something she would never be if she continued to be part of this family.

Everything after that seemed to pass as quickly as a blur. Salem remembered being accepted as his father's heir, being given many papers and the whole family rejoicing; even if some were sorrowed by his sibling's leave, many of them were too proud of their family to respect her anymore. He was given the shield, though, he honestly felt he deserved it. He was also given a decently sized building, in his name. It included a small shop front, a work room in the back and a few rooms for living in. He'd also received a crew of workers who would supply him with materials and handle the hard work, such as mining, or moving shipments into the shop's work room, as well as delivering jewelry to customers. Salem felt, he now pretty much had his life under control, though... when you're a citizen of Wonderland, the controls may shift at any given time.

Additional info:
♥ Firstname means "Safe; to be safe".
Pronounciation: SAY-Lim.
♥ Surname means "God is my Guardsman".
Pronounciation: San-trEE-el.
♥ Heterosexual.
♥ Height is 5'6" ft. (167cm.)
♥ Weight is 132 lbs. (60 kg.)
♥ Fighting style is "Guardsmanship", much like "Swordsmanship". It includes melee attacks with a shield equipped to the lower arm. Salem's in particular uses charging, swift and weaving movements.
♥ Left-handed.
♥ 2 years older than his sister.
♥ Has no problems with other factions, since he prefers to do business openly.
♥ If his faction has an opposition or enemy, he would still fight against them; but only if the situation endangered another member of the Hearts.
♥ Doesn't care to "Play the Hero" in saving members from other factions who are in danger, unless they're his friend or important to him in some way.
♥ Enjoys a little friendly competition, though even he gets carried away...
♥ When angry or in a pinch, his rashness can make him seem vicious or even sadistic. (Though he does not enjoy causing others pain, he feels satisfaction in overpowering or getting revenge on those who've done him wrong.)
♥ Tries to restrain negative emotions with a smile most of the time, but cracks under pressure easily.
♥ Doesn't like sharing personal information with others. Especially weaknesses, secrets and anything to make him look bad.

Current Relationships : (Non-NPC)
Shesta Reinwinds

♥ Assumes Shesta is too innocent and generally easy to fool, but a good person.
♥ Thinks that the jingling sounds from the chains and gems on Shesta's clothes make him more delightful to be around.

Notes (just to be safe):
I don't know how "big" a chateau is, so if it's too out of line for a regular noble, let me know..
That dialogue was inserted from my attempt at the Writing Application, but I didn't want it to go to waste.
I'm using terms such as months and years as an estimate, for how it felt.. though I know time doesn't exist in Wonderland. Please let me know if you'd prefer I say it in Periods or something instead.
Anything related to Shesta was decided with , his creator.
I made him uninterested in love because I'm not really sure about him having opinions on love/adult topics (should they arise? .///.) or romantic relationships between him and another OC, unless they really want to; then their creator can talk things over with me.
Also, if you're wondering, the image below Role is the Santriel coat of arms. C: