'Sometimes, the smartest thing to say is nothing at all.'
Name: Bradshaw Zachary Ceres
Nickname: Brad 'I much prefer Brad, if you please.'
Age: 16
Sexuality: Homosexual
Pantheon: Greek
Ancestor: Demeter - Goddess of Nature
Occupation: Full-time student, part-time Library worker
Likes: Reading -- Being outside around nature -- Studying 'I rather like to study; I find it curiously soothing for the brain.' -- Correcting people -- Writing -- Debating -- Shopping -- Extreme weather (bad storms, hurricanes, blizzards, etc)
Dislikes: Rude or ill-mannered people -- Bad grades -- Being corrected -- T-shirts -- Idle chats -- Littering -- Loud and crowded places
Fears: Spiders, failure, and heights
Hobbies: Reading, biking 'I'm not fond of most physically strenuous activities.. but I happen to love riding my bike almost as much as studying.'
Ancestor: Demeter, Goddess of Nature
Powers: Being the descendent of the agricultural goddess, Brad and his siblings have inherited the ability to manipulate nature. Upon his command, Brad can cause plant life to either flourish or wither. Being the natural scientist that he is, Brad has studied his powers extensively through intense introspection as well as trial-and-error experimentation. His powers are very well developed because of this. He makes a point to regularly study Botany and Horticulture aside from his schoolwork and in addition to his political studies. Brad has evolved his natural ability to will plants into growth by this research, and thus will often apply his powers for the sake of growing medicinal herbs as they are needed by himself or his family/neighbors. Brad has a great amount of knowledge on many subjects, and has made a point to be especially educated on herbal medicine due to its relevancy and practical application to his powers.
Weaknesses: Brad has a low tolerance for people whom he deems "inferior in intelligence", and is prone to fits of anger and frustration because of these people. During these mental states, his powers are greatly inhibited. He's also noticed that in times of great fear, some nearby plant life had died as a result of his negative emotions.
He's also not very physically apt and is prone to exhaustion. If he's weak or tired, he can't spare any energy on his powers.
Strengths: Brad's greatest strength is his memory and cleverness. He's very intelligent and takes delight in studying and retaining lots of information.
Thoughts: 'Not to be partial, but.....
The Norse can be really stupid. It confounds me how barbaric and primitive they can all be, at times. The Egyptian seem rather intelligent, so that's nice. However, they place too much emphasis on spirituality and not enough on science. Us Greeks are fairly balanced in terms of this.'
Personality: Brad is a very intelligent and studious kid. While most texts regard his ancestor Demeter as an Earth Goddess, there have been many accounts that she was also a goddess of knowledge. If indeed these accounts are true, then her children today are living proof of it. Almost all of the Ceres children are in some way or another academically gifted, and they seem to share a common love for books and reading. Brad in particular happens to be very into his studies; he often claims that he'd much rather sit at home and read a book than go out with friends, and he typically does just that.
Being the youngest, Brad tends to stay wrapped up in his own little world which consists of several books and hobbies, usually related to academic pursuits. He values studying above just about everything else and is sometimes seen as a bit of a nerd. His studying is actually a direct product of his numerous ambitions. In his youth, Brad wanted nothing more than to be a Politician. In recent years with the discovery of his powers, his focus has shifted more towards the medical, more specifically natural medicine. However, being the tireless researcher that he is, he didn't see the point in giving up his old political studies and is to this day a remarkable debater - an activity which he takes great joy in. That being said, Brad doesn't actually open his mouth to speak very often, but he'd never turn down a good debate, or an intellectual discussion.
Although all of Brad's studying has greatly increased is already dazzling intellect, there are two downsides to this: firstly, he's incredibly physically inept. Not only does he tire quickly with most sports and exercise, but he's also incredibly uncoordinated. Secondly, he tends to be a bit harsh and cold in character. That's not to say he can't be warm and welcoming when he wants to be, as all children of Demeter are known for being hospitable and caring. But he has developed a rather low tolerance for anybody he deems less intelligent than himself, which unfortunately is a lot of people. He tries very hard not to be rude because he's not all that fond of rude people himself. But even if he keeps his snide remarks to himself, his facial expressions still ooze with judgmental crass.
In the rare moments that he's not reading or studying something, Brad can be found interacting with friends or his family, whom he is very close to. He doesn't at all mind socializing with people, and is actually rather good at it although he'd never admit to it. Just be sure to mind your P's and Q's when around him and chances are he won't forever judge you as a barbarian.
Brad is rather mindful of social graces and is a very well-mannered person (except for when he's criticizing others on their mistakes.) He always dresses nice and professional, preferring to wear upscale clothing, and maintains a clean-cut appearance. You'll hardly ever find him dressed down, even during casual occasions. He also has a habit of speaking very verbosely; his manner of speech and expression is rather eloquent and sophisticated, but sometimes people have a hard time understanding him because of the advanced vocabulary he uses.
History: Brad was always very close with his family ever since he was a little kid. He often preferred to spend time around them as opposed to making friends and then going out and socializing. During the times when his older siblings weren't available to entertain him, he would find solace in books and schoolwork. He had high ambitions from the time he was young, and often thought many years ahead to who - and what - he wanted to be when he grew up. He always had a gift for speaking and arguing, and was a very naturally intelligent child. During his younger years, he longed to be a politician. That all changed with the discovery of his powers.
He knew the powers would arrive one day. He frequently witnessed his brother and sister being able to influence the growth of plants, and was taught that one day he would be able to do the same. When that day finally came, the ability entirely captured his curiosity. He began to study the complete ins-and-outs of plant biology, and after he learned as much as he could about that, he honed in his studies to more specific areas of botany. He spent most of his efforts with this research on the practical application of plants -- in other words, their medicinal use. He's still in the process of "mastering" the healing properties of them all.
Brad has decided to devote his main work to this. Using his abilities, he wishes to make quick work of the growing process and then harvest the herbs and flowers of their numerous curative uses.
In terms of love, Brad has been in love twice: once with his childhood best friend Evan Hampstead, who stopped talking to him after he confessed his feelings, and once with a boy at his old high school before moving to Northbay named Ethan. Ethan beat him up once because he caught Brad staring at him and suspected he was crushing on him. He has yet to develop any feelings for anyone in Northbay, but it's not really like he's paying that much attention. Mostly he just keeps to his books.
