Username: iBrevity
Name: Pavel "Pasha"
Name Meaning: a Russian name that means "small"; Pasha is a popular nickname for Pavel
Gender: male
Occupation:heir apparent to the country of Burya; a prince being groomed for the throne
Pasha was largely ignored as a child but after his father's death his mother the queen began teaching him what he would know to ascend to the throne. She is still queen in title and right but when she retires Pasha will inherit the country. He has only known Burya, as he was born there on the coast, and holds great affection for his country. He is adept at every task he is told to do and quick to realize numerical errors or potential loopholes in treaties. Pasha looks forward to being king one day but not quite for the reason one might suspect; rather than yearning for the power Pasha cannot wait to be responsible for all its people. In Burya commoners are traditionally separated from nobility but he intends to bring more of the civilians into the castle itself, and not just as new hires for the staff. Pasha knows what it's like to be looked at and underestimated and he doesn't want anyone else experiencing it if he can help it.
Theme Song: Run Boy Run by Woodkid [
YouTube link]
Personality:honorable || genial || perceptive || genuine
Pasha is not what a prince is usually imagined to be. Perhaps he became so jubilant and open because he was not raised with the pressure of the crown already balanced precariously on his head; he was underestimated for so long that he was allowed a normal childhood in the middle of a castle. He is quick to show pleasure, quick to reward those who trust him, are friendly to him, who do something to pleasantly surprise him. Pasha never comes across as stressed despite the inherent time constraints of the job; he's always happy to stop and listen to someone else's complaint, to idle in the throne room some hour after the day has officially ended to hear about the local court that needs the monarchy to step in. He always seems like he's genuinely interested in what someone has to say to him, and is an exceptionally attentive listener. Pasha does not have much tact however and becomes flustered easily when approached with any sort of romantic overture; it in these situations that he reverts to the nervousness of a child raised without a social circle. He simply hates saying no to anyone.
He learned early on how to read someone by their body language and expression so he would get out of the way of annoyed nobles. Pasha speaks softly so he often has better success in diplomatic meetings than his mother, who has something of an infamous temper. He never raises his voice, even when he's excited, but rather speaks in an even, bright tone. He laughs frequently and at great length; he finds almost every joke he's told funny, although he is too sensitive to laugh at the offensive ones. He has a particular soft spot for the innocence of puns. If he gives his word to someone he always follows through, no matter what he must sacrifice to make it happen. Pasha considers a code of honor a very important thing to have. He trusts easily and without great excuses for his behavior. Pasha wants to believe in people. He's a natural optimistic so he is constantly getting hurt when he trusts the wrong folk and they use it against him.
Trivia:-he absolutely adores his younger sibling
Katya and would do anything for them
-although technically him and Katya aren't related by blood, he loves them like they are
-he is very close with his mother, Queen Arisha and often accompanies her to government meetings
-Pasha has been involved with sailing since he was a kid, and is more at home on the sea than on land
-he prefers Burya's colder temperatures than the warmer climates of the south
-Pasha learned English young in order to talk with dignitaries but he prefers the weight of Russian in his mouth
Backstory:Pasha was born very small and exceptionally lilac. His father the king, in a fit of cruelty upon seeing his heir's diminutive size, named his firstborn 'Pavel'. "The history books will remember him as being small," he'd told his wife, hard eyes narrowed in blatant disappointment. "As they say: small in stature, small in mind."
After that day the king discarded any lingering affection he had for his son. He was certain Pavel would not survive the winter, or that he would grow up to be little better than a figurehead in the palace guided blindly by the counsel's whims. The king, a hulking beast in his own right, did not believe that someone so small could ever be fit enough to hold the throne.
In secrecy the queen began encouraging her son to find what he loved best in this world and to hold it tight to his heart. She did not expect much from him either but there was real love there when she pressed him to her and called him her Pasha. She was surprised when he began picking up books, and more surprised still when she realized that he was actually comprehending what he was reading. Pasha's delicate body held an intriguing mind that thirsted for every scrap of knowledge it could uncover. He tore through the royal library before anyone in the castle even knew he'd learned to read.
As Pasha got older he became smarter yet. He was incredibly quick to reason out puzzles, a savant on the battlefield, a protege of numbers. He remained small but he only learned more and more and begrudgingly his father turned his eye back to his eldest heir. Perhaps there would be something there after all, he thought.
When Pasha was five his mother Arisha brought home a little girl. She'd been orphaned in a nearby city, and Arisha had been unable to say no to her enormous sparkling eyes. This pup she named Katya, a Russian name meaning "pure", and Pasha loved her so terribly much. He had no friends in Burya for the commoners were frightened of his status and the nobles saw only his reputation so him and Katya became fast friends. As she got older and began exploring more in her own right they started doing everything together; it was unusual to see one without the other, two lavender heads bent together in the shade, two young dreamers discussing the future of their country.
Pasha and Katya's father died shortly before Pasha's 16th birthday. Pasha did not mourn overmuch, as he'd held no real love for his sire, but he was named as heir apparent in all of the official documents. Pasha would inherit the throne when he was old enough and his mother deigned to step down but he was in no rush for the crown. He immersed himself in scholarship while Katya pursued an adventurous childhood, and still they found common ground. In an adolescence where they had few friends they were exceptionally good for each other, and encouraged one another to be better still.
Adults now Pasha still dotes on Katya and would do anything they asked of him. He still has very few friends; there are some individuals in the nobility now that seek his approval, but Pasha knows this is not the same thing. He keeps to himself mostly but lets his guard down among the commoner staff; it is down the belly of the kitchen where Pasha is most free, laughing at a woodcutter's bawdy joke or challenging a fisherwoman to a race in the sea.
Short Story:Pasha likes the castle best at night, when the nobles have retired to their rooms and the staff can move unhindered through the halls. He likes the quietude of the stairways and the reverberated echo of his whispered footsteps in the enormous antechambers; he loves particularly the throne room, where moonlight streams in through the high windows and lays thick on the ground like damp snow.
When his mother leaves the throne room for the evening there is a swarm of servants who descend briefly upon it like industrious magpies. They beat pillows, straighten the rugs, clean whatever is displayed in the room until it gleams; and then they all disappear in a scattering and the throne is left empty. Is it then when Pasha visits, as he has long ago figured out the schedule of the staff, and he waits patiently around a corner until they finishing their cleanings. He enters as they leave, catching the well-worn edge of the door, feeling the weight of it straining against him and its hinges; and then he's through, and it's the throne before him, and the moonlight looks inviting enough to wade through.
Pasha doesn't usually approach the throne but rather looks upon the documents his mother left in a heap on the armrest that day, pages upon pages of governmental treatises and shaky alliances. It is here that Katya finds him, as they often do; he doesn't flinch this time when they say suddenly, "Couldn't sleep, Pasha?"
He shrugs a little, readjusts how he leans against the throne so the chill doesn't seep into his back. Katya sits beside him, peering over his shoulder to read the dossier he holds open in his hands. They snort and their breath rouses Pasha's hair. "Really, brother? This is what you chose to do at half past midnight?"
He laughs then, glances at them; and they're smiling despite their serious tone, their golden eyes exuberant. He sets the papers aside with a soft noise. "What are you doing up?" He asks instead, turning to better see them. "I can't believe anything could entice you to get out of bed."
They smack his shoulder in the way of siblings but they're grinning now. "I'll have you know I hadn't even laid down yet." They lean up against him, closing the distance he'd made. "
Matushka said she hadn't seen you go to your room."
Pasha snorts but he looks pleased, and he knows it. "Mama worries too much," he said, then twists to gently push back on Katya. "Just like you."
Katya makes a face. "You'll catch cold in here, Pasha. Come to bed."
He looks again past them to where the moonlight pools on the tiles. It's a particularly big moon tonight and the light is intense; he can't even see the stars from here, whereas usually he can pick out constellations. The throne glistens in the wet light behind him, blinding from the corner of his eye. "Alright," he says finally. "There's not much in these today anyway."
They arrange the papers so they're resembling their previous organization (what little there was, anyway) and walk together through the darkened hallways. To save on energy they burn torches through the night. Katya asks him suddenly, "Do you ever think about being king?"
They stop together outside his door and he looks at Katya in the flickering light. He smiles at the seriousness in their gaze. "Of course," he says, "But mama's healthy and the country loves her, so I don't think about it much."
They nod after a pause. Katya tilts their head to the left and says, smiling, "You'll be a good king, Pasha." They nudge him then move down the hall to their room, whistling quietly a lullaby he thinks he remembers from their childhood. He waits until he sees Katya disappear through their door and then enters his own room, mulling on what they had said. Until their father died Pasha never thought about being king but when he stretches out on his bed he's thinking about what it might be like to sit in the throne rather than be pressed up against it.
