Gabriel James Noel

Arrogance is perhaps the first word that comes to mind to describe Gabriel, but it is not, strictly speaking, the most accurate. There is undoubtedly pride in Gabriel, and more than his fair share of it is undeserved. He is vain about his appearance, confident in his speech, and generally at ease with where he stands in undeath. For those who meet him for the first, second, and even third times, all this leads to the appearance of Gabriel as narcissistic and self-serving, but there is more to it than that.

Gabriel was once an idealistic young man, who wrote poetry about beauty and stories about chivalry and love. War made him more serious, but the idealism stayed. Even as a young vampire, he refused to let himself be brought down, preferring instead to see a world of adventure. It was only with age and loss that the cynicism that so often comes with those two began to be felt. Almost two centuries since his death, it has developed into sort of a defense. Gabriel has found it easier to be jaded and vain, striving to maintain the demeanor of a gallant, charming man with a jaded, dim view of the masses.

As he gets older, the passion he once held so dear and endeared him to others has begun to disappear. The iciness that he often seems to show is now becoming more and more of a reality, and as a writer, it scares him. Because of this, certain situations Will there be no more adventures? The question is worrying to Gabriel, and he tends to involve himself in all sorts of hedonistic behavior to compensate, without concern of the consequences. As a vampire, a sort of cockiness about that has arisen in him: in a good mood, Gabriel feels that he's unstoppable. This, along with the opposite, despair and anxiety, provoke him to write. Death, loss, and the beauty of impermanence are major themes in his writing.

These good moods often arise in social situations. Gabriel's excitement is generally piqued by interacting with others: despite his arrogance, others are still fascinating to him, with all their passion, ideas and emotions. Art, literature, and culture all fascinate him as the epitome of emotional expression, and beauty even more so. A sucker for a pretty face, a nice smile, and charm, regardless of gender or orientation, Gabriel enjoys the flirting game, and all too often falls for others, whether they are interested or not. His biggest weakness would be the people who manage to pierce through his emotional armor and win him over, thawing the ice he surrounds himself with.

Otherwise charming and effusive, when Gabriel finds he desires and truly cares for someone, jealousy and possessiveness often take control. The fear of loss he carries around is extremely prevalent here, and his love is not something one can deal with lightly. To him, it is an extension of who he is: the consummate lover, Gabriel strives to be gallant in conversation, despite the personal need to appear somewhat jaded. Perhaps the only real Gabriel is the one portrayed in his poetry and stories, or the man one gets to know when he truly loves them.

The stereotype of the mad, bored aristocrat, Gabriel finds comfort in the pleasure wealth can bring. He enjoys the influence over people being a vampire of wealth brings, and can be a rather manipulative in this sense. Being rather old, he is beginning to feel out of touch with modern world: some older inventions which have since be updated make sense to them, and those he uses, but there are others which alienate him. Aspects of culture, such as hip-hop music, newer rock, the Internet, texting, and social media are almost foreign to him.

Born to the Marquess of Cambridge in the English Midlands during the late 18th century, Gabriel James Noel was raised into the sheltered life many nobility of the area led. Lord Noel, as courtesy dictated he be known as, grew up surrounded by books and stories told to him by his mother, Anne Noel. His favorites were the classics: King Arthur and his court of knights, stories of fairies and wizards, the battles of Ancient Greece, and the Song of Roland, to name a few. These were the tales that made his worldview, one where heroic knights, using wits and honor, won the hearts of beautiful ladies and sturdy peasants alike.

A naive view, to be sure, but one that suited him very well for his early life. James Noel, his father, was a wealthy man, perhaps a bit of a dullard but also singularly suited for the noble life. While the Marquess spent most of his time hunting, he also cared greatly for his family's wellbeing.Thus, Gabriel was to be given a tutor, just as all the Noel children were. This mostly entailed the comprehensive studies a young noble would need to know: Latin and Greek, courtesy, history, swordplay, and horse riding. What truly captured his heart was composition and literature: after reading the great contemporary works of Shakespeare, Moliere, and Goethe, Gabriel James felt that literature was his passion. From the on, he read avidly, even writing a few of his own.

Many of these were silly ditties or patriotic pieces, if juvenile in nature. The latter were mostly praises of his father, a military veteran who at this point had returned to the army life in order to fight for Britain in Egypt, against the rebellious Egyptian state that had allied itself with Napoleon. James, given the rank of brigadier, commanded an infantry division. However, James was a foolhardy man, more prone to pride and stubbornness than good sense. In thie summer of 1807, this finally caught up to him. The ill-fated expedition to Egypt was met with fierce resistance. An offensive by the Egyptian forces near the city of Rosetta led to his death, as Lord Cambridge was one of the few that refused to withdraw from the city. It was valiant but futile, and those who didn't die were taken prisoner. Considering the fate of many prisoners, Lord Cambridge was lucky.

When the news arrived back at the Noel estate, the fifteen-year old Gabriel immersed himself in his books. He discovered the way that writing could serve as an outlet for all the intense emotions he was feeling, and used it to focus himself. Despite the hardship, as an adolescent, Gabriel James began to realize that he was surrounded by people full of beauty, internal and external. It was at this time that he happened upon the relatively unknown poems of William Blake, and chose to model himself after that poet. His first sophisticated piece, a sonnet to the common-born boy he had fallen in love with, was published, placing him in the ranks (albeit as an obscure member) of the poets that would be come to known as Romantics.

His numerous flirtations with boys and girls alike, as well as a tendency to shirk his responsibilities in favor of living it up or writing his stories got young Gabriel into much trouble, particularly when he was attending Oxford. As England's attitudes towards such behavior were beginning to reach the Victorian Era level of intolerance, the Noel family did much to cover it up. However, after one particular encounter, the University decided that it was only proper to expel the young man. Disgraced, and with only a rudimentary education, Lord Noel asked his brother to purchase for him, as was the custom, the rank of Captain in the British Army. It was seen as a way to redeem himself in the eyes of his family and country, and follow in his father's footsteps.

While it did provide a convenient escape, the glory of war escaped him. It was a hard life, far less glamorous than a young man would imagine. The violence, the bloodshed...it was all pointless to him. And yet he fought, winning commendation and consideration for knighthood for his service. When Britain decided to invade Holland, his luck finally ran out. Gabriel was soon captured by a French patrol while scouting. Trying to fight his way out, he was eventually subdued. Instead of being traded for another prisoner of equal rank and honor, something very strange happened.

Drugged and tied up, the leader of the patrol had him brought back to Paris. When he awoke, it was night, several days later. A beautiful woman with jet-black hair was standing over him, holding a copy of several of his poems. Surprise was his first emotion: how did a random Parisian get a hold of an obscure British writer's manuscript? Then fear. He saw the fangs, and heard the words. "You write beautifully, ma chere...how would you like to write forever?" She went on to explain her motives: this lady, Marielle by name, had contacts around Europe, one of which was a girl who had seduced him while he was at Oxford, getting him expelled. When she passed on the poems and stories to Marielle, the vampire, for that was indeed what she was, decided she desired him as a companion. When her contact had told her of his military career, she had him tracked down, having seduced and dominated the military officer that captured him.

Transfixed by her presence, Gabriel said nothing. Merely nodded his head, and acquiesced. It took quite awhile to get over the shock and pain of what he went through after that, the period of becoming a vampire. If what Marielle said was true, Gabriel was part of a race of near-immortal vampires, so long as he drank the blood of the living. The way she put it, it was a gift. There was a whole new world for him to discover as a vampire. And she, his maker, would lead him through it.

As he learned and grew in strength, Gabriel found that he was increasingly entranced by Marielle. She was stunning, clever and gregarious, with a beautiful singing voice that charmed the hearts of Paris. Marielle, looking for a companion, soon found herself with a devoted lover. For 15 years, the two romped around Paris, independent of the numerous covens. Hedonism was the lifestyle of these lovers: sex and violence was the norm for them, and with Napoleon gone, they could easily affect the air of disaffected, debauched aristocrats.

It was 1831 when Gabriel's family died, wiped out by cholera. He returned to England briefly at this point, selling off most of the family's estate. This became the basis of Gabriel's income, which he uses and reinvests to this day. Saddened by the event, his love for Marielle got him through it, and slowly the two formed their own coven, becoming the mother and father to two young vampires they made. This gang wandered Paris, further increasing their reputation as mad aristocrats and patrons of the art. Their reputation became notorious among the covens, and soon they were expelled from the city.

They went first from Toulouse, and then to Bourdeaux, but none of this satisfied them: the vampires there were hardly accepting. Eventually, they became desperate enough to try the New World, in the fledgling country known as America. With Gabriel financing the venture, they went to New Orleans. The rapidly growing commercial center of the American South, they found they fit right in: the city was rife with mysterious religious practices, degeneracy, and French-speaking colonists. They were comfortable. Over the next half-century, the small coven thrived. There were some losses: the young man they had turned into a vampire grew to hate them, and his perceived "monstrous" existence. One evening, he rose earlier than the rest, and attempted to drive a stake from Marielle's heart. Gabriel's quick military instincts deflected that, and the other vampire was killed. It was painful to hurt one Gabriel viewed as a son, albeit in a twisted way, and although Gabriel and Bea (Beatrice is the girl who was their "daughter"), found it tragic, Marielle did not, viewing him as a traitor and would-be murderer.

This marked the beginning of the end for the coven. Gradually, Marielle and Gabriel grew apart. Gabriel resented the control she had over the group, and Marielle was becoming increasingly despondent over her inability to understand modern culture. In response to this, she became tyrannical and violent, increasingly putting their safety at risk. Months of planning between Bea and Gabriel led to one decision: they would turn her over to the mob. They drew her out into the country one night, where a violent, enraged crowd of superstitious Voodoo practicing Creoles, having claimed that Marielle was an "Adze", the West African term for a vampire. The two other vampires let the mob do the work, and simply reported Marielle's disappearance as a murder.

They were free now, but Gabriel couldn't help the guilt. He distanced himself from Bea, gradually. The old pleasures now became an escape, a cover-up for the loss of morality he was slowly feeling. Modernization was getting to him as well. By the 1950's, society was becoming more and more alien to him. Film, telephones, and automobiles he managed to accept, gradually. Television and radio, however, were far too modern and advanced for him to be truly comfortable with. Bea often teased him about this, but the fact of the matter was that he was just getting far too old. By the time the early 60's came around, he had isolated himself emotionally, and later physically, from his companion.

First, Chicago was his home, and then Denver. The pain of two centuries was his to bear, and two attempts at making vampires from those he desired could not sooth it: one ran away, and one nearly killed him. Gabriel took up writing again, a way to communicate and stem the increasing lack of emotion he felt. Time had taken its toll, and with little else to do but perhaps stall the inevitable change of emotion and understanding into mere desire and recklessness, he moved to the small town of Bad Rock.

Gabriel stands at 5'9" and weighs in at around 140 pounds, average for the time period he was from though perhaps on the short, skinny side these days. He attempts and succeeds (so far) at keeping up with modern fashions, and blends in fairly well. His dark hair is almost always unkempt, and his hazel eyes often strike others as bored and lifeless. Gabriel speaks with a British accent, which sometimes sounds antiquated and formal.

Very unmotivated at the present, Gabriel nonetheless has some of his finances invested in business via proxies and brokers. Wealth allows him to maintain the lifestyle he enjoys, though such a lifestyle is rather aimless. There is a subconscious hope that he will find somebody or something to give him direction, but for now, on the surface, a (un)life of idle pleasure and occasional writing suits him just fine.