Feliciano Vargas || North Italy

Country Name: Repubblica Italiana (More specifically, Northern Italy/Italy Veneziano)


Human Name: Feliciano Vargas

Gender: Male

Appearance:


Personality:
People are quick to write off Feliciano Vargas as cowardly, stupid, and incapable of really making an impact on the rest of the world- it's easy to look at the surface of the Italian and make assumptions, but Feliciano is much more complex and deep than others would like to believe. Feliciano tends to very carefree and happy, a bubbly contrast to his older brother, who was darkened by the different events that colored the two halves of Italy. Italy was a cheerful boy from his childhood, and he only became happier when his grandfather- the Roman Empire- took him under his wing.

Feliciano loves the finer things in life- art, good food, a nice nap on a sunny day... he has a very colorful outlook on life, and tends to find the tiniest things to appreciate in every situation. The only problem is that if Feliciano is particularly nervous, he'll focus on the tiniest things too much to soothe his nerves- for example, ignoring a conversation to go play with a kitten he idly noticed a few minutes before. The country tries to be very polite and has a cautious respect around others, but this is largely caused by the fact that he's scared of setting anybody off. Feliciano has difficulty with reading into subtleties and undertones, and so he may often seem rude or ignorant by saying something he shouldn't or doing something inappropriate to the situation.

However, this doesn't mean Feliciano is rude or ignorant by default. The Italian is very open and affectionate with those he calls his friends, and Feliciano is very eager to make a new friend at any opportunity- this can lead to trouble with him making friends with supposed enemies, but Feliciano is extraordinarily forgiving, and never really holds a deep grudge for too long- if slighted or wronged, the nation will often be rather upset, but he can see past his own feelings to forgive another. Feliciano is a fiercely loyal and invaluable friend, and he will stand by those who he's befriended, even if it means putting aside his own opinions and feelings. He's very trusting- perhaps overly so- and this leads to Feliciano quickly making very close friends, though there will always be a few he holds the closest.

Feliciano's cowardice can be written off simply as emotional and mental weakness, but in reality it's more of a conditioned response to his values. He doesn't want to fight- he's a very pacifistic man and would rather see diplomacy than bloodshed- and the idea of inflicting pain on another is just as frightening as experiencing pain himself. He's a passive man by default, but Italy will very quickly become submissive if it means a conflict can be avoided- there are rare exceptions. Some issues may warrant Feliciano standing his own ground, and the man is very sound in his own convictions. There are many topics Feliciano won't argue about with another- but there's a profoundly fierce doggedness about others. Italy isn't just an idle blade of grass- he can be pushed... but sometimes, he may push back.

Only when provoked or aggravated does Italy really show the fierceness worthy of the grandson of the Roman Empire, and it's a rather terrifying shift. Italy can go from carefree to dead serious, his nervous laughing transformed into dead silence, and his bumbling turned into cold calculating. Italy is more intelligent than many people give him credit for- he's very observant and will often notice small oddities, as he has a trained artist's eye. If something's out of place, Feliciano may not be the first to speak out about it, but he will probably be one of the first to notice it.

All in all, Feliciano may not be a very fierce enemy to face in battle or in a debate- but he is a very valuable friend. He easily notices when things are off with other nations, especially his closest friends, and is quick to try and remedy them, whether it means being a shoulder to cry on or just lending an ear. Feliciano's a lover, not a fighter. Though he's a virgin, so. If the world could be united under friendship and understanding, Feliciano would be the first one to try and accomplish that goal- but the reality of the world is that it can be violent, and while Feliciano tries to ignore that fact at times, he knows it's there. He knows he can't change everybody's personality, because everyone is unique, and uniqueness is what makes the world so colorful. It's sentiments like that that keep Feliciano so optimistic and happy- a little spark of hope in a dark spot is capable of keeping him going for a very long time.

If he could paint the world with the stroke of a single brush, Feliciano would paint it for peace- but he knows he can't do that, so until then, he'll do his best for himself, his family, his friends, and his country.



Weapon: Having no preferred weapon and no real, lasting experience with anything that could be considered one, Feliciano's 'weapons' are really just tools he brought along that are capable of working against the monsters if used creatively. The most important weapon is a book eerily reminiscent of a Bible- the journal of Ryuuzu no Ko. The journal is critical to the mystery of the mansion, and by taking it Feliciano has indicated himself to be the new Ryuuzu. Feliciano also has several white flags of varying size due to his tendency to surrender- while they appear to have no combative use whatsoever, it's surprising what the nation can come up with while in a pinch


Likes:
♥ THE FINE ARTS: Spending much of his childhood with his grandfather, the Roman Empire, Feliciano quickly became fond of the fine arts- he had a great natural talent for them, and Rome helped foster his ability even more by spending many days just painting with the boy. Art reminds him of the days he spent with Rome, and makes Feliciano feel like he still really has a connection with his late grandpa. Feliciano's a brilliant artist and can sing beautifully- the trick is trying to find the Italian actually exercising those abilities.

♥ COOKING: Feliciano may seem incompetent at many things, but cooking isn't one of them. While he mostly limits himself to Italian dishes for cooking as he enjoys them the most (pasta and gelato are basically the staples of his diet), Feliciano can make a masterpiece out of nearly any recipe. Not only does the Italian enjoy making others happy with food he cooks, but he just loves food itself- hunger is one of the worst feelings in the world for Feliciano, and the highlight of nearly every day is having a full meal.

♥ NAPPING: Feliciano doesn't just enjoy napping- he almost requires it. Having made a ritual out of daily siestas at 3:00 P.M., Feliciano keeps his habit up of enjoying a nice snooze even if it results in Switzerland trying to shoot at him all the time. (Feliciano sometimes forgets to put his clothes back on after siestas, leading to unintentional streaking across Switzerland's yard being a very common event.) Feliciano adheres to the scheduling of his siestas so strictly that he'll indulge in them at the hour no matter where he happens to be.

♥ FLIRTING: Almost exclusively with pretty women. Flirting is an idle habit for Feliciano, and he does it so much that, by default, if he meets a woman, he'll flirt with her. He doesn't even think about it- if he meets a cute girl, he will flirt with her without a second thought. It doesn't matter if said woman scares him, strikes him as nice, or anything in between- Feliciano isn't a malevolent heartbreaker, he just simply doesn't think about the implications of flirting, and sees it as a casual greeting. Feliciano thinks of it as a compliment to a girl's attractiveness more than anything, and so he's dismayed if they're offended.

♥ SPORTS: To be specific, Feliciano enjoys football- he's very good at the sport if he (miraculously) manages to put all of his focus and drive into it. More than anything, Feliciano sees sports as a way for the world to grow closer and bond- and anything that can make the world seem a little happier and a little closer is something that Feliciano's happy to support.

♥ COMPANY: Some nations thrive alone- some prefer isolation as often as possible, lone wolves in the global arena, but Feliciano is anything but a lone wolf. He loves friends, and loves the idea of doing a bit to brighten up somebody's day- really, just having company is enough to brighten up Feliciano's day, so he feels he needs to return the favor.


Dislikes:
✖ WAR: It's not surprising that Feliciano doesn't like war- who does, really- but his dislike is particularly intense. After seeing what war did to his siblings, to his grandfather, and to the Holy Roman Empire, he's particularly vehement about his opposition against fighting, fearing that all it will do is cause him to lose more of his friends- and those he loves.

✖ BAD CUISINE: Let's just say that English food is the most effective method of torture against Feliciano. Does this really even need any more elaboration than that?

✖ LONELINESS: Feliciano has always grown up with somebody around, whether it was his grandfather, those in Holy Rome's house, the other Axis Powers, or his brother when Italy was unified- to be cut off from human contact is one of his greatest fears, and it takes a surprisingly small amount of time for Feliciano to start panicking if he's completely isolated.

✖ INTIMIDATION: Feliciano isn't one who uses his strength to make friends or discourage enemies- it's nearly impossible for him to really hate a person, but those who throw their weight around to their advantage will immediately put off Feliciano. It's not being intimidating that puts him off- look at Germany- but rather active attempts to intimidate another nation into submission. Feliciano may not be able to really speak against those who rely too much on their power, but he will make sure to avoid them as best he can.

✖ TRAINING: Italy's not exactly an active person in the first place, and most of his daily activity consists of eating, flirting with girls, more eating, and maybe sketching a few things. Not only does training take up his active time, but, really, the biggest problem with training for Feliciano is its implications- people train a lot when preparing to go to war. Boot camps, drafts, training drills- the mere thought of needing to train terrifies him because he always sees such exercises as a prelude to war, hence leading to Feliciano skipping out on training as much as he can.

✖ NOT BEING TAKEN SERIOUSLY: The worst part about those who usually underestimate Italy... is that they're almost always right. Seeing him as convenient bait at best and an extremely useless annoyance at worst, the fact that most nations do not take Italy seriously is something that frustrates Feliciano, even if he does nothing about it- and often can't. Being as self-conscious as he is, if something said about him really bothers the nation, he may actually make an active attempt to change said behavior or flaw- only to either forget about his efforts later, or give up out of frustration. As carefree as he is, not being taken seriously is something that continually gnaws at his self-esteem, even if it doesn't show.


Strengths:
✔ QUICK: Feliciano can't drag a car several miles one-handed. He can't defeat attackers with one hand- but he can run. If Feliciano was a track athlete, he'd bring home every gold medal- even if weighed down, Italy is ludicrously fast when he needs to be. This is a very useful advantage in the mansion- not only can he easily outrun most monsters pursuing him, but his agility means that he can often avoid slower attacks and try to slip past the enemy in situations that would leave most nations trapped.

✔ RESOURCEFUL: Feliciano may be extraordinarily airheaded at times, but it's almost disturbing how he can think of ways to bend a situation to his advantage with few tools. At the very basic level, this constitutes using white flags as bandages and using a tomato crate as a hiding spot- at the highest, it means that Feliciano can create improvised weapons or traps that would give him a fighting chance he otherwise never had. The nation knows how to conserve resources, and he knows how to make every bit count thanks to periods of poverty in Italy's history- though prioritizing his resourcefulness can still be an issue, considering that this is the man who expended all the water he had in a desert on cooking food.

✔ OPTIMISTIC: Feliciano always tries to see the glass as half-full, and it helps to stay optimistic considering the circumstances Italy's currently in and the circumstances he's been exposed to before. No matter how dark things get, Italy will often try to stay happy and cheerful as he was before- WWII being a perfect example of such optimism- though this doesn't mean Italy's optimism is absolutely infallible. Feliciano can very easily see the cracks in a beautiful piece of art or the dark side of his existence- often times he just nervously tries to turn a blind eye and deny those things.

✔ SELFLESS: He may be a coward. He may be terrible at fighting. But Italy will always protect a friend if the choice comes between him being harmed and them being harmed. This is extremely obvious with his best friends- Italy may hesitate very slightly in giving up something for a casual friend, but he would die for those he really cares for without a second thought, even if death terrifies him. This is one of the few times where Italy's cowardice rarely kicks in- he may want to run for it, but he will protect another nation with his very life if necessary, no matter how futile it seems. This kind-hearted, genuine willingness for self-sacrifice could be called a disadvantage if not for one thing- a selfless, defensive Italy is a very vicious and provoked Italy.

✔ PERSISTENT: Inherently being carefree and lazy, it's surprising that Feliciano is actually very persistent when he sets his mind on a goal- this doesn't manifest as bull-headed stubbornness, but Italy will never give up on something he thinks he should do. Good examples of Italy's persistence are his befriending of Germany and his attempts to loosen up Japan, due to his reserved, isolated nature- but just because most of Italy's persistence manifests in creating social relationships doesn't mean the man can't devote himself to a cause... such as getting everybody out of the mansion.


Weaknesses:
✘ INEXPERIENCED: Italy has seen and experienced awful things, much like almost every nation- but in general, Feliciano is sheltered and pacifistic, meaning that when it comes to combat, he just... really doesn't know how to fight. World War II especially gave him a bit of experience with guns and grenades out of necessity, but Feliciano has essentially refused to pick up a weapon when not absolutely needed- all he has to rely on is a fight is his instinct and his mind, which is difficult when he's so easily scared out of his wits. Combat itself makes Feliciano nervous- trying to fight something scary? Much worse.

✘ FORGETFUL: Italy isn't one to forget important events- rather, he overlooks the little things. Italy won't forget what happened to during a certain historical period, but he will forget to tie his shoes before he goes out. He may forget to grab groceries while walking down a street, or forget to put his pants back on after a siesta- really, Feliciano's quite scatter-brained when it comes to keeping track of small tasks and items, and the more he's burdened with, the more he'll probably forget. Definitely a disadvantage in the mansion, where supposedly little things can end up being very, very important.

✘ VULNERABLE: Emotionally and physically. Italy isn't a pitifully weak nation by any means- after all, he once fought off Turkey by himself- but compared to most of the others, his vulnerability is an obvious flaw. He can't take much damage before he's out for the count, and a stronger monster could likely kill Feliciano easily with an off-handed blow if it landed in the right place. Emotionally, Feliciano's psyche is easy to break when exposed to the darkest aspects of humanity. Death, war, blood, murder, terror- Feliciano won't just start panicking after seeing these things, chances are he'll shut down entirely. There are rare occasions where Feliciano will be pushed so far that he will essentially become a different country entirely- hardened, apathetic, and powerful, but the torment and trauma required to push him into that state is so extraordinary that the negative consequences far outweigh the positive.

✘ LAZY: Italy isn't spitefully lazy- he doesn't avoid things to irritate others or to prove a point- but he's just not used to putting effort forward. There are a few things that Italy will do with a great amount of enthusiasm and drive, but the problem is what he's lazy about- he's happy with cooking, cleaning, singing, drawing, napping... but what sort of edge are those things going to give him against vicious monsters and being trapped in a mansion?

✘ COWARDLY: In most situations, Italy is going to want to run. His fight or flight instincts are basically locked into flight, and he'll rarely take any sort of initiative regarding dangerous situations- Italy as he is would probably rather hide in a box and starve than choose to engage a monster in combat, not out of survival instincts, but out of sheer fear. Anything even remotely dangerous is likely going to rattle Feliciano, and being as jumpy as he is, his cowardice is made even more obvious when he's startled.


Sample Post:

Quote :

He just wanted to go home. He just wanted to run home and listen to Romano calling him stupid and yelling at him for being slow and being a wimp and for being such a pushover and---

A single tear stung a cheek already burned by many streams, a single salty drop in an ocean of sobs that choked him to this very moment. He wanted to go home and make pasta and eat so much he would get sick, and then when he got sick he would go offer the extra servings to everybody else. Everybody else. Everybody.

There was no everybody. There was nobody else. He was the only one, and every moment that fact broke him down more as the country hysterically cried, struggling to catch his breath through his own tears, ignoring the fire that coursed through legs that had been worn down to the bone. He had to keep running. He had to keep running through every hallway, he had to get through every door, and he had to get out, because Germany said- because Germany-

He's dead.

There was no more Germany. He could run ten laps around the world, do all the pushups that every Italian had ever done, and he could fight every war that had ever been waged- but it wouldn't bring him back. It wouldn't bring any of them back. Finding Japan had cracked his sanity- watching the others die shattered it entirely. And that monster was still coming. Why wasn't it satisfied? Why did it leave him? Why did it leave little Italy, the most cowardly of all, the one who would sooner wave a flag than grab a gun- why not anybody else?

Feliciano screamed in frustration as he found the strength to shove ajar a door he never thought anyone would be able to open. He couldn't die. They had all died, but he couldn't, because they had died for him, and it wasn't fair, why did they all die for him? Everybody died just so he could run.

"G-germany... have I run enough yet? I-I promise, I'm not going to run away anymore, I'll run twice as many laps as I have to, and I'm going to be big and strong and brave like---"

It was coming. Those dead black eyes were growing larger, and Italy felt a surge of emotions he never knew he could feel as he looked over his shoulder. Hate. Pure, raw hate. He wanted to kill it, he wanted to charge at it, stab it into little pieces- Italy wanted to scream and cry and fight, but he knew he wouldn't win. He knew if it had killed all of them, he would not pose a threat to it. Part of him wanted to give up, to just let his knees buckle and let that thing smash him into a thousand pieces. But Japan wouldn't have given up. So he kept running, knowing the exit was in sight. He could have run out the door, never looked back, and forgotten about this entire thing- but Germany wouldn't have left him behind if he was the one in that mansion.

Germany, who was a bloody pile sprawled against a wall next to his brother. America, who wished him the best as he waited for death to come, just sitting there next to those he cared for the most. France had told him to be happy as blood pooled around him, an ugly dark stain on that bright blue uniform, and he had to watch him bleed there with Russia and China even as he cried and begged not to leave them behind because he didn't want them to die, only to leave them there and run like a damn coward--- Japan. Japan slumped against that piano, Japan telling him to go, Japan asking that he didn't let anybody know about what had happened to him, and seeing right through Italy's lies- his lies that he could help. His lies that he could save his best friend.

Every step brought another memory, the heart-tearing reality of another friend dead, another sob- another shout towards the heavens, another inquiry towards God asking why he was the one to escape. Why not America? America was brave and strong. Why not Germany? Germany was smart and calm and he was a great friend, and Italy was so happy to be around him and---

He couldn't stop crying when he finally slammed open the front door, when he ran towards the gate of the mansion while the world raged around him in a haze of grey storm clouds- as grey as the skin of that monster. It was as if the sky was mocking him. Each step caused a loud splash as he dashed through a puddle in this desperate last stretch of his race to freedom- and every time, a bit of blood would drip off his boots and his uniform, staining every puddle like a dark memory. Most of the blood wasn't his. The rain mixed with his tears, and he nearly tripped up three times, cursing his own clumsiness. The monster wasn't hurrying. That thing just calmly kept walking. It was unfeeling, uncaring, as if it knew that the crying country running for his life was no threat.

He turned around when he finally stepped out of the mansion's property, still covered in the blood of his friends, face soaked in the rain and his own tears. He had no white flags to raise, no way to surrender to the monster that had killed the people he cared for, no matter how well he knew them- but he wouldn't have surrendered. Everybody had died so he could get away, wishing him luck, telling him to do his best and get away and run from the mansion, to run and never look back.

"...I can't do it."

He didn't speak to the monster. He sobbed his words apologetically to his friends, to the countries that could no longer hear him. He could not abandon them. He could not forget them, and he would never understand why they so happily died so he could live. ...America's dying smile flashed in his mind. A hero. He would be the hero. He would fix everything, and suddenly, Italy knew how, staring at the battered, bloody journal that he held so tightly to his chest.

He looked up with a newfound courage, with a newfound resolve crafted only from his innocence being so absolutely shattered. He would be brave, like Japan, like Germany, like America, like--- his grandfather had been. Romano would see. Romano wouldn't yell at him anymore, nobody would laugh at him, he could stand on his own two feet. ...But he couldn't do it alone.

He smiled at the alien- a broken, angry smile, so falsely crafted. It stared at him. It said nothing, it did nothing, it just stared. And as Feliciano balled his fists until his nails dug into his palm, as he angrily held up the book in front of him, he knew what he had to do to save everybody.

"Take us back."

He would save all of them. He had found his purpose, and his new goal- this time, this time... Feliciano swore he would make sure they all got out. Alive. No country left behind- no country forgotten, no country dead, no more sorrow. When their blood didn't stain his hands... then, he would win. He would win this game against this monster, even as he sobbed and looked it right in the eye, his own amber eyes burning with the unfamiliar courage that twisted what was once such a meek face. Germany, Japan... Romano, his grandfather... it would have made them all proud to see him being so brave. So he had to try again. He had to try again so he could go home and cook the pasta he had wanted so desperately- and not be forced to eat it alone.

He repeated his words, loudly. It was a shout, a declaration- an official challenge.

Did you read the rules?:
★ Freedom
★ Maple
★ Eyebrows
★ Rose
★ Knife
★ Tomatoes

---

Name: Feli or Rose

Timezone: Eastern -5.00[/quote]