character survey of doom

[sticksaround]

Aspects of this survey will reference abuse and violence. I tried to keep it short and succinct, but please be aware of this and tread with caution as necessary.

Body and Appearance
1. Describe the character's height and build. Is he heavyset, thin, short, rangy?
¬ Casey stands at about 5'10" - 5'11", so he's about average, maybe a little bit taller than, though he's also probably still got a couple of inches of growing left in him. He's sturdy and relatively muscular: the kind of guy you can tell is solidly built and athletic, but not really the body-building type. Not thin, but not particularly broad.

2. How old is he?
¬ It hasn't been specified in canon yet. Unless or until it is, I generally estimate him at 19.

3. Describe his posture. Does he carry himself well or does he slouch?
¬ Casey carries himself pretty well. He doesn't keep to perfect posture, but he's generally facing life straight-backed and with his head up. When it comes to his dad, he keeps his back as straight as he can for as long as he can. When he's comfortable, he has no problems slouching on the couch or sitting backwards on a chair, or leaning against a wall, etc. Overall, he's just kinda casual.

4. How is his health? Is he fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities?
¬ Assuming he hasn't recently found himself on the bad end of a fight, Casey's typically in good health and very fit, with no illnesses or disabilities to speak of.

5. How does he move? Is he clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid?
¬ Casey's movements are straightforward and deliberate. He isn't what I'd call graceful, but when it comes to fighting and hockey, he's fairly fluid. His body language is normally a little tense and leans towards defensive, unless he's in the company of somebody he knows for sure he trusts not to try to kill him and/or his friends. Casey favors simplicity and power over grace and complex movement, which makes him pretty ill-suited for missions purely devoted to stealth. He has his run-ins with clumsiness, especially when he's injured, but not so often that I'd call it a regular attribute. Just, uh. You know. Don't ask him to hold any priceless vases. He's not great with fragile stuff.

6. How attractive is this character physically? How does he perceive himself in the mirror?
¬ He's... fairly attractive? I figure attractiveness is pretty subjective depending on who's doing the looking, but he's yet to be seriously called a troll in canon, so. Yeah. He tries not to be particularly concerned with what he sees in the mirror unless he's about to meet up with April.

7. Describe his complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred?
¬ His complexion's light and pretty clear. He's got scars here and there from being on the receiving end of numerous hits over the course of his life, but nothing enormous or disfiguring.

8. Describe his hair: color, texture, style.
¬ Black hair, kind of soft but mostly on the shaggy side. He has one of those 90s boy haircuts. You know the one. Cut short, floppy side bangs?

9. What color are his eyes?
¬ Brown. Probably. Comics are pretty tough mediums for pinning things down.

10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features?
¬ Nah, not that I know of.

11. What are his chief tension centers?
¬ Neck, shoulders, arms. Sometimes Jaw.

12. What is the character's wardrobe like? Casual, dressy, utilitarian? Bright colors, pastels, neutrals? Is it varied, or does he have six of the same suit?
¬ Jeans, sneakers, and t-shirts all the way, broken up with the occasional jacket. It's generally the same formula every day, and he sticks to neutral/darker colors.

13. Do his clothes fit well? Does he seem comfortable in them?
¬ His clothes fit well enough, and he's very comfortable moving in them. If he's in a suit for some reason, assume he's not comfortable even slightly. Otherwise, he's chill.

14. Does he dress the same on the job as he does in his free time? If not, what are the differences?
¬ Well, if you consider vigilantism a job... he still wears the same clothes he wears everywhere else. Like he leaves school and changes nothing and starts beating up criminals. All he adds is a mask and a hockey stick.

15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando?
¬ Boxers, yo. If he doesn't have anything clean at all, he sort of shrugs and does without. It's underwear, man, who's gonna stop him in the street and fine him for not meeting their standards?



Speech
1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse?
¬ Casey still sounds more young than anything. He's gotten past the voice-changing hurdle, so it's not high-pitched or prone to breaking (or hoarse, unless he's sick), but you can tell he isn't exactly far into his deep, manly adulthood.

2. How does he normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does he talk easily, or does he hesitate?
¬ He's usually at a pretty normal volume when he's calm, and is capable of speaking softly when a situation requires it, but if Casey gets agitated or excited, he definitely veers towards being loud. He can be an exuberant guy when the time is right, okay? Casey sticks to a pretty even speaking pace, and talks with ease in the sense that he doesn't normally mind trying to make conversation. This ease, however, does not guarantee that he won't end up being pretty awkward or need to interject a few "uh"s here and there.

3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics?
¬ New York, New Yoooooork. Casey isn't sporting a super thick accent or anything, but he was born and raised in the city and it's definitely present in his speech. He's got a really notable habit of dropping his Gs (e.g. "I'm just sayin'", "don't leave me hangin' bro", "I'm managin' alright", etc.). His grammar also tends to be pretty atrocious.

4. What language/s does he speak, and with how much fluency?
¬ English, and very fluently. Maybe a few words here or there in other languages, but nothing he could actually converse with.

5. Does he switch languages or dialects in certain situations?
¬ If by switching dialects you mean he goes from average good guy joe to angry snarky punk when confronted with criminals? But nah, he keeps to his english.

6. Is he a good impromptu speaker, or does he have to think about his words?
¬ I won't say he's a good impromptu speaker, but he definitely doesn't think much about his words before he starts talking. Casey just sort of figures things out as he goes, for the most part. Even if it means digging himself a hole and having to dig back out of it.

7. Is he eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change?
¬ Ehh, he's not particularly either. Casey's pretty good at getting across his current thought/sentiment in an understandable manner, but he's not much good for a poetic speech. This doesn't really change.



Mental and Emotional
1. How intelligent is this character? Is he book-smart or street-smart?
¬ Casey is more street-smart than book-smart. He's not a complete idiot, and can comprehend strategic plans/make guesses at motives or next moves now and again, but he's far from matching anyone's genius intellect, and needs tutoring to keep his grades at a level where his scholarship isn't in danger. He's a lot more suited to retaining knowledge of things that have more application in his day to day life. Like how to punch without breaking your fingers, or changing car tires, or keeping tabs on gang territories.

2. Does he think on his feet, or does he need time to deliberate?
¬ He thinks on his feet all the way. Casey is impulsive as hell and probably doesn't trust his mental faculties to do serious deliberating/strategizing. Better to just jump in and figure things out as he goes than to try planning only to fail embarrassingly.

3. Describe the character's thought process. Is he more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical?
¬ He's a lot more intuitive than he is logical, but at the same time, after being stuck with his dad as long as he has, Casey values the practical over the idealistic in his personal dealings. He's not afraid to hope for the best out of humankind in general, but he's not all that surprised if someone disappoints him, either. He's been handling an unfair burden of responsibility for years, and it can show.

4. What kind of education has the character had?
¬ High school and some college. Nothing fancy.

5. What are his areas of expertise? What, if anything, is he interested in learning more about?
¬ His areas of expertise are hockey and fighting tbh. He is very interested in pursuing those interests.

6. Is he an introvert or an extrovert?
¬ In the past few years he's leaned towards introversion, but he's got the makings of someone with past experience as an extrovert. Life situations just necessitated a change.

7. Describe the character's temperament. Is he even-tempered or does he have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven?
¬ Casey goes back and forth a bit, as people tend to do, but mood swings are probably more accurate than trying to say he's even-tempered. He feels very strongly, especially when it comes to his anger, but he's used to feeling that he has to push it down, and only has an outlet for it in certain situations. When he's wearing the mask, he's unforgiving and violent towards people who he feels have it coming. He can be laid-back and cheerful when he feels like it, and has a natural talent when it comes to being accepting or friendly with others. But on the whole, Casey is more likely to be withdrawn about himself, and pragmatic about getting done what needs to be done. Since meeting the turtles, he's gotten better about... being happy in general, I guess. He's driven when it comes to things he considers important or things he's passionate about, but everything else he's pretty laid-back with.

8. How does he respond to new people or situations? Is he suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic?
¬ It depends on what the people/situations are like and on how he's introduced to them. If Casey is introduced to someone/something new as a result of his own arrangement and agreement, he tends to approach it with a friendlier air, if just a little bit reserved going in at the same time. Things that come out of nowhere tend to leave him suspicious and he likes to get a feel for them before making any judgements on whether or not he'll stay suspicious. Raph saving his potatoes was kind of an exception, since there was potato-saving involved. And then in many a situation, things just sort of happen and he goes along with them as they come enthusiastically, because there's no time for suspicion or relaxation or feeling them out.

9. Is he more likely to act, or to react?
¬ Act.

10. Which is his default: fight or flight?
¬ FIGHT.

11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does he appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks?
¬ Casey can appreciate a little bit of everything when it comes to humor, just for the sake of it being humor, but he prefers dryness, sarcasm, and self-deprecating stuff. Also that thing where dudes call each other ugly and stupid and it's really hilarious to them for some reason? Wow great bonding guys you told each other your teeth are gross. He can laugh at goofy humor and bathroom humor and pranks, but those aren't humor types that he goes in for using himself. Also puns are the worst. Stop those immediately they are awful.

12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does he deal with them?
¬ ......to be determined.

13. What moments in this character's life have defined him as a person?
¬ One of the biggest defining moments in Casey's life came not long before his mother died of a terminal illness. His father had been drinking heavily since the diagnosis and generally being a huge jerky wreck, and one of his mom's last wishes was for him to take care of him. To let him "feel strong" even though Casey was stronger himself. He promised just that, and it was the catalyst to two or three years of taking his dad's abuse without fighting back.

¬ Oh, and there was that time that a giant talking turtle burst into his house to defend him. It led to meeting the other turtles and Master Splinter, and they're all a huge part of his life now.

14. What does he fear?
¬ Failing to keep his promise to his mom, thereby disappointing her memory.
¬ Failing to take care of/protect the people he really cares about.
¬ His chosen family realizing he's not worth keeping around- that he's a lost cause to them, or a burden, or just plain annoying- and cutting ties with him.
¬ One of his biggest fears of all, though, is turning out like his dad no matter how much he tries not to. For all that he's learned to get by from one day to the next, for all that he has a future and people he loves neatly lined up in front of him, and for all that he knows he'd rather die than be the kind of man his father is, Casey also knows that he's just... angry. He doesn't know where some of it comes from, and he doesn't have the luxury of being able to let it out whenever it surfaces. Casey's great at clenching his jaw and pushing it down again and again: partly because he's in situations where he can't/won't allow himself to lash out, and partly for fear of earning his title as Arnold Jones's son. If he can't control when he sees red and throws a punch or breaks a door, then what keeps him from losing control for the rest of his life? Hockey and beating up criminals are the outlets he allows himself, and he gets pretty intense when it comes to the latter as a result.

15. What are his hopes or aspirations?
¬ Casey's hopes and aspirations are all pretty much about not dying, not losing his scholarship, not flunking his classes, and not letting down the people he cares about. And getting to play hockey. He's kind of out of wide-eyed optimism regarding his future.

16. What is something he doesn't want anyone to find out about him?
¬ He generally does what he can to keep people from finding out about his dad situation.
¬ And his mom situation.
¬ Looking back, Casey generally seems to prefer keeping people from finding out pretty much anything deeply personal about him? He's pretty free with the casual stuff and the witty banter, but unless it's unavoidable or something he sees as really important to discuss, his problems stay nice and deep in his soul where they can fester and cause him eventual danger. Aww.



Relationships
1. Describe this character's relationship with his parents.
¬ Ha ha...ha... okay. Casey's mom died a couple of years back. He loved her and respected her very, very dearly, and misses her a lot. He'd have done anything for her. His dad gets a lot more complicated. There may have once been a point where he respected him and loved him without complication, but those days are long past, and it seems like his dad's never been picture perfect. At the moment, his father is... an obligation. A duty. He promised his mom he'd take care of him, and that's what he's been doing since they lost her. There's still some sort of love left in him for Arnold Jones, some tenderness that kept him draping blankets over the guy when he passed out, but it's been long tempered by abuse and resentment. He's done with thinking deeply about it.

2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like?
¬ No blood-related siblings here.

3. Are there other blood relatives to whom he is close? Are there ones he can't stand?
¬ Canon, so far, hasn't mentioned any other relatives. If they turn up, I'll adjust to account for them.

4. Are there other, unrelated people whom he considers part of his family? What are his relationships with them?
¬ Turtles + Splinter: The ninja turtles are his brothers from another amphibian egg mutated by alien goop through and through. Casey gets along well with all four of them and holds them very, very dear. Splinter is somebody that he also holds dearly, and who he respects greatly. Since meeting them, they've all firmly wound their way into his heart and left roots that can never be ripped back out. That's it. It's over.

¬ April O'Neil: So at first she was just his really attractive tutor in exchange for getting self-defense lessons, but on both of them being wound up in the intrigue of an existence knowing the guys, she's become incredibly important to Casey personally. Actually, she's probably the first real human friend he's had in ages. He'd do as much for her as he would for any of the turtles or for Splinter.

There's nothing Casey Jones wouldn't do for this family, and no sacrifice he'd consider too great for their sake. They've saved his skin more than once and given him a place to go when he really needed it. He owes them so much, and he's so glad they freakin' exist.

5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet?
¬ Raph is his best friend thank you very much. I went into it up there somewhere, but to recap. Raph overheard a bad night at the Jones residence, saved Casey's butt, and then they had some deep conversation, hot dogs, and several vigilante-type fights together all in one night.

6. Does he have other close friends?
¬ Nope, not really. There is Angel, who he grew up with. She knows about his whole parenting/home situation and is a Purple Dragons leader trying to initiate reform in the gang's general mission statement. But they don't seem to keep in regular contact so much as they acknowledge they care about each other while sort of... running into each other whenever fate allows for it.

7. Does he make friends easily, or does he have trouble getting along with people?
¬ Casey generally doesn't have a lot of trouble when it comes to getting along with people. He actually defaults to friendly and hard to scare off, and tends to genuinely care for others. What he has trouble with is reaching out to those other people to start with. Maybe he used to be more open and determined with his friendly energies, but ultimately it was easier for him to shut down and pull back than he thought it would be to keep it up/reach out. He's lived with a strong resolve not to involve people with what his home life is usually like, and it's better to keep things completely separated than to get muddled up with lies and excuses.

8. Which does he consider more important: family or friends?
¬ uh wow those are one in the same aren't they y/y

9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has he been married more than once?
¬ Single and never married.

10. Is he currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse?
¬ N...o...

11. Who was his first crush? Who is his latest?
¬ I don't know about his first crush. Probably some girl in kindergarten or first grade who had hair like his mom's or really bright eyes, who thought picking up frogs was awesome. His latest crush is April O'Neil. He's pretty sure he's done for.

12. What does he look for in a romantic partner?
¬ It's yet to be detailed in canon, obviously, but I figure Casey looks for someone... fierce. Confident in their skin and their talents, stubborn, a little difficult, who doesn't let people just push them around. But at the same time, someone capable of kindness and understanding. Casey likes people who are just plain good, while also being the sort of people who enjoy throwing down a challenge.

13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does he relate to them? If no, does he want any?
¬ No kids here. Whether or not he wants any probably changes from day to day. He doesn't think about it much at his current place in life. Like he's barely keeping himself in one piece, not to mention the whole mess with his dad, and having ninja mutant friends and a vigilante career and a whole lot of chaos. There's just no room for thinking about it yet. Kids of his own fall into more of a "maybe that'd be nice in the future, I dunno" category.

14. Does he have any rivals or enemies?
¬ If he happens to be out and about and finds a criminal in need of vigilante justice, they become his enemy immediately. Oh sorry did he need to think through the connotations of beating up a gang member because his fist is already sort of meeting their face. His bad.
¬ And pretty much anybody who is an enemy to the turtles is an enemy he's taken on as his own as well. That's what you do for family.

15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does he fall on the Kinsey scale?
¬ 0/1-ish. Casey is heterosexual.

16. How does he feel about sex? How important is it to him?
¬ Sex sure is a thing that exists and which would probably be nice to have someday in the future. He's a healthy young man with no real hangups, so he thinks about it often enough. Casey has zero negative feelings about sex in general, other than some of the usual "but what if i'm awful at it" nerves, but at the same time, it's not an important thing to him in the sense that he goes out determined to... find it. I guess. Or at least not with his life being as crazy and busy and messed-up as it is right now. With time and circumstance, maybe...

17. What are his turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits?
¬ I REALLY DON'T EVEN KNOW



Beliefs
1. Do you know your character's astrological (zodiac of choice) sign? How well does he fit type?
¬ N/A. No specified birthday.

2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in his life?
¬ Casey is neither at the moment. He's pretty firmly grounded in the reality immediately surrounding him, and so spiritual/religious matters don't often come into play for him. His best friends are sort of reincarnated, though, so that much is kind of in the air.

3. Does this character have a personal code of morals or ethics? If so, how did that begin? What would it take to compromise it?
¬ Casey has one hell of a strong personal moral code, and he sticks to it like cement, to the point where he's a vigilante by night. It's tough to say where it began. I think a lot of it comes from being pushed around by his dad and hating to see other people in the same sort of helpless situations. His mother was a really grounding force in his life while she was alive, and she definitely lent to his emotional strength, but the majority of his views come from not wanting people to be treated the way he's been treated, or not wanting to see someone left helpless, or just wanting to lay into a couple of bastards since he promised not to fight back against his own. Casey's code isn't something that he'd easily compromise, but if it saved a friend's life to do it... he'd probably be willing to, eventually.

4. How does he regard beliefs that differ from his? Is he tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent?
¬ He straddles the line between curious and indifferent, for the most part. If it's something harmless, Casey might ask questions here and there, but he generally leaves other people alone. Unless their beliefs differ in the sense that they believe it's cool for them to mug a grandma or murder somebody, you know, of course.

5. What prejudices does he hold? Are they irrational or does he have a good reason for them?
¬ Casey is super prejudiced against bullies and criminals, a lot of which comes from growing up with his father (who has a big criminal past and who qualifies immensely as a bully on his better days) as an influence in his life. He's got a lot of anger and very few places where he can safely vent it, and he takes that anger out on people who he feels have it coming: people who prey on the weak. Objectively speaking, his reasoning's pretty irrational, but he feels like he's justified in it. Someone's gotta look out for the underdogs. Someone's gotta pay for something.



Daily Life
1. What is the character's financial situation? Is he rich, poor, comfortable, in debt?
¬ On the lower end of comfortable, by his own standards. He's got what he needs and seems to have a bit off on the side of that if he needs it?

2. What is his social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected him?
¬ He doesn't really have a social status. That hasn't changed in a while.

3. Where does he live? House, apartment, trailer? Is his home his castle or just a place to crash? What condition is it in? Does he share it with others?
¬ He formerly lived in a run-down place with his old man. It was in pretty shabby condition, but still serviceable. This was not so much a home to Casey as it was a place to live that he called "home" because it was where he lived. Very recently, he was invited to live with the turtles and Splinter at April's family's old secondhand store. That's five new roommates for him. He hasn't gotten into the rhythm of living with them yet, but it'll probably feel more like home than his dad's place does.

4. Besides the basic necessities, what does he spend his money on?
¬ His money goes towards rent and food, generally. He's pretty much bodily holding his dad up financially for the time being. But if he's got wiggle room, he's all about pizza for the guys.

5. What does he do for a living? Is he good at it? Does he enjoy it, or would he rather be doing something else?
¬ Casey is a college student and part time vigilante. He's okay at being a student and pretty damn awesome at vigilantism if you ask him. I don't think there's anything he'd rather be doing at this point, honestly. He doesn't currently subscribe to that following-your-passion style as much as he does the "well I enjoy hockey and beating up criminals and the idea of having a degree to get a job and get away from home" style. He can't imagine not wanting to beat up criminals, at the very least.

6. What are his interests or hobbies? How does he spend his free time?
¬ Hockey, vigilantism, a little auto repair. He spends his free time playing hockey, being a vigilante, studying with April, teaching April self-defense, and hanging around his chosen family. Patrolling with Raph is probably one of his more favored outlets, because he doesn't exactly have room to rage around in his daily life.

7. What are his eating habits? Does he skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods?
¬ Casey isn't a picky eater, and he'll pretty much try anything once if it doesn't sound too gross. He likes fresh food, whether it's fruits and vegetables or an actual meal that just got cooked, and also enjoys his share of junk food. More often than not, he does fast food/buys whatever he can afford and microwave, though, and he's gotten used to that. It's cool, man, New York's got the best hot dogs anyway. He sometimes falls into a long rut of not eating breakfast, and can be prone to losing his appetite when his mood takes a turn for the sour, but overall he likes eating and does what he can to continue that habit. Drinking alcohol is something he vehemently refuses to do.



Associations
Which of the following do you associate with the character, or which is his favorite:

1. Color?
¬ Red.
2. Smell?
¬ Freezerburn and stale booze.
3. Time of day?
¬ Late evening/early night.
4. Season?
¬ Autumn.
5. Book?
¬ when i know i'll chuck it in here.
6. Music?
¬ Alt/80s rock. | I've assigned him Bukowski by Modest Mouse for now. idk man I might do a playlist when I'm not so lazy.
7. Place?
¬ Hockey rinks, bro.
8. Substance?
¬ Motor oil.
9. Plant?
¬ Cactus.
10. Animal?
¬ Dog through and through. And I guess turtles kind of on a default level.



END
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