Aabrus

Aabrus was born with the magic inherent to dragonkind, but absolutely no way to use magic in any way. His mother went on and on and on about his “potential,” but categorically refused to listen when he told her about his limitations. Young Aabrus had to adapt. His mother was convinced he’d been holding out on her and being lazy on purpose when he “managed” to use magic, even though she couldn’t sense it. Parlor tricks, sleight of hand, smoke and mirrors and playing on expectations. As he grew older, his skills grew in proportion. Rumor had it, among those who knew his situation, that he was involved in rather darker work… but nobody could ever definitively tie him to anything substantive. All the while, his mother kept pushing and pushing. Resistance, or even the thought of having limits to his skills, was considered lazy. Wanting a break was considered defiance, and protesting his treatment was considered an attack on the one who “loved him most.” The boy seemed happy on the surface because that was what was required.

Terrible tragedy that Syruri disappeared without a trace.

These days, Aabrus uses his little tricks to amuse and delight, rather than to deceive or frighten. He has reduced his art to cheap parlor tricks and is delighted to do so. Aabrus puts on one hell of a good show, and while the money is good, the smiling faces of his audience are an even better reward. He’s bombastic and bright onstage, and waffles between abrasive and approval-seeking off it. When he’s relaxed, Aabrus is the life of the party, but handles criticism poorly. Those who’ve insulted him usually find their pockets a lot lighter and their valuables mysteriously gone.

Aabrus seems to place a great deal of stock in the words of a fellow performer named Zzylla, whose act involves a flock of specially trained chickens annd other assorted avians. She doesn’t take nonsense and doesn’t fall for his act when he hides feelings, but she shares his slightly twisted sense of humor and willingness to pilfer from rude strangers. He’s motivated to clean up all the cracks and damage in his brain that lead to antisocial behavior, not because he thinks he’s entitled to her attention, but because he wants a chance to show her his best. Whether or not it’ll be successful remains to be seen.