Riyu Ichijo -- Headmaster

Name: Riyu Ichijo.
Nickname: None.
Age: In appearance, mid-twenties. In actual time, centuries old.
Gender: Male.
Sexuality: Anyone he takes interest in.
Birthday: Unknown; he's forgotten by this point.




Race: The great Phoenix of the South.
Powers: Riyu is hiddenly immortal. When killed by normal means, he bursts into flames and is reborn within his ashes. He can control flames and the temperature around him. Riyu can also change between his humanoid form and his true form at will, although he tends to avoid that as it attracts attention. 




Height/Weight: 6', 158 lbs.
Appearance: As a human. In his true form.
Markings?: Not really a marking, but he has a lip to ear piercing. He also has several feathers tattooed on his right shoulder but should he die, they will vanish when he is reborn.
Hindrances: Injuries, physical disabilities, etc.





Personality:
 
Riyu is very outgoing. He isn't afraid to get into someone's space and can be quite loud. Personal space doesn't exist in his dictionary, but this is mostly because he's gone years without human contact at different times in his life. Meeting people and getting to know them brightens up his day. You'd think after living for many centuries you'd get tired of people but Riyu never does. He has a knack for getting into trouble and is just a bit too flirtatious for his own good. The Phoenix is as eccentric as he is loud. In his opinion, the grander the better.

It was originally Riyu's idea to start Finix Academy. His intention was to help young children born with supernatural abilities and ones who obtained them at a later age to control them. Riyu wants them to live a life of peace and happiness without fear of being killed. Finix Academy brought about a town for these supernatural beings to live. He began to oversee the Academy as Headmaster and loves his job. Seeing all of the kids grow up and graduate makes him extremely happy. 

Riyu is very hard to make angry, and even if you do, you won't even know. He'll smile the entire time ... even when he doles out your punishment. That comes with being the Headmaster, and as the students have begun saying, you don't wanna go to his office.

Health Issues?: Over the last ten years his flames have begun to burn him. Riyu knows why but refuses to share the information with anyone.




Parents: Unknown.
Siblings: None.
Other Relations: Although not related by blood, he considered a pipe fox named Taikyu his brother.

History:

Riyu's original place of "birth" was a vast forest in China. He grew up there with a few others of his species. He spent all his time in that little forest until he turned ten years old. The Phoenix parted ways with them to begin exploring the world and all it had to offer at a young age. He vaguely remembered that he was part of something bigger but never really thought much of it. The four Sacred Beasts, as they were, had been created together, but in Riyu's mind they were but a distant memory. There was really no explanation to it but he knew they existed. Not that he wanted to meet them of course.

It was during his travels that Riyu seen a human for the first time. Riyu learned by listening and observing what a human was and how to behave like one. He learned their customs, their emotions, and their lifestyle before he actually began to walk among them. Through this, Riyu learned of other supernatural beings and what kind of hardships they went through, although the Phoenix rarely thought of it.

His first thousand years were spent traveling and learning. He met humans other supernatural beings and formed friendships with them, even though Riyu knew most of them wouldn't be around for long. The Phoenix experienced his first death around this time after he was murdered by a shady man in rural China. Due to this, he ended up seeing his sister again, although their visit was short lived.

Fifty years  later he met one of the other four for the first time. Well, meeting wasn't really the best way to describe it. The meeting was simply a passing on the street; he didn't even get a glimpse of them, just a feeling and knowing it was them.

Over time he began to realize how bad the human world was becoming. War, famine, and anger seemed to rule their lives. Supernatural and mortal alike suffered from the carelessness of these humans, and Riyu tried desperately to find a solution. His second death occurred around this period of time. It was here that he also met Taikyu, a young pipe fox who "raised" him from his second cycle.

They became good friends and luckily for Riyu the pipe fox was immortal like him. Together they traveled the world, seeking out supernatural beings that couldn't quite control their powers. Taikyu was the first one to suggest a place for them to go but it was Riyu that unconsciously summoned the other four. From that meeting Finix Academy sprang up, and with that came the city.

It took some fleshing out and building but soon there was a place for young supernaturals to go and learn to control their abilities. The Bondmate system was developed by a young scientist at Finix, and Riyu and Taikyu volunteered to try it out first. They were close after all. At this point in time the ability to take them off wasn't yet fully developed but they didn't mind. The pair kept them on and time continued on. Finix was a hit and it lent a hand to many supernatural children. But of course with the good comes the bad.

The Resistance sprung up and soon there was full out war between the Academy and the strange presence. They would raid the school, kidnap and kill their students, and then retreat again. Riyu was at a loss for what to do; the stress seemed to overwhelm him. It was around this time that Taikyu fell prey to a raid. The Phoenix felt what it was like to die without promise of rebirth for the first time. He held the pipe fox, the one who had become his friend, in his arms until his last breath. 

From then on Riyu tried everything he could to stop the mindless killing, hoping that he could let Taikyu rest in peace.

As of today, he works as the Headmaster at Finix Academy.



Alliance: Finix.
--- Headmaster.