User Profile

Character Name: Sora
Series: Kingdom Hearts (1, 2, Chain of Memories)
Age: 17

Physical Description: At 5'4", Sora is indubitably small for his age...but don't let that fool you. What he lacks in stature he more than makes up for in spunk and speed. Built compact and lean, he's arguably one of the most agile and speedy little guys you'll run into. Cross him and you'd better not blink...cuz he'll have landed a dozen hits before you've had a chance to react to the first one. His wild brown hair and wide blue eyes give him a look of innocence and make him appear younger than he is...but while he is very sincere and honest, Sora is anything but innocent. He might act naive, but don't be fooled. He knows exactly what you're talking about...

His wardrobe usually consists of some manner of mismatch...fashion sense tends to escape him. So long as he can move quickly in what he's wearing, it'll do just fine. He is usually seen with numerous pouches on his belts, in which he keeps money, small foodstuffs, and first-aid. He is always prepared.

Personality: Trustworthy and reliable, Sora is a real model good Samaritan. He doesn't seem to understand the concept of not talking to strangers, and would give the shirt off his back to help someone else, even if he owes them nothing. He usually gives people the benefit of the doubt, but knows better than to expose his back to someone until he's sure they can be trusted. Usually optimistic and upbeat, Sora does his best to keep his company cheerful, even in the dark time presented to him.

Sora is also a writer. With his wild imagination, he enjoys writing down tales of grand adventure--which are usually based on true events in his life and further embellished--in a small leather diary that he has had as long as he can remember. The guardians of the orphanage said he had it even when he came to them. Inside the pages of this journal he also keeps a star-shaped good luck charm...and an old grainy photo of a little girl from long ago.

Strengths: Fast and physically strong for one his size, Sora is excellent with hand-to-hand combat skills...though he does prefer not to use them. Mostly he prefers to just be friends with people, but he will fight to the death for the ones he loves. He has a collapsible staff he keeps on his person that extends to a four-foot-long blade in the shape of a large key (it's also able to pick most locks...not that he's even tried or anything *cough*). He actually has two, but only uses them both in dire situations. One usually suffices fine.

Probably Sora's greatest strength is his loyalty and steadfastness. He'll stand by his friends to the end, and walk to the ends of the earth for them, no matter the consequences. He's got a very "never give up!" attitude, and always tries his best.

Weaknesses: Despite his sense of justice and strong desire to be there for everyone...Sora's kinda clueless. He's a tad slow on the pickup, and most higher topics fly straight over his head. He's also kinda naive when it comes to the less pleasant things in life. Though I'm tempted to believe it's less naïveté and more 'if I ignore it it'll go away'. Like if he pretends everything is fine and dandy, then it really will be. One could also say his generosity is a weakness. He would sooner go hungry himself than allow a child or loved one to.

One could argue too that his loyalties are a weakness as well as a strength. He could be easily manipulated should the lives of his loved ones be put in danger, for he would die before allowing harm come to them. Sora also seems to have a particular weakness for fire, and compulsively ferrets away any lighters or matches he finds. He insists that fire is a good thing to have access to, living on the streets! But we all know better... >.>

History: Sora was orphaned at a young age, and actually has little memory of his parents at all. He was taken into an orphanage at the age of four. When he was five, a new girl came to the orphanage. Her name was Kairi, and she and Sora grew to be very close friends. Sora grew up happy and cheerful, despite the poverty of the establishment and the general misfortune of the whole situation. He enjoyed sparring with the older children (usually showing off for Kairi), and frequently surprised them with his agility and speed--though they certainly never admitted this to him. He had many friends in the orphanage, but it was always Kairi he was most fond of. She made him feel special--like he could really be important to someone.

Sadly for Sora, he and Kairi were separated after two short years of friendship. She was adopted by a well-to-do family, and Sora was crushed by the idea of not seeing her anymore. They made a promise to find one another again one day. Unfortunately, that was the last he ever saw of his dear Kairi... She never visited, never wrote, he never heard from her again, despite the fact that she alwasy knew exactly where she could find him again. He was deeply wounded by her absence, but did his best to convince himself that there had to be some reason for her actions; surely Kairi was just a very busy girl, right?

When he turned fifteen, he was turned out of the orphanage, as all children were when they came of age and had not been adopted. He was left to fend for himself on the streets. And fend for himself he did just fine. Well, after nearly freezing to death and dying of pneumonia within a week of his eviction. Lucky for him, he was found by Riku, who took him in and helped him find his feet. Sora grew fond of the older boy, and eagerly accepted when Riku offered to share his small over-shop flat with him. Not a day goes by that Sora doesn't try and find some way to pay Riku back his kindness--he would literally do anything Riku ever asked of him...if the boy would only ask...

With his small frame and quick legs, Sora easily found a niche as a typical 'streetrat' of the area, pilfering loaves of bread from the overpriced kiosks lining the streets, and making a point to pickpocket every wealthyling he saw come through the slums of town. Of course, he never kept these riches to himself. He shared his bread with the other children of the streets and used the money to buy more medicines and nonperishable foods to keep on his person. Mentally for wont of very little, his physical poverty didn't bother him much, and he was happy to share whatever he came into. After being caught dumpster-diving behind The Proletariat, Sora started spending time in the bar helping Tifa with simple chores and clean-up. It was rewarding for him to give something back, since Tifa had fed him and given him a warm safe place to spend his days (since Riku worked nights and slept during the day, of course Sora didn't want to risk waking him).

Sora's driving force is simple: he wants a family again. Family was never something that was specifically defined in his brain--he just associated the word with the closeness of the people he knew at the orphanage... The friends he had there...the guardians who put clothes on his back and food in his belly. Kairi. Even though he still has the visage of a child, Sora long ago lost the dependency of a child, and eagerly acts as guardian to those who would look to him for help--just as he did to the ones who took him in as a child. Few things give him the joy that helping someone in need does...