he called himself major fraser, lived alone and never alluded to his family. moreover he was lavish with money, though the source of his fortune remained a mystery to everyone. he possessed a marvelous knowledge of all the countries in europe at all periods. his memory was absolutely incredible and, curiously enough, he often gave his hearers to understand that he had acquired his learning elsewhere than from books. many is the time he has told me, with a strange smile, that he was certain he had known nero, had spoken with dante, and so on.
albert dresdan vandam, 1820
OH, WHAT A COINCIDENCE! i was just thinking of [ THE COUNT OF ST GERMAIN ]. most swear their resemblance to [ DEV PATEL ] is unmistakable, but he has been around since the [ RENAISSANCE ]. it is rumoured that the [ CIS MALE ] was born in [ LONDON ] in the year [ 1636 ], even though they don’t look a day over [ THIRTY ]. what a shame, though: they were once famed for being [ INTELLIGENT ] and [ AMIABLE ] ; yet now, they seem more and more [ DISHONEST ] and [ MATERIALISTIC ]. but while [ LEOPOLD ] spends their days working as [ MUSICIAN ], they are already notorious around town for [ A COLLECTION OF GEMSTONES, PRECIOUS METALS, AND ROYAL FABRICS THAT MAKE IT EASY TO PRETEND, TO BELIEVE HIS OWN UNTRUTHS ; A REFUSAL TO BEG FORGIVENESS, AND A GIFT AT CONVINCING OTHERS THAT PERMISSION HAD BEEN ASKED ; HIS ARTS HAVE FOUND PATRONAGE, BUT IT FEELS EMPTY, AS INSINCERE AS HE IS ]. when you live forever, you might as well make the most of it.
TASK ONE : THE RUNDOWN
▼ STATISTICS.
full name: leopold. whether the family name of his birth was forgotten, never present, or simply omitted is unclear.
moniker / nickname: many ... it is one of his favorite past times. weldoun, de saint-noel, saltikov, montferrat, bellamarre, bedmar, tzarogy, rakooczi, belletti, fraser, d’aymar, giovanni, simon wolff, surmount, frater lacius tertiarius, denis s. m.
titles: comte de saint germain is one of his favorites, though he’s also claimed to be a prinz of transylvannia, a marquis, and a major, among other things.
gender && pronouns: cis male; he / him
dob && age: june 2nd, 1636; about 384 years, though he has appeared to be about thirty since he woke up from his first death in 1665
place of birth: london, england
previous residences: primarily england, france, and the dutch republic; he’s a traveler though, and the true list is somewhat extensive, and the false one is certainly extravagent
zodiac sign: gemini
ethnicity: indian
sexual orientation: bisexual
romantic orientation: biromantic
occupational history: adventurer, musician, composer, diplomat, general renissance man, con artist
▼ PHYSICAL APPEARANCE.
face claim: dev patel
height: 6′2.
physical build: not particularly athletic, somewhat lanky
eye colour and shape: a very deep brown, eyes that often inspire trust despite themselves
hair colour and style: brown, though nearly black, worn in loose curls just short of his shoulders
usual expression: a slight smile, always friendly
accent and speech style: he switches, somewhat unpredictably, between british and french accents
distinguishing marks / characteristics: plague scars on his torso and left arm, though he takes car to keep them covered.
clothing style: extravagant and expensive, but with some degree of tastefulness. he toes the line of being too eccentric, but his goal is really to either blend in with the well to do around him, or to convince others that he is one himself, not to appear as if he is new money with no knowledge.
jewellery and accessories: a collection of rings, there’s a certain glint to the gemstones when he plays the piano. he’s got a story to tell about most of them, but it is up to you if you believe any of them. he used to wear large chains, brooches, and more, but these days it is just the rings.
▼ FAMILY.
father: a london merchant; sometimes claimed to be francis ii rakoczi of transulvania
mother: wife of a london merchant
siblings, if any: none
extended relations: none
significant other(s): quite a few he’ll claim, but nothing that’s stuck
children: none that he’s aware of
household pet(s): it’s best he’s only responsible for himself
▼ FAVOURITES.
colour: royal blue
weather: bright sun in the spring, temperate afternoons
food item: he’s quite adventurous with food, and will claim to love any number of dishes deemed fancy enough, but he’s got a soft spot for comport food. a warm soup of a chill day... there’s nothing better.
beverage: wine or tea.
time of day: early evening
television genre: he’s not really a tv person
favourite era lived: besides the few months he spent imprisoned for espionage, the 1700s were really his golden years. he also enjoyed the early 20th century.
▼ PERSONALITY.
hobbies: playing violin, reading, painting
pet peeves: --
phobias: --
allergies: --
mbti type: esfp
enneagram type: 7w8
positive traits: intelligent, amiable
negative traits: materialistic, dishonest
morning routine: --
beauty routine: --
sleeping habits: --
oldest belonging: a copy of the letter where voltaire sarcastically refereed to him as the wonderman, it’s a bit of a badge of honor
living space && home: --
FURTHER DETAILS
the lie he has told is that he has existed since the beginning. he received gifts from a great grandson of moses, he lived under the rule of valentinian i, lived in the tower of london while king edward ii held the throne, worked with raymond lull, studied speculative chemistry with francis i of france and was personal friends with michel eyquem de montaigne. the fact that the deceased prince of transylvannia would be similar in age to him and they shared a birthname allowed him to fold that into his identity as well, although contradictory to the earlier claims. there's something quite romantic about being the long lost prince. though he used a variety of names, depending on the location and his mood. marquis de montferrat, comte bellamarre, chevalier schoening, count weldon, comte soltikoff, graf tzarogy, though prinz ragoczy was likely his favorite identity besides the count. these days he let's people call him leo.
the truth is that he was the son of a london merchant, who died for the first time during the plague year. he had been granted some education, and now had the time and lack of identity to put it to use. he used his musical talents to impress the aristocrats and become one of them. it was his music that caught the most attention. lady jemima yorke, prince frederick of walkes, prince charles of hesse - kassel, king louis the beloved and others were endeared to him, though voltaire seemed to have other thoughts. leopold did his best to make himself useful, besides just being liked, such as completing diplomatic missions on behalf of louis in the late 1740s.
he's never been one to be overly cautious when protecting the truth about him, and rather is quite open about it; something most deem as another eccentricity of the strange man. however, it is likely such actions that have lead to most of the trouble he's run into, such as being arrested in london for suspicion of espionage during the jacobite rebellion. centuries later and he has yet to learn discretion of this kind, or perhaps he just had no wish to. being mysterious, hard to understand, to the point of fascination not rejection, is part of his act, and it's how he's been able to support himself over such a long life. if you endear yourself to the wealthy and powerful, they'll often take care of you while they try to figure you out. they like to feel like they're smart, like they're just on the edge of solving the puzzle.
he's put away enough by this point to live comfortably, but he gets oh so incredibly bored if he cannot entertain ―― for that's what this all has been really, an entertaining endeavor where he is the star of the show. the decline of royalty really did put a damper on his fun, and so did the rise of mass communications that made it more difficult to claim various identities. these days he's a musician, a pianist mostly who is equally comfortable at dingy jazz bars or wigmore hall, though he does enjoy the grandeur of the latter. when he isn't playing, he's something of a socialite, enjoying expensive parties where he can continue to tell his stories , both true and false .
