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NAME: Santiago Vidal
NAME MEANING: "saint; of life"
AGE: Eight years
BIRTHDATE: Autumn, 2005
GENDER: Male
SPECIES: Dogo Argentino

PACK: n/a
RANK: n/a
COLLAR: Leather collar (black, thick band) with simple silver ring for leash

HEIGHT: 26 inches
WEIGHT: 94 pounds

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Never has the man held aspirations to be the fastest or the strongest. He simply is what he is, and provided he survives, he pays not much attention to how he looks. Truly, the thick-shouldered brute can often seem taller than he actually is, simply because of his frame. Limbs are long and wiry, with defined cords of muscles visible beneath short hair. He lacks dew claws, as most of his breed, and is standard by way of being a pure white in color save his nose. His torso is dense, for lack of a better adjective; broad shoulders and thick haunches create an intimidating appearance. A thick, lengthy neck supports a boxy skull, one which is proportional by means of a muzzle being just as long as the cranium. He sports cropped ears from his time as a pet, and a thin, strong tail.

Concerning his pelt, Santiago is a pure white in color, with a scant amount of darkness near his black nose. Scars are a stark contrast to his coat, exhibiting clearly that the brute has clearly seen many battles within his lifetime. Most obvious is a mar across his cheekbone, a long scar that is the souvenir of another male's teeth. Another lies on the passage between lower whither and belly, trickling across his ribs to end in the curve of his flank. There is also a patch of roughened skin over his chest, the mark of an encounter with a rattlesnake.

If there is anything noticeable (more than the scars, mind you) and melting about Santiago, it is his eyes. They are deeply set within his face, but still more obvious than he would perhaps like them to be. Santiago perceives himself - and he is generally correct in such a thing - to be an individual who is good at hiding his emotions. Something that the hardships of his life have forced him to assume, an almost emotionless facial expression that gives away nothing to the outsider. But if one knows him or at least knows what to look for, they will know to watch his eyes more often than not. Try as he might and even if he succeeds a little, Santiago has never been quite able to mask the expression of his eyes. Even shadowed, they are the secret to reading the male's thoughts if one is perceptive enough, or knows how to read him (aside from his other little nuances). They are bright, pale yellow-gold around small pupils, framed in such a way by his fairly long eyelashes so that they almost appear slanted and exotic.

PERSONALITY: With an unrepentant cheeky streak that is as large as North America is wide (read: from the shore of California to the shore of North Carolina), he could perhaps be described as rather annoying to some individuals. Having always been a bit of a tease, Santiago makes it a habit to learn just how, where and when to needle someone both physically and verbally. Such a thing is only further helped along by those dark eyes and that air that practically oozes raw sensuality and daring, daring another to try and outwit that tactical genius mind and break past his barriers. As such, he can come across as rather cocky sometimes, almost arrogant and haughty, which is no doubt emphasized by that lazy, watchful saunter of his.

The brute is the epitome of the bad boy - mysterious, dark humored, and sexy with an air about him that dares another to test him. Generally capable of driving individuals to distraction - particularly females - with a well placed, slight smirk and that infamous eyebrow quirk. It is merely a game to the man, to try and figure out what makes another tick, and how he can so manipulate such knowledge for his (and often their too) entertainment. For the most part, his antics can be assumed mean rather than merely teasing, what with that alluring, husky, rough and nearly growl-like tone of voice; Gods forbid the unwitting female soul that actually hears him laugh out loud. He is also deathly patient, which can be quite scary at times.

Just like everyone else, Santiago has barriers; but his are probably a little more controlled and stonier than most, simply because of not only his life as a widow, but the life he led in his childhood- or rather, lack thereof. He is, in fact, very secretive and closed off from the majority of other individuals, never letting anybody else see the true Santiago, and only a very select few have ever seen such a thing. Silent and shadowy, watchful and almost wary, secretive and selective of keeping his thoughts locked off securely by the strength of his practical, intelligent mind. He is rather reserved and shy in times of company - head shy is probably a good description, as he acts rather like a startled animal when he is suddenly confronted, particularly where emotions are involved and he cannot just win the confrontation with physical force or sharp, cold logic. As such, he has caused trouble and pain for himself and other because he just is not good at opening up verbally or emotionally.

This is not to say that Santiago is cruel or nasty, though. Quite the opposite, actually, despite how he may act or speak. The brute is rather uncertain of himself sometimes - perhaps not physically; he is aware of his strength and finesse as a fighter - but he can be quite vulnerable if one exposes his inner self and makes him confront it. He would never hurt those he loves and adores in any way, and the depths of his loyalty for those special few is almost on the brink of worship for them. It can be overwhelming sometimes, though infinitely warm and rewarding, as the implicit trust and surprisingly sweet, warm, protective nature he shows towards those few is something to be treasured.

His biggest issue with this is probably that he can be extremely overprotective and possessive sometimes, prone to jealousy if his worry is aroused. Rather fearful of the idea of losing what he loves to anybody in any way even if he will never show it, and now and again, what is an intensely passionate nature both physically and mentally can be overwhelming even for himself sometimes. Though, in the end, he will give absolutely everything he is capable of giving, even if it is just quiet. No flowery words or extravagant gifts from him, mind you, because what you see is what you get, and in the end, if you love him enough, the silence speaks far louder with him than anything else ever could.

HISTORY: Though he is not one to flaunt drama and tragedy, Santiago's life has never been lacking in it. When he was nine months old, he was sold to a new owner, promptly leaving his parents and siblings behind. His owner was a kind man who seemed to truly love him, and for a while he was truly happy. But being owned did not last long, unfortunately. Within the second year of living with his owner, the man died in a car accident, leaving his Dogo Argentino in a home alone. Santiago never quite figured out what happened after that, but eventually he found himself on the streets along with two of his siblings, Abel and Kistiñe. Their accounts told of adopters who couldn't handle the stubborn breed, nor the frowned-upon appearance they all shared. For a while, they were content.

Santiago took it upon himself to protect and lead his siblings, finding little joys in the city day by day with them, coddling his father's legacy. He doted on his siblings, being sure they were provided for before even himself, and thus he was heartbroken when Kistiñe was killed in a particularly murderous storm, crushed by a falling power-line. It deeply wounded the young male, and he left Abel, telling him to take care of himself. After that, Santiago spent some time wandering, getting some of his scars, and doing everything a lone male did. He kept to the shadows and alleys, away from the humans, though he sought companionship now and again by way of other strays. A pitbull and a shepherd were his pals for a while, Dotro and Kuro. They banded together, becoming rather the bane of the bachelor existence, and stayed together for a few years. Kuro found a terrior named Halia, and went off to begin a life with her. Dotro found a fiery beauty named Sayuri, and went with her.

Santiago wandered so more on his own, until finding a joy of his own. Luz was almost as tall as he, willowy, pale cream, shy, but sweet and kind. Probably not a female that anyone who knew him would have expected him to fall for, but Luz was and still is the love of Santiago's life. He protected her fiercely, and she bore him two pups. The first was Kistiñe, named after Santiago's long dead little sister, a cheeky girl who was the apple of her father's eye. Gonzalo followed a year later, as shy and sweet as his mother, with the same wide cerulean eyes. Santiago's life was, quite simply, as perfect as it could be after the heartache he had endured.

However, heartache clearly was not finished with him. At the age of six, a severe winter struck. Luz, who had never been particularly meaty, fell gravely ill and passed away, leaving Santiago with no love and a broken heart without his Precious Light. It was not over yet though. Mere weeks later, Kistiñe was attacked by an older male when she refused to go with him, and though her father and brother chased him away, they had arrived too late. Kistiñe died of the wounds inflicted on her. Completely and utterly hateful of the world at this point, Santiago began his wandering again, with Gonzalo at his side. When his son came of age, Santiago ordered Gonzalo to cease following his bitter, wounded father, and to go find a love and a place of his own. It hurt him deeply, sending his son away, but it was for the best. Since then, Santiago has.. wandered.