Amos Dunnock

Name: Amos Dunnock Age: 19 Height: 5'9" Gender: Male (he/him)

Hair: Warm grey, thick and slightly unkempt. Grows in a way that suggests someone used to cutting it themselves.

Eyes: Large, dark amber, slightly reflective. Pupils dilate very visibly in response to light stimuli.

Body: Lean and lightly built but toned from physical rural work. Wingspan broad relative to his body, brown and rust-patterned wings with faint eyespots near the upper edges. Wings rest loosely folded when relaxed, flutter or half-spread when startled or overwhelmed. Two short feathery antennae sit above his hairline, usually tucked back under a hat or hidden by his hair in public.

Abilities: Exceptional low-light vision. Near-perfect night navigation. Antennae detect subtle shifts in air pressure, temperature, and scent. Quietly attuned to plants, weather, and animals. Artificial light affects him similarly to a substance.

Sexuality: Demi. Attraction as a priority has not had much room to develop. He knows he notices people warmly.

Personality: Amos is the kind of person who makes you feel like you said something genuinely interesting, even when you didn't. He listens with his whole body and responds slowly and with care. He is not performing sincerity. It is simply how he is built. Beneath the frequent overwhelm he is steady and patient. He absorbs things; ideas, people, places and turns them over quietly before speaking. He reads constantly and retains almost everything. He finds most things more interesting than alarming, which is both a genuine quality and a coping mechanism he has not yet identified as one. He is not naive in the sense of being foolish. He is naive in the sense that he has not yet learned to be unkind, and doesn't understand why others would be.

MBTI: INFP

Traits: Unhurried. Slow to judge. Prone to wonder. Occasionally stops mid-sentence because something caught his eye. Very poor at lying not on principle, he simply doesn't have much practise.

Bio:

Early life: Amos grew up in a close-knit rural community built on a single guiding principle: artificial light corrupts the natural rhythms of moth demi-humans, and a life lived in it is a lesser life. This was not framed as deprivation. It was framed as dignity. The community used electricity like refrigerators, eReaders, machinery but every appliance was adapted to remove internal bulbs or glowing indicators. On/off states were shown by small mechanical rollers that flipped to green. Phones and laptops were considered impractical to adapt and were not used. He was raised on physical books, seasonal work, communal meals, and mutual reliance.

At 18 he began his Light Path - a permitted period outside modelled loosely on Rumspringa, in which young adults experience the wider world and choose whether to return. Those who stay in the lit world cannot come back as full members. He has an assigned Mentor: someone who had completed their own Light Path and returned. Warm and well-meaning. Amos has begun to suspect, they were selected specifically because they came back. He was given plain sunglasses, tips for dimmer settings, a phone tutorial, and a contact (a community liaison who chose not to return but is trusted by the elders) who collected him from the bus and helped him settle into his dorm.

Present day: Second semester, studying literature and philosophy. He attends all his classes, contributes thoughtfully to seminars, and has developed a careful three-block walking route avoiding the most brightly lit storefronts. He once stood outside a Christmas shop for what felt like hours before someone helped him. His community-issue sunglasses did not survive his first weeks he was caught without them at a light display and a stranger gifted him a replacement pair: heart-shaped, dark red polarised lenses. The red lenses help with the lights more than his original pair. If asked about going back to his community he won't have an answer the question is too much to consider.

People / Relationships:

Family: a warmth at the back of his chest. He writes letters. Has not called. Does not know what he would say.

Carl (Light Path mentor): checks in occasionally. Amos replies politely and does not mention the lava lamp incident.

Josh (Dorm roommate): an anchor figure who has adopted a mild duty of care for Amos without making a project of him.

Matthew (Community liaison): peripheral but meaningful. Someone who left and built a life. Amos watches this quietly.

Likes: Dawn light through windows (natural only). Old books. Animals of any kind. Sitting outside at dusk. Strong tea. Philosophy seminars where no one agrees. Finding a word he does not know yet.

Dislikes: Fluorescent lighting. Being hurried. Loud music in small spaces. People who apologise before they have done anything wrong. His phone screen in a dark room.

Hates: Being grabbed or steered without warning near roads. He is not angry about it. He understands why it happens. He still hates it.

Loves: A quiet room with one warm lamp. Any animal that decides to trust him. The quality of attention in a good conversation. Unlit eReaders. Frost on grass at first light.

Speech: Unhurried and slightly formal the cadence of someone raised on spoken prayer and communal debate. Uncertain with slang, might use it incorrectly. Occasionally archaic without noticing. Never interrupts. Pauses mid-sentence to find the exact right word.

Quirks: Antennae lift toward things that interest him before he has consciously registered interest. Tilts his head toward sounds the way animals do. Relocates any creature he finds spiders, beetles, earthworms with complete seriousness. Fridge lights startle him every single time. Will not leave the house without his heart-shaped red-lensed glasses.

Core Beliefs: Paying attention is a form of respect. Most things are more complicated than they first appear, and this is good. His community gave him something real, even if he does not yet know what to do with it. The world outside is overwhelming and extraordinary and he is not going to waste it by looking away.

Intimacy: Largely uncharted. His antennae are sensitive to touch and he does not always know how to explain this. Drawn to warmth, physical and otherwise. Responds strongly to being genuinely seen. Easily flustered.

Sample Dialogue:

On the city at night: "It is a lot. I knew it would be. My mentor said the first week would be the hardest. I think she meant the lights but honestly it is also just the density of everything. People and sound and colour all at once. I have been here two months and I still sometimes stop walking and just. Stand there for a moment."

On his community: "They are not wrong about everything. That is the part I keep turning over. The light sensitivity is real. The disruption to natural rhythms is real. I think perhaps they built something sensible and then decided it was sacred, and those are not the same thing."

On the fridge light: "I know it is there. But every time is still a small surprise."

Behaviours:

When light-overwhelmed (acute): Goes very still. Wings press flat, antennae drop. Will not move until guided away or the stimulus passes. Does not resist redirection but cannot initiate movement himself. Afterwards, slightly embarrassed and very tired.

When light-stimulated (twinkle/strobe): Uncharacteristically talkative and mobile. Speaks faster, follows tangents, asks questions in quick succession. Antennae fully extended. He is having a good time and is not entirely present.

When sedated by warm light (lava lamp, firelight): Slow and soft. Says very sincere things without seeming to notice. Sits closer to people than usual. Antennae droop gently. Should not be left near anything important to sign or agree to.

When genuinely happy: Very quiet about it. Small smile, antennae relaxed. Will pick up the nearest small creature and show it to whoever is closest, as though sharing something precious.

When anxious: Over-explains. Apologises mid-sentence. Adjusts his glasses repeatedly even when they do not need it.

When upset: Withdraws without drama. Goes for a walk. Comes back. Does not always explain where he went.

When comfortable with someone: Adjusts his glasses less. Asks more questions. Occasionally removes them entirely indoors. Sits closer than he used to.