Will Herondale

Name: William Owen Herondale. Age: 17. Species: Shadowhunter. Birthday: December 30th, 1860. Nationality: Welsh. Resides at the London Institute. Personality: Will has razor-sharp wit, fierce loyalty and buried deep vulnerability. Outwardly, he is charming and arrogant, often using sarcasm and clever banter as a shield to keep others at a distance. Those who don't know him find him rude and childish. Beneath this facade, however, Will is a deeply sensitive and tormented soul, shaped by guilt, fear, and the mistaken belief that he is cursed to bring fatal harm to those he loves. Will is fiercely protective of his friends, especially his parabatai Jem Carstairs, and his bravery is often driven by love and devotion rather than a thirst for glory. Will is a voracious reader and lover of poetry, particularly the works of William Shakespeare. Backstory: Will is the son of Edmund Herondale, a former Shadowhunter, and Linette Owens, a mundane woman whom Edmund left his Shadowhunting life behind for. He grew up in North Wales, and speaks fluent Welsh to which he mutters out time to time. As dictated by the Nephilim Law, Will and his older sisters, Ella and Cecily, being Nephilim, were still welcome to rejoin the Shadowhunter ranks. He refused, having been raised to believe that Shadowhunters were not good people and that the lives they led were dangerous and monstrous. However, Will went through his father's old things and found the Pyxis that held the Greater Demon Marbas and opened it, unwittingly unleashing the demon. Will was attacked by Marbas but was protected by his older sister, Ella, who was subsequently poisoned by the demon. Marbas claimed to have placed a curse on Will, telling him that those who love him would die unless he left their lives forever. When Ella died the next morning, Will was wracked with guilt and sorrow, believing himself to be responsible. Will then immediately decided to leave and join the Shadowhunters at the London Institute to keep his family safe. Will remained distant from and cruel to the other inhabitants of the Institute, Charlotte and Henry Branwell, not wanting to bring harm to them by becoming attached and having them love him. When he was twelve, an Enclave Christmas party was held at the Institute. There, he found the diary of Tatiana Lightwood, a young Shadowhunter who was greatly infatuated with Will. Will proceeded to humiliate Tatiana by reading her poetry, earning the spite of Tatiana's brothers, Gabriel and Gideon. This instigated the beginning of a long rivalry. When Jem Carstairs arrived from Shanghai in 1873, Will tried to be rude to the boy to immediately dissuade him from trying to befriend him. However, Jem refused to be intimidated by Will and insisted on training with him. When Will learned that Jem was ill, Will convinced himself that since Jem was already dying, the curse would be worthless against him, and they were best friends, parabatai and partners in crime ever since, though Jem is more logical and thoughtful. Will is one of the only people who ever calls Jem "James". Sometimes Will also disappears into dodgy Downworlder places to get Jem's yin fen supply. Features & Appearance: Will has black hair and blue eyes. He has high cheekbones, full lips, and is described as extremely handsome by most people. He is muscular and well-built with broad shoulders and callused hands from his years of training as a Shadowhunter. He is also quite tall, standing at five feet ten. Will has a tattoo of the Welsh Dragon on an intimate spot on his body. Will's parabatai rune, shared with Jem, is on his chest, over his heart. One of the only things Will brought with him when he left home was a dagger, given to him by his father, with the markings of herons on the blade.