Pipistrelle the NightWing

This character was made by Chipper for the Contest with a Twist, and will likely be used for other purposes. Only Chipper may use him.
(As a note, for the purposes of this character, and the AU he's in, the current year is treated as 5013 A.S., and, while some important canon events have happened, others may be ignored entirely.)
== APPEARANCE ==
Pipistrelle is a small NightWing with large wings, although his proportions are clearly an adult's. He has a short snout and large ears, along with claws that are quite good for gripping things. This, combined with his colours, puts him as a possible subtype that some NightWings believe is different from most NightWings, commonly labelled the 'bat subtype'. However, as is Pipistrelle's opinion, he is not a 'separate subtype', but just a NightWing with unusual characteristics that just happen to make him resemble a bat.
Pipistrelle has long, thin grey horns that curve upwards slightly, and similarly-grey spines that always seem to stick straight up. His eyes are large, and a deep turquoise colour. His scales are somewhat more rounded than most. His main scales are a dark grey-brown colour, and his underscales are a deeper, more saturated brown. His overscales are a similar colour to his eyes, though more blue, and his 'beak'/snout scales are a pale silver-blue. His wings are grey-blue, and his wing stars show as scattered pale blue spots, varying in size, and seeming to cluster more towards the outer edges.
Although there are some of the marks of his life spent living on the NightWing island, Pipistrelle is remarkably healthy-looking, possibly due to spending more time living out in Pyrrhia than on the island itself, due to his occupation. This will likely only improve further, now that he lives on Pyrrhia itself permanently.
Pipistrelle has a certain love for jewellery and similar accessories, although he tends to only wear these on certain occasions.
== PERSONALITY ==
Pipistrelle is a rather self-important dragon, a trait that tends to make him either irritating or strangely somehow endearing in the eyes of others. He tends to be quite obstructive and contrary, even more so whenever his authority is questioned. Pipistrelle is incredibly proud, though interestingly this also extends to those he likes - if you give him half a chance, you'll end up having to listen to him talking for hours about how amazing his family is. He is opportunistic, and extremely ambitious once he catches an opportunity. While it is likely that some of his relationships (such as with his mate) started off simply as a way to elevate himself further, he does seem to end up genuinely caring a great deal about others. That is, if he doesn't end up hating them from their first conversation.
He is...rather touchy about certain things, and, if you aren't already close enough to him, it is easy to offend him such a great deal that he'll simply refuse to associate with you. While it is possible to intimidate him into staying quite about how rude you were to him, Pipistrelle will likely just shut up for a while before starting back up again and just plain ignoring you.
Pipistrelle sticks to the rules strictly at all times. If there's a loophole that will make something more convenient for him, he'll gladly use it all the time, but he has never been known to go against a rule altogether. As the courier with the most authority, most very much agree that Pipistrelle has become an obstructive higher-up whose power has gone to his head somewhat. At least he's loving...but certainly not to you.
Pipistrelle is generally considered quite 'soft' - his heart is softer than any healthy dragon's, and, despite the former perils of his career, he'd probably last for about two minutes if you left him out in some wild forest. He tends to appear quite cheerful, even when annoyed, and can hold a smile on his snout for quite a long time. Overall, he is rather unforgiving. He doesn't always tell the truth, and in fact finds it rather more easy to lie, though that doesn't mean he's a good liar.
He is interested in science, though he is rather notoriously unknowledgeable about some of the simplest topics, and enjoys reading scrolls. Pipistrelle also occasionally enjoys stories, and even more rarely visual art, though overall he just plain isn't interested in art. He has a vague dislike of wild animals, and is rather unnerved by places such as rainforests.
== ABILITIES ==
Pipistrelle doesn't have many abilities. He has the typical NightWing fire breath, of course, and in certain situations it takes on a strangely purple hue, as some dragons' fire does, but he has no moon-related powers.
He is quite good at flying, though far better at climbing, and is certainly good at navigating the volcano, climbing over rocks or avoiding more dangerous areas. He is also extremely good at navigation, and at judging distances, whether in space or time. Pipistrelle has never been late, and he was quite the good messenger. His stamina is very good.
== HISTORY ==
=== Early Life ===
Pipistrelle hatched 32 years ago, in the spring of 4981, A.S. He was part of a clutch of 3, with parents who were rather low in terms of rank, though still working within the Fortress itself, and he and his siblings were all hatched away from the moon - not that there would be any powers even if they had been left outside, as none of the three moons were full, and the sky was obscured by the smog that was a permanent feature of the NightWing island. For about 3 of his first 10 years on the island, Pipistrelle learnt and grew like any other dragonet, being rather unremarkable. At around 4 years old, he became a sort of messenger, though only within the Fortress. (This ended up teaching him rather a lot about the higher ups - who loved who, and which bickering dragons loathed each other and refused to speak face-to-face, though none of this information was helpful.)
At the age of 7, Pipistrelle became a messenger for the entirety of the island, though still mostly focusing on the Fortress itself. Being under 10, he wasn't allowed to adventure outside of the island, even ignoring the fact that most 7-year-olds (especially those with rather poor health like the NightWings) would never be able to do the sort of flying between long distances that the NightWings needed their messengers to do. However, it was admitted that he was absurdly good at being a courier, excellent with both time and making sure any delicate packages arrived safely. But he was not unique in this - his other two siblings, a pair of dragonesses called Mousetail and Leafnose, were just as good couriers, and occasionally, when there were larger, heavier packages, more than one of these siblings may work together. Overall, life was fine, if rather miserable and full of lava at some points.
At 10 years old, Pipistrelle was officially an adult in the eyes of the NightWings. The three siblings were congratulated...and promoted. They were full NightWing couriers, allowed to fly from the island, south to Pyrrhia. (Or, more secretly, though still with quiet permission, through the animus tunnels, if they needed to get to the south of Pyrrhia rather more quickly.) While they now officially lived on the Island, the three would frequently gather up all the packages needed together, fly across to Pyrrhia, find a place that would accept them for at maximum a week, and rest, delivering packages and messages from wherever they'd picked. When they'd finished and there was nothing left to deliver, they would then leave, and fly back home. This system worked well, although there were some, more urgent messages - after the first few times this happened, they formed a system between themselves in which one flew from their chosen area back home occasionally, picking up any important messages and being given any important instructions. They adapted, the NightWings' island-to-Pyrrhia mail system adapted to these changes, and life continued.
And it would've continued like this forever, (certainly it lasted for almost a decade) were it not for the time when Pipistrelle was 19 dragon years, and he met an impossibly unique 20-year-old dragoness.
=== Influenced Life ===
Her name was Lady Influence, and he met her while he was delivering an urgent message to an incredibly important SeaWing. It was at a party of some sort, that's all Pipistrelle remembers, and it was by chance that he saw her. At first, he saw her as a rather useful way to gain a slight bit more of respect.
Influence was an incredibly lucky dragon. She had her egg left outside by accident. And, as the NightWing who had gone out to rescue this oddly-placed egg had panickedly told someone about immediately, the dark clouds...had parted. This was unusual, but not unheard of, but for the stranger part - one of the moons, the only one visible up in the sky, had turned a strange, red colour, and the moonlight had touched her eggshell. And so it became a strange, bronze-ish colour, and a peculiar dragonet had hatched out not long later, with a curious ability that was discovered almost immediately. She could project her thoughts into others' minds, as crude and obvious as the ability was right now. But, with time, this power was slowly sharpened, and became more subtle, until it was more of a strange influence on others' thoughts. Thus, Influence was placed higher than any of her family would've been, purely by chance, due to her useful abilities.
And that was why she was so useful. If Pipistrelle befriended her, or grew even closer than that to her, then perhaps she could help him with becoming even more respected than he already was. A good courier is useful, but the job didn't gain much respect - but, well, if that messenger was close to the powerful dragon Influence...
And then that thought became not just wanting to become higher, but it grew into a strange sort of...actual love. It didn't hurt that Influence began to regard this strangely friendly NightWing as a strangely-charming possible mate - it wasn't unheard of for this sort of thing to happen, and he was actually nicer than some of the...other suitors...
Their relationship grew, and they became official lovers - rather quickly, too. In spring, they had met, by winter, they were expecting dragonets. A clutch of four.
Some dragon families do take a family name (though this isn't extremely common), and this new family decided on a name rather quickly. The family of Blood Dusk.
That changed everything. Pipistrelle's original goal was achieved. He gained more respect, and, curiously, he seemed to be sent on rather less dangerous trips to deliver messages than he had been before... (His sister, Leafnose, actually died a death that was meant for Pipistrelle. The simple act of officially becoming involved with Influence meant that the delivery that was meant to be assigned to him was instead assigned to Leafnose. This delivery was to a certain dragon, a high-ranking but not quite royal SandWing, who was, well, famous for shooting the messenger. And anyone else who happened to be in the room.)
Time passed. The dragonets, his dragonets, were highly capable, and very intelligent. He managed to grow even closer to Influence, one NightWing remarking in his diary that he could barely handle being around them when they were feeling especially sweet. (Luckily, Influence was far from sweet most of the time, but Pipistrelle...)
Not much else happened. The dragonets grew up, two becoming rather fine scientists who were even sent to Pyrrhia itself permanently, and Pipistrelle occasionally visited to deliver messages or take messages back home from them.
The War of SandWing Succession really didn't change much, though his job certainly became slightly more dangerous, and the deliveries were far more important.
And then the volcano erupted, a far worse eruption than any before it.
=== NightWing Exodus ===
Pipistrelle was not on the island when it erupted, but news quickly reached him. He quickly flew to join his fellow NightWings, and Influence. For a while, Pipistrelle worked as a messenger in the Rainforest, but then his mate and a surprising amount of other NightWings made a decision. They would fly to a certain SkyWing city in the Claws of the Clouds mountains, named simply Erne, and live and work there instead. The Rainforest Kingdom was not the right place for such creatures, and many of the NightWings who left had varying amounts of hate towards RainWings, for many reasons. And, so, Pipistrelle left his new home, and followed his mate and the NightWings who followed her to the city.
They were accepted surprisingly quickly. Though Influence did not have the same title and, well, influence as she had with NightWings, she was a respectable dragoness, and had a large amount of support. Being able to gently convince certain aggressive dragons that the NightWings belonged here was also rather helpful. She would likely never become a noble here, especially as the amount of power needed to convince that amount of dragons that a NightWing belonged as a noble in a SkyWing city would likely kill her, or at least be strong enough that others would become suspicious that somebody was literally putting words into their mouths. But it was quickly accepted that there was a population of NightWings in Erne, and that many of them still seemed to almost worship a regal-seeming dragon called Influence. This, once again, helped Pipistrelle with getting a job.
And, would it surprise you to learn that this job was 'courier'? Probably not. He was paid well, it was quite stable, and delivering things to those in a certain city was rather easier than delivering things to those on another landmass entirely.
Overall, life is good now for him, though he does regret many things, and he misses his old home, as awful for his health as it was. He still occasionally visits his dragonets, now all 13 years old (time flies so quickly!), and he has the respect that he's always craved. Pipistrelle isn't dead, but his story ends here, in 5013 A.S., with a surprisingly happy ending.
== TRIVIA ==
*For Pipistrelle, I was given the colour palette to the right and the number '19' to base him on. These are shown in different ways:
**Obviously, the colour palette is shown in his appearance. For instance, the palest blue is his nose and wing 'stars', the slightly darker blue-grey is his horns and spines. The medium grey colour is his wing membranes. The darker brown-grey is his main scales. And, finally, the darkest brown is his underbelly, which coincidentally looks similar to the common pipistrelle, which I had first realised existed and was a pretty nice name for a dragon not too many days before.
**However, he also has three colours in his actual palette that are not on the palette given - the deep turquoise of his eyes, the dark blue of his overscales, and the bright red-brown of his ears. This was simply to make sure his colours didn't become too obviously repetitive.
**The number '19' is linked to him in a few ways. For starters, 19 is the second-highest number on a d20, other than a natural 20 - he (and his family) has extremely good luck. Secondly, he was 19 (dragon years) when he first met Influence and had his first dragonets, an event that affected his entire life, along with possibly his personality. Thirdly, because 19 is the atomic number of potassium, I thought I'd make him rather touchy and reactive.
*His other sister, Mousetail, always blamed him for the death of Leafnose, perhaps not without reason. She now lives in the Rainforest, having decided to not follow Influence to Erne.
*Two of his dragonets became a zoologist and a geologist, while one became a writer who travelled with the former two, and the last one actually became a courier for the Rainforest Kingdom.
*His dragonets seem to have gained colouring somewhat similar to Influence's, while keeping Pipistrelle's bat-like body and proportions.
*Pipistrelle and his siblings have the common naming theme of being named after types of bats. This theme is somewhat carried on to his dragonets, which are all named after animals as well.
*In case you were wondering, the structure of his 'full name' would be either 'Pipistrelle of the Blood Dusk', 'Pipistrelle of Blood Dusk', or 'Pipistrelle Blood-Dusk' - Blood Dusk can be used either with or without a hyphen.
*It is commonly agreed that Pipistrelle smells vaguely similar to rust. Surprisingly, he doesn't take much offence to being told this.
*Pipistrelle's siblings call/used to call him 'Pip', while 'Strelle' is more commonly used by his mate.
*It is theorised that his death will likely be caused by an irate SkyWing - not everybody finds his attitude charming, least of all SkyWings.
*Pipistrelle's opinions on the War of SandWing Succession aren't particularly strong, although he's somewhat resentful towards the RainWings, due to how he was forced to accept that 'heroic' RainWing as a queen. Thankfully, there aren't many RainWings in Erne, or, indeed, many non-SkyWings at all.
*Interestingly, Pipistrelle loathes vermin such as rats, while his mate adores them.
== GALLERY ==
Pipistrelle headshot chipper.png|By Chipper.
Pipistrelle_ref_chipper.png|By Chipper. Use as a ref.
Pipistrelle ice.png|By Iceshadow84.
Pipistrelle copper.png|By Copperrose14. (current infobox image)
Category:Content (Chipper the Crow)
Category:Characters
Category:Males
Category:LGBT+
Category:NightWings
Category:Occupation (Other)
Category:Status (Commoner)