Cross King - D5 [DONE]

Cross King is crowned by a mop of dark, wavy hair that reaches down just fair enough to obscure his oft downcast brown eyes from any observers. It is all too often a greasy mess due to Cross' handling of oily machine parts and his lack of interest in vanity. His mother frets that it is more due to his lack of interest in hygiene, though. In truth, it is both. A stranger would think him well-tanned, but his family know that it is simply the latest layer of dried dirt from his frequent trips to the district's scrapheaps in search of oddities. The hint of a moustache tickles his upper lip, just enough to warrant a gentle teasing from his father. When he stays still for any extended period of time, typically against his will, he starts getting fidgety. This usually manifests itself in him repeatedly scratching his forearm with his index finger or twitching his foot.

Standing at 5'9" tall, Cross has a rather scrawny frame. He'll eat anything put in front of him, but he forgets to eat often enough that he remains rather bony. Hanging off his frame can be found one of the three shirts that he owns with the sleeves rolled up, as well as a pair of brown cotton trousers and some beaten up shoes that have gone through many trips to the cobbler.

Cross' driving force in his short life so far has been to his curiosity. He takes great satisfaction in discovering something new and finding out out it works. He is prone to avoiding simply asking others for answers to his questions, as that would ruin the fun, as well as the challenge. He lives for the sudden burst of satisfaction that can emerge from hours, days or even weeks of frustration upon the arrival of the solution. Others may find tedious the gears, springs and valves Cross spends his free time with, but he would much rather spend the day disassembling a gas lamp than discuss the weather with those boring souls.

Despite this general distaste for being social, Cross feels a need to do what he must for his family. He doesn't have the leadership qualities to fill the shoes of his parents during their long work days, but he satisfactorily carries out the chores that his younger brother Luca deem highest priority; if he isn't too engrossed in a system of pulleys, that is. He is fiercely focused, which can lead to him devoting the majority of a day considering the ins and outs of his current project. Unfortunately, this means he has a tendency to forget about the concerns of others. It is entirely unintentional and he apologises profusely each time, yet the damage is done nonetheless.

Quite the control freak, he has a place for everything. His personal area at the desk he commandeered for himself has a myriad of nuts, screw, bolts and a range of other kinds of bits and bobs, but they are all sorted by size, weight, shape and umpteen other variables. He takes great pride in being so organised, it's fun, even. Everything having its place means finding a place for everything, a challenge in and of itself. Cross is confident in his own abilities and decision process, so he doesn't take kindly to being given orders by those he isn't overly familiar with. Even an overly stern demand from his parents can ruffle his proud feathers, though.

Cross was born in District Five to two power plant workers, Charles and Louanne, and is the one of six siblings. Despite being the eldest among them, he has never really been alone, due to all six siblings being born in consecutive years. He even only vaguely remembers a world without Dallas, the youngest. Relationships with some of the others have been tenuous at times, but such is to be expected in a house full of growing children.

Cross' thirst for knowledge has transferred to school life reasonably well. He is not as naturally gifted with a hacksaw as other, bigger pupils, but he does well when he applies himself and learns the methods by which to go about finishing his engineering and woodworking assignments to a high standard. He does not fare as well in theory-based subjects, though. As someone who prefers practical problems, actual things, and being able to engage with them and learn through trial and error, math and history prove a challenge for Cross. This is not helped by his lack of endeavour to improve in these areas, either.

Cross' time at school is coming to an end; he will soon be expected to join the workforce. It is a family tradition, on both his father and mother's sides of the family, to join the power plant after school is finished, or in lieu of it even. Cross doesn't particularly care what others think of him, but he knows that the Kings have a reputation throughout the local area as a hard-working family and he would hate to let them down by being a liability in the plant or even worse, not getting a job there. Plus, the idea of being ordered about by some geezer who hasn't lifted a finger in years doesn't particularly entice him. Alas, he fears his worry-free youth is soon to be taken from him, whether he likes it to be or not.