Tavaril Brisby

Tavaril Brisby is a ranger, woodsman, and general outdoorsy type that has married into nobility with Hellissa Brisby. Now he does what he can to help her lead the Arathorian Coalition -- as well as most of the remaining people of the Kingdom of Stromgarde -- and make sure she doesn't get herself killed in the process.

Description
Lean, dark, and not overly tall, this man could quite possibly be mistaken for one of the dusky-skinned bandits of Tanaris. His Gilnean accent is light most of the time, to the point where it might be difficult to tell he's even from that region. This occasionally changes when he's under stress, or, conversely, in comfortable company. He's got muscle to him, but it's not overly pronounced, more of what you'd see on a swimmer or a runner.

"Rough around the edges" would be an apt description, as Tavaril obviously doesn't put massive amounts of time into his personal appearance (though he seems to be making more of an effort than he used to). At least he bathes regularly, judging by the lack of unpleasant odors  accompanying the scruffiness. In fact, he has a faintly spicy, earthy smell to him, like someone who spends a lot of time outdoors.

Pouches of various herbs and unguents line his belt, and several potions are tucked through loops in the leather. A long, ragged scar that stretches across one side of his back horizontally is visible if he happens to be shirtless. Which isn't often, so don't get excited.

Personality
Tavaril's personality can best be described in one word as "irreverent"; he doesn't concern himself overmuch with fancy titles or formality, and at times can be actively made uncomfortable by an excess of that sort of thing (though he's managed to stop visibly cringing when people call him "Duke" or "My Lord" at least). Even the most basic honorific of "Mr." will elicit something along the lines of "Please, Mr. Brisby is my father." He tends to address everyone with the same air of cheeky and inane friendliness until they do something that downgrades their status from pleasant acquaintance to irritant or threat. In those cases the smiles and jokes will vanish very quickly, unless he's actively trying to defuse a situation.

Hellissa Brisby
You'd be hard pressed to find two people that were more opposite, in some ways. Where Hellissa is fiery, Tavaril's anger is a controlled burn; her grasp of magic is intricate and masterful, while Tavaril considers it to be "cheating," tongue and cheek though his disparagement might be. His dark hair and skin contrast starkly with her red tresses and pale complexion, the difference made even more pronounced by his love of the outdoors and her disdain for them.

Regardless of all of this, it doesn't take long for one in their company to see how strong their relationship actually is. Some might say that they're proof positive that sometimes opposites really do attract. More cynical observers would likely point out that two rather attractive people getting married based on their sexual compatibility is not exactly uncommon. And perhaps still others, slower to look for simple explanations of such complicated constructs as relationships, would simply say that there's likely more to this pairing than can be encapsulated in a pithy phrase or dismissive labeling.

If nothing else, he provides a foil to her status as one of the hereditary nobility, encouraging her egalitarian tendencies and helping take other high and mighty nobles down a peg.

Children
Tavaril has taken some important lessons from what he sees as the failings of parenting that produced many of the contemporary nobles of the Alliance. He is determined not to let his children grow up to be entitled, arrogant, or thoughtless, and so makes certain to spend as much time with them as he possibly can, even if his duties and Hellissa's often require the use of an ancillary caretaker. They're all under five years old at the moment, though, so that mostly consists of taking them for plenty of trips outside and among the people that they're going to be responsible for protecting when they grow up.

History
Tavaril Lyndon Brisby was born in a little cabin nestled into the Northgate Woods of Gilneas. Lionel and Sarah Brisby were simple folk; Lionel was a rough -- but kind -- old shepherd, and Sarah a no-nonsense housekeeper. Tavaril had a younger brother as well, Thatcher, and the two would often venture out into the woods around their home. Thatcher, unfortunately, had no sense of direction, and would often get lost if he went by himself, prompting Tav to be a shepherd, guide, and tracker to keep his brother from falling prey to the forest’s twists and turns. He even gave his brother a red kerchief, to make him easier to spot in the woods.

                  Both brothers helped with their father’s shepherding, but Tav longed for more adventurous work. He would work for people living in the woods, or in nearby towns; chopping wood, finding lost pets/children, and – once he was old enough – tracking down those who would prey on the isolated communities, and bringing them to justice. He did this not out of any sense of overwhelming altruism, but because the grateful people would offer to pay him handsomely to remove threats to their lives and livelihoods. Money was his primary motivator, but he loved to be out among the trees of his forest, running and climbing and learning its secrets.

                  Tavaril made a solid living doing this until the Worgen Curse spread across Gilneas like wildfire. He was hunting a particularly canny worgen in the early days of the infection, after his brother had gone missing. He  tracked the monster down, the battle soon raging through the forest with multiple wounds taken by both combatants. Tav dealt the beast what he thought was a mortal blow, dislodging a red checkered kerchief from its arm as it fled. He fell to his knees and wept, his anguished cries soon warping into the bloodthirsty howls of his new form.

                   Later trapped and given the potion to repress his beast like many others, he re-integrated into Gilnean society in time to join those men of the woods who would engage the Forsaken invaders in guerilla warfare. Eventually, though, he was driven to flee Gilneas like so many of its citizens. Drawn to Mount Hyjal by stories of Goldrinn and the Wolf God’s shrine, he aided in driving off the Lycanthoth and reclaiming the shrine for its worshippers, counting himself among their number. Soon enough, though, he found himself moving on once again, making his way to Stormwind before meeting a noblewoman by the name of Hellissa Ravenshadow.