Jesse, also called The Prince, is the protagonist of the main story. He is a clockhand child of low class, being in close proximity to The Council and having very little autonomy, free will, or knowledge of the outside world. During the reign of The Council, he was created as a personal vassal for The Queen. He is the long-term partner of Archer, and a close friend to Aurora.
Jesse initially went without a name, as it was deemed unnecessary. He was instead referred to as The Prince, or vorah in romanized Relavere, which can be most directly translated to the word "vassal" in English. The name Jesse was later suggested to him by Archer before the events of the story, with it being adopted by him some time before the two reunite.
When prompted or expected to have a surname, he uses "Jesse Hourigan." He finds the surname amusing, due to how it can be used as a clock-related pun.
Jesse is a short, chubby individual at around 5'3 (160 cm.) He has dark brown skin, a round face, orange eyes, and wavy, very-dark brown hair.[1] During most of the story, he had doe freckles[2] that he would cover with makeup; once his exposure to The Queen died down, they eventually faded into being regular freckles. He also wears glasses, which are usually small, thin, and rectangular.
Jesse would wear formal clothes for most of his life, most notably a plain white dress shirt with an orange accent. However, over time he branched out more, and can commonly be seen wearing casual clothes like wool sweaters, as well as leather jackets, long skirts, blouses, and vests.
While all clockhand children may be somewhat fluid in presentation while using a host, Jesse can be seen later in life purposefully shifting his outward role and sex, whether using a host or not. Other than presentation and sex characteristics, most aspects of Jesse's appearance tend to stay consistent when possible.
[1] While clockhand children do not have "race" in quite the same way we organize it, Jesse would be considered Arab, more specifically Lebanese.
[2] Doe Freckles: Freckles that are light in coloration rather than dark; usually caused by exposure to The Queen's influence.
Jesse is naturally shy, coming off as socially awkward and reserved. As a loyalist, he came off as very standoffish and cold, easily driven to annoyance in response to social pressure or confusion. Despite this, Jesse is incredibly loyal towards those he trusts, sometimes to his own detriment. Later in life, he becomes much more openly warm, affectionate, and caring towards those he's close to, though he still struggles to be emotionally vulnerable.
He has a difficult time understanding what his emotions are, largely due to frequent dissociation and emotional detachment. To most, he comes off as reserved, quiet, and stoic. That being said, he does have major outbursts when holding everything in becomes too difficult. This can make Jesse very emotionally volatile and unpredictable, though not on purpose.
Jesse is a hard worker, valuing commitment, respect, and justice. He is deeply altruistic and has a strong desire to make the world a better place, being driven by the seemingly utopian ideas of The Council under pretense that it would improve everyone's lives. Consequently, his desire to help others is used as a way to continue the cycle of control on himself and others, with him largely unaware of what it's doing to him due to his situation. He's a perfectionist, and has a hard time convincing himself to take a break or relax.
While it is a side of him often hidden tactfully, Jesse does have a known rebellious streak. Later in life especially- but even before then- he can be incredibly smug, hyperbolic, and sarcastic. This becomes more and more common as he grows further away from The Council's influence.
Jesse is considered to be low-class, being a unique individual that was tailor-made to be a personal vassal for The Queen, and by extension The Council. Because of this, he has the particularly brutal experience of being in very close range to the tyrannical upper-class, while having very little power to do or say anything otherwise. While he likens himself to a prince as a loyalist, he would be better described as a servant.
Jesse's duties vary in complexity and skillset, ranging from high-stakes, dangerous missions to seek out rogue clockhand children, to standing in the back of the room and playing music for others. Whatever use he could bring to The Council, he is rigorously trained to do it perfectly. Additionally, to keep Jesse from becoming independent as much as possible, he was not taught to read or write, and his language pool is incredibly small, mostly wrapped in loaded language. Because of this, certain words, such as "clarity," can trigger a negative reaction.
Despite Jesse's traumatic upbringing, he is quick to reject the notion that he was anything other than lucky, as he did not have to deal with some of the issues that other low-class clockhand children did.
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