CHARACTER INFO: NEAL DOUGLAS

[nealdouglas]

CHARACTER NAME: Neal Douglas
CHARACTER AGE: 49.
SPECIES: Siren
BACKGROUND & HISTORY:
Neal was born and bred in Siren Cove. A smart, talented, ambitious young man, Neal's background meant that he could never have afforded the life that Neal aspired to. Not unless he worked for it which Neal did. Gaining a scholarship to study at Harvard, Neal worked jobs at weekends and nights to provide more money for his parents at home and also for himself. It was at college that Neal met his first wife and after returning from law school and passing the bar with his pregnant girlfriend, Neal married her and got a secure position working as a prosecutor for the State's Attorney's office.

It should have been enough for Neal- he had a good job, a loving wife, an amazing kid but it wasn't. It didn't challenge him and when his old friend Catherine "Catie" Kennedy came to Siren Cove with an offer, Neal took it with both hands. Starting up Douglas/Kennedy was hard; it was challenging, with long hours and little reward at first, it was almost too much but the firm gave him purpose and challenged him and Neal never regretted his decision. Well, almost never.

With the long hours, his inability to show up on time to any of his kids events, his extra-marital affairs... his relationship with his wife was strained until she finally had, had enough. Taking his kid, their home and a lot of his money, Neal threw himself into his work rather than reflecting on what he could've done better or how he could change.

Neal met his second wife while trying a case in Boston and while Neal tried to remain faithful, the call of his local matriarch was too hard to resist and the marriage was short lived with them remaining... mostly friends. At least she wasn't entirely bitter about their end.

But it was Neal's third marriage was the one of renown, after marrying Siren Cove's very own Beauty Queen- a young twenty something- Neal's friends joked that she'd take him to the cleaners and they were right. Because despite the iron clad pre-nup Neal insisted on, Neal still ended up paying through the teeth for the divorce. It was worth the price though if it meant keeping the name of the woman, the well known Siren Cove public figure, he was having an affair with out of the press.

Since his latest divorce Neal has mostly kept a low profile, working on cases in New York and only circling back to Siren Cove every now and then. With Kennedy under more pressure from her family, Neal has been ordered to stay in Siren Cove for more than a weekend meaning Neal has to suck it up and finally let the consequences of his actions catch up with him.



PERSONALITY:

For those who know Neal, truly know Neal, then they would tell you that there are two sides to Neal Douglas. There's the smart, considerate, charming lawyer who loves passionately and vigorously defending the law, who loves his, troublesome kid Killian and is a wonderful friend. And then there's the asshole lawyer who can't keep it in his pants and defends scumbags from Siren Cove's finest.

A very public figure in Siren Cove, Neal is very outspoken about the law and very driven when it comes to his work. Viciously ambitious, Neal enjoys working long hours and staying in the office until the hours of the early morning if it means winning a case. Neal throws himself into his work and even in his downtime can often be found at the Quill working on proposed legislation to keep himself occupied.

One of Neal's most publicised traits is his infidelity. Neal would not describe himself as disloyal but he knows, and understands, that when it comes to women he has a very short attention span. For Neal the most exciting part of a relationship is the chase; flirting and teasing, falling in love with them and getting them to do the same, showering them with affection in and out of bed. But for as much effort as Neal puts into the start of a relationship, he finds it hard to commit to the same level of interest later on. And despite having had three wives, each of Neal's relationships have fizzled out or crashed and burned because of his inability to stay focused on his wives and not on his next case or the next chase.

Neal's charm, his easy smile and flirtatious nature aren't entirely owed to his Siren nature. Networking, is part of his job and Neal dedicates himself to it thoroughly. Neal makes a lot of friends easily but keeping them is another matter and Neal has a list of enemies a mile long.



OPINION OF THE RIVALRY: Neal is Switzerland. Although close friends with the Thornton patriarch, Neal's clients tend to lay on the Coombs side of the fence and while the rivalry can be good for business- it usually isn't good for his social life.

LIFESTYLE:

Neal is a co-founder and senior partner of Douglas/Kennedy, the top law firm in Maine with offices in Siren Cove, New York and Los Angeles. A former prosecutor, Neal left prosecution for a more profitable line in defence where he could actually earn enough money to support his ex-wife (wives) and his kid. Neal helped grow their firm from a typical small town business into the national success it is today. Neal can often be found harassing the local police department, networking at the mayor's office or teaching a class or two at the police academy when he wants to rile up his former co-workers at the police department.

Neal has a large house on the outside of Siren Cove, where he spends very little time at other than to throw big parties or- when he was younger- have his kid over for parent-son bonding weekends. Neal actually spends the majority of his time in a clock-tower apartment near the water's edge where he can get home from trials and the office easily and where he can go swimming late at night. His clock-tower apartment has become a little notorious as a place where he takes his mistresses. Or so town gossip says at least.

Neal's life is his work. He loves the law, he loves every aspect of it and while he knows some of the clients he takes on are scumbags, he loves nothing more than viciously defending them and using the law. Neal does not use underhanded tactics but is actually an upstanding gentleman who uses his knowledge of the law to undermine a prosecution's case. He doesn't hold with witness intimidation and drops clients if he thinks anything untoward is going on. If Neal isn't in the office, he's usually networking the town or flying out to the firms operations in LA or NY.

Having been married three times, each marriage more disastrous than the last, Neal isn't in a rush to get married again. One of the town's biggest flirts, Neal has a very large reputation as a ladies man and when he has been encouraged out of the office he can often be seen flirting and taking out the lovely ladies of Siren Cove at the more upmarket bars and restaurants.


POWERS &ABILITIES: Neal is a siren but is abilities don't lie in songs but words. A gifted orator, Neal can charm a jury with the law or with his powers. He can make you want him, he can make you love him but Neal prefers to win cases on his own merit. He will use his powers, if needs be, but never in the court of law. That charm is all him.

Neal's siren appearance is, quite aptly, a shark. Sleek and deadly, Neal is powerful in and out of the water.