This is actually one of the first things I came up with when making Brennus's character. Put simply, Brennus is afraid of women. He grew up in an extremely isolated environment, which is to say, smack dab in the middle of nowhere (think somewhere in Coerthas, (probably) the outskirts of Ishgard). The only other living being he had around (that wouldn't try to eat/maim him) was an elderly Elezen Duskwight who fostered him when he was a wee infant. From what Brennus can remember of his childhood (and that is very, very little) the Elezen didn't talk much. In fact, he can't remember a time when the Elezen spoke more than a sentence at a time. As a result, Brennus was more often than not left to his own devices. It wasn't until he was ten that he finally got some interaction with actual people. A few months after the Elezen died, leaving Brennus on his own in their little cabin in the woods (I hate using that term, stupid horror movies), a Dragoon passing through the area happened upon his hut and offered to welcome Brennus into his family of two, including himself. Brennus was never taught the ins and outs of "Stranger Danger," so he agreed quite readily. Even after he began living with his new adoptive father and his butler, Brennus still kept interaction with other people very limited. I would go as far as to say that both genders make him pretty uncomfortable, though that's more of an "I don't know you" kinda thing than genders really (I digressed really badly here oops). He definitely feels more comfortable around males than females, simply because that's what he grew up around. Although he certainly had female Dragoon comrades, they knew well enough to keep their distance. Being around women in general makes Brennus flustered enough, but when they're trying to come on to him, it doesn't make for a pretty picture.
(This is quoted directly from Brennus's wiki page)
His first "official" confrontation with more than one woman at a time (and when he wasn't hiding behind his adoptive father) was when he was 18. His fellow Dragoons took him to a pub to celebrate his promotion to Dragoon. He doesn't remember much of the encounter, but it seems some Courtesans had take a liking to him. In his effort to avoid them, he managed to knock over two tables, elbow one unfortunate Miqo'te in the nose, and trip over three chairs before landing face-first in a Roegadyn woman's bosom. As the poor boy was terribly flustered and hopelessly drunk, she let him off easy with one black eye, a broken nose, and a horribly, horribly bruised ego. Brennus wouldn't talk to his comrades for days afterward. [1]
The effect of the pretty Roegadyn's ass-whooping (well, maybe it wasn't quite that harsh) still lingers to this day. Everytime he encounters a woman, he suddenly becomes extremely tense and twitchy, whether or not they're being kind to him. He'll definitely warm to them more quickly if they are in fact nice to him, but he always makes sure that there's at least 10 feet between him and the unfortunate woman/women. While Brennus by no means intends to convey any disrespect towards women (in fact, he holds quite a bit of respect for them), the fact that they make him uncomfortable as all hell makes him avoid them like the plague (well, he tries, at least). To give him credit, over the years of his adventuring, he's grown to become more used to women.
(WOW that was long for just women. Now it's the boys' turn)
Brennus definitely feels much, much more comfortable around men. Neither I nor him know the reason exactly, but it's most likely due to the fact that he was raised by men all his life, and a big chunk of his Dragoon comrades were men. (Trivia Time: Brennus was originally planned to be a panromantic asexual, but then it hit me that it's hard to be panromantic when you're afraid of women. In the end, he ended up becoming a homoromantic asexual.) Due to his severe lack of communication and interaction with people, Brennus is a really, really awkward guy. It's exceptionally difficult for him to pick up on social cues, so if some poor sap decides to pick Brennus as his target, well, all I can tell the guy is good luck. Brennus is also what one would call "brutally honest." He doesn't do it on purpose, but he was never taught the haphazard art of subtlety. He's sent a number of men fleeing with their tails between their legs without having a single clue why. It's a shame, really, because a few of them were rather handsome.
That's all I got for now. This was more of a "how Brennus feels around x gender" rather than "how Brennus treats x gender," and I think I completely missed the main question, but it was rather insightful for me regarding Brennus's personality, so, eh, what can ya do. I might edit this post a little if I think of a better way to convey his treatment of the sexes.
(This is quoted directly from Brennus's wiki page)
His first "official" confrontation with more than one woman at a time (and when he wasn't hiding behind his adoptive father) was when he was 18. His fellow Dragoons took him to a pub to celebrate his promotion to Dragoon. He doesn't remember much of the encounter, but it seems some Courtesans had take a liking to him. In his effort to avoid them, he managed to knock over two tables, elbow one unfortunate Miqo'te in the nose, and trip over three chairs before landing face-first in a Roegadyn woman's bosom. As the poor boy was terribly flustered and hopelessly drunk, she let him off easy with one black eye, a broken nose, and a horribly, horribly bruised ego. Brennus wouldn't talk to his comrades for days afterward. [1]
The effect of the pretty Roegadyn's ass-whooping (well, maybe it wasn't quite that harsh) still lingers to this day. Everytime he encounters a woman, he suddenly becomes extremely tense and twitchy, whether or not they're being kind to him. He'll definitely warm to them more quickly if they are in fact nice to him, but he always makes sure that there's at least 10 feet between him and the unfortunate woman/women. While Brennus by no means intends to convey any disrespect towards women (in fact, he holds quite a bit of respect for them), the fact that they make him uncomfortable as all hell makes him avoid them like the plague (well, he tries, at least). To give him credit, over the years of his adventuring, he's grown to become more used to women.
(WOW that was long for just women. Now it's the boys' turn)
Brennus definitely feels much, much more comfortable around men. Neither I nor him know the reason exactly, but it's most likely due to the fact that he was raised by men all his life, and a big chunk of his Dragoon comrades were men. (Trivia Time: Brennus was originally planned to be a panromantic asexual, but then it hit me that it's hard to be panromantic when you're afraid of women. In the end, he ended up becoming a homoromantic asexual.) Due to his severe lack of communication and interaction with people, Brennus is a really, really awkward guy. It's exceptionally difficult for him to pick up on social cues, so if some poor sap decides to pick Brennus as his target, well, all I can tell the guy is good luck. Brennus is also what one would call "brutally honest." He doesn't do it on purpose, but he was never taught the haphazard art of subtlety. He's sent a number of men fleeing with their tails between their legs without having a single clue why. It's a shame, really, because a few of them were rather handsome.
That's all I got for now. This was more of a "how Brennus feels around x gender" rather than "how Brennus treats x gender," and I think I completely missed the main question, but it was rather insightful for me regarding Brennus's personality, so, eh, what can ya do. I might edit this post a little if I think of a better way to convey his treatment of the sexes.
