Hamasaki Hachi (Aoi-mizu)
Song: "Change the World" by V6
Origin: Feudal (14th century) Edo, Japan
Sire: Lamia Kokkodis

Height: 64 in / 163 cm
Weight: 130 lbs / 59 kg
Mortal age: 25 years
Immortal age (at end of story): ~700 years
Hair color: black
Eye color: blue
Ethnicity: half Japanese, half English
Blood type: A-

Let's see.... what to say about Hachi. First I suppose is his name. Hachi is the illegitimate son of Hamasaki Yukio (a samurai) and an English seacaptain's widow. She was not willing, and asked to be killed immediately after the baby was born. Because Yukio did not want him, he was given to a poor couple, who raised him until they died when he was 8. After this he became homeless. Since he is from the feudal era where people were named for what they do, the people called him Hachiemon (Hachi for short), or "raccoon." The part in parentheses, "Aoi-mizu," is something you'll find out along the way, if you stick with him.

Hachi's sword is one of the earliest prototypes of the katana, forged in 1310. It is called Rei Jin Shin and represents three virtues of Bushido (courtesy, compassion, and sincerity). The sword belonged to his father and was used in the honorable executions of both of his parents. There is a terrible spoiler involving Hachi's connections to this sword, which will be discovered more than halfway through the series (so keep your pants on!) but let's just say that this blade is more than just a simple heirloom.

Here is a photograph of my real-life copy of Rei Jin Shin: [link]

Since Lamia is the only person who voluntarily showed love and compassion for Hachi, the Japanese man quickly develops a strong affection for him. They are separated often, and every time it happens, it is very painful for Hachi. That's why his lyric is:

hai-iro no sora no kanata nanika oite kita
kimi wa mayoi nagara sagashi-tsudzukeru
kimi no kokoro furuete'ta asu no mienai yo
nanimo shinjirarezu mimi wo fusagu
kimi ni deaeta toki hontou no ibasho mitsuketa
nanigenai yasashisa ga koko ni atte
bokura mezameru

English Translation:
You've left something in the far reaches of the grey sky,
and you keep on searching as you wander.
In the night when your heart shook, and I can't see tomorrow
I can't believe anything, and close my ears.
When I met you, I found my true place in life.
An innocent kindness is right here.
And so we awaken....

Fun little trivia: Hachi, at 25, is the character with the oldest mortal age in the Young Vampire series. The only other character to break the teens is Gilgamesh, at exactly 20.



Materials used:
HB graphite pencils from Ticonderoga
colored pencils by Prismacolor
micron01 and brush markers from Pigma
pilot v razor point felt tip pen
sharpie marker
edited on micrografx pp10




Young Vampire and all characters, concepts, and ideas represented therein are © Eleanor Leaman. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical without permission in writing from both the copyright owner and the publisher. Material printed without aforementioned prerequisites is fraudulent, illegally produced, and punishable by law.