Corbin MacBranain

Born in BC, Canada, Corbin was found abandoned in the woods when he was very young, about 3 or 4. No one knew if he had been purposely abandoned, or if he had simply wandered and gotten lost, nor even how he had managed to survive on his own. Either way, no one was able to recover any records of who his family was and thus he was put into an orphanage. He lived there for a couple years before a spry irish woman paid the orphanage a visit. He felt drawn to her, though he didn't know what it was that made her different from any other person passing through the orphanage. But, whatever had drawn him to her seemed to in turn draw her to him, and that day when Siofra entered the orphanage to visit a friend, she left with a son in tow.

Siofra had never intended to have kids, but she found herself feeling a need to take Corbin in and give him a good home. Something about his grouchy nature not only amused her but perhaps resonated with something in her. While he couldn't really remember much of his family before the orphanage, beyond pain and fear, Corbin loved Siofra and endlessly felt grateful to her for 'rescuing' him like she did. He latched onto her and became a bit of a momma's boy, something that made Siofra feel that he had definitely suffered abuse before. They moved around a number of times before eventually settling in Willow Creek when Corbin was 14. 

His school days were rough; he was a surly, aggressive child who frequently got into fights and defied authority when he wasn't being gloomy and quiet. Due to how rocky his education had been in his earlier year, he was held back and started the school year later than he normally should have, resulting in him being one year older than his classmates. One day however, he was befriended by a sweet and gentle young girl named Belle. They clicked in an instant and have been best friends ever since. Now, Corbin's fights became ones to protect Belle when he felt she was being bullied or harassed by the other students. She would often try to convince him it was better to stand down, and sometimes it worked. But when it didn't even he was surprised by how fiercely she would stand at his side. Gradually the bullies learned to leave them alone and their friendship continued to grow. Corbin soon felt that Belle was a sister to him, and he was welcomed into the LeBlanc family with the same open arms that Siofra welcomed Belle with. 

As they grew older, he found that he had a proficiency with all things mechanical or technical. He loves taking things apart to see how they work, and putting them back together. Even as a kid he would often be the one to get things working again. And when he was a teen, he started learning how to work on cars to add to add to his skills. He eventually got a job in a local repair shop when he was 22, and could often be seen around the LeBlanc's flower shop either visiting Belle or trying his hand at helping with minor repairs. One day, when he was 27, a black cat wandered into the shop and made herself at home by him. He tried kicking her out but no matter how hard he tried she somehow kept returning. Later that week she made it into his car and then his house, and at that point he gave up and reluctantly accepted that he was stuck with Ciar. Belle of course doted on the cat. 

Having been an older woman when she adopted Corbin, Siofra's health began to take a turn for the worse when Corbin was 28. Then, suddenly, she passed away from a stroke. This was a hard blow to Corbin, and he was left feeling lost and empty with no idea how to process living without his mother. He became more bitter, angry, and withdrawn from everyone around him. Slipping into a deep depression, it was likely only because of Belle that he wasn't completely lost. Unable to stand living in Willow Creek while he processed his raw grief, Corbin sold the house and moved to Crawford City to try and find a fresh start away from the memories of Siofra in the small town. Finding work was easy with his skills, and he found employment as a handyman who'd work on site on business machinery. It was there he found a strange one-armed man named Halcyon during one of his repair jobs. He found he was slowly opening his grieving heart up to the man, and soon found himself in a close friendship with the odd man (though Belle was still his best best friend). Given that his friendship with Hal involves some...certain benefits...he's still very unsure about being close to someone in this way, but Hal showers him with unconditional love and patience, despite the bad days Corbin has, so he is able to work through things. Between Belle, Ciar, and Hal he is filling the void Siofra's death left him with. He still visits Belle and remains fairly as close with her as before he lost himself for a time. 

Corbin is incredibly crude most of the time, with a cynical view on life. He's often thought of as being dark and gloomy, and that he spends most of his day sulking. He really just has a hard time expressing cheerier emotions, and finds it easier to just be sarcastic and rude, mainly to keep others at bay. He's quite guarded about himself, and it's rare for others to see what he's really like when his defenses and attitude are down. Despite his many shortcomings though, he is dependable and if given a task to do that he agrees with, he will see it out to the end, regardless of how difficult the going may get. His mechanical mindset allows him to understand or figure out machines and devices as he comes across them.

Given how he was orphaned at a young age, there is still much about being a shapeshifter that he does not understand. Corbin knows he can change into a bird, and that he heals comparatively faster than what should be normal, but he does not realize his affinity for magic nor that he has seen ghosts without realizing what they were. When he first began to learn that he could shapeshift, he was confused and a little scared, but Siofra did her best to help him understand that there was nothing wrong with him. He still doesn't know the word for what he is, and he keeps it a hard secret. Even Belle doesn't know what he can do, as he is terrified of how she may react if she found out. The irony of not knowing that she too has a secret she keeps from him, and of not realizing that her being a witch is part of the reason he felt naturally drawn to her from the start.