Gibbs and Tessa

Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs & his daemon Tessa (f).

The idea of fusioning Phillip Pullman's daemon concept with the great characters of the NCIS MCRT comes from a story from Xanthe: "Soul Deep".

I agree wholeheartedly with the choice of each animal, and their names, of course.

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(16.10.2011) I did a little research on the web and fused some of the description of the personality traits attributed to NCIS’ daemons. The funniest part is that I haven’t truly invented anything. Their daemons Xanthe chose do truly fit them like a glove, so I thought I’d share.

Leroy Jethro Gibbs

(Wolf (female) daemon named Tessa)

“Wolf daemons have some of the worst reputation worldwide. They are reputedly aggressive, cunning and ruthless. In thruth, wolf daemons are mostly misunderstood. Wolf people have always found their place amongst soldiers and warriors, and in modern days have become rather unsusal, with the greater changes in civilian society and the removal of children from belic conflicts. Wolf daemons are today related in the collective mind to a traumatic passing into adulthood and are viewed with some wariness. Although this view has become accepted for reasons as yet unclear, there are a good number of people with wolf daemons that have led perfectly normal lives. A great truth, wolf folk are the very soul of the survivor, but ironically, the character traits that hide under a wolf daemon are anything but ominous. This men and women put a lot of emphasis in social and family values. They are highly social and will commonly be found in groups of four to eight, typically consisting of close family. Every wolf person will pass through several stages in their life, first abandoning his or her family of birth and will pass through a period of solitary lifestyle before establishing in a more definitive group of their choosing. They are energetic at all hours, also very early in the morning when most people are half dead. They put a lot of emphasis in communication, even if not always in the more traditional sense, body language and facial expressions to get their mood across the easiest, and words aren't usually necessary. They are deep, and emotional, but also a playful spirit that loves tussling and play-fighting. Theirs is a unique style, and they have a voice that is disctinctive. Mostly mysterious, their reputation acquires mythical a quality and their thoughts are often impenetrable to others. Mentally and bodily agile, they never worry about what others should think of them, and are only dependent on the affection of a few. This is good because there are many who dislike or fear them. They are good teachers, pathfinders and cunning leaders that look out for their own. Steadfast in any situation they will face their challenges with dignity and courage ans show loyalty and spirit. They will be reliable and are the embodiement of success through perseverance, of stability and the establishment of a functional order. Very ritualistic; they live by carefully defined rules. In the more private spheres of life, they are only ever interested in serious relationships and marriage, always in the look-out for a life-long mate and the possibility of building up a family, to which they will dedicate the greater part of their time. They have a capacity for making quick and firm emotional attachments; always trust their own insights and guard others with love. Well mannered and polite to those they look up to, they are always willing to submit to that power figure, and more playful and teasing toward those they see as equals. Their circle of friends has necessarily to be described as a hierarchy of dominant and subordinates that help it to function as an organized unit, and will fall apart if there is too much competition. The leader of said group, who could easily be themselves, will initiate any activity, always help everyone, and take control in critical times. This deep-seated mentality makes them incredibly well suited to a military lifestile and its requisitions. They will need discipline to work on developing their self-control and a more staid personality in their youth. The mind make-up behind a wolf daemon is that of intuition strongly mixed with intelligence. They are good at sensing opportinuties, escaping and outwitting their enemies and have an ability to pass by dangers invisibly should they choose to. They are hard-workers, and work at they never drag their feet and can smoothly work their way through a task for hours on end, with great stamina without a change of pace. They conserve energy by first evaluating a situation and acting later, their approaches are always dynamic, but rather than use complex stratagems, they will do things the easy proven way. Even then, they will not always use the same strategies; making use of all available to them. They will do simpler tasks by themselves, but they set their sights high and will accomplish most things with help of their group. Their approach to problem-solving is more persistent that efficient, but it always yields visible and immediate results. Tending to locate what they want by chance or intuition, instinct tells them to not let an opportunity get away, but they know how to let go of something if it's just not an option. They have a gift for living in austerity and in truth need very few things. Always ready to be on the move, they can do without practically anything. Their personality is complex and never easy to describe. They can been described as cruel, intelligent, crafty, curious, handsome, savage, and sly; and depending on a given moment in time they can be all at once, or none at all. Wolf people can have an easy-going nature, and at the same time they are capable of being antagonistic and savage in a fight. But contrary to popular belief they do not fight unnecessarily. Wolf daemons will never be the kind to initiate a serious altercation and will only react with aggression when previously provoked. They won't risk a confrontation unless desperate, stressed, or if deemed absolutely necessary, and will be at their most aggressive when sick or defensive. They appear intimidating but are not malicious, and though extremely strong and powerful, disagreements rarely end in serious fights. Their reputation as agressive will come because they easily bare thier teeth when pushed, warning people they mean business before starting a fight with them. This results in both others backing down with relative ease without coming to blows, and the persisting misconception that they're antagonistic. They will give people their space, and although hostile toward some groups, they are very accepting and amiable towards woung ones. Many will find problem with the fact that they’re not above taking something without asking. And once that something is their hands, they’ll highly protective of it, be it material or otherwise. Even negating that they have any great aspirations and ambitions, they will often seek to improve their status in the eyes of others and be ready to assert their authority if the leader shows any weakness. They will not take orders from indecisive individuals with anything remotely resemblant of grace, will show obvious contempt. Often, their peers will take their cue from them in these matters. Wolf daemons often test other people’s daemons. If they stand and fight back, they will back off and respect them, but they’ll go after the easier quarry that looses confidence. They look for signs that signal the possibility of victory, and they are always capable of finding them if they exist. They're good at identifying weakness in others and may use this to their advantage. They will never inflict true harm this way, it is not their style to be verbally insulting of aggressive; instead they’ll used old-fashioned and overwhelming assertiveness. People sometimes will try to humiliate them in front of an audience, but they're always prepared to fend off these attacks to maintain status. Its is because this fierce defense of their their place in the pecking order, their ability to scent the smallest weakness and their willingness to use it to put someone in their place what makes many people resent a person with a wolf daemon. Very few people try to bother them though, but outlandish rumours often float around, and are repated because of petty vengeance. It will seem often that their greatest natural enemy may be those like them. Male wolves daemons are often more aggressive, while female wolves are usually more domineering, but aside from that there is not great difference between both genders.”

*Note: female daemons are most common amongst men, while male daemons are most often found amongst women. The fact that human and daemon are almost invariably of opposite genders has no accepted explanation. They can be the same gender too, and this is often assocaited with homosexuality, and even though it is the most usual and immediately identifiable cause for this kind of unusual arrangement human-daemon it is not the only one. There are known cases that do not adjust to that simplistic explanation. It is thought that the gender of a daemon reflects a person’s needs. For example, a male human who is mostly in male company, and is masculine, would most likely have a female daemon to give him a feminine input he needs and will have difficulty finding. Conversely, a female human who is mostly in male company, maybe considered a tomboy, could possibly develop a daemon of the same gender to reflect her more masculine nature. But none of this would have to do with sexuality. Even so there is no proof as to why daemons take a specific gender and the reasons for that are usually determined individually.