Riven is a man with a lot of insecurities. He likes to look nice because, to be brutally honest, he doesn’t feel nice. He thinks he’s too stupid, too weird, someone without many skills and no real redeeming factors. The man is eager to cling to anyone who will tolerate him out of the belief that he really isn’t much, and anyone who cares about him must be a rarity. It’s difficult for him to break off unhealthy relationships, just because he thinks that anyone who loves him must be rare. He’ll defend anything that his friends do, no matter how immoral or dangerous they are. He simply believes that someone who is his friend must be right. Loyalty is Riven’s middle name, and once someone has earned it, only Serhan can really convince him to ditch someone.

On days where his insecurities don’t swallow him up and make him shy and unsure, Riven is...well, he’s a bit of a brat. He’s used to getting anything he wants from Serhan, and when other people stand in his way, he doesn’t appreciate it at all. Most of the time he’ll get his husband to fight his battles for him, but Riven isn’t afraid of getting his hands dirty, especially if he’s getting into a tussle on Serhan’s behalf. Sure, his husband can fight his own fights, but Riven is extremely protective of people he loves, Serhan especially. His possessive nature comes out very quickly if he thinks anyone is making a move on his husband, and Riven’s insecurity and anxieties evaporate the minute that he’s in a fight. He is a surprisingly aggressive man when he needs to be, fighting until the bitter end and not worrying if a fight ends in serious injury.

In general, though, Riven is a loving person. He adores children and isn’t afraid to sneak them a few extra treats. He’d love to adopt some day, once the weyr fills with children. Riven makes a good shoulder to cry on as well, always patiently and sympathetically listening to anyone’s complaints. Whether he actually cares can be difficult to tell- sometimes, he’ll just listen and agree because he believes it brings someone closer to him, and he is desperate to be close to people. Riven can be very, very clingy, having a hard time letting his friends out of his sight. What if something terrible happens to them? What if someone convinces them that he’s bad?

Riven worries an awful lot. He worries about things that are impractical and practical and completely impossible all equally. Sometimes he lays awake at night, unable to breath because he can’t get rid of the concerns circling his head. That’s not the only reason he can’t sleep, though. Riven suffers from intrusive thoughts that revolve around hurting the people he cares about, and they terrify him. He doesn’t share them with anyone but Serhan, and even then, Serhan doesn’t know the extent of what his mind drags up. In an attempt to drive away these thoughts, Riven engages in obsessive compulsive behaviors. He especially likes to do things in threes- washing his hands three times, locking a door three times, tapping his fingers in a one-two-three rhythm. Usually, they aren’t too obtrusive of rituals, but when his intrusive thoughts worsen, he can be paralyzed by a need to do things over and over and over.