| “ | ” | |
— Rafael Hawkes to William Hawkes, Tumbling Tower | ||
Rafael Hawkes is the eldest son of Stefan Hawkes and Josephine Hawkes, and the older brother of William Hawkes. He works at the Circus Royale as a blindfolded pianist under the alias "Apollo". He is one of the members of the elite team called the Pantheon.[1]
Appearance[]
Rafael bears a striking resemblance to his younger brother, William. He possesses fair skin, messy, wavy blond hair that is often tied in a low ponytail, blue eyes, a faint stubble, and has the Circus Royale emblem tattooed on his right wrist.
Rafael is often seen wearing his Circus Royale outfit, which consists of a white shirt, a blue and black checkered vest, and black pants. When he goes out at night, he wears a dark cloak or brown coat over his clothes. When performing, he wears a light blue blindfold over his eyes.
In flashbacks, Rafael was shown to wear a white shirt, a dark green vest, and a black tie. Notably, he is clean shaven. When he is running away, Rafael wears a dark coat and top hat.
Personality[]
When he was younger, Rafael was the golden child of the Hawkes family. He was favored greatly by his mother, and his father placed heavy expectations upon him. Rafael has stated that there was not one day spent in the Hawkes manor when he did not hate his father. Despite this, William remembers his brother fondly. Will recalls Rafael being his partner in crime, sneaking him out of the house, comforting him when he was sad, telling him everything, and promising that the two would always be together. It is evident that Rafael held much love for his younger brother.
In the present, however, Rafael has changed drastically. When reunited with Will ten years after he left, Rafael shows no emotion in the face of Will’s (justified) anger, and only offers an insincere apology when Will demands answers. There appears to be no hint of the once loving brother from Will’s memories.
When Will runs into Rafael again, Rafael shows about the same amount of indifference towards his brother. While not answering any of Will’s questions, Rafael pulls Will into a tender hug, proving that he truly does love Will, and telling Will he never wanted to leave him alone in that house, and that he would have taken him with him if he could have.
Relationships[]
William Hawkes[]
Stefan Hawkes[]
Rafael describes his father as cold, manipulative and cruel. He has told Will that there was not one day he spent in the Hawkes manor were he didn’t hate Stefan. When talking about the other, both father and son are shown to hold a deep resentment of the other. Stefan greatly disapproved of Rafael’s relationship with Thalia Lin, an actress from the South Shore. It is hinted at by Rafael that Thalia was murdered, and that Stefan played a role in her death, deepening his hatred towards his father. After he ran away, Stefan was absolutely furious, disowning Rafael, and placing his high expectations upon his youngest son, William.
Josephine Hawkes[]
Rafael never mentions his mother when talking to Will. However, in her brief appearances, Josephine has been shown to favor Rafael out of her two sons, calling out to him, and mistaking Will for him. When she thinks that Rafael has returned, she is seen to be delighted. Will states that Josephine was heartbroken at Rafael’s departure. This points to the two having a good, albeit shallow, relationship.
Thalia Lin[]
Thalia was an actress from the South Shore who was Rafael’s ex-fiancée. While little has been revealed about her, it was evident that Rafael loved her very much. One day, Thalia never showed up to rehearsals, and vanished all together, with no records of what became of her.
It is heavily implied that she was murdered, with the series hinting that Rafael’s father playing some sort of direct role in it, as Stefan greatly disapproved of Thalia and Rafael’s relationship. It is implied that Thalia’s disappearance was what ultimately led Rafael to run away, breaking off from his family, and joining the Phantom Scythe and Circus Royale.
Viscount Redcliff[]
Rafael joined Redcliff’s Circus Royale in its early years, becoming a member of the elite team, the Pantheon, as the blind pianist, Apollo. In reality, this is just a cover for their operations for the Phantom Scythe, as Rafael is Messenger VII, acting as the eyes and ears for the Viscount, delivering his orders and messages, and reporting back to Redcliff on his findings.
In their few interactions, Rafael and Viscount Redcliff treat each other like an employee would to their boss.
Background[]
Trivia[]
List of Appearances[]
| Season 2 | |||
| Ep. 50 - Warm Welcome | Ep. 51 - Conspicuous Circus | ||
| Ep. 52 - Inevitable Issue | Ep. 53 - Sagace Soleil | ||
| Ep. 54 - Restless Reminiscing | Ep. 55 - Carmine Camelia | ||
| Ep. 56 - Poor Peacock | Ep. 57 - Inconvenient Interference | ||
| Ep. 58 - Foredoomed Future | Ep. 59 - Painful Proximity | ||
| Ep. 60 - Obstructive Oath | Ep. 61 - Temerarious Trespass | ||
| Ep. 62 - Ad lib Alibi | Ep. 63 - Peaceful Promenade | ||
| Ep. 64 - Distant Daydreams | Ep. 65 - Gruesome Greychapel | ||
| Ep. 66 - Compassionate Companion | Ep. 67 - Weary William | ||
| Ep. 68 - Dangerous Disagreement | Ep. 69 - Moon Maiden | ||
| Ep. 70 - Singular Spectacle | Ep. 71 - Fierce Flame | ||
| Ep. 72 - Bleak Bluff | Ep. 73 - Grim Ghosts | ||
| Ep. 74 - Unforeseen Unveiling | Ep. 75 - Tumbling Tower | ||
| Ep. 76 - Terrible Truth | Ep. 77 - Poisonous Past | ||
| Ep. 78 - Haunting Horrors | Ep. 79 - Sinking Suspicion | ||
| Ep. 80 - Anticipated Allegations | Ep. 81 - Willing Witness | ||
| Ep. 82 - Solid Stand | Ep. 83 - Kaput Kym | ||
| Ep. 84 - Hollow Hope | Ep. 85 - Tragedies' Trail | ||
| Ep. 86 - Dazzling Demoiselle | Ep. 87 - Even Escape | ||
| Ep. 88 - Merciless Monarchs | Ep. 89 - Venturesome Visit | ||
| Ep. 90 - Torturous Trap | Ep. 91 - Rough Reminder | ||
| Ep. 92 - Brainy Birds | Ep. 93 - Coming Clean | ||
| Ep. 94 - Factory Facade | Ep. 95 - Momentous Message | ||
| Ep. 96 - Cordial Competition | Ep. 97 - Face à Face | ||
| Ep. 98 - Conflicting Collaboration | Ep. 99 - Imploring Intuition | ||
| Ep. 100 - Tight Timing | Ep. 101 - Scarce Seconds | ||
| Ep. 102 - Calculated Crash | Ep. 103 - Familiar Feeling | ||
Family Tree[]
Gallery[]
