Welcome!

Welcome to Charlatan, a shrine to the always unpredictable Xerxes Break from the anime and manga series, Pandora Hearts. This one page shrine was created with the intent of trying to understand Break just a little bit better. This site will contain so many unmarked spoilers up through Chapter 50 of the manga. This shrine will be updated soon with the latest from the series.


Last Updated: November 01, 2015

Pandora Hearts

Pandora Hearts is manga known for its numerous references to Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. Like the series it relies so heavily on, most of the characters are over the top and deadly. Pandora Hearts tells the story of Oz Vessalius, a fifteen year old boy who is taken away from his life as a young nobleman only to be dragged (down the rabbit hole so to speak) into the Abyss; an alternate dimension that works as a prison, barring those who go there from returning to the real world. There Oz meets Alice, a creature known as a “chain” that feeds on the life of the human who summons its power. Alice, who is more commonly known as being the most deadly of chains “The Bloody Black Rabbit”, takes the form of a young girl. The two manage to escape from the Abyss together, by forming a contract in which Alice will give Oz her power if he helps her find her missing memories.

The Organization

Pandora is an organization created by the Four Great Dukedoms (Vessalius, Nightray, Rainsworth, and Barma) for the purpose of handling all matters related to the Abyss. The organization splits its agents into teams which are sent on various missions to prevent the knowledge of the Abyss from leaking to the public and to stop the rampage of chains under the control of “Illegal Contractors”.  Upon returning from the Abyss, Alice and Oz are recruited by Break who believes that Oz is the secret to discovering the secrets of the Abyss. When Oz and Alice accept Break’s invitation to join they become part of his team.

Xerxes Break

The following is Break's profile based on the Pandora Hearts 8.5 Fanbook. I added information that was revealed about Break after the book's release.

Name: Xerxes Break (Born as Kevin Regnard)
Aliases: Red Eyed Ghost (As Kevin)
Age: Physically 24, He was 24 when he was sent to the Abyss, he hasn't aged since then however, he was spit out of the Abyss 30 years after his actions as the Red Eyed Ghost, therefore he has technically been alive for 44 years.
Chain(s): The White Knight (as Kevin), The Mad Hatter
Height: 177.5cm/5'10"
Likes: Sweets (Especially Candy), Teasing Gil and Alice
Dislikes: Vincent Nightray
Good At: Swordsmanship, Eating Lots of Cake
Not Good With: Guns, Out of control Sharon

Break's Role

Break is known for being a “rule breaker” at Pandora. He often ignores his less favorable duties (mostly paperwork) in favor of playing around with Sharon and harassing his fellow Pandora members, specifically Liam and Gilbert. Despite his mischievous tendencies Break plays the role of a guide and mentor to his team. Break is always giving advice in the form of snide remarks to Gil and Oz. He advises Gil not to rely too much on his relationship to Oz, because if something ever happened Break wouldn’t want Gil to follow the same path that took Break to the Abyss. Break also ensures that Oz’s first mission involves an Illegal Contractor who is about to fall into the Abyss. Break wants Oz to know what will happen to him if his contract’s “clock” completes its cycle. Break spends a lot of his time trying to help Oz, Gil, and Alice so that they don’t end up in a situation similar to what happened to Break in the past. It is easy to see that Break was deeply affected by his time in the Abyss. He believes that it is his duty as an “old man” to keep them from destroying their lives and the lives of the ones they love. Break is also a manipulator and a trickster, who is constantly trying to gauge the skills and abilities of both his friends and his enemies. Break is much like a Knight on a chess board. He maneuvers around the board, avoiding everything that blocks him from his destination. He lets the other pieces fight while he jumps around, avoiding most conflicts. The difference between Break and most of the other manipulators of the series (Vincent who hates humanity and Rufus whose sole desire is to gain information about everything), is that Break (as Sharon says) won’t forget about the humans involved when he’s playing with them. Break is unable to truly manipulate people simply because he cares too much. He allows Alice to hold Sharon hostage because he knows that Alice will be unable to hurt her.

Rainsworth Family

Members of Pandora all seem to have some relation to one of the Four Great Dukedoms. Break is revealed to be a servant of the Rainsworth household who serves under Sharon’s mother, Shelly. It is explained that when Break was first found unconscious in the snow, the Rainsworth family took him in, and Shelly nursed him back to health. Break was still angry and frustrated by the loss of his eye and was constantly frowning and throwing rude remarks at everyone in the Rainsworth household. It was only through the kindness and determination of Shelly that Break was able to reopen his heart. In return for her kindness and trust Break swore his absolute loyalty to her. Break takes his oath very seriously and will risk anything, and everything to protect what’s important to Shelly. Break gives up Alice’s memory of the Tragedy of Sablier in order to keep Sharon safe. Break abandons his duty to Pandora, because while Alice memories would help unlock secrets of the Abyss and help Alice get back her humanity. Sharon, the Shelly’s only daughter was far more important to both Break and Shelly for him to risk her safety.

Break's Friends

Break is eccentric to say the least. Liam believes that Break’s various of oddities are the reason he has so few friends. Most of Break's friends are also his subordinates as they are the only ones who will put up with him.

Oz Vessalius and Break have agreed that despite their friendship they will manipulate each other as needed. Oz is one of the few people who can see through Break's lies. Oz's intelligence and sense of humor allows Break and Oz to get along well no matter the situation.

Gilbert Nightray is pretty much the little girl whose hair Break stuck in an ink well. Break has spent a lot of his time harassing Gil since they first met. Break asked Gil to be his "left eye" and be his spy in the Nightray household. Whether or not Gil fulfills that role is unknown right now.

Alice and Break have a tense relationship at best. Break picks on Alice, yet he has a general curiosity about her. He is always trying to find out how she is different from other chains and how she is related to what happened 100 years ago and the Will of the Abyss.

Liam Lunettes is Break's "best friend". Liam is always willing to help out Break when he's in a pickle. He tries to protect Break from Rufus (his master) and offers to do Break's paperwork when his failing eyesight makes him unable to do so.

Sharon Rainsworth grew up always having Break by his side. She used to call him Xarks-nii. Now she works as his subordinate and is always trying to make herself more useful to him. Break is always trying to protect Sharon from the brutality that comes from working within Pandora. He often underestimates Sharon's strength of body and mind. She seems to have a slight crush on him and he seems to return the feelings to an extent. Break even sacrifices Alice's memories from 100 years ago in order to save Sharon from Vincent.

Break's Goals

Break is a very goal oriented man and he even claims at one point that he needs to have something to work towards in order to continue his life.

Break's Chains

Most chain users only form one contract during their lifetimes. Break however, has formed two separate contracts due to the unique situation that led him to Pandora.

When Break (Kevin Regnard at the time) first formed a contract to save the Sinclair family, his chain was “The White Knight.” The chain was symbolic of Break’s profession and lifestyle, as the kindhearted knight to the Sinclair family. Using his first chain Break murdered 116 people before his contract was fulfilled and he was dragged down to the Abyss. His chain was destroyed by the Will of the Abyss soon after Break fulfilled his contract because of a comment it made while in her presence.

Break’s second chain, The Mad Hatter is a rather unique chain that he gained after joining Pandora. The Mad Hatter is known for being a chain that exists to destroy other chains. Like his previous chain this one is also symbolic of the Break that is introduced as a member of Pandora. Break is a bit off his rocker and more than a bit manipulative and he knows it. Break’s chain represents that “insanity” perfectly.

Losing His Eye

One of the most noticeable qualities about Break is his “ghostly red eyes” (or really his eye). Break’s right eye is a crimson shade while his left eye is constantly covered by choppy bangs. It is revealed in Gilbert’s flashbacks that Break covers his left eye, because it is simply not there. Break later explains that the Will of the Abyss’ pet chain, Cheshire was given Break’s eye when she popped it out of the socket to make Break into her “doll”. Break is very antagonistic towards Cheshire because, while the cat chain didn’t actually do anything to Break, he does have his eye (which would be reason enough for most people to hate someone else). Although Break defeats Cheshire he doesn’t take his eye back. It is likely that without the magic that the Will of the Abyss controls, Break would be unable to see out of the stolen eye.

Later in Chapter 42, it is revealed that Break has lost most of the sight in his right eye. Break once again used his chain, during a conflict in the previous chapter, and the deterioration that had been affecting the inside of the body worsened to the point where it affected his sense of sight. Break can still see shapes however they aren’t very detailed, to the point where he has trouble seeing where one pastry ends and the other begins. Liam and Oz are quick to hide Break’s injury from the rest of the party and in no time he’s able to walk around and fight as if nothing ever happened.

Break tells Liam he doesn’t care if he loses his sight because he doesn’t rely solely on visual information. At the same time Break seems upset at the thought of not seeing Sharon’s face again. Break’s contradictory attitude proves how desperately Break wants to cling to his life (for more than just to fulfill his mission meeting the Will of the Abyss again). The loss of his sight makes the idea of death all the more real for Break and while he may not care about leaving the world behind, he can’t bear the thought of leaving those he’s close to behind. Break’s will to live is just one way that he’s changed since his return from the Abyss.

The Red-Eyed Ghost

Xerxes Break was born as Kevin Regnard. The name change occurred because Break needed to hide his past life from the majority of Pandora. Kevin Regnard was born into a family of knights that served a minor noble family, The Sinclair Family. Break, like most fairy tale knights, was a skilled swordsman. Unfortunately Break wasn’t able to make use of his skills during the Sinclair family’s time of greatest need because he was away watching over their youngest daughter. Upon his return to the house, with his young mistress Break discovered that the entire Sinclair family was murdered by a “burglar.” Break fell into despair at his inability to save the family while the little girl cried, asking him to help her so she wouldn’t be alone.

Break became an illegal contractor to revive his mistress’ family; however he (as with all illegal contractors) was dragged into the Abyss before his wish could be fulfilled. During his time in the Abyss he was able to swear to help the Will of the Abyss if she would change the past for him. Although the Will of the Abyss never verbally agreed, she did tell him her wish, and he was returned to the human world. Break later learned that he did change the past; however, it was not for the better. Four years after the Sinclair Family would have died their eldest daughter was murdered, which caused their youngest to become an illegal contractor and kill her own family.

Break made two mistakes during his life as Kevin Regnard. The first mistake was becoming an illegal contractor. His mistress wanted his help so she wouldn’t be alone. Break was the one who decided to try and revive her family. It is likely she would have been happy if Break stayed with her, despite the fact that the family he served as a knight was no more. The second was not considering the consequences of his actions. Break tells Oz early on in the series that “What’s left in the end is not always what you wished for.” Break realizes that although he bought the Sinclair family some time, he ended the life of a girl who would have otherwise lived out her life. Break admits that he was weak and naïve in the past. He realizes that although he claims he became an illegal contractor to save his mistress that he really just did it to save himself.

Deterioration

As with many chain users, Break’s body doesn’t visibly age. The difference however, between Break and most of Pandora’s other chain users is that Break has housed a chain’s power within his body more than once. The stress of using chains for so long, even after his body was supposed to have been laid to rest in the abyss, has begun to corrode Break’s body from the inside out. Break is often weak and sick after using his chain. The immediate effects include Break coughing up blood and passing out. It has gotten to the point where Break’s senses have begun to fail him from the use of his chain. Break has reached a point of near blindness in his right eye because he used his chain in Sablier.

Break often ties to hide his symptoms from the people around him. Break refuses to let people see him as a liability to their missions. Break doesn’t want to be forced onto the sidelines. He feels as if losing the choice of when to fight and when to watch would be the same as taking away his freedom. Break’s fear of being considered useless is only logical, considering, the last time he was sent away, the entire family he worked for was murdered. Break also hides his fear for Sharon’s sake. He still sees her as the fragile little girl who found him unconscious in the snow. He doesn’t want her to worry about him.

Break's Insanity

When Break was first taken into the Abyss, The Will of the Abyss made a comment about how most illegal contractors lose their mind quickly once they start using a chain. She called Break “special” because “he didn’t lose his mind until the end”.

The Will’s comments imply that Break lost his mind when he fell into the Abyss. The Break that returned from the Abyss seems fairly sane. The question is, is Break actually insane? I wouldn’t call Break “insane” per say, although I do believe that Break is far from the textbook definition of "sane." Break’s “insanity” may come from the fact that Break has an unusual way of doing things. Break is rarely seen entering or leaving a room via the door if he can help it. Instead, Break often pops out from under tables or inside cabinets. Some have even theorized that Break created (or at least made use of) secret passages to travel through Pandora headquarters. Break also believes that harassing a 15 year-old boy to force the most fearsome chain, known to Pandora, to come out, is “a good idea.”

Often Break tries to emphasize his insanity by playing “the village idiot.” He’ll go so far as to blame his doll for the things he says and does and feign innocence for his actions. Break hides behind a curtain of fake bricks (facing the wrong way of course) to not so subtly follow Alice. He also knits Alice a scarf as a “good luck charm”.

Break's Doll

One of the strangest things about Break is the constant presence of an ugly blue skinned doll on his shoulder that goes by the name of “Emily.” Break carries the doll with him everywhere and is only seen without it once when he left her behind to ensure Oz would chase after him. Break loves the doll but is often seen blaming it for his words or actions; he even seems to think that the doll can talk to him. It is obvious that the doll is important to Break but why?

After some digging through the manga we see that the youngest daughter of the Sinclair family is holding a doll that bears a striking resemblance to Emily. This doll is better cared for than Break’s but they have the same hairstyle and a similar dress. It is highly likely that since Break was never shown carrying a doll during his life as Kevin Regnard that it was an addition to his life after he found out about how he changed the past. Break’s doll is probably a similar, if not the same doll that his young mistress carried. The explanation for its condition is that between Break’s disappearance into the abyss and his sudden reappearance at Pandora 30 years later. It is likely that the doll is no longer sold and that Break’s Emily is the result of 30 years of age.

Why did Break name her Emily? Many speculate that Emily was the name of the Sinclair Family’s youngest daughter and Break named the doll after her, just as he carries it around in memory of her. Another likely scenario is that the young girl’s doll is named Emily and that Break named his doll the same thing. Of course it’s possible that the fandom is looking into this way too much it is just a doll after all, however in a series where even the smallest details have meaning it is unlikely that the name is insignificant.

Leaving So Soon

The title, Charlatan comes from searching for mass amounts of synonyms that fit Break's personality. Eventually I stumbled across the word, Charlatan which, according to Merriam Webster means: one making usually showy pretenses to knowledge or ability. Break certainly lies a lot. He lies about his past and deceives people more often than not. Break is also extremely flashy, that's why I picked it as the shrine's title.

Resources & Credits: PSTutorialLsws, Minitokyo, Pandora Hearts LJ Community, and Google Fonts.

If you would like to affiliate I would be glad to, however, there are very few Pandora Hearts shrines so if you have a fanlisting related to Pandora Hearts I would affiliate with it as well, just contact me.