Character from The Gods are Bastards by D.D. Webb
Professor of Botany and Alchemy at Last Rock University — a man whose relationship with sanity is best described as 'on a break,' but whose brilliance with plants and potions is undeniable.
Rafe is, as multiple characters observe, bat-shit crazy. He talks to plants (they might talk back), experiments on himself with untested compounds, and approaches the boundary between genius and madness as a suggestion rather than a line. His classes are simultaneously the most dangerous and most educational at the University. He's harmless in intent if not in effect — his experiments have a tendency to escape, mutate, or explode, and his students learn crisis management as a side effect of botany. Tellwyrn keeps him on staff because his knowledge of alchemical and botanical magic is genuinely irreplaceable, and because he's one of the few people whose chaos she finds entertaining rather than annoying.
Wild-eyed human male with unkempt hair, stained clothing, and the manic energy of someone who has inhaled too many alchemical fumes. His fingers are perpetually discolored from plant extracts. Moves erratically, often mid-thought, and gestures expansively when excited, which is always. His lab coat has scorch marks.
Also known as: Rafe, Professor Rafe