#Character backstory

[luna-azzurra]

Exploring Character Backstory

1. Start with the essentials: Begin by outlining the basic information about your character's past, such as their family background, upbringing, education, and early experiences. Consider their cultural, social, and economic background, as these factors can shape their worldview and values.

2. Identify key events and milestones: Determine significant events or milestones in your character's life that have had a profound impact on them. These could include positive or negative experiences, such as the loss of a loved one, a major achievement, a traumatic incident, or a life-changing decision. These events help shape your character's personality, fears, and aspirations.

3. Examine formative relationships: Explore the relationships your character has had with their family, friends, mentors, or romantic partners. How have these relationships influenced them? What role models or influences have shaped their values, beliefs, and behavior? Relationships can provide insight into your character's vulnerabilities, strengths, and emotional attachments.

4. Dig into their beliefs and values: Understand what your character believes in and values. Examine their moral compass, political views, religious beliefs, or philosophical outlook. Consider how their beliefs might clash or align with the conflicts they encounter in the story. This will create depth and authenticity in their character development.

5. Uncover secrets and hidden aspects: Delve into your character's secrets, hidden desires, or aspects of their past that they prefer to keep hidden. Secrets can create internal conflicts, fuel character growth, and add intrigue to the story. They can also reveal vulnerabilities or flaws that make your character more relatable and complex.

6. Consider the impact of societal factors: Explore how societal factors such as gender, race, class, or historical context have influenced your character's experiences and identity. These factors can shape their struggles, opportunities, and perspectives. Understanding the societal context in which your character exists adds layers of depth to their backstory.

7. Connect the backstory to the main story: Once you have explored the character's backstory, identify how it relates to the main story. Determine how their past experiences, relationships, or traumas influence their present motivations, conflicts, and goals. This connection will ensure that the backstory serves a purpose in the narrative and contributes to the character's growth.

8. Use backstory selectively: While backstory is essential for understanding your character, avoid excessive exposition or information dumping. Introduce elements of the backstory gradually, through dialogue, memories, or subtle hints. This helps maintain reader interest and allows the character's past to unfold organically throughout the story.

Remember, not all aspects of the character's backstory need to be explicitly mentioned in the narrative. It's important to choose and reveal elements that have the most significant impact on the character's present circumstances and development.

[lady-0f-the-wood]

A very detailed character biography to help build characters. I found the original template HERE and edited it to make it more suitable for the characters I'm creating, and also to add some more details, such as a mental illness checklist section to use for myself to reference (because it helps to know what's wrong with your characters) and other details. You may not need so many minor details for a character, but you never know if you'll end up needing an explanation for something. I'll be using this template myself so I figured I'd share it in case it could help others too. I have edited it to better suit my own medieval fantasy characters, so I'm not sure how well it will work with other genres. Enjoy. ♡

☆Trigger Warning - Sensitive Mental Health Topics☆

Character 1

• Character’s full name:

• Reason or meaning of name:

• Character’s nickname:

• Reason for nickname:

• Character’s titles & what they mean:

• Birth date/season:

Physical appearance

• Age:

• Appears how old:

• Race:

• Gender:

• Weight:

• Height:

• Body build:

• Shape of face:

• Eye color:

• Skin tone:

• Distinguishing marks:

• Predominant features:

• Hair color:

• Hair type:

• Usual hairstyle:

• Voice:

• Overall 1-10 attractiveness scale:

• Physical disabilities:

• Usual fashion:

• Favorite outfit:

• Jewelry or accessories:

• Tattoos:

• Miscellaneous:

Personality

• Good personality traits:

• Bad personality traits:

• Most common mood:

• Sense of humor:

• Greatest joy in life & why:

• Greatest fear & why:

• What event would be most devastating & why:

• Most comfortable when:

• Most uncomfortable when:

• Most angry/furious when:

• Most depressed/sad when:

• Most happy/joyful when:

• Priorities:

• Life philosophy:

• Biggest wish & why:

• Character’s soft spot:

• Is this soft spot obvious to others or common:

• Political views:

• Greatest strength:

• Greatest weakness:

• Greatest vulnerability:

• Biggest regret:

• Minor regret:

• Biggest accomplishment:

• Minor accomplishment:

• Most embarrassing event & why:

• Character’s darkest secret, if any:

• Does anyone else know this secret:

• Miscellaneous:

Goals & Dreams

• Drives/Motivations:

• Immediate goals:

• Long term goals:

• How to accomplish the goals:

• How others will be affected if the goals are achieved:

• How long has character had the goals:

• Goals that character thinks are hard to achieve:

• Goals that character thinks are easy to achieve:

• Goals that character has already started working on & how long:

• Dreams:

• Miscellaneous:

Past

• Location of birth/childhood:

• Socioeconomic status:

• Cultural traditions:

• Parents Socioeconomic ranking:

• Parents involvement:

• Type of childhood:

• Siblings/other family involvement:

• Friends/Acquaintances:

• First memory:

• Most important memory & why:

• Childhood hero:

• Pets:

• Dream job:

• Education:

• Religion:

• Wealth/inheritances:

• Miscellaneous:

Present

• Current location:

• Currently living with:

• Type of residence & who owns it:

• Possessions/Owned assets:

• Weapons owned:

• Socioeconomic ranking & how it was achieved:

• Cultural traditions/practices:

• Religion:

• Sexual orientation:

• Occupation:

• Wealth:

• Acquaintances/Friends/Lovers:

• Pets:

• Miscellaneous:

Family

• Mother:

▪︎Alive or Deceased:

▪︎Relationship with her:

• Father:

▪︎Alive or Deceased:

▪︎Relationship with him:

• Siblings:

▪︎Alive or Deceased:

▪︎Relationship with them:

• Spouse:

▪︎Alive or Deceased:

▪︎Relationship with him/her:

• Children:

▪︎Alive or Deceased:

▪︎Relationship with them:

• Other important family members:

▪︎Alive or Deceased:

▪︎Relationship with them:

Favorites

• Color:

• Food:

• Form of entertainment:

• Story/Myth/Legend:

• Mode of transportation:

• Most prized possession:

• Location/place:

• Season/weather:

• Miscellaneous:

Habits & Activities

• Hobbies:

• Training:

• Magical/special abilities:

• How he/she would spend a rainy day:

• Spending habits:

• Smokes tobacco:

• Drinks:

• Drugs/herbs:

• Activity does too much of:

• Activity does too little of:

• Extremely skilled at:

• Slightly skilled at:

• Extremely unskilled/terrible at:

• Nervous tics:

• Usual body posture:

• Mannerisms:

• Peculiarities:

• Places visited for fun/interest:

• Miscellaneous habits:

• Miscellaneous activities:

Traits & Flaws

• Optimist or pessimist:

• Introvert or extrovert:

• Daredevil or cautious:

• Logical or emotional:

• Disorderly/Messy or Methodical/Neat:

• Prefers working or relaxing:

• Confident or unsure:

• Easy to anger:

• Easily pleased:

• Manipulative:

• Apologetic:

• Accepting of advice:

• Easily bored:

• Mentally/Emotionally strong:

• Accountability:

• Ambitious:

• Work ethic:

• Demanding & bossy:

• Submissive & subordinate:

• Playful or boring:

• Brave or cowardly:

• Chases power/success/glory:

• Protective of loved ones:

• Doubts themselves or others:

• Talkative or quiet:

Mental Illnesses

• Trauma & why/who/what/when:

• Addictions:

• Depression:

• Anxiety:

• Paranoia:

• Hallucinations:

• Personality disorder:

• PTSD:

• Obsessive compulsive:

• Bipolar:

• Stable:

• Triggers:

• Miscellaneous:

Self-perception

• Feelings about himself/herself:

• One word the character would use to describe self:

• One paragraph description of how the character would describe self:

• Character considers their best personality trait:

• Character considers their worst personality trait:

• Character considers their best physical characteristic:

• Character considers their worst physical characteristic:

• Character thinks others perceive them:

• Character's aspect they would change about themself:

• Miscellaneous:

Relationships with others

• Opinion of people in general:

• Does the character hide opinions/emotions from others:

• Most hated/Biggest enemy & why:

• Most loved & why:

• Best friend(s):

• Love interest(s):

• Who to go to for advice:

• Who they're responsible for/Who they take care of:

• Who character feels shy or awkward around:

• Who character openly admires:

• Who character secretly admires:

• Most important in character’s life before story starts:

• Most important after story starts:  

• Opinion of relationships with family:

• Opinion of relationships with lovers:

• Opinion of relationships with friends:

• Treats strangers:

• Treats authority figures:

• Opinions of authority figures:

• Treats subordinates:

• Opinions of subordinates:

• Treats the opposite gender:

• Opinions of the opposite gender:

• Treats other races/cultures:

• Opinions of other races/cultures:

• Treats children:

• Opinions of children:

• Treats others with different tastes/interests/activities:

• Opinions of others with different tastes/interests/activities:

• How they treat others who admire them:

• How they treat others who love them:

• How they treat others who betray/harm/bully them:

• How they treat others who disrespect/harm others:

• How they react when someone needs their help:

• How they react when someone tries to help them:

• How they react to sexual/romantic advances:

• Opinions of sex & brothels:

• Miscellaneous:

[writeouswriter]

I always say how I love psychologically torturing my characters until I create a genuinely devastating backstory for one and feel so bad it's like I'm clicking the mean dialogue in a video game, I'm like I can't do that, that's illegal

[bearfoottruck]

Let's talk about My Hero Academia for a bit. First of all, according to the MHA Wiki, the manga is to conclude in five chapters, so Season 7 of the anime will DEFINITELY be the last from what I know. As the series nears its conclusion, I have one question on my mind: WHY has Horikoshi not revealed anything about Fumikage Tokoyami's backstory? I mean, you don't just create a character with birdlike features and not explain how they (my headcanon is that Tokoyami is nonbinary) became that way!

[dizzyhslightlyvoided]

an important part of creating any character is figuring out where and how to fit transitioning into the backstory

[incorrectbatfam]

What company did Blaise work for that ignored safety? Because it would be hilarious if it was a hand railing manufacturer.

He worked for a company that did concert pyrotechnics. His boss was always cutting corners and ignored multiple warnings for safety, but Blaise put up with it because he liked pyrotechnics and enjoyed the people he worked with, including his childhood best friend Charlie Burns. It all changed at a concert when a faulty piece of fireworks equipment resulted in Charlie getting permanently injured. Blaise ghosted his job for a couple weeks as he grappled with self-blame as he felt he should've taken more of a stand against their boss, and after getting officially fired for abandonment, he turned his anger outward. What officially set him on his criminal course was a month of stalking his former boss, gathering incriminating evidence, leaking everything to the Gotham Gazette as an anonymous whistleblower, and burning the boss's office to the ground as a final act of revenge

[ichimakesart]

Curious tigress Part 1

Part 2

[midnightconcepts]

Shirley and Jack Worthington, right after locking vows. 💍

I’d also believe, given Johnny’s age of around 18 in 1987, Jack the Fang and Shirley got married in the early to mid 60s. Which would make sense for Johnny to be born most likely in 1968/69.

I’ve got a new project in line to dig up more on Johnny’s family and the bloodlines of the Worthingtons, and have an understanding about Johnny’s character dynamics!

[i4mask]

MY KÖNIG HEADCANONS, #BACKSTORY EDITION. Written by @i4mask, aka Daniel.

DISCLAIMER: In no way am I claiming any of this is canon, it’s entirely fictional and borne of my own imagination. If you don’t agree/like what you read, please simply just scroll. I also wrote this at like, one AM, forgive me of any errors.

WARNINGS: Mentions/brief descriptions ONLY! of child abuse & violence against children, domestic abuse, alcoholism, murder and trauma.

• KÖNIG was born at home by his Mother with the help of a Midwife and Doula, as well as his Father. He grew up on a large plot of land at the bottom of the Austrian Alps, owned by his Father, who was a well-known Gunsmith to the village a few miles down South.

• KÖNIG was homeschooled by both of his parents in different fashions. He did not have much technological entertainment, instead using nature and the outdoors as means of stimulation. He was often exposed to the elements, but knew how to handle himself amongst them. He grew up learning to hunt, scavenge, identify, plant, etc.

• He did not have many friends aside from his siblings as well as KRUEGER, who I headcanon to have lived in the same area as him for a short period of time. KÖNIG’S lack of social practice is also what contributed to his anxiety and aloofness later on in his life.

• He is the eldest son, having two brothers and two sisters. Emmerich, Rafael, Gisela and Anna. (ORDERED OLDEST TO YOUNGEST.)

• KÖNIG was initially taught to shoot a gun by his Father, who started him on an old revolver at the age of seven. Unfortunately, he struggled in shooting due to his inability to sit/stand still, often missing his marks. He was also quite clumsy, motor skills lacking finesse, leading to his Father believing he was a lost cause when it came to the art, even as he grew older, he struggled with the same problems.

• When KÖNIG proved that he was no good with fire arms, his Father turned to his brothers Emmerich and Rafael, but did not teach his daughters, believing they had no business near such things.

• KÖNIG had a complex relationship with animals, especially small ones. From a young age, it was difficult for him to control the wide range of his own strength. His siblings often disliked allowing him near rodents such as rabbits, mice, or rats, as he often had a habit of injuring or even killing them, even if he didn’t mean to.

• His Father became an alcoholic within his early childhood, his first victim of cruelty being KÖNIG’S Mother, and then KÖNIG himself, who grew up with a lack of confidence, low self-esteem, distrust towards others, anger-hostility, and a sense of general worthlessness because of the continued verbal, physical and emotional abuse.

• KÖNIG began to hate his face since an early age, mostly due to the fact that his Father would often use a knife to cut him, in an effort of intimidating him and preventing him from intervening in the abuse of his Mother (of which he loved dearly.)

• Despite this, KÖNIG grew an emotional attachment/crutch to the very weapons his Father threatened his family with. He had become very familiar with knives since a young age, viewing them as his “neutral guardians”. Knives offered a sense of protection that he had never received as a child, since he used them in many other helpful situations. However, the fact that they were also used against him brought him conflict. He soon came to the conclusion that the only thing which mattered was the person holding the blade.

• On a similar note, he had grown infatuated with fire arms, not dissimilar to his own Father. Despite his own failures with them, he had gone on to silently teach his sisters how to use them.

• KÖNIG tended to idolize his own growth since an early age. He believed that the day he was finally taller than his Father was the day he would be able to “free himself” and his family from the shackles of his father’s violence. He constantly, discreetly measured himself against the other, in both height AND stature, as well as strength.

• Rather than being a male figure to look up to, KÖNIG’S Father was a figure to look down upon. He often used his Father as an example of what NOT to become, which helped him to better manage his own temperament.

• As the abuse escalated, KÖNIG’S mental health took a downward spiral. He often confided with his only friend at the time, SEBASTIAN KRUEGER, who at one point said, “It would be a shame if your father fell down that ravine near your house, wouldn’t it?”

• SEBASTIAN, who had a penchant for violence of his own since a young age, had subtly encouraged KÖNIG over the expanse of many weeks to find a particular solution to his problem, one which, KÖNIG, after turning seventeen, took upon himself—and then later had KRUEGER aid him in covering up the true nature of his Father’s untimely, unfortunate end.

• With his Father as the family’s only means of income, as his Mother did not work nor was she mentally capable enough to do so after the years of abuse she had experienced, KÖNIG knew that his family’s well-being was left up to him. This, in turn, is what prompted him to join the military, and act as fast as possible to begin a steady income.

• After saving enough up, he moved his family away from Austria and into Germany, where his siblings could attend an official public school and his mother could get the help she needed. He sent his family money quite frequently until his siblings managed to grow their own lives and leave the nest.

• In his free time/leave, KÖNIG visits his Mother, who had decided she wanted to move back into their Austrian home. He only agreed as long one of his siblings stayed with her, to which his younger sister, Gisela, had.

To anyone who made it to the end, I applaud you, and thank you for reading. You may read “SCHADENFRUEDE”, a series on Ao3 in which I write snippets of memories from KÖNIG’S childhood according to this post on here:

[chillwildwave]

The Wishing Kingdom AU: Florin Walt ✨🪄🔮

Since I posted Chapter 4 and at the moment working in Chapter 5, I thought it would be a great idea to share a character that Ive been thinking on who to add to the story and what role they play.

I simply thought about adding Flazino after watching that deleted scene, I mean I did the elements of the character but from this description, you will know…

This is Florin Walt, an imprisoned apprentice of the king and queen who wishes to do magic just like them, but his type of magic of a bit distinct to other forms, you see…

The backstory of Florin starts off in Stillfort, a poor village where he lived with his mother, father and little brother, he spent most of his life working in the farm and doing the chores around his cottage, although during his spare time, he would use a pair of chalk and started drawing on the rocks (sort of like how Rapunzel paints on her tower walls) so that he can make his dream come true, however, people around him said that it would be too impossible and that there’s no such thing as a dream come true, but he still kept drawing and drawing until the rocks were covered.

When he was 9, tragedy struck…

It was when a nearby kingdom by the name of the Crangon destroyed his homeland due to loosing a lifelong beef between Stillfort since they won a war centuries ago and it was plotted as revenge, little Florin tried to attack one of the soldiers who was on his way to destroy his home but the soldier brutally kicked him back to the floor, causing his hand to bleed, thus, unable to get back up, he watched his poor home and his dream die…

Years later, still with no home, he went up to the highest mountain where a cave stood strong since the war, filled with curiosity, he went inside and to his surprise, there was a stained glass drawing of him as a king with these sketchy lines of magic on the centre of his hands, below the drawing,

There is a wand shaped like a pencil that is wrapped around in thorns, it felt like his dream had already chosen him, it felt like there was someone calling out to him where he could finally get his dream come true, to think he worked his whole life to get this goal, it felt like it would become reality because of one kingdom…

One night, on his 18th birthday, he walked all the way to an unnamed kingdom at the time where he snuck inside the castle where he could get his dream, hesitant, Florin knelt by the king and queen (Harry and Adrianna during that time), he started by touching the pencil, raising it up and drew a circle, and just like that, that circle began to move ever so fluidly, like an illusion brought to life!

Impressed, Adrianna and Henry rewarded him with a wish to become a sorcerer by taking a petal and placed it on his chest and from there, his dream finally came true!

Since his dream, he continued using his magic to get better at his skills as whilst using it to help those in need for his kingdom, however, since Magnifico and Amaya entered the building, he knew that fate would enter….

During their ceremony, Amaya decided to reward Florin with a magical diamond, shaped like a pencil except it was extremely sharp, it wasn’t any diamond, it was a wishing diamond, just one touch and his wish would become bigger than ever, even though he already had his wish, he didn’t agree the first time but after hearing the queen’s truth about the wish, he accepted and touched his finger on the top of the diamond and…

OUCH!

The diamond caused another cut on his finger which led him to fall into a deep sleep, and while he slept, the magic from the diamond stole his wish and it floated towards the king and queen and his bright colour scheme went dark in a matter of seconds, and after that, it was then when he was thrown in the dungeon where until the curse lifted, he would spend the rest of the night doing labour for the couple.

The role he plays in the story is that he is supposed to be a cursed magician in Rosas until Asha and Antares find him and lead him to stop the couple as soon as possible, but he lacks empathy since he only cares about getting his dream back by himself without anyone’s help but as the story progresses, he learns to empathise with people throughout.

Now let’s analyse his design…

For the character design, I wanted it to become different from other Flazinos and I was able to do this by looking through medieval wear from the 1200s whilst also adding the gradient purple on his hands and feet, the purple is also present in the yellow suit which is symbolism for creativity and lack of empathy, it’s also a royal colour as well which is so funny because he wasn’t born into royalty to begin with, and I also noticed how I accidentally made him hot, like look at that face!!!!!

And this is the design of him after Rosas, and as you can see, the colour scheme has gotten darker, I wanted to use this to represent the current state of Rosas as well as the pain of getting your greatest desires washed away and taken away from you, and I feel like this could be great to visually showcase character development as the AU progresses through chapters!

I also forgot to mention that his name is a reference to Florian from Snow White and Walt Disney himself, so I felt like it would be heartwarming to pay homage to him in this way and also through this characters beliefs on making his own wish come true…

Let me know your thoughts on the character below and see if he stands with other Flazinos, I’m pretty sure they’ll greet him with open arms!!!! @annymation @uva124 @signed-sapphire @wings-of-sapphire @gracebethartacc @gracebeth3604 @rylxdreams @flicklikesstuff @oh-shtars @mythartist21 @spectator-zee @rascalentertainments @your-ne1ghbor @ishadow246 @tumblingdownthefoxden

[mj-iza-writer]

Hello MJ!!! I love your work and i was wondering if you could do another part to the story where the whumpee and caretaker have the same scar? Maybe a prequel where we see what happened to the whumpee or caretaker? Whatever you choose I adore your writing and I hope you have endless inspiration and motivation forever and ever. 💫

https://www.tumblr.com/mj-iza-writer/754906910306762752/warning-swear-words-used-the-team-burst-through?source=share

I believe you should be able to find the original story there. Here is a background if not.

The story is a team whump story where Leader and the team bring an almost dead Whumpee to Caretaker, the teams medic. Caretaker right away sees similarities in Whumpee's wounds to someone from their past. While healing Whumpee, Leader and the team go out, hunt this person down, and kill them before they can strike again. This story goes into Caretaker's past.

I am so sorry this took so long to answer. Tumblr deleted the story the other day after I had worked on it for like three hours, so after crying my eyes out, I rewrote it... on my phone's notepad as I didn't want that to happen again. I always appreciate ask, and I thank you so much for the request.

The story.

Whumpee was gaining strength now. It had been a few weeks since their rescue.

Caretaker had worked hard to get them to this point.

"How about we attempt a real bath today?", Caretaker sat down next to Whumpee's makeshift hospital bed. A better option then the gurney they had laid on for the first two weeks.

"D-do you think I'll be able to do it?", Whumpee whispered.

"I guess we won't know unless we try", Caretaker smiled, "we can do a quick bath today. Maybe give your hair some attention", Caretaker looked over the clumped hair that still had dried mud from when they were found.

"I think I would like that" Whumpee nodded. Knowing they could use a good clean up.

"Alright I will go get your bath together, and I'll be back to get you", Caretaker stood.

Leader came in and found Whumpee leaning forward in their bed.

"Look at you", Leader smiled, "looks like you are getting stronger and better every day."

"Caretaker is going to give me a bath today", Whumpee whispered, "a-a real bath."

"Oh, that's going to be nice", Leader sat down next to Whumpee, "I take it that's where Caretaker is."

Whumpee nodded.

Leader looked around the room, "I wonder if Caretaker would need a hand", they looked at Whumpee, "would you be okay if I offered to help?"

"Yes that's fine", Whumpee nodded.

Caretaker came in just then and looked at Leader weirdly.

"Good morning, uh, I was just about to give Whumpee a bath. Did you need me for something?"

"No, no, just checking in", Leader smiled, "I was wondering if you'd like a hand though? Whumpee said they were alright with it."

"Actually, that would be helpful", Caretaker nodded, "I can have you work on their hair while I clean the rest of them up. We'll be able to get more cleaned in a little bit of time."

Leader carefully set Whumpee into the tub of warm water.

"Does everything feel alright?", Caretaker looked them over. The way Whumpee happily sunk into the water was enough of an answer.

"It feels so good", Whumpee moaned happily, "thankyou."

Caretaker knelt beside the tub, "yes, I remember my first bath after I escaped. It felt so good", they smiled.

Leader came around to other side of the tub and knelt down. They knew better than to ask questions about Caretaker's past.

"Alright Leader, get to cleaning", Caretaker smiled as they handed them a cup, "please remember we won't look clean right away. Whumpee's body will only let us get so far before they need to rest again. We just need to get enough off."

Leader nodded.

Whumpee stole glances at Caretaker. They looked to where that mark was hiding under his clothes. The one they had in common. The one that meant Caretaker knew exactly what had happened to Whumpee because it may have happened to him.

Whumpee then looked down where their mark was. A fresher wound right on their ribs, not as faded as Caretaker's was.

"Caretaker?", Whumpee whispered.

"Yes Whumpee, are you okay?" Caretaker gave a concerned look.

"May I... may I uhm", Whumpee stuttered nervously.

"Whumpee you can say or ask anything you want", Caretaker gently rubbed their shoulder.

Whumpee nodded, "may I, uhm, know what they did to you?"

Leader stopped what they were doing but didn't look up.

"I-I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked", Whumpee hurried when they saw Caretaker's jaw clench.

"No... uh.. it's fine", Caretaker looked at Whumpee shamefully, "I guess you have a right to know."

Caretaker started to gently clean Whumpee.

"Well I guess to start off, I was originally a doctor. That was my calling in life, it's what I always wanted to be, but they stole that from me", Caretaker frowned, "I was taken by them a little after I started working in the hospital."

Caretaker sighed, "after they found out what I was and what they could make me do", Caretaker paused to look at a wound on Whumpee's back, "they locked me in a room they called the operating room."

"They did things a little differently at first. They had several prisoners to play with. If they went too far, which was often, they would bring them to me. I was forced to heal their victims. I would be severely punished if I didn't.... if I lost someone."

Caretaker sighed, "many nights I cowarded away in the corner of the operating room. I was so scared that my door would be opened and another victim would be laid on my table. I'm still haunted by the faces or those people, buy their voices. Them begging me to just let them die. Them telling me I was just as bad as them. I was causing their suffering to be longer."

Caretaker's lip quivered, "I wanted to heal people, but not like that. I wanted to be appreciated for my work. To feel proud of my abilities, but instead, I heard yelling and pleading from people who wanted me to kill them. Cowering away from that person as their victim was dragged out kicking and screaming. Telling me that I was a horrible... person. What hurt worse was when I started to agree with them. I was a horrible p..person."

Caretaker looked up at Leader for a moment before continuing.

Leader felt their eyes but didn't dare look up.

"One night in particular, a victim was brought in. I had had them on my table before. They pleaded with me to let them die this time. They couldn't go on anymore. I remember looking deep into their eyes. I nodded. This was their only victim at the time. I knew my punishment would be especially bad if I failed."

"They came into my room a few hours later and saw the body. I was forced to take that victims place in the torture. It hurt like hell, but it was worth it", Caretaker chuckled lightly, "it gave me a boost of confidence."

"A few days later, I heard my door unlock. They came in and told me they were going hunting for a new victim since they didnt have any", Caretaker stopped for a second and looked lovingly at Whumpee, "I some how got them to come closer to me..... I stabbed them with a makeshift knife. I thought I killed them, unfortunately I guess I didn't."

"I ran", Caretaker looked up at Leader again, "I ran until I couldn't run anymore, then I collapsed. I prayed that I might die as well and be forgiven of my sins in the afterlife."

Caretaker smiled again as they wiped a tear, "thankfully someone found me. Someone who has a habit of finding injured people and bringing them here, and making them like a family. They didn't exactly have a medic back then. So I took care of my own wounds. Leader tried to help as much as they could."

"You said I did good at getting the supplies you needed", Leader finally spoke up.

"Yes you did", Caretaker nodded.

Caretaker sighed again, "I don't like talking about my past too often as I'm ashamed of it. I allowed people to suffer because I was too afraid to speak out and stand up against our captor. I was too afraid of them."

Whumpee looked deeply into Caretaker's eyes, "you were allowed to be afraid, you're human. I was terrified by them. I can see why you would have been as well. I'm sorry for what those people yelled at you and called you. You're my hero", Whumpee shook, "plus if it hadn't happened, you would not have met Leader and become part of this team. I could have died. It's unfortunate, but those hard times brought you to this family.

"Thankyou Whumpee I appreciate that", Caretaker smiled, another tear threatened to fall, "well, I think that just about does it for this bath, you are shaking a lot. I think your body is ready to rest again."

Whumpee nodded, "thankyou for telling me about that. I really appreciate it."

"You're welcome", Caretaker smiled weakly.

Whumpee fell asleep a little after their bath.

Caretaker stepped outside on their office's balcony to get some air. Maybe cry a little more.

They were just about to lower to the ground when Leader came out carrying some drinks.

"Hey, sorry to bother you", Leader frowned, "I thought maybe you could use one of these after that. I know you don't like talking about that subject. Though I think it was good for Whumpee to hear it. Maybe they can see that being fully healed is possible after some time. I know I have a deeper respect for you than I already had. You're absolutely inspirational."

"I-I don't know about that, but Whumpee deserved to hear it", they looked down at the drink, "I'm not proud of that time of my life. Thanks for this."

"You're welcome", Leader took a drink of their own, "I agree with them though. If it wasn't for that, this team would have never made it. None of this would be possible."

Caretaker smiled weakly.

"I guess I know why you are able to fix just about anything I bring to you", Leader tried to lighten the mood.

"Yep, you still haven't given me anything compared to what I've dealt with. Except Whumpee, that was a hard one. Which is how I knew it was their work. It had to be at least."

Leader nodded, "for what it's worth. You are an amazing doctor, and I'm honored to have you on this team. I know this wasn't what you had planned for your life, but man, I appreciate you so much."

"Thanks", Caretaker smiled, "this isn't what I had planned, but I wouldn't change it for the world."

Leader grinned, "I'm glad."

Taglist. As always please let me know if you want to be added or taken off of the list. It's not a problem at all.

@villainsandheroes @the-beasts-have-arrived

@sacredwrath @porschethemermaid

@monarchthefirst @generic-whumperz

@bloodyandfrightened @freefallingup13

@notpeppermint @cyborg0109

@idontreallyexistyet @painfulplots

@whumpbump @everythingsscary

@skittles-the-whumpee @expressionless-fr

@theforeverdyingperson @legendarydelusiongoatee

@candleshopmenace @whumpanthems

@lavndvrr @ivymyers

@starfields08000 @a-living-canvas

@lumpofsand @watermeezer

@indigoviolet311 @whumpy-mountains

@3-2-whump @risk606

@electrons2006 @paperprinxe

@whumprince @kaz-of-crows

@mis-graves @decaffeinatedtimetraveler94

@sausages-things @sunglasses-in-the-bentley

[godspeedviper]

Hell is Real: A personal account of the American South as told by Dr. Jonathan Crane

"Hell is real" he said, eyes fixated on the floor as he exhaled a smoky breath. "That much I know"

"I didn't take you for a religious man"

"I'm not." his voice was prim, proper, long gone are the traces of an identifying southern drawl, forced out by the ardent desire to become more myth than man. Human beings have hometowns, fear itself does not.

"God does not exist, but Hell is very real." Jonathan takes another puff from a cigarette that looks almost like a sixth finger in his spindly grasp. His hands are long, fingers narrow, with skin as pale and dry as bone.

"Forsaken by both mother and father, I have been destined for Hell from the day I was born."

"If you are not a religious man, then are you a determinist? Do you believe you were always meant for evil? Can man not change his ways?"

"I am neither religious nor determinist, rather I am a man of science, but even science agrees with me." Crane puffs out a final plume of smoke, and puts out the cigarette butt in the crude ash tray before him. "An object in motion stays in motion until acted upon by an equal or greater force. Evolution traces a line back to a common ancestor, a common sin, and psychology lets us know that a man is built out of the influences of his growing environment."

He continues to stare at the floor, and the icy hot glare of his crystalline gaze bores a hole through the present. Memory bleeds out.

"They used to say that great grandpa Keeny fooled around with a fortune teller when the circus came into town... She told him to wait for her, that they would come back next harvest..."

His voice trailed off, swept away by the invisible currents of memory.

"She came back." Crane's voice now had a subtle lilt which he tried to stifle with a cough. "She came back and realized that great grandpa never intended to keep that promise. It's said that she then laid a curse on him and his bloodline. The years wore on, each harvest season claiming a new prize till there was nothing left but the house and me. It's why great grandma became such a pious woman, but even Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. No amount of prayer could save the house of Keeny from falling."

"Do you believe in that curse?"

"I believe that nothing good comes from confining an orphan boy to the attic, in a town abundant with suspicion, bourbon and sin. Night after night I would fall asleep to the sounds of televangelism seeping through the cracks in the floorboards. I dreamt of Hell."

Jonathan reached out for another cigarette, never bothering to look up. He inhaled deep, exhaled slow, and closed his eyes.

"Even in my cell I can still hear the distant voice of pastors speaking through static. I can still smell the rotting wood and Georgia heat. Nothing good ever grew on that farm, and I am no exception."

ao3 || Ko-Fi || WiPs || Guidelines

[the-anime-void]

My RWBY OC done by the amazing @yellownicky

Ylva Fenris a wolf Faunus standing at a staggering 6'2".

She lost her arm in her youth when she was living at an orphanage, warning this story will get a little graphic.

She was out playing when she got separated from her friend, and when she found her, she was being attacked by a Beowolf. It was alone, separated from its pack when Huntsmen tracked it down. But they had lost its trail, leaving the two girls alone.

In this moment, Ylva's Semblance awoke, and she went into a blind fury. It's called Berserk, and it causes her body to internalize her aura, allowing energy to surge through her body, allowing her to perform feats of incredible strength and not feel a bit of pain. The trade off being that it robs her of defense, and the rush of energy messes with her mind, making it nearly impossible for her to think straight.

And so, in this state, Ylva was able to overpower a Beowolf at the age of 12, with heavy cost. Her face and body were gouged and scarred, and the uncontrolled strength she unleashed as she pummeled the Grimm with her left fist caused the muscles to tear and bones to splinter. That, combined with the Beowolf's defensive bites and tears, left her left arm unsalvagable and it had to be amputated.

Soon after her recovery, she was adopted by a local retired Hunter who thought it best to train her to control her Semblance, least she get herself killed with it.

[monstatron]

“There’s something else on your mind, isn’t there.”

a sketch i drew to go along with a new blade in the city short story! obasi faces a haunting memory and seeks out noctis for company.

>> READ "HAUNTINGS" HERE! <<

i’m very proud of this work, tho it’s something i wrote mostly to practice my writing skills and flesh out the characters a bit more. regardless, after completing this i feel much more confident in my writing skills and i have more (non-bitc, and bitc) related short stories in the works! >:]

[rosered-schneeweisschens-sis]

one hero’s painful past, is one villain’s origin story.

and vice versa.

[incorrectbatfam]

Wait Rob ACTIVELY wanted an intern? I thought Booker just showed up one day? Also why do they need an intern?

Actually it went a little something like this:

*phone rings*

Rob: Hello?

Booker: Hi, I'm calling to follow up on my application for the Gooners internship. I hope you received my resumé and cover letter just fine. If you have any other questions for me, please feel free to let me know.

Rob: Internship? What internship?

Booker: The one on Indeed from yesterday.

Rob: Please hold.

Rob, covering the phone: Anyone know anything about an internship?

Blaise, pointing at Molly: It was her idea!

Molly, pointing at Blaise: It was his idea!

Kellin: It was a stupid idea, that's what it is.

Rob: Why would you need an intern?

Blaise: We could all use a hand in our workshops—especially Otto with his bad knee.

Molly: The admin stuff is piling up too. Plus, I see it as a learning opportunity.

Rob: *sighs*

Rob, back on the phone: You're hired.

*knock at the door*

Rob: I got it.

Rob: *opens the door*

Booker: New intern, reporting for duty!