[APP] Destinik
ABOUT YOU
What you prefer to be called: Krissy
Gender pronouns you prefer (he/she/etc.): She
Personal LJ (if any): harbek
Are you over 16?: Yes
Are there any contact methods (IM, e-mail, etc.) you'd like listed for yourself in the Player Contact info post?
MSN: krharbek@online.no
AIM: krharbek
email: replace online with bluezone.
Do you have a couple good samples of your writing already posted online that you'd like to share? (completely optional):
Not... that I want to share. XD
ABOUT YOUR CHARACTER
(please note when/if you need to approximate or invent any important bits of information)
LJ username: wankerrecluse
Canon and canon type (TV, novel, etc.): Black Books (TV)
Name: Bernard Ludwig Black
Age: 30
Brief backstory (200+ words):
Early backstory (more or less invented)
Bernard grew up in Ireland, a single-child, and he and his parents moved to Northern England during his mid-teens. He was mostly a poor student due to lack of interest, though every subject that required him to read, like English and History, he was quite capable of holding up his own, but he did not pursue any higher education. He moved to London during mid twenties, and has had very limited contact with them.
Recent backstory
He runs a second-hand bookshop called Black Books, just off Russell Square in London, and lives in the flat behind/above the shop, with his friend Manny, who works for him, and next door to his best friend (and one-time lover, although he "isn't allowed to remember it") Fran. About two years ago, he got engaged to his girlfriend Emma, and was heartbroken when she died. About a year ago, he found out his accountant was a fugitive, and had a fair bit of trouble trying to do his tax returns himself, until he drunkenly hired Manny to do it for him, which he later regretted. After a very successful trial run, he still refused to hire Manny, until Fran beat some sense into him, and be grudgingly let Manny stay, and has since grown to rely on his quite a bit for things such as cleaning, cooking, accounting, managing and generally taking care of the shop. This doesn't mean he treats him very nicely, but the shop has a tendency to deteriorate quickly if Manny is away, as Bernard has no sense of hygiene or cleanliness, and would rather prefer to bury himself in his books and his wine and cigarettes.
Brief description of personality (100+ words):
He generally tends to behave like an asshole towards most people. He's pessimistic, occasionally neurotic, bitter, possessive, jealous, rude, nihilistic, spiteful, moody, irresponsible, reclusive, occasionally temperamental, self-destructive, unhygienic, and a misantrhope. He's not evil, he just has a lot of problems and baggage.
He is, however, also intelligent and creative. He's witty and satirical, has a good psychological understanding of people around him, and can write a whole complex, interesting novel in a short space of time, with themes such as love, betrayal and the Stalinist purges. He's very good when it comes to literature, but he's rubbish at things that involve math, accounting, or legal mumbo jumbo, or anything that involves social interaction, really. He doesn't care much about the world at large, and has a strong loathing of being around a lot of people, or leaving the house to go further than around the corner.
This isn't very helpful considering his occupation is in retail, as he hates the pressures and responsibilities, as well as his customers, and doesn't have much faith in his store. Despite this, he is quite fond of the shop itself, and is rather defensive and protective of it, as well as having a strong passion for what he sells, and thus perhaps maybe treats it more as his personal library. He spends most of his time reading (usually accompanied by drinking wine and smoking), and occasionally writing short stories or novels.
He thought he was gay for a bit, but he was discouraged by "the prohibitive standards of hygiene, and all that dancing". He does not dance unless forced, and his hygiene leaves things to be desired. His hair is usually a greasy mess, his clothes are usually dirty, and his flat is no better, in fact it's a lot worse. The only appearance-related thing he manages to keep up is shaving, and only because he can't stand beards. His health is not the best either, as he despises doctors and claims they're Satanists, and since he spends half the time smoking and drinking, he has a rather bad cough and is frequently hungover.
He is quite fond (and possessive) of his friends, although he has trouble shoving it, but he gets very jealous and upset if they choose someone else over him. He's also quite bitter and heartbroken about his fiance Emma dying, when they should've been living together by now, and now he has no one. In fact, the presence of girls he likes has a tendency to bring out a much gentler side of him, and he is quite obviously shy, awkward and self-conscious. He can be both generous and eager to please (if a bit overbearing), but has not had a proper relationship since Emma.
Any special skills?
Writing, reading, drinking and smoking obscene amounts.
At what point in their canon does your character land in the city?
Between season 1 and 2, early 2002.
Just prior to their appearance in the city, is your character alive or dead?:
Alive.
What kind of clothing/small items might your character reasonably have on their person when they arrive?:
One rather large, long, black trench coat
One black pinstripe suit jacket
One pair black pinstripe trousers
One dark red dress shirt, untucked
One white undershirt
One pair black suspenders
One pair black socks
One pair black leather shoes
One pair of Y-front underpants
One lighter
One and a half packs of Marlboro cigarettes
One emergency hip-flask of cheap whisky
One set of keys (for home and bookshop)
One black leather wallet with
-Driver's license
-Bank cards
-£24,59 in notes and small change
PLEASE WRITE YOUR CHARACTER'S ENTRANCE POST FOR THIS GAME (at least 200 words) -- check the OOC community for the latest weather report for the city:
WHO: Bernard Black
WHERE: The pub (57)
TIME OF DAY: Around noon
POST SUMMARY: Bernard wakes up on the ground, with a noticable lack of hangover, quite unusual for him in such a location.
It takes a while before Bernard fully reaches consciousness.
It's a slow process of realisations, first that he is laying on something very hard. Then it reaches him that he is apparently outside, he is still fully dressed, and he is... not hungover. He should be. When does he ever wake up on the pavement without getting drunk first? He lifts his head and realises it's not even that; he's in the middle of the street.
He slowly staggers to his feet, looking around and rubbing his cheek, the asphalt having made his skin patterned and sore. He shuffles onto the pavement to get out of the street, in case any cars drive by. Doesn't seem to be very busy at the moment, though. There's one parked down the street, but other than that it's pretty deserted. Is it Sunday? That might explain it.
Then again, London is never this quiet, not even on a Sunday. Come to think of it, it looks nothing like London at all. Definitely not central London, and Bernard has no clue why he would ever venture outside it. Last thing he remembers, he was definitely only just around the corner from his shop. And if he got that drunk that he left to go somewhere outside London, why does he feel no trace of that alcohol now?
The best answer to all these questions is definitely more alcohol. He pulls out a flask from his coat pocket, somehow miraculously not emptied earlier, and takes a drink from it, then lights up a smoke, looking up and down the deserted street, wondering what to do now. If there were anyone around, he might've just asked where he was, but the place is empty.
He starts wandering up the street, trying to figure out where he is, or find someone, or at least a pub. He starts looking at buildings and signs, and suddenly notices that it's not English. In fact, it's not even the Latin alphabet, it appears to be Cyrillic.
"What?" He accompanies that with a little flail.
Is this a joke? Did he somehow leave the country while intoxicated? Has he been kidnapped? Is he on a hidden camera show? Is he in Wales? No, Wales has the Latin alphabet...
It's beginning to get a little creepy how empty it is, too. True, Bernard doesn't like people, doesn't like to be around them, but he doesn't actually expect to have a whole neighbourhood apparently to himself. He takes another, much longer drink to stop himself from panicking. If this keeps going, he's gonna be done with the whisky in no time at all, which would not be good.
A pub! Perfect. He only realises that's what it is when he's right outside it, glancing in the window. He walks up to it and practically presses his nose against the glass. Definitely a bar of some kind. He tries the door and finds it locked. Which pub is locked at noon? Then again, if he's not actually in London or even England, this might not be so odd.
He tries to read a sign on the door, and fails miserably. Why did he not learn Russian? Or... whatever this is. Definitely Slavic. He knows so many languages, since all he ever does is read, but he never learned any Slavic languages. He promises himself that if he finds his way back to his shop easily, he'll pick up a book on learning Russian.
"Bollocks..." he mutters to himself, and sits down on the ground, leaned against the wall, and continues to try not to panic, greatly helped by the alcohol, and starts smoking another cigarette.
URL to a 100x100 photo of the person you'd like to represent your character's appearance for use on the character listing page:
http://l-userpic.livejournal.com/91253252/2124775