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 Alex Smith, The Cuckoo Well, poo poo. Garth loving bit it. I had a great plan, right? I was ready to finally be someone. Garth wasn't popular or anything, but people noticed him. They had feelings about him. He was poo poo at living his life, yeah, but all it needed was a change in the leading man. I could have made him something. Made myself something. That's gone. Doesn't do much good to walk around as someone when they're dead. Brings the wrong kind of attention, you know? Now? I'm still just Casey's little brother. How can I live up to someone like that? He's lettered in everything that you can and I'm pretty drat sure he's come up with a few more activities to letter in after that. He's just... perfect. Amazing grades, word is he's going to get a full ride at U-of-N-L — go Huskers! — on a football scholarship and, oh yeah, he even has time to buff up his resume with a little community service. He has a future. I've always been in his shadow, ever since I was born. That wasn't too bad, I guess, not until my parents popped out another kid. Suddenly they're busy with baby Alice when they aren't giving Casey everything he could ever want. I'm pretty sure they forget I exist half the time. Hell, it's been three years since anyone celebrated my birthday. Who could care about a shlub like me? I'm nothing. I'm nobody. Maybe that's why I took to theater. I'm not one for the lead roles. Even in a half-rate club like ours, politics are supreme. Nobody wants to do me a solid. That's fine. I'll act circles around them, even in a supporting role. You see, I've got a secret. When I put on someone's clothes, I change. I become that person in every possible way. A perfect duplicate. That, uh, that made a few parts I've had to play pretty awkward. We don't have a budget, so everyone chips in materials for costumes. Usually their old clothes. It can be hard to hide that I'm suddenly a perfect duplicate of Abbey or Keith, but it's exciting! It's an escape from being a nobody. It even works if I just steal some clothes from the locker room. Or someone's bag. I've tried my hand at being a lot of people. Garth. Casey. Hell, even that weird girl in science. That was a trip. It's so much fun being them. I wish being me was even a fraction as exciting. That's why I chose Garth. He's interesting, but not too interesting. He has potential! He could be someone. Anyone. All most people know is that he's a stoner. I wouldn't have been constrained to being him. I could have made him better. Made myself better. quote:1. What's your favorite place in Canaan, and where's a place you can't stand to go? There's a thrift shop not too far from the school. I like to hunt for bargains, track down interesting clothes. They don't work the way something more personal and immediate does, but I'm sure if I can find something fresh enough... Well, I haven't yet. No harm in trying, right? The stuff is still great for costuming even if it's not great for passing. It all seems so interesting. The chips on the china. The weird stains on the clothes and furniture. What's the story behind it? I want to know. I want to have a story of my own. Least favorite place? Easy. The new stadium they built for the school. Can't scrape together a budget for theater, but they can blow untold thousands on a giant monument to my loving brother. I hate football. I hate the people that play it. I hate the people that worship it. And, most of all, I hate myself because I want all the attention it would bring. The worst part is that I have to go to the games. The one time my parents deign to notice me and it's to yell at me about being supportive of Casey. Like he gives two shits whether I'm there or not. quote:2. Who's someone you know something weird about? Conversely, who's someone who knows something weird about you? Well, like I said, there is a pretty drat weird girl in science. I think her name is Jackie Moore? She's a bit of a space case, right? Always hinting at these weird things that she can see. Monsters lurking among us. Real conspiracy theory poo poo. I'll admit it, okay, I'm curious what it's like. You know. Being her. I stole a change of clothes from her bag. It didn't matter that she's like half my size. It's all part of passing. Everything fits, unless it's not supposed to. So I found a quiet spot, put her stuff on, and changed. And, uh, I don't know if this is where she gets her info, but she's definitely rocking three eyes. It's so goddamn weird to experience first-hand. Got one hell of a migrane from it, so I took her poo poo off with the quickness. So, there I was. Most of the way out of Jackie's clothes when Ben King stumbled into the whole mess. I don't think he saw me change, thank god, but uh... Well, he's been giving me a little bit of the side-eye ever since. I mean, people say he's into some weird poo poo. Maybe he thinks I am too? Whatever the case, I definitely think he's got the wrong idea about me. quote:3. How did you know Garth? Could you have saved him? Why didn't you? Hm. How to put this delicately? I guess you'd have to say that I was stalking him. Learning everything you could about him. What he liked. Disliked. How he talked. What he ate. How he walked. I went through his trash. I watched him for days on end. Don't get me wrong, I'm not too torn up that he died. He needed to. Eventually. When I was ready. Not like he did, though. Not so... public. I had figured, I don't know, poison? Something quiet. Something so I could just hide the body and take over. The thing on the roof, though? That was crazy. There were so many people there and Garth was starting to throw all sorts of poo poo at me. Like he said that I was starting these rumors about him, trying to ruin his life. Not true. Maybe I was starting to lay the groundwork. Make things more interesting when I finally became him. Anyways, things got a little crazy. We were all pretty drunk. He was pushing and shoving and everything happened so fast. I know I punched him good. Really busted up his eye with this ring I found a few weeks back at the thrift shop. Garth was sporting a goddamn distinctive cut above his eye when he hit. I know I should ditch the ring, but it's mine, right? It's one of the few things I have that are interesting. Anyways, whether or not he knew my game, he needed to go. I just wish it had been quieter. quote:4. (Optional) Any OOC notes you have for me. This can be anything you'd like me to know as I consider the application: boundaries/content issues as mentioned above, some element of the character that didn't come through in the backstory, or whatever. Basically, this is free communication, if you want to use it. I'm still voting for no explicit on-screen child abuse, though I doubt it will come up. The Cuckoo posted:Name: Alex Smith Tricky fucked around with this message at 19:32 on Jan 31, 2017 |
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Jan 29, 2017 11:09
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Antivehicular posted:Question time! Sorry about the picture quality, I don't exactly have a top of the line cellphone. I'm using Casey's lovely hand-me-down phone, of course. The screen's busted in like three places and I don't get signal half the time.  It didn't really catch my eye at first. It was buried pretty deep in the miscellaneous jewelry box. I was digging around in there to see if anything would work for our production of Coriolanus. Usually we just shoot for something that's subtle, but how fitting is that? It's kind of a weird style to show up in Canaan. I mean, it's... not awful and gaudy? It's distinctive. Interesting. It even fit when I tried it on. It's hard to describe the sensation I got when I put it on. Warmth? Understanding? Acceptance? I don't know. Maybe I just imagined the whole thing, but for once in my life I felt important. I felt like someone saw me as worthwhile. Funnily enough, I think that just made me want to be Garth even more. You don't always fully understand what you don't have until you get a glimpse of what could be. Antivehicular posted:Okay, so Garth's out the window -- anyone else you've been considering replacing? Your brother, maybe? If you had your pick of replacement targets, any life to step into that you wanted, what kind of life would it be? Casey? No... no. I can't. I mean, he's... perfect. Obnoxiously perfect. I could do a good job of being him, better than him maybe, but all that time keeping up appearances? What's the point? He's not a challenge. It wouldn't be interesting. Garth was interesting because he was flawed. He had an opportunity to come in to Canaan and be anyone. Do anything. And he chose... that. The potential was there, of course, but he was loving it up. That's the kind of person I'd pick. I guess Jackie is up there on the list. The eye thing is really weird, yeah, but I'm sure I can figure that out with a little more time to experiment. She's got potential. She's a looker, for sure, and she could really make some waves if she dialed down the crazy a bit. That's the poo poo that gets me. She could do it! She could be so much more than she is. All this wasted potential drives me nuts. But, man, if I could be anyone? I think it would be someone like Robert Downey Jr. A guy who's on the edge of crashing and burning, but who can do amazing things. The kind of person who just needs someone making a few changes in their life. I wouldn't be surprised if someone like me fixed him. God, wouldn't that be amazing? A comeback story like that. It'd be perfect. And when I got bored, why not do it all again? There are always going to be challenges out there.
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Feb 1, 2017 06:43
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Likewise, here are mine:quote:You've stolen an outfit from someone. Record it under Outfits and gain a String on that person. quote:Someone gave you an outfit so that you could impersonate them - discuss with them and decide why. Record it under Outfits and you each get a String on one another.
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Feb 6, 2017 08:25
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Alex Smith, the Cuckooquote:Casey got invited out to the Mallard Lodge for some kind of "awards ceremony" a few weeks ago in mid-August, right before school began. What happened there, and how was Casey different afterward? Yeah, I was there. The family was. You know how my folks get when it comes time to support their favorite kid. A lot of it was pretty standard. Just pointless drivel celebrating our goddamn football team. It's like, uh, great. They are a good team. I don't need to get dragged to a creepy building to see them award the whole team (or at least the starters) with an honorary membership to the lodge. Now, don't get me wrong, things got weird later on. When Casey went up there to get presented with his mask, the guys up there took him behind a curtain. Nobody seemed to think it was odd, but he was the only one that happened to. I don't know what happened to him back there, but he came out a different person. His stride was all different. The body language was completely wrong. Knew everything he needed to, but this was strictly amateur hour. I'm a better Casey than this... thing. But hey? Who's going to listen to me? I'm just Casey's lovely little brother. I'm just jealous of his success and need to apply myself more. Whatever. quote:You've stolen an outfit from someone. Record it under Outfits and gain a String on that person. Mm, yeah. Audrey. She left her bag on the bench in the locker room and I took the opportunity to grab it a few weeks ago. Or, should I say Catherine grabbed it? Heh. It is pretty nice being able to sneak in there with nobody being the wiser. Not that I'm there to perv on anyone or nothing, but with Garth out of the picture... Well, I'm going to need to broaden my horizons. I tossed her bag in the lost and found a few days later. Didn't want anything other than the clothes, but I grabbed the cash to muddy the waters. Audrey has a few too many moving parts to be a good candidate, but I'm sure that being her will come in handy. We're certainly running in very different circles. quote:Someone gave you an outfit so that you could impersonate them - discuss with them and decide why. Record it under Outfits and you each get a String on one another. So I don't know how Catherine knows what I can do. Must have seen me changing or something. poo poo. I've been trying to be careful, but... Well. No use worrying about it now. Left me a bag with some of her clothes and a note. She's interesting. Definitely interesting. Not sure I'm down with whatever her Jesus freak crew is spewing, gives me kind of a weird vibe, but the girl herself? Huh. At some level, I guess we aren't that different. People that just aren't appreciated. She hasn't realized that it's pointless to try so hard, but give it time. For now? I've been watching her. Scoping things out. Learning everything I can. Just in case. Maybe I'll check out this Reverend and his flock. Maybe I'll even be me when I do it. Tricky fucked around with this message at 03:10 on Feb 8, 2017 |
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Feb 7, 2017 16:38
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I'm in the back corner, naturally. What better place to observe everything? Like, say, Jackie. She's up towards the front of the class. Catherine puts on a serious cold front, but I have a feeling she'd be pretty Hot if she could just loosen up.
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Feb 9, 2017 00:13
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