application for rubycity_rp

[pessimiste]

PLAYER
Name: Arden
Age: 21
Personal Journal: uponastar
Plurk: ardendillo
AIM/MSN/etc: ardendillo @ AIM/Skype

CHARACTER
Name: Grantaire
Canon: Les Misérables
Age: No exact canon age- late 20s is the best that can be drawn.
Timeline: His death ( June 6th, 1832 )
If playing another character from the same canon, how will you deal with this?: N/A

Personality:

"Grantaire was a man who took good care not to believe anything."

The skeptic, the winecask, the mirror of Enjolras. Everything that Enjolras is, Grantaire is not, and vice versa. In stark contrast to the passion and purpose of the rest of Les Amis de l'ABC, Grantaire is the lone cynical member who does not believe in the cause that his friends fight for. It is not out of ignorance or stubbornness that he holds this belief in absolutely nothing.

In fact, he is one of the most intelligent and educated men of his companions. Grantaire is accomplished and quick, able to debate or discuss on a number of topics. Ultimately what one can glean from conversation with Grantaire, despite or because of all that he has learned, is his complete and utter lack of faith in anything. Humanity is doomed to repeat all of his mistakes in his eyes, and there is no point or good that can come from what the Amis are fighting for. And every time he is proved right his philosophical hole is dug deeper, right up until his death at the bloody end of their failed revolution.

"This was his axiom: There is only one certainty, my full glass."

Alcohol is Grantaire's crutch- it is how he manages to get through the day with such an utterly bleak view of life itself. He can drink almost anyone under the table and is intoxicated to some degree at nearly all hours of the day. Life is a joke- "a hideous invention," he calls it, but alcohol helps to numb himself to this truth that he holds himself and everyone else to. It makes him rowdy and a big talker, but he's also been known to drink to excess and in his last moments before his death he'd been passed out for nearly 24 hours. It is a problem, but not one he has any desire to quit so long as he is still living.

His continual drunkenness makes Grantaire a source of entertainment and humor to the rest of Les Amis; Enjolras constantly critiques him for his failure to be serious. He laughs and mocks much of what goes on to many's frustration, but his general good nature is what endears him enough that he is allowed to remain within the group. Over-the-top and boisterous, Grantaire rarely takes anything seriously because it comes back to his beliefs that it is pointless to do so. This is the hollow base of Grantaire's personality-- Literally everything is for naught in his eyes, so he drinks. He gambles. He travels. Only one thing gives him any hope at all.

"Still, this skeptic had a fanaticism. This fanaticism was neither an idea, nor a dogma, nor an art, nor a science; it was a man."

This man is Enjolras, who R is drawn to like a magnet. As said previously, Enjolras is, in many senses, the opposite of this skeptic. And Grantaire is absorbed completely with him. Enjolras is the only reason that Grantaire even became a member of Les Amis de l'ABC and gives Grantaire a cause that nothing else life offers can. His one passion.

He is utterly devoted to Enjolras and would- and did- die for him. Hugo's novel describes it as "being drawn to what we lack," literally the law of magnetism. When the revolution took place and the rest of his comrades fell, Grantaire had just awoken from a drunken daze- And rather than lying where he was passed over, he knew what was coming and rushed to Enjolras' side. Because a life without him was not worth living- Even less so than it already is.

Background:
Grantaire's Les Mis Wiki page
Brick's Wiki Page
2012 Film Wiki Page

Strengths/Weakness:

[ + ] intelligence
a double edged sword - it makes him very smart and he's learned much, but it has also led his mind to force itself into the hole he finds himself in.
[ + ] education
years of schooling have shaped him to be a well-rounded person (so what happened?); he speaks well, writes well, has read the classics, etc. etc. and on that note, he is a great artist.
[ + ] loyalty
but only to Enjolras (and thereby, his causes)- however, it is a positive quality in that when he professes loyalty, nothing will shake him from it (see: stubbornness).
[ + ] quick learner
part of being intelligent, R is a sharp tack who can pick up on things easily (when he's not too drunk).
[ + ] humor & general good nature
grantaire is a good friend for, if not his habits and beliefs, his demeanor. unless you are enjolras, in which case it's another infuriating quality that he can't take much seriously.

[ - ] alcoholism
unquestionably one of his larger faults, especially because he has no desire to quit even though he knows it is a fault.
[ - ] cynicism
or, more appropriately, nihilism: the belief that life is completely pointless; it leads to many a philosophical debate ending in frustration for the other and leaves grantaire's life stagnant.
[ - ] arrogance
grantaire believes he has all of life's answers in his grasp, and mocks those who don't share his belief - or lack thereof, more appropriately put. it's all a show, no one hates grantaire more than grantaire, and he wants desperately to be proved wrong.
[ - ] stubbornness
and don't try to talk him into seeing things from a different light - he is hard as hell to sway one way or the other and is very set in his ways; he's capable of change, but only if he wants to.
[ - ] impetuousness
in many senses of the word; he's boisterous, rude, and snarky, but hey at least he's funny, right?

Abilities:

"He knew the good places for everything; furthermore, boxing, tennis, a few dances, and he was a profound cudgel-player. A great drinker to boot."

Not a man with any extraordinary abilities besides a few of those already mentioned. He's extremely intelligent, accomplished, and witty. He knows a lot about a variety of things- A well of information, if he feels like sharing. Especially skilled at barfights, too.

First Person:
[ A dark-haired man comes to with a shallow gasp, a particularly violent shake of the train waking Grantaire from his position lying crumpled on the floor of the car. He clutches his hands to his chest but- there is no blood. No wound. No pain. ]

No- No, I-

[ He opens his shirt roughly and looks down, but the bullet holes are nowhere to be found. The last thing he remembers was the feel of Enjolras' hand as he stood by him and ended that joke that was his life.... But if he is here and alive then- ]

Enjolras. ...Marius? Anyone?

[ His voice cracks, his throat dry as sandpaper and his tongue feeling heavy. Looking around, he stands up and finally realizes now that the panic has subsided that he's in a moving vehicle of some sort. He grabs onto a seat as the train rocks.

I- I missed it. Waking up, it was a dream. But... how? he sits down and runs a hand through his black curls. Where was he going? Who found him? Enjolras was nowhere to be found- None of the Amis were. He was alone and in some kind of railroad...

Unless... Unless they were right. What if there is a God after all? Perhaps Grantaire is dead... and en route to his afterlife. With a hollow laugh as the train stops, he shakes his head and puts his face in his hands. Rubbing his eyes, he stands up and looks at the open doors, which look so foreboding after this realization. ]

Apollo made it to Heaven, of course. And I must be going where the sun does not shine.

Third Person:
As Grantaire lied on the table in a drunken stupor he regained consciousness with the storming of feet as uniformed men flooded into the Cafe Musain. Previously clouded with the effects of the alcohol, the alcoholic suddenly felt fully aware for the first time in weeks. The revolution- It was here. The smell of blood and gunpowder made his stomach turn as his mind worked itself around what was happening, to find out what he had missed.

His eyes snapped open but he remained still as he heard a series of gunshots fired into the ceiling. The boots raced upstairs and he rose so quickly from the table that the bottles rolled to the floor. One smashed open with an unnoticed crash. His mind was on one thing- And with sudden clarity he knew what he had to do.

There was one thing tying him to this world and it carried his feet flying up the stairs. Wings could not have carried them faster.

"Wait!" he cried, pushing past the guards. He could care less for them.

His gaze was fixed, as it always was, on the man by the window. Enjolras' blond hair was kissed by the sunlight, a red flag in his hand. Taking his place by Enjolras and facing the barrels of the guns, he glanced at their fearless leader. He had barely pressed his hand into his, the unspoken question of permission answered in Enjolras' eyes, when the order was given.

Grantaire staggered back into the wall before he fell to the floor in a heap- following Enjolras to the very end.

[ from the perspective of the 2012 film, because this scene kills me every time tyvm. ]