Howard Link (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
boundbydevotion) wrote2009-08-18 11:58 am
boundbydevotion) wrote2009-08-18 11:58 am
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App and Contact Info
Character Name: Howard Link
Canon: D.Gray-man
Reference picture and Wiki link: picture - the blond one | Wiki
Point in the time-line taken: chapter 186
Character History: D.Gray-man has good guys and bad guys \o/. The bad guys are a family of eccentrics that want to end the world. The good guys are a semi-secret global organization run by the Catholic Church called the Black Order. Neither side is as black and white as they seem like they should be. Central, the division of the Order generally considered to be made up of high level administrative bureaucrats, is also the division that oversees a special unit of combat specialists called "Crow." Their work includes, but is not limited to, such things as assassinating uncooperative Generals on their own side and coercing children into participating in human experimentation. Lol Central.
Like all members of Crow, Howard Link was brought into the Black Order at a young (and impressionable) age and given a thorough academic education as well as extensive training in physical combat and special techniques based on the use of paper talismans. He was conditioned to be duty-driven and obedient to Central, to always follow their rules and never question their orders. So when he is told his mission is to monitor Allen Walker 24/7, that is exactly what he does.
As "Inspector Howard Link" (as opposed to "Faceless Crow Member"), he officially goes everywhere Allen does at all times: when Allen is getting breakfast, when Allen is out on assignment, when zombies attack (canon), when Allen goes to sleep at night, etc... And this arrangement is indefinite! By the time current canon rolls around, they've probably been living and working together for several months. It's all very heterosexual.
Canon Personality:
Generally speaking, Link is strict and controlled. He strives to maintain a dignified air about himself and likes to keep things professional. His work always comes first and little else outside of it matters to him. He doesn't believe in things like jokes or having a sense of humor, and conducts himself as if he were merely a tool of Central, rarely smiling or speaking his opinion on things if they don't line up with Central's views. And of course Central didn't raise him simply out of kindness, he exists to do their dirty work. Because of this, while not naturally inclined to it, he has the capacity to be very ruthless when he feels his actions are justified.
Despite this, it doesn't take very long for Link to start showing some autonomy after he is assigned to watch Allen. While his words don't convey it, his actions tend to show a more empathetic side that doesn't like to see good people get hurt. For instance he is only told explicitly to watch Allen and report anything unusual, but takes it upon himself to protect him when Allen is too out of it to do it himself. He is very dedicated to his job, but makes small allowances like that.
As the series progresses, Link's empathetic side becomes more and more clear, as well as other personality quirks. While he is completely serious about everything he does, some things come across more amusement-inducing than others, such as his fondness for baking and sweets. Also, due to his upbringing in the Church, there are plenty of things that fluster him, and he can't stand inappropriateness in a lot of forms. His reactions to it range from disapproving or angry yelling to too-flustered-to-speak (and as a result he's a lot of fun to tease).
He likes memorizing things and hero-worships his superior a bit and wears stripey pajamas to bed... Basically he's just a dork that takes himself and others too seriously sometimes.
Blank Personality:
The most major change to Link's personality I believe will be his social availability. Before, where his work was his life, he didn't make much room for forming connections to people beyond being polite for appearances sake. He'll be more open to other people's ideas and his curiosity will be more apparent to other people than in canon. He'll want to learn and be useful. There will be times when he'll be more comforted by being told what to do rather than deciding himself, but overall his actions will be much more his own as a Blank.
Also, his concept of duty will make a more perceptible shift towards the people around him. While before he was interested in the safety of others and in protecting the innocent, a lot of it was squashed back by his need to adhere to Central's rules. As a blank, his natural inclination towards protecting others won't be as hidden; in fact, neither will most of his personal feelings. Without his training and normal social context he won't struggle as hard to stay composed.
It's very likely things will still fluster him, though this is less due to things being 'inapproprite' or 'unacceptable' according to social decorum, and more likely to be because he just doesn't know what the correct reaction should be. A lot of his immediate feelings about things will still reflect how he'd react in canon, because of how long he's been operating in that mode, and so there will be an absence of knowing what to do in situations where there are, say, naked women (just for example). He defaults to flailing and flustering. He's much more likely to eventually learn how to deal with it as a Blank though, instead of denying anything that doesn't fit into his world view. At least until he starts to remember stuff and starts regressing...
I expect he'll still be a serious mcserious pants in general, since it's not as if he wasn't allowed to have a sense of humor before.
Writing Sample:
As the sleep fog cleared from his mind, the new Blank found himself already sitting upright and groggily saluting at a wall he didn't recognize. When had-- he snapped fully awake in alarm, eyes sweeping the room for... it felt somehow strange to find himself alone... He relaxed slightly, seeing no immediate danger waiting, though he was certainly still unsettled. He sighed, feeling put upon, and dropped his gaze to examine himself and received another shock. It wasn't just the room that was unfamiliar but himself as well. He stilled, breath caught in his throat as he curled and uncurled his own hand, seeing it as if through a stranger.
He looked around the room again for something reflective to see himself in, slightly frantic. His gaze fell upon the brass telescope lying on his pillow and he seized it immediately. The surface of it, though bright and clean, was not polished enough to see himself in, so he turned one end with glass towards himself. A small image peered back at him, and he was disappointed to find he could not recall ever having seen that face. Then, the reflection spoke. "--wolla t'noD" a voice said into his ear, and the Blank dropped the telescope with a start.
Eyeing the object suspiciously, ears straining for the sound he'd heard, he gingerly picked up the telescope again, looking into the proper end this time. What he had thought was a reflection turned out to be a recording of a rather stern looking young man in a buttoned down and neat looking uniform. He stood at attention, arms held behind his back, staring directly out at the Blank, expression schooled into a slight frown.
"Don't allow him to go unsupervised," the young man spoke with authority. Then his expression shifted almost imperceptibly, and the Blank felt his next words were somehow more invested. "He is your responsibility," he said with resolve. The man in the recording then snapped an arm up in a salute, "I do this willingly!"
The Blank shook his head slightly, lowering the strange device as the image went black. Was this meant for him to find? There seemed little else of note in the room after all. It did little to ease his worries, but he felt at least he had been given an order and a goal he could work towards.
Now to somehow determine who it was he was meant to supervise in a world he was positive he knew nothing about.
Canon: D.Gray-man
Reference picture and Wiki link: picture - the blond one | Wiki
Point in the time-line taken: chapter 186
Character History: D.Gray-man has good guys and bad guys \o/. The bad guys are a family of eccentrics that want to end the world. The good guys are a semi-secret global organization run by the Catholic Church called the Black Order. Neither side is as black and white as they seem like they should be. Central, the division of the Order generally considered to be made up of high level administrative bureaucrats, is also the division that oversees a special unit of combat specialists called "Crow." Their work includes, but is not limited to, such things as assassinating uncooperative Generals on their own side and coercing children into participating in human experimentation. Lol Central.
Like all members of Crow, Howard Link was brought into the Black Order at a young (and impressionable) age and given a thorough academic education as well as extensive training in physical combat and special techniques based on the use of paper talismans. He was conditioned to be duty-driven and obedient to Central, to always follow their rules and never question their orders. So when he is told his mission is to monitor Allen Walker 24/7, that is exactly what he does.
As "Inspector Howard Link" (as opposed to "Faceless Crow Member"), he officially goes everywhere Allen does at all times: when Allen is getting breakfast, when Allen is out on assignment, when zombies attack (canon), when Allen goes to sleep at night, etc... And this arrangement is indefinite! By the time current canon rolls around, they've probably been living and working together for several months. It's all very heterosexual.
Canon Personality:
Generally speaking, Link is strict and controlled. He strives to maintain a dignified air about himself and likes to keep things professional. His work always comes first and little else outside of it matters to him. He doesn't believe in things like jokes or having a sense of humor, and conducts himself as if he were merely a tool of Central, rarely smiling or speaking his opinion on things if they don't line up with Central's views. And of course Central didn't raise him simply out of kindness, he exists to do their dirty work. Because of this, while not naturally inclined to it, he has the capacity to be very ruthless when he feels his actions are justified.
Despite this, it doesn't take very long for Link to start showing some autonomy after he is assigned to watch Allen. While his words don't convey it, his actions tend to show a more empathetic side that doesn't like to see good people get hurt. For instance he is only told explicitly to watch Allen and report anything unusual, but takes it upon himself to protect him when Allen is too out of it to do it himself. He is very dedicated to his job, but makes small allowances like that.
As the series progresses, Link's empathetic side becomes more and more clear, as well as other personality quirks. While he is completely serious about everything he does, some things come across more amusement-inducing than others, such as his fondness for baking and sweets. Also, due to his upbringing in the Church, there are plenty of things that fluster him, and he can't stand inappropriateness in a lot of forms. His reactions to it range from disapproving or angry yelling to too-flustered-to-speak (and as a result he's a lot of fun to tease).
He likes memorizing things and hero-worships his superior a bit and wears stripey pajamas to bed... Basically he's just a dork that takes himself and others too seriously sometimes.
Blank Personality:
The most major change to Link's personality I believe will be his social availability. Before, where his work was his life, he didn't make much room for forming connections to people beyond being polite for appearances sake. He'll be more open to other people's ideas and his curiosity will be more apparent to other people than in canon. He'll want to learn and be useful. There will be times when he'll be more comforted by being told what to do rather than deciding himself, but overall his actions will be much more his own as a Blank.
Also, his concept of duty will make a more perceptible shift towards the people around him. While before he was interested in the safety of others and in protecting the innocent, a lot of it was squashed back by his need to adhere to Central's rules. As a blank, his natural inclination towards protecting others won't be as hidden; in fact, neither will most of his personal feelings. Without his training and normal social context he won't struggle as hard to stay composed.
It's very likely things will still fluster him, though this is less due to things being 'inapproprite' or 'unacceptable' according to social decorum, and more likely to be because he just doesn't know what the correct reaction should be. A lot of his immediate feelings about things will still reflect how he'd react in canon, because of how long he's been operating in that mode, and so there will be an absence of knowing what to do in situations where there are, say, naked women (just for example). He defaults to flailing and flustering. He's much more likely to eventually learn how to deal with it as a Blank though, instead of denying anything that doesn't fit into his world view. At least until he starts to remember stuff and starts regressing...
I expect he'll still be a serious mcserious pants in general, since it's not as if he wasn't allowed to have a sense of humor before.
Writing Sample:
As the sleep fog cleared from his mind, the new Blank found himself already sitting upright and groggily saluting at a wall he didn't recognize. When had-- he snapped fully awake in alarm, eyes sweeping the room for... it felt somehow strange to find himself alone... He relaxed slightly, seeing no immediate danger waiting, though he was certainly still unsettled. He sighed, feeling put upon, and dropped his gaze to examine himself and received another shock. It wasn't just the room that was unfamiliar but himself as well. He stilled, breath caught in his throat as he curled and uncurled his own hand, seeing it as if through a stranger.
He looked around the room again for something reflective to see himself in, slightly frantic. His gaze fell upon the brass telescope lying on his pillow and he seized it immediately. The surface of it, though bright and clean, was not polished enough to see himself in, so he turned one end with glass towards himself. A small image peered back at him, and he was disappointed to find he could not recall ever having seen that face. Then, the reflection spoke. "--wolla t'noD" a voice said into his ear, and the Blank dropped the telescope with a start.
Eyeing the object suspiciously, ears straining for the sound he'd heard, he gingerly picked up the telescope again, looking into the proper end this time. What he had thought was a reflection turned out to be a recording of a rather stern looking young man in a buttoned down and neat looking uniform. He stood at attention, arms held behind his back, staring directly out at the Blank, expression schooled into a slight frown.
"Don't allow him to go unsupervised," the young man spoke with authority. Then his expression shifted almost imperceptibly, and the Blank felt his next words were somehow more invested. "He is your responsibility," he said with resolve. The man in the recording then snapped an arm up in a salute, "I do this willingly!"
The Blank shook his head slightly, lowering the strange device as the image went black. Was this meant for him to find? There seemed little else of note in the room after all. It did little to ease his worries, but he felt at least he had been given an order and a goal he could work towards.
Now to somehow determine who it was he was meant to supervise in a world he was positive he knew nothing about.