OOC: APPLICATION (THE PINES)

[royalpassport]

PLAYER

NAME: Ros
CONTACT: rosloops
OTHER CHARACTERS IN THE PINES: N/A

CHARACTER

NAME: Jefferson. JUST THE ONE NAME. Though some people call him the Mad Hatter.
CANON: Once Upon a Time
CANON-POINT: S1 E22, "A Land Without Magic," after freeing Belle from the asylum, and before the curse is broken.

DOSSIER

HISTORY: Enchanted Forest History | Storybrooke History
CR AU: N/A

WHAT ARE YOUR CHARACTER'S STRENGTHS?: A former con artist and thief, Jefferson has a knack for thinking on his feet-- he's clever, cunning, and a convincing liar. He has a way about him, this seemingly effortless charm that can be completely disarming, to the point where he can serve someone tea spiked with sedatives, and they'll take it without wondering, "Hey, is this total stranger about to drug me?" As a man who spent years traveling to other worlds, each with their own rules and magic, Jefferson has a vast breadth of knowledge about other worlds and is able to believe what others might dismiss as impossible, which helps him to adapt to new situations with ease. In some respects, he can be driven and tenacious (though this can also be something of a weakness, as it can lead to obsession). At his best, Jefferson can be a kind, devoted, responsible person. He's capable of selflessness, sacrificing a lucrative and exciting life of portal jumping to raise his daughter Grace as a single father. Though Jefferson going legit left him and Grace in a position where they're barely scraping by in poverty, he'd give his very last coin to make her happy. When he has Grace, all he wants is to give her the life she deserves.

WHAT ARE YOUR CHARACTER'S WEAKNESSES?: Jefferson's a weak-ass motherfucker-- like, all around, even before Wonderland and the curse both broke his spirit. He doesn't have a particularly firm sense of self, he rolls over easily, and his healthy coping skills are nonexistent. He can be short-sighted, acting without much thought as to the long-term consequences of his actions. He can be somewhat cowardly or spineless, choosing to run or hide rather than face things head-on. He can be seduced by money, luxury, and comfort, and in turn, easily manipulated by his desire for it (Multiple times! By the same person!). And he's selfish, even when he tries to put his daughter first (see: being cool with helping Regina keep the curse going, so long as it's altered to give him Grace back). In fact, even when Jefferson attempts to do the right thing, he's got terrible judgment (see: going to Wonderland with Regina, despite Grace and common sense telling him not to). Thanks to 28 years trapped in a living hell, Jefferson's pretty quick to act in a spiteful, petty, or antagonistic way. And he has no qualms with being duplicitous or making threats. However, for as dangerous as he can seem when pushed to the edge, he doesn't have it in him to actually pull the trigger, as it were. Sure, that could be seen as some strength of character in another person, but with Jefferson, it's not that he's a pacifist who objects to murder on moral grounds. It's more that he lacks the guts or conviction to do it himself, and would rather set up circumstances for others to get his revenge for him (see: freeing Belle from a psych ward, not because it was the right thing to do, but because he figured it would spur Gold to go after Regina for what she did to Belle). When he's not putting on a charming act, Jefferson tends to come across as off-putting, disturbing, and dangerously delusional. Sometimes, he seems like he's about two seconds away from launching into unpredictable violence, though he generally won't (the one time he got violent was in a scuffle with Emma after she-- rightfully-- clocked him upside the head with a telescope).

And he never seems to learn from his mistakes. Ever.

WHAT EVENTS OR CIRCUMSTANCES IN YOUR CHARACTER'S PAST HAVE IMPACTED THEM THE MOST?: Aside from "somehow coming into possession of a magical hat that allows him to travel to other worlds," there are four major events that shaped Jefferson into who he is at this canon point.

1. Though he wouldn't experience the impact of it for many years: conning the young queen Regina into thinking that her beloved Daniel could be brought back from the dead (by his associate, Dr. Frankenstein, OBVS), only to have the experiment 'fail' (deliberately) and truly dash her hopes of being reunited with her love. This event, orchestrated by Rumplestiltskin (who Jefferson was working for), broke whatever goodness was left in Regina and set her on the course to becoming the Evil Queen.

2. Losing his wife to his work. Life as a thief/con artist/portal jumper was, unsurprisingly, rife with danger, and Priscilla ultimately paid the price. With his wife dead (or missing in another land), Jefferson found himself raising Grace as a single father. Because he didn't want his daughter to lose both parents, Jefferson had to hang up his hat, give up the life of crime, and go legit. Which meant, uh. Foraging for mushrooms and selling them at the market. And living in poverty. This event led to Jefferson maturing and becoming a more responsible person, softening the slightly sketchy edge he used to have.

3. Getting trapped in Wonderland. And here's where Jefferson's past came back to bite him in the ass! Regina, in full on Evil Queen mode, manipulated Jefferson out of retirement so that he'd take her to Wonderland. And then she betrayed him and left him there, and he got his head cut off, but it's okay because he survived because ~MAGIC~ (and now he's got a bitchin' neck scar to show for it). Anyway, his imprisonment in Wonderland led to him being given an impossible task (Make a magic portal hat like the one you just lost! Oh, you don't have magic? OH WELL, DO IT ANYWAY.) and being forced to do it over and over again until he crumbled under the Queen of Hearts' demands-- not to mention his grief over being forcibly separated from his daughter, who he inadvertently abandoned back home-- earned him the nickname 'the Mad Hatter.'

4. And then after an indeterminate amount of time spent making hats, he was yanked out of Wonderland and woke up in another world entirely: the land without magic! Or: our world, basically. While all the others cursed to live in Storybrooke had new lives, identities, and memories in their heads, the Evil Queen made sure to leave Jefferson with all of his memories intact. In fact, he was the only person besides Regina to retain his memories-- along with the addition of new memories, from life as another Jefferson. With memories of his curse identity and his true identity both existing in his head simultaneously, both feeling real, Jefferson felt as if he was losing his mind. And if he tried to talk to anyone about it, they'd think he was mad (after all, they only knew their cursed lives). Oh, and his daughter was now called 'Paige' and living with another family, with no memory of him. And time essentially stood still for 28 years-- for everyone but Jefferson. So he was being gaslit (in a sense) and trapped in a living hell for nearly three decades, which further broke him down into the miserable, obsessive recluse you have today.

WHAT MOTIVATES YOUR CHARACTER?: Grace. At this point, his main motivation is his daughter. Whatever it takes to get back to her, he'll try to do-- well, short of murder or (in most cases) violence. This also makes him easy to manipulate, because it can take the flimsiest reasoning to convince him that something will help him get Grace back and give her the best life. For example: "Do this thing and I'll give you riches WHICH YOU CAN THEN USE TO TAKE CARE OF GRACE!"

WHAT IMPRESSION DO OTHERS TEND TO HAVE OF YOUR CHARACTER?: Generally, when interacting with others, Jefferson puts on a friendly, charming act. He tries to come across as a perfectly normal-- if somewhat lonely-- person, somebody who can be trusted enough to give you a drink that, you know, hasn't been drugged. However, as a reclusive shut-in, Jefferson hasn't had to make a sustained impression on others in 28 years, so it's hard to say how long he could keep the act up.

The impression he gives when he's not actively putting on the charming facade is one of a dangerous, deluded, and deeply lonely man. He tends to be written off with words like crazy, insane, and psychotic, because even though he's telling the truth with as much conviction as possible, it just makes him come across as unhinged and completely disconnected from reality.

Regardless of whether he's putting on an act or not, there's one constant: he's a really well-dressed dude.

IN WHAT WAYS DOES THAT IMPRESSION DIFFER FROM WHO YOUR CHARACTER REALLY IS?: Well, the first impression-- that of the charming, totally stable Jefferson-- is totally off the mark. Obviously. Since it's an act. With the latter impression, it's accurate in some ways, and totally wrong in others. For starters, he's not really violent. Though he'll come across as threatening, he doesn't have the capacity to act on it. When he does threaten the one character who knows him beyond Storybrooke, she instantly dismisses the threat, pointing out that he doesn't have it in him.

And though he's the Mad Hatter, he isn't actually deluded, despite coming across that way. However, he's not stable, either. His 'madness' is the result of having been tormented for decades-- and, oh, having a second, conflicting set of memories shoved in his head. It makes it hard for him to be cool as a cucumber for very long. So basically: yes, he's a bit mad, but not in the way one might initially think. But the impression that he's very lonely is definitely correct.

HOW DOES YOUR CHARACTER HANDLE CRISIS OR ADVERSITY?: Very poorly ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ It's easy to make Jefferson roll over and do whatever you want when he's pushed in just the right ways. Though he can be tenacious about some things (like his belief in the curse-- he's adamant that he's not insane), and downright obsessive about others (making hats over and over again until one might 'work'), he doesn't have a whole lot of resolve. For instance, after he fails to get Emma to believe him, he seems to just give up and go back to his usual routine of hiding in his house or lurking around spying on his unaware daughter (instead of, say, reaching out to Henry, who he knows believes in the curse). When he tries to be strong in the face of Regina, she gets him to cave and agree to help her in a few short minutes-- oh, and then he's surprised when she screws him over again, because apparently he learned nothing over the past 28+ years. Jefferson doesn't seem to have any healthy, constructive coping skills to manage his trauma, or any other crisis or adversity. He will take any roadblock in his way as a sign that he should give up and run away.

That being said, if he's pushed enough, he'll sneak around and get his revenge in indirect ways. So that's basically how he handles adversity: he'll either roll over or he'll sneak around it.

WHICH 5 THINGS WILL YOUR CHARACTER REMEMBER UPON ARRIVAL, AND WHY DID YOU CHOOSE THEM?:
1. He has a daughter who's no longer in his life (though he won't know how or why).
2. He once lost his head to an executioner's ax.
3. He had a nervous breakdown that sent him from his career in NYC to the family home in Maine. (Curse Memory)
4. He comes from a wealthy family. (Curse Memory)
5. He used to have tea parties with a March Hare and a Dormouse.

His memories are a mix of real memories and the false memories of Jefferson's Storybrooke persona, which were conjured up by the Evil Queen's curse, and which he's been living with in his head for 28 years. The curse memories were chosen to throw him off/give him a reason not to trust the two more outlandish memories of Wonderland (losing his head and having Mad Tea Parties). And Grace, of course, he has to remember in some capacity, as she's from his life before the curse and before Wonderland.

IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE YOU FEEL WE NEED TO KNOW ABOUT YOUR CHARACTER?: This is a perfectly reasonable response to Jefferson. Also, while I keep the name 'Priscilla,' and the thief background for his wife, I don't include Tea Party in March as part of Jefferson's background. His behavior in "Hat Trick" makes no sense if the comic is included in canon, and as far as I can tell, it had no impact on/was never referenced in OUAT or OUAT: Wonderland, anyway.

SKILLS, ABILITIES, & PHYSICAL WEAKNESSES: Jefferson's a portal jumper, which means that while pretty much anyone can just open a portal if they have the right materials for it (a magic bean, a magic hat, a magic tree-- magic's the keyword here), he's somebody who knows how to navigate with more precision, to the point where he can reach a hand into his hat and pick up an apple from a particular place and time in another world. It's not a magical ability or anything, just a skill he picked up over the years. He's also probably adept at general thieving skills, like pickpocketing, lockpicking, sneaking around, etc. He's skilled at foraging and has knowledge of which plants and fungi are safe to eat (and sell) and which aren't.

Oh, and he's clearly a talented milliner, because look at all these hats he's made. And given that 1) he clearly knows his way around a needle and thread and fabric shears and all that, 2) various pieces of set dressing in his home in the Enchanted Forest point to weaving and sewing, and 3) he and Grace are pretty well dressed for poor peasants, it's pretty safe to assume that he's also skilled at clothes making, as well.

Physically, he's a normal human, with all of the usual weaknesses. Jefferson's so-so in a fight, and he can throw a punch or shove people around if he needs to, but he doesn't seem to have any particular skill or training. He's not in any exceptional shape, either-- he's just lean, verging on skinny. So he's definitely not a powerhouse.

INVENTORY: Just the clothes on his back-- which, at this point in time, is a black blazer, purple/black paisley shirt, FANCY SCARF, and black pants and boots. Like so.

SAMPLES

PROSE-HEAVY: Some angsty prose and some bracket prose.
DIALOGUE-HEAVY: Network and Network from a different canon point. (Enchanted Forest canon point, FOR VARIETY.)

(Look, I am the most indecisive person when it comes to samples, so you get extra.)