El Nysa

[winecasks]

OOC

Handle: Hannah
Contact: muttonchops, PM this journal
Over 18? Yes!
Characters Played: Theon Greyjoy (reek)

THE CHARACTER

Character Name: Grantaire
Series: Les Miserables
Canon Point: After his death at the barricade
Character Age: ~29
Background: Over here

Personality:

If you’re looking for the poster child for skeptics everywhere, Grantaire is that man. He sticks out like a sore thumb in a group of young men who believe vehemently in their cause for revolution. While his friends speak of rights of the people and things of actual importance, Grantaire shrugs off their concerns and prefers of speak of women, gambling and wine: his favorite vices. He, at one point, outright states that he does "not think much of [their] revolution" and does "not execrate the government". He doesn’t hold the same views as his friends, but he attends every one of their meetings and genuinely enjoys being there and in their company:

"Grantaire…inhabited this circle of young men; he lived there, he took no pleasure anywhere but there; he followed them everywhere. His joy was to see these forms go and come through the fumes of wine. They tolerated him on account of his good humor."

And it’s true, he is a man of good humor. Although he’s prone to bought of melancholy and depression, he’s among the first of the group to make a humorous quip. Every court needs a bit of a jester, and while Grantaire doesn’t quite fit the bill, he’s a good man and the closest Les Amis de L’ABC have. He’s a friendly sort, at the very least, and they seem to enjoy his company. He arguably knows more about Paris than the rest of his friends, having discovered all the best places for anything you can possibly imagine. Although he doesn’t share their beliefs, he is always willing to share this information with them.

His skepticism can become somewhat tiring, though. He makes it a point not to believe in anything, and he's relatively loud about it. He believes in no politics, no religion, an especially not in the things that his friends are ready to lay down their lives for, but he has somehow acquired one belief in their company. Grantaire’s only belief lies in Enjolras, the leader of the revolution and his obverse in every way. Enjolras disdains Grantaire, but Grantaire loves Enjolras. He reveres him, admires him and respects him. He’s everything Grantaire is not, and that’s what draws him to him. Although Enjolras treats him harshly and rejects him and would seemingly prefer that he not be there at all, he never treats Enjolras in the same manner.

"Grantaire in the presence of Enjolras became some one once more. He was, himself, moreover, composed of two elements, which were, to all appearance, incompatible. He was ironical and cordial. His indifference loved. His mind could get along without belief, but his heart could not get along without friendship. A profound contradiction; for an affection is a conviction."

Grantaire is an incredibly capable man with a wide variety of skills. He’s a boxer, a fencer, a dancer, and a painter with a vast knowledge of a number of subjects, but you wouldn’t know it at all. He is truly capable, but what good is intelligence and talent if you never pursue any of it? That’s the rub of it: Grantaire has trouble with ambition. He lacks it, horrendously. For example, it is implied that he was a pupil of famous French painter Antoine-Jean Gros, but "instead of daubing wretched little pictures, [he] passed [his] time in pilfering apples". Not getting into the various ways the translation has been interpreted, but my favorite interpretation is the typical art school student one: he was dissuaded by the fact that he had to paint still lifes, and thus gave it up early on.

The point of the matter is that Grantaire is only wholly focused on two things: Enjolras, and alcohol. He’s an excessive drinker, and it is a legitimate problem. He’s seldom ever portrayed as sober, and he can regularly drink two bottles of wine on his own. Oftentimes while drunk, he'll spin long yarns that often lead to lines such as "I desire to forget life. Life is a hideous invention of I know not whom." What's led him to such a dark place is never revealed, but he is undoubtedly a deeply depressed man. This is further revealed at the barricade. Grantaire sleeps throughout the battle, too drunk to function. He sleeps a good 20+ hours, and wakens just in time to ask to die beside Enjolras. He asks permission to die; he asks to be accepted. The others give their lives what they believe in, and Grantaire gives his for what he believes in, because life would be too painful without it.

Basically, what you’ve got on your hands is a talented, yet unmotivated drunk prone to tl;dr who needs some therapy and isn’t so subtle making the moon eyes at the leader of the revolution.

Good luck.

Powers/Abilities:
An excellent painter
A skilled fencer
Not a terrible boxer
Most excellent at believing in nothing at all

Power Nerfs (if applicable): N/A. Grantaire is woefully human.

Inventory: Clothing, riddled with bullet holes. Nothing more.

Incentives: “There is nothing you can offer which will give me any further will to live” is likely to be Grantaire’s first incredibly melodramatic response, until he learns that the safety of his friends can indeed be secured. That changes everything. The safety of his friends is vital, without a doubt, and is enough to make him change his mind, but give him a moment and he’ll make a second request: a bottle of wine. Strike that—two bottles of wine. The finest wine that can be offered in this place.

SAMPLES

TDM top level with multiple prompts