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 Posted: Mon Oct 25, 2010 10:08 pm
 AMITYVILLE ACADEMY ENROLLMENT FORMName: Alwine Van Brunt
Nicknames: Allie, Al, Winnie
Gender: Female
Age: Dead for Sweet Sixteen years
Faction/Race: Ghost- Haunt
Natural Ability: Object Invocation- A haunt's powers are usually tied to their power object in some way. (in this case, an ectoplasmic flaming pumpkin)
Personality:
Alwine is certain that she has a thoroughly dislikable personality. Perhaps it comes from the fact that she's the middle child in a tiny off-branch of the Van Brunt family, but she has been generally overlooked from the day she was tripped over in the pumpkin patch. (That's how she was found. Her parents tripped over her.)
It's not that the Van Brunts were a bad family... it was that they were the opposite. Some great great grand second cousin's roommate's banker's lawyer's friend did something famous, and the headless family simply hasn't been able to let go. For the last century or so, they have been loudly campaigning to be officially adopted into the ranks of the demons, but they have always been met with very cordial letters thanking them for their interest but ultimately declining them. Perhaps the demons were hoping that this would shut up the Van Brunts. It never did.
So, Alwine was born into a tiny branch of a family tree that had egos the size of Ginger's fermenting lunch meals from the month prior. Perhaps this helped shape her low self-esteem and her tendencies to (literally) blend into the background.
Elegance and social pizazz is a way of life in the Van Brunt family. While elegance and decorum were able to be beaten into Alwine's head-- er, neck, the girl is a clinging vine and a wallflower all in one. At parties, she has a tendency to latch onto the unfortunate soul that addresses her first, and won't let go. It isn't like she chats their ear off or anything... she just stands there. She stands, watches, and observes. What makes these people so confident? If Alwine does say something, she apologizes afterward and generally slinks away. She has a dislikable personality, of that she is certain.
Enough of her weaknesses, let's see what Alwine enjoys and is good at. For someone with no ears, Alwine is a great listener. She loves to give her opinions and advice, though she'll be the first to tell you that it often isn't very sound.
She also loves to dress herself up, and she gains confidence when she wears clothes she particularly enjoys. Her favorite outfit has a high white collar that matches the doily covering her severed neck perfectly (she always wears a doily or some sort of cloth there... just because she has no head doesn't mean she has an excuse to show off unsightly gore!) She loves dresses with high collars, and pretty much anything that accents the neck: pearls, broaches, and feathered collars are her favorite. She also enjoys lace gloves and riding attire (which is ironic, given the history of her great great grand second cousin's roommate's banker's lawyer's friend), though horses (corporeal, spectral, and skeletal) terrify her.
Alwine is at her happiest when she's outside with her favorite camera, an old Obscura Redux 1820. She loves photography, and wants to travel Halloween and eventually the human world searching for beautiful abandoned sites like saw mills, wind mills, amusement parks, and bridges. Old bridges are possibly her favorite... though she's fallen through quite a few (which is quite a feat for a ghost), it never seems to deter her.
She also collects lipsticks, oddly enough. She has entire shelf dedicated to lipsticks, glosses, and stains of all colors and shades. She never uses them for anything, choosing to keep the stick in pristine shape and condition.
 Why are they enrolled in Amityville Academy? The Van Brunts have hated schools and school teachers for generations. Those who have attempted to complete their education at Amityville have found themselves inelegantly retreating due to their egos refusing to let them listen to anyone who considers themselves faculty or staff. Though her initial request to attend Amityville was overlooked (as always), Alwine was finally allowed to submit her application. Her entire family is certain that it will only be a matter of time before she comes back-- and rightly so! The Van Brunts are far mightier than any mere schoolteacher. Alwine harbors no feelings of disrespect for anyone, even the Van Brunts' ruler-wielding nemeses. Like many things, schoolteachers actually terrify her. She always answers with "ma'am" and "sir", and if she's asked a question that requires more than a "yes" or "no", she stutters until she finds an answer that the schoolteacher might deem suitable. Maybe.
The classes that Alwine are especially interested in are Paranormal Photography and Literature. Reading is a solitary act, and one that Alwine actually believes that she's good at (shocker).
FEAR: Many of Halloween's residents love pumpkins, and Alwine is no exception. She focuses her ectoplasm to form a flaming pumpkin (though she isn't good enough at it yet to make it appear orange and red with flames... at the moment it's mostly see-through and monochrome). She hurls it at her opponent, and crosses her fingers that it hits something or another. As she practices, the pumpkin will solidify more and maybe get even bigger.
Physical Description:
Eye Colour: n/a
Hair Colour/Style: n/a
Skin Colour: Pale cream, though she prefers to keep all of it covered with high collars, lace, and stockings.
Clothing Style/Colours: Something like the one on the right, only with a very, very high neckline (normally adorned with pearls, feathers, or a broach) and laced gloves. She also prefers to wear greens and blues with black trim.
Extra: She has no head. Nothing. Not even a pumpkin to replace it. Nada.
References:
Art by Smerdle, Blade Kuroda and childs menu. Thank you! heart
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Posted: Mon Nov 15, 2010 2:46 pm
Alwine's Minipets Pumpkin"Owl"? What are you talking about? This is Alwine's favorite minipet, a glowing pumpkin that she has aptly named Pumpkin. Pumpkin has its own pillow next to Alwine's bed and often wears little hats or collars. She usually carries Pumpkin around in a carpetbag. Pumpkin is not Alwine's head. Pumpkin is not Alwine's replacement for a head. Pumpkin is NOT to be put on Alwine's neck. Do not mention the words 'Pumpkin' and 'Head' in the same sentence. Ever. FloortjeFloortje (pronounced floor-tee [correct me if I'm wrong]) is the youngest minipet, but she sticks by Alwine's side almost as much as Pumpkin. She loves to be walked (she even has a rhinestone collar) and be the subject of various photos (alongside Pumpkin, of course). She adores the spectral vegetable, and will viciously protect its pillow from Catriena. She sleeps on Alwine's pillow, where the haunt's head would be if she had one. CatrienaCat is an outdoor Scareon that has made Alwine her pet ghost. She shows up every now and then demanding homage in the form of leftovers and adoration. Her main goal in life is to claim Pumpkin's pillow beside Alwine's bed... however, the pesky spectral vegetable will not cooperate!
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Posted: Mon Nov 15, 2010 6:19 pm
She sounds super cute! I love all her odd little habits, like collecting lipstick! xD I do have some questions though.
Was she adopted or born into the family through a pumpkin (this is more of I think I'm miss reading so I want to check than anything else)? Why is she the only one in her family without an ego, especially when she seems to self-conscious in comparison? Why did her family request to be demons when they're ghosts? Why is she afraid of horses (I think it's cute, I want to know why!)? How does she see in regards to taking photos? Is it just like she just knows what's being taken somehow or does she hold up the camera like, to her head as if she had one and was seeing through it?
Most of these are just because I want to know more about her. Hope it helps some! Good luck with her, she seems fun. <3
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Posted: Mon Nov 15, 2010 6:33 pm
I really appreciate your questions, it helps me think about what I need to add on. Thank you!! Ary Keeyara Was she adopted or born into the family through a pumpkin (this is more of I think I'm miss reading so I want to check than anything else)? Born into the family through a pumpkin. T-That is how it works, right? They just... tripped over her during the process. Non-noticeable from the start. Ary Keeyara Why is she the only one in her family without an ego, especially when she seems to self-conscious in comparison? Hmmm... I had to think on this one. I think it's because, unlike her older or younger sibling, Alwine didn't really have any special talents. She wasn't the 'heir' to that branch or the 'baby'... and she wasn't noticed enough to ever get the spoiled coddling that the others did. She was the runt of the litter, and was raised believing that she was uninteresting and had a thoroughly dislikable personality. I'm sure someone, somewhere in the Van Brunt family tree is also more humble... maybe... Ary Keeyara Why did her family request to be demons when they're ghosts? It's quite simple: the demons are the ones with the social pizazz! They're the aristocrats of Halloween, the ones with the power and the best parties. Of course, a family as ~wonderful~ and ~famous~ as the Van Brunts would have to be included in their ranks. Ary Keeyara Why is she afraid of horses (I think it's cute, I want to know why!)? Honestly, I originally included this as a cute little guffaw towards Irving's story. But it makes sense why she would be afraid of horses... they are gigantic, excitable, hateful death machines that will stomp on your bones and bite off your fingers. (aka she fell off a horse as a kid and never got over the trauma). Ary Keeyara How does she see in regards to taking photos? Is it just like she just knows what's being taken somehow or does she hold up the camera like, to her head as if she had one and was seeing through it? She holds the camera up to her non-existent head. It's like she has eyes, they're just not... there... Thanks again for the crit, I really REALLY appreciate it!
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Posted: Mon Nov 15, 2010 9:54 pm
Somehow I have been summoned. . . .please accept my crit for you . . . .
- - - -
@Personality:
1. I like her low self-esteem, it's a good perky trait, but where did it come from? You don't explain anything except her parents overlooking her - did it come from there? Please explain this a bit more, you've suddenly made her dislike herself and her personality without explaining why.
2. How would she react to someone taking her lace doily off? Has she ever had to dress "peasant" for any reason? Does she have any dreams to make her own clothing, or has she ever looked down at someone for how they dress?
3. I love her odd little hobbies, like collecting lipstick. Has she ever thought of buying a dummy head and putting lipstick on it (and then sticking it to her neck? - Perhaps when she was younger?) Does she ask where they got it from and then buy it, in regards to people who have shades of lipstick she likes? How do her parents feel about this hobby? ( Or do they not know? )
4. For photography, does she develop them herself or take them somewhere to be developed? Does she display them for people to see or does she keep them in private albums? How do her parents feel about this hobby?
@History:
1. Was she really tripped over, or do her parents just tell her that to make her unhappy? It is some kind of running joke, though with a bit of love involved? You say she's overlooked, in what way? Is she a disappointment, or is it something else?
2. Just how many siblings does she really have? Two?
@Appearance:
1. I love her being headless! And Victorian young women's wear is my absolute favorite type of clothing, right next to Victorian widows
@ FEAR:
1. Sounds good! Does she practice often, or is her inability to properly make something adding to her low self-esteem?
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Posted: Tue Nov 16, 2010 2:07 pm
I accept your crit with a frenzied THANK YOU!
@Personality
1. I'm going to go ahead and blame her parents (and extended family) for this one. The Van Brunts are arrogant... very, very arrogant, and if someone doesn't fit their mold, they try to make them fit it. This means a lot of pressure, a lot of chastising... and in the end, they still might not fit. She doesn't believe it's her parents' fault, though... it's just that she has a thoroughly dislikable personality.
That, and she was sheltered. She feels incredibly awkward around others, and has generally assumed from the beginning that she is bad at making friends.
2. She'd probably cover up her stump and shriek before retreating (if she cannot reach a door, she'd probably try to vanish in a corner). Then she'd just ask, "Why did you do that...?"
Alwine doesn't look down on people who wear "lesser" clothing than her's-- because they probably have the confidence to pull it off. They have friends, and likable personalities... she'd give up fancy clothing up for that!
Clothes help add to her confidence, though, so she'd probably be even more wallflower-ish if she had to wear something she didn't find attractive.
3. Alwine doesn't like the feeling of heavy things on her neck... and she probably did try things out as a kid. She's also tired of all the quips about how headless people are out looking for their lost heads/replacement heads/vegetables for heads/etc. Can't someone just enjoy the feeling of a breeze on their neck?
As towards the lipsticks, she will ask people where they got it, and probably would have no trouble showing off her collection ("But why would someone want to see something boring like that?" she says with a dramatically self-loathing emotastic sigh.)
As for using it on a dummy? Nope. She likes to keep the sticks pristine and unused.
4. Ooooh, that's a good question. In the past she's probably taken them to be developed, but she'd love to try out Amityville's dark rooms. She thinks it would be fun! She has a biiiiig book of her best photographs, she doesn't really show them off.
Her parents don't care about the hobby either way. It's just something silly that she enjoys... she'll probably grow out of it and do something more worthy of the Van Brunt name-- like minipet collecting or dancing or sports...
@History
1. Sadly, it's literal. They literally tripped over her. Was quite a spectacular faceplant on Mr. Van Brunt's part... oh, wait, he doesn't have a face... er, neckplant?
She's overlooked because of middle child syndrome, and because she generally isn't what the Van Brunts want in offspring. They want someone strong, tough, and terrific to continue the family name. Once they started ignoring her... it just got easier and easier to do.
I WILL CONTINUE ANSWERING LATER, I have to take care of some foster kittens. heart
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Posted: Fri Nov 19, 2010 4:41 pm
Okay, back to answering questions!
@History
2. Yes, she has two siblings: an older sister (the future Headless of the Household [har har]) and a younger brother (the 'baby' of the family). However, she has a huuuuuge extended family.
@Appearance:
1. Thank you!! Victorian women had serious style, and I thought it would be ironic given that she hates horses. But yeah, the widow garments were gorgeous.
@FEAR
1. I have a feeling she tried to practice, then gave up because she felt that she wasn't good at it. It'll take lots of practice once she's enrolled.
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Posted: Tue Dec 21, 2010 6:28 pm
blablabla bla bla something about a Quest Fairy blablabla...
... *goes off to hyperventilate*
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Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 11:41 pm
It took the secretary two months to discover that his stapler had been stolen. It took him exactly three months to discover that someone had thought it was funny to stick dead Floresce in his drawer, and a little longer to pull out an old issue of Hornz from under the cabinet.
The fact that Alwine's application form fluttered out from said old copy of Hornz only made the secretary eyebrow raise slightly. Just slightly.
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