Application for luceti

[theblogger]

Mun

Name: Effy
Livejournal/Dreamwidth Username: terrabelle
E-mail: Upon request, otherwise PM theblogger or terrabelle
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Current Characters at Luceti: N/A


Character

Name: John Hamish Watson
Fandom: Sherlock BBC
Gender: Male
Age: 36
Time Period: Post-The Reichenbach Fall (Application contains spoilers)
Wing Color: Sandy brown with darker striping nearing the tips
History:

Note: References to canon in the further sections may be abbreviated. This will also act as the key for that.

A Study in Pink (ASiP)
The Blind Banker (TBB)
The Great Game (TGG)
A Scandal in Belgravia (ASiB)
The Hounds of Baskerville (HoB)
The Reichenbach Fall (TRF)
The Blog of Doctor John H. Watson (Blog)

Personality:

John Watson is often described as an ordinary man and, when standing next to his friend, flatmate, and colleague, Sherlock Holmes, that would be a fair assumption. But Sherlock Holmes can, and often does, make idiots and dullards out of perfectly capable people.

The truth is John Watson is a quiet and exceedingly private man, but not for lack of ability or intelligence. Years in the army have disciplined him, while age, experience, and injury has humbled him. He doesn’t like being a part of the spotlight, preferring instead to be the one that bends the ears of those who do, or contenting himself as an observer in the background. This does not mean, however, that John is incapable of socializing normally – on the contrary, the doctor is often responsible for gathering facts that require more personable prying (just pick any episode, really). He’s also shown himself to be a capable flirt (TBB, According to friends/dates recorded on Blog, HoB). The only caveat with John is that he volunteers very little information about himself, mostly because it makes him uncomfortable sharing anything personal with strangers. He has trust issues, a diagnosis certified by his therapist (ASiP).

John took to the role of a doctor honestly. He isn’t any sort of doting caregiver, but he does genuinely seem to care about the welfare of others. This is often a point of argument between he and Sherlock, because John is generally disapproving of the callous manner in which his friend treats and uses people (specifically, they have a good row over this in TGG). Does he try to stop Sherlock from doing it? No. But he will usually try to step in and perform damage control on the detective’s behalf, if possible, if not directly apologize for him. He is inclined to help others in need or distress, though he will not allow it to weigh upon him if he has other priorities he must attend to.

Another notable trait for the doctor is his steady temperament. John has proven himself to be a man in possession of a phenomenal amount of patience and good will, especially when it concerns his socially impaired friend, Sherlock. Despite being a tidy man by habit, John has allowed himself to live in a flat that is almost always budding with clutter. There are human body parts in their fridge and microwave and, after an initial complaint, John just shuffles them aside and goes about his business (TGG). This is the attitude he has for most of the stunts that Sherlock pulls – initially disapproving, but ultimately insubstantial. He endures his flatmate’s erratic, and occasionally destructive moods, as well as his quite frankly disturbing astuteness and candor. There are things that can set John off, of course, things that will spark loud, abrupt, short-lived rage: his leg (which he used to carry a limp in) is a sore subject (and any physical inadequacy for that matter), and he is quite easily frustrated with technology. Despite how angry John has gotten, however, he never seems prone to exact violence on anyone or anything. He would much rather walk away from a situation that made him angry. Sometimes his rage embarrasses him, at which point he is quick to apologize. Otherwise, he returns and forgives once he’s cooled off a bit. The only exception to this rule is when a defense prompts him to act out. Sherlock tells John to punch him in the face in A Scandal in Belgravia but, despite admitting that he often thinks about doing that very thing to Sherlock, John refuses to hit him. Only when Sherlock punches John does the doctor retaliate, and violently, again alluding to the fact that John has some very pent-up issues. The other moment John strikes anyone in anger is on the brink of Sherlock's arrest in The Reichenbach Fall. After a long day of searching for kidnapped children and learning that Moriarty is trying to set Sherlock up as a villain, the Chief of Staff for Scotland Yard appears shortly after Sherlock's forceful apprehension and makes a jeering comment about Sherlock's character. John's face barely shifts as he leans back in response - the next scene shows John joining Sherlock against the police car while the Chief of Staff leaves the flat with a bloodied nose. He is not the least bit apologetic.

Finally, it should be understood that John Watson is a man of upstanding honor and moral principle. He is honest and sincere; unlike Sherlock, he knows how to do this with a level of kindness, too. John believes in promoting the welfare of humanity and bringing to justice those that would seek to destroy it. He is not shy about voicing his objections if his sensibility is offended, though he knows that the opportune moment to speak them is not always the heat of the moment. He is unwaveringly loyal to his friends and loved ones, enough that he would risk life and limb for them, even kill for them if it meant saving them (ASiP). As an example, he was offered the opportunity to spy on Sherlock for a large sum of money, something he was very concerned about having, but declined the offer on the principle that he thought he was defending Sherlock from a nefarious force, despite the fact that John himself had been coerced into the meeting and had no guarantee of making it out alive (ASiP). Once he and Sherlock officially became friends, he was willing to try and sacrifice himself in order to save the detective (TGG). Even if he disagrees with Sherlock on something, he will defend him against others and wait until they were in private to disclose his true opinions. It'd be assumedly the same for any other friend he had.

John considers himself to be an ordinary, and largely insignificant, person (ASiP, TRF, Blog). He has confidence in his abilities as a physician and an intellectual, but little else. He tries to be a good man and a good friend to the few relations he keeps. In his friendship with Sherlock, he considers himself a voice of reason. Monetary matters often concerned him, and by extension having the security of a job. He has only recently come to the realization that he may not be as content with a normal life as he had originally thought, as he forsakes other responsibilities to accompany Sherlock on whirlwind, often dangerous, missions. He tries to justify this by the belief that Sherlock’s work has more of an impact on the world than anything he can do with his own profession.

Strengths:

Physical:
John is capable of defending himself and others in physical altercations, using standard military techniques combined with personal experience. Because he’s physically fit, it’s assumed that he has some strength in these situations, though he prefers to use his opponent’s movements against them rather than brute force. Specific fighting examples can be found in The Blind Banker, in which he fights against a masked assailant to save Sherlock's life, and a decent example of his trained style can be seen when he successfully topples Sherlock (a man a good head taller than him) and puts him into a headlock (ASiB).

He is adept at firing several types of guns and is considered to be a crack shot with a pistol. Despite being a building away, he managed to shoot a man through the heart even after the bullet had passed between two windows (ASiP). Even under the effects of a neurotoxin-induced fear, he doesn't miss a bounding, rabid dog on his first or second shots and successfully kills the beast when Detective Inspector Lestrade fails the task (HoB).

Mental:
John is a trained medical doctor and army medic. It’s assumed that he has a professional grip on human anatomy, pharmacology, diagnosis, and medical treatment. He is suited for repairing wounds sustained in and out of combat situations or otherwise preserving life until in a more equipped facility. He has exhibited the ability to determine general time and cause of death in murder victims in numerous cases, including ASiP and TGG.

Emotional:
Truly, an impressive amount of patience and tolerance is exuded by Doctor Watson, especially toward his flatmate. Everyone that knows Sherlock in the series has, at one point or another, expressed their amazement for John's ability to live with the detective and it's clear, to the viewer, that the drama of their living together is just the tip of the iceberg for what their colleagues know. Whether he's politely enduring the obvious flirting of the same sex for the sake of evidence (TBB) or staring down a man who is effectively telling him he's single-handedly put Sherlock at the mercy of his greatest enemy (TRF), John keeps his cool.

This also applies when John is put under stress. While we do see that John has expressed a genuine fear of dying (ASiP), he does not hesitate to put himself on the line for Sherlock when guns start firing or stand up to a kidnapper that has every possibility to kill him without leaving a trace (any episode and ASiP). John is courageous, then, and loyal. It is a popular trope by the series to suggest that his loyalty to Sherlock is what ends his relationships with his girlfriends (Blog and ASiB).

Weaknesses:

Physical:
John is on the shorter side of average for a male, standing at about 5’7 (170cm). He is solid for his build, but he can still be overpowered. He is also a simple human, with no special powers or invulnerability to speak of.

His left shoulder has a large amount of scar tissue on it. He may become stiff there at times and it's probably a good place to hit if you want to knock him off his guard.

Mental:
John is not technology savvy. (TBB, Blog)

He also does suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. Previously, this manifested in a psychosomatic limp. However, as of late it has been compressed to nightmares (ASiP).

Emotional:
Again, the issue of trust should be mentioned. John holds people at arm's length for the most part. He's sympathetic toward humanity as a whole, but he never shares about himself outside of tidbits in his blog. Even then, it's mostly in relation to his friend, Sherlock. A very good personal example would be that John never seems especially put out when his girlfriends leave him. In fact, at one point, he even confuses his current girlfriend with one of his exes. He makes no attempt to make amends and lets them go instead (ASiB, Blog). If he were serious about them, he could have done more; certainly his level of dedication to other activities shows he's capable of it.

His friends are a great emotional weakness for him. Not only does he prove that he'll put himself in life-threatening situations for Sherlock and Sherlock's cause (any episode), but he's also shows that he's allowing some of his morals to be bent by them. Sherlock has successfully convinced him to tolerate vandalism, to commit crimes such as trespassing, breaking and entering, burglary, and minor theft. Granted, all of these things are done in the pursuit of solving a crime, and that sometimes means working outside of the law, but these are almost certainly things that John would never do without a case and Sherlock's behest. When his landlady, Mrs. Hudson, is beaten and interrogated by American agents in A Scandal in Belgravia, his first concern is to see to her injuries. He clearly knows that leaving Sherlock in a room with one of those agents cannot be a good thing, but he leaves Sherlock to do whatever he sees fit.

John is still a soldier in ways that extend beyond his spartan personal space and his discipline. In the first episode, it is suggested that he misses the war as much as he is haunted by it ("When you walk with Sherlock Holmes, you see the battlefield." - Mycroft in ASiP). Indeed, John shows a level of excitement when the case is getting 'good' and they're closing in on their suspect. It is, in fact, the notion of chasing a suspect in the first episode that makes John forget about the limp everyone was telling him was psychosomatic. It has not returned in any further episodes.


Samples (ALL samples must be set in Luceti-verse.)

First Person:

[ His eyes scour the wood-framed walls. Swords and staffs and bandoliers - is there really any hope for something more modern here? At least the help looks... helpful. ]

I'm looking for a revolver. Have you got anything in?

[ Fingers tapping the counter as he leans against it. A bit anxious. Once he notices it, however, he ceases. Smiles distractingly. ]

Anything will do, though if you've got a selection, I'd like to have a look.

[ His journal is settled upon the tabletop, flipping open to a fresh page. How does this work again? He'll just write on an earlier conversation and hope it works out. ]

'Start thinking up alternatives for putting holes in our new wall.'

Third Person (Introspective?):

When someone finally takes the time to properly explain magic to John, he thanks them and moves the topic on. He shoves it to the back of his mind and pretends to accept it as fact until the conversation is over and he's in a place where he can think. Then he begins to break it all down.

The first time John ever saw "magic" was age seven. He and Harry had been invited to their neighbor's birthday party, settled in the pinched backyard of the two-family house. Acquaintances by proximity and the friendship between mothers, John felt out of place among the other girls and boys, quiet in his youth, but he had Harry there, packed up against his side, ever loud and ever skeptical as the magician hovered around his table of secrets. John thought the man looked a little ridiculous in his short cape and his tall hat, but he sat and watched, rapt, as the magician's gloved fingers seemed to summon a long stream of coloured handkerchiefs from their very palms and wrapped fire around the shape of a dove that took to the sky. He believed in that power then, but soon enough the illusion was explained to him. Misdirection and a sleight of hand, sleeves and trick compartments - needless to say, he was a bit disenchanted.

When John joined the army, fresh out of Saint Bartholomew's and training, he was deployed to Northern Ireland to assist with counter-terrorist operations. That was alright; anywhere was better than London, or so he thought at the time. He learns that there are still, indeed, people who set out milk for mischievous faeries and believe in superstition.

In the States, John met a girl who, upon making it into her home, revealed a room laced in pentagrams and air that cloyed with sandalwood. As soon as John could get his trousers back up, he was gone.

When John was shot, just south of Helmand, he prayed to God, and any power that would listen, to let him live. Briefly, laid up and suffering from the bullet fragments knitting their way into the rest of his body, he begged those same powers to let him die.

When John first met Sherlock Holmes, he wasn't quite sure he was ready to live with anyone, but he was out of money and hated the flat given to him by the Army. John thought the man looked a little ridiculous with his wild curls and his two-pieced suit, peering into his microscope like he were divining something far more important than what either visitor had to offer. But John was polite if guarded, even offering his mobile up to make a fair impression, and Sherlock asked if John had just returned from Afghanistan or Iraq without more than a passing glance. John thought he'd been tricked at first, that Stamford had passed on a heads-up to this strange colleague just in case Sherlock would be objectionable to living with a wounded soldier. But then Sherlock went on to note the drinking habits of his sibling, a fact that John had yet to share with anyone outside of his therapist. John was old enough then to doubt the supernatural, but for the sake of his sanity, he couldn't figure out the trick. Later, when they're in the taxi to what would be their first crime scene, it's explained to him. Observation, the science of deduction - John had never been so impressed by a reality.

John knew he should question anything that seemed surreal. There were things and happenstances in life that no one could quite explain beyond the scope of spiritualism, but that didn't mean the explanation was magic, the force that powered fantasy books and programs. And yet here he was, in this little village he'd never heard of, with a pair of appendages that attached as if he'd been born with them, surrounded by strange people who claimed to be from worlds he'd never known. Was magic to be such a difficult concept to stomach?

The last he'd heard of magic, before arriving in Luceti, a man had stood atop a tall building and relayed it to him over a phone. "It's all just a trick. A magician's trick." And the magician in question, his long cape and his overstated bravado, placed his finale upon the streets of London. There was no colour in him at all, no fire up his sleeve, though John had checked. But there was blood, so much blood, and the cold implication that the life John had expected to live was just an illusion after all.

No, John didn't know if he wanted anything to do with magic.