BASIL DARLING
personality
- Introverted -- "Parties are tiresome and dull events Mr. Pottes. I think I will stay in tonight and watch the paint on my walls dry."
- Pessimistic and Cynical -- “Death is rather ordinary and happens all the time. I don't see why it is that everyone makes such a fuss over it."
- Intelligent and Arrogant -- “The dumber people think you are, the more surprised they're going to be when you kill them.”
- Lazy and Unorganized -- “He who wants to change the world should already begin by cleaning the dishes.”
While most of the human race would jump off a cliff to socialize with one another, Mr. Basil Darling would rather sit back and drink an entire bottle of whiskey and enjoy the company of his own thoughts. Not to be mistaken with a loner, Mr. Darling is just incredibly picky in who he associates himself with. He is one to easily tire from long conversations and activities with groups of people, and would rather sit inside and contemplate the meaning of life ( or how he got the mysterious scratch on the back of his hand earlier that day ). Of course Mr. Darling cannot stay inside and watch the neighbor's cat vomit on his porch everyday. And so, Mr. Darling is forced to wander the outside world and interact and force awkward smiles and words with random strangers as he runs his daily errands.
The glass is always half-empty, or at least that is how Mr. Darling always sees it. Perhaps sometime in his early life, Mr. Darling broke a mirror and was cursed with bad luck. Maybe things aren't so bad and he's simply a a whiner. Regardless, Mr. Darling sees the world and most of the people inhabiting it as a terrible and dreary place. However, there is a light in this world that only Mr. Darling seems to notice.
A plague that will cleanse the planet.
They say that insanity is merely another word for intelligence -- a phrase that suits Mr. Darling all too well. With his intelligence comes arrogance, and Mr. Darling will be sure to show off his IQ to all he meets. He will speak in quotes, riddles, and Latin phrases, and then stop and correct the other party if they so dare get their facts wrong. Despite his book smarts however, Mr. Darling does lack common sense, and is probably most likely to get scammed by a con artist.
Mr. Darling is not the sort of person that follows strict schedules or cleans up after himself. Instead he'd much rather lie on the sofa the reeks of last weeks dinner and nap for most of the afternoon. His mess of a home though, is not the result of one man being a lazy old fart, but rather that the mess is a highly complicated system. Basically, to find a paper from last March, he simply climbs over the paperwork from Summer and into the far right corner of the room where he spends 40 or so hours reading each paper in search of "that one paper from last March". It's not a very practical system, but it works well enough.
journal entries
- March 23, 1394
This is the diary of Basil Darling. Today Mam gave me a diary for my birthday and says I should record interesting events and thoughts until I leave this world. She showed me hers and I was immediately enthralled by the idea that one day this book will be filled with stories and mementos of my own adventures. I am not sure as to where to begin, so I will start with myself. I am 10 years old and live with my mother and father in a small room above Mister and Missus Botelle in West Ardenth. Pap is an engineer and Mam is a washerwoman. I am in the fourth grade in Miss Fabley’s class, and my favorite subject is History. I am not so sure as to what else to write, and the light is almost out so I will end this here.
March 30, 1394
Today during recess, my classmate Victor made fun of my glasses and took my marbles. Pap always said that I should be strong, and I tried my hardest not to cry. I am not so sure if I should tell Miss Fabley, or my Mam. They say tattletales get their tongues cut out by demons. I am not so sure how I will handle it again in the future, though I suspect it will be harder to not cry.
July 13, 1394
Today when I came home from school, Missus Botelle made a fool of me. She accused me of stealing her jewelry, and threatened to burn my hands so that I may never steal again. When I tried to defend myself, she then threatened to wash my mouth out with soap. Mam overheard the racket and came downstairs and quarreled with the Missus. Finally after Mam gave her a thorough tongue-lashing she took my hand and led me upstairs. I never liked Missus Botelle very much; she Is a fat old woman that reeks of cats and perfume. But I did hope she would find her jewelry.
November 19, 1394
Today as I walked to Clermont’s house, I saw two men breaking the window of Mistur Limbeck's bakery. Luckily neither of the two saw me, and I managed to quickly find a guard nearby. The guard had big hairy whiskers and eyes too close together, but he still intimidated me greatly. I told him of the good-for-nothings that broke Mistur Limbecks window, but the guard merely shrugged and said that there was nothing he could do.
I don’t really like that man.
February 8, 1395
On my way home from school today, Victor stopped me. He called me stupid and took my glasses. I am not too sure but I think he stepped on them, I just remember the sound of them breaking. He then shoved me, and then began to slap and hit me. He called me trash, and told me to kill myself. I yelled at him to stop, but he never did. When he was done he spat on me, and I think I heard the laugh of a girl nearby. By the time I got home it was already dark and supper was ready. Mam cried that she was worried, and Pap scolded me for coming home late and losing my glasses.
Vivere commune est, sed non commune mereri.
Everybody lives; not everybody deserves to.
May 5, 1397
I went to visit Mr. Ripper this afternoon for an interview. Pap says I should begin working to bring in an income, and the boys in my class mentioned Mr. Ripper was hiring a chimney sweep. I was so anxious, and knew if I did not get the job Mam and Pap would be disappointed. Mr. Ripper was an interesting man, and had a calm and kind sort of nature about him. He told me someone already had the job, but I was not too saddened.
It was dark by the time I was headed home when I heard a yell in the alleyway behind Mr. Gold's bank. I saw a shadow on top of an elderly man who desperately called for help until his voice went hoarse. I could hear my heart pound in my ears and I was completely frozen. When the attack ended and the shadow vanished into the dark, it was only then that my mind began to clear. The old man lied in a pool of blood, and I'm quite sure he was dead.
I spent the rest of my walk home wondering if the old man deserved it.
June 14, 1402
This morning I discussed my future plans of becoming a solicitor with father over coffee and cigarettes. I had hoped for his support -- some praise or acknowledgment in my revolutionary ideas to save Ardenth. But he merely frowned and called me a dreamer and suggested I find a much more suitable and realistic career. We quarreled over this before I walked out of the house in a huff. I walked around the area for an hour or so before I cooled my head and returned home.
At supper I reaffirmed him that I would become a solicitor.
August 3, 1404
Today was a miserable day. Mr. Peryton scolded me for my behavior in the courtroom earlier today. He said that I had no right to accuse the innocent, but I am simply trying to serve justice and save Ardenth from falling. My faith in the justice system is beginning to waver these days. On many nights I think back to the old man in the alleyway and the man who got away. I also think of how things that night were done quickly and forcefully.
I wonder if the problem is the solution.
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- Almost all of the pages after this entry are torn out. Only one page remains intact.
- April 9, 1409
What have I done? What have I become? I begin to feel sensations run through my body each time I spill the heathen's blood. I feel happy, so happy, as I clean the blood from my butcher knife. I sleep soundly if I recall their begs and cries. Each meal tastes so much better knowing I am cleansing Ardenth one life at a time. I fear that my soul is being tainted by theirs. I can feel my soul darkening each time I inhale.
I am becoming on of them.
Non sum qualis eram.
I'm not what I used to be.
I am leaving Ardenth and my sins behind me, lest I become another sinner like them. I am moving to the city of Gadu; Mr. Wilson says many opportunities lie for me there. I will start over, I will abandon my previous life.
Deus Misereatur.
May God have mercy.
BASIL'S SPIRIT ANIMAL IS A SWAN. YOU SHOULD DRAW HIM AS A SWAN.
IF I COULD BREAK THIS SPELL
I'D RUN TO HIM TODAY
AND SOMEHOW I KNOW HE'S ON HIS WAY TO ME
ELLIES YOU AND I WERE MEANT TO BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
FAR LONGER THAN FOREVERRRRRRR
I'LL HOLD YOU IN MY HEARTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT
IT'S ALMOST LIKE YOU'RE HERE W/ ME
ALTHO WE'RE FAR APARTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT
I'D RUN TO HIM TODAY
AND SOMEHOW I KNOW HE'S ON HIS WAY TO ME
ELLIES YOU AND I WERE MEANT TO BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
FAR LONGER THAN FOREVERRRRRRR
I'LL HOLD YOU IN MY HEARTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT
IT'S ALMOST LIKE YOU'RE HERE W/ ME
ALTHO WE'RE FAR APARTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT
HIS LITTLE BOWS GO SWOOSH. JUST BTW.
AND HE CAN DO THE BUFFALO BILL DANCE FROM SILENCE OF THE LAMBS.
OTHER COOL FACTS:
- HE'S AFEARED OF SEX.
- THOUGH HIS FAVOURITE POSITION IF HE WASN'T AFEARED IS SITTING SO HE CAN SCRATCH AT YOUR NECK.
- FHSDgwlkgjlKGM
- yes.