Wormwood

PERSONALITY

Worm has kind of given up in a lot of ways; his life has sucked ass for the longest time, and he doesn't see it getting better any time soon, so why bother? This has led to a sort of forced apathy on his behalf, especially towards relationships- though he desperately wants a friend and even a partner, he's lied to himself about how okay he is without to the point where he's started to believe it. Of course, that illusion of his shatters whenever he's presented with the opportunity for a relationship, but instead of sitting with those feelings and taking steps to connect with people, he merely forces them back down and pretends that everything is okay. His forced apathy also falls apart whenever he's presented with anything stressful, where he immediately falls to pieces and panics. He's generally very pessimistic, and tries to force himself to be okay with that fact. He's not all dreary, though- he can be a legitimately good friend when he finds someone who wants him in their life. He tries to make people laugh (though he fails frequently) and is a very generous person as well. He does tend to struggle with empathy, but that doesn't necessarily mean he doesn't care about others; he also sturggles with low self esteem and depression.

DETAILS

LIKES

• dogs
• comic books
• bland foods
• alchemy
• driving

DISLIKES

• the cold
• spicy foods
• cooking
• socializing
• his body

TRIVIA

• He has a very faint Southern accent- it used to be more prominent, but it's faded with his exposure to other areas of the country.
• He's autistic.

BACKGROUND

Worm started his life as an attempt to keep his mother's boyfriend trapped in a relationship, which failed miserably as he jumped ship anyway upon the burden of additional responsibility. It went further downhill when he and his twin sister hatched and his mother was stuck with the biggest reminder of her failed relationship. She dealt with this newfound burden very maturely by abusing and neglecting the two, something that was only exacerbated by her drug addiction and eventually led to his sister's untimely death at the age of 7. Not that the cops really cared about that- after all, it was just some druggie's kid, and she would've turned out the same as her mother if she had lived.

He wasn't able to find much solace outside of the home, as he was bullied by many of his peers and ostracized by the rest- his only real friend for the longest time besides his sister was his math teacher, who really only talked to him out of pity. Eventually, as he entered middle school, he found a group of people who would tolerate him, though unbeknownst to him, it was largely for those people's entertainment rather than a genuine desire for companionship. This came to a head around the beginning of high school, where the group he'd fallen into assaulted a teacher and pinned the blame on him, leading to his expulsion and a subsequent increase in the abuse he faced. Fed up with his treatment, he finally snapped and ran away from home at 15, beginning his life as a vagabond.

Worm lived on the streets for several years, running into trouble here and there but largely keeping to himself. That is, until one particularly dreary winter morning, when he was shambling along the sidewalk and noticed a milktruck idling outside someone's house. Desperate, he jumped in and drove off, finally leaving his hometown behind at the age of 17. Luckily for him, the milktruck was still filled with stock and quite roomy once it was emptied, which provided both the prfect travelling home and plenty of stuff to trade with other people when necessary- eventually, this bartering of his allowed him to gain the supplies needed to start his own illicit alchemy business, selling medicinal potions to those who can't afford them through other avenues.

CURRENT SITUATION

Now, he travels all around the country selling his wares, with his trusty dog Clover and, occassionally, his sole friend Jade. Business isn't that great, but he's making do with what he has, and has effectively settled for the life he feels is the best he's ever going to get.