Trivia

There's something unshakably mysterious about Earl - underneath his completely average behaviour and actions, it seems like... there's more than he lets on. It's hard to ask about, however - he is a master at deflection, and the question always feels too rude to ask. It's probably nothing, anyways.

Backstory

Earl was born in a small, rural town, with one younger sister, and two busy parents. His parents were fairly traditional, but loving. As a young boy, Earl was one of those sweet, class clown types. He would interrupt class goofing off, befriend the new kid, invent games for everyone to play, and stand up for kids who were getting bullied. He didn't have much to offer in the ways of physicality - he was a bit of an idiot savant, goofing off in class and somehow still aceing his exams. As a result, if his standing up for someone resulted in a fight, he was going to lose. This academic prowess annoyed his teachers - as he would be a problem child if he was only a little less clever.

"If only you took school more seriously!"

It was hard to take it seriously, though. His head was in the clouds, absently writing poetry into his notebook, staring out the window of a sunny day. As much as he loved all his friends and the town of his birth - he couldn't help but crave more! He wanted to see the world, travelling around, maybe even documenting his experiences, like a modern-day explorer... He fell in love with the stories that people would share with him, developing a passion for writing biographies. After highschool, he pursued a degree in writing, before packing a bag and setting out to see the world.

It was there, miles away from home, scribbling away in a cafe with a name he couldn't read, that he met her.

After a few short weeks, Earl had all but dropped off the face of the earth - phonelines dead, pager empty, piles of unread DMs. An international traveller was too hard to send a search team for - the family was advised to mourn.

Crawling back

Just as abruptly as he had left, seven years later, Earl resurfaced. He didn't answer any questions, he didn't acknowledge the lost time, he simply introduced his two new children to the family. His family, dumbfounded, could do nothing but meet their new family members.

Earl quickly returned home, packing up all his belongings, before setting his sights on the city. His lust for travel had also vanished - perhaps the only thing that had visibly changed about him. He spoke about wanting to settle down, somewhere with enough stories to tell to keep him satisfied. Before anyone could argue, he had moved, setting himself up in the big city, and securing a job as a journalist, creating a dedicated section in the newspaper for biographies on various people in the city, compassionately exploring their life and life experiences.

"You know Earl, you write a lot about others," his coworker muses, flipping through the paper, "but I almost know nothing about you! What's your story?"

Earl laughs. "Ah, nothing interesting, I can assure you."

Relationships

Petunia [ Daughter ]

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His youngest! She's too adorable, his heart melts every time she flops over or offers him the princess crown. He loves her to death, even if she...

Aster [ Child ]

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His oldest! They're a bit mischevious, but they still have a good heart. Earl wouldn't replace them for the world, he's glad to still have them...