application for the box

Player Information
Player name: Brandon
Contact: (plurk) badinages
Are you over 18: I'm 25.
Characters in The Box Already: N/A

Character Information
Character Name: Alaric Saltzman
Canon: The Vampire Diaries
Canon Point: Season 2, "As I Lay Dying" after Alaric has gone downstairs to sleep on the couch for the night
Is your character Dead, Undead or Alive: At this point in canon, he's alive!
History: HERE.
Personality:

On the surface, Alaric Saltzman is an easy-going teacher who wants his kids to succeed, who insists they call him Ric instead of Mr. Saltzman, who gives them chances at extra credit, and who enjoys a glass of bourbon at the end of the day. This isn't an inaccurate description, not really. But, much like Mystic Falls, there's a lot going on under the surface.

Speaking of the surface, Alaric doesn't go to great lengths to hide his feelings. When he is angry, he lets you know, as he has no problem shutting Damon out for killing him (either time). When very down, he turns to alcohol, preferring to wallow in the pain. In a way, alcohol cures all. Alcohol mends friendships, it numbs the pain, and it makes life bearable. While he doesn’t do things like show up to school drunk, an argument could be made that Alaric is a functioning alcoholic on his worst day. Some people eat their feelings, Alaric drinks them. He also drinks for fun. And when it’s Monday. He drinks to dirty shame and he drinks to a well-won battle. When he goes on these binges, he pulls away from everyone completely.

Alaric is also a playful person, having teased Isobel, calling her a hotter Mulder. He's been shown to flirt with both Jenna and Isobel openly. He's not bad at it. In a relationship, he's sweet, conscientious and a gentleman. He can be a dork. He arrived in Mystic Falls as a history teacher and he truly enjoys history calling first hand accounts "porn for a history teacher." He likes to read. He has an intellectual side to him and he’s smarter than he comes off. He has extensive knowledge into Mystic Falls’ past thanks to Isobel’s research. He’s naturally curious and he has a real thirst for knowledge. He accompanies Elena and Stefan to Duke to check out Isobel's research.

When it comes to specific feelings, he doesn't voice them with just anyone. He’s not one to talk through his problems. He prefers to bottle them up and let them fester. He’ll deal with them on his own. He’ll brood. But, he isn't about to sit up at night rambling on about his vampire ex(es, now). He did open up to Jenna about his inner pain and past with his ex-wife, Isobel, but only because their relationship was hanging by a thread.

Alaric is a determined person. He dedicated most of his adult life to finding the vampire that he believed killed Isobel. Before she died, he pursued her enough that she filed two restraining orders on him. When he gets an idea in his head, he goes after it. In edition, despite how he can be, he's a pretty hardened person thanks to the loss in his life. He takes time to warm up to people and to fully trust them. He and Damon don't immediately become friends.

Isobel Saltzman was his first love. He felt betrayed and hurt when she returned to town the first time but in a moment of weakness and love, Isobel admitted she felt something for Alaric. She then compelled him to move on. After showing back up and being compelled by Klaus, Isobel revealed that she truly loves (or loved at one time) her ex-husband.

Outside of that, he grew to love and trust Elena’s Aunt Jenna. In fact, it bothered him to have to lie to her. He doesn't like lying to his loved ones. It pains him. He feels guilty, especially when John Gilbert returns to town and blackmails him. Both of his exes were vampires and Alaric has to live with that as well as with losing the both of them. Jenna's death hits him hard. Before learning about Damon's bite, he'd been on quite the bender.

Alaric has come to be very protective of Elena Gilbert and by proxy, Jeremy. But, he hasn't quite made it to "guardian" yet. He's devastated when he sees Liz Forbes has shot Jeremy and basically flips off the witches because Jeremy's just a kid. After seeing how out of sorts Jeremy is, he offers to stay on the couch. He will always be tied to Elena because she is Isobel's daughter and he does feel a responsibility for her but that responsibility hasn't kicked in fully yet. He does feel horrible seeing as every one of her parental figures has died. Except for John, despite his last ditch effort to be a good father, he was a dick.

As shown several times, mostly with Damon, Alaric can really hold a grudge. It took most of the first season for Damon to wear down his resolve and for the two of them to form a pseudo-friendship. By season 2, they had reached full-fledged friendship and even respect. However, when Alaric becomes a friend and ally, he’s loyal to the end. Alaric’s friendship with Damon survives Damon killing him twice. At the end of season 2, Damon pushes Alaric to kill him, to get him back for essentially being the one responsible for putting Elena’s aunt Jenna in harm’s way and Alaric can’t bring himself to because Damon is a friend. He offers Damon a drink when he finds out about his lethal werewolf bite. Alaric is one of the only people besides Elena who can talk Damon down or who attempts to stop him from doing something asinine as in the case when he goes after Caroline’s father, Bill Forbes, who had been torturing her. He knows when to not take Damon seriously but he does have his limits. And Damon killing him really pisses Ric off. Despite Damon being the reason Jenna was taken as a plan B, he doesn't blame Damon. He knows this is all Klaus' doing.

At this point in the show, Alaric trusts Stefan Salvatore. He's an ally. He knows Elena loves him and he loves Elena. He's also unaware of the dark path he's about to go down. Stefan is the level-headed mature brother.

Abilities/Strengths and Weaknesses:

Alaric has no supernatural-slash-extraordinary powers. He is human. But, he does happen to be in possession of a Gilbert ring. While wearing it, he can’t succumb to a supernatural death (as he’s died three times now in the series.)


Alaric has also taught himself self defense. He's a great shot with a cross bow and a gun. He can craft home-made weapons to fight vampires. He's seen creating stake launchers, vervain and wolfsbane bombs. He also crafts vervain jewelry if need be.

Samples
Network/Action Spam Sample:

[ Alaric provides audio. He's in no real shape to show his face right now. He's found alcohol. Surprise, surprise. ]

It's easy to shirk responsibility when you're kidnapped and taken to a deserted town. This would normally be the time where I introduce myself and offer help wherever it's needed: exploring, locating supplies, teaching the community at large to fashion their own weapons - but, I'm afraid you've caught me at a bad time. Or, I caught you while I'm having a bad time. [ Yeah. Drunk. ] Give me a few days, then we'll talk. For now, the person you're trying to reach is unavailable. Or, the person who reached you. He's also unavailable. Both people. Unavailable.

And before you ask, I don't share.

Prose Log Sample:

Alaric thought about taking the bed. He'd taken one look at Jenna's room and shut the door. He couldn't stay there. Hell, he couldn't stay here. This wasn't his home. But, seeing Jeremy there back from the dead, he couldn't stave off a twinge of obligation. As much as he didn't want to admit it, he was worried for the Gilbert's. But, he'd masked it by mocking the youngest Gilbert. He and Bonnie had been sickeningly sweet. Jeremy reminded Alaric of him when he was in high school. Carefree. Maybe a little bit in love. Perhaps not quite as on the brink of death day in and day out, but there were similarities.

Turning the hall light off, Alaric made his way downstairs. He stopped at the bottom and just stood there. The house was quiet. Jenna was gone. Damon was dying. He pulled out his phone to dial Stefan's number. After a few rings, it went to voicemail. That didn't mean anything. It couldn't. It didn't, he told himself again.

Moving to the couch, he set his phone down. He took out his keys and his wallet and placed those on the coffee table as well. Finally, sat back, allowing himself to sink into the cushions. He wanted a drink. Pulling his flask out of his pocket, he unscrewed the cap, taking a long swig before closing it again and setting that on the table. He ran his hands down his face.

One close call and two tragedies later...

Shifting, he laid back on the couch and attempted to get comfortable. His legs wouldn't fit. He'd had to dangle them, but it didn't matter. Comfort wasn't a priority right then. He'd drift off to sleep eventually. He'd miss the text from Damon telling him he was a-okay and to stop worrying his pretty little head. He'd miss Jeremy coming downstairs and discovering the consequences to what Bonnie did. He'd wake up with a stiff neck and no clue where to go or what to do next. He wondered if his apartment was free, yet. The apartment he'd paid for. Not Klaus. Not Katherine. Shifting onto his other side, finally, his eyes slid shut.

He dreamed of Isobel, of Jenna and of the lives he never had.