keep_smiling | UAA character info

☣CHARACTER;
Name: Elmer C. Albatross
Alias: the Smile Junkie
Series: Baccano!
Canon Point: 2002; Post The Children of the Bottle
Age: 312; physically 21
Rank: 36

Weapon: Flamethrower
Personality:Outwardly, Elmer is a nondescript, average-looking man, with one noticeable feature: he’s always smiling. Always. In passing, this may come off well with others, bright and infectious. But to anyone who spends time and gets to understand what’s going on inside will realize that there’s a lot more to that smile. His outlook on how everyone should be smiling and happy reaches lengths that are twisted .

“I'd sell the souls of all humanity to the devil if I thought it'd get us a happy ending.”

These words summarize Elmer to a T. Despite a life of hardships and torture, Elmer keeps up positive and upbeat front, convinced that anything bad can be overcome if you just smile and feel better about it. This has lead others to believe that he’s simple, or oblivious. He lives in his own little world where everyone can be happy and get their happy ending. But this doesn’t mean he doesn’t understand the consequences of his action, or that he’s stupid. That’s not quite the case. He’s described as calculating and conniving in his attempts to get people to smile, since that’s the only consequence that matters to him. For example, he puts his life on the line just to prove a point to Czes. The only way to kill an immortal is to have another immortal “eat” them – placing their right hand on their head and imagining consuming them, which then happens, destroying the immortal. Upon first meeting again after 300 years, Czes places a hand on Elmer’s head, and Elmer doesn’t flinch. Later, when Czes asks him why he didn’t, Elmer simply grabs Czes’s arm and places his hand on his head, all in order for Czes to see he can trust Elmer, to make him see that there are worthwhile people in the world. Just to see if he would smile. Czes can’t handle this, though, and asks what if what would make him happy was if Elmer jumped off the roof they were on. Without a second thought, Elmer does just that. The levels he will go to make someone happy reach strange and twisted levels. Even when faced with the demon they summoned to gain immortality, he is told by the demon he would be granted any wish he wants – and Elmer wishes to see the demon smile genuinely. The demon remarks that this is the most difficult thing he’s tried to do.
The truth is, though, that even Elmer doesn’t know what his emotions are, since his treatment at the hands of the cult bled them away. He makes people smile to hope that someday, he’ll feel what it’s like to smile for real as well. In this way, all his attempts at making others happy are nothing but a selfish action in order to make himself feel better. After 300 years, it’s still not working, but this is just how Elmer is and always will be. He’s the same person from 1710 as he is in 2001. There’s no such thing as God and life has no purpose or meaning – so why not try to make people happy while they’re here?

To others, his constant smiling makes his true emotions hard to read. Maybe he is just blissfully happy all the time, or maybe he’s covering it up. His attitude can come off as insensitive or tactless, since he will stop and make people try to smile even in the worst situations. Occasionally, he does show other emotions from time to time, usually surprising those around him. When Fermet, another immortal, comes across Elmer by random chance on the Flying Pussyfoot, he tells him outright that he is afraid of Elmer because he never knows what he’s thinking. He’s also convinced that Elmer is an idiot, and won’t consume him because he’s afraid of Elmer’s “rotten” mind and personality might infect him. Elmer also physically throws Fermet off the moving train because he was making someone else nearby unhappy.

Elmer is also adept at reading other people. Being an expert in smiling, he can instantly tell when other people are faking it. It’s said he can spot a fake smile a hundred yards away. If you give him a fake smile in an attempt to placate him, he won’t leave you alone until he gets a genuine one from you. He might even give you an arbitrary time he’ll get one from you – something like “I’ll get you to smile in 3 days, 4 hours and 12 minutes!” - though this might not be arbitrary at all. He might actually have a plan to back that up to get you to smile.

Being immortal gives you a lot of time to travel and see the world. Elmer is very knowledgeable about many cultures of the world. He’s especially fond of Asian traditions, and has learned a lot about Japan from his friend Denkuro, another immortal. He’s spent time there and knows a lot about their holidays, literature, etc. Despite his age, he’s also is up to date on modern culture, making many references to movies, books and even video games. For a guy who seems to live in his own little world, he sure knows a lot about the world going on around him.

☣PERMISSIONS;
OOC;
backtagging: Always up for backtagging forever.
threadjacking: Sure, but it couldn't hurt to ask first.
character recognition: Sure, because Elmer will just laugh about it.
offensive subjects: none

IC;
injury: It's bound to happen. Elmer has no idea how to fight.
death: It's happened before and it'll happen again. Just let me know if you plan to cause it!

☣OTHER:

☣MORE IMAGES;