PLAYER.
NAME: Joy
CONTACT: kanetsugu or thesecondbesttheory#8142 @discord. Pms are fine too.
ARE YOU 18 OR OLDER: Yes

CHARACTER.
NAME: William Twining
CANON: Makai Ouji: Devils and Realist
AGE: 18
CANON POINT: End of the manga

BACKGROUND:
Fandom Wiki entry, only covers William's childhood and the first volume of the manga
Wikipedia entry for the series, provides a good general overview of characters

Going to give a general summary of everything not covered in his wiki article. Things get convoluted, near the end, so apologies!

-The first arc focuses on William handling being a poor noble, while dealing with having three demons in his life, Dantalion, Sytry and Camio. All three of them have the right to replace Lucifer as King of Hell, when he enters his period of Sleep, a period of Hibernation all demons and angels must enter to maintain their longevity. Resistant to these interlopers, William reluctantly develops a bond with them, particularly Dantalion, who keeps proving himself a loyal friend. William also has his loyal Steward, Kevin Cecil, though the man has his own secrets, being an angel of Heaven, Uriel. As Uriel, he has a duty to turn William towards Heaven's cause, but cannot move past his attachment to his young master.

-Numerous events happen to move the story away from being slice of life, one of the most significant being the arrival of the archangel Michael, Kevin/Uriel's superior, the chief angel in Heaven. Angry that Kevin seems to be failing in his mission, Michael decides to test William by posing as a fellow high achieving student, Elliot Eden. He tests William about his loyalty to Heaven and Hell, as well as what William considers worth protecting, forcing William to once again consider where his demonic friends fit into his life, as he is still unsure despite their growing closeness. Michael eventually reveals his true self and tries to slay William, but is defeated by Dantalion and encouraged to go back by Kevin, who manages to still hide his angelic identity from William.

-William finds the ring of Solomon which Kevin has been keeping in his room. William only knows it as a precious possession of his long past father and takes it without confronting Kevin. He is invited down to Hell for a meeting with the Four Kings, Astaroth, Samael, Baalberith and Beelzebub, the demons directly under Lucifer who have a right to nominate his successor. Camio, Dantalion and Sytry are also in attendance. They press William to choose a King, but he declines, feeling that as a mere human it is beyond him. Tensions go south when it's revealed that William has the ring, which demons fear as it symbolizes Solomon's ability to enslave them. William ends up putting the ring on and is possessed by Solomon. Solomon proceeds to attack all in attendance, being an impossible force. He mysteriously remembers everyone except Dantalion, his closest friend, though Dantalion is also the only one who can touch the ring.

The battle is only stopped when Lucifer awakens, causing Solomon to pass out. Afterwards, William remembers nothing and no one will reveal the events to him. Lucifer's awakening makes the battle to become his replacement less drastic, at least for the moment.

-While on vacation with Kevin, Kevin tries to use Ecstasy, Heaven's mode of mind control, to turn William to their side. Finding that William is resistant due to a mental block, Kevin enters his memories and finds out that William's parents didn't die in an accident, but were murdered and that William has repressed the memory. Kevin is shocked, but can do nothing due to his own secrets.

Later during this trip, William is first introduced to Samuel Liddell Mathers, a magician who wants to teach him how to fight demons. When Mathers comes again to William's school as a teacher, William accepts the agreement and he begins to study magic under the man, along with Isaac, who proves to be a better student than William, much to his frustration. William starts to learn how to call his demon friends to his side, so that they can better assist him.

-While William has learned how to call both Camio and Sytry, he is avoiding calling out to Dantalion, which the demon has noticed. Dantalion vents to Isaac, who sets up a plan to make the two reconcile. He ends up engaging William in a magic duel where the two both summon demons. William summons Sytry and Isaac calls Dantalion, much to William's dismay. Dantalion gets cross, saying it's William's fault and demands an answer. Before William can respond, Sytry reveals that he's learned Dantalion had killed Solomon and accuses him of only being by William's side to kill him. Dantalion offers to explain, but William refuses, stating that Solomon's life has nothing to do with him and that Dantalion has a right to keep such personal matters to himself. The duel ends without a conclusion and Dantalion later speaks with William again. William doesn't ask for the truth, but confirms Dantalion's loyalty and his own trust in the demon and the two end up closer.

-On his birthday, William learns that Kevin is not who he says he is, but an angel who has stolen the identity of the real Kevin Cecil five years ago. His trust initially shaken, William eventually accepts Kevin/Uriel, as he is the one who has been by his side since the deaths of his parents, making William who he is today. From here on, Kevin's loyalty shifts from Heaven to William.

-Dantalion's precious retainer, Baphomet, invites William to a private dinner. About to enter his own period of sleep, Baphomet wants to encourage William to choose Dantalion. The dinner gets interrupted by demons out to kill Baphomet. A great battle ensues involving William and the rest of his cohort. Solomon speaks with William during this time and gives William access to all of his knowledge and power. Despite everyone's efforts, Baphomet dies and Dantalion is left bereft and powerless. He takes a long absence from school and comes back with a new retainer, Gilgamesh. William notes he is much changed and disturbed but feels powerless to help him.

-William's Uncle Barton returns during Christmas time, along with all of William's wealth. No long poor, William finds he cannot enjoy himself as all his friends are busy with the growing conflict in Hell. Particularly down on Solstice night, he is visited by Dantalion, who wants to have a talk, having realized that William now has Solomon's memories and wants to address both personalities. Dantalion reveals his past losses and Solomon reveals that he had forced Dantalion to kill him out of desperation. Solomon apologizes and then William and Dantalion confirm that they have the same wish: to be together and continue their friendship. Unfortunately, Dantalion isn't able to commit to it, as the war between Heaven and Hell is brewing and he has to do his part in it, to defend William. He leaves, but William vows to participate, tired of being left out.

-William's visited by Mathers, who discusses the war between Heaven and hell in depth, as well as the role of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse in it, which Mathers is a part of. Things become even more complicated when Kevin arrives with a now disgraced Michael. William gets drawn further into the war and ends up going down to Hell for the final confrontation with Lucifer.

He finds Dantalion already engaged with Lucifer when he finally arrives. Lucifer tries to use his bond as Dantalion's master to force him to kill William. Dantalion tries to commit suicide rather than kill William, but is saved by Uriel, who takes Dantalion to Limbo, the place where Demons go to Sleep, ensuring that Dantalion will be able to heal through his wounds, though he will possibly never see William again, as demons usually sleep for a hundred years.

Lucifer is defeated and the war between Heaven and Hell ends and a new world order begins. A year later, William is graduating school, but feels depressed that his friends are not there, as they have all gone their separate ways. He gets surprised by Dantalion arriving, having miraculously sensed William's wish, causing him to awaken early. Before William can respond, the rest of his non-human friends appear, having all decided to make time for this important day. Camio, Sytry and Dantalion also demand to know who William likes best among them, as he has never chosen. Annoyed, William shouts he is a Realist and wont choose, which just earns laughter, and the story ends.

-The ending of the manga is convoluted and confusing, so I didn't touch on everything, but can clarify if needed.

PERSONALITY:
William identifies himself as a Realist, a person who values science above all else, ignoring that which doesn't make any sense within this framework. This view leads him to be extremely rigid early on, refusing to accept the existence of the demons right in front of him. Even after he promises to stop denying their existence, it's with the caveat that he wishes to find a scientific explanation for their existence and to keep them out of trouble.

He's an intellectual to the point of being a big nerd stereotype. He's a top student at his school, earning high marks in every subject, save for athletics, which he loathes. One time, when falsely accused of cheating on a Latin exam and put on trial, William was able to conduct his defense entirely in Latin, proving that he had no need to cheat. He does have his weak areas though. He's initially shown to have a difficult time learning magic at first, losing out to mediocre student Isaac, a natural hand at it. While William does greatly improve his magical aptitude in later chapters, he complains about it being nothing like the sciences.

His intelligence and privileged status has led to William being incredibly arrogant. He brags about his good qualities and is very ambitious, to the point that he has stated a rigid life plan, where he will become the youngest Prime Minister England has ever known. This sense of entitlement means that he struggles when his pride is wounded, especially by things that conflict with his self-image. William is bankrupted right in the first chapter and is forced to contend with this change for a good majority of the manga. He finds it shameful and embarrassing, often complaining that the Twining name has been tarnished by him being forced to take scholarships.

This pride can also cause William to come off as childishly insecure at times. When the Victorian School custom of fagging comes up and no student is willing to serve under him, William gets so desperate that he hides in a cupboard to eavesdrop on the younger students to find out why. When he hears that they think he is snobbish, unathletic and poor, he becomes deeply depressed. There is also a point later on when Dantalion confronts him on his repeated refusal to not summon him, despite summoning other demons. William mentally flails, as he had been telling Dantalion to stay away from him until recently and is now embarrassed to summon him. His outward reaction is to yell at Dantalion and call him weak instead. There is a part of him that hates being wrong and also wants to be liked by others, despite trying to come off as above it all. This improves a bit at the end of the series, though he still struggles with it.

His ambition and pride can lead to him being very competitive as well. When challenged on his perfect grades, William becomes viciously obsessive, studying like a maniac in order to "win." At one point he abuses his summoning powers to force Camio and Sytry into drag to work in a maid café and earn him money so that he will not lose in a student event. He also constantly looks for ways to ingratiate himself to those of high status. He tends to be much more polite and pleasant when sucking up to such individuals.

Around others though, William can often be blunt, often stating his beliefs tactlessly. He's capable of excellent manners, but tends to only display them when it is to impress someone. He can be incredibly rude, in particular his behavior towards Dantalion is callous early on, at one point literally trying to order him away with his powers, despite the other's obvious affection for him. Even after he softens up, William can still be cold, unafraid to call others stupid. He's very straightforward in some ways, but will also act harsh to cover up awkwardness and embarrassment and seems to be inept at putting more delicate feelings into words.

Underneath all of his brattiness there is a strong sense of determination. While William complains about the obstacles in his path, he never lets himself be overpowered by them, pushing forward instead. He never gives up on his dream of being Prime Minister, even in the face of overwhelming poverty. And while he is often terrified of the supernatural things that threaten him, William will still face them head on, often trying to reason with them as if they were any other human, having no qualms about telling them off. When offered the chance to learn magic and become equal to his enemies, William embraces it, even though it proves to exceedingly challenging to him. And the end of the series sees him willingly going to Hell to end a war.

And it should be said that despite his brusque attitude, William is incredibly loyal and kind to his friends in his own way. He throws himself into harm's way in order to protect Isaac at many points. When his demon friends disappear for any prolonged period of time, he'll worry over them. And sometimes he can be surprisingly sensitive to people's feelings in an indirect way, such as when he went and asked to have wine and cake with Dantalion, as a way to prove that he still trusted him after the revelation that the demon had murdered him in a past life.

While it seldom makes an appearance, William has all of his memories of his past life as Solomon in his head, though he cannot always freely access them. Solomon himself used to come out as a unique personality, but near the end of the manga, William is able to repress Solomon's personality entirely, keeping the man's power without losing control, a further testament to his resolve.

POWERS:
Intelligence: William is one of the top students in his school, excelling in most subjects with ease. While some of this is definitely through hard work, it's still noted that his ability to learn and memorize is extraordinary. He is also shown to be up to date on all the scientific breakthroughs of his time and often inserts science references into his dialogue and speech.

Magic: William has been studying magic in canon and at this point, he's pretty powerful. He can use spells that allow him to fly and float with ease, use fire and wind magic and create illusions. His fire and wind spells can create a powerful enough blast to knock people back and smash through walls. His illusions are such that he can make a convincing copy of himself and fool one of the most powerful demons in the series. He's also naturally capable of seeing and communicating with fairies and other supernatural beings hidden from the human eye.

72 Pillars: In his past life as Solomon, a contract with 72 demons was formed. These contracts have lasted to present day and mean that these demons must obey William. They must come when called by him and he can order them to do various tasks. If he orders them to stop, the order is strong enough to quench any magic they are currently using. The only thing that can block his orders tends to be magical interference, or moments when the demon is in a blind frenzy or unusually dedicated to their task. There is also an almost psychic bond between him and his demons at times and they can sometimes sense when he has need of them, despite long distances.

This would only work on demons from MO!verse, as those were the demons Solomon made the contract with. It wouldn't work on demon bearing the same name from another canon since he never made a contract with them. He has the potential to make contracts with other demons if he so chose, though he's never shown any inclination to do so and I'm happy to have it nerfed as the mods see fit..

SAMPLES.
1ST PERSON: here
3RD PERSON: here

MISC.
SUITABILITY: William was thrust into the world of the supernatural without much choice in the matter. While he initially felt that the war between Heaven and Hell wasn't his problem, by the end of the manga, he chooses to take an active part in ending the war and in harnessing the power needed to defend himself and what he believes in. He also has a natural interest in politics, wishing to enter that world after his schooling is done, so he'll be fascinated by that potential aspect as well.

He'll grudgingly go along with what COST wants as long as it's not something he finds stupid or morally abhorrent. He'll also be excited to witness any historical goings on and like the idea of potentially influencing things. Basically, he'll complain a lot, but troop along, since for some reason he doesn't remember, he committed to this, so there has to be a good reason, right?

ITEM: A magic spell book he received from Mathers. Contains writings about Solomon and a variety of spells that William studies, so it's a useful reference for him and has some sentimental value.
CHARACTER @ID SUGGESTIONS: surprise me!
HOW DID YOUR CHARACTER JOIN COST? William doesn’t quite remember and is highly suspicious, but well, he's here. He's trying to think of it as a post-graduation trip. He's also assuming his friends from back home will join up with him eventually, since they're usually not far behind.

April 2018
4/16 Jean post
4/16 Atsushi
4/11 Lizzie, intro
4/9 Intro Log
4/10 Alphinaud, intro
4/3 Edgeworth, post about the inbox error.
4/29 Meeting, Mephisto
4/28 Meeting, Yona

March 2018

3/11 Percy, Clean up
3/12 diva post
3/24 Reign, post kidnapping event

February 2018
2/5 Network, Elliot, cat names
2/7 Network, Reign and giraffe names
2/10 Quest with Yona
2/10 Mephisto, Chibi, Bazett, intro log.
2/23 Olympia riots, Sorey.
2/12 Olympia, Linneus

January 2018
1/9 Open log/quests, Crowly, Cu, Reign, Kanade
1/24 Wyver, Trinket.

December 2017
12/19: Gala. Yona, Cu Chulainn


November 2017
11/13: TDM, Reign, Cu, Mephisto, Eichi
11/13 TDM, Shirou
11/14 TDM, Diana
11/30 Intro Log, Elliot
11/29 Intro Log, Mephisto, Allen, Mai, Lance

*this was an explanation of how Solomon's connection with William works as part of a revision for CC and I'm linking it here for convenience.


Solomon tends to manifest either when the scent of herbs are heavy in the air or when it's necessary to speak with someone he shares a past. He can also manifest with the use of Solomon's ring, but that isn't something that will be coming with William in the game.

Solomon's main method of appearing is with exposure to herbs. William started drinking herbal tea when he began to learn magic, as it helps with casting spells. He notes that after he started drinking it, that he began to have more vivid memories of the past, particularly Solomon's. Even before that, William tends to have flashbacks when meeting Solomon's demons or when they refer to certain events. He also often has dreams from Solomon's past, both good and bad. William spends most of the manga ignoring these memories until Dantalion finally forces him to admit the truth.

One of the biggest examples of Solomon's behavior is seen with William's servant, Kevin, who is also the angel Uriel. Uriel had tortured Solomon, a fact unknown to William, who only knows him as Kevin for most of the series. During the London arc, William regularly shifts into Solomon, who chooses to tease and taunt Kevin, while trying to be helpful. These shifts are very fluid, with William seeming to not realize they had happened. During the London trip, Solomon can be seen offering advice to Kevin, who is worried over choosing between William and his loyalty to Heaven. He teases Kevin, asking if he "dislikes herbs" and also advises him to drink catnip tea to clear his head, which he needs in this situation. He doesn’t seem to bear any actual grudge towards Uriel, even though the angel holds some responsibility for Solomon's fall. Instead Solomon tries to help improve his relationship with William, going as far as to show William memories of the past with Uriel, to get the truth out in the open. When William's relationship with Kevin nearly falls apart instead, Solomon briefly manifests to express regret and dismay.

In general, Solomon seems very avoidant when it comes to conflict. In his real life, he was locked away for most of his childhood and adolescence, being an illegitimate child. He used the power that God gave him to summon demons, but instead of using them for war or vengeance, chose to throw fun parties, being unwilling to confront his father, David until he was forced into a war that ended with Solomon becoming an unwilling king. Despite his wisdom and great power, Solomon is someone who feels powerless in the face of his fate, often saying he doesn't have a choice or that it is no use. He tends to cover this up with a cheerful demeanor, acting flippant and unaffected, though he is shown to be more honest with people who he is truly close to, such as Dantalion, having said he wished to die to him.

Powerless in life, Solomon was greatly depressed and had himself killed, hoping to escape his burdens. He wished to be reborn into a new and happier life and after many unsuccessful attempts, found that existence in William. Because of this, he sees William as someone he needs to protect, valuing the mental strength his current vessel has, as William is much stronger willed than him, with none of Solomon's depressed personality. When Solomon manifests in William's body during battle situations, he'll use the most powerful magic at his disposal to defend his vessel and doesn’t play around, even going hard at old friends. He usually doesn't take control of William's body for long though, preferring to leave it to him.

William generally doesn't seem to remember these shifts into Solomon, with long periods of possession being the same as blackouts. The one exception seems to be on Solstice night, when Solomon, William and Dantalion have a long heart to heart. Solomon confesses to having selfishly made Dantalion kill him, and apologizes as he had left the demon without a home. He then immediately shifts to William, who promises to never rob Dantalion of his home again and make his dreams come true, making it clear that William remembers what Solomon said.

Whether William remembers these shifts seems to be related to how important it is that he remember what is going on at the time, as he needed to remember the conversation with Dantalion. Kevin though needed to address William himself instead of having William find out the truth through Solomon.

The big difference with Solomon is that he is more playful than William, but also more melancholy and less blunt. He's more likely to handle problems by joking and teasing in order to push things in a good direction. Otherwise, he likes to leave things in William's hands, sharing his knowledge of magic with him, but nothing more.


*Note, if you guys think that Solomon's personality is too much of an appable character/too overpowered, I'm happy to find a way to just strip it away/silence it due to the mana in the game's world or something else. Or even just clarify something else. I know it's an obscure canon.

State your name and business and I shall get back to you as soon as convenient.

[ooc: will dress this up later. Maybe.]

September 2016
9/3 Catch all.
9/3 Severa post
9/6: Aoba post
9/6: Main event log
9/7: Out of the settlement log
9/16: Mizuki at the campsite.

August 2016
8/1: Klaus on the network.
8/12: Karkat's post on defenses.
8/12: Watermill
8/13: Watermill, Genesis.
8/13: The forge, Carlos.
8/13: Potemikin at the dream event.
8/14: Loki at the mingle.
8/14: Dio's post on Mikado's vanishing.
8/23: Genesis network post.

July 2016
7/6: Intro Event/plus wolves.
7/16: Reality Bubbles

June 2016
6/2: Zexion's post about his beach getaway.
June 4 June red string event.
6/17: Percy Post about roommate finding and sexuality.

May 2016
5/???: TDM thread with Karkat. Started at the end of april, but game canon, so it's taking place some time in the start of May.
5/4: Arrives to Carvaka planted in the ground up to his neck, in his pajamas, interrupting his convo with Dantalion. He is unamused.
5/9: Introducing himself on Monty's post.
5/10: Visiting the lab.
5/13: Lucina's post about the door.
5/15: Masaki's post on courtship in a sex game.
5/19: Open log
5/24: Dorian's post.
May TDM: WIP