゜★｡ hey, is that radcliff's very own AWKWARD WORM ? yup, i'd recognize MATILDA APPLE’s face anywhere. if you twisted my arm and asked me to describe them, i’d say they’re incredibly QUICK-WITTED, GRACELESS, GOOD NATURED, JUMPY, and they always seem to be carrying around a DOODLING NOTEBOOK for some reason. kind of weird, right ? when they hit play on their walkman, you just know it’s SHE’S A RAINBOW by THE ROLLING STONES tickling their eardrums ——— a creature of habit, maybe ? they have the same peculiar energy as HANDS ALWAYS COVERED IN FRESH DOODLES - A FRANTIC HEART, RESULT OF BRIEF EYE-CONTACT WITH AN ENEMY OR CRUSH - BOOKS ALL AROUND HER PLACE, LOVED AND WORN OUT - A HIDDEN AND DESPERATE LONGING FOR FRIENDSHIP AND CONNECTION and work at scratch that with all the other losers. shit ! that’s them … i guess they’re about to clock in for their dreadfully long shift. well, good luck to ‘em.
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stats !
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• name: matilda apple
• nicknames: besides tilly (lovingly by tate) and maggot, given to her by an elementary school bully, she doesn’t have a lot. but if u give her one it will make her the happiest person alive
• gender & sexuality: bisexual cisgender woman
• age: twenty6
• birthday: july 10
• likes: mystery novels, horror night at the cinema, black cats, bright colored bugs, baking sweets, stargazing, knitting, crochet patterns, hot chocolate, smile lines and wrinkles around the eyes, cornflower-blue paint, handwritten letters, reading books in a big-and-sturdy tree branch, big sweaters, red licorice
• dislikes: snakes, public speaking, people who smile with their mouths but not their eyes, 3am thinking, starless nights, mathematics, feeling lonely around people, exams and quizzes, big surprises, the terrifying thought of being stuck in radcliff forever, black licorice
• character parallels: amy (booksmart), michael scott (the office), jonathan byers (stranger things), nadine (the edge of seventeen), harold (stranger than fiction).
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backstory blurb !
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• as an only child of two sibling-less parents, matilda is no stranger to loneliness. ( she has wondered more than once if her lack of social skills is thanks to that, or if she was simply born absolutely graceless ). a quiet girl since birth, her first word was uttered at three years old. almost immediately after that she began speaking in full sentences, so her parents assumed she had been able to talk for a while, but simply preferred not to ( matilda cannot say for sure, but believes that theory ). now, deandrea and terrence apple are nice enough people who absolutely adore their daughter, but they are also low-earning geologists who need full time jobs to support their little family, so matilda quickly learned how to be alone ( and as a loneliness expert, her social skills suffered ). instead of people, her early-age companions were the characters in books and movies.
• school wasn’t the greatest help either. as a lonely girl of few a words, she was already an easy target for bullys, but her strange knowledge of rocks and magical worlds made her the perfect victim for more than a few ill-meaning kids, and as a surprise to no one, teachers would turn a blind eye to this behavior. all but one, her art teacher, who seeing matilda hiding behind some bushes one day, told her that she could spend her recess in the art classroom. this changed everything. even though the bullying didn’t stop, matilda found a safe haven in that place, where she also discovered her adoration for all things art. her recesses now were full of paint, yarn and multi-colored buttons; she knew from that moment that art was what she wanted to do with her life. hiding in that classroom was another probable detriment to her social skills though.
• so art was her passion now, and as the seasons changed, she began to dream. this dream became a fantasy, the fantasy of leaving everything behind and going to a big art university on the other side of the country, and…. maybe, just maybe, finally making a name out of herself. of course, all that stayed in her head, since she didn’t have the money or the courage to actually make it a reality. matilda settled for a small art college close enough to radcliff for her to still live with her parents while attending. oh, but she absolutely loved it there! and even though she didn’t stop being the quiet girl, she found the closest thing to a voice she ever had. after graduating she felt on top of the world, only to be aggressively tumbled down by reality. as you might already know, there is not a lot of demand for a so-called artist in a town like this, and since geologists can only earn enough, matilda had to leave her fantasies behind and find an actual job. even though working at ‘ scratch that ’ doesn’t look like most people’s dream careers, it definitely is the only real life option that would have her and is also somehow related to what she loves. and of course selling records isn’t exactly like painting, or similar at all, but matilda believes that the store is the only place she would be able to find that wouldn’t make her go absolutely insane. and again, she is probably right.
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headcanons & fun facts !
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• ever since she was a child, she has suffered from stage fright. or simply talking-in-front-of-any-kind-of-audience fright.
• matilda managed to get into a small and really good college close to radcliff with a full scholarship, and she graduated with a fine arts degree ! which so far has not been of much help in anything at all. but here is to hoping !
• her favorite movie is " the cabinet of dr caligari ", which she owns in VHS and watches repeatedly.
• at seven years old, she had her first crush ever. it was a boy close to her age who lived in the same building as her. the girl´s way of dealing with these new feelings was a very peculiar one: almost daily she would knock on his door, then run and hide, hoping to catch a glimpse of him. eventually his family ended up moving because of these "pranks" ( which they never learned the actual truth about).
• her first celebrity crush, matilda later realized, was lynda carter as wonder woman.
• she hates the taste of olives.
• her favorite candy are twizzlers.
₊˚⊹ ㅤa collection of character analysis/headcanon questions to learn more about your character and your partners'! writing/headcanon prompts requested by anonymous. feel free to edit these as you see fit.
[ 🖐️ ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat do their hands feel like: soft, calloused, trembling ?
[ ☂️ ]ㅤ.ㅤdo they crave touch or fear it ?
[ 🎐 ]ㅤ.ㅤdo they have a sound, like a song or voice, that they associate with peace ?
[ 🕊️ ]ㅤ.ㅤwhen did they feel the safest ?
[ 💤 ]ㅤ.ㅤhow do they sleep ? curled up, sprawled, holding onto something ?
[ 🦇 ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat is a fear they never talk about ?
[ 🔒 ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat is a secret they’ve sworn never to tell ?
[ 🪢 ]ㅤ.ㅤwhen was the last time they broke a promise ?
[ 🫳 ]ㅤ.ㅤwho do they feel they owe, but never paid back ?
[ 💼 ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat do they always carry with them ?
[ 🧨 ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat’s the quickest way to set them off, even if they hide it well ?
[ ⛓️ ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat does guilt feel like to them ?
[ 💢 ]ㅤ.ㅤwho have they never forgiven and never will ?
[ 🩸 ]ㅤ.ㅤis there something or someone that, if lost, would break them ?
[ 🌧️ ]ㅤ.ㅤis there a pain they refuse to heal from ?
[ 🪞 ]ㅤ.ㅤwhen have they looked at their reflection and hated what they saw ?
[ 📿 ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat superstition or ritual do they cling to ?
[ 🌊 ]ㅤ.ㅤwhen was the last time they cried ?
[ 🐾 ]ㅤ.ㅤdo animals like them instinctively ?
[ 🪶 ]ㅤ.ㅤhow do they laugh ?
[ 🫀 ]ㅤ.ㅤwho taught them what love is ? did it hurt ?
[ 💭 ]ㅤ.ㅤdo they believe they’re worthy of being loved ?
[ 🎀 ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat is their main love language ?
[ 🔦 ]ㅤ.ㅤwho do they search for ?
[ 📜 ]ㅤ.ㅤis there a story they love sharing with others ?
[ 🌒 ]ㅤ.ㅤdo they have a dream or goal they have given up on ?
[ 🕯️ ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat memory do they replay when they’re alone ?
[ 🌪️ ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat’s the one choice they regret (not) making ?
[ 🧩 ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat’s a truth about themselves they refuse to admit ?
[ 🍻 ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat kind of drunk are they ?
[ ✉️ ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat kind of letter would they write but never send ?
[ 🗡️ ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat is a scar that they have but never talk about ?
[ 🕸️ ]ㅤ.ㅤdo they have a favourite lie they like to hear ?
[ 🪦 ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat would they want on their gravestone but never admit aloud ?
[ 🎱 ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat kind of future do they crave, and who’s in it ?
[ 🌀 ]ㅤ.ㅤdo they have a recurring dream or nightmare ?
[ 🍃 ]ㅤ.ㅤdo they feel like they belong ?
[ ⚓ ]ㅤ.ㅤwhat does “home” mean to them ?
[ 🧭 ]ㅤ.ㅤwhere would they go if they could disappear tomorrow ?
who : @applecrumb
where : scratch that records
when : monday , when matilda's voluntary overtime from her morning shift has bled into ozzy's afternoon one
ozzy has a habit of speaking before he thinks , and with a few days to reflect on it , he has felt ... somewhat guilty about calling matilda back into the game of truth or dare when she was clearly trying to creep away during the party . he tends to forget that not everyone is as much of a party animal as himself , and that participating in ridiculousness is not part of everyone's modus operandi the way it is for him . this sudden bout of self awareness is what leads him to lean across the shelves to face matilda on the next aisle while she replenishes the stock , creating a buffer of lighthearted conversation before delivering a sheepish apology . " overtime , huh ?? your shift shoulda' ended a half hour ago . better make sure old man silvio pays you properly . don't let him conveniently ' forget ' , " he says , air quotes around the last word . " i wanted to say i'm sorry if you felt like i roped you into the game of truth or dare against your will , 'tilda . it was harmless fun but i'm just nervous that it made you uncomfortable ... " he rambles , wondering if his sincerity can ever be taken seriously when he's someone that's rarely ever not making a joke .
the clock is ticking in slow motion again. matilda finds herself working at scratch that after her shift has already ended. today is kinda bleh. first thing in the morning, she forgot her sketchbook at home ( tragedy ), but thankfully she didn’t forget her water-based markers ( salvation ). currently matilda doodles on her left arm, giving herself tiny tattoos as she mentally prays that no costumers bother her. still bleh, but a bit better. without much activity today, it’s easy for the artist to get lost inside her head, all her attention in detailing the drawings decorating her skin… but one thing about matilda, she can never have a moment of peace. it’s just her luck that today’s next shift is being covered by a certain someone who she is currently and always kind-of avoiding. her ears ring as his voice makes it way to the store. its coming from outside, and its only getting louder. shit, right! it’s monday and his shift is now. how did i forget that oh my god. like a mouse being chased by a broom, the girl quickly scurries away. now, hiding between aisles isn’t enough to escape all interaction, but at least she can pretend to be actually working, or- wait shit i actually have to stock this. matilda where is your mind today?????
ignoring ozzy is not an easy task for the awkward worm, ( he has the ability to make her even more jumpy than usual ), but doing her boring job can be a good enough distraction. that lasts five minutes. the girl actually jumps when she hears ozzy’s voice behind her, oh no. he is too pretty. those blue eyes, they look particularly bright today, and when he smiles… god. he irritates her so fucking much.
here we go. is small talk reeeally necessary? can’t he just- wait. huh? the apology takes apple completely by surprise. does he really mean that? no, i don’t - oh right. matilda, it´s ozzy, he is joking more than likely. well... then i am screwed because i’m really not getting the joke at all. is it a weird sarcastic something? or… um. maybe he is just making fun of me. is that the joke? for the long seconds that matilda’s brain tries to decipher the situation, the girl silently stares. her hardware is in dire need of some updating,- “ um. sure, yeah… sorry, what is the punchline here? ”
𝙒𝙃𝙊 : closed for @applecrumb .
𝙒𝙃𝘼𝙏 : event 001 — in celebration.
the party is alive ( and a little sticky; for someone's spilled orange soda on the grimy carpet ), the pizza is almost out, and the smiths are crooning about charming men again. tate's in a good mood as he weaves through the warm haze of laughter to find the person he's been looking for all evening, and when he spots her, his gentle pace breaks out into an unnecessary jog to cross the rest of the cramped little space. "tilly!" oh, joy, new and fresh, voice instilled with enough warmth to make a stranger think he hasn't seen his best friend in years when it's really only been a few hours since hearing her voice last. he doesn't bother with hellos— why greet someone you never intend to say goodbye to?—and simply reaches for her hand, already halfway tugging her toward the emptier center of the room. "we're dancing!"
one minute matilda is quietly leaning against the wall; people-watching while her fingers lazily trace the outline of wooden planks behind her, and the next a surprised laugh escapes her lips as tate ( her very bestest friend in the whole wide world, according to a crayon-written letter made in pre-school ) tugs her towards the dance floor. “ we are dancing ? ” she mimics his words with loving amusement; “ tate i am not a dancer- ” with a smile the girl complains ( she has always been quite the shitty liar ), “ -and you know that! you know i´m so damn ungraceful that i´m not even... a "dan". ” oh such a stupid joke, knew it as soon she said it... but instead of the routine shame washing over her, matilda snorts ( which is an equally shameful thing to do ), and continues: “ you do realize that now you’ll have to commit to be, like… 200% good at dancing ? since i am in zeros. do you really want that responsibility ? ” oh, but with tate nothing could be shameful; not even a tiny-itty-bit embarrassing.
her dear friend shines, and around him, matilda feels lucky. a belief: that his light is so bright, it blinds. a cheesier belief: it even has the power to drown all her insecurities, at least for a moment. it’s like a force field, of sorts, or maybe like… like being sprayed by… pesticide! or, well, if they created a type of pesticide that made all the bugs smile and dance and have fun instead of… killing them. gosh it´s a good thing i´m not a poet.
( but the better analogy is much simpler. tate is the sun. )
