Personality
Jul. 3rd, 2017 12:20 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
teapottsHatter can easily be described as a charming asshole, give or take the charming part depending on his mood. He's spent the majority of his life trying to play both sides of a war out of fear until playing the conman became part of his nature. He's suave when he needs to be, knows how to flirt and compliment his way into someone's good graces. It means, at times, he comes off as a brown-noser, a spineless yes-man ready to agree to anything that will keep his target content.
Spineless is a part Hatter plays well, he acts the coward to keep others believing they have power over him and in truth he is a bit of one. Fear of the crown has kept him from truly working for the resistance and his fear of the resistance has kept him from truly spilling any secrets. While Hatter would like to believe he's portraying confidence and the cowardice is an act, deep down he's still a lost man terrified to lose his life the way his family did.
Despite that, Hatter does have some bravery in him. When he realizes what the ring could mean for the future, he sets out to help. He complains the whole time, because he's lived a life in which he believes there must always been reasonable doubt to his intentions and while he presents himself highly at times he does seem to think little of himself, but he gets the job done when he knows it's the right thing to do. It doesn't hurt that Alice is one of the few people to call Hatter out on his wishy-washy bullshit and proves to be one of the few to believe he's capable of better.
As said, while Hatter can put on a charming show where it seems he regards himself as the best, Hatter has a low sense of self esteem. He doesn't think of himself as a good person or a hero, knowing that his years of playing both sides have ultimately caused more harm than good. He spends much of the series comparing himself to Jack, the valiant prince, and believes himself to come up short due to his shady past. He wants to make up for the harm he feels he has caused, just as he wants to see the Queen's reign end and for his people to be okay again. But he lacks the courage to try on his own, needing someone else's support to push him into being a better person.
It can be easy to tell from the above, that Hatter does not have a support system of any kind prior to meeting Alice and later Charlie. With a suicidal father and a homicidal brother, his family gave him little kindness. His bother trying to kill him was a massive betrayal that damage his ability to make personal connections. His job and life as a double agent made trust even harder to form. Most people who know him, know he's an oily snake. They know he works both sides, they know he's out to save his own hide now that his family has caused so much disappointment for the Queen. The fact he engages in the drug trade doesn't help his image; to the resistance he's a conduit for what's destroying their society, to the populace he's a wealthy kingpin holding their vice ransom. Hatter exists as a friend to no one, having to get by on expensive bribes and overt flattery to make deals. No one bothers to pretend they actually like him or show him any kind regard, and in turn he fakes every enthusiastic interaction.
That's not to say he isn't capable of caring about people. He does have some affection, even if it's mixed with pity, for the lower level members of the resistance. He was once close with Mad March before the latter turned into a royal assassin. He cares greatly about Alice and Charlie in the time he gets to know them, proving that a little push back against his sarcasm and a little kindness go great lengths into making Hatter a loyal ally. And while he has been a double agent for years, he can be steadfast and loyal when someone gives him personal reason to be. While he wants to see the world bettered, that's the big picture, and he doesn't find motivation to be involved until he's given a personal connection to the cause.
Hatter tends to be pretty good at thinking on his feet, a side effect of never knowing when the other shoe was going to drop. He keeps contingency plans for his contingency plans. He never goes anywhere without packing items he can use as bribes, collects favors in fear of needing a quick escape, and tries to have connections all over the country "just in case". Of course he could have never anticipated the arrival of a new Alice, which turned all of his plans on their heads, but in most cases Hatter will have some idea of how to get out of a situation. He tends to panic a little, but his self preservation instincts always kick in.
It should be noted Hatter is a great fighter, possessing enhanced strength in his right arm and a working knowledge of guns. However, he vastly prefers talking his way out of a situation when possible because he hates getting hurt. He will fight when necessary, and will take weaponry over relying on his natural abilities.
He's also quite the flirt. The flirtation is partly because of his life as a conman as sometimes the best way to win someone over is with sexual advances. But it is part of his natural way of dealing with people, particularly young women. He's never crude, unless the situation calls for it, but compliments and playful innuendos as common in his conversations as greetings. Mostly, he just finds the act of flirting fun and gets amused by the reactions he gets. He rarely expects it to turn into anything, though he won't complain if it did, and never means it in a romantic sense. Having such little experience in someone actually caring about him means that when faced with the possibility of love, Hatter turns in a self sacrificing dunce. He closes up on the depth of his feelings, choosing to believe he's the worst possible choice for the object of his affections and will likely try pushing them away.
Spineless is a part Hatter plays well, he acts the coward to keep others believing they have power over him and in truth he is a bit of one. Fear of the crown has kept him from truly working for the resistance and his fear of the resistance has kept him from truly spilling any secrets. While Hatter would like to believe he's portraying confidence and the cowardice is an act, deep down he's still a lost man terrified to lose his life the way his family did.
Despite that, Hatter does have some bravery in him. When he realizes what the ring could mean for the future, he sets out to help. He complains the whole time, because he's lived a life in which he believes there must always been reasonable doubt to his intentions and while he presents himself highly at times he does seem to think little of himself, but he gets the job done when he knows it's the right thing to do. It doesn't hurt that Alice is one of the few people to call Hatter out on his wishy-washy bullshit and proves to be one of the few to believe he's capable of better.
As said, while Hatter can put on a charming show where it seems he regards himself as the best, Hatter has a low sense of self esteem. He doesn't think of himself as a good person or a hero, knowing that his years of playing both sides have ultimately caused more harm than good. He spends much of the series comparing himself to Jack, the valiant prince, and believes himself to come up short due to his shady past. He wants to make up for the harm he feels he has caused, just as he wants to see the Queen's reign end and for his people to be okay again. But he lacks the courage to try on his own, needing someone else's support to push him into being a better person.
It can be easy to tell from the above, that Hatter does not have a support system of any kind prior to meeting Alice and later Charlie. With a suicidal father and a homicidal brother, his family gave him little kindness. His bother trying to kill him was a massive betrayal that damage his ability to make personal connections. His job and life as a double agent made trust even harder to form. Most people who know him, know he's an oily snake. They know he works both sides, they know he's out to save his own hide now that his family has caused so much disappointment for the Queen. The fact he engages in the drug trade doesn't help his image; to the resistance he's a conduit for what's destroying their society, to the populace he's a wealthy kingpin holding their vice ransom. Hatter exists as a friend to no one, having to get by on expensive bribes and overt flattery to make deals. No one bothers to pretend they actually like him or show him any kind regard, and in turn he fakes every enthusiastic interaction.
That's not to say he isn't capable of caring about people. He does have some affection, even if it's mixed with pity, for the lower level members of the resistance. He was once close with Mad March before the latter turned into a royal assassin. He cares greatly about Alice and Charlie in the time he gets to know them, proving that a little push back against his sarcasm and a little kindness go great lengths into making Hatter a loyal ally. And while he has been a double agent for years, he can be steadfast and loyal when someone gives him personal reason to be. While he wants to see the world bettered, that's the big picture, and he doesn't find motivation to be involved until he's given a personal connection to the cause.
Hatter tends to be pretty good at thinking on his feet, a side effect of never knowing when the other shoe was going to drop. He keeps contingency plans for his contingency plans. He never goes anywhere without packing items he can use as bribes, collects favors in fear of needing a quick escape, and tries to have connections all over the country "just in case". Of course he could have never anticipated the arrival of a new Alice, which turned all of his plans on their heads, but in most cases Hatter will have some idea of how to get out of a situation. He tends to panic a little, but his self preservation instincts always kick in.
It should be noted Hatter is a great fighter, possessing enhanced strength in his right arm and a working knowledge of guns. However, he vastly prefers talking his way out of a situation when possible because he hates getting hurt. He will fight when necessary, and will take weaponry over relying on his natural abilities.
He's also quite the flirt. The flirtation is partly because of his life as a conman as sometimes the best way to win someone over is with sexual advances. But it is part of his natural way of dealing with people, particularly young women. He's never crude, unless the situation calls for it, but compliments and playful innuendos as common in his conversations as greetings. Mostly, he just finds the act of flirting fun and gets amused by the reactions he gets. He rarely expects it to turn into anything, though he won't complain if it did, and never means it in a romantic sense. Having such little experience in someone actually caring about him means that when faced with the possibility of love, Hatter turns in a self sacrificing dunce. He closes up on the depth of his feelings, choosing to believe he's the worst possible choice for the object of his affections and will likely try pushing them away.
