Gender: Male
Age: 18
Grade: 12th
Hobbies and Interests: Reading, snowboarding, travelling, indie music, Verisimilist media
Gift: Hindsight
Power Details: Mattie has the ability to remember a past memory and see the potential aftereffects an alternative choice on his part would have had. He perceives these potential outcomes as if they were actually happening to him. This gift can be used on any memory of his, as far back as he can remember. He is mostly able to control this ability, the same way most people can simply choose which memory to remember. He is able to use these would-be flashbacks to more actively learn from past mistakes and decisions, usually in more mundane situations, such as using them to correct wrong answers on exams.
Limitations and Drawbacks: As he perceives these would-be memories as if they were happening in real life, Mattie has to be standing or sitting still in order to enter a flashback, making his gift almost unusable in combat situations. In addition, his gift only lasts from thirty to sixty seconds, and is only usable with choices he made. He cannot determine potential outcomes hinging on other people making different choices, nor can he use his gift on things he cannot remember, such as while he is sleeping, for example. Also, his flashbacks are only as reliable as his memories are, meaning if he were to misremember a key detail about a past event, his flashback would be similarly unreliable. Finally, there is an element of uncontrollability to this gift, as sometimes Mattie can enter a flashback without meaning to, particularly during bouts of strong emotion like regret or excitement. While pulling himself out of a flashback is as simple as moving an arm, much like waking yourself from sleep, this means that sometimes Mattie can get caught unawares, potentially leaving him vulnerable during life-or-death situations.
Appearance: Mattie makes a rather small, thin figure for someone his age at 5'3" and around 105 pounds. His skin is pale and easily sunburned, and his face is freckled. He has naturally auburn hair, kept around three inches in length, usually left unkempt with minimal combing at best. He has green, somewhat droopy eyes, an upturned nose, and a small dot-sized birthmark below the left corner of his lips. His jawline is almost triangular, tapering to a square chin, and is clean, with no hint of facial hair.
His attire is pretty uniform, consisting usually of caps, flannel shirts, tank tops, and jeans or joggers. On the day of the abduction, Mattie was wearing a red and blue flannel shirt with a plain white tank top underneath. He had on a pair of dark blue denim jeans with a black belt, and dark brown six-inch boots.
Background:
- Mattie was born on August 12, 2003 to Lillie and James Wilkinson. He has two older brothers, both college graduates and rather distant from the family currently, given they have families of their own.
- His power manifested around first grade, and his teachers took notice when his scores in exams abruptly began rising to near 100%. Mattie's power had manifested at home, and he had realized, with time, that he could ask classmates in flashbacks the answers to questions he didn't know, and then come back to the present with whatever answers they would have given him.
- As a result, teachers remedied this by having him take exams by himself, but he attempted to counter this by remembering when he was supposed to study for the exam and reading the other pages of his textbooks in his flashbacks. It was here he discovered that his flashbacks were only as clear as the memories they originated from. Subsequently, he started paying more attention to the books he was reading, in an attempt to refine his flashbacks, and ended up developing a lifelong interest in reading instead.
- Mattie's parents divorced when he was eight years old. Lillie's phone had been left at home and started ringing on its own, and Mattie, in an attempt to help, handed the phone to James. The person calling was Lillie's lover, as it turned out, and James was immediately, visibly distraught. They broke up soon after, and Lillie left the household to be with her lover. In the aftermath of this event, Mattie entered a flashback and imagined himself not giving the phone to James, and saw that life continued on as normal for the next minute, at least. While he eventually came to understand it wasn't his fault, for a long time, Mattie blamed himself for his parents' divorce, and up to now, there is residual guilt left over from the event.
- Another traumatic event came to occur a few weeks after when, after letting his pet dog out for a walk, he let go of the leash and saw it get run over by a car. He entered a flashback and saw that the event could have been easily prevented and thus blamed himself for his dog's death.
- James came to suffer a mid-life crisis as a result of his marriage's dissolution. In an attempt to get his mind off of things and rediscover himself, he abruptly took two weeks off from his job, and embarked on a road trip across the Pacific Northwest with his son. It proved to be a formative event for both of them that strengthened their bond, and began Mattie's love for travelling. Currently, they dedicate every other weekend to visiting a new place, and have acquainted themselves with Eastern Oregon in particular. The two came to pick up other outdoor hobbies along the way, and chief among them is snowboarding, which the duo dedicate winter break for each year.
- In school, Mattie tends to do best with the liberal arts, including history, geography, and English. He likes reading and learning about different places and, while unsure of what his future career will be, is aiming for something involving worldwide travel. He does not do as well with more technical subjects like mathematics or computer science, as his flashbacks can't make up for his lack of skills here.
- Mattie does not involve himself in extracurricular activities at school too much, and does not gravitate towards any friend group in general, as he has always felt more comfortable by himself, and does not see the point in staying in school any longer than necessary.
- Instead of hanging out with friends, during the weekdays, Mattie prefers to spend his free time at home, either watching Verisimilist shows or movies with his father, or alone in his bedroom, listening to music.
Other Skills: Camping, outdoor survival
