User:Serilly/Sandbox/Ghostbur

"How bad was I, Phil? How awful of a person was I?"

"This page is about Ghostbur. For his living counterpart, see Wilbur Soot/SMP."''

Ghostbur is a ghost who was formerly known as Wilbur Soot. He suffers from severe amnesia and can only remember happy things, and considers himself an entirely separate person from his alive self, who he calls Alivebur. He roams freely around the SMP, and followed his brother Tommy when he was exiled from L'Manberg.

Appearance
Ghostbur is a ghost with light gray skin, black eyes, and darker gray hair. He wears a yellow sweater, black pants, and gray shoes.

Personality
Ghostbur acts a lot like Wilbur did pre-presidency, most likely as a result of his spotty memory. He claims to have let go of the majority of his lifetime struggles, attempting to find peace again. Despite this, in his own words, existence is pain. He seems to struggle with the realization with the fact that there is no afterlife, talking frequently about the fraudulence of religion.

Despite his calmer state, he seems to be very sad, trying not to focus on deep emotional things as a whole. His main goal is to make everybody else happy. He claims that he doesn't see a point to most superficial things, such as marriage, and asserts that since there is no afterlife, there's no point in being anything but kind. As a result, he is a lot nicer than he was directly before his death, treating most of his old lifetime friends with a tentative and hopeful new approach. Ghostbur seems to be highly conflicted about being dead, sometimes expressing desires to be resurrected, and sometimes claiming he is happy remaining dead. He has voiced that he does not want to go back to "Hell", the afterlife he was initially sent to post-mortem.

Ghostbur seems to be very tentative, doing his best to stay out of the way of large-scale meetings and avoiding any and all mentions of his past. Whenever reminded of his history, he becomes very uncomfortable, almost as if he is experiencing some sort of emotional distress at the idea of remembering. His memory isn't entirely gone - he attempted to list the things he does recall in his book, What I Remember. He seems to have detached himself from his living form entirely, to the point where he asks to be referred to as Ghostbur and refers to living Wilbur as if he were a separate person, often using the name "Alivebur". Despite this, Ghostbur is determined to make up for his past self's antagonism.

Ghostbur actively tries to avoid sad or distressing topics, usually those relating to his past but not solely. For example, he didn't Tubbo to explain the full exile situation, which had nothing to do with his actions while alive or dead.

Ghostbur has retained his old affinity for tricks and pranks, and he enjoys messing with his friends in little ways - usually by going invisible and punching them, or by placing menacing signs around them. He has a continued interest in literature, collecting every book he finds in his personal library. He is fond of reading them to people he likes, even if he doesn't remember the context behind some of them. He has also demonstrated a new affinity for building, completing a variety of structures around the new L'Manberg.

Ghostbur appears to be rather depressed, stating frequently that his existence is pain, everything is meaningless, and that he would like to stay dead. He has selective memory loss (dissociative amnesia), likely due to the trauma he suffered throughout his life. When actively attempting to recall information, he struggles to remember the negative experiences of his past. The memories are not entirely gone, though, as Ghostbur somehow alluded to them in his final version of the L'Manberg Anthem, implying that his mind has consciously blocked them out as a natural coping mechanism.

It's alluded to that Ghostbur's memory is actively deteriorating as a result of said dissociative amnesia, or is at the very least fluctuating heavily depending on his levels of stress. He failed to remember writing a book of his memories, despite its creation having been very recent, and states that he doesn't remember half of the things written inside despite having writing them himself. He also tends to forget the names of people and places, often forgetting and remembering people sporadically when his mind registers them as being distressing.

Initial Post-Death
During his death, Wilbur supposedly experienced the afterlife, coming to the conclusion that religion was false due to the fact that he saw nothing while there. Somehow, he returned to the server as a ghost spirit. He claimed to have found peace after blowing everything up, though his subsequent despairing language calls this claim into question. Ghostbur showed a tentative new kindness to the members of the restored L'Manberg, and requested a small area of land to build on, which he received. He offered his advice about rebuilding L'Manberg to the new President Tubbo, complimenting his leadership. Later, he expressed a desire to be resurrected to Tommy and Phil.

Using his small area of allotted land, he set up a place of residence for himself - a crane, with a small underground sewer-based living space. In the sewer, he moved the majority of his preserved documents into a barrel, which was later renovated into a personal library. He then took an hour to compose two more verses for the final version of the L'Manberg National Anthem, delivering it to Quackity for him to sing it.

Later, while relaxing, he mentioned to Quackity that Tubbo wanted to take down the Ninja Alleyway, which was a lie. It is unclear if this was out of a malicious intention or not. After talking about the state of L'Manberg briefly, Quackity proceeded to attempt to forcefully remind Ghostbur of his final explosion plot, but Ghostbur denied having ever detonated the TNT, claiming he would never do such a thing.

After collecting more lost documents and setting up a potion brewing service, Ghostbur compiled everything he could remember into a journal named "What I Remember". It covered a loose recollection of his past both during and before his life L'Manberg, before ending in a hastily typed ellipses (it is disputed whether or not this was intended to be morse code), and a loosely written 'I don't know'. Notably, he seems to believe he won the Election. The only negative things he remembered while writing the book were Phil killing him and a large explosion (it is unclear if this is a memory of Dream's first detonation of L'Manberg, or his own). Shortly afterwards, though, he forgot having ever written said book.

Attempting to Settle Down
Ghostbur requested for Tubbo, and then, later, Jack Manifold, to write custom books, in order to add them to his collection. He assisted Fundy in helping tear down the Orphanage structure erected around his house by Captain Puffy. Later, he would request for another book - titled Arrival - to be written, this time by Philza. He spent some free time with his father, playing music in central L'Manberg, reading some of his book collection, and working on Phil's house together.

After retrieving Fundy's lost items, he attempted to return them in hopes of repairing his relationship with his son. Fundy informed Ghostbur that Eret had proposed the idea of adopting him, and that Phil would likely agree to it. Upset, he went to ask Phil about it, learning that Phil was still in the deciding stage, but would lean towards approving it. He pleaded for Phil to explain his bad history to him, but backed out of the conversation when things got too dark. Ghostbur went for a silent walk in Pogtopia before leaving when that also overwhelmed him, coming to the resigned conclusion that Fundy needed a dad, and he would do whatever he could to make up for his past.

Ghostbur accidentally stumbled across the old button room, but when Phil and Tubbo offered to explain it, he backed out of the conversation immediately. Later, when Phil was consoling Fundy about his failed adoption, Ghostbur attempted to engage conversation, tagging along in secret to their fishing session. After being discovered, Fundy demanded to speak to him, and the two went down to his sewer to talk properly, but Ghostbur refused to acknowledge the darker topics, stating he didn't remember doing any of what he was being accused of. He claimed to have forgotten the adoption process entirely, and attempted to deflect with another fishing offer before escaping with an invisibility potion.

After hearing about Techno and Phil being somewhere out of L'Manberg from Tommy, Ghostbur went to try and find them at Techno's old base. He met up with them despite Tommy's vocal dislike of Techno. Ghostbur didn't seem to grasp the divide between the family, hoping that everyone could re-befriend each other in a conversation, before leaving with Tommy upon his insistence. While returning, Tommy tried to explain Ghostbur's past to him without explicitly saying any names, in hopes of jogging his memory. Ghostbur voiced that he believed he did remember the history of L'Manberg, and recounted all he remembered in response, but his recount was still flawed, and he failed to remember who blew the land up.

Tommy and Ghostbur encountered Connor together, and Ghostbur attempted to get Connor to write a book for him, but failed to find one for him to write in on the spot. Instead, he promised to get one for him later. Together, Tommy, Ghostbur, Sapnap, and Connor planned to make some apology drugs in the Camaravan in order to try and prevent Tommy's exile the next day. Ghostbur expressed confusion at Sapnap being part of L'Manberg, stating he remembered seeing him on the other side in the war for independence, and accused him of being a traitor, like Eret. Once again, Ghostbur described death to Tommy upon his request, and then swore on demand.

When Tommy found Ghostbur's stash of golden apples, Ghostbur explained that he was hoarding supplies to cure villagers for Fundy. He then tried to advise that Tommy should free a bat from a container of glass, to which he received backlash from the entire group, leaving briefly. Ghostbur went and told Tubbo about the gift, accidentally ruining the surprise, before returning to help complete the brewing process despite Tommy's irritation at him. He then showed off a flying Strider he tamed with Fundy to the small group, before they went to gift Tubbo his drugs, supporting Tommy.

Ghostbur and Tommy separated from the group after the exchange to speak privately about how badly the gift giving went. Tommy asked Ghostbur for advice on what to do if he gets exiled from L'Manberg, and asked if he would still be there for him. Ghostbur proposed that Tommy should make a house outside L'Manberg, and Ghostbur expressed that he didn't wholly understand the ongoing drama, but voiced that he would be wherever he is needed. Tommy questioned why Ghostbur was still in existence, and Wilbur explained that he tried not to think about it, in an attempt to avoid forgetting further. He continued to try and reassure Tommy through his distress, wondering aloud who else on the server needed his help, before coming to the conclusion that Tommy was the one who needed his help more than L'Manberg did, now. Ghostbur proposed the idea that he should pretend to be like his alive self in order to go and help Tommy make a new nation, and stated he would follow Tommy, no matter what happened the next day.

Following Tommy into Exile
Ghostbur willingly followed after Tommy, after Tommy was exiled from the entirety of the server - though, he didn't seem to properly grasp that Tommy had been permanently exiled. He asked why Tommy got thrown out, but never received a clear answer. Along the way, he tried to cheer Tommy up, despite not fully understanding the situation. While Tommy and Dream spoke, Technoblade contacted Wilbur in private as they set up a new spawn, asking for their coordinates. The two brothers started afresh together, 2,000 blocks away from spawn, having lost almost all of their items to Dream's TNT. Hurt from the past ordeal, Tommy asked why Wilbur made Tubbo president, and Ghostbur expressed that he genuinely didn't know, entirely separating his current self from his living self. He tried to distract from the conversation when Tommy seemed upset at him.

Ghostbur proposed they make a house to stay in, but Tommy declined, declaring they were only making a campsite, and Ghostbur agreed with the sentiment. Ghostbur spoke up about what he remembered of Pogtopia, noting the similar situation, wondering how it went, and Tommy explained that it went badly. Tommy blamed Tubbo's presidency on living Wilbur, accusing him of having orchestrated this outcome, to which Ghostbur tried to backpedal once more, explaining he did not like to think about his living self. Ghostbur told Tommy about Techno's contact, and seemed confused by why Tommy hated him, before declaring to Tommy that he was going to make up for whatever Alivebur did to him.

When Tommy declared he needed his discs, Ghostbur questioned him about their worth. When Tommy mentioned Tubbo, Ghostbur tried to recall his past motives about promoting Tubbo in the first place, wondering if he may have made Tubbo president because he wanted someone with discs to be in charge, or if he'd had faith in his leadership skills. Later, Ghostbur reminded Tommy of his initial victory in the War for Independence, recounting the duel between Tommy and Dream, and when he gave his discs up for L'Manberg on two occasions, praising him for his past, and offering him reassurance about his bravery.

When Techno joined the call, Ghostbur greeted him fondly and tried to invite him to join them, describing his location aloud to him, despite Techno and Tommy clearly disliking each other. Ghostbur voiced that he only had good memories of Techno and Phil, saying that he wanted the family to reunite once more in exile. When he visited briefly, Ghostbur greeted and chatted to Technoblade with joy, despite Tommy's anger at his presence, and stated that he hoped to go back to L'Manberg soon with them. When Techno mentioned they were anarchy brothers as he left, Ghostbur reacted with confusion, to which Techno reassured that he would explain later. Ghostbur went back to trying to make Tommy feel better, trying to distract him from the drama going on. Together, they named the new settlement Logsted, formally known as Logstedshire. Ghostbur constructed the majority of the new nation’s base, and Dream gifted Ghostbur a book to write in, and some drugs. Upon Tommy’s request, though, he gave the book to him.

Repairing Relationships
Ghostbur travelled back to L’Manberg briefly in order to retrieve some of his books from his home library and take screenshots to hang around Logstedshire. He offered to take Tommy with him, but Dream convinced him not to. Ghostbur later made a Lodestone Compass that would point directly to the White House, where Tubbo lives, and gave it to Tommy as a gift. Later, in a visit to L'Manberg, Phil gifted him a Friendship Emerald from Techno. He then took Tubbo to Logstedshire while Tommy wasn't there in order to show him around. Tubbo offered to explain the events properly to him, but Ghostbur said he'd rather keep avoiding the sadness. Ghostbur asked what Tubbo did to Tommy, and acted encouraging when Tubbo expressed a desire to fix their relationship, complimenting his presidency.

After discussing his old Presidency, Ghostbur expressed vocal sadness at the fact his living self never received a gravestone, further separating his current existence from his living self, talking to Tubbo about how he had supposedly come to peace with the fact that his old self was "awful". Tubbo tried to explain that it was because he was still around, but Ghostbur replied "I'm not him." He led Tubbo back to his L'Manberg base in order to give him a present - a Lodestone Compass that would point directly to Logstedshire, where Tommy lives.

The next day, Ghostbur readily helped Tommy and Dream beautify the Logstedshire Beach, in preparation for a beach party, or as Phil called it, the “beach episode”. He happily agreed to hand out the invitations. However, he was never able to hand the invitations out for an unknown reason. Ghostbur never turned up to the event, and was not seen for a while. It was later confirmed that Dream had told Ghostbur that the beach party was scheduled for a different day.

Quotes

 * "Don't get me wrong, I'm super dead." — shortly after materializing as a ghost on the server.
 * "How bad was I, Phil? How awful of a person was I?" — to Phil after hearing of Fundy's plan to get adopted.
 * "Fundy needs a dad. For sure. And I need to make up for what I did. I gotta make up for what I did."  — after considering the circumstances of Fundy's adoption.
 * "The thing you're holding in your hand, Fundy... it's gonna make me act up if you keep holding that." — to Fundy when he was holding a salmon.
 * "Don't tell Dream I have this. *Gives Tommy picture of Quackity.* We'll be safe, everything will be okay." — to Tommy after the second banishment.
 * "Calm yourself, have some blue." -- often said while handing out his "Blue".

Trivia

 * In life, Wilbur often refused to wear armour (initially due to a peaceful mindset, and later due to a lack of self-preservation). However, in death, he does not seem to share this same ideology, readily wearing any armour that is offered to him.
 * Ghostbur remembers Sally, and has mentioned her a few times in death.
 * Despite being dead, Ghostbur is usually tangible, and can build and interact with the world as usual.
 * In the book that Ghostbur wrote, What I Remember, he writes that he used to spar with Techno when they were kids.
 * Ghostbur's memories are increasingly unreliable. He falsely claimed that Fundy is only 14 years old.
 * Ghostbur likes to hand people what he calls "Blue", an item that supposedly starts transparent and turns blue when it absorbs sadness. Notably, none of Ghostbur's "Blue" has ever been transparent.
 * He is persistently trying to remember his past, but dwelling on the topic for too long usually results in him forgetting anything of value.
 * Ghostbur melts in the rain, and as a result, he needs to take shelter from the water.