Barry Ill

* V4 (Current)
* V3
* V1 - V2

**Barry Erry Ill** is the main protagonist of *Sparklecare*.

Barry is self-admitted to Sparklecare Hospital after his family doctor neglects his health over money. He mentions to Nurse Mood that as a child he ate a glow-stick and thereby lost his sense of taste. He also claims he is missing several organs, but is unaware of which ones.

## Appearance

Barry is a short, fat cat with mint-green fur. He has tea-green paws, muzzle, tail-tip, and similarly colored eyes. His ears are rounded, and he has small button nose and a flat snout. When he was first admitted to the hospital, he wore a white hospital gown with baby blue dots, much like the other patients. His wristband is RYB, signifying he is receiving the universal treatments that all patients are given.

After being situated, he was left with a bloodied hospital gown that is torn directly down the center, as well as a large sutured scar along his abdomen alone with several others, including top surgery scars. As of Volume 3, his left ear now sports a scar from being cut off and re-attached.

## Personality

A former physics student at CLCtech University that had admitted himself to the Sparklecare hospital after his previous doctor neglected to help him with his needs. Barry struggles with a poor immune system, and that makes him prone to getting sick really easily. He also deals with paranoia over others trying to get him sick, and has an obsession with science to try and ground himself in reality.

### Scientific

Barry loves science, which means all his opinions are based on facts and reality. He doesn’t believe in anything that can’t be explained with science, whether it’s fantastical mythical creatures like unicorns or HIGHER POWERS like Emem and Tears. A big reason he’s so invested in science is a coping mechanism, a way to ground himself in reality by reminding himself of what’s real and can be explained, because unexplainable things scare him– largely because of his schizophrenia. He’s very, VERY vocal about his rejection of make-believe, and refuses to accept the idea that some things can’t be explained with science.

### Germ-repulsed

Barry HATES germs. Because of his poor immune system and how easy it is for him to get sick, he’s deathly afraid of anything that might cause illness. He doesn’t like touching other people’s hands, touching dirty things, or being anywhere that isn’t clean or sanitary. His schizophrenia causes him to have paranoid delusions that people are intentionally trying to make him get sick. He also hallucinates visualizations of germ-covered things. He hates being close to other people in general, unless he is very afraid. He will cling to people he trusts for comfort, ignoring any fears of physical contact he might have otherwise as he seeks their support.

### Prude

Barry is very prude, and he doesn’t like swearing or talking about anything that is inappropriate. He considers it to be “verbally unsanitary” and like dirty language is literally just that, and that the more you swear the more unclean you become. He thinks inappropriate jokes are immature and annoying, and he doesn’t like talking about sex outside of mature and scientific contexts (using exclusively scientific terms). Truthfully, the biggest reason he feels like this is because growing up his parents raised him to not swear or be foul-mouthed. It was deeply ingrained into him, and he never grew out of it.

### Self-absorbed

Barry is very arrogant and is constantly talking about how amazing he is. He always brags about his ~superior intellect~ and how he’s so much more intelligent than everyone else. He thinks nerd jokes are funnier than any other kinds of jokes, and he thinks only the opinions, thoughts, and feelings of “smart people” are worth listening to or caring about. However, you have to wonder if all of the things he says are genuinely how he feels…

### Pro - Healthy

Barry cares a lot about his health, and tries hard to take care of himself to prevent from getting sick. He exercises frequently and tries to stay in shape, and because of this he is extremely physically strong. Barry can’t taste or smell anything, so the taste of food doesn’t really matter much to him– so he chooses to eat things that are good for him. He’s also vegan due to childhood trauma involving orb produce, but he doesn’t put down anyone else who isn’t the same as him.

### Fanfic Writer

Barry actually loves writing a lot, it’s his biggest passion outside of science. He likes writing fanfiction about Bingo Bongo Theory (his favorite show ever) but he doesn’t share it with anyone else. He says it’s because he doesn’t think he’s a good enough writer yet. He also says it’s personal to him. Sometimes he says he just hasn’t finished anything yet. His story changes a *lot.* Some think it’s just because he writes… *scientific* things. And nobody else is *intellectual* enough to understand them.

### Likes

Science (specifically physics, biology, and psychology), reading, writing, Bingo Bongo Theory, being clean

### Dislikes

Anything that defies science (like magic), swearing, unsanitary things and environments, immature jokes, touching people

## Relationships

### Uni

Although Barry doesn't believe in magic, Uni is seen as a big comfort source for Barry, even rarely letting Uni touch him or initiating the contact of his own volition. The two are roommates, and since Barry doesn't like messes, Uni even cleaned it up a bit for Barry when he moved in. Uni also greatly respects Barry's germ issues, such as when he used his magic to catch him, rather than his hands. Uni is shown to have an obvious crush on Barry, and finally verbalizes it in Volume 3, but it is unknown if Barry returns these feelings.

### Polaris

Barry was lovestruck by Polly at first sight  due to their illness, The Uncommon Cold. He's shown to get nervous, blushy, sweaty, glossy-eyed  and extremely happy whenever he's seen to interact with them. He also starts acting very different from his usual self, behaving more like a giddy fanboy than his normal proud and arrogant self. At the start of volume 4, he's also implied to have a suggestive dream about Polly where apparently Polly asks him to read a dictionary cover-to-cover regardless of how long it takes  which... is probably a euphemism for... something else. He seems to not realize (or maybe care) that Polly isn't really reciprocating or responding to his affections.

### Caroline

Caroline and Barry have a turbulent relationship for most of the series (thus far). She calls him mean names like "Gangrene," and doesn't take his phobia of germs seriously. She is also shown to be jealous of the attention he receives from Uni. They make amends in Volume 2 and become better friends, but things still aren't perfect. Caroline has ongoing issues with Barry due to his tendency to unintentionally hurt Uni's feelings.

### Jay

Jay and Barry weren't properly introduced to one another until Volume 2. They had a bit of a rough start, when Jay mistook Barry not wanting to shake their hand as him being put off by their extra fingers. Jay is also put off by Barry's gloating when he beats Uni at cards. Still, they are nice to him, and even comfort him sometimes- such as saying that it's okay when he does not want to enter the garbage chute.

### Hemera

Hemera and Barry seem to get along well enough, although Hemera doesn't enjoy Barry's attitude sometimes. She originally believed she had a crush on him before quickly losing interest after Barry began talking about how he is "the best". Barry deeply respects Hemera, because her interest in botany extends to being fond of biology - giving them a common scientific interest. Their friendship becomes extremely turbulent after the end of Volume 2, when Hemera assists the Doctors in capturing him from the dump.

## Trivia

* Barry has a crush on a tortoise named Shelldon Gooper from *Bingo Bongo Theory*, a Spinch parody of the real television show *The Big Bang Theory*. He writes self-insert/self-ship fanfiction about himself and Shelldon. Bingo Bongo Theory was first mentioned on the Ask Sparklecare in the Wedoncare arc (which takes place directly before Volume 1).
* Barry was designed on July 10, 2016, on the same day as Kills, Snare, Cuddles, and Charles.
* Barry is Pre-T and does not plan on taking it, but he has already had top surgery.
* He came out as trans at a very young age. He had top surgery when he was 21, but does not take testosterone as he is not bothered by how his voice sounds
* Barry has sicks-a-lot, autism, OCD and schizophrenia.
* His olfactory and gustatory systems are damaged from repeatedly becoming ill as a child. As a result of this he cannot smell or taste anything.
* He is 5’1“ tall.
* His favorite flower is lavender.
* His favorite color is orange.
* He likes 5980’s music (which is 80s music on Earth) and is embarrassed about it because he feels it’s not good for his Intellectual and Sophisticated Image.
* Barry actually feels a lot of anxiety over some of his interests because he’s worried about people thinking less of him.
* Barry’s response to the sex question is “What?”
* Barry has a unicorn plushie named **Corny** as seen here, while Uni has a plush named **Bearry**.

## References

1. ↑ https://sparklecarehospital.tumblr.com/post/708252063141969920/is-there-any-info-on-barrys-grandparents-i-cant
2. ↑ https://sparklecarehospital.com/comic/update16/page37/
3. ↑ https://www.sparklecarehospital.com/comic2/update16/page48/
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 https://www.sparklecarehospital.com/comic2/update42/page126/
5. ↑ https://www.sparklecarehospital.com/comic/update28/page79/
6. ↑ https://www.sparklecarehospital.com/comic/update42/page119/
7. ↑ https://www.sparklecarehospital.com/comic3/update34-5/page104b/
8. ↑ https://sparklecarehospital.com/comic3/update33/page99/
9. ↑ https://sparklecarehospital.com/comic3/update33/page98/
10. ↑ https://sparklecarehospital.com/comic3/update57/page177/
11. ↑ https://sparklecarehospital.com/comic4/update1/page2/
12. ↑ https://www.sparklecarehospital.com/comic2/update12/page37/
13. ↑ https://www.sparklecarehospital.com/comic2/update51/page153/
14. ↑ https://www.sparklecarehospital.com/comic4/update25/page80/
15. ↑ https://www.sparklecarehospital.com/comic2/update3/page7/
16. ↑ https://www.sparklecarehospital.com/comic2/update5/page13/
17. ↑ https://www.sparklecarehospital.com/comic2/update12/page34/
18. ↑ https://www.sparklecarehospital.com/comic2/update5/page14/
19. ↑ https://sparklecarehospital.tumblr.com/post/179461828382/barry-and-hemera-o
20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 20.3 https://sparklecarehospital.tumblr.com/post/190510408837/could-you-maybe-ramble-off-some-fun-facts-about