When the ink from the inkwell is thrown at an object, it allows other objects to pass through the original object if thrown at the ink stain. The stain returns to the inkwell after a few seconds. According to Artie, the inkwell made Villon "a terrible poet, but an excellent thief."
François Villon was a French poet and thief who was born in Paris in 1431. He was raised in poverty and was adopted by Master Guillaume, who was, coincidentally, a professor of law at the church ( back in those days, churches were kind of like colleges). His adopted father began to teach him Latin grammar and syntax, which may be part of the reason he became a poet. He received his masters of arts degree and could have had a promising career in law or church. He was first arrested for killing a priest, Philippe Sermoise, in a bar fight on June 5, 1455.
On his deathbed, however, the priest publicly forgave Villon, and he was exonerated of all charges. However, François had already skipped town and returned to Paris a year later. He was later convicted of stealing 500 gold crowns from a coffer, just as he finished a poem he was writing. Some say the only reason he wrote the poem was so he could use it as an alibi. He was later banished from Paris and wandered for several years, until he met the Duke of Orleans who admired his work and helped him get pardoned. He was then convicted of another crime, was pardoned again, and wrote more poetry. Finally, his luck ran out and he was arrested for brawling and was sentenced to the gallows. While he was sitting on death row he wrote "Ballad of Hanged Men" and "I Am Francois, They Have Caught Me." A last minute appeal had saved his life and reduced his sentence to 10 years banishment from Paris in 1463. At the time he was 34 years old; he never returned to Paris and was never seen again.