Beautiful People is a series of questions you ask your
characters to answer as a way to get to know them better. It comes from the blog
Further Up and Further In, which I’ve begun to follow and occasionally comment
on. I first saw this set of question in March. They were repeated again in April (just this past Sunday, in
fact). They are questions meant for a couple or pair of Protagonists. So who
better for me to use than Sarah and Jason, now known as Hasón (aka the Spanish
pronunciation of Jason).
Now, before I start grilling them, there are two important
facts for people who don’t know Sarah and Hasón, my Phoenixes of Vervell. First off; Sarah is from our world, which is
on the brink of, and then collapses into, World War III. Secondly; Hasón is
from another plant/parallel world that’s similar to our 18th century but
without gunpowder. Sarah ends up in his world, which is where their trilogy
takes place.
Part One
1. Do they believe in
anything that most people think is impossible?
I can’t say that Sarah does, though by the end of the book
she believes in things she would have never believed in before.
Hasón doesn’t believe in the impossible so much as hopes
that what seems impossible will become possible. He prays a lot to the Gods
about this.
2. Are they strong,
or the "damsel/knight in distress" sort?
Oh goodness no, neither one of them. They are both people of
action, though Hasón thinks things through a bit more than Sarah does. Then
again he’s been trained to do so.
3. Do they have a
special place? (e.g. a corner in his/her bedroom, under a tree...)
They both feel The Grove is their special place. It’s a ring
of Willows with one Dogwood tree and a spring hidden inside. No one else can
come into it, even though they’ve tried to share it with other friends. It’s also where they met (see Part Two
Question 1). :}
4. What occupation do
they have, or plan on having?
Sarah is an elementary school teacher. She’s following in
her mother’s footsteps and it’s also a way for her to avoid the draft (and
war). But, she also really cares about kids and in the time of war wants to give
them a safe place to just be kids.
Hasón is a Scout, a trained swordsman. It’s not a typical
profession for a Nobleman’s son, but he didn’t want to become a Knight due to
their arranged marriages. Now he’s a Sergeant and leads his own small group of men,
patrolling the boarders of the Kingdom and generally keeping the peace.
5. Describe their
current place of residence.
In the beginning of the story, Sarah’s moved back into the
farmhouse in which she grew. There, she’s helping work the farm with her father
while tending and teaching the city children that they are sheltering from the bomb
threats. Once in Hasón’s world... well let's just say that finding a new home is part of the plot. *grin*
Hasón lives in a Sergeant’s house when he’s not on patrol.
It’s a simple wooden duplex, with a outhouse and small yard in the back next to
the barracks where his men live and the practice fields and what not. My own medieval
version of army base housing.
6. Explain their last
crisis. How had they changed when they came out of it?
Sarah’s last big crisis was a gang rape. Five guys did some
nasty things to her and as a result she had to get a full hysterectomy or die.
She was twenty. Afterwards she dove back into taking self defense classes,
mistrusted most guys and decided she was glad she had decided to become a
teacher. In fact, it was easier for her to accept the fact she’d never be
anyone’s biological mom than it was for her to start trusting guys again.
Hasón’s last crisis was being captured by unfriendly kingdom
next door. He managed to escape with his men, but not until after they’d been tortured
by General Wholawski. Hasón left the fortress knowing just how much pain his body
could withstand and how a woman can pull apart friends. His exterior self
became a hard shell, but thankfully, he’s still a lovable huggable teddy bear
at his core.
7. If they could
drive any kind of car they wanted, what would it be?
Sarah would have a red pickup truck. In fact, I suspect she
drives her Dad’s, which is probably an old ford. At least she would drive it if
the war hadn’t put a ration on gas.
Hasón has no idea as his world doesn’t have cars, but he
prefers horseback to a carriage, despite being open to the elements. He likes
being able to see around him – it’s the military training.
8. How do they deal
with change?
Sarah will moan and groan about it, but she deals. She’s
seen a lot of change in her life, with the conversion of the ranch to a farm,
her mother’s death and then the war. The war has changed a lot of things like
de-modernizing the farm, and the rationing of food and gas.
It depends on the change with Hasón. He thinks a lot,
internally running through the various ways to deal with it before selecting
the one he wants. Essentially, change is just another mission to conquer. The amazing
part is he can do it quickly, which is why he’s a good leader.
9. If they had to
amputate one body part, which one would they choose?
Sarah would choose her hair, and if that didn’t count she’d
go for a pinky toe. Easy to get used to having and easy to hide in shoes or
show off in tevas for amusing conversations.
Hasón would give up his sword arm so he could retire from
the Scouts and spend the rest of his life with Sarah. And if the Gods won’t let
him do that, he thinks Sarah’s idea is a reasonable one.
10. What would their
favorite be at the local coffee shop?
Sarah would probably order a French Vanilla, light, extra
sugar, from the local Dunkin Donuts. Starbucks would be too pretentious, though
a good chi from her hometown coffee shop always hits the spot.
Hasón would have no idea what to do with coffee. I presume
his land probably drinks tea like the English, so I suspect, if Vervell has
small cafes, he’d order a nice black tea... No, scratch that. Apparently, he
prefers light green tea. Go figure.
Part Two
1. How did they meet?
Sarah’s best friend had just moved away and she didn’t want
to deal with her brothers that day (she has four, all older) so she slipped out
to the Willows behind their house.
Hasón, disappointed no one would spar him with his new shiny
and sharp sword, went into some woods to fight imaginary foes and rescue
damsels in distress. He stepped under a Willow tree and found Sarah.
They became best (imaginary) friends, almost immediately, as she joyfully joined in
his game, but not as the damsel in distress mind you... at least not one
without a few tricks up her sleeve to get herself rescued.
2. How do these two
deal with conflict?
They both face it head on. Sarah might be more stubborn, but
Hasón is well versed in the way of compromise. He rarely yells though, and
would rather think it through and let Sarah rant and rave before throwing in
his two quinnies (Vervellean cents). After all Sarah isn’t completely illogical
and she often has good points hidden in her ranting.
3. Do they have a
special song, phrase, item, or place?
If they had a song it would be “Some Where, Out There” only
they technically are not ‘sleeping underneath the same bight star’. They
definitely have a place though – The Grove – the place I mentioned above where
they met and played, and later just talked.
4. What kind of
things do they like to do together?
They like to just be together and talk about whatever comes
to mind, or hash out whatever is in their thoughts. Only, it’s mostly Sarah
doing the talking. Hasón loves to listen to her and be near her. He wants to
wrap his arms around her, only there was a limitation to the Grove where he couldn’t
actually touch Sarah. Once she’s in his world, he’s not all sure what he should
do.
5. Describe their
relationship as a whole in 3 words or less.
Skeptical true love
:} Cathryn Leigh
D'awwww *Spook and some of the company nod in approval. Florien just gives Hason a thumbs up, until someone kicks him*
ReplyDeleteSho cute :3
Just one thing: In Part One, Question Five, you have half a sentence attached to Sarah's bit. It irritates me with its teaser- ness *giggles*
Aren't they? *giggles*
DeleteOkay I thought I'd fixed that or at least erased it, but since you've seen it I"ve turned it into more of a teaster *Mu ah ha ha he* :}
"Once in Hasón’s world... well let's just say that finding a new home is part of the plot."
Hey, Cathryn Leigh! I stopped by from Charley's blog...and this post is awesome! Your novel sounds fantastic; I just love fantasy, and it's really cool how you combined dystopia with fantasy. :) OH YES, LOVE IT!
ReplyDeleteAnd hair should totally count for amputation. ;)
Also, did you paint those illustrations? Because they're really great! I love the one of Hason and Sarah. :)
Hello friend of Charley! Glad to have you visit. :}
Deletehe he, well the dystopia gets left behind prety quickly at the begining of the book. Still there is the fact that Hasón's world could become dystopic if they don't stop the evil bad man. *grins*
I agree on the hair, but I suspect only those who have had long hair for most of their life would understand why. (I know it was very traumatic just going from waist length to shoulder length right before high school.) :}
As to the painting, I only wish it was me. But I commisioned from a fellow from Protagonizer, Gabriel Morrison. Both are cropped pictures of the same picture (I forget the medium now) the original is framed and hung above my creating space for inspiration. :}
Yes, I don't think people who have always had short hair would understand. But I just got a pixie cut, and it's crazy how much you can notice the loss of several inches of hair! My hair wasn't even too long, and I've had pixie cuts before. But I still noticed the huge difference. And waist-length to shoulder-length is a huge change. So yes, hair counts! ;)
DeleteWow, that's pretty cool. Gabriel did a great job, and I'm sure his painting is really good for motivation! I need one of them, hehe... ;)
You changed his name? Why did I not know about this until now?!
ReplyDeleteI can't talk, look at Aifa (formally Leah). At least you just changed the spelling. But still... *traumatised*
Oh dear... I forgot to tell you.. it's been a gradual thing. He's been trying it out in my conversations with Charley. Our crews like to meet in pubs and discus all manners of things. *grin*
DeleteBut yes Hasón is formally Jason's new name, as Mathew has become Maunel. I had a few reasons, the first being that I want to use the Spanish pronunciation of Jesus for the Grand-Fayhter (leader of Vervellean religion) and I have a prince Mathew running about my head who is not at all like Scout Mathew, and since the Prince has been around longer (from my original Rainbow Island) he got to keep it. :}
Soo sorry about the traumatization *huggles*