Character Questionares, Ect.

[GGJ5]

You know what this is for. Have a party. :3

Here are the first two sets of questions for Erin:

Character Questionnaire 1
This questionnaire is found in Gotham Writers’ Workshop’s Writing Fiction.
You might start with questions that address the basics about a character:
• What is your character’s name? Does the character have a nickname?
Erin Chloe Spenser. Has been shortened to Rin by a few lazy people… or Chloe rarely.

• What is your character’s hair color? Eye color?
Dark brown, both.

• What kind of distinguishing facial features does your character have?
Big and expressive eyes, a wide and open smile

• Does your character have a birthmark? Where is it? What about scars? How did he get them?
A scar on her knee from a concert when she was in middle school.

• Who are your character’s friends and family? Who does she surround herself with? Who are the people your character is closest to? Who does he wish he were closest to?
She's closest to her boyfriend, her best friend Cassie, her band, and her childhood friend Silhouette and Si's family. She's very much a people-person… so there's probably a lot of people she'd love to hang out with more.

• Where was your character born? Where has she lived since then? Where does she call home?
She was born in Sherman, TX, but her family moved out to Louisiana when she was in middle school-- hence the reason she doesn't have an accent that matches the majority of her peers.

• Where does your character go when he’s angry?
It depends. If the person she is angry with is a person who is very close to her, she will isolate herself from them after a loud and long rant. If the anger isn't directed toward a close friend-type, then she'd go and rant to them rather than at them… but it varies a lot… sometimes when she's upset she does stupid things on impulse if no one is around.

• What is her biggest fear? Who has she told this to? Who would she never tell this to? Why?
Her biggest fear is coming to the end of her life and, looking back on it, seeing it as nothing but a huge disappointment. She fears never measuring up, messing it all up, and being incapable to realize dreams.

• Does she have a secret?
To her, her learning problems are a secret. She hates talking about it, hates it when her family brings it up, and is very, very selective about who she shares the information with. The topic embarrasses and humiliates her, and is one of the few things that can truly make her feel inferior.

• What makes your character laugh out loud?
She laughs far too easily and is very easily amused… she'll live till about 105 at this rate.

• When has your character been in love? Had a broken heart?
She has had a broken heart only once, and would tell you now that she is in love with the same one that broke it.

Then dig deeper by asking more unconventional questions:

• What is in your character’s refrigerator right now? On her bedroom floor? On her nightstand? In her garbage can?
Fridge: the leftovers of a chocolate cake, tea, Diet Dr. Pepper [mom's favorite], orange juice, leftovers galore. Bedroom floor: clothes, a bracelet, her booksack, its contents strewn about, a pair of headphones, flip-flops. Nightstand: ipod and speakers, cell phone (when it's not lost…), her notebook for music, markers and pens to write and doodle, a few guitar picks. Garbage can: a pair of broken flip-flops, old sunglasses she was tired of, schoolwork

• Look at your character’s feet. Describe what you see there. Does he wear dress shoes, gym shoes, or none at all? Is he in socks that are ratty and full of holes? Or is he wearing a pair of blue and gold slippers knitted by his grandmother?
She prefers barefoot when she can. If she HAS to have shoes on, they're bold-colored flats, flip-flops sometimes, Converse, or --rarely-- boots.

• When your character thinks of her childhood kitchen, what smell does she associate with it? Sauerkraut? Oatmeal cookies? Paint? Why is that smell so resonant for her?
Rice, spice, and chicken. Neither parents enjoy cooking, but rice her mom will willingly and nearly always make if she must make something. Lots of stir-fry types.

• Your character is doing intense spring cleaning. What is easy for her to throw out? What is difficult for her to part with? Why?
She'll easily toss anything from school, but other than that she's kind of a packrat. She keeps all birthday cards, anything that was given to her unless she was mad at that person enough to ditch it, CDs and their cases, notes from friends, chords and tabs for songs, anything music-related she's done….

• It’s Saturday at noon. What is your character doing? Give details. If he’s eating breakfast, what exactly does he eat? If she’s stretching out in her backyard to sun, what kind of blanket or towel does she lie on?
She may be sleeping, depending on how late she stayed up the night before. Or talking to her friends or boyfriend online or on the phone or via text…

• What is one strong memory that has stuck with your character from childhood? Why is it so powerful and lasting?
In early years of elementary school, once overhearing her teacher speaking harshly about her to a colleague-- the first time she saw herself in that light.

• Your character is getting ready for a night out. Where is she going? What does she wear? Who will she be with?
Either with her friends, boyfriend, or both. Chances are it'll involve movies or music, or dancing if she can persuade anyone to actually go and dance with her. She'll probably have on a cotton graphic tee or something, skinny jeans or flair depending on her mood, flats… bracelets, necklace, earrings, rings, and a hat if she has one to match, too.


Character Questionnaire 2
This questionnaire was invented by the noted French author Marcel Proust. These questions are frequently used in interviews so you may want to pretend you’re interviewing your characters.

• What do you consider your greatest achievement?
There's a song I wrote… I actually wrote the music for it, too, which almost never happens, 'cause I feel like I suck at that part… but I played it for my boyfriend once, before he was actually my boyfriend, and I think it's one of the best things I've written. I know that's not, like, the hugest achievement ever, but it works for me, so, yeah.

• What is your idea of perfect happiness?
To love and be loved, to be doing what you love with the people you love the most, giving them a way to share that love-- or whatever they're feeling-- with the ones they love… well, it kinda looks like it's all about love… I guess that's it then. Oh, and fudge brownies and hot chocolate. And a warm blanket… all those together would be perfection. Don't mess.

• What is your current state of mind?
: )

• What is your favorite occupation?
Making music.

…yes, I mean that literally. -_-

• What is your most treasured possession?
My pretty stratocaster and keyboard… ^.^ I like the shiny.

• What or who is the greatest love of your life?
Yukito Maki <3

• What is your favorite journey?
Somewhere I've never been.

• What is your most marked characteristic?
Um… I laugh a lot… and loudly… I guess that counts?

• When and where were you the happiest?
In my boyfriend's arms. Disney world can't compare. ^.^

• What is it that you most dislike?
People that tell hurtful lies/talk bad about others behind their back but not to their face. If you're gonna be a jerk about something, at least have the backbone to say it up front instead of through the back door…

And okra.

• What is your greatest fear?
Seeing the ones I love hurt/dead… Even just /thinking/ about it is bad enough. And being a disappointment. And someone coming into my home and hurting me.

• What is your greatest extravagance?
I… don't know? I'm not that … extravagant… I don't know how to answer this.

• Which living person do you most despise?
Anyone who hurts someone that doesn't deserve it. Anyone that hurts someone I love.

• What is your greatest regret?
Everything I've done that got me the "I'm not angry with you, just disappointed" speech-- I know I frustrate them and burden them, I don't need a reminder each time I screw up royally. Whenever I know I've ruined something beautiful, hurt someone who was beautiful. When I separated myself from him because I was doubtful and jealous and hurt and wouldn't let it out until it exploded.

• Which talent would you most like to have?
Like those musical prodigy kids who can hear a piece and play it back perfectly, have perfect pitch, can compose and play crazy complex scores at age six… that would be friggen sweet. I'd learn every instrument out there. It would be awesome.

• Where would you like to live?
Somewhere outside of the state of confusion.

• What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
Being alone and unwanted. Unworthy of another.

• What is the quality you most like in a man?
loyalty

• What is the quality you most like in a woman?
…loyalty? I don't get this question… I like boys… :/

• What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Not being normal. Not being able to understand things everyone else can get in a heartbeat. Not being able to hide how I feel. It all comes from the same source, and I hate it.

• What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Dishonesty to the point that it's cruel and hurtful. You can't ever be entirely true always, but when what you're saying/not saying is HURTING someone else, that's just wrong.

• What do you most value in your friends?
I know that they're gonna be there when I need them, just like I'm here if they need me.

• Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
I… don't think I have any of those…

• Whose are your heroes in real life?
Lacey Mosley (:

• Which living person do you most admire?
I admire my boyfriend. No, really. I do.

• What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
Um… patience, I guess. It's nice and all, but no one really has it… so it's kind of a waste…

• On what occasions do you lie?
When I want to get out of something/get someone off my back.

• Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
"I don't know." Perfect for this one… -_-

• If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
I'd make the NLD go away.

• What are your favorite names?
Girl: Tara, Krystal, Sabrina

Boy: Levi, Shade, Royce

• How would you like to die?
Happy.

• If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what do you think it would be?
Awesome? xD

• What is your motto?

To love another person is to see the face of God. Dunno where that's from, but I've heard my mom say it. I like it. I think it's true. : )

ETA:

Here's Erin's "Fears" sketch. She has a lot, so I picked a less dramatic one... not so deep. But still real. So... yeah. (:

□ What is your character afraid of? Failure? Abandonment? Spiders? Write a scene showing the origin of this fear, and another showing this fear in recent times.

I wanted to go on the tilt-a-whirl. She wanted the new roller-coaster. You know, the one with the highest incline and fastest speed in the South or whatever the lame cutesy tagline was. I've been called stubborn enough times to be pretty sure it's true, but I guess I half-wanted her to convince me to go with her. It's stupid, really, to be so nervous about a park ride, but I was eight and I'd never been on one of those before. So I was already kind of freaking inside, but only a little, and it was the exciting "I'm doing a new thing that's kind of scary-ish, yay!" freaking. So we both slipped into the back compartment-thing (what are those things called, anyway?) and the handrails snapped down. Well, the problem was that I never heard ours make a snapping sound... I said so to Silhouette, and she shook the handle enough to convince both of us that it was fine. Well, we started rolling. And we went up. Slowly, of course. Didn't seem bad-- actually, kind of... a let-down. Reached the top, and then tore down the other side. It was all good.

Except then it stopped. Just as our cart and just edged over the top of the highest slope. Yeah. Everything was straight down below us. It was. Freaky. Not only were we stuck there, on a broken coaster as the people twenty million feet below us tried to fix it without killing anyone, but remember how I didn't hear the snapping sound? Yeah. I was right. It started slipping up from its spot, and Si and me being the young, impressionable, blah, blah… we clung to that stupid handle for dear life, trying to hold the thing back so we wouldn't come tumbling out to our deaths.

We were stuck like that for what they claim was seven minutes. Ha. Right. Our hands were so red and white and soar coming down, and I couldn't walk afterward I was shaking so much.

I hate roller coasters.
----
I want to meet the person whose bright idea it was to take a field trip to the new State Capitol. I want to meet them. And punch them in the face.

Seriously, don't you do that in third grade? Not in high school? In fact, I did do that in third grade! And I hated it then!

Thank God that I could keep holding onto Yukito's hand the whole time and no one would think anything of it. There was no way I was going to announce to any of them that it freaked me out inside to be THIRTY FOUR STORIES above the ground. THIRTY FREAKING FOUR. In case you missed it the first time. You know, it's illegal to drop pennies from the top of the Capitol, because you could kill someone with them. True story. A penny-shaped hole straight through the head. Imagine that with a person. Yeah. Creepy much?

And there was WAAAY no way I was gonna tell Yukito that, either. How lame would that be? There are way taller buildings in Japan.

But still. It's like, the tallest building in the south part of the state. That's freaky. And then they make you stand on the balcony at the top, like it some kind of privilege to look down to your doom and get all sick and dizzy and shaky inside. I hate it! Hate it hate it hate it hate it!!! Yukito looked out on the balcony. Cassie looked out on the balcony. And I didn't want to let go of his hand-- I already felt myself swaying, so far up there… if I let go, I'd fall, and falling was a thousand times worse than the alternatives. I had to go, too, if he went. If I breathed enough to walk myself there. God, I hated it…

It took me a minute, but I did glance over-- with everyone watching, with your boyfriend watching, you don't wanna fail and look like a complete wimp just because you're high up… So I did, and god, I regret it. I might have been standing still, but that glance made me feel like I was falling, and I felt sick, and really dizzy and weak and I buried myself in Yukito because I couldn't stand up on my own and I didn't want everyone else seeing the pathetic look on my face.

"Why didn't you tell me you were afraid of heights?" he whispered to me.

Shoot. So much for that effort. I made myself swallow hard and answer him: "I'm not afraid of heights. I'm just dizzy, I dunno why. But it's not because I'm scared." Well, I thought I sounded believable. Even if I was nauseated and trembling and couldn't look anywhere around me.

"Yes, you are, but it's not a problem, Erin. We'll go back down now, okay?"

I couldn't make myself even nod, because I thought I might throw up, and that would be the worst. But I guess he took my silence as agreement, because when I opened my eyes again I was on the ground floor. Cursing myself for the stupid, kiddie phobia. So not attractive.

[Elda Forever]

Yukito's Questionnaires!

Character Questionnaire 1

• What is your character’s name? Does the character have a nickname?

Yukito Maki(Maki Yukito) - Yuyukun

• What is your character’s hair color? Eye color?

Black hair and brown eyes.

• What kind of distinguishing facial features does your character have?

A crooked smirk, very full lips for a boy.

• Does your character have a birthmark? Where is it? What about scars? How did he get them?

N/A

• Who are your character’s friends and family? Who does he surround herself with? Who are the people your character is closest to? Who does he wish he were closest to?

Band mates, especially Aidou Kagayaki, his mother, Erin Spenser.

• Where was your character born? Where has he lived since then? Where does he call home?

Born and bred in Chiba, Japan, and lived there constantly until he was about 15, when he lived in Tokyo for the summer, then when he was 17 moved to the U.S.

• Where does your character go when he’s angry?

He shuts himself up in his room and turns the music up.

• What is his biggest fear? Who has he told this to? Who would he never tell this to? Why?

He's afraid of someone knowing everything about him, and being able to use that against him. Because the people he trusted the most, and shared with the most, such as his parents, always pinned him against a wall with that knowledge.

• Does he have a secret?

Yes. His father.

• What makes your character laugh out loud?

Very embarrassing situations. When he laughs out loud, he's always cherry-red in the cheeks.

• When has your character been in love? Had a broken heart?

He fell in love with a girl when he was living in Tokyo for the summer at the age of 15. She played the violin, and loved to draw, and he was learning to play guitar and piano, and drew awfully. They became very close very quickly, and she committed suicide three weeks before they moved back home to Chiba.

Then dig deeper by asking more unconventional questions:

• What is in your character’s refrigerator right now? On his bedroom floor? On his nightstand? In his garbage can?

Fridge – leftovers from last night's dinner, half a gallon of milk(half gone), wine coolers for his mother, and a twelve-pack of soda for Yukito, as well as spices and easy-to-make lunch ingredients. Bedroom floor – discarded clothes, music CDs, pencils, paper, and notebooks, and his blankets. Nightstand – Erin's camera, his band's CD, his reading glasses in a black glasses case, a ballpoint pen, and a small flashlight. Garbage can – awful lyrics(as well as good ones), chewing gum, soda cans, and wrappers.

• Look at your character’s feet. Describe what you see there. Does he wear dress shoes, gym shoes, or none at all? Is he in socks that are ratty and full of holes? Or is he wearing a pair of blue and gold slippers knitted by his grandmother?

He used to wear lots of worn-out-looking tennis shoes, but in the summer goes for black flipflops. In houses he goes barefoot, and rarely wears just socks.

• When your character thinks of his childhood kitchen, what smell does he associate with it? Sauerkraut? Oatmeal cookies? Paint? Why is that smell so resonant for him?

He thinks of curry and steam. Curry because it has always been his favorite meal, and he was happiest watching his mother make it in the kitchen. He used to sit on the counter and lean over the rice maker, feeling the very hot steam floating up around his face and hair. The colors he thinks of are eggshell white and a light brown.

• Your character is doing intense spring cleaning. What is easy for him to throw out? What is difficult for him to part with? Why?

He throws out old birthday gifts, most of them gag gifts that are just embarrassing to look at, and useless in their own right. He throws out old clothes – the ones that are unrecognizable – and refuses to throw out his favorites He keeps most of the CDs he has, and is very adamant about cleansing out his notebooks for awful and good lyrics. Has a few memorable objects, such as his purple beanie baby, a black cap he never wears anymore, and some jewelry, that he refuses to get rid of.

• It’s Saturday at noon. What is your character doing? Give details. If he’s eating breakfast, what exactly does he eat? If she’s stretching out in her backyard to sun, what kind of blanket or towel does she lie on?

Yukito is probably at his own house on Saturday at noon, either sleeping in, hanging out with his girlfriend(or friends) or trying his best to figure out a way to hang out with his girlfriend(or best friend. But usually he'll just browse the internet for new music, dumb games, or whatnot.

• What is one strong memory that has stuck with your character from childhood? Why is it so powerful and lasting?

The first time he went to a rock concert at age 15.

• Your character is getting ready for a night out. Where is he going? What does he wear? Who will he be with?

Probably will be going out to a concert or a movie, so he dresses casual, with his favorite black leather jacket, a cool-looking(and dark-coloured) t-shirt, and faded blue jeans. He will probably be with his friends, or his girlfriend. On a very rare occasion his mother.

Other Facts – Reading glasses(he hates them), pierced in one ear(right ear when he was 14), has broken his left arm and his nose, had chicken pox when he was 11, has been in a casino as well as in a play, kept a purple beanie baby from his first dating relationship, has owned a music-playing device of some sort since he was 4, hates lettuce, loves curry.



Character Questionnaire 2

This questionnaire was invented by the noted French author Marcel Proust. These questions are frequently used in interviews so you may want to pretend you’re interviewing your characters.

• What do you consider your greatest achievement?

my music. it's the one thing I don't repeatedly screw up in my life.

• What is your idea of perfect happiness?

not having to deal with people, just speaking to them through the music. and being with someone I really care about, and that it would be that simple to be with that one person.

• What is your current state of mind?

content and perhaps even happy, actually. I feel like things are looking up.

• What is your favorite occupation?

musician.

• What is your most treasured possession?

I have a girlfriend...does that count as possession? or how about my first cd?

• What or who is the greatest love of your life?

Erin Chloe Spenser

• What is your favorite journey?

The journey of a thousand miles, maybe? Or three doors down.

• What is your most marked characteristic?

The way I smirk, my usual inability to accept happiness very easily.

• When and where were you the happiest?

Last night in my girlfriend's arms.

• What is it that you most dislike?

Sometimes, myself. other times, the hatred that keeps getting through all these dumb filters in the world.

• What is your greatest fear?

That i will hurt everyone close to me and end up dragging them down.

• What is your greatest extravagance?

My music?

• Which living person do you most despise?

My father.

• What is your greatest regret?

That i broke her heart.

• Which talent would you most like to have?

The ability to make everything better.

• Where would you like to live?

I don't really care

• What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?

Slowly killing the person you love the most

• What is the quality you most like in a man?

weakness

• What is the quality you most like in a woman?

strength

• What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?

My hatred

• What is the trait you most deplore in others?

Their hatred and anger that they take out on other people

• What do you most value in your friends?

That they know when to not say anything and when to jab me where it hurts so i'll feel better

• Who is your favorite hero of fiction?

The count of monte cristo

• Who are your heroes in real life?

Real life has no heroes

• Which living person do you most admire?

My best friend Aidousan

• What do you consider the most overrated virtue?

gracefulness

• On what occasions do you lie?

When i am trying to push people away

• Which words or phrases do you most overuse?

'whatever'

• If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I would make myself more comfortable with my words, and maybe myself

• What are your favorite names?

Evangeline and Hizumi

• How would you like to die?

Id like to just die quickly and painlessly, with no blood

• If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what do you think it would be?

dead

• What is your motto?

People screw up. The world IS screwed up. But we have to make the most of things. Because we're still here, still today. And we have to just learn to pick ourselves up and move on somehow. And if you hurt the people you love like that, its wrong to hold them down – you have to let go.

[The Phantom of Paris]

I haven't had time to do any of the sketches yet, but here are the two questionaires for Cassie...


Character Questionnaire 1
This questionnaire is found in Gotham Writers’ Workshop’s Writing Fiction.
You might start with questions that address the basics about a character:
• What is your character’s name? Does the character have a nickname?
Cassandra Emily Wright. Mostly referred to as Cassie. Other nicknames include Cass, Strawberry/Berry, and Sugar, but that one is used only by Adele, the Wright family cook.

• What is your character’s hair color? Eye color?
Wavy red hair, blue eyes

• What kind of distinguishing facial features does your character have?
Lots of freckles!

• Does your character have a birthmark? Where is it? What about scars?
How did he get them?
Small scar on her stomach, from complications due to the C-section her mother had in order to deliver her--Cassie was born two full months premature. Also one on her right calf from a fall while climbing a tree, and a cluster of circular-shaped ones on her thighs. These are from the times she has gone into anaphylactc shock due to allergies--Cassie is allergic to all nuts except peanuts--and was forced to use her epi-pen, which administers medicine through a needle.

• Who are your character’s friends and family? Who does she surround
herself with? Who are the people your character is closest to? Who
does he wish he were closest to?
Very close to her best friend Erin, Erin's boyfriend Yukito, and Yukito's friend Kagayaki. Used to be very close with her younger sister Shelby until the divorce of their parents. Wishes she had a boyfriend, or just someone to truly love her.

• Where was your character born? Where has she lived since then? Where
does she call home?
Born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana. She's lived her entire life in her family's old New Orleans mansion.

• Where does your character go when he’s angry?
Usually to her attic, or the gazebo, to be alone and think.

• What is her biggest fear? Who has she told this to? Who would she
never tell this to? Why?
Two biggest fears are hurricanes and being alone. She doesn't like talking about her fears, because she feels she has to be strong for her younger sister.

• Does she have a secret?
Well, if she told you, it wouldn't be a secret!

• What makes your character laugh out loud?
Funny movies, utter randomness, inside jokes. Cassie laughs a lot.

• When has your character been in love? Had a broken heart?
She's had a broken heart, but not in the romantic sense. While she's had a few relationships in the past, she's never really experienced love.

Then dig deeper by asking more unconventional questions:
• What is in your character’s refrigerator right now? On her bedroom
floor? On her nightstand? In her garbage can?
Fridge: Grapes, watermelon, and strawberries, a chicken breast that is currently defrosting for tonight's dinner, a big pitcher of pink lemonade, leftover gumbo from lunch.
Bedroom floor: Clothes galore, sketchbooks, paintbrushes, her hairbrush.
Nightstand: Sketchbook, iPod, alarm clock, lamp with lampshade she decorated herself.
Garbage can: Mediocre sketches, tags from new clothes, school stuff, plastic packaging from new paintbrushes.

• Look at your character’s feet. Describe what you see there. Does he
wear dress shoes, gym shoes, or none at all? Is he in socks that are
ratty and full of holes? Or is he wearing a pair of blue and gold
slippers knitted by his grandmother?
Usually wears flip-flops wherever she goes. Today, they are blue with green stripes.

• When your character thinks of her childhood kitchen, what smell does
she associate with it? Sauerkraut? Oatmeal cookies? Paint? Why is that
smell so resonant for her?
There's usually always something cooking in the Wright kitchen, and a sweet-spicy-savory smell fills the air, like barbecue sauce and chocolate chip cookies and jambalaya and chicken.

• Your character is doing intense spring cleaning. What is easy for
her to throw out? What is difficult for her to part with? Why?
She won't get much done, because every time she picks something up she'll gaze at it and reminisce. The hardest things for her to throw away are her sketches, no matter how bad, because she'll flash back to exactly what she was thinking about when she drew them.

• It’s Saturday at noon. What is your character doing? Give details. If he’s eating breakfast, what exactly does he eat? If she’s
stretching out in her backyard to sun, what kind of blanket or towel
does she lie on?
She's been up for about four hours already, and is most likely sketching or watching a movie, or maybe out taking a walk.

• What is one strong memory that has stuck with your character from
childhood? Why is it so powerful and lasting?
Once, on a family vacation in Rome when she was about four, she got separated from her mom and started talking to a nice lady by the gelato shop. The lady asked if she wanted to come with her, and Cassie said yes. But when the Italian lady started to pull Cassie towards her car, she got scared and wriggled away, running away from the would-be kidnapper and into a museum. Her mom found her there, crying, and hugged her tight, telling her to never do that again and how much Cassie had worried Mommy. It was probably the only time Cassie's mom had expressed any sort of affection towards her oldest daughter.

• Your character is getting ready for a night out. Where is she going?
What does she wear? Who will she be with?
She'll be with her friends, maybe for a movie night or something. Most likely wearing a skirt of some kind, or a sundress--she has a strange addiction to sundresses and cannot get enough of them.


Character Questionnaire 2:
• What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Getting an art piece of mine into an art show in Baton Rouge, at the Capitol Building for a charity event type thing. Even my mom said she was proud of me.

• What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Surrounding myself with the people who care about me.

• What is your current state of mind?
I guess I'm okay...

• What is your favorite occupation?
Artist. I want to create things and share the way I see the world with...the world, I guess.

• What is your most treasured possession?
My easel

• What or who is the greatest love of your life?
New Orleans. I absolutely love living here. Also, Reeses Pieces.

• What is your favorite journey?
I've been to so many places, I can't pick...but I've never been to Boston and I've always wanted to go.

• What is your most marked characteristic?
My hair, I guess? It's bright. And pretty. I love being a redhead.

• When and where were you the happiest?
When I'm with my friends. Or with my dad.

• What is it that you most dislike?
Dishonesty. I hate people who lie all the time at the expense of others.

• What is your greatest fear?
Being caught in a hurricane. I hate them, okay? I don't care if I live in NOLA and hurricanes are a part of life. I HATE THEM. Kthnxbai.

• What is your greatest extravagance?
My oil paints are not cheap...*sigh*

• Which living person do you most despise?
My mother--and I mean that in the loosest sense of the term.

• What is your greatest regret?
I've got a lot...I wish I had seen that my mother was cheating before it was too late. I wish I could have told my dad I didn't want him to move out.

• Which talent would you most like to have?
The vision of Mary Cassat combined with the awesomeness of Monet and the patience of Seurrat. Have you SEEN "Sunday Afternoon On the Island of La Grand Jatte"?

• Where would you like to live?
France or Italy

• What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
Being betrayed

• What is the quality you most like in a man?
Honesty

• What is the quality you most like in a woman?
Um...as a friend? Honesty, randomness

• What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
I hate how easily hurt I am. I wish just once I could be strong

• What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Dishonesty and disregard for the feelings of others, shallowness, selfishness

• What do you most value in your friends?
They're always there, and they can always make me smile.

• Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
Um...Marianne Dashwood, even if I've only seen the movie. She's strong-willed and independent, and I love her ideas on love.

• Whose are your heroes in real life?
Mary Cassat, Georgia O'Keefe, Frida Kahlo, my dad.

• Which living person do you most admire?
My Dad.
• What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
I really don't know...Grace, I guess? So people are clumsy. Get over it!

• On what occasions do you lie?
I try not to when I can help it. I really do.

• Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
"Epic win" and "epic fail".

• If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
I would like to be braver.

• What are your favorite names?
For a girl: Alanna, Lila, Gabrielle, Claire

For a boy: Matthew, Will, Mark, Ethan

• How would you like to die?
I...don't know?

• If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what do you
think it would be?
I would love to be a cat, actually. Just sleep all day and wake up to have people petting you and telling you how pretty you are? I'm in.

• What is your motto?
The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return. It's from Moulin Rouge. Love. It.

[Elda Forever]

Character: Yukito Maki
What does your character think about during downtime? Past experiences? Philosophical questions? Hopes? Disappointments? Put your character on a boring freeway drive and get inside his/her head for a scene or two.
Note: Contains PG:13 language. <_<

Yukito slipped into the Volvo with a little wave to his mother, one hand reaching for his keys, the other automatically reaching for the stack of CDs in the glovebox. He pulled out several options, and went for a mix he'd forgotten even burning. The first whines of a guitar screeched out of the speakers, and he tapped one foot as he revved up the engine. Today he was on a roadtrip, and he was going alone. He had considered inviting Aidousan along, or maybe Erin, but it was only for an hour or two, so why bother them about it? Besides, he already knew Erin was over at Cassie's house for another one of their sleepovers, and he wanted to enjoy some quiet time alone.

As quiet as his quiet time ever was. Considering that he could feel the wheel vibrating underneath his hands from the volume. He glanced at the radio with a surprised, and pleased look. I'd forgotten I had this song.

'When did you sell yourself for the white oleander's touch?
I won't let you off so easy, you can't escape the clutch
Of the watching lover in the shadows
I will find you!'

Yukito moved in several ways as he pulled onto the parkway, his foot tapping, his hand beating lightly against the wheel, his lips mouthing the words. I remember when I first heard this song. This band was my first hardcore metal band. He wanted to smile at the memory. He wanted to share the moment with someone. But he couldn't explain what made the memory a happy one. It came with so many conflicted feelings, none of which he wanted to try and word in a telling. He couldn't do it justice, though he'd tried so many times. The closest he had ever come was in his music, which he mother had grown considerably more concerned about as time went by.

He sighed, watching out for the idiot behind him who insisted on passing him, even though he was slightly above the speed limit.

~~

“Drive faster, you drive like a grandma!” Natalie complained, rolling her eyes as she thrust her head out of the open window of the beaten-up truck. “Look, there goes an old man right now, and he's passing us!”

“We'll get there in plenty of time, Natalie, stop hassling me,” he grunted, irritated by her constant nagging. “And that guy is speeding. I'd rather us get there two seconds late – which we won't be – than get in a car wreck. Besides, I'm not even supposed to be legally driving this thing. We're lucky to be on a straight road, and you're lucky I'm even behind the wheel.”

“Gosh, you're such a stiff, Yukito. Why don't you ever loosen up a little, huh?” he didn't answer her for a stretch of time, because she already knew his reply.

“I don't always have to risk my life to feel like I have one.” Natalie rolled her eyes again and started running her hands through her blonde hair, dyed with streaks of red and blue, which Yukito teased her by declaring that the color choice made her look like the United States' flag. She always retorted by slapping him across the forehead and telling him not to make fun of her mother country, or she would totally dish up crap on his.

“But you could actually live your life a little, instead of letting everyone push you around. I mean, look at yourself. You let your mother cut your hair in this totally dorky-looking style, you never go out and just have some fun, and you've never even seen any movies worth watching! I mean, seriously, you haven't seen The Nightmare Before Christmas?! It's a classic!”

“I do too do stuff, like right now. I'm going out to a rock concert with my girlfriend,” he smirked at her, and allowed a beat before adding, “What band are we going to see, again? Traveling Cords?”

Natalie let out a series of dramatic gasps and utterances of disapproval, including a false faint against the window, “It's called TRACES OF THE CORE. Get it RIGHT, won'tchya?”

“I...I no underlstand this Engrish...” he whined in a mocking voice, exaggerating his Japanese accent, “What 'wontchlyalr' mean?”

“Oh, shutup, you freaking moron. You have better English than I do.”

“That's because I'm smarter than you,” he said simply, earning a hard smack on his head.

“I'm gonna give you brain-damage one of these days, and you'll be sorry,” she slipped a CD into the worn-out radio, “HERE is the band we're going to see. God, I can't believe this is your first concert. You are a seriously sheltered smart-ass.”

“I pride myself on being a 'seriously sheltered but hot smart-ass',” he smugly corrected her, “And I'm not going for the music as much as to get you off my back. What is this stuff, anyways?” he made a face at the player, and Natalie laughed.

“Trust me, once you hear these guys live, you're gonna fall in love.” she played along with the strings portion of the first song with her own, well-played air violin, and Yukito smiled at her as she started singing along, “When did you sell yourself for the white oleander's touch....?”

~~

Yukito swerved slightly on the road when a huge semi-truck flew past him, wandering into his lane. He growled under his breath at the driver, muttering a few choice words in both languages he knew. She would laugh at me all the time. She would probably laugh at me now, cutting my own hair and trying to look so much cooler than I am, but still not 'living my life' as she kept trying to make me do. I wonder what we would be doing right now..if things hadn't ended the way they did?

He felt his throat tighten and his fists clenched on the wheel. Natalie's death had hit him hard. For weeks he had wondered why he hadn't been able to stop the bleeding, why she would have done something so stupid again. Why she hadn't kept her promise to stop, forever, so that he could save her from her parents, from her old life. He had promised in return to protect her, to remind her that she was strong and beautiful and talented, and to give her new, better memories. His mother knew little of how seriously the two teenagers had taken their relationship, nor how dark their secrets had been, told to each other in a dark little apartment Yukito had found for her. A little studio, all her own. So she could draw. Usually, she drew dark pieces with chalk, of chained beings and tortured-looking souls that seemed to leap off the page and cry in your ear of all their sufferings. Then, once in awhile, she would convince Yukito to pose for a drawing, and he would argue with her for ages until she finally just ordered him around. The first time she had tried makeup on him, he'd gone ballistic, but after seeing the first drawing she'd done of that, he had to admit he liked how it turned out. It somehow made him feel better seeing his own - what was it called? Would it be lame to call it his darkness? - expressed on his face, in between the chalk lines. She said he was always her favorite subject, because he was so good at sitting still and not moving for long periods of time.

“Just like you're sleeping or something,”

“Maybe I am. After all, you're so boring.”



Maybe I'm only sleeping.

[More than Music]

Two Character Questionares of Kagayaki.... comin' right up!

~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~

What is your character’s name? Does the character have a nickname?
Kagayaki Aidou AKA Aidou Kagayaki. AKA Kagakun, Kakikun.

• What is your character’s hair color? Eye color?
Hair: Naturally bluish-black, but he typically dyes it a bright red, sometimes a light brown.
Eyes: A deep brown.

• What kind of distinguishing facial features does your character have?
Very round and childish in appearance.

• Does your character have a birthmark? Where is it? What about scars? How did he get them?
No birthmark that he knows of. Two scars on the back of his head, one from falling when he was young and one from surgery to extract a tumor. A notable scar on his right ribs, from when some kids beat him up in high school. Scars scattered all over his torso from similar situations, but none so serious.

• Who are your character’s friends and family? Who does she surround herself with? Who are the people your character is closest to? Who does he wish he were closest to?
Friends: Yukito Maki, Erin Spenser, Cassie Wright, Shelby Wright, Karyu Tanaka, Yumi Saito, his ex-bandmates.
Family: Mother, Father.

• Where was your character born? Where has she lived since then? Where does she call home?
Born: Chiba, Chiba, Japan. Still lives there with his mother and – to his dismay – his father.

• Where does your character go when he’s angry?
When he's upset, he goes somewhere he can be alone, if possible.

• What is her biggest fear? Who has she told this to? Who would she never tell this to? Why?
His biggest fear is Takeshi Matsumoto finding him again. He has told no one this, especially not his friends, because he thinks it would worry them.

• Does she have a secret?
His secret is why he is afraid of Takeshi. Takeshi nearly strangled him once, but was – thankfully – stopped by his cousin (who was also Kagayaki's girlfriend at the time; Sumire Matsumoto).

• What makes your character laugh out loud?
Some things that make Kagayaki laugh very hard are when his friends do silly things – can be pretty much anything – but what makes him laugh the hardest are animals that clap and squeak and squawk. It's so hilarious to him he doubles over in laughter.


• When has your character been in love? Had a broken heart?
Kagayaki has been in love three times – one continuing: Sumire Matsumoto was his girlfriend in high school. She split up with him saying that he was 'suffocating her', when they both really knew it was because of her cousin, Takeshi. Yumi Saito was his girlfriend until just recently, being previously Yukito Maki's girlfriend. She split up, saying that she thought they'd 'both been through enough already', when the truth was that she still loved Yukito. She told him this once. His current love remains a secret, and her name is Cassie Wright. She's been very sad lately and he doesn't want to break her heart like he thinks he has his previous two girlfriends, so he hasn't told her anything of it yet.

Then dig deeper by asking more unconventional questions:

• What is in your character’s refrigerator right now? On her bedroom floor? On her nightstand? In her garbage can?
On his nightstand is his cellphone – a picture of Yukito and his girlfriend Erin sleeping as the background -, and his wallet – which contains his ID and small pictures of Yumi, Simure, Yukito, and Kagayaki's mother.

• Look at your character’s feet. Describe what you see there. Does he wear dress shoes, gym shoes, or none at all? Is he in socks that are ratty and full of holes? Or is he wearing a pair of blue and gold slippers knitted by his grandmother?
Kagayaki's feet are small, and they usually don tennis shoes that are rather new, simple but rather cool looking. He doesn't much care what his shoes look like, but they are very comfortable. He usually goes around in just socks and never goes barefoot if he can help it.

• When your character thinks of her childhood kitchen, what smell does she associate with it? Sauerkraut? Oatmeal cookies? Paint? Why is that smell so resonant for her?
When Kagayaki thinks of the kitchen in their house when he was growing up, he thinks of curry and green tea, because that was what his mother used to make him when he was upset or sick – which was quite often when he was a young boy.

• Your character is doing intense spring cleaning. What is easy for her to throw out? What is difficult for her to part with? Why?
He finds it very hard to throw things away, even when he is cleaning, because most everything he has in his room is connected to a certain memory or experience, usually because it was given to him by a friend he rarely sees anymore.

• It’s Saturday at noon. What is your character doing? Give details. If he’s eating breakfast, what exactly does he eat? If she’s stretching out in her backyard to sun, what kind of blanket or towel does she lie on?
A Saturday at noon usually finds him in his room, laying on his bed – which is clear of all clutter and wrinkles by his mother with great devotion – in his room – which is of equal cleanness, for the same reason -, staring up at the ceiling. His thoughts go over everything that has happened to him, and his expression – which is a rare one for him – is one devoid of emotion, but all his pain and happiness and fear is echoed in his eyes.

• What is one strong memory that has stuck with your character from childhood? Why is it so powerful and lasting?
One of the most powerful memories in Kagayaki's childhood was when his father left for the last time. It had begun with an argument between his parents, and Kagayaki had been hiding underneath the table when his father had packed up and stormed out. The boy had looked up just in time to see his father glance back, fury in his eyes, with the afternoon light streaming through the door, before he disappeared for twelve years.

• Your character is getting ready for a night out. Where is she going? What does she wear? Who will she be with?
Usually when Kagayaki is going out, it has something to do with his friends. He dresses rather casually, usually in either bright colors that no normal adult would wear or in black t-shirts that he bought simply for the reason that they remind him of Yukito's t-shirts.


Character Questionnaire 2
This questionnaire was invented by the noted French author Marcel Proust. These questions are frequently used in interviews so you may want to pretend you’re interviewing your characters.

• What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Staying alive.

• What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Finding love, and my friends being happy.

• What is your current state of mind?
Crazy?

• What is your favorite occupation?
Being in a band with my friends.

• What is your most treasured possession?
My handphone; so I can talk to with the people I care about.

• What or who is the greatest love of your life?
Cassie Wright, but she doesn't know.

• What is your favorite journey?
The journey home; that's where all my journeys end and begin.

• What is your most marked characteristic?
How happy and excited I act.

• When and where were you the happiest?
When the band was still together, Yuyukun was still in Japan, and my heart wasn't as broken.

• What is it that you most dislike?
When I can't do anything to help.

• What is your greatest fear?
Being strangled/suffocated to death.

• What is your greatest extravagance?
Love?

• Which living person do you most despise?
Matsumoto Takeshi.

• What is your greatest regret?
That I wasn't more careful, cautious, and didn't think things out.

• Which talent would you most like to have?
To be able to love someone right.

• Where would you like to live?
Home is fine.

• What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
Not feeling anything; not being in control of who you are, where you are, how you are.

• What is the quality you most like in a man?
Um... I guess the strength to not let something hold them back from what they need to do/say.

• What is the quality you most like in a woman?
Being able to love someone even if they don't deserve it.

• What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
How afraid I am.

• What is the trait you most deplore in others?
How they can't let anyone in.

• What do you most value in your friends?
How loyal they are, what a good influence they are on me.

• Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
Don't have one; real people are much more heroic.

• Whose are your heroes in real life?
My mother and Yuyukun.

• Which living person do you most admire?
Yuyukun.

• What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
Physical strength.

• On what occasions do you lie?
When what I should say might hurt someone I care about.

• Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
“Yah”, and “Doumo”.

• If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
I would be smarter.

• What are your favorite names?
Naruse, Maki, Karyu, Yumi, Saito, Cassie, Yuuki.

• How would you like to die?
Quick and painlessly; being shot in the head, in a car accident, or something like that.

• If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what do you think it would be?
A handphone? Small, chirpy, and reminds you of what's important?

• What is your motto?
'If you act happy, you'll feel happy.'

[GGJ5]

haha... Erin would like to announce the fact that she hates long car rides with a passion and that apparently I am evil for putting her in one.... (:

□ What does your character think about during downtime? Past experiences? Philosophical questions? Hopes? Disappointments? Put your character on a boring freeway drive and get inside his/her head for a scene or two.

Long car rides sucked. Especially when it was just her and her parents, and her mom only wanting to listen to Chopin and the Canadian guy who played piano for cows and all that. Not that that was bad or anything, but when that's all you heard for an hour… She still didn't know why she had to tag along for this ride. At least they were going back home-- there was literally nothing in Walker, Louisiana. Nothing, unless you counted a Wal-Mart. And they weren't even at the Wal-Mart, they'd spent way too long at some lady's house-- some friend of her mom.

More than anxious to get out of the car and to get back to civilization, Erin turned up her iPod louder, moving with the rhythm, her knees becoming a drumset for her fidgeting hands.

"...She reaches forward
And grabs ahold of my sleeve
Her antennae wrap around me
Her lungs infect me as she breathes…"

The music was a lot different than from what she played… the weird 3/4 time of Project 86 and dark, complicated lyrics. They had a weird, great way of harmonizing screaming with a choral sound with almost whispering, and It gave such a cool, eerie vibe. Erin smiled to herself as she imagined covering the song in her own style. She did that a lot-- would hear a song and imagine herself performing it, sometimes in front of a fantastic, crazy throng and sometimes for an audience of one. Or somewhere in between, sometimes… it was fun, though, because it both gave her something to look forward to and it gave her ideas for fun covers or inspiration for her own stuff.

She imagined herself now singing this, but it was in a music-video format in her head. Gosh, she wanted to do that so bad! The crazy fun camera angles, the wicked lighting, the wardrobe and makeup and performing something that would, no doubt, end up blazing the charts on Youtube. Billboard crap she could care less about, because people like Timbalaine or whatever his name was were on the top 40 from Billboard.

And she let herself imagine Yukito was in the video, too. She really, really wanted to play music with him. Not just once, or in practice, but for real For him to be there with her when they actually made it to really good venues, when they finally scored as an opening act, and then headlining… festivals, tours, rallies… all of it, she wanted it to be with him. Now imagining her dreams without him made it seem like they were half-baked. Like there was this big, gross chunk just glaringly missing.

Erin smiled, remembering the taste of his kisses and the sound of his voice when he was talking to her. It sounded different, somehow, when he was talking to her than to others. She liked it. It was musical in its own way, and it made her feel just… right. Like he made her better, like she couldn't do anything to disappoint him or fail him. It made her dreams seem that much more attainable.

The artist changed, and Erin grinned, thinking her iPod's shuffle knew her freakishly well.

"I'm gonna ride like I've got the cops on my tail
I'm gonna live my life like I'm out on bail
I'm gonna be out front, gonna blaze a trail
I'm gonna cross that line!""

[Elda Forever]

Character: Yukito Maki
Sketch: Part one of two in his 'Worst Fear' sketch. One is the origin of the fear, two is the fear in modern times.


Warning: PG:13 for graphic scenes and brief language. Ooooooh... Yukito is a potty-mouth these days, isn't he?

~~

“I'm back, Natalie-san!” Yukito called out, slipping into the small and drab apartment, juggling the grocery bags and backpack in his hands. He expected Natalie would come help him once he'd gotten into the door, but was disappointed to see no Natalie as he clumsily dropped half of everything he carried. “Damn.”

With the air of someone who often waltzed around without being invited in, Yukito went to the kitchen and started to put away the groceries, calling out with a teasing voice, “You'd better be brave. There was no more mild curry. Only the spicy stuff. We'll see if the silly foreigner can handle it. And those pictures from your birthday party came back. I have them here on the counter.” he dropped the opened envelope on the counter, smirking at the dumb expressions on the familiar faces. Natalie's bright face and blonde hair contrasted with Yukito's smug look and dark, longish locks. She had her arms wrapped around his neck, her face peering over his shoulder. “Hey, have you heard from your folks? I bet they'll leave soon once they realize that you're not coming back anymore, then you can be released from this unofficial house arrest – I know you hate it.” His flippant manner was cut short by the continued silence. “Natalie-san? Are you here?”

She wouldn't be asleep. Yukito was a late-sleeper, but Natalie couldn't stand to sleep very late, or very long, for that matter. He started for her bedroom door, peering around the corner, “Natalie-san?”

Natalie was lying on her bed, facing away from the door, not responding and not moving. Yukito's face showed worry, and he stepped into the room. “Natalie, what's up? Are you not feeling well?” He touched her shoulder, and it felt stiff beneath his touch. His heart leapt into his throat and refused to allow passage for the little air he would have the strength to gasp for. “N-Natalie?”

A little movement, barely noticable, and a painful moan. She turned to bury her head farther in the pillow. Yukito leaned forwards to search for her face, and that was when he noticed all the blood on the sheets. She seemed to be soaked in it. It was in her bed. Her clothes. On her skin. In her hair. Blood, everywhere. It was cool and sticky now, a dark, almost-black hue as it showed a fatal path leading from her wrists. Yukito let out a shuddering gasp, drawing back fearfully as his head started to spin out of control. She's alive...she's still alive. Oh my god, she's alive.

“What the hell are you doing, Natalie?” he demanded in a shaky voice, not daring to touch her. “What the hell did you do?”

“Yu...kun....” her voice was weak, quieter than a rustle of fabric could be, and Yukito felt tears threatening to come. “I di'n...t...I...di....wan...”

He leapt up and started pacing wildly about the room, his cell phone in his hand as he dialed. “Hello? Please...please help me..my...my girlfriend. She's commiting suicide...or she's trying to. She's...there's blood...” he stared fearfully at the bed, as if some creature was going to leap up and drag him into the still-growing pool of crimson as well. “There's blood everywhere...please...please help her. I don't...I don't know what to do.”

A pause. “No, I'm...I'm fifteen. She's fifteen, too. I...I can give you directions. Will you be here soon? Please, send them quick.”

“Yu....kun....” Natalie's voice would never have been heard if there had been any other sound in the entire apartment besides Yukito's panicking breath as he hung up the phone. “I...di'n...”

“Natalie, you hang in there, okay? I'm going to...” he looked about helplessly, “I'm going to try and stop the bleeding.” He raced to the bathroom and soaked down all the towels he found there in cool water. The water dripping across the floor, he rushed back to Natalie's bedside, starting to carefully and delicately soak up the blood, gradually putting pressure on her wounds, both his hands on her wrists. He stared down at the towels as they turned dark red, and he could feel Natalie's eyes on him, her eyes distant and glassy, her eyes closing slowly as if her eyelids were heavier than steel.

“Yu...kun..Mmsorry...” she whispered, and he didn't move. The tears were falling down his face by now, and a furious gleam appeared in his eyes.

“You're not going to die on me, Natalie.”

“Mmsorry...” she closed her eyes, her eyebrows knitted against the pain as Yukito furiously pressed tighter on the reopened scars that were bleeding...spilling out her life into his hands.

“DON'T DIE ON ME, NATALIE!”

She didn't respond anymore, and it felt like hours until Yukito heard a distant clatter, and the blurs of people came in and talked to him, and ran past him and all around him. They only touched Natalie for a few seconds, and pulled him away from her. A guy was talking to him about shock, about trying to stay calm, because they were doing everything they could. But all Yukito could do was cry. He didn't have the strength in him to even hope. He stared blankly at his hands, feeling the blood and cool water there. He looked up at the bed and saw the messy sheets, and forgot everything except that image.

She's gone. She left me, here, alone. And she didn't even take me with her.




~~


Character: Yukito Maki
Sketch: How Your Character Shows Love

He hated this. He hated the waiting, the wondering, the endless, irritatingly love-struck questions in his mind that continued to interrogate every possibility available until he went crazy.

“Konnichiwaaaa!” Erin squealed by way of greeting, flying into his room and tackling him in a hug. “I missed you, Yuyukun!”

Yukito's face went crimson from the nickname, as well as other things. “Yikes, Erin. You're going to kill me one of these times, with hellos like that.”

“Aww...what do you mean by that?” Erin said with a playful pout that he loved. He smiled and kissed her in response. I love you, Erin. He smiled at her, and started to lead her out the door, “I have a few questions, on this our...what? Third date? I think we should start going out together more often, so I can very easily lose count. Dates often, and as late as possible, starting with - ”

“What's that?” Erin said suddenly, pointing to a magazine tucked underneath the pillows on Yukito's bed. Now, a magazine may not have been out of place in his room, and it certainly wasn't odd for it to be thrown into a corner somewhere. The odd thing about this magazine was its colors, and his cover. For one thing, it was pink. For another, it showed the Jonas Brothers on the cover of it. Yukito cursed inwardly as Erin slipped over and picked up the magazine, intrigue written all over her smiles as she studied it. “Should I be worried?” She teased, dangling the magazine between two fingers, her other hand on her hip.

He felt the heat rising to his cheeks already, so he hurried to snatch the offensive article out of her hands, “It's just...research.”

“Research?” Erin questioned, arching an eyebrow, “And might I ask what this research is for?”

Yukito stuck out his lower lip, considering how to answer her. He'd promised to tell her the truth, always, but it was hard to say it right so it didn't sound either extremely pompous of him or really, really lame...and he was putting good money that it would probably sound really, really lame first. “Just...I was just wondering about some things. I haven't exactly shown myself skilled when it comes to understanding and working with...females, so I was just -”

“Gosh, you're starting to sound like my dad,” she laughed with a roll of her eyes, taking the magazine back and, unfortunately for him, found his handwriting on some of the pages as she rifled through. He could see the amusement in her eyes, and felt himself really go red as she started to read aloud, “Ten Things A Girl Likes To Get, And Likes To Give...hm...interesting...Hottest New Faces....I have to say I'm biased...let's see...oh, wow...” She smiled as if she had just seen a large-eyed puppy on the page staring at her, “Ten Ways To Tell If He's 'Boyfriend Material'. You have notes written all over this one, Yukito...”

“Give it back...” he said in a strained voice, reaching for it. But she giggled and kept going.

“You highlighted all these here..Number one: He asks you questions about your day. If he's really boyfriend material, he'll want to know how you're doing, and keep learning more about you. Even if the things you're up to are things he isn't really interested in, or doesn't necessarily agree with.” She sent him a grin, “Do you do that, Yukito? You have a check by it.”

“The checkmarks are for ones I think actually make sense...” he grumbled, resigned to his fate, and sort of wanting her feedback on this one.

She giggled, “Number two: he can disagree with you. Even if you have your differences, you and your boyfriend need to be able to maturely debate opinions. This puts down a stable foundation for your future. Aww...that's sweet, you have 'maturely' underlined in red, and everything.”

He let out an irritable sigh, looking away from her laughing face to stare at the posters on his wall, “Are you done yet?”

“Let me just skip to the bottom. Number one sign that he is NOT boyfriend material: he can't keep his hands to himself.” Erin looked up at Yukito with a sly grin, and started laughing again. With a mocking, motherly air, she asked, “Yukito, can you keep your hands to yourself?”

Yukito didn't answer her at first, glaring at the wall.

At last he mumbled, “If I sit on my hands, yeah.”

Then he leapt over and started kissing her as if he couldn't help himself, and Erin giggled, pretending as if she was trying to push him away.

“That's really sweet, you know,” she said at last, and Yukito watched her face until she continued, “That you 'did research' on being my boyfriend.”

“I've gotta do it right this time, Erin,” he said quietly, a serious look on his face.

“Well, you're doing a fine job so far,” she declared with another giggle. A smile lit up on Yukito's face.

“Oh really, now? I think I do best at number eleven: He kisses you like crazy all the time, because he just can't help himself.” He ignored Erin's squealed protest that there were only ten on the list, and tackled her to the ground, resuming his quick pecks on the cheek that always led to long, drawn out kisses he loved.

“I love you, Erin Spenser.”

[The Phantom of Paris]

Here's part one of Cassie's fear sketch...forgive me, I know nothing about hurricanes...

~What is your character afraid of? Failure? Abandonment? Spiders? Write
a scene showing the origin of this fear, and another showing this fear
in recent times.

Thump. Thump. Thump. Cassie's feet took turns smacking the leg of her chair, matching the sounds of the endless hammers outside. Cassie looked up as the light in the kitchen dimmed, sheets of plywood blocking out the light of the afternoon.

"Adele?" she asked, reaching for her box of crayons and selecting a purple one. "Why aren't they letting the sun come in with us?"

Adele turned around. "There's a big thunderstorm coming, Cassie. They're doing that to make sure the house stays okay."

Cassie set down her crayon. "But..." she began, a frown coming over her face, "our house is always okay in storms."

Adele gave her a little smile. "I know, baby. But this is a big one. It's a storm so big, they gave it it's own name."

Cassie's eyes widened. It's got a name? No way. Thunderstorms don't get names like people or animals do. They're just storms! She's wrong! "Show me!"

Adele winked at her and switched on the kitchen TV. A man in a suit filled the screen, talking and pointing to a big green sock behind him. The man, she knew, was The Weather Man, who Jake said was always wrong no matter what. The sock was Louisiana. She jumped off the chair and walked over to the TV, trying to read the letters on the screen below the man.

She reached out a hand and traced each letter with her fingers as she spoke them out loud. "H-U-R-R-I-C-A-N-E..." she said loudly, "A-N-N-A". Cassie looked back over at Adele. "Anna. Anna? The thunderstom's name is Anna?"

Adele nodded. "Yep. Anna's coming, Sugar. And she's gonna be one heck of a visitor."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cassie huddled under her covers, clutching her stuffed bunny, Daisy. Tears streaked down her cheeks as the wind howled outside and rain battered the house that Cassie had always considered safe and sturdy until now. I don't like it I don't like it I don't like it! The thunder boomed again, so loud that Cassie almost covered her ears, and she bit her lip to keep from crying out. Mommy had already yelled at her once for being scared. Cassie was a big girl now, Mommy had said, and five was too old for a big girl like her to be scared of a little rain.

But I am scared, Mommy!

The wind roaring outside was more terrible than all the monsters in the world, and Cassie was all alone, waiting for them to get her. "Go away, Anna!" she yelled "I hate you! Go away!"

Cassie heard a huge crash outside her window, different from the thunder--she would later find out that it had been a branch that had fallen from one of the big trees in the yard. "DADDY!" she sobbed.

She heard footsteps, and the hallway light came on. "Daddy, help me!"

Mommy's voice cut through the noise Anna was making. "Mark, don't go in there."

Daddy said something Cassie couldn't hear. Wrapping her blanket around her, she crept from her bed and over to the door, still holding tight to Daisy. "You can't keep babying her like this. It's borderline pathetic. She's five years old, for God's sake. She'll get over it if we just leave her alone."

"But I can't just ignore her. She's scared, Kristen!"

"She's too old to be scared. Jake's not--Shelby's still asleep, and she's not even four!"

"Those two can sleep through everything, you know that..."

"She needs to learn that she can't be afraid and depending on us all the time. We're just going to let her be."

Cassie's heart raced. Don't listen to her, Daddy! Don't leave me!

Daddy mumbled something. The light went out, the footsteps went away. "NO!" Cassie shrieked. "Daddy, please! Come back!"

Another roar of thunder, the rain still sheeting down the windows and making it impossible to see. Cassie ran to the light switch and flicked it on, but her room stayed dark. "Hey! Anna, give me back my lights!" She sank to the floor, crying and calling for Daddy.

After what seemed like years, she heard someone in the hall again. The door flew open and Daddy ran over to her, joining her on the floor and scooping her up into his arms. She clung to him and cried along with the wind, accusing, "You left! You left me alone for Anna to get me!"

"I know, Cassie. I know. And I'm sorry. But I'm here now. And I'm not going anywhere." Cassie's tears slowed as they sat there, and eventually she fell asleep, finally safe from the terrible thunderstorm named Anna.


-------------


And....here's part two!



Cassie strained her ears to hear her dad's voice through the static on the cell phone. "What?" she shouted into the receiver.

"I said, did you get the house boarded up and stuff?"

"Yeah! It's all taken care of"

"Good! I'm--" The rest of his words were drowned out and Cassie covered her other ear with her hand in an attempt to make out what he was saying. "WHAT?" she repeated just as the first bolts of lightning, still a ways off into the distance, lit the sky.

"I said, SORRY I CAN'T BE THERE!"

Yeah, Dad, you and me both... Cassie thought worriedly. Mr. Wright had been called to New York on business only two days before Hurricane Katrina was expected to make landfall. Cassie had ridden out every hurricane and other major storm with him for as long as she could remember, but now for the first time she would be on her own.

A clap of thunder sounded, making Cassie jump. Her breathing quickened along with the winds, and she stiffened as she felt a hand on her shoulder. "Cassie? You okay?" asked a voice, and Cassie turned around to see Julie, a friend of her mother's whose house (an hour drive north of NOLA) they were using to ride out the storm. Cassie didn't answer her. The phone slipped from her hand and onto the floor.

Her mom pounced on it, snatching it from the sparkling hardwood and putting it to her ear. "Line's dead," she announced coldly, shooting Cassie a glare. "If you broke it, Cassandra, I am not going to be happy with you." She tossed the phone unceremoniously into Cassie's lap. "If you don't mind, I'm going to head off to bed. Julie, thanks again for being so welcoming. If you would just show me to your guest room?" Julie nodded and led Kristen away, but not before Cassie's mom stopped in the doorway and looked back at her. "And honestly, stop acting like such a child. You're a teenager now and there's absolutely no excuse for you to act this way about a storm, for God's sake. Grow up, Cassandra."

Cassie stared at the ground, her hands gripping the cell phone so hard her knuckles were white. Her breathing came out in short, shallow gasp and her eyes were squeezed shut, as if that alone would stop the hurricane from getting any closer to her. The first of her tears slid down her face just as the clouds opened up above them, spilling buckets of rain that hit the house as if shot from canons. It's just a storm...it's just a storm...just...pretend Dad is here. It'll be fine...

She could feel the blood pounding in her ears as she sat there, staring at the cell phone and willing it to ring. When it finally did, she answered it with more speed than she would have thought herself capable of. "Dad!"

"Cassie! I'm so sorry, sweetie, the weather's making the phones go completely haywire..."

Cassie tried to smile. Brushing the tears off her face with the back of her hand, she said, "No, it was my own fault--I dropped the phone. Sorry about that."

"I'm watching the coverage of it now, it looks--" Static combined with the din of the rain and the wind cut off the rest of her dad's words.

"Dad?" Her words were met with only static. "Dad?!" Still nothing. "Daddy!"

The phone clattered to the floor, but Cassie barely heard it over the roar of the wind and the racing of her heart. Just stay calm...it'll be okay...just relax. Mom's right, I'm thirteen now, I shouldn't be scared...

The wind battered the little house savagely, and Cassie shrieked. Daisy. She needed Daisy. She always had Daisy during storms, and this was no different. Daisy would make her feel better. She repeated these words like a mantra as she stood up and ran to the room she and Shelby had claimed for themselves, locating her suitcase and unzipping it quickly. She dug through the bag, throwing aside clothes and shoes and pajamas, even going to far as to turn the suitcase upside down and shake it. It was no use. The familiar, comforting bunny was nowhere to be found.

"I forgot her," Cassie whispered, dread coming over her. She really was all alone--no Dad, no Daisy, no nothing. The tears came again, faster now, until Cassie was full-out sobbing.

She heard a rustling and looked up to see Shelby stir. "Cassie?" her sister asked sleepily. "What's the matter?"

Cassie's throat was too tight to speak. "I...Daisy..." she finally managed to croak out.

Shelby looked confused for a second, squinting at her sister in the dim light. "Oh!" she said after a minute, reaching next to her to grab her glasses. She leaned over and grabbed her backpack, searching through it with a little smile on her face. "You mean...this Daisy?" she asked, holding out the worn rabbit.

Cassie stared at her. "I saw you left her and...I don't know, I just thought you might want her. I was gonna tell you in the car, but I forgot." Shelby grinned and held the bunny out to her, and Cassie took it, burying her face in the soft fur.

"Shelby...thanks," she whispered.

"Don't mention it," said Shelby through a yawn. She removed her glasses once again and scooted over in the bed, pulling back the covers. "Come on. I'm no Dad, but I can be pretty comforting at times." She held out her hand, and Cassie took it.

"I love you, Shelby."

"Right back at'cha. Now shut up and let me sleep, 'fraidy cat."

[GGJ5]

Ooooh! *claps hands* That was wonderful, Poppy! I'm so glad you had them evacuate for Katrina, too-- a lot of people were insistent on riding it out... yeah... didn't work out so well. Erin's family moved back to Texas for a month, and then two weeks in a puny town about an hour and a half outside of NOLA until they were able to clean up the city enough for them to find a new apartment... -_- Boo for breaking levees of doom. You really did fantastic for not having a clue about what they're like, though, remembering the plyboards on the windos and everything! (We're lazy at my house and just use tape... NOT fun to take off after the storm passes... lol)

[hanashyrexchana]

Questionnaires for Juliet ;P


Character Questionnaire 1
This questionnaire is found in Gotham Writers’ Workshop’s Writing Fiction.
You might start with questions that address the basics about a character:
• What is your character’s name? Does the character have a nickname?
Juliet Echo Eco. She can be called Jewl, Julie, J., Echo, Echo Eco, or just Juliet.

• What is your character’s hair color? Eye color?
Black curly hair, Hazel eyes

• What kind of distinguishing facial features does your character have?
Her naturally high-arched eyebrows

• Does your character have a birthmark? Where is it? What about scars?
How did he get them?
She has a couple scars on her legs, from a period of her life she doesn't really like to think about.

• Who are your character’s friends and family? Who does she surround
herself with? Who are the people your character is closest to? Who
does he wish he were closest to?
She's closest to her little brother. She's not really attached to her mother, but she loves her dad, no matter how she acts around him.

• Where was your character born? Where has she lived since then? Where
does she call home?
She was born in Kansas, but since then she has been in almost every other state. Her mother loves to move a lot.

• Where does your character go when he’s angry?
She finds a high up place, like a tree.

• What is her biggest fear? Who has she told this to? Who would she
never tell this to? Why?
Drowning and being alone for the rest of her life. NOBODY knows this.

• Does she have a secret?
She can't swim.

• What makes your character laugh out loud?
She doesn't laugh much when she's happy. She only laughs when she's pretending to be.

• When has your character been in love? Had a broken heart?
SHe's never been in love, which is why her heart is broken.

Then dig deeper by asking more unconventional questions:
• What is in your character’s refrigerator right now? On her bedroom
floor? On her nightstand? In her garbage can?
Fridge: Chinese takeout, a gallon of milk, and some chicken.
Bedroom floor: boxes!
Nightstand: Makeup, alarmclock, cellphone charger.
Garbage can: nothing but a couple of gum wrappers.

• Look at your character’s feet. Describe what you see there. Does he
wear dress shoes, gym shoes, or none at all? Is he in socks that are
ratty and full of holes? Or is he wearing a pair of blue and gold
slippers knitted by his grandmother?
greek-style sandels, black or brown.

• When your character thinks of her childhood kitchen, what smell does
she associate with it? Sauerkraut? Oatmeal cookies? Paint? Why is that
smell so resonant for her?
soap and paint,as her mom thinks yellow is the only acceptable colour for a kitchen thus every house must be painted accordingly.

• Your character is doing intense spring cleaning. What is easy for
her to throw out? What is difficult for her to part with? Why?
Wouldn't happen. She keeps most of her stuff in boxes; saves trouble.

• It’s Saturday at noon. What is your character doing? Give details. If he’s eating breakfast, what exactly does he eat? If she’s
stretching out in her backyard to sun, what kind of blanket or towel
does she lie on?
She's asleep right now, come back in an hour.

• What is one strong memory that has stuck with your character from
childhood? Why is it so powerful and lasting?
Once, when she was in Michigan, her and another girl her age named Maggie carved their names into a birch. Since then, Juliet's liked to do something similar in each town, just to leave something behind.

• Your character is getting ready for a night out. Where is she going?
What does she wear? Who will she be with?
She's off to check out the local music scene, wearing jeans and some sort of tunic (she loves the things)


Character Questionnaire 2:
• What do you consider your greatest achievement?
uhmmm... dealing with my mother?

• What is your idea of perfect happiness?
The feeling of belonging.

• What is your current state of mind?
meh.

• What is your favorite occupation?
Barista.

• What is your most treasured possession?
...

• What or who is the greatest love of your life?
...

• What is your favorite journey?
I don't like to travel.

• What is your most marked characteristic?
My braids.

• When and where were you the happiest?
Reading, listening to music, or eating icecream.

• What is it that you most dislike?
Jerks. Unfortunatly, they're like squirrels... I find em in almost every town I go.

• What is your greatest fear?
I would hate to drown.

• What is your greatest extravagance?
My makeup <3

• Which living person do you most despise?
My mother.

• What is your greatest regret?
I'd... really like a friend.

• Which talent would you most like to have?
I wanna sing. Well.

• Where would you like to live?
Anywhere, If I can stay.

• What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
Loss.

• What is the quality you most like in a man?
Commitment

• What is the quality you most like in a woman?
...I guess you mean friendship? Someone interesting and nice.

• What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
I hate how much I'm afraid of people.

• What is the trait you most deplore in others?
backstabbery and dishonesty.

• What do you most value in your friends?
...

• Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
Too many to count, it changes each week ;P

• Whose are your heroes in real life?
Mason, he's such a trooper.

• Which living person do you most admire?

No one, really.
• What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
Patience. Sometimes, you have a right to want to hurry.

• On what occasions do you lie?
"Are you ok with moving again? Mason really doesn't like it here..." "Sure, mom, I don't mind at all."

• Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
"Sweeeet"

• If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
I want to be stronger.

• What are your favorite names?
Chester.

• How would you like to die?
I wouldn't.

• If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what do you
think it would be?
A big tree!

• What is your motto?
Things could be worse.

[More than Music]

Raiu's version of this, just for kicks.

Character Questionnaire 1

• What is your character’s name? Does the character have a nickname?
Raiu Wahei. He introduces himself in Japanese order, which makes him Wahei Raiu. The only nickname he allows people to call him besides "Raikun" is "Waheisan".

• What is your character’s hair color? Eye color?
Black longish hair with brown mixed in, light brown eyes.

• What kind of distinguishing facial features does your character have?
His face seems unnaturally calm sometimes.

• Does your character have a birthmark? Where is it? What about scars?
How did he get them?
He has a birthmark in the shape of a boomerang just below the hairline on the back of his neck. He has no other notable scars besides a burn mark on his right wrist that he got when he burned himself a few years back and it swelled up to the size of a half-dollar.

• Who are your character’s friends and family? Who does she surround
herself with? Who are the people your character is closest to? Who
does he wish he were closest to?
He has his adoptive parents, but he isn't very close to them, or anyone else. He once had a friend, Alex Groban, but they parted ways a long time ago. He wishes he had someone he could trust, but has a hard time getting close to anyone.

• Where was your character born? Where has she lived since then? Where
does she call home?
He doesn't know where he was born. He grew up somewhere near Nashville Tennessee, but, right now, he's living in a small apartment he's managed in New Orleans.

• Where does your character go when he’s angry?
He doesn't get angry.

• What is her biggest fear? Who has she told this to? Who would she
never tell this to? Why?
His biggest fear is to be caught in the middle of emotional chaos he can't escape. No one really knows this because he's never told anyone. He never considered it very significant.

• Does she have a secret?
He wants to pursue music, but he's sort of afraid he'll mess it up or end up just sounding like someone else.

• What makes your character laugh out loud?
He doesn't laugh very easily, he usually maintains his composure, but one thing that makes him laugh out loud is when people trip over their own feet or something silly like that. He has a loud and obnoxious laugh though, so he feels kinda bad whenever he laughs.

• When has your character been in love? Had a broken heart?
He's never been close enough to anyone to be in love or have his heart broken. He doesn't really understand the whole thing and doesn't know what to think about it.

Then dig deeper by asking more unconventional questions:
• What is in your character’s refrigerator right now? On her bedroom
floor? On her nightstand? In her garbage can?
In his fridge is everything he needs to make his signature stir-fry, his special rice filled with vegetables, and many other yummy Asian things; he enjoys cooking but tells no one this.
On his bedroom floor is his clothes from the day before, crinkled up sketches he didn't like, a paint brush that fell off of the easel, and water balloons he never felt like cleaning up. And his blankets are hanging off of his bed onto the floor... does that count?
On his nightstand is his back-up sketchbook, his second favorite sketching pencil, and a few other things in case he jumps up in the night and has inspiration for a drawing. And his reading glasses, maybe some book that has piqued his interest.
In his garbage can is much of the same things that clutter his floor: scrapped sketches, broken pencils, worn down erasers, pencil shavings, water balloon pieces, old and ugly paintbrushes, and a few shirts that got paint all over them.

• Look at your character’s feet. Describe what you see there. Does he
wear dress shoes, gym shoes, or none at all? Is he in socks that are
ratty and full of holes? Or is he wearing a pair of blue and gold
slippers knitted by his grandmother?
He runs around barefoot when at home alone, but he wears black thong flipflops when ever he goes out, even if it's cold; he doesn't get cold very easily, but his feet are often unnaturally warm.

• When your character thinks of her childhood kitchen, what smell does
she associate with it? Sauerkraut? Oatmeal cookies? Paint? Why is that
smell so resonant for her?
He smells the wonderful Japanese meals his mother used to make for him, and the citrus soaps she would clean the dishes with.

• Your character is doing intense spring cleaning. What is easy for
her to throw out? What is difficult for her to part with? Why?
It is easy for him to throw out everything. He has nothing he would have trouble parting with except for a faded photograph of his parents and him; it is the only thing he has left of them and he'll never get rid of it.

• It’s Saturday at noon. What is your character doing? Give details. If he’s eating breakfast, what exactly does he eat? If she’s
stretching out in her backyard to sun, what kind of blanket or towel
does she lie on?
He's probably sitting on his roof, staring up at the sun with a sketch book in his hand and a pencil on his ear. He's looking around for inspiration, because Saturdays are the slowest days of the week for him.

• What is one strong memory that has stuck with your character from
childhood? Why is it so powerful and lasting?
The strongest memory he has was from his 5th birthday, which he barely remembers. His parents were throwing a party for him, and they were praying over the tiny cake. He remembers peeking, hands still folded, at them as they leaned over him. This is the happiest memory he has.

• Your character is getting ready for a night out. Where is she going?
What does she wear? Who will she be with?
He doesn't go out, except to art exhibits and the like, and what he wears is completely random - his sense of style varies by his mood and is unpredictable.


Character Questionnaire 2:
• What do you consider your greatest achievement?
My sketches. They are the only thing I can really do right.

• What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Complete silence filled with love that doesn't have to be spoken.

• What is your current state of mind?
Artistic, I suppose, as always.

• What is your favorite occupation?
Artist. I couldn't stand to be anything else. This is why I am currently living on the money my 'parents' are sending to me. It's okay, but I guess I'll have to get a job eventually or something.

• What is your most treasured possession?
The picture I have of my parents and me when I was a baby. It's the only picture I have of them and it can't be replaced, so I guess that's my most treasured possession. I could part with anything else easily.

• What or who is the greatest love of your life?
God, because he's the only one that really loves me or cares about me at all.

• What is your favorite journey?
The journey in and out of my own mind; it's fascinating to look back at my sketches and try to figure out what I was doing, thinking, and feeling at the time.

• What is your most marked characteristic?
My calm attitude, I guess.

• When and where were you the happiest?
When I lived with my real parents. It was a long time ago, and I don't really remember, but that's the truth.

• What is it that you most dislike?
Yelling, fighting, loud and obnoxious noise.

• What is your greatest fear?
To be locked in a small room with thousands of loud and hateful noises.

• What is your greatest extravagance?
My art supplies. They aren't cheap by any means, but my 'parents' claim they "owe" me that much "for not being around enough." Whatever, you know?

• Which living person do you most despise?
I don't hate anybody. No one's ever done anything worth making me feel that way.

• What is your greatest regret?
I guess that I never tried to tell my 'parents' how much I wanted them to be around. Or that I can't remember my real parents as much as I'd like to.

• Which talent would you most like to have?
I wish I could sing and play piano, actually. It looks like it's such a wonderful release.

• Where would you like to live?
Somewhere quiet and peaceful and nice, where no one has any enemies.

• What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
Not being able to control your anger/sadness/negative emotions. Or going to go to Hell. Take your pick.

• What is the quality you most like in a man?
Taking the time to care, despite your masochism and how busy you are and how tired you are.

• What is the quality you most like in a woman?
Stopping to think about how someone can feel without being as dramatic as they are.

• What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
How I can never seem to let someone into my heart, even if Jesus would want me to.

• What is the trait you most deplore in others?
The desire to make people feel something they're not.

• What do you most value in your friends?
If I had friends, you mean?

• Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
I don't know, Indiana Jones. Because, even if he's cheesy, he's got all those cool moves.

• Whose are your heroes in real life?
Does God count?

• Which living person do you most admire?
God, again?

• What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
Grace, because sometimes it's just better to trip and fall, because it'll make you feel human so you don't get too proud.

• On what occasions do you lie?
I don't usually lie. I prefer to tell people how I feel, when I feel it, because then I don't get all down about it.

• Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
Stuff like "Whatever" and "Nevermind", but "I guess" especially. They help me not take stuff too seriously.

• If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
I would be able to find the person who makes me happy again.

• What are your favorite names?
Roy, Juliet - long story short, a girl I knew who actually ended up playing the female lead in the famous Shakespeare play; it was kinda funny -, and Destiny - because it's kind of an ironic name, isn't it? I mean, to call your kid Destiny? Think about it.

• How would you like to die?
In complete peace. And happy.

• If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what do you
think it would be?
A painting.

• What is your motto?
"Don't sweat the stuff that won't matter later, or it'll sweat you out until you get over yourself."

[Elda Forever]

Character: Yukito Maki
Sketch: Part two of two in his 'Worst Fear' sketch. One is the origin of the fear, two is the fear in modern times.

Again, I used Erin. You all know she's not mine. Korkoro and Yukito are, though. > . < GG, let me know if she's out of character. I'm worried about it, especially since it's an odd situation to write your charries in.

Rated PG:13 for graphic themes. <_<


“Kareshi!” Erin called out, knocking on the driver-side door of his car. He looked up and smiled at her, rolling down the window. “What are you doing here?”

“I wanted to pick you up from school. Just because I'm not chained here every Monday through Friday doesn't mean I forgot where the building was...” he glanced around at the other teenagers loading up onto the bus nearby, and made a face, “And that doesn't mean I don't want to help save you from it as soon as possible.”

She giggled, reached into the car and unlocked the door, opening it and slipping onto his lap, he leaned back, looking surprised. She wrapped her arms around his neck and giggled some more, giving him a 'hello, kareshi!' kiss. He wasn't against it, either. “What was that for?”

“Oh,” she lifted one shoulder and rolled her eyes, “Just because.”

He laughed, then nodded over to the passenger seat, “Get in, let's go someplace.”

“But I'm already in!” she teased, indicating her comfortable seat in his lap. He shook his head, promising himself yet again not to do anything to screw this up with Erin. Sure, she had her problems, but the fact that she still seemed so happy with little things, with every day things...made her beautiful to him. As lame as that sounded in his head. Maybe that was one of the reasons he hadn't really written Erin-inspired poetry yet. He knew it wouldn't sound right. Two languages, and he still couldn't choose four or five words that described her just right.

“You can't exactly buckle if you're sitting on my lap,” he teased. She pouted at him, starting to kick her legs a little as they stuck out the door of the car.

“Aww....” she whined. He kept the amused-but-still-being-stubborn look on his face until she reluctantly got out, raced around the Volvo, and buckled in next to him, sticking her tongue out at him. He just grinned as he started up the car, and she immediately began to bounce a little on her seat, “Oh! Oh! I almost forgot! I feel so proud of myself for knowing the 'two truths and a lie' on your livejournal the other day! I totally knew it! You never draw!”

“Erin...” he laughed, reminding himself to show her later exactly why he never drew, “That was over a week ago.”

“I know, but I just remembered this afternoon. We were talking about it at lunch.”

“I see....” he muttered, looking amused with his own, unspoken thoughts. They pulled up to a stoplight and he looked over at her, as she picked absentmindedly at a little scar on her wrist. Yukito suddenly felt like a bright light had glared in his eyes, and something punched him in the chest. He tried to disguise the panic in his voice as he asked,“What happened to your wrist?”

“Oh, I gave myself a papercut this morning.” she shrugged, and smiled up at him. “Natural klutz, you know.”

“Did you clean it out?” he reached over and grabbed her hand, inspecting it closely, as if expecting to see a sudden gap open up in her wrists and start spraying blood, “Are you alright?”

“Sure...?” she started to laugh, sending him a confused look, “Are you?”

He waited before answering, wetting his lips, then forcing himself to let go of her hand, letting it drop, turning back to the light just as it turned green.

“Yukito?” He was staring forward, maybe glaring, and she didn't understand it. “What's wrong?”

“I just...I dunno. Forget it. I'm fine.”

“Yukito...”

“Just be careful, okay?” he demanded harshly, looking over at her. He met her eyes, and his anger started to fade, “Just...and don't pick at it anymore.”

“Yukito, it was just a papercut. I'm fine, see?” She waved her hands, and grinned at him.

“I know...”

“Silly kareshi!” she leaned over and kissed him just at the wrong moment. The intersection he had been crossing had a broken light, and the silver van crashed right into Yukito's side of the car. They let out a scream, thrown in circles across the asphalt, the vehicles letting out ear-shattering thuds and squeals of their own. When the world stopped moving, Yukito was still gripping the steering wheel, staring ahead with a blank expression. Erin was clinging to his arm tightly, and she looked over her shoulder to see the crushed front end of the van they had collided with. The blond-haired woman inside leaned out her window, calling out to see if they were okay. Erin looked over to see Yukito hadn't moved, his face white and his body tense.

“Yukito? Are you alright?”

He shook his head in the negative, looking up with a grim expression at the other car. The woman in the van had looked too much like Natalie...no matter how many times he told himself she was too old to be his Natalie, that she was dead. And no matter how much he told himself otherwise, he could still see gallons of blood splayed across his front windshield right now.

“Are you hurt?”

Again, a shake of his head. Erin leaned out her window, “We're okay,” she yelled at the woman, “Is everyone there --”

“We're fine!” came the reply, though the woman sounded shaken, she seemed to be fine. Erin didn't want to imagine what Yukito's car looked like. Was it my fault? Maybe I shouldn't have been distracting him as he drove... She shook her thoughts away and turned back to Yukito, who hadn't moved.

“What's wrong?”

Yukito swallowed, hard, then managed a strained, “Everything.”

“What?”

Why did it look like Natalie was lying across the front of his car, bleeding? He hadn't hit anybody. He hadn't hurt anybody. He had just droven through the intersection.

Where did all the blood come from?

“Erin...” he whispered, “Do you see any blood?”

With wide eyes, she sat up straighter and looked all around the car, expecting to see something. But after a few moments, she answered in a tentative voice, “No, Yukito. I don't see any blood. Are you bleeding anywhere?”

“I don't think so...” he mumbled, but she leaned over to make sure.

“What about your arm?” she asked, and he turned to look at her. He'd been hoping the pain in his arm had been his imagination, too. After looking at the expression in his eyes, she gripped the arm closer to her and started to shake it, “Yukito!”

He blinked, hard. But the tears were still coming, “Erin, I see a body on the windshield.”

Automatically she turned to check, then looked back at him with fear written on every feature, “Yukito, there's no body on the windshield....”

“But I see it!” he whispered, crying now as his next words escaped strangled and hoarse. “I see her, right there!” he pointed, but there was nothing in the place he was indicating. Yukito fell forward onto the steering wheel, his face hidden in his hands, and Erin watched helplessly as he began to sob. Hesitating, she unbuckled and leaned over to wrap her arms around him as best as she could.

“It's alright, Yukito...” she murmurred, “It's okay...Just calm down.”




-----




Korkoro raced over to see Yukito sitting next to an ambulance, holding out his arm as it was being swabbed and cleaned. He didn't look towards it or Erin, but the girl was still watching his eyes with a worried look on her face. “Oh my God, Yukito!” she called out, and her son looked up. He looked relatively unharmed, but there was a dullness to his expression that made her feel as if something had happened he was trying to bury.

“I'm fine, mom...” he mumbled, “A piece of the window busted and a chunk of it hit my arm. Erin's not hurt at all.” His last statement seemed to give him a bit more optimism, and when he slid off the bumper of the ambulance, he tried to smile a little.

“What happened?”

“Just a freak accident. The lady was turned around, trying to stop her baby from screaming, and she didn't see the light was broken. A car was merging left, so she assumed it was green. We ran into her.”

Korkoro raced over and embraced her son, burying his head in her arms, and forcing herself to breathe evenly. Erin stood with her hands in her pockets, unsure of what to do with herself. Yukito pushed his mother off, and she reattached to Erin immediately, asking, “Are you sure you're alright?” Erin nodded, smiled, and that in itself earned another hug from the flustered woman. His mother insisted on driving them home, and when she turned back to the car, the two teenagers shared a look.

“Are you gonna tell her what you saw?”

Yukito shook his head, frowning. “She already went through enough of my problems with me.”

Erin reached over and wrapped her arms around his elbow, staring up at him, “Will you tell me?”

He walked with his head looking down at the ground, considering, “I don't think you want to know.” She squeezed his arm tighter. He looked down at her and sent her a smile.

“Please? Don't shut me out.”

“Do me a favor...” he said quietly, “And just be careful.”

[GGJ5]

Wooooahhh intense! You did really well with this one, chica! I feel soo bad for Yukito. V_V And Erin has no idea what's going on, either. You did really, really well. Gosh... so sad and so good! Stop that.

[The Phantom of Paris]

I concur with GG--intense! I liked how you wrote it, though, a lot...and I kind of just want to give Yukito a gigantic hug right now. That okay?

[Elda Forever]

Aww....thanks, you guys! I'm serious. ^.^ I just went back and edited some parts, where the speaker was so unclear it was confuzzling, or where I repeated words or something odd... Meep...and I realized that my separator between the first scene and the scene where his mom comes up was gone, so I had to re-add that. It looked really confusing the way it was. >.<


Aaaaaand I figure Erin isn't gonna let it rest at that, but she's still all in shock and stuff, so she's letting him slide for now. ^.^ Imagine a scene where he has to tell her all this @*#92*@( stuff he never tells people about. Yipes.

Gosh, I'm all smiley right now because it's "intense". Brahahaha. And now I'm stuck on which one to do next... I want to revive the character sketch thing because everyone here procrastinates them like no one else would believe. LOL So someone has to get the sketch muse rolling again.


*pause*

*hold out Yukito plushie* You guys wanna hug this instead? I doubt the real Yukito would accept hugs from other people's mommies out of the blue like that. But this works, too. It even has his hair. ^.^ And pants with a chain. *pulls chain* So kawaii! I <3 my little emo Japanese boy.