Character Interview Blogfest-Style

Well my dearies (and I know I keep calling you dearies but I like the sound of the word, sorry),

it's character interview day, hosted by the lovely and waywardedly minded Sangu!

Because I've done quite a few character interviews already on my blog I've decided to do something a little different this time...

***

Tessa's having a bad day. It was raining when she dragged herself our of bed. Her toast burnt. The coffee machine was on hiatus. Her secretary called in sick. 


You get the picture, I'm sure. 


So when she walks into her work-office and finds it occupied, that really is the last straw (okay, maybe the second-to-last). 


T: (drops the pile of notebooks and mail she's carrying; it goes fluttering all over the office floor) What the hell are you doing here?

She stares at them one by one. Redblade has taken over her office chair and is swirling back and forth. Silence is balancing along the window sill, Merle sits on the floor on the pillow Tessa's dogs usually use. Cavan is busy rifling through her files. 


They all stopped what they were doing and stared back. 


T: (speaking slowly and carefully, enunciating every word) What. Are. You. Doing. Here.

Redblade: (giving T a big, big smile; she's also trimming her nails with a sharp little dagger) Why, we thought we'd visit you for a change!

Silence jumps from the window sill and hugs Tessa, patting her on the back. She pushes him away, quickly. 


T: Nuh-uh, no you don't, you little thief! I remember what you did last time.*

Silence just smiles. 


Cavan and Merle wave at Tessa but don't say anything. 


Redblade: (sits up straight and then leans against the desk in a Thinker-pose) You always want to talk to us. Tell us what to do. So today, we thought we'd give that a try.

T: (sits down hard on the visitors' chair in front of the desk) You thought what? 


Cavan: (leans against Redblade's chair until she swats him away) Come on, Tessa, honey, it'll be FUN!

T: (somewhat incredulous) Are you serious? (T's characters have always kind of had a life of their own but this is ridiculous) 


Merle: (looks up at T, eyes all shining and beautiful) I'm always serious, my lady.

T: (rolls her eyes) Jeez. (throws arms up in the air) Fine. Whatever. Go ahead.

Cavan: (walks around the desk and leans against it, crowding Tessa's personal space) So, Tessa. Tell us something about yourself.

T: (crosses her arms and stares at Cavan, who isn't fazed at all) So we're really going to do this, are we?

They smile at her, all innocence. 


Red: Let's start with that name of yours. Tessa. I like it - short, to the point.

T: (lip curls up at one end, almost a smile but not quite) It's my pen name. Some friends of mine helped come up with it while we were at university.

Merle: So what is your name, then?

T: (laughs) If I told you now why should I even bother with a pen name, huh?

Merle: But why lie to us? You created us. Surely you can tell us?

T: (shakes her finger at Merle) Nuh-uh. No way. You never know who's listening.

Silence: (hugs T from behind the chair; she can feel his chuckle more than hear it) 


T: (twists a little in her chair to look at Silence) What is it with you, today? Touchy feely R us?

He just grins at her and shrugs. 


Red: (puts her dagger down on the desk) Alright. You don't have to tell us if you don't want to. How about your age? Is that beyond the pale, too?

T: (frowns; why oh why did she have to make her characters so cheeky, anyway?) I'm 28 years old. I don't think I've quite reached the pale, yet.

C: I would have said 20 summers, at most, sweet lady.

T: (rolls her eyes again; really, what else could she do?) Thank you, Caiten.

C: ( leans in and whispers) You may call me Cavan, my lady.

R: Cut it out, Cavan. We're here to learn about Tessa, or whatever her name is. You can flirt later.

C: (now he's the one rolling his eyes) Yes, your highness. Whatever you say, your highness.

R: (leans over and gives Cavan a shove, making him stumble away from the desk) Shove it, man, just shove it.

T: (scoots her chair a little to the left to avoid being landed on) So, Red, how's Erathane doing?**

R: (makes a grimace) He's doing alright. Still a bit of a barbarian. (grin blooms on her face, turning her from nice-looking to stunning) Same pretty boy as always.

T: (grins back) Glad to hear that.

Merle: (looking around the office) So is this your seat of power, my lady?

T: (looks at him blankly) My seat of what?

Cavan: (leaning against the desk again) I think our young friend wants to know if this is where you rule your empire from.

T: I guess you could say that. Although this is my work office. I...rule...your worlds from a different room.

M: A study like this one?

T: Yes. It has many more books than this one, and maps of your countries stuck to the walls.

Red: You have maps? There are no maps of my realm. We've made sure of that. Maps are dangerous.

T: (raises an eyebrow) Well, I have one.

Silence (waves his hand at Red as if to say of coure she has one)


Merle: So does that mean you rule more than one realm, then? This one here...(he motions around the office) and another one, too?

T: (smiles down at him) Yes, I guess you could say that.

Cavan: You said something about a University? Is that like being fostered?

T: (laughs) Not quite. A University is a place of learning. In your world the equivalent is a Temple College.

C: Oh. You went to a Temple College? They allow women here?

Red: (frowns at Cavan) What do you mean they allow women? Why wouldn't they allow women?

C: (holds his hands up in surrender) Peace, princess. I didn't mean it like that.

T: (looks at Red) You know Cavan here worships a Godess, too, right? (Red looks a little surprised) He doesn't mean it the way you think. (Red stares at C, then nods; T turns back to C to answer his question) Yes, although they didn't in the beginning. In my world we're still working towards equality of genders.

M: So what did you learn at this...University, my lady? Is that place close to here?

T: Not really. I went to University in a kingdom called England. The University was called Oxford.

C: (frowns) I've never heard of England before.

Red: (smacks C on the back of the head) Fool. We live in Tessa's head. Of course you've never heard of England.

T: (smiling at Red) They have a Queen over there, too.

R: (showing white teeth) It must be a great place, then, obviously.

T: It can be.

The telephone rings and all of Tessa's characters jump up in panic and vanish into thin air. Tessa leans over the desk and picks it up, chuckling. 


T: That's what you get for writing fantasy. (gets up to gather the papers they made her drop; then she notices that her wallet is missing) Dammit! That little bastard...

***

Ok, that's it for today. Saved by the bell and robbed by one of my own characters! Stupid Silence. I'll have to write him a lesson, I guess.

Well, for now I've had enough of my characters hijaking my writing (I don't want to encourage bad habits - they have enough of them already)... 

So tell me what you think (no, really, do tell) and then go check out everyone else's entries HERE(in the sidebar). 

* see character interview blogpost HERE.
** if you want to know who Erathane is, look at the right-hand sidebar to find a link