Character survey!
Jan. 5th, 2012 07:42 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
perceptive_purpleThe New, Improved Character Survey of Doom
Body and Appearance
1. Describe the character's height and build. Is she heavyset, thin, short, rangy?
Persephone is the most petite thing. She is 5' 4'' and very skinny.
2. How old is she?
See, this is where things start to get a little problematic. Persephone is pretty much as old as the world, though, of course, not as old as her parents Zeus and Demeter. At the same time, she's currently in the body of a teenage girl, who could be anything from 13 to 16 (currently, I'm having her at 16).
3. Describe her posture. Does she carry herself well or does she slouch?
She's really quite petite, especially without her usual heels, so no danger of slouching there. As she walks or stands, she can be often found hanging her head pensively.
4. How is her health? Is she fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities?
Well, on the one hand, she's technically an immortal, so it's impossible for her to suffer from anything serious. On the other hand, the body she's trapped in right now, though still immortal, has a few flaws, rendering her prone to headaches and rather anemic. She tends to develop migraines when she's too stressed out or working too hard on one of her projects.
5. How does she move? Is she clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid?
She normally moves slowly and carefully, as if she were afraid to bump into the things around her. When she is feeling comfortable, however, she's been seen making rare, theatrical gestures for the sake of expressiveness or to make a point. Alternatively, when she's trying to get a read on someone, she tends to inadvertently copy their movements and stance. As she walks, she makes her blue coat swish a little around her.
6. How attractive is this character physically? How does she perceive herself in the mirror?
Persephone is really quite pretty. And she knows she is, although far be it from her to ever rub it in people's faces. She isn't overly concerned about her appearance, precisely because she knows she's beautiful the way she is. Her heavy goth makeup is really more of an artistic statement than an attempt to cover up flaws.
7. Describe her complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred?
She definitely lives up to her "white-armed" epithet. The teenage body she is in is as pale as a corpse, and too young to have any scars or marks, aside from minor bruises resulting from unimportant incidents in which she had to carry bulky art or music equipment around.
8. Describe her hair: color, texture, style.
Persephone's hair is straight and black. When seen in the light, a few natural, plum-colored highlights become noticeable. It's long, a few inches past her shoulders. Her overly long bangs are a set of very unruly locks, and they kind of have a mind of their own.
9. What color are her eyes?
Black.
10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features?
She is inseparable from her Goddess earring, a purple crystal hanging from her right ear which, to most, may look like a perfectly ordinary piece of amethyst. The shape of the gem is a sort of hybrid between a diamond and a teardrop. Other Goddesses who are in the same situation as her usually wear their Goddess crystals as a pendant or a bracelet. Persephone has made an earring out of hers. The gem serves to amplify the Goddess powers that she has while in her teenage body.
11. What are her chief tension centers?
Her legs tend to be kind of stiff and achey at the end of the day, since she walks a lot. Her upper body, on the other hand, is generally very relaxed.
12. What is the character's wardrobe like? Casual, dressy, utilitarian? Bright colors, pastels, neutrals? Is it varied, or does she have six of the same suit?
Oh boy. Where to start? First of all, she subscribes to the goth subculture and has happily adopted the fashion style, albeit in her personal, unique way. Her fashion ensembles are always dark and edgy. In general, you won't catch her wearing a lot of bright colors, especially in winter: a lot of black, purple, indigo and dark blue, with the occasional white, burgundy and blood red. However, her closet is actually quite varied, and she's been known to wear a lot of bright-colored clothes and accessories in spring and summer, because the seasons affect her moods so much.
Also, if she grows bored with any of her clothing items, she can and will modify them to her heart's content.
Her favorite outfit consists of a black and white striped top, a black miniskirt, a large burgundy leather belt, blue or dark gray tights and black knee-length lace-up boots. Over it all, she wears a long indigo coat with flower designs around the hems.
13. Do her clothes fit well? Does she seem comfortable in them?
They do and she is! She has no problem wearing skintight tops and miniskirts, with her coat over them to make them not as sexually suggestive. Though once in a while she will try wearing an oversized top just to experiment.
14. Does she dress the same on the job as she does in her free time? If not, what are the differences?
Why should she dress differently at school than what she would normally wear? Persephone sees absolutely no reason to do that. She's not afraid of being judged, or seen as a freak. She treasures her own uniqueness.
15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando?
Briefs, definitely.
Speech
1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse?
Persephone's body is not fully developed yet, and as a result her voice is that of an average teenage girl; at the same time, it's very soft and quiet. Some people find it unsettling, others find it soothing to listen to, others find it a bit of both. When she's singing, her voice acquires a deep, mature and soulful edge - she's a contralto.
2. How does she normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does she talk easily, or does she hesitate?
She speaks very softly by default. Some would argue that that's because she's shy, but the truth is that she tends to save her voice for her songs. As she tends to space out quite a lot and it's not always easy for her to get back to reality, she always tends to hesitate and even stutter when initiating dialogue or interaction. She tends to gradually grow more comfortable after that - she is not actually shy, or so she likes to claim.
3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics?
Not really, though the little Italian she knows is more Sicilian than anything else. Once again, when she's trying to get a read on somebody, she will inadvertently mimic their manner of speaking, including their verbal tics.
4. What language/s does she speak, and with how much fluency?
She speaks English and Greek, both at native level, and a bit of advanced Italian. She's trying to learn French, too, because France has the coolest art museums.
5. Does she switch languages or dialects in certain situations?
Not really! Well, okay, sometimes she will pretend to chant spells in Greek to scare off bullies bothering her friends. But real Goddess spells don't work like that.
6. Is she a good impromptu speaker, or does she have to think about her words?
A bit of both. She does have to think really hard before speaking, which tends to result in abnormally long moments of silence, but once she starts talking, she effortlessly pours her heart into what she says and conveys her ideas and feelings quite easily. She really has a tendency to need some time to slip into gear.
7. Is she eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change?
She's the quiet type and tends to only speak when prompted or asked. But that doesn't mean she isn't able to occasionally spew out a few mouthfuls, especially when the mouthful in question is a bunch of information regarding an artist or a work of art.
Mental and Emotional
1. How intelligent is this character? Is she book-smart or street-smart?
She's quite smart. Her intelligence is almost exclusively of the emotional type, however - she's far from being a logical individual. Her mind and spirit aren't bound by strict logic. For one, she's extremely perceptive - by listening and observing, she can pick on a person's mood rather quickly, even when the person in question is doing everything in their power to somehow conceal it. Because of that, she's often been called a psychic. As far as intellect goes, she's read and eagerly absorbed a lot of literature and bulky tomes on the arts and the lives of artists. At the same time, she is very much the practical type. She can paint, compose music and poems, write, and dance. She is a member of a school band and she's always working on one (or several) of her creative projects. Lately, she's started promoting her works, too, which has given her some experience of how, for example, art exhibitions and advertising work. She has a pretty good memory that allows her to remember a lot of facts and dates about her favorite artists and works of art.
2. Does she think on her feet, or does she need time to deliberate?
Most of the time, Persephone tends to need unreasonable amounts of time to think things over. She really wants to consider all factors involved, which, sadly, tends to result in long moments of silence and/or inaction. The only time she can think on her feet is when she is inspired to do something - during those moments, she's just pouring her heart and her emotions out and letting them take shape.
3. Describe the character's thought process. Is she more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical?
She is very intuitive. Her idea of solving a problem does not entail any calculation. To her, problems can be solved by being true to oneself and to one's own aspirations and inspirations in life, a concept that she describes as the "inner voice". By marching to the beat of one's own drum, essentially. One should always follow their inner voice no matter what, and never be afraid of being judged. In that respect, she's definitely an idealist. When confronted with situations that clash with her ideal, she tends to need quite some time to reorganize her strategy, and during that time, she'll be feeling pretty stressed and frustrated.
4. What kind of education has the character had?
She is currently attending high school, taking several courses in figurative arts, music, photography and literature.
5. What are her areas of expertise? What, if anything, is she interested in learning more about?
She's all about music, literature and the arts. While she doesn't own an incredible amount of books, she owns quite a few art history texts and encyclopedias that she's read enough times to know some extracts by heart. She's also interested in improving her music and art, and therefore she's been studying very practical aspects, too, either by reading about them or by asking more experienced artists and musicians.
6. Is she an introvert or an extrovert?
She is definitely an introvert, with a... core of extroversion embedded deep within. She usually needs unreasonable amounts of alone time, but she'll give up her solitude at any time to help a friend in need. She has actually a pretty broad circle of friends, even though at times she simply... disappears, becoming wholly absorbed by her art projects.
7. Describe the character's temperament. Is she even-tempered or does she have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven?
Her mood swings are frequent, seasonal and unpredictable. Her state of mind is strongly affected by the weather. During the winter, she's more likely to be quiet, introverted and pessimistic, and her songs, writings and paintings tend to have a gloomy, gothic flavor. In spring, however, her friends agree that it's as if Persephone became a completely different person, more outgoing, generally more positive about life and eager to spend time outside.
8. How does she respond to new people or situations? Is she suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic?
Again, she's very shy and timid at first and needs time to slip into gear. Just give her enough time, and she'll grow comfortable with it. She is actually always willing to get to know new people, it's just that the first few moments tend to be really awkward: either she will feel intimidated, or she will inadvertently do something that will result in the other person being intimidated.
9. Is she more likely to act, or to react?
It depends. But in spite of the story the myths tell, she's far from being a passive individual. Though her confidence may falter sometimes, she's strong enough to take matters into her own hands when it gets down to it. Her acts are many, but usually subtle, or in the form of artistic self-expression.
10. Which is her default: fight or flight?
Her default is... closer to flight, actually. When confronted with overly stressful or dangerous situations, she tends to retreat to a safe place where she can be alone and calmly think of a way to sort it all out.
11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does she appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks?
She loves a good joke, but pranks are usually met with a bit of an irritated frown and "why are you doing this?".
12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does she deal with them?
Well, she tends to have trouble fitting in and socializing, but that's more due to her own choices than to anything else. No, mentally, she's very healthy.
13. What moments in this character's life have defined her as a person?
Well, being kidnapped by Hades and consequently becoming Queen of the Underworld is definitely one of those moments. Then, it was when she heard Orpheus' song that she realized how truly powerful music could be as a means of expression. Nowadays, however, she has no clear memory of either of those events.
14. What does she fear?
Her greatest fear is that her "inner voice" might actually get her in trouble someday. Reading about the lives of artists, she's become familiar with enough tales of self-destruction. As an immortal, perhaps the risks are much lower for her than they are for her mortal fellow artists. Still... that is a path she will do everything in her power not to walk.
15. What are her hopes or aspirations?
Well, for the moment, she'd like to be absolutely certain that she's a goddess. And maybe reunite with Hades along the way. Her long-term goal is, simply, to be herself and express her feelings, emotions and ideas in every possible way.
16. What is something she doesn't want anyone to find out about her?
She absolutely doesn't want her mortal friends to find out that she isn't quite like them. What would they do if they found out their friend was a Goddess of Death?
Relationships
1. Describe this character's relationship with her parents.
Persephone is the daughter of Zeus, king of the gods, and Demeter, goddess of the earth and agriculture. At this point, Persephone has no direct memory of Zeus and Demeter. She's read the myths, but the point is that she doesn't have any memory of her own. However, even if she regained those memories, she wouldn't hold any resentment towards them for what they did to her. If her current goth lifestyle is anything to go by, she was definitely able to make lemonade out of the lemons that life gave her.
2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like?
Her father is Zeus, so she has [infinity symbol] half-siblings. Out of all of them, the ones she knows best are Artemis, or rather, Diana, and Athena, two of the goddesses in teenager bodies that she hangs out with. Diana is essentially a jock. Persephone likes and admires her, but doesn't think she'd ever be able to do half of all the physical stuff Diana does, though Diana successfully got Persephone to take up modern dance. Persephone is great friends with Athena. They regularly trade tips on books and cultural events, and Athena is the first person Persephone goes to when she needs someone to beta read her written works or give her an opinion on a new painting.
The three of them used to be close even in the ancient times, but they have no memory of that.
And then there's Hermes, who is technically her half-brother, her nephew, and her cousin, too. Oh boy. Persephone enjoys his company, he's fun and everything, but he's really too fixated on ripping people off. It's fun once, Hermes. The first time. After that, it's just irritating.
3. Are there other blood relatives to whom she is close? Are there ones she can't stand?
Other goddesses that are in her group of friends that she is related to are Hera (whom, she supposes, she should see as her father's legitimate spouse) and Venus (who should be like, her aunt). They are great friends. In that respect, it's... actually a really good thing that none of them has any clear memory of their past as goddesses.
4. Are there other, unrelated people whom she considers part of her family? What are her relationships with them?
Well, two of her other Goddess friends include Isis and Kwan Yin. She is very close to both of them. Kwan Yin always helps her relax and free up her mind, and she's gotten Persephone into Yoga to boot. Isis shares Persephone's love for nature and the environment, and they can be often seen supporting good causes together and taking part in enviromentalist rallies.
5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet?
For her current best friends, let me refer you back to the parts about Athena, Isis, and Kwan Yin, all of whom, by the way, she first met in the Goddess Garden, where it was revealed to them that they were actually goddesses. Her former best friends from her time as the Queen of the Underworld included Hermes, who was like, her personal taxi driver from and into the Underworld, and Hecate.
6. Does she have other close friends?
There are a lot of them, actually, in spite of the scary goth image that she has built for herself. Aside from the other six goddesses, Persephone is friends with quite a few mortal kids from her school. Pretty much all those who have had the patience to get to know her for the person she really is.
7. Does she make friends easily, or does she have trouble getting along with people?
She's really quite socially awkward, at least in the first stages of her getting to know someone. She attends parties and social gatherings, but on those occasions she tends to isolate herself. In general, she needs lots of space and alone time. If one comes to understand and accept that, they'll discover that Persephone is actually a pretty amazing friend. She's a great listener who never, ever judges and can dispense pretty wise advice when needed.
8. Which does she consider more important: family or friends?
... It's a trick question, right? It's complicated. Four out of six of her twenty-first-century best friends are actually her family. So.
9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has she been married more than once?
Here's the thing - as previously hinted, Persephone knows she is Hades' spouse, but she has no recollection of ever being married. She's under the assumption, however, that her marriage is still very much valid, even though she's in the body of a teenager.
10. Is she currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse?
No. ... That would make things even more complicated than they already are, wouldn't it?
11. Who was her first crush? Who is her latest?
Persephone's crushes have been a few mortals from her school, often members of bands that she was in. She gave up flirting almost entirely after she discovered she was already married.
12. What does she look for in a romantic partner?
Her ideal guy is someone relaxed and laid-back, with the sensitivity to understand art and people's feelings. Someone with whom she could philosophize on the meaning of life and death. In short, someone that could accompany her on those journeys to another planet that she seems to go on several times during the day. ... She seriously doubts that Hades answers to that description, but hey, again, it turns out she's spent all of eternity making lemonade out of lemons, so she could deal with that kind of thing, too. Also, she is far from being the possessive type, but she'd still like her romantic partner to respect any commitment made.
13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does she relate to them? If no, does she want any?
She probably has children, but she doesn't remember ever having them. It's a thought that sometimes keeps her awake at night. In some really indirect way, all living beings are her children.
14. Does she have any rivals or enemies?
No, but she discovered there is a reason for her seemingly irrational hatred for mint. Mint is a plant that Persephone created under... very unpleasant circumstances.
15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does she fall on the Kinsey scale?
A neat 0. Guys only.
16. How does she feel about sex? How important is it to her?
Considering that her body is only 16, she is pretty cool with the notion of sex. After all, she's a fertility goddess. However, as she doesn't remember any of her sexual experiences before the year 1995, including being allegedly raped, we could say that it's an aspect of life that she still has to explore.
17. What are her turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits?
Um... She's 16. So. You don't get to know that yet. :| Although that is information that she probably wouldn't mind sharing.
Beliefs
1. Do you know your character's astrological (zodiac of choice) sign? How well does she fit type?
I don't think it's actually applicable. But Persephone's birthdate that shows up in legal documents about her is March 21st, 1995, which makes her a Boar and puts her right on the Pisces-Aries cusp. The latter is actually quite appropriate: she has the creativity and sensitivity of Pisces, combined with the strength of character of Aries. As for the Boar, I'm not sure.
2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in her life?
She is definitely spiritual. It would be really weird if she adhered to any specific religion, since she's a goddess herself and she's friends with goddesses from several different mythologies. Anyway, as a death and rebirth goddess, she knows there's a certain aspect to life that transcends both the physical and mental levels, and she's always happy to help others get in touch with it. If one is bereaving the death of a loved one, they'll want to have someone like Persephone by their side. She knows that the souls of the dead are always hanging around somewhere, much closer to the living than they think.
3. Does this character have a personal code of morals or ethics? If so, how did that begin? What would it take to compromise it?
Persephone essentially runs on a sort of basic, slightly environmentalist common sense. If it hurts any of the following: yourself, other people, Nature - then don't do it. Other than that, she tends to be cool with pretty much everything.
4. How does she regard beliefs that differ from hers? Is she tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent?
She is very curious about various beliefs. Upon meeting Kwan Yin, she's read up on Buddhism quite a bit to understand her better.
5. What prejudices does she hold? Are they irrational or does she have a good reason for them?
Persephone is proudly 100% prejudice-free. She doesn't put labels on people. Again, she treasures uniqueness and specialness in everyone.
Daily Life
1. What is the character's financial situation? Is she rich, poor, comfortable, in debt?
At the moment, Persephone is legally an orphan on a public subsidy. When she needs money, she makes some by selling her art. In case of an emergency, she can make some appear out of nowhere. Still, she isn't about to use that power to become stinking rich - all she needs the extra money for is to buy more and better media to express herself with.
2. What is her social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected her?
She's a Greek Goddess. Namely, the goddess of death, renewal, reincarnation and springtime. Even though she's currently in the body of a child, she's married to Hades, the God of the Dead.
3. Where does she live? House, apartment, trailer? Is her home her castle or just a place to crash? What condition is it in? Does she share it with others?
She used to share an apartment with a few other Goddesses. But she turned out to need silence for her songs and art and unreasonable amounts of alone time, so she arranged to live alone in a tiny studio apartment. The whole place is quite messy - Persephone is simply unable to keep her things tidy. As a matter of fact, she doesn't even see the need to, since, according to her, she just finds things more easily that way. At the same time, it isn't a complete disaster, either - you'll just find books, pillows and random objects strewn across the floor. While Persephone does spend quite a bit of time outside, visiting museums, hanging with her friends, walking around in search of inspiration or on her quest to find Hades, her apartment is still the place where she spends most of her free time, since she locks herself there whenever she's composing music, painting or writing.
4. Besides the basic necessities, what does she spend her money on?
Oh boy. Art equipment, first of all: canvas, paints, brushes, watercolors, pencils, you name it. She owns several cameras, too. And then, she's spent a fortune on music equipment for her small music studio. She currently owns a keyboard, an electric guitar, an acoustic guitar, several microphones and a small sound mixer.
5. What does she do for a living? Is she good at it? Does she enjoy it, or would she rather be doing something else?
She goes to school, and she likes it a lot. She takes several art, music, creative writing and literature classes and she's quite good at them, even though she has a tendency to fill her term papers with personal theories, developments and interpretations of her own. The most understanding teachers tend to find her insight on life quite brilliant. As for the others... she doesn't mind getting an F as long as she feels she has spoken her mind and said everything she had to say on the matter.
6. What are her interests or hobbies? How does she spend her free time?
Persephone is all about art and expressing herself. She writes poems, draws, paints, plays the piano and the guitar, composes songs and lyrics, dances, takes amazing photographs... she's tried sculpting, too. She's always busy with at least one of her countless creative projects. She loves reading books and encyclopedias about art and artists, too. She's fascinated with the lives of artists, and loves memorizing as many facts as she can about them and later recounting entire biographies to her friends. She doesn't see anything weird about that - amazing existences need to be remembered as passionately and vividly as possible. When she's seeking inspiration, she takes long walks and does some basic yoga.
7. What are her eating habits? Does she skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods?
Technically, she doesn't need to eat to live. But she eats anyway, though she is far from being a big eater. She likes lots of sweet things, namely fruit, especially pomegranates. Also, fried flowers in spring and summer are a must. A big part of the reason why she is stuck in her current state, without any recollection of her past, is the fact that she started eating modern mortal food. Since she realized that, she's been trying to keep herself in check with a healthier diet, so, much to her dismay, she's banned things like alcohol, coffee and chocolate. Currently, she's more or less a vegetarian - so no meat or fish for her, either. She also detests mint and avoids everything mint-scented like the plague.
Associations
Which of the following do you associate with the character, or which is her favorite:
1. Color? Indigo.
2. Smell? Juniper incense.
3. Time of day? Night just before dawn.
4. Season? Spring (well, duh!).
5. Book? Any bulky Art History textbook.
6. Music? Goth-metal and artsy electronica.
7. Place? An art museum.
8. Substance? Paint or ink.
9. Plant? Lots of 'em. Pomegranate trees, first of all. And then lilies, violets, juniper, poplars, cypresses.
10. Animal? A butterfly.
END
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Body and Appearance
1. Describe the character's height and build. Is she heavyset, thin, short, rangy?
Persephone is the most petite thing. She is 5' 4'' and very skinny.
2. How old is she?
See, this is where things start to get a little problematic. Persephone is pretty much as old as the world, though, of course, not as old as her parents Zeus and Demeter. At the same time, she's currently in the body of a teenage girl, who could be anything from 13 to 16 (currently, I'm having her at 16).
3. Describe her posture. Does she carry herself well or does she slouch?
She's really quite petite, especially without her usual heels, so no danger of slouching there. As she walks or stands, she can be often found hanging her head pensively.
4. How is her health? Is she fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities?
Well, on the one hand, she's technically an immortal, so it's impossible for her to suffer from anything serious. On the other hand, the body she's trapped in right now, though still immortal, has a few flaws, rendering her prone to headaches and rather anemic. She tends to develop migraines when she's too stressed out or working too hard on one of her projects.
5. How does she move? Is she clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid?
She normally moves slowly and carefully, as if she were afraid to bump into the things around her. When she is feeling comfortable, however, she's been seen making rare, theatrical gestures for the sake of expressiveness or to make a point. Alternatively, when she's trying to get a read on someone, she tends to inadvertently copy their movements and stance. As she walks, she makes her blue coat swish a little around her.
6. How attractive is this character physically? How does she perceive herself in the mirror?
Persephone is really quite pretty. And she knows she is, although far be it from her to ever rub it in people's faces. She isn't overly concerned about her appearance, precisely because she knows she's beautiful the way she is. Her heavy goth makeup is really more of an artistic statement than an attempt to cover up flaws.
7. Describe her complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred?
She definitely lives up to her "white-armed" epithet. The teenage body she is in is as pale as a corpse, and too young to have any scars or marks, aside from minor bruises resulting from unimportant incidents in which she had to carry bulky art or music equipment around.
8. Describe her hair: color, texture, style.
Persephone's hair is straight and black. When seen in the light, a few natural, plum-colored highlights become noticeable. It's long, a few inches past her shoulders. Her overly long bangs are a set of very unruly locks, and they kind of have a mind of their own.
9. What color are her eyes?
Black.
10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features?
She is inseparable from her Goddess earring, a purple crystal hanging from her right ear which, to most, may look like a perfectly ordinary piece of amethyst. The shape of the gem is a sort of hybrid between a diamond and a teardrop. Other Goddesses who are in the same situation as her usually wear their Goddess crystals as a pendant or a bracelet. Persephone has made an earring out of hers. The gem serves to amplify the Goddess powers that she has while in her teenage body.
11. What are her chief tension centers?
Her legs tend to be kind of stiff and achey at the end of the day, since she walks a lot. Her upper body, on the other hand, is generally very relaxed.
12. What is the character's wardrobe like? Casual, dressy, utilitarian? Bright colors, pastels, neutrals? Is it varied, or does she have six of the same suit?
Oh boy. Where to start? First of all, she subscribes to the goth subculture and has happily adopted the fashion style, albeit in her personal, unique way. Her fashion ensembles are always dark and edgy. In general, you won't catch her wearing a lot of bright colors, especially in winter: a lot of black, purple, indigo and dark blue, with the occasional white, burgundy and blood red. However, her closet is actually quite varied, and she's been known to wear a lot of bright-colored clothes and accessories in spring and summer, because the seasons affect her moods so much.
Also, if she grows bored with any of her clothing items, she can and will modify them to her heart's content.
Her favorite outfit consists of a black and white striped top, a black miniskirt, a large burgundy leather belt, blue or dark gray tights and black knee-length lace-up boots. Over it all, she wears a long indigo coat with flower designs around the hems.
13. Do her clothes fit well? Does she seem comfortable in them?
They do and she is! She has no problem wearing skintight tops and miniskirts, with her coat over them to make them not as sexually suggestive. Though once in a while she will try wearing an oversized top just to experiment.
14. Does she dress the same on the job as she does in her free time? If not, what are the differences?
Why should she dress differently at school than what she would normally wear? Persephone sees absolutely no reason to do that. She's not afraid of being judged, or seen as a freak. She treasures her own uniqueness.
15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando?
Briefs, definitely.
Speech
1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse?
Persephone's body is not fully developed yet, and as a result her voice is that of an average teenage girl; at the same time, it's very soft and quiet. Some people find it unsettling, others find it soothing to listen to, others find it a bit of both. When she's singing, her voice acquires a deep, mature and soulful edge - she's a contralto.
2. How does she normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does she talk easily, or does she hesitate?
She speaks very softly by default. Some would argue that that's because she's shy, but the truth is that she tends to save her voice for her songs. As she tends to space out quite a lot and it's not always easy for her to get back to reality, she always tends to hesitate and even stutter when initiating dialogue or interaction. She tends to gradually grow more comfortable after that - she is not actually shy, or so she likes to claim.
3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics?
Not really, though the little Italian she knows is more Sicilian than anything else. Once again, when she's trying to get a read on somebody, she will inadvertently mimic their manner of speaking, including their verbal tics.
4. What language/s does she speak, and with how much fluency?
She speaks English and Greek, both at native level, and a bit of advanced Italian. She's trying to learn French, too, because France has the coolest art museums.
5. Does she switch languages or dialects in certain situations?
Not really! Well, okay, sometimes she will pretend to chant spells in Greek to scare off bullies bothering her friends. But real Goddess spells don't work like that.
6. Is she a good impromptu speaker, or does she have to think about her words?
A bit of both. She does have to think really hard before speaking, which tends to result in abnormally long moments of silence, but once she starts talking, she effortlessly pours her heart into what she says and conveys her ideas and feelings quite easily. She really has a tendency to need some time to slip into gear.
7. Is she eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change?
She's the quiet type and tends to only speak when prompted or asked. But that doesn't mean she isn't able to occasionally spew out a few mouthfuls, especially when the mouthful in question is a bunch of information regarding an artist or a work of art.
Mental and Emotional
1. How intelligent is this character? Is she book-smart or street-smart?
She's quite smart. Her intelligence is almost exclusively of the emotional type, however - she's far from being a logical individual. Her mind and spirit aren't bound by strict logic. For one, she's extremely perceptive - by listening and observing, she can pick on a person's mood rather quickly, even when the person in question is doing everything in their power to somehow conceal it. Because of that, she's often been called a psychic. As far as intellect goes, she's read and eagerly absorbed a lot of literature and bulky tomes on the arts and the lives of artists. At the same time, she is very much the practical type. She can paint, compose music and poems, write, and dance. She is a member of a school band and she's always working on one (or several) of her creative projects. Lately, she's started promoting her works, too, which has given her some experience of how, for example, art exhibitions and advertising work. She has a pretty good memory that allows her to remember a lot of facts and dates about her favorite artists and works of art.
2. Does she think on her feet, or does she need time to deliberate?
Most of the time, Persephone tends to need unreasonable amounts of time to think things over. She really wants to consider all factors involved, which, sadly, tends to result in long moments of silence and/or inaction. The only time she can think on her feet is when she is inspired to do something - during those moments, she's just pouring her heart and her emotions out and letting them take shape.
3. Describe the character's thought process. Is she more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical?
She is very intuitive. Her idea of solving a problem does not entail any calculation. To her, problems can be solved by being true to oneself and to one's own aspirations and inspirations in life, a concept that she describes as the "inner voice". By marching to the beat of one's own drum, essentially. One should always follow their inner voice no matter what, and never be afraid of being judged. In that respect, she's definitely an idealist. When confronted with situations that clash with her ideal, she tends to need quite some time to reorganize her strategy, and during that time, she'll be feeling pretty stressed and frustrated.
4. What kind of education has the character had?
She is currently attending high school, taking several courses in figurative arts, music, photography and literature.
5. What are her areas of expertise? What, if anything, is she interested in learning more about?
She's all about music, literature and the arts. While she doesn't own an incredible amount of books, she owns quite a few art history texts and encyclopedias that she's read enough times to know some extracts by heart. She's also interested in improving her music and art, and therefore she's been studying very practical aspects, too, either by reading about them or by asking more experienced artists and musicians.
6. Is she an introvert or an extrovert?
She is definitely an introvert, with a... core of extroversion embedded deep within. She usually needs unreasonable amounts of alone time, but she'll give up her solitude at any time to help a friend in need. She has actually a pretty broad circle of friends, even though at times she simply... disappears, becoming wholly absorbed by her art projects.
7. Describe the character's temperament. Is she even-tempered or does she have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven?
Her mood swings are frequent, seasonal and unpredictable. Her state of mind is strongly affected by the weather. During the winter, she's more likely to be quiet, introverted and pessimistic, and her songs, writings and paintings tend to have a gloomy, gothic flavor. In spring, however, her friends agree that it's as if Persephone became a completely different person, more outgoing, generally more positive about life and eager to spend time outside.
8. How does she respond to new people or situations? Is she suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic?
Again, she's very shy and timid at first and needs time to slip into gear. Just give her enough time, and she'll grow comfortable with it. She is actually always willing to get to know new people, it's just that the first few moments tend to be really awkward: either she will feel intimidated, or she will inadvertently do something that will result in the other person being intimidated.
9. Is she more likely to act, or to react?
It depends. But in spite of the story the myths tell, she's far from being a passive individual. Though her confidence may falter sometimes, she's strong enough to take matters into her own hands when it gets down to it. Her acts are many, but usually subtle, or in the form of artistic self-expression.
10. Which is her default: fight or flight?
Her default is... closer to flight, actually. When confronted with overly stressful or dangerous situations, she tends to retreat to a safe place where she can be alone and calmly think of a way to sort it all out.
11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does she appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks?
She loves a good joke, but pranks are usually met with a bit of an irritated frown and "why are you doing this?".
12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does she deal with them?
Well, she tends to have trouble fitting in and socializing, but that's more due to her own choices than to anything else. No, mentally, she's very healthy.
13. What moments in this character's life have defined her as a person?
Well, being kidnapped by Hades and consequently becoming Queen of the Underworld is definitely one of those moments. Then, it was when she heard Orpheus' song that she realized how truly powerful music could be as a means of expression. Nowadays, however, she has no clear memory of either of those events.
14. What does she fear?
Her greatest fear is that her "inner voice" might actually get her in trouble someday. Reading about the lives of artists, she's become familiar with enough tales of self-destruction. As an immortal, perhaps the risks are much lower for her than they are for her mortal fellow artists. Still... that is a path she will do everything in her power not to walk.
15. What are her hopes or aspirations?
Well, for the moment, she'd like to be absolutely certain that she's a goddess. And maybe reunite with Hades along the way. Her long-term goal is, simply, to be herself and express her feelings, emotions and ideas in every possible way.
16. What is something she doesn't want anyone to find out about her?
She absolutely doesn't want her mortal friends to find out that she isn't quite like them. What would they do if they found out their friend was a Goddess of Death?
Relationships
1. Describe this character's relationship with her parents.
Persephone is the daughter of Zeus, king of the gods, and Demeter, goddess of the earth and agriculture. At this point, Persephone has no direct memory of Zeus and Demeter. She's read the myths, but the point is that she doesn't have any memory of her own. However, even if she regained those memories, she wouldn't hold any resentment towards them for what they did to her. If her current goth lifestyle is anything to go by, she was definitely able to make lemonade out of the lemons that life gave her.
2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like?
Her father is Zeus, so she has [infinity symbol] half-siblings. Out of all of them, the ones she knows best are Artemis, or rather, Diana, and Athena, two of the goddesses in teenager bodies that she hangs out with. Diana is essentially a jock. Persephone likes and admires her, but doesn't think she'd ever be able to do half of all the physical stuff Diana does, though Diana successfully got Persephone to take up modern dance. Persephone is great friends with Athena. They regularly trade tips on books and cultural events, and Athena is the first person Persephone goes to when she needs someone to beta read her written works or give her an opinion on a new painting.
The three of them used to be close even in the ancient times, but they have no memory of that.
And then there's Hermes, who is technically her half-brother, her nephew, and her cousin, too. Oh boy. Persephone enjoys his company, he's fun and everything, but he's really too fixated on ripping people off. It's fun once, Hermes. The first time. After that, it's just irritating.
3. Are there other blood relatives to whom she is close? Are there ones she can't stand?
Other goddesses that are in her group of friends that she is related to are Hera (whom, she supposes, she should see as her father's legitimate spouse) and Venus (who should be like, her aunt). They are great friends. In that respect, it's... actually a really good thing that none of them has any clear memory of their past as goddesses.
4. Are there other, unrelated people whom she considers part of her family? What are her relationships with them?
Well, two of her other Goddess friends include Isis and Kwan Yin. She is very close to both of them. Kwan Yin always helps her relax and free up her mind, and she's gotten Persephone into Yoga to boot. Isis shares Persephone's love for nature and the environment, and they can be often seen supporting good causes together and taking part in enviromentalist rallies.
5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet?
For her current best friends, let me refer you back to the parts about Athena, Isis, and Kwan Yin, all of whom, by the way, she first met in the Goddess Garden, where it was revealed to them that they were actually goddesses. Her former best friends from her time as the Queen of the Underworld included Hermes, who was like, her personal taxi driver from and into the Underworld, and Hecate.
6. Does she have other close friends?
There are a lot of them, actually, in spite of the scary goth image that she has built for herself. Aside from the other six goddesses, Persephone is friends with quite a few mortal kids from her school. Pretty much all those who have had the patience to get to know her for the person she really is.
7. Does she make friends easily, or does she have trouble getting along with people?
She's really quite socially awkward, at least in the first stages of her getting to know someone. She attends parties and social gatherings, but on those occasions she tends to isolate herself. In general, she needs lots of space and alone time. If one comes to understand and accept that, they'll discover that Persephone is actually a pretty amazing friend. She's a great listener who never, ever judges and can dispense pretty wise advice when needed.
8. Which does she consider more important: family or friends?
... It's a trick question, right? It's complicated. Four out of six of her twenty-first-century best friends are actually her family. So.
9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has she been married more than once?
Here's the thing - as previously hinted, Persephone knows she is Hades' spouse, but she has no recollection of ever being married. She's under the assumption, however, that her marriage is still very much valid, even though she's in the body of a teenager.
10. Is she currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse?
No. ... That would make things even more complicated than they already are, wouldn't it?
11. Who was her first crush? Who is her latest?
Persephone's crushes have been a few mortals from her school, often members of bands that she was in. She gave up flirting almost entirely after she discovered she was already married.
12. What does she look for in a romantic partner?
Her ideal guy is someone relaxed and laid-back, with the sensitivity to understand art and people's feelings. Someone with whom she could philosophize on the meaning of life and death. In short, someone that could accompany her on those journeys to another planet that she seems to go on several times during the day. ... She seriously doubts that Hades answers to that description, but hey, again, it turns out she's spent all of eternity making lemonade out of lemons, so she could deal with that kind of thing, too. Also, she is far from being the possessive type, but she'd still like her romantic partner to respect any commitment made.
13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does she relate to them? If no, does she want any?
She probably has children, but she doesn't remember ever having them. It's a thought that sometimes keeps her awake at night. In some really indirect way, all living beings are her children.
14. Does she have any rivals or enemies?
No, but she discovered there is a reason for her seemingly irrational hatred for mint. Mint is a plant that Persephone created under... very unpleasant circumstances.
15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does she fall on the Kinsey scale?
A neat 0. Guys only.
16. How does she feel about sex? How important is it to her?
Considering that her body is only 16, she is pretty cool with the notion of sex. After all, she's a fertility goddess. However, as she doesn't remember any of her sexual experiences before the year 1995, including being allegedly raped, we could say that it's an aspect of life that she still has to explore.
17. What are her turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits?
Um... She's 16. So. You don't get to know that yet. :| Although that is information that she probably wouldn't mind sharing.
Beliefs
1. Do you know your character's astrological (zodiac of choice) sign? How well does she fit type?
I don't think it's actually applicable. But Persephone's birthdate that shows up in legal documents about her is March 21st, 1995, which makes her a Boar and puts her right on the Pisces-Aries cusp. The latter is actually quite appropriate: she has the creativity and sensitivity of Pisces, combined with the strength of character of Aries. As for the Boar, I'm not sure.
2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in her life?
She is definitely spiritual. It would be really weird if she adhered to any specific religion, since she's a goddess herself and she's friends with goddesses from several different mythologies. Anyway, as a death and rebirth goddess, she knows there's a certain aspect to life that transcends both the physical and mental levels, and she's always happy to help others get in touch with it. If one is bereaving the death of a loved one, they'll want to have someone like Persephone by their side. She knows that the souls of the dead are always hanging around somewhere, much closer to the living than they think.
3. Does this character have a personal code of morals or ethics? If so, how did that begin? What would it take to compromise it?
Persephone essentially runs on a sort of basic, slightly environmentalist common sense. If it hurts any of the following: yourself, other people, Nature - then don't do it. Other than that, she tends to be cool with pretty much everything.
4. How does she regard beliefs that differ from hers? Is she tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent?
She is very curious about various beliefs. Upon meeting Kwan Yin, she's read up on Buddhism quite a bit to understand her better.
5. What prejudices does she hold? Are they irrational or does she have a good reason for them?
Persephone is proudly 100% prejudice-free. She doesn't put labels on people. Again, she treasures uniqueness and specialness in everyone.
Daily Life
1. What is the character's financial situation? Is she rich, poor, comfortable, in debt?
At the moment, Persephone is legally an orphan on a public subsidy. When she needs money, she makes some by selling her art. In case of an emergency, she can make some appear out of nowhere. Still, she isn't about to use that power to become stinking rich - all she needs the extra money for is to buy more and better media to express herself with.
2. What is her social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected her?
She's a Greek Goddess. Namely, the goddess of death, renewal, reincarnation and springtime. Even though she's currently in the body of a child, she's married to Hades, the God of the Dead.
3. Where does she live? House, apartment, trailer? Is her home her castle or just a place to crash? What condition is it in? Does she share it with others?
She used to share an apartment with a few other Goddesses. But she turned out to need silence for her songs and art and unreasonable amounts of alone time, so she arranged to live alone in a tiny studio apartment. The whole place is quite messy - Persephone is simply unable to keep her things tidy. As a matter of fact, she doesn't even see the need to, since, according to her, she just finds things more easily that way. At the same time, it isn't a complete disaster, either - you'll just find books, pillows and random objects strewn across the floor. While Persephone does spend quite a bit of time outside, visiting museums, hanging with her friends, walking around in search of inspiration or on her quest to find Hades, her apartment is still the place where she spends most of her free time, since she locks herself there whenever she's composing music, painting or writing.
4. Besides the basic necessities, what does she spend her money on?
Oh boy. Art equipment, first of all: canvas, paints, brushes, watercolors, pencils, you name it. She owns several cameras, too. And then, she's spent a fortune on music equipment for her small music studio. She currently owns a keyboard, an electric guitar, an acoustic guitar, several microphones and a small sound mixer.
5. What does she do for a living? Is she good at it? Does she enjoy it, or would she rather be doing something else?
She goes to school, and she likes it a lot. She takes several art, music, creative writing and literature classes and she's quite good at them, even though she has a tendency to fill her term papers with personal theories, developments and interpretations of her own. The most understanding teachers tend to find her insight on life quite brilliant. As for the others... she doesn't mind getting an F as long as she feels she has spoken her mind and said everything she had to say on the matter.
6. What are her interests or hobbies? How does she spend her free time?
Persephone is all about art and expressing herself. She writes poems, draws, paints, plays the piano and the guitar, composes songs and lyrics, dances, takes amazing photographs... she's tried sculpting, too. She's always busy with at least one of her countless creative projects. She loves reading books and encyclopedias about art and artists, too. She's fascinated with the lives of artists, and loves memorizing as many facts as she can about them and later recounting entire biographies to her friends. She doesn't see anything weird about that - amazing existences need to be remembered as passionately and vividly as possible. When she's seeking inspiration, she takes long walks and does some basic yoga.
7. What are her eating habits? Does she skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods?
Technically, she doesn't need to eat to live. But she eats anyway, though she is far from being a big eater. She likes lots of sweet things, namely fruit, especially pomegranates. Also, fried flowers in spring and summer are a must. A big part of the reason why she is stuck in her current state, without any recollection of her past, is the fact that she started eating modern mortal food. Since she realized that, she's been trying to keep herself in check with a healthier diet, so, much to her dismay, she's banned things like alcohol, coffee and chocolate. Currently, she's more or less a vegetarian - so no meat or fish for her, either. She also detests mint and avoids everything mint-scented like the plague.
Associations
Which of the following do you associate with the character, or which is her favorite:
1. Color? Indigo.
2. Smell? Juniper incense.
3. Time of day? Night just before dawn.
4. Season? Spring (well, duh!).
5. Book? Any bulky Art History textbook.
6. Music? Goth-metal and artsy electronica.
7. Place? An art museum.
8. Substance? Paint or ink.
9. Plant? Lots of 'em. Pomegranate trees, first of all. And then lilies, violets, juniper, poplars, cypresses.
10. Animal? A butterfly.
END
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