Soo… here are the next two characters. These profiles are written in interview style, to allow more of a feel for the characters. The questions aren’t taken from any place in particular, but I personally found these interviews quite easy to write. When you know a character well, interviewing them can give you quite a lot of information.
The Elf
The Interviewer walks into a grove, looking like she’d rather be anywhere else but here.
The Elf is standing there already, his eyes closed and his hands half-lifted, as if soaking in the rays from the sun. He speaks without opening his eyes. “You took your time coming here.”
“I have to take a different approach.” The Interviewer pauses a short distance from the Elf. “Are you free to talk?”
The Elf opens eyes of a startling green, slanted at the corners like a cat. He turns to smile at the Interviewer, showing a lean, handsome face framed by blond hair pulled back into two braids. He smiles charmingly. “I always have time for a pretty woman.”
The Interviewer frowns, flicking through her files. “It doesn’t say here that you’re a sleaze.”
“I merely speak the truth.” The Elf smiles at her. “Ask your questions.”
“It doesn’t give you a name here.”
“I have no need for a name. I am a guardian of the gate and nothing more.”
“Where are you from?” the Interviewer asks.
“Another world,” the Elf answers. “I came through the gate.”
“And what is the gate?”
The Elf smiles. “The gate isn’t a ‘what’. It’s a who.”
“Don’t you miss your true home?” the Interviewer asks.
“Of course I do.” The Elf shrugs. “But this is a necessary task to do.”
“Who gave you your task?”
“It’s been my destiny. I’ve known about it as soon as I was old enough to understand what I needed to do.”
“Do you have any family?”
“Both my parents still live,” the Elf answers. “I have an older brother and a younger sister. I have not seen any of my family in a very long time. And, yes, I do miss them. I am loyal to my duties, but I still have feelings.”
“Do you have any special skills?”
“I have been trained with a variety of weapons – specifically a bow and throwing daggers, but I have had long enough to be trained in weapons such as the mace and quarterstaff.”
“What do you hope for?”
“An end to my work here. Doesn’t everyone?”
“Is there anything you fear?”
“I fear failure. I fear being unable to stand before my ancestors and account for myself. And I fear the destruction of the worlds.”
“And what do you desire?”
The Elf turns away. “Everything I cannot have.”
Dismissed, the Interviewer leaves without another word.
Nyoka
The Interviewer is sitting in a cafe, drinking some coffee and trying to stay awake. She’s watching the door and tapping her foot impatiently.
Nyoka, a fifteen-year-old, slender girl with long black hair, braided back from her face, and dark eyes, steps through the door. After glancing around the cafe, she walks over and sits opposite the Interviewer. “You’re who I’m supposed to meet?”
The Interviewer nods. “I’m sorry for any inconvenience called.”
“It’s no inconvenience, honest. But I do need to get back to my brother, so if we could get this done quickly, that would be great.”
“This won’t take long.” The Interviewer shuffles some papers and then looks at Nyoka. “You mentioned your brother. Is he very important to you?”
A fond smile crosses Nyoka’s face. “I’ve been looking after the kid since he was a baby. I’m the only mother he’s ever known. Ever since…” Her face darkens.
“Ever since your parents left you,” the Interviewer finishes.
“Abandoned us,” Nyoka corrects. “You might as well call it what it is.”
“Can you tell me a little about your powers?” the Interviewer asks.
Nyoka sits with her hands laced on the top of the table. “I can talk to snakes.”
“You control them?”
“No. I can’t control living things. To the best of my knowledge, no person can. I can ask the snakes to do things, but it’s ultimately their choice.” Nyoka smiles, a faraway look coming over her face. “If I wanted one to bite someone, for instance. I could ask them, but snakes don’t just bite for no reason. It would have to be someone who was threatening me or someone I care about.”
“And who do you care about?”
“Apart from my brother, Mitch?” Nyoka shrugs. “There’s no one. I mean, I care about my snakes, of course, but those aren’t people.”
“Don’t you ever get lonely?”
“Only sometimes. But, really, I don’t need anyone other than Mitch. If I don’t let anyone in, no one can hurt me.”
“Like your parents did.”
“I don’t like talking about them.”
The Interviewer nods. “What about school?”
“The foster families who took me in tried to make me go to school, but foster families don’t know everything.” A dark look comes over Nyoka’s face. “I ran away from them as soon as I could and took my brother with me. They weren’t going to hurt him, too.”
“Don’t you ever worry about Mitch not getting what he needs when he’s with you?”
“I make sure he’s fed. I got a fake ID made by someone who owes me a favour, so people think I’m older than I am. I work and leave him with people to be looked after.” Nyoka smiles, this time with a proud edge to it. “He’s turning into quite the little pickpocket. Oh, don’t worry,” she adds. “We only steal from those people rich enough to afford losing a little cash. And he knows not to hurt anyone.”
“Do you ever dream of a… better life?”
“Doesn’t everyone?”
The Interviewer nods. “What are your dreams?”
“I dream of a world where there are no poor people and everyone’s equal.”
“Under a dictatorship?”
Nyoka snorts. “Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Haven’t you ever heard that saying before?”
“Are you corrupted?”
“Only if you consider the ability to talk to snakes corrupt.”
“What would destroy you?”
“If anything happened to Mitch, it would change me. I’ve invested… everything into my little brother. He’s my whole world.”
“Do you have any other fears apart from that?”
“I don’t like the silence.” Nyoka laughs. “It’s really strange, isn’t it? I supplement my income by stealing – and yet I hate the quiet. It’s not like I enjoy talking, but if no one’s talking, it makes me feel uncomfortable.”
“Is there anyone you’re romantically interested in?”
“Not in this lifetime.”
“You’re talking like you’re an old maid.”
“I grew up fast.”
“Do you have any regrets?”
“Not really.” Nyoka stands up. “But on that note… I believe it’s time for me to go.” She tosses a wave back over her shoulder as she stands up and leaves the cafe.
Ink of Blood 