Character Interview

Saw this on a friend's page, thought I'd do it too. You get a look at a few things that aren't in the book, check it out. ^_^

WARNING: SPOILER ALERT - aka - DON'T READ IT IF YOU HAVEN'T READ SLAYER AND ELITE YET!!



ME: Where did you grow up?

Kitty fidgets with the fabric of her black pants; not entirely comfortable in this position yet. "I grew up all over, actually. My parents were on the run with me throughout my childhood...we didn't stay in one place for very long."

ME: Okay then, describe your childhood family?

"It was just me, mom, and dad," she replies, glancing away from me. Obviously this is a tender subject. "We were happy. They were happy. Until a bunch of bloodsuckers came in and killed them both. That was the end of my childhood for me." Her gaze hardens as she speaks. "My father was a Lyski outcast; a type of elemental immortal. They had three forms, all feline. Humanoid, amalgamate, and grimalkin. Humanoid was human, obviously, amalgamate was a mix, and grimalkin was their large cat form. The Lyski people were very exclusive and he was exiled for bonding with my mother. My mother was a fallen angel, cast from Heaven because another angel (who turned out to be a demon, by the way) fell in love with her, got jealous of her relationship with my dad, and turned her in for fraternization. Angels have very specific kinds of immortals they can mate with. Heaven's insanely protective of that rule."

ME: Hmm. What's your happiest childhood memory?

She smiles only briefly. "There was a tornado watch where we were living when I was...oh I don't know maybe seven or eight. I guess maybe I should have been scared, but I wasn't. We were all down in the basement, the power was out, and we just had a few candles lit. My dad was making me and my mom laugh telling silly stories about the tornado being at a "weather ball" and she had started off as a gust of wind who had one too many drinks and got dizzy and spun out of control." Kitty shrugs as if embarrassed by this story. "It took some of the fear away from the situation." She snorts and the memory makes her smile again. "A drunk tornado..." she snickers.

ME: Alright, you say that should have scared you but it didn't. What's your most frightening childhood memory?

Kitty glares at me. "I think you know the answer to this one..."

ME: Just answer, please.

Her glare deepens and she looks angry. She picks at the fabric of her pants again. "Watching your mother die at the hands of vampires would be enough to terrify anyone, don't you think?"

ME: Sorry. Would you say your childhood was happy then? Why or why not?

She looks away from me again. "All things considered, yes my childhood was happy. What there was of it. Even constantly running, constantly hiding, I was happy because my family was happy. My parents loved each other, and me. They were just trying to keep me safe. My childhood died when my parents did."

ME: Fair enough. Kenric found you after your parents...passed, right?"

She nods. "Yes."

ME: And you went to the IIC after that.

"Right."

ME: Okay, who was your best friend in junior high, while you were there?

Kitty crosses her legs and laces her fingers over one knee; becoming more comfortable as we draw away from the subject of her family. "Kenric was, at first. Because he was the only person I knew. Darien introduced himself after that and he quickly became my best friend. Until he turned dark anyway. But he was my best friend in "junior high" or whatever it's called at the Confederacy.

ME: What activities did you participate in when you were in high school?

Kitty raises an eyebrow at me. "Seriously?"

ME: I have to ask.

She sighs dramatically. "Fine. I killed people."

ME: People?

"Vampires. Demons. Dark fae. Bad guys. All those things that go bump in the night. I slew them."

ME: Nice use of the past tense.

Kitty snorts. "I get tired of hearing people say 'slayed.' That's not a word."

ME: [I laugh] Alright. Did you have a group of friends or just Darien?

"Just Darien. I had a group of enemies though. I don't make friends easily; most Slayers don't."

ME: What were your aspirations in high school?

"Again with the stupid questions. I wanted to avenge my parents' deaths."

ME: Not everyone knows your past, Kitty. I'm just trying to cover all the bases.

"Right right, sorry."

ME: Did you go to college? Where, and what did you study?

Kitty shifts uneasily and I can sense she doesn't like where the conversation is going. "Yes and no. Immortals only go to college if a) they really want a diploma or b) heaven sends them there. Someone like Kenric, scholar that he is, would go to get a diploma. I got sent there on an errand, and before you ask, NO I didn't study. That's not what I was there for."

ME: Why did you get sent there?

Kitty's eyes dart around as if looking to escape. "It was an errand for Heaven, basically. I was sent to track down another immortal."

ME: Okay, good enough. What's your greatest talent?

Without missing a beat: "Killing vampires."

ME: [I snort] Yeah I think we knew that one. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

She looks momentarily thoughtful. "I guess sometimes I wish I wasn't so hardheaded. Or so determined to do things my way or not at all...That's gotten me into trouble a few times. I'm just rebellious at heart I guess." She grins widely at me.

ME: [Laughing] So, any regrets?

She sighs. "If I regretted anything I did in the past, it would distract me from what I'm trying to accomplish in the future; from living my life. So...no."

ME: Okay, I have a question here that asks if you get along with your parents and/or siblings but I guess we can skip that one.

She smirks. "Oh good, you're learning."

ME: Mmmm...okay. Are you married? How do you feel about it? Are you still in love with your spouse?

Her joviality from before immediately fades, replaced by a drawn expression. And then anger. And then sadness again. "I love my...spouse, yes. Marriage works a little differently in the upper ranks of Heaven than on earth. It's...a bond, more than a ritual symbolizing it. My 'marriage' is the first one in the Heavenly Realms, I believe, where the bond is not actually...consummated."

ME: Can...you be a little more specific?

She sighs. "I don't like to talk about it. My first love was killed in battle. He is the father of my only child, and I loved him with more than my life. I loved him with my soul, and part of it died the day he was killed. I love Kenric, who I'm currently 'married' to, but he'll never come close to replacing...him."

ME: You don't like to say his name?

"I can't. It physically hurts me too much, even now."

ME: Okay then, you mentioned your child. Can you describe him or her?

Kitty's eyes brighten only a little at the mention of her child. "Her. She's beautiful. She's some of him and some of me. She has my temper and his...sense of duty, I guess. Wanting to help, wanting to do something for the common good. She wants to go to school, which I didn't. She wants to help, she wants to have a profession. We can't give her one yet."

ME: Why not have her follow in your footsteps as a Slayer?

"She's too powerful, number one. And number two, she's had no training in the fighting field. That's not what she's meant to do, in the end. We haven't been able to tell her what to expect of her profession yet. But that's her story to tell, not mine."

ME: Alrighty. What can you offer the world?

Kitty snorts derisively. "Safety. Every vampire I slay, every demon I kill, makes the human world a little safer. Being an Elite doesn't hurt either. My kill rank is around 700 now, I think..."

ME: What's your strongest opinion?

"Heaven is too powerful. And keeps too tight a rein on its immortals. A story for another day."

ME: Do you say what's on your mind?

"Most of the time. I'm pretty blunt."

ME: I know the answer to this next question, but I'll ask anyway. Are you a peacekeeper?

She laughs and relaxes back into her chair. "Hell no. My IIC profile was flagged as a potential troublemaker until the day I got initiated as an Elite. I started a lot of fights. Kenric was always the peacemaker. Or...him. Yeah."

ME: Moving on then...do you consider yourself intelligent?

She raises an eyebrow at me. "I can do basic math and as you noticed earlier, my grammar's not that bad. I'm not a Technician; they're the super-smart ones. But I have to have common sense and be somewhat street smart to do what I do, so...yes. I think I'm fairly intelligent."

ME: Are you compassionate?

"I can be. Most of the time though, no. It gets me in trouble."

ME: Do you like animals?

She laughs. "I guess, sure. I'm not a crazy cat-lady or anything...Oh wait. Some people might say I am." She points at the obvious feline ears that currently adorn her head and we both laugh. "But seriously though," she continues, "I'm not a super animal-lover. I'm not vegetarian, obviously I'm a carnivore. But some animals are okay, I guess. Elites just generally don't have time for them. Especially when still active, like I am."

ME: So, no pets when you were a kid?

"No."

ME: Okay, do you like where you live? Why or why not?

Kitty shifts her weight so her legs are slung over the arm of the chair. "I guess I do and I don't. I don't like being in the upper realms of Heaven, constantly being scrutinized, that whole thing. But...it beats having to move around all the time, which I've done most of my life. So I guess it's okay."

ME: If you could be any other person, who would you be?

"Geez I don't know. Someone with a simpler life maybe? I'm so busy living mine I really haven't thought about trying to be in someone else's."

ME: Favorite movie or TV show?

"Ananya is the TV watcher, not me. I like that Buffy show alright, though they're way off on how it's done. And I'm really sick of people interpreting vampires as some kind of lovable teddy bears. They're killers. Plain and simple. They always will be. And letting what Angel did to her get in the way of her Slaying. That's just...argh it just frustrates me. But aside from that it's alright."

ME: Alright, not a big TV person. Which character trait do you think is the most important, and why?

Without hesitation: "Strength. We live in a cruel, heartless world. Bad things happen to good people. If you don't have the strength to fight that every single day, then, well, why bother? You have to be willing to fight for what you love the most in this world, and a lot of people give up way too easily. I know I almost did."

ME: Okay, quick twenty questions. Favorite color?

"Green."

ME: Food?

"Pizza and a coke."

ME: Music?

"Something like rock but no screaming. Breaking Benjamin is good, for the most part."

ME: Season?

"Spring."

ME: Do you believe in a higher power?

Kitty laughs. "I work with his angels on occasion, so yes."

ME: Would you consider yourself religious?

"Not in the way that mortals do. 'Religion' applies to us differently than in the mortal world."

ME: What religion would you be, then?

She shrugs. "We don't really have 'religion' like I said. That's based on faith, more or less, and we know he exists."

ME: Wish religion were that easy for all of us.

She laughs again. "No kidding. I don't envy mortals their stupid wars."

ME: Right. Would you lie if you knew you wouldn't be caught?

"Absolutely."

ME: Interesting. If you could do anything, what would it be?

"I'd bring him back." Her eyes go hard at that, which makes me wonder if she hasn't already tried to get him back.

ME: Okay, are you brave? Trustworthy? Honest?

"Yes, yes, and yes."

ME: But you just said you'd lie if you wouldn't get caught.

"I'm brutally honest, with certain people. I'll lie to the Heavenly authorities if I need to, but I'd never lie to Kenric, for example. He knows better by now anyway."

ME: Okay, I guess that makes sense. So what's your biggest fault then?

"The same thing that makes me who I am. I'm stubborn and I have a quick temper." She laughs. "It's why I survived the massacre after he was killed; I was too stubborn to die."

ME: [forced laugh] Yeah okay, so this next question is probably rhetorical then, but have you tried to change your biggest fault?

Her eyes soften and she looks away. "Only once. And god knows I wish I'd changed earlier. If I hadn't been so stubborn, he might have survived."

ME: Do you have a sense of humor?

She rolls her eyes at me. "What do you think?"

ME: You have a great sense of sarcasm.

She laughs. "Yeah, my sense of humor is fairly dry and is limited to sarcasm, I think."

ME: What kind of car to you own?

"A black porsche convertible." She grins at me. "It's fast."

ME: Do you wear designer clothing? Why or why not?

She snorts. "No. Because vampires tend to rip right through my clothes trying to get to my skin. It would be a waste of money."

ME: So you're not rich, I guess?

"No, I am. The IIC is ten times more wealthy than the richest corporation in the mortal world. We don't use currency in the upper levels, and the IIC has invested in too many good companies to fail. I think I'm technically a billionaire in mortal terms, I just don't use it cuz I don't want to. I'm looking at buying a faster car though; maybe a Lambourghini."

ME: That's impressive. Do you donate to any charities or anything?

She snorts again. "Like what? Homeless immortal orphans?"

ME: I'm just asking. Do you even have charities?

"Not really. We have adoption like the mortal world does, but it's the IIC that funds everything. For every Christmas and birthday, every immortal in the IIC gets a lump sum of money to do whatever they want with. We can invest it, spend it, but if we use what we've got, then we have to wait till our next birthday or Christmas or whatever. But that amount of money is usually too high to spend all at once anyway, unless you're just really, really stupid. Or go out and buy one of everything at the nearest mortal supermarket."

ME: Makes sense, I guess. Okay, final question. Describe yourself to me; appearance, personality, anything we haven't covered.

She settles herself into her chair as if about to make a long speech. "I'm about 5'5", average build. My hair is two different colors, light blonde and dark brown, and that's natural from my father's heritage. I got his three forms from him too; human, hybrid, and feline. My eyes are green, and can look like a normal human's eyes, or else they're in their feline form. I have claws too, but they only come out when I'm fighting, and I like to use my daggers anyway. They're my weapon of choice. I've got fallen angel wings, obviously from my mother. They're a dusty brown color with black flight feathers. I can hide them at will, if I want. I'm brutal, pretty violent, and very blunt. I don't stand for BS or for anyone to mock me or those close to me. I've nearly killed people over a small insult. I fight viciously over those who are dear to me, and I've killed hundreds of creatures. In short terms, don't mess with me."