Character Survey: Vahaadi

1. People don’t behave the same way all the time. In fact, they generally have a mask for every social group — friends, family, business. Sometimes they have a different mask for different groups of friends. How does your character act around different people? How does their personality shift and change?
Vahaadi acts very differently depending on who he’s around. To his friends, he’s playful and casual. He usually manages to maintain a suave, bad-boy air, but at the smallest show of affection he’ll melt. His gaze is warm, his touches are petting, and he tends to be more expressive in his body language. People he doesn’t like get treated with a passive-aggressive snarkiness and even cruelty. He uses touch to harass and subtly threaten. Around men he’s attracted to, he’s submissive, coaxing and serious. Smiles are rare and eye contact is carefully calculated. The worst state to see him in is when he’s strung out on aphrodisiacs, which is his go-to coping method for depression and loneliness. He becomes very sexually solicitous (though not aggressive, since he’s found he gets more attention from playing the lapcat), slinky and raunchy. He usually only lets himself be seen this way by whoremongers and clients. When caught in this state by people he knows, he’s deeply humiliated.

2. Your character has been brought to a party and promptly ditched. They don’t have a ride back home. How does this work? How comfortable are they around all of these strangers? Do they interact?
Depending on who he was ditched by and how, he can respond two ways. If he feels really betrayed, he’ll try to make himself feel better by engaging in some scandalous flirting and get himself in whole lot of trouble. >.o Under better circumstances, he’ll join the party as the “cool newcomer” and have a good time.

3. It’s kind of awkward – what subjects are likely to make your character hesitate, flush, stumble on their words, etc.?
Hahaha um…getting caught acting the slut by the people he actually cares about. Otherwise, he’s pretty smooth even when he’s embarrassed. Oh, and gaining the attention of someone that he thinks is out of his league will get him flustered. (if somebody like Flint started flirting with Vahaadi, for instance, he’d get really confused. He’d like it, but he’d be thinking “what are you doing? You’re with Opal! DX And you’re way too good for someone like me!”)

4. Is your character more dominant or submissive to the people around them? Do they tend to follow others’ orders and wait for people to give them instruction in life, or do they charge ahead and make decisions on their own?
Submissive, definitely. He’s had it repeatedly reinforced in his mind that he’s a poor decision maker and benefits most from being guided…or just straight-up used.

5. What happens when your character doesn’t get what they want?
Bad things. >.> Vahaadi does not deal with disappointment well.

6. What’s the character’s self-esteem like?
His self-esteem is completely dependent on the treatment of whomever is calling the shots in his life at any given time. Sometimes, it’s quite stable and healthy. Most of the time, however, he deals with some serious self-pity, loathing, and shame.
a. Does it change over the course of the story? Yes. In Loose Canon and in Ashen Shard I see him moving gradually toward a sense of redemption. In Ashen Shard, its Lanthriel’s ghostly visitation that spurs Vahaadi to turn his life around. In Loose Canon, it’s Spark’s high esteem of him that makes him come to terms with his past and accept that there’s still good in him.

7. What’s one flaw about themselves that they hate the most and wish they could change?
Vahaadi hates that he’s so needy and clingy. He is awed by people like Lanthriel and jealous of people like Kalarune who seem to be content to go about doing their thing whether people like them or not.
On a more superficial note, he occasionally hates being short.

8. How does their personality shift when someone gets to know them well?
He becomes more flirty, teasing, and touchy.

9. Do they prefer time alone, or with other people?
With other people. He’s codependent with a capital C. When he doesn’t have friends around, he’ll latch onto the first dominating personality he can find, which causes all sorts of drama.

10. Is it easy for this character to tell someone “no” when they don’t want to do something?
Vahaadi’s “no” button is broken. He’s a doormat. There are very few things he’ll soundly refuse. His “friends” have exploited him liberally for this particular trait.

11. If this character were to describe their own personality, how would they do it?
“Weak.”

12. Is this character aware of their flaws?
Maybe a little too aware…

13. How has this character’s personality changed from childhood to adulthood?
As a kid he was a lot more aggressive and hot-headed. He had pretty much NO charisma. In his teens he started experimenting with passivity and poise and was rewarded generously with the kind of attention he thought he’d always wanted.

14. Who influenced this character’s personality? Did they pick up any mannerisms or traits from someone?
Vahaadi’s passive aggressive nature came from his parents. His mother was very passive, his father very aggressive, and Vahaadi learned to deal with frustration in internally destructive ways to avoid getting “disciplined” by his father. After running away, Tryvnah became the biggest influence on Vahaadi’s young life. Tryvnah reinforced his passivity by rewarding him with tenderness and affection only when he was submissive. What little willpower he’d had gradually fell away as he became more emotionally dependent on Tryvnah’s attention. However, Tryvnah was a good influence on him in other ways—he taught Vahaadi to appreciate beauty, to see the good in other people, and how to conduct himself with class and showmanship. While their relationship was in good terms, Tryvnah also had the best impact on his self-esteem.

15. Does this character express affection? Are they comfortable doing so?
Yes, and generously. He can be nigh unbearable around people that aren’t used to having someone ALL UP IN THEIR GRILL. There is no one on earth he won’t share a kiss with if given the right opportunity or motivation.

16. When frightened, will the character “fight” or “flight”?
He’s more likely to flee. He has a low stamina and technically never learned how to defend himself or fight properly. But, he does keep a whip and a sword handy to fight if necessary. His fighting “style” relies mostly on stunts he learned from Tryvnah, smoke and mirror tricks, djinni magic, and a large amount of playing dirty. He’ll bite, kick, pull hair…and somehow manage to look very cool doing it. Mostly, anyway.

17. Does this character ever put someone else’s needs in front of their own?
Ummmmm…no, not really. Kindness or sacrifice is almost always for some kind of gain, even if that gain is a split-second of attention.
a. If there are only rare exceptions, why is that the case? In Loose Canon I imagine he sticks his neck out for Spark on a fairly regular basis, but he can afford to because he’s immortal. Even so, it’s for his own good: the longer she lives, the longer he gets to enjoy her attention and care for him.

18. If this character suffered amnesia and lost all their memories, what would they be like?
Haha. Under Took’s memory spell he loses much of his cheekiness. He’s just kind of sullen, and still suffers from neediness and codependency. Instead of flirting for attention, however, he just acts extremely submissive.

19. How does the character’s living space reflect their personality?
Vahaadi doesn’t really have a home and isn’t much of a decorator (believe it or not) but he gravitates to beautiful and gaudy surroundings that are tailored for lounging and entertaining.

20. What’s one thing that other characters wish they could change about this character’s personality?  Everyone would benefit from Vahaadi being less clingy and more confident in his ability to do good and be good.

EMOTIONAL PROFILE

1. How easy is it for your character to feel anger? What’s usually a good tip off that they’re experiencing it? (Physical reactions, movements of appendages, etc.)
It takes a bit to work Vahaadi up to full-blown anger, since he’s been “trained” to bottle it up. However, it’s not hard to see when he’s getting irritated. He starts to get more snarky, more stubborn, and may begin subtly ruining things. When he’s completely reached his limit, he becomes outright violent. He will start destroying the nearest thing he can grab and has even turned weapons on his friends.
a. Sadness? Vahaadi cries easily. He’ll try and fight tears, but when he’s disappointed, hurt, or lonely, he’ll let the tears flow freely. He rarely works himself up to full shuddering sobs, however.
b. Happiness? Vahaadi’s gestures are more casual and large, his lips have a seemingly permanent curve, and his eyes take on a warm glow. A happy Vahaadi is an affectionate Vahaadi, and he’ll sometimes let kisses, pettings and hugs speak for him.
c. Fear? Vahaadi’s usually heavy-lidded eyes become very round, his eyebrows furrow and rise, and his motions lose much of their poise. He often finds it hard to speak when he’s frightened. He draws into himself.

2. What state of mind is the character usually in?
Yearning. When he’s wound down, his mind almost always drifts to what he doesn’t have, loves he’s lost, and how restless he feels.

3. Are there any emotions the character is particularly afraid of, or really resents having to feel?
Loneliness. He hates feeling alone more than anything.

4. How easily does this character trust their feelings with others? No.
a. Has anyone ever betrayed them? Vahaadi felt betrayed by Tryvnah’s decision to start seeing other lovers.
b. How did it affect their ability to trust? Vahaadi has never trusted a lover since. He operates under the assumption that all men have wandering eyes and uses this to justify his own lasciviousness.

5. Can this character easily hide their emotions? Not really.
a. Do they find it difficult to express emotion, thus tend to look neutral? No. Generally you can tell how he’s feeling, even when he’s trying to play his poker face.

6. How well can this character resist their emotions and impulses? He tries to bottle his emotions and impulses but since he never learned to deal with them in a healthy way, they eventually and dangerously explode out.

7. Does this character ever get violent (with others, objects, themselves) when feeling any certain emotions?
Yes. When he’s disappointed or angry, he’ll start wrecking things. He tried to stab Tryvnah when he found out about Tryvnah’s other lover.

8. Has this character contemplated suicide? Yes. While immortal he tried a couple different times.
a. Self-harm? Yes. He’ll bite his hands or rake his nails in his arms when he’s really frustrated.
b. Physically injuring others? Yes.
c. Killing others? Yes.

9. Does the character have any triggers? Why do these things trigger them?
He can’t hold very young girls, especially if they’re not clothed. He feels perverted and ashamed.

10. What would hurt this character so badly they couldn’t even breathe?
The usual things…a kick in the gut, breaking a bone, etc. He has low emotional, physical and mental stamina.

11. What is guaranteed to make this character smile?
A nuzzle from Spark.

12. If the character could remove one emotion from their life, which would they choose?
Attachment.

13. If they’re feeling upset, who are they likely to talk to for comfort? Or do they keep it inside?
He keeps it to himself unless prodded, and then he’ll spill. Everywhere. To anyone.

14. How would this character cope with losing someone extremely close to them?
Drug binges, promiscuity, self-harm and exercise.

15. How does this character look and feel when crying?
Vahaadi is a “movie crier.” He’s actually really graceful in the way he sheds tears. Part of this comes from being a djinni—his tears don’t drain through his nose and throat. They only fall from his eyes. This reduces some of the inconvenience and humiliation of snuffling, but he still feels gross and weak. His tears crystallize as they fall so he ends up with a salt-like residue on his face.

16. If the character had to live out the rest of their life either perpetually angry, sad, or frightened, which would they choose?
I think he’d choose sad. That way he’d at least be able to play the pity card and still get attention. If he was always angry, he’d just destroy and ruin things. If he was always frightened, he wouldn’t be able to let anyone get close to him.

17. Does this character tend to blame or punish others for their own emotions?
Yes. He has a major victim complex.

18. Is this character empathetic, and tends to be influenced by the emotions of others?
No. He’s too wrapped up in his own feelings most of the time.

19. What is the strongest emotion they have felt? Desire.
a. What event caused that? Not so much an event, but a mixture of surging hormones, neglect, and emotional malnutrition that exploded in an urgent sense of lust.
b. How would they react if that happened again? It depends on who he’s with. With Tryvnah or another lover, he’d happily go with it. With Spark or someone he doesn’t want to have that kind of relationship with, he’d freak out and probably isolate himself from them for a long time.

20. If the character were to come face to face with their darkest fears in a nightmare, what would be the scene?
His worst nightmare ever was imagining that he saw his family all suffer and ultimately starve to death because he’d left them and his father wasn’t able to support them without his help.

PHYSICAL PROFILE

1. Based on the current diet and exercise your character has, where do you see them physically in five years? Probably about the same…though he’d be a bit bigger since he’s a djinni, and djinn get bulkier yet less dense with age.

2. How agile is this character? Can they dodge easily? Or are they clumsy? Very agile! He uses his djinni magic to cheat, too. He’s physically agile and…”magically” agile.

3. Describe the muscle content of your character. Are they untrained and soft? Or lithe and powerful?
Lithe, yes! However, he doesn’t have a six-pack or anything from doing crunches and military drills. He crouches a lot so his thighs and buttocks are particularly well-defined. XD

4. What kind of body fat percentage do you suppose they have? Pretty low. Vahaadi is very active. All of that running from guards… X/

5. Do they have any scars? Where did those scars come from, and how did they get them?
He has a thin scar on the side of his neck. It’s too shallow to be visible, but you’d feel it if you ran your hand over it. His sister scratched him the night he assaulted her, but he doesn’t remember that’s how he got it.

6. Describe some hairstyles your character has had in the past. He tells me he used to shave his head! That was time consuming so he stopped.
a. How about the present? What’s their hair like now? It looks like he was on the run and didn’t have time to cut it before signing his soul away. XD (his beard is another matter; he maintained that very carefully) His hair is unevenly layered and a bit shaggy, but not overly long. His hair has a radial part and his bangs fall right into his face around his eyes.

7. What are their teeth like? Any cavities? Root canals? Does their dentition ever hurt? C’mere, Vahaadi, lemme look at your teeth.
Vahaadi: *bares teeth at me*
Me: *backs slowly away* Eh-heh…looks good!

8. Do their arches ever fall? That’s painful. No. Is that a normal thing to happen?

9. How much endurance do they have? Do they easily get tired during a workout? He gets tired easily, but when he’s having fun, (as in sports or running) he’ll push through it. If he’s not having fun, his endurance is minimal.

10. How easily can they bear pain? In mortality, not well. In immortality, he knows all wounds, pains, etc. will pass so he’s a lot more brave about putting himself in harm’s way.

11. How long can this character sit still? A good long while. He’s pretty relaxed. When he’s meditating, he doesn’t move at all.
a. Do they shift a lot when sleeping? No. He’s used to sleeping with someone either right next to him or on top of him, so he’s quite still and calm in his sleep.

12. What do their nails look like? Do they bite them? His nails are long and come to rounded points. He doesn’t bite them. He has one nail that he broke before agreeing to his contract so it is shorter and more jagged than the others. For the first hundred years or so, IT DROVE HIM CRAZY.

13. How hairy is this character? Oddly specific question. XD He has a normal amount of body hair? He doesn’t shave, but he doesn’t need hair to thermoregulate as much as humans do so it’s not thick and curly. Similar to what most people have on their arms, I guess, though he does have some darker, somewhat thicker hair on his chest, from his navel to his groin, and in his armpits. This is a weird question. XD He has thick eyebrows but they aren’t scruffy.

14. What is the most imperfect part of this character’s body? Well, I think he’s perfect everywhere but that’s because I love him. XD Though I never draw him as such, he probably doesn’t have nice teeth. He probably has gross toenails too since he spent a lot of his life barefoot or wearing sandals. By modern human standards, his hair really needs to be washed. It’s oily.

15. Do they get cold easily? Yes. Freezing conditions will quickly weaken a djinni.
a. How about overheated? No. Djinn can’t overheat or burn.
b. Seasick? Haha, I have never thought to ask. Probably not. He flies around on his carpet enough to be used to pitching and tossing.
c. Do barometric changes in pressure affect them? I’m not sure.

16. How do they react to getting an illness? Think about sore throats, achy bodies, headaches, stuffy noses, runny noses... Uh, he curls up and dies? Haha Vahaadi is a total baby about being sick.

17. Is this character’s body sensitive to touch? Yes.
a. Do they have any unusual erogenous zones? The tips of his ears, strangely enough. When he’s with Tryvnah he will take his earrings out because Tryvnah will kiss his ears and Vahaadi likes it a lot. The metal gets in the way.

18. How strong are this character’s basic senses? Sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell. His sense of smell is average for a djinni, but strong compared to a human. Similar to a cat but not as strong as a dog’s. His sight is beginning to weaken. He’s still alright up close but he could use glasses. His sense of taste is pretty basic. No refined palate here. And finally, sense of touch…well, it’s not extra-sensory, but he is highly attuned to it since touch is his favorite sensation.

19. If this character had to permanently lose one of their senses, which would they choose? He’d give up taste. He has a weird relationship with food and could go without tasting it.
a. What if they could only have one sense, and had to lose the others? Feeling, of course.

20. Does this character have any unusual limbs or physical features? Like all djinn, he has three incorporeal “limbs” called tendrils. They allow him to push, pull, or otherwise exert force in up to three directions at a time. When he has a tail, one of his tendrils flows into it to connect it to his nervous system, making it unusable as anything but a tail. The two others are more specialized for motor skills, but not quite as specialized as, say, a hand. His tendrils don’t have “thumbs.”
(fun trivia, the tendrils are what allow Marids to have working wings and Ghuls to have a working set of extra arms. While they have those features, they can’t use their “arm tendrils” kinetically.
Fun fact 2: Took’s telekinetic powers are actually tendrils. He was born with them thanks to the blood transfusions his mother received from Mystan to ensure his survival. His tendrils are UNUSUALLY strong and specialized. Like Vahaadi, he can use two of them almost like hands, and the third can be used as an anchor. Because he is a lot heavier than a djinni, he has a much harder time lifting his own weight with his tendrils, but it is possible with some exertion.)

PREFERENCES AND PEEVES

1. What’s the state of your character’s kitchen? What kind of foods do you find in it? Is it… clean? Kitchen? Nonexistent. When he still had to eat, he tried to keep dried fruit, oils, and cigarettes on him.

2. If they could only eat one type of food for the rest of their life, what would they choose? In immortality, he chooses to smoke because it’s almost like eating but he doesn’t have to throw it up. Any other food he can’t keep down because his stomach no longer works.

3. What kind of clothing does this character like wearing and why? Loose linen. It’s comfortable, easy to wear, and easy to take off. *rolls eyes*

4. How does this character feel about piercings? Yes, is his answer. XD
a. Tattoos? Yes.
b. Dyed hair? Yes.
c. Revealing clothing? Aaaaand…yes.

5. What’s something that turns this character on? Masculinity. Also, textures, especially hair. And scents! He likes the scent of sweat, ugh.
a. And what’s a definite turn-off? Advanced age. In humans, especially, since they get all wrinkly and saggy…though he doesn’t find old djinn much better. Djinn get more fiend-like the older they get. He *DREADS* getting old himself.
b. Do they have any kinks? Probably. I prefer not to ask him about such things. >.>

6. How does this character feel about animals? He tolerates them, but he doesn’t love them. However, he seems to have a particular magnetism to people that do like animals. I think it’s because animal people are skilled in being commanding yet caring.
a. Would they want any pets? No. He has enough trouble caring for himself. Any pet of his would not live long.
b. What animals are their favorite? He thinks snakes are pretty cool. He likes the feel of their scutes and scales, and that they’re generally calm.

7. What type of movie is this character most interested in watching?
Ahahahaha I have no idea. I don’t think he’d like movies. The changing angles would make his head spin. I think he might tolerate filmed stage productions, because they’re closest to what he understands.

8. If this character could master a skill instantly, which would they choose?
A ballroom dance, like cha-cha, salsa or tango! He’d think that would be fun and sexy. XD Dances in his culture are very low-contact and usually aren’t choreographed for pairs.

9. Are there any behaviors that other characters do that irk this character? Everything, absolutely everything Kala does rubs him the wrong way. He just hates everything about her. In Loose Canon, I think Vahaadi is initially annoyed by Spark’s loud voice and space invasion but he learns to like it.
a. Does the character ever voice their annoyance? Not outright, but in passive-aggressive ways.

10. Would this character rather create something or destroy something? Unfortunately, I think he finds destruction a lot more entertaining. He spends a lot of time creating clothes, but he doesn’t particularly love it.

11. What kind of comedy does this character prefer? Toilet humor, vulgar, slapstick, morbid, etc. You know, I think slapstick would crack him up. He’s not sophisticated enough to enjoy high-brow humor.

12. If they could stay at one age forever, which age would they choose and why?
I think he wishes he were still 17. That’s when life was good. At 17 he’d finally gained weight, muscle, and some athletic ability, the worst of the teen hormone fluxes had passed, and he was happily and deeply involved in his relationship with Tryvnah.

13. If the character could only wear clothing of one color, which would they choose?
Huh. White, maybe? Like an off-white? In his culture that’s appropriate for most occasions.

14. Describe the character’s favorite possession. Where did they get it, and why are they so attached? Though the circumstances that brought it into his possession are painful, he loves his whip.  He’d be devastated if he lost it.  It was a “goodbye forever” parting gift from Tryvnah and has saved his butt many times.

15. What is the character’s favorite weather? Warm and dry. It’s best for his health.

16. Do they prefer sweet, salty, sour, meaty, spicy, or neutral tastes? Spicy and sweet together!

17. Would they rather sleep in a cold room or a warm one? Warm, definitely. Preferably from someone else’s body heat. He’s a co-sleeper, and has been since he was born, so he has a really difficult time sleeping soundly without contact with another.

18. Are there any hobbies this character absolutely hates and would never want to do? Chess. “How is this a hobby.”

19. What’s the easiest way to annoy this character? Deny him of something he wants.

20. Are their interests and likes socially appropriate? Imma say…no. >_> Well, he does like sports and watching people perform, that’s OK.

ALL ABOUT HISTORY

1. Describe a scenario that has impacted your character and caused them extreme happiness. *EXTREME* happiness? Hmmm…Well, he enjoyed the “lovebird” stage with Tryvnah. That made him feel about as happy and secure as ever. After that (this is technically a future event), being given the chance to earn his redemption after Spark sets him free, and then getting to see her and be with her again. I think that will make his heart glow. 😀
a. Fear? He lived in a nearly constant state of fear toward the end of his mortal life, before selling his soul to become immortal. The desert kingdoms were in total upheaval; Tryvnah had been killed and Zahar, in grief, had lashed out at Vahaadi for it; the thief Vahaadi idolized had been captured and beheaded; bounty hunters were on the prowl; and Vahaadi was ill and starting to go blind. He was absolutely terrified.
b. Disappointment? He has disappointed himself many times. It’s a bit of understatement, but you could say he was pretty disappointed when the “sell my soul for lucre and then turn on my master” thing backfired in a major way and enslaved him to the contract of the lamp.
c. Depression? Vahaadi was NOT well after he and Tryvnah broke up, and everyone could tell. Much of the progress he’d made since he’d been found as a young teen regressed and all of the demons he thought he’d dealt with for what he’d done to his sister came back and brought even worse friends along for the siege. Tryvnah felt both guilty and deeply annoyed, because he was convinced Vahaadi was severely overreacting and robbing Tryvnah’s joy of being a new father out of spite. Vahaadi lived under a dark haze for months, physically, emotionally and mentally sickened by this heavy depression. At the celebration of the birth of Tryvnah’s daughter, Tryvnah asked Vahaadi if he would like to hold her. Vahaadi regarded the little girl, then looked up at Tryvnah with hollow eyes, and silently walked away.
No one could find him for the rest of the celebration. He had come to a decision—he had to leave. He found Zahar in his tent (he had been at the celebration for awhile, but he was old and too tired for such things) and requested permission to take provisions and leave the troupe with Zahar’s blessing. Tormented and bitter, he explained that in the moment Tryvnah had held out his daughter to him, Vahaadi had been seized with a vicious, jealous urge to kill the baby. He couldn’t stand to watch Tryvnah’s happy life with his little family while Vahaadi felt like his world had fallen apart. He knew his envy was hurting them both. Zahar was sorry to see Vahaadi leave but he knew he couldn’t force him to stay under the circumstances, and besides, he thought it would be more than appropriate punishment for Tryvnah, who had courted Vahaadi directly against Zahar’s counsel. (Zahar thought Vahaadi was way too young, and he was suspicious that Tryvnah was taking advantage of Vahaadi’s naivete, fear and weakness in a selfish power play, even when Vahaadi showed every indication of enjoying the relationship. He didn’t doubt that Tryvnah loved Vahaadi, but it chilled him that Tryvnah used the same kind of methods he used with his animals to “train” Vahaadi. And, much to Zahar’s dismay, he was right. Tryvnah did love Vahaadi, very much, but he was simply one of many “pets” while to Vahaadi, Tryvnah was his one and only) He allowed Vahaadi to take the requested supplies and then Vahaadi left, without a word or sign to anyone else.
The next morning, Tryvnah realized Vahaadi was nowhere to be found. Without much concern, yet, he asked Zahar if he’d seen him. Zahar, grimly, responded “he’s gone.” Zahar refused to tell him where Vahaadi had gone and chastened Tryvnah for causing this rift in the troupe. Tryvnah, in alarm, ran out (Zahar angrily calling after him to leave Vahaadi alone, “haven’t you done enough?”), saddled up on one of his animals, and charged out into the desert to find Vahaadi.
Vahaadi had set out on foot, so Tryvnah was eventually able to find him. Tryvnah tried to beg Vahaadi not to leave, but Vahaadi responded with an “all or nothing” ultimatum, and Tryvnah couldn’t do it. Vahaadi, having for once “won” an argument with Tryvnah, found no particular pleasure in it. Solemnly, Tryvnah offered Vahaadi his whip. Vahaadi refused it, insisting he didn’t want anything to remind him of him, but Tryvnah was able to convince him to take it for protection, since he’d (rather foolishly, in the fog of his pain) left unarmed. Tryvnah tried to give him a kiss, but Vahaadi shoved him away, turned on his heel, and ran…both of them knowing that if Vahaadi had let him kiss him, he’d have lost his resolve to leave.

2. What is the character’s first memory?
Distantly he remembers that he used to live in a nice, wealthy home. That was exceedingly early in his life, though, when he was perhaps two.

3. Has the character ever experienced deja vu? Do you happen to know why? In Ashen Shard, under the influence of Took’s memory spell, I imagine these experiences were fairly regular.

4. Sensations are powerful things, and often certain scents, sounds, touches, etc. can invoke memories strongly associated with them. Which have imprinted in your character’s mind? I think Tryvnah had a distinctive laugh, and whenever Vahaadi hears a laugh similar to it, it pricks his heart.

5. How’d they get along with their parents and/or other relatives? Vahaadi feared his father for pushing him so hard and hated his mother for not protecting and nurturing him like she did his brothers and sisters. He had an incestuous devotion to his elder, mentally handicapped twin sister. For the rest of his siblings, he cared little. I’m not sure he even remembers their names.

6. If your character had to choose one friend they’ve valued over all others, who would it be? Before the events of Loose Canon, it would be Tryvnah. But, once he finally gets over his frosty disdain for her, definitely Spark!

7. What’s the worst injury they’ve ever gotten? Ooh. Well, in his immortality he has withstood numerous fatal injuries. The most extreme is when he is dismembered by something heavy and sharp falling on him, when Spark has to use her second wish to repair the damage she has caused.

8. How many places has this character lived in? What stands out most about those places to them?
Hm, Vahaadi’s lived a lot of places! He spent all of his mortality in the Azaharian desert of Ia’Leri, in numerous locales (the wealthy city where he was born, the poor village where he grew up, all over the place with the troupe, on the streets and later in a wealthy palace in one of the biggest desert cities, in a huge tunneling cavern in the Maridian mountains, and basically where ever he could find a bed while he was out traveling). If we’re counting Ashen Shard, he lived with Took in Chen and JaniHarrii. Then, in Loose Canon, he lives with Spark and then as a Narrator I suppose he lives *everywhere.*

9. If the character could erase one memory from their mind, what would it be? Oh gosh. Toss up of what happened with his sister, and what happened with Tryvnah. He’d probably pick the incident with his sister, since the thought of his guilt and how he may have ruined her vulnerable life kills him. His experience with Tryvnah was painful, but much of it was good, too. And, he doesn’t feel as fully at fault for what happened.

10. What was the character’s economic situation? Very early in his life, his family was quite well-off. However, most of his childhood was spent in hand-to-mouth, desperate poverty. With the troupe, he enjoyed a communal prosperity. After leaving, he lived on the streets, again in dire poverty, until he was able to get a job with a wealthy merchant. He had a place to sleep, food to eat, and fresh clothes, but his wages weren’t high enough to afford much else. After being compelled to aid a robbery of his merchant’s palace, he got a taste for lucre that he’d never known. From then on, he threw himself into the practice of magic and thievery and enjoyed the spoils of stolen riches.

11. What are the character’s three clearest memories?
He has a memory of his sister nearly dying from a scorpion sting. That rattled him badly and he remembers it with alarming clarity.
He also has a memory of his father getting down on one knee, taking him by the shoulders, and looking into Vahaadi’s three year old face and saying, “I need you to be my big boy.” His dad had said things like that to him before, and before he’d enjoyed being “the big boy,” but the urgency and grimness in his father’s voice on that occasion was the hallmark of the end of Vahaadi’s childhood.
His other clearest memory is of Tryvnah’s kiss. For some reason he remembers one kiss in particular. It wasn’t their first, last, or otherwise significant—he just remembers exactly every sensation and it simultaneously comforts and torments him when he thinks about it.

12. If the character could go back and speak to a younger version of themself, what would they say?  If Vahaadi really wanted to mess up the time-space continuum, he would have met himself when he was like eleven or twelve, and told himself to take his twin sister and run away from home, find the troupe, live with them, and start making nice to a teen named Tryvnah. Then neither of them would have had to live in squalor anymore, and maybe he wouldn’t have hurt his sister because he’d have other people and friends in his life to give him the affection he wanted, and all would be hunky-dory. Well, except his parents would have been heart-broken to lose two of their kids. D: But he doesn’t care.

13. If the character could go back and choose their sex at birth, what would they choose? Girl. Maybe things would have turned out differently…

14. Describe the character’s love life throughout the years. @_@ Ugh, I’m kind of embarrassed to go through this. Vahaadi, why are you so promiscuous!?
Well, first, there was his sister. For a while he had a thing for a dancer in the troupe named Aaliyah but she and Tryvnah had been sweethearts since they were little (yeah, weird love triangle thing) aaaaaannnnd he quickly lost interest when Tryvnah was suddenly into him. Tryvnah and Vahaadi were practically married for a few years, then that fell apart. I think Vahaadi may have tried dating another guy (or maybe many others…sigh =_=) from the troupe but that didn’t work out. Then he was involved with his merchant boss, but I don’t think there was any love there. More like mutual lust and certainly power and money involved. There was also a coworker/supervisor weirdly mixed up in that episode of Vahaadi’s life. That was when Vahaadi learned how to use his charm to subtly exploit men. He had a crush on the thief that compelled him to help in a heist, but I don’t know that anything ever came of that? I haven’t decided if Vahaadi even ever got to speak to him again. His life between leaving the merchant’s palace and selling his soul is still hazy, to me. I know he learned how to use his magic somewhere, got better at fighting and theft, and led a pretty lewd lifestyle. He had an on-again-off-again thing with Tryvnah and I believe he also dallied in prostitution, sometimes for fun and sometimes…not so much for fun. (loneliness and addiction, I think) There were also probably some other flings and short relationships in there, with traveling partners or friends or random strangers…(it helps to understand that the culture at the time was sort of an enabling feature of this behavior. There were some good, god-fearing djinn, mostly in the small villages, but they were outnumbered by the pleasure-seeking, wicked, cutthroat, and confused masses. For many, there was no such thing as “straight” or “gay;” men were simply presumed to be pansexual, and women and submissive men were exploited accordingly. Vahaadi wasn’t weird because he slept with men, he was weird because he *ONLY* slept with men. Vahaadi actually grew up in a religious home, believing that homosexuality and pansexuality are wrong, but he has resigned himself to the fact that he is broken or that there’s something wrong with him and doesn’t have the backbone to stand up to himself or anyone else. )
Anyway, eventually his life started really going downhill. Tryvnah was killed by bandits, the thief beheaded, and Vahaadi’s only relationships were one-night stands and whoremongers, which is hardly a “love” life. Then he became immortal. I know he didn’t have any love for the sorcerer he sold his soul to since he ended up killing him. I think he may have had a relationship with the Aladdin-like character that found him and used his powers to become king and unite the desert kingdoms, but it may have been one-sided. Or maybe they were just friends. After his king was murdered, I don’t think he explored romantic relationships with anyone. He may have acted alluring and coaxing and submissive to get his masters into a false sense of security but actually just wanted to kill them.
After meeting Spark, he has his episode with Aura but that is exceedingly brief and unusual for Vahaadi, and looks very little like his other “relationships.” They part understanding nothing will come of it and I think in retrospect Vahaadi can’t remember what was between them, since it was so totally calm and different from his emotional, sexually-charged previous experiences. Maybe after he becomes a Narrator he regains the ability to sleep, so he can visit Aura in Reverie. I dunno if I see a lot of long-term potential in their relationship, though. Shrug!
And if we’re counting Ashen Shard there was…whatever was between him and Lanthriel. Unrequited love, I suppose, but mutual affection.
And, I still have this very alternate timeline, fanfic-y story in my head involving Leimira and Vahaadi having a family. I would see if I could tack it onto Loose Canon somehow, except that it involves Tryvnah and reconciliation with his parents, sister, and other siblings. I like the story because it has a lot of healing in it, but it can’t exist in the same “continuum” as Loose Canon.

15. How did the family that raised this character influence them? As mentioned above, the combined influence of his intense, hard-working, overbearing father and the passionless neglect from his mother caused him to become very passive-aggressive. Having his sister around all the time made him clingy.

16. If this character could “unmeet” someone in their life, who would they choose? Part of him would like to say Tryvnah, but honestly he wishes Tryvnah could “unmeet” Aaliyah so he could have him to himself. XP Like that would help…

17. If the character could choose different parents for themselves, who would they choose and why? HA I think Vahaadi would want Spark’s parents, because they’re normal and well-to-do and never home. XD Although, that could be bad. Then he and Spark would be siblings and he has that incest problem D:

18. Does this character feel guilty about anything in the past? See above. Incest. Not good.

19. If the character were asked to associate an adjective with different stages of their life, what would they choose and why?
Well, for Loose Canon I’ve broken his life up into five distinct segments that correlate with the five pieces of his soul. The first segment of his life, birth to young teens, he remembers always being hungry. Physically, emotionally, and, when the hormones started raging, sexually. The next part of his life was passionate, both in the negative and positive sense. He didn’t get to explore his emotions much in his childhood and suddenly he had a lot more freedom to be angry—raging, furiously angry; sad—miserably, completely despondent; happy—radiantly, pleasurably euphoric; and head-over-heels in love. After breaking up with Tryvnah and leaving the troupe, he felt lost. Nothing was fun or thrilling anymore, not even scandalous affairs. He learned to be a better liar and a loveless lover. Unintentionally ending up as a pawn in a heist rekindled his spark of interest, and the next few years of his life were obsessive as he learned to master his magic and became a proper vagabond. Finally, when his life took a final, steep downward turn, he became desperate.

20. If the character could choose to have themselves born at a specific time period, which would they pick and why?
He’s not well-versed in history enough to think of cool things like this…but if he could get over his fear of machines, he likes the plush life Spark lives in the modern US. The fact that she doesn’t have to work, care for kids, or sleep around to keep herself fed, liked, and entertained blows his mind.