| Prompt #51 |
[Oct. 26th, 2008|02:09 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  productive | ] |
How deadly is your character? What could make him kill someone, and how would it happen?
Deadly enough.
This sounds unlikely, for someone as diminutive as me. (Hiraen says I look like a "decorative minstrel", damn him.) But somehow it's true. I've killed plenty of people, both in battle and out. I've led screaming charges into the metaphorical mouth of hell. I've plotted the downfall of my enemies, and to some extent succeeded. All this despite being more-than-slightly useless with the sword and easily mistaken for a girl from a distance.
Really, it's impossible to pinpoint what made me do it. The murder of my father comes to mind right away. But then there are so many reasons - the dreams Hiraen and I shared, dreams of kingship and greatness; the bloodlust that comes in the midst of battle; the flawed belief that somehow, if in retaliation I damage the world badly enough, it won't come and damage me again.
As for how it happened, that's an interesting question. I am an archer; my weapon of choice is the bow. I have killed many with swords and spears, though. I've also crushed men beneath the hooves of my faithful warhorse, Starchaser, and once I strangled a traitor with my bare hands. I've murdered with magic, quite by accident. To take the question less literally, I once slew a king with sweet words. (Unfortunately, the king in question was my greatest ally and it cost me a war. Not that I meant for it to happen.)
I've never once ordered anyone's death, though. If you're going to kill someone, then you owe it to them to do it yourself. (Unless they're bandits. Then all bets are off.) |
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| Prompt #50 |
[Sep. 20th, 2008|10:47 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  mellow | ] |
Do you believe in loving a person unconditionally? Why or why not?
Yes. I believe that if someone really means that much to you, nothing they ever do can make you turn your back on them. I've had a handful of people who've loved me in this way. The one who comes to mind now is Luthas. He was always more sensible than me, and after my father died he became the one who looked after me, reasoned with me, stopped me from blowing up the world when I got one of my well-intentioned but unfeasible ideas. Many a time I tested his patience, but he's one of the few people who can rival me in stubbornness. If not for him and his loving guidance, I would probably have died long ago.
As for me, I can only truly say that I've loved one person in this way. No matter what he did, he would always be beautiful and blameless in my eyes, purer than any mortal man could ever be. To me he was practically a god. He could've done anything and I would still have adored him with all my heart.
I'm not entirely sure he knew this. |
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| Prompt #44 |
[Jun. 21st, 2008|11:55 am] |
| [ | mood |
| | content | ] |
What will they say about you after you're gone?
You know, of late I've spent an inordinate amount of time thinking about this.
They might say that I was the sort of person who knew what he wanted and went all out to get it. The sort you couldn't say no to. They might hail me as the hero who all but turned the world on its head, who defied kings and routed armies to avenge one dearest to him. Already they have started giving me all sorts of names, names I'm still not altogether sure I deserve: Savonn the Filial. Savonn the Brave. Savonn the Minstrel King.
And then, doubtlessly, there are those who would throw a feast when I die. "Good riddance," they'd say. "He should never have been born." This used to bother me quite a bit. But then I've realised that once I'm gone, no words can hurt me, so I've given up on caring. |
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| Prompt #43 |
[Jun. 20th, 2008|12:12 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  aggravated | ] |
Reasons you do the job you do.
The Sack of Madrest. The burning of Cassarah, my home. The slaughter of so many people dear to me. Do I need any other reasons? |
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| Prompt #38 |
[Jun. 12th, 2008|07:04 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  curious | ] |
Write about your muse's favorite food. Describe a complete dinner from their point of view.
Mmm. Hastily prepared herbal soup. Roasted rabbit. Cold water if we're not lucky, wine if we are. Sometimes there's even chocolate. Such are the dinners (well, any meal, really) of the Betronett rangers.
See, we spend most of our time away from the camp. Our patrols bring us to all sorts of godforsaken places. There was once when we pursued a host of bandits all the way into the Cragstone passes in the dead of winter, where we had to live on wolf meat and increasingly mouldy bread for a week or so - not that we complained, since food was just about the least of our problems that time.
I loved every moment of it, though. I still have to smile when I see overcooked rabbit meat, because it reminds me of all the good times I had with my comrades years ago. Good company makes the lousiest food bearable, see. (But sometimes good company brings the good food with them; Hiraen's favourite thing to say was, "You should never go anywhere without chocolate!") |
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| Prompt #34 |
[Jun. 7th, 2008|12:18 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  sore | ] |
"There are people I would take a bullet for and people I would like to put a bullet in." -Benji (Good Charlotte)
True enough. I think it's a rather cruel twist of Fate, however, that most of the people I would die for are already dead and most of the people I want to kill are still alive.
Pfft. I think I shall stop believing in Fate.
I would have died in Iyonë's place. The Saraians oughn't have killed her - she hadn't done anything wrong to them - but what can you expect from such despicable barbarians? She was my friend since childhood, and I miss her more dearly than I thought I would. And if she were still alive, Hiraen might stop moping around and go back to his usual cheerful self. I'd die for him too, if the need arose. And I would have willingly laid down my life for my father that day in spring if only I'd gotten to Madrest a little earlier.
On the other end of the stick, I really wouldn't mind dying right this moment if only I could bring King Zarian down with me. I'll never forgive him and his stupid war - none of this would have happened if not for him. His hateful face still haunts my dreams some nights. |
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| Prompt #30 |
[Jun. 6th, 2008|09:43 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | amused | ] |
St. Valentine was a Priest, martyred in 269 at Rome and was buried on the Flaminian Way. He is the Patron Saint of affianced couples, bee keepers, engaged couples, epilepsy, fainting, greetings, happy marriages, love, lovers, plague, travellers, young people. He is represented in pictures with birds and roses.
Does learning this change your thoughts about Valentine's Day?
Well, no. I have no bee-keeper friends, for instance. There is still nobody in my inner circle who would bother celebrating it. |
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| Prompt #29 |
[Jun. 6th, 2008|09:38 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | annoyed | ] |
Write a letter to yourself at some point in the past.
Dear Seffë,
Don't trust Desmin. Get rid of him NAO. >____________<
Your future self, homeless and bereaved, with half his arm burnt off. You now know whom to blame. |
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| Prompt #28 |
[Jun. 6th, 2008|09:03 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  exhausted | ] |
"If your number one goal is to make sure that everyone likes and approves of you, then you risk sacrificing your uniqueness and, therefore, your excellence."
Mmm. True enough. My, well, occupation (does revolutionary leader/self-proclaimed king constitute an occupation?) requires a certain measure of popularity, but being liked by the majority is enough for me. There's no way you can be liked by everyone. Besides, if I'd been too busy worrying about whether my actions were socially acceptable or not, I'd still be stuck in a rut, still a nobody. I made some unwise choices, but on the whole, I regret nothing.
(These prompts are getting harder to answer. o_o) |
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| Prompt #27 |
[Jun. 6th, 2008|08:44 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | cranky | ] |
"If you look into your own heart, and you find nothing wrong there, what is there to worry about? What is there to fear?" - Confucius
...an awful lot?
A clear conscience is good to have, but it doesn't protect you from everything, if it even protects you at all. I learnt that a long time ago. It's one thing not to fear accusations when you know you haven't done anything wrong. It's another thing altogether to somehow sail through life unaffected by trouble, just by keeping a clear conscience. Bad things can and do happen to good people. I'd know. *shrug* |
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| Prompt #26 |
[Jun. 6th, 2008|08:30 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | amused | ] |
"Any man who has the guts to sell his soul for love has the power to change the world." - Ghost Rider
Yes. Yes, yes, yes.
This quote pretty much describes my situation. Out of grief for one I loved, I did all sorts of things that I wouldn't ordinarily have done - killed first and asked questions later, hired mercenaries, won the king over to my side with the full intention to betray him later. I wouldn't say I sold my soul, but I must have lost my mind; nothing mattered to me except vengeance. I set out to find revenge for my father and wound up changing the world.
I have to admit, though, that I did mean to do a lot of what I achieved, like rebelling against the king and having Jewelcrest rebuilt. I mean, it would be funny if it were all an accident. ("Oh, by the way, I accidentally changed the world last week. It was a side effect of something else.") |
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| Prompt #24: Snow |
[May. 30th, 2008|11:18 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  cold | ] |
Write a prompt based around the theme of snow.
I have rather conflicted feelings towards snow. When I think of it I think of the Cragstones, and then I think of interminable patrols and wild-goose chases in the passes, and then I think of all the old days before the war. Then I get nostalgic. It's not that I actually enjoyed freezing my ass off in drafty caves and living for weeks on stale trail rations, but then I used to think those days would last forever. It didn't really occur to me then that when I returned to the city to claim my father's lordship, I would have to leave Betronett and resign myself to a lifetime of paperwork and diplomacy in the castle.
So whenever it snows, a whole host of bittersweet memories comes back to me, and I wind up either laughing or crying by myself in my tent. It doesn't help that snow also reminds me of Midwinter, always Ana's favourite time of the year (and thusly, mine by extension) because he got to see Adarin. I think he would've liked the weather here.
(Really? I do like snow. It's pretty. It's just that it makes me remember a lot of things that sometimes I would rather not remember.) |
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| Prompt #23: Afterlife |
[May. 30th, 2008|11:02 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  lazy | ] |
Do you believe in an afterlife? If so, what do you expect to find when you get there?
Well, yes. It would be sad if there were no afterlife, because "normal" life on earth is really quite short. It took me years to learn that. Sometimes I still forget that I'm very ill and could pop off any time, and it takes me a moment to wrap my head around the concept that I won't live to a hundred like I always thought I would.
Maybe that's not such a bad thing, because I'm rather looking forward to the next life, or the next phase of this life (or whatever the afterlife is). This one isn't really worth hanging around in any more. I haven't the faintest clue how dying and getting to the other side will feel like, or what I'll see there, but one thing I'm sure of - I'll be reunited with all the ones I've loved and lost. And to be honest, I can barely wait for that to happen. (Though I won't do anything stupid like try and kill myself again. I don't think Hiraen would ever forgive me.) |
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| Prompt #22: Letter to your mun |
[May. 30th, 2008|10:46 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  creative | ] |
Write a letter to your mun (the person that writes you). Tell them everything that's on your mind.
Dear Alcyone, Cliche.
To my author, mun and friend, Alcyone Ugh, no. She'll think I've lost my mind.
Alcyone the Great, to whom I owe everything I was being sarcastic, all right?
Hey you! -_-;
Dear Alcyone, yes, I realise that was what I started out with in the first place
I've been haunting you for close to seven years now, haven't I? That's a pretty long time. Almost half your life. Note that only recently have you actually begun to understand me, and you still haven't finished my life story yet, useless wench. (Just kidding. You know I love you.) Also note that I'm not showing any signs of leaving yet, because I don't mean to. Be glad.
I've just got a few things to say:
- I want to blame you for heaping all of those disasters on me, but I won't. I know perfectly well I brought them all on myself. Just don't make me sound so insane when you're writing them down, all right?
- School isn't nearly as important as I am.
- Chocolates are cool. Give me more.
- Lastly, get better soon, because there's no time to lie around groaning about your earache/sore throat/whatever the heck it is you have now. You still have seven more prompts on that table to finish :3
Your gnat-like muse,
Seffë |
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| Prompt #21: "There is no agony like bearing an untold story inside of you." - Maya Angelou |
[May. 30th, 2008|10:34 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  contemplative | ] |
"There is no agony like bearing an untold story inside of you." - Maya Angelou
Alcyone used to love this quote. But since I'm a musician and not a storyteller per se, I'll extrapolate and take it to mean also that, "There's no agony like bearing an unsung song inside of you." Which I agree with completely.
Some of my relatives joked that I was singing before I learnt to talk. I don't know if that makes any sense at all, but when it comes to venting my feelings, I find it far more natural to express myself through music than words. The latter gets maudlin too easily. Not to mention the sheer amount of barefaced honesty it requires. When I sing and play my harp (or whatever instrument I happen to be using), my listeners are free to interpret the music any way they like. I can air my feelings without too much explicit self-disclosure, and that makes it far easier for me. I can't imagine having something to say inside me and not being able to make a song out of it. That, I believe, would truly be agony. |
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| Prompt #20: Love Bites |
[May. 30th, 2008|10:32 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | cranky | ] |
Love Bites
Love does bite. DESMINIHATEYOU.
Sorry, I haven't got a clue what else to say. |
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| Prompt #19: In your time of need, who will you turn to? |
[May. 25th, 2008|05:34 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | cheerful | ] |
In your time of need, who will you turn to?
Hiraen, of course. He has been my best friend ever since I started to have memory. I can't even remember a time when he wasn't in my life. We've gone through all sorts of things together, from skinned knees and broken hearts to war and bereavement. He was the first to comfort me when Madrest fell; he was a constant companion during all our patrols; he even rescued me from the aftermath of the second battle for Cassarah, when I wasn't even sure whether I was dead or alive. He understands me better than almost anyone else. (I mean, we both share a fondness for instigating revolutions, among many other things.) It makes sense that I'd instinctively turn to him for help if ever I needed it.
(I wish I could say that he'd turn to me if he needed help too, but he never does. He never turns to anyone. It's quite unsettling.) |
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| Prompt #18: What was your most embarrassing moment? |
[May. 25th, 2008|05:19 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  embarrassed | ] |
What was your most embarrassing moment?
If I had to pick just one, it would be the time when I had to reject Iyonë's affections for me. When I was seventeen (she was fourteen), some of us junior members of the Board were staging music performances at several towns in the Westlands - rather like a travelling concert, I suppose. She was playing the flute and I the harp. We were also performing a duet, so our rehearsals gave us plenty of time alone. I'd already known that she fancied me, but she'd never actually told me - until that evening at Terinea. I don't really want to go into the grisly details, but I tell you, I'd never been more embarrassed.
Long story short: I don't know how to reject someone. Savonn Andallë is a fool when it comes to romance, happy now?
It was a disaster. To her credit, Iyonë didn't cry or lose her temper - she just smiled and walked away, leaving me standing there alone like some idiot in the town square. But things were awkward between us for the rest of the concert, and we stopped performing our duet. It was horribly uncomfortable. I seriously thought Hiraen was going to beat me up for breaking her heart. |
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| Prompt #17: What is the best - or worst - advice you have ever received? |
[May. 25th, 2008|05:03 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | angry | ] |
What is the best - or worst - advice you have ever received?
Best advice: "Just go in and plug your ears and go LA LA LA and do it."
(So said by Aldrin the ever-wise, when I was fretting about whether I should go for my Ambassador interview or just forget about that lifelong aspiration of mine. Even now, almost ten years later, they're still carrying out those interrogations for new applicants. They've been doing that since Iredrin's time and they'll probably always do it.)
I've also received countless pieces of horrible advice. Let's see: "I think you should go around calling yourself the Minstrel King. In front of the real king. Who isn't going to be happy about it in the least. And who has also just ridden halfway across the continent to save you and all your people from hordes of bloodthirsty Saraians. And whom you CAN'T AFFORD TO OFFEND, DAMN IT." Sound familiar, Desmin? What about "I think you should trust me and my host of shady turncoat assassins in the middle of battle"? Or, "You should take me home and give me free access to every part of your city"? And, worst of all, "SMOOCH! Love me back!"
...sorry. I'm bitter. And the fact that I actually heeded his advice doesn't make me feel any better. |
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| Prompt #16: What moment from your life do you wish you could re-live again? |
[May. 25th, 2008|04:37 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | pensive | ] |
What moment from your life do you wish you could re-live again?
I don't so much want to relive a single moment as an entire time span. It would be when I was maybe 23 or 24, spending at the most a few months a year at home before I went haring off to Betronett again. I didn't realise then how insensitive I was being to the people who missed me. I remember, in the winter of 2706, I left the Board to visit Aldrin just a month after coming home for the first time all year - I know it bothered many people, but I was too caught up in my own plans to care. Maybe if I'd spent more time with my Ana, I would have realised how depressed he was getting and been able to make him feel better. Maybe he wouldn't have gone off to Madrest and got himself killed... but there I am, stuck on that again.
I'd spend more time with Iyonë too. It was bad enough that she always fancied me, but I only ever thought of her as Hiraen's little sister. I know she felt left out, what with us perpetually away from home. I wouldn't have minded marrying her, to tell the truth - I needed heirs, and her parents would have liked it. But now she's gone too, and it's all too late.
I guess I would have treated my loved ones better. I was always too busy chasing dreams, and I thought once I'd made a name for myself I could do anything for them, but they didn't want me as King Savonn. They wanted me as I was, as their Seffë. I should have realised that sooner. |
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