A princess cut from marble

26.) Second day of favorites! Favorite comfort food, favorite vice, favorite outfit, favorite hot drink, favorite time of year, and favorite holiday.

Favorite comfort food would probably be soup and grilled cheese. Favorite vice is coffee, she drinks too much of it which also answers the ‘favorite hot drink’ question. Favorite outfit is hard - no, wait, no it isn’t. She has two outfits she likes. She has a form fitting white suit and then this black suit with a jacket that she feels just makes her look very professional and like she’s a force to be reckoned with. Favorite time of year is summer because she likes the sunshine and warmth, she probably naps in the grass in the sun. As for favorite holiday, I don’t think she’s really big on holidays? I can google more later.

27.) Pick two songs that describe your character at two different points of their life, and explain why you chose them.

Suzie Q by Credence Clearwater Revival for when she was a teenager, determined to charm and flirt her way into the world's graces and land herself a comfortable life as well as a way to stand out amidst all her sisters. She's young and blossoming from the position attention, she finds it empowering and feels like she's on her way to success because she's this girl everyone is charmed by and people want her favor, it feels perfect.

California Dreamin' by The Mamas and the Papas is for after she lost her family. I like to see my two song choices as a sort of before and after, she goes from walking down the street in the bright sunlight with a bounce in her step and her head held high, knowing she's pretty and delighting in the attention it gets her, to feeling so cold and empty because of what that attention resulted in. She's feels cold, empty and hurt, and suddenly she's alone and wants the privacy to lick her wounds (or fall apart) without anyone seeing her. She wants the innocence and warmth of her youth back, she would like to run away to somewhere else, but instead she grits her teeth and makes it through the cold.

28.) If your character’s life was a genre, what would it be?

You probably expect me to say a tragedy, but instead I’m going to classify it as true crime and a coming of age story.

29.) How does your character smell? Do they wear perfume or cologne?

Either like clean skin or antiseptic, depending on if she’s spent the day at home or at work. If she’s at home, she’s likely been outside, so she could possibly smell like sweat. She doesn’t wear perfume, or at least she hasn’t in a long time.

30.) And finally: Write a letter to your character, from yourself.

Dear Evanna,

I have put you through so much shit, haven't I, my dear?

I'm not really sorry about it, however, because while I've spent this entire development meme answering questions to get to know you, there is one thing I've been certain of from the very beginning. You are strong enough to live this life I'm putting you through. You are traumatized and while it's an event I keep coming back to, you are the one that pushes yourself upright and declares that it will not be your defining trait. You will not be 'the broken girl', instead you are 'the woman someone tried to break once.' You are not so easily beaten, not by you past and not by a single story.

But here's the thing - You make yourself into more. You make yourself into a scientist, you give yourself a hobby, you turn stone into something that is yours, but I can still see the fear threaded through you like cracks in pavement. You keep that wall up emotionally and you're nice, yes, you can be kind and you want to help and to matter, but you're too damn scared to go out on a limb and trust someone when it comes down to it.

Are you trying to endear yourself to people? Trying to make them trust you or trying to get so attached that you'll trust them?

Listen to me, it's an empty life if you're always on your own and yes, I know that you'll have another life to live in... oh, a hundred years, but you have this life now, so live it. You are the central character in your story, yes, but supporting roles are there for a reason. Let someone support you, it's okay to allow yourself to be moved.

There's nothing wrong with being cautious, but if you're too afraid to make a move, you only ever stand still and I know that you're more than that. Charge forward, lionhearted girl, make sure they know you as more than a monster in a myth.

21.) What would your character’s cutie mark be?

This is probably where you expect me to say a snake, but you would be wrong. It would be something like a shield (or admittedly, maybe a stone pillar) that represents protection of others as well as her own defensive nature.

22.) If your character could time travel, where would they go?

To the future. She’s not sure about what specific point in time, but she hopes for a day when mankind (and maybe godkind) evolves to be kinder and less violet, more accepting and just a less traumatizing place. She’s seen a lot of advancements in her lifetimes and knows things have changed a lot since she was first born, but she is still looking forward to the other changes the future has to hold.

23.) Is your character superstitious?

No, she isn’t. While she knows there are greater powers than herself at play, she knows there are rules that even they have to obey, so she's more practical and scientific than suspicious.

24.) What might your character’s ideal romantic partner be?

Patient, for one, but if left to her own devices, Evanna would likely fail to become intimate with anyone because that's not something she's going to pursue under her own steam. Not someone that's aggressive or violent, not someone that will trigger her fight or flight instinct and absolutely no one that's unctuous or reminds her of Ronan. And probably not someone after a hook-up, not unless they want to respectfully pursue the idea for months because I think she'd definitely need a sense of trust, so she's built more for a slow burn than a one night stand.

25.) Describe your character’s hands. Are they small, long, calloused, smooth, stubby?

Small, like the rest of her, and while I don't think she has any scars on her hands, I think she does sometimes end up with little nicks and cuts from her sculpting tools. She fidgets with her hands and fingers a lot, I think she also usually has torn cuticles.

Self para #4

"I'm going to fail this test, I know it," Gordon complained, fisting a hand in his hair and yanking so that the already disorganized stands began to resemble a porcupine atop his head. "I've started having dreams about this crap, I woke up in a panic shouting out different bones in the a few nights ago, Emily told me she's going to make me sleep on the couch if it happens again."

Emily was Gordon's girlfriend of five months, a woman that not only attended med school, but also worked part time and would absolutely wreak havoc on someone if she felt slighted or they got in the way of her goals. It was a trait that Evanna admired to some extent while at the same time leaving her just a little bit intimidated of her. Evanna didn't bother asking Gordon why he didn't get Emily to help him study considering that last time she saw her, Emily was talking about how she was beginning to forgo showers and instead just stick her head under a faucet to wash her hair because it was faster and worked just as well at waking her up. That was a busy schedule that Evanna didn't envy at all and it was the reason why they were sitting in a cafe, Emily was busy and Gordon didn't like staying at home alone, but Evanna wasn't about to meet up with him at his apartment by herself.

He had a girlfriend, sure, but there were some lines that Evanna didn't want to cross.

"I already told you that you could borrow my notes," Evanna pointed out, certain they were just as good as listening to any lecture.

"That's not enough," He said in a voice of despair, showing a level of dramatics that Evanna thought was highly uncalled for.

She did feel bad for him on some level, however, because Evanna couldn't imagine if their scores were reversed. She worked hard to be one of the best in in their class and Evanna pressed the tip of each finger to the pad of her thumb before asking the question she thought Gordon had likely been waiting for. "Do you want me to help you study?" As far as guys went, Gordon seemed nice and Emily had done her a favor once, so she didn't really mind. They were the closest things to friends that she had in med school, she wouldn't exactly be much of a friend if she ignored the chance to help one of them out, would she?

"Yes!" Gordon shouted loudly in triumph, causing heads to turn towards them as Evanna rolled her eyes and tried to suppress a smile at his reaction.

"Don't get too excited yet," She told him, folding her arms on the edge of the small table and leaning forward, soon grabbing her cup and shaking it at him as if to make a point. "You're going to have to pay me back. You'll need to focus. But first, if you want to study with me, you have to buy me another coffee."

The longer she talked, the more serious Gordon had taken to looking as if he actually expected he'd need to pay her for her time, but he smiled as soon as Evanna named her price and Evanna couldn't help but smile back at him as he did so. Giving her cup another shake in emphasis, Evanna set it down and leaned back in her seat to reestablish the space between them before Gordon stood up and stretched.

"Hazelnut, right?" He asked as he went towards the register and Evanna merely nodded, already planning out their first study session.

16.) Are there any blood relatives that your character is particularly close with, besides the immediate ones? Cousins, Uncles, Grandfathers, Aunts, et cetera. Are there any others that your character practically considers a blood relative?

One of Eva's aunts took her in after the loss of her parents and she has another aunt and uncle that would check in with her regularly, but her closeness with them varied as the years turned. She was always on good terms with the aunt that took her in, but her other aunt was chilly with her after the accident, apparently blaming Eva for what happened or for being alive, Eva's never been sure and the pair never reconciled. As for her uncle, he's the only one that's still alive and their relationship is cordial with Eva visiting him somewhat regularly in his old age, but he doesn't always remember her due to his advanced age.

17.) What’s your character’s desk/workspace look like? Are they neat or messy?

It is organized so very precisely and if you move something over by an inch, she's going to fix it. When she was younger, tidying was almost a compulsion for her, it was a way to control something when she still felt helpless and her emotions continued to shift from one extreme to another, but things have relaxed since then.

18.) Is your character a good cook? What’s their favorite recipe, whether they’re good or not? (Microwave mac-and-cheese applies.)

She is, she and her sisters all used to take turns helping their mother in the kitchen as part of a way to make sure they could help provide a good home for their future spouses. Admittedly, Evanna wasn't the best of her sisters at cooking, but she still knows her way around a kitchen and knowing her mother's recipes is something that she appreciates more than she is willing to express most days. Despite all this, one of her favorites meals is a microwavable Asian noodle tray that she generally only eats on days when she's too tired to cook and just wants to kick her shoes off after getting home.

19.) What’s your character’s preferred means of travel?

Walking. She doesn't have anything against bikes or buses or anything like that, but she would rather get there under her own steam than anything else. Also, she doesn't like boats - or maybe rather ships, I think she'd get sea sick.

20.) Does your character have any irrational fears?

Not being able to protect herself in a dangerous situation, freezing up instead of doing something about it. But also, she fears hurting someone on accident, someone that doesn't deserve it.

Self para #3

The library was quiet that Saturday afternoon, but it was a library and therefore it was always supposed to be quiet even though it sometimes seemed like certain people lacked any understanding of that concept at all. Evanna herself was silent as she moved between the shelves, the carpet muffling her footsteps as she looked at gardening books without any real interest in picking any of them up. They'd be helpful, certainly, but Evanna wasn't particularly keen on gardening despite the vines that covered her yard, all of them kept alive due to their own resilience instead of any effort of her part and she thought they were beautiful in their wildness and didn't desire to contain them.

When nothing caught her interest, she wandered over to the next aisle and then to the next, finding herself in the mystery section where a large selection of Sherlock Holmes novels sat for anyone curious about brilliant detectives, which Evanna was not. She'd tried them and found them dull, but there were a few slender books that gave Agatha Christie as an option and she grabbed one of those at random, not overly concerned if she liked it or not. Reading wasn't something Evanna did much for pleasure, the book she'd returned before going to browse having more academic purposes, but the mystery she picked up was short enough that it shouldn't take much time to finish and she could always bring it back if she didn't care for it, so Evanna didn't see what she had to lose.

As she began to carry the book back to the desk, she slowed upon passing the children's section where a little girl was stretching up on her tippy toes in an effort to reach a large hardcover with fantasy creatures on the cover, her fingers only just just managing to brush against the bottom of the shelf as she struggled to close the remaining distance.

"Do you need some help?" Evanna asked as she reached up and lifted the new release from the clear plastic stand it was displayed on before delivering it into the hands of the little girl, not sure if she was even old enough to understand the words in the book, but she wasn't about to stand in the little girl's way of pursuing knowledge or literary entertainment.

"Thank you, I couldn't find a stool!" The little girl said brightly, grasping the book on either side with eager hands. "And mommy gets mad at me when I climb shelves."

"I wouldn't have told on you," Evanna said conspiratorially, her voice the quietest whisper she could manage. "Is that the only book you wanted?"

The little girl nodded rapidly, her pigtails bouncing with the motion and Evanna gave the girl a tiny wave before walking away. "Bye bye," She said as she again moved for the check out desk. "Have fun."

There wasn't a line at the desk and Evanna set her book down without waiting before she began to dig around for her library card, not paying any attention to the man behind the desk as he scanned her book, at least not until he said, "You know, I saw what you did. That was pretty nice of you."

Slapping her library card down on the desk, she scowled at him, "Don't start."

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone," He promised, a hint of a laugh under his words, his phrasing close to what Evanna had said to the girl and she glanced back over at the kids section only to find the child gone, likely off to show the book to one of her parents.

"No one would believe you anyway," Evanna told him as she turned back around and picked up her book and her library card, not bothering to wave goodbye the way she did with the little girl.

11.) Is there an animal you equate with your character?

Snakes, obviously. In her second lifetime, after she remembered she was Medusa, she absolutely hated snakes because of all the time she'd spent listening to their hiss and they were always there no matter her mood. She couldn't escape them and her second life felt like freedom from them, so she hated whenever they came slithering up. However, I think by her second lifetime, her hatred had cooled and she began to wonder if snakes were drawn to her like those cursed were drawn home to Aionios.

12.) How is your character with technology? Super savvy, or way behind the times? Letters or email?

Super savvy. Well, okay, she probably can't hack into government data bases, but she's skilled with her smartphone and probably knows a bit of code on a computer.

13.) What does your character’s bed look like when he/she wakes up? Are the covers off on one side of the bed, are they all curled around a pillow, sprawled everywhere? In what position might they sleep?

She sleeps on her stomach slightly off center of her bed and while she doesn't kick, she does turn a lot and that generally results in the covers pulled this way and that, one side hanging near the floor when she wakes up. However, she makes her bed every morning, so it's not obvious.

14.) How does your character react to temperature changes such as extreme heat and cold?

Hates it. Just flat out loathes it and would rather a comfortable medium because it's easier to be productive when your body isn't fighting to regulate its own temperature.

15.) Is your character an early morning bird or a night owl?

Early bird, she regularly gets up around dawn and if she's anxious about something, she'll wake up a few hours before that, sometimes jerking awake multiple times in a single night.

Self para #2

The sun was hot on the back of her neck, Evanna's hair pulled up into messy knot of spiraling curls atop her head in an effort to keep it from her face as she scraped at clay with a small tipped blade to add in detail to the statue she was working on. She couldn't remember any longer just who it was that first suggested she needed a hobby, if it was a therapist or one of her former friends that suddenly didn't have time for her any longer once the scent of scandal attached itself to her skin, but it was one of the better pieces of advice she'd received in the beginning.

Well, maybe not better, but at least easier to listen to since it let Evanna channel what she was feeling, it was something productive and didn't drive her to the edge so that she wanted to scream the way introspection did. Back then, Evanna had thought she was being clever by choosing to work with stone since that was something that haunted her and by the time she realized who she was, Evanna mostly just thought it was funny.

She could turn a man to stone with a touch of her hand, who would ever expect her to sit with sweat running from her temple as she shaped her latest sculpture?

It was unexpected soothing to work at clay with her hands, form it the way she wanted and once it was shaped, add all the details she wanted before curing it. She had even started trying to paint a few of them, although her results on that were generally very mixed and not worth showing off. Those statues were usually shoved into corners out of sight while she found a different project for her time and over the years, Evanna had filled her space with the fruit of her labor and given a few of them away on occasion when she either needed space or simply didn't like them.

Once, someone had actually asked to take one of her statues and Evanna had been quietly pleased even while pretending to be unmoved by the request.

Evanna's favorite statues, however, were all crowded outside in her backyard and the statue she was currently working on was her favorite yet even though she wasn't finished. She could still mess up and accidentally mark the clay where she didn't mean to, the details may end up looking more like disfigurements, but Evanna didn't feel anything but peace as she set her tool down and leaned back, sighing as she swiped the sweat from her brow. She liked the statues now, she wasn't cursed by nightmares picturing bodies of stone reaching out for her with gnarled fingers any longer and Evanna thought of the statues as her domain in some strange sense.

Her powers still scared her to some extent, the idea that she may accidentally wrap someone in stone without meaning to, may kill them without the intent to, still lingered in the back of her mind, but that was something Evanna was adjusting to. Yes, she'd once killed a man by accident, but he hadn't been a good man. He'd hurt her and he'd had it coming and if anyone ever scared and hurt her to the point that Evanna lashed out with her powers on accident, then they could hardly be called innocent.

Years ago, lifetimes ago, a god had taken advantage of her and in turn, a goddess ensured that any man who so much as looked at her would turn to stone, freeing her from ever suffering an unwanted touch again. She'd been given the power to protect herself back then and she had it again, there was no fault in protecting herself and the stone was a shield that would keep her safe. The stone was hers and she refused to be afraid.

“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.” - Desmond Tutu

6.) Describe your character’s happiest memory.

When she graduated from the University of Aiónios. That proved that she was more than a pretty face and it was also a very important victory for Evanna because there were times when she considered dropping out because of stress and anxiety, so it also felt like a win against her self-doubt as well as all the people that had doubted her. She managed to show that they were wrong and she hasn’t stopped since.

7.) Is there one event or happening your character would like to erase from their past? Why?

Oddly enough, no. It’s her gut reaction to immediately think about the night she lost her family, but after that first heartbeat, she’d suck in a breath and say no. Evanna isn’t sure if it’s selfish to resign her family to death or not, but she thinks that night helped turn her into the person she is, that it helped fuel her drive to succeed and be more than a pretty face. She wouldn’t be who she is without her past and she doesn’t want to get rid of the lessons that it’s taught her.

8.) Day of Favorites! What’s your character’s favorite ice cream flavor? Color? Song? Flower?

Butter Pecan is her favorite ice cream flavor and she always keeps some in her fridge to curl up on the couch with while she mocks the science in television shows. her favorite colors are purple and gold and I cannot offer an explanation for why. Her favorite song is Fighter by Christina Aguilera and her favorite flower is foxglove.

9.) Who does your character trust?

No one but herself, at least not really. She may say she trusts someone, but it’s usually a conditional trust. She ‘trusts’ someone to get her a drink if she sends them to a vending machine with a five, she ‘trusts’ a mechanic to be able to fix a tire, but it doesn’t mean she trusts them to be there if she has a screaming fit or that she doesn’t think they’ll choose the option that benefits them most. She likes to prepare herself to be disappointed by people and the idea of trusting someone is scary, so she never tries.

10.) Can you define a turning point in your character’s life? Multiples are acceptable.

Beyond the obvious night she lost her family, I think the day she chose medical school is fairly important. She doesn’t like hospitals, but she chose to go into it partly because she doesn’t like hospitals. I can’t think of what you call it, but she was hoping the exposure would get rid of dislike of them. It was one of many decisions she made simply to prove that she could do something because proving people wrong and showing that she could overcome something became a theme in her life. I’m not sure if I would call it a turning point, but seeing Ronan’s associates being punished and go to jail was also something important for her because otherwise, she likely would have been afraid of them coming back to finish what they started, so standing up to them was important.

#Eve: headcanon

Self para #1

"I have lost my mind," Evanna announced as she stared at her reflection in the mirror, her features only faintly visible in the predawn light that filtered in to illuminate her face. Even though she couldn't see them, Evanna knew the skin below her eyes was bruised from a restless night, but she didn't plan on doing anything about it and why should she? There wasn't anyone she was trying to impress, she wasn't going to medical school to show off her skill at applying make-up and didn't plan on wearing any of it, not even reaching for a tube of lip gloss.

Sighing, Evanna continued to examine her features and flexed her fingers at her side reaching up to drag her fingers through her dark tresses, unease beginning to prickle at her stomach the longer she stood there. "I can do this, I am in control and no one can stop me." She said, trying not to be a pessimist and to pep herself up instead.

Gathering up her curls in her hands, Evanna next grabbed a pen and twisted her hair into a messy, perfunctory bun to keep it from her face while at the same time ensuring she would have a pen if she happened to need one while at school. It felt surreal that she was once again getting ready to depart for an early morning class, she'd anticipated being married by her current age, maybe even have a baby on the way, and yet life wasn't anything like she had imagined on all those other early mornings when she woke up and cursed having to report for another day of education.

But it was fine. It was only one in a long line of first days back to school and Evanna rubbed tiredly at her face before finally turning away from her vanity so she could turn on the light and see properly, the sudden brightness making her blink when it hurt her eyes.

She should have slept longer - she could have slept longer, and yet anxiety over the idea she would oversleep or wouldn't get ready in time had ensured that every time she managed to drift off, Evanna jerked awake in short order with only a few moments of slumber snatched that round. At least it meant she wasn’t in a rush, she could grab coffee or maybe breakfast at a bakery, but her stomach was too queasy to eat as she pulled on her clothes, her skin pallid in a way she would have once balked at letting people see. Oh, how the mighty had fallen.

Or had the resilient merely risen from the dead?

The clock on the wall continued to tick away each second and Evanna paused only a moment to look at the degree on her shelf that proved she'd survived college before shoulder the bag she'd packed and left beside the door on the previous night. She'd checked twice to make sure she had everything and waiting any longer to leave was merely stalling, a pointless exercise that Evanna wouldn't allow and her steps were quick as she walked along the streets.

The sun would be up soon and Evanna thought momentarily of the way sunrise looked over the shores of Aiónios before shaking her head, mentally reciting various bones in the body as she squeezed her fingers around the strap of her bag, feeling the material give beneath her fingertips. She would not skip class on her first day to watch something as common as a sunrise.

Medical school was another thing a younger Evanna wouldn't have anticipated for her future self, but the past few years had made Evanna realize that she wanted to be useful to people instead of just a beauty queen and people that knew how to make someone better were always in need. Healing and saving sounded good in comparison to death and violence, but Evanna wasn't completely sold on being the kind of doctor that struggled to snatch someone back from the hands of death.

Evanna still didn't understand what happened on the night she lost her family, but she knew that Ronan's death was supposedly her fault and that made it hard to trust just what would happen if she put her hands on someone. The idea of touching someone that was hurt and having them crumble was enough to make her nauseous and Evanna had a different vision for her future in mind. Coroners didn't have to have a medical degree, but if she was a medical examiner, she could work with the dead and not worry about harming anyone, but instead find reason for their end and maybe, just maybe, bring their family some peace.

Being able to give peace of mind to those left behind sounded like a damn good thing to Evanna and with each step she took towards her destination, it seemed to get easier to breathe.

1.) Describe your character’s relationship with their mother or their father, or both. Was it good? Bad? Were they spoiled rotten, ignored? Do they still get along now, or no?

Evanna’s relationship with her parents was perfectly fine, they cared about her just like they did all of her siblings, but that was a bit of a problem in Evanna’s mind. As the last child, the baby, she was spoiled terribly in terms of affection, but a lot of her material belongings were passed down by her older sisters, which would make her feel put out, as if she wasn’t deserving of her own nice things.

2.) What are your characters most prominent physical features?

Her short stature is one of them, she’s small enough that the average teenage girl is taller than she is and wearing heels is the only way she manages to look a normal size. A second noticeable thing about her is her wild curls that she general tries to tame, some considering them to be too reminiscent of the snakes that used to curl around her head.

3.) Name one scar your character has, and tell us where it came from. If they don’t have any, is there a reason?

She doesn’t have any scars. There were a few when she was smaller from things like accidentally cutting herself while trying to peel an apple or burning herself on a hot pan, but nothing that ever managed to be severe enough to last. Now that she has access to her powers, it’s unlikely that she’ll ever be exposed to something threatening enough to leave her scarred.

4.) How vain is your character? Do they find themselves attractive?

She isn’t as vain as she used to be. When she was a teenager, Evanna was incredibly vain and prided herself on her beauty, but that changed over the years. Now she still finds herself attractive, but she doesn’t doll herself up anymore because she wants to be considered a force for her brains, not for her looks.

5.) What’s your character’s ranking on the Kinsey Scale?

I’m thinking a 1, possibly a 2, but her distrust of people (especially when it comes to men) makes it difficult to pin down right now.

#Eve: headcanon

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Tully (2018) dir. Jason Reitman