19. who is your favorite nonplayable character and why is it sophie larsen, the spiritual successor to serenity james, now that leah has been promoted to series regular
S O P H I E!!!!
1) Someday I’m really going to develop Leah / ILUSHUN and give her a backstory so she’s playable. Trying to differentiate her from Sarah so it doesn’t look like I’m playing a carbon copy of a muse has been a challenge, since originally she wasn’t going to be anything other than an NPC who introduced Sarah to her own sexuality, but she’s been fun to play around with! Like Sarah, she’s used graffiti as a form of activism (though for different topics–like she’s really into saving the bees). Mastering the Tough Girl, But WIth Flowers Aesthetic has been tricky, and frankly my mind isn’t in her right now, but one day she’s gonna be a wild ride.
2) Sophie serves as a catalyst for so much in Natey Boy’s life. The idea that you don’t always have the strength to live for yourself, but find it in the necessity of other people that depend on you, is such a prevalent theme in his story. It’s the reason he runs away from home. It’s the reason he finds food and shelter every night. It’s the reason he goes on living.
I’m still trying to figure out where she fits in his story present-day / in-game. Part of me wonders if there was a terrible accident when he was looking after her and she didn’t make it, which would alleviate that problem (and also give him a healthy dose of undeserved guilt, my personal fave), but that’s … just too sad for me to bear. Plus, if his mom died in a car accident with Mia’s mom (name tbd), I feel like that’d be just too cruel. So that’s still up in the air, unfortunately. But nevertheless: Sophie!!! I have a bunch of tiny little shits / headcanons that need flushing out in my Google Keep, so it’s a work in progress.
3) Follow-up goes to Cain James. I loved him. The little James brother who loved to look through his telescope and would always get caught reading in odd, secluded places. (He’s a little hard of hearing, so it often takes a long time to find him). My boy!!! Julia and I had fun chatting about him, for sure. I think if I was ever at a loss for a character to develop and needed somebody new, I would use him a skeleton for somebody playable and great.
Roleplayer Ask Meme | Open 4 Bizness
