Character Q & A (Patreon)

Belladonna

- You strike me as a very ambitious individual. What is the biggest obstacle for you to reach your goal?

“I long ago have reached my goal, dear heart.  I am quite comfortable with my position in the Night Market.  It is best not to strive too high in life. The higher you climb, the more painful the fall.  However, I must say that I do enjoy watching people climb that ladder.  I enjoy even more giving them a little shove along the way.”

- Can you tell us a little something about the place you came from?

“That’s the funny thing about the Night Market. Whether you mean for it to happen or not, you often times forget your life before.  If you plan to come and visit and peruse our wares, I would suggest getting out quickly. For the longer you stay, the more you forget why you ever wanted to leave to begin with.”

-Have you ever been in love?

“Of course not. Love is foolish.  It accomplishes nothing in life.  However, for the right price, I can certainly fall for you.”

Gabriel

- You seem conflicted about the work you do. Why do it at all?

“A job is a job.  Whether you like it or not makes no difference.  In order for society to function properly, everyone must know their place.”

- If you were to choose a different career path, what would you want to work with?

“You do not choose careers.  You simply are born into what you are meant to be. Choosing a career is for the whimsical and the unambitious.”

- What was home like, where you came from?

He declines to answer.

-You carry a shard of something on you.  Can you tell us a little more about it?

“It’s nothing.  A trinket that I like to fidget with from time to time.  I don’t even remember where I got it.”

Milo:

- Keys are an interesting collectable for someone who seems perfectly capable at lockpicking. Why keys, specifically?

“What can I say? I like how they look. Something so shapely about them.  I see one on the ground, pick it up, give it a home.  Such a shame for something so pretty to be forgotten in the dirty streets.”

-You seem to hold Hazel in high regards.  Did you two ever have a thing.

*wild laughter fills the room

“Hazel? Haze? No. No no no no no. She’s practically a sister. I could never… no.  That girl and I have been through far too much for me to think of her as anything other than my dearest friend and family.  Why do you ask? You’re not considering trying anything with her are you?”  He leans forward, a small glint of something unreadable in his eyes.  “You think you’re good enough?”

Hazel

- What is one thing you and Malcolm can't see eye to eye on?

“Milo.”

- You seem like a caring and selfless person. Is there a personal reason why you feel like you need to help others?

“My mother was not a kind person.  I don’t know if she ever was.  She was the original bog witch of the Night Market and ran this apothecary at the edge of the herbal district before it burned.  I grew up watching how she was. How she treated others. How others treated her.  I didn’t want to be there.  So when I took over her shop, I just chose not to be.  I want to change the perception everyone has of the Albright family.  I’m not sure if I’m doing a good job of it, though.”

- If you could set aside others need and ask for one thing for yourself, what would that be?

“Time to garden. I know it sounds silly, but I would really love some uninterrupted time to dig into my plants.  They get so neglected sometimes and seeing them flourish under my care is one of my favorite things.”

Blue-eyed cellmate

- Do you know of Milo Next, Gabriel Caine, Hazel Albright and Belladonna Maladie? What would you have to say about them?

“Does one ever really know a person? Let us think about that for a moment.  What makes up a person? Is it their occupation? Is it how they take their morning tea?  Do we define others by how they look and conduct themselves within society? Or do we make snap judgments and decide who they are to us, never quite knowing the bountiful nature of their soul.

When asked, just now, whether I know the four individuals in question, it gave me pause. A pause so pregnant and bright that I am blinded by the possibilities of what it can pertain.  What do I know about them? Nothing.

And everything all at once.

For to know a soul, you must experience them to their fullest. You must allow yourself to revel in their aura and find yourself consumed in their thoughts and fears until you sweat nothing but their very existence. Aw, yes, to know a soul.  Such a messy process full of love and wonder.  I find most afraid of it.  Too scared to allow themselves the quintessential action of opening their minds and hearts to another.  Too timid to let their flaws be known.  It is a humbling process. One that we avoid as a society.  The nitty-gritty of belonging is not a path many are strong enough to take.  But if you are brave enough. If you can tread that narrow road of broken dreams, you may just find one, beautiful, sparkling gem at the end of it all.”