August Character Interview
Patricia Parrington ~ August 1, 2024
Hello my lovely readers and fellow book-lovers! For those of you who are new here, I, your thrifty host, Patricia Parrington, have the pleasure of interviewing characters from books all over the world.
Today we have here with us Melodia from the book A (Not So) Simple Quest by Christina Wallace. Christina is a fantasy writer who enjoys writing stories that sweep you up in excitement and make you smile.
Meet Melodia
Welcome to Fable Features!
[Patricia settles onto an orange suede couch opposite her guest. She adjusts a checkered pillow.]
Just thrifted this pillow! Isn’t it fun?
[She smiles and settles back against the couch cushion.]
So, tell me, what’s a day in your life like?
Oh, that is lovely!
[She reaches out to stroke the pillow’s fabric.]
We don’t have pretty things like that around the castle.
[Melodia tucks her hair behind her protruding green ears and straightens her back as she lightly clears her throat.]
A day in my life? Well, I wake up at dawn and I rush down to the kitchen for a quick meal, usually just some cooked oats and a piece of fruit. Then I head to the Enchanting Room. If Sorceress Catrin is already present, she’ll give me my tasks for the day which could be drying out plants for spells, or re-organizing our potion vials. Otherwise, I work to perfect whatever spell or enchantment the sorceress has most recently taught me.
[Her eyes dart to the ground before she looks back up with a half-hearted smile.]
It’s important that I make no mistakes.
[She’s silent for several seconds as if remembering something upsetting, but then shakes the thought away and a bright smile returns.]
After I’ve completed my tasks for Sorceress Catrin, she sometimes has me clean, but lately I’ve been allowed to help the guards with the prisoners. Then I have a small dinner and it's off to bed!
That sounds like a very busy day!
[Patricia leans forward.]
And you get to help a sorceress? How’d you get that opportunity?
Oh, I was raised to be a sorcery apprentice. My father found me on the side of the road when I was very young, and he was a mighty sorcerer himself, though healing was his specialty. Sorceress Catrin was his twin sister. He always told me I would do great things. He died when I was six and then Sorceress Catrin said she promised my father she would always keep me safe and train me in sorcery, because we’re family.
I’m glad she decided to take you in.
[Patricia taps her chin, thinking.]
Do you have any hobbies? Or a hobby you wish you had time for?
A hobby?
[She giggles.]
No one has hobbies in Catrin’s castle. If she thought for a minute anyone believed they had extra time . . .
[She laughs again, covering her smile with her hand.]
Well, it wouldn’t last long. Although, if I did have time to learn something beyond sorcery, I’ve always enjoyed watching the cooks and I’ve been eager to learn their secrets.
Cooking is a great hobby! And a delicious one.
[Patricia licks her lips and laughs.]
What makes you feel safe?
[Without missing a beat she replies,]
The castle keeps me safe, and Sorceress Catrin. It’s not safe for someone like me to be out in the world. Nothing can happen to me, so long as I’m here.
[Patricia raises an eyebrow.]
Well I’m certainly intrigued. Someone like you? If you feel comfortable sharing, why is it not safe for you to be in the outside world?
I am what is considered an abomination due to my mixed blood, elf and orc. Some with mixed blood favor one race over the other in appearance and can get away without many knowing, but I quite stand out with my orcish green skin and large ears, yet my white hair and my slim frame are distinctly elven traits.
Sorceress Catrin said people will hate me for simply existing because I am a mistake that should have been corrected when I was born. Likely why my father found me on the side of the road like he did. And so, by staying in the castle, no one can try to harm me.
[Patricia shakes her head.]
That’s awful people would hate you simply for what you look like. I’m truly glad your father found you and cared for you.
Our next question’s a fun one! What incredibly strong opinion do you have that is completely unimportant in the grand scheme of things?
Hmm . . .
[She places a finger on her chin, gazing toward the ceiling as she thinks.]
No one cares to know my opinions on anything, but I suppose I think we should do all spells and enchantments outside. The effects are the same when you perform them inside, but it just seems to me that if you’re trying to affect nature, you should be among nature.
I can agree on that! I love being outside in nature. Sounds like it would be a relaxing way as well to perform magic.
[Patricia adjusts the pillow next to her then smooths out the skirt of her dress.]
Do you have any close friends? What are they like?
Dur’Han and Benson are my closest friends. Dur’Han is an orc. Not very many people like him, but I’ve known him practically my entire life. I don’t remember a time before him, and I’m part orc, so that’s probably why he’s nicer to me than most others. Benson is just a human, and it took him a little while to warm up to me, being an abomination and all, but after I healed him a few times, he got used to me, and then he got partnered up with Dur’Han and we grew closer. They are both Catrin’s guards, and they often go out on patrols and work shifts in the dungeon with me.
They sound like great friends!
What would you say is your favorite memory of a time you were hanging out with them?
When I was little, when my father was still alive, I would play hide and seek all throughout the castle. And if Dur’Han was around, I could hide behind him too, and he’d play along, telling my father he hadn’t seen me. Sometimes he would even give me rides on his shoulders, but all that changed after my father died.
Dur’Han and Benson cover for me. I try to always do as the sorceress asks, but if you’d never seen the outside of the castle walls, beyond looking out a window, you’d probably be most intrigued by anything foreign that wandered in as well. I found a mouse once. Benson warned me that Catrin wouldn’t be pleased when I decided to keep it as a pet, but still they didn’t tell on me. They also both tell me as many stories as they can about the things they see and do when out on patrol. I love them both very much.
[Patricia smiles warmly.]
Better keep them around!
Changing topics now, I’m curious—Do you have any tattoos, scars, or birthmarks?
[Her shoulders slump as she slides her fingers around the strands of her white hair.]
You mean something appearance-wise that sets me apart from others?
[She chews her bottom lip and looks at the ground.]
I’m an abomination already. I need nothing else to draw further attention to myself. If you’re not familiar with the term, it’s a combination of races that should never mix. The two races—elf and orc—have been at war endlessly for hundreds of years, I’m probably the most abominable of all abominations . . .
[Her voice trails off.]
[Patricia’s eyes lower.]
I’m sorry to hear that. That must be hard. Let’s move onto a more lighthearted question, yes?
When was a time you surprised yourself?
Sorceress Catrin taught me how to make a healing salve and I not only understood immediately, I’ve perfected it. Catrin even said I am just a skilled as my father had been.
That sounds like very high praise! That’s cool you even perfected the healing salve.
[Patricia cocks her head, thinking.]
What’s your favorite memory?
Sorceress Catrin doesn’t like flowers. But my father would always bring some back to me whenever he went out somewhere. When I was six, he had gone out for a few days and when he returned, he brought a whole basket of small flowers on long thin stems, and he taught me how to weave a flower crown. He said that he might not be a king . . .
[Tears well in her eyes as she sniffles but forces a smile.]
. . . but I was certainly his princess.
[A tear rolls down her cheek. With a whisper, she adds.]
I still have the crown he made.
[Patricia quietly hands her a box of tissues.]
That sounds like a great memory and memento of your father.
[She smiles gently.]
Others may call you an abomination, but from what I’ve heard, you are a talented, kind person. It was a pleasure getting to know you, Melodia! I hope you well in all your future endeavors.
End of interview.
Want to Read More?
Melodia’s author, Christina Wallace, and her other works can be found here. Her book A (Not So) Simple Quest can be purchased here.
Author Christina Wallace
See Ya Next Time
Aaand that's all the time we have today. Thank you, readers, for coming. And thank you, Melodia, for letting us get to know you! See y'all next time.
If you would like to submit a character to be interviewed for a future issue of Fable Features, please send an email to linnaekconkel@gmail.com with the subject line: Fable Features.
Please note that erotica and content with excessive vulgar language will not be accepted.
If you have questions you'd like Patricia Parrington to ask in a future interview, please submit them to linnaekconkel@gmail.com with the subject line: Interview Questions.
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