Unruly characters
Giffen keeps making passes at Peter--which *so* isn't in the story, But at least is breaks up the angst... ------------------ “That’ll do for today,” Peter said as he gently closed the old tome’s cracked covers and replaced it on the shelf. He could keep his low spirits from showing. It was late, he felt ill and tired and in any real way—he was alone. It seemed ridiculous to pine for Veleur who was clearly acting like a perfect fool. But in the end so much in life comes down to faith. Peter had faith that if he acted according to his conscience he would never be distanced from God; he had faith that he was meant to be with Veleur and that somehow Veleur would comes to his senses long enough for that to happen. Until then he simply had to find someway to pass through his current purgatory productively. “I’m keeping you up,” Peter said as he picked up his jacket. “I don’t sleep much anyway, besides…” Giffen grinned. “Perhaps I should be keeping an eye on you 24-7. Who knows, you might be sneaking out the window and getting up to all sorts of trouble.”

*chuckles* NOW I'm curious... LOL (And I know what you mean about unruly characters... *shakes head* men...)

Mychael is the most unruly one I've worked with so far. *grumbles* He wants his wings back. *sighs* The plan is to give them back by the end of Blessed, but he wants them now. I almost did it too. I almost gave them back and let him use glamor magic to hide them (from everyone except Morgan, of course), but then I had serious trouble reconciling the wings with still being a vampire, which requires blood-drinking. *shakes head* I love this man, I really do... but damn he's complicated. (No, I didn't give him the wings; the jury's still out on that one.) I'm just venting. LOL

Vent away, hon. I'm having exactly the same problems with Nat. Well, not *exactly* - he isn't an angel. LOL. But he does keep wandering off and trying to do his own thing, and having to be hauled back by main strength. Drat the man. ;)

Yup. That's pretty much what Mychael tries at nearly every turn (with one thing or another). *sighs* I swear, if I ever hear someone say that a writer's job is easy, I'll beat him/her over the head with my massive Oxford Dictionary.

:::chuckle::: And I'll jump up and down on what's left. ;)

Deal. Anyone else want in? LOL Like I said, I almost let him do it. But if I had, I would have had to deal with the resulting issues of an angel having to kill to survive. Plus it would lessen the impact at the end when he's *supposed* to get his wings back. (There's more to that twist, by the way. He's not the only who gets wings.) *sighs* Why are these guys so difficult?

LOL. At least it shows they're viable, multi-faceted, complex, characters aka REAL PEOPLE!!! It's if a character doesn't start to go off in unexpected directions that I start to worry, however much easier it makes life as a writer. LOL

Here's the scene in which I nearly caved in and gave the sorcerer what he really wanted: ------------------------------------------------------ “You will be needed.” The glass vial slipped from Mychael’s hand and shattered on the stone floor. He grumbled and backed away to avoid the spray of tiny shards. “Keep that up and I’ll be lucky to have any vials left.” He bumped into one of his shelves and caught another vial before it could hit the floor. “You’re troubled,” the Archangel said. Mychael set the vial back on the shelf carefully. “Morgan doesn’t know about the dreams.” Mychael knew that tone well. “No,” he muttered. “He does not.” “Why haven’t you told him?” “Because they concern a past that I wish to forget.” Mychael sat down on the steps and looked up at the angel before him. “You cannot forget. That’s not how I made you. Why do you try?” Mychael sighed. “What am I? Carwyn was here earlier. I told him what I was, but I don’t even know what I truly am now. He asked about my wings; I said I gave them up when I chose to stay. Yet I’m not human.” He raised his right hand and an orange-red flame appeared. “Tell me,” he whispered, “how I can do these things if I’m no longer an angel.” “You are an angel, but I fear that you have lost your faith.” With those words, the flame flickered out. “You said I will be needed. Why?” “You are a guardian now.” Mychael glanced up the Archangel, a pale eyebrow lifted in cautious question. “Morgan’s guardian.” “There is another who will need you, Tânellu. You’ve already been warned that he is much like you. He will need you before the sunrise.” Mychael groaned and dropped his head to his hands. “What do I tell Morgan?” “The truth. You have not been released from duty, and you are needed now. Morgan is a strong ally; let him help you.” “Aye, he is.” Mychael looked up and watched in silence as the Archangel faded away.

Awwww.... that's kinda sad, actually. :::sniffle:::: :cry:

Yup. The Archangel isn't too far off the mark either. Blessed Sacrament is literally going to be a -*test*-('") of Mychael's faith - in himself and others. And yes, there are going to be some rough parts (in terms of sad or devastating), but it will have a happy ending. :)

Phew. You had me worried for a moment there. :) Don't you think that writing that includes the 'tough' bits is so much better and more believable than stories where the characters just agree with each other and say 'I love you' endlessly.... ;)

Oh God yes. A story without any sad or rough parts is utterly boring (at least for me). Even if it's set in a fantasy world, I want it to be so believable that I get sucked into it. And if the characters don't go through rough times, then how do they grow and why should the reader care about them? I like happy endings, but I'm going to put Mychael (and Morgan) through Hell and back (quite literally) to get there. It'll be a -*test*-('") of Mychael's faith, yes; but also a -*test*-('") of their faith in one another. Mychael's past has the potential to destroy him. Question is: will he let it? He'll screw up... big time, at one point. I've already written that scene and it isn't pretty. (And it earns him a right-hook from Morgan's fist.) By the time I get done with these two, their bond will be strong enough to survive anything.

I like to let unruly characters have their way, just to see where they lead me. if I like where they end up I keep it in the story if I don't , well there's always the backspace button. I find it very interesting to let unruly characters have their way with me, at least for a little while. It's better than beating your head against the keyboard trying to make them behave !!