Body and Appearance
1. Describe the character's height and build. Is she heavyset, thin, short, rangy? Gemma is "tall for a girl" of the late-Victorian age, so we're talking 5'6". She has "broad shoulders" and is apparently rather busty (she's had trouble hiding her chest beneath men's clothing in-canon). Otherwise, she has a thin waist and is just average all over.
2. How old is she? Eighteen.
3. Describe her posture. Does she carry herself well or does she slouch? She carries herself very well. It's in her breeding.
4. How is her health? Is she fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities? She is rather healthy, but she's been going through a bout of insomnia for the past few months.
5. How does she move? Is she clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid? Clumsier than all get-out.
6. How attractive is this character physically? How does she perceive herself in the mirror? She doesn't think she's attractive at all, but apparently she's actually quite pretty.
7. Describe her complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred? She has light skin that is just covered in freckles.
8. Describe her hair: color, texture, style. She has red hair shot through with gold undertones. It is naturally curly, and reaches to her mid-back.
9. What color are her eyes? Bright, jade green.
10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features? Not really.
11. What are her chief tension centers? Her lower back.
12. What is the character's wardrobe like? Casual, dressy, utilitarian? Bright colors, pastels, neutrals? Is it varied, or does she have six of the same suit? She likes earth tones, though does own the odd green or purple dress. And yes, everything she wears is a dress. She also wears stockings, corsets, shawls, capes, hats, and boots.
13. Do her clothes fit well? Does she seem comfortable in them? Yes. But she's been dressing more modern as of late.
14. Does she dress the same on the job as she does in her free time? If not, what are the differences? Yes.
15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando? NONE OF THESE OH GOSH SO IMMODEST.
Speech
1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse? She sounds like a girl.
2. How does she normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does she talk easily, or does she hesitate? Depends on the situation. She's good at whispering, and also yelling. But she usually has a very even-paced speech pattern.
3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics? She has a British accent and uses Victorian slang.
4. What language/s does she speak, and with how much fluency? English, and a bit of hideous French. Also, some Hindi.
5. Does she switch languages or dialects in certain situations? Not if she can help it.
6. Is she a good impromptu speaker, or does she have to think about her words? She usually has to think; when she speaks her mind without doing so, the results are generally disastrous.
7. Is she eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change? Eloquent; she has to be.
Mental and Emotional
1. How intelligent is this character? Is she book-smart or street-smart? Book-smart, seeing as that is all her education would allow. She's getting better in the street-smart area, though.
2. Does she think on her feet, or does she need time to deliberate? Depending on the situation; if she has time to deliberate, she'll use it. She also loves to procrastinate.
3. Describe the character's thought process. Is she more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical? She tries to be logical, but sometimes she just has to use her intuition.
4. What kind of education has the character had? The majority of her education was very informal homeschooling. The very last part was very formal, as she attended boarding school.
5. What are her areas of expertise? What, if anything, is she interested in learning more about? She is great at making tea and making decisions about fashion. She would love to learn more about technology.
6. Is she an introvert or an extrovert? An introvert, actually.
7. Describe the character's temperament. Is she even-tempered or does she have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven? She has frequent mood-swings, mostly caused by the magic.
8. How does she respond to new people or situations? Is she suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic? She tries to learn as much about everything in as short a time as possible. She is also very judgmental, though she doesn't realize it half the time.
9. Is she more likely to act, or to react? React.
10. Which is her default: fight or flight? Fight.
11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does she appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks? She finds most everything Felicity says very scandalous, but can have a laugh when she wants to.
12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does she deal with them? No, though she did go insane for a short while.
13. What moments in this character's life have defined her as a person? Her mother's death, her first vision, Pippa's death, her father's addiction, Miss Moore's betrayal, Kartik's death.
14. What does she fear? The fact that she still doesn't understand herself.
15. What are her hopes or aspirations? She just wants to be happy; she doesn't really care about marriage anymore (except when it happens to other people). She would really love to be like, a librarian for the rest of her life.
16. What is something she doesn't want anyone to find out about her? That she isn't as innocent and pure as everyone thinks.
Relationships
1. Describe this character's relationship with her parents. She had a love-hate relationship with her mother; Virginia would spoil her one day and then fiercely reprimand her the next. Virginia has even bribed Gemma to get her to behave, and sadly, it usually worked. Gemma feels terrible about her last words to Virginia ("I don't care if you come home at all!"), and will always regret not mending their relationship before her death.
Her father is a totally different story. She is his princess; he has always cherished her, and usually gives her whatever he wants. However, she was hurt when he took advantage of her love to feed his opium addiction, and will never forgive him. She still loves him dearly, but can never forget that he chose his drugs over his family.
2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like? Yes; her older brother, Thomas. They were thick as thieves as children, but once he went away to university, that all changed. He and Gemma always fight, and his jealousy regarding the love of their father had recently surfaced before she left her world. She was hurt that he felt that way, but was unwilling to admit that his anger was completely justified.
3. Are there other blood relatives to whom she is close? Are there ones she can't stand? She has a love-hate relationship with her paternal grandmother as well. Grandmama has a habit of bossing her around relentlessly, but Gemma knows that it's usually in her best interests.
4. Are there other, unrelated people whom she considers part of her family? What are her relationships with them? Felicity Worthington: Her best frenemy. They've gone through so much happiness and heartbreak together. Gemma has kept all of Fee's secrets, and Fee has returned the favor. They can be at each other's throats in a moment, though.
Ann Bradshaw: Gemma's roommate at Spence. They had no choice but to stick together at the beginning of their relationship; both were outcasts at school, and they needed each other to survive. As much as Gemma loves Ann, she gets annoyed with her lack of ability to stand up for herself more often than not.
Pippa Cross: Vain and beautiful, but someone Gemma admired because of her ideals about love. Never would've guessed that she and Felicity were lovers, but hey, what can you do? She was hurt by Pip's betrayal, but has more or less forgiven her.
5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet? Kartik: They met when she kicked him in the balls because she thought he was going to rape her.
6. Does she have other close friends? Not really :c
7. Does she make friends easily, or does she have trouble getting along with people? She kind of has a hard time. She's never fit in during her entire life, and she's acutely aware of that. Whenever she has the opportunity to, though, she usually messes it up.
8. Which does she consider more important: family or friends? Friends. Her family has let her down too many times.
9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has she been married more than once? S...ingle with a dash of widowed? Idk, her true love died :c
10. Is she currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse? No.
11. Who was her first crush? Who is her latest? Kartik, and still Kartik.
12. What does she look for in a romantic partner? Someone who is willing to help her carry her secrets, and who can make her laugh.
13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does she relate to them? If no, does she want any?No.
14. Does she have any rivals or enemies? Cecily Temple, that bitch.
15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does she fall on the
Kinsey scale? A one.
16. How does she feel about sex? How important is it to her? Women are to "lay back and think of England," you know. But really, it's something for after marriage. She may or may not have slept with Kartik, though. WE'LL NEVER KNOW THANKS LIBBA BRAY.
17. What are her turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits?
Here.
Beliefs
1. Do you know your character's astrological (
zodiac of
choice) sign? How well does she fit type? I am too lazy for this, I apologize.
2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in her life?She's spiritual kind of. She didn't go to church until she went away to school, but it isn't really something she thinks about often.
3. Does this character have a personal code of morals or ethics? If so, how did that begin? What would it take to compromise it? Yes; it's just what she thinks is best, really.
4. How does she regard beliefs that differ from hers? Is she tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent? Tolerant.
5. What prejudices does she hold? Are they irrational or does she have a good reason for them? She kind of has that whole "I'm better than you because I'm of a higher class, but I'll never acknowledge it" thing going on. But it's totally subconscious, and if she offends, it isn't on purpose.
Daily Life
1. What is the character's financial situation? Is she rich, poor, comfortable, in debt? Comfortable.
2. What is her social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected her? High class; her father is a merchant, so she has quite a large fortune back home. Here, she's working middle-class.
3. Where does she live? House, apartment, trailer? Is her home her castle or just a place to crash? What condition is it in? Does she share it with others? Townhouse that was left to her by Wanda Maximoff.
4. Besides the basic necessities, what does she spend her money on? Dresses and jam.
5. What does she do for a living? Is she good at it? Does she enjoy it, or would she rather be doing something else? She's a secretary, and she is damn good at it.
6. What are her interests or hobbies? How does she spend her free time? Making tea and reading. Also, playing piano.
7. What are her eating habits? Does she skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods? She eats very well, and never misses meals.
Associations
Which of the following do you associate with the character, or which is her favorite:
1. Color? Purple.
2. Smell? Roses.
3. Time of day? Twilight.
4. Season? Spring.
5. Book? Jane Eyre.
6. Music? Classical.
7. Place? Gardens.
8. Substance? Idk.
9. Plant? Rose.
10. Animal? Cat.
END
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