and more Beautiful People

           I've been trying to get more in tune with my characters since writing is coming a bit hard. So I decided to take all of this month's Beautiful People's question to each of them.

          Well, the important ones at least.

           You probably don't know this. But Oddball has a foursome of characters. Oddball is the main character, and there is also Rocky, Skyler and Lucky Peril (or Peril, or Lucky, or whatever you want to call her).

           How about Rocky? I love the way him and Oddball interact with each other. They are so different, but hilarious together. I noticed that the tone of these answers is different from Oddball's Beautiful People. And I realize it's because Rocky has a more casual, rambling tone. He also has very strong feelings about things. He either loves and adores it, or hates it to pieces. Everything is an extreme with Rocky. :P

1) What’s their favourite food? (Bonus: favourite flavour of chocolate!)

            -Rocky loves chocolate cake. With gobs and gobs of frosting. Not the stuff that’s really sweet and almost grainy with sugar, but the kind that Evaline, Hawk’s wife, makes. Where it’s just sweet enough and thick as peanut butter.

2) What do they absolutely hate?

            - Rocky can’t stand any kind of injustice. Life isn't fair. But shouldn't people try to make it as fair as possible? He hates tyrants, leaders who are out to serve themselves. He hates people who think they are tough because they pick on other people. He can’t stand not knowing the answer to something. He hates being useless in a situation and not having the ability to help other people. He hates people who don’t do their part and pull their own weight. He can’t admit defeat. And he can’t stand to not be doing something.

3) What do they enjoy learning about?

            -Rocky isn’t much of an academic. Living in Shadow Gulch, he was lucky to learn the rudiments of reading and writing. And the only reason he was better at it than most in the Gulch was because he knew if he ever wanted to leave he’d need some kind of education. He did terribly at school when he moved to Echo Heights to live with Hawk's Wing.

            -But if you teach him things like survival, he won’t get enough of it. Fighting. Weapons are cool, but he’s better at fist fighting. Camping. Rock climbing. That is what he likes to learn about. His Bible and the Cliffhanger (a magazine) are the only things he likes to read.

4) Who is the most influential person in their life?

            -He never knew his parents, but he had a letter from his Dad once that helped. To, you know, the meager extent that a somewhat vague letter from a father you never knew can help.

              -But Hawk would probably be the most influential person in his life. He took Rocky out of Shadow Gulch and to Echo Heights. Gave him a new life. Hope. Taught him a lot about life and rock climbing. And just everything. Hawk's Wing is the first person Rocky met who genuinely cared. And who didn’t have some vendetta of his own.
            
5) What is their childhood fear?

            -Rocky wasn’t really afraid of much. He didn’t fear the dark. He didn’t fear dying; he didn’t think it was possible. He always had his big brother Callor with him, and when he was really young, he never felt afraid with Callor around. But he did fear Callor’s disapproval. Not that Callor was ever violent to him, Rocky just respected him so much that he didn’t want to disappoint Callor.

6) What is something they have always secretly dreamed of doing, but thought impossible?

            -He wishes he could stop all the pain and all the wrongdoing in the world. He hates to see people hurting and he thinks that almost all the hurt in the world is the result of someone else’s wrongdoing.

           -And he wishes he could fly. Rocky adores heights.

7) What is something he is impractically afraid of?

            -Spiders. Oh, man! He hates spiders.

            -He also has this fear that one day Skyler will leave. That she will never really love him. He doesn’t think he’s good enough for her and he thinks if she knew his past she would just walk away. And then one of the only two good things in his life would be gone.

            -Failure. It’s, like, against his nature to accept defeat.

8) Are they a night owl or morning person?

            -He doesn’t really stay up late unless he has to. But he is so not a morning person. He never gets up early unless someone drags him.

9) Do they say everything that pops into their head, or leave a lot unsaid?

            -Some might say he just says anything. He doesn’t have problems with confrontation. Though he’s more prone to confront someone with his fists than his words. But he has nothing against a good quarrel as long as it’s for a just cause. He can speak his mind. And he doesn’t always have the best intuition so he does tend to say out of place things. But there are times when he really does know when to keep his mouth shut. And when he does talk during gloomy or serious moments, he’s the one who lifts everyone’s spirit and gives them hope. He doesn’t always use the most intelligent words, but it ends up being the right thing to say and he keeps everyone going.

10) What are their nervous habits?

            -He tends get snappy and grumpy until he realizes what he’s doing and that it’s unfair to take his frustration out on other people. Then he wants to be alone, which is also unusual for him but he doesn't want to chew someone out for no reason. And he’s not as eager to talk and laugh and tell stories and funny jokes like he usually does.