HelenaInterviewQuestionsIndex | Time Under Chaos | Player Characters | Helena | Helena Interview Questions I understand that unlike your sister, you are new and inexperienced in the ways of Amber, having spent most of your life amongst the Healers. What do you foresee being your relationship with your twin sister, now that both of you are at the same pole in the universe? Helena shrugs. "I really don't know," she replies wistfully. "The last time I saw my sister I was four. We...did everything together then. When Ness fell down and skinned her knee, Tally, the woman that looked after us, put a bandage on my knee too. We had words that we made up and no one else knew what they meant. I always knew what Ness was thinking and feeling, and she always knew about me. We were inseparable. "Now, though... I hope we'll be close again, but I really don't know." There's a sense of resignation in the line of Helena's shoulders. What is your opinion of your biological father? "Mandor is highly respected in the Courts. He's brilliant, talented, far-seeing, resourceful... He's been a great asset in Amber," Helena answers, sounding very much like she's regurgitating the current party line. She smiles pleasantly. Beyond the physical, just how alike are you and your sister? "In personality and temperament, you mean?" Helena asks, seeking clarification. She spreads her hands. "Mother says we have a lot of the same mannerisms. She says we make this face, when we're annoyed, that reminds her of Oberon." Helena dons the aforementioned expression for the purpose of illustration, then grins. The smile is bright, transforming her previously serious face into something more carefree, more happy... And then just as quickly the grin fades, replaced with a more, appropriate mien for the situation. "Aside from that, I really don't know. I'm starting to say that a lot, aren't I?" Do you feel yourself more of Chaos or of Amber, and why? "More of Chaos, I suppose," Helena answers, slightly puzzled at the question. "I've spent most of my life in either Houe Ishtar or House Hendrake. I don't really even understand what 'to be of Amber' means. Perhaps you're referring to allegiance, or where I feel my origins are?" Helena shrugs. "Torren adopted me and made me part of his House and for that I'm grateful—it wasn't something he was required to do. " Given your difference from other Chaosites, you might feel more comfortable in an environment such as Amber. What do you think your reaction will be to being placed in a situation where you are seen as "normal"? Helena chuckles, but it has a bitter edge to it. "Normal? I...can't remember when...well. It will be a novelty, I suppose. Despite being considered 'normal,' I will still be the 'outsider,' and that's familiar territory for me." How does it make you feel not to be able to shapeshift when all the others could? How does your lack of shapeshifting powers affect your life? She frowns at the pair of questions, annoyed, and it's perhaps the same expression that reminds Fiona of Oberon. "Torren has taught me to define myself by what I can do--not what I can't." Her tone turns mildly defensive. "And I can shapeshift...a little. "Not being able to shift well sometimes made things difficult. There were places in the Ways I couldn't go. There was training I couldn't participte in. However...however, I discovered things that I could do better than others, and it sort of evened the score. Sort of." Are you solely concerned at the moment with Chaos and your adoptive state or does the idea of Amber, the place your mother comes from, make you curious at all? "I'm curious, of course.This is an adventure, coming to Amber and seeing new sights, meeting new people... I'd like to know more about my mother's side of the family. In learning about them, I learn more about myself. Who knows? Perhaps I will be a completely different person when I return." She smiles. |
