[PROJECT DISCUSSION] [FELID_FACTOR]

[skinstealer]

Beatrix here. I'm here for a bit and would like to talk over my new character, Mabel...

Mabel is my first foray into writing a character, though I wouldn't be surprised if I had some hand in Pokemon-related characters growing up. However, this is my first since becoming a distinct system member, and while I am very nervous in some ways, I am very excited in others.

Mabel's typing was an obvious pick for me- while I abhor the idea of monarchy in actuality, regal and royal imagery tend to hit for me in ways I don't fully understand. It felt like picking a queen type TCP would be an interesting way of working with and deconstructing that...someone who was effectively born into a role they never chose, and with powers that force others to adhere to that role around her. After all, queen types command authority when they speak firmly, whether they want to or not. The responsibility of it weighs on her shoulders and she feels as if any missteps could seriously hurt others in ways that she doesn't want, and she actively has to deconstruct any possible speech patterns that could set off her ability. Thankfully her roommates (Courtney and Honey) have built up a decent bit of resistance over time thanks to...exposure, I suppose, and mindfulness regarding passive aura effects (something I imagine to be a big thing in TCP culture...), but Mabel still struggles with tone regulation and essentially forcing herself to sound levelheaded at all times. Fighting is something she's trying to leave in the past- because the fact that her typing would make her more likely to "win" vs actually coming to a compromise makes her feel sick. 

Typing aside, other themes that Mabel is going to tackle include repetition in work and home life, finding yourself in monotonous cycles that grip you and don't let you go. Her previous job was very corporate and lead to her feeling trapped until she finally broke free, and grief definitely made things worse while she was in the throes of it. This is something we've felt a lot due to our workaholic nature even when it's self imposed (and for Mabel, it definitely is even as she works from home), and while it's strange to think that since I wrote that update, we've gotten significantly better about this thanks to therapy, it still rings true in some places of our heart.

The static headache effect mentioned in this update is an actual thing we experience, and was worsened significantly back when our life situation wasn't as stable. I don't want to reveal too much about it, so I won't be acknowledging too much conjecture about it. Feel free to talk amongst yourselves on that one, though.

And then...Phantom.

Phantom is a difficult character to write and is weirdly enough not rooted in experiences with a partner, but more the fact that we started writing Phantom around when our grandmother died and we were processing the sudden grief snaps throughout the day, as well as the complicated nature of "Here was a person I loved dearly who I didn't always have the best relationship with, and they're gone now. What do I do to move on?" Things have very much changed for us perspective wise since then...but I have some good ideas.



Re: Ace's comments...

Mabel definitely loved the pie. She is fairly reserved about expressing joy but she loves it when her roommates do nice things for her. She will definitely love the scarf too...

As for forum boards, game threads mainly. She enjoys puzzles and games of strategy, especially more traditional/old fashioned ones. Board games too. Chess is a big thing for her.