(no subject)
Body and Appearance
1. Describe the character's height and build. Is she heavyset, thin, short, rangy?
Elisa is somewhere above six feet tall, heading towards six and a half feet. (she appears slightly taller than she is because she stands on the balls of her feet). Elisa’s got a slightly muscular, athletic build.
2. How old is she?
As of December 31, Elisa is 28 years old. Technically, to be a Gargoyle of that biological age, she would have to be chronologically 56, but prefers not to think about that.
3. Describe her posture. Does she carry herself well or does she slouch?
Elisa normally has very excellent posture, carrying herself well. However, she’s quite comfortable in all manner of stooped over or crouched like positions, managing to look alert rather than lazy in any of those.
4. How is her health? Is she fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities?
She’s in extremely good health and is considerably fit (Elisa herself reflects that she’s in the greatest shape of her life.). No illness, conditions (unless you count permanent magical transfiguration into a Gargoyle), or disabilities.
5. How does she move? Is she clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid?
Elisa moves with the fluid grace of a predatory animal, equally comfortable on all fours as she is on two legs. Under normal circumstances, there’s an unconscious sway to her tail as she walks.
6. How attractive is this character physically? How does she perceive herself in the mirror?
By Gargoyle standards, at least, Elisa is rather attractive. How attractive she is to humans varies, with some finding her just scary, others finding her attractive, and others finding her just a bit too inhuman to be attractive. Elisa’s mental image of herself hasn’t entirely caught up to her body, but she generally likes what she sees in the mirror.
7. Describe her complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred?
Elisa’s skin in a tan color, though the membrane of her wings is a dark red.
8. Describe her hair: color, texture, style.
Elisa has dark black hair that looks almost blue in the right light, which comes to a little bit past shoulder length. She usually wears it pretty loosely, with a few strands over her ears.
9. What color are her eyes?
Elisa’s eyes a dark brown.
10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features?
Wings. A tail. Pointed ears. No eyebrows (with a slight browridge in their place). Fangs. Four taloned fingers on each hand, three taloned toes and a heel spur on each foot. No belly button.
11. What are her chief tension centers?
Elisa typically gets tension headaches centered either in the middle of her forehead or in the back of her head where her head meets her neck. She also carries some of her tension in her shoulders.
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?
Elisa’s entire wardrobe essentially consists of a pair of blue jeans and a black t-shirt. She’s dressed up for Halloween and her “wedding,” but otherwise essentially wears the same clothes day after day, since stone sleeps effectively works to clean them. In coming to Taxon, she’s since added a red bomber jacket and a beige scarf, if just to keep folks more comfortable around her in winter.
13. Do her clothes fit well? Does she seem comfortable in them?
Elisa’s quite comfortable in her clothes and they’re comfortable enough. Getting them back on after she’s taken them off, however, can sometimes be a challenge.
14. Does she dress the same on the job as she does in her free time? If not, what are the differences?
She pretty much wears the same clothes all the time.
Q15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando?
Briefs, with a hole for her tail.
QSpeech
1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse?
At least in her own opinion, Elisa’s got a fairly pleasant voice.
2. How does she normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does she talk easily, or does she hesitate?
Elisa’s normally got a pretty even cadence when she speaks, pretty evenly on the whole. She usually talks easily, once she’s gotten to know someone, and can very quickly adopted a commanding tone.
3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics?
Elisa’s a native New Yorker and definitely sounds like it.
4. What language/s does she speak, and with how much fluency?
Elisa knows a few words and phrases in Spanish, along with just a little bit of Latin and Gaelic picked up from the Clan, but doesn’t actually speak any other languages.
5. Does she switch languages or dialects in certain situations?
Does the occasional use of “jalapeña” as an exclamation count?
6. Is she a good impromptu speaker, or does she have to think about her words?
Elisa thinks on her feet pretty well and can speak importantly when the situation calls for it.
7. Is she eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change?
Elisa’s reasonably eloquent, though she gets less so when nervous or depressed.
Mental and Emotional
1. How intelligent is this character? Is she book-smart or street-smart?
Elisa is reasonably intelligent, having attended Columbia University and attained a degree in psychology. She’s savvy and street-smart to say the least.
2. Does she think on her feet, or does she need time to deliberate?
Elisa is extremely good at thinking on her feet when it comes to things that need that snap judgment. Affairs of the heart or more complicated matters need to be mulled over.
3. Describe the character's thought process. Is she more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical?
Elisa operates primarily on gut feelings and instincts when it comes to dealing with things. She’d a little bit of an idealist, but knows enough about how the world works to round out towards practical.
4. What kind of education has the character had?
Elisa attended and graduated Columbia University with a degree in psychology, followed by the New York Police Academy.
5. What are her areas of expertise? What, if anything, is she interested in learning more about?
Elisa is a skilled police detective, a decent shot, and a more than capable hand-to-hand fighter. She’s got an armchair interest in history.
6. Is she an introvert or an extrovert?
Somewhere in-between, learning towards extrovert.
7. Describe the character's temperament. Is she even-tempered or does she have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven?
In general, Elisa’s emotions run pretty hot. When she gets mad, she gets really mad. When she’s depressed, it’s really depressed. By the same token, when she’s happy, she’s really happy. Cop or Gargoyle, she’s a decidedly driven individual.
8. How does she respond to new people or situations? Is she suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic?
Elisa adapts to new people and situations fairly well, though she approaches them all with a degree of caution, simply because the standard response to someone like her is often screaming.
9. Is she more likely to act, or to react?
Reactive, in general (as is common with most crime-fighting types), but if she knows she can head off something before it happens, she’ll take it.
10. Which is her default: fight or flight?
Fight. Definitely fight.
11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does she appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks?
Elisa has a slightly cynical sense of humor, and will sometimes use humor to defuse tense situations, but overall, she laughs easily enough.
12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does she deal with them?
Elisa went through a fairly heavy period of depression after she was first transformed into a Gargoyle, but eventually adapted to having her life turned upside down-to the point where it could be said she adapted too well. Adapted or not, she’s still a human mind in a body with a different set of instincts.
13. What moments in this character's life have defined her as a person?
Graduating from the police academy. Making detective. Meeting the Gargoyles. Figuring out she loved Goliath. Being transformed into a Gargoyle. Starting a relationship with Goliath.
14. What does she fear?
There’s a certain amount of fear of being smashed during the day, but Elisa’s bigger fear is that things are never going to get any better for the Gargoyle race, that they’ll always be the subject of hate and fear.
15. What are her hopes or aspirations?
Elisa’s biggest hope is for a world where Gargoyles and humans can live together peacefully.
16. What is something she doesn't want anyone to find out about her?
Elisa in general prefers to limit the number of people who know she wasn’t always a Gargoyle.
Relationships
1. Describe this character's relationship with her parents.
Elisa has a good relationship with both of her parents, though she’s closer to her father, simply by virtue of the fact that he’s also a cop. Her closer relationship with her mother is a more recent thing, as she had previously often found her mother too intrusive. She counts herself very fortunate that they’re such accepting people.
2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like?
Elisa has a brother, Derek, who she was once very close to, but trust issues forced them somewhat apart. Derek also strongly disapproves of her relationship with Goliath and her acceptance of what’s happened to her. She has a sister, Beth, who’s enough years behind her to diminish closeness some, but not significantly.
3. Are there other blood relatives to whom she is close? Are there ones she can't stand?
Elisa had a grandfather (on her father’s side, now deceased), whom she was semi-close to.
4. Are there other, unrelated people whom she considers part of her family? What are her relationships with them?
Elisa considers the other Gargoyles in the Clan to be family. Hudson in a slightly avuncular sort of way, the Trio as younger brothers, and Angela as a stepdaughter. There’s also Maggie and Claw, the former of which is more or less her sister in law, and also Delilah, her partial clone, with whom things are somewhat strained.
5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet?
Elisa’s best friend is, of course, her mate, Goliath. They met when she fell off the Castle and he glided down to catch her.
6. Does she have other close friends?
Elisa’s other closest friend is her ex-partner on the Force, Matt Bluestone.
7. Does she make friends easily, or does she have trouble getting along with people?
Elisa definitely makes friends easily, having made friends the world over during the course of the World Tour (or just in easily becoming friends with the Clan).
8. Which does she consider more important: family or friends?
Elisa tends not to make a very big distinction between the two, with a wide definition of family that encompasses most friends, but does put family first.
9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has she been married more than once?
Elisa considers herself married to Goliath, though the Gargoyle term is “mated”. This is the only time she’s been married.
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?
Elisa’s first crush was some boy in middle school. Her latest and last is Goliath.
12. What does she look for in a romantic partner?
Integrity, compassion, compatibility, a strong-will. Basically, someone who can keep up with her.
13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does she relate to them? If no, does she want any?
Elisa has a step-daughter (from her perspective, anyway), in Goliath’s daughter Angela, who’s glommed onto her as something of a mother figure. It’s still an unexpected role for Elisa, but one she’s happy playing. She looks forward to children of her own.
14. Does she have any rivals or enemies?
Several enemies. Chief among these is Demona, the rogue Gargoyle semi-directly responsible for her transformation and Goliath’s former mate. Needless to say, Demona had already hated her as a human for corrupting Goliath. The hatred has only gotten worse sense. Elisa also has the same other enemies as the Clan, including Tony Dracon, the Pack, and Coldsteel.
15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does she fall on the Kinsey scale?
Zero.
16. How does she feel about sex? How important is it to her?
Elisa definitely enjoys sex and feels it’s an important component of a mature relationship, but is also perfectly capable of going without it, as she did for the better part of a year.
Q17. What are her turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits?
A deep voice, for one. Elisa’s major turn off’s are usually personality factors, like laziness or apathy. No real weird bedroom habbits.
Beliefs
1. Do you know your character's astrological (zodiac of choice) sign? How well does she fit type?
Elisa’s a Capricorn, but doesn’t especially fit it.
2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in her life?
Elisa believes in God, more or less, but is more spiritual without actually being any particular denomination. These things don’t form an especially moral part of her life.
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?
Elisa was raised with a very strong moral code, as well as a strong belief in law and order, picked up from her policeman father, though Elisa occasionally can be shown to believe that the rules can be bent if there’s good reason; her current state as essentially a vigilante illustrates that.
4. How does she regard beliefs that differ from hers? Is she tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent?
Elisa is generally pretty tolerant of belief systems that are different than hers, though the sometimes truly alien beliefs or practices of the real Gargoyles give her pause at times.
5. What prejudices does she hold? Are they irrational or does she have a good reason for them?
Elisa doesn’t hold any particular prejudices.
Daily Life
1. What is the character's financial situation? Is she rich, poor, comfortable, in debt?
As a cop, Elisa was comfortable enough. As a Gargoyle, she’s really not on any kind of economic map. Currently jobless in Taxon, with a look to changing that.
2. What is her social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected her?
Middle-class, originally, essential outcast as a Gargoyle, moving towards functioning member of Taxon society.. The severely diminished amount of human contact still weighs heavily on her at times.
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?
Prior to her transformation into a Gargoyle, Elisa lived in a fairly nice apartment in SoHo. After that, she moved into the Clock Tower above the 23th Precinct in Manhattan with the Clan. She was staying in the Sanctuary in Taxon, but has since found a reasonably nice top floor apartment.
4. Besides the basic necessities, what does she spend her money on?
Elisa really doesn’t have much money of her own, but she does have a weakness for old movies and mystery novels.
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?
Elisa’s an ex-cop turned freelance vigilante/guardian of Manhattan. The second half of that is something she never would have expected, but it’s a pretty good life. Taxon-life is going to likely necessitate a “real” job again.
6. What are her interests or hobbies? How does she spend her free time?
Elisa likes old movies and mystery novels, and fills some of her free time with those. She also just enjoys gliding around the city (especially with Goliath), and, ah, other activities which take place between consenting adults. She and Goliath also made time for at least one “date” every week. That having been removed, she finds herself looking for more things to fill the long nights.
7. What are her eating habits? Does she skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods?
Elisa generally eats at least two meals a day, drinks on occasion, but doesn’t have any big preferences. Her favorite food, however, is a hot dog from an NYC street vendor with everything on it.
Associations
Which of the following do you associate with the character, or which is her favorite:
1. Color? Red
2. Smell? Goliath
3. Time of day? Sunset
4. Season? Fall
5. Book? Murder on the Orient Express
6. Music? Beauty and the Beast
7. Place? Manhattan
8. Substance? Stone
9. Plant? Roses
10. Animal? Cat
END
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