Dragonborn Interview: Kiara

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I was tagged by :iconlesliewifeofbath:

I am choosing Kiara, because so far, she is leading in my poll. But I will be doing separate journals for the runners-up as well, because this is too much fun!

Kiara by NorroenDyrd


I get to interview Kiara in the kitchen of the home she built for herself in Hjaalmarch, the hold of her good friend Jarl Idgrod the Ravencrone: her family retreats here now and again when they come to Skyrim. Outside, the sky is overcast by drab grey clouds, and I can hear the rain tap against the wooden roof with its sticky, cold fingers - but inside the kitchen, it is warm and dry, and the air is filled with a heady smell of spices. Kiara darts across the room like a queen bee in her beehive, bathed in warm golden glow: sampling food here, adding a pinch of seasoning there, and not forgetting to flash a smile at me every now and again.

 

1. Well, hello! What's your name?

 

Kiara! Just that! I do have a string of fancy titles attached to it, but I keep forgetting them or mixing them up. Titles are such bothersome baggage anyway, don't you think? Oooh, and would you mind tasting this stew for me? It's a new recipe, and I need your opinion!

 

2. Mmm, that was delicious! And if you don't mind my asking: about how old are you?

 

Oooh my, I am always so concerned about keeping track of other people's birthdays that I keep forgetting mine. And I only learned when it is recently, too, after I met my birth-mother... Sorry, I am rambling, am I? Let's say I'm in my late twenties... That should be right. Don't - don't mind my hair (she ruffles her greying locks). It's a little souvenir from the Soul Cairn. Creepy place... Ahem. Where were we?

 

3. What food tempts you?

 

(Kiara freezes for a while and then slaps her thighs with a hearty guffaw)

 

You are kidding, right? I love food! It makes people happy and strong; it brings them together, starts conversations, and settles arguments... I could go on talking for ages and ages about food - but since you ask about being tempted, I'll say I am tempted by collecting new recipes! It's so hard to resist trying out some new concoction! The tradition goes back in my family for generations, all the way to Vestige Rhiawen!

 

4. Thank you! Now, next question: did you go to school?

 

I was home-schooled by my father... adoptive father, that is. Areldur. He used to be a Priest of Stendarr before becoming a wandering knight; and after he retired from adventuring, he returned to being a preacher. So that means lots and lots of books lying around the house, begging to be read. Ahh, he and mom would so often give up their last food and clothes for two things: caring for me and buying more books... I do try not to use smart words in conversations, though: they are cumbersome and make me look like a snob sometimes.

 

5. What animal are you or most related to you?

 

Ahhh, it's so hard to say... I love animals! Do birds count? If they do, I could be one of those adorable poofy little songbirds! Could I?

 

6. Of course! Well then... Are you straight, gay, or what?

 

(Kiara bites into her lips to suppress a snicker)

 

Oh goodness, I am most definitely 'what'! You see, I like giggling over good old Crassius Curio as much as the next girl, but for most of life, I have not really thought of actually doing... anything like that. I believe that every single person I meet, man or woman, is very, very beautiful in their own special way... But I just admire this beauty without letting it get all over me... Except while hugging. Hugging is great... Oooh, wait a second, I think I smell something burning!

 

(She whizzes off to rescue some unfortunate batch of pastry, and then comes back, slightly flushed and breathless, and continues).

 

Anyway... The first time I started having... naughty thoughts was after I met Ondolemar. I asked Dibellan priestesses what this meant, and they said I was... demisexual. Ondolemar would probably call it Lemmie-sexual, though, bless his precious puffed-up ego.

 

7. Have you hurt anyone in any way?

 

Oh gods, not intentionally! People take offence at the oddest things sometimes, and when I sense that, I try to make it right.

 

8.Have you killed anyone before? (Preferably human)

 

(Kiara sighs deeply)

 

Sadly, sometimes I was forced to, when there was no other way. The people of Skyrim, they see me as a protector of sorts, I suppose... And that protection often requires calming those poor wretches who wish to cause harm to others - and time and again, the misguided souls stubbornly refuse to calm down until I send them directly to Stendarr. Maybe they will listen to him...

 

9. What class are you? (Medium, low, high)

 

Why, all of them at once! I have tried out many lifestyles, and I love them all! Now I am supposed to have settled down, though - and my Lemmie barely allows me to go out and do some fun vagabonding. We do have to move around, sometimes, though, shifting between here and Solstheim.

 

10. Strengths? (Speed, strength, etc.)

 

Uhhh, gods, that's a hard one... I am not sure if I have any strengths... Well, I have picked up some warrior skills, obviously, but I have met quite a few better warriors than myself. Better mages, too. There is that Voice thing, but it's not really my personal strength, is is? I mean, anyone can be born with the Voice! It's random! Like, maybe there is a frog somewhere out there that has the Voice! Oh, wait... Did you just laugh?

 

(Her face lights up)

 

Why, I do believe this is my strength! Making people laugh! And the harder the challenge, the more exciting it is for me! Just look at Lemmie!

 

11. Ahh, that’s wonderful!  Any family?

Like I said, I was raised by two very, very loving elves, Areldur, and his wife Nimrodel. She is the former Champion of Cyrodiil, descended from one of those legendary Soulless Ones! They had a son of their own blood before taking me in, but he died before I could meet him, sadly. In a horrible fire set by Thalmor agents in his home in Valenwood. His own son survived, though - Malborn. Such a sweet young mer; I do hope he is doing all right out there in Morrowind, among prickly plants and flying jellyfish and grumpy Dunmer...

 

12. What're your hobbies?

 

Ahh, I could ramble about these until next sunrise! To save your time, I will only name a few. Cooking, for one; then, dungeon delving, reading, more cooking, exploring scenic routes in the wilds, throwing random parties, pranking overly serious people, babysitting... Oh, and did I mention cooking?

 

13. Got a crush?

 

Well, I love my Lemmie so much I could scream, that goes without saying... But I do get these fits of starry-eyeness when talking to people I greatly admire. Like my friends Mjoll and Erandur, for example. You could say I have a crush on them. Ah, whatever: I have a crush on everyone! Because everyone deserves lots of love and respect... And adoration even!

 

14. Thought about marriage or kids?

 

Lemmie and I were wed in a wonderful, thrilling secret ceremony, by Erandur - and we have a darling little boy, Riellyn! He is out right now, gather Alchemical ingredients with Daddy, but if you stay a while, I will let you squish his precious chubby cheeks! Mind Lemmie, though - he is very protective of Riellyn, and he might just have cast a Lightning Cloak spell on him before they left home.

 

15. Are you female, male, or both?

 

Female! This poll gets a little odd sometimes, doesn't it?

 

16. Wait till the next question! Are you human, werewolf, ghost, etc.?

 

Well, I am a human: Redguard, to be precise, but I do have some Dunmer blood mixed in, according to my birth-mother. My birth-father's ancestor was involved with an Ordinator, you see - or so he bragged while wooing my birth-mother. That sounds quite believable to me, though: it explains where I get my love for teasing unteasable sour-faced elves. Oh, and I also was a werewolf at some point!  I got cured, though - the bloodlust really, really creeped me out, and at times I felt like I was not really myself... Not to mention fur coming out of my ears. That, er, treatment was a messy business. Severed hag heads? Not the best thing to carry around in your backpack.

 

17. Any pet peeves?

 

(Kiara huffs while kneading some dough-like mass, deep in thought)

 

Well, I am rarely annoyed by anything: rather, some people say that I annoy them, by being so friendly and all. One thing that gets my blood boiling is when people are mean to each other. Especially because of silly things like appearance. Ahh, if only there was some kind of spell that cleared their minds of all hatred, once and for all!

 

18. Do you have any special abilities?

 

There's the Voice, like I said before... And I think that over the years, I have gotten pretty good at guessing what makes someone feel sad or troubled. Being raised by a priest helped a lot.

 

19. Any nicknames?

 

I could name a few - but my favourite is Moonsugar. This is what Lemmie calls me, the silly baby. He was trying so hard to push me away when we first met, but we kept being drawn to one another. Sort of like an addict and Skooma. I forbid him to use that nickname around Riellyn, of course - he is just a child, and it's too early for him to know about such horrid things as Skooma addiction.

 

20. Birth defects?

 

I think I was lucky enough not to have any - but I did get covered with a gazillion scars during my adventures. Lemmie does not think they are defects, bless him - he actually likes kissing them.

 

(She laughs)

 

And oh gosh, it takes a long, looong while...

 

21. Do you have a pet, sidekick, partner of any kind?

 

I suppose Barbas counts as a pet of sorts. You know, the talking, wisecracking hound of Clavicus Vile? We had a lot of exciting adventures together, before he was finally reconciled with his master. And I love taking travel companions with me! Cleaving through hordes of undead in some dungeon is such a wonderful way to forge a friendship! One of my best-friends-forever is Serana, that beautiful, if a little spoilt, Volkihar princess! And I mean, best-friends-forever, because I am the Dragonborn and she is a vampire!

 

22. Do you have a picture of yourself? Outside of the cover shot.

 

Sure, there you go! Dangit, why do the best pictures of me show me when I'm sad, huh?

Alduin Mahlaan by NorroenDyrd

 

23. Someone stole your sweetroll?

 

(Kiara shrugs nonchalantly and sweeps across her kitchen to do some more work)

 

Let the poor hungry little thing have it! I will bake another one! Maybe I will even ask my friends from the Mage College to cast a tracking spell so I can find that person and make sure they are never forced by hunger into thievery again!

 

24. Who/What faction is your arch-nemesis?

 

(Kiara completely abandons her cooking and looks at me with widened, wistful eyes, which steadily grow more teary while she speaks)

 

My family has always been closely tied to the Thalmor, in good and bad ways. Rhiawen, my adoptive mom's ancestor, was one of the famous Eyes of Queen Ayrenn, and she thought that serving the Dominion was a noble cause... But now, it is all so very, very different; so many Altmer have let darkness into their hearts, letting it poison their true selves, letting it hide their beauty like a dark cloud... I try as hard as I can to dispel that cloud. In the case of Lemmie, I succeeded - but some mer are just too far-gone.

 

But it is not only the case with the Thalmor: some people and factions have also fallen into darkness. More often than not, they opened the door to shadows when they gave in to greed. Like poor, poor Maven Black-Briar; she has no love in her life. I have struggled so much to help her - but she just responds with hatred.

 

25. Where did you grow up?

 

(Kiara replies mechanically, still a little agitated from her last response)

 

Port Hunding, Stros M’Kai.

 

26. Any tragedies that you would be willing to share?

 

(Kiara tries to smile through a loud sniffle)

 

Well, I am in a sobby mood now anyway, so... Yes, I have lost some friends, very good ones, too, like Kodlak White-Mane or Skjor or Savos Aren. And there was a time in my life when I thought Lemmie was gone, too. But - but even when the pain isn't personal, I still think it is a tragedy when a living being is senselessly destroyed. It is a tragedy when forests are ravaged by wildfire; when men hunt for sport rather than survival; when a person drowns in a creek because the village crafstman was too lazy to fix the bridge; and when family members turn against each other in a destructive civil war...

 

Ah, gods!

 

(She stomps her foot impatiently)

 

All this teary talk has made me crave for some healing hugs! Come here - right now!

 

Annnd… extra question:

What is your life’s greatest dream?

(Kiara has already answered that: her dream is to somehow, magically banish all hatred from the world)

I tag:

:iconskyflower51:

:iconblueoakrogue:

:iconwynnifredd:

:iconpunkranger:

(I will tag more peeps in different journals!)


Want to interview someone? Here are the rules:

Rules:
A) Choose an OC.
B) Answer the questions as your OC.
C) Add an extra question and answer.
D) Tag four people please. (I doing more).

© 2015 - 2024 NorroenDyrd
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PunkRanger's avatar
Woo! Thanks for tagging me, this looks really fun! Though I'm not sure what character I should choose... Your Kiara is so wonderfully nice and positive, one cannot help but like her!