The idea of this game is to answer, In Character, the question posed by the last person.

Me'll start:

What was the most crucial event in your life?

Hmm... I guess that would have to be my being brought to an orphanage? I'm not sure. There are a few crucial events in my life, but none that I would really like to talk about right now, heh.

How about you? What do you think was the most crucial event in your life?

Going to Eton or passing the bar. Possibly being titled Baron John Doyle, Lord of Wothersham.

What moment did you feel most victorious during?

Hard one... Perhaps on my wedding day.

How about you?

The day that I finally understood Reimann's zeta function. Ever since then, my knowledge of mathematics has grown exponentially; it was the key to my future studies.

Although the day that I first went to the University of Göttingen was quite a successful moment for me. I would not have been able to study in such depth without the assitance of the library there.

What about you?

O.o Victorious? That means...? Oh, yeah, like you accomplished something big...? Well, ummm...

Mmm....

...

>.<

... ... ...

v.v

M-maybe when I... Err... No. When I... - Dammit, Doyle!

Maybe when I chased away this person who was menacing a girl I know? I don't know.

What do you think of when you see stars?

I think of the gleam in a dead man's eye just before I sew it shut.

What do you think of when you see stars?

When I see the stars, I see many things. I see both success, and failure. To wish upon the stars may bring success, but if you reach to touch the stars, one often misses.

What was the happiest moment in your life?

Oh, there are many! Maybe when I first dared jump from the 14 metre tall cliff outside my town back home. I was so proud!! Or maybe when my first novel got published. Or when... I have no idea!

What kind of weather are you most fond of?

The clear, warm weather in late spring, just before the heat of summer sets in.

Who do you trust?

Myself. Trust is a dangerous thing t'give... hard to earn, and hard to get back if lost. Easier just t'go it alone.

What do you believe in?

(Tch, why not ask what the meaning of life is or some fin. Huge but interesting question.)

I believe that happiness is not sinful and the pursuit of it admirable. I believe in Lindebo and the success of England. I believe that a person's past can haunt their future. I believe in the art of believing.

What is your biggest fear?

I don't have fears, what's yours?

Getting caught at what I do. Any of the things I do. If anyone saw through my magic tricks, I'd be quite ruined; they're valueless once they're no longer secret. And my biggest trick of all...well, it's actually a punishable offense. I could be arrested and imprisoned if anyone caught me at it.

It's a good question so I'll send it around again.

What's your biggest fear?

I don't really fear anything, I suppose. I've not had the occassion to. I should be disappointed if I don't make some kind of worthwhile contribution to mathematics, though, but I'm not afraid of not doing that, per se. I suppose I should be afraid to die? The idea finds little merit with me.

And what of your fears? What is it that sets you to running?

Not that it's any of your business but I am terrified of anything happening to Marie. I would do anything to prevent harm from coming to her. I'm also a little wary of the coppers finding out about the bodies I've taken...

What about you, what do you fear?

Scandal. Poverty. Appearing foolish. Losing.

What do you struggle with?

My daughter. Raising her to be a proper young lady is proving to be most difficult. She is forever learning words that she should not, and is always arguing in a most unladylike fashion. I am quite pleased at her keen intellect though.

What do you like about your job?

I love fooling people on such a grand scale. I think if I weren't a magician, I might be a criminal of some kind.

How do you spend your day? Do you have a "routine"?

Yes, I do. I spend my days dressing bodies for their funerals. I have a routine which differs slightly depending on the damage to the body, either from age or injury. But they all get washed, and I always treat them to control the decaying, and always I must remove some blood and inject dyes. Usually most people have to be made up as well, and I sew the eyes shut.

What do you love about your job?

Job? What job?

Same question. What do you love yada yada.

About my job? I love fooling people, especially on such a large scale. An entire auditorium, watching, waiting... and then poof! Fooled. To get away with something usually very simple in plain sight is something I absolutely adore. I also love the opportunity to work with my sister. I think I should be part of a team with her in a criminal field if we were not magicians.

Who do you love (it need not be romantic love), if anyone? If you don't love anyone, why not?

I care about my parents, but we don't see each other often. Beyond them...no one, really. I do my duty socially, but I would not say that I have any close friends.

Who do you care about?

My daughter. I have a few friends, too, but none that mean even a tenth of what my daughter means to me.

Who do you love?

I love my sister. I have friends as well, but I don't trust any of them very far, so I guess I really don't care about them that much.

Who do you care about and why?

I care about most people - or I try to, anyway. And I automatically care about anyone with whom I get better acquainted. Why? Because I believe that it is important for us to care about one another. I think that if we all cared more about other people, the world would be a better place for it.

I daresay I find there to be a lot of cynical views on this point here.

Oh and another reason for caring is simply that I find people interesting.

Do you find people interesting?

I find people... Scary. Intimidating. Strange. Fascinating...

Yes, I would say I find them interesting. Yes, I do.

Do you find people interesting?

No. I find most people excruciatingly boring.

What about you? Are they interesting to you?

I find that observing people is most enjoyable. There is a lot one can learn by quieting your thoughts and putting yourself in other's shoes as it were. Of course, there are people that I would not waste my time on--there is nothing much to be seen because there is nothing much to them at all. Usually people do not surprise me much, though I am always looking for a challenge.

Do you like the arts? What medium?

I like most of the arts, in an amateurish way. I cannot critique art based on the talent or skill of the artist as a painter, because I only have two gradations of art; something is art, or it is not. To be art, it must be lovely to my eye in some fashion--not necessarily in the traditiona manner of lovely either. If it is not, then it is not art. The traditional mediums of art that I am particularly fond of are painting, sculpture, dance, music, drama, and particularly literature. I also appreciate the art of a craftsman about his trade; these machine-made acessories we have these days are unfeeling productions of a factory behemoth, they have no art to them. A good weaver can produce better cloth than a machine ever could.

What do you think of the theatre?

Waste of time. Bunch of namby-pamby fellows dancing about on stage pretending to be something they aren't, someone that doesn't exist. Couldn't get a real job, says I.

Are you strong, either in character or physically? What makes you strong or weak?

I think I'm stronger both mentally and physically than most women; I'm very sorry to say it, but a goodly proportion of women are fainting ninnies. Of course, that is probably because they are stuffed into armored underclothing meant for women a good deal smaller than themselves. But then you have to take into account the fact that they do have other options, such as the liberty bodice that I myself wear. That's where the "ninny" applies.

Now I don't think I'm stronger physically than the average man, probably not even as strong. But I am a good deal more flexible and deft; I have to be in order to do what I do.

I believe that I do have strength of character. I am not a fool, any more than can humanly be avoided, and I steer my own course rather than passively allowing my peers or society as a whole to dictate my actions. And at the same time, I don't buck conventions unnecessarily or rebel against every piece of advice directed my way. I simply quietly go my own way.

What is your life's path - at least up until now? Why have you chosen it? What do you foresee for yourself?

My life's path so far has been the path of knowledge and education. I am quite highly educated, although this has had the effect of also making me quite highly insolvent, until recently. I chose it because mathematics is my passion, and I love to understand the mechanics of the world in which we live. I forsee that I shall remain poor until I can secure a position where my education is valued, which is most certainly not the case just now.

Do you like people in general, or at least find them interesting?

Miss Fjelde already posed that question, but I'm happy you did too, because it's a very interesting one. Hehe. Hehehe. Hm.

Do I like people or find them interesting...

Depends which people. Some people are, as the Countess puts it "excrutiatingly boring" while others are, as Nora puts it "fascinating." Some people are wonderful personalities with whom I love spending my time, while others are.. monsters. I guess I will have to say yes, though, if it's a yes-or-no question. In general, I would say that... humanity is interesting, if not exactly likable.. yes.

Do you enjoy sweets?

I don't really know. I can't remember having any. I'm sure I have, though, and I'm sure I did enjoy them. It's not always easy to remember everything that happened when you weren't... entirely sober.

Do you enjoy sweets?

I am indifferent to them. I will confess a partiality for liquorice-mints, though. Many people do not like them, finding them too foreign for their tastes, but I enjoy the uniqueness of their flavour.

Do you enjoy foreign things at all?

Yes. I enjoy several types of wine, especially Italian. I enjoy the fashions from France and my husband enjoys Scottish malt whiskey. My ancestors were Greek and Irish, and I suppose you could say I enjoy my foreign legacy. I also enjoy Indian silk, Belgian chocolate, several kinds of imported tea, wood, textile...

A person claiming not to enjoy foreign things at all would have to be an incredibly stupid one.

Are you proud of your heritage?

Yes, of course I am! Why, who wouldn't be, with my heritage? I am more than proud to state my ancestors, not ancient, but as close as my grandfather, were a part of the glorious Old South. Many from my family fought for Southern Rights and died under the flag of the Confederacy. I surely inherited that sense of patriotism from them. If you don't believe me-well, try and offend the South or our rights with a mere word or a flicker in your eyes. You'll see my words are not exaggerated then.

Whose side would've you taken in the American Civil War?

If I was an American, and a man, and with any inclination to be a soldier (I find I don't particularly enjoy being shot at) I would have chosen to stand with the Union. The British Empire has been free of slavery since 1833. And we didn't have to have a war over it.

Are you superstitious? What do you think of the paranormal?

BOO!

Pffft. Rubbish.

What about you?