Beautiful People: Gael and Morella Whalen {April 2015}

Greetings, fellow blog people! I wanted to post this yesterday - it was National Siblings Day, after all - but I was so busy I didn't have time. To be honest, I was super excited when I found out that this month's Beautiful People linkup (hosted by the lovely Sky @ Further Up & Further In and the awesome Cait @ Paper Fury) would be about siblings. I adore my brother and sisters, so it's always fun to write about fictional siblings. (Come to think of it, I literally can't name a single novel I've written where a character didn't have siblings. o_O)

I thought about using Elroy and Donovan Plemmons this month, but I had already talked about them in a recent post, so I decided against it. Instead, I suppose we'll talk about Gael and Morella Whalen, from that novel I'm always working on. >.> Their whole plot is really spoiler-y (Gael is really spoiler-y), but I love them and, besides, Elroy and Donovan hog the spotlight all the time. I wanted to find an image for Gael and Morella, but they are no doubt the hardest characters to find faces for. No one is as cute as Morella or as angry as Gael (except for Kim Myungsoo, but his eyes are brown, not blue <3). Ah, what the heck? There has to be a picture of Myungsoo and a little girl somewhere . . .

"Where did Mommy and Daddy go?"

     For a long moment, Gael stared at her in silence. The question - so direct, yet filled with so much confusion - had caught him off guard. In the months that had passed since their parents left, Gael had received this question countless times. He knew Morella deserved an answer, he knew she deserved the truth, but he knew better than anyone that the truth, once discovered, wasn't at all freeing, but instead a prison that kept one tied to the bitter reality brought out by secrets. He couldn't - no, wouldn't - do that to Morella. He refused.
     "I've told you before," he explained, his voice soft so he wouldn't upset her. "They're away, taking care of people."
     "What kind of people?"
     "Family."
     Morella paused, pondering this. "But . . . We're family, too. Why don't they take care of us?"
     It was an innocent question, asked by an innocent girl. It was a question worthy of a response, but, for this, Gael had no answer. He sighed, leaning forward to plant a kiss on the top of her head. "I don't know, Morella." He pulled the blankets up to her chin and offered the smallest of smiles. "Just get some sleep. Sweet dreams." He stood, starting toward the doorway after blowing out the candle next to her bed.
     "Bruhder?"
     He stopped at the doorway, forcing his gaze to meet hers. "What is it?"
     She blinked at him, blue eyes wide. "Mommy and Daddy were like the dragon, right?"
     "What dragon?"
     "From your story. They're not here." Her smile returned and she beamed at him. "But that's okay, Bruhder! We still have each other."
     Another sharp pain stabbed through his heart, but he forced it away. "Oh, really? And who were we, in the story?"
     "I was the princess!" She grinned and he noticed the gap between her two front teeth. "And you were my smile! We made other people happy and, even when things were tough, you never left me like the dragon did! Right?"
     This hit him like yet another punch in the gut and he hoped she couldn't see the tears that sprang into his eyes. He tried to blink them away, but one escaped and rolled down his cheek just to spite him, to remind him that he should have been wiser, he should have been a better brother to Morella than he was. "Right," he spoke, but his voice caught and his next words came out in only a whisper, "I'm sorry."
     If she heard him, or even noticed anything was wrong, she didn't let on. Instead, she offered him a wide grin. "Good night, Bruhder! I love you!"
     Wiping another stray tear away, he smiled softly at her. "I love you more."

~ * ~ * ~

1. What is the first memory they have of each other?

Gael's first memory of Morella was just after she'd been born. He was only twelve at the time, terrified of holding children, but when his mother finally convinced him to take her, it was a perfect fit. He fell in love with her immediately, already giving in to her adorable charms.

Morella's first memory of Gael, on the other hand, was several years later, when she was three and he was fifteen. Their parents were out of town one night and she woke up in the midst of a thunderstorm. She was terrified and raced into Gael's room. He let her climb onto his bed and he sang soft lullabies until her tears subsided and she fell asleep.

2. Describe their relationship in 3 words?

Close, protective, complicated.


3. What kind of things do they like to do together?

In spite of their age difference and responsibilities, they try to spend a great deal of time together. Most often, Morella convinces Gael to play dolls with her on a pretty regular basis. She enjoys this, because Gael made the dolls for her when they couldn't afford to purchase any. She also enjoys doing his hair (and her own).

Aside from that, Gael likes taking her to visit the dragons. As a dragon caretaker, he finds it important that he teaches Morella some of what he knows. They both enjoy caring for the dragons and going on adventures together (which really means that Morella pretends they're in the sky while Gael works).

4. What was their biggest fight?

Their biggest fight was shortly after their parents left. Morella missed them terribly and felt ignored by her older brother, who was stressed and working day and night to provide for himself and Morella. There was a lot of screaming involved in their fight, Morella was crying, and the conversation ended with Gael telling her that their parents didn't love them. Morella then called Gael a liar and said she hated him before running to her room. It was then when he decided not to tell her the truth about what had happened with their parents, for he never again wanted to hurt her the way he had that night.

5. How far would they go to save each other?

Throughout the entire novel, Gael shows his willingness to sacrifice many things - including his life - to save his sister. Morella is what drives him, what keeps him working so hard to make a better life for them. She is most important to him and he would go to any length to keep her safe.

Morella, only five years old in the story, doesn't know much about sacrifice at all. She loves her brother more than anyone, and she would stand up for him in a heartbeat, but she is still only a child, afraid of danger and trouble. She would do many things to save Gael, but she wouldn't go as far as he would for her.

6. What are their pet peeves about each other?

Most often, Gael finds himself annoyed by the fact that Morella refuses to listen to him. She has a tendency to wander off without telling him, or to open the door for strangers. Perhaps it is because adventure runs in their blood, but Morella is intent on inserting herself into dangerous situations and going on perilous adventures. This annoys and worries Gael to no end. Aside from that, he utterly despises being told he is just like their parents.


Morella finds herself most annoyed by Gael's busy schedule. She longs to spend every waking moment with her brother, but that isn't at all possible with his work schedule. And, on the rare occasions when he does have a moment to spare, he's too tired to spend hours upon hours playing dolls with her. Even worse, she cannot stand how bossy he is. She's a big girl now - she can open doors and wander off whenever she wants to.

7. What are their favorite things about each other?

Gael knows there would be a neverending list of things he loves about Morella, but, if he had to pick only a few, he would say, first, he adores her forgiving heart. Being one to hold grudges, Gael finds it both beautiful and refreshing to watch Morella forgive so effortlessly. He admires her heart and love for other people. Second would be tenacity. No matter what she is attempting, Morella refuses to quit until she has accomplished something.


Morella's favorite things about Gael are both his bravery and his love for her. She admires his strength in the midst of tough situations. She hopes she will grow up and become as brave and strong as he is. She also loves his love for her and his want to help those in need.

8. What traits do they share? Mannerisms, clothing, quirks, looks, etc?

They both have dark brown, almost black hair, and midnight blue eyes, for starters. Aside from physical appearances, however, they share the same stubborn nature. Once their minds have been made up, that's it - there will be no convincing them otherwise. And, although Gael would argue, they both have big hearts. A lot of their mannerisms are similar as well, but mainly because Morella enjoys mimicking her brother.

9. Who has the strongest personality?

That's a tough one - both Whalens can be quite the handful when they want to be. However, Morella's personality is probably the strongest. Although Gael's anger is what drives his personality, Morella is much more outspoken and energetic, in contrast to her cold and anti-social brother. During a tantrum, she can become your worst nightmare and, when in a good mood, she is the kindest, most outgoing person around. She's always intent on getting what she wants, though, and she's not afraid to let anyone know it.

10. How does their relationship change throughout your story?

When the novel begins, the siblings are close and Gael's love for his sister is evident in everything he does. As the novel progresses, it becomes clear that Gael is literally willing to go to any length to protect his sister. It isn't until the end, however, that Morella makes her love for her brother known as well and it is then when Gael realizes just how close they are. Even through all of the crap I put them through in that book, their relationship was much stronger in the end than it was in the beginning, as Morella realized the extent of Gael's love for her and vice versa.

So, that's it! Beautiful People is just so much fun! ^___^ I learn so much about my charries this way. Let me know what you think! :D

What about you guys? Do you have any siblings in real life? What about in your books? Do you prefer writing about only children or big families? Let me know! I'd love to hear about them! ^_^