Firstly, I want to say something before the start of the Q&A. I want to thank everyone who has supported me on this journey. I also want to thank my readers who have put up with all the emergency hiatus I have had lately. You being understanding has made it easier for me to keep this series going, even with all the health issues that threaten to hold me back.
I want you all to know how much I appreciate every single one of you. On my bad days, I look at the comments you post and feel like I can keep going. It makes my day. To talk to you about my characters who I treasure is a great honor. I want to keep sharing more and more stories with you. And I hope you will keep walking down this path with me hand in hand.
May you enjoy this story and everything it brings to you.
Question 1: What is the difference between a dark elf and a drow?
Traditionally in fantasy media, Drow are just Dark Elves. In my world-building, though, the elves are less concerned with the physical appearance of an elf and more about their loyalties. So Drow evolved from meaning just “Dark Elf'' to someone whose loyalties they questioned. These would be in different ways the most common were elves fornicating or aligning themselves with non-elves. In this world, Drow is considered a way to call someone a traitor to Elven's kind. They often targeted the elves living in the Lutus Empire by branding them as traitors through the use of Drow.
While not in widespread use during Shafir’s time, it’s still used by the older generation. It is very serious to call someone a drow, especially someone in service to an empire as a civil servant or knight. I will explore the drow more in a later arc/extra story as I will be able to deep dive into a more political side of romance between elves.
Question 2: When will Shafir start to realize that Eliqinor has it bad for him?
That’s a hard question to answer as it might spoil some of the ending. What I can tell you is after Shafir realizes Eliqinor likes him, a lot of things make sense. He’s able to put two and two together and it hits him like a train for how much and for how long Eliqinor has liked him. It’s to the point that it has him extremely emotional.
Question 3: Do they mark, brand, or give a gift to their significant others to indicate they are in a relationship?
Most elves don’t. It’s more of a mutual agreement thing. If they want to be together, they just agree on it and most people accept it. The way they indicate they are in a relationship is by flaunting their significant other. That is going out often with them or by showing lots of public displays of affection. Marriage isn’t a very Elven thing, it’s more of a human thing. Elves see marriage as a chain, as it's hard to break it off if something were to happen. The closest thing to a marriage ceremony they have is inviting their friends to a party and announcing they are together. Lutus Elves, on the other hand, has a unique form of relationship indication and that will be delved into during the extra arc.
Question 4: Can you tell us more about Ghaisu or give a quick summary of what we know about him so far?
As of right now, what we know about Ghaisu is that he is the dark elf who cursed Shafir. The curse mark he has given Shafir is a big mental toll on our Main Character. Shafir refers to him as a drow here and there because he considers him someone not to be trusted. Again, Drow tends to mean traitor. While he doesn’t know who Ghaisu is there is something about the villain that draws him to that conclusion.
I also implied that Ghaisu is a necromancer and the cause of the orc attacks. He wants Shafir to be his puppet, which may confuse you about his motivations. Ghaisu intends to kill the current Empress and cut off her bloodline due to his past. It is a motivation for revenge. Ghaisu is meant to be more than just the spooky villain of the story. He is broken just like Shafir but differently and I hope I’ll be able to express that near the end of the novel.
Question 5: If they were animals, what would they be?
Based on the April Fool's’ day chapter, Shafir is a Golden Retriever and Shafir is a gray cat. Though if I had to pick something else… I would say Shafir is a honey badger. Eliqinor strikes me as some kind of majestic beast, like a lion or tiger.
Question 6: How do you choose your names?
I won’t lie. The way I choose names is super boring. I just go onto a fantasy name generator and click on elf names and randomize it until I find a name I like. Then I use "The Vikings of Bjornstad” in an Old Norse to English dictionary and get inspired by what their names would mean in an elven language.
Question 7: Will there be any more new characters?
The extras will dive into more about characters we have already met and characters we haven’t. It’s meant to give those who haven’t gotten enough screen time will end up with at least some screen time outside of Shafir and Eliqinor. These include extras for Katar, Valneiros, Ghaisu, Aila, and Orpha. It might be a longer time before I get to them, but I want to flesh them out a bit. There is also Lusha, but she’s for a later conversation.
Question 8: If Shafir ever realizes why Eli likes him could they, would they adopt little elf children?
The simple answer here is yes. A more complicated answer is there is no need for them to adopt. While people can adopt Elven children, Shafir and Eliqinor do not follow this practice. We will discuss it much later in an extra about how elves of the same sex can reproduce.
Question 9: Has Shafir had daydreams or thoughts about romance?
Shafir has had thoughts about romance. Though he’s never had thoughts about who the romance would be with. I think if Shafir had to give it any thought, he’d want someone who is trustworthy and could handle his temper. He would also like someone who gives him lots of attention, even when he says he doesn’t want it.
Question 10: Do Elves have puberty like humans do?
Elves go through puberty, some more so than others. In Shafir’s case, he was just focused on more important matters as the time he was going through puberty was around the same time his father died and he joined the House of Honors. Shafir was more focused on becoming a knight and catching up with his peers than worrying about sexual and/or romantic relationships. Usually, elves manifest their magic around the time of puberty. If it has not manifested by then, then they have what they consider a secondary puberty where they manifest their magic.
Question 11: Has anyone else been attracted to Shafir that he’s noticed?
There have been! Though they don’t have long-lasting attraction, Shafir is quick to turn people away. Mostly by his bad habit of opening his mouth. He tends to be very rude to others he’s not close to. The few times that he’s noticed people liked him, they were very forward with him.
Question 12: What are their personality types?
These questions are always hard because I know there is no right or wrong answer. Shafir would probably be ISTP and Eliqinor would probably be ENFJ. I hope I could label them well for you guys!
Question 13: If they lived in our world, what would their jobs be?
If Shafir and Eliqinor lived in our modern world… Hm. I feel like if Shafir’s dad hadn’t died he would take after him. So whatever his dad was would be what he would do whether that be running a family business or working in the same company that his dad does. Eliqinor would be a bit on the richer side, so he would probably own a big company and run a small niche business on the side, preferably something next to Shafir’s job.
