Haven Agnelli is a character I’ve been working on for a new five book series I’ve started working on. I found this really helpful for learning about her. And Bri is technically me with a name change. Hope you enjoy! 🙂
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I sigh, crumple up another sheet of paper, and toss it on the ever growing stack. I grab another sheet, and a sting of pain grabs my finger. Paper cut. I hear a knock at my door. “Yes? Come in.”
My secretary pokes his head into my office. “Haven Agnelli is here, Bri.”
I smile. Finally. “Let her in, Benedict.” He nods and steps out. I prepare a sheet of paper and a pencil and put a small bandage on my finger. Maybe this interview will be helpful. I need to get the juices flowing.
A fairly tall teenage girl steps hesitantly into my office. Her smooth brown hair falls below her shoulders; it’s loose, no ponytail or anything. She has short bangs, just on the right, and her hair is parted to the right. She looks sweet and shy with her golden-brown eyes and soft face. Something about her face makes her look young, around fourteen, rather than her actual age of seventeen. She looks nervous, so I offer her an encouraging smile and motion her to the chair in front of my desk before scribbling down notes on her appearance.
I finish the notes with a flourish and turn to her. “I’m glad you could make it,” I tell her. “I think this interview will help me out a lot.”
She nods a little nervously. “No problem. I love helping others out.” Her voice is soft and somewhat musical.
I smile. “So I’ve heard,” I say, jotting down another note on my paper. I look up. “Well, let’s get started. Can you tell me about your family?”
Her face reddens slightly. “Not very much to tell, I’m afraid,” she says quietly. “My dad left when I was five, and my mom died when I was eight. I never had any siblings,” she adds. I nod as I start on another sheet of paper. “My aunt and uncle took care of me while their son was at boarding school, but after he came back, I took the back seat. I felt lonely, rejected, and alone. I was also often bored, so I started working on developing my Gift. When I turned thirteen, I left them to get my own job and so I could work on my Gift more. I still keep in touch with them, though.”
“What did you do after you left?” I ask, writing furiously.
Haven smiles. “I found a job at a bakery in a small town. The owner let me have a room at his house to live in, staying with him and his wife, and I was allowed to keep any leftover baked goods that didn’t sell. I gave those to the poor people that I served with my Gift. The poor people were my closest friends.”
“And what is your Gift?” I ask as I finish writing down her back story.
“I have the Gift of healing,” she replies. “I can’t bring people back from the dead, but I can heal injuries, wounds, sickness – even little things like headaches or nausea.”
“Remind me to call you next time I stub my toe.” I grin. She laughs, a soft, sweet sound, and I make a note of that before checking my question list. “All right, now we’re going to get to some of the harder questions. How would you honestly describe your personality?”
Haven frowns, thinking. “Well, I would say I’m definitely an introvert. I don’t do much voluntary socializing, and I don’t talk very much. I’m the kind of person who finds a quiet spot in a social setting to watch all the action from. So, basically, I’m shy and quiet, although friendly, kind people who take the time to talk to me can pull me out of my shell. But I must admit that I’m still quiet after that; it just becomes more of a, uh, thoughtful quiet, rather than a shy quiet, I guess.” Her brow wrinkles as she thinks. “Most people treat me like I’m fragile, and they worry about me, but I’m really fairly strong, emotionally and mentally, at least.”
“Are you a hard worker?” I ask.
She nods. “If someone sets me at a task, or if I see something that needs to be done, I’ll work hard at it. I’m not much of a leader, so I’d rather be following someone else’s instructions about what to do than telling others what to do.”
I smile. “I understand. Okay, now, here’s a pretty hard one. What are some of your faults, or bad habits?”
Haven makes a face. “Well, how many faults do you want? For one thing, I struggle with seeing myself as I really am. I’m getting better at it, but I still have trouble with focusing on my good characteristics instead of my bad ones. Sometimes, well, a lot of the time, I struggle with speaking up and sharing my thoughts or opinions with others. I feel unwanted and useless sometimes. And I have a fear of people disliking me or making fun of me. I’ve been working on taking my focus off of what others think of me, but it’s hard. Most of my faults are insecurities.”
I nod. “I think we all struggle with that. Anything else?”
“I’m sure there’s plenty more, but I can’t think of any right now,” Haven says.
I smile and add a note on my sheet. Humble. “Okay, what are some of your strengths and good points?”
She thinks for a minute. “Well,” she begins slowly, “I’ve learned a lot about human nature and motives and things like that. There’s not really that many,” she admits.
I laugh. “It’s okay, tell me all.” I underline the word humble.
Haven sighs. “Well, people sometimes say I’m generous and kind and compassionate. I have a heart for serving others, and I always try to be loyal and not hurt anyone’s feelings.”
I check the next question on my list. “Okay, last one. What is your Name, the one the King assigned to you?”
She smiles. “The Healer.”
I nod and write it down. “Thank you so much for the interview, Haven. It’s been very helpful, and it was so nice to get to know you.”
Haven smiles her shy smile. “You’re welcome. I’m so glad I could help you.” She reaches over and touches the bandage on my finger where I got the paper cut earlier, and then she leaves. I pull off the bandage and smile at my healed finger.
Proverbs 31 Teen 