My story is set in a universe that is our world but with surviving elements of Greek myths (I am a big fan of Rick Riordan, by the way!). My MC is about to find out that she will become one of the Fates on her sixteenth birthday. In the story's universe, the Fates and the Furies are two opposing forces which provide balance to the world-- Fates are born into their roles and Furies choose to be what they are-- my MC's mom was also a Fate. So far two characters, one who is a Fate and one who's a Fury have approached my MC and made cryptic "I know what you are" comments.
Of course, by doing that I've written myself into a corner because I haven't figured out HOW those two recognize her as one of the Fates. I don't want to do a "special eye color" thing, maybe a birthmark that all the Fates have but which wouldn't be obviously strange to the untrained eye? Anyone have any creative suggestions?
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~tangled_threads~
63,236 / 50,000
Nov 7, 2009 - 23 26
Perhaps by virtue of being a Fate, she's a talented seamstress. Maybe she sewed (or even just patched up) something she wears, and it's obvious to the others. When she does something with thread - any thread - it takes on a rather magical quality, which wouldn't be readily apparent to a normal human (except that it's well-sewn), but another one of her kind would recognize it, and her, instantly.
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1,272 / 50,000
Nov 8, 2009 - 00 14
She's very good at intuiting what happened in the past, or what's happening right now, or what will happen in the future (but not all three). Probably past or present, since she's young and ought to be currently inhabiting the "maiden" version of Fate.
She has a fixation on the number three (if there are 3 Fates in your world), and likes everything to be in threes.
She loves to read or listen to prophecies and tales of fates, even if she doesn't believe them all.
She can instinctively tell the difference between a true prophet / fortuneteller / soothsayer and a false one.
She can tweak probability in her favor - ie, going shopping and immediately finding what she wants, lucky at games of chance, the weather is sunny when she wants it to be, money turns up on roads where she walks, near-accidents are averted, she never gets sick when illness is going around, etc.
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50,014 / 50,000
Nov 8, 2009 - 00 48
Heyy, another person writing about Greek mythos! *high fives*
Fates have the ability to see the thread that connects people. Think the red-ribbon thread in Japanese myths. They can also see how long a person will live.
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50,027 / 50,000
Nov 8, 2009 - 06 17
well, hm. I'm really mean to my characters; if she were mine I'd have this be a cataclysmic event for her. I mean, what sixteen-year-old would be thrilled to learn that instead of going to the prom and please God getting a boyfriend, she's going to be spinning freaking wool?
Have her blurt out that someone she loves is going to die, and then it happens, and she is shunned. Or make it worse. What's the WORST thing that could happen? Make it so!
----------30,000 / 50,000
Nov 8, 2009 - 10 10
Thanks for the wonderful suggestions everyone! Prismac, I love your idea about things Leah creates with thread taking on a "magical" quality because she's a Fate -- I've already established that she's a Goodwill shopper, so it's feasible that she would wear altered clothing; I think that's how I'll have Gavin (the Fury that recognizes her in the first chapter) recognize her as a Fate.
Raksab,
I hadn't gotten into the specifics of what parts of fate (past, present, future) she can see yet, so your suggestion that she can't see all three is intriguing! I also LOVE the idea that she can manipulate probability-- that's going to be FUN as a writer! The nature of the Fates means that my story is going to get pretty dark, so I need as much mirth as possible to balance it out. One idea I've already had is that as Leah's birthday approaches, she's going to start feeling an urge to intervene in the lives of strangers to "twist fate" in certain ways.
Takato Metallium, I've already planned on having the "invisible red string" play an important role in the plot. Also, Jacob's Ladder and knitting! Pretty much any string-related thing I can think of is coming into play.
Deborah, thanks for reminding me how important it is to imagine the worst thing that can happen to my MC and then have it happen! My story doesn't have much conflict so far.
Thanks again, so much, and I'm sure I'll be coming back to the Fantasy board for more help... the boards are the most positive aspect of NaNo so far for me!
----------~tangled_threads~
77,035 / 50,000
Nov 8, 2009 - 11 15
Since the Fates always dealt in thread, you could have your character literally spin thread from her body (probably her fingers). She could throw it, weave it between her fingers like cat's cradle and "read" the futures and fortunes of others or spin it into ropes, ladders or bridges in order to enable her to travel. In short, my idea of a Fate would be a woman with the abilities of a spider (NOT Spiderwoman!).
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