Post by The Exodus on Oct 21, 2012 21:47:02 GMT -6
Character: Charisma “Izzy” Richmond
Age: 25
Gender: Female
Occupation: Prostitute, (ex) musician
AI: Amy Winehouse
Personality: When Izzy was a child, people warned her parents that she would one day be a handful. But it never occurred to Izzy that she was a problem child. By the time it occurred to either of her parents, there wasn’t much to be done. She was always a promising musician, but poor choices and bad breaks have kept Izzy from advancing. Ironically, one word can be used to describe her by both her johns and her former audiences: talented. Izzy has potential and she’s good at what she does. She’s incredibly spirited and it was no mistake that her parents named her “Charisma”. However, not all adjectives people use to describe Izzy are so nice. Many find her crass, rude, and deviant. The way she tells it, she’s just another working girl, trying to get by. Izzy knows she is not living the life she wishes she had. She’s hungry, but for what, she doesn’t know.
History: When Stella and Joshua Richmond found out they were pregnant, the two Leeds natives knew their baby would be something special. Due to an old hockey injury, Joshua’s sperm count was low, and the couple knew this would be their only chance to have a biological baby. And when their little girl was born, the Richmonds would have sworn her laugh was music of the gods. And so from day one, Charisma Richmond, was treated like their demi-goddess. The Richmonds made for indulgent parents, but to say they gave Charisma everything she wanted isn’t quite fitting. Joshua worked as an assistant principal at the local grammar school and Stella worked as a beauty sales representative. The Richmonds weren’t exactly rolling in the dough. But Charisma never knew hunger or want as a child. And when she proved musically gifted, her parents saved and saved so she could go to singing and piano lessons. She didn’t know about the extra commissions her mother had to make or the after-hours job as a janitor her father took to make the music lessons happen. After all, what kind of parents tell their seven year old such grown up worries? Besides, Charisma was not just talented—she was gifted.
Every parent believes his or her child is “gifted”, but Charisma’s voice filled a room. Friends and relatives marveled at the power of her lungs and the size of her voice from such a pint-sized package. Her music teacher had even wept when Charisma gave her first recital.
But even in their proud haze, the Richmonds could scarcely ignore Charisma’s shortcomings. Charisma picked fights with other students over everything from missing bobby pins to stolen boyfriends. She refused to go by her “weird” full name and shortened it to “Izzy”. She occasionally skipped classes and often spent what time she was in class disrupting lessons. Izzy talked back to teachers and administration and often hid behind Joshua’s position within the school district to avoid backlash. She scraped by academically, mostly for lack of trying. At some point—Izzy can’t exactly remember when—her parents split. Izzy lived with her father and her mother moved to Bristol and got a new job and a new boyfriend. When Izzy was older, she got tattoos and smoked behind the school. Stella tried to reprimand her during a short visit, but Joshua insisted that Izzy was just going through a phase. He promised Izzy he would pay for her next tattoo if she did better in her classes. For the first time, she got top marks. At the end of term, she emblazoned her arm with “Daddy’s Girl”. She cut back on the cigarettes and stopped fighting with staff. Things seemed to be on track for Izzy’s final year at school. She took jobs singing in local pubs on weekends, did her homework, and considered reading at a local college.
But the summer after she finished, everything changed. Izzy was singing in a local bar (she now sang five nights a week) and was spotted by Bastien Monteblanc. Bastien was enchanted by Izzy’s singing voice and he followed her from nightclub to nightclub to hear her sing. After several weeks, he introduced himself as a talent agent from Paris. He was a smooth-talking man a few years Izzy’s senior and she found herself swimming in his grey eyes. The two embarked on a love affair for the few months Bastien was in town. Bastien never seemed to be doing his job, however, and he spent much of his time with Izzy “networking” her with his friends—a rowdy bunch of “artists” from every corner of Europe and in every shade of sobriety from the “straight-edge” goth chick from Germany to the doped-up everything-addict from Amsterdam. None, seemed to have a substantial body of work, but most of these new age bohemians were willing to share tips (among other things) with Izzy and those months remain a blur. However, in a moment of clarity, Izzy demanded Bastien take her to Paris so she could start her real career. She told him if he didn’t take her to Paris, she’d leave him.
So Bastien left without her and suddenly Izzy couldn’t find their “friends”. She spent nights shaking and vomiting and days trying not to lash out at her parents. In retrospect, it’s clear that Izzy was experiencing withdrawal symptoms from some of the freebies she got from Bastien’s friends, but at the time, she thought these were symptoms of a broken heart. She boarded a train to Paris to find Bastien. The lovers reunited and Bastien promised to make Izzy’s career take wing. But first, he said, they’d fix up her “health problems”. He connected her to dealers on the shady side of town and Izzy’s withdrawal symptoms disappeared as she experimented with whatever she could get her hands on. And when she was in a fog, she didn’t notice the other women Bastien brought home or that he had done next to nothing to help her career. Occasionally, he found her a job in a two-bit cabaret, and Izzy told herself she had to start small anyways and that this was the man she loved. He would never do anything to hurt her. In fact, when Izzy turned 21, she and Bastien got married in a small ceremony attended only by her father and two of Bastien’s best friends. Joshua told Izzy he didn’t like Bastien much, but that if Izzy was happy, he’d do his best to be happy for her. However, marital bliss was short-lived. The couple often fought and came to fisticuffs. One night Izzy got a call from police saying that Bastien had been driving the getaway car after one of his friends held up a local convenience store. Inside the car, the police had found trash bags full of money and “illegal substances” (which they could not specify). Bastien was sentenced to five years in jail. He was killed six months into his sentence by his cell mate. Izzy tried to live off the money she and Bastien had saved, but it wasn’t enough to live on, let alone enough to support her own addictions on. Izzy wasn’t getting many engagements at clubs. But one night while leaving a failed audition, she was propositioned by a stranger with the offer of two hundred francs for one night in the sack.
Since then, Izzy has been turning tricks. She doesn’t call home out of shame and when Joshua calls, she tells him things are fine. She fluctuates between sober and addicted periods. During one “sober” time, she taught herself guitar; during an “addicted” time she stole an elderly woman’s purse because she was convinced it would be filled with money and jewels. But most often, Izzy is somewhere in between, trying to quit and suffering from withdrawal. And no matter what shade of sobriety (or lack thereof) she finds herself in, Izzy is making music.
Sometimes, she thinks it’s the only thing that keeps her from giving up entirely.
Age: 25
Gender: Female
Occupation: Prostitute, (ex) musician
AI: Amy Winehouse
Personality: When Izzy was a child, people warned her parents that she would one day be a handful. But it never occurred to Izzy that she was a problem child. By the time it occurred to either of her parents, there wasn’t much to be done. She was always a promising musician, but poor choices and bad breaks have kept Izzy from advancing. Ironically, one word can be used to describe her by both her johns and her former audiences: talented. Izzy has potential and she’s good at what she does. She’s incredibly spirited and it was no mistake that her parents named her “Charisma”. However, not all adjectives people use to describe Izzy are so nice. Many find her crass, rude, and deviant. The way she tells it, she’s just another working girl, trying to get by. Izzy knows she is not living the life she wishes she had. She’s hungry, but for what, she doesn’t know.
History: When Stella and Joshua Richmond found out they were pregnant, the two Leeds natives knew their baby would be something special. Due to an old hockey injury, Joshua’s sperm count was low, and the couple knew this would be their only chance to have a biological baby. And when their little girl was born, the Richmonds would have sworn her laugh was music of the gods. And so from day one, Charisma Richmond, was treated like their demi-goddess. The Richmonds made for indulgent parents, but to say they gave Charisma everything she wanted isn’t quite fitting. Joshua worked as an assistant principal at the local grammar school and Stella worked as a beauty sales representative. The Richmonds weren’t exactly rolling in the dough. But Charisma never knew hunger or want as a child. And when she proved musically gifted, her parents saved and saved so she could go to singing and piano lessons. She didn’t know about the extra commissions her mother had to make or the after-hours job as a janitor her father took to make the music lessons happen. After all, what kind of parents tell their seven year old such grown up worries? Besides, Charisma was not just talented—she was gifted.
Every parent believes his or her child is “gifted”, but Charisma’s voice filled a room. Friends and relatives marveled at the power of her lungs and the size of her voice from such a pint-sized package. Her music teacher had even wept when Charisma gave her first recital.
But even in their proud haze, the Richmonds could scarcely ignore Charisma’s shortcomings. Charisma picked fights with other students over everything from missing bobby pins to stolen boyfriends. She refused to go by her “weird” full name and shortened it to “Izzy”. She occasionally skipped classes and often spent what time she was in class disrupting lessons. Izzy talked back to teachers and administration and often hid behind Joshua’s position within the school district to avoid backlash. She scraped by academically, mostly for lack of trying. At some point—Izzy can’t exactly remember when—her parents split. Izzy lived with her father and her mother moved to Bristol and got a new job and a new boyfriend. When Izzy was older, she got tattoos and smoked behind the school. Stella tried to reprimand her during a short visit, but Joshua insisted that Izzy was just going through a phase. He promised Izzy he would pay for her next tattoo if she did better in her classes. For the first time, she got top marks. At the end of term, she emblazoned her arm with “Daddy’s Girl”. She cut back on the cigarettes and stopped fighting with staff. Things seemed to be on track for Izzy’s final year at school. She took jobs singing in local pubs on weekends, did her homework, and considered reading at a local college.
But the summer after she finished, everything changed. Izzy was singing in a local bar (she now sang five nights a week) and was spotted by Bastien Monteblanc. Bastien was enchanted by Izzy’s singing voice and he followed her from nightclub to nightclub to hear her sing. After several weeks, he introduced himself as a talent agent from Paris. He was a smooth-talking man a few years Izzy’s senior and she found herself swimming in his grey eyes. The two embarked on a love affair for the few months Bastien was in town. Bastien never seemed to be doing his job, however, and he spent much of his time with Izzy “networking” her with his friends—a rowdy bunch of “artists” from every corner of Europe and in every shade of sobriety from the “straight-edge” goth chick from Germany to the doped-up everything-addict from Amsterdam. None, seemed to have a substantial body of work, but most of these new age bohemians were willing to share tips (among other things) with Izzy and those months remain a blur. However, in a moment of clarity, Izzy demanded Bastien take her to Paris so she could start her real career. She told him if he didn’t take her to Paris, she’d leave him.
So Bastien left without her and suddenly Izzy couldn’t find their “friends”. She spent nights shaking and vomiting and days trying not to lash out at her parents. In retrospect, it’s clear that Izzy was experiencing withdrawal symptoms from some of the freebies she got from Bastien’s friends, but at the time, she thought these were symptoms of a broken heart. She boarded a train to Paris to find Bastien. The lovers reunited and Bastien promised to make Izzy’s career take wing. But first, he said, they’d fix up her “health problems”. He connected her to dealers on the shady side of town and Izzy’s withdrawal symptoms disappeared as she experimented with whatever she could get her hands on. And when she was in a fog, she didn’t notice the other women Bastien brought home or that he had done next to nothing to help her career. Occasionally, he found her a job in a two-bit cabaret, and Izzy told herself she had to start small anyways and that this was the man she loved. He would never do anything to hurt her. In fact, when Izzy turned 21, she and Bastien got married in a small ceremony attended only by her father and two of Bastien’s best friends. Joshua told Izzy he didn’t like Bastien much, but that if Izzy was happy, he’d do his best to be happy for her. However, marital bliss was short-lived. The couple often fought and came to fisticuffs. One night Izzy got a call from police saying that Bastien had been driving the getaway car after one of his friends held up a local convenience store. Inside the car, the police had found trash bags full of money and “illegal substances” (which they could not specify). Bastien was sentenced to five years in jail. He was killed six months into his sentence by his cell mate. Izzy tried to live off the money she and Bastien had saved, but it wasn’t enough to live on, let alone enough to support her own addictions on. Izzy wasn’t getting many engagements at clubs. But one night while leaving a failed audition, she was propositioned by a stranger with the offer of two hundred francs for one night in the sack.
Since then, Izzy has been turning tricks. She doesn’t call home out of shame and when Joshua calls, she tells him things are fine. She fluctuates between sober and addicted periods. During one “sober” time, she taught herself guitar; during an “addicted” time she stole an elderly woman’s purse because she was convinced it would be filled with money and jewels. But most often, Izzy is somewhere in between, trying to quit and suffering from withdrawal. And no matter what shade of sobriety (or lack thereof) she finds herself in, Izzy is making music.
Sometimes, she thinks it’s the only thing that keeps her from giving up entirely.
