Interview With a Dreamer: LaTao

Plucked from The Dreamer's reality, LaTao spins around. As her eyes scour the room for information, the 17-year-old apprentice mutters an incantation under her breath. Within seconds, her body is surrounded by a faint magical orb visible only by the magically inclined. Behind the muted shimmer, she eventually notices someone sitting in a chair with a clipboard in hand. She concentrates, hoping to sense a magical spell, but despite seeing Adeaus Kingdom through an open window, she senses nothing magical beyond the room's four walls.

The interviewer gestures toward a chair a few steps away. "Please, have a seat."

LaTao smiles. She drops her guard, ending her shielding spell. Oh I know what THIS is! she thinks as she struts toward the empty chair. With her head held high, she straightens her red-tipped black hair and pulls a few strands from her blemishless face. Keeping a serious face, she tries her best to seem older, but the anticipation brings a smile to her face. The more she smiles, the younger she looks. "So what? Are you from the future or something?"

"Let's go with... 'or something' for now," they reply, holding their cards close to their chest, metaphorically.

"Ha! I KNEW it! I KNEW they were gonna write books about me," she says, beaming with pride. She tugs at the skirt of her magenta overall dress and straightens out her tight grey undershirt. The right strap of her garb rests on her shoulder, but the left strap dangles at her side, showing the blackness of the garment's reverse side. "Go on. Ask me a question!"

"You are LaTao of Gander, right?"

"Yup! Gander's my old man. My dad's a beast! My mom is more powerful though. I love my old man, but if it was up to me, I'd go by LaTao of LeNaia."

"Interesting," the interviewer nods. "So, what's your next goal in life?"

LaTao smirks. "I'm going to be the youngest apprentice to pass the Mage exam."

"A lofty goal."

"Heck yeah, it is! The youngest male was eighteen and the youngest female was twenty. I'M gonna get mine at the age of seventeen!"

"The good news is that even if you fail and have to try again in six months, you'll still be the youngest female to pass the test!"

LaTao's smile dissipates. She leans forward and sternly says, "I'm going to be the youngest apprentice to pass the Mage exam." Her amber eyes are locked on the interviewer. "Not 'youngest girl...' THE youngest. After that, I'm going to become one of the youngest to ever become one of The Nine! I'm not talking after Coliculous passes away. No. I mean in my twenties, I'll replace The Black Lightning Wizard. I'll take his place and as the world's most powerful Wizard, I'll do my best to keep this world safe."

"Okay!" the interviewer replies with a smile. "I like that fire in you! Is Coliculous someone whom you look up to? What inspires you to want to be one of the most powerful Wizards?"

Almost blushing, LaTao looks away and says, "Oh no. My favorite Wizard by far is The Blood-Cloaked Doom... Dominus." Her eyes wander as if peering out the window, but her mind is clearly elsewhere. "I read tales of The Bloody Black Mage and I knew immediately, THAT is what I want to be! Sage wants to be like his dad and save souls and Kain wants to surpass his dad and protect our kingdom... but I want to be powerful enough to preserve and protect the whole world" She crosses her arms and returns the interviewer's gaze. "Now that is a lofty goal."

"What drives you to show everybody that you’re not a fragile little flower?"

"What the Heck is that supposed to mean?"

"Look, I'm just asking the questions I was given," they defensively reply, gesturing toward the clipboard.

"Fine." LaTao rolls her eyes. "I'm not a 'fragile little flower' and I don't need to prove it." She leans forward in her chair and gestures with her hands as she says, "My goals are no different than they would be if I wasn't cute or short or if I was a boy instead of a girl. I'm me. If I died and was brought back to this world as a giant, a dragon, or even a little person, my goals would not change one bit. I'm going to get stronger. I'm going to get wiser. I'm going to protect this rock we're on, and no one's gonna stop me."

The interviewer hectically jots notes, nodding their head. "There goes that fire again."

LaTao shrugs. "Get used to it."

"Next question?"

"Hit me."

"What do you regret the most?"

LaTao opens her mouth to reply, but stills her tongue. She sits back in her chair and crosses her legs. She plants her elbow into the soft velvet of her chair's armrest. She leans her chin against her fist and dwells, allowing her mind to truly chew over this question. I was GOING to say "Nothing," but I'm guessing the audience wants more than that.

The interviewer takes not of the thoughtful pause. "Would you like a glass of water?"

"I'm good," she replies. Her eyes trace the floor tiles as if the answer is written there. "Hmmm." After a deep breath, she says "If I have to pick something... I'd have to say it's that I left my friend, Meeka, behind. She's a clever one. We used to get along great... but she started getting jealous the better I got.

"Don't get me wrong," LaTao blurts. "I don't regret studying on my own in general... I just wish I found a way to help bring her along for the ride. Sage and Kain are my besties, but I don't have any female friends. I never have... so she was the only one. But she wasn't ready to devote herself to the craft like I was... so I had to either go half-assed and bring her up, or do my best... and like I said... I'm going after all of my goals, and no one's gonna stop me... not even Meeka."

"Okay. Final question: What kind of person would you die for?"

"Myself. I would die to save the world without question, but I'd be doing it for me. I mean, I would rather live to protect those I love and protect those that can't protect themselves, but if I have to die to do so, I'd be doing it for myself and the legacy I want to leave behind... not for my king, my country, or some god or something. When I die, I hope it's saving the world and in a way people will write books about... a way where other little girls will pick up a book, read about me, and be as inspired by me as I am by Dominus."

The interviewer nods. "Well... I didn't expect that answer. I actually was expecting a more generic answer. You caught me off guard."

LaTao rises to her feet, slightly bows her head, then smiles. With a wink, she turns to the side, wishing she had a cape to dramatically toss. "Yeah... I do that sometimes."