血秋 (Chiaki)'s Questionnaire

Though I have traveled far and wide across this Earth in my many years of life I live now the same place that I was born in 1606. That is Kyoto, Japan. 

Kyoto is world aside from the modern, clinging stubbornly to tradition and preserving the old ways for the endless generations. A fitting place for a soul like me who also clings to the grandious opulence of the past. The Kabuki house where I met my maker still stands. I purchased it many years ago and have made it into my own performance space. For this place, my own sanctuary alone, this place is unlike anywhere else. A place that could have been a grim memorial of my unlife has been made into a place of beauty for all to celebrate. 

  As the guitarist of the visual kei band, Theatre de Vampire, I make most of my money through record sales and live performances. Due to my vampiric condition I am unable to be captured in film, so coming to a live show is the only way to see the band except for in promotional paintings. I also own my own nightclub, Craven. During the day one can come and enjoy a gothic tea party and at night it transforms into a cathedral style nightclub and music venue.

  I spend most of my money on clothing, decor and other trinkets. My favorite clothing evokes a feeling of the past wether it be traditional Japanese or western style dresses. My favorite color is undoubtedly black.

  The common factor that I unites my life is a drive to be adored. The is nothing like the feeling of looking over an audience writhing in dance to the music booming from the speakers or the sublime satisfaction of meeting with fans and being fawned over like you are the image of perfection. While it may seem on the surface like this is enough to make me happy I still am not free. 

The Vampire that made me and stole my voice still has me in his thrall, dependant on his blood to maintain my eternal youth. I would do anything to become a powerful vampire and take revenge against him for making me such as I am. I will kill him or be killed revenging my honour. 

The day I became a ghoul and the weeks preceding it. I met a handsome sailor who had taken to coming to the theatre  I perform at. I saw him many times. Every Time he came into port he would bring me the most beautiful things in his travels as trinkets. Finally I resigned myself to a triste with him in the cabin of his ship. Instead of tender love i received a mauling that resulted in me being left in a cursed state, unable to subsist on anything but my masters blood. 

Not just this event but being a vampire has the effect of dulling experiences as the weariness of time builds. You learn to invest emotion because when you next blink your own eyes the world will have changed. 

Shiro is the vocalist of Theatre de Vampire and my best friend. He brings voice to words I cannot say or sing. He also knows me well enough to assist me in getting around in the modern world which is often scary to me. He is shorter than me with white hair and wears a princely style to his clothing. 

Agustino is my maker. When we first met he was a sailor but is now a shipping giant with his hands in alot of investments, even in  my record label. We have a difficult relationship as he is a stubborn man that sees things only his own way. 

May started out as just the president of my fanclub but has become a trusted friend. She is outspoken and perceptive, too much so. Sometimes I fear she may discover that I truly am a vampire and that it's not just all an act. 

My childhood was at once both fanciful and destitute. My parents were very poor and lived a nomadic life style as part of a travelling performance troupe. They were both acrobats that would perform tricks for thrown coins. I don't much remember their character after all of this time. 

When I was ten years old I was noticed by a Shogun because of my girlish good looks and being a procurer of beautiful things he bought me from my parents and set me up to be trained by a Kabuki actor who played female parts, Yukiko. For their part Yuki was very kind to me and taught me many things both professionally and in the art of socializing. 

As a Kabuki actor I was no longer a vagrant roadside attraction and I more than fit in. In my elegant kimono with all their sweeping long sleeves and soft colors in the years following I would become the object of worshipful adoration and scornful jealousy. 

I have been in love with two people of note. The first was my maker. It was a twisted and codependent love, both of us trying desperately to fill the endless years of the other with meaning. But he was controlling and jealous with me, so much so that I felt that he viewed me as a coveted possession that must be hidden away. This was never my nature, to fade into obscurity. So I rebelled and met Tetsuya, the son of an influential general during the war. 

Tetsuya was soft and gentle with me. I think now that he thought of me as fragile because of my muteness. I let him think that because of the tender care he showed whenever we were together. My maker found out but didn't fly immediately into a rage. Rather he told me that if I felt that strongly about the boy I should turn him so I can keep him with my always. He even told me how...only because he knew I lacked the power to do it. 

I was young then and knew little of being a vampire so I did it. I drained him to the point of death and fed him my blood and...nothing. I killed the only decent person I have ever loved. Since then I have kept myself cool and detached up until I met Shiro. His sweet caring for me reminds me of Tetsuya and I find my stare lingering too softly on his face for too long.

Despite having lived so long, I still fear many things. I fear falling into obscurity with no way to reclaim the roar of the crowd. The one constant has always been that my performances could gain me fame, adoration, and riches. My music has always been a way for me to feel like I reach others emotionally.

I am a creature of comfort. I love beautiful things and love crafting sanctuaries for myself away from the modern world. The strange devices of this era also terrify and confuse me. Things were so beautiful and simple once. I fear this eras complexity and the abundance of choice boggles my mind. 

I fear being alone in the world more than any of those things though. That's why I stayed with my maker so long and why I cling so fiercely to my inner circle. Even more than the adoration of a crowd I am someone who needs to love, deeply and purely. The idea that any of the people dear to me could be hurt or taken from me sends shivers up my spine but worse than that is the nagging fear that I could be the monster that hurts or kills them.

My most prized possession is my electric guitar. It is a custom piece by ESP with a beautiful rosewood body. It is priceless to me and one of a kind. I use it in all of my recordings and live shows. It is special to me because it represents my role in my band who is special to me. It is also the tool by which I achieve the fame and adoration I crave. More than that by playing it I am able to express myself vocally in my voiceless state. 

I spend a lot of time with my guitar jamming with my band. It is almost like an extension of myself. Whenever I am near it I can't help by pick it up and begin lazily plucking at it's strings.  I can become lost doing this foenhou w and have written. A number of my bands songs this way.