Music Monday (2)

Music Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Ramblings of a Daydreamer where we get to share our favorite music: singers, bands, videos, concerts, or anything else that catches our attention.

Sealer's Promise Edition #2: Kesyl Veradayne

mage by Kattling

Who is Kesyl Veradayne? 

Kesyl is often referred to as the Moon Prince, since he is the son of the Moon Goddess, Ruby. She despises him and views him as an abomination, and Kess was actually raised by Ruby's former high priestess, Carita Veradayne. 

Kesyl was the one who opened the tear in the veil between the Kindred homeworld of Zynedia and our planet so that his people would not be wiped out. Despite this, he is often feared or outright hated by his peers since his Immortal blood has somehow imbued him with the powers of a Sealer--someone who has the power to give or take away the connection others have to the Weave. (The invisible force of every living thing's emotions, from which the Kindred derive their magic and their name.)

In contrast to what most people think, Kesyl is actually a quiet and gentle person when he doesn't have to use his powers to set things right in the midst of one crisis or another. He enjoys cooking, water sports, dancing (he has permitted me to begrudgingly admit this to all of you here. Shhh, don't tell Sarena.) and collecting unique or exotic cars. 

So, what can I tell you about the man from his music? Take a look below to hear some of the songs that have helped me define Kess and get a closer peek into who he is as a character. :) 

Song #1: So She Dances by Josh Groban

Kess has super uber amazing powers, money and the ability to take someone's soul. Sounds a bit too perfect / scary / out there, doesn't it? I thought so too, so one of my goals when I wrote him was to find some way to humanize him and give him a vulnerability that would allow readers to connect with him. I decided to do that by making him very uncertain about his own worth when he likes someone. There is a scene where he has bought Sarena's Christmas gift and is carrying it to the tree with Carita. They are talking about how he needs to let her know how he feels and the scene ends with the line:

Money talks so much better then I do.

When I think of Kess' doubts about whether he will end up with Sara, one of the first songs that comes to mind is So She Dances by Josh Groban. I love the song because when I think about Sara and Kess while listening to it, it reminds me of how much he comes to appreciate her commitment to her art (dancing) and as the book progresses we see that same commitment shown toward her friendship (and possibly more ;) ) with him. 

I particularly love the lines:

I watch for the chance I should take
But how will I know where to start?
She's spinning between constellations and dreams
Her rhythm is my beating heart. 

Song #2: She's Everything by Brad Paisley

I went over this last week but for anyone who doesn't know: I'm really into country music. I ended up really connecting to "She's Everything" while writing Kess because I got Brad Paisley's Hits Alive CD as I was just working on my rough draft of Sealer's Promise (then it was called Moon Dance) in May of 2011. I actually didn't realize Brad had recorded the song until I got that CD, and it was a pleasant surprise since it was a song I already liked.

But there is something very special about the live version on this CD. It has a different intro then the actual recording which is pretty neat, but the best part is, in my opinion, the way the lines:

She looks good in cheap sunglasses
She looks good in anything

are done. Yet again, it's a showcase for that vulnerability that I was so desperate to try and show in Kess and I could see him talking to someone about Sara and reacting like that, which was incredibly helpful (and was what inspired the line he says to Carita in the Christmas scene that I quoted, actually.). 

Song #3: Somebody Like You by Keith Urban

Kesyl is the God of Justice, and as such he has had to make some very tough decisions despite being an 18 year old guy. He can also be a bit quick to be angry or frustrated about things that go wrong, which has not helped him win friends and influence people. Because of the events that predated her birth, Sarena is destined to become the Goddess of Mercy. She is much more mellow then Kess, although like him she has a very fine tuned moral compass and strives to do the right thing.

I'm lettin' go of all my lonely yesterdays
I've forgiven myself for the mistakes I've made
Now there's just one thing, the only thing I wanna do
I wanna love somebody, love somebody like you.

The two strengthen each other's weaknesses--Kess grows to understand people and gain more compassion because of his closeness to Sara, and Sara learns to have more courage and stand up for what she believes in rather then always trying to stay out of things because she loves / wants to protect Kess. 

"Somebody Like You" really speaks to this part of the relationship between Sara and Kess, which is a vital part of their story. As the God of Justice, Kesyl finds it incredibly hard to forgive people for their mistakes, and even harder to forgive himself when he screws up. As he grows to love Sara this is something he must confront and learn to change.

So, what music is on your mind this week? If you're taking part in Music Monday feel free to link to your post and I'll drop by. Thanks for visiting my blog, learning a bit about some of the music that has inspired me and getting to know Sarena a little better.