Found her!

I found my Sylvia, and I am happy now.

[insert row of immature smiley faces and watch as my sister rolls her eyes]

It's hard writing a story if you don't know how to picture your protagonist.  I struggled through the first half of OAN without knowing precisely how Elizabeth looked-- it wasn't until I stumbled upon some pictures of Anna Friel in Our Mutual Friend that everything fell into place.  But now, folks, I can truly begin real work on The Rochesters with a light heart, because I can look at Sylvia's face whenever I want to.  May I present Miss Sylvia Jane Lemmins?

For all those of you who might not have guessed...
this is Julie Andrews at sixteen.  Sylvia's fifteen,
but hey, you can pretend she's younger.

Now, of course, she looks quite sophisticated and grown-up in this picture AND her hair is short, which leads me to believe that the picture was taken just before Alice's wedding.  Because when Sylvia first came to the Rochesters, her hair was past her shoulders.  It got... um... cut... during the course of the summer.  *snickers*

So in this picture she's feeling (and trying to act) terribly grown-up, but don't think that Sylvia is a model of primness and propriety all the time.  Because she just isn't.  She's more fun than that.

To celebrate my delightful discovery, I chose a Beautiful People questionnaire from the archives and will now proceed to fill it out for my Sylvia.

What type of laugh does she have?

Bubbly and happy and something like an older version of a baby's laugh.  Kind of hard to describe, but very spontaneous.  Very spontaneous indeed, and rather unfortunate if she happens to be eating or drinking at the time when her laugh is provoked, because then she tends to embarrass herself.

Who is her best friend?

Myrtle Lionel was a good friend to her at boarding school, and she corresponds with her over the summer, but her best friends are really her cousins.  Francie and Celia especially, as they're the girls closest to her in age.  Technically Mark is closer to Sylvia than Francie is, because he's twelve and Francie's nineteen, but like I said, Mark's twelve.  He doesn't consider girls (cousins air otherwise) to be best friends.

Before her hair was cut.  Obviously.

What is her family like?

Her family?  They're awesome.  :D
I'm taking "family" here to mean "extended family", because Sylvia's family is currently comprised of her cousins, both second and first-once-removed.  The Rochester family is noisy, silly, witty, slapdash, let's-go-on-a-picnic-in-the-pouring-rain and just all-around fun.

Is she a Christian, or will she eventually find Jesus?

Sylvia is a Christian, and was before she came to stay with her cousins, but seeing their strong, day-to-day-and-not-just-for-Sunday faith helps to strengthen hers.

Hmmm, I'm thinking there ought to be a play of
some sort in the course of the story...

Does she believe in fairies?

She'd like to, but can't really find it in herself to believe in them.  Sylvia's down-to-earth, and fairies aren't.  She's always been a little wistfully envious of those who can believe in fairies, though.

Does she like hedgehogs?

Um.  Well, that depends on the way this question is being asked.  How is she supposed to like them?  With ketchup?  No, thank you.

Favorite kind of weather?

Sunny  and warm, with puffy white clouds in the sky and enough wind to make peaks on the lake.

Does she have a good sense of humor? If so what kind? (Slapstick, wit, sarcasm, etc.?)

I love her hair like this.  :)

Sylvia has an excellent sense of humor, which is further developed by constant exposure to her cousins.  Sylvia's tends toward sarcasm and puns.  The Rochester kids (well, except Alice, who likes to think herself too old for that) tend toward slapstick.  But not with real sticks.

How did she do in school, or any kind of education she might have had?

Sylvia's still in school, actually, and she does pretty well.  She's a straight B student, neither at the top nor the bottom of any class.  A boring teacher's dream.


Any strange hobbies?

None that I've come across... as yet.