Fated

Author’s Note: I decided to write a piece on the book I am currently reading, Fated, to demonstrate my understanding of “point of view.”  I reflected upon Daire, the main character’s views were on Cade, her arch enemy.  From there, I wrote the same scene from his point of view to show him their sides differ.  


My screams fell upon deaf ears as I cried and fought this hopeless battle.  Mostly though, I wondered “why?”  Why?  Why me? Why now?  Why him? Tears should not be falling, this I was aware, I barely knew this boy.  But was it wrong if it felt as if my heart had been ripped right out of my chest?  Dark eyes stared down at me them, completely overlooking the limp body in my arms.  “I’m sorry, sweetheart, but you should’ve listened the first time,” he purred, his voice nearly making me gag as I forced myself to look into his eyes.  “Come ‘ere,” he said with a 2 quick motions of his pointer finger as he motioned me over to him, but I stayed where I was.  “It won’t hurt a bit,” he assured me, “I just need your soul.”  I stood up.  In the distance, a raven crowed.  In Alyson Noel’s Fated we get a peek inside of Daire Santo’s live as she takes her new role as soul seeker, protecting the world against the only enemy she never knew she had, but as a new feature we can see this enemy’s view on the same scene recreated above.  

As you can tell, Daire isn’t too fond of this boy in the scene above otherwise known as Cade Ritcher: the seeker’s only enemy in the blood himself, the El Coyote.  The entire book is told from her point of view, so oblivious this boy is casted off as a heartless, evil, character in her eyes.  One particular passage, I feel demonstrates this brewing relationship between these two characters, “‘I know exactly who you are,’ I tell him, noting the way his lip twitches with delight, as his gaze connects with mine.  The two of us knowing what no one else does, I’m no longer hiding.”  (Pg 173)  Doesn’t he just sound evil?  From just this passage we can tell he’s pretty full of himself and thinks he can take her easily.  Just the way “his lip twitches in delight,” show this evil excitement within him.  From all we know, Daire is the good guy in this battle and we all root for her, but what is Cade’s real story?  I decided to write a scene along the same guidelines above from Cade’s point of view to emphasize what I think we miss by just viewing Daire’s side of the story.  

I heard my father's voice as I killed him. Yelling at me, screaming at me even, his hateful words echoing in my mind.  And her screams.  That’s what I remember most.  The pleading as she watched him die, the tears as he fell limp in her arms, but I couldn’t stop.  There was something inside of me, pushing me forward, something not under my control.  I did not choose this life.  My father chose it for me.  Whipping up magic so dark, so that my soul would stand no chance against it, ultimately guiding me to the dark place in which I now stand.  When I am around these “seekers” a sort of frenzy begins, and it is nearly impossible to control my actions, my thoughts.  Seeing my brother die, courtesy of me, I paused.  I really, truly did.  But just as quickly, I snapped out of the trance, I had a job to do.  Daire looked up at me, with those broken eyes, and it was all I could to force the words out of my mouth, “I just need your soul.” In my mind, I heard my father as he praised me.