Turn It Up Tuesday: Armored Hearts

One more day my heart's in armor
Though I meant to let you in.
In an effort to protect it
I have missed my chance again.

Hey! Karlie speaking. Welcome to Turn-It-Up Tuesday!

I always listen to music when I write. It inspires me, helps me get a feel for the mood of whatever scene I'm writing, and most of all it helps me connect with what my characters are going through.
"Hearts In Armor" by Trisha Yearwood is high on one of my favorite character playlists. It describes my master assassin-turned-sort-of-good-girl perfectly. As if it had been written just for her.
This song rings true in a lot of ways - Vivian is slowly falling in love with an innocent Healer who has no problem saying I love you. 
But when you've gone your whole life needing nothing and no one, those three simple words just don't come easily. She tried. She really did. I'm not going to write out the whole song here, just the parts that really apply:

Every hour that goes by

The harder I become.

Because I let that well run dry

Because I left you unanswered…

One more day my heart’s in armor

Though I did not see it then 

I would finish what you started

If I had that chance again.

It ends on a sorrowful note, describing lost chances and empty hands and hearts. One especially poignant scene in the book has Vivian watching Tristan pack for a journey he might not return from. It's dangerous - they both know that. But when he says his last I love you, she can only answer as she always has. I know.

By the time Tristan returns, he's seen and gone through things no one ever should. It's changed him in a lot of ways, both physically and mentally. Vivian's finally ready to say those words back to him, but it's too late.

She doesn't get another chance.

This song was instrumental in writing these scenes - I must have listened to it dozens of times. So give it a listen! It's my character and her tragic romance in a nutshell. Here's the link: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=dRPzcMLV1Oc

And now that I've depressed everyone sufficiently, I'm going to go listen to a Disney soundtrack. LOL.