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"Your smile scars
And I can't recall
Where you end
Or how I fall
This can't last
But I'm in thrall
Its just a dream
But aren't we all"
- from "Wide Asleep"
Aimee Solleau
Aimee Lynn Solleau was born in Beaumont, Texas, but grew up down Highway 69 in Kountze. Her mother, Rachel, taught at the local elementary school, and conducted music lessons on the side. Aimee's father, Joseph, is a chemical engineer, recently opening his own consulting firm with money from his daughter's lottery winnings. Aimee has two sisters, Penelope Anne, the oldest by two years, and Joanna Elizabeth, five years younger than Aimee.
Rachel Solleau shouldered the majority of the burden of raising her daughter's, due more to the vagaries of her husband's job more than any negligence on his part. Rachel is very traditional about most things, and has tried to instill this trait in her children. She was overjoyed when Penny Anne (as she is referred to by the majority of her family) married her high school sweetheart, Jackson Davis, three years ago. While it took her some time to adjust to Aimee being "out," Rachel's usually conservative viewpoints are tempered with a deep belief in equality, and she wants her children to be happy. Rachel adores Constance, viewing her as essentially a fourth daughter, something which has engendered numerous arguments with Aimee's staunchly (and strictly) Catholic paternal grandparents.
Joseph (Joe, to most) Solleau has worked hard his whole life to provide a comfortable life for his family, and is having some trouble adjusting to the autonomy brought on by Aimee's lucky break. While the girls were growing up, he was never sure exactly how to deal with his daughters and largely related to them the same way he would "one of the guys." He is particularly close to Aimee and Joanna, having taken them hunting, taught them to work on cars, and built a treehouse with them (which still stands, somewhat worse for wear, in their backyard). He gets along well with Jackson, though he wishes they saw more of the "Boston Solleaus." Constance is somewhat of a mystery to Joe, in that he's not sure how to act around her. He harbors some worry that his "macho" relationship with Aimee may have contributed to her homosexuality, but he knows Joanna is currently seeing a guy and seems to have no leanings the other direction. So, while he supports Aimee and Constance, and is generally liberal in his personal interactions, he is concerned that he "messed up" somehow.
Penelope (as she prefers to be called) is very close to her mother, and has always had a somewhat competitive relationship with her middle sister. While they get along reasonably well, Aimee and Penelope have very different personalities and interests. Whereas Aimee favors her mother's musical talents and her father's ruggedness, Penelope picked up her father's work ethic and her mother's domesticity. Penelope currently lives in Boston, where she is attending medical school. She makes it home to Texas for most holidays, as her and her husband's parents live in the same area. She and Aimee speak slightly more often than that, and exchange emails every few weeks.
Joanna Beth (or occasionally Jo Beth) is incredibly close to her middle sister, and Aimee makes sure call her every few days. Joanna is a sophomore studying political science at the University of Texas, something her father and Aimee, Aggies both, consider a great injustice. Joanna is the most athletic of her siblings, having played every sport Kountze High School had to offer, and she gives Aimee no end of grief that she is in better shape. Somewhat of a workaholic, Joanna has maintained a 4.0 GPA so far, and doesn't get out much. She has, however, started dating Constance's younger brother, a fellow U.T. student whom she met when Aimee and Constance took them both on the same vacation. They haven't actually told their sisters, as they incorrectly believe they would get a negative reaction.
Aimee's life hasn't always been as idyllic as her relatively benign family might make it seem. She clearly remembers reading fairytales as a child, consistently imagining herself as the one saving the princess, rather than being rescued. Aimee didn't really realize she was different until puberty, but, being fairly mature for her age, she recognized she probably wasn't going to find happiness in Kountze. So, while she cultivated an avid social life in high school, she never dated. She deflected suspicion as much as possible, claiming "college boyfriends" and the like, though she suffered through several unrequited crushes. Despite choosing A&M (in large part by her father's encouragement), she found college a freeing experience, and she came out "officially" to her parents the day before she left for school (they had already suspected for some time).
Music, Aimee's first love, developed at an early age, starting with lessons with her mother and other family members. Family reunions were full of music, as the Solleaus and the Mackelroys (Rachel's family) both had long traditions of musicians. Rachel likes to say Aimee was playing almost from the time she could talk, and they couldn't stop her singing after that. She plays violin, mandolin and banjo, though she is always most comfortable with guitar. She currently owns several of each, as well as a few amps, which stay in her studio in the apartment she and Constance share. Earning her bachelor's degree in music, Aimee has devoured the music of cultures worldwide, and enjoys music from mountain bluegrass to opera. She has considered going back to school for her master's in performance studies, as she is beginning to realize it is music, not fame, that holds her attention. Her common public performances, in venues local to College Station and Bryan, are an eclectic mix of musical genres, something which occasionally annoys her loosely organized (and long-suffering) band, The Voodoo Banshees.
Aside from music, Aimee is hooked on fantasy novels, and she doesn't usually differentiate based on quality. Though she has a particular love of Tolkien, McCaffrey, and LeGuin; she reads voraciously, appreciating interesting ideas even if the writing is terrible. Her love of fantasy was inherited from her older sister, and it is the closest bond the two girls share. Penelope let Aimee accompany her and her friends to the Texas Renaissance Festival when she was 14, and Aimee was hooked. She still loves renaissance festivals, and even plays a few with her musical partner in crime, Adam Spitzer. Her love of fantasy and medieval reenactment led her to study fencing and SCA light fighting. Though she is mostly a beginner, she has been improving in her off-time since graduating.
Aimee rides a blue/pewter 2005 Harley Davidson FXDX Super Glide (she rarely shortens the name if someone makes the mistake of asking her about the bike) which she spends and inordinate amount of time on. Named Shadowfax, Aimee has customized it extensively, working on it by herself. She adores the bike, despite continued warnings from her parents and worrying by Constance.
Aimee is hopelessly devoted to her girlfriend of four years, Constance. The two met in French class their junior year and, shortly after being assigned together for a class project, began dating. Aimee can alternate between complete absorption in a project and bouts of complete loss of focus, and she relies on Constance to manage the day to day maintenance of their lives. Conversely, Aimee showers her partner with affection, doing anything she can to brighten her day. She has no embarrassment about serenading Constance in public, bringing flowers to her work, or anything else she thinks of. Her only worry, and one she's never articulated, is that she isn't good enough for Constance. True or not, she considers Constance her intellectual superior, and she is acutely aware that Constance comes from a "better" family than she does.
Chrys was like another little sister to Aimee. They connected through their singing, and shared geekage. Aime had even managed to get Chrys to sing with her band a few times. Constance and Aimee worried about Chrys a great deal, as her usually good judgement seemed blind when it came to dating. More than once they had to pick up Chrys in the middle of the night after terrible breakups. A string of terrible boyfriends, culminating in Chrys's eight-month long relationship with Steve Douchene, caused consistent consternation for Aimee and the rest of Chrys's friends. While she believes Steve had nothing to do with Chrys's death, Aimee still blames him for it to a certain degree. She is committed to finding the truth, but feels overwhelmed by what she and her friends have uncovered so far.
And I can't recall
Where you end
Or how I fall
This can't last
But I'm in thrall
Its just a dream
But aren't we all"
- from "Wide Asleep"
Aimee Solleau
Aimee Lynn Solleau was born in Beaumont, Texas, but grew up down Highway 69 in Kountze. Her mother, Rachel, taught at the local elementary school, and conducted music lessons on the side. Aimee's father, Joseph, is a chemical engineer, recently opening his own consulting firm with money from his daughter's lottery winnings. Aimee has two sisters, Penelope Anne, the oldest by two years, and Joanna Elizabeth, five years younger than Aimee.
Rachel Solleau shouldered the majority of the burden of raising her daughter's, due more to the vagaries of her husband's job more than any negligence on his part. Rachel is very traditional about most things, and has tried to instill this trait in her children. She was overjoyed when Penny Anne (as she is referred to by the majority of her family) married her high school sweetheart, Jackson Davis, three years ago. While it took her some time to adjust to Aimee being "out," Rachel's usually conservative viewpoints are tempered with a deep belief in equality, and she wants her children to be happy. Rachel adores Constance, viewing her as essentially a fourth daughter, something which has engendered numerous arguments with Aimee's staunchly (and strictly) Catholic paternal grandparents.
Joseph (Joe, to most) Solleau has worked hard his whole life to provide a comfortable life for his family, and is having some trouble adjusting to the autonomy brought on by Aimee's lucky break. While the girls were growing up, he was never sure exactly how to deal with his daughters and largely related to them the same way he would "one of the guys." He is particularly close to Aimee and Joanna, having taken them hunting, taught them to work on cars, and built a treehouse with them (which still stands, somewhat worse for wear, in their backyard). He gets along well with Jackson, though he wishes they saw more of the "Boston Solleaus." Constance is somewhat of a mystery to Joe, in that he's not sure how to act around her. He harbors some worry that his "macho" relationship with Aimee may have contributed to her homosexuality, but he knows Joanna is currently seeing a guy and seems to have no leanings the other direction. So, while he supports Aimee and Constance, and is generally liberal in his personal interactions, he is concerned that he "messed up" somehow.
Penelope (as she prefers to be called) is very close to her mother, and has always had a somewhat competitive relationship with her middle sister. While they get along reasonably well, Aimee and Penelope have very different personalities and interests. Whereas Aimee favors her mother's musical talents and her father's ruggedness, Penelope picked up her father's work ethic and her mother's domesticity. Penelope currently lives in Boston, where she is attending medical school. She makes it home to Texas for most holidays, as her and her husband's parents live in the same area. She and Aimee speak slightly more often than that, and exchange emails every few weeks.
Joanna Beth (or occasionally Jo Beth) is incredibly close to her middle sister, and Aimee makes sure call her every few days. Joanna is a sophomore studying political science at the University of Texas, something her father and Aimee, Aggies both, consider a great injustice. Joanna is the most athletic of her siblings, having played every sport Kountze High School had to offer, and she gives Aimee no end of grief that she is in better shape. Somewhat of a workaholic, Joanna has maintained a 4.0 GPA so far, and doesn't get out much. She has, however, started dating Constance's younger brother, a fellow U.T. student whom she met when Aimee and Constance took them both on the same vacation. They haven't actually told their sisters, as they incorrectly believe they would get a negative reaction.
Aimee's life hasn't always been as idyllic as her relatively benign family might make it seem. She clearly remembers reading fairytales as a child, consistently imagining herself as the one saving the princess, rather than being rescued. Aimee didn't really realize she was different until puberty, but, being fairly mature for her age, she recognized she probably wasn't going to find happiness in Kountze. So, while she cultivated an avid social life in high school, she never dated. She deflected suspicion as much as possible, claiming "college boyfriends" and the like, though she suffered through several unrequited crushes. Despite choosing A&M (in large part by her father's encouragement), she found college a freeing experience, and she came out "officially" to her parents the day before she left for school (they had already suspected for some time).
Music, Aimee's first love, developed at an early age, starting with lessons with her mother and other family members. Family reunions were full of music, as the Solleaus and the Mackelroys (Rachel's family) both had long traditions of musicians. Rachel likes to say Aimee was playing almost from the time she could talk, and they couldn't stop her singing after that. She plays violin, mandolin and banjo, though she is always most comfortable with guitar. She currently owns several of each, as well as a few amps, which stay in her studio in the apartment she and Constance share. Earning her bachelor's degree in music, Aimee has devoured the music of cultures worldwide, and enjoys music from mountain bluegrass to opera. She has considered going back to school for her master's in performance studies, as she is beginning to realize it is music, not fame, that holds her attention. Her common public performances, in venues local to College Station and Bryan, are an eclectic mix of musical genres, something which occasionally annoys her loosely organized (and long-suffering) band, The Voodoo Banshees.
Aside from music, Aimee is hooked on fantasy novels, and she doesn't usually differentiate based on quality. Though she has a particular love of Tolkien, McCaffrey, and LeGuin; she reads voraciously, appreciating interesting ideas even if the writing is terrible. Her love of fantasy was inherited from her older sister, and it is the closest bond the two girls share. Penelope let Aimee accompany her and her friends to the Texas Renaissance Festival when she was 14, and Aimee was hooked. She still loves renaissance festivals, and even plays a few with her musical partner in crime, Adam Spitzer. Her love of fantasy and medieval reenactment led her to study fencing and SCA light fighting. Though she is mostly a beginner, she has been improving in her off-time since graduating.
Aimee rides a blue/pewter 2005 Harley Davidson FXDX Super Glide (she rarely shortens the name if someone makes the mistake of asking her about the bike) which she spends and inordinate amount of time on. Named Shadowfax, Aimee has customized it extensively, working on it by herself. She adores the bike, despite continued warnings from her parents and worrying by Constance.
Aimee is hopelessly devoted to her girlfriend of four years, Constance. The two met in French class their junior year and, shortly after being assigned together for a class project, began dating. Aimee can alternate between complete absorption in a project and bouts of complete loss of focus, and she relies on Constance to manage the day to day maintenance of their lives. Conversely, Aimee showers her partner with affection, doing anything she can to brighten her day. She has no embarrassment about serenading Constance in public, bringing flowers to her work, or anything else she thinks of. Her only worry, and one she's never articulated, is that she isn't good enough for Constance. True or not, she considers Constance her intellectual superior, and she is acutely aware that Constance comes from a "better" family than she does.
Chrys was like another little sister to Aimee. They connected through their singing, and shared geekage. Aime had even managed to get Chrys to sing with her band a few times. Constance and Aimee worried about Chrys a great deal, as her usually good judgement seemed blind when it came to dating. More than once they had to pick up Chrys in the middle of the night after terrible breakups. A string of terrible boyfriends, culminating in Chrys's eight-month long relationship with Steve Douchene, caused consistent consternation for Aimee and the rest of Chrys's friends. While she believes Steve had nothing to do with Chrys's death, Aimee still blames him for it to a certain degree. She is committed to finding the truth, but feels overwhelmed by what she and her friends have uncovered so far.
