Freja’s personality is challenging to capture. She comes across as stoic and fierce, but she has an endearing, sentimental side she represses. Many forces influence Freja’s character. Her ups and downs are more severe than others.
Here’s a super official description of Freja’s overall personality:
Freja Leonard is a reserved and enigmatic figure in The Diviner’s Son. She is childhood friends with Cullum Soleil, who harbors deep feelings for her. Aware of his affections, she maintains a strict emotional distance. She never explicitly rejects him but never encourages his affection. She is aware of the weight of her choices and the consequences they carry, particularly in a world where such bonds dictate survival.
Freja is shaped by an unforgiving past. Her backstory is slow to show itself in the story, because she is not one to share her trauma, or even her true thoughts, with others. Her motivations are unclear to those around her.
Despite her outward detachment, she carries a deep understanding of the people around her, especially Cullum. Her choices are deliberate, and she does not bend easily to sentiment or obligation.
The best description of her from the current draft of the novel is as follows:
Freja Leonard was the tallest young lady he’d ever seen, though he hadn’t seen many. . . Her skin was roasted gold, a few shades deeper and darker than the doors that lined the palace hallways. Her hair was as dark as slate and shadows. The sweet pitch of her voice didn’t suit the ferocity of her expression.
From the perspective of Leander Veille
Freja’s design is one of the few that hasn’t changed much. Good for her!
This is the most accurate illustration of Freja.
This illustration best captures Freja’s essence.
This is the very first sketch of Freja!
And my favorite.
“I yearn for the privilege . . .” She sighed under her breath. Her robes floated out the door. Her lips were glossed with bitterness, “ . . . of needing nothing from anyone.
Mystified, his gaze followed her out the door, slipping down the skirts of her robes, fixing on her ankles, until he couldn’t catch more of her.
Howdy, father. I posted for you. See you next time.
Ena Sage has a small role in the first novel, but she ends up being an integral part of the cast, along with her older sister, Anise.
Here’s a super official description of Ena’s overall personality:
Ena is of sharp wit, restless energy, and unrelenting boldness.
Her demeanor is lively, her words quick and sporadic, filled with wry humor and youthful bravado. Behind her playful insouciance lies a girl keenly aware of the uncertain future awaiting her. She speaks often of marriage, not out of romantic yearning, but out of necessity. She knows the fate that awaits unmarried women in her village.
There is a fierce intelligence in Ena, though it is masked by her youthful exuberance. She is perceptive, able to read between the lines of conversation, and maneuver social situations with surprising dexterity.
The best descriptions of her from the current draft of the novel are as follows:
Ena was well-spoken but had a quick, sporadic cadence. She made steady eye contact and smiled often, even when her words weren’t suited for one.
From the perspective of Leander Veille
She looked a lot like a quill, with a slender build, dark inky hair that reminded him of Freja’s, and a complexion identical to a sheet of papyrus.
From the perspective of Cullum Soleil
Ena’s personality used to be more serious, but she has been rewritten to be much more playfully witty. Her current personality is very similar to Leander’s personality before his sister’s death. Leander even notices this and forms a quick fondness for her.
I end up drawing Ena only every once in a while. Her character goes through many changes throughout that time. I don’t really think Ena’s true appearance is captured by the current illustrations. Hopefully, as she becomes a larger part of the story, her image comes together. Here are the facts, based on how the other characters describe her.
Shiny, dark hair.
Slender build.
Pale skin.
Pointy, bird-like features.
Recently, I have liked depicting her with a short, boyish cut.
This is the most accurate illustration of Ena.
This is illustration best capture Ena’s “vibe”
This is the very first sketch of Ena!
And my favorite.
Rain chirred. The princess exhaled quivering, rattling breaths. The prince tilted her head into him, stroking her mousy head.
He whispered.
“ — the dragon falls from the sky, finally defeated. His body erupts in furious flames. He descends upon Dinas Emrys like a fallen star. The city is scorned. Its king watches from a distant hilltop, discontented. He shrugs his shoulders and tells his men, ‘Alas, there was much gold in Dinas Emrys.’”
A draft dashed through the room. Stiff and shivering, the child awakened.
Despite being a pretty prominent character throughout the first half of the story, Cullum doesn’t have many illustrations. Not that I don’t love his character! He happens to be a bit tricky for me to draw.
Here’s a super official description of Cullum’s overall personality:
Cullum Soleil is bound by duty, loyalty, and an unshakable sense of honor. He is tall and broad-shouldered, built like a man who has spent his life wielding a sword, with sharp, sun-kissed features that mirror the name he bears. His dark eyes are observant yet weary, reflecting the weight of unspoken burdens.
Once a street orphan, Cullum owes his life to the late queen, who saw potential in him and gave him the chance to serve. This debt fuels his unwavering allegiance to the crown, though it also leaves him conflicted — especially when it comes to Leander, the boy he was meant to protect but now struggles to understand. Their bond is laced with tension, shaped by Cullum’s belief in duty and Leander’s resistance to it. Though he cares for Leander deeply, he fears growing too close, knowing that his loyalty to the king may one day demand his betrayal.
Cullum carries a quiet, restrained love for Freja, his childhood friend and the woman he believes is bond to him. Despite his devotion, she keeps him at a distance, never giving him hope yet never severing the thread between them. He aches for something she will not give, and though he tries to convince himself that their fate is already written, doubt lingers in the shadows of his mind.
Cullum is defined by his unyielding sense of right and wrong, but in a world where loyalties shift and truths unravel, he may find that honor is not so simple—and neither is love.
The best description of him from the current draft of the novel is as follows:
Cullum had stretched like taffy. His legs were longer, his arms were longer, and even his hair was longer. The fullness of his cheeks was carved away by time and too much training. His blue eyes were the only constant. The pearly blue shimmered at Leander, as if he saved his life. Grown out, his once white-blonde hair turned brassy. Just the ends of the strands were still light. Besides his nose, which was red and freckled, his face was warmly tanned.
From perspective of Leander Veille
I may be very indecisive, but Cullum’s design is mostly down. (The scars man, idk. They are all injured so much.) His appearance drastically changes at some point. He chops off his longer hair and gains a gnarly scar across his right eye. The wound was so bad, he ends up losing his right eye entirely. He loses a bit of weight, giving him a leaner build. Most depictions of Cullum are before the events that caused these changes. Here’s the important stuff:
Sandy, brassy hair
Very blue eyes
Freckles
Muscular
There are the most canon sketches of Cullum.
There is one sketch that really captures Cullum’s essence.
My first sketch of Cullum!
And finally, my favorites. Yippee!
He was a knight, and it was his duty to follow the king’s orders, but he didn’t respect the king. He loved Freja and dreamed of her happiness, but she didn’t want happiness. The queen took him from the streets, a kindness that should be repaid, but she never asked anything from him. And there was Leander, who was stuck in a frenzy of what others wanted, just as he was. With so much weighing on his mind, he could’ve taken a wrong turn, but the steps lay ahead of them. Cullum feared there were no wrong turns. He feared no matter which turns he took, they’d lead him to these steps.
Chapter 12
Short aside, Leander sees Cullum as a soldier who’s been hardened by the battlefield. In reality, he has never killed a man. Further, Cullum finds true shame in his past on the streets.
He knew the alleys as well as a street rat, a bittersweet fact. He’d never wash off the stench of Rafflesia district. Regardless of what uniform he put on or who he stood beside, he’d be an orphan with alleys instead of veins.
Chapter 13
Cullum is painfully aware of how much he owes to the royal family. If it weren’t for the queen’s mercy, he may have been one of the many orphans left to die on the streets. He is bound by this perceived need to repay. He spent so long serving the needs of others that he has an extremely hard time figuring out what he wants for himself. Freja is essentially the only thing he’s ever known he wanted, yet he cannot have her.
Thanks for reaching the end. As a bonus, here’s a little sketch of Cullum as a kid.
THE DIVINER'S SON 