~Tess, being
of a different background, is quite a curiosity to characters like Dustin-who
are accustomed to women playing much less assertive roles; gilded with flowing
dresses and jewelry, and treated like fragile ornaments. Tess is quite the
opposite. She's independent to a fault, inconspicuously resolute, and carries
with her a rather prominent mean-streak.
It's obvious to those charmed (and often troubled) by her presence that Tess
has an agenda…it's never quite obvious, though, what exactly it is. Her
moods alter between searing, roguish humor, petulant contempt, furtive aloofness,
and pensive seriousness with disconcerting frequency. She has a disturbingly
light-hearted approach to her deliberately cruel pastimes, but attacks the
smallest of annoyances with almost inappropriate ferocity. She also makes
it very clear to her acquaintances that she tolerates their company only because
she has to, and maintains a tenacious barrier--fortified with idle threats--between
them and herself.
Tess's schizophrenic behavior stems from the intent to find some sense of
comfort in being unapproachably self-contained while surrounded by unfamiliarity.
At the same time, she uses it to highlight her strong aversion for the perceived
opulence and arrogance of Ainessa. Her underlying convictions regarding patriotism
and familial loyalty, however, offer her a separate perspective that she occasionally
allows to temper her belligerent manner.
