Loving Fictional People

I really love some fictional characters.

I don't even know how it happens, because when I read a book for the first time, or even the first book or two in a series, I barely know the characters.

I mean, of course character development happens along the way so I come to know them, and of course I always root for the hero(es).

But last week, I was reading the third book in a series, and I realized all of a sudden "I love that character."

I'll find myself talking to the book sweetly as I'm reading. I'll moan and call the characters "darling" when they do something stupid, or are on the receiving end of a stupid/ignorant action from a loved one. I practically squealed when one character remembered a first encounter that totally wasn't romantic at the time, but becomes romantic just because of the little fact that the character remembered it.

And then I just wanted to slap one of my favorite characters when she began falling for someone totally unworthy of her, and every single other character in the entire book knows it, and she would even know it if she took half a second to really look at the guy's personality and interests, rather than just his handsome face.

Whew. Rant over. Just wanted to say, it's interesting how I can grow to love some fictional characters so much; and I didn't even realize that I was starting to love them until they were thrown into the middle of a war that brought out the worst in each of them.