Art by WolfHuntressArt on DeviantArt!

I absolutely adore Turtle, and I think that's because I share quite a lot in common with him – namely the aspect that we both find so much value in stories and words and books! We also both struggle with low self-esteem and low opinions of ourselves, fighting for confidence. Turtle and I also share a very important life goal: to be like the characters that stories are written about.

Book Nine: Talons of Power (which my friends and I renamed "Turtle of Power" to keep the name-title theme going) was a comfort to me during some of my more weathering years. I found myself reflected in his inner commentary, his self-loathing over stupid mistakes he had made in the past. I've grown with him, in a way. To be honest, I think if you merge Turtle, Qibli and Sunny you'd get me perfectly represented as a Wings of Fire character!

In a way, his relationship with Anemone also sort of reminds me of my relationship with my own brother – although I try to find that parallel wherever I look, but I digress. This is especially true during Turtle's and Anemone's animus fight at the beach: her spells are primarily attacking and damaging, while his are defensive and defusing. We see Anemone so angry, and we see Turtle able to help her because he's gone through it all before her and worked out that there is hope if you persist and grow. 

Turtle is another character I hold close to my heart because of what he means to me and how much of myself I can see in him.