Quest 226

[primrosella]

It's interesting, really; we've been having weekends like this past one for more than a year and a half now, and even though they're always quite ridiculous and often full of the same sorts of curses, no two weekends are ever just alike. I've been a bird quite a few times now--which is rather a shame, since I was thinking very hard about dressing up as one for Halloween, but the idea seems a bit less appealing now that I've just spent the whole weekend as one--and I've been a child, too, and I've felt compelled to write my name all over things, and I've acted...well, quite unlike myself at times, as well. And sometimes my friends turn into animals themselves, and other times their souls come out for a visit, and other times still it's memories on the Network or red letters on their clothes or something else equally silly and uncomfortable. But they're never just the same as the last, no matter how many times we have them.

This was the first time I'd been turned into a bird with a cat in the house, actually. Which isn't to say that I haven't done my share of staying away from cats when I've been turned into a bird, but usually I can manage to reason with the cat in question when it comes up, and Snowdrop didn't seem particularly interested in listening to reason at the time, anyway. So it's lucky that she didn't manage to get me, though I am rather pleased that she saw fit to come into my room at all, since it wasn't so long ago that she wouldn't even dare to set foot inside the door.

But in any case, it was no harm done and it's all over now, so that's that.

Let's see, then. Today is the eighteenth of October, which means two weeks from today is November first--so it's only two more weeks until October is over with for another year. It really does seem to be going fast, doesn't it? Or at least, faster than it did last year. And a bit milder than it was last year, too, which could mean one of two things--either this month is going to be milder all around than we've been expecting, or the past few weeks have been the calm before the storm, and the next two are going to be terribly troublesome. But there's really no way of knowing until they come, of course, so the most we can do is to hope for the best and plan for the worst, and simply ride out the next two weeks however they may turn out.

Oh, but speaking of which, that reminds me. A few months ago, when the deities had us all writing essays about one word or another, they rewarded those efforts with a sort of coin or token that was said to have the power to undo a curse. I know it's been a while since then, and we've had some rather awful curses in that time, so I was curious to know--has anyone used one of those tokens before? And if so, what ended up coming of it? Did it really manage to undo a curse that had already struck?

That's the sort of thing that might turn out to be quite useful to know, after all, and especially so considering the tricks this month often likes to play on us.

Mm. Two more weeks of October. I suppose that also means it's just about the time to start expecting Peg-Fist Jack and his ghostly crew, isn't it? Goodness, that legend has been around a long time now--pirates and lost treasure and a ship full of ghosts said to appear around Halloween, looking to claim it again. It's just the sort of spooky thing that goes with this time of year, isn't it? And at least ghosts, I should think, would be much more harmless than most of the things we tend to run into when this month comes around.


[OOC: Sob, nostalgia. So two years ago, Rosella and a friend invented a Halloween legend about a ghost pirate named Peg-Fist Jack, his first mate Leonard the Barnacle, and his ghost ship, the Wandering Hangman; it's evolved into a sort of running joke for her by now, so bringing him up this time of year is tradition. Longtime residents, feel free to note the fact that she does this every year. After all, it's all in good fun. :D]

Comments

[wandbreaker]

Peg-fist?

That sounds completely useless.

[primrosella.livejournal.com]

Well, some pirates have peg legs, and others have a hook where their hand ought to be. This one, it seems, got them a bit mixed up and ended up with a peg for a fist.

[wandbreaker]

Not particularly bright pirates, then?

[primrosella.livejournal.com]

Oh, he was quite the terror of the City seas! Or so the stories go, anyway. He's supposed to have some buried treasure around here somewhere, too, which is why he keeps coming back to haunt the place.

[wandbreaker]

What kind of treasure?

[misterblackbird.livejournal.com]

You're not still going on about Peg-Fist Jack, are you?

[primrosella.livejournal.com]

It's the right time of the year for him to come back and haunt us, you know.

[misterblackbird.livejournal.com]

Rosella, there are no such things as ghosts. Even in the City, we know better than that.

Yes, granted, things aren't quite as clear as they once were, but I rather doubt Peg-Fist Jack exists at all.

[primrosella.livejournal.com]

What about his scurvy crew, then? Leonard the Barnacle and Morgan the Lurch and all of them?

[misterblackbird.livejournal.com]

I rather doubt any of them are real.

[worksmart.livejournal.com]

I haven't used mine. Let me know if anyone gets back to you on that?

[primrosella.livejournal.com]

I will, of course. I'd like very much to know if they are of any use, after all.

[worksmart.livejournal.com]

Me, too. Maybe they'll get you out of a scrape if those pirates come calling.

[primrosella.livejournal.com]

It's the right time of the year for it, you know. I wonder if this will be the year that someone finally uncovers Peg-Fist Jack's lost treasure?

[worksmart.livejournal.com]

Could be. I met him and his crew once, wouldn't give them much credit for their sense of direction. Bunch of girls.

[had_not_lived]

Are you sure it's wise to mention him? You know what they say about calling ghosts' names.

[primrosella.livejournal.com]

Well, he's going to appear whether we like it or not, isn't he? It's that time of year, after all.

[had_not_lived]

Still, it takes a certain amount of nerve to risk provoking his ire, I think.

[primrosella.livejournal.com]

If I were trying to provoke his ire, I'd suggest we go try to dig up his treasure. I'm sure he wouldn't like that at all, would he?

[had_not_lived]

Perish the thought!

[hatedbyfanboys.livejournal.com]

They have... age reversal curses...?

[primrosella.livejournal.com]

Oh, yes! I've had that one quite a few times, actually.

[hatedbyfanboys.livejournal.com]

I.. see... Do they have.. aging up curses as well?

[primrosella.livejournal.com]

They do, yes. I've had that one once before, too, but it was a long time ago. And I've met a few other people that have had that one, too--some of my best advice once came from someone grown older that way, actually.

[hatedbyfanboys.livejournal.com]

But it's only from one possible future, right..? The deities can't know that much...