Princess Rosella of Daventry

[Accidental Video Post]

[When the video first snaps on, it's accompanied by a brief glimpse of what appears to be white fur; for those more familiar with Rosella's living arrangements, they might recognize the culprit in question as Snowdrop, her cat, who is apparently feeling somewhat adventurous today.

Rosella, for her part, seems to have no idea what her cat is up to, or that she's currently on camera; at the moment, she's standing in front of the mirror in her bedroom, gazing intently into it as though looking for something. Rather than being pulled back in her usual braids, her long blonde hair is down today, and she's standing with a lock of it caught in one hand, absently twisting it around her fingers as she looks at whatever it is that's keeping her enthralled at the moment.

Then, after a few tilts of her head and tugs of her hair, the answer becomes apparent:]

...Well, at least it washed out, just like the last time...

[She frowns, pausing a minute to regard herself in the mirror, and then resumes fussing--and shortly thereafter, the video switches itself off with a click.]


[OOC: So yes, Rosella was cursed yesterday but my schedule tied me up from posting about it, and to hear her talk, it was the most awful day ever--except that she really just spent it as a brunette. What can she say, she's a little vain and likes being blonde. If you want to say you spotted her out and about yesterday, feel free! She'll just be a little miffed if the hair color topic arises. :D]

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[Failed Filter | Accidentally Viewable to Public]

PARTY
--Location

o) Gardens?
o) Palace?
o) Warehouse?

--Guest list
--Invitations

o) Out by Monday at latest

--Food

o) Dinner? No, that's too much for one little party
o) Snacks
o) θάνατος
o) Desserts?
o) Cake

--Music
--Decorations

o) "Crystal Ball"?
o) Find out about chocolate fountains
o) Fresh flowenslsossffffssssmmsss,usfsfosfff

[OOC: Hello, bad omens! The abrupt ending to this post (and failed filter) is because Rosella's poor skittish cat just jumped on her, which made her stylus drag across her device's screen--which the device promptly translated into a jumble of letters. And due to the fact that she'll be nursing a scratched hand for the next few moments, she won't realize right off that her filter failed--or that she unconsciously added "death" in Arabic and Greek to her lists.]

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...That's odd, how did that get there? And it doesn't seem to want to come down, at any rate, so I suppose it will have to stay. It's a bit odd to think of a cat dancing, isn't it? And especially so when his partner has turned herself invisible; one would think she'd want to be the center of attention if she could help it, and show off her lovely dress for all to see. Though perhaps she's invisible because she's shy, or was made to feel ashamed of the dress she had, like Cinderella. Poor dear, I'm sure it was very lovely. After all, fur never does go out of fashion, does it?

Well, in any case, it seems I'm not the only one with dancing on my mind, if these cats are any indication. And how could anyone not, with a ball like Tamaki's on the horizon? And I must admit, I'm quite excited about the theme--I like all the parties we have here, of course, but the formal balls are really my favorites. They feel the most like home, and it's always such fun to see all the lovely ladies in dresses and their dapper partners dancing the night away.

And speaking of dancing, is it true that most people in modern times never learn how to waltz properly? Really, it's such a shame to hear. But there's still a few weeks until the ball, and that's certainly more than enough time for lessons, if anyone should like to learn how. After all, "practice every day has made / Pangur perfect in his trade", as the rhyme goes. And I'm sure there are enough of us around who do know how to dance, that we ought to be able to offer lessons for anyone interested in learning.


[OOC: She's in ur City makin ur lolcats relevant. Link is OOC and there for player reference, but she's definitely advertising for the ball--and yes, she's serious about offering dancing lessons for anyone who wants to learn how. After all, the more people dancing, the merrier! And if anybody else wants to get in on helping teach, feel free to chat Rosella up about it; she'd be more than pleased for the help. ♥]

Well, that was certainly an...interesting curse yesterday, wasn't it? Rather tedious after a while, of course, but the same could be said for most of the curses, anyway. When they're not dangerous, they're tedious, and even the nicer ones begin to get a bit wearing after a while, in the hours winding down toward midnight. But I did like yesterday's curse, in its own way; some of the songs were terribly catchy, and even if things did get a bit repetitive, at least it made it that much easier to learn the tune and the words. I recognized a few of them, even, from around Christmas last year--like the one about the holly and jolly, or the one about the star dancing in the night with the tail as big as a kite. I like both of those very much.

I'm, er, not quite as certain about the one about the hippopotamus, though. It does seem like a terribly odd gift to ask for, doesn't it? Whatever would one do with a hippopotamus, anyway? I could understand a horse, perhaps, but certainly not that.

Goodness, and speaking of horses, it's almost two years now that I've had Valor in the City! He was my Christmas present two years ago, and it's been just lovely having him. I wonder if there are any places to find a sleigh around the City? Or if there's time to build one, even, before Christmas Eve. It'd be great fun to go sleighing around to see everyone, especially with all this snow, and I'm sure Valor would enjoy the chance to trot about with a harness of bells and holly in his mane and so on.

And wasn't it lovely to see all of the visitors earlier this week? Most of them were They were all so nice! I saw Blue again, and Duo, and the Goblin King, and made plenty of other new friends besides. It's always so wonderful to visit with them all when they manage to come, and I think it made for a perfect start to the holiday season, really. Except for that awful

Oh, er--and Nigel, I do hope you've been settling in all right? If there's anything else you need, please do let me know and I'll be happy to see to it for you. Or...er, ask, if you'd rather, and I'll help you find it yourself, instead.

Well, we're two days into October, now, and we haven't had a curse yet.

Perhaps it's just asking for trouble, saying that. But I seem to recall thinking the same thing last year, too--that the month started off quietly, without any curses to speak of, and I remember wondering if that might be a sign that it was going to be an easy month, after all. But now I rather wonder if all Octobers will start out this way, with a great deal of trouble to usher it in right at the end of September, and then a few days of quiet at the very beginning before everything gets awful again. Last year in September, there was all that trouble with the prison exploding--which means it's been sunken beneath the lake for a year now. It's a little strange to think it's been gone all this time, really. And horrible to think what they did to the people there-- And this year it was a boat--or an ark, rather--and now that's been sunken, too, and by a whale of all things.

Ugh. At least it didn't eat me this time.

I remember I wasn't one of the ones taken for that prison curse. Some of my friends were, but I wasn't. And I remember wondering over and over again why it was that things had turned out that way, why they'd been put into that mess and I wasn't. Dr. Chase said it was something to do with surviving and guilt--"survivor's guilt", I think it must've been. I just remember feeling terrible because I hadn't done more to help when people were in trouble.

But I suppose it's always easier to look back on things and see what we ought to have done differently, isn't it? Just like it's easy to forget that looking back on something and regretting the choices we made at the time won't solve anything at all. What matters is learning from a mistake, and trying hard not to make it again, and hoping that the next time something horrible happens, you'll have the wisdom and experience and good sense to get through it without making mistakes.

This time, on the ark, I was one of the ones that ended up there. And as horrible as it was, for those hours we spent in the rain and the water and on the beach after we were wrecked...I still think it was the right decision to go. At least that way, I knew I was with the people I care about, and even if there were to be danger, at least that way we'd be together in facing it. Isn't it better to take that sort of risk for the sake of saving others, even if it'd be safer for yourself in staying home?

They're difficult questions, I think. But October is the sort of month that begs them.

But in any case. On the bright side of things, at least the Warehouse managed to come out of things reasonably safe and dry. Prince weathered the storm perfectly fine, and Snowdrop is all dried out now, though I don't think she'll soon forgive me for that swim we took the other day. I meant to go check Blue's old apartment yesterday, too, but I ended up staying under a pile of covers all day, keeping warm instead. So perhaps I'll go today, and see how that made out.

...Or perhaps I'll go tomorrow, and stay under my covers all day again, today.

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My, what an odd few days we've had lately! First it was that silly day where no one could write much more than a sentence or two on the Network at a time, and everything appeared backwards, and then yesterday it seemed as though half the City was sparkling like diamonds! Still, I agree with Todd; I'd much rather have a ridiculous curse than a terrible one, no matter how silly it might turn out to be. It's tedious to have to think on how to make a message fit a certain number of words, or to have to wear those dark glasses in the sun to keep from being dazzled by the sparkling that people were doing, but there's no real harm in it, and that's always something to be grateful for.

And it seems that August isn't turning out to be quite as bad as I've been expecting! There certainly seem to be a lot of nice things happening lately, too. Old friends are turning up again, and it seems there are some secret admirers going around, too, delivering special gifts to lucky people when they least expect it. Like that lovely little crane I found in the mailbox the other day--I know quite a few people have been getting those. And I know Penny got a lovely jacket recently, too, which is beautiful and well-deserved, I'm sure.

Oh, and speaking of which--Penny, thank you again for the beautiful portrait. It's absolutely lovely and you're wonderfully talented, and I had a marvelous time sitting for it. If it's all right with you, I'd like to have it framed and put it up on my wall. I think it'd look just lovely next to the one of my family that Sam got me for Christmas this past year.

Duo, have you recovered from the war we waged against the cupcakes in the kitchen the other day? I thought I ought to warn you that I've made another batch or two, so it seems reinforcements have arrived. We may be forced to engage them again soon. Perhaps after we work a bit on that project I mentioned to you the other day?

In any case, I hope things stay quiet and occasionally ridiculous like this for a while. We could all use the respite, I think, no matter how odd of a respite it may be.


[OOC: Whew! Rosella's been keeping busy lately, between a ghostly visitor last night, having Arkady attempt a break-in of the Warehouse, getting paper cranes in the mail, and all the usual August worries. But such is life in the City!

Also, the lovely art Rosella linked to is IC, viewable to all, and definitely not drawn by me--credit for that goes to Penny and Veda, who are amazing and worthy of praise.]

[Accidental Video Post]

[As the video switches on and fades in from black, the sound of wingbeats and merry chirping can be heard, as though a multitude of birds of all varieties have all come together in one place. Shortly thereafter, the picture comes in to focus on Rosella, standing in the middle of one of the burned-out sections of the Library with a broom in her hands and a bluebird on her shoulder. She is wearing a neat, albeit slightly sooty, dress and a pair of sensible shoes, and her hair is braided and pinned up on her head with a few tendrils hanging loose, having obviously slipped free of their coils while she was working.

However, the strangest sight is the wildlife around her--birds, squirrels, chipmunks, and even the occasional deer, all with wide innocent eyes, and all dutifully aiding her in her attempt to clean up her area of the Library. The birds flutter around collecting bits of charred paper that have fallen on the ground, the squirrels dust and sweep with their tails, the chipmunks sort though the remains for anything that might be salvageable, and the deer trot around with collections of half-burned books and pieces of wood secured in their antlers, delivering them to other parts of the Library.

And every one of them is singing or contributing to the tune. Merrily.

The expression on Rosella's face clearly reveals just how ridiculous she finds all this commotion, but hey, she's not about to complain about the extra help in cleaning the Library. When she speaks, her voice sounds...not different, exactly, but perhaps slightly more melodious than usual.]

Oh, do be careful! That's quite a lot of books you're carrying around, you know--don't try to take too many at once! Really, there's no need to rush. I really do appreciate the help, but I haven't any balls to be late for, so there's no need to work so fast and risk hurting yourselves.

[The birds twitter and chirp at this, rustling their wings noisily.]

Yes, of course, you're all being wonderfully helpful, thank you.

[A pause, as she glances toward the camera.]

Oh, drat, how did that get on? I don't suppose one of you could...oh, thank you, I do apprecia--

[And with a flurry of fur near the camera, the video switches off.]


[OOC: Cinders + Rosella = Cinderosella? And a little bit of Snow White, too. She's afflicted with the Child Friendly curse today, which means all the standard features of a standard Disney Princess--helpful birdies, merry work tunes, and the apparent ability to remain pretty even after a long day of hard work.

IF ANYONE IS INTERESTED IN JUMPING IN--safari!cursed people who want to join the animal brigade, people wanting to play Fairy Godmother, princes who want to attempt a rescue, etc.--feel free! I will roll with anything. :D]

Well, all this business has made for quite a spectacle on the Network today, hasn't it?

I'm not entirely certain I approve of the idea of people selling themselves--or each other, my goodness--to the highest bidder, but I must admit, it's not the first time I've heard of such a thing. I recall Blair doing much of the same thing last year for a charity event, and so despite the silliness of the...er, donation process, I suppose one might call it, all the money still went to a good cause. I do hope that's what it's all going toward today. Or, at least, that it's due to something more than just simple greed.

And I haven't seen myself featured in any such proclamations today, so that's something to be thankful for, at least. Or rather, I haven't seen myself featured in any of them so far. I do hope it stays that way; I really do think it's all a bit ridiculous, and I shouldn't like to give anyone the wrong impression because of all this silliness.

I will, however, point out that for anyone looking for a nice place to go to spend time with a friend--however that time might have, er, been acquired--the Turnabout Cafe and the Blue Light are both very fine and respectable establishments, and I'd recommend them both to anyone.

My, the City has just been full of commotion recently, hasn't it? All the bidding on the Network today, and yesterday night there was all that--whatever that was in the middle of the night, when the lights went out and all the noise started. I wonder if the City chose to repair itself from that, or if it's still all a mess? Regardless, I do hope that we'll manage to find out what happened and get things all resolved soon.

And Neil, thank you for the lovely walk yesterday. It was nice to see you in such a good mood, and I had a marvelous time. And I haven't forgotten about that story for you; with any luck, I'll have it ready soon.


[OOC: Sneaky princess is on ur Network, watchin' ur biddings! And she's not particularly interested in buying anyone for her own sake, but she's certainly not against dropping into bidding wars for her friends and ratcheting them up a little so they get a more worthy price, or buying someone to save them from a bidder they don't want. Bwahahaha. She's also not up for bid herself, but feel free to make offers anyway, if you want to see her sputter a little.]

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My, it really is raining out today, isn't it? Though I think I prefer this sort of rain to the variety we had yesterday. As unpleasant as it may be to go outside and get soaked through with rain, I imagine it'd be considerably worse to end up covered in cake and frosting, instead. All that sugar would make for a terribly sticky situation, I'm sure.

Still, it seems as though things are settling down a bit now. Monday's curse made for quite a troublesome day, what with the stories and rhymes running wild all about, and then yesterday it was falling cake, but today it seems as though it's nothing but rain--and ordinary rain, too. It may make things a bit more difficult for anyone trying to get around without getting wet, but it's certainly more peaceful than many of the curses we've been having lately, and much less...obtrusive, as well. Though I think it'd be better if people stayed indoors this evening if they could at all help it, because it rather sounds as though it's getting worse out there. I wonder if it will let up by tomorrow?

And I wonder if weather like this can really be called a curse, or if it ought to be termed as something else entirely. Perhaps it's simply the aftermath of the one we had yesterday--first it rained cake, and now it's water to wash it all away again. Or perhaps it's something to do with the curse we had on Monday, since I seem to recall a rhyme about rain falling down to wash spiders out. And I really do hope that won't be the case with this rainfall, but one never knows. Or perhaps it's simply the weather of the City, and there's no connection whatsoever. That might be for the best, really, if it was.

But in any case, it's raining, and that means I'll have to entertain myself indoors for the time being. Perhaps I ought to curl up with a book and a blanket and listen to the rain as I read. Or perhaps I'll go bake a cake myself, since all that cake yesterday rather put me in the mood for some of my own. Or I suppose I might get out my Rollerblades and go for a skate around the open parts of the Warehouse; there's certainly enough room for it, and it's far too wet to go skating outside, of course. There are plenty of ways to spend a rainy evening, after all.

Though, er, I can't help but wondering--did anyone happen to notice if lemon cakes were falling from the sky, too, along with all the others that came down yesterday?

[Accidental Video Post]

[The video opens with an image of Rosella, sitting at a table in the Library with bookshelves all around her as a backdrop. For anyone reasonably familiar with the Library, it is clear that she is not in one of the more high-traffic areas; quite the contrary, she's picked the quietest corner she could find, and tucked herself away as best she could in the back. All around her on the table are stacks of books piled seven or eight high, not so much for the purposes of reading, but--as soon becomes clear--for the purposes of huddling behind, and for obscuring from passing view the small pile of photographs she has accumulated in front of her.

From the way she handles them, they don't seem to be in any sort of order, and from the disheveled state of the pile, it looks as though she merely scooped up an armful off the ground and took them with her to examine, rather than picking them up one by one and looking at them individually. As she shuffles them around, attempting to straighten them into some sort of order, she mutters under her breath.]

So it's this curse again. I remember this one, raining memories in the form of pictures. As though the one that puts our memories up on the Network for all to see without our knowing isn't trying enough already...

[She sifts quickly through the pictures, her eyes flickering over them; she is clearly looking with a particular objective in mind, and from the way she shakes her head when she is done, it is apparent that she hasn't found what she was looking for.]

Drat, there aren't any of mine. Which means either there aren't any of mine at all floating around today...or I just haven't found any of them yet. Drat it all.

Well, I can at least give these ones back, anyway. Let's see, then.

[And she begins to sift through again, more carefully this time, glancing at each picture and separating them out into two piles--one of people she doesn't know, which becomes apparent from the way she quickly glances at them and then immediately sets them aside, and one of people she does know, which are equally apparent from the way she lingers over them.

After a minute or so of sorting, she glances at one and nearly drops it, her eyes going wide.]

What in the--

[And quite abruptly, the feed ends.]


[OOC: Rosella's in ur City lookin at ur pictures! And she's nabbed quite a few of them, too, but she's only collecting them so she can give them all back to their owners, promise. She hasn't found any of herself today yet, but anyone interested is welcome to grab any of the ones listed here. No limit on the number of duplicates, so have a ball! Just let me know if you're finding one, please? ♥]