User: he_who_kills Date: 2009-12-24 17:06 Subject: Video post Security: Public Location: Opera House/laying in wait Mood: mischievous

[Look whose going to pull ninja cat move on a certain somebody.]

User: valentineluke Date: 2009-12-23 18:41 Subject: (no subject) Security: Public Location: Fountain/Square Mood: listless

Not too surprising I would return during a curse.

Little seems to have changed during my absence from this world. Few more holiday decorations have been added - how festive.

( (Private to Road) )

User: dresden4hire Date: 2009-12-23 18:32 Subject: 241st Quip Security: Public

My father, Malcolm Dresden, was a good man, a generous man, a hopeless loser. A stage magician at a time when technology was producing more magic than magic, he had never had much to give his family. He was on the road most of the time, playing run-down houses, trying to scratch out a living for my mother. He wasn't there when I was born.

He wasn't there when she died.

He showed up more than a day after I'd been born. He named me, then took me with him, on the road, entertaining children and retirees, performing in school gymnasiums and grocery stores. He was always generous, kind-more kind and more generous than we could afford, really. And he was always a little bit sad. He would show me pictures of my mother, and talk about her, every night. It got to where I almost felt that I knew her, myself.

( He died in his sleep one night. An aneurysm, the doctors said. I found him, cold, smiling. Maybe he'd been dreaming of Mother when he went. )

The weird thing is he's come to me in dreams and visions since then. It's odd meeting your father when you're the same age.

My mother is a whole different story. Margaret Gwendolyn LeFay Dresden was a scary, scary lady. She's been dead for over 30 years and people are still afraid to speak her name. I guess she wanted to revamp the laws of magic to include things like justice rather than just limiting use of power. It sounds good but in the end it's not. People tell me she was brilliant, erratic, passionate, committed, idealistic, talented, charming, insulting, bold, incautious, arrogant... and short-sighted.

But I know she loved me. She's also visited me in visions and I can tell she regrets a lot of her decisions. Probably all of them but having my brother and I and marrying my father. She died when her former lover was so furious over her leaving him he had an entropy curse cast on her, causing her to die in childbirth.

Aaaaand that's way, way more than anyone wanted to know, I'm sure.

[ooc: *I pretty much just quoted that entire top part from the books, so Jim Butcher's words, not mine.]

User: cursed_ninja Date: 2009-12-23 15:17 Subject: [accidental voice post] Security: Public

So that's the curse today? To talk about families?

Hn. It doesn't do much good to talk about them when they're all dead.

[ooc; Not cursed. He's just reminiscing a bit, he hates these type of curses-- he doesn't realize it recorded either, and well since this is a very touchy subject with him, just a warning that he might not even respond~]

User: misterblackbird Date: 2009-12-23 16:13 Subject: Entry 367; Day 369 Security: Public Location: Opera Abandoned

My family is a very old one, stretching back hundreds if not thousands of years. We've a castle, after all, in Cornwall, and lands there too, though I don't visit any of the lands my family holds often. We've a crest too, if that carries any weight in the City: a griffin. From our very origins, we've a reputation not all that unlike the Borgias, if you follow my meaning. I shouldn't be at all surprised if some of the family came and went to Italy more than once. It seems entirely plausible to me, knowing what I know. We were known for our reputation. Whether the rank of Earl came before, after, or with that reputation, I don't know. I only know that the title is almost as old as the family.

( [Public Post || Viewable to All] )

I've aunts and uncles in droves, but I've not a care for them. My father is a madman, as is my half-brother; my mother is dead, as is my beloved cousin--no matter what that creature might claim. For all that my family seems vast, those are only blood ties. Of them all, perhaps only Uncle Neil comes closest to being a real uncle. I am related to them, yes, but my family is small: Merry and Riff and me. If I can keep them near me, I could be happy forever.

There is something between us that is deeper than blood ties. And I think no one but the three of us can understand that.

~C.

[ooc: And...it's all canon ._.v I may have missed a few uncles or aunts mentioned in passing, but I tried my best! I hit the big ones, I think. I may edit this as I go through the canon again ah ha ha ha but nothing big will change in this post. I just might...add a bit.]

User: makes_you_tick Date: 2009-12-22 22:50 Subject: [Voice] Security: Public

The Gray family was always a little wrong. Okay, a lot wrong. My father, Samson Gray, was a murderer. He was afflicted with the 'gift' of knowing only a little, having only a little, and being aware of how much he was missing. He'd kill people for their abilities. When I was five, he sold me for cash to my aunt and uncle, then walked outside and murdered my mother. He used telekinesis, opening her head up like a ripe orange before he pushed her out of the car, leaving her in that dusty parking lot. It's the only time I can remember seeing my mother's face, that shocked expression...

My uncle had never wanted a child, so he left two weeks later. The old out-for-a-cigarette routine. He never came back. My aunt raised me as her own, never telling me the truth. I wonder sometimes if she always expected me to become a monster, like my dad. But she was still always there for me, up until the end.

All I'd ever really wanted when I was a kid was for my father-- my uncle-- to come back. I wanted a real family. I wanted him to be proud of me. I miss that hope, small as it was.


...thanks so very much, City.

User: venomouselle Date: 2009-12-22 13:30 Subject: glance 310 Security: Public Tags: bill, bitch, do not want, give me something to break, hmph, holiday, la vida diva, you fucking suck

Christmas time all over again, huh? Of course. Practically everyone with a mouth has been talking about it. As if we could ever fucking forget. Then the brand spanking new year comes on after. I wonder if we're going to get more world ending signs when it gets closer to New Year's Eve. I seen it happen. Who the fuck really knows.

Santa packs a punch for an old guy. Goes to show you better watch out for them.

User: misterblackbird Date: 2009-12-22 15:15 Subject: Entry 366; Day 368 Security: Public Location: Opera Abandoned

I think the 'deities' have very contentedly settled back into their routine of cursing us every few days. And it almost seems like October, when the curses alternated between the stupid and the terrifying. Although I rather think the curse from earlier this week was both stupid and terrifying. I can hardly imagine Father Christmas wielding axes and swords. Sometimes the 'deities' surprise even me, even if the pattern of curses is familiar.

I'll still count myself fortunate that I didn't encounter that monstrous Father Christmas in the City on Sunday. After I saw a few posts on the Network, it seemed wiser to defend myself and prepare in case I did encounter him than not. Once again, I've just barricaded myself in my room and waited for midnight.

Although some would say it's a shame that I didn't feel an urge to explain my good and bad deeds during the past year. It's like gossip, and I don't know of many people in the City who don't like gossip. I let the anniversary of my return to the City slip by entirely--it's been a bit more than a year that I've last seen home and I've certainly done enough in the City--though whether good or bad I shall leave unanswered. The real Father Christmas, if there were one, would know.

Christmas is this Friday and today is already Tuesday. As I recall, yesterday was supposedly the shortest day of the year--if the City follows those same rules of the seasons. It certainly seems to, though we've not yet had any real snow. Yes, there was a curse that divided the City into those who liked warmth and those who liked cold, and there was a bit of ice and snow then, but hardly the snowstorms we've had here in the past.

Perhaps we'll have some snow by Christmas. So long as it isn't an absolute storm, I think it would be rather enjoyable. There's no curse today, nor was there one yesterday. The odds are best that there will be one tomorrow. And that means that there may also be one on Christmas, or the day after.

If the 'deities' have any mercy in them, they won't set down a curse on Christmas Day. I've had enough holidays cursed this year and I don't think I'll stand for Christmas Day to be cursed.

( [Private to Sam Witwicky & Princess Rosella || Unhackable] )

( [Private to Opera House Residents || Unhackable] )

Riff, I think we could easily finish with Christmas preparations today, especially since there doesn't seem to be any kind of curse at all today. We've certainly had enough problems keeping us from preparing much for Christmas so far this month, but we've not much left to do. I think we could finish it all today and we'd do best to take advantage of a day without a curse as must as we can.

And you are taking Christmas Day off, of course.

Now if only I knew what to give you for Christmas--I can't just give you a Christmas box here--That would just be disgraceful--I'll have to think of something better--

~C.

[ooc: Blah blah blah. Sorry for my lack of updates of late. I'm still recovering from final projects and things. ;; Cain didn't encounter the crazy Santa, but he certainly saw everyone else crossing his path. Cain, Cain, Cain, you've got to learn to live a little more dangerously...]

User: makes_you_tick Date: 2009-12-21 10:48 Subject: Welcome home. Security: Public

I have my memories back. Not only that, but I'm me again- however better or worse that might be. It was a hell of a time, back home. Thankfully, that's all over now, even if I'm never going to get that popcorn grease out from under my nails.

Thank you to everyone who was willing to help me out when I was last here. I appreciated the effort, I know I was tough to talk to.

The watch shop is, once again, closed for repairs. I made a mess of things when I was pulled out before. That's okay, it'll give me time to take care of a few things.

( Private to Peter )

User: pinkikemenhero Date: 2009-12-20 13:59 Subject: Ikemen Beam ~ 136 Security: Public Mood: worried Tags: affected, christmas, curse, getting revenge, gonna kick some ass, oh hell no, oi santa, santa's slay, wtf

[accidental voice]

... Hn? ... You. A bit early, aren't you?

[Is that a chainsaw being revved up? Yes it is.]

... I already delivered your presents once, what do you want n-

[and now that chainsaw is cutting through something. Thankfully it's not Hiiragi. Okay, this is definitely not the Santa he knows]

Tch. I should have figured. Even Santa isn't off limit for curses...

User: seahorse_dragon Date: 2009-12-19 18:02 Subject: Record Seven Security: Public Mood: aggravated Tags: red thread plot

This has become extremely old.

No offense intended, Buffy-san.

If anyone knows how to get this thread off, I'm sure we'd both greatly appreciate the insight.

EDIT: That had better not be it.

User: princess_crow Date: 2009-12-19 18:22 Subject: Two Hundred and Sixteenth Position ]Accidental Video[ Security: Public Location: Opera Abandoned Mood: crushed Tags: angst level is ovar 9000, angst princess, raven's blood stirs, the light of hope is gone

[The device that’s on the table is softly knocked down to a side. Starting a feed of the right angle of Rue who is dressed in a maroon leotard, dancing alone inside the rehearsal room; she pauses with her gaze lingering on a corner. There’s a chair there and, over the seat, a pair of light pink slippers that used to belong to Ahiru. She feels as if she is going to start crying again, but she refuses to break down again. Instead, she throws herself wholly into her upsetting ballet, one without melody or tune to accompany her graceful motions. She reclines to grasp her chest, her heart aches under her breast with the sense of lost and the too familiar fear of being alone again, as she was when she first came to the City years ago.

Her Prince. Autor. Ahiru. Will Fakir be next? She wants to forget about everything, have her thought drift into happier days they used to be together under the same roof.

Step. Step. Pirouette. Step. Step. Run. Grande jete…]

User: eccentric_ox Date: 2009-12-19 00:55 Subject: 215 Security: Public Mood: pensive

Down one.

It seems like a repetitive cycle.

It's always hard to keep people in one place, isn't it? It's better this way, as it always is.

User: vicodincrutch Date: 2009-12-18 11:59 Subject: 087. Diagnosis Security: Public Tags: caspian, curse?, dammit eden do something, do not want, dr grinch, lolz, sigh, this bites

Good? Nice? This year I've been a saint.

I haven't fired anyone. I haven't been caught breaking and entering. I've made leaps and bounds educating the young. My amnesty actions with the Irish are on Peace Prize grounds. Let's not forget my impact on the Hispanic community: gracias, Caspian.

But enough about me. I'm curious to see what I'm getting out of it.

User: misterblackbird Date: 2009-12-17 23:01 Subject: Entry 365; Day 363 Security: Public Location: Opera Abandoned

Riff, given everything that's gone on this month, we've not had time to plan for anything--not even Christmas--and here it is the 17^th of December. I suppose the chance, however false it might be, to go home and the risk, however real that was, of the City's destruction could distract anyone.

I've been invited to Christmas dinner, too, though we may have one for ourselves amongst the opera house residents too. I suppose I'll have to decide which invitation to accept. I'd rather like to bring you along--

For those who might find themselves wondering, I did manage to survive those ordeals the 'deities' or that Architect threw us into. I found myself trapped in my room, then a grave, and then I was made to dig myself out of it and into the cemetery. It was hardly an easy task, or need I say so?

Never mind the curses that came after, as exhausted and injured as I already way, both having to endure a glowing, red nose, and having mistletoe sprouting everywhere. That seems to happen most every year. I know I've endured that curse at least twice. And, really, the next time mistletoe starts sprouting everywhere, the best thing to do is to keep inside and keep to yourself. I didn't have any trouble with it. Then again, I still wasn't feeling quite well, but I wasn't so badly affected by it all. Admittedly, yes, it was tiresome to endure the mistletoe growing from my ceiling, but nothing came of it, fortunately. I doubt anyone would have wanted to kiss me in that state anyway.

As I recall, though, it was around this time last year that there was at attack of zombies. I wasn't in the City at the time, for good or ill, but I did hear about it when I returned. I almost think that December should be dreaded as much as October. There's usually at least one week that's as wretched as that. And, as I recall, the 'Stewards' came in January. Perhaps January will be quiet this year.

But first there's Christmas. And if it's the 17^th of December, that means tomorrow is the 18^th and my birthday. It's a very strange thing to realise that I'll be turning eighteen for the second time in the City. At least, that's the best I've managed to figure out about it.

I was seventeen when I arrived in the City for the first time, and I stayed here through my eighteenth birthday. I could have been here through my ninteenth birthday as well, but the City saw fit to show mercy enough to send me home for a fortnight of my time and a week of the City's time. So I was seventeen again while I was at home, of course, and I didn't remember anything about the City. And that would mean that I was seventeen again when the City drew me back in--unless, of course, I gained that year back with my memories, but I somehow doubt that. So that means I'm turning eighteen for the second time in the City.

I suppose I could be turning either eighteen or nineteen or even twenty. But I rather think I'm turning eighteen. I feel, more or less, as I did when I turned eighteen before, even if it is strange to have even one's own age stopped, to some degree, by the City. Time stops in our worlds while we're here, even our own lives.

Either way, some would say I've reached my majority. Not that I haven't already been living independently for years now, of course. And I don't know that I'll really have come of age at home until I'm twenty-one, but I've already inherited both my title and my fortune--I will have had those for ten years by then.

Perhaps it doesn't matter at all, really. After all, the City is a separate thing from home. After all, it also means that I've been here for another year. It's been almost exactly a year, from my count, since the City brought me back in.

That time I was fortunate. I suppose that's some of why I hoped that tear in the sky really did lead home.

I should have really learnt from my past years here, as long as I've been here.

Although, I suppose I've learnt enough to only ask what was going on at the edge of the forest today. I heard a few rumours on the Network and I saw a little of what was going on. If it was a curse, it was a small one. I watched what I could as one might a storm, but nothing came of it.

And that's just as well.

Riff, I've a few plans for tomorrow evening, as I'm sure you expected.

~C.

[ooc: LOL UNANNOUNCED HIATUS~!! School tried to eat me there at the end of the semester and I just couldn't spare the time to play like I wanted to--and when I did have time, I was beat and had no inspiration. I'm working on the last pages of my last paper right now. So, um, hi! My excuse is that Cain was recovering from his injuries (from Yuri, from the carousel tiger, and from digging himself out of his own grave), recovering mentally, and maybe he had a fever. Also, for the record, Cain doesn't have a canon birthday, so I've claimed Kaori Yuki's birthday for his birthday. And that would be tomorrow, December 18^th (Cain seems like he would have been born in winter). He's turning 18...again!]

User: dresden4hire Date: 2009-12-17 19:49 Subject: 240th Quip Security: Public

I hate, hate, hate chlorofiends. Plant monster attacks are never fun. They're always a lot messier than you'd expect them to be.

The Christmas tree in the apartment looks good though. Strings of popcorn, candles, and ornaments and all that. Almost like home. You know, if I actually put a tree up back home.

Detective Beckett, do you have any plans for tomorrow evening?

[ooc: Pretend this went up before Tara returned all dead and such.]

User: againstgod Date: 2009-12-17 14:46 Subject: # 260 Security: Public Location: Firehouse rooftop Mood: calm Tags: foolish man, nature pwns you, sara and setsuna, the great organic angel

The rage of nature.
Mm. It suits this season.

Mister Four Wings. I have moved with Sara Mudou back into th Firehouse.

(ooc; Pretend was earlier! Link ooc!).

User: crossshapedscar Date: 2009-12-16 12:56 Subject: 245th Oro // Video Security: Public

[The feed comes on, showing Kenshin from the side in his living room on a couch with his giant orange cat sprawled across his lap. His right arm is still in the sling and he's awkwardly switched it on with his left--the device likely sitting on the arm of he couch.]

[He looks a bit down--big surprise.]

This unworthy one has been in this apartment almost his entire time in this City... [scratches Orenji under the chin--the cat looks pleased at least.]

He thinks... he is ready to move... but... [Moves the slung arm a bit.] he isn't entirely capable of doing it himself this time...

...

Would anyone be willing to help him?

...

This unworthy one... would like to be elsewhere by the 19th...




[ooc; Yeeeeeeeah... 19th is his anniversary of marrying Kaoru the FIRST time... and she's gone. Again. Emo!boy is emo :/]

User: floating_bamboo Date: 2009-12-16 00:37 Subject: ❀22❀ Security: Public Mood: disappointed Tags: daddyfish worries, edensphere is one big family, maybe i'm older than i look, my adoptive kids, • bastet, • blood, • handmaiden, • serenity (matsuri), • will

This is ridiculous. After all the problems we've gone through, someone now feels the need to murder a guard? What good does such actions do? Whatever the reason was, you've brought upon yourself more trouble than anything you had before.

Bastet, is there anything I can do to help?

Will, Serenity and Geranium; there is food in the fridge if you feel hungry after work.

User: pinkikemenhero Date: 2009-12-15 15:33 Subject: Ikemen Beam ~ 135 Security: Public Mood: annoyed Tags: affected, brothers, curse, he's mister hundred and one, hot tempered brother, i'm mister ten below, icy cold, jun, snooty mode is go, snow miser, throwing contest

[video]

[Hiiragi's seen standing at the thermostat. He's got it set to 50°F. As soon as their furnace clicks, Jun comes running over]

50?! Are you kidding me? That's friggin' freezing!

[He closes his eyes and tilts his nose in the air]

No. Your 80° was much too warm.

[Jun looks like Hiiragi just went insane]

Then go outside if you want it that cold! I hope you get pneumonia.

And how would I write music outside?

Sit on a bench, genius!

No. I am keeping the thermostat at this temperature and if you don't like it, then move into the next apartment.

No way! All my stuff is in THIS apartment!

Then deal with it.

[JUN RAGGEEE. Cue things being thrown across the room until Jun's hit in the head with something that's been frozen solid. Oops.]

Tch. Idiot...


[OOC: FUCK YEAH MY CHILDHOOD. 8D Snow miser ftw. Apologies for the playercest but it was too good to pass up.]