I suppose there is no harm in trying, is there?

My name is Frances Owens. I come originally from San Juan Island, Washington. Presently I serve as a Warden on this ship, and I am an excellent conversational companion.

[Private to Vriska Serket]

Up for that visit yet, dear?

Well. At least I got some baking done.

I prefer Halloweens back home. My family and I fly off our roof and hand out candies.

[Is she joking? It's hard to tell.]

And look! A present. Vriska Serket, I believe we've spoken a few times before. It would seem we're going to be spending lots of  time together, now.

I'm in the kitchen, and other than the dining hall there doesn't seem to be...well, anything else here. There's nothing outside the door and none of us here can step past it. Does anyone know what's happened?

...I can't say how permanent this is, but last I checked, the greenhouse was still fine. If this keeps going for longer than a day, there ( Read more... )

Paris is one of those cities that goes on the major lists when people get to talking about famous places they want to see before they die -- even if they're not all that fond of the French. I'm...admittedly a little disappointed to see that the Eiffel Tower seems to be missing, but there's plenty more to appreciate. Despite what might be assumed ( Read more... )

I would suggest that the spells I cast in my room have been taking their desired effect if the apparitions are now banging on the doors to get in, but that seems to be a common phenomenon around the Barge. I think that some have already insisted these are not ghosts, and unfortunately specificity tends to make spells more potent. The only thing I ( Read more... )

[Frances is back, and she's all seriousness.]

For my sudden departure, I apologize, and it would seem I arrived back not a moment too soon. I suppose I can only be too grateful that whatever strange pall this is on our home, it has not affected the greenhouses in any noticeable way, nor my own quarters, as far as I can tell -- understanding this is ( Read more... )

I must express my deepest apologies for my absence from the greenhouses of late. Admittedly, I have been somewhat under the weather, and the flora tend to be sensitive to that -- not in the way that other people are, but if you are unhappy, they tend to be as well.

And so many disappearances! Is there anyone still working up there, or have I ( Read more... )

We have only just passed the time of Lughnasadh, the first of the Autumn harvest festivals. In ancient times this was viewed as a prime point in the year to arrange winter lodgings and marriages, and over time became a very popular time to schedule handfastings and other ceremonies. Anyone feeling particularly romantic, I wonder?

I, myself, have ( Read more... )

[People who know the rather eccentric interior of Frances' cabin can tell where this video is being shot right away. There is a short-eared owl perched just in front of the journal, and she delicately lifts a wing to straighten the feathers underneath with her beak. When she fixes the camera with her rounded, amber eyes (the plumage making her ( Read more... )

"Dog Days bright and clear
indicate a happy year.
But when accompanied by rain,
for better times our hopes are vain."

It would seem we are fast approaching what would normally be known as the "Dog Days". As I understand it, to the ancient Egyptians these were marked by the movement of Sirius across the heavens, beginning just before the waters of the ( Read more... )