I have many questions that I would like to have answered. However, I have only three that I need answered most urgently, and so I suppose I should begin with those
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//Private to Sephiroth//lady_caterinaJanuary 14 2008, 01:55:34 UTC
Brother mine, I am sorry for your sadness. All these people disappeared, hopefully back to thier own lives. There is no simple process for grief, and no one can tell you the "best" way to handle it. I ..tend to bury myself, even more, in work and duty and push myself until I am so exhausted I cannot feel anything. Doubtless this is not the most healthy approach, but yet it works. Ah, if only Gyula were awake...the man has made grief into an art form. And I am not terribly amused that my blood seems to have made no difference in his condition. Is there nothing I am good for?
When Abel died....well, I confess I did not handle it well. If not for the presence of Ashtarothe Asran and the culmination of all our hopes in that single piece of parchment, perhaps I would have descended into madness as well. Ah but we were speaking of good ways to deal with grief....
Marriage? Being neither married, nor a man, I do not know that I can be of much assistance. However....
Re: //Private to Sephiroth//katayoku_tenshiJanuary 14 2008, 02:42:39 UTC
Father Tres recommended work as well, and while working to exhaustion may not be the most productive option, it is certainly less volatile than smashing a giant piece of space debris into the world which vexed me last time round. So I'm certain it would be an improvement. And I do have an idea for some additional work I can distract myself with now, thanks to Daisuke-kun...
You are neither married nor a man, so I'll not trouble you with that question. But the other -- what was your home like? What little things were familiar, and comforting, and treasured, and yet you miss their presence here?
...What can I do to make this place more of a home and less of a temporary shelter for those who have had their worlds torn away from them?
Re: //Private to Sephiroth//lady_caterinaJanuary 14 2008, 02:59:24 UTC
Ah, so Tres has been speaking with you? Tres is....quite simply the most comforting person I know.
My home? Well, my home in Milan was...quite ancient. It began its life, if a building can be said to have life, centuries before Armageddon, as a fortress. My Sforza family have ever and always been warriors, I have been told. But there was something comforting about that heap of stones and mortar.
In Rome, I lived near the Vatican, in the Palazzio Spada, though I admit I ...spent more time in my office.
What I miss most are the faces of those who are not here. Perhaps...and perhaps there is already something in place that I am unaware of, but...for lack of better words, a welcome center, with orientation to the city for those new arrivals?
Re: //Private to Sephiroth//katayoku_tenshiJanuary 14 2008, 04:02:25 UTC
He is remarkably skilled at it, yes. He makes a far better person than my entirely organic father, regardless of whether or not he is technically a human being.
So a sense of home has something to do with the physical material of the surroundings with which you are familiar? We can't provide one's missing people at will, but we can provide a variety of ...textures. Stone or wood or steel, tapestry or paint...
There is a welcome center -- Bradstone House, Mr. Wright's shelter for the newly arrived and the displaced. But after his first loss, it seems to have fallen out of the collective consciousness. I remind people when I can, but perhaps they need a marketing advisor as well... hmm.
[ooc: my cat nearly got the post again, but I will prevail! XD Gmail is still throwing errors at me even when I clear all my caches, siiigh...]
I'm sorry to hear that. But if the person in question is still here, then perhaps there remains the opportunity to mend the problems that you have with him?
[ooc: email coming your way as soon as I finish writing it...]
I am not sure that it really helps, but the belief in my world seemed to be that food was the way to fix grieving. I can cook for you if you think it might help.
Ah -- you're Lady Caterina and Father Abel's friend, aren't you? I've seen your journal's name in passing, but I don't recall if I've ever introduced myself. I'm sorry that this is your first impression of me.
Would you be willing to teach me what it is that you cook in your world? It seems that many people's sense of home is bound to their familiar foods, and one of the things I would like to learn from this situation is a way to make this world more home-like for our residents, so that they no longer feel such a need to leave... so that I don't lose more new friends... Yes, it's selfish in the end, but surely the means is harmless enough?
I am friends with both of them, yes. I do not think we have ever formally met so I am glad to meet you. And you have no need to apologize.
Of course I would be more than willing to help you in any way that I can! And not wanting others to leave, especially if they are happy here, is not necessarily selfish. At least not entirely. And wanting to do something nice for others is never a bad thing. I think you are being overly hard on yourself.
I doubt it would be possible for me to be sufficiently hard on myself, I'm afraid. I know that I am arrogant, selfish, prone to destroying things when I am displeased -- up to and including planets -- and that my attempts at becoming a more pleasant and socialized individual are borne largely of the entirely self-centered desire to have the people I trust feel more willing to remain in my presence. I calculate social interactions, rather than simply understanding them. I shouldn't allow you to suffer under the misapprehension that I am a good person. It's just that I am sincerely attempting to learn the patterns of society for my own, often less than noble, purposes.
With that warning given -- if you are still willing to help with my education, I would be most grateful. I understand that there is an upcoming event where it is important for individuals to give the proper gift to their heart's best beloved, and that the improper gift can cause distress? I'd be eager to learn whatever it is you're willing to teach.
The line between military and police is rather blurred here -- originally I enlisted as a member of the military, but this appears to be the only nation in this world, and so there was little for the military to do beyond march, while the lack of an established police force meant that the streets themselves were in more need of armed forces than any opposing countries. So I organized the patrol in order to provide all those soldiers with something to do during peacetime, although I confess I am still learning the differences between martial law and the ordinary type.
Colonel Curtiss, my commanding officer in the government, has instructed that new recruits should spend at least two months in the city first, in order to learn the streets and the local laws, which may possibly be different than those in people's home worlds. The laws, I mean. I'm fairly certin the streets are guaranteed to be different. But if you'd be willing to enter the cadets' training program before full enlistment
( ... )
I'm glad to make your acquaintance, Mr. von Bielefeld. My name is Sephiroth -- that's all there is to my name; some people from my world have family names as well, but in my case... heh. That's too long a story for the moment.
[ooc: sorry for the lag time! Also, whenever Wolfram comes to the government building to meet up for cadet enrollment, Sephiroth is going to give him a couple of stuffed bear bees too. Gunter explained that stuffed animals are good for making people feel better, and that bear bees are unique to their world, and Seph's on a mini-crusade to give people reminders of home in this world so that there's something familiar and comforting here. Player hopes very much that Wolfram doesn't get offended! Sephiroth is trying his best to play by the rules of etiquette as he just barely understands them...]
Comments 78
When Abel died....well, I confess I did not handle it well. If not for the presence of Ashtarothe Asran and the culmination of all our hopes in that single piece of parchment, perhaps I would have descended into madness as well. Ah but we were speaking of good ways to deal with grief....
Marriage? Being neither married, nor a man, I do not know that I can be of much assistance. However....
Reply
You are neither married nor a man, so I'll not trouble you with that question. But the other -- what was your home like? What little things were familiar, and comforting, and treasured, and yet you miss their presence here?
...What can I do to make this place more of a home and less of a temporary shelter for those who have had their worlds torn away from them?
Reply
My home? Well, my home in Milan was...quite ancient. It began its life, if a building can be said to have life, centuries before Armageddon, as a fortress. My Sforza family have ever and always been warriors, I have been told. But there was something comforting about that heap of stones and mortar.
In Rome, I lived near the Vatican, in the Palazzio Spada, though I admit I ...spent more time in my office.
What I miss most are the faces of those who are not here. Perhaps...and perhaps there is already something in place that I am unaware of, but...for lack of better words, a welcome center, with orientation to the city for those new arrivals?
Reply
So a sense of home has something to do with the physical material of the surroundings with which you are familiar? We can't provide one's missing people at will, but we can provide a variety of ...textures. Stone or wood or steel, tapestry or paint...
There is a welcome center -- Bradstone House, Mr. Wright's shelter for the newly arrived and the displaced. But after his first loss, it seems to have fallen out of the collective consciousness. I remind people when I can, but perhaps they need a marketing advisor as well... hmm.
[ooc: my cat nearly got the post again, but I will prevail! XD Gmail is still throwing errors at me even when I clear all my caches, siiigh...]
Reply
[ooc; you know, canonly, Sephiroth and Zack were never friends.]
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[ooc: email coming your way as soon as I finish writing it...]
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Reply
Would you be willing to teach me what it is that you cook in your world? It seems that many people's sense of home is bound to their familiar foods, and one of the things I would like to learn from this situation is a way to make this world more home-like for our residents, so that they no longer feel such a need to leave... so that I don't lose more new friends... Yes, it's selfish in the end, but surely the means is harmless enough?
Reply
Of course I would be more than willing to help you in any way that I can! And not wanting others to leave, especially if they are happy here, is not necessarily selfish. At least not entirely. And wanting to do something nice for others is never a bad thing. I think you are being overly hard on yourself.
Reply
With that warning given -- if you are still willing to help with my education, I would be most grateful. I understand that there is an upcoming event where it is important for individuals to give the proper gift to their heart's best beloved, and that the improper gift can cause distress? I'd be eager to learn whatever it is you're willing to teach.
[ooc: Sephiroth ( ... )
Reply
(The comment has been removed)
The line between military and police is rather blurred here -- originally I enlisted as a member of the military, but this appears to be the only nation in this world, and so there was little for the military to do beyond march, while the lack of an established police force meant that the streets themselves were in more need of armed forces than any opposing countries. So I organized the patrol in order to provide all those soldiers with something to do during peacetime, although I confess I am still learning the differences between martial law and the ordinary type.
Colonel Curtiss, my commanding officer in the government, has instructed that new recruits should spend at least two months in the city first, in order to learn the streets and the local laws, which may possibly be different than those in people's home worlds. The laws, I mean. I'm fairly certin the streets are guaranteed to be different. But if you'd be willing to enter the cadets' training program before full enlistment ( ... )
Reply
I am Wolfram von Bielefeld. I apologize that I have not asked you your name...?
Reply
[ooc: sorry for the lag time! Also, whenever Wolfram comes to the government building to meet up for cadet enrollment, Sephiroth is going to give him a couple of stuffed bear bees too. Gunter explained that stuffed animals are good for making people feel better, and that bear bees are unique to their world, and Seph's on a mini-crusade to give people reminders of home in this world so that there's something familiar and comforting here. Player hopes very much that Wolfram doesn't get offended! Sephiroth is trying his best to play by the rules of etiquette as he just barely understands them...]
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