Alice Liddell (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
makebelieveavenger) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
ioduanlogs2018-10-08 05:59 pm
makebelieveavenger) wrote in ioduanlogs2018-10-08 05:59 pm
For to see Mad Tom of Bedlam, ten thousand miles I'd travel...
Characters: Alice Liddell and You!
Date: Throughout October
Location: Aifaran
Situation: Alice's adventures in Aifaran
Warnings/Rating: Mentions of murder in the Spirit Scalpers prompt.
Dreaming Sickness [Early October - Open]
The Dreaming Sickness was a problem for many indeed. But for Alice, who'd spent nearly half her life inside her own head…?
She felt right at home.
It had initially been a surprise, of course - but however much trouble Alice had adapting to a more modern lifestyle, she had no such issues drifting in and out of her dreamscapes. It was almost second nature now, and at least it wasn't preceded by the blinding whiteness and migraines so many of her other hallucinations were. It was almost… pleasant.
Without question she hopped onto the oversized mushroom which launched her a good twenty feet in the air, and she glided daintily down onto the ledge of a building where she continued her commute to work, fragments of her Wonderland springing up around her as she went.
Commerce Affinity - Spirit Scalpers [Open]
It had been hard to find even one candle for the Night Parade - all of the stalls Alice had visited had run out hours ago, and people were packing up their things and clearing the streets. She really shouldn't have left it this late, but she had been wallowing in indecision for the past two weeks.
One part of her was skeptical of the whole affair - Alice didn't believe in ghosts. Not the kind that were being presented as so matter-of-fact at least. But this was Aifaran and stranger things happened every day - for Alice doubt was much easier than the dread of her family being among the Night Parade, and if they now hated her, for she still felt she carried part of the blame for the fire.
Bumby may have set it to cover his crime, but Alice had seen it, heard Lizzy cry out, and just thought it all a bad dream until she smelled the smoke and by then it was too late.
More horrifying to her than that was the fear the candle would draw the ghost of Bumby to her. He'd died by her hand after all.
When she bought the last candle off a dodgy, back alley peddler, she felt as though she really should have known it would be fake. The price was too exorbitant, the peddler too convenient. The flame had burned a brilliant blue with the Igheeri had lit it, likely having coated the wick in some chemical.
Alice stared forlornly at the normal orange flame, before blowing it out. The streets were deserted and it was well past dark - the parade would be starting soon and from what she heard, one did not want to get caught up in whatever marched through the streets.
It seemed she'd have to wait until next year to find out for herself if it was at all true.
Out and About [Open]
It was an odd feeling for Alice to have a purse full of money all to herself. While she'd had wages at Houndsditch, Priss's extortion and the funds for her 'treatment' under Bumby meant hardly any was left over for her. And she hadn't been working at the opera house long enough to enjoy her independence.
She was hardly affluent in Aifaran either, but she had some clothes that weren't second-hand - a tidy black dress and apron and sensible black shoes - and with food and shelter largely taken care of, she had some excess income of her very own.
She browsed the stalls, her frugal instincts preventing her from buying up every glittering bauble that caught her eye. She was no magpie after all. But she stopped in her tracks when she saw something that was quite a marvel - an electric keyboard.
"I've never seen a piano so small," she remarked, bending to inspect it closer. "Does it even work?"
Date: Throughout October
Location: Aifaran
Situation: Alice's adventures in Aifaran
Warnings/Rating: Mentions of murder in the Spirit Scalpers prompt.
Dreaming Sickness [Early October - Open]
The Dreaming Sickness was a problem for many indeed. But for Alice, who'd spent nearly half her life inside her own head…?
She felt right at home.
It had initially been a surprise, of course - but however much trouble Alice had adapting to a more modern lifestyle, she had no such issues drifting in and out of her dreamscapes. It was almost second nature now, and at least it wasn't preceded by the blinding whiteness and migraines so many of her other hallucinations were. It was almost… pleasant.
Without question she hopped onto the oversized mushroom which launched her a good twenty feet in the air, and she glided daintily down onto the ledge of a building where she continued her commute to work, fragments of her Wonderland springing up around her as she went.
Commerce Affinity - Spirit Scalpers [Open]
It had been hard to find even one candle for the Night Parade - all of the stalls Alice had visited had run out hours ago, and people were packing up their things and clearing the streets. She really shouldn't have left it this late, but she had been wallowing in indecision for the past two weeks.
One part of her was skeptical of the whole affair - Alice didn't believe in ghosts. Not the kind that were being presented as so matter-of-fact at least. But this was Aifaran and stranger things happened every day - for Alice doubt was much easier than the dread of her family being among the Night Parade, and if they now hated her, for she still felt she carried part of the blame for the fire.
Bumby may have set it to cover his crime, but Alice had seen it, heard Lizzy cry out, and just thought it all a bad dream until she smelled the smoke and by then it was too late.
More horrifying to her than that was the fear the candle would draw the ghost of Bumby to her. He'd died by her hand after all.
When she bought the last candle off a dodgy, back alley peddler, she felt as though she really should have known it would be fake. The price was too exorbitant, the peddler too convenient. The flame had burned a brilliant blue with the Igheeri had lit it, likely having coated the wick in some chemical.
Alice stared forlornly at the normal orange flame, before blowing it out. The streets were deserted and it was well past dark - the parade would be starting soon and from what she heard, one did not want to get caught up in whatever marched through the streets.
It seemed she'd have to wait until next year to find out for herself if it was at all true.
Out and About [Open]
It was an odd feeling for Alice to have a purse full of money all to herself. While she'd had wages at Houndsditch, Priss's extortion and the funds for her 'treatment' under Bumby meant hardly any was left over for her. And she hadn't been working at the opera house long enough to enjoy her independence.
She was hardly affluent in Aifaran either, but she had some clothes that weren't second-hand - a tidy black dress and apron and sensible black shoes - and with food and shelter largely taken care of, she had some excess income of her very own.
She browsed the stalls, her frugal instincts preventing her from buying up every glittering bauble that caught her eye. She was no magpie after all. But she stopped in her tracks when she saw something that was quite a marvel - an electric keyboard.
"I've never seen a piano so small," she remarked, bending to inspect it closer. "Does it even work?"
no subject
"Wouldn't that be an accordion?"
They weren't just on different wavelengths, they were on different planets entirely. Fortunately, Alice was experienced enough with Aifaran that she was able to recognize that she didn't have the whole picture.
"...Is this some sort of electric device then? Like the yimo?"
no subject
At the next question, the Inkling nodded. "Yep. The yimo doesn't take double-As, though." And she grinned at her own joke, showing her squidlike teeth. "It's kinda like my own phone that way. But this looks small enough to only be battery-operated."
no subject
"That's quite remarkable," she mused. Technology really must progress so rapidly from her time on.
"Did you want to buy it?"
If it really was a little piano, Alice wouldn't mind trying to recall her lessons. But she had no intention in standing in someone else's way - this child seemed more keen and knowledgeable of it anyhow.
no subject
"Nah, it's all yours. I'm not musical at all, I broke my friend's guitar the last time I tried." That had been a disaster. Don't ask her to sing, either.
"I'm just super jazzed to see something like it here! Maybe I can find some new bands to follow, 'cause even though I can't play, I love music, heh." Kai fished her smartphone out of her pocket. "If you want, I can play some for you so you can see how it sounds. Maybe you could try playing some with that keyboard!"
no subject
"I could - I'm better at playing by ear than reading music. Or I was. I don't know now-"
"Are you gonna buy it or not?" demanded the merchant with growing impatience.
"Yes, please," Alice replied, a bit breathless as she fished out the string of coins, handing them over. She'd never had money of her own like this, and getting to buy something absolutely, utterly frivolous that she just *wanted* was a bit of an experience.
She took the keyboard, holding it like it were some precious possession.
"I'd love to hear your music. I can ... try to follow."
While her nan had remarked that Alice had the potential to be the next Gilbert or Sullivan, she'd been six at the time, and she hadn't touched a piano since the fire. She was, probably, more than a little rusty.
this is totally not an excuse to play Splatoon 2 music
"Okay," she said, scrolling through her music. "This one's pretty fresh! And it kind of...helped me out a lot when I was fighting." The Squid Sisters singing to distract DJ Octavio had helped her get those Rainmaker hits in.
"Check it," she said, and hit play.
there is no need for an excuse to play splatoon music.
Well, actually it only sounded like a lot of noise at first. But only at first.
Alice had a good ear for rhythm and melody, and while she doubted she could replicate it on a piano - even a small electric one - she found herself tapping her foot in time to the beat.
"It's very interesting - is it a sort of war ballad? I've read about those, how a long time ago, bards would get whole armies riled up with their music."
no subject
There had been three songs - the one Callie sang as a concert while she was brainwashed, the song Marie sang while trying to break her cousin of the brainwashing, and the song they sang together, helping Kai get the final hit in.
no subject
"...Out of curiosity, is hide-and-seek also a large part of your culture? Only that I met an octopus who was rather fond of it."
no subject
At least she smelled better than that one octopus?
no subject
"I take it that it's nothing like an actual gang fight," she said. She'd seen those, especially around the docks when Splatter and his gang got riled. There was always a body count when the coppers came to clean up the aftermath.
"More like play-fighting, right?" She added hopefully.