A Second Chance (Reincarnation/Crossover)

[overmind]

[X] Study hard. A Princess needs to be educated.
[X] Work on your 'special' talents.

 

[Emral282]

[X] Study hard. A Princess needs to be educated.
[X] Work on your 'special' talents.

 

[MacroDaemon]

[X] Study hard. A Princess needs to be educated.
[X] Spend time with your mother.

 

[Pipeman]

[X] Study hard. A Princess needs to be educated.
[X] Work on your 'special' talents.

 

[Jiven]

[X] Study hard. A Princess needs to be educated.
[X] Explore the castle.

 

[Larekko12]

{X}Study Hard
{X}Hang with Mom

 

[Cytokinesis]

[X] Study hard. A Princess needs to be educated.
[X] Work on your 'special' talents.

 

[ShadowAngelBeta]

[X] Study hard. A Princess needs to be educated.
[X] Work on your 'special' talents.

 

[Inara Seraph]

BGM Set

[X] Study hard. A Princess needs to be educated.
[X] Work on your 'special' talents.

Your intense studying regimen doesn't leave a lot of time for long sessions of wire-crafting. Instead, you try to test out your healing ability. Walking around the castle looking for injured people proves to be wasted time, but you can injure yourself to get some practice in. It hurts, but you want to get better at this. You get hold of a kitchen knife; it was the easiest thing you could lay your hands on.

You sit on your bed and position the knife above your left hand, steeling yourself. Pricking your hand with the knife produces a tiny cut. You focus intently on the wound, weaving your healing magic and watching as the cut slowly disappears and your hand is left pristine. You don't learn much from your first go, so you try again. This time, however, your hand slips and you cry out in pain as the knife digs into your skin far more deeply than you intended. A few tears fall down your face as you grip your hand forcefully.

"It hurts.. uu.." A tingle spreads out across your palm as you try to focus through the pain. Suddenly, your hand feels heavier, different. You blink owlishly at the wound, wiping away your tears with the back of your unblemished hand.

"..? It.. doesn't hurt?" You look again. There's still blood oozing out from your palm, but the pain is gone. You poke the wound with your finger, but there's hardly any feeling at all. Your entire hand has gone numb.

A scream pierces your eardrums, and you look up. A maid is looking at you with horror, staring fixedly at your bloody hand. This seems really familiar. It's kind of funny, actually; you can't stop yourself from giggling. It completes the picture; you, a little girl with a vicious cut bleeding all over the floor, laughing at the unfortunate caretaker who stumbles across the scene. Her eyes bug out and she dashes away in a blind panic. You sigh. You've scarred that maid for life. Now that she's gone, you bitterly reflect that this latest incident is sure to get around among the servants, making them more afraid of you than ever. You don't want to be feared, but you don't know what to do about it.

Back to your injured hand, you realize that you can control the feeling in your entire body by simply concentrating, and not just your hand. Perhaps if you had more practice and skill with this new ability, you could undo the numbness as well, or remove the feeling entirely instead of simply numbing the area. For now, you have to wait a couple hours for it to wear off. Until it does, you take advantage of the lack of pain to carefully observe the healing process as you repeat the cycle of cutting with the knife and healing it back up.

You have a greater understanding of how your healing works; it reverses the history of the injury. You don't seem to need any knowledge of the human body to use it; the flesh-knitting happens perfectly even if you don't specifically direct it. Heavier injures have more 'history', so it takes a lot more effort and skill to undo them, and a partial reversal might end up making the injury worse. Blood also is included in the history, as evidenced by the blood that is no longer on the floor of your room. It flowed backward through the air back into your wound when you healed it. If the blood from an injury is very far away, it might be hard or even impossible to heal. You probably won't be able to cure diseases or birth defects with this power, but it will work on any race of people as well as animals or familiars.

Skill improved: Healing F
New Skill: Nerve Control F-

All your studying has paid off in making you very well educated for a seven-year old. Reading and writing are old hat, and you know some basic geography, history, math, science, and theoretical magical studies. You couldn't help but notice your amount of tutors decreased in quantity steadily as the year went by. There's only one old maid and your mother taking up your lessons now. It somewhat limits the amount of education you can receive without self-study.

New Trait: Diligent F

Your mother has regained some of her vitality; she's found some kind of project or activity that takes up most of her time, so you don't see as much of her as you used to. At your birthday party, she was very distracted throughout the event. It worries you a little. Your party was small this year; only castle residents attended, but you still got a heap of gifts, half of which you have no use for. You still had fun celebrating with your mother, even with whatever is on her mind. She seems very relieved when the party is over, which offends you a little. Was your party that bad for her?

--

Now that you can read and write, your lessons have changed focus. You must learn how to be a noble lady; propriety, culture, history, and more. How do you approach them?

[ ] These are just more lessons. Study diligently.
[ ] The earlier material was more interesting. Study moderately.
[ ] You have other things you'd rather be doing. Study the minimum amount.

What do you do in your free time?

[ ] Wander about the castle practicing your eavesdropping skills.
[ ] Work on your 'special' talents.
[ ] Explore unknown parts of the castle.
[ ] Spend time with your mother.
[ ] Watch the chefs cook meals in the kitchen.
[ ] Reading books from the vast collection in the library.
-[ ] What kind of books? (Write-in.)

Special event: something interesting happens this year?

[ ] You make a friend.
[ ] Your mother does something cool.
[ ] The King pays a visit.
[ ] You discover something while reading.

 

[Biigoh]

[X] These are just more lessons. Study diligently.
[X] Spend time with your mother.
[X] The King pays a visit.

 

[Selias]

[X] The earlier material was more interesting. Study moderately.
[X] Work on your 'special' talents.
[X] You discover something while reading.

 

[Robotninja]

[X] The earlier material was more interesting. Study moderately.
[X] Work on your 'special' talents.
[X] You discover something while reading.

 

[Pipeman]

[X] The earlier material was more interesting. Study moderately.
[X] Work on your 'special' talents.
[X] The King pays a visit.

 

[MacroDaemon]

[X] The earlier material was more interesting. Study moderately.
[X] Spend time with your mother.
[X] Your mother does something cool.

 

[Jiven]

[X] These are just more lessons. Study diligently.
[X] Spend time with your mother.
[X] The King pays a visit.

 

[Ephemeral_Dreamer]

[x] These are just more lessons. Study diligently.
[X] Spend time with your mother.
[X] Your mother does something cool.

 

[minuseven]

[X] The earlier material was more interesting. Study moderately.
[X] Spend time with your mother.
[X] You make a friend.

 

[Emral282]

[X] These are just more lessons. Study diligently.

[X] Watch the chefs cook meals in the kitchen.

[X] Your mother does something cool.

 

[Scia]

[X] These are just more lessons. Study diligently.
[X] Spend time with your mother.
[X] You make a friend.

 

[Inara Seraph]

Awawawa.. can someone break these ties for me?

Diligent IIIII
Moderate IIIII

Mother IIIIII
Talents III
Chefs I

King III
Discovery II
Mother III
Friend II

 

[Terribly Fluffy]

[X] These are just more lessons. Study diligently.
[X] Spend time with your mother.
[X] Your mother does something cool.

 

[Inara Seraph]

Thank you, votes are locked.

edit; God damnit, most of the update gobbled up by an internal error. Motivation to get an update out tonight has been killed.

 

[Inara Seraph]

BGM Set

[X] These are just more lessons. Study diligently.
[X] Spend time with your mother.
[X] Your mother does something cool.

You've come up with a term for a significant subset of your lessons: 'Princessing' lessons. They cover all sorts of things like the difference between a Baron and an Earl, the proper way to greet nobles of varying stations, refined tabled manners, how to dress appropriately for each situation, and many other skills. Nobles of all stripes learn most of this, but you especially are expected to be able to comport yourself with the dignity and grace befitting a Gallian Princess. You take this to heart, studying diligently to be a Princess that can make your mother proud.

You learn how to carry yourself with a certain gravitas and elegance that you didn't have before. Combined with your vaguely other-worldly features, you have a definite presence in everything you do, even at your extremely young age. Eyes are naturally drawn to you, and people will remember things you do and say more strongly. The old maid in charge of your lessons confided that you're the best student she's ever had, and she's taught multiple generations of royalty. She says you still have a long way to go, though.

Trait increased: Diligent F+
New Skill: Royal Demeanor F

It's bugging you, so you ask your mother about her preoccupation during your birthday party. She sighs as she explains her behavior. "Oh.. I'm so sorry, Charlotte. It's just- I don't want to let any of those horrible nobles anywhere near you. The royal palace is tightly guarded, but on an occasion like your birthday, they might try to show up. I know.. I won't be able to hold them off forever. We'll have to deal with them eventually.. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have worried you. I love celebrating your birthday with you."

You're reassured. It was silly to believe she might think ill of you. So many of the people you interact with are terrified of you, look down on you, or just don't like you, that you feel a bit of insecurity that it might spread to the ones you love. You don't think you could take it if your mother looked at you with fearful eyes. You hug your mother tightly, savoring her warmth. She holds you in her arms, and you both feel the powerful bond of mother and child. No matter what, you'll always be able to ask her for help, and she'll always be there for you.

--

You're walking to your room when you're interrupted by a voice calling out to you from across the hallway.

"You.."

"What?" You turn to face the speaker. You vaguely recognize him as one of the servants who works here, having seen him around occasionally. He has an an arm behind his back, and a cornered look in his eyes as he stares intensely back at you. He starts gibbering to himself madly as he slowly approaches you with measured steps.

"Unholy thing.. demon's spawn.. I have to get rid of it.."

"U-um.." You start retreating slowly, not really sure what's going on. His intentions are suddenly blindingly clear when the hand behind his back reveals itself to have an enormous butcher's cleaver in its grasp. You scream, loudly, and dash in the opposite direction, flight instincts telling you to get as far away as possible. He chases you, his longer gait threatening to quickly overtake you.

"Die!! Die..!"

You find your feet carrying you to your bedroom, your heartbeat racing as you dash in and slam the door shut as fast as you can. The servant smashes headlong into the wooden frame right as it closes. Glancing around, there aren't any other exits.. but your room is safe, right? Now that you're basically trapped in here, you don't know why you thought that. Loud banging assaults your eardrums. Somehow, he's tearing through the door with raw strength. You didn't even get a chance to lock it, but he's not even bothering with the doorknob. All you can do is cower, jumping every time the axe cleaves through the door.

Before long, it's blasted completely off its hinges and he comes roaring into the room, giving you a good look at your assailant. He's completely unhinged. His appearance is so monstrous, with bloodshot eyes, foam dribbling from his mouth, and screaming bloody murder, that you are utterly terrified. You huddle in the corner of your room, gazing fearfully at your attacker as he rapidly approaches you with his cleaver raised high. You close your eyes as he swings downward, but the killing stroke never comes.

Your mother's voice is the herald of your salvation. It holds none of its usual warmth, only a cold fury. "Ice Prison."

The crazed servant's ankles are quickly covered in rapidly forming ice. He panics, trying desperately to swing his axe at you, but you've already dashed out of his reach, and he can't move. He tries throwing it at you instead, but the ice has already spread up and encased his arms, halting his throw. In total, it only took a few seconds for him to be completely covered in a large block of ice, but they were the longest seconds of your life. You collapse onto the bed wearily.

Your mother rushes over to you, looking over you intently. "Are you alright, Charlotte?"

"Mm.. you're pretty, mommy." You're not sure why you said that. Your thoughts are kind of muddled, now that the intense situation has abruptly ended. You just ended up blurting out whatever came across your mind first.

Your mother looks embarrassed. "A-ah.. you've never seen me in my mage's regalia, have you?"

You shake your head negatively, looking at the staff she has gripped in her hands. She really does look pretty; her hair is pulled back in a pony-tail, and she's wearing a modest skirt and ornate deep blue cape that stretches down all the way past her knees. Mostly you look at the gorgeous staff gripped in her hands; it's taller than you are, the head inlaid with glimmering gemstones and the wood keenly polished. Your mother's presence helps you calm yourself.

"What will happen to him?" You reach for the solid block of ice, staring at the man's fearsome expression frozen in time. Your mother slaps your hand away before your fingers brush across it.

"Don't touch it," she chides you gently. She thinks on your question for a moment before replying with a smile that doesn't reach her eyes. "He'll be locked up far away. He won't be able to attack you anymore."

Your mother is lying to you. You know her well enough to be able to tell. If she's lying about something like this, it must mean this man is going to be executed for attacking you. It makes you sad. He wasn't driven by hatred or bloodlust, he was just terrified. There's nothing you can say to change his fate, assuming you wanted to. He did try to kill you, no matter his reasons. Still, you didn't realize the servants' paranoia was this strong. It makes you wonder if that's all there is to it. Did he really go that insane without any outside intervention?

You survived a near-death experience. You realize how short life is, and resolve to make the most of the time you have. The next free time action will have increased effectiveness.

You turned eight today. Your mother was extra-paranoid, using the attack on your person to justify increased security, and allowing both of you to have a quiet birthday celebration. It won't last forever. You are directly in the line of succession to the throne of Gallia; you must be seen by the other nobles, at least occasionally. The small amount you've seen of your peers has not given you a good impression. None of them are warm and kind like your mother or late father; you want as little to do with them as possible. Your lessons are at least valuable in learning how to deal with unpleasant things. You will surely have to put them to use in the future.

Thinking of your lessons, your mother told you that there aren't any tutors left for you. Apparently, it was decided that only she should be the one to teach her child. You're not sure how this was justified, but you're sure some twisted rationale was involved. You wonder what happened to the old maid. You liked her; she was too elderly to be scared off or intimidated by a little girl. Your mother will have to take time off of her other duties to give you lessons, and she won't be able to practice magic as much. You want to find a solution to this if you can.

Regarding your education:

[ ] You like learning from your mother, even if she has to sacrifice a lot of time for your sake. Things are fine as is.
[ ] Try to find a servant qualified to be a tutor who isn't terrified of you and arrange some secret lessons.
[ ] Attempt to convince your mother that she doesn't need to sacrifice too much of her time for your sake, and that you can do a lot of self-studying.
[ ] Try to find out what happened to the rest of your tutors; if your mother doesn't know or can't tell you, maybe you could ask your uncle, the King?
[ ] Something else. (Write-in.)

What do you do in your free time?

[ ] Work on your 'special' talents.
[ ] Spend time with your mother.
[ ] Exploring the castle, eavesdropping on castle residents.
[ ] Practicing your 'Princessing' skills; interacting with visiting nobles, practicing knights, the servants, etc.
[ ] Read in the library.
- [ ] What books? (Write-in.)

A breakthrough, your abilities have increased:

[ ] You find another way to use your Nerve Control ability.
[ ] You learn how to make a specific type of wire-animal.
[ ] Your healing ability has a 'remember wounds' setting.
[ ] You discover how to use willpower far earlier than should be possible.

 

[Biigoh]

[X] Try to find out what happened to the rest of your tutors; if your mother doesn't know or can't tell you, maybe you could ask your uncle, the King?
[X] Spend time with your mother.
[X] Your healing ability has a 'remember wounds' setting.

 

[Pipeman]

[X] Try to find out what happened to the rest of your tutors; if your mother doesn't know or can't tell you, maybe you could ask your uncle, the King?
[X] Work on your 'special' talents.
[X] Your healing ability has a 'remember wounds' setting.

 

[Emral282]

Regarding your education:

[X] You like learning from your mother, even if she has to sacrifice a lot of time for your sake. Things are fine as is.

What do you do in your free time?

[X] Work on your 'special' talents.

A breakthrough, your abilities have increased:

[X] You discover how to use willpower far earlier than should be possible.

 

[ShadowAngelBeta]

[X] Attempt to convince your mother that she doesn't need to sacrifice too much of her time for your sake, and that you can do a lot of self-studying.

You two want to learn from our Uncle? The same uncle who, thanks to OoC knowledge and politics, is the mot likely guy to have had our father killed. Or at least didn't do anything to stop it ... I think I'll play it safe thank you.

[X] Exploring the castle, eavesdropping on castle residents.

Maids and other servants are horrible gossips.

[X] You discover how to use willpower far earlier than should be possible.

Because we're already an established freak. Why not go all out? *sigh* (Note this was all said in a very dry voice.) Actually if anyone has a good argument for one of the others I may switch.

 

[MacroDaemon]

[X] Attempt to convince your mother that she doesn't need to sacrifice too much of her time for your sake, and that you can do a lot of self-studying.

[X] Work on your 'special' talents.

[X] Your healing ability has a 'remember wounds' setting.

 

[Jiven]

[X] Try to find out what happened to the rest of your tutors; if your mother doesn't know or can't tell you, maybe you could ask your uncle, the King?
[X] Exploring the castle, eavesdropping on castle residents.
[X] You discover how to use willpower far earlier than should be possible.

 

[minuseven]

[X] Attempt to convince your mother that she doesn't need to sacrifice too much of her time for your sake, and that you can do a lot of self-studying.
[X] Exploring the castle, eavesdropping on castle residents.
[X] Your healing ability has a 'remember wounds' setting.

Also, originally, we summoned a dragon. Guess who's a dragon reborn~ ... Yeah, that's pushing it a bit...