And It's Way Nicer This Year Too

[save_us_alice]

Oh yes, you know the drill. Birthday times for Alice! We've got blue and white streamers held up with little cardboard Vorpal Blades, and a splash of red confetti across the tables and floor. The jukebox is on too, and playing a medley from both the original game and "Alice: Madness Returns" -- because while this Alice may be from the first game only, she still likes her sequel. Come, eat, drink, and be merry!

Comments

[flightattendantguy]

Simon's the first up, with a grin and a small package wrapped in bright blue. "Happy birthday, Alice! I'm sort of paying back your gift to me."

[save_us_alice]

"Are you now?" Alice opens up the gift -- to find a little first-aid kit, with a roll of bandages, some generic band-aids, ointment, cotton gauze, and medical tape. "Oh! Yes, I see," she giggles.

[flightattendantguy]

"Yup -- I thought that would be useful whenever you're injured somewhere where you can't get to metaessence," Simon nods. "You never know what'll happen."

[save_us_alice]

"No, you don't -- and with us on a road trip in our little Nexus storyline of the moment, this'll be useful, I'm sure," Alice nods. "Thank you very much, Simon."

[misslucysleeches]

Lucy's up next, bearing another little box in bright green. "I think you'll like this -- I may have gotten inspiration from Butterfly Boy's tumblr," she says, nodding at their local science-obsessed Victor.

[save_us_alice]

"I'm already intrigued," Alice says, pulling off the paper. Inside is a little box, and inside that box is a silver bracelet shaped like a circle of butterflies, connected wing to wing. The bodies are made of emeralds, and the wings filled in with a variety of colored glass. "Oooh -- goodness, it's beautiful," she whispers.

[misslucysleeches]

"I thought so! He occasionally likes butterfly-patterned jewelry, and that's what gave me the idea," Lucy says, nodding at Butterfly Boy again. "I'm glad you like it!"

[save_us_alice]

"It's lovely," Alice says with a grin, fitting it over her wrist and admiring the way the light catches the colors. "Thank you!"

[secundus_cast]

As Butterfly Boy steps up, Doc, Marty, and Alice from Secundus appear at the door. "Hey! Have we missed the gift-giving?" Marty asks.

"I was just about to give my gift to Save Us," Butterfly Boy tells them, then presents his present, wrapped in copper-colored paper. "I think you'll enjoy this."

[save_us_alice]

"You're just in time," Alice nods, before accepting her present. "Thank you." She opens it to find -- "Oooh, colored pencils! I don't usually work in these," she says, examining the pack with interest.

[butterflyboy]

"Oh, they're a little more than that -- they change color as you draw," Butterfly Boy chuckles. "Perhaps not the best for actually coloring things in, but for doodling and the like? I thought they were interesting."

[save_us_alice]

"Really?! Your world will never cease to amaze me," Alice says, shaking her head with a bright smile. "I'll have to try them out before the day's done. Thank you very much!"

[forgotten_vows]

Forgotten Vows decides to step up next, carrying a long, thin present wrapped in dark blue. "Happy birthday, Alice," he says, handing it to her. "I do hope you like it."

[save_us_alice]

"I'm sure I will," Alice assures him, before opening it up. Inside appears to be a long wand with a white bulb on the end of it. "Ooo -- a magic wand?" she asks, picking it up. She knows he's an aspiring magician, after all. . .

[forgotten_vows]

"Not quite -- try waving it around," Forgotten Vows says with a smirk.

[save_us_alice]

Alice does so -- and jumps a little as the wand crackles with electricity. "What the--"

[deadgirlslikeme]

DG-Victor is the last to come up, and he's hauling along a rather flat, rectangular present. He also looks a little more tired than normal. "Happy birthday, love," he says, setting it down on the table. "I'm afraid it's a bit last-minute, but I hope you'll like it nonetheless."

[save_us_alice]

"I'm sure I will," Alice tells him, and pulls off the yellow paper.

And gasps as a canvas is revealed -- with a painting of her Wonderland on it. DG-Victor's captured all the highlights from each domain -- the plunging waterfalls and crying statue of the Vale of Tears, the rickety buildings and earthen tunnels of the Village of the Doomed, the turning gears and toxic green sky of Hatter's Domain, the oversized fungi and towering trees of the Wonderland Woods -- even the squirming pink tentacles and fiery sky of Queensland. "Oh, Victor. . ."

[deadgirlslikeme]

"I spent most of the day yesterday painting it," DG-Victor says as the others crowd around for a look. "I wasn't sure at all what to get you, and then Vic suggested a hand-made gift, so. . ." He rubs the back of his neck. "I haven't worked in paints for a while, so I'm glad it came out as well as it did."

[8docs_n_1victor]

There's the usual chaos as the muses come tromping in, with everyone waving hi to everyone else. "Happy birthday, Alice!" Tie-Twister Victor says with a bright smile, handing her a large box on par with the one she and Butterfly Boy gave Secundus Alice. "We do hope you like it."

[save_us_alice]

"Oh, I'm sure I will," Alice says, opening up the box. Inside is a bright red dress styled like most of her dresses, only with two black ruffles on the skirt and a lacey overlay/apron that's held on with a red belt dotted with white skulls. (One can see sort of what it looks like here, thanks to this lovely artist.) "Well," she says with a laugh. "Should I guess artbook?"

[8docs_n_1victor]

"You guess correctly!" Tie-Twister nods. "It's one of the unused Hysteria designs."

"Emily and I helped make it," Victoria adds as Emily does a little bow. "I do hope it's to your liking."

[alienlisa]

AL and the guys pop in, fashionably late as per usual.

"May the Fourth Be With You, everyone!" says AL. "And happy birthday assembled Alices."

[save_us_alice]

"Thank you!" Alice says, as everyone waves. "May the Fourth Be With You too."

"She's already made an Obi-Wan Kenobi joke," Vic says with a snicker.

[alienlisa]

AL chuckles. "Nice. Anything else interesting happening since last time we were here?"