well, i've just finished the next batch of chapters to the adventure... so, depending on which direction you had Rosella choose in the beginning, well here are the outcomes and consequent branching choices
2. Back to Tamir! With one last glance at the flickering shadows, cast by the fireplace upon the wall in the dining hall where her family waited for their beloved daughter, Rosella turned and stepped into the shimmering mirror…
Immediately she was met by light and a force of wind that threatened to blow up her long red skirt had she not the modesty to catch it in her tiny hands, keeping it intact while she was hurtled through space far away. Rosella had to keep her eyes squeezed shut to be safe from her long braids that whipped wildly like attacking snakes. And as she fell sideways through the long warp, she questioned her rash decision to step through the mirror. Wouldn’t her family worry? Didn’t they love her very-very much, and would worry sick about her sudden disappearance? The logic was outsized by Rosella’s big heart, and admittedly, curiosity for adventure again.
Just when she felt she had rationalized her decision to step through the portal, the shimmering lights and chaotic winds came to a halt, and Rosella felt quiet suspension, if only for a moment. She then dropped, in a not so graceful fashion onto a mildly cushioning bed of moss and cattails.
As soon as she gained the wind back in her lungs, Rosella crawled up onto her knees, rubbing her sore fanny with a grimace. “How very unladylike” she chirped while turning her nose up in mock royalty. Getting to her feet, she felt a tiny prickle on the bottom of her foot, “ouch!” she yelped in the surprise that comes from an unexpected feeling of pain. Looking down, she saw that she had stepped on a small broken reed growing up out of the damp green moss. “Oh dear, where are my shoes!?” asked Rosella, wiggling her white stocking feet. “I must have lost them coming through the portal. Now I wonder where they have gotten to?” Taking a gingerly step away from the poking reed, Rosella looked up from her feet and glanced at her overall surroundings.
The humid air hung in an almost visible fashion. Moss covered everything it could grow on, which was just about every rock and many-legged tree in the muck rich area around the bewildered princess. Crickets, frogs, and many unknown creepy crawlies filled the silence with their unnerving dialogue. Yes, Rosella was back in Tamir, back in the swamp of Tamir for certain. It seemed as though it had grown even more wild and sinister looking since her last visit, if that was possible. Now where were her shoes? Was it even possible to find them in this place? Could she safely go on without them? The only certainty Rosella had was that she needed to get out of this creepy place! It was time for Rosella to make a decision. Will she…
a. Forget the shoes. Just worry about getting out of this swamp! The longer I stay here, the greater risk I put myself in. I’ll take my chances barefoot. (proceed to 5)
b. Look for her shoes! This is NOT a safe place for a princess to be wandering around in just her stocking feet! (proceed to 6)
3. Mission Grounded! Deciding it best to tell her family where she was headed so as not to put any unnecessary stress upon her father’s only recently regained health, Rosella put her chin forward and marched into the flickering light of the dining room.
“Well, hello there my daughter,” cooed Valanice of her precious young princess. King Graham smiled warmly at the entrance of his beautiful daughter. Her brother, Prince Alexander was the only one to see it immediately.
“What is the matter?” he asked forwardly.
Rosella shook her head of her own thoughts, the words she was planning during her march into the room seemed to be rattled by her brother’s acute observations of her inner workings. “I… there’s… I need to return to Tamir! There is trouble there once again, and I fear Lolotte… I must go back,” her words trailed off into a whisper as her cerulean eyes searched the warm rug pattern on the floor for the strength to sound resolute.
Alexander dropped his gaze from his naïve sister at the sound her proclamation. Valanice’s eyes did nothing to hide her surprise and they didn’t need to, because her jaw dropping seemed to sum it up for the audience in the fireplace lit royal dining hall. It seemed only Graham showed no reaction. His eyes betrayed nothing, while the muscles in his face followed suit. And that seemed to be it, for several moments, unless somebody could hear the sound of Rosella’s heart beating like a humming bird in her chest. Her ivory face was revealing a bit of red and she hadn’t breathed in nearly a minute!
“You will do no such thing, now sit down and--”
“I will- I am! I am going to Tamir to--”
“Sit down, Princess Rosella!” Graham’s cold formality frightened his young daughter, but her resolution would not be defeated that easily.
“No, I won’t, I’m going!” she cried through newly formed tears, turning to burst out of the room, back to the mirror. Back to Tamir and adventure.
“Alexander!” called Graham in royal authority. The young prince nodded in response, quickly standing to block his sister’s stubborn escape, and gently, but firmly grab her upper left arm. Rosella’s blue eyes burned with cold sibling betrayal, seeking out her guilty brother, but his face had turned down in the shame of responsibility. Her chin quivered in the overwhelming feelings that erupted as this situation played itself out. “Take her to her room, Alexander. Rosella, you are grounded and will not leave the confines of your bedroom until I say otherwise. Are we clear?” She did not reply.
“It is for your own good, my daughter,” added Valanice trying to sooth the wound that this room had become. Once again, Rosella said nothing. With a gentle urge, Alexander led his obstenant sister out into the hall, and up the winding stairs to her room. She cast a longing glance at the shimmering mirror and the adventure that lay behind the glass. Two palace guards had shown up to hang a heavy tarp over the magic mirror even before Rosella reached the top of the stairs to her bedroom. Once she was inside, Alexander locked the door from the other side, leaving the princess to her solitude. Despite the fact that her bedroom was large and lush with extravagance, it felt cold and small. She was after all a prisoner under another name.
Looking at her new surrounding, Rosella was determined to get an idea, something, anything that she could do to remedy her current situation. It all boiled down to one thing. It was time for Rosella to make a decision. Will she…
a. attempt to escape out her window on the ledge, and hope to find a safe way down? (proceed to 7)
b. attempt to escape out the window by tying sheets together and climbing down? (proceed to
c. attept to pick the lock on her door and sneak downstairs (proceed to 9)
d.lay down on her, drawing her knees up to her chin and sob to herself, giving up, there’s no chance for escape. (proceed to 9)
4. Nothing to Get Choked Up Over! Deciding that she’d really had enough of Tamir the last time, Rosella turned to head into the dining hall for a much-needed meal. She was starving. Let the Pesky Genesta deal with Lolotte herself this time. After exchanging brief greetings with her family, Rosella eagerly gnawed away at the large portion of chicken before her. It looked absurd in front of her ever-slight frame, but she was a growing young girl after all. With a sudden surge of panic, however, the princess stopped eating all together. Her slender fingers slowly let go of the piece of chicken while her naïve blue eyes, glazed over with an ever so subtle confusion. The delicate ivory skin on her face began to playfully imitate the color of her eyes. Rosella wanted someone in her family to notice and help, but they all seemed attentive to their own platters. The sweat began to form on her brow, and air seemed a preciously lacked resource, as Rosella began to think. Are my braids to tight? Is my gown to heavy for this fire warm room? Alas it was none of those things. Just a little chicken bone that found it’s way into her narrow throat.
And while Genesta and her fairies were likely meeting a terrible end at the magical hands of Lolotte, not to mention the unsolved mystery: was Edgar really a monster again and helping Lolotte? Rosella found herself getting all choked up over it!
-THE END
