Ohh, thank you! Tuna Diem to you, too! ;)

Thanks for the tip to read backwards, will definitely do that. XD

I also got the thank you from Dresden Keith that Caitlin got. (Tuna diem to you too DK) But, um, I never got any message following the original from DK on the 17th so I've not really earned the thank you because I've not done anything :(

Will read the thread backwards and see if I can figure out what's going on though. :)

I got a thank you as well!

Urk I feel bad because I never got the notification for the last gift or the last message! 😩 Sorry!

I STILL SAY ITS EVIL xP

/got the thank you message

Oh! Well captain, I'll tell you why: YOU WERE THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX, of course! 8D

BUT YOU'RE WELCOME its no problem at all! ^u^ I'm addicted to spreadsheeting things anyway har har I hope we can get it all sorted soonn

SOON 8D

mwahah -stalks everyone on dat ship- I SEE ALL OF YOUR GIFTING

To people who said they haven't got any message after the original one, HERE IS YOUR CHANCE.

Do we go back to Ylana, Chaka or Ludovic?

EDIT:

Yes. And I'd appreciate not having to talk about the gift exchange any further

Because whenever we have the gift exchange, either for the summer solstice, for the winter solstice or for partner's day like now, we ALL CROSS our fingers to not get him.

Because he is probably the most annoying (And I don't mean Mathias-level-of-annoying), selfish, rude, controlling, JERKY JERK ever.

I almost miss Hester when I see him. And, I hated Hester with every fiber of my being, does that give you an idea?

Why do we have to have a spy on board. Alexis is downright untrustworthy and I'm expecting us to backstab us at any moment. Seriously. That smug idiot is going to be the harbinger of our downfall.

Sorry. Complaining about Alexis seems to soothe me a little. Especially because it's just my rotten luck this time.

This is Karen's answer to the question she was asked.

Any other questions for her?

(LOL I actually went find Alexis' face and his description was "Alexis is the guy who looks like a bad decision." The mustacheee XD ahaha)

AHEM.

Quote

</p>
<p>Yes. And I&;d appreciate not having to talk about the gift exchange any further</p>
<p>Because whenever we have the gift exchange, either for the summer solstice, for the winter solstice or for partner&;s day like now, we ALL CROSS our fingers to not get him.</p>
<p>Because he is probably the most annoying (And I don&;t mean Mathias-level-of-annoying), selfish, rude, controlling, JERKY JERK ever.</p>
<p>I almost miss Hester when I see him. And, I hated Hester with every fiber of my being, does that give you an idea?</p>
<p>Why do we have to have a spy on board. Alexis is downright untrustworthy and I&;m expecting us to backstab us at any moment. Seriously. That smug idiot is going to be the harbinger of our downfall.</p>
<p>Sorry. Complaining about Alexis seems to soothe me a little. Especially because it&;s just my rotten luck this time.

Awh, I'm sorry to hear that! D: From what I can recall since last time, he really does sound like a blunt, kind of inconsiderate type of guy x_x It's so annoying to have one person ruining the peace, but hey, at least he's the only one... on the bright side, I'm sure he wasn't the one who picked your name, so someone will be trying to brighten your day a little with lovely things! ^-^ It's only 50% bad, I guess n_n

Anyway, I think I've been enough of a bother and you're super busy so that's it for now! c:

[edit]

Quote

</p>
<p>I have sincere sympathies for whoever Alexis gifts, seriously. They&;ll probably end up with a box full of scorpions, just to be told to not trust anyone. Hmph. The captain is the one that decided to take him on board, if <em>I</em> had my way, trust me, I&;d have stranded him on a soaring meteorite a while ago.</p>
<p>Alas, I&;m no longer captain, I&;m no longer allowed to go and maroon my own crew and I sure ain&;t a sky pirate anymore right?</p>
<p>So, who can I transfer you to... Well, there is captain jerkass on line 1. As in, KAREN1. Just thinking about him makes me...feel uneasy</p>
<p>KAREN2 gets you to Kinnon. I think he must be back from his coffee break, by now.</p>
<p>Finally, KAREN3 gets you to the responsible of our resources...</p>
<p>Personally, and that&;s only my point of view, if you are short on patience, I&;d go see Kinnon, because the other two have a tendency to be slightly really annoying.

Ahahah well, that meteorite would've been a nifty solution indeed! I think I'll take your advice and go with KAREN2 then xD Thank you!

[edit] la la la more edits

Quote

you have terminated communication with li, karen</p>
<p>you have engaged communication with o&;bass, kinnon</p>
<p></p>
<p>Have you waited here for long? I&;m so sorry, I was overwhelmed with work and I had to head out and get some coffee and...with my health issues, of course, it took a while.</p>
<p>The joys of being me.</p>
<p>So, I hope I can be of some help to you.</p>
<p>But tell me, if the rumor mill is right, you seem to be investigating a fair bit about the gift exchange. Since it&;s my wife who is running it this year, I was wondering why you were ...involved in our issues.</p>
<p>Don&;t take this personally. I know Dresden is fully capable...it&;s just...are you really meddling? Any specific reason why?

Not really, I went around a little bit while waiting c: That's ok! BUT YOU SEEM TO KNOW ABOUT ME ALREADY, looks like you met some of the other guys in that coffee break xD Look at all of you gossiping! omg

Ah, being nosy is like... second nature at this point, haha. I'M NOSY ABOUT EVERYTHING! But I'm not really looking to interfere :P Actually, it all started with a chat about these cute lifelike dolls all of you seem to own, they're so adorable and cuddly I figured I HAD to ask where you got them! Some people said they got theirs as a gift, and then the subject of gift exchanging came up. As I happened to need some gift ideas myself, it didn't seem such a bad idea to go around asking what people bought and yeah, basically being nosy xD Why, though? I mean, I get the curiosity about me, but did you think she had made any mistakes? Aw poor she, don't let her hear you, I'm sure she'd be a little sad :x

Alexis has the face of a charmer. (stab him)

Quote

</p>
<p>That&;s not really fooling me, you know. As you might have guessed, we pretty much all know it&;s about the gift exchange and nothing more.</p>
<p>I&;ll be frank, I am pretty much expecting something to happen. Especially when my wife is in charge. I love her but...</p>
<p>well...she sure put the SALT in salt caramel cake.
(two cups of salt exactly)</p>
<p>She needs to slow down, sometimes. Then again, her impulsiveness is why I love her so. And don&;t worry, she knows what I think about her. I tell her at least 20 times a day</p>
<p>Well, back to the topic of the gift swap...since you&;re so interested in learning about what we do around the holidays...what about I tell you what I got for my partner? ;)</p>
<p>Lime Gear Spritzer
Mint Chocolate Ball
Purple Fresh Snipped Memorial Flower</p>
<p>Hopefully this information is of use to you. I&;m one of these old-school guys who don&;t like to say too much ;)

-blinks- well, but of course it is! How else I'd find out about all these fancy things o.O Or, you know, maybe it's not. Maybe I'm just creating a distraction while I plot the best way to sneak in while everyone is asleep and steal all the lifelike dolls 8D mwahah. -ahem-

Hahaha I bet that cake was super tasty :P It's still possible something out of the ordinary may happen, like her totally messing up the gifts for whoever she picked xD But I think the rest of the exchange should go as planned... presuming everyone shopped for the right things, that is. The gifts lists sure help a lot with that! Did you happen to have one of your own, by the way? c;

And thanks for the information! It shall be useful, but I'm certainly not ruining any surprises ^u^

[edit]

Quote

</p>
<p>This cake was horrid, if you want my frank opinion. I felt like a goat craving that mineral.</p>
<p>Well, I do have a gift list ready.</p>
<p>Blackberry Geartini
Orange Chocolate Ball
Survival Black Paper Flower</p>
<p>Although I&;m not really sure why you&;re asking me what I asked for. Are you running errands for someone? Now, I&;m getting far too curious for my own good, am I?</p>
<p>Anyway. I don&;t think I have much new information to share with you, I&;m afraid.</p>
<p>I guess you can go and see for yourself who I got by dialing KINNON1. KINNON2 brings you back to Karen and I think KINNON3 brings you back to whoever else has a field doll.</p>
<p>By the way, thanks for the compliments about my Darkonite. I like my Darkonite.

LOL xD 987989 glasses of water needed to counter the salty taste of that cake, hehe.

Nah, how'd I get gift ideas if I didn't ask all of the gifts?! I mean, I'm not even sure I'll manage to contact everyone, so I must make the most of everyone I can reach out to ^-^ Thanks again! And about the doll, you're welcome xD

Mhm now that's a tough choice, but I think I'll go with KINNON2 back to Karen and then pick one of her other lines! **

Irrelevant to the plot itself, but Valaire was mentioned in the early pages and last night, I decided to do a "what if Valaire was involved"

IN REALITY, HE WOULD PROBABLY USE A SILVER LIFELIKE DOLL, BUT THEY ARE NOT YET RELEASED.

AS LONG AS THERE'S NO DEAL WITH ANCIENT GODS INVOLVED ALL IS FINE xD!

Quote

you have terminated communication with o&;bass, kinnon
you have engaged communication with li, karen
you have terminated communication with li, karen
you have engaged communication with frk, mathias</p>
<p></p>
<p>Sure took a while to come see <del>MEEEEEEE</del>, did you?</p>
<p>Can&;t really blame you. You need some mad tricks to survive my blinding aura!</p>
<p>Wait. You don&;t actually remember <del>MEEEEEEEEE</del>, Mathias Frk, voted most perfect crewmember three years in a row!
Doubting me? Calling that a fraud? What no, that survey is TOTALLY legit. I still have the numbers in my cabin! Absolutely and totally!</p>
<p>Anyway, we talk, we talk and my job is not being done. What can big <del>MEEEEEEEEEEE</del> do for little <del>yoooooou</del>?

Omg really, most perfect crewmember?! But how could the other guys even stand a chance?! XD

Ah, turns out I'm in need of some gifting ideas and I learnt you are doing a gift exchange within the crew... so hey, why not ask around? Now I'm totally sure I'm going to get the best item ideas ever from you, I mean how'd you not buy and/or ask for the absolute best things?! JUST LOOK AT THAT GHOSTLY DOLL. Perfection!

[edit] yay stack of cash XD I wish we had more stack of cash items!

Quote

</p>
<p>Absolutely. No. Competition.</p>
<p>I mean, it sucks for all of these amazing people I really care about, like Robin or Jeff, but I am just the best there is! The summum! The very best! There isn&;t a single thing where I&;m being outmatched!</p>
<p>Oh, and you know how generous I naturally am. Like, I am gracing you with <del>MEEEEEEEEEEE</del>! My presence is a gift!</p>
<p>Yes. Gifts. Gifts, yes. Well, it&;s not that I don&;t trust you, but I think we should keep hushhush on who I got for the exchange. If they heard the rumor I got them, they might faint in excitement...right?</p>
<p>Alright. I&;m <em>slightly</em> exaggerating. Especially since she&;s an old friend of mine, we grew up together and all. I don&;t really impress her.</p>
<p>Cherry Fruited Drink
Mini Mint Chocolate Cube
Pink Memorial Note Rose</p>
<p>Well. I would have gotten more for her, but everyone else would have felt bad!</p>
<p>Oh, and if you feel like spoiling <del>MEEEEEEEEEE</del>, here is what you need</p>
<p>Lemon Corkscrew Drink
Strawberry Banana Blended Smoothie
Survival Bouquet of Red Lillies</p>
<p>Well, time is short, right! To talk to the cute miss who also has a nice little Ghostly doll, you dial MATHIAS2. And, to go back to Karen, it&;s MATHIAS3. As usual.

Haha, there really isn't a way around with the people who have known us since forever, is there? ;) But yeah it's definitely better to follow the standard 3-gift pack! THOSE ARE SUCH FINE PICKS. I might just have to hunt a lemon drink myself now, omg. Thank you for the information! c:

Ah sure, work must be done, such a sad thing. I guess I'll go with MATHIAS2 for the time being!

...

You summon elder gods on this plane of existence and curse your friends AND ALL OF THEIR BLOODLINE only ONCE and people try to find a way to remind you about it for the rest of your life.

THIS IS ABSOLUTELY NOT PLOT RELEVANT, DON'T TAKE NOTE OF HIM, OMG

XD WELL someone has got to remember it, after all! WHO KNOWS WHAT COULD COME UP NEXT TIME?! gosh

Quote

you have terminated communication with frk, mathias
you have engaged communication with kane, florence</p>
<p></p>
<p>Finally, it&;s you!</p>
<p>Your communication attempt is no surprise to me. Like others said, the rumor mill goes really fast here! One thing happens and we all know about it pretty fast.</p>
<p>Let&;s not beat around the bush too much; I do know what you&;re here for :)</p>
<p>But first, you have to prove yourself worthy of my trust and swear on the heads of all of the Subeautique designers that everything I tell you is strictly between you and me!

Yay! It's me xD I guess that's really a small ship, huh? OK THOUGH. I promise not to spoil any secrets! I mean... we can't have all the Subq designers dying on us now! D:

ps. I think that cute Ghostly doll wants to steal your hat o:

Like one of the others mentioned earlier in the thread, I got super confused and overwhelmed by that first message, and no amount of rereading allowed me to understand. I don't fault the writing at all for that, I'm just super easily overwhelmed by things, especially lately. Definitely all on me!

So, I'd like to apologize now for not participating. :( And also offer a huge thanks for the chance, as well as the gifts in the two messages I received! I think this time, I'm going to sit back and read the story and let some of the more capable people handle it.

Quote

</p>
<p>To be honest, the chaos that would follow the breach of your promise would be entertaining, if you ask me. But a lot of people holding onto piles and piles of invitations would melt in puddles of tears. That wouldn&;t be very nice, would it</p>
<p>Anyway, I&;m gifting Oliver. He&;s not going really hard to shop for, since he is perpetually satisfied with everything. I would appreciate you not telling him. He&;s probably the tallest member of our crew and yet, he still sees everything with kid-like enthusiasm. Such a pleasant person.</p>
<p>Orange Gear Spritzer
Mini Strawberry Chocolate Cube
White Memorial Note Rose</p>
<p>This is what I got him, by the way. I tried to match what he asked me for to a t.

Haha, yes, I'm sure quite a few people would be disappointed by not having any more new designer lines! If I recall correctly, there was even one of the crew members who was interested in fashion... Becky, I think? I bet she'd also be sad with that loss D:

Aw he sounds like such a lovely person :3 HE SHALL NOT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT IT. Well, at least not until the gift exchange happens! Even if he'd be happy with mostly anything, I think it's always helpful to have some sort of list to guide the shopping c: Did you ask for anything special as well?

I spent 45 minutes last night on writing a reply to this box, only to accidentally copy-paste something over it.

I'm so upset

Ugh I hate when that happens D: I keep trying to make myself save the file every once in a while when I spend too much time typing things, but... I often forget x-x Always so frustrating :/ sorry!

Quote

</p>
<p>Becky is...something. Really something. She can get overwhelming at times, but she&;s alright. But to be frank, I think she thinks most of your Subeautique is...pretty boring. She prefers things more avant-garde like ZombieCrossing to soft grunge fashion like Mimi Moe or Verdi. But, these are her words, not mine!</p>
<p>I didn&;t have a really complicated list. Just orange things, such as Adorable Vesnali Orange Cupcake and Survival Orange Memory Flower. Orange is the best flavor, by far.</p>
<p>Now, let&;s analyze your options.</p>
<p>FLORENCE1 gets you to Oli. Told you about him already, right? He&;s a sweet boy</p>
<p>FLORENCE2 gets you back to Mathias. He&;s...he&;s something, for sure. But like a nut, you just have to crack his shell to get to the good part.</p>
<p>Aaaaaaand, if I remember right, FLORENCE3 gets you to our head engineer. He might appear cold at first, but he is a sweetheart

Aah I'm not really surprised xD A good part of our lines don't have that 'edgy' vibe to them... I do love Junko, though!

Orange... to be honest, I don't come across orange cake all that often o: I might have to hunt some now! At least orange drinks are everywhere xD Thanks for the information! I think I'll try to find Oliver now (FLORENCE1), but I might be back to talk to other people from this line ^-^;

[edit] XD THE ITEM IS SO FITTING

Quote

</p>
<p>Message</p>
<p>you have terminated communication with kane, florence
you have established communication with karlson, oliver</p>
<p>...
...
.................
.........................................................
.....................................................
.............................................................
i-i c-can&;t d-do t-this, s-sorry</p>
<p>you have terminated communication with karlson, oliver

;o; someone's got pretty bad social anxiety! D:

Oh well, the previous person is usually on line 2, so we'll try dialing OLIVER2 and then if that's indeed Florence, FLORENCE3! c:

[edit] bots bots botss xD

Quote

</p>
<p>Message</p>
<p>you have established connection with vega, ridley</p>
<p></p>
<p>I hate to be pushy, but is it really important?</p>
<p>We have an important breech of security on-board and as head engineer, it is my job to tend to it.</p>
<p>(not that i don&;t trust my employees or anything, really)
(why can&;t i have robots to work for me. robots work well. people, not so much)</p>
<p>Anyway. I will give you 300 seconds of my time, no more, no less. So, what can I do for you?

I guess that should be enough! I saw you guys are using awesome lifelike dolls (it's such a sad thing there are no Steamwork ones out, right?), some of them were apparently gifts so I started asking around for some more great gift ideas, since I hear there's a brand new gift exchange happening. Did you shop for any items in special? c:

WHATEVER1 is always direct connection to who they are gifting

WHATEVER2 is always direct connection to who has the same lifelike doll specie

WHATEVER3 is always direct connection to who has the same lifelike doll color.

And negative outcomes just reset back to who you talked before.

(OLIVER2 would have gotten you to Becky, btw)

OH RIGHT it's the lifelike dolls, that makes a lot more sense! OK THEN xD

Quote

</p>
<p>Message</p>
<p></p>
<p>You want the truth? I&;m the last one to ask for gifts and shenanigans.</p>
<p>I have coded a list of interests for each crew member and it is my improved AI system, I.N.F.I. who is choosing and buying gifts for me. You&;d ask me what I bought for the gift exchange and I&;d have no idea.</p>
<p>I mean, I could check I.N.F.I.&;s logs.</p>
<p><em>mumble mumble</em></p>
<p>Apple Geartini
Adorable Vesnali Coconut Cupcake
Blue Memorial Note Rose</p>
<p>There you go. Satisfied yet? I hope so, because you&;re not going to get much more out of me.</p>
<p>If you want to go bother Florence again, you just dial RIDLEY2. And, if you want to see &;riana, it&;s RIDLEY3.</p>
<p>Oh, I don&;t really like Steamworks things, by the way. My Subetan influences are closer to Blackmoon and Vernon Yun, such as the famous Mark II Endeavor. NOW, THAT&;S A FINE PIECE OF MACHINERY!

Ah, well there are indeed some of us who wished the Mark II had become a new android-like pet color c: A bot for shopping, now that is a fancy idea, haha. And I guess that will have to do! Thank you for the information, I shall move on with RIDLEY3 now c:

[edit]

Quote

you have terminated communication with vega, ridley
you have engaged communication with anvers, ariana</p>
<p></p>
<p>Still looking for information, sir or ma&;am? Well I sure am your source for gossip here! Ariana, pilot! A ship ain&;t anything worthwhile without a pilot, right?</p>
<p>Judging by your expression, I take it you just talked to Ridley. Can you believe he used to be worse and even more detached about things. But at least, if you give him something he likes, like a good ol&; Raspberry Gear Spritzer, well, he gets slightly more willing to listen to you. Can&;t really blame him, tho.</p>
<p>He has odd tastes, liking things such as Coffee Cake Get Mugged Pint and Survival Purple Lovely Flower too. Must be an engineer things.</p>
<p>But I am not going to ruin an entire conversation! What can I do for you?

Yeah! ALWAYS LOOKING FOR INFORMATION xD Thank you very much! ❤️

Oh I did, he's quite... short isn't it? I was impressed with his system for buying gifts/items, he really does put a lot of effort into not having to do things himself his machines o.o

Did you join the gift exchange and buy some fancy things for your partner too? :3 OR ASKED FOR TASTY THINGS. Tasty things are never enoughh~ although you probably shouldn't drink alcohol and pilot! xD

WAIT WHAT IS THAT

spoilers, it's a prize for taking part in that plot.

wat o.o!!

Quote

</p>
<p>Yeah, Ridley is a boss at actually not doing anything. He makes robots to avoid working and probably do something like playing Dr. Mario. Wait, do you even have Dr. Mario?</p>
<p>Well, Dr Mario pretty much works like our medecine works: Throw medication at the illness until it works.</p>
<p>Just kidding!</p>
<p>Well um, what did I get again? Sorry! Well, this is what I remember buying!</p>
<p>Strawberry Geartini
Pineapple Glam Cupcake
Survival Pink Paper Flower</p>
<p>Well, there is that, I get! I&;ll be frank, I totally forgot what I asked for. I&;ll have a nice surprise, I guess.</p>
<p>(Also, I only drink genuine virgin Rum and Coke when I&;m at the helm.)</p>
<p>So, to go back to Ridley, I think it&;s ARIANA2. And, to transfer to someone else, it&;s ARIANA3. 😃 Who could it beeeeeeee?

Haha, I hope none of you gets sick then! xD Plus I guess one person catching the flu could mean everyone in the crew having it within a short period of time, anyway n_n

Thank you c: I say, if you're sure there are no possible bad outcomes (which, in this case, won't happen, since there was a list) then surprises are always welcome! YAY no alcohol and pilotingg~

I GUESS WE SHALL SEE WHO'S ON LINE 3 THEN! xD