(no subject)

[clinical]

[Jade has his feet kicked up on one of the tables at the library. He has six folders beside him, all in the style of official military reports from the Malkuth Imperial Forces. He is also turning back in forth in his hand a piece of paper--the slip he drew for the Secret Santa, in fact. With a glyph, he burns it up.]

All irresponsible children who want to change the world are free to avoid bothering me. Someone my age can't take the burden of shopping for presents and instructing foolish people in one weekend.

[In other words, he has finished the reports he promised Peony.]

[Jade takes a drink. Mmm, eggnog. Now excuse him while he hums a few bars of "Baby, It's Cold Outside." Regret the day Jade Curtiss was introduced to Christmas.]

[ooc; Tags will be slow as I work on a paper!]

Comments

[pactum.livejournal.com]

[What is Christmas? No, really. Emil has no idea what's going on, but he does have a little catgiraffebatsnake (http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r117/Airship_Canon/ToS2%20Monster%20Book/Chimera.png) with him. In his arms, actually.]

Why are you buying presents?

[clinical]

[Ooh, strange animals. Jade loves to dissect them.]

Why, for the Secret Santa. I'm always looking for new ways to spread goodwill and cheer.

[pactum.livejournal.com]

[That sounds suspicious, Jade.]

What's a 'secret santa'? S-sorry, I don't know the customs of other worlds very well, even though I've been here for a while.

[If it involves presents, though, it could be fun.]

[clinical]

Apparently, people draw names and have to secretly get a gift for the person they've selected. A girl named Sawako decided to hold one here.

[lamb_of_gold]

What a difficult life you must lead, what with such pressing matters from every angle.

[clinical]

I've been thinking about retiring in a few years.

[If Jade weren't lying, this would be the time that the Retirony takes down. Thank goodness this isn't a war film.]

[lamb_of_gold]

So young? It must be stressful indeed.

[clinical]

Oh, I just look young for my age. This fresh and beautiful face hides a mind wearied by long years.

[buckingbronco.livejournal.com]

[Because Dino needs more awkwardness in his life, he was searching the library for inspiration for his own secret santa gift. When he hears someone humming a Christmas carol, he decides to come out and see who else is sharing in the holiday spirit.

Upon seeing who it is however, he stops and is torn between pretending like nothing is wrong or dodging back behind a bookcase.]

[clinical]

[Jade's response to seeing someone he killed is a bright smile.]

Hello again. I see you managed to put yourself back together.

[buckingbronco.livejournal.com]

[And Dino decides that he will not lose to Jade, so he puts on a grin. At least he's had practice in dealing with people he doesn't know what to do with.] Well more or less. I'm surprised though, I didn't figure you for the festive type.

[clinical]

Are you familiar with the holiday?

[quecaneatit.livejournal.com]

[It's about time, Jade]

Man, I wonder what poor cadet was stuck doing your work for you this time.

[he picks up one of the reports and starts flipping through it]

I'll read through all this later. How about you just give me the gist for now. [it's a statement, not a question]

[clinical]

Your Majesty shouldn't project his irresponsibility onto other people.

[Jade takes his feet off the table so that he is more professional. He won't stand up, though. That would introduce extensive banter, and Peony wants answers, not quips.]

There are essentially six different possible outcomes. Three are non-destructive. The first is that any alterations to history will be ineffectual and create stable temporal loops. What they may try to do has already been done or will be incorporated into history; history cannot be changed. The second possibility is that alternate histories will create alternate worlds, each of which will progress in its own variation on the history. The third possibility is that the different histories will at one point 'catch up' with each other, and elements of each variation of history may or may not take precedent over other elements. In such a case, memories may be altered or individuals may have trace memories of the original timelines.

There are also three possibilities of destruction. It's possible that the temporal paradoxes will invoke in physics a sort of 'cleaning program' that will destroy the distorted area of space-time, presumably without doing damage to other versions of history, but that is not guaranteed. The second possibility of destruction is for the temporal distortions to destroy the world that was altered, allowing the dominant form of history to remain. Finally, there is the possibility that the temporal paradoxes are completely unsustainable across all universes. In this case, all the interconnected worlds would be completely annihilated.

[quecaneatit.livejournal.com]

[he listens to all that, and then grabs himself another nearby chair and pulls it over to the table Jade is sitting at before taking a seat]

Man, that Asch guy really is an idiot. Make sure to share everything you just told me with the others. I want them to know exactly what they're risking with their recklessness.

[he leans across the table to look curiously at Jade's glass] What are you drinking?

[clinical]

Of course, Your Majesty.

[Blithely, Jade finishes his egg nog. As if he would share.] It's egg nog. I understand it's traditional for the festival.

[youidiots.livejournal.com]

What are you working on now, Colonel Curtiss?

[clinical]

[After another drink of eggnog] The Emperor asked me to write a report on the potential consequences of rewriting history.

[youidiots.livejournal.com]

... what sort of conclusions did you arrive at?

[cuteliar.livejournal.com]

Who are the presents for, Colonel?

[clinical]

It's supposed to be a secret, Anise. I hope you aren't asking me to break a vow of silence.

[cuteliar.livejournal.com]

Oh, of course not!

Just a little hint.

[royallybitching.livejournal.com]

Presents for what? Are we celebrating something?

[clinical]

Only the possible end of the world.

[royallybitching.livejournal.com]

[If only Luke had been drinking because wat.]

The- The end of the world?! What the hell do you mean?! What kind of sick person would celebrate that!?