Just like the past few years, the Executive Director of the Rurikton Roses continued with her aesthetics tradition of choosing a color scheme for the Roses’ Wintersday gifts. For 1333′s Wintersday, the socialite opted for warm hues, dominated by greens and golds. The year before, she’d also used gold, but with yellow as its main thematic color. And the year before that, she chose vibrant purple hues. In 1329, her theme was all about pale mints and powder pinks, so this year felt strangely familiar. Was there a reason behind that?
But something about the color green entwined with nature’s boons, as if blooms and butterflies guided Lux when it came to welcoming 1333.
Life, birth, rebirth, a promise. Hope.
Each Rurikton Rose, whether old or new, whether actively working with the organization or mostly retired from it, received a lavish gift basket covered in peppermint green tulle and tied together with an intricate, pearlescent Wintersday tree ornament bedazzled with dangling beaded threads. Inside each basket, there were stacks of gift boxes in various sizes wrapped in silk-finished pale teal paper tied with baby pink satin ribbons and adorned with rhinestone circlets on the bows’ centers.
With it, an envelope, recognizable as the notorious lavender stationery belonging to a certain socialite, was addressed to each recipient. It included the following note:
Dear Rurikton Rose,
I hope this small gesture of appreciation for your services and support finds you in the Wintersday spirit it aims to uplift. Yet another year has passed, indeed another trying one –for us as an organization, and for our beloved Tyria.
But, as always, we Roses marched forth and did our part to aid Tyria and those in need. Our efforts assisting the struggles in Thunderhead Peak and Dragonfall did not go unnoticed. And our unwavering commitment to continue helping the Pact remains –with more support than ever from within the organization and those who believe in our cause.
While some of us are seeking different paths throughout Tyria, and others choose to serve in Kryta or Olivia’s Refuge, our mission remains the same: That of charity, volunteering, and community service.
As 1332 comes to an end, all I can say, as your Executive Director, is that I, as always, couldn’t be more proud of you ladies. Every step you’ve taken and every effort you’ve put in to help Tyria and those in need has always been accounted for and highly appreciated. It’s not always easy for most of us to take the time to give back, when we have so much going on in our lives.
Please accept these small tokens of gratitude for being so excellent and committed to the Rurikton Roses’ cause. May you and yours have a lovely Wintersday and a wonderful 1333.
Now, here’s hoping the best god wins. Last year, Dwayna won again. And you all know Dwayna’s our patron goddess, so let’s keep the momentum going!
I hope to see all of you on Colossus 90 for our annual Dwayna versus Grenth brawl, either on the stands or in the fighting pit. May the best team win! Go Team Dwayna! Go Teams!
And may the stars always light your path,
~Lux
PS. I hope you enjoy this latest Bulletproof Belle folding fan to add to the previous ones. They make handy foci and excellent weapons once you retract the blades. I’ve added a mount in case you just want it as home decor if you’re not the folding fan fair maiden!
Enclosed, each recipient would find a lovely gold rose brooch, with tiny diamonds encrusted along the pink lacquer-painted petals.
An elaborate tree ornament decorated with green beaded threads dangled from each orb as a tear-shaped jewel added to its finishing touch.
The elegant compact mirror’s pale variscite stone encasing sprouted three dimensional blooms decorating the upper cap, as well as filigree detailing along with tiny decorative rhinestone roses along the frame. It provided a sturdy hold, thus aiding one’s grip while perhaps attempting to touch up during precarious situations….or just fighting a mesmer and trying to decipher illusions. Secrets of the trade.
Clearly enchanted, the accompanying jewelry box with dramatic tiny sculptures of flowers and butterflies served as a ‘storage’ for what each Rose might need instructions to use, should they not be a mesmer or have access to one. A memory box, Lux would call it –lined with velvet, to “soften the blow, if necessary.”
A note was slipped into each box, with vague instructions. A Rose with doubts or questions should see Lux about said box’s purpose or usefulness, if they were curious. Such an object would always come in handy, some day.
As a set, a series of gold-encased containers embellished by a row of pink and green engraved blooms added a sense of ‘for your amusement’ to the gift, as if one could use said tiny bottles and cases for anything from perfume to poison. How very apropos for all the scandalous Roses.
Keeping with the spirit of the organization’s own duality, a personalized pocketknife with each recipient’s name engraved on its main blade was found –this year’s was a gold-framed butterfly-shaped switchblade, discreet enough to look like a hair clip in one’s purse.
And lastly, an ornate folding fan –its guard made of carved birch and housing a series of ribs that halfway through seemed to turn into damascus blades, like the previous year. At its head, a cat’s eye rivet rested, acting as the switch should its user decide to go from folding fan to full on tessen and turn it into a lethal weapon that could slice through a neck or three. Not to mention, it could act as a focus for those in quick need of casting and perhaps otherwise disarmed. Perfect for balls, in more ways than four. This year, Lux opted for a mahogany mount to accompany said fan, for those who rather use it as home decor and weapon in plain sight should an…unwanted visitor appear.
(( Merry Wintersday! As usual, I can’t even keep up who is or isn’t a Rose on what alt or what not and who does/doesn’t have a tumblr so if you get tagged by accident, consider your character got free gifts! I’m tagging the ones I know are still active in some capacity here on tumblr, but also I may have forgotten some and you can yell at me later but I’m still jetlagged and you’re in my heart regardless okay! Also I know some of you have multiple Roses so just tagging one of your tumblrs for the sake of brevity. This is for all the Roses, tagged or absentee or inactive or otherwise! Happy Holidays, Roses! <3 xoxoxoxo –Lux, and player of Lux ))
((Also, don’t forget, our Team Dwayna v Team Grenth match in Olivia’s Refuge is scheduled for January 5th, time TBD! And we have the Wintersday Benevolent Walk followed by a Ball on December 28th, so see you there! xoxo ))
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