Teu hummed to herself as she applied her shiny new Gnomish Army Knife to a King's Amber. Valyrie could barely watch; such a nice gem to be cut in such an amateur fashion! On the other hand, lately Teu had been making all sorts of neat things–target dummies (some of which exploded in a terrific burst of color when Valyrie attacked them), explosive sheep, and boxes and boxes full of saronite bombs.

"Do I get some?" Valyrie had asked, only to be met by an indignant puff of air and a five-minute lecture on how bombs are not for inside the house. As if the furniture didn't need replacing anyway!

It had brought a bit of company by, which was also welcome; Teu had mentioned that the tiny braided dwarf was coming over to help Teu put together her new robotic butler, who was apparently going to clean the house for them. Valyrie was entirely in favor of this plan. When the knock came at Teu and Valyrie's door, Valyrie hopped up and went off to answer it.

The braided dwarf looked up, and up, and squinted at Valyrie. "'Ey there, Miss Valyrie. Is Teu ready to get started putting her Jeeves together?"

"The butler? Yes, I think so. She's in the workshop, as usual."

"Thanks! I'll show meself back, don't trouble yourself a titch."

"Of course. Take care, have fun, all that stuff…"

"Will do, aye!"

* * *

Ovistine pulled the titansteel bar out of her pack and placed it carefully on the table. "There! Careful with it; I cast a levitate spell on it so it didn't weigh me down too much, but it's best to wait it out an' have the spell wear off before you start working."

"Oh! Yes, yes, certainly." Teu pushed her goggles up on her forehead. "It has been so much help, you and your expertise! So many thankings!"

Chuckling, Ovistine dug into her pack again. "You're welcome, lass. An' I brought you sommat else."

It was a Construct-Your-Own-Mechanopeep set, one which Teu had cooed over in the tinkering shop the last time she and Ovistine had gone out to shop for materials. She'd let it sit there, saying something about increased fees for outfit maintenance that Ovistine didn't quite catch, but with this plan of hers and Ethel's, Ovistine had seen an opportunity, and she'd gone back to the shop early this afternoon.

Once she'd figured out how to miniaturize the gizmos, the rest had been easy. Adjusting the parts to fit logically into the mechanopeep head had been a challenge, but a very welcome one. The holo-transmitter was even set up to project an image, a voice, or both, out of the mechanopeep's beak.

And, of course, she'd wired up the transmission recorders at home, made out of several databanks she'd recovered from Gnomeregan–she'd always figured they'd come in handy someday. More to the point, she had the data ready to print out on punchcards, so she could hand them over to Ethel if need be.

Of course, all this relied on Teuthida having the mechanopeep out of her packs, and that was something Ovistine couldn't control–but given her enthusiasm for tinkering lately, and the way she could customize the mechanopeep to have sparkles all over it, Ovistine thought the chances were quite good.

The parts for Jeeves she'd brought were just a backup.

It would have taken a far more experienced engineer to figure out what was going on; the Field Repair Bot 74A had been customized, but not in a way that was too terribly obvious. Ovistine encouraged Teuthida to use that bot's parts in Jeeves' head, and Teuthida cheerfully agreed. When Jeeves was finished, and Teu had hopped up to fling triumphant arms and tentacles around Valyrie, it was a matter of mere moments–and a quick flick of a gyromatic micro-adjustor–to get the recording and transmitting units turned on and working.

"Take care," Ovistine told Teuthida. Teu bent down and gave Ovistine an enthusiastic hug, too, and Ovistine squeaked a bit when one of Teu's tentacles brushed across her ear.

"Sorry, sorry! But yes, yes, thank you so much! And for the tiny peep!" She snapped her fingers at the mechanopeep, and it trotted over to her feet. "I will keep him out of harm's way! He can sit upon my totems during battle!"

"Good call, aye," Ovistine said. "Light be with you."

"The Naaru have not forgotten us," Teu said, and Ovistine nearly laughed–so many times she'd heard that phrase, but never in such earnest, at least not from a friend. "And the elements will be at my side as well."

Ovistine had let herself out, and after she hopped into her turbo-charged flying machine, she set the controls to autopilot and put her head in her hands for a moment.

Spying on the elf I–on the elf. It's come to that, has it?

She thought about the axe again, the way the runes had seemed to pulse. The way it had been cold to the touch, the one time she'd brushed against it. It feeds on souls, Valinar had said, and she wondered if he'd really considered what that might mean.

"No," she murmured, pushing the "manual" button again and drawing the flying machine out of its spiraling northward lean. "No, Ethel's right. They need us at their backs."

An' I'll be damned if I let my elf walk in there without some way to know if he's safe. I didn't wait all these years just to lose him to the Lightforsaken Scourge.

Steady again, she headed back to the portals in Shattrath City, more than ready to be home.

How often do you get impatient for something big to happen for your character? Whether it's a wedding, a breakup, a character revamp, or just having the opportunity to RP with a well-loved but rarely-seen character, there are often circumstances that prevent us from being able to snap our fingers and declare "boom! done!" about something.

When it's a matter of lining schedules up, that can be frustrating. When it's a matter of many plots weaving together properly, that can be challenging.

When you are waiting for Cataclysm to come out so you can race-change your most-logged-in character and have her take over the mantle of the character you still consider your main, it can drive you UP THE DAMN WALL.

In a way, I kind of wonder if the impatience I'm feeling toward getting to play Ovistine full-time again is rubbing off on poor Teuthida. Teuthida's major plotline, I felt, had a lot to do with Kael'Thas — she and Valyrie originally set off on the mission to retake Tempest Keep, ended up on the Exodar, and after many adventures, took the bastard down. Her real goal at this point has always been to help rebuild Shattrath City and try to help out at the orphanage. But off she trots into Naxxramas… Ulduar… Trial of the Crusader… Icecrown Citadel… not because she wants to, but because I love playing a shaman.

How's she doing now? Well, she's not really enjoying herself in ICC; she comes home smelling terrible, she's not entirely convinced Arthas can be beaten, and she simply doesn't have the same kind of background with the heroes of Azeroth that other people do. (She barely blinks an eyelash at Muradin Bronzebeard, and has yet to figure out why Muradin calling out "By me own beard!" makes several members of her adventuring party raise their boomsticks or steins in a loud /cheer.) Arthas, ultimately, worries her a lot, and she's not so sure her time is best-spent there in ICC, as opposed to being home with Valyrie or going back to Shattrath and trying to make sure a few orphaned Draenei have a really great next few years (even if the next few years are all that's left).

I, on the other hand, pretty much love ICC. The fights are challenging but not impossible, the plot is great, and I'm really excited to see how it all works out for us (PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD NO SPOILERS). I'm really having a good time there, and it's nice to know that there's still so much new content ahead of us.

Mind you, there's an RP reason for Ovistine not to be in Icecrown Citadel right now — with her memory and abilities as fractured as they are, she knows she can't be trusted to go into the front lines. She doesn't know when her healing abilities will be cut off again — it could happen at any moment. She doesn't know whether she'll always be able to harness chaos and walk in shadows, or if that's at some risk of going away with the light as well. ICC is really dangerous, and Ovistine's not about to put her friends at risk by asking them to bring along a priest who may or may not be reliable, albeit through no fault of her own.

There's still Ovi's memory to sort out before she can really tackle the other alternative, the one she hasn't even thought about yet — harnessing healing energies the way the Wildhammers do it. I have a character in play who's intended to be a possible pathway to that end, but I'm leaving my options open — I don't want to lock myself into one true storyline, since I think improvising Ovi's story has been an awful lot of fun over the past several months. But at some point, I should probably write up a quick bit on Varrim Featherstoneshire (Fanshaw), a former gryphon rider who took a very bad fall and is not even a little bit happy about being grounded for the foreseeable future.

But here is my very quick first-wing wishlist for Icecrown Citadel:

* Saurfang throws Mark of the Fallen Champion on the warriors.

I would have settled for "on the melee", actually, until Valinar got marked one fight and immediately exclaimed "WHOO! Free rage!" Turns out if he gets marked, he gets so much rage he can afford to stance-swap. We have two to three DPS warriors and one warrior tank in our 25-man, and they're all damn good at using those rage bars; giving them all hawt free full rage bars is never bad.

And let me tell you: Chain Heal + melee = THING OF BEAUTY. Not that this is news; Chain Heal + melee is actually why I tried out resto in the first place (I had a group that was two feral druids, a rogue, and a warrior, and we wanted to go pwn a heroic), and ever since I have had a great enduring love for it. Give me three marked melee and I'm your shammy; keeping three full-throttle DPS warriors alive through that isn't a huge problem (especially not when you have talented HoTtie druids and paladins running around throwing bacon — and, uh, Hand of Salv — on people).

Our raid has totally gotten the hang of this fight, even if some particular versions of it are harder than others. We know not to stand in the Blood Beasts. Our tanks are pro. We spread out enough. So I am not, exactly, complaining about the fight mechanics. But I'd be lying if I said I wasn't wishing for easymode heals mixed with holycrap hardcore deeps from the warriors on that fight.

1. Do you celebrate Winter Veil at all? If so, is it a new tradition for you, or one you've been doing for as long as you can remember?
2. How do you feel about the more commercial aspects of Winter Veil? Do the Smokywood Pastures vendors bother you at all?
3. What sort of food do you like to have around Winter Veil time? Are you a fan of Graccu's Mince Meat Fruitcake?
4. What sort of decorations do you put up for Winter Veil, and when do they go up?
5. If you could get anything at all from Greatfather Winter this year, what would it be?

Ovistine
1. Do you celebrate Winter Veil at all? If so, is it a new tradition for you, or one you've been doing for as long as you can remember?
Oh, all me life. I'm a dwarf, after all. An' yes, of course I celebrate — it's one of the best times of the year. I go back home to Stormwind, spend some time at the Cathedral to bring myself closer to the Li–

–I–this year I'll probably go back to Ironforge, maybe see how Grandmum an' Grandda are doing, hang out at the forge. I'll look around an' see what wishes are around for the orphans, if anybody wants wee steam tonks or mechanical yeti, an' build a few if there's a need. Of course, Da always makes a fine Winter Veil breakfast an' me an' Da an' Mum open our presents together, an' then we go to the Ironhammers' an' see Uncle Brandur. Grandda is already bugging me to bring the elf. After Pilgrim's Bounty… we'll see. I'll ask him…

2. How do you feel about the more commercial aspects of Winter Veil? Do the Smokywood Pastures vendors bother you at all?
Nah. I figure goblins celebrate in their own way, an' if that involves turning a profit, a'right. They're good for presents for people you don't quite know what to get, anyhow, an' Light knows I've always got some of those!

3. What sort of food do you like to have around Winter Veil time? Are you a fan of Graccu's Mince Meat Fruitcake?
Oo! Fruitcake! Well, it's got to be soaked in rum, of course. But aye! It's one of my favorites. I'm also fond of the candy you find this time of year–peppermint sticks, chocolate bark, chewy nougat, and any sort of chocolate. Da's usual Christmas turkey is always nice, too. An' I'm hoping Valinar will bring some more of those sweet potatoes. I mean, if he comes for Winter Veil. Light knows with my family being how it is, he might rather not…

4. What sort of decorations do you put up for Winter Veil, and when do they go up?
At me own place in Stormwind, I have a teensy mechanical tree. Built it meself two years back with some help from Da. It lights up and spins around! There's a stocking I knit meself, but as Mum pointed out, what with it sort of having two toes, it might be a good axe cozy. I need to look up Tiforis an' see if I can try it on that fromping great axe of his, the one like Valinar's, so as to see if it'll fit. An' then I suppose I'll need a new stocking…

5. If you could get anything at all from Greatfather Winter this year, what would it be?
*braids droop* I… I don't think Greatfather Winter's in the business of granting what I want most for Winter Veil. At least, last I checked, he didn't do much about dead snake gods an' restoring someone's spirit to the Light…

Teuthida
1. Do you celebrate Winter Veil at all? If so, is it a new tradition for you, or one you've been doing for as long as you can remember?
Eeeeee! Winter Veil! It is the most wondermous time of the year! For sparklies! For presents! For happiness! Even the goblins are cheerful! It is such fun! Yes, yes, it is a new tradition. I first heard about Winter Veil on my buzzbox. Then I asked Miss Twirlybraids about it. And oh! Such wonderfulness! She even made me a set of Red Winter Clothes, with a convenient hole for my tail! It does not cover much, but that is all right. Valyrie approves. Clearly she is equally fond of festiveness! This is why I put battleproof tinsel on her horns.

2. How do you feel about the more commercial aspects of Winter Veil? Do the Smokywood Pastures vendors bother you at all?
No no no no no! I buy many presents from Smokywood Pastures! Cheese wheels and bean brews! Candy canes! Fruitcake! Meat pie! Meatcake! So useful!

3. What sort of food do you like to have around Winter Veil time? Are you a fan of Graccu's Mince Meat Fruitcake?
Yes yes! Oh, fruitcake! Very delicious! Though I am told only the rum-soaked kind is useful, and tastes better too. But I did not know this at first, and so I put the fruitcake in a bowl and submersed it in a whole bottle of rum. Valyrie would not even taste it. Fortunately, I traded it to Miss Twirlybraids for a lightly soaked cake. All worked out!

4. What sort of decorations do you put up for Winter Veil, and when do they go up?
Yes yes yes yes! All sorts! Trees! Lights! Little train sets! Battleproof tinsel! This goes on everything. Best places are trees, including druids, and horns, and sometimes on particular swords. There were swords Valinar was given from the Ebon Blade. They were just like little Winter Veil trees! I put much tinsel on them! Now he has axes instead. I have not yet caught up to him to put tinsel on.

I tried so hard to convince Valyrie to let me keep everything up all year! So very hard! But no, she is saying; up it can go after Pilgrim's Bounty, down it must be before Lunar Festival. Sigh. Pilgrim's Bounty! It would be better if I could put it up over Hallow's End! Or even Brewfest!

5. If you could get anything at all from Greatfather Winter this year, what would it be?
Oh! Oh! Hmm… well, I am already having a dancing girl brazier. Oh! I know! A Sonic Celebration Oscillator! It would be so wonderful and sparkly!

Agness
1. Do you celebrate Winter Veil at all? If so, is it a new tradition for you, or one you've been doing for as long as you can remember?
Oh, sure. I've been celebrating Winter Veil ever since I could remember. Mostly I've always just gone to the Cathedral and helped the less fortunate, since that was what most of the priests I knew did, and of course Vaelen is always very fond of doing that sort of thing. One year we took a shift in the Trade District, ringing a bell for charity. Vaelen was very enthusiastic! The bell was… loud. I let him do that on his own these days.

2. How do you feel about the more commercial aspects of Winter Veil? Do the Smokywood Pastures vendors bother you at all?
Ugh, goblins. Yeah, I'd be happier without them, but every year it seems like somebody sends me a fruitcake. Vaelen seems to like them, though, so I guess it works out okay.

3. What sort of food do you like to have around Winter Veil time? Are you a fan of Graccu's Mince Meat Fruitcake?
Heh, we were just talking about that, weren't we? I'm not so crazy about fruitcake, but I do like chocolate bark and blended bean brew.

4. What sort of decorations do you put up for Winter Veil, and when do they go up?
We get a fresh tree every year. Vaelen chops it down at the tree farm, and we bring it home and decorate it. There are handknit stockings to hang on the fireplace, although I think I might make a new one for myself this year. I have been crazy about felwool lately. It's so great! Anyway, my old one is a little… white and shiny for my tastes now. Vaelen's still happy with his, I'm sure. It's bright gold and has a Stormwind crest on it.

5. If you could get anything at all from Greatfather Winter this year, what would it be?
A lifetime supply of wool-safe imp repellant, and my very own flock of felsheep.

Talents and abilities!
1. What's one thing you're particularly good at?
2. What's one thing you're particularly bad at?
3. Do you prefer it when your talents put you in the spotlight, or when you can perform them quietly from the sidelines? Or neither?
4. If you could be instantly great at any one thing, what would it be?
5. What's a talent someone else has that you particularly admire?

Ovistine Lighthammer
1. What's one thing you're particularly good at?
…I was real damn good at healing, once upon a time. I can make a mean flat of bullets nowadays.

2. What's one thing you're particularly bad at?
Heh. You ever seen my knitting? Or sewing? Mind you, it usually works out. I made this robe once that had a hole in the seat. Teuthida snapped it right up an' said it was perfect. Fit her tail just right!

3. Do you prefer it when your talents put you in the spotlight, or when you can perform them quietly from the sidelines? Or neither?
Well, neither healing nor melting faces really do their best when they're in the spotlight. I did win a contest once for "best model gyrocopter", back when I was a wee thing. (Though some folks complained that as a dwarf, I had an unreasonable advantage. Feck that. I worked as hard as anybody.)

4. If you could be instantly great at any one thing, what would it be?
Well. Right at this moment, given me options are a bit thin on the ground, I'd like to be better with Chaos. Shadow. It's not sommat I love, but it'll have to do, aye?

5. What's a talent someone else has that you particularly admire?
Mum makes pretty spectacular jewelry, when she's of a mind to. I wish I could do half as good with it, but the wee "String Your Own Beads" kit she sent me went about as well as the "Learn To Patchwork Quilt" kit I got from Agness one year. I'm still finding beads weeks later…

Agness Dea
1. What's one thing you're particularly good at?
Cooking! I love to cook, bake, and generally experiment in the kitchen. I may never live down that one time I made soup out of Murloc Fins, though…

2. What's one thing you're particularly bad at?
You know, this is going to sound weird, but for a priest, I was never much good at healing. I can still do it if I want to, though. What? I totally can, darn it. I just haven't wanted to in a while…

3. Do you prefer it when your talents put you in the spotlight, or when you can perform them quietly from the sidelines? Or neither?
I'm not too crazy about being in the spotlight. I'd rather donate baked goods for a bake sale than actually auction them off, say.

4. If you could be instantly great at any one thing, what would it be?
*mutter* I don't suppose "imp wrangling" is an option…

5. What's a talent someone else has that you particularly admire?
Vaelen can get the tops off jars every single time. It would be really, really useful if I could do that, but noooo, half the time I have to get him to do it. I swear, it was easier before we got married. Do you ever think marriage was invented so people would have someone around to open jars for them? I wonder that sometimes.

Teuthida of Shattrath
1. What's one thing you're particularly good at?
Setting things on fire! …usually, even on purpose. Ahem.

2. What's one thing you're particularly bad at?
*sigh* It is not surprising to anyone, I think, and so I am going to say "languages". You would think after four or five years among the Alliance, I would be better at Common. But it is so complicated! So many words that mean the same thing! Such silly structure for putting words together! It is easier to just concentrate on blastings or healings and assume people will know what I mean, yes?

3. Do you prefer it when your talents put you in the spotlight, or when you can perform them quietly from the sidelines? Or neither?
There are certain dwarves who are very, very insistent that if there is a spotlight, or a puddle, or a blizzard, or a rune, I am NOT to stand in it. I must move quickly quickly quickly. Yetis are also not for standing in. So no, I am not liking the spotlights a bit. Unless it is Flame Wreath. Then I am not to move. Or things blow up.

4. If you could be instantly great at any one thing, what would it be?
It would be nice if I could learn to conjure pies, instead of only breads and cinnamon rolls… I am very very fond of pies! Also sandwiches, but I have learned recently to conjure those. \o/!

5. What's a talent someone else has that you particularly admire?
Have you seen the little dwarf? Ovistine? She shares my buzzbox frequency. She has braids that go TWIRL TWIRL TWIRL TWIRL TWIRL!!! So cute! Many dwarves can twirl their braids this way! My pigtails, they occasionally bounce and that is all. I would like to learn this twirling thing! Perhaps if my hair grows long enough…

Romance seems to be the driving plot behind a lot of characters — or if not the driving one, certainly one that lasts through other major plot elements. I think it might actually be more unusual for characters in my circle to be single than attached.

Which makes me wonder, and inspired a set of five questions to be posed to any characters interested in answering them:

1. If you're attached, how did it happen? (If not, are you interested in dating?)
2. Have you been "lucky in love" in the past?
3. What's the number-one thing you need from a potential mate?
4. Is there friction in your relationship? Big, small, none at all?  (If you're not in a relationship, how much friction would you like?)
5. Do your friends and family like the person you're dating?  (If you're not dating anyone, how important is your friends' and family's approval?)

Of my four "major" characters — Ovistine, Teuthida, Nancie, and Agness — two are in relationships and two are, um, uh, HEY LOOK A MURLOC KILL IT KILL IT!

Ovistine

1. If you're attached, how did it happen? (If not, are you interested in dating?)
   I'm, uh… I mean, I wouldn't… well, if someone asked me out for a drink, see, I'd… I mean, only if it were a drink an' that's it. Right? It's not that I'm not interested, I just… I wouldn't want to hurt anybody's feelings. By which I mean someone twice my height, with pink skin an' purple hair, who carries fromping big axes. Not that I know if he'd be upset, but best not to chance it, aye? (Cf. fromping big axes.)
    
2. Have you been "lucky in love" in the past?
   I've not ever brought a lad home for the holidays, so I think that answers that. Um, unless you count last Pilgrim's Bounty. But that would be the first, so!
    
3. What's the number-one thing you need from a potential mate?
   A nice, bushy beard, preferably with braids in it. Oh, um, or someone patient an' kind an' thoughtful. With nice ears.
    
4. Is there friction in your relationship? Big, small, none at all? (If you're not in a relationship, how much friction would you like?)
   *grumbling* Not the kind I'd like. *pause* Assuming that's even… I mean, how would you… *blushes deep fuschia* Let's just say "no" an' leave it there.
    
5. Do your friends and family like the person you're dating? (If you're not dating anyone, how important is your friends' and family's approval?)
   Well, it's important, aye! An' everyone likes Valinar. I mean, theoretically, if… they seem to like… what research facility is this survey with, again?

Teuthida

1. If you're attached, how did it happen? (If not, are you interested in dating?)
   Valyrie has been my closest friend since we were tiny! Since before our horns grew in! How did we… "hook up"? Um… I am having a fishing pole, yes? And Valyrie sometimes gives me shiny baubles for the fishes… and for me…
    
2. Has your character been "lucky in love" in the past?
   Oh, I am very lucky all the time!
    
3. What's the number-one thing you need from a potential mate?
   Well. Good bonking skills, and perhaps willingness to head-butt me if I am pouting? Or, no, no, wait! A sense of ADVENTURE! Yes yes! Also willingness to eat pies for three weeks if I am beset with an urge to bake.
    
4. Is there friction in your relationship? Big, small, none at all? (If you're not in a relationship, how much friction would you like?)
   Friction? This is… oh, fightings! Well, so long as they do not hurt themselves by head-butting giant fire elementals. …too often. I suppose it is friction when I am head-butted for pouting, yes? That is fine too.
    
5. Do your friends and family like the person you're dating? (If you're not dating anyone, how important is your friends' and family's approval?)
   Oh, it would be very important for Valyrie to like anyone else who came to live with us! It would really not work even a little if only I were fond of them, or only Valyrie.
    

Agness

1. If you're attached, how did it happen? (If not, are you interested in dating?)
   Well, Vaelen asked a friend of his to ask me if I would go walking along the canals with him if he asked, and of course I said yes. Then we went steady, got pinned, got engaged, he gave me a pretty ring, and then there was that thing that happened over Winter Veil two years ago and we got married very, very quickly. He was kind of insistent. I just thought the Red Winter Clothes were cute…
    
2. Have you been "lucky in love" in the past?
   Vaelen is all the past there is, so I feel very, very lucky!
    
3. What's the number-one thing you need from a potential mate?
   Hmm… I can't decide between niceness, righteousness, or a desire to smite Scourge.
    
4. Is there friction in your relationship? Big, small, none at all? (If you're not in a relationship, how much friction would you like?)
    Um, well–hey! Bizpit! Felwool is not for eating!–I might have to cut this a little short. Anything else?
    
5. Do your friends and family like the person you're dating? (If you're not dating anyone, how important is your friends' and family's approval?)
   Unfortunately, both my parents were killed in the Third War, so I don't really have much family left. But Trisia likes him, and my friends like him.
    

Nancie

1. If you're attached, how did it happen? (If not, are you interested in dating?)
   Once upon a time, there was a gryphon rider who was verra earnest, but didnae fly so good. But it turned out he had a knack fer tinkerin', an so one day at th' Forge, he an' a young lass turned soldier noticed each other o'er a fiery blaze. Wasnae nearly th' hottest thing goin' on tha' day, if ye ken me meaning! *chuckle*
    
2. Have you been "lucky in love" in the past?
   A lady ne'er kisses an' tells. I suppose a few lads may 'ave carried a bit o' a torch fer me now an' again…
    
3. What's the number-one thing you need from a potential mate?
   'E jes' needs t' stand by me, an' Geoffar's done tha' fer many years now.
    
4. Is there friction in your relationship? Big, small, none at all? (If you're not in a relationship, how much friction would you like?)
   Pffft! Ain't a marriage a'tall if there's no' a row now an' then. Anyway, nowt serious ever came o' it. He loves me an' I love 'im an' thass that.
    
5. Do your friends and family like the person you're dating? (If you're not dating anyone, how important is your friends' and family's approval?)
   Mum an' Da were a bit surprised I fell fer a Wildhammer, but th' lad's perfectly keen on Ironforge as well, though we've moved about a bit. Obviously th' bit loves 'er da greatly. An' ol' Brandur kin keep 'is advice to hisself, thanks. Jes' 'cause I've 'ad months where I didnae get th' kind o' home-leave I'da liked… anyway, aye, everyone loves Geoffar.
    

Recapping the quest text for Pilgrim's Bounty:

Won't you celebrate Pilgrim's Bounty with us, <name>? It's a time for reflecting on your journeys and your good fortune, sharing plentiful food and stories with friends.

Teuthida is grateful to have such strong and generous and wonderful friends — with particular /hugs and /squees to Alishe, Alonora, Prydion, Israia, and of course Valyrie, who is a bit puzzled at the many, many pies Teu has been baking, but not so puzzled she won't eat them! The one thing that's giving Teu pause these days is that she's been feeling like her "job" — and adventuring really has become a job for her — keeps her away from Valyrie and Shattrath a lot more than she'd like. She misses spending time at home, at the orphanage, and she especially misses getting to sing and read to the tiny baby draenei. You may be hearing a loud ticking sound these days if you're standing too close to Teu, and it ain't a gyrochromaton.

Nancie finally got in touch with Ovistine and demanded requested Ovistine join her, Geoffar, Brandur, and the Ironhammer parents in Ironforge for Pilgrim's Bounty. Nancie is grateful that her family is still in one piece — her father, a retired mountaineer, still spends a lot of time fishing at Loch Modan, and her mother's still working at the forge, turning out battle hammers, blades, and making the occasional pair of mithril spurs. Her brother has a good job training paladins at the Mystic Ward. Ovistine is, more or less, safe. Nancie and Geoffar have a hard, struggling job out at Wintergarde, but they're managing. (And this is where I apologize for being slightly out of phase — ha! — with most people, because Wrathgate still hasn't happened for the Lighthammers. Sigh.)

Ovistine has returned from Darnassus, and this year she's incredibly grateful that, despite all the trials and tribulations the Boomsticks have been going through, they've got Homrend back and things look safer now than they have for a while. She's trying to focus on that, and not the way it feels to be cut off from the Light, because that's something she just can't deal with right now. She is also grateful for a certain elf, whom she's planning to invite to Pilgrim's Bounty with the Ironhammers. ("An' may the Light have mercy on his ears.")

Agness is grateful for her wonderful husband, her warm, comfy house in Northshire ("Kobold-Free For 13 days!"), her yarn stash, her new friends at the Shadoweave Knitting Circle, and the fact that Bizpit seems to have been too preoccupied with sulking lately to show up very often or chew on much of her yarn. She's not sure where little demons go for Pilgrim's Bounty, but hopefully he'll stay out of trouble.

Teuthida: Unchanged, IC and OOC.

Agness: IC, still struggling with what to say about her shadow powers, and still avoiding thinking about the fact that she isn't as strong in the holy arts as she used to be. OOC, 76 and momentarily on hold as the Boomstick RP picks up.

Nancie: IC, still in flux as I work on the Wrathgate story. OOC, dinged 80, has an epic flappy, maxed out her mining and jewelcrafting, working on her Argent Dawn/Crusade rep (well over halfway through revered with both), and is collecting RP gear like crazy. She's got a set of "Wrynnforge" (it's Lightforge recolored in blue and gold), and I've got an eye out for a set of Moutaineer's Garb (you have to assemble it in pieces, mostly from AH drops), as well as giving a look around for the kind of armor she wears in her nightmares. Working on it! I really like the idea of being able to have visuals for the Nancie biography. (Yes, I'm working on that. No, I'm not on schedule. No, I don't care.)

Ovistine: IC and OOC: SHE'S BACK! \o/ The main of my heart has returned (and made me wish I'd registered twirlybraids.com instead, or in addition). IC, Ovistine has gotten her arse out of the library and taken on a role in the search for her good friend Homrend, recently killed by a mysterious group of Dark Irons and unable to resurrect because his spirit's been trapped by Hakkar (who always did bear a grudge). She knows there's a bargain that's going to have to be made to save him, and she knows what she's going to have to give up, but it's not going to stop her.

OOC, Ovistine is out of her rut, having pushed past 73 as well as getting one of those nice Cold Weather Flying Tomes. She's now 75 and I'm able to be very choosy with her quests, avoiding awful things with pitiful drop rates in favor of quests that are of more interest, both to me and to her.

I had actually been pondering the things brought up by this post on WTT:RP: what quests would Ovi do for real, and which am I doing because she's 75 and Disc/Holy and boy howdy I do not want to have to kill 93 bears for their asses, I'd rather just take a necklace to the dudes on the hill?

Ovistine is actually the first character in a while who's had an opinion about quests, and I think that's got a lot to do with how she got where she is. The short version: because Teu was my raiding main, she got pushed to 80 first, and that left Ovi constantly having to explain her absences. Eventually, I decided she'd taken up a research position at the Cathedral of Light and has been working on the Scourge problem as well as looking into these Ebon Blade death knights Varian Wrynn seems so determined to support. That left me with a much more thoughtful, much more curious dwarf than I'd started with — so thoughtful and curious that she's beginning to think more seriously about archaeology and where the dwarves came from. The Explorers' League holds a lot more appeal for her now than it ever used to, and she's been distracted from her main goal (find Homrend. find him now) a couple of times by information about the Titans and an old battered journal of Brann Bronzebeard's that she found in Thor Modan. Where Nancie spent the last couple of levels in Icecrown fighting Scourge, Ovistine is likely to level up in Storm Peaks looking for evidence of the Titans.

(And at some point I really need to start writing and posting Wrathgate, and begging my RP crew's forgiveness for what will probably be an abrupt "WTF" moment for Ovistine; the main reason I'm not doing it right now is because the Search for Homrend/Dark Iron Chaos storyline is moving so fast that I'd really rather not put something else into the mix. Also I'm procrastinating. Again. >_>)

1. "I like this ship! It's exciting!" It was actually a pretty fun fight.
2. Earth shield eventually went on a rogue who was stabbing one of the healers in the face, purely for the healing boost. Spell interruption was either total or nonexistent, so I really didn't need the extra interruption resistance.
3. Water shield on me for the mana boost; weirdly, I used more potions in that fight than possibly in all of Naxx put together.
4. Completely PVP totem set — Earthbind, Cleansing, Grounding, which were easy enough to throw on the run, grouped or individually (*cliiiiings to TotemTimers*). Maybe a Searing next time. Mana Tide came in VERY handy. I wonder if anyone else was running out of mana.
5. Approximate spell rotation: purge riptide purge purge riptide CHAIN HEAL purge purge riptide purge SHIT RUN AWAY WHILE PURGING RIPTIDE purge purge HAHAHA HEX SCREW YOU SHADOW PRIEST lesser healing wave chain heal chain heal purge purge AUGH FUCK RUN AWAY… in other words, mess and chaos! But fun mess and chaos.
6. I never used to want to stab shadow priests right in the (insert name of sensitive body part here), but NOW I DO. Jerk.
7. I find myself wondering if we might be able to have healer priority for that fight — "while we're fighting X, we must keep A, B, and C alive; while we're fighting Y, we must keep D, E, and F alive". Early on, it felt like the people to keep alive were our melee DPS, which was great, I'm good at that, and I was able to get Chain Heals off with no problem. Later, I wasn't entirely sure who, if anybody, to focus on. Of course, as the fight goes on, it gets easier!

What I learned, above and beyond everything else:

PvP on Teu could actually be fun. o_O That was… an interesting revelation. I will grant you — I would rather (by a factor of eleventy billion) be healing friends and people I actually know than healing random n00bs. And if I'm ever in a battleground with someone who, after taking four times his entire health pool worth of healing and still getting his face eaten because he was unable to kill someone who did not have a healer, tells me, "Don't just stand there, do something", I will, in fact, say "I was healing you, assclown" rather than letting it sour me on the whole PvP experience.

But if I were gonna PvP on Teu, I'd need gear. And practice. And I have no idea how much I'd really like it. And, honestly, it's not really very in-character for her, which is unfortunate. (Nancie, on the other hand…) But hey, it's a thought.

(Dwarf shamans NOW PLZ. Ovi-shaman in battlegrounds? !!)

* Agness has been leveling up her fishing and cooking, using the awesome Level Your Cooking While You Fish! guide from El's Extreme Anglin'. She's just reached Northrend, and I've been doing a little RP writing to get her caught up to where she'll be in game in a few weeks (computer permitting). She's about halfway through L69–not quite the same level as her husband Vaelen, but really close; in a level or two, she'll be caught up, and Val will be switching to Vaelen, since he's the alt Val most wants at L80.

I am really excited about the RP, even if my RP tendencies are very writing-oriented and not so much on-the-fly in-person. (I freeze up at major RP events and have trouble following fast-paced multi-character real-time conversations.) Being able to have Agness chatter at Vaelen in-game will be a lot of fun. It's been a long time since they adventured together — pretty much since they hit 60 and we both changed mains (me to Ovistine, Val to Valinar). Then I re-rolled Agness, so when Vaelen went from 60-71, he was mostly playing with Nancie — who doesn't have any RP with him to speak of. Dual paladining is fun, but there wasn't much RP involved. I can't wait!

* Nancie hasn't been very active — primarily because I can't decide what to do about emblems for her. I'm trying to decide if I want to get her some heirlooms. I also want to get her PvPing again. And I need to get her leveled up. Now that you can gain XP in battlegrounds, I'll be really tempted to do that! It depends on whether it's faster to quest or grind it out in battlegrounds. I also need to decide whether to move Nancie to a different account, so she and Ovistine can actually take on Wrathgate together.

* Ovistine has been on hold, too — and she may be more thoroughly on hold in the upcoming days. One thing that's going on with her has to do with future changes, so I'll save that for the future section of this post; otherwise, I desperately want to move her and Nancie through the events of Wrathgate, because it's going to have some major implications, some of them right away.

* Teuthida has gotten to go out and adventure and see the new instance, which has been fun. Kinda buggy, but fun. I need to find someone who can cut her a Reckless Ametrine for her new chestpiece.

All right, so that's what I'm doing now. And in the future…

There are a lot of things we're hearing about — some confirmed, some not. The retuned Onyxia makes me whoop with glee (really! there was whooping!), and I'm looking forward to the Coliseum opening up further.

But one of the big things people are talking about is opening up class choices to different races, and let me tell you, I am wildly excited about that — I'm just waiting to find out if it's true.

Most notably, it's the idea of dwarf shamans that has me excited. The dwarves I know have been clamoring for it since the introduction of Alliance shamans — after all, with the Wildhammers, it just plain makes sense!

But on a personal front, the idea of being able to keep the class I love best at endgame (shammies forever!) but, potentially, tie it together with my all-time favorite RP main (Ovistine forever!), is — needless to say — incredibly exciting. I love being a shaman, no question, but between the fact that Ovistine has more history with everyone — especially including Valinar — and the fact that I just plain like playing a dwarf better than I've ever liked playing a Draenei (there's a reason I have two separate dwarves and only one Draenei character!), I'm very interested in the notion of rerolling shaman. And, er, possibly going enhancement as an off-spec! Maybe! (YOU NEVER KNOW. I COULD EVEN LIKE IT.)

I even have an RP storyline figured out for this; it has to do with Wrathgate. But in the meantime, I'm also kind of tempted to roll Ovistine as a hunter. (Really!) Mostly because, darn it, I like the hunter class, and I don't have one Alliance-side. She'd be a hunter-gatherer (*groan*), with two of the three gathering professions — undecided about which ones. The only problem is that until Wrathgate, Ovistine's a Priesty Priest Of Priestiness And Nothing Will Ever Change That (She Thinks). So playing Ovistine-the-hunter would mean making sure everyone understands that, in-character, she's not a hunter, she's a priest.

And what about just plain re-rolling, as in with a character recustomization option? I've been asked, if I were able to reroll Teu-Shaman as a dwarf and recustomize her, would I just dwarfify her and have a ready-made Ovistine? What if you could simply reclass? I don't know if either of these will actually happen in game, and I'm not holding my breath. And I'm also kind of relieved that it's not a question at this point, because a.) Ovistine-priest becoming Ovistine-shaman would require a hell of a lot of new gear AAGH, but then b.) Teu-shaman becoming Ovistine-shaman just seems unfair to Teu. Even if I have Emergency Backup Teu (the mage), I can't say I really want to have Teu-shaman just… gone. It doesn't seem right.

There's also the fact that Teu, as a draenei, does bring along that 1% hit aura. >_< I'm pretty sure my raid is cool enough that they'd be willing to deal with one fewer squid in the raid when the next expansion hits — after all, when a new expansion comes out, there's always a scramble to see who changes mains and what opens up for people. (Overall, in our raid, we had, I think, three people change mains with Lich King, plus a bevy of alts coming around and several new faces.) Losing your only regular resto shaman might be less than ideal (I do pine for more resto shammies!), but I don't want to not be a shaman. I just want to be a dwarf shaman — if I can. (And let me tell you, the desire to figure out what Horde race would transform to Dwarf, and roll a shaman with that race, and start playing them up right now so I don't have 80 levels to make up when the expansion hits, is very great.)

ETA:

Q. Will I be able to choose the race on the opposite faction that I want to change to?
A. Yes, but you will only be able to switch to a race that has your class type available to it. So if you play a human paladin, you’d only be able to change to a blood elf paladin.

So, uh, I had been thinking about rolling up a Horde shaman anyway…

Frankly, there are too many things going on in my head to make any good decisions just yet. Until we have real information, I'm going to stick with what's already clear and established — namely, Agness's leveling, Nancie and Ovistine's need to at least go through Wrathgate, even if I don't know what's going on with Ovistine afterwards, and Nancie's return to PvP.

And I need my *&#% computer back. Hopefully sometime this weekend we'll have a chance to figure out WTF is wrong with it. *whimpers* (Let me tell you how much I am not looking forward to having to reinstall everything I own — though, on the bright side, quite some time ago I added my gaming rig's WTF and Interface directories to my Live Mesh, which means they're backed up and some of my pain may be alleviated. Live Mesh = FTW FTW FTW. If you are not backing up your important files already, I strongly recommend doing so, and there are many free remote storage services available!)