#valerie graves seong ;

[withoz]

the bestest family group chat

dorothy: i need advice dorothy: and it's not relationship advice dorothy: but maybe i want it to be dorothy: but i don't want to be weird...or creepy dorothy: but i like them and i don't know if they like me and i'm so confused

[fragilcline]

THE PHRASE WHEN IT RAINS, IT POURS wasn't an ideology Mei usually subscribed to, instead considering the much more logical reality that, unfortunately, shit was just always happening. Not that the artist herself would use vulgarity herself, but the meaning remained the same. But life at the moment seemed to certainly be trying to change her mind on that belief, as she couldn't even seem to get home from work without more issues arriving, as if she did not have a very busy night planned full of fruitlessly trying to come up with anyway she could help Mindy and Ava before eventually giving up and spending the rest of the night in frustration and anxiety. However useless that plan sounded, it felt wrong to be doing anything else. "I guess that's a relief." Really, it just meant she possibly made a bigger fool of herself that could've been avoided, but some minor social embarrassment barely registered to her when there was so much else going on. That, she actually had thick enough (scarred) skin to deal with. "I'm not incredibly acquainted with the rationale of thieves-" No, she was only acquainted with thieves and outwardly ignoring the rationale behind it, which was enough for her to consider it not entirely a lie. "-but I'll take your word for it. Although, if I was more of an opportunist, you may have been able to inspire a life of crime." In actuality, the looming thought of getting caught breaking the law would probably set her paranoia to a record-breaking high. "You can?" The offer had Mei's eyes opening a bit wider, looking at the other as if they were the embodiment of relief in a sticky situation. Looking between the bobby pin and the locked door, then back at the tiny hair accessory, not intending to give off an air of doubt. "So, that really works? I thought maybe it was just made up for the movies."

Over the last decade, Valerie had become a little too accustomed to sleepless nights and habitual bouts of restlessness, her body having long adjusted to her strange circadian rhythm. If she was lucky, she might get a few hours of uninterrupted rest a day, but the slightest noise was enough to rouse her from even the deepest of sleep. Her paranoia, triggered over the recent threats made against her family, certainly didn't help the constant anxiety simmering just beneath the surface of her joyful demeanor, though the relatively new addition of Seojun sleeping in her guest room, spending most nights at her home to keep her company and make sure she was safe, did much to soothe Val's frayed nerves as of late. The blonde was grateful not to spend her evenings alone with her thoughts anymore, no longer stewing in her anxiety for as long as she could physically stomach, but on nights that the fighter was busy with other obligations, the silence in her residence felt nearly suffocating. A walk felt like the perfect thing to clear her head until her companion returned. And, as luck would have it, thank goodness she had decided to take a stroll, stumbling on a person in need against the darkening Alaskan skyline. "Oh, it's okay! I wasn't gonna accuse you of breakin' in," she promised, her usual chipper tone still present in her voice, despite the slightly forced stretch of her smile and bags forming underneath wide brown eyes. "It's not my business to interrogate ya anyways, but... ya don't really strike me as the thievin' sort. They tend to use back doors, don't they? Either way, I think I can help ya get your keys back, sugar," the performer asserted, fishing a light brown bobby pin out of her hair and presenting it to Mei with a triumphant flourish, bleached baby hairs standing at attention at the motion. "It's been a while since I've done this, but I reckon it should be like ridin' a bike."

[thvnderr]

​🇸​​🇪​​🇴​​🇯​​🇺​​🇳​ ​as​ ​🇧​​🇺​​🇿​​🇿​ ​🇱​​🇮​​🇬​​🇭​​🇹​​🇾​​🇪​​🇦​​🇷​ —— participating with Valerie Graves-Seong. Signed up by Lou!

"I don't do costumes." "Don't you dress up every night to kick junkie asses?" "That's different!" "Sure, Batman".

Because of his parents and no particular interest in the whole hassle of finding a costume, Seojun has never been one to put effort whenever attending a Halloween party, the clothes would be off by the end of the night anyways.

How Lou convinced him of matching with him for a contest still beats him, but in a way or another, he ended up asking Sky for help with the handmade costume. It would have been easier to buy one, for sure, but the fighter could be picky about things, so to avoid that, he decided to work on the thing himself. Sky, Lou and him ended up covered in green and white paint as they ate pizza two nights before the event on Seojun's kitchen floor. Each one of them with a recently painted part in their hands. "So you're gonna be Woody?", Seojun would ask Lou. "Uh? Ah... yeah, yeah! Totally. My costume is great, wait until you see it".

Unexpectedly, Seojun proudly got into his costume before heading to the party. Lou should definitely hide, at least until the reasons behind his lies come through.

[smckesprite]

❀ *◦ ⇝ hey, isn’t that si-woo “addison” graves-seong? i think that the 27 year old from aurora, west virginia works as a drag queen and a donut maker at top pot doughnuts, but outside of that people describe them as having the inability to focus on a single thing, golden retriever energy, and innocence. i hear they are sensitive & acute, but they are also known to be magnanimous and neurodivergent. consider giving them a visit at their home in kingpin trailer park and get to know why they’re called the kaleidoscope hair.

» BASICS.

FULL NAME. si-woo “addison” graves-seong

NICKNAME(S). addy, sunny, sudowoodo ( dustin’s nickname for them, no one else *glares* )

AGE. twenty-seven ( 27 )

DATE OF BIRTH. april 22, 1996

ASTROLOGICIAL SIGN. taurus

PLACE OF BIRTH. aurora, west virginia

HOMETOWN. ?

ORIENTATION. asexual + panromantic

GENDER & PRONOUNS. genderfluid ╱ he + him ┊ they + them

NATIONALITY. american

ETHNICITY. east asian — ( south korean )

RELIGION. atheist

LANGUAGE(S) SPOKEN. english, korean, spanish & portuguese

RELATIONSHIP STATUS. single

CURRENT LOCATION. anchorage, alaska

OCCUPATION. drag queen & donut maker at top pot doughnuts

FINANCIAL STATUS. working-class, poor; barely hanging on for dear life

EDUCATION LEVEL. high school diploma ( salutatorian graduate — didn’t bother trying to go to college because he only lasted one semester )

» APPEARANCE.

FACE CLAIM. lee felix

HEIGHT. 5 feet, 7 inches ┊ 171 centimeters

HAIR & EYE COLOR. naturally dark brown, constantly dyes their hair & hazel eye color ( wears contact lenses of various colors, purple contact lenses as lulu lopunny )

TATTOOS. their parents and siblings’ names in hangul on their inner wrist — ( tiny, minimalist )

PIERCINGS. two on each earlobe, cartilage, right helix & left orbital

» FAMILIAL DETAILS.

PARENTS. eomma & appa — deceased ✝

SIBLINGS. duck-young “dustin” graves-seong — 36 ; sun-young “valeria / valerie” graves-seong — 25 ; da-eun “dorothy” graves-seong — 23

CHILDREN. n/a

PETS. southern chorus frog ( unnamed, refers to it as frog or dusty sometimes )

CONNECTIONS. circus members he frequently traveled with throughout his time as an act, during his childhood, before and after leading to his parents’ deaths, + relations made through their siblings in town — tbd.

» PERSONALITY.

POSITIVE. magnanimous, empathetic, caring, gentle & neurodivergent

NEGATIVE. acute, sensitive, forgetful, indecisive & unpremeditated

» BACKSTORY.

** posting this before i accidentally delete it & have a mental breakdown again. * TBA.

[dreampedia]

WHERE: peppy parrot's emporium opening event WHEN: 1st september WHO: valerie graves-seong ( @daydreambelievcr )

"This feels so wrong, it's like I'm being paid to skip work!" That was a slight exaggeration, in the sense that it wasn't true at all. After all, they were still being tasked with keeping track of a whole group of kids. Very excited kids. And that was perhaps the trickiest kind of kid to keep an eye on. The field trip itself had been a no-brainer; there were a lot of busy working adults in Anchorage who just didn't have time to take their kids to this swanky little opening event but, when just about everybody else was going, it felt wrong for all those kids to be left out! (And maybe it'd help alleviate the parents' guilt about being too busy. Mio was worried about everyone in this equation.)

It went rather without saying that they hadn't needed an individual pizza for each and every kid but they had gathered enough fliers to end up with a spread of various different pizzas with various different toppings. Most kids had shoved a few slices down their gullets and run off to go play in the arcade, leaving Mio and Val with the leftovers. Still, the novelty of sitting around was starting to wear off a little. If the table weren't covered in pizzas, she would have flopped down on it. "You think we could get away with playing around on the crane machines for a while? Or do you think there's gonna be a shock accident the second we stop paying attention?"

[b4rredteeth]

pesor, choose: dusty or valerie graves-seong

"Uhm... probably Dusty, I know him better than I know Valerie."

[solitaryspirits]

valerie graves seong

For the longest time, Simon didn’t think himself capable of selfless acts. And yet, here he stands just outside of Flying Saucer pizza with their stupid looking dog and the old mural that needed updating in the fucking shitty cold weather and — and he knows he’s being unreasonable. He’s only there to pick up pizza for Anjali. Their order is still another twenty minutes. And if he has to go another second without smoking…

Temptation draws him to pull the pack out of his coat pocket. He doesn’t open it, but his fingers twitch with the desire to. Still unable to throw the pack away, Simon leans against the wall as he finds himself at a rather unfortunate standstill.

“If you’re going to tell me to turn my frown upside down or look on the bright side, I am not up for your cheery attitude today,” From the corner of his eye he spots Valerie next to him. “Just because it’s pizza night doesn’t mean it’s a good night.”

@daydreambelievcr​

[daydreambelievcr]

valerie graves-seong as starfire from teen titans, duo costume with seojun

"i am sorry to disappoint you, but i am stronger than i look."

[daydreambelievcr]

valerie graves-seong as jessie from toy story

"thought i'd get one last look at the sun before i get packed away again." ( participating with seojun cha, signed up by lou jin )

[daydreambelievcr]

❀ *◦ jo serim ( onda ). demi woman. she/they. panromantic demisexual. ⇝ hey, isn’t that sun-young “valeria / valerie” graves-seong? i think that the twenty-six year old from aurora, west virgina works as an aerialist at the carnival of time and daycare worker at the moon & sun daycare, but outside of that people describe them as bright summer days, velvet theater curtains, tangles of wildflowers, sidewalk chalk art, and pastel electric guitars. i hear they are guarded & withdrawn, but they are also known to be optimistic & generous. consider giving them a visit at their home in the marionette and get to know why they’re called the songbird.

-a sweetie that just wants to recover her lost childhood -endlessly optimistic, always smiling -was a circus performer in her youth -had a career in child acting for ten years under the stage name margo sutton -will go quiet if you insult her, but won’t hesitate to defend the people she loves -a believer in giving people the benefit of the doubt -but give her a reason to not trust you, and she won’t look back -she has a big heart, but doesn’t want to be taken advantage of again

pinterest board / playlist

flowers, i remember fields of flowers: lore.

tw: mentions of death, abuse, grooming, and sexual assault

Childhood:

Valerie doesn’t remember a great deal about her biological parents, having lost them at such a young age. Regardless, she still considers her childhood a largely happy one, and one that instilled in her a passion for creativity, performance, and whimsy.

During her time traveling with her family and performing as carneys, she trained in gymnastics and dance, performing as a trapeze artist and silk aerialist. She also discovered her love for music when she was still young, learning to play the guitar and ukulele. 

At the age of nine, Valerie was scouted by a modeling agent at one of her family’s shows. Soon, she was offered the chance to fly out to LA for auditions, and the prospect of performing in a more mainstream manner and making some money to help out her siblings proved enticing to the young girl, so she jumped at the opportunity.

Adolescence:

Her journey into child acting was initially exciting, and after years of performing alongside her found family, she was accustomed to the demands of show business. Her professionalism and “maturity for her age” was something that made her both an asset to the projects she worked on, but also the target of a powerful person that she worked under.

At the age of thirteen, Valerie began to be mentally and verbally abused by a producer, which continued for two years before the abuse turned sexual in nature. When Valerie finally mustered the courage to confide in someone about the abuse when she was eighteen, she was swiftly intimidated into silence and blackballed in the industry.

Though she attempted to keep her career going with her team, in two years, she grew largely disheartened with the industry, no longer enchanted by the idea of working on sets and missing the simplicity of her childhood.

Becoming a has-been by the age of twenty was certainly a shock to Valerie, but she had no desire to continue her professional acting pursuits in Hollywood.  

Present Day:

After deciding to leave her silver screen dreams behind and start anew, Valerie sought the comfort of her family, relocating to Anchorage to be near them in her twenties.

Currently, she works as an aerialist at the local carnival, happy to be reconnecting with her family, making friends, and getting back to the root of what she loved so much about performing to begin with.

Nowadays, she tends to avoid the topic of her former career in general, choosing instead to focus on the future and what lies ahead for her.

She would love to become an advocate for the protection of children somehow, but without a formal education under her belt, she has no idea where to start. In the meantime, she treasures her job at the daycare, happy to be a part of the childhoods of the children under her care.

soft beneath my heels, walking in the sun: stats.

General Info: Full Name: Sun-young “Valeria / Valerie” Danielle Graves-Seong. Nicknames: Valerie, Val, V, Sunny, Ria. Age: 26. Date of Birth: February 20th, 1998. Zodiac Sign: Pisces. Gender: Demi woman. Pronouns: she/they. Sexual Orientation: Demisexual. Romantic Orientation: Panromantic. Relationship Status: Taken, crushing on Cha Seojun.  Alignment: Neutral Good. MBTI: ENFP, the Campaigner.

Appearance: Faceclaim: Jo Serim ( Onda ). Height: 5′5. Eye Color: Brown. Hair Color: Brown naturally, but she regularly dyes it platinum blonde. She used to have bangs in her childhood/adolescence, but she currently wears it all one length. Tattoos: A watercolor dandelion on her right shoulder blade. Piercings: A single earlobe piercing on each ear.

Background: Education: Homeschooled throughout her life, finished high school at the age of seventeen. Occupation: Aerialist at the Carnival of Time and Daycare Worker at the Moon & Sun Daycare. Residence: The Marionette. Class: Middle ( comfortable, has plenty in savings from her acting days ). Ethnicity: South Korean. Language(s) Spoken: English / Korean / Spanish.

Identity: Label: the songbird. Positive Traits: kind-hearted, optimistic, empathetic, generous, enthusiastic. Negative Traits: absent-minded, withdrawn, guarded, nonconfrontational, emotional. Quirks/Habits: her eyes are very expressive, goes quiet/retreats into herself when she’s upset. Love Language: Physical touch and quality time. Hobbies: playing the guitar/ukulele, singing, baking. Likes: statement earrings, sugar cookies, knit cardigans, cowboy boots, homemade ceramics. Dislikes: people that make her feel dumb, feeling pressured to do things, being infantilized. Fears: revisiting her traumas, letting her past change who she is, losing her softness.

[daydreambelievcr]

In direct contrast to Murphy and the blind confidence afforded by the God complex of her youth, Valerie still harbored the deep-seated insecurities brought on by her own childhood, buried underneath her usual sunny and optimistic disposition. All of the facets about herself that had once seemed innocuous back in West Virginia were examined under a microscope by her former team at nauseum until they threatened to eclipse everything unique about the performer. Still, she was a different person now than she was back then. The blonde tried not to think about that uncertain little girl too often, content to set her sights on the future instead. "Ah, I know that feeling all too well," Valerie empathized, letting an uncomfortable truth slip in the presence of a friend. "I swear, I got so sick of people telling me I was 'mature for my age.' What does that even mean? Maybe that's why I spend my days as a fully grown woman runnin' around with little ones, makin' sure they still get to be kids."

A light peel of laughter slipping past her lips, Val shook her head in disbelief. "Oh, I'm sure you don't evaporate! But I get it if you prefer the cold. Luckily, we mountain folk are used to both," the blonde declared, standing up straighter, her chunky white go-go boots giving her a few extra inches of height. "Now I have to tell Dusty whatta big fan of his show ya are. He'll be beside himself that you enjoy the show so much, ya had to listen even while you were off havin' adventures 'round the world," the acrobat insisted, her smile brightening on behalf of the eldest Graves-Seong, so proud of everything her sibling had accomplished in Anchorage. Following behind Murphy in anticipation of viewing the gallery's newest installment, Valerie's mouth dropped open in a small "o," taking in the display with wide eyes. "Whoa... you were right about this being trippy," she exhaled, the wonder apparent in her tone. "This is so cool. I'm usually pretty dense about art, so you might have to clue me in on the inspirations and all that. But the meaning's pretty clear to me."

"You definitely do," Murphy concurred as Valerie spoke on the different facets of wisdom — they might have displayed as polar opposites, but that didn't negate the other's capabilities. She had once developed a God complex in her youth, mostly in thanks to her mother's harsh rule and the perfectionism that took root in the young artist's soul as a result, but as the years wore on, the less she seemed to think she was, or ever needed to be, this omniscient force when it concerned life and all its obstacles. "I'm not sure anyone's actually called me an expert before," she admitted, a meek blush blossoming on the apples of her cheeks. "I suppose I always suffered from that good ol' fashioned 'good for my age' trope." As gifted of a child as she was, she couldn't deny how detrimental the awareness of her talents had been on her psyche.

She slid her palms into the pockets of her checkered slacks comfortably, head cocked sideways as she listened intently to Valerie and felt a warm smile break her neutral expression. "Well, if you melt, then I practically evaporate," she returned in jest. "Yeah, I never really stopped, actually. I even listened while I was away — just had a friend record it for me. I think I fell asleep to his voice a few times, even," Laughter emanated from her chest, shaking her head at the memories of pulling all-nighters and having the balanced chaos of the distant ocean coupled with Dustin's voice lull her to sleep. "In that case, I think you'll love it." Rounding a corner, her eyes shimmered with excitement as she made a sweeping motion with her arm to show off the environment. "It's called Climate Changing. You see, we have these sawed-off tree limbs here, spray-painted black, and then here — all these birds? Painted skeletons, all real, mind you, picking at the bark because they have nothing left to eat in their habitats."

[daydreambelievcr]

setting: visiting hours + val / dusty ( give me Pain from his car accident when she was like 11.... evil laughter )

[  VISITING  HOURS  ]:     upon waking in a hospital bed, one of the muses turns their head, and finds the other sleeping in an uncomfortable chair by their bedside.

Eyes slowly fluttering open, straightening from the huddled position that she'd fallen asleep in, Valerie sucked in a breath at the sight of her brother stirring in his hospital bed, eyes burning as a fresh wave of tears threatened to spill. "Hey... I'm glad you're up, but try not to move too much, okay?" she urged him softly, her high-pitched voice breaking. For a fleeting moment, the preteen girl hoped that the whole ordeal had been some kind of homesick nightmare—phone lighting up with a call from an unknown number, excusing herself from rehearsals to take it, the feeling of her stomach dropping down to her toes, blooding running cold in her veins at the news that Dusty had been in a car accident (a really bad one, from the sound of the person's utter disbelief that he'd made it out of the wreckage still clinging to life). Since they were both in California, Val was the closest family he had, and although she was a mere eleven years old, she'd been the first one to arrive at the hospital to see him. It felt all wrong to her, seeing her jovial and outgoing older brother in such a state, so frail and broken, his limbs and skull covered in bandages in a feeble attempt to hide just how bad his injuries were. She'd been too young to really remember losing her parents, but the sudden reminder that she could have lost the closest thing she had to a guiding hand planted a festering pit in her stomach. Even though they'd come to the decision to emancipate the youngest Graves-Seong children so that she and her siblings would be free to pursue their separate dreams, she had a sinking feeling that nothing good could come of their family being splintered like this.

[daydreambelievcr]

( dusty's place, early evening, october 8 ) @withoz

"You sick of rewatching Disney movies yet, Pidge?" Valerie wondered as the credits of Lady and the Tramp rolled on the TV across from them, lazily turning her head to the side to properly look at her sister, resting her cheek against the back of the plush living room sofa. "'Cause you just say the word, and I can switch over to the trashy reality TV show of your choice. This is a judgment free house, remember?" she joked, managing a soft smile, but her eyes involuntarily caught on the youngest Graves-Seong's arm, still secure in its sling. The former starlet was doing her best not to fuss over her sister any more than she already had over the last few weeks, determined to offer her a distraction from being housebound. The night of the accident was still a blur to Val—the only things she remembered with much clarity were the sounds of gasps out in the audience alerting her that something had gone wrong and the sight of her sister's face crumbling once she'd made it backstage. It had been enough to send the blonde into action, her heart pounding with a protective urgency so great, everything else that night melted away. Since then, Dorothy's palpable absence during their act felt like a phantom limb. Valerie tried not to dwell on it (the same way she did with most negative things), but sitting together in the stillness of their brother's remote country home, the faint light of the TV casting a neon halo around them both, she felt a tug of concern, compelled to check in and see how Dorothy was handling everything. "How are you feeling, by the way? Not just physically either. It's been... really weird not having you around," she confessed, hoping it would be enough to open a door for them both.

[daydreambelievcr]

( valerie's apartment, evening ) @withoz

Nimble fingers threading through raven hair as she gently worked her little sister's long locks into a fishtail braid, Val absentmindedly hummed along to the music coming from their movie selection of the night, Grease. The sisters had watched the movie dozens of times over the years, practically able to recite it from memory, so they rarely gave it their full attention, only stopping the flow of conversation to occasionally sing along to their favorite songs or quote lines they'd memorized (with matching inflections and all). Valerie herself would always drop whatever they were doing to dramatically belt out a rendition of Hopelessly Devoted, looking to earn a few giggles from Dorothy in the process. But on that particular night, she had a suspicion that the youngest Graves-Seong was hoping to use their weekly movie night to talk about something that was on her mind. Still, Val didn't want to press her if she wasn't ready to talk yet, so she took her time combing through Dorothy's hair with meticulous care. "God, your hair is so shiny and healthy—I'm jealous," she teased from her spot up on the couch, nudging her sister gently with one of the knees perched on either side of Dorothy's shoulders. "I feel like no matter how many treatments I do on mine, it still feels dry," she lamented, referring to her own head of bleach blonde hair. Still, the performer knew in her heart that the compulsion to cover her natural hair color wouldn't be going away any time soon. At this point, it felt almost like a security blanket to her, the desire to look nothing like she had a few years ago. "So, what have you been up to lately, sweets? Anything fun?"

[daydreambelievcr]

Though Dorothy's birthday was still a few weeks away, the former starlet was already furiously thinking about all of the potential ideas for her baby sister's cake. The Graves-Seong family certainly had a penchant for celebrating even the smallest of accomplishments and milestones, so despite the fact that the sisters both had birthdays within mere days of each other, Valerie always insisted on making the youngest member of their family feel extra special on her birthday. Could she have made the cake herself? She had in years past. But the blonde feared that her current ideas required the hand of a professional. Eyes scanning the small treats on display at Puggy's Cakes, Val let out a small cough, her throat dry from the winter air outside, eyes widening when she caught the attention of the person behind the counter. "Not long at all!" she assured Jaye, her usual sunny grin fixed on her face, though her features softened with slight concern at the other's clearly exhausted countenance. "I was just wondering... what do you guys offer by way of custom cakes?"

Location: Puggy's Cakes

Cap: None for now.

@anchoragestarters

The day had been slow which meant that Jaye was left alone with her thoughts once more. It was clear to anybody that knew her that she wasn't really herself and the smiles that she was putting on for customers were fake. She had a lot on her mind, especially since her friend was still missing and her nerves were getting the better of her, she couldn't really focus on anything other than wondering if she was okay. Thankfully there wasn't any customers in the bakery so the smile was nowhere to be seen and she was just staring off out the window. It was still cold out but thankfully the sun was out that day instead of it being windy and rainy like it had been so she could see out clearly. She didn't know how long she had been staring out the window until she heard the sound of coughing, bringing her back in to reality. "Oh I'm so sorry, how long have you been standing there?" She asked before rubbing her hands against her face like she was rubbing sleep from her eyes.

[daydreambelievcr]

Comforted by the appearance of her sister, Val reflectively reached for the extra bags Dorothy was carrying, her wide brown eyes filled with concern. "Come 'ere, let me carry some of those for you," she insisted gently, her smile softening with fondness at the reassurance that she was alright. The blonde wasn't much taller than her younger sister, but what she lacked in physical stature, she made up for with an obscene amount of enthusiasm, more than happy to take three of the bags from her and slinging them on her arms with ease. Though she was well aware that Dori could handle herself, that she didn't need her older siblings constantly coming to her aid, Valerie couldn't help her instinct to want to protect her younger sister. Despite the fact that they were close in age, she had always done her best to look after Dorothy—which had been the hardest part of Val's move to California in her youth, leaving her behind with their circus family to fend for herself.

Grateful for a task to anchor her during such an uncertain time, she nodded with newfound determination at the mention of all of the animals that would be without heat, already looking in the direction of the circus and reaching for her keys. "We can head that way right now and see if there's something we can do to help over there. Do you think there's anything else we might need?" she wondered, glancing back in the direction of her apartment. Dusty had always been known as the more level-headed and cerebral of the Graves-Seong children, but she was certain that they would be able to figure something out together. Clasping Dorothy's hands in her own icy ones, a misguided attempt to warm them when hers were just as icy, she replied, "I know, I thought it would have kicked back on by now. But I'm glad you slept well. I was worried sick about everyone."

DOROTHY LEARNED AT A YOUNG AGE TO SLEEP through quite a lot. That trait kind of came along with being on the road for years at a time, especially when a number of animals (and personalities) were traveling with you. When the power of her apartment had gone out, she had just assumed it was a minor situation, possibly related to the weather, and piled every blanket on top of herself before going to sleep. What she didn’t expect was to wake up with the outage still going on. Her first reaction was to text the family group chat, but her phone had died overnight, without anyway to charge it. 

Her only options at that point were to try to make the journey to one of her siblings' places or remain under the heap of comforter and blankets that she was currently curled up underneath. Then, the thought occurred to her of the animals at the carnival, many of which were unprepared to deal with the Alaskan weather without powered heaters. Throwing on a powder blue sweater and her thickest jacket over it, she stuffed as many of her own blankets into a few tote bags that were easy to find amongst the rest of her belongings. Dorothy didn't exactly want to bother her siblings, but figured she would at least pass by their places, thankful to find Valerie already outside. "You think you can help me with this? They're not heavy." Just abundant as the small girl was attempting to carry five overflowing bags. "The elephants are used to being kept at like, 75 degrees. They have to be freezing if the power has been out since last night. I don't know how much my blankets will help, but I figured it was better than nothing." If there was anyone she could rely on to help her, it was her sister. "I slept alright last night. But I don't really like that this is still going on today. I thought it would have been fixed by now...."