[Shiny New Handheld Device] [Video]

[purered]

[Klaus appears on screen, looking decidedly frazzled. He's in his gardening apron, his hair is disheveled holding a spade. Behind him is the greenhouse which is a veritable wall of, well, green. And brightly coloured flowers.]

My word, has anyone else experienced a sudden surge of plant life? These should not be as far along as they are - half these seeds I only just planted a week ago.

There is quite an abundance of... well, everything, so I would be delighted to give away any potted plants to anyone interested. Also - [and here he gives a bewildered sidelong glance to his left] - zucchini. I'm honestly not sure how as I never planted any, but there is a mountain of zucchini if you like that sort of thing.

[video]

[unetrustworthy]

[From the moment the camera turned on, Midii looked...almost as if she were regretting the decision. Public speaking was never her strong suit, which was why she so rarely made videos like these. But there was something on her mind. For once...something personal. And after a few seconds of hesitation, her resolve won out.]

It's...strange to think about.

[Maybe it would have been better if she'd gathered more of her thoughts before doing this, but she hadn't wanted to give herself a chance to back out.]

I cam here when I was eleven. Today, I'm sixteen. [Ah, there was one point of motivation; she'd never publicly announced her birthday before. There truly was a first time for everything.] And I've had so much time to think about what that means. That I've lived here for so long that I...I almost forgot what it was like to live in the world I grew up in. That...that's a good thing. Because when I came here, I didn't trust anybody. I couldn't. I was scared and small and...didn't think I deserved the kindness that people were suddenly showing me. I tried turning them away. I figured that they'd get over it and move on sooner or later and leave me alone.

But...they didn't. Leave me alone, that is. Five years later, and people still won't leave me alone. [Despite her words, she spoke them with hints of a smile. Humor. Her attempt at a joke.] I've never been more grateful for those people as I am today. And I wish...that I could tell the ones who are gone that. I wish they could know how much they meant to me. More than even I knew then.

[A pause. She took a deep breath and stared into the camera greatly. Then let out a sheepish smile.]

I'm...not even sure what I was trying to say anymore. I guess...for those of you who are still finding it hard to deal with having been brought here...I just wanted you to know that there are good things that have come out of it. I'm living proof of that.

[Because she was still alive.]

[Although, just when it looked like Midii was about to (awkwardly) sign off...one last thought came to her. And in a rare show of her age, her nose wrinkled slightly in distaste.]

I still don't think I'll ever get used to the magic here, though. It's too....unpredictable.