[Video, virus]

[twobloomsup]

[The feed opens with a shot of a hydroponics lab, where lots of crops are being grown. Look long enough and you'll see a certain troll, who is usually quite happy.

Now, however, he is visibly shaken. Why?

Because right next to him is a statue that is a spitting image of himself. ignore the people in that picture]

Whooo... this is not, this is not funny at all.

Comments

[makewayforroze]

It's very cute.

[twobloomsup]

It's me! Or it WAS me, or - why?

[Stanley's comfort just got rocked. *ohsnap.gif*]

[makewayforroze]

You were a statue? [No Stanley, don't be sad.] What happened?

[twobloomsup]

Have I ever told you about Gnorga?

[makewayforroze]

No, you haven't. [But she's ready to listen.]

Warning: spoliers for the entire movie ahead

[twobloomsup]

Before I ever came to New York, before I ever met Gus or Rosie or Annette or found the community, I lived in a place called Troll Kingdom.

Troll Kingdom is not a place you would want to live. It is dark, gloomy, nasty, and Bad Trolls live there too - they think that being ugly and mean and brutish are good things to be, and they don't like what is good, and nice, and kind, and beautiful. I didn't like it there, but at the time I didn't know where else to go or how to get there.

Anyway, I grew flowers in secret, caring for them, playing with them, being able to simply like them in my own little green patch among a sea of brown horribleness. As long as nobody saw or smelled my flowers, or saw me growing flowers, I wouldn't get punished by Gnorga.

Gnorga... she calls herself the Queen Of Mean, and prides herself on being the most nasty, horrible Bad Troll in the Kingdom, the one all other Bad Trolls should look up to. She is also very good at sorcery, and can turn anyone to stone with a touch of her Black Thumb, which she used to punish those who break her rules. We all didn't want to get on her really bad side - her normal side was terrible enough! - so we did our best to remain hidden and out of her sight.

One day, I grew a rose that got much too big, got too huge for my house. Everyone saw it, and I was soon hauled in front of Gnorga, wondering what she would do to me. At first she wanted to stoneify me like a lot of other people she did not like, but King Llort, her husband, managed to convince her that it would be worse if I got sent to New York - a place where nothing grew, is nothing but stone and coldness and monsters.

[It was pretty traumatic for Stanley; he may have fudged a few details.]

At first, I thought Llort was right! I had some scary experiences when I first crawled out of my little ball. I managed to escape that by finding a little cave under a bridge and staying there. And that is how I met Rosie and Gus.

Rosie is a human child, no older than two years, I think. Gus is her brother, older by a few years, and both of them dropped into my place. Hee hee! Anyway, we quickly got to know each other, and we even managed to show each other a few things!

But Gnorga found out where I was, and she tried a few times to finish me for good. The final time, she came to Central Park herself, and she kidnapped Rosie and turned Gus into a Troll! It was only with the help of my friends and the boat that Gus brought that we were able to get away from her, and my Green Thumb was able to stop her Black Thumb from turning me to stone. I guess her magic backfired on her after we got away, because I never saw her again after that.

But Gnorga was done yet. See, since she turned Gus into a Troll, she was able to give him a Black Thumb and force him to stone me! That was something I did not expect at all. I didn't expect Gnorga's magic to wear off so quickly either, because Gus turned back to human after we got away.

For a while, I was as you saw me. But then something else happened: Gus used the Green Thumb! He used it to normalize me back to my good old self, and everyone was happy. He must have really wanted to be able to use it; I suppose my Thumb grew on him! Hee hee!

I have been living in Central Park ever since, well until the community revealed itself to me.

[makewayforroze]

[She doesn't interrupt him, doesn't speak or look away until the story is done but as he talks, she looks increasingly sad. Poor Stanley...it must have been terrible for him.]

That isn't you, anymore. I'm very glad for that.

[twobloomsup]

I'm glad, too. If I'm still that... well, I couldn't talk to you, could I?

[Stanley brightens. You have no idea, Roze.]

[makewayforroze]

I would have missed out on a very important friend but I'm not the only one. I know you've made a difference in a lot of lives.

Video

[material_guy]

Hell of a face you're making there. Take it that ain't some kinda flattering monument kinda statue?

[twobloomsup]

This statue was me! I got rockenized once.

[And that brought up some bad memories.]

[material_guy]

[Whistle.]

How'd you get better?

[twobloomsup]

Gus brought me back! I was very lucky, hee!

[Notice he didn't say HOW Gus brought him back...]

[material_guy]

You still got contact with this Gus?

[twobloomsup]

Of course I do! He's my friend; I still see him a lot!

[Yes, even though he's staying at Kefka's right now. Let's just say that something was worked out.]

[material_guy]

Hnnn. Then, you don't gotta worry too much. If you get stoned again, Gus can fix it again for you, right?

[twobloomsup]

Right!

[Never mind that Gus may end up getting petrified too, but logic.]

[tenminutes]

It looks like a creepy Garden Gnome version of you.

[twobloomsup]

That's because it once was me!

[tenminutes]

In that case, you used to be very creepy.

[ It's fine if he's alive, but those stone garden gnomes man. You just never know!! ]

Wait, are you saying garden gnomes really can become alive?

[twobloomsup]

I don't know anything about garden gnomes, but I can tell you that getting turned to stone was not fun at all.

[...that's not what she asked, Stanley.]

I was lucky that Gus was able to unstone me.

[tenminutes]

Oh, so you turned to stone in the first place.

[ Thank god it's not all regular garden gnomes. ]

[twobloomsup]

[Stanley nods.]

It wasn't good at all.

[tenminutes]

It's in the past now and everything's better right?

[twobloomsup]

[Well, Stanley can't argue with that. He nods.]

Everything, is much better yes.