Application: Cathy Dollanganger, Flowers in the Attic and Petals on the Wind

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

((Taken from the end of Petals on the Wind . There will be spoilers. Also, I have chosen to write up the app in first person, but all comments will be made using third-person narration, because I can be snarkier that way.))

I think I was upstairs, in the attic, looking at those two twin beds I'd shoved so close together when it happened. I don't remember too clearly what I was doing, only that one moment I was at home, and the next I was here, dressed in my favorite leotard and pointes, in this drafty room. The chill in the air caused my nipples to harden, and I stared for a moment at my body, still supple and graceful even though I was nearly 30. Good golly dayy, but all the practicing I was still doing even though I no longer had a chance of being a prima balerina had kept my figure svelte and lithe! I had never had to worry about things like keeping post-pregnancy weight, nor did I have any stretch marks! I was beautiful, and I reveled in my beauty!

I glanced around the room, rubbing my arms to warm myself up. I was in a drafty stone hall. I wondered if I was back at Foxworth Hall somehow, then reminded myself that was foolish! The Grandmother and Grandfather hadn't gone for castles. Oh, their houses had been grand, but there was no glitter, nor were there any priceless objets d'art in the room. There was only a table, upon which rested a stack of papers, with a quill pen hovering over them.

Suddenly frightened, I ran to the door, pounding my fists against the wood, but nothing happened. I flung myself against it, trying to break it down, screaming for Chris, for Doctor Paul, for Julian, even for Bart, even though the latter three were now dead!

Nothing availed me, and eventually I felt a bit foolish. I walked over to the table and sagged heavily in a chair, staring at the papers. Surely someone had to come collect them! I couldn't just be locked in here forever, alone, without even my Christopher Doll for company... could I? And I might as well fill this paper out. It would give me something to do before I was rescued!



State your full name.
I hesitated over what to write, and how honest I should be, but finally settled on the truth. After all, maybe this was Hell and I'd died without realizing it or making any dramatic speeches! Maybe God would let me out if I didn't lie! So I wrote, "Catherine Leigh Foxworth Marquet Sheffield Dollanganger."
1. What is your favorite cheese? Why is it your favorite?
Golly-lolly! What kind of test was this? Where were the questions about sin, suffering, and whether or not I'd had sex with my brother? I wrote, "I adore brie and cumembert. I like all cheese, though. Especially since the Grandmother never served us any when we were locked in those horrible rooms! But, really, if there was ever a cheese my momma never tried but that I've eaten, I would say that is my favorite!"
2. Who would you kill first, Barney or Carrottop?
Ah, this was a question I'd been expecting, although it hadn't been phrased in the way I was anticipating! "I don't know who either of those are," I wrote, "But I wouldn't kill either of them! Unless, of course, they are men who aren't related to me, in which case they will probably come to tragic ends all the same!"
3. What time is it where you are?
I glanced at my wrist. I had not been wearing a watch, and the room was not well lit. "I have no idea. This room is like that cold, lonely attic where I spent so much of my childhood! There, the minutes seemed to last for hours, so that we lost all track of time, except for the hours we ate." I glanced around, the idle thought crossing my mind that I was hungry, especially for a powdered sugar doughnut.
4. If you were Albus Dumbledore returned from the dead, which member of the Order of the Phoenix would you sexually harass? How would you harass them? If you are Albus Dumbledore, please answer as if you were Sirius Black.
Ah, another question that made an odd sort of sense! I didn't know if I was making a good enough accounting of myself here or not. Anyway, I must tread carefully. "I don't know who these people are," I wrote. "But I don't sexually harass anyone. I know I'm beautiful, and I can't help that men are naturally drawn to look upon a body like mine. And if one should be unable to control his lust--as so often happens--I might let him touch me, but only a little. At least until his lust overtook him and he ravaged me, but certainly men can't help that, can they?"
5. If you are pushing to be in:

A. Slytherin - please state the clever, witty name of the bar in which you bartend, in the dark.

I laughed, a high, tinkling, silvery sound. "In the dark?" I wrote. "Oh golly gosh, that would never do! I am meant to be out in front of an audience, on stage, bathed in spotlights! In the dark, no one would see me!"
B. Gryffindor – Debate whether Harry should ultimately end up married to Fred or George. Use examples from a variety of world mythologies to bolster your argument.

"Harry should marry whichever of them he loves. Failing that, he should look for whichever of them is older, wise and protective. Or, failing that, the one which sweeps him off his feet. I suppose Harry isn't likely to try to seduce Fred or George so that he can gain revenge upon his mother, though, and I certainly hope Fred and George aren't related to him! Not that that's exactly been a problem for me lately."
C. Ravenclaw – You guys are supposed to be smart. Explain why my desk is inundated with paperwork at all times, even though I’m constantly disposing of it.
"Oh, I could never be bothered with paperwork. That's why one hires a secretary, you know. My sister Carrie, now. She was a brilliant secretary. She liked nothing more than taking dictation, cooking, and waiting on Doctor Paul hand and foot. But Momma murdered her! By denying Carrie when she saw her in the street, she as good as shoved those powdered sugar doughnuts into her mouth! If she weren't already in an insane asylum, I'd crush her again for that!"
D. Hufflepuff – Prove you are not useless.
Another laugh, though this time my laughter had a bitter tinge. "Useless? I am certainly not that. I have worked hard to become a respected balerina, and even though I don't dance anymore, I could if I wanted to. I have useful skills, and don't need a man to support me, unlike my foolish waste of space of a mother, who neglected all of us children while she went galavanting throughout the world with that new husband of hers, Bart Winslow! But I showed her, didn't I? Yes, I did! And now she's in an insane asylum, and I'm here, so you tell me which of us is useless!"
6. Offer a bribe to the members of this community so that they will not squib you. Items used in bribery do not necessarily have to belong to the person offering the bribe. Do not threaten us rather than offering a bribe. A threat indicates you either don't really want to be here, or don't have enough sense to answer the question properly. The hat will automatically squib you, regardless of other votes, if you do.
I had to think about this. "I suppose I could dance for you! I still have those abilities, you know, and I could have been a prima balerina, if only Julian had cared more about our careers than he did!"


I have read the hogwarts_hocus faq and understand it is a crazy, cracktastic sorting community and RPG. Catherine Doll
I have read the hogwarts_hocus rules and agree to abide by each and every one. Catherine Doll
I agree to be a good sport and not get my knickers in a bunch. Catherine Doll
One day, marmelade will rule the world. Catherine Doll

Comments

[vislor-turlough.livejournal.com]

"I have heard a lot of stupid names, but this one officially takes the cake."

He's back, baby!

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

Cathy's capacity for seklf-delusion was endless. She decided that this red-headed man was only being snarky because he wanted her, and couldn't express that.

She gave him a contemptuous glance. "I'm sorry you don't approve of my name," she said. "It is mine, though, whether you like it or not!"

[gourmetchairman.livejournal.com]

The Chairman looked at Cathy in disgust. "Give men a little more credit than that."

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

Cathy shrugged. "I take it you prefer other men, then," she said, making it a statement rather than a question. Because in the world of Cathy Dollanganger, no man could possibly refuse her unless they were... that sort.

[doctor-hook.livejournal.com]

"Your mother murdered your sister with doughnuts?"

Hook was, it seemed, doing a good job of controlling his manly lusts. He was trying to control his sense of humor, at the moment. It was difficult not to joke about the doughnut deaths.

He confined himself to remarking: "Tragic."

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

Let the record show that Hook had better control over his sense of humor than Cathy's mun.

Cathy eyed Hook appraisingly, and decided she liked what she saw. "Not exactly," she said. "But she did try to kill us all with sugar doughnuts laced with arsenic. *She* claimed it was because there was no way to get us out of the Grandmother's house, but I don't believe her. Only Cory died, but Carrie committed suicide years later in that same way." Two large tears shimmered in Cathy's eyes. "It was horrible," she said. "Carrie didn't do anything wrong, but our mother ignored her and didn't care about her, and Carrie was led to believe she was an abomination against God. None of that would have happened if it hadn't been for that bitch, our mother!"

[republikatt.livejournal.com]

"Oh yeah? Back in Boston, Rob used to lock me in a closet. Beat that." Bucky was a pro at the oppression olympics.

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

"Did he ever put tar in your hair to make you cut it off?" Cathy demanded.

Why yes, yes she was going to have a pissing contest with a cat. Why do you ask?

[blond-bondshell.livejournal.com]

"Uncontrollable lust?" Two words guaranteed to get James Bond's attention. "Do you think being overtaken by lust is only a man's problem? Or that women can succumb to it as well?" While maybe not overcome, it was certainly on his mind right now.

As he spoke, he took off his jacket. "You must be freezing," he said, and offered it to her. How on earth could he have guessed?

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

Cathy certainly had no idea how he knew she was cold. But she was grateful for the thoughtful gesture and put the coat on anyway. "Thank you," she said with a smile. "I really was cold. As for lust, well, of course women can experience uncontrolled lust. I know I have, but I like for a man to be aggressive. It brings that sort of emotion out in me!"

[mello-n-choco.livejournal.com]

"And you know this isn't an asylum how?" I ask blandly, leaning against a column. This one's an utter mess. Even it it weren't for Near, I wouldn't touch her. But, messing with her head is an entirely different story.

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

Cathy shrugged, glancing over at Mello. He was too young, and not nearly sexy enough. This was probably a good thing for him.

"Well, if it is, what did they admit you for?" she asked archly.

[miranda-bnewski.livejournal.com]

((OOC: I love you.))

Miranda looked over the application from a fellow dancer. Well, not that Miranda was trained in dancing herself, but surely stripping ought to count. It was an extraordinary document.
"And if one of them should be unable to control his lust..." she choked. Or snorted. Something like that.

"Really, it sounds like you have lived in an attic most of your life."

And I thought my life was stupidly dramatic.

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

Cathy did not like that Miranda was also very pretty. That made her competition, and Cathy didn't deal well with competition.

"Well, I did," she said coolly. "From the time I was 12 to the time I was 15. Three and a half years of utter misery, with nothing to do but watch TV, practice ballet, and long for the outside." Oh, and randomly boink her brother, but let's not go there, shall we?

[ra-tilt-chimera.livejournal.com]

"Don't have a high opinion of men, do you?" Zelgadiss remarked dryly.

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

"Of course I do," Cathy said. Zel, clearly, was not going on the list of men Cathy was going to get her hooks into. He should be relieved. "Most of them are very nice--certainly nicer than the women I've met in my life. But they are so easy to tempt." Just keep telling yourself that, kiddo.

[callmewednesday.livejournal.com]

"Hogwarts isn't too keen on the finer arts, m'dear," said Mr. Wednesday.

For the record, the mug he held read Kiss Me, I'm Half-Veela. It did not say anything remotely like Ask Me About My Nipples!

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

"What's Hogwarts?" Cathy wanted to know. "Other than this place. And..." she glanced at the mug he was carrying. "What's a veela?" It should probably bother her that she didn't know this thing.

As for his question, she waved her hand airily. "I'm sure people will appreciate fine arts once they're exposed to them," was her horribly optimistic assessment.

[mio-remaining.livejournal.com]

Woman who slept with her brother and had family members kill each other, meet girl who killed her sister and is accused of being very twincesty with her before that.

"Your mother killed your sister?" Mio said in shock and alarm.

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

"Not directly," Cathy hastened to explain. "But everything that's gone wrong in my life I lay at the feet of that conniving, selfish whore." Pot, meet kettle.

[psy-nuisance.livejournal.com]

Sage couldn't resist a good tear-jerking romance. Also, for the empath, feeding off other people's misery could be tempting. As long she didn't accidently bump into the memories of incest, this promised to be juicy.

"Your mother locked you away?" the pimply albino girl looked suitably horrified. "That was awful for you." she breathed. "What did you do?"

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

Sadly for Sage, the first thing that came to Cathy's mind was an image of herself and Chris, sunbathing on that old mattress by the window. What she said was, "There wasn't much we could do. We read a lot. And watched TV. And Chris and I had to be both mother and father to two four-year-olds who didn't understand any of what was happening. And always, always we prayed that our grandfather would die and leave his money to Momma so we could be let out."

[catcherandrye.livejournal.com]

Another applicant. Hm. Upon reading her application however, he barely held back a wince. Such outdated manners of speech seemed to overwrite her naive romantic approach to her answers.

He blinked at her. "For all you've suffered, you don't seem to have grown much from it." Maturity wise he meant. Hell, he wasn't even out of his teenage years yet, and though he still had somewhat childish ideals, he saw himself as considerably less dreamy-eyed and keen on taking advantage of others as she. In fact, she irritated him. She seemed a little fake.

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

He was absolutely right. Cathy had grown not at all from her experiences, because character growth and maturity were the purvues of better writers than Virginia Cleo Andrews.

That did not, however, stop Miss D. from taking offense. She glared at him, blue eyes flashing indignantly. "And how would you know anything at all about that?" she asked. "I've never seen you in my life, and you don't know me at all!"

[znachit-v-morg.livejournal.com]

Had Ivan known that Cathy had slept with her brother, he would have been far less inclined to speak with her. As it was, he skimmed over all the parts of the application that bored him, his eyes lighting up when he found some information that did not.

"Ah, you are a ballerina? I'm afraid I haven't been to the ballet in years. Haven't had the time. I think that I would really like to see you dance." He stood back a bit, as if Cathy would burst into motion immediately after his declaration, and he smiled expectantly.

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

"Really?" Cathy smiled, intrigued by the prospect of someone actually taking her up on her bribes. "Well... I suppose I still could."

She began to hum one of her favorite pieces of ballet music, and glided into the dance. Her movements were graceful, and it was obvious that here, at least, she actually showed some talent. She moved through the dance dreamily, focused on the feel of her body, and the music in her head, and the moves of her imaginary partner.

((I'm so sorry for taking forever with this. Life has been crazy lately.))

[best-guitarist.livejournal.com]

"Ja, you ares pretties hot," Skwisgaar agreed, in response to Cathy's answer to the fourth question. Never mind that she barely even looked like a MILF -- at least she wasn't jailbait, which was really all that mattered. She also sounded kinda skanky, which was awesome and definitely another plus. "So you likes to be ravaged, eh?"

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

((Sorry this took forever. Life has been hectic lately.))

Cathy would never actually admit to liking being ravaged. After all, that would imply she was a slut. And, sure, she slept with just about every man who showed an interest in her, but that was different.

However, this young man was handsome, and thought she was attractive, so she could be honest.

"Well... yes," she admitted after a moment. "I mean, if you're being ravaged, at least you know the man in question finds you irresistible."

[arrogantmage.livejournal.com]

"Of course you are meant to be bathed in light." Lezard's gallantry could not be impeded by the fact he was entirely unfamiliar with spotlights, and indeed with all modern stagecraft. He bowed. "Lezard Valeth, at your service, my lady. Such crude people as some you may meet here are simply unworthy of your time. Please be assured they are not representative of all the persons who reside in this castle."

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

Cathy smiled beatifically at Lezard. At least here was someone who appreciated her.

"It's nice to meet you, Lezard," she said. "And I'm glad to know there are some here who will appreciate my talents." She was beginning to feel that everyone here bore her an unnatural amount of hatred. (She had no idea this was because she was a shallow twit with no redeeming qualities and simply thought this was a deficiency of everyone else.)

[ugly-old-hat.livejournal.com]

"I want powdered doughnuts! I'm immune to poison!" declared the hat.

[good-golly-day.livejournal.com]

"Are you sure you should?" Cathy thought she was handling the arrival of a talking hat with all the aplomb such an event deserved. "I mean, even a hat ought to watch its figure."

Tootsitramp!

[ugly-old-hat.livejournal.com]

Your bribe has been accepted!

Welcome to Tootsitramp!