"Yes, that's doable."

The angel nods, adding a bullet point to the Choices Hologram.

"Which parents do you mean? The ones from your home world, or the people who will be your parents in Villarosa?"

"... They won't be the same?"

She hadn't even thought what she would even say to her... her original parents.  So much had happened since they'd died.  It wasn't that they'd been bad parents, but they'd left the story; it wouldn't do to break the pattern and bring them back in.

"Er... if I'm going to be a pampered duke's daughter, it'd fit better for, er, my new parents to be alive."

"Not by default, no. There's an advantage that you can take, if you'd like, that would allow us to take your original parents from the moment of their death and slot them into any role you'd like, including that of your new parents. Technically, taking it once only gets you one person, but in practice, we almost always let it slide if you wanted to take it once and get your parents. Would that sort of thing interest you?"

"Would they --"

It would be a strange story if they didn't get their memories from their first life and she did.

Well, it'd be a strange story if they did, too.

They'd been good parents, but she'd hardly been close to them.  They'd had their own stories to live out, and she'd had hers.

"-- No, leave them in their current, er, afterlife or reincarnation.  I'll have new parents."

"Okay. All right, let's see… okay, I must have had my notes out of order, because I actually forgot to mention the species option. You've got essentially - well, two options, but it's more like three. You can be either the baseline species of your planet, or you can be a version that's, to be blunt, better. What that means can be up to you - the enhanced species is usually any or all of stronger, longer-lived, more intelligent, faster, holier, and prettier. The reason it's technically three options is that - if you opt into the enhanced species, there'll be a baseline species present and you'll have to take an extra drawback. If you choose to be baseline in a way that disadvantages you because there are also members of an enhanced species present, then you'll earn an extra advantage. But you can also choose for there to be no enhanced species, in which case you won't get the advantage or the drawback. By default, the baseline species is humans and the enhanced species is elves, but you can honestly be anything you'd like as long as both species meaningfully have humanish faces and hair and can wear clothes recognizable to humans."

"I like the idea of being an Elf... but what're these enhancements and drawbacks?"

"Oh, there's lists of the drawbacks and advantages. You can pick any from the list. And - well, again, by default Elves are stronger and faster than humans, and more beautiful, and more magical, and longer-lived, and cleverer, and wiser, although typically that's just a result of their lifespans. There can be other benefits as well, if there's something you've wished you had yourself that wasn't really possible to get with hard work alone."

"It sounds like that's probably worth one disadvantage..."

Lila looks through her folder for that list.

The list of drawbacks and advantages looks something like this! There are some differences, though - in addition to Flexibility, there's a Vending Machine advantage that works similarly to what the angel described when Lila asked about her parents:

Vending Machine

By default, all non-you characters are either new souls or reincarnators selected for being able to fit well into the plot. With this advantage, you may pick any character, including but not limited to your fiance, your rival, your parents, and your Allies, and select any person, real or fictional, to fill their role. Real people will be drawn from the moment of their death, while fictional characters may be slightly different from the fictional version as they will be drawn from the closest matching universe to the canon you specify. This person won't retain their memories - ask your representative about past life recall options if you're interested. You may take this advantage more than once.

On the drawbacks page, "Patriarchy" isn't present and all the personality flaws such as Jealousy, Ditz, No Compromise, and Spoiled Rotten are bundled into one all-purpose Flawed Personality disadvantage that can be taken multiple times with different effects. There's also Wrong Genre Savvy:

Go back to the list of potential Genres and choose an option other than the one you picked, and your memories of this planning session and of The Roses of Villarosa's canon will reflect that new Genre. No matter how many times events contradict your memories, you'll be inclined to chalk the discrepancy up to having misremembered the events or something having failed to go according to plan.

"Oh, so I can have Fate allow a Good Ending!  Of course I'll do that, even though I need to work to find it!  And of course I'm going to be a Magic-User, and Unearthly Insight would be fun...  If I'm going to start out pampered, Silk Hiding Steel would be helpful...  And I haven't seen the bad endings yet, but 'Bad for Her, Good for You' would be nicely poetic.

"In exchange, I'll be In-Character, of course.  And Save the World will make the story much more exciting...

"... Four perks, and flaws to balance any more, plus one flaw since I'm an Elf?"

She frowns briefly, looking over the lists.

"For my Allies - My friend Kiri.  And she can find another Classmate to be her friend, I'm sure.  She isn't dead yet - I don't think - but... can it work out if I ask for her with the 'vending'?

"Also a Maid ally - I don't have anyone particular in mind -

"And... Sir Dermot probably died right after me, for my sake; I'd love to have him be a teacher in this Academy, and I think he'd like it too."

She purses her lips pensively.

"Extra Ally and two reincarnations makes three more flaws...  Wrong Genre Savvy so I don't know the script for the epic quest?  And then Flawed Personality; I'll take the suggestion where I'll be distracted from classwork."  (She chuckles, remembering how few distractions there really were that one winter in hiding.)  "And Dark Secret.  I don't want to be secretly treasonous, and I don't think I would like being bankrupt after a pampered childhood, so I'll go with Forbidden Magic!"

The angel nods along, noting all the choices and requests.

"All right, that sounds like it'll add up nicely - especially the combination of Unearthly Insight and being otherwise easily distracted and unacademic. I like the touch of Silk Hiding Steel too. You don't have to worry about whether someone has died yet - we operate outside the same timeframe as your home world, so we can grab any death at any point."

The hologram now has quite a few things on it!

Genre: Epic

Time Period: Preindustrial

Magic Level: Medium

Social Role: Duke's Daughter

Story Role: Pampered Princess

Species: Enhanced

Fiance: Noble Prodigy

Rival: Hero's Daughter

Allies: Classmates, Maid

Advantages: Good Ending; Magic User; Unearthly Insight; Silk Hiding Steel; Bad For Her, Good For You; Vending Machine (x2)

Drawbacks: Wrong Genre Savvy; Flawed Personality; Dark Secret; In-Character; Save the World

"Am I missing anything? The classmates count as one ally mechanically even though they're two people, so if you want there to be two classmates total, you can skip Extra Ally."

"I thought the Extra Ally was for the Maid?

"That's everything so far - what's next?"

The angel glances down.

"Oh, you actually start out with two Allies - so a Maid and pair of Classmates doesn't require you to do anything extra. And - I think the last purely mechanical choice is your canonical counterpart's Fate. The choices, in roughly increasing order of severity, are Disgrace, Nunhood, Exile, Poverty, Servitude, and Death."

The paper elaborates:

Disgrace: The least severe option. You retain your rank and status, although your reputation is permanently in tatters. You probably won't be invited to rub shoulders with the upper crust, but you still have your money and title. Requires one extra drawback.

Nunhood: Yes, that's totally a word. After your fiance calls off the engagement, you are forced to stay in a convent and become a nun, taking vows of chastity, poverty, and service. 

Exile: Whether you're unceremoniously married off to a foreign noble in a last-ditch attempt for your parents and family to save face or simply shown the proverbial door, this Fate means you'll be banished from Villarosa, never to return to your homeland.

Poverty: As though it wasn't enough to simply lose a valuable engagement and watch your fiance marry somebody else, you lose your title and riches and are forced to work for a living starting from next to nothing. Although it's very much possible for you to make the best of this and have a happy, successful life, you'll never be rich or noble again.

Servitude: In addition to being stripped of your title and wealth, this Fate forces you into the service of your rival. This can range in severity from being a paid member of her staff to slavery, and much of your treatment at her hands will depend on her personal preference. Keep in mind that if your Villarosa has the right technology or magic, this may be used to ensure your obedience.

Death: Whether you're executed for your crimes, murdered by your rival or fiance, or suffer karmic retribution as the result of your own schemes, by choosing this Fate, you wind up dead at the conclusion of the story. Entitles you to one extra advantage.

Lila stares back and forth between the angel and the paper.

"Disgrace isn't Epic enough, but I don't like any of the other choices!  Especially if my winning means my antagonist gets it!

"I'll use the Flexibility you mentioned.  Sort of like Servitude, but just as a retainer - I'd keep a title and a few resources of my own, and honor means she wouldn't mistreat me too badly."

The angel makes a thoughtful expression.

"Hmm - oh, actually, I think I've got an idea that I can spin to my supervisor. She could save your life in a way that's - costly, or otherwise going above and beyond such that you owe her a life debt and she's socially entitled to make any demand of you that she likes. And then we can of course spin that she's honorable enough to not seize all your assets or treat you like a slave."

Fate: Life Debt goes up on the list.

"Now, let's see… you won't be in the same body you're in now; do you have any requests as far as appearance goes? By default you won't be a dead ringer for your past self, but you'll still have a resemblance. I think your hair in particular suits the role of a Pampered Princess quite nicely, especially if it's been done up in a little bonnet or bow or something."

"And I can do the same to her if I win."

Lila tosses her hair.  "Thank you; I do like my hair - and I'd like it more without all the mess that'd gotten into it over the last few years in hiding.  I'm looking forward to those bows and fancy braids!

"As for appearance... I'm supposed to be an Elf.  Can we make Elves not be a fully different race?  Maybe it's a trait that gets passed down in the blood, and maybe skips some generations sometimes so my parents don't have to be Elves as well.  In fact -" she speeds up a bit "- let's say Elves are the people who can do magic, at least usually?  And also they're a bit taller, and faster, and have those other slight advantages you were mentioning earlier.  So it gets passed down in the blood, but not universally."

"That's the idea!"

They listen to her suggestion for the elves of Villarosa.

"Yes, that should work. Especially with your magic level - 'magic is ubiquitous but only among a subset of the population' slots very well into Medium. Do you know what sorts of things you want magic to be capable of, or what kinds of magic you want to be forbidden for your Dark Secret? Do you want elves to be able to hide the fact that they're elves? - That last one isn't particularly mechanically important, it's just an idea prompt."

"Yes!  But it takes some work to hide that you're an elf, and it can fail..."  She strokes her wrist pensively.  "Elves are tall - but there are humans that tall.  There's something unusual about their ears or wrists, say - but I could wear my hair over my ears and wear bracelets or super-long sleeves, if it doesn't fall apart; or I could disguise it with magic if nobody notices the spell.

"Magic... We already said magic can make devices that cast repeating or lasting spells to do things like keep food fresh.  And I also mentioned battle-magic.  I'm sure it also helps with building... maybe even with keeping arches up, if you're sure there won't be enemies to cancel the spells?... and with long-distance messages..."  She grins.  "I wish magic were that useful at home!  And it also does all sorts of small fun things, like lights and music and glamours and - and even flying!

"But no grand big spells that affect the whole kingdom - that's too big for magic."

She frowns.  "Would the forbidden magic be some sort of spell only I can cast, or... no, that wouldn't be a Dark Secret if I didn't even know about it... No, it's some spell I did cast at some time back when I was a girl.  A spell that I cast on someone else to somehow enchant them.  My parents and I broke the spell and covered the incident up as much as we could, but it still could come out - and I still know the spell."

"That magic system sounds good! And - I can't guarantee that there won't be any enemies who would try to cancel the architectural spells, but in the same way that I can't guarantee there won't be enemies who try to disrupt your architecture by more mundane means. As for the forbidden magic - I think it could work if it was a one-time spell, regardless of whether or not you still know it, if the effects were big enough, though if you undid it as fast as you could that may not count. Hmm. What sort of enchantment were you thinking - would it be some sort of spell to make them do your bidding, or a curse?"

They flip through a binder.

"Let's see, was there something specific you wanted to Save the World from, or is the default Demon Lord option okay? If we keep the Demon Lord, we could potentially have it so that you can only use the dark magic because the two of you are connected, so even though you undid the spell from when you were younger, people would still be afraid. And what Genre did you want to have incorrect expectations for? There's Down To Earth, Musical, Dystopia, and - the sex one, although if you'd like I can put the request through as more of a romantic comedy than a pornography."

"If I'm connected with the Demon Lord, how would that work in the other story where I'm the villainess?  That'd be too close to working for him, or me or my family working with him in the past... especially if I'm not going to remember this part of the planning.  So let's not go with that.

"You said I could take another advantage - I'd missed that note earlier - so how about I take Magical Prodigy?  That way I could cast some elaborate curse spell while I was still a little girl - I'm sure there was luck involved too - and let's say we got most of it off but not all of it.  My father didn't understand it well enough, and we didn't dare call in the few other genius magicians just in case they could remove it better."  She strokes her hair again.  "Let's say it was one of the servants' or neighbors' son, and we were rivals for something or other.  We already established I'm pampered, so I got really upset.  Father had a magic book that he wasn't really supposed to have in the first place, and I didn't know the strength of my own magic.  And we established I get easily distracted from studying, so I didn't notice the parts of the spell that should've warned me - and it came out even stronger a curse than I'd intended."

She shakes her head.  "Poor boy.  Do make sure he comes out well in the story, will you?"

"And say I'm expecting... What's the difference between Down to Earth and Romantic Comedy?"

"There would be a few potential ways for you to be entangled with the Demon Lord while not being overshadowed by him, but we don't have to pursue that route if you'd rather not. And - yes, I think that being a Magical Prodigy in such a way that you got your hands on dark magic at a young age and cursed someone. Especially if the victim is another noble, or if harming a servant would greatly decrease your family's perceived honor, or if people find the damage he suffers to be particularly pitiful. We can definitely ensure that he comes out all right one way or another."

The angel chuckles at Lila's question.

"Well - hm. In a Down to Earth story, the characters don't see themselves as being part of a story, except in the broader sense where everyone's the hero, or at least main character, of their own life story. Actions tend to have tidier consequences, or at least consequences that become tidier in retrospect once you discover more context. Coincidences are just as likely to mess things up as they are to be fortunate. And - well, in a romantic comedy, sometimes things that characters do are supposed to be seen as romantic, even if in real life they wouldn't necessarily be. Things such as repeatedly pursuing someone you're interested in even though they've turned you down, or - well, abandoning someone you're engaged to because you met and fell in love with an old flame or someone who caught your eye. In a Down to Earth story, that kind of behavior would be seen as an indicator that the character in question was disrespectful of boundaries, bad at communicating, unreliable at honoring commitments, and so on. Does that cover your question?"

"... and if we say I secretly brought the book to school with me just to find out more about it?"

Lila frowns briefly at the angel's mention of more things being perceived as romantic, but she quickly brightens back to a smile.  "I can make the Story more active and visible like that?  Definitely, a Romantic Comedy!"

Headtilt.

"I'm not sure I know what you mean - do you mean, would it add to the perceived shame if even after accidentally hurting someone, you still tried to learn more from the spellbook, or do you just mean you think you would have wanted to find out more anyway?"

"It would add to the shame - and it'd also add to the potential for the story!  And if I'm thinking it's going to be a romantic comedy too, there'll be even more story potential!"