Literally in Pieces

Figured a bit of customization was in order after using this a lot more…

[geocitiesephemera]

Eyewitness Series II by DK Vision (1996)

[battle-of-alberta]

Because I'm actually kinda obbsssed rn with it. What is Cal's opinion over the Glenmore Dam/Resevoir?

[ part 1 ] [ part 2: 2013 Flood ]

[ This is a bit more of a visual essay than a comic. I hope it kind of sort of starts to address the question even though I don't really say much about Calvin's opinion! Part 1 is mostly an early 20th century look back, the 21st century part I'm still working out. ]

[ I started this part's research with one particular 1990s article that was reprinted online in 2021 and went down several rabbit holes. To call the "fun facts" uhm, 'misleading' might be a little harsh, but let's just say there was a bit more to the stories than what was printed there! Doing historical research like this is a bit like playing the world's worst game of telephone, so I tried to unpack some things and correct mistakes where I could, though I am by no means an expert. ]

Early 20th Century

1920s

Calvin, something needs to be done about this muddy water.

"That's okay, I've resolved only to drink coffee or tea from now on!"

You still need clean water for both of those things.

"...What about whiskey?"

---

Calgary's drinking water in the early 20th century, both in spite of and because of its proximity to the mountains, wasn't the cleanest. Some unnamed newspaper* lamented: ”Both the Bow and the Elbow Rivers have become very muddy as a result of the sudden thaw and the water with which cooks boil the potatoes and mothers bath the baby is several shades darker than rain water.”

Water scarcity was a common problem in Calgary due to frequent contamination. Although new sources of water were sought in the 1900s, it was not until 1929 that a feasibility study was conducted to recommend options to the young city. The Glenmore Dam was one of the recommendations -- the cheapest, of course -- but the city still needed to consider how it would be built.

1930s

One of the early considerations was of course acquiring the land it would be built on. Some of the land was bought from settlers, but the city also had to negotiate with the Tsuut'ina (Sarcee) Nation.

JOHNNY ONE SPOT: They want $100 an acre and they won't take a cent less.

L.W. BROCKINGTON: Why man, the citizens would hang this committee from the nearest lamppost if we paid that much for it.

JOHNNY ONE SPOT: Well, maybe that would not be much of a loss.

[ Calgary Herald, May 5, 1931 ]

--

The dam was built and the area flooded in 1933. Among other structures, it required the removal of the Livingstone house and barn which survive in Heritage Park today.

"This is the most money I've ever spent on anything, ever!"

"...yes, that includes horses."

There were rumours of funds being used poorly and that the City had bought too much land, but a 1932 investigation did not uncover any major issue. At the time, the dam was the largest public works project undertaken by the City of Calgary. Construction had started in 1931, a sorely needed make-work project during the Great Depression, and the Art Deco style dam made of French marble, Manitoba Tyndal stone, and Medicine Hat brick was operational in January of 1931. There was no official opening, but thousands attended the open house in the following Sunday.

--

1940s

In the 40s, the Glenmore reservoir had a reputation as a "swimming, fishing, and picnicking paradise." The problem was: technically, none of those things were allowed given the mounted constabulary-patrolled fence around the entire reservoir during World War II.

"So much for my Sunday afternoon!"

After the war, the city was desperate for public park space. A series of 1946 articles in the Calgary Herald bemoaned that citizens starved for recreation in the beauty of nature were being shooed away from Glenmore Lake and scoffed at the insistence that "pollution" was a hazard worth taking seriously. Surely in this new age of modern science, something could be done! Perhaps some intrepid fishermen would actually help reduce the risk of contamination by stocking the lake with predator trout and removing the coarse fish!

Despite repeated warnings from the City medical officer of 'social disease' such as polio, the Herald pointed to the frequency with which local youths could be seen swimming and playing in the water as further justification not to fear (and besides, think of all the cows upriver! so they claimed). Opinion letters raged back and forth between citizens, some more concerned about further contamination of an already frequently contaminated water supply than others.

By 1949, the dam was "under near constant strain" while only able to serve about half of its predicted capacity of 200,000 Calgarians. The introduction of water meters also raised hackles - according to the Herald, Calgarians used far more water than any Western Canadian city of comparable size, mostly on lawns and gardens.

---

1950s+

Several upgrades were added to the reservoir over the next few decades, including an expansion that doubled the reservoir capacity in the 50s, new filter beds and a pumping station in 1965, and a research lab and administrative offices in 1979.

By 1972, the Bearspaw Treatment plant was built on the Bow to help service Calgary's water supply.

[ I don't have the brain space (yet) to go deeper into this part of the research, but do let me know if there's something in particular in the latter part of the 20th century I should look into. ]

--

Afterword

Thanks for your patience, I actually started this ask months ago because I have an earlier ask that I wanted to pair it with and both required some digging and a lot of thought. I decided to answer this one first because we could do a sort of chronological look back... (and completely coincidentally I've been doing a lot of research on dam construction in Manitoba for work too.)

Also as always forgive me if i miss some vital context since I have much less on-the-ground experience in Calgary and maybe I've missed something, or maybe I've not addressed the specific part you might be obsessing over, please fill me in if so! :3c

Because this is going to be kind of a two part question and we're going to jump forward to the 21st century in part 2 some more, this part of the ask is more focused on the 20th century and the construction of the dam. I realize that there are recent renovations (muahahaha improved cycling infrastructure? say no more) and I sort of kind of gesture at them here in the first panel.

I have a ton of saved Herald articles on this subject, so if you'd like some more specific citations just let me know. I wanted to get this ask out and over with so I could stop falling down rabbit holes and keeping all the juicy stuff to myself, but I don't have the brain to prepare a complete bibliography.

Overall I had a lot of fun poking into research for this ask and I hope next time I'm in Calgary that I can pay a visit to the reservoir! I haven't been in town in about ten years (getting stuck in traffic on the way to Okotoks doesn't count) so there's a lot of Calgary catch up I have to do.

*The unknown newspaper with the whole "bathwater and potatoes" quote I suspect to be The Albertan, though I haven't been able to find the exact article since I don't have access to it and it may not even be digitized. If anyone in the Calgary area or at U of C might want to go looking for it, good luck and have fun :D I couldn't find this article in the Herald at all, so if it's from there I must have just overlooked something.

[battle-of-alberta]

Got a question for Calvin and Caroline (along with anyone else who wants to chime in!). 2023 marks the ten year anniversary since the 2013 flooding in southern Alberta. With ten years to rebuild, plan, and create new flood mitigation projects, I was wondering how you felt in terms of the next big flood, whenever that is. And going back to the 2013 floods, what was that like?

[ Author's Note: I decided to frame this as the second half of the Glenmore Dam question, but each piece is stand alone and not required to understand the other! Please check the reblogs on this post for more notes and resources. I also want to note that I did not have firsthand experience of the 2013 floods - I hope that this comes across as informed and respectful as I intended it to for those of you who did. This is only a small piece of a larger story. ]

The 2013 Flood

--- RED: Cal said to look for it here...

RED: That must be it!

[ JUNE 19, 2023 ] [ GLENMORE DAM, CALGARY]

RED: So, ten years on from one of the worst floods in Southern Alberta's history... How do you remember it starting? CAL: It's still unbelievable. I was just walking around downtown and the water was almost up to my ankles by the time I realized what was happening. CARO: The police showed up at my door to make sure I was ready to evacuate that night.

RED: How did it get so bad so fast? CAL: Even though it was a clear day here, the rain on the melting snow in the mountains upstream was so heavy that everything came down fast. People genuinely thought the measurement instruments were broken. CARO: It was the first time the city ever had to use the Municipal Emergency Plan. We did what we could to build temporary barriers and get people out, but you couldn't get downtown for days afterwards.

CAL: Luckily, we were able to meet up and visit some of the rec centres people were evacuated to. You hear stories about disasters hitting and violence erupting and people fending for themselves, but it wasn't like that at all. CARO: People were coming by and dropping off so much food that it was difficult to figure out where to send it all! CAL: Eventually we just started telling people "Come back tomorrow!" It wasn't a problem I'd have ever complained about.

CARO: We weren't always in a place that had power, so it took us a while before we saw the footage of the flooding in places like Bragg Creek and other parts of southern Alberta. CAL: We lowered the water in the Glenmore Reservoir to try to keep up with the flood and keep a supply of safe drinking water for us and our neighbours, but the water was still flowing out of the dam about seven times faster than normal. Watching it spill over like that was awful... CARO: Luckily the water quality was nowhere near as bad as it got during the 2005 flood, but I definitely saw a few people splashing and swimming around in it. You have no idea how much sewage was just floating around the streets, guys! Eugh!

CARO: It was lucky that we have such great neighbours looking after us! RED: Aww, I'm gonna blush! It was the least I could do, luckily we did enough preparation after 2005 to avoid the worst of that flood.

ED: Jeez, "most expensive disaster in Canadian history,"* really? CAL: You know me... always going all out... CARO: Thanks for breakfast, it was nice to sleep on something other than a gym mat too! RED: You betcha! We're nearly done loading the truck, so you guys can rest up.

[ *Until the Fort McMurray Fire in 2016 ]

---

CAL: Coming back, downtown was... different after that.

CARO: The clean up was not exactly fun, but you'd have to beat Calgarians looking for a way to help off with a stick. CAL: [laughing] The police were annoyed that people kept getting in the way at the time, but I think just giving people something to do helped make things a lot better in the end. CARO: We like to brag about our can-do attitude and volunteer spirit in good times, but it really makes you cry to see people help each other when we're all hurting like that. CAL: That and it's way easier to deal with a carpet of mould with friends!

RED: So the flood happened, you clean up, sort through the insurance... then what? CAL: I ended up moving into my current apartment after that. I couldn't stand the thought of not being able to see what was happening. CARO: No thanks, I smelled downtown after the power went out and everyone's food rotted. You couldn't pay me to live in one of those high rises!

-- RED: And only two weeks to go before the greatest outdoor show on earth! Did you think of cancelling? CARO: No way - we hadn't cancelled Stampede since the First World War! We were still selling tickets while the grounds were still wet!

CAL: I'm not entirely sure how we did it, although we did have a lot of help from some American friends - and Calgarians, of course! There were some cancellations and it was a little quieter, but opening Stampede meant the world to us.

CARO: We've done a lot to make things safer since the flood. CAL: There's new steel gates on the dam that doubled the water capacity, which helps a lot. CARO: Although we sometimes forget that when we are under water restrictions... shortages are still a big problem.

RED: I saw the barrier along Heritage Drive you told me to look out for earlier. CARO: We hope that one will help keep the roads clear for emergency vehicles if another flood happens. CAL: If you give me a lift downtown, I'll show you a couple of different things we've installed in Eau Clare... CARO: I'll meet you there! CAL: ...I hope you're taking the C-Train because otherwise something is deeply wrong with you. CARO: Enjoy sitting in traffic!

CAL: Can you spot the flood barriers? RED: Those tiered rocks? CAL: That's one of them, but there's another part of Eau Clare Plaza ahead that's a little harder to spot. RED: It looks pretty normal to me...

CAL: These benches are actually fitted over concrete barriers! We have a steel gate we can install between them before a flood hits. RED: Whoa! Subtle, yet effective! RED: Your place in Bowness was hit pretty badly too, wasn't it? Do you have anything like this, Caroline?

CARO: Ah, well, we definitely did some studies but... a lot of the areas affected involve cooperating with private property owners. They want to see how the province manages with building a new reservoir upstream before they commit to anything yet. Stuff like this is pretty pricey - it's already cost well over a billion dollars total to make some of these changes. CAL: It's alright, we're still much more prepared even though we haven't built every project. We know what to pack for an evac, we both have water level alerts set up on our phones... and we've reduced the flood risk of the whole city by about 70% too. RED: That's really impressive!

RED: You hadn't seen a flood like this since the 1890s. Are you worried about another "once in a century" flood any time soon? CARO: The Bow and the Elbow have flooded for our entire lives, and it's not likely to stop anytime soon. CAL: There's still a lot we have to do to improve our relationship with the river, but I think we've come a long way. RED: Let's hope for the best, then! CAL: We can do more than just hope! I'm thinking of building a rain garden... CARO: ...you live almost 30 storeys in the air. CAL: I didn't say its going to be for me! CARO: You are not digging in my yard until you fix my pipes...

[ THE END ]

[battle-of-alberta]

Further Reading

Thanks for bearing with me as I took an extra couple of years to answer this big question! The following is a little collection of things I gathered while I was preparing the finished piece. It is not meant to be a comprehensive guide to the flood (I barely touched on the effects of the flood on Banff, Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, etc.) but just a handful of the things influencing how I approached the ask.

I've learned to save links like this since the internet is making finding this kind of thing increasingly harder. I was able to access all of these sites on the day of writing (April 16, 2026).

City of Calgary

River Flooding in Calgary

Collection of resources and information on flooding and current predictions for the city of Calgary, new infrastructure, etc. Includes videos demonstrating the West Eau Claire Flood Barrier and the Flood Barrier on Heritage Drive. I've highlighted a few specific pages below...

Flooding in Calgary - Flood of 2013

Quick facts on the causes, impact, and response to the 2013 flood

Glenmore Dam infrastructure improvements

Information about recent upgrades to the Glenmore Dam between 2017-2020, short video included

Bowness Flood Barrier

Information on the proposal and feasibility of a potential barrier in Bowness

Be Prepared for Flooding

Information about how to protect your home and family from floods

Government of Alberta

Bow River Reservoir Options

Current information on provincial Bow River flood mitigation projects. As I write this, the Ghost Reservoir Infrastructure Project is on phase 3.

Reflections 10 Years Later

CBC: City of Calgary enters state of local emergency in response to heavy rainfall (2022)

CBC: Construction begins on Springbank reservoir intended to protect Calgary area from floods (2022)

CBC: It's been 10 years since the Big Flood. How the changing climate is shaping life in Calgary (2023)

CBC: Mayor explains why Calgary is still waiting for flood mitigation on the Bow River (2023)

More Videos

CALGARY FLOODING (2013)

EVACUATE CALGARY: A Calgary Flooding 2013 Short Documentary (2013)

CBC: Alberta Floods (2013)

Calgary Stampede "We're Greatest Together - 2013 Flood" (2013)

CBC: Come Hell or High Water (2013)

---

CTV: How Calgary has changed since the 2013 flood (2023)

CityNews: Naheed Nenshi and Craig Snodgrass look back on the 2013 Calgary flood (2023)

City of Calgary: Strong Neighbours. Strong City. 10 Years since the 2013 floods. (2023)

Youth Link + Calgary Police Service: Calgary Flood 2013: 10 Year Anniversary (2023)

[fragmentaryremains]

Oh wow! Thank you so much for answering my ask! I really love how your response came out. Between all the research you did and the lovely art you drew to accompany it, I can tell you put a ton of effort into it! I kind of feel a little bad saddling you with another question that takes a ton time and research to respond to (the previous question I'm referring to being the Parks Canada management plan one). At least the next few I have should be easier to answer? Er, relatively speaking that is.

As for the answer itself, I really liked it! I feel like it did a good job at both capturing everything happening during those days (I definitely remember the flood of donations and volunteers being mentioned by the Calgary Herald and CBC). Pairing that with the update about what is/has been done also allows for some good retrospection. As someone who hasn't lived in Calgary, learning about those flood barriers was cool! I'm familiar with some of the stuff Canmore did while I was there, such as reinforcing Cougar Creek's banks as well as the flood mitigation project, so it's nice to see how other municipalities tackled similar problems.

As for my personal recollection of the flood, there's a couple things that stand out for me. I definitely remember all the work to make Stampede happen that year—"Come Hell or High Water" is just a fantastic slogan. More locally, I remember my dad getting stranded on Highway 1 due to it being washed out. We weren't living in any of the areas of Canmore at risk of flooding, but that was still a little scary. Perhaps the silliest thing to remember from all that is the fact that I didn't have to do any tests at the end of the school year! Funny what sticks with you I suppose.

One other thing I wound up thinking about when coming up with this ask is how things have changed not just in Calgary, but in Alberta and even globally. Twitter's the first thing that comes to mind here—Naheed Nenshi used it to great effect to stay connected with Calgarians. That almost certainly wouldn't be the case today—given that X requires an account to access, you're not reaching nearly as many people as you otherwise could. There's also the fact that changes to Twitter's algorithm have promoted more conservative views and misinformation. I have to wonder if a disaster like this were to happen again how politician's method of engagement would change. Then again, I don't think we had the emergency apps that we do nowadays either. I suppose Twitter was just the solution for the time.

On the note of Nenshi, I think it's interesting to look back at one of the formative moments in his career as Calgary's mayor. The images of him at McMahon Stadium rallying a crowd of volunteers is iconic:

While his career as a politician may have started in 2010, I always tend to think of his political breakthrough as being in 2013 what with all the work he put in throughout the flood. And now here he is over ten years later, leading the NDP. Its interesting to reflect on I suppose.

One final thing related to my ask. Back when I was unpacking from my recent move, I found a copy of the Calgary Herald from just after the flood that I had kept. Given how much you've referenced newspaper articles on here, I figured it'd be kind of neat to showcase a bit of it. I've included a couple photos of it I took with my smartphone. Hopefully you enjoy them. Either way, thank you so so much for answering my ask! I really enjoyed seeing all the effort you put into it, and it was more than worth the wait!

[ariartaccount]

Ehlek vs Carapar - fully rendered commission

If you'd like art of your characters, visit my ko-fi page for commission rates!

[tyrantisterror]

Yeah so I don't think I'm building this tower in just one night. Made a lot of progress, though!

[tyrantisterror]

Night 2 progress

[tyrantisterror]

I know it's objectively a silly thing to say, but I feel like the coolest motherfucker to walk the earth when I look at this preposterously massive thing I built.

[fragmentaryremains]

Congratulations! I can't imagine it was easy to build. Between how heavy that thing must be and the fact that it's so tall (and thus would require reaching up higher and higher to keep building it up), I imagine it would take a steady hand and a good stool/chair to put everything together.

Now that you've finished building it, what was your favourite part of the building process? I know Lego likes to hide all sorts of references in their larger sets (such as a including elements in Lego Star Wars sets that are based on the colour scheme of Lego's own fictional energy company). Any cool little details you noticed while building it?

[tyrantisterror]

Ooh! Not to change the subject from your post about whether or not to get the Barad-Dur set, but I wanted to ask about something I saw in one of the photos from your subsequent reblog. Namely, I was curious about the Lego Elves sets it looked like you had. What did you think of the line? As someone who only got a couple sets from the last waves, I'd be curious what someone who collected them more seriously thought of them.

I really liked it! It had lots of really fun castle sets (which I put in storage years ago but still like quite a bit), and the brick built dragons it had are REALLY cool! I wish the Jurassic Park sets had taken after it, actually - the brick-built dragons got to be the stars of their sets in the way the minifigure dinosaurs of the Jurassic Park sets have never managed. The different elf minifigures (mindolls, I think they're called technically?) are really fun too, each one has a distinct personality and they make for a fun little group of adventurers.

[fragmentaryremains]

Nice! Yeah, I was really impressed by the line. Part of that is because I hadn't been keeping up with the improvements and innovations Lego's been making with articulated figures. Those miniature friction joints are really great! Especially for creatures designed around minifigure/mini-doll scale. I also agree about the character designs being fun too. My personal favourite would to be Azari (the fire themed elf). That's mostly just cause I liked what I saw of her in the bits of Elves media that I've actually gotten around to watching though…

On the note of brick-built dinosaurs, it is a bit of a shame that they aren't more present. Especially with it being easier than ever to actually have decently articulated brick-built dinosaurs that don't tower over everything like earlier sets. Although, it does look like there's a little progress there with stuff like the recent brick-built Mosasaurus from 2025. At least it's not zero… And hey! There's always the option of doing it yourself (assuming you have the right pieces and/or want to pay for the sets to do so).

[lilybug-02]

Dewi's Adventures in Hollow Knight: 𝐕𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐦𝐞 𝟐

Another Buggy Beggining ... 2 ... 3 ... 4 ... 5 … 6 ... 7 ... 8 … 9 … 10 … 11 … 12 ... 13 ... 14 ... 15 ... 16 ... 17 … 18 ... 19 ... 20 … 21 ... 22 ... 23 ... 24

... 25 ... 26 ... 27 ... 28 ... 29 ... 30 ... 31 ... 32 ... 33 ... 34 … 35 ... 36 … 37 ... 38 ... 39 ... 40 ... 41 ... 42 ... 43 … 44 … 45 ... 46 ... 47 … 48 … 49 ... 50 ... 51 ... 52 … 53 ... 54 … 55 ... 56 ... 57 … 58 ... 59 ... 60 ... 61 ... 62 ... 63 ... 64 ... 65 ... 66 ... 67 ... 68 ... 69 ... 70 ... 71 … 72 ... 73 ... 74 ... 75 ... 76 ... to be continued! Usually updated weekly.

𝐕𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐦𝐞 𝟏

≿━━━━━༻✧༺━━━━༺❀༻━━━━༻✧༺━━━━━≾

Non-Cannon Adventures: Zote Time-out // Slug Catcher Champion // Meeting the White Lady // Pencil // Sam's Adventures(V2 Concept Art)* // Bug!Dewi FanFic!!!

* multiple posts in one

All other tagged posts

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"Dewi is back at his dad's house for the summer and it seems unwanted company has arrived. Having to deal with a cousin who hates bugs is hard enough, but when the denizens of Hallownest need his help with a growing problem, it's not just up to him to find the solution."

This fancomic is based within the Hollow Knight Games. A 'what if' scenario where Humans and Bugs collide!

≿━━━━━༻✧༺━━━━༺❀༻━━━━༻✧༺━━━━━≾

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[lilybug-02]

Dewi's Adventures in Hollow Knight: 𝐕𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐦𝐞 𝟏

A Buggy Beggining ... 2 ... 3 ... 4 ... 5 ... 6 ... 7 ... 8 ... 9 ... 10 ... 11 ... 12 ... 13 ... 14 ... 15 ... 16 ... 17 ... 18 ... 19 ... 20 ... 21 ... 22 ... 23 ...

24 ... 25 ... 26 ... 27 ... 28 ... 29 ... 30 ... 31 … 32 ... 33 … 34 … 35 … 36 … 37 ... 38 ... 39 ... 40 ... 41 ... 42 ... 43 ... 44 ... 45 ... 46 ... 47 ... 48 ... 49 ... 50 ... 51 ... 52 ... 53 ... 54 ... 55 ... END

-> 𝐕𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐦𝐞 𝟐 𝐎𝐮𝐭 𝐍𝐨𝐰 <-

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Non-Cannon Adventures: (more non-cannon adventures in V2!!)

Call out on Instagram.com // Meeting Godseeker // Crossover // Moth Dust // City of Tears // The Hunter // Swordplay // The Humans are Talking // Dewi's Dad in Dirtmouth // Pancakes! // Old // Animation vs HK // Pet Pat :3* // Food Comparisons* // Bugs as Humans* // Bug Dewi(Humans as Bugs)* Honorary Fanfic written by @worthytemplarnerd // Bug!Dewi FanFic!!!

* multiple posts in one

All other tagged posts

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"A curious young boy has stumbled across the most unusual bug in his backyard. He soon finds himself in an adventure spanning much more than he could have ever imagined."

This fancomic is based within the Hollow Knight Games. A 'what if' scenario where Humans and Bugs collide!

≿━━━━━༻✧༺━━━━༺❀༻━━━━༻✧༺━━━━━≾

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[allbeendonebefore]

I'll go for tarot reading! The one you did for me last year wound up being surprisingly prescient for some of the things I wound up dealing with this year. So I'm kind of curious what this coming year might bring then.

Also, happy New Year! Hopefully you're enjoying tonight in whatever way you prefer Hapo! Here's to a less stressful next year hopefully.

Ah, you're in the Gasoline Alley of the Battle when the lines are drawn and a side must be taken. Unfortunately there's no getting out of this decision unscathed by pretending you don't have to make it! To battle!!

Happy new year! And thank you! :D

[fragmentaryremains]

Thanks for the tarot reading Hapo! A decision, eh? There's definitely some notable ones I can think of in my future. The question then would what side to take…

[abpoli]

Petition to the Minister of Health

Whereas:

The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms exists to protect individuals and minority communities from discriminatory laws;

Recent legislation enacted by the Governments of Alberta and Saskatchewan restricts the rights, dignity, and safety of transgender and gender-diverse people, particularly children and youth, including access to gender-affirming and medically appropriate health care;

These provincial governments have invoked the notwithstanding clause to shield such legislation from judicial review, thereby preventing Charter challenges from being meaningfully heard;

The Constitution Act, 1867 provides the federal government, through section 90, with the authority to disallow certain provincial legislation in order to protect constitutional principles and minority rights; and

The use of extraordinary constitutional powers to limit Charter protections warrants careful federal review and response.

We, the undersigned, Concerned Allies of Transgender Canadians, call upon the Minister of Health to Recommend and support, within Cabinet, the exercise of the Government of Canada’s constitutional authority, including the power of disallowance under section 90 of the Constitution Act, 1867, to annul or repeal provincial legislation enacted in Alberta and Saskatchewan that restricts the rights of transgender and gender-diverse people and has been shielded from Charter scrutiny through the use of the notwithstanding clause, and to affirm the federal government’s responsibility to uphold Charter rights across Canada.

Sign the petition here, and make sure to click the link emailed to complete the signing process

[tyrantisterror]

We Go Bump in the Night Post-script with Q&A

Well, the masquerade has come and gone. Saoirse Aterkop made her wish, and the second of my Choose Your Own Adventure Tumblr Poll Story Thingies is officially concluded. But, because I'm a sentimental fucker, I'm going to do a little post-story analysis going over the development of We Go Bump in the Night, as well as answering some questions submitted by readers like YOU to end this with one last bit of audience participation. So, join me after the cut for a little afterparty with Saoirse and pals!

Part 1: You're At the Party

This project initially began as an idea for a music video I had while driving to work and listening to "You're At the Party," a bonus track from Lemon Demon's album Spirit Phone. It was going to be a very literal interpretation of the lyrics, with a person being dragged out of bed by a vampire into a party full of monsters - including, amongst others, a lady with a green ribbon on her neck as a sly homage to one of my favorite scary stories growing up. I idly dreamed about how it could be a fun stop motion movie project. But I haven't had a stop motion studio for over a decade now, and am not likely to have space for one in the foreseeable future, much less the time it takes to actually make a stop motion movie, even one that's only five minutes long, so I let the idea die pretty quickly.

...but story ideas don't really like to stay dead in my brain. In fact they often come back when I least suspect it, often changed in strange and unexpected ways, ready to live again in a new form.

All of this is to say that to understand where We Go Bump in the Night came from, you kind of have to understand my own personal interpretation of "We're At the Party," which is probably not correct? I feel like it's at the very least a wild take, even for a song that's meant to be open to interpretation like this one.

So, ok, "You're At the Party" begins with you, the protagonist, struggling to sleep, specifically with the viscerally familiar sensation of watching the clock with despair as your inability to sleep stretches further and further into the late hours of the night: "Hour hand's gone from two to three, now four." You're being kept up, ostensibly, by the noisy party your neighbors are throwing, which you perceive in an exaggeratedly negative light: "people screaming bloody murder" instead of, you know, just people loudly enjoying themselves.

Then you hear the music of the party in your own house. You lock your bedroom door, but your window breaks and someone/something takes your hand. The music shifts into a more frenetic pace as we get the chorus, and now you're at the party.

And the party, despite how negatively you framed it in the beginning of the song, is welcoming. You've been invited, it's a place that seems familiar, albeit in a strange way (a place you've seen before you were born). While there's still an air of menace as part of the chorus repeats "Too late! Wake up!", every description of your time at the party is... kind of lovely? You're with your people, you're dancing and drinking and doing fun shit, you're not alone.

There's this telling section of the first chorus that really defines the song: "You are the party, you are the nuisance, you're not alone." The party, which was annoying you to the point of keeping you awake, which you framed as a nuisance, has become you. You are now the person doing the annoying stuff - dancing, drinking, screaming bloody murder. I think the reason why you/the protagonist frame the party as negative in the beginning is because they felt they could not be a part of it - that they would always be on the outside, looking in, seeing others having fun but not able to enjoy it.

This is a song about a person with social anxiety, in my mind, and it's only solved when a bunch of monsters and freaks drag them into their party and show the protagonist they're not alone. This part of the chorus goes on, "It's not a nightmare, you are delightful, you're not alone." Again, the fears you had about the party - that you would be unwelcome, that it would be a nightmare, that you'd embarrass yourself and be unwanted - are unfounded. You are delightful, people love to have you here, you're invited, you're welcome here, you're not alone! The chorus even goes on to repeat this point: "You've been invited, you're at the party, you're not alone, you've been invited, you're at the party..."

And then the protagonist wakes up. The song shifts back into the slower rhythm of the start of the song as you find yourself alone in your house again, only to realize that what you wanted - which is to say, the end of the party next door - is pretty dismal: "the sun's not rising and the birds are dead." Your new friends - the ones who thought you were delightful, who invited and welcomed you, who made you feel like you're not alone - are gone: "There's only dust on the floor where people were before and the dream won't leave your head - it won't leave." And, yeah, of course it wouldn't! All your anxiety, your tossing and turning, your lonely night not sleeping because of all the fun you were missing out on, was briefly healed by being with these people, strange and othered though they might be, and now they're gone and you're alone again. There's nothing in your life without those weirdos - no sun rising, no birds singing, only dust on the floor. Why wouldn't you pine for that dream - it's not a nightmare, despite the menace in the song around it, but a dream now.

You go to the bathroom to try and get a grip on yourself, and notice that the "hour hand's gone" from the clock - the thing you watched as your anxiety kept you up, the symbol of your ever present self doubt, no longer exists. And upon noticing this you realize you're becoming something new: "Your hands grow strong, your fingers long, and your face... your face begins to change..." After spending time at a party full of monsters, a party which you now pine for, you yourself begin turning into one of them. And as you change, there's "a whisper in your ear, only you can hear, only you can hear it..."

And then you're back at the party again. Still welcome and invited, no longer alone, and now "You are the uproar," the life of the party as it was, the greatest and happiest monster of them all.

To me, this song is about a person who is worried that they will always be an outsider, who has been dying in self-imposed solitude out of fear that people will hate them if they ever let their true selves show, only to be dragged into socializing with other misfits, and realizing that there are other weirdos like them out there, strange and terrifying yet wonderful people. The party and its guests are not normal, in fact they're monsters, but that's why they're welcoming, and that's why the protagonist longs to join them. This is about finding solidarity among monsters, about accepting and embracing your weirdness as you find it reflected by others like you, and casting off the anxieties that you'll never be loved even if the act of doing so terrifies you.

Which, again, is probably not a well-supported reading of the song, but it became the core of We Go Bump in the Night. This song, and specifically my weird reading of it, is what spawned Saoirse Aterkop.

Part 2: Dark Urges and Princesses

Ok, so, if you've been following this blog for the last two years or so, you might have noticed that there are a couple of video games that took a considerable amount of real estate in my brain - namely, Baldur's Gate 3 and Slay the Princess. Both had been in development for a while, both dropped their full games around the same time, both got some significant and juicy free updates loaded with new content, and both were so tailored to my tastes that they inspired me to make an amount of fanart that I did not think I was capable of making anymore in my old age. For STP I made, like... so many dolls, just so many, and for BG3 I drew a bunch of poorly-drawn fancomics about my player character, who was specifically a paladin (i.e. knight in shining armor) with the Dark Urge background (i.e. character who is unconsciously driven to commit acts of extreme violence whether they like it or not).

And, like, I'm not going to pretend that I'm not an intensely derivative person in my creative endeavors. I love stories, and I specifically love stories that are told and retold and how they inspire other stories in the same vein which go on to do the same, and how one tale can inspire so many variations of itself that it becomes a genre. Like, I love Arthuriana, which is mostly retellings of the same basic story of King Arthur, but those retellings vary so wildly based on the culture and time period they came from that they become extremely distinct, and that's cool as hell! And people are still contributing to it, still retelling and remixing and reinterpreting the story to their modern senses, and that's awesome, isn't it?

So BG3 and STP made me love their story, yes, but also made me look at parts of those stories that I really loved and think, "Hmm, what would I do if I told a story with those parts?" From BG3, I was thinking about the fun contrast in the Dark Urge I built - a knight who wants to be a good and compassionate person, but feels trapped into a life of violence and horror. From STP, I was thinking about a sweet, adorable princess who gets trapped in a terrifying situation and has to find the steel within herself to adapt to it and overcome, showing the strength hiding beneath her silk.

And when I had these two character pitches together, my horrible brain suggested a third idea: "what if they kissed?" Because, you know, I'm a sucker for romance, and yeah, that idea appealed to me a lot, because I see myself in both of them to an extent, and I just find it very satisfying to tell a story about characters who are suffering intensely finding each other and, despite their own struggles, deciding to lend what strength they have to each other out of love, and building each other up as a result.

Buuuuuuuuut, as much as this idea appealed to me, I was worried it might not to anyone else. "Sweet feminine girl is put in a terrifying situation and falls in love with a big, brooding, scary guy" is a very common plotline in fiction and, you know, more than a little trite, right? And so often it feels like the girl is reduced to playing Mommy Therapist to this asshole broody guy instead of, like, getting an arc of her own, and that sucks! I hate romances that boil down to "understanding woman bends over backwards for some asshole because the writer says so," and there was a risk of this story becoming that, or at least being confused for being that by people, and I didn't want to tell that story. I wanted something much more balanced, more even, and I also wanted something that, you know, my audience wanted to read.

So I let the idea simmer for a bit. Focused on other things, made... just a shitload of dolls, so many tiny dolls, for some reason. I also started working on pulling together the print version of At Sea Without a Map (WHICH IS STILL COMING, BTW, there's just one big editing thing I have to do that's going to be a long, tedious pain in the ass and I've been dragging my heels to do it but it's happening I swear to you), and rereading that story made me realize it... is really very good! Obviously very different from my novels, what with being written in second person and being a lot less thoroughly planned out, but still very good! I like that I've gotten to a point with my writing where I'll reread a story I wrote and find myself delighted by it instead of cringing, you know?

And it's especially encouraging with At Sea Without a Map, because that story was more or less written without the in-depth prewriting stage I normally use for my fiction. I had only the loosest outline, because I wanted there to be room for the audience to pull the story in strange directions, and pull they did! It coming together into a story I liked was never a guarantee, but it managed it. As a writing experiment it was very successful - and I know it had an audience who liked it, because that audience kept coming to vote on its events. Its story was battle-tested in a way my novels aren't.

Which is interesting, isn't it? There were a lot of ideas I threw out in At Sea Without a Map, some of which I wasn't sure would work - hell, the central conceit of "I want to make a story where the audience falls for the man-eating sea monster woman" was something that very well could have failed entirely, hence me posing the experiment to the audience directly. And here I was with another idea I wasn't sure would work for my audience - perhaps it was time to try that experiment again, and see if my idea survived the stress test?

I wouldn't make my audience read the story of this knight trapped into villainy falling for a princess finding her strength. Instead, I would give them the option to choose it, and see if I could tell it well enough to make them want to see it through. Worst case scenario, we tell a different weird story instead. Best case scenario? I prove to myself this idea works.

And Halloween was coming up soon, so why not tell a tale about a vulnerable woman exploring a haunted castle?

Part 3: Lessons from the Sea of Monsters

While At Sea Without a Map was not the first Choose Your Own Adventure-style story I made on tumblr here, it was more or less the first that I took even a little bit seriously. Its plot was intentionally simple, episodic, and formulaic to make it easy to adapt to the audience's choices, but I took the characters seriously, more or less - yes, even goofy ones like Captain Peter the pirate tiger and Dr. Neptune the brain in a jar. I wanted to see if it was possible to tell an actual story with that format instead of just a series of goofy and random events, and as I've said, I think the result was pretty damn good! At Sea Without a Map is simple, but it works for me, and I'm proud of how it turned out.

...but now that I had one story like that under my belt, I was flush with ideas of how the format could be taken further. We told a good simple story together, fuck yeah, but can we tell one that's a bit more complex? How could I build on ASWaM's successes, and learn from its setbacks? This CYOA format is really fun to do, so why not see how much more fun can be had with it? Worst case scenario, I make a fun mess. Best case scenario? We tell a really good story together.

I feel like I'm answering one of my Q&A questions here, so I might as well post it here instead of in the Q&A section below:

I always feel unqualified to determine whether a story of mine is good or not, both because of my history of irrational self loathing and, paradoxically, from my obvious bias towards my own tastes and style. I am both inclined to irrationally hate my own work because it is a reflection of me, and to love it uncritically because it is a reflection of me, and yes obviously it doesn't make sense that I can do both of those at once, but making sense is not something my self image is keen on doing, so here we are.

Beyond that, I struggle to compare the quality of these stories because they're trying to be different things, and so what they do better or worse than each other is kind of irrelevant because they're aiming to do different stuff. A basketball player is going to do a lot more cool stuff with their hands than a soccer player, but that doesn't make the basketball player better, necessarily - they're playing different games, so they need to do different stuff.

All that said, there were a lot of things that We Go Bump in the Night did specifically in response to my experience as the writer of At Sea Without a Map, and the many experiments that were going with that story's structure. Probably the biggest alterations had to do with the way choices were presented in the polls of each update - ASWaM always had four options, each labeled with a compass direction. Since the compass was secretly four characters within the narrative, I gave each direction its own loose personality and motivation, so each of the four choices you'd get everyday would have a distinct personality to follow.

I really enjoyed this choice, it gave a very distinct feel to ASWaM's polls, buuuuut it did present some problems. Sometimes an update would end with a problem that didn't feel like it could be neatly encapsulated with four choices - sometimes it felt like three or two would make more sense, and sometimes it felt like there should be way more than four. In addition to that, the distinct personalities of the four options sometimes made it hard to give all of them an interesting option for a given event - although that could be fun on occasion (there were moments where the different directions teamed up that I think were pretty fun story beats), it could be frustrating sometimes as a writer. So yeah, it worked for ASWaM, but it wasn't something I was eager to repeat - if I was going to do a story with this format again, my first big change would be to give myself a bit more freedom with the number and structure of the choices presented with each update.

Also, remember how the compass was a character in ASWaM? Well, once the audience figured that out, there was a very common reaction of them wanting to confront the compass for its actions. While the audience were picking the choices, ultimately the compass was the force that was making the protagonist act on those choices, and a number of the people in the audience felt that was unjust. They didn't like the idea that they were forcing Sailor to do things in the narrative, denying the character of autonomy. It was a really interesting thing - the audience had bought into Sailor's story enough to want Sailor to be free of their influence, to defy the compass and thus their votes and become fully independent. I didn't give the audience the chance to turn on the compass like they wanted - ultimately, it got to serve its purpose and disintegrate, and Sailor ended the story free of its influence and thus free of audience control. I feel that was the right choice for ASWaM - but in the back of my mind I thought, "What if I could let the audience fight the choice-making mechanism? What if I took their desire to express to the protagonist that they wanted to help, not control them, and made it a story beat?"

So that was when I decided on two new gimmicks for ASWaM's successor story. First, there would be at least one moment where the protagonist makes a choice that disregards the choices made by the poll, and second, while most of the poll options would be ideas the protagonist has that the audience is merely giving support to, one option would be a counterfeit, the voice of an outside and malignant entity that our protagonist AND our audience would have to confront together. We could have our compass and destroy it too!

Another big change I wanted to make was the protagonist themselves. ASWaM's protagonist, Sailor, is intentionally designed to be undefined at the start of the narrative, both to allow the audience to have the freedom to shape them as a character, and to work with the story's theme of finding one's identity. Sailor begins the story as a person who is looking to be told what to do and what to be, someone who thinks their content to let their life be defined and shaped by others. Sailor wants a map, something that tells them where to go, and ends up battered about by different currents as a result. The thrust of the narrative is Sailor learning to define themselves on their own terms, because letting other people define them has ended poorly.

And I think that's a very compelling story! I feel a lot for Sailor, there's a lot of me in them just as there is in all the characters I write. But, all that said... it did result in a protagonist who is undefined for much of the story, and thus not the main draw. For the audience, ASWaM isn't really about Sailor so much as it's about Calibani, with Sailor's journey being an afterthought to hers. And, again, I don't think that's a problem for ASWaM, necessarily - the idea that started that story was "Can I make the audience love Calibani?" not "Can I make them love Sailor?", and goddamn, did I succeed in the former! Calibani is VERY loved, and I think we developed a fondness for Sailor too by the end of it.

...but what if Calibani was the protagonist? Or, rather, a character who is as lovable and defined as Calibani was? What if our protagonist was much more defined from the get go? Would the audience still invest in the story if they weren't given as much freedom to define the hero? That would be an interesting experiment to try.

In a similar vein, ASWaM kept its core cast very small: just Sailor and Calibani, for the most part, with a monster or some other freak they run across in each chapter. Bob was a late addition to the cast that wasn't intended to stick around, but she had such a fun chemistry that she became a permanent addition for what little remained of the story, giving us a core trio. Which, again, worked - it was simple and allowed the story to stay focused, and made it easier to fuck around and do weird shit at the audience's insistence. But it was so fun to see Bob bounce off of Sailor and Calibani that I kinda wished she'd been introduced sooner, and, well, with a second attempt at a story like this, couldn't I do that? And hell, if I didn't want to lock the audience into a given romance, wouldn't I HAVE to do that? I wanted to see if you guys would willingly choose to put the Princess and the Dark Knight together, and for that to be a choice, you'd need to be able to choose someone else, which meant there had to be other options. So this story needed a bigger cast of companions, which in turn required a different and slightly more complex story structure. That might work, and it might not - only one way to find out...

The last big structural change I made was removing dialogue suggestion sections. There was one of those for every chapter of ASWaM - nine in total, basically - and each time I'd be lucky to get, like, three different people at most to respond. And they gave great responses, don't get me wrong, but it was clear to me that was asking too much of my audience as a whole - most people interacting with the story didn't want to do much more than vote in a poll, so I might as well keep audience participation to that sphere. I did find a couple of other ways to involve the audience, though - the Resist update is the obvious one, as well as my little contest to let YOU design poltergeists (and thus create the avatar of yourself in the narrative, haha tricked you!), and one "suggest some questions" section towards the very end - but overall, polls were what worked, so I stuck to polls.

Part 4: Creating the Cast

So it was time to develop the cast, which meant a lot of sketching. I knew I wanted a princess/noblewoman in a poofy dress, an armor-wearing dark knight who looks as villain coded as possible, and a Halloweeny-styled gothic horror feel to the whole lineup, while having a vaguely medieval fantasy vibe mixed in (like chocolate and peanut butter). A bugbear would make sense - Midgaheim bugbears are meant to be a child's idea of a monster, which fits the Halloween vibe perfectly. One of the guests should be a ghost, and my mind went to the Green Ribbong again - why not a dullahan noblewoman trying to hide her nature with a green ribbon?

These two choices gave the story its shape - dullahans and bugbears evoke a lot of modern Halloween/gothic horror imagery, but are also unfamiliar enough to modern audiences to feel a little weird and unique. Let's try that for two other classic gothic archetypes, the Vampire and the Werewolf. Doppelgangers are a type of vampire in my lore, and they're a VERY common archetype in horror yet rarely recognized as such by the average person. Likewise, werecats are VERY common in horror fiction, and even moreso in the medieval literature that Midgaheim is inspired by, but they feel like a novelty to a modern audience. So let's have a doppelganger and a chapalu/werecat add to the roster.

Since Dullahans aren't entirely ghosts in Midgaheim, but rather undead fairies, I kinda felt like we'd need a more traditional ghost to balance it out, and why not make him a butler? That'd be fun - in fact, his ability to pass through walls and manifest anywhere would be useful for butlering, much as a bugbear's ability to pop out of any shadow would make them a pretty useful maid, so now we have the serving staff of our castle. That leaves the cursed prince, the doppelganger, the chapalu, and the dullahan as our love interests, so let's try and build them to fit that role in different but complementary ways: the cursed knight is tall, dark, and brooding, the dullahan is elegant but aloof, the doppelganger is a bratty little sass basket, and the chapalu is buff because Aisha Clan Clan taught me that the ideal catgirl is a physical powerhouse, and also a lot more direct and no-nonsense than the others because fuck we need SOMEONE who's easy to talk to.

Finally, it'd be fun to have a narrator, a little Rod Serling-esque character to give us a frame for this whole story and guide the audience while being mostly disconnected from the narrative, who would of course pop in somewhere in the middle to the audience's surprise and interact directly to show that the story is escalating. I decided to repurpose a gothic jester character design I made years ago and hadn't found a home for yet, and like that we had a core cast.

After a lot of sketching, I refined the designs to a state that I felt had enough distinct bits to be recognizable while being simple enough to draw several times in a row, knowing full well from my experience making ASWaM that they would likely change a bit in the process of drawing them day-to-day. Much like Calibani before her, I think it took me a few days to actually get Saoirse's design to where I wanted it, and obviously all the others had little changes too.

Part 5: Things that Go Bump in the Night

A cast alone doesn't make a story, though. There would need to be a conflict to, you know, make a story happen. Looking at my core cast, it became apparent that all of these characters are outcasts who have trouble fitting in (like all my protagonists, really). All of the love interests could be considered cursed in some way - literally, in the case of Dredgore. So what if what brought them all to the castle was a wish to change who they are? And what if that is the ultimate conflict of the story - our protagonist wishing to change herself, in one way or another?

Well, that's pretty good, but it's also very conceptual. We can't just have it be a series of discussions about what someone should wish for, that'd be dull as shit. So let's do what I always do when I want to spice up a story: throw in some more monsters!

I was riding in a car with my friend @dinosaurana one day, and decided to ask him what kind of monsters he'd like to see in a haunted castle story. He suggested a few - some sort of large rat, gargoyles, haunted armor, a slime, all of which I played with, though only the big rat ended up making it into the story as the Rat King. But there was one other he mentioned, which apparently was just a slip of the tongue and not a real suggestion: "a... crumbly man..."

What the fuck was a crumbly man? Well, a slip of the tongue, apparently, but it was an evocative slip. The name felt like the kind of cutesy-ominous title you'd give to a classic boogeyman, and what would make a man crumbly, exactly? I was getting a really nasty visual in my mind, and I knew that this Crumbly Man needed a place of prominence. He'd be our fourth act monster, obviously, the penultimate threat.

When I decided the polls in this story would function in-universe as a bunch of poltergeists subtly encouraging Saoirse to go with different impulses, I realized said poltergeists would need designs as well, and practiced sketching a bunch of them - though I ultimately left a lot of that design work to YOU, the readers, so they'd feel more authentic as your avatars.

We needed some early chapter threats - I figured Repeter could provide our first true scare in the story, since he's a bit of a dick that way, and we'd need to show Tomasin taking on her panther form at least once. Since Emma is a dullahan, I thought it'd be fun if the antagonistic monster in her focus chapter was a jack-o-lantern, which led to the creation of Prim Prunella.

I also began to worry that Saoirse might feel a bit uninteresting when surrounded by Literal Monsters. At first I thought that could be solved with costuming - why not give Saoirse a spooky theme to her outfit so she fits in a bit better? Her hair was giving me trouble for a while - I knew I wanted her to have big curls, but wasn't sure how she should wear them, until I hit upon this look that made her head look like a giant spider. That was perfect, I thought - a subtle indication that she fits this gothic castle better than she thinks she does.

As I got to writing, though, the worry resurfaced with a new wrinkle: what if her issues might felt less credible when compared to people who are suffering from demonic hunger and horrific transformations? The solution I decided upon was to that was to transform her as well - her "hands grow strong, [her] fingers long, and [her] face begins to change," to go back to "You're At the Party." And we've already got a malign voice possessing her anyway - why not go full gothic horror and just make it a demon? Of course, demons are so strong in Midgaheim that this would be Kind of a Big Deal, one that the final threat would have to match, which resulted in the demonic rivalry simmering in the background of the story between Barbatos and the Queen of the Masquerade - who, for consistency, would share the spider theming of Saoirse and her maid, Shuffyl.

And speaking of characters developing in new directions during the writing process...

Part 6: Oh, Dredgore's an Egg

Before the story started, I knew Dredgore was a cursed prince ala Beauty and the Beast. I knew that he was a peaceful person who had been pushed into violence, and was punished severely for it by others AND himself. My idea was that he would look on the surface like a modern fantasy villain, a Sauron/Darth Vader knockoff, but that he'd actually be a Medieval hero - well-intentioned, extremely emotional, and capable of performing extreme acts of violence.

Seriously, have you read The Song of Roland? It has MULTIPLE scenes of knights on horseback being bisected hot-dog style, horses included. The finale involves a heroic 200 year old king fighting the champion of his enemies after getting half his skull cut off, slaying his opponent with his brains leaking out of his head. And the number of scenes of INTENSE VIOLENCE are matched by the number of scenes of strong heroic men breaking down in grief. That was a core part of Dredgore's character - someone who feels very intensely, loves very deeply, and yet has performed acts of unspeakable violence. He's got PTSD, he's got extreme self loathing, he falls in love quickly but thinks he's utterly unworthy of it. It is easy for people to think he is a monster, especially since he's so convinced himself that he is that he would never argue the point. But he's a hero, a person wit ha lot of love to give. That was my concept of Dredgore when the narrative started.

Dredgore and Saoirse were the two characters this story was built for and around, so I thought about him a lot even when he wasn't present in the story at the moment. I really wanted him to work for the audience, and was deeply worried he wouldn't - again, there are so many ways this character could feel trite and cliche, I thought it was fully in the realm of possibility that the audience would not like him at all purely out of pre-existing disdain for this archetype. So I took pains to make sure I presented him as well as possible - his scenes had some of the most extensive pre-writing of any character in the story. I knew at some point we would have him tell his backstory, and so I decided to write and refine that ahead of time to make sure it was done well.

...and somewhere in the middle of it I realized, "Oh... Dredgore's a girl."

Like... I had fleshed out her feelings on her life and herself, and it became so clear to me that Dredgore was trans. Which then uncapped a slew of new worries and doubts about her, or at least my ability to write her well.

So, like... my general approach to the cursed prince archetype is to choose one of two different takes. If the prince was cursed to have a monster body before they were born, like the Lindworm Prince is, then the happy ending is them turning into a human. They were born in the wrong body, and magic allowed them to have the body they needed. Very trans friendly narrative, so much so that I have James Chaucer, the transman main character of Wizard School Mysteries, specifically cite the Lindworm Prince story as a way of explaining how he felt about his gender and his need to transition.

If, on the other hand, the prince transforms after spending time as a human, ala Beauty and the Beast, then their monstrous form represents a part of their true self that they need to address and accept. It's their Jungian Shadow, all the parts of them that they have tried to hide and pretend don't exist, but need to embrace to be whole. These cursed princes don't need to turn back, but to accept the parts of themselves that they've repressed - and be loved for the "monster" they are.

And while I like that approach, I worried it might have unintended implications if the cursed prince is trans. Dredgore is a Beauty and the Beast style cursed prince, and the Midgaheim approach would then follow that she needs to accept her monstrous form. But if she's trans, that could be read as me saying that trans people need to accept their Assigned Gender at Birth - "you don't need to change your body, you need to love yourself!" And, paradoxically, having her turn back into a human might send that same message.

Alternatively, having her embrace her monstrous form could uncharitably be read as me saying that trans people are inherently monstrous and ugly - sure, I intended Dredgore's monster body to be seen as lovable and attractive to my fellow monster fuckers, but how am I certain that it will be read as such? This could be taken so, so badly if I didn't do it well - it could still be taken that badly even if I did!

I had this horrible moment of panic. What if this was unworkable? Did I need to rewrite the character entirely - erase anything that could be given a trans reading, for fear of it coming off wrong? Had I screwed up Dredgore before her big spotlight moment even came to pass? How could I fix this?

...and then I drew her in a dress, and I realized, oh... she looks so happy in it. And for the first time I thought not about how this could go wrong, but how it could work, and what it could say if it worked. I thought about what it might mean if people loved Dredgore despite her self loathing, if they adored her despite how she felt like a monster - what it might mean for Saoirse to brush her fingers through Dredgore's hair and tell her that she's beautiful.

It could still go wrong. I could still fuck up. But it was important to try.

...plus, from a cynical side of things, Dredgore would have a much better chance of winning my sapphic-heavy audience's love if she was a girl.

Part 7: Q & A

Alright, let's get to some audience questions! ...not as screencaps, though, because apparently I'm out of images for this post:

@howieduet asks: Three questions for you about WGBitN: 1) How would the Crumbly Man have reacted if Saoirse had made her way there before becoming a demon? Would Knife Voice have made a play for control then and there? 2) What was the most surprising choice by the group? 3) Who was it that you were hoping Saoirse would dance with at the ball?

There were actually a lot of ways the Crumbly Man confrontation could have gone - we had options to go to the basement VERY early on, even though I wanted to save him till the penultimate act, and it could have resulted in some fun sequence breaking. Had Barbatos still been present in Saoirse's mind (and thus not mutated her into a cambion yet), I think he would have pressed her to force the Crumbly Man into her service (and thus back to being Barbatos's lackey). Yeah, the Crumbly Man could have become your companion for a while! Wouldn't have ended well for anyone, but it could have happened!

The most surprising choice came fairly early on - it was when you all chose to have Saoirse remember what she'd heard about Dredgore before meeting her. In ASWaM, the audience almost always avoided options that sought out more exposition in favor of developing their relationship with Calibani, which surprised me a lot (but also delighted me), and I guess I kind of assumed the exposition aversion would continue here? I suppose I didn't think about how in this case the exposition tied in to developing a relationship with a character, but either way, I didn't expect you guys to dig into exposition about Dredgore's character so early.

That became a big defining moment for who Saoirse was, actually - she was always going to be well-educated, but whether she was actually smart depended on audience choice. There's a world where Saoirse might have been a know-nothing know-it-all, someone with a head full of trivia but no real understanding. By picking that moment of exposition, you defined her as someone who wants to apply her knowledge, and that became a big part of who she is. She's not just a trivia fountain - she's genuinely curious and smart, and that's an important distinction!

I was, as should be obvious now, on Team Dredgore the entire time.

@quetzalrofl asks: So if Emma had been the one to enter the basement with Saoirse, would we have learned the Crumbly Man's actual name? He feels like a Georg[sic] to me. ...Hedonism Georg, whose current infernal punishment is to be eaten by 10,000 spiders each day

Yep, if Emma had been brought along we'd have to get the Crumbly Man to say his name, and she'd use that as the supernatural loophole to kill him. Dredgore and Tomasin would have to settle for just beating his ass and leaving him alive but in pieces. I think Repeter was the best option, though, both narratively and for killing that fucker. He got reverse Dorian Grayed, it was great.

@maplesamurai asks: I remember that at least one reblog speculating from Saoirse's spider motif and her surname that she might be a human form ettercap (or at least descended from one). Was such a revelation ever on the table, or was her being a human turned cambion always where her story was planned to go?

Originally Saoirse's spider motif was just a surface-level thing, though I gave it more meaning as the story went on. As is often the case with spider characters in my stories, she's supremely nice and sweet, because spiders need more good press IMO. While I didn't initially intend for her to literally have etercap ancestry, given that Celpict has more fairies involved in its history and culture than any of the other countries of Midgaheim, I kinda think it'd be a waste NOT to have an etercap in Saoirse's family tree somwhere. She probably had a distant ancestor who was an etercap that took on human form to be with their lover or something like that - which is probably where the Aterkop name really comes from, and also likely why her family was so good at weaving.

@fragmentaryremains asked a lot of questions, starting with this one: I've got several questions for you about We Go Bump in the Night. Let's start with an unexpected one regarding some behind the scenes work. Early on in the story you brought up how your experience directing plays helped when it comes to writing these sorts of interactive stories. I was wondering if you could go into more detail about how the skills from that transfer to something like this. What are the similarities? What are the differences? I'm really curious, since it's not a connection I would have ever made (having no real experience with that sort of role).

Ok, so, people often talk about directors as if they're the sole creative mind behind the films and plays they direct, right? Akin to how a novelist is more or less the sole voice behind a novel. But having directed plays and short films AND having written novels, I can say with relative confidence that this is horseshit - horseshit that serves a director's ego very well, mind you, but horseshit nonetheless. A good director is not the sole voice of a story - quite the opposite, actually. A good director makes sure that the many different voices telling a story are working together.

One of the key skills of a director is delegating - i.e. knowing when to pass of the responsibility of an element of a story to others. Plays and films cannot be made by one person alone, they are collaborative by nature. You need costumers, prop makers, crew members, script writers, actors, all these different people to come together to create the whole of the story, all with different ideas and views that need to be bridged. The director is the bridge - they direct all these people to the end destination, but they can't make the trip on their own.

While ultimately the experience of writing At Sea Without a Map and We Go Bump in the Night is closer to writing a novel than directing a play, it isn't fully in that same zone. With a novel I can (and do) spend months planning out the structure of things, fine-tuning details, making sure every element I put in serves a purpose and has a payoff. I cannot do that with a story where major events are out of my hands - I have to trust you, my co-writers, my actors playing a role, to make interesting choices that I can then direct to the destination I want the story to reach. There has to be that collaborative spirit involved, that relinquishing of control - I have to delegate, even if it's in a smaller way than I would on a play.

A second question about We Go Bump in the Night! This time it's regarding Saoirse. I was specifically curious about some of the planning that went into creating her. What made you decide to have Saoirse go in the direction that we saw (that is, kind and caring to everyone she met). Did you have her general arc and an ending in mind when you started writing?

My initial sketch of Saoirse's character was as follows: she wants to be loved but thinks she can't be, she needs friends but thinks she doesn't deserve them, she has a high position but has been made to feel lower than dirt, she has a great education but very little experience with the outside world, she thinks people hate her because she is strange yet is fascinated by everything strange she meets, and most importantly for the conceit of the story, she is a monsterfucker, i.e. someone who is attracted to inhuman people.

Kindness was not a character trait I had in mind making her, but... damn, how do I answer this without making me seem like a better person than I am? Hmm...

I could say that making Saoirse very kind and open is just pragmatic writing - it makes her more likely to interact with characters and get into situations. From an improv standpoint, it means she Yes, And's a lot, and thus facilitates the story. But that wasn't on my mind when I wrote her.

I could also say it was pragmatism from the audience interaction standpoint - you are less likely to derail the story and hurt the protagonist on purpose if you like her, and an easy way to make someone likable is to make them not be a dick. If she is kind, you feel more compelled to like her. That's a good answer, but it's not true.

My friend @bugcthulhu kinda answered this very succinctly in a discord chat: "Saoirse quickly slotting herself into the TT Protagonist mold: Troubled, genuinely kind and full of crimes" Because, yeah, looking back on them, all of my main characters seem to inherit at least two of three traits from me: 1. self loathing, 2. a deep desire to be kind, and 3. buffoonery. Those are traits I recognize in myself - I don't think I succeed at being kind often, but I definitely want to, and the other two I definitely suceed at. And their traits my main characters end up sporting, whether I intend them to or not. So Saoirse's kindness comes from me, I guess, whether I intended it to or not.

Hello! Here's third question about We Go Bump in the Night! I was curious about some of the more critical decisions that occurred. More specifically, I was curious about what could have been had things gone differently. The most obvious one is the possession scene—what would have happened if no one had voted in that poll? Second, what might have happened if more people had voted to shout suggestions to Saoirse? Would she have followed along with our suggestions, or would she have put her foot down like she did with regards to our name?

@fragmentaryremains wasn't the only one to ask about the possession - @demi-shoggoth also asked:

Could we have "lost" We Go Bump in the Night? As in, could Saorise have fully succumbed to Barbatos' influence? And if so, would Barbatos have been able to fight Dantalion directly using Saorise, or would it have been more of a Crumby Man situation? Also, I just have to say, as a trans woman who has been through a lot, including emotional abuse from a lot of different people, thank you. This story was beautiful and heartfelt and very very queer, and I loved it.

Barbatos's influence could have changed this story A LOT depending on how you reacted to it. Had his voice won in any of the earlier polls, we would have seen Saoirse becoming crueller and more violent - and her noticing that as an unnatural change, and trying to fight against it. Had we picked his options A LOT, he would have fully taken over Saoirse and made her commit some violence, forcing us to fight on the inside and recruit other characters to try and pacify her, probably resulting in some character deaths. It would have been a much darker story.

...but, like, I generally want stories to be satisfying, and I found myself endeared to Saoirse VERY quickly. I wanted her to win, and I wanted YOU to want her to win. So I don't know if I would have committed to that outcome. I'd probably try to give her an out - an escape, perhaps in a way that made the story unsatisfying for you but good for her. I wanted her to be happy.

Alternatively, had NO ONE voted in the Resist poll - had there only been resistance and NO submission - you guys might have pushed Barbatos out before he could transform Saoirse. Barbatos would have then tried to manifest physically on his own - a hard thing for demons to do, but not impossible - and Dredgore, Saoirse, and you poltergeists would have to team up to fight him off with good ol' violence, which is why I made sure I sketched Dredgore in combat poses just in case I needed to do so for realsies.

And you guys could have killed Dredgore if you chose to. As I said, I wanted to see if you'd invest in her, and that meant giving you the option not to - the most extreme of which would be to dispose of her callously. I'm so glad you didn't, but that option WAS there and I would have committed to it if you chose to.

Also thank you @demi-shoggoth for that last message, that means so much to me as writer and I'm glad my story was meaningful for you!

Here's a more meta heavy question about We Go Bump in the Night. One of the things that stood out to me is how you played with the format of “interactive story told on Tumblr” as well as the conventions of interactive fiction. The most prominent example being the update where we had to resist Barbatos, which was notable in how it tasked readers to not vote in the accompanying poll. Not to mention how you had Saoirse occasionally disagree or even go against the voters decisions. As such, I figured I'd ask what you think are the strengths and limitations of such a story—both generally in terms of it being an interactive narrative and specifically about it being a story hosted on Tumblr.

The strength IS the limitation - this is a story I don't fully control, which means I get to see it taken in strange directions I might not have chosen, and get to see whether what I set up worked based on whether or not you all chose to follow through on it. That meant some elements might not be fleshed out as much as they would be if they were fully in my power, but others might be fleshed out more than I had imagined. That's exciting as a story-teller! Stories always take on a life of their own, and this is just a different way for them to do so.

Here's another question for the We Go Bump in the Night Q&A! Unlike with At Sea Without a Map, we did pick what you might call “troll options." That is, we picked options that would put Saoirse in danger or were humorously disastrous. Since that's a notable difference from how ASWaM went, I'm curious what you think about that. Was it a surprise? Were you ever worried about balancing the need for logical progression from our actions (and thus punishing us) with a desire to give us freedom to choose things (even if those decisions might be terrible)?

Nah, I trusted you all to reign it in when you needed to. I'm actually glad a few more dangerous options got chosen this time - it allowed Saoirse to face some genuine peril and grow from it! Conflict is needed for a story to impact the audience, after all.

I was and still am worried that I might feel a bit toothless as the story-teller when it comes to paying through on that conflict - we all know, I think, that I was rooting for our girl throughout the whole story, and that her coming into life-ending harm was unlikely. But she got close a few times, and I tried to make sure she still faced some consequences along the way.

Yet another question about We Go Bump in the Night. You had mentioned earlier in the story that you wanted a larger cast to allow for some intrigue in how said cast interacts and develops. I thus wanted to ask two questions relating to that. The first being whether you feel you were able to achieve the effect you were looking for. And second, who were your favourite character(s) to write?

I think we balanced the bigger cast pretty well! In retrospect I kind of wish I gave Tomasin a bit more to do, but I think she serves her purpose well in this story, and there's always room for sequels. I definitely think it was more fun having more characters to play with this time around, and if anything I'd want to build on that more in future CYOAs.

Saoirse was my favorite to write, with Dredgore a close second. Repeter was my favorite to draw, though.

A short question for you about We Go Bump in the Night. I was curious about your favourite scene(s) to write, as well as what your favourite act was. Not to mention what each act encompasses—I'm fairly certain I can guess, but it doesn't hurt to ask for clarification.

Act 3 was my favorite to write from top to bottom - I was looking forward to it throughout all the previous parts. I love demons and I love Dredgore and I REALLY wanted Dredgore and Saoirse to smooch, so it was an important act for me! It was also the one I was most nervous about, which made it a relief to finally get it out there and see the audience reaction. Yeah, definitely Act 3.

One final question for you about We Go Bump in the Night! To copy over a question I asked about At Sea Without a Map, I'm curious what a version of We Go Bump in the Night would look like if it was solely "chosen" by you. That is, what might it be like if it was written without having the readers vote on actions? Would there be any significant changes? As this is my last question (for now at least), I'll also say thank you for taking the time to read and respond to my questions! I've had a lot of fun taking part in this adventure, and I hope you enjoyed the responses I wrote!

I think the story would have been the same in the broad strokes, but I probably would have had the characters be less segregated - there'd be more scenes of them interacting in groups and less one-on-ones with Saoirse. I would have tried to make sure all of them had something to do in the finale beyond just dancing with Saoirse, and it would overall be more ensemble-based and less Saoirse-focused. I definitely would have tried to give Tomasin more to do.

But I like this story as it is, and there's no reason I can't do all of that in a sequel later on. This is the ideal form of We Go Bump in the Night as far as I'm concerned.

Realized I had one additional question for you about We Go Bump in the Night! Back when we were voting for Saoirse's dance partner I had idly wondered if the extended time for voting led to more votes. That in turn made me wonder what were some of the updates that saw the most votes? And perhaps more broadly, how did the level of engagement compare to At Sea Without a Map's?

I'd say overall engagement was about on par - I think they both have roughly the same median and average number of voters, which would be somewhere in the mid thirties. At Sea Without a Map reached some high numbers of voters that We Go Bump in the Night never did - I think the highest we got here was in the high forties, whereas the highest ASWaM was in the 70's or so, but ASWaM also had some polls that were, like, 23 voters or so, which WGBitN never fell to. So about the same, just with less extremes.

I do think there were a lot more audience reactions to this one, though - people got really invested in the characters here, even moreso than ASWaM. Having more recurring characters probably helped, but I also think we just really loved Saoirse as a protagonist. I mean, I know I did, but it feels like you all did too!

Thank you for being such a responsive reader! I really do love reading all your thoughts and feedback.

@glarnboudin asks: What inspired the spider theming for so many of our cast?

Me loving spiders and spiders being a stock Halloween symbol, basically.

@partlysmith asks: Was this whole thing an elaborate long con to design monster girls in poofy dresses for future soft sculptures?

Yes.

Thank you all for reading and voting! There will be a print edition of this story... eventually, but for now, I've got to get back to working on Maude and Mordi and Wizard School Mysteries Book 4: Creative Spellcasting!

[fragmentaryremains]

Thank you for answering my questions! I really love getting a chance to learn more about the behind the scenes work that goes into making something like this. I had a lot of fun taking part in this adventure. It was super fun seeing how Saoirse developed, and I really liked how you played with the format this time around.

It's also interesting to learn that Dredgore wasn't always planned to be trans at the start of the quest. Given how natural that particular development feels, I have to wonder what a version of We Go Bump in the Night that didn't have that would be like. I definitely think the version we got is the better in regards to that option.

[tyrantisterror]

We Go Bump in the Night Finale

Previous Part

"I wish I had your job," you tell the Queen of the Masquerade with shameless audacity. "If I had the power you have at your disposal - a castle that can travel anywhere in Midgaheim at my command and seek out desperate souls on its own, a support staff, and the power to grant wishes, I would not only teach the lessons you teach, but with less pain and more comfort so they are more successful. That is what I wish for, oh great Queen of the Masquerade. I wish I had your job!"

The Queen is silent for a moment. Then there is a crack, and another, and another, and soon nearly a quarter of her mask falls away to reveal a glimpse of the demonic visage hidden beneath it.

"You want... my job?"

The atmosphere of the room changes, filling with a great heat and pressure as everything else falls into darkness save you and her. The uppermost skirt of her dress flips up and unfurls into a vast pair of draconic wings, and her lower skirts tear to shreds that reveal eight spider-like legs and a long, serpentine tail beneath their tatters. She swells to an even more enormous size, dominating your vision with her presence as she keeps you from escaping with one outstretched hand.

"I have been kind and cordial till now," she hisses beneath her mask, "But make no mistake, I am a demon of Hell, and though it may not be my favorite sin, my wrath is still terrible to behold. The masquerade is not a trifle - it is my greatest work! It must succeed! Don't you see? If mortals can cast off the chains of Hell, then perhaps... perhaps..." Her sole visible eye closes in a moment of immense emotion, then reopens with new fire burning in its iris. "It must succeed."

For all the dread this sight should inspire, you find your nerves are uncharacteristically tight and strong. "All the more reason to turn it over to me!" you shout back at her.

Her reptilian tail thrashes behind her in agitation. "You think you can do better than I have, little girl?"

"I am not a little a girl - I have seen thirty winters, for fuck's sake!"

"And I have seen the great light that birthed the stars in your sky!" she roars back at you. "Your life is but a drop in the ocean of my history!"

You flinch back at her outburst, but do not cower. "Be that as it may, I am no child, and I am old enough to understand the weight of my words when I say them.  I can do better than you have."

"Arrogant mortal!"

"This is not arrogance!" you argue. "It is confidence, and I refuse to confuse the two anymore! I know I can help people, and I love nothing more than to do so! Lend me your power and I will ensure your venture succeeds!"

She watches you closely, her demonic iris flashing like firelight as she sizes you up. "You're... not lying. It is confidence. How? You did not possess such fire in your spirit before tonight."

Somehow, through all this harrowing drama, you manage to laugh. "That is true enough! I have doubted almost every decision I’ve ever made.  There have been days when I spent hours wondering if I had made the right choice of breakfast, long after it had ceased the hunger in my belly." You laugh again, shake your head, and look her in the eye with renewed resolve. "But I feel no such doubt now."

Once more she scrutinizes you. "There will be a great price for such power," she says quietly, "With two conditions to fulfill.  And, confidence or no, you will doubt whether this was the right decision from time to time, and it will pain you."

You match her gaze in steel and ferocity as you say, "Doubt and I are well-acquainted.  I will push on despite it.  Name the conditions of your price."

Her tail lashes back and forth behind her as she speaks, "First, should you accept, you will take this job for the rest of your days - that is to say, if you ever decide to quit, whether you pick a successor or not, you will die.  It is your job for life in a very literal sense."

"Fair enough.  The second condition?"

"The body you have now shall be yours for the rest of your life, unalterable by any force shy of the Divine itself.  Every imperfection, every blemish, every horn, claw, fang, scale, all of them will remain with you till the day you die, down to the last freckle." She watches you closely to see signs of reluctance, but to her shock, finds none. "Take me seriously, girl. I do not say this to frighten you, but to make you aware of what you are doing. There is no backing out once you agree, and this will bring you pain."

You nod. "I know. But I will learn a lesson and be better for it, will I not?"

Though you cannot see her mouth, you can spot the smile in her visible eye. "Yes, it will. A painful lesson at times, but a useful one. If you accept these two parts of your price, I will give you this castle, which will seek the desperate souls you wish to help, and go where you command in the interim.  I will further empower you to grant wishes to the extent that I can.  All my vassals will swear the same fealty to you that they have to me, and you shall be my one heir and successor.  Do you accept the terms of your wish?"

It is a big decision, that is true, but you know in your heart there is only one answer you can give: "I do."

The four masks sitting atop the Queen's horns fly down and swirl above your head in a shower of sparks, colliding above you and merging into one singular crown that gently floats down to rest upon your head.

"I bestow upon you the Four-Faced Crown of Dantalion," the Queen says. The dance hall emerges from the room once more, its guests all watching with baited breath as you and the Queen capture all attention. "I name you as my sole heir and successor, and relinquish my throne to you. Hail, Saoirse Dantalion, Queen of the Masquerade and first of her name!" She turns to the revelers and commands, "Hail!  To the Queen of the Masquerade!"

"HAIL TO THE QUEEN OF THE MASQUERADE!"

The Queen curtsies to you, and the guests follow suit, and you realize that their reverence is not feigned or forced, but genuine. You are no longer some hideous joke that everyone is laughing at, or an unwelcome guest that everyone hopes leaves early. No, you're at the party, you're with your people, and you're not alone.

It is a kindness that must be repaid. As the Queen turns to leave, you shout, "Wait!" before pulling a key out from a hidden pocket in your skirts and using it to unlatch the elaborate necklace you've been wearing. Taking it off, you hold it out for the Queen to take.

She cocks her head to one side and looks at it. "You have already paid the price, Queen Saoirse."

"This isn't payment, it's a gift," you say with a warm smile. "You have done a great kindness for me and all the people here. It is time someone returned the favor." You beam as she picks the necklace from your hands. "And I hope that, in time, you may love yourself as you have loved others."

She turns the jewelry over in her hands for a moment, and a smile returns to her eyes. "Your confidence may be well-founded after all," she says quietly. "Thank you, Queen Saoirse. I wish you every happiness and success."

"I wish the same for you!"

"Sweet thing," the Queen says with an airy laugh as hellfire begins to spark around her body. "You genuinely do, don't you? You're a rare creature." The flames form a great and terrible maw that swallows the Queen up, and she gives you one last wink. "Farewell, Queen of the Masquerade!" Then she disappears within, and the fiery jaws smother themselves out as they close around her.

Everyone looks to you now, so you smooth out your dress, straighten your posture, and say in your most elegant and regal voice, "What are you all standing around for? Get dancing!"

A raucous cheer fills the hall, the band strikes up again, and soon the party is in full swing once more. You quit the dance floor for now, accepting the congratulations and encouragement of your guests with grace, and are stopped by... Mr. Jeebes, of all people.

"Your majesty," he says with an obsequiousness that is especially painful for you given how you once acted much the same, "I fear I have not made the best impression as head steward of the castle, so please allow me to-"

"You're overworked, Jeebes," you tell him plainly. "One of my first orders of business will be to hire more staff so you can focus more on the tasks you are suited to, and delegate the rest to capable helpers." You smile and pat his ghostly, vaporous cheek. "Fear not, your position here is safe."

Unsure how to respond, he bows his head and says, "Thank you, your highness!" before slinking away.

That was very satisfying, you think. Not that you want to throw your weight around that often, mind you, but occasionally it's nice to be able to call the shots.

Your friends come to your side very quickly, all of them wide-eyed with concerned. "What happened? What did you wish for?" Dredgore asks.

"Why did the Queen give you a crown and declare you her successor?" Emma adds.

"Didn't take you for the kind to make a power grab," Repeter says with a sly grin. "Suits you, though."

"I guess you're my boss now?" Tomasin says.

You can't help laughing at it all. "I wished for the power to make all of our lives better," you say. "I can control the castle, I can grant the wishes, I am the Queen of the Masquerade! And we're going to do things differently. We'll travel all over Midgaheim - every creature and plant and place I've read about, we'll see them all! We will find wizards and witches and other learned people to connect with and learn from!"

You turn to Emma, flush with happiness, and say, "There are wizards who can create enough light to sustain plants, did you know that? Imagine if we had an indoor garden - all those plants you miss would be yours to see again! And Tomasin, we can find new foods for you to try, new recipes to learn! Repeter, we will find people who are willing to be scared to keep you enriched! And Dredgore-"

Dredgore takes your hand in hers and smiles. "You need not promise me anything, Queen Saoirse. Your presence here is enough for me."

"Tough," you say with a mischievous smile, "Because I am going to spoil you rotten anyway!" Then you pull all four of them into a hug and declare, "We will no longer settle for surviving! From this day forth, the residents of Castle Dantalion will flourish!"

The sound of clapping hands and jingling bells fills your ears, and you and your four friends turn to see the Jester approaching. "Well said, your highness," she says before giving you a deep bow. "Hail to Saoirse Dantalion, Queen of the Masquerade! Allow me to inaugurate your tenure with your first great success, for already you have helped more souls than you knew!"

You - that is, the collection of ghosts that have bonded to Saoirse Aterkop, or, rather, Saoirse Dantalion now - hear the Jester's words and realize she is calling to you. Emerging from your hiding places, you find the bonds of spirit glue holding you to Saoirse are withering away. Your time with her is at an end.

"These souls were lost," the Jester says of you as Saoirse watches with amazement. "Stranded by a desire to make more of their lives, yet unable to remember what they could do to earn their blessed rest. By helping you, they have earned that satisfaction, and now, in honor of their service and your aid, I bring them to their final rest. Farewell, Queen Saoirse Dantalion!"

A pair of black, feathery wings emerges from the back of the Jester as she removes her mask to reveal the grinning death's head beneath. "It is time to climb the vast mountain, and from there we shall find the fields of Elysia and a paradise beyond all imagining!"

Above you, there is a light, pleasantly warm and inviting, and you find yourselves floating up into it. With your time coming to an end, you look down on Saoirse and her friends as they wave you goodbye, and leave this world knowing one thing for certain.

Saoirse will flourish.

The End

...

Roll Credits

We Go Bump in the Night

A story written by William Cope, with choices made by readers like you!

Starring:

Lady Saoirse Aterkop as The Ingenue

Tomasin as The Chapalu

Lady Emma Scarve as The Dullahan

Lady Dredgore as The Cursed Soldier

Repeter as The Doppelganger

With Shuffyl as The Maid

Heebes Jeebes as The Butler

??? as The Jester

And Readers Like You as The Poltergeists!

Thank you for reading, and remember to love yourself!

There will be a Post Script for this story on 11/28 with a Q&A section, so if you have a question or comment you'd like to see addressed in it, please submit it by the 27th!

(Thanks to @downtofragglerock, @evolutionsvoid, @writerofweird, @glarnboudin, @partlysmith, @lydiathespiderqueen, @bugcthulhu, @shadyserpent269, @cerothenull, @thebigdeepcheatsy, and @titleknown for submitting poltergeist designs!)

[fragmentaryremains]

Man. What a great conclusion! Feels very appropriate for Saoirse too. I hadn't even considered she could take over the Queen's job until you had hinted at it last update, but it also makes perfect sense given what we knew about Saoirse and her motivations.

There will be a Post Script for this story on 11/28 with a Q&A section, so if you have a question or comment you'd like to see addressed in it, please submit it by the 27th!

Nice! I've definitely got several questions. Now I just need to gather them all together…

[tyrantisterror]

We Go Bump in the Night pt. 50

Previous Part -- Next Part

Rather than downplay your flustered attraction to her majesty, almost half of your ghost friends actively encourage it, which only spurs you to blush more vividly as let the Queen take your hand in her own and lead you back to the dance floor. The many other guests part to let the two of you in, quitting the floor so you and the Queen may have it to yourselves. It is clear they know what is about to happen - that you are the guest whose wish will be heard tonight.

You feel a gust of warm air rise beneath you, lifting your wings into the air until you are at eye level with the Queen. It keeps you there, ably bridging the height gap between you two without you so much as having to flap a wing. "Mr. Jeebes tells me you're quite a busy woman, always finding something to do and someone to help," the Queen says as the band plays a song that starts slow and gentle but quickly kicks up into a frenetic whirlwind of sound.

"I suppose so," you say, your blush still intense as you feel her long, spindly fingers hold your hands tight. "You have such a lovely estate, and I couldn't resist exploring it to see all it has to offer." Remembering your friends, you add, "And your staff is so kind! Shuffyl is an excellent maid, Tomasin a marvelous cook, and Dredgore performed so admirably in your stead as the leader of the house!"

"A glowing review," the Queen says with a note of amusement in her voice. "I shall have them commended for their service, then. Dredgore in particular seems to be in rare form tonight." Her head turns in the direction of your friends. "In fact, all four of my hangers on seem to be in high spirits. Is this your doing, Lady Aterkop?"

If you blush much more you'll be as red as an apple. "We have gotten on well, if that is what you're asking. Dredgore, Emma, Tomasin, Repeter, they've all been just lovely to me. I've never felt more welcome."

She cocks her head to one side and studies you. "Hmm, perhaps that explains it," she mutters to herself.

"Explains what?"

Her neck straightens as she holds her head high, but she does not answer your question. "I take it Dredgore explained the nature of my masquerade to you, correct? She did agree to perform that task for my guests when they arrive."

"She did," you say, and at once you are flooded with advice and queries from your ghostly retinue - it seems some of them have more useful ideas than raving about the Queen's otherworldly beauty. "I have some questions, though, if you don't mind answering them."

"Not at all," the Queen says as you and her take a turn on the dance floor, the music growing more frenetic as your bodies move in time. "I actually prefer my guests to feel informed to their satisfaction before they make their wish, and especially before they agree to it."

That's reassuring - it seems she isn't one of those wish-granting entities that seeks solely to trick the unwary, at the very least. Still, best to be as informed as possible, and not just about the wish itself. "We are in the Other World, correct? I know time passes differently here - how much time has passed in the mortal world since I arrived?"

"Castle Dantalion remains in sync with the mortal world when a new guest arrives for the masquerade," the Queen answers, "Should you leave tonight, you will return to the mortal world at sunrise of the day after you left home. If you were to stay longer, though, you will travel with the castle as it drifts through the astral plane, and a vast amount of time in the mortal world may pass in the blink of an eye for you. Or you might experience ten years in the span of a single mortal day - as we both know, time is strange here!"

About as comforting an answer as you could expect - and there are worse anxieties you have, anyway. "So... while you were out...," you say quietly as you avert your eyes and shrink in on yourself, wrapping your whip-like devil tail around your dress skirts. "I was possessed by a demon named Barbatos. I threw him off, but he seemed to have it out for you, or at least for your masquerade. Were you aware of that?"

She clicks her tongue and shakes her head. "That feculent rump-fed ronyon," she hisses. "Hmm, how to explain this... you could say Duke Barbatos and I are from the same country, but different kingdoms, to put it in terms you can understand. We run in very different circles, but circles that happen to share a border, and I guess he's taken it upon himself to critique how I go about my business." She giggles and covers the painted lips of her mask. "Though I must confess he is not entirely wrong to - I am bending a few rules, after all, though he has no authority to call me out on in. Still, that grudge is solely between himself and I, and you should not have been brought into it. Rest assured, when I leave the castle tonight, I will see him properly harangued for his uncouth behavior."

"He's attacked this castle before, though, hasn't he?" you say. "The Crumbly Man in the basement told me as much before I uh... got Repeter to kill him." Again you find yourself shrinking away, though her grip on your hands keeps you from going far. "Sorry about that, by the way."

Instead of chastising you, though, she laughs. "An unnatural end finally found him, eh? It was bound to happen eventually. In fact, I can hold that over Barbatos's head when I see him next - you bested him not once, but twice, and he is now in your debt for finally being able to collect that wayward soul! Oh, his humiliation will be exquisite!"

"If he is in my debt," you say meekly, "Can you ask him not to attack this castle anymore? The other residents don't deserve to deal with such strife."

Again, the Queen stops and studies you. "You are a strange one," she says quietly. "There's more steel in you than I expected."

"Is that good?"

"We shall see."

You swallow your anxiety and nod you head for a moment before thinking of another question. "I asked everyone here who got a wish about what they wished for and the price they paid. The Crumbly Man's wish seemed the most odd - he claimed you gave him his wish without a price, and yet it seemed to have severe drawbacks."

"He was not a guest," the Queen says plainly. "I did not invite him - he barged into here and demanded a wish. I saw no reason to make his wish useful to him, and allowed his own gluttonous desires to reap his ruin."

"Make it... useful?" You wrinkle your brow as you try to figure out what she means by that. "I don't understand."

"You will when you make your wish," the Queen says with a low chuckle. "Are you ready now?"

"I have a few more questions, your majesty," you say. "If that's alright."

"Of course it is, Lady Aterkop! I enjoy good conversation."

"Right, good. Um... so... there were other strange goings on here. Killer pumpkins, rat kings-"

"You're in the Other World, dear, such oddities should be expected," the Queen says with a shrug.

"They threatened my life, though! Doesn't that endanger your whole enterprise?"

"You survived, did you not? Shuffyl would come to your aid when you called, and clearly the other guests adore you enough to help you out of any conflict you found yourself in."

"Still, some additional security might be a good thing to invest in," you say quietly. "It might even keep the Jester out..."

A terrible and audible CRACK splits the air as a fracture appears over the left eye of the Queen's mask. "She was here?"

"...yes?"

Her body briefly grows rigid as her grip on your hands becomes almost painfully tight. "I hate when she meddles," the Queen hisses before taking a deep breath and relaxing once more. "What did my dear sister say, exactly?"

"Um, that I should talk to everyone in the castle about their wishes, and that you and her don't get on very well," you say very quickly and nervously.

"That trifling little prude," the Queen hisses, "Always sticking her holier-than-thou nose in my business." Again she takes a breath to calm herself. "That was all she said, though? If so, it matters little - I would have allowed you to ask those questions yourself if you thought to do so. For all her meddling, she lacks the true wit to actually stifle me. Poor, incompetent sister, ha!"

Her hatred for her sister seems almost performative - and a mask is very good for hiding one's identity, especially when one wishes to play more than one role in a tale. Hmm, could there be more to this? "You and her are never in the same place at the same time..."

"Of course not, two objects cannot occupy the same space at the same time," the Queen says with a shake of her head. "That's a law of reality your kind will figure out... eventually."

"Right." Of course she'd dodge the question, but perhaps you can get an answer some other way. "Did you attach these ghosts to me? And my friendship with the others, was that also your plan?"

She cocks her head again. "What on earth are you talking about?" she laughs. "I see the ghosts, yes, but that's not my doing. And you befriending my hangers on was all your choice, not mine." She leans in and whispers, "It's considered poor form where I come from for me to admit this, but I am not, in fact, all powerful or all seeing. There are limits to what I can predict and control - less severe than those you face, but they exist all the same."

Damn, that's not a definitive answer either. Perhaps this is not a question you'll get a clear answer to - and, perhaps, it isn't one you need, at least not right now. "How did I get here, then? Surely you must know that."

"Didn't my staff tell you?" the Queen asks. "Your carriage crashed, and we found you at our castle gates."

"Very convenient."

"Of course it is, it's magic!" the Queen laughs. "Castle Dantalion seeks out guests in need of attending my masquerade. When it finds one, it arrives at the moment they need it to, and welcomes them in."

You blink in surprise. "The castle does it on its own?"

"Thanks to my enchantments, yes," the Queen says. "It'd be obnoxious if I had to do that grunt work myself, and I don't have anyone else I trust to run the process."

"So the castle travels on its own," you say thoughtfully. "Can it go anywhere? Does it have to stay in the Other World between masquerades?"

"It can go anywhere, and it does not need to stay here, no," the Queen says, "But it's safe here when I am away, and I'd rather it stay safe than be jeopardized in the mortal plane."

"But if someone wanted to take it to the mortal plane between masquerades," you press on, "Could they do it?"

She scrutinizes you for a moment. "They could, I suppose. Why do you ask?"

That's a good question, why are you asking about this? Shouldn't you- "I think I'm ready to ask about the wishes themselves. Repeter said they have to be selfish, and from everyone I've talked to, they seem to come with a high cost as a universal rule. Why is that?"

The Queen considers her response before speaking. "Would it shock you to learn," she says as her head turns to your friends again, "That I pity these loathsome creatures?"

That's... not the answer you expected. But she isn't finished speaking, either.

"My kind hates yours as a matter of principal, you know," she says quietly. "Mortals - second born, yet first favored. When I came to your realm, it was with the order to sew strife and suffering among every mortal I met. So imagine my surprise when I learned that no torture I could devise holds even a candle to the cruelties you heap upon yourselves. I, who know the torments of Hell, saw them reflected in your hearts and minds!"

She shakes her four-horned head. "Despite what I am, where I come from, what I know, I found myself feeling sorrow on your behalf.  After all, I at least felt the joys of Heaven before being cast into Hell, but you, who have never seen such splendor, have cast yourself into the flames before you even see the end of your miserable lives! It isn't fair - it isn't just! I could not abide it!"

Fumes rise from the air holes in her mask for a moment, abyssmal plumes of smoke that billow and then disperse into the air as she calms herself before speaking once more: "In time I wondered if I could relieve your suffering, or lessen it to some degree.  Of course, there would be a price - I am a demon, bound to Hell by oaths and fealty, and there are rules of conduct I must abide by.  I swore to cause pain to every mortal I met here - yet pain can teach valuable lessons, when properly applied."

She gestured to the room around you. "So I built this castle, and led self-despising souls to its halls.  I blanketed them with the cloak of anonymity, so they could bare their hearts freely as they told me their most desperate wishes, and then I thought of a price that would teach the best lesson.  Whether they accept the deal or not makes no difference - in knowing it, there is pain, and in that pain there is truth that can lead them to a brighter future, should they find the strength to face it."

It is a terrifying confession - the knowledge that you are once again dealing with a demon does not sit well with you, even if she seems to have better intentions than Barbatos. After all, good intentions and good results are not one and the same. "Do these lessons have to be painful?"

"If I am to teach them, yes," she says. "But do not let that scare you off. My success rate is quite good."

"Really?" you balk. "Because the people I've talked to all seem pretty miserable still."

"You have only known them a night," she says with a dismissive roll of her eyes beneath her mask. "I am an eternal being, and can see their lives from beginning to end. The four you've met are improved by the experience, I assure you - it may take them a long time to learn their lessons from your perspective, but from mine they are proceeding quite well. Even better than expected right now, in fact! So you see, there is nothing to fear." She leans in at you and says softly, "Which I think finally brings us to you, Lady Saoirse Aterkop. Freckled, disfigured, unloved and unwanted by your family... what do you wish for?"

Alright, I know what I want to wish for.

Shout suggestions to her! (You may post them in the replies)

Trust in Saoirse.

Voting ended onNov 23, 2025

[maplesamurai]

Okay, the Queen intentionally causing pain through her wishes kind of throws a wrench in my theory (unless we've still to see a revelation regarding that point), but this whole conversation's been quite fascinating regardless.

[tyrantisterror]

Not to give anything away, but she noted specifically that she has to cause pain with the wishes, but causing the pain is no longer her goal - she wants to teach lessons, to help people not torment themselves. She's just not able to do so as a demon without causing pain in the process - if she doesn't hurt people, she gets in trouble, so she's trying to hurt people in a way that helps them.

[fragmentaryremains]

…huh. So she has to specifically cause others pain when doing this. But if someone else were to use the resources of the castle (that they know about because they asked about them)…

Then again, I'm pretty sure the only reason she can grant said wishes is because she's an actual demon instead of a cambion. That doesn't completely rule out Saoirse trying something like fulfilling Queen's role, but it would preclude her literally filling that postion 1:1.

[tyrantisterror]

We Go Bump in the Night pt. 50

Previous Part -- Next Part

Rather than downplay your flustered attraction to her majesty, almost half of your ghost friends actively encourage it, which only spurs you to blush more vividly as let the Queen take your hand in her own and lead you back to the dance floor. The many other guests part to let the two of you in, quitting the floor so you and the Queen may have it to yourselves. It is clear they know what is about to happen - that you are the guest whose wish will be heard tonight.

You feel a gust of warm air rise beneath you, lifting your wings into the air until you are at eye level with the Queen. It keeps you there, ably bridging the height gap between you two without you so much as having to flap a wing. "Mr. Jeebes tells me you're quite a busy woman, always finding something to do and someone to help," the Queen says as the band plays a song that starts slow and gentle but quickly kicks up into a frenetic whirlwind of sound.

"I suppose so," you say, your blush still intense as you feel her long, spindly fingers hold your hands tight. "You have such a lovely estate, and I couldn't resist exploring it to see all it has to offer." Remembering your friends, you add, "And your staff is so kind! Shuffyl is an excellent maid, Tomasin a marvelous cook, and Dredgore performed so admirably in your stead as the leader of the house!"

"A glowing review," the Queen says with a note of amusement in her voice. "I shall have them commended for their service, then. Dredgore in particular seems to be in rare form tonight." Her head turns in the direction of your friends. "In fact, all four of my hangers on seem to be in high spirits. Is this your doing, Lady Aterkop?"

If you blush much more you'll be as red as an apple. "We have gotten on well, if that is what you're asking. Dredgore, Emma, Tomasin, Repeter, they've all been just lovely to me. I've never felt more welcome."

She cocks her head to one side and studies you. "Hmm, perhaps that explains it," she mutters to herself.

"Explains what?"

Her neck straightens as she holds her head high, but she does not answer your question. "I take it Dredgore explained the nature of my masquerade to you, correct? She did agree to perform that task for my guests when they arrive."

"She did," you say, and at once you are flooded with advice and queries from your ghostly retinue - it seems some of them have more useful ideas than raving about the Queen's otherworldly beauty. "I have some questions, though, if you don't mind answering them."

"Not at all," the Queen says as you and her take a turn on the dance floor, the music growing more frenetic as your bodies move in time. "I actually prefer my guests to feel informed to their satisfaction before they make their wish, and especially before they agree to it."

That's reassuring - it seems she isn't one of those wish-granting entities that seeks solely to trick the unwary, at the very least. Still, best to be as informed as possible, and not just about the wish itself. "We are in the Other World, correct? I know time passes differently here - how much time has passed in the mortal world since I arrived?"

"Castle Dantalion remains in sync with the mortal world when a new guest arrives for the masquerade," the Queen answers, "Should you leave tonight, you will return to the mortal world at sunrise of the day after you left home. If you were to stay longer, though, you will travel with the castle as it drifts through the astral plane, and a vast amount of time in the mortal world may pass in the blink of an eye for you. Or you might experience ten years in the span of a single mortal day - as we both know, time is strange here!"

About as comforting an answer as you could expect - and there are worse anxieties you have, anyway. "So... while you were out...," you say quietly as you avert your eyes and shrink in on yourself, wrapping your whip-like devil tail around your dress skirts. "I was possessed by a demon named Barbatos. I threw him off, but he seemed to have it out for you, or at least for your masquerade. Were you aware of that?"

She clicks her tongue and shakes her head. "That feculent rump-fed ronyon," she hisses. "Hmm, how to explain this... you could say Duke Barbatos and I are from the same country, but different kingdoms, to put it in terms you can understand. We run in very different circles, but circles that happen to share a border, and I guess he's taken it upon himself to critique how I go about my business." She giggles and covers the painted lips of her mask. "Though I must confess he is not entirely wrong to - I am bending a few rules, after all, though he has no authority to call me out on in. Still, that grudge is solely between himself and I, and you should not have been brought into it. Rest assured, when I leave the castle tonight, I will see him properly harangued for his uncouth behavior."

"He's attacked this castle before, though, hasn't he?" you say. "The Crumbly Man in the basement told me as much before I uh... got Repeter to kill him." Again you find yourself shrinking away, though her grip on your hands keeps you from going far. "Sorry about that, by the way."

Instead of chastising you, though, she laughs. "An unnatural end finally found him, eh? It was bound to happen eventually. In fact, I can hold that over Barbatos's head when I see him next - you bested him not once, but twice, and he is now in your debt for finally being able to collect that wayward soul! Oh, his humiliation will be exquisite!"

"If he is in my debt," you say meekly, "Can you ask him not to attack this castle anymore? The other residents don't deserve to deal with such strife."

Again, the Queen stops and studies you. "You are a strange one," she says quietly. "There's more steel in you than I expected."

"Is that good?"

"We shall see."

You swallow your anxiety and nod you head for a moment before thinking of another question. "I asked everyone here who got a wish about what they wished for and the price they paid. The Crumbly Man's wish seemed the most odd - he claimed you gave him his wish without a price, and yet it seemed to have severe drawbacks."

"He was not a guest," the Queen says plainly. "I did not invite him - he barged into here and demanded a wish. I saw no reason to make his wish useful to him, and allowed his own gluttonous desires to reap his ruin."

"Make it... useful?" You wrinkle your brow as you try to figure out what she means by that. "I don't understand."

"You will when you make your wish," the Queen says with a low chuckle. "Are you ready now?"

"I have a few more questions, your majesty," you say. "If that's alright."

"Of course it is, Lady Aterkop! I enjoy good conversation."

"Right, good. Um... so... there were other strange goings on here. Killer pumpkins, rat kings-"

"You're in the Other World, dear, such oddities should be expected," the Queen says with a shrug.

"They threatened my life, though! Doesn't that endanger your whole enterprise?"

"You survived, did you not? Shuffyl would come to your aid when you called, and clearly the other guests adore you enough to help you out of any conflict you found yourself in."

"Still, some additional security might be a good thing to invest in," you say quietly. "It might even keep the Jester out..."

A terrible and audible CRACK splits the air as a fracture appears over the left eye of the Queen's mask. "She was here?"

"...yes?"

Her body briefly grows rigid as her grip on your hands becomes almost painfully tight. "I hate when she meddles," the Queen hisses before taking a deep breath and relaxing once more. "What did my dear sister say, exactly?"

"Um, that I should talk to everyone in the castle about their wishes, and that you and her don't get on very well," you say very quickly and nervously.

"That trifling little prude," the Queen hisses, "Always sticking her holier-than-thou nose in my business." Again she takes a breath to calm herself. "That was all she said, though? If so, it matters little - I would have allowed you to ask those questions yourself if you thought to do so. For all her meddling, she lacks the true wit to actually stifle me. Poor, incompetent sister, ha!"

Her hatred for her sister seems almost performative - and a mask is very good for hiding one's identity, especially when one wishes to play more than one role in a tale. Hmm, could there be more to this? "You and her are never in the same place at the same time..."

"Of course not, two objects cannot occupy the same space at the same time," the Queen says with a shake of her head. "That's a law of reality your kind will figure out... eventually."

"Right." Of course she'd dodge the question, but perhaps you can get an answer some other way. "Did you attach these ghosts to me? And my friendship with the others, was that also your plan?"

She cocks her head again. "What on earth are you talking about?" she laughs. "I see the ghosts, yes, but that's not my doing. And you befriending my hangers on was all your choice, not mine." She leans in and whispers, "It's considered poor form where I come from for me to admit this, but I am not, in fact, all powerful or all seeing. There are limits to what I can predict and control - less severe than those you face, but they exist all the same."

Damn, that's not a definitive answer either. Perhaps this is not a question you'll get a clear answer to - and, perhaps, it isn't one you need, at least not right now. "How did I get here, then? Surely you must know that."

"Didn't my staff tell you?" the Queen asks. "Your carriage crashed, and we found you at our castle gates."

"Very convenient."

"Of course it is, it's magic!" the Queen laughs. "Castle Dantalion seeks out guests in need of attending my masquerade. When it finds one, it arrives at the moment they need it to, and welcomes them in."

You blink in surprise. "The castle does it on its own?"

"Thanks to my enchantments, yes," the Queen says. "It'd be obnoxious if I had to do that grunt work myself, and I don't have anyone else I trust to run the process."

"So the castle travels on its own," you say thoughtfully. "Can it go anywhere? Does it have to stay in the Other World between masquerades?"

"It can go anywhere, and it does not need to stay here, no," the Queen says, "But it's safe here when I am away, and I'd rather it stay safe than be jeopardized in the mortal plane."

"But if someone wanted to take it to the mortal plane between masquerades," you press on, "Could they do it?"

She scrutinizes you for a moment. "They could, I suppose. Why do you ask?"

That's a good question, why are you asking about this? Shouldn't you- "I think I'm ready to ask about the wishes themselves. Repeter said they have to be selfish, and from everyone I've talked to, they seem to come with a high cost as a universal rule. Why is that?"

The Queen considers her response before speaking. "Would it shock you to learn," she says as her head turns to your friends again, "That I pity these loathsome creatures?"

That's... not the answer you expected. But she isn't finished speaking, either.

"My kind hates yours as a matter of principal, you know," she says quietly. "Mortals - second born, yet first favored. When I came to your realm, it was with the order to sew strife and suffering among every mortal I met. So imagine my surprise when I learned that no torture I could devise holds even a candle to the cruelties you heap upon yourselves. I, who know the torments of Hell, saw them reflected in your hearts and minds!"

She shakes her four-horned head. "Despite what I am, where I come from, what I know, I found myself feeling sorrow on your behalf.  After all, I at least felt the joys of Heaven before being cast into Hell, but you, who have never seen such splendor, have cast yourself into the flames before you even see the end of your miserable lives! It isn't fair - it isn't just! I could not abide it!"

Fumes rise from the air holes in her mask for a moment, abyssmal plumes of smoke that billow and then disperse into the air as she calms herself before speaking once more: "In time I wondered if I could relieve your suffering, or lessen it to some degree.  Of course, there would be a price - I am a demon, bound to Hell by oaths and fealty, and there are rules of conduct I must abide by.  I swore to cause pain to every mortal I met here - yet pain can teach valuable lessons, when properly applied."

She gestured to the room around you. "So I built this castle, and led self-despising souls to its halls.  I blanketed them with the cloak of anonymity, so they could bare their hearts freely as they told me their most desperate wishes, and then I thought of a price that would teach the best lesson.  Whether they accept the deal or not makes no difference - in knowing it, there is pain, and in that pain there is truth that can lead them to a brighter future, should they find the strength to face it."

It is a terrifying confession - the knowledge that you are once again dealing with a demon does not sit well with you, even if she seems to have better intentions than Barbatos. After all, good intentions and good results are not one and the same. "Do these lessons have to be painful?"

"If I am to teach them, yes," she says. "But do not let that scare you off. My success rate is quite good."

"Really?" you balk. "Because the people I've talked to all seem pretty miserable still."

"You have only known them a night," she says with a dismissive roll of her eyes beneath her mask. "I am an eternal being, and can see their lives from beginning to end. The four you've met are improved by the experience, I assure you - it may take them a long time to learn their lessons from your perspective, but from mine they are proceeding quite well. Even better than expected right now, in fact! So you see, there is nothing to fear." She leans in at you and says softly, "Which I think finally brings us to you, Lady Saoirse Aterkop. Freckled, disfigured, unloved and unwanted by your family... what do you wish for?"

Alright, I know what I want to wish for.

Shout suggestions to her! (You may post them in the replies)

Trust in Saoirse.

Voting ended onNov 23, 2025

[fragmentaryremains]

She gestured to the room around you. "So I built this castle, and led self-despising souls to its halls.  I blanketed them with the cloak of anonymity, so they could bare their hearts freely as they told me their most desperate wishes, and then I thought of a price that would teach the best lesson.  Whether they accept the deal or not makes no difference - in knowing it, there is pain, and in that pain there is truth that can lead them to a brighter future, should they find the strength to face it." It is a terrifying confession - the knowledge that you are once again dealing with a demon does not sit well with you, even if she seems to have better intentions than Barbatos. After all, good intentions and good results are not one and the same. "Do these lessons have to be painful?" "If I am to teach them, yes," she says. "But do not let that scare you off. My success rate is quite good."

…damn. Okay, maybe I should have seen the reveal of the Queen being a demon coming. The fact that the Queen is looking to specifically cause pain through her granting of wishes throws a huge wrench in my plans. Not to mention how she refers to Saoirse at the end there. Bringing up all the qualities that she used to dislike about herself—it feels like textbook manipulation. She wants us to experience pain—she's being intentionally cruel. I don't know that there's a clever, thoughtful way out of this that doesn't play directly into her hands.

Alright, I know what I want to wish for.

…hm. There might be another way. A practical, studious, audacious, kind and above all independent way. A way that only someone who has literally bested a demon through their own power could achieve.

Saoirse? You can do this. I believe in you!

That being said, I do want to put my suggestions for wishes down here. In the even that our suggestions do win, I had several plans for what to wish for. I'm going to divide them up into a few different categories:

Nice things/gifts for friends. Let's face it, Saoirse's new friends are amazing. I'm sure Saoirse would love to see them get some sort of gift. It doesn't have to be what they wished for—just something small to bring them some more joy. A nice dress for Dredgore, some mortal flowers for Emma, a meal that Repeter could actually enjoy, or even just some more praise for Tomasin. If Queen tries to argue that our wish must benefit ourselves in some way, then we can just reply that we'll be happier seeing our friends happy.

The ability to return to Castle Dantalion from anywhere in the world. Saoirse has been confined in various ways all throughout her life. The standards of other nobles, the walls of her own castle, the veiled jabs designed to put her down. To that I say, no more! Saoirse deserves to be able to freely explore the world and enjoy it! That being said, I imagine she'd still want to be able to come back to Castle Dantalion to be with her friends. And I'm sure they in turn would love for Saoirse to return to see them outside of the one time of the year the castle returns to the mortal world.

Her most treasured possessions. I'm sure this is going to be a depressingly small amount of items. But even if we do wish to explore the rest of the world, Castle Dantalion is almost certainly going to be Saoirse's new home. To that end, I figure it'd be good to get whatever items she wants out of there right away. That way she'll be able to move in almost immediately, and she won't have to deal with her parents trying to take away what should be hers.

Again, I'm going to put my faith in Saoirse having an idea that will get her what she wants the most in this situation. You can do it!

As an asied, I'm also going to guess that that's the reason the Queen and the Jester have had a falling out. There's a pretty big difference between Jester being playful and teasing us/Saoirse, and Queen wanting to cause pain on purpose. Jester's been all about fair play and what's best for the story (otherwise Saoirse would have died a while ago), whereas Queen doesn't seem to care too much about the well-being of others. I kind of doubt she would have cared too much if Saoirse had died…

[tyrantisterror]

We Go Bump in the Night pt. 49

Previous Part -- Next Part

You can feel your friends' eyes fall upon you. The moment of truth is here - soon you will be called upon to make your wish, and by the heavens you need to make it good. All of your adventures this night have built up to this moment, where you define the course of your life from this point forward.

But you can delay it a little longer, can't you? Surely the Queen will understand that you have a need a bit more dancing time. Taking Tomasin's hand in yours, you head back to the dance floor.

True to her feline nature, Tomasin is agile, graceful, and fast on her feet, matching you step for step with astounding poise and precision. Her soft, padded feet are utterly silent on the dance floor, and her flexibility allows her to pull of movements that you would struggle to even halfway attempt. Best of all, she, like Dredgore, is more than strong enough to lift you up and sweep you off your feet, spinning you around the dance floor as if you were as light as feather, and by the end of it all you are faintly dizzy but in the best way.

The band plays a serene number when you take Emma onto the dance floor, and the two of you begin your dance living up entirely to the expectations of a pair of noblewomen at a fancy gala. It is elegant, stylish, and a little... slow. You don't know if whether you're the first one to bring a bit of silliness into your steps, or if it was Emma who first took it on a strange turn, but halfway through the number you find that you both have abandoned delusions of decorum and thrown yourself into simply having fun together, swinging and swaying to the music however it suits you, and laughing together when the song comes to an end.

There could be no pretense of dignity when the next song starts, and it's fitting that this is the one you choose to dance with Repeter. He (yes, still he - as Repeter himself puts it, "A doppelganger is whatever it wants to be at a given moment, and tonight I wanted to avoid being the only one without a cute dress") exploits his malleable anatomy to delightful effect, spinning and gyrating around you with tremendous speed and fluidity, and sending you spinning in turn with exceptional ease. For once you are the one keeping up with your partner's lead, and though Repeter's inhuman movements are impossible for you to replicate, thinking of ways to match his dancing proves a delightful task all the same.

You are all smiles and laughter when you rejoin your friends, and you already find yourself eager to dance again. As your hand reaches for Dredgore's (might as well start from the beginning, eh?), you are stopped by the sensation of a finger gently poking your shoulder, and a chill runs down your spine as a voice, beautiful and terrible, soft yet clearly from a set of lungs that can thunder quite loudly when roused, says sweetly, "Lady Saoirse Aterkop?"

Behind you looms none other than the Queen of the Masquerade herself, a tower of a woman more than twice the height of an average human, with four curling horns sticking out of her mask-clad face. She turns her head down to look at you, and you crane yours up to meet her gaze. She is intimidating and immense and... immaculately beautiful, you think, a truly wondrous and lovely titan of a woman.

"May I have this dance, Lady Aterkop?" her quiet voice asks as she extends a hand with too-long fingers to you. "I've been quite impatient to meet you, you know."

No more delays, it seems. Any advice for me, Chatter?

Perhaps it's time to be obsequious again, eh? Flatter her as a queen deserves!

We have questions, she has answers. Here's what to ask: (put Q's in the replies)

Remember what you've learned! (Reply with facts you want Saoirse to focus on!)

Voting ended onNov 22, 2025

Don't worry, friendly spirits! I will slow time enough for Saoirse to hear your individual thoughts and queries, so if you have any Questions or Facts you'd like her to keep in mind, please, Reply with them - as many as you have, in fact! Now is the time to make your voice heard!

[fragmentaryremains]

Now is the time to make your voice heard!

Aw, thank you Jester! I've definitely been looking forward to a good old fashioned conversation.

As for Saoirse: Hi! I'm glad you're enjoying the dance. I suspect our time with you is drawing to a close soon—hopefully we haven't been too much of a bother! I do have some questions that I'd love for you to ask the Queen, if you don't mind.

I definitely want to ask about Lord Barbatos. More specifically, I'm curious how on Earth he discovered this place and the masquerade in the first place. I've otherwise got a good grasp on the timeline—he asked the Crumbly Man to get in, Crumbly Man didn't follow his orders, then he followed Saoirse in and possessed her before getting sent back to Hell by Saoirse. But how did he become aware of this in the first place? I kind of figured somewhere like this would have a bouncer or something that could send a malicious actor packing…

A more pressing question for our wish—can Saoirse return to the castle if she were to leave it? While I don't imagine that's in the cards right now, it seems a shame to limit Saoirse to yet another castle when she's just escaped from the one her family kept her in. Even if this place holds four of the very best friends Saoirse has ever made, she may still desire to explore more of the world with those wings of hers. But if that's the case, I'd want to make sure we could return and spend time with them whenever we want—not just whenever the castle comes back into the mortal world.

Speaking of friends, I've heard from one of them that our wish has to benefit us first and foremost. My question then is whether bringing us happiness counts as benefiting us. I'd love to use our wish to get Dredgore some nice dresses, Emma some plants from the mortal world that could survive in Fairyland, Repeter a recipe/meal that he could actually eat (which would kind of be nice for Tomasin too given she's expressed interest in wanting to feed Repeter) or have Tomasin receive more compliments for her cooking. Given the kind of person Saoirse is, I imagine a wish that makes her friends happier would also make her happier too (especially since it feels like she's already had her wish granted with all these new friends she's made!). If that's not an option though, I'll have to think of something else.

I'm also going to second @maplesamurai's question about why certain wishes have high costs. I don't expect this to actually receive an answer—at best, I assume a deflection like "each cost is personalized to the wisher" or something. Which, technically true—I'm sure if we're allowed to wish for something like Repeter being able to make a human face our price would be different from his. Still worth asking about though!

I'd also like to ask the Queen about her sister. Specifically, what led to her falling out with The Jester? She seems cordial enough, and it isn't like The Jester has any ill will for the Queen.

As for facts, I'm not actually sure what to remind you of. Maybe it's just because I already went over a bunch of the events that have happened recently, but I don't think there's anything you particularly need to remember. I have a pretty good idea of what I'd recommend you wish for, and I don't think they'd run into the usual concerns about some of the other wishes we've heard about. Although, there is one thing that I would want you to recall Saoirse. Is there anything of yours back home that you'd want to have access to here? Any makeup, dresses, books, toys, or any other items? I suspect that even if you do wind up exploring the world, you're probably going to be moving in and living here. If there's anything of particular sentimental value, we should probably consider wishing for that. Besides, all of that stuff was likely bought with your dowry money—it's yours in more ways than one!

That should cover everything I want to ask/remind you of, I think. Good luck Saoirse! We're all rooting for you to find your happily ever after!

[tyrantisterror]

We Go Bump in the Night pt. 47

Previous Part -- Next Part

The ghosts swarming in your head have many words for you as you leave your room and head down the stairs to the floor with the ballroom. Some remind you of your purpose here - the wish you will be given, which you have not fully figured out but are beginning to form. Others focus on your new friends, with a particularly large contingent hoping for you to make a romantic entanglement - after all, you did set out this night in hopes to find a spouse.

Yet the main sentiment is simple encouragement for you - praise of your beauty and confidence in your ability to win the day. Loving yourself has always come hard to you, but oh, it is easier - still hard, but easier - with encouragement. Perhaps you are ready to take on the world after all.

You have been to masquerades before, of course, but the spectacle you find in the dance hall still astounds you. It is a vibrant and varied assortment of colorful fashion, every facemask a different shade. There a flash of mauve, here a splash of puce, green and black, trace of rouge, eyes of gold, thighs of blue, grinning yellows, spinning reds - it’s hard to focus on one thing before another catches your astounded eyes!

Of course, the masquerades you attended in the past were solely composed of human guests,s while the attendees here are much more varied. There are some humans, of course, or at least guests wearing well-tailored human glamors, but the vast majority of the attendants seem to be of a different persuasion. You spot more than a few fairies - bugbears, goblins, trolls, sylphs, elves, ettercaps, et cetera, all of which make sense given that Castle Dantalion spends most of its time in the Other World, and thus within the homeland of all fair folk.

Yet there are some comparatively mundane arcane creatures as well - you spot at least a few guests that seem to be dragons. Fire-breathing, scaly-skinned, serpent-necked dragons! Some of the guests are chimeras made with human components - gorgons, satyrs, centaurs, and so on. You even spy a few homunculi here and there, and wonder what their stories might be. Are they here attending on their creators, or were they invited on their own?

The hostess of this party must be a very open-minded sort, for more than half of the guests are visibly cambions. A part of you had worried, dimly, that you might be ridiculed for your half-demonic appearance, but now you see that if anything it makes you more well-suited to this gathering than you could have dreamed.

Still, you would feel better if you could find your friends. You slowly make your way through the crowd in search of a familiar face. Eventually you find two, though one of them is dressed very differently than before.

The tailors clearly put in their work tonight, for Dredgore looks nothing short of stunning in her new finery. Every one of her anatomical quirks has been accounted for and presented in a most enchanting manner, and the effect is jaw-dropping. What's better, though, is the happiness you see on her features, for while Dredgore may not be capable of smiling in the human fashion, her gentle poise and the ease in her body language shows that she is, for the first time since you've met her, truly comfortable in her skin.

You're not the only one to notice, either, as you hear Emma remark, "Well, this certainly is a surprise, Lady Dredgore, but I must say it makes all the sense in the world. I don't think I've ever seen you so happy."

You decide to wait before joining them, and let Dredgore have her moment to shine.

"Thank you," Dredgore says to Emma as blush fills her cheeks. "Lady Aterkop pushed me to admit what I had long been denying."

Oh, the subject of the conversation as turned to you. That would be a natural point to join the pair, would it not? And yet your feet suddenly feel as heavy as lead. Dear heavens, woman, you have seen thirty winters, you cannot still be frightened to join company - or indeed, wish to hang back and hear what others say of you when you are not around.

"She has a way of doing that," Emma says breezily. "I was so afraid to show who I truly am, and yet I have never felt more myself than when I sat with her with my head off my shoulders. I have only known her this one night, but I count her as a dear friend."

Dredgore nods and says, "I would give my life for her if she asked."

"I know you would, darling," Emma replies, "It's actually a bit distressing how quickly you make that promise."

"But I mean every word, by my bones and my blood, with my body and soul," Dredgore professes. "No one has ever shown me as much kindness as she has."

Tomasin happens to walk by at this moment and says, "Forgive my interruption, but are you two discussing Lady Aterkop?"

"That we are!" Emma says as she quickly brings Tomasin into her and Dredgore's confidence. "She’s a most welcome addition to the castle, don’t you think?"

"Aye, Lady Scarve, a most generous and kind lady," Tomasin says with a nod. "I am glad to hear you speak well of her, for she has been a splendid guest."

"Generous... yes, quite so," Dredgore says thoughtfully, "How did she help you, may I ask, Miss Tomasin?"

Tomasin's ears fold back as she bows her head nervously. "Oh, I wouldn’t wish to scandalize the lady-"

"Pish tosh," Emma says with a dismissive wave of her dainty hand. "You could not say anything to make us think ill of her without lying, and I do not think such falsehoods are likely to spill from your lips."

The chapalu cook sighs and says, "Well, I mentioned offhand the need to clear the rats from the pantry, and she offered to help, despite it being below her station." A warm smile spreads across her face as she recollects your shared adventure. "A marvelous help she was, too! She found the rodent, a fearsome Rat King, and helped Repeter and I sever its connection to its horde."

"That not only speaks well of her, Miss Tomasin," Dredgore says, "But is wholly consistent with my understanding of the woman's character. Her knowledge of the world's creatures is unsurpassed."

"Most truly spoken!" Emma says. "She enlightened me on that very subject earlier tonight - perhaps more than I wished to know, I’ll grant, but it was very charming nonetheless."

"She is a scholar beyond compare," Dredgore says with a nod. "Oh, to spend more time with her in the library! The topics we could discuss and research together! I would profit greatly from her presence."

At this moment Repeter strolls by the group, though it takes you a second to recognize him, as he is wearing a dress as well - something you might want to discuss with him later, when you're not so overwhelmed at hearing yourself praised by those you admire. "Are we talking about Saoirse?" he asks, the second person to assume you are the topic of conversation when another mentions their adoration.

"Yes we are, Repeter," Emma says. "We were sharing our fondness for the woman."

A big smile stretches across Repeter's face as he says, "As you all should! I almost wish she’d stay."

"I confess that I have the same desire," Dredgore says quietly. "Though I know it is selfish, I would be overjoyed if she decided to remain with us. She deserves better, of course, but she has brought such light and warmth to the castle."

Tomasin nods in agreement. "It is nice to have someone who offers to help, isn’t it? I think I have been left to suffer so long that I forgot that being helped by others was possible. It was nice to be reminded of the good there can be in people."

Though she still smiles, Emma's voice hitches with a faint sob as she says, "She allowed me to share my pain, when she has suffered so much herself. I cannot understate the value of that!"

"I share my pain too often, I know," Dredgore says, "Yet she let me rant and rave and never once stopped offering me compassion through it all, even after learning what a rotten soul I am." Tears trickle down her cheeks. "The woman is a marvel!"

Even Repeter grows solemn and says, "She made me feel like a person. I’d forgotten what that was like. I’ll never forget again."

They all nod in agreement and share a thoughtful silence. It is Emma who speaks up first, saying, "Whether she stays or goes, whether her wish is granted or left unresolved, let us swear to live by her example, and care for each other with the kindness and consideration she has shown us." They all agree, and joy returns to the quartet.

Your heart is racing, your face warm and flush with the sheer volume of emotions flowing through you. Till this moment, you did not know that a heart could break with joy as easily as it could with sorrow, yet here you are, on the verge of explosion from the admiration professed by your friends. How can you endure it? And how wonderful that you must?

After taking a moment to compose yourself, you clear your throat, and your friends turn to look at you. "Ah, there she is, the lady of the hour!" Emma says as she strolls over to bring you to the others. "Come here, dear Saoirse, we've been waiting for you! Now the revels can truly begin!"

I aim to dance with them all, Chatter, but... who should I ask to dance first?

Tomasin

Lady Emma Scarve

Lady Dredgore

Repeter

Voting ended onNov 19, 2025

I should note, dear spirits, that this is a VERY SIGNIFICANT choice for our dear ingenue! The first dance is special, especially when picking among such dear companions - for the first dance may well lead to a new intimacy! So, in fairness to you, I will allow you THRICE the normal time to mull over this decision!

Which is to say, We Go Bump in the Night will update again on November 19th! Thanks to @bugcthulhu, @cerothenull, @chocolatechipkraken, @downtofragglerock, @dragonzzilla, @dwollsadventures, @glarnboudin, @lydiathespiderqueen, @maplesamurai, @mmmskulljuice, @partlysmith, Prince Staghorn, Sir K, @thesilkenlair, @titleknown, and @wyverewings for submitting masquerade revelers!

[fragmentaryremains]

I suppose I should actually get around to voting for this now. Funnily enough, the person that actually changed my mind the most is … myself. Specifically, now I'm torn between my previous choice of Emma and Tomasin. Doing that big post analyzing all the choices made me think about what Tomasin bring to the table, and that's actually something I'd kind of like to see. I'd like to see an independent Saoirse that's free to use those wings of hers and explore the world. At the same time, Saoirse and Emma's romantic attraction is a very compelling factor to vote for Emma.

I think what's making me lean towards Tomasin more though is that this isn't going to be our only dance. So while I want to encourage the romance and attraction between Saoirse and Emma, it'd still be present even if they're the second pairing. That, and it really feels like we haven't seen as much of Tomasin as all the rest. This would probably be the best chance to change that!

[tyrantisterror]

We Go Bump in the Night pt. 47

Previous Part -- Next Part

The ghosts swarming in your head have many words for you as you leave your room and head down the stairs to the floor with the ballroom. Some remind you of your purpose here - the wish you will be given, which you have not fully figured out but are beginning to form. Others focus on your new friends, with a particularly large contingent hoping for you to make a romantic entanglement - after all, you did set out this night in hopes to find a spouse.

Yet the main sentiment is simple encouragement for you - praise of your beauty and confidence in your ability to win the day. Loving yourself has always come hard to you, but oh, it is easier - still hard, but easier - with encouragement. Perhaps you are ready to take on the world after all.

You have been to masquerades before, of course, but the spectacle you find in the dance hall still astounds you. It is a vibrant and varied assortment of colorful fashion, every facemask a different shade. There a flash of mauve, here a splash of puce, green and black, trace of rouge, eyes of gold, thighs of blue, grinning yellows, spinning reds - it’s hard to focus on one thing before another catches your astounded eyes!

Of course, the masquerades you attended in the past were solely composed of human guests,s while the attendees here are much more varied. There are some humans, of course, or at least guests wearing well-tailored human glamors, but the vast majority of the attendants seem to be of a different persuasion. You spot more than a few fairies - bugbears, goblins, trolls, sylphs, elves, ettercaps, et cetera, all of which make sense given that Castle Dantalion spends most of its time in the Other World, and thus within the homeland of all fair folk.

Yet there are some comparatively mundane arcane creatures as well - you spot at least a few guests that seem to be dragons. Fire-breathing, scaly-skinned, serpent-necked dragons! Some of the guests are chimeras made with human components - gorgons, satyrs, centaurs, and so on. You even spy a few homunculi here and there, and wonder what their stories might be. Are they here attending on their creators, or were they invited on their own?

The hostess of this party must be a very open-minded sort, for more than half of the guests are visibly cambions. A part of you had worried, dimly, that you might be ridiculed for your half-demonic appearance, but now you see that if anything it makes you more well-suited to this gathering than you could have dreamed.

Still, you would feel better if you could find your friends. You slowly make your way through the crowd in search of a familiar face. Eventually you find two, though one of them is dressed very differently than before.

The tailors clearly put in their work tonight, for Dredgore looks nothing short of stunning in her new finery. Every one of her anatomical quirks has been accounted for and presented in a most enchanting manner, and the effect is jaw-dropping. What's better, though, is the happiness you see on her features, for while Dredgore may not be capable of smiling in the human fashion, her gentle poise and the ease in her body language shows that she is, for the first time since you've met her, truly comfortable in her skin.

You're not the only one to notice, either, as you hear Emma remark, "Well, this certainly is a surprise, Lady Dredgore, but I must say it makes all the sense in the world. I don't think I've ever seen you so happy."

You decide to wait before joining them, and let Dredgore have her moment to shine.

"Thank you," Dredgore says to Emma as blush fills her cheeks. "Lady Aterkop pushed me to admit what I had long been denying."

Oh, the subject of the conversation as turned to you. That would be a natural point to join the pair, would it not? And yet your feet suddenly feel as heavy as lead. Dear heavens, woman, you have seen thirty winters, you cannot still be frightened to join company - or indeed, wish to hang back and hear what others say of you when you are not around.

"She has a way of doing that," Emma says breezily. "I was so afraid to show who I truly am, and yet I have never felt more myself than when I sat with her with my head off my shoulders. I have only known her this one night, but I count her as a dear friend."

Dredgore nods and says, "I would give my life for her if she asked."

"I know you would, darling," Emma replies, "It's actually a bit distressing how quickly you make that promise."

"But I mean every word, by my bones and my blood, with my body and soul," Dredgore professes. "No one has ever shown me as much kindness as she has."

Tomasin happens to walk by at this moment and says, "Forgive my interruption, but are you two discussing Lady Aterkop?"

"That we are!" Emma says as she quickly brings Tomasin into her and Dredgore's confidence. "She’s a most welcome addition to the castle, don’t you think?"

"Aye, Lady Scarve, a most generous and kind lady," Tomasin says with a nod. "I am glad to hear you speak well of her, for she has been a splendid guest."

"Generous... yes, quite so," Dredgore says thoughtfully, "How did she help you, may I ask, Miss Tomasin?"

Tomasin's ears fold back as she bows her head nervously. "Oh, I wouldn’t wish to scandalize the lady-"

"Pish tosh," Emma says with a dismissive wave of her dainty hand. "You could not say anything to make us think ill of her without lying, and I do not think such falsehoods are likely to spill from your lips."

The chapalu cook sighs and says, "Well, I mentioned offhand the need to clear the rats from the pantry, and she offered to help, despite it being below her station." A warm smile spreads across her face as she recollects your shared adventure. "A marvelous help she was, too! She found the rodent, a fearsome Rat King, and helped Repeter and I sever its connection to its horde."

"That not only speaks well of her, Miss Tomasin," Dredgore says, "But is wholly consistent with my understanding of the woman's character. Her knowledge of the world's creatures is unsurpassed."

"Most truly spoken!" Emma says. "She enlightened me on that very subject earlier tonight - perhaps more than I wished to know, I’ll grant, but it was very charming nonetheless."

"She is a scholar beyond compare," Dredgore says with a nod. "Oh, to spend more time with her in the library! The topics we could discuss and research together! I would profit greatly from her presence."

At this moment Repeter strolls by the group, though it takes you a second to recognize him, as he is wearing a dress as well - something you might want to discuss with him later, when you're not so overwhelmed at hearing yourself praised by those you admire. "Are we talking about Saoirse?" he asks, the second person to assume you are the topic of conversation when another mentions their adoration.

"Yes we are, Repeter," Emma says. "We were sharing our fondness for the woman."

A big smile stretches across Repeter's face as he says, "As you all should! I almost wish she’d stay."

"I confess that I have the same desire," Dredgore says quietly. "Though I know it is selfish, I would be overjoyed if she decided to remain with us. She deserves better, of course, but she has brought such light and warmth to the castle."

Tomasin nods in agreement. "It is nice to have someone who offers to help, isn’t it? I think I have been left to suffer so long that I forgot that being helped by others was possible. It was nice to be reminded of the good there can be in people."

Though she still smiles, Emma's voice hitches with a faint sob as she says, "She allowed me to share my pain, when she has suffered so much herself. I cannot understate the value of that!"

"I share my pain too often, I know," Dredgore says, "Yet she let me rant and rave and never once stopped offering me compassion through it all, even after learning what a rotten soul I am." Tears trickle down her cheeks. "The woman is a marvel!"

Even Repeter grows solemn and says, "She made me feel like a person. I’d forgotten what that was like. I’ll never forget again."

They all nod in agreement and share a thoughtful silence. It is Emma who speaks up first, saying, "Whether she stays or goes, whether her wish is granted or left unresolved, let us swear to live by her example, and care for each other with the kindness and consideration she has shown us." They all agree, and joy returns to the quartet.

Your heart is racing, your face warm and flush with the sheer volume of emotions flowing through you. Till this moment, you did not know that a heart could break with joy as easily as it could with sorrow, yet here you are, on the verge of explosion from the admiration professed by your friends. How can you endure it? And how wonderful that you must?

After taking a moment to compose yourself, you clear your throat, and your friends turn to look at you. "Ah, there she is, the lady of the hour!" Emma says as she strolls over to bring you to the others. "Come here, dear Saoirse, we've been waiting for you! Now the revels can truly begin!"

I aim to dance with them all, Chatter, but... who should I ask to dance first?

Tomasin

Lady Emma Scarve

Lady Dredgore

Repeter

Voting ended onNov 19, 2025

I should note, dear spirits, that this is a VERY SIGNIFICANT choice for our dear ingenue! The first dance is special, especially when picking among such dear companions - for the first dance may well lead to a new intimacy! So, in fairness to you, I will allow you THRICE the normal time to mull over this decision!

Which is to say, We Go Bump in the Night will update again on November 19th! Thanks to @bugcthulhu, @cerothenull, @chocolatechipkraken, @downtofragglerock, @dragonzzilla, @dwollsadventures, @glarnboudin, @lydiathespiderqueen, @maplesamurai, @mmmskulljuice, @partlysmith, Prince Staghorn, Sir K, @thesilkenlair, @titleknown, and @wyverewings for submitting masquerade revelers!

[tyrantisterror]

A couple people have floated the idea of making public arguments for each character here, and I think that would be very fun but I don't think I should be the one to do it. As a writer I do have a bias towards one choice, and I'd really like to keep it more fair/audience driven.

[fragmentaryremains]

Huh. Well, now I'm curious what your choice would be. I know, I know—you don't want to influence the vote right now. I'll just have to keep that in mind if/when you do a postscript like you did with At Sea Without a Map.

As someone who hasn't voted and is interested in seeing that sort conversation though, I suppose I could always take a stab at it. While I will freely admit to being biased toward Emma Scarve as our first dance, I'll try my best to give each option a fair shake here. This wound up getting VERY long—I am many things, but "concise" is not one of them. Still, if you're interested in reading a reader's thoughts and observations about the friends Saoirse has made and can dance with, read on! We'll start with…

Dredgore

Dredgore was the first guest we encountered at Castle Dantalion. Our first few exchanges with Dredgore were cordial enough (not to mention it was likely the first time Saoirse was ever complimented on her appearance). Of course, that was merely the tip of the iceberg. Much like Dredgore's armour concealed their appearance, so too did their emotional walls hide much of her true feelings. The cracks started small at first. Dredgore and Saoirse reunited in the library and talked about the dance (during which Saoirse stated that she wanted to find Dredgore at the dance—nice to see Dredgore kept to it), chatted about animals, and they commiserated about the restraints society places on them. That turned the conversation to Dredgore's past. This revealed two rather interesting pieces of information. For one, despite being referred to as the "Butcher of Bledwehl" by others, Dredgore had no appetite for killing. The other was that Dredgore had been cursed—their form altered so that Dredgore would "never be able to hide my sin" to anyone. Though even before they received their curse, there were hints that they did not like their appearance.

"Do you think this is petty vanity?" Dredgore hisses back. "My body has never suited me! Even before the curse I was too tall, misshappen, a crude and brutish thing. How I wished..." He bites his tongue and shakes his head. "No, it is not my physical form that plagues me. The monstrosity of my visage is a reflection of my true nature! There is nothing delicate, nothing beautiful-"

Given Saoirse's own anxieties regarding her appearance, this seems to have struck a chord with her. She demanded that Dredgore show her their face. She wished to see it to prove to Dredgore that there was beauty inside them. She wanted to see it, to show Dredgore that despite everything they both deserved and received love.

And then, well…

NO MORE SENTIMENT! IF SUBTLETY FAILS ME, THEN I SHALL TAKE THIS WRETCH BY FORCE!

Yeah, that. Saoirse was possessed by a Duke of Hell, her body puppeted by him in the hopes of destroying the castle. Dredgore then stepped in to act as our vessel, letting us use them to free her from the Duke … at the cost of Dredgore's own soul being damaged. We didn't particularly care for that though. Instead, what followed was something more tender. We got to see what Dredgore loved about Saoirse, from their perspective. Their compliments, encouragement and love helped Saoirse find the strength to send the Duke of Hell back to whence he came. The only problem was that the process transformed Saoirse. Already plagued with insecurities and anxieties about her appearance, Saoirse began to panic. And so, Dredgore did the only thing that they could do.

She took off her armour.

What followed was a scene of tender love and affection, two women finally able to love their own form after years of hating it. After all the trials and tribulations, all the hiding and masking, Saoirse and Dredgore could finally just … be. Or, in Saoirse's own words:

"We are, both of us, unnatural beauties, and I will not hear any disagreement on the matter. Is that clear, Lady Dredgore?"

Whew. That got away from me for a moment there. Anyways Dredgore's certainly a dramatically appropriate choice. She's the choice you'd want if you want to embrace change, renewal, growth and transformation. Or maybe you're just into knights? I mean, pairing a princess and a knight together always feels appropriate.

Repeter

Ah, Repeter. He was the next guest we encountered at the castle. And man, talk about a turn around. I (and a lot of other people) definitely didn't care for how he terrified Saoirse at first. He definitely struck me as being rather cruel. Like with Dredgore though, first appearances can be deceiving. Especially with a doppelganger. There were hints of this in our first encounter—while Repeter might have enjoyed scaring Saoirse, he was distraught at the idea that he'd actually killed her. Repeter and Saoirse conversed for a bit afterwards—it's here that we actually got the first real instance of Saoirse's independence, a trait of her that had otherwise been thoroughly crushed:

Despite the obvious jab, the carved smile on his face spreads a bit. “You’ve got some bite to you, huh? Here I took you for a meek little pushover.” That gives you pause. You are a meek little pushover, aren’t you? How many times in your life have you rolled over when someone gave you trouble? Better to be beaten than to appear haughty or insolent, right? And yet here you are, letting your tongue lash a stranger for upsetting you. …you rather like it.

Our next encounter with Repeter came as we set out with him and Tomasin to go deal with a rat in the kitchen. As the impromptu rat patrol (rat patrol, rat patrol♪) made there way down, the topic of their life before the castle came up. Repeter didn't particularly care for it—as far as he's concerned, having his world be limited to just what's in the castle walls is a fair price to pay when living outside it would involve starving, torches and pitchforks. After all, he needs to scare people to eat—that's not exactly something most people take kindly to. During this excursion, he also noted Saoirse's tendency to act unlike most other nobles—something he'd later reiterate in greater detail:

"That standard you say you're held to? The nobles I've met believe they meet it by default - that it is their nature, an inherent trait, and not something they must work to reach. And it follows in turn, then, that the rest of us do not - can not - reach that standard." You frown. "It is a common sentiment among nobility, I must admit." "But it's not one you hold to," he says. "You'll play the noble role when it amuses you or fills a need, but it's not who you are." Blush fills your cheeks as you turn your head away from him. "You're not the first to say I don't act according to my rank." "Probably not, giving how critical your kind are," he says, "But I think I'll be the first to say you shouldn't."

He also strove to protect Saoirse when he and Tomasin took on the rat king. At least, that's how I'd interpret him pushing Saoirse behind him. But the biggest showcase of his character came when we recruited him to assist us in confronting the the Crumbly Man. We got to hear more about his history, learn about doppelganger biology, and find out what makes him tick. As it turns out, when you're literally born from a horrific tragedy, it's hard to have any positive view of yourself. The fact that he keeps going day after day is in a way commendable (though also a bit sad—life shouldn't just be about survival, but taking time to enjoy said life too). While he wasn't able to immediately follow Saoirse to confront said Crumbly Man, he did provide some vital aid at the end. We also finally got to learn his wish, which … ouch. That does give him something in common with Saoirse, though—both of them have wished to no longer be a burden to others.

I've certainly come around on Repeter since he was first introduced to us. Comparing his introduction to his more recent appearances is kind of fun, both because of how different they are while also being a totally natural progression of his character. To that end, I'd say Repeter's the choice if you like redemption arcs. You could make the argument that Dredgore also fits this description. But Dredgore never actively antagonized us like Repeter did. Choosing Repeter is all about embracing redemption, progress and self esteem. It means committing yourself to being better, of striving to overcome the pain in your past. It's about making mistakes, apologizing and doing better—until finally you've come so far that you're surprised at just how far you've come. Or maybe you're just in the mood for two people who are willing to be audacious and have fun with together. After all, those mammoth knockers aren't going to bang themselves!

Lady Emma

Lady Emma (or just Emma to us) was the third guest we encountered. Right away, it was pretty clear that Saoirse was attracted to her:

The door opens slowly, and you see a beautiful woman standing behind it. She has long raven hair, dark skin, and intense orange eyes. Her attire absolutely puts yours to shame, too, being so intricate in its finery - her skirt is encircled by a long sash with red tassels hanging between it, and a similar sash extends from the top of her dress and drapes over her shoulders. Most eye-catching, however, is the shining green ribbon she has wrapped around her neck. Your mother would probably say it was painfully mundane, and assume the woman must be on hard times since she has no necklace to adorn her, but you think it's actually quite a striking choice. Shit, now you do want to ask her about her fashion choices. But no, you can't, you promised yourself you wouldn't. "Sorry to intrude so late at night, but I was told I should introduce myself. I am Lady Saoirse Aterkop," you say with a curtsy, "How do you do?" Her eyes flicker over your face and attire for a moment before she returns the curtsy. "Charmed, I'm sure," she replies before standing upright again. "I am Lady Emma Scarve." Gods, she really is pretty, isn't she? You want to get lost in her eyes, but no, focus, Saoirse. You have interact correctly! "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Lady Emma. We are both here for the masquerade, are we not?"

We didn't have time to really converse with her though—we had to wait until after our impromptu ratting party (TM) before we got the chance to speak with her again. The wait was definitely worth it though—not only did Saoirse enjoy getting to see Emma dress up, but the chance for some "refined conversation" as Emma put it was also put Saoirse in good spirits. From magical beasts to Fairyland's flowers, the two noblewoman clearly enjoyed each other's company. Emma might even reciprocate Saoirse's attraction?

Emma blushes out of what you assume must be humility, though why she would feel the need to be humble is beyond you.

Sadly, Emma had to depart early to deal to straighten out her attire. Saoirse took the time to enjoy the garden's flora before accidentally falling into some mortal peril. That's not the important part. The important part is what happened next.

Emma's head is lying on the ground next to her feet, rather than atop the neck between her shoulders - which is understandable, you suppose, since that neck has clearly been cut in two sometime in the past. The fact that Emma's body is moving, as is her head, which now sports an unearthly pair of eyes and some rather sharp teeth in her apologetic smile, does muddy the water somewhat. "I suppose there's some things we might need to discuss," Emma says with a weary, self-conscious frown. "But let's get you safely up here first."

Yes, it turns out that Emma is a dullahan. She had once been a mortal noblewoman like Saoirse (or, well, like Saoirse was). She fell in love with elven lord, and let him take her to Fairyland. They soon were married, and for a time everything was happy. Then…

It takes a moment for Emma to collect her feelings and answer. "Fairies have courts just like we do, and my husband was a vassal to someone higher on the chain of being. His master, the Summer Prince, requested our presence one day, and when we arrived at his castle he demanded my husband give my name to him." Her expression turns from sorrow to fury in an instant, her orange eyes blazing in her sockets. "And he did so immediately! I had trusted him, loved him, given him my very name, and he gave it up as if it were a mere bauble!"

Said Prince immediately set about abusing Emma for his own gain. He had her head removed, transforming her into a phantom fairy—or in other words, a dullahan. No longer allowed to be in the Seelie court her former husband belonged to, Emma was instead presented to the Queen of Night as a gift to win her favour. Thankfully the Queen of Night was reasonable about Emma's circumstances—whether that was out of pity for the newly transformed Emma, or out of distaste for the Summer Prince. She gave Emma free reign to leave and return to her home. Unfortunately…

"But I could not." "Why?" you ask. "Was your family not happy to see you return?" "i doubt they would welcome me home in this state," Emma says with a shrug. "Not that I found out. Phantom fairies can't exist in the mortal world during the daylight - we are, by nature, creatures of the night, and will be sent back to Fairyland as soon as daylight strikes our skin."

Emma's done her best to adapt, but it's clear that she misses her old life. She misses being able to see the mortal world's flowers, she misses being able to see flowers in full bloom illuminated in the light of the sun, and while she does love Fairyland's flowers … they aren't quite the same. Saoirse listens to it all, trying to comfort the poor woman.

And then she opens up to Emma.

She talks about her own regrets. How she feels like a burden, like an unwanted thing. How if she had just been a good daughter—if she had been talented, beautiful, clever, better—then she would have already been married. Emma hears all of this, hears Saoirse bare her shame, her very soul to her. And Emma…

"Saoirse..." Here it comes. You brace yourself for her final rebuke. It was nice, though, to have a friend in her, even if only for a brief moment. "No one should treat you like that." ...What? "What?" you ask. "Making you feel like your existence is a burden, that you're in debt just for being born - that isn't right, Saoirse. No one should be made to feel that way, least of all someone like you."

Emma reassures her. She asks her to tell her more about the animals that she knows of. As Saoirse starts to go into detail about unicorns and their horns, Emma scoots closer. There's an intimate feeling in the air as Emma listens to Saoirse. Until finally…

A stray glance at Emma makes you realize how much you've been talking, and for a moment you are flooded with shame... until you see her smiling up at you. "See?" she says quietly. "You're a smart and engaging woman, Lady Saoirse Aterkop. It's time to stop letting people tell you otherwise." She stands up abruptly, stretches, and puts her head under the crook of her arm. "I think it's time we returned to the castle, don't you?"

As I said earlier, Emma is the choice I'm currently leaning. Part of it is because we were almost responsible for her getting killed by a pumpkin. But part of it is because there's an obvious level of romantic feelings both woman have for each other. That's pretty much the theme of Emma's scenes—romance. It's about loving after having your heart broken, its about enjoying your partner in spite—no, because of all their weird idiosyncrasies. It's about letting yourself be loved and the vulnerability that comes with admitting those feelings of romance. It's about how amazing and wonderful and perfect your partner is, and them reciprocating those feelings because, well, they love you just as much. Or if you want to put it more bluntly … it's yuri.

I mean, hey. It is the one I'm leaning towards.

Tomasin

Tomasin was the fourth and final "guest" we encountered. I say "guest" since she's actually employed at the castle—she serves as the cook. That's a pretty notable difference—while the others guests are exactly that, Tomasin's settled into something more permanent (for lack of a better word). That's not the only difference either…

But I digress. Tomasin isn't quite sure what to make of us at first—she's used to being judged by others. As a chapalu or "werecat," she's had some self esteem issues according to one of her coworkers:

"Be sure to tell her, miss!" Shufyl says with a smile. "It'll make her day, dear, and heavens know she needs the compliment. Can't get a much lower view of one's self than she's got, no sirree - but then, this castle seems to attract gloomy gusses as a matter of course, though I can't imagine why."

We talked a bit more with her (and Repeter) on our way to the kitchen. The ensuing conversation gave us a bit more insight into who Tomasin is and what she desires. We learned that she'd actually made her wish (to have control over herself when she's in her bestial state) and we learned what it cost her (she would never be fully human again). Perhaps more interesting was why she wished for what she did:

"Why not just wish the curse away entirely?" you ask. A rueful smile spreads across Tomasin's face. "Please do not think me wicked, Lady Saoirse," she says quietly, "But I do not wholly hate my curse. There are things I experience in the body of the pard that I cannot in the body of a human. I have lived by those claws and fangs, and they are mine, even if others curse me for them. And I cannot fully hate what is mine." She gives a harsh, sad little laugh and shakes her shaggy head. "See, I truly am of the devil. Here I am, reveling in my curse."

Keep that in mind for later. At any rate, Saoirse, Tomasin and Repeter continue talking. As we already saw with Repeter, Tomasin's happy with her life in the castle. True, it's not perfect. There can be the occasional rude guest. But most everybody else is kind or at least respectful to her. Besides, when nearly every guest only stays one night, there's not much reason to worry (also, I just want to mention a little scene that I didn't really appreciate when first reading through that update—Tomasin wishing she could feed Repeter is really sweet).

At any rate, Tomasin seems to have settled in. She's grown comfortable with herself, and she's happy with her form—quirks and all. Which is why it's so galling that this rat has evaded her! Though it's a bit more understandable when one learns that said "rat" is actually a rat king. He's still no match for Tomasin though—especially not with Saoirse's guidance. After taking the time to enjoy a well earned meal the talk turns to other topics—namely, noble decorum. Repeter delves more into that topic as I mentioned above. But while Dredgore was the first to express that Saoirse's freckles are cute, Tomasin was the first to seriously suggest that she should embrace them despite what others say.

"Most people would find your freckles cute," Tomasin says. "If the people around you have made you feel like they're a deformity, maybe those people aren't healthy to have around."

One last note before my final analysis of Tomasin—it's interesting to see how she brings out the traits that have caused Saoirse so much stress and grief—that is, her desire to please others and not be a burden—and channels it into something more positive. Namely, being helpful. And I'm not just talking about the tongue lashing she gives to Jeebes (though that is a highlight).

(pictured: Saoirse, done with your shit)

But even her decision to go with Tomasin on this impromptu rat patrol (drag 'em out of their holes♪) has similar motivations. She joined because she wants to help people—a much more positive way to channel her insecurities.

So, where does that leave us with Tomasin? To answer that, I'm going to get a bit meta here. Fellow reader @maplesamurai has made a couple of posts analyzing the wishes of some of the other guests. Specifically, he's looked at Emma, Dredgore and Repeter's wish, and how their costs tend to result in them having to instead accept the parts of them they consider monstrous. Tomasin then stands out as being the only person we've talked to that has made their wish (that didn't regret it as the Crumbly Man did). As we saw, she's already accepted and even likes herself—monstrous features and all. She's displayed a level of self confidence and assurance that dear Saoirse would find inspiring. She's like the cool high school senior that's taking the time to show their younger junior the ropes and guide them through what must be a turbulent time. Choosing Tomasin then is all about confidence—Saoirse and Tomasin would likely produce a more confident, independent, and positive Saoirse. She might even think about leaving the castle to explore the world. Not permanently mind you. But I wouldn't be surprised if a confident Saoirse was a returning visitor rather than a permanent guest. Then again, she could also become part of the castle staff. There's nothing wrong with that either! Either way, I think a Saoirse and Tomasin dance would push Saoirse to embrace her transformation and herself more than any of the other options here. It's a chance to celebrate just how far she's come

…or maybe you just like Cat Girls. To be fair, it does feel like we've seen the least of Tomasin. I wouldn't say no to more scenes with her!

Phew! That was quite a lot to cover. If you've gotten to the end and read all of this, you have my sincere gratitude. I hope this was interesting to read, and that this prompts further discussion! At the very least, I hope it's a decent look back at everything and everyone that helped Saoirse get to where she is now. Thank you for reading, and have a lovely day!