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"..." Your first attempt to greet them comes out as a strangled wheeze, and as you belatedly begin to breathe, with a bit of effort, you clear your throat. "...Good morning." You greet them.

The apron-clad woman's eyes roll back into her head, and she topples over backwards, landing with a clatter of metal on stone - she seems to have armour on, under the apron.

>You should probably see if she's alright.
>...The ghost(?) girl seems to be having problems.
>You have no idea what's going on.
>...Maybe you should just go back to sleep.

>>40415044
>You have no idea what's going on.
Baker's back!

>>40415044
>...The ghost(?) girl seems to be having problems.

>...The ghost(?) girl seems to be having problems.

>>40415044
>>You have no idea what's going on.

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You slide yourself out of your coffin, finding your feet before walking over to the two women on the ground.

"...You alright?" You ask the ghost, eyeing the baking sheet slowly slipping through her body. She looks a bit embarrassed, and waves a hand at the tray. You eye it for a moment. "...I'd have to reach into you to get it." You warn her her mild embarrassment turns to sudden mortification. She buries her face in her hands - which doesn't do as much to hide it as it could, given that her hands are transparent, too - but nods.

With a shrug, you collect the tray which is now icy cold, dragging it through the resistance of her body to collect the faintly glowing cookies. She shudders softly.

"Sorry." You apologise, as your hands grow colder and colder, until you finally finish freeing her, pulling the tray and cookies away. "There you go." Still looking like she wants to die of embarrassment, the ghost girl sinks into the floor, and out of sight.

A moment later, a transparent arm reaches over your shoulder and steals a cookie.

When you glance back, she's gone.

Meanwhile, the woman in the apron groans, and sits up, one hand coming up to rub the back of her head - except her head seems to have rolled, and she sat up without it.

>...That's a bit spooky for you.
>What?
>...No, really, what's going on.

>...?

>>40416804
>>What?
>>...No, really, what's going on.
Spooky domestic scene?

>>40416804
So a Ghost, A Dullahan, and whatever we are.

>>40416804
>...No, really, what's going on.
Uh..you dropped something.

Well, guess I'll call the vote and start writing, then.

Dammit, captcha, I think I know what bread looks like, stop.

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As she searches for her head, it calls out to you.

"...Ah, I'm sorry to ask this of you, but..." You're already making your way around her body and its groping hands

"Just a moment, let me..." You step around her, and carefully pick up the head. She smiles warmly at you.

"Thank you, my lord." She says, her cheeks a little red. You nod, and hand her head over to her searching body. As she secures it into place, you ask your question.

"...So, what exactly is going on here?" She stares at you, so surprised that she fumbles her head. She catches it, but doesn't try to fix it back into place just yet.

"You...You don't know?" You shake your head. "...Oh, oh my. That's not good at all." She frets, "And your servant is still out. Oh no..." She chews her lip, as she goes back to securing her head. "...Well, um, I guess I could show you around...?" You nod. "...Oh, dear..." She finally notices the tray of cookies - you'd set them down on the edge of the coffin, so you'd have your hands free. "You saved the cookies!" The worry on her face is wiped away into a brilliant, bright smile. "The children will be so happy! Thank you!"

"It was nothing. The ghost helped... what's her name?" The woman frowns, a little, as she eyes the baking sheet.

"And she stole one of the cookies too." She notes, her cape flaring out as she walks over to collect the cookies in her oven-mitted hands - probably why she was having so much trouble getting her head in place, actually, those mitts. "...Well, I suppose it's alright. Her name...well, we call her Amalie. She doesn't talk, but she seems to like it." There's a moment, before she gasps. "And I haven't introduced myself! My name is Alheid. I'm very glad to see that you've awakened at last." She turn that warm smile on you again. "This way, I'll show you around." You follow the aproned woman out of the room, noting the flare of failing runes around the doorway as you exit.

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Alheid leads you down a long, forbidding stone hallway, and hesitates at the first intersection.

"Ah, Master, would you like to meet the others first, or would you like to visit the children?" She asks, glancing over her shoulder. "The cookies are already cold," She frowns at this, "so whichever way you'd like to go is fine."

"You don't need to call me master." You tell her, but she shakes her head.

"Oh, no! Anything less would be improper, Lord!"

>Meeting the others would be nice.
>Children?
>Why do you call me that, anyway?

>>40418736
>Why do you call me that, anyway?

>>40418736
>Why do you call me that, anyway?

>>40418736
>>Children?
>>Why do you call me that, anyway?

>>40418736
>Why do you call me that, anyway?
but what is even happening?

>>40418736
>>Children?
>>Why do you call me that, anyway?

>>40418783
The Interlude!

Votes called, writing.

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"Why do you call me that, anyway?" You ask, curiously.

"You don't know?" She seems baffled. "...Well, it's because you're the Master, of course. Our Great Lord, who has slept a thousand years, and..." She gasps. "I need to let the others know that we'll need an extra plate!"

"...Extra plate? What?" You ask, and she has the grace to look a little embarrassed, as she answers your question.

"...Well, um. We have a little party for you, every year - they're bigger on the hundreds, of course, and since this one is the thousandth year of your long sleep, we thought we'd really go all-out..." She explains. "So we were baking a couple of cakes, to share, and then there were some favours for the children, but Seffi got jealous, so we ended up doing something for everyone, but we usually, uhm, you know, burn your portion, like a sacrifice?" She explains, a little quickly. "...And we don't have enough plates, for everyone, so Sieglinde was making some extras, but we weren't expecting you to join us for the party, Lord, so..."

"Okay." You show her a little mercy and cut her off before she can feel too awkward. "...But sleeping for a thousand years? What?" She blinks at you, baffled.

"...Lord, you...don't know?" She seems perplexed. "Well, um..." She chews her lip, thinking. "I don't know if I'm really the right person to explain it to you..." She frowns. "Well, if Sir Veit doesn't get back soon, maybe Ulrike? She's the oldest of us, other than Sir Veit, she might be best. But Sir Veit was around even before your Long Sleep, so he's definitely the one to talk to."

"...I see." She uses a lot of names you're not familiar with, but you think you understand. You don't know any of these people, but you'll meet them soon enough, you figure.

"Ah, my lord..." You look over at her. "...Uhm, if it's alright..." She fidgets, "...What's your name, Lord? Sir Veit wouldn't tell us..." You blink. Well, that one's easy enough.

"Oh, my name's..." You trail off. ...What IS your name?

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You can't recall. The last thing you remember is... You frown. The earliest thing you can remember is waking up, and that ghost girl on your arm.

"Ah, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have..." She misinterprets your expression.

"No, no, it's not that." You reassure her. "...I just...." You frown again. "...I can't remember."

"...Ah..." She seems a little subdued. "...Well, I'm sure it'll come back to you." She reassures you, "...And even if it doesn't we've got a lot of practice coming up with names for each other, so I'm sure we could find a name for you!" She giggles. "Just a joke." She's remarkably unconcerned about your memory. When you comment on it though, "Well, we've all been there. Some of us have even remembered something here or there from before! It'll be fine, Lord. Sir Veit probably even remembers your name, if you care to ask!"

>Go meet the others.
>The Children?

>>40419902
>>The Children?

>>40419902
>>The Children?

>>40419902
>The Children?

>>40420178
Bit belated, but votes are called and I'm writing.

Bump

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"Let's go visit the children first, I think." You tell her.

"Ah!" She smiles. "I thought you might choose that." She confides, "Sir Veit implied you were fond of children." She leads you down the left-hand corridor, chatting as you go. "We've been taking good care of them." She tells you. "They seem much happier here than they were before. Why when they first got here, most of them couldn't stop crying!" She says this like it's surprising with ghosts flying around and women whose heads simply fall off. "But they grew to like us after a while." She leans in a bit closer, with a smile, and lowers her voice. "Some of them call me 'Mom'!" She tells you, proudly.

Looking at her, in apron and oven mitts and carrying a tray of cookies, you're...not terribly surprised. You continue down the ancient stone hallways, the faintly glowing runes on the walls lighting your way, until you come to a large, ominous-looking doorway. The massive portal is coated in frightful carvings and eerily glowing runic arrays. It's more than a little bit intimidating.

"This is the kids' room!" She announces, happily. "Kids~!" She calls as she swings the door open, just leaning into it. The door opens silently, and smoothly, swinging wide. "I've got someone for you to meet~!" The room beyond...

Well, you'll definitely admit that it looks like a room for children. The floor is covered in scattered toys, and blocks, and there's a row of small beds in the back. The walls look much the same as the rest of the place that you've seen so far, but they seem to have been whitewashed, and then the kids must have been given paints or something, because there are doodles everywhere - mostly showing children and assorted other figures - you think that one's supposed to be the ghost, Amalie, and there's Alheid - she has cookies in that doodle, too.

"Miss Alheid!"
"Mom!"
"Mama!"
"Who's this!"
"He looks spooky!"
"You take that back!"
"He looks totally cool!"
"That scar!"
"He pushed me!"
"Ow! No biting!"

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In moments, the two of you are surrounded by children - at least ten, you think, and evenly divided between girls and boys. They're all quite young, and energetic - one of the boys is in the middle of losing a fight with one of the girls, at the back of the pack. He's the one who complained about the biting, you think.

"Now, now, children." Alheid scolds them, mildly. "Behave. The Master finally woke up, and he wanted to meet you all!" There's a chorus of 'ooo's, before the swirling chaos of the children focuses itself on you.

"So you're the Master, Mister?"
"Mister Master! Hahahah!"
"Hey, Hey, where'd you get that scar!"
"Fighting bad guys, duh!"
"Shut up!"

You're more than a little overwhelmed. The shouting and pushing all blends together, really.

"They like you!" Alheid observes, from across the room, where she's setting out cookies on a child-sized stone table, made from what looks like a broken door much like the one you entered from. The kids are pushing and tugging around your knees, and you put a hand on the wall to steady your balance. It wouldn't do to fall into the swarm. You're a little worried you might not get back up.

"Cookies!" One of the kids in the back seems to have noticed what Alheid's up to, over there. "Mister Master, come on!" Another kid says with a giggle, and you're herded over to sit with them at the table. There's a quick fistfight to determine who gets to sit on your legs - each of them, apparently, considered prime seating.

The kids all wait until everyone's found a place at the table, before they start on their glowing cookies. The boy on your knee looks up at you, and then over at Alheid, who's watching with a warm, maternal smile. ...Seeing her there watching, you feel a little embarrassed at being dragged over.

"Mister doesn't have a cookie!" He announces to her.

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"...Oh!" She says, "...Uhm." She's been holding the baking sheet against herself - there's clearly no more cookies. A murmuring goes up among the kids. Apparently, that's not good.

>"I don't need a cookie."
>You gave yours to Amalie. It's okay.
>Amalie took it.
>...?

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>>40421780
>The fuck is this shit?
>Are these raisins? Why in fuck would you put raisins in cookies?
>Shit's nasty man.
>Get this weak shit out of my face.

>You gave yours to Amalie. It's okay.

>>40421780
>You gave yours to Amalie. It's okay.

Vote is called.

Now writing.

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You've got to head this off fast. You think quickly, and tell them.

"I gave my cookie to Amalie on the way over here." You explain, "It's alright." Another round of murmurs go up as the children discuss this between themselves.

"You're a nice guy, Mister Master." They aren't getting tired of that name, are they? You hope they will soon.
"Amalie took his cookie!"
"She stole it!"
"No, he gave it to her!"
"But she always takes stuff!"

"...Mister." The girl on your other knee catches your attention. "...Here." She holds out a little hand. A piece of cookie is held out in it. "You can have part of my cookie." There's a general wave of agreement among the children. 'It's not right that someone doesn't get to taste Alheid's cookies' is the genreal sentiment of the group. Reluctantly, you accept the piece of cookie.

Looking at it, it looks like she broke her cookie in half, and then thought about what she was about to do and broke one of them again, so she could have more. Still, it's kind of generous for a little kid.

"Thank you." You tell her. They're all watching you. Waiting for you to eat. Well, you'll have to - not that you're really worried about it, but it's a little strange to eat while everyone's staring at you like this.

The cookie, despite its glow, is quite good. ...It kind of makes your mouth tingle, and warms your body. Just what is this cookie?

"It's good!" You confirm, and the kids cheer, before turning their attention back to their own cookies and concerns.

Alheid, meanwhile, is so happy that she's nearly glowing.

The visit goes on for a little while, but the kids eventually drift away, losing interest. Some of the younger ones are put down for their naps by the older children - not that there's a very wide gap in ages.

You and Alheid make your farewells to the children, and head back down the hallway.

"So? What do you think?" She asks, still glowing.

>"You're an excellent baker."
>"What kind of cookies are those?"
>They're good kids.

>...?

>>40422710
>"You're an excellent Baker."

Sorry, I've been quiet for longer than usual, but It's about time I started getting ready for FAMILY TIME FUN TIME EXPERIENCES. I dunno when I'll be back, but if I can I might be able to phonepost. We'll see. Votes won't close until the post goes up, I think, so there's that.

>>40422710
>They're good kids.
>"You're an ecellent baker."

>>40422710
>"You're an excellent baker."

>>40422710
>"You're an excellent baker."

Well, I was planning to phone post, but I had forgotten how I drink when I have to be around this much family for this lobg. I'll post sometime, but I hsve trouble rhen I've been drinking.

Keep the thread alive fir me please.

I keep forgetting to do the captcha.

>>40421780
>>You gave yours to Amalie. It's okay.

>>40422710
>>"You're an excellent baker."
>>"What kind of cookies are those?"

>>40422710
>"You're an excellent baker."
>"They're good kids."
also a bump.

>>40427520
You are the slowest of pokes. I mean, I'm slow as shit, sure, but even I'm not that slow.

Also, fuck Barcelona. Juventus deserves this, fuck you.

>>40429700
Thank beer for that.

>>40429700
sober up, baker! Don't phonepost when drunk!

bumping again as we wait for the alcohol to pass through Baker's bloodstream

one more bump

I took a nap, and now have an ETA for the next post! About six hours. Please wait warmly.

I can't do the captchaaaas

>>40436109
6 hours, got it!

bump

one more

Votes are called here, then. Post is incoming.

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"I think..." You say, thoughtfully, "That you are an excellent baker." She reddens, looking away in embarrassment.

"I'm not that good, I'm sure." She protests, softly, despite the big smile she's trying to hide. "And the children?" You nod, satisfied.

"They're good kids." You admit, with a thoughtful nod. "...But what are they doing here?" She looks over to you.

"Sir Veit's been collecting them." She tells you. "...Well, if I say it like that, it sounds bad. Hmm..." She thinks about it for a moment. "Sir Veit's been bringing them here." She says, instead. "...It's sad, but..." She looks down. "None of those children have anyone. No-one who will even notice they're gone. No-one to look out for them." She sighs. "We've been doing our best to treat them well, and give them a family. We're not sure why Sir Veit's been doing this, but...he said it was for you." She looks over at you. "...And I know you can't remember, so..." She sighs. "It's hard to take care of them, here." She confides, "They're the only ones here who need to eat, and food's hard to come by. Sir Veit's the only one who really goes out, too, and he can't do everything himself." She giggles softly, despite the serious topic. "After all, he's always complaining about that." She looks back to you again, seriously. "Now that you've awakened, my Lord, hopefully things will start to change." She looks down the hallway. "Sir Veit was very sure they would."

>...I'll do my best.
>You won't have anything to worry about.
>I'll try to live up to everyone's expectations.

>...?

>>40444441
>>You won't have anything to worry about.

>>40444441
>...I'll do my best.
So let's go talk to Sir Viet.

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"You won't have anything to worry about." You reassure her. It's quite the heavy responsibility you've found yourself bearing, but you'll fulfil it to the best of your ability. "I'll make sure of that." She smiles back at you.

"Thank you, Master." She bows to you - just a bit though, because her head isn't exactly fixed in place, after all. "You're a greater man than I could have expected you to be." You glance away.

"Well, I don't know about that." You wave away the praise. "But I know that this won't be easy." She nods.

"You're right. We'll all have to work hard." She nods towards the approaching doorway. "This is where we stay - the room here is our lounge. There are usually one or two of us here, if you ever need us for anything."

"How many of you are there?" You ask, a bit belatedly. You should have thought of it sooner.

"There's seven of us, Lord." She replies. "...And Amalie, but none of us are sure if she really counts." You frown at that.

"What do you mean?" She pauses, outside of the door.

"Ah, it's because she was a single spirit." She explains. "As Sir Veit explained to us, each of us here - excepting yourself and Sir Veit - formed from a conglomeration of souls, who perished many years ago. Each of us, apparently, started from seven priestesses each, who died here together a thousand years ago. To hear him explain it, those souls were trapped here, and as they merged, and absorbed magic, we slowly grew. And then, eight hundred years ago, something terrible happened in the outside world." She looks up at the ceiling. "Ulrike woke up almost right away, as soon as the tunnels were exposed to the outside. She doesn't like to talk about the early days - too many frightened, confused souls, all desperate to live. We were like them enough for them to seek us out, and try to join us." She sighs. "Sir Veit says that they only managed to destroy themselves like that, as we grew in power."

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"For the next few hundred years, we gradually became aware of ourselves." She places a hand over her heart. "Sieglinde and I woke up next." She looks down at the oven mitt over her hand. "...We didn't really know what was going on, but Ulrike was there, and she helped us. And then, when Hannelore and Silke woke up, we were there for them." She smiles, faintly. "A family. Seffi and Jana were the last two to wake up, five hundred years ago. Seffi's still sort of the baby of the group." She giggles, softly. "The children like her a lot, though." She's silent for a moment, in front of the door. "...Did you have any other questions, before we meet the others? I know it can be a bit overwhelming, when you've just awoken, even if you're not like us."

>Did you have further questions?
>>...?

>No. You think you're all set, for now.

>>40445544
>No. You think you're all set, for now.

>>40418639
>The dullahans name is 'all-head'
kek

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"No, thank you." You decline, with a shake of your head. "I think that's enough, for now." She nods, and turns to the door. She startles, a tiny cream quickly stifled, as she comes face-to-face with Amalie, who has stuck her head through the door, and is watching the two of you. She jumps as well, quickly pulling her head back through the door.

A moment later, she's back, joined by a second, more solid-looking woman, who is still softly complaining.

"Amalie, you know it's not as easy for me as it is for you! This had better be impo..rt..." Her whisper-soft voice dies as she sees you standing next to Alheid, "...oh..." She looks embarrassed as she falls silent. She looks over at Alheid, questioningly, but doesn't speak. Alheid sighs.

"Hannelore, it's okay." She says. "It's the Master. He's finally awoken." The note of reverence in her voice makes just a little bit uncomfortable, but you're not going to complain. The woman's eyes widen in her pale face, and she glances over to you, scrutinizing you with a piercing, soul-searching gaze. It's more than a little awkward to be on the receiving end of that look, but you refuse to show it. Her eyes widening, she pats Amalie on the head - which, you'll admit, is somewhat surprising, since Amalie is totally intangible - and pulls back through the door, her strangely ethereal hair the last thing to disappear. Alheid just frowns.

"I thought I talked to her about not treating Amalie like some kind of pet..." The ghost herself, on the other hand, seems quite pleased with the patting. The woman beside you just sighs. "...Well, she's gone to let everyone know that you're awake."

"THE MASTER IS AWOKEN!" The voice is muffled by the thick stone, but carries clearly through to the two of you. A strange chill runs down your spine at the call.

"Would you like to give them a moment to get ready for you?" Alheid asks. "Or should we catch them unprepared? She won't yell like that again, so don't worry. ...Probably, at least."

>Let's go in!
>Give them a moment.
>...What was with that?

>...?

>>40447770
>Let's go in!

>>40447770
>>Let's go in!

>>40447785
>>...What was with that?

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"Let's go in." You decide. At least that way you'll probably catch only a couple at a time, which should make this round of introductions a bit easier. Alheid nods, swinging the heavy door open without effort, before removing her oven mitts. She sets them on a low side table next to the door, nodding to the small, bluish woman who's just taking her fingers out of her ears. She has a remarkably uninterested expression on her face, until she turns to you.

The turning is a remarkable sight - her head stays in place, for a moment, as an ethereal face pulls out of her, turning to look at you excitedly, and a transparent, wispy body turns to face you. overlapping with her physical body for a moment before the disinterested, physical body turns in a near-perfect mimickry of the motion.

"You're the Master?" She asks, the strange double-motion of her movements distracting you from her excited words, so mismatched with the expression on her face. Her physical lips don't quite move in sync with her words. "Really?" She sounds ecstatic to meet you, and the wispy form takes a few steps closer, a half-second ahead of her physical body. The excited, fascinated expression on her face disappearing as the body catches up, and takes her place.

"That's what I've been told." You smile back at her. "You don't need to call me that, though." She shakes her head, which is an interesting sight to be sure.

"You're the Master." She says, with certainty. "It wouldn't be right, otherwise." She explains, and then pauses. "...We'll need an extra plate!" And with that, she turns, and runs over to a table at the side of the room, covered in strange glassware and arcane apparatuses. The abrupt end to the conversation leaves you a bit off-balance, but Alheid seems to have expected it.

"Sieglinde's like that." She tells you, sympathetically. "She distracts herself pretty easily, if she's not doing magic, making things, or eating." Alheid shakes her head.

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"She'll usually find an excuse to do one pretty quickly. Most of the furniture is her work. She doesn't sleep well." She frowns, as she looks around. "...I would have thought at least one of the others would show up by now." The wispy form of Sieglinde turns and calls out.

"I heard that!" Alheid shoots her a look, but she continues anyway, her physical body sluggish as she focuses on something else. "Silke and Jana are in the kitchen, taking care of the cakes." There's the high-pitched sound of shearing stone, as something lights up in front of her. "I think Ulrike was checking on Sir Veit, so she's in the crystal room. Hannelore's probably looking for Seffi, she wandered off a while ago." Sieglinde turns back to her work, and her movements pick up in speed. "I'll get back at you later, 'Heid."

"Sure, sure." Alheid doesn't seem terribly concerned. "Well, Lord, there you have it. The kitchen's down that hallway," She points, "And the crystal room is through there, and down some steps. Ulrike spends a lot of time down there."

>Well, the 'crystal room' sounds pretty interesting. Let's start there.
>Always take the option that leads to cakes.
>How hard could it be to find Seffi?

>...?

It's getting late here, so vote, and I'll post an update when I get up, before work. Maybe six or seven hours.

>>40450619
>How hard could it be to find Seffi?

>>40450619
>>How hard could it be to find Seffi?

>>40450619
>Well, the 'crystal room' sounds pretty interesting. Let's start there

>>40450619
>Well, the 'crystal room' sounds pretty interesting. Let's start there.
Tour the place!

>>40450619
>>How hard could it be to find Seffi?

>Well, the 'crystal room' sounds pretty interesting. Let's start there.

Bump

>>40450619
>>How hard could it be to find Seffi?

bump as we wait to find seffi

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"Well, how hard could it be to find Seffi?" You ask. Across the room, Sieglinde pauses, her wisp exchanging glances with Alheid.

"Oh, boy." The woman at your side seems considerably less then enthusiastic. "...Are you sure?" Sieglinde speaks up, from across the room.

"Hannelore went that way." She gestures towards a door. "So I'll see you in a week." Alheid sags.

"I bet she's lost again." she mutters, as she makes her way to the door. She swings it wide open, and there's a soft crunch.

"...Ow." Alheid and Sieglinde both sigh, in unison.

"Seffi, come out." After a moment, a pale white figure shuffles around the door. She appears to be carrying a skeletal arm, completely devoid of flesh. it matches, you notice, her other limbs. "...Hannelore's gone looking for you, you know?"

"Sorry." Seffi is probably the least-human looking woman that you've met so far. While her torso is, mostly, relatively normal - if you ignore the pale flames flickering at her hips and shoulders - her arms and legs are bare bone, and her face is half-covered with a skull-like bony mask, the eye socket glowing red. "My arm fell off." She walks over to Sieglinde and pokes her, just under the ribs. "Please fix it?" Sieglinde jumps when she's poked, and with a small bang, something on her table explodes.

"No." She snaps. "I'll fix it later. You should know better than to stand behind doors like that."

"I wanted to jump out when someone came through." She explains. Sieglinde cuffs her. "Hannelore was too fast."

"And you should know better than to do that, too!" She snaps. "Geez, Seffi, how many times have you gotten in trouble for that? You know Ulrike hates surprises!" The skeletal girl sulks, a bit, before turning to you.

"Boss, my arm fell off." She reports, saluting with the dismembered limb. "Make Sieglinde fix it." The hand scratches her head on its own. "...PLEASE make her fix it." She corrects herself after a moment. She seems inordinately proud of herself for that.

>No, she's right. You'll have to wait.
>Well, you can fix it yourself. Probably. Maybe. Feels like you could, you think.
>There's supposed to be a party today, isn't there? She'll need her arm. Next time though...

>...?


----------------------------

I have to head to work now. I'll do a couple of posts if the thread's still up when I get home, in about ten or eleven hours, but if it's not, no big deal.

>>40460779
>>Well, you can fix it yourself. Probably. Maybe. Feels like you could, you think.

>>40460779
>Well, you can fix it yourself. Probably. Maybe. Feels like you could, you think.
no big deal, I sorta like this leisurely pace anyway

>>40460779
>There's supposed to be a party today, isn't there? She'll need her arm. Next time though...

The only downside I see is that discussion drops off in slow threads like this. Sometimes it's nice to see what you guys are thinking, and to get a feel for how I'm doing.

Anyway, out the door.

>>40461241
Its like the start of a new quest, making an interlude with none of the established characters in it, so there isn't really anything to discuss yet since its just the intros so far

>>40461241
Yeah, to be fair, we don't even know anything about who we're playing as.

though I do like the cast of characters we're hanging out with.

One last bump and I'm going to bed.

bump

Early morning bump

Bump

I'm running late today. I should be home in about an hour, hour and a quarter. Votes are still open, for the readers with a schedule more like mine.

>>40463977
I meant in general. I understand things will be quiet for something like this, but most of my threads are similarly silent. It was more an observation than a complaint, anyway.

>>40464046
Then you know precisely as much as the perspective character!

>>40460779
>>There's supposed to be a party today, isn't there? She'll need her arm. Next time though...

>>There's supposed to be a party today, isn't there? She'll need her arm. Next time though...

This seems right.

Anyway, I'm back. Guess I'll call votes here, writing now.

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"Well..." You waver. There was supposed to be a party today, right? That's what Alheid said, at least.

"Come on, Boss!" Seffi urges, "I need my arm on! For things!"

"I guess you'll need it, yeah." You relent. Seffi grins, excited, as Sieglinde's wispy form pouts, despite her physical disinterest. "...You've got a lot of work to do, after all."

"...W-what?" Seffi and Sieglinde exchange expressions almost instantly. You just nod, thoughtfully.

"Yup." You tell her, innocently. "After all, you're going to be the one setting up." You inform her, as her expression continues to fall. "Next time, though, I don't think you'll be quite so lucky." You shake a finger at her. "It'll be up to Sieglinde whether to fix your arm or not, and if you're going to disrupt what she's doing like that..." A sad wisp of smoke rises from the worktable, as though to underline your warning. "I'm not sure she'd want to."

"I-I'll be careful!" Seffi promises. Alheid, behind her, mouths to you 'no she won't' as Sieglinde moves up to the skeletal girl.

"Give me your arm." She says, with a theatrical sigh. "Since the master wants it done..."

"Sorry, Sieg..." The skeletal girl says, looking contrite. "...I didn't mean to make your thingy blow up." If Alheid's eyebrows shot up and further or faster, you think her entire head would roll right off of her neck. It seems the apology was unexpected.

"..." Sieglinde's physical body doesn't react as she accepts the proffered limb, turning Seffi to present the empty joint she's reassembling, but her wispy, ethereal form, moving out of sync with her body once more, glances away, embarrassed. "...It's alright." She says, after a moment, almost shyly. "It's not anything I can't replace in a couple minutes." The end of the limb in Sieglinde's hands bursts into a bluish flame, off-colour from Seffi's other joints. "...I can't do it as gently as Ulrike, so brace yourself."

"...Wha-?" Sieglinde jams the end of the arm into place.

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A burst of blue fire washes over Seffi's body hungrily.

"ghrklklk" Seffi says, as she keels over. Her torso loses a bit of definition, and about an inch off the bottom burns away in her own fire, revealing more bone. As it does, though, the off colour fire of her new joint stabilises, now burning the same as the others, if discoloured. "...oh, wow." The girl says, from the floor. "That's not nice at all." It takes her a couple tries to get back to her feet. "Thanks for helping, Boss!" At least her thanks sounds sincere.

"Then maybe you should be more careful." Sieglinde tells her, disinterestedly. "Just because I CAN replace it doesn't mean it's acceptable to break it." There's a pause. "...And also be careful about the limbs thing." She adds, before going back to her work. Seffi sticks out her tongue at the blue girl, before running off.

"Wow." Alheid seems impressed. You agree, that seemed a bit excessi- "That was WAY less vindictive than Sieglinde usually is." She grins. "Guess if it's the Master asking, it's alright, huh?" ...Or not.

"You're still on the list, Alheid." Sieglinde reminds her, but the caped girl just shakes her head.

"Anyway, Lord," She turns back to you. "Would you like to see the Crystal Room or the kitchen? You wanted to meet everyone, right?"

>You're starting to reconsider.
>The Crystal Room sounds interesting.
>Let's check on the cake.

>...?

>>40473509
>>Let's check on the cake.

>>40473509
>Cake

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>>40473509
>Let's check on the cake.
I still have no idea what's going, but everyone's a cute and it's really comfy here so it's ok

It's pretty late here, so I'm going to head to bed. I'll post in about seven hours, when I get up - until then, votes are open as always.

>>40473509
>The Crystal Room sounds interesting.

>>40473509
> The Crystal room sounds interesting

>>40473509
>The Crystal Room sounds interesting.
sparkly glitter kind or pure glowing power kind?

I am running so, so late - I overslept. Post when I get back from work, if there's a thread.11 hours

>>40483072
Well I'll try to keep the thread alive at least.

Late night bump

A bump before I sleep!

Bump?

B-b-b-bump !!

I'm home and writing. Late, but what's new.

Tie vote, so I'll take the one that got its votes first - It's time for cake-checking.

>>40492160
I just realized i didnt actually vote. Oh well.

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"Let's go check on the cake." You suggest. "See the kitchens." Alheid eyes you appraisingly.

"...Maybe snack a bit?" She adds, innocently. Your perfect poker face refuses to confirm or deny such spurious allegations. She laughs at you anyway. "Alright, alright, like I said, it's right down this way." She leads the way through another, much shorter corridor, past a few smaller doors. This particular path ends in a massive rockfall, but shortly before it is the door you're looking for.

It opens onto an interesting scene - a patchwork girl in a patchwork dress, playing cards against a shadowy, feminine spectre with glowing red eyes. Both look up, nod to you and go back to their game. It takes a few moments, before the spectre reacts first - her body suddenly puffs outward, as though a sudden wind had disturbed it, before she flows into what you suppose must be 'standing', considering that she has no legs and the rest of her body is indistinct and smoky. The cards she had been holding are neatly stacked to the side, though you never saw them move from her grip.

"Master!" Her voice has an odd tone to it - equally that of a young girl, calling from far off, and that of a woman, whispering softly into your ear. The patchwork girl, meanwhile, is still considering her cards. She reacts a moment later, jumping to her feet, cards fluttering to the ground. You note they seem to have been hand-drawn - exceptionally poorly, at that.

"Master?!" She seems...slightly panicked. "But, but I'm not even in my-"

"...You JUST changed into your good dress." The spectre interrupts her. "Just now. You went running off when Hannelore shouted? Remember?" She sounds a little exasperated, but not very surprised. The patchwork girl looks down at herself for a long moment. She looks up, meeting your eyes. Squeezing her eyes shut, she buries her face in her hands. Alheid nods.

"This is Silke, Lord." She indicates the girl, who sinks to the ground, the very picture of mortification.

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"I am Jana." The shade curtsies, a pair of hands gaining definition in her smoky form for the motion, before they whisk away. "It is wonderful to finally meet our lord, awake." She sighs, a satisfied sound. "Just as pretty as you are asleep..." You blink. ...Is she saying...? Come to think of it, Alheid was saying something like 'cuddling with the master again' when Amalie first... "And so expressive~" Next to you, Alheid is making sharp motions across her throat.

>...Excuse me?
>SO ABOUT THE CAKE
>That is more than just a little creepy, Jana.
>You're not sure whether you should be feeling violated right now.

>...?

>>40493904
You had so, so many hours to vote.

Anyway, I'll be heading to bed early today - hopefully I can avoid last night's issues with a bit of extra rest. Hopefully I'll have a post for you in seven and a half hours.

>>40494069
>>That is more than just a little creepy, Jana.
>SO ABOUT THE CAKE

>>40494069
>That is more than just a little creepy, Jana.
>SO ABOUT THE CAKE
I like patchwork girls, so Silke a cute. We must daughteru her immediately.

>>40494069
>>SO ABOUT THE CAKE

>>40494069
>...Excuse me?

>>40494116
>That is more than just a little creepy, Jana.
>SO ABOUT THE CAKE
changing the subject!

>>40494069
>>40494069
>Just how many people have been.... cuddling....me?

I'll add >>40503372 to my vote (>>40500588)

or not, fuck me sideways.

I'll be home at the usual time, if the thread's around.

I swear, my alarms are broken.

>>40504457
or get a regular sleep schedule!

bump

bump

Bump

Home, writing, etc.

>>40506186
I think my schedule is fairly regular, when it works.

Well, a quick bump while I wait won't hurt.

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"...Jana." She tilts her head - judging by the movements of her eyes, since most of her definition has faded away - while you try not to think about just how often over the last several hundred years someone spent their time staring at you in your sleep or cuddling up to you while you slept, or....

Not thinking about it is extremely difficult, you conclude.

"That is more than just a little creepy, Jana." You tell her, and she giggles.

"Flatterer~" You clap your hands together, the sudden crack of flesh-on-flesh startling everyone else and neatly grabbing their attention.

"SO! How about that cake you were talking about, Alheid?" You ask, and she stares at you, for a moment, confused.

"Oh!" She exclaims, "Oh, right," She checks a glowing bar, near a small door in the wall, that you would think might be an oven, but for the lack of flame, or heat in the room. "Halfway done!" She pronounces, indicating the half-full bar. "Not too much longer before it's done cooking." Glancing around the room, she frowns. "...Where's the other one?" Indeed, several tables - clearly for food preparation, although the one covered in odd runic arrays and circles-within-squares-within-circles seems a bit out of place - stand empty, except for a small pile of plates, neatly stacked and clean.

"...Other one?" Silke asks, confused.

"...The other cake." Alheid says, as though to a child. "The one I baked before. It should be cooling, right here." She indicates a spot on a table. Of course, there's no cake there. She turns to demand answers, and as she turns her back, the cake fades into sight.

...What?

"Jana, what did you do?" She demands, obviously discounting Silke as a cause for the disappearance of the cake. "If you let Sieglinde in here, so help me..."

>The cake is right there. Right there!
>Stay Quiet
>Why Sieglinde, specifically?

>...?

>>40514463
>>Why Sieglinde, specifically?

>The cake is right there. Right there!

It's like I can't do anything at all without getting interrupted. And then there's more.

Eight and a half hours, because I need to go cook and do a couple of things before I sleep today.

>>40514463
>>Stay Quiet
She turns, it disappears. Let's see who 's behind this. Perhaps the juice?

>>40514463
>>Why Sieglinde, specifically?

>>40514463
>cut a piece of the disappearing cake and study it

>>40514463
>Why Sieglinde, specifically?
ghooost caaake!

>>40514492
it's okay, life happens. Keeping this thread bumped while we wait!

>>40514463
>>Stay Quiet
I give up. No clue as to what is going on.

>>40514463
>>Why Sieglinde, specifically?

Bump

I was up on time but things happened. This is starting to get annoying, honestly, every single time this seems to happen.

I'll be back as usual, if the thread's here. Maybe I'll even be able to get multiple posts for once, who knows.

>>40526700
don't worry, we all have those days/weeks/months/lifetimes.

>>40526700
Dude, why do you even bother running this shit if you are not going to actually run it. Fuck, this is worse that psion quest.

bump

Home, writing, etc.

My last day of work for week is tomorrow, so I can get things back on track. No overtime, so I'll have plenty of time to write.

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"Why Sieglinde, specifically?" You ask, curiously, disrupting Alheid's momentum before she could even really get started. Surprised, she turns to you.

"Oh... Remember how I said she likes eating?" She asks, with a shrug. "It was...a little understated. She's always, always hungry." She considers this. "Ravenous, might be a better word. Alone, she can eat through a month's worth of the kids' food, in one night. She wouldn't!" the woman hastens to add, "She's been very good about their food. But the cake, just sitting here, it's the sort of thing she might disappear." You can't help but chuckle at the choice of words."What?" She asks, glancing suspiciously over her shoulder at the two others in the room, as though they might have been making fun of her. Jana waves, while Silke, having apparently grown bored, is picking up the cards, shuffling them back together a little awkwardly. "Why are you laughing?" She crosses her arms, a little insecurely.

"It's not you." You reassure her. "You said the cake was right here?" You point at the cake, innocently. It winks out of sight as she turns.

"Yes." She confirms. "I baked it right before I made the cookies, it should almost be cooled." You nod, as she turns back to you, and watch as the cake fades back into sight.

"Interesting." You glance over at the other two in the room, thoughtfully. Jana catches your look, and shrugs expressively. "Did anyone else come in here?"

"Nope!" Jana says, at the exact same moment as Silke answers,

"Yep~!" She pops her 'p' loudly.

"What?" Jana's voice is loaded with doubt. "I didn't see anyone." Silke blinks at her, guilelessly.

"You didn't? But Ulrike even said 'Hello'!" Jana and Alheid exchange glances, before Alheid storms towards the door.

"If she took the cake, I swear..." Her face is stormy.

>Follow.
>Stop her.
>Let her go.

>...?

Crashing can no longer stop me! just slow me down! Hahah!
why is firefox the worst browser

>>40536853
>Follow.

>>40536853
>Follow.
That baked good better be the epitome of its kind; or top kek as you say.

I fell asleep at the computer.

I think this is a sign - I'll have the update in about eight or so hours, but I need to get some sleep before work. This time for sure, we'll have an update before I have to leave.

>>40536853
>Follow

>>40536853
>have some cake