Shawn had just gotten out of the 'Gathering' as he had come to know it--a procession of victory led by the victors of the Soul Contest in which the 'Circus Master' was named to run the whole show on behalf of the Proprietor.

Malinda had left Fortune Teller's tent with all the pomp and bravado of a military general who had won a great victory. She was sitting in a plush throne adorned in purple, tattered silk cloths. Four carnie workers held out protruding poles at each end and they carried her with blank expressions on their faces towards the hill where Cherrywinks was known to live.

The Clown troupe had long abandoned the tent. It was rumored that Cherrywinks had gone into hiding of some kind. Some of the Circus members, particularly Crowley, had mused that it wasn't possible for the Clown to disappear forever, and that when summoned by the Circus master, he would undoubtedly appear to work the Show as commanded.

All were in agreement however, that this was the most violent Soul Contest in memory. Griffix had speculated to Shawn that the war fought between the Clown Troupe and the Order would almost certainly sow the seeds of future conflicts, yet to be defined.

Shawn watched sitting on a stump with Griffix at his side while the Fortune Teller and her carnie entourage passed, Malinda's chin up in a noble triumph.

"Well, well...what'ta'ya make of that?"

"I...I'm trying not to think about it too hard." Shawn was exhausted, and had sprawled himself on the ground, leaning back against the stump. He was alive, he was intact. He didn't want to think about anything else.

"hmmmm" Griffix observed, unperturbed by Shawn's demeanor. "It looks like she's heddin' up that hill ta' the tent up there. I seen it more than a few times lad. Good on ya' for savin' us. There's no tellin' what that Clown might'ah done to us if he had his way. If he'd be the one with the souls."

"I mean. I'm already dead for a long time. But you ain't yet lad. You ain't never died. So the Circus has got ya' but your still with the livin' too."

"I wish I'd a known that." Griffix was shuffling what looked like an old, worn deck of cards. The spades, hearts, diamonds and clovers were all there. But the face cards looked strange. The King of Hearts and the Jack of Spades still had faces Shawn could see, but they looked more like children's faces than was normal.

Shawn watched the cards with mild curiosity, grateful for any opportunity to distract himself from weightier matters. "Oh, are you doing a card trick?"

"Oh, no, no , no lad." Griffix corrected.

"No tricks from me ta' you lad. I'm just doin' a bit of the predictin.' But first, I need ta' tell ya' somethin.' Somethin' a bit important. And then, I wager ya' won't be herin' from me for a while."

"The first ting' is that I put a ticket under your pillow. Ya' can use it whenever ya' like. It's a free ticket that the Tattooed Lady gave me. Now that we're done with Contest, Malinda's gonna take Feddler off your hands. So just show up to the Tattooed Lady's spot, whenever ya' want ta' do that." Griffix shuffled the cards again.

"The second. Well. The second, is a bit more complicated lad. The 'ting is, I'm gettin' hungry. And because I'm cursed, I cannot just a' eat any'ting lad. I need ta' eat the bad 'tings that people, and most tastily, kids, do."

"I need ta' eat those 'tings lad. Or else I'll get really hungry, ya understand?"

“I’m getting a ticket for a free tattoo?”Still, Shawn wasn’t quite getting the other part of Griffix’s meaning. Or maybe he was in denial. “So you eat stuff like candy? I can buy you some when I go home.”

"Maybe lad." Griffix said, shrugging his shoulders. "Truthfully, I don't know what she's gonna do. She's a strange lady, she is. I was just told ta' put that ticket under tha' pillow, if ya' wanted ta' get rid of Feddler once n' for all. 'Tis your choice what ta' do." Griffix explained.

"Candy won't do lad. Not at all. I eat people's worst confessions. I find that eatin' 'em when their written down is a far better way of doin' things than eatin' 'em when...." Griffix paused and looked up at Shawn, the shaggy curtain of hair like a veil covering one eye.

"Well...'tis ta' say----eatin' THEM." Griffix explained.

"O're the years, it's gotten worse and worse n' I get hungrier and hungrier each time. So I usually try ta' get anythin' I can find that's written down that's true. Diaries, love letters, notes. One time I even ate meself a painting that some poor sap made of him killin' some one."

"I do it all so I don't have ta' eat them. Because if I don't eat, I'll...I'll...I'll lose control lad." Griffix admitted, his tone changing to one of serious concern.

"Then I'll change into a wolf-thing. A savage. I'll go right for the first kid I can find. N' when I do. I'll eat-'em. Because me mind knows that 'tis true that everyone has done somethin' wrong. And the savage part o' me knows that if I eat their mind, I'll find out."

"Time was I could just eat people. But each time it got worse and worse until now. Now I can only eat the bad things that kids do....or the kids themselves."

"I donna-wanna eat kids lad. So I've got ta' find some bad things that've been written down."

A flood of details seemed to surge into Shawn's mind: Griffix visiting Shawn at night and changing into a wolf, Griffix thumbing through Tiffany's diary while her family was out of town. Griffix asking Shawn questions about if Shawn felt something was wrong or not and if Shawn had any guilt.

“So...you need me to write down all the bad things I’ve done? So you can eat them?” Shawn felt a little worried about that; he wasn’t so comfortable with the truth that he liked the idea of a written copy of it floating around, even if it was immediately going to be eaten. And he suspected it wouldn’t be quite as easy as just putting pen to paper.

"Oh...yesssssssss" Griffix displayed a primal, wolfish and hungry grin. Shawn could see that his lips drew back to reveal yellowed fangs, covered in watery, froth. He was like a dog that was suddenly presented with raw steak.

"That's a great place to start." And Shawn couldn't avoid hearing the word start.

"Umm, I'll need a pen and paper..." Shawn subtly scooched over a bit, away from Griffix. "But what do you mean by 'start'?

Griffix opened up his coat and pulled out a large scroll. Then he fumbled his hands--they were shaking with eager anticipation. Finally he produced a small ink bottle and pen.

"Yes. Just write them down." he said, all serious. There was a dark nature to his voice that Shawn hadn't heard before. A deep hunger. Gone were the pranks and the lighthearted jokes. Griffix was fixated and determined.

"A start. Just a snack. Ta' hold me over. Until I need more." He said, and instead of patting his stomach as he was known to do, he scratched at it with tense fingers, raking them across his stomach.

"A snack? How much bad stuff do you need?" Shawn tried to find himself a flat surface upon which to write. "Can you eat the same story more than once?"

Griffix leaned forward, hot breath coming across to Shawn's face.

"No." He growled. It wasn't an angry growl, but a hungry one. "Just a wee bit of a snack." He corrected, seeming to recognize how hungry he was and perhaps how he sounded.

"I need to eat really bad things. The worse things are, the more tasty and filling."

"I can't eat it more than once."

Shawn wrote down I lied to my Mom about wanting to go to acting school. He handed it to Griffix. "Like this?"

Griffix snatched the paper out of Shawn's hand, took one sniff and the snapped it up, munching on it hungrily.

Then his face changed. There was a mixture of disgust and distaste on his face. It was the look of a child that was expecting something tasty and ended up with a bland, rice cake.

"Ya' can barely taste the lie!" Griffix complained. Shawn saw that Griffix's hair bobbed around his head, flowing long and free as he shook it in dismissle of Shawn's offering.

"'Tis a bit weak on the taste side, n' its hardly fillin'" Griffix said. He opened the coat and pulled out another crisp piece of paper, laying it flat in front of Shawn.

Shawn backed away a little, not wanting to show fear, but very much aware of how dangerous Griffix would be if he ever turned on him. "Wait, wait, that was just practice! Let me try again!" He wrote down I stole my friend's memories so he wouldn't betray me and handed it to Griffix.

This time Griffix didn't snatch the paper, but the eagerness in his eyes was still very much there. He gently placed the paper in his mouth and Shawn heard the crunching sound as he munched it to pulp.

"Ah', lad. I mean ta' say, that's a good taste lad. It's got a base of..." Griffix curled his hand in the air like a aristocrat tasting a fine wine "malevolence and a hint of treachery."


Griffix sat back down on his stump and patted his stomach. He seemed satisfied for the moment. Then he turned to Shawn and said.

"Well lad, ya' done good. 'Tanks for that. I've got ta' tell ya' that soon I'll be hungry again. I can feel it comin' on again."

"Well, then. Now that' the Soul Contest is o'er, did ya' feel ya learned any-'ting? I mean, from all of this?"

OOC: Shawn Chooses One of the Following:

A- No triggers nor loss of morality - Shawn does not receive any triggers

B- Shawn gains trigger - Insomnia: When the Insomnia trigger activates, the afflicted character’s only immediate reaction is a slight anxiousness and hyper-awareness. This offers a +1 bonus to Perception rolls while the trigger is active (see p. 34). The full burden of the trigger becomes evident when the character next attempts to sleep. The same state of heightened sensitivity that fuels the Perception bonus also makes it impossible for the character to slip into a restful sleep. Regardless of how many hours he lies in bed or what types of medication he takes, restful sleep eludes him. Treat this as if he were going without sleep altogether; even if he manages to catch an hour or two, it does not recharge him the way restful sleep does. For an adult character, this is inconvenient and slowly begins to take its toll. For a child, however, the effects are almost immediate and severe (see p. 159 for information on how
fatigue works). The Insomnia trigger remains active for a week minus one day per dot of the character’s Resolve + Composure, with a minimum of two nights’ lost sleep. From page 159:
    For every six hours that a character tries to remain
awake past his normal bedtime, make a Stamina + Resolve
roll. If the roll fails, the character falls asleep. If it succeeds,
he stays awake for that six-hour period, remaining relatively
alert. For each six-hour period past bedtime, all of the
character’s dice pools suffer a cumulative -1 penalty
     After a long enough time awake, minor hallucinations
might occur (fi gures seen in peripheral vision, or
phantom voices). Some children may become oddly hyperactive
when overtired, burning off energy they shouldn’t
have, with irritable twitching and erratic movement.
The penalties imposed by forced wakefulness do
not disappear until the character gets 10 hours of sleep.
Therefore, a child who stays up six hours past his bedtime
and then only sleeps for six continues to suffer a -1 fatigue
penalty, until he manages to get a nice four-hour nap. If
naptime is out of the question and he attempts to stay
awake again at night, he begins with a -1 penalty to stay
awake at all, and moves on to -2 if he manages to keep his
eyes open for six long hours.


C- Shawn loses 2 Morality:Shawn loses 2 morality from his character sheet, but no degeneration roll is made and Shawn does not receive any triggers

---

Experience Roll:

If Shawn chose A above, Shawn Rolls 1d10 +1. The final number is the experience that Shawn earns and adds to his sheet.

If Shawn chose B above, Shawn Rolls 1d10 +3. The final number is the experience that Shawn earns and adds to his sheet.

If Shawn chose C above, Shawn Rolls 1d10 +6. The final number is the experience that Shawn earns and adds to his sheet.

Shawn nodded his head wearily. "I did. Too much, I think."

OOC: I'll take option C!

22:15, Today: Shawn Cramer rolled 14 using 1d10+6 with rolls of 8. Experience Roll.

"'Tis true. Too true. I me-self tried ta' unlearn a few o' those lessons n' memories. But ya' can't undo it. As much as ya' wish that ya' could. For me lad, I feel I just don't have much in the way of protectin' ya' from what ya' saw...or even what ya' did."

"A dark path all of us walk who come down here. Dark indeed."

"But I wager lad..." Griffix put his hands up in surrender. "...that maybe a 'wee part of ya', just maybe a small part...enjoyed some of it?"


OOC:

Shawn earns 14 experience and loses 2 morality,, makes changes to character sheet using the following guidance for spending experience:

EXPERIENCE POINT COSTS

Trait Experience Point Cost

Attribute New dots x 5
Skill New dots x 3
Skill Specialty 3 points
Merit New dots x 2
Morality New dots x 3

Shawn shook his head sadly. "No, I didn't enjoy it. I just...I just feel numb to it now. I should feel bad about everything I did, but it's just blank."

Griffix shrugged. "I guess the darkness affects us all a 'bit differently."

Then the focus turned back to the cards. He took one from the deck and got up from the stump, taking care to rub the base where he was sitting with the forearm of his overcoat, as if to remove any unwanted debris. It was a practiced maneuver and he pulled it off with the flourish of a performer ready to do a trick of some kind.

"We've got a few scraps." Griffix started, flipping over a card onto the stump. It was the King of Hearts. Only instead of the normal picture, there was clearly a child's face where the King's usually was. "I need to eat. So I picked out o', a few troubled souls and damaged goods who I 'tink will help me. If we can get these souls ta' do some bad 'tings, and write them down, then maybe this hunger o' mine will go away so I won't have to eat any kids. Or if it don't.....I might eat them. Better ta' eat those that have done bad than those who are innocent."

"This is Junior." Griffix said, pointing towards the kid on the picture. "I took him from the pile of souls we were given ta' Malinda. He's a troubled soul. Which, under most circumstances would mean I'd turn him right over. But I figured he might help me out. N' helpin' me out is what I need right now or else I'm liable to eat whatever comes along, and that could be trouble for me n' for the Order n' for the 'tings that come along."

Shawn looked at Griffix blankly. "You want me to trick him into writing stuff down?"

"Oh I donna-think we'll have ta' do too much ta' trick 'em. He's a bushel of a lad. Strong and determined. But also feisty n' a rule breaker ta' the bone, if ya' will. I'm not sure if he's already even up ta' some bad 'tings."

"No. I 'tink its better lad if ya' just sort of see your role as managin' the upcomin' affair of several kids. Junior n' some others still. I need ya' ta' manage it for me. I can't be stealin' souls no more than I can be eatin' kids. I've done both before and let me tell ya' that it doesn't leave me feelin' good. And the stealin' of souls might get me destroyed."

"No lad. No tricks. This is me bein' honest with ya.' I need your help. I need ya' ta' manage this for me. I need ya' ta' convince some kids ta' write some of the 'tings down that they've done or that they plan ta' do."

"I need ya' ta' help me make sure that I don't lose control of myself. That I don't go n' eat no one." Griffix said, seeming to lament the predicament of his curse.

"These aren't kids I know, are they?" Shawn was a little concerned now; it seemed his tasks never ended. Though at least getting confessions from them wasn't going to get anyone killed, right?

"Honestly lad, I haven't used the Fortune Teller's Crystal Ball on ya' ta' keep track of who or what ya' have been up to, not least who ya' know. Especially the whole world of who ya' know. So for my part, I'd have ta' wager, that honestly I'm not sure."

"But because of that, I thought it best ta' give ya' some help in the matter, seein' as ya' did so much alone. My problems with soul stealin' n' kid eatin' aren't exactly a secret in the Circus. So I told the new up n' commer 'Bradford' that he and ya' both might be able ta' help ya' out. He's been doin' some 'ottar 'tings for the Order. And seein' as ya' both have done a bit by yourself, I thought it might be worth askin' ya' both ta' help me out together."

"So. Do ya' want ta' see who else is in the deck, n' see if ya' know 'em or not?"

Shawn felt resigned to this, but he didn’t show it on his face. Instead he gave Griffix a brave smile. “Sure, show them to me.”

Griffix layed another card down on the stump. Shawn instantly recognized it as the girl he had chosen not to save during the encounter with Mr. Cherrywinks in the snowstorm.

"'tis Delilah." Griffix announced. "She's a bully. I donna-think ya' find any problem with gettin' her ta' do bad 'tings. But I'm not too sure I am, 'bout gettin' her ta' write 'em down."


There was something odd about the card that Shawn saw. The image was of the girl for sure. But she was missing an eye.

Shawn squinted at the card, then went pale as recognition dawned on him. “I don’t think she’d do anything for me. The last time she saw me, I was selling her and her friend out to Mr. Cherrywinks.”

"mmmmmm..." Griffix acknowledged. "Well. Perhaps ya' never know what the future might hold. I mean, for me, I used to fight all the time with the Tattooed Lady, I did. But now we find ourselves on the same side under Malinda."

"But for now, I see your point lad. Best ta' try someone else. Perhaps ya' can divide the pile with Bradford ya' can. Best if I leave it up ta' ya' both ta' figure that part out."


"I mention her because she's part of a few newer kids commin' inta' the town, she is. Lad, as I told ya' before. These are stolen' souls. Well, I prefer ta' call 'em, borrowed souls. So don't go 'bout tellin' folk at the Circus or even these kids whats what. 'Tis is ta' keep both you and me safe."

Griffix sighed, as if somewhat exhausted.

"Lad. Ya' do understand that I wouldn't be askin' this of ya' if there were another way? But I can't be eatin' kids. So I thought it best ta' borrow these souls, eat what I can from what they did, and then put them back."

Shawn nods seriously as he tries to think about his upcoming task. "Well, if you'r going to put them back, that's good. I can use that to persuade them, probably."

"I've been workin' on this for a bit lad, I'll admit. The last time, 'tings didn't go so well, they didn't. It's important ya' don't tell 'em why they need to write 'em down. I mean, not really why. Ya' see why lad, don't-cha?"

"I find, its scares 'em off if they have someone commin' 'bout tellin' 'em they might get eaten if they don't do as they're told. Also, it's a lot ta' take in." Griffix raised his hands as if he was gesturing to the whole idea of the Circus, not just this specific task Shawn now found himself involved in.

"Also, many a kid don't want ta' believe, plain n' simple"

"I'm not going to tell them the real reason, don't worry." If there's one thing Shawn had learned to do, it was convincing people of things without bringing up his real motives.

A wave of relief passed over Griffix's wolfish face. The lines around the corners of his mouth relaxed into well-worn creases, and the brows that were furrowed close together un-creased, giving him an easy-going look.

"Well now, that's a relief. 'Tis a wonderful thing, finding someone as dependent as you. A job well done. Ya' put it perfectly. Plain n' simple. Just as I like."

"Now let's see." Griffix shuffled the cards again. Then he separated them into two piles. Shawn had been playing with cards all summer, and so he knew that Griffix was about to do a Riffle Shuffle. Sure enough, the Leprechaun gripped both halves of the deck, each hand following the same position, thumb over the top edge and using his middle and ring fingers to support the bottom edge. The cards bent and flipped around in a satisfyingly crisp, ruffling sound, the whir of their movement fast and furious.

"This here is Kristin." Griffix said, placing the card down on the stump. The girl had a somewhat devious smile, and the backdrop was the Queen of Hearts. "She's a tight-lipped one. She'll hardly tell anyone what's goin' on."

OOC: Ego Boos Merit: Shawn gets a +1 to any socialize or expression roles that may come up this scene.

"Where will I meet these kids?" Shawn idly wondered if he'd be going inside the cards somehow. It was absurd, but so was everything else about this situation.

"I woundn't worry 'bout that lad." Griffix explained with a nod. "They're movin' inta' the neighborhood. Ya' got yourself some new neighbors, as it were. At the end o' the summer, there's gonna be a glut o' new kids around here."

"And they ain't the best kind."


Griffix's eyes seemed to glint with a hungry expectation. As if the eyes themselves were greedy and happy that bad kids were coming.

Shawn looked at Griffix, surprised. "You can just make kids move to my neighbourhood?"

Griffix shook his head, hair swishing from side to side. "Not me lad." He refuted. "They're comin' for the Circus. Or maybe 'tis the Circus that's comin' for 'em. Remember I asked ya' once what ya' thought might have attracted the Circus to ya?. 'Tis the same thing here lad. Same thing here. They're comin. Whether we like it or not."

“Will Melinda or the Proprietor mind this?” Shawn sincerely hoped not; in a way, he’d be helping these kids. A confession would be much more painless than losing a soul.

Griffix put up a finger to his mouth.

"Shhhhh..." He warned. "No one can know 'bout it.  It's bad lad, I know. You know it. They can't know it lad. 'Tink 'bout how bad it would be if they found out that we were takin' souls. If we were stealin' 'em." He waited for Shawn to contemplate how bad that scenario would be, before he set to speaking again.

"Now lad, 'Tink  about how much worse 'twould be if I lost control. If I got meself so hungry, that after the Soul Contest, I just started eatin' kids at random. Well, I'll tell ya' what. 'Twould mean that a bunch o' innocent kids that could have written 'tingss down, would suddenly be gone.

Killed.

Eaten.

Worse off lad, it could be that others at the Circus would 'Tink that I was skimmin' souls outside of official Circus business. Seein' as the Proprieter and Malinda need a cut o' everyting that we get Soul-wise now that the Contest is over. They might hold me accountable. And since I'm in charge o' you, they might take ya' away from me. Put ya' under someone else."

Shawn tried to look worried about that possibility, but resolute. Certainly, his mentorship under Griffix had been...challenging, but Shawn had gotten used to the man and wanted to avoid doing it again with a new person he didn’t know as well. “I can keep it quiet.”

"Right ya' are lad. Right ya' are. 'Tis a good 'ting, in my opinion, ta' know when ta' keep quiet n' when ta' make noise. ''Twas a time not too long ago, when I me-self thought that I could just stand for every-'ting I believed in. Thought I could change n' mould 'things the way I'd see fit n' let the world change accordin' ta' the way I wanted it ta' be. But then I learned with time, that pickin' yer battles makes it easier for ya.' Ya' can try n' fight for 'things. But after o' while, it feels like ya' find yourself swimmin' against a tide. The tide o' the water just keeps comin'.  It dont' care not a bit 'bout how ya' feel. What ya' think. Ne'er a thought about the future or what right or wrong is. It keeps pushin' n' pushin' ya'. I just got so tired lad. Tired of swimmin' against it. I mean, can any of us really be blamed for feelin' that way?"

Shawn was a little less philosophical about these matters than Griffix. He just really didn’t want to die. But he thought he understood the gist; neither of them really wanted to be here, but they had no choice. “There’s some battles you can’t fight.”

Griffix set to placing the cards down on the stump. Now that the two had agreed on the idea of keeping the upcoming project a secret, the interaction took on a more intimate, conspiratorial tone. It was as if a barrier had been crossed, and now business could be attended to, without the worry or fear of what each thought of the other. The atmosphere had suddenly become judgement-free.

"Me too lad. Me too." Griffix nodded, the fear of what might happen to him also clearly at the forefront of his mind.

Griffix put a card down on the stump.  The picture couldn't be confused with anything other than what it was: a picture of Bradford. He was wearing a Jester's hat with a big, broad smile on his face, while holding a funny looking scepter.  On the top of the card a caption read 'Joker.'

"hmmmm." Griffix said, confused. "That wasn't one o' the souls I borrowed."

Shawn eyed the card with some concern. “Is he okay? The dummy of his gives me the creeps.”

Griffix shrugged, pushing aside the card to the other side of the stump. "Maybe 'Tis just a mistake. 'Tis possible.  But still, I find it a wee bit strange is all. No matter. It do't mean nuthin' I suppose."

Shuffling the rest of the cards, Griffix laid them all down flat: They were all normal playing cards. Numbers of diamond, clover, hearts and spade suits.

"We'll. I guess that's all then." Griffix said. "Wait 'till I get hungry again." Griffix said, patting his stomach. "I'll let ya' know when we should get started then. Sound good?"

Shawn was relieved to hear he’d have a chance to rest before he did this next task. It felt like he’d been at this forever! “Sounds good. Maybe you can teach me a new card trick in the meantime.”

"Ah yes. A card trick!" Griffix agreed. "I tell ya' what lad. I'll go ahead and meet up with ya' in yer dreams. 'Tis a fine way ta' learn somethin." Griffix offered.

"That'd be great!" Shawn was genuinely glad about Griffix doing it that way - he was not looking forward to his dreams for the next little while.

OOC: Shawn Join's Thread

Shawn: A Return To Normal...Sort Of