In Progress [LP CYOA] Tower

[Baltika9]

Locking votes to D. D for ound... round... ground... the ground, I wonder if it'll be friends with you.

 

[Azira]

This is a dream sequence, right? Let's try and change shape into that of a sperm whale and a bowl of petunias before impact. Because reasons.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

This is a dream sequence, right? Let's try and change shape into that of a sperm whale and a bowl of petunias before impact. Because reasons.

Go away Zaphod

 

[treave]

Manor on the Moors (II)

Placing one foot on the trellis, you begin to clamber up the wall. At the end of the trellis, the stones are cold and slippery under your fingers, and the wind is strong. The nearest open window is just to your left. You stretch out, straining your short limbs to reach the window frame. Your fingers grasp hold of the wood… and you slip, your feet losing purchase.

Just in the nick of time you tighten your grip on the ledge, and you find yourself dangling in mid-air, two floors up. The wind continues to blow – you can’t stay like this for long, lest the grip of your fingers’ weakens and you fall. With some effort, you pull yourself up and over the ledge. Without wasting any more time, you slide through the opening and roll into the room beyond.

You land face first into a pile of clothing. You remove a chemise from your face – clearly women’s underwear, from all the frills and laces. It even looks like the one that Sophie owns. Not that you had purposely taken a look or anything – it was just something you picked up from helping with the laundry, since something like that couldn’t actually belong to Father McClellan. Looking around, you find yourself in a girl’s bedroom, all pink and pastel. Clothes are messily strewn all over the floor, and the closet door is open. The untidiness is rather unexpected for a mansion like this; shouldn’t they have housekeepers to keep everything spick and span?

Just then, the door opens without warning, and an elderly maid walks in, feather duster with hand. Her wrinkled eyes open wide as she sees you standing there, chemise in hand.


***


A. You attempt to convince her that you mean no harm and just entered here by accident.

B. You rush the old maid and try to punch her out before she can call for help.

C. You attempt to stuff the chemise into the old maid’s mouth so that she can’t scream.

D. You jump back out of the window, figuring that you can search for another way in.

E. You stand still and wait to see her reaction before deciding what you should do next.

 

[treave]

Will check votes in 36 hours once more.

 

[Kipeci]

E

Lmao, OK stealth seems off the table

 

[Baltika9]

Drat. What's the genre-consistent response to this? Asking the bodice-ripper fans among us, I know you're out there.

A>E

I really want to do B for the lulz, though.

Not that you had purposely taken a look or anything – it was just something you picked up from helping with the laundry, since something like that couldn’t actually belong to Father McClellan.

Father McClellan is part of the Homosexual Underground, confirmed.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

F: Bow, hand her the chemise, say "You dropped this", and walk out.

 

[Nevill]

At the end of the trellis, the stones are cold and slippery under your fingers, and the wind is strong.

Ah, our old nemesis. If I knew you were there, I would never have left the homey desert.
*screaming flashbacks to climbing walkways in a storm*

I hope we are found by the mansion staff

I take it all back! *jumps out of the window*

Dammit, that's a compromising position, isn't it?

I... had an idea of pretending to do the laundry, but it's the head maid judging by seniority, and we look nothing like a servant boy. Alas, our prospects for getting away with bullshit of this caliber were shot down at chargen.

Do we have a chance to punch out an old woman? I'd go for it, but we are only a boy. Uridimmu would approve.
Another way in wouldn't really help us much since the staff would be on alert.
Waiting for her reaction... we look to all the world like a thief, pervert, or both (panty thief?), so much as that phenomenon exists in this time. She would... raise a ruckus? Probably?
If we try to explain ourselves... she will likely yank us by the ear and hand us off to the security, since there is no way to accidentally end up in this room with underwear in hand. I am not sure how much it would be different from standing still and not doing anything at all.

C. You attempt to stuff the chemise into the old maid’s mouth so that she can’t scream.

I don't know why this is here. Are we strangling her, or something? Why wouldn't she be able to take it out?

 

[Kz3r0]

G put on the chemise and ask if you are cute dressed like that while doing a pirouette.

 

[Kz3r0]

I don't know why this is here. Are we strangling her, or something? Why wouldn't she be able to take it out?

Puppy suggestion probably.

 

[Nevill]

I really want to do B for the lulz, though.

Do you think it'll work?

I mean, it probably is one of the better moves in our position. Our style is much less James Bond and much more Hitman.

There must be a closet in here somewhere...

Clothes are messily strewn all over the floor, and the closet door is open.

Ah, there it is!

Puppy suggestion probably.

They have been italicized so far. Nah, I think that's us, same as when we were offered to shoot the nomads or Rasputin.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

G put on the chemise and ask if you are cute dressed like that while doing a pirouette.

Sir, I must prevail upon you to cease this lunacy.
Surely you see we are in no position to effect a graceful pirouette with our leg in such a state?

 

[Baltika9]

Do we have a chance to punch out an old woman? I'd go for it, but we are only a boy. Uridimmu would approve.

Do you think it'll work?

Tlalli taught us how to fight, so I think that we have the capacity to pull off C. The question is: should we?

Look, we're in this situation because that's what would happen in a Jane Austen novel: of course the scoundrel sneaking through the window would land in Father McClellan's the heroine Sophie's laundry, and of course he would be discovered by the head maid. Should we react like a character from the genre would? I'm not sure that we have the swag to pull off the lovable scoundrel act. Like you said, we're more of a Mr. 47 than a 007.

But I'm also assuming that being consistent with the setting is the best move.

 

[Azira]

Hehe... Wrinkly is an underwear gnome!

 

[Nevill]

Tlalli taught us how to fight, so I think that we have the capacity to pull off C. The question is: should we?

B is where we render her unconscious by hitting her.
C is... I have no idea? It says we stuff her mouth with cloth, but it does not say what we actually do with her. Tie her up? Put her in a closet? Drop her out of a window?
The image of a 10 year old kid trying to jump up so he could gag a maid towering over him is a bit too much. I don't undertand the logistics of it.

Should we react like a character from the genre would?

I did not read Austen's novels, sorry. But if I had to take a guess...
If we were a scoundrel neighbour boy with an unrequired love for Sophie, sure. And then we'd get an earful, and be paraded to the exit under the eyes of the girl we saught to impress, and maybe she would speak to us, etc. That is a treatment the main character gets.

...it is a bit different for a homeless thief a maid found during rounds. He gets a beating, and then a boot, and is not heard from again. The servants won't even trouble their masters for such a nuisanse. That would, too, be consistent with the setting.

We don't know our role, but somehow I am beginning to get the feeling we are not supposed to be here in this story. So far nothing indicates there is a role reserved for us, and that we must act something out to fit in. It is best to assume that we look like a random ragamuffin... at least, until (or unless - it's not a guarantee) Sophie acknowledges us.

 

[Baltika9]

We don't know our role, but something I am beginning to get the feeling we are not supposed to be here in this story. So far nothing indicates there is a role reserved for us, and that we must act something out to fit in. It is best to assume that we look like a random beggar brat... at least, untill (or unless) Sophie acknowledges us.

Then maybe we should try to get in touch with her? We'll need to not get kicked out for that, and A seems like the most reasonable route if Wrinkly can apply his speaking lessons and name drop Sophie. B is the Codexian Extreme Special, but it'll work, I think.

B is where we render her unconscious by hitting her.
C is... I have no idea? It says we stuff her mouth with cloth, but it does not say what we actually do with her. Tie her up?

Yeah, I meant B. My bad.

Right before the previous vote closed, I suspected that our best move was to knock on the window and get her attention to get invited into her dream, but I thought better of posting it. Oh well.

I did not read Austen's novels, sorry. But if I had to take a guess..

Alright, autism mode engaged:

Jane Austen

Jane Austen (/ˈɒstɪn, ˈɔːs-/; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for her six major novels, which interpret, critique and comment upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots often explore the dependence of women on marriage in the pursuit of favourable social standing and economic security. Her works critique the novels of sensibility of the second half of the 18th century and are part of the transition to 19th-century literary realism.[2] Her use of biting irony, along with her realism, humour, and social commentary, have long earned her acclaim among critics, scholars, and popular audiences alike.[4]

With the publications of Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814) and Emma (1816), she achieved success as a published writer. She wrote two additional novels, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, both published posthumously in 1818, and began another, eventually titled Sanditon, but died before its completion. She also left behind three volumes of juvenile writings in manuscript, a short epistolary novel Lady Susan, and another unfinished novel, The Watsons. Her six full-length novels have rarely been out of print, although they were published anonymously and brought her moderate success and little fame during her lifetime.

Sense and Sensibility

Sense and Sensibility is a novel by Jane Austen, published in 1811. It was published anonymously; By A Lady appears on the title page where the author's name might have been. It tells the story of the Dashwood sisters, Elinor (age 19) and Marianne (age 16 1/2) as they come of age. They have an older half-brother, John, and a younger sister, Margaret, 13.

The novel follows the three Dashwood sisters as they must move with their widowed mother from the estate on which they grew up, Norland Park. Because Norland is passed down to John, the product of Mr. Dashwood's first marriage, and his young son, the four Dashwood women need to look for a new home. They have the opportunity to rent a modest home, Barton Cottage, on the property of a distant relative, Sir John Middleton. There they experience love, romance, and heartbreak. The novel is likely set in southwest England, London, and Sussex between 1792 and 1797.[1]

The novel, which sold out its first print run of 750 copies in the middle of 1813, marked a success for its author. It had a second print run later that year. It was the first Austen title to be republished in England after her death, and the first illustrated Austen produced in Britain, in Richard Bentley's Standard Novels series of 1833.[2] The novel has been in continuous publication since 1811, and has many times been illustrated, excerpted, abridged, and adapted for stage and film.[3] In March 2020, there were 20 different editions available as new books.[4]

Pride and Prejudice

Pride and Prejudice is a romantic novel of manners written by Jane Austen in 1813. The novel follows the character development of Elizabeth Bennet, the dynamic protagonist of the book who learns about the repercussions of hasty judgments and comes to appreciate the difference between superficial goodness and actual goodness. Its humour lies in its honest depiction of manners, education, marriage, and money during the Regency era in Great Britain.

Mr Bennet of Longbourn estate has five daughters, but his property is entailed and can only be passed to a male heir. His wife also lacks an inheritance, so his family will be destitute upon his death. Thus it is imperative that at least one of the girls marry well to support the others, which is a motivation that drives the plot. The novel revolves around the importance of marrying for love, not for money or social prestige, despite the communal pressure to make a wealthy match.

Pride and Prejudice has consistently appeared near the top of lists of "most-loved books" among literary scholars and the reading public. It has become one of the most popular novels in English literature, with over 20 million copies sold, and has inspired many derivatives in modern literature.[1][2] For more than a century, dramatic adaptations, reprints, unofficial sequels, films, and TV versions of Pride and Prejudice have portrayed the memorable characters and themes of the novel, reaching mass audiences.[3] The 2005 film Pride & Prejudice is the most recent film adaptation that closely represents the book.[4]

Mansfield Park

Mansfield Park is the third published novel by Jane Austen, first published in 1814 by Thomas Egerton. A second edition was published in 1816 by John Murray, still within Austen's lifetime. The novel did not receive any public reviews until 1821.

The novel tells the story of Fanny Price, starting when her overburdened family sends her at age ten to live in the household of her wealthy aunt and uncle and following her development into early adulthood. From early on critical interpretation has been diverse, differing particularly over the character of the heroine, Austen's views about theatrical performance and the centrality or otherwise of ordination and religion, and on the question of slavery. Some of these problems have been highlighted in the several later adaptations of the story for stage and screen.

Emma

Emma, by Jane Austen, is a novel about youthful hubris and romantic misunderstandings. It is set in the fictional country village of Highbury and the surrounding estates of Hartfield, Randalls, and Donwell Abbey and involves the relationships among people from a small number of families.[2] The novel was first published in December 1815, with its title page listing a publication date of 1816. As in her other novels, Austen explores the concerns and difficulties of genteel women living in Georgian–Regency England. Emma is a comedy of manners, and depicts issues of marriage, sex, age, and social status.

Before she began the novel, Austen wrote, "I am going to take a heroine whom no one but myself will much like."[3] In the first sentence, she introduces the title character as "Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and a happy disposition... and had lived nearly twenty-one years in the world with very little to distress or vex her."[4] Emma is spoiled, headstrong, and self-satisfied; she greatly overestimates her own matchmaking abilities; she is blind to the dangers of meddling in other people's lives; and her imagination and perceptions often lead her astray.

Emma, written after Austen's move to Chawton, was her last novel to be published during her lifetime,[5] while Persuasion, the last novel Austen wrote, was published posthumously.

This novel has been adapted for several films, many television programmes, and a long list of stage plays.

 

[Kz3r0]

I'm not sure that we have the swag to pull off the lovable scoundrel act.

We are a ten years old boy, just by stay there and doing nothing we will look like a little scoundrel caught doing naughty things.
My suggestion of putting on the dress is serious, in that way we will look like a cheeky brat and not a murderous thug.

 

[Nevill]

We'll need to not get kicked out for that, and A seems like the most reasonable route if Wrinkly can apply his speaking lessons and name drop Sophie.

We don't know if it's "Sophie" Sophie, or if she knows us. I just dislike the wording of trying to explain away that we ended here on accident. What are we doing here? Not just in Sophie's room, but in general. We don't know it ourselves.

Maybe we could have been less of a sneak and approach Sophie openly, but we chose to be quiet and poke around the place. Now we've been discovered. What will we be doing from now on? Double down, or back off, probably in a worse position than before?

Alright, autism mode engaged:

That... tells me nothing.

My suggestion of putting on the dress is serious, in that way we will look like a cheeky brat and not a murderous thug.

You find a ragged cheeky brat in the room of your master's daughter, playing with her underwear. What are you going to do, give him a lecture? We look like a beggar and a thief (dirty, disfigured), so it is likely we'll be treated like one, and maybe someone would talk to us after they shake us down and realize we haven't stolen anything (didn't have time?)

 

[Baltika9]

We don't know if it's Sophie, or if she knows us. I just dislike the wording of trying to explain away that we ended here on accident. What are we doing here? Not just in Sophie's room, but in general. We don't know it ourselves.

I don't follow. The previous update stated that Sophie is the lady of the ball:

There doesn’t seem to be anyone around in the grounds. Moving closer to the mansion, you look through the window. There, to your surprise, you see Sophie in an elaborate, expensive-looking white dress. Her hair is tied up neatly and she is all dolled up, looking prettier than you have ever seen her.

Maybe we could have been less of a sneak and approach Sophie openly, but we chose to be quiet and poke around the place. Now we've been discovered. What will we be doing? Double down, or back off, probably in a worse position than before?

Well, we can attempt to talk our way out, and hopefully get some slack for being a kid, or go the full home invasion route. Maybe we can elicit pity from the head maid, we obviously look like a poor urchin with the social skills to match. Yeah, A seems reasonable.

That... tells me nothing.

I'm just reading through these myself. What I'm trying to do is pick up on the possible story threads at play here (if this dream does indeed follow a Jane Austen plot) and I'm sharing my sources. No conclusions to report yet.

 

[Nevill]

I don't follow. The previous update stated that Sophie is the lady of the ball:

Yes, but is she Sophie McClellan, or Margarita María de la Victoria Esperanza Jacoba Felicidad Perpetua y Todos los Santos de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias?
It's just a sufficiently long royal name I found on the Internet, don't read too much into it.

As I said, it's not certain Sophie is in control of her character here. Namecalling her might backfire. We did pick to infiltrate the mansion to find out more about it.

 

[Baltika9]

As I said, it's not certain Sophie is in control of her character here. Namecalling her might backfire. We did pick to infiltrate the mansion to find out more about it.

But that failed, so now what do we do? Play the pitiable urchin that we are, go full murderhobo, or try to run away and find another way in? What's your take?

Margarita María de la Victoria Esperanza Jacoba Felicidad Perpetua y Todos los Santos de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias?

Pfft. Sophie, descendant of the house of Bourbon and of the house of Bourbon of the Two Sicilies? Yeah right, and Father McClellan is the son of Irish kings.



As an aside, this isn't necessarily a royal name, but a Mediterranean one. It is in the tradition to combine the names of saints and related families to the baptismal names of their children. For instance, Pablo Picasso, a man of relatively middle-class origins, had the following baptismal name: Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso.

No idea if that's still practiced, though. Kz3r0, can you confirm or deny?

 

[Nevill]

Play the pitiable urchin that we are, go full murderhobo, or try to run away and find another way in? What's your take?

It would depend on the maid's reaction. Maybe it is my inner pessimist speaking, but I mark it down as "uncharitable".
It was our character's trait that people perceive him in the worse light due to his appearance and inexperience with words. Sophie barely got over her revulsion, if she did.
Tlalli was different, but we were a kindred soul, and our first act in her sight was protecting the girls and murdering lizards, things she is very much in favor doing herself.
Father McClellan was different, but he was a priest known for his kind heart, and we were a pair of homeless kids with no one to turn to.

Consider what the situation looks like to the head maid; consider that she is not a God's woman, but a hired worker; consider what her job and duties are. Barring extreme soft-heartedness, she would be inclined to throw us out at best, and Wrinkly is not the type to evoke a compassionate response just by virtue of his character.

I don't think talking is in the cards, unless something else happens. Maybe they'd drag us down to Sophie and we can salvage it there, but by itself I don't hold much hope for explaining things away.

And I wouldn't call doubling down being a murderhobo... not yet. There is no murder involved.
...but if we are going to be here a while (in dream time), this is absolutely going to be a problem because either Sophie is going to retire to her room, or some other maid will check on it for something else.

I am leaning B, personally. I am just trying to consider other angles before voting for it.

Sophie, descendant of the house of Bourbon and of the house of Bourbon of the Two Sicilies?

...I dig that.

If she isn't a descendant, it just means we'll have to carve out a throne for her ourselves.
Or for us; and she can be our religious advisor/head priestess.
Mmm, Head Priestess of Uridimmu sure has a nice ring to it.

 

[Absinthe]

H - Instead of trying to convince her, briefly apologize (say "Sorry" or such like), behave, and otherwise remain silent. Only explain if prompted.

If we do explain, I think we should just tell the truth as far as we are able (omitting any references to the supernatural). "What were you doing?" "I was trying to reach miss Sophie" "How do you know miss Sophie?" "Met her at church" "Where are you from?" "[Explain church we live at.]" And so on.

A (trying to persuade her that we are not, in fact, up to no good) is digging ourselves into a grave and E will get us in trouble (as the circumstances are not good). B (punch out the maid) and C (gag the maid) are not happening, and dangerous besides (people here carry pistols). D will cause us trouble anyway, since we are easily identifiable and people will keep an eye out for us. We don't have the charisma to pull off F (handing her the chemise and walking off), and G is too out of character for us and likely to end in disaster. May as well try H. We're well-mannered enough to do this much. It's basically "E, but less bad" which seems to be as good as it gets.

Y'know, I just realized we picked the adventure that leans heavily on our nonexistent speech and etiquette skills. Maybe this was a bad idea.

 

[Nevill]

Lmao, OK stealth seems off the table

Nah, it just got a little more... Malfean.

Spoiler

People coming up with write-ins for communication options is a sign that they don't have much faith in communications working.
To hell with it, I am going with...

B. You rush the old maid and try to punch her out before she can call for help.

Spoiler

Call it... "Codex co-writes a Jane Austen novel"