Sophie
Changeling the Dreaming
It isn't often that I get to be the player lately. Although I've been anxious to try games like Fiasco and Mythic, which supposedly allow games that don't have a Storyteller/Game Master handling things, I haven't really had the chance to be the player in a game for a number of years. This was a Sunday which had me home alone and two friends came over to try playing Lacuna. Half an hour later, after aborting the mission due to intense heart palpitations and overwhelming levels of stress, the game closed with a not so happy ending. Of the two players present, one had to head on home, leaving me and my good friend Mahar left wondering what to do next. Lo and behold, Mahar offered to run me a game, and I was definitely excited to take a stab at it again.
The game was to be set in the modern day. I decided to go for a concept I had peculating for some time in my head ever since I saw Skyfall and Notes on a Scandal: I wanted to play a Boggan grump based on Dame Judi Dench.
Sophie Lessway was born. Newly Chrysalised, Sophie was still deeply engaged by her mortal retirement that Kithain politics was boring and frustrating to her. While she understood the importance of the Houses and the need for politics, she felt that she had devoted so much of her life to being of service to others that she wanted to embrace her old age as a chance to just be herself and do what she wanted to do. From being a house helper during her younger years to pay for her medical studies (her parents had left her a large but not overwhelming inheritance), she eventually became a care giver, and from the kindness and devotion she showed one old woman, she ended up inheriting the woman's millions when she died. Now wealthy and retired, Sophie purchased the Home that she moved into once she realized she needed assistance with some activities of daily living, and spent most of her days taking picnics, visiting libraries, or chatting up with strangers at her favorite cafe.
Little did she know her Chysalis from human to one of the changelings would affect her so deeply. She adorned the gifts of the Arts, but greatly resented her innate ability to read the social dynamics of a gathering. Knowing who hated whom and who lied to whom was a terrible ordeal she could not even close her eyes from seeing. The frailty of needing to be of assistance to anyone who asked for help even made matters worse, making her feel once more trapped into the service of others.
Sophie finds herself having a visitor; a spunky young girl who annoys her and insults her, and ends the conversation by identifying herself as a messenger of the reigning nobleman in charge and that she was being requested to come "as you are." Annoyed, Sophie searches through her old dresses and the staff hand her other old gowns and dresses that they have had through the years. Uncertain which one to wear, she decides to head to the cafe to find her Dreamer, a young writer named Elmo, to get his opinion on the matter.
She finds him speaking with the messenger, who once more pushes the right buttons to rile her up. The two verbally spar for a while, and once the young Satyr leaves, Sophie rants to Elmo about it, only to be rebuffed by Elmo's belief in the young lady's words that Sophie was her grand mother and that Sophie would naturally want to disassociate herself with her. Hurt that Elmo would trust the young beautiful girl over her, Sophie walked out and decided to come up with her own dress to wear. She visited a number of shops to buy the cloth and articles she needed, then spent the next few nights doing months worth of work to create a dress which she felt captured her identity. The dress she crafted was like an onion, with various layers which depicted different instances in her life - from her time as a house helper, to the time she was a nurse, and eventually a final outfit which she felt was a good way to end any political or service-related discussion. She then made arrangements at the home and with other friends, handling them post-dated checks if not envelops of cash to "handle affairs while I'm gone. I have no clear idea when I am returning after all."
The night of the party came. Sophie headed to the location listed in the invitation, which showed an old church in the center of their community. She hands the church a huge donation, then slides into the confessional to take the necessary trod. The trod leads her into the near dreaming, and there she finds the annoying young wilder waiting for her again. Their banter is different how, as it seems many are making it clear how important a guest she is among the others present. She eventually finds herself asked to step into a room that is populated mostly by the Sidhe, save for a single troll who laughs along with them. When she tries to slip back out, she leans that the troll is the Baron of the location who had invited her over, and that he wanted to offer her a job. Knowing most of the Sidhe were too preoccupied with their own trivial affairs, the Baron needed someone who had the keen mind to handle any changeling affairs that tip-toed towards mortal issues. Sophie questioned if she is really suited for the job, and the Troll noble-man mused how among all the guests, she alone understood what was expected of their outfits. "Show me the dresses then, that they do not go to waste."
Sophie presented each dress, telling him about her lives through the years as a servant, or as a care giver, and in the end, stripped away the final dress to reveal a pure white business suit underneath. She pulled her collar closed tighter, then agreed to do the job even as the Troll threw some clearly seductive remarks her way. Of course, she realized eventually, the Troll was of House Fiona. And if she were lucky, Sophie would get through all these things with her sanity intact.
*
Not bad for a one shot.
I had hoped to have some fun with my Arts, or even just throw around some "This is the power of a massive collection force" but clearly, the two were not going to be in the game. But man, that was fun. I tried recording the audio of the game but afterwards, listening to it, I realized I could barely hear Mahar, the storyteller, 2) I had NO intentions of resharing what sounded like me doing a VERY VERY BAD JUDI DENCHI, 3) And lastly, I will need a proper microphone to do this better.
Anyway, keep the dice rolling folks!
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