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Chatterbox: Pudding's Place
You walk home from school, feeling utterly exhausted. Slumping on your bed, you close your eyes, trying to wish away the mountain of homework on your desk. It’s a warm day, even though it’s October and the leaves should be turning red and falling. The sun is shining, the sky is blue. The weather makes it hard to be grumpy, but you’re trying your hardest.
Suddenly, the room gets much hotter. You open your eyes, feeling grumpier than ever. Why can’t the weather be pleasant, for once, you wonder, forgetting that it was pleasant just one minute ago. When you sit up, you nearly fall over, thinking you’re dreaming.
Because standing on the outside of the window, looking very cross, is a phoenix. “Open your window, grumpypants,” it seems to say. You’re too shocked to do anything but obey. The phoenix hops inside, making the room even hotter. You open all your windows trying to cool the room down.
The phoenix unfurls its tail, making it look like a peacock on fire, and making you wish even harder that it was gone as the room becomes almost too hot to bear. A piece of smoldering paper tied with a piece of singed ribbon falls to the ground. “Goodbye, for now,” the phoenix’s voice in your head says, and it jumps through the window and disappears in a flash of gold feathers.
The room has now cooled down significantly. You pick up the smoking paper gingerly, hoping it doesn’t fall apart in your hands. It doesn’t. You gently tug on the singed green ribbon and it disintegrates, bits of ash floating down to your carpet. You wince, and uncurl the note even more carefully. In the top right, it says the date. Under that, it says Pheonixe Place.
Are they aware they spelled phoenix wrong? You wonder, but read the note anyways. In immaculate handwriting, it says:
Dear CBer,
My sister and I would like to invite you to spend a fortnight of vacationing at our house, Phoenixe Place. It’s located on the Edge of the World. If you accept, fill out the form below. You may bring up to one companion. Please no CAPTCHAs. Last time no one could understand them and they got rather upset. My sister doesn’t want to hurt their feelings again. Ten spots only, not including companions. Reply as soon as possible. Teleport to Phoenixe Place using the device attached at three o’clock on October Fifteenth. Forms must be filled for alter egos as well.
Name:
Pronouns:
Appearance:
Personality:
Luggage:
Age:
Favorite Color:
Companion:
Allergies:
Other:
We hope to see you there.
Sincerely,
Fae (and my sister, Yasmine)
Underneath the note, a wooden phoenix is taped to the paper. You slide it out and put it on your bed. Then you reread the note. Wait. The Edge of the World? Earth is a sphere. Don’t they know that? Your frown and wonder whether to go.
You debate with yourself. A vacation sounds great, but do you really want to be murdered? After a few minutes, you catch sight of the pile of homework sitting on your desk. That does it. If it isn’t fun, at least you’ll be able to figure out what Fae and Yasmine mean by the Edge of the World. You fill out the form. It disappears, and you wait for October Fifteenth…
submitted by Fae and Yasmine, age Ski Lodge!, Pheonixe Place
(October 5, 2020 - 1:37 pm)
(October 5, 2020 - 1:37 pm)
Author's Note, #1: Oh dear, I'm very sorry! I had this written but it appears I have forgotten to post it. Well, here it is, three days late:
Day 2, pt 1
Summer woke up early the next morning. Spring was still sleeping in the bed across the room, so she tiptoed across the room to watch the waterfalls falling into nothingness. It was strangely calming, once you got past the height.
She tore herself away reluctantly, deciding she should probably go get some breakfast, as she was rather hungry. She slipped out of the door- which she realized was sky blue on one side and slate blue on the other (had Fae and Yasmine repainted the doors just for them?)- quietly. She closed it, making as little noise as possible…
...and screamed. Inside, Spring shot out of bed, banging through the door. “What happened-” she started, then shouted. All around them, doors were opening.
Darkling was on the floor, face down, in a position so uncomfortable looking she couldn’t have chosen to put herself in it. Heroes burst into tears. Luna-Starr ran back into her room and slammed the door. Sage hugged herself.
Feet pounded the stairs. “What happened?” asked Fae’s no nonsense, business-like voice. “Is everyone okay?” asked Yasmine, her voice tight with worry. “No!” the word seemed to rip itself out of Nightfall’s throat. Galaxy squeezed her hand.
Their hosts, who had by then made it up the stairs, gasped. “Oh,” said Fae, turning pale. “Oh.” Yasmine bit her lip. “Please everyone make your way to the kitchen. Breakfast has been made. Fae and I will take care of Darkling.” Her voice was robotic, as if she was just trying not to think about it right now.
The CBers nodded shakily. AutumnArtist knocked on Luna’s door gently. Luna opened it and followed her miserably downstairs.
“What- what do you think happened to her?” Sterling asked nervously. No one answered her. Moondrop shivered, even though it was just as warm as it had been the day before.
Steaming cups of hot cocoa and tea were on the counter, with a sign reading, “Take one.” PygmyOwl took a tea, feeling that hot cocoa was too cheerful for the current situation. “Maybe- maybe Darking isn’t- isn’t… dead,” Agent Winter said, in a brilliant show of optimism, but no one bought it. They all knew the truth.
Heroes took a deep breath, trying to control herself. “Fae and Yasmine will probably tell us what happened when they come back. Let’s talk about something else,” she said, trying to sound firm but instead sounding more scared and worried and sad than ever.
Starlight nodded. “Um, what colors were your doors?” she tried to change the subject. Summer decided to go with it. “Spring’s and my door is sky blue on one side and slate blue on the other. Do you think they repainted specifically for us?” she wondered.
“Maybe,” PygmyOwl said. “Mine’s painted the colors I listed in the sheet.” There was a chorus of agreement. Suddenly, a shout came from upstairs.
The CBers and AEs looked at each other and ran towards the stairs.
“Back downstairs, please,” Yasmine said desperately. “Why?” asked Bakerloo. “We deserve to know what happened,” Spring said quietly. Orson nodded. At least they could agree on that.
Fae bit her lip. “Okay. We’ll tell you exactly what happened in five minutes. Please stay downstairs, no matter what you hear. Go anywhere you want, as long as it’s downstairs and inside. We’ll be finished up here in a minute.”
She turned back to where they all knew Darkling lay. The CBers went downstairs to have more anxious, awkward discussion while they waited.
~to be continued~
Deceased: 1 (Darkling, cause currently unknown)
Alive: 16
Suspects: 0
Author's Note, #2: Does anyone have any suspects?
(November 1, 2020 - 1:02 pm)
Awww...poor Darkling.
(November 2, 2020 - 10:30 am)
I, PygmyOwl, self-proclaimed genius and the bestest detective in the history of the universe, suspect... absolutely no one, because my brain is dead. *applause*
Wonderful again, Fae and Yasmine! This ski lodge is so good!
(November 2, 2020 - 1:26 pm)
This is awesome! While retreating back into my room after seeing a dead body would totally be my real reaction, it's a little suspicious in a ski lodge setting... so right now I suspect me. Hooray!
(November 2, 2020 - 5:44 pm)
No, Darkling! And here I was thinking this would be a fun, lighthearted vacation, but of course it's a ski lodge.
Hmm, I have a tiny bit of suspicion, but I don't know. It might be nothing...
It's Heroes. Changing the subject was a very suspicious thing to do.
Well, it could be. It could also be you, Spring.
No. It was most certainly not me.
(November 2, 2020 - 8:51 pm)
Darkling, no... We hardly knew ya!
Don't tell him, but I'm kind of suspicious of Orson right now... I'm pretty terrible at guessing the murderer though, so don't quote me...
Oh, and great work, Fae and Yasmine! I love the setting of Phoenixe Place, and I can't wait to see where this goes...
(November 2, 2020 - 2:47 pm)
I'm feeling a bit suspicious of Agent Winter, because even though she tried to change the mood, she was still talking about Darkling.
(November 3, 2020 - 9:55 am)
Day 2, pt 2
Fae stood in front of the crowd of CBers with Yasmine. The CBers were buzzing nervously. “We have determined the cause of Darkling’s…” Fae bit her lip. With great effort, she continued. “…d…eath.” She winced, cringed, and shuddered at the same time. “It appears she was shot with a poison dart, and then, just for good measure, stabbed with a pocket knife as she walked down the hall. It happened from the front, and the person seems to have pushed her over to hide the-” Fae couldn’t continue.
“To hide the evidence,” Yasmine said, strangely calm. If Darkling’s death was making Fae jumpy and emotional, it was turning Yasmine into a robot, AutumnArtist noticed sadly.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a yelp from Bakerloo and Nightfall bursting into messy tears, to the bewilderment of everyone. Moondrop put her arm around Nightfall worriedly, catching Sterling’s nervous eye. “What’s wrong?” PygmyOwl asked Bakerloo, who had suddenly turned an unhealthy shade of grey. “Did- did anyone else bring poison darts?” he asked nervously.
“No,” everyone said. Then they noticed: “Wait, anyone else?” Luna-Starr said suspiciously. Bakerloo opened his mouth to explain, looking sick. Orson interrupted. “Bakerloo brought poison darts,” he said, his voice strangely void of emotion. Agent Winter gasped. “Wait, what?” she asked, sounding shocked. Nightfall wiped her eyes. “Galaxy and I both brought pocket knives,” she said quietly. “Wait, WHAT?” Agent Winter said again. Galaxy bit her lip, blinking hard.
“So one of you two did it!” someone accused. Bakerloo reacted immediately. “I did not! Someone must have stolen them! And can we not forget that Orson had access to the darts as well?!” He would’ve kept protesting, but Orson interrupted. “Excuse me? I would never!” Nightfall didn’t say anything, so Galaxy did it for her. “Neither of us did it, either! And I have my pocket knife with me. I know it wasn’t Nightfall because-- well, because--” Galaxy faltered angrily. “It wasn’t me,” Nightfall said, her voice choked up. “I didn’t even-- I didn’t even unpack yet,” she managed to get out before dissolving into tears once more.
“Well…” said Moondrop, “What about Luna? She went back inside her room. What if she was hiding the weapons?” Luna recoiled, shocked. Sage stood up defensively. “It was NOT!” both of them said. “Lizards, can we calm down, please?” PygmyOwl said frustratedly. “Lizards?” asked Sterling. “Yes, lizards. Anyways, it could be any of us. True, the-” she stopped. “The murd-” Pygmy tried, but she couldn’t seem to get the words out. Summer, who hadn’t said anything yet, was thinking hard. “The murderer,” she said calmly, too preoccupied to notice the horrific reality of the words coming out of her mouth. After a brief pause, Pygmy continued. “Yes, the- the murder… er. Anyways, he or she used Bakerloo’s and Nightfall’s weapons, true, but that doesn’t necessarily make them the culprits. A good thief would’ve been able to steal them easily, what with all the distractions we had.”
There was a murmur of agreement. Luna spoke up. “It wasn’t me, if any of you were wondering. I promise. I’ll let anyone search Sage’s and my room if they want to make sure. And since Pygmy’s right, I think we should just start a buddy system. CBers, stick with your AEs. And Sterling will go with Pygmy and Moondrop will go with A.A.. Does that seem okay to everyone?”
Agent Winter spoke up. “Um, not to make everyone feel… unsafe… but, what if our buddy is the murderer? I’m not saying I think Night is the murderer- of course I don’t think that- but - still…” she ended awkwardly. Luna frowned. “You’re right. We’re going to need to make groups of three. I’ll have the assignments up soon.”
The CBers, feeling slightly safer, nodded. Meanwhile, the murderer’s mind was racing.
So was Summer’s. With a murderer on the loose… she knew what she had to do. It wouldn’t be easy, or even necessarily morally correct, but… anything to save the CBers and AEs from the impending doom.
Deceased: 1 (Darkling, shot with Bakerloo’s poison dart and also stabbed with Nightfall’s pocket knife)
Alive: 16
Suspects: Agent Winter, HeroesOfOlympus, Orson, Luna-Starr
Author’s Note: Is the suspect list still accurate? Anyone you no longer suspect? I will take them off. And any new suspects? I will add them to the list. Please note that this question goes for every installment in the future, so I’m going to stop asking it, just know that you can always submit new suspects or take suspects off the list.
Now for the unique question of the week: what do you think Summer’s going to do?
PS. Feel free to guess who I am...
(November 5, 2020 - 8:31 pm)
Well, I think Summer is almost definitely not on the suspect list, since you said "The murderer’s mind was racing. So was Summer’s." Which isn't really helpful, since she was never on the list in the first place. I think I will add Sterling and I to the suspect list, since it would make the most incredible plot twist if one of the detectives were the murderer. My suspects whenever I read/watch mysteries are almost all from plot related stuff, not actual clues XD.
I think you have to be someone on YWP, because you did the joke about lizards. I'll guess... Lumi, maybe? I don't know, though. My brain is still somewhat dead.
This is so good, Fae and Yasmine! This chapter especially had me hooked the entire way through. I can't wait for the next part. Which I'll have to wait an entire week for. I'm such an impatient person.
(November 5, 2020 - 10:35 pm)
Wait.
Oh my goodness.
I mixed this up with the other ski lodge I'm in, the one by Lady Ellingham, Sterling and I are detectives in that one, so ignore my suspicions. My brain is definitely made of feathers.
I would suspect Summer, since she found the body, but it's pretty obvious from the writing that it's not her.
Oh, Nightfall was actually being kind of suspicious. She didn't speak at first to defend herself, and when she did, she was crying. It can take a while to summon fake tears. AND the pocketknife wasn't really neccesary in the killing, since poison darts are probably pretty fatal. So she could have thrown in the knife as a way to draw attention away from herself as the murderer, since, if the murderer was smart enough to steal Bakerloo's darts, she (assuming it's Nightfall) wouldn't want to use her own weapons, and everyone would assume that. But, off course, using my dizzying logic, it's all a bluff.
Which is to say, I have no idea and I'm grasping at loose straws. Threads? I forget the expression.
However, I do have something to say about Luna's suspicion of Summer and Kitten. They know each other irl, so, if one of them had a dentist appointment, the other would be able to finish up/post the part, which is the beauty of a collab ski lodge. So I don't think it's them. (Grasping at straws or thread or whatever it's called again. I am probably completely wrong.)
(November 7, 2020 - 4:04 pm)
Ooh, this is good! I like how you included our suspicions in the story. I kinda still suspect myself- I could have hid the weapons somewhere other than my room, knowing I could use that as an alibi. In fact, I think that's probably what happened- I jumped on assuring everyone they could search the room and recovered from the accusation quickly. Though... maybe it's someone who was pointing fingers, like Moondrop. Ack, I don't know!
I think Summer is going to try and kill the murderer. You mentioned it being "not morally correct", so it would be something more extreme than playing detective, I bet.
Are you two people or just one? If you're two separate CBers, I would think you're Summer and Kitten. If not, are you Bakerloo?
I'm really enjoying this- keep it up! :)
(November 7, 2020 - 1:18 pm)
I have a feeling it's
It could also be either me, Bakerloo, Orson, or Galaxy, since normally we wouldn't be y'know, killing people, but what if one of us made it so that everyone SUSPECTED we were framed? Ohmysaintedheavensijustrealized~
I think its somebody without AEs. They won't have to kill off their own. Or someone with ANNOYING AEs. But probably not...
I think Summer is going to start taking notes and all. Except. She's probably going to be next. She is off of the list, officially.
Orson is kinda suspicious....but he has a CBer. Probably not him...
(November 7, 2020 - 2:37 pm)
This is a brilliant piece of work! I agree that it seems like I'll try to kill the murderer. And then I'll probably fail, and then the murderer will kill me. Oh joy. XD
Are you... Starchaser? Random guess but IDK.
(November 7, 2020 - 5:15 pm)
(November 10, 2020 - 2:11 pm)
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(November 11, 2020 - 11:50 am)