GM: Eric Fattig
Players: Adrienne Mueller, Karen Twelves, Sean Nittner
System: Under Hollow Hills
Eric offered to run Under Hollow Hills, which I had only played once before at SeanCon with Jozy, and I was eager to see it in action. We planned it as a one shot but after the session, we had such a good time that we’re going to do it again!
Characters
Karen quickly gravitated to the Nightmare Horse. I played the Chieftain Mouse last time so I knew I wanted to play a low status character this time. I picked the Stick Figure. Adrienne looked at a few different options and settled on The Crooked Wand, witch-folk.
We picked some imagery, reviews our trappings, chose our plays, and divined names that spoke to us.
Delilah Drowning, the Crooked Wand. In summer she was know for drowned roots and mud, knotted hair, worn clothing, tattered lace, and a perpetual squelching. Her cart was pulled by the old ox Henry, and she carried a pitch fork which was actually a trident. Here annoying cat Scuppers was always at her heals.
Old Jesper, the Nightmare Horse. In summer she was a wild orchard with shapely legs, moss green colors, high books, and an unapproachable demeanor. She had a glorious wagon pulled by matching geldings. The face of our circus.
Grumpy Pillbottle, the Stick Figure. A mechanical contraption made and forgotten. In summer he was know for the bellows nested in his chest, pearl eyes, copper finish, and a doctor’s lab coat and stethoscope that comically failed to disguise him. He had a hook that he hung from in Delilah’s wagon.
Bindings
Grumpy:
- Old Jesper knew where I came from, but wouldn’t tell me.
- Delilah Drowning I’ve taken as a role model. I attempt to emulate her grunts, groans, and flatulents with my creaky parts and bellows.
Delilah
- I once turned Grumpy into a fish, put them in a bowl, and let my cat Scuppers state at them with its yellow eyes. Grumpy must have asked too many questions.
- Old Jesper once confessed to me their heart’s true love and longing.
Old Jesper
- I’ve known Delilah Drowning for a long time. We joined the circus together.
- I caught Grumpy Pillbottle opening a door to the fey wild in Titania’s court that he had no business opening.
Welcome to Calistoga
We arrived at the Calistoga County Faire in time to see trucks setting up to sell cold treats, a hammer and bell setup to test the strength of a contender, fireworks, and Commissioner Howe. He welcomed Old Jasper and said he wanted the “Best show we’ve ever seen. You just let me know if there’s anything you need to succeed!” Old Jasper assured him we had everything we needed. The seeds of distrust planted already.
Back at the wagons, Grumpy Pillbottle tumbled out of Delilah’s wagon, all in parts, some on the ground, some still on the wagon’s bench. A young girl and younger boy approached looking at them with skepticism and curiosity respectively.
Grumpy tried to draw them in by spitting out a card with a fortune written on it, but he was rebuffed. The girl (who we’d later learn was named Curly Q on account of her curly hair) was distrusting of adults. She was a keen observer and noticed how often they lied to suit their needs. She walked off and dropped the card in her wake.
The boy (who we’d later learn was Bruce) did not talk, and though he was not trusting of people, he loved animals.
—
As they departed Delilah read the bones and scanned the fairgrounds for people who might be oath breakers. She found several:
- Commissioner Howe, no surprises there.
- Superintendent Sullivan, who ran the ranch
- An Italian woman and a Chinese man departing (separately) from the train.
Delilah picked up the discarded fortune, which said “You will eat a grasshopper” and the bones told her this would not happen. Jasper noted that three out of five of Grumpy’s fortunes were “You will eat a grasshopper”. It paid off big in Toad Swamp, so it had become one of Grumpy’s favorites, even if it was less likely anywhere else. Still, Old Japser was a great cook, she could surely make a chocolate covered grasshopper no one could resist…if she chose to.
—
Old Jasper sniffed the wind and noticed a few things. One of the people in the crowed was a fairykind, a tall man who was spiderfolk. He nodded to her but otherwise seemed innocuous. Her ears twitched (like a horse’s ears would) and her nose led her back to Commissioner Howe and Superintendent Sullivan who were sharing an unkind joke about rearing children. Grumpy offered to come along and help but Old Jasper said she wanted to fit in. “Fit in where?” Grumpy asked as he passed his arm through his hollow chest cavity. Then the arm fell off, as it was prone to do.
Commissioner Howe introduced Jasper to Superintendent Sullivan, who was the employer at the ranch. When Jasper inquired they revealed that the children had been up to mischief: backtalk, shirking chores, and general misbehaving. Jasper pressed harder and the releveled that “Old Fluffy” a beloved cow had been sold to a butcher for steak and they had told the children she had a new home, so as not to make them sad. Old Jasper inquired bluntly about lying to children as a way of preparing them for adulthood, which just make the other two former jovial conspirators feeling judged and defensive. They clammed up and went on their way.
—
Near the ice shack, the young boy found a contraption dressed in a doctors coat with a stethoscope hanging down where a child could put it on. When he put the device to his ears he heard instructions for activating the machine. Just pull this lever. When he did one of Grumpy’s pearl eyes rolled out of it’s socket down a long slide like a gumball and into a tray as a prize. The boy did not talk but he shoved a piece of paper in the slot indicating his name was Bruce. Bruce led Grumpy to an old leaky milk shack where other kids played as well. The kids teased Bruce some but he ignored them. Mostly he wanted to show Grump his drawings, on scraps of paper and magazines and envelopes all over the walls.
—
Delilah and Jasper inspected the suspicious people who came off the train. The first was Gratia, a very refined Italian woman who looked out of place in the fairgrounds. She had every intent of enjoying herself. She was a person used to getting what she wants, regardless of who it helped.
The second was a baby-faced Chinese man, who just wanted to live life to the fullest, but had no idea what was in store for him.
—
Jasper approached the inquisitive child who engaged her in honest and direct conversation. “You look smarter than most of the adults here. What do you know?”
“I’m Curly Q on account of the curls I used to have. Old Jasper sounds like a strange name for an adult. Sounds like a horse’s name.”
Old Jasper withheld a snort. She continued talking with the girl and realized she was very frustrated that adults lied so much, but when asked what she was going to do about it, said “Nothing I’m a child.”
Jasper retorted “Go do something! Steal some money. Learn to ride a horse!”
Finally Curly Q shed some of her tough exterior “Sometimes failure hurts really bad. And I wont want to get hurt. I’m not going to steal, that’s not right, but I assume you mean the horse is metaphorical.”
“No I mean learn to ride a horse. As a young girl who is one day going to be a young woman you need to have your own money and a way to travel on your own.”
—
Delilah found the strong woman who run the bell, proving her strength. The woman gestured to hand Delilah the hammer but she deferred “Oh, my hammer swinging days are over…for now.”
“Yeah, I can tell.” The woman said, proud of her strength “My name is Mean Beth.”
“You have kind eyes—” Delilah said, but was quickly cut off.
“That’s a lie!”
Delilah looked into her secret heart and saw Mean Beth was mostly mean because people said she was and over time she grew to live up to her reputation. There was a softer side in her. She also peered back into the Crooked Wand’s heart and saw that Delilah was empty inside, a dead woman.
—
In the milk shack Grumpy looked at Bruce’s art. All of the pictures were animals, some of them very good. Grumpy took one of them and framed it in his chassis, set a light on it and and presented it as if it had won an award at the faire. Grumpy and Bruce became friends!
Curly Q arrived as Grumpy was fixing the leak in the milk shack and then encouraged both Curly Q and Bruce to come help him set up the tent. Once they joined, so did all the rest of the kids, and soon Grumpy plus a whole gaggle of children were pulling ropes, hammering stakes, and otherwise pitching a great tent.
Unfortunately Grumpy got fixated on getting it just right, and couldn’t stop tightening one bolt that kept slipping. Standing 30′ tall on stilts that were his own legs, Grumpy didn’t come down until Delilah coaxed him to return. It was okay if the tent sagged a bit.
The Show
The tent raised, the circus assembled it was time to put on the show:
Thimble the Plum barked and barked until his cheeks turned purple (hence his name) drawing the crowds into the tent.
Old Jasper lead the opening act, first riding a delicate chariot before leaping on the horses and riding astride two of them at once. She dismounted and had them perform dressage, dancing in delicate patterns. To finish the act, she called for a volunteer in the audience and the spotlight fell on Curly Q, who reluctantly came to ride the circus horses. She was a natural, of course!
Following this the lights went dark and a single spotlight turned on to illuminate Delilah Drowning as she told fortunes for those in the audience. She called the ranch hand to the fore and told him that he would meet a beautiful woman that would show him incredible pleasures. As the audience cheered, she leaned forward and told him privately that he might not like what happens next.
Then she called upon those whose fate might take a dark turn. The spotlight fell on the baby-faced Chinese man, who matched the exact description of the wanted poster Mean Beth. Beth chased him out of the tent.
Finally called upon someone who had a fortune that was not deserved. The Superintendent Sullivan turned out not to be a superintendent at all, but a simple ranch hand, and she was happy with the work. Nobody to boss around.
Though fortunes had changed, the crowd was waiting for something more spectacular.
Grumpy Pillbottom, with help from Bruce performed all manner of antics that were dramatic and had everyone on the edge of their seats. Would little Bruce be hurt…of course not, but they still wanted more.
Grump loaded himself into the cannon and Bruce lit the wick, when it fired Grumpy exploded into a hundred bits that landed in the laps of the audience, sending the laughing and cheering uproariously.
The Dandelion Band ended the show with a musical number and the audience filed out of the tent, knowing their lives had changed, but not necesarily knowing how.
After the Show
Curly Q came to Old Jasper’s wagon. Jasper swung the door open quick when she knocked and only her quick dexterity prevented her from been knocked aside by it. “I think it was go with you.”
“You’re life will change for ever if you do. You’ll see many great things, but you’ll never be able to return. Do you still want to join us?”
“I do.” Curly Q walked away, confident she had made the right decision. Jasper smiled, delighted as well, but perhaps for more sinister reasons. On the way home to collect her few belongings, Curly Q even stopped for a chocolate grasshopper (Delilah cursed the bones for telling her wrong).
As the stage hand walked home from the circus he saw an alluring figure by the swamp who beckoned him for a night of delights. He thought on it, and decided to keep walking.
Delilah curse him as well! On her way back to the wagon however, she found Grumpy Pillbottle and told him that his show a good one…good enough he’s going to have to get his own wagon. As a pile of animated metal and wood parts, Grumpy wasn’t capable of blushing, but somehow we all knew he was.
