#rivervale_lodge

"I... I thought it would hurt less, if she stopped writing."

"I've already ruined things. I can't fix this."

Brow again. "You are a Beaumayn now? You can see what will come?"

Brekke leans back and indicates the letter. "Read."

A miserable expression, but she opens the first letter.

Brekke sits quietly, watching.

Dagmar reads.

The entry letter speaks of how great the campus is, but she really misses them all. 'I know how weird it is to write a letter, but I wanted to give you the entry to my first script... please, send me some input, you know detailed stuff about which parts you love about it. I think I could be good at this but you always believed in me'

And the script starts. It's like a Xena t he Warrior Princess tale with three sisters who in no small part resemble Sam, Lupe, and yes, May. Dagmar may remember this one.... via Lupe

It does hurt to read, not for the letter itself, but for the guilt that is screaming in her head. But.... she has orders, and that gives her enough of a push to wade into it.

The tale is a fun romp, the sort you get if you want feel good action

with a healthy dose of fantasy

the elements of sisterhood are through it all

It is NOT perfect. A plot hole here , a repetition there

The letters are mutely pushed over the table when she finishes each in turn.

The next letter asks if she got the last one? Is all well. How are you? She'd text but she's trying to win a bet with a professor who says she can't go a month without it.

Stupid professor

A wince or two.

Brekke gestures to the ones on the table, a wordless request if she has permission to read them.

A pained look, but she nods.

The third letter speaks of how things are going well, but she thought she found that plot hole (She did) And 'you mustn't be afraid to tell me how it is. We're friends. If you don't like my material just tell me how to improve it. I'm a big girl, I can take it 🙂 '

And the script changes ARE for the better

Brekke reads them as she passes them across.

The fourth letter is... full of frustration and bad news. Looks like there are some snobby girls in class. She got voted 'worst script' for the project. 'Too syrupy' 'too sweet'

Her expression gets stonier as she continues to read. She doesn't need anyone to chastise her for letting May down... for abandoning her...

The fifth one is another script. 'Trying to adjust my style. PLEASE tell me what you think?' It's grimmer, post apocylptic, dog eat dog,but still with some hopes. KInd of like Hunger games. And a good guy dies

Brekke reads quietly, her expression echoing Dagmar's with a bit of delay.

A frown. "But this isn't you."

Brekke looks up curiously.

The next letter says "Okay, you must be really busy. Lupe too. She was responding but it's rarer and rarer,a nd yours not at all. Did I do something to piss you guys off? Anyway, they liked that last one okay but htought it was too derivative. I guess it was. I'm making some friends, but not FRIENDS friends. Folks here are nice, but ... not kind'

...but resumes reading.

She puts her hands over her face.

"This is hard," she says quietly. "You must continue."

"She was supposed to be having a better time than me."

"You made up a fiction of what was. Now you know a clearer truth."

LUcky number 7 is another script, brilliant 'I found a muse, at least that's what she called herself. Ha. Isn't that fun? Anyway I did get inspired by Dyana... but it's ... well, it's odd. I felt chaqrged, but ...well,see for yourself" the script is HORROR. Not horrible, but a horror. Stalking hunting killing one by one members of a book club are hunted and slain. They try to escape their 'getaway' even turning on each other in panic. It's a brillaint story of the break down of morality in the face of terror. And the end story? the main POV character, the survivor, kills the killer... but discovers she liked the feeling. And there's all signs she's a murderess in themaking herself. A redcap would LOVE this.

It's really well done!

A frown.

When Brekke gets to that one and finishes it, she lets out a heavy sigh. "This was my concern."

"This isn't her."

Indeed, Brekke is experienced enough to strongly suspect Dyana IS a redcap muse, either that or a highly uncouth sluagh

"No. It is this Dyana. She is feeding May ideas, and May's talent is crafting them into stories."

"So... she found someone." Deeply ambivalent.

A brow. "You are content to leave her in the hands of one who encourages her to do this?" she indicates the script.

There are more letters still

"It's good." A frown.

"I never really... I just always thought of her as my friend first, instead of as my 'Dreamer', so I didn't..."

"That suited her, I think."

Letter 8 beckons like a sword of damacles

She indicates the next letter. "Continue."