Episode 98 - Harvests

## Harvests

A black background with four white images in each of the corners making up the border. These images are two pieces of wrapped candy in the top right, three small hard candies with a swirl pattern in the bottom right, a small cluster of popcorn cornels in the bottom right and candied orange peels in the top left. Within the border three pumpkins of varying size are depicted in white, the middle has been covered in light candle sticks and the largest had been carved into a Jack-O-Lantern and possesses a flurry of eyes within it, depicted in red. Bellow this image but still within the border the words "98.HARVESTS" are depicted in white

### Author

William A Wellman

Violet prepares for the winter, Riot goes trick-ot-treating, and Diggory gets an unexpected visitor. The theme of tonight's episode is Harvests.

> ***Content warnings**:* *Animal death (Heidi as usual), Kidnapping and abduction, Death + Injury, Blood, Emotional Manipulation, Body horror, Consumption of Inedible Materials (bad candy), Electrocution, Vomit (turn of phrase)*
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## Intro - Rot And Song

Nikignik speaks to the Dreamers of something that resided deep under the ground, not knowing yet if it should wake, if it should rise. It concludes that, what was life if it did not, and with a lunge they reach upwards and seize the air, blind its many eyes as it crawls up into the sun for the first time, into a field of gleaming black gourds around it.

Nikignik lurks within a large Jack-O-Lantern, looking out over Scoutpost Two.

## Story 1 - Two Hikers

Violet Keene thinks to herself that in her life she had found few troubles that could not be reasoned with. It was numbers that she struggled with, and that Bern Keene excelled at, and this was why she tried not to panic as she counted their food supplies and found them lacking. Clementine Maidstone approaches Violet and asked her opinion on her Halloween costume, to Violet's approval, saying that she looked like Valerie Maidstone's old magazine covers. Clementine asks if there was anything she needed help with, and Violet asks her to take some of the ciders up to the rest of the group as they'd see use that night. Clementine obliges, before she goes asking Violet if everything was okay, but Violet tells her it was and to enjoy her night. Violet follows her a few moments later, telling herself that things would be okay, they'd survived every winter before this one.

She walks around Scoutpost Two as it celebrates. She concludes that The Scoutpost's attitude towards the strange and paranormal started with Walter 'Walt' Pensive, when he'd shown her that skeletons in the lake were harmless if left undisturbed. She wonders if she was going to rest peaceful when she died, or if something unnatural was going to happen to her like everything else in her life. Returning to her and Bern's cabin, and Bern starts to talk to her from their living room about how she'd figured out how many caramels to give to each trick-or-treater. Violet brings up what Bern was wearing, that it wasn't the costume she was meant to be in, and Bern reveals that she'd getting her part of their matching bear and hiker costume mixed up. Bern tells her that she could find something bear like if it meant that much to Violet, but she tells her that it was alright, they could be two hikers. Bern tells her that things were going to be alright, and Violet tells her that she believed her.

### Interlude 1 - Autumn Has Arrived

Nikignik tells the Dreamers that Autum had arrived in the Hallowoods. The trees that still bore leaves had turned from blackish-green to blackish-reds and oranges, the pines unchanged. They were evergreen, ever dark, ever listening, and had only dropped their pine cones to celebrate the season. It was the time of harvests—and although their planet had grown warmer overall, the winters remained temperamental, as curious and difficult to track as the new topography itself. The gardens were empty and brown, the evenings grew earlier and the nights colder.

## Story 2 - The Easy Part

Riot Maidstone having decided to dress as a knight for Halloween and put an admirable if bootlegged attempt at making her costume, finds herself excited for the night. Standing next to Olivier Song, who had painstakingly assembled her period accurate princess costume over the past weeks, she finds that her knight costume looked '*like garbage*'. The two of them approach the bonfire set up for the vent, and Riot tells Olivier that she was probably going to steal some of her candy. Olivier comments that this was not very chivalrous. Riot remarks that she was getting used to the royal treatment, Olivier shooing back that it was nice to get a little respect. They walk into the part in full swing, seeing a variety of angels and devils, maids and politicians, pets and performers, one individual dressed as a wandering Nightgaunt, and Cole Kane dressed as a Solomon Reed. They find Clementine and Danielle O'Hara, Danielle dressed as Nikignik though her costume naturally makes no sense to Riot.

Danielle and Clementine share memories of the Prime Dream, Danielle pointing out the irony in the Botulus Corporation's cyberpunk feature. Riot asks if everyone was okay if they started trick-or-treating, but Danielle points out that they were still waiting on Diggory Graves and Percy Reed, but Riot tells them that they should get started without them, as they'd been '*doing their own thing, lately*'. They set out to begin what Riot calls "operation sugar rush", when she spots Cindy Lockheart watching her looking displeased. Riot silently pleads with her to just let her enjoy one night when their lives weren't in danger (see Episode 96 - Horizons), and Cindy walks away.

### Marketing - See Myself Out

Lady Ethel Mallory interrupts Nikignik's broadcast with her 'marketing' segment. She speaks to the Dreamers of the importance of brand consistency, of not making sudden changes 'willy-nilly', alter their branding, their message, their mission, and they risk losing customer faith. For example, if they've had one consistent spokesperson for thirty years, people would grow attached to her (see Lady Ethel Mallory). To throw her out (see Episode 95 - Homecomings), shove her away into the wilderness with only a suitcase and the portable dreamcaster she stole (see Episode 96 - Horizons), would be a huge mistake.

### Story 2, Continued - The Easy Part

Riot goes around the Scoutpost trick-or-treating. They visit Zelda Duckworth, who was dressed like a duck and handed out wrapped Christmas peppermints that were potentially 20 years post their prime, Jonah Duckworth and Hector Mendoza acknowledging them from inside the cabin. Bern and Violet dressed not too dissimilarly to how they did normally, and handed out caramels, with Bern slipping her a few coins of liquorice. They sit and talk to them, Riot noticing that Clementine was much closer to the two than she was. Buck Silver, who Riot rarely talked to but tried to be welcoming, finding that he reminded her of herself when she'd first come to the Scoutpost (see Episode 3 - Books), hands out bagged caramel popcorn and dressed as an unidentified biblical character. Marco Torres and Brooklyn Williams Riot had found she did not like, for a litany of potential reasons, their costumes are not described but they hand out candied orange peels. Valerie Maidstone dressed as her old band days, and instead of handing out treats sat with a ukulele and sang songs at people's request. Virgil Kane dressed as a cowboy and handed out pecans.

As they go around Riot keeps an eye out for Percy and Diggory, who at no point make an appearance. She is aware that they'd been spending more time alone together as of recent, the smell of something brewing, but she was still surprised to not see them at the spooky dance or bonfire. Things quiet down, Olivier leaving to fix a rip in her costume and Clem and Danielle exchanging their sweets. This is when Cindy reappears, now beside Riot. She asks if Riot was enjoying herself and tells her that she needed '*an answer from [her]*'. Riot tells her that she was still deciding, and still needed to track down Diggory. She tells her that she wasn't scared (silently wondering to herself if this was immature), but she understood it was a big journey (see Episode 96 - Horizons) and she may not come back. Cindy tells her that it was good she understood the gravity of the situation, and walks off, telling her that she expected her answer at 11 the next day. Olivier rejoins the group.

### Interlude 2 - Beauty In The Wondering

Nikignik asks the Dreamers if the mystery of their own existence ever bothered them. Surely there were those among them who wanted to know why they existed, what their place in the universe was, how they came to be. He asks them that if the answers were disappointing, would they still want to know. If they were magnificent, would it break their spirit to have been told a definite purpose? Was their ability to choose their purpose what they derived their zeal for life? He tells them he could give them the answers to these questions. But he thought that it was better not to know the answer, to find beauty in the wondering.

## Story 3 - Another Promise

Diggory Graves thinks to themself that they held three things dearly. The first was their jacket, the second was the direction that they'd always feel the need to walk in, normally this was north and tended to end up being good, and the third was Percy Reed, who was with him now as they sat together in a pine tree overlooking the Scoutpost. Diggory asks if Percy had ever been trick-or-treating, and Percy tells them he hadn't, they did have harvester fest at church, but it wasn't the same. He comments that it was funny they'd been so afraid of summoning evil spirits, and he'd ended up as one. Diggory tells them that they were a very good spirit, not an evil one, and Percy goes quiet. They ask him what was wrong, as he didn't seem to want to go trick-or-treating. He tells them that he felt that time with them was important at the moment. Diggory assumes he was talking about the expedition (see Episode 96 - Horizons) and reassures Percy that both of them would be coming back safe. Percy thanks them.

There's a sudden rumbling, what Diggory at first thinks to be a stampede of griffocaughs, but is quickly revealed to be the Museum of Broken Promises as it made its way through the trees. Percy asks what it was, and Diggory tells him that the proprietor (see Mx Morell) was a friend of theirs, that it was probably there for them [Diggory], and that it would be best that Percy return to the Scoutpost. He tells them that he wasn't leaving. The museum passes bellow them, and Diggory picks up Percy and jumps down to its upper floor balcony, setting Percy down just in time for Mx Morell to step out. Diggory introduces Percy to Mx Morell, and vice versa, asking why They had sought them out. Mx Morell tells Percy that they were well acquainted with his story and tells Diggory that it was good to see them again, but they were there on some rather unfortunate business. Mx Morell tells Diggory that they'd been sent to kill them [Diggory].

## Outro - Harvests

Nikignik waxes poetics about harvests, calling on the saying 'good things come to those who wait', but also, 'the early bird gets the worm', so it seemed their adages were undecided as to whom good things went: those who leaped on each new writhing opportunity, or those who made the most of the journey. He suggested that the Dreamers proceeded at a comfortable pace, and what is good will find them regardless. It could take time, before they saw the first hints of green rise through the soil. If they stayed, they would find a bounty to harvest. But if they travelled, and danced from one field to the next, they would carry soil and seeds with them leave a few flowers behind wherever they walked. He tells them that he was taking his time with the broadcast, although the reward remained to be sawn.