Repose

Packages are sent to Repose's residents. They all contain pieces of the same timepiece, albeit in different colors:

The clock is small, just six inches high. Its shell and its clockwork are beautifully engraved with guilloche, shimmering as they're turned under the light. This effect, achieved by wheel-engraving metal and flooding it with enamel, creates a uniform ripple as pure as water in a pond.

Who owned it? Who commissioned it? The name on the face says 'Cartier,' but ask them after the serial number and the records, while proving its authenticity, are blank. Purchased by no one, commissioned by no one, and yet it exists - in pieces, but all too tangible.

It comes in colors, it does - in canary yellow, yes, but also in deep-sea blue, in lavender, soft as the Provence countryside, in the green of new grasses, starry black, or red as rouged cheeks, and more and more. It whispers of luxury - of an age where it was a gift from someone to someone else, or a warning of the passage of time. Where it was a treasured heirloom, or a valued investment, or a casual expense. Who can say? It is about one hundred years old, or appears to be. Edwardian edging into Art Deco, clean lines and geometry but lovely script numbers. The little knob on top is made of ivory, and it winds the hands, which are embellished with tiny mine-cut diamonds.

Rich and fabulous and spotless - not a chip in the enamel, not a speck of dust under the glass. When together, it whirs fabulously.

But now it is apart, in pieces. It will not whir again, unless it is made perfectly, perfectly whole.

July dawns warm and sticky in Repose. The days average a warm 85 degrees, and the nights remain balmy, with temperatures in the mid- to upper-50s. It rains daily, usually in the afternoons, with the skies going dark and thunder booming until the clouds clear in early evening. Sometimes, on very warm days, there is no rain, and the humidity makes everything damp. Other things of note for the month of July:

→ Something very bad is going on with the family residing at the southernmost tip of the lake. They haven't been out for days, and strange sounds begin to come from their house at the beginning of July. Neighbors report growling and crashing, and nearby residents swear they've seen inhuman shapes on the roof in the early evenings. The first week of the month, unmarked cars come to the house in droves, and a For Sale sign goes up the following morning.

→ The Facility, after a period of quiet and good PR, is fully operational again. Pamphlets start going up around town, offering good money for residents interested in helping test a new sleep aid. Should someone volunteer, they'll spend weekends at the Facility for the month of July. They share rooms with one other, and they are treated well and fed well during the study. Sleeping aids are provided, and effects range from very vivid, vibrant, shared nightmares, to peaceful and deep sleep. At the end of the month, the study closes. The pay is substantial, and NDAs are required. Some of the medications may have long-lasting effects on subjects' sleep.

→ In the Capital, there are reports of the library in the university being haunted. Books fly off the shelves during the evening and are found strewn about when the morning librarians arrive. The books scattered are always romance novels, oddly enough, and some ghost hunters swear the library is haunted by a young woman with dark hair and a penchant to curl up in chairs to read throughout the night. Should anyone sneak in to spend the night, they might encounter the ghost, who has a tendency to fall desperately in love with whoever she comes into contact with, and who is unwilling to let the objects of her affection leave.

→ The Super Prison, located on the island at the far end of the Capital, is filled to capacity. Various newspapers report that a new building is being created on the island, but there is no confirmation by the county that this is true. However, scientists are being sought locally to assist with a project to aid in containing a more varied type of supernatural beings. Said scientists are also required to sign NDAs, and the pay is exceptional for gifted men and women who can provide assistance. If the assistance is supernatural in nature, then a waiver will be issued, which provides immunity from arrest to the scientist in question.

It's the most romantic time of the year. Maybe the town is looking to attract tourists, or maybe love is in the air, but things around town get a little odd, as they tend to. A little...polished. Smooth as a frozen, botoxed face captured by a Vaseline-covered lens.

( Beginning Wednesday, and for the next seven days, Repose becomes a diorama of favorite Rom-Com moments. )

→ Fall is in the air, and the weather in Repose has turned colder. Leaves have begun falling from trees, and the smell of wood from fireplaces carries on the night air throughout the town. The pumpkin patch on the east side of town opens, as it does every year, and the corn maze beyond makes visits there a full-day excursion for Repose's families. The owner of the patch provides cider and apples for snacks, and Repose's young adults can readily be found out in the maze on weekend nights, flashlights in hand and antics afoot. There are those who say being in the maze makes them feel lightheaded and bold, but that's chalked up to youth and colder climes.

→ Cooler weather brings whispers about Halloween. The town announces that they will not have an official party this Halloween. They don't cite a reason, but they assure the town that the rec center will have activities set up for children on the day, and volunteers are requested. Additionally, they encourage neighborhood residents to buy candy and open up their doors to trick-or-treaters.

→ In the Capital, the prison for powered individuals is receiving an expansion. Along with this expansion, job postings are made available for corrections officers interested in this challenging branch of work. Pay is competitive and various non-disclosure agreements are required for anyone applying.

→ Additionally, there have been some hush-hush problems reported in the Capital's Red Light District. Some workers have gone missing, and authorities remind those working in the area to be careful and aware of their surroundings. Whispers indicate that none of the missing workers were actually seen leaving their window-rooms, and they all seem to have simply vanished without a trace.

→ Notably, Monday morning brings no official statement from Town Hall about the strange persons attending the street party celebrating the performance of Spamalot. When asked, officials state that the costumed figures were surely performers paid to enhance the street party experience, and nothing further is done regarding the incident, despite countless appearances on socials about strange encounters at the party and throughout the town following the play. Though, peculiarly, the Playbills and vintage articles are missing from the rec center lobby come morning.

→ In an effort to restore normalcy, Town Hall offers free tickets to the town's annual Movies in the Park. Scheduled nightly August 9-15, the movies showing will be romantic classics, with Sleepless in Seattle, Casablanca, Titanic, and An Affair to Remember scheduled to be shown. The small park near the haunted pond is the location for the films, and viewers are encouraged to bring blankets and refreshments for themselves.

→ Lastly, as per usual, rumors abound in Repose. An elderly water aerobics attendee claims he saw an honest to goodness mermaid's tail splashing in the rec center pool earlier in the week, the local high school math teacher has gone missing after supposedly solving the Hodge conjecture during a lecture on Friday, and a teen claims to have spent an entire evening playing a nonexistent game of Polybius at the local arcade.

→ The town's production of Spamalot is slated to begin its run this Friday, and the recreation center is decked out with nostalgic items from productions past in the lobby. There are Playbills and newspaper clippings in their multitude, and there's something magical about the space, even before the seats fill and the curtains go up. Visitors catch memories of dust, fougère, and forgotten things on the air, and those scents are followed by snatches of sensation. For some attendants, the effect is a quick one: They lose themselves and become other people entirely, fictonal people, characters from those Playbills and clippings. For others, the transformation is partial and they retain bits of themselves as the characters inform their personalities, abilities, and wants. Some people aren't affected at all, and for them it's simply a night of enjoyable theater. The night's magic isn't contained to the rec center, either. It slips through cracks in the old building, and it walks itself out open doors, and anyone it touches as it dances on Repose's night air can find themselves suddenly changed. One thing is certain, Repose is sure to be a very theatrical place come morning and for the following week.

→ Late at night, the military facility, which is nestled into a mountain and heavily guarded with armed guard and miles of electric, barbed-wire fences, descends into chaos. With the facility being so far removed from the town, nothing is audible to residents, though those night-owls working in the nearby rental laboratories might have heard some commotion. However, these residents have no access to the military base, and so begins the speculation.

→ Found in the chaos is one of the relics from the time capsule, but this knowledge is not made public. What does happen, is that the time capsule display is closed down, and the remaining items are removed from the town's recreational center without further explanation. Should anyone inquire, Town Hall just informs them that the display was determined to have run its course. No information is available about where the items have gone, though one resident claims to have seen a soldier exiting Town Hall in the early hours with a very large bag.

→ As for the military facility, it is on lockdown for the remainder of the week, with only authorized personnel with appropriate clearance allowed in. There is no press release, but the official statement that is made available says there was a containment breach on one of their lower levels. The statement goes on to say that there was no contamination beyond the building. All employees are being treated for injuries. No deaths are officially reported.

[Spring has sprung, and Repose is no exception. Warmer days mean longer days, and dark doesn't fall until well after 8 p.m. most nights. These longer days mean more town activities, and Town Hall is busy beautifying Repose. Buildings are painted, and landscaping sounds can be heard all over downtown. Unfortunately, all the beautification reveals a time capsule buried behind the general store. After much consideration, Town Hall decides to open said time capsule in the center of Main Street and with much fanfare.

The lock on the old box, which is old and copper, decidedly Art Deco in appearance, gives way rather easily, and the puff of smoke that accompanies the opening is ominously dark, curling itself around spectators and winding its way down alleys and into the fields and orchards. As for the items inside the box, they're placed on display at the rec center, and they're available for handling by residents, but being around them seems to have strange effects on the town residents:

→ The first item in the box is a locket, and the accompanying card says it belonged to a Miss Reich. Miss Reich's family, the display card says, owned the town B&B over a hundred years ago. Sadly, Miss Reich was abandoned at the altar, and she hung herself from the B&B's attic rafters. Handling the locket makes the handler feel intense sensations of emotional love.

→ The second item on display is a compact. Upon opening it, the scent of old roses fills the nostrils, though it is long empty. The card accompanying it explains that it belonged to a Mrs. Hardy. Mrs. Hardy, the card states, had an unremarkable and happy life. She was an insightful woman, or so the card states, and those who have handled the compact will find any mirrors they encounter in days after show them strange and undeniable truths.

→ The third item on display is a lighter. The accompanying card states that it belonged to Mr. Stephens. The card indicates that the rumors around town involved Mr. Stephens having been bitten by a feral animal when he was just 16. He ailed for a month, before dying of infection on the full moon. Handling the lighter, which Mr. Stephens apparently could not handle having in his presence after the attack, makes the handler feel angry and animalistic.

→ The fourth item on display is a pendant, and there is no card accompanying, but it feels sinister to the touch, and it draws people with darkness to it. After interacting with it, these people feel their darkness much more strongly than before.

→ The final item is whimsical. The fairy pendant does not have an accompanying card, but there is an accompanying sketch. It is drawn in faded and smudged charcoal, but it clearly shows the space in front of (what is now) the secondhand book store. It is a sketch of the grass in front of the large widow at the store's entrance, and it shows a very small fairy, wings blurred in movement. Whoever handles the fairy pendant feels lighthearted and bright.

Additionally, the display includes letters from residents at the time the capsule was closed, and the letters include a set of skeleton keys. The keys do not indicate what they open, but the letters all refer to them, and to the fact that they should be reburied if ever found in future.]

→ In the Capital, the Red Light District comes back to life after a cold winter. Once again, visitors and customers wander the brightly lit streets with its enticing windows. Rumors abound that some windows offer more than just scantily clad bodies. This window crackles with electricity, and that window is a favorite with anyone that likes being bitten, while that window on the corner is always filled with the sounds of howls. Strangely enough, no authorities seem to notice the activities there, and there are rumors that some of the residents of Second City can be found on the outskirts selling potions of forgetfulness and to make supernatural things unnoticed by those who have no abilities of their own. These are only rumors, of course.

→ In Repose, on nights in March, a strange rumbling can be heard underfoot. Nothing comes of it, but the sound is definitely occurring. Residents all over town go out into their yards and can be seen staring down at the thawing grass. These rumbles coincide with lights deep in the facility's mountain network of laboratories, though only people working inside would make the correlation. Needless to say, it's a little unsettling to feel the ground growl in the evenings. Town Hall blames standard ground settling after the harsh winter months, and the Rangers are instructed to ensure the trails are vacated by dusk daily.

→ Movies in the Park are a Repose summer mainstay, but it's not warm enough to sit on the grass, and this winter seems to be dragging on. As a way to make residents look forward to sunnier days, Town Hall makes all movies at the local theater only $1.00. The movies that show are old classics, and viewers comment about looking around in the theater and seeing patrons dressed as they would've been in whatever picture is playing that evening. That can be chalked up to nostalgia, surely, but when a few residents mention the lobby being similarly populated with old things and older people, and the street beyond too, well, one has to wonder.

→ Weather in Repose has been unpredictable recently, with bitter colds followed by surprisingly temperate days. Ice lingers, and Spring does not yet seem inclined to show its face. After recent incidents there are still regular searches for wolves and snakes, and Town Hall assures residents that they will find the wolf (or wolves) responsible for the deaths in the Fall. There is also a small inquiry into the recent death of multiple prey animals in the woods, but there is no official statement, and the Wild Hunt is remembered as another oddity in Repose's long history of oddities.

→ The island in the middle of Repose's lake has always been a place of speculation. A wildlife preserve and historical site, local teens regularly attempt to sneak out to it and spend the night. They always return with tales of strange radios, and remembering past events. The ferry to the island never runs in winter... until, that is, this winter. The ferry begins running on the 25th of January, and it keeps running until the thaw. And, while no one can confirm whether or not the claims are true, those who remain on the island overnight say they have relived their youth. Teenage visitors, for once, report nothing, but older residents return with stories of a fountain of youth. Unfortunately, effects only seem to last while visitors are on the island.

→ In the Capital, The Hall Way is papered with fliers warning magic-possessing visitors to be cautious. Word is that the magical prison on the far side of the Capital, SuperMax, is strengthening its defenses, and there is talk of new wards that can hold any type of magical being indefinitely. There are weekly gatherings in The Hall Way's bars and shops to discuss the future of magic in the country, and deliberations about the possibility of training and locating magical beings.

→ In the Capital, the abandoned amusement park, The Jester's Court, is (once again) causing trouble. There are no official indicators of the amusement park re-opening, but it has reopened. On weekends until Spring thaws, the mid-century amusement park is in full swing. Once inside, the weather is balmy and warm, and the rides and games are all mid-century in nature and perfectly safe.

[Information on local places.]

→ Dusk comes to Repose's forests with a little something different the night of the 10th and several nights following. Two lit braziers appear deep in the forest and to those without any abilities or powers, they come with a sense of needing to be elsewhere. For others, there is a heavy sense of anticipation, like something in the forest is preparing. Right past the seeming entry, there's a wide clearing and the beginnings of a few fires within fire pits and barrels full of frothing ale scattered throughout.

When night falls, the anticipation ends with the blowing of a cattle horn, loud and clear like an invitation for all those that have not been driven out of the woods. The Hunt is on, with a tall blonde woman in the lead, standing in a chariot pulled by goats and armed with both bow and spear. The ale begins to pour and within moments, the first quarry of the night is felled, and prepared for roasting on one of the firepits.

The Hunt continues on for the whole night, with the sounds of baying dogs and howling laughter heard depending on how close one is to the hunting party. Those that get too close can hear snippets of conversation, some in English, some in a language much older.

For those within, there's drinking and feasting a-plenty, with a few brawls that are loudly betted on before they're broken up.

By the time dawn comes, it winds down, with a few less deer and boars in the forest, and the scent of roasting meat still hanging in the clearing.

→ Tuesday morning dawns with a sniper stopped and infrasound silenced. The sniper's victims and their families are being assisted by various charitable foundations in the Capital, and the man himself is handed over to the FBI. There is no official statement released about his fate, but rumors state that he's being held in Washington D.C. pending medical tests and legal concerns. The police do not mention the vigilantes that brought the man to justice, but vlogs and blogs all over the Capital reference two men who "saved them," and new Twitter and Instagram accounts pop up overnight with shoutouts and blurry photos of the city's heroes.

→ In Repose, the woods and lake are a mess. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service sends out help, as does FEMA and other disaster charities. Clean-up begins immediately, and there are volunteer stands set up along Main Street for residents who want to help. University students come in from the Capital, receiving extra credit for their time, and various local Meet-Ups take place on the lake and in the woods, where the most help is needed.

→ Eventually, the military acknowledges that the infrasound was a result of a faulty emitter, which they blame on the private corporation that created said emitter. Whether this is true or not, the company announces that they will be compensating those affected, and representatives set up at the local library to process claims more efficiently.

→ As for the more supernatural occurrences which took place throughout the week, they aren't officially discussed, but whispers around town and in the Capital are loud on social media. Repose's antics have been noted, and the town is definitely being watched. Repercussions for supernatural behavior are reiterated in fliers that line the Hall Way's storefronts, and anonymous blogs warn those who are not "normal" to be increasingly discreet.

→ It's not confirmed, but there's a rumor going around that the military is working with vibroacoustics to safeguard the facility. Infrasound, with the goal being to more effectively keep unwanted people away from certain parts of the facility. Employees are supposedly being treated until they develop an immunity to the infrasound being used exclusively in the high-clearance area of the facility. Untreated civilians coming too close feel a series of effects, including everything from nausea, to uncontrollable vibrations, to hallucinations. Of course, this rumor spawns the obvious question: What are they trying so hard to hide?

But before anyone can ponder this for too long, things start becoming strange. It begins with a soldier going vigilante. He complains of headaches and invasive thoughts, and then he begins attacking anyone in town who he thinks is deserving of it. There seems to be no reason for his choices - the school bus driver, a ranger - and then he becomes lost in the chaos of the Capital, where escalating crime rates make him hard to locate. The military, of course, is looking, but the soldier is a sniper by trade, and he's good at hiding.

In Repose, things aren't much better. Animals, sensitive to the frequency, are agitated, and some residents can feel the vibrations and hallucinations strongly.

The military does not offer any confirmations when contacted, but they do insist they are looking into the problem. Compensation is offered to the families of those impacted, and people are asked to come in to the local ER to be looked at if severely affected.

→ Throughout the month, there have been whispers in the Hall Way about a formal magical community taking shape in the States. The result of panic caused by the blatant and public use of magic, this new magical government intends to levee heavy fines on magical use around non-magical persons. As a result, the Hall Way has become even more active.

A literal hallway located in the Capital, the Hall Way boasts shops, restaurants and housing for magical residents who prefer to live among their own kind. Some magical residents welcome these new restrictions, and it's whispered that the number of magical beings being held in both the Facility and the Capital's island prison are growing. The Hall Way, which is accessible by magical humans and magical creatures (werewolves, sprites, vampires, elves, etc) alike, is bustling with old stories about the vanquishing of a certain dark lord in England, and how things might follow a similar path in the States.

However, a group of dissenters makes their displeasure with this new magical-government meddling known: Starting Friday, and for the following two weeks, portkeys litter both Repose and the Capital. These portkeys (which can be anything from a pair of keys to someone's old boots) transport whoever touches them, be they magical or mundane. Some portkeys transport people across town, while others might leave someone stranded in a foreign country. Some portkeys transport one person, while other transport anyone in their vicinity when they are activated.The portkeys are unpredictable and there is nothing to indicate they are, in fact, portkeys.

The portkeys are spelled to work for a duration of two weeks, and at that time the items become unspectacular once more.

→ The Inaugural Repose Gala was a great success, and the powers that be announce that enough money was donated for the Ranger Service to begin work on securing new trails to the south of town. No one's been out that deep since that family went missing from their acres of uncleared land back in '85, at which point the land was cordoned off due to strange reports in the area. The wooded area stretches acres at the far end of town, and the Ranger Service promises new paths and new camping areas that will be ready for use by mid-summer. This, of course, has once again, caused rumors to surface of a dark, mirror world beneath the town, but no one gives credence to these rumors. Why would they?

→ With the return of summer, Edwards Island is one again open, with ferries running from morning until nightfall. Of course, the stories about the island persist, though the tales of time travel and ghostly visitations are hardly factual. But, as always, town teens will venture over and attempt to spend the night on the haunted island. It is unofficially recommended that visiting residents bring radios, since the island's haunts are fond of playing tricks on the AM frequency.

→ In the Capital, the heatwave is apparently getting to residents. Reports of rides randomly turning on at The Jester's Court start flooding police lines. The now-abandoned mid-century amusement park was closed in the '70s, after two local children disappeared while riding the Funhouse ride. Local officials claim group hallucinations, blaming the early heat and humidity. For residents who happen to visiting when the Court is 'awake,' it's a trip right back to the '70s. It is recommended that visitors avoid the Funhouse.

→ When sound returns to Repose's forests, it returns loudly. After the shockwave, the woods shake off the quiet with leaves littering the spring earth. Wolves howl, crickets chirp, and birds sing. The woods are alive again, and with their awaking comes the advent of warm days. Picnic blankets become a regular sight off Main Street. The poetess at the pond is, once again, visible on warm evenings and sharing adages about love. Bingo nights go late, and old couples walk out hand-in-hand. The theater begins having midnight showings of old black and white romances. Love is in the air, and residents begin having brief visions of the town's old lovers. Margot and Michael at the train station when he left for the war. Amy and Jessica stealing kisses behind the library. Robert and Jackson falling into the piles of leaves at the orchard. The visions are flickers, brief, and they steal across town during daytime and evening, leaving romance in their wake.

→ In Repose, a town bonfire is scheduled for Makeout Point on the evening of May 18th. Fliers are pasted around town and appear in windows of shops and diners. The town will be providing non-alcoholic refreshments and grilled foods, and residents should bring their own blankets and alcoholic beverages. Volunteer firefighters and ranger service will be handling the fire itself, in order to ensure fire safety.

→ In the Capital, things are more educational in nature. The university offers a spring 'free-for-all.' In May, residents are invited to audit special classes without fees or applications required. A class schedule is available on the university website, and the classes range from the mundane to the eclectic: From classes on cooking to seances, from painting to demonology, the selection is varied, strange, and open to anyone who wishes to experience a class or two on the university's dime.

→ It's officially spring, and Repose alternates between sunny days in the temperate 70s, and freezing nights in the low 30s. But the fluctuations in the weather aren't what's strange about the town during the last two weeks in April. No, it's the fact that the nights are so quiet. There's not a peep to be heard in the woods around town. No night animals, no night insects. None of the regular sounds that come from a town surrounded by a dense and untamed wood. During these nights, and for no reason that anyone can determine, everything is silent and eerily still.

→ During the last two weeks in April, the Capital is alive with music. Buskers seem to be singing and strumming and banging at every street corner. From the university, to the Village, to the shopping district, music is in the air. The days are warmer, and the sounds all mingle together to give the city a constant thrum of background noise. And it's not magic, but venturing near these musicians seems to make people feel happier. Their steps are lighter, and they want to drop dollar bills into open guitar cases and overturned caps. But, like we said, it's not magic.

→ Speaking of magic, those residents of Repose and the Capital with magic in their bones - witches, wizards, necromancers, vampires, werewolves, elves, reapers, shapeshifters, etc. - all see fliers up around town. The fliers indicate that there's to be a street fair in the Hall Way, and that the fair will features stands and wares from magical beings far and wide. The fair, which is slated to run through the end of the month, promises to be fun for all!

→ In the aftermath of the chaos caused by the maddened god, the Dream Center in the Capital makes a humanitarian offering: Buses tour the city offering 'shared dreams' via their patented Dream Device™ for 5 dollars. In these brief dreams, settings are fixed (cannot be changed by dreamers), random, and (in this instance) all positive. The Dream Center's usual offerings are more customizable, and all dreamers are given coupons for visits to the Dream Center in future months.

→ In Repose, the biting winter cold is moderated by town-wide activities! The orchards play host to a month-long scavenger hunt, and the list of items being hunted for is entirely mundane. However, local seekers know that these hunts always result in items being found that are not on the lists. Old town relics: bits of jewelry, of pottery, of writing. Small things, here and there, and some items are said to be magical.

→ Lastly, on Saturdays in February and March, a bonfire is lit by makeout point each evening. Different local merchants donate refreshments and foods, and some local vendors sell wares. The fires blaze high are kept burning late into the night, bringing warmth to everyone seated on the logs around them. As by tradition, older residents tell stories of the town's strange happenings. One old woman tells tales of mirrors that you can climb into like they're doorways, and she insists balls are held within every evening. Of course, no one really believes her, but various mirrors are reported to be broken after the first Saturday bonfire.

→ It begins Friday afternoon in Repose, and it comes on a cold wind and with flurries of snow on the air and the feel of old, old things that remind residents of that time the animals went rabid. A 'gift' from an old and chaotic god, the memories of Repose's residents begin to play tricks on them. It doesn't affect everyone, but those affected forget things, or they remember things that happened incorrectly. Memories twist and turn and tangle and disappear, and there's no consistency to it. Anything in a person's past is open to contortion or disappearing, and sometimes those affected realize it's happening, and sometimes they don't realize anything at all.

→ While memories go mad in Repose, the Capital suffers a worse fate. That same old god plays havoc with a city that's already rife with violence and crime. The perceptions of some visitors and residents are subject to manipulation. Untrue things become true, and people see things that do not exist. It's only a trick, magic, an untrue thing, but the things seen seem real, even if they're not. Citizens call 911 and stream into hospitals, convinced that they're dying from imaginary car crashes and non-existent subway accidents, and isn't reality comprised of what is perceived?

→ New Year's Eve brings a gala at the National History Museum. The museum itself a puzzle, the entire building is ever-changing, and leaning here or there can open secret passages and change entire levels. For the evening, the main floor is decorated in white and golds, and waiters wander with platters held aloft and bearing decadent hors d'oeuvre and flutes of champagne. The bar is open and the liquor is expensive, and there's no limit to how much ticket-holders can consume. Wandering is welcome and none of the museum's levels are blocked off for the evening. Wanderers might find hidden treasures and creatures from legends and nightmares, or they might find quiet and privacy for the evening. Getting lost is a distinct possibility, but guests will all find their way out come morning light.

→ The last mail delivery of 2017 proves to be a little bit odd. Letters are delivered to recipients all over town, but the letters are all postmarked between 1920 and 1970. The addresses belong to people in town, and searching archives will reveal that the intended recipients all did exist, but none of them are alive at present. The letters, which are all already opened when they end up in mailboxes, range from discussions about daily gossip, to love, to war. The post office, when asked, has no idea how this hiccup occurred.