text: [Themes: true story, college, art]
  
  > Look around
  A yellow moon hangs low over the pumpkin fields and graveyard. The denizens of Halloween Town are out in force, cavorting through the streets and across the countryside, toothy grins on every face. A tiny devil-thing is toddling around on its stilt-like wingtips, apparently engaged in a game of tag. Barrel the trick-or-treater pops his head up from behind a tombstone. A quartet of vampires waddles across the street, gossiping loudly.
  
  The twisting road that skirts the city limits runs east and west.
  
  Jack Skellington watches over the scene with his own satisfied smile.
  
  > Go east
  Colors flow and mingle, turquoise into lavender, pale cream into indigo, rolling in fat raindrops down from liquefying petals,
  drenching the soil, impregnating the dark earth, the deep blackness of the earth.
  
  The maiden and her knight lie sinking into melting lilies.
  
  To the south and west are other spaces.
  
  > Go south
  A cloud of yellowish smoke billows over you, stinging your eyes, burning your lungs. You fall to your knees.
  
  No, you need to keep going. Get up. Focus.
  
  Tall tongues of flame line the passage toward the dais where Nega-Hina lounges on her thorny couch.
  
  Hot, dry wind whistles through narrow windows. Your only hope of
  escape is in returning to the north.
  
  "You're here! Finally!" Nega-Hina groans. "I've been so friggin' bored."
  
  > examinNega-Hina
  Her face is your face, down to the furrow in her forehead. And you recognize her body as your body, stretched out like a cat on her leather couch. She's your exact double���except for her horns, and her fangs, and her glistening red skin.
  
  > talk to her
  You take an uncertain step toward the dais.
  
  She waves you closer. "Don't be shy. We have a lot of work to do."
  
  1: "Who are you?"
  2: "What is this place?"
  
  > 1
  "Who are you"
  
  "Oh come on. You know exactly who I am. You're just not 'comfortable' with me���" (here she uses finger-quotes, for some reason) "���so you tried to get rid of me. But it turns out you can't get rid of me! And actually, you don't want to get rid of me. You'll be a lot better off when we start working together."
  
  1: Okay, I guess.
  2: I don't know about that.
  
  > 2
  How can you put this politely? "I'm sorry, but I don't think I feel comfortable accepting a naked devil-lady as an element of my psychology."
  
  She rolls her eyes. "You're being really literal about this, Normal Hina."
  
  "You're a succubus! You're trying to tell me all my problems are about being repressed, and if I embrace my sexuality that'll somehow fix everything."
  
  Nega-Hina drags her claws down over her face. "Oh my gosh, that's not what's going on here at all."
  
  "Well, maybe you could explain what really is going on here."
  
  "Gladly! That's what I'm actually here for anyway, is to friggin' explain things..."
  
  1: "What is this place?"
  2: Ask about one of the places you've been.
  3: Ask about what is going on in general.
  4: What am I even supposed to be doing here?
  5: Stop talking to Nega-Hina.
  
  > 1
  "What is this place?"
  
  "That's an interesting question, actually. We're in two places at
  once: Physically, this is the end of the sidewalk, where Xavier drew his bodacious drawing. But experientially, we're in..." Nega-Hina
  leans down and whispers: "Heck."
  
  "Are you not able to say 'Hell' for some reason?"
  
  She answers with a pout and a little who-even-cares shrug.
  
  Then an awful thought occurs to you. "Are you saying Xavier drew a naked picture of me on the sidewalk?"
  
  "No, no, no. You're just interpreting me in the context of your emotional baggage. Would Xavier know about this birthmark?"
  
  She juts her hip out at you in an unnecessarily slinky manner.
  
  "I guess not."
  
  1: "What is this place?"
  2: Ask about one of the places you've been.
  3: Ask about what is going on in general.
  4: What am I even supposed to be doing here?
  5: Stop talking to Nega-Hina.
  
  > 3
  "Can you tell me just generally what's going on?"
  
  She cocks her head. "I mean, sure, if you want. I feel like you have everything pretty much figured out already, though. I don't want to waste time explaining stuff you already know."
  
  "That's very considerate of you."
  
  "I know. But it's up to you. Do you feel like you need some extra clarification?"
  
  > No
  "Eh, no thanks."
  
  Nega-Hina nods.
  
  1: "What is this place?"
  2: Ask about one of the places you've been.
  3: Ask about what is going on in general.
  4: What am I even supposed to be doing here?
  5: Stop talking to Nega-Hina.
  
  > 2
  What do you want to ask about?
  
  1: Ask about the Coils of Ahigu.
  2: Ask about Rachel's artwork.
  3: Ask about the Kingdom of Cealdhame.
  4: Ask about Halloween Town.
  5: Ask about Curling Flower Space.
  6: Never mind.
  
  > 1
  "So, there's this gigantic snake guy?"
  
  "Yeah, Ahigu! So friggin' cool."
  
  "Well, he won't let me get to the equipment shed. If I try to get past him he'll venom me to death."
  
  "Huh." Nega-Hina strokes her chin. "You know, Princess Hebryn of Cealdhame���mistress of the fortress Cynebrand���she wears a magic bracelet called Hlutorbeg. The stone-elves made it for her. It's supposed to grant its wearer immunity to poison."
  
  "How do you remember all this?"
  
  She shakes her head wearily. "Last January, you and Jonathan were in the Honors Center, and he was telling you all about his novel while
  you were trying to study for an exam. You tried so hard to ignore him, but unfortunately your subconscious mind absorbed every friggin' detail."
  
  "Did I retain anything for the exam?"
  
  Nega-Hina shrugs. "I dunno. I don't pay attention to that stuff. But
  if you go back to Cealdhame and get that bracelet, it might let you
  get past Ahigu."
  
  "Well, last time I was there, I couldn't really observe or touch anything."
  
  "Yeah, because you lacked perspective! You didn't have the context necessary to interpret what you were seeing. That's the value of conversations like these."
  
  1: Ask about the Coils of Ahigu.
  2: Ask about Rachel's artwork.
  3: Ask about the Kingdom of Cealdhame.
  4: Ask about Halloween Town.
  5: Ask about Curling Flower Space.
  6: Never mind.
  
  > 2
  "What do you think of Rachel's entry?"
  
  "Well, she did what she said she was going to do. I guess that's... honorable." You get the impression that Nega-Hina does not value honor very highly.
  
  "Should I have told her she had to do something else?"
  
  She throws up her hands. "It's your sidewalk chalk thing! Just tell people whatever you want!"
  
  1: Ask about the Coils of Ahigu.
  2: Ask about Rachel's artwork.
  3: Ask about the Kingdom of Cealdhame.
  4: Ask about Halloween Town.
  5: Ask about Curling Flower Space.
  6: Never mind.
  
  > 3
  "How exactly am I supposed to get this magic bracelet?"
  
  "I guess, go to Cealdhame, and, go inside of it again? And then look around for a magic bracelet?"
  
  Very helpful.
  
  1: Ask about the Coils of Ahigu.
  2: Ask about Rachel's artwork.
  3: Ask about the Kingdom of Cealdhame.
  4: Ask about Halloween Town.
  5: Ask about Curling Flower Space.
  6: Never mind.
  
  > 4
  "What do you know about Halloween Town and Jack Skellington?"
  
  Nega-Hina raises a cautionary finger. "I know that guy is way too
  nice. I don't trust nice people."
  
  "That's a terrible attitude."
  
  "Well, you can try going through life associating with nice people���and
  being nice to them in return���and see where it gets you."
  
  "Sounds great! Maybe I'll go talk to Jack instead of you!"
  
  "Great! Go do that!"
  
  1: "Fine, I will!
  2: "I would, but I'm not finished here yet."
  
  > 2
  "I would, but I'm not finished here yet."
  
  "Is that so? You need more help? From me? Even though I'm not nice?" Nega-Hina gives you some big fake doe-eyes.
  
  1: Ask about the Coils of Ahigu.
  2: Ask about Rachel's artwork.
  3: Ask about the Kingdom of Cealdhame.
  4: Ask about Halloween Town.
  5: Ask about Curling Flower Space.
  6: Never mind.
  
  > 5
  "What was that place with all the melting flowers?"
  
  "That's just Jessica's entry. Alec must have spilled his bucket of water on it somehow."
  
  "Oh." You nod.
  
  Nega-Hina squints at you. "You did realize that was Alec and Jessica back there, right?"
  
  "Of course I did," you fire back indignantly.
  
  "Okay, okay."
  
  1: Ask about the Coils of Ahigu.
  2: Ask about Rachel's artwork.
  3: Ask about the Kingdom of Cealdhame.
  4: Ask about Halloween Town.
  5: Ask about Curling Flower Space.
  6: Never mind.
  
  > 6
  Okay. What would you rather talk about?
  
  1: "What is this place?"
  2: Ask about one of the places you've been.
  3: Ask about what is going on in general.
  4: What am I even supposed to be doing here?
  5: Stop talking to Nega-Hina.
  
  > 4
  You don't want Nega-Hina to think you're flailing, so you ask very casually: "What do you think I ought to do next?"
  
  She counts on her fingers: "Go back over to Cealdhame. Get down inside it like you were earlier. Find the bracelet Hlutorbeg and put it on. And then see if Ahigu can still venom you to death."
  
  "Okay."
  
  1: "What is this place?"
  2: Ask about one of the places you've been.
  3: Ask about what is going on in general.
  4: What am I even supposed to be doing here?
  5: Stop talking to Nega-Hina.
  
  > 5
  "I should probably get going, actually."
  
  "Sure, sure." Nega-Hina nods emphatically. "And, yeah, if you need anything else..."
  
  "Yeah, definitely."
  
  "Okay, cool. I'll be here."
  
  "Right."
  
  > go to the north
  Colors flow and mingle, turquoise into lavender, pale cream into indigo, rolling in fat raindrops down from liquefying petals,
  drenching the soil, impregnating the dark earth, the deep blackness of the earth.
  
  The maiden and her knight lie sinking into melting lilies.
  
  To the south and west are other spaces.
  
  > Go west
  A yellow moon hangs low over the pumpkin fields and graveyard. The denizens of Halloween Town are out in force, cavorting through the streets and across the countryside, toothy grins on every face. One particularly noticeable demon has a mouth that goes all the way around its head. The little witch-girl Shock is scurrying through the cemetery, searching for her friends. A trick-or-treater named Lock is hiding in an open grave.
  
  The twisting road that skirts the city limits runs east and west.
  
  Jack Skellington watches over the scene with his own satisfied smile.