Shadows in the Smoke S1E29 - "Dancing on Air"

Shadows in the Smoke S1E29 – “Dancing on Air”

Kim
Shadows in the Smoke is intended for mature audiences and may contain material that some people find disturbing. Please see the episode description for content warnings, and listen with care.

[Shadows in the Smoke theme]

Kim
Welcome to the Dusk.

[Soft, contemplative piano]

Kim
We begin the Dusk as we always do, with a Quickening roll. Mr. Hutchinson, if you please.

T.
Okay, umm… I’m going to look at Miss Fu’s daguerreotype she gave me way back when. And as I’m staring at it, thinking over what I did to her when I last saw her, and that… That bestial encounter. Putting it in the past. I’m turning over a new leaf. I’m returning to my old name, I’m returning to humanity, I’m returning to society. I’m gonna make this roll with advantage, please.

Kim
Alright, please do.

T.
3, 2, 1 is 5. +1 Sensitivity is 6.

Kim
So… what’s happening tonight?

T.
Last one, I promise. I’m going to mark the Darkened Threshold.

Natalia
[Slams table] Damn it!

Kim
Oh my, T. You are killing me dead.

Natalia
I want this so bad.

T.
You’re not the only one.

Cassandra
Oh boy, okay.

Natalia
My heart is pounding.

Kim
So, you have marked the Darkened Threshold. It reads as follows: Narrate a scene in which you hurt an innocent because of your curse.

T.
Hutchinson stares at the daguerreotype. And as he looks at that sepia parchment, his eyes begin to turn that same kind of brownish yellow and gold, and their pupils elongate into sliver-like slits. He holds this piece of metal that the daguerreotype is imprinted on and it snaps in two as his fingernails grow into long claws. Hairs begin to bristle out along his chest, and fleshy tendrils emerge from below his ribcage and from his back – long appendages ending in we don’t know what as he opens his mouth in a scream, and we see behind his teeth a second alveolar ridge with sharp teeth growing out of them from his hard palate. And then a third one, going behind that. And as he screams, we go down his gullet to the dark of the night in London…

[A London harbor]

T.
…Because ever since the night she saw a strange girl swimming in the Thames, Abigail has been drawn to the water. Her mother feeds her collard greens, listens as she recites the Lord’s prayer with her – twice. Then tucks her into bed and heads downstairs, steeling her nerves and rouging her cheeks with an extra helping of sherry before heading out the door.

As Abigail’s mother wraps herself in a thick coat, Abigail herself slips out of bed and, barefoot, sticking to the shadows, follows her mother toward the harbor, hoping to catch another glimpse of that girl who gave her the pearl that she constantly fingers in her pocket.

On this night, Abigail has followed her mother far, listening to the water of the Thames lapping at the banks down past six whole bridges, all the way to Chelsea. Unbeknownst to both of them, there is something else in the dark of London this night, lapping at its chops as they pass Westminster Bridge. These ladies have a familiar smell to them. Fishy.

Abigail’s mother slips into a jolly boat at a jetty near Cremorne Gardens, and Abigail suddenly realizes just how far from home she is. She tiptoes nearer to the banks of the Thames, and peers into the dark, looking for the nice girl. Listening to the water, the lapping of the water, lapping like a tongue.

[Sinister ambient tones grow louder]

T.
And as Abigail stares into the dark, a little pale ball gripped tight in her little pale fist, she is startled by a voice.

“Little girl!”

Abigail stumbles back on the ornate brass railing, tumbling into the water below. Horrified, the couple that startled her dash to the edge.

“Simon, do something!”

But the man is fixed to the spot. So Beulah, a woman of no common metal, slips out of her petticoats and dives into the water after the child.

Beulah rescues Abigail, and takes her back to shore. “Are you alright, my dear? Simon, help her out of the water.”

“Yes, miss. I’m sorry, I was looking for the lady.”

“Now now, dear. There’s nothing to—”

Simon doesn’t finish his sentence. He sees Abigail’s face go pearl white and opens his mouth to scream but never gets the chance, as something fleshy and ropey forces itself down his throat and lifts him into the air, and pulls him back into the water. The sounds of his struggle and Beulah’s screams are drowned out by the revelry of the dancing platform – which can accommodate 4,000 people.

Kim
[Laughs, despite herself]

T.
Beulah surges into he water after her betrothed, crying for help, as Abigail tears off back home as fast as her little legs can carry her. She doesn’t notice that she drops the pearl along the way, and she never sneaks out of the house ever again.

Natalia
No, baby!

Kim
You took all my characters!

T.
Not all of them. I only took the one.

Kim
I love that. Good job. That’s someone who does their homework.

[Quiet, contemplative piano]

Kim
Please take the Condition: Drained. Miss Douglas, will you be using Moonlight Upon the Waves tonight?

Natalia
Um, no. I have a very important audition.

T.
[Laughs]

Kim
It’s time to warm up. We gotta print out your 8x10. Staple your resume tot eh back, you have to cut it to fit.

T.
[Sings] God, I hope I get it.

Kim
So, I would now like to invite you all to answer a question, should you like to. We have two threats that we are currently working on. We have the Limehouse Lurker. We have amassed four Clues for the threshold question. And then we have The Nutcracker. We have also amassed four clues.

Cassandra
I think we should try to answer Limehouse Lurker if we can, just so we can move forward and get more Clues for whatever is beyond the threshold.

Kim
The Clues we have amassed for the Limehouse Lurker are as follows: A copious amount of roses that were found backstage at the Songbirds of Shanghai. Crude drawings of a Roman phalanx that were drawn by the Lurker on the floor of the opium den in Soft Jimmy’s blood, shortly after his murder. Another Lurker victim was discovered with a Bible nearby. That Bible has had pages ripped out – specifically, the pages concerning the story of Noah and the Ark. And finally, Detective Inspector Pettigrew – or rather, former Detective Inspector Pettigrew. The vampire Pettigrew told Miss Thanero that he saw a sudden heavy fog that arrived at the same time as the Lurker, shortly before Pettigrew was turned.

Our threshold question is, “Is the vampire young or old?” And it is a complexity 4. I now turn discussion over to you all.

Cassandra
I’ll say I’m personally leaning on the vampire being old. I mean, the Roman phalanx of it all. Like, the crude drawing can be attributed to that this was a child, but like having knowledge of that makes me think that they were probably there.

T.
You can also attribute it to the medium. Like blood on the ground is gonna be a crude drawing.

Cassandra
Absolutely. And then for the heavy fog, I feel like in order to be impacting the weather, you may have needed to be around for a little while…

T.
Exactly.

Natalia
Yeah.

Cassandra
To be able to just conjure up a large fog.

Natalia
Yeah.

T.
Yo. Also, how about this? Affecting the weather. What about a rain for 40 days and 40 nights to be like, “Oh, you think God did this?”

Cassandra
Oh!

Kim
Oh!

Robert
The vampire is so ancient, they were actually around and possibly to blame for the flood.

T.
Yeah, to blot out the sun for 30 days plus 10.

Kim
Oh, interesting. So ripping out the pages of the Bible is maybe just like because it’s upset that this narrative is being attributed…

Natalia
It considers that blasphemous.

T.
It’s like Hazel Beaumont.

Cassandra
Yeah.

T.
It’s like, “Um, actually…”

Natalia
“I have some notes.”

T.
Although do we want to give Kim “bringing on the flood of the covenant”-powered Threat?

Kim
I think you do.

 Robert
Well, I mean there is an anthropological theory that the flood of the covenant might be… Because there’s similar myths across the Mediterranean, that it might be a primordial memory of when the Mediterranean basin flooded. So… Sorry, this is me bringing my actual history knowledge in here.

Natalia
How dare you.

Cassandra
No, I love this. Please keep talking.

Kim
How dare you be smart on this podcast?

Robert
So it’s possible that like maybe it’s not even that he was so powerful back then that he caused the flood, but he’s like, “No, I was there when the flood happened. This isn’t what it was.”

Natalia
Mmhmm.

T.
Sure. Yeah, yeah.

Cassandra
“These are lies.”

Kim
I need you all to decide right now if the vampire can control the weather.

T.
I think it’s cool.

Natalia
I think it’s cool too.

Cassandra
I actually really like it.

T.
I think it sucks for us, but I love it.

Robert
At this point.

Natalia and Cassandra
Yeah.

T.
At this point, I think it just adds more color.

Kim
Let me just make a little note…

Robert
So we are left with the rose petals.

Cassandra
We’re left with the roses.

T.
Here’s my idea for that.

Cassandra
Okay.

T.
Reincarnation. This vampire has been around so long that Philomena Fu is the reincarnated form of a royal member of an ancient dynasty.

Robert
That’s very classic vampire. The, “I must find my lost love in every life of hers.”

T.
Yeah.

Kim
Oh, which is maybe what the vampire was doing in Limehouse specifically.

T.
Uh-huh.

Kim
That’s why it’s targeting that area. Oh, that’s so tragic. Especially because the Lurker is now like in like a child body. So it’s implied that maybe this was like a childhood love.

T.
Or mom.

Kim
Yeah. Ooh…

Cassandra
Oh! That’s worse!

Robert
That’s a dark twist on that.

Natalia
But roses feel very romantic.

Robert
It does.

Natalia
So unless it’s… If you want to paint it in some other way, like in terms of what the roses mean.

T.
Yeah. Unless she, like… She cultivated roses.

Natalia
She was like a gardener and she liked roses.

T.
Yeah. Mom grew roses. Like, kid got turned in mom’s rose garden and is trying to show like, “It’s me. It’s still me.”

Kim
Alright. I love this theory. So this would be a flat roll.

T.
I’m not touching dice if I can help it.

Cassandra
I worked out a couple of the Clues. I’ll toss a die on the table for it.

Robert
I’ll go ahead and roll for the other one.

Cassandra
Alright, here I go. Here we go. Ooh, 5 for me, baby.

Robert
3 for me, so.

Cassandra
Hell yeah!

Kim
So it’s an 8. Your answer is correct.

Robert
So is there a complication when we answer the mixed result on a threshold question?

Kim
Yes.

Natalia and T.
What?

Cassandra
[Sputters]

Natalia
I feel like maybe we save the mask though for the secondary question, or for the resolution.

Cassandra
I think so too.

Kim
Okay.

Cassandra
Kim smiles and says, “fine.” [Laughs]

Natalia
“All right!”

Kim
It’s fine with me.

Cassandra
Whatever you guys think.

Kim
You have unlocked the next question. This question is, “If the vampire is old,” which it is, “where is the vampire’s nest?” That is a Complexity 4. And you resolve the Threat by infiltrating its nest and then destroying it, or convince it to leave London.

Now, I must ask, are we planning on going into London tonight, or would we like to do a Hargrave House Night Phase?

Natalia
I have to go to London, so we all gotta go to London.

Kim
Alright. Then what is everybody getting up to in the city today?

Natalia
Audition. I’ve got to dance!

Kim
[Sings] God, I’m a dancer. A dancer dances.

T.
I would like to go to Kilburn Abbey.

Kim
Intriguing. May I ask to what end?

T.
I have marked the Darkened Threshold. I would like to consult a demon.

Kim
Marvelous. Alright.

Robert
I am going to use my new power and walk the streets of London as a Beacon in the Dark.

Kim
[Gasps]

T.
Oh cool!

Kim
One of my favorite moves in the whole game. I can’t wait. Miss Thanero?

Cassandra
Seeing as Mr. Hutchinson was not present at the binding of the Demon of Kilburn Abbey and doesn’t necessarily know where this demon might be or how to talk to it, I think I will tag along and show him the way to get into the basement and to contact this demon.

Kim
Alright, that sounds good to me. But first, a word of warning for Miss Douglas. This audition will be very dangerous, but you will have the opportunity to get two Clues.

T.
Whoa!

Cassandra
[Shudders]

T.
Oh, bud. Oh, boy.

Natalia
Lord, I hope so.

T.
That’s tasty.

Cassandra
Delicious.

[An ominous, rumbling woosh]

Kim
Tonight’s Unscene is called Madame Morvain’s Boy Tour: Powdered Princelings and Delightful Demigods, All Agape for Your Amusement.

[Cello music]

Kim
Madame Morvain’s famous guidebook is a walking tour of all the best male prostitutes in London. Ship Captain Jackson “Flint” Broadmoor has just come in for a three-day port of call, the well-worn guidebook clutched beneath his arm.

Robert, one such item in the guidebook is Prince Louis – powdered, soft, covered in yards of satin and lace – who invites Captain Broadmoor into his boudoir. What distinctly feminine touches do we see in Prince Louis’ room?

Robert
Prince Louis’ room is in one of the nicer apartments in Notting Hill – which really isn’t saying much at this time. But the humble exteriors of the building bely the palace that he had made for himself within. Resembling nothing more than a room that Marie Antoinette might grace – the gilded wallpaper, the sconces, and everything in the pale powder blue that signifies feminine virtue. Prince Louis has truly created a den of opulence, a Rococo pleasure palace. Gilded absinthe glasses, lines of every sort of slipper one could want, robes by the dozen hang on the walls. All of this is not quite that Captain Broadmoor was looking for tonight. A little too soft, a little too feminine. A little too eager.

Kim
Before we all go our separate ways tonight, you all had requested an evening breakfast phase.

T.
Breakfast for dinner!

Kim
It will be brief, as we have a lot to do today.

T.
Maesie, I believe is returning from her date?

Natalia
She’s not spending the night tonight. It’s too early! It’s too soon!

Kim
But you did go on a promenade with Miss Albertina.

Natalia
I did go on a promenade. So it’s a little bit later than usual when she waltzes in through the door.

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
There you are, girl. I’ve been looking all over this estate for you.

Miss Doulgas (Natalia)
I told you I was going… I went with Albertina.

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
I must not have been listening, and I apologize. Listen, you got an audition this evening.

Miss Douglas (Natalia)
Oh, alright. Uh, what for?

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
The ball-et. What else?

Miss Doulgas (Natalia)
[Breathless] You got me an audition…

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
Naturally.

Miss Doulgas (Natalia)
This is the best day of my life.

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
Girl who loves to dance as much as you, and them being in need of a dancer? It’s about time you stop twirling around in fancy fetes for the rich and threatening, and you started doing it for audience of London.

Natalia
Maesie swoons.

T.
[Chuckles] Augustus catches her.

Miss Douglas (Natalia)
Right. Sorry.

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
You’re gonna need to be lighter on your feet.

Miss Douglas (Natalia)
No, I will. I will. Okay. I need to go get all of my things. I need to go get all my things!

Natalia
Maesie takes off to her room.

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
What things? You don’t even wear shoes.

Cassandra
Ena, I think, passes Maesie just clamoring up the stairs.

Miss Thanero (Cassandra)
Are you alright, little pearl?

Miss Douglas (Natalia)
I have an audition! I have an audition, and I have to get ready! But oh my god – wait, no. I have to tell you before I go. There was a man, he was a cobbler, and he kidnapped me. And he was asking me questions about you? And… But yeah, no, he just – I didn’t tell him anything, I promise. Right, okay, I have to go.

Natalia
Keeps running up the stairs.

T.
“Cobbler” gets Augustus’ attention. And he looks up after her, and then looks at Ena significantly. And you can see, looking at him, that catching Maesie in that swoon took it out of him. Even a girl that light, catching her and holding her up. As she goes up the stairs, he’s leaning on a receiving table, and the pallor of his face is a little piqued and there’s a little bit of sweat on his brow.

Cassandra
Ena is receiving a lot of information in this moment. A kidnapping has happened. There’s a cobbler who she’s unfamiliar with that is asking pointed questions about her – which gives her some concern. But it all washes away when she sees how Augustus is leaning against this table. And she crosses down and pulls out a handkerchief and starts to dab his brow.

Miss Thanero (Cassandra)
Are you alright?

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
To be perfectly honest, no. That ain’t nothing you need to concern yourself with.

Miss Thanero (Cassandra)
I shall concern myself with it if I like, thank you very much. Do you need to lie down? Do you need some water? Some food? What can I do?

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
I don’t think I have that luxury, but if you’ll do the honor of taking the evening air with me? I am not about to go running into he lion’s den.

Miss Thanero (Cassandra)
I don’t think you could run right now if you wanted to.

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
I’d prefer to crawl before you as it is.

Cassandra
She smiles and gives him a little swat on the shoulder.

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
Sorry.

Miss Thanero (Cassandra)
Well, if you want to walk, we can walk. Where do you want to go?

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
Take me to church?

T.
And he pulls out the little black book and hands it to her.

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
Somebody’s been very interested in me, and that somebody knows a thing or two about making shoes. I don’t want to confront them unless I’ve got some information. And as I recall, we found a source of information, but I don’t know where you left her.

Miss Thanero (Cassandra)
I can take you to her. Are you absolutely sure you want to do this? You’re not well.

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
Never have been. That’s never stopped me before. It’s moments like this when I feel like I have less time than I would like, that I need to move more quickly.

Miss Thanero (Cassandra)
Alright. I’ll get my coat.

Cassandra
And Ena goes upstairs to her room to get her walking jacket.

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
Sorry, I’m in no position to fetch it for you.

Miss Thanero (Cassandra)
I’m perfectly capable of getting things from my room. Thank you, Augustus.

Natalia
As Ena walks to her room, Maesie just bursts by her, holding dresses and jewelry – and like way too many things – and just runs screaming down the hall…

Miss Douglas (Natalia)
Rabbit! You’re good at finding things! I need ballet shoes! Help!

Robert
Rabbit is not at the house. He hasn’t returned to Hargrave House this evening.

Miss Douglas (Natalia)
Where is he?!

Kim
Mr. Lloyd, where are you?

Robert
That’s a good question.

[Mystical ambient tones]

Robert
Mr. Lloyd is probably not entirely certain where he is himself. Ever since he’s regained the abilities to open the ways, to walk the hedge, the weirding way, he has spent more and more time in sort of the land between lands. And he is doing that, wandering all over London without a real thought or goal, just allowing the spirit to move him. One moment he’ll be in a neighborhood, then he’ll find himself in a ferry, then briefly somewhere else. Just sort of wandering and reacquainting himself with the process.

Kim
Is this what Beacon in the Dark is for you?

Robert
Morgan’s experience with this sort of thing would literally have been him walking through the land of dreams and peering in on the sleeping minds of the unconscious. But he’s not quite there yet. So instead, he is just feeling the natural magic that flows throughout London, the beck and the call of supernatural beings, of powers, of ancient places, sacred sites long forgotten. And just wandering, feeling almost a magnetic draw towards places.

Kim
Beacon in the Dark reads as follows: When you walk the streets of London at night, your consciousness spreading across the city like a vast spider web, roll with Sensitivity. I am gonna put this roll at disadvantage. You are trying to call things to you, but you yourself are a servant, waiting for the call of your Mistress, Mistress Beaumont.

Robert
So I think Morgan is trying to avoid fae eyes in this moment. Not just Mistress Beaumont, but perhaps other, more powerful fae beings as well that he does not want to run into. So out of his little carpet bag, he has pulled an ancient iron horseshoe, and is clutching that tightly as he walks the streets. An item from my Witch’s Cupboard.

Kim
Alright, go ahead and mark the iron horseshoe, and take this roll straight.

Robert
That is a 13.

Kim
Tell me who it is you wish to be contacting today.

Robert
Well, we did just answer the threshold question o the vampire, so I think I’m going to go for that. I will try and contact the Limehouse Lurker.

Kim
Miss Douglas, you arrive at the Royal Ballet onto a darkened stage. You see other dancers waiting in the wings. There is a single spotlight in the center of the stage. And as you enter, you hear a woman’s voice echoing from somewhere within the audience of the theatre.

Zelia Gagnon (Kim)
You’re here, good. Onto the stage with you.

Miss Douglas (Natalia)
Alright. Right now?

Zelia Gagnon (Kim)
Yes, child.

Miss Douglas (Natalia)
Um, I don’t… I don’t own ballet shoes?

Zelia Gagnon (Kim)
Tell me, child. What is your training?

Mis Douglas (Natalia)
Uh, um… Well, I am very practiced in Scottish step dance. And I have danced recreationally for a very long time, basically since I was born. I have a very strong core, but no formal training. Which is why I am here, because I want to learn.

Kim
A figure draws close to you, and you see the director of the Royal Ballet, Ms. Zelia Gagnon. She is very tall, very severe looking. Always perpetually with a walking stick, as is befitting of a ballet mistress.

Zelia Gagnon (Kim)
Let’s see your legs. Onto relevé.

Miss Douglas (Natalia)
That would be…?

Zelia Gagnon (Kim)
On your toes, child.

Miss Douglas (Natalia)
Okay.

Natalia
Maesie rises up on her toes fairly well. She is strong.

Zelia Gagnon (Kim)
Good natural talent. Could be something we could mold, but we sill see. The audition will show all.

Kim
She claps her hands together twice.

Zelia Gagnon (Kim)
We will outfit you, do not worry. Go with the ballet rats.

Kim
And little members of the corps de ballet take you and whisk you offstage to get dressed for your audition.

Let’s go back to the Boy Tour.

[Cello music]

Kim
Nat. Anthony the Adonis, whose body is rubbed with golden powder. How do we know Anthony is dying of consumption?

Natalia
Jackson “Flint” Broadmoor finds Anthony splayed delicately across a bed, his body glistening gold. But also with a very thin sheen of sweat, before they’ve even begun any of their activities. As they get closer, he runs a hand across Anthony’s brow, commenting on how warm it seems to be already. Anthony makes a slight comment about insisting that it’s due to his desire for Jackon. He takes a handkerchief and wipes away any of the sweat. And then delicately applies some red lipstick, to hide any of the blood he might cough up during their encounter.

Kim
I’d like to rejoin Miss Douglas.

First, an attribution: this sequence that you’re about to experience was not written by me. It was written by the author of the Nutcracker Threat, Ben Bisogno, with collaboration from friend of the podcast, Chaotic.

Scene One: Journey in the Dream.

[Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy plays]

Kim
Miss Douglas, you take the stage adorned in ballet slippers and wings, performing the first steps of the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy. It is a pas de chat sequence, or “step of the cat,” jumping from one foot to the other, bringing both feet up and momentarily seeming to levitate. I have a Paint the Scene for everyone, not just Miss Douglas. What here indicated that the venue that Miss Douglas is dancing in is, in fact, a dream?

Robert
As Miss Douglas is led to the venue, there are several signs – dressing room, utility closets, other sort of things you would find backstage at a theatre. If she were to glance at those signs more than once, she would find that the writing on them had changed to say something else.

Cassandra
As the dancers enter and exit through the wings, the wind of their movement brushes though the curtains, but the curtains swirl as if they are just ghostly apparitions of the curtains.

Natalia
And the dancers themselves have faces with recognizable features, but they’re not specific. They’re not human enough.

T.
Being professionals and figments of imagination, none of these dancers dare glance at their feet. And neither does Maesie. Which is fortunate. Because if they did, they would see there is no stage. They’re dancing on air.

Natalia
Maesie has never danced ballet before. But she is naturally athletic. And she also has such a love for dance that she is practiced in mimicking movement. And she just needs to be shown the pas de chat once in order for her to copy it, and she jumps and dances her way across the stage.

Kim
Let’s pick up with Mr. Hutchinson and Miss Thanero.

[A London street at night]

T.
On the way out of Hargrave House, Hutchinson grabbed a walking stick from a hollowed-out elephant leg that serves as an umbrella stand, and puts a lot of his weight on it so that he can still offer his elbow to Ena without leaning on her. And as they finally come up to Kilburn, clears his throat…

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
You know I know you’re capable, right? It’s because you don’t need any help that I offer it.

Cassandra
Ena just looks at him with kind of a veiled expression, but doesn’t say anything in response.

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
Just wanted to make sure that was clear. There’s no higher place of respect for me than to be used as you’d use your dog.

T.
And he takes the walking stick, which has a silver wolf’s head pommel, and uses it to rap on the door.

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
I know a girl that lives here. She might be able to get us inside.

Kim
The door is opened by Charlotte McGowan, the nun.

Charlotte McGowan (Kim)
Oh! Mr. John!

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
Miss McGowan. Sorry, Sister McGowan.

Charlotte McGowan (Kim)
It is quite late.

Kim
And then she glances at Miss Thanero.

Charlotte McGowan (Kim)
And also with a friend.

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
And a colleague. We have some night work that needs being done. I need you to take us back to the place where I found those papers.

Charlotte McGowan (Kim)
Oh.

Kim
She says, a little detected that it’s maybe not the night work that she thought the two of you might be getting up to.

Cassandra
At this response from her, Ena removes her hand from John’s elbow – like resting it as if they’d been walking side by side – and grips under his elbow instead. Supporting him, but also making him keenly aware that she knows what the relationship is.

Charlotte McGowan (Kim)
Yes, of course. Follow me.

[Deep, distant ambient tones]

Kim
And she leads you down into where she had previously had a rendezvous with you, the Abbey archives – which is close to the wine cellar.

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
Thank you, Charlotte. You have a good evening.

Charlotte McGowan (Kim)
Not as good as I thought it was going to be…

Mr. Hutchinson (T.)
Maybe your Lord will see fit to give you something better next time, in your prayers.

T.
And, mortally uncomfortable, Hutchinson spies that the sacrificial knife that he used to cut open Charlotte’s habit the last time they were in this room together has been left on the floor. And just to busy himself, picks it up and returns it to its place. Smooths out the velvet of its cushion.

Cassandra
Ena can feel this tension. And again, is very aware of what this pretty young nun has been up to with Augustus occasionally in her free time. And as Sister Charlotte is turning to leave, Ena looks at her, her eyes going ever so faintly gold, but it’s hotter this time. It’s angry. And she looks at the back of Charlotte, and says…

Miss Thanero (Cassandra)
Did I dismiss you, servant?

Kim
[Gasps] Oh…

T.
The knife falls to the floor again.

Kim
Oh! Okay, Giveth.

Cassandra
Yes, I believe so.

Kim
Describe how Sister Charlotte McGowan is subtly or not so subtly debasing herself before you in the scene – and also in front of Mr. Hutchinson.

Cassandra
Ena looks at Sister Charlotte who has turned back around, having been acknowledged by her mistress. And ever so slowly starts to pull up the habit that she is wearing. Ena looks at her as she is doing this.

Miss Thanero (Cassandra)
I would remind you of your vows to both myself, and to that “Lord” above that you have chosen to serve otherwise.

Cassandra
And as she says this, Charlotte inserts her hands between her thighs and slowly starts to pleasure herself.

Kim
Scar your reflection.

T.
Hutchinson’s mouth is open, looking at Ena.

Kim
Tell me how the reflection has changed.

Cassandra
The painting is cloudy and there are spots in the corners where there’s a bit of sun peeking through. And up in that corner, we see a crucifixion of Christ kind of painted into the clouds, reminding her of Sister Charlotte’s obedience to not just her, but to this other God. Having other deities before her, if that makes sense.

Kim
It absolutely does. Alright, so you can go ahead and take Sister Charlotte as one of your servants. I am curious in this moment, Mr. Hutchinson, how you’re feeling, witnessing this?

T.
Oh, boy.

Kim
This is a lot to take in. This is also the first flex that I believe you have seen of the notion that Miss Thanero has cultists within the city.

T.
That it is. It’s also the first flex Mr. Hutchinson has seen of Ena being anything other than comported.

Kim
Yeah.

T.
First indication of, like, her really like doing anything sexual or demanding. She’s usually so acquiescing and helpful for other people. Talk about information coming at you quickly. Hutchinson does some quick math. Sees, okay, this nun that I used to have a sexual relationship with is… Well, she was always a bad nun for the Lord, but it turns out that it’s because she has a lady. This lady is not very much so in the Victorian sense, not as much as Hutchinson thought. Also, this is extremely hot. And he is, I think his blood is beginning to rise in spite of himself as he’s putting the pieces together and realizing also that, you know, maybe dallying with a god might have some risk associated with it. And how much, for all of his talk, is he willing to give away?

[a Mozart adagio]

Kim
Mr. Lloyd, you are walking the streets of the city, the puddles splashing beneath your feet. And then you step into a curious puddle. Not water, but blood. And rising out of this puddle of blood is this small form, its long hair hanging limply in front of its face. None other than the Limehouse Lurker.

Mr. Lloyd (Robert)
Hello there. Familiar with your handiwork.

The Limehouse Lurker (Kim)
It called.

Mr. Lloyd (Robert)
Yes. I was hoping to have a bit of a meeting with you. Maybe see if we couldn’t talk things out before things had to be resolved another way.

Kim
Mr. Lloyd, what is your question?

Mr. Lloyd (Robert)
I’m a believer that, while violence is an answer, it’s not the only one. And that maybe… maybe we could find a way for you and the people of this neighborhood to coexist in a might more peaceable way. But first, I suppose I need to know what you intend to do here.

Kim
The vampire reaches out a pale hand to you.

The Limehouse Lurker (Kim)
You called, but this is far too exposed.

Mr. Lloyd (Robert)
Very well. I’ll follow you. Lead on.

Kim
Mr. Lloyd, this small childlike hand takes yours, and then you feel sharp nails dig into he flesh of your palms and your wrists, as this tiny vampire pulls you with surprising strength towards it, and then down. Down into the puddle of blood, and out of sight.

[Shadows in the Smoke theme]

Kim
Shadows in the Smoke is a Kitten Marlowe production. This episode was edited and produced by Kim Dalton, and featured a theme song by Jake Pierle. You can find out more about us by visiting KittenMarlowe.com, signing up for our newsletter, or following us on socials. For Discord access, an exclusive behind-the-scenes show, and more, visit Patreon.com/Kittenmarlowe and join our roommates at Hargrave House, our Kitten Marlowe patrons, in supporting artist-driven storytelling. Thanks for listening.