Itty bitty short Creativity

Back!!! With day 8 of Strahdtober +Miyori!

Hiii, I’m back. Sorry about disappearing like that. We’re on day 7 of Strahdtober though!

AAAH Hi!!! I’m back with day two of Strahdtober+ Miyori!

Hello, hello!!!! I’m jumping on @crowholtz ‘s Strahdtober challenge:

So we’ve seen them. This nameless mannequin, hiding around corners, peeking in on conversations, having no name, no backstory, and no invitations to adventures.

“But Teeny,” I hear you question. “We don’t know anything about them except the fact that they exist! Why would they abstract?”

What if I told you that that’s literally the answer why I think they will?

Think about it. Kinger said something to the effect of “The worst thing you can feel in the circus is unloved.” To not be considered or concerned for at all. Keep that in mind while we talk about:

Pomni’s first day at the circus! As soon as they dropped in, there was Caine! Introducing himself, the circus, and the rest of the cast. Pomni was immediately integrated into the group, dynamics were formed, and everybody knew everyone. But look at our nameless fellow here:

Always peeking in. Never given a name, an introduction to anything, just an easter egg that the viewers know about, and someone that absolutely no one in the circus knows about.

Some people may think such a character may have nefarious intentions, whether they’re someone from the outside, or a mannequin NPC that just happened to gain sentience. But what if their habit of peeking in on conversations is something else entirely?

What if it’s social anxiety?

Think back to what I said before. Pomni was properly introduced and integrated into a group with the help of Caine. There’s already an established dynamic, and this mannequin just shows up someday, unnamed and unannounced. For all we know, they could have arrived during the middle of an adventure, when everyone else was too busy to notice.

And as someone with social anxiety myself, I can tell you, that unless you have help from someone in the group, integrating suddenly into an established group dynamic feels like HELL.

What if the mannequin wants to be apart of everything, but hasn’t mustered up the courage to come say hello? They only ever show up when the other characters are interacting with each other. What if they feel unloved for not being included, named, and announced to the group? Shouldn’t Caine know they exist? What if they get so sick and jealous of being an outsider looking in that they just—!

Do that?! After all, Gooseworx said that the next person to abstract would be very unexpected. What if it was the person we least expected? What if it’s the person we all expect to never know anything about at all?