Hey everyone! It's been a while since I've coded in Ren'py, so for practice purposes I thought I'd dig out an old competition entry that I've been meaning to polish and release as a standalone - just never really got around to it. I'll probably give the script a light revision before putting it together, so any feedback on the script as it stands would be greatly appreciated!

This is a short VN with only one choice, which you can vote on! I'll post whichever option(s) people want to see.

Content warning: mentions of self-harm/depression/violence.

"I lock my bedroom door and tiptoe out onto the balcony, making as little noise as possible."

"I can't see any stars at all, but I know she's out there."

Dani "Hey. You can hear me, right?"

"She doesn't answer, as always."

"It's okay though. I know she's listening."

Dani "Dad's in the next room, so I have to be really, really quiet."

Dani "He caught me talking to you a few nights ago, and, uh... {w}I don't think he took it too well."

Dani "He started saying some really weird stuff."

scene black with fade

Dad "I'm sorry, Dani... I lied."

Dad "She's not a star."

Dad "She's not in the sky."

Dad "She's not coming back, Dani."

scene back12 with fade

Dani "And then he started crying and hugging me, and then, and then..."

Dani "He got snot all over my shirt!"

Dani "Dad's so silly sometimes."

Dani "Isn't he, mom?"

Dani "I mean, of course you're coming back."

Dani "You said so, didn't you?"

Dani "I told him that again and again, but he just cried harder."

Dani "Though..."

Dani "I wouldn't mind if you came back sooner, mom."

Dani "I mean, it's not like I want to rush you or anything, but..."

Dani "The house doesn't smell like you anymore."

Dani "And dad's bedtime stories are boring."

Dani "And the piano's all dusty and I can't remember the keys to press to make that super cute song that sounds like a kitty stepping all over the piano and I know if I ask daddy he's just going to start crying again..."

Dani "He's such a crybaby! Hahaha! Haha... hah..."

"I rub my eyes, but it's no use. The cold night wind is blowing right in my face."

Dani "O-oh, wow... Th-the moon's all blurry..."

Dani "..."

Dani "Huh. It almost looks like a marshmellow."

Dani "A big fat marshmellow... melting in a glass of grape juice!"

Dani "That actually sounds kinda yummy."

Dani "Oh, I know! I'll make it for you when you come back!"

Dani "Seriously, mom!"

Dani "Being a star must be fun and all..."

Dani "But does the sky have marshmellow grape smoothies with honey and kisses on top?"

"I stab my finger at the moon."

Dani "It doesn't, does it?!"

"The wind answers by blowing even harder. I shiver and rub my bare arms."

Dani "Ugurrhh..."

"Goosebumps. Goosebumps everywhere."

"But I can't go in yet."

"There's still something I need to see."

"I clench my teeth to keep them from chattering as the clouds slowly drift apart.. and there it is."

"A star on the horizon."

"It looks small and lonely and not like mom at all."

"Even though I know it's probably not her - there are so many different stars in the sky, after all - I grin and wave at it."

Dani "H-hey! Hey mom!"

Dani "C-come back soon, okay?"

"The star twinkles in response."

"Well, okay, so maybe it didn't really twinkle, but still. It's nice to imagine that it did."

"In any case, I'm going to catch a cold if I stay here any longer."

"I blow mom a goodnight kiss, but just as I'm about to head back in, there is a flash in the corner of my eye."

"Something white streaks through the sky, disappearing into the forest behind my house."

"Wait. Waaaait wait wait wait wait. That was a falling star, wasn't it?"

Dani "Mom?"

"She... heard me?"

"She really heard me!"

"She's back! She's finally back!"

"I rush into my room and throw on a pair of sneakers and a jacket."

"There's a backpack full of snacks in my room. Seeing it reminds me that mom's probably hungry after being in the sky for so long."

"It's supposed to be for the school trip tomorrow, but whatever. I grab it anyway. Mom and I can have a delicious midnight picnic in the woods together. Heeheehee!"

"I run back out, giggling madly under my breath."

Dani "Picnic picnic picnic~"

"Now all I need to do is to climb down the tree in our backyard and sneak out into the forest. Easy!"

"The branches stick through the balcony railing. They look like big monster claws trying to rip the house out by the roots."

"It's great cause it makes the tree really easy to climb onto from my room."

"Mom and I used to do it all the time. We'd sit in the tree and eat jelly sandwiches and sing to the garden fairies under the moonlight."

"So I pretty much know every single branch and leaf and foothold on this thing."

"I have to be careful not to make any noise though..."

"I'm glad that it's so windy tonight."

"After a few minutes..."

"My feet hit the ground."

"Phew. Looks like I managed to make it down without dad noticing."

"I give the moon a silent high five."

"Wait for me, mom!"

"I'm coming to find you right now!"

Dani "......"

Dani "........."

"How long has it been?"

"Half an hour? An hour? Fifteen minutes?"

"I'm getting tired..."

"Don't tell me... the only person in this forest is me?"

Dani "Ugh..."

"No. That's not right."

"Mom landed right about here."

"She's here. She has to be."

Dani "Mom?"

"The clouds are smothering the moon again, and the trees are blocking out the rest of the light."

"I can barely see where I'm going."

Dani "Can you hear me?"

Dani "Mom?"

"As if in answer, something crackles in the distance."

"Somebody's... moaning?"

"Oh no! Maybe mom hurt herself when she landed!"

Dani "Mom! Are you okay?! Mom!"

"I run through the trees, moving closer and closer to the sound."

"It's too late to stop - I crash right into it."

??? "Gwaah!"

"Something soft and heavy tumbles to the ground as I fall backwards onto my butt."

??? "Oww!"

"It's... a girl's voice?"

Dani "Mo-"

"No. It's not mom."

Dani "Mo-"

"She's making a really scary noise. It sounds like rocks grinding inside her throat."

Dani "Mo-"

??? "Uuaaarrgghhhh...!"

Dani "MONSTER! AAAAAAHHHHHHH!"

"The monster babbles something at me, but I'm screaming too hard to hear any of it."

"I scramble to my knees, trying to escape, but something cold and wet wraps around my ankle and I fall flat on my face."

"No... no no no no no nooooo! At this rate, I'm going to be eaten!"

Dani "Get away from me, you SHE-DEMON!"

"I try to kick her with my other foot but she grabs it."

"And now I can't move at all!"

Dani "NOOOOOOOOOOOO-"

"The wind suddenly picks up, blowing the clouds away from the moon."

"The monster doesn't look half as demonic as I expected."

"In fact, she looks just like a really weirdly-dressed, weird-looking teenage girl."

Dani "You're... not a monster?"

"Oh, I am."

"I'm just wearing a skin right now."

Dani "A... a skin?"

"I stuck my demonic mandibles into this girl, liquefied her organs, slurped it all up, and then draped her pretty skin all over myself."

"Inside this shell is nothing but rotting tentacles and cockroach eggs."

"And now... I'm going to eat YOU! MUAHAHAHAHAH!"

Dani "NONONONONO!"

Dani "MOM, HELP ME! MAMA! MAMA! MAMAMAMAMAMAMAMA!"

"Oh, for fuck's sake, all right, all right!"

"Calm down, geez. I'm {i}not{/i} going to eat you."

"She lets go of my legs."

Dani "...r-really?"

"Mmhmm."

"For now, at least."

"If you're a good little girl and keep quiet, I might even consider letting you live, you know?"

"I clamp my hands over my mouth and nod my head frantically."

"..."

Dani "..."

"...pfft..."

"...fggh..."

"...GYAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"AHAHAHA!"

"AHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Oh man oh man oh man! You really believed all of that crap?"

"This is the first time I've seen such a stupid little kid!"

"WAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Dani "I'm not stupid!"

Dani "I always get the best grades in my class!"

"Hey, kid... you {i}do{/i} know that there are no such things as monsters in this world... right?"

Dani "R-really?"

"Well, not the kind of monsters you're thinking of, anyway."

"I have no idea what's going on."

Dani "Then... if you're not a monster... {w}what {i}are{/i} you?"

"Huh."

"Good question."

"Even though I'm not a monster, you can't call me a human either, can you...?"

"I'm kinda dead, after all."

"I stare at her."

"She looks pretty alive to me. Then again, she also doesn't look like any other person I've ever seen, so..."

Dani "You're... dead?"

"Mmhmm."

"Have been for a while."

"Or something like that."

Dani "Wait... don't tell me... y-you're a ghost! A spirit!"

"A spirit, huh...?"

"She chuckles."

"Yeah, I guess you could say that..."

"I'm a spirit."

"The spirit of disaster."

Dani "What... what does that mean?"

"It means that I bring death and destruction to everyone I touch, of course!"

Dani "What?! No! But, but, but you just touched me!"

"Oh yeah, sorry about that. You're going to die a slow, torturous death in, oh, about a week from now."

"It'll involve maggots, somehow."

"I rip open my backpack and start hurling hard candies at her, howling my lungs out as I do."

"Ow!"

"Oww!"

"Owww!"

Dani "Take it back! You take it back! I don't wanna die! I haven't watched the last episode of Fantabulous Ice-Skating Detective Ranmaru yet!"

"It was a joke, kid! Mother of Jesus! Can't you take a fucking joke?!"

"I pause in mid-air strike, tears and snot running down my face."

Dani "I, I, I don't wanna dieeeee!"

"You're not gonna die! I was just joking!"

"..."

"Well, you {i}are{/i} going to die eventually anyway, but not from my magical powers of death and dismemberment."

"For that to work, you have to be somebody... close to me."

Dani "But... I'm close to you right now..."

"Not that kind of close, idiot!"

"I guess I'll have to explain this to you with an example."

"When I was at school-"

Dani "At spirit school?!"

<img src="http://i.imgur.com/YlpsRJp.jpg" ...no,="" at="" a="" http:="" i.imgur.com="" 7hfsdyq.jpg"="">school."

Dani "But you're a spirit, why would you need to go to a normal-"

"Just shut up and listen."

"Okay, so there I am, a cute little spirit of disaster at school, kicking ass and taking names, right?"

"Guess what comes along?"

"Another spirit! The spirit of, oh, so many things it's going to be hard to list, but... let's see..."

"The spirit of weird books and homemade booze and fake eyelashes and coffee-flavored makeouts..."

Dani "Make...? I don't get it..."

"You'll understand when you're older."

"So anyway, when we were together, I kinda stopped being the spirit of disaster for a while."

"Instead, I was the spirit of... oh yes, I became the spirit of love!"

"Courage!"

"Rebellion!"

Dani "That sounds awes-"

"Only I wasn't, really."

"Once a spirit of disaster, always a spirit of disaster."

"I was cursed from the very beginning."

"She pauses. Blinks a few times, like she's trying to get rid of something in her eye."

"Her eyes..."

"They look red and purple in this light."

"I've never seen anybody with those eyes before."

"Her fingers twitch as she slides them through her hair, which is completely white."

Dani "Why do you have white hair?"

"Huh?"

Dani "Only old people have white hair, but you... you're not old at all!"

Dani "It's weird!"

"...it's the mark of my curse. That's all."

"As are these eyes... and this skin..."

show girlsprite at spirit

"Just kidding! Ahahaha!"

"I'm an albino. A-L-B-I-N-O. It's kind of like a disease. Go Google it or something when you get home."

"Though what I said earlier isn't necessarily untrue either... heh."

"She shakes her head."

"Anyway, as I was saying..."

Dani "You became the spirit of love and happiness!"

"Or so I thought, yeah."

"Of course, since I'm actually the spirit of disaster, I managed to get the spirit of cupcakes and papercuts and butterfly kisses..."

"Completely and utterly annihilated!"

Dani "An... nile...?"

"Is that word so hard to understand? What the hell are they teaching kids nowadays?"

"She was invaded! Defiled! Torn to pieces with much beating of breasts and gnashing of limbs!"

"I, on the other hand, got away with a bullet in my chest."

"They thought I was dead, you see."

"They were so disappointed. Looking forward to fucking the rot of Sappho out of me, weren't they?"

"Too bad they preferred making corpses over making love to corpses though."

"But she was stupid enough to struggle. Got her cellphone out. Managed to dial through."

"She was dead by the time the police and medics arrived."

"Ahahahaha! It was so fucking stupid!"

"If she'd just laid there quietly, they probably wouldn't have put that last bullet through her brain."

"Though, of course, if the ambulance had gotten there any later, I probably wouldn't be here right now."

"But hey, since I'm the spirit of disaster..."

"I'm alive. And the one close to me..."

"... died an slow, painful, humiliating death."

"That's my power... and my curse."

"No more though. No more..."

"She's muttering under her breath now, like she's completely forgotten that I'm here."

Dani "I don't..."

"She turns to me."

"So you see, you don't need to worry."

"Only people close to me die, after all."

"You're not my girlfriend or my family or somebody I give two shits about."

"You're just some random mentally retarded little brat."

"Oh? So why are you running around in the forest in the middle of the night?"

"Isn't that something only somebody really retarded would do?"

Dani "Like I said, I'm not retarded! I... I was just looking for my mother..."

"Your mother."

Dani "Y-yeah. I saw her land around here somewhere..."

"Land- what?"

"Look, kid, I don't have time for your delusions."

"You want to find your mommy, wait until it's nice and bright in the morning."

"You never know what kind of person you'll run into in the woods."

"Murderers. Thieves."

"Maybe even a demon or two."

Dani "B-b-but what if she's lost in the woods?!"

"If your mom can't find her way out, what makes you think you have a chance of finding her?"

Dani "Ugh... I..."

"She sighs again and reaches out for my hand."

"Come on, brat. Enough of this nonsense."

"I may be the spirit of disaster, but trust me, I can hold my epic powers of death and disintegration back long enough for me to take you home."

"Her hand looks silver under the moon. Weak, somehow. Like a single touch would make it fall apart like powder."

Dani "...no."

Dani "She's somewhere here, I know it! She fell from the sky and landed right about here!"

"If you keep this bullshit up, I'm just going to leave you here and let the wolves eat you."

"There are rabid werewolves running around, you know? Maybe even a vampire or two."

Dani "But she really is here! I saw it!"

"So, let me get this straight."

"You saw your mom flying in the sky with sparkly angel wings."

"And then a comet struck her in the head."

"And she came flippety-floppeting down through the air like Peter Pan sans fairy dust."

Dani "Yeah! That's right!"

"Really?"

Dani "No, well, my mom doesn't have angel wings or anything like that."

Dani "Uh, but, she's been a star for a while now after that thing happened, but it's kinda lonely with just me and dad, so I asked her to come back, and then she turned into a shooting star, and, well..."

Dani "This is where I saw her land."

"..."

"Kid... no, wait, what's your name?"

Dani "Dani."

"Dani, can I ask you a question?"

Dani "Sure!"

"Do you believe in Santa Claus?"

Dani "Huh? What's there to believe in?"

Dani "He drops by every Christmas and gets all the good children awesome presents. That's all, isn't it?"

"No, I mean... Santa is real, right?"

Dani "Of course he's real! Are you saying this backpack he got me is a fake or something?"

"..."

"Why do you think your mommmy's a star, Dani?"

Dani "Hmm? I'm not sure what-"

"I'm stupid, Dani. Explain it to me so I can understand."

Dani "Well..."

"Start from the very beginning."

Dani "Okay..."

Dani "So, uh, mom is a suuuper famous magician."

Dani "She flies all over the world to entertain people with her magic."

Dani "But then when she left for her last tour, the plane exploded!"

Dani "She's magic, after all!"

Dani "And since she was there already, well, she figured that she'd go visit the stars for a change."

Dani "So she turned herself into one of them and she's been up there ever since."

Dani "Well, until just now, at least."

"Heh."

"Did you just make that all up by yourself?"

"I at her."

Dani "My dad told me."

Dani "Though he's being silly and pretending that it was all a huge lie."

Dani "I'm not going to fall for a stupid prank like that. Hmph!"

"..."

"Your mom."

"Her stage name... Estrella. Isn't that right?"

Dani "Yup! How did you know?"

"I just read about her in the news a while ago."

"She was one of the passengers on that plane that exploded."

Dani "Oh, so you know all about it already."

"..."

"Dani."

"You do know that in that accident... there were no survivors, right?"

Dani "Hmm. Really?"

Dani "They must've missed my mom."

Dani "She's really good at vanishing acts, after all!"

"...I see."

Dani "So..."

Dani "Will you help me find her?"

Dani "She's got to be around here somewhere."

"She's gone all quiet. Weird."

"Dani."

Dani "Yeah yeah?"

"I'm the spirit of disaster."

Dani "Yeah, and?"

"That means I am omniscient when it comes to disasters, from the beginning of the universe to the very edges of the fabric of space and time."

Dani "Omni- omnishi-"

"It means I know everything."

"I know everything that happened to the plane that exploded with your mom on it."

Dani "Oh! So you saw her fly away into the sky too? My mom's super cool, isn't she?"

"Dani. Listen to me."

"I didn't see anybody fly into the sky."

"All I saw was the explosion..."

"The flaming debris..."

"And every single person in the plane screaming as they burned."

"Dani..."

"Your mommy's dead, Dani."

Dani "That's not a very funny joke."

"It's not a joke."

Dani "Well then it's a big, stinking lie!"

Dani "My mom said she'd come back!"

Dani "She always comes back!"

Dani "She brings me chocolate and cake and ice cream and all kinds of weird-"

"No, Dani, she's dead."

Dani "But-"

"She's dead."

Dani "No-"

"She's dead."

Dani "You're ly-"

"How many times do I have to tell you?"

"She's."

"Fucking."

"Dead."

Dani "..."

Dani "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

Dani "You just want to make me cry so you can at me, right?!"

Dani "Well, I'm not going to!"

Dani "I-I know a boy just like you in my class..."

Dani "One day I saw him take a baby caterpillar..."

Dani "He poked at it and poked at it and poked at it..."

Dani "And then he grabbed its head and tail..."

Dani "And then he slowly, gently ripped it apart until its insides fell out..."

Dani "Then he squished the two parts with his fingers while they were still wriggling for help..."

Dani "Well, I refuse to be your baby caterpillar!"

Dani "You should die! I hope you die! And... and...!"

Dani "I hope your mom and dad die too!"

"Did you forget?"

"I'm already dead."

"Everyone I care about is dead too."

"My mom, my dad, everybody."

"I killed them!"

Dani "You...! Murderer!"

"No no no, not a murderer..."

"Spirit of disaster, remember?"

"That story that I just told you about getting shot in the chest..."

"There's a hilarious little epilogue to it, you know?"

"The victim - me! - had a mother, who was back at her parents' place because {i}her{/i} mother was sick and depressed."

"After hearing that her dearly beloved daughter was in the hospital and might die at any second..."

"She got into her car and raced down the highway, crashing through all the speed limits like a lunatic..."

"And then..."

"Boom! Crash! Bazam!"

"Bye bye mommy, hello morgue-y."

"H-how can you talk about your own mom like that?!"

"Man, the funniest part is this. See, it wasn't long before {i}her{/i} mom heard about it."

"Two weeks later, right before I woke up, {i}she{/i} threw herself off the roof of her apartment."

"They buried her next to my mother."

"The earth on her grave was still fresh."

"Bam bam bam!"

"My girlfriend!"

"My mother!"

"My grandmama!"

"Three women in a single blow."

"Damn, I'm like, the most efficient spirit of motherfucking disaster ever."

Dani "Why... are you smiling?"

Dani "You're weird! I don't understand you at all!"

"You're the one who's weird."

"Tell me, Dani. What happens when people die?"

Dani "H-huh? Why..."

"Just tell me already."

Dani "W-well... you go to live in the sky. I think."

"That's really weird."

"Why would I be sad that the people I love are living happily together in the sky?"

Dani "B-because you can't see them anymore?"

"I can see them any time I want."

"All I need to do... is die."

m "But but but! What about all your other friends who are alive?!"

"That's what a spirit of disaster is for, isn't it?"

"I just need to kill off everybody so we can all live happily in the sky!"

Dani "That... that doesn't make any sense!"

"Why?"

Dani "B-because... uh, erm, because..."

"Because people don't really go to the sky."

Dani "But... but..."

Dani "Where do dead people go then?"

"Nowhere."

Dani "Huh? I don't-"

"You're dead, after all. You can't go anywhere."

Dani "B-but your spirit?"

"No such fucking thing."

Dani "I, I, I don't-"

"Your body rots and becomes maggot bait. That's all that happens."

Dani "I'm not talking about my body! What about me?"

"I jab a finger at my head."

Dani "The 'me' inside here!"

"...nothing."

Dani "What?"

"You become nothing."

"You just kinda... stop."

Dani "Then... my mom... she..."

"She's not coming home, Dani."

"You can look in the sky all you want. She's not going to be there either."

"This isn't a fairy tale, after all."

"Magic and spirits and creepy fat old stalkers don't exist."

"Well, except for that last one, but they sure as hell don't go riding through the sky on a sleigh pulled by prancing reindeer."

"I stare up at the sky."

"Mom..."

"Didn't you say you would definitely come back?"

[CHOOSE ONE OF THE ABOVE OPTIONS]