You stand before the wrought iron gates, the entrance to your new school. You were admitted to a highly selective art program for your paintings.
[[Enter]]
[[Turn back]]You push your way past the gate and start down a tree-lined path. The greyish birch trees, all twisted and ugly and near-bare, reflect in the campus pond like a foggy mirror. Autumn is really setting in.
You eventually reach a crossroads. You are looking for the [[admin building]]. Which way do you go?
[[Go straight, toward the quad]]
[[Go left, toward the dormitories]]
[[Go right, toward the athletics complex]]Eh, now that you’re really thinking about it, school is overrated. You turn around and [[walk off]].You walk onto the quad, a large stretch of green at the center of campus. You spot a group of students. Most of them are wearing designer clothes, their posh blazers and overcoats kicking up in the early autumn breeze. You glance down at your secondhand outfit and feel self-conscious.
You could ask for directions, but you don’t want them to clown on your frumpy clothes. What should you do?
[[Ask directions]]
[[Who needs 'em?]]It seems unlikely that the admin building is near the dormitories, but it doesn’t hurt to check. You head that way.
On your way to the dormitories, you spot a girl painting a mural on the mosaic wall outside. She seems hard at work.
[[Talk to her]]
[[Turn around and leave]]It’s possible the admin building is near the athletics complex. After all, schools tend to prioritize athletics in their budgets year after year.
You continue to wander until you eventually run into the [[disc golf]] team. They block your path. They look like they mean business.
[[I want to join!]]
[[I don't want any trouble.]]
[[Greetings, frolf team. Where is the admin building?]]You wander into the street to leave campus when the wind suddenly picks up. Just then, you hear a horrible, metallic clanging sound, as if something is being ripped from the earth. You look around. The traffic sign at the end of the road has gone rouge, and it’s headed straight for your head!
[[Duck]]
[[Run!]]You are to meet an administrator in the admin building to get your schedule for the day.As you approach the group of students, they disperse, but one of them lingers behind. She is wearing a pleated skirt, loafers, and an expensive-looking cardigan. She waves at you, smiling, a cigarette between the fingers of a limp hand. Okay, you think. This is off to a good start.
“You look lost,” she says when you approach her. “Everything okay? I’m Jane, by the way.”
[[I'm Shannon]]Asking for directions is a sign of weakness. Better to figure this one out on your own.
Okay. There are three buildings adjacent to the quad. Which one should you enter?
[[Big spooky building with a clock tower]]
[[Building with an art gallery sign in front of it]]
[[Building with vines growing up the side of it]]You duck, and the traffic sign misses you by a fraction of an inch. It hurtles into a nearby parking lot and impales a parked car. Glass shatters all over the pavement. You take a deep breath and stand up. After this near-death experience, you decide that the universe is telling you that your education is actually very valuable. You elect to [[Enter]] the gate. You run as fast as you can! Unfortunately, your choice of pathing is a little off, and you’re running in the exact same direction as the road sign, except it has a much higher velocity than you do. Damn it! You knew you shouldn’t have slept through all those track meets in high school. THWACK! The traffic sign clocks you in the head. You fall forward, and the last sound you hear is your skull cracking against the pavement before the world [[fades into darkness]].Uh oh! You died. Want to start from the [[Beginning]]?"Hi, Shannon. Good to meet you."
[[Do you know where the admin building is?]]
[[Just tell me how to get the admin building, woman!]]“Of course, but first … do you smoke?”
“Cigarettes?”
“No…”
“Oh. Uh…”
You smoked weed a couple times in high school, but you wouldn’t consider yourself an avid smoker. You have no idea what the appropriate response to this question is. It feels like both answers are half-truths. Oh god why are you sweating???
[[No]]
[[Sure?]]Jane admires your spunky personality. "I love a girl who knows what she wants. I'll take you to the admin building."
You thank Jane, and the two of you walk through the quad. The admin building was, predictably, right at the center of campus. You feel a little silly asking directions, but you feel like you've already made a [[friend.]]She shrugs. “Alright. Suit yourself.” She walks away. You continue in the direction you assume the admin building could be.
[[Onward!]]“Alright, bet. Let’s get out of here. School is wack anyway.”
You follow Jane to an overlook at the edge of campus and smoke with her for the rest of the day. [[You never make it to class.]]You venture forward, into what //looks// like an admin building. You are looking for the main office. There are two unmarked doors in the corridor. Which will you choose?
[[Door 1]]
[[Door 2]]Uh oh! You were too busy getting stoned to find your first class. Want to start from the [[Beginning]]?You open the first door, only to find that it is a janitorial closet. You turn around to leave when the door closes on you, locking from the outside. You pound on the door for a few minutes to no avail. There is no one else in the building.
You realize that the storage closet is actually quite spacious. Want to explore further?
[[Sure, why not?]]
[[No way]]Could it be? The administration room? At last! You pick up your campus map and your class schedule. Hope is restored in the world (and in your GPA.) Congratulations. Want to start from the [[Beginning]]?You investigate the storage closet further. It seems to go on forever, and you can't see anything. You can't even feel the walls. It's like an unending void...
You fall into the Dark World. [[You miss your first day of classes.]]Stubbornly, you sit on the floor and stay put. You eventually starve to death. [[You do not make it to class.]]Aw, man! You died. Want to start from the [[Beginning]]?You accidentally got DeltaRune'd. Want to start from the [[Beginning]]?It’s like golf but with frisbees. In fact, at this school, they call it //frolf//. You inquire within regarding joining the disc golf team. They question your athletic ability, and you explain that you used to run track in high school. They are impressed with your background, and explain that practice is 8 hours a day, every day, until you graduate. This completely interferes with your class schedule, so you [[never make it to class.]]The frolf team throws up their hands and backs off. You make an educated guess that the admin building is not with the athletics department. You turn back. [[Enter]]“Nobody calls it frolf, pansy.”
Sorry, I guess I got that one wrong.
The frolf team beats you to a pulp. You spend the day in the infirmary, missing your first class. You lose. Want to start from the [[Beginning]]?
Damn it! You got too wrapped up with your professional disc golfing career to go to your class! Want to start from the [[Beginning]]?"Well, here it is," Jane says. The two of you are standing on the steps outside of the admin building. "Hey, there's a comedy club right ouside campus. You should meet me there tonight. Maybe around 8?" She hands you a small slip of paper. "Call me if you get lost."
Jane walks off, and you enter the admin building. You have [[made it to class.]]Congratulations! You made it to your first class. Want to start from the [[Beginning]]?You enter the building with the art gallery sign in front of it. It is, unsurprisingly, an art gallery. There is a photography exhibit featuring photographs of the inside of refrigerators in dramatic lighting. Maybe one day your paintings will be exhibited here, if you ever make it to class.
Where to next?
[[Building with vines growing up the side of it]]
[[Big spooky building with a clock tower]] You would think this big spooky building with a clock tower would be the admin building. And you would be correct.
Good work, detective.
You've made it to class.This building is pretty cool. There are vines growing up the side of it. Seems pretty admin. Except it's //not//! It's the Department of Arts and Sciences.
Where to next?
[[Building with an art gallery sign in front of it]]
[[Big spooky building with a clock tower]] You decide to approach the girl.
[[What are you working on?]]
[[Is the admin building anywhere around here?]]
[[Come here often?]]You go back to the crossroads: [[Enter]]"Oh, hi. I haven't seen you around before. Uh, I'm just getting a jump start on my thesis project."
[[That's great and all, but can you tell me how to get to the admin building?]]
[[Need any help?]]She laughs. "Uh, no. These are the dormitories. The admin building is back the way you came."
[[Oh, okay.]]The girl glares at you, clearly unimpressed.
"Get out of here, perv. I'm busy."
[[You leave]]Go back to the crossroads:
[[Enter]]Go back to the crossroads:
[[Enter]] The girl gives you a look you're unsure how to read. "Sure thing," she says. "It's that-a-way. You're on the right track. Just go up this hill and enter the smallest building. You'll find it."
You smile, confident that this new information will take you far. [[Thank you!]]Her eyes light up. "Sure! Thanks for asking. I'm Claire. Um, can you go to the art department and get me some more of this adhesive? I'm running low, but it's a bit difficutl for me to get around at the moment."
[[On second thought, I have to go to the admin building]]
[[Sure, Claire. I'll help you out. I'm Shannon, it's nice to meet you.]]You trek onward, shoulders back, chin up. Up the hill, smallest building. You [[step inside]]......and it's the boy's locker room.
And it's packed with sweaty jock bros.
Oh, man. This is so gross. How could that girl trick you like this? She must be a Scorpio.
You run out of the locker room and hurry off campus. You do not make it to class. You decide school is [[not for you.]]Those sweaty jocks freaked you out so bad that you couldn't bring yourself to go to class. That sucks! Want to start from the [[Beginning]]?You walk away, leaving Claire and her mosaics behind. You head back to the crossroads: [[Enter]].You agreed to help Claire. Unfortunately, you don't know where the arts department is, either. You don't even know where the admin building is, and that's where the campus maps are! Now you really are doomed. You wander around aimlessly. Not only do you never get to the art department, you also do not make it to class. Want to start from the [[Beginning]]?
↶↷You stand before the wrought iron gates, the entrance to your new school. You were admitted to a highly selective art program for your paintings.
Enter
Turn back