Here’s the latest play report from the Sat. Morning Cartoons Monsterhearts 2 game.
Originally shared by Yoshi Creelman
Mercy Falls High [MH2] – Session 2
Characters
Serina – Vampire played by me.
Margo – Werewolf Kevin Lovecraft
Jonah – Queen Phillip Wessels
Lillith – Fae Fraser Simons
Everyone else (MC) – Jason Cordova
Scenes
The after school bell rings, we see an aerial shot as all students are filing out into parking lot. Streams of students lining up for lines of buses, and lines of cars. Dolly in and see Jonah directing his crew to look for Austin. Everyone asking other students, we see Margot in the background overhearing the questions. She comes drifting up to Jonah. “I hear you’re looking for our little buddy Austin, I can smell the Axe, I know he’s around here somewhere. What are you trying to score?”
Jonah gazes into the abyss, and discovers, Austin, trying to make himself not found. The Vice Principal is calling people in, “Do you know anything about Kyle Norwood?”. Austin is afraid he’d get implicated.
Cut back to Jonah replying to Margot, “Weed, do you have any extra, I can pay you, well I can’t pay you, but Tony can pay you. I just need some to make a blunt.” Margot takes out her stash and hands it over so he can take some, “You don’t mind if we take it all, do you?” A slight hesitation, then she just nods.
Short scene with Allen trying to get Serina to go get high with Margot and Austin. Seems like it could be fun, so she agrees. Allen goes off to find and talk to Margot.
Seeing Allen walk away, Lilith takes the opportunity to create an intimate moment and lead Serina away. They walk to the Double Q dinner.
Allen follows Margot. He tries to be slick and unnoticed… but is just super creepy. Every time Margot turns and looks Allen is still the same far off distance away trying to “look casual”. Margot can just smell him, eventually get’s fed up, “Hey creeper come here.”
Allen walks over and tries a super awkward hand slap/fist bump/high five failure, “Serina and I heard you had some stuff… got any to share?”
“Sorry, no, passed my last baggie to Jonah. Austin would be your guy, but he’s hiding from the Vice principal, but I should be getting some stuff later, meet up at the flower gardens in the woods at 7:30?”
“Perfect” again super awkward hand slap.
Cut to Jonah, two story house, but rundown, Jonah walks in, the handle is a little jiggly, he opens the door. His are parents watching TV in living room. His father, Bob, is on disability. His mother, Mary, sells NuLife (Avon). They’re both into religion. Jonah tries to be quite, but door squeaks, “Oh hey honey, how was school?”
“It was fine”
“Why don’t you come in here and tell us about it?”
“I got to go.”
“You’re going to be here tonight, for the NuLife party, right?”
Jonah pauses looks her in the eyes and turns away, “Yeah, I’ll be here.”,
“Jonah, I wasn’t born yesterday, I didn’t just fall off the turnip truck, I was super embarrassed last time when you didn’t show up. After I bought you that suit and everything.”
“I have some studying with Tony, I’m just worried I’d be late.” Keep your cool roll (total success). Jonah wants to know what can he do to get Mary to obsess over something other than Jonah. Ben is the thing. “I was talking to Ben, he was saying he wanted to hang out and help out.”
“He’s a nice boy, he certainly doesn’t have as many tattoos as you.”
Cut to the Double Q dinner, it’s like stepping into the past. Formica floors, turquoise booths, chrome jukebox. A Woman, Norma, owns and runs the joint. She was really popular in high school, now pushing 40, is a little faded, now she’s working at the local dinner. All the older guys still come in and have their high school drama with Norma. It keeps them coming in.
Lilith and Serina come in and order a chocolate milkshake to split, they go sit in the back booth. They talk how it was nice when Kyle worked here and you could just smile and get a free milkshake.
Since they are the only two in the Dinner Norma comes over and chats a bit. She mentions Ben, Serina looks at Norma, “Ben isn’t the guy you would have gone out with in High school.”
The bell over the door rings, Norma leaves the two to go greet the new customer. A tall, wide, older, man in a soft yellow suit, bolo tie, cowboy hat, and boots strides in. He’s got an imposing demeanor, he and Norma chit chat softly. We can hear Norma speak up a little bit, “I don’t know about that, but can I get you a cup of coffee or a piece of pie.”
Lilith, “I think that’s her type, not Ben.”
In a voice, higher than you would expect for someone with such a large frame, “What’s up with you ladies?”
Serina, sensing an opportunity, stands up and sashays over, hand grazing his back with her hand stands on the opposite side of him, right next to the Pie display. Letting her hand drift from his shoulder to right in front of a piece of pie. “Sometimes what you want is right in front of you.”
Cut to Chad outside his white Camaro, with some of his jock guys, he sees Margot approaching. “What the fuck, you not done messing up my life?”
“You said you were going to get the $120, we got a couple hours.”
“It’s in my room”, looks to his car, we see Margot nod, and walk to the passenger side.
Cut to them in the car on the road. Chad puts his hand on Margot’s leg, she stiffens up, we can almost see the wheels turning in her eyes, as she just lets the hand rest there. “You’d be real pretty if you didn’t dress like a dike.”
“Nice talk, straight to a girls heart.” Margot takes his hand off her leg, puts it on the gear shift. “Let’s go.”
Chad’s house is beautiful, large picturesque. “Well, this is my house. Not something you’re accustomed to, cause you live in a trailer right.”
“Fuck you very much Chadwick, let’s get my money.”
“Alriiiiiiiight”, he says exasperatedly.
The Hispanic housekeeper, Maria, opens the door. Chad looking to Margot, “You hungry? Want something to eat?”
“What, like the cucumber sandwiches in the TV shows?”
“Yeah… Maria, make us some sandwiches we’ll be in my room.” As they walk up, “They’re actually pretty good, crusts cut off, cut diagonally”
Open on Chad’s room we see an acoustic guitar which has never seen any play just hanging on display. An ego wall full of trophies and the rest of the wall space is covered in posters of women in bathing suits posing sexually. On the trophy wall, we see a single picture of Chad and his little sister together. They both look genuinely happy and sweet.
Cut to Jonah popping collar, tucking jeans into his boots, doing push ups, and then walking to Ben’s front door. He knocks and leans on the post on the front porch. We can hear the Ukelele. Jonah looks into the window, sees him plucking and watching instructional videos. Jonah rings door bell and waves through the window.
“Hey, Jonah, what’s up?”
“I just wanted to know if you come over and help out. My mom has this NuLife thing and well I thought you could help.”
“I’ve got this science exam, I should be studying for.”
Jonah looks up gaze at him, turn on, Ben slips and stumbles out of the door, into Jonah’s arm, lingers a little a bit, Jonah straightens him up, “Who cares about science anymore, Science isn’t important in this country anymore.”
“Oh well, my mom needs people to help, be friendly faces, but um… do you think you could change into something a little more… preppy… just go get changed, and meet me at my place.”
Jonah walks back home, just next door, “Ben will be over in a moment”, We follow Jonah as he goes to his weird pantry room converted into a bedroom. It has a cot, tile floor, an old tv and an old Nintendo NES. On the floor, there is dirty laundry, a pizza box, and a black duffle. Jonah walks over the duffle, unzips and pulls out a stag skull mask, checks it over and places it back in the duffle.
Chad strolls around taking off his shirt. Margot looks appreciatingly, “Damn son, that’s a pretty nice body you got there.”
“It’s my gift, I can get you to switch teams.”
“I don’t’ know, you got my 120?”
“God your busting my balls lets just relax, Maria’s going to bring some cucumber sandwiches.”
“You weren’t kidding. Oh god, you are really messed up.”
Chad goes puts hotel do not disturb sign on the outside of the door. Margot jumps him as he turns around and throws him to the bed. Margot’s sex move, biological imperative. Chad is now her property, Jessica Jones Luke cage bed scene, hard on the bed.
Cut to see Jonah’s front door as we hear him call to his Mom, “I got to check in with Tony, I’ll be right back.” We see him exit as the door closes we cut to Jonah and crew at the pond.
Tony is reluctant, trying to step back, “I’ve got to go, I got a doctor’s apt. I can’t stay today, I can’t do this today.”
Jonah knows he’s lying. Jonah starts undressing him, “You know it doesn’t work if we don’t all do it, we all have to plant the soil.”
“Alright, look, can I just go make a phone call real quick.”
Smile at him, “Sure.”
“Just to tell the doctor”
Don comes up, “Dude, Tony has been acting real strange.”
“I think he’s been distracted lately.”
“By what?”
“Girls I think.”
Cut to Lillith and Serina in the booth. Lillith extracting a promise from Serina to not lead her on. Serina looks down to her phone and sees she missed a call from Tony, who she was planning on meeting at the Dinner. She listens to the message and turns to Lillith, “my thing got canceled… want to get out of here?”. Lillith nods takes her by the and-and leads her out of the Dinner.
Pan to Rody rolling up joints. They all are using mud to make swirls on each other. Using the mud to highlight muscles. Jonah takes the mask out of the bag and puts it on.
Weird distorted cuts and visual artifacts as we see Jonah fucking Tony. Sharp cut and we get a perspective shot of 4 trees with 4 young men hanging upside down, each by their own peg hammered into the tree. Each has a look of terror on his face.
First one is Tony, flailing around and freaking out. A pair of small girl hands, with a ruby ring (Serina’s ring) reaching into frame trying to calm him down.
Second is Rody, alive but looking pale.
The third is Don.
The fourth person is dead, it’s Kyle Norwood. A desiccated corpse with his skin all vacuum sealed over his bones.
Snap back, Jonah has wrestled Tony to ground, staring at Tony through the stag mask, with his hand on Tony’s throat.
Cut to the townhouse, Lillith’s home. It has 5 floors but each floor is very small. The bedrooms are at the top, her mom is big exec in the city. Now that her parents are divorced she now lives in the city. Her dad is a deadbeat, Rod, like Chad, reliving glory days. He stays at home and listens to vinyl records “Summer of ’69”. Gloss eyed and missing things constantly mumbling how old days were great, never actually acts on things to make things better. Lillith and Serina rush by and run upstairs door closes, from downs stairs we hear, confused sorrowful cry, “Honey?”
Cut to Chad smoking a cig by the open window, “Your money’s on the nightstand.”
Margot putting on her clothes, grabs the money, “What, no tip big boy?”
“That was a kinda wild ride, not really what I was expecting.”
“I’m just glad you aren’t going to be a clingy little bitch.”
Chad blows smoke out the window and takes a deep breath, “You’re kinda in with Austin, right?”
“Well, I was short of cash, he fronted me. I’m just trying to get some goods.”
“I just thought you knew people”
“I know people… what are you asking?”
“I got this guy… I owe him some money, he’s a much bigger problem than I was for Austin. This guy, he’s from the city, all big business, not some high school kid.”
“What’s his name?”
“I only know him by his internet name, ShadowMaster55”
“What’s the deal, is he your alternate supplier?”
“I’m in deep, you might not want to hear about this.” She just nods for him to continue. “Last summer my parents cut me off, I was looking for some extra cash, I live in this big place, but I can’t send sell my parents rep at the mall. I told him I would sell for him, but I couldn’t manage the product, to the tune of 10,000. I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I’m afraid. I think I’m done for.”
“If I’m going to do this for you, I’m going to need some tokens.”
“Like what, sex again?”
“No, got any of the product left? I got to hook some others up, give me some stuff and we’ll see what can happen.”
Cut to Jonah cleaning up in the Pond. Washing Tony, intimate and sexy turn on Tony.
“You know Serina, right?”
“Yeah.”
“I had this vision, I’m worried. I don’t’ trust her, I think she’s going to come for us.”
Jonah puts the mask in the bag, looks up to Tony, “The forest showed us hanging from trees and scared, and Serina was there, and we were scared of her. She wasn’t untying us, I mean I didn’t see her do anything. Don’t trust her.”
Tony nods as they finish packing up.
Cut to Lilith’s bathroom, Lilith get’s Serina to help teach her out to apply makeup. Serina makes Lilith choose which color lipstick. She chooses the bright blue. Serina takes the deep red, extreme close up of Serina’s lips as she applies the lipstick, then leans in and kisses the mirror. Lillith steps back leans against the light switch and the lights go out (though we can still make out their bodies and features… this is TV after all). Lilith reaches forward and rests her hands on Serina’s chest. Serina gently grabs her hands and places them back on the counter.
“What’s wrong with me?”
“It’s not you, it’s me.” an awkward pause, “Hold still” Serina caresses Lillith’s face and brushes her hair off her neck and leans in, but as her lips approach Lillith’s neck we see her fangs come out as she bites Lillith.
Margot at home in the kitchen making dinner. Her mom. Evon works two part-time jobs and isn’t present. Her dad, Ken, is a drunk is in the living room. Margot is essentially alone.
“Hey little girl, what’s going on?”
“I can see you did a lot today?”
“I don’t’ have to justify myself to my daughter”
“Fine what ver, how do you want eggs?”
“Scrambled but you overcooked them last time.” He then continues to bark instructions on cooking eggs, “I wonder when you are going to listen to all this wonderful advice I’m giving you. I know you go out there, into the forest, what you got a boy? a girl?”
“I just don’t want to be here.”
“We’re just not good enough for ya? Your mom works two jobs, I’m holding this place down.”
“Oh, how’s that couch going, getting really out of hand there.”
“Just make my fucking eggs.” Pause. “Look some guy, some big guy, wearing a cowboy hat, came around looking for you. Old guy, fucking huge.”
“What?”
“He said, ‘is your daughter Margot’ I asked him who’s asking. He gave me a big schpeal on questions and who gets to ask and who gets to answer. What’s the deal?”
“Nothing I don’t know him at all.”
“Oh, he just knew your fist name, and your address, it definitely seems like you don’t know each other.”
“Fine, whatever!” Margot slams the pan down, “Your eggs are fucking done.” and storms off.
Cut to Jonah sneaking back into his house, trying to be quiet. At the entrance, his mom notices, “Jonah, decide to grace us with our presence, Ben was really helpful, he’s a really nice boy, you should hang out with him more, I think it would be good for you.”
“Yeah, we hang out a lot at school.”
“Do you? He brought his ukelele over, I made a lot more sales because of it.”
Ben is glowing, really enjoying the attention he’s getting. “We had a really good time, Jonah, I wish you could have been here.” Jonah stomps over to Ben and pulls him by arm towards the door.
“I’ll be seeing you tomorrow” and pushes him out the door, and shuts it as Ben is still talking.
Jonah walks back in scans over the food. Ignores the vegetables.
To his mom, “I’m glad Ben was helpful for you.”
“He’s a really lovely boy, did you know he’s going to be an environmental scientist, it’s really lovely, we need more of that in this country.”
“Yeah, whatever”
“I just feel if we had given you more direction, guidance, things might have worked out differently for you. Why can’t you be more like Ben.”
“I don’t know mom, Maybe I could be more like Ben if I didn’t live in a shithole if the door knob wasn’t broken, I didn’t sleep on a cot in a pantry!” Mary gets ‘enraged’, goes off the handle, throws a wooden spoon in the sink, and other nonbreakable stuff. “Just wait until your father gets home, just wait until he gets home.” and storms off.
Jonah is not going to wait for his father to come home to take a belt to him. He sneaks out the front door and goes off to Mr. Thompson’s house, teared up a little, trying to be stoic, but we can see the glisten in his eyes.
Lillith pushes Serina off, but Serina pushes her back to the wall and doesn’t stop until Lillith can’t stand on her own and slumps to the floor. Serina brakes her promise of not going too far and gets condition “drunk on you”, Lights come back on and flicker.
Margot talking with Allen, “You still want to do this tonight?” Allen, a little nervous, cause he never got a hold of Serina, “Yeah.”
Jonah at the door, it opens with Mr. Thompson gazing expediently.
Cut Serra the straight A student activist captain of the debate team also happens to work at the Double Q at night. She drives up the dinner, goes to doors, but they’re locked, sign has been turned to closed, Camera swoops at empty dinner, jukebox is playing Patsy Cline, “I Fall to Pieces”
Smash cut to Norma’s face with two massive hands with yellow sleeves choking her to death, we can still hear Patsy Cline in the background, then the jukebox switches to Radio Head’s “Creep”, cut to black.
Thoughts
There were a couple of problems with moves, where they felt a little different, different than what we were expecting from MH1. Specifically “Keep your cool”, did not quite what felt right in the moment, especially given the available options. The options didn’t really fit in with a general “Act under pressure”. “Gaze into Abyss” is now about naming something you are trying to find rather than asking a question.
The lack of highlighting definitely affects the meta information for how you direct and encourage the game. Right now we have a character group where only one character has a positive Dark score. In MH1, you could just highlight Dark no matter what and watch each other flail at gazing into the abyss. Now, without highlighting, we’ve lost the lever to mechanically reinforce, “Just go be dark, introspective, and monstrous, screw the consequences.” Oh you can still do it, and it would probably work out very similarly… there just feels like some weight missing when someone isn’t straight up telling you, “I want to see you be dark this session”.
I’m bad at continuity, in session 1 I couldn’t be seen in a mirror… now in session 2, I have a whole scene about putting makeup on in a bathroom with a mirror.
We’ve had a lot of good slow build for drama so far… I just some more pay off. It seems like we have separate storylines going… and I want more people at more people’s throats (whether it’s kissing, strangling, or biting). I want the PCs to have more interaction with each other. Lillith and Serina are together, which is great, now we just need to get Margot and Jonah to join.
For the next session, I want to follow up on the guide move from Lillith. I want to be in the forest (with it actively trying to kill me). Since I have the can’t enter a home move… I sort of want to be stuck out in the forest trying to get into a “home”. All of these can be related together.
I want to see the forest and/or The Big Man strike hard, and the repercussions. I want someone to go darkest self. I want Lillith to get more promises. I want Margot to do some violence. I want Jonah to ensnare new members. I want I want I want…